Used Knabe Player Piano

Click Here To See Sonny’s Knabe Player Piano Video Tour

Knabe Art Case Double Leg Baby Grand Piano 5′3″ American Walnut. Piano and player system was rebuilt around 5 years ago. Piano was refinished and has new strings, pins, pin block, hammers, dampers, new key tops, felts, bushings, plate was reguilded. Great Knabe rich tone and action response. Piano action was just regulated. Player system is the Ampico Roll System. Comes with 20 rolls. Warranty. Free LI/NYC delivery. All else continental USA only $475. for delivery and set up in your living room. Questions? Call Sonny Direct at 631 475-8046.

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November I’ve always thought was kind of okay. It’s the start of the chilly season, so short days, wrapping up warm and eating big hearty meals by the fire in my fictional country home that lives in my mind, seems all cosy and romantic. Come February you’ll find I have a rather different attitude to the colder season, which is generally one of ‘FUCK THE FUCK OFF!’. But for now, get a woolly jumper on, drink some warm cider and make the most of the insane amount of live music going on right now.

Last week (as an example of November being heavy on the live music) was insanely gigtastic for myself. It went down like this:

Flaming Lips at The Troxy

Wednesday - Incredible scenes at Oh, Inverted World at the Old Queens Head. It was such a special night, so huge thanks to Player Piano, Mariners Children and Treetop Flyers. Thanks also to Dave Depares for his awesome DJing – the boy has skillz.

Thursday – The Mighty Mighty Biffy Clyro at Brixton Academy: Amazing amazing amazingness.

Friday – Tegan and Sara at Shepherds Bush Empire: Brilliant girly fun.

So all that music was nice. There’s also been a few new tunes rocking my world in these newly chilly days. First is the pretty wonderful Think About Life from Montreal. A cross between Black Kids, TV On The Radio, and, er something very pop. They’re just amazing and I’ve pretty much not stopped playing ‘Havin’ My Baby’ for the past two weeks. They released an album earlier this year called ‘Family’ that I don’t think is available in the UK, but those lucky American and Canadians can purchase away.

Here are two tracks from the new album:

Havin’ My Baby – Think About Life

Johanna – Think About Life

Some time ago a band called Venice Is Sinking from Athens, Georgia contacted us. They were nice enough to send over a copy of their new album ‘Azar’ and it’s actually really great. It’s college orchestral indie-rock, if such a genre exists, and is definitely worth some of your listening time.

Here they are!

oh, and an mp3 too! Man, do we spoil you…
Compass – Venice is Sinking

So that’s it for today. We’ll hopefully have some news for you guys soon about the next Oh, Inverted World night that’s going to come and make your life worth living. We promise it won’t be long.

Player Piano doing their homework for their OIW show on Wednesday…

Yep, the lads are playing a show for us at The Old Queens Head this Wednesday (11th Nov) and are on at 8:45 so be early! You can then also catch the awesome MARINER’S CHILDREN followed by TREETOP FLYERS afterwards! It’s going to be another great night, and here’s a link to get your flyer for cheap entry too (just £5!)… LINK!

Woo, only a week to go before our great big OIW shindig down at The Old Queens Head (that’s Islington, London folks) on November 11th! We’ve already previewed our fantastic openers Player Piano, now here’s a taste of the super main support for the night… Mariner’s Children!

Mariner's Children kicking out the jams

These guys are something else, they just performed at the Roundhouse as part of the BBC Emerging Proms and are heading off for some dates with Peggie Sue following their appearance at OIW next week. Think along the lines of the dark, endearing qualities of The Decemberists with the earnest beauty of Cherbourg. Here’s a great track we’ve managed to get hold of from the guys, ‘It Carved Your Name Into the ground’.

Mariners Children – ‘It Carved Your Name Into the ground’

Aw, it’s going to be great! And Treetop Flyers are also along to headline with Dave Depares flying back from the US (we like to think especially for the show) to fill your ears with wonderful sounds from the DJ booth all night. More details on the Facebook event HERE and your flyer to get in for a fiver is below, woo!

Following our Oxjam exploits, OIW is back for another top show at London’s Old Queens Head on November 11th (that’s a week today kids!)!

We’ll have the wonderful Treetop Flyers and Mariners Children on the bill, and we’re also super damn excited to have Player Piano opening the night for us. These guys came under our radar very recently and we’ve fallen head over heels in love with them already!

Player Piano

We’re not the only ones though, Player Piano have already have their tunes spun on Radio 1 and 6music as well as signing to King Creosote’s Fence label. It’s hard as hell to reference them as every track seems to take in something else, but here’s a starter just for you folks, the top tune “Anything At All” along with some of the press adoration these guys are getting already. Enjoy and we’ll see you on the 11th! (facebook event here)

Piano Player – Anything At All

Now go check out some more at the Player Piano myspaz HERE!

“BREAKING ACT”, The Sunday Times:
“In most instances, a debut release’s appeal is down to a certain tentativeness and innocence — great potential, as yet only partly fulfilled. In Player Piano’s case, however, it is the completeness, the fully realised grandeur of Radway’s first EP, Into the Dark, that so impresses. Evoking solo-Lennon string arrangements, the unfettered creativity of early Bowie and the Walker Brothers, and the vocal plangency of Chris Martin and Rufus Wainwright, it tugs at the heartstrings and ensnares you with the scope of its ambition.”

“TRACK OF THE DAY”, Q Magazine Online:
Vocally, former Indiana native (now London-based) Jeremy Radway sounds like a more lazily delivered, more articulate, Julian Casablancas crossed with the baritone depth of John Grant from The Czars.

Instrument-wise by the time the piano flourishes kick in on Mad Dog there’s reminders of Ben Folds (Whatever And Ever, Amen period) and vocal harmonies/arrangements that might not sound out of place on an Ed Harcourt album.

All of these references might give you some idea or just serve to confuse, but they do illustrate the mercurial melting pot of Player Piano. As I’m writing this I’m now thinking Beck as well – probably best to just have a listen and decide for yourself…”

Q MAGAZINE Online
“However he dresses his tunes, Radway’s innate pop sensibilities and deadpan showmanship make for hugely entertaining viewing, like Eels or Ben Folds, only with better tunes.”

THE LIST:
“Indiana bred/ London based Jeremy Radway – he who plays piano – is remarkable. Bearing by no means unflattering resemblance to Mark Oliver ‘E’ Everett and Ed Harcourt, Radway combines their effortless songcraft with the sheen of Jon Brion.”

Used Boston Grand Piano

Click Here to See Sonny’s Piano’s Boston Grand Piano Video Tour!

(Full Video Tour Coming) Ebony Boston Baby Grand Player Piano GP 156, 5′1″ serial number 121029, 10-years-old with PianoDisc System & Floppy Disks included. Originally $20K. Piano & Furniture in mint condition. Questions?  Call Sonny Direct 631.475.8046

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TREETOP FLYERS + MARINERS CHILDREN + PLAYER PIANO!
November 11th @ The Old Queens Head (Angel, London)
Facebook event HERE.

Hell yeah! OIW will be back at the Old Queens Head on November 11th for another top night of debauched fun with the magnificent Treetop Flyers, the wonderful Mariners Children and the brilliant Player Piano!

TREETOP FLYERS

We’re big fans of Treetop Flyers here at OIW. The lads just released their ace new EP “To Bury The Past” this month, sold out The Lexington a couple of weeks ago (turning away a large crowd of hopeful punters in the process), and were called both “stunning” and “the 2009 equivilent of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young” by the NME. Hell yeah, we can’t wait for this one!

MARINERS CHILDREN

Quite how we’ve never had the unmissable Mariners Children down for an OIW show yet is beyond us, but it’s finally happening. These guys are absolutely amazing and will also be coming at us off the back of a BBC Emerging Proms show at The Roundhouse. Expect dark folk that recalls the likes of The Decemberists and Stornoway.

PLAYER PIANO

We’re also really goddamn excited to have the wonderful Player Piano coming down for a set. We’ve been mewing over their tunes for a few months now so it’s great news that we’ve got them for an OIW show. Their music is truly something wonderful, they were a recent “Track Of The Day” in Q Magazine, featured in The Times “Breaking Act” column, played by Radio 1’s Rob da Bank, Vic Galloway on 6music, AND signed to the supercool indie label Fence (King Creosote’s label no less).

It’s going to be another top OIW night, if you’re coming along then we highly recommend getting down early as we’re expecting a busy as hell night in the intimate surroundings of the Old Queens Head.

Go to the Facebook event HERE.

The concept of Bandstand Busking is to reclaim and reuse the many overlooked – and much neglected – bandstands that are hidden around London. It’s a brilliant concept and one that might just play a key part in saving many of these wonderful constructions from deteriorating even further.

Player Piano closed the most recent busking afternoon, in my old haunt of Clerkenwell. I worked here for five years – in a building overlooking the bandstand, as it happens.

It’s very strange to walk past something every day and see it out of context – and then suddenly have it reclaimed and used as originally intended. Weird, spectacular and lovely, all at once. The ethos behind Bandstand Busking is admirable and makes me proud to be an (adopted) Londoner.

Cat’s Cradle is the latest in my list of required reading that I never quite managed to get around to before now.  It’s Kurt Vonnegut’s second most well known book (after Slaughterhouse-Five) and its notoriety is well deserved (although I still want to know why people tend to ignore Player Piano).  Vonnegut is a masterful writer, and is possibly the only person in the American canon besides Twain who has managed to write novels that are considered as high art while still being both accessible and incredibly fun.

And yes this is a fun book, about the end of the world and nonsensicalness of humanity.  The story is about a writer whose working on a book about the end of the world and inadvertently becomes a part of the sequence of events that actually brings about the end.  But before that comes to pass he becomes involved with the politics of a small island nation that no one wants and the unique religion founded on lies (whose leader claims to never do anything he preaches) that is based there.  This is great and unique material to work with, and Vonnegut makes the most of it, creating one of the few enduring classics of the last 50 years.

By Alexander Lawrie & Oliver Farrimond

BOY-BANDS could soon become a thing of the past after a Scots group invented a new smart instrument.

Cybraphon could be the next step in the evolution of pop music as it has a working, digital brain with real emotions, and plays music depending on how it feels.

It was created by Found – an avant-garde musical collective and is completely self sufficient.

The Edinburgh-based group teamed up with a university professor to come up with the technology, which is set to go on show during this year’s Edinburgh Arts Festival next month.

Professor Simon Kirby, from Edinburgh University, said that the Cybraphon can feel emotions and is “completely obsessed with its own celebrity”.

He said: “The obvious question is – what makes Cybraphon happy?”

“24 hours a day, seven days a week, Cybraphon is online surfing Google, looking at its Facebook page, counting website hits.

“Whenever it gets someone visiting its web page it will cheer up, and whenever it gets extra friends on Facebook, that will make it happy.

“However, Cybraphon is insecure – it just wants more and more fame and publicit and if that rate of publicity falls, it will get upset again.

“In that way it’s basically a model of a modern Indie band.”

Amazing machine

Inspired by 19^th century mechanical instruments such as the orchestrion and the player piano, the Cybraphon is an interactive, mechanical band in a box.

The amazing machine consists of a number of acoustic instruments, antique machinery, and objects from junk shops, played by over 60 robotic beaters and motors all housed in an antique wooden display case.

And the brain-box band is so excited by their invention they plan to try and get it signed by a major record label.

Ziggy Campbell, the lead singer of Found, said: “It plays music mechanic

ally by itself, but what’s interesting about it is that it’s affected by the internet and by any internet activity that relates to it.

“Ultimately we want to try and get it signed – I think a label would get a lot of PR legs out of signing a wardrobe.

“There’s talk about maybe trying to take it over to Berlin.

“I don’t know how well it will travel, like most bands it will probably become unhinged as it goes on tour.”

The Cybraphon will be on display at the Inspace gallery in Edinburgh during the Edinburgh Arts Festival from 5 August to 5 September.

Q:What's the white stuff in Bird Poop? A: Well that's Bird Poop too.

I feel like it was a wasted attempt the first time I read it. I was 21 when I first read it and it was my first Vonnegut book.

Looking back on things, I’d have been better off by starting on Player Piano, or Bluebeard, maybe even Breakfast of Champions, but Slaughterhouse Five can’t be truly digested without having some sort of intimate knowledge of Vonnegut and his work.

It was a completely different experience this time around. The first time I did it , I just thought it was weird. But now I understand.

What struck me this time around was how funny it was, hilarious, tawdry, and most of all, touchingly human.

I love reading Vonnegut because of his down to earth, matter of fact style. He was a real rule breaker by taking chances with characters and plot lines, and even went as far as to insert himself into many of his novels.

The craziest thing to think about is the fact that he survived the fire bombing in Dresden. All those 130,000 plus people who died and the few who survived were ironically saved by a structure that served to kill many of the oxen, pigs, and cattle in that area.

I can’t imagine coming up and seeing what he saw. It seemed like it was the most profound experience of his life. So many of his books deal with WWII and a survivor’s mentality.

Elements of that event pervade Bluebeard, Mother Night, even. How could anyone look at life the same after miraculously surviving the biggest massacre in world history?

Then of course, Hiroshima and Nagasaki came after the Dresden bombing.

The world is such an evil place. To think that some people are so wicked that they’d beat a 14 year old boy to death for whistling at his ugly assed, rat faced wife (i’m sure somewhere up there Emmett would love a mulligan on that one–certainly wasn’t a regular ass beating over) , then laugh about it after being acquitted and sticking his tongue down his ulgy wife’s gullet (pure fucking evil).

to think of all the people who run these corporations that lay off 1,000’s upon 1,000’s of people so they can make an extra million or two.

We live in a world of serial killers. Not Gacy and Ted Bundy types, but something way worse, and even more sinister. Serial killers do it for the sheer joy of killing, these fuckers are just sociopaths looking for an extra buck.

Dressed up in suit and ties, determining the fates of millions of people without blinking an eye. We elect these people, shake their hands, and give them the power to affect our lives.

We’re talking bankers, CEO’s, Senators, Governors, and Presidents.

It makes you ask the question of who’s really the sick ones here? Are masochists? Or are we sheep? Or is it really way more complicated than “the world trying to commit suicide.”

Its stuff like this that makes me admire Vonnegut and his writing so much. No matter how dark the subject, he takes a drag of his Pall Mall and makes a joke that points out the absurdity of our existence. Is it or isn’t real?

This bizarre trip we got going on here. Perhaps its better just to do your best, love those around you, and hope that the ripple effect ensues. Maybe the best way is to ensure that every interaction counts, smile more, laugh harder and embrace those tender and sweet moments of joy.

Even in the darkest of times, a sense of humor will get you far.

cuz maybe its just too absurd to take that seriously anyway.

imagine taking this thing way too seriously to find out it was all a silly little dream.
So it goes.

Fence Collective Campfire Special.

29th June 2009 part 1

29th June 2009 part 2

Tracklisting:

The Carter Family – ‘Keep On the Sunny Side’ (Proper)
Spongebob Squarepants – ‘Campfire Song’ (Nick)
Blue Roses – ‘I Am Leaving’ (Salvia XL)

Fence Session Artist 1: King Creosote
King Creosote – ‘Curtain Craft’ (Session Track)
King Creosote – ‘It Means Nothing’ (Session Track)
King Creosote – ‘Nothing Rings True’ (Session Track)
King Creosote – Coast On By (Session Track)

Track As Chosen by King Creosote
Withered Hand – ‘No Cigarettes’ (SL Records)

Bill Monroe And His Bluegrass Boys – ‘I Saw The Light’ (Universal)
Laura Marling – ‘Cross Fingers’ (Astralwerks)

Fence Session Artist 2: Pictish Trail
Pictish Trail – ‘You Covered The Earth With Your Thumb’ (Session track)
Pictish Trail – ‘Going Gone’ (Session Track)
Pictish Trail – ‘Nothing Rings True’ (Session Track)
Pictish Trail – ‘Words Fail Me Now’ (Session Track)

Track As Chosen by Pictish Trail
The Shivers – ‘African Passport’ (State Capitol)

Woody Guthrie – ‘Riding In The Car’ (Smithsonian Folkways)
Gizzly Bear – ‘Campfire’ (Warp)
Bob Dylan – ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’ (Columbia)
Greek Folk Song – ‘Himariotikos’ (.)

Fence Session Artist 3: Player Piano
Player Piano – ‘Mercy’ (Session Track)
Player Piano – ‘Anything At All’ (Session Track)
Player Piano – ‘Mad Dog’ (Session Track)
Player Piano – ‘Backwards Invention (Session Track)

Track As Chosen by Player Piano
Dr Dog – ‘The Breeze’ (Park The van)

Frank Turner – ‘Nashville Tennessee’ (Xtra Mile)
Joni Mitchell – ‘Carey’ (Reprise)

Fence Collective Singalong
King Creosote/Player Piano/Pictish Trail – ‘La De Da’ (Session Track)
King Creosote/Player Piano/Pictish Trail – ‘Cod Liver Oil and Orange Juice’ (Session Track)

I went along to the Glee Club last night to see King Creosote and other members of the Fence Collective perform.

In previous visits to the club there have been ‘No Photography’ signs up in the entrance but despite this the MC has usually said that people are ok to take photos as long as no flash is used, so I decided to take along my 5D and 24-70mm lens, hoping to get a decent front row seat. As the venue is all seated there is not a great deal of opportunity to move around during the shows and being not 10 feet away from the performers I really didn’t want to be a distraction to them. I love small gigs like this, what you lose in photographic angles you gain in intimacy.

So we took our seats waiting for the first act, Player Piano, to come onto the stage. I had already had a look at the light and metered accordingly, shutter speeds were at about 1/125 at ISO-800 and f/2.8 which is great for this kind of concert, nice depth of field and a decent shutter to help freeze the moment. My intial readings were thwarted though, as Player Piano came onto the stage the lights dimmed so I swore slightly under my breath and re-adjusted the ISO to 1000 which gave me an approximate speed of 1/80 in the available light. Of course, this changes with every shot as the stage lights vary the available light, but that is the fun of it all.

Player Piano

This shot was taken at full zoom as the keyboard was located on the far end of the stage to where I was sitting, I was very pleased with the light that falling on him as he played, I desaturated the shot in post processing to get over the funny colour casts that you get in these situations.

When The Pictish Trail came on stage I wasn’t really in the right position for the first song as he had his back to me, as the set continued though he moved back to centre stage and gave some great opportunities though some other mic stands were partially blocking at times. The following photograph was at 1/50 f/2.8 ISO-1000.

The Pictish Trail

Though King Creosote had been on stage supporting both Player Piano and The Pictish Trail during the night it was then time for his set. The great thing about the Fence Collective is that everyone supports everyone else, there seems to be no ‘I’m a bigger artist than you’ kind of thing going on at all, just people who love to make music, making it together.

This is a shot of the stage area, taking in all of the band and indicating the kind of light available. This at 24mm, ISO-1250, 1/80, gives an indication of how close to the performers we were.

From right: Uncle Beesly, On The Fly, King Creosote, The Pictish Trail (hidden) and Player Piano

I was keen to get some different compositions for the main act as I had been sat in the same seat for the previous two. So, I moved two seats further to my right (wow!!) and tried to look for better angles. Being slightly more upbeat, I upped the ISO to 1250 to keep my shutter speeds up, confident in the 5D’s ability to handle the extra sensitivity and produce relatively clean images.

This is possibly one of my favorite shots from the night, composed to keep the backing singers in the frame and shot at a wide aperture to give the nice depth of field which gives more impact to King Creosote himself. Shot at 1/80, ISO-1250, f/2.8.

King Creosote

Finally a shot of Uncle Beesly playing the bass. He sat down on a monitor right in front of me so I lowered my position a touch and shot this. I applied a cross processed effect in post processing as I thought it looked nice.

Uncle Beesly

King Creosote, The Pictish Trail, Found, Player Piano

GRV, Edinburgh

We were treated to a triumphant post-Homegame hoe-down from a selection of Fence Collective luminaries at the GRV. Individually, the line-up was announced as Player Piano, Found, The Pictish Trail and King Creosote. However, they all spent so much time on stage with each other, as Fence traditions dictate, that it hardly seemed to matter! Great stuff.

It was not the first time that I saw one but I was still enthralled by it. A player piano is a self-playing piano, containing a mechanism that allows it to plays notes and pedals without a human operator.

A player piano performing

The box below is the control unit

Readers, here is the score for “Tonsils on Piano.” Notice the instructions to the player piano and human. Human: Play fast as physically possible. Robot: Presto. To look closer at the score, press down on the “cntrl” button and mouse wheel in. The human is at a great loss to the player piano on this one, but perhaps one day with new technology a human could match the speed as in the audio recording at the bottom. However, if anyone manages to play this at any decent level of speed past adagio, I’d be rather impressed!