We’re on Spotify

Better late than never, folks: Numbers And Letters’ EP is now up on Spotify, so you can add it to your playlists!

All in prep for the damn album. Joe Peretore’s working hard on mixes, we’re re-doing some vocals, life is happenenig.

Christmas song, Christmas show, SOFAR songs, Radio interview

*** Numbers And Letters has completed our sixth annual Christmas song, “In the Bleak Midwinter.” The main guitar arrangement is performed by my dad, Herndon Hasty, inspired by James Taylors’ version. The words to this hymn are by English poet Christina Rosetti. Earlier this year, my grandmother (dad’s mom) passed away; she had given me a volume of poems by Rosetti — which included “Midwinter” — on my 16th birthday. This song is released with loving rememberence. Thank you to Admiral Fallow’s Sarah Hayes and Joe Rattray for singing and playing bass on the track, respectively.

You can download “In the Bleak Midwinter” plus all our other Christmas songs here: http://numbersandletters.bandcamp.com/album/merry-christmas-songs

*** N&L is playing a big show on Wednesday (Dec. 21). We’re the meat in a Racing Heart and Pony Of Good Tidings sandwich. We play at 9pm and, yes, there will be Christmas songs, you betcha. More information and tickets can be found at the Union Hall website. The lineup this time includes me, Joe “Dasher” Lops, Justin “Dancer” Keller, Zachary “Prancer” Eichenhorn and Pete “Bruiser” Maness.

*** I will be interviewed live on Conversations LIVE/Conversations Magazine radio tomorrow (Dec. 20) at 6pm. Cyrus and I will be talking about the music industry, Christmas music, splitting time between being a critic and a musician and, probably, dinosaurs. More info here: www.blogtalkradio.com/conversationswithmusic

*** Sounds From A Room has posted their recording of N&L, live and live-streaming from Glasgow, Scotland in October. Check out four N&L songs, performed with the help of Joe Rattray and James Apollo. Jamesy also plays a set of his songs at the end. Video from that performance is forthcoming. Download or stream it here: http://8tracks.com/sofarsounds/sofarsounds-glasgow-oct-11-mix

*** Many thanks to NYC’s Church of the Advent Hope, who invited us to play their Holiday Benefit Concert again this year. The event raised thousands and thousands of dollars, to go toward the Tropical Health Alliance Foundation’s Visually Impaired Persons Project. That organization literally gives sight to the blind. Read more and donate here: http://www.thaf.org/WWW.THAF.ORG/OUR_PROJECTS.html

*** We’re trying very, very hard to finish the album. Just recently, Mike Brenner (Marah, Badly Drawn Boy, Magnolia Electric Co.) contributed some pedal steel tracks to “Run Downhill” and “Don’t Say It Was Me.” Joe Peretore has started mixing. It’s all still kinda exciting.

Listen to Numbers And Letters on SoFar (Sounds from a Room)

N&L was lucky enough to be tapped for the premier Glasgow edition of SoFar — Sounds From A Room, the video/podcast live music hub for and from audiences around the world.

SoFar selects musicians to perform in stripped-down settings, each act playing a handful of songs. What we love about them is that these shows are performed in living rooms, not loud clubs, for fans that just want to enjoy acoustic music in a non-traditional setting.

Numbers And Letters played some new and old songs, including “Ghost,” “Dark Adam,” “Canyon or a Mountain” and “Run Downhill.” N&L’s Scotland tourmate James Apollo also did his own set. It was awesome. We did some drankin’.

Thanks a million again to SoFar, who will be posting the video companion soon!

http://8tracks.com/mixes/433348/player_v3

Autumn is a time to harvest: Show tonight, Scotland tour, T-shirts, recording

For some, the passing season was one of leisure, of blistering our favorite jeans with grass stains, our favorite t-shirts exposing the wet imprint of the swimsuit underneath. For others, these summer months were dotted with the sharp refrain from our mothers that we work too much. If we’re lucky, there was both.

Numbers And Letters took a break from shows so that we could breathe, and make some headway on recording and other projects. Now, it’s a time to sow…

Numbers And Letters + ThunderHead Improv = Prov-Rock

N&L has been invited to play an acoustic set during the newest installment of Prov-Rock on Friday, Sept. 23.

What is Prov-Rock? It’s improv comedy meeting teh rock. ThunderHead — helmed in part by Joe’s newly minted wife (and funniest person on the planet) Beth White — is the group and Peoples Improv Theater is the place.

Joe, Katie and Pete will take the stage around 11pm for a few songs, then there’s comedy, then there’s more music. It all goes ’til midnight, and if you’re lucky, you’ll see our new T-SHIRTS. Holy crap.

The PIT is at 123 24th Street, between Lexington and Park in Manhattan.

New(ish) Song – “If You Say the Words (Live)”

Here’s a sample of things to come… “If You Say the Words” is performed here live from Mercury Lounge.

The track was made out of a dare, sort of: Clifton said I should try writing a straight-forward tune, for once. Joe told me I should try writing a love song where I don’t kill anybody.

This is a result. It’s for all the various.

Ward Williams (Jump Little Children) on cello and Pete Maness on bass are featured.

Midsummers’ update

It’s been a minute, and with good cause.

Since the tour in May, N&L has been focusing almost solely on finishing the album. Just this past weekend, them Tin Pan boys came in and slapped some stank onto “Broken Road.” Stefan also stepped up to the plate on “Sad Ocean Song” and brought the creepiest noises. It pleased me so.

We’ll continue that track until late August, then off to mixing she goes.

I think we’ve settled on an album title, which we’re not ready to reveal yet…

But some of the imagery will be utilized in some new merch…

That will join us in SCOTLAND.

Yes, N&L is going international for the first time this October. We’ve been brushing up our brogue and upping our tolerance. Justin said he may learn to dance. Bless him.