The Homosexuals play TONIGHT with James Chance @ the Secret Santo Party. 100 Lafayette NYC.
10PM-4AM. RSVP to mailinglist@newyorknighttrain.com anytime before 6PM today for half price admission. $10/$5 with RSVP. Monday, July 21: Secret Santos' Party w/James Chance, The Homosexuals, DJ Mr. Jonathan Toubin, dancer Anna Copacabana, and projectionist Spencer Bewley, Santos' Party House (100 Lafayette).
New Jack and the Pulpits video on the YouTube. Kaufman and Nero singing "Dance Area"
Take a moment to soak in the sweet sweet sights and sounds below. It is a little video of Josh Kaufman and Annie Nero, sometimes known as Jack and the Pulpits doing a stripped down live version of "Dance Area," one of the year's most beloved big hits here at Serious Business. This was shot in Memphis while Josh and Annie were on tour doing double-duty, playing with the mighty Balthrop, Alabama and the lovely Dawn Landes.
"Dance Area" comes from this excellent 3 song self-titled digital-only EP:
Buy the JACK AND THE PULPITS EP digitally on iTunes and eMusic and Amazon.
Also, Josh and Annie are performing LIVE this Sunday at the Mercury Lounge, but not as Jack and the Pulpits. Annie is joining Josh and the boys on upright bass as part Rocketship Park. They're playing a quasi-experimental acoustic-ish set this Sunday July 20. Be there! 8PM. Also on the bill: Taxi Taxi.
2MGB - Never ending tour. West coast swing right now. Plus! Photo essay from THE ROAD
The Two Man Gentlemen Band are men of the road, traveling minstrels earning their livings by spreading unknown joy to delighted strangers from Cherry Hill to Cherokee, from Texas to Memphis to Bethlehem and back. If you happen to live on the west coast and feel a burning need to witness some world-class two-man novelty-banjo music, this week you're in luck! Fill yourselves in on all the details by visiting the Gents' MySpace page. Here's a quick overview of July.
Jul 16 2008 Bellingham, Washington
Jul 17 2008 Anacortes, Washington
Jul 18 2008 Seattle, Washington
Jul 19 2008 Port Townsend, Washington
Jul 21 2008 Portland, Oregon
Jul 22 2008 Eugene, Oregon
Jul 23 2008 Cottage Grove, Oregon
Jul 24 2008 Davis, California
Jul 25 2008 Santa Rosa, California
Jul 27 2008 San Francisco, California
Jul 28 2008 Oakland, California
Seriously, visit the Gentlemen's MySpace or the SBR events page and find out when the Gents are coming to your town! The rest of 2008 is booked solid. Kazoo along to their unique brand of sophisticated silliness!
For those of you who sit around asking yourselves, "what is it like to be a Gentleman?" I offer this humble photo essay from the road. The author of these posts also doubles as third Gentleman from time to time and on two recent trips I snapped a honey bucket's worth of revealing shots of love from the ROAD. Behold.
1. Andy Bean and the Councilman collect their belongings after performing at a Vermont wedding in an enormous old mansion. Bean becomes enraptured with his man-friend's hind quarters:
2. Andy Bean and the Councilman enjoy the thrill of stiff competition. Watch as they work out their differences on the table tennis court.
3. If you've ever asked yourself "what do the Gentlemen do on their days off?" then you'll be excited by this next segment. They find a local T.G.I. Friday's and shove lots of stuff in their mouths. Behold this remarkable progression of events:
BEFORE
Sweet NYC SBR shows this summer. First one: Looker, Higgins, The Homosexuals @ Public Assembly (ex-Galapagos Art Space) in Williamsburg
Its summer. Its music time. We've got a number of full-on excellent Serious Business events coming atchya during the hot months, the first of which we'll tell you all about below. Check it. The legendary Bruno Wizard and his Homosexuals share the stage with the power-packed pop perfection of Higgins and Looker.
Friday night
July 18th Public Assembly formerly Galapagos
70 North 6th St, btwn Kent and Wythe
Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY
Starring... LOOKER HIGGINS THE HOMOSEXUALS
with super special surprise guest DJs
The party starts at 10PM and continues to 4AM.
PS there was a little confusion about the venue. at first we thought we'd booked the show at galapagos' new space in dumbo but the we realized that the show is actually going to happen at the old galapagos locale on good old north 6th st in wiiliamsburg
Today Looker guests on ProductShopNYC Sirius radio show.
Today at noon, Thursday July 3, tune in to Sirius satellite radio's Left of Center channel to hear a two hour show focused on our favorite lady power-popsters Looker. The group makes an extended appearance on ProductShopNYC's Blog Radio show, granting blogger/DJ Jason an in depth interview and performing two brand new songs, "Animal Dreams" and "Stand Back," full-on live in the studio. The show was taped at Serious Business Music recording studio in Soho, NYC. P.S. Looker are the cutest interviewees in history, just so you know.
The band just wrapped production on their second full length album, their first for Serious Business. Six of the selections have already been released as 3 separate singles over the past few months.
Looker has a series of excellent NYC area summer shows for you enjoy:
7/17 - Maxwell's: Hoboken, NJ. with the Orion Experience
7/18 - Galapogos Art Space: Dumbo, Brooklyn, NY with Higgins, the Homosexuals
7/25 - Mercury Lounge: NY, NY with the Damnwells
8/22 - Union Hall: Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY. with the Unsacred Hearts, the Homosexuals.
The 60s and 70s styled power-pop-n-classic-rock man force known as Higgins has finally sealed the deal on their third album entitled Z's. Mixes by Halsey Quemere and Travis Harrison were completed last week, Richard Morris mastered it yesterday, and now the artwork designed by Bridget Lanigan is done. These are the final steps in the record making process. We're happy to announce that this thing is done and also that it rules. Z's is the long awaited follow up to Dear Higgins (2006, Maggadee Records). The record was tracked by Travis and Halsey at Serious Business' studios over the course of the past year and a half. Kevin Fish's songs are elegant, eloquent, one-of-a-kind slices of delectable pop perfection. I swear. The band that is Higgins plays these songs like men on a mission from the Almighty. The busiest man in show-biz Josh Kaufman (Rocketship Park, Jack and the Pulpits, Caithlin DeMarrais, Dawn Landes, Balthrop Alabama, Benji Cossa) contributes inspired guitar playing throughout and delivers a classic string arrangement on "Write It Down." And in case you were wondering, drummer Brian Kantor can officially stake his claim as the bad-assest rock drummer in the world of rock-drummers, especially with his performances on the "Charly" suite. No release date is officially set yet but our sights are set the fall.
HIGGINS Z's
Tracklist:
1. There He Is
2. Always Something
3. Wall of Dumb
4. Jamy
5. Roy G. Business
6. Yes I Know
7. Write It Down
8. OK
9. Prelude to a Charly
10. Charly
11. Everybody (Thunder Mountain) Cat# SBR27
Man In Gray going out with a BANG tonight! Penultimate gig was Brooklyn Vegan party with the Futureheads
So tonight is the end for now. Come to the Delancey and see the NYC juggernaut that is Man In Gray go down swinging. If you're just tuning in, catch up here.
For those of us that thought that tonight at the Delancey was the last chance to witness their legendarily loud and lovely rock-splosion, a delightful surprise was announced yesterday. Man In Gray would perform one super-special surprise penultimate rock show, on the night before their fabled last hurrah, and they'd be opening for The Futureheads at Pianos! If you're not tuned into the NYC music blogosphere or on the band's personal list you probably didn't know about this and that sucks for you because its too late now, the penultimate party-down is over, and there's only the last chapter to look forward to tonight. Last night at Pianos it was packed to the rafters, thanks to the very popular blog Brooklyn Vegan who threw the event (Rock n ROFL) and invited MiG to play. Check out BV's MiG post from yesterday and the comment stream that grew from it. Damn. We'll miss these dudes.
New Secret Dakota Ring record. Title, cover, tracklist.
Serious Business co-founder and OK Go guitarist Andy Ross has finally wrapped his second record as Secret Dakota Ring. The long awaited follow up to 2004's Do Not Leave Baggage All the Way should reach your hands, eyeballs and ear-holes by October 2008 but a firm release date isn't set yet. The title of the record is Cantarell. Andy collaborated with drummer/producer/mixer/SBR-main-man Travis Harrison throughout the record. Josh Kaufman (Rocketship Park) produced three tracks and Assaf Spector produced two. There's no MP3 for you yet but good things come to those who wait. The cover art, made by Worcester, MA artist Jacob Berendes, can be seen below.
Tracklist:
1. They Got the Wrong Guy
2. The Fade to Black
3. Losing Eyeballs
4. I Blew Myself Up Over You
5. I Dont Wanna Know About My City
6. Sell Us a Spaceship
7. Red Light
8. Elephants
9. Still Awake
cat #: SBR26
More hot press for Rocketship Park, this time from AM New York and the blog Big Diction
Oh man, the 'ship is taking flight. The debut record Off and Away is hot like hot fire!
Earlier this week New York #1 free daily newspaper AM New York ran a little blurbie about the record. They called it "perfect chillin' in the summer music." Hell yeah! And they put it in there right next to the hotly anticipated new Silver Jews record so that alone is exciting.
And here's a sweet write up from an excellent music blog called Big Dic-tion. Read the wonderful words John Michael Cassetta wrote about Rocketship Park, and the song "Birthday Death Wish" in particular. Here's a quick excerpt: "I thought I’d heard some of the best string arrangements of the year on Shearwater’s new album Rook, but Rocketship Park have been equally impressive, if in a different way...
The strings aren’t this song’s only qualities. “Birthday Death Wish,” off Off and Away (which came out earlier this year on Serious Business Records), is a soft melodic sampling of Josh Kaufman’s songwriting. Kaufman, who heads up the project, has a voice that compliments the style well, rising up out of the atmospheric tones of the strings and pedal steel to croon a few melancholy lyrics, like the one that leads the song: “In a little while no voice is recognized / We struggle with ‘Hello’ mingle and say goodbyes.” On top of that, the whole song reverberates with the air of good old country rock, a quality that rarely leads a listener astray."Read the whole big hot wonderful piece right here. Well said. Thanks! Way to focus on the strings. That is Karen Waltuch playing the viola on that track. She's completely incredible. Her hands are the same ones who played all the stings on Wilco's "Jesus Etc." and lots of other Jim O'Rourke productions. Support her work because it is amazing. Fans of the strings on the Rocketship Park record can look forward to hearing the lovely Ms. Waltuch playing Mr. Kaufman's arrangements on future SBR releases from Higgins and Secret Dakota Ring.
Anyone who knows Boshra, Nicole, Robbie and AJ of Looker will attest that they are four of the smartest, funniest, cutest and most genuinely joyful people in the whole wide world. Beyond that, they are a real band, in it to win it. They actually like one another and buy each other gifts and they hang out all the time and they make lots and lots of crazy good pop music. Its weird! Its wonderful! Its love!
Also, they make for stellar interviewees. The brothers behind WalrusComix.com did them serious justice in a recent extended query. The band is probed deeply and they respond with wit, candor and plentiful insight. Read the whole interview here.
And a studio update? With three excellent singles in the bag, Looker has now entered album-finishing stage. Two new jams, "Animal Dreams" and "Stand Back" are waxed and done. A final crop of luscious tunage is set to be captured at the end of June. And then an album we will have. Prepare your tender earholes.
Man In Gray's "final show" going down at the Delancey June 19
If You Ride It to the End You'll Get What You Came For
Since 2002, Man In Gray has been poised in attack mode, annihilating audience after audience with their cathartic loud-soft, fast-slow, whisper-scream rock-shows. They have played every venue of note in NYC, sharing stages with dozens of fancy bands, setting the blogosphere alight and accumulating legions of sweaty devotees in the process.
But alas, we grow up we move on and all good things must come to an end. In this case the band insists they aren't officially breaking up or saying they'll never play together again, but rather they are going to enter an indefinite hibernation phase. So for the foreseeable future, this is it folks. June 19. The Delancey. Get your socks rocked off.
THURSDAY, JUNE 19 - NYC, NY
-- MiG's LAST SHOW! ---
@ the Delancey
168 Delancey St, NYC
w/ Zero Spanish, Gold Streets, Mancino
8pm, $6
Be sure to download the NPR podcast which has the radio-ready man voice of host Robin Hilton intoning about the band's sweet rootsy sound before spinning our favorite jam-of-jams "Run Away" which we all already know is the stuff of legend.
This handsome photo was snapped by Bryan Bruchman at Rocketship Park's recent record release party at Sound Fix Records in Brooklyn.
Here are the words contained in that review: Whoever said Americana had to come from the heartland? Brooklyn-based Rocketship Park, headed by the talented (yet unassuming) lead singer and instrumentalist Josh Kaufman, fleshes out smooth, folky songs about life and loss, family and friendship, while harnessing a simple, seemingly effortless beauty. The group's debut record, Off & Away, offers a sense of peace and nostalgia that grounds even the most anxious of listeners.
Off & Away plays like a comfortable living room jam session, which isn't too far from the truth. Kaufman originally played every instrument and recorded many of the record's soft, acoustic, feel-good sing-alongs and catchy folk-pop ballads himself for what was to be an obsessively overdubbed solo album. Ultimately, though, he wound up inviting long-time friends to record the album with him live as Rocketship Park. The result is an organic sound that thrives on group performance. "Why?" Kaufman asks, "Because it's fun and we like each others company."
"Run Away," easily the album's catchiest track, features an eclectic arrangement including pump organ, glockenspiel, coronet and trombone surrounding Kaufman's signature twangy croon. The short and sweet two-minute pop song showcases the band's ability to craft musically unique tracks that sport catchy melodies and strong lyrics, while still showing off the band's relaxed approach.
The cast has played together for years, and their success, Kaufman says, comes because they all happen to be "unpretentious and extremely talented." The band consists of five members at its core, but Off & Away features work by many in the band's "extended family," including piano work from Rob Burger (Calexico), percussion from Bryan Devendorf (The National) and violin help from Karen Waltuch (Wilco).
Touring is off the table for now, with the group's members working on separate projects. However, the songs for Rocketship Park's next album are already written, with studio time to be found when its members aren't busy with other acts.
Rocketship Park celebrates Off & Away tomorrow night at Sound Fix in Williamsburg
Join us in celebrating the release of Off and Away, the debut album from Rocketship Park. This record contains ten of the finest, classiest, most in-focus indie pop songs you'll hear all year. This performance will feature the five core members of the group along with a heavy-hitting line-up of guest stars who contributed to the record: Rob Burger on piano, Karen Waltuch on viola, Annie Nero on backing vocals, Travis Harrison on hot, low tambo. This is an event not-to-be-missed! If celebrating the release of a brilliant and as-of-yet uncelebrated album is not enough for you, we will also be celebrating the birthday of 'Ship main-man Josh Kaufman (and his younger brother too!).
Sweet new review of Benji Cossa's Between the Blue and the Green from AllMusic.
Here's what All Music Guide said about Benji's Between the Blue and the Green which came out last year. This review is pretty much right on. Very flattering. Thanks AMG.
After years of doing the low-fi home recording thing all by himself, Benji Cossa has moved up in the world -- the liner notes to Between The Blue and the Green inform us that most of the album was recorded at other people's houses for a change, and one was cut in an honest-to-goodness recording studio in New York. Cossa also has a band on most of these thirteen songs, though thankfully the results tend to enhance rather than dilute the charm of Cossa's playful but engaging songs, sunny melodies and joyous vocals. Most of the Between the Blue and the Green still sounds like the work of an inspired amateur, not because the craft is faulty (it isn't) but because of the guilelessness of Cossa's musical personality and the open honesty of his music; this doesn't sound like the work of someone who has given any thought to creating a persona for the stage, but of a musician who is just being himself before the microphone and happens to be having a grand time doing it. Even the relatively somber songs like "Tonight", "Alone" and "Have You Seen" aren't so dark that they don't let a bit of light shine though, and the tinkling chimes and huffing-puffing accordion of "Streets To Streams" add a warm pastoral undertow to a song that could pass for Village Green Preservation Society-era Ray Davies in dim light. On Between the Blue and the Green, Benji Cossa manages the rare feat of sounding sweet but not cloying, playful but not willfully naïve, and it's a simple, satisfying joy to hear.
Benji is currently finishing up his next album which should come out on Serious Business by the end of '08. It'll be his fourth record in less than two years for SBR.
Below, help yourself to two MPfrees from Blue and the Green. Buy the CD at our store. DOWNLOAD: "A Rainbow" [MP3] DOWNLOAD: "Sunset" [MP3]
The Two Man Gentlemen Band bring hot banjo fire to the Mercury Lounge this Sunday
Below you'll find the message that the Two Man Gentlemen Band has just sent to their email list.
Dear Friends,
Greetings from The Two Man Gentlemen Band! It is with great delight that we announce our appearance at one of NYC's finest music venues. Please join us:
This Sunday, May 18th The Mercury Lounge
217 E Houston St, New York City
Gents at 8pm sharp!
$8 Admission, FREE KAZOOs!
w/ our NC pals The New Familiars (9pm)
See the two-man show that has wowed audiences from Paonia, CO to Montpelier, VT!
The Unsacred Hearts return this Friday with a show at the Delancey. Plus --- new album update.
The Unsacred Hearts, who haven't played a show since the Serious Business Christmas party in December, will return to the NYC stage this Friday night at the Delancey. It's a late one. The Hearts' set is at 12:30 AM right in the middle of the Delancey's 2-for-1 drink special hour (12-1). Show details below.
In studio update news, the Hearts have been slowly but surely constructing their full length follow up to In Defense of Fort Useless. We're hoping to get this baby into your ear-holes by the end of October.
The Unsacred Hearts
Live at the The Delancey
Friday, May 16
Hearts @ midnight
with Superfortress, Blip Blip Bleep, The Picture, The Diggs.
168 Delancey St (btwn Clinton and Attorney)
In case you forgot, watch the Hearts rock it at the Delancey one year ago in the YouTube clip below:
Dave and Travis (Unsacred Hearts) play with The Homosexuals this Sunday at the Knitting Factory with John Zorn and Bill Laswell, Martin Bisi, Susu etc.
If you're out and about this Mother's Day (I love you, mom!) be sure to get tickets to this big big show at the Knitting Factory.
Who are the Homosexuals? Tsk tsk. Bruno Wizard, Anton Hayman and Jim Welton were legendary late-70s UK D.I.Y. cult heroes. Read this, this, this, this and this. In the wake of two recent reissues, singer and auteur Bruno Wizard has been performing under the name again with various bands, most recently the mighty Remarkable Man, an outfit made of Dave and Travis from The Unsacred Hearts and Mike DosSantos (ex. Realistics) and Phil Aceto (ex. Blue Sparks) both of Apache Beat. Thr Homosexuals recently played two very well received shows at SXSW.
Here's a little taste of what you are in for --- The Homosexuals playing "Neutron Lover" live at the Beauty Bar ... Austin TX SXSW 2008. enjoy:
Rocketship Park celebrates the release of Off and Away (SBR16) with big show at Sound Fix Records in Williamsburg
.
If you haven't heard Off and Away yet, you must quit the dilly-dally, get a glove and get in the game because this is the record to beat in '08, without a doubt. Join us on Saturday, May 24th in celebrating its release at Sound Fix Records in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Yes its a record store and an excellent one at that, but its also a cozy, great sounding venue and an ideal environment to hear a band that's been lauded as "friggin' awesome," "so the real-deal" and "completely un-sucky," mostly by me, your humble news-poster. But other very nice and far more articulate things are being said too we're sure, as the record oozes through the internet into the hearts and minds of music lovers like you. Please help yourself to the free MP3s posted below. SBR16 - Rocketship Park : Off and Away DOWNLOAD: "Seasons" [MP3] DOWNLOAD: "Run Away" [MP3]
Buy the record at the show, at our store, or from your favorite digital retailer.
Saturday, May 24th Rocketship Park
Record release party for Off and Away
at Sound Fix Records
110 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn NY
HIGGINS album update, biographical video, KP's ode to the world's most flavorful potato chip.
The musical man force that is Higgins have found themselves ass-deep in the final stages of record making. Their forthcoming full length platter, a magnum opus begun in the twilight of '06, is finally nearing completion. No word yet on release date or any of that stuff. But if you're a Higgins freak (or a Hig-aholic, or El Higgerino if you're not into the whole brevity thing) then you'll be pleased to know you can watch the video embedded below:
The fine folks at Vimby.com stopped by the Serious Business recording studio to capture some of this joyous but painstaking process on film. Interview footage gives you a portal to biographical details on the Higgins that you might not have known. That's SB engineer Halsey Quemere on the knobs as the dudes add shakers to "Charlie" and tweak the mix of "Jamy." Not all of the song titles on the record evoke the names of dudes but these two do.
So now that you've gazed into a session at Serious Business, its time you understand the importance of our most cherished of fuels. No we're not talking about alcohol or drugs, or sandwiches or pizza, we're talking about the finest of chips, the Kettle Chips Cheddar Beer potato chip, the most flavorful chip in the known universe, a product that has been an indispensable accoutrement at nearly every Serious Business Higgins session. Head Hig Kevin Fish (aka KP) wrote a song in honor of these holy chips. You can hear it by heading over to his KPMy Space page. This page is a good spot if you want to hear his synth 'speriments, Higgins demos, and buckets of sweet, juicy melody. Of course, there's always the My Space page too.
So for those of you waiting with baited breath for Higgins to unveil their masterpiece, you'll have to settle for this audio snack in the meantime, their digital single for "Yes I Know" which we put out back in January. Mmmm. So crunchy and flavorful.
SBR21
HIGGINS - 'Yes I Know' / 'Slap or Pinch'
Buy it on iTunes, eMusic, Amazon or your favorite digital retailer.
Bluegrass Journal gushes over Heavy Petting. Of course! Plus, the Gentlemen's return to NYC
I know there are thousands of you out there who religiously check Bluegrass Journal everyday for the latest news in the world of hot pickin'. So this news-post won't bring a revelation to those multitudes. For the rest of us, allow us to direct you to their gushing review of the Two Man Gentlemen Band's latest album Heavy Petting. Read the whole thing here. The whole thing is pasted below as well.
In other Gentlemen news, the group has been on the road spreading hot banjo fire across the great United States for many many months now. May brings our heroes home to NYC for much needed relaxation. But don't think they're lazily resting on their laurels! On May 18th the Gentlemen make their Mercury Lounge debut. Click here for details about the show.
And now for that review...
THE TWO MAN GENTLEMEN BAND - Heavy Petting
The Two Man Gentlemen Band is comprised of Andy Bean ( Vocals, Banjo, & Foot Tambourine, Piano) and Fuller Condon (Vocals & Bass) who got there start spending two years as street musicians in New York’s Central Park. The CD also includes Travis Harrison on percussion and Justin Smith on “violin.”
“Heavy Petting,” the Gentlemen’s 3rd record on Serious Business Records, features a batch of songs that are chock full of humor, heavy innuendo, wit, energy and some raucous grooves. Bean and Condon’s music is a veritable melting pot of influences seasoned with vaudeville, swing, jazz, blues and old time country. The pace on the CD runs from a trot to absolutely frenetic with some of the haughtiest kazoo solos you’ve ever heard.
The CD kicks off in high gear and sets the tone for what’s to come with a tongue in cheek ode to the United State’s largest President, “William Howard Taft,” touting “you can’t sneak nothing past William Howard Taft.” The Gentlemen have also released a video for “William Howard Taft.”
“The Square Root of Two” is an upbeat geeky romantic serenade for those who are more mathematically inclined. The wit of Andy Bean proclaiming “My love is like the square root of two written as a decimal” will surely come to be the “pop the big question” theme song for mathematicians everywhere. After one listen you’ll agree, how could it not?
“Heavy Petting” is one of the funnest albums I’ve listened to in a long time. On the first, second, heck even the third listen, the Gentlemen’s songwriting leaves you on the edge of your seat throughout the album wondering what hilarity or subtle twisted lyric is coming down the pipe. Andy Bean, the group’s main songwriter, writes lyrics so off the beaten path they are virtually cliche free.
The Two Man Gentlemen Band , at the very least, should go down in the history books as the duo who made the kazoo hip again.
Spit for Your Shine sends rock thrills down the bones of your back. Its a minor-key guitar thumper that induces a physical reaction in listeners' ears, heads and hearts. Boshra al Saadi's singing leads the charge, leaping across registers and cutting deep. Spit has been a live staple for the better part of the past year; the band performed it on Steve Lamacq's BBC radio show during a recent UK trip.
Flip the single and you've got Born in the Desert, a crystallization of all Looker's best bits, the big hooks, great words, the sheer exuberance. Producer Erik Paparazzi wisely indulges the band's willingness to explore , with long churchy reverberations and swirling feedback bashing up against cave-stomp fuzz-tones and big big beats.
View new Two Man Gentlemen Band live performances on the YouTubage. Allow yourself to be entertained.
Last week at The Sellersville Theater in Sellersville, PA the Two Man Gentlemen Band took part in an exquisite triple bill along with their pals the Wiyos and the Hunger Mountain Boys. A fan posted a gleaming review on her blog which you can read here and also captured two songs on video which she then posted on YouTube.
Watch above as the Gentlemen perform "They Can't Prohibit Love" which appears on their latest album Heavy Petting
And here you can watch and listen as the Gentlemen perform one of their newest original compositions entitled "Fancy Beer." Of particular note in this performance is the Councilman's furious bass solo which will tear the bones from your back. Special accolades should also be heaped upon Andy Bean's new foot percussion contraption which colors the music in newly vibrant hues. The world waits with baited breath for a recorded version of this soon-to-be Gentlemen classic. Enjoy!
Special thanks to Ammuse's Weblog for the footage and the fine words.
SBR23 is Benji Cossa's Vault Volume 2: Jewels and Gems.
Limited edition CD available April 22. Digital release available NOW on eMusic, Amazon, etc! +PLUS! 3 MPFREES.
Ladies and gentlemen! Now announcing the release of Benji Cossa's Vault Volume II: Jewels and Gems! Formed and cut in the years 2000-2003. Observe these beauties' many facets. Behold their rich colors. Value their clarity remastered in a new digital format. You can pre-order this 19 piece collection now! The CD will ship to arrive on or around the April 22nd release date! For Benji fanatics, the album is also available digitally right now at eMusic and also at Amazon. iTunes will follow next week.
Since 1995, Benji Cossa has amassed an extensive body of work but few outside of his inner circle of friends, loved ones and cult followers know much about it. Benji spent years and years recording his little masterpieces alone or with close pals on a 4-track. After years of D.I.Y. tapes and 7-inches and compilation appearances, his growing cult was rewarded with the Cossa's debut album in 2005. It was called Vault Vol. 1 and it culled 17 glorious nuggets recorded in the years 1995-2000. An excellent Portland label called Magic Marker brought it to the world. Vault Vol 2 is the sequel to that release, concentrating on the years 2000-2003, and further delving into Benji's treasure chest of magnificent jewels and gems. His songwriting transcends the "lo-fi" sub-genre by pulling more inspiration from the Brill Building, All Things Must Pass and ELO than scratchy, punky indie-rock. In Benji's world of songs, the hook is the king.
Some of the songs are recording collaborations with Devin Flynn (Pixeltan) including "April," which was featured on excellent the Hishaam Baroocha-curated They Keep Me Smiling compilation in 2003. Others feature the 24-Karat Band (Eric Copeland from Black Dice and Joe Bradley from Cheeseburger). The tracklist unfolds in chronological order.
CD pre-orders will ship to arrive on or around the release date of April 22nd, 2008.
SBR24 is a digital EP from Jack and the Pulpits, starring Josh from Rocketship Park and the lovely Annie Nero
Three concise, beautiful and poetic pop tunes comprise this sublime EP made by Josh Kaufman and Annie Kaufman in the comfort of their home. Organs, whistling and tambourines shake up the walls of your heart. Flawlessly constructed, these little melodies will become immaculate staples in your ears.
This music was committed to tape in Brooklyn right after the '04 presidential election, but in no way is a reaction to it. Dance Area and The Dismember were written at that time but Dear Andy dates back to 1998 and was conceived in New Paltz, NY. Josh and Annie recorded, played and sang everything. They mixed it too.
-Josh also performs with Rocketship Park, Higgins, Caithlin De Marrais (formerly of Rainer Maria), the Homophones. He was the producer of several tracks on the forthcoming 2nd Secret Dakota Ring album.
-Annie performs with Ladystein and El May.
-Together they perform with Balthrop Alabama and Benji Cossa and also Mary Mulliken and Rob Burger.
-A previous collaboration between Josh and Annie was The Mansfields which featured Bryan Devendorf and Geoff Mann.
SXSW. Half of the Unsacred Hearts back up THE HOMOSEXUALS, and JAYMAY
Alright ... so no Serious Business bands are going to be down in Austin, TX at SXSW. Everyone's, like, busy...or whatever.
But there will be a presence down there in the form of 50% of the UNSACRED HEARTS, Dave Siegel and Travis Harrison, who will be running around backing up some extremely talented folks. If you're in Austin, you can see Dave and Trav playing with two separate acts, both amazing but very different:
JAYMAY
(Jaymay is an ultra-Dylan-y NYC songstress. Dave and Travis grew up in the same town as her. She's very excellent. D&T will be her two man backing band at SXSW.)
Fri Mar 14 : THE HOMOSEXUALS
@ Spiro's, 611 Red River
Austin, TX
WFMU Party!
Homos at 8PM
w/ Psychedelic Horseshit, Paul Metzger, Cheveu, the Lexie Mountain Boys, the Bad Trips, Citay, Half Japanese, Evangelista, Hank IV, Kelley Stoltz, Harvey Milk, and Los Llamarada
Sat Mar 15 : JAYMAY
@ HIT SHEET/BMI showcase @ Momo's
618 W 6th St
Austin, TX
Jaymay on at 3PM
Sat Mar 15 : JAYMAY
@ Maggie Mae’s Gibson Room
323 e. 6th st.
Jaymay at 8PM
Sat Mar 15 : THE HOMOSEXUALS
@ The Beauty Bar (front room)
617 E. 7th St
Austin, TX
Homos at 10PM sharp!
with/ Caps & Jones (8), Twin Crystals (9), Apache Beat (11), Dandi Wind (12), Tough Alliance (1)
Also, BONUS NEWS.
If you enjoy watching television, you'll be able to see Travis on it this Monday, March 10th when he backs up Jaymay on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Also in that band will be Chris Mitchell, Steve Lewis, and Steve Shiltz (Longwave). Booya.
More Gentlemen news
"William Howard Taft" video featured on Blender.com. The Two Man Gentlemen Band are the Blender Breakout!
If for some reason you've neglected to watch the Two Man Gentlemen Band's extremely gentlemanly one-shot video for "William Howard Taft" on YouTube, now you can watch it within the glitzy internet confines of Blender.com! Today that site, an outgrowth of the esteemed music/sexy-boobies mag Blender has named the Gentlemen their BLENDER BREAKOUT! Huzzah! Visit their homepage and you'll see our distinguished duo holding their own amongst Rhianna, Chris Brown and Soulja Boy! Score one for old-time novelty banjo music!
The Two Man Gentlemen Band get excellent praise from PopMatters, continue touring exhaustively, make cameo in Hollywood rom-com.
The Two Man Gentlemen Band, badminton net and corn liquor in tow, have been scorching their way across the USA for the umpteenth time. They are supporting their new album Heavy Petting and at every stop, fans kazoo along, throw their dollars at the stage and leave battered and bruised by good cheer.
This week, influential online music mag PopMatters bestowed Heavy Petting with a very favorable review. Scribe Spencer Tricker wrote the following: "Overall, Heavy Petting's success lies in its being a refreshingly crude batch of Americana that buzzes with enough overtly intellectual humor and raucous energy to make even the coldest of hipsters crack a smile. It's a record that's completely unpretentious and, consequently, enormous fun." Indeed! BE SURE TO READ THE ENTIRE MAGNIFICENT REVIEW HERE.
The AllMusicGuide's blog also posted this sweet little write-up, which was featured on allmusic's home page and which you should read right away.
In additional news, the Gents had the honor to be featured extras in the new movie "27 Dresses" starring that blond lady from Grey's Anatomy. They play the part of Central Park Street Musicians. It took them little effort to get into character.
SBR01 available as FREE DOWNLOAD | The UNSACRED HEARTS debut EP. This week only.
The record that started it all for us here at Serious Business was The Unsacred Hearts' debut EP. The year was 2004 and the future seemed so vast.
Join us in reliving these glory days by downloading The Unsacred Hearts EP for free. We're going to take the .ZIP file down on Friday night February 29th at midnight. Share this information with all your loved ones. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A ZIP FILE OF THE ENTIRE RECORD
SBR22 is the second Serious Business single from LOOKER. Plus! A sweet video clip.
Here's the second Serious Business single from NYC lady-fronted power-pop hook factory Looker. This one, like its predecessor "After My Divorce,"delivers maximum melody, lyrical sophistication and bittersweet ear-candy, leaving your finger stuck on that repeat button. Looker has two charismatic and expressive lead vocalist/songwriters in Nicole Greco and Boshra AlSaadi, and the sublime balance between the two, which this single demonstrates, is the heart of the band. "Gates of the Old City," a tuneful slab of visceral rock classicism, explodes into a soaring Greco chorus with words that keep your brain pinned to speakers. "Help Me Roada" is a laid-back AlSaadi masterwork, a truly touching gem that marries Dylan-y verses and Beatles-y chorii. Producer Erik Paparazzi (Cat Power and The Dirty Delta Blues) ran the proceedings with Serious Business recordist Travis Harrison as his first mate.
Production for the third single is currently underway. Expect that in the Spring.
SBR22 Looker Gates of the Old City' / 'Help Me Roada'
Digital-only single
Release date: March 4th, 2008
Plus
Check out this sweet video clip from Vimby.com. See interviews with the band and producer Erik Paparazzi, live and rehearsal footage, all around excellence. Enjoy!
NEW VIDEO! The Two Man Gentlemen Band endorse our fattest US president "William Howard Taft" in their new YouTube video. In other news, they themselves continue to blow up.
Feast your eyes.
Please enjoy this music video for the original composition entitled "Wiliam Howard Taft."
A word from the Gentlemen: "The Gentlemen maintain that our president ought to be a physical representation of the national spirit. To this end, we always cast our vote for the moustachioed, fat man. Sadly, we haven't picked a winner since 1908."
-USA Today's Pop Candy pop culture blog included "William Howard Taft" in a recent podcast. Blogger Whitney Matheson's exclaims that the Gentlemen are her new favorite band (this week). Read all about that here.
-This blog called MainstreamIsntSoBad posted some nice things. Read it all here
-Matt Winters, who is the host of The Moonshine Show on WKCR-FM in New York City, a bluegrass and old-time radio program that has roots dating back to 1963, posted this nice stuff on his blog called Sound of Blackbirds. Read the very thorough and very well crafted post here.
-Here's a review of Heavy Petting on a blog called The Late Greats.
-Concert industry supersite Pollstar did a little write-up on the Gents outrageous touring schedule. Read that right here.
In anticipation of the forthcoming full length from the 60's styled guitar pop man-force named Higgins, we give you this digital single. The guitar heavy A-side "Yes I Know" will appear on the album later this year. Close your eyes and you might hear some Ray Davies, some Beach Boys, some of Zeppelin's rhythm section, some Mike Bloomfield guitar, some McCartney, some Zombies; and all kinds of good good stuff. The B-side "Slap Or Pinch" is a delightful must-have home recording from head Hig Kevin Fish. This single is for lifetime lovers of melody.
This release hits the digital outlets like iTunes and eMusic and all those places on 2/26/08. Please support us. Thank you.
Help Rocketship Park win $10,000. All you have to do is vote.
Election fever?
Rocketship Park has been entered in a contest sponsored by LG phones. There is a clip of the group playing "Seasons" live at Pianos from the Serious Business Holiday Party competing against a bunch of other bands. PLEASE VOTE! In fact, you can vote three times a day. We're gonna ask you to go ahead and get all OCD with this thing here. You see, there's a pretty big prize. The band who receives the most votes, wins 10 grand. We really could use 10 grand. So all you have to do is register your email address (yes we realize that's incredibly annoying...sorry...we really could use your help), and get to voting. Stuff that ballot box.
Feel free to repost this shameless solicitation.
WARNING: Our experience with this lg contest site can be a little frustrating if you aren't on a super fast internet connection. The clips tend to freeze up and that can be super annoying. So if you're interested in actually watching the clip, check it out on the Youtube.
So now we'll reward you for your efforts.
The Rocketship Park album (SBR16) has been done musically since the middle of last year but the CD (featuring cover art by Benji Cossa) isn't slated for release until this Spring. We've had the song Run Away kicking around on our music page since October. To further tide you over, download this MP3 of Seasons(the song in the above clip). We're only gonna keep it up for a short while so grab it while it lasts.
P.S. Who knows? If we snag that $10K its a pretty good bet we'll see a sweet vinyl pressing of SBR16.
January 30
Union Hall
Brooklyn, NY
w/ Polite Sleeper and Alberta Cross
If you're still sleeping on Nothing But Change, WAKE UP! Get in on these jams now! The Skinny says, ""Rock that's both sloppy and strung-out, shades of Pavement and The Minutemen, with hooks that fall stumbling out of an alleyway before you realised they were coming. You don't expect a song like this to be so catchy." Also, Minnesota's St. Cloud Times had this to say about NBC, listing it as the #2 album that no one ever heard of in 2007. "The Octagon crafted an amazing second album...Songs such as “The Narrow Road To Oku” deserve a spot in every jukebox between here and Spain so people can nod along to the clever lyrics while pondering their mistakes. Check out ...“Oku,” and be prepared for love at first song."
Then, somewhere between the end-of-the-year drinking, feasting, and more drinking, the group over at 3hive.com wrote about not one, not two, but three SBR acts- Benji, the Two Man Gentlemen Band, and the Unsacred Hearts. They said nice things, such as, "With their Dixieland, Tin Pan Alley, goofy slapstick kazoo-billy rock, [the Two Man Gentlemen Band] tend to have a blast in the recording studio" and "I fell for [The Unsacred Hearts'] elastic, spastic sound and booze-soaked narratives." Aside from this being the first ever recorded instance of the Gentlemen being referred to as "rock" of any variety, we humbly thank the proprietors of the site for their attentive ears and friendly words. find the permalinks (with MP3s) to the original posts here: Hearts, Benji, the Gentlemen
If that doesn't make your new year sweet enough, be sure to catch the Gents as they tour the country, The Octagon as they head up north, Looker with a few local dates, and MIG in DC. Dates over here.
We at SBR give to you this shirt, designed by Jared Friedman at Econo Graphics. Hell yes. It's January. It's cold. Make your bottom layer this handsome number, which is definitely a limited edition type of thing (meaning we don't have that many). The design depicts the Cyclone roller coaster at Coney Island. Dark blue on light blue with yellow light bulbs. Printed on super high quality American Apparel Tees. TO BUY: Visit our store, scroll down and plop the appropriate T Shirt icon in your shopping cart. Booya.
Photo of Rocketship Park auteur Josh Kaufman printed in mag for reasons having nothing to do with music Also another free MP3...
This photo of Rocketship Park auteur Josh Kaufman was recently printed in Time Out NY for reasons having nothing to do with music. A photographer came to his place of employment, took his picture for completely non-musical reasons, and by some strange stroke of fate, it wound up in the magazine. Josh, who along with Serious Business stable mate Benji Cossa works for a fancy SoHo letterpress company, was excited enough by this rare yet barely newsworthy occurrence to email us with the details. Anyway, um, we hope this pleases you. To read the full article which focuses on a nine-months pregnant creator of a designer stationery line and has nothing to do with beautifully crafted soon-to-be-classic, country-tinged and divinely poetic pop music, click here.
THE YEAR IN BUSINESS: 2007
Free digital compilation record.
The "Best of 2007" from Serious Business. 11 TRACKS. FREE!!!
Its December and we're all about giving until it hurts. To celebrate an amazing year, we're issuing an all-free digital compilation record. It is called The Year In Business: 2007 (SBR20). This is basically a "Best of '07" type of thing, with the hit jams from all the records we issued this year. There will also be 3 exclusive newies on there too in the form of unreleased business from The Unsacred Hearts, Secret Dakota Ring and Higgins.
Tracklist: 1. HIGGINS - Yes I Know - previously unreleased
2. BENJI COSSA - Sunset - Between the Blue and the Green (SBR13)
3. THE TWO MAN GENTLEMEN BAND - William Howard Taft - Heavy Petting (SBR18)
4. LOOKER - After My Divorce - 'After My Divorce' b/w 'Master's Gone Away' (SBR15)
5. THE OCTAGON - The Narrow Road to Oku - Nothing But Change (SBR14)
6. THE UNSACRED HEARTS - I Am Joe - previously unreleased
7. ROCKETSHIP PARK - Run Away - previously unreleased
8. KICKSTART - Harmonica - Kickstart (SBR12)
9. MAN IN GRAY - Stranded - I Can't sleep Unless I Hear You Breathing (SBR11)
10. DRACULA ZOMBIE USA - Right Makes Might - 'Right Makes Might' b/w 'Long Shot' (SBR17)
11. SECRET DAKOTA RING - Keep It Down - previously unreleased
Man In Gray on TV this Saturday Night! Also, #95 record of 2007!
Serious Business' resident punky-poppy-neck-breaking-noise merchants Man In Gray recently set off some rock-bombs in front of TV cameras. The results are airing this Saturday night 12/22 on Fearless Music (FOX channel 5 in NY area). Here are the details.
Saturday, 12/22/07, 12:30AM
MAN IN GRAY on
Fearless Music
Airs Saturday nights at 12:30AM on FOX Channel 5 in NYC.
If you are not in NYC, check www.fearlessmusic.tv/channels.html to find out when and where else this fine program airs.
95. Man In Gray I Can't Sleep Unless I Hear You Breathing; Man In Gray come out with guns blazing on their debut LP I Can't Sleep Unless I Hear You Breathing. The album is paced at break neck speed, with their furiously frantic songs taking a nice neat album and thrusting it into near chaos. It's probably the fastest album on this entire list because its a fairly long record, but when you're listening to it it just seems to fly past you. Of course this is all led by the screaming yells of their front woman, and the quick rhythms and tempo changes found throughout the music. These are the kind of tunes that should get people going nuts in a small sweaty venue, which is some of the most fun and exciting music out there!
SERIOUS BUSINESS CHRISTMAS PARTY. 12/20/07 @ PIANOS, NYC
Come one, come all. Don't be shy. We're having a Serious Business Christmas party. And we're gonna bring just a little bit of the true spirit of Christmas back into your lives. You're going to love it.
Starring ROCKETSHIP PARK BENJI COSSA's Christmas Spectacular THE UNSACRED HEARTS
Special treats for all...including...an all Christmas set from Benji Cossa who'll joined by Travis Harrison from the Unsacred Hearts on drums. And also...speaking of the Hearts...founding member Andy Ross will join the Unsacred Hearts on stage for several numbers. Not to be missed.
the most flavorful chip in the known universe, a product that has been an indispensable accoutrement at nearly every Serious Business Higgins session. Head Hig Kevin Fish (aka KP) wrote a song in honor of these holy chips. You can hear it by heading over to his KP 
SBR15
SBR22
.jpg)
This photo of Rocketship Park auteur Josh Kaufman was recently printed in Time Out NY for reasons having nothing to do with music. A photographer came to his place of employment, took his picture for completely non-musical reasons, and by some strange stroke of fate, it wound up in the magazine. Josh, who along with Serious Business stable mate 
