January 22, 2016
Bowie Bonds playlist, Doveman covers "Lazarus"
Almost two weeks after David Bowie's passing, the Brassland community is still grieving. Let us be the first to acknowledge that, duh, Bowie occupied a far more widescreen canvas than we could ever hope to. Everyone from his peerless peers like Brian Eno to the artists we grew up with like Trent Reznor to contemporaries who thrill & infuriate us like Kanye West have marked his passing in the social media medium. Unlike another recent legend's passing, we and our roster didn't have a particularly personal relationship with Bowie or his music -- Bowie having been off-the-musical scene for most of our label's existence, he seemed less like a presence we might encounter and more...
April 5, 2012
Doveman's Burgundy Stain Session returns to NYC
What the hell is going on in that picture? We were wondering too. But St. Vincent's Twitter feed cleared everything up. Apparently it's St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark) literally walking all over Doveman.
What the hell indeed!?! Is this Annie's way of lording it over her equally pseudonymous but slightly less unit-shifting friend Doveman (aka Thomas Bartlett). Well...no. We actually think she was giving him an EXTREME massage. That said, when Doveman's friends walk all over him, shouldn't he get a shot at turning the tables? Hells YES!
Starting next week, Doveman (aka Thomas Bartlett) will once again turn (Le) Poisson Rouge into an intimate salon with the r...
October 28, 2011
Doveman reissues his Footloose soundtrack
If you're anything like us, you were probably at the local megaplex opening night to experience the shining beacon of artistic creativity that is the remake of the movie Footloose. Who isn't a fan of edgy, hip-hop interpretations of the classic stories like this one: boy vs. authority, love & dancing in small town America...
Ok, so we can't even pretend that we've seen the new version of this movie and, let's be honest, we probably never will. However, we do have some relevant news: In conjunction with the release of the film, we've reissued Doveman's interpretation of the original soundtrack! Here is his friend Gabriel Greenberg writing about Doveman'...
February 2, 2011
Doveman returns with the Burgandy Stain Sessions
Our personal superhero, Doveman, is in the midst of a highly praised run of shows at New York's Le Poisson Rouge called the Burgundy Stain Sessions. No stranger to working with other musicians (as he has in the past with the likes of David Byrne and Yoko Ono), the first installment of Burgundy Sessions hosted the likes of Sam Amidon, Beth Orton and Glen Hansard. It's almost like that Big Four thing that happened in Europe, only with folkie people rather than Megadeath.
Anyway, you can get a dose of many a music personality at these shows while still hearing plenty of Doveman's own material, sung "in the style he calls insomnia pop: uncertain anthems, sung in his whisper...
September 27, 2010
Doveman premieres a video by Sam Amidon
The soothing tones which Thomas Bartlett's Doveman project specializes in are certainly pleasing to the ears. Now, add some visuals to the Doveman experience with the latest video premiere off his 2009 album The Conformist. Directed by Sam Amidon, a childhood friend and a considerable musician in his own right, The Burgundy Stain video depicts an array of powerful scenes showing the tranquility of nature, the beauty of musical creation, and the emotional attachment to family.
The viewer is transformed! At least for the 2 minutes and 26 seconds that it lasts. Amidon had these words to contribute alongside this video:
The video was shot in Vermont, where the trees are...
June 23, 2010
Doveman Covers Katrina and The Waves for Brooklyn Vegan
In May, Brooklyn Vegan began an EP-length tribute to Katrina and The Waves in celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the release of the band's classic "Walking on Sunshine." Featuring some of the blog's favorite artists, the individual tracks to Sun Salute (cover at left) were released one by one, beginning with 802 Tour alumnus Sam Amidon's cover of "Walking on Sunshine". Since then, Deer Tick, Fucked Up, and Tune-Yards have thrown in tracks ("Sun Street," "Walking on Sunshine," and "I Really Taught Me to Watusi," respectively), creating a decidedly eclectic line-up for the release.
And today, Doveman adds his particular brand of lamp-rock to the mix, joinin...
May 5, 2010
Doveman on Tour with Patrick Watson
Beginning May 6th, Doveman will embark on a short tour of the Northeast United States (with a one-off in Los Angeles) opening for Canadian musician Patrick Watson, whose folk-influenced lamp-rockish songs nicely complement Tommy Dove's and should make for some good shows. To see these two in the flesh, be at the following places on the following dates:
May 6th - Brooklyn, NY (The Bell House)
May 7th - New York, NY (92Y Tribeca)
May 8th - Washington, DC (Rock and Roll Hotel)
May 9th - Philadelphia, PA (Unitarian Side Chapel)
May 22nd - Los Angeles, CA (The Hotel Cafe)
For links to venues, tickets, and showtimes, head over to our Shows page.
April 5, 2010
Doveman and Friends to Play Music Set to Movies
UPDATE: Word has been received at Brassland HQ that this show will be delayed until the summer. More details will appear here as they filter in!
On April 25th, Doveman will appear at Le Poisson Rouge to perform songs from his cover album Footloose and latest Brassland release, The Conformist.
As part of LPR's Unsilent Film Series, the event will screen selections from the dancing flick as well as the 1971 fascist-era drama. If you've ever wanted a little Bacon with your Bertolucci, this is your event.
Doors open at 10:00 pm for a 10:30 showing. Seating is limited and not guaranteed, so arrive earlier rather than later. Advance tickets are $10 and ca...
March 23, 2010
Doveman, Nico Muhly in New York Observer, Playing Big Ears Festival
Last week, Doveman and Nico Muhly performed a two-night stand at The Kitchen in Manhattan as Peter Pears, their duo project. In addition, Doveman played some of his own tunes. The program made the New York Observer's cultural highlights of the week.
In addition to the Observer, New York magazine wrote a nice profile on Doveman. For those that want to know the man behind the pretty face, this article provides a start. A sample:
Despite naming his most recent album The Conformist, in the pop world Bartlett is anything but, and he has clearly never been driven by conventional rebellion. He grew up in Vermont, where his interests included basketball, traditional Iris...
December 21, 2009
Doveman Update: New Video, Curating Mercury Lounge Show, Playing Kitchen
With his tour opening for Swell Season now complete, Doveman is off the road and taking a breather. While he was traveling North America, however, the video for "Breathing Out," a song off The Conformist, premiered on Spinner. Using only two shots, director Marc Anthony Thompson (better known as Chocolate Genius) succinctly explained his working process:
"I rarely make films for other people. I pick up my camera for very few reasons: The hotel has good light. The music inspires me. My lover isn't shy. 'Breathing Out' matched 2 of my criteria."
Very nice. You can watch the video below:
On January 12th, Doveman will curate and play his first...
November 16, 2009
Doveman Featured on NPR, Continues Tour
As Doveman kicks off the second half of his November tour tomorrow with a solo show in Los Angeles, we thought it fitting to provide you with an update regarding Doveman-related activity on the World Wide Web. Last week, NPR's World Cafe featured "Breathing Out" and "Angel's Share" from his latest album, The Conformist, on their broadcast. Here's what they had to say about the new release:
With the release of 2005's The Acrobat, 2007's With My Left Hand I Raise the Dead and a legally contentious album in which he covers the soundtrack to the '80s movie Footloose, Bartlett established Doveman as a true sleeper. His third album of original material with Dovem...
November 4, 2009
Doveman Plays Fancy Loft Party for CMJ, Touring With Swell Season
In case you haven't paid attention to our frequently updated shows page, Doveman's hitting the road with Oscar-winners The Swell Season. They kicked off the tour last night in Toronto and will make their way through the Northeast and West Coast. To see exactly where and when Doveman will land (pun alert, sorry!), click here.
Meanwhile, in somewhat more exclusive & shmancy news, Doveman gave an unofficial CMJ performance a week or so back to celebrate the release of The Conformist. Held at a friend's loft in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood, he was backed by a string quartet and friends Sean Lennon, Charlotte Kemp Muhl, Jennifer Charles (of Elysian Fields), Justin...
October 16, 2009
Doveman
For those unawares, Doveman's latest album The Conformist will be hitting the shelves of fine music retailers next Tuesday. To celebrate our upcoming release, The Brassland Store is holding a special offer (with special pricing) for pre-orders of The Conformist. The skinny:
Bundle #1 - includes The Conformist, With My Left Hand I Raise the Dead, and a Doveman t-shirt
Bundle #2 - includes The Conformist and a Doveman t-shirt
Act fast - bundles will last until we run out of t-shirts.
Now, watch some lil' preview videos we put together featuring audio courtesy of Doveman's The Conformist and visuals courtesy of Bertolucci's The Conformist. Act...
September 16, 2009
The 802 Show at Miller Theatre Reviewed by NY Times
Last week, The 802 Tour reconvened for a one-off performance at Columbia University's Miller Theatre. While we at Brassland certainly liked the show, another, more important source enjoyed it, too.
The New York Times voiced its appreciation of the show's "seamless flow" in its live review, mentioning Doveman in particular, whose "piano-driven ballads, including some from a forthcoming CD, The Conformist, had a shadowy, confessional intimacy that was accentuated by his tremulous, nearly whispered croon."
Nico Muhly was given a positive appraisal, as well, with the Times mentioning in particular his "appealing instrumental compositions [that] drew on Philip Glass&#...
September 9, 2009
Pitchfork Posts News on New Doveman Album
As you may remember, Doveman released a couple of songs to Brooklyn Vegan and Stereogum as a preview for his upcoming album. Yesterday, Pitchfork posted a little story revealing the album's title (The Conformist), cover (pictured left), tracklist, and a new song featuring The National's Matt Berninger, which you can stream below:
The Conformist will be released October 20th.
In other, more immediate news, The 802 Tour is having its sole 2009 show tonight at Columbia University's Miller Theatre. Featuring Doveman, Nico Muhly, and Sam Amidon "playing each other's music," they're also bringing in a...
June 24, 2009
Wrap-Up of Doveman's Show at Le Poisson Rouge
As many of you probably know, Doveman played a show last Thursday at Le Poisson Rouge with backing noises provided by Sam Amidon, Nico Muhly, and select members of The National (Aaron, Bryce, and Bryan). Brooklyn Vegan was there to document the evening with digital images and an overwhelmingly positive post-gig review from Gangster Legs, whose appreciation for the evening's entertainment initially seemed suspect. (One doesn't think of the Brassland Family as particularly "gangster." Baby D...maybe?) Regardless, the kind words were more than welcome, so thank you, Gangster Legs. A couple of pictures, courtesy of someone named Fresh Bread:
The gang, cranking...
June 17, 2009
New Doveman mp3 on Brooklyn Vegan
A while back, Stereogum posted a Doveman update featuring a download of "Breathing Out," a song off of the band's still-untitled new album. (To stream the song, click the blue box; to download it, click here.)
Yesterday, Brooklyn Vegan got in on the action, posting a Doveman update of their own, complete with a download for a groovy new leak titled "Hurricane." (To get your dancing shoes on, click that blue box; to put the song on your iPod, click here.)
In addition to posting the new mp3, BV.com also mentioned Doveman's show tomorrow at Le Poisson Rouge, where Thomas will be backed by Sam Amidon and Aaron, Bryce, and Bryan from The National. The group...
May 25, 2009
Doveman mp3 Leak on Stereogum, Show in June at LPR
Last Thursday, Stereogum posted a Doveman update that included an exclusive leak of his new song "Breathing Out." (Click the above link to stream the song.) The song's release comes in anticipation of Doveman's new album, produced by Grammy-winner Patrick Dillett (David Byrne, Mary J. Blige). For those anxious to hear Doveman's follow-up to Footloose, we can only preach a little patience - we'll keep you posted on details regarding its release, which is expected later this year.
In other news, Doveman has recently been seen backing pretty much everybody (My Brightest Diamond, Bon Iver, David Byrne, The National, and Nico Muhly). On June 18th, however, he'll...
April 25, 2009
On June 18th, Doveman Will Be Backed By The National and Sam Amidon at LPR
Having temporarily taken a break from gigging to finish up the recording of his latest album, Doveman will return to the stage for a performance at Greenwich Village's Le Poisson Rouge on June 18th at 7:30. Backed by Sam Amidon, who will also play an opening set, as well as Aaron, Bryce, and Bryan from The National, Thomas will play some songs off of the new record.
To guarantee that you hear the new tunes, be sure to buy your tickets early. You can purchase them online here.
March 24, 2009
Doveman Update: New Album, New Show
It's been awhile since Doveman made some news in these here parts - after a UK tour in January and a sold-out performance of Footloose at Joe's Pub in February (pictures of which can be seen on BrooklynVegan), Thomas and the gang have laid low, putting songs on tape for a spankin' new record. While the details are still a little secretive, we can divulge that the new record will feature Sam Amidon as well as Aaron, Bryce, and Bryan from The National making various noises and sounds. So get excited and stuff.
In addition, Doveman will be playing with Sam, Aaron, Bryce, and Bryan at Le Poisson Rouge on June 18th. You can purchase your tickets here on LPR's ticket se...
January 29, 2009
Doveman To Give One-Off Footloose Performance on February 4th
Doveman is currently in Britain finishing up his UK tour (for venue information on the remaining dates in London and Coventry, head over to our Shows page). However, he will soon be back in the good ol' US of A to give a one-time only performance of his now semi-infamous Footloose cover album.
The show will take place at 9:30 on February 4th at Joe's Pub in Manhattan. For tickets and venue information, head over to Joe's website. Be sure to buy your tickets soon before they're gone - as the posters on IMDB say, "One kid. One town. One Chance." (We figured such a tagline could metaphorically apply to you, the independent music consumer.)
Ok, take ca...
December 21, 2008
Doveman Gets A Nod in New York, Touring in January
As our previous news story on Nico Muhly illustrated, the end of the year means one thing for music fans - Best-of Lists! And as it turns out, Nico wasn't the only artist in the Brassland stable to receive a little recognition. Doveman's Footloose cover album received top prize for "Best Nutty Covers" in New York's The Year in Pop round-up. Listing Grizzly Bear's take on "Owner of a Lonely Heart" and numerous versions of "Umbrella" (including Mandy Moore's) as contenders for the title, the publication ultimately chose Doveman because, in creating the album, he made nine cover songs. Mandy, on the other hand, made only one, so whatever. No brainer there.
In o...
December 10, 2008
Doveman Tours the UK in January
Having finished a short, successful string of shows in England this past November, Doveman will again cross the Atlantic in January for an extended tour of the United Kingdom. The tour - sponsored by the UK Arts Council - will begin in Cheltenham on January 21st and span the island, making it as far north as Glasgow. It will feature both David Thomas Broughton and Doveman cohort Sam Amidon.
Similar to this summer's 802 Tour, each show will be played in a spirit of collaboration with the three guys swapping instruments and interweaving and interrupting each other's performances to create "a continuous flow of instrumentation." For more details on the tour, you can visit the...
November 2, 2008
Sam Amidon Gives Word From Doveman UK Tour
As you might well know, Doveman is out and about on his very first tour of the United Kingdom. With the Manchester show now relegated to history, Britons have only Nottingham (11/2) and London (11/3) left to catch Thomas and the band in the flesh. (Visit the Shows page for venue information.) Despite the tour's brevity, however, there has still been ample time for chuckle-worthy memories to be made. The anecdote(s) for today are provided by Sam Amidon, Doveman collaborator and banjoist extraordinaire. So without further ado, Sam's thoughts from the former imperial power:
Doveman Tour, Manchester, UK (11/1)
we have arrived in Manchester. tonight doveman will pl...
October 17, 2008
Doveman Tours UK & Europe, Footloose Receiving Digital Release
On November 1st (and fresh off a few dates with Antony & the Johnsons), Doveman will begin his first UK tour with a show in Manchester at the Cross Street Chapel. With shows only in Manchester (11/1), Nottingham (11/2), and London (11/3), the tour's certainly brief, so Britons take note - grab your tickets while you can. (For those on Facebook, socially network around the London show here.) Many thanks to The Local for organizing Thomas's little jaunt.
As for other Europeans wishing to witness Doveman in the flesh, there's good news - the band will be crossing the pond a second and third time to play the Tanned Tin Festival in Castellón on November 15th and Mains D...
September 25, 2008
Doveman Does The Lillywhite Sessions
Last week, Doveman went on NPR's World Cafe to showcase a few songs from his formerly-free, now-streaming Footloose.
The show features the Bacon-staples "Footloose," "Dancing In The Sheets," and "Almost Paradise," all re-recorded by Thomas with British producer Steve Lillywhite (U2, Peter Gabriel, The Pogues, Psychedelic Furs) as part of NPR's The Lillywhite Sessions at Avatar Studios. Previous guests have included She & Him, Fleet Foxes, and Dr. Dog.
The show also includes an interview with Thomas explaining both the creation of the Footloose covers and the genesis of Doveman. In addition, Lillywhite gives a brief interview at the end, providing his British t...
July 24, 2008
Doveman Goes On Letterman With Grizzly Bear
In case you missed it, Doveman made it onto Letterman last night accompanying fellow New Yorkers Grizzly Bear in a performance of their new song "Two Weeks." You can see Thomas hunched over his keyboard in back, firing off arpeggios with quiet dignity. An mp3 of the performance is available for download on Stereogum.
If the performance below gets you all riled up, be sure to catch Doveman in the flesh this August on The 802 Tour with Sam Amidon and Nico Muhly. And if you're still feeling restless, get Footloose.
July 22, 2008
The Internet Gets Footloose with Doveman
Following the release of his cover version of the Footloose soundtrack, Doveman received some pretty positive pub, going on WNYC and making Entertainment Weekly's "The Must List." Fortunately, the good word continues to spread as the blogosphere catches on. BuzzFeed described the record as "stunning" while compiling a nice little list of other places you can go to read about the release. NPR featured "Let's Hear It For The Boy" on their program All Songs Considered. Even Gawker jumped into the media frenzy, calling Doveman's version of the title track "a beery-eyed-at-the-bar-at-4:30am-thinking-about-college sad hipster jam" while inventing the adverb "baconly." Very clever,...
July 15, 2008
Doveman's Footloose Featured in Entertainment Weekly
Last week, Thomas Bartlett of Doveman appeared on Soundcheck with John Schaefer to talk about the band's cover version of the soundtrack to the 1984 film Footloose. (You can stream Thomas's radio appearance in the previous news post.)
This week, the media's positive response to the band's digital release continues with a write up in Entertainment Weekly's The Must List. Found on page 70 of the July 18th issue, the nice press talks about the inspiration behind the album while specifically mentioning "Let's Hear It for the Boy" as a highlight. For those interested, you can stream the album here.
July 7, 2008
Doveman Speaks to WNYC About Footloose, Guests With Grizzly Bear
As you might have already discovered, Doveman recently released a cover version of the soundtrack to the 1984 Kevin Bacon dancing picture Footloose. You can listen to and/or download (for free!) the tunes on Footloose's microsite. Since its release, word of the project has spread, and subsequently Thomas was invited to speak about the album on WNYC's Soundcheck with John Schaefer. The show aired this past Tuesday (July 8th) on 93.9 FM. You can stream Thomas's appearance below.
In other Doveman news, Thomas will be playing with Grizzly Bear on The Late Show with David Letterman on July 23rd. If the band's performance on Conan (watch it on Red Lasso) wa...