CLAIRECORDS NEWSLETTER DECEMBER '06/JANUARY '07 Welcome to the 26th edition of the Clairecords newsletter. Happy (belated) Nondenominational Retail Product Day! We at Clairecords are simply ecstatic to report that, to better serve our mates over on the other side of the pond, we have made the majority of our catalog available for purchase on www.northernstarrecords.co.uk . While our bevy of musics has been and will continue to be available on iTunes, we thought this would be a more convenient option for our legions of fans in the U.K. You can thank us later. CLAIRE'S ECHO The next 12-inch issuances from our vinyl-only sister imprint are headed straight to your postal box next month courtesy of Sway and Destroyalldreamers’. Upcoming releases will feature Mahogany, The Voices and The Tangles, so set those turntables to stun! http://www.clairecords.com/clairesecho/home.html SCIFLYER Calling all inhabitants of interplanetary craft! Progress continues on Sciflyer's next studio album, now emerging in a clandestine location under the title They Only Believe in the Moon. Plans are also underway for a road trip through the western U.S. in June. Keep your eyes peeled for dates! http://www.sciflyer.net THE BROTHER KITE In case you missed The Brother Kite's reverb-ridden rampage across the freezing Midwest (which you really shouldn't have), here's some highlights courtesy of Jon Downs: "Opened for Dirty on Purpose and Shade in Pittsburgh. Allowed the audience to select our last tune. They decided against our cover of the Wings tune 'Jet.' Played the Nite Owl in Dayton. Saw some drunken fights in the street, and regretted eating at Arby's. Headlined a semi-sloppy show at The Note, put up with relentless rain and snow, and saw Pan's Labyrinth and the Sears Tower. Plowed through a snow storm as we traveled to Detroit. Arrived there to find the entire city covered in ice. Performed to only a handful of fans...some of which traveled over two hours for the show. Arrived in Indianapolis to find the hotel that the club suggested had been demolished. Played at the Melody Inn, and argued with Colts fans about the upcoming Pats/Colts game. They were right. Pleasantly surprised by the Lime Spider. Played with a great NYC band called Gracer, and watched some bizarre psychedelic Neil Young movie without sound. After the show, Mark and Matt tried out the mechanical bull at the bar down the street. Two giant bruises later, they decided to stick to rock and roll. Played at a hookah lounge near Penn State. Free hookahs and tea for the band. Played at Sin-e with the greatest band ever, Frightened Rabbit. Sold more merch than ever, and enjoyed seeing people sing along to the new tunes. " http://www.thebrotherkite.com *** ALL YOUR PRESS IS BELONG TO US *** THE BROTHER KITE "If there's ever going to be a 21st century Beach Boys, here's our best shot. Full of sunny, robust choruses that fly in from 100 miles away, 'Waiting' is the headphone album of the year." –- Chad Swiatecki, The Flint Journal *** CLAIRECORDS ON THE ROAD AGAIN*** AIR FORMATION 02/07/07 London, UK- Resonance 104.4 FM radio session 02/07/07 London, UK - The Buffalo Bar 02/15/07 Brighton, UK- The Engine Rooms 02/17/07 London, UK - Univ. of London Union w/ The Wrens 02/20/07 London, UK - The Luminaire w/ Malory 02/25/07 Brighton, UK- The Hope MALORY 02/13/07 Hamburg, DE- Astra-Stube 02/14/07 Frankfurt, DE- Das Bett 02/16/07 Erfurt, DE- Museumskeller 02/18/07 Bristol, UK- Joe Public's 02/20/07 London, UK- Luminaire w/ Air Formation 02/22/07 München, DE- Prager Fruhling 02/24/07 Regensburg, DE- Leerer Beutel SCIFLYER 02/07/07 San Francisco, CA- Madrone Lounge 07/05/07 Roswell, NM- UFO Festival THE BROTHER KITE 02/10/07 Durham, NH- Gables Community Center (UNH) THE TANGLES 02/04/07 Sacramento CA- Fools Foundation w/ Wet Confetti HEY, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING? (A peek into the inner sanctums of your favorite Clairecords stars!) Steve Kennedy (SCIFLYER)'s Top 10 Things that Rocked in 2006: 1. 2006 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (hers) 2. '99' Jeep Wrangler YJ (his) 3. Vox AC-30 Custom Classic 4. Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man 5. LSD & The Search For God 6. Expressions recording school 7. Zzyzx 8. Mercey Hot Springs 9. "Publish My Love" by Rogue Wave 10. cannabis indica - still in the top 10 after all these years! Susan Moll (CLAIRECORDS INTERNATIONAL WOMAN OF MYSTERY)'s most favoritest relics of the year prior: 1. Jesse Sykes & the Sweet Hereafter, Midlake, Lisa Germano and Great Lake Swimmers at SXSW, plus our showcase --and the fried chicken 'n' mojitos-- at Habana Calle 6 2. Our SXSW day party at End of an Ear, except for the miscreant (s) who bogarted all my cider (Incidentally, there will be absolutely NO getting away with that. I know who you are and where you live, so don't even think it!) 3. The Brother Kite- Waiting for the Time to be Right. And, more importantly, the fact that we put it out and no one else did! 4. The Byrds- There Is a Season (box set) 5. Nip/Tuck 6. Mark Kozelek at Harlow's (Sacramento) 7. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti- House Arrest 8. Cat Power- The Greatest 9. Wonder Showzen 10. Election Night The best of 2006, handpicked just for you by THE BROTHER KITE: CDs: Tom Waits - Orphans Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope Band Of Horses - Everything All The Time Yo La Tengo - I Am Not Afraid Of You... Grizzly Bear - Yellow House Flaming Lips - At War With The Mystics Camera Obscura - Let's Get Out Of This Country Films: The Departed Science Of Sleep Rocky Balboa Little Miss Sunshine Borat Stranger Than Fiction V For Vendetta The Descent Performances: Animal Collective (SXSW 2006) Flaming Lips (Boston, MA) Midlake (SXSW 2006) Mount Eerie (Providence, RI) Tom Waits (New York City, NY) Echo And The Bunnymen (Boston, MA) ___________________________________________ Clairecords * Purveyors of Quality Noise http://www.clairecords.com http://www.myspace.com/clairecords