Pitchfork

Mark this historic date in your Hello Kitty mini-planner, with hearts over the "i"'s: the Twee Renaissance has officially begun. Sub Pop Records, sometime home to grunge powerhouses, emo superstars, and indie stalwarts, has finally succumbed to the effervescent charm of New Zealand's latter-day indie-pop royalty, the Brunettes. The venerable Seattle label has signed the band and plans to release their to-be-titled third full-length sometime in the sunny summer of 2006. Which, the hemispherically astute might point out, equates to winter in the Brunettes' scenic homeland.

The twee-riffic magic of the Brunettes radiates from a core coupling of brown-maned cutie-pies: husband-and-wife Jonathan Bree and Heather Mansfield. Each possesses formidable pipes and sings in a manner that will make you want to touch your naughty bits (Bree harboring a serious Velvet Underground fixation, an interesting counterpoint to Mansfield's '60s girl-group-with-attitude leanings). Live the pair are joined by any number of buoyant cohorts and an array of instrumentation: clarinet, glockenspiel, trumpet and banjo all complement that ol' guitars-and-drums sound. And don't the kids just love it?

Sub Pop co-founder Jonathan Poneman was happy to share these wisdom nuggets: "Having shimmied, curtsied and barnstormed their way into the hearts of North America, I was left no choice but to sign The Brunettes...it's their unerring ability to captivate, both on stage and in the studio, that inspired me to purchase their souls." Fucking satanic, dude! And awesome. So watch as the Brunettes vie with the Long Blondes and Blonde Redhead in 2006 for sovereignty.

The Brunettes have released two full-lengths and two EPs on their native New Zealand's Lil' Chief Records, bearing such sickeningly precious titles as Holding Hands, Feeding Ducks and When Ice Met Cream. Just last year they dropped the delicious sophomore LP Mars Loves Venus and this year they dazzled U.S. audiences opening for the Shins and Rilo Kiley and prancing about the stage adorned in makeshift Olsen Twins masks. As it happens, they are pairing with those life-altering Shins once again for a new-year's jaunt across Australia.

This gentleman prefers Brunettes:

01-05 Brisbane, Australia - Rics Bar *
01-06 Brisbane, Australia - The Tivoli #
01-07 Melbourne, Australia - The Corner #
01-08 Sydney, Australia - Metro Theatre #
01-12 Sydney, Australia - Hopetoun Hotel
01-14 Melbourne, Australia - Northcote Social Club
01-20 Auckland, New Zealand - Ericcson Stadium (Big Day Out Festival)

* with the Zebras
# with the Shins

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