Dear ridiculously attractive person who just so happens to be looking at this webpage about Tasteful Nudes right now,

Hi. My name is Dave and this is my very first collection of essays. As you can probably imagine, it pretty much has everything. In fact, if you like stories about stolen meat, animal attacks, young love, death, naked people, clergymen, rock-n-roll, irritable Canadians, and prison, you have just hit a street called Easy because my book talks about all that stuff and a bunch of other stuff too.

Getting back to that prison thing for a second though, I can think of almost no place better to read my book than from within the confines of a correctional facility. For starters, you will definitely have the time. Also, cozying up with a good book in front of your fellow inmates is a great way to show them a softer side that for some reason no one ever wants to hear about in the yard.

Fear not though, non-convicts: my book makes for a solid read outside of prison too. At the beach, on the subway, while whitewater rafting, during couples counseling, under local anesthesia--I have personally seen to it that my book is totally readable in all these scenarios as well as most other scenarios out there today. It will make you laugh, cry, and maybe even think so much that it will make you forget all your problems while simultaneously creating a few new ones. In limited instances, it has been known to cause severe dehydration and the occasional groin pull, but honestly I don't know what that's about. That said, it's probably not a bad idea to keep a glass of water handy and really stretch things out before strapping yourself in for a literary thrill ride you will want to experience again and again until you are either dead or your eyesight fails completely, whichever comes first. In fact, if I end up being wrong about any of this stuff, you can kick me right in the privates. Also, I will send you a nice ham (serves twenty). In short, you really can't lose on this one.

Your man,
Dave Hill

Catch Dave live at The Rejection Show Valentine's Day Heartbreak Haven taking place at Littlefield on 2/14 with "Lizz Winstead, Dave Hill: The One Man Heat-Bringing Machine, Sara Benincasa, Mandy Stadtmiller, Eliot Glazer, Elna Baker, Adam Wade, Katina Corrao, Ted Travelstead, Tom Shillue, Jordan Carlos, Bridey Elliott, Giulia Rozzi, Liam McEneaney, Blaise Kearsley, The Defibulators, Colleen AF Venable, and pie by the slice by Daly Pie!", and then again at Littlefield on 2/18 for The Lindsey Buckingham Appreciation Society performs MIRAGE ... and more. Yes there will be Fleetwood Mac.

by Klaus Kinski

Kurt Braunohler

Hey readers. Long time no write, amIright? I haven't been writing much these days and I bet you thought/hoped I was dead or something. Wrong! Unlike most people (according to the news media) I have a job and lately it's talons have been dug so deep into my flesh and lard that I haven't been able to deal with anything else. I poked my head outta the trenches today to wipe the sweat and offal from my brow and noticed that we in the Tri State area are on a collision course for some seriously incredible comedy, like, really soon.

Friday February 10th really has us laugh-seekers in a right pickle as there are two amazing shows happening that night, but one happens on one side of the Hudson, while the other happens on the other side of the Hudson. I kall this phenomenon Klaus Kinski's Komedy Krawl.

First off, on Friday February 10th at 7:30pm the UCB Theater (Chelsea) will play host to the great and way-not-famous-enough Tom Shillue and his show Tom Shillue's Funny Story. The show is more a storytelling affair than a stand-up affair and will feature a STELLER line-up including Bobby Tisdale, Bob Walles, and Gavin McInnes. This is an EXTREMELY miraculous line-up and the fact that it isn't sold out tells me that there's probably only one or two tickets left. I cannot tell you how brilliant Shillue is. Get. On. It.

After that show ends, get those gorgeous hemispheres (bunz) of yours upstairs and down (or up) to the PATH train and make your way into Hoboken for a special, off-site-off-nite edition of the great Pretty Good Friends. PGF is usually hosted by Eugene Mirman every Sunday night in the subterranean confines of Union Hall. However, they are shaking the fuck out of things and bringing PGF to Maxwell's in Hoboken on Friday February 10th at 9:30pm. The show will be hosted by Kurt Braunohler and feature the likes of Andrea Rosen, Wyatt Cenac, and Todd Barry. Some tickets are still available, so get yours before they go the way of the Dodo. These two inexpensive events will bring you face to face with some of my personal favorites in the biz. Live it up! You CAN do this.

Oh, and speaking of Kurt Braunohler... Kurt got the gig as host and star of a forthcoming IFC comedy series called Bunk. The show will be taping live February 17th through February 24th at Manhattan Center Studios in NYC. Guest panelists will include Ethan T Berlin, Bobby Moynihan, Jordan Klepper, Damien Lemon, Matt Oberg, Chris Gethard, Kumail Nanjiani, John Gemberling, Eugene Mirman, Alison Rich, Michael Che, Dana Gould, Scott Adsit, Tom Lemon, Alex Borstein (no Dave Hill? tha fuck?). Wanna attend a taping or several of them? Head over to the Black List and throw your name in the hat for FREE TICKETS.

Last but not least... first there was ONE, then TWO, then THREE, and now there are FOUR Demetri Martin shows happening at NYU. The newest one happens at the Skirball Center on February 15th, at 9:30pm. Tickets are on sale, and we're also giving away tickets to the third one which is now sold out like the first and second.

ALSO
* Rob Delaney added a 2nd NYC show!
* Those in Chicago should go see Brian Posehn this weekend!
* Follow @bvComedy on Twitter!
* "SXSW Comedy" is expanding its offerings in Austin this year
* We're giving away a pair of tickets to see Tosh at Radio City.

Some videos below...

Continue reading "PGF in Hoboken, Tom Shillue, a FOURTH Demetri Martin show & other comedy stuff"

After quickly selling out his May 11th Bowery Ballroom show, L.A. comedian Rob Delaney, has added a second show happening the same night. The first (sold out) one is at 9 p.m., and the second is at 11 p.m. Tickets for the new show go on sale Friday at noon, and note: "Limited seating will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis when doors open at 11pm."

Rob Delaney is also playing Sasquatch this year.

"I can tell by the bellows of my neighbors that sports are over & the New Jersey Acromegolics beat my 6-State Patriots." - John Hodgman

Ted Leo leaving Beerland - 1/28/2012 (by Tim Trentham)

After a recent trip to Texas in honor of Esme Barrera (picture from the Beerland benfits above), and more recently a weekend of "curling (the "sport"), Nightbirds & Kim Phuc at the Acheron, seal watching boat trip in NY harbor, and Puppy Bowl repeats," Ted Leo is heading out to Gowanus to host tonight's edition of Hot Tub at Littlefield with guests John Hodgman, Christian Finnegan, Jamie Lee, Harrison Greenbaum, and Brandon Wardell (2/6).

today in NYC
* ASSSSCAT 3000 @ UCB
* Alon Yavnai @ Barbes
* Kama Rupa @ The Stone
* Pharmakon @ The Stone
* Nicolas Jaar ("From Scratch") @ P.S. 1
* Lacrymosa, Sea of Bees @ Joe's Pub
* Sunday Night Live: Ed Vallance @ The Ace Hotel
* Narc, Alexander Trust, Jaja, Big Ups @ Cameo Gallery
* Fred Armisen (Fred Armisen's Playlist Live!) @ Union Pool
* Stephanie Wrembel presents The Django Experiment @ Barbes
* Permanent Wave presents Allison Weiss, Traveling, Swearin', Early Riser @ Big Snow Buffalo Lodge

I can't tell if Eugene Mirman will be hosting the Superbowl party at Union Hall tonight or not. I guess he is, that is if they're able to show it.

Brooklyn Bowl is probalby a great place to watch the Superbowl (if you like football and don't mind lots of people).

Madonna, Nicki Minaj, and most interestingly, M.I.A. are performing during the Superbowl's Halftime show.

Fred Armisen, who like Bon Iver, performed on Saturday Night Live last night, and like St. Vincent, appeared on a new episode of Portlandia one night before that, plays his first residency show at Union Pool tonight.

Lana Del Rey was on SNL last night too.

Papermag shows us "Downton Abbey Stars On-Screen Vs. Off-Screen." The Guardian has an article about how they got the World War I trenches. A new (for the US) episode of Downton Abbey premieres tonight on PBS. A new commercial for Downton (or is it Downtown) Abbey on Spike TV premiered on Saturday Night Live last night. Watch that commercial below.

Dominick Fernow of Cold Cave (and other projects) curated Feb 1-15 at The Stone.

Be our friend on Facebook.

Be BV Chicago's friend on Facebook too.

Follow @BrooklynVegan on Twitter.

Also follow @bvAustin for just Austin stuff.

SXSW is coming. Follow @bvSXSW on twitter too.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Sunday? (Superbowl)"

"Rolling Stone asked me to speak about Lana Del Rey. I wanted to know how big my participation in the piece would be-was it substantial or just a quote? Just a quote, they said, to which I replied that I wasn't super interested. Which was a lie. I have a lot to say about her, but no sound bites. You see, Lana Del Rey is exactly what I was hoping to inspire when I took on the male rock establishment almost twenty years ago with my debut record, "Exile In Guyville.""... [Liz Phair]

And speaking of LDR, who recently performed on Letterman, Bon Iver wasn't the only musical guest on Saturday Night Live last night. Lana Del Rey, who was on two weeks earlier, came back to discuss her famous performance on Weekend Update with Seth Meyers. Check out the video below...

Continue reading "Lana Del Rey returned to SNL! What does Liz Phair think?"

Daniel Tosh of Comedy Central's Tosh.0 has announced a comedy tour. That tour hits NYC for two shows at Radio City Music Hall in NYC on April 13 (early & late). Tickets for those shows go on sale at 10am. We also have a pair of tickets you can win! Details below.

LA Comedian Rob Delaney, who is part of the just-announced Sasquatch Festival lineup, will headline Bowery Ballroom on May 11th. Tickets, on AmEx presale now, go on general sale at noon. More dates are listed below.

As previously mentioned in a post that lists othre upcoming comedy shows, Demetri Martin added a 3rd upcoming NYC show. Tickets for that new date are still on sale and we have a pair you can win. Details below!

All contest details and Tosh dates are listed below...

Continue reading "Daniel Tosh touring & playing Radio City (WIN TIX); Rob Delaney playing shows too; and Demetri Martin (WIN TIX) "

"Following last year's 10th anniversary, which crushed previous attendance records and set a new mark for the speed with which tickets sold out, the Sasquatch! Music Festival unveils its 2012 lineup which once again features 4 days of music. The festival, hailed as "a model of well-paced programming...in a four-day schedule as efficient and natural feeling as an expertly built algorithm" by NPR Music while Wired notes, "leave the landscape out of it and Sasquatch! has a lineup to kill for," runs May 25-28 (Memorial Day Weekend) at The Gorge, the internationally acclaimed concert venue carved in the basalt cliffs high above the Columbia River Gorge in Quincy, WA."

Continue reading "Sasquatch! 2012 lineup announced (Bon Iver, Jack White, Beck, Tenacious D, Shins, Portlandia, Spiritualized & more) "

"I make a lot of coffee," James Murphy told NY Mag in an interview after the movie's premiere. "For my birthday, my girlfriend got me a training course with the world champion. That's what I'm going to do when I get back to London."

Most recently done by Bonnie 'Prince' Billy with his limited edition "Bonny Billy Blend" from Kona Rose Coffee (available for purchase via Drag City), Murphy is planning on reiterating the trend with his own espresso blend.

According to Murphy himself, he plans to "just go to a roaster who lives near me and just start tweaking beans and temperatures," for the fun of it.

He loves coffee so much, he's releasing the hits, "Never As Tired As When I'm Waking Up (Without Coffee)", "Disco Percolator", and "Bean Connection."

Well, not really, but James is keeping busy in the art world too. The LCD Soundsystem documentary Shut Up and Play the Hits just premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 22. Billboard reports:

The film is reminscent of Martin Scorsese's "The Last Waltz" (1978), about rock group The Band's final show, in that it documents an influential group's guest star-laden final live performance and largely focuses on the frontman (in "Waltz's" case, Robbie Robertson). When asked during a post-screening Q&A about trying to best Waltz, Murphy joked: "I was just like, 'that chump Robbie Roberston, I'm gonna take him --'"

Going into the project, Murphy said he was aware of the thematic similarities with "Waltz." "We all talked about it. Knowing that it is there, you can't not deal with it," he said.

And, "Shut Up and Play the Hits" was just one of two movies Murphy was involved with at Sundance this year. He also stars in The Comedy along with Bonnie Prince Billy's Drag City labelmate Neil Hamburger, Tim Heidecker (of Tim & Eric who also premiered another movie at Sundance), Eric Wareheim (of Tim & Eric who also premiered another movie at Sundance), Matador-signed comedian Jeffrey Jensen, Will Sheff (of Okkervil River), and many more. The film was directed by the Jagjaguwar-signed Rick Alverson, and the indie label is also involved with the film. Check out a clip with James,Tim & Eric below...

Continue reading "like Bonnie Prince Billy, James Murphy is making his own coffee (and he's in 2 new movies too) (1 with Tim & Eric)"

photos by Dana (distortion) Yavin

Like he did the night before at Music Hall of Williamsburg, Hugh Cornwell showed up as Fred Armisen & Carrie Brownstein's special guest at Bowery Ballroom on 1/21 (the second NYC show on the the Portlandia live tour). This time Hugh played hit single "Golden Brown" by his band The Stranglers to the sold out Manhattan crowd. Bowery showgoers also got live appearances by Portland mayor Kyle MacLachlan and music by Annie Clark aka St. Vincent (who just announced a tour). Annie covered Pearl Jam's "Black" at the Feminist Bookstore Pop Up Shop (Eddie Vedder, who recently announced a tour, was also a guest on the IFC show this season). Video of the cover with more pictures and the setlist of the show, below...

Continue reading "St. Vincent & Kyle MacLachlan joined Fred & Carrie for Portlandia @ Bowery Ballroom (pics, video setlist)"