Hometapes

THE SIXTH DAY OF HOMETAPES… DOWNLOAD: All Tiny Creatures...

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:45:11 -0800

THE SIXTH DAY OF HOMETAPES…

Featuring Truman Capote’s story A Christmas Memory.

“I used an excerpt…basically used the intro and then spliced in the last 8 minutes. The feel of it, plus the way certain passages are sung is kind of an homage to Robert Ashley.” - Thomas Wincek of All Tiny Creatures

Photos courtesy of The Caribbean (and featuring a reclining Matt Byars in both).

All TIny Creatures’ Favorite Record of 2009:

THOMAS WINCEK: I have to say Megafaun’s “Gather Form and Fly”. One of the most successful examples of fusing seemingly disparate elements into a cohesive whole that I can think of. “Impressions Of The Past” is the key to this album. Both beautiful and totally experimental in it’s construction and focus, it’s stuck with me more than anything else I’ve heard this year.

ANDREW FITZPATRICK: Jim O’Rourke: The Visitor. A lot of territory is covered over the course of one quite cohesive 38-minute track; I’ve been listening to it pretty frequently. Honorable mention: Acid in the Style of David Tudor by Florian Hecker.

All TIny Creatures’ Favorite Movie of 2009:

THOMAS WINCEK: I didn’t see many movies this year, but I thought “Where The Wild Things Are” was very good. The fact that Spike Jones was able to make such a melancholy and static film through the Hollywood system is impressive. I thought it captured the general feeling of what it’s like to be 8 years old very well.

ANDREW FITZPATRICK: I didn’t see many new movies in ‘09. I did see The Informant! in the theater; it wasn’t bad.

All TIny Creatures’ Favorite Discovery of 2009:

THOMAS WINCEK: I’ve been working on playing american fingerstyle guitar over the past year or so, and I’ve been using John Fahey recordings and videos as instructional material. Through this I discovered the music of Jack Rose, someone whom I had heard of, but never investigated thoroughly. I was extremely excited to find someone who was just as technically proficient and committed to a sort of “new traditionalism” as Fahey was in his early years, and also as open to experimental practices as Fahey was in his later years, all in the service of taking american fingerstyle to new places. Needless to say I was heartbroken when he tragically passed away last week, and I regret deeply that I’ll never be able to see him perform.

ANDREW FITZPATRICK: I heard In The Pendulum’s Embrace by Oren Ambarchi for the first time this year — wonderful stuff. It was also great to hear the previously unreleased tracks included in the reissue of Tracks & Traces by Harmonia & Eno. I saw David Lynch’s The Straight Story for the first time and almost cried.

All Tiny Creatures’ Favorite Show of 2009 (Played or Attended):

THOMAS WINCEK: Playing at the Hometapes Friend Island SXSW party. It was really inspiring to play alongside such great musicians and artists, and feel a part of it as well. It felt very familial, and like the start of something special. That and witnessing one of the best solo-guitar performances I’ve seen from David Daniell in Milwaukee. That guy is astounding.

ANDREW FITZPATRICK: Tie: Sunn O))) in Chicago (my nose cartilage was vibrating and plaster was literally raining from the ceiling) and Butthole Surfers in Madison (a very surreal experience)

All Tiny Creatures’ Favorite Moment of 2009:

THOMAS WINCEK: Night-swimming in the ocean in South Carolina with my wife and best friends.

ANDREW FITZPATRICK: personal: hanging out in New Orleans with my wife; band: SXSW

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All Tiny Creatures’ Segni 12” was released this year, a precursor to their 2010 album on Hometapes. You might recognize Thomas from his longtime work in Collections of Colonies of Bees and the recently revealed Volcano Choir.

THE FIFTH DAY OF HOMETAPES… DOWNLOAD: The Caribbean...

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:32:17 -0800

THE FIFTH DAY OF HOMETAPES…

DOWNLOAD: The Caribbean “Christmastime is Here”

Michael Kentoff. Milwaukee, WI.

Matt Byars. Minneapolis, MN.

A matched set of Dave Joneses. New Jersey.

The Caribbean’s Favorite Record of 2009:

MICHAEL KENTOFF: I heard both of my entrants during the same afternoon loitering session at my favorite record store, Soundscapes in Toronto (College Street).

• Floating Action is some (presumably) Jewish guy named Seth and his friends. I don’t know where they’re from, but they play very homemade poppy r&b that has some 60s ska inflections. Pretty unusual, at times truly haunting and yet very easy to access.

• The comp geniuses at Ace (UK) put out another woozy gem: Chartbusters USA Special Edition - Sunshine Pop. Some hits, some obscurities. Great Donovan song (and I rarely say that). Even the Mama Cass song is sweeeet. The art of writing singles used to be so subversive!

MATT BYARS: Always have trouble with this because I’m never sure what’s been released when, and I often end up choosing things that were put out seven or nine or twenty five years ago. I guess I just choose whatever I’m really liking at the moment, whether it was put out this year or not. So, just thought about it, and of course the record I think of (Kings of Convenience, Declaration of Dependence), was put out in — you guessed it — 2009. So there’s that.

DAVE JONES: I didn’t buy a lot of new music this year. This’ll sound kindof lame/predictable to those who know me, but I’ll have to go with Super Furry Animals Dark Days/Light Years. There are a couple of misfires on there (I really wish I liked Cardiff In The Sun more than I do), but it also brought me new tunes that have everything I love about the band, and I love a lot about that band.

The Caribbean’s Favorite Movie of 2009:

MICHAEL KENTOFF: • District 9. Just when I’m thinking CGI is the ruin of all art (which it still might be), District 9 redefines what great storytelling one can do with CGI. Or better put: what great storytellers can do with CGI. All it takes is really good CGI and, more importantly, a good story to tell, the ability to story-tell, inspired acting, and soul. An utterly unique movie.

• Visual Acoustics. Don’t know if this is 2009, but it just came to DC last month. This documentary of the Dean of Architecture Photography Julius Shulman is, aside from being a fascinating introduction to a cool 90-something year-old guy, is absolute and total eye-candy. It also made me realize that The Caribbean – and really Hometapes – is about modernisn, not post-modernism.

MATT BYARS: Due to the fact that I own my own children, I haven’t been to a movie theater in quite some time, so that leaves the old DVR. So I’m choosing two movies, neither from 2009, I’m pretty sure: the Coen Bros. Burn After Reading, and In Bruges. The former was way underrated but is ridiculous, black-hearted fun, and the latter is gorgeous, funny, and dark as night. Guess I’ve learned something about myself.

DAVE JONES: I rarely go to the movies. One I did see and greatly enjoy was Visual Acoustics, about the life and work of photographer Julius Shulman. But I’d bet $5 Michael is going to write about this one, and better than I would, so I’ll let him. I’m going to see one this Monday called The Miracle Of Berlin that I’m really looking forward to. Ask me Christmas 2010, I’ll let you know how it was. Oh, and The Hangover. The Hangover was very funny, big laughs all the way through, not front loaded like so many comedies are, even very good ones.

The Caribbean’s Favorite Discovery of 2009:

MICHAEL KENTOFF: • Warhol. I didn’t just discover Andy Warhol, but I probably never appreciated him until my wife Maureen and I visited the Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh in October. He was a kindred spirit, even if The Velvet Underground was his favorite band. If anywhere near Pittsburgh, go to the Warhol! Also, go to the Mattress Factory!

MATT BYARS: Tom Waits, Bone Machine. Recently reminded of the joys of Meat Puppets II, as well, and hearing it with 41 year-old ears instead of 16 year-old ones reveals new things to love about it. And The Field. That’s it, I swear.

DAVE JONES: Myself. And Asia.

The Caribbean’s Favorite Show of 2009 (Played or Attended):

MICHAEL KENTOFF: Friend Island at SXSW ‘09. We saw lots of wonderful artists (some of them labelmates), ate pancakes and drank wonderful Portland, OR beer. The joint was packed and everyone was friendly and funny. The Danes ruled: Slaraffenland confirmed their status as messengers of pure joy and Murder slowburned their way into my soul. Also, The Caribbean was reduced to 2/3 touring capacity, which was a bit of a fright and I was proud/astounded how Matt and I pulled it off with such swagger. A lovefest (with state flags!!!).

MATT BYARS: The Empty Bottle show on the summer tour with All Tiny Creatures? And Slaraffenland all five times I saw them at SXSW. And Efterklang at the Hometapes SXSW Showcase. And Megafaun at Friend Island.

DAVE JONES: My favorite show played was the Empty Bottle in Chicago. We’ve played there a number of times, the sound is always excellent, you and your music feel big onstage. The staff couldn’t be nicer or more accommodating, and Chicago is my favorite city in the US. Sharing the bill with Nick Butcher and All Tiny Creatures, Hometapes friends old and new, really made it special.

My favorite show attended was the Bang On A Can All-Stars performing Brian Eno’s Music For Airports in the lobby of the University of Maryland’s Performing Arts Center. The music was intensely beautiful and the setting was perfect, close in many ways to what Eno envisioned, I have to think. The lobby has a kind of modern, jet age quality to it (high ceilings, big windows and a lot of natural light. See Julius Shulman.), and the performance was in the context of a larger festival with other, concurrent performances, people were coming and going, walking by, stopping for a minute. You could sit and listen, as many people did, enraptured, or you could get up and walk around, hear the music and see the performers from a number of different angles, heights, and vantage points. It was music you could get inside of, or completely ignore. Perfectly ambient.

The Caribbean’s Favorite Moment of 2009:

MICHAEL KENTOFF:

• Friend Island, SXSW (see below).

• Cineforum, Toronto. Maureen and I were wandering along College Street in Toronto and we came upon a photocopied flyer for a documentary about Jane Jacobs, great city planner icon. 5 pm, BYOB. Cineforum is a one-man operation, the one man being Reg Hartt, a crabby film historian who acts like he wants you out of his house, but actually hosts Cineforum in his rented Victorian and shows films in his office/theater at the front of the house. We sat in office chairs with about 6 strangers (Canadians, I’m guessing), watched a number of cool interviews with the recently departed Ms. Jacobs, were told by Mr. Hartt that he knew, admired, and felt deeply for Ms. Jacobs, and were unceremoniously bounced from his house within seconds of that statement. Magical.

MATT BYARS: Three way tie: running the Annapolis 10-Miler; the Empty Bottle show on our summer tour with All Tiny Creatures; Friend Island 2009 at SXSW.

DAVE JONES: I got engaged to a very hip chick.

THE FOURTH DAY OF HOMETAPES… DOWNLOAD: Brad Laner...

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 07:22:34 -0800

THE FOURTH DAY OF HOMETAPES…

DOWNLOAD:

Brad Laner “It’s Christmas (But I Don’t Care)”

Brad’s Favorite Record of 2009:

“Dirty Projectors ‘Bitte Orca’ (but reading interviews with the main dude nearly ruined it for me).”

Brad’s Favorite Movie of 2009:

“Up”

Brad’s Favorite Discovery of 2009:

“My new WiFi streaming Netflix/Youtube/blu-ray box. I’ll never leave the house again.” *

Brad’s Favorite Show of 2009 (Played or Attended):

“Pattern is Movement at the El Rey Theater here in Los Angeles.”

Brad’s Favorite Moment of 2009:

“My son starting Kindergarten at a truly amazing local charter school. ‘No child left behind’ can eat it.”

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Learn more about Brad Laner, including his landmark album Neighbor Singing, here. Hometapes will release Natural Selections, Brad’s new album, in 2010.

* Check out this LA Times article about Brad and his house, which we would also not leave. Even if it were just equipped with a Betamax and an ice chest.

THE THIRD DAY OF HOMETAPES… DOWNLOAD: Pattern Is Movement...

Sun, 13 Dec 2009 07:58:00 -0800

THE THIRD DAY OF HOMETAPES…

DOWNLOAD:

Pattern Is Movement “O Holy Night”

Andrew Thiboldeaux of Pattern Is Movement.

Chris Ward of Pattern Is Movement.

Pattern Is Movement’s Favorite Record of 2009:

CHRIS: I fell in love with so many different records this year - from St. Vincent’s Actor to Dirty Projector’s Bitte Orca - but one record sticks out for me - Bon Iver’s Blood Bank EP. Now, I’m not the biggest fan of EP’s and I love Bon Iver, but I would not have guessed that his record would have grabbed me so. Every time I put it on, I can hear winter — which, for me, is something I’ve never experienced with a record. On top of that, the song “Woods” is by far one of the most simple and beautiful songs to be song. I would place that song on repeat and listen to 10x in a row. God I love that song.

ANDREW: Bitte Orca. I know this is most of the modern world’s fav too but I can’t help it. I just love it.

Pattern Is Movement’s Favorite Movie of 2009:

CHRIS: I feel like I saw a lot of movies in 09, but not that many come to mind when I think of movies released in 09. I just recently saw The Fantastic Mr. Fox twice and I have to say that its by far of the best films I’ve ever seen. I was stunned at how flawless the dialogue was — it moved at such a rapid pace, but yet it was clear all the way through. I’ve always loved Wes Anderson, but I have a new found respect for him due to this movie.

ANDREW: The Wrestler. Haven’t sat in a theater and yearned liked that in a while.

Pattern Is Movmement’s Favorite Discovery of 2009:

CHRIS: I fell back in love w/ Starflyer 59. I could not believe how much I listened to their records when I was growing up until I found there records at my folks’ house. I love Jason Martin’s voice coupled with his crushing guitar tone .. its just magnificent.

ANDREW: Toy Camera app on the iphone. Woulda paid the same amount I paid for the phone for that app.

Pattern Is Movment’s Favorite Show of 2009 (Played or Attended):

CHRIS: I saw Glass Ghost play at Johnny Brenda’s a few weeks ago and I was blown away. I’ve never taken my iPhone out a show and taped anything - but I was so freaked out by the drummer — and how amazing he was - that I had to tape it. I then proceeded to gush about them to everyone for weeks straight. He is by far one of the best drummers I’ve ever seen in my life.

ANDREW: tUnE-YaRdS @ Bowery Ballroom. I think about it daily. Greatest singer on Mother Earth.

Pattern Is Movment’s Favorite Moment of 2009:

CHRIS: Playing with Questlove at Brooklyn Bowl in October. I’ve always been the hugest fan of his and to look behind me and watch him play Beyonce’s “Crazy in Love” — it was so amazing. Also, it sunk in the next day that he played with Jay-Z and Beyonce at Madison Square Garden — how crazy is that.

ANDREW: LA show with St. Vincent. I can’t remember anything not wonderful about it.

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Pattern Is Movement’s “O Holy Night” originally appeared on “Peace On Earth: A Charity Holiday Album, Vol. II,” released last year and available here.

THE SECOND DAY OF HOMETAPES… DOWNLOAD: Shannon Fields of...

Sat, 12 Dec 2009 07:02:00 -0800

THE SECOND DAY OF HOMETAPES…

DOWNLOAD:

Shannon Fields of Stars Like Fleas (featuring the Canizares family) “I’ll Be Home For Christmas (If Only In My Dreams)”

“I liked the idea that this could sound a bit like eavesdropping on a discarded cassette tape from someone’s family Christmas. I always wanted to have the sort of family that would sit around a piano during holidays and sing together jovially drinking eggnog or something.”

“This photo is me (second from left, with trusty pipe) during the making of a video for The Silent League. The cardboard photo figures are by Noah Kalina, this photo taken by Alexandra Marvar.”

Shannon’s Favorite Records to Listen to Consistently in 2009:

Records released in 2009:

These Are Powers - All Aboard Future
Echoes Still Singing Limbs - S/T
Glass Ghost - Idol Omen
Desire - II
Jensen Sportag - Jackie EP
Ariel Pink - Can’t Hear My Eyes single
Nite Jewel - Good Evening
Helado Negro - Awe Owe
Bear in Heaven - Beast Rest Forth Mouth
Honne Wells - “What the lead told or said? The home recordings of Henri Honne Wells [2005-2007]”
Duane Pitre - Origin (well, not yet released, i think)

Records made in a time that was not 2009:

ABC - Lexicon of Love
Daryl Hall & Robert Fripp - Sacred Songs
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - S/T
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Architecture and Morality
Gary Numan - Dance
John Maus - Love is Real
Lansing-Dreiden - The Dividing Island
Microdisney - 82-84: Love Your Enemies
The Psychedelic Furs - All Of This & Nothing
Peter & The Wolf - Lightness
Cocteau Twins - ‘Love’s Easy Tears’ and ‘Tiny Dynamine’ EP’s
Hall & Oates - Ultimate Daryl Hall & John Oates
Scritti Politti - Provision
Sawako - Yours Gray
Miranda July - Binet-Simon Test
A whole heaping lot of cosmic/italo disco tracks downloaded from American Athlete and Bumrocks.com.

Shannon’s Favorite Movie of 2009:

This year I enjoyed but did not care about movies. Also, this year, I thought a bit about why I’ve maybe always enjoyed but perhaps never cared about movies. Fascinating (for me, not you). How about books? Kelly Link - Magic For Beginners. There you go (May not be 2009 though…damn, it’s not. oh well). But I don’t mind admitting that I caught myself crying during the first 15 minutes of “Up” on the plane back from Stars Like Fleas tour in Europe.

Shannon’s Favorite Discovery of 2009:

My favorite discovery of 2009 is narcissistic..you don’t get to hear it (but you might next year).

Shannon’s Favorite Show of 2009 (Played or Attended):

Attended

In February of 2009 I curated John Zorn’s new music space, The Stone, in NYC. I booked 2 different shows each night for a month. I can confidently claim to have produced the world’s first and largest festival ever devoted entirely to whatever the fuck shannon fields would like to hear. I went to every one. What else can i say? It was unreal. You can see the listing here: http://thestonenyc.com/calendar.php?month=-10

The MOST memorable shows outside of that include These Are Powers at SXSW, Light Asylum at Music Hall of Williamsburg, Glass Ghost at the Sycamore, Jason Ajemian with the High Life at some restaurant back room in Harlem that I forget, Tristan Perich at Issue Project Room, Luluc at the Sycamore, and Corridors/Byron Westbrook in some room next to Glasslands that I forget the name of, Nick Keupfer at Cagibi (Montreal, QC).

Played

* These all have stories but it would take too long to tell them so I’ll stick with physical inventory. I’ve hardly been home this year but it has been an awfully rewarding year spent traveling and playing music with my friends.

/with Stars Like Fleas at: The Attic (houseparty in Guelph, Ontario, with Echoes Still Singing Limbs), MoMA (NYC), P.S.1. Contemporary Art Museum, Centre George Pompidou (Paris), Salle Paul Fortes (Nantes, France), Cafe Credenza (Faenza, Italy)

/with Helado Negro: Knitting Factory (NYC), Lyndon Street Artworks (Greensboro, NC), houseparty at William Tyler’s place in Nashville, TN.

/with Duane Pitre ensemble: Roulette and at Issue Project Room…both a thrill for me.

/with Chris Schlarb ensemble at The Stone.

/with The Silent League: Music Hall of Williamsburg, and Wildfire (Ithaca, NYC), and at Union Pool with the calendar boys of Bear in Heaven.

Shannon’s Favorite Moment of 2009:

My favorite moments of 2009 are too numerous to mention. Spending the day lazing around the ancestral farmhome of Merriweather Lewis (Lewis & Clark), drinking and watching my Helado Negro comrades hit the zip line…that’s up there. As was playing in a storewindow on a small square in Faenza, Italy. As was hanging around Union Pool and catching up one by one with friends who live near me but whom i haven’t really spent time with in ages. As was a recent, indescribably meaningful and inspiring trip to Montreal to kick off one of several new projects. But my favorite moments of the year were probably the little stretches of time spent alone: in the early morning, waking up in a new town, walking around with my thoughts in search of coffee; walking around in an old town latenight coming down from whatever sensory overload i put myself through the day; or in the car, driving alone from one place to the next, a little anxiety and a little anticipation and a whole lot of singing along with Simple Minds or something. It’s a sappy self-absorbed rom-com I’ve just told you, and altogether true.

THE FIRST DAY OF HOMETAPES… DOWNLOAD: Slaraffenland...

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:51:02 -0800

THE FIRST DAY OF HOMETAPES…

DOWNLOAD: Slaraffenland “Little Drummer Boy”

Slaraffenland’s Favorite Album of 2009:

“Dirty Projectors ‘Bitte Orca’

This one got 3 of 5 votes. Other candidates was Animal Collective and The XX.”

Slaraffenland’s Favorite Movie of 2009:

“‘Antichrist’ by Lars Von Trier

Niklas, Bjørn and Jeppe did not see this movie, but Christian and Mike persuaded the others because the movie really made a big impression on them. The movie has been very controversial, because of some people’s perception of the movie as being misogynist. Von Trier’s movies has always been controversial, but this one is by far the most beautiful and yet scary movie in a long time.”

Slaraffenland’s Favorite Discovery of 2009:

“Our best new discovery this year is a Laser Spirit Level! We used it to build the floor in our new studio. BIG HELP!

The studio is not finished yet, but we are working on the place when we’re not on tour. It will be awesome when it’s done.”

Slaraffenland’s Favorite Show of 2009 (Played or Attended):

“The best show we’ve played this year was a show we did @ Voxhall in Århus, Denmark in May at the Pop Revo Festival. The crowd was great and the venue was awesome.

Christian heard Faith No More on Roskilde Festival this year, and he really loved that show. Other great shows has been Eagles of Death Metal in Copenhagen.”

Slaraffenland’s Favorite Moment of 2009:

“The day where we did the Temporary Slaraffenland movie with Vincent Moon, was very special. It was a beautiful sunday in May, and it will be a day we will all remember. In November, the movie was screened at the CPH:DOX festival in Copenhagen. This was a special and memorable day as well.”

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Hometapes released Slaraffenland’s “We’re on Your Side” album on LP and CD this year, as well as a 7” single for the album track “Meet and Greet,” all featuring the magical art of Cody Hudson.

It’s been a wild year. December always provides that high...

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 10:51:28 -0800

It’s been a wild year. December always provides that high vantage point for looking back over the months before, as well as the not-so-distant views of the new year to come. We’re definitely standing on top of that proverbial mountain right now, taking it all in, and being humbled by the expanse and our place in it. Hometapes is way more than a record label. Hometapes is the sum of its parts.

As a gift to all of you who comprise the equation that equals Hometapes, we crafted a week of special music from Hometapes artists. We’re calling it The Eight Days of Hometapes, as that sounds holidayish and/or like a bad movie. Over the next week, we’ll be unveiling a new song daily via our website and its digital tentacles. And these are holiday jams — covers or inspired originals — that can soundtrack your next few weeks of celebration, contemplation, and everything in between.

The First Day of Hometapes….coming up next.

2010 is going to be insane. Bear In Heaven’s excellent...

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 13:19:15 -0800

2010 is going to be insane.

Bear In Heaven’s excellent adventure begins next year:

01/13/10 - Cleveland, OH @ The Spot at Case Western ∆
01/14/10 - Chicago, IL @ Schubas - TNK fest ∆π
01/15/10 - Bloomington, IN @ The Bishop ∆
01/16/10 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Brillobox
01/27/10 - New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge ∂
03/05/10 - Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s *
03/06/10 - Washington, DC @ Rock And Roll Hotel *
03/07/10 - Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506 *
03/09/10 - Nashville, TN @ The End *
03/10/10 - Knoxville, TN @ Pilot Light *
03/11/10 - Atlanta, GA @ The Earl *
03/13/10 - Orlando, FL @ Will’s Pub *
03/14/10 - Tallahassee, FL @ The Engine Room *
03/16/10 - Houston, TX @ Mango’s *
03/17/10 - Austin, TX @ SXSW -TBA
03/18/10 - Austin, TX @ SXSW - TBA
03/19/10 - Austin, TX @ SXSW - TBA
03/20/10 - Austin, TX @ SXSW - Hometapes Friend Island ¥
03/22/10 - Phoenix, AZ @ The Rhythm Room *
03/23/10 - San Diego, CA @ Casbah *
03/24/10 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo *
03/25/10 - San Francisco, CA @ Bottom Of The Hill *
03/27/10 - Berbati’s Pan - Berbati’s Pan *†
03/28/10 - Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile †
03/29/10 - Vancouver, BC @ The Biltmore Cabaret *
03/31/10 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court *
04/01/10 - Denver, CO @ Hi Dive *
04/02/10 - Lawrence, KS @ Replay Lounge *
04/03/10 - Saint Paul, MN @ Turf Club *
04/04/10 - Chicago, IL @ Schubas Tavern *
04/06/10 - Toronto, ON @ El Mocambo *
04/07/10 - Montreal, QC @ Il Motore *
04/08/10 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Downstairs *
04/09/10 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall Of Williamsburg *

∆ with Freelance Whales
π with Surfer Blood
∂ with Oh No No
* with Cymbals Eat Guitars
† with High Places
¥ with Megafaun, Pattern Is Movement, Slaraffenland, etc.

Adam and I will be spinning records this Thursday to kick off...

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 16:24:01 -0800

Adam and I will be spinning records this Thursday to kick off Stumptown Printers 10th Anniversary Party! We’ve worked with Stumptown since 2004 (when we were in Miami - whoa) and we can’t wait to celebrate the amazing shop we now just live up the street from…after all these years.

The skilled hands at Stumptown printers are responsible for some of the most beautiful record packages in our catalog:

Feathers :: Absolute Noon

Feathers :: Synchromy

Shedding :: What God Doesn’t Bless, You Won’t Love; What You Don’t Love, The Child Won’t Know :: CD

Canonic :: Scott Solter Plays Pattern Is Movement

Pattern Is Movement :: All Together :: CD

Stars Like Fleas :: The Ken Burns Effect

Slaraffenland :: Sunshine EP

Slaraffenland :: Meet & Greet 7”

CYNE :: Water For Mars

The next best thing to holding something made by Stumptown Printers in your hands is being able to visit their shop — and now you can, minus the tasty vegetable ink and machine fragrances, thanks to this short documentary on them by Monocle.

Bear In Heaven ring in the new year with a few dates across the...

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 11:00:10 -0800

Bear In Heaven ring in the new year with a few dates across the the exposed midriff of North America. And this is just the beginning. Consider this the Bloomin’ Onion to your Sizzlin’ Fajita Platter.

And they open for Mew tonight in the Big City!

12/04/09 - New York, NY @ Webster Hall - w/ Mew
01/13/10 - Cleveland, OH @ The Spot/Case Western - w/ Freelance Whales
01/14/10 - Chicago, IL @ Schubas (Tomorrow Never Knows fest) - w/ Freelance Whales and Surfer Blood
01/15/10 - Bloomington, IN @ The Bishop - w/ Freelance Whales
01/16/10 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Brillobox
01/27/10 - New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge - w/ Oh No Ono

Megafaun’s been in Europe. We’ve been watching the...

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 20:38:13 -0800

Megafaun’s been in Europe. We’ve been watching the new experience unfold on their blog. We’ve been imagining the looks on faces across France, Benelux, Germany, Denmark, and the UK, as Joe, Phil, and Brad take the stage and the rumblings of “Kaufman’s Ballad” begin. After 6 weeks alongside them this summer in the US, I yearn for their merch table and the smiles of new fans. We’re so happy that Crammed Discs released Gather, Form & Fly in Europe, with all the love and detail that Megafaun and Hometapes began the project/revelation with just about this time last year.

If you’re missing Megafaun, too, here are a couple videos from their seemingly magical time in Utrecht, Holland. They’re pretty awesome.

Megafaun on a rooftop.

Megafaun at Le Guess Who Festival.

And Megafaun have three more dates, including their first visit to Ireland.

12/04/09 York Moors, England @ The Band Room
12/05/09 Cork, Ireland @ Opera House Festival
12/06/09 Dublin, Ireland @ Wheelans

See you soon, guys!

Hometapes artist Nick Butcher and his partner Nadine Nakanishi...

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:29:00 -0800

Hometapes artist Nick Butcher and his partner Nadine Nakanishi run Sonnenzimmer, a magical studio in Chicago, and are responsible for some of the most beautiful works on paper on our entire planet. Seriously.

Yesterday they announced their 2010 poster subscription series - and there are a few slots left. We wanted to let everybody know! And if you are more of a one-poster-kinda-(wo)man, their poster store provides all the love you need.

Here’s the info from Nick and Nadine on the 2010 subscription:

Hey y’all.
We are once again offering a subscription for all of the posters we produce within the calendar year. We typically produce between 20-30 posters a year. 2010 is already shaping up quite nicely! We only have 10 subscriptions slots. They will be on honored on a first come first serve basis, so act fast! Posters will be shipped twice a year in sturdy cardboard tubes on June 1st and December 31st. The subscriptions are $500 with shipping included (within the Continental United States). This year’s subscription will also include Nadine’s book, Formal Additive Programs.

To subscripe, go to:
http://sonnenzimmer.com/sale/2009/poster-supscription/

To get a taste of this year’s work, go to:
http://sonnenzimmer.com/store/2009/objects-of-affection/

Thanks for the support!

Cheers,
Nick and Nadine

Bear In Heaven on ABC! Click to see the band and Beast Rest...

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:32:36 -0800

Bear In Heaven on ABC! Click to see the band and Beast Rest Forth Mouth featured on Pitchfork’s New Music Monday segment.

“Bear In Heaven has figured out how to render bodily sensations, fears, and passions into what feel like effortless three to four minute pop songs. This is the sort of thing that lesser bands might try their entire careers to do and never accomplish.” - Eric Harvey, Pitchfork on ABC

“Take out the earbuds and let it fill a space: This is...

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 09:11:04 -0800

“Take out the earbuds and let it fill a space: This is music that’s bigger than your iPod— music you’ll want to feel all around you.” - Eric Harvey

Pitchfork on Bear In Heaven’s Beast Rest Forth Mouth :: BEST NEW MUSIC.

Megafaun are headed to Europe! Gather, Form & Fly is being...

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:58:37 -0800

Megafaun are headed to Europe! Gather, Form & Fly is being released across the ocean by the wonderful Crammed Discs. We’re still trying to figure out how to be a helpful-yet-undetected stowaway on this amazing trip:

11/13/09 Paris, France @ Point Ephemere *
11/14/09 Evreux, France @ Abordage *
11/15/09 London, UK @ Scala ∆
11/17/09 Lille, France @ Le Grand Mix ∆
11/18/09 Nantes, France @ Olympic ∆
11/19/09 Strasbourg, France @ La Laiterie ∆
11/21/09 Amtwerp. Belgium @ Trix ∆
11/22/09 Groningen, Holland @ Vera ∆
11/24/09 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Loppen ∆
11/25/09 Dresden, Germany @ Beatpol ∆
11/27/09 Amsterdam, Holland @ Paradiso
11/28/09 Utrecht, Holland @ Le Guess Who Festival
11/29/09 Cologne, Germany @ Studio 672 ∆
12/01/09 London, UK @ Borderline †
12/02/09 Aldershot, UK @ West End Centre
12/03/09 Manchester, UK @ Dulcimer
12/04/09 York Moors, UK @ The Band Room
12/05/09 Cork, Ireland @ Opera House Festival
12/06/09 Dublin, Ireland @ Wheelans
* with Akron/Family
∆ with The Dodos
† with Deer Tick

Today we unveil a bona fide Megafaun video, crafted on the road...

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 10:47:22 -0700

Today we unveil a bona fide Megafaun video, crafted on the road this summer to the tune of “Impressions of the Past.” We’ve watched this so many times. I think we’ll watch it again now. While we do that, you can read a little thing we wrote about the beauty and her maker, our friend Tim:

Thousands of miles, thousands of images. On tour with their new album “Gather, Form & Fly”, Megafaun was captured, piece by piece, by the photographer Tim Lytvinenko. Part-documentary, part-sense memory, Tim’s images took on a life of their own as he traveled across the west with the band, the music, the landscape, and everything in between. He set his first magical trademark sequences to the album’s epic and beautiful “Impressions of the Past” —- and a video was born. Further shaped across the plains, the mountains, the coast, and the desert of North America, the video became a daily experience for the band on tour. Tim’s memories became everyone’s, almost just as real as the moments they documented. This seemed to be the perfect expression of this song —- one that came by surprise, and one that conjures up the collective nostalgia of Summer 2009, and perhaps all those bygone seasons before.

So enjoy. Put yourself in it. Fill in the blanks.

Megafaun “Impressions of the Past”

Directed by Tim Lytvinenko.

Produced by Hometapes.

Buy “Gather, Form & Fly” on 2xLP or CD here.

Bear In Heaven and their ecosystem welcomed the...

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:06:54 -0700

Bear In Heaven and their ecosystem welcomed the foreign-yet-familiar object of me these past few days. I got to see them play five times. I wandered the city with them. I wandered it alone. I sat still. I saw so many old friends and met so many new ones that I listed them all by name, in chronological order, in a notebook on the plane ride home.

I can’t say enough about our dear friends and longtime-collaborators Bear In Heaven, their new record Beast Rest Forth Mouth, and the vibrant intensity of their performances — it seeps all the way from the stage to their practice space to the streets to my speakers in the dark dark Portland night. They connect all the dots, and, this past week, I was lucky enough to color in the spaces.

Here are a few links to some excellent words about their CMJ-related performances, as well as some nice pictures. The one above was taken by Rez in the pouring rain in Brooklyn, following their show at the Pitchfork Showpaper Benefit at the Market Hotel last Saturday:

Pitchfork - Stephen Deusner on Bear In Heaven’s performance at the Team Clermont showcase at Lit Lounge, Fri. 10/24.

Oh My Rockness - Friday CMJ Pick: Bear In Heaven

Pitchfork - on the Pitchfork Showpaper Benefit at Market Hotel. Sat. 10/23.

Heeb Magazine - Live review of Bear In Heaven at the Market Hotel, Sat. 10/23

SPIN - On Bear In Heaven at the After The Jump party at Brooklyn Bowl, Sat. 10/23.

Time Out NY - On Bear In Heaven at the After The Jump party at Brooklyn Bowl, Sat. 10/23.

-Sara

Way back when we started Hometapes, I don’t think we ever...

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 08:53:18 -0700

Way back when we started Hometapes, I don’t think we ever could’ve imagined that we’d one day be working with artists (Slaraffenland) on the other side of the globe (Copenhagen) who in turn would create a long form film with a super-talented, acclaimed filmmaker (Vincent Moon). But that day has come.

Today we present to you: TEMPORARY SLARAFFENLAND

Shot in one day around the city of Copenhagen, the film showcases all of the songs from Slaraffenland’s new album, “We’re On Your Side.” Think of it as a 40-minute, moving postcard from Slaraffenland and Vincent Moon to you. In addition, we’ve created a pretty, little website to showcase the film, give more information about it, and show a map of the various locations around Copenhagen where it was filmed. (Suggestion: download it and watch it on your lunch break today!)

This is a big day for Hometapes. We couldn’t be more proud of what Slaraffenland and Vincent Moon have created. Thanks to Mathieu, Rasmus, David, and everyone else who helped make this project come to life.

[For bonus points, check out the Pitchfork review of “We’re On Your Side” that came out today!]

Bear In Heaven Beast Rest Forth Mouth LP/CD/MP3 out...

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 09:57:00 -0700

Bear In Heaven Beast Rest Forth Mouth LP/CD/MP3 out now!

Today, Bear In Heaven starts watching you. The eyes that have been on us for weeks as we hit repeat, repeat, repeat on our stereo now belong to your record store, your iPod screen, and, if you are lucky to catch Bear In Heaven on tour, on your t-shirt.

Beast Rest Forth Mouth manifests in multiple ways: a compact disc (image below), trusty and ephemeral digital (from your favorite vendors), and, most exquisitely, as an LP. As the image above illustrates (that’s Bear In Heaven in a Tennessee field), the LP is available in two colorways: red jacket with blue LP and blue jacket with red LP. Each version shares a 17” x 22.5” newsprint poster (the art is unique to the LP, just as the inner panels of the CD are unique to that format), as well as a coupon for a high quality digital download.

As a bonus to Hometapes mailorder customers, we’re including a BEAR IN HEAVEN STICKER in all orders. If you are in North America - we’re offering a discount on the “Wholehearted Mess” 12” for a limited time. See the Beast Rest Forth Mouth product page for more info on how to easily order the 12” - with $5 off - when you buy your copy of Beast Rest Forth Mouth on LP or CD!

The Bear In Heaven tour blog is in full effect. Here, Adam and...

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:49:00 -0700

The Bear In Heaven tour blog is in full effect. Here, Adam and Joe live our dreams for us, in front of Backyard BBQ in Apex, NC - the only restaurant we’ve threatened to actually release as part of the Hometapes catalog.

Don’t miss these guys:

10/08/09 Knoxville, TN @ The Pilot Light
10/09/09 Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
10/10/09 Birmingham, AL @ Bottletree
10/11/09 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
10/12/09 Asheville, NC @ Broadways
10/13/09 Washington, DC @ DC9
10/14/09 Philadelphia, PA @ Kungfu Necktie
10/15/09 Cambridge, MA @ TT The Bear’s Place
10/16/09 Brooklyn, NY @ Union Pool (album release party)
10/23/09 New York, NY @ Lit Lounge (CMJ showcase)