Thanks to the good people at Merge Records, a few good quality Neutral Milk Hotel videos have surfaced from a 1998 concert at the Knitting Factory in NY. Originally two videos were posted (Two Headed Boy and April 8th); however, since then two more have been uploaded (Oh Comely and The Fool).

It seems that there must be footage of the whole concert so stay tuned in case more videos are posted in the future. For now, check out the four videos below for an intense and glorious stroll through memory lane by way of Jeff Mangum’s heralded creation Neutral Milk Hotel. And if you aren’t a Mangum/NMH fan, at least check out a few seconds towards the middle of “Oh Comely” to see the magnificent singing saw (one of the most unique instruments out there) in action.

Modest Mouse—The Moon and Antarctica
Epic, 2000

Despite the overwhelming success of 2004’s Good News for People Who Love Bad News, The Moon and Antarctica still seems to inspire the most resounding acclaim from longtime Modest Mouse fans. It highlighted a point in Modest Mouse’s storied career where, even though radio still wasn’t really playing them, they were becoming impossible to ignore. Their enormous fan base was built almost solely from extensive touring, and when a band plays together that much for that long, the music can reach insane highs. Moon proved two things about Modest Mouse to the world: 1) They weren’t going to be fading away any time soon, and 2) They were capable of much more than ripping off Black Francis. Those things were important to establish, but the record is actually much more than a stone of proof—though thematically similar to MM’s other albums, Moon has the ability to work on many levels. There’s a sort of code of ethics to its moral ambiguity, a kind of spirituality to its atheism. It’s a very human record that deals with human afflictions, while not failing to comment on how silly many of these afflictions are and how badly they cause some people to screw up. “3rd Planet” and “Dark Center of the Universe” have both become anthems on this topic in their own right, boasting melodic yet dreary guitar lines that tend to inspire ornery grins—the stuff from which rock and roll is brewed. Amazingly, Modest Mouse never lose themselves in this process of reinvention, a sure-footed attitude that no doubt helped to poise them for the great takeover. (Note: Though this album was reissued in 2004 with a new mix and new artwork, all the info in this review is based on the original 2000 release.)

My Morning Jacket—Z
ATO/RCA, 2005

Like Summerteeth did for Wilco in 1999, 2005’s Z changed how the world listened to My Morning Jacket. It showed the band taking their alt-country upbringings, slingshotting them as far off into the mountains as they would go, and replacing them with a more psychedelic-pop-oriented approach. Jim James’ songwriting may have taken a more upbeat turn on this record in favor of commercial appeal, but he sounds more driven than he ever has before or since. Plus, the songs on Z are still as emotionally immediate as his earlier gospel-inspired work; and on top of that, it’s easy as hell to rock out to them. “Anytime” sounds like a radio hit in all the best possible ways—the verse feels like a chorus, the chorus feels like a verse, and the bridge feels like Jerry Lee Lewis somehow avoided self-sabotaging his career back in the 50’s. “Off the Record” is probably what Sticky Fingers would have sounded like with some more reggae thrown in, with an extended end-solo a la “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking?” that feels more tip-of-the-hat than uninspired rip-off. James’ ability to humbly wear his influences on his sleeve while still creating unique rock music is one of the many things that make MMJ so much fun. (Note: This was the RGH selection for Best Album of 2005.)

Portastatic—Be Still Please
Merge, 2006

Superchunk may be the banner under which Mac McCaughan achieved his status as indie cult auteur, but Be Still Please (the 2006 offering from Portastatic, McCaughan’s solo project) is one of the finest records he has made—bold proof that he not only deserves more credit as a songwriter, but is in fact one of the indie generation’s greatest. As an album, it is a departure from everything McCaughan has done in any of his projects, boasting Dylan-esque arrangements and loads of unorthodox instrumentation like clarinet, oboe and bassoon. Given this fact, as well as the ultra-personal nature of the songs, one could wonder why McCaughan didn’t choose to release the album simply under his own name. It probably has something to do with the fact that—despite the overall melancholy tone of Be Still Please—he is still too rock and roll to pull that move. He could easily become the old guy who is still making music because a handful of people like him enough to buy his records, and to make it easier for them, he records and performs Michael McDonald style. But, as proven by the track “You Blanks”, he is anything but that guy: “All my songs used to end the same way/Everything’s gonna be okay/You fuckers made that impossible to say!” Whomever those “blanks” are, the tone is not an accommodating one, and it’s clear from this album’s beautiful beginnings to its whispery end that McCaughan is doing this for himself.

Remember this post saying that Spoon’s new album, Transference, would be released January 26th? Well, according to their official site, that date has been changed. Fortunately, it’s been moved forward a week, to January 19th! This is possibly the best news I’ve heard today.

Merge Records is reissuing, yet again, the classic 90’s Neutral Milk Hotel album In The Aeroplane Over The Sea as well as their previous album On Avery Island on 180 gram vinyl, each LP will come with a download code so you can put them on the mp3 player of your choice even though they’re probably already there. To celebrate the reissue Merge has also dug up some old video of a show that group did in 1998 at New York’s The Knitting Factory. I must say that I have never tried to search out live videos of Neutral Milk Hotel before but watching Jeff Mangum perform there two tracks all I can say is that guy is intense and fearless.

“Two Headed Boy”

“April 8th”

If you’ve been waiting around for months to finally see that great local band that you’ve heard so much about, now’s your chance.

Troika serves as Durham’s own music festival with performances in venues all around Bull City throughout three nights. Some local event sponsors include Merge Records, Duke student-run radio station WXDU and the Durham Performing Arts Center.

This event is affordable (and college-student friendly) with a full-festival pass priced at $20 or $8 for a night. However, if you’re feeling super thrifty, there is at least one free show each night (one Thursday, two Friday and four Saturday).

Rock, Paper, Scissors, a new addition to this year’s festival, features live music, and art from local craftsmen and band merchandise for sale on Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. Check out the vendor list.[map]

There’s no lack of quality in talent whatsoever, so I’ll take the lazy, yet thorough way out and post the entire schedule:

Thursday, Nov. 7

Festival Kickoff at Durham Central Park (free) [map]

• 7 p.m. The Beast

• 7:45  Megafaun

Backstage at the DPAC [map]

• 8:30 p.m.  Ghost Cats
• 9:15 p.m. Humble Tripe
• 10 p.m. The Future Kings of Nowhere
• 11 p.m. Bowerbirds

The Pinhook [map]

• 9 p.m. The Desmonds
• 9:45 p.m. House of Fools
• 10:30 p.m. Aminal
• 11:15 p.m. Max Indian

Duke Coffeehouse [map]

• 9:15 p.m. Molly Bancroft
• 10 p.m. The ExMonkeys
• 10: 45 p.m. EAR PWR
• 11: 45 p.m. Future Islands

Broad Street Cafe [map]

• 9:30 p.m. Regina Hexaphone
• 10:15 p.m. Pink Flag
• 11 p.m. The Dry Heathens
• 11:45 p.m. The Moaners

Friday Nov. 8

West End Wine Bar (free) [map]

• 7:30 p.m. Tea and Tempests
• 7:45 p.m. Liza Kate
• 8:30 p.m. Birds and Arrows

Marvell Event Center [map]

• 8:15 p.m. Ryan Gustafson
• 9 p.m. Wembley
• 9:45 p.m The Proclivities
• 10:30 p.m. Embarrassing Fruits

Trotter Building [map]

• 9 p.m. The Huguenots
• 9:45 p.m. Brett Harris
• 10: 30 p.m. Hammer No More the Fingers
• 11:30 p.m. Gentleman Jesse & His Men
• 12:30 a.m. Dex Romweber Duo

Duke Coffeehouse

• 9:30 p.m. The Ringing Cedars
• 10: 15 p.m. The Pneurotics
• 11 p.m. I Was Totally Destroying It
• midnight Birds of Avalon

Broad Street Cafe

• 9:45 p.m. Jews and Catholics
• 10:30 p.m. Whatever Brains
• 11:15 p.m. Dirty Little Heaters
• 12:15 a.m. Pipe

Bull McCabe’s (free)

• 11:30 p.m. All Your Science
• 12:15 a.m. Beloved Binge

Saturday, Nov. 9

Rock, Paper, Scissors at Trotter Building (free)

• 12:30 p.m. Three Days in Vegas
• 1:30 p.m. Tin Star
• 2:30 p.m. Mount Moriah

West End Wine Bar (free)

• 7 p.m. Sequoya
• 7:45 p.m. Jasme Kelly
• 8:30 p.m. The Tender Fruit

Marvell Even Center

• 8:15 p.m. Sea Cow
• 9 p.m. Bright Young Things
• 9:45 p.m. Lud
• 10:30 p.m. Luego

The Pinhook

• 9:30 p.m. Veronique Diabolique
• 10:15 p.m. Citified
• 11 p.m. Gray Young

Duke Coffeehouse

• 8:45 p.m. D-Town Brass
• 9:30 Veelee
• 10:15 Schooner
• 11:15 Lonnie Walker

Trotter Building

• 9 p.m. The Bronzed Chorus
• 9:45 Maple Stave
• 10:30 The Travesties
• 11:30 Red Collar

Broad Street Cafe

• 9:30 p.m. Dynamite Brothers
• 10:15 Rat Jackson
• 11 The Loners
• midnight The Love Language

Bull McCabe’s (free)

• 11:30 p.m. Butterflies
• 12:15 a.m. Pistil

Check out a map of all the venues (courtesy Troika’s Web site).

If you can’t make it to Durham, head over to the Indy and download some free tracks from festival performers. (If you love free stuff check out Free-cession in the Triangle for all kinds of free activities!)

Can’t get enough Troika here? Follow the festival’s Bullbot and check out his blog.

A recent announcement by Spoon made my week pretty awesome: Transference, the follow-up to 2007’s Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, will be released January 26th via Merge Records. Head after the jump to see the track listing.

Over at You Ain’t No Picasso, they have a great collection of Spoon covers. Check it out!

Track Listing:
01 Before Destruction
02 Is Love Forever?
03 The Mystery Zone
04 Who Makes Your Money
05 Written in Reverse
06 I Saw the Light
07 Trouble Comes Running
08 Goodnight Laura
09 Out Go the Lights
10 Got Nuffin
11 Nobody Gets Me But You

Merge Records announced just moments ago that they are planning the release of the 7th studio album by Spoon. The title will be Transference and will be released on January 26th in North America and January 25th in Europe via Anti-. You can peruse the tracklist below but you’ll notice that we’ve already heard “Got Nuffin’” from their EP by the same name which was release earlier this year. Let’s see if Spoon can work the same magic early next year.

01 Before Destruction
02 Is Love Forever?
03 The Mystery Zone
04 Who Makes Your Money
05 Written in Reverse
06 I Saw the Light
07 Trouble Comes Running
08 Goodnight Laura
09 Out Go the Lights
10 Got Nuffin
11 Nobody Gets Me But You

The boys have been playing some of these tracks live over the last year or so. Check ‘em out below.

“Is Love Forever?” Live in Austin 07/09/09

“Who Makes Your Money” Live at MFNW 2008

“Written In Reverse” Live at Pitchfork Music Festival 2008

“I Saw The Light” Live at MFNW 2008

If you were introduced to Lou Barlow as I was in the early ’90s, there were two threads that were always connected to him: the raw, emotional lyrics that marked much of his work with Sebadoh, The Folk Implosion and his own solo material (released under his name or as Sentridoh), and his acrimonious split from Dinosaur Jr. (a subject he has addressed in songs like “The Freed Pig” on Sebadoh III).

Though softened a bit, the former is still with Barlow and can be heard most clearly on his latest solo effort Goodnight Unknown (out now on Merge). The latter thread has been snapped completely with the reunion of the original Dinosaur Jr. lineup, a reconciliation that has spawned some fiery live performances and two stunning new albums, including the most recently released Farm (found on Jagjaguwar).

Lou Barlow took time out of his busy schedule playing in both the headlining and opening acts of the current Dinosaur Jr. to look at some videos for The Voice of Energy.

Promotional video for the Dinosaur Jr. song “Over It” (found on their latest album Farm)

Who came up with idea for this video?

Mark Locke, an English video director. He did amazing work for the Jeffrey Lewis song, “Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror”.

Is this tapping into a bit of your youth as a BMX rider or a skateboarder?

Not for me…for J maybe, though I only saw him carrying his board back in the day. I tried jumping off a ramp with a bike once when I was 12 and flew over the handlebars. My parents were risk-averse. So am I. That was the first time I had ridden a bike in years. It was a blast.

Almost all the reviews that I have read of the two albums you’ve recorded since reuniting talk about how you are one of the few bands that are making albums as good as the work you did in the past. Is it gratifying to hear those sort of comments?

Of course. We haven’t changed the formula at all. Murph and I have an idiosyncratic way of playing together. I’m not sure how it happens. It’s ingrained.

Did you have any idea that this would turn into a full-time gig for you again?

I didn’t think it wouldn’t last. Making new records was a surprise. I’ve been taking it one tour at a tiime. I don’t feel particularly secure in the band, but I don’t feel insecure either. I’m cautiously optimistic, which is how I try to take everything these days.

Does it feel good to have all the past anguish gone and to be playing music with J and Murph again?

I love the music, playing it live, especially. We are the same people essentially so I don’t know if the anguish is gone. It’s muted. The music is the focus whereas we may have been overly self-conscious as kids.

How does it compare with the first time around?

It’s 100 times better. Nothing is cooler than a bunch of 20-year-olds making new music, but this isn’t bad either.

Elliott Smith interview Lou Barlow (shot for HBO Reverb)

Do you remember filming this video with Elliott?

Yeah. A salon in NYC. I wish I would’ve shut up more. He was much funnier than me when given the time and space to speak. We had toured together once at that point and were friends. This reminds me of how well we got along.

You wrote a very emotional tribute to Elliott on your website. Is it still hard to know that he’s gone?

Elliott wasn’t long for this world. It was clear to me after he moved to L.A. (a year or so after this) that he was on a self-destructive path. I was recovering from my own troubles at that point (note the wagging jaw), so I didn’t spend much time with him. I guess I prepared myself for losing him before he was lost.

A video combining footage of someone dancing in a parking garage to Sebadoh’s “License To Confuse” with footage from a film.

This is perhaps one of the strangest fan videos I’ve seen for a band. Had you seen this before?

Yeah, but not with the airplane toilet scenes. I like the quote in the video description: “Who says you can’t dance to Sebadoh?” I can’t imagine this is that strange, but…cool. I like this one too:

How do you feel about people using venues like YouTube to pay tribute to bands/songs that they like in ways like this?

I love it. I have discovered songs by watching videos of cats and montages that people put together. YouTube makes me grateful to be alive and cognizant in 2009.

Promotional video for the song “Natural One” by The Folk Implosion (found on the soundtrack for the film Kids)

This is an unusual video – who came up with this?

The Udris Brothers. John Davis, my partner and the drummer in The Folk Implosion, went to Brown University with them. The video was filmed in Rhode Island at some sand dunes outside of Providence. John and the brothers conceived of it and we strong-armed it past the label people who wanted us to do a more MTV-friendly piece.

How surprising was it to have this song take off in the manner that it did?

Completely. An amazing experience though. There was so much joy and freedom in the recording of the song and the filming of the video that I had no ambivalence about the popularity it achieved. I love being a one-hit wonder. It’s an honor.

How did you end up getting your music used in the film Kids?

Harmony Korine, the screenwriter was very into my early cassettes and thought it would be interesting to match a tale about city kids with my music. I think he would’ve preferred the soundtrack to be more in the style of my home recordings but John and I responded in a different way by experimenting with sampling and hip-hop.

What is it like to have your music used in films like this or in something like Session 9?

Placement in films and TV is really the only way to make money outside of touring. My records don’t sell, so I love it for that reason. And I also think it can work on an artistic level, in general.

Speaking of films, you also did a little bit of acting in the film Laurel Canyon – how did that come about?

The executive producer of that film [Scott Ferguson] was a fan of The Folk Implosion’s One Part Lullaby. I refused to score the film or even try. I wasn’t inspired by the script and was depressed in general. So, they asked my band and I (the new Folk Implosion) to try out for the parts of the “band” in the movie. My bandmates (Russ Pollard and Imaad Wasif) were young and attractive so we got the parts. I’ve never been so out of my element in my adult life.

Some friends in Portland saw you do this song at a karaoke bar there – does that happen often or just on silly drunken nights?

That was a singular amazing night. Imaad did a Led Zeppelin song with his bandmate in Lowercase at the time, too. A great drunken night out. I’ll never forget it. Janet Weiss (Sleater Kinney, Quasi) appealing to the karaoke master – “He WROTE the song!” – to make sure I could try it. I’m smiling thinking about it.

A promotional video for “Too Much Freedom” (original track found on Lou’s latest album, Goodnight Unknown)

How did you decide to do a lot of videos for the songs off the new album?

I had a video maker, Adam Harding, living in my guest room so I put him to work making videos as a form of rent. I thought I’d be busy on Dinosaur Jr. duty so I thought that videos were the only way to effectively promote the album. And it just makes sense in the YouTube era. You don’t need money or connections to make videos that anyone can watch. It’s just logical.

Did you have a hand in coming up with concepts for these clips?

Yes. Imaad Wasif, the monkey in this video and the lead guitar player on my record, came up with the concept for this one. Shooting in the abandoned zoo in Griffith Park, L.A. Adam conceptualized most of the others. Everyone involved fine-tuned the rest. It was a blast.

How long did it take to get all of them filmed? Was it fun, laborious, a bit of both?

We did it all in about a month. Laborious for Adam a little, perhaps. The editing involved is mind-numbing, but the filming was painless.

A promotional video for Deadsy’s cover of the Sebadoh song “Brand New Love”

I’ve always wanted to ask you about this cover of one of your songs. What do you think of what this band did with “Brand New Love”?

I really like this, reinventing a song rather than recreating it. It’s kind of awful, but I blame myself. The song wasn’t strong enough to survive Deadsy’s style!

Is it strange to see the young kids in the audience singing along?

At this point, at the age of 43, having people sing along is a great compliment. Always strange but I’m not complaining.

You must have heard a lot of people doing interpretations of your work – is that a flattering thing even when it is done in this odd manner?

Yup. Always flattering.

Although this blog is events-based, there are certain building blocks of Triangle music that anyone looking to learn more about it just needs to know, like the history of a little Chapel Hill record label called  Merge Records and its impact on the local scene. However it isn’t just important for the Triangle, it’s a staple in talking about indie rock in general, from Neutral Milk Hotel to The Magnetic Fields to Spoon.

Listen to an interview with founders Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance by Marketplace’s Kai Ryssdal about the label’s impact and success.

The now Durham-based label kicked off its 20th anniversary celebration this summer with the XX Merge festival at Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro and Memorial Hall at UNC-CH. Tickets for the July 22-26 festival sold out immediately and sad ticket-less locals (like me) were forced to constantly refresh a Twitter search for #xxmerge instead. But now other kindred  spirits can find solace in this performance and interview video archive on Babelgum.

Performances included 33 bands from Merge’s two decades, including The Rosebuds, Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band (Oberst’s otherwise known for his work in Bright Eyes), Telekinesis, Polvo, Arcade Fire, She & Him (M. Ward and actress/as of recently Mrs. Death Cab Zooey Deschanel) and Superchunk, which kicked off the festival and includes McCaughan and Ballance.

The founders recently teamed up with journalist/Superchunk fan John Cook (of Gawker and formerly Radar) to pen the history of Merge in “Our Noise: The Story of Merge Records, the Indie Label That Got Big and Stayed Small.” The 320-page book is packed with plenty of text in an oral history from the founders and others integral to the label’s birth, and is balanced out with coffee table-worthy images of concert posters, its first company invoice and enough behind-the-scenes pictures to fill several photo albums. The forward’s even written by long-time Merge fan/N.C. native/musician Ryan Adams. It’s available in stores and Merge’s Web store now.

But the  celebration doesn’t end there, “The Merge Records Companion,” a limited-edition picture book discography of the label’s first two decades is available for pre-order now and set to ship on Nov. 3.

Check out this UNC TV special on the anniversary

For more info on Merge’s anniversary, check out this Indy article by Grayson Currin, the accompanying links on the same page, and an interview with Cook and favorable book review, both by Marc Masters.

If you just happen to be in New York on Friday, Oct. 23, Mac and Laura will  read from “Our Noise” and perform some songs at Housing Works starting at 7 p.m. Check here for more info.

There will surely be many more great things coming from the folks at Merge, but not just musically. It seems that they have a knack for innovation as the label was the first ever to sell “LP3s” in 2005, which means that when a customer buys one of its releases on vinyl, he or she also gets a digital version at no extra cost.

For more general info on Merge, check out its blog and Twitter.

Expect future installments on other locally based labels.

So Merge Records is going thru all this 20th anniversary stuff. There’s been concerts, boxsets, books, etc. And why not? It goes w/o saying that they are a label that gives actual meaning to the concept, yeah / no?

Logic demands a Merge Records installment of the popular Epitome series. We’ve still not explained exactly what this series is, but this should make it more evident.

Even though the 7″ defines their aesthetic, Merge has released some of the best EP’s in the biz.

Polvo’s Celebrate the New Dark Age was originally released in 1994 as a triple 7″. I remember standing in the Cat’s Cradle at the merch table, a naive youth, early of my first thrift store record player of my non-fisher price years (the needle was trash), confronted with the consumer’s dilemma: I thought I was being precocious when I decided that the triple 7″ format would be impractical (6 trips to the arm!); I would get the cd. Both the EP and the decision burn.

Now cd’s are the 8 tracks of my generation.

Spoon’s Love Ways: Their return to indie love and terminus of their route to mainstream fame. It’s like a post-punk musicology. Some Sun Records, some Stax/Volt, some Beatles & Stones, and so on… Building the constellation even then.

So seek those out. There’s probably some more in their hollowed discographic halls.

Anyway, on to it:

1. Spoon – All I Got Is Me

2. Superchunk – Throwing Things

3. Butterglory – Alexander Bends

4. Teenage Fanclub – It’s All In My Mind

I just finished Our Noise, the Merge Records literary rockuspective.

I want to say this at the outset, because it surprised me: the Introduction is the best part.

Written by Ryan Adams, it is heartfelt & pretentious, frank & overwrought in a manner not too different from his own music. Somehow it manages to capture how Merge’s music opened certain metaphorical doors for me, doors that lead from childhood & ignorance to something wider.

It was 1994, Iwas not even yet in high school, and my best friend’s mom amazingly and inexplicably drove me and two more of my best friends 7 hours to Chapel Hill to hear the three nights of Mergefest, the label’s 5th Anniversary concert. I witnessed iconic performances by the greats: Polvo, the Archers of Loaf, and of course, Superchunk, among many, excellent others. In some ways, it was the first adventure of my life, a trip to Mecca. It blew my mind.

It is pretty remarkable really, but to hear Adams recount his sense of correspondence with the label, via postal service and, of course the music, is so right on. I forget when I discarded the handwritten responses I got from teenage letters sent to Merge bands (“when are you gonna come play my town?” — and they did come & play my town!) from my wallet, but whenever I did, it surely marked a deadening of the spirit that I wish I could reverse today.

The book is sad in a way, with its inevitable backward looking posture. Half the book tracks the rise & fall of Superchunk, shaming me all along for not buying any of their albums after Here’s Where the Strings Come In. I read how every succeeding album sold fewer copies, life in a band became more grinding, and efforts to expand and diversify their sound fell on (mostly) deaf ears. So okay, I will go pick of a copy of Come Pick Me Up, and I bet I will like it and wonder what was wrong with me.

What is interesting is how the book casts this as an amazing sacrifice — a kind of epic battle between the independent and the major label, the almighty dollar and artwork, the corporation and the community, capitalism and Main (or, Franklin) Street.

Merge stayed true to its principles, put thrift and integrity first — ran it itself nearly like a non-profit, really — and ended up surviving one of the most fabulous capitalist collapses in an era in which such failures may have become the norm (although it is too soon to tell), namely, the present-day doom of the record industry.

The majors blame it on file-sharing (as if half of my early Merge experience didn’t happen on tape decks, unwinding f^cked up cassette dubs), but Our Noise persuasively details how speed, speculation, standardization and cynicism did the industryl in and turned a generation off to spending any money for music . It is really one of the great case studies of political economy and should make the academics sit up, but I’m sure they won’t.

In Merge’s story you can almost see the glimmer of an alternative economy, one that would lead the way out of this down-spiraling fossilized / automobilized / suburbanized triptych we seem to be memorializing ourselves with.

This point is elaborated through the remainder of the book, as it details some of Merge’s most spectacular successes. Spoon’s dramatic artistic and commercial redemption after near destruction at the hands of big business, and Lambchop’s total artistic freedom and thorough triumph in liberal Europe (while enjoying domestic anonymity back home)  are two of the most classic examples.

Even the story of the ignorantly misanthropic and wretchedly capitalist Stephin Merritt, of the Magnetic Fields, has ironic value. He despises the indie culture without recognizing that his success would be impossible without it. Merritt leaves Merge for a major label at his first opportunity, and as the book astutely points out, his art has suffered ever since.

In the end, of course, this book simply reinforces that iron-bound rule, that learning the history of an artist (or artists) only diminishes one’s capacity to identify with and appreciate their art,  and, as a result, should be avoided at all costs (see the chapter on the Magnetic Fields, for example). However, Our Noise is exceptional for that Introduction and its lingering effect as one reads Merge’s history and wonders how music like this can change a life and even receive a cosmic reward in return: to endure as a creative force, seemingly in perfect balance with its surroundings — a model for living.

Here’s to 20 more years of Merge Records.

image from superchunk's myspace

Today’s Friday Flashback is brought to you by the fine folks in Chapel Hill, NC and Carrboro, NC.  Superchunk. In the early to mid 90’s Chapel Hill was supposed to be the next big wave of alternative music. Except many Chapel Hill bands kinda turned their head at established major labels and therefore Chapel Hill was instead branded as one of the indie rock band capitals of the world with the formation of  Merge Records.

Having spent my college years in Chapel Hill, I probably saw Superchunk in concert more than any other band. You know what? They continue to sound as great now as they did back then.  So many great songs like “Hyper Enough”and “Fishing”, But one of my favorite songs has got to be Driveway to Driveway. Watch it below.

The Clientele’s new album, Bonfires on the Heath (due out October 6th), is streaming now on the Merge website. Listen for free? Yes, please.

And here’s an older song for you:

This week, more from the Times–an uplifting story for Rosh Hashanah and another article about World War Two music.

• World War Two veteran Max Fuchs remembers how he served as a cantor for the first Jewish services broadcast from Germany after Hitler’s defeat.  Fuchs sang at his New York City congregation’s Rosh Hashanah services this past weekend in honor of that Shabbat 65 years ago.  The article includes some clips of Fuchs singing.
• Dame Vera Lynn is topping the British charts–at age 92, no less–with a reissue of popular World War Two-era songs.  Nostalgia anyone?
• A new book on Merge Records (the label of early-90s indie band Superchunk and currently home to the Arcade Fire, the Magnetic Fields, Lambchop, Spoon and others) is out and one of the label execs/musicians talks about the music business and what it takes for an indie band to succeed today.

Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan perform at Regulator Bookshop in Durham

Back when I had customized earplugs, was music editor at the Patriot Ledger, and saw bands almost nightly at the Middle East in Cambridge, Mass.,  I had three favorite record labels: Touch and Go, Matador, and Merge. Touch and Go is gone as of this year, but Matador and Merge live on, bless their indie hearts.

Over the years, the music scene became less important to me. Though I can’t keep up with much from afar, I do still like to watch. So how lucky am I that I moved to Mergeville six years ago, and could partake of some of its 20th anniversary merriment.

What a treat all indie music lovers in North Carolina are enjoying as our hometown heroes Merge Records celebrates its two decades (!) and the release of the book “Our Noise: The Story of Merge Records, The Indie Label That Got Big and Stayed Small.” If you or anyone you know cares about music, bands, touring, recording, this book is a wonderful behind-the-scenes look at that crazy life.

Laura reads a passage from "Our Noise"

Because the label is based in downtown Durham (after moving from nearby Chapel Hill), founders and principles Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance have been gracing our area with fantastic readings/performances at local bookstores. Mac and Laura started as bandmates in Superchunk, and continued that while starting Merge in Laura’s bedroom. They’re both married (to others) and have children, so they don’t live the rock-and-roll life but are still very much involved in recording all sorts of indie bands.

Merge’s biggest names are Arcade Fire, Magnetic Fields, Neutral Milk Hotel, Spoon, and their own Superchunk, but they’ve hand their hands in so much great music in the past two decades. During the reading we attended, at our wonderful Regulator Bookshop, they performed a bit and read passages from the book. While they played a couple Superchunk songs, acoustically, Mac also graciously covered pieces from two Merge artists, Matt Suggs and Lambchop, and read book passages about both. All “book readings” should be this lively! Oh, yeah, and there was free beer, too. Good beer.

Laura and Mac sign books for fans

I should mention that “Our Noise” was written by John Cook, a reporter for Gawker, and published by our other local hero, Algonquin Books in Chapel Hill. The 290-page book includes narrative, interviews with Merge artists and Mac and Laura, and fun photos of musicians, shows, and Merge ephemera. It’s a great read for anyone caring about American rock music from the ground up and a record label that hasn’t sold itself, or its artists, out. Here’s to another two decades!

Lit.

Dennis Cooper continues his “Tragically o.o.p. search and rescue mission”, with writer Tony Duvert’s Strange Landscapes.

• Cool Hunting on the photo book “Who Shot Rock n’ Roll“

• In the never ending parade of folks getting book deals, Old Jews Telling Jokes has made it to the front of the line. (Thanks The Awl)

• Chicago Subtext asks you to write fiction in under 100 words or less.

• The Rumpus on the new Soft Skull book Label 228

• Boston Globe talks to Garrett Peck, author of  “The Prohibition Hangover, Alcohol in America, From Demon Rum to Cult Cabernet.’’

• The Granta events for Chicago

• I like anything that has Moby Dick and Iggy Pop in the same paragraph. (Thanks McSweeney’s)

Music

• Andrew Bird and St. Vincent playing together at a house party in Paris: this is where the happy is. (Thanks Pitchfork)
  

• First previews from the Bob Dylan Christmas album (Thanks Flavorwire)
  

• For their Friday top 5, Deckfight picks their top Merge Records albums.  I gotta say, mine is a whole different set, but hey, different strokes for different folks.

• The Faster Times on Leonard Bernstein’s opera, “Mass”

• I agree that iTunes Genius isn’t very good at making mixes

Misc.

• A “Forest Park Journal” on softball.

Lit.

Who would have guessed that Osama Bin Laden was a fan of books by Jimmy Carter (above, looking troubled) and a University of Chicago professor?  I wonder if he has a Goodreads account?

• People are really excited about Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol.  Lev Grossman asks “How Good is it?”

• Vulture looks at the “daring interior monologue” in The Lost Symbol.

• Jacket Copy tells us “How to Party Like Dan Brown“, and suddenly we think we should just give this stupid books it’s own category.

• Somewhere in Denver, a Broncos Cheerleader is reading about mavens, and connectors.  (Thanks HTML Giant)

• Lit Kicks reviews The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker.

• Hooves on the Turf goes to the Brooklyn Book Festival.

Food

• “Few meals hold the appeal of brunch.”  We agree 100% with Largehearted Boy, especially when discussing the most recent book by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, Vegan Brunch (Da Capo Press).

Music

• YES!  Pavement is back!
  

• Carrie Brownstein talks about heavy riffs.

• Deckfight reviews Our Noise: The Story of Merge Records

• L Magazine on A Sunny Day in Glasgow
  

Film

• Krushchev-era Russian sci-fi films (Thanks Boing Boing)

The Top Albums of September 2009

The masterful singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie told stories with his music. He sang songs about the plight of immigrants, farmers, and workers. He told the story of America. He represented the common man. This new collection of Woody Guthrie music is superb. It contains everything from the well-known mainstream hits “This Land Is Your Land,” “Going Down The Road (I Ain’t Gonna Be Treated This Way),” and “Hard Ain’t It Hard“ to some of  politically charged ballads like “Tear The Facists Down,” “You Gotta Go Down And Join The Union,” and “Jesus Christ.”

The legendary folk singer mastered the folk hero ballads like “Pretty Boy Floyd,” “Stackolee,” “John Henry,” and “Harriet Tubman’s Ballad Part 1.” The collection contains fun classic folk songs “More Pretty Girls Than One,”"Brown’s Ferry Blues,” and ”Ain’t Nobody’s Business” and captures the storytelling abilities of the man with tunes like “The Sinking Of The Reuben James.”

Furthermore Woody Guthrie had an extensive catalog with wonderful children songs like “My Daddy (Flies A Ship In The Sky)“ and magnificent New Deal era tales of bringing power and jobs to the country in celebratory tales like “Grand Coulee Dam.” This is an  amazing collection with good quality sound. In this new era of economic hardships the sounds of the Great Depression and New Deal seem to be a perfect soundtrack for the “Hard Travelin’” ahead.

1. Woody Guthrie – My Dusty Road [Rounder 2009]
2. Phish – Joy [Jemp Records 2009]
3. Soja - Born In Babylon [DMV Records]
4. Willie Nelson – American Classic [Blue Note 2009]
5. Polvo - In Prism [Merge Records 2009]
6. Casual Sax - Baby I’m Black [Wonder Sound 2009]
7. Pearl Jam – Backspacer [2009]
8. A.A. Bondy - When The Devil’s Loose [Fat Possum Records 2009]
9. Jay-Z – The Blueprint 3 [Roc Nation 2009]
10. Pitbull – Rebelution [Jive 2009]
11. Rodrigo y Gabriella – 11:11 [ATO Records 2009]
12. John Fogerty – The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again [Verve Forecast 2009]
13. Busy Signal – Hott Ed [Greensleeves 2009]
14. The Black Crowes – Before The Frost…Until The Freeze [Silver Arrow Records 2009]
15. Yonder Mountain String Band – The Show [Frog Pad Records 2009]