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NW Bike Tour Begins.......

The Portland Bicycle Music Fest was StitchCraft’s last show with Heather and Anna as a duo as it has been for the past six years. We played to a lovely grassy hill of fanciful folks with hoola hoops and striped socks, we thank the dancers and pedalers for their energetic contributions. After a few sets of music in Park, by Cello Joe, The Spider and the Fly, Bear Dykan, and others, the bikes set off to a new location for a slide show and a Ginger Ninjas performance. Kipchoge, lead singer of the Ginger Ninjas is the spark that inspired this bike touring movement of musical eco activism. Strapping food, clothes, sleeping gear, rain gear and a banjo to my bike was an ongoing challenge of balance; the banjo’s constant adjustments were my hourly yogic practices, extra care not to side swipe someone with it when passing high speed down hills. The majority of the crew rode xrtracycles with amps, instruments, cables, pots pans, stoves, food, and let me not forget; exquisite picnic foods…....

The crew was an epic jamming potato soup of sweet sweet sweet. The 6 bands/solo acts that merged upon each other mixed and played together from show to show, around camp fires, in underground tunnels, on-bike sing alongs, and eventually got on the same wavelength pedaling and sleeping in the same area for so long. What a cool experiment! We were blessed with “road fairies” offering us free farmer’s market foods, Chinese food, places to stay, and many good, enthusiastic words!

The Seattle Bike Music fest was a success, with 4 locations, StitchCraft played at the Waterfront morning show and in front of the Space Needle in the evening before the bike dancers and the bike shop after party. Aaron's Bikes very generously fixed up everyone's bikes before we set off the next day toward the border.

An extended stay in Bellingham to play a show and do a bit of farm work made us all want to stay a little longer, or build our own sustainable, farm community...Thank you to all those who supported our trip on the way north!!

We had an epic border crossing when we showed up with 20 bicyclists on the highway, the patrol had to shut down the road for us to go across rather than making us ride 40 miles out of our way to cross at the "bike crossing" location. We were all very thankful.

Our Vancouver experience was very welcoming; the fantastic host and Vancouver organizer, Mia, prepared a hige meal for the arriving, exhausted bicyclists, and set us up in our own appt for the 3 nights there which came equiped with a giant dome filled with pine branches that we all squeezed and nested in perfect for doing some sound yoga. Vancouver was by far my favorite because I performed my first LIVE ON BIKE performance throughout the streets of Vancouver, under bridges, and through tunnels for some exquisite reverb effects, past the docks and water sides sides, all the while - with one pedal. Some how the bike basket I pedalled in lost a pedal and Aaron of Aaron's bikes pedaled me for close to an hour!!! with one pedal. What a trouper!!!

 

To conclude our adventure, we all tooka  train back to Portland and continued on in touring mode to Salem, to Eugene and to Burning Man in the Veg Oil Bus named Milli.

I give many thanks for the people and the opportunity to have this great experience and highly recommend the method of touring for your music (and your life) on bike.

Video of on bike show...My Love Comes to Me

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We just got back from a very exciting northwest tour through parts of northern California, Oregon, and Washington. We met up with some unexpected guests from Florida at our Casper performance, and got to see where the mermaids swim in their seaweedy coastal lagoons. The trees grow in crooked, twisted winding bundles, that make you want to scurry up a branch and build a home. Chico, CA held a grand welcoming for us, with potluck of farm grown goodies at the GRUB Collective community house where we performed the first night, and a bustling crowd of eager listeners at Cafe Coda. What a pleasure it was to share the stage with the talented ladies of MaMuse!! If you haven't heard them, check them out www.myspace.com/mamuse

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Making our way north, we made a stop in the Mt. Shasta to howl at the moon and jump into a frothy bubbling waterfall before arriving in Ashland to enjoy the fine and fancy tastes of Liquid Assets Wine Bar. ....

Two shows, an impromptu hoola hooping session in the street and bags of free vegan donuts made Portland quite a sweet stop as well. From there we wondered out to Bend to rock the Back Porch Coffee house, and they treated us very well. There are some excellent listeners in that town - which leads me to suspect that they must have some awesome musicians there, such as Erin Colebaker who organized the show for us that evening . Thanks for a wonderful show Bend! Our final destination as a three piece band was Seattle, where we were treated so well at the Nettle Honey house concert www.myspace.com/nettlehoney and we had the honor of playing for the lovely Reed Lane and Kelley Ballentine wedding, congratulations!! Our final destination was traveling back to Portland to perform on pedal powered speakers at the Portland Bicycle Music Festival! What fun was that!! It was the last StitchCraft show with amazing violinist, singer, composer and arranger, Anna Perlmutter, who has headed out to the east coast.....

We are very thankful for the assistance we received putting shows together, advertising, feeding and housing us. Big shout out and thanks to GRUB Collective, Nettle Honey, Margorie Maffet, Erin Colebacker, JJ Stein, and the Bicycle Music Fest crew!!! ....

www.myspace.com/stitchcraft

StitchCraft’s Through the Hoolaboo was recorded and produced by Ashley Beach of Seagrape Studios.

The new album, Through the Hoolaboo, can be found online at www.cdbaby.com/stitchcraft2 for $14, all shipping included.
Get a 10% discount if you buy more than one. Pick up a copy or three today!
Purchase the songs on iTunes through the link above as well!

StitchCraft is coming to Florida!  Myspace events listings don't seem to be working, so below is all of the info you'll need. It's also on our website, www.stitchcraftmusic.com

Friday, April 17 8:00 PM - CD Release Show at Art Center Sarasota with Silas Durocher
Where: Art Center Sarasota - 707 N Tamiami Trl (near the Van Wezel)
Sarasota, Florida 34236
Cost: $5-$15 Sliding Scale - Tickets sold at the door
Description: We
are pre-releasing our new album at a special event in Sarasota, FL...for our long-time and wonderful Florida friends and fans. We will be playing in our old Florida stomping grounds with Silas Durocher and Everybody Knows (silasdurocher.com), former band mate in Stone Soup. We’re throwing the big party at the Art Center, located on Tamiami Trail near the Van Wezel theater. www.artsarasota.org
Official West Coast Release in late May!
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Wednesday April 22, 8:00 PM - Sweat Records, Miami
Where: Sweat Records, 5505 NE 2nd Ave.  (next to Churchill's Pub)
Miami, Florida 33137
Cost: Free - Support cool local record shops!
Description: We’re playing with some sweet friends at a sweet record shop. You should be there too! www.sweatrecordsmiami.com
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Thursday April 23 - 7:00 PM - Books and Books, Coral Gables
Where: Books and Books, 265 Aragon Avenue
Coral Gables,  Florida 33134
Cost: Free
Description:We’ll
be playing at our favorite Miami bookstore this evening, with the
lovely Raffa Jo and other great musical friends. Come for a lovely
musical night.
www.booksandbooks.com
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SEE YOU THERE!!
<3 StitchCraft

So! We may have told you before that there was a walking tour being planned in which we would be walking (with our feet) into and through the Marin Headlands and Bolinas for three days, playing songs to a great many walking, standing and wonderful people.
Wait...we didn't tell you? Well for the love of all that is spontaneous, we invite you to come with us THIS WEEKEND for the epic and blister-loving music walking festival, into the unknown as we sing  you sweet everythings...


Here's a summary of the full trip. If you can only make part of it, that's just fine with us! see below for bus schedules.

FRIDAY 2/6
6pm
Benefit for the Bolinas Community Garden

$15-$100 sliding scale (no one turned away for lack of funds!)
Bolinas Community Center http://www.bocenter.org/

14 Wharf Rd

Bolinas, CA 94924

(415) 868-2128
Featuring:
Pedal-powered PA workshop // Cello Joe // Sonya Cotton // StitchCraft // Shake Your Peace (and maybe more!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SATURDAY 2/7
[in the morning bands and walking caravan will get kayaked and kayak ourselves across the channel to Stinson Beach]
7pm
Slide Ranch Intern Party
@ Slide Ranch.
2025 Shoreline Hwy., Muir Beach, CA 94965

bring potluck dish for potluck at 6pm
Free!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SUNDAY 2/8
6pm
In the great room of the Hosteling International Marin Headlands Hostel
Building 941 at Fort Barry, Sausalito, California

Free!
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DETAILED SCHEDULE AND WAYS TO GET IN AND OUT AND AROUND:

Friday 2/6 -

Meet at 10:25am at Golden Gate Transit's 7th & Market stop.
board the Marin City Northbound #10
10:38am ---> 11:25am
fare = $3.75 p. person

>>Transfer at Marin City (same bus stop they leave us at)

to Marin Stagecoach's South Route 61
11:45am --->1pm
fare = $2 p. person

[NOTE:
for those who may need to come later, you can do this same
route later - GGT's #10 also leaves from 7th and Market at 2:33, 3:28,
4:30, and 5:26. The Marin Stagecoach's # 61 only leaves from Marin City
at 4:05 (arrives in Bolinas at 5:20pm) and 6:45pm (arrives in Bolinas
at 8pm)]