Josh Ritter at BookPeople in Austin in October (more by Tim Griffin)

Singer/songwriters Josh Ritter, John Wesley Harding (aka Wesley Stace), and Steve Earle are also authors, and all three of them put out novels this year. They'll be teaming up for "a night of talk and songs" at the Celeste Bartos Forum of The New York Public Library on Tuesday (12/6). Tickets for the event are on sale now.

Josh Ritter made a promotional appearance for his novel, which is titled Bright's Passage, in Austin this past October. As you can see above, it was also an event that included some music. Pictures and full recap, including a part where Josh says Wesley was one of his writing inspirations, HERE.

Ritter has also been added to the bill of the previously mentioned WFUV show, which is happening on 12/5 with Dawes, Mavis Staples and The Head And The Heart at Beacon Theater. Tickets are still available.

Dawes played Occupy Wall Street today and according to Rough Trade, they put out the 48th best album of 2011. They also have two more shows at Maxwell's after the Beacon show (12/6 and 12/7), but both are now sold out.

Steve Earle recently announced a residency at City Winery with Allison Moorer taking place from January 9 to February 6. Tickets for all five shows are still on sale.

All dates below...

Continue reading "Josh Ritter added to WFUV Holiday show @ Beacon Theater, appearing @ NYPL w/ Steve Earle & Wesley Stace"

"@tedleo and me were repping Jersey hard at 'Mats City. Guy from the Gaslight Anthem - apparently not all that concerned! #jerseystandup" - Titus Andronicus

"Backstage; mike Scott just asking Ted Leo if he'd heard the Ram record" - Chris Funk

John Wesley Harding (more by Chris Graham)

Like Craig Finn the night before (and many others who were on the bill of one of the three Replacements tribute shows at Bowery Electric, Ted Leo took on the Replacements on Thursday night (11/17). Check out the videos below.

One night later, last night (11/18), Ted was one of many special guests at John Wesley Harding's Cabinet of Wonders at City Winery. If you missed it, as previously mentioned, John's tour continues in Brooklyn and NJ on Saturday and Sunday. They aren't Cabinet shows, but they are also pretty special. As his own site reads:

Critically acclaimed singer-songwriter John Wesley Harding is set to tour the U.S. this fall with the all-star King Charles Trio, whose lineup includes John Moen, Chris Funk, Jenny Conlee-Drizos and Nate Query, all members of The Decemberists, Peter Buck of R.E.M. and Scott McCaughey (Thee Minus Five, The Baseball Project). Thee Minus Five are tabbed to support.

Ted Leo also has shows coming up at The Bell House and Maxwell's. Watch him cover the Replacements below...

Continue reading "Ted Leo covered the Replacements (video), played w/ John Wesley Harding (who plays again this weekend) "

photos by Chris Graham

"John Wesley Harding just sang a song with an Atlantic Yards reference." - Kate

John Hold Steady Walkmen Mountain Goat Wesley Harding

"Well, you know, I've been making music for twenty something years now, and over the years, you meet many people in and out of your lives. They may or may not be your best friends, and you may or may not be close with their families, but there is a mutual respect and in some cases, that blossoms into very long friendships. For example, when I first came into America in 1990, I think my first ever solo show here was in Athens, Georgia. There, I was invited to stay at Peter Buck's house, and staying there was Nikki Sudden who has since sadly demised, and Billy Bragg; it was quite a wild scenario. It was my first time in town really, and my first solo show in America, so I've known Peter 21 years now. Scott, the producer of the record, came up to me at a show in Seattle in 1992 and said, "I'm a fan, I'm in the Young Fresh Fellows," and I said, "Fantastic." Now, bizarrely, he's not only in the Young Fresh Fellows, he's also in The Minus Five who was the backing band of my last album, and R.E.M who are now no more. Rosanne Cash, I met totally by chance in a New York lunch place. We were introduced, and I'm an artist-in-residence at this university, and I asked her to do a talk for the students with me because she's also a writer and musician. We've become very good friends, she's a great user of the social networking device Twitter, and we kind of keep in touch through that. So, I've known her a few years now, and her voice is so very recognizable to me, and I've loved it for so long that she is a very easy person to summon how good she would be in your mind of how good she would be in a song; then there's John Roderick of The Long Winters who is quite a recent friend; also Laura Veirs--I needed a woman to sing the parts of the ghost of my ex-girlfriend in one of the songs; and Steve Berlin of Los Lobos does the horns on everything, and he produced an album for me in 1992 called Why We Fight. He also found me a place to live. I was his neighbor for a couple of years. So, as you can see, it's a lovely web of friendship and mutual history."
- John Wesley Harding to Huffington Post

Tickets are still on sale for the Decemberists-filled Cabinet of Wonders that will go down in the same venue on 11/18. Many of the same musicians will also be in the house the next night at the Bell House and then at Maxwell's right after that.

More pictures from City Winery below...

Continue reading "John Darnielle, Rosanne Cash, Hamilton Leithauser, John Hodgman & others played John Wesley Harding's show (pics)"

photos by Chris Graham

"I just saw Craig Finn play a theramin with a beer bottle." - Kate McKean

Craig Finn, Eugene Mirman & friends @ City Winery

"Craig Finn, frontman of The Hold Steady, has confirmed the November 25 release of his new 7" single "Honolulu Blues," a preview of his highly anticipated solo debut out early 2012. The limited edition 7" vinyl, released with new b-side "Rented Room," will only be available in select record stores nationwide on Record Store Day's "Black Friday" sale. Both songs will be available via all digital retailers on November 29.

Produced by Mike McCarthy (Spoon, Trail of Dead) in Austin, Texas earlier this year, Finn's solo album features backing by members of White Denim, The Heartless Bastards, Phosphorescent, and Centro-matic." [PR]

Continue reading "Craig Finn releasing Record Store Day 7", played Cabinet of Wonders (pics)"

Mountain Goats @ Knitting Factory, Halloween 2005 (more)

As previously mentioned, John Wesley Harding is holding a "Cabinet of Wonders" variety show at NYC's City Winery on October 28th with Hamilton Leithauser (The Walkmen), Eugene Mirman, John Hodgman, Emma Straub, Paul Harding, and more TBA. Since our last mention, two very special guests have been added to the bill: Craig Finn (The Hold Steady) and John Darnielle (The Mountain Goats). Hopefully you didn't sleep on tickets because the show is now sold out.

Tickets are however on sale now for A Haunted Hot Tub Halloween at Littlefield, also a comedy and music variety show, happening one day later (10/29) with Kristen Schaal, Kurt Braunohler, Wyatt Cenac, Andres du Bouchet, and... John Darnielle, and more.

Tickets are also on sale for Hot Tub on 10/10 and 10/17.

Tickets are also still on sale for the 11/18 Cabinet of Wonders at City Winery with The Blue Fisherman (from Edinburgh, Scotland), Howe Gelb, Myla Goldberg, Ted Leo, Eugene Mirman, Audrey Niffenegger AND "Plus for this Cabinet of Wonders, and this Cabinet of Wonders only, the House Band will be THE KING CHARLES TRIO, comprising: Peter Buck (REM), Jenny Conlee-Drizos, Chris Funk, John Wesley Harding (Appearing as Himself), Scott McCaughey (The Minus Five), John Moen, and Nate Query." That's a lot of Decemberists. More upcoming JWH shows HERE

Speaking of Ted Leo and Craig Finn, both are scheduled to make appearances at the BrooklynVegan-presented Replacements tribute shows happening at Bowery Electric in November. The previously announced two shows (and movie screenings) are sold out, BUT a third tribute concert - a late one on 11/17, has been added. Tickets for the new show are on sale. More info HERE.

Mountain Goats dates and flyers below...

Continue reading "3rd Replacements tribute show added, John Darnielle schedules guest appearances, Craig Finn too"

John Wesley Harding (aka Wesley Stace) has three 'Cabinet of Wonders' scheduled at City Winery for his second season this fall. The dates scheduled are September 23, October 28, and November 18. Each night features a collection of special guests. The first night (9/23) includes Eleanor Friedberger (of Fiery Furnaces), Andrew VanWyngarden (of MGMT), Todd Barry, Jami Attenberg, Tony Visconti, Dan Zanes, and more TBA. The October 28 lineup includes Hamilton Leithauser (The Walkmen), Eugene Mirman, John Hodgman, Emma Straub, Paul Harding, and more TBA. The November 18 lineup includes Howe Gelb, Eugene Mirman, Audrey Niffenegger, and Myla Goldberg. Check the Cabinet of Wonders website for updates on the shows. Tickets are only on sale for the first one at the moment.

John Wesley Harding is also playing a few shows in November, some of which are with The Minus 5. Those dates include November 19 at The Bell House in Brooklyn, and November 20 at Maxwell's in Hoboken, both with The Minus 5. Robyn Hitchcock also plays the The Bell House on November 19, and there's a combo ticket for both shows.

John Wesley Harding also appears with 'friends' and Josh Ritter at the New York Public Library on December 6. The show starts at 7 PM and will be held in the Celeste Bartos Forum. The event is listed as discussion/reading/singing.

All dates and a video of a past Cabinet of Wonders below...

Continue reading "John Wesley Harding shows, The Minus 5, Robyn Hitchcock, MGMT, Eugene Mirman, Todd Barry & others too"

John Wesley Harding and Eugene Mirman at LPR in 2009 (more by Tim Griffin)

"I wanted to bring together my novel writing friends (who mostly envy my musician friends) and my musician friends (who mostly envy my novel writing friends) under one flag," says John Wesley Harding. "Then add Eugene Mirman and his comedians of comedy... The fact is: I like everyone who's performing.

In between (and before) those dates, John Wesley Harding AKA Wesley Stace will do readings in and around the area, including one on 3/10 at Book Court in Brooklyn and one on 3/17 as part of a panel at LIO in Brooklyn. He'll be speaking about Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer, his new book. Maybe you read about it in the New York Times:

WESLEY STACE'S new book, "Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer," is both a murder mystery and a novel about classical music, with a character who sometimes assumes another identity. Mr. Stace, an enthusiastic, donnish Englishman with an honors degree in English literature from Jesus College, Cambridge, and a head stuffed full of historical trivia, is an expert on both double lives and music. Improbably, he is also John Wesley Harding, an Elvis Costello-like singer-songwriter and folk rocker who has released more than a dozen records and is cool enough to have enlisted most of the Decemberists as the backup band on a forthcoming album.

The Decemberists play Prospect Park on June 14th with Best Coast. Ticket info is forthcoming.

The David Wax Museum, who recently played their own show at City Winery (and who are part of John Wesley's Cabinet on 3/11), will also be at SXSW where you'll be able to catch them at a BrooklynVegan day party right at noon on Friday, 3/18 at Barbarella on Red River. Stay tuned for more details on that party coming shortly (but I can say it is the same one Middle Brother is playing later in the day). More David Wax dates at their website.

All Stace & Andrew Bird dates are below...

Continue reading "Andrew Bird playing w/ John Wesley Harding, Wesley Stace released a book, David Wax Museum heading to SXSW"

John Wesley Harding @ the Eugene Mirman Fest (more by David Andrako)

The next edition of John Wesley Harding's Cabinet of Wonders goes down at City Winery in NYC tonight, 2/11, with Eugene Mirman, Ted Leo, The Fiery Furnaces, Evan Dando & Juliana Hatfield, Ben Ottewell (of Gomez), and Rivka Galchen Patrick McGrath. That's an amazing lineup and tickets are still available for the show that features a few people who appeared on the lineup of last night's Neil Young tribute at Carnegie Hall.

As mentioned, Ben Ottewell also plays an early show at Mercury Lounge tonight.

Tonight's show is Ted Leo's only upcoming NYC appearance, though those in Austin in March can catch him at the BrooklynVegan SXSW showcase and at other shows. His full solo tour includes February west coast dates, and April east coast dates (Philly, Scranton & CT included). All dates are listed below...

Continue reading "updated Ted Leo solo dates, John Wesley Harding Cabinet of Wonders at City Winery tonight"

photos by Chris La Putt

Eleanor Friedberger / David Johansen

What Kind of Love Is This:
The Music of BOB DYLAN & THE BAND
w/ Steven Bernstein (Sex Mob, Levon Helm Band), John Medeski (Medeski, Martin and Wood), Rob Burger (Laurie Anderson, Marianne Faithful, Iron & Wine), Tony Scherr (Bill Frisell, Norah Jones, Sex Mob), Kenny Wollesen (Norah Jones, John Zorn, Bill Frisell, Sex Mob), and special guests Jolie Holland, Laura Cantrell, Nicole Atkins, John Wesley Harding, and Eleanor and Matthew Friedberger of The Fiery Furnaces. And special Guest Vocalists Chocolate Genius, and David Johansen (New York Dolls).

Continue reading "Bob Dylan was celebrated @ Le Poisson Rouge (pics, video & setlist) -- David Johansen, Fiery Furnaces & many more"

Bob Dylan by Greil Marcus: Writings 1968-2010 was recently released, just in time for the holidays...

"The book begins in Berkeley in 1968, and ends with a piece on Dylan's show at the University of Minnesota--his very first appearance at his alma mater--on election night 2008. In between are moments of euphoric discovery: From Marcus's liner notes for the 1967 Basement Tapes (pop music's most famous bootlegged archives) to his exploration of Dylan's reimagining of the American experience in the 1997 Time Out of Mind. And rejection; Marcus's Rolling Stone piece on Dylan's album Self Portrait--often called the most famous record review ever written--began with "What is this shit?" and led to his departure from the magazine for five years. Marcus follows not only recordings but performances, books, movies, and all manner of highways and byways in which Bob Dylan has made himself felt in our culture.

Together the dozens of pieces collected here comprise a portrait of how, throughout his career, Bob Dylan has drawn upon and reinvented the landscape of traditional American song, its myths and choruses, heroes and villains. They are the result of a more than forty-year engagement between an unparalleled singer and a uniquely acute listener."

Eleanor & Matt Friedberger will also be on hand at the 14th St Y and Le Poisson Rouge on Sunday, December 5th, for a day of Dylan events. The concert at LPR is this:

What Kind of Love Is This:
The Music of BOB DYLAN & THE BAND
w/ Steven Bernstein (Sex Mob, Levon Helm Band), John Medeski (Medeski, Martin and Wood), Rob Burger (Laurie Anderson, Marianne Faithful, Iron & Wine), Tony Scherr (Bill Frisell, Norah Jones, Sex Mob), Kenny Wollesen (Norah Jones, John Zorn, Bill Frisell, Sex Mob), and special guests Jolie Holland, Laura Cantrell, Nicole Atkins, John Wesley Harding, and Eleanor and Matthew Friedberger of The Fiery Furnaces. And special Guest Vocalists Chocolate Genius, and David Johansen (New York Dolls).

Greil Marcus: Author of the definitive book on Bob Dylan and The Band, Invisible Republic: Bob Dylan's Basement Tapes.

Christopher Ricks: Renowned critic and scholar of English literature and poetry, and author of Dylan's Visions of Sin.

John Niven: Novelist whose book Music from Big Pink vividly imagines the world of Bob Dylan and The Band.

Dana Spiotta: Author of mesmerizing portraits of the 60's underground, including Eat the Document.

Matt Friedberger: Co-founder of the visionary rock band The Fiery Furnaces.

D.A. Pennebaker: Pioneering film documentarian, whose credits include Don't Look Back, the first film on Bob Dylan.

Stephen Hazan Arnoff: Executive Director of the 14th Street Y writes and teaches widely on music, art and religion.

Wesley Stace (John Wesley Harding): Singer-songwriter and award winning author of Misfortune.

William G. Scheele: Museum curator and former Equipment/Stage Manager for Bob Dylan and The Band.

John Wesley Harding also has a show coming up at City Winery.

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"

words & photos by David Andrako

"Boo Todd relentlessly. Throw shit at him. When Jon (Benjamin) and I tell you to stop, ignore us and boo louder." - David Cross's instructions to the audience just before Todd Barry's "surprise" appearance.

The Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival came to a close on Sunday, its fourth and final day, at The Bell House with two sold out shows. There was the early show billed as "Wes and Eugene's Cabinet of Wonders", and the late show "A Toddless Tinkle."

Friend and frequent collaborator of Eugene, John Wesley Harding, hosted the early show along with Eugene. The show featured performances by Yo La Tengo, John Oliver, Colson Whitehead, Darin Strauss, and Scott McCaughey.

Darin Strauss, the Brooklyn based author of "Half a Life" read a recently written piece entitled "Puberty", which was an autobiographical story set in the mid 1980s that involved gaining entrance to a much cooler high school classmate's party. Scott McCaughey, touring member of REM, performed two songs backed by Harding and his backing band The English UK including a 5 minute tribute to the 1986 Mets.

Eugene Mirman made a brief appearance with his newly purchased $380 Theremin and also returned to the stage to "sing" a cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson." Colson Whitehead, the New York based author, read a chapter from his best selling 2009 book, Sag Harbor. "John Wesley Harding's favorite comedian", John Oliver, from The Daily Show and the upcoming "Smurfs" movie followed with a set that featured a particularly interesting story about a gig in the remote Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Yo La Tengo closed the show with a five song set that featured both Harding and McCaughey and included covers of "I'm A Believer" and The Kinks' "All That Will."

Between the shows Eugene made his way out to the dunk tank in front of The Bell House as John Oliver and Daniel Kitson threw balls at the target and were cheered on by the long line of fans waiting for the 2nd show.

The 2nd show, "A Toddless Tinkle", was hosted by Tinkle founders David Cross and Jon Benjamin. Todd Barry, the other member of the Tinkle crew was at the Music Hall of Williamsburg as an opening act for Superchunk. From the beginning of the show Cross and Benjamin let the crowd in on the fact that Todd would be making a "surprise" walk on sometime between 10 and 11PM. Both agreed that the proper greeting for Todd would be for the audience to boo him off stage. Throughout the evening random audience members were brought onstage to audition to fill the role of "Todd." "Todd #2", an audience member named Andy ventured out into the audience to attempt to do some of Todd's famous crowd work. Andy failed miserably but did offer some unintentional comedy when he approached (and didn't recognize) Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo and mocked him for his orange shirt and told him that he looked like Gilbert Gotfried. Cross quickly jumped in and saved Kaplan from being mocked by the auditioning "Todd".

Todd Barry made his way to The Bell House shortly after 11PM and was greeted by the aforementioned boos as well as cups, beer cans and hundreds of expletives. He attempted to win the crowd over but ended up quickly leaving the stage and the venue.

The nearly 3 hour show featured short sets from John Mulaney, Kristen Schaal, Eugene Mirman, and Karen Kilgariff. Festival favorite Daniel Kitson was the final performer of the evening with a 12 minute set that saw him chastise the audience over their reaction to Todd Barry's appearance and pointed out that everyone went along with the "mean boys" (Cross and Benjamin). The show ended with the 2nd ever screening of Cross and Bejamin's "Paid Programming", a mock informercial that aired a handful of times on Adult Swim last fall. The 11 minute short was meant to be aired at 4AM and didn't have any mention of the creators. And with that the 3rd Annual Festival came to a close. 9 shows, 3 venues, 25 velvet paintings of Eugene and 1 angry Todd Barry.

Check out the pictures and reviews from previous nights: NIGHT 1, NIGHT 2 and NIGHT 3. NIGHT 4 continued below...

Continue reading "Todd Barry booed, Yo La Tengo harassed, David Cross & more @ night 4 of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Fest (pics & review)"

words & photos by David Andrako

"It looks like America might have fallen in love with a Pakistani!" Eugene Mirman after Kumail Nanjiani's well received set at The Bell House.

The third day of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival (Saturday) saw four shows performed at three different venues around Park Slope and Gowanus along with performances from over 20 comedians, a song by John Wesley Harding and a heavy dose of Bourne Trilogy references.

The early show, "Mike Birbiglia Interviews A Bunch Of Sort Of Authors and Sarah Vowell", was hosted by the aforementioned Birbiglia and saw him interviewing Michael Showalter, Eugene Mirman, Patrick Borelli and Sarah Vowell about their most recent books. Birbiglia based the order of the interviews on his anxiety about the interviews from highest to lowest. Sarah Vowell went first and Eugene Mirman closed. Sarah, the most accomplished author on the panel, admitted being jealous of Chuck Klosterman "because he would get mentioned on The O.C." She also spoke of her next project, a historical book on the American annexation of Hawaii.

Michael Showalter's book "Mr. Funny Pants" will be released early next year and was described as "a book about how to write a book." He and Birbiglia read a chapter from the book that recapped a fictional interview with Charlie Rose. Patrick Borelli gave a surprisingly heartfelt slideshow of headshots from his book, "Holy Headshots." Birgibilia reminded Borelli about their short-lived two man improv team "Michael O' Patrick" from earlier in their careers. Eugene Mirman joined Birbiglia to chat about his book "Will to Whatevs: A Guide to Modern Life" that was released in February of 2009. The two also recounted the origin of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival that was hatched during a night of heavy drinking and may or may not have been the result of a dare that Eugene accepted. The early show ended with all of the authors having a Q&A with the audience.

The two middle shows of the evening ran simultaneously at Union Hall and The Rock Shop. Eugene headed over to Union Hall to host "Eugene's World Class Masters of Comedy" which featured sets from Daniel Kitson (who also performed the night before), Ron Lynch, Marc Maron and Todd Barry. Being that I'd seen or would be seeing all of the comedians at Union Hall (except Todd Barry) at other shows during the festival I opted to head over to The Rock Shop for "A Night of Gay or Foreign Comedy." The show was hosted by Gabe Liedman and featured Maeve Higgins (who also performed the night before), Glenn Wool, Brent Sulivan, Kumail Nanjiani and Mehran Khaghani. Standouts of the show were Higgins, Boston based comic Mehran Khagani and Brent Sullivan (I agree with Eugene's description in the Festival guide that one of his jokes is a Top 5 joke of 2010).

The final show of the evening was held back at The Bell House and was billed as (deep breath) "Why Do I Know Everything about Everyone At The French Dinner? An Evening of Espionage Themed Comedy Celebrating Our Love of the Bourne Trilogy and All Things Spy." Eugene opened the show by explaining that his love for the Bourne Trilogy began when he watched the first film and showed a short film that he created in tribute to the trilogy. Kumail Nanjiani, fresh off a quick set at The Rock Shop, was the first comic of the evening and admitted that his set was "based on someone who watched the Bourne Trilogy yesterday". His set, which ended with a story about being subjected to racist taunts in Los Angeles, was rewarded by the loudest applause of the festival (so far).

Jon Glaser returned to the stage, not as Dr. Attitude (his character from Thursday night's show) but as The Man In The Green Mask - a CIA spy sent to educate the audience on what it takes to be a spy. He was unwilling to answer most questions during a brief Q&A but did admit to melting a gun into the shape of a banana. Friend of Eugene, John Wesley Harding (who also plays the fest Sunday night), performed a song written especially for the evening, "A Ballad Of The Bourne Trilogy". Sarah Vowell made several appearances between acts to read Bourne-themed poetry that was penned by Eugene.

Leo Allen and Eric Slovin (Allen and Slovin) performed in complete homemade, glue filled costumes as Spy vs. Spy and spent most of their set lamenting having booked a comedy show on Yom Kippur and talking about their day spent at Temple Beth Chuckles. Marc Maron, after performing at Union Hall, closed the show with a thoroughly researched set that featured his thoughts on spys, espionage, proper mic stands and the existence (or not) of his FBI file.

More pictures from the whole day, below...

Continue reading "Mike Birbiglia did interviews, Spy vs Spy & more on Day 3 of the 2010 Eugene Mirman Comedy Fetival (review & pics) "

by Klaus Kinski

As I get older, I just I don't have the wherewithal to see as much comedy as I should. It's really depressing. There are so many goddamned GREAT comedy shows happening in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and even Queens that rather than pick one to go to, my brain shuts down and says "Just go home and watch Wheeler Dealers on the ole DVR, KK." It was easier to decide when Rififi was around. So thank Cod there's a yearly comedy festival in Brooklyntown that brings my ever flabbening body out of hibernation and reacquaints me with a sliver of the current roster of the greatest living comedians. That festival is the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival, and this year it takes place from September 16th - September 19th and will impregnate The Bell House, The Rock Shop, and Union Hall (or as I like to call them, the most annoying venues to go if you don't have kids or play bocce) with its comedy seedlings.

As with previous years, the 2010 Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival brings together a supremely jaw-dropping group of comedians and performers. What can one expect? Oh, I don't know. Maybe (definitely) Emo Philips, Daniel Kitson, Jon Glaser, Max Silvestri, David Cross, Jon Benjamin, Kristen Schaal, Kurt Braunohler, Yo La Tengo, John Wesley Harding, Sarah Vowell, John Mulaney, and so many more I'm liable to puke with glee should I continue. What am I most looking forward to? Thanks for asking! I'd have to say it's a toss up between the bill Yo La Tengo falls on and a rare Tinkle performance (without Todd Barry, sadly)(although, Todd is opening for Superchunk at MHOW on September 19th, so that's something) (sold out though) (probably because Todd is on the bill).

The festival line-up will be tweaked, added onto, emboldened, modified, and made better as we make our way to the opening date, but have a gander at what's already planned below. In the immortal words of the person who put the roster together for me, "This is what's happening; but not everything that's happening". Ticket info to follow, but many shows will be on sale in advance. Also, please see a message from enfant terrible David Cross below...

Continue reading "the 2010 Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival is coming"

John Wesley Harding @ City Winery Haiti benefit Jan. 20th (more by Tim Griffin)

Songwriter and author John Wesley Harding has a number of different events coming up. He joins his band the English U.K. for three shows this weekend (two of which are in the NYC-area). They play Joe's Pub on Saturday, February 13th. (tickets), then they're at Maxwell's with Freedy Johnston on February 14th (tickets).

JWH, real name & pen name Wesley Stace, will be doing a reading/musical performance at Brooklyn's Greenlight Bookstore (686 Fulton Street) on Febraury 25th. He'll be joined by another author/musician, Rick Moody (who plays as part of the Wingdale Community Singers). Stace's third book is due to come out in 2010.

John Wesley Harding's Cabinet of Wonders variety show will return to (Le) Poisson Rouge for shows in March, April and May. Tickets are TBA. Dates for those and all shows/readings are below...

Continue reading "John Wesley Harding tour dates (shows this weekend, Freedy Johnston, readings, more Cabinets of Wonder...)"

photos by Tim Griffin

City Winery's series of Haiti benefit concerts kicked off last night (1/20) with an all-star lineup that included Patti Smith, The Swell Season (they headlined Radio City Music Hall one night earlier), The Antlers, John Wesley Harding, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Yo La Tengo, Young People's Chorus of New York City, Tiempo Libre and Joshua Bell. Everyone played short sets, especially the unannounced guest Michael Stipe who actually only read something and introduced his friend Patti Smith.

Tonight's City Winery show (1/21) features Lewis Black, Vernon Reid & Corey Glover of Living Colour, Rich Pagano & The Sugarcane Cups, Marshall Crenshaw, and David Johansen. More pictures adn some videos from last night, below...

Continue reading "Patti Smith, Michael Stipe, Swell Season, Antlers, Yo La Tengo & others played a benefit @ City Winery - pics, video"

We need your help to raise $100,000 in four nights to help the victims of Haiti's catastrophic earthquake. No country in the Western Hemisphere has been battered more than Haiti in the last 500 years--the nearly complete annihilation of its native population over two decades, a brutal slave regime, ongoing foreign military interventions over hundreds of years, brutal dictatorships supported by western powers, blockades of aid and more recently, devastating natural disasters from hurricanes to this latest earthquake.

100% of proceeds from this benefit will be donated to Doctors Without Borders, Partners In Health and the mobile hospital initiative directed by the Jewish Renaissance Medical Center - all recommended by the Haiti Consule General. We ask that you give any way you can.

Continue reading "Patti Smith, Swell Season, Josh Ritter, Roseanne Cash, JW Harding & many more playing Haiti benefits @ City Winery"

photos by Tim Griffin

"@colinmeloy just asked me to MC the Decemberists show tonight in NYC. Finally, something to dress up for! I know just what to wear...." - John Wesley Harding

"When the spotlight glared down on the tinsel-bedecked stage-left podium at Terminal 5 [Saturday] night, the crowd got very excited. It could only mean that The Decemberists were about to hit the stage and get their first set of randomly selected songs to perform in an unusual lottery concert.

For those in the audience who know Wesley Stace (better known to many by his stage name of John Wesley Harding), we recognized that we were in for a rare treat -- a collision of sharp wits. And although Wes said he got the call to play MC for last night's show just hours before he went on, giving him no time to put any material together, he managed to wing it just fine...

...song titles were pulled from a basket, bingo-style and the band had to play them right away, with no cheating...

It was a superb mix of songs old and new -- one so very new that the band's mastermind, Colin Meloy, wrote it on the spot, referencing NYC Miracle on the Hudson plane crash and ending with an admission that on his first visit to New York he stole something from the Empire State Building gift shop. We also got The Tain, all 20 minutes of it." [Will You Miss Me When You're Gone]

From Terminal 5, The Decemberists embarked on their latest tour which also brought them to The Wellmont Theatre in Montclair, NJ on Monday. Laura Veirs opened both NYC-area shows and is also on the tour. Terminal 5's lottery-generated setlist, and lots more pictures from the show, below...

Continue reading "The Decemberists & Laura Veirs w/ lotto master John Wesley Harding @ Terminal 5 in NYC - pics & setlist"

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) "

by Andrew Frisicano

John Wesley Harding (aka Wesley Stace) enjoying some cricket...

As you can see above, John Wesley Harding has been taking a vacation abroad (documented on both his Twitter and MySpace blog). It wasn't all fun though -- the trip included a set of overseas shows too. Actually, hopefully those are fun too.

Harding's next show will take place July 8th at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. After that, Harding has a few full band gigs scheduled. John and friends come to the NYC area for a show at the Bell House on July 25th. Tickets are on sale. No word on which friends he'll bring with him, though we're willing to bet one of them will be Eugene Mirman who is also performing at the Brooklyn venue less than a week earlier.

JWH will be starting up his "Cabinet of Wonders" shows again too. That monthly residency at (Le) Poisson Rouge runs September 16th, October 7th and November 18th. No lineups have been announced, but past event fixtures have always included Eugene Mirman, and other authors and musicians.

Before those dates, Harding jumps on another friend's revue -- "Are You Worried About the Rising Cost of Funerals?" hosted by Errollyn Wallen at LPR on Tuesday, July 14th. Others on that bill include Margaret Leng Tan, Rita Porfiris, David Grand and Djonque.

Tickets for all of the John Wesley Harding LPR shows are on sale.

Harding's Cabinet of Wonders revue last visited NYC on April 15th, after a national March/April tour. If you're wondering, What the hell actually happens at these Cabinet of Wonders things? You can check out our coverage of the event's February 11th, March 11th and April 15th performances at LPR. Or look at the performer/set list chart from one of the most recent CoW events in Pittsburgh, with all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "John Wesley Harding - 2009 Tour Dates (more Cabinet of Wonders @ LPR, full band shows, Bell House & more) "

The Hold Steady @ Terminal 5 11/6/08 (more by Chris La Putt)

All four of the Hold Steady's scheduled NYC shows, June 8th - 11th, have sold out, though the group's second Music Hall of Williamsburg show (Thursday, June 11th) is part of the Northside Festival, which still has badges available.

Openers for those shows are Right on Dynamite (6/8 @ Bowery Ballroom), Mischief Brew (6/9 @ Bowery Ballroom), Gost Trio (6/10 @ MHOW) and Hype of the States (6/11 @ MHOW).

The Hold Steady's other upcoming dates include them playing as openers themselves for the Counting Crows (in the UK in May) and the Dave Matthews Band (in the US in June).

The band also just announced some new headlining dates including a Friday, July 24th show at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, NJ. Tickets go on sale Friday, May 15th at noon.

The Sayreville show is then one day before the Hold Steady play a show further south at the 2009 XPoNential Music Festival. The three days fest runs from July 24-26 at Wiggins Park at the Camden Waterfront. Yeasayer, Peter Bjorn and John, Aimee Mann, and many more artists are on the bill.

Complete fest lineup, and all Hold Steady tour dates below...

Continue reading "2009 XPoNential Music Festival lineup (in Camden) & more Hold Steady tour dates (Starland Ballroom)"

Eugene Mirman @ Le Poisson Rouge (more by Tim Griffin)

Dates have been announced dates for this year's Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival, which will take place September 17th - 20th at The Bell House in Brooklyn. Lineup and ticket info to come.

Last year's fest happened September 15th-18th, with events at the Bell House and Union Hall. Featured acts included Janeane Garofalo, John Oliver, Kristen Schaal, Aziz Ansari, Michael Showalter, Mike Birbiglia, Fred Armisen and many others.

Aziz Ansari, now an even huger celebrity thanks to a co-starring role in the new NBC TV series Parks and Recreation, will be back in NYC soon and will be making at least two appearances while he's here. The first is at Eugene Mirman's weekly Tearing the Veil of Maya show at Union Hall on Sunday, May 3rd @ 7:30 pm (tickets at the door) (Eugene won't actually be there though). The next is one night later at UCB as part of Leo Allen's weekly, late-night Whiplash show. Tickets to the latter are free, and you probably want to make a reservation.

Aziz's other upcoming appearances include the Sasquatch Festival, Bonnaroo, and a TBA DVD taping in NYC in "early June".

Mirman is currently on tour with Flight of the Conchords (which is why he won't be at Union Hall on Sunday), though he didn't jump on till after the group's two NYC shows.

Mirman also recently toured with John Wesley Harding's Cabinet of Wonders. That show visited NYC three times: February 11th, March 11th, and April 15th (all three links have pics, one of which is reposted above). There remains a May 21st show hosted by Philly radio show World Cafe Live. Tickets for that show are on sale.

Speaking of John Wesley Harding (aka Wesley Stace), on Thursday, April 30th, he'll be performing at CUNY's Proshansky Auditorium on a bill titled "Collaborations/Elaborations: The Music of Daniel Felsenfeld." The event is part of the PEN World Voices Festival, and will feature Harding, Mark Z. Danielewski, Daniel Felsenfeld, Rick Moody, and others. Details on that below.

In addition to that show, Harding has his own UK tour coming up. He just did a reading/performance at the Union Square Barnes and Noble on April 27th.

Details on the PEN Festival show, with all upcoming Eugene Mirman dates and a video roundup of the comedian's recent activities, below...

Continue reading "2009 Eugene Mirman Comedy Fest dates announced ++ upcoming Aziz Ansari appearances in NYC"

photos by Tim Griffin

" Graham Parker (musician, Bloodshot Records)
" Josh Ritter (singer-songwriter) (moved from March)
" Eugene Mirman (comedian, Flight of the Conchords)
" Daniel Wallace (magician/author, Big Fish)
" Dan John Miller (actor/musician, ex-Blanche, played Luther Perkins in I Walk The Line)
" Sam Lipsyte (author, one of New York Magazine's "Ten Funniest New Yorkers You've Never Heard Of")
" Daniel Felsenfeld (classical composer/author)

Continue reading "John Wesley Harding, Graham Parker, Eugene Mirman, Josh Ritter & more @ Le Poisson Rouge, NYC - pics "

As previously reported, Amanda Palmer is hard at work preparing her own high-school musical...

I am going to be performing in an original play with music titled "WITH THE NEEDLE THAT SINGS IN HER HEART" at lexington high school. the show is inspired by the album "in the aeroplane over the sea" by neutral milk hotel and is being written (and we're almost done!) by me, the cast and my former drama director and mentor, steven bogart.

performances are May 7, 8 and 9 at the LHS theater. doors at 7:30. show at 8. $5 for students. $10 for the general public. come. come come come.

using "in the aeroplane over the sea" by neutral milk hotel as an inspiration, the kids (a cast of 20) have been putting together a play through improvisation. the process started about a month ago and i've been in the last two weeks of rehearsals helping shape the plot and characters and create the musical accompaniment, mostly songs from the record played live. often with me playing the instruments, but the whole cast and some extra musicians will be presenting the music....

As Pitchfork recently reported. Amanda is also making a public effort to get dropped from her Roadrunner Records contract. She even sings a song about it to the tune of "Moon River". Check out the video below. In a letter to Bob Lefsetz she wrote:

my label-dropping game has become very fun. please pray for me.

it's a lesson in how the future of music is working - fans are literally (and i mean that....literally) lining up at the signing table after shows and HANDING me cash, saying "thank you".

i had to EXPLAIN to the so-called "head of digital media" of roadrunner australia WHAT TWITTER WAS. and his brush-off that "it hasn't caught on here yet" was ABSURD because the next day i twittered that i was doing an impromptu gathering in a public park and 12 hours later, 150 underage fans - who couldn't attend the show - showed up to get their records signed.

no manager knew! i didn't even warn or tell her! no agents! no security! no venue! we were in a fucking public park!
life is becoming awesome.

Palmer is also releasing a Who Killed Amanda Palmer book -- "a fine art hardback book of "photographic evidence" with contributions from celebrated blogger and photographer Kyle Cassidy, Beth Hommel, Tegan Rain (of Tegan and Sara) and many others. Fictional stories to accompany the photographs have been penned by best-selling author Neil Gaiman." That book will be available for pre-order on Palmer's website starting Monday, April 20th at noon (cover art above).

Full With the Needle That Sings in her Heart press release, plus Palmer singing an impromptu song with John Wesley Harding at SXSW and other videos, and all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Amanda Palmer - wants out of Roadrunner, playing NYC, writing a play, releasing a book, likes Twitter & other news"