NEWS ARCHIVE
Hi.
Age makes the bad news better and the good news mellower.
3/28/07What does a man do with two weeks off? Fill it up with more shows. The Springsteen tribute at Carnegie Hall will be especially cool. Nice to be back in Inferno-land, ever so briefly...speaking of, just got the final mixes of the new Peter Lorre recordings. They sound good. The band will be in residence at Montclair State University in NJ in August, workshopping the road production, with premieres to follow in September.
Recent tour reading: Michel Houellebecq (everything I can get my hands on), a Dexys Midnight Runners bio, Graham Greene "Journey Without Maps", Herodotus "Histories", Woody Guthrie "Bound For Glory"
And! Whoever anonymously sent me Rob Sheffield's "Love Is A Mix Tape" last month, thank you. It is a beautiful book. Nice work, Rob.
1/5/07I've been a poor updater it seems. But it's been a crazy fall. The reception for "Boys and Girls In America" was really gratifying. World/Inferno's "Fiend in Wien: Peter Lorre's 20th Century" came off like a charm at the Spiegeltent, and we're working on developing it as a touring theatrical project. Just started recording the Lorre songs with the great Mr. Don Fury today and it sounds great. Way more stripped down and punk than Inferno has been.
What else...Hold Steady on David Letterman Thursday Jan. 11. Anti-Social Music at BAM Cafe. Guignol at Golden Fest. Lizzie Greene's "Mora XXIII" dance project. Playing accordion on the new Sharp Things record, and on Rima Fand's (of Luminescent Orchestrii) score to "Dreamland" a new musical set in Coney Island.
Some Hold Steady movie news! "Girls Like Status" will be on the soundtrack for the upcoming "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" soundtrack. We're doing a Dylan cover for the upcoming Todd Haynes biopic "I'm Not There", with a star-studded cast.
My favorite records of 2006, if you're interested (no particular order):
Psalters - Divine Liturgy of the Wretched Exiles...I am totally obsessed with this band.
Mastodon - Blood Mountain...What can you say? Mindblowing.
Destroyer - Destroyer's Rubies...This also features the best piano playing of the year on a rock record, by Ted Bois. (Honorable mention to Rick Steff of Lucero)
The Divine Comedy - Victory for the Comic Muse
Moneybrother - They're Building Walls Around Us....Technically a compilation, on Sabot Productions, but their first American release. Thanks Germans for showing me this in the first place.
Demander - The Unkindness of Ravens...A hardworking New York band finally making the record they should.
The God Damn Doo Wop Band - Broken Hearts
Corey Dargel - Less Famous Than You...Like smart, ironic lyrics and electronics? This was better than "Showtunes" or Gothic Archies.
HEY WAIT PS: I just found this. Top 15 Moustaches in Rock History?! I'm going to Disneyworld. For the record the chin patch has been gone for a while.
6/10/2006Well, the Hold Steady record is done. 15 tracks. Will they all make it? Will it come out 9/26? Will me and Tad kill each other first? Only the Shadow knows.
Played some accordion and Moog (!) on the new Demander record at Headgear last night; looks like it's getting the full Hess and ASM treatment as well. Nice.
I'll be guesting with Nanuchka on their debut CD release show 6/21 at Northsix, along with Kid Casanova, Jack T. Kloth acoustic, Emilyn Brodsky, the awesome Zydepunks from New Orleans, and DJ The Old Bailey. Be there.
And the big World/Inferno "Red-Eyed Soul" tour is finally coming together. See the Shows page. Record release 7/28 at Bowery Ballroom!
5/9/200617 basic tracks done for the new Hold Steady record. It sounds awesome.
Check out Hold Steady in "The Brooklynites" photo essay with Spike Lee, Jonathan Safran Foer, Paul Auster, and more...
4/20/2006It's official:
"The World/Inferno Friendship Society's Red-Eyed Soul"
The World/Inferno Friendship Society give you your damn soul back. Its been up all night, thinks everything is hysterical, and keeps humming tunes about Halloween and heroes, love lost and found, and the chivalry of crime. It sweats like whiskey and cries real red wine. Its chiding your friends for being so sad, mumbling, "You bouncers don't scare me one bit," and yelling "I joined a punk-rock band to break stuff, not to sit around lawyers offices!" at inappropriate moments. 15 new songs by NYCs original international Punk-Rock Orchestra of elegant and angry Gentlemen and Ladies produced by Hardcore legend Don Fury and released by New Jersey Pioneer Punk-Rock label Chunksaah! The piano croons, the guitars shout, the drummers threaten, saxophones rip you from where you are tied to the mast, the accordion just stole your wallet, the string section is whispering in your ear, "Dont be a jerk," and boys and girls are singing in harmony "Only anarchists are . . . pretty!" Life is a cabaret, the circus is leaving town, dont forget the struggle, dont forget the streets.
Jack Terricloth, BK, NY
"The World/Inferno Friendship Society's Red-Eyed Soul"
street date 7/11/06, good for the rest of your life
Pre-order begins 6/15/06 and ship 7/1/06.
Check out "Only Anarchists Are Pretty" on www.myspace.com/worldinferno.
Get your "Red-Eyed Soul" before the stores do! Big CD release show in NYC (details soon) followed by a FULL U.S. tour, * w/ Leftover Crack, Intro5pect, and Mischief Brew:
Fr. June 23 - NYC
Sa. June 24th Pittsburgh*
Su. June 25th Cleveland*
Mo. June 26th Detroit (No LOC)
Tu. June 27th Lexington, KY*
We. June 28th Chicago (No LOC)
Th. June 29th Chicago*
Fr. June 30th Madison*
Sa. July 1st Minneapolis*
Su. July 2nd Omaha*
Mo. July 3rd Kansas City*
Then WIFS to Denver and beyond! If you want to help us promote the show in your town, email inferno@worldinferno.com.
RED-EYED SOUL TRACKS:
1. Brother of the Mayor of Bridgewater*
2. Velocity of Love
3. Your Younger Man
4. Only Anarchists are Pretty
5. Lets Steal Everything
6. Annie the Imaginary Lawyer
7. Me v. Angry Mob
8. Hothouse Flowers
9. Paul Robeson*
10. Me and The Mad Monkettes
11. Please My Favorite Don't Be Sad
12. Fiend in Wien*
13. Jerusalem Boys
14. The Devils Ball
15. So Long to the Circus
(* from the now out-of-print "Speak of Brave Men")
Love,
YOUR Inferno.
P.S. Thanks to Rain and Brain for their hard work on the album art.
4/7/2006Look at me, on the internet. Here's what's up...
- Hold Steady signs to Vagrant Records! How about that roster eh? Recording in May with John Agnello (Sonic Youth, Mark Lanegan, Drive-By Truckers) for a September release.
- New World/Inferno is done and will be out on Chunksaah this summer, with a national tour to follow.
- Played some keys on the new Ratchets record.
- Have you seen the "Little Hoodrat Friend" video directed by Chris Thompson?