News reaches us that the eagerly awaited new Neko Case album Middle Cyclone will be released on Monday 2nd March. The fifteen-track album is Case’s first release since 2006’s highly acclaimed Fox Confessor Brings The Flood.

Middle Cyclone was produced by Case with Darryl Neudorf and recorded in Tucson, Brooklyn, Toronto, and Vermont.  It features Case backed by her band - guitarist Paul Rigby, bassist Tom V. Ray, backing vocalist Kelly Hogan, multi-instrumentalist Jon Rauhouse, and drummer Barry Mirochnick - along with numerous guests including M. Ward, Garth Hudson, Sarah Harmer, and members of The New Pornographers, Los Lobos, Calexico, The Sadies, Visqueen, The Lilys, and Giant Sand. In addition to twelve new songs written by Case, Middle Cyclone includes covers of ‘Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth’ by Sparks, and ‘Don’t Forget Me’ by Harry Nilsson.

Track listing for Middle Cyclone:
1.  This Tornado Loves You 
2.  The Next Time You Say Forever
3.   People Got A Lotta Nerve
4.   Polar Nettles
5.   Vengeance Is Sleeping
6.   Never Turn Your Back On Mother Earth
7.   Middle Cyclone
8.   Fever
9.   Magpie To The Morning
10. I’m An Animal
11. Prison Girls
12. Don’t Forget Me 
13. The Pharaohs
14. Red Tide
15. Marais La Nuit

As 2009 pokes its cheeky nose just round the corner, our faithful and intrepid writers at TLOBF come up with the bands they think should make you sit up and take notice next year…

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Perennial TLOBF favourite M. Ward has announced plans to hit the road this winter and bring audiences on both sides of the Atlantic tracks from his highly-anticipated new album, Hold Time (February 16th, 4ad).

February
18  Boston, MA @ Somerville Theater
19  New York, NY @ The Apollo Theatre
20  Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero Theatre
21  Washington, DC @ Sixth and I Synagogue
25  London, UK @ Borderline
26  Paris, FR @ Café de la Danse
27  Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso

March
4  Los Angeles, CA @ Music Box at Fonda
5 San Francisco, CA @  Palace of Fine Arts
6  Seattle, WA @ Showbox At The Market
7  Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater

We’re massive fans of Mr. M. Ward at TLOBF so it was with much celebration that we found out, via the wonders of the internet, that he’s confirmed details over his next solo album.

It’s going to be called Hold Time and is pencilled in for a February 2009 release.

This was all divulged in an interview with Paste magazine, which can be found here, and he also reveals plans for a She & Him Volume 2 as well as plans to record with Jim James from My Morning Jacket. Though that’s not going to see the light of day for a while… Shame.