Lots of good tour news last week.  I bought tickets to see Godspeed but got my scheduling messed up because it's on the same day as Coachella.  Damn, would've loved to see Godspeed at Big Sur, CA.  If you ever get a chance to drive up the California coast, do it.  But remember, it's a LONG drive so make sure you plan accordingly.

When we saw Swervedriver at Coachella they played a very solid set in a tent that was barely 1/3 full. Lame. One way for Adam Franklin & Co. to gain new fans amongst a younger crowd is to cover a song by a band like the beloved Wolf Parade. Bingo: On a forthcoming 7," Franklin takes on Boeckner-fronted Apologies To The Queen Mary rocker "Shine A Light" and Dan's Handsome Furs are set to do a still-unannounced track by Swervedriver. It'll be available digitally and as a limited edition "Shine A Light" 7" on colored vinyl via White Whale. We're told to expect the finished platter in "early summer," though Franklin's chilled, atmospheric, and haunted (but somehow tonally sunny) take's already available via iTunes. Or, you can stream it at MySpace. Pick a good song, Dan and Alexi. The popular "Duel" would be appropriate. - Source

Having proven their re-formed worth at Coachella late last month, a recently reactivated Swervedriver will kick off their first proper North American tour in quite some time tonight in Omaha. The gas pedal-gazers will floor it across this fair continent of ours for the next three weeks or so before hitting the brakes June 14 in Chicago. - Source

They've been away for so long, but alt-rockers Swervedriver are making up for their absence with the addition of even more reunion tour dates, including a run of shows at the end of May with Film School. However, the current list of Swervedriver dates still doesn't quite match the original promise of a full-blown world tour, so let's hope the band has a few shows still stuck in its flannel sleeves. - Source

After first learning about the collaboration from Interpol's Sam Forgarino and Swervedriver's Adam Franklin, it seemed like it was going to be something that was too good to be true. Throw in the fact that the EP is going to be released on Record Store Day made the whole thing sound even more intriguing - Source

On February 28, SWERVEDRIVER's going to release a compilation called, "Juggernaut Rides". It's a 2CD set with some favorites, some b-sides, and a couple of unreleased tracks. There are also some tracks that have previously only been available on vinyl so I'm really looking forward to owning a clean copy of "Why Say Yeah" and "My Zephyr".

Regarding the two new songs, Adam Franklin (lead singer) was quoted in an old interview:

"There was a song called 'Just Sometimes' that I wanted to re-name 'Song of Laughter & Forgetting' which has all the instruments and melodies going round in cycles, a song called 'Neon Lights Glow' which is ten minutes long, has a string section on it and is a cross between 'Neon Lights' by Kraftwerk, 'Rumble' by Duane Eddy and 'Signed DC' by Love, and 'Ennio II' which has an Ennio Morricone feel but is really just a strange little instrumental. None of these tracks are available as far as I know, but what do I know?"

Over at the the Official Swervedriver Website, they just put up four live albums that are free to download. Adam Franklink, the lead singer, has given his "okay" for the release just as long as they are traded freely and not sold. The albums have been compiled by the Swervedriver forum members using the best live versions of each track. If you want higher quality versions then you can download the FLAC version from Sharing The Groove. I'm download that version right now and I'll be seeding this Bit Torrent for another week or so.

SWERVEDRIVER's drummer Jez did a recent interview on Glamorama and pretty much said that Swervedriver is no more. The lead singer, Adam Franklin, always seems to dodge the question and leaves the door open to more Swervedriver records in the future. But in true Swervedriver style, Jez didn't quite put the nail in the coffin when he said, "I'd never say never." It's a great interview with Mike Kegler (the interviewer) asking if there's a possibility of a Swerve box set ala the recent Ride reissues plus a decent history of the band's constant record label problems. I used to run the official site, swervie.com, but now it just redirects to the wonderful www.swervedriver.com

In the past eight years, Swervedriver have been dropped by 3 different record labels and have lost two band members. Why haven't they broken up? Adam Franklin sat down with me in the lobby of the Sunset Hyatt on April 7, 1998 to talk about it.

Several years ago, Alan Mcgee was driving in Los Angeles with Guy Chadwick [ex-House of Love] when someone popped in a tape with Swervedriver's demo "Son of Mustang Ford." He instantly signed them to the Creation label and the first "car-band" was born. The initial line up was Adam (guitars and vocals), Adrian "Adi" Vynes (bass), Jimmy Hartridge (guitars), and Graham Bonner (drums), but that would soon change.