Our friends in the band Low have been involved in a project to help increase adult literacy in Kenya. They’ve used money from Christmas shows this year and in 2005 to help fund the building of a school in Namuncha, Kenya.

You can read a bit about all this from Low’s Alan Sparhawk, on Low’s own website.

There’s also an article about all this in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

And then, you can read a whole lot more about the Maasai School Project…

This Dave Fridmann produced gem from Low’s Drums & Guns is dark, gloomy, sparce, and powerful while still managing to be my new favorite ringtone. Low are back and as morose as ever on this track, turning a song that consists almost solely of vocals, organ, and guitars into something that sticks in your head like superglue. Take a listen!

There’s a new video for the song Breaker, directed by Marc Gartman, from Low’s just-released album Drums and Guns. And while several people have claimed that it makes them a little nauseous, we think it’s pretty great.

Here it is! You be the judge.

A galloping exploration through vocal beauty and continuously looming guitar work, Tiny Vipers’ On This Side is a wonderful tune for your late night summer drives over dark mountain roads.

All of the bands/artists/comedians participating in our various 20th anniversary revelries have agreed to play for free in the hopes of raising a bunch of money to give to a bunch of worthwhile organizations. Basically, we’re pooling the money we make, dividing it amongst everyone playing and each band/artist/comedian picks a recipient.

Herewith the list of organizations to which these folks have elected to donate their share of the proceeds. And, sometimes, where possible, we’ve included a bit of info about…

Our friends at Fantagraphics Books have a whole bunch of cool stuff planned for the month of August at their store here in Seattle. This whole bunch of cool stuff includes an appearance by our old pal and former Low member Zak Sally!

Here are the details:

Zak Sally, a notorious Minneapolis-based musician and cartoonist will perform music and sign books on Saturday, August 2 from 6:00 – 9:00 PM at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery (1201 S. Vale Street, Seattle…

Well, well, it’s November already and I’m sure I probably don’t need to mention it, but if you don’t vote on November 4th then you are a total asshole. Moving on…

In a somewhat unprecedented but sure to be financially viable move, Sub Pop will only release vinyl singles for the remainder of 2008 or until gay marriage is legal in Washington state, whichever comes first. In celebration of Obama’s win tomorrow we are letting loose onto the earth three singles…

Our old pal Zak Sally (musician [Low, Dirty Three, Kid Dakota, etc.], cartoonist Recidivist, Sammy the Mouse, the forthcoming Like A Dog hardcover collection due this fall from Fantagraphics], and publisher La Mano 21) somehow ended up making a record; wrote, sang and played every damn thing on it, recorded it with his old pal Ben Durrant (Andrew Bird, Dosh, Shearwater) at Crazy Beast Studios.

It’s called Fear of Song (as in: “Zak Sally’s Fear of Song,” get it?). 9 songs…