Violent Femmes to play a trio of northwest shows in June
The one and only Violent Femmes have announced plans for a summer headline tour, set to get underway June 11th at Denver, CO’s Botanica Gardens and then continue through the month with dates in Boise, Portland and Seattle. Support throughout will come from a variety of special guests, including Ava Mendoza, Dirty Femmes, Ashwin Batish, and the band’s own Blaise Garza & John Sparrow. For complete details and local on-sale information, please see vfemmes.com/tour.
In addition, Violent Femmes will be among the top stars at Pasadena, CA’s upcoming Arroyo Seco Weekend, set for Sunday, June 24th alongside Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters, The Bangles, Los Lobos, The Revolution, Irma Thomas, Aaron Neville, and many more. For details and remaining ticket availability, please visit www.arroyosecoweekend.com/
VIOLENT FEMMES
ON TOUR 2018
JUNE
11 – Denver, CO – Botanic Gardens *
13 – Salt Lake City, UT – Red Butte Garden #
14 – Boise, ID – Knitting Factory #
16 – Portland, OR – Portland Zoo Amphitheatre #
17 – Seattle, WA – Woodland Park Zoo #
20 – Reno, NV – Cargo #
21 – Saratoga, CA – The Mountain Winery **
22 – Berkeley, CA – UC Theatre **
24 – Pasadena, CA – Arroyo Seco Weekend 2018
25 – San Diego, CA – Humphrey’s ***
* w/Dirty Femmes
# w/Ava Mendoza
** w/Atwin Batish
*** w/Blaise Garza & John Sparrow
Violent Femmes’ always busy live schedule follows last year’s release of 2 MICS & THE TRUTH: UNPLUGGED & UNHINGED IN AMERICA (PIAS), a remarkable collection of unprecedented live recordings available now at all music retailers and streaming services.
2 MICS & THE TRUTH: UNPLUGGED & UNHINGED IN AMERICA saw Violent Femmes reinventing their own extraordinary canon with all-new live performances, including rearranged classics, songs played live for the first time, spontaneous requests, and random improvisations. Produced by founding member Brian Ritchie and featuring The Horns of Dilemma, Violent Femmes’ ever-evolving cabal of multi-instrumentalist backing musicians, the album was recorded in 2016 as the band visited public radio stations and music media outlets across the country in support of their acclaimed ninth studio album, WE CAN DO ANYTHING. Always eager to push their sound forward, the Milwaukee-based combo brought with them a pair of Ear Trumpet Labs Edwina microphones, specialized bluegrass mics that allowed Gordon Gano (voice and guitar/banjo/fiddle) and Brian Ritchie (acoustic bass guitar and vocal) to play and record in close proximity. Backing musicians – including baritone saxophonist Blaise Garza and special guests like banjo master Tony Trischka and legendary Television drummer Billy Ficca – were tracked through sound bleed in the tradition of the early jazz, blues, country, rembetika, rockabilly, and folk records which informed the Violent Femmes aesthetic from the jump. Percussionist John Sparrow’s innovative use of a Weber Grill as a rhythm instrument enabled Violent Femmes to stand close together around the two mics and play in perfect balance, the metallic tones meshing with Ritchie’s acoustic bass and Gano’s strummed guitar.
2 MICS & THE TRUTH: UNPLUGGED & UNHINGED IN AMERICA is available on CD, digital download, and limited edition 2xLP 140gram vinyl, with the latter edition featuring five bonus songs. An array of exclusive 2 MICS merchandise is also on offer, including t-shirts, tote bag, and a limited edition lithographic poster. For details, please visit the Violent Femmes Official Store.