Jiggity Jogg...

And just like that, we are back home in not-so-sunny California. It rained most of the night last night and into the afternoon. I went to bed at 11 and woke up at noon... I must have needed it. So where were we...

Last we spoke we were still heading east.. We left Chicago, split a few shows with our badass drummer Katherine Monnig, had a bitchin show in Cbus with the Rosie Burgess Trio and guest appearance by Joe's little bro who laied down some awesome lead lines for us. There we received one of the coolest gifts Coyote Grace has ever received.. an Alaskan Ulu, a kickass knife with the words "Columbus loves Coyote Grace" inscribed on it... No shit. Way cool. I'm going to chop some greens for a dinner date with Ing tonight with it. Aw:) Anyway, way cool, thanx Jazz! On to Pittsburgh, a great show sweetened by the sweet stylings of Nicole Steele on the djembe.

Heading northeast, we start to feel the fall, brilliant leaves on a few select early bloomers. Boston is just as treacherous as ever with their lack of signage and street grids (cows don't walk in straight lines, silly suburbian!) but we had an amazing show with Chris Pureka and Brooke Brown Sarancino at the Lizard Lounge. The appreciation for folk/acoustic music over there never ceases to amaze and empower me. We played in Vermont for the first time, postcard views everywhere. Had to stop at the Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Factory, it was awesome! Free samples and everything. And at that point, we begin to head west again...

Nothing like heading west. That means you're heading home. Long drives this way, house concert with friends in Ann Arbor, a return show in Chicago with the rhythmically boggling Congress of Starlings (we're going to make this a regular thing). There was a very heartfelt show/memorial in Des Moines at the Ritual Cafe, one of the leaders of the community there fell upon tough times and checked out early. Jeff is greatly missed, and his presence affected more lives than he knew. He continues to inspire and change the world with his memory. Here's to all the folks there fighting the good fight!! Lots of Graceful Coyote love to you all.

A long stretch across the Plains to the Front Range, I feel the moisture disappear from the air, and the mountains rise in front of us, the highest hurdle. We rock out in Denver and Fort Collins, so awesome to reconnect with our Folks Fest and Song School buddies. We shared the Ft Collins show with Jill Brzezicki, rocked out late at night in her amazing cabin in the woods. I feel as though that music community I have been looking for is developing before me, and I am so grateful. Off to Park City UT where our show was canceled without a heads up, but luckily an old high school friend on Ing's had a health spa up the street and offered her space! So we had an awesome guerrilla show in the spa, slept on massage tables that night, woke up and got rubbed! Amazing:) Then we jumped on 80 and blazed 11 hours home. A little snow, endless Nevada, and clean sheets at the parent's house. This is my job? I must be dreaming.

Not quite done yet, however, we stay in the Central Valley for a few extra days and play a fun hometown show in Sacto with old high school musician friend of Joe's, Boy Loin out of Oakland. If any of you have been to a show that my Mom was attending, you can imagine the energy. I never get heckled so much. Lots of fun, up to Chico for another show with Boy Lion, not to forget Chico State and Sac State. Then... an awesome house concert is Oakland at the Back Porch Concert Series (do check them out if you appreciate good taste) and THEN... we finally get to go home.

Now it is raining again, we are back home on our computers getting ready to do it all again... We have the winter fairly free, save a trans conference in AZ for Joe, Trans Day of Remembrance in Omaha and possibly Iowa, and a week trip to LA. And lots of busy work in between. The "Buck Naked" EP will be out by January, our next big tour will be to the Southwest in Feb, and the big wheel keeps on turning. It's a life, I tell ya.

Lots of love to you all, it is an endless joy to play music for you and have that energy exchange; a good show is definitely a joint effort between the audience and the performer. Neither party is more important than the other. It is an age-old line of work I suppose, and I am beyond grateful that I can contribute to the self, group, and community healing that takes place in the presence of music. Happy winter everyone, we look forward to seeing you again down the road.

j&i

.. .. .. .. .. .. ....

Heya Folks!

Coming to you with a mid-tour report, we are eating breakfast in Cincinnati at the moment, sitting don to catch you all up. A beautiful ride north along the west coast, late night jams with our newly found pitstop and ever gathering crew in Eugene OR. Rockin show in Portland, just keeps getting roudyer! Seatown during Gender Odyssey weekend seems to be becoming a regular thing. The whole west coast is our home turf these days, so awesome to roll around in the old stomping grounds, so awesome to have a good mirror of how far we've come. Two amazing sold out shows in Seattle, with local poets warming up the stage - Elaina Ellis, Patch Avery, Marita Isabel, Jessica McPherson - look out for these wordy Northwesterners!

Across the great state of Warshington, quick stop to see some fam in Spokane, up highway 2 along the northern border...way gorgeous.  Not quite enough daylight to get up to Glacier Ntnl Park, but that northern Montana territory is worth checking out. See Joe's Facebook for the usual slew of random objects and vistas. We stopped and had lunch at the geographical center of North America, in Rugby North Dakota (although you cannot find the center of something that does not have solid edges), saw some rainbows, lightning, the usual business out on the plains.

To the upper Midwest we go, bitchin show in the twin cities, one of our favorite stops. The people make the music, you know. It's a joint effort, art is a reciprocal process. We toured the Duluth Pack factory with our buddy, nothing like leather, canvass, and grommets to liven up the day! In Milwaukee we get to see a kite festival... who knew there was such a world for avid kiters! Complete with dancing kites and dancing children. So awesome to see all our folks, great meals, wonderful hospitality. It is a true joy to have such community around the country. Ing and I are fighting off colds tooth and nail at this point (and still are) but hey, that's touring. We get to do our laundry at that point, never so grateful..

Down to Chitown, get to hook up with our homeys Simon and Madsen of Actor Slash Model, and see a sneak peak of their flick "Riot Acts", a documentary about trans folks in the performance world, which features yours truly!! They have been working on this film as long as we have been on the road, and it is a truly inspiring indie project that will be out soon. Check the youtube for the kickass trailer that has some pretty awesome music on it by..someone really cool. A late night jam with Madsen and co, who doesn't like to hear accordion and banjo outside their window at 2am? Chicago show was packed to the gills, we split the show with Rosie Burgess ad her band from down under, and a surprise appearance by Lynnee Breedlove!! She gave me a pisser:) I almost asked her to sign it, but that would be pretty weird. What great energy in that room. Off to Indy, then Cinci, and here we are in the car heading to Columbus. This blog is being birthed in pieces, if you couldn't tell. Not sure where it will actually be sent from, I'll let you know.

That's is for now folks, new updates about the shows in the east, we are splitting two with the awesome singer songwriter Chris Pureka, other shows and back through Chicago, the plains, and back to the Rockies... It's a living!

Split some bitchin' shows with the Rosie Burgess Trio from down unda'! We are so happy to have met up with them and look forward to splitting some shows down in their corner of the globe:) Sent from the One World Cafe in Baltimore:)

J&I

Hey yall,

Just wanted to give a howl to let everyone know we will be roaming around again, a nice big northern loop - up to Seattle, across to Minnesota (taking the tiny roads up by the border:), through the Midwest, a little East Coast in there, and back across the middle. Check the website or the myspace for show details, there's plenty of shows to go around.

Hope to see you there!! Spread the word any way you can, if you are so inclined:) We so so appreciate it.

Did you happen to see our Guy Named Joe video on the LOGO Click List? Keep voting, we wanna be on TV!! You already got us up into the top 10, way to go!

xoxo
J&I


***EAR TO THE GROUND TOUR 2009***

WED, SEPT. 2 - Cozmic Pizza - EUGENE, OR
THUR, SEPT. 3 - Alberta Street Pub - PORTLAND, OR
FRI, SEPT. 4 - Empty Sea Studios - SEATTLE, WA
SAT, SEPT. 5 - Empty Sea Studios - SEATTLE, WA

WED, SEPT. 9 - Beaner's Central - DULUTH, MN
THUR, SEPT. 10 - Ginkgo Coffee - ST. PAUL, MN
FRI, SEPT. 11 - Hotch a do's - MILWAUKEE, WI
SAT, SEPT. 12 - Paradigm Coffeehouse - SHEBOYGAN, WI

TUES, SEPT. 15 - Homolatte @ Big Chicks - CHICAGO, IL
WED, SEPT. 16 - Lazy Daze Coffeehouse - INDIANAPOLIS, IN
THUR, SEPT. 17 - The Comet - CINCINNATI, OH
FRI, SEPT. 18 - Havana - COLUMBUS, OH
SAT, SEPT. 19 - Club Cafe - PITTSBURGH, PA

SUN, SEPT. 20 - Phase 1 - WASHINGTON, DC
TUES, SEPT. 22 - Lizard Lounge - CAMBRIDGE, MA
WED, SEPT. 23 - Langdon Street Cafe - MONTPELIER, VT
THUR, SEPT. 24 - Jason's Upstairs Bar - HUDSON, NY
FRI, SEPT. 25 - Clarion University - OIL CITY, PA

SUN, SEPT. 27 - House Concert - ANN ARBOR, MI
MON, SEPT. 28 - Red Line Tap - CHICAGO, IL
TUES, SEPT. 29 - The Mill - IOWA CITY, IA
WED, SEPT. 30 - Ritual Cafe - DES MOINES, IA
THUR, OCT. 1 - Swallow Hill Cafe - DENVER, CO
FRI, OCT. 2 - The Tap Room @ Catalyst - FORT COLLINS, CO
SAT, OCT. 3 - The Listening Room - PARK CITY, UT

THUR, OCT. 8 - Marilyn's on K - SACRAMENTO, CA
FRI, OCT. 9 - Cafe Coda - CHICO, CA
SUN, OCT. 11 - Back Porch Concerts - OAKLAND, CA

Coyote Grace hearts Colorado. And all the strange and beautiful miles in between. Driving those Rockies is one of my favorite drives. We had a rockin time, we plow through endless mountains, slat flats, and earth guts, play a show is Fort Collins, then the lady flies out to Ohio for her 10 year high school reunion (thank dog we dont breed!) leaving Joe all by his lonesome for the weekend...! Many a mile, many a view, many a rusty metal thing photographed. Ing returns, and we head off to Song School and the Rocky Mountain Folks Fest. And let me tell you what.... No, Melissa Ferrick didnt ask us to tour with her again, but we met so many awesome folks, reconnected with so many awesome folks, played mad music till all hours of the morning. With me on banjo and Ing on bass, we sandwiched many an awesome songwriter and were able to throw down and shine in different ways. Not that we didnt do our share of swapping our own tunes (summertime furrowed a few confused brows, hehe!) in circles and elsewhere. We had a beautiful camping spot by the river, with our homie Amber Darland out of Bellingham WA, you may have caught her opening for us. It was overall wonderful community, wonderful music, and although we were hustling the business cards and working hard, it felt like vacation. Funny that we do the same thing on vacation that we do for work.. but it makes sense to me. The Folks Fest was equally cool, even though our song saturation point was reaching critical.

Back to Cali for another too short break, and in less than a week we will head north with show on the way up, and then east to hit our favorite Midwestern spots and the East Coast as well. In just a short five weeks we will be home... Other highlights - we bought a tiny video camera thing, and as soon as we figure out how to use it, we will be posting all sorts of hilarious road adventures, so stay tuned on the youtube. Also, we have now reached gay stardom... our kickass music video to "A Guy Named Joe" produced by Josh Klipp is up on the LOGO Click List!!!! Go vote for us so we can get the video up on the LOGO channel! We barely get to watch TV, but we would if we were on it!

I hope this finds everyone well, I hope everyone is getting in all their veggie burger flipping for the summer, still keeping the tan, swimming in the pool. Check out our new tour schedule, I bet we'll be coming to you soon!

J&I

Greetings, folk fans and festival goers!!

Coyote Grace just got back from the muddy land of tents and tarps, bare feet and BO all across the looong state of New York. We being on a red-eye from San Fran with Ing's 11 year old niece, a night on a big plane, the morning on a tiny propeller plane, plopped down in Erie PA, and the mayhem begins...

Another rad year at Brushwood, a beautiful piece of land right over the western border of New York. Highlights include many a midnight ring around the big fire, a fair amount of rain and soggy tents (shoes are useless by this point), lots of flowing pants, crazy hair, and sleep deprived sun burnt happy people all reveling in their yearly unconventional church service. Lots of friends and family, time for reconnection and introspection, and time to let loose and party! We had a rockin time.

Mid-week 2, we go back to the tiny Erie airport and rent an equally tiny car and begin our journey across the state, all the way over to the Albany area. A lovely 7 hour drive. I always picture scenes from my west coast elementary school history text books - little men with pointy hats, indians and turkeys and pumpkins, "whigs and tories" darting around in the trees with muskets and little grey suits, people writing on scrolls with big feathers... Public school taught me good. We stay in a hotel Mid-York, where we were profled in the most hilarious way - The timid woman behind the counter seems like she is having a hard time giving us a non-smoking room, like she doesnt believe us... she asks me a few times if i am "sure" we want a non-smoking room (i am the man, after all). We reassure her that a non-smoking room is just fine, only to be put in a smoking room... Wanna smoke a fatty with us?! As we're loading in instruments and colorful clothing, she asks "do you have a dog?" No, we dont have a dog. I love throwing off people's stereotypes!

We get all the way to Catham, a tiny town south of Albany, and pull into the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival where we will play in the Emerging Artist Showcase. They picked 25 out of 500, not bad! This was another festival where the people have made it theirs, their once a year let loose, get dirty and stay up late surrounded by great music. We met and reconnected with many comtemporaries, namely Raina Rose, John Elliott, Driftwood Fire, Pesky J Nixon, Aiden James, Amy Speace, Trina Hamlin and many more. We were also trapped backstage for a few hours durring a deluge that took over the camp like the nothing, and we hung with Ellis Paul, Dan Navarro, Janice Ian, and other random folkstars. :) Then over to another rainy tent for an out-of-this-world performance by the kickass fiddler Eileen Ivers and Immigrant Soul - rocked our wet hippie hearts. Picture Ing and I dancing in the mud along with other poncho wearing music lovers. We also had backstage passes, so we were able to see the most amazing shows - Karen Savoca, Susan Werner, Pamela Means, and the amazing Girlyman! We had great chats with them, nice to meet up with fellow gender warriors. There were many midnight song circles that Ing and I trudged up in the mud for, great to share and hear songs with real song nerds (it's nice to not be the only ones!) So we had a seriously amazing time, we thought of all the little roads that have brought us to this point, and all the folks who continued and continue to come to Coyote Grace shows, even when we arent spectacular - the love and the path have been amazing. It was a moment to smile on the past and breathe in the present, future be dammed. We made it this far and we're still having fun. It's all we could ask. Thank you all for getting us here:)

We have a short week off, then we are off to Colorado to the Rocky Mountain Song School and Folks Fest, the famous place where Joe met and wooed Mellissa Ferrick. Ing will be with this time, so we'll see what we stirr up this year. Looking forward to more song swaps and beautiful camping (in the car this time. i'm not a princess, i just like living in my van. so there) and a great lineup of inspiring artists that remind me of what I do it all for. You need that sometimes. After that we are scheduled for a big ass loop of the US, starting northward towards Seattle. Keep yer eyes open, we will be coming to ya, wherever you are!

Hope all is well and the summer is filling everyone with more and more reasons to be alive.

xo,
j&i

Greetings folk fans,

We are wrapping up another fun-filled mini-tour, spreading Pride all over the Midwest! We kicked off with Pittsburgh Pride, where we got to see some of our best buddy contemporaries, Eric Himan and the Adams and Andy Moore. A highlight was seeing Jennifer Holliday wailing away on the main stage, one of Ingrid's long time idols and crooner of the family play "Dreamgirls". Way cool. So fun to see the mix of Steelers jerseys and rainbow boas in the streets. Off to the Wisteria Solstice Festival for a great show, late nights around the bonfire and a rainy night in the tent. We also hit up Columbus and Cleveland Pride, got to hang with other awesome folks, our bud Melissa Ferrick, Josh Klipp out of San Fran, and many other up-and-comers as well as riding-highers. Also had a rockin good time down in Cinci with drummer Katherine Monnig who also came along to spice up our Pride sets. Ing got some good time with the family out there as we criss crossed the ol' home state multiple times. Our microscopic rental car accomodated the bass and all our vagabond accoutremonts after some significant tetrising (I love my duties!), and got us here to there no problem. A big thanks to Larry, our Midwest upright bass supply, for letting us borrow his bass for a good 9 days. The bass happened to be the one sitting in the back of the band room at Ingrid's high school, fully restored and getting some hot play:) The humidity almost did us in, but eased off a bit up in Cleveland when we played right by Lake Erie. Not too bad!

We are hanging in the Cbus airport as we speak, ready to be home for a minute before we fly off to yet another fest, tis the season! Hope you're all having fun in the sun, pick some flowers, roll in the hay, and go jump in a lake!!

See ya round the bend,
J&I

it is grey and still in eugene oregon, i wake up in a room full of stringed instruments and a chatty cat. coffee is brewing... maybe i am in heaven. i had a breauiful day yesterday, bumming around the corvallis/eugene area, a spot i have passed many times on my jogs from seattle to sacramento and back. i took a road along the willamette river, played banjo to a circling group of vultures, the wind breaking the sun and making the trees shimmy. i also spent the last two days scoping out what interesting things have turned up in the local trade-up music shops. nothing makes me happier than a gear upgrade! i have to say, the next time you see coyote grace, they will be playing awesome (if quirky) new instruments!

it has been busy since the new CD came out, last time we talked i think we had just been through the southwest. since then, i made a solo appearance at the Transgender Leadership Summit this year in san diego. the northern california boys had a kickass showing! community is really an amazing thing. on the way home a friend and i got lost in the deserts to the east of the sierras, spring flowers in the desert, colourful rocks whispering... climb me! and we obeyed.

coming home we kicked right into CD release party gear, all of our homies that came out to play on the CD also flew out for a weekend of shows... from tucson, seattle, and cincinnatti. the amazing thing was that we had never all played together. so it was an experiment, and it was so worth it! everyone knew their parts, played well, it was just awesome. check out the photos posted.

from there we flew out to one of our favorite areas to visit, the beautiful minnesota! hung out in the twin cities area for some awesome shows, jumped on board last minute to play for a chest surgery benefit, caught some amazing work by a local theater company as well. up to duluth for more music and old friends - check out Yeltzi, another couple band that we crossed paths with a few times out on the road before ever seeing them in their home town.

home for a day, and then we are in the car heading to the great northwest, which is where you find us now. had a great time seeing folks and making music in portland, a really awesome town. i got to hit the slopes for the only time this year!!! hell yeah. up to the old homestead in seattle, its always funny to go back to a place you spent significant time in, it can be some intense self reflection. we had great shows, the highlight being our fiddling picking squeeze box squeezing buddy Michael Connolly's brand spanking new acoustic venue at Empty Sea Studios in the Phinny Ridge neighborhood. what a treat to play with such georgeous sound in an aweosme intentful listening environment. every songwriter's dream. keep your eye out for new shows at the venue, as well as for the return of coyote grace in the fall. lots of fun in bellingham, out on the peninsula, an amazingly beautiful day up there. a great show in eugene and lots of jam time with our music crew here. a show tonight with katz and katastrophy, itll be a tranny hootenany!! then we're on our way home. i am so grateful for this life of music and travelling, i know nothing is permanent, so the best way to honor it, i suppose, is to enjoy the shit out of it, even if that means you might miss it a little more when its gone. i will probably think it will have been worth the heartache by then:)

the summer hold lots of fun stuff, we will be out in the midwest for some pride gigs, out to the hippy festivals, and then the music festivals! on the radar but not yet secured... an artist in residency for mr coyote at the Goldwell Museum out near death valley, and... a possible trip to Copenhagen for Pride!!! dont hold your breath... the passpost offices still have my gender in their hands. we'll see. it may not be this year, but the US borders are not long for coyote grace. stay tuned, we'll keep you posted!

we hope very much that everyone is enjoying our new work, thanks so much to everyone for their feedback! i hope the spring is getting everyone a little restless and randy, making eyes peek out of their office windows at short skirts and big bicepts. hopefully on the same person!

love you all,
j&i

Having difficulties downloading our cult classic song, "Daughterson"? Well, look no further. An awesome fan of ours came to the rescue after promising our crowd during a recent show that we were NOT trying to play a cruel joke on our devoted listeners. We do indeed want you to have first dibs at downloading Daughterson.

Well, we found out that it's not super difficult (Thanks, Julie!), but it's not built into myspace and certainly not a 1 click process!  Here's how it can be done:

1.  Go to http://file2hd.com/Default.aspx
2.  Enter http://www.myspace.com/coyotegrace in the URL line.
3.  Click the box beneath to agree to the Terms of Service.
4.  Choose your filter below that (ie. Audio only).
5.  Click "Get Files."
6.  From the list that appears below, right click on a song you want to download, and choose "save link as."  (Choose the one that is from the "Standard Quality" list.)
7.  Save the song in the folder of your choice.


There is other software you can use, like http://www.orbitdownloader.com/myspace-music-downloader.htm or http://www.freemusiczilla.com/download-myspace/ but it has to be installed on your computer first, whereas file2hd.com does not.


DOWNLOAD AWAY!! You have ONE MONTH to download the song before it vanishes from MySpace. Get it while you can, my friends.

Love, Kisses, and Tranthems,
Miss Grace & Mr. Coyote

That's right, folk fans ~

You can now order your copy of our brand spanking new album, Ear to the Ground on CD Baby!!

Check it:

EAR TO THE GROUND:  www.cdbaby.com/coyotegrace2

You can order the new album in its fancy pants package (w/lyrics!), or just download them in MP3 form to save trees and postal pennies. Either way, THANK YOU. :)

...and the album should also be available on iTunes very, very soon.  keep checking in and stalking us online :)  we appreciate it.

The Proud Parents,
Miss Grace & Mr. Coyote

www.coyotegrace.com

Happy Sunday Folks,



Coyote Grace just finished three kickass CD Release shows around
Northern California, and I'm here to report that it was a great
success! It was such an honor to have everyone who played on the album
with us for these shows! If only we could do ten more. Soon, maybe.
"Ear to the Ground" has started off with a bang. Recorded in Cotati at
Prairie Sun Studios, it was a great undertaking, and now we
celebrate... By sitting down at our computers and figuring out how to
get it out to yall! On the roster we have our third muskateer Courtney
Robbins from Tucson on guitar and vocals; Michael Connolly from Seattle
on fiddle, mando, keys of all sorts, and concertina; and our newest,
Katherine Monnig on drums all the way from Cincinnati. They all flew
out to for the shows, and we had an awesome time! You never saw such a
handsom gender bent band. So many ties, so many dimples... Along with
us we had Amber Darland, who is a new buddy of ours out of Bellingham
WA, who we will certainly be seeing more of. Check her out, she is well
worth a listen.



So now we rest momentarily, Ing and I will soon be off to Minnesota for
a few shows, then it is back up to our old stomping grounds around the
Puget Sound. We will have Michael with us for a few, as well as playing
the very first show at his new acousitc venue in Phinney Ridge, tickets
are on sale. The summer brings much more wanderings, bouncing from here
to there, Prides, and many more surprises I'm sure.



Stay tuned, the band in full force will be out and about this year, one
way or another, in one manifestation or another. We are so grateful for
all the folks who have helped make this possible, there have been so
many, hopefully we will make our way around to ya for a big thank you
hug.



Spring flowers in yer face!

Coyote Joe

..

good middle of the night, everyone!

a road weary coyote here, coming to you from rock springs wyoming. we
have had a great southwest tour, and are relaxing to the soothing
sounds of party music through the thin walls of our motel 8 luxury
suite. figured i'd get up and tell yall some of the highlights of this
trip...



we headed down good ol 101 and hit up our favorite So Cal spots, had a
killer show at the mint with angie evans, truly a kickass
contemporary. we were joined by none other than the amazing courtney
robbins, freshly relieved of employment and ready to play. down to long
beach we went, loving up the viento y agua coffeehouse, who always
loves us up good. we have become regulars at pitzer college in
claremont these days, and had a rockin show there as well.



off to the AZ, hit up court's home turf of tucson, it had been two
years since we have been back! so great to see old faces, new faces,
and wearing shorts and tank tops didn't hurt either. did a fabulous
show at my old girl's school - a slightly intimidating audience of 50
teenage girls treated me like an alumni, beard and all. it was a pretty
cool experience. another bitchin show in phoenix with angie evans and
courtney robbins at the peace tree house concerts, our hosts marc and
abby awesome as ever. nothing better than talking some shop late into
the evening. great show in flagstaff, great company with our buds tori
and kelly, nothing better than a little home on the road.



off to new mexico, the land of enchantment. great show in santa fe,
FABULOUS show in albuquerque at the KIMO theater, put on my equality
new mexico. a stunningly beautiful theater and a wonderfully warm and
receptive audience. taos was no exception, loved playing at the inn and
staying with our generous host in her cabin in the mountains...my dream
home. one of these days! i'm still good with my minivan. we saw a
buffalo and a fox. not a bad day.

up to colorado, a surprisingly attentive audience in boulder,
considering we've never played there before! word travels fast, i
guess. stayed with the dynamic folk grass duo mike and amy finders in
fort collins, then off to the great divide basin where i rustled up
some big ol bones and some metal crap that had been skunked a while
back... eew. now we rest our weary heads. we have shifted a few doors
down, letting the townies have their fun. off to salt lake tomorrow to
play at the pride center, drive thought the salt flats and through one
of my favorite places on earth - nevada. i know, i'm crazy.

the new album "ear to the ground" will be out in april, CD release
shows are around the corner! this year is revealing itself to be a lot
like the last, as far as galavanting around making a folky ruckus all
over the country, but goddess knows what we will run into this time.
stay tuned, we will be rolling through to see you sooner or later.
until then, rest well for us, we'll catch up oe of these days!

howlin at the moon,

j

Hello Everyone!!!

Joe here, writing from the cockpit mixing room of Prairie Sun Studios. There are so many knobs, buttons, and blinky things I feel like it's still Christmas in here. It is, sort of, the music we have been creating is the best present ever given to us by Visa/Master Card and by viewers like you. We had Courtney Robbins in here last weekend, always a treat. I miss my IG counter part even more so when we get to catch up and play. We had a great show at Ace in the Hole in Sebastopol and two great days in the studio. Her fancy fingers and cake icing vocals make me all happy inside. Then came the ever awesome Michael Conolly down from our old stomping grounds in Seatown, laying fiddle, mando, and keys like nobody's business. These are my two favorite musicians, and it is an honor to have them on the CD. Rough mixes will soon be posted!

CG had a busy holiday as usual, we flew out to Boston before New Year's to play two shows with our homegirl Melissa Ferrick, and then split a show with our favorite contemporary, Chris Pureka. All shows were a great success and worth all the driving and the snow. I saw my first salt truck! Cute, I know. Californian through and through.

Other awesome news - vagabond Coyote Joe has finally found a den! A kickass mother in law with some great folks who are very understanding of my emergence from the wilds of the road. I'm so dramatic:) But yes, after 2.5 years, I finally have my very own place to recharge, write tunes, dance around naked, be loud or quiet, sleep or not sleep, and whatever else I may do behind closed doors...MY closed doors! I'm pretty stoked, as you can see, I've never had a place of my own. Miss Ingrid has her own first as well, her very first car! Not a van or an RV to live in shared with musical partners, but a for real gas efficient cute little white car all her own! Way cool. I think we're growing up. This might get scary!

All this nesting doesn't mean at all that we wont still be banging around the country, playing tunes and hawking our wears, giving hugs and sleeping on couches. No way - we will soon hit the Southwest, it's certainly been a while, and a nice time of year to breeze through the desert. Check the sched, we'll be around. Also planning to head out to the East Coast and the Midwest later this spring, and then Pride season is right around the corner. The new albums should be in our hands by the summertime, so stay tuned! And remember - every time you burn an independent CD, a puppy dies. A really cute one. Support us, and we will be able to support you!

Lots of love to ya!!
Joe

Wanna have your very own recording of...
 
DAUGHTERSON?      PICTURE FRAME?      SUMMERTIME?     LITTLE TREE?
                                        
Welp, we are in the studio RIGHT NOW!! We have MORE than enough new original material, and we so enjoy documenting the truths of our hearts and our people... but wanderlust & lack of resources have taken their toll. We are so excited to see how this next musical lovechild will come out, since we have grown so much since Boxes & Bags, and it will be exciting to see what we will create this time around.

To give credit where credit is due, Boxes & Bags would NOT have been possible without the financial contribution of friends, family, & fans... like YOU. After recording, mixing, mastering, art design, and duplication, our project calls for a grand total of at least $7,500.Yikes!!  Although it's a large chunk to swallow, this number is still painfully small in the professional music world. (And we still have to eat!)  ANY amount contributed is so greatly appreciated. NO amount is TOO small!!  Here are the perks for throwing down on this album:

·      ALL donations receive very valuable karma points for supporting independent music during the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression.
·      $50+     You receive a free autographed copy of the NEW album with some special one-of-a-kind goodies (as well as our undying love & gratitude)
·      $200+   You get your name printed in the "Special Thanks" section of your free autographed copy of the NEW album along with all your special one-of-a-kind goodies (and our undying love & gratitude)


CLICK BELOW to donate through PAY PAL. You do NOT have to have a Pay Pal account to give!  Be a part of the artistic process... NOW!!

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A big SHOUT OUT to those who have already been so kind to give their virtual pocket change (without the lint) to our humble cause.

THANK YOU... BLESS YOU... WE DO IT FOR YOU.

Love, Kisses, & Puppy Dog Eyes,
Miss Grace & Mr. Coyote


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Good morning from Omaha Nebraska!

Just wanted to give a shout out on this very special day. Not the happiest day in the books, but important none the less. Trans Day of Remembrance is the day when we remember all the folks who have been killed for their real or perceived gender expression. "Perceived" gender expression is included because many folks who do not identify as trans but don't don't conform to gender norms. every year we do an event for this day, and every day new names are added to the list that is read to honor them.

I want to give a special tribute to Ian from Michigan, who's family was just beginning to get behind him and try to learn what they needed to do to support him. There is work to be done to make sure no other youth gives up before they find where they belong.

This event sits heavy in my heart, all the pleasant events of childhood come back to me - with angry ladies in the bathrooms at department stores, disgruntled church goers, confused peers on the play ground - I know that most of the incidences were folks who were caught off guard and afraid. The same can be said for kids on the playground, although many days it's hard to forgive. My flaming brother got it a whole lot worse than me. Nothing sucked more than being the weird girl/boy with a stutter, watching the boys chase my brother around the playground. I would wait until it got bad enough and then I would intervene. I'll never forget those moments. I feel differently about them as time goes by, but one never leaves their history behind.

History be damned, let's look hopefully at the future and keep on keeping on with the good work. Hug a gender fuck today, and if you are one, give yourself a big ol hug!!!! You are important and your energy and heart is desperately needed in this world.

Love to everyone,
J

Hey all,

A very sleep deprived Coyote here, writing from a coffeeshop in Chicago, checking in to say that the tour with Mel Ferr has been fuckin awesome. Last night was to be our last show, until we had a college back out and now we will do Cleveland with her on Tues. Then we will scream 10 hours to Des Moines for a show the next night... We came in here like crazy people, we may as well go out like crazy people. We have learned an incredible amount, and have had many hilarious late nights with friends and fans, Melissa and Bubba the tour manager. Thanks so much to everyone who let us come in very late and crash with them, for all who came out to the shows during a recession, and so much to Melissa for taking a chance on us.

Highlights in a nutshell -

* First time in Pittsburgh, lots of construction and rain, late for sound check, lucky to have Ingrid's fabulous mom as the only one who knew who we were at all. Beautiful leaves.
* Columbus, more of Ing's fam and friends, my little bro and co, beautiful sound, weird hard to find auditorium, but lots of fun. Beautiful leaves.
* Indianapolis, fun familiar faces, crowded rowdy club setting, awesome crew from Cinci, fun, fun show. Then, a three hour drive to the Chicago airport, two hours of sleep in the long term parking lot, then on a plane to Las Vegas to play for the Goldwell Sculpture Museum in Rhyolite, a ghost town 3 hours north of Vegas near Death Valley. * Played in a Barn in the middle of one of the most desolate areas in the country. Twilight Zone. It was amazing. A few more hours of sleep and back on a plane and off to Milwaukee. Beautiful...rocks.
* Milwaukee, found anti-abortion protesters outside the venue, thought it funny that they were barking up such the wrong tree, until we learned there was a clinic nearby. Great show, an unnervingly quiet and attentive crowd, a few faces we were happy to see Trish and Cameron, and Tychia, you look great!!!. Great Italian food. Beautiful leaves.
* Off to Iowa City, stayed with the awesome and talented River and the Tributaries, Melissa in rare form and giving one of the most energetic and hilarious shows of the tour. We jump in on a tune on Melissa's, now a standard in our sets. Awesome room, awesome set. Scary girl tripping on something following us all around after the show, asking for Melissa while she was right in front of her...yikes!
* Up to Minneapolis, get to see some of our favorite people on the planet, Rhys and Ali and Luke, play a fucking gorgeous room with unequalled sound. Leave too soon just as the rain starts. And then... our first day off... We reward ourselves with a 7 hour drive back through Chicago to stay with half of Actor Slash Model and enjoy our first full night of sleep. Beautiful leaves.
* Then more hours to Grand Rapids to play a big fat rowdy fairly drunken crowd. Ingrid draws a giant artful Vagina on the wall to counter all the lewd little penises and gay jokes scribbled on the walls with instructions to "Worship Here". Kickass. AMAZING leaves.
* Off to The Ark in Ann Arbor, a bitchin room with a bitchin sold out crowd who bought all remaining Boxes and Bags albums. A good review at The Ark is a very good thing. A woman comes up to me after the show and tearfully tells me of her friend's trans son who couldn't hang on in the terribly conservative area they lived in. His family was just getting on board and rallying behind him. Keep Ian in your thoughts, and remember that even though many of us life in our queer friendly urban bubbles there is still much work to be done so that no other youth loses hope before they realize that there is a place for them. The woman hugged me and thanked me. You can imagine.
* Back to Chi Town for two sold out shows back to back, lots of familiar faces, beautiful sound, wonderful crowds. UPS and Fed Ex manage to lose both ours and Melissa's emergency CD shipments (bastards!) but we play on. Two days off till Cleveland, then we finally start heading west again, finishing off the last of our shows on the way.

Whew! It's been amazing. As you can tell, the fall leaves rocked my world. Looking forward to sleep, privacy, and some songwriting time. And very much looking forward to playing with Melissa again back in Cali for a show outside of Santa Cruz on Nov 18th, and again around New Years on her coast. Mel rocks! I'm sure she knows what she has done for us, and we know to the extent that we can really understand at this point in our career. We are beyond grateful.

See you next time, folks! We'll be around with more T shirts, CDs, tunes, sweaty hats and pretty ear rings. Thanks so much for your support!

J & I