anika-pyle-freakout-fest

Chumped members formed Katie Ellen, playing their first show tonight w/ Smith Street Band; The Rentiers have new songs

Anika & Dan at Freak Out! Fest (photo via FOF Instagram)
Anika Pyle

Australia’s The Smith Street Band have been on a tour with The Front Bottoms and Elvis Depressedly, which recently hit NYC for two BrooklynVegan-presented shows at Irving Plaza (check out pictures). They have a few nights off, so TSSB are coming back to NYC for a small headlining show TONIGHT (10/23) at Suburbia. Opening are Great Cynics and Katie Ellen. $5 at the door gets you in.

It’s the first show ever for Katie Ellen, which is the new duo of Chumped singer Anika Pyle and drummer Dan Frelly. We haven’t heard any music from them yet, but Anika says it sounds “like if teenage fanclub and jenny lewis were a two-piece.” Sounds promising. She also mentions that they’re named after her great grandmother’s radio stage name. Though it’s their first show as Katie Ellen, Dan did back Anika at her recent solo set at the day 2 matinee of Freak Out! Fest at ABC No Rio (pictured above).

Anika is also one of the contributors to Plow United bassist Joel Tannenbaum’s project The Rentiers, that also includes Mikey Erg and more. We posted a track from them back in February, and they recently released two more. One’s called “Black Metal Yoga” (that’s a thing now, remember?) and the other is “We Don’t Cry.” The latter comes out as a 7″ and cassette on November 17 via Baldy Longhair Records (pre-order).

Stream both, with the list of TSSB dates and the flyer for tonight’s show, below…

Smith Street Band Katie Ellen

The Smith Street Band — 2015 Tour Dates
10/23 Suburbia Brooklyn, NY w/ Great Cynics, Katie Ellen
10/25 The National Richmond, VA*
10/27 The Altar Bar Pittsburgh, PA*
10/28 The Majestic Theatre Detroit, MI*
10/29 Skully’s Columbus, OH*
10/30 Agora Theatre & Ballroom Cleveland, OH*
10/31 Bottom Lounge Chicago, IL*
11/1 Varsity Theater Minneapolis, MN*
11/3 Majestic Theatre Wisconsin, WI*
11/4 The Ready Room St. Louis, MO*
11/5 Granada Theatre Lawrence, KS*
11/6 Summit Music Hall Denver, CO*
11/7 Complex Salt Lake City, UT*
11/9 Chop Suey Seattle, WA*
11/10 Hawthorne Theatre Portland, OR*
11/12 Slim’s San Francisco, CA*
11/13 EchoPlex Los Angeles, CA*
11/14 Glass House Orange County, CA*
11/15 The Irenic San Diego, CA*
11/17 Club Red Phoenix , AZ*
11/19 The Parish Austin, TX*
11/20 Gas Monkey Bar N Grill Dallas, TX*
11/23 The Orpheum Tampa, FL*
11/24 The Social Orlando, FL*
11/27 The Fillmore Silver Spring Washington, DC*
11/29 Royale Nightclub Boston Boston, MA*

* – w/ The Front Bottoms, Elvis Depressedly