Hi friends, we've been a bit busy since our last post.

Hi LP4 fans,

As you can see by the image of HAM we've lately been obsessed with the idea of space chimps for no good goddamn reason. In our research on we ran across this article from TimesOnline.com that chronicled how sadly our heroic chimp-o-nauts have had it over the years. Luckily, Save the Chimps has been doing some good work and you can even adopt a chimp. We particularly like Gromek the chimp because he has bad-ass name so expect that name to appear in some lyric at some point.

At this point, you are likely asking "Sure primates in space are cool but what else have you guys been up to?" OK then...

Well, we've been pretty busy in the studio lately and so haven't been out playing shows or much else. We did have a chance to open for Shonen Knife on November 9th at Mangos (Larry and I are huge fans) but once we realized it had become a four band bill on a Monday night we thought it would best for everyone concerned to not clog up the bill with four bands and so we gracefully bowed out. Still, if you are in Houston you should definitely check out the show, we'll be there (of course off the stage).

Personal commitments forced us to have to cancel our playing two excellent festivals (This fall's Block Party on November 14th and 15th and a cool psych fest being put on by our friends at Golden Cities on December 5th). Sadly, it doesn't look like we're going to play any shows before year's end which is a shame because shows are always fun.

On the bright side, we have been pretty productive in the studio.

We have a split 7" with our good friends ST37 that we hope to have out early next year. The song we've picked is one called "Monster" which is pretty much what you'd expect when people say "Texas Psych" and ST37 are doing a cover of Helios Creeds' "Lactating Purple." We're looking at a run of like 300 with silk screened covers (prepared and designed by a local artist and screened by ourselves).

We also expect to have a CD album of odds and sods we've had kicking around for some time in the spring of 2010. It's stuff that was mainly recorded and written between Killing You With Rock and All Things Are Light. The material is a lot more focused on melody than just chimpy guitar riffs so if you are expecting the muscle riffs of ATAL you may be disappointed beyond the re-issue of HAWG!. That said it's solid stuff and if you've kept up with our myspace you've likely heard older mixes and recordings of songs like "Porno In the sink" (which we re-recorded with a drunken piano part that's pretty aces).

Add to that the fact that we are looking at releasing a full length LP by the end of 2010 of all new material. If you are in Houston you've likely heard some of the material live but some of it is stuff that is still in the gestation stage of songwriting. The material though seems to be along the lines of ATAL in terms of the heavy riffage. If You've heard the demo of "She Did Not Know" on our Myspace you'll know what to expect.

And as for recent press...

Pauling On Line: The Good folks at this blog devoted to our favorite scientist gave us a passing mention in this article which was an epic thrill for us: Clarifying Three Widespread Quotes

The Examiner: Trevor Wallace wrote a nice interview with us: The Linus Pauling Quartet: space, dope, monkeys and D & D

Astral Headspace: The folks here dug back and gave their (you could say belated) top 10 albums of 2007 and All Things are Light scored the bronze: All Things Are Light - Linus Pauling Quartet #3. Thanks guys, that's awful nice.

Here is a post for You Tube that they made for "Waiting For the Axe To Fall":



Well that is all friends.

And so Clinton came down from the mountain with these 5 commandments.

Here is an excerpt from an e-mail conversation Clinton and I had yesterday in which Clinton lays out the 5 commandments of Linus.

Here are some things that LP4 members should NOT do:

1) Give guitars to women. Especially vintage guitars. No good can ever come of this.

2) Text women during practice, even during exceptionally long and tedious guitar solos by one's bandmates

3) Avoid load-out so they can get some booty

4) Go to see highly questionable shows just because some woman they are into is there

and ESPECIALLY

5) Give up drinking for any reason other than avoiding imminent, massive organ failure - and even then, it comes up for a vote

These Principles have stood the force of time, reinforced by the Wisdom of all, and continuing to flout them will undoubtedly result in exceptionally Bad Karma.

We're playing Saturday August 1st with ST37 & Giant Princess! Come on Out!

Poster By Lindsey Simard
(Right click to enlarge)

Hey comic book fans, you may recognize the artwork above as being that of Lindsey Simard of the KTRU Post-Punk Show as well as the much beloved Weak Highlights comix. Colorful awesomeness isn't it! The show itself should be just as awesome. We've got the ever bad-ass Giant Princess opening the show who are a band that sound like what an Indie-Pop band would sound like if they ever were on International Artists. I personally really love the song Adventure and it's almost obscene to have them open given how balls out their live shows are. In Headlining Middle slot (this is Houston after all and nobody wants to play last) is Austin's Psych-rock masters ST37. We've played with them a million times over the years but this time should be special as it's their first tour in I believe Five years. I remember driving up to Austin to see their last record release a few years back and all I could say was it was worth the drive. So come on out, set a spell, and enjoy a fine night of music at (our home base) Rudyards.

It's July and we're playing Mangos with Fired For Walking and Novox on the 18th

Anyhow we had a blast the Harvey Milk/Bolt show last month. Bolt are fast becoming one of the more fun bands in Houston (shamelessly swiping from T-Rex and early Bowie) though arguably the normally excellent sound at Rudz failed them for some reason. I'd seen them three times now and this was the one time they seemed off to me. Hey no worries, I was pretty sick that day with a horrible cold and had to clock in a show. I think that's the first time I'd done that but it was all I could do to just hit the notes given my condition. Playing sick is pretty lame, I tell you what, but the show must go on. It reminds me of a time where I had a hundred degree fever (I later passed out at home I was so sick) and there I was laying on the studio couch as we went over remixes - stupid! Anyhow, I digress, Point is Harvey Milk closed and holy shit were they amazing. Even through all my sickness drama I was still blown away. The band was probably one of the most heavy bands I'd ever seen and the singer sang with a roar that would have made a grizzly stop its charge, cower, and run away. Fucking amazing! I hope they make it back in town and I'm in better health.

That was back in May but this is July and we have a show coming up now that Clinton is back from the EU...
Nice poster huh? One of the Fired For Walking dudes did it. FFW are the band that still carries the 90's torch with flair and Novox are one of Houston's best (if criminally under appreciated) instrumental rock acts. Plus it's at Mangos (my FPH editor and chief's wife's new restaurant/bar/venue) where you can get your vegetarian/vegan on and order at ODB for breakfast or choose between a Castro or Zapatista pizza. Anyhow, see ya there no?


Oh and PS, we're playing with our good buddies ST37 and Giant Princess at Rudyard's on August 1st too so Mark you calendars.

Saturday 23 May 2009 - Harvey Milk, LP4, Bolt, & Ghost Town Electric @ Rudyards

Yes, we're playing with Athens, GA's heavy Harvey Milk, local cool cats Roky Moon and Bolt (who sound like they absorbed every T-Rex and Bowie record from the early 70's in a good way and thankfully left the corny clothes and make-up behind), and power trio Ghost Town Electric. It's Four Bands so the doors are at 8 with music at starting at 9pm so get there early.

Hope to see you there.

All Things Are Light goes digital

Yes, all things are light is now available on most music services including EMusic, ITunes, Yahoo Music, La La, and a whole bunch more.

So if you missed out on our vinyl copies here is you chance to score the digital version. and dont forget all the inserts, lyrics, and art are available on the LP's media page.

Monday April 27th - Hearts of Animals VS. The LP4 (Free!!!)

Hey friends,

I know this show is a Monday but it will run only from 10PM to 12AM so we promise to get you enough sleep to survive work on the following Tuesday. We're gonna be playing at Boondocks with Hearts of Animals, Mlee Suprean, who is both one of my favorite artists and one of my favorite people in the world. Bonus is it will be our friend Carlos Sanchez's birthday (he of of Young Mammals fame). We will debut a new song Clinton wrote called "She did not know" (that you can preview on our Myspace) with all the standard LP4 tropes - heavy guitars and goofy lyrics about bongs. So it's going to be a fun night so come on over.

Oh yes and here is artist Chris Cascio's poster:

Sandy Ewen, Wols, Dogebbi - Sunday 05 April 2009 @ Avant Garden

(Just a reminder that this Sunday I am helping put on this lovely show.)

Signal To Noise Magazine and Sound Exchange Present:

Sandy Ewen, Wols, and Dogebbi
Sunday 5 April 2009
At Avant Garden
411 WestheimerHouston, TX 77006
832-519-1429
$6.00
7PM -10PM

Sandy Ewen - Employing various tools and techniques, Sandy Ewen coaxes sounds from her guitar that have a fragile fleeting otherworldly beauty. That may be because Austin's Ewen seems to approach the guitar less as an instrument than as a canvas. This is nothing new for fans of her band The Weird Weeds (pictured at left) - a band who Popmatters raves "can make you scratch your head, cover your ears, or dance with abandon. If you let it, though, it can also break your heart.” while Pitchfork describes them as a band that "excel at creating moods and demolishing formulaic songwriting." This evening Ewen will be performing an improvised set of music that will show why Austin 360 calls her an "improvisational guitar wunderkind."

"...seeing such unusual instrumentation used in such a genuine way is a real treat. The bows, bells, and drums littered about the stage were gradually employed to their various effects, yet at no point did anything feel unnecessary. Instead it felt like the joy of experimentation tempered by the hard-headed realism of musical invention. A friend I ran into there who swore he saw her employ an E-bow found out after the show that it was actually a piece of chalk used as a slide." - Tiny Mix Tapes (Weird Weeds review)

Artist Links:Weird Weeds ( http://www.weirdweeds.com/ )
Weird Weeds on Myspace ( http://www.myspace.com/weirdweeds )
Autobus Records ( http://www.autobusrecs.com/?page_id=11 )

Wols- Amye McCarther is one of Houston's most engaging songwriters. Her low-fi cassette recordings are essential examples of how melody, voice, and instrumentation can say more through simplicity and understatement than the most baroque of recordings. Live performances are another matter entirely as, without compromising the emotion and wit of the recordings, she surrounds herself with musicians who add color and texture to expand on the original song structures. By design the musicians - who have included Will Adams (Black Snakes & Kangaroo), Abe Houck (Hungry Villagers), Mlee Suprean (Hearts of Animals), and the lovely guitar work of brother Jake McCarther- perform without rehearsal and follow McCarther's muse to wherever it leads. It's performing without a net to be sure but that openness to the moment is what makes each performance singular and demanding of attention. (Photo John Van)

Wols ( http://www.myspace.com/wolsies )
Bonernap Cassettes ( http://www.myspace.com/bonernapcassettes )

Dogebbi - Michelle Yom incorporates her classical training as a flautist (she received a masters from NYU) with a love for improvisation and takes the flute to places most people would never expect. With a range that encompasses the classical and jazz traditions to the more abstract and experimental, it is music that celebrates the versatility of the instrument and the joy of music's communicative embrace. For this performance, Yom will be performing with Spike The Percussionist (Astrogenic Hallucinauting) a noiz freak who studied under master percussionist Dr. Norman Weinberg. Together, the duo goes by the name Doggebbi - named after a breed of monsters in Korean folklore possessing supernatural powers and a penchant for pulling pranks on humans (transforming themselves into furniture and such). It's an appropriate name for music that overflows with intelligence, energy, and mischievous wit.

Dogebbi (http://www.myspace.com/doggebi)
Michelle Yom ( http://michelleyom.com/ )
Michelle Yom ( http://www.myspace.com/michelleyomflute ) Astrogenic Hallucinauting ( http://www.myspace.com/astrogenic )

Westheimer Block Party!!!

Well we played the Westheimer Block Party this past Saturday and it was an interesting experience. I mean we've played festivals but they always seem to be indoors and we've played outdoors before but that was someone's backyard. This was outside, on a fairly wide stage with monitors and the whole shebang. So this was new territory for us and while we had a great time it was, shall we say, not our best live performance err... I mean it approached the godhead of musical experiences.

Still, despite that whole train wreck of a show the tedious crush of fans and adulation, we had a good time and a dude - who I think may be one of the Valient Thorr dudes or a damn good doppelganger - said he really dug it and someone told me a bunch of pot smokers also dug it too. So, go figure, stoners and heavy rockin' bearded dudes liked our set to at least some degree.

But lets look at the LP4 show elements in detail here:

A. Huge throng of onlookers bowing to our greatness. Clearly awed by our mighty rock.
B. What may seem like an empty 10 foot gap between band and audience is really where the time space singularity (caused by our volume) exists. Any audience member foolish enough to step too close would be sucked up into another dimension.
C.1 Not poor fashion sense, I am merely ahead of my time. Right now this may appear to be a fashion disaster but I am already told that Muccia Prada's fall line up will be following my lead.
C.2 What may have sounded like an out of tune guitar to the common person is actually a rebellion against the oppressive wohl temperiert 12 note per octave scale. Fuck Bach!
D. Charlie studied with George Balanchine and here is putting his years of rigorous dance instruction to the test. This move is known as "la singe."
E. Beer is what fuels this engine.
F. For legal reasons, I can't say what powers this engine.
G. It's not that we rushed our soundcheck and therefore Clinton couldn't hear the rest of the band. No not at all, it is that his tone is so perfect as to cause all other sounds to be phased out.

Yes, that's right if you missed this show we were freaking awesome and boy did you miss out!*

Thanks Omar and the Free press for having us,
We had fun

*On the other hand, if you saw the show - our sincerest apologies

January 31st 2009 - MV & EE, LP4 and WOLS!!! (with Eli Brumbaugh Poster)

WOW! Artist Eli Brumbaugh did this poster for us and we think it's jaw dropping! To really appreciate this poster I suggest you click on the image to enlarge it. You should make it a point to see this show as we're playing with two mind crushing bands:


MV & EE Are simply stunning! Are they playing a folky set, an trippy improvised psych set, or a heavy rocking set with The Golden Road? I have no Idea but I saw them last Year at Terrastock doing the latter two and they were freaking amazing. Highly recommended freaky psych folksters!

Wols is Amye McCarther's ragged improv beast that killed me last December. Not sure who is playing in it Will Adams (more than likely), Mlee Suprean (maybe), but whoever she drops it's gonna kill! The songs are Myspace are older songs but her skeletal compositions take wild turns and get get epic when they hit the stage. So point is don't be late!