Heron Oblivion’s U.S. tour schedule in support of their self-titled debut, has been extended, and now spans March 3rd in Oakland, CA at Starline Social Club though June 18th in Portland, OR at Mississippi Studios. Newly added dates include stops in Philadelphia, Brooklyn, DC, Cleveland, Detroit, and Chicago in late May and early June. Additionally, Heron Oblivion’s festival schedule includes: March 11th in Marfa, TX for Marfa Myths; June 10th -11th in Sonoma, CA at Huichica Music Festival; and the Levitation Festival’s two North American dates, held on April 30th in Austin and June 17th in Vancouver. (complete tour dates below.)
You can now hear Heron Oblivion in full via NPR Music’s “First Listen”.
NPR Music says of the album: “Heron Oblivion shows an uncanny ability to merge and move between authentic forms of psychedelic expression, be they slow burners like “Beneath Fields” and the 10-minute “Rama,” or in woollier offerings like “Oriar” and the whammy-bar-heavy “Faro,” in which Baird enters a vocal trance from which many might never return. Across the whole endeavor, Saufley and Harmonson display a shared language of dynamic shifts and withering, feedback-laden bursts of guitar that create a deeply unsettling effect. Miller hangs back, providing a near-perfect foil to Baird’s minimalist, atmospheric percussion.
“Still, it’s Baird’s voice that sets Heron Oblivion apart: Clear and breathy, it evokes the spirits of Sandy Denny, Trees’ Celia Humphris, Judy Dyble, and the vocal performers from the Wicker Man soundtrack, among others. It cuts through even the grimiest displays of noise the band can muster, punctuating the band’s doom-laden sentiments with bell-tolling finality and grave seriousness. Even if it’s not what the group had envisioned as its calling card, that stern mood helps Heron Oblivion stand out. With any luck, this music will mark a sea change in how we approach psychedelic music in general: as a sound that’s both rooted in history and geared toward the future (see“First Listen” February 24th).”
Heron Oblivion will be released on CD / LP / DL / CASS worldwide Friday, March 4th through Sub Pop. The album, which features the highlights “Oriar”, “Beneath Fields”, “Your Hollows” and “Sudden Lament”, was produced and mixed by the band in San Francisco at The Mansion.
Heron Oblivion is now available for preorder from the Sub Pop Mega Mart, iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and Bandcamp. LP preorders from megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser” edition on clear vinyl with a white swirl (while supplies last). Additionally, a slate gray T-shirt will be available with CD and LP bundles and as a stand alone item.
More on Heron Oblivion from WFMU’s Brian Turner: Pastoral pummel. Listening to Heron Oblivion’s album feels like sitting in a lovely meadow in the shadow of a dam that’s gonna heave-ho’ any minute. Members of this new San Francisco combo have put in time in both raging and relatively tranquil psychedelic sound units—this is the premise and the synergy behind this very unique and special new album (read more atSub Pop).
Tour Dates: Mar. 03 - Oakland, CA - Starline Social Club* Mar. 04 - San Francisco, CA - Amoeba Records (instore) Mar. 05 - Los Angeles, CA - Resident^ Mar. 06 - San Diego, CA - ‘Til Two Mar. 11 - Marfa, TX - Marfa Myths Mar. 20 - Santa Cruz, CA - Don Quixote’s International Music Hall** Apr. 30 - Austin, TX - Levitation Festival Jun. 17 - Vancouver, BC - Levitation Vancouver (Cobalt) May 27 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle May 28 - Brooklyn, NY - Union Pool May 31 - Washington, DC - DC9 Jun. 01 - Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop Jun. 02 - Detroit, MI - UFO Factory Jun. 03 - Chicago, IL - Beat Kitchen Jun. 10-11 - Sonoma, CA - Huichica Music Festival Jun. 16 - Seattle, WA - Sunset Tavern Jun. 17 - Vancouver, BC - Levitation Vancouver - Cobalt Jun. 18 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios * with CCR Headcleaner, Bill Orcutt ^ with Morgan Delt, Itasca ** with Fred & Toody (of Dead Moon)
What people are saying about Heron Oblivion: “…A raging new psych band.” - Uncut
“These San Franciscans are that rarest of beasts: a supergroup that delivers more than the sum of its parts. Their debut album triumphs, thanks to how well those constituent parts complement each other…Heron Oblivion’s blend of tender melodies and lysergic moods works so well you wonder why these kindred spirits waited so long to collaborate; let’s hope it’s no one-off.” [4/5] - MOJO
“Anyone hoping to hear the mash-up of extroverted guitar blowouts and folk-derived lyricism promised by their collective CV will get what they came for, but Heron Oblivion’s root equation is multivariate multiplication, not addition. The way they factor in bits of Crazy Horse, Fairport Convention, and The Stooges and High Rise gets complicated in a hurry, so that even when you recognize the elements they own the final sum.” -The Wire
“…Like Pentangle and Black Mountain gorging on magic mushrooms at a woodland commune” - Q
“Whereas Baird’s serene vocals are reminiscent of folk greats like Sandy Denny, the unhinged guitars are pure psych firework displays, exploding frequently, shimmering and screaming, waningmomentarily into the background, and then blasting off again with frazzled gusto.” - The Quietus
“Expressive guitar lines laced with feedback sprawl out again and again without trailing away too far. Meg Baird’s serene voice harkens back to ’60s folk singers, subdued in a way that lends special gravity without being bombastic. Frankly, the group sounds exactly like what psychedelic rock should sound like.” [“Oriar”] -Stereogum
“Not much of HO’s music lives online at the moment, but what’s there suggests a group— Ethan Miller, Noel V. Harmonson, Meg Baird, and Charles Saufley—who like to jam for long durations in the fuzzy, fiery guitar-laden zone where Neil Young’s Zuma meets Joe Walsh-era James Gang. (One track is called “Funeral Funk 49,” and while it’s not as funky as James Gang’s 1970 hit, it takes you deeper into trance land.) Heron Oblivion alsoclaim influences from the Japanese power-psych label PSF and UK electric folk rock, and Baird’s vocals counterbalance the swarming sound with a dulcet breeziness.” -The Stranger
“San Francisco band Heron Oblivion (who just signed with Sub Pop) opened the night. Fronted by singer/drummer Meg Baird of the Espers (and a Philly ex-pat who’s sung backing vocals for Vile), the band set the tone for the night with some moody psych-folk/noise rock that was made all the more impressive when paired with Baird’s powerful, haunting voice.” -Three Match Breeze
“Sour Silk” is the newest standout track from New Misery, Cullen Omori’s forthcoming Sub Pop debut coming out on March 18th.
Stereogum had this to say of the track, “Though Omori’s vocals prevail in the forefront of this single, perhaps its most impressive aspect is a backdrop where every component is defined yet bleeds into each other seamlessly. Throughout the entire song, a number of ever-varying guitar parts pan across the plain of his composition, each with its own unique but cohesive sound. Omori constantly adds and subtracts sounds, maintaining his hook without allowing it to go stale. And as soon as you think you’ve pegged his song as smooth and almost psychedelic, Omori adds crunchier, rock-inspired guitar tones plus a goddamn trumpet.
“Remember the scene in Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off where Eddie pretty much combines his entire kitchen in a blender and ends up with a purple sauce that’s somehow delicious? “Sour Silk” is the combination of sounds you weren’t sure could be mixed, blended into a song that sounds both effortless and endlessly faceted (see premiere Tuesday, February 2nd).”
Omori began working on solo material in early 2014 which has now fully materialized as New Misery, a collection of 11 songs building upon his own musical past while reaching towards the future of what guitar rock could be. His songs marry dark yet blissful pop with vocal melodies and hooks that are at once immediate yet demand to be heard again and again.
Omori’s previously announced 4-week spring tour in support of New Misery starts March 24th in Chicago, IL at Lincoln Hall and currently ends April 24th in Toronto, ON at the Horseshoe Tavern. Preceding the tour is a string of midwestern dates this week, beginning February 3rd in Indianapolis at The Hi Fi through February 5th in Champaign, IL at The Accord. Additionally, Cullen will appear at the 2016 edition of SXSW in Austin, Texas. (See dates below.)
[Photo Credit: Alexa Lopez]
More on Cullen Omori:
“I had this overwhelming feeling that perhaps the apex of my life both as a musician and as an individual would be relegated to five years in my late teens/early 20s,” says Cullen Omori, who was launched into the music industry when the Smith Westerns, who started in high school in Chicago, became fast-rising indie stars. “This fear really forced me to work hard as to not see the Smith Westerns as an end but as a point along a bigger trajectory.”
While New Misery grew out of a difficult personal and professional time for Omori, he says the title reflects “not so much the distress that comes with failure, but the troubles and complexities that come with any type of success. No matter what you get you’re going to want more, you’re going to want something different. That’s the catch.”
The title track is a dreamy, resonant reflection on these feelings, but is also a guidepost for Omori’s musical evolution. “The song starts slow and then builds with two solos,” he says. “There’s the guitar solo which is very much a Smith Westerns thing. The next solo is on the keyboard, which is a shift to a lot of what I’m trying to do.” Synths play a much larger role in Omori’s new music than in the Smith Westerns’ guitar-fueled rock, as do a wide range of influences including Roxy Music, INXS, Spiritualized, Wilco, Garbage, Hall & Oates, Kate Bush, U2, and Sparks. There’s also a more deliberate pop streak, inspired by the top-40 radio that would play while Omori worked at a medical supply company cleaning stretchers and wheelchairs.
“There is so much dirt in hospitals and fuzz and lint and dried blood on these things. We’d clean them down, which in a way is kind of therapeutic, and listen to the radio. Then we’d go back to Adam’s (Adam Gil, current live band member) house and record demos for what was to become the skeleton of New Misery. I can’t sit down and say I’m going to write a Sam Smith or an Adele song or whatever. The closest I can get to that is making like this weird hybrid of what I think is a pop song.” The strongest example of this is the new wave-tinged single “Cinnamon,” which Omori describes as “dark pop–it’s poppy, it’s fast, but it also has all the colors and tones that are kind of dark. It’s self-deprecating, which was kind of where I was at emotionally. That, you know, I could have this poppy song or whatever but I don’t think I’m a pop star. I’m closer to thinking I’m a piece of shit than I am a pop star (read more at Sub Pop).
New Misery will be available worldwide on CD / LP / DL/ CASS through Sub Pop Records on March 18th, and is now available for pre-order through Sub Pop Mega Mart, iTunes, Google Play, Amazon and Bandcamp. LP pre-orders though megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser” edition on clear vinyl with black, white and gold swirls (while supplies last).
The album was recorded by Shane Stoneback (Sleigh Bells, Fucked Up, and Vampire Weekend) at the now defunct Treefort Studios, and was mastered by Emily Lazar (Sia, HAIM, Vampire Weekend, Arcade Fire, and Bjork) at The Lodge.
What people are saying about Cullen Omori:
“Shimmering beauty” [“Cinnamon”/ “New Music of the Day”] - NME
“It’s bittersweet, blissful pop with an ’80s hue - vocal melodies and hooks that are at once immediate yet demand to be heard again and again. Job well done, Cullen.” [“Cinnamon”] - The 405
“Led by dreamy, glimmering guitars, it takes Smith Westerns’ knack for a poppy hook to the next level.” [“Cinnamon”] -Consequence of Sound
Tour Dates
Feb. 03 - Indianapolis, IN - The Hi-Fi Feb. 04 - Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club Feb. 05 - Champaign, IL - The Accord Mar. 14 - Columbia, MO - Rose Music Hall Mar. 15 - Norman, OK - Opolis Mar. 16 - Austin, TX - SXSW Mar. 17 - Austin, TX - SXSW Mar. 18 - Austin, TX - SXSW Mar. 19- Austin, TX - SXSW Mar. 20 - Austin, TX - SXSW Mar. 24 - Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall Mar. 25 - Madison, WI - High Noon Mar. 26 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th St. Entry Mar. 28 - Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge Mar. 29 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge Mar. 30 - Boise, ID - Neurolux Apr. 01 - Seattle, WA - Barboza Apr. 02 - Vancouver, BC - Fortune Sound Club Apr. 03 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir Apr. 05 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent Apr. 07 - Los Angeles, CA - Teragram Ballroom Apr. 08 - San Diego, CA - Casbah Apr. 09 - Phoenix, AZ - Valley Bar Apr. 11 - Austin, TX - Stubb’s Jr Apr. 12 - Dallas, TX - Prophet Bar Apr. 13 - Houston, TX - Raven Tower Apr. 15 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl Apr. 16 - Nashville, TN - High Watt Apr. 17 - Columbus, OH - The Basement Apr. 18 - DC, Washington - DC9 Apr. 19 - Philadelphia, PA - Boot & Saddle Apr. 21 - Boston, MA - Great Scott Apr. 22 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom Apr. 23 - Montreal, QC - Le Divan Orange Apr. 24 - Toronto, ON - Horseshoe Tavern
Twitter
exchange sparks new in-flight partnership with Sub Pop Records
BY KEEGAN PROSSER for Alaska Airlines
Looking for something fresh and exciting to do during your
next flight? Then Alaska has some good news for you. Beginning this month, the
airline is partnering with Seattle’s Sub Pop Records to bring some of the
label’s best music onboard – for free.
Launched with Beach House’s latest
album Thank Your Lucky Stars on
February 1, the new program offers fliers the chance to listen to one
complimentary featured Sub Pop title per month on Alaska Beyond Entertainment,
Alaska’s direct-to-your-device inflight entertainment service, and two albums
per quarter on the rentable tablets.
“We didn’t have inflight entertainment on most of our
flights until about a year and a half ago,” says David Scotland, manager of inflight
entertainment and connectivity for the airline, adding that one of Alaska’s
priorities is to ensure that customers aren’t receiving “plain vanilla anything”
aboard its flights. “We have our own unique way of designing every experience of
travel – from locally sourced food to space-enhancing seats and now music,” he
continues, noting that the record label takes a similar approach in curating
its artists. “And Sub Pop is a way for us to do that in the music and
entertainment space.”
The partnership itself came about when a former Sub Pop
employee was on an Alaska flight and tweeted to ask why the two companies
weren’t working together. Soon after, the Twitter conversation turned into a
real plan of action.
“There’s definitely a big appeal for doing something
specifically with Alaska,” notes Chris Jacobs, General Manager of Sub Pop
Records. “Because Sub Pop is so overtly and proudly associated with the region,
and so is Alaska, it makes sense.” According to Jacobs, albums selected for the streaming and
tablet platforms are based on timeliness and appeal to a variety of listeners,
with March’s featured album set to be Shearwater’s latest
release Jet Plane and Oxbow. “The music we put out can range pretty widely, from
relatively accessible to relatively not,” Jacobs says of the label. “So we are
trying to focus on bands at the more accessible end.”
In that spirit, Shearwater frontman Jonathan Meiberg sees
the inflight entertainment platform as a great way to gain new fans. “My hope is that the record feels accessible and friendly on
first listen but has enough depth and detail that you’ll want to play it
again,” he explains of the project, which pairs dreamy indie rock with punchy
‘80s synths. “We spent many weeks laboring over the texture and colors of the
sounds.” He also sees it as a great alternative for his music to be
consumed. “I’m just glad for the chance to reach people who might
never hear our music otherwise.”
And fellow Sub Pop artist Cullen Omori, whose solo
debut New Misery will be featured on
Alaska flights in April, shares the sentiment. “There’s no better audience,” says the former Smith Westerns
vocalist, whose collection of genre-bending pop rock cuts hits stores March 18.
“You have a captive audience that’s stuck on a plane for X amount of hours. And
so, there’s no better time to pitch them some music to listen to.”
As Scotland points out, teaming up with local brands such as
Sub Pop, the Seattle International Film Festival, fashion designer Luly Yang and Tom Douglas restaurants enables Alaska to deepen the
relationship it’s built with core customers and provide them with a piece of
home. “One of the things that our customers from the Seattle area
tell us very often is that they feel like they’re already home when they get on
the plane, and there’s a comfort there.” But it also leaves a lasting impression with customers who
may be flying in the region for the first time. “There is something cool and unique about the PNW,” he
continues. “We do march to the beat of our own drum. We’re not like the rest of
the country. And being an airline, we get to introduce a lot of people to some
of the best parts of the Pacific Northwest.”
- - - - -
Guest Writer Keegan Prosser is a full-time pop culture junkie and part-time freelance music journalist who is based in Seattle and has contributed to Seattle Weekly and RollingStone.com. When she’s not writing about Justin Bieber for radio prep service ReelWorld.com, Keegan flies Alaska to cities with good food, great people and exceptional live music.
Arbor Labor Union (fka Pinecones) will release I Hear Youworldwide on May 13th through Sub Pop. The album featuring highlights “Radiant Mountain Road” and “Volume Peaks,” was produced and recorded by Randall Dunn and Arbor Labor Union in the fall of 2015 at Avast Studio in Seattle, WA and mastered by Jason Ward at Chicago Mastering. (Tracklisting below.) Noisey had this to say about “Radiant Mountain Road”: “It’s a chugging, ballsy rock squall, with a pinch of psych and a smidge of QOTSA, that’ll stomp its way straight into your heart. The bass and drums at the top may make you want to break stuff. This can be a good thing. Elsewhere singer Bo Orr’s tone is simultaneously powerful and sexily insouciant.” (see track premiere February 23rd).”
Arbor Labor Union have scheduled performances from March 16th-20th in Austin, TX for SXSW. Preceding the festival, the band have scheduled a show on March 15th in Birmingham, AL at the Syndicate (with Lazyeyes). Additional tour dates will be announced in the coming weeks.
Arbor Labor Union’s I Hear You will be available on CD/LP/DL/CASS and is now up for preorder via Sub Pop Mega Mart, iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Bandcamp and independent retail stores near you. As is the custom, LP preorders from megamart.subpop.com will receive the limited “Loser” edition on pink vinyl while supplies last.
Tracklisting:
1. Mr. Birdsong 2. Hello Transmission 3. Radiant Mountain Road 4. I Am You 5. Volume Peaks 6. Babel 7. Belief’d 8. Silent Oath 9. IHU
Arbor Labor Union on I Hear You:
“““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““ Hello & Welcome to the Thousand Eyed Present. H E L L O T R A N S M I S S I O N STARSHIP IHU MYTH DEVELOPMENT (FOR NEW USERS AND LISTENERS)
………………………………………………………….....
4 years ago, in the Peach state of Georgia, there was a mighty green conifer tree whose limbs were wider than the smile on the sun. From this tree hung many a seed. The tree was home to so many creatures big and small. The most fun of them all was perhaps MR. BIRDSONG. Mr. Birdsong was a single white dove known for his beautiful voice and powerful wings. Sometimes, Mr. Birdsong would be so lost in song and dancing that his wings would knock loose one of the Pinecones! The armored seed would then whoosh toward the ground and sometimes break open on the forest floor below. But you see, it’s very dangerous when this happens. For inside each pine cone on the mighty green tree lies all of the possible decisions a living person can make! And, luckily, in these seeds on that particular day was the possibility that 4 lifelong friends would decide to form an eternal union founded in sound.Arbor Labor Union was born! Their roots immediately began to burrow deep into the earth (some say towards the ear of Pythagoras!). Most trees in the forest try to grow fast. Many trees’s desire is to race one another to the clouds and back. These four trees, however, are growing slowly together. They know beyond every cloud is a radiant, true blue sky and they aim for no less than the cosmos! No one knows which one of the four spoke first. Mr. Birdsong was there and he swears that they all spoke in unison. He sings about it like this:
“Listen now! O! dear listener For what I sing is True Out from the sound of song forest 4 trees sang “I AM YOU”
The trees are still singing in unison today. Most recently the song they could be heard singing has been said to sound like this: “IHer Yu! Ihear u! Iher YOU!”
New Initiate, you must be ready to find these young trees! For those of you who have received this message in full I have included a map below:
In the case that your map gets stolen, I am sorry. It looks as though you will have to hear your way there. Remember these instructions- if you press your ear to the ground you will find that it too has a sound… and it sings:
“Past the VOLUME PEAKS And down the RADIANT MTN ROAD Past the Palace of Sleeping Songs And the meditating toad It is there that you might find Four trees singing so divine I HEAR YOU I AM YOU And together we shall shine!”
The bond of music is resounding. And to add more lava to the volcano of song should be sin. For it is known the world could use some silence. But the Arbor Labor Union is still growing in agreeable song. Toward the planets. Toward the Polestars. And toward the People. We are adding bricks to our Tower of BABEL. We are building our song up to Heaven. For belief in an honest sound is BELIEF’d among us. Take the SILENT OATH. Look no further. You have arrived for you have been here all along.
We are your banner men. The image on your flag is written in our hearts. It shall be done, for it is already accomplished.
JOY OR DIE
Together we are: Captain Brain Atoms Starship IHU Mind Leader/Omega Kindess One Captain Ryan Evers Starship IHU Extratonal Grin Generator Captain Bo Orr Starship IHU Jester Shaman/ Headless Guru Captain Ben Salie Starship IHU Weathervane Mystic/ Love Ambassador
Sub Pop Records in Seattle, WA is offering a grand total of $15,000 worth of
college scholarship money to three eligible
high school seniors. There are three scholarships—one
for $7,000, one for $5,000 and one for $3,000. As longtime and proud losers
ourselves, we’re exceedingly happy to be able, in some small way, to help
further the education of art-enthused misfits from the NW.
Applicants must be
a resident of Washington or Oregon, and a graduating senior on your way to
full-time enrollment at an accredited university or college. We are looking for
applicants who are involved and/or interested in music and/or the creative arts
in some way. However, you do not need to be pursuing an education in the arts.
To apply you must submit an essay, one page or less, using any combination
of the following questions as a guide (or write something completely your own,
be inspired and creative!). Please list the school you are graduating from and
the school you plan to attend in the fall at the top of your essay along with
your contact information.
- What are you doing in the arts/music field in your community?
- What does being a Sub Pop ‘Loser’ mean to you?
- What are your influences and/or who inspired you to become involved in the
arts?
- Describe your biggest failure
and explain how it has brought you closer to your goal(s).
- Discuss a special attribute or accomplishment that sets you apart.
- How has your family or community background affected the way you see the
world?
Applicants are strongly encouraged to send digital links and/or provide hard
copies of their artwork along with their essay (we have never had a winner who
submitted only an essay). However, please be aware that Sub Pop will not return
any of this material, so please don’t send originals. Sub Pop will give equal
opportunity to all applicants who fit the criteria outlined above. The deadline
for applications is Sunday, March 20th.
Please send all submissions and attachments to scholarship@subpop.com by
March 20th, 2016. We will announce the scholarship winners on April 12th.
Grammy Award-winning folk comedy duo Flight of the Conchords (aka Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie) will return to the U.S. this summer. The “Flight of the Conchords sing Flight of the Conchords Tour,” is their first since co-headlining 2014’s “Oddball Comedy & Curiosity Tour.” Jemaine and Bret have new material in the works, which they’ll showcase exclusively at these shows. The amphitheatre and concert hall tour will make stops in Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Seattle, Atlanta, and more.
The “Flight of the Conchords sing Flight of the Conchords Tour” begins June 11th in Cleveland, OH at State Theatre and ends July 27th in Los Angeles, CA at The Greek Theatre. Highlights for the tour include July 5th in Morrison, CO at Red Rocks Amphitheatre; Newport Folk Festival July 22; and New York’s Central Park Summerstage July 24th. Tickets are on sale beginning Friday, March 4th at 10am. (complete listing below.)
Bret had this to say of the upcoming tour: “I’m thrilled to get back on the road with over half the original band.”
The Conchords have also partnered with the charity organization Global Citizen for this tour. Amy Freeland, Senior Manager of Global Citizen Tickets, had this to say of the union, “We are so excited that Flight of the Conchords has joined the Global Citizen Tickets program for 2016! Offering two tickets to each show on the upcoming “Flight of the Conchords sing Flight of the Conchords Tour” will engage and motivate Global Citizens across the U.S. to take action to end extreme poverty by 2030.”
Tour Dates Jun. 11 - Cleveland, OH - State Theatre Jun. 12 - Philadelphia, PA - Mann Center for Performing Arts Jun. 13 - Washington, DC - Wolf Trap Filene Center Jun. 14 - Columbus, OH - Palace Theatre Jun. 16 - Detroit, MI - Fox Theatre Jun. 17 - Minneapolis, MN - Orpheum Jun. 18 - Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theatre Jun. 19 - Chicago, IL - Pritzker Pavilion Jun. 22 - Redmond, WA - Marymoor Park Jun. 23 - Vancouver, BC - Orpheum Jun. 24 - Portland, OR - Keller Auditorium Jun. 27 - San Francisco, CA - The Masonic Jul. 01 - Santa Barbara, CA - Santa Barbara Bowl Jul. 02 - San Diego, CA - Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre at SDSU Jul. 03 - Phoenix, AZ Comerica Theatre Jul. 05 - Morrison, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre Jul. 07 - Kansas City, MO - Starlight Theatre Jul. 09 - Austin, TX - Bass Hall Jul. 11 - New Orleans, LA - Saenger Theatre Jul. 12 - Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheatre Jul. 14 - Nashville, TN - Ascend Amphitheater Jul. 16 - Boca Raton, FL - Mizner Park Amphitheatre Jul. 17 - St. Augustine, FL - St. Augustine Amphitheatre Jul. 18 - Cary, NC - Koka Booth Amphitheatre Jul. 22 - Newport, RI - Newport Folk Festival 2016 (Fort Adams State Park) Jul. 23 - Boston, MA - Blue Hills Bank Pavilion Jul. 24 - New York, NY - Central Park Summerstage Jul. 27 - Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre
About Flight of the Conchords: Bret and Jemaine first met in 1996 at Victoria University Wellington. Jemaine vividly remembers the first time he met Bret; “he was wearing a hat”. Bret doesn’t remember meeting Jemaine, but says it was unforgettable.
They were both acting in a University Drama Club production called Body Play. Bret and Jemaine were put in a group of five men to create a short theatrical piece about male body issues. The most memorable part of the show was the costumes. They wore nothing but skin coloured bike shorts giving the audience the illusion that they were naked. From that short vignette the group of five developed another pseudo nude show called So, You’re A Man. They performed to sell-out audiences in Wellington andAuckland,and were then invited to perform at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
They flew to Australia for a one month season at a Melbourne comedy club called The Last Laugh. The group couldn’t believe they were being paid to perform and Bret blew his entire first pay cheque on a pair of leather pants. Unfortunately the Australians didn’t appreciate the show like they had in New Zealand, and the season was cancelled after one week.
In 1998 Bret and Jemaine decided to start a band. With a combined knowledge of three chords on the guitar they set about jamming out. The first song was Foux Du FaFa, (two chords) and they called themselves Moustache. The four piece band had Bret on casio-tone, Jemaine on guitar, and their friends Toby Laing and Tim Jaray on trumpet and double bass. They performed their one song at the Wellington Fringe Festival late night club and members of the audience were said to have been “mildly impressed” by the act.
After the encouraging feedback the pair continued to write songs in their living room, subjecting their six flatmates to relentless three chord jams. After several weeks they knew four chords and Jemaine got them a gig to perform at the Thursday night Comedy Club. On the afternoon of the gig they realized they needed a band name. The initial list of names included Roxygen Supply, Albatrocity, and Tanfastic. But the final name was chanced upon in a series of events that went something like this: Jemaine went to the bathroom and noticed the flat toilet was called the Concorde, he returned from the bathroom to suggest the name Conchord, and Bret said “What about Flight of the Conchords”, and Jemaine said “okay”, and Bret said “okay “, and Jemaine said “okay then” and Bret said “We should go to the gig, we’re late”.
That night was their first performance as Flight of the Conchords. Bret and Jemaine were so nervous they couldn’t speak between songs. Despite their performance anxiety the crowd of eleven people enjoyed their gig and were heard clapping and talking amongst themselves (read more at Sub Pop).
