Very Special

The boys from Scotland have a new record coming out!

Special Moves is a live album, comprising of audio recordings made over three nights at sold-out shows in Brooklyn on April 27th, 28th and 29th 2009 at the Music Hall Of Williamsburg. There will be two versions released:

Deluxe triple vinyl box set

• I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead

• Friend Of The Night

• Hunted By A Freak

• Mogwai Fear Satan

• Cody

• You Don't Know Jesus

• I Know You Are But What Am I

• I Love You, I'm Going To Blow Up Your School

• 2 Rights Make 1 Wrong

• Like Herod

• Glasgow Mega Snake

• Yes! I Am A Long Way From Home

• Scotland's Shame

• New Paths To Helicon Part 1

• Batcat

• Thank You Space Expert

• The Precipice


CD version

• I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead

• Friend Of The Night

• Hunted By A Freak

• Mogwai Fear Satan

• Cody

• You Don't Know Jesus

• I Know You Are But What Am I

• I Love You, I'm Going To Blow Up Your School

• 2 Rights Make 1 Wrong

• Like Herod

• Glasgow Mega Snake

The six extra tracks featured on the vinyl version will be available as a free download to those purchasing the CD. Both vinyl and CD versions of Special Moves will accompanied by a DVD of the Burning live film.

Burning is a 50-minute live film by Vincent Moon and Nataniel La Souanec, comprising footage shot over the same three nights. The songs featured in the film are:

• The Precipice

• I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead

• Hunted By A Freak

• Like Herod

• New Paths To Helicon Part 1

• Mogwai Fear Satan

• Scotland's Shame

• Batcat

No release date has been made, though it is slated for this year. And that the film will be screening in the US in early March is a good sign that may be near the release.

Proof Of Awesome

It took a few days for people to post, but there's finally some clips of Mogwai at the Orpheum.

My Father My King
(behind us but near where we where sitting)

I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead

Tonight, Los Angeles Is Howling!

A Vincent Moon clip of the band...if there's any bells rang, that's because La Blogotheque is also know as the home of the Take Away shows, that our pal Jeremy often shoots with audio by Rybot. Yeah, there's some MAGNA ones that will hopefully see the light of day.


UPDATE:
Damn, that was a great show! Having already done the first tour leg on their latest album, this time around was a more diverse and farther reaching setlist, with several first time performances for me.

Yes! I Am A Long Way From Home (Young Team)
I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead (The Hawk Is Howling)
Travel Is Dangerous (Mr Beast)
I Love You, I'm Going To Blow Up Your School (The Hawk Is Howling)
Christmas Steps (Come On Die Young)
Killing All The Flies (Happy Songs For Happy People)
I Know You Are But What Am I? (Happy Songs For Happy People)
Summer (Young Team)
Auto Rock (Mr Beast)
Hunted By A Freak (Happy Songs For Happy People)
You Don't Know Jesus (Rock Action)
Glasgow Megasnake (Mr Beast)
My Father My King (single)

The band managed to take at least one track off every album, and it was a huge thrill to see "Glasgow Megasnake" and "I Know You Are But What Am I?" played. Guitarist Stuart mentioned how much the band we happy to be playing at a beautiful theater like the Orpheum, and I think that translated on stage. The band itself, while never one to be gushing or overly-demonstrative, really expressed themselves in the most obvious way possible - through the vibe of their music. And at a show like this, that connection between the band and the audience was solid.

Most notable was their amazing rendition of "Christmas Steps". LA can sometimes be a crowd of dickheads, but this group was generous and respectful, and that was evident midway through the song, where the guitars and bass thin out to just one instrument, getting softer and softer until almost inaudible. The room was completely still, and as the notes were played, it was as though it was a challenge to see how much quieter it could get before the fans broke their silence - but we never did. I think everybody, including the band, was just stunned by the focus. The following section and crescendo were so much more dynamic because of the meditative calm of that moment.

Just a terrific show and a really inspired group of songs. It felt like a gift with such an array of songs from their repertoire, and while there's always one or two you hope the band will play, there's no complaining when a group of tunes like this is performed.

Autopia / Distopia Weekend

Super Saturday is here, and it's a sweet combo of high-performance racing and awesome music.

After a work exile in Palm "hot as balls" Springs, Rybot is back and hosting the screening of the missed F1 races as well as the apt-themed Mad Max series. It's unclear if everybody will manage to get through The Road Warrior or the three prior races, but there will be much in the way of cars. And then there's Mogwai. The Scots return and are playing the Orpheum Theater downtown, which is a sweet venue. Scartoe is in for another round with them, and Scarlett will be getting her first taste. I'll give the review afterwards...

Busiest of all this weekend are the Sri Lankian armed forces (how's that for a 180?). Sri Lanka's president vowed to end the decades-old war against the Tamil Tiger rebels within 48 hours. Gee, that's not ambitious.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa said thousands of civilians still in the war zone will be quickly freed from a tiny slice of the country's coastline still controlled by the guerrillas, formally known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. "The freedom of the Tamil civilians held hostage by the LTTE is near at hand and the rescue of all civilians in the small patch of land held by the LTTE will be done in 48 hours".

As the fighting raged, hundreds of desperate war refugees escaped the conflict zone and a top U.N. official headed here on an urgent mission to safeguard the tens of thousands of civilians still trapped amid the heavy shelling. The government has forced the rebels out of the de facto state they once controlled in the north and cornered them in a 1.5-square mile strip of northeastern coastline.

As of this morning, two army units were fighting their way down the coast from the north and up from the south in an effort to link up, severing the rebels' last remaining sea outlet and completely encircling them. That's a pretty baller move. The two units were only 1.1 miles apart.

Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said that Sri Lankan soldiers were probably fighting their final battle against the remaining rebel fighters, and reports indicated that even the relatives of top rebel leaders are starting to flee the war zone. At least 1,800 more civilians managed to flee rebel-held territory today, joining more than 3,700 who waded across a lagoon to escape yesterday. Rebels had fired on those leaving Thursday, killing four and wounding 14 others. Families packed onto inner tubes floated across the water, past rows of coiled razor wire.

About 200,000 civilians have escaped the war zone in recent months and are being held in overwhelmed displacement camps. The rebels have denied accusations they were holding the civilians as human shields and were shooting at those trying to flee. Reports of the fighting are difficult to verify because the government has barred most journalists and aid workers from the conflict zone. International concern has grown for tens of thousands of civilians under threat from the heavy artillery bombardments shaking the war zone, and the Red Cross warned of "an unimaginable humanitarian catastrophe" for the hundreds of wounded trapped without treatment.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon sent his chief of staff, Vijay Nambiar, to Sri Lanka for a second time to try to bring the conflict to a peaceful conclusion. Nambiar is expected to meet with top government officials after he arrives Saturday and push for ways "to secure the safety of the 50,000 to 100,000 civilians remaining inside the combat zone". The U.N. says 7,000 civilians were killed and 16,700 wounded in the fighting from Jan. 20 until May 7. Since then, doctors in the war zone say more than 1,000 civilians were killed in a week of heavy shelling that rights groups and foreign governments have blamed on Sri Lankan forces. Sri Lanka denies firing heavy weapons into the war zone.

Hard to say who will have a more relaxing and pleasant couple of days, but I think it's going to be me.