Ryan Schreiber reports:
After holing up over the fall and winter in a Nashville recording studio, Yo La Tengo have finally completed work on their eleventh full-length album, the long-awaited "official" follow-up to 2000's And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out, and their first LP since last year's moody instrumental The Sounds of the Sounds of Science, a collection of film music to accompany the works of sealife documentarist Jean Painleve.

The album, appropriately titled Summer Sun, "finds [the band] exploring the sunny landscapes of summer, in every imaginable mode of music," according to the Matador website. "From the gorgeous 'Little Eyes' to the ten-minute jam 'Let's Be Still', this may be Yo La Tengo's most ambitious album to date." In a post to the official Matador message board yesterday, label Co-President Gerard Cosloy described the record as "a bit all over the musical map. It won't sound entirely out of place alongside And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out... a subtle stylistic shift, I'd say. Swinging stuff." Implications that he concluded by stroking his goatee, stuttering "da-da-daddio," and returning to the comforts of a fresh-lit jazz cigarette are as yet unconfirmed.

There's no mention on the website as to whether long-time YLT producer Roger Moutenot was on board for the sessions, or whether the band produced the record themselves. However, the first single, "Don't Have to Be So Sad", which is available for download at Matador's website, features a very similar ambiance to the band's last Matador release. What I'm saying is, it's anyone's guess. But! If Moutenot did get the ax, it will be the band's first release without his assistance since their 1992 release, May I Sing with Me. Summer Sun is scheduled for release on double-vinyl and compact disc April 8th. Tracklist:

01 Beach Party Tonight [3:06]
02 Little Eyes [4:18]
03 Nothing But You and Me [5:13]
04 Season of the Shark [4:27]
05 Today Is the Day [5:33]
06 Tiny Birds [5:07]
07 How to Make a Baby Elephant Float [3:29]
08 Georgia vs Yo La Tengo [3:56]
09 Don't Have to Be So Sad [5:53]
10 Winter A-Go-Go [3:21]
11 Moonrock Mambo [4:49]
12 Let's Be Still [10:22]
13 Take Care [2:32]

Yo La Tengo have already announced a few springtime tour dates at which they'll be playing songs from and otherwise supporting Summer Sun. Things kick off with a quick swing through the South in mid-March on their way to a performance at Austin, TX's annual music conference, South by Southwest. Then comes the full-fledged North American tour, which is scheduled to begin two days after the album's release at The Music Factory in Columbus, OH. More dates are still expected to be announced (at least we expect more dates-- so far, this is the scrawniest tour agenda since... uh, Cat Power's?) The band is also on board for the Matt Groening-curated edition of All Tomorrow's Parties, to take place on June 21st in Los Angeles.

03-10 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
03-11 Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club
03-12 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
03-14 Austin, TX - Stubb's BBQ [SXSW Showcase]
04-10 Columbus, OH - Music Factory
04-11 Cincinnati, OH - Southgate House
04-12 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
04-14 Toronto, ON - The Phoenix
04-16 Boston, MA - The Roxy
04-18 Philadelphia, PA - Trocadero
04-19 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
04-20 Towson, MD - Recher Theater
04-24 Providence, RI - Lupo's
04-25 New York, NY - Beacon Theater
06-21 Los Angeles, CA - All Tomorrow's Parties

.: Pitchfork Review: Yo La Tengo: The Sounds of the Sounds of Science
.: Pitchfork Review: Yo La Tengo: And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out
.: Pitchfork News: Yo La Tengo joined by David Byrne at Maxwell's
.: Yo La Tengo: http://www.yolatengo.com
.: Matador Records: http://www.matadorrecords.com

Ryan Goldman reports:
The Tyranny of Distance was a terrific record, but 2001 was such a long time ago. No need to be sad, though, if you didn't pick up Ted's last album or if you missed him on tour with Pharmacists or with Sin Eaters before that or with Chisel even before that (don't even get me started on Citizens Arrest or Animal Crackers)-- as Pitchfork reported in December, Lookout! Records has scheduled the release of Tyranny's smartass baby brother, Hearts of Oak, for February 11th. And best of all, Ted's hitting the road for a massive tour that will bring his Crass/Curtis Mayfield/Billy Bragg hybrid to a town near you, including a stop at Emo's in Austin, TX for a Lookout! Showcase at the South by Southwest Music Festival this March. Be sure to keep an eye out for a star-studded pharmaceuticals staff that usually includes James Canty (The Make-Up, Nation of Ulysses), Dave Lerner (Native Nod, The Van Pelt), and Chris Wilson (Aspera, Sean Na Na). Tourdates:

02-07 Hamilton, NY - Donovan's Pub (w/Bats and Mice)
02-14 New York, NY - Village Underground (w/The Holy Childhood, Eamonn Vitt)
02-15 Clinton, NY - Hamilton College (w/Dismemberment Plan, Mooney Suzuki)
02-19 Pittsburgh, PA - University of Pittsburgh *
02-20 Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop *
02-21 Hamtramck, MI - Small's *
02-22 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle *
02-23 Milwaukee, WI - The Globe *
02-24 Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry *
02-27 Seattle, WA - Graceland
02-28 Vancouver, BC - Pat's Pub
03-01 Victoria, BC - Thursday's Pub
03-02 Portland, OR - The Blackbird
03-05 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill
03-07 Berkley, CA - 924 Gilman St. (w/The Pattern)
03-10 San Diego, CA - Casbah (w/Simian)
03-11 Phoenix, AZ - Modified (w/John Vanderslice, Hella)
03-13 Austin, TX - Emo's (SXSW Showcase)
03-17 Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder +
03-18 Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds +
03-19 Orlando, FL - The Social +
03-20 Atlanta, GA - The Earl +
03-22 Carrboro, NC - Go Rehearsal Rm 4 +
03-23 Richmod, VA - 929 +
03-24 Washington, DC - Black Cat (w/Joan of Arc)
03-25 Baltimore, MD - Ottobar +
03-26 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church (w/Joan of Arc)
03-27 Providence, RI - Met Café =
03-28 Cambridge, MA - Middle East Restaurant =
03-29 Brooklyn, NY - Southpaw =
03-31 Buffalo, NY - Mohawk Place =
04-04 Montreal, QC - Case Del Popolo

* with openers Saturday Looks Good to Me
+ with openers The Oranges Band
= with openers 33 Slade

And now for something I've been meaning to write for a while:

Dear Kristin Sage,
Thanks for your letter suggesting I buy the last Ted Leo/Pharmacists album, The Tyranny of Distance, a couple years ago. Everyone in D.C. is better off for your recommendation. Where you been lately?

Sincerely,
A bosom friend

.: Pitchfork Review: Ted Leo/Pharmacists: The Tyranny of Distance
.: Pitchfork News: Ted Leo Finishes New Album, Tours U.S.
.: Lookout! Records: http://www.lookoutrecords.com

Eric Marth reports:
D.C.'s finest art-punk trio, Q and Not U, are embarking on a massive international tour with stops all across North America and Japan. The tour will be the group's second since splitting with bassist and founding member Matt "Two Belts" Borlik in late 2001. Borlik was the backbone of the group's live shows, holding the Q down with his nasty low end and infamous "girly stance." The band's first shows as a trio proved shaky, but they've since adjusted and seem to be performing better than ever, according to Pitchfork spies. The group will play with various artists during their nearly three-month trek, including fellow Dischord acts Black Eyes and El Guapo, as well as Engine Down and Denali. Tour dates:

02-07 Haverford, PA - Haverford College
02-08 Charlottesville, VA - University of Virginia Indie Music Fest
02-13 Baltimore, MD - The Talking Head
02-14 Annapolis, MD - Broadneck Community Center
02-15 Newark, DE - The Scrounge
02-16 Fredericksburg, VA - The Underground

03-01 Kyoto, Japan
03-02 Osaka, Japan - Fandango
03-04 Nagoya, Japan - Huck Finn
03-06 Sapporo, Japan - Counter Action
03-07 Yokohama, Japan - F.A.D.
03-08 Tokyo, Japan - Shelter
03-09 Tokyo, Japan - ERA

03-11 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
03-12 San Diego, CA - Che Café
03-13 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill
03-15 Portland, OR - Nocturnal
03-16 Seattle, WA - Graceland
03-17 Vancouver, BC - Mesa Luna
03-30 Baltimore, MD - Charm City Art Space
04-03 Washington, DC - Black Cat
04-06 Newport News, VA - TBA
04-07 Charlotte, NC
04-08 Wilmington, NC - TBA
04-09 Myrtle Beach, SC - Rhythm House
04-10 Atlanta, GA - TBA
04-11 Murfreesboro, TN - Red Rose Café
04-12 Louisville, KY - Aslans How Art Gallery
04-13 Indianapolis, IN - Solidarity Books
04-14 Champaign - Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center
04-15 St. Louis, MO - The Gargoyle
04-16 Lawrence, KS - Bottleneck
04-17 Omaha, NE - Sokol Underground
04-18 Sioux Falls, SD - TBA
04-19 Minneapolis, MN - TBA
04-20 Chicago, IL - Fireside Bowl
04-21 Milwaukee, WI - The Globe
04-22 Kalamazoo, MI - TBA
04-23 Columbus, OH - TBA
04-24 Pittsburgh, PA - TBA
04-26 Storrs, CT - U Conn. Hillel
04-27 Boston, MA - TBA
04-28 W. Long Branch, NJ - Monmouth College
04-29 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church

The band also plans to continue whoring themselves through the Summer and Fall of 2003 in the U.S., Canada, and Australia. Fans anticipate the group's tour diary to focus on the similarities of guitarist Chris Richards and crocodile hunter Steve Irwin's haircuts.

.: Pitchfork Review: Q and Not U: Different Damage
.: Q and Not U: http://www.qandnotu.org/
.: Dischord Records: http://www.dischord.com/