Here's a little behind the scenes peek at the Department of Eagles video.

Nope, this isn't a movie about Snoopy and his feathered friend. Taking Woodstock stars Demetri Martin and is directed by Ang Lee. Check out the preview below. -IL

Yes, everyone's favorite affable French electro-popsters Phoenix will be playing SNL on April 4th.

And we think the timing is perfect -- the Euro is evening out against the dollar, French president Nicolas Sarkozy is in the Democratic Republic of Congo right now urging them to share their wealth to bring about peace -- we're so loving the Frenchies right now!

Pretty much the rest of Europe is blowing a big snot on our president's spending initiatives. So we think it's time for our two peoples, united under the way-better-than-average style of our two leaders, (have you noticed the tailoring on Obama's suits recently? I'm convinced Sarko has a hand in this) to join a good-style and prosperity alliance. And what better way to kick off the Franco-American love fest than a Phoenix performance on SNL?

AND: rumor has it that Seth Rogen will be hosting. Of course he's Canadian, not French, but you know -- the Canadians are Frenchish-AM

Just announced: Bon Iver will join the bill May 3rd at Radio City for Dark Was The Night - Live, a concert to celebrate the Dark Was The Night compilation. Also on the bill are Feist, The National, Dirty Projectors, My Brightest Diamond. More artists will be announced in the coming weeks.

If you don't have the album yet, pick it up. It's one of the best new records of '09, and sales go to benefit the Red Hot Organization, an international charity organization to fight HIV/AIDS. Click here for a free download of The National's "So Far Around The Bend" from the record.-AM

It's here.

Yeah, so SXSW was last week and I'm only now writing. These reasons are twofold: I'm lazy and SXSW kicked my ass. It was great though, I saw some really amazing new bands that I want you all to start listening to immediately. The first is Crocodiles from San Diego. They sound like a cross between the Jesus and Mary Chain and Gun Club. SO GOOD! Then there's Late of the Pier. Weirdly-awesome-choppy-synth-disco from the UK. Does that make any sense? And lastly, Micachu and the Shapes. An even weirder art-school band also from the UK. Their look says Ponytail, but their sound is more stripped-down and organic. Anyway. All of these bands are playing NYC this week and next as a follow-up tour from Austin. Go see them!

Here are some of my photos. They go in this order (and feel free to click on them to make them larger): Adam Stephens (from Two Gallants); Akron/Family; Jeremy Jay; Wavves; Crocodiles; Passion Pit; Matt and Kim (clapping hands); Amazing Baby (in the fog)

Can't wait til June to get your hands on the new Dirty Projectors record and you're pissed that no one has leaked it yet? (At least no one from this magazine has leaked it -- we can't speak for anyone else.) Well fret not -- click here to listen to their live set from last week's NPR party at South By Southwest. The set includes new songs, and these guys are great live.-AM

The Meat Puppets, who formed nearly thirty years ago in Phoenix, Arizona, have just announced some new tour dates.

Most of us were introduced to the Meat Puppets in the early nineties as the guys with the big hair who played guitars with quarters on Nirvana's Unplugged. "Backwater" was quite the hit as well.

The band, whose members are approaching their fifties, will be touring in support of Sewn Together, a new album which will be released on Megaforce Records. (Like Kill 'Em All!)

Puppets tour dates are available after the jump. -SB


MEAT PUPPETS TOUR DATES
May 12 - The Mint - Los Angeles, CA
May 27 - Waterfront Park - Louisville, KY
May 28 - Blueberry Hill - St Louis, MO
May 29 - High Noon - Madison, WI
May 30 - Schubas - Chicago, IL
May 31 - Schubas - Chicago, IL
June 2 - Radio Radio - Indianapolis, IN
June 3 - The Summit - Columbus, OH
June 4 - Magic Stick - Detroit, MI
June 5 - Mr Smalls - Pittsburgh, PA
June 6 - Grog Shop - Cleveland, OH
June 7 - Mohawk Place - Buffalo, NY
June 9 - Higher Ground - Burlington, VT
June 10 - Paradise - Boston, MA
June 11 - Mercury Lounge - New York, NY
June 12 - Mercury Lounge - New York, NY
June 13 - Rock n Roll Hotel - Washington, DC
June 14 - Cat's Cradle - Carrboro, NC
June 16 - The Earl - Altanta, GA
June 17 - Exit/In - Nashville, TN
June 19 - Cambridge Room - Dallas, TX
June 20 - The Parish - Austin, TX

03-24 Brooklyn, NY - The Bell House
03-25 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge
--
05-27 Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge
05-28 Newport, KY - Southgate House
05-29 Chicago, IL - Metro
05-30 Minneapolis, MN - Cedar Cultural Center
06-01 Denver, CO - Bluebird
06-02 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
06-04 Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
06-05 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore
06-06 Seattle, WA - Showbox
06-08 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
06-09 Pomona, CA - Glasshouse
06-11 Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theatre
06-13 Mexico City, Mexico - Lunario
06-15 Austin, TX - Antone's
06-16 Dallas, TX - The Loft
06-18 Birmingham, AL - Bottletree
06-19 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
06-20 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
06-21 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
06-22 Philadelphia, PA - TLA
06-24 New York, NY - Webster Hall
06-25 Boston, MA - Somerville Theatre
06-26 Montreal, Quebec - La Tulipe
06-27 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace
06-29 Columbus, OH - Wexner Center at Ohio State University
06-30 Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Small's

Metric's new album Fantasies will be released on April 7th. Here's the video for "Gimme Sympathy" directed by Frank Borin. Enjoy! -IL

3/24 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst
3/25 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
3/27 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom
3/28 Seattle, WA Chop Suey

Adam Mixson knows his Dazed and Confused trivia. When the singer/guitarist named his indie rock band Melba Toast back in 2004, he wasn't trying to pay tribute to dry crackers -- his band shares its name with Matthew McConaughey's trusty car in the cult classic. And Melba Toast does the name proud. Far from being an innocuous, bland snack, the group's folk-twinged, grunge-filled, rock-and-roll repertoire tastes much more like a sweet, sometimes rebellious wind blowing through a 1970 Chevelle window on an afternoon drive.

If you haven't heard Melba Toast yet, check out the sound on their Myspace. The band hails from a forgotten corner of the music world -- the rural, northeast Texas town of Greenville. No, they don't sound like contemporary country, death metal, or Fall Out Boy, as the region might suggest. Melba Toast adopted a DIY spirit and followed a different musical crowd. "Think for yourself, but not in an arrogant way," said Adam, regarding his band's message. And that's exactly what Adam, joined by his younger brother Alex on drums, Lee Hyatt on bass, and Brandon Barker on guitar, have done in creating Melba Toast.

Read more about the band's unique sound, their newest EP, and upcoming releases after the jump.

Melba Toast's last self-titled EP plays like an auditory road trip, driving the listener from tripping, easily relaxed indie pop tunes to more contemplative, darker, dirtier ballads. "Icy Sleep" creeps with the spidery bass lines and feedback guitar of classic Nirvana, a sound the band has perfected through touring with such grunge-era legends as Mudhoney. Electric guitar riffs in "Yellowbelly" jangle and twang with a subtle Creedence Clearwater Revival-inspired country lilt. Whimsical windings of melodies in "City Life" play like Tom Petty tunes done in a refreshingly modern style.

Adam's lyrics and voice shine in tunes like the Pavement-inspired "Screwball." Gentle and likably melancholic, the singer's quiet hums wrap around such affably belligerent words as, "Mess with my dog and I'll -- I'll mess your face up." So what gives Adam the inspiration to write such unique songs? According to his Myspace, it's "a good movie, a good book, and sometimes life."

Adam recently ended his project as a solo artist, which he pursued while continuing to play with Melba Toast. His solo songs incorporate the folksy, soft sounds of AA Bondy, and will all appear, with full band instrumentation, on Melba Toast's new 12-song LP. The band is still putting the finishing touches on the album, and getting ready to relocate to Austin in May, but they expect to release the LP by next fall. Indie music fans, Nirvana revivalists, and, of course, Dazed and Confused enthusiasts, rejoice! - AK