Cafe Finjan 2010

Thumpers! We know it's been a while since you've heard from us. Alan was in Israel for a while, and we've been spending lots of time in the studio prepping new tracks for your biblegum pop enjoyment. But never fear! We are back out and rocking again with Cafe Finjan, coming up this Thursday on the Loyola University campus. Here is the info on this unique, exciting event that we're so proud to be part of - see you there!:

Café Finjan is a series of interfaith arts exchanges begun in 2002 as part of the Jewish-Muslim Community Building Initiative (JMCBI). The series establishes points of contact, and nurtures a greater understanding between Jews and Muslims of Chicago while creating spaces for people of these diverse backgrounds to come together and give voice to their identity and experience as part of a larger community.

The theme of the upcoming Café Finjan is “2020 Vision”.

This dynamic evening, featuring performing artists and interactive audience participation, will explore both a common vision for the future (a vision for the year 2020) as well as clarity of vision (20/20) with regards to the challenges we face and the complexity of our identities.

Thursday, Feb. 4th

7-9:30pm

at the Loyola University/Mundelein Center Auditorium

1020 W. Sheridan Rd

$5 suggested donation

All about Jewish SXSW

Hey! We're back from Austin, and we had an INCREDIBLE time. Below are the links to the articles we contributed to the MyJewishLearning.com blog, and a great video about the event produced by the JTA. Enjoy!

http://www.myjewishlearning.com/blog/culture/south-by-southwest-the-jewish-edition/

http://www.myjewishlearning.com/blog/culture/shabbat-at-south-by-southwest/

http://www.myjewishlearning.com/blog/culture/south-by-southwest-the-rest-stop/

Where in the world is Stereo Sinai?

We'll give you a hint: it's NOT North by Northeast. Haha.

So far, we're having an amazing time at the South by Southwest music festival in Austin, TX. Meeting tons of cool people, and seeing countless bands (good and not-so-good) all over the city. This photo is us proudly displaying out hard-earned wristbands, which allows us to have even more fun the rest of the weekend. Stay tuned to http://myjewishlearning.com/blog/ for updates and adventures from your favorite Biblegum Pop duo in the People's Republic of Texas.

Stereobama

It's an Obamicon! Get your own, you Obamaniac, you...

Happy 2009 from Stereo Sinai

If 2008 was the year Stereo Sinai was born, then 2009 should be the year that Stereo Sinai sits up without support, bangs objects on tables, and maybe even starts walking on its own. Hey, parenting is tough stuff.

Now, I know you’re interested in cooing at Stereo Sinai live and in person, so here’s the info on our next couple of shows: 

Stereo Sinai with Israeli rocker Udi Krauss- FREE SHOW!
Saturday, January 17, 2009
7:00pm - 10:00pm
Subterranean
2011 W. North Ave.
Chicago
RSVP here

Biblegum Sounds at Uncommon Ground
Sunday, January 25, 2009
7:30pm - 9:30pm
Uncommon Ground 3800 N Clark St. 
Chicago
(Make reservations for the music room if you want to be guaranteed a seat. Otherwise, it's standing room only...)

And raising a band is not without it glitches and obstacles, either. I’d like to apologize to those of you who may have received an email from me at the end of 2008 in error. It was a technical fault involving my other website, http://www.alanjaysufrin.com, which has not only been corrected, but I’m glad to inform you that (a) the website has been updated and is now a sleeker, more readable place on the web to visit, and (b) now includes some information on the world of Alan Jay Sufrin that was not previously available. For example, I’m now a published author of fiction. The Blue Jew Yorker is a great online zine of Jewish-themed poetry and prose, which is definitely worthy of frequent visitation.

So for the best and most frequent updates to Stereo Sinai’s early development, be sure to check out http://www.stereosinai.com often, and become a Stereo Sinai fan on Facebook in case you’re one of the Thumpers who isn’t already.

After all, who doesn’t love a cute baby band that rocks your face off?

Song (and Video!) Spotlight: "G-dcast – Lech Lecha"

Parshat Lech Lecha from g-dcast on Vimeo.

Words and Music by Miriam Brosseau and Alan Jay Sufrin

Avram says I'm beautiful
So much so
He hides me away
But now I'm growing old
And it's time to go
Should I laugh, or should I pray?
This land that will be ours
Where sons are just like stars

We're blindly told to go
To somewhere we don't know
To live without blame
There's a promise made
That will never fade
Revealed in our new names
[breakdown- Abraham, Sarah]
So it's time for us to leave
With souls who now believe

It's not beauty, not royalty that keeps me going
But a Voice that's worth hearing, a path You're showing
It's not just the land that we're walking to
But the journey itself is where we prove ourselves to You

Now it's time for us to leave
and live what we believe

© 2008 Stereo Sinai. All rights reserved.

When I was about 6 or 7 years old, inspired by the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," I tried to invent a machine that could bring animated characters to life in the real world. True story.

Nearly two decades later, I've got the next best thing – Stereo Sinai's music is being brought to the world of the animated! An awesome new movement to animate the entire Torah in 54 weekly installments launched just two weeks ago, and has already been getting some pretty amazing press. It's called "G-dcast" (www.g-dcast.com), and Stereo Sinai has created its first (mostly) English-language song for the third weekly installment, "Lech Lecha," which launched earlier today.

For the full awesomeness of the experience, follow this simple 3-step procedure:

1. Visit www.g-dcast.com regularly.
2. Love the videos.
3. Tell all the teens in the world and everyone that you know.

I know you, and believe me; you'll like what you see.

As for Stereo Sinai's first foray into the animated viral video realm, we are really proud of all the work that went into this, both from our end and from the people at G-dcast. You can see the video on our website's new videos page, and then when you've decided that the soundtrack to this video is better than anything John Williams or Danny Elfman could ever have dreamt up, download the song FREE from the music + merch page. Cool, huh? We certainly think so, and we're already working on our next trip to the animated world. Stay tuned…

PS - Vote!

6 degrees... or less

My current hairstylist is good friends with Melissa Etheridge. Also, he's styled the hair of Dolores of the Cranberries, and all 4 Black Eyed Peas! I really just wanted to share that with the world, because I think it's freakin' sweet. Gotta love Melissa.

Also, I met Matisyahu last night. He's a really, really nice guy.

So, I'm a bit starstruck lately. Can you blame me?

"Yipee-aio Chai-ay!"

Last night Miriam and I went to Uncommon Ground to see the folk music duo Andina and Rich - an amazingly talented couple of singer/songwriter goofs, good friends, and just plain good people.

Stephen Lee Rich, your friendly, neighborhood, yodeling cowboy, is a friend and fellow producer who goes back to our Sof Sof days in Madison, Wisconsin. In case his Allen Sherman covers hadn't already convinced us, last night's Yiddish stage banter and "Yipee-aio chai-ay!" holler have solidified him in our minds as an honorary MOT. We Jews have been low on our yodeling cowboy numbers lately, anyway. Here's a clip of Steve doing an amazing cover of a song by the great Tom Dundee:



For some reason, I couldn't find any video clips of Sandy Andina, who's also awesome, as well as a born-MOT. A 2004 compilation, Tappin' Out a Rhythm, Pickin' Out a Tune, produced by Steve, includes not only the award-winning Miriam and Alan English-language folk original "Eleven Below," but also a great Sandy song about the Middle East conflict from the perspective of an Israeli Soldier, called "Shira." Sandy is also somewhat of a big-shot in the Chicago folk music scene as President of the Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM), and an important member of the Chicago Songwriters Collective.

When their powers combine, it's just a lot of fun. Two veteran folkies like these at a classy local coffeehouse venue reminded us that good live music can be experienced all the time by local musicians here in Chicago, and wherever we are. Stephen now heads up the Madison Songwriters Group, without which I am sure that Miriam and I would not be where we are today, musically. They both continue to be inspirations for us, both as working musicians and as good friends.

So go check 'em out!

Upcoming Stereo Sinai show for human people!

The most highly anticipated 5769 Chicagoland-debut biblegum pop concert all day!

STEREO SINAI will be opening for the amazingly marvelous and outstanding (as far as we can tell from her MySpace page) Izzy Cox, THIS SUNDAY at:

The Red Line Tap

7006 N. Glenwood Ave, Chicago IL 60626

Sunday, October 5th

9:30 PM

21+, a mere $5 cover

You can let us know if you're planning on being there, by telling us here.

And don't forget to solidify your Stereo Sinai fanship here, if you haven't already.

If you're not there to show your support, I'll have no choice but to incessantly poke you in the facebook.

Bring friends!

Absurd!

Gut Yontif, Mr. Schrute

It's really easy for me to get a bit depressed when I'm so busy, snowed under with work and unable to claw my way out from under it. That's kinda where I am right now. Also, this is the time of year when the pressure of the Jewish high holidays is beating down. But there are two things coming up that have kept me looking forward: Rosh Hashana, and tonight's season premiere of NBC's the Office.

The upcoming Jewish new year is a chance to start fresh - I can work on improving myself by learning from last year's mistakes, and generally trying to be a better person. Very serious business. The new season of the Office on the other hand, is going to be just plain fun.

It's a theme that tends to be a common one this time of year. Many Jews are stressed out about the status of their souls in Heaven, repenting properly, eating too much, and then not eating at all, not to mention missing work for most of October. That's why it's so super important to take it easy once in a while.

If you're like me, and you happen to be observing the High Holidays, you'll take Rosh Hashana very seriously. It's about your soul, after all. But my opinion is that if you REALLY care about the status of your soul, well, you'll check your local listings.

MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU

We just thought this was super-cool:

MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.

The ASCAP Songwriter's Bill of Rights

I've signed it. Here it is:

Just as citizens of a nation must be educated about their rights to ensure that they are protected and upheld, so too must those who compose words and music know the rights that support their own acts of creation. Without these rights, which directly emanate from the U.S. Constitution, many who dream of focusing their talents and energies on music creation would be economically unable to do so - an outcome that would diminish artistic expression today and for future generations.

At this time, when so many forces are seeking to diminish copyright protections and devalue artistic expression, this Bill of Rights for Songwriters and Composers looks to clarify the entitlements that every music creator enjoys.

1. We have the right to be compensated for the use of our creative works, and share in the revenues that they generate.
   
   
2. We have the right to license our works and control the ways in which they are used.
   
   
3. We have the right to withhold permission for uses of our works on artistic, economic or philosophical grounds.
   
   
4. We have the right to protect our creative works to the fullest extent of the law from all forms of piracy, theft and unauthorized use, which deprive us of our right to earn a living based on our creativity.
   
   
5. We have the right to choose when and where our creative works may be used for free.
   
   
6. We have the right to develop, document and distribute our works through new media channels - while retaining the right to a share in all associated profits.
   
   
7. We have the right to choose the organizations we want to represent us and to join our voices together to protect our rights and negotiate for the value of our music.
   
   
8. We have the right to earn compensation from all types of "performances," including direct, live renditions as well as indirect recordings, broadcasts, digital streams and more.
   
   
9. We have the right to decline participation in business models that require us to relinquish all or part of our creative rights - or which do not respect our right to be compensated for our work.
   
   
10. We have the right to advocate for strong laws protecting our creative works, and demand that our government vigorously uphold and protect our rights.

Miriam and I have been proud members of ASCAP since 2004, and I can't overemphasize the importance of this document. It reaffirms my belief that like most things, as long as a person is willing and able to work hard, it is indeed possible to become a physically and metaphysically self-sustaining American artist.

Autograph the bill. And if you're a music composer, author, and/or publisher, join ASCAP.

You'll be in good company.

The Disgraces

I had been seriously craving a classical-Jewish/Queercore/Feminist Punk show for over a year, then then at 11:34 PM last night, I met the Shondes (pronounced shahn-duhs), and I can honestly say that my craving has been more than satisfied. In fact, if anything, I want more now...

Check it out:

Shonde: shahn-duh Yiddish; a shame, a disgrace, a pity, an outrage

--From the Shondes website

The Bottom Lounge in the West Loop is a relatively new venue with a great feel and an intimidatingly ginormous music room. Hence, what impressed me most was that nothing seemed to faze this band. In other words, I have every confidence in the world that whether there were 1500 people or 15 people in that echoey hall, they would have rocked the house.

And rock the house, they most certainly did.

The REAL shonde, in my opinion, is that there were probably only about 50 or so people in the crowd last night. Next time they're in your neck of the woods, be sure to catch them, even if it is on a humpday night.

Analyze This

I am now going to sing the praises of Google Analytics. This makes me a big ol' nerd.

Google Analytics, for those of you who are unaware, is this awesome website for people who manage and operate websites like this one, where data and stats about your visitors are shown in what I think is a really fun way. For example, there is a political map of the world, and each US state or country gets highlighted whenever someone in that country or state visits StereoSinai.com. Miriam and I can then see how much time they spend on StereoSinai.com, how many pages they visit on StereoSinai.com, how many of our viewers are returning visitors, how many visits we get each day, boxers or briefs, and the like. But don't worry, we can't see the important stuff, like your name or address.

To many non-webnerds, this is boring. And frankly, if it weren't the information gathered about the website for Stereo Sinai, the thing that Miriam and I have worked so hard to make into the unbelievably awesome cyber-experience that it is, I'd probably also think it's pretty boring. But what makes it exciting for me is that we get hits not only from English-speaking places like Anchorage and Kanab (which seem like exciting places I sincerely hope to visit one day), but also from all over the world.

So I'd like to say a special "hello" to all the Thumpers in the following countries (in order of number of visits this past month):

• United States
• Israel
• India
• United Kingdom
• Yemen
• Lebanon
• Iran
• Canada
• Sweden
• Vietnam
• Germany
• France
• Japan
• Colombia
• Italy
• Egypt

Visits in previous months have included places like Australia, Russia, and the Netherlands, too.

So to ALL our visitors, thanks for visiting. No matter what country you're visiting from, you're welcome here any time.

Every day is Air Pollution Action Day!

AN AIR POLLUTION ACTION DAY HAS BEEN DECLARED for the Chicago metropolitan area today. This is an especially common occurrence during the summer months due to the sun hating us Midwesterners. The good news is, there are some things you can do about it:

Green Actions:

• Limit Driving. Rideshare (www.sharethedrive.org), walk or bike.
• Take public transit: CTA, Metra and Pace.
• Avoid excessive idling and abrupt starts.
• Drive a hybrid or flexible fuel vehicle.
• Use a charcoal chimney or electric starter instead of lighter fluid when grilling.
• Limit use of household products that cause fumes.
• Conserve energy at home to reduce energy demands on power plants.
• Do not burn leaves and other yard waste.
• Avoid using fire pits/fireplaces on Air Pollution Action Days.
• Avoid using lawnmowers and other gasoline-powered equipment on Action Days.

MORE...

Stereo Sinai also reminds you to download your music on Air Pollution Action Days instead of buying plastic CDs.


For more information about Air Pollution Action Days, visit www.cleantheair.org.
And get more tips on being green from "the leading source of free eco-living tips" at Ideal Bite, which is a pretty cool site/blog I just discovered today.

The Jewish Community Hour with Bernie Finkel

I'm proud to report that "The Jewish Community Hour with Bernie Finkel" on WONX AM 1590 is Chicago's longest running radio program. It's now approaching its 46th year on the air. Bernie Finkel is a wonderful friend and a great radio host. If you're in the Chicago area, or if you have a chance to listen from the WONX website, the show airs Sundays from 11:00 AM to noon.

I'm even prouder to report that yesterday, Stereo Sinai's "Radiant Faces" was aired on that program. Woohoo! We're radio stars!

... And I'll cry if I want to

Today is my birthday.

And I'm the type who likes to make a big deal about birthdays, because I believe every year is a milestone in its own right, and it should be celebrated. I love finding out about special historical events that happened on August 20th, and I especially love learning who shares a birthday with me. And since being Jewish means having two birthdays most years, I get to share it with even more people (my Hebrew birthday is shared with Nachmanides. Cool, huh?). It just so happens that I share my Gregorian birthday with a good number of influential musicians, including a couple of my favorites, namely Robert Plant and Jim Pankow of the band "Chicago."

But there is a bit of a bitter twinge to this year's birthday when I think about having shared it my whole life so far with the late, great, Isaac Hayes.



Just 10 days ago, 10 days before our birthday, actually on the 9th of Av, Isaac Hayes passed away in his home. I believe that was a tragedy. And I'd be hard-pressed to find many things that Isaac Hayes and I had in common, other than a passion for creating great music, so I feel as though sharing a birthday with him during his remarkable lifetime brought me just another inch closer to this musician I still very much admire.

"Joy, Pt. 1" is one of the first Isaac Hayes songs I ever heard (and by the way, I could make a pretty compelling argument that it's a song about Shacharit...). That song reminds me to pursue joy wherever I can, so I'm going to have a good time today, in small tribute to Isaac Hayes.

This year, I'll celebrate for the both of us.

"Ezra Furman for 1000 Please, Alex"

... That's a line from Jeopardy, circa 2012 or so.

Got to hit up Schubas tonight to catch Ezra during his August residency there on Monday nights. (Thanks to Adam at KFAR for the tip!)

Ezra Furman & the Harpoons will rock your eyelids off. Here's a bit of proof:



And for the full experience, buy their music (Stereo Sinai recommends the environmentally-friendly album downloads). Also, you could come to Schuba's tonight, and maybe wave hello to me.

Lastly, in case you're not completely convinced, a video that will brainwash you into becoming a fan immediately:



Very Chicago!

New Website Design!!

...Finally...
It only took me about a week to get this new design working.

But, now that it's up and running, I'm really quite proud of it. It's sleeker, more user-friendly, and not quite so "standard bloggish." It's best viewed in Mozilla Firefox, but it should work well in all browser types. Drop me a line to let us know what you think!

Enjoy the new site...