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CLAIRECORDS NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2009
Welcome to the 45th edition of the Clairecords newsletter.

We at Clairecords would like to extend our sincere thanks to everyone who bought our releases, came to our concerts, wrote about our bands and gave our releases such generous airplay in 2008. Radio stations, print and online publications, devoted fans-- that means you! 2009 promises to be even more exciting (yes, that’s more than possible), so stay tuned! 

On to the happs!

AUTODRONE
College and community broadcasters continent-wide are continuing their torrid affair with Strike a Match, among them WVUD (Newark, DE), WBNY (Buffalo, NY), WVUR (Valparaiso, IN), WXBC (Annandale-on-Hudson, NY), KSLU-1 (St. Louis, MO), KFAI (Minneapolis, MN) KBOO (Portland, OR), WPHS (Warren, MI), and WPUB (NYC, NY). KVCU (Boulder, CO), in its infinite good taste, named Strike a Match its #1 album of 2008! Clairecords loves you, KVCU! And thanks to everyone who came to see the band on their journey out West—it was a resounding success! Look for the band at SXSW, too.
http://www.myspace.com/autodrone

GUITAR
Autodrone aren’t the only Clairecords melody makers burning up the charts! Honeysky charted at #19 on KDVS-FM earlier this month and we extend mad props to everyone responsible for that. Saltykisses, meanwhile, made it to #19 on KUCI (Irvine, CA); #6 on KVCU (Boulder, CO); #16 on WNYU (NYC, NY); #5 on WTJU (Charlottesville, VA) and #23 on WTUL (New Orleans, LA). Everyone remotely affiliated with the aforementioned broadcasters unquestionably rules.
http://www.sunkiss.de/
http://www.myspace.com/guitarsunkissed

TEARS RUN RINGS
Pitchfork’s Matthew Solarski was kind enough to list Tears Run Rings’ Always, Sometimes, Seldom Never as one of his top 25 albums of the year (#23, to be exact). In further news, Matthew is officially our #1 homie. Kisses, Matthew!
http://www.tearsrunrings.com
http://www.myspace.com/tearsrunrings


 * * * ALL YOUR PRESS IS BELONG TO US * * *

GUITAR
“Honeysky starts off with the appropriately titled ‘Escape,’ and continues to shed feather-like music that's sounds like it was recorded in a cloud studio, while the backmasked and reverbified ‘Love Is Slow’ sounds like Slowdive on liquid acid.   It's sometimes delirious music to be sure, and not recommended while driving. Sleeping in late on Sunday, though? Piece of cake. While the utopian dreams of the shoegazers might be gone, some dreamers remain.” – David Day, The Weekly Dig


* * * CLAIRECORDS IS COMING—EVERYBODY LOOK BUSY *  *  *

AUTODRONE
02/07/09  NYC, NY- Crash Mansion
02/27/09  NYC, NY- Mercury Lounge
w/ The Swirlies
03/19/09  Austin, TX- The Spider House (SXSW/Post-Punk.com showcase)
Free! No wristband needed.


AVERKIOU
02/15/09 Gainesville, FL- The Atlantic
03/05/09 Gainesville, FL- Common Grounds
03/06/09 St. Augustine, FL- Harvest of Hope Festival
w/ Devotchka, Broken Social Scene, Holy Fuck, Bad Brains, Her Space Holiday, John Vanderslice + more
03/07/09 Atlanta/Athens, GA- TBA
03/08/09  Durham, NC- House Show
03/09/09  Washington, DC- Velvet Lounge
03/10/09 NYC, NY- TBA
03/11/09 NYC, NY- TBA
03/12/09 Richmond, VA- The Czar
w/ Slavagoh, Julie Karr
03/13/09  Arlington, VA- Basement Speakeasy
w/ Ringo Deathstarr, Screen Vinyl Image
03/14/09 Norfolk, VA- The Boot
w/ Ceremony, Screen Vinyl Image
04/16/09  Tampa, FL- TBA


HEY, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING?
(A peek into the inner sanctums of your favorite Clairecords stars!)

Michael Lueckner (der Musiker, GUITAR)
ALBUM of the Year 2008:

Francois Couperin
Pièces de violes
Musicians: Philippe Pierlot, Emmanuel Balssa, Eduardo Egüez, Pierre Hantai
Mirare / www.mirare.fr

CONCERT of the Year 2008: David Sylvian live in Offenburg

Jon Downs (guitarist, THE BROTHER KITE)
TBK Music:
The Walkmen - You & Me
The Tallest Man On Earth - Shallow Grave
Fleet Foxes - S/T
Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
Frightened Rabbit - The Midnight Organ Fight
Deerhunter - Microcastles
Sigur Ros - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
R.E.M - Accelerate
Department of Eagles - In Ear Park

TBK Film:
Rachel Getting Married
The Fall
Synecdoche, New York
The Dark Knight
The Visitor
In Bruges
Wall-E
Zack And Miri Make A Porno
Man On Wire
Slumdog Millionaire

TBK Resolutions:
Finish the record

Dan Sostrom (CLAIRECORDS owner/founder/mack daddy/daddy mack)

Here's my top 20, split into 4 categories:

SINGLES/SONGS:
1) THE RULING CLASS - Flowers (Shelflife / Fandango)
2) DEEP CUT - Commodity  (Club AC30)
3) QUE POSSUM-Stay Heavy  (from Pop Mayhem 4-way split 7")
4) PIA FRAUS/ULRICH SCHNAUSS-Split 7" (Seksound)
5) Any/All split singles in Slumberland's Searching for the Now series

ALBUMS:
1) MOSCOW OLYMPICS-Cut the World  (Lavender)
2) SOUNDPOOL-Dichotomies and Dreamland (Aloft)
3) PANDA RIOT-She Dares All Things (self-released)
4) ROSEBUDS-Life Like (Merge)
5) PETER BRODERICK-Float (Type)

REISSUES:
1) RODRIGUEZ-Cold Fact (Light in the Attic)
Worth all the hype? Hell yes.
2) NGAS-Nah Und Fern 2xLP / 4xCD (Kompakt)
Both formats essential, because (a) it's vinyl (duh) and (b) the digital version has like a bazillion more songs (duh!)
3) THE LEFT BANK-Walk Away Renee/Pretty Ballerina LP (Shasam)
The ultimate in lush 60s orchestral pop. This was reportedly the most expensive album ever produced at the time of its recording. Well worth it!
4) THE WAY WE LIVE-A Candle for Judith 180g LP (Ozit)
An amazing 1971 album by the band Tractor, recording under a different name. A totally gorgeous and mindblowing off-the-radar classic.
5) METALLICA-Master of Puppets: Deluxe Edition 2xLP (Warner Bros)
Their greatest achievement, half-speed remastered at 45 rpm. What more needs to be said??


OVERRATED "IT BANDS" THAT REALLY AREN'T THAT OVERRATED AT ALL. THEY'RE JUST AWESOME.

1) KASAI ALLSTARS (Notable awesome release: in the 7th moon, the chief turned into a swimming fish and ate the head of his enemy by magic on Crammed Discs)
Konono No. 1 took Congotronics into Pitchfork hipsterdom. And suddenly everything in the Congo has to follow suit? But holy bejeesus - go right now to last.fm and listen to the track Quick as White. Then listen to it about a dozen times over the next week. Don't worry, you won't forget - that's instinct taking over. And don't say I didn't TELL YOU. Best track I've heard all year, easily.
2) FUCKED UP (Notable awesome release: Crooked Head single on Matador)
What the hell is it about this band that makes me feel like it's a guilty pleasure, when really, it shouldn't be? Like it's supposed to be too hipster or cool for my tastes, or something? No, it just rules. This band encompasses everything I love about music. You know these guys all have Sarah Records, shoegaze records, Angry Samoans albums, and fucking classic Metallica LPs in their record collections. And for that reason alone, they should be your best friends in the world. And maybe they are. But for me? They are much tougher than any of my friends ever could be. I just know it. I still don't know if they completely destroyed one of my favorite Sarah Records catalog tracks, or did an awesome job...
3) DEERHUNTER (Notable awesome release: Microcastle LP on Kranky)
And this just makes you realize that finally people are coming to accept the fact that there is so much more awesome music to be made. If ever in a funk that there's "no good or new or interesting music anymore" you can just throw on a damn Deerhunter record and flip your shit around.
4) VIVIAN GIRLS (Notable awesome release: all of them)
These girls are the real deal definition of buzzworthy: amazing, simple harmonies recalling the best of C86, shoegaze, and 60s girl groups.
5) SIGUR ROS (Notable awesome release: Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust on XL)
Thankfully, I have kept Sigur Ros unspoilt over the years by not overplaying them to death like the rest of society seems to have done. Every time I hear one of their tracks or albums or releases, it blows me away and stays refreshing and gorgeous, as it should.

Ten things that restored Susan Moll (CLAIRECORDS international woman of mystery)’s faith in humanity in 2008:

1. Our badass new president
2. Helvetia- The Acrobats (The Static Cult Label/Up)
3. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FX)
4. Mad Men (AMC)
5. Idaho- Alas/The Forbidden EP: Special Edition  (Halfpipe Records/Idaho Music)
6. Tina Fey as Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live. 
7. The Helio Sequence- Keep Your Eyes Ahead (Sub Pop)
8. Chocolate News (Comedy Central)
9. Beach House- Devotion (Carpark)
10. Greedy, arrogant stock traders barfing into their hands on the floor of the NYSE

Questions? Comments? Need an advance copy of something? Want to book one of our bands, or license a song or two for your film or TV project? Well, what are you waiting for? Contact Susan Moll (susan@clairecords.com) or Dan Sostrom (dans@clairecords.com). Kids, ask your parents before you call.
______________________________________________
CLAIRECORDS * Purveyors of Quality Noise
http://www.clairecords.com
http://www.myspace.com/clairecords




CLAIRECORDS NEWSLETTER MARCH 2009
Welcome to the 47th edition of the Clairecords newsletter, brought to you by a plateful of BBQ and a nice cold Shiner Bock. BURP! 

AUTODRONE
There’s plenty in the works for Autodrone this spring: live appearances in and around the eastern side of the Yoo Ess, potential West Coast dates, a remix by Ulrich Schnauss and a great big batch of new material. Stay tuned for updates and details!
http://www.myspace.com/autodrone

AVERKIOU
Gainesville’s greatest are back from their whirlwind tour of the East Coast, and boy was it a scorcher!  Late-spring tourdates are in the planning stages, so if you’d like the Fab Five to play your provenance, drop us a line!  Triple-R Independent Radio in beautiful Melbourne, Australia has discovered Throwing Sparks, and we simply adore them for doing so.  http://www.myspace.com/averkiou

GUITAR
Computerjockeys of the world unite! For those of you who’ve committed every track on Honeysky and Saltykisses to memory, you’ll no doubt be thrilled to know that Michael Lueckner has already wrapped up work on a new batch of post-Krautrock ambience, “It's Sweet to do Nothing!” It’ll be coming your way sometime in August.  And thanks to the peeps at WFMU-FM (NYC, NY) and KALX-FM (Berkeley, CA) for their continued airplay!
http://www.sunkiss.de/
http://www.myspace.com/guitarsunkissed

PARK AVENUE MUSIC/HEARTS + HORSES
Wes and Juju are now active on Twitter and Facebook, so why not become a fan or send them a tweet?  The dynamic duo has also traded remixes with German mixologist Aus as of late, and both will arrive April 20. You can also hear hearts+horses on this here Chicago Public Radio program: http://audio.wbez.org/thirdcoast/player/3player_new.asp?fileId=resound108 . If you’re in or around the Sacramento area June 7, be sure to stop by their shot at Luigi’s Fun Garden! 
 http://www.heartshorses.com

PIA FRAUS
Estonia’s best exports are set to join Clairecords’ own DAYSLEEPERS on the third and final installment of Club AC30’s Never Lose That Feeling compilation series, which also includes a cut by Ulrich Schnauss with Chapterhouse’s Andrew Sherriff and Stephen Patman. Suffice to say it’s going to be bomb.  The Pias have also redesigned their Web site all nice and pretty-like, so be sure to drop by for a visit!
http://www.piafraus.com/
http://www.myspace.com/piafraus

SECRET SHINE
Secret Shine is about halfway through their follow-up to last year’s wonderful “All of the Stars,” so stay tuned for a working title and potential release date! Italy’s Raise Records will also feature the band on its forthcoming vinyl compilation, which will arrive sometime this spring.
http://www.secretshine.co.uk
http://www.myspace.com/secretshine


* * * CLAIRECORDS MEETS THE PRESS * * *

AVERKIOU
“Thankfully, Averkiou doesn’t assume that atmospherics are enough to carry an album, and Throwing Sparks has some pretty solid (if simple) pop-song sensibilities at its foundation. It’s just a shame that it barely breaks 25 minutes.” – Monosyllabic.com

GUITAR
“Layers of guitars and simple rhythms create compelling amounts of beauty-trails and fantastic visions.” Alon Shapiro, Fabric


* * * OUR TOURS. LET US SHOW YOU THEM.*  *  *

AVERKIOU
04/10/09 Gainesville, FL- Common Grounds
04/16/09  Tampa, FL- Czar Bar
05/23/09 Gainesville, FL- The Atlantic
08/16/09 Gainesville, FL- Pop Mayhem

MAHOGANY
04/26/09  Hoboken, NJ- Maxwell’s
w/ Crystal Stilts

MALORY
10/14/09  Berlin, DE- Bang Bang Club
10/16/09  Regensburg, DE- Gloria
10/17/09  Dresden, DE- AZ Conni
10/18/09 Hamburg, DE- Gruner Jager

PARK AVENUE MUSIC/HEARTS + HORSES
06/07/09  Sacramento, CA- Luigi’s Fun Garden

THE BROTHER KITE
04/06/09  Providence, RI- AS220

HEY, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING?
(A peek inside the inner sanctums of your favorite Clairecords stars!)

THE TOP 10 THINGS THAT ROCKED AT SXSW 2009
1. American Analog Set performing ‘The Golden Band’ in its entirety at Club de Ville
2. The Irish breakfast and Woodchuck Amber on tap at B.D. Riley’s. Mmm-mmm good!
3. Beach House in the dark at Volume
4. Having my picture taken with two strange Colombian people wearing whirlybird hats that, to my crushing disappointment, didn’t whirl
5. Migas at Cisco’s
6. The perfect weather
7. Dosh guitarist Jeremy Ylvisaker’s vintage kelly-green Airline axe. Quite possibly the most badass guitar ever. I’m so not even kidding.
8. Wheat covering Daft Punk at Maggie Mae’s
9. The Decemberists at Stubb’s
10. The Cupcakemobile

Questions? Comments? Need an advance copy of something? Want to book one of our bands, or license a song or two for your film or TV project? Well, what are you waiting for? Contact Susan Moll (susan@clairecords.com) or Dan Sostrom (dans@clairecords.com). Kids, ask your parents before you call.
______________________________________________
CLAIRECORDS * Purveyors of Quality Noise
http://www.clairecords.com
http://www.myspace.com/clairecords 








CLAIRECORDS NEWSLETTER APRIL 2009
Welcome to the 48th edition of the Clairecords newsletter, brought to you by Kleenex-brand tissues and a box of Alavert. ACHOO! 

AUTODRONE
New York’s finest (next to Ifwhen, natch) are hard at work hammering out new tracks for your listening enjoyment, and the Prids benefit album (Connect the Dots) on which they appear is waiting for you at the nearest independent music emporium. Autodrone has also posted a link to a downloadable unreleased live cut on their Facebook group, located here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Autodrone/60898092884.
http://www.myspace.com/autodrone

AVERKIOU
Gainesville’s greatest are back from their whirlwind tour of the East Coast, and boy was it a scorcher!  Late-spring tourdates are in the planning stages, so if you’d like the Fab Five to play your provenance, drop us a line!  Triple-R Independent Radio in beautiful Melbourne, Australia has discovered Throwing Sparks, and we simply adore them for doing so.  
http://www.myspace.com/averkiou
 
SILVER SCREEN
There’s plenty going on in the Silver Screen camp: As Cris Miller reports, the next album is rapidly taking shape. Titled When You and I Were Very Young, it’s expected to be finished in June. Details to come. In further news, “I will be taking vacation In Bali and West Java, Indonesia. Part of it is recreation, and part of it will be promoting Silver Screen music to a potential southeast Asian audience. There is a possibility I will be on a radio show in Indonesia for an interview and perhaps Silver Screen acoustic performance.”
http://www.myspace.com/thegreateststorynevertold

THE BROTHER KITE
Left Coast residents take note! The Pride of Providence have wrapped up work on their third album, and are heading westward to Los Angeles to mix it with Thom Monahan, whose name is likely familiar to fans of the Pernice Brothers, Devendra Banhart and J. Mascis and the Fog. Catch a sneak preview at The Brother Kite’s Myspace outpost, and don’t you dare miss them live!
http://www.thebrotherkite.com
http://www.myspace.com/thebrotherkite

* * * WHAT ALL THE IMPORTANT PEOPLE ARE SAYING* * *
AVERKIOU
“Throwing Sparks is packed with production straight from the playbook of Kevin Shields, with a visceral, Spector-esque wall of sound that cuts thin and lean right down the center.”  -- Matt Cohen, Delusions of Adequacy

GUITAR
“Guitar’s abstract and amorphous borders are not the result of a monolith of sonic obliteration.  They have gentle curves in their feedback loops, and often play ornate, delicate melodies as brittle as a glass menagerie alongside the loud stuff.”  --Timothy Gabriele, Popmatters.com


* * * CLAIRECORDS LIVE AND IN STEREO!*  *  * 

AUTODRONE
05/02/09 Brooklyn, NY- Public Assembly
05/22/09 NYC, NY- Le Royale
w/ Violet Hour

AVERKIOU
05/23/09 Gainesville, FL- The Atlantic
08/16/09 Gainesville, FL- Pop Mayhem

MALORY
10/14/09  Berlin, DE- Bang Bang Club
10/16/09  Regensburg, DE- Gloria
10/17/09  Dresden, DE- AZ Conni
10/18/09 Hamburg, DE- Gruner Jager

PARK AVENUE MUSIC/HEARTS + HORSES
06/07/09  Sacramento, CA- Luigi’s Fun Garden

THE BROTHER KITE
06/01/09  Cambridge, MA- Middle East
w/ True Widow

HEY, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING?
(A peek inside the inner sanctums of your favorite Clairecords stars!)
 
CRIS MILLER (SILVER SCREEN)
“Lately I love drinking Manhattans! The key is a tasty bourbon... no Jim Beam allowed unless you're in a pinch. The recipe for Manhattans I make here at home:
2 parts bourbon, pref. Maker's Mark, Knob Creek if you like it a bit sweeter.
1 part sweet vermouth (Rosso)
4 quick shakes 
Angostura bitters
1 blood orange, cut in halves, squeeze one half into the mix.
Shake with plenty of ice, and strain. Enjoy responsibly.”

______________________________________________
CLAIRECORDS * Purveyors of Quality Noise
http://www.clairecords.com
http://www.myspace.com/clairecords







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