popwreckoning

L.A. five-piece Rooney is gearing up to release a new, limited-pressing EP, Wild One and will embark on a national headlining tour beginning November 27 at Los Angeles’ El Rey Theatre, in support. Fans can get a first listen to Wild One as the EP will be available exclusively at these upcoming shows before becoming available at iTunes in early 2010. Only 5,000 EPs will be pressed.

Wild One was produced and engineered by the band, and features four brand-new tracks. The EP was mixed by Dave Trumfio (Wilco, Built to Spill and My Morning Jacket) and mastered by Dave McNair (Willie Nelson, Patti Smith.)

After signing with a major record label and working with some of the music industry’s most esteemed producers since their inception, the band is proud to showcase this collection of songs they crafted entirely themselves. Rooney’s latest offering features some of their best, most inventive and original material to date.

Rooney was signed to Geffen Records in 2002 after independently releasing a series of EPs and demos. They released their self-titled debut in 2003; shortly thereafter they saw significant success with single “I’m Shakin” and a cameo appearance on hit teen drama The O.C. The band has toured with a variety of superstar acts including Kings of Leon, Weezer and The Strokes.

Rooney is Robert Schwartzman (vocals/guitar), Taylor Locke (guitar / vocals), Ned Brower (drums / vocals), Louie Stephens (keyboard / vocals) and Matthew Winter (bass).

Track Listing:
1. Suckceed
2. I Don’t Understand
3. Wild One
4. The Days Keep Going By

Tour Dates:
Nov. 27 – El Rey Theatre / Los Angeles, CA
Nov. 28 – The Glass House / Pomona, CA
Nov. 29 – Slim’s / San Francisco, CA
Nov. 30 – WOW Hall / Eugene, OR
Dec. 1 – Hawthorne Theatre / Portland, OR
Dec. 2 – El Corazon / Seattle, WA
Dec. 4 – In the Venue-Club Sound / Salt Lake City, UT
Dec. 5 – Bluebird Theatre / Denver, CO
Dec. 7 – Station 4 / St. Paul, MN
Dec. 8 – House of Blues / Chicago, IL
Dec. 9 – Majestic Theatre / Detroit, MI
Dec. 10 – Beachland Ballroom / Cleveland, OH
Dec. 11 – Webster Hall / New York, NY
Dec. 12 – Club Stage / Baltimore, MD
Dec. 13 – Middle East Underground / Cambridge, MA
Dec. 14 – The Note / West Chester, PA
Dec. 16 – The Loft / Atlanta, GA
Dec. 17 – Tipitina’s Uptown / New Orleans, LA
Dec. 18 – Meridian / Houston, TX
Dec. 19 – Emo’s / Austin, TX
Dec. 20 – Granada Theatre / Dallas, TX
Dec. 22 – Club Congress / Tucson, AZ

Rooney: website | myspace

Are you ready for the musical orgasm of your life?  Take one of the single most influential rock bands ever, (in this case, the legendary R.E.M.), tie in a classy and famed New York City venue (Carnegie Hall), and pepper in about 20 of the biggest names in indie rock and you’ve got yourself one helluva night.  And one helluva tribute show.  And one helluva story at the water cooler the next morning.  Have you ever wanted to be the envy of all your friends?  Well don’t worry,  I’ve got just the thing for you.  Attend this show and no one will ever try to steal your lunch money again.

We’re talking the genius of R.E.M. and the on-stage help from some of these not too shabby musicians: Throwing Muses, Elf Power, Ingrid Michaelson, Kimya Dawson, Glen Hansard (of The Frames), Bob Mould (of Husker Du), Rhett Miller (of Old 97′s), Rachael Yamagata, The Feelies, Guster, Patti Smith, The Apples in Stereo and house band Calexico.  Oh, there are more scheduled performers and I could go on, but I’m too excited to type.  In fact, I was imagining an ”It’s The End Of The World” mash-up, but I had to stop because my mind was about to explode and laptops are just really hard to clean.

And if you think I’m lying because a line-up this good is inconceivable, feel free to find our more about the event here.  But please click at your own risk.  I can’t be held responsible if you fall off your chair out of sheer excitement.  Trust me, I almost broke my ass.

There’s even a chance to purchase VIP tickets that get you into an exclusive after-party.  You get to mingle with the bands and chow down to some seriously fancy eats courtesy of Chef Mario Batali.  But if this isn’t your scene, you can still find regular tickets here.  If this event weren’t cool enough as is, 100% of the net proceeds will be donated to musical education programs for underprivileged youth.  So, now you can rock out and do your part to keep the fine tradition of music alive and well! 

So come on out and support some of your favorite indie artists paying tribute to one of the best bands in American rock n’ roll!  I know it’s Carnegie Hall and what-not, but whatever you do please try to leave those opera glasses at home.