The Pixies are currently in the throes of the North American leg of their Doolittle tour, a wormhole of a trek we’ve been quick to spill much digi-ink over in these parts recently. Via an e-mail from the band’s publicist, we’ve just learned that the band will sandwich in an appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon next week when they come to New York for four sold-out nights at Hammerstein Ballroom. So if watching Fallon get goofy is your thing, check your DVR of tonight’s show come tomorrow morning. He’s planning to announce the following: while The Pixies will be kicking things off with “Debaser,” fans/you guys now have the opportunity to choose their Doolittle second jam via Twitter. Fire those in Fallon’s direction (@jimmyfallon) and maybe make it “Hey.” Just an idea.

As if we weren’t already majorly excited about the upcoming Pixies Doolittle tour: now it’s been revealed that in addition to mind-blowingly amazing tunes, the Pixies will be treating audiences to a multimedia extravaganza, blowing eyes, ears, and possibly mouths and noses away.

To properly celebrate the 20th anniversary of Doolittle, the band enlisted long-time lighting designer Myles Mangino and designer Paul Normandale, who partnered with filmmakers Judy Jacobs, Tom Winkler, Brent Felix, and Melinda Tupling to create 11 films especially for the tour. The films will be projected onto a massive screen as visual accompaniments to 12 of the 21 songs in the Doolittle set. Additionally, “four huge, undulating, eyeball-like spheres are flown just below the lighting rig and become part of the concert’s light show.”

A few examples of what to expect were detailed in the press release:
“Visuals accompanying the song “Debaser” are from a compilation titled “Forbidden Images.” The hauntingly beautiful black and white footage from the 1920s depicts the beginning of the women’s rights moment, showing women’s exuberant playfulness, femininity and sensuality. The footage, a little too progressive for that time period, was originally banned from theatres.”

“For “Here Comes Your Man,” a four-way split screen displays close up images of the band members dancing along to the song; “I Bleed” sees blood dripping down the screen in time to the music; “Hey” features hand-drawn animation of the song’s lyrics by Hollywood animator Tom Winkler; clouds, black holes, and Mankind’s arrogance destroying the Earth are the focus for “Monkey Gone to Heaven,” while “La La Love You” is a humorous animated piece starring hearts with legs.”

Holy guacamole. Tour dates are as follows:

11.04.09 Los Angeles, CA @ The Palladium
11.05.09 Los Angeles, CA @ The Palladium
11.06.09 Los Angeles, CA @ The Palladium
11.08.09 Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
11.09.09 Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
11.10.09 Oakland, CA @ Fox Theatre
11.12.09 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
11.13.09 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
11.14.09 Eugene, OR @ Hult Center
11.16.09 Denver, CO @ The Fillmore
11.17.09 Denver, CO @ The Fillmore
11.19.09 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom
11.20.09 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom
11.21.09 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom
11.23.09 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom
11.24.09 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom
11.25.09 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom
11.27.09 Boston, MA @ Wang Center
11.28.09 Boston, MA @ Wang Center
11.30.09 Washington, D.C. @ Constitution Hall
12.01.09 Washington, D.C. @ Constitution Hall

Pick L.A.: you win No Age. D.C.? Jay Reatard or Mew. Oakland? Rain Machine. New York City? Could be Jay, Kyp or Bad Lieutenant. It’s like a new unique experimental rock act at every corner. Jay even found a new rhythm section for the occasion.

Black Francis and Co. are embarking on a nine-city U.S. jaunt (right after their European dates that kick off the Doolittle Tour) to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their classic album Doolittle, and apparently thought it would be a worthwhile notion to spread the celebration around. Below are the dates and a confusing system of asterisks to differentiate opening bands.

11.04 Los Angeles, CA  @ Hollywood Palladium ^
11.05 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium %
11.06 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium *
11.08 Oakland, CA @ Fox Oakland Theater *
11.09 Oakland, CA @ Fox Oakland Theater ^
11.10 Oakland, CA @ Fox Oakland Theater %
11.12 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre *
11.13 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre ^
11.14 Eugene, OR @ Hult Center *
11.16 Denver, CO @ The Fillmore ^
11.17 Denver, CO @ The Fillmore
11.19 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom #
11.20 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom ^
11.21 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom ~
11.23 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom #
11.24 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom ~
11.25 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom *
11.25 New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom (late show)
11.27 Boston, MA @ Wang Center ~
11.28 Boston, MA @ Wang Center *
11.30 Washington, D.C. @ Constitution Hall ~
12.01 Washington, D.C. @ Constitution Hall @

^ with No Age
% with Black Gold
* with Rain Machine
# with Bad Lieutenant
~ with Jay Reatard
@ with Mew

(Via: P4K)

On their first tour as an ensemble since 2005’s reunion, the Pixies are hitting the road once again to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their 1989 opus Doolittle. As Black Francis puts it, “We wanted to do something special for Doolittle’s 20th anniversary, and we thought his was a good opportunity to play all of the songs from that album, something we don’t normally do at a regular gig.” The tour kicks off in Europe, where most dates have already sold out, but the U.S. leg begins on November 4th in L.A., and includes three dates in New York City. Some tickets go on sale as early as this Saturday, August 1st, so be sure to check out your venue of choice’s website in the near future for details. The tour also coincides with the release of the limited edition box set, Minotaur, allowing you to indulge all of your Pixies related desires this fall.

Pixies Tour Dates

8.29.09: V Festival – Burl’s Creek Park, Ontario, Canada
9.30.09: Olympia – Dublin, Ireland
10.1.09: Olympia – Dublin, Ireland
10.2.09: Olympia, Dublin, Ireland
10.4.09: SECC – Hall 4 – Glasgow, Scotland
10.6.09: Brixton Academy – London, England
10.7.09: Brixton Academy – London, England
10.8.09: Brixton Academy – London, England
10.9.09: Brixton Academy – London, England
10.11.09: Jahrhunderhalle – Frankfurt, Germany
10.13.09: Heineken Music Hall – Amsterdam, Holland
10.14.09: Forest National – Brussels, Belgium
10.15.09: Zenith – Paris, France
10.16.09: Zenith – Paris, France
11.4.09: The Palladium – Los Angeles, CA
11.8.09: Fox Theater – Oakland, CA
11.9.09: Fox Theater – Oakland, CA
11.12.09: Paramount Theatre – Seattle, WA
11.13.09: Paramount Theatre – Seattle, WA
11.14.09: Hult Center – Eugene, OR
11.16.09: The Fillmore – Denver, CO
11.20.09: Aragon Ballroom – Chicago, IL
11.21.09: Aragon Ballroom – Chicago, IL
11.23.09: Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY
11.24.09: Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY
11.25.09: Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY
11.27.09: Wang Center – Boston, MA
11.30.09: Constitution Hall – Washington, D.C.

Ever found yourself thinking, “Hmmm, I wonder what the hell Black Francis meant in, oh, every single Pixies song…”? You’re not alone. And lucky for you, in this interview with Minnesota Public Radio’s Mary Lucia, he takes the time to explain some of his songwriting ideas, concepts and inspirations. And by that, we mean he talks a lot about hangovers and lemurs, but it’s still totally awesome. Additionally, the interview is peppered with acoustic versions of Pixies songs, including this lovely rendition of ‘Velouria,’ featured above.

The Pixies will be touring this fall in honor of the 20th anniversary of their 1989 game-changer Doolittle. Kicking things off at the Olympia in Dublin, Ireland on October 1st and 2nd, the Pixies will be playing the landmark album in its entirety, including some B-Sides. Surprises are reputedly in store, “Debaser” will most certainly scorch.

—Meryl Natow

In 2006 Cave In took a break from the music world after releasing Perfect Pitch Black. But it looks as though a three and a half year hiatus was enough to rekindle the desire to make music, because the Boston-based band has regrouped and will be releasing a new EP along with a coinciding reunion show this July.

To be titled Planets of Old, the new EP will be released on 12″ vinyl only via Hydra Head Records. The album will be released on July 19; the same day the band will be playing their release show at Great Scott’s in Allston, MA. Along with Cave In’s performance, Disappearer and Phantom Glue will also be playing.

Cave In worked with Paul Q Kolderie, who has produced for the likes of the Pixies and Radiohead, on four tracks for the new record. Planets of Old will be Cave In’s sixth studio album to date, since their formation in 1995.

Official statement from Cave In
Dear friends,

Steve, Adam, J.R., Caleb
CAVE IN

Nothing can induce a potent combination of nostalgia and rage like the time-honored top 100 list. All the major music magazines have come out with at least one or two, and Rolling Stone has about a one-per-month quota. But this latest one comes from a slightly unlikely source — Amazon. Apparently they don’t just sell you music. They might actually know a little something about it, too. Maybe.

The Amazon list came equipped with a read-this-before-you-write-a-strongly-worded-letter clause, listing all the requirements and stipulations the Amazon music editors placed on albums worthy of the list.

The term “Indie Rock” is undeniably tricky. We challenge anyone to definitively define what is and what is not indie rock–you will fail. For the purposes of compiling this list we’ve decided to use a combination of hard and fast rules and gut instinct. Our hard and fast rules are listed below, but as for gut instinct—you just kind of have to know. For example: John Oates put out a rock record called Phunk Shui on an indie label, however, in no way should Phunk Shui be mistaken for indie rock. Likewise, Black Flag put out many seminal punk albums on SST, but we’re not talking about punk or grunge or classic post-kraut-rock, we’re talking about indie rock. Are Black Flag really indie rock? Not to our ears.

Here are the hard and fast rules:
• One album per artist.
• No EPs or singles, this list is about albums.
• No greatest hits collections or compilations of previously released tracks.
• Nominations must have been originally released on an independent label. Albums released on indies which were later acquired and/or re-released by majors are allowed (like Sonic Youth’s Daydream Nation, originally released by a pre-1989 major label merger Enigma Records).

With the only one album per artist rule, there are definitely a few that make you scratch your head — why Death Cab’s We Have The Facts instead of Plans, why does Sufjan Stevens fall higher than Bright Eyes, and both of them higher than Arcade Fire’s Funeral, which is higher than Husker Du?

But when it’s coming from Amazon, we know two things that bring us solace. No. 1, it’s an online marketplace ranking indie records, and thus any discrepancy should be taken with that proverbial salt grain. No. 2, the only reason something like this exists on a site like Amazon is to boost sales. And any outlet that wants to boost sales of indie rock? Pretty much okay in our book.

You judge for yourself. Here’s the top 20, you can see the full listing here.

20. I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One – Yo La Tengo
19. Kill the Moonlight – Spoon
18. Give Up – The Postal Service
17. Dig Me Out – Sleater-Kinney
16. No Pocky for Kitty – Superchunk
15. I See A Darkness – Bonnie “Prince” Billy
14. We Have The Facts and We’re Voting Yes – Death Cab For Cutie
13. Michigan – Sufjan Stevens
12. Daydream Nation – Sonic Youth
11. 69 Love Songs Volume 1 – The Magnetic Fields
10. Bakesale – Sebadoh
09. Either/Or – Elliott Smith
08. Surfer Rosa – Pixies
07. If You’re Feeling Sinister – Belle & Sebastian
06. Slanted & Enchanted – Pavement
05. Imperial f.f.r.r. (Deluxe Edition) – Unrest
04. Exile In Guyville – Liz Phair
03. Spiderland – Slint
02. In the Aeroplane Over the Sea – Neutral Milk Hotel
01. Bee Thousand – Guided by Voices

If you grew up in the 90s like some of us (no names will be mentioned), then you must be creaming your collective pants. Let’s see, we’ve had Jane’s Addiction, Blur, Faith No More, Sublime, Jesus Lizard, Pavement, Orbital and The Libertines all in the news in the past couple months about confirmed or rumored reunions. And that’s not even taking into account The Specials or Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Well, add one more to your list. The already once-reformed and broken up Pixies are at it again three years after their 2004 reunion stint.

Earlier today, NME reported that the Pixies will be playing Isle of Wight Festival on June 14 before headliner Neil Young. Festival promoter John Giddings was quoted as saying, “It was hard to think of someone capable of complementing the musical talent of Neil Young, but once I had the idea it was blindly obvious and it will surely be a legendary day on the Isle Of Wight.”

The Isle Of Wight Festival line-up so far is:
The Prodigy
Basement Jaxx
The Ting Tings
Pendulum
Stereophonics
Razorlight
Neil Young
Pixies
The Charlatans

And in case you want some juice with your news, Pitchfork has reminded us that in 2007 Kim Deal said, “I think [a new Pixies album] is something to bring up whenever [Frank Black] needs press. That’s the only time I hear about it. I have no idea, dude.”

And in fact, Frank Black does have have somethings to promote, including a new album with his wife, Violet Clark, under the name Grand Duchy, out April 14 in the U.S. on Cooking Vinyl. He also produced Art Brut’s latest LP, Art Brut vs. Satan, and there may or may not be a new Breeders EP in the works.