Delete Blog? No. Just Tallest Man Tour Dates

[mp3] Tallest Man on Earth: "King of Spain"

Weird. Amid the snow storm which attributed to a half day of work and one of the nicer commutes I have had in a few NYC months, "Burden of Tomorrow" off the Tallest Man on Earth's newest record, The Wild Hunt (due April 13 via Secretly Canadian) hit my speakers. Fuck run on sentences, we are Stark Online (maybe soon to be .net or .com?) Before we go off on that tangent, let's touch on our undying love for Kristian Matsson, a.k.a The Tallest Man on Earth.

His new record is full of buoyant, pop-sensible tunes, that showcase his amazing guitar talent while at the same time, mask it behind beautifully written strumming patterns; it's a procon (hybrid of PRO and CON). His lyrics continue to impress with endless nods to Dylan, Cohen and more. His vocals are unmatched -- he roars in tune like a musically trained, caged animal might. On the whole, the album is well-paced sounding at times, like a runaway train, and at others, like how one might imagine a vast, Midwestern landscape might sound; pitcture a Bob Ross painting singing to you. Done.

Insert tangent here: Yes. The rumors are true. MP3s may attribute to the deletion of your blog. Brooklyn shut-in's, vegans and Julie from "Julie and Julia" alike are running for the hills taking refuge behind Godaddy.com domains and other scary options; we've heard great things about WordPress, but can you transfer two and a half years of stark, snark, sweat and tears to Wordpress? Me thinks not.

Why we are here -- Tallest Man tour dates after the jump!

Previously announced European tour dates:
2/20/10 Blois, FR The Velvet
2/21/10 St. Malo, FR La Route Du Rock
2/26/10 Stockholm, SE Debaser Slussen
3/04/10 Hamburg, DE Astra Stube
3/05/10 Berlin, DE NBI Club
3/07/10 Den Bosch, NL fabrlQ Den Bosch
3/08/10 Amsterdam, NL Bitterzoet
3/09/10 Brussels, BE Botanique
3/10/10 Paris, FR Le Scopitone
3/11/10 Puerto de Santa Maria, ES Teatro Municipal Pedro Munoz Seca
3/12/10 Granada, ES Centro Cultural
3/13/10 Barcelona, ES Sidecar
3/14/10 Mallorca, ES Teatre Lloseta
3/15/10 London, UK Bush Hall
3/17/10 Copenhagen, DK Klub Shh at Din Nye Ven

After the jump.

Tallest Man on Earth Takes Away

Tallest Man on Earth - The Gardener - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Filmed by One Take New York in conjunction with Vincent Moon & Co's La Blogotheque, longtime Stark favorite The Tallest Man on Earth, offers "The Gardener." Almost overpowering, yet tenderly warming, Sweden's Kristian Matsson sits inside a quaint, highly eclectic instrument shop, and performs; he is a performer, for those who have had the pleasure of seeing him live. We were introduced to Matsson during his first trip across the pond and we have been subscribers ever since. See Stark coverage of all things Tallest here, here, here and so much more.

Nashville Review: The Tallest Man on Earth @ The Basement

By Vince Amoroso

He was not the tallest man on earth, but rather a living irony. This cliché will soon become commonplace as this Swedish troubadour gains fame. Shallow Grave, the new album from Kristian Matsson, a.k.a. Tallest Man on Earth, received an 8.3 out of 10 on Pitchfork. For gaining hipster-indie-cred, Pitchfork’s rating system is tops.

“He was like a caged tiger on stage” one performer said alluding to Matsson’s set. Well, he was some sort of animal up there. (Hold back the Metallica puns, please.) Matsson’s performance centered on his stalking abilities - be it through long drawn out soul-ensnaring stares pinpointing certain audience members or his unpredictable pacing.

Matsson is small though. We are not joking about that. He sported tight jeans that made his legs seem transparent. Widely hailed as "Dylanesque", Matsson's lace-up leather boots exemplified the analogy (his rustic singing voice helps too.) With a hair quaff and a childishly contrived mustache, Matsson had our attention before he even sang. He worked the crowd in all possible ways.

The power of the Tallest Man’s voice humbled audience members. At any given point during his performance, one could observe hands on chins and elbows on knees, people seemingly in awe of this man. His guitar playing was utterly flawless – fingerpicking at its best.

Matsson was the whole package. He captured the emotions of his songs in facial expressions and through his stage presence, venturing into the crowd at times to dramatize everything that much more. Every breath and lyric sung was heartfelt and delivered in an unassuming, mature fashion.

Check your local listings. Tallest Man on Earth is definitely worth checking out.
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After the jump.