Swans Announce June 2020 North American Touring
I haven’t reviewed the new Swans album, Leaving Meaning, and I’m kind of going back and forth on doing so. Not that my fucking opinion matters about it in the slightest — ain’t like Michael Gira is sitting on his hands waiting for me, or probably anyone else for that matter, to put a post up on the internet — but I didn’t even know about the sexual misconduct allegation against him until the last time I posted about the band and now I’m not really sure where I stand on it. Dude got inappropriate and made a lady uncomfortable. It’s extra fucked because she was on his label. I don’t think there was forced sex, rape in the way we used to think of rape, but still. Doesn’t that matter? Shouldn’t it?
Happened to Bobby Liebling from Pentagram a few years ago as well — not that his troubles are all limited to that — and the woman was basically obliterated for it, like it was her fault Liebling‘s been a reputed scumbag his entire adult life. I don’t know. It just seems like for an underground that counts itself as being vaguely progressive in some inclusionary sense, the dominant voices are still awfully white and awfully male generally. It’s a bummer sometimes, complicit as I am in it.
Countdown to some dude disagreeing in five, four, three…
So anyway, here some Swans tour dates. I may review the record, I may not, but I’ve covered the band to this point since they got back in 2010 (and kind of before that too), so there you go:
SWANS announce North American tour dates for 2020
Having released their 15th studio album leaving meaning. to considerable media acclaim, Swans are announcing North American tour dates for spring 2020, which follow a European tour. Very special guest for these shows will be Anna von Hausswolff. Kicking off in Dallas, TX, the tour will finish with two Brooklyn dates at Warsaw June 26 and 27 – full details below.
Swans live will be: Michael Gira (acoustic and electric guitar and voice); Kristof Hahn (lap steel guitar, electric guitar, loops); Phil Puleo (drums, percussion, gizmos); Dana Schechter (bass guitar, lap steel guitar, keys); Christopher Pravdica (bass guitar, loops, keys); Ben Frost (synthesizer, Mellotron, electric guitar).
SWANS NORTH AMERICAN TOUR – SPRING 2020
6/5/2020 Dallas TX Granada Theater
6/6/2020 Austin TX Oblivion Access Festival at Empire Garage
6/9/2020 Los Angeles CA Regent Theatre
6/10/2020 San Francisco CA The Fillmore
6/12/2020 Portland OR Revolution Hall
6/13/2020 Seattle WA The Neptune
6/16/2020 Minneapolis MN Varsity Theater
6/17/2020 Chicago IL Thalia Hall
6/19/2020 Detroit MI El Club
6/20/2020 Toronto ON Lee’s Palace
6/21/2020 Montreal QC Theatre National
6/24/2020 Allston MA Brighton Music Hall
6/25/2020 Philadelphia PA Underground Arts
6/26/2020 Brooklyn NY Warsaw
6/27/2020 Brooklyn NY Warsaw
leaving meaning. was written and produced by Michael Gira and features contributions from recent and former Swans, members of Angels of Light, as well as guest artists Anna and Maria von Hausswolff, Ben Frost, The Necks, Baby Dee, and a Hawk and a Hacksaw.
Michael Gira explains, “leaving meaning. is the first Swans album to be released since I dissolved the lineup of musicians that constituted Swans from 2010 – 2017. Swans is now comprised of a revolving cast of musicians, selected for both their musical and personal character, chosen according to what I intuit best suits the atmosphere in which I’d like to see the songs I’ve written presented. In collaboration with me, the musicians, through their personality, skill and taste, contribute greatly to the arrangement of the material. They’re all people whose work I admire and whose company I personally enjoy.”
http://www.facebook.com/SwansOfficial
https://swans.bandcamp.com
http://www.younggodrecords.com/
