Wow.

So there it is...almost exactly one year between updates. Long enough that I actually forgot how to even do this anymore.

I can try to blame babies, but it wouldn't be fair because one of the babies is Charlotte Birch Rodgers, the second of Rob and Leslie's daughters who was born in December of last year. Rob and Leslie have been out of active Paper Moon service since their FIRST kid so Charlotte's arrival, while exciting, didn't really interfere with PM business. The other baby hasn't even HAPPENED yet, but Allison has been spending a lot of time over the last few months pregnantly gasping and groaning and laying motionless, and I've been doing a lot of Alli-belly rubbin' and nest buildin'. That does tend to get in the way of band stuff somewhat, but still...

Look, let's just move past this, yeah? There's a reason for this blathering. Our bass player, Ken, totally engaged his fantastic ladyfriend Susan and they're throwing the classic Paper Moon wedding social, also known as a "Showcial" due to the live performance aspect.

Now, most Winnipeg folks already know of it and probably already have tickets or plan on going but in case you are only finding out about this now, here are the "deets":

It's happening THIS FRIDAY, June 17, at the Park Theatre. There will be a silent auction, dancing, food, drinks...the usual stuff. ALSO, a swollen version of Paper Moon will be playing! Rob and Leslie will be rejoining us on the stage. It's a big ol' family reunion. Additionally, Ken will be playing bass in The Petty Thieves, a fantastically-named Tom Petty tribute band that will surely be astounding.

You probably want tickets for this. I can tell you that they are available...from band members. Maybe just email us (papermoon@papermoon.ca) and we'll make arrangements for you.

We've been shrugging off the cobwebs, blowing the dust off, oiling the hinges, tightening the screws, oiling up the slip'n'slide, browning the...meat...basically, just getting ready for the show and I think we're sounding quite fabulous. Plus...you could win a Wii!* So come on out!

Love,
Chris

*I don't know if there's a Wii.

We are now 2/3 of the way through our triptych of activity after long months of slumber.

Panel 1: In which Paper Moon rearranges, rehearses and performs Red Fisher's album "War Wagon" at the WECC a few weeks ago.

Panel 2: In which a segment of Paper Moon culminates months of physical training by running 13.1 miles in the Manitoba Half Marathon on Father's Day. Surprisingly, there is talk of next year's marathon as well...

Now, we will reveal the third and final Panel: In which Paper Moon attempts once more to play an outdoor show at The Forks on Canada Day and NOT have it rain violently for the exact duration of their planned set.

Some of you might remember the fiasco of Canada Day '07. According to a sound tech that had worked many an outdoor show on the Scotiabank Stage, we set a precedent for rain-outs. It had never rained that catastrophically during a show there in his memory. We dealt with our grief the only way we know how: Angry Drunkenness, in the privacy of Paper Moon Manor. We hope this year will be different. We hope that the endless rain we've been experiencing for the last several weeks in Winnipeg will wring the skies dry in time for our performance next Thursday. Hope is all we have.

Paper Moon @ The Forks (Scotiabank Stage)
July 1, 2010 (Canada Day!)
6:00pm
FREE SHOW! OUTSIDE! POSSIBLY DRY AND SUNNY!

After this, we will sleaze back to our lair and continue concocting fat beats for your future pleasure. Or we'll hit the beach and toss a frisbee around, hopefully towards an energetic Border Collie who will nimbly leap above the surf to catch it neatly in his mouth. That would be awesome.

Love,
Chris

If you enjoy reading interviews with bands that are covering entire albums by other bands at the West End Cultural Centre on June 10th, 2010, then this interview may be of interest to you. Thanks, Painting Over Silence!

Don't forget, the first annual 100 Mile Musical Diet challenge takes place THIS THURSDAY!

Love,
Chris

Painting Over Silence: You’ll be performing seminal Winnipeg punk-rock act Red Fisher’s record War Wagon in its entirety. What is it about this album that intrigued Paper Moon enough to choose it for the inaugural100 Mile Musical Diet?

Chris Hiebert: There were a couple of reasons for picking that album. Red Fisher holds a special place in most of our hearts for one reason or the other, and Allison's first all-ages show ever was a Red Fisher show, so there's a certain amount of nostalgia involved. Also, Johnny Stewart was actually hoping to become part of Paper Moon while we were living in Vancouver a couple of years back (which, alas, never actually happened) so it seemed "right" to pick HIS band when we were asked to cover another Winnipeg band's music. We actually discussed with Johnny which album we should choose and we ended up with War Wagon because we all felt that it was Red Fisher at their height of proficiency and musicality.

And I own a set of Jason Tait's old drums, so there's another Paper Moon/Red Fisher connection.

PoS: Is your approach to tackling War Wagon more of a reimagining of the sound with that irresistible Paper Moon pop-rock flair, more of a loyal, straight-forward cover that retains the punk sensibilities of the original release, or somewhere in between?

CH: A bit of both. We took most of the songs, deconstructed them and then re-arranged them in our home studio. We definitely pop-ified some of them while some others retained a bit more of the pop-punk edge. While we were tempted at times to take the easy way out and simply play the album note for note, it would've felt wrong. Cheap. Dishonest. So we only did that for a couple of the shorter songs. Oops. Hey, this process was fairly exhausting so we had to draw the line somewhere!

PoS: Learning another band’s record all the way through surely involves a lot of time, tons of energy, and even more patience. What has this rather unique, self-directed apprenticeship been like for the band so far?

CH: Holy crap. WAY more work than we thought in the beginning. We tried just bashing them out in the practise space but just ended up basically playing the exact songs so we decided on the deconstruction route instead. That got off to a very slow, disheartening start. Lots of staring at blank ProTools sessions and poking randomly at a keyboard until deciding to just take a nap or something instead. But we finally got a beat down for one, or a melody for another, and it just snowballed. It's been tough, we haven't had as many practises as I would've liked due to basement flooding and scheduling conflicts, but it's been a lot of fun. I think we might end up continuing to play one or two of these songs in future sets.

PoS: So…approximately how many time HAVE you heard War Wagon over the past week?

CH: Not so much during the last week, in fact not as much as we would've liked. The first couple of weeks were saturated with War Wagon while we were all getting familiar with it, but we actually tried to avoid too much of it when we were demoing the Paper Moon versions, so as not to fall back on the originals. I can say, though, that there was a lot of lost sleep during those weeks. Lying in bed, staring into the darkness with Cookie Dough or Crank Bait on infinite repeat in our heads. Could be worse, though. We rearranged Under The Sea from The Little Mermaid for a benefit comp a couple of months ago...imagine THAT screaming through your brain over and over at 3am.

PoS: Were there any other local releases you considered before ultimately landing on this Red Fisher record?

CH: Mike Petkau originally wanted us to do God Shuffled His Feet by the Crash Test Dummies but we didn't really have any connection to that one so we started throwing around some other ideas. A couple of other notable considerations were something by The Watchmen, or Propagandhi's first record which would've been pretty fun. Mike's vision was to have us play something that was very different from the usual Paper Moon style, and having Allison singing about sticking the $%&*ing flag up your *@%# ass would be a departure indeed, though perhaps too much so.

PoS: And finally, what’s in store for Paper Moon during the second half of 2010?

CH: Some of us will be participating in the Manitoba Half Marathon on June 20, and training for that is taking up a surprising amount of time and energy. We will also be playing at the Forks on Canada Day. Besides that, we've been working on a bunch of new songs. We'll probably work on a bunch more, and maybe end up with an album's worth of material. Should that occur, then our plans may shift from leisurely walks in the park and lying on beaches to becoming pale and gaunt in the recording studio, but we'll see.

Well, this is very exciting! This show will be the culmination of weeks worth of listening to almost nothing except for Red Fisher. Good thing they were awesome!

West End Cultural Centre presents:
100 Mile Musical Diet – Winnipeg Rock Tribute
w/ Magnum K.I. perform The Weakerthans’ Reconstruction Site + Paper Moon perform Red Fisher’s War Wagon
Thursday, June 10 @ WECC

The West End Cultural Centre is excited to celebrate June’s first annual 100 Mile Musical Diet challenge. Our stereos will be tuned in to lots of obscure or forgotten local acts as well as to those more renowned ones, while also exploring some new Manitoba music that hasn’t been spotlighted yet. This first instalment of the 100 Mile Musical Diet is a show that will capture the imagination of all Winnipeg music fans alike.

Acclaimed local hip hop outfit Magnum K.I. is undertaking the bold task of covering The Weakerthans’ album Reconstruction Site. It will be exciting to hear the Weakerthans music twisted and morphed into a completely new genre.

And for the true rock n roll nostalgist in you, local pop band Paper Moon will perform Red Fisher’s album War Wagon in its entirety. Red Fisher featured future Weakerthans’ drummer Jason Tait, and was part of the early 90’s punk scene that exploded and formed the genesis for the next round of Winnipeg bands.

This is going to be a show for the ages – a stylistic mashup to pay homage to some of Winnipeg’s most legendary acts. We’d like to thank Magnum K.I. and Paper Moon for taking on the challenge of the first 100 Mile Musical Diet!

The WECC is also excited to introduce our NEW and FREE BICYCLE VALET service to our patrons on the same night as this show. Ride your bike here and have it stored in a locked and safe area while you watch the show!

Thursday, June 10, 2010
Doors 7:15pm | Show 8:00 pm
Tickets are $10 in advance/ $13 at the door
Available at the West End Cultural Centre, Ticketmaster, Music Trader

Love,
Chris

Remember late last year when Winnipeg radio station Hot 103 released a benefit compilation of Christmas songs done by Winnipeg artists? Well, it's kind of happening again! This time it's for the kids though.

They asked us to contribute, so we kicked our guests out of the spare bedroom containing our studio and cranked out a version of "Under The Sea" that may please you. So far, both kids songs we've done (the first being "Your Attitude Towards Cuttlefish" some years ago) feature underwater denizens. I guess that's our thing.

If you want to hear it, head over to our MySpace page. It's up there, at least for a little while.

Here's some information!

HOT 103 and QX104 are proud to present "We Are Family: A Collection of Super-Fun Songs For Kids & Parents"!

It's a brand new CD in support of the Children's Hospital Foundation of Manitoba and it will be released on Thursday, April 29 at the 2010 Caring For Kids Radiothon.

The CD will be sold for $10 and all proceeds will go to the Children's Hospital Foundation of Manitoba.

You'll be able to buy your copy at HOT 103/QX104 Studios (3rd Floor - 177 Lombard Ave.) starting on April 29.

And, on April 29, you'll be able to pick up a copy of the CD at The Forks while attending the Wondershows Spring Carnival. Have fun and contribute to a great cause!

The album features over 20 tracks by great local artists! Here's the Track Listing, in no particular order:

The QX104 Waking Crew: Caroline Hunter & Mookie Wilson - The Candyman
Ace Burpee & His Mom - Had A Little Doggie
Chrissy Troy & Fred Penner - Fred & Chrissy
Bryce Pallister - When You Wish Upon A Star
Paper Moon - Under The Sea
Voldis & The Melodicas - Anything You Want To Be
Cher Maendel feat. James Roth - This Little Light of Mine
Fred Penner & The Pushing Daisies - Comfort Food
Bubba B The MC - Wish My Teacher Was Bubba B
Flo - Brahms Lullaby
Why - Happy On Purpose
Enjoy Your Pumas - I Am An Astronaut
The Pushing Daisies - Rock & Roll Readers
Ingrid D. Johnson & The Funky Fresh Crew - Summertime
Jeff Driedger - Going For A Ride
Joel Nickel - Down At Fraggle Rock
Little Hawk (Troy Westwood) - By My Side
Chad James - Old McDonald Had A Farm
Jason Gordon Feat. Jessica Lynn - Let The Sun Shine
Matt Epp & Alex Sannie of The Lytics - My Own Man
Jaylene Johnson - Grow
Alana Levandoski - Why Oh Why

Love,
Chris

I've upgraded my traditional First-Message-Of-The-New-Year outfit from basic pyjamas to pyjamas + Snuggie. It's a new age of functional comfort, my friends. My arms are free from the restrictions of clumsy, restrictive blankets and throws. Come. Let me hug you.

It's been tingly and exciting to see "Best Of 2009" blogs and charts popping up that mention our own little album. For example:

-!earshot online pressed their Indie Supercomputer (which is cooler than whatever Supercomputer YOU use...) into service and calculated that "Only During Thunderstorms" was in the sexiest chart position possible - good ol' 69 - on their Top 200 of 2009.

-CBC Radio 3 felt that "People Were Talking But Now They Are Forgetting" was a song worthy of inclusion in their Top 103 of 2009 chart (we're #73).

-Members of Pop Underground voted on their best of 2009 chart and placed our record at #73.

-etc...

I'm happy that people thought our record was worth listening to often enough to find us a spot in their "Best Of" lists. Thank you, everyone, for the support over the last year! I'm sorry we didn't get out to all the places we had hoped to. It was a very strange year for touring, filled with potential and excitement in the West but also fraught with disappointment in the East.

Hey, and remember that time when we made a video and created a YouTube channel? And then we started a Twitter page? How we managed to squeeze all of that into just one year is beyond me. It's like we weren't even ourselves, but were possessed by some other beings made of pure light and energy and driven by a single motivation - to network socially.

What does 2010 have in store for us? Well, friends, I don't know. There has been some songwriting going on after several months of precious relaxation, so maybe some more of that will happen? The only certainty at the moment is that we will be performing at the 2nd Annual Manitoba Music Showcase which takes place on January 31. There is a LOT more information about it right over here, but the short version is that it is a "a FREE public event filled with multiple genres of music, film and television entertainment". There will be a fat lineup of musicians including (besides us) The Weakerthans, Grand Analog, Romi Mayes, Fred Penner, Nathan, JP Hoe, Harlequin, Billy Joe Green, Quinzy, Daniel ROA, Domenica, and Record of the Week Club with Mike Petkau. There will also be film screenings, interviews, and more. The musicians are all only doing one song each, but with that kind of lineup it will definitely be worth spending a couple of hours at. And hey, FREE!

2nd ANNUAL
MANITOBA FILM & MUSIC SHOWCASE
brought to you by Rogers
*FREE PUBLIC EVENT*
SUNDAY, JANUARY 31, 2010
2:00PM – 4:30PM
DOORS OPEN AT 1:00PM
CENTENNIAL CONCERT HALL
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA

Love,
Chris.

So much time has passed since the last update that I'm probably startling you right now. As if Paper Moon was this creepy guy who used to talk to you a lot but now just follows you around, silently, until you forget he's even there and you're just standing in line at the grocery store when suddenly he shouts "SO I'M CONSIDERING ACQUIRING A PAIR OF WHITE PANTS! DO YOU THINK THAT WOULD BE A MISTAKE?!" and it scares the crap out of you and you drop your pint of Haägen-Dasz Mint Chip ice cream that took you so long to track down. So, I'm sorry about that.

But check this out! We very recently recorded a version of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" which will appear alongside a bevy of fantastic musicians on a compilation being released by Hot103, a Winnipeg radio station. And it's for a good cause!

HOT 103 presents The 12 Days of Winnipeg Christmas in support of the Christmas Cheer Board and the Winnipeg Humane Society.

On sale Friday, December 4 at One Big Day for Christmas at the Safeway on Ness Ave. by Polo Park in Madison Square for just $10. Following that day the CD will be available at HOT 103 Studios - 3rd floor 177 Lombard Ave.

Featuring:

The Shouting Ground – Feliz Navidad
Keith and Renee – Winter Wonderland
Jaylene Johnson – Winter Wish
Pushing Daisies – Silent Night
Don Amero & Jason Gordon – All I Need For Christmas
Flo – Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire)
Quinzy – Feast!
Paper Moon – Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Jodi King – Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
JP Hoe – The Shopping Mall Santa
James Struthers – All I Want For Christmas (Is You)
The Details – Strings & Ribbons
Fenom- We Three Kings
Mike Burnard – Santa Please
Ace Burpee feat. JP Hoe – The Happiest Christmas Tree
Chrissy Troy feat. Troy Westwood – Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree
Ace Burpee, Chrissy Troy, and LTI feat. Sierra Noble – Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer

Love,
Chris.

The last update was pretty long, so I'll make this one more concise.

In addition to the last-ever Hot Little Rocket show at the Marquee Room in Calgary on Saturday, September 19th that you should be attending, we are also playing an ALL-AGES show the night before at...oh my god I can't even believe this is happening...TUBBY DOG. I believe it is KEN'S turn to be introduced to Sherm's Ultimate Gripper. Enjoy, Ken.

FRIDAY, SEPT 18th
Calgary, AB @ TUBBY DOG (ALL AGES!)
w/ Hot Little Rocket (their penultimate show!)

SATURDAY, SEPT 19th
Calgary, AB @ The Marquee Room
w/ Hot Little Rocket (their very last show ever!)

Love,
Chris.

This memorandum leaves me with a confused jumble of emotions to deal with, similar to the feelings I had at the end of that day in which I first burnt my Pop Tarts, but then I went outside and the ice cream truck was JUST driving by so I scored a delicious Fudgesicle! I got halfway through it before a tiny, yappy beast came running out of a hedge and scared me into dropping my remaining Fudgesicle. But after the beast ran off to harass another helpless victim and I squatted down to see if I could salvage any of the precious, icy fudge (alas, it was beyond saving) I found a long-forgotten green plastic army man lying in the hedge and it was the BAZOOKA guy, which was the only one I was missing from my collection! There had been many casualties during the Great Firecracker War of '81... The rest of the day progressed in a manner which was pretty neutral compared to those other rollercoaster events. I'm still not sure if that was a good day or a bad one.

First, the blackened Pop Tarts:

WE AREN'T TOURING OUT EAST THIS YEAR!
We were extremely disappointed to learn that our tour itinerary wasn't quite as firmed up as we were lead to believe. In fact, it was the exact opposite of "firmed up". It was a phantom itinerary, ghostly and insubstantial. By the time the truth was realized it was too late to get anything properly lined up and promoted so we decided to cut our losses and hold off until we could do the tour justice. I can't tell you exactly when we'll head out there, but right now we're throwing around words like "spring". I know that's very sad news, but what's that sound? Is it "Camptown Races" that you hear, announcing the arrival of the ice cream man and his bounty of Fudgesicles?!

WE'RE GOING TO CALGARY INSTEAD!
Our dear friends in Hot Little Rocket have invited us out to play a show with them in Calgary at The Marquee Room on Saturday, September 19th! We initially had to turn them down because we were still being wooed by our shadowy Eastern tour, but since that spectre has now been banished we can do it. It's always a good time when we play together but this time is bittersweet, not unlike the sight of a half-eaten Fudgesicle flying out of your hand when you've been badly startled by some sort of dog-rat hybrid hiding in a hedge. You see, it is their very last show ever. We have been friends ever since they first started and we're immensely sad to see their story conclude. This makes TWO bands that we are very close to that have marked their ends by playing a show with Paper Moon this year. I'm starting to feel like an undertaker.

Hey, what's that little green thing under the hedge, there?

WE ARE IN AN MTS ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN!
If you live in Manitoba and think that the song playing in the new MTS television and radio ads is familiar, then you are very perceptive. It is "Where Did All Our Time Go?" (which, in case you didn't know, has an accompanying video that you can see HERE) by your favourite band, Paper Moon! It makes me want to purchase a cellular phone every time I hear it. Keep an eye and/or ear out for it!

A REMINDER OF THIS OTHER SHOW COMING UP!
Hopefully your class schedule can accomodate you being in the University of Winnipeg Quad between 1:30 and 2:15 on Wednesday, September 9th, otherwise you'd best get your skipping excuses prepared now. We will be playing at that time, in that place as part of O-Week. It's an outdoor show...always risky especially for us, but we're hopeful that our soggy curse has been broken since our Winnipeg Beach outdoor show last month was such a rousing success. Did I just jinx it? Probably.

WEDNESDAY, SEPT 9th (1:30pm-2:15pm)
@ the University of Winnipeg Quad

SATURDAY, SEPT 19th
Calgary, AB @ The Marquee Room
w/ Hot Little Rocket (their very last show ever!)

Love,
Chris

We have not been busy for the last couple of months. Not at all. There have been sun-drenched beaches. There have been barbecues. There have been birthdays and anniversaries. There have been long walks.

There have been naps.

But with a yawn and a luxurious stretch, we are rolling out of bed and preparing for some activity. We will shave and shower and put on deodorant and face the upcoming events, well rested and ready.

CAN WE BORROW YOUR UMBRELLA?
I'm sorry if you live in Manitoba and were hoping for a warm, sunny day on August 1st because there's a good chance there will be a monsoon or earthquake instead. Maybe a rain of frogs. You see, Paper Moon is scheduled to play outdoors that day, on the Winnipeg Beach bandstand at around 7pm. When John joined the band a few years back, he brought with him some eldritch curse that perhaps even he doesn't understand, and since that day our outdoor engagements have been extra moist. Perhaps this time will be different but just in case, the rain location will be the Rec Centre.

And why tempt fate just once, when you can do it twice? We're also going to Kelwood, Manitoba for the Harvest Sun Festival. We'll be there on Saturday, August 15 at around 7pm.

Oh, wait...I just realized that we're actually going to poke Mother Nature in the face with a stick yet again on Wednesday, September 9. We will be at the University of Winnipeg, most likely outside the Atrium, at around 1:30. It's "O-Week", and we'll be helping to ease the student's transition from the lazy freedom of summer into the dusty world of lectures and textbooks.

After that we're going to penetrate Eastern Canada for a little while, hopefully indoors. Those dates are still in flux, but we're hoping to visit Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, and a potpourri of other Southern Ontario hamlets. You will be informed over time.

Saturday, August 1st, 2009
7pm and onwards @ the Winnipeg Beach bandstand
Rain location is the Rec Centre

Saturday, August 15th, 2009
Kelwood, Manitoba for the Harvest Sun Festival
We're on at around 7pm

Wednesday, September 9, 2009
@ The University of Winnipeg for O-Week
We're on at 1:30pm

Approximately September 10-19, 2009
Somewhere between Montreal and Winnipeg

RANDOM RADIO NEWS
I'd like to point out that we reached NUMBER 3 on CBC Radio 3's Top 30 recently. We aren't up there anymore, but we were, and it felt awesome. Thanks, CBC Radio 3!

Feel free to request our songs on pretty much any campus radio station across Canada, or on CBC Radio 2 or 3. And if you live in Winnipeg you can request us on Curve 94.3 as well as Hot 103, as we are on the playlists of both stations. If you are NOT in Winnipeg, then ask for us on your local commercial radio station!

WE'RE TWEETING. IS ANYONE LISTENING?
There are so many ways of keeping up with what we're doing, I get a little sick just thinking about them. There are the usuals like our website, MySpace, Facebook, Reverbnation...but now we have these new venues:

• www.youtube.com/youlovepapermoon is where you can find our video for "Where Did All Our Time Go?", as well as whatever other moving pictures we see fit to stick up there. Maybe we'll start video-blogging on tour or something. That would be cool, hey? Très moderne.
• www.twitter.com/papermoonmusic is where we tweet. That's what people do nowadays. Come on, follow us on Twitter. I promise to not just tweet about bacon and urinating next time we tour. Well, I can't really promise that, actually...

Love,
Chris

My mind is bursting with information. Most of it is worthless trivia, valuable only to me and useable only to amuse others at parties. However, these days my skull strains even further to contain the abundance of Paper Moon-related minutiae, and I must purge some of it lest I forget truly important things like how to breathe or what language the power droids in Star Wars speak (it's Gonkian, by the way).

WE BIRTHED ANOTHER CD!
First, let me thank all of you (and there were many!) who came out on May 1 to partake in the celebration for our new album's release. I hope you enjoyed yourselves. I know I did. Special thanks to the incredible Liptonians and the astounding BEAT! for playing this show with us. Double extra special thanks to Larry (I hope that's right) who bought John a tray of Jagerbombs for his birthday.

Oh, and you can now get the album on

WE BIRTHED A VIDEO! Those of you in attendance also got a delightful surprise...the world premiere of our brand new video for "Where Did All Our Time Go?"! After so long without one, Ben Stouffer and his crew came along and finally just made us a damned video. It was so great to share it with the crowd at the Pyramid and see the reactions to it, and now we can share it with EVERYBODY, although we can't see your reaction unless we're creepily staring into your window while you watch it (which might happen, if you're very lucky).

I recommend watching it in "HQ". You can also read a little bit about the making of the video and look at some behind-the-scenes pictures and videos in this here blog post, but you should try to name all of the movie scene reenactments that we did first.

Watch it HERE!

WE'RE BIRTHING A TOUR!
Just a reminder that WE'RE GOING ON TOUR BASICALLY NOW. So maybe we'll be seeing you in one of the following places, at the appropriate time?

May 6, 2009 - Regina, SK - The Club
May 7, 2009 - Lethbridge, AB - The Slice
May 9, 2009 - Vancouver, BC, CD Release Party - The Railway, with Cinderpop and Dawntreader
May 12, 2009 - Kelowna, BC - The Grateful Fed
May 13, 2009 - Penticton, BC - Voodoo's
May 14, 2009 - Edmonton, AB - The Crown and Anchor
May 15, 2009 - Calgary, AB - The Palomino

WE BIRTHED A...TWEET?
Okay, fine, we'll sign up for a Twitter account. It's at
http://twitter.com/PaperMoonMusic
and you should become a...follower? Because FitnessLion, the pity-fan that was assigned to us by default, is lonely. We'll try to update it as rapidly and pointlessly as we can while we're on the road. Maybe from rest-stop bathrooms.

WE ENABLED THESE OTHER PEOPLE TO BIRTH STUFF ABOUT US!
Just for fun, here is a small selection of links to reviews and interviews that we've seen and done in the last little while. You know, to remind you of how awesome we are.

The Winnipeg Sun likes our new album.

As does 30Music.

The Uniter starts a local band rivalry that we didn't ask for.

FFWD in Calgary gives us some tough love.

CBC radio's DNTO included us in their recent podcast, "Makin' Mistakes". We're at around the 50 minute mark.

Uptown Magazine did an interview with us.

Enjoy this interview with BeatRoute Magazine.

Some more Winnipeg Sun action, this time in interview form.

Soundproof Magazine did an interview as well.

Love,
Chris

How appropriate that this wonderful event should take place in the spring. Our new album, "Only During Thunderstorms", is now completely available. The CDs have emerged, glistening and chittering, from the warmth of their cocoons and are ready to find their way into your greedy paws by whatever means necessary. If they must undergo metamorphosis once more in order to reach you digitally, then so be it. They are prepared for even this.

Now you want to know how to obtain one of these crazy things. There are a few methods, and they are as follows:

PHYSICALLY
-Go to the Endearing Records store. They have many of them, and they will be only too happy to mail one or more out to you. As an added bonus, our previous two full-length albums are currently 25% off! Not enough bonus for you? Then simply spend $40 or more at the Endearing Records store, enter the coupon code 5SPRING09 when you checkout, and receive an extra $5 discount! They want you to buy stuff so bad, they're practically paying YOU to take it! YOU CAN'T REFUSE!

-Go to CD Baby. They have them as well. They will also mail one or more out to you.

-Support your local record store. If they don't have it, make them get it for you. They are able to, I assure you.

-And of course, if you can wait until May 1, you can take one directly from the hands of a band member at our CD release show at the Pyramid Cabaret in Winnipeg. If you do this after we play, there is a chance that the band member's hands will be sweaty. This only adds to the experience.

If you are not in Winnipeg, then perhaps we can complete a similar transaction in your hometown should we be passing through on tour.

DIGITALLY
-Use the creepy power of the internet to buy a digital copy from:
Zunior
It will also be on iTunes very soon. I'm sorry I can't be more precise than that.

You can do this. It will be worth it, trust me. The album is awesome.

Love,
Chris

You're a Paper Moon fan, right? So you know how we do things. Very slowly, is how we do things. There was a span of about four years between our first and second albums but since then we've functioned like a well-oiled machine, precise and strong, masterfully juggling schedules and details and managing our time in the most efficient manner possible. Now, we're proud to announce that after a mere three years, our new album, entitled "Only During Thunderstorms", is imminent.

Naturally, this is cause for celebration, and celebrate we shall! Hopefully with you. On May 1, 2009 at the Pyramid Cabaret, you will be delighted first by the mighty and award-winning Liptonians. While you're still reeling from the excitement, Paper Moon will deliver the knockout punch with a set of songs almost entirely drawn from the new album. You will awaken from brief, blissful oblivion to the throbbing, sexy sounds of The BEAT! and you will realize that the night has only just begun.

And somewhere in there, you will purchase our brand new album, yes?

If you'd like a taste of this delicious album, head on over to our MySpace page where there are several new tracks, most of which are from the album and one of which is a cover of Hot Little Rocket's "Down With Safe" which appears only on the "What Are You Going To Do With Me?" CDEP which is for sale even now at the Endearing Records store.

Fear not, non-Winnipeggers, we shall also come to you! We are planning a couple of quick junkets to our left and right. The Western tour is coming together. Examine these dates to see if one of them might be appropriate for you!

Friday, May 1, 2009 Winnipeg, MB @ The Pyramid w/ The Liptonians and The BEAT!
Thursday, May 7, 2009 Lethbridge, AB @ The Slice
Saturday, May 9, 2009 Vancouver, BC @ The Railway w/ Cinderpop and Dawntreader.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 Kelowna, BC @ The Grateful Fed
Wednesday, May 13, 2009 Penticton, BC @ Voodoo's
Friday, May 15, 2009 Calgary, AB @ The Palomino

More dates will be added as they get confirmed. Visit one of our many websites to stay up-to-date.

There might be some other awesome stuff happening but I don't want to overwhelm you. Remember...very slowly.

Love,
Chris

One minute Alli and I are potato-ing it up on the couch watching Fringe, the next minute we're gearing up for a show in which we are suddenly the opening act!

Paper Moon w/ Lights
Friday, January 9, 2009
@ the Pyramid Cabaret
Winnipeg, MB

Come on out! Don't talk to me about how cold it is and how you don't want to leave your home. Suck it up, you baby! This is where you live, so deal with it! This show will be worth it. I can't wait to see Lights blazing away on a keytar.

Love,
Chris

Seriously. I honestly don't know where to start. I considered making a numbered list and rolling dice to determine the order in which I would report the latest "events", but that method is better suited to battling bugbears and determining random treasure drops in Dungeons & Dragons than for laying out newsletters. I should know.

So here is the news, without further indecision!

A NEW ALBUM THAT YOU STILL HAVE TO WAIT FOR!
We basically have another album. The songs are there, the album art is there, the post-album-making exhaustion is there, but we won't be releasing it until April, 2009. I just wanted to put this information out there for you to consider during the next several months. Also, because the next news items are very much related to this one. It's a really good album, though. You can't wait for it. It's called "Only During Thunderstorms".

A FAIRLY IMPORTANT SHOW, AT LEAST TO US!
Cancel your plans for Thursday, December 4th, unless they already included attending our show at the Park Theatre. You can tape/TiVO/download Grey's Anatomy if you need to, as this is more important.

Remember a few sentences back, when I mentioned an album? Yeah, we still have to pay for that. So we are going to play a show that will hopefully help us do that. That's where you come in. Please come to this show!

Paper Moon w/ Ann Walton and The Playing Cards
Thursday, December 4th, 2008
@ The Park Theatre (698 Osborne)
Doors open at 7pm, show starts at 7:30, over by 10
Tickets are $8 in advance/$10 at the door and are available at the Park Theatre and Music Trader

If you need more incentive, how about this next news item?

DO YOU LIKE MUSIC?
Since you're wringing your hands and gnashing your teeth impatiently, unable to contain your excitment for the new full-length album, we're going to throw you a bone. This bone is shaped like a CD EP. In fact, it's not a bone at all, it's actually a CD EP. It will feature the song "What Are You Going To Do With Me?" which will be on the upcoming album (see how it's all relating?). It will also have some unique Paper Moon stuff on it that we mainly did at Spare Bedroom Studio (which is actually just our spare bedroom) like a remix of "These New Friends Of Yours...", a little ditty called "We Can Take The Long Way", two covers of Hot Little Rocket and Lindy songs, and if that all wasn't enough, some live video that was shot last year at the Park Theatre (which is where we're playing on December 4th). It will all be encased in hand-made sleeves. This sweet item will be available for sale from the Endearing Records website on December 1, or you can pick it up from us at the show on December 4th at the Park Theatre that you really should go to.

ROB AND LESLIE'S NEW RELEASE!
While the band was busy busting out some rockin' tracks in the studio, our very own Rob and Leslie were busy busting out a rockin' BABY in their LIVING ROOM! They (more specifically, Leslie) gave birth to Molly Rodgers on October 26th. They're all doing well and are basically the most awesome. It's pretty crazy, really. I still remember meeting Rob for the first time at the Albert when he was, like, 10 years old or something. And now they just went and made this person. Yay for that!

Alright, so, see you on December 4th at the Park Theatre then! I have tickets on me right now if you need some. Help me reach my quota, or Allison will scold me.

Love,
Chris

Despite what you may have been thinking, the members of Paper Moon have not been vacationing on some private Italian beach. Nor have we been engaged in rampant debauchery in the "Pudding Room" of our enormous mansion. Also, we haven't just been sitting around on our asses watching TV*.

We've been busy. Moving, marriages, babies, new jobs...and around all of that, we managed to write an album's worth of songs which we've started recording! Even though the first weekend in the studio was a whirlwind of bed tracks and Quiznos, it was very exciting to be recording again. We're shooting for a spring '09 release. Does that suit you? I hope so. Spring seems like a good time for releasing new things.

If you'd like to hear some of these new songs, perhaps you could pencil us in for August 22. We, along with some other fabulous acts, will be playing at The Pyramid Cabaret. Please come.

Friday, August 22
@ The Pyramid Cabaret
Paper Moon w/ Flying Fox & the Hunter/Gatherers, Novillero and The BEAT!
http://wheresyourmusic.ca

You can, of course, hear one of these new songs on Q-94 FM. They have been playing "What Are You Going To Do With Me?" quite a bit, but still not enough to get on the chart. Won't you please request it from the website or by phone (204-780-9436)? Thanks!

Love,
Chris.

*(One of those statements is a lie. I'll give you a hint...it's the last one. We've been doing some TV watching. Let me just say that while I'm happy for Joshua and his "So You Think You Can Dance" victory, I am not sure he was the best dancer in the final four. I would've gone with Twitch. Aside from Alli, I can't speak for the other member's TV habits).

Sit back, close your eyes, have a sip of whatever warm beverage provides you with comfort (or sip BEFORE closing your eyes if you're clumsy) and think back to the beginning of 2007...The thought that probably leaps into your mind first is how awesome it was when Paper Moon was 8 on Q-94's Top 40 chart, right? And now you're stuck gazing into that empty place in your soul which was once blazing with pink and blue light, illuminating the members of Paper Moon standing victorious over the beaten (but still hot) body of Justin Timberlake, and you're wondering if you could ever experience that thrill again.

You can.

The opponents are different this year. Miley Cyrus and ...Doughtry?... have taken the places of Gwen Stefani and Hinder, but we have a brand new song with which to obliterate them. It's called "What Are You Going To Do With Me?" and we think you'll like it. The thing is, we can't do it alone. We need all of YOU to start requesting this song. Over and over again.

So, go to q94fm.com and click on the On-Air DJ to make a request, or call them directly at 204-780-9436. If you feel weird calling them all the time, you can try calling as different characters. You can be Rodney the chimneysweep who needs motivation to get his ass up that last chimney of the day. Or maybe Aristotle the yacht owner who is concerned that his on-board champagne party is becoming too pedestrian. It's up to you!

Now, PICK UP THAT PHONE!

Love,
Chris

You see, there's this thing happening on May 24th. Most people we mention this to are convinced that May 24th falls on a long weekend so they won't be able to attend. Rest assured, we know all about Winnipeg and long weekends and we do our best to avoid booking anything on any summer long weekends. We can not compete with cabins, tubing, wakeboarding, squid jigging or whatever summer activities you partake in during long weekends.

Now I will describe the Thing that is happening on May 24th.

As you may or may not know, Chris (that's me) and Allison (that's HER) are totally getting married in September. Being Winnipeggers, that inevitably means there will be a "wedding social" (Google it if you don't understand those words). We are straying from the rules a bit with out social, though. Our social will be a Paper Moon show, with local DJs The Beat! enticing you to dance afterwards. We'll have some of the usual trappings of a social, like an auction and/or a 50/50 draw, but don't count on cold meat at midnight. Also, don't count on the Bird Dance. Okay, there might be the Bird Dance.

To sum up:

Chris and Alli's Wedding Social!
Saturday, May 24th, 2008
@ the Park Theatre (698 Osborne Street)
Doors: 8pm
Paper Moon: 8:45pm
The Beat!: 9:45-close
Tickets are $10 at the Park Theatre and Music Trader (or from a member of Paper Moon if you bump into them on the street)

There are also a couple of other shows that I'd like to mention.

Sprengjuhollin + Major Maker + Paper Moon
Friday, May 9th, 2008
@ The Garrick Theatre

Paper Moon
Thursday, May 29th, 2008
@ O'Hanlon's Pub
Regina, SK

Paper Moon w/ The Details and Hot Little Rocket
Saturday, May 31st, 2008
@ The Palomino
Calgary, AB

Love,
Chris

I’ll just put this out there...we’re going to record a new album this year. I’m going to leave it at that for fear of prematurely revealing information that is best kept hidden, or, more likely, revealing information that’s just plain wrong. I do that sometimes.

But here! Some news that is relevant! News that can be acted upon!

There is a label based in the UK called Baby Boom Records. They have generously placed one of our new songs on their most recent sampler, concisely entitled "Sampler 003". The song in question is "The One For Me" which is also featured on our MySpace page which you probably already know. You can purchase this sampler by following a link on their MySpace page, or by just following this. I know, it’s not an actual Paper Moon album or anything but it’s going to have to do for now. Apparently we are incapable of releasing more than one album every four years or whatever. Guided By Voices we are not.

Anyway, thanks, Baby Boom! You’re awesome!

Love,
Chris

It has been pointed out to me that the previous entry entitled "MySpace Sucks!" may have achieved less "comedy", and more "alienation", than I had intended.

I, myself, do not like MySpace. I find it to be extremely buggy and unstable and overly flashy for my tastes. That being said, Facebook is well on its way to achieving these same conditions but for the moment, I find it to be cleaner and more functional and therefore more pleasant to use. The thing is, as someone who has spent a lot of time working with these newfangled computing engines, I dislike all technology equally.

I still recognize what MySpace did for bands in particular, believe me. I embraced it when I first stumbled across it and still believe the connection that it creates between musicians and fans is invaluable. I just think that, like the dwarves of Moria, it delved too greedily and too deep in its effort to please everyone with more customization and more "features". But whereas the dwarves released a Balrog, MySpace just kinda got a little...broken. But hey, at least we can say "myspace.com/papermoonmusic" from the stage which is a lot easier to say, and remember, than "facebook.com/pages/Paper-Moon/6228339572". That's one thing Facebook hasn't quite figured out yet.

My distaste for MySpace certainly doesn't reflect on any of you, dear friends. You say poTAYto, I say poTAHto*, but let's not call the whole thing off just yet. Let us agree to disagree. We will still promote our Facebook page, and our website, and our ReverbNation page (which hasn't really caught on yet), and I will even promote this awesome webcomic that was recently shown to me called Achewood**, but we haven't abandoned MySpace and will continue to use it along with everything else. We just provide options for those of you who want them, and for everyone else, keep on keepin' on.

Love,
Chris

*Please note that I do not say poTAHto. I pronounce it as "potential french fry".
**Please note that there is some talk of "boning" (in the biblical sense) in Achewood so if that offends you, maybe just skip it.

You know how Myspace was the Big Thing a couple of years back, until it became so bloated from its own excesses that it stumbled and fell, twitching and drooling as the tangled mob of crappy music players and flashing backgrounds ripped its corrupt frame asunder? And do you remember how Facebook stepped out of the shadows with open arms, kicking the remains of Myspace aside and leading everyone away with promises of cleaner, more functional interfaces and stable mechanisms? Well, before Facebook falls to the same ravaging diseases that took Myspace, why don't you conform to the fickle whims of online social trendiness and check out...
Paper Moon's page?

Come on, you know you want to.

Love,
Chris

So, the first Paper Moon Rock Show since, what, August 2007 or something? went amazingly well. Cinderpop was kind enough to let us play at their CD release show and I think the Vancouver Paper Moon pulled it off. Our only regret...that the stage at the Railway wasn't big enough to allow Robb and Jahmeel to properly pull off some Twin Axe Attacks. But hey, for those who want to see Jahmeel, the Dark Prince, playing some wimpy pop music, check THIS shit out:

If you're wondering what that single second of some other band is at the end of the video, I'd like to take this opportunity to shamelessly plug this other band that I'm in called Dawntreader. They (we?) are awesome. FUCKING awesome. And we're playing on January 17, 2008, at the Biltmore in Vancouver and if you're in the area, you should totally go.

I'd like to thank Jahmeel for playing with us. This was his last show, as he is now a member of the BLACK HALOS, who are much busier than us. The fat bottom of Paper Moon will now be held down by Ryan Worsley (also from Dawntreader). We're working on some other shows in the near future, but for sure you'll see this line-up of Paper Moon at the Biltmore on February 29th (Happy Leap Year!) for Hinterland's CD release. We mainly service CD release shows now.

Love,
Chris

Hello again!

I'm really sorry. I know there's probably nobody reading this because you're all sick of checking this page for updates and never seeing anything and why waste your time here when there's Scrabulous to be played, right? Well, for the persistent among you, the ones that still care, I can say that there is a Year End Wrapup coming soon. As tradition demands, I will create it in my pyjamas.

Until then, I'll just say that there are a couple of shows in the near future (see, over there on the right side?), and if you go to either our MySpace page or our fancy-but-relatively-unvisited ReverbNation page, you'll find a new song called "The One For Me", which is a demo Alli and I did for our new record-in-progress. Enjoy!

Love,
Chris

Hello everybody!

It may have become apparent to fans of Paper Moon that the band has been suspiciously quiet of late. Mainly, that's me not being sufficiently motivated to write anything. But it isn't entirely my fault. We are actually not doing very much right now. I mean, Allison and I have decided to take a bit of a songwriting trip to the west coast in preparation for a new record, and the rest of the band is doing...whatever they do when we aren't around.

I'll stop waffling and get to the point. As you may or may not have known, Alli is part of another pop combo called The Hermit. This merry band of troublemakers will be stuffing their junk deep inside the Gnorg (the Paper Moon touring van, for those who think I'm talking about something dirty) and will be traveling to a few select parts of the western provinces to promote their brand new (and fantastic) album.

OBSERVE:

9 Oct 2007
20:00
Doc Willoughby's
Kelowna, British Columbia

10 Oct 2007
20:00
Packers Pub
Golden, British Columbia

11 Oct 2007
20:00
Canmore Hotel
Canmore, Alberta

12 Oct 2007
20:00
Broken City
Calgary, Alberta

13 Oct 2007
20:00
The Royal
Nelson, British Columbia

(Not a tour date, but an upcoming show nonetheless)
2 Nov 2007
20:00
The Railway Club
Vancouver, British Columbia

So, for those of you (all of you) who really only like Paper Moon because of how cute/how awesome a singer/how endearingly clumsy Alli is, you can watch her be all of those things in a different context!

As for Paper Moon, we're not dead. Oh my god, you should hear the stuff we're writing these days..
OH. MY. GOD.

Love,
Chris

Seriously, I had to say basically that exact thing so many times when telling people about that show. Is it so strange that we would play a show, not at the home of the Monday Night Wet T-Shirt Contest, but at the home of the gibbons and red pandas and burrow owls?

I'm talking about the 2nd annual Brew At The Zoo which took place last Thursday. I admit to some skepticism when I heard that the "stage" would be the fenced deck in front of the zoological society's office, but everything went swimmingly. Despite our being last on the bill and thus starting fairly late, we were pleased with the partially-drunken crowd that remained to watch us. There were a lot of you, and you seemed happy! Perhaps it was all the free beer samples and meat. That kind of thing always makes me want to whoop and whatnot.

For those of you who didn't know, that was our last full-band performance for some time (potentially until April of the fantastic year 2008), local or otherwise. I just got kinda sad as I wrote that. Hey, all of you members of the ever-expanding Paper Moon line-up? I like you all a lot, and I'll miss you. I think I can safely say that Alli will miss you too.

So, thanks to all of you for coming out and enjoying meat and beer, and music. Thanks to Tannis Scott for organizing this massive and successful event. Thanks to the sky for not raining on us as specifically as you've been known to do in the past. NO THANKS to the jerks that threw bottles in the bear pits. Jerks. Yeah, YOU.

On behalf of Paper Moon, I'd like to apologize to those who came out to the Forks on Canada Day to see us and ended up getting drenched by the heavy rain that started the moment we were about to play our first song and ended the second our set would've ended. Mike, one of the techs working that day, mentioned that he's worked around 70 shows on that stage and had never seen one rained out. That's what Paper Moon is all about...being the first (and in this case, the ONLY) ones to experience some sort of bizarre disaster.

Anyway, I'm sure the rest of the bands were awesome. We got to see Entropy who were on just before us, and they were fun.

I'm fairly sure that our show at the Collective with the Golden Dogs on July 21st will not be rained out. Though I may have just jinxed it...

Hello everybody!

Let's get right down to business...SHOWS!

-July 1 (CANADA DAY!) @ The Forks (Scotia Bank Stage)...we're on at 6pm
-July 21 @ The Collective w/ The Golden Dogs
-August 4 (ALL AGES!) @ The Park Theatre w/ Hot Little Rocket (it's their CD release!) and All Of Your Friends
-August 23 @ Brew At The Zoo (more information forthcoming)

These shows will feature the swollen new Paper Moon, which now boasts at least three lovely ladies providing more harmonies than you can stand, as well as tambourines, shakers, claves, hand claps, dancing...a feast for all senses!

ATTEND!
Please.

After wending our lazy way through the lush meadows of Q-94's Top 30, running up and then gleefully rolling down the grassy hills of the Top 20, and finally finding ourselves riding the Zipper and eating greasy, sugary treats at the glorious carnival of the Top TEN, it's time to go home. The rides are shutting down, the barkers have stopped ceaselessly urging you to show how much you love the "little lady" by winning her a giant stuffed penguin, and Samson, who runs the travelling show, is telling the rousties to "shake some dust".

Technically, we're still IN the top ten (as we are currently #10), but we knew this time would come eventually, and three concurrent weeks in the Top Ten was more than we hoped for. I wonder what the next "single" will be?

SXSW is fast approaching. All you Austin friends, be sure to make it out to the Co-op Bar on March 14. We're also playing an industry BBQ on Friday at 5pm, but I'm not sure if that's open to the public or not.

That show on Saturday kicked ass, huh? Bunch of amazing stuff topped off by the always-incredible Golden Dogs, and MAN were Jets Overhead ever good!

Below: Our apex, if you will.

I realize that some of you may have glanced at the Top 30 Countdown chart on Q-94's website and believed that Paper Moon was still holding steady at Number 11. Well, it seems that whoever is in charge of updating Q's website is on strike, on vacation, or living the same week over and over again, just like in Groundhog Day except with fewer groundhogs, no Bill Murray, and an entire week instead of a day. Maybe this person has gotten to the point where they're frustrated and just punching people at random, thinking that it doesn't matter because tomorrow the whole thing just starts over again. I hope they don't reach the point of kidnapping a groundhog and driving it off a cliff.

What I'm trying to say is that the chart hasn't been updated for a couple of weeks now, but if Beau, Tom and/or Dez are to be believed, then we hit NUMBER 9 last week, and NUMBER 8 this week! Yay for us, and thanks to anyone who contributed!

What else to say...We have that show with the Golden Dogs and Jets Overhead coming up on March 3 at the Pyramid. We'll be in Austin, Texas, very soon for SxSW. That's exciting. Also, in April I think, we'll be in Los Angeles for several days. We have some demos almost entirely finished, which means NEW SONGS.

Let's leave it at that, shall we?

Holy crap, it's finally happening and we're nervous...

Remember last year, when all we could talk about was how we spent a couple of days on the set of Falcon Beach, shooting scenes for an upcoming episode in which we play ourselves? Well...the time has finally come for the world to see what we look like while playing music on a hillside, as models carrying diaphanous fabrics prance joyfully around us. THAT TIME IS FRIDAY. This Friday, February 9th, at 7pm CST on Global.

What's that? You're positively gibbering with excitement, I can't understand what you're saying, please slow down...OH! You can't wait for Friday and you want to see something NOW? Well then, head over to the Falcon Beach website (http://www.falconbeach.ca) where you will find a link to a FULL-LENGTH MUSIC VIDEO, made specially by the production for this episode! You get to hear our song, "These New Friends Of Yours...", over top of the images I described above as well as scenes from the show. Sexy scenes...especially for a few seconds at the start of the bridge. You'll see what I mean. If you aren't sure what a "bridge" of a song is, just watch for the part where everybody starts furiously humping each other like horny little weasels. THAT'S the bridge. And it's exactly what we had in mind when we wrote it.

Oh yes, it's true. As of last Saturday, we're #17 on Q-94's chart! Here's your proof:

See how I pointed out that while we've only gone upwards during the 6 weeks or so that we've been on the chart, that terrible Gwen Stefani song is already on the way down after being on the chart half as long? Yeah, that's good stuff. I mean, I hope I'm not poking karma with a stick or anything, but it really is kinda satisfying. Gwen, you used to be so good in No Doubt. What the hell?

Anyway, to make this week even more awesome, we found out that String of Blinking Lights is included in the latest Music Advisory Board survey. Let me explain...

Basically, Q94 (a leading commercial radio station in Winnipeg, for those that don't know) is listener-driven. If you sign up to their Music Advisory Board, you get a survey every month or so consisting of clips of a bunch of songs that you get to rate. It takes about 2 minutes or so to complete, enters you into contests (allegedly), and lets you have a say in what gets played. Sounds fantastic, hey? Like maybe it makes you want to sign up immediately? What's more is that, like I said before, our song has been stuck onto the end of this survey, so you get to help decide whether we get higher rotation or not, and whether the station should continue supporting local talent. A noble cause!

So, if you have a couple of minutes to spare and want to help us out, sign up to the Board and rate us highly!

I'm in my pyjamas. I think that's how most of my year end wrap-up posts (both of them?) have been written, so why mess with tradition? Anyway, I've been in them all day and didn't feel the need to dress up just for "blogging".

So, yeah, 2006 is done, huh? It was a pretty neat-o year for Paper Moon, mainly thanks to all of you. The faceless supporters that we haven't met yet, the friends, new and old, that we see at shows and whatnot...everybody. You're all wonderful and if I could kiss you all, I would. Just ask Rob.

It really got started for us with the CD release in February. Helluva show to launch what has turned out to be a fairly successful little record. It's received some good press and "units" have been "moving" at a steady, unrelenting pace. I'm glad. We're really proud of it. It's quite a step forward from "1000 Reasons..." I think, musically closer to what we really wanted to achieve, and the mixing and mastering skills of Greg Reely gave it an extra boost of confidence, a reassuring slap on the ass that said "Hey, you are sleek like a weasel, shiny like those gold records on my wall, and powerful like a lion that is hungry enough to be really ferocious but not so hungry that it's weak and starving. Go out there and get on some people's Top 10 lists!".

Songs from the record have found their way into many a television show and film, thanks to Blair Purda's excessively hard work at hassling music supervisors. We even wrangled a guest spot in a second-season episode of Falcon Beach, which you are probably sick of hearing about. "Our" episode, that is, not Falcon Beach in general. I tell ya, I recently finished watching Season 1 and I'm anxious to see what kind of crazy shit Mook is gonna pull next, and who's going to be making out topless on the beach with whom.

Lots of touring, most of which was completely awesome and some of which we'd like to forget entirely. One great western Canada tour, one great eastern Canada tour with our favourite people, Lindy and Sally, and one...other...eastern tour...let's go back to that GREAT eastern tour in November, shall we? Also, let's not forget some fun showcases, especially Popkomm in Berlin which was so absurd and unreal that if it wasn't for that video I took of Professor Squeakerton watching crazy explicit late-night German chat line commercials on the TV in our hotel room, I'd still think it was all just a dream.

Speaking of the Professor, there was some sadness when we left him behind with his rightful owners, Shannon and Maria, in Sault Ste. Marie. I hope he still remembers us...and I hope he hasn't done anything too creepy to them while they sleep.

By the end of the year, people were still talking about us thanks to the now-defunct Cafe 100 and of course, Q-94. Paper Moon's first forays into commercial radio were (and still are) exciting and rejuvenating. As of right now, we still appear to be number 25 on Q-94's Top 30 chart. That's just crazy. As for Cafe 100, they appear to have metamorphosed into HANK FM, all country, all the time. It saddens and confuses me.

What will 2007 bring? Well, we're really starting to grunt and strain and push some new songs out, hopefully for and album that will come out late this year or early next year. That's just me pulling a timeline out of my ass, by the way. I actually have no idea what's going on when. But yeah, new songs are happening. No more of this 4-years-between-releases nonsense for us. Some of us are too old for that.

Happy New Year, everybody! And resolve to come to the King's Head on February 3rd to see us play! Also resolve to request us on Q-94 at a renewed pace!

In the "Tour" category of the "Photos" section, you will find a photo documentary that follows the adventures of Professor Squeakerton, our pudgy penguin companion over the last few months. Enjoy!

Also, there are a couple of new shows to talk about:
-December 9th at the Freehouse in Osborne Village, we will be playing from 10pm to about midnight.
-February 3rd at the King's Head, we will be playing all night.

These are probably our last couple of shows for some time, as we need to get to work on our new album! So, maybe try to attend one of these shows, if you can manage.

Hello, anyone who came out to Jack's in Thunder Bay on November 11th and found something vastly different from the Paper Moon show you had been hoping to see...

We were there, but only long enough to find out the place had been double-booked and we were not going to be playing or getting paid that night. Believe me, we worked hard to play that night (20+ hours of driving from Montreal through blizzards and psychotic truckers) but to no avail. You can find the full story in a blog on our MySpace page.

Sorry for the mix-up. We'll try to get back to Thunder Bay (IN A DIFFERENT VENUE) sometime in the future.

This is just a quick update to our tour schedule. Things keep changing on us...

The show that we had informed you was at Strega in London Ontario on November 5th is in fact at Strega in St Catherines on November 5th. Also, the Thunder Bay show on November 11th at Jacks has turned out to still be fully confirmed, so you can safely attend.

Sorry to anyone who might have wanted to see us in Sudbury. There was a mix-up in the booking and the show ended up getting cancelled.

Hopefully we'll see you at one of the upcoming shows!

With Jann Arden's victory in the Outstanding Pop Album category, we are now officially on the same "level" as Michael Bublé...that of WCMA LOSERS. Welcome to our world, Michael.

It was a pretty awesome weekend, actually, and the awards show was spectacular, though a bit on the long side. Yay Harlequin for being better than the Guess Who in most respects! You can read a more detailed accounting of our weekend at our MySpace page.

In other news, we have a couple of additions to our tour dates. No, you might be drunk but you aren't seeing double...we ARE playing Thunder Bay twice, at the same venue. Thunder Bay will be the warm-up AND the cool-down to this marathon we'll be running. Also, note the single non-Ontario show on November 9th...we finally get back to Montreal!

I've blown the dust off of this website and can now update it without fear of soiling my hands and then rubbing them on my pants or shirt or whatever and having to walk around all day with fingerprints on my crotch or nipples or some other embarrassing places. So...here we go!

Laugh it up, Buble. You won't be all smiles and chuckles when we snatch that trophy out of your greedy little paws.

We're going to be playing a show during WCMA week here in Winnipeg on October 20th at the Collective Cabaret with some fantastic people, like our friends from Calgary, Hot Little Rocket, and our friends from right here, The Details! It's going to be really great. If you have only enough time to see US that night (though I strongly recommend being there for the whole event), we'll be going on around midnight.

Oh, hey, speaking of the WCMAs, we have been nominated for Best Pop Recording along with the likes of Michael Buble, Jann Arden and Daniel Powter! We're pretty excited about this, and look forward to hearing our music blaring out for a few seconds at the Walker on awards night, wringing our hands in sweaty anticipation and then lurching joyously to our feet when the winner is announced and hugging everyone around us before realizing that the winner was Michael Buble and not us. At that point, we'll all announce loudly that we just had to get up to go to the bathroom, what the hell is everybody looking at and HEY ISN'T THAT KALAN PORTER OVER THERE and then we'll sneak out while everybody is looking around for someone who isn't there. Man, what a night!

What else do we have going on? I'm all distracted from thinking about Michael Buble and his soothing voice...Oh yeah, we're going on tour again! Reinforced by the wondrous Lindy, we are going to mount another, hopefully more successful assault upon Ontario. I've nerdily named this outing the "Revenge Is A Dish Best Served Cold" tour, which works on many geeky levels if you think about it. Anyway, check the SHOW listings. I'll keep those as current as possible.

Also, have a look at some of the pictures we took in Berlin!

Now that the absurd, mysterious event I referred to in the last entry has passed, I can safely tell you what it was.

WE ARE GOING TO APPEAR IN SEASON 2, EPISODE 6 OF FALCON BEACH!

We spent a breathless couple of days last week on the set at Winnipeg Beach shooting a variety of outdoor scenes for our "video". It's funny because we have never shot an ACTUAL video, so I guess this is our first one. It was an amazing experience, so amazing I blogged about it on our MySpace page. You can read the whole story here (and also in John's blog), complete with some pictures. Also, in the "Falcon Beach" section of the PHOTOS section of THIS website, you will find even more photos. Page 2 of that section will be up in the next 24 hours, I think.

Everyone we worked with, all of the cast and crew, were so friendly and helpful that any fears we had were quickly banished. We miss them already. In fact, after two days of being herded around to and from the set and other important places (hair/makeup, wardrobe, our pods, the craft services table...), we're kinda lost in our real lives now. Why hasn't Doug Morrow come to powder my forehead yet? I spilled something on this shirt the other day and I don't know what to do! WHO WILL FEED ME?

I recoded it all to (hopefully) smooth everything out. You may notice the text is a bit bigger. Also, the PHOTOS section is a little easier to deal with. Not that many photos there yet, but they're coming hard and fast. That's right. Hard and fast. Other than that, trust me when I say that the site has been mechanically retooled.

So, listen, there are a lot of things going on, not the least of which is a terribly exciting and nerve-wracking experience that starts tomorrow morning at 6:30 and ends sometime late Friday. I can't even say more about it for fear of fatally jinxing something. It involves miming.

There will be more details regarding the wispy subjects I've alluded to once I stop freaking out about what's going on during the next two days.

You’ve noticed the tour listings on the right? You know, because I pointed them out in the last news entry? That’s good. There was a minor change…we aren’t playing Thunder Bay anymore, but you lucky folks in Sault Ste. Marie get TWO chances to see us because we’re playing back to back nights!

Rob and Allison have been working VERY hard on transferring our old photos to the new website, as well as posting pics from our western tour! I encourage you to go have a look at them, and see just what kind of ridiculous fun a Paper Moon tour consists of.

If you’re reading this, it means that I’ve managed to successfully stumble my way through the unsettling process of posting things on our NEW WEBSITE! Gone is the charmingly-trashy orange and black scheme of yesterday…welcome to the creamy sophistication of the future.

You may realize that things are missing…Like a pimply-faced adolescent, our website is currently going through an awkward phase. It grows in spurts, doesn’t yet know how to gracefully control its new appendages, has started growing hair in astonishing places, and is laughed at and pushed around by the older websites who are already dating and have their drivers licences. Only time can remedy this. We’ll get all of the old favourites you know and love into their proper places in this new environment very soon.

Check it out…over there on the right. See those upcoming shows? Yeah, we’re coming to EASTERN CANADA in a couple of weeks so clean all that crap off your floor, because we need PLACES TO STAY!

I know you’re angry, and justifiably so. You don’t want to hear excuses. You don’t care about feeble attempts to pass the buck. I get that. You’ve been hungry for new Paper Moon information, and I’ve been holding out on you. I’m sorry, but it hasn’t been easy on either of us. Do you think I enjoyed holding this giant sack of delicious informative fruits and breads while you lay prostrate at my feet desiring even a single dry crust of delectable news to devour? No. I haven’t. But hear me…now is your chance to feast. Check it:
We’re playing shows in Winnipeg.
Tonight - @ Shannon’s Irish Pub
April 13, 2006 @ The West End Cultural Centre w/ Julie Doiron and Shotgun & Jaybird

We’re coming TO YOU (in our spanky new VAN) to play more shows.
April 23 - Edmonton @ Red Strap Art Market (w/ Julie Doiron)
April 24 - Calgary @ Broken City (w/ Julie Doiron)
April 27 - Vancouver (NMW) @ Richards on Richards (w/ The Meligrove Band + Jonathan Inc)
April 28 - Kelowna @ Mission Hall (w/ The Meligrove Band)
April 29 - Vancouver @ The Main
May 2 - Vancouver @ CBC (Radio 3 taping to be broadcast nationally at a later date)
May 3 - Calgary @ Weeds Cafe
May 4 - Edmonton @ Sidetrack Café (w/ Columbus)
May 5 - Regina @ O’Hanlon’s Pub
May 6 - Saskatoon @ Amigos (w/ The Bloodlines)

Then we’re playing another show in Winnipeg.
May 7 - Winnipeg @ West End Cultural Centre (w/ Sons of York and Quinzy)

Is that better? Tummy full now? Rub it. Nothing feels better than a full tummy getting rubbed.

Don’t worry, eastern Canada. You’re next on our list.

Okay, so we have some tight, firm dates for you. Forget all that loosey-goosey Ontario-related jibberjabber I was loosing upon you in the last entry, these new details are the real McCoy.
FEAST YOUR EYES UPON THIS…

February 9 - Our CD release towards which you are counting down the days
February 16 - Allison, Leslie & John w/ Julie Doiron and Aaron Booth at the Drake Hotel in Toronto, Ontario
February 17 - Allison, Leslie & John w/ Julie Doiron at The Ford Plant in Brantford, Ontario
February 18 (4pm) - Allison, Leslie & John w/ Julie Doiron at Alex P Keaton in London, Ontario
February 18 (8:30pm) - Allison, Leslie & John w/ Julie Doiron at Club Vinyl in Guelph, Ontario
March 2 (we’re on at 11pm) - ALL of us performing at CMW in Toronto Ontario, at The Reverb

Do these cold, hard facts reassure you? Can you safely pen us into your schedule, knowing now that the fog has lifted and our true intentions are revealed? I hope so. If you crave even more details, perhaps the slightly expanded version of this list found in the SHOWS section will be more to your liking.

So what are you all doing on February 9th? It’s a Thursday…I know that’s O.C. night (or maybe you prefer it’s less expensive Canadian cousin Falcon Beach, in which a couple of our songs are featured), but that’s what VCRs are for because that’s also the night of our CD RELEASE SHOW! Oh, god, we’ve waited so very long for this show. Extra long because even though this is our second album, this is sort of Paper Moon’s first “real” CD release show. The release of One Thousand Reasons was this bizarre slapdash affair where we were unceremoniously wedged into the middle of a supporting lineup for Tuuli and it felt very awkward, as if we had crashed someone’s birthday party and were trying to sell vacuum cleaners to the guests.

THIS time we’re doing it right. We’ve got bands that we actually enjoy playing with us, namely The Bonaduces and The Honeybuckets. We’re doing it at the West End Cultural Centre so it’s going to sound nice. I’ve heard talk of cookies at all the tables and specially-designed cocktails called “Paper Moon-tinis”. It’s going to be oodles of fun. We all hope that you can join us for this extravaganza, this placenta-free birthing of our beautiful, rectangular bastard child.

We’ve also got some other shows coming up in the Greater Toronto area. There’s a big shebang going on at the Drake Hotel in Toronto on February 16th (I think) during which a portion of Paper Moon will be performing, along with the likes of Julie Doiron and Aaron Booth. For the next couple of days after that, this Paper Moon portion will be travelling around the area with Julie, performing some other intimate shows. A few weeks later, the full complement of Paper Moon will be performing at Canadian Music Week. Additionally, we’re already planning some tours in May and early June. We’re hoping to hit both coasts. Every show mentioned in this paragraph has details forthcoming which will be relayed to you the moment we receive them.

Oh my god, I just realized that there is NO MENTION on this website of our latest acquisition! We have a sixth member! Her name is Leslie and she’s at least as awesome as the rest of us so there isn’t any uncomfortable tension when we’re all together. She plays keyboards and guitar and adds a THIRD fantastic voice to the mix. If you saw us in Calgary, then you’re already familiar with her. Jeez, Leslie, I’m REALLY sorry about that. I know I mentioned this in a newsletter, so for anyone reading this that ISN’T on our mailing list, here’s one big reason to sign up. Sometimes, mailing list folks are privy to information that isn’t readily available to the general public because of my dull-witted laziness.

The Liberty Lounge show on December 10 is confirmed! We’re playing with The Summerlad and Duck!. Also, the U of Calgary show on the 9th is at a place called That Empty Space, which hopefully all of you Calgarians are familiar with. All details in the SHOWS section for the three gigs in Calgary this weekend are UP TO DATE.
Also, there’s mention in the SHOWS section of another show we’re playing on December 17th at the Park Theatre with The Honeybuckets. Show starts at 8pm sharp.

Wanna look at ANOTHER…oh, never mind. No poster to look at this time, although we DO have a couple of exciting shows coming up, NEITHER of them in Winnipeg.
We’re taking a short trip to Calgary during the weekend of December 9-11 to play what looks to be three shows. On Friday at around 3:30pm we’ll be playing at the University of Calgary somewhere with The Summerlad, then later that night (but not TOO late) we’ll be part of The Pants Situation All-Ages CD release extravaganza at the Crescent Heights Community Centre with a bunch of bands including the lovely Hot Little Rocket, and then the NEXT night (Saturday, if you’re having problems keeping up) we’re possibly at The Liberty Lounge with a couple of bands who I don’t want to mention because it’s not 100% confirmed yet and I’m still hurting from the spanking that Blair gave me a couple of years ago about saying we were going to a festival before we were “officially” confirmed. That Blair has a firm, but loving, hand.

Okay, I’m sorry about all of that. I probably used way too many words to describe something that’s FAR more simple than it looks. Check the SHOWS section for concise details. Really, we’re just playing some shows in Calgary so if you’re a Calgarian, maybe come to one of them, hey?

In other news, I know all of you have been chewing your fingernails and pacing around just WAITING for an update on the album. Give those poor fingers a rest and take a seat, you crazy worry-warts, I’ve got NEW INFORMATION. The album itself is complete. The album artwork is nearly complete. The whole thing will be sent off to manufacturing in MERE DAYS. It’s going to be called “Broken Hearts Break Faster Every Day”, which is another long, cumbersome album title I know, and we were totally going to try giving it a nice short title this time but who can resist FULL SENTENCES? We’re shooting for a mid-February release and have started planning the release show, which will be fancy. I have to honestly say that it sounds really really great and we hope you will enjoy it as much as we do. It’s been a long time coming…