All In One Annual Blog

Time for our once a year blog update of all that is going on. We lost two beloved vans in 2016, King Mike's Castle and The Magic 8 Ball. The Castle went down in Kansas City, but thanks to the good folks from Nature Boys, Danny and Suzanne, the pain was minimalized and the show went on. The first tour our mighty maroon express took us on was the Slits, Shellshag, This Bike is a Pipe Bomb tour of 2008. We will miss that van. The van we moved onto was so rad!! Although she only did 5,000 miles, and a tour and a half, we made enough memories to miss the 8 ball almost as much.
It happens. Good things happened in 2016 too. We released a cassette for songwriter John Hays, also our bandmate/tour manager.

It's a great dark comedy acoustic sort of thing. We did a release show at our film studio 94 jewel with art by Lauren Denitzio, Jamie Morrison, Melissa Guachun, and Shellhead. Jen Shag, Pale Angels, Anna Banana and John Hays played.

This came out, a really awesome triple LP of the final days at Death by Audio, the raddest Brooklyn Venue. Its all live stuff, Shellshag is on there doing "Destroy Me I'm Yours", along with Ted Leo, Screaming Female, Deerhoof, Ty Segal, Lightning Bolt and others. really miss that place. There is a book and a movie about the joint too I think.

We made more Shellshonic Shag-O-Vision episodes. Season 3 features guests Mike Watt, Chris Gethard, Ian Vanek, Kreamy 'Lectric Santa, Pale Angels, Patrick Jennings, Bobby Harper, and Marissa Paternoster! We do songs by Velvet Underground, Wire, the Smiths, and more.

We also launched a new show called Flashback TV, which features old footage we have from the '90s.
The pilot episode is a nice clip of famed punk band Hickey playing at Starcleaners in 1997.

We made three music videos. One for Vacation "every direction"
Non Person is one of the best records ever, it was so much fun making a video for one of the songs on that record, honored. 

Pale Angels "you don't dance"And this video came out so rad! The new record they are making for Recess is incredible! Yes we have been lucky enough to hear some in progress. Pale Angels are a force!

and we made this video for our song "50/50", from the Why'd I Have to Get So High LP. We used these cool old chess pieces my grandma Nana made a long time ago. We didn't place chess with them, but still, they look sweet in the video. We also got to show off our outfits that our friend Hellena made for us! It's a bunch of our old rock t-shirts spanning 30 years, sewn up together in a single outfit. They are so rad!!

Finally, right at the end of the year, we released a classic 3 song, 7 inch style single called
More Survival Tips from the Bay. Hello my name is along with More Survival Tips from the Bay and Please Don't Go are a perfect mix of unreleased music that spans many years while looking for a home. They go perfect together even though it took so long for them to tumble into place together.

We had a good time on the road this year despite our troubles, playing with Toys That Kill at Planit X Fest and at First Ave. in Minneapolis, and going to Pierre South Dakota for the first time. Fest in Florida was super fun this year, and going to Santamania in Cincinnati was a blast.
Big thanks to everyone everywhere.    -shellshag

Why'd I Have to Get So High?

Our new LP "Why'd I Have to Get So High?" was released a few months ago on Starcleaner Records and Don Giovanni Records - and we are having so much fun taking it around the world and playing the songs live.

We had an amazing two month tour and got to play with so many great bands and see so many great friends. Here is a pic from our record release show at Bell House in Brooklyn -

Now we are working on our TV shows for Shellshag TV and planning our next tour!
Shellshonic Shag-O-Vision is about to launch its third season and we have a slew of excellant guests lined up. And we are releasing the first episode of a new show called Flashback this month, which features old footage we have collected form over the years of cool people, artists, and bands.
So keep an eye out for lots of great new Shellshag music, TV, and live shows!

Here are our 2 newest videos from the new record, have a nice day, love Shellshag
'90s Problem
Blowin It 

Everything and the kitchen sink!

Shellshag Update: Haha, we are finally updating this blog!! We have been hard at work recording our next album "Why'd I have to get so high?" in northern Kentucky at The Lodge near Cincinnati with engineers Jerry Queen and John Petty from the band Vacation. 16 new songs with tons of guest stars to make it our fullest sounding recordings to date. Guest players on the album include Marissa Paternoster of Screaming Females, Peyton Copes of Tweens, Pookie of Pookie and the Poodlez, Billie Lee of Black Planet, Lillien Currens of Swim Team, Laree Teevee of Pretty pretty, and Evan Wolfe, John Petty and Jerry Queen of Vacation. Young newcomer artist Melissa Guachun is doing the artwork. The album should be out this fall in time for our U.S. tour which will include stops at Total Fest [Missoula MY], Roachella [Seattle WA], Awesome Fest [San Diego], and The Fest [Gainesville FL]!!

Between now and then we are doing some short tours including shows in Fargo [with The Arrivals,] Minneapolis [with We Ours], Deluth, Madison, Milwaukee, D.C. [with RVIVR and Max Levine Ensemble], Atehns GA, and Chattanogga TN at the Do Ya Hear We Fest as well as anamazing show with punk rock legends The Avengers, and local friends Surfbort at The Bell House on Tuesday August 4th! Get tickets here

Other than that it's playtime as usual here at Shellshag studios in Brooklyn, making our action figures, screening t-shirts, and shooting season 2 of our web television show Shellshonic Shag-O-Vision!

Shellshonic Shag-O-Vision season 2 has included some great guests including Tweens, Pookie, RVIVR, Pretty Pretty, Worriers, Anna Banana, Walter Schreifels [Youth of Today/Quicksilver], and our latest episode with Raging Nathans. The next episode will be out next week June 9th and the guests are comedian Kevin Titty and from Todd Killings, John McLean!

You can learn more about all of this, and what we have been up to with our label Starcleaner Records at the starcleaner website, and exciting news on the documentary we are producing about The Slits called Here to be Heard: The Story of The Slits , as well as new releases from 50 million, Black Rainbow, Rats Rest and Lilith Velkor!

Check out all the latest!!!

Destroy Me I'm Yours - last 40 records with gatefold covers!

We have finally repressed our first full length release Destroy Me I'm Yours! The repress will come in a single jacket with the same cover art, but there are 40 records left with the original gatefold jackets.

These are available at our website starcleaner.com.

....has it really been almost year?!

Wow.  A lot has happened since then  for all of us no doubt! Hope you are all well.

Forgot EXACTLY what has happened since July, but I do remember some important good times, like playing Hawaii! People in and around No Suck Fest are amazing inspiring people. Awesome Fest in San Diego too! Saw Marked Men for the first time there, still gives me chills thinking about it. " The" Fest in Florida. Very nice. Fantastic seeing Stoned at Heart, Delay and  Underground Railroad to Candyland live with our kick ass roadie Justin Bohmer.  I know, I know- old news but felt the need to try to replay what happened..

The New News is............
We play with the incredible RVIVR, Dogjaw and Extrafeeler at Union Pool April 13 in Brooklyn NY.
We are going to premiere our latest unseen video at this show!

Speaking of videos we made this one also: "forever".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_JdiUkio7k

April 16 our new record - shellshag forever- comes out on Don Giovanni Records!
You can pre order it- www.dongiovannirecords.com
You can hear it on line here:
https://soundcloud.com/don-giovanni-records/sets/shellshag-shellshag-forever

Record Release show is at Maxwells in Hoboken NJ on Saturday April 20. Look as this line up!

Shellshag
Screaming Females
Swearin
Great Thunder
Hilly Eye

I'm actually scared of this show it's so sick!

We will have Shellhead's Noize Toys available at the release show.
Yes, shellshag action figures!- with shellshag forever download codes included.

We will also have shellshag drum sticks and guitar pics!
Been making lots of cool stuff. It's been pretty alright around here.

Thrillhouse Records released a really cool split 7" with Apogee Sound Club + Shellshag called lifestyle obsession. We also went to the Bay area and had a blast doing shows with Apogee. 50 Million also rocked the punk rock prom at Thrillhouse. It was really quite a night! Looking forward to these guys coming out in June for some more shows together.
www.thrillhouserecords.com

Naturally the release of our newest record has prompted the writing of a another one - we are pretty into this name for it right now- more survival tips from the bay.

Our label Starcleaner Records is super excited to be releasing Minneapolis' Frozen Teens newest 7"
Oakland / Footsteps! This will be released on May 21 2013.
www.starcleaner.com

Here are all the upcoming shows.. It's easier to catch up if we hang out!

04/13/2013	Brooklyn NY	Union Pool	w/ RVIVR, Dogjaw, Extrafeeler
04/20/2013	Hoboken NJ	Maxwells	w/ Screaming Females, Swearin, Hilly Eye, Great Thunder
05/09/2013	Boston MA	Middle East	w/ Screaming Females, Black Wine, Parasol
05/10/2013	Brooklyn NY	Death By Audio	w/ Swearin, Black Wine, Chris Gethard, Dave Hill
05/16/2013	Brooklyn NY	Shea Stadium	w/ The Brooklyn What
05/18/2013	Manhattan NY	Mercury Lounge	w/ Jeff the Brotherhood, Hunters
05/23/2013	Brooklyn NY	Death by Audio	Chris Gethard Birthday Show!
06/05/2013	Brooklyn NY	Death by Audio	w/ Apogee Sound Club, Extra Feeler, 50 Million
06/06/2013	New Brunswick NJ	TBA	w/ Apogee Sound Club + TBA
06/07/2013	Manhattan NY	Mercury Lounge	w/ Apogee Soundclub, Shannon Wright
06/08/2013	Long Island NY	TBA	w/ Apogee Sound Club + TBA
06/09/2013	Brooklyn NY	Acheron	w/ Apogee Sound Club, Big Eyes + TBA
06/19/2013	Greenville NC	Tipsy Teapot
06/20/2013	Asheville NC	TBA	TBA
06/21/2013	Chattanooga TN	TBA	Do ya Hear We Fest 6/21-6/23

We are also managing this amazing film, photo, event space. Hit us up if you are in need:
www.94jewel.com


With love- Jen and Shell

2012 update

We are half way through 2012 and this is what we have been up to.  Shellshag has been busy recording a new 12" for Don Giovanni Records out in San Francisco at Light Rail Studios and it is almost finished. Twelve brand new songs along with the traditional guest musicians on a few of the tracks.  During the months we were creating this record we have played some great shows around the country and released a new 7" with We Are Busy Bodies out of Toronto Canada.(pictured on the right)  It has four songs and includes some guest vocals from Screaming Females Marissa Paternoster, Kate Mc Laughin, and Doris Zine writer Cindy Crabb.

The songs are Stars and Bars, In the Pink, Starting Line and No More War. Half of the 7" was recorded with Elton Ridge and Eric Haas in SF at Light Rail Studios, and the other half at Hunt Studios in NJ with Eric Bennett and Marissa Paternoster.

     We also released this 12" Fuck Society Volume 1 on Mauled by Tigers. It has 14 of our favorite songs to cover, by some of our favorite bands. The title track Fuck Society is the original by AK77. We recorded all the songs with Mike Pack in Chattanooga TN at Tiny Buzz.

     We played the DonGiovanni Showcase and Hilly Eye record release, as well as NXNE and Streetopia, and later this summer we will play at Clitfest, Awesome Fest 666 and Fest 11-

We have taken this year a little slower than usual because we moved into a new Starcleaner studio and have also been taken some more time to create and write. We hope to see and do more as we get settled and organized. The rest of the year and 2013 are sure to find us back with a vengence and with a ton of new art and music to share.

The Final Word

This is the final writing from last years Shellshag Japanther European Adventure:

I'm so tired. Days and nights have collided and formed one long non stop journey through time that seems to stand still. The first day and today are the same long day. Images of movies just released, Mac Donald's signs, white lines and black tar are a collage of normalcy, although there is nothing normal about what I am doing. Traveling with artists, a group of medicine men selling variations of the same potion, have left me feeling like an over worked doctor whose patients get better as he grows sicker. All will return to normal with rest, but although that rest is only a few days away, a few days are an eternity in a world where the clocks have stopped, or perhaps even begun to turn slowly backwards. It's days like this that make it hard to remember what I am doing here and why. Not here in England, but here in this world, in this life. In a week the memories will flood my senses and the days will separate and distinguish themselves in my mind. Then I will tell the stories of my journey and boast of my triumphs and confess my failures. A tired body and mind can tell a confusing story, just know that I am happy, so happy.