The band explains via MySpace bulletin: *It’s true, Nick wont be joining us for the upcoming European tour, but it’s not true that he is fired. We just feel Nick needs time to sort out exactly what he wants right now. His heart and all his energy and attention is on his own solo project and he needs to see that through. We welcome his singing and songwriting in BRMC, but his focus, at least at the present time, is on doing his own thing and we wish him the best. He is our brother, our musical partner & we love him dearly & look forward to playing with him again in the future. Rob & Pete.*

Visit BRMC on MySpace.

MP3: BRMC – The Line (Live)

All spring dates can be found below:

4/16 Intersection: Grand Rapids, MI
4/17 Frankie’s: Toledo, OH
4/18 Mad Hatter: Covintgon, KY
4/19 The Dame: Lexington, KY
4/22 Visulite: Charlotte, NC
4/23 40 Watt: Atlanta, GA
4/24 Valarium: Knoxville, TN
4/25 The Pageant: St. Louis, MO
4/26 Liberty Hall: Lawrence, KS
5/1 Canopy: Urbana, IL
5/2 Turner Hall: Milwaukee, WI
5/3 High Noon Saloon: Madison, WI
5/19 Attone’s: Austin, TX

For further info, head to BRMC’s official site.

MP3: BRMC – Sympathetic Noose (Live)

Full track listing for American X: Baby 81 Sessions is below.

1. “The Likes Of You”
2. “Vision”
3. “The Show’s About To Begin”
4. “MK Ultra”
5. “Whenever You’re Ready”
6. “20 Hours”
7. “Last Chance For Love”
8. “American X” (short film)

Learn more about BRMC here at their MySpace page.

MP3: BRMC – The Line (live) (via Down Here)

iTunes Festival: London is the first in a series of month-long worldwide concerts aimed at a particular city, organized by the fine folks at Apple. Though details have not been fully announced thus far, we do know that each show will be recorded for a special iTunes ‘Live From The Festival’ set, and that the audience for each gig will be extremely limited (in the neighborhood of 350 people) with tickets only available via radio contests.

For more info, including quotes from the festival’s organizers and the complete line-up, hop over to NME.com.

Here’s what we’re most excited about:

July 3 – Travis
July 4 – BRMC
July 9 – The View
July 11 – Editors
July 18 – The Rakes
July 20 – Stereophonics
July 25 – Amy Winehouse

(photo via Michael Williams)

MP3s: Amy Winehouse – Tears Dry On Their Own + Editors – Camera

I’ve been sorely disappointed with the last few Black Rebel Motorcycle Club LPs (though I happen to think their debut, BRMC, is brilliant). Baby 81 is no exception, it misses the flair that made their earlier work so amazing. However, this feature is about album art, and when it comes to Baby 81 I ask you – love it or hate it?

Old-school MP3: BRMC – Whatever Happened To My Rock N Roll?

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is a band I used to LOVE LOVE LOVE. Their debut was thrilling, one-of-a-kind and a college fave a few years back. Sadly, most things they’ve released since then have really fallen under the bar, at least for me. That said, I have high hopes for their upcoming LP and have my fingers double crossed that it’s better than 05′s lackluster, Howl.

Via Billboard: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club has christened its fourth album “Baby 81″ and will unveil it May 1 via RCA. The 13-track set ushers drummer Nick Jago back into the fold after he sat out the majority of the band’s 2005 album “Howl.” “Things open up and break down within the songs, a lot,” guitarist Peter Hayes told Billboard.com in October. “There are some songs that are kind of groove-oriented, not so blues- or country influenced [as 'Howl'].”

“When he came in for the last record, there were two songs we did with him that we left off,” he added of Jago’s return to the band. “We knew they’d be for this one. We used those two songs as a starting point for what this album was going to sound like, and we stuck to it, for the most part.” “Baby 81″ features BRMC’s most epic track to date, “American X,” which runs more than 9 minutes. Hayes previously enthused about the songs “All You Do Is Talk” (which utilizes 12 different guitar parts), “Am I Only” and “666 Conducer” (which he described as the most even blend between “Howl” and 2003′s “Take Them On, On Your Own”). According to a spokesperson, BRMC will begin a tour in support of “Baby 81″ directly after the album’s release.

Tracklist for Baby 81:

“Took Out a Loan”
“Berlin”
“Weapon of Choice”
“Window”
“Cold Mind”
“It’s Not What You Wanted”
“666 Conducer”
“All You Do Is Talk”
“Lien on Your Dreams”
“Need Some Air”
“Killing the Light”
“American X”
“Am I Only”

Wouldn’t it be awesome if ‘Weapon Of Choice’ was a Fatboy Slim cover??

MP3: BRMC – Whatever Happened To My Rock N Roll? (via The Crutch)