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Music News: Mac DeMarco hiring dank meme specialist

Jay Gabler's Mac DeMarco job application
Jay Gabler's Mac DeMarco job applicationimage courtesy the artist

by Jay Gabler

April 24, 2017

Mac DeMarco is hiring an assistant to help run his fan club, and only those proficient in dank memes need apply. "This position will be great for a college student!" reads the job listing. "Must live in the 5 borough area and willing to come to Brooklyn at least one day a week." To apply, "please send cover letter explaining experience, resume and your dankest Mac meme or Mac related gif to sarah@panacherock.com." (Stereogum)

Radiohead news — both heavy and light

Radiohead are booked to play a show in Tel Aviv on July 19, their first time in Israel since 2000. Now, artists including Roger Waters, Thurston Moore, and Tunde Adebimpe (TV On The Radio) have signed an open letter asking Radiohead to cancel the show.

"We'd like to ask you to think again," reads the letter, which is also signed by non-musical figures including Desmond Tutu, "because by playing in Israel you'll be playing in a state where, UN rapporteurs say, 'a system of apartheid has been imposed on the Palestinian people.'" (Billboard)

Whatever happens with the Israel show, the band's legacy will be forever preserved in the form of a species of ant named after them. Sericomyrmex radioheadi are a species of Amazonian ant that were named for the band by the two Smithsonian scientists who discovered the species. "We wanted to honor their music," said one. "But more importantly, we wanted to acknowledge the conservation efforts of the band members, especially in raising climate-change awareness." (Pitchfork)

Tori Amos announces new album

Tori Amos has announced her 15th studio album: Native Invader will be out in September. The songs, Amos says, are about "being pushed by the Muses to find different ways of facing unforeseen challenges and in some cases dangerous conflicts." She'll also tour behind the album, with dates TBA. (Rolling Stone)

M83 go to the circus

Ringling Bros. may be closing down, but Cirque du Soleil is still going strong — and their new show, VOLTA, is soundtracked by M83. The show, which opened last week in Montreal, "tells a spellbinding story about the freedom to choose and the thrill of blazing your own trail," according to the show's website. "Inspired in part by the adventurous spirit that fuels the culture of action sports, the show weaves acrobatics in a visually striking world driven by a stirring melodic score." A soundtrack album release seems likely, reports Pitchfork.

Jack Black, Fred Armisen, Henry Rollins cameo in Ty Segall video

Ty Segall has released an official video for his song "Break a Guitar." In the clip, features guests including Jack Black, Fred Armisen, and Henry Rollins. The video "comes to a gruesome conclusion in an all-white room," explains Rolling Stone, "where Segall's head literally explodes, Scanners-style, while typing on a laptop."