Throughout the majority of the tour, Jenny Owen Youngs will open for Fitzsimmons which means put your shoes on because you need to get on this. Jenny Owen Youngs recently released her new album, Transmitter Failure, so it should be fun to hear some newer stuff from her.
And if words like “newer stuff” and “fun” do not appeal to you, here’s a nice video of William Fitzsimmons performing “Maybe Be Alright.”

Tour Dates:
07.03.09 Des Moines, IA @ 80-35 Music Festival
07.08.09 Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre*
07.09.09 St. Cloud, MN @ Pioneer Place*
07.10.09 Lincoln, NE @ Knickerbockers*
07.11.09 Omaha, NE @ Saddle Creek*
07.12.09 Denver, CO @ The Soiled Dove Underground*
07.14.09 Park City, UT @ Star Bar*
07.15.09 Boise, ID @ Neurolux*
07.16.09 Sandpoint, ID @ Panida Theater*
07.17.09 Seattle, WA @ High Dive*
07.19.09 Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios*
07.21.09 Eugene, OR @ WOW Hall*
07.23.09 San Francisco, CA @ The Independent*
07.24.09 San Diego, CA @ LeStat’s (two evening shows!)*
07.25.09 Los Angeles, CA Hotel Cafe
07.26.09 Lake Tahoe, CA @ Wanderlust Music Festival

* Jenny Owen Youngs supporting

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Pre-sale tickets are currently available.
For more information on William Fitzsimmons, visit williamfitzsimmons.com.
To learn more about Jenny Owen Youngs, stop by her official website.

»Album Reviews For Release Date: 05.26.09
by Joshua Krage

I know the music industry is forever continuing its fiscal downward spiral in the constant evolution of music listenership and technological innovation, but it’s still sobering and sad when the casualties hit close to home. This week Sacramento lost its best source for alternative music in KWOD 106.5, which went dark and was replaced by a 90′s station. Just another example of the times, I know, but a good reminder to invest in the things you don’t want to go away. For instance, if you want your favorite band to continue producing quality music, you must buy their product or attend their show, otherwise how are they gonna have time for that awesome tuneage while they’re holding down a day job to pay their rent? Here’s a list of what’s out this week for you to help support some starving (and not-so-starving) musicians and/or their record companies:

Black Moth Super Rainbow
Dave Brubeck – Time Out 50th Anniversary Legacy Edition
Miles Davis – Sketches of Spain 50th Anniversary Legacy Edition
Dmitri From Paris / The Idjut Boys
Electrik Red

Grizzly Bear, Veckatimest – once you get past all the blog buzz and hipsternet hype encasing this Brooklyn quartet, you’ll find a very adventurous avant-folk sound that doesn’t just defy description, it necessitates new adjectives. Lo-fi acoustic foundations support synth-augmented psychedelic flourishes, dynamic chamber pop gives way to lush, unhurried romanticism, old-timey classic ambiance is carried along atop odd time signatures and iced with ethereal children’s choirs… ambitious is an understatement, but if you’re familiar with their last few albums, they’ve been steadily building and streamlining toward this incredible amalgamation of sound for quite awhile now, and they have earned their place atop the indie-beard blogger lists.

Hillsong United, a_CROSS // the_EARTH: Tear Down the Walls – if you are part of a contemporary worship team at any church, you most likely play songs from this band, the youth component of Australia’s famously expansive house of praise. Part 1 of a 2-part series, they have some refreshing deviations from their normal formula on this live-recorded album, different time signatures and a bit of musical exploration on some tracks, a welcome change and an engaging set of worship altogether.

Marilyn Manson – I have no desire to listen to this album, but am sorely tempted on account of industrial-lounge mastermind Chris Vrenna (who records his own stuff under the “Tweaker” moniker) being present, both in the band and in the sound booth (as well as the songwriting).
Julian Marley
Donnie McClurkin

Mandy Moore, Amanda Leigh – it’s hard to not make fun of someone who got their start as a candy-pop teen sensation, but I admire Mandy’s newfound appreciation for authenticity in music, taste, and songwriting. This record has Inara George (Bird and the Bee) involvement so it gets immediate notice, and Moore’s chief collaborator and producer for the endeavor is established scene-scoring musician Mike Viola, who helps the overly-cute songstress pursue her Laurel Canyon ’70s sound pretty effectively. Although Moore still doesn’t possess an incredibly strong voice, her conviction is pretty solid here and her songs are relatively enjoyable.

Motley Crue – Dr. Feelgood 20th Anniversary – this album is actually a guilty pleasure of mine, though I still cannot stand Vince Neil’s nasally weenie-whine. I once constructed a killer mash-up of the title track with a Michael Jackson classic and a Bebel Gilberto tune. Someday I might even get to post it…

Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – up to this point, the most anyone knows about these Parisian pogo-pop hommes is that Sofia Coppola is a fan, as is somebody at Saturday Night Live. Honestly, the relative unfamiliarity is to be expected, since, until now, they haven’t done anything nearly as noteworthy as this new album. Their fourth full-length is up-front and catchy pop/rock, with lots of bright, jangly guitars and youthful yowling from effervescent vocalist Thomas Mars, plus a few mature moments with full, lush keyboard beds framing the sonic scene. A big step forward, and rather solid grab for the spotlight.

Eros Ramazzotti
Michelle Shocked
Siouxsie and the Banshees – at the BBC
Tiga

VAST, Me and You – moody guitar shredder turned songcrafter Jon Crosby sticks with his acoustic-based theme for a second straight album (regrettably) and turns in a rather lean set of ambient shadows looming over semi-gothic, minor-key majesty. I used to be a big VAST fan, but his songwriting skills really aren’t served by this acoustic crap, I think he’s just getting lazy.

Viva Voce
War Tapes

Jenny Owen Youngs, Transmitter Failure – far surpassing her acoustic singer-songwriter roots, my favorite imaginative lyric conjurer goes for broke on her follow-up LP, with ace help from producer Dan Romer and musician Bess Rogers, who contribute excellent songwriting collabs and innovative arrangements with elements ranging from studio-pop to old-timey ragtime to lush strings and beyond.

James Yuill, Turning Down Water for Air – I believe “electroacoustic” is the proper term, but I hate that term. The long-awaited U.S. release date of this superb folktronic songsmith, deftly melding his subdued acoustic compositions with big, meaty bliptop beats and electronic effect wizardry, effectively creating a kinder, gentler, guitar-toting industrial robot hiking across the countryside.

I know every other blog has been/is/will be gushing over that new Grizzly Bear album, if only because it’s incomprehensible to the masses and indiscernible to your average listener, thus the interweb community feels they must call it greatness. But greatness is where you find it, and hopefully something from this list will lift you up a few notches this week. Have a Happy Memorial Day, and see you next month.

P.S. Enjoy a sampling from this week’s new songs on my MySpace page. It’s updated pretty much weekly now…

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To view past reviews, visit our archives.

This time Jukebox the Ghost hit the road with Jenny Owen Youngs. The tour begins April 30th in Chicago and makes its way to the Midwest by early June. (You might have heard Youngs’s song “Fuck Was I” creep its way on the show, Weeds, a popular Showtime series.)

In celebration of their upcoming tour, Youngs and Jukebox the Ghost are releasing a 7” single on which they take turns covering each others’ songs. I’m sure that the release is something you won’t want to miss.

The online release date has not been issued yet, but you can stop in at Insound, because that’s where it will be featured shortly. In the meantime, you can grab a copy at any one of their upcoming shows:

4.30.09 Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
5.01.09 Omaha, NE @ Slowdown Jr
5.02.09 Denver, CO @ Hi Dive
5.03.09 Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
5.05.09 Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern
5.06.09 Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
5.08.09 San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill
5.09.09 Los Angeles, CA @ The Hotel Café
5.10.09 San Diego, CA @ The Loft- UCSD
5.12.09 Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress
5.14.09 Austin, TX @ Stubb’s BBQ Indoors
5.15.09 Dallas, TX @ The Prophet Bar
5.16.09 Little Rock, AR @ Juanita’s Cantina Ballroom
5.17.09 Memphis, TN @ Hi-Tone Café
5.19.09 Nashville, TN @ 3rd and Lindsey
5.20.09 Charlotte, NC @ The Casbah / Tremont Music Hall
5.21.09 Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
5.22.09 Richmond, VA @ Canal Club Downstairs Lounge
5.23.09 Washington, DC @ Rock and Roll Hotel
5.26.09 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny and Brenda’s
5.27.09 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
5.28.09 Boston, MA @ Café 939
5.29.09 Portland, ME @ Empire Dine and Dance
5.30.09 Westport, CT @ Toquet Hall

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For more information on Jukebox the Ghost, visit jukeboxtheghost.com.
For more information on Jenny Owen Youngs, visit myspace.com/jennyowenyoungs.

photo by Shervin Lainez.