Beyond

With more Coachella tickets going on sale over the weekend, a little part of me just wants to jump on a plane and go. Alas, it's short notice and it's not in the cards. But if you want to go, I suggest you act fast because remaining tickets will probably go quickly. This was after all originally sold out.

But I'm looking forward more to NXNE in Toronto this year ever since receiving a recent e-mail update from the festival. Most exciting news is to hear all the record label and organization showcases which will be happening with the likes of Yep Roc, Myspace, Sirius Satellite, Chart Magazine, PopMontreal, Fontana North, BBC Radio2, NOW Magazine, Musebox, and NeXT. Newly confirmed for the festival include Urge Overkill, The Sadies, Jim Lauderdale, Icarus Line, The Ladybug Transistor, die mannequin, and Great Northern. The previously announced Dinosaur Jr show at the Phoenix on June 8 and the Fountains of Wayne show at Lee's Palace on June 10 will also be allowing limited wristband / badge entry - for the Dino Jr. show NXNE will be allowing only 100 NXNE delegate badges / wristbands into the show; otherwise tickets will set you back $34.50 CDN before taxes. One normally to shun interviews, Dino Jr's J Mascis has also signed on as a celebrity interview at this year's conference - J will be interviewed by Edge 102.1's Dave Bookman from noon in conference rooms B and C at the Holiday Inn on King (370 King W.); you'll need a delegate badge to get in. This year's festival is definitely looking up. Can someone out there offer me a free delegate badge(nudge, nudge, wink, wink)?

The wonderful Jenn Grant has a song("Make It Home Tonight") from her upcoming new album "Orchestra For The Moon" streaming over at MySpace. The song was included on her debut independent EP and was rerecorded for the new album. Lovely. Excitingly, she's also added some new tour dates over at her MySpace - she'll be in Toronto for a show at Horseshoe Tavern on June 15 with Toronto's Royal Wood and Halifax's Tanya Davis.

Fellow east-coasters Museum Pieces will be in Toronto over the next couple of months for a few shows according to their MySpace, including on May 30 at a venue TBA as part of a free taping of a radio show, and then on June 7 at Tranzac which I'd guess is part of NXNE since the duo played the festival last year.

Land of Talk are releasing a 7-inch single of "Speak to me Bones" which will out on May 21 in the UK through Fandango/Fierce Panda. UK, American, and a few Canadian tour dates follow over the next couple of months. Hope they get back to Toronto this summer. Stay tuned to their MySpace.

Starting today, The Cowboy Junkies have a new online digital downloads store where you can purchase hard-to-find Junkies' music as well as downloads of albums released by the Junkies'-owned and operated indie label Latent Records between 1981 and 1992. [Via the band's message forums].

Ms. Mary Timony is streaming a few new songs("Sharp Shooter", "Rock Man") from her upcoming new album "The Shapes We Make"(to be released through Kill Rock Stars on May 8, my b'day) over at her MySpace. She'll be touring in June.