It has been a busy fall for Mint. Lots of bands on the road and lots of music conferences. Next up is our CMJ showcase will be on October 14th at Fat Baby (112 Rivington St - right in the heart of the Lower East Side) and will feature The Pack A.D., Novillero, Vancougar, The Awkward Stage and our newest signing Hot Panda (album out in February).
See you there!
Meet the latest addition to the Mint Records family, Olivia Fetherstonhaugh or, as we like to call her musical alter ego, fanshaw. As a prior member of The Choir Practice and important part of Vancouver's eclectic music community, we think she's going to fit in just nicely. Her Mint debut, Dark Eyes, will arrive in record shops on February 9th 2010.
Always one to support her friends, Olivia recruited fellow Choir singers, Larissa Loyva (Kellarissa, P:ano) and Shane Turner (Love and Mathematics) to play on her record. Visual artist Karin Bubaš (also a Choir member) created fanshaw artwork and took photographs. She also snatched up fellow CiTR Shindig winner, Johnny Payne (Victoria, Victoria, The Shilohs) to play drums.
fanshaw is able to toe the line between accessible and adventurous. Her voice reminds me of Laura Gibson. The warbles and fluctuations challenge you, but the sounds warm you even with only the minimal instrumental backing. The thing that helps her stand out? She can effortlessly switch from intimate quirky vocal delivery to a chanteuse with the vocal power to dominate a song as well. - herohill.com
Our pals in Hot Panda are feeling a little restless. In addition to preparing for Vancouver's always exciting Victory Square Block Party, they are writing new material and packing their bags for their second European tour. Not bad guys, not bad.
Their dates look like this:
Aug 18 - Comet Tavern, Seattle, WA
Sep 04 - Victory Square Block Party, Vancouver, BC
Sep 15 - Guilt and Co, Vancouver, BC
Sep 24 - Reeperbahn Festival, Hamburg, Germany
Sep 26 - Weekender, Innsbruck, Austria
Sep 28 - L'Internationale, Paris, France
Sep 30 - The Brixton Windmill, London, UK
Oct 01 - Labour Club, Northhampton, UK
Oct 02 - The Old Queen's Head, London, UK
Oct 03 - The Bull and Gate, London, UK
Well, it's certainly a first for us here at Team Mint H.Q. to have one of our roster nominated for not one, but TWO Grammy Awards. That's right, our dear friend Neko Case appears twice as a nominee for the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards! In the category of Best Contemporary Folk Album, Neko's brilliant Anti- Recordings release Middle Cyclone goes head to head with the likes of Tracy Chapman, Elvis Costello and Steve Earle, and for Best Recording Package, she's duking it out with David Byrne and Brian Eno and Spinal Tap, among others!
Keep your fingers crossed and your rabbits' feet close to your hearts on January 31, 2010. Let's see Neko bring home the gold (or whatever a Grammy is made of)!! We're proud of you Neko; we knew you had it in ya, even waaaay back.
...or even waaaaaaay back.
It looks like our Geoff Berner is once again Europe bound. This time, he's traveling with his klezmer trio of Wayne Adams and Diona Davies.
Beginning in Bremen, Germany on Oct. 28, and finishing in Aalborg, Denmark on Nov. 27, the trio will hit Germany, England, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden and Denmark, in a circuitous tour that takes them through 5 major festivals and a rash of sweaty club gigs.
This is their 2nd European tour of 2011, already having taken the new album to France, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, and other shows in Germany. Reviews have been terrific for the new disc, which is available on CD, LP and all digital formats, including iTunes.
The trio's live shows are legendary debauches of drunken dancing, and the crowds have been getting ever-larger on each tour. Come on out for the Victory Party!
Dates Include:
Oct 28 - Bremen, Germany at Weserterrassen, Klezmerwochen Festival
Oct 29 - Hildesheim, Germany at Folk n Fusion Festival
Oct 30 - Halle, Germany at Objekt 5
Nov 02 - Croydon, UK at The Green Dragon
Nov 03 - London, UK at Jamboree
Nov 04, 2011 Bridlington, UK at MusicPort Festival
Nov 05 - Bridlington, UK at MusicPort Festival
Nov 06 - Vienna, Austria at Ostklub (Klezmore Festival)
Nov 07 - Kronach, Germany at Struwwelpeter
Nov 08 - Fuerth, Germany at Babylon
Nov 09 - Augsburg, Germany at Ballonfabrik
Nov 10 - Fulda, Germany at Kreuz
Nov 11 - Langenthal, Switzerland at Chramerhuus
Nov 12 - Fribourg, Switzerland at Elvis et Moi
Nov 13 - Schaffhausen, Switzerland at Tap Tab
Nov 14 - Biel, Switzerland at International Lokal
Nov 15 - Kassel, Germany at Schlachthof
Nov 16 - Erfurt, Germany at Stadtgarten
Nov 17 - Hamburg, Germany at Astrastube
Nov 18 - Flensburg, Germany at Volksbad
Nov 19 - Odense, Denmark at Studenterhuset
Nov 22 - Goteborg, Sweden at Mitt Andra Hem (with Blue Eyed Blondes)
Nov 23 - Stockholm, Sweden at Mosebacke (with Peter Murphy)
Nov 25 - Frankfurt on Oder at Trans Vocale Festival
Nov 26 - Copenhagen, Denmark at Huset Magstraede
Nov 27 - Aalborg, Denmark at 1000fryd
"I'd heard other recordings from Berner, but this was the first time I'd been struck so viscerally and so deeply. The songs here make me want to dance. And sometimes they make me want to fight. Often they make me want to do both at exactly the same time." --Rootsworld Magazine
"Like rabbit tracks going through the backyard, Geoff Berner's intellectual path is both mysterious and twinkling. I would call him the perfect Canadian musician in that he spices so much of the soup with history while simultaneously delivering a heck of a tasty bowl." --SEE Magazine Edmonton
Hey y'all, just in time for the gift givey season, Mint has teamed up with our pals at eMusic to offer a free seven-song sampler featuring tracks from The Pack A.D., Kellarissa, the Buttless Chaps, the Awkward Stage, Vancougar, Novillero and Hot Panda! All's you need to do is pop on over to this link and claim your sampler! Of course you need to have an eMusic account to access the download, but that's easy enough!
Time's limited so go get it today!
Holy Smokes! SXSW is less than a month away. If you are also counting down the days to a week of sunshine, bands and BBQ delights do pop by our annual afternoon Hootenanny! There will be tacos, tequila and performances from your favourite Mint and Six Shooter artists.
Our Hootenanny hostess, Carolyn Mark, has a brand new youtube cook show! Episode one with NQ Arbuckle, Justin Rutledge and BBQ secrets can be seen here.
2:15 - Carolyn Mark
2:35 - Amelia Curran
2:55 - Hot Panda
3:15 - Luke Doucet
3:35 - Meilssa McClelland
3:55 - The Pack a.d.
4:20 - Justin Rutledge
4:40 - The Beauties
5:05 - Carolyn Mark
5:25 - Nardwuar with special appearance by Andrew W.K.
Also, Mint Yvette and Mint Shena will be there. They will also be hanging out at these other Mint shows, hunting for late night burritos and crashing cocktail parties. Get ready!
Hot Panda
Thu March 18th - Mint/Sixshooter Hootenanny @ Headhunters, Austin, TX (2:55pm)
Fri March 19th - Jamies Spanish Vila, Austin, TX (10:00pm)
Carolyn Mark
Thu March 18th - Mint/Sixshooter Hootenanny @ Headhunters, Austin, TX (5:05pm)
Fri March 18th - Stephen F's lounge, Austin, TX (12:00am)
Sat March 20th - Riot Act Party @ Liberty Bar, Austin TX time TBA
The Pack a.d.
Thu March 18th - AFM party @ Canada House, Austin, TX (12:30pm)
Thu March 18th - Mint/Sixshooter Hootenanny @ Headhunters, Austin, TX (3:55pm)
Thu March 18th - The Best Damn Day of Duos Ever @ Pie Guy's Pizza, Austin, TX (6:00pm)
Fri March 19th - Buddyhead.com Day party TBA
Fri March 19th - Jamie's Spanish Villa, Austin, TX (12:00am)
Download the brand new mp3 of "Crazy" from The Pack a.d.'s upcoming album we kill computers.
Holy smokes! We've passed the test and are gearing up to celebrate 20 years of Mint Records. Now, this isn't our typical Ridiculously Early Xmas event. This time, we've summoned 13 bands (many which are re-uniting to play for the first time in years!) and will be taking over two rooms at the glorious Waldorf Hotel. Come out! Come out!
Featuring:
- cub tour videos
- Miss Marr (of cub) & Friends
- The Evaporators
- Fanshaw
- The Gay
- Hot Panda
- Kellarissa
- Maow*
- Operation Makeout
- Pluto
- Vancougar
- Volumizer
with friends:
- The Maxines (K Records)
- My Friend Wallis
AND MORE!
November 25th @ The Waldorf Hotel (1489 E Hastings)
Tickets: $12 in advance/$15 at the door
Doors: 8pm (come early for prizes)
The first 50 people to arrive will receive gifts from the good people at: Pocky, Red Cat Records, Zulu Records, Six Cent Press and Black Dog Video.
Partial proceeds go to support Vancouver's Safe Amplification Society.
We'd also like to thank our sponsors, CBC Radio 3, CiTR 101.9FM, Exclaim! and Scion. Maybe they'll donate some prizes too.
Advance tickets are available from: Red Cat Records, Zulu Records, The Waldorf's front desk and online through eventbrite.com
*Maow will feature original members, Corrina Hammond and Tobey Black, with guest drummer Lisa G.
This year’s Mint Records Ridiculously Early Xmas party is over and after an action-packed night and tons of great music, we've managed to raise $1765 for the ALS Society of Canada.
The ALS Society of Canada is committed to supporting research towards a cure for ALS, supporting provincial ALS societies in their provision of quality care for persons living with ALS and building public awareness of ALS and its impact.
Thanks to Bella, Vancougar, the Awkward Stage, Young & Sexy, Hot Panda, The Ramblin' Ambassadors and Novillero for making this event such a success! As always, a special thank-you goes out to our generous prize sponsors, and of course to everyone who came out to the Cambrian Hall to join us!