Optical Atlas

Today Orange Twin artist Madeline kicks off a tour which will guide her throughout the South and Southwest, in conjunction with the vinyl and digital release of the Madeline Tour EP, to be released by Orange Twin Records on March 4th. The EP, previously a tour-only release (as you probably figured out for yourself), features appearances by members of Architecture in Helsinki and Mt. Eerie. A sampling, as well as tour dates, follow:

Madeline – I Waited All Day

Madeline Tour Dates

2/26 – Gainesville, Fl. @ The Atlantic
2/27 – Tallahassee, Fl. @ Fresh Face Fest
3/4 – Athens, Ga. @ Little Kings
3/5 – Birmingham, Al. @ Spring Street Fire House (7 p.m. All ages)
3/7 – Pensacola, Fl. @ Sluggo’s
3/8 – Baton Rouge, La. @ All Ages outdoor Party
(email andytgibbs@gmail.com for more info)
3/9 – Denton, Texas @ Rubber Gloves
3/10 – Dallas, Texas @ The Amsterdam Bar w/ Little Birds
3/11 – Austin, Texas @ Momo’s w/ Geoff Reacher (All Ages)
3/12 – Lafayette, La. @ Artmosphere
3/13 – New Orleans, La. @ AllWays Lounge

The Elephant 6 Townhall has assembled an album of covers of E6 songs, from of Montreal through Major Organ and the Adding Machine, Elf Power, Neutral Milk Hotel, Olivia Tremor Control, and more.  You can download Elephant 6 Fanfare through this thread.  Thanks to lenn9o9n for assembling the project, and everyone who contributed.

Big Fresh’s stellar album B.F.F., which I excerpted in my podcast interview with John Ferguson, is gaining a worldwide re-release from Garden Gate Records this Tuesday.  The label, which is also releasing Thee American Revolution’s debut album this November, recently partnered with Red Eye Distribution; the result is that the album previously limited to 150 copies will now be available more widely in online dealers and select record stores.

You Ain’t No Picasso recently interviewed Madeline for their My First Time segment.  Check it out.

Orange Twin Records artist Madeline will be on the road from the Northeast to the Midwest and back down to the South, throughout July, to promote her gorgeous album White Flag. The Ginger Envelope is opening. Here are the dates:

07.02.09 Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
07.03.09 Asheville, NC @ Hookah Joe’s
07.04.09 Shepherdstown, WV @ camping party (4530 Shepherd Grade Road – FREE)
07.05.09 Baltimore, MD @ The Copy Cat
07.06.09 Arlington, VA @ IOTA
07.07.09 Brooklyn, NY @ Zebulon
07.08.09 Philadelphia, PA @ North Star Bar w/Folklore
07.09.09 Worcester, MA @ house show – TBA
07.10.09 Brooklyn, NY @ Cinders
07.11.09 New York, NY @ The Cake Shop
07.12.09 Pittsburgh, PA @ TBA
07.13.09 Covington, Kentucky @ Down Under Cafe
07.14.09 Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen
07.15.09 Bloomington, IN @ Uncle Fester’s
07.16.09 Lexington, KY @ Al’s Bar
07.17.09 Chattanooga, TN @ JJ’s Bohemia
07.18.09 Athens, GA @ Little Kings

Wow, I can’t believe we’re already to the next Flagpole Music Awards.  As with last year, voting will culminate in a live awards show, which will be held during AthFest, at the Morton Theatre on June 25.  Get your vote in by Friday, June 5th.  E6-related bands up this year include: Casper & the Cookies (Best Pop Band), Madeline (Best Solo Performer, Best Album), The Music Tapes (Best Live Band), of Montreal (Best Live Band), and Vic Chesnutt, Elf Power, & the Amorphous Strums (Best Album).  You can also write-in your favorites.  I’m also excited to see Venice is Sinking nominated in so many categories, as their new album Azar is one of my favorite albums of the year so far.  VOTE HERE.

Kevin Barnes and Bryan Poole of of Montreal recently stopped by WNYC’s Soundcheck for an interview and acoustic performance, and here’s the audio (you can watch some video from the appearance here):

Nina Barnes sells and distributes her art under the name Geminitactics, and now she is selling some Skeletal Lamping-themed prints at her Etsy store, with more to come.

In non-of Montreal news, Merge Records will continue celebrating its 20-year anniversary, not just through a massive subscription-series box set, but also through a 5-day music festival, “XX Merge”, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, July 22-26. No acts have been announced yet, but The Music Tapes might be a safe bet.

Oh, and I don’t think I ever mentioned that Orange Twin now has a digital store, where you can download albums by Vic Chesnutt & Elf Power, The Visitations, Nana Grizol, The Instruments, Ham1, Madeline, and Geoff Reacher. Very nice.

Lou2ser has kindly pointed out that Flagpole, the Athens weekly, has nominated numerous Elephant 6-related artists in their annual Athens Music Awards.  As the blurb on the voting page states, “The Flagpole Athens Music Awards Show kicks off AthFest, Athens’ annual music and arts festival, and will be held at the Morton Theatre on Thursday, June 19. You, the local music fan, will choose the local performers you wish to recognize by filling out this ballot.”  There are categories for each genre as well as Best Album (May ‘07 – April ‘08).  Among the bands nominated across the many categories are Andy from Denver, Casper & the Cookies, Circulatory System Phase 2, Dark Meat, Elf Power, Ham1, Japancakes, Madeline, of Montreal, and many others.  Vote here!

Elf Power, Folklore, and Dark Meat are among the initial acts announced for this year’s AthFest in Athens, Georgia (June 18-22, held all over town). Dark Meat is one of the three headliners, the others being Modern Skirts and Dubconscious. Expect more acts to be announced shortly, eventually adding up to more than 100; I know, for example, that Casper & the Cookies will also be playing the festival. For tickets, venue, and hotel info, check out the AthFest website.

The 20th annual AthFest CD compilation will be released on May 6th, and on May 2nd a CD release party will be held at Athens’ Tasty World with Titans of Filth, The Packway Handle Band, and Timber. Admission is free. The CD features Ham1, Madeline, Titans of Filth, Hope for Agoldensummer, Dubconscious, Russian Spy Camera, and many more. You can preorder it here.