Ah, Muppets.

Hmmm... tricky. This may be the most pleasant Iowa summer that I can remember. Well... let me back up. I know that I always discuss Iowa weather, and it isn't really because of a lack of other worthy things to think about. It's more because Iowa weather patterns are extremely violent. I love my home, but it wants to kill me. It's sorta like living in Australia, except with tornadoes, blizzards, and sweltering heat instead of jellyfish, scorpions, and snakes. And out toilets swirl clockwise, like they're supposed to.

So back to the not-too-terrible Iowa summer. It's like we bought a used car from a very slick dealer. We get the sweet Cadillac (moderate heat, humidity that's not out of control), but he doesn't tell us about the oil leaks or gas gauge that doesn't work (floods, insanely aggressive gnats). We have, however, recovered from the flooding, depending on how you define "recovered". Lots of damage and folks without homes, but at least the water has receded.

Oh, but our tomato plants have gone nuts. Mmm hmm. Two more weeks and my daughter and I will be easily found, every day at 6:00, as the sun has finally started to go down, planted on our butts in the middle of the garden, covered in tomato seeds. We will not speak for extended periods of time, and we'll just be chewing our ways to the next nap.

And now with a spectacular and inappropriate segway, I leave you with what may possibly be the finest music video ever made...

Underwater

Iowa City seems to be slowly sinking. The river has gone far over its banks in places, and things look to be getting worse. The issue is that the river itself is at full capacity, from a combination of a very icy winter with lots of precipitation and runoff, with more rain than it can handle. Actually, the river can handle it, the town cannot. The University Of Iowa paper, The Daily Iowan, has some pretty good photos here.

Now the full river seems to be standing still, and all of the various other waterways cannot empty, which is slowly making the creeks rise deeper and deeper into the city. I've heard rumor of a crest by Monday, and then we'll see what we have. Mason City, IA has already been submerged:


Time to stock up on batteries, water, food, and cheap beer...

Moses review from Gazette

The Iowa paper, The Gazette, has run a very gracious review of Moses, written by Eric Clark in the 5/22 edition. It's impossible to directly hot link to the review, so below is the review as an image. Lesee if this works (click the image to make it massively huge)...

Hmmm... is posting this actually legal?

May flowers

Garden worms are a thing of beauty. Just ask my 3 year old. I've been digging in the garden, pulling up the long grass and the creeping charlie that has taken over the space. So far we have tomatoes ready to go in, sweet peas and cucumbers sprouting away, and I'm ready to get everything in the dirt. It's Iowa dirt, so things can't help but grow. Anyway, my daughter is now old enough to help, as it were. And she really tries. But her favorite part is finding earthworms, and I'll tell you, I never realized that a pile of slimy, wriggling worms in a tiny hand could be so beautiful.

I know, fatherhood is slowly turning me into a sap. You'll get to witness the process as I send more and more updates, each getting sappier and sappier (is that even a word?) until one day your internet service will stop working because my updates will have completely gummed up your computer.

I'm slowly amassing a pile of useless reviews. That is to say, they're in different languages and I can't translate them. Google and Babel Fish process them in such a way that I feel like I'm reading a transcript of somebody speaking in tongues. Anyone know Dutch?

You may know that I don't get to listen to all that much new music these days, but for the last week I've been carrying Sera Cahoone around in my headphones. Not literally mind you... she wouldn't fit and she'd probably get kinda mad otherwise. The album is called Only As The Day Is Long. It's a folk / roots album with some country tinge, and Sera sings in a sweet, unadorned alto. The arrangements are lovely, and the songs are great. There's grand music blog called Aquarium Drunkard where you can read more about Sera and download a couple of her excellent tunes... here's the the link. Man oh man do I recommend it.

I hope that you're having a fine May. Word.
-Patrick

Moses, taxes, and a CD release show...

Ah, tax time. Such a sweet time of year. Today is, in fact, Tax Day, that lovely day when the sound of millions of heads banging against millions of desks can be heard throughout this fine country. My head is hollow, so it makes a particularly interesting noise.

Updates and a show to report. Since the last time I've been in touch, Moses has reached #10 on the Roots Music Report chart and #14 on the Euro Americana chart. Plus it's been chosen as an editor's pick at CD Baby and a top album at multiple radio stations across the US and Europe. Thanks so much to everyone who has purchased a copy or made a request at their local radio station, or who has sent a small yacht with my name embossed across the side in gilded letters. Anyway, in addition to being available online, the album is also now available via iTunes.


And despite the fact that you were the first to know about the album, we're finally doing the long awaited CD Release bash in Iowa City. Want the details? Sure you do...

This Sunday, April 20th, I (Patrick Bloom) along with the band (Ghosts Of Radio) will be performing at The Yacht Club in Iowa City. This will be special for a few reasons. It is, of course, a time of celebration, complete with pixies, unicorns, and rainbows. But even better, we'll be joined by the mighty Eric Straumanis on guitar. Eric is no longer a Midwesterner, so we're feeling especially fortunate to have his company. Additionally, this will be an early show, starting at 7:00 pm (!) and running until 9:00 pm. And extra super-additionally, this will also be a non smoking show.

So to review... CD Release, early show, non-smoking, pig-wrangling. All true, except for the pig-wrangling, but this is Iowa, so anything is possible. And my apologies for those folks not close enough to be at the launch, but plans are also brewing for visits throughout the US and across the beautiful deep sea. And maybe for a nap.

Thanks, as always, for the kind support, and feel free to drop a note any ol' time you please.
-Patrick

March changes

So this Saturday, March 22nd will indeed *not* be the CD Release show for Moses. This is due to a human scheduling error, and my apologies for the multiple shouts on this. Still, I and a partial semblance of the band will be performing a rather acoustic-ish show that night, and we will be joined by an acoustic semblance of The Mayflies, as well as the wonderful S. Eric Ketzer.

Moses has remained in top 20 on the Roots Music Report Folk chart for the last three weeks. It's the #3 add at WUMB in Boston and the 2nd most played album on KAXE in Grand Rapids, MN, and critical response has been pretty dern good. I'll try to get a current radio list up soon, which will allow folks to know where they can tune in or request.

In the meanwhile, I'll send word when we have the real CD release scheduled, as well as any other upcoming festivities. Thanks, as always, for the wonderful support.

-Patrick

Patrick Bloom & Ghosts Of RAdio

We're packed in. Iowa has been pounded repeatedly for the last few months with lots and lots of ice. Even when the weather was polite enough to send us plain, powdery snow, it would be followed up immediately with some sort of rainfall that would quickly freeze. Now March is rearing her head in hopes of tricking us into a pleasant disposition before she smacks us with another ice storm. She can't fool me... I'm far too cynical for that mess.

So what's up? I and the band will be doing a live radio show this Monday (stream-able via your computer, if you care to hear the full band), as well as a CD launch in Iowa City on the 22nd, so please see the calendar page of the website for more info. The band is finally steaming ahead and I appreciate y'all's (how's that for a word?) patience while we were getting ready to not suck. And we gots pics from our recent show... if you'd like to take a gander, you can go here (please note that it's a MySpace album, so it won't work for you MySpace haters).

Meanwhile, The new CD 'Moses' is officially available. It debuted at the #19 spot last week on the Roots Music Report Folk chart, and has maintained that position this week, right next to Iowa's very own Greg Brown. If you'd like to hear the thing, you can head on over to CD Baby and give it a spin (just hit those little arrows next to the song titles to stream the music).

And finally, you can head over to the website music page for lyrics and more info.


There it is. The album is being received well, with your kind support, and is being played across the US and Europe.

Thanks as always,
-Patrick