L.A.'s All Tomorrow's Parties Fest Postponed

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The first-ever American edition of the U.K.'s All Tomorrow's Parties festival, to be curated by Sonic Youth and held Oct.19-21 on the campus of the University of California at Los Angeles, has been postponed. In a statement, the band said, "in lieu of the events of [September] 11th and the present volatile world climate, we have postponed ATP until early 2002." Sonic Youth was to have also performed at the event, alongside such acts as Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, Stereolab, Television, and ex-Pavement frontman Stephen Malkmus.

The terrorist attacks have also affected recording sessions for Sonic Youth's upcoming Geffen/Interscope album, which got underway in downtown New York in late July. Writing on its official Web site, the group said, "none of the band members were hurt in the catastrophe of 9/11. [Guitarist] Lee [Ranaldo] and his family and [multi-instrumentalist] Jim [O'Rourke] were in the area at the time but escaped unharmed."

"Major damage [to the group's Echo Canyon studio] seems unlikely; reports have said that the street sustained little damage, though an engine from one of the planes supposedly landed almost in front of our door," the statement continued. "Once the studio is up and running again, it is back to work on the new album and a soundtrack for a French film called 'Demonlover.' The month of August was spent working on both of these projects, writing songs and producing collages for the film."

One of the group's new songs, the self-described "no-wave rocker" named "Plastic Sun," will appear on a compilation bundled with an upcoming issue of Jane magazine. However, due to a "digital error," the track runs at the wrong pitch. A corrected version will be posted on the Web site in the future.

Meanwhile, Sonic Youth and Television guitarist Tom Verlaine have announced plans to stage an Oct. 7 benefit concert in New York. The show will "raise money for those affected by the events of 9/11," according to the group. More details are expected in the coming days.

The 2002 U.K. edition of All Tomorrow's Parties will be April 19-21 and April 26-28 in Camber Sands, and curated by Shellac, who will also perform.