The most important movie announcement of the year was made last week when the release date for Scott Pilgrim vs. The World was finally revealed. The August 13th date (that's FRIDAY the 13th, of course) means a long wait for us die-hard (read: obsessive) fans of the comic book series, but at the same time, the late summer release ensures the movie has a chance to succeed at the box office by dodging the high-summer big-budget blockbusters. Director Edgar Wright has yet to produce a film I've not completely loved, and I've been a fan of star Michael Cera since his time on Arrested Development, so needless to say my expectations are absurdly high.

Official Site

OK! One part research, one part messing around, I made this mix in part to familiarize myself more with current J-Rock bands leading up to my trip to Japan in a couple weeks. Most of my favorite Japanese groups tend toward the electronic side of the spectrum, like Capsule and YMCK, but I definitely have an affinity for more rocking crews like The Pillows and Asian Kung Fu Generation. I sifted through gigs and gigs of material to produce this mix, discovering dozens of rad bands I had never heard of before. Hopefully giving it a quick listen might expose you to a few new sounds yourself.

Enjoy! And comment!

Stereorobo // KaijuMix // January 30, 2010

1. Pinhole by Ogre You Asshole
2. Come On by Bugy Craxone
3. Hyper Hyper Hyper by 8Otto
4. Koi no Uta by Go!Go!7188
5. Discommunication by 9mm Parabellum Bullet
6. Bakayarou by Sparta Locals
7. GWD by Thee Michelle Gun Elephant
8. Bear Up Bison by Shonen Knife
9. Candy by Fake?
10. Hit In USA by Beat Crusaders
11. Electric Surfin Go Go by Polysics
12. Toumei Shoujo by Number Girl
13. After Dark by Asian Kung Fu Generation
14. Birthday Cake by Cibo Matto
15. Call My Name by The Brilliant Green
16. Cobalt Blue by The Back Horn
17. Straw by Noodles
18. Ride On Shooting Star by The Pillows
19. Magical Girl by Guitar Vader

As the world's biggest Jim Thome fan, the months since the end of the MLB season have been filled with anxiety and speculation as to when and where Big Jim would sign coming off free agency. Relegated to a DH role, Jim would have to return to the AL after his bizarre trip west to the Dodgers, and certainly he would prefer to be close to his Peoria home so late in his career. Fans, teammates, and ownership in Chicago were certainly receptive to having him playing in the South Side once again, so common sense would have him returning to the White Sox, right?

Well, he would be, were it not for ornery, acerbic Ozzie Guillen.

The worst talent evaluator in baseball put the skids on Thome's return after cowardly Ken Williams handed him the reigns to personal decisions this off-season. Not wanting to field a full-time DH, Guillen will instead turn to a clearly superior DH-by-committee including such legendary hitters as Mark Kotsay, Andruw Jones, and OMAR VIZQUEL.

Instead, Jim signed with Sox rivals the Twins earlier this week to the tune of a paltry $1.5M - less even than the Sox are paying the vastly inferior Kotsay. With the Twins moving to a new park this season, it's yet to be seen how the move will affect his offensive output. Still, it's safe to say that Thome should put up much better numbers than whatever the Sox hope to field in his old slot this season.

Good luck in the Frozen North, big guy, and sweep the Sox for me. Maybe then they'll recognize the folly of their ways.

For more on the signing:

• Ozzie Guillen is not a fan of the DH, Productive Offenses
• Thome Makes Entire White Sox Organization Look Like Fools, Signs With Twins for Pennies
• An Unladylike Reflection On The Gentleman

Vampire Weekend's newest album, Contra, hits stores next Tuesday! To drum up buzz for the record, the band appeared on the Juan's Basement segment over at Pitchfork TV, playing through Cousins and White Sky and answering a few questions in between. I'm a little surprised that they didn't record a version of Horchata, my favorite song off the new disc, but I'll take what I can get.

Knights of the Soundtable ride again!

In a tweet around midnight last night, Chris Cornell announced the launch of www.soundgardenworld.com, a site which pretty much cements the return of The Greatest Band of All Time. Those of you that remember the hey day of Soundgarden will recall the Knights of the Soundtable, Soundgarden's official fan club and maker of fine Christmas postcards. Hopefully this marks the beginning of some heavy news updates and more details about what marks the greatest rock reunion ever!

Fresh off my, um, success?, with Orbity, I put together a really straightforward mix of my favorite tracks from 2009 which I've titled Annum. There aren't any fancy effects or EQ twiddling or anything like that - just a bunch of great tunes laid out in as smooth and natural way as I could manage. Still, the number of songs has doubled since my last attempt, and the number of different genres and tempos I've incorporated made for a distinctly different challenge. I'd like to think this mix follows the old chef's notion that fine ingredients make for a fine meal, but I'm still new to this after all.

Please let me know what you think!

Stereorobo // Annum // December 26, 2009

1. Two Weeks by Grizzly Bear
2. 1901 by Phoenix
3. Kettering by The Antlers
4. Glass by Bat For Lashes
5. Panic Switch by Silversun Pickups
6. Don't Rush by Tegan and Sara
7. The Sweetest Thing by Camera Obscura
8. Daylight by Matt and Kim
9. Little Secrets by Passion Pit
10. Happy Up Here by Royksopp
11. When I Grow Up by Fever Ray
12. Useful Chamber by Dirty Projectors
13. Dominos by The Big Pink
14. Young Hearts Spark Fire by Japandroids
15. Stay Alive by The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
16. Crystalised by The xx
17. My Girls by Animal Collective

Merry Christmas, everybody!!!

This year Santa comes to you from the incomparable Kate Beaton and her amazing webcomic Hark! A Vagrant. Brush up on your Canadian history and crack up at the same time, you can't lose!

I've wanted to take another stab at mixing for years now, and finally found the time to fire up Ableton while I was home for Thanksgiving. In school I kept to using Acid primarily, so bear with me while I noodle with the new software, it's a little daunting!

I started with something simple, a quick and dirty mix of Orb tunes ranging from their earlier tracks to some more recent stuff from just a few years ago. Orb was great because most of their material rides along at an easy tempo, without a lot of quirky time changes like you would see with, say, Aphex Twin. Also, their songs tend to be extra long so it's not as tough to fill up sixty minutes of audio =).

Leave any comments you might have, I need all the feedback I can get!

Stereorobo // Orbity // December 13, 2009 // All songs by The Orb

1. Little Fluffy Clouds
2. Passing of Time
3. Now Here
4. Captain Korma
5. Hamlet of Kings
6. Prime Evil
7. Earth (Gaia)
8. Valley
9. A Huge Ever Growing etc etc

Absolutely brilliant…Phoenix teamed up with La Blogotheque for a few impromptu songs on the streets of Paris as part of their Take-Away Shows series. The band kept things simple using only acoustic guitars and a synthesizer, and Mars's only microphone was the one on the video camera. There's a lot to be said for watching Phoenix perform "1901" at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, but I'll let the videos speak for themselves.