JANUARY 22, 2010

Here’s an outtake from Jon’s photo shoot for Out Magazine.  Sharing the shot are Wendy & Lisa, formerly of Prince & The Revolution (nowadays doing TV soundtracks) and singer Matt Alber.  The theme was vaguely based on “school nostalgia.” (What decade, we’re not sure.)

You can view the issue online: http://out.com/out100/

NOVEMBER 21, 2009

Two more things!

Jon has one more event this year.  He’ll be doing a reading & acoustic performance at Modern Times Bookstore, 888 Valencia (@ 20th Street).  It’s Wednesday night, December 9th, at 7pm.

Also, earlier this year Jon did a long, extensive career-spanning interview with JD Doyle, who does the site Queer Music Heritage. The program includes music clips as well; in July he focused on queer punk, and also interviewed G.B. Jones of Fifth Column. Lots of cool and obscure stuff, check it out:

www.queermusicheritage.com/jul2009.html

OCTOBER 14, 2009

Two things!

1.  Jon Ginoli has been named one of Out Magazine’s 100 People Of The Year for 2009! He was photographed for the magazine in September in Los Angeles; the magazine will be on newsstands in mid-November.

2.  On Tuesday, November 17, Jon will be on a panel discussion about Queer Punk at the newly renovated Harvey Milk Branch of the San Francisco Public Library. Other panelists will include KD Davis, bass player for Wilma and Impulse F, and Debbie Hopkins, drummer for The Contractions, discussing being queer in the San Francisco punk scene in the ‘80s and ‘90s.

The address: 1 Jose Sarria Ct. (just off 16th & Market). It’s at 7 p.m. and it’s FREE!

SEPTEMBER 22, 2009

Thanks to everyone who saw Pansy Division this past week on the West Coast!

It was great playing with The Avengers! It was great seeing and playing with the Paul Collins Beat!! Fine people one and all.

We're done touring for now, but Jon will read from his book Deflowered: My Life in Pansy Division as part of San Francisco's Litquake festival.  Also reading: Sam Barry, Alan Black, David Comfort, Linda Robertson, RU Sirius, Denise Sullivan, and Richie Unterberger. Emceed by Litquake co-founder Jack Boulware. Book sales and signing to follow. It's Saturday, October 10th.

The event is called Chaos is a Friend of Mine. Authors and musicians spew forth on the topic of music. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, San Francisco; (415) 923-0923. Admission: $5 at the door.

21 and over. It's from 6-8 pm. That's early! Don't be late!

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

Jon is reading Wednesday night, Sept. 2, at the San Francisco Public Library, with Brontez (from Gravy Train!!!! and Younger Lovers) as part of the radar Reading series. It should be a hoot!

Here’s the official announcement:

RADAR READING, featuring ALEXANDER CRUMBSNATCHER, BRONTEZ of FAG SCHOOL zine and JON GINOLI of Pansy Division, author of DEFLOWERED: MY LIFE IN PANSY DIVISION. Guest host ALI LIEBEGOTT. Wednesday, September 2, 6 p.m. San Francisco Public Library, Lower Level, Latino/Hispanic Community Room, 100 Larkin Street, San Francisco. (415) 557-4400.

The final in the series of 4 Pansy Division webisodes posted!

JONAH - Episode 4: "You’ll See Them Again"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQW_JS6L9iA

Netflix for documentary

The PD movie is now on Netflix! So if the film never made it to your town, put our DVD in your Netflix queue! And in San Francisco, it’s for rent at Lost Weekend Video on Valencia St. and Superstar on Castro St., and possibly others!

AUGUST 19, 2009

New Pansy Division webisodes posted!

You can now see episodes 2 and 3 of our four-part video series for the new album.

The links below go to Pansy Division’s You Tube page.

JONAH - Episode 2: "Ride Baby"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE7lR90UacA&feature=related

JONAH - Episode 3: "Some Of My Best Friends"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyozcaJnQM4

and if you missed the first one:

JONAH - Episode 1: "That's So Gay"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsc1Ww3lU1U&feature=related

AUGUST 18, 2009

Thanks to everyone who came to see us live on our June East Coast/Midwest tour!

Here is updated tour info for the West Coast tour!

FRI     SEPT 11     SEATTLE, WA     w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat
The Funhouse

$12 advance  / $14 day of show  21+

206 5th Ave N.   (206) 374-8400

SAT    SEPT 12     PORTLAND, OR     w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat

Dante's

$12 advance  / $14 day of show  21+

1 SW 3rd Ave        (503) 226-6630

SUN     SEPT 13     MEDFORD, OR     w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat

Musichead

$12      all ages
350 S. Riverside Ave        (541) 857-1745

TUE     SEPT 15     SACRAMENTO, CA  w/ The Paul Collins Beat

The Fire Escape 

$10      all ages--early show!  Doors 6pm, show 7pm. For real!
7431 Madison Ave, Citrus Heights, CA      (916) 967-5464

WED     SEPT 16     SANTA CRUZ, CA     w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat

The Blue Lagoon

$8.00                21+

923 Pacific Ave        (831) 423-7117

THU     SEPT 17     OAKLAND, CA     w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat

The Uptown

$12.00   21+ 

1928 Telegraph Ave.         (510) 451-8100

FRI     SEPT 18     SAN FRANCISCO, CA     w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat

Bottom of the Hill 

$12.00        all ages   

1233 17th Street         (415) 621-4455

SAT     SEPT 19     SANTA ANA, CA     w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat

Galaxy Theatre    

$15.00         all ages

3503 S. Harbor Blvd        (714) 957-0600

SUN     SEPT 20     LOS ANGELES, CA    w/ The Avengers & The Paul Collins Beat
The Echo

$12 advance  / $14 day of show    21+

1822 Sunset Blvd. (Echo Park)     (213) 413-8200

Also: Jon has two more readings from his book!

On his book tour, Jon went to 46 cities between March 20 and May 28!

SEPT. 10 - Seattle, WA
Bailey-Coy Books, 7 pm
414 Broadway E.    (on Capitol Hill)   206.323.8842   

Jon will read from his book + play an acoustic set 

OCT. 10 - San Francisco CA
As part of the Litquake Festival--details TBA.

JUNE 11, 2009

East Coast/Midwest tour starts next week!

WED June 17, 2009 -- Cambridge, MA --TT The Bear's

THU June 18, 2009 -- Cleveland Heights, OH -- Grog Shop

FRI June 19, 2009 -- Hamtramck (Detroit), MI -- Small's

SAT June 20, 2009 -- Chicago, IL -- Subterranean

SUN June 21, 2009 -- Minneapolis, MN --Triple Rock

TUE June 23, 2009 -- Pittsburgh, PA -- The Pegasus Lounge

WED June 24, 2009 -- Philadelphia, PA -- North Star Bar

THU June 25, 2009 -- Washington, DC --Velvet Lounge

FRI June 26, 2009 Baltimore, MD --Insubordination Fest @ Sonar

SAT June 27, 2009 -- New York, NY -- Mercury Lounge

SUN June 28, 2009 -- Brooklyn, NY -- Public Assembly

New Pansy Division webisode posted!

We mentioned a while ago that we’d done a series of websidoes for our new album--four short films, with actors and scripts, based around a Pansy Division from our new CD That’s So Gay. They’re not music vids--there’s only a portion of a song in each--and are based on a fiction character, Jonah, at 4 different ages--21, 28, 35, 42. The first of these, JONAH - Episode 1: "That's So Gay,” has now been posted to our You Tube page, check it out!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsc1Ww3lU1U

MAY 29, 2009

Jon’s book tour update:

Jon went to 46 cities between March 20 and May 28!  Unfortunately, the previously announced book tour dates for the Northeast in early July have been cancelled.

JULY

07/14 - San Francisco Public Library, 6pm

OCT.

10/10 - Litquake, San Francisco

MAY 6, 2009

Forgot to mention: Pansy Division was the subject of a full page article in Newsweek last month!
It's our first such coverage in a national news magazine. Here's the link:

http://mobile.newsweek.com/detail.jsp?key=46222&rc=ent&p=0&all=1#___1__

MAY 2, 2009

See the PD documentary film:

There are still a few places where you can see the PD documentary on the big screen! Here are the upcoming screenings:

May 8, 2009 - Santa Cruz Film Festival (8:45PM @ Riverfront Twin) Director Michael Carmona and PD bassist Chris Freeman will be on hand for a Q & A. Later that night, Chris will DJ at Mad House Bar and Lounge, 529 Seabright Ave.

May 9, 2009 - The Loft Cinema, Tucson, AZ 3233 E. Speedway (film screening + Jon’s acoustic set & book signing)

7pm. (520) 795-7777 www.loftcinema.com  $8.00

May 30, 2009 - QDoc, Portland Queer Documentary Film Festival, Portland, OR,. (9pm, @ The Clinton Street Theater, 2522 SE Clinton St. @ 26th, $8.00) Check the website: http://queerdocfest.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52&Itemid=61&12aed25ae36efa8c5a9a744536199980=b5cac5e24cf43f4f97160060111fb431
Jon will be present for the screening.

Early June, 2009  - 23 Degrees Mix Festival of GLBT Film and Queer Culture, Milan, Italy, time/date/venue tba. Check the website: http://www.cinemagaylesbico.com

September 18 - 26, 2009 - Queer Lisboa 13, Lisbon, Portugal, time/date/venue tba. Check the website:  http://www.queerlisboa.pt

MARCH 28, 2009

The CD is out! It’s on iTunes (USA) too! The DVD is out! In stores any day now!

Press for Jon’s book tour is pouring in! Here’s the most interesting stuff:

-- Notable is a nice feature story in the San Francisco Chronicle.
-- Vancouver’s Nardwuar did a pretty thorough live radio interview with Jon on March 27, on CITR Radio, that you can hear here.
-- Interview with the website afterelton.com.

This comment was posted to the afterelton site:

“I was a PD groupie from the early days--so early that, ironically, the only one of their CDs I don't own is "Undressed," because I had it on cassette tape and wore it out, and never replaced it.  :)  (Now I'll have to start loading them all into iTunes to put on my iPod...)

Long story short, when I worked at Wherehouse Records in the San Francisco financial district, Chris the bass player used to come in and browse, and we struck up a casual, flirtatious friendship.  I'd go see the band in clubs, always said "hi," yadda yadda.  So one day he brings in a videotape to the store, and says, "I think you'd like to see this."  It was the new video for their song "Bill and Ted's Homosexual Adventure."  Gave me a wink and smile and left.

As it so happens, I forgot the tape at work when I left for the day, and someone--not sure what it was--stuck it in the MASTER VIDEO PLAYER.  So the video--including some very interesting porn clips involving a dark-haired and blonde-haired couple--was playing on EVERY SCREEN IN THE STORE for a few too many minutes.  Brouhaha ensued.  The next day, when an agitated assistant manager accosted me when I came in, I just shrugged and said "Don't touch things that don't belong to you." 

MARCH 11, 2009

Jon will be interviewed on public radio! He is on KALW (91.7 San Francisco) on their gay radio show Out In The Bay on Thursday, March 19, at 7pm. It will be archived on their website (www.outinthebay.com) so non-local listeners can hear it too.

FEBRUARY 27, 2009

Jon’s book is finally out! It should be arriving in stores this week. Check our merchandise page to order one from us, or check the usual places you buy books.

FEBRUARY 12, 2009

The new Pansy Division 7” vinyl single is out! It’s on Alternative Tentacles Records, featuring two new songs: “Average Men,” featuring a co-lead vocal by former Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra, and “Coming Clean,” a cover of the Green Day song from their Dookie album. The title track will appear on the new PD album, but the B-side will not. Available now from us! Will be in stores as of Feb 17th.

The single is $5 postpaid in the USA, $6 in Canada, $8 everywhere else. Both songs will be on iTunes (USA only) shortly. Click on Merchandise for ordering info!

DECEMBER 7, 2008

We mastered the album! We’re getting the artwork ready, for the CD as well the 7” single, which will be completed this month. Coming up with album covers art is fun but a little stressful, trying to create a visual image that complements the music within.

ALSO: Jon is organizing a tour for the release of his book in early March. He’ll be going around the country for several months, dates to be announced soon!

OCTOBER 13, 2008

We were just notified of a screening that’s coming up very soon, in Liverpool, England! On Thursday, October 23, at 6:30 PM, Pansy Division: Life In A Gay Rock Band will be screened at the Outsiders Film Festival, at FACT, 88 Wood Street. Info here.

Liverpool, England -- Thursday, October 23, 2008 - Outsiders Film Festival

OCTOBER 8, 2008

We've got the details about our appearance in Seattle later this month. Following our film screening, there is an afterparty very near the theater. The film is Friday, October 24 at 7:30 PM at the Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Avenue; the party follows right after at 9 PM at Purr, 1518 11th Ave.

SEPTEMBER 27, 2008

1. Our new album is done! We finished recording it in July; we finished mixing it earlier this month. It will be mastered in November, after which we'll share some of it with you.

Titled That's So Gay, the album has 14 songs, is 38 minutes long, all originals. It will be released, like our last two albums, on Alternative Tentacles Records. It will probably be out in March. It will be preceded by a 7" vinyl single; "Average Men," a song on the new album, is the A-side, and the B-side is a cover of a Green Day song, "Coming Clean," that will not be on the new album. We're very excited to be at this point; it took a year and half from the beginning of the album to the end, the longest we've ever gestated one of our releases.

2. Film/DVD news: we're working on a DVD release for the Pansy Division documentary. It will be out on Alternative Tentacles as well. If it's done in time, it will be out in March, in which case the album will be pushed back to May. There will be a Spanish language option, and it will be an all-region DVD. The film will be accompanied by a bonus live DVD. The documentary has a lot of short live clips; the bonus DVD has the best of the live stuff we combed through in the making of the movie, complete performances. We've never had an official live album, so this will be the next best thing.

But it has not yet finished the rounds of gay film festivals! It is coming soon to a few more cities:

Albuquerque, NM -- Monday, September 29, 2008 - Southwest Gay & Lesbian Film Festival.

Washington, DC -- Thursday, October 23, 2008 - Reel Affirmations

Seattle, WA - Friday, October 24 - Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival
7:30 PM at the Northwest Film Forum. Even better, Jon and Chris will be there in person to answer questions, and to perform an unplugged set
right afterwards at Purr, .

Chicago, IL - Saturday, November 8 - Reeling Festival
We just received news about this one yesterday! More details ASAP.

3. Jon's book, Deflowered: My Life In Pansy Division, now has a release date: March 1, 2009! You can actually pre-order it on Amazon, even though the final edit isn't even done yet! (If you wait you can order it directly from us, or your local book store.)

The book is a detailed history of how Jon conceived and formed the band, and the many adventures we've had ever since. It's a nice companion piece to the documentary; the doc covers a lot of ground, but the book fill in a lot of the details there weren't time for in the film. Which brings us to #4....

4. Here's where we need your help! Starting some time in March, Jon is planning to do a book tour, doing readings and signing books. At the same time, our idea is to also tour the film, visiting cities where we were not able to get screenings. We've done many tours with the band, but we've never done a book tour, nor a movie tour. What we're looking for is for you to help us find places in your town where Jon can read, and/or places where small one-off screenings of the film can be arranged. Jon will bring his guitar along too, do a few songs when possible. This will be happening off and on between March and May. We're looking for bookstores, small theaters, gay community centers, colleges with gay student groups who can arrange events, and anything else that would be appropriate.

We're trying to compile a resource list and figure out where we can go, and who would want to have us. We're looking for something pretty specific; small places, the right setting, which can be a bit difficult to coummnicate, but we welcome your suggestions. Just reply to
pansydivisionmail (at) gmail.com with your ideas, and if possible any contact info you might have with people at these places. A lot of our band's success is based on word of mouth. At this time we're looking for places in the US only.

However, if you want to show the film, and book a screening, we will being doing that soon! Contact the film's director, Michael, lastritesfilms (at) gmail.com

5. iTunes! We were off of iTunes for a long time, but we're back, and for the first time our complete back catalog is available. You can download each of our albums (including the Essential best of), or individual tracks, in the knowledge that the money is actually getting to the band (they've been great about paying us--a perennial record biz problem, hooray!). (A plug: The Essential Pansy Division makes a great cheap holiday gift! Sorry to mention it this far before Xmas.) For now, this is just for the USA; we will be working with another company soon that will be distributing our mp3s to other digital sources worldwide, including iTunes in other countries.

Don't know if we've mentioned this before, but there are two songs we do ("I Really Wanted You" and "Not Enough Of You To Go Around") that were originally recorded by Jon's band The Outnumbered back in the 80s. We now have the original versions posted on the PD Audio page (they're near the bottom).

6. There are always new PD things popping up on You Tube; we add to our You Tube page when we find good ones. We've added a few ourselves: see Green Day singing a bit of "Groovy Underwear" from a TV special; see our tribute to Jim Carrey on the USA Network, circa 1996, hosted by Gilbert Gottfried; our video page is http://www.youtube.com/user/PansyDivisionvideo.
Also, someone else posted excellent footage of us on a Canadian TV morning program, from 1999, here:
Canada Clip

You can preview clips of 3 new songs from That's So Gay on our page: "Twinkie Twinkie Little Star," "You'll See Them Again," and "20 Years of Cock."
PD video page

7. Last chance for t-shirts: Though we recently removed t-shirts from our merchandise page, we discovered a small batch we'd overlooked. We've only got Small and XL sizes, but once these are gone, they're gone. Go to our merchandise page to check them out.

8. Last, not least, but definitely farthest off in the future: there will be a Pansy Division live tour next summer, sometime in July/August 2009.

9. 9.Registered to vote? Don't delay, please register today. If you've moved since you last voted, make sure you're registered at your current address.
   
   
   

APRIL 2008 NEWS

The process of getting our film into festivals has been interesting. So far we're doing much better with gay festivals than general film fests. Completing the film took months of free labor from a number of talented people; the whole thing was done on a shoestring budget, though it looks very good. What's frustrating is how much it costs to enter some festivals. Most film festivals are community-based organizations themselves on low budgets, so we're sympathetic, especially it's so much easier to make a film than it used to be, and they're flooded with entries. That said, San Diego's Outfest charges $85 just to look at your fuckin' film! (They turned us down, too.) I'm sorry, but that is outrageous; films in these festivals do not get any income from the screenings, no payment or cut of the gate. Other culprits: $100 to enter a film in the Swansea, Wales festival? $65 to enter the Erie, Pennsylvania festival? (It only costs $28 to enter the Paris Gay Film Festival!) Erie is the PA equivalent of Peoria (one of my best friends lived in both towns), and while I'd love it if people there (or anywhere!) could view our film, we don't have that kind of money to throw at the literally hundreds of festivals out there. Sheesh!

OTHER VISUALS

In the process of doing our film, we have collected a number of performances and clips that didn't make the cut. We've been remiss getting these up on the website, but there is now a Pansy Division You Tube page and some of them are posted there. One of the more interesting clips is "Pansy Division on TV and in Film," a short compilation of our music being played or us being mentioned on famous shows. There are also clips of two more songs from the upcoming album that you can get a sneak peek at now: "20 Years of Cock" and "You'll See Them Again." Other performances come from various times in the band's history, including clips of "Flower," "Expiration Date," "The Story So Far," "Fluffy City," "Hippy Dude," and more. Check them out!

Other fun PD You Tube stuff:
• Pandas sing Pansy Division! They do "Luv Luv Luv"!
• An appealing "Luv Luv Luv" lip sync! Live intro w/Luis intro.
• A French band with an appealingly odd take on, yes, "Luv Luv Luv"!

There will more to come soon on our website's video page, including some stuff too racy for You Tube.

SHOW REVIEW

A belated review of our January show at The Eagle. The author and Jon used to do a DJ night back in SF in the earliest days of Pansy Division called Rock & Roll Queer Bar...which is the reason we did the song--as a theme song for our club. From the San Francisco Bay Times, 1/24/08.

By Don Baird
"Speaking of inspiration, the other night at the Eagle Tavern I had the extreme pleasure of catching a set by a band who has been on a similar crusade for as long as I have, and that band is Pansy Division. Replete with a new guitarist, Joel, the band played a set that was one of the most rocking and finest I’ve ever seen from them. It was pure ecstatic joy to watch this combo of excellent musicians really pound out a fucking smutty hilarious unhinged set, the most unhinged and punk rock I’ve ever seen from them. The crowd was absolutely riveted, and one could see that these fans in the crowd had come to know Pansy Division at different times and different places throughout their lives, and they had made a considerable impact on many. I heard more than a few snippets of stories about when and where they were when they first heard the band and how very much it changed their lives, be it in a small town in Kansas or a queer radio show or whatever. It put it all in perspective for me just what a truly important groundbreaking band they are and what a local treasure we have in Pansy Division. What’s more is they rocked my fucking world that night, jumping up and down in unison, laughing at their own ribald and hilarious pervy lyrics, just having a great time onstage. I’ll not soon forget what a great show it was, nor will I miss other shows in the future. Pansy Division rules, and this world is a far better place with them in it."

WE'RE FAMOUS

The Pansy Division band bank account is through Wells Fargo. Had it since 1995. A few years ago when they first offered online banking, they charged $9.95 a month, so I said no. It's free nowadays, so last month I finally called them to get it going. I got a very nice, but corporate sounding young woman on the phone, and gave her my information. When she asked the name of the business, and I told her Pansy Division, she said, "The band?" I laughed and said I was very surprised that anyone at Wells Fargo knew of PD. She said she "saw them at Gilman years ago." She did not break corporate stride to get more casual or personal than that, but that made my day.

THE GROOVY 70s BASEMENT

I recently made a myspace page for my parents' basement. This basement was decorated during 1970 and early 1971 in Peoria, Illinois, in the house I grew up in, and where my parents still live. It was that period where '60s hippie and countercultural concepts had filtered down to people like my open-minded Republican mom. She picked out everything--wallpaper, furniture, light fixtures. Her decorator had a field day, because it was so far out. As a kid, I thought it was really cool, and so did my friends. My parents used to entertain a lot, and I had parties there in grade school and high school. It's also where I did my homework! It became outdated rather quickly, but except for the fabulous red shag carpet (later damaged and replaced) it has remained intact for almost 40 years.

Now it's a period piece, and if this basement was in Sherman Oaks or Brentwood it would probably be used for authentic location filming. (I had made a webpage for it a couple of years ago called The Mod Basement, but later I took higher quality photos, and besides there's already an online furniture store on myspace with that name.)

Check out the loads of photos, and enjoy your trip through The Groovy 70s Basement! --JON

Luis, now a Brooklyn resident, is co-owner of a new grocery/cafe next to McCarren Park, Urban Rustic. Its goal is to provide local and sustainably raised food, and since opening in December it's going gangbusters! Good review in theNew York Times and everything. If you're a New Yorker, check it out.

JON ON THE BATCAST

Our label, Alternative Tentacles, has a podcast they call the Batcast (because the label logo features a bat).
Jon did one prior to the tour, which is now posted here. You can stream it or download it.

In this podcast, Jon plays and discusses his 10 favorite tracks (of other bands' songs) from the history of the label, which dates back to 1979.
Check out some great overlooked songs!