Salons Februar – Juli 2012

Welcome back to Sofa Salon. Last month’s collaboration with Bremen agency Songs & Whispers was an amazing night. Thank you to Gillian Grassie for her songs and her generosity in sharing her harp with the audience, Adam Donen for the poetry and candlelight and Heiko and team at Songs & Whispers.

Have a listen to the new Sofa Salon podcast featuring February’s performers plus independent poetry and music from around the world including David Creese, Sharon van Etten and Jenny Hval. 

Regards,

Sam 

Friday 24 February: Gosia Winter (Aus) + Cera Impala (US) + Claudia Emmingham ( DE)

Three powerful performers, Berlin ladies all. Gosia Winter, a Polish-Australian songwriter and guitarist with a playful avant-pop style with the sensuality of 30’s jazz and the soul of Slavic folk, Cera Impala, a charismatic stalwart of Berlin’s bluegrass/americana scene who sounds like Mama Cass and Michelle Phillips with a wicked sense of humour, and Claudia Emmingham, a bi-lingual poet whose found her voice and bone-dry performance style in Berlin’s spoken word scene.

Einlass 19:00. Eintritt 6€. Email reservations to berlinsofasalon [ at ] googlemail.com

Friday 23 March: Miss Kenichi (DE) + guests

Miss Kenichi, born a trucker’s kid in a secluded little town in the woods of south-east Germany, makes a kind of parched and dreamy Americana with a husky voice that slips in under your defences.

With another musical guest and poet to be announced.

Friday 27 April: Phia (Aus) + Holly Mae and the Painted Room (US) + guests

Phia is the playful DIY-art-pop music project of Australian-in-Berlin multi-instrumentalist songwriter Sophia Exiner, think Regina Spektor or New Buffalo playing in a kitchen full of musical instruments. Holly Mae and The Painted Room is a literate art-folk project that draws inspiration from myths, fairtales and Greek tragedy, heavy on swooning, sparking sounds and harmonies.

Saturday 12 May: Sean Nicholas McMahon (Aus) + A Seated Craft (Aus) + guest

Continuing the Sofa Salon tradition of being a Berlin home for Australian independent music, we’re pleased to present Sean Nicholas McMahon and his plaintive Alt.Country/Folk songs. He comes from acclaimed Melbourne band Downhills Home. A Seated Craft is the warm, gossamer music of Alexia Peniguel. The underlying melancholy in her emotive music is leavened by its great, delicate beauty.

Saturday 23 June: SAND Summer Sofa Salon Summer Festival

Sofa Salon again joins with SAND Journal, Berlin’s English-language literary magazine, to create a day-long festival of incredible music and spoken word. We will be holding this somewhere extraordinary.

Friday 6 July: Lapingra (It) + guests

Italian toycore band Lapingra is a collaboration between two quirky musicians with shared passion for Barbie, bake-a-cakes, Björk, Disney soundtracks and Bauhaus. Their album uses toy instruments to bake oven-fresh and original songs.

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2011: New Sofa Salon lineups

Welcome, Dearhearts, to Sofa Salon 2011. We begin on Thursday 27 January at Joe’s Bar, Prenzlauer Berg, with the monthly Sofa Salon showcase. Please come along and witness the warm, wonderful pop-folk of Australian musician Jona Byron and the thrift-shop pop of Brighton, UK anti-folk band Curly Hair.

Herzlich willkommen, liebe Herzen, zu Sofa-Salon 2011. Wir Beginnen am Donnerstag 27. Januar mit der monatlich Sofa Salon präsentieren in Joe’s Bar, Prenzlauer Berg.
Bitte, kommen Sie und the warm, wunderschön pop-volkslieder von Australien Jona Byron und der “Thrift-shop pop” von britischen anti-folk band Curly Hair erleben.

Love,
Ms. Sam

Donnerstag Januar 27. – Joe’s Bar Showcase: Jona Byron & Curly Hair
Jona Byron (AUS) is purportedly a large, hairy, bipedal humanoid which carries a guitar and sings from the trees, originally discovered in Melbourne, Australia until 2010, when he was spotted in Berlin. Also spotted in Berlin is anti-folk group Curly Hair (Brighton, UK) who bring their charming, thrift-shop pop to Joe’s Bar this Thursday 27.

Doors at 21:00. Eintritt 4€. Joe’s Bar, Schönhauser Allee 157, Prenzlauer Berg.

Samstag Februar 19. – Wohnzimmer Konzert: Roland Satterwhite & Gosia Winter & poet Linden Horvath
For the first living room concert of 2011, welcome back a previous Sofa Salon guest, Berlin-based violinist and songwriter Roland Satterwhite (Berlin/USA) alongside with talented folk-jazz chanteuse Gosia Winter (Berlin/AUS). This will be a joyful and sassy jazz-influenced night from these two wonderful voices. Our poet will be the thoughtful and wry Berlin-based writer Linden Horvath (USA/Berlin).

To reserve places, the new Sofa Salon email is : berlinsofasalon@googlemail.com.

Donnerstag Februar 24. – Joe’s Bar Showcase: Janin Johannsen & Sarsaparilla plus poet to be announced

Sarsaparilla was one of the first musicians I saw live in Berlin. He has a lovely way with words and a sweet, organic sound for fans of Devemdra Banhart. Janin Johannsen has an emotional, crystaline voice, delicate folk style and a fascination with Elvis. A gorgeous night ahead!

Doors at 21:00. Eintritt 4€. Joe’s Bar, Schönhauser Allee 157, Prenzlauer Berg.

Samstag März 26. – Wohnzimmer Konzert: Chloe Charles (CAN) & Aly Tadros (USA) plus poet to be announced

Sofa Salon is excited to host these two amazing alternative acoustic songwriters during their European tour. Toronto native Chloe Charles has been likened to Cat Power and Joni Mitchell and is possessed of a dramatic dark-honey voice. Austin-based Aly Tadros has the sass of Fiona Apple and the swing of a Ricky Lee Jones. Both ladies offer a distinctive and accomplished point-of-view.

To reserve places, the new Sofa Salon email is : berlinsofasalon@googlemail.com.

Donnerstag März 31. – Joe’s Bar Showcase: Biddy Connor (AUS) with Ned Collette (AUS) & Emaline Delapaix (AUS) plus poet to be announced

Talented Australian film composer, viola player and songwriter Biddy Connor comes to Berlin for a one-off performance of her atmospheric music featuring respected songwriter Ned Collette (AUS). Also featured is the spun sugar ambient folk-pop of Emaline Delapaix (AUS), now based in rural Germany.

Doors at 21:00. Eintritt 4€. Joe’s Bar, Schönhauser Allee 157, Prenzlauer Berg.

Samstag April 23. – Wohnzimmer Konzert: Christina Maria (CH/CAN) and Jimmy Tait (AUS) plus poet to be announced

Christina Maria did a Sofa Salon in July 2010. She was mesmerising and garnered requests for an encore. She brings her lithe acoustic folk pop back to the Salon alongside emerging Australian act Jimmy Tait, the melancholic and spacious sound of prolific Melbourne songwriter Sara Retallick and this gun band.

To reserve places, the new Sofa Salon email is : berlinsofasalon@googlemail.com.

Samstag Oktober 15. – Wohnzimmer Konzert: Wooden Peak (DE) + Martin Lau & Teleskop (DE)

I heard Wooden Peak’s wonderful electronic-acoustic folk at Fusion 2010 and asked them to play a Sofa Salon. They will also perform for us their collaboration with poet Martin Lau, who has just released his first cycle of poems on Periplaneta, with Wooden Peak setting Martin’s words to music.

To reserve places, the Sofa Salon email is : berlinsofasalon@googlemail.com.