Stream Previously Unreleased Track From the Late Great Arthur Russell, “Come to Life,” Recorded in the Late 70s, Which Is Quite Lovely [Gorilla vs. Bear]

Stream New Track From Chicago’s The Lawrence Arms, “Demons,” Which Is Teeming With Midwestern Values (Which Really Just Means It’s Emotive, Non-Blushing Pop Punk); Ask Yourself When The Hell Spin Started Releasing “Exclusive” Tracks From a Local Chicago Band [Spin]

Fantastically Indie-fied Charity Compilation Dark Was the Night, Which Was Released in February, Raised Over $650 Thousand For AIDS Awareness [Pitchfork]

Arcade Fire Working on New Album For 2010? TwentyFourBit Lays Out The Evidence, Forgetting the Fact That Win Butler Has Said Over and Over Again That They Are Currently Writing Material For New Album [TwentyFourBit]

Stream First Official Them Crooked Vultures Song (Dave Grohl, Josh Homme, and John Paul Jones (For The Youngins, That Dude Was In Zeppelin)) Track, “New Fang,” Which Has Guitar So Filthy I Need To Take a Shower; Them Crooked Vultures Released November 17 [Pitchfork]

The Always Innovative Sufjan Stevens To Release “Album” Next Year, Which Will Contain “Songs,” Instead of the High Conceptual Art Pieces Rooted in the Folklore of the 50 States That Have Become So Blasé; Elsewhere, All Albums Contain Fucking Songs, Sufjan [The Tripwire]

NME Quotes Jarvis Cocker: “Pulp Could Reunite for Glastonbury 2010;” Elsewhere, Jarvis Cocker Never Said This In the Referenced Interview; I Make Toast to Poor Music Journalism (And to the Hope That Pulp Actually Does Reunite, Cheers) [NME]

Stream Weez(y)er Collaboration, “Can’t Stop Partying” Off Weezer’s Upcoming LP Ratitude in Which You Can Literally Hear Lil Wayne Lighting a Joint, Which is Risky Considering The Man Is Going to Prison [Idolator]

compiled by Max Sebela

TOP DOG
David Byrne appeared at Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, May 3 to perform tracks from the charity compilation, Dark Was The Night, a CD and concert put together to benefit AIDS fundraising group Red Hot. Byrne writes in his journal about how impressed he was with the other Dark Was The Night artists, such as Dirty Projectors, (did anyone pay $100 to see them play with Bjork at Housing Works?), Dave Sitek (was he nice to Telepathe’s cat?), and Sharon Jones (still blacker than Amy Winehouse).

Byrne also mentions in his journal that pop music “might be going through one of its periodic peaks,” a statement justified even with Black Eyed Peas, Lady GaGa, and Beyoncé holding the top 3 spots of the 100 pop songs most listened to on iTunes. Byrne depends on pop music being good again - even if 13-year-old Ciara fans don’t find him the cool silver fox he is.

Anyone can see David Byrne for free at Prospect Park though, as part of the Celebrate Brooklyn series, on June 8th. Tell all the Ciara fans you know – maybe they’ll get a chance to catch up a little on thirty years of David Byrne pop menagerie.

by Thomas Wilk