Dizzies press release — 826 on 8/26

REVENGE OF THE BOOK EATERS

826NYC and The Bowery Presents return to the Beacon Theatre with an all-star evening of music, comedy, and storytelling

CELEBRATED SONGWRITERS, WRITERS, AND COMEDIANS COME TOGETHER FOR AN UNFORGETTABLE NIGHT OF LITERATURE-MEETS-MUSIC TO RAISE MONEY FOR 826NYC, A CHILDREN’S WRITING CENTER IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

IN WHICH: A.C. NEWMAN sings alone. GRIZZLY BEAR is a band. FEIST reads from a book. JIM JAMES croons. SARAH VOWELL speaks. DEMETRI MARTIN hosts.

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The Beacon Theatre
Sunday, August 26, 7:00 PM
2124 Broadway (between 74th and 75th Streets), New York
Tickets: Balcony $35, Loge $45 Orchestra $50
Tickets available through Ticketmaster: www.ticketmaster.com, www.bowerypresents.com, www.beacontheatrenyc.com, or (212) 307-4111
On sale Friday, July 20 at 10AM
All proceeds go toward 826NYC’s free programming for children

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Brooklyn, NY July 20, 2007— 826NYC and The Bowery Presents present REVENGE OF THE BOOK EATERS, a one-night-only event that brings together celebrated comedians, writers, and indie-rock songwriters for a rare evening of intimate performances, including FEIST, A.C. NEWMAN (of The New Pornographers), JIM JAMES (of My Morning Jacket), GRIZZLY BEAR, SARAH VOWELL (best-selling author and This American Life contributor), and DEMETRI MARTIN (Daily Show regular, comedy superstar), that promises once and for all to try to settle the debate: words or music — which is better?


The evening will benefit 826NYC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.


This event, which is named after a story by an 826NYC student, is a follow-up to last year’s much-heralded event and six-city tour by the same name. Last year, the New York show sold out the Beacon Theatre in less than one day. At that show, Jon Stewart told jokes about his baby, David Byrne performed a country music set, Sufjan Stevens joined him for a duet, Sarah Vowell and Eric Bogosian acted out diary entries of a real-life explorer of the American West, John Hodgman hosted, and Dave Eggers doled out hugs. The deluge of local and national press coverage all agreed on one thing—that Revenge of the Book Eaters was a unique and awe-inspiring synthesis of the literary, comedy, and music communities in support of 826NYC's similarly innovative programming for kids.


This year’s show promises to pick up where last year’s left off, focusing on unique, memorable performances, all raising money for charity.



About the performers:


Feist is the stage name for Toronto-based musician Leslie Feist, whose recent album The Reminder has been universally lauded since its release in May. After damaging her vocal cords singing in a punk band as a teenager, Feist began a long string of collaborations in her 20s that included her performing with the electro-punk vixen Peaches, and joining the Toronto band Broken Social Scene. In 2004, her breakthrough solo album, Let It Die, won two Juno awards and landed on numerous “Best of Year” lists, paving the way for “The Reminder,” her follow-up, which prompted the New York Times to proclaim, “this album should transform Feist from the darling of the indie-rock circuit to a full-fledged star, and do it without compromises.” The Reminder was voted “Best New Music” by Pitchfork and was recently nominated for the Polaris Music Prize.


A.C. Newman is the primary songwriter and front man for the Vancouver-born indie pop band The New Pornographers. In 2004, he released the widely-acclaimed album The Slow Wonder, his first solo effort. Upon hearing it, Spin magazine requested that “pop genius Carl Newman” be “required by law to release a new album every month.” Last year he fled Canada for Brooklyn, to work on Challengers, The New Pornographers’ latest album, out on Matador on August 21st.


Jim James is the singer-guitarist and songwriter for the popular Louisville-based rock band My Morning Jacket. His voice has been described as an ethereal, reverb-drenched falsetto, and he cites The Muppet Show as one of his biggest musical influences. Known especially for live performances, he leads My Morning Jacket through American backcountry to arena rock with ease. He has been featured on albums by Bright Eyes, M. Ward, and Bobby Bare, Jr., and was awarded an Esky for Best Songwriter in Esquire’s 2006 Esky Music Issue.


Grizzly Bear are masters of the magical, haunting melody, crafting their songs from start to finish with meticulous instrumentation and arrangements. The young Brooklyn quartet’s most recent album, 2006’s Yellow House, received mass critical acclaim, was ranked as one of the top ten albums of the year by the New York Times, Pitchfork, and numerous other publications, and has been widely recognized as an understated masterpiece.


Demetri Martin is a comedian, actor, musician, and writer. He is a contributor to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, where he appears as their Resident Trendspotter and Youth Correspondent. He was a writer for Late Night With Conan O’Brien, and he has had two one-hour specials on Comedy Central: Comedy Central Presents Demetri Martin and Demetri Martin. Person. In 2003, he was awarded the Perrier Award at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival. Entertainment Weekly named him one of the 25 Funniest People in America. He is currently working on two films: Will (Dreamworks) and Moon People (Columbia Pictures).


Sarah Vowell has turned her gimlet eye—and razor-sharp tongue—toward everything from her father’s homemade (and life-size) cannon and her obsession with the Godfather films, to the New Hampshire primary and her Cherokee ancestors’ forced march on the Trail of Tears. Vowell is best known for her monologues and documentaries for public radio’s This American Life. A contributing editor for the program since 1996, she has been a staple of TAL’s popular live shows around the country, for which The New York Times has commended her “funny querulous voice and shrewd comic delivery.” Her most recent book, Assassination Vacation, was a New York Times Best-seller.