Thursday, July 28, 2005 Last night, a bunch of us watch Fearless Freaks, the Flaming Lips documentary, at the building where Ben's studio is. He managed to score a projector, so it was almost like we were watching at the movies. This documentary really delivered, from lots of footage of Wayne growing up and interviews with his family, to the history of the band from their fuzzed out psychedelic punk rock days until now. It was funny seeing little parts of Tarbox Road Studios in the documentary and Dave Fridmann briefly on screen. I'm inspired to re-listen to a lot of their records today. The first Flaming Lips album I heard was In a Priest Driven Ambulance as a cassette in 1994. Later that year, when my friend dragged me with her and a bunch of other people to Lollapalooza, I was insistent on seeing them play the side stage and was completely blown away. I bought the 4cd Zaireeka the week it came out and then attempted to figure out how I was going to synchronize all 4 discs to play at once on separate systems. I saw them when they came to Philadelphia on the boom box experiment tour that was more or less their Zaireeka tour. The crowd was much less sparse than when I saw them on the Soft Bulletin tour. I was excited to score a couple of copies of Telepathic Surgery LPs in Umea, Sweden for 15 kroner, the equivalent of $1.50 and they were still sealed in mint condition. I'm finalizing the gatefold jacket design for Saxon Shore's The Exquisite Death LP tonight, along with a couple of poster design, a postcard, and a t-shirt. All should be ready in time for their late August tour dates. Neumu has a fairly detailed piece on Bosque Brown here. Go and find out more about Mara's childhood and influences. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 10:07 AM CST Tuesday, July 26, 2005 Saxon Shore : Luck Will Not Save Us from a Jackpot of Nothing is #146 on the CMJ top 200 this week, the 6th week on the charts. Bosque Brown : Plays Mara Lee Miller is #145 this week, the 4th week on the charts. Thanks to everyone playing these btv releases. Johnathon is in Bloomington with Dan Burton finishing up the new Unwed Sailor album The White Ox. Phillip from Questions in Dialect is playing on the album as well. I'm not sure who all else will be playing. I just added a few more Unwed Sailor dates to the touring page, be sure to check out the dates and see both Saxon Shore and Unwed Sailor when they're in your area. I finally got the audio for June Panic's one-sided LP that will be called Raising the Canopy Wire. It should be out in the next few months or sooner. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 08:15 PM CST Monday, July 25, 2005 Bosque Brown is playing in Dallas this Friday at Sons of Hermann Hall. Get yourself there if you can. I added new dates for Saxon Shore and Unwed Sailor, so be sure to check them out. They'll both be touring in August and Unwed Sailor continues on into September. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 12:57 AM CST Saturday, July 23, 2005 I had an amazing dinner with my old friends Mike and Jill and their wonderful kids at their new house outside of Lancaster last night. It had been far too long. Denison called to say that he will be featured on CNN for his new album sometime this coming week and they will be playing a clip from the video featured on the updated version of his Philadelphia Songs album. The video for "24 Turned 25" was directed by our friends Andy Bruntel and Ali Zubik. Coincidentally, Andy e-mailed to tell me he was working on a new video for The Mountain Goats. Count me in the front of the line for the Andy Bruntel fan club. I'm sending out tour posters for Unwed Sailor mid-August to September touring dates. I'll have them added to the site shortly, but for now, they're at their newly designed website. I'll soon be on my way to the hott rokk with Saxon Shore at the Fire as they play with Bardo Pond. See you there. "I am going to make it through this year if it kills me." :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 05:22 PM CST Friday, July 22, 2005 A happy Friday to you. For those in Philadelphia, I recommend attending the opening of Whimsical Works : The Playful Design of Charles & Ray Eames partially curated by our good friend Ben Volta. It's up for a month or so if you can make the opening tonight. I'll see you Saturday at the Fire for Saxon Shore's show with Bardo Pond and Chromolodeon. Maybe some take out from La Cazuelas if we're hungry? :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 09:04 AM CST Thursday, July 21, 2005 Bosque Brown Plays Mara Lee Miller is now #108 on the CMJ top 200, the third week on the charts. Saxon Shore : Luck Will Not Save Us from a Jackpot of Nothing is now #137, the fifth week on the charts. Thanks to everyone who keeps playing both records. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 10:46 AM CST Wednesday, July 20, 2005 I got home super late from the Saxon Shore show at Tonic in NYC last night. They faithfully brought the rock, playing songs from The Exquisite Death. Thanks to everyone who came out on a Tuesday night and props to my good friends who arrived, Keyes and Nicole. I'll see everyone for the Philadelphia show on Saturday. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 12:57 PM CST Tuesday, July 19, 2005 Tonight is the release party for Saxon Shore : Luck Will Not Save Us from a Jackpot of Nothing at Tonic is NYC. Saxon Shore are on at 9. See you there. On Saturday, they will be at the Fire in Philadelphia with Bardo Pond and Chromolodeon. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 02:21 PM CST Sunday, July 17, 2005 A big apology to my pal willi$ for inadvertently leaking sensitive Saxon Shore folklore to the world. It's been fixed on the site. I felt guilty since Daniel Smith was pushing his series of "I'm Sorry" gift cards. I should have bought some to send one to will. Thanks for the little bird who hooked me up with the New Pornographers Twin Cinema album. I can't wait for the vinyl to spin on my turntable. I love all of the Dan Bejar songs. I have a soft spot in my heart for Destroyer. I'm starting the design for Saxon Shore posters and postcards with Ben Volta and the band. I also just got the drawing and sketch for the June Panic one-sided LP. Unwed Sailor are in Denmark and getting ready to come home soon. Plans are for The White Ox to get finish the last week in July. That's the latest in record label excitement. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 10:37 PM CST Saturday, July 16, 2005 I got up early to print out a bunch of covers and traycards for super advance Saxon Shore cd-r releases. I'm off to a bbq at Nathan and Norma's house in a bit with Dave and Nicole. Last night, the Woven Hand/Brother Danielson show was epic. I don't use that lightly. I have never seen Daniel in such a funny mood during a show. He didn't play in his tree, but appeared in a suit as a door to door salesman hawking his Great Comfort goods in between songs. He played a few new songs in what was one of the best performances I'd seen him give in a while, maybe because it was so different. Woven Hand was David on stringed instruments and Ordy on drums and the set went through a long history of both Woven Hand and 16 Horsepower songs. For the encore, Daniel joined on stage to play some fierce metal bass parts in what was a super rocking ending. My friend Scott sat next to me and we were reminiscing to the first time we'd seen 16 Horsepower in like 1995 or 1996 at J.C. Dobbs and how mesmerizing the whole set was back then. By the way, the band found some copies of the first LP pressing, so if you catch them in Pittsburgh or Cleveland, you're in luck. Otherwise, it's the second edition. Happy birthday, Jane. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 12:32 PM CST Friday, July 15, 2005 Apparently, the navigation to the news section hasn't been working for pc users. It's been working great for us mac people. If you're here reading this, you either have a mac or have figured out that I added a new link to let you continue on. Come out to see Woven Hand and Brother Danielson tonight at the Philadelphia Ethical Society. See you there. Consider the Birds LPs will be available again at the show. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 11:22 AM CST Thursday, July 14, 2005 Happy Bastille Day! The Saxon Shore artwork is officially complete and off to the factory. LP lacquers have been cut and plates are getting made. I'm hoping we have LPs in time for late August touring. Hidden Cameras are playing tonight in Philadelphia at the First Unitarian Church and Woven Hand/Brother Danielson are playing tomorrow at the Philadelphia Ethical Society. See you at both. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 10:56 AM CST Monday, July 11, 2005 I'm in Manchester UK en route to Philadelphia after some plane delays and craziness, but it will all be better when I'm home tomorrow. My friend ben (wandering european ben) was supposed to be hanging out here tonight, but he's sick, so i guess that's okay. I'm finishing up the last details of the Saxon Shore design so it will be printed properly. Anybody want to join in on a debate on printing a spot pantone color? We've got an artist, a graphic designer/screenprinter, a stubborn self-taught print "expert" by merit of printing 70 different releases, and an architect with a keen sense of design. These are the finest moments of decision making at btv hq. More trip synopsis...Lucas helped me recover from a tragic mishap where my cell phone got all wet and stopped working. He took everything apart, let it dry, and got it working again. Lucas, Diana, Sarah, and I went for a road trip to Belgium to visit the Chouffe gnomes. We weren't able to see them work, but could celebrate the results. We cruised into Luxembourg and stumbled on an abbey overlooking the town in the middle of a beautiful forest. We opened the door to the sanctuary just as the monks were chanting their service. Incredible. It was a good runner-up prize for not making the trip to the Trappists at Rochefort or Achel. Lucas and Diana showed me Haarlem where they live now and we had a nice lunch on the town square. It was a lot cozier than Amsterdam. Who knew? Stephan and Lydia came back early from camping and I got to finally see them after a couple of trips without them around. Stephan is the singer and a guitarist for Satellite 7. One of the interesting things about Amsterdam is that squatting empty buildings is legal until challenged by the owner in court who must have plans for development. It's not about getting something for nothing, but about creating sustainable rent levels and using all available city space to its fullest potential. Some of the most interesting bars and venues for concerts and arts events are squats, including the ij brouwerij and a free internet cafe, ascii. It's really a fascinating thing. Lately, the government has been evicting some squatters more violently and prematurely using various loopholes in the law. A few of us went to a demonstration supporting one of the houses, afrika, which was recently shut down. It's always great to visit everyone in Amsterdam. The Hidden Cameras are in Philadelphia on Thursday. I've been waiting for them to show up since Sean (who did the Bosque Brown layout) hooked me up with a copy. It should be a good show, I'm looking forward to it. Woven Hand and Brother Danielson are on for Friday at the Philadelphia Ethical Society and the LP represses will finally be available at that show and for back orders. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 04:40 PM CST Thursday, July 7, 2005 Ben just finished the artwork for The Exquisite Death of Saxon Shore and I'm finalizing the layout to make sure everything prints properly. Ethan just finished the text layout. I'm in Holland and am getting ready to visit some monasteries and breweries in Belgium as soon as I take a shower. Vacation has been pretty hectic and exciting, lots of hanging out with Lucas, Diana, Sarah, Lodevijk, Dorien, and Rik. I went to the recording studio with Lodevijk and Rik to hear some of the new Satellite 7 songs. I was supposed to learn how to spit fire on Monday, but was stood up and never got the change to learn. Someday I will learn how. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 03:49 AM CST Saturday, July 2, 2005 Masters for The Exquisite Death of Saxon Shore have just arrived. I sent off the official orders for cds and LPs a few minutes ago and everything is underway. Last night, Ben, Ethan, Willis, and I met to do the final overall design for the packaging and have come up with something promising, at least we think it's promising. Ben's images are really amazing, I think we're all pretty happy. Overheard last night about Live8 (in Philadelphia tonight)..."we're having a party for Africa and they're not invited." I'm missing my Swedish friends who are in Illinois tonight to play an electronic/noise show. Rich just called and said that he met up with some of them he thinks. Hello to Simon, Samuel, and Jan. I'm finishing up last minute details and packing before heading off to the airport. I'll be in Amsterdam in about 15 hours. See you at the ij. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 12:43 PM CST Friday, July 1, 2005 The Exquisite Death of Saxon Shore audio is now finished. All ten songs have been mixed and the album has been mastered. Ben Volta is diligently finishing up the images for the cd packaging. Ben, Willis, Ethan, and I are meeting tonight to finish the layout of the text and images. I'm going to be sending everything off to the factory tomorrow morning once the cd masters arrive. Then, I'll catch my plane to Amsterdam for a few days off. :::scott::: Posted by Scott @ 06:01 PM CST [ Archives ]