Bill Goffrier, self-portrait

Bill Goffrier is playing The Rock Shop tonight, August 26th, with Doug Gillard and The Norfolk Downs. Bill Goffrier is the singer of Big Dipper, who split up in 1992, two years after the release of their fourth full length album Slam. He also played guitar in The Embarrassment prior to forming Big Dipper. Big Dipper reformed in 2008 and signed to Merge Records who compiled a 3-disc anthology of their work titled Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology and released it the same year. Since that release, Big Dipper recorded a new song titled Princess Warrior and posted it on their myspace in April 2009.

This past April (2010), Goffrier played a solo show in Lawrence, KS performing a mix of old Big Dipper and The Embarrassment songs, plus some new material. He told Lawrence Journal-World, "I've been writing a lot of songs for Big Dipper because we're working on a new CD. But we have three pretty prolific songwriters, so there's a lot of material to pick and choose from. Sometimes I'll say about a song I've got, 'This would be good for Big Dipper, but this one, clearly not.'" He also claims to have an existing offer to release a solo album. Videos from the Lawrence, KS show are below.

Tonight's show at The Rock Shop also features Doug Gillard and The Norfolk Downs. Doug Gillard, as we've pointed out numerous times, was a guitarist in Guided By Voices but is not part of the currently reunited "classic lineup." He also played in Death of Samantha, Gem, Cobra Verde, and various other bands. The Norfolk Downs are an acoustic duo featuring Dave Derby of Dambuilders, Brilliantine, and Gramercy Arms, and Kendall Meade of Mascott, Juicy, and Gramercy Arms.

Bill doesn't have any other shows scheduled that we know of. Those videos below..

Continue reading "Bill Goffrier played Kansas (videos), playing Brooklyn w/ Gillard & Derby (tonight) --- Big Dipper working on new album"

DOWNLOAD: Clogs - Red Seas w/ Padma Newsome (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Clogs - On The Edge (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Clogs - Three-Two (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Clogs live on WNYC (MP3)

Olof Arnalds @ SXSW 2010 (more by Dominick Mastrangelo)

Chamber group Clogs played live (and spoke) on WNYC on Monday. You can listen at their site (and download it above).

Wednesday night (tonight, 3/24) is Clogs' record release show at The Bell House in Brooklyn. They've confirmed that Sufjan Stevens and My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden (who also played with them on WNYC and was a special guest at the Regina Spektor show at Irving Plaza Tuesday night) will be their guests. Whether Sufjan will sing or not isn't 100% clear, but like Shara, he does sing on the new album.

The National's Padma Newsome and Bryce Dessner are permanent members of Clogs. Bryce's twin brother Aaron and the National's Matt Berninger aren't, but will also play with the group when they perform at the Big Ears Fest in Knoxville, Tennessee this weekend.

Opening the Brooklyn show is Julianna Barwick and Olof Arnalds who was just in Texas for SXSW. Tickets are still on sale.

Full Big Ears schedule at their site.

Continue reading "Clogs played WNYC (listen), confirm that Sufjan & Shara Worden will join them in Brooklyn (and in Knoxville)"

As you know, Big Dipper got back together. Tickets are still available for the show in Brooklyn on Friday and for the one the day before that in Hoboken
(and for the one Saturday in MA).

The Feelies are playing in Hoboken too.

Same with Polvo who are also playing in Upstate NY with Built to Spill, Shellac and My Bloody Valentine.

Yo La Tengo played Conan last night.

DOWNLOAD: Big Dipper - Shes Fetching (MP3)

Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology is a 3 CD set. 48 tracks re-mastered from the original tapes, plus a video, all for an incredibly low price. Extensive liner notes are included, with background and history provided by the band themselves, as well as exclusive liner notes from Tom Scharpling, who famously set out on a crusade to get the band back together for his “Best Show on WFMU” in 2004. [Merge]

Continue reading "Big Dipper reuniting, releasing anthology, playing 3 shows"

DOWNLOAD: Big Dipper - Shes Fetching (MP3)

$493??? Well, it is for charity, so that's good. For a more affordable donation, the David Kilgour autographed poster is still available for less than $50. David Kilgour plays Cake Shop tonight, tomorrow and the next day. Keep checking Merge's auctions through Christmas - they'll also be selling posters autographed by Robert Pollard, M. Ward, Oakley Hall, Spoon, The Rosebuds, Superchunk, Portastatic, and Destroyer. Or just screw charity, and check out Merge's holiday sale.

Robert Pollard is having an art show at Studio Dante in Manhattan in December. Listen to Spoon on NPR. Big Dipper is releasing an anthology. Polvo are reuniting for ATP. Every single Merge tour date, below...

Continue reading "signed Arcade Fire poster @ $493, Robert Pollard art"