David Garland is a singer and composer, and is known for his innovative radio shows Spinning On Air and Evening Music on WNYC-FM 93.9 in New York City.
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June 7, 2009—I love to hear Gretchen Phillips sing. She’s usually in Texas, but has a gig in New York City and she’s invited me to share it with her. We’ll each present a set of songs, and perform together, too.
Gretchen Phillips and David Garland: Wed. June 17th (Gretchen at 9pm, David at 10pm, with overlap), at Banjo Jim’s, 700 E 9th St (at Ave C), New York, NY (212) 777-0869; no cover charge. David = the most continually obscure art/rock/noise/folk songwriter on the downtown NY scene; Gretchen = living legend of lesbian song, raconteur, possessor of a magical voice.
Gretchen and I will appear on Jim Allen’s eastvillageradio show For the Sake of the Song at midnight, Monday, June 15th (technically Tuesday, June 16th).
May 10, 2009—In mid-April I was in Scotland to perform in the 6th annual Homegame Festival. The festival takes place in the little fishing village of Anstruther, and features a wide range of adventurous songwriters. I had a great time hearing music and meeting people and playing my songs. You can hear my Spinning On Air show about the festival here. This photo of me (well, of me times 2) performing in Anstruther Town Hall was taken by Al Campbell.
I’m writing and recording new songs for my next album, including writing string quartet arrangements that are played by Osso. One of my new songs, Splinter Heart, will first appear on a benefit compilation organized by Buck and Shanti Curran of Arborea. The compilation, Leaves of Life, will be released on June 23, 2009. All proceeds will to be donated to World Food Program and the Not On Our Watch, agencies which help with important relief operations in places such as Darfur region of Sudan, Uganda, and the Congo. Also on the album are tracks by whole bunch of wonderful musicians: Alela Diane (with Mariee Sioux), Rio en Medio, Fern Knight, Marissa Nadler and Black Hole Infinity, Devendra Banhart, Arborea, Micah Blue Smaldone, Larkin Grimm, Mi and Lau, Mica Jones, Starless and Bible Black, Cursillistas, Silver Summit, Big Blood, Eric Carbonara, Magic Leaves, Citay, and Ora Cogan. The digital version of the cd will also include some bonus tracks—music by Plains, Jozef Van Wissem, Denise Dill, and Laurent Brondel.
I’ve updated my Radio page to include info about my Ear to Ear interviews, my Evening Music Blog, and the April 30th Evening Music event in WNYC’s new storefront studio/venue, The Greene Space.
March 15, 2009—Prelude and Diorama, directed, filmed, and edited by Amber Benson and Adam Busch
Connie Converse Walking In the Dark, a special edition of my WNYC radio show Spinning On Air, airs Sunday, March 15, 7 to 8 pm on WNYC FM 93.9 and wnyc.org. You can also listen at your convenience by downloading the hour-long show for free at wnyc.org. I’ve loved the music of Connie Converse since I first heard it five years ago, and with this radio show I hope to help make people aware of Connie’s wonderful songs and fascinating story.
David Garland with Luminous Playhouse, sharing the bill with Joe McGinty's Circuit Parade—Friday, March 20, 2009, at Monkey Town, 58 N 3rd St (btw. Kent & Wythe), Williamsburg, Brooklyn 11211. Showtime is 7:30. Reservations are recommended: 718.384.1369. Note that Monkey Town serves great food, so come hungry and enjoy!
I'm excited to be performing again at this unusual Brooklyn venue, where the audience is surrounded by four large projection screens. I'll be singing my songs with images from Anne Garland’s Luminous Playhouse. I’ll accompany myself on 12-string guitar, with interludes of clarinet and flute, and a one-man trio for voice, shruti box, and flexible funnel. (See below for photos of our October performance at Monkey Town.)
It’ll be a double bill with Circuit Parade, a new quartet formed by Joe McGinty, who leads the Losers Lounge series of tribute concerts. Circuit Parade is a collective exploration of pop songwriting and arrangements, fused with improvisation and experimental electronics. Circuit Parade features McGinty (vocals and keyboards), Mike McGinnis (woodwinds), Sarah Schoenbeck (bassoon) and Leon Dewan (Dewanatron). Circuit Parade will debut a new video from their forthcoming CD, and will feature visuals by the legendary Ken Brown. Also, interesting composer and guitarist Alexander Turnquist will perform a 10:30 set that night at Monkey Town, so consider making a night of it.
February 4, 2009—Diorama video premiers today on Coilhouse!
November 2, 2008—On Tuesday, October 28 we had a special collaborative performance at Monkey Town in Brooklyn. I performed with the gorgeous visual accompaniment of Luminous Playhouse, the photo project by my wife Anne Garland. We premiered a short film for my song “Diorama” directed, shot, and edited by Amber Benson and Adam Busch, who were there, along with Adam’s band Common Rotation. They joined me for my songs Every Bird and Obama Nation (which you can download here for free, or listen on MySpace). And I joined them on clarinet, flute, and backing vocals for a few of their songs while they showed slides of their mid-winter trip to Alaska. My son Kenji Garland provided wild video processing for two songs. We had a great time. Here are pics and more info …
