Pitchfork

Photos by Denny Renshaw (left) and Matt Wignall (right)

Sufjan's journalistic coup continues! This week our bard slacked off on his 50 States Project by interviewing bandmate and My Brightest Diamond sorceress Shara Worden as part of Asthmatic Kitty's "Half-Week of My Brightest Diamond" (yes, it's officially a trend now).

Sufjan-- who recently reviewed a MBD gig, along with other dabblings in the written word-- talked My Brightest Diamond's just-released remix disc Tear It Down with Shara, who declared, "Genre is a bit overrated, so I like the concept of taking these tunes out of the indie rock world and letting them breathe in a different context." We can dig it.

Mr. Stevens also waxes philosophical about the essence of remixing and whether his own tunes are suited to such a treatment. Survey says...not so much. "I've never embarked on this before," wrote Sufjan, "and I have the feeling my songs don't lend themselves to remixing." Shara thinks otherwise, and the two basically geek out about remixes and music and clubbing(!) for a few more paragraphs. Plus Shara calls Madonna "a queen with a iron fist and honey for hips." It's cute. Read the whole thing here.

While you're around, check out the wacky video for Gold Chains' remix of "Freak Out", some rare/early/live MBD cuts on Asthmatic's AKRadio, and Shara's list of her favorite "electronicish" records, which includes Peter Gabriel, Four Tet, the Books, Pierre Boulez, and, yes, Throbbing Gristle.

My Brightest Diamond hits the road with the Decemberists later this month, following a couple SXSW engagements.

My Brightest Diamond:

03-15 Austin, TX - Emo's Lounge (SXSW) %
03-16 Austin, TX - Antone's (SXSW) ^
03-21 Jersey City, NJ - Loews Theater #
03-22 Jersey City, NJ - Loews Theater #
03-23 Boston, MA - Avalon #
03-24 Boston, MA - Avalon #
03-26 North Bethesda, MD - Strathmore Music Center #
03-27 Upper Darby, PA - Tower Theater #
03-28 Northampton, MA - Iron Horse Music Hall
03-30 Buffalo, NY - Center for the Arts #
03-31 Grantham, PA - Messiah College #
04-01 Norfolk, VA - The Norva #
04-02 Raleigh, NC - Meymendi Concert Hall #
04-04 Knoxville, TN - Tennessee Theater #
04-06 Cincinnati, OH - Memorial Hall *
04-08 Orlando, FL - Hard Rock Live #
04-09 Tallahassee, FL - The Moon #
04-10 Birmingham, AL - Alabama Theater #
04-11 Memphis, TN - New Daisy Theater #
04-13 Louisville, KY - Brown Theater #
04-14 St. Louis, MO - The Pageant #
04-15 Champaign, IL - Foellinger Auditorium (University of Illinois) #
04-16 Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theater #
04-18 Chicago, IL - Riviera Theater #
04-19 Chicago, IL - Riviera Theater #
04-20 Madison, WI - Orpheum Theater #
04-21 Kansas City, MO - Uptown Theater #
04-22 Denver, CO - Fillmore Auditorium #
04-25 San Francisco, CA - Warfield Theater #
04-26 San Francisco, CA - Warfield Theater #
04-27 Las Vegas, NV - House of Blues #
04-30 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour $
05-03 Eugene, OR - McDonald Theater #
05-04 Seattle, WA - Paramount Theater #
05-05 Bellingham, WA - Western Washington University #
05-30 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom

% with Castanets, Shapes and Sizes, Rafter, Old Time Relijun, the Weird Weeds, the Field Guides
^ with Margot & the Nuclear So and So's, the Black Angels, the Frames, Antibalas
# with the Decemberists
* with Amiina
$ with Pedestrian