Pitchfork

Photo by Leo Stefansson

They got the fashion spread, the side project and, of course, the charity compilation appearances out of the way. Now, with their calendars cleared, it's time for Bloc Party to get back to the nitty gritty. Kele and company are presently holed up in the studio cranking out their follow-up to last year's A Weekend in the City, and are getting ready to head out on the road this summer

The tour kicks off in California late in July, and sees them crossing the States from the West Coast to the East, with stops at Lollapalooza and the Virgin Mobile Festival in the middle. After a trio of gigs a little closer to home, they'll return to the continent in September for the V Festival. Party on and so forth, fellas.

As for Pin Me Down, the recently revealed project from Bloc Party guitarist Russell Lissack and songwriter Milena Mepris, they too are getting down to the nitty gritty. The duo's first single, "Cryptic"-- which you may recall from Kitsuné's recent Maison 5 compilation-- hits iTunes in the UK May 19, arrives on a 12" May 26, and drops on CD June 2, all from Kitsuné.

The various formats sport a number of remixes of the track from such notables as Paul "Phones" Epworth, Cazals, and others. Pin Me Down also have a trio of London dates coming up soon.

Bloc Party:

07-28 Pomona, CA - Glass House *
07-29 Los Angeles, CA - Mayan Theatre*
07-30 San Francisco, CA - Fillmore *
08-01 Chicago, IL - Lollapalooza
08-05 Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of Living Arts *
08-06 New York, NY - Webster Hall *
08-07 New York, NY - Webster Hall *
08-09 Baltimore, MD - Virgin Mobile Festival
08-15 Erfurt-Hohenfelden, Germany - Highfield Festival
08-21 Dublin, Ireland - Marlay Park
08-23 Reading, England - Reading Festival
08-24 Leeds, England - Leeds Festival
09-06 Toronto, Ontario - V Festival

* with Does It Offend You, Yeah?

Pin Me Down's "Cryptic" 12":

A1 Cryptic
A2 Cryptic Repuzzled (Jamie Ellis & Russell Lissack mix)
B1 Cryptic Phones Materialisation Mix (Paul Epworth)

Pin Me Down's "Cryptic" iTunes single:

01 Cryptic
02 Cryptic Repuzzled (Jamie Ellis & Russell Lissack mix)
03 Cryptic Phones Materialisation Mix (Paul Epworth)
04 Cryptic (Dave P & Adam Sparkles mix)
05 Cryptic (Dubka/Cazals mix)

Pin Me Down live:

05-07 London, England – Water Rats
05-08 London, England – The Fly
05-09 London, England – Camden Proud Galleries