ANDY SHAUF RELEASES NEW SINGLE, “SPANISH ON THE BEACH”

WATCH AND SHARE “SPANISH ON THE BEACH” HERE

BUY / STREAM “SPANISH ON THE BEACH” HERE

ANNOUNCES CANADIAN TOUR DATES FOR 2022

Photo Credit: Colin Medley // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Today, Andy Shauf returns with a new single, “Spanish On The Beach”, via Arts & Crafts. “Spanish On The Beach” could neatly slot into The Neon Skyline, his most recent album and “a wistful, funny, and heartbreaking world of its own” (Pitchfork). Over gentle, jazzy guitar strums augmented with the whispiest of woodwinds, Shauf tells an empathetic, funny story of a couple’s time on an all-inclusive resort vacation, using the idea of a language barrier as a metaphor for the beginning stages of communication breakdown. It ends with the narrator envisioning an imagined scenario in which he proposes to Judy, a character mentioned across The Neon Skyline, before bursting into song, musical theater-style, with the resort’s house band. “It’s the same theme as the story ended up being at the Skyline but the narrator's life is a little bit booze-fueled,” says Shauf on the song. “And this vacation is kind of like the first stop on the way to destruction.”

WATCH AND SHARE “SPANISH ON THE BEACH” HERE

BUY / STREAM “SPANISH ON THE BEACH” HERE

“Spanish On The  Beach” Track Artwork // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Andy Shauf kicks off his full band US tour next week before beginning another run in Canada in 2022 with stops in Ottawa, Montreal, and Toronto. The Andy Shauf band is comprised of Shauf (guitar, vocals), Colin Nealis (keys, synth), Daniel Pencer (woodwinds), Chris Bezant (guitar), Josh Daignault (bass) and Sean Mullins (drums). Tickets are available here.

US TOUR DATES

Sept. 9 - Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw

Sept. 10 - Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw

Sept. 12 - Chicago, IL @ Pitchfork Music Festival

Sept. 14 - Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre *

Sept. 15 - Grand Rapids, MI @ Calvin College *

Sept. 16 - Indianapolis, IN @ Hi-Fi

Sept. 17 - Cleveland, OH @ The Grog Shop *

Sept. 18 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Sound Series: Block Party 

Sept. 21 - Fort Collins, CO @ Washington’s Foco

Sept. 22 - Boulder,CO @ Fox Theatre

Sept. 23 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The Urban Lounge

Sept. 24 - Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Fest

Sept. 25 - Eugene, OR @ Sessions Music Hall

Sept. 26 - Tacoma, WA @ McMenamins Elks Temple

Sept. 28 - Santa Cruz, CA @ Moe’s Alley

Sept. 29 - Santa Barbara, CA @ Soho Restaurant & Music Club

Sept. 30 - Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Forever Cemetery

Oct. 1 - Sonoma, CA @ Sebastiani Theatre

Oct. 30 - Austin, TX @ Levitation Festival

Nov. 13 - Perris, CA @ Desert Daze Festival

2022 TOUR DATES

Feb. 3, 2022 - Ottawa, ON @ Bronson Centre

Feb. 4, 2022  - Montreal, QC @ Corona Theatre

Feb. 5, 2022  - Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall

Feb. 6, 2022  - Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall

Feb. 17, 2022  - Sheffield, MA @ Race Brook Lodge

Feb. 18, 2022  - Woodstock, NY @ Colony Cafe

Feb. 20, 2022  - Charlottesville, VA @ The Southern Music Hall

Feb. 22, 2022  - Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle

Feb. 23, 2022  - Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle

Feb. 24, 2022  - Birmingham, AL @ Saturn

Feb. 25, 2022  - Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West

Mar. 20, 2022 - Bruxelles, BE @ Le Botanique

March 30, 2022  - Washington, DC @ Black Cat

March 31, 2022  - Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer

April 3, 2022  - Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club

April 18, 2022  - Düdingen, CH @ Bad Bonn

April 20, 2022  - Mérignac, FR @ Le Krakatoa

April 21, 2022  - Paris, FR @ Trianon

April 22, 2022  - Rouen, FR @ Le 106

April 23, 2022  - Esch-Sur-Alzette, LU @ Kulturfabrik

April 24, 2022  - Utrecht, NL @ Tivoli Vredenburg

April 25, 2022  - Rotterdam, NL @ Rotown

April 26, 2022  - Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje

April 28, 2022  - Copenhagen, DK @ Loppen

April 29, 2022  - Oslo, NO @ Ingensteds

April 30, 2022  - Stockholm, SE @ Nalen Klubb

May 2, 2022  - Hamburg, DE @ Knust

May 3, 2022  - Berlin, DE @ Silent Green

May 5, 2022  - Bruxelles, BE @ Les Nuits Botanique Festival

May 6, 2022  - Cologne, DE @ Luxor

May 7, 2022  - Genk, BE @ Little Waves Festival

May 9, 2022  - Birmingham, UK @ The Castle & Falcon

May 10, 2022  - Edinburgh, UK @ Summerhall

May 11, 2022  - Glasgow, UK @ Drygate 

May 12, 2022  - Manchester, UK @ Gorilla

May 13, 2022  - Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club

May 14, 2022  - Bristol, UK @ Fiddlers

May 15, 2022  - Brighton, UK @ Chalk

May 16, 2022  - London, UK @ Shepherd’s Bush Empire

May 18, 2022  - Belfast, UK @ Em in pire

May 19, 2022  - Dublin, IE @ Button Factory

TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE

ANDY SHAUF ONLINE

WEBSITE
INSTAGRAM
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
BANDCAMP

GORD DOWNIE’S COKE MACHINE GLOW 20th ANNIVERSARY EDITION IS RELEASED

COKE MACHINE GLOW: SONGWRITERS’ CABAL REVISITS DOWNIE’S FIRST SOLO MASTERPIECE WITH AN EXPANDED TRIPLE ALBUM (ARTS & CRAFTS) AND AUDIOBOOK OF POETRY (PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE CANADA) 

OUT NOW - STREAM & BUY HERE

CLIP: “I STAND BEFORE THE SONGWRITER’S CABAL” 

Gord Downie’s Coke Machine Glow was released in 2001, in between Music @ Work (2000) and In Violet Light (2002), the ninth and tenth albums by his mighty band of brothers in The Tragically Hip. The first solo project by one of the world’s great wordsmiths, Coke Machine Glow’s sixteen painterly songs were released with an accompanying book of poetry, collectively emanating Downie’s heartrending stories, from the road as from home, in his signature quirk and complex, approachable wit. Twenty years since its release, Coke Machine Glow remains a teetering, charming body of work, never static, shot across its canvas in brilliant glowing embers of “mustard and honey tones.”

Now, to mark its 20th anniversary, Arts & Crafts releases a special expanded edition that revisits the music and poetry of this prolific and pivotal time of Downie’s career. Entitled Coke Machine Glow: Songwriters’ Cabal, the triple-album features the original two-disc set plus a bonus record of twelve unreleased demos, alternate versions, and never-before-heard outtakes, carefully curated by Gord’s “oldest Toronto friend” Josh Finlayson and brother Patrick Downie with Arts & Crafts’ Jonathan Shedletzky. The in-all 28-song collection presents a portrait of Downie with rarely before heard intimacy, unrefined and dripping in the wildness of the moment. 

OUT NOW - STREAM & BUY HERE

The previously unreleased title track, an ominous and askew improvisation called “I Stand Before The Songwriters’ Cabal,” posits Gord, alone – save for notebook in hand – facing the pantheon of his craft, stepping to the mic, voice tinkling like a chandelier, with everything and nothing to prove. The spidery acoustic guitar and piano form a web around Downie’s bold yet tentative prose, securing it in the heft of the moment. 

CLIP: “I STAND BEFORE THE SONGWRITER’S CABAL” 

Elsewhere, two opposing versions of the mysterious outtake “Contact” reflect the distance and different shapes these words travelled with Downie in various envelopes over the years. Elegant alternate studio takes of "Vancouver Divorce" and "Lofty Pines" capture the fluidity of the “Goddamned Band” that comprised the Gas Station recording sessions in Toronto that May of 2000; while home recordings dated November 1999, Carlaw Avenue, of "SF Song," "Trick Rider," and "Chancellor," and more, spotlight Gord in close communion with his tape recorder and coffee machine. The hotel room stationary and napkin blueprints practically fill the recordings with tape hiss ambience. 

Produced by GD, Josh Finlayson, and Steven Drake, featuring Dale Morningstar, Julie Doiron, Kevin Hearn, Atom Egoyan, Dave Clark, Don Kerr, and more, Coke Machine Glow: Songwriters' Cabal is a document of Gord at the precipice of his illustrious solo career.

Concurrently, Penguin Random House Canada releases the first ever Coke Machine Glow audiobook, a complete reading of Downie’s original book of poetry by family members, band members, and friends, like Sarah Harmer, Dan Aykroyd, Ron MacLean, Bruce McCulloch, Don Kerr, and many more, produced by Patrick Downie. (See here for the full list of readers.) Ultimately a book Gord wrote about the distances that bridge and separate us, Coke Machine Glow is bound by the dedication of those he loved and was loved by – a rich, haunting collection that reveals both the public and private selves of Gordon Edgar Downie. In poetry that is urban, gritty and political, romantic and nocturnal, nostalgic and whimsical, the reader gets a glimpse inside Downie’s world, with loved ones carrying the gift of his words onwards. 

Available via digital audiobook retailers, the Coke Machine Glow poetry collection will also be included on CD with A&C’s physical music editions. The Songwriters’ Cabal 3LP vinyl is presented in a beautiful embossed triple-gatefold package, limited to a one-time pressing of 2000 hand-numbered copies. In addition to the 3LP and 3CD sets, A&C is for the first time offering a Coke Machine Glow songbook for voice, guitar, and piano. The album, audiobook, and songbook are out today. The Coke Machine Glow: Songwriters’ Cabal limited edition vinyl is expected to ship November 15, 2021. 

ORDER COKE MACHINE GLOW 20th ANNIVERSARY ITEMS

That Coke Machine Glow did not sound like a record by The Tragically Hip is not a surprise, but is still in every way a surprising work: Downie’s oblique yet vicarious poetry undressed of its electricity, redressed in a glorious other voltage. A snapshot of spontaneity, recorded but barely rehearsed – its arc of clandestine art pop clashing with the hum of collective stream-of-consciousness – Gord Downie’s Coke Machine Glow feels like a wild passage through listless places, burrowing in the magic of whatever delicate moment at roadside. Maybe Downie was the genius orchestrator of this Goddamned Band, or perhaps he was just always prepared with the right things to say. You might have listened to this record for the last twenty years, and still not heard some of its finest details – that is the happenstance when onesome poetry is rightly crossed with musical conversation. On Songwriters’ Cabal, the curtain is pulled back for a rare look into Downie’s creative process during a magical time, at the foot of a new path.

Josh Finlayson on the Coke Machine Glow sessions (from the liner notes):

“Having lived in Toronto for over 10 years, Gord wanted to make his first solo record in his adopted city,” co-producer and musician Josh Finlayson recalls. “He had met and befriended many artists in different disciplines and was keen to collaborate with that community. The Gas Station recording studio was located in an old warehouse district of Toronto close to the exhibition grounds near King and Dufferin. Located on the fourth floor, it was an open spaced room with 10 foot windows that had spectacular views looking south to Lake Ontario and east towards downtown. Owned and operated by Dale Morningstar and Don Kerr who after 10 years of operation were being evicted from this location. Coke Machine Glow ended up being the last session at the Gas Station from April 29-May 10, 2000.”

The one concrete idea we had going into the recording was that Gord would sing these songs quietly, as they had been written. The recording room was large (50'X25') with high ceilings. The musicians were spread throughout this room facing the centre where Gord was sitting. Don Kerr (drums) and Kevin Hearn (piano) were only available for the first day of recording which was also our set up day. By late afternoon we were ready to start and their time constraints led to the decision that we were going to make a live off the floor record using an 8 track machine. In hindsight, this was a fortuitous decision as it created a structure that forced us to work within certain parameters. All the songs ended up being cut live, including Gord’s vocals. The only overdubs were done by guests who weren't available at the time and had to add their parts later. For the remainder of the session Dave Clark took over on drums and Dale Morningstar who was assistant engineering, played several different instruments throughout the recording. There was little rehearsal time for anyone so in most cases the songs were run through once or twice and then recorded.”

The Coke Machine Glow 20th anniversary collection, including exclusive merchandise commemorating this landmark release in Downie’s career, is AVAILABLE NOW via Gordieland, Arts & Crafts and Penguin Random House Canada.

ORDER COKE MACHINE GLOW 20th ANNIVERSARY ITEMS

Photo Credit: Mike Downie from “Chancellor” video (2001)

GORD DOWNIE COKE MACHINE GLOW: SONGWRITERS’ CABAL TRACKLIST

Coke Machine Glow:
1. Starpainters
2. Vancouver Divorce
3. SF Song
4. Trick Rider
5. Canada Geese
6. Chancellor
7. The Never-Ending Present
8. Nothing But Heartache in Your Social Life
9. Blackflies
10. Lofty Pines
11. Boy Bruised By Butterfly Chase
12. Mystery
13. Elaborate
14. Yer Possessed
15. Every Irrelevance
16. Insomniacs of the World, Good Night

Songwriters’ Cabal:
1. Vancouver Divorce - Alternate Take
2. Trick Rider - Demo
3. SF Song - Demo
4. Contact - Demo
5. Down Down Down - Demo
6. Putting Down - Demo
7. Chancellor - Demo
8. The Never-Ending Present - Demo
9. I Stand Before the Songwriters' Cabal - Outtake
10. Contact - Outtake
11. Mystery - Alternate Take
12. Lofty Pines - Alternate Take

Audiobook Readers:
Dan Aykroyd, Rob Baker, Andrew Cash, Dave Clark, Julie Doiron, Charlyn Downie, Clare Downie, Clemens Downie, Lou Downie, Mike Downie, Patrick Downie, Paula Downie, Willo Downie, Johnny Fay, Josh Finlayson, Sarah Harmer, Kevin Hearn, Dave “Billy Ray” Koster, Paul Langlois, Ron MacLean, Andy Maize, Bruce McCulloch, Dale Morningstar,  Larry Murphy, Andrea Nann,  Dr. Pee, Gillian Reiss, Damian Rogers, Gord Sinclair, Kaya Usher. 

TOUCHING SHARES FIRST VIDEO / SINGLE FROM UPCOMING ALBUM

TOUCHING (AKA, MICHAEL FALK) SHARES NEW VIDEO FOR “TONY CALLED THE MUSCLE” FROM UPCOMING ALBUM, littleworlds, OUT OCTOBER 29 VIA HEAD IN THE SAND

WATCH AND SHARE “TONY CALLED THE MUSCLE” HERE

BUY / STREAM “TONY CALLED THE MUSCLE” (OUT EVERYWHERE TOMORROW) HERE

Photo Credit : Samanta Katz // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Touching, the artistic alias of songwriter and producer Michael Falk, is sharing the first new music since the project’s debut album, Isolation Blues. In late Spring of 2020, Touching began sharing 10 songs over 10 weeks, a project that was unveiled serially with a one-shot video for each track filmed and released every seven days. With its relatable lyrical themes of loneliness, depression, and disconnection, Exclaim! described the collection as “a greatest hits of pandemic moods.”

Hot on its heels now comes littleworlds, a new album aiming to disinfect the darkness with sunlight. The sophomore release from Touching is built on feelings of hope, simple joys found amidst conflict, and the anticipation and fear of becoming a parent. Its 12 songs were written during the same period as Isolation Blues as Falk stepped away from touring and various other collaborative projects. Using this opportunity to build a studio in his basement, he centered his efforts on writing and recording.

“I bottomed out last year and had a desire to reconnect with my own path of self-fulfilment,” Falk explains. “The only way to become a role model for my son was to show him that I know how to walk the walk by living the life that I want to live. You can tell kids whatever you want, but in the end they’ll look up to what you actually do.”

Today, Touching is sharing the new video for littleworlds lead track, “Tony Called The Muscle”, a song which explores the dramatic end of a close creative partnership. “Losing a client? It happens,” says Falk. “Losing someone you connect deeply with artistically and personally? That's tough. ‘Tony Called The Muscle’ speaks to universal themes of rupture and repair that populate the new album.”

The video for “Tony Called The Muscle” marks Michael Falk's debut as a director. “What better way to kick things off than by installing a boxing ring into centre stage at the historic Burton Cummings Theatre.”

WATCH AND SHARE “TONY CALLED THE MUSCLE” HERE
BUY / STREAM “TONY CALLED THE MUSCLE” (OUT EVERYWHERE TOMORROW) HERE

MORE ABOUT littleworlds

At the heart of littleworlds is Falk’s rich baritone. His striking voice soars with the passion of Frightened Rabbit’s Scott Hutchison, coasts with the coolness of Marker Starling’s Chris A. Cummings, and plumbs the emotional depths of Richard Dawson. Musically, the album injects the downtempo electronic ambience of Massive Attack (“I’m inspired by their late career stuff that no one thinks about,” laughs Falk) into the high drama indie-rock of Editors, Manchester Orchestra, or We Were Promised Jetpacks.  

Driven by thunderous drums, squelching synths, and massive choruses, first single “Tony Called The Muscle” digs into the turmoil of separating from a former creative collaborator. “Caught In The Middle” swoons with slow-paced reverence, exploring the complex feelings that emerge with the coming of a first child. “All I Need”, set on the last day of work at a manufacturing plant, questions the worth of a life spent working on things that people don’t seem to value, while trying to connect to what really matters. The cycling synth arpeggios of “Spark” create a feeling of propulsion as Falk meditates on the intentions to become his best self. Taken as a whole, these songs point to a lighter, warmer, more connected future than Isolation Blues’ view from the muck.

“I had to turn inwards to refocus on my songwriting, becoming a dad, and getting my mental health back in relative order,” says Falk. “I wanted my relationship with my kid in the first few years to be really grounded. I want him to grow up seeing his dad doing what he loves meaningfully and successfully. If you really value something, I want to show him that you can figure out the path to make it work.”

From his home in Winnipeg, the multi-hyphenate musician has organized festivals, run a studio, and operated a record label, juggling countless roles within the local scene. As a performer, he has toured with acclaimed acts including Les Jupes, The Liptonians, and rapper/CBC host Ismaila Alfa. Yet since becoming a father, Falk has consolidated his lifelong pursuit into a renewed, singular focus: Get back to making music. And lots of it.

DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

littleworlds TRACKLIST
01 Still Slow
02 Tony Called The Muscle
03 The Same Way
04 Nothing Can Change Your Mind
05 All I Need
06 Spark
07 Diamond In The Light
08 Two Solitudes
00 Caught In The Middle
10 Unbelievable

TOUCHING ONLINE
WEBSITE
TWITTER
FACEBOOK
INSTAGRAM