official archived news 2000

DECEMBER 2000 fork news

hello forks. here is your news for december:

we are absolutely thrilled to announce SHOW DATES for JANUARY 2001. these shows will be the first performances with new member CHAD AMORY! CHAD has been through all of the requisite de-programming and subsequent 're-focusing' sessions necessary to become a fork and is now officially ready to bend. chad is amazing and we can say without question that the band has never been better. we would like to extend the invitation for you to see for yourself at the following locations:

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JANUARY 1ST- PHOENIX, AZ @ THE NILE THEATRE
JANUARY 2ND- SAN DIEGO, CA @ THE CHE
JANUARY 3RD- LOS ANGELES, CA @ THE SMELL
JANUARY 4TH- ANAHEIM, CA @ CHAIN REACTION
JANUARY 7TH- S.F., CA @ BOTTOM OF THE HILL (SPECIAL DJ SET)
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all of the above are part of the 6 show GOLD STANDARD LABORATORIES records showcase tour. appearing at some or all shows will be: THE LOCUST. DEFACTO (members of AT THE DRIVE IN). GOGOGO AIRHEART. VUE. BEAUTIFUL SKIN. LE SHOK.

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JANUARY 19TH- SAN FRANCISCO, CA @ THE GREAT AMERICAN MUSIC HALL.
headlining, w/ KID 606, SLAVES, WETGATE & KNIGHTS OVER EGYPT.
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this is a very, very special show for us as it marks our first headlining show at this large historic venue. it is a rare thing for a san francisco act not on a major label to have this opportunity and we are taking full advantage: this will be the biggest and most beautiful stage show we've assembled and we hope everyone makes the trip to attend. it will also be our last S.F. show for quite awhile as we ready ourselves for our first north american tour in march.

we've been writing a lot lately and the new material is coming out very nicely. the latest stuff seems to be much more voice oriented than in the past, giving way to a strong 'hypnotic, synthetic pop' feel. the demos for these songs- IMPOSTER(I'M YOU), TRIVIAL PREMONITIONS, COMPLETE WITH TREES, etc- are being shipped around to various labels for the consideration of our next release.

CONTEST: be one of the first three people to name the 20th century american conceptual artist that our song title 'THE TEETH'S LOAN AND TRUST CO.' (from SENDER/RECEIVER) is referencing and you'll win your choice of any I AM SPOONBENDER item currently in print. send your answers to: forks@iamspoonbender.com before 12.31.00.

on halloween, SPOONBENDER 1.1.1 performed at the san francisco international film festivals' DARK WAVE FEST- an annual 3-day horror movie festival. this was great for us, as we actually got to fulfill some life-long desires of opening for a movie.
the following is from the program:

"Spoonbender 1.1.1 is the "tele-ambient" dream self of I Am Spoonbender- the world renowned, San Francisco-based electronic avant-pop group. While I Am Spoonbender is designed for playing in concert halls, theaters and clubs, Spoonbender 1.1.1 has previously influenced the atmospheres of art galleries and modern dance events. For Dark Wave, Spoonbender 1.1.1 will augment its "electronic soundtracks for levitation sessions" with a considerably darker, seasonal timbre."

lastly, we'd like to extend special thanks to all of you who sent packages and emails about trying out for I AM SPOONBENDER. for everyone else, see you at the shows and thanks for the support.


SEPTEMBER 2000 fork news

sunday september 17th, san francisco:
SPOONBENDER 1.1.1 (our 'tele-ambient' alter ego)
aquarius records instore. 5PM. free.
bottom of the hill club. 9PM. $ tba also appearing: TRANS AM and NEIL HAMBURGER come early- this show will sell out.

for those of you who aren't in san francisco (which is most of you!) - we'll be coming to vancouver, seattle, portland, l.a., and san diego in november/december. east coast/midwest soon after.

check out www.allmusic.com ("the worlds largest music database" for an amazing and beautiful i.a.s. overview/history/review frenzy) enter 'i am spoonbender'. "no other band or artist makes music like (i am spoonbender). the only problem? where does music go from here?"

CUP and DUSTIN recently played with DEAD VOICES ON AIR opening for THE LEGENDARY PINK DOTS in san francisco. D.V.O.A. that night was mainman MARK SPYBEY, w/ RYAN MOORE (TWILIGHT CIRCUS, L.P.D.), NIELS VAN HOORNBLOWER (L.P.D.) CUP, DUSTIN, and AIMEE (unknown last name). a very good time onstage, and the PINK DOTS were amazing as usual.

the DAMO SUZUKI'S NETWORK 'live in seattle' cd is out now in japan (and some american specialty shops) on the amazing CAP'T TRIPS label. this record features DAMO SUZUKI and MICHAEL KAROLI (of CAN!!), MARK SPYBEY and DUSTIN. live versions of 'mother sky' and 'spoon' can be found along with some heavy-duty improv psych.

the new issue of BUNNYHOP magazine (# 10- "the fake issue") contains an interview by MARC with SANDY STONE titled VIRTUAL IDENTITIES. sandy's academic/art credentials are too varied and lengthy to go into here, suffice to say it is a very interesting read. check it out.

CHUNKLET magazine is up to issue 15, and the new one is certain to ruffle some...people. beyond the cover lies CUP and DUSTIN's first published 3-part comic strip ("GLIM AND POG"),and an interview with WILL HART from the OLIVIA TREMOR CONTROL by DUSTIN. CHUNKLET is put out by the same folks who run LITTLE ARMY records- who, of course, put out the american version of our e.p. TELETWIN. which you own, right?

the "SENDER/RECEIVER" picture disc (GOLD STANDARD LABORATORIES) is available now from us or better indie shops. as usual, one new song title- "around them like ghosts" replaces "spirit photography".

want to hear the best new independent music from around the world? listen to CBC RADIOESCAPADE (canada) where CUP will be hosting and spinning the latest "twisted pop and sonic oddities". dates: 9/02-03, 9/09-10, and 9/16-17 from midnite to 4. in realaudio at www.radioescapade.com.

join our email list. describe ice cream.


AUGUST 2000 fork news

TELETWIN (cd-ep) is now out in canada on MINT RECORDS. this version features very special must see packaging, and of course one new song title! TELETWIN (cd only, the 3-sided vinyl is long gone) is still available in the u.s. on LITTLE ARMY RECORDS. everything is available through this site also.

the 'PLASTIC LIPS' b/w 'SEARCHING FOR MR. RIGHT' 7" is available now on CONTACT RECORDS (japan). 500 copies are in existence- 400 black vinyl, 100 white. 'plastic lips' is a retitled 'replaced by toys' (from SENDER/RECEIVER), and 'searching for mr right' is a YOUNG MARBLE GIANTS cover, done our way. we love the young marble giants, and if you haven't heard them..... this 7" is a japanese only release, but AQUARIUS RECORDS in san francisco will definitely have 20 or so white vinyl copies. contact them.

lot's more special and limited releases coming soon, not to mention our 2nd album (the SENDER/RECEIVER follow-up, tentatively titled BLACK DOTS SHIFT).

THE LOCUST remix album is out now on GOLD STANDARD LABORATORIES, and features a slamming mix that we're quite proud of- it's basically a spoonbender song now. there are also remixes by KID 606, CHRISTOPH DE BABALON, and more. amazing packaging too, check it out!

URI GELLER recently sent us some photos from his home in england after he'd received some cd's, shirts, stickers, etc. that he'd ordered. soon after that, a package arrived for us here in san francisco with signed bent spoons and books for all I AM SPOONBENDER members...very cool. learn more about uri here.

from a recent interview with uri geller: Q- "who's your favorite band?" A- "i am spoonbender"

DUSTIN just recently completed filming his part in indie-superstar filmmaker JON MORITSUGU's latest (as yet untitled) movie. this is his follow up to last year's oscar-nominated FAME WHORE. CUP and MARC also have cameos. look for it early next year.

SENDER/RECEIVER is now a limited vinyl lp picture disc! one new song title! order it here.

SPOONBENDER 1.1.1 (our 'tele-ambient' alter-ego project) has been getting quite a workout lately: we recently played with MACHA, THE DYLAN GROUP, and ELECTRIC BIRDS in may, and GOGOGO AIRHEART in june. we also performed a special show called 'CHEMICALS RECOMMENDED- A TRIBUTE TO THE RESIDENTS' in june- there is a video from this show that will be posted on this site shortly, under the new 'movies' section. look for a SPOONBENDER 1.1.1 release this year.

"U.S. POP LIFE 2" the compilation cd on CONTACT RECORDS (japan) is out now. this release will probably be found only in japan, though some are probably to be found in better u.s. shops. it features I AM SPOONBENDER ('WHERE DO WORDS GO?') and others such as MACHA, BRIGHT EYES, MUSIC TAPES, etc.

our studio- SEISMIC SEANCE- has moved! we are now in a beautiful new space and have combined forces with LUCKY CAT studios. a major overhaul is in the works for the SEISMIC SEANCE page at this site, but we're still available as a commercial studio for your recording projects. 16 track analog tape/protools. get in touch for rates.

check out our new 'photo album' section- lots of pictures of us and friends (or at the very least, people we've played shows with!). look for late-night stupidity with WIRE, SEAN LENNON, BOB BERT, URI GELLER, MOGWAI, JELLO BIAFRA, lots more...