Thanks to everyone who came out to the show at Mt. Saint Mary’s College last night in Newburgh, NY. The SGA staff and crew were great hosts—there were cookies, t-shirts, and BAKED CHEETOS!!
It was a pleasure to share the bill with the very energetic Steve Marshall, a surprise set by the comedy duo Ben & Josh, and the headliner Jessimae Peluso, who all had great sets and were loved by the crowd.
It was especially nice to be back at The Mount because I performed there a couple of years ago and they brought me back for more. It’s always nice to be remembered.
Everyone takes the occasion of April 1 to spout lies, fabricated stories, and half-witted hoaxes, but I’ve decided to use April 1st as a day to re-invent myself Continue reading
Thanks to all that came to the big Record Recall Party at Union Hall, the show was a ton of fun and thankfully there were no injuries! Continue reading
I’m always excited—and a little nervous—when I get a new iTunes review, but lately things are getting just plain weird. People seem to be liking the album but they’re also reporting some side effects that are… unexpected.
The first reviewer seems to be having seizures whenever he hears the intro to “Tech Support for Mom and Dad” another person kept getting cuts on his/her hand from the packaging.
And another reviewer experienced something really disturbing:
I’ve been a fan of Rob’s since BEFORE the Pachelbel rant (he played my school. He is awesome Iive!) and this new album really delivers. So rare to have good original music that actually rocks. The only bad thing I can say about it is that it kills birds.
I wish that last part wasn’t true but OMG birds die when they hear this album. There must be some sort of ultrasonic stuff happening in the mix? IDK but at first I thought it was a coincidence because I live it1 suburbia and hey ~ sometimes you find a dead bird. Maybe a cat brought it~ right?
But no. Once I started listening regularly it started happening more and more. A coupIe of times I hear like a THUD and it’s a sparrow actually hitting the window of the room I’m Iistening in. Also happened on my windshield. Mostly sparrows, but, Iike, songbirds too. It’s gotten to the point where if I want to listen to KYJHS I do it with headphones onIy because otherwise I feel like a murderer.
Anyway, great stuff, “Applewood” and “I Poop Gold” are completely lol funny. But headphones are HIGHLY recommended.
I’m going to be looking into this some more, and hopefully I can find an entertainment lawyer who has some experience in product liability should the need arise.
If you’ve had any issues with the new album let me know, either here or on iTunes, and I’ll get my case workers on it.
On the upside, despite the problems I’m getting a fair amount of 5-star reviews so, a cautious “yeah!”?
Last month’s B.O.R.E.D. Tour at Flappers Comedy Club was a ton of fun, and the extra days spent in beautiful Southern California were filled with typical Californian activities like going to the beach, appearing on internet radio, and watching the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup at a bar filled with rabid Chicagoans.
Thanks to all who made the West Coast swing a great one. Stay cool and Keep Your Jazz Hand Strong!
The BORED Tour shows are always great. In the past through them I’ve met and/or performed with Dr. Demento, Barnes & Barnes (Fish Heads!), Henry Phillips and so many more I can’t even mention them all. This SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY is BORED 2013 and it will be another killer lineup.
If you’re not in the L.A. or Burbank area but have friends who are, pass the show info along to them and they’ll love you forever for telling them about a show they’ll be telling their grandchildren about.
Get advance tickets here and come to see a great show!
Yesterday I got the last batch of kickstarter packages sent off to the folks that opted for physical CDs and I’d like to give one last hearty “thank you” to everyone who participated in funding the project. The support was wide-ranging and I sent CDs to over 80 people in 11 countries!
The exclisive, numbered and signed copiesd
The CDs were hand-numbered and signed, and the numbers ranged from 1 to 82. CD #1 went to my good friend Alan Rovner, and I’m sure it’s only a matter of time until the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame tries to track him down to get their hands on it.
Stamped and ready to go
There were many bubble mailers involved, and for a couple of days my apartment looked like an office supply store exploded, but by Friday morning the domestic packages went out and yesterday the international packages—going to destinations from Australia to Finland—had their turn, after some unfortunate sticker shock at the Post Office…
Apparently since the last time I mailed a CD internationally (last fall) the US Post Office changed the designation of bubble mailers from “large envelope” to “package” thus raising the price for mailing a 3-ounce CD envelope from $3.75 to $9.45, a 250% increase. So all of the time I spent weighing the packages and buying postage ahead of time was pretty much wasted. Such is the price of international rock stardom.
One other unexpected challenge led me to give up on trying to include a polaroid of me signing the first 10 CDs. I tried a couple of shots and they ended up looking like there was some sort of creepy hostage situation going on, which wouldn’t have been fun for anyone, so I swapped in the lovely 4-color stickers with the cover art, which I think you’ll agree are much more pleasing to the eye.
Creepy Hostage Situationcover art sticker, much less creepy
And now that the wonderfully generous kickstarter supporters have gotten their CDs, it’s everyone else’s turn! Keep Your Jazz Hand Strong will be available Tuesday, June 4 on CDBaby.com, Amazon and more!
The discs have officially been delivered to the RobPRocks warehouse facility (the basement of our undisclosed Midwestern complex) and they are being readied for shipment to our distribution partners. That means on (or before depending on iTunes) June 4, 2013, you’ll be able to get your jazz hands on Keep Your Jazz Hand Strong!
We’re also putting the finishing touches on the video for the first single, which should be posted early next week!
For all of my wonderful kickstarter supporters, the download codes for the digital versions of the rewards will be emailed early this week and the physical merch (the CDs, DVDs and more) will be shipped this week and early next.
As soon as the links are live we’ll post them here and on the new official site for the album, KeepYourJazzHandStrong.com.
Is this going to be the best summer ever? I simply don’t see how it won’t be!
I can hardly express in words how excited I am about the cover for the new album BECAUSE IT ROCKS SO COMPLETELY!!
I was lucky enough to be able to secure the services of Stephen Gardner, a friend and an amazing artist and illustrator. Stephen recently launched a new website showcasing his work, and if you’re a comedy fan you may have seen his cover for Christian Finnegan‘s Au Contraire DVD.
I told Stephen I wanted to go for a 1970s movie poster kind of feel, in keeping with the streetwise theme of the title (and title track), and I think he did an amazing job making it a reality. When I first saw the finished product I was so thrilled it inspired me to work even harder on making this new album the best I can. If people judge a record by its cover I’m in luck!
I hope you like it as much as I do and I’m excited for you all to hear the music soon.
Thanks for your support and interest in the project, and remember, keep your jazz hand strong!
As you might have guessed, my scheduled gig at the Way Station on Monday the 29th was canceled due to the storm that hit the East Coast. Oddly enough, since my neighborhood wasn’t hard hit, the Way Station, which is only about 4 blocks from my apartment, was open last night; and since the scheduled band was unable to travel due to public transit outages they invited me to perform.
I got there around 8pm and it was packed with people who wanted to get out of their apartments but couldn’t go that far. It turned out to be a nice, momentary escape from the sense of immobility of the storm’s aftermath.
I know our thoughts are with those who have been more adversely affected by the storm, let’s send them some money too. Red Cross website.
This past Monday I had the pleasure of singing with The Titanics, a 9-piece band that plays once a month at the Ace Hotel in the Big Band Hot 100 show. Each singer picks a song from the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the Titanics put together a great full-band arrangement, and the show blasts out two sets of awesomeness.
Singing a swingin' arrangement of "Gold on the Ceiling" by the Black Keys
For my tune I chose Gold on the Ceiling by the Black Keys and the Titanics put together a great, swingin’ jazzy arrangement (hence my blazer and “prop” scotch). I had a ton of fun singing with the band and listening to other great singers and performers doing their songs with the group, including Ann Enzminger from A Brief View of the Hudson, Jen Kwok, Chemda from Keith and the Girl, and so many more.
The Big Band Hot 100 show takes place every month at the Ace Hotel, it’s a total blast and it’s only $10 (that’s less than $0.50 per performer!). Check out their site and go see that show!
I’m really excited to be doing another full-hour set right in my neighborhood at The Way Station on July 16! I’m also extra excited that my good friends from Chicago, Rivals of the PeacemakerContinue reading
