let’s just start this thing finally with some clarity.

January 6, 2016 3:59 PM

LCD Soundsystem is reuniting in 2016 and plans to release a new album. LCD Soundsystem is headlining Coachella 2016. After walking away in one the most memorable set of shows documented in "Shut Up and Play the Hits", James Murphy and crew is returning to the stage but in typical fashion he pours out his heart in a mixture of anxiety, excitement, and pathos evident in all of his songs. Previously 1 2 3 4
posted by 27kjmm (38 comments total)

This is happening, and I couldn't be happier.
posted by SansPoint at 4:05 PM on January 6, 2016 [6 favorites]

AAAAAAAHHHHHHH

(something I do: go to all the wine bars in London that Murphy loves and suggests. A small way to feel like a rockstar without actually being one or paying through the nose unless I get a really posh glass of wine)
posted by Kitteh at 4:08 PM on January 6, 2016 [2 favorites]

Don't want to derail but does this mean I need to make a GnR post? (Relevant due to Coachella/reunion..)
posted by raider at 4:18 PM on January 6, 2016 [2 favorites]

Is this some sort of rock star record for going from "Hey, this is our last tour everybody" to "Hey guys, forget about that whole retirement thing"?
posted by octothorpe at 4:30 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

Is this some sort of rock star record for going from "Hey, this is our last tour everybody" to "Hey guys, forget about that whole retirement thing"?

10 Farewell Tours That Didn't Stick (listicle)

5 years is nothing. Judas Priest was only a 2 year gap.
posted by dw at 4:36 PM on January 6, 2016 [3 favorites]

I look forward to them being around long enough that kids start saying "What's an LCD?"
posted by srboisvert at 4:37 PM on January 6, 2016 [2 favorites]

Octothorpe, The Who have pulled off farewell tours for a quarter century. Like DiMaggio, that's one of those records that will never be broken.
posted by raider at 4:40 PM on January 6, 2016

I look forward to them being around long enough that kids start saying "What's an LCD?"

OLED Earbuds?
posted by jason_steakums at 4:40 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

To be fair, Guns N Roses is also reuniting to headline Coachella 2016. I mean, it's like, aren't there any actually new or current bands which are worthy of headlining Coachella, or has that festival entirely lost its way?
posted by hippybear at 4:50 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

I swear that they teased breaking up prior to the album before also, and when pressed about it admitted it was just to hit the reset button and make new music with a fresh perspective. I never really believed they were done, but maybe I'm just cynical.
posted by lownote at 4:52 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

Very, very, very excited!
posted by persona au gratin at 4:54 PM on January 6, 2016

I'm super excited - I came a little late to the lcd party. Looking forward to catching them this time around. Yay!
posted by Otherwise at 5:08 PM on January 6, 2016 [2 favorites]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, ye ye ye ye yeah! Yeah! Ye ye ye ye YEAH!
posted by grumpybear69 at 5:19 PM on January 6, 2016 [2 favorites]

One of the funnest every bands to see live. If you like to dance, go.
posted by cell divide at 5:24 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

Never change never change never change never change never change never change never change, this is why I fell in love.
posted by Joey Michaels at 5:27 PM on January 6, 2016 [8 favorites]

LCD Soundsystem is perhaps the best live band I've ever seen. I've seen them twice including on their farewell tour and I'll definitely see them again. James Murphy's songwriting combines humanity, humor, and solid jams in a way that really makes me excited to hear more from him and his bandmates.
posted by sleeping bear at 5:35 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

10 Farewell Tours That Didn't Stick…

Without reading the article, let me guess: Three of them are The Who...
posted by littlejohnnyjewel at 5:41 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

Gotta believe this was all planned from the get-go. I mean, planning a farewell tour, five-night NYC stand, sponsored webstream, juicy kickbacks from the secondary ticket market, a 5xLP box set, theatrical documentary, DVD & blu ray...this stuff doesn't "just happen". And it's all just prelude to the REAL payday, The Coachella Reunion®.

I mean, I don't begrudge them their getting back together, good for them, good for their fans I guess. My question is why break up with such a drawn-out, ruthlessly monetized fanfare?

People want to give James Murphy credit for being a canny observer of culture, a loveable curmudgeon outsider critiquing the foibles of indiedom, I'd say go all the way: this guy knows how to play this game.
posted by anazgnos at 6:13 PM on January 6, 2016 [9 favorites]

Sort of like the 3-night Dead Chicago stand and then a quick announcement "oh we might do more dates". /cynical
posted by hippybear at 6:18 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

To be fair, Guns N Roses is also reuniting to headline Coachella 2016. I mean, it's like, aren't there any actually new or current bands which are worthy of headlining Coachella, or has that festival entirely lost its way?

The hype that a band reunion brings is very exciting to people, moreso than a band they could have seen for 1/3rd-1/20th of the price in a more local, convenient venue. Scarcity sells.

Also LCD Soundsystem is pretty fucking great.
posted by JauntyFedora at 6:40 PM on January 6, 2016 [2 favorites]

a band they could have seen for 1/3rd-1/20th of the price in a more local, convenient venue.

Going to Coachella really fucking sucks.

Seeing Coachella bands play rinky-dink venues in the SGV and LA proper the week before/after is much, much more preferable.
posted by carsonb at 7:00 PM on January 6, 2016 [7 favorites]

It's kind of a bummer Steven Adler and Izzy Stradlin won't be the other three. :(

I didn't realize how much Steve Adler brought to the G'n'R, his drumming really swings. And look at him! He's still rocking the same haircut! He's like an adorable muppet!

Also, I can't think of modern Axl without thinking of this. (For reference.) I hope he's up for it this time.
posted by entropicamericana at 7:01 PM on January 6, 2016 [1 favorite]

I want them to go on tour with At The Drive In and Blood Brothers.
posted by 1adam12 at 7:17 PM on January 6, 2016 [2 favorites]

The only good thing about the last twenty plus years of GNR comes to an end with Duff's return. Nothing against him, mind you, but him back means Tommy Stimson is out. And the only worthwhile part of GNR in at least a generation has been the knowledge that well, at least one of the fucking Replacements is a rich rock star playing to enormous crowds.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 7:51 PM on January 6, 2016 [4 favorites]

I heard his debut from 2002 "Losing My Edge" for the first time four months ago. Funny when it's about you, too.

After 20 years buried in the underground, you emerge top side with 20 years of pop to explore.
posted by four panels at 8:11 PM on January 6, 2016 [3 favorites]

They're apparently going to play other festivals this summer, and I fully expect that they'll play Primavera Sound in Barcelona. Line-up should be announced later this month. If you don't want to deal with Coachella, I strongly recommend checking out Primavera instead, and here's why.

My Primavera Sound dream for this year is for LCD Soundsystem to finish their set, just as the sun comes up over the Med.
posted by daveje at 3:07 AM on January 7, 2016 [2 favorites]

Have you seen Axl Rose?
posted by pxe2000 at 3:46 AM on January 7, 2016

There's an alternate universe where Game Theory is the prestige reunion act at some of these festivals, and I want to go to that timeline.
posted by pxe2000 at 3:47 AM on January 7, 2016 [4 favorites]

aren't there any actually new or current bands which are worthy of headlining Coachella, or has that festival entirely lost its way?
Coachella also has kind of a ongoing "tradition" of bringing back some retired act every year. MBV, Slowdive, Ride, Pulp, Pixies, and many others made their big return there. It's a launchpad for the European fest season.

If you don't want to deal with Coachella, I strongly recommend checking out Primavera instead
... and if you have an extra week to spare, the Porto leg is smaller, but share something like half of the international acts, for around $100 ($150 at the door) for three days. As there's only three concurring stages (both main stages alternate), you get a pretty decent bang-for-buck without having to spend time in queues or travelling between stages.

What I missed about being dead broke last year and very likely this year again is missing my little piece of paradise.
posted by lmfsilva at 4:10 AM on January 7, 2016

Seeing Coachella bands play rinky-dink venues in the SGV and LA proper the week before/after is much, much more preferable.

Which is exactly why they'll pull the routine they do with Sasquatch and Seattle, where they put a time and distance limit in the bands contracts so they can't play any shows in LA or nearby. Or maybe even in like, California and Nevada.

It's not unheard of, and i'd be utterly shocked if anyone like LCD would even bother with anything but the big festivals.

My Primavera Sound dream for this year is for LCD Soundsystem to finish their set, just as the sun comes up over the Med.

I'm really really tired of music festivals. It takes something really special, or a big group of friends and a silly twist(like my friends roofdeck-equipped metro bus) to get me out to one. I've been to too many, and even played a couple on the small stages... Fuck an awful lot of that shit, and the process. If i never sleep in the front seat of a rav4 because some dumbass forgot half the tent again it'll be too soon.

But this, this sounds like my shit.

Protip, if you don't think you would want to fly to spain for a festival... don't look at any of the photos of what the grounds and everything look like. Holy crap.
posted by emptythought at 4:43 AM on January 7, 2016 [2 favorites]

I love music festivals up to a particular size. I'm 45, and the last great festival I attended was last summer, a 100% underground, outdoor 3-day electronic music fest on remote private land, which featured one major international act (Brainkiller from Spain) who is not known outside breakbeat or techno circles. The music varied but was mostly centered around breakbeat, which to me is awesome, and kinda old school in comparison to all the dub and bass wobble. I had a blast, but there were far less than 1000 people and no facilities. I love LCD Soundsystem and will almost certainly buy the new album, but I'd go to an underground or small and intimate music event every time over some giant event like Coachella, which gives me anxiety just thinking about it.
posted by krinklyfig at 5:22 AM on January 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

carsonb: Seeing Coachella bands play rinky-dink venues in the SGV and LA proper the week before/after is much, much more preferable.

That's great if you live in those areas. Otherwise, Coachella and other festivals are great for people who live hours from any reasonably visited venue. I've thought of traveling from New Mexico to the Indio Valley just to return to Coachella, partially out of nostalgia (I went to the first four or five festivals, barring that weird one day festival in 2001), and partially because I don't get out to see much music here. Except now it's crazy huge, and mostly sold out, except for stupid expensive group tickets: tent space + general admission for 4 = $3196 !! That's $266+ per person, per day.

Coachella, you're breaking my heart. (Now I want to go, find somewhere to crash, and see if I can sneak in the venue like friends did, oh a decade ago [fuck, was it that long ago?])
posted by filthy light thief at 7:38 AM on January 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

I guess I'm churlish, but I would have a lot more respect and enthusiasm for a new James Murphy project -- and be 1000% on board and enthusiastic about it -- than I am about an LCD "reunion" with nothing in the interim.

I didn't shell out for the huge farewell concert or the deluxe vinyl box set or anything like that -- bought the "farewell concert" on iTunes and that's about it -- and even without any financial investment, the emotional investment I made in The End Of The Band was enough that now I feel that I've been rooked. A little bit.

I mean, he obviously has the right to do whatever he wants with himself and his past and future identities and manifestations; I have the right not to engage with this manifestation of the band at all. Nobody's getting hurt here. So I'm just Internet Complaining.

But it all feels a bit Tom Sawyery and while that was a great book and all, if I were at Tom Sawyer's funeral, I'd pretty much write him off forever as being kind of a dick. I don't think Murphy's intentions were as manifest when he "ended" LCD Soundsystem, but I'm definitely going to look at any new iterations with an eyebrow cocked and a much more skeptical ear.
posted by Shepherd at 8:55 AM on January 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

Hear, hear Shepherd!
posted by wyndham at 12:24 PM on January 7, 2016

i mean, he talks about that in the post? if he's making new music with the same people he made music with in lcd soundsystem, ultimately it's silly to call it anything else. and it's absurd to think he can never make music with his friends again just to preserve some legacy none of them feel very strongly about anymore.

i find this whole debate tiresome. can't we just enjoy the new music once it's here?
posted by JimBennett at 4:17 PM on January 7, 2016 [4 favorites]

It's not exactly nothing in the interim. He's produced some stuff, most notably Arcade Fire's Reflektor (the one with David Bowie).
posted by sandswipe at 6:00 PM on January 7, 2016

Yay!
posted by Divine_Wino at 7:13 PM on January 7, 2016 [1 favorite]

can't we just enjoy the new music once it's here?

No. Apparently we cannot.

Listen, all you kids on my lawn: being a fan of something isn't about you. It's about the thing you like. And liking that thing doesn't mean you own the thing. Not one iota.

Now, please vacate.
posted by JoeZydeco at 12:24 PM on January 8, 2016 [1 favorite]