Hey Kids! The next couple of weeks are going to be very busy and exciting and fun Smittens times – especially if you happen to be in the northeast! We have a fantastic Popfest to go to, a handful of awesome shows on the road, a big hometown day an a new release! Beware this is a long post but we’ve got so much exciting news so please read it all. It’s worth it we swear!

THE COOLEST THING ON VINYL!

Just this month Happy Happy Birthday To Me has reissued our most recent album, The Coolest Thing About Love, on 12″ vinyl in hand-screened covers featuring new artwork by David Smitten! It’s a limited edition release (300 copies) and comes with a code for digital download of the tracks as well – so you can have it on your mp3 music player, too!

We have 50 copies of the LP and will be selling them for $12 a pop!

They are also available for mailorder from the Happy Happy Birthday to Me website in their online shop.

NYC POPFEST
This year’s NYC Popfest looks superfab! Kicking off on Thursday night and running through Sunday (5/20-5/23), there will be more top-notch indiepop than you can shake a stick at with band playing at multiple venues and a gang of international guest DJs making everyone dance in between and keeping the good times rolling!

We are thrilled to be playing at Don Hill’s on the Friday night bill with some of our favorite bands from near and far!

Here’s the line-up for the Friday show:
Cotton Candy (MA)
The Smittens (VT)
Allo Darlin’ (UK)
Pants Yell! (MA)
Tender Trap (UK)

For full details and tickets please visit www.nycpopfest.org and get the scoop on the whole weekend!

SHOWS AND MORE SHOWS

We love the band Allo Darlin’ so much we decided to kidnap them and bring them home with us, too! The weekend after the NYC Popfest will find us back at home for a show at one of our favorite venues – The Monkey House! Allo Darlin’ are a band from the UK that has all awesome songs and a brand new self-titled album coming out on the hip London label, Fortuna Pop (www.fortunapop.com)- hopefully they will have some copies with them! They are a ukulele-centric pop band made up of 2 Aussies (and boy and a girl) and 2 boys from the UK – led by Elizabeth who writes witty and melancholic and amusing and charming songs that will get stuck in your head!

In addition to Allo Darlin’ and The Smittens, we will also be hosting A Smile and A Ribbon – a five (or six?) piece indiepop band from Sweden!
They play catchy and clever songs that remind me of those old school girl groups with their storytelling songs – of course with a more modern approach to relationships when they sing about them!

We are so psyched to haves such sweet indiepop ambassadors visiting Vermont!

The last band on the bill (who will most likely be playing first) are a crazy lo-fi duo called Moustache of Insanity. They are not dangerous crazy, just cheap casio and guitar kind of awesome crazy. They are Nik from Sweden and Bill from Australia – two cool dreamers who take recording action in the afternoons. Bill is also in Allo Darlin’. Colin is a big Moustache of Insanity fan, so he is extra psyched!

Anyhow, it is certain to feel like a popfest sampler at the Monkey House on Saturday Night. And kinda like 3/4 of a WeePOP! festival, as three of the bands have released recordings on that wonderful label! www.weepop.com

Please do come! WRUV is sponsoring the show and we’ve arranged for it to be 18 and over, so that is nice of them to let us do that. Look at David’s swell flier!

A SMITTENS CRAFTERNOON!
Earlier in the day on Saturday we will be participating in a special event – CRAFT WITH THE BAND with The Smittens at the Bobbin Sew Bar and Craft Lounge. It’s basically a friendship bracelet-and-pin-making party – an all-ages crafternoon! Starts at 2 p.m. and tickets are limited due to the size of the space, so call 802-862-7417 if you wanna go! There will be music, too! The address is 299 North Winooski Ave at Archibald St in the Old North End in Burlington.

Stay tuned for more news next week! We will have details on our further planned adventures with the likes of Allo Darlin, Moustache of Insanity, A Smile and A Ribbon and Heart!Attack, too!

Check out our shows page for a preview of what we’ll be telling you about later. Here’s a brief version:

UPDATE! The Smittens are no longer on the 5/23 – Northampton show at the Elevens with
Allo Darlin’
Moustache of Insanity
Hearts!Attack
Friends of Yours
Sitting Next to Brian
Unfortunately we’ve had to cancel but if you can make this show please do as the other bands are totally amazing!

5/25 – on this fine date we are playing a special show to celebrate the release of our friends One Happy Island’s latest album on London’s Odd Box Records (oddboxrecords.com). The bill is amazing!
One Happy Island
The Smittens
Allo Darlin’
A Smile and A Ribbon
Horowitz
Hearts!Attack

5/30 – Lookout, Montreal! The Smittens are coming to play at Le Divan Orange (4234 Boulevard Saint-Laurent) with Allo Darlin and A Smile and A Ribbon! 8 p.m. $8 yow!

Hope to see some of you soon and do some dancin’ with you! We’ll be wearing our Dancing Shoes, too!

xoxo,
the smittens