Pitchfork: Bellini Bounce Back with New Album, Tour

Bellini Bounce Back with New Album, Tour

The true test of a band's mettle is not a meteoric rise to success, but survival in the wake of disaster or discord. Bellini's got mettle up the wazoo then, having lasted through the dramatic onstage departure of virtuoso drummer Damon Che, formerly of Don Caballero. Che infamously parted dissed the group during a show in Athens, GA, following the 2002 release of their first album, the Steve Albini-produced Snowing Sun. After replacing Che with new drummer Alexis Fleisig (of Girls Against Boys), bassist Matthew Taylor (of the Romulans) and the husband-wife team of Agostino Tilotta and Giovanna Cacciola (of Uzeda) soldiered on to deliver Small Stones, out last week on Temporary Residence. Recorded in Austin over five days and once again featuring Albini behind the boards, Small Stones signifies sweet revenge for Bellini. Take that, Che:

01 Room Number Five
02 Fuck the Mobile Phone
03 The Exact Distance to the Stars
04 The Buffalo Song
05 Not Any Man
06 Chaser
07 Smiling Fear
08 The Switched Lovers
09 Raymond
10 Agatha

Bellini are currently hittin' the clubs in support of Small Stones. They join forces with Japanese post-rockers Mono this Friday here in Chicago, and take on the rest of America from there. Dates:

09-14 Bloomington, IN - Second Story
09-16 Chicago, IL - Subterranean *
09-17 Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock *
09-20 Seattle, WA - Sunset Tavern *#
09-21 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge *#
09-23 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill *
09-24 Los Angeles, CA - Echo *$
09-25 San Diego, CA - Casbah *$
09-26 Tucson, AZ - Plush *
09-27 Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad *
09-28 Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge *
09-29 Lawrence, KS - The Jackpot Saloon *
09-30 Denton, TX - Hailey's *&
10-01 Austin, TX - Emo's *&
10-02 Houston, TX - Mary Jane's Fat Cat *
10-03 Baton Rouge, LA - Spanish Moon *
10-04 Tallahassee, FL - The Beta Bar *#
10-06 Orlando, FL - Will's Pub *#
10-07 Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds *
10-08 Atlanta, GA - The Earl *
10-09 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506 *
10-10 Richmond, VA - Nanci Raygun *
10-11 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church *
10-12 Baltimore, MD - Talking Head *
10-13 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge *
10-14 Brooklyn, NY - Northsix *
10-15 Cambridge, MA - TT the Bear's *
10-21 Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club %
10-22 Chicago, IL - Beat Kitchen %