File: May 2008
Nacht Nacht — Who’s There
Shoot, we’ve already got a Dimmu Borgir feature in this issue, might as well keep the black metal ball rolling with some Nachtmystium news. Actually, the Chicagoans don’t want to be coined “black metal” anymore, but we’re doing it anyway, otherwise it screws up the whole intro.
Exactly a year ago, Nachtmystium had the honor of being the first black metal group (band of black metal origin?) we know of to score a feature in IE. Problem is Mike Meyer interviewed frontman Blake Judd about a split with Leviathan that never came out. Judd finally abandoned the plan earlier this year and, never one to mince words, blamed (via Myspace) the failed collaboration on “a certain label not involved with Nachtmystium fucking everything up for all parties with their corporate label bullshit behavior.” That label, Moribund, politely but testily told IE they had nothing to say about the situation.
Don’t go burning a church, though (Judd will hate that joke), the material (two new songs, one old song reworked, and two covers) intended for the Leviathan split were released last month as the Worldfall EP, which will serve as an appetizer until the band’s full-length Century Media debut, Assassins: Black Meddle Part 1, is released June 10th. The CD-release show is May 30th at Reggie’s. Leviathan also moved on, releasing Massive Conspiracy Against All Life in March.
Keep Up With Pumpa-kin
Add Virgin Records, Pepsi, and Amazon.com to the list of things that make Billy Corgan so dang angsty. The Bald One and Smashing Pumpkins filed lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Virgin, who released most of the Pumpkins’ pre-Zeitgeist material, for breach of contract. The suit, according to the Associated Press, says Virgin overstepped their bounds when they used the Pumpkins in a “Pepsi Stuff” promotion. “At face value, it’s not a huge deal. But in terms of precedent, it is, because there will be much more of this coming,” Corgan told Billboard.com.
In less-boring Smashing Pumpkins news, hometown fans might actually get to see the group perform live in late summer/early fall. Since Corgan “reunited” the Pumpkins in 2006, it seems they’ve played everywhere in the United States except Chicago, but in the Billboard interview, Corgan said after a summer break the band will return to the road for shows in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
What Will $200 Get Me?
Last month the folks at Lollapalooza (delivered by AT&T!) released the full roster of bands slated for Grant Park August 1st-3rd. The biggest names include Radiohead, Rage Against The Machine, Nine Inch Nails, Kanye West, Wilco, The Raconteurs, Love And Rockets, Gnarls Barkley, Bloc Party, and The Black Keys. Other notables include Explosions In The Sky, Flogging Molly, Cat Power, Broken Social Scene, and Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks.
Chicagoans other than West and Wilco invited are Lupe Fiasco, Kid Sister, Office, The Cool Kids, and DJ Bald Eagle. Advance three-day tickets will set you back $190, but when those are gone, prices go up to $205. And if you want to go to the concert without actually having to feel like you’re at a concert, why not go the private-cabana route? For upwards of $1,500 per person you can have personal servers, wine and specialty drinks, an all-day “light-fare” buffet, umbrellas, and air conditioning.
The Pitchfork Music Festival (July 18th-20th) also threw some more names out there. Besides acts like Public Enemy, Animal Collective, Dizzee Rascal, and Boris already announced, Pitchfork added Mission Of Burma (performing Vs. in its entirety), Jarvis Cocker, Dinosaur Jr., and Ghostface with Raekwon. Three days in Union Park are considerably lighter on the wallet, with passes going for $65. Plus, every single band on the bill is great. How do we know? Pitchfork told us.
— Trevor Fisher
