Just a quick reminder that Annapalooza is this Friday at the Gulu Gulu Cafe in Salem. This show is a benefit for the American Heart Association in memory of my dear friend Ann Repp so please come out and support a great cause while watching a terrific show. Not only are Magen and I reviving a little Low Static Romance action for the first time in months, but you’ll also get a sneak preview of the new Best Intentions (minus one). Come on out and hear the new songs in their infancy.

Just in case that’s not enough for you, join Parlour Bells the following night as we present the 2nd year of the Winter Formal. Fancy dress is encouraged. Many of you witnessed the glory that was the Dating Game last year and we have more fun for you again, so come early and come often.

Well, there was 2011. That happened. And now there’s the whole “new” year thing. So have a happy one of those and all.

It’s been an interesting, full year here at the Legion of Boogie (that’s my supervillian headquarters). With a lot of help from an amazing group of producers, collaborators, players, and friends, I somehow managed to actually deliver on my quixotic quest to produce six EPs in six(-ish) months, all of which I am very proud and all of which are available for download right this second on the MUSIC page. I also bid a sad adieu to Tim, Justin, and Nate as members of the Best Intentions as well as retired the entire catalog to start anew. My music wife Magen and I (of Low Static Romance infamy) recorded a live album which will hopefully be released at some point soon (the tracks are being held hostage as part of an FBI plot to bring down the Occupy movement with sad songs). I had the pleasure of being Jane’s Addiction (with Parlour Bells) and dress in some very unfortunate Magnum PI short shorts as part of Mixtape 1988. Overall, a pretty busy year.

So what’s on tap for 2012? I’m glad you asked, rhetorical device. We start the new year off with a bang tonight as the Cover-Up presents The Beatles as part of First Night Boston, featuring New Million Box and members of Spirit Kid and Oranjuly. It’s absolutely free and you don’t need one of those First Night buttons so come on by and listen to the songs of some band from Liverpool.

I’ve got big plans for this year. The new Best Intentions line-up is almost set, new songs have been written and rehearsals are about to begin. I can’t give you an exact date on when you’ll be able to see us live, but you won’t have to wait long. I’m also pleased to announce that I am finalizing plans for a new series that I will be producing and hosting in the new year. I can’t get into details yet, but I can say that the new series will be a compelling and intimate look into some of your favorite local artists. Details to be announced soon.

And on a more serious note, the worst day of 2011 (or any day of any year that I can remember) is when the world lost my dear friend Ann. Many of Ann’s loved ones are going to be gathering for Annapalooza: A Concert in Memory of Ann Repp on January 27 at the Gulu Gulu Cafe in Salem. The concert will celebrate the life of Ann as well as raise money for the American Heart Association and will feature music from St. Helena, Low Static Romance, Freg and Grank and myself (maybe with band or maybe without, depending on where we’re at). If you can’t make the show, please donate in the name of Ann and Emily’s Walk which Ann set up very shortly before she left us.

I’m pretty psyched about what’s on the burner for 2012. Hope you all come along with me for the ride. The Mayans can suck it.

Hi kids,

Just wanted to drop a line and let you know what’s been going on in Boogieland. First off, the songwriting is going better than ever. By your general habit of yelling at me in public, I know some of you are disappointed that we won’t be doing any of the old songs (although feel free as always to download from the MUSIC page). But not to toot my own proboscis, but I’m pretty happy with how the songwriting process is going with all the new material. I hope you are as excited about hearing it as I am writing it. That’s not very likely, though. No one’s more excited about me than me.

Rebuilding the Best Intentions from scratch is a daunting process, but I’ve been talking to a lot of talented and enthusiastic musicians. The plans are in place to get together in the lab and see if we can get some alchemy going. I can’t give you an exact date on when we will debut, but I have the feeling it will still be cold outside.

In the meantime, the Cover-Up will return to First Night Boston with a little help from our friends in Oranjuly, Spirit Kid, and the New Million Box covering The Beatles. For those of you that don’t know, “The Beatles” were a band from Liverpool, England in the 1960′s.

That’s all from over here. What’s going on with you?

Courtesy of Sophia’s Rock Beat, here is “The High Sign”:

And “Heart Unbroken” into “Natalie”:

Thanks to Sophia for catching my voice at the exact moment it apparently hit puberty.

Come join us as we retire the entire Brendan Boogie catalog! We’ll be playing songs from all 8 records (available as always for download by clicking the MUSIC button up there) for the last time before I go back to the drawing board with a whole new band, a whole new sound, and a zesty new attitude!

I’m thrilled to have Brandon Erdos (The Luxury, Parlour Bells) and Stu Dietz (This Blue Heaven) playing alongside the legendary Nate Leavitt and myself on Friday night. If rehearsal is any indication, we should bring the house down on Friday night. We’ll have to bring our A game, as we are sharing the stage with the amazing John Powhida International Airport, Muy Cansado, and Future Carnivores. All great bands for sure.

Come on by and rock with the pink and black attack one more time.

From The Rationales:

Mystery has been shrouded like a fog over the towers of Boogie HQ ever since this top secret video was leaked to the press:

To dispel a few rumors:
a) I am not retiring from music.
2) I am not joining a nudist colony.
III) I am not retiring from the nudist colony of which I am currently a member.

But this IS the end of an era as I say goodbye to The Best Intentions as you all know them. For the past few years, I have had the honor and the pleasure of rocking the stage with Justin Tibbetts behind me on drums and the two-headed guitar monster known as Tim Delaney and Nate Leavitt on either side of me. Sadly, Tim and Justin have moved on (I think they married each other and started a potato farm or something) and Nate is about to join them, making November 18 at the Middle East Upstairs his last show with The Best Intentions.

In Japan, they have the same word for “crisis” as “opportunity” and (strangely enough) “tentacle porn.” So I am taking this opportunity to completely reinvent the look, sound, and direction of the band. No more pink and black. No more “Cigarette.” No more “I Hate New York.” I’m throwing everything from the first 8 records out the window and starting from scratch. As sad as it is to say goodbye to my dear friends and fellow musicians, I’m very excited about the next phase. I’m already reaching out to people I want to make music with and writing some of the best music of my life. As they say in my favorite sport hockey, you don’t go where the puck is, you go where the puck is going to be.

So please join us on Friday November 18 at the Middle East Upstairs as we send off Nate in style and play songs from my entire catalog for the last time. The amazing Stu Dietz (This Blue Heaven) and Brandon Erdos (Parlour Bells) will be rounding out the lineup. Fret not – the only tears shed will be tears of rock and f’ing roll.

I’m opening the second show of the Self-Proclaimed Rockstars residency at Precinct in Union Square. Also on the bill are acoustic sets from Southern Lust Club and the always entertaining Streight Angular. I’ll be playing a bunch of new songs. All of them are sad.

Come on by early – I’m on right at 8pm. Thursday show! Hooray for me!

I’ve got two gigs this week, so you can come out and enjoy the many sides of Boogie!

This Thursday night 10/13 at 8pm, I’m doing an acoustic solo set at Precinct in Union Square Somerville. I’ll be debuting a few new songs and getting all intimate on you. So come on by early and enjoy some heartbreak.

Then a mere few days later, I join my other outfit Parlour Bells for our first show at the hottest club in town, the brand-spanking-new Radio. We open the show at 9pm, so come on by and enjoy a great night of music at Aimee and Josh from the Rosebud’s new club!