Check out this video of Fiona Apple, Jon Brion, and Chris Thile of Nickel Creek performing 'Fast as You Can' together....

Check out this news.....

Fiona Apple (again) & Nickel Creek are playing Central Park Summerstage in NYC on August 14th, but it gets better (or worse) than that:

The members of Nickel Creek and Apple met several years ago in Los Angeles, and began occasionally working together at the club Largo - an intimate and magnetic music club that has become legendary for stellar lineups and surprise appearances. A loose and friendly musical exchange began with Apple sitting in on Sean and Sara Waktins' ‘anything goes' "Watkins Family Hour," and with either Thile or the Watkins returning the favor whenever possible.

For the August dates, fans will be treated to an expansion of those collaborations developed at Largo. Naturally, material will be pulled from both artists' solo catalogues, but fans can also expect to hear anything from pop standards to country classics to modern rock covers. Apple's presentation will be unique in that she will rely on Nickel Creek for back up during her set.

Continue reading "Nickel Creek & Fiona Apple - 2007 collaborative & farewell Tour Dates (Summerstage)"

With Mew, Antony, and Golden Smog all playing shows, I totally forgot that Fiona Apple was @ Summerstage last night.

Previously
Fiona Apple & Damien Rice touring | Summerstage
Fiona Apple @ Nokia Theatre, NYC | Reviews & Pics

Another hour, another Summerstage announcement. This time it's Fiona Apple and Damien Rice playing (what I assume is a benefit) the outdoor Central Park venue on July 26th. It's one stop on a summer tour. Those dates below...

Continue reading "Fiona Apple & Damien Rice touring | Summerstage"

Last night (Dec 11, 2005) Fiona Apple played the Nokia Theatre in NYC. As you can sort-of see in the above and below Getty Images, she was sporting the latest Jawa fashion.

She spent about half the time behind the piano, and the other half singing and violent dancing front-and-center at the mic. Full band. No Jon Brion. No Roseland-like incidents. Very enthusiastic, sing-along crowd. I hope she comes back soon. For a more detailed review and setlist, check Fluxblog, and even more at Manic Mess.

Previously
Fiona Apple Nominated for a Grammy
Fiona Apple on Letterman - Video | Tix (not) on Sale
Fluxblog loves Fiona
Fiona Apple 2005 Tour Dates | New Album (Stream)

Catchdubs pointed to this video of Fiona Apple on Letterman (real media).

Tickets are on sale for a bunch of Fiona's upcoming tour dates, but still no NYC.

Previously
Jon Brion playing Canal Room | Tickets
Fluxblog loves Fiona, screwed by Daily News

Fiona Apple's Extraordinary Machine was actually released. Pitchfork says the original unreleased version was better. Listen to the whole thing at Myspace.

She also just announced tour dates including a show at the Nokia Theater in NYC on December 11th. All tour dates below...

But first...
*Listen to Fiona on NPR
* Read what the Washington Post has to say
* Prefix also compared the new to the old
* Rolling Stone says EM is her strongest album yet

Continue reading "Fiona Apple 2005 Tour Dates | New Album (Stream)"

"I'd rather be with Lady Sovereign and Joanna Newsom." [Bill Callahan aka SMOG]

"I'm glad Antony and the Johnsons won because the prize is supposed to be based on innovating and I've never heard another voice like it." [Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand]

"But anyways, it is a great film and it does great things for Anton, for sure. He is loved and listened to more than ever..." [Courtney Taylor of the Dandy Warhols]

"I felt so incredibly moved by it, and then that went to 'Oh my God, I feel so horribly guilty.' I was a poster girl for what was wrong with the music industry but Sony hadn’t told me I couldn’t put out the record. They’d got it all wrong." [Fiona Apple on the 'Free Fiona' campaign]

"today. tuesday, september 20, 2005. i saw fiona apple perform at the virgin megastore on union. i was up at the front for maximum fiona time. she is beautiful and tortured. and hot, too! she performed extraordinary machine, oh sailor, parting gift, waltz, fast as you can, paperbag, and then she did a cover of an oldies hit. and thennnn, she signed the cd coverbook thingy that will be on her new album and i shook her hand and thanked her." [Mary's Live Journal]

photo from deathbyorgasm's livejournal.

Previously
Fiona Apple live on MTV w/ Jon Brion | MP3
Fiona Apple & Jon Brion Performing @ Virgin Megastore
Pitchfork's Jon Brion Mixtape

Fiona Apple performed with Jon Brion and Mike Elizondo for Hurricane Relief on MTV the other day. Soon she'll perform with them at the Union Square Virgin Megastore in NYC.

Download the MTV Performance
Extraordinary Machine (live) (MP3)

Pre-Order Fiona's new album at Amazon.

Previously
Be in Fiona Apple's TV Commercial

Fiona Apple performed with Jon Brion. Neil Young performed with Fisk Jubilee Singers. Green Day, U2, Beck, Dashboard Confessional, Pearl Jam, Common, Elton John, Beck, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Paul McCartney and many, many more artists performed for MTV's Hurrican Relief concert. You can watch the whole thing (by artist) on their site.

Previously
Be in Fiona Apple's TV Commercial
Fiona Apple & Jon Brion Performing @ Virgin Megastore

"BE IN FIONA'S COMMERCIAL - If you're in the New York City area, come be in Fiona's TV commercial promoting her new album, "Extraordinary Machine!" Be prepared to talk about why you love her music. We'll be taping this Wednesday, September 14 at 11am at Loft 11, 336 W. 37th St. between 8th and 9th Avenue in Manhattan."

Previously
Fiona Apple & Jon Brion Performing @ Virgin Megastore

09/20/05 @ 6pm
Fiona Apple Performs Live!
See Fiona Apple Perform Live w/ Special Guests Mike Elizondo and Jon Brion Tuesday, September 20th at 6pm
The first 450 people to pre-order Extraordinary Machine (DualDisc version only) beginning on Tuesday, 9/20 at 9am (only at Union Square location) will receive a wristband and CD Booklet that provides admission to the Fiona Apple event. -One wristband per person -Fiona Apple will only be signing copies of her new DualDisc booklet -One item signed per customer -No photographs Extraordinary Machine In Stores October 4th ***Show capacity is 450. (thx Rose)

Previously
Pitchfork's Jon Brion Mixtape
Fiona Apple Alive....Continued

JON BRION AND FIONA APPLE

I swiped the above photo from Pitchfork who "compiled a 70-minute sampler for interested parties that covers the major facets of Brion's career: live performances, soundtrack work, production for other artists, and his own pop compositions"

"1. "Stairway to Heaven" (Live, 4/27/05 @ Tonic, New York City) (sorry, no MP3)
A screwball to start off the mix, just as Brion looked to throw off his audience on this night by opening with the Led Zeppelin staple-- he comments they were probably expecting "some soundtracks or something." Nevertheless, soundtracks do turn up in this rather loose interpretation, as teases of famous scores like The Exorcist and Jaws are featured in the piano variations of "Stairway"'s first two sections. However, the third, "rock out" section is the most impressive, showcasing Brion's favorite live trick: Using a number of samplers, he moves from instrument to instrument, building up the song piece-by-piece (yes, drums, bass, rhythm guitar, lead, vocals) from memory. The amount of musical ability it would take to do this absolutely boggles my mind, so much so that when Brion performs it I can even bear to listen to fucking "Stairway to Heaven"."

2-17 in the Pitchfork Story.

Stream samples of Jon's solo album at CD Baby

Previously
The Kanye West, Brion produced Late Registration gets a 9.5
Fiona Apple Free! | album to be released & new video
Fiona Apple performed EM with Jon Brion at Largo

"The label is wasting little time in tapping fans' curiosity. Epic plans today to reveal a new version of Ms. Apple's Web site, on which fans can hear two of the album's (Extraordinary Machine) songs, "Parting Gift" and the rerecorded "O' Sailor." The latter will also be available for listening at myspace.com, the online social network. Tomorrow major online music services plan to begin selling "O' Sailor" as a single, and Apple's iTunes music service is expected to offer an exclusive bundle of the two songs for $1.98." [NY Times] (thx spinachdip)

Previously
Fiona Apple Free! | album to be released & new video

As you know, Fiona Apple performed live with Jon Brion in LA on July 30th. Well, she did it again...
"Friday August the 5th........she did 7 songs.......including EM, Paper Bag and Fast as You Can.......her solo segment was carefully prepared and FILMED.....some speculate for a possible EM dual disc, which was mentioned before......betcha it'll be out before long! I predict no later than November"

And the picture above...that's from the video she just filmed for "Parting Gift."

And here's musical proof: Download a clip of "Parting Gift" (mp3)

From a message board...
"Fiona Apple performed tonight (Saturday July 30th, 2005) with Jon Brion at the Largo in LA! She debuted the live performance of "Extraordinary Machine", accompanied by Jon on acoustic guitar, and also performed two other songs (possibly a cover, and another new song, not from the Extraordinary Machine album). IT WAS FANTASTIC! She sounded absolutely amazing! she was obviously nervous before she sang, but when she started performing, her uncertainty dissappeared. every single person in that audience was so lucky to be there!"

And...
Jon Brion Piles It on But Still Can't Get Album Into the Stores
Jon Brion @ Tonic, NYC | Pics (& lots of Links)
Download Jon Brion performing "Stairway to Heaven" live at the Tonic show I was at

In case you don't have it already, someone said you'll find it here.

Read:

Who Will Free Fiona Apple? Suddenly on the Internet: A flood of unreleased bootlegs sung by a goddess. What gives

Has she got a full deck?

Previously

Free Fiona

Seven days in a week. Eight days of Hanukkah. Nine days of shows in what was a hectic and magical week in the life of concert loving New Yorkers. From December 11th to 19th, the Pixies played 8 times, Broken Social Scene 3 times, Joanna Newsom twice, Ted Leo twice, and Scissor Sisters once. Throw in TV on the Radio, Smog, Rachel Yamagata, Bella Lea, Kimya Dawson, and more for good measure.

If you want to make this post even longer, you could mention that Yo La Tengo was playing their 5th of 8 shows in a row on December 11th, and that Calexico had just finished two shows, which came after the final three NYC Guided by Voices shows ever, BUT the post is about to be long enough, and anyway, the YLT shows were technically in Jersey.

By day (bold means I was there):
11th - Pixies/TV on the Radio & Ted Leo
12th - Pixies/Datsuns & Ted Leo & Ida/Kimya Dawson
13th - Pixies/Mission of Burma & Broken Social Scene & Junior Boys
14th - Pixies/Broken Social Scene
15th - Pixies/Le Tigre & Broken Social Scene
16th - Pixies/Reid Paley & Joseph Arthur & Kiki/Herb
17th - Rachel Yamagata & Kristin Hersh
18th - Joanna Newsom/Smog/Weird War & Pixies/Mike Watt & Pixies/Kristin Hersh & Bella Lea
19th - Joanna Newsom/Smog/Weird War & Scissor Sisters

New York City always has a ton of shows to choose from. That's nothing new. It's just rare that the combination turns out exactly like it did in the list above. Like CMJ, you can feel the musical excitement. It forces music addicts to set priorities, make decisions, compromises, and possibly forego sleep for a while.

I know. You're thinking, "What kind of problems are these? We're at war, people are starving, and Sony won't release Fiona Apple's album." I think about those things too, but forget about that for a second. This post is not about those.

In the end, I really messed it up. I had so many Pixies tickets, that selling extras became a second job. After thinking I would make at least 4 Pixies shows, I went to one. I didn't get Ted Leo, Kimya, or Kiki & Herb tickets because I thought I'd be at the Pixies. I ended up missing them all. And the worst of all - I completely forgot to go use my Rachel Yamagata tickets when Friday came around. That's ok. It was 100% for charity. I wish Bella Lea had chosen another week to play their first show in NYC, and although I hate missing the Scissor Sisters, Joanna Newsom in Bowery Ballroom beat Scissor Sisters in Hammerstein by a long shot. Junior Boys at Joe's Pub would have been cool, but also no contest with the option of Broken Social Scene.

The NY Post reviewed the Scissor Sisters show (via Coolfer)

Scissor Sisters Frontman Calls For Two A List Singers To Admit Your Gay

The Pixies played their hometown of Boston right before NYC.

Billboard reports that Pixies Wrap Reunion Tour, Prep DVDs

TIA went to the early Saturday Pixies show.

eatsdirt was also at that Pixies show, took pics, and went back the next night for Scissor Sisters.

Lizzy Vegas was at Scissor Sisters too

The Black Table was at Ted Leo

Domi was at Ted Leo and posted pics.

Out of Focus saw Ted Leo too.

Heaneyland saw the Pixies and Ted Leo

Previously

Broken Social Scene @ Bowery Ballroom Night 2 | Pics

More Reports From the Drag City Christmas Party

Joanna Newsom covers Melanie MP3 | Drag City Christmas Pics

Scissor Sisters About to Take Over Hammerstein

Broken Social Scene @ Bowery Ballroom | Pics | Part 2

David Byrne & Bowie do the Pixies

Back from the Pixies/BSS show

Off to the Pixies

Broken Social Scene @ Bowery Ballroom | Pics

Pixies @ Hammerstein Ballroom | Day 2

Scissor Sisters Weekend Update

Pixies Discs: The Twelve Final Shows

3 Days Till the Pixies Hit NYC

Ted Leo & The Pharmacists

One Week Till The Pixies hit NYC

Free Fiona is the international campaign to Sony Music/Epic Records for the release of Fiona Apple's third album, Extraordinary Machine. Despite its completion in early 2003, Sony/Epic has withheld the release because...

FreeFiona.com