tour diary – chickfactor zine

January 4, 2023

Looking back at CF30: Oct. 30 at the Betsey Trotwood, London, featuring the Catenary Wires and Marlody

The Catenary Wires at CF30. Photo: Andrew Bulhak

Our final chickfactor 30 party in London was an afternoon Hangover Lounge affair at the Betsey Trotwood and had kind of a chill vibe that was welcome after two nights at the packed Lexington! Marlody is a new signing on Rob and Amelia’s Skep Wax label and her moody, intimate songs were quiet and poignant at a time when finally coming together after so long was so needed. Her music was a reminder that we all need to share our stories. The Catenary Wires are of course pop legends: Amelia Fletcher, Rob Pursey, Ian Button and Andy Lewis. They played stellar songs from their latest, Birling Gap, which you should snap up if you haven’t got it, and even thrilled the audience with a Heavenly song, “Cool Guitar Boy,” in advance of their couple of Bush Hall shows next spring, which was so so fun.

London is a place I was lucky to call home for half a decade and I miss it like crazy. chickfactor’s cofounder Pam Berry has lived there since the late ’90s and I love being able to go back and see people at these events in these places that miraculously are still open. I wish we could do it every year! Thanks again to the musicians, bands, venues, Paul Kelly for backline wrangling, the sound people, Hangover Lounge, Tae Won Yu, the folks who put me and others up, the documenters, readers, fans, friends, strangers, and pop lovers who make up this incredible community.

Marlody, an artist on Rob and Amelia’s Skep Wax label, played the show. Photo: Jen Matson

The Catenary Wires. Photo: Morgan Stanley

People with great taste in music. Photo: Gail O’Hara

Pop stars meeting and smiling. Photo: Gail O’Hara

Beer mats from CF20. Photo: Morgan Stanley

Lunchbox at the Betsey. Photo: Gail O’Hara

Legends in our midst. Photo: Morgan Stanley

All the Umbrellas in London (sorry, I’ll stop saying that now). Photo: Morgan Stanley

Hangover Lounge gents Tim and John. Photo: Gail O’Hara

Raz attempting to wrangle the unruly CF revelers. Photo: Gail O’Hara

January 4, 2023June 13, 2023

Looking back at CF30: night 5, Oct. 29, the Lexington in London starring Birdie, The Umbrellas and Seablite

Seablite played their London debut! Photo: Jen Matson

Tonight from the stage, Morgan from the Umbrellas said that her face was hurting from smiling so much and we could all relate! The London CF30 shows were like a big lovefest full of fantastic pop music! The show kicked off tonight with the Bay Area pop group Seablite, making their London debut in the most stylish and melodious way!

Birdie played next and our hearts melted because they are so damn charming and just effortlessly generate classic-sounding pop music that could have come from the 1960s. Their set list is below, but we know how lucky we are to have heard a few Dolly Mixture songs on Friday during Rachel’s set and some on Saturday with Birdie! Unbelievable joy.

The final act tonight was the Bay Area Slumberland band The Umbrellas, who are so young and yet so good at making classic but fresh indie pop in the best possible way. Such energy! Such positivity! If there were any justice in the world, we would take these shows on the road and fill the world with joy and melody! I’m sure these US bands will be back soon, but for now London + California = love.

Just a note: In case you wondered why the shows started so early and they had no real breaks between bands, it’s because the Lexington has another dance party event that starts roughly an hour after our thing ended. We left a time cushion between our show and theirs because our experience at CF25 was a bit difficult to deal with, the Pastels could hardly load out or relax and have a post-show beer before the late-night dance party people rushed the room.

(Personally, I was perched on a bench in the back because I had recently rolled my ankle and couldn’t manage the pain being on my feet all night or I would have been dancing like a dervish right up front as per usual! I was on so much paracetamol that I felt I couldn’t drink much cider, and I was a bit limited in my movements as host! But it was pretty crazy to see three of my former coworkers from SPIN magazine in the house! Daisy and Sarah, shoutouts to you for being so fun. )

Thanks again to all the bands who played and all the fans who came from afar and the Lexington. Special thanks to Gaylord Fields and Rachel Love (to whom I apologize for my grumpiness) for helping me wrangle the right lager and snacks from the local Tesco. The overall vibe this weekend was very much a lovefest, a total all-hands-on-deck, walking around the neighborhood and running into each other funfest with some of the greatest people. MC Gaylord did an amazing job of waxing loudly and lovingly about the bands to get everyone’s attention back to the stage. Many thanks to Paul Kelly and the Betsey Trotwood for wrangling the backline for the whole weekend. Thanks to the Hangover Lounge gents—Tim, John, Ben and Steve—for handling merch and being the generally wonderful humans that they are.

Keith and Nick Umbrellas / Photo: Gail O’Hara

The Umbrellas sparked so much joy it lasted for the rest of the year / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Some Umbrellas after their London debut! Photo: Daisy Wake

January 4, 2023January 4, 2023

Looking back at CF30 night 4: Oct. 28 at London’s Lexington featuring Sacred Paws, Rachel Love and Artsick

chickfactor anniversary parties are sometimes characterized as events where we bring bands back from retirement or as total nostagia-fests. While it is true that they are basically the best kind of friend reunion, this year’s London shows had little to do with nostalgia (though there was a wee Dolly Mixture vibe and a Heavenly song!). Our three-day festival featured five bands that were just interviewed in our latest issue, chickfactor 19 (Sacred Paws, Rachel Love and three Bay Area pop bands mentioned below), and two bands whose members (Paul Kelly and Debsey Wykes and the Catenary Wires) have been interviewed on our site in mostly recent times. The Lexington shows also featured three bands making their London debut: Seablite, Artsick and The Umbrellas flew across the world to play in London!

Tonight I was dead excited to see Sacred Paws for the first time, and they did not disappoint! (They toured the U.S. a while back but only the East Coast and I was West Coast then.) Rachel Aggs’ dance moves are a joy to watch and the whole band generates goodness. Their sound is rooted in the ESG-influenced past, but completely fresh and modern. We are so grateful they came down from Glasgow to play!

Nothing to see here! Just three members of Dolly Mixture. Photo: Gail O’Hara

It was also amazing to see Rachel Love solo for the first time! She brought her kids and their friends to play many of the wonderful songs from her 2021 solo album that deserved more attention. We heard a few Dolly Mixture songs during Rachel’s set (“Down The Line,” “Miss Candy Twist,” “How Come You’re Such a Hit With the Boys, Jane?”), some with Debsey Wykes as a guest! Unbelievable joy. Plus, tonight was the first time Artsick has ever played in London and they were killing it with fizzy pop punk energy!

Rachel Love soundcheck / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Thanks to the bands who played and traveled from afar, MC Gaylord Fields, the fans who came out, the Lexington, the soundpeople and especially the Betsey Trotwood and Paul Kelly for sorting out the backline for the whole weekend. Tonight was epic!

Rachel Love and her fab band / Photo: Jen Matson

A mini Dolly Mixture reunion / Photo: Jen Matson

Debsey and Rachel at soundcheck / Photo: Gail O’Hara

No one puts on a show like the Paws! Sacred Paws / Photo: Andrew Bulhak

Morgan Umbrellas getting an autograph from Rachel Love

Indie legends sign the set list / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Berets for everyone! Rachel Love and Debsey Wykes with Morgan Umbrellas / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Rachel Love set list / Courtesy: Morgan Stanley

Five of the acts on the London shows are in CF19.

January 2, 2023January 5, 2023

Looking back at CF30 night 3, Oct. 8, union pool starring Seablite, Gary Olson, Artsick and Jeanines

Night three at Union Pool was a blast! I was so excited to be seeing ARTSICK for the first time, and it was a NYC/East Coast debut for both them and SEABLITE! Both bands gave it everything and the crowd loved it. NYC’s JEANINES (now more of a Western Mass. combo I believe) and GARY OLSON (with a bit of LADYBUG TRANSISTOR!) brought it too! It was a magical night of old friends, fantastic music and general stardust. Thanks to DJ Sukhdev Sandhu, MC Gaylord Fields, Tae Won Yu for the gorgeous posters and graphics, our wonderful sound person Beck and the folks at Union Pool, along with everyone who played, came out and enjoyed the night! See more of Dean Keim’s photos here.

Indie kids, the next generation! By Gail O’Hara

Jed and Alicia Jeanine / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Mario and Christina Artsick with MC Gaylord Fields / Photo: Gail O’Hara

January 2, 2023January 5, 2023

Looking back at CF30 night 2, Oct. 7, Brooklyn

our second event in New York was at the Chashama space in Brooklyn where Steve Keene was having an exhibition. As the editor of the Steve Keene Art Book, I was sad to miss a number of book launch events earlier in 2022, so I was happy to put on this event with the book’s producer and SK documenter Dan Efram. Many of the pieces on the wall were from his or other private collections, so they were not all for sale (sadly!) Christina Zafiris, who worked in the marketing department at Matador Records when the label did a series of “Pavement Trees” made by SK, wrote about the experience of doing those in the book, and asked me to edit her essay for the book, which led to me editing the whole book. Another contributor to the book, Sam Brumbaugh, interviewed Bridget St. John for chickfactor 12 back in the late ’90s. (Read his essay from the book here!) Our love for Bridget’s music led to us having her play at many of our big festivals over the years in both New York and London. We named one of our festivals at Bush Hall in London “Mon Gala Papillons” (it takes its name from a photograph by Jacques Lartigue), which inspired Bridget to write a song of the same title! We love Bridget. (Photos: Gail O’Hara)

The great Bridget St. John playing our event in Oct. 2022. Photo: Gail O’Hara

Christina Riley from Artsick with her fave Steve Keene / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Tonight’s DJ: CF contributor and wonderful human Sukhdev Sandhu / Photo: Gail O’Hara

I want this one too / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Former Matador marketing lady Christina Zafiris / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Best LP of all time? Perhaps. Photo: Gail O’Hara

Donna McKean from Artsick and Lunchbox with her fave / Photo: Gail O’Hara

The amazing photographer Reuben Radding and Bridget St. John / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Steve Keene documenter Dan Efram / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Chime School / Seablite’s Andy Pastalaniek and Christina Riley out front / Photo: Gail O’Hara

January 2, 2023January 4, 2023

Looking back at CF30 night one, Oct. 6, the Frying Pan, Manhattan

When I arrived in NYC in early October, the remnants of Hurricane Ian were still turning the city into a nasty soupy mess. I visited Eric Fischer at the Frying Pan pier complex a few days before our event there, and the wind and waves were violently shooting up through the dock. But on Oct. 6, the weather and party gods shined on us and gave us a completely perfect NY evening. Luckily Eric, who pretty much built much of the pier complex and has been involved with running and maintaining the ships for decades, is the hardest working person in showbiz and pushed me to try to hammer out every detail before the event. We had special gold wristbands, a fancy ‘chickfactor’ cocktail ready as a special for the event, and even a special vegan menu. Eric’s wife, Christina, procured our giant inflatable CF30 letters. Josh “Other Music” Madell helped me wrangle my least favorite part of setting up shows: PA and backline. Our sound person Mike Yesenosky usually works with the Magnetic Fields, so we were very lucky to have him tonight!

When Beatrix Madell, the 14-year-old who formed a band called Girl Scout Handbook for our CF30 NY party on the Frying Pan, asked her mom (longtime CF contributor Dawn Sutter Madell) what makes a song a chickfactor song, Dawn told her it would have to be a song “Gail likes.” But it’s clear that, between the folks who contribute to, read, support, and sell the zine and the folks who play at and attend our events, there is a community of like-minded folks out there that like similar tunes!

we love NY! fireworks went off as the first band went on. Photo: Dean Keim

Girl Scout Handbook, a group of 12- to 14-year-olds from Brooklyn, took the stage right as fireworks were going off out in the Hudson River. Helicopters were swooping into the pier next to ours as well. GSH’s set was made up of covers chosen specifically for the event: The Zombies, Heavenly, the Spinanes, Lois, B&S and it was amazing! So great! They only practiced four times and already got written up in the New Yorker! Watching their proud parents watch them was so heart-warming. What a way to start the show!

Next up was DUMP, Brooklyn’s James McNew, who slayed the crowd with his solo set of classics from his repertoire and ace covers. The Jim Ruiz Set, as they often do, came all the way from the Twin Cities to make us swoon to their easy listening pop gems. And the Aluminum Group also flew in from Detroit and Chicago to show the world why it needs to listen to their fab new album. DJs Gaylord Fields and Stephin Merritt helped us keep things humming in between. Artist Kevin Alvir was offering quick portraits on demand, and the Aluminum Group brought a boutique’s worth of fun merch and handmade garlands. It was such a great night full of all kinds of people from different generations enjoying the venue, the music and each other’s company. Thanks to everyone who played, came to the event, and helped out (especially Eric and Christina, Josh and Dawn, and Y-Mike!)

Trixie, Ella, Nora & Claude from Girl Scout Handbook’s very first show ever! Photo: Dean Keim

Rose from Girl Scout Handbook Photo: Dean Keim

Girl Scout Handbook drummer Ella / Photo: Dean Keim

Emily Ruiz at soundcheck / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Jim Ruiz Set soundchecking / Photo: Gail O’Hara

Gail tests out the ‘chickfactor’ cocktail pre-show

The Aluminum Group’s Frank and John Navin! Photo: Gail O’Hara

Fireworks on the Hudson / Photo: Dean Keim

December 21, 2012September 29, 2016

london tour diary!

oh london, you know how I adore you.

8 november: arrive at heathrow. terminal 5 reminds me of the buildings in the movie brazil. in a coma most of day. spent quality time in crypal with the girls.

9 november: still sleepy. lunch at domali (some kind of cheese and veggie sausage toastie with loads of mustard was in order). jenn connor showed up! dinner at the berry jones casa: butternut squash risotto (which kicks off a week of what feels like a weight-gain diet!).

10 november: went to planet organic (their food boxes are one of the best tasting food bargains in london; and the crazy selection of outrageously expensive food and tea items is way fun to peruse), met lupe, we sat on a couch in muji and talked, then ate delicious thai food at busaba eatthai (pumpkin curry and pad thai I believe!).

11 november: met one of my many u.k.-based cousins for lunch at ray’s jazz café (chickpea spinach dahl). wow, the entire area surrounding tottenham court road tube station is a huge construction mess! went to the hangover lounge at the lexington for an easy, breezy afternoon with close friends. had my first pub version of a nut roast (not a fan), though it came with butter-drenched veggies, potatoes and yorkshire pudding, which I’d never had and is basically a popover to american palates. not bad.

12 november: headed north to go meet up with peter paphides, said hello to his famous wife and lazy cats, we picked up bob stanley, had a cozy pub lunch (the butternut squash risotto), went record shopping (I got a harry nilsson LP), that was fun. bob and I went to the relocated photographer’s gallery (I was a big fan of the old one). my take: location is fine. there is no natural light inside and the overuse of track lighting is blinding. the photo show we saw by tom wood was excellent but I couldn’t wait to get out of the space. ugh, I hate change. there was also a giant display of a LOLcat in the lobby, which I found disturbing. tonight was a chickfactor dinner party at mildred’s, one of the best vegetarian restaurants in london (on my personal menu: mushroom ale pie with mushy peas and chips).

13 november: I head to bayswater to meet up with jessica would-be-goods. we have delicious mezze at al-waha, where she is treated like royalty. we spend the afternoon with her burmese cats, chatting, eating amazing chocolate and looking at designy stuff. I head to one of my favourite bars, the phoenix theater bar, which is unchanged (and there is a large poster of kirsty maccoll on the wall), where I meet with some of my pals from my london magazine days for some halloumi cheese and drinks. then it’s off to walthamstow to meet with some merge records act, which picks me up at the tube station.

14 november: isn’t walthamstow village lovely? I have lunch with stephen coates at one of london’s private clubs (blacks), where the only veg option sans egg is… butternut squash risotto! later I meet travis and we check out the photographic portrait prize show at the national portrait gallery, which I always go to see and I always complain about. it was very dull this year. most of the photos are unbearably sterile, gimmicky and this year had way too many celebs. after that it was off to the curzon soho, where I attended a screening of lawrence of belgravia followed by a Q&A with director paul kelly and the BFI’s michael hayden, a big indie nerd. it was delightful! except that lupe and al were waiting outside for me and wanted to flipping kill me because they were so hungry (we went to taro for bento!).

15 november: today was a chill morning with pam. I imagine domali was involved, I probably ate some kind of heavy-carbed snack like an HBLT. later we picked up her girls from school and took them to the tate modern. after that I met up with paul kelly and his adorable son donovan at the horseshoe pub, where we are having an event the next night. we ended up having a pint at the betsey trotwood, where we talked about the simpsons a whole lot.

16 november: lunch at the gate islington. I had some kind of enchilada. later I headed over to the horseshoe pub in clerkenwell. gaylord turned up, then paul kelly and donovan, and after a number of bothersome technical issues, we were able to proceed! I had a brie and red pepper panini (too rich for my blood). then various pals began to arrive: the aislers set! the jim ruiz set! pipas! amor de días! the berry joneses! the starfolk! we all settled in to watch take three girls: the dolly mixture story, which is so great; and then gaylord conducted the pop quiz that he and pam and I came up with! good fun was had by all and it was just the way to kick off chickfactor 2012: for the love of pop! weekend in london.

17 november: tonight kicks off the live music portion of the weekend at bush hall! with the lineup that is hard to beat:

the pastels (set list here: listen to “comin’ through” + “baby honey” here) such a dream to have them play! they hadn’t played a chickfactor party since our cmj show at fez in 1995. cannot wait to hear their new LP due out in early 2013.
the aislers set (listen to “been hiding” + “chicago new york” + “the way to market station” + “last match” + “the walk” + “red door” + “mission bells” + “hit the snow” here) wow. wow. wow. wow. wow. yes, they tore the roof off. I may devote the rest of my life to trying to make them play more live shows.
the would-be-goods (listen to “the camera loves me” + “the last of the pin-striped rebels” + “temporary best friend” here) this was kind of emotional night for the WBGs. super-duper set. I liked it when peter talked about heavenly crashing on my floor 20 years ago.
amor de días (dan lee has some great footage, will try to get it here!) these guys really shine in a live setting, I would like to see them more often! set was to die for.

honestly, not much could have ruined this night. if I could change one thing, it would have been to keep the audience quiet during amor de días but as pam would say: it’s impossible to get a roomful of people who haven’t seen each other in 15 years to be quiet. everything else was just flat out marvelous. gaylord was the best MC! here’s a post on la terrasse.

18 november: today’s lineup was just as spectacular! the lexington is a dreamy venue, love it. gaylord & the hangover lounge folks = the best DJs!

tender trap (watch “train from kings cross station” + “do you want a boyfriend?” + “memorabilia” + “leaving christmas day” here) really really stellar set! loved it. just still cannot get over how ace their new album is! amelia talked about the early days of chickfactor, and how it was celebratory instead of angry like riot grrrl. ended the night with everyone dancing like goofballs.
pipas (watch “barbapapa + “bitter club” + “hiding in the park” + “the occasion” + “rock and/or roll” + “wells street” here) pipas won them over, as always, despite no soundcheck, despite knocking over a lovely guitar several times. another band that should not be allowed to be inert. such charm! such songs!
the real tuesday weld, who have a foxy new girl singer that attracted every man with a phone camera in the place! always great to see jacques the clarinetist, who commented that the girls in tender trap looked to be about 20. always so entertaining, these guys!
bridget st john with brian willoughby (strawbs) (watch “ask me no questions” + “hole in my heart” here) bridget is such a lovely presence. it’s always such an honor to have her play our shows! she played “mon gala papillons,” which was inspired by a chickfactor party in london in 2004.
the jim ruiz set featuring the legendary jim ruiz from the legendary jim ruiz group. I only wish tracey thorn and max eider could have been front and center to watch this charming jazz-tinged minneapolis pop group play their london debut.
harvey williams + josh gennet (watch “I don’t suppose I’ll get a second chance” + “her boychart” + “colour me in” here) perhaps you remember josh from the u.s. indie band holiday and harvey from such bands as another sunny day, the field mice and trembling blue stars. they also covered carole king & a girl called eddy — my favorite part of the night was teaching ava berry jones to finger snap.
the starfolk (featuring brian from the hang-ups and allison from the jim ruiz set, typsy panthre, etc) my first time seeing these guys—they were so great! here is a write-up on la terrasse.

see photos from the weekend here from andrew bulhak + marianthi + anneliese + chris stevenson + andy aldridge + natascha unkart.

19 november: it was family time in gerrards cross, buckinghamshire; followed by mellow drinks and snacks at medcalf with travis, josh, sarah, paul, debs & donovan; followed by gentle chilling at lauren’s cozy flat in gipsy hill.

20 november: spitalfields walkabout this morning, checking on how the hood has changed. lunch at mildred’s again, then off to the magma product store. before heading back to SE london to have a low-key night in with the family-friends.

21 november: flew out from terminal 5. they have a wagamama!

May 2, 2012September 30, 2016

CF2012 East Coast Tour Diary…

(This set list was appropriated from Robin Banks, the lucky owner!)

So we did it. We had six nights of rock (or pop) in seven nights. two in D.C., one at Maxwell’s, and three at the Bell House in Brooklyn, NY. it was total euphoria and ecstasy and emotional and all just completely great in every way. Mike from Black Tambourine tore off a finger in D.C., a few other BTs had stomach flu, many had terrible allergies, Pam had an ankle injury, and nearly everyone who attended all six shows lost their voices and had “retail feet” at some point! By Wednesday, April 11, I was nearly laryngitic. When I flew back home on Friday, April 13, I was so cloggy and allergic I lost hearing in one ear and I still have not regained it all! If it weren’t for all the dopamine we were hopped up on, we would not have survived.

Friday, April 6: Tonight was Stevie Jackson, Frankie Rose, Honey Bunch, Dot Dash, and special guest The Pines (featuring Black Tambourine singer / CF cofounder Pam Berry & the Foxgloves’ Joe Brooker). Watching the Pines with Pam’s daughters Ava and Lulu was a highlight in both D.C. and New York. They already have a hunch that they totally lucked out in the mom department, and now they got to see mom (er, mum) up there singing like an angel along with Joe. The Pines did a quickie special guest set in D.C. but it was just delightful. Dot Dash, featuring Terry Banks of Tree Fort Angst and glo-worm, was super great and sold a million T-shirts. Stevie ended up joining forces with Honey Bunch on their set and vice versa (he said it was like playing with the Velvets don’tcha know), and how great was that? Worlds collide. I don’t think I’d heard the chickfactor song live since 1998 at the Supper Club in NY! The only issue with the venue was that it never quite seemed loud enough, except during soundcheck. Frankie Rose did all the hits and closed out the night with her cool pop combo. Dan Searing (of glo-worm, Big Jesus Trash Can, Saturday People) was the charmingly loquacious MC and booze coordinator for both nights. I only wish I’d been in town earlier to attend a party at the Pines, where parties are legendary. The age group tonight ranged from age 5 to 78 btw. chickfactor attracts a diverse clientele. (food diary: lunch veggie mezza at Lebanese Taverna Market, dinner a big salad)

Saturday, April 7: Tonight was Black Tambourine, Lilys, Fan Modine, Lorelei and special guest LD Beghtol (backed by some guys from Black Tambourine / Lorelei). LD is the bearish gent out of Flare, who also was a guest singer on 69 Love Songs and chickfactor’s art director in the later years (when the photos started looking amazing). I had asked him to do some covers of songs by Crash, an amazing late-80s, early-90s pop group featuring singer Mark Dumais (who died 20 years ago) and guitarist Kurt Ralske (of Ultra Vivid Scene). I learned about Crash from Pam and Mike and the Black Tambourine/Slumberland crew 21 years ago and LD has a great voice for singing those songs. He did a few Crash tunes, a Flare song and a Jesus and Mary Chain tune, and oh my god “Everything Under the Sun” was one of the most compelling live music moments in years. Really was so great and so happy to see LD backed with a bunch of Crash fans. D.C.’s Lorelei made everyone swoon by covering the Pale Saints and being generally foxy, and while they were plenty loud during soundcheck in an empty room, I would have liked to hear them even louder (this was one of our main concerns with the venue all weekend). The Fan Modine came up from NC to play some hits and sounded super-rad, though I prefer hearing them when things quiet down more. Lilys mainstay Kurt Heasley played solo, which sounded pretty ace, even if I have to admit it would have been great to have him backed up with a band on a few of those classic tunes from his rich, rich back pages (why are these not all reissued? what is wrong with the world?). The first moments of the Black Tambourine show were just dead exciting. It just moved me to near-tears seeing them up there! I was one of the lucky few back in the day (1991 ish) to see them live, but tonight! you could hear the vocals! the venue was, well, basically an art gallery and wasn’t always ideal (too bright, not always loud enough) but I was more than chuffed to finally be seeing these guys play live again (set list above, natch). “Aggi” was a highlight for sure! (food diary: again! Lebanese Taverna with the family; dinner: salad and a giant iced coffee)

Sunday, April 8: Day off from rocking. I had not enough sleep, took Amtrak north and guess who randomly sat next to me? Stephen Lorelei’s mom! Crazy. She was telling other people on the train about the CF20 show! Along with my mom, she made it to the event, which was great. I got off the train in Newark, Gaylord Fields picked me up, we stopped and chowed on a few giant vegan sandwiches, and then we did his radio show together, with me getting to play all the records! What a dream come true! He seemed to enjoy what I played, which isn’t surprising as we have similar (um, perfect!) taste in music. (food diary: we went to Angelica Kitchen! Where I would have many meals this week and where Lupe Pipas met us and hung out too)

Monday, April 9: Tonight was Black Tambourine, Fan Modine, Rose Melberg and special guest Musical Chairs. Downtime became a rare and valuable commodity this week, we realized after not having nearly enough. Today we were out at Maxwell’s in Hoboken by 5pm or something, and the classic venue lived up to its reputation as being one of the finest venues in the nation in every way (apart from the food maybe). Once I had some superpowerfulmagic spanish ibuprofen powder (thanks to Lupe), I overcame my giant allergy migraine and had a spectacular night. We all sat down and had dinner together, which was really fun. We hadn’t seen Ian from Musical Chairs in ages, and he played a short set of jangly kinda pop! Rose melted my heart by doing Kirsty MacColl’s classic “They Don’t Know” which many people know from Tracey Ullman, along with doing a handful of Tiger Trap songs! Fan Modine and Black Tambourine fared better in this environment — this is the kind of venue made for this music! I was woo-ing like a crazy Beatles fangirl and just completely losing my voice, it was so fun to watch them with Lupe and Gaylord and all our pals. Really super fun. MC Gaylord Fields was just as funny and entertaining as he is on the radio! (food diary: lunch with Loops at Candle Cafe on the Upper East Side; dinner at Maxwell’s, I think I had a veggie burger, it was not terrifically memorable)

Tuesday, April 10: Tonight was Black Tambourine, Small Factory, Versus, The Lois Plus, Dump and Mark Robinson (last two were special guests). What a lineup, holy crap. I think I probably would have put SF & BT on different nights originally but Dave SF specifically requested this lineup, and I really wanted them to play so… Dump did a proper set of tunes including their stunning version of the Pacific Ocean’s “Last Minute,” Prince’s “Pop Life” and a few of their own classics like “Superpowerless” (or what Dawn calls “Pants on the floor” or something). Dump said if it weren’t for chickfactor they probably wouldn’t play live, which is crazy! Mark Robinson was going to be there anyway and Unrest couldn’t do a proper set but wowed the kids (and the oldies) with just two perfect tracks: “Isabel” and “Yes, She Is My Skinhead Girl” so so great, love that guy! Miss Maffeo played with The Would-Be-Goods’ Peter Momtchiloff and Bratmobile’s Molly Neuman on drums, and it was just so perfect. “Rougher” was a highlight, as was “Strumpet.” Lois, as always, delighted the audience with badinage and persliflage. One would never suspect this lady has stagefright issues! Versus gave it to you. Richard and Fontaine looked foxy in their suits and Margaret is near the bursting point; Richard joked that they were my third choice (which is true: Containe & the Pacific Ocean were asked first, and it’s pretty hard to conceal that information from Versus, it’s all the same people!) They gave us exactly what we wanted: a trip back to the early 90s! Oh god, my heart was already overflowing when Small Factory hit the stage, delivering nothing but their ultracharming pop energy, including “Suggestions,” one of the top pop songs ever. Black Tambourine played their third & final reunion show and it was mind-blowing, heart-warming, just amazing, so great. This venue was perfect for everything, especially being able to see and hear from anywhere despite your height. Just perfect! MC Gaylord Fields had nothing but witty, erudite things to say as always, I wish we’d had him properly miked up so we could go back and hear it all.(food diary: lunch at Angelica Kitchen, special no. 2; dinner: vegan panini from S’nice and I didn’t realize how walking over there would seriously cut into my duties as promoter; note to self: next time: hire more interns!)

Wednesday, April 11: Tonight was The Aislers Set, Pipas, Bridget St John, The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group, and special guests LD Beghtol backed by some Lorelei/Black T types and John Lindaman from True Love Always. John TLA just came out and did “Mediterranean” the excellent pop track his group contributed to the chickfactor mixtape comp from 2002. LD & the gang did their Crash and J&MChain covers and Flare song along with a Ben Watt-sung EBTG tune, the first of many EBTG references this evening! The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group, or the Jim Ruiz Set as they may now be known, just blew us away with their midwestern pop genius. Highlights included “Goodbye to All That” and “Valentine”, such a great set! Bridget performed beautifully and made a lot of people well up. We loved hearing “Mon Gala Papillons,” something she was inspired to write after hearing the name of our 2004 London festival of that name, which was inspired by a Jacques Lartigue photo. The Brooklyn/London duo Pipas haven’t played anywhere in years, and made the crowd so happy. They did so many hits. I really love those guys! The Aislers Set played a better set than I have ever seen them play, and I found myself wondering: Why, as a society, we ever allowed this fan-effing-tastic pop group to disband? What the hell? the Dubya era killed so many good things, and this was one of them. They did nothing but hits. Apparently they have nothing but hits! And they were just on fire tonight, ask anyone. The video doesn’t really even capture the greatness. But wow, wow. And Peter Momtchiloff commented how this music being played this week doesn’t feel like it’s just about the past, but also about the present and the future. So true. Professor / film critic / indie nerd Sukhdev Sandhu was the MC tonight and he was irresistible as always albeit a bit quiet in his subtle Britishness. (food diary: lunch at Angelica Kitchen; dinner at S’nice)

Thursday, April 12: Tonight was Stevie “Belle and Sebastian” Jackson, HoneyBunch, The Softies, the Pines, and three! special guests Franklin Bruno, Ladybug Transistor and Fan Modine. Someone noticed that all the special guests were, uh, boys! I did try for some ladies, I’ll have it be known that Mascott, Jennifer O’Connor, The Cover Girls, Laura Cantrell, the Naysayer were among those on the list but for various reasons they could not! The manguests were super anyway — Franklin did after all play at our very first CF party with live music in 1993. Ladybug did a few fine Nordic-tinged Brooklyn tunes, and Fan Modine did a couple ace covers. Again, watching the Pines with Ava, Lulu and Bix Madell may have been one of the festival highlights for me. The paparazzi could not get enough! It felt really special to see the Pines doing a proper set in a proper venue in New York — about time! The Softies hadn’t played in 12 years and that was hard to believe because they just sound so fresh! HoneyBunch and Stevie did their collaborative thing again tonight and it was bliss. Stevie ended up with a real interactive fun set drawing the audience in and making them love him even more. We were at a chickfactor show and we were all singing our hearts out to Stevie’s cover of “Rocket Man” by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. MC Phoebe Bluesky Summersquash was on hand to keep the audience entertained, man, she is a good one. In case you didn’t know who HoneyBunch wrote “Hey Bluesky” about, now you do. The whole week just filled me with so much love, luck, dopamine, euphoria, pop love, friend love, I know I sound dorky but who cares. All that was missing was more time so we could all have spent more quality time together. Pam and I didn’t even get to go shopping like the olden days. In fact the New York economy would have fared better had she been able to shop instead of just rehearsing! (food diary: lunch at Angelica; hummus sandwich with the kids from S’nice)

I got thanked an awful lot and CF did and I did work hard but it took a village to pull this thing off. Next stop: Portland, Oregon! May 30 at Bunk Bar featuring The Softies, Joe Pernice, Lois, and Selector Dub Narcotic. Later this year: San Francisco, Los Angeles and London, and maybe Chicago! (Sorry, kids, Black Tambourine not likely to play those dates)

• Here is a piece about chickfactor in the Washington City Paper, where Pam and I met. WCP also had some post-show commentary and photos.

• And an interview with Black Tambourine in the Washington Post, Mark Jenkins’ review of the BT night, and another article here

• And an interview with Pam on Refinery 29 & an interview with Gail in Capital New York and one with NBC’s Nonstop Sound

• This is a photographic document of our D.C. shows in Paste

• The DCist writes up the Black Tambourine Artisphere night and they interviewed Dot Dash as well

• Brooklyn Vegan reviewed some bands and missed others, nice photos here (Bell House April 10, Bell House April 11 and Bell House April 12)

• Maura’s nice writeup in the Voice and her post-show technology commentary related to my attempt at getting people to put their cell phones away during the shows

• Vinyl District did some nice coverage here

• Brightest Young Things’ kooky Stevie Jackson interview and some nice post-show coverage

• Here are some items from Killer Femme, The L Magazine, Exclaim, Pitchfork, Reverb City, NPR Intern Edition, TBD, TimeOut NY, New York Times, Yale Daily News, Express Night Out, South County Music, Eardrum NYC and Orange Juice in Bishops Garden

• Photographs from Verbicide, Brad Searles, Shantel Mitchell, Erica Bruce, Andrew Bulhak, Kyle Gustafson, Frances Chung, Sean, and Caren Parmalee.

• Videos from Bleary Eyed Brooklyn, Rawkblog, Vimeo and Youtube here.