by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: BOAT - Inside an Aquarium (MP3)

Seattle self-effacing indie rockers BOAT will release Pretend to Be Brave via Magic Marker on March 12. You can stream the self-described "epic car crash song" and first track to be released from the album, "Inside an Aquarium," below or download it above.

To help promote the album, BOAT asked some of their favorite bands to cover tracks from the new album which will be on a cassette titled Pretend to Be BOAT that comes with the first 100 pre-orders of the album. Tracklist and performers are below. For those of us who don't have a cassette player anymore, the band are releasing one track a week on their Soundcloud page, and you can stream covers by John Roderick, The Hairs, Burn Permits and Throw Me the Statue below.

Only a couple upcoming shows for BOAT at this point and only in the Pacific Northwest, but all dates are listed below.

Continue reading "BOAT releasing new album ++ covers of all its songs by John Roderick, Throw Me the Statue & others (MP3, streams)"

Jonathan Coulton and past collaborator/tourmate John Roderick (of The Long Winters) released a Christmas album, One Christmas At A Time, together with ten original Christmas songs by the two musicians ("actually one of them is a Chanukah song, so OK, nine"). Listen to two tracks from the holiday release below.

They'll support the release with another tour together this fall which brings them to NYC on December 14 at City Winery. Tickets for that show are on sale now. All tour dates are listed below.

Jonathan Coulton is also the house musician on NPR/WNYC puzzle show Ask Me Another which tapes live at The Bell House in Brooklyn . The shows are hosted by Ophira Eisenberg and tickets are on sale for five upcoming dates, all also listed below...

Continue reading "Jonathan Coulton & John Roderick released a Christmas LP, touring together (dates & streams)"

"Just out here showing NYC how it's done." - @JohnRoderick

Long Winters frontman, songwriter and Twitter funnyman John Roderick is in NYC helping out John Hodgman with his audiobook. While he's here he set up an impromptu show at the Rock Shop TONIGHT (6/12) and tickets are still available. Roderick promises "There will be some funny hilariousness at the Rock Shop tomorrow night, as well as a full spectrum of music performancing! Plus sexiness!" Who wouldn't want to see that?

Meanwhile, Roderick continues his tour with Jonathan Coulton (which hit NYC on June 2). All remaining tour dates are listed below.

Continue reading "John Roderick playing The Rock Shop TONIGHT"

Jonathan Coulton at Williamsburg Waterfront in 2011 (more by David Andrako)

Geek rocker Jonathan Coulton released his newest album, Artificial Heart (produced by They Might Be Giants' John Flansburgh), last year and is continuing to tour in support of it this year. He kicks off a string of dates next month with John Roderick (of The Long Winters), who appeared on Artificial Heart. That tour comes to NYC for a show on June 2 at Gramercy Theater. Tickets for that show are available.

Artificial Heart features the track "Glasses," which a fan (Craig Clark) recently made a video for and Jonathan approves. Check out the video below, along with a list of all dates...

Continue reading "Jonathan Coulton is touring with John Roderick (dates); approves of fan-made video (watch)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Aimee Mann @ MHOW

Aimee Mann's concert at Carnegie Hall in New York on Saturday night (Jan. 28) was for the birds. Or, at least, birdcalls.

The singer/songwriter has humbly admitted in the past that crafting small talk on stage between songs is slightly beyond her comfort zone. How far so? On her 2006 holiday tour, she outsourced the job to such comedians as Patton Oswalt and Paul F. Tompkins.

The audience assumed the responsibilities Saturday, as Mann invited the crowd to fill the spaces between tracks with birdcalls, a running gag that humorously linked her stellar 18-song set.

Backed by her three-piece band, Mann's adult alternative rock was a natural at Carnegie Hall's prestigious Zankel Hall. She joked that she'd do her best to adjust to the fairly formal setting, as she had played the more casual Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, N.Y. (with its smells of "beer and bleach," she ribbed), the previous night.[Billboard]

Continue reading "Aimee Mann & John Roderick ended their tour in NYC (pics)"

The Long Winters (Roderick second from left)

The Long Winters frontman John Roderick will play a few shows with Aimee Mann in January followed by a headlining show at Mercury Lounge on 1/28/12. Tickets for the NYC show are on sale. All dates are listed below.

1/28 is the same date that Aimee plays a NYC show at Zankel Hall which is one day after she plays Music Hall of Williamsburg (both shows are without John and now sold out or close to sold out). Aimee has also announced a NJ show in Red Bank and other dates since we last spoke. They are all listed below.

Back to John Roderick for a second. You can buy his guitar on eBay...

Do you want to play guitar like John Roderick? Sorry, can't be done. But, you can play his guitar as much as you'd like! Just win his solid body Hohner EX Artist electric guitar, whose unique sound has appeared in The Long Winter's recordings. Small Print: Guitar has been used. It's got a few scrapes (nothing that's visible from a stadium seat - see photos), needs a set-up (easy!), but has been lovingly modified - with embellished pick-ups (blood red nail polish, an 80's classic). Comes with a Gibson Explorer Guitar case (some use on outside, but like new on inside with instructions for programming the unused combo lock). Don't let THIS ONE get away. Donated by John to benefit Suz, all proceeds help her recover from severe illness. Thanks for lookin'!

Roderick also appears in Coulton's new video for "Nemeses" which came out before the even newer Coulton video for "Sticking it to Myself", both of which can be watched, with all the tour dates below...

Continue reading "a John Roderick show, his guitar on eBay, more Aimee Mann & They Might Be Giants dates, a new Jonathan Coulton video"

That was so weird. I still feel kind of nauseous (no dishes rattled though) (in Brooklyn anyway). I hope everyone's ok in Virginia (and elsewhere).

photos by Jacob Blickenstaff

Jonathan Coulton @ Williamsburg Watefront

After playing a waterfront show last month with They Might Be Giants, Jonathan Coulton will take to the high seas on Friday August 19th for a show aboard the Jewel, a Rocks Off NYC Concert Cruise. Tickets are on sale. The show is a prelude to his US tour with TMBG which will occur in two legs: East Coast/Midwest in September and West Coast in November. Full tour schedule is below.

If you can't make it on Friday, you can still catch comedian/songwriter "JoCo" on a boat, but the destination will be much different...

JoCo Cruise Crazy II is a 7-day Southern Caribbean cruise in 2012 on Holland America's ms Westerdam, with music, comedy and performances from Jonathan Coulton and friends. It departs from Ft. Lauderdale, FL on February 19th and returns February 26th, with ports of call at Half Moon Cay, Bahamas; Oranjestad, Aruba; and Willemstad (Curacao), Antilles.

All dates and more of a second set of pictures from Coulton's rainy appearance at Williamsburg Waterfront, below...

Continue reading "Jonathan Coulton playing boats & shows with TMBG (more dates & pics from Williamsburg Waterfront)"

Todd Barry @ Fun Fun Fun Fest 2010 (more by Tim Griffin)

Want to laugh Tuesday night? Head over to Lolita Bar at Broome and Allen for another edition of "Tell Your Friends!". This week's special guests include HANNIBAL BURESS (who performs a free show every Sunday at Knitting Factory) (and who recently opened for Aziz Ansari at Beacon Theater), LIAM McENEANEY, ANDY DE LA TOUR, and a "MYSTERY GUEST" who "is doing a big big show later in the week, and can't be advertised for this. He appears all over television and films, though, and this may be your last chance to see him in a basement before he's too famous for our show. - A MUST SEE!" Hmm.

Speaking of a big big show later in the week, Nick Kroll's two tapings at Music Hall of Williamsburg take place this Thursday, 11/18.

Nick also did a show at UCB tonight/Monday right before Whiplash (with special guest Mike Birbiglia). How was that? Whiplash takes place every Monday.

MGMT's Andrew VanWyngarden will be a guest at the live broadcast of WFMU's comedy/variety show "Seven Second Delay" at UCB Theatre on Wednesday (11/17). $5.00 tickets are still on sale, though note that he won't be performing. They'll be interviewing him, but they promise they have a couple of surprises planned. Other guests appearing on the same show: former New York Times Ombudsman Dan Okrent, and author / gambling expert / former bookie Beth Raymer.

That WFMU thing is early - like 6pm. Stick around after for an edition of Joe Mande and Noah Garfinkel's Totally J/K with special guests Hari Kondabalu (Comedy Central Presents), Greg Johnson (Sirius/XM Radio) "& more!" Then stay even longer, cause Joe Mande is also part of the show right after that too. Anthony Atamanuik, John Flynn & Ed Gavagan also perform in "The Nights of Our Lives"

Much like Pee Wee Herman, Colin Quinn has a new show on Broadway (which is directed by Jerry Seinfeld) (the Colin show) (Jerry didn't direct the Pee Wee show). We are giving away tickets to see Pee Wee. The Apiary has a pair up for grabs to see Colin.

What about Eugene Mirman you ask? Well, in addition to stuff we've mentioned in the past and his somewhat regularly scheduled Sunday night shows at Union Hall, you can catch him along with John Roderick (as Santa Claus), A.C. Newman, John Hodgman, Gary Shteyngart, and Ollabelle on December 17th at City Winery for the next edition of John Wesley Harding's Cabinet of Wonders. Tickets are on sale.

You will also find Eugene Mirman at the Bell House on December 12th for "Pretty Good Friends (formerly Tearing the Veil of Maya) End of the Year Holiday Blowout" with Kristen Schaal, Jon Glaser and "more to be announced." Tickets are on sale.

Speaking of Kristen Schaal, was she at Littlefield last night/tonight/Monday night for "Hot Tub with Kurt"? It's unclear from the listings whether Kurt Braunohler is doing "Hot Tub" without her every Monday night through 11/29. Upcoming listed guests include Wyatt Cenac, Laura Krafft, Dan Friel, Jon Friedman, Liam McEneaney, and Chris Rozzi.

Patton Oswalt has four shows coming up at Caroline's - two on January 7th and two on January 8th. Tickets are on sale.

Last but not least, after postponing the original date, honorary Juggalo Gallagher will appear at Gramercy Theatre on April 8th. Tickets are on sale.

Continue reading "Andrew VanWyngarden, secret guests, John Roderick as Santa, Dan Friel, AC Newman & other upcoming comedy shows"

"Played the Simon & Garfunkel tribute in Central Park last night. John Roderick brought it! Ben Gibbard's psych jam ruled..." - Aimee Mann

Holmes Brothers (Sherman, Popsy and Wendell) & Mayor Bloomberg (WFUV)

Ben Gibbard & St. Vincent play "Fakin it" (WFUV)

Paul Simon & WFUV Music Director Rita Houston (WFUV)

SummerStage hosted a pricey benefit for its free programming last night (June 8) in Central Park. The show was a tribute to the songs of Simon & Garfunkel, and musicians covered the pair mostly as duos. St. Vincent and Ben Gibbard teamed up for "Fakin' It," Dean & Britta played "Homeward Bound," Alejandro Escovedo and Willie Nile played "The Boxer," Aimee Mann and John Roderick did "Only Living Boy in New York," Loudon Wainwright III and Lucy Wainwright Roche sang "Bleecker Street" and lots more. Both Simon and Garfunkel were there, but didn't perform. The full performer+set list is posted below.

How did the new speakers at Central Park sound? The SummerStage series continues through August. Celebrate Brooklyn kicks off TONIGHT (6/9).

No videos from the show at the moment, but someone posted some from the show's rehearsal that took place one night earlier at City Winery. Those with the Central Park setlist, below...

Continue reading "Simon & Garfunkel were honored at Summerstage, Ben Gibbard performed w/ St. Vincent & much more"

words & photos by Kurt Christensen, additional photos by David Andrako

Nada Surf played the 2nd night of 3 full album shows at The Bell House on Friday night. On deck for the evening was "The Weight Is A Gift" followed by a set of covers and songs from their other albums.

John Roderick of The Long Winters opened the show. He definitely seemed to have the crowd more engaged than the opening set by Sondre Lerche the night before. Some were familiar with his music, but Roderick won over the rest of the crowd with his great in-between song banter. His humor was also on sale at the merch table, where he was selling a book of material culled from his twitter feed (@Johnroderick). Nada Surf joined him for the final song of his set.

Perhaps Matthew Caws was getting over his cold, or perhaps the Bell House provided a better atmosphere for the show, but Nada Surf seemed to have even more energy than they did the night before at Bowery Ballroom. Joined by John Roderick on background vocals, and Doug Gillard on guitar (also there the night before), as well as a rotating list of guests on keys, the band got the crowd bouncing for two long sets. During "Blankest Year" everyone shouted along, and a girl up front jumped on stage in her bra, waving her shirt before diving back into the crowd. That got the crowd going even more.

The second set, like the previous night, was a mix of old favorites and covers from their new all covers album. several songs were played again including Depeche Mode's "Enjoy The Silence" and Bill Fox's "Electrocution". Oddly, they included no songs from "Let Go" (the album featured the night before at Bowery) despite shouts for songs from that album from the crowd. Nada Surf closed the show in the same fashion as the night before, with a cover of "I Fought The Law", this time joined by John Roderick, which brought it to another level.

They concluded their 3-night run at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Saturday. At that show they performed "Lucky". Their tour next brings them to Toronto, but NYC is the only place they were scheduled to play full albums. More pictures from Friday with the setlist, below...

Continue reading "Nada Surf completed their 3 night run of NYC album shows - pics from the Bell House (where a shirtless girl ran on stage)"

Nada Surf @ Music Hall of Williamsburg (Jack Groetzinger)

There weren't a ton of shows going on in NYC last night (10/28), relatively speaking, but members/collaborators of most indie rock bands in existence were part of them. Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service, husband of She of She & Him) played with Jay Farrar (Son Volt, Uncle Tupelo) at Webster Hall with John Roderick (The Long Winters) opening.

"Along with all 12 songs from the album, Farrar and Gibbard each sang a song from a different project, before finishing with a pair of covers. Gibbard sang a rootsy version of "Couches in Alleys," a tune he sang on a 2004 album by the Belgian electronic band Styrofoam. Farrar opted for a rousing take on "Voodoo Candle," from his 2001 solo debut, "Sebastopol." And the covers: Farrar handled lead vocals on a countrified rendition of Bob Dylan's "Absolutely Sweet Marie," and the pair closed the show with Gibbard singing lead on a shattering version of Tom Waits' "Old Shoes (and Picture Postcards)."" [listen, damnit]

Meanwhile in Brooklyn, Nada Surf (who played electric instead of acoustic as originally advertised) (and who played as Holly Miranda's backing band at Bowery Ballroom one night earlier) teamed up with Charles Bissell of the Wrens and They Might Be Giants for an indie rock benefit at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Videos below.

Over at BAM it was "The Long Count" featuring the we've-collaborated-with-everyone Dessner twins from the National in partnership with the Breeders-Deal twins who count a member of the Pixies among them. Joining them on stage was Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond, Sufjan Stevens, The Decemberists) and many other indie-friendly musicians, classical and otherwise. Everyone who wasn't playing at one of these shows, was probably in the audience of this one. Check out pics and our review HERE, and our interview with Bryce Dessner HERE, and then check the show out, if you haven't already, on Friday (Mischief Night) or Saturday (Halloween).

Continue reading "last night: 3 shows, but many indie rock members (Death Cab, Son Volt, Long Winters, Nada Surf, They Might Be Giants, Wrens, National, Pixies...)"

Ben Gibbard & Jay Farrar @ Bimbo's 365 Club, 10-24-09 (pneyu)

John Roderick of the Long Winters is the opener of the Ben Gibbard & Jay Farrar Kerouac-tour that ends with a show at Webster Hall in NYC tonight (10/28). Tickets are still available. John will then stick around for a day, and headline his own show at the intimate Union Hall in Brooklyn on Thursday (1/29). Tickets are on sale for that too.

Greg Kot was at the Gibbard/Farrar show in Chicago the other day...

"The one-week old band," as Farrar called it, devoted the show to playing the album in its entirety, plus a handful of loosely related songs: Farrar's "Voodoo Candle," Bob Dylan's "Absolutely Sweet Marie" and Tom Waits' "Old Shoes (And Picture Postcards)."

The "Big Sur" songs put the focus squarely on Kerouac's lyrics, which detail the dissolution of a drunk looking for sobriety and inspiration in a cabin on a remote stretch of the California coast. The material's tailor-made for Farrar: His voice has a natural slope to it, an ache that shades even his most optimistic sentiments, and his melodies are steeped in mourning.

Continue reading "John Roderick opening for Jay Farrar & Ben Gibbard (Webster Hall tonight), playing Union Hall "

The Long Winters @ Castle Clinton in 2008 (more by Elizabeth Weinberg)

"A couple of months ago, the Long Winters got some mixed news: Our drummer, Nabil Ayers, was taking a full-time job in New York that would preclude his touring, and our band was invited to play Bumbershoot. We cried, we laughed. Happy as we were for our friend, his new direction meant we would have to start searching for a new drummer, a grueling process under the best of circumstances.

Since then, we've been auditioning drummers from all walks of drummer life, playing with a dozen different characters in search of a good fit. ....

....In our case we ended up with something I never expected: three drummers who made the grade. I've been agonizing over the decision for a couple of weeks, setting up increasingly difficult initiations to try to wear them down, but all three are stalwart. Meantime, Nabil will fly out to play one last show with us at Bumbershoot, and we'll choose a new drummer after the break." [John Roderick for Seattle Weekly]

The Long Winters played a new song at Bumbershoot. Before Bumbershoot they played the Doe Bay Festival with Mike Musburger (formerly of the Fastbacks and Posies) on drums. Videos of/from both of those and more below...

Continue reading "the Long Winters played Bumbershoot with their drummer for the last time +++ John Roderick is here..."

John Wesley Harding & Eugene Mirman @ CoW in April (more by Tim Griffin)

John Wesley Harding's Cabinet of Wonders variety show, which graced the city in February, March and April, in addition to tour dates around the country, will be back for shows on September 16th, October 7th and November 18th at (Le) Poisson Rouge. Tickets for all three are on sale now, AND now the shows have full lineups.

Like before there will be many special guests at each show. These include Tanya Donelly, John Roderick, A.C. Newman, Todd Barry, Rhett Miller, and many others. Each night is different. Full lineups with all JWH tour dates, below...

Continue reading "John Wesley Harding bringing John Roderick, Tanya Donelly, AC Newman, Rhett Miller & many more to LPR (dates) "

DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Pushover (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Stupid (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Blue Diamonds (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Carparts (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Scent of Lime (MP3)

For the last few years the beard has surged in popularity, first among indie-rockers in denim-rock bands, and now increasingly among the general population. I see them sprouting on faces everywhere, and I've noticed that I'm asked about my beard more and more all the time. It occurs to me that today's young men, and the young women and men who love them, may be as confused about the care and maintenance of beards as I was at their age, so they keep bringing the topic up in the hope that someone will offer some encouraging words of advice. I remember asking my Dad, who wore a moustache for thirty-five years, how he kept it trimmed so perfectly. He explained by taking out the scissors on his Swiss-Army knife and making a snipping motion while looking at me like I was retarded. This is the way men in my family explain things to each other. I used to surreptitiously examine older men's beards in the hopes of divining their secrets, but had to be very careful not to get caught staring too intently, especially in my old Pike/Pine neighborhood around the corner from the old Spar, where altogether too many men would have been HAPPY to show me how they trimmed their beards... [John Roderick of the Long Winters]

Tickets are required and space is limited. Two free tickets per person will be distributed at the Castle on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 5:00PM on the day of the show.

DOWNLOAD: Feist - 1234 (Van She remix) (MP3)

Feist @ Bonnaroo 2007 (CRED)

I’ve also toured with Feist, but now that I’ve established my journalistic integrity we can dispense with formality. She’s a first-rate guitarist and musician who is inspiring some cult-like devotion from her fans.

I didn’t hear cheering anywhere else like the cheering for Leslie Feist — she’d arch her eyebrow and the place would blow up — which always makes me wonder what the heck is going on. Her songs are minimalist and inventive, and she has a good voice and a good ear, like a PJ Harvey who’s not so mad at boys, but the rabid fandom is usually about something else. She must be code for something that I haven’t figured out. [John Roderick]

Tickets are at Ticketmaster for Feist's August 29th show at McCarren Park with Kevin Drew who has an MP3 to download too. More JR & Bonnaroo HERE.