2009's Eddyflower Vertical Challenge is a Nation wide kayaking competition held each year to raise money for First Descents which is a non-profit kayaking camp for young adults with cancer.  Read more here: http://www.eddyflower.com/EventDetail.aspx?EventId=54. 
Eddyflower has chosen to use Whitman's song "Culdesac" in this years highlight dvd!  The film will be posted online in the near future.  We're very pumped to not only offer a soundtrack to Kyle's favorite past time but also honored to be part of such a incredible project. 
~Whitman

Mr. Fest is a Free Music Festival thrown by KTSW (student radio for Texas State) that will be held on the square in San Marcos, TX next Sat., May 2nd. Whitman will be playing between Built By Snow and Black Joe Lewis on the headlining stage ending an entire day of awesome bands. KTSW is not only an incredible radio station but have been a supporter of Whitman for years so please come out to the Fest and show both Whitman and KTSW your support (good radio is a depleted resource). This show will be worth the 30 mile drive from Austin plus you can go for a swim in the San Marcos River!

Last weekend we went into the studio to record some new material we had been working on.  Our intentions were to challenge ourselves by recording these tracks the ol’ fashioned way.  The result is five totally live tracks that we hope capture the energy of our live performances.   We planned on only using these as demos but after hearing them we’ve decided to share them with you.   If these tracks will ever see a proper release is yet to be determined.  Check out our myspace profile to hear the title track “Culdesac”. Please feel free to leave us comments telling us what you think and if you’re a vinyl head let us know if you’d be interested in purchasing this EP on vinyl.  More coming soon!
~Whitman   

As printed in the Colorado Springs Independent on Jan. 1, 2009
The traditional record industry may (or may not) be collapsing, but critical consensus will never die. Just look at a few "Best of 2008" lists and you begin to wonder if all critics spent the past year listening to the same 50 albums.
Which is why we're opting for the year's best overlooked songs, a list that should, by its very nature, fall outside the parameters of traditional pack journalism.
Of course, your mileage may vary when it comes to defining "best," or, for that matter, "overlooked." And yes, this list may include a relatively well-known track or two that we couldn't bring ourselves to leave out, as well as a couple 2007 releases that didn't become widely available until this year.
Still, the following litany of personal faves should be sufficiently esoteric to provide you with alternatives to the usual suspects and, just maybe, a few new favorites of your own. (And hey, don't forget to send us your own lists!)
"The Evangelist," Whitman
Irresistible track from an Austin band whose idea of rock defies the trends and reaps the rewards.
 Click Here for full list.

Seasons Greeting!

Whitman would like to wish you & yours a Merry Christmas!  As a token of our appreciation, here's a demo of a little ditty we've been workin' on called "Hangover Holiday". Enjoy!

 

Free download here

 

You can also listen to it on our myspace profile.

 

Thanks for all your support and may you have a safe & Happy Holiday.

 

 

~Whitman

  Last night was surreal in every sense of the word. I won a contest on 101x for free tickets to the Weezer show, but never thought in a 67 years it was part of the "Hootenanny" portion of the show.  It was the opportunity to play guitar for a couple of songs during their encore. There were 30 other winners/players (horns, banjos, egg shakers, bongos, clarinets, skin-flute (j/k) and 8 guitar players) I was among the 8.  The radio station had contacted me the day of the show and notified me that I had to provide my own acoustic guitar.  I arrived at the Erwin Center @ 5:30pm and was directed to a room where I was to rehearse some songs w/ Weezer guitarist Brian Bell and the "Weezer track jacket crew."  After practicing the songs a couple of times, I was led back to my seat and was told to come back @ 10:15pm.
  Show kicks off w/ "My Name is Jonas" and "Pink Triangle."  Ryan was right. These guys do whatever the hell they want now.  Scott, the bass player was singin' "Jonas" and Rivers was wearing a huge sock on his head. Shit, I had no idea these guys were so rich they were sponsored by Nike.  Those Weezer track jackets were off the chain!
  9:35pm:  Weezer played "Susanne."  I am officially happier than a "pig eatin' shit." "Snoochie-boochies."   When 10:15pm rolled through, I headed back to the rehearsal room.  The crew told me they were providing me w/ a guitar to play and they would DI it on stage.
   I was pretty much shitting a brick w/ excitement as I and twenty-five others were led backstage as Weez covered Pink Floyd's "Time."  When they wrapped up "The Greatest that Ever Lived" (Greatest Weezer Rap Song ever), I was directed stage right.  I had the pleasure of sharing the stage between drummer Pat Wilson and guitarist Brian Bell in front of thousands of kids going completely bat-shit.  We played "Island in the Sun" and "Beverly Hills." It was probably one of the top ten highlights of my life playing in front of 10,000 people and w/ one of the first bands I ever actually got into when I was kid.  My roommate Rollie filmed the entire 15 minutes of goodness and it should be posted on myspace or youtube soon. The greatest thing of all is Brian Bell and an AR rep from Interscope Records have a copy of Whitman's "Torch Songs." That makes half of my night even if I found out they "Hustle & Flow'd" me. Thanks for checkin' in.  

Thanks for the messages. I hope to see you soon.  New songs are here and more will be coming...

Love,
Ram

 

Check out some of the press we got on Tour this Summer:

Colorado Springs Independent

Grand Junction Sentinel

It's been a great Tour.  Thanks to all of you who came out to the shows.  See you next time.

~Whitman 

Whitman's Torch Songs is available for purchase at the following locations.

 

 

Locally owned record stores:

 

Waterloo Records -  600 North Lamar, Austin TX 78703

 

End of an Ear - 2209 South First Street, Austin TX 78704

 

Cheapo Discs - 914 N. Lamar, Austin TX 78703

 

Bills Records and Tapes – 1317 S. Lamar, Dallas TX 75215

 

Surf Club  Records-  300 N. Water Street, Corpus Christi TX 78401

 

Music Express – 119 S Cate St., Hammond LA 70403

 

Disc Daddy – 1267 Barksdale HWY, Shreveport LA 71105

 

Ear X-tacy – 1534 Bardstown Rd., Louisville KY 40205

 

Record Exchange – 3254 Silas Creek Prkwy, Winston-Salem NC 27103

 

CD Alley- 405C W. Franklin St, Chapel Hill NC 27156

 

Finest Music – 1103 W. Elizabeth, Ft. Collins CO 80521

 

Rock N' Robin's – 804 S. College Ave., Ft. Collins CO 80524

 

Triple Play Records – 530 Main St., Grand Junction CO 81501

Zia Records: www.ziarecords.com

                        1940 W. Indian School Road, Phoenix AZ 85015

                        2510 W. Thunderbird Road, Phoenix AZ 85023

                        105 W. University Drive, Tempe AZ 85281

                        1940 W. Chandler Blvd., Chandler AZ 85224  

                        3370 E. Speedway Blvd., Tucson AZ 85716

                        3655 N. Oracle 107, Tucson AZ 85705

                        4503 W Sahara Av, Las Vegas NV 89102

                        4225 S. Eastern Ave., Las Vegas NV 89119

Independent Records: www.beindependent.com

                      3030 East Platte Avenue, Colorado Springs CO 80909

                      123 East Bijou Street, Colorado Springs CO 80903 

                      3040 West Colorado Ave., Colorado Springs CO 80904

                      937 East Colfax Avenue, Denver CO 80218

                      420 West 4th Street, Pueblo CO 81003

                      5680 Highway 85/87, Fountain CO 80906

 

Graywhale CD Exchange : www.fatfin.com

                        208 S 1300 E, Salt Lake City UT 84102                       

                        575 East University Parkway Suite M-222, Orem UT 84097

                        390 North 500 West, Bountiful UT 84010

                        1763 W. 4700 S, Taylorsville UT 84118

                        4066 Riverdale Rd., Ogden UT 84407

                        256 E 12300 S, Draper UT 84020

                        1670 West 9000 South, West Jordan UT 84088

 

 

 

Torch Songs can also be purchased on-line at the following places:

 

ITunes (US, Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Japan)  link = www.msplinks.com/MDFodHRwOi8vcGhvYm9zLmFwcGxlLmNvbS9XZWJPYmplY3RzL01aU3RvcmUud29hL3dhL3ZpZXdBbGJ1bT9pZD0yNzUxODI2Njgmcz0xNDM0NDE

 

Rhapsody

 

Napster

 

eMusic

 

Groupie Tunes – For your very own Whitman Ringtone www.groupietunes.com/artists/Whitman

 

Amazon mp3

 

 

Thanks for listening.

 

~Whitman

Greetings! Check out this sweet blurb Austin Town Hall had to say bout' our show last Friday @ EMO's Lounge:

WHITMAN SHOW REVIEW

Primary Colors!

~Whitman