Denison Witmer Releases “A House With,” Third Single from Anything At All
January 15th, 2025 , by Asthmatic Kitty
The spirited “A House With” was one of the first songs written and one of the last to be completed for Denison Witmer’s forthcoming album Anything At All. Produced entirely by Sufjan Stevens, the song showcases Denison’s reflective lyricism as it builds from a gentle melody into a rhythmic crescendo, with female vocal echoes adding depth and texture. The crescendo gives way to Denison’s intimate vocal, singing, “I wanted to have a house full of life and meaning, but everything is wild and fleeting,” capturing the bittersweet nature of life’s impermanence. Listen now here.
Anything At All releases on February 14, 2025. Pre-order your copy on vinyl here and receive a postcard featuring a video message from Denison—perfect as a collectible or to share with a pen pal. Plus, all pre-orders are entered to win a signed test pressing of the album.
Photo credit: Lindsay Elliott
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Denison Witmer Announces New Album ‘Anything At All’ – Available for Pre-Order Now
December 4th, 2024 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Denison Witmer returns with a new collection of ten vibrant and pensive folk-pop songs recorded and produced by Sufjan Stevens, his long-time friend and collaborator. Anything At All finds Denison in a suitably reflective mood, mining sublime revelation from an ordinary, domesticated life. Topics like bird watching, carpentry, houseplants, and hiking offer insights into bigger, existential questions about life, death, meaning, and purpose. What are we doing with the precious time we have left on this earth? Whether it’s spent making clocks, gathering berries, planting trees, or putting the kids to bed at night, these songs suggest that a life lived with thoughtfulness and care can lead to deeper joy and fulfillment.
Recorded sporadically over a period of two years, Anything At All was primarily created at Sufjan’s Catskills studio during the pandemic, with additional sessions recorded by Andy Park, in Seattle, WA. Contributors include Stevens and Park as well as Sam Evian, Hannah Cohen, Sean Lane, and Keenan O’Meara, amongst others. The album’s musical aesthetic marries Denison’s folksy vibe with Sufjan’s signature bells and whistles: lush strings and woodwinds, women’s choir, and an occasional jazzy saxophone weave their way around Denison’s matter-of-fact vocals and acoustic guitar. These are simple folk songs with bursts of awe and wonder.
Those who pre-order the album will receive an Anything At All postcard that can be kept as a collectible or shared with a pen pal. All pre-orders will also be entered into a drawing to win a test pressing of the album, signed by Denison Witmer.
Brighten up your inbox with stories and updates from Denison Witmer: Subscribe to Denison’s Email List. Photo credit: Lindsay Elliott.
25% Off Cyber Monday Sale – December 2, 2024
December 2nd, 2024 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Cyber Monday | Dec 2, 2024
In celebration of Asthmatic Kitty Records’ 25th anniversary, we’re offering 25% off all merchandise (excluding bundles) in the AKR store—for one day only this Cyber Monday!
Plus, one person who makes a purchase on Cyber Monday will win a special Silver & Gold(en) Ticket, redeemable for $50 to spend on anything they’d like in the AKR store. Don’t miss this chance to save and celebrate with us!
Giving Tuesday | Dec 3, 2024
Starting at 9AM ET on Dec 3, Asthmatic Kitty Records is hosting a live auction on our Instagram featuring a Silver & Gold Vols. 6-10 test pressing LPs in a slipcase + Silver & Gold merchandise.
⦿ When: Bidding opens at 9am ET and closes at 9pm ET. Starting bid is $250.
⦿ Where: AKR’s IG profile – comment directly on AKR’s auction post to bid (will go live by 9am ET). The highest bid by 9pm ET wins!
At auction close, the highest bidder will be contacted by AKR and has 24 hours to make a donation to World Central Kitchen, providing AKR the receipt for proof of donation. If the highest bidder does not make the donation within the 24 hour period, the next highest bidder will be next in line to claim the test press.
All auction proceeds will support World Central Kitchen, and AKR will match the winning bid amount with a donation to The Trevor Project .
AKR Staff Picks Gift Guide
This holiday season, the staff and artists of AKR are highlighting some of their favorite small businesses in the AKR Staff/Artist Picks Holiday Gift Guide. We’ve curated a collection of unique, locally-sourced gifts—from ceramics to books to handmade treasures—supporting independent makers and shops. Browse the guide to see if you can find the perfect gift for someone on your list!
25% off Cyber Monday Sale, Holiday Bundles and Giving Tuesday Auction
November 22nd, 2024 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Now’s the perfect time to stock up on AKR catalog classics! This holiday season, enjoy savings when you purchase multiple items from the AKR store. Explore bundles featuring music from Sufjan Stevens, Angelo De Augustine, Denison Witmer, Half-handed Cloud, and The Welcome Wagon. Plus, a few options to stock up and save on Silver & Gold merchandise!
Available now through December 10th HERE.
AKR GIFT GUIDE
Find the perfect gift for the music lover in your life with AKR’s Holiday Gift Guide. Discover discounts on vinyl bundles, festive merch, and unique apparel for fans and collectors alike. Shop the AKR Gift Guide and give the gift of music!
Gifts For $100 + ↗
Gifts For Under $100 ↗
Gifts For Under $25 ↗
CYBER MONDAY & GIVING TUESDAY
Cyber Monday (Dec 2)
In celebration of Asthmatic Kitty Records’ 25th anniversary, we’re offering 25% off all merchandise (excluding bundles) in the AKR store—for one day only this Cyber Monday!
Plus, one person who makes a purchase on Cyber Monday will win a special (Silver &) Gold Ticket, redeemable for $50 to spend on anything they’d like in the AKR store. Don’t miss this chance to save and celebrate with us!
Giving Tuesday (Dec 3)
Asthmatic Kitty Records is hosting a live auction on our Instagram featuring a Silver & Gold Vols. 6-10 test pressing LPs in a slipcase + Silver & Gold merchandise.
📅 When: Bidding opens at 9am ET and closes at 9pm ET.
📍Where: AKR’s IG profile – comment directly on AKR’s auction post (will go live by 9am ET). The highest bid by 9pm ET wins!
All auction proceeds will support World Central Kitchen, and AKR will match the winning bid amount with a donation to The Trevor Project.
FOLLOW AKR ON IG TO PARTICIPATE ↗
SILVER & GOLD
Finally, you can still stock up on all the Silver & Gold merchandise + the deluxe Silver & Gold box set featuring 6 LPs, temporary tattoos, stickers, a coloring book and so much more. Available now – including some merch bundles here.
Denison Witmer Returns With New Single “Older and Free,” Produced By And Featuring Sufjan Stevens
October 25th, 2024 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Photo by Lindsay Elliott
Denison Witmer just released his new single, “Older and Free,” produced by his longtime friend Sufjan Stevens, who also contributes to the track (with additional co-production by Andy Park). With its thoughtful lyrics and rich instrumentation, the song is about centering yourself in nature.
“One of the benefits of getting older and knowing yourself is being able to seek out the things that reset you in times when things feel off balance. For me, alone time is very important. Nature is very important. Moving my body and getting lost in my thoughts has become a must – whether it be running or, in the case of this song, hiking.
I wrote this song when I was solo camping for a night at French Creek State Park not far from my home in PA. During Covid lockdown, my wife and I realized that we would burn out in the responsibilities of our day to day life if we didn’t take time to ourselves. The melody and lyrics came to me as I was hiking the Lenape Trail back to my campsite. I have a little classical guitar that goes with me most places, and I wrote the song in completion that evening. I got so attached to the sound that the little guitar ended up being the instrument we recorded the basic tracks with.” – Denison Witmer
“Older and Free” is available now on all streaming and download platforms.
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Announcing the Sufjan Stevens Javelin Global Listening Event
September 7th, 2023 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Hear the album early!
Read the Rest...Sufjan to release duo piano album Reflections, performed by Timo Andres and Conor Hanick; video & single out now
April 18th, 2023 , by Asthmatic Kitty
We’re proud to announce Reflections, a new duo piano album composed by Sufjan Stevens and performed by pianists Timo Andres and Conor Hanick, set for release May 19th, 2023.
“Ekstasis” is the first track from the album and is available now. Director Brian Paccione and his team filmed Timo and Conor playing “Ekstasis” live at Yamaha Studio NYC. You can watch that below, or here.
Pre-orders for the album on aquamarine-colored 45RPM LP, and CD, are available now wherever you buy records. The first 500 orders made via our AKR store includes a slipmat featuring the cover art by Jessica Slaven. You can also bundle your purchase with The Decalogue + Reflections slipmat. Pre-order those here.
Reflections was originally commissioned by The Houston Ballet with choreography by Justin Peck and premiered March 21, 2019. Written for two pianos and eleven dancers, Reflections marks the sixth collaboration between Sufjan and Justin, following Year of the Rabbit (2012); Everywhere We Go (2014); In the Countenance of Kings (2016); The Decalogue (2017); and Principia (2019). You can read more about Reflections here. Pre-orders are available here.
Announcing Esther, a new album from The Welcome Wagon
September 7th, 2022 , by Asthmatic Kitty
We are thrilled to announce a brand new album from The Welcome Wagon: Esther, for release on November 4th, 2022.
As a preview of the album, The Welcome Wagon (Monique and Vito Auito and friends) are releasing the first single “Isaiah, California,” which you can hear by clicking here, or watching the visual below.
Esther is as much about homecoming as it is about making peace with—and a home in—uncertainty. “It became apparent to us that so many of these songs were about coming home, or leaving home, or reckoning with the homes we grew up in,” says Vito, “plus we wrote them in our home.”
“Making a home in this world is one of the hardest and most beautiful things any of us ever do,” says Monique. “Our music helps us to do that—to make a home, together with our family and friends—and we hope that somehow our songs might help others to make a home wherever they are, too.”
You can read more about the album here.
Pre-orders for the album (translucent pink vinyl LP!) are here. Also available at that link are bundles, including a custom-screen printed tote, tickets to a very special Welcome Wagon release party livestream, a special hand-made cassette, and an archival quality 16″x24″ print of Monique’s artwork.
“Remember Magic: A Tribute to Ray Raposa” in Portland, Oregon & San Diego
August 31st, 2022 , by Asthmatic Kitty
On July 30th we shared news from the family of Raymond Raposa, long-time Asthmatic Kitty band Castanets and Raymond & the White Freighter: “It is with great sorrow that the family of Raymond Raposa announce his passing today. Raymond was a wonderful son, brother, uncle, friend, and musician. He will be greatly missed.”
On September 25th in Portland, Oregon at Polaris Hall and on October 9th in San Diego at The Casbah, friends, family, past band members, and collaborators will gather to perform and remember Ray. All proceeds will be donated to Central City Concern and Shoreline Community Services.
Ticket links:
Sept 25 – Polaris Hall – Portland, OR
Announcing Convocations by Sufjan Stevens
April 2nd, 2021 , by Asthmatic Kitty
Convocations, a new instrumental album by Sufjan Stevens, will be released on May 6 digitally, and on August 20th, 2021 via 5xLP colored vinyl boxset .
Convocations is comprised of five volumes—Meditations, Lamentations, Revelations, Celebrations and Incantations—the project is a two-and-a-half-hour, 49-track reflection on a year of anxiety, uncertainty, isolation, and loss. Read more about the project here.
You can hear the first song from the project, “Meditation V,” right now by clicking here.
The full volume of Meditations will be out this Thursday, April 8. We’ll be releasing the other four volumes each week for the next four weeks. See schedule below for details.
Each of the volumes and tracks of Convocations are accompanied by a generative video art piece created by artist Melissa Fuentes.
Also: please save the date and join us on Thursday at 12pm ET, when we’ll be premiering Meditations in full, alongside with Fuentes’ visuals, via YouTube livestream here. The livestream will remain active during that week to come, and we encourage you to join in the stream’s chat throughout to reflect, respond, meditate, lament, revel, celebrate, and incant what we’ve gained and what we’ve lost over the last year, and what we see on the horizon.
We are also releasing Convocations on 5xLP on August 20th. You’ll be able to pre-order the boxset on Thursday, April 8th at 1pm ET here or over at Bandcamp here. See photos below.
Schedule
Today
“Meditation V” out now.
Thursday April 8
12PM ET: Livestream of Meditations.
1PM ET: Pre-orders available for 5xLP boxset
Monday April 12
“Lamentation II”
Thursday April 15
12PM ET: Livestream of Lamentations
Monday April 19:
“Revelation II”
Thursday April 22
12PM ET: Livestream of Revelations
Monday April 26
“Celebration VIII”
Thursday April 29
12PM ET: Livestream of Celebrations
Monday May 3:
“Incantation VIII”
Thursday May 6
12PM ET: Livestream of Incantations,
1PM ET: full Convocations project available on digital platforms
August 20th
5xLP boxsets ship (first pressing).
Click here to follow the schedule on our Sufjan calendar.