Tom Krell, better known by his stage name How To Dress Well, will follow up to his much beloved 2010 album Love Remains this Fall with a new LP entitled Total Loss (a title which almost seems to contradict that of his debut album).

Details on the release are scarce, but we do know it will be coming out through Acephale in North America, while Weird World has the honor of releasing Total Loss internationally. No confirmed dates have been given, but we do have a brand new track to check out called “Ocean Floor For Everthing.” You can hear that below as well as see the handful of dates that HTDW has upcoming.
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Last week we received the sad news that Dan Boeckner’s band with his wife Alexei Perry had called it quits, seemingly leaving Boeckner at a loose end, but apparently this is not the case at all; it appears he was just getting the one project out of the way so that he could focus on his next: Divine Fits.

Divine Fits brings together Boeckner with Spoon’s front man Britt Daniel (who was seen joining Handsome Furs on stage in LA last year – perhaps then we should have suspected something) and Sam Brown of New Bomb Turks. There isn’t much information about Divine Fits yet, but we’re informed that they will be releasing their debut record, which was produced by Nick Launay, through Merge later in 2012.

Divine Fits have a website at divinefits.com, but there isn’t much on it yet except a place to sign up for their mailing list and the above picture. You can also follow the band here on Twitter.

Some exciting news for Yeasayer fans: following the relatively abrupt release of single “Henrietta” last week, Yeasayer has already followed up with the details of their third LP. The album is titled Fragrant World, and will release on August 21st.

Speaking to Under the Radar, band member Anand Wilder unveiled some of what to expect from the album, and it may surprise some fans. He explained, “I wanted to make a record that was legitimately, to use a bad word, funky. Listening to Teddy Pendergrass and then Aaliyah records. Something that legitimately has a sway to it, tempos I call mid-tempo come-ons, BPM ranges that you’re seeing in more R&B kind of stuff and some really sub-y bass tones.”

Intruiging, to say the least. Check out the tracklist below, and listen to “Henrietta”. Beneath that you can also see the dates of a small pre-album tour the band is heading out on.

Fragrant World track list:

01. Fingers Never Bleed
02. Longevity
03. Blue Paper
04. Henrietta
05. Devil and the Deed
06. No Bones
07. Reagan’s Skeleton
08. Demon Road
09. Damaged Goods
10. Folk Hero Shtick
11. Glass of the Microscope

Tour dates:

6/19: Richmond, VA @ National
6/20: Asheville, NC @ Orange Peel
6/21: Knoxville, TN @ Bijou Theater
6/22: Nashville, TN @ Cannery
6/23: Louisville, KY @ Headliners
6/24: Cincinnati, OH @ 20th Century Theater
7/02: Vienna, Austria @ Szene
7/04: Gdynia, Poland @ Heineken Open’er Festival
7/07: Bruges, Belgium @ Cactus Festival
7/08: Lieges, Belgium @ Les Ardentes
7/09: Utrecht, Holland @ Tivoli De Heling
7/13: Norfolk, England @ Latitude
7/15: Grafenhainichen, Germany @ Melt Festival

After a long wait for the buzz process leading to their sophomore album, The xx have been making quite a bit of noise lately. When they announced a European tour, most believed it meant new material was near; when they debuted a new song at Chats Palace in London, fans became all the more sure.

Now The xx have taken the next big step: they’ve announced a few American dates, sadly, few in number due their lengthy European festival plans. Check out both their American and other tour plans below.

05-29 Bordeaux, France – Le Rocher De Palmer
5/30 Toulouse, France – Le Phare
5/31 Barcelona, Spain – Primavera Sound
6/8 Turin, Italy – Traffic Festival
6/9 Porto, Portugal – Primavera Sound
6/15 Aarhus, Denmark – Northside Festival
6/16 Hultsfred, Sweden – Hultsfred Festival
6/22 Scheessel, Germany – Hurricane Festival
6/23 Neuhausen, Germany – Southside Festival
6/27 Haervic, Norway – Hove Festival
6/29 Arras, France – Main Square Festival
6/30 Werchter, Belgium – Rock Werchter
7/7 Gdynia, Poland – Heineken Open’er Festival
7/14 Joensuu, Finland – Ilosaarirock Festival
7/23 Los Angeles, CA – The Fonda
7/25 Seattle, WA – Showbox at the Market
7/28 Toronto, Ontario – Phoenix Concert Theater
7/29 Montreal, Quebec – Metropolis
7/31 Boston, MA – Wilbur Theatre
8/2 New York, NY – Terminal 5
8/9 Sibinek, Croatia – Terraneo Festival
8/10 Budapest, Hungary – Sziget Festival
8/11 St Pere, France – La Route du Rock
8/18 St Polten, Austria – FM4 Frequency Festival
8/19 Biddinghuizen, Netherlands – Lowlands Festival
8/31 Laois, Ireland – Electric Picnic
9/7 Isle of Wight, England – Bestival

When John Frusciante left the Red Hot Chili Peppers, many assumed he’d release a plethora of solo work – he had released ten solo albums while with them, after all – but nothing ever materialized. Finally, the guitarist has announced his next solo outing: an EP, releasing July 9th. Titled Letur Lefr, the EP will boast five tracks.

Hey folks. Beats Per Minute is looking for writers and photographers to contribute content to the site. We are searching for writers with a clear, strong, and engaging voice — and up-and-coming photographers — that have an extensive knowledge of music past and present, an open mind, and passion for new and exciting upcoming acts.

Those interested should email apps@beatsperminute.com with the following:

- Links to your three best pieces (or photo galleries) [no attachments, please]
- Lists of your 10 favorite albums of 2011 and 10 favorite albums of all time
- Some brief details about yourself, including your location and past publications you’ve written for.

Unfortunately we won’t be able to respond to each submission, but if we like what we see, we’ll get in contact with you and give you the details of what we need to move forward.

The deadline for submissions is Monday, June 4th. Thank you.

Remember when Kanye was talking about how he’d changed the way film could be viewed? As with many of Mr. West’s more bizarre ideas, the ones most assume will go nowhere, the “seven screen experience” (above) he bragged about has rapidly grown into reality, and a reality with a purpose.

Aside from the few tracks released, not much has been said about his approaching G.O.O.D. Music compilation. Until now, that is. When any other hip hop label releases a joint effort, it’s simplistic, only meant to help market the artists on that label. Of course, this wasn’t enough for Kanye West.

The album has been revealed to be called Cruel Summer – with a film of the same title to go along with it. The film, which makes use of the 7 screen contraption, is set to debut at Cannes no less, on May 23rd. No word as of yet on a release date for the album, but if the film is anything like West’s last, it will contain much of the music thus far unheard. Following the film’s debut, it will be open to the public for two days only, for which tickets can be purchased here.

Handsome Furs, the project of Wolf Parade’s Dan Boeckner and his wife Alexei Perry, have decided to breakup. The group released three albums in recent years on Sub Pop. The following was posted on their Facebook:

With a heavy heart the time has come to let all of you know that Handsome Furs are no more.

The most important thing that needs to be said right now is how extremely grateful we are to all the fans all over the world that showered us with love and support over the years. Thank you for everything! It’s been an incredible 6 years and we owe it all to you.

No word on the future plans for the members or if this is any indicator about their personal relationship, but we can all hope that maybe Wolf Parade will get back to being an active band.

This has been a sad few months. I’m posting this behind most other news sources, frankly, because I wasn’t quite sure what to say. For most music listeners checking this site – or any other of our type – Donna Summer was before your time, before our times. However, chances are she’s impacted each and every one of us, at least to some extent.

Donna Summer used to ring about my house, my mom completely unwilling to let go of her period of dominance, much like any of us, sticking loyally to our nineties memories. And what a period of domination it was: once upon a time, the lady had four #1 chart toppers in a year. I’ve yet to check (and am afraid to), but I’m pretty sure it’s safe to say Drake hasn’t pulled that off.

It’s easy to ignore the pop music our parents played, but it’s far more truthful to recognize its impact. Speaking personally, I know the sounds of Donna Summer influenced my musical growth at a very young age, so it’d be wrong for me not to show respect, show respect to the queen of disco. The singing legend passed away after a long battle with cancer, which she sought to keep away from the public and her fans as much as possible. She was also working diligently on a new album, which hopefully we’ll hear one of these days. That said, a note to the label: show her the respect she deserves, if it’s going to sound anything like Michael (the crap album Epic released to capitalize on Michael Jackson’s passing), just don’t do it. I’ll leave you with what’s quite possibly Mrs. Summer’s most obvious song, but today, what could be more appropriate?

Riding the high from yesterday’s release of “Like That” (listen here), T.I. has shared the release date for his 8th – and first since returning from his latest prison sentence – LP, Trouble Man. While the album’s lead single “Love This Life” is essentially a generic pop rap single, Tha King has stated his intentions to, as much as industry pressure will allow, to largely return to his trap roots with the album, a claim supported by both “Like That” and Fuck tha City Up, the mixtape the Atlanta rapper released earlier this year in support of the album.

As part of a marketing strategy, the rapper intends to release the album directly after his show, The Family Hustle, latest season’s premiere, explaining, “September 3 is the premiere of Season Two, and September 4 is the release of Trouble Man, the album. Coincidence? I think not.”