Ex-Art Brut Member Chris Chinchilla Forms Band

Chinchilla, the guitarist famed for quitting Art Brut via LiveJournal, has a new gig. Kids, say hello to Macaca Mulatta. In addition to Chinchilla, the group includes ex-Rhesus (a late London punk band) members Arran Lovechild (drums) and Jim Rhesus (bass). Curious readers can download the three mp3s available on MM's official website (all of which were recorded at an "old distillery in Deptford", Chinchilla told us in an e-mail interview), while lucky London and New York residents can scope the trio out in the flesh next month.

Dates:

04-06 London, England - The Good Ship
04-08 London, England - Pleasure Unit
04-14 London, England - The Windwill
04-25 New York, NY - Cake Shop
04-28 New York, NY - Sin-é<br> 04-30 New York, NY - Pianos
06-01 Bath, England - Porter Cellar Bar

Chinchilla told Pitchfork that MaMu (take that, Washington Mutual!) plans to keep on truckin' with the rehearsing/recording regimen until they obtain some high-quality demos. He explained, "Recording-wise, the song list is slowly building. The songs recorded so far are rather downbeat. We have more positive songs to record, and some instrumental tracks too :-)" Rock fingers! \m/\m/

As for relations with Art Brut? Chinchilla says things are good, though Bang Bang Rock & Roll's success makes the dudes a little hard to pin down. "Mainly due to them being out of the country most of the time and both sides getting into that situation of waiting for the other to make the first move... I must admit now that I regret leaving the band and miss it a lot, but at the time it was something I had to do, and now that I'm largely over that I need my fix of Rock & Roll again, hence a new band, new challenges, starting all over again. It's exciting but just taking a lot longer and a lot more of a struggle than I was expecting :-/"

We must comment that his emoticon usage is seriously adorable.

As for Chinchilla's solo plate? Firstly, an undertaking he deems the "Arts Project" is available at www.orderoutofchaosornot.com, though it's on the back burner while Macaca Mulatta work toward a two-day London event in July. Yeah, we don't know what's going on either.

Also on the agenda is the guitarist's Podcast, which he uses to let his music reviews and DJing skills be known. It has "proved quite popular," Chinchilla claims. "I have a long term plan which I'm slowing putting into operation..." If there was an emoticon for sinisterly rubbing your fingers together, we're pretty sure he would have used it there.

* Pitchfork Review: Art Brut: Bang Bang Rock & Roll
* Pitchfork News: Art Brut Guitarist Quits Band Via LiveJournal

Macaca Mulatta: http://www.macacamulatta.com