News
6/11/2009
A quick update: Pop! The Beat Bubble Burst has archived today's show (which featured The Simple Carnival). It'll be online until June 25th, so check out the show -- it looks good!
6/10/2009
A new song is up on the MySpace player -- Keeping it Quiet, from Girls Aliens Food. Check it out!
Thanks to Rich over at Pop! The Beat Bubble Burst for playing The Simple Carnival tomorrow (Thursday) between 5 AM and 7 AM central time on KDHX in St. Louis. You can listen online here.
6/4/2009
Another wow!
A big thanks goes out to Aaron from Powerpopaholic for reviewing Girls Aliens Food and calling it "a soft pop masterpiece"!
Check out the whole review here!
5/30/2009
Well, wow! Girls Aliens Food is currently being featured on the front page of mega-cool pop retailer Not Lame!
Not only that, but there's a stark raving mad review of Girls Aliens Food on the site as well. (Those are the best kinds of reviews. 
)
A big thanks to Bruce at Not Lame for the review and for inviting The Simple Carnival on board!
5/27/2009
I thought my very first radio interview was gone forever, mercifully disappearing off the beaches of Maui after its broadcast last August... but noooooooo!
Yes, thanks to the power of the internet, my chat with the very cool Michael McCartney (from Hawaii's The Time Machine radio show) has now been archived for posterity's sake.
So if you'd like to hear me speak very nervously (about 3x my normal rate) and in an exhausted state (it was past midnight on a Friday), here's the link you need!
(And thanks to the power of digital audio editing, they did a heck of a job editing my rambling. Thanks again for having me on the show, Michael!)
Also, thanks to Steve from the Dalecast podcast for playing The Simple Carnival recently.
5/20/2009
Is it OK if I name-drop for a moment?
A few days ago, I received a surprise e-mail from distinguished recording artist Jim Noir. I asked him if I could use a sentence from his exceptionally kind message in The Simple Carnival's press kit, and he said yes.
Rather than tell you what the quote is (it's not exactly family-friendly), you can check it out on The Simple Carnival's quote archive. Thanks so much, Jim -- you made my week! Be sure to check out Jim's most excellent music here.
Thanks goes out to the Digivegas podcast for playing The Simple Carnival on a recent show.
Finally, thanks to Steve from the Dalecast podcast for playing The Simple Carnival (again!).
5/7/2009
It's another podcast/internet radio thank you day!
First, thanks to Shockpop from scrubradio.com for playing The Simple Carnival this past weekend.
Thanks to Larry from The Patio for playing The Simple Carnival on show 175.
Thanks to Atlantic Wave Radio for apparently playing The Simple Carnival. I say "apparently" because I received an e-mail saying that they played a song, but I can't find any podcasts on their site. Maybe it's on their streaming radio station? I don't know, but thank you anyway!
And no thank you list would be complete without thanking Steve from the Dalecast podcast... Not only did he play The Simple Carnival three times recently, but The Simple Carnival made it onto his Dalecast Top 20 list. Thanks Steve! Make sure to check out his show here.
4/29/2009
A new song is up on the MySpace player -- Effortlessly, from Girls Aliens Food. Check it out!
4/24/2009
Well, whaddya know? The Simple Carnival is being featured in a blog post over at Baroque Pop Radio. Check it out! (Thanks, Sean!)
Thanks to The Awful Show for playing The Simple Carnival on Awful Snack episode 93b. (I don't understand why it's called The Awful Show when it doesn't sound awful at all. And Joel, the show's DJ, was very complimentary about the Simple Carnival song he played. Am I missing something? In any case, thank you, Joel!)
Thanks to Steve from the Dalecast podcast for playing The Simple Carnival twice lately. Check out his show here.
Did you know Girls Aliens Food is on www.pandora.com? I didn't. But now I do. And now you do too. Here's the link!
4/2/2009
Thanks to Matt Williams from The Brigadier, Christian Phillips from The Sonic Executive Sessions, and Rob Gibson from Mister Fusty for agreeing to blindly lend their names to yesterday's April Fools' Day post. Also, a big thank you to Missy Kulik, for trusting me to manipulate her artwork for yesterday's foolishness. Based on the feedback I received, it seems that a good time was had by all.
A big shout-out to Tim at Whisperin & Hollerin for an excellent review of Girls Aliens Food -- definitely one for the quote archive! Thanks so much for the kind words.
Finally, thanks to Steve from the Dalecast podcast for playing The Simple Carnival three times... in one day, I think? Check out his show here!
3/20/2009
There were a lot of great entries from last year's Really Really Weird remix contest.
However, I wanted to put one of the remixes -- which didn't win -- in the spotlight, because I think it's really, really good. So up on the MySpace player is Admo's remix of Really Really Weird. (You'll need to click on the bottom song title in the player to play it.) Check it out!
3/18/2009
Remember the cool painting videos that Adam Yeater made with The Simple Carnival's music as the soundtrack?
Well, I thought I'd show where I put one of his paintings in my recording studio. It's right above what I call my "pile of keyboards":
So thanks again to Adam for the excellent artwork. Be sure to check out his MySpace page for more!
Here's something which happened a little while ago but I forgot to mention it. The Japanese site Powerpop Academy now sells The Simple Carnival's Girls Aliens Food and Me and My Arrow EP. Note that these links only apply if you pay for things in yen.
For everyone else, there's iTunes, CDBaby, Amazon, and (of course) www.simplecarnival.com.
3/16/2009
Thanks to Matt from Electric Needle Room for putting Girls Aliens Food in rotation over at UNO MavRadio! (That's the University of Nebraska-Omaha radio station.)
Thanks to the radio show Dancing in Circles for playing The Simple Carnival last week.
Lastly, thanks to Steve from the Dalecast podcast for playing The Simple Carnival five times recently. Check out his show here!
3/3/2009
It might've been released nearly a year ago (March 11, 2008 to be exact), but a couple new Me and My Arrow EP reviews just trickled in!
First is this great review from Even in the Future Nothing Works which asks if I'm the happiest man in Pennsylvania. I've never thought about that, but if I get more reviews like this one, I suppose I could be!
The next fine Me and My Arrow review comes courtesy of Is This Music?. Actually, someone else at that site also reviewed the EP favorably last year, but it's good to see that they still like it!
Lastly, I received issue #46 of an excellent magazine called Roctober, and inside is the best one-sentence review of Girls Aliens Food I've ever seen: "If Brian Wilson had a nice dad, this is the kind of music he would have made!"
A hearty thanks goes out to all three reviewers -- Stephen Harrison, Donny, and Waymon Timbsdayle -- for the kind words!
3/1/2009
Spring is almost here! What does that mean?
It means it's time to start breaking out the t-shirts!
From now through the end of March, these very comfy navy blue Simple Carnival t-shirts are 25% off! They feature the colorful characters from the Girls Aliens Food album cover. (My apologies for the graininess in the above pictures -- they don't do the t-shirt justice.)
So if you want something for this spring/summer which is comfy, unique, and will definitely turn heads (I've seen it happen) get your Simple Carnival t-shirt today!
2/23/2009
A totally new Simple Carnival recording is up -- one that is not yet on any album!
I just covered Joe Raposo's song "J Jump." It's going to appear on an as-yet-untitled Raposo tribute album, probably later this year.
If you're unfamiliar with the name, Joe Raposo was the prolific composer of nearly every classic Sesame Street song from the '70s and '80s. He also wrote a multitude of other TV show music that you've no doubt heard thousands of times (the immortal Three's Company theme, for example). He scored movie soundtracks, worked on musicals, wrote songs for Sinatra... The list goes on and on...
You can hear The Simple Carnival's version of "J Jump" here. (You'll need to pick "J Jump" on the MySpace player.)
There's a bunch of fantastic artists who are going to be on the tribute -- Louis Philippe, Paul Steel, BMX Bandits... Judging by the tracks on the Joe Raposo tribute page, it's shaping up to be a great album. I can't wait to hear the whole thing!
P.S.: If you're thinking to yourself, "Hmmm... What do you mean, a 'new' Simple Carnival track? I thought I heard you cover 'J Jump' already." The answer is, you're right -- I covered the song about four years ago, and that version was up on the tribute page until now. I re-recorded the song from scratch with what I think is a better arrangement and performance. So, yes, I've recorded the song before, but I just finished this new version last week.
2/20/2009
It's another podcast thank you day...
A big thanks goes out to Steve from Dalecast for playing The Simple Carnival six times recently. Have a listen to any show on his episode list and there's a good chance The Simple Carnival is on it!
Thanks to the PageantCast podcast for playing Really Really Weird on episode 170.
Thanks to Shockpop from scrubradio.com for playing a Simple Carnival song last Sunday.
Did I miss anybody? If you're a podcaster or DJ who played a Simple Carnival song and never received a proper public thank you, let me know and I'll make sure to plug your show!
2/13/2009
Hope you are doing lots of smoochin' with a loved one this weekend.
Just wanted to tell you about one of the coolest unexpected surprises I received lately. This ranks up there with the 7-year-old girl singing "Really Really Weird."
An artist by the name of Adam Yeater asked if he could use a couple of my songs as soundtracks to his videos. His videos consist of -- are you ready for this? -- paintings!
It's kind of like animation, but not really. It's a bit difficult to describe unless you see it yourself:
The very cool painting featured in the second video now hangs in my recording studio. More information about Adam's work can be found at his MySpace page. Thanks again, Adam!
OK, back to your regularly scheduled smoochin'!
2/6/2009
A new track is up on the MySpace player -- You Jump First. It's from the album Girls Aliens Food. Enjoy!
1/25/2009
It's a podcast thank you day, so here goes!
A big thanks goes out to Steve from Dalecast for playing The Simple Carnival seven times (!) since the last post here. I'm not going to attempt to list all of the episodes The Simple Carnival is on, so just pick out any show on his episode list and you'll probably find one!
Thanks to the podcast Suitcase Full of Dimes for playing The Simple Carnival on episode 100.
Finally, thank you to PMN Hit Makers Podcast for playing The Simple Carnival on episode 121.
1/13/2009
I have a bunch of thank you messages to catch up on today, so without further ado...
A double thanks goes out to David Bash (organizer of the well-regarded International Pop Overthrow) for placing the Me and My Arrow EP on his top 5 EPs of 2008 list and Girls Aliens Food on his top 125 albums of 2008!
Thanks to the Ed's Mixed Bag podcast for playing Over Coffee and Tea on his show.
Thanks to Steve from scrubradio.com for playing two Simple Carnival songs in one show!
Last but not least (do you really think I'd single out someone as the "least," anyway?), another round of thanks goes out to Steve from Dalecast for playing The Simple Carnival... I think three times in the past few days. If I were as prolific with albums as Steve is with podcasts, I'd be releasing a boxed set by now!
1/9/2009
So we're expecting four inches of snow this weekend and... Man, I wish I were flying to Hawaii to hang out with the nice folks at The Time Machine radio show! A big aloha and thank you goes out to them for listing Girls Aliens Food as one of their most played albums of 2008.
A belated thank you to the very fine songwriter Marc with a C for making Girls Aliens Food one of the runners-up on his favorite 2008 album list!
1/7/2009
A very big thanks to indiepop legend Louis Philippe for listing The Simple Carnival's song Really Really Weird as one of his top 10 of 2008 -- I'm honored!
Thanks to probably one of the more unusual outlets to play The Simple Carnival, the XBox 360 Fancast. She Won't Look At Me (from Sonic Rescue League Vol. 1) was played during episode 98. I don't own an XBox, and The Simple Carnival is probably the furthest thing from video game music, but I do indeed appreciate the airplay!
Lastly, another thanks goes out to Steve from Dalecast for playing The Simple Carnival another three times in the past few days! (At least, I think it was three times -- I've lost track.)
1/4/2009
Thanks to Dag from groove.no for ranking Girls Aliens Food as the #3 album of the year!
Likewise, thanks to Marc Morrison at WIUP-FM for playing The Simple Carnival on today's show and listing "Nothing Will Ever Be As Good" as one of his favorites of 2008!
Last but not least, a triple thanks goes out to Steve from Dalecast for playing The Simple Carnival three times this past week!
1/2/2009
A new song is up on the MySpace player -- Nothing Will Ever Be As Good, from Girls Aliens Food. Check it out!
1/1/2009
Thanks to the Sammy's Tunes blog for ranking Girls Aliens Food as the #2 album release of 2008 -- and for listing the song You Jump First as one of the top 50 tracks of 2008!
Did you know you can listen to pretty much the entire Girls Aliens Food album online? Yep, it's true. Check out this page at CD Baby and click on one of the "Play all songs" buttons on the left side of the page. (Likewise, there's a similar page for the Me and My Arrow EP.)
While you can order either CD through CD Baby, if you order directly through simplecarnival.com, if you'd like, you can get personalized, autographed CDs. Plus, you'll get a mp3 download link within 24 hours of payment, so you don't have to wait for the CD to arrive in the mail before you can listen to it. (Oh, and there's other things you can get only through simplecarnival.com, like early EPs and this very comfy t-shirt.)
12/30/2008
I've been somewhat busy with the holidays and things, so I have a bit of a backlog of news to report. First, thanks to Steve from Dalecast for playing Misery and Cocktails from Girls Aliens Food on two recent episodes. Second, thanks to Ed's Mixed Bag for playing Super Robot Toy (from Sonic Rescue League Vol. 1) on his show. Also, many thanks to Power Pop Station for listing Girls Aliens Food as one of the top 100 albums of 2008! (It's #66.)
Last but not least, thanks to Lino and Cathrin for translating this Italian review -- it's much more coherent than those online translation web pages. Here's what they say the review says:
The Simple Carnival is the solo project of Jeff Boller, a young artist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a clear vision and full artistic independence (he says that didn't have a choice as he, strangely enough, couldn't find anybody who shares his melodic obsessions – but we're sure that this is also a deliberately chosen and necessarily needed loneliness).
Following the first songs between 2001 and 2005 (collected in mono on Sonic Rescue League Vol. 1) it was time for two EPs (Me and My Arrow and Menlo Park), and as he went back working on the fifty tracks again and again, Boller had the chance to constantly refine his very own pop style. In 2008 the project is released on CD via Sundrift Records and Girls Aliens Food is amazing proof for vitality and a rare talent for melodies.
It's pretty uncommon indeed to meet someone who is able to evoke memories of él records as well as of Burt Bacharach, Beach Boys, Pea Hicks, Sean O'Hagan and Ben Folds without yearning for the good old days in this half hour, equipped with frugal and considerate knick knack instrumentation. Jeff Boller is an artist who, as it often happens, seems to have popped up from out of nowhere whose style could be described as sweet and effortless, smooth and delicate which successfully joins instrumental decoration with emotional and sensitive songwriting. A wonderful and balanced way with mild tremors and balanced sounds that has already captured personalities such as Margo Guryan and Louis Philippe.
"Really Really Weird," the fabulous opening track of the album (also object of a remix contest) is a fair pop carousel which blends the remote heritage of soft pop and current taste in such a lush and bright way that it evokes childhood memories of Todd Rundgren. This strange and effusive joy is continued in "Over Coffee and Tea" which comes up with an obvious parallelism of gesture and certain opposites.
If "Nothing Will Ever Be As Good" is Jeff Boller's personal symphony to god, or to its signature, an exact synthesis of Smile, "Caitlin's On The Beach," "Cocktails," and "Flirt" make language easier once again by turning emotional chirp and overwhelming choruses into simple and effective bossa nova collages, TV jingles, glockenspiel, gizmo, kazoo, marimbas and theremin, taken to a state of trance like enchanted childhood memories.
The touching figurative blends of "Misery" and "Hey Lancaster" hit right into the heart, aces up one's sleeve, which take you to the West coast of Marc Jordan and Nick de Caro. Eventually the picturesque "Effortlessly" is epic proof of Mister Simple Carnival's talent. Put shortly before the end it's a melody full of harmonies that attire a comet which arpeggios that beam with clear light, vested with an atmospheric celestial bed.
Have a fun and safe New Year's Eve! See you next year.
12/26/2008
A new, timely song is up on the MySpace player -- it's a semi-instrumental celebrating New Year's Eve parties. It's called Cocktails, and it's a track from Girls Aliens Food. Check it out!
12/23/2008
Christmas is near, and The Simple Carnival's unapologetically materialistic holiday song is getting a bit of airplay! Thanks to Adam from Pop Garden Radio for playing Super Robot Toy again on his December 19th show. Likewise, thanks to Chris from The Curve Ball for playing the same tune on today's show.
Finally, Beatmag.net printed a pretty good review of the Me and My Arrow EP.
12/20/2008
This is not strictly Simple Carnival news, but if you're a vocalist and/or home recording musician you might find this interesting. I just posted a new article on Songs and Sonics called Three tricks for better vocal overdubs.
If you're interested in how I record Simple Carnival harmonies and lead vocals, check this article out, because I'm giving away all my secrets!
12/19/2008
Many thanks to Cathrin for providing an English translation of the German Konkret review that I wrote about on 12/9/2008. Here's her translation:
In Delmont, Pennsylvania, Jeff Boller is sitting in his garage working on his audio tracks and crafting the most wondrous melodies. He says his music sounded as if the Beach Boys and Harry Nilsson wrote for Sesame Street or Burt Bacharach for the Electric Light Orchestra. I'd say he's right but sometimes it also sounds as if Todd Rundgren and Hall & Oates worked together on a good day in the early eighties. Stressing "good day" which is the big difference between Boller's music and the in fact rather not charming collaboration that is the Hall-Oates-Rundgren record War Babies.
And as the changes in the music industry do of course not primarily harm the ever complaining majors but in fact the tiny enthusiast labels who would have taken under their wings such an artist in the past, Boller needed to create some space in his home for his own CDs and sell them through his website (www.simplecarnival.com) hoping that word gets round. He'd deserve it. Girls Aliens Food is one of the most beautiful song records of the year. "It does not rock, it pops" writes Boller and I couldn't have said it better.
Other men create model railroads in their cellars with detailed landscapes. Boller builds song miniatures with passion, nerdiness, ardour that is contagious, artificial lawn and tiny H0 scale figures sunbathing on an artificial beach under an artificial sun.
Each and every second you can feel Boller's enthusiasm and his admiration for his idols. This is music from a fan perspective, music that succeeds in passing on joy and ardour to the listener and create something new and original from these influences. Or as he puts it himself: "I'm a big fan of the music of some artists. But it never pushes exactly all the right buttons with me. I'm making music to have something that is a hundred percent what I want to listen to."
Jeff Boller is making music because he wants to, because he has to and because he loves music. The concentrated charms of Girls Aliens Food will bring cheerfulness and joy to the life of even the most morose crank would be my educated guess. If you want to do something for your karma and go through the dark winter with a smile on your face, buy this wonderful record from Mister Boller.
- Alexander Kasbohm -
Thanks to Alexander for the sparkling review and thanks again to Cathrin for helping me understand it! I'm still looking for good English translations of this Italian review and this Norwegian review. Translators will receive a free download of Girls Aliens Food.