Zola Jesus is touring America in 2012 in support of their critically acclaimed album, Conatus, which is out on Sacred Bones now. Tour Dates after the jump.

ZOLA JESUS TOUR DATES
Feb 01 Phoenix, AZ – The Crescent
Feb 03 Austin, TX – Parish
Feb 04 New Orleans, LA – One Eyed Jacks
Feb 06 Tampa, FL – Crowbar
Feb 08 Orlando, FL – The Social
Feb 09 Miami, FL – Bardot
Feb 10 Tallahassee, FL – Club Downunder
Feb 11 Birmingham, AL – Bottletree
Feb 16 Washington DC – U Street Music Hall
Feb 17 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
Feb 18 New York, NY – Webster Hall
Feb 20 Columbus, OH – Skully’s  CAC  Cincinnati, Ohio
Feb 21 Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
Feb 22 Grinnell, IA – Herrick Chapelat Grinnell College
Feb 23 St. Louis, MO – Luminary Arts
Feb 24 Lawrence, KS – Granada
Feb 25 Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge
Feb 27 Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge
Mar 01 San Francisco, CA – Great American
Mar 02 Los Angeles, CA – Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
Mar 03 San Diego, CA – Casbah

Here’s the Breeders’ Kelley Deal covering the Black Swans song “Slide on Down” from the album Change. On accordion is Christie Hunt and Paige Bellar of the Dayton band “Jasper the Colossal” is on electric.

You can catch Kelley Deal’s newish band R. Ring Friday at Skully’s, part of the Ohio Film + Music Festival.

Comedian Andy Milonakis and recent Soulja boy Signee MTV Riff Raff were in Columbus Tuesday. Danielle Kline took photos.
Read my review in The Other Paper.
After the jump more photos and a video Andy Milonakis performing a new song.

Click here to view the embedded video.

MP3: Street Clothes

Los Angeles’ Fool’s Gold recently released Leave No Trace, the follow-up to their 2009 self-titled debut album. Their lineup (which still includes Columbus ex-pat and multi-instrumentalist Brad Caulkins) and sound have changed a bit since the first album and previous tours, and the new album reveals a band that is focused on what it wants to be.

Leave No Trace features 10 new songs that delve into a wide range of styles and textures. While their collection of international influences are still easy to hear, the new material also touches on 1980s British pop (the opening of the title track is a near dead-ringer for a Smiths song) and dance music. Another stylistic shift is that lead singer Luke Top sings in English for the majority of the album, as opposed to the debut album that was sung in Hebrew. The result of these changes is that the songs have a more grounded, personal sound, which also plays out in Top’s lyrics. Songs like “The Dive” and “Narrow Sun” mix Top’s yearning spirit with catchy hooks, while the synth-laden “Street Clothes” seeks to inspire while evolving into a dirty jam led by Caulkins’ saxophone. The now five-man outfit has created a batch of songs here that convey passionate personal emotions while remaining primarily joyous and buoyant, led by Top’s soaring vocals.

Fool’s Gold is currently on the road in support of Leave No Trace, and the tour includes a stop Monday night at Skullys. Opening are locals Maza Blaska and You’re So Bossy. Admission is $10 at the door.

Video for “Wild Window” after the jump.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Nick Tolford & Co, Envelope & Detox, Freaky Franz & Cornelius Jackson, DJ Johnny Cashola, DJ True Skills are performing at Skully’s Tonight for Daymon Day Eve.  
The 5 dollar cover raises money for parade costs.
I wrote a story about the Daymon Day weekend in the Other Paper.
I didn’t get to use quotes from everyone I talked to..

So after the jump, Mike O of Nick Tolford & Co, Johnny Cashola, Envelope and Freaky Franz all speak on their experiences with Daymon Dodson, and the Daymon Day Parade.

Mike O’shaughnessy of Nick Tolford & Co and El Jesus de Magico

I met Daymon… wow, maybe in like 2000 or 2001 down at hip-hop night at Bernie’s. I don’t think there was one certain point where I ‘met’ him, it was sort of like we were just both around at the same time. All the rocker kids went to Bernie’s for hip hop night because the music was always good, it was always fun, and always packed. I think, for the same reasons, Daymon came out to pretty much every el Jesus / CDR associated show.

I learned from Daymon that it’s easier to bring a community together than you might think. Daymon brought crowds of people together that you might not expect; people gravitated toward him. He’s the reason we could do a show like Greenhouse Effect, Cheater Slicks, and el Jesus de Magico and have it packed with all the hip hop kids, all the old rockers, and all the young trouble makers. If you think about it, it’s a weird bill – you’d never think noisy ass rock bands would be able to hold the attention of backpackers that are into clean beats – but if Daymon was standing there watching Tom Shannon shred the room with feedback, he was always surrounded by as many dudes in baggy jeans as dudes in tight jeans. This is also why it made so much sense to have him as ‘The Jesus’ in the Last Supper photo re-creation we did for el Jesus. We were just as honored to have him in the center as he was to be there, I think. And we weren’t ripping on religion, he knew that, because we’d had so many conversations about mystical bullshit that he knew it was beyond some sort of lame attempt to downplay the importance of the image. He was the center of so many normally disparate music scenes that he essentially ended up merging just by existing. I mean, it’s not like he had some master plan to get everybody together. He was just as into going to a rock show as he was clowning on the mic next to Prizm djing at some house party, and he would clue you in on what to do the next night, or what show was going to be good, cos he had better taste than anybody handing out handbills. The thing was, he was this real nice, god-fearing dude hanging around all these criminals and druggies and miscreants, and he never pushed his politics on anyone – it’s like, just by him wearing a shirt that said “Token” summed it up perfectly.

The first Daymon Day parade was pretty emotional, really. I mean, we were out on tour (el Jesus) when BJ called to tell us he’d died. I think we were driving in California drinking champagne and listening to “St. Elmo’s Fire” by Brian Eno. Every time I hear that song it takes me right back. Everyone just went silent. I felt a million miles away from Columbus. I was almost like, alright, turn the van around, let’s go be with our friends. We can’t miss the funeral. But, shit, Daymon would have wanted us to spread that good Columbus word the best we could. I was glad to be with Tony, Jon, Sarah, and Dave, who were all just as close with Daymon as I was.
So, seeing the turnout for the first parade was great. It was my first chance to really be with everyone and remember Daymon together. I had to put sunglasses on when we started marching because I got a little misty. I had the shivers, the hairs standing on the back of my neck listening to everyone chanting. All these Betty and Bobby Buckeyes dropping their beanbags and running up and asking what the deal was, I couldn’t even talk to them. My hope is that they start scheduling games around the Daymon Day parade. It’ll just keep getting bigger, next thing you know OSU will want their band to march with us. Think we could teach them “Bitch, You Don’t Know Shit”?

I think the parade is going strong mainly because of Tony(Envelope), honestly. Dude got all the permits and the cops wrangled up – we both know he has a special relationship with Columbus’ Finest – and he’s a tireless promoter when he’s hyped about something. Now, I don’t think it’d fall by the wayside if Tony didn’t organize it, don’t get me wrong. It’s like, Daymon was a catalyst, he gave us all a reason to get off our asses when he was around. Now that he’s not, we’d be knuckleheads to just stand around and talk a bunch of shit when we should be doing something fun and creative and constructive and bringing everybody together. You know, there’s gonna be a point where I’m too feeble minded to remember anybody’s name, and young kids aren’t gonna come visit me in my rocking chair asking for stories about how cool So What was back in the day. I hope at that point Daymon Day is still going, Tony Envelope pushing Detox down High Street in a wheelchair with turntables on it and a huge crowd of the next-next generation chanting ‘Ra-cst Jo-oe’ behind them in green Chucks.

Envelope rapper/ Co-organizer of the Daymon Day Parade

1.How did you meet Daymon?

I met Daymon in the late 90s through the Bernies/Thieves World/Columbus Hip Hop Expo circuit.

2.What Daymon, Przm, and Camu teach you?

They all taught me different things, but the one thing they all taught me was the need to be original.

3.What are some memories you have from the parade?

looking around and seeing everyone smiling.

4.Why do you think the parade is so strong after 6 years?

It has meaning.

sorry man, i kinda struggled with the questions today. i think i could of wrote a book on the subject. but i decided to make my answers as simple as possible.

1.How did you meet Daymon?

 I met Damon at a party at camp David he took a liking to me and my friend Lil Eric cause 1.) we were the two youngest people there chillen and 2.) we knew everyone and was always busy causing trouble there.

2.How did he affect your life?

He always was in a good mood and as a younger kid being around him the positivity he let off was contagious. Although a lot of time it was sarcasm and joking about people.

3.What are some memories/feelings you have from the parade?

The first year I went I think someone had like an almost life sized cut out of him and that shit was tight.

4.Why do you think after six years the parade is going strong?

I think Damon is a hard person to forget for many reasons and people aren’t ready to let go of him and hopefully it stays like that. If there is a way to come back for it every year or I can give a hand to keep it going I’ll bend over backwards for it. I mean shit he gave me the crown as the prince of this city

MP3: Icebird (RJD2 & Aaron Livingston) “Going and Going and Going” (RJD2 RMX)
MP3: Icebird (RJD2 & Aaron Livingston) “Going and Going and Going” (Illvibe RMX)

Two Weeks ago ICEBIRD (RJD2 and Aaron Livingston) leaked their first single,“Going and Going. And Going,” off their upcoming album the Abandon Lullaby which drops October 11th. Now Icebird is back with two official remixes. One by the Columbus ex-pat, and one by Sonny James of the Ill Vibe Collective.

“I always liked how 12 inch releases back in the ’90s had multiple remixes of the same song,” RJ speaking on the reasoning behind the remixes. “Fans could choose and debate, argue the different versions and which they liked more.”

RJ’s remix is reminiscent of his sophmore album Since We Last Spoke.

And the Ill Vibe remix is dubbed out. “The Illvibe remix does a great job to really re-envision the track in a dub style,” RJ remarks about the later mix, “When that beat drops, it was the last thing I expected, but it’s a great groove; the Hammond organ – it really makes sense with original.”

Icebird will be playing at Skully’s in Columbus 10/08/11 as part of the Ohio Film and Music Festival.
Buy tickets here.

The Wet Darlings are doing things the right way – playing shows both in and out of town, generating press, recording new music, getting radio play on CD101 (are we still allowed to call it that?) – and generally just having a blast in the process. Tonight they’ll be releasing So Long, Lover, a 6-song EP recorded at Earthwork Recording Studio (Newark, OH).

Things start going down around 9pm at Skully’s with Ghost Shirt and Yellow Light Maybe rounding out the bill. Make Believe Monsters will be on hand to make custom Wet Darlings screen-printed t-shirts.

I’m not sure what you’re up to tonight, but if you like super totally bad ass live rock shows, then there’s no reason you shouldn’t be attending this show. I saw Priestess open for High on Fire last time they came through (which was the night I called 911 for the first time in my life because some chick fell through my glass coffee table and was bleeding from her back) and 2 things real quick-they slayed my brain and their albums don’t do their live show justice.

What I’m saying is if you like cool shit you should go to this show because Priestess will rock your socks off.

naam and LO-PAN open

8pm door, 9pm show
$12
All Ages

Metal Rob tells me to put all my money in Intronaut stock. “They have the potential to be the next Mastodon,” he says. I have little reason to doubt Metal Rob as he is all knowing. Intronaut’s third album, Valley of Smoke, was released this week and is full of proggy, post-metal with jazzy instrumental Sabbath-y breakdowns. The one thing that always kept me from digging this band as much as Metal Rob were the gutteral, barking vocals but they’ve remedied that on Valley of Smoke with, dare I say, melodic singing?

Intronaut opens for the legendary Helmet who released Seeing Eye Dog last month. While Page Hamilton is the only original member of the band that formed in the late ’80s, even the most current material retains the heavy, chunky signature Helmet sounds. Last time these guys headlined a Columbus show (at the Ravari Room), they melted faces. Expect the same on Friday night.

Doors are at 7, show starts around 8. In addition to the main attractions (Helmet, Intronaut), two local bands – Bastards and Absolute Magnitude – get things started at Skully’s. Tickets at the door are $18.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Odd Blood has received acclaim from multiple reviewers across the US and UK since February and supplied the demand of fans globally, including appearances at prominent festivals like Coachella, Splendour in the Grass, Reading and Latitude. Last month they also released new single “Madder Red,” which features yet another typically strange Yeasayer video. Check it out above.

Opening the show will be Georgian-based Washed Out (stage alias of Ernest Greene), whose chillwave sound has been gaining exposure over the last year. The Newport Music Hall will open its doors at 7pm.