Welcome back to another edition of Duane’s Pit Stop. This week we're kind of dry on the punk news but we still managed to get some good info on your favorite Punk Bands. Chuck Widell from Austin , Texas asks, “what do I personally think of Blink 182 and why do I not post any info on them?”

Well, Mr. Chuck.. personally I think the band blows major chunks and with the exception of you, there really hasn’t been any major demand for them as Punk REALLY goes. They're just too commercial punk for the MusicTAP staff as well as the hard cores. And for that matter, bands that are played heavily on KROQ here in Los Angeles really, really blow chunks. You people have got to hear College Radio to get the real stuff, not the 'wannabe' junk.

And with that in tow let’s get to the news.

SONIC YOUTH IN LOUISVILLE - SY will play May 15 at the noncommercial radio NONCommvention in Luisville , KY on a bill with Patti Smith and others.

 SY AT LOLLAPALOOZA '04

Sonic Youth will tour this summer as part of the Lollapalooza 2-day festival playing 20 cities in North America . The tour's schedule and more bands are expected to be announced soon.

SONIC YOUTH IN MA, NJ, AUSTRALIA , AND NEW ZEALAND

Dates are starting to surface for the summer tour. Here's what we know so far, we'll give you more info as it becomes available.

SY will be in Northampton , MA on April 30 with J. Mascis, Sebadoh, and others at John M. Greene Hall at Smith College .

Tickets will be available at: Night Owl Records - Easthampton , MA and Turn it Up! - Northampton , MA

Tickets are also available on insound.com All proceeds from the concert will benefit Community Resources for People with Autism. Sunday, June 6th, Sonic Youth is playing The Great Bamboozle at The Stone Pony Festival Area in Asbury Park , New Jersey . 3 day passes went on sale on March 20th and daily ticket sales begin on March 26th. The fest is all ages. For more info, check out:
www.thestonepony.com
www.thegreatbamboozle.com

Then the Sonics are off to Australia and New Zealand for a whirlwind whip with J Mascis in tow. Tickets for all of these shows go on sale April 2nd. Check www.ticketek.com or the venue for tickets unless otherwise noted.

June 15 - Canberra A.N.U

June 17+18 - Sydney Enmore Theatre

June 19 - Brisbane Arena

June 21 - Fremantle Metropolis (Buy tickets at 78's, Beat, Planet or Mills)

June 23+24 - Melbourne Forum

June 26 - Auckland St. James

New Dischord releases available now  at http://www.dischord.com/news/index.shtml -

Beauty Pill "The Unsustainable Lifestyle" CD (only)-- The long awaited Beauty Pill full length is now available both in stores and on this website. This CD follows last year's EP "You Are Right To be Afraid" and the band's 2001 debut, "The Cigarette Girl From the Future." Beauty Pill are currently booking dates on the east coast and mid-west for April. Click here to go to the tour page.

Antelope "Crowns"b/w "The Flock" 7"/CD single-- Antelope feature Justin from El Guapo and Mike and Bee from Vertebrates. They recorded two songs with Ian at Inner Ear Studios which are being released on a CD single and limited edition 7". Antelope also have a fine CD/EP released as a joint venture between Dischord and their own label, Bug Records, available from this site.

Don Zientara "Sixteen SSongs,"-nolib#1
Minor Threat "Live" DIS 27DVD
Shudder To Think "Curses, Spells, Voodoo, Mooses" SR05CD
Soul Side s/t--SR02CD
Lungfish "Love is Love" --DIS 137CD/LP
Radio CPR "Begin Live Transmission" DIS 136CD - This is a benefit CD compilation.

The Dischord Re-mastered series continues. We have several newly remastered CDs available, including some that have been out of print for some time, all remastered at Silver Sonya:
Lungfish "Talking Songs for Walking" + "Necklace of Heads" maxi-CD (previously out of print), Shudder To Think "Get Your Goat" CD (previously out of print), Circus Lupus "Super Genius" CD (previously out of print) , Jawbox "Novelty" CD, Minor Threat "Complete Discography" CD, Gray Matter "Food For Thought" CD (previously out of print)

Black Eyes - announced from the stage Friday night at the Black Cat that the show that night would be their last. Clearly we at Dischord are deeply saddened by the news that the band will be breaking up. Black Eyes represent, both musically and ethically, an uncompromising spirit of creative independence that we are proud to be a part of. The good news is that before their announcement the band delivered a stunning new recording, "Cough," that will still be released on CD and gatefold LP on May 31th.

The Evens - have finished recording a 9 song full-length CD/LP that should come out either late this spring or in the summer. They just returned from a week of shows on the east coast and are planning more shows for the near future. We will put dates up on the tour page as we get them.

El Guapo - has been recording demos that will hopefully amount to a full-length release later this year. The band continues to burn up the road and will be playing shows with Pinback and American Analog Set in April and have further dates planned in May.

Lungfish - has still been receiving tons of positive feedback, both for their live shows and for their album, "Love is Love." The band continues writing new material and hopes to record later this year. Lungfish has been very active on the road; the band just performed at the All Tomorrow's Parties Festival in England and are next headed to Japan . Lungfish also have some more US dates planned for May and you can go to the tour page for updates.

Q and A - Not U has finished a busy year of touring and is currently working on new songs. The band plans to get into the studio to record a new album sometime early this year and have a tour booked in South Africa this summer, stopping off in the UK for 5 dates on the way. Currently the band is on tour and will play the Coachella Music Festival in California on May 1st.

Daniel Higgs (from Lungfish) - has recorded a solo album of jews harp improvisations, "Magic Alaphabet," that will be released on April 19th on Ian MacKaye's new label, Northern Liberties.

Et At It, who feature former members of Metamatics and Meltdown will also have a debut CD, "I Count," that will be released on Northern Liberties on April 19. All Northern Liberties releases are limited pressings and are available on this website and to stores exclusively through Dischord Direct.

The Warmers - who featured Alec MacKaye, Amy Farina and Juan Carrera, will be releasing a 6-song CD of their last demos recorded at the Pirate House studio in 1996-97 on Dischord later this spring.

Contrary to a flood of recent internet postings, Fugazi has not broken up. Over the years the band has circulated in and out of active recording and touring according to the ebb and flow of their personal lives. Two band members now have families with children and currently their concerns are being put above the band's. As of this moment Fugazi is not actively playing or recording but that doesn't mean the band won't become active again in a year, two or possibly never....such is life. Members of Fugazi have always made music outside the band and will continue to do so. Ian is currently playing in a duo with Amy Farina (ex-Warmers) called the Evens, Brendan has been playing with Amy Domingues and Jerry Busher in Garland of Hours, Joe recorded an album with Black Sea (now called Decahedron) feautring ex-Frodus members Jason and Shelby, and Guy performed with members of The Ex at a jazz festival in Austria.

Thin Dark Tour  - Last mintue update before I disappear into the realms of Asia . The wonderful amazing boys in Thin Dark Line have prompted me to remind you that thier Spring tour with friends Ever Since Radio begins Thursday in Maryland. From there, the guys head north all the way through Canada , so you can all get a taste of their crisp rock. Check this:

April 1: Fishnets Records - Ocean City, MD
April 2: The Venue - Camden, DE
April 3: The Harmony Grange - Wilmington, DE
April 4: The Internet Cafe - Red Bank, NJ
April 6: The Zoo - Wilkes-Barre, PA
April 7: The Compound - Fitchburg, MA
April 8: The Cruise In- Buffalo, NY
April 9: The Opera House - Toronto, ONT
April 10: Midgard Comics - Columbus, OH

After tour, the band will head back into the studio with producer Paul Leavitt (Over It, Don't Look Down, Rain Delay Theater, Stars Hide Fire) between April 24th and May 9th to record their debut full-length. There's so much TDL, you've no excuse to miss out.

Bend Over Backwards - ArmsBendBack have finally hit us with a new video, and this one is hot. Download QuickTime is you don't have it, and click here for ABB's "The Arms of Automation" from their TK debut The Waiting Room. Of course, there's always more ArmsBendBack at Trustkill, so head over and hit it all.

Krazyfest Committed, Locked Up Forever? - Initial Records' 7th annual Krazyfest, originally scheduled for the weekend of May 28th, has been indefinitely postponed and may be gone for good, according to www.krazyfest.com. The Kentucky festival, which many of us remember from the barrage of posters used by InterPunk as packing material last year, has taken an apparent turn for the worst and while the promoters are trying to save it, they say not to get your hopes up. The festival may be pushed back until late Summer or Fall, but it's not looking good. The DVDs for Krazyfests 5 and 6 are still slated for release, 5 in Fall 2004 and 6 in Spring 2005. Bands who took part in last year's festival included Bouncing Souls, Hopesfall and Cave In.

Coheed Join Forces With...Spider Man? - Last night during their set at Lupos @ The Strand in Providence , RI Coheed and Cambria announced a deal was in the work to possibly have their song "Time Consumer" appear on the soundtrack to the second Spider Man movie. "Sometimes I feel a little bit like Spider Man," Co&Ca frontman Claudio Sanchez said jokingly, after making the annoucement. One thing's for sure, it'd sure be a lot nicer than hearing the parade of nu-metal bands that were on the soundtrack of the last movie in the series.

Find The Meaning Of Life - Tonight marks the launch of the website where you can stream yourself the new album from Fearless Records' Brazil , A Hostage And The Meaning Of Life. Brazil have been compared to a variety of bands such as Radiohead, Camera Obscura and At the Drive-In, so it'd be a shame to miss out on an oppurtunity to give them a listen. To hear the album just head over to http://www.ahostage.com.

The Stereo Is Turned Off  - One of Fueled By Ramen's biggest bands, The Stereo has parted ways in a particularly ugly bout of drama. What exactly happened is fuzzy, but according to a statement posted on The Stereo's Yahoo Group by ex-drummer B.J. Wuollet, it had something to do with his living in Minnesota instead of Tempe like the rest of the band but implies that it was only the tip of the iceberg. The rest of the band has not made an extended statement, but intends on explaining everything on monday. This news comes after ex-guitarist Philip Trapp left the band less than a month ago. Frontman Jamie Woolford and bassist Chris Serafini are rumored to be starting another band, but the details on that are unknown.

I Surrender signs two new bands - I Surrender Records has signed two new bands - The Westminster Abbey and Descendre. Also,the label is releasing the upcoming Vise Versa EP.

Red Chord re-issue due this May - Robotic Empire has announced that they will be re-issuing the debut full-length from The Red Chord, Fused Together In Revolving Doors. The CD will be enhanced with exclusive demo tracks, the "Dreaming in Dog Years" video, a full live set and more. Fused Together In Revolving Doors will be out on May 11th.

The Red Chord is heading out on tour for the month of April; click READ MORE for those dates.

Detroit Never Says Die this May - The Never Say Die Fest has announced their preliminary lineup for this year. A sample of the groups playing: Dillinger 4, Lawrence Arms, The Reputation, Hewhocorrupts, Guff, Pelican, Intro5pect, and Suicide Note. Click READ MORE for the full confirmed lineup. The Never Say Die Fest will take place in Detroit at Idle Kids (3535 Cass) from May 28-30.

That’s going to do it for another week here at Duane’s Pit Stop. If you should have any questions, I can always be reached at dkleyva@pacbell.net. And if you want to talk some crap or just want to shoot the Sh#t with me, use the address. Peace!! Have a safe one.