self-evident

News

SNOWS BEFORE SHOWS

Hey dudes, we've posted a handful of upcoming shows we'll be playing through the spring and into the summer.

Next week we're playing on Wednesday (4/24) at 7th Street Entry with two incredibly amazing touring groups, Tera Melos and TTNG (This Town Needs Guns, UK). We play first, right at 9PM, so here's your chance to see us early for a change!

We're also playing next Saturday (4/27) at The Belmore / New Skyway lounge, which is a totally new venue to us. We'll be rocking with our Minneapolis pals Hardcore Crayons and Hasps, as well as old Chicago friends Phantom Works.

There are some regional shows coming up in May, and then we'll rock a few other shows sprinkled in there with Stinking Lizaveta and Traindodge around Ben's wedding in June (no kidding!).

Finally, there's another European tour in the works with our bros and labelmates, Buildings. Look for dates in the late fall. Holy shit!

Cheers.

Posted by Tom on Apr 19, 2013 - 03:03 PM

THING IN THE HOUSE

So in two days at the Turf Club in St. Paul we will be hosting one of our favorite heavy bands from the Windy City; an instrumental powerhouse known as Electric Hawk. We are seriously excited to rock with them once again.

In order to step up our game, we will be featuring a secret 4th member for a few of our songs. If the performance is anything like the rehearsals have been, you're in for a real treat.

If that wasn't enough, pals They Dead (members of Story Of The Sea / Push On Junior) will be kicking the night off in all the right ways.

This will be our only local show until late April, details on that awesomeness to follow.

Posted by Tom on Feb 28, 2013 - 09:27 AM

JANUARY EMBERS

S'been far too long since the last update. Seriously. We've been kinda laying low since the November tour, working on some new songs and otherwise hibernating like proper North country folk. 2011 and 2012 were pretty damn good to us - we're looking forward to finding out what this new year will bring. For starters, we're gonna heat things up w/ good friends Nonagon (who have a new record that rules!) and Buildings (who have a new bass player who rules!) at the Cause on Lake and Lyndale on Saturday, 1/26; we'll see you there. And on Saturday, March 2nd, we'll be back at the Turf Club w/ Electric Hawk (Chicago's finest heavy instrumental riff rock band who only a fool would miss). We're also working on some regional midwest shows in the near future - so stay posted. (Also, we're on TV! See our facebook page for details.)

Posted by Conrad on Jan 17, 2013 - 07:50 PM

NEW VIDEO / US TOUR STARTS TODAY!

Have you seen the new music video for "Our Condition" yet? Well here it is. It was produced by the amazing men at Northern Outpost, and stars our unofficial 4th member, Mike Siddall of Doubleplusgood Records. Enjoy!

self-evident - "Our Condition" Music Video from Northern Outpost on Vimeo.

BTW, here is our most up-to-date tour schedule. We leave today!

11/2 - Madison, WI @ The Frequency w/ Bear Claw, Tyranny Is Tyranny, New Lepers
11/3 - Cicero, IL @ PRF Halloween Show (Klas Restaurant)
11/4 - Bloomington, IN @ Gay Dudes Annex w/ TBA 1022 w kirkwood ave 8pm all ages
11/5 - Knoxville, TN @ Longbranch Saloon
11/6 - Greensboro, NC @ The Blind Tiger w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/7 - Charlotte, NC @ The Milestone w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/8 - Savannah, GA @ The Jinx w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/9 - Atlanta, GA @ The Nigredo House w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray, Nigredo
11/10 - Athens, GA @ The Caledonia Lounge w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/11 - Winston-Salem, NC @ The Black Lodge w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/12 - Washington, DC @ The Velvet Lounge w/ NASAwives
11/13 - Philadelphia, PA @ Kung Fu Necktie (upstairs) w/ Heavy Medical, Depths
11/14 - Providence, RI @ Local 121 w/ A Troop of Echoes, Glowkid
11/15 - Fredonia, NY @ The Foxhole w/ Mr. Boneless, Mooses
11/16 - Grand Rapids, MI @ (venue TBA) w/ The Summer Pledge, Charles the Osprey, Between Brains
11/17 - Oshkosh, WI @ The Algoma Club w/ Haunted Heads, The Dirty Rotten So and So’s

Posted by Tom on Nov 02, 2012 - 09:28 AM

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

It's true, we're old. So old in fact that we have booked a 15 year anniversary show in Minneapolis on Saturday, October 20th at Hell's Kitchen to celebrate our elderly-ness. We'll be playing with some of our favorite bands including Traindodge, and both of our labelmates Buildings and Haunted Heads. It's gonna be a HELL of a show. Get it?

With that said, we want to hear from you as to which song or songs you want us to play at the show. We will at least consider anything from our entire catalog. Feel free to send an e-mail to with your requests!

Posted by Tom on Sep 19, 2012 - 11:10 AM

WAGONS EAST!

Actually, we decided against taking the wagons since our van will be faster (and much more comfortable). Fact is, we're finalizing the details for our upcoming November tour, and I thought I'd give y'all a quick heads up as to where we expect to be, when we expect to be there. (Some of the dates have NOT been secured yet, so if any of you out there are able to help us out w/ info on bands/venues/people who make stuff happen in a given town, we'd super appreciate it! You can email me directly at , and thanks!)

11/2 - Madison, WI @ The Rigbey Pub w/ Tyranny is Tyranny, New Lepers
11/3 - Chicago, IL - TBA
11/4 - Bloomington, IN / Louisville, KY - TBA
11/5 - Knoxville, TN - w/ Lions, venue TBA
11/6 - Greensboro, NC @ The Blind Tiger w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/7 - Charlotte, NC - w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray, venue TBA
11/8 - Savannah, GA @ Jinx Cafe w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/9 - Atlanta, GA @ house show w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/10 - Athens, GA @ The Caledonia w/ The Bronzed Chorus, Manray
11/11 - Winston-Salem, NC @ The Black Lodge w/ The Bronzed Chorus
11/12 - Washington, DC - w/ NASAwives, venue TBA
11/13 - NYC - We're working on a couple of leads, but need help!
11/14 - Boston, MA - We're working on a couple of leads, but need help!
11/15 - Fredonia/Buffalo, NY - We're working on a couple of leads, but need help!
11/16 - Grand Rapids, MI - w/ Charles the Osprey, venue TBA
11/17 - Oshkosh, WI @ Reptile Palace w/ Haunted Heads

For our Twin Cities peeps, we'll be playing at the Hexagon on Saturday, 9/15 - looking forward to seeing you there!

Posted by Conrad on Sep 06, 2012 - 08:36 PM

ARCHERS!

Yep, Archers of Loaf are coming back to Minneapolis for a two-night stint at the 400 bar - and we'll be playing the opening slot for the 18+ show on Sunday, August 26th! Last I checked, tickets were still available - visit 400bar.blogspot.com for details. We'll have specifics on a couple of other great upcoming MPLS shows soon (our 15 year anniversary and the return of OKC's Traindodge, anyone?), so y'all best keep in touch...

Posted by Conrad on Aug 12, 2012 - 07:52 PM

PRE-ORDER HERE!

You can now pre-order the new CD/LP HERE! Anyone who pre-orders digital, CD, or LP between now & Aug 7th will receive an immediate download of the first 2 tracks on the album. On Aug 7th, you'll receive an email with a code to download the rest of the album.

P.S. Check out the new tee shirt design while you're there. Antonio Perez-Cajina killed it.

Posted by Tom on Jul 26, 2012 - 01:12 PM

AN APPETIZER OF SORTS

Tak from Stiff Slack has posted a track from the new album HERE. We hope you love it.

Just a reminder, the album is available in a little over a week in the US (8/3/12) through doubleplusgood records, or of course at our release show at the Triple Rock Social Club on 8/3! We will also be doing a performance on Radio K's Off The Record the same afternoon. Check out the shows and/or releases pages for more info.

Word.

Posted by Tom on Jul 25, 2012 - 09:29 AM

DOMO ARIGATO GOZAIMASHITA

Well, we arrived home from Japan late last night - tired, but with all instruments intact. We couldn't have wished for a greater experience; we all agree that this was one of - if not THE - best long weekends of our lives. We met some of the kindest, most gracious, fun and talented people ever in Tokyo and Nagoya, and we look forward to returning sooner than later. Extra special thank-yous to Takuya from Stiff Slack Records (the coolest guy in the room), our friends Daisuke, Shio, Kyohsuke, and Jun from the band Balloons, also Folio, Mouse on the Keys, clubs Tokyo Nine Spices and Fever, club Tightrope in Nagoya, our excellent soundman Yami, our wonderful photographer Yuki, and our part-time translator Yuta. Thanks to Daisuke and his family for hosting us after the first show, and to Shio and Yuki for hosting us the following three nights - and for driving us five hours back overnight(!) to Tokyo after the final show in Nagoya. Thanks to all the bands from Tokyo Fever Summer Meeting festival (too many to name) - it was an honor to share the stage with all of you, and thanks to all of the showgoers and new friends met.

Overall, thanks to everyone for making us feel so welcome in Japan. I hope I haven't left anyone out - we love you and we can't wait to see you again. Please keep in touch - we will be posting videos of our travels in the days to come. Oh yeah, one last thing...

KANF@#KINGPAI!!!

Posted by Conrad on Jul 19, 2012 - 05:46 PM

JAPAN, HERE WE COME!

In a matter of hours we'll be getting on a plane headed toward the far east to play shows over the next handful of days. We can hardly believe it. We'll be posting pictures and videos along the way, both here and on our FACEBOOK PAGE. Wish us luck!

Posted by Tom on Jul 11, 2012 - 02:00 AM

RANDOM

Somehow I just managed to watch Hardcore Crayons’ “Sarcasmic” video while hearing the audio for Buildings’ song “Rainboat.” Not on purpose. And it ruled.

Posted by Conrad on Jun 24, 2012 - 02:23 AM

FIGURE OF MERIT - VATIC

Go find a copy (bwr0018) and listen to tracks 1-3 in order. You’ll thank me later.

Posted by Conrad on Jun 17, 2012 - 02:38 AM

COUNTDOWN TO JAPAN

So we were loading our gear back into the ol' practice space late Saturday night after the Hell's Kitchen gig, and we realized the next time we take the stage it'll be in Tokyo. Totally mindblowing. I actually studied Japanese language for 6 or 7 years back in high school and college, and (embarrassingly) don't remember much at all - it's crunch time to hit the books! (We'll see how that goes...) We fly out one month from today to arrive a day before the first show, hotel already booked. After that, we'll be hanging with Tak from Stiff Slack and the boys from the band Balloons until we return. Super psyched to finally meet these folks after only corresponding via email for the past few years. Wish us luck!

For you Twin Cities folks, we got a little album release show scheduled for August 3rd at the Triple Rock featuring (ahem) Zebulon Pike and Hardcore Crayons. No big deal. We'll have vinyl, CDs, new t-shirts, stickers, posters, the works. Don't be foolish and miss out - we don't play the 3rock that often and it's a sweet place to catch a sweet show.

We'll also be hitting the road in the U.S. for a couple weeks (keep an eye on the "shows" page for details) in the Sept-Oct time frame - it's been far too long and we're sorry. We miss you and we'll see you soon.

Hugs,
L'il C and the Boyz.

Posted by Conrad on Jun 11, 2012 - 06:00 PM

ALLTHEHARDCOREBUILDINGSNSTUFF

Imitation is flattery, no? Beware: S-E just might steal your band's name for a song title next (maybe we'll steal a riff while we're at it, too). Only kidding. Or not.

ANYWAY - Mega huge thank-yous to all the good people who attended the Minneapolis and Chicago shows this weekend. I think I can safely write on behalf of our group and also Traindodge that much fun was had by all. (Extra shout outs to video-er Gravey and his fellow front-of-stage troublemakers for their boundless, endless, overflowing enthusiasm and support since before I can really recall - y'all know who you is and so do we.) We'll be finalizing the mixes of our newest batch of songs this week, and we can't wait to get the album done and out to you. Expect a release show August 3rd or 4th at the Triple Rock - we'll relay the details as soon as we know more.

MEANWHILE - Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 9th, because you absolutely WILL NOT WANT TO MISS Hardcore Crayons' CD release show at Hell's Kitchen. We'll be performing, and I've heard rumors that The Book of Right On and Bloodnstuff will be taking the stage that night, too. We'll count on seeing you there. The heat is on. It's on the street. Summer of Oh Twelve is gonna be seriously rock awesome.

Best,
C-rad.

Posted by Conrad on Apr 22, 2012 - 09:40 PM

BUILDING A FORTRESS

So we've settled on the title "We Built a Fortress on Short Notice" for the forthcoming album, but y'all know we took our own damn sweet time putting it together, didn't we now? Once again, we drove down to The Mousetrap (http://carlamburn.com/) in Norman, OK to get it on tape (or on computer, I guess). We managed to record 13 songs in less than six days, 10 of which will appear on the U.S. release (CD and vinyl through doubleplusgood records) and all 13 on the Japan release (CD only through Stiff Slack records). Hats off to Carl Amburn, our champion of breakfasts, studio guru, and all-around magic man - he manages to bring out the best in this band, every time. (I'd call him a record producer, but he'd deny it, so let's just say "engineer.") Carl's in the process of mixing the songs as I write - everything's really starting to come together. Stay posted for details on the album release show.

We have some terrific shows lined up for the coming months: we'll be at Cause (SE corner of Lake and Lyndale, MPLS) on Friday, April 20 with our friends Traindodge (OK) and the Twin Cities' one and only Buildings; Saturday, April 21 we'll be at Quenchers in Chicago (that means road trip for you Twin Cities folks), again with Traindodge and also with Chicago's own The Midwestern. We're also looking forward to playing Hardcore Crayons' CD release show in June - stay tuned for details on that one.

Oh, I almost forgot - we're playing a handful of shows in Tokyo and Nagoya this July. Yep, we're going to Japan. Can't hardly wait. I'll be back with more news sooner than later. Meanwhile, keep in touch with us through Facebook or whatever (duh). Much love.

Posted by Conrad on Mar 20, 2012 - 01:48 PM

AUTUMN: THE GOTHEST OF ALL SEASONS

It's true, I'm about ready to bust out my copy of Unwound's "Leaves Turn Inside You". Or maybe some Bahaus.

Anyway, we have a bunch of fancy rock shows coming up this fall, including a stint in the next few days with our good pals from North Carolina, The Bronzed Chorus. After that, a few more regional shows, and then another mini-tour with or local brothers and new labelmates Buildings, who will be releasing their new album "Melt, Cry, Sleep".

Speaking of new albums, we're going to be demoing our new songs in the next few months and then recording with the one and only Carl Amburn sometime in the late winter / early spring. It's gonna be another full length, and we think the material is stronger than anything else we've ever done (well of course we do). Gettin' excited!

Check out the shows page for details about the upcoming rock soirees, including this weekend.

Cheers!

Posted by Tom on Sep 29, 2011 - 12:27 PM

WE’RE BACK….

So Europe was a huge success and great trip in so many ways. Met so many amazing people and visited some seriously incredible places (watch the videos below). Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts. You know who you are.

It's good to be back, although I don't understand some of the recent phenomenons here like Rebecca Black and "owling" (seriously check it out). We haven't wasted any time since returning to the sweltering practice space, we've already finished one song and are working on more. We've also got a list of late summer / early fall shows coming up, including a great one on Friday, July 29th at Hell's Kitchen. Check out the shows page for more details.

There's also talk of near future recording endeavors........although that's as much as we can divulge at the moment.

Cheers.

Posted by Tom on Jul 19, 2011 - 08:43 AM