Julianna has some new work showing at TAG Art Gallery in Nashville, Tennessee, along with artists Rik Catlow, Matthew Feyld, Jason Dunda, Kelly Williams and Mr. Hooper. The show is up from July 5th through the 26th with an opening reception on the 5th from 6 to 9pm. More information can be found at www.tagartgallery.com

May 7, 2008
Maaaaaany years ago, I was in a band called the Vile Cherubs. There were a few lineup changes along the way, but the band always included my oldest friend Tim Green and Jesse Quitslund. We loved psychedelia and garage rock, and “newer” music too: Stooges, Pere Ubu, Suicide, Mission of Burma.

Here’s a little of what we sounded like:

• “Man With a Photograph”: Our take on Burma, inspired by obsessive listening to “This Is Not a Photograph.”

• “Flower Garden”: Similarly, this one was heavily influenced by Plasticland, an incredibly anachronistic band from my home town of Milwaukee, WI.

We played the clubs of D.C., at least those that would admit a bunch of underage, tripping, long-haired prep-school kids. Our drummer Ben Wides’ looming college career put an end to ours, but not before we recorded an LP and released it as a split with Dischord (catalog # 33 1/3!). We didn’t have the money to print “proper” sleeves, so we ordered them premade from a company specializing in gospel recordings, and silkscreened our own images and information over a generic shot of a trumpet bell blasting, presumably, the Lord’s message deep into an Iowa cornfield or what have you. Ditto the vinyl, which was clear blue with only the red “Cherubs Guy” logo superimposed where the label would have been. (Years later I ran across the Texas band Cherubs who claimed to be fans.)

Exciting as it was to make the album, we always felt that the demos we had recorded over the previous couple of years were superior. In the early ’90s, a classmate of Ben’s reissued those earlier demos, but the deal was shady in the extreme and there are few copies extant.

More recently, and more happily, last year the fine folks at Afterburn Records approached Tim about a definitive rerelease. We were all only too happy to see our best work revisited, and the CD you see pictured above is the result. I’ve played in too many bands between then and now to count, but oddly enough I feel like the Cherubs are closer in spirit to the Golden Bears than almost anything else I’ve done musically. Go figure.

Anyway, I’m going to try and figure out how to get some streaming audio up on the site soon. Till then, you can find the Vile Cherubs CD here:

• Afterburn Records

• Dischord Records

Here are a few comments/blogs about the Vile Cherubs and rerelease:

• manwithoutshame.blogspot.com

• blog.wfmu.org/freeform

This winter, our friend Chris Duncan invited us to participate in the upcoming issue of his art zine, “Hot & Cold,” by recording a small batch of songs to be tucked in the magazine sleeve.

Well, we did it. It seemed appropriate that the songs be lullabies and as I was writing the lyrics I magically came upon a book that had belonged to my very recently deceased grandfather when he was a boy. The book contained children’s poems and stories, perfect fodder for the verses I was piecing together. In the end the songs are both a little eulogy for that tough old guy and something to sing to our little girl when she can’t find her rest. You can find out how to get your copy at www.hotandcoldmassive.com.

If you’re in San Francisco, celebrate the release of “Hot & Cold” on May 9, at the Luggage Store gallery on Market Street. So sad we won’t be able to make it, but I did contribute the painting below to the show. Other artists include: Mary Elizabeth Yarbrough, Amanda Eicher, Chris Taggart, Bill Dunlap, Christopher Robin Duncan, Ryan Jacob Smith, Paul Schiek, William Swanson, Jason Jagel, Butt Johnson, Colter Jacobsen, Tucker Nichols, Andy Vogt, Glen Baldridge, Chris Corales, Ernesto Burgos, Griffin Mc Partland, Paul Wackers, Hisham Akira Bharoocha, Jen Smith, Jeremy and Claire Weiss and Chris Pew. Musical Performances by Soft Circle, The Urxed and Car Clutch.  

Here’s some local press for the record! Planning a show with dear hearts Car Clutch for mid-May at Exit Only in North Portland. More information to come…. 

http://endhits.portlandmercury.com/2008/04/the_golden_bears_wall_to_wall.php

#more

Hello Dears!

  Spring is nearly upon us as evidenced by an explosion of plant life outside our door. The first day of spring also marks one year of life for our little girl, Evelyn, an exciting milestone for all of us. But along with the daffodils and baby antics and occasional blasts of sunshine, we’re also celebrating the release of our first full-length album, “Wall to Wall,” out March 10!! A glorious, gatefold beauty on 180 gram vinyl… and each LP is accompanied by a free digital download code. It’s been a long haul getting this music in the world (see above: baby) and we’re exceptionally grateful to our friends at Amorephonics for lending their name and many hours to this project. We hope you like it and hope it won’t be long before we’re serenading you in person.

Love & more light in the evening, Julianna & Seth

Buy the lp or download!!!