AC/DC may do do dirty deeds dirt cheap, but to accurately capture the sonic sugarplums that had been dancing in the heads of Bloomington, Indiana’s Murder By Death—and press the debut studio effort on vinyl—cost a small fortune, as the band quickly learned.
Not having that kind of cash in the till, they turned, as so many do these days, to the online fundraising platform Kickstarter (kickstarter.com).
What resulted was nothing less than the third largest musical campaign in the history of the organization, with just under $200,000 raised for the cause. As MBD’s singer/six-stringer Adam Turla explains, the band were able to record the now critically acclaimed Bitter Drink, Bitter Mood with a little help from their friends, plus a bunch of people they had never met.
“The money was great, and made keeping all our albums pressed on vinyl manageable,” he says, “but the best part was the unique and kind things that came out of it. There were people who pledged to our campaign as gifts for others or reached out to us with an idea to help a friend or loved one who was sick, overseas or just down and out.”
Murder By Death performed at Pearl Street Feb. 27 for an all-ages show with Philadelphia experimental heavyweights Man Man.
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Similarly seeking cyber dinero via Kickstarter are the Valley’s own Lo Fine.
“Our sixth album is finished and we are seeking crowd funds for limited edition vinyl LPs,” explains singer/songwriter Kevin O’Rourke.
As of press time, the band had already obtained $6,000 of its $7,500 goal. Among the potential incentives for bidders to help them reach the monetary milestone are “The New England House Concert Package” (for $500, the band will come and perform at your house), “The Epicurean” ($750 pledge gets O’Rourke preparing dinner for four at your house, among other items), and “The Grand Benefactor” (everything on all lists plus Kevin will take care of your dogs when you go on vacation for $5,000).
To make your contribution, kindly point your browser to kickstarter.com and search for Lo Fine. Note: This campaign ends on March 1.
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In other news, Lady Gaga was not born with a labral tear in her right hip. But she recently incurred one, forcing her to cancel her current Born This Way Tour—which had included a March 3 Mohegan Sun play.
Ticket refunds are available at point of purchase.
On a brighter Mohegan Sun note, sales for the boy band bonanza known as “The Package Tour” (featuring New Kids On the Block, 98 Degrees and Boyz II Men) have been so strong that a third casino date has been added for Tuesday, May 28.
Tix range from $59-$79, depending on your proximity to the finely crafted harmonies, and are available now at ticketmaster.com.
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Speaking of harmonies, Nederland, Colorado’s Elephant Revival has been touted as having some of the best—or at least most haunting—in the biz. To hear for yourself and formulate your opinion, catch the band’s Iron Horse (iheg.com) set this Friday, March 1. Admission to the Elephant Revival show is $12 in advance, $14 at the door—mere peanuts for a band of this caliber. (Couldn’t resist, sorry.)
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Last but not least, several area notables, including School For the Dead’s Henning Ohlenbusch, The Winterpills’ Phillip Price, Rick Murnane and more, will literally rock for Robyn this Sunday, March 3 with the 60th Birthday Tribute to Robyn Hitchcock at Northampton’s Parlor Room.
For more info or to purchase tix, hit up signaturesounds.com.•
Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, P.O. Box 427, Somers, CT 06071; fax to (860) 394-4262 or email garycarra@aol.com.
