Music News & Notes

Magik Markers Make the Magic Happen in May

Magik Markers are looking to May 5th to release their new album, Balf Quarry. It will be released on Drag City Records. The album was named after an old stone pit just outside of Hartford, Connecticut, It will be released on both CD and vinyl.

The Magik Markers formed in Hartford, CT, in 2001, featuring guitarist/vocalist Elisa Ambrogio, drummer Pete Nolan, and bassist Leah Quimby. Inspired by no-wave and hardcore, the trio developed a free-rocking sound that made the most of their stream-of-consciousness approach.

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Doves New Album

Doves will release their fourth album, Kingdom of Rust, on April 7th on Astralwerks. To get the party started right, they've offered a song available for free, titled Jetstream. This will be the first official full length album since 2005's Some Cities.

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Placebo announce self-released sixth album

Not content to let new bands hog the eyeliner, Placebo have announced the release of their sixth album, Battle for the Sun. The "optimistic" and "positive" LP will be released on 8 June.

"We've made a record about choosing life, and choosing to live, about stepping out of the darkness and into the light," frontman Brian Molko told NME.

To capture all this cheeriness, the band travelled to beautiful, sunny, er, Toronto, recording with Dave Bottrill, producer of Tool's Lateralus. The album was mixed by Alan Moulder, who has worked with My Bloody Valentine, Nine Inch Nails and Smashing Pumpkins.

Battle for the Sun is Placebo's first album since parting ways with Steve Hewitt, their drummer of 11 years. They now have a 22-year-old Californian named Steve Forrest in charge of hitting things.

The band have also left their long-time label, Virgin Records, self-funding the album and releasing it in an independent deal with Pias. "I'm very optimistic about the future," Molko said. "I'm in a positive frame of mind and a good headspace."

Indeed, instead of sulking in his bedroom, Molko and his bandmates are busily autographing box sets. Deluxe £70 editions of Battle for the Sun are now available for pre-order, with the first 500 buyers receiving signed copies. The set also includes a live CD, a DVD of last year's performance at Angkor Wat, a making-of DVD, vinyl LP, and two books.

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New Vinyl Releases

Black Joe Lewis: Tell 'Em What Your Name Is! (vinyl)
Black Sabbath: Heaven & Hell (remastered vinyl)
Black Sabbath: Heaven & Hell (remastered vinyl)
Black Sabbath: Live Evil (remastered vinyl)
Black Sabbath: Mob Rules (remastered vinyl)
Bonnie Prince Billy: Beware (vinyl
Decemberists: Hazards of Love (vinyl)
Eleni Mandell: Artificial Fire (vinyl)
Joy Division: Leigh Rock Festival 1979 (import vinyl)
The Loved Ones: Distractions EP (vinyl)
Principles of Geometry: Interstate Highway System (vinyl)
Say Hi: Oohs & Aahs (vinyl)
Various Artists Watchmen (soundtrack) (vinyl)
Violens: V EP
Wavves: Wavvves (vinyl)
White Lies: How to Lose My Life (vinyl)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Zero (single)

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Bloc Party To Release New Remix Album
Featuring Armand Van Helden re-working...

Bloc Party are to release a remixed edition of their latest album 'Intimacy' on May 11th.

The album includes remixes from the likes of Villains, Filthy Dukes and Mogwai.

An Armand Van Helden re-working of 'Signs', which also features on the album, will be released as a single on April 27th.

The album will be available on both CD and triple vinyl.

The tracklisting for 'Intimacy Remixed' is:

'Ares' (Villains remix)
'Mercury' (Hervé Is In Disarray remix)
'Halo' (We Have Band Dub)
'Biko' (Mogwai remix)
'Trojan Horse' (John B remix)
'Signs' (Armand Van Helden remix)
'One Month Off' (Filthy Dukes remix)
'Zephyrus' (Phase One remix)
'Talons' (Phones RIP remix)
'Better Than Heaven' (No Age remix)
'Ion Square' (Banjo or Freakout remix)
'Your Visits are Getting Shorter' (Double D Remix)

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Madonna to Record New Songs for Greatest Hits Collection

Madonna’s 25-year tenure with Warner Music will come to an end with a new greatest hits compilation due out in September, the Material Girl’s management told People.

“Madonna does have plans to go into the studio to record a few new songs for this album,” says Madonna’s publicist Liz Rosenberg. “We’re hoping to have a greatest hits package come out in September. We’re all very excited about it.”

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New Skynryd LP

Lynyrd Skynyrd has signed with Loud & Proud/Roadrunner Records and are planning to release a new album later this year. It will be their first album of new material since 2003's Vicious Cycle.

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Pete Seeger's 90th Birthday Celebration

Dave Matthews, Bruce Springsteen, Eddie Vedder, John Mellencamp and Emmylou Harris are among the dozens of musicians who will gather and celebrate American folk music legend Pete Seeger's 90th birthday with a gala concert at Madison Square Garden on May 3.

The event, dubbed "The Clearwater Concert: Creating the Next Generation of Environmental Leaders," will raise funds and awareness for Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, an environmental organization founded by Seeger to preserve and protect the Hudson River.

Other artists scheduled to appear include Steve Earle, Joan Baez, Juanes, Richie Havens, Kris Kirstofferson, Tom Morello, Billy Bragg, Michael Franti and Ben Harper.