THIS FRI. DEC 19 @ OFF BROADWAY - A BLUE RIBBON XMAS w/GAH, The Hibernauts, Target Market, & Cold Bear Scout

This Friday, you're invited to...

A BLUE RIBBON CHRISTMAS
December 19 at Off Broadway
3511 Lemp Ave, St Louis, MO 63118
Doors at 8:00 | Show starts at 9:00 | $8



Featuring...
Gentleman Auction House
The Hibernauts
Target Market
Cold Bear Scout

Sponsored by...
KDHX
PABST
VINTAGE VINYL

GENTLEMAN AUCTION HOUSE


"Gentleman Auction House put out one of the great records of 2008 with their debut full length, Alphabet Graveyard, and as if that wasn’t enough, they have also put together the excellent 6 song Christmas In Love EP for your Holiday enjoyment. If you like ["On The Rooftop"], you’ll definitely want to pick it up, the rest of it is just as good. The pefect stocking stuffer."
-Tom @ bagofsongs.com

"The mode might be indie rock, but the mood is pure Christmas. This six-song pop romance buzzes with hope and loss, ends and beginnings, and all that good wintry stuff… These St. Louis-based newcomers have created a stellar Christmas classic..."
-Linda Laban, Rock 'n' Roll Examiner

RIYL: The Starlight Mints, Beck, The Polyphonic Spree, Modest Mouse, The Rentals, The New Pornographers

THE HIBERNAUTS


"They do have a typical pop thing going on but add their own touch to the din of swirling, swooning guitar licks, trippy hooks, and lyrical effervescence… The whole album has a smooth continuity with each tune being the piece of a well-constructed puzzle."
-Kent Manthie, Amplifier Magazine

"The Hibernauts play a strong, stripped-down style of indie rock that comes forth into pop glory...Their superior musicianship and arrangement skills here are why the band ultimately succeeds. Each of the tracks here could conceivably be a single."
-Neufutur Magazine

RIYL: White Rabbits, The Features, The Strokes, The Killers, The Deathray Davies

TARGET MARKET

"This band has the aesthetic and the melodies, all wrapped up in a package of straight-up fun. Well, maybe 'fun' isn't the right word; this band has some darkness to their music, too. This one isn't long, but it's durable… Three hours later from now, [it] will still be stuck in your head."
- Music For Robots

"…Spring-loaded, danceable rhythms and howling vocals… Think the corrugated riffs promulgated by J. Robbins in his various bands, or the atmospheric, experimental angles found on ...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead's recent albums. "
-Riverfront Times

RIYL: Thunderbirds Are Now!, Enon, We Versus The Shark, So Many Dynamos

COLD BEAR SCOUT

"Cold Bear Scout is the solo project of a damaged man named Steven Colbert (pronounced "Coal-burt")... He asked me to make his EP... It was one of the most fun records I've made so far because there were absolutely no rules the entire time."
-Ryan Wasoba, Bird Cloud Recording

RIYL: Sunset Rubdown, Handsome Furs, Frog Eyes, Swan Lake

Stuff a stocking with "Christmas In Love"!

Little Elves and Big Elves -

On November 18th of this year, our beloved record label, Emergency Umbrella, will release our third record of 2008: Christmas In Love

Obviously we are crazy lucky to have a record label that will let us release an EP, our first full-length, and a Christmas record, all in one year (collect them all!), but more than anything, we're just happy that we got to check this project off of our Wish List.

Since Eric had recorded a few Christmas song demos over the last couple of years, and the holiday "concept" had popped up in an album song or two, a Christmas EP seemed like an inevitability.

Eric spent the better part of two weeks holed up in his basement studio with the AC cranked down to a wintry 35˚F, a fire burning in an old Crate cabinet, and a gallon of hot cocoa bubbling over the edges of his Grandma's old CrockPot. His only human contact was Steve hanging around to make sure he was keeping up with his personal hygiene, and to help rewrite all the not-quite-Christmasy-enough parts (read: sucky parts) [Ed. note: (read: drunkenly fumble with sleighbells)]. Kiley also stopped by to record all the piano parts that actually required being good at playing piano.

By the time the EP was done what rose from the cold was a cover, a re-recorded old song, a re-arranged old song, a re-written old song, an entirely new song, and an intro for good measure. Exhausted? You betcha!

So, the GAH & Emergency Umbrella present... Christmas In Love... available in stores on Nov. 18th.

1. A Banner Year
2. On The Rooftop
3. Home For The Holidays
4. Here Comes Santa Claus
5. Don't Want Another Christmas (Like Last Christmas)
6. Christmas In Love

You can preorder a copy for yourself (and all your friends - stocking stuffers!) right now at Insound.com or Amazon.com, OR you can come out to any of our shows between now and the 18th and buy a copy straight from us. Cut out the middleman! After the 18th it will be available at stores around town, at our shows, and at numerous online retailers. Bingo!

Speaking of shows, 'Here We Go A-Tourin''...

11/7 - Champaign-Urbana, IL @ Courtyard Cafe w/Headlights
11/8 - Richmond, IN @ Earlham College w/ Wax Fang, Birdnames
11/14 - Columbia, MO @ Mojo's for The Bluebird Music & Arts Fest w/ Bald Eagle, Elsinore, more
11/15 - St. Louis, MO @ The Billiken Club w/ Bound Stems, Yea Big + Kid Static
11/29 - St. Louis, MO @ 3rd Deg. Glass Factory for the Rock 'N Roll Craft Show
12/3 - Columbia, MO @ Mojo's w/TBA
12/4 - Springfield, MO @ TBA w/ Sweetwater Abilene & TBA
12/5 - Tulsa, OK @ TBA w/ El Paso Hot Button
12/6 - Stillwater, OK @ Eskimo Joe's w/Mayola & El Paso Hot Button
12/7 - Oklahoma City, OK @ TBA w/ El Paso Hot Button
12/8 - Dallas, TX @ Good Records - FREE In Store Performance
12/8 - Dallas, TX @ Club Dada w/ Cocky Americans
12/9 - Austin, TX @ Lambert's w/ The Lemurs, The Ovenbirds
12/10 - Houston, TX @ Rudyard's w/ Motion Turns It On, Spain Colored Orange
12/11 - TBA - Help!
12/12 - TBA - Help!
12/13 - TBA - Help!
12/19 - St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway w/ The Hibernauts, Target Market, Cold Bear Sc0ut

Thanks for helping us spread that holiday cheer around like frosting on a sugar cookie. We love Christmas, and we love you all.

Cheers,
GAH

VOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTEEEE!!!!!!

(please)

Givin' the GAH a good WOXY-clean scrubbin'!

Greetings, mates!

We're back from a short October jaunt to NYC and back. On the way up we sneaked into Cincinnati, OH and stopped by popular internet-radio station WOXY.com to chat with Shiv and record live-off-the-floor versions of some Alphabet Graveyard tunes. Everyone at the station was super-nice and, to reciprocate, we tried our best to tidy up after ourselves. We also celebrated a shared love of Grampall Jookabox's videogame for his new song, The Girl Ain't Preggers. Our set list from the show:

You And Me, Madly...
Call It Casual
- interview -
I Sleep In A Bed Of Scissor Arms
The Book Of Matches
We Used To Dream About Bridges

To download the mp3 of errythang and check out some in-studio pictures head here:














Gentleman Auction House at WOXY

Stay tuned!!!!!!

RIP: Cannonballs & Catapults Tour

We just got back from a fun-filled tour with our new BFF's, Yea Big + Kid Static. Thanks to everyone who came out to the shows, it was fun!


Stay tuned for info on our upcoming East Coast October trip, and another special GAH release before the end of the year!

Cheers,
GAH

"The Book of Matches" Music Video

Our video for "The Book of Matches" premiered at thetripwire.com yesterday, but if you missed it (even though it's still there), here it is in all of its glory...



Thanks to everyone that helped out and donated their weekend - I hope it was worth it!

Cheers,
Steve | GAH

GAH on Daytrotter.com

The radboys over at Daytrotter.com posted our feature article today, along with four live in-studio tracks that we recorded while we were on tour a couple months ago. The article is a dreamy read, and Eric even explains some lyrics! Lookout!

Cheers,
Steve | GAH

"Alphabet Graveyard" CD RELEASE SHOW - Sat. July 5th @ The Bluebird w/The Hibernauts, Colourmusic, Jumbling Towers

Hey everybody,

The Gentleman Auction House debut full-length, Alphabet Graveyard, is finally coming out on July 22nd, and to celebrate, we're having a CD Release Party at The Bluebird tomorrow, Saturday, July 5th. Helping us celebrate are our good friends The Hibernauts, Colourmusic, and Jumbling Towers, and hopefully you, too!




Alphabet Graveyard was recorded at Silver Sonya Studios in Washington, D.C. last October, and after a few release-date push-backs, it's finally coming out. BUT, if you come to the show, not only can you get your hands on the record two and a half weeks early, it will also be $2 cheaper than it will be in stores. That's half a gallon of gas, right?

We've been touring all summer, playing the new songs from the record, but we're thrilled to be able to finally let everyone hear the recordings, and to play in front of a hometown crowd again. If you've been reading the blog here, you've got a pretty good idea of how the touring's been going, but if you want a few more details, head over to Annie Zaleski's blog at the Riverfront Times website. While you're there, check out the article she wrote about the new record. If you haven't been out to see us in awhile, or ever, this will be a great show to see. The Hibernauts are playing new songs, Colourmusic is shopping a new CD on their way back to Oklahoma, and Jumbling Towers just released a new EP, free for download on their website. Make sure to get there early so you don't miss a note!

Doors @ 8 | Show @ 9 | $8
6709 Olive, St. Louis, MO

Hope to see everyone there!

Love,
GAH

Bloghorn Leghorn

JUNE 21ST | Mike N’ Molly’s w/ Sangamon, Curb Service, Todd Kessler | Champaign, IL

We did the ol’ rise and shine and took a trip down the road to our Dekalb favorite, the Hillside Café. With full bellies and a full tank of gas, we set out for our home-away-from-home, Champaign, IL.

After the short trip to CU, we bummed around our favorite establishments before making our way over to Mike N’ Molly’s, where we had only been once before – to see Jumbling Towers play.



We met the guys in Sangamon outside the gate of the outdoor patio, where we would be playing in a few hours. We loaded our gear to the side of the stage and enjoyed the beautiful weather while Sangamon set up and soundchecked.



The patio filled up quickly as the night went on, and the bands seemed to enjoy playing to the abundant yet attentive show-goers. Larry Gates (formerly of Lorenzo Goetz) put on an especially entertaining show with his one-man-band project, Curb Service, which brought to mind early Beck and Soul Coughing.

The audience was exuberantly receptive to our set, as every song garnered loud applause, and many audience members expressed their excitement after the show. Thanks Champaign, you consistently treat us so well.

Throughout the night, Stephen had been perfecting a sunglasses-wearing, hair-backslicking (coined?), sleazeball character that constantly offered to order people drinks. After we loaded up our gear, he unloaded the poses…



Afterwards we shacked up with our favorite newlyweds, Ryan and Jody. You guys rule.

Cheers,
Steve | GAH

Wade Bloggs

JUNE 20TH | The House Café w/ Joie De Vivre, Dragonfire Parade, You | Dekalb, IL

We made good time on the drive to Dekalb, so we had a little time to relax and hang out when we got there.


We had been to the House Café before, when we stayed in Dekalb back in March, but this was our first time playing the venue.





Since there were four bands playing, real estate for gear was limited, so we used the kitchen.



The drums got set up in the server station.




After the show, we headed back to our friend (and booking agent) Bojan’s house, where we got to meet his new dog, Ines, who was sporting the cutest/most hilarious cast on her leg.


We hung out and played some "Pain" on PS3 for a bit, before calling it quits and giving in to our fatigue.

And from "Pain"...

Seven Things That Represent The Members Of Our Band:


Plaid O' The Day®:


Cheers,
Steve | GAH

Bloggy Bottom Boys

JUNE 19TH | High Five w/ Ruvane | Columbus, OH

After we caught up on sleep, we emerged from Ahmed's house and headed down by the OSU campus.




We hit up a cool little restaurant called The Blue Danube (aka The Dube), where a few of us really enjoyed the "Cobb" sandwich. Highly recommended. Then we headed over to a great record shop called Used Kids, where I think all of us bought at least something.

On the way to the record shop, I noticed a sandwich board advertising some falafel. Now, I love me some falafel (and I think I've eaten it at least five times so far this month), but this looked like a horror movie about falafel...


Kiley, Mike and I headed over to Shi Sha Lounge (Columbus's first hookah lounge & espresso bar!) to drink some iced chai (delicious) and use the wifi. The rest of the boys headed down the street to the local pub to shoot some pool. Hours later, it was time to get to the club for load-in. On the way there, we were driving beside this lady. We would get to a red light, and a few moments later, she would start to go - as if she was going to run the light - and then stop sharply. This happened at a few different stoplights. Maybe whoever she was talking to on her phone kept saying "Green light" or "You can go!" just to mess with her. Or, it was her Jaguar acting up...


The show was at a venue called The High Five, a pretty snazzy venue that actually had big floor-to-ceiling windows along the front of the room (a nice change of pace compared to the standard: no windows).







The show was sparsely attended, but still a lot of fun. You can read about our set over at Don't Just Do Something, Stand There.

Afterwards we followed my friend's brother-in-law Mike (who we stayed with on our last trip to Columbus - thanks Mike & Elise!) over to his new house, where we were welcomed by their two dogs, and then called it a night due to exhaustion and a long drive the next day.

Seven Things That Represent The Members Of Our Band:


The Plaid O' The Day®:


Cheers,
Steve | GAH

Highly Il-Blogical, Captain

Ewww, two Star Trek title references? Really?

JUNE 18TH | Day Off | Drive from Philadelphia, PA to Columbus, OH

We awoke and got chased out of the HoJo by the housekeeping staff – they wanted to clean! We headed over to Franklin Trailers to pick up our trailer.


Though it cost us a pretty penny, the guys at Franklin really did a number on our battered box trailer. They fixed us up with a new axle…


A new fender (we only had one, on the other side)…


New wheel hubs and lug bolts on both wheels…


New leafsprings and ubolts…


A new lock for the latch on the back…


And they welded on entirely new beams for the front of the hitch. Essentially the only thing that isn’t new is the box itself – everything else, with the exception of wheels themselves, is brand new. Thanks Franklin Trailers!

So, we hit the road, headed to Columbus for our show the following night. Somewhere in Ohio, we stopped at a gas station where the attendants feed the local raccoon population and have been doing so for a little while. Apparently it keeps them out of the garbage.


This was a great opportunity for…

Seven Things That Represent The Members Of Our Band:


And, The Plaid O’ The Day®:


We rolled into Columbus at 2:30am, welcomed by Ahmed from Sinkane, our Emergency Umbrella labelmate and host for the night. Moments later we were all asleep, and some of us were snoring.

Cheers,
Steve | GAH

"I'll Never Forgive Myself If We Don't Go All The Way Tonight"

So while I formulate some bloggage for the last couple days of the tour, I felt compelled to break up all the GAH-centric content with a little bit of universally mind-blowing video.

My coworker Bobby and I stumbled onto something today that shook us both to the core. Bobby had sent his friend a video of Celine Dion covering ACDC (which is pretty hard to watch, by the way), and she had replied telling him about another Celine Dion video that she had just happened to watch earlier that day - the video for "It's All Coming Back To Me Now" - which, she noted, reminded her of "the video where Meat Loaf looks like a Klingon". This would, of course, be the video for "I Would Do Anything For Love".

So we loaded up both videos on You Tube, and just out of sheer curiosity, we decided to play them simultaneously, with the Celine song muted. Whoa. We then watched them again, this time with Meat Loaf muted. Whoa again. We also managed to track down a version of the video with a running length of 7:39, (only two seconds longer than Meat Loaf's video), but we think there might actually be more crazy coinciding moments with the 6:00 version. I'm still posting the long version, though, for those of you who want to see them end at the same time.

Enjoy! I'd recommend muting Celine and listening to Meat Loaf for the full "whoa" factor. Also, notice the sweet Mark Wahlberg cameo in the police getup.

Meat Loaf

Celine

Celine's long version:


Now, I'm sure you're busy gathering all your brains that are inevitably strewn around your computer, but wait just a second, because it's about to get messier.

Check this shizz out.

Now feel free to mop up.

Cheers,
Steve | GAH

[EDIT: After a little research, I found out a couple things: 1. Though the two videos were done by different directors, both songs were actually written by Meat Loaf collaborator Jim Steinman. In fact, "It's All Coming Back To Me Now" was originally supposed to be on Bat Out Of Hell II, but was left off in favor of "Anything For Love" with the intention of including it on BOOH III, which was released in 2006 - when the song got the Meat Loaf video redux. 2. In an even more bizarre twist, check out the random similarities (i.e. a huge house with arched doorways and windows, moonlight shining in through billowing white silk curtains, candles everywhere, etc.) in the video for "Total Eclipse Of The Heart", which also happens to be a Steinman penned song. I wonder what his house looks like...]

Ain't Too Proud To Blog

JUNE 17TH | M-Room w/ Seymore Saves The World, The Weather Underground, Padre Pio | Philadelphia, PA

We arrived in Philadelphia after an overnight drive from Boston, looking for somewhere to get some breakfast and take an early morning nap, but when we parked the van, we noticed something that kinda made us lose our appetites…




[NOTE: I’ll try to explain this as best I can without really knowing that much about it…] The bearings in the wheel hub had apparently stopped spinning, fused, and melted until the collar that they normally sit inside had fallen out altogether. At that point the wheel was just spinning loose on the axle, grinding away at all the working parts.

We decided to jack the trailer up to take the weight off of the wheel so we could determine how bad it was. Once it was elevated, we could literally pull the wheel right off the axle. Somehow by the grace of God it hadn’t fallen off on the highway, which would have been awful.

Mike, Stephen, and Ryan walked down the street to the Gulf service station, where the nice guys there helped us find the closest place to have the trailer serviced.


We found a place 30 miles away in Jersey that could repair the trailer in 24 hrs., but we needed to get it there, and there was no way we could risk pulling it in the condition it was in. So, we had to resort to our second tow of the tour…




With our trailer in someone else’s hands, and load-in still hours away, we had the day to kill. Priority: Cheesesteaks. Red Face Robot tagged along.



Afterwards we went second-hand shopping…



And then got some gelato…







It was a nice day to sit outside and enjoy the weather...





Finally it came time to head to the M-Room for load-in.



I especially liked the way they painted the hand dryers in the bathroom the same color as the walls. Nice.


Somehow Stephen still had plenty of energy. I was delirious. Oh, to be young again…


Over the last few shows I’ve found myself getting more and more into taking photos of the other bands. I’ve always been into photography, but of the mind that the world needs another photographer like it needs another world war, so I keep it strictly hobbyish. Anyway, I’ve been having fun with Kiley’s little point-and-click, and on this night in particular, I kind of got carried away…

Padre Pio






The Weather Underground







Seymore Saves The World (with Shawn, the bassist! Back from the Carson taping with Cloud Cult!)











Since we didn’t really know anyone in Philly, we hopped over the river to a Howard Johnson to stay the night, since it was closer to the trailer repair place. Stephen was finally tired, but still dedicated to his text conversations.


The Plaid O’ The Day®:


Seven Things That Represent The Members Of Our Band:


Cheers,
Steve | GAH