photos by Toby Tenenbaum

"While Glen Hansard is more recently known for his 2008 Oscar win for co-writing 'Falling Slowly' and being one-half of the folk duo the Swell Season, his first band the Frames is what has made this singer and songwriter a legend in the Irish rock scene. So when the band celebrated their 20-year anniversary, it was obvious that Hansard was overwhelmed by the heroes' welcome he, Colm Mac Con Imoaire, Joe Dole, Rob Bochnik and Graham Hopkins at New York City's Terminal 5.

"Sincerely everybody, we really appreciate you coming out to us," Hansard told the packed venue on Saturday night (Nov. 20). "We thought you've forgotten us. You've given us a great welcome."" [Spinner]

The Frames played 21 career-spanning songs on Saturday night, four encores, and the Swell Season's Marketa Irglova on piano for a tune, included. The crowd, as Glen Hasnard even pointed out, was heavy with Irish accents. They cheered appreciatively and even broke out into the signature football (soccer) chant of "ole ole" between songs.

Jake Clemons opened the show with, according to Toby, "a 40 minute set of up-tempo country pop tunes. Before he left the stage he declared his gratitude to the Frames for allowing him to open for them and was quick to credit Glen Hansard for being the reason he learned to play guitar in the first place."

The Frames kicked their North American tour off in Philly on Friday, but stopped by Late Night With Jimmy Fallon one night earlier. Video from that TV appearance, with more pictures, videos, and the setlist from Saturday night's NYC Show, and the rest of their tour dates, below...

Continue reading "The Frames (and Marketa Irglova) played Terminal 5 & Fallon (pics, videos, setlist & more tour dates) "

The Frames...


The Swell Season (the duo of Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová) came through NYC for two nights at Radio City in January, and played an even more intimate show at 92YTribeca in September. They'll be here again for a free Celebrate Brooklyn show on Friday, July 30th with the Low Anthem.

Ireland's The Frames, Glen's band since well before he was in the Swell Season, haven't played New York in quite a while (since 2007). They'll change on Saturday, November 20th when they play a show at Terminal 5. Tickets go on AmEx presale Wednesday at 11am. General sale starts Friday at noon.

The Frames are celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. Their only other date currently is Electric Picnic in Stradbally, Ireland, September 4th-6th. Videos and all Swell Season tour dates (quite a bit in North America & Brazil this summer, then Europe in October) are below...

Continue reading "The Frames are returning (and the Swell Season even sooner)"

photos by Chris La Putt

The Swell Season's new album, Strict Joy, is out October 27th on Anti-. On Monday night, September 14th, the Irish & Czech duo (who are no longer a couple) performed at 92YTribeca in Manhattan. 92YTribeca is an intimate, and kind of swanky, downtown NYC venue that is much smaller than the places the Academy Award-winning band played last time they were here (Radio City and Summerstage). It's also probably much smaller than the ones they'll play next (nothing announced yet) (Beacon Theatre?). Bands often visit NYC for press purposes before an album, and I think that's related to why this show happened. Limited tickets were sold for $35 a pop. It was a packed house with tables taking up most of the room. People stood on the sides and in the back.

The setup on stage was spare. Glen Hansard had an old acoustic guitar which sometimes had "a mind of its own". Markéta Irglová sat at the piano when she wasn't standing up singing, either with Glen or by herself. They alternated playing solo and together. They flew in the night before, and hadn't performed in a while. Glen related that last fact to his forgetting to pack a few things, like his guitar tuner. To remedy the situation, he told us he downloaded iTune, an iPhone app that helps you tune your instrument. He even gave a demonstration of it after showing us how the Brian Eno iPhone app works (not sure if it was the old one or the brand new one). The iPhone segment was one of Glenn's many trademark (and entertaining) stories of the evening. His funny anecdotes offset the feelings of woe that dominate Swell Season songs.

Glen was as modest and down to earth as ever. He became frustrated when his guitar didn't do what he wanted. He thanked everyone for coming (especially Paddy, or is it Patty, in the front row who he thinks has been at every NYC show he's ever played), and for paying money to do so. He acknowledged that he expected the great success of last year to not always be there in the future. I imagine he is fine with the possibility that it won't always be Radio City and the Academy Awards, but I have no doubt The Swell Season can do it again (even if their demographic becomes less my friends, and more my mom's). Everything else aside, Glen (who is also in the band The Frames), can sing and play. And so can Marketa. It was especially noticeable since I'd just returned at 5am that morning from ATP NY, a festival in upstate NY where I saw a variety of bands, of varying musical abilities, perform.

The Swell Season setlist ranged from new songs to old songs to covers to something Glen wrote the night before. I don't know exactly what Glen's relationship is to Nico Muhly (Nico may have worked on the new album), but I know that Nico and Glen have a friend and collaborator Thomas Bartlett (aka Doveman) in common. I didn't see Thomas there, but Nico (who performed with Thomas at the Miller Theatre just a few days earlier) was, and he played a solo piano song in the middle of Swell Season's set. It was kind of weird - maybe out of place. Glen introduced his friend Nico before leaving the stage (Marketa was already off). Nico then came up and played his song, and then Nico left and then the Swell Season came back. Regardless, special guests are always fun and I like Nico.

"Falling Slowly" (the big hit) was played early in the set, and my initial excitement turned into "I guess I'm sick of this song", but the Once songs they played at the end, "When Your Mind's Made Up" and "Lies", felt much better. Other highlights included an upbeat cover of Tim Buckley's :"Buzzin' Fly" mixed with a bit of Jeff Buckley's "Grace", anything Marketa did solo, and the closing number which was a cover of Daniel Johnston's "Devil Town". During that, Glen had the NYC crowd singing along to the chorus which he repeated a few times, partially A Capella and sometimes with accompanying funny faces, accents, and vampire gestures. He sang part of it with a German accent, and he ended with a pose he called a "Kanye moment". The crowd followed with a laugh and a standing ovation.

More pictures and tour dates (which were recently announced, but no NYC yet), and the NY show's setlist, below...

Continue reading "The Swell Season (and Nico Muhly & Brian Eno's iPhone app) played 92YTribeca - pics, review, setlist & 2009 Tour Dates "

"The Happy Ending Music and Reading Series, chosen by New York Magazine and NY Press as the best reading series in NYC, and singled out by the New York Times Magazine for helping to "Keep downtown alive," features the most interesting storytellers, writers, musicians, raconteurs and personalities, and requires the readers to take one public risk, while the musicians, who perform two short sets with their original, lyric-driven music, are required to play one cover song and try to get the audience to sing along."

The next edition of The Happy Ending happens at Joe's Pub on March 4th. Readers will be Julie Orringer, Ryan Harty, and Andrew Sean Greer. Music will be provided by Glen Hansard of the Frames and Swell Season. Tickets are on sale.

Glen appears at Carnegie Hall for the R.E.M. tribute exactly one week later.

According to MySpace, The Swell Season "are currently in the studio with Joe, Colm and Rob of The Frames, Graham Hopkins and other special guests working on their next album, with hopes of finishing it up and having it released later this year."

SMH reports,

And what about Hansard and Irglova? Once is a love story and it has such a persuasive documentary feel about it that surely the love that develops between the two of them has to be more than just an on-screen illusion.

"It did become a real relationship," Hansard admits. "I think it was just a very natural part of what we were doing together. We had made the film. We had gone through so much with the Oscar. Of course, we fell into each other's arms. It was a very necessary part of our friendship but I think we both concluded that that wasn't what we really wanted to do. So we're not together now. We are just really good friends."

The work they do together, which started with the film Once and continued with the album The Swell Season, has continued. Now the duo has recorded a new album that they are considering releasing independently.

"I am trying to keep the simple philosophy that the Frames have always had," Hansard says. "I don't want to start signing to a major label when I am 38. Right now I am trying to figure out the best deal for us."

The "Falling Slowly" video below...

Continue reading "Glen Hansard playing Joe's Pub & Carnegie Hall "

Throwing Muses with Kristen Hersh, Kimya Dawson, Ingrid Michaelson, Glenn Hansard of The Frames & Swell Season, Apples in Stereo, Tommy James and the Shondells, Jolie Holland, Keren Ann, Guster, The Db's, Bob Mould, Vic Chesnutt & Elf Power, Rachel Yamagata, Calexico, Patti Smith, and others will be singing R.E.M. songs at Carnegie Hall on March 11th. "100% of net proceeds to benefit musical education programs for underprivileged youth." Regular tickets are on sale at the venue's site. VIP tickets are available at the event's own site (thx rajohn)...

Your VIP ticket includes entrance to the private artist reception taking place at City Winery featuring cuisine designed by Mario Batali. Food will be delicious and the free wine will be flowing. Join the artists and friends in New York's first full winery and amazing new event space. The party will start immediately after the concert and go to 1am. With a full stage and sound system at City Winery, we expect many musical surprises!

Mario Batali and Michael Stipe are good friends. Michael Dorf is producing this whole event. Michael Dorf owns the new City Winery which is opening on New Years Eve which is the night Michael Dorf's old club Knitting Factory is closing (which Michael pointed out himself in that NY Press article).

Patti Smith also just added a 3rd show at Bowery Ballroom. Tix are now on sale..

Tickets are still on sale for Kimya Dawson's upcoming show at Bowery Ballroom.

Vic Chetnutt & Elf Power are also touring and playing NYC together in January.

Pro-shot video of R.E.M.'s encore in Mexico City the other day, below...

Continue reading "Music of R.E.M. @ Carnegie Hall w/ Patti Smith, Kimya Dawson, Calexico, Bob Mould & others (by Michael Dorf)"

photos by Kurt Christensen

Continue reading "The Swell Season @ Rumsey Playfield, NYC - pics & setlist "

The Swell Season @ Radio City Music Hall (more)

Tickets are now on sale (@ noon) for the show The Swell Season are playing in Central Park.

$30 tickets for the August 4th Yeasayer/The National show at Summerstage go on sale Friday.

More pictures and the setlist from Monday night's show below....

Continue reading "updated setlist & more pics from Swell Season @ Radio City"

The Swell Season (Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova performing songs from the motion picture Once) played a triumphant, sold-out, and emotional (though at times a bit 'adult contemporary') two hour show at Radio City Music Hall in NYC last night (May 19, 2008). A setlist will surface soon enough and that will help summarize things better than I can do right now, but... there was a lot of storytelling, a shout-out to Pianos where they played two years ago, two Van Morrison songs, Marketa's singing sister from the Czech Republic, an opener from Ireland who later came on stage with the Swell Season, a violinist who played one of his own songs, and at least two standing ovations. There was not any Kraftwerk or Pixies.

The Swell Season's next NYC show will be at Rumsey Playfield in Central Park (Summerstage) on September 17, 2008. Tickets go on sale Thursday.

Continue reading "Glen Hansard/Marketa Irglova - Falling Slowly - Oscars video"

Tickets are on sale for a show by The Frames @ Webster Hall in NYC on September 10th. All tour dates below...

Continue reading "The Frames - 2007 Tour Dates"