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Manchester Orchestra/Thrice co-headlining tour announced

Alternative Press - Scott Heisel on 2/18/10 @ 1:08 PM - altpress.com

Manchester Orchestra and Thrice will team up this April and May for a co-headlining tour across the United States. Opening all shows will be O' Brother.

"We've only gotten to hang out [with Manchester Orchestra] in passing, so we're excited to get out on the road with them," says Thrice frontman Dustin Kensrue. "They're a great band and one of the few out there that I feel an affinity with in more ways than one."

Dates are below:

Apr 14 - Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
Apr 15 - Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
Apr 16 - New Orleans, LA @ The Howlin Wolf
Apr 17 - Oxford, MS @ The Lyric Oxford
Apr 18 - Birmingham, AL @ WorkPlay Theatre
Apr 20 - Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues
Apr 21 - Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s
Apr 22 - Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
Apr 23 - St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
Apr 24 - Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
Apr 25 - Des Moines, IA @ People’s Court
Apr 27 - Vermillion, SD @ Eagle’s Club Room
Apr 29 - Billings, MT @ The Railyard
May 1 - Eugene, OR @ McDonald Theater
May 3 - Reno, NV @ Knitting Factory
May 4 - Santa Cruz, CA @ The Catalyst
May 7 - Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues
May 9 - Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theatre

Avenged Sevenfold recruit Dream Theater drummer

Alternative Press - Tim Karan on 2/18/10 @ 10:55 AM - altpress.com

Avenged Sevenfold have announced that they will record their upcoming album with Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy. The band were forced to look for a replacement following the unexpected death of James "The Rev" Sullivan in December, and they turned to Sullivan's "all-time favorite drummer."

The band released this statement: "Mike [Portnoy] said it would be an honor and without question that's what Jim would have wanted. It's comforting to us that someone like Mike, who is undoubtedly revered as one of the best drummers in the world, held such respect and adoration for the Rev's abilities."

Portnoy had this to say about filling in: ""Even under normal circumstances, I would've been happy to help the guys out in any way I could as I think Avenged Sevenfold are a great band...but under these incredibly sad and tragic circumstances, I must say I am truly honored to have been asked to play with them and I didn't even have to think twice about saying 'yes.'

These guys are a true family and it is an incredibly emotional experience to be here with them for the first time without their lost brother. But they have welcomed me into the family with open arms and there's a real excitement to make the record they had set out to make.

I am treating my participation on this album with the utmost respect for Jimmy's memory and am remaining as true as possible to the drum parts that he wrote for the songs and the record he wanted to make.

I want their fans to realize that I'm not trying to step into or fill The Rev's shoes...I'm just merely lacing 'em up for him!"

Avenged Sevenfold will be working on the follow-up to 2007's self-titled album. Check out video of Portnoy playing:

Powerspace announce break-up

Alternative Press - Tim Karan on 2/18/10 @ 1:40 AM - altpress.com

Chicago powerpop outfit Powerspace have revealed that they've called it quits. In a MySpace blog, drummer Kevin Kane said, "Powerspace is no more--the name and everything that it signified."

The band spent much of last year working on the follow up to their debut full-length, 2007's The Kicks Of Passion.

Read Kane's statement below:

This explanation's been a long time coming, I know. I started making jokes about Powerspace "falling off the face of the planet" over a year ago! So here:

A lot has changed in the last year, and the unfortunate result is that Powerspace is no longer a band. We've had to make some heartbreaking decisions and like any breakup, it's a complicated and private matter.

I set out to write a tl;dr version for anyone that might care to hear more than the standard band breakup letter--thanks for the memories, thanks for the support, that sorta thing--but I'm realizing that there's not much else I can say. Nothing new and interesting, anyway. It's true that Powerspace is no more--the name and everything that it signified. And yeah, like I'm sure Tom said elsewhere on the internet, we really are thankful for the memories and the support--it's a shame that things like this always come off as trite and insincere, that I can't think of a word that packs more of a punch than "thankful"--but we are, from the bottom of our hearts. The cliches turn out to be true, one by one--that we couldn't have done it without you, that we wouldn't have wanted to anyway if it weren't for you, that most of our memories from the last three years were built on your kindness and generosity and that sorta thing. That you were with us through it all, when we were (it has to be admitted) clumsy, inexperienced chumps. That you bought our tacky t-shirts (and snap bracelets, of course) so we could put enough gas in the van to get to the next city. That you were, in a lot of very subtle ways, wiser than us--again, something that sounds unbearably cheesy, but trust me, I'm thinking about the Kevin that used to have short hair and that tiny gray hoodie and the first of maybe 25 beanies that I lost on tour, and I've changed so much in just three years, and most of those three years were spent around you. Seeing all of the states for the first time (having only previously visited, what, like two states?), going to Canada, going to Japan... in short, taking what amounts to a three-year dream vacation (with less frequent showers, maybe) with your best buds--and all because of you. So thank you, a thousand times.

That being said, this isn't -quite- the teary-eyed goodbye I might've made it out to sound. Throughout all of its iterations, there was a lot of talent in Powerspace--prime stuff, really, which I feel like I'm in a privileged position to say, for some reason (my talents don't really extend past drumming, but one thing I'm -really- good at is respecting and even revering my fellow bandmates--don't tell them I said that). Powerspace as everyone knows it is 100% gone, and speaking about it in the past tense is still a very new thing for me, but for these guys to give up music entirely would be a crime. And they're not, and I'm not, and that's about all I can say. So keep tabs.

But again, and most importantly, thank you. If I kept rambling on, it'd just be a recap of all those cheesy things I said up there, so I'll just say the two words again and hope that, by virtue of repetition, you'll believe me this time: thank you! We wish you all the best and hope that we see you all again, in one way or another.

~ Kevin Kane and Powerspace

Watch Paramore's video for "The Only Exception"

Alternative Press - Tim Karan on 2/18/10 @ 12:58 AM - altpress.com

Paramore have unveiled their video for "The Only Exception," the third video from their latest full-length, brand new eyes. Check out the video below.

Minus The Bear sign to Dangerbird

Alternative Press - Tim Karan on 2/17/10 @ 6:57 PM - altpress.com

Minus The Bear have revealed that they've signed a deal with Dangerbird Records and that the band will release their upcoming full-length via the label this spring. Bassist Cory Murchy said, "After months of looking under rocks and in dark caves, we've found a nice place to nest with Dangerbird Records. They are a label of artists for artists and we are very excited to work with their creative minds to continue to bring you quality craftsmanship and the very best we can provide for our fans, both old and the newly educated."

The album will be the band's first since 2007's Planet Of Ice and their first not to be released by Suicide Squeeze.

Pete Wentz wheeled out as Hannibal Lecter at Clandestine fashion event

Alternative Press - Tim Karan on 2/17/10 @ 3:29 PM - altpress.com

When Pete Wentz announced last week that he was throwing an off-the-wall fashion event for his clothing line, Clandestine Industries, he warned it could get crazy. The Fall Out Boy bassist (or is he?) was wheeled onstage after the show as an homage to Silence Of The Lambs character Hannibal Lecter. Check out more images and photos from the Clandestine line here.

Photo: Theo Wargo, WireImage