Kim Boekbinder is The Impossible Girl

Notes on the Occupation

2011-10-08T08:13:00.000-07:00

I wrote a piece for Coilhouse Blog about Occupy Wall Street. READ MORE...

"People around America are confused, interested, annoyed, supportive, angry, joyous. But no one seems quite sure what Occupy Wall Street is.

“It’s like the 1960′s.”

“It’s the democratic answer to the Tea Party.”

“It’s just dirty hippies.”

There are as many explanations for what Occupy Wall Street is as there are people involved in it..." READ MORE...

Motion Consumes Distance

2011-09-25T03:32:00.000-07:00

As I was out walking today I thought about how the motion of my legs propelled me forward through space. The distance between myself and my destination got shorter and shorter. Being eaten up.

"Motion consumes distance." I said.

I bring myself closer to things by moving towards them. I bring myself closer to my goals in the same way: by motion, though it's not always physical.

I move a lot. I'm a little obsessed with motion. Getting closer...

Which is why I have launched a UK and Ireland mini tour. It is a pre-sold tour which will only happen if I sell enough tickets. I'm doing six dates (though I only mention five in the video.)

Also not mentioned in the video is that Molly Crabapple will be doing the art for this tour!

NOVEMBER:

- 21st Manchester - w/ She Makes War

- 22nd Leeds - w/ She Makes War

- 23rd Dublin - w/ She Makes War

- 24th Birmingham - w/ She Makes War

- 25th Brighton - w/ She Makes War

- 26th London

She Makes War is a musician from London who will be doing the tour along with me.

I won't be touring for a while after this, so if you want to see me: THIS IS YOUR CHANCE.

October:

- 4th Boston (Free, RSVP here: http://www.morganshotelgroup.com/rsvp/ames-sessions.html )

- 16th San Francisco - w/ Gabby Lala http://www.brickandmortarmusic.com/event/66835/

- 22nd Portland - with Myrrh Larsen http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=153547161400486

- 27th New Orleans - w/ Helen Keller's Ukulele http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=201653956557445

November:

- 4th Boston

-12th New York City

- 21st Manchester - w/ She Makes War   http://kck.st/pWkjWk

- 22nd Leeds - w/ She Makes War   http://kck.st/pWkjWk

- 23rd Dublin - w/ She Makes War   http://kck.st/pWkjWk

- 24th Birmingham - w/ She Makes War   http://kck.st/pWkjWk

- 25th Brighton - w/ She Makes War   http://kck.st/pWkjWk

- 26th London http://kck.st/pWkjWk

The Molly Crabapple Posters for The Impossible Tour (pre-sold dates)

People who bought tickets through Kickstarter get copies of the posters.

By way of a little update

2011-09-04T04:02:00.001-07:00

I left New York on Wednesday morning and arrived in Melbourne on Friday morning. It is cold here! We have fires and drink hot tea and wear scarves. Very different from my sweaty summer in NY. This fuzzy blue hot water bottle is my best friend.

Since arriving I have been sleeping, eating scones, helping Jim with the animation, and doing my part to make sure my pre-sold tour gets sold.

I'm happy to report that with 56 hours to go half of my pre-sold "Impossible Tour" has sold!

Shows that will happen!

NOVEMBER 4th - Boston, MA

NOVEMBER 12th - New York, NY

OCTOBER 15th - San Francisco, CA

OCTOBER 27th - New Orleans, LA

OCTOBER 22nd - Portland, OR

Shows that may not happen

O CTOBER 14th - Los Angeles, CA

OCTOBER 23rd - Minneapolis, MN

NOVEMBER 5th - Hartford, CT

OCTOBER 21st - Seattle, WA

OCTOBER 13th - San Diego, CA

I'm really excited about the shows that have been funded and I cannot wait to come to those cities and put on amazing shows. There's still a little bit of time left to buy tickets, so if you want a show now is your chance.

Here's a little preview photo from the set of the "I Have Your Heart" animation:

Follow the progress here: http://www.ihaveyourheart.com

XxK

Calling ALL Bloggers

2011-08-27T11:54:00.000-07:00

I need you to help make my "Impossible Tour" happen. We have 10 days left to make sure all 10 shows sell 100% and I really want these shows to happen! They only happen if we reach 100%. This touring model has HUGE implications for musicians everywhere. I really do believe that this could work for many bands.

So here's my exclusive blogger deal (valid through Tuesday August 30th):

Write a blog about me, my music, and my pre-sold tour. You can come at it from any angle you like: the music, the innovation of the pre-sold tour idea, how pink my hair is, how sparkly my shoes are, whatever it is that you connect to.

For your blog I will answer three questions via email: kim (at) kimboekbinder.com

I will also take an exclusive photo JUST FOR YOUR BLOG.

Once the blog is posted I will post a link on my sites to your blog.

AND I will mail you a thank you package. In the real world mail. For real.

It doesn't matter if your blog has 2 readers or 20,000 for this. And you can cut and paste the text below, or write your own post. The post can be any length (as long as it talks about the tour.) Anywhere between 100-1000 words is great! I just want to get the word out as much as possible.

So:

1) Email three questions to: kim (at) kimboekbinder.com

2) I'll send you an exclusive photo along with the answers to your questions.

3.) Post your blog with an embedded Kickstarter video from one of my shows and links to all ten shows.

4.) Send me the link to your blog so I can post it. Send me your postal address so I can send your thank you package.

You can post the blog anytime this week but I have to have your postal address by midnight on Tuesday if you want me to send you a thank you package.

Here is an example blog by Eric Parfait: http://www.theparfaitreport.com/2011/08/sharing-music-kim-boekbinder-is.html

Here is my press release text you can cut and paste into your blog if you want:

Kim Boekbinder Redefines The Rock Tour

Iconoclastic New York musician, Kim Boekbinder, has set the internet abuzz with her passionate rant about the state of the music industry and how she's decided to circumvent the broken system by using her vibrant social media presence to pre-sell her shows BEFORE they are even booked. Kim's first test run of the idea was launched on Kickstarter and she got her funding for a show in New York City in under 24 hours. Now she's doing a 10 date US tour: http://kck.st/pIcXeH

Ms. Boekbinder's "Impossible Tour" idea has been featured on CCN Money, BBC Radio's World Service, and BoingBoing. http://www.boingboing.net/2011/06/14/crowdfunding-the-tou.html#comments. The attention generated from the story has her email inbox flooded with thank you messages from fans, musicians, and venues; as well as offers from internet startups trying to address the very issues that she is dealing with.

Kim Boekbinder is The Impossible Girl; a performer, composer, musician, and visual artist who defies genre. She has travelled the world, stealing hearts and changing paradigms with her indelible live performance and her excitingly original and unforgettable music. http://www.kimboekbinder.com/about/

For those of you who are not inclined to blogging, posting helps! Put a link on Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Tumblr, whatever your preferred form of internet communication is. And appeal to your friends directly with personal emails inviting them to be part of making the show happen.

OCTOBER 13th – San Diego, CA

O CTOBER 14th – Los Angeles, CA

OCTOBER 15th – San Francisco, CA

OCTOBER 21st – Seattle, WA

OCTOBER 22nd – Portland, OR

OCTOBER 23rd – Minneapolis, MN

OCTOBER 27th – New Orleans, LA

NOVEMBER 4th – Boston, MA

NOVEMBER 5th – Hartford, CT

NOVEMBER 12th – New York, NY

Let's get the word out and make art happen!

Thank you!

The Impossible Girl

How to be Impossible: Dancing in the rain.

2011-08-19T20:28:00.000-07:00

Me and my brother Oliver.

So I've been thinking about doing a column in my blog called "How To Be Impossible" which would be a sort of "self-help" or "how-to" column, but you know: TOTALLY RIDICULOUS.

I haven't written anything yet because I don't know how to tell you how to shed sequins everywhere you go (because I just do it. I don't know how.) But tonight I did something I can explain. There are easy steps. And so tonight I pen my very first "How To Be Impossible" in the hopes that this will break the seal and now I can write more of these:

Tonight at around 7:04pm a most epic thunderstorm descended on New York. The sky got all DOOM colored and the trees started to dance with the wind. Lightening split the sky and thunder creaked and boomed. Rain thrashed against the windows, coming from every direction at once.

My brother and I decided we should go outside.

The light was fantastic, it wasn't really true night, but it was very dark and DOOM-y. Oliver and I sang "Singing in the Rain" and did the dance - swinging around lamp posts and clicking our heels. We ran and skipped and laughed and jumped until we were soaked through and through.

It is amazingly freeing to do something that doesn't "make sense." Running around in a storm is so much fun. Watching the lightening, loving the thunder, getting soaked. It is extra fun with a family member or friend, but also quite satisfying and sometimes even more freeing to do this alone (I know from experience.)

It doesn't further my career or get anything done. It doesn't give my body nutrients or cure cancer or solve the (insert hyperbole here) crisis. But it is fun.

And fun is so so so so so so so so SO IMPORTANT.

That photo above was taken just after we came inside, the flash sort of obscured how soaked we were, but nothing can hide our excitement.

How To Be Impossible in three easy steps:

1. Find EPIC thunderstorm.

2. Go outside in it.

3. Dance.

"Such Great Heights" is out NOW!

2011-08-11T12:53:00.000-07:00

My duet with Amanda Palmer has been released. You can listen, love, download here:

Such Great Heights by Kim Boekbinder and Amanda Palmer

CNN and the Pre-Sold Tour

2011-08-10T14:11:00.000-07:00

I did a CNN Money interview. Click on the image to watch it on the CNN website. Molly Crabapple was also interviewed, we talk about Kickstarter, art, pre-sold tours and more.

The pre-sold tour is humming along nicely. No completely sold shows, and we've got a few straggler cities, but I have high hopes and it is early yet.

I also have some fans who have taken initiative and put up Facebook events to try to get me to their cities: Tampa, FL, Chicago, IL and even Dublin, Ireland and the UK.

Tampa Florida went up two weeks ago and only has 11 people requesting me so far. It makes me a little sad of course, but it illustrates how hard it is for me to get the word out about my shows.

It also illustrates the distortion of internet "fame" and social media perception. I may have 11 fans in any given city who all talk to each other and because they are part of a community of many thousands on the internet who like my music they think I am super famous and wanted by a large group of people in their home town.

Many people have written to me to say "Please come to CITY X, no one ever comes here, we always get passed over, we are always left out." And I understand the frustration of living in a city that is not on a popular tour route. I know you love music as much as anyone in a big city. You may even love music more. I'd love to come play everywhere. I'm not snobby about cities, I'm not "passing you over" because your city isn't "cool" enough. Musicians don't often take chances in smaller, or unknown cities because we lose a lot of money when we do. Being an independent artist I just don't have money to lose.

My pre-sold touring concept puts far more power in your hands, if you choose to accept it. You can put up Facebook events and promote them to get me to try one of my pre-sold shows in your city. And for those cities that had people write in to get me to play there:

OCTOBER 13th – San Diego, CA 12%

O CTOBER 14th – Los Angeles, CA 10%

OCTOBER 15th – San Francisco, CA 46%

OCTOBER 21st – Seattle, WA 4%

OCTOBER 22nd – Portland, OR 43%

OCTOBER 23rd – Minneapolis, MN 11%

OCTOBER 27th – New Orleans, LA 43%

NOVEMBER 4th – Boston, MA 27%

NOVEMBER 5th – Hartford, CT 15%

NOVEMBER 12th – New York, NY 38%

The ball is now in your court. I've given you the tools to make the show happen and now it's up to you. Once I reach funding then I do the rest of the work. But we get to do this together. That's why it's special.

I believe in you!

Love,

K

First Pre-Sold Show Recap

2011-07-25T12:30:00.000-07:00

photos by Kate Black

Watch the webcast:

Watch live streaming video from makerbot at livestream.com

I spent weeks making 440 paper flowers out of 1800 sheets of tissue paper because I wanted this show to be visually amazing. The wonderful people at MakerBot let me take over their space, helped me build a stage, filmed the webcast, and even printed me out in 3D while I was playing!

Folding flowers.

Flowers get flounced by handy Australians.

Flounced!

The flower wall is assembled. 200 flowers in all.

The stage is built.

The flower wall is hoisted into place behind the stage.

The show.

photos by Jim Batt

Stage and projections by Bri Olson

photo by Ryan Anas

Credits:

Projections by Bri Olson

Poster by Molly Crabapple

Sound by Nathaniel Chambers

T-shirts by Melissa Dowel

Door and random help by Foley

Webcast by Eddie Codel

MakerBot love by Keith Ozar

Flowers by Kim Boekbinder, Jim Batt, Oliver Boekbinder, Ryan Anas, Autumn Drouin,

Dax Tran-Caffee, Katelan Foisy, Sean Wyers, and Betty Turier.

This was such a wonderful experience. I'll be launching Kickstarter pages for my pre-sold tour this week. Anyone in Florida should check this out: Bring The Impossible Girl to Tampa, FL

Thank you for supporting my first ever pre-sold show!

Abigail Amalton

Adam T

Alan Spindel

Alicia

Ana Cerro

anagenesis

Andreas Beck

Andrew Janke

Anna J

Annalee Terranova

Arianna Biasini

Arthur Omeljaniuk

Atlanta Camilleri

Audrey

Autumn Drouin

Ben Hayes

Brian Lopez

Brianna Lueders

BriAnna Olson

Bryan Chance

Cameron Horn

Carter Laren

Cheeky Buckfest

Chris Hamilton

Chris Kalata

Claire

Corey Sheesley

Courtney Varga

Cynthia von Buhler

d freymann

Dan Smart

Danielle Lavigne

David Fulcher

David Maynor

David Renshaw

dawn

Dawn Nikithser

Dennis Friend

Dennis Preski

Denny-Ray Carstens

Dietmar Bloech

Douglas Young

Drtom

Ellen

Fidel Jiron Jr.

Gary Falk

Ginger Raner

Graham Arnold

Greg Nesbitt

Gudrun Thäter

Guillaume Laurent

harry w skene

Heath White

hep1013

Ian Gazzotti

Ian Lewis

J Whitney

James Jackson

Jana

Janice

Janna Rhodes

Jared Boles

Jena

Jessica Berglund

jim ramsay

Josh Hoffmann

Kaebel Hashitani

Karina Cetin

Kate Lee

kateblack

katelan

Katie McManus

Keith Jenson

Ken Kilen

Kiska

kris cowen

Kristin Brenemen

Lac23

Laurie

Lewis Winter

Mark

Mark Anderson

Matt Mullany-Green

Matt Wicking

Megan Kingery

Meghan

Meghann Gilligan

Menachem Luchins

Michael Davis

Michael Diaz

Mike Knauer

Molly Crabapple

Monica Arrington

mwolff

Myrrh Larsen

Nelia White

NightGal

Patrick McCracken

Philip Tchernavskij

Quinn McDonald

Rachel Boyadjis

Rick

Rita Flores

Rita J. King

Robyn Tillery

Ryan Anas

Saki Waki

Sam Mancuso

Samuel Erikson

Sara Robisch

Sarahmarian

Sean Francis

Seth Gover

Shawn Patzkowsky

Shelton

Shervyn von Hoerl

Silpa

Skaja Wills

Smidge

Stav Meishar

Summer Laws

Sylva J

Thingumbob

tim kardos

Tim Kellen

Tim Reynolds

Tomás Ford

Tony Gatner

Travis Amiel

Trisha Cornelius

Wayne Watrach

wendy boffo

xombi

Yao Xiao

THANK YOU!!!!!!!

New Music Video: Impossible Girl #3

2011-07-11T11:59:00.000-07:00

On Vimeo

On Youtube

A short history of this music video:

This is the first video Jim Batt and I ever shot together. Jim just happened to have an old bathtub in the woods of his family home and walked bucket after bucket of hot water out through the trees so that my mid-winter bath would be nice and warm. Impossible Girl #3 is not a song I think about often, I hardly ever listen to it and I never play it. It isn't that it's a bad song, I just don't need it anymore. I wrote it at a time when I needed it and then that time passed. I do think it's pretty and the video makes me happy.

In other news: Yesterday I became a unicorn!

Molly Crabapple plays the virgin who tames me.

AND...

I have 19 tickets left for my first ever pre-sold show in NYC on July 21st. Get them here: http://www.kimboekbinder.com/store/tickets

*The unicorn horn made for me by M.A.D. Hatter in Melbourne.

Love,

Kim

p.s. I finally got a new computer and it is making my life way better. I'll be able to record demos, do webcasts, edit videos, and so much more - all without needing to be constantly plugged in and crashing all my programs several times a day. Yay functionality!

7" Vinyl Record with Amanda Palmer

2011-06-29T09:32:00.000-07:00

In March 2011 Amanda Palmer and Kim Boekbinder sat on a couch in a warehouse in Melbourne, Australia and sang a song called "Such Great Heights," by The Postal Service.

It was the end of the night at the end of the tour at the end of the world. The duet is simple and beautiful. It is a snapshot of a time when two busy musicians found quiet in a city at the end of the earth.

The song will be released on a 7" record, along with an original song by Kim Boekbinder called, "On the Other Side of the World" which is a song about being in love with someone on the other side of the world, ie: Australia. Australians are wonderful.

Only 1000 lavender colored vinyl will be made. The packages will also include high quality stickers and 5x7 art cards with the album art and a digital download. Each record will be hand numbered and signed by Kim.

The songs will also be released as a digital EP after the 7" is released.

The album art is by the NYC duo, Teetering Bulb www.teeteringbulb.com who have done beautiful art for comics, graphic novels, album covers, book covers, and more.

The Value Experiment

2011-06-28T08:44:00.000-07:00

<a href="http://music.kimboekbinder.com/album/the-impossible-girl">The Impossible Girl by Kim Boekbinder</a>

Since releasing my album I have done several experiments. Sometimes my album is available as a free Pay-What-You-Want download. Most people download it for free, some people give me money. And mostly it seems like it works out okay.

A few weeks ago I put the minimum cost for my album at $5 and most of those who have chosen to download it have given me $10-$15. But most people have actually just not downloaded it at all and I have seen my download numbers drop off. Interestingly enough I have made the same amount of money.

But what does that mean? Is it more valuable for me to have more people downloading my music? Or is it better to place a value on my music so that people respect it?

Are people more likely to enjoy music they pay for? Or are they more appreciative of a gift from the musician?

They say that music is free now. But what the hell is free?

The freedom for more people to create? Or the freedom for more people to starve?

I can set a price for a CD or a vinyl record because those cost money to make. But it is expected these days that digital downloads are available for free. Sometimes the musician offers the music for free and sometimes you have to steal it. But either way, if it's music, and it's been recorded, it is yours for the taking.

The good thing about being an independent musician is that I can do these experiments without having to pass the idea by some committee of suits worried about the bottom line. I also don't have to find answers to all my questions above. Because the answers change for each person. A few weeks is not enough time to really know what the effect is, but it has made me think about the question of value in music.

Do you value my music because I offered it to you for free? Or do you value it because you paid for it?

Am I engaging in a culture of openness and sharing? Or am I devaluing all music by being one of the problem musicians offering my music for free and making it harder for other musicians to charge if they wish to?

What it comes down to is that it is ridiculous to me to place a value on my own music using a monetary system. I can say my album is "worth" a minimum of $5 for you to download. But in reality what $5 means to me and you is different. $5 could be a meal, or an entire day's food, or maybe it's just the morning latte.

I got an email from someone who found my album online and loved it, and even though it was free when he found it he did not download it because he valued it so highly that he didn't want to take it from me until he felt he could give me what it was worth to him, but as he has no extra spending money he decided to go without.

You might make $100 an hour, in which case giving me $5 only costs you about 3 minutes. Or you might make $7.25 an hour (which is the US Federal minimum wage,) in which case giving me $5 is almost an hour of your time which you most likely cannot afford because life is expensive.

And maybe you only listen to one of my songs occasionally. Or maybe my entire album is on repeat and it has changed your life. But how can we even begin to quantify that?

I have decided to end my experiment of having a minimum cost to download my album, because I don't want to decide the value of my music for you. My music has value for me regardless of how many dollars it makes me. And whether you make $100 an hour, or minimum wage, my music could be the background to your bus ride, or the anthem which helps you make it through another day.

Maybe I'll do another experiment with charging for my album. Or maybe I'll decide I need to value my music using dollars. But today, and for the foreseeable future, I'm happy to offer my music to you for the price you can afford: be it $0 or $1000.

<a href="http://music.kimboekbinder.com/album/the-impossible-girl">The Impossible Girl by Kim Boekbinder</a>

Song Sketch - The Last

2011-06-21T20:30:00.000-07:00

I've put up a new album on bandcamp.com, this will be the place I put new songs this summer. Just simple demo recordings.

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://music.kimboekbinder.com/track/the-last"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The Last by Kim Boekbinder&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

I wrote this song while thinking about friends, artists, who've had to resort to getting day jobs to pay the bills. Now, I'm not against working to pay bills. I've certainly done my bit of punching time clocks. In this past year I have worked freelance as a writer, editor, graphic designer, and one night as catering staff at an event. My job was to wear black and pick up people's dirty dishes, but you know... glamorously.

What does make me sad is falling into the trap of thinking that some other job is going to pay a bunch of money AND leave time for art. I've had all kinds of jobs, and still done art. But day jobs eat up a part of me that I believe is too precious to be eaten.

Yes. I know. I am a very sensitive artist. And for most of my life most people I know have not understood how much it killed me to work, day in and day out. The freelance stuff is okay, it changes, it keeps itself fresh. But the other jobs, like waiting tables which was my highest paying job ever = DEATH.

Sensitive artist (see above.)

And you think, "I could be a stripper. Or a hooker. Taking my clothes off, and having sex, those are both things I do for free. Maybe I could do them for money?" But no. You couldn't... well I couldn't, but if you can and you like it then YAY! And I hope you're making a good living.

And then I think, "If I just waited tables a few nights a week..."

"And if I wasn't so scared about being able to eat then my life would be better."

"And maybe if there wasn't so much pressure on my music having to be 'successful' it would make my music better."

"If I could just BREATHE without feeling the cost of each breath..."

But nothing is free and I know from experience that each breath taken in a job is worth far more than any money paid me.

So yes, I work other jobs when I need to. I do what I have to do to get by.

And sometimes I think I just can't make it. I can't go on anymore like this. Living on the edge of financial chaos like I do.

So I wrote myself a song to remind myself why I keep going.

The Last

It's the last unicorn you'll ever see

Resigning itself to a life

In the cold winter sea.

It's the last love you'll ever know

So don't let it, don't let it,

don't let it, don't let it go.

How hard can you fight when you know you will lose,

But when it's your life how can you choose?

It's not a game you didn't come here to win,

You just try your hardest and do whatever you can to live.

I know what you think there's an easy way out,

You fell in the pit with the voices of doubt.

I know that they tell you you're not good enough,

"Get a job, make some money, life isn't that tough."

But it is.

How hard can you fight when you know you will lose,

But when it's your life how can you choose?

It's not a game you didn't come here to win,

You just try your hardest and do whatever you can to live.

It's the last unicorn you'll ever see

Resigning itself to a life

In the cold winter sea.

It's the last love you'll ever know

So don't let it, don't let it,

don't let it, don't let it go.

Oh don't let it, don't let it,

don't let it, don't let it go.

Gosh, I had no idea this post would be so long. But you know, another thing is: I know people with jobs who live on the edge of financial chaos. Sometimes those people make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year and they just can't ever dig themselves out of a hole.

And then there's most of the earth's population living in poverty. So if I can eat anything at all and sing songs then I'm doing okay.

I also know that each person has to decide for themselves when they've had enough of something and when they need something new. I don't have a family to support which makes my topsy turvy lifestyle sort of viable.

And there is always the possibility that one of these days I will say, "ENOUGH! I want a house, and a bed, and a place to put things. And I want things. And healthcare. And to be able to give more to charities. And to not be always talking about my shows that people should really, REALLY come see."

That could happen. I could get a job. Any day now. But not today. And probably not tomorrow. Either.

So come to my SHOW

p.s. Today I learned that the word 'Passion' comes from a root which means to suffer, and endure. Yeah...

Notes From a New Platform

2011-06-20T13:44:00.000-07:00

Contained herein is a followup to my pre-sold touring ideas. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about check out my first pre-sold concert HERE or the BoingBoing post about me HERE.

This is an interview with Brad Lagasse of Dukits.com, a developing web platform that will be pre-selling shows just like I'm talking about. All the attention on this pre-sold tour idea made me realize I was just about one one-millionth of a second ahead of the curve and just happened to be the first person to put it into words and sell a show (pre-sold tour impending!)

If you are a musician and/or a fan of music please sign up to receive updates about Dukits.com - it won't hurt and the more interest they have the sooner (and better) they can launch. And if they turn out to not be your type of thing you can unsubscribe at any time.

On to the interview!

1. How will Dukits.com work?

Artists/Bands propose a concert date, venue, ticket price and minimum/maximum amount to be sold as well as a deadline for the tickets to be purchased by. If enough fans buy the ticket within the timeline, their credit cards will be charged and tickets are issued by us.

2. How did you get the idea?

We were researching the Group Buying power trend and as a music lover, I saw it as a no brainer. This solution takes away a lot of risk for both the venue and the artist while shifting the power back to the emerging artist.

A lot of emerging artists have a great social media presence but until now haven’t figured out a way to engage their fan base in a meaningful way.

This is a very niche market as the U2’s of the world pre-sell everything, yet the bands with little to no following can’t drum up enough fans to go this route. Therefore this solution is geared toward bands/artists in your sweet spot. You have enough fans and a good social media presence to leverage our tool.

3. What payment platform do you use? Google, Paypal, Amazon, other?

We use a credit card processor; take all majors. No Paypal yet. Might happen in the future though.

4. Will Dukits.com be booking the venues, or is that up to the artist?

We first considered working on the booking side but quickly realized that we couldn’t scale in that model. Therefore, our solution will provide a form page for the artist to submit all the details including the venue.

It will be up to the band to negotiate with the venue to ‘pencil in’ a date in the future and give a time line for which the artist can confirm the date or let venue resell the time.

5. What percentage of the money does Dukits.com keep?

There are variables here but on average it’ll be between 7%-15% That is only if the show goes on, if they don’t then we take nothing.

6. Are there any other fees we should know about?

Depending on the failure rate of concerts, we may implement a set up fee for bands that continue to put up shows that don’t go on.

7. What are the potential problems you foresee?

- Promoters seeing this paradigm shift as a threat and acting accordingly.

- Bands either buying their own tickets to play a certain venue therefore pissing off the venue when they play to an empty building or not appropriately qualifying the venue, i.e. They said they had an agreement to play on a certain date but they didn’t. What next?

To offset some of these challenges, we have set a long term goal of developing strong relationships with venues across north America and staying on top of dodgy bands abusing the system.

8. What is the best thing about Dukits.com?

We are not a huge corporation. This site is built to put on concerts for emerging artists; a market virtually ignored but huge when you look at the numbers.

Our vision is to produce a site that empowers bands to succeed on their own, provide an amazing user experience for the fans, and generate something so much bigger than just ticket sales.

9. The worst?

We are not a huge corporation. Our resources, for now, are limited.

Thanks, Brad!

***

Brad brings up an interesting point about mega-famous bands: once an artist gets to a stadium level they announce a tour and if it doesn't sell well enough they cancel the tour. No one comes out and says, "Hey, buy tickets because if you don't the tour won't happen." but it amounts to the same thing.

It is also quite common for the tour promoters to buy up a block of tickets so the show appears to be "SOLD OUT!" even though it isn't, just so the dates on the rest of the tour will sell well.

I'm not going to buy up my own tickets. I'd rather just be honest and say, "Hey, buy tickets because if you don't the tour won't happen." Because I know people are smart enough to look at that and understand.

I have been hearing from a lot of artists about the difficulty of filling venues, even popular bands worry about making enough money because shows are so expensive to produce that people really only start making money at a close to sell-out level. In a 1000 seat venue you may not start to see a profit until over 800 tickets have been sold. So the show could look packed and amazing and full of energy, but still leave the artist with an empty bank account.

As an aside: last month when I was first telling people about my pre-sold tour ideas people kept saying, "Oh, so its like Groupon." And I don't know from Groupon because I don't use it, but I guess it's a way to understand the concept.

Next interview: Comedian Paul F. Tompkins on garnering enough interest in a city before he books a show there.

Past interview: Notes From a Venue Owner - Jamie Zawinski, owner of DNA Lounge in San Francisco, expounds on the difficulty of booking live music.

Notes From a Venue Owner

2011-06-18T15:52:00.000-07:00

My pre-sold concert idea is still making its way around the internet, getting people fired up, excited, or just annoyed. And since I wrote my musician's perspective on the situation already I decided to ask for the thoughts of a venue owner. Venues have challenges of their own: licenses, permits, staffing, rent. It's hard work and a huge risk. I wouldn't want to own a venue, but I'm glad other people do.

Here, Jamie Zawinski, owner of the popular DJ and live music venue, DNA Lounge in San Francisco, was nice enough to answer my questions in detail:

JWZ: So, by way of rambling background... We don't actually do a lot of live music at DNA for a few reasons. We're one of those rare spots that is both a dance club and a live venue; most places tend to do just one or the other. So, all of our Saturdays and most of our Fridays are pre-booked with recurring DJ nights that pay the bills. They're put on by outside promoters (so someone else is doing the hard part) and our overhead is low compared to a live show. Also, this is a pretty big room. This makes it really hard for us to hire a talent buyer who knows what they're doing -- because anyone who knows what they're doing is going to look at it and say, "So, I can only have weeknights, but to break even I need to get 200 paid? That's setting me up to fail."

This is a constant source of frustration to me, because I really want to see more live music here, but I just can't figure out how to make it happen with any regularity.

1. What do you think of the idea of a pre-sold show? Would you be willing to block out a date knowing that if enough tickets aren't sold the show won't happen?

I think it's a really neat idea.

When a band self-promotes on a weeknight, the typical rental deal we offer (not having any idea whether anyone will show up) comes out to roughly $1000 rent for 21+, $1300 for all ages. That covers our staffing costs if the room is empty and we make nothing at the bar. With that deal, we cover security, sound, and lights, we keep the bar, and the band keeps the door, whatever they want to charge. So realistically that means that nobody says "yes" to this unless they're confident they can get 200+ people. Which is good, because this place feels pretty cavernous and empty with fewer people than that. (Our upper limit for a live show is 800-ish.)

Smaller places get away with doing a straight bar/door split with no rent because they can get away with having like 3 people on staff (door, sound, bar.) We can't even open this place with less than 10 people. (Or because they have someone on staff who is a good judge of whether a band will actually be a draw, which we don't.)

As far as scheduling, it depends on what night of the week we're talking about, and when it would be confirmed. If it's a night we don't have a lot of demand for, like Tue/Wed, then it's almost never a problem to hold that date indefinitely, since we'd likely be closed anyway, so a last-minute cancellation is harmless. But if it was a night that someone else was interested in, we'd have to make a decision between the two, while leaving at least 4 weeks for promotion. If it was a Friday, probably more like 6-8 weeks (because risking having a dark or very slow Friday is pretty bad, financially; there are usually pretty good opportunities there, if we have time to find them.)

2. What are the possible negative outcomes you foresee?

Well, the only negatives would be, ending up with an empty house and not getting enough rent or other income to cover staff; or, holding a date for an event that didn't come through or didn't perform well and missing other potential events because of that.

3. Do you have any sad stories you can share about popular bands that you were sure would draw a crowd but played to an empty venue?

Oh man. Almost every time we've tried to in-house-promote a band that I loved, because apparently we suck at promoting.

Our one success at this was a monthly dance party we did for a few years called Pop Roxx, where the primary draw was the DJs, but we booked a band who did a 45 minute set at midnight at every party. That was great, because we were booking bands who, on their own, usually only had a 100 person draw, but we got to put them in front 700 people and only had to pay them a few hundred bucks. Usually 20 minutes into their set, 500 of those people decided they needed to go outside and smoke, which made me sad, but I did get to see some great bands on our stage, so that was nice. But, attendance declined after a while and we couldn't afford to keep doing that party.

4. Best thing about being a venue owner?

Not working for someone else.

5. Worst thing?

It's all my fault and I don't have anyone else to blame.

Alternately: spending way too much of my time talking to lawyers and dealing with insane governmental nonsense.

Thank you for answering my questions, Jamie!

DNA Lounge - 375 Eleventh Street, SF CA 94103 - 415-626-2654
Calendar: http://www.dnalounge.com/calendar
Private Parties: http://www.dnalounge.com/booking
Webcasts: http://www.dnalounge.com/webcast

(All photos are from the DNA website.)

***

As a travelling musician I've met all kinds of venue owners and bookers. Some are money grubbing jerks. Bust most of them are music lovers who saw a lack of live music venues in their communities and decided to step in to fill the gap. I've also seen many of these people lose money, sometimes a little on one night and sometimes catastrophic amounts over time. It's really quite dreadful to try to make a living at promoting music - especially if you love it. Trying to commodify something you love is a painful experience. Some people can make it, but many work hard for little money and reach a burn out point. For my part I'm happy to share revenue with the venue - they're providing a great service to the world. (Hey, has anybody else ever noticed the word "revenue" has the word "venue" in it?)

Next interview: Brad Lagasse of dukits.com

NYC Concert Poster by Molly Crabapple

2011-06-18T11:24:00.000-07:00

art By Molly Crabapple

Poster is included in the price of a $10 ticket for my New York show

July 21st : BUY TICKETS

(If you can't attend the concert due to geographical challenges you can still purchase a poster at the above link and I will ship it to you.)

Internet go BOOM!

2011-06-17T08:17:00.000-07:00

As you've probably heard if you follow me: I got a little bit more internet famous in the last few days because of my pre-sold show ideas: First show, NYC July 21st. Buy Tickets

My post for Warren Ellis about pre-sold tours got picked up by BoingBoing which spread out and got all kinds of people talking about pre-sold shows and tours. I hear the New Music Group at Mills College in Oakland, CA was discussing me in their email group. Yeah, that means it went deep. When a small group of experimental musicians at a liberal arts college are talking about you in an email group - you've made an impact. (Hi, Mills!)

Hooray! People are talking. But what next? This is one show. And I am one very particular case. I did this to solve a problem in my career: I'm too busy with this music thing to work another job, but not making enough money to tour properly. It's a terrifying gap in a creative career that almost every artist must face at some point. Too busy to make money, too broke not to. Sucks. So solve it.

I knew I had more fans than were coming out to shows. Part of the problem is that one person cannot possibly do all the things I attempt to do and promotions suffer. So I figured out a way to promote first, then sell, then book.

I am so excited about all the things I've been learning in the past few days. Several artists and websites have been mentioned. And because this is the internet there are a few people saying, "She's not doing anything new. This is an old idea. Here are examples 1 - 67."

I've looked. And I can't find anyone who is doing it. Not at my level and not in this way. I would love to see someone else pre-selling tours. But you know, when it comes down to it, it really doesn't matter whether I'm the first, or the last. What matters is that I'm doing something that people are thinking might work for themselves or for other musicians.

Here are a few of the things I've learned about:

There are sites like www.eventful.com or www.upcoming.org that allow fans to "Demand" an artist in their town. But that's not pre-sales, that's just clicking a button. Singer-songwriter and internet celebrity Johnathan Coulton has been using Eventful as a gauge of interest for his shows. Seems to work well for him.

Comedian Paul F. Tompkins has fans set up Facebook events for their towns - when that event hits 300 attendees he'll book a show. And his website states it works really well. Once again it's just clicking a button, but since it's really fan motivated I think it's probably better. We talked a little bit about pre-sales. He said my plan seemed less anxious. I said his plan seemed less needy. He's funny, check him out: www.paulftompkins.com

The founder of www.dukits.com contacted me and they are going to be doing EXACTLY what I'm talking about, but they're not quite ready to launch yet and their site is a mess - don't try to click anything on it but do go look. If you're interested you should check back in with them soon. They look like they could actually be great when they get it together. I hope to work with them at some point.

Friend and social media pioneer Amanda Palmer pointed me towards www.nuevostage.com which has also not launched, and while they will be pre-selling shows in a way, they will also have bands competing against each other for the same venue, getting fans to commit to buying tickets in the hopes that their band will "win" the show. Looks like a bad deal for fans and bands but great for venues and nuevostage itself. Competitions are the worst part of the internet. Let's move on.

www.queremos.com.br contacted me, they're from Rio, Brazil. They pre-sell shows by getting backers to pledge to bring big famous bands to a country that otherwise might not ever get to see them. So these backers put up large sums of money (in smaller, bite-sized chunks) and when they reach the minimum they book the gig and start selling tickets. If the show sells well the backers get their money back, they get credit on show promo, and they get to go to the show. I think it looks pretty great. But once again, for the already famous. And in Brazil.

www.gigmaven.com in NYC has also been in touch - they don't pre-sell shows, but they do put venues and bands in contact with each other and they're helping me find a venue, so they get a shout out.

So far, no one doing the pre-sales the way I'm talking about doing them. I'll keep looking though and would like to keep hearing about it.

I think what has people excited about my plan is that I'm just me, not super famous, not represented by a manager or agent, and not letting anything stop me.

The Problems with my Model of Pre-sold Shows

- It's only worked once. So far. So there's that.

- It might not work for everyone. I mean, I know it won't. This isn't the magical answer to solve all touring problems. It's just an awkward first step.

- It's way more work than just showing up at an established venue and playing my 45 minute set.

- All ages venues are as rare as unicorns, or people who don't promote themselves, in NYC.

- Venues are hard to book this short notice. I might have to rent an empty room and have to get my own sound system and staff.

- It's a hard sell. I've made enough money to put on the show, but there still aren't that many tickets sold. I have incredibly supportive followers who are backing this very generously just to see it happen. The press on this has gotten me even more generous champions, but not high volume sales. That's okay for this show, but it makes me realize just how hard it will be when it's not my first show this way and I don't have all the internet poking at it.

These aren't complaints and they aren't going to stop me, I just know I can't solve the problems if I'm not making them (errrr… thinking about them.)

Things That Are Not Problems

- Fans in each city get to make a show happen! That is maybe the most exciting part of this whole thing. You want me to play. I want to play. You know I can't afford to travel, and I know you can't afford to fly me there yourself. But I can give you the resources to make a show happen. I'll set up a Kickstarter (or some such) in each city/town/hamlet/shire/what-have-you and then you and me get to work together to sell the show. Sweet!

- Little cities in the midwest or Florida (or wherever) that feel left out of the cultural loop because bands always pass them by get an equal chance to bring me there. (The caveat being that I can't be everywhere at once and might not make it to every city this first time.)

- No more empty venues! 10 people buy a show, I play in a living room, 100 people and I book a small and lovely venue. 300-500 people and I get a small to mid-sized venue. 3,000 people… 300,000… it just works.

- Venues get a guaranteed audience to buy drinks and/or food. Venues lose lots of money all the time on shows. It sucks. That's why so many of them try to sell you lots of alcohol - hence the serious dearth of all ages places to enjoy music.

- Everyone feels invested in the show. Me, you, the venue. We make it happen, we're all financially risking something and we're all working as promoters. And let me tell you that nothing tastes as sweet as the fruit of your own labors. You help me put on the show and it's your show too. I love that.

- Equal commitment equals happy relationship. I commit to play for you. You commit to come see me. We meet each other halfway, and then we go all way (no, not that kind of 'all the way' just all the way to a great concert.)

I feel really lucky to be at a point in my career (and in the history of the world) where this can work. I have the fans. I have the network. I have the tools.

Twitter, Facebook, email, Kickstarter and one very determined me = good things.

X O X O - BoingBoing Girl

p.s. NYC July 21st. Buy Tickets

Right Side Up

2011-06-10T16:26:00.000-07:00

The Story

This is how it goes (or how it went for me) you start a band and you get in a car and you drive around the country many many many times until after a while people start coming to shows. And then more people come. And after a few years of this the empty rooms have become full rooms and you can afford things like food and rent.

Then your band breaks up.

Then you start over as a rocking solo artist and you drive around a little bit but nobody is coming to your shows and you know that you don't have it in you to drive around the country again for three years. So in Portland Oregon you drink a lot of whiskey and re-invent the concept of touring.

BAM!

You realize, from your years of experience (and by use of your vast intellect,) that touring is backwards.

Booking a gig and then promoting and hoping people will show up is crazy. CRAZY.

We don't think of it as crazy because we take it for granted that crazy people (called musicians) all over the world will risk their livelihoods and happiness on the off chance that empty rooms will stop being empty and people will come to shows.

And then you realize that you are one of the crazy people. Have some more whiskey.

At this juncture, out of money and out of whiskey, you realize there are two options:

OPTION A) Quit touring, be a recording artist who never plays live. Or get a day job, nobody likes you anyway.

OPTION 2) Do something you don't think anybody has ever done before at your level: pre-sell the concerts, the tour, the everything. You've got the fans, you know they support you, you raised $20,000 to record your album. SOMEBODY likes you!

You know you're crazy anyway. Might as well do something crazy about this crazy situation.

Yeah. We know for all your mild mannered cuteness that what you really want to do is change the world.

So do it. One show at a time.

They've got your back.

Go!

by Shami Kiely

Thursday, July 21st

New York City

The Kickstarter will be up for two weeks. The show will be all ages. Tickets are only $10. Everyone who attends gets a limited edition poster with art by Molly Crabapple. The show will be webcast so you can watch from anywhere in the world. The show will also be recorded and every single person who pledges will get a download of the set played live. I want to play for you!!!!

***
EDIT
***

I want to do this in other cities! Contact me to bring the show to your city: kim (at) kimboekbinder.com

Wrapping it Up

2011-06-03T11:41:00.000-07:00

Six months ago my very first solo album came out. I am very proud of how it sounds and how it was produced. The album was made possible by many of you who contributed to my pre-order campaign and for that I am immensely grateful!

Yesterday I sent out an email to check in and make sure that everyone got what they ordered. The USPS lost some things and I didn't get to send some of the things I meant to. I'm posting this here for those who have changed email addresses, don't check email, or just like to read things twice.

I've been writing custom songs for people who pre-ordered the $200 + packages. The custom songs are still coming - some of them have been written and are up HERE, if you ordered one you'll get yours by email from me.

Mostly I want you to know that though I have been busy, and that things got confused and lost and dropped, I have not forgotten you! I feel incredibly lucky to have such wonderful supporters of my art and I really want to make sure you know how much I appreciate you.

If you need to contact me, email: kim at kimboekbinder.com

Into the Future

I'm in New York - this is me in my new living room (there are books!) I'll only be in this house for two months, but that's about as stable as I get and I have my own room with a door and everything! I also have a great roommate who makes fancy cocktails. We have two baby mice who like to climb walls.

There are many new projects on the way, some which launch very soon. This is going to be a busy summer.

Look out for an upcoming 7" vinyl record, new songs, a new tour announcement, and random side projects with amazing collaborators in New York.

Thank you for coming along for the ride!

Love,

Going Steady

2011-05-13T17:49:00.000-07:00

I've decided to 'Go Steady' with New York City. At least for a few months I will call Brooklyn my home. And then I'll probably extend my lease for a few more months and flee when the cold settles into my bones to the city I love in the Southern Hemisphere.

But this summer I'll be sweating with all the rest of you New Yorkers, at least when I'm not sweating in some other city in the United States of America.

Maybe I'll call it the United Sweats of America Tour.

Anyway - I'll have an address in New York. And I will do little regional tours. And we shall all rejoice. Hooray!

Get ready to sweat.

Love,

K

p.s. For those of you new to my "Impossible Girl" lifestyle: having a fixed address is a BIG step. I tend to run my empire out of a suitcase. I also tend to be a little crazy. My grandfather told me recently that he and my grandmother really admired the way I move through life. I told them my brother thinks I'm crazy. My grandmother said, "Maybe that's why you're so good at your life."

Photo by Shami Kiely

So Long, Australia

2011-05-05T23:06:00.000-07:00

Last day in Melbourne. Corner of Smith & Gertrude.

Being really cool.

Australia was exactly what I needed. Good shows, good people, staying in one place for longer than two months. I built up an audience, my show got better, I made art, I made friends, I made love. For so many reasons I needed to be right where I was.

And now I'm back in America, sitting in a room in Carmel Ca at my father's house, surrounded by my old things and ready to be back here, putting on shows, being the Impossible Girl, doing what I do best.

My next gig is tonight (Friday May 6th) in Monterey. DETAILS HERE.

Next gigs are in Nevada City CA and San Francisco. DETAILS HERE

Here is a little photo essay of my last weekend in Australia. I went out to the country and played at the Ruffy Community Center to about 50 people who live out there in the wild.

The fairytale house where I stayed.

Fairytale garden.

Fairytale Oak trees. Seriously.

I go looking for kangaroos at dusk.

Wearing my camouflage.

Skipping.

Down to the swamp.

This is the face I make when I see kangaroos.

Excited. Also a little hungry.

My show at The Ruffy Community Hall.

They served cake and coffee during intermission.

(Hello, Twin Peaks.)

A quiet moment in the garden.

Back in Melbourne, I have a going away party.

And then I pack.

Australia, I love you.

***

Even if you do have scary unicorns.

I'll be back.

Photos by Jim Batt www.jimbatt.com

Press, Shows, A New Makeup Set!

2011-04-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

From MX Melbourne

MX is a free daily paper distributed on all the commuter trains and trams. I'm totally famous now for people who commute! Photo taken at Rose Chong Costumes in Melbourne.

I was also featured on www.frankie.com.au - Frankie Magazine is a wonderful and very popular culture magazine here in the land down under. I was very pleased to be featured.

You can also find me in the Drum Media in Sydney.

SHOWS THIS WEEK

APRIL 20th - Melbourne - The Empress

w/ Lanie Lane

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=108435045905814

APRIL 21st - Sydney - Red Ratller

w/ Helen Perris and Brendan Maclean

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=200829429941343

In other news: The Kickstarter for the 'I Have Your Heart' animation passed the $14,000 mark. This rocks so much! Animation is hard, time consuming, expensive stuff and having a budget for this is amazing. Thank you to all who helped make this happen. We posted videos of champagne drinking here: www.ihaveyourheart.com

And...

We now have makeup for the project, so if you love the song The Organ Donor's March and/or the animation and/or the colors red and/or silver you should totally get this on your peepers:

$15 for two color natural makeup set

Cora models the makeup:

The Rap of Tasmania

2011-04-14T02:37:00.000-07:00

Backstage iphone snap while at a photo shoot for MX

(look for it next week in Sydney and Melbourne.)

Costumes by Rose Chong's

My musical compatriot, Amanda Palmer, wrote a song called 'The Map of Tasmania' which is about pubic hair. Mostly it's about having pubic hair, and that having a big bush is great and shaving or waxing is painful and crazy and makes you look like an 8 year old. Those lyrics are funny, and thought provoking, and also necessary in a culture where the public pubic is mostly quite sparsely hirsute.

While we were on tour together I wrote a rap for the song, the rap evolved and grew and I got better at rapping - which I'd never done before. So when Amanda decided to release a remix album with a whole bunch of radtastic folks like PEACHES remixing her song I was happy to record my rap.

Here is my 'Rap of Tasmania.'

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://music.amandapalmer.net/track/the-rap-of-tasmania-kim-boekbinder-vs-my-name-is-gus"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The Rap of Tasmania (Kim Boekbinder vs My Name Is Gus) by Amanda Palmer&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

My Name is Gus helped me record and write the beats and grooves - he is awesome.

Lyrics:

Hey Amanda I don’t mean to be rude
but I think it’s kind of nice when it’s all slippery and smooth
Some women just don’t have a lot of hair
and to say they all look eight years old is really unfair
Yeah, I dig the jungle,
I dig the Rubyfruit,
just like a pirate,
I dig the boot-y.
You say you got the map,
I say you got the treasure,
your hair can mark the spot
where I can dig for pleasure.
I like it fuzzy, yeah I like it bare,
uh-huh, but most of all, I really don’t care.
So let me clarify what I’m trying to say:
There’s a thousand ways to shape it,
do it your own way.

And something I wrote for Amanda's blog about the song:

I grew up around a lot of hippies who had an almost mystical belief in the power of the human body in its completely natural form. I don’t think anyone ever said this outright, but what I learned was that women should not shave or pluck or wax any part of themselves and to do so was an affront to nature. Women who submitted to popular beauty trends were seen as anti-feminists and idiots, subjecting themselves to the will of the patriarchy; all men who preferred their lady lovers with less body hair were porn obsessed pedophiles. The judgements were harsh and I was happy to look down from my hairy high horse at the idiotically smooth bottoms of the porn obsessed rabble below. Hair free legs were one thing, but leave the pubic mons as wild and free as nature intended. That was until I got an accidental Brazilian in Berlin (oh language barriers) which was the first step on a long road to the realization that I was a judgmental asshole who should shut the hell up about other peoples’ pants regions. We all have preferences and we all pick and choose which popular aesthetics to adhere to.

Given my history, it is with a certain irony that my rap is in defense of the bare ‘down there.’

Body hair is political, but it’s also personal. And yeah, I like it all kinds of ways on all kinds of people.

You can read Amanda's blog about the remixes here: http://blog.amandapalmer.net/

Here is Amanda's fantastic and colorful original song and video:

Here's another Amanda video that Jim Batt made:

Space Barbarian and Marie Antoinette

2011-04-14T02:04:00.000-07:00

As I reached 2,500 followers on Twitter yesterday I took a poll as to what I should do to celebrate. I had people pick a costume, and which artist's song I should play. Then I got dressed up with my friend Saint Clare and we sang "I Want to Hold Your Hand" by The Beatles.

Your browser doesn't support iFrames :( Vote for this poll <a href="http://twtpoll.com/tuzeu8"  title="here" target="_blank">here</a>.

Credits:

Filmed by Jim Batt

Edited by Kim Boekbinder

Costumes by Rose Chong's in Melbourne

Shannonigans & The Bewilderbeast

2011-04-11T07:38:00.000-07:00

Chapter One

"You smell funny." Said The Bewilderbeast, snuffling into Shannonigans hair and exhaling quickly and with such a snort that her hair flew up around her face.

"Funny how?" Asked Shannonigans.

"I have no idea," Said The Bewilderbeast, "I'm absolutely flummoxed."

Chapter Two

"What are you doing?" Shannonigans murmured sleepily.

"I don't know." Answered The Bewilderbeast. The train was rocking gently on the tracks. The Bewilderbeast looked up suddenly as though something had just occurred to it, "Something has just occurred to me..."

"What's that?" Asked Shannonigans letting her head flop in the general direction of the beast in her sleeper car.

"I'm confused!" Exclaimed The Bewilderbeast.

"You're always confused." Said Shannonigans.

"Yes, I know!" The Bewilderbeast looked quite chuffed, as though it had just solved a Rubik's cube with one hoof, while blindfolded, and riding a unicycle. "I know I'm always confused. I just figured that out."

"Do you find that confusing?" Shannonigans asked.

"Not at all."

Chapter Three

The Bewilderbeast dropped its fork, then followed the action by sweeping the spoon, knife, and bread plate all on to the floor.

Shannonigans did not even bother asking why. She knew that any answer would leave both of them perplexed.

"I know why I did that." Said The Bewilderbeast in quiet astonishment. Shannonigans's eyes snapped open extra wide and her mouth formed a perfect "O."

"Oh?" She said. "You know?"

"Yes," Said The Bewilderbeast, "I know why."

Now it was Shannonigans's turn to be flummoxed. In all her years with her beastly companion she had always known one thing for certain: that nothing The Bewilderbeast did would ever make sense or be explainable to either the beast itself or to anyone else - Shannonigans included.

And now the beast was telling her that it knew why it had done something.

"Why? Why did you do that?" Shannonigans asked with a modicum of trepidation. She didn't think she actually wanted to know. Nothing had ever shaken her so much as this possibility that The Bewilderbeast might suddenly make sense.

"I don't know why." Said The Bewilderbeast.

"But you just said you knew." Said Shannonigans, both relieved, and aggrieved that the beast had found a new way to confuse her.

"I mean I know that I did it because I don't know why I did it." said The Bewilderbeast, and when Shannonigans looked up she saw that tears stood on the precipice of The Bewilderbeast's eyelids, perched like liquid diamonds among the lush and beautiful lashes that fringed The Bewilderbeast's opalescent eyes.

"I know I do things because I don't know why I do them."

"It's so confusing." Sighed Shannonigans.

"Tell me about it." Said The Bewilderbeast, brushing aside its long mane while it tossed the saltshaker out the window.

**

I wrote this today after thinking for several days that I should write something just because - not for work, or because it is good for my career, or a press release, or an interview. But just because I wanted to. So I wrote that.

If someone would like to do an illustration for this that would be lovely.

Maybe I will write more of these things called stories.

**

This story is dedicated to Shannon Marshall (Shannonigans!)

**

There is an album called "Bewilderbeast" there is also a band called "Bewilderbeast" I didn't know either of those until I said "Bewilderbeast!" out loud and then googled it.

We Have Your Heart

2011-03-25T06:07:00.000-07:00

Molly Crabapple, Jim Batt, and I have been working on an animation together for the past year. Not full time - life keeps getting in the way - but we've worked on it steadily and today we launched a Kickstarter to raise money so that life can stop getting in the way and Jim can devote himself to animating.

We've already gotten over the 50% mark of our initial $7000 goal. Huzzah! The support has been wonderful. Thank you so much.

We hope to reach our goal in the next few days even though we have 29 more days to go on the Kickstarter. And we can always use more money. Art sucks up money faster than anything (except maybe drugs or gambling habits.) Any money above the initial goal will be put towards making the project even better - all the while allowing us to keep eating, and sleeping in beds.

Today I went to hang posters for my upcoming Melbourne shows. I came across a poster from my last show and concocted this little scene.

I called it, "The ImpossiPole."

I have a residency in Melbourne - Every Wednesday in April - each week with a different, amazing, musical guest. And each week I will play different songs - some songs will get played often, but others will only be played once during the residency. Come to one, or come to all, I'd love to see you.

I also have a show in Sydney, on April 21st!

And a show in Ruffy - about an hour and forty five minutes from Melbourne at the Ruffy Hall, a tiny community in the country. Rumor has it that the denizens of Ruffy bring cake to all the shows. I am very much looking forward to this!

Find out more about the shows: HERE

And I have started booking my return to the US:

May 14th - Nevada City - more info
May 15th - San Francisco
May 27th - Fredericktown, MO

If you want me to come to your town send me an email! kim - at - kimboekbinder.com

More show info: HERE

Crowd Sourced Concert

2011-03-21T23:56:00.000-07:00

This idea has been skittering around my skull for a while now. I think I've been flirting with it for years.

The idea is still a little nebulous, but it is taking shape as I'm facing the giant blank wall of booking tours. The surface of this wall is absolutely smooth, with nothing to hold onto to help the climb. It leaves me feeling stupid and ineffectual. I should know how to do this, but it's a struggle every time. How do I book the good venues, how do I get people to the shows?

And I think, "If only I had help." And people keep offering help, but not 'real' bookers, with networks and contacts for venues all over the country or world. But maybe I don't need one booker. Maybe I can have a different booker in every city. And maybe that booker can be you. Or your mom. Or your friend, Sassafras. Or all of you.

I've been doing house concerts for years and what I'm thinking of is a little bit like a house concert, in the way that the hosts are the promoters are the audience. But these could happen in all kinds of venues.

What if the concerts were crowd sourced? Maybe one person has a venue contact, someone else does great sound, your cousin likes to hang posters, your dog can interview me for the local paper.

I put on a great show, the problem here is not lack of talent or appeal, the problem is that I am only one person. And hard as it might be to admit: I can't do everything. At least, I can't do everything all at once all the time.

So what if I came up with a number? I can break it down. I can say how many people need to attend a show for me to break even.

And what if I pre-sold those tickets before I even booked the show?

It might be crazy, it might not work, but it might also be the only way I can tour. Because I am an artist, busy making the art, and managing about a million things in my career. I do it all myself: the websites, the posters, hanging the posters, the booking, the social media, the blogs. I don't know any other artists who do as much as I do alone. I know some amazing and successful artists that work very very hard. Not a single one of them works alone. And this is why: because it's impossible. It is impossible to have a successful career without help. It cannot be done. I know, because I'm here, working with every ounce of everything and not getting anywhere until someone helps. I get intermittent help here and there. Someone books a show, someone else puts up posters. Even something as simple as a retweet, or a mention in a personal blog. And then my career moves forward.

It's so simple. Help = movement. And I'm too self sufficient for my own good, too good at working by myself. Which doesn't work. Not really. I need the crowd, and not just as passive audience, I need the crowd management team, the crowd bookers, and the crowd promoters.

I've always done things differently, found a new angle, tried a new way. I pride myself on discovering new paradigms. But the truth is that while I have done things my own way I have also spent years waiting for the right person to "discover" me, to think I was worth something, to believe in me.

And what I've realized is that the right person has discovered me. The right person is you.

This post, as you have discovered, is not a finalized thought, it is just the beginning of a thought. I hope you'll join the discussion.

***Amendment!***

I realized a few things

1.) I do know someone with a successful career who does everything on their own. Jason Webley does everything on his own. But he's the only one I know who does. And I love him, but he's crazy.

2.) I do have help. I have a lovely assistant who mails things for me and really does all the things I have ever asked and does them well. My real problem is not getting help when I need it. Not knowing how to ask for help and not knowing how to let people help before it's too late.

I didn't mean to lie. Or leave anyone out.

Happy Anniversary to Molly and Me

2011-03-14T00:44:00.000-07:00

Two years ago I met the incredible, Molly Crabapple, at SXSW. Our friendship changed my life for the better. In celebration of this I will be holding a 24hr sale of the Paper Doll that Molly drew for me.

For the next 24 hours the paper doll will be only $10 for two copies with free US shipping and cheap international shipping ($1 to Canada, $3 international.)

Printed 11x17 inches on matte paper - limited edition of 100. With two copies you'll get one to frame and one to cut out and play with.

Buy it here: music.kimboekbinder.com/album/the-impossible-girl

Paper and Dust

2011-03-13T08:10:00.001-07:00

Feeling very physically ill after watching two youtube videos of the tsunami destroying towns in Japan. I have to be very still and breathe very slowly or I will be sick. Crying isn't enough. Nothing is enough.

The cumulative impact of disaster after disaster these last few months is taking its toll. My grief has no outlet. The tragedy is not mine. It belongs to us all.

Floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, nuclear meltdown.

Our walls are made of paper and we are made of dust.

Custom Song #2

2011-03-11T22:47:00.000-08:00

In 2010 I launched an album pre-order campaign to raise $20,000 to record my solo album - The Impossible Girl. For extra generous supporters I am writing custom songs.

This song was written for Yuri Long.

Written, performed and recorded in one afternoon with electric guitar, loop pedal, and one ZOOM portable recorder.

Melbourne Love (Possibly NSFW)

2011-03-09T02:50:00.000-08:00

We have reached the end of the Amanda Palmer Goes Down Under tour. Amanda says it was her best tour ever and I'm so happy to have been a part of it. I met some very talented and wonderful people, and reconnected with Amanda, while getting to know the country I now call home.

Future Plans!

I've extended my visa and will be staying on in Melbourne until May 3rd. I have a residency at The Empress Hotel - every Wednesday in April - which I am very excited about. My show at The Empress on February 27th was absolutely wonderful. Thank you to everyone who came down and made me feel so very welcome in this beautiful city. It was the first official "Impossible Girl" show and it was better than I would have wished.

I'll also be booking my next US tour - starting in May! Finally bringing The Impossible Girl to visit all my beautiful American friends.

I'm almost out of CDs! Hurray. Thank you all for this. It keeps me eating and means I get to do another round of printing. You can get my CD here: Kim's Bandcamp

Been working hard on a project that will launch in a few days. It's SO good! Stay tuned…

Here are some photos from my escapades over the last week of the tour.

I'll leave you with this video of Amanda Palmer and me singing "Such Great Heights" in a men's bathroom in Geraldton, Australia.

Love!

Kim

p.s. SPARKLY CUPCAKES!

All photos by Jim Batt

Fan Mail - Pink Hair

2011-03-01T04:22:00.001-08:00

Hi Kim,

I downloaded your record last night and I wanted to listen to it this morning. The problem is my 2 year old is obsessed with Tori Amos for some reason, and it's hard to get him to agree to anything else.

Me: How about Kim Boekbinder?
Him: How about... Tori Amos?
Me: Kim Boekbinder first?
Him: No. Tori Amos.
Me: Kim Boekbinder has pink hair.
Him: Oh. How about Kim Boekbinder?

So thank you Kim for having pink hair. You've made my morning go a bit smoother.

The Map of a Truck

2011-02-21T05:58:00.000-08:00

Today I recorded my final rap for Amanda Palmer's 'Map of Tasmania.'

Today Jim is working on 'The Organ Donor's March' animation, cutting up pieces of paper, figuring things out. I love to watch him work.

Today I found out my childhood friend is in a coma here in Melbourne. She was run over by a garbage truck. Her pelvis is crushed. Her coma is medically induced, they don't want to wake her up. Too much pain. She can't breathe on her own, there are machines to do it for her.

We grew up not far from each other, in the countryside of Ontario, Canada. Her family and my family were good friends. I have so many memories of those beautiful, blonde sisters and their fairytale home. She has lived in Melbourne for years. She is insanely smart, like scary smart. When she was five she had a better vocabulary than most professional writers. She's a lawyer now. She's 27. She was run over by a truck. A fucking truck.

Humans are so little. So fragile. Trucks are big. And stupid. Who the fuck thought of trucks?

I want to keep smiling and believe that she will be ok. Because humans are fragile but they are also very strong. And resilient. And she's so smart and determined and beautiful. She must know how to fix herself. Even in her sleep.

She was riding her bicycle to work.

I write a blog, I send emails, I record a song. I keep doing things. Intermittently, I cry. Quietly.

I want to be able to make her all better. I want to fix everything.

Jim cuts paper. I send some more emails. And I try to understand how to keep going when someone so beautiful is hurting so badly. And I can't do anything about it.

Queens of the Desert!

2011-02-18T02:33:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to do this ever since I've been in Australia - actually ever since I saw "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert." Now I am happy.

Also: These people make me happy...

Sometimes I look at these photos when I'm sad.

So much love.

XXK

Unicorns and Happiness

2011-02-14T21:59:00.000-08:00

by Cynthia

For my birthday I asked people to draw me riding a unicorn, and I got some very lovely submissions. These make me really happy.

Enjoy!

By Melissa Dowell

by Alice

From Dietmar

by Floriana

By Jewell

by Jini

by @kandis123

by @klockan8

by The Kiska

The Kiska also included this amazing email explanation. Subject line: I'M AN ART MAJOR

"Dearest Kim,

Happy birthday! I hope it was an awesome one. As requested, I have drawn you YOU, riding a unicorn. But it's MORE than just you riding a unicorn! I would like to point out straight away that you are, indeed, naked. But there is fair reason for that. In a world where unicorns just step out of hiding at 9 AM and allow you to ride on them, do you honestly think people would worry about clothing? Of course not! They'd HOP on his/her/it's/hir's back without a second thought and ride until they needed to stop for food or perhaps a bathroom break! And, if they WERE wearing clothing, ANYONE would tear the fabricy strands from their body from SHEER excitement!

Secondly, you also have lobster claws. There's a good reason for that too. It's your birthday present. Gifts are best when they're filled of things you do NOT expect and when was the last time someone drew you naked with lobster claws? WHILE riding a unicorn? It's your special day. Embrace your gorgeous hands. They'll help you catch your prey or pick little buggies out that are nezzled in Unicorn's hair. They also produce sparkles.

You're also a faerie.

Lastly, the upper left hand corner was very bland, so I tried to draw you a mango vine. But the mangos just looked like a bunch of deformed glaring eyes with streamers running through them, so I drew you a glass of wine. Clearly, Unicorn is bringing you right to it and you can reach out with your lobster claws and grab it. I hope you're not allergic to wine. Lots of people I know have grown an allergy to wine within the past two weeks. If so, then it's grape juice. And if you're allergic to grapes all together, it's blood.

I hope you had a FABULOUS birthday (by the looks of your blog, it seems so!). I've always wanted to be friends with and ride a unicorn too. I know it'll happen some day.

Enjoy your drawing of you! Keep happy and awesome!! Much love!

.Kiska"

Where in the world - Byron Bay, Australia

2011-02-10T21:31:00.000-08:00

Photo by Jim Batt

Kim Boekbinder, Amanda Palmer, Saint Clare

I'm in Byron Bay, Australia. Jim Batt, Amanda Palmer, and Eric Sussman flank me. We are the dreaded macbook brigade. The cafe tries to hate us but we are charming.

Eleventy million things to say, but not much time for saying.

I'm trying to figure out how to tour. I love playing. I need to do a lot of work to figure out how to afford launching a good tour. I've just plotted out the next year of schedule, things will surely change but it helps to have even a shadow of a plan. I want to be everywhere at once. I want to go to every city and play in every place I can.

I have so many ideas and so many plans.

My show is getting better every time I play. Being on tour with Amanda Palmer is really good for me. We play, we laugh, we look good in sparkles. We go naked night swimming. We work all day on laptops. We live.

Photo by Jim Batt

Kim Boekbinder with Mikelango and Saint Clare

Walking Into The Sky

2011-02-02T17:50:00.000-08:00

This is a sort of follow up to the last blog in which I said:

"…one of my deepest fears is that nothing will ever be enough, that I will be too busy reaching for the next shiny red apple to notice the juicy ripe peach that's in my mouth. I always want more. And striving is a wonderful thing, reaching for the stars is grand, but not if you miss the life while you're living it."

A few days ago an old friend wrote to me - I've known her since the day she was born - she was writing to tell me how much she loves me, she misses me and is wondering how my life is. I wrote her a very brief update:

"Hi!

I'm in Australia - in love with super amazing lovely Australian artist and film maker who makes my heart bigger and stronger and lovey. His name is Jim. Kim and Jim. Jim and Kim. Lalala.

You can see his stuff here: http://www.jimbatt.com

I'm touring a bit with my friend Amanda Palmer who has a cult following. We just played at the Sydney Opera House which was fun and great. I play dress up for a living!

I released my album - you can get it here: http://music.kimboekbinder.com

I'm glad to hear your mum is better. And that your dad is well.

Let's have a skype date after your thesis draft and my tour is done. Mid feb - your birthday time!

Love!!!

K"

And she wrote back:

"WOW!
Amazing!!!
That's incredibly wonderful and my heart is soaring for you, your Love and your fun tour with Amanda (who is exquisite, I MUST say...)
This is so great----darling, in case you haven't noticed…you're DOING IT!
I am so proud that you are playing dress-ups for a living and can't help feeling like a rooted part of that crazy tree...and I'm so glad to know you still my darling friend."

**

And then I think, "Yeah…I'm doing it, aren't I?"

It's easy to think it isn't enough. I don't want to just rap in one song at the Sydney Opera House, I want my own fucking show there. I don't want to just release an album, I want it to be a runaway hit.

But this is a step. A good step. A step that needs to be made. Release the album, play the little shows. Be the support act. Sometimes you play to empty rooms. But always be sparkly, always give it everything, always be present, always be you.

I'm impatient. Yes. But I can be present. Right now. I am doing it. Playing dress up for a living. Having hard shows, good shows, great shows. Being no one, being someone, being.

Step by step, slowly and with intention. Head up, heart open. Walking into the sky.

Photos by Jim Batt

Where in the world - Sydney, Australia

2011-01-28T21:47:00.000-08:00

Good morning! Or afternoon, or evening or whatever it is for you.

I'm in Sydney, Australia, sitting in a living room in a house filled with international surfers who are speaking Portuguese and German. The view from this house is incredible, it reminds me that being next to the ocean makes me a better person. Waves and rocks and ocean wind. Horizon without obstruction. Nature being itself; powerful, ever changing, intense.

I came here on Wednesday to rap with Amanda Palmer at the Sydney Opera House.

This is what I look like while waiting for a suitcase.

I had some very sparkly ladies on stage with me, they worked out a whole dance to 'Map of Tasmania' and included some special moves for my rap.

The Go Girl Gadget Go Go dancers!

My very favorite part of the evening is that Neil Gaiman paid me a compliment. It isn't the first compliment Neil has ever paid me, but this one was special. As a writer, and a lover of language, Neil is someone who knows the value of words. He is not given to hyperbole the way that most of us are. He does not describe everything as "epic" or "amazing" or "fantastic" (I describe things that way all the time - I have become stuck in the tantalizing honey of the hyperbole trap of our modern culture.) Neil says things are 'nice' or 'rather nice' or 'lovely.' He talks the same way he reads, in a very deliberate way. He uses words the way they are meant to be used, to mean the things they actually mean and he is very easy to understand.

But after our gig at the Sydney opera House Neil said,

"I really enjoyed your rap tonight. You killed it."

And I was so flattered and flustered that I said something like, "Thank you. I had fun killing it. Killing is fun. I like killing..."

***

Last night Amanda and I played a very special house show for about 40 people. It as intimate and rare and great. Before we played we ate and everyone went around the table and introduced themselves. Amanda said we should all state our deepest fear as well. And that was brilliant, it made us all vulnerable and powerful at the same time.

The concept of a 'deepest fear' is interesting. There are so many to choose from: visceral, physical, animal instinct kind of fears, like the fear of spiders or being eaten alive by lions (one of mine.)
Or emotional, philosophical, modern day fears, like being mediocre, getting stuck in a dead end job and never reaching the dream. And they are all real, all deep, all scary.

I said I was afraid of performing solo - which is true. And then I sang. And then Amanda sang. And then we took this picture with the group:

***

Sydney is a very beautiful city. I'm having a great time. I rapped (I RAPPED!) at the SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE - probably the world's most recognizable venue. I'm palling around with wonderful, kind, creative, intelligent people. I just released an album. I have a really wonderful partner who matches me intellectually, creatively, intuitively, emotionally, physically. And he's SO cute:

And sometimes I look like this:

I have to list these things for myself. To remind myself to look at the wonderful things I have. Because one of my deepest fears is that nothing will ever be enough, that I will be too busy reaching for the next shiny red apple to notice the juicy ripe peach that's in my mouth. I always want more. And striving is a wonderful thing, reaching for the stars is grand, but not if you miss the life while you're living it.

And sometimes I move too fast, reach too far, want too much to see that HOLY HELL: my life is fantastic.

Sure, things can always be better. Truth is, album sales are slow, I am COMPLETELY out of money - in the super scary, pit of nausea, heart aching anxiety, way. My computer is on its last legs and hardly ever concedes to connect to the internet for long enough to post photos or write blogs. And I may never be able to afford touring again.

But those things are all part of my job. Because I consider it the job of the artist to live on the edge. The edge of sanity, the too scary, too much, too close, too hard edge. Sometimes it's money, sometimes it's loneliness, sometimes it's the art itself. And being out of money and scared and still moving forward even if it means not eating, or losing everything, is the edge that I am on.

And the view from here is AMAZINGLY EPIC and rather nice, as well:

***

All photos by Jim Batt (except the BBQ photo. And the photo of him, which I took.)

Best Birthday (UNICORNS!)

2011-01-18T06:09:00.000-08:00

I just had the best birthday ever. Yesterday I was being miserable. I hate birthdays. And I can be quite miserable. And then, while rolling around in a heap of badness, I had the clarity to ask myself what exact purpose my misery was serving. Unable to come up with an answer I decided to ignore the crappy voices inside my head that tell me I'm not working hard enough/being good enough/taking over the world enough/beautiful enough/skinny enough/lovable enough/sparkly enough and that I would just have a nice time instead.

And I did:

I got breakfast in bed

I got absinthe. And a Zoom audio recorder. I got lots of sparkly things.

I got fish and chips. Friends came over and we talked and laughed and drank absinthe and made stupid videos and kissed. And now I'm writing a totally indulgent blog about NOTHING AT ALL. Except just to say:

I have been drinking absinthe. And I have had a wonderful day.

Not that much absinthe.

But lots and lots of wonderful.

I wish I could figure out how to be happy more often. How to be not so hard on myself for not curing death/inspiring world peace/scoring the most beautiful symphony ever heard by human ears/ having perfect eyelashes. But today it was enough to just be nice to myself - or rather - to tell the inner voices to take a day off and SHUT THE FU*K UP.

*

Also...ohh! Birthday wish: please, pretty please, draw me riding a unicorn. I so so so so SOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSO badly(goodly?) want drawrings of me riding unicorns.

I will be happy FOREVER if you send me a drawing.

Quick sketch or epic masterpiece - all manner of magical unicorn ridingness will be accepted, nay! cherished!

send to: kim - at - kimboekbinder.com

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX!!!!!!

Birthday Month - Birthday Sale - Kaboom!

2011-01-05T18:44:00.000-08:00

It is my birthday month! That's right. In New Orleans you get a birthday week, and people pin dollars to you. I decided to take a birthday month, but don't worry, I'm sharing it with you.

I'm having a birthday month sale. For all of January my album will be a $0 minimum download. The CD will be only $9, the poster sets will be $6, the T-shirts will be $15.

This is my birthday present to you. I don't make much money at these prices, but this is what makes me happy right now, so I'm doing it. This is a chance for people without much money to get my album and my way to give more.

Tell friends that they can download my album for as little as they like and/or get one of the beautiful CDs for only $9.

Copy this link to share it: http://music.kimboekbinder.com

And then watch this video because it makes me happy:

I will be practicing every day because I want my show to be the best possible, I want it to be irresistible. I want to make your heart explode.

Art of The Impossible Girl

2011-01-02T17:50:00.000-08:00

I know a lot of amazing artists. And I love to collaborate. So when I started to think about how I would release my album I came up with the idea of having a unique illustration for each song. Some of the pieces were done with songs in mind, others were just various interpretations of, "The Impossible Girl." This is the story of the art, the artists, how I know them, and what their art means to me. I'll start at the beginning.

"Impossible Girl #1"

Travis Louie painted this gorgeous piece for the cover of my album. I met Travis through Molly Crabapple after he watched a webcast that Molly and I did. Travis is a true master, his rendering is astounding. What he calls a sketch others would call a masterpiece. He's also just a wonderful person to be around, very easy to talk to; intelligent and interesting. I was very lucky to meet Travis when I did, to connect with him about art and music, and mostly to have him contribute such a beautiful piece of art for the cover of my album.

***

"Rainbows and Unicorns"

Melissa Dowell is a tall, leggy, whip snapping, gal friday. She works as an illustrator, designer, screenprinter, and personal assistant. She loves tentacles, has purple hair, and brings me fancy chocolate. She knocked it out of the park on this one with a ridiculous two day deadline. Sparkles, sea creatures, pink: what's not to love?

***

"More and More"

Mary Larsen painted me at Dr. Sketchy's the day we met. Her watercolors are deliriously beautiful, haunting, and quite often disturbing. Fantastic stuff! I love her colors and her shapes. This painting was not done with a particular song in mind, but I think it fits well.

***

"Open/Avocado"

Teetering Bulb is the partnership of Kurt Huggins and Zelda Devon. I met them at a fancy Easter party in Brooklyn and loved them immediately. And then I saw their art. Every single piece of work I see from Teetering Bulb is mindbendingly gorgeous, from the beautiful line work to the luminescent coloring, the pieces are bursting from the page with a rich and intense life. They chose to illustrate "Open/Avocado" and I'm so glad they did.

***

"Gypsy"

Katelan Foisy has gypsy blood and a gypsy soul. She's an artist, a writer, model, and medium (and more...) She is absolutely stunning inside and out. Such a joy to be around and a Grade A snuggler. We like to make mustaches out of cookies (I'll explain when you're older.) I dedicated this song to her the first time she came to my show and we knew that she would have to paint this piece.

***

"Impossible Girl #4"

Karen Schmidt did a painting project called "Send Me Your Head" where she painted 3 inch portraits of people who sent in photos of themselves. I sent her a photo and loved the result. This piece wasn't created specifically for the album. It is based on a self-portrait I took of myself while I lived in New Orleans.

***

"Stalker"

Tim Smith lives in a small town in Missouri where he creates wonderful art, runs a print shop, and produces fantastic music shows that host international touring artists in a town that might otherwise be skipped over by hardworking musicians trying to get across the middle of America as quickly as possible. Tim's strong graphic style uses photography as its basis and this piece is based on Heike Schneider-Matzigkit's wonderful photo of me. This piece is still available as a limited edition t-shirt in my store - but not for long.

***

"Impossible Girl #2"

Kate Rannells has been in my life for at least half of it. She has helped me move about once a year, visited me in countries all over the world, come with me on tour, held me as I cried, laughed until she cried during all night talking sessions, polished of bottles off whiskey by my side, and kissed me under the stars. Kate is intelligent, curious, a fantastic storyteller, and the life of the party (though she considers herself to be shy.) She is an amazing artist, a sculptor and photographer who works with fantastic emotional detail. Sometimes you cannot tell why her work looks and feels so RIGHT, it just does. At art shows I've watched people - good friends - fight over buying her pieces. This song is inspired by her, and the garden she built for the song is a brilliant playground of earthly delights. I wish you could all see it in person.

***

"He Said"

Justin DeVine was drawing a rhinoceros on a napkin the day I met him. He was probably about 17 at the time and it was best piece of napkin art I've ever seen. Justin draws. Always. His line work is beautiful and effortless, he can draw anything you ask, from memory, in about five minutes. He once painted a 30 foot giant squid on the wall in my house, it took him 13 hours to completely paint in the entire thing and it is stunning. He has the best laugh in the world, snuggles like a world champion snuggler, and is my favorite touring partner. He doesn't have a website at this time (Damnit!)

***

"Sex, Drugs, & Nuclear Physics"

Jim Avignon is a painter and electronic musician from Berlin who now lives in Brooklyn, NY. His music and his paintings are produced with great speed as lo-fi as possible. He paints on paper and makes music with crappy old keyboards (some of the finest instruments on earth!) and his work in both mediums has a fresh intensity that only the highly prolific can exude. We recorded a song together for his 2009 album "Say Hi to Your Neighborhood" and we sometimes play my song "More and More" together. He made this painting for "More and More" but I thought it fit much better with "Sex, Drugs, & Nuclear Physics."

***

"The Organ Donor's March"

Molly Crabapple and I just sort of fell into each other in 2010. I'm not sure how it happened, but it did, and now we are inseparable (even if I am 17,000 miles away.) Molly is absolutely fearless in her art, she attacks the page at once. Without hesitation her lines build upon themselves into piles of curled hair, luscious lips, wide hips, rococo detailing, and dancing legs. Her art is alive, bouncing and spilling out from the page, it is addictive and easy to understand. We are making an animated music video for this song! It is going to be the best animation on the planet. I will tell you more about this soon.

***

"Slip Away"

Jim Batt is more to me than I can say here. We met because Molly tweeted for an animator for our video together and Jim Batt answered the call. We met on Skype to talk about the animation and then we kept talking for six months. Then I flew to Australia where we shot five music videos, fell in love, and did many photo shoots. Jim is a fantastic film maker, as well as a game designer, writer, and visual artist. This piece is based on a photo of me taken on my last day in Melbourne in July. Jim asked to illustrate this song because it is one of his favorites on the album. I told him I wrote the song for him, before I met him. And we both know it's true.

***

"Song For My Father"

Chris Worfold created a character called, The Impossible Girl. I discovered this fact while I was staying in an artists' residency in Brooklyn. Chris and his partner, Nikki Curtis, had just released Chapter One of their graphic novel and I had just released Chapter One of my album - The Impossible Girl. Chris is from Australia, I am from everywhere, and we just both happened to be staying in the same house, in the same city, at the same time, while releasing things with the same title. My brain did kind of explode that day. And I had to use his art. The song was written in the aftermath of my father's massive heart attack (he survived and is doing well after several surgeries and the installation of a pacemaker.) I felt that the skull mask on Chris's Impossible Girl was fitting. I do not perform this song very often because it makes me cry.

***

"Impossible Girl #3"

Rita Burkholder (a.k.a. Helen Keller's Ukulele) lives in Huntsville, Alabama which is full of rocket scientists and artists. Rita is the single mother of two wonderful teenage daughters, and supports her family working as an artist. She sings in a heartbreakingly beautiful voice, plays ukulele, makes glass sculptures, puts on lovely house concerts, and paints surreal self-portraits while traveling the world. Basically: she is awesome. You should know her music and her heart. She helps me believe that art is possible anywhere, at any time.

***

"Big Easy"

Dax Tran Caffee is one of my favorite living artists. He can draw and paint with breathtaking skill, he sculpts kinetic, storytelling devices, makes his own musical instruments, and does giant puppet street theatre. He is in one of my favorite bands, Corpus Callosum, and he sings and plays accordion. AND he has a very fancy moustache. I didn't tell Dax which song I would be using his piece for, I just asked him for art. To me this piece is a wonderful allegory for the song and the city of New Orleans; a beautiful, impossible creature: a tragedy that cannot be understood: and a light that draws me in again and again.

***

"Lick My Love Pump"

I met Ryan St. Germain (18+ NSFW) in New Orleans in June. He plays bass in my upcoming music video for "Big Easy" and we got along really well. I had a crush on him almost immediately. He looks really good in a suit and is very open and engaging. Turns out he's a professional photographer, of the pornographic kind, so when I needed art for this song I turned to him. The delicious, Bella Blue, models.

EXPLICIT!

***

"Anyone at All"

The illustrious, Fred Harper, drew this for me. He lives in a great big loft in Manhattan with Molly Crabapple, he has long hair and an octopus tattoo, he's one of the nicest people I've ever met, and he's fun to be around. I asked him for a black and white piece after seeing beautiful work he did for Hermès. Fred said he would like to draw me floating or flying. It seems to be a theme among the illustrators. And, I must admit, I like to fly.

***

"Tinkerbell"

Tinkberbell is actually the bonus track. I vacillated back and forth about whether I should include this piece in the blog post, thinking that maybe I should keep the song as secret as it can be. In the end I decided to include it because I like this art a lot and want to tell the story.

Adrien van Viersen is a storyboard artist, illustrator, and film maker living in Vancouver, British Columbia (that's in Canadia.) He works on big budget Hollywood films and dresses very well. He always has fancy shoes and nice hair. Once, while illustrating, he stabbed himself in the hand with a pencil - don't let anyone tell you art is safe. We dated briefly and intensely years ago and have just reconnected. I've always loved his work and am so happy to have his art in my album. I think it goes with the song perfectly, something about the look on my face just evokes how the song makes me feel.

You can only hear this song by purchasing the entire album.

HERE

***

And there you have it. The story of the art of The Impossible Girl. I am so grateful and happy to know all these people and to have their art as part of mine. Thank you.

Bandcamp.com embeds the track art with the song, so when you play the song on your ipod you see the art. If you already bought the CD and need a download code please contact: impossiblemerch (at) gmail.com

Pouncing on the New Year

2010-12-31T17:01:00.000-08:00

I am writing this from the future. It is already a new year for me, a shiny, brand new year. I have made sure it is not poisonous, it is safe for you to take a bite out of 2011.

***

Isn't it strange that numbers are so important to us? The New Year rolls around and we feel a sense of defeat or triumph. We curse the old year and we reach for the promise of renewal that tomorrow offers.

Tomorrow is a new day, a new year. It is important. It will be epic. This will be THE YEAR. We turn our faces into the bright, shining hope that the numbers on the calendar are a spell that can evoke and bring forth a new life - maybe a little like the life we already have only shinier, happier, thinner, less smokey, more creative...

This year, I will be a better me. This year...

It's silly, I tell myself. But I feel it. Feel the depression of the autumn sloughing off me, the dried snakeskin of last year is ready to fall away. I crouch, tensing muscles in anticipation, flicking a long tail of excitement as I wait for the clock to tell me it is time to pounce!

This year. This year I will be more. A bigger, brighter, incan-fucking-descent, unstoppable, irrepressible, undeniable force.

Just like last year.

***

I love New Year's Eve. It doesn't even matter what I do. I can be out at a party, I can be home alone. New Year's, for me, is a wrapping up time. I lived last year. I did things. I feel a sense of accomplishment. And I am ready for the next year.

2010 was amazing for me, it brought me so many things, life altering, universe bending things. I worked really hard and got a lot done, met some of the best people of my life, and learned how to be happy.

Here's a very short tour of "Fantastically Wonderous Things Kim did in 2010."

Finished my very first solo album which was fully funded by YOU. Thank you!!!! It is so good. Produced by Sean Slade (Radiohead, Dresden Dolls,) engineered by Benny Grotto (Boston's Producer of the Year,) made musically delicious by a small selection of wonderful musicians. I worked with a dream team, and we made a really dreamy album

Got amazing artists involved in the album project. Each song has an illustration by a different artist. And the cover of my album was done by the amazing, Travis Louie:

Met and fell in friend love/deep collaboration frenzy with Molly Crabapple:

Made art for a sculpture show:

Moved to New York City:

Modeled:

Played in Australia, Canada, Germany, and back and forth across the US several times.

Here's a live video of an intimate show at Cindy Wonderful's FAB LAB in Berlin:

Got drunk in New Orleans (also played 6 shows, shot an upcoming music video, and registered to clean pelicans:)

Made amazing videos with BriAnna Olson:

Made amazing music videos with Jim Batt (more to come!) :

Met Peaches at one of my shows in Berlin. She said I was intense. Best compliment ever.

Got an assistant!!! Shannon, you make my life better.

Hugged a trumpet player:

Launched a make up line with Sweet Libertine!

And last, but certainly not least: I fell in love. The best ever love. With the best ever person. Ever. And we love you, too.

The Impossible Girl - FULL ALBUM LAUNCH!

2010-12-14T22:47:00.000-08:00

Yes!!!!!!! YESYESYES!!!

I have an album. It is launched. It is up and ready and out and you can get it!!!

If you pre-ordered my album your package is on it's way - check your email for your download code and more information.

***

Because you are lovely I am offering this discount code of 35% off the CD, which means the CD is only $10 through Dec. 18th (full price is $15)
You are free to use this code yourself or share it with whomever you like.

35% off CD Discount Code: impossible

Check out the things here: Kim's Store

***

I've been working on this for so long that I forgot to be excited about it. Until I got my CDs in the mail and then all my excitement was renewed. Digital releases be damned! As long as we have physical bodies we will be interested in, and excited by, the physical world. Even if the CD is just a medium that holds the digital information, it is still a real object. It has texture and weight. Light reflects off its surfaces. The brain is stimulated by the body, and the body loves to have and hold, to see and smell, and feel. And there is a lot of feeling wrapped up in these little CDs. A lot.

Speaking of digital releases - the album is a free download today - December 15th - until midnight! And I was being a bit dramatic about damning the digital releases, because actually there is a lot of neat stuff in the digital release - like art for each track - that the physical product does not provide. Anyway - we live in a world where we get both!

Now go, little Impossible ones, and tell the world: on facebook, twitter, blogs, myspace, anything. Link to my music on bandcamp, link to my fancy videos, spread the music so it can grow and I can keep making music for you.

I have a bunch of new merch too!

New posters. (Two designs that combine into one! )

Fancy, glittery Impossible Girl make-up by Sweet Libertine.

Two eyeshadows and one glitter.

****

A note on the chapter releases and the downloads:

All of the songs from the chapters are also included in the full album, PLUS six more songs. So you can delete the chapters if you like. Don't worry about losing any songs - you will have them all and more.

***

And have you seen this amazingly creepy new music video of mine?

Directed by Jim Batt

'Stalker' music video by Jim Batt

2010-12-13T15:11:00.000-08:00

Please leave comments on the youtube page and share everywhere you can think of: facebook, twitter, blogs...

Directed by the incredibly talented (and imminently patient) Jim Batt.
This video was shot in one day in the middle of winter in Melbourne, Australia. The spunk (that's Australian for total babe) I'm stalking is Mojo Juju, an amazing musician and performer here in the land down under.

The house belongs to Frankie Valentine, Mojo's partner.

My dress was found at a vintage shop and the rest of the costume was provided by Rose Chong Costumes in Melbourne.

That little nightgown was FREEZING cold. I also had no idea how see through it was until I saw the footage.

Big thanks to: Mojo Juju, Frankie Valentine, Jim Batt, Anthony Cleave, Rose Chong's, Tim Tam's, Murray Lorden, and whiskey.

**

And one other thing: MY ALBUM COMES OUT DECEMBER 15TH!!!!!!!!!!

Hearing My Song on the Radio

2010-12-12T22:56:00.000-08:00

Today I tuned in to BBC6 Music online to listen while a fan in Florida got to call in and request any song he wanted. What he requested was my song, "Rainbows and Unicorns," and what happened inside me was amazing.

I listened to several songs before mine came on, radio friendly songs by famous artists, wondering how my song would sound next to these slick productions.

The show's host, Chris Hawkins, announced that they would be talking to listeners all around the world to get special Christmas requests. Chris said that one of these calls would be to Tampa, Florida - this is where Kyle, the young man requesting my song, lives. Seems the call to him was eagerly anticipated. They liked especially when Kyle said, "Awesome." And Kyle was Awesome. He was casually articulate and interesting. And he had chosen my song as his gift to BBC6 Music.

And then Rainbows and Unicorns started, and held it's own next to all those famous songs. There was my little song, not so little anymore, out in the world, all on it's own, doing it's thing, and being rather lovely.

I was anxious and proud and honored and shy and amazed and happy most of all.

Thank you, Kyle!

**

And then I watched the final edit of my music video by Jim Batt. "Stalker" video launches tomorrow: Monday, December 13th. Watch out world, this video is really wonderful!

In Between Everything

2010-12-11T19:18:00.000-08:00

Here I am in the midst of a performance reverie. Peaches was at this show in Berlin, she said I was intense. Intense is exactly what I want to be - along with everything else.

Here is something I've been thinking about:

Art happens in the space in between the viewer and the piece. The listener hears the space between the notes. The reader lives between the words. There is an undefinable, intangible, amazingly profound thing that happens. And we cannot see it, hear, touch it, taste it, or smell it. It happens beyond the senses, or maybe between them.

We work so hard to create these amazing works of art, symphonies and cathedrals and giant paintings, great novels, we work our whole lives to express something, to create something, that can only happen in the space in between. The artwork is not the art. Art is the incredibly personal relationship that cannot be expressed or defined.

We have art teachers, art critics, art industries. We can say a painting, a song, a book is technically good or bad; we can have subjective opinions, we can say, "Awesome!" or "Suck!" ; we can point at the thing and say yes, or no, but we cannot ever point at the art. Because art is the gap.

So why? Why bother? Why work so hard, use so many words, so much paint, learn how to play barre chords, when it isn't the art that is the art?

Because what we make provides a structure, and structure defines space, and in the space the art happens. In a properly defined space, art can be perceived, however ephemerally, however fleeting, or intangible, or rarely. We build a a beautiful thing and the art comes to it.

We try to capture art, but it cannot be captured. If the thing that lives in the gap is not allowed to move freely it will wither and die very quickly. You see it all the time, an artist has some form of success, and repeats this over and over again, thinking to capture the inexplicable thing that happened the first time, only to find that the repetition has driven the art out of the thing completely.

This isn't to say that repetition is always bad. Sometimes it is repetition that leads to the most amazing of artistic experiences. Repetition can be a form of discipline which can lead to a magnificent structure. What is bad is the stagnation and denial of movement. Trying to stay still in the moment that is already gone.

The experience of art, music, literature, is so fulfilling that we don't want to be without it ever. Moments of pure feeling, that don't necessarily have an emotion attached but can be any and all at once. It is a feeling of true understanding and belonging. What you understand or belong to cannot be explained. Open your mouth to say why and what you think/feel/know and the art, the gap, the bright, living thing in between everything, slips away.

And then we are empty. And we try to fill the space with something that resembles the thing that once filled that space. We try our own repetition. Like addicts we will do anything to fill the hole that art left.

But just as art is the gap, art is also the void. I am learning to live with the emptiness, not to give in to it, not to submit to a depression or a fear. And when I can be empty, without trying to stuff myself full of anything and everything, that is when my best work begins.

**

More photos from the Berlin show. (Photos by Jim Batt.)

And by the way, Peaches is intense.

Sparkly Things and The Terror of Sleep

2010-11-27T12:04:00.000-08:00

I am about to have my very own makeup line! Sweet Libertine and I have concocted a new line of colors - two eyeshadows and one glitter. To launch on December, 15th with my album!

Go here for the Sweet Libertine official announcement: www.sweetlibertine.com

***

I've been working hard with Molly Crabapple and Jim Batt on our animated music video for The Organ Donor's March - that song will be released on my album on December 15th. The video will come...later.

***

I have so many cool merch things coming up. Interesting, odd, amazing, lovely. Yum!

***

As the date approaches - December 15th - I get more and more anxious. Today is a good day so I write a blog. But man! The stress! I woke up in the midst of a full blown panic attack - sat bolt upright, unable to breathe, feeling like my insides were trying to be my outsides, as if my whole body was trying to purge itself from itself. When I do sleep I have nightmares. One nightmare featured sleep itself trying to kill me. Sleep was like a jealous lover, angry that I wasn't paying enough attention to it and beating me because of this.

Today though, I woke feeling rested, got a good email first thing, then set some fancy meetings regarding my release. Then I thought about my upcoming Australia plans, my animated music video, my album, my family, my friends, and felt like I actually have a really great life. When I sleep, things go much better.

Time for a nap?

Nope. Workworkworkworkworkworkwork.....

Love!

Quite Possibly Impossible

2010-11-19T10:04:00.000-08:00

T-shirt HERE

The Impossible Girl is being...... difficult.

Today the manufacturing plant called to say there is a problem with the master audio disc I supplied them. I should tell you, I was not very nice to them. This is their fault. They should have checked the files weeks ago, when they said they were checking the files.

Every day there is a problem. Things that should be simple, easy, rote, are difficult, awkward, late, broken, corrupted.

I've put out several CDs with my band. I know how this is done. The manufacturing plant makes tens of thousands of albums every year. My mastering engineer is one of the very best. It isn't like we all just woke up and decided to make a CD. We are professionals performing the crafts we have been perfecting for years.

This isn't a crisis, this doesn't change the release date of December, 15th. It's just very stressful to get phone calls every day with new problems.

But maybe this is part of the story of The Impossible Girl. My own journey to her wasn't easy, so why should her journey to me be any easier?

Travis Louie, who drew the amazing cover art, told me he started the painting three times. I've watched him work, he's amazing, everything he does looks perfect. I can't imagine anything he does being not good enough. And he told me how strange it was to have to start this piece over and over.

The first song of the album, Impossible Girl #1, is an incantation, the sound which calls her forth into the world. I implore you to sing it with me. In your head, in your room, in your local coffee shop, at work, at home, at a glance. Sing it loud! Play it loud! Share it loud!

Pre-order the CD here:

Next album will be called, The Easy Girl....

Important News - New Release Date

2010-11-14T10:18:00.000-08:00

In the fashion of many beautiful and difficult women, The Impossible Girl is late. Not terribly late, but late enough that I am pushing back my release date to December 15th. Sometimes art takes longer than you expect. Actually, it almost always does. But also, sometimes, it exceeds your expectations. And taking the time to make it great pays off.

And, well, The Impossible Girl will not be rushed.

As you can see above, the art by Travis Louie is amazing; the design by Jim Batt is wonderful.

She looks great. She sounds amazing. She's totally impossible. We wouldn't have her any other way.

The new release date, and the date you can expect to have your CD packages by is December 15th. In time for that holiday. And better for the wait. Believe me. It is beautiful!

Order the album here. You can also order additional discounted copies for friends, family, attractive strangers, strange attractors, stage actors, staid acts, stacks and stacks of them - the album that is: ORDER HERE

Thank you. So much. For being with me on this journey.

Humbly, and with great gratitude,

Kim Boekbinder
The Impossible Girl

www.kimboekbinder.com
www.theimpossiblegirl.com
www.twitter.com/kimboekbinder

Chapter Three

2010-10-15T07:42:00.000-07:00

Photo and design by Jim Batt www.jimbatt.com

Track #2 is probably not safe for work.

<a href="http://music.kimboekbinder.com/album/the-impossible-girl-chapter-three">The Impossible Girl - Chapter Three by Kim Boekbinder</a>

Here we are again, release day! Chapter Three of The Impossible Girl is up and out and ready for download.

Rainbows and Unicorns by Melissa Dowell: www.melissadowell.com

Lick My Love Pump by Ryan St. Germain www.ryanstgermain.wordpress.com

Impossible Girl #3 by Rita Burkholder (a.k.a. Helen Keller's Ukulele)

helenkellersukulele.bandcamp.com

He Said by Justin DeVine (he's too cool for a website.)

Impossible Girls Collide

2010-09-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

On September 14th I checked into a rented room in Brooklyn, NY. The room was in a warehouse complex of studios, filled with artists from around the world working in different mediums who were all staying for varying lengths of time. On the desk I found an informative sheet that listed everyone who was staying and what they were working on. The first thing that caught my eye was: theimpossibleplace.blogspot.com - "Hey," I thought to myself, "I'm impossible, that sounds like a place for me." So I checked it out. And that is where I found The Impossible Girl. The (other) Impossible Girl is a 36 part melodrama about a fashion designer and her rockstar boyfriend. Which has deliciously painted art and has just been published into a book.

The Impossible Girl (that isn't Kim Boekbinder)

My brain did this really neat thing then that felt like collapsing and expanding all at the same time. As though suddenly everything made sense and stopped making sense at once. As it comes together it falls apart. KABOOM!

Ok, look: "The Impossible Girl" is a good name, I'm totally willing to share it with other creators. Of course other people will think of these things, and have, and will again. But there are two Impossible Girls, one is a book, one is an album, and they are both being launched at the same time. And their respective creators - from different places in the world - all ended up staying in the same house in Brooklyn at the same time.

Of all the gin joints in all the world in all of the universes and all of the time lines....you had to walk into mine.

There are differences of course. But damn. And SHAZAM!

I started to write an email to the creators of the story but then I felt really strange; like I was a fictional character writing to my authors. Suddenly unsure of how to proceed I abandoned the missive and just went for a lie down while my brain did laps around the universe.

A few days later I met one of my authors on the rooftop garden. Nikki, the writer, was delighted and took me down to meet her partner, Chris, the painter. We walked into their studio where he was engrossed in painting a large canvas. Nikki announced, "Hey, I've brought The Impossible Girl."

Chris turned slowly from his work, said, "Yeah...right..." Then looked at me startled as I handed him the postcard with my album art that states clearly who I am. And he looked a little bit like his brain was doing what my brain had been doing when I first discovered his art.

Then we drank vodka. And they came to my NY show and I went to their book launch/art show closing party and we all marveled at the world and talked and had a lovely time. They're off to Mexico next and I'm off to Berlin. And I may never see them again. But we're linked in our imaginations. We both dreamt up the same girl.

And she is me. And not me.

She is The Impossible Girl.

**

And The Impossible Girl has RAD t-shirts!

In pink or green ink on black organic cotton, for girls and boys and everyone else too!

Buy them HERE

My first music video with Jim Batt

2010-09-23T17:44:00.000-07:00

Vimeo: Watch full screen HD!

Or Youtube: Watch full screen HD!

In July I flew to Melbourne, Australia to work on music videos with the wonderfully talented Jim Batt. This is the first of five videos we shot in July. We're also working on an animation for "The Organ Donor's March" with Molly Crabapple.

Collaborating with Jim has been a wonderful experience and I am incredibly happy with our first public outing, "Impossible Girl #2." I'm looking forward to the continued collaboration and new art expeditions.

There are no computer effects in this video, all the magic happened as it was shot. Nature conspired with us that day and made some extra swirly things happen. The wonderful matador jacket came from Rose Chong's Costumes in Melbourne.

It is always helpful and wonderful to have comments on the video pages. So leave your thoughts on youtube or vimeo if you please. And, as always, sharing is caring.

Love,

K

The Impossible Girl - Chapter Two

2010-09-15T09:58:00.000-07:00

Chapter Two is out today with wonderful art for each song and a music video by David Westway!

<a href="http://music.kimboekbinder.com/album/the-impossible-girl-chapter-two">The Impossible Girl - Chapter Two by Kim Boekbinder</a>

Downloads of Chapter Two come with high quality copies of all this amazing art. And there are t-shirts!

Stalker

Art: Tim Smith - www.uniqueink.net

This art is also available as a T-Shirt - order on Bandcamp

(Video for "Stalker" by Jim Batt will premiere on October 6th)

Impossible Girl #2

Art: Kate Rannells www.katerannells.com

(The song is inspired by Kate!)

(Video for "Impossible Girl #2" by Jim Batt will premiere on September 22nd)

More and More

Art: Mary Larsen www.marylarsenart.com

(Video for "More and More" by Bri Olson coming soon!)

Sex, Drugs, & Nuclear Physics

Art: Jim Avignon www.jimavignon.com

Video for "Sex, Drugs, & Nuclear Physics" by David Westway:

Chapter Three releases on October 15th.

Full Album releases on November 15th.

And here is the full photo taken by Lauren Goldberg of Fairytale Vegas

Pants are Heavy

2010-09-11T14:31:00.000-07:00

Chapter Two of The Impossible Girl will be out on September 15th! Rejoicing!

**

While checking my bag at the airport I was asked to remove something so it would be under 50 pounds (sequins + gear = big bag.) I took out an item of clothing which bumped me down just below the line.

"Pants are heavy!" I blurted, with far more volume and enthusiasm than the situation warranted.

Awkward silence surrounded me.

But pants. They're heavy.

My First Music Video

2010-09-04T22:43:00.000-07:00

Open/Avocado, directed by Brianna Olson, is so fancy! Watch it full screen!

Loopy and layered and wonderful.

Also on youtube. Share, comment, like...you know how it goes!

p.s. I hear if you watch through old style red/green 3D glasses it looks extra nifty. Haven't tried yet because I don't have any!

In the Woods, in the Bath, with a Bottle of Whiskey.

2010-08-24T17:47:00.000-07:00

Outtake from music video for "Impossible Girl #3" by Jim Batt

Videos are on their way. Being edited. Being made extra amazing. I'm so excited. Just watched a rough cut of the video for "Open/Avocado" by Bri Olson and I LOVE it! Can't wait to share it. I was worried I would hate it because I'm in it and I haven't been feeling so great about me lately. But I still love it. Any director who can make me enjoy 3 minutes of my own face is very talented indeed.

Actually I have been depressed for the past week. No reason.

Nothing is wrong.

But that's the problem with depression. Nothing.

And on top of the depression I felt a guilt (or if there was a feeling it would have been guilt) because actually my life is really amazing right now. And I didn't think I had the right to feel bad. So mostly I just stopped listening to myself. I took a walk. I dug a hole and pushed the nothing into it. Felt the coolness of the ground seep up into me. Washed my hands in the ocean. Wrote "Impossible Girl" in the sand and watched the waves swallow her whole, take her out to sea where her heart flies. Sometimes you just have to get your hands dirty.

Today I feel better. Been getting things done. Playing with a two year old - mostly teaching her how to swear and run with scissors. (We finally got in trouble for jumping on the furniture.)

Don't you wish your big sister was a rock star? Yes, yes you do.

The songs are still going strong. 12,000 plays now. Has slowed down after last week's flurry of famous author mentions, but there seems to be a slow burn. Even if you aren't a famous author it means a lot to me, and really does help, when you mention my music on the internet. Twitter, facebook, myspace, blogs. All of it helps. As does using your mouth to tell people. I like that one too.

http://bit.ly/TIGch1 - copy and paste that to share.

And one last thing: Your homework assignment for the day/week/year/life

Take a moment to think about the person or people closest to you. Someone you might take for granted. Think about something they do really well. Maybe it's the way they cook, or sing, or make art, or smell, or look, or snoozle, or wrangle ocelots, or travel through time....could be anything.

And now tell them.

Today: pay someone a compliment. Because we take people for granted. All of us. And even if we know how great someone is, we often forget to tell them. Because we think their greatness is so self evident that to mention it would be redundant.

I think you're great. I do. I really like the way you read my blog.

Love,

K

Molly Crabapple Strikes Again

2010-08-18T15:11:00.000-07:00

I just got this beautiful Molly Crabapple poster of 'The Impossible Girl' paper doll printed and it is SO GORGEOUS!

Holy hell is that woman talented!

You can order this poster (includes download of Chapter One of my album.) here: http://music.kimboekbinder.com

I also added signed postcards to the album download page - if you already pre-ordered my album for $10 or more you will be getting a signed postcard already - so no need to order one!

I will be adding more merchandise as I go, packages, t-shirts, stickers, and more. Here we go!

Day four and my album has been listened to over 8,000 times. I am very pleased with this and now just need to figure out how to keep it going strong. Every mention helps! So blog, tweet, repost. Bandcamp gives you lovely 'Share' options - you can post a little player to almost any site on the web.

It feels so ^*&@&^#^!!! good to finally have songs I am proud of out in the world. The recordings are fantastic. Producer, Sean Slade, and engineer, Benny Grotto, did such a good job at giving my songs the right amount of production.

Hurray!

And...San Francisco show this Friday, August 20th at The Independent (such a great venue!) with The New Orleans Bingo! Show (such a great band!) I play at 9pm.

Get Tickets

Exceptions, and Random Movie Times

2010-08-17T23:28:00.000-07:00

Zip. Zip. Zoom. Trying to keep up with all the emails. Falling behind.

Getting some lovely buzz on my little EP/first chapter of my album.

Neil Gaiman's tweets helped steer some people my way. And today Warren Ellis blogged about The Impossible Girl. Fun times!

I am now sitting in bed - though sleep is many hours away (I also call bed, "the office,") under a pile of sequin dresses. Fun times!

I'm staying in Carmel, CA with my father. My two year old sister is very excited to see me. She 'helps' me cook, and type; she tries to take my pants off while I stand in the kitchen; she sticks her hand down my shirt (after looking down it to see what's in there;) bites my thighs; sticks her finger up my nose; and squirts herself in the eye with Windex. Then she laughs as I hold her under the tap to rinse her eyes out. Fun times!

I taught her how to pounce on people. And how to jump on all the furniture - a skill which has helped me get as far as I have in the world today.

I'm not really a "kid person" - as a general rule - but she's a pretty fantastic little person and I make exceptions for the exceptional (smartest thing I've EVER said.)

**Random Movie Times**

This is a short silent film clip I made with Jim Batt while I was in Melbourne, Australia last month making 5 music videos. This clip is for Jim's Ghostlight Project which is a collaboration with four other artists of various mediums - it's really good.

Every day of the week, Monday through Friday, a new post gets added. Monday's are the days that Jim adds a new silent film clip, Tuesday is music, Wednesday is a photograph, Thursday is a graphic of some sort - usually a film poster, and Friday is a written piece (a scrap of script, a journal entry from an insane actor...) The project is really interesting and I was very excited to be part of it. Jim is very talented, as evidenced. Kim is very silly, as evidenced. Enjoy!