Tag: Cotton Mather

SXSW 2017 OFFICIAL ROSTER SHOWCASE AND PARTY

SXSW 2017

Welcome back to Austin for SXSW 2017!! We are excited to show off how we can shine your brand anywhere you like with lasers, ride your VIP’s on one of the Bike Zoo’s Giant one-of-a-kind Animals or Fly your brand 100 feet in the air with aerial balloons! A lot of event planners can brag about creating from the ground up but at RajiWorld we can even offer you world-class, beautiful and professional mermaids to start the party underground, not to mention our taste in music!!!

Date: Thursday, March 16
Venue: Palm Door on Sabine (401 Sabine St.)
Lineup: The Place 1:00 AM, Cotton Mather 12:00 AM, Misimplicity 11:00 AM, Billy Harvey 10:00 AM, Akina Adderley & The Vintage Playboys 9:00 AM, EMQ 8:00 AM with set change harp by Analee Cantu, magic in the trees and on the building with Laser Spectacles, rides and photos with the one and only Bike Zoo and landlocked play with the Sirenalia Mermaids!!

We will have complimentary temporary Manifestation tattoos from our sponsor Conscious Ink.

Beyond the showcase RajiWorld clients will be playing “Second Stage” hotel stages all over town, check here for updates and Chris Stamey will be presenting the BIG STAR’S THIRD + FRIENDS show as well as the film!

A special orchestrated performance of selections from both Big Star’s legendary Third album and their earlier releases, featuring an all-star cast, including members of Austin’s own Tosca Strings. Preceded by sets by three superb singer/songwriters.

Date: Friday, March 17
Venue: Central Presbyterian Church (200 E 8th St.)
Lineup: Parker Millsap, Skylar Gudasz, Robyn Hitchcock, and then a performance of Big Star’s Third by Jody Stephens (Big Star), Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Ken Stringfellow (Posies, Big Star), Mitch Easter (Let’s Active), Chris Stamey (the dB’s), Brett Harris, Skylar Gudasz, Robyn Hitchcock, members of Austin’s own Tosca Strings

BIKE ZOO AND ROGGIE IN NYC THIS WEEK FOR APAP (BOOTH 1232)

I am setting meetings this week while at APAP/ New York Hilton Midtown 1/7-10/2017. I am yours if you want to discuss The BIKE ZOO (who will have a booth there) or any of my clients or projects. Let’s work together in 2017!

The BIKE ZOO had a great experience at the last few APAPs with many new bookings. We would love to meet with you! We are at Booth 1232 Americas Hall I – Level 2. Please reply here as I want to be able to give you the time you deserve, You will not see anything else like us at APAP or anywhere!

Ringleader, co-founder and mechanical engineering graduate of UT Austin, Jeremy Rosen and his company create life-long memories with The Bike Zoo. The ever-growing menagerie of giant, playful, interactive, hand-built creatures includes the following: our 80-foot Rattlesnake, a flurry of Giant Butterflies, the Beloved Bat, our Fanciful Owl, a Majestic Bald Eagle. Our Praying Mantis functions as a stage and our Bicycle Carousel can carry a dozen people at once! We are a unique addition to any festival or corporate event, or as a placemaking option for a public space, environmental, arts or science event. You can count on us to engage visitors of all ages and captivate the imaginations of those who see or interact with our work. The Bike Zoo may be booked as a static backdrop  for event video and photo opportunities or as functional roaming displays for guests and VIPs.

APAP|NYC is the place to feel the pulse of the industry. Plenary speakers such as Stephen Schwartz, Rosanne Cash, Harry Belafonte and Ira Glass inspire attendees. Innovators from various fields share knowledge. Colleagues exchange practices and problem-solving techniques. The popular EXPO Hall is the one-stop networking hotspot with 370 exhibitors. More than 1,000 artist showcases make up a mini festival of the performing arts.

COTTON MATHER RECORD RELEASE SHOWS ANNOUNCED!!

robert_harrison-800x450

Join us for one of two very special shows sure to sell out at The Townsend Friday September 23!!!

Robert Harrison returns with a new album from his old band, but he hasn’t exactly shut down Future Clouds and Radar, either—in fact, both outfits are now inexorably intertwined.

BY FRED MILLS, read the interview and here a song here

So there’s a guy in Austin, Texas, who we’ve been tracking pretty much since BLURT got started, and his name is Robert Harrison. At the time, he was fronting a visionary outfit called Future Clouds and Radar (go HEREfor my 2008 interview him about the band), but all along, he had in his back pocket his former band, acclaimed ‘90s indie rock outfit Cotton Mather (about which, not so coincidentally, you can spot some of our enthusiasm HERE and HERE, when the band played our SXSW party in Austin).

So a brand new CM album, Death of the Cool, arrived recently, the first proper Cotton Mather studio release in over 15 years. It comes on the semi-heels of the 2012 expanded reissue of the band’s acknowledged classic, Kontiki, and it also marks a decided uptick in Harrison activity that, in addition to DotC, is slated to bring two more CM albums and one from FC&R. They represent his plans to write and record 64 songs for each of the I Ching’s 64 hexagrams. Tracks both from the new album as well as digital-only non-album material can be heard now via ichingsongs.com (additional non-album tracks forthcoming).

Meanwhile, below you’ll find the fruits of an interview I conducted recently with Harrison in which he discusses all this and more, additionally weighing in on the current status of Future Clouds and Radar, which despite that outfit’s relatively low profile the past few years is definitely not up on the blocks. As Harrison assured me, “I promise—no more hiatuses any time soon. Really liking this new batch of songs I’m gnawing on!”….read the rest here 

28 tickets are available@$90 for a IChing inspired gourmet multi-course meal and wine pairing, a reserved seat and your ticket to an acoustic and intimate show with the band including stories of the songs at 7 PM OR one of 99 tickets to the late full electric rock show at 10:00 pm for $20.

Cotton Mather | Record Release Show
Friday Sept 23
purchase your 10pm, $20 tickets here 

Cotton Mather | Acoustic Show + I Ching Tasting Menu + Beverage Pairing
Friday Sept 23
purchase your 7:30pm, $90 tickets here
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cotton-mather-acoustic-show-i-


The Townsend is a cocktail bar and performance space located in the Townsend-Thompson Building, a historic downtown landmark built in 1875. Under the direction of Steven Weisburd as well as Justin Elliott, one of Austin’s most notable names in cocktails, the Townsend has received numerous awards including CultureMap’s Bar of the Year in 2016 and Eater Austin’s Best New Bar in 2015. Justin Elliott also was individually awarded CultureMap’s Bartender of the Year 2016. In addition to its award-winning cocktails, the Townsend offers an array of vibrant fine dining bar food prepared by Chef Justin Huffman and his team. The concept and design for the Townsend was created by principal owner Steven Weisburd, while co-owner/investor Scott Samson, an acoustician, created the Townsend’s performance space, which has received great acclaim for its exceptional sound quality and sonic design. The Townsend’s owner-investor team also includes Kathy Valentine, who helps direct the music program, Suzanne Deal Booth, who helps direct the arts program, as well as Roger Sandau, Stacey Sher, Kerry Brown, and Justin Elliott. The Townsend is managed by Penumbral Strategic Ventures, LLC. For more information on The Townsend, visit: Facebook.com/TheTownsendAustin and thetownsendaustin.com.

HEAR IT HERE, NEW TRACK CHILD BRIDE FROM SONGS FROM THE I CHING

robert_harrison-800x450

Cotton Mather, the brainchild of Robert Harrison, is an ambitious dude. His new project Songs From The I Ching will tap out at 64(!) songs. That behemoth isn’t due until May, but we’ve got a new track for you today called “Child Bride” to give you a taste of the epic that is to come. “Child Bride” proves that Cotton Mather isn’t going for some huge act of self-indulgence; this song is incredibly down-to-earth and well-crafted. Check it out HERE.

APAP NYC JANUARY 14-19

OWL_EDC_EDGAR_SNAKE

I am setting meetings this week while at APAP/ New York Hilton Midtown 1/14-1/19. I am yours if you want to discuss The Bike Zoo who will have a booth there or any of my clients or projects. Let’s work together!

We had a great experience as first timers at last year’s APAP with new bookings made there at events all over the world  with more to come in 2016.

We would like to make the most of year two.

May I set a time to show off our live videos and answer your questions? We are at Booth 1232 Americas Hall I – Level 2. Please reply here as I want to be able to give you the time you deserve, You will not see anything else like us at APAP or anywhere!

Ringleader, co-founder and mechanical engineering graduate of UT Austin, Jeremy Rosen and his company create life-long memories with The Bike Zoo. The ever-growing menagerie of giant, playful, interactive, hand-built creatures includes the following: our 80-foot Rattlesnake, a flurry of Giant Butterflies, the Beloved Bat, our Fanciful Owl, a Majestic Bald Eagle. Our Praying Mantis functions as a stage and our Bicycle Carousel can carry a dozen people at once! We are a unique addition to any festival or corporate event, or as a placemaking option for a public space, environmental, arts or science event. You can count on us to engage visitors of all ages and captivate the imaginations of those who see or interact with our work. The Bike Zoo may be booked as a static backdrop  for event video and photo opportunities or as functional roaming displays for guests and VIPs.

APAP|NYC is the place to feel the pulse of the industry. Plenary speakers such as Stephen Schwartz, Rosanne Cash, Harry Belafonte and Ira Glass inspire attendees. Innovators from various fields share knowledge. Colleagues exchange practices and problem-solving techniques. The popular EXPO Hall is the one-stop networking hotspot with 370 exhibitors. More than 1,000 artist showcases make up a mini festival of the performing arts.

MUSIC MONDAY: COTTOM MATHER HARNESSES ANCIENT CHINESE WISDOM

robert_harrison-800x450

Music Monday: Cotton Mather Harnesses Ancient Chinese Wisdom In “The Book of Too Late Changes”

Cotton Mather translates the wisdom of ’I Ching’ to Texas power pop.

11/16/15 by Michael Hall with photo by Valerie Fremin 

 Robert Harrison moved to Austin from Auburn, Alabama, in the late eighties and formed his first band, Cotton Mather. It started with Harrison and cellist Nat Shelton making avant-garde music, but evolved, as more members were added, to power pop: catchy songs, memorable guitar hooks, quirky lyrics, and sweet harmonies reminiscent of the Beatles, Squeeze, and Crowded House. Cotton Mather’s second album, Kon Tiki (1997), became a hit in the UK after Noel Gallagher raved about it in the British press, and soon the group was touring with Gallagher’s band, Oasis, and living like rock stars.

The band broke up in 2003, and Harrison focused on his next project, Future Clouds and Radar. But since Cotton Mather reunited in 2012 to play a limited number of shows marking Kon Tiki‘s deluxe release, the band has continued to perform. Lately Harrison has been working on a new concept with Cotton Mather: writing songs inspired by his readings of the I Ching, the ancient book of Chinese wisdom and advice. Although he eventually plans to package them on two vinyl albums, right now Harrison is releasing the songs individually, beginning with “The Book of Too Late Changes.” AND YOU CAN HEAR THE FIRST ONE HERE RIGHT NOW!

 

Texas Monthly: Your band was named for a seventeenth century Puritan preacher, and your latest project revolves around songs inspired by the words of a Chinese book from the tenth century BC that has been used for eons as a source of wisdom and spiritual guidance. Is there some kind of connection between a witch hunter and a spiritual guidebook?
Robert Harrison: Starting in my teens I began experiencing a deep longing for a connection with the divine behind—and within—the world I saw. By college I was seriously considering a life in the ministry and decided to major in religious studies. I became especially enamored in those years with Chinese religions—Taoism in particular. As for the I Ching, I studied it in college but didn’t delve deep until later.

I’ve always been spiritually curious. I love the story about Woody Guthrie getting admitted to the hospital near the end of his life, when he’s asked by the attending nurse to state his “religious affiliation,” and he answered “all.” When she replied, “No Mr. Guthrie, please be serious,” he shouted in anger, “All or none!” Well, I’m an all or none guy myself.

When I started this band my brother suggested the name Cotton Mather and we couldn’t stop laughing. It was his brilliant, perverse tip of the cap to my road not taken. And as for the witch burning characterization, I’ll take this moment to point out that Cotton Mather was an extraordinarily complicated man, hideous and despicable as those events were. Graduated Harvard age eleven. A man of science who first introduced vaccines into the colonies. Someone who likely wrote more in their lifetime than anyone ever! But Salem is to Cotton Mather as Vietnam is to Lyndon Johnson. History is a cruel publicist.

TM: Your breakthrough album Kon Tiki was influenced by Chinese philosophy, right?
RH: Yes. One night, our drummer Dana Myzer, burst into a Cotton Mather rehearsal going on about some talk and demonstration being given the next evening at a place called The China Health Center. Something from those college years stirred within, and I knew I had to be there. The band attended en masse and joked about it as our “trip to India.” What was being offered by this amazing, beautiful, humble master from an age-old tradition of qigong and tai chi was unique, rarified, pure temple training, handed down directly through generations from ancient masters. My music up till then had been so cerebral—our first record was clever, poppy, well-crafted, and smart. My mother had died a couple of years before, just before we were to open on a tour for Hootie and the Blowfish, and I was devastated. Performing night after night I felt so constrained by these clever, emotionally restricted, carefully crafted songs.

But now this training opened up my heart channel—and the music we were making—the music that became Kon Tiki—was emotional and spiritual. The album captures the pure joy of our experience. That’s the energy of Kon Tiki—it’s almost giddy with it. Also, in that class I met a guy who recommended consulting the I Ching. I began to ask questions of it, though I didn’t really know how to do it yet. Another friend pointed me to a different translation, and I began to understand it, have a rapport with it. The I Ching became an invaluable companion, and guide out of the deep dark forest of life I was temporarily lost in.

TM: The way I understand it, the I Ching is split into 64 hexagrams, and you consult it by asking a question, then tossing some sticks or coins, and analyzing the results.
RH: Right. My theory of how the I Ching works is: if you shoot an arrow into the distance, it’ll land somewhere, though we don’t see where. If you ask a question to the cosmos, there is an answer somewhere. The I Ching is an ingenious device to give you an answer here and now. I consult it at the beginning of most days, to give me an awareness of what to pay attention to.

TM: When did you start using it in songwriting?
RH: A few years ago I wrote a song titled “Call Me the Witch” for a woman named Nicole Atkins. I got the idea for the song after consulting the I Ching, trying to figure out what to write. I wrote a couple more after that, basically using it as a writing aid. Around Christmas last year I got the idea for this project as I was recalling a conversation with a friend, who was also a student of the I Ching, and I said my favorite movie is It’s a Wonderful Life, and he supposed this was because every condition of the I Ching happens in that movie. So I thought, “What if I could do that in songs?” At first, when I would ask, “Should I do a project based around the I Ching?” I’d get a gentle “No.” But this spring I was in Europe and realized it was burning in me to do it. I thought it would be gimmicky to do all 64 at once, it would only work if it comes from sincerity. It couldn’t just be, “Hey, look at me.”

TM: So, what is your motivation?
RH: One, once you have an idea, you realize if you don’t do it now, you never will. And two, when I first started playing music, I was in my twenties, and the script for my songs was furnished for me by the way I was living—staying out late, making discoveries, living an edgy life. But the newness begins to diminish as you age. The exploration turns inward. I find this is a valuable way to keep my eyes and ears open and fresh. Also, it gives me a framework for making something with its own agenda. I’m just along for the ride.

The question was, where do I begin? One problem is you have to convince people you’re worth hearing again. I knew it had to be something explosive. I consulted the I Ching and got hexagram 24, “The Return,” which is about turning back onto the path. So I thought, I’ll make it about the return of Cotton Mather. I wrote the song, which I call “The Book of Too Late Changes.” It’s an answer to people who might say, “What happened to Cotton Mather? You guys got really big and then were gone.” I thought, This needs the full rock production. It’s way over the top. Pretty soon I had about seven songs written or in production in my home studio. By summer I had some more.

TM: How many have you written now?
RH: I think about eighteen, with another five or so simmering. Recently I was wrestling with a relationship that seemed unhealthy for myriad reasons. And the I Ching directed me, as I asked for guidance, to hexagram 21 which is called “Biting Through” or “Eradicating,” depending on what translation you’re using. The primary theme of this reading is about setting boundaries and administering justice in a relationship by “biting through” to the truth of an unfavorable situation. So I wrote a song. I also recently finished up a track called “Never Be It,” which is taken from the hexagram 5 called “Waiting.”

TM: How does the I Ching actually guide you in writing the songs?
RH: The I Ching, as I experience it, communicates about what is predominantly occupying my thoughts or feelings at a given time. And as songwriters, that is typically what we end up writing about anyway. So this serves as a companion, directing me toward that which I’m in some sense most qualified to speak to. I’m not super literal. I’m still writing the songs like Robert Harrison would.

TM: Will “The Book of Too Late Changes” be available on iTunes?
RH: We will make it available as a free download in the next few days on our website. It will migrate to iTunes eventually. And we’ll let everybody know where to find the new tracks as they materialize. Each track will also come with a “commentary” which might be personal, humorous, anecdotal, or all of the above. The commentary for this one is called “Mama Sugarly’s Yum-Yum.”

TM: What will the next song be?
RH: I’m not sure. My aim is to release one per month until we bring out a new Cotton Mather record next summer. This first song will definitely be on it, but I’ll hold the other candidates back until that time. One result of creating in this way is that there is a great deal of range within the collective. So I’ll bring some songs out deemed less suited for the first record. As for the musical personnel, I’ll probably be calling it all Cotton Mather, but you can expect a heavy dose of Future Clouds as well. And more records.

– See more at: http://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/music-monday-cotton-mather-harnesses-ancient-chinese-wisdom-in-the-book-of-too-late-changes/#sthash.idLqofsi.dpuf

RAJIWORLD INVITES YOU TO JOIN US AT APAP NYC

rajiworld-banner

RajiWorld is proud to be attending APAP 2015 with Austin Bike Zoo founder Jeremy Rosen and Flam Chen Artistic Director and Co-founder Nadia Hagan. Please visit our booth on The Americas 1 Floor two Booth number 542.

Austin Bike Zoo
The Bike Zoo presents a magical show for people of all ages, thrill seekers and corporate clients.  It’s readymade for festivals. You can feel a bit of what the experience is like through our live videos. We love to book city events, festivals, EDM and parades.
“Circuit of The Americas would like to thank Austin Bike Zoo for being an unforgettable part of the United States Grand Prix. Their creations reflected the unique culture of Austin and were clearly a delight to our guests.” – Dominic Iacano, CMO, November 5, 2014
Flam Chen
Flam Chen has been creating, performing, and touring new circus and fire theater since 1994. They create a  dazzling public spectacle merging daredevil acrobatics, pyrotechnics and a mastery of light, air and fire.

Flam Chen’s work ranges from the intimate to large scale. Residencies include company designed workshops, combining student talent, troupe talent and community culminating in spectacular works that resonate with locally derived history, energy and depth.

We have several shows to choose from for this season in every price range.
“An adventure from the get-go
this gig is pure fun and fantasy casting an atmosphere of wonderment” – Deni Kasrel, City Paper Philadelphia.
“They have developed a beautiful habit of ever expanding the public’s imagination, continually taking us deeper and deeper within it’s layers, leaving us breathless.” – Tucson Model Magazine
APAP|NYC 2015, January 9-13, is the membership conference of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters. Held each January in New York City, the conference is the world’s largest networking forum and marketplace for performing arts professionals. More than 3,600 presenters, artists, managers, agents and emerging arts leaders from all 50 U.S. states and more than 30 countries convene in the city for five days of professional development, business deals and exciting performances.
 APAP|NYC is the place to feel the pulse of the industry. Plenary speakers such as Stephen Schwartz, Rosanne Cash, Harry Belafonte and Ira Glass inspire attendees. Innovators from various fields share knowledge. Colleagues exchange practices and problem-solving techniques. The popular EXPO Hall is the one-stop networking hotspot with 370 exhibitors. More than 1,000 artist showcases make up a mini festival of the performing arts.

Welcome to SXSW 2014!

RajiWorld SXSW 2014

South by Southwest (SXSW) Music and Media Conference, the world’s leading music industry event, offers attendees the opportunity to explore the future of the music industry during the day at panels, talks, the Trade Show, Music Gear Expo and other conference activities at the Austin Convention Center. At night, the absolute best mix of musical performances from over 2,200 regional, national and international acts take place at the SXSW Music Festival. Altogether, SXSW presents unmatched networking opportunities, career-building conference programming and over 100 stages of music for showcasing bands and conference attendees. SXSW Music is now in its 28th year.

RajiWorld has been active with SXSW for 24 years! It is our favorite time of year and we have booked shows for families, badge-holders, locals and more. Please feel free to write for additional information roggie@rajiworld.com.