MEDICAL MISSION FUNDRAISER IN BROOKLYN
January 22nd, 2008 , by Asthmatic Kitty
You might remember Welcome Wagon, a band that has appeared on both of our label compilations, To Spirit Back the Mews and Mews Too. They are, of course, still around! And you can hear them too, if you’re in the New York area, on Friday January 25th.
They’ll be playing a benefit show at Perch Bar & Cafe to assist a community based HIV/AIDS medical missions project in Addis, Ethiopia. Also playing are Ryan & Megan Simms, Theo Prince, and Andrew Rose Gregory.
We hope you’ll be there, but if you can’t make it, you can donate to the project via Park Slope Church here.
"The Line," Andrew Gregory (MP3)
"Sold! To The Nice Rich Man!" Welcome Wagon (Download)
HUNTING FOR UNUSUAL ANIMALS
January 16th, 2008 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Though part of a record label, the Unusual Animals here at Asthmatic Kitty have always leaned heavily on the sense of sight. That is now more true than ever, as we begin a very special hunt. We are partnering with the 930 Art Center in Louisville, Kentucky to craft a gallery exhibition as a visual compendium to a party/showcase of Louisville musical talent. The Unusual Animals Louisville party and gallery opening will take place on April 5th, with the gallery show running until May 27th.
We are asking for submissions to an exhibit appropriately titled Unusual Animals. Favored pieces of work will depict unusual animals from nature, or the imagination of the artist. Two hundred dollars will go to best in show, as well as a $100 second place award. The deadline for submissions is March 15, so you have some time – but don’t take too long. We are anxious to see what the kinds of creatures inhabit the recesses of your imaginations and backyards. Click here to see more details.
SHARA WORDEN PLAYS THE BUNNY
January 12th, 2008 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Tom Eaton, animator of Sufjan Stevens’ "Put the Lights on the Tree" video," has released a new short entitled "Don’t Smash"! And what’s more, our very own Shara Worden from My Brightest Diamond plays the bunny (she has a special place in her heart for the furry creatures). Click more for the YouTube video.
CHRIS SCHLARB ROUND-UP
January 7th, 2008 , by Asthmatic Kitty
It was a month ago that we proudly released Chris Schlarb’s Twilight & Ghost Stories. It’s already turned up on a few Top 10 of 2007 lists, so Chris could have very well walked away from the table. But instead he’s been just as busy. Some of this busy-ness involves interviewing his Twilight collaborators. Expect […]
Read the Rest...PUT THE LIGHTS IN KAOHSIUNG TAIWAIN
December 24th, 2007 , by Asthmatic Kitty
The hard working souls at Stereogum managed to wrangle the following little video gem from the depths of YouTube. If you don’t smile by the time one of the students pretends to bite into a candy cane, please say hello for us to the three apparitions of various timeframes that you’ll be seeing tonight.
Thanks to the Grade Four students who worked so hard at this wonderful video!
Oh yes, and Merry Christmas from Asthmatic Kitty!
INTRODUCING THE WINNER OF THE GREAT SUFJAN SONG XMAS XCHANGE!
December 20th, 2007 , by Asthmatic Kitty
A message From Sufjan Stevens, followed by the winning entry and by a message from the AK Elves:"Having received over 600 Christmas song entries, it became a daunting task to pick just one. I fell in love with them all. Even the songs with expletives, the songs with Christmas clichés, the many songs about ex-girlfriends, […]
Read the Rest...STILL DECIDING
December 18th, 2007 , by Asthmatic Kitty
As of December 17, we are still trying to decide the winner of the Great Sufjan Song Xmas Change. We received so many great entries, this is a harder job than we thought! Expect something in the next day, and thank you for your patience!
MOSTLY LOVES CLOUDS (AND SHIRTS)
December 17th, 2007 , by Asthmatic Kitty
The Unusual Animals Project Space is finished exhibiting the brilliant landscape dissection of installation artist Cindy Hinant, and there are a few limited edition t-shirts still left. Designed by Cindy herself, made by American Apparel, and pressed by Kangaroo Press, these are custom made for each order and will take 1-2 weeks for manufacturing and shipping. You can purchase them for just $15 from the UAPS website here.
And on January 4th, UAPS will debut its new show, Mostly Loves Clouds, a crowd collaborative installation from the clouded mind of librarian Michael Kaufmann. The show will open on January 4th, 2008, from 6-10pm, at the Project Space in the Harrison Center for the Arts in Indianapolis.
CHRISTMAS MUSIC IS EVERYWHERE
December 13th, 2007 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Music is one of our favorite parts of the holidays, and we’re not just saying that because we’re a record label. Besides listening to the submissions for the Great Sufjan Song Xmas Xchange (we’ll announce the winner soon!), there are a few other things in rotation. Our very own Chris Schlarb is member of I Heart Lung, who created the wonderful EP, I Heart Christmas – a fine holiday soundtrack, and probably the only one that features a battle between Santa and Dracula. Click here to download for free (and here for the semi-related Nichole and the Dreamcatchers Christmas release).
Also making the rounds is A Familyre Christmas, from sister record label Sounds Familyre. Danielson starts off the album, followed a few songs later by a special Christmas gem by Half-handed Cloud entitled, "Plant a Little Fir Tree on the Roof." Sounds Familyre is providing each song as a stream and a download right here.
MICROCINEMATIZED
December 7th, 2007 , by Asthmatic Kitty
We met Microcinema in Houston, Texas for a collaborative all-day, all-ages, all-free, all-good five-band gig called Unusual Animals. But that short rendezvous was not enough for either of us, so after a few carefully written telegrams and telephonic calls, we are getting together with Microcinema again to collectively present Independent Exposure 2008.
Since its inception in 1996, Independent Exposure has been a curatorial effort designed to bring the newest and most innovative short films to an untapped, broader audience by using non-traditional venues. These showcases are exhibited in non-traditional venues or "microcinemas" such as galleries, cafes, bars, nightclubs, outdoors, and other alternative spaces that support the independent arts. To date, Independent Exposure has been presented hundreds of times in 44 countries plus Palestine and Antarctica and at base camp on Mt. Everest.
Microcinema is therefore asking for film submissions, from everyone including you, our readers. Winning filmmakers will receive everything from a Panasonic AG-HSC1U 1/4" 3-CCD High Definition Video Camera (if you know what that means, you know how awesome it is), to a specially selected Asthmatic Kitty discography. And with base camp at Mt. Everest setting the bar, who knows where Microcinema might display your work?
Click here to read rules and submission instructions, and click more to see one our favorites from last years winners.
"Trace," by Chirstinn Whyte