Whimsical NYC collective Toys & Tiny Instruments will release their long-percolating debut album, Thunder Clap Machine, on Friday (3/1). As their name implies it's serious pop music but made with kazoos, stylofones, ukulele's, slide whistles and other toys and tiny instruments. You can stream the whole thing below.

The band have a couple local shows on tap, including tonight (2/28) at The Rock Shop with Boy Girl Party and Late Cambrian (tickets). Then on March 21st they'll play Death by Audio as part of The Chris Gethard Show's "The Weirdest Bands We Know Vol. 3" with Bad Credit, No Credit, Disposable Rockets Band and Hand Job Academy. $7 at the door for that one.

Continue reading "Toys & Tiny Instruments released LP (stream it), playing shows"

As you may have seen in today's "What's Going On?" post, Molly Ringwald is performing at 54 Below tonight (1/15, and Wednesday 1/16). She'll be doing a cabaret set of standards, and perhaps a cover of Simple Minds' "Don't You (Forget About Me)" from The Breakfast Club which she does on her forthcoming album Except ... Sometimes that will be out in April. Tickets are available for both night.

In other John Hughes-related news, this Saturday (1/19) at Union Hall it's the debut of "Novelization: A Reading Series Based on the Original Motion Picture" which features dramatic readings of "classic" movie novelizations. For the premiere event, they're doing the novelization of Pretty in Pink and features Frank "TV's Frank" Conniff, Heidi Vanderlee (The Chris Gethard Show), Todd Hanson (The Onion) and more doing the reading, plus musical guest Hand Job Academy. Novelizations of Grease, Grease 2, Rambo IV and others will also be featured. The Pretty in Pink novelization is notable in that it came out before the movie and was based on Hughes' original version of the screenplay...where [SPOILER] Duckie got the girl. Tickets are $5 and still available. More info here.

As reported previously, '90s alt-rockers that dog. are playing Music Hall of Williamsburg on May 24, the band's first NYC show in 15 years with Fred Armisen opening. That show sold out and the band added a second MHoW show the next night, Friday, May 25 with comedian openers Kurt Braunohler and Baron Vaughn. Tickets are still available to that one.

If you'd like to go for free, we're giving away a pair of tickets to the show of your choice. Details are below.

Oh, and speaking of Kurt Braunohler, he isn't playing the "Tell Your Friends! It's The Spring Fling!" at the Bell House tonight (5/15), but his partner in crime Kristen Schaal is along with host Liam McEneaney and fellow comedians Janeane Garofalo and Christian Finnegan, plus musical guest Hand Job Academy. Tickets are still available.

Continue reading "that dog. playing 2 Brooklyn shows (win tix); Kristen Schaal & many more playing the Bell House (tonight)"