2003 News

DECEMBER 2003
Happy Holidays from all of us at ComboPlate Booking.

Laura will be out of town December 25-January 12. Please feel free to email or call and if everything goes as planned… the right person will call to follow up with you further.

NOVEMBER 2003
If you live in Austin, here are some free/tips shows where some of our artists are playing:
November 6 – Eric Hisaw – Flipnotics 8-9:30pm
November 9 – Nathan Hamilton & No Deal – Jovita’s 6-8pm
November 12 – Milton Mapes (the duo) – Hole in the Wall 8-10pm

Plus, word on the street is that ComboPlate Media Contact, Amber Byfield, will be swapping songs with a couple friends on Wednesday, November 5, 8-10pm at the Spider House.

OCTOBER 2003
Two artists have been added to the roster and we couldn’t be happier… please check out the links for Milton Mapes and A.J. Roach. Both simply floor us with their incredible talent and intense live shows. If you live in Austin, be sure to come Milton Mapes’ CD Release show at the Cactus Cafe on October 14th as they celebrate it big with the release of “Westernaire”.

Upcoming Kitchen Concerts include Claire Holley on October 9th, and Mark Ambrose has been rescheduled for November 7th.

SEPTEMBER 2003
Thank you to Roggie with Rajiworld for inviting Michael Fracasso to be a part of the Four Men From Now Tour with fellow Austin based singer songwriters Adam Carroll, Beaver Nelson, Scrappy Jud Newcomb. They will be touring the midwest, east coast and the south this month. Michael is looking forward to playing with such wonderful talent.

Nathan Hamilton & No Deal take the new record on a West Coast and Southwest tour the end of this month and into early October. A huge thank you to friends of the band who have helped build up this tour – Doug Thompson, Dave Insley and especially D. Green.

AUGUST 2003
The biggest news is that we are very happy to have Amber Byfield on board as our Media Contact. She has already worked on updating tour sites, updating artist promo, and everyone is looking forward to her working on press for upcoming tours.

Caritas has asked to reschedule the Kitchen Concert to August 29th… Elizabeth McQueen will be the performing artist.

JULY 2003
Eric Hisaw will be in New Mexico & West Texas early July, and he is very excited to take the band on the road this time around and to give them a tour of his old stompin’ grounds.

Matt the Electrician will be out west again, playing dates in 5 states – NM, AZ, CA, OR & WA. There’s something for everyone on this tour – house concerts, a cocktail lounge, busking outside a coffee house, a brew pub, biker bar, hipster bars, bar bars, a festival, BBQ with Crispin show, and a cantina. Wow.

It’s for real now, Nathan Hamilton & No Deal‘s “Live at Floore’s Country Store” album is available for purchase. Check out Nathan’s site to buy online, and Nathan is the Indie Artist of the month with lonestarmusic.com. We’re so proud. :)

The Friday Kitchen Concert is booked for this month and the next couple. These scheduled performers #1 in our book:
July 18 – Troy Campbell
August 8 – Elizabeth McQueen
September 5 – Mark Ambrose

This month’s favorite booking contacts are Griff Luneburg – The Cactus Cafe in Austin and Jesse Lundy – The Point in Bryn Mawr PA. Thank you both for your support and for being real.

JUNE 2003
Claire Holley‘s fourth album, Dandelion, is officially released on June 17th. This is her second record with Yep Roc. Claire begins a very busy tour schedule this month which continues through the fall. Please come to her shows in your town. And if you don’t see a show in your town and you’d like to host one of those house concerts we love so much, please contact Laura to learn more.

Early to mid June, Matt the Electrician hits the road again touring through the South and the East Coast. Matt will be touring as a duo with the fabulous Seela. Thank you for your support on their first big tour in these regions. Tell your friends.

A big thank you to this month’s Kitchen Concert volunteer… Kevin So from Boston will be playing the soup kitchen on June 11, the same day as his CD release show at the Cactus Cafe. Thank you Kevin, you are exceptional.

Michael Fracasso‘s summer festival schedule has had another date added. Here’s the list: Michael will be performing July’s Woody Guthrie Festival in Okemah, OK… then in August, The Balloon Festival in Oklahoma City, The Newport Folk Festival and The Kerrville Wine & Music Festival. A huge thank you to Val Denn & GiGi Benno for all of their support of Michael and for including him in the Woody Guthrie Tribute tours and for helping get Michael booked at Newport.

MAY 2003
Come to live shows!! We love seeing you there.

Thank you Danny Santos for volunteering to play the Friday Kitchen Concert at the Caritas soup kitchen on May 9th. Still looking for volunteers the next few months…

Laura is creating a job description for a ComboPlate Booking Intern. Hopefully this can happen and the position be filled sometime over the summer. Looking for a genuine individual who loves live music and singer songwriters and who would like to learn a little about the booking biz. A lap top would be cool and a mac user ideal but not essential. Stay tuned or email Laura if interested in learning more.

Michael Fracasso and Nathan Hamilton are both mixing and mastering their next releases. Nathan’s is the live record recorded at Floore’s Country Store, and Michael’s is his next studio release. Michael is self producing and the record is brilliant. Nathan and band rocked at Floore’s, and the new hit single, “15 Dollars”, will be on the live record. We can’t wait.

APRIL 2003
ComboPlate is happy to announce the addition of Claire Holley to the roster. Claire is with Yep Roc Records and her fourth album, “Dandelion,” is scheduled for release June 17th. Watch the tours page for Summer and Fall CD release tours.

This is not an April Fool’s joke …. April 1st is Matt the Electrician‘s Austin CD release show at the Cactus Cafe. Please come celebrate the release of Matt’s kick ass new record, “made for working.” Matt and his trio hit the road west beginning April 9th… they will be playing shows in AZ, NM, CA, OR and Washington State. Good luck on the tour, Matt!

One more local invitation… Nathan Hamilton & No Deal will be recording a live record at Floore’s Country Store in Helotes, TX on Saturday, April 12th. Come join in on the fun and support Nathan and the band.

Ray Cashman from Austin will be this month’s performer at the Friday Kitchen Concert at the Caritas Loaves & Fishes Community Kitchen. Thank you, Ray, for volunteering to play April 18th!

Thanks to Andre in Corvallis, you can now go to www.comboplatebooking.com and wonderful things will happen.

MARCH 2003
South By Soup Fest is booked! 15 artists from five countries, 6 US states and 12 different cities have volunteered to play for the diners at the Caritas of Austin Loaves and Fishes Community Kitchen. Check out the complete lineup.

Don’t forget to come to Opal Divine’s Friday March 14th, 2-5:30pm for the ComboPlate Booking Party. Opal’s has great food, an outside patio and music stage… and we want to thank you in person for all of your support this last year in music.

Michael Fracasso‘s tour in Spain and in London was a great success. We met so many wonderful people, and Michael hopes to return soon. Be sure to check out Michael’s web page – he will have a special press page for his Spanish fans up sometime this month.

FEBRUARY 2003
Mark your calendars now…. Friday, March 14, 2-5pm for the ComboPlate Booking Party at Opal Divine’s Freehouse. Come see Claire Holley, Will Kimbrough, Simon Bruce, Mark Morris, Matt the Electrician, Eric Hisaw and Michael Fracasso perform at this special party for all of our fans and friends like you. This is our thank you to everyone for their support for the past year. We will miss Nathan Hamilton during the party as he will be out of town… but he will be with us in spirit. There will be CD giveaways and “free beer” on us. See you there…

JANUARY 2003
SXSW is around the corner, and that means so is SXSF… South By Soup Fest. SXSF 2003 is scheduled for March 12, 13, 14. ComboPlate is actively looking for out of town talent to volunteer and play the Caritas of Austin Loaves and Fishes Community Kitchen. Last year, fifteen artists from four countries, five U.S. states, 11 different cities volunteered their time to come and play their music for the hungry and homeless clients of the Caritas soup kitchen during SXSF 2002. The event received local press, television coverage and even a Dutch radio interview. We are planning for this year to be as successful and especially in the goal of bringing quality music to the homeless and low income clients of the soup kitchen.

Michael Fracasso‘s February tour to Spain is now booked. A couple of London shows were also scheduled on the way back to Texas. Please visit Michael’s web site for the tour dates and locations. Wish Michael, Laura and Anthony a safe journey before they leave mid-February. And a huge thank you to our friend Lluis Sala in Girona for all of his help.

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