Elise and Mo for their version of Business Time. And going so far as to film themselves performing it! Go ladies. I've yet to shrink the file to host it with you, but as soon as I do, I'll let you know. Your tee shirts and BBC radio CD will be winging their way to you in the New Year :)
Chica for her Very Conchords Christmas. Inspired and lo, I think I got all the references. A WTF! tee shirt for you!
Ms Dandy Lyons for her photoshopped seasonal pic of the Conchords. A WTF! Binary Solo mousepad is yours!
And lastly, an extra winner, Heather. Anyone who bakes Conchords cookies has to win something in my book! A WTF! mousepad for you too!
View the winning entries here. Many thanks to everyone who took time to enter. It was such a difficult thing to choose just a few of you for prizes as there were many great entries. Honourable mentions should go to Electra for her artwork, Simon for his version of Business Time, Elizabeth for her version of the same song and Bianca for her great photoshop pic (Bret as Rudolph made me smile)
December 15 2007 - Eeny, meeny, miny.... I'll start *here*
I know I've been a bit slow updating about the recent Conchords nominations, but I've a whole heap of other news also to include for you that you may not have read about elsewhere. I like to try to cover all the goings on for the Conchords, wherever it may be happening in the world, so without further ado, one big news update for you :)
WTF! is giving stuff away!Christmas cheer has reached me and I've got a couple of tee shirts, a BBC radio CD and a mousepad up for grabs. Alas you do have to do *something* to try to win one, but I know you are a creative bunch ;) It's a Christmas theme, so feel free to photoshop a picture of the Conchords with all the trimmings, write a seasonal lyric for one of the Conchords songs (and record it if you really want to), draw a picture, whatever takes your fancy really.
The long awaited studio album from the Conchords is due for release April 22 2008. It's been bumped back from a tentative release earlier in the New Year. As yet untitled, it'll feature 10-12 songs from a possible 15, all used in the Conchords HBO series and elsewhere in the past. All the tracks have been re-recorded in LA as the Conchords themselves felt the versions used in the HBO series were not quite what they should be and wanted to improve on them. I guess recording the tracks for the HBO series on weekends during filming was not ideal and I think its cool the guys wanted to go back and make changes to songs. And lets hope its still slated for a vinyl release. Read more on Billboard.
WGA have announced its television and radio nominees for the 2008 Writers Guild Awards Wednesday. And lookie, the Conchords are in there! They got a nod for Comedy Series, New Series and Episodic Comedy for the Sally Returns episode. Read more about it over at Variety.
TheNZ Herald ran an article on the Conchords today. Pretty much things we know already but a decent recap on events for the NZ public. They also ran their pick of local talent and named the Conchords are #1 and Taika Waititi at #3. Read the article here
Australian press article on Eagle vs Shark. Click image for larger size.
The Guardian in the UK has its annual Gong Show list for 2007 and Rhys Darby's character Murray Hewitt came out tops as the Best Supporting Character. The snippet says
In comedy, supporting players brought in to bring up the funny quota can often usurp the lead performer. Larry Sanders had Hank Kingsley, Seinfeld had George Costanza, now The Flight Of The Conchords has Murray. It's all about Murray. Narrowly beating fellow co-star Kristen Schaal's adorable and terrifying stalker Mel, Rhys Darby's turn as sweet natured, dim but enthusiastic Murray is exemplary, hysterical stuff. Be it baring his soul in the song Leggy Blonde ("I like pie") or his band meeting rollcall etiquette ("Murray... present") Murray nails every line. Even the posters in his office are hilarious - "New Zealand... It's not part of Australia." The Conchords just wouldn't fly without old Ginger Balls.
December 6 2007 - Nominations everywhere - Conchords bag a couple
It's awards season in the US. And a few other places. The Conchords have been nominated for a Grammy in the Best Comedy Album section. Good going for an EP! Congrats on the nom guys.
O and North & South, another Kiwi magazine and fans of the Conchords dished out an award to the Conchords recently. They were their Arts and Entertainment winners! Congrats Bret and Jemaine.
And a big thank you to all those who have been helping to support What The Folk! by visting the WTF! shop and shopping. Thank you :)
December 1 2007 - Mentioning everyone else today...
No actual real Conchords news but more a round up of the goings on with other projects and co stars from the HBO Conchords series...
One or two Conchords snippets - they are apparently going to appear on the Daryl Hall webcast sometime early next year, but I've no idea of the exact (or even vague) date. I'll post more info as it comes in. Daryl was asked in a recent Q&A interview -
Q: How did your cameo on "Flight of the Conchords" come about?
A: They were fans. They asked me to do it before the show had been broadcast here, so I was given a tape of the pilot, which I thought was amazing. Not only are they really funny, they write great songs. Their droll act is the way they are in real life. When I asked them to be on my webcast show, Jemaine just said, "Hmmm, we'd better practice ..."
And I heard that the Conchords have been nominated for a Satellite Award. Waiting for the offical listing to go up on the website to confirm this. This blog has predictions and explains a bit about the awards themselves.
New movie search for talent - The star director and writer of the Oscar-nominated film Two Cars One Night is looking for the cast of his new feature film. Taika Waititi's new film The Volcano is about a young boy's coming of age on the East Coast in the 1980s.
Producer Ainsley Gardiner says the new film will begin shooting late next year. She says The Volcano is loosely based on Waititi's critically acclaimed short film. Gardiner says the characters and story are different but it has definitely come about because of Two Cars, One Night.
Casting sessions will be held in Rotorua, Whakatane and Gisborne over the next two weeks.
Rhys Darby, back home for a while, was interviewed by TV3 in New Zealand recently. You can read about it here or watch the video here. He has a few gigs lined up while home but alas they are already sold out. Details here.
Kristen Schaal will be appearing on Never Mind The Buzzcocks (imo the funniest music quiz on TV - Simon Amstell = top notch presenter) this coming Thursday December 6 on BBC2 at 9PM. Listing here. She'll be sitting alongside team captain Noel Fielding of The Mighty Boosh.
November 27 2007 - Conchords radio interview on Radio New Zealand
This Conchords interview flew under the wire last week with the rest of the world, but there is an option to go listen it it again on the Radio New Zealand site here . Or you can download it from WTF! here :> *Warning* Bret and Jemaine are not in character during this interview and actually sound like they know stuff about stuff ;)
November 23 2007 - Out there in the depths of the internet....
Peter Bradshaw over at the Guardian thinks Flight of The Conchords is the best comedy on TV (in the UK) and it deserves to be given a slot on BBC2 soon. Read his thoughts on the show here
You can now download Conchords songs from the Humans Are Dead EP in MP3 format from Amazon. Flight of the Conchords - Distant Future EP
For all other Conchords albums please visit the Shop page for links.
Like the guys dulcet tones so much you'd like soundbites of them? Well someone had you in mind when they made these soundboards. Go listen to clips of Jemaine, Bret and Murray in action (click links in names)
And a couple of old clips have surfaced thanks to the joys of the internet. You can view them over at Leftfield or I have them for you to download also. Frodo clip - Pencils In The Wind (aka Sellotape) clip (in .flv format)
The above clips should be popular with those who are liking Jemaine's new facial hair growth :p It's not the first time he has sported the fuzzy look as these clips (and pics) prove ;)
And Eagle vs Shark news for Australia! It's due for release there in December apparently. I found a listing for it at an arthouse Melbourne cinema and it should slowly do the rounds at other arthouse/indy cinemas around the country. Check local listings for details.
And I know I'm late with uploading them all, but loads of people sent in their Halloween pics and they do deserve to be seen. Dressing up as the Conchords seems to be becoming a national pastime :p Go view the Halloween does the Conchords page here.
November 18 2007 - I know I know, they won something and other news
I've been busy, life and all that waffle so excuse that I am a little behind in posting the Welly awards news.
The Conchords have been recognised back home in New Zealand at their local awards ceremony and been named Wellingtonians of the Year 2007. Stuff NZ reports -
Conchords soar over all
Business time made way for some hard-earned celebration when comic musical duo Flight of the Conchords were named 2007 Wellingtonians of the Year.
The award presented at the Duxton Hotel last night caps a year of staggering success individually and collectively for Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement.
Since June they have gone from being unknown in the United States to securing a hold on TV viewers through The Flight of the Conchords series with their catchphrases picked up by a much wider audience. Sports commentators have taken to bawling "it's business time", the phrase Clement made his own, and it is known to millions.
The two Wellington College old boys have secured filming of a second series of their show on cable network Home BoxOffice - best known for prime-time hits such as The Sopranos and Sex and the City.
As the first series went to air in June, viewers also had their first opportunity to see Clement's lead role in the comedy film Eagle vs Shark directed by friend Taika Waititi, also from Wellington.
His documentary about the cult following McKenzie earned for a fleeting role in The Lord of the Rings trilogy screened to New Zealand audiences in September, the month the Conchords' series started here.
The duo have released an EP, and finished a studio album of songs from the show. A DVD was released in the US this month.
The Wellys were started 18 years ago by The Evening Post.
View the Conchords accepting their award below
November 9 2007 - I did something. Small in the world of somethings but its something
I really did. Something. I finally got to updating the Fantastic section of the site. So called as it's where you, the fans, send me the fruits of your creative talents and I post them for all to see. Artwork, icons, clips and fan reviews. All there to be seen and read. I created a new page solely for icons as there seem to be so many out there now. And tweaked a few pages elsewhere content wise. If you have sent something in recently and its not yet been posted, please be patient as I have a fair few to try and include.
If you would like to send something in to be included in the Fantastic section drop me an email.
Wanting to yell a little at HBO for the lack of Conchords DVD extras? I have an updated contact page for you to visit. Click here to contact HBO Most people are very happy to finally have a copy and be able to watch the Conchords, but many were hoping for extras also. I'm all for supporting the guys (I have bought everything else they ever put out) but I won't be parting with my cash for a DVD without extras I'm afraid. I already have the episodes saved so don't see the need to invest in the DVD. Sorry if I am depriving Bret and Jemaine of a bit of cash there, but it's really not worth it for me without extras. Plus I am worried HBO will release an extras laden one in the not too distant future and I'd then be coughing up the money twice. That's more of a rip off than anything in my book, if it were to happen. So no, I shall resist.
November 7 2007 - No you don't get extras with that
Flight of The Conchords HBO series was finally released in the US yesterday. Yay! And for those eager to know what other goodies the DVD contained, alas you may be disappointed. Not yay :/ As I thought and posted a little while back, not a sniff of an extra to be seen. It was also never listed as having extras, so I just felt it was not likely to happen. Seems pretty poor showing in this day and age of home entertainment to leave off extras of some kind. But at least people will be able to watch the show as and when now its gone from On Demand.
Please don't yell at me regarding HBO's glaring omission to the Conchords DVD content. Go yell at them direct... click here to contact HBO
November 3 2007 - Eagle vs Shark news and other stuff!
Firstly, concerns abound about the looming strike by writers in the US abound. You can read more about it in an article on the Wall Stree Journal and the BBC. Last ditch talks are due to be held tomorrow apparently. And yes, it would seem the Conchords HBO second season would be affected. So, let's hope tomorrow turns out well eh :)
Eagle vs Shark update next. Amazon have fixed the DVD format listing. Now listed in standard DVD format for pre-order from Amazon. Go shopping!
The UK DVD release of Eagle vs Shark will be January 21 2008 I am informed. Thanks to Emma for the tip off. Pre order fromAmazon UK here And lookie, we get a different cover to the US one. And yay I have the DVD extras listing - Eagle vs Shark DVD Extras: Commentary with director Taika Waititi and lead actors Loren Horsley and Jermaine Clement / UK Exclusive Interview with Director / Director Introduction / Deleted Scenes / Cast & Crew Interviews / Mouse Wheel (Behind the Scenes footage) / Theatrical Trailer / Hard of Hearing subtitles
You can also order an Eagle vs Shark movie poster. Imagine ladies, an almost lifesize if not larger than life pic of Jemaine for your wall! Order 11x 17 here and the 27 x 40 one here.
The Conchords HBO season 1 is due for release in Canada in the not too distant future.
October 27 2007 - Something to cheer US Conchords fans up a little
If you have Comedy Central that is! The Conchords One Night Stand show is airing on Friday Noveber 2. Check listing here at 10.30PM. Check your local listings also as I've no idea what timezone this is for. Thanks Sara for the heads up.
Next, the Conchords appear on the cover of this months Channel Guide magazine. Although I think the actual content inside will only amount to a brief explantion of the cover tagline which is '#9 - Why Flight of The Conchords soared'. Thanks Lauren for the scans :)
Bret tries falling out of the photo while Jemaine keeps busy propping up a wall. Click image for larger pic.
Now onto the Conchords DVD release. Released in the UK on October 29 and reviewed by The Telegraph today as one of their DVD's of the week. Points of interest re this DVD release a) A 2 disc set, b) listed on Amazon UK as having a running time of 346 minutes but clocks in at 360 minutes in the US Amazon listing. Now the UK running time has me wondering, as it would not leave much room for extras. Or it may be incorrect. Other sites list differing details. Anyways, no definate word if the Conchords DVD on either side of the pond will include extras, but with a running time of 360 minutes you'd hope for a few. I'm leaning toward it including the trailers and such stuff, but that's only wishful thinking on my part. I'll keep you posted.
Well my DVD release date of October 29 was apparently correct. For those in the UK/region 2 anyways. The Conchords HBO series is due for release then confirms DVDActive. And Amazon UK has the same date listed.
Next a bit of fan art. I've finally gotten round to updating the Fantastic page with some new submissions. You can check them out over on Fantastic . I'll add more in the next few days.
The Fix recently ran a Conchords article online and also have a Murray Hewitt/Rhys Darby one, which I forgot to mention :| Anyways, go read the Murray one here and the Conchords one here.
O and I finally saw Eagle vs Shark at the cinema recently and loved it. I'd write a review but I've not seen Napoleon Dynamite so can't possibly comment :p
October 9 2007 - You've always got the Conchords...
Meanwhile Sarah Barnett of the same publication interviewed Rhys Darby. If you've not read the great interview/article Barnett did on the Conchords earlier this year, you can go take a peek at the magazine scans here or read it online here (no pretty pics to be seen there however) Thanks Missy for the heads up on the lastest articles.
And one Kiwi writer mentions the Conchords in his piece titled 'Rugby schmugby, New Zealand's got plenty of other reasons to be cheerful' Read it online here
And I hear that Eagle vs Shark, the film starring Jemaine Clement has been pencilled in for a DVD release date of January 8 2008. No pre order info as yet, but as soon as it comes in I'll be sure to share.
October 4 2007 - The Conchords may have gone to ground but news trickles on
Bret and Jemaine are both back in New Zealand. Hopefully taking it easy and able to enjoy being home for spring and summer. Their HBO series, Flight of The Conchords has now begun airing in New Zealand and the UK and seems to be received well. Good reviews in the press and pretty positive feedback from people tuning in!
A few newsy bits for you. Firstly an interview over at BlackBookMag with the Conchords. I'm guessing it was done a little while back however.
The Mirror online here in the UK (the height of journalistic integrity second only to The Sun and The Sport, which I guess makes it 3rd then.... ) wrote a short review type piece on the Conchords series. And wondered why its been stuck on BBC4 and not given prime time on BBC2! My sentiments there exactly. BBC2 would be a great place for the show, given that the Beeb is known for great comedy! Hint hint the BBC :>
The Fix online ran the Conchords on their cover this month/quarter. And included them inside also. Read it here
September 28 2007 - Propping eyelids open and it's only 7pm
Before I fall back to sleep (I'm doing a lot of that at the moment) here is a news update.
The Conchords are back home in New Zealand. Well Jemaine is. Spotted somewhere on the North Island by an eagle eyed fan ;)
...Still, even with my parent-goggles on, I can’t deny that the best new series of the night was Flight of the Conchords (BBC4). Made for HBO, this is a sitcom that features a couple of blokes from New Zealand (Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement) living in America, talking about girls and wondering why their two-piece band has only one fan. The dialogue is interspersed with songs sung directly to camera, commenting on the action (or lack of it).
If this makes the programme sound slightly peculiar, then that wouldn’t be unfair. On the other hand, in a rare twist for such an original sitcom, the originality feels entirely unself-conscious. More importantly, the jokes are funny.
The dialogue, in fact, is delivered in such a low-key way that it takes you a moment to realise how witty and well-crafted it is. The songs combine more gags with surprisingly touching tunes. All in all, I feel a cult hit coming on.
FromThe Scotsman - Review of episode 1 on BBC4. Read the review below.
Conchords take off with a slow burn by Andrea Mullaney
REALLY good sitcoms are rarely immediate hits: usually it takes a while for them to hit their stride. Flight Of The Conchords is a dry, subtle slow-burner and it's a wonder it survived in the American TV market, which ruthlessly cancels shows before their first ad break, practically, if they're not an immediate smash. Being on the subscription cable network, HBO, which specialises in offbeat shows, helped save it and now it's become a cult hit with acclaim for its unconventional format.
For British viewers, it's less unusual: not just because the duo whose act gives the show its title went from the Edinburgh Fringe to a Perrier nomination and a Radio 4 series. But the style of humour is more familiar to us and it feels like a show which could easily have originated here - though probably to rather less financial reward for its stars.
Playing versions of themselves, Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie are a New Zealand folk/electronica band trying to make it big in New York, where everyone thinks they're either British or Australian. Both go around with hangdog expressions and speak in monotones, unless they're performing one of their songs, when the show suddenly turns into a musical. In last night's episode, Jemaine saw a girl at a party and burst into a song about how she was pretty enough to be a "part-time model - but you'd probably still have to keep your other job". She was the most beautiful girl in that particular room, he told her, and probably in the top three of any street, depending on the street. Strangely, she was not charmed.
The show is certainly not for everyone: I tried showing it to two Peep Show fans on the grounds that it's a little similar (well, there are some extreme camera close-ups and Rachel Blanchard plays a girlfriend in both). One walked out of the room the minute they started singing and the other, after about a minute of music, said politely: "Is this going to go on long?" Sadly, they didn't stick it out till the hilarious music video the Conchords create later, for a Kraftwerk-style robot song called The Humans Are Dead ("We used poisonous gases and poisoned their asses"). Budget constraints meant they filmed this on a cameraphone, so it's probably not going to get them on MTV any time soon.
In fact, the first episode is actually the least funny of the three I've seen so far, so it's worth staying with it. There's something appealing, in an age when so much comedy is getting progressively more frenetic and catchphrase-based, in the show's refusal to milk its deceptively clever lines. And as their manager/consular official, Murray, Rhys Darby almost steals the show.
The Guardian Unlimited has an article about viewing figures for the first Conchords episode on BBC4. Read the snippet pertaining to the Conchords below.
Flight of the Conchords fails to soar - John Plunkett
Much-anticipated HBO comedy Flight of the Conchords made a low-key debut on BBC4 with 161,000 viewers, a 1% share of the audience. The Kiwi comedy, which stars Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie as a pair of musicians struggling to make it in New York,has been described as "Peep Show meets the Monkees" and first aired on BBC Radio 2 two years ago.
Its first episode had 161,000 viewers at 9.30pm last night, a 1% share, according to unofficial overnight figures.
The Conchords have the top selling comedy album on the US Billboard chart. Congrats to Bret and Jemaine! Read the article here.
September 25 2007 - Got five minutes to read all this?
Now that the Conchords HBO series is airing in their homeland and as of tonight begins airing in the UK on BBC4 there is another flurry of press activity. I've compiled a round up of news and reviews...
Firstly a short interview over at Chortle with Rhys Darby where he tells about his new film role alongside Jim Carrey and the possible back to work date on the second Conchords series. Congrats to Rhys on the film role :)The article says
Stand-up Rhys Darby has landed a key role in Jim Carrey’s new movie, Yes Man. The film is an adaptation of Danny Wallace’s autobiographical book about his decision to say ‘yes’ to whatever he was asked to do.
Darby, a London-based New Zealander, will play Norman, the boss of Jim Carrey’s character Karl in the loan company where he works.He landed the role on the back of the success of HBO series Flight Of The Conchords, in which he plays Murray, the hapless manager of the New Zealand folk parodists.
Darby told Chortle: ‘The director Peyton Reed is a big fan of Flight Of The Conchords, and loved my work in that. So I got a call from him and he asked me to audition on a tape, which I sent him from the UK.
‘And now I leave for Los Angeles in three weeks, for filming which will take me up to January, when we start work on the second series.Read the rest of the article here
Long time fan/supporter of the Conchords, The Guardian newspaper has a great article online including a short, enlightening interview with Bret and Jemaine. It says
Do the flight thing - They say it's 'Peep Show meets the Monkees'. Not only that, Flight Of The Conchords - a comedy series following the trials of two New Zealand musicians in New York - is the funniest thing on TV, says Tim Jonze
Comedy and music - it's a combination known to inspire yawns, tears and the sudden impulse to violently beat passers by with a Tenacious D 12-inch.
Thankfully, the genre has met its saviours in Flight Of The Conchords, two geeky guys - Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement - here to stake their claim as,"formerly New Zealand's fourth most popular guitar-based digi-bongo a cappella-rap-funk-comedy-folk duo." Their recent HBO series has earned them a devoted following in the States - they're even signed to legendary grunge label Sub Pop - while over here they've built up a cultish buzz thanks to the modern miracle of YouTube.
A kind of Mighty Boosh meets Peep Show, the show documents the lives of Bret and Jemaine, two struggling musicians whose manager never seems to get them any gigs and whose fan (yep, they only have the one) makes.... read the rest of the article here
Flight of the Conchords is, nutshell-wise, the New Zealand version of The Mighty Boosh. Jermaine Clement and Brett McKenzie are a long-standing institution in New Zealand, from where their digi-folk parodies and impressively low-key comic delivery have got them a Sony Award-winning Radio 2 show.
Now we have their HBO show on import. The premise is simple – an aimless Kiwi digi-folk two-piece move to New York to “make it”. What distinguishes Flight of the Conchords from everything else, however, is that this is the first sitcom musical. Yes – my final TV dream has finally come true.
It is a proper musical, too – not just men singing a song occasionally. The songs extrapolate, move scenes on and impart information, just like Rodgers and Hammerstein. While deadpan in their day-to-day affairs, in song, Clement and McKenzie can suddenly express what they have secretly been thinking – “You’re so beautiful, like a part-time model or high-class prostitute”; “I’m not crying because you left me today/ It’s just my eye is/ Sweaty”; and, just before a seduction, in a painful falsetto: “My room is usually/ Tidier than this.” There is also immense kudos for the joyous Dad-ness of the Fleetwood Mac joke: “Some of their best work came out of that sordid love triangle.” “Rumours?” “No, it was all true.”
Meanwhile, back in New Zealand the Sunday Star Times called the Conchords 'American Idols'
Their faces are on T-shirts, their songs are on cellphone ringtones and their catchphrases are on the lips of the nation's biggest sports commentators. Just how big are Kiwi comedians Flight of the Conchords in the US? Very, very big. Tim Hume reports.
On the ESPN highlights reel, the world's highest-paid baseball player steps up to the plate and prepares to swat a hapless pitch deep into the stands.
"Alex Rodriguez. He steps in at the top of the first: you know what time it is," intones commentator Scott Van Pelt, anchor of the cable network's flagship SportsCenter show, before - CRACK! - the Yankees star wallops his 52nd home run of the season over leftfield. "It's business time, baby!" roars Van Pelt, breaking into manic, half-scatted song: "Let's get down to business, it's business time!" ... read the rest of the article here
September 21 2007 - The Conchords are off back home to New Zealand
I know this as the kind lady publicist at the BBC had been hoping to have them do a bit of publicity for their HBO series now airing here in the UK. Alas she has been told they are unavailable for the next 6 weeks and that they are going back to New Zealand. I can only think that Bret and Jemaine are taking a well earned break from all things Conchord like (at least overseas) although who knows if they will do some New Zealand publicity to promote the show when back home. Hopefully she'll get to talk to Rhys Darby (Murray) and a few other people, but the UK is going to be lacking in actual Conchords comments and stuff. Ah well, it would have been nice as the Conchords have a decent fan base built up here over the years but it was not meant to be. Any news from the BBC I'll be sure to share with you here :)
Now for some news and reviews from the guys homeland. First up Jane Bowron of The Dominion Post had this to say about the first episode of Flight of The Conchords that aired this past Monday on NZ Prime.
You have to wonder what Americans made of HBO serving up Flight of the Conchords (Prime, 10pm Monday) in the wake and devastation of The Sopranos and such raunchy shows as Six Feet Under and Sex and the City.
On the Common Sense Media website, which gives a steer to parental guidance of TV viewing, the assessment of Flight of the Conchords came with the advisory: "Parents need to know that this musical comedy about a faux folk duo is pretty mild."
And indeed this show is so innocent it could be called No Sex in the City or, if Woody Allen had anything to do with it, Everything You Wanted to Know about Not Getting Sex in the City.
In fact, even though Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie use awkward silences rather than words as their preferred way of communication...read the rest of the article here
Also The Hit List on Stuff NZ ran an article and the writer said he was putting Flight of The Conchords in his top 5 sitcoms of all time! OK, so at number 5, but it's in there! Read the article here
TVScoop posted a review of the Conchords One Night Stand. OK, so the show was filmed back in the summer of 2005, but only aired in the UK this past week to help kick of the Conchords HBO series which starts airing from next week on BBC4. Read the One Night Stand review here
September 18 2007 - O those guys - plus BBC Conchords trailers - tres amusing
The Conchords partied with Kristen Schaal at the HBO Emmy's after party. Jemaine kindly matched the wallpaper. What a gent ;)
Photo by Gus Ruelas
Go check out more pics of them here. Yahoo TV was at the after party and had a few words with Jemaine. View the clip here (yay for interviewer flirting :| )
The BBC is airing the Conchords HBO series starting in the next week or two. They are running a couple of made for UK TV Conchords trailers at the moment and also have them to view online on their Conchords page. View the BBC trailers here (Choose Trail 1 & 2) Visit the BBC Conchords page here
Did New Zealand enjoy the first Conchords episode? If you caught the show on NZ Prime last night and liked (or didn't like) what you saw, drop me an email . I may post your comments here.
The Sunday Star Times in New Zealand ran an article on the Conchords this past weekend..
Flight Path - By Grant Smithies - 16 September 2007
Rejected at home, embraced in the United States, now about to be world famous in New Zealand. Grant Smithies asks Flight of the Conchords how they did it.
There wasn't much local comedy on the telly when Jemaine Clement was a teenager. "I felt really starved for it," the star of Eagle vs Shark and half of comedy duo Flight of the Conchords says. "In fact, when Melody Rules was about to start, I remember getting up on our garage roof in my school uniform and trying to hook up an aerial so we could watch TV3 in Masterton. In the end I never got the aerial to work, so I never saw the show."
He is, of course, extremely lucky on that score. Melody Rules was crap. I've had funnier dental appointments. But the sad thing is that there's still very little decent homegrown comedy on the telly now, 14 years later. You have to wonder why. Are we simply an unfunny nation? Or are the wrong people commissioning comedy television in this country? Going by the experience of Clement and his Conchords co-star Bret McKenzie, you'd have to suspect the latter.... read the rest of the article here
New Zealand Herald, posted a review of the Conchords first episode which aired on NZ TV station Prime last night...
TV Review: Flight of the Conchords, September 18, 2007 - By Linda Herrick
Wellington boys Jemaine (Clement) and Bret (McKenzie) are all alone in New York, following the time-honoured Kiwi tradition of trying to make it as a band in the Big Apple. Their two-man band is called Flight of the Conchords ... and so is their outstanding HBO series (opened last night, Prime, 10 o'clock) following the trajectory of their struggle for success, and with each other.
Jemaine and Bret are mates - but not when it comes to girls. Last night's show opened with Jemaine musing on his great success with chicks back home... read the rest of the article here
September 16 2007 - Gone from US TV but appearing soon on UK and NZ stations!
So the Conchords have gone from US TV now, repeats aside, until sometime in 2008. But in New Zealand, TV station Prime is beginning airing the Conchords HBO series from tomorrow. It's a Monday night, never known for huge viewing figures but lets hope people tune in :) Prime are also airing a newhome grown comedy series before it. Click here for Prime listing In the UK BBC4 will start airing in the next couple of weeks. BBC4 are also showing the Conchords One Night Stand to kick start the season this Tuesday 18 at 9.30pm. BBC TV listing info here - Conchords BBC page here
Somewhere in New Zealand people are seeing this sign promoting the series. Thanks Chris for the pic :) Click on image for full size
Click on image for full size
Something for the Bret fans now! Recorded back in early June, check out these clips at MUD of Bret McKenzie and his fellow uke players Gemma Gracewood and Carmel Russell.
Also NZ Herald reports Bret will be reuniting with his old band The Black Seeds for a gig at the Manawatu Arts Festival soon. Read the article here. Go here for ticket and some online booking and click on 'Upcoming Gigs' on the top right side. No listing at yet for that specific gig. But sometime early October is looking likely.
Sabrina over atYumSugar is a fan of the Conchords and came up with a recipe for the Conchords lasagne for one! Go check out the write up and recipe here. Thanks Sabrina.
Harp Magazine now have an online version of their Conchords interview. Read it here
September 12 2007 - Cricket... football... rugby... and I still found time to update!
Kiwis flying high in the States - By Tom Cardy. From Stuff NZ
New Zealand folk-parody duo The Flight of the Conchords have gone from obscurity to celebrity in just a few weeks. Wellington comedians and musicians Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement don't have to wonder whether their sitcom Flight of the Conchords has had any impact in the United States.Speaking from the offices of American cable channel HBO in Los Angeles, just days after the final episode of the 12-part first season aired, the two say they are recognised wherever they go.
"Over the last 12 weeks it's really incredible, the change," says Mc- Kenzie.
"Up until when the show started airing no one recognised us on the street. A few weeks into the show a few people recognised us, then about eight weeks into the show a lot of people. And now every time we go out someone comes over to us."
The BBC have let me know the Conchords page on their site has changed. You can now find it living here . Don't forget that One Night Stand airs on BBC4 Tuesday September 18 at 9:30pm and will be repeated on Friday September 21 at 11pm. The Conchords HBO series should begin airing the week after! They are also going to try to let me know what sequence the episodes will be shown in.
September 8 2007 - I have news! No really its almost newsworthy enough to be news anyways :p
Round up of some bits and pieces I've mentioned here in recent times....
That series, Flight of The Conchords, well the last part aired in the US this past Sunday. And I rather enjoyed it. In fact, more than rather enjoyed it. Didn't mind the lack of songs, the episode held together well without any as there were plenty of things going on plot wise to keep us occupied, loved the dancing and thought the Todd and Demetri played their parts well. And also felt that acting wise, this was one of the better ones. A worthy season ending.
BBC4 are going to be airing Flight of The Conchords One Night Stand to kick off the Conchords HBO series they are airing from this month. One Night Stand will screen on BBC4 on Tuesday September 18 at 9:30pm and will be repeated on Friday September 21 at 11pm. Visit BBC4's Conchords page here . My one thought is will they air the episodes out of sequence as happened on HBO or now they are all completed, will they be shown in order and therefore Murray wont suffer computer woes one week, get a new one another, then be back on the old one the following episode...
And o. AConchords news story that kicks off with Figwit. If you ask 'Figwit? What's that then?' then you are not alone :p Not everyone had internet back in 2002 or went to see LOTR Fellowship of The Ring at the cinema. And only a handful spotted Bret's uncredited appearance (pre Conchords taking off) as an elf extra during a scene. And only two people thought it would be funny to start a website about it and call the extra 'Figwit'. Anyways, back to the Conchords news article, it's decent, but I for one think the whole Figwit thing had it's moment and it'd be nice to let Bret move on :p I think maybe even Bret thinks that also seems as he said about it elsewhere in interviews. I'll go on the record and say I for one shall never mention Figwit in news updates again *closes that book finally* It was fun back in its day though ;)
The Guardian newspaper in the UK listed Flight of The Conchords HBO series at #8 of its 50 Must See Shows! The Guardian has always been a strong supporter of the Conchords so cool to see they thought enough of the series to rate it. Thanks Claire for the link :)
September 4 2007 - HBO Conchords series on BBC 4 - update
BBC 4 have put together a Conchords page on their website and are keeping me in the loop as to news and airing dates. At the moment, the latest transmission date is September 25, although that has yet to be confimed. I'll post updates as they come in and you can also visit the BBC4 Conchords page here Thanks for the link back BBC :>
Much like HBO have done, the BBC plan to put up new clips each week as the series airs. So all you UK Conchords fans with freeview or satellite TV, enjoy the Conchords on your TV screens soon :) And let's hope the Conchords prove popular and who knows, a move to BBC2 might happen....
September 3 2007 - HBO Conchords DVD release date
Well I was out by a week ;) Apparently the DVD of season one is due out on November 6 2007. Read more about it on tvshowsondvd.com
And the last episode has aired. Hope you enjoyed it! Now for the guys to take a break, head back home and come back with some fresh ideas and songs for the second season.
Rhys Darbygrabbed a news article mostly to himself recently. The New York Post had this to say about him...
I'D CATCH THIS DELIGHTFUL 'FLIGHT' ANYTIME September 2, 2007 -- You've heard of the summer of Sam?
Well, this was the summer of Murray. And unfortunately, it ends this week with the season finale of HBO's "Flight of the Conchords."
Murray is Murray Hewitt, goateed cultural attache to the New York office of the New Zealand consulate and hapless manager of the two-man band known as the Flight of the Conchords.
Murray (played by New Zealand comedian Rhys Darby) livened up my summer immensely with his ludicrous, by-the-book rollcalls (when the only other attendees at his band meetings were the two band members) and absurd prohibitions on such things as booking the band into nighttime gigs because he felt the streets of New York would be unsafe for them after dark.
Murray was one of the standout characters seen anywhere on TV this summer, although he could not have attained that status without the Conchords themselves - deadpan musicians and fellow New Zealanders Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement.... read the rest of this article here
August 31 2007 - mtvU and Billboard
I mentioned a while back about mtvU interviewing the Conchords are Bonnaroo and wanting fan questions sent in to put to the guys. Well, finally (mtvU said a month or so for it to run, its been ooo 2 and a half) they have posted the Conchords clips on their site. Go view the Conchords interview and fan questions here Worth mentioning it may not be viewable to those outside the US. But at least I managed to see it :>
Next up Billboard.com ran an interview with the Conchords. I'm eating my supper as I write this update, 8.45PM, so excuse me for not saying much here about it. Maybe later, if I've not nosedived into the duvet to sleep.
HBO blurb for the last episode of Flight of The Conchords reads - In the Season One finale of Flight of the Conchords, Murray foists a new bongo-playing band member on Bret and Jemaine, triggering much disharmony. After the group splinters into mutant half-bands and Bret works his aggression out in angry dances, where will the dust settle?
Lastly, Demetri Martin, friend of the Conchords, appearing in the last Conchords episode on HBO and a funny guy to boot is filming a pilot for Comedy Central in New York on September 7 apparently. Limited tickets for the pilot filming are available via here . I am amused they state a dress code and ask for it to be 'hip, fashionable, casual' Be sure to dress smart as no one will really see you :p Anyone who gets to go along to the filming, feel free to drop me an email reporting all :>
August 30 2007 - BBC 4 to air Conchords series from mid September
Or at least, that's what I think I deciphered from the email :p I'll double check the start date, but as I understand it, its due to begin the week of September 22-28. Now while I think its great BBC 4 have picked the Conchords series up, I'd love to see it reach a wider audience on BBC 2. The Beeb are known for great comedy and Thursday evenings are always funny, so maybe they would squish the Conchords in there sometime once Mock The Week ends... I can live in hope ;)
BBC press release says
HBO’S FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS TOUCHES DOWN ON BBC FOUR
HBO’s new comedy series Flight of the Conchords will be shown on BBC Four this Autumn.
Co-created by James Bobin and cult New Zealand comedy duo Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie, this 12-part comedy series follows Jemaine and Bret’s fictional characters as they attempt to make their way as musicians in New York.
The pair - who live in New York’s Lower East Side - divide their time between seeking gigs and awkwardly courting women. Sometimes finding it easier to express themselves through music, they are apt to break into song at any moment.
BBC Four Acting Controller George Entwistle said “we are very pleased to have secured Flight of the Conchords for BBC Four. Jemaine Clement and Bret Mckenzie have already proved to be a huge success with their BBC Radio 2 comedy series, and have won several awards for their innovative variety of stand-up. We’re confident Flight of the Conchords will go down well with our audience.”
Now onto a disclaimer of sorts! I've been emailed by a fair few people lately who seem to be under the impression I am the lady who carries a picture of Jemaine's lips in her wallet and shows them to him in the Texan Oddessy documentary. And some people are also asking if the character of Mel is based on me at all. To both of those, the answer is no not me and no not me :p I was no where near Austin in March 2006 when the documentary was filmed. I wasn't in the country or on the same continent for that matter! And for the second part, I'm not Mel like in the least. The Conchords have said that Mel is based on a number of fans from over the years, so a whole mix of people.
August 27 2007 - Harp magazine scans featuring some comedians and the Conchords
Hehe, only kidding. Featuring lots of comedians and the Conchords. OK, seriously now, featuring some very cool comedians and the Conchords. Wait, better quit while I'm ahead. Some comedians and the very cool comedic Conchords! Yay I got there :>
Harp magazine is on the shelves now (at most good bookstores) and has a 20 page spread on various comedians. The Conchords got in on it and here are scans of their pages from the article. Click here to view/read full size scan pages.
August 24 2007 - I'll go sit on the fence, it's safer up there...
Rob McKenzie (no relation) has written an interesting article about the Conchords series for the National Post in Canada. I've read it, re read it and I have to admit, I can see his point. I am sure you will also, but as to if you will agree with it or not, that is another matter completely.
Moi? I have to admit to wishing to see more plotlines used. Ones that don't involve trying to get with a woman or having a girlfriend and then not having one or the band breaking up and then getting back together again. Mugged was good as it got away from that and outside the box. Drive By was another one that stood out as its plot was a big change and more animated. What Goes On Tour was for me the weakest episode so far but it was a different setting and storyline, so that was something.
But anyway, I've sat and backspaced, deleted and rewritten this paragraph 10 times over now and nothing I say makes it better. Most who watch the Conchords on TV are loving it. Good thing. Some are enjoying it but wishing for something more.... a Josh Duchee type, or a Rob Brydon narrator with brilliantly funny commentary and witty one liners or Brian's phonecalls to Neil Finn... "Hi Neil, umm, sorry, I think my phone... accidentally... rang you!" But then some need to stop comparing series. But its kind of hard to do when quite a lot of the storylines in the TV show are taken from said radio series! And in my humble opinion, the original remains better than the remake :P There I said it (again). But I am thrilled the Conchords are on TV and chuffed to bits for them for the second season. I'm looking forward to it. I'm still here and I'm still a fan :p Now I'm off to officially sit on the fence and try to remain there without falling off while the emails come in!
Largo The Film! LAist reports a Largo concert film in the pipeline. And it features the Conchords. Read what the LAist has to say and view the trailer.
August 23 2007 - Put down the remotes, step away from the TV.... erm wait, that doesn't work...
New York Times ran an article about HBO today. Eagle eyed Chris spotted a Conchords mention and sent it along. Thanks Chris.
Mr. Plepler pointed to positive recognition for HBO’s movies, like “Longford,” as well as for its documentaries, like “When the Levees Broke,” which recently won a Peabody Award. And he cited the continued success of the comedy “Entourage,” the drama “Big Love” and the new comedy “Flight of the Conchords,” which was renewed for a second season.
In terms of raw numbers “Conchords,” with only about a million viewers on average for its initial run on Sunday nights, is not in the same league as previous HBO hits like “Entourage,” which has drawn as many as 3.8 million viewers. But increasingly HBO is measuring its success both by how many viewers a show accumulates over multiple plays and especially by how well it drives the on-demand business, where viewers can order specific episodes of shows.
HBO says that its on-demand business is not dominated by its hit shows but by the niche interests of its audience for choices from theatrical movies to sports programs. According to the channel, “Flight of the Conchords” has been a strong on-demand entry with men between the ages of 18 and 34.
HBO have a couple of new Conchords podcasts online. Download Making Beautiful Music and It's A Kiwi Thing via either the HBO podcasts or HBO RSS feed. Enjoy :)
Music For Kids Who Can't Read Good have an interview with Flight of The Conchords manager Murray (ok so it's Rhys but he was in character) online. Check it out here Amusing reading.
I uploaded anotherTongan Ninja trailer. View it below or download from us here. Is there a talk like a Ninja day out there already.... and is that Bret appearing there at the end...?
Eagle vs Shark is doing well at the New Zealand box office, coming in at #4 in its opening week. Over in the UK the film opened on 70 screens (and coming to an independant cinema near me soon :> ) and was #15 here in its opening week. Read the report on Stuff
Friends of the Conchords and providers of the soundtrack to Eagle vs Shark, The Phoenix Foundation have announced a new album. The Eagle vs Shark soundtrack is available on iTunes. And TPF will be on a nationwide summer tour round New Zealand in November. Their latest album, Horsepower, is available from Amazon US and Amazon UK.
August 21 2007 - Early DVD cover - Bret and Jemaine getting ready to hit the shelves
Not looking all that much different from the artwork used on posters, website and about a thousand blog type pages out there now. Be cool if they could make the guys heads bobble about a bit, or have it go 'Baaaaa' when you open it. Just a thought HBO, just a thought...
Bret and Jemaine getting ready to hit the shelves.
In time for the holiday season no doubt according to TVShowsonDVDdotcom . You know how it is, cash strapped cause you've already overspent on presents no one will ever use and a turkey thats the size of a small country.... and lo you spy it on the shelf there. Do you buy it now or hope someone will care enough to make one worthy purchase and get you a copy....
Remember thatTongan Ninja, Jemaine Clement goodness I said was coming your way on this site in the not too distant future. It's mostly here! Those of you wondering what the hell Tongan Ninja is, you can read more about it on the WTF! forum. Or watch the clips below..
Tagline reads: A film that will touch your heart...
after it's finished with your teeth, ribs, spleen and kneecaps.
A film worth it for the stunning opening sequence
alone.... *whispers* It has a lil appearance by Jemaine... see if you can spot him!
And to show you what else you are missing, here is a trailer from the movie.
Musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords will fly again next year on American television.
Cable giant Home Box Office announced at the weekend it had renewed the self-titled sitcom by Wellingtonians Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie for a second season.
The 12-part first season, filmed in New York, has been airing on HBO each Sunday night since June, after Hollywood drama Entourage. It airs in New Zealand from September 17. Clement, speaking from the United States, told The Dominion Post the pair had known for the past month HBO had renewed their show.
"It was so much hard work this time, but we knew it was going well. We thought it was likely they would ask us again."
Clement said it was likely the second season would be less than 12 episodes so they could concentrate on "quality not quantity". He and McKenzie would return to Wellington next month. Rather than write in Los Angeles, which they had done for the first season, they preferred to write in Wellington before returning to New York next year for filming.
Clement also stars in the feature comedy Eagle vs Shark, directed by Wellington film-maker Taika Waititi. Waititi has directed two Flight of the Conchords episodes, including one by Wellington playwright Duncan Sarkies, which aired yesterday.
Clement said he hoped Kiwi writers and directors would also be involved in the second season. Though the show has yet to rate in the top 40 cable shows, HBO entertainment president Carolyn Strauss said it was renewing Flight of the Conchords because it had "quickly become a show to watch".
Clement and McKenzie have been performing live throughout the US – and selling out many venues, including the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles.
Seattle record label Sub Pop, best known for signing Nirvana, has released a Flight of the Conchords EP, The Distant Future. Clement said the two would soon complete recording a full-length album in Los Angeles.
O I don't know what I'm on about (actually I do, but you don't want to know the contents of my email inbox the past few weeks :p ). If you'd asked me five years ago when I started this site if I thought the Conchords would be where they are today, I'd have said no. Not that I didn't think they were talented enough, but because I saw them as a live comedy act and never thought of them as transplanting to TV. But here they are, and a second season looms... somewhere in the far distant haze of 2008.
Congrats to Bret, Jemaine, James, Rhys, Kristen, Arj and everyone else connected with the Flight of The Conchords TV series.
The Conchords also clocked up another first a couple of days ago, being the number one subscribed podcast on iTunes.
Keep an eye out for some Tongan Ninja, Jemaine Clement goodness coming your way on this site in the not too distant future. I dug out the old files, cleaned them off and am cobbling a page together for it all :>
And lo, The Distant Future is already on filesharing sites *sigh* I know it goes on, I know the arguments for and against, but I have always encouraged people to purchase legally and help support the Conchords. Let's be honest here, $5 for an EP is not exactly going to break the bank. If you would like to purchase their albums, check out the Shop page here on the site for all the info you'll need. Folk The World was self funded by the guys back in 2002, so even more of a reason to get it legally rather than elsewhere.
August 17 2007 - About the last episode....
HBO and the Conchords have agreed to a second season!
HBO has renewed its Sunday comedies, handing out a fifth-season pickup to veteran "Entourage" and bringing rookie "Flight of the Conchords" back for a second season.
Both shows are slated to return with original episodes in 2008.
While the renewal of "Entourage" -- one of HBO's top series -- was widely expected, things weren't that certain for "Conchords" as the half-hour starring the New Zealand folk duo of Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie quickly developed a cult following but came up short of the wider appeal of "Entourage."
"'Entourage' is a full-fledged cultural phenomenon, and 'Flight of the Conchords' has quickly become a show to watch," HBO Entertainment president Carolyn Strauss said. "I'm delighted that we'll be bringing new seasons of these distinctive series to our subscribers."
The listing info for the last episode of Flight of The Conchords has finally been released.
Episode 12 -The Third Conchord - September 2 - Murray introduces a new bongo-playing band member on Bret and Jemaine, triggering angry dances and mutant half-bands.
As I understand it this is the episode where Todd Barry and Demetri Martin appear. I won't give away details as I don't want to spoil any surprises ;)
And that leads me on to the other remaining episodes. New Fans has me wondering. Part 3 of the BBC radio show, had a couple of weird fans appear (played by Jimmy Carr and Nina Conti) and I am curious to see if the premise has been reworked for TV or if they have done something different. Episode 11, The Actor does sound very much like the plot from part 2 of the BBC radio series, except the 'semi professional actor' part. They roped in 'Bernard' in the BBC series. Veery funny.
Episode 10 - New Fans - August 19 - The Conchords triple their fan base after playing a local world music jam, but Mel is suspicious of the two new fans' motives. Episode 11 - The Actor - August 26 - Bret and Jemaine enlist a semi-professional actor to cheer Murray up after a disappointing gig. Asked to place a good-hearted rejection call, the actor gets carried away, offering Murray and the Conchords a recording deal that's too good to be true.
Apparently The Distant Future EP has shifted 6,000 copies since release. I'd make that 5,999 as I've yet to receive mine :| *shakes fist at whoever thought it was a good idea to short the supply* Cock ups like this are what send some people to downloading (and not from iTunes) Support the Conchords she says , buy the albums/ EP legally she says... then can't get a copy of said EP shipped :/
NZ Scoop has an article up online about Prime airing HBO's Flight of The Conchords from September 17. Nothing new really contained within it other than Prime airs Dr Who. I never knew that :p *geekgeekgeekoutalittlegeek*
Thank you once again for all the emails of support and appreciation for What The Folk! It means a lot, especially during busy times when I am battling the site design and trying to write regular decent updates, newsletters, emails and other stuff along with my real life happenings.
August 16 2007 - Running in....
Rhys Darby is back at the Edinburgh Fringe (I may have mentioned this before :p ) The online booking set up is now online and setup. So if you are heading Fringeward and want to amble along to his show, book online here
And Arj Barker (Dave in the HBO Conchords series) is on tour in Australia from August 24. Just about everywhere. Go here for venues and dates. My Bloke tells me you don't pronounce Wagga Wagga as 'Wagga Wagga, more like Wugga Wugga. Joys and perks of me living with an Aussie, you get to learn weird place names along with me :p
NJ Ledger has a Conchords article online. I'd write something about it but I've hot crumbly cake to go eat.
August 15 2007 - Jemaine speaks about the HBO series... will they won't they make another season...
Just as I am about to nosedive into the duvet... Interview on IGN with Jemaine and James Bobin (director of HBO Conchords series). Bobin mentions at the end of the article that Demetri Martin is showing up in an episode. Hehe not news to those who read this site as I posted about his appearance, along with Todd Barry back on August 7. And I could tell you the plot secret James is on about, but I won't because I'm good like that. Anyways look out for Todd and Demetri in the last episode....
Jemaine was interviewed tomorrow in the NZ Herald. I've snipped the part where he talks about the HBO series...
Clement is looking forward to heading back home after spending most the year stateside filming, writing, singing and talking up his two big productions.
The reaction to the show, screening in the northern hemisphere summer, has generally been positive.
"I was nervous but we've got positive and negative.
"I saw a thing in the Guardian the other day saying it's the best new sitcom in years, and there are other people right on the other end of the scale ... the truth, of course, is somewhere in between. But it's probably the best reviewed new comedy show on TV here and a lot of new shows when they start they take a while to get some good reviews and ours straight away got some."
Clement says says HBO have indicated they are interested in keeping the Conchords flying.
"We know they are interested in doing another series but we have to think about it.
"It's not a definite offer but they have talked about us starting writing but we've got other things we want to do as well.
"But one season is not very long though. Twelve episodes - I think that is what Fawlty Towers did.
"The only reason I would want to do it is to do it better.
It's pretty much as I've been thinking all along so please don't lose sleep over the fact the guys may not make another season. I'ts really not all HBO's doing if they don't and Jemaine has said they (he and Bret) both wish to do other things. Let's wait and see :)
Eagle vs Shark is out on release in New Zealand today. Read an interivew with Taika Waititi online here
Flight of The Conchords airs on NZ Prime from September 17 2007
August 14 2007 - Whut? Whut! Whut
I'm really not surprised to read that HBO are supposedly undecided about a second season of Flight of The Conchords. And I find myself not really minding all that much. I come from a land where great and good TV comedy series are short and sweet but deservedly become classics. The bad ones merely short and sweet and forgotten. I can live with one season of FoTC. I can live with two, should HBO and the Conchords decide to plough ahead with more episodes, but it's no biggie. I'm a fan of the Conchords I really am, so don't think for one second I don't want them to do well. Of course I do, but far better the Conchords do things their way and in their own time.
Should the Conchords choose to renew with HBO if its offered then fair play to them. I hope season two will be a great success on their terms and not based on viewing figures and all that *waggles hand* stuff. However I am also remembering them saying in the past that they like to work on other things away from the Conchords and that that's what they might go and do once the album is finished. Something else.
Whoever decides about a second season, should it turn out that HBO cancel, I don't see Bret, Jemaine, James, Rhys, Kristen or Arj (and not forgetting all the other support cast and the crew) will have failed. I loathe the word, failure... failed and how it's used in terms of fame and fortune in that weird world of fame and fortune. It's a crappy word and one I will never feel comfortable with when it comes to art and the people who make and perform it. And comedy to me is an art. It gives me more enjoyment than peering at a painting in the Louvre or seeing a disheveled bed or dead cow in a tank. Its all subjective eh :) Should Bret and Jemaine be the ones who decide to walk away and do 'something else' then good luck to them. I'll follow what they do with interest in a non stalkerish way :p And I'm sure the Conchords will be back with a new live show sometime in the not too distant future.
If Flight of The Conchords is not renewed for whatever reason on either side, then so be it. My thanks and congratulations to all involved for making something fresh, different and with the ability to make some of us laugh. If it is reneweed, then ditto the previous sentence above.
So starring in a popular TV comedy series and looking half way decent had made Jemaine a fashion dweeb. Because in TV comedy series land its about how you look not how talented or funny you might be right? O wait, that was just The Simple Life. O wait that wasn't a comedy. That was tragic (confession time - I've never seen it but the ads looked dire).
August 12 2007 - Keeping you in the loop... Is this the HBO Conchords DVD release date?
October 29 2007.... It may well be. Amazon UK has a listing for what appears to be the DVD of the Conchords TV series, released via Warner Home Video (Warner being the bod which owns HBO.... ) The DVD description fits the HBO series and the retail price of £25.99 (£19.49 after Amazon reduction) would make sense also. Its not listed anywhere else as yet, but this is looking more and more like the Conchords DVD is due soon!
I've finally gotten my arse into gear and uploaded all the HBO podcasts for you. View or download them from the HBO page.
*Rhys Darby at the Fringe update* Rhys Darby's good lady kindly sent me his Edinburgh Fringe booking info as it is not appearing on the offical site. She says of the 2007 Fringe show -
'He had not intended to do one, but as Matt Kirschen is in the US on Last Comic Standing, Rhys has taken over his slot at the Pleasance Courtyard to show off some of his characters. The characters he will be doing were last seen in NZ at the Comedy Festival as part of a show called The Everymen in 2006. He will also being doing some standup, some of his old favourites, but lots of new stuff too. The show is on at 8.15pm at the Pleasance Courtyard in the Attic.
Some creative Conchords icons for you now. Thanks to Causette for letting me share these on What The Folk! More can be found on the Fantastic page
The Distant Future is at #6 on the iTunes Alternative Album Chart. So what's the alternative then eh? Thanks Kayla for sending it in.
I broke my own techno weenie skills on this here cap by filling a rectangle with colour AND then made it a bit transparent. Genius am I!
And go figure but over at Amazon its (or it was when I last looked but things change) #1 in 'Comedic Music' and 'Comedy' and #4 in Alternative Rock and #9 in Pop/Rock. Pop/rock? Alternative rock? If it crops up in 'Folk' I'll be worried :p
Looking for other Conchords albums to have shipped or download? Check the Shop page for listings.
Kristen Schaal is getting some decent Fringe buzz, both Chortle and The List posted good reviews. And here is a clip of her in action at a Fringe Preview. *Clip content warning*May contain mild references to world history, Winston Churchill, and the occasional vagina.
DMWire ran a review of the Concords HBO show. So late in the series run, but they had some good things to say about it. Read the Conchords HBO review here
August 8 2007 - Sold out already!
Flight of The Conchords EP The Distant Future has a supply and demand problem already! Not enough to go round. It's in at #14 on the Amazon best selling CD chart (thanks Kristi for the info). Not as high as the White Stripes (#3), but just ahead of Bon Jovi (#15). I think Bret might appreciate the outselling Bon Jovi bit. Or is that just me?
But SubPop it appears 'shorted' the EP supply as they did not expect such a high demand for it (they are not shipping to as many to stores as they originally planned). I've had a few emails from people unable to buy the Conchords CD in store. Either not there or sold out already. Be patient, you'll get a copy eventually :p
HBO's Flight of The Conchords series anyone? Yeah, that lil TV show I've mentioned a few times here. I reported back in March about Taika Waititi and Duncan Sarkies, fellow Kiwi's, being involved in a couple of Conchords episodes. Taika wrote and directed Drive By, but he also directs the eleventh episode The Actor, which was written by Duncan Sarkies who wrote Scarfies which starred one Taika Waititi.... see... veritable Kiwi fest!
Remeber that interview with Bret McKenzie I posted about a little while back? It was done pre to the Conchords appearing at Bonnaroo. Bret talked about how they had found their last lot of live gigs strange as fans joined in singing songs and made requests. Well, this lil Conchords clip from Bonnaroo shows how they managed to solve this happening during a gig. Nice one guys :) Thanks K for sending it along.
Let me mention a few changes happening here at What The Folk! Firstly Eagle vs Shark news posts, articles, clips, images and the kitchen sink have all been archived to the Eagle vs Shark page on What The Folk! Everything I've compiled on the film since 2005 is now all in one place to read
Secondly, there have been so bloody many HBO Flight of The Conchords related articles and interviews they now have their own page and index listing. You can find them all there on the HBO Articles page.
Thirdly, I'm updating various sections of the site so you may notice pages like Conchords FAQ, Jemaine, Bret, Sound, Vision, Conchords Links and Connections will have new material appearing on them in the coming few days. Its taking time as I am only one person and this is now, much to my shock, a HUGE flipping website. I had no idea it'd gotten so vast till I was trying to find an article and it was buried somewhere in the depths. So, it galvanised me into action and lo, changes are happening.
And to wrap things up for now, a Conchords site in Hebrew. Run by Dovi and Netta. Kinda cool to see other sites out there, spreading the word on the Conchords. Kudos.
August 7 2007 - That's a whole heap of update!
So the eagle eyed amongst you will have noticed the glaring continuity error in the most recent episode of Flight of The Conchords. Murray had a new computer last week, this week its back to prehistoric times and a Commadore 64 (the Bloke is a bit of a geek). Yes HBO are aware of this :p I reported on July 30 that due to 'some creative reasons we have made a change in the episode order. The remaining episodes will now air asfollows - Girlfriends, What Goes On Tour, New Fans, The Actor and The Third Conchord. Hope that clears up the confusion and speculation. Thanks to someone in the know at HBO for the info.
The Girlfriends episode was written by Eric Kaplan. Anyone found this episode and Drive By had a different feel to them? Being written by other people as they were and not by Bret, Jemaine and James Bobin. Post on the forum or email me if you have any thoughts you'd like to share on the HBO Conchords show.
And the songs in Girlfriends? Both oldies, from 2002! A Kiss Is Not A Contract is on their Folk The World live album, titled as K.I.S.S.I.N.G. Foux Da Fa Fa snuck on there also. Yes, get to the end of the CD, Frodo stops playing and lo, the track carries on.... gets to 2.53 on the running time and all of a sudden, this track starts up. The Conchords performed this live in 2002 and it was pretty much the same track, with lots of random basic tourist French, usually food products and the like being sprouted at random in sexy dulcet tones by Jemaine and Bret. It was revived and used in the BBC radio series I seem to recall and is now expanded for the HBO show. Proof that you can sing about *anything* in French and make it sounds sexy!
Next, I've been busy doing some detecting and have upcoming episode blurb for you. While I don't have the final episode write up as yet, I'll go out on a limb here and say I put 1 and 12 together, divided it by a carrot and multiplied it by magic and came up with Todd Barry and Demetri Martin as guest stars for the final episode (The Third Conchord) of Flight of The Conchords. And methinks they might even be using their own names. OK, maybe not Barry and Martin, but you never know as both can also be first names. Sneaky. I'll plump for Todd and Demetri. Friends of the Conchords and funny guys to boot.
August 7 2007 - The Distant Future is here already
The Distant Future is here. Already! Flight of The Conchords EP released today. Already been delivered to some people who ordered online! Click image for larger size pic. Purchase Flight of The Conchords - The Distant Future now
SubPop says - The Distant Future features, in audio form, all the hilarious songs you’ve come to know and love from HBO’s hit tv show Flight of the Conchords starring Flight of the the Conchords as Flight of the Conchords. All your favorites are there—“Business Time”, “If You’re Into It”, “The Most Beautiful Girl in the Room” and more. As an added bonus, you’ll get absolutely nothing for free when you order the Flight of the Conchords’ ep because we’re saving up all our free goods for the full length in January.
So the full length album appears to have been pushed back to January next year. But it is slated for a vinyl release which put a smile back on my face.
August 6 2007 - A newspost about the support cast! 'bout time I gave them (and you) a mention
Rhys Darby is back performing at the Edinburgh Fringe this year. Fame in a cult TV show could not keep him away! He's done with band meetings, band rotundas and red shorts... now he's back to stand up and a few of his characters Bill Napier the ranger, Ron Taylor the whale watcher and Steve Wittle the UFOlogist to Britain.
No listings on the official Fringe site for these gigs, but check out Rhys Darby's page here for dates. I'll post booking info as soon as the official site lists it. He says he is performing at The Attic, Pleasance Courtyard. Small venue but should make for up close and personal and a good atmosphere.
Kristen Schaal has also taken the plunge and crossed the Atlantic and is joining Rhys in Edinburgh (doing her own stand up routine) Kristen is at the Assembly on George Street performing As You've Probably Never Seen Her Before. Listings and online bookings - click here. Once done there Kristen is off to Bumbershoot 2007.
And now a lil mention or two of a few fan communities sprung up in the wake of the Flight of The Conchords on TV!
Firstly, the ladies (and any guys who happen to have signed up...) over at Vox have a Jemaine Clement community going on. A place to worshi... erm, ador..., express their appreciation of Jemaine. Yeah, I checked the place out, in the name of research. Gotta keep up with things after all. Not much of a fan site if I don't give a shout out to the fans every now and again eh ;)
Not to be outdone, LJ fans have also got in on the act of worship... I mean adorin... erm, setting up a community to worshi... I mean ador... erm, worship Jemaine Clement adoringly.
And what about Bret I hear you ask. Well a long time ago in a land far far far away, Bret gained a bit of a cult following for a small part in some film or three. Maybe it was two, but anyways, back then someone over on LJ set up a community for him. Since then its languished around a bit, taken it easy, occasionally seen a flurry of activity and then suffered a relapse (sounds like my life ) so if you are on LJ and worshi... I mean ador... erm think Bret is ok and want to worship and adore him, then go check it out and help liven the place up a bit. Or else set up your own community and tell me about it so I can tell everyone else. Anyone with a community that's feeling ignored by me as I've not mentioned them, drop me an email and I'll see if I can change that.
And the Toothbrush fence (as mentioned in the HBO Conchords show) is real. And weird. And real. Check out newsclippings of it online over at the Toothbrush Fence page. Yes, that's real too. And weird. And real. Thanks to the Te Pahu community for being cool and having their own site and giving a page over to the Toothbrush Fence.
And no, I don't wonder if they are all used...
And while I've been reading all the news alerts on the Conchords, and posting many of them here, I just cannot bring myself to post anything else using the words 'celebrity' or 'gossip' ever again on this site. Once was enough and I cried for days. Well hours, actually I didn't cry at all but thinking back to it brings tears to me eyes. If you want those kind of news posts I'm sure you can find them elsewhere online. What The Folk! has never been about that nor Bret or Jemaine's personal lives, and out of respect, I'm leaving that kind of news posting alone.
August 4 2007 - There has been news, but I've been busy being lazy....
I enjoyed the most recent episode of Flight of The Conchords. Drive By had a different feel to it and it had a bit more Murray time which is always good. Dave (Arj Barker) has grown on me also (kind of like mould) and I'm enjoying the show more each week. Just wanted to share that.
Hello to whoever is visiting this site from Tuvalu. I think it's very cool that we have had visitors to this site from the second least populated independent country in the world! Now if someone from Vatican City (holder of the title 'Least populated independant country in the world in case you are wondering) would check us out, we would really be succeding in getting the word out on the Conchords ;)
And over at TV Deuce they've run an article titled I Love Six: Six Reasons That Flight of the Conchords Is Now My 2nd Favorite Comedy. The top six, in reverse order were #6 Coco #5 Dave and Mel, #4 The songs, #3 Bret's sweatshirts #2 Murray and #1 Dry humour. Read the entire Conchords write up over on TVDeuce
What else do I have on my 'to post' list... Ah this one, Marc Allen has a short interview with the Conchords online. Jemaine tells the world he fancies toothbrushes and Bret recommends a great little cafe on Kantara.
Remember back in June and July when the guys went on a mini mini mini tour? Not toured in a Mini, but played a minute (that's mini in funny speak) amount of gigs in the entire landmass that is the US of A. Yeah, that mini tour. Well Little Radio ran a great review of the LA El Rey gig.
And lastly today, as its a sunny evening and I am off to make home made pizza and sit out in the orchard for the evening...
Jemaine still not quite able to master the one fingered salute :p
July 31 2007 - Bret speaks. We know he can but in interviews he's often ummm, ahh, yeah....
I read an interview with Bret yesterday. Have to say it told me things I was aware of - his dislike of TheArseOfTheInter... I mean MySpace for one, how they have worked flat out since the start of the year and are in need of a break. And some things I didn't know but do now... he likes making radio comedy still, Mermaids looks like its making an appearance in a future episode (an underwater mermaid set anyone?) HBO didn't like some of the casting choices in the series, and that during recent live shows people were forgetting it was a comedy set and were singing along and singing the jokes and making lots of song requests and how its "not particularly funny any more" and if performing live is a giant singalong session and they don't feel their show works they may "just never play live again".
How I hope Mr McKenzie was joking about the last part.
Why? Any number of reasons. Where do I start? They are at their absolute best live, even thought all but a lucky few have seen them in that setting, in a small intimate venue, performing their set just them and their guitars. The Conchords have never been (at least in my mind) a large venue act. I am looking forward to seeing the guys come back after a well earned break from all things Conchords, with an entire new show of comedy banter and songs. And if I never hear them perform Business Time, Albi, Hiphopapotamus or any of the old songs again then that's absolutely fine with me. Comedy is about being fresh, taking a new show out on the road, playing to unsuspecting audiences who'll listen, laugh and leave. Having all your material on TV and YouTube and becoming more 'band like' instead of a comedy act who use music has changed how people hear the Conchords.
The studio album and EP will also give the Conchords a large listening base. But I'll miss the banter and the crowd laughter and all the little quirks of hearing them perform a live set. I'll miss the lyrics changing to suit the audiences/location each time or when Jemaine forgets his words and tries to cover it up, or they have to struggle with unhelpful mike stands... it'll lose something in its transition but I am optimistic the studio album will gain in other ways. Those songs will be defined and the chapter finished. Bret and Jemaine can close the book on them even should they wish and I'd like to think that fans will be understanding of that and will await a new live show with anticipation.
While the HBO Conchords TV series has been good, some say great, others say the best thing ever on TV... I hope the guys are able to go back to their roots and the live act. It'd be a shame to lose what they have worked so hard all these years honing. Stand up comedy is far from easy and it takes a real talent to make it work. And the Conchords have been making it work for years now and I hope for a long time to come.
July 30 2007 - A shedload of stuff about stuff you never knew you needed to know stuff about!
I spend my afternoon working on site updates, post them, sit back and begin to relax then get an email from someone in the know at HBO about the remaining Conchords episodes running order changing. Read about the changes and get the most up to date episode listing around over on theHBO page.
Claymation sheep anyone?..... Jemaine's hobby, claymation, saw him make a number of short films with Guy Capper a while back. The guys have now made them available to watch online. Go visit the Jemaine page to view them.
'Baa baa baa baa bloody baa' 'Baaaaa ba?'
Next, last nights episode, Drive By seems to have gone over well. A few emails and posts on the forum about the songs in this episode. New to many people's ears but actually old old songs. Mother*uckers is from the 2002 season and Leggy Blonde (as performed by Murray) is also an oldie from the same season. I recall it being one of the songs that had me laughing a lot when it was sung live. I also have a bootleg version of it from a Fringe performance, with l the guys telling a story to go with the song. I think its great the Conchords have been able to work these old songs into the show.
There was something else but I forget now.
In the meantime until I get my brain power back, don't forget that Business Time is now available as a radio release in the US, so go get requesting it and hopefully it'll get some airplay. And if you are wanting a taster of how the song sounds, go have a 45 second blast of Business Time here (3rd one down)
Oh, beware TheArseOfTheInter... I mean MySpace imposters. Not everyone can be the Conchords, Jemaine or Bret. In fact, I don't think either Bret or Jemaine keep a page there anymore.
July 28 2007 - It's Business Time!
Oh that pained me to type. Really. Anyways, keeping Conchords fans in the loop is why this site is here so without further ado *drumroll*
Monday July 30 SubPop will be releasing Business Time as an airplay single in the US! Nice of 'em eh ;)
Now, this version is ever so slightly different from the HBO studio version, but unless you are really listening for the changes, chances are you won't notice much difference. But my policy still stands. Studio recorded stuff be it from HBO, EP or forthcoming album won't really be found here. If all the others songs are as similar as this one is to the HBO version, I really would encourage you to go buy the EP/album and support the guys :)
I saw a whole bunch of pics of Bret and Jemaine this morning. They both looked like crap! Sorry to the Guys but its true :p Jemaine has enough luggage under his eyes to fly back to New Zealand with and Bret looks like he's become a vampire and is paler than ever. Hoping they get to wrap up all their Conchords commitments soon and take a well earned break from the madness.
Next, Patrick sent in a Flight of The Conchords wallpaper. 1024x768 size. Thanks Patrick :)
Anyone else who's creative and makes avatars, wallpaper or gifs of the Conchords and would like to share them with others feel free to email them in to me.
July 25 2007 - Stop asking, it won't work! *headdesk*
I've had a number of requests/pleas/demands to make the HBO studio versions of the Conchords songs available on the site for download. My thinking on this is that the guys have been busy recording studio tracks and the Conchords EP is out in a couple of weeks and a studio album follows in the autumn. And some (who knows maybe all) of these tracks are making an appearance in some shape or form. I've never really hosted much in the way of studio stuff on the site and nor do I wish to host tracks that will potentially be released on an album soon. The guys are cool with me hosting the live stuff but I shall not go overboard and host all their studio material (yeah I've snuck a couple in but that'll be it). I'd rather encourage you to go out and purchase abums and support the Conchords. In my book its studio and possible album stuff so you won't find much of it here.
And now on to matters of a more delicate nature. Yes, women are (and excuse me if I sound surprised here because I'm not, its been going on for years) finding their hotnesses Bret and Jemaine a bit, well, a bit hot! I've had numerous emails from ladies who are quite expressive about their adoration (and no, I won't give you details here) but as you keep asking, I'll break with WTF! policy and go into personal info just this once (and as its been covered in the press now on a few occasions) Ladies, steel yourself, sit down, grab the phone to call your girlfriends, log into IM or Skype and go boohoo for all its worth, but neither Bret or Jemaine are single. Both are in long term relationships and Bret is recently engaged. So, there endeth the personal insight info. Stop asking me.
There ends the mini rant/whine. Thanks for listening *sniff*
Conchords things
Pitchfork has areview and pics from the recent Conchords El Rey gig.
Jemaine and Bret were spotted at their mates recent gig in LA. Said mate being Neil Finn. Yes, Neil Finn who appeared in the Conchords BBC radio series back in 2005. Thanks to Michele over at LAist for the info.
And lastly, a lil clipping from the NZ Sunday Star Times. Click here or on image to view full size scan. Thanks Meli for sending it in :)
Pssst its made up... really it is
July 21 2007 - Conchords - Best and worst? Best and worst what? Dressed? Facial hair?
Neither apparently! Vulture ran an, a, ummm, something discussing the Conchords TV series. Called it the best show on TV right now but felt that episode 5, Sally Returns was the worst so far. Anyways, I'm too confused (it doesn't take much, let's face it) so go read it for yourself here .
KROQ clip for you, Flight of The Conchords perform Think About It live in the studio while wearing ear muffs! To view or download (to play this file, save it to your computer and then try opening it in your web browser. If that doesn't work, perhaps try using Adobe's Flash Player )
July 18 2007 - KROQ radio interview for you
Running in long enough to upload this radio interview with the Conchords from a few days ago. Download it here (first few seconds sound a bit dodgy but then it picks up)
July 16 - Fill in the missing episode titles and loads of Conchords pics!
So I have had a tip off on another working episode title. Episode 12 is called Actor. Episode 10 is apparently titled Drive By, so not sure where that leaves What Goes On Tour. Will keep you posted.
A review of the El Rey gig can be found here, at the LAist
Next, I've been sent a rather obscene amount of new Conchords pictures from recent gigs.
You can see more of them over on the New York to LA image gallery.
July 13 2007 - If I had a dollar.... I'd have a dollar ...
Seriously, if I had a dollar for every time someone emails me asking for Conchords CD info I'd be rich. Well, at least enough to treat myself to a decent deli sarnie for lunch. But really, please people, all Conchords CD info (and everything else merchandise wise) can be found via the WTF! Shop Till You Drop page. Please check there first before emailing me. Upcoming EP and album news can be found there also. Save my sanity :p Ta
Now this! Cover of Flight of The Conchords EP - The Distant Future - Pre order at Amazon
(click image for larger size) Read more on the Shop page
Next a report on the Conchords TV ratings. *types lots then backspaces* Actually, no, sod the ratings report *tears it up and throws it out the window* I don't much give a toss about all that ratings crapola and will Conchords be recommissioned, get dropped and so on. Its what it is, and it should stand on those merits. People will either like it and watch, or dislike and never bother tuning in again. As it is, I'd only ever thought it would be a one series deal, but who knows and right now, who cares. Enjoy it while its here and if the guys and HBO decided to try another season sometime in the distant future then :) If not, then I look forward to whatever other projects Jemaine and Bret might go work on. Jemaine has another film in the works back in New Zealand and Bret I am sure has things to keep him busy. Good on HBO for having the balls to make something different and good on the guys for being that 'something different'.
El Rey gig news - One of our forum members Cankersaurous hatched a plan to go see the Conchords at El Rey last Tuesday, even though she had no ticket, no leads to a ticket and well, was ticketless and spare tickets appeared non existant. Would you believe it, she got in to the gig! Our intrepid fan ran round with a sign saying 'Will dance robot for spare ticket' and lo, a kind man gave her a spare! A spare! Whoever you are sir, you are a true gent :) And even better as Cankersaurous tells us ' Then I was looking for a seat and a girl in the front row (center!) signaled to me - she said she saved me that seat in case I got in! I know!' Cool beans and thanks to the mystery lady. Good to know Conchords fans are so generous and seat savers to boot. And yes, Cankersaurous did do the robot for the audience, and she got some attention from the guys during their set. I guess the news had gotten round ;) Anyways, to top off a great night she also got to meet Bret and Jemaine and have pics taken with them. I've posted them over in the I'm With The Band section so please check them out.
Near the end of the evening, I hung out with my new best friends, Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie of "Flight of the Conchords," my favorite new series. I want to be cool like them. Jemaine said I was cool like Bret because we both had on neckties. Since Jemaine and I are such good chums now, I asked him to make me his No. 1 friend on MySpace. He said no way. That's what good friends do. They deny each other space on MySpace, right?
Jemaine and Bret had women around them all night. Jemaine has a girlfriend so he was not interested. She lives in Greece. I bet she's a fabulous supermodel. Jemaine said he was humiliated to have to wear a fake, er, body part with fake body hair for a nude scene. But, I saw a clip of the scene today -- in which he sings a song called "Business" -- and it's hilarious.
And lastly, as I had to build myself up to this and even now I cannot believe I am about to type this word and that it's what Bret and Jemaine are right now in many peoples minds - Celebrity Gossip ran an interview with the guys *passes out in shock at use of word 'celebrity' and 'gossip'.
July 12 2007 - WTF! Conchords tees now available
What The Folk! now has its own tees, so if you'd like to show your appreciation of the Conchords and help support What The Folk! go have a look. Choc full of Conchords goodness. Tee shirts and more tee shirts. Some with writing on the front. Some with writing on the front and back. Have people peer at your chest in wonder!
A report from the Conchords El Rey gig last night has been posted on the WTF! forum. Sounds like a cool night and the Spanish HBO 'Bret and Jemaine' (the guys who are dubbing the Conchords TV series) showed up and joined in and Arj Barker providing the warm up act.
Bret and Jemaine x 2!
Guess what's happening in this photo? Answer: Genius.
Jemaine and Bret did "Think About It," then announced that HBO is dubbing the show into Spanish -- then introduced their Spanish counterparts. These guys could mimic them perfectly, only in Spanish. The crowd went nuts when Spanish Jemaine (on the right in this photo) did the bit about little slave kids making sneakers, because that's a whole lotta words to cram in, in Spanish. They repeated the entire song in Spanish.
USA Today reports that viewing figures are down for the Conchords TV series. Episode one managed about 1.5 million but this has now dropped to around 817,000. Read the article on USA Today.
Complex.com has a Conchords interview/article online. They aren't actually a real band you know.... read it all here
Vulture called the Conchords 'unlikely studs' I wonder what that means....
Its been bugging me ever since I first heard the name Murray Hewitt. Why that name? Familiar to many now as the Conchords band manager in their HBO TV series, but why not stick with Brian Nesbitt as they are more or less the same person, doing the same job so wonderfully ineptly. Eh? a fair few of you are probably going about now, Brian Nesbitt? Who he?
Allow me to explain... Brian Nesbitt was the bands manager on the BBC radio series, played by the same man, Rhys Darby. Listen to a clip of Brian in action here. Both characters, Brian and Murray are his creations. It seemed strange they never kept the character name as he was truly a great part in a great radio show. Anyways Rhys explained why he is now Murray Hewitt in the HBO TV series. He said - 'FOTC thought the BBC might own the rights to my Brian Nesbitt character. (although i don't see why as he's entirely my creation) so we had to change it to Murray Hewitt for the States. Murray is Brians cousin.'
Hey at least he's part of the family ;) Would explain a lot :p
Really, Darby was in top form in the Conchords BBC radio series, as were the Conchords themselves, and they were ably supported by some great comedians including Greg Proops, Rob Brydon, Daniel Kitson, Dan Antopolski and the great Neil Finn! Yes he. Appeared in all 6 parts. Class stuff.
For those that may be interested in the BBC radio series when it aired back in 2005 I compiled a weekly breakdown of all six parts, so you can read what it was all about (and see some close similarities to the HBO TV series). Read the BBC radio series report here
July 7 2007 - I heart Conchords fans
Why? Cause they send me such cool emails and tell me how much they like the Conchords and do pics like this! Lookie! A Bret and his stripey sweater! Its more famous than he is. Almost.
Thanks to Geaux Tiger for this South Park folkparody duo likeness. View the full size on the Fantastic page.
July 6 2007 - NPR for ya - UK FoTC fans can see them on BBC4!
Flight of The Conchords appeared in session on NPR yesterday. For your listening pleasure, here is the interview, interspersed with Conchords songs including Beautiful Girl, K.I.S.S.I.N.G (or A Kiss Is Not A Contract) Think About It and Something Special. Grab the entire thing in MP3 format here . Enjoy :) I'll get the individual songs up later.
UK Conchords fans who have BBC digital or satellite will be pleased to know that BBC4 have bought the rights to air the Conchords HBO TV series. So yeah, that means millions won't get to see it. Lets hope the Beeb air in sometime after that on BBC2 where more can see it.
Geekgeekgeekgeekgeekgeekgeek You have to read it to appreciate true geekdom. I am a mere sproutling in comparison :p
July 5 2007 - MP3 goodness for ya ... and other snippets from the official Whinging Pom!
Its official! I am a 'whinging pom' I guess my waffling about the TV show got noticed by someone :p Thanks Jemaine ;) Complaining at me for compaining about you *sniff* Noice :p
July 4 2007 - I see to avhe lots teh powa of typ :|
Its not my best brain day ever, in fact its more like my brain went 'bleh' and packed its bags and left. I have at least regained the ability to type it seems.
Firstly I'd like to say thank you again to all who have emailed in recently to tell me how great you think What The Folk! is *sniff* I'm pleased you are able to find what you need here regarding the Conchords and like it enough to come back and visit again. So thank you!
Anyways, I'm done with the soppy moment... Conchords news time
Episode 3 of Flight of The Conchords, Mugged aired last Sunday night on HBO. For me it was definitely an improvement on the first two episodes. I found more amusing moments and it was enjoyable. There was more Murray time which is always good in my book. Thank you Rhys Darby, you are class! And Arj Barker's Dave finally had me laughing a little.
I'm still not sold on the video clips or the studio versions of the songs. If anything that's the most difficult part to watch and enjoy and its only the guys dancing that saves it for me there. I'd like the music to drift in and out of the show more, rather than set songs and vids to go with them. And the lip synching distracts me from the song, so I end up closing my eyes so as to not notice that but then miss the dancing, which in turn makes me notice the non liveness of it all.... vicious circle :|
Really, of anyone out there who likes the Conchords, believe me I wanted to love the HBO series. And I didn't set high or unrealistic standards for it either. Having seen the three episodes so far, I am starting to like it, it's growing on me but its far from having the same impact as the BBC radio series did.
And in case anyone from HBO is reading this :p FoTC baseball caps = not cool. FoTC One Night Stand DVD = very cool. Where is it eh? Eh?
Next, the guys played Seattle this past weekend. Kali dropped a note to let me know she had posted a report from the gig on her blog. Read it here . Thanks Kali :)
And what of Bonnaroo? Alyson sent in her theory as to why the Conchords may not have gone over as well as we know they can. She said ' I was at the Bonnaroo set on Sunday. The boys were good but it's just a difficult venue. By Sunday people have been going full force for 3 days in the Tennessee sun and are exhausted. The Comedy tent is a long wait to get into and fans get restless. It's just hard to connect with an audience. Under the circumstances they were great. I loved it.'
June 30 2007 - Busiest month ever for WTF! O and Happy Leg Day Bret
Thanks people! What The Folk! has had is busiest month traffic wise... EVER! I've more than doubled the bandwidth used back when the One Night Stand show aired and outdone every other stat by a fair whack. Goes to show that interest is high and people are using the old Google on the Conchords. I was well prepared for the surge in interest and the site has coped with the increased demand. Wooo :) Long may it continue...
And to let you in a little something we've been working on, WTF! tees are arriving soon! The Bloke has tussled with the technical side and we've gotten the shop online, just need to go live sometime in the next few days, so keep your eyes peeled. We've kept it simple and hope people will find something they like in amongst the designs.
Bret McKenzie celebrated (who knows maybe he didn't 'celebrate' but it sounds better) his 31st birthday yesterday, and me being somewhat useless at that kind of detailed reporting I forgot to post about it. Hope it was a good one Bret! The cake I made was yum.
I posted about being under whelmed by the Conchords HBO series so far and got a fair few emails in reply. Thanks for those. Good to know what others are thinking and I may cobble together a page on the site and post them. And thank you also to those who have emailed in saying how much they like the site and what I do here. Always good to know that people are liking what I do.
I've updated the Conchords Vision page with the Letterman and Conan clips. Lots of others there also if you've not gotten them already. Have a peek around the page!
And now some *gasp* shocking news. Fake band reporting! MSN (a semi evil but it needs to be reported) posted a news story recently. It begins something like, well actually very like, this....
Musical talent is overrated. Just ask "American Idol" anomaly Sanjaya. Or Grammy-winning facade Milli Vanilli. Or "Saturday Night Live" scapegoat Ashlee Simpson, if you can locate the original parts.
Luckily, the stars of HBO's new comedy series "Flight of the Conchords" have plenty of chops.
And ummm when they say 'chops' do they mean these?
Bret in all his chops glory! (well it was his birthday, so what else am I supposed to do? Post pics of a cake? Pfffft! )
June 28 2007 - A million and one snippets (ok I fibbed, maybe its 12 plus one)
First up, I've a revised episode list for the Conchords HBO series. It changes with the wind at the moment, but its given me something else to do other than install electric fencing and watch Wimbledon.
Is this articlesaying the Conchords are ugly? Nerdy? OK, so maybe the guys are not trying to look hot in their series, but blimey, women all over seem to be swooning over them and finding them attractive and telling them so. The not trying thing seems to be having a reverse effect on the ladies out there ;)
Are you loving or hating the Conchords HBO series? Me? I'm still on the fence waiting for it to take off. I'm finding it hard to get in to from the first two episodes, but am hoping I'll get snagged by it soon. Both episodes have had moments, but nothing has really grabbed me. I am also finding the video segments hard going as the lip synching vids are not doing anything for me. I much prefer the live versions of songs especially She's So Hot... Boom! I like the more free wheeling take on their songs, but understand why thats not happening in the series. Anyways, I see potential :) I'm looking forward to episode 3 Mugged, with more Murray screentime. Class stuff from Rhys. Whatever happens, I'll watch all 12 epsodes.
EW.com ran a Top 100 (yeah you know the sort of thing) In the section 'TV stars were loving right now' the Conchords landed at number 18! Glimpse the Conchords diary while you are there. The made for TV version methinks :p
I'm told thatRolling Stone has a small piece on the Conchords this week. The cover has three ageing wrinklies going by the name The Police on it.
I've heard conflicting reports from the Bonnaroo Conchords gigs. Some loved them, others fell asleep. Anyone with a review from that or any other recent gig feel free to email it in.
June 22 2007 - NPR Conchords session (sounds naughty) and more
Flight of The Conchords have recorded a session for NPR's World Cafe due to air on July 5. So say SubPop, the Conchords US record label.
June 21 2007 - One for NZ comedy... 1.5 million US viewers!
So where was I before life decided to go wonky for me yesterday... Let's see
First up Flight of The Conchords did pretty well on Sunday night averaging 1.5 million viewers and keeping 55% of its lead in audience. So says Reuters. The NZ Herald reports mixed reviews from the US critics. Chortle UK reports more of the same.
Rebecca Barry over at NZ Herald writes about the Conchords. I won't mention how some TV stations/networks over in New Zealand were a bit dumb and passed up on the Conchords in years gone past. Oooops, I guess I just did. Ah well, the HBO show has been picked up by Prime (who beat TV3 to it) and will air there later this year. Lets hope the Conchords overseas success story opens the door to more home grown comedy on TV in New Zealand. Pay attention TV bigwigs! - You may not have good taste but 1.5 million TV viewing Americans and goodness knows how many Kiwi, Brits and <insert long list of countries this site has had hits from here> can't be wrong!
Next, Kristina sent in some pics of the guys performing at Bonnaroo this past weekend. Jemaine made an interesting wardrobe choice and revealed way more chest hair than I needed to see at 8am in the morning, my coffee missing the computer screen... just. Click on the thumbnails below to view the full size pics. Thanks Kristina :)
June 19 2007 - Dividing a nation of armchair critics. Or at least the HBO armchair critics
I've been trolling about the interweb in the name of research to see what people are saying about the Conchords HBO show. Bearing in mind only one episode has aired so far, its certainly stirring up some interest. People are either loving or loathing. Or else the middle of the roads are just not bothering to post about it anywhere ;)
And blimey some are already speculating on the show either a) being commisioned for a second series or b) being cancelled soon. Too funny! My thoughts on such things are a) the material used in the 12 episodes is pretty much everything the guys have done in the past, ooo 5 years. And only a few new songs have been written for the HBO show. I think they will be hard pressed to come up with 12 more episodes anytime soon. Besides, I think a one off season would be perfect. Remember they were not formed with a view to becoming a TV act, but are live performers, usually coming up with one new 'show' a year. And b) Its only 12 episodes, not 22 or 24 like most TV series seem to be. I cannot see HBO cancelling a 12 episode show. They are trying something new out and want to see where it goes over the next 12 week run. Let's see what it paves the way for eh :)
Is it me or have the versions of the songs changed between the online pilot and TV pilot. Others seem to have spotted the same thing. I think I preferred the online pilot. And what happened to the opening credits? Bring back the old ones!
Brooklyn Vegan has a fan review up on the Rhys Darby / Conchords gig last week.
June 18 2007 - So.. how was it for you?
Weeks, months, nay years of anticipation and humming Business Time lyrics to yourself to get you in the mood... only it wasn't Wednesday.... it was better than that! Episode 1 day! For half an hour, well 23 minutes and 38 seconds to be exact, but better than two minutes in heaven and defo better than one ;)
So on a bigger screen, with better sound... hope you enjoyed. I'm guessing many had already seen it online, but I am hoping people tuned in and watched on TV also. Has to improve the viewing of it. If it didn't quite grab you, I am told things improve over the next couple of weeks...
What am I going to do with myself now? *panics* The flurry of everyone and his dog reporting on the upcoming Conchords show is over, now we just have to wait for the flurry of reporting on the rest of it.... if there is any. Hit or miss and all that hoopla that you can only find around TV ratings. I'm going on the record now to say that I don't give a toss if its a ratings hit or not. If its good, its good, bad its bad and regardless people will either like it or not. Each to their own, taste is subjective. I was underwhelmed by the pilot, but saw the potential and where the guys might run with it so hold out that the series will pick up as it continues. I'll be watching with interest :)
Now for the news round up of Conchords HBO write ups for you...
Firstly, kebab does rhyme with cab. If you are a Brit or a Kiwi that is. *eyes spelling of kebab* so *nyer* National Post says otherwise but thinks thats where the genius lies... in a kebab! The very last part of the interview caught my eye...
'As our interview ends, I ask Clement and McKenzie if there's anything they'd like to add about the new show. "Give us one chance, I'm asking the reader," replies Clement, with the faintest earnestness.
"Let the readers know that it's our first show we've ever made, and we didn't know what we were doing," adds McKenzie.
"If they don't like it, we were really trying," Clement concludes. "Have them know we were really trying." ' Read the interview here (or don't, National Post had me pull the article)
TVGuide not wanting to miss out on some Conchords action, came up with a great interview. The guys sounded like they were kicking back a bit. Go read it here.
The Conchords - quirky, offbeat, strange, funny and unique. Allegedly.I'll stick with 'rather talented'
June 17 2007 - It's showtime! Congrats Conchords :)
Telling you the obvious here, but on the off chance someone has been living under a rock that was stuck on the moon for a few thousand years before finally falling to earth and landing in Outer Mongolia (yes such a place exists in the world) only to be buried under a pile of yak dung until being tripped over by an intrepid explorer (or local, but I thought interpid explorer sounded better) who upon standing, lifted the rock and discovered a person hiding underneath. And lo that person was YOU!
Well you, that one-hiding-under-a-dung-covered-rock-hermit might not have heard but Flight of The Conchords episode one, Sally, airs tonight on HBO. 11 more episodes have been made, which you can read about on our HBO page. Cast and episode lists can also be found there.
TVNZ ran an article about the Conchords and the HBO series. Over 100 days straight working on the show! In need of a holiday methinks.
TV Blend have a Conchords article online also. I'm noticing that much like Eagle vs Shark being compared to some film called Napoleon Dynamite, when stuck for how to describe the Conchords many people in the press and a fair few of the general viewing public use the Tenacious D comparison. Tenacious D know of the Conchords btw, Gass having seem them live ;) Maybe I am living on a different planet, but I just don't see the two as being remotely alike. Nor that the Conchords are ripping The D's act off. Conchords are far more subtle and laid back than the more livewire and in your face Tenacious D (and yes, I listen to The D also). In the name of science, I started a forum thread on it! Feel free to sign up and discuss this or anything else Conchords or not so Conchords related.
Detriot Free Press call the Conchords a 'giggly flight of fancy' and really like what they have seen. Read what they said here. Thanks Robin for the link :)
Washington Post has a Conchords review. Its in the 'we like it' camp!
June 16 2007 - I wanted to say something classy and inspirational
but Keanu Reeves already used that line ;) I'm amused and somewhat speechless at the amount of press coverage the guys are getting in the US. Promoting their HBO show is serious stuff. Maybe its my Britishness, or that I've simply been following them too long, but I find it all a bit, well at bit excessive (thats not a complaint, merely an observation). Two down to earth guys and the media circus surrounding them. Guess it comes with the territory. HBO have sunk time and effort into promoting this series at the young adult demographic, lets hope they are rewarded and people enjoy the series :)
OK, I giggled/snickered when I saw the listing this NY Times article was filed under. Fashion and Style. Just brilliant and caused much mirthful gigglings round our house. Its a film not a bloody handbag! The writer got a few colourful references as to clothing items that were being worn by Jemaine. Shagadelic? Yes well, the article in between the fashion descriptions was pretty decent and an enjoyable read.
ViewImage has some great pictures from the same night (and earlier) of Jemaine, Bret, Taika, Loren and others. 9 pages in fact. Due to copyright I cannot put them online here but you can go view them here. And then you can do a search for Jemaine Clement and see a few more!
The Salon ran an article on the Conchords. Read it here
And to show I am not biased and only running the good Conchords reviews, here is a scathing one from seattlepi.com (scroll down page a little). I can actually understand why for some the TV series just does nothing for them. The first episode didn't work for me very well either. I think that the Conchords live versus the Conchords TV series are two very different creatures, even if the guys and director James Bobin have strived to make it a comfortable transition. Mind you, some don't like them live either, so no pleasing everyone.
And yet another sold out picture to make me smile...
Selling out!Murray/Brian would encourage it :p
June 15 2007 - Conchords NPR interview online and gig/ticket updates
Flight of The Conchords were interviewed on NPR yesterday. Some amusing and enlightening moments plus they performed Beautiful Girl, I'm Not Crying and Think About It live. Listen to it HERE
And from the recent NY gigs.... Apparently the set list was similar to the Philly gig but the guys included Busdrivers Song (one of my favourites of theirs from way back) If You're Into It and as part of their encore they played Mother*uckers (classic Conchords - alas I only have a bootleg version of it) and Angels. Good to see the old material making a comeback! Thanks Adam for the snippets.
Something about this picture makes me smile :)
although I know it might pain those unable to get tickets :(
There are many more HBO reviews, blog and forum comments out there, but I think I am going to pass on listing them all here on the site. After a while they all start sounding the same to me and I don't want to confuse my brain more than I have to and end up posting the same article two or three times :| So I'm saving the finger wear and tear and giving you what I feel are the better (for good or bad) articles and blog comments.
June 14 2007 - part deux
So many Conchords stories, interviews and articles floating about the interweb right now that its in danger of clogging up my brain. Doesn't take much lets face it. Before my brain collapes in a heap of Conchords overload, here are the lastest news updates.
New York Observer ran a great article a little while back that I forgot to mention in all the madness of the past week or so. Very deserving of a read methinks....
'The Sopranos' is done! Will New Zealand’s folk parody duo Flight of the Conchords keep the network from getting whacked? by Sara Vilkomerson
You’ve come a long way, baby: Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie.Photo: Nicole Rivelli
On Saturday, June 2—the kind of hot and humid day that only inspires a dread of July and August—cast and crew members of HBO’s new show Flight of the Conchords crowded into a small soundstage at Steiner Studios in the Brooklyn Navy Yards.
Inside, an elaborate set was made up to look like the prototypical I-hope-to-make-rent-next-month New York City apartment: two twin beds in a cramped bedroom, an overstuffed, dingy striped sofa, some ironic art on the walls, single dishes and glasses, etc..... Continue reading article here
EW.com has run a great interview with Bret and Jemaine. 3 pages of Conchords goodness for you. Read it all over here
Scripps News says that 'HBO returns to form with 'Flight of the Conchords' Terry Morrow continues... 'After failing to find interesting and engaging comedies to follow in the hallowed footsteps of "Sex and the City" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm," the cable channel has finally gotten it right with "Flight."
It's the quirky story of transplanted New Zealand folk musicians Jemaine and Bret (Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie) who are trying to make it in New York City. The story borders on surrealism. It follows the duo trying to date women in the big city or finding time to practice for their next, non-paying gig or finding enough money for food..... Read the rest of the article here
June 14 2007 - Number 1 fan!
Eh? I hear you collectively ask. Someone knows how to make me sound not batty. Yes 'eh' indeed.
USA Today film critic Susan Wloszczyna has written a humourous article after interviewing the Conchords and humble lil moi recently. Susan being the writer who gave Bret McKenzie some USA Today column space a few years back and has enjoyed following his career ever since. I think its great that fans are given opportunities like this to explain their interest in the Conchords. Not all fans are the fan girl stereotype (if there is such a thing for folk parody) or stalker woman extraordinaire ;) Hell, the extent of my stalkering is that when the guys were supposedly doing some promotion for Phones 4 U a few years back I *thought* about going to the nearby city to see them. But then I thought not :p So yes, I am super-failed-miserably- at-the-first-teeny-tiny-hurdle No 1 fan! Wooo. Mel has nothing on me
No. 1 fans — on-screen and on tour - By Susan Wloszczyna (read article on USA Today)
One of the funnier conceits of HBO's Flight of the Conchords is its take on rocker-groupie relations. The show's out-of-work band consisting of New Zealanders Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement might be reduced to eating "found food" (better known as garbage) and moonlighting as human billboards on the streets of Manhattan.
But they can always count on Mel, their No. 1 and only fan, to stand by them. They would just feel better if she stood farther away. Without a court order, if possible..... Read the rest of the article here
The cute one and the cute one with glasses
Also Susan wrote a charming piece about the Conchords HBO show. She has seen the first four episodes and tells me she was "utterly charmed".
The Conchords take 'Flight' with new series and spoofs - By Susan Wloszczyna
They come from a land down under. No, not Australia. New Zealand. (You know, those two tiny lumps over to the right that vaguely resemble Middle-earth.)
Shaggy Kiwi musicians Bret McKenzie, 31, and Jemaine Clement, 33, are the stars of HBO's newest series, which takes its title from their band name. Fueled by boyish whimsy and clever pop parodies, Flight of the Conchords premieres Sunday (10:30 ET/PT).
The two ex-roomies, who have known each other since the mid-'90s, play scruffier versions of themselves, struggling troubadors living in a dingy one-room flat on New York's Lower East Side, desperate to find gigs and attract girls.... Read the rest of the article here
A few other snippets - Televisionary ran a cool piece on the Conchords.
Variety reviewed the first four Conchords episodes and the writer seems to be slightly underwhelmed but found some good things to say.
June 13 2007 - Another day, another update, another hair turns an invisible shade of grey!
College Humor has an online interview clip with the Conchords. Yay for the 'embed' option.
Ellen, a forum regular went along to the Conchords Philly gig yesterday and has posted a review of sorts, as only Ellen can! I like your style Ms ;) Thanks for the report.
Flight of The Conchords bathed in pink light at the TLA on June 12, 2007
Here's the complete set list from last night:
The Most Beautiful Girl In The Room
Robots (AKA The Humans Are Dead)
Something Special For The Ladies
I'm Not Crying
Business Time
Albi
K.I.S.S.I.N.G.
Bowie
Think About, Think, Think About It
Jenny
Encore: Mother*uckers
Some news from the gig: I probably shouldn't be telling you this, because as we all know, what happens on tour stays on tour, but ... the guys did mention that they had tuna sandwiches for lunch yesterday. You heard it here first.
Additionally, the sing-along disease has apparently spread from New York to Philly, and surprisingly, the latest song to fall victim was Albi. Bret said that had never happened before, and Albi is said to be resting comfortably after nearly being sung to death by a crowd of Philadelphians.
Opening act Kristen Schaal was great - the part where she read the phonebook aloud, discovered Amelia Earhart’s number, and proceeded to phone her on stage was probably my favorite. She's a gem.
I also had the pleasure of meeting a fellow forum member last night and we followed up the Conchords show with another equally enjoyable one with The Phoenix Foundation.
Thanks to FoTC and Kristen Schaal for bringing their considerable talents to Philadelphia, and special thanks to my fellow Philadelphians for not screaming out "Business Time" every five minutes.
Next, Rob Thomas over atmadison.com talked about the Conchords on the HBO schedule. I've skipped some of it and jumped to the Conchords part below...
Media musings: Conchords will help fill void left by Sopranos
HBO is also premiering the fourth season of "Entourage" this Sunday, just two weeks after the third season ended, displaying a much more rigorous work ethic than any of the characters on the show actually do. But I'm not complaining, because "Entourage" is a big hit for HBO and will hopefully prove a nice lead-in to "Flight of the Conchords," a dry and winning comedy that has become a new favorite of mine.
"Flight of the Conchords," which premieres at 9:30 p.m. Sunday, features the New Zealand music-comedy duo of Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, two scruffy, likable guys basically playing fictionalized versions of themselves, roaming the Lower East Side in Threadless T-shirts trying desperately to be hipster indie-rock stars and not quite getting there.
To finish off the day here is last nights appearance on Letterman for you to watch or download. Enjoy! Watch or download the Letterman clip here - Conchords performing Beautiful Girl (28MB)
Conchords on Letterman. Well, on stools actually, but on Letterman too. Sort of....
June 12 2007 - Jemaine's having a busy week.... lets play 'find the Bret interview' C'mon people, there has to be one!
Jemaine seems to be attracting plenty of media attention due to Eagle vs Shark and the HBO show both being out this weekend. But what about Bret? OK, so he doesn't have a film to promote, but he's half a Conchord. Surely that deserves a bit of an interview to himself? Besides he has a legion (ok maybe a few less than that) of stripey sweater fans who want to know what became of the infamous item of Bret clothing.
My one thought about these clips... what have they done to their accents? In the Inner City song Bret sounds like he is trying to be Neil Tennant. Bizzare. And just a little creepy.
I'll get the Letterman appearance online later. I rather liked it. And defo preferred them singing live in front of an audience over the lip synched video clip in the HBO show. T'was cool.
O and CenterDaily website has a video interview (mostly just the guys videos though) where they explain a little about some of their songs came to be. Click 'Clips of Conchords' under the picture of them.
June 10 2007 - New Zealand.... It's not Australia! Majorly long updateage abounds
In between attempting to have a life and actually managing to have one, I find time to run this place and on occasion throw together some words to make this site happen. Its a gorgeous sunny day so of course I am sat inside, like the true Conchords geek I am and writing all this *waves hand dramatically*
So without further ado, because I want to go sit out under the apple tree in the orchard and read my book.....
Holden wrote in to tell me about some goodies HBO are dangling. Many of you may have seen and even attempted to play the online Survive Night Gig game (I did for all of a nanosecond and was bored, I'm not much into games) - where Jemaine defends Bret from some rampaging New York feral pigeons armed with nothing more than a kebab. Classy.
Anyways, the backing track sounds alot like the Pet Shop Boys song West End Girls, but its not. The guys sing about inner city pressure and lint on sweaters. Sweet.
And after the game? Well, according to Holden apparently this happens *whispers* 'When I won the game (or lost - hard to tell) they guys transform into robots and the Robots promo vid plays. Note that after the game when the Robots vid is playing or has finished, if you click on the circuits in the bottom right, a little Flash animation plays with Murray and a band meeting about playing night gigs. Note that the poster behind Murray says "New Zealand... It's not Australia." ' Thanks Holden :)
And as if that wasn't enough, iTunes are doing their bit for the Conchords and HBO. On the main HBO Conchords page, look for the 'Download Podcast' bit. From there you can go to iTunes and get the song clips from the pilot episode. Except they are titled differently. Look for 'Rain Ballard' and 'Pretty Song'. Lost? Go via - Store menu, Search, Podcasts and
search for "Flight" in "Title". Other snippets abound there. Have fun.
The blessing of being a comedian from New Zealand is that your accent will make anything you say sound a little bit funny to American ears, whether you intend it or not. The curse is that your naturally laid-back attitude and innate stoicism will cause some people — say, television executives — to doubt your commitment to your art, and others to question your career choice altogether.
“People are always surprised to hear that I’m a comedian,” said Jemaine Clement, a shaggy, low-key New Zealander with ample sideburns and a pair of Elvis Costello glasses, who is one-half of the musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords. “Like, people will say: ‘But you’re not funny. You don’t even talk.’ ” read the rest of the article here
And meanwhile over at the New York Post, Sara Stewart interviewed the guys and wrote this article -
Kiwi Con Men - New Zealand comedy duo masters the offbeat
Flight of the Conchords Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie, who had a bit part in "LOTR." Two awkward, thirtysomething guys in a music-parody band have their own HBO show coming out? Something here rings a bell.
"We joked about calling it Tenacious Dundee," says Bret McKenzie, one half of New Zealand folk duo Flight of the Conchords.
Sure, there are surface similarities between their upcoming self-titled show and "Tenacious D," which made Jack Black and Kyle Gass household names: half-hour episodes are built around the relationship between the two guys and their travails in the music biz, interspersed with actual songs.
And then, of course, there's the rabid cult following of comedy insiders.... read the rest here
Guitar hugging folk parodists
The LA Times also ran an article this weekend about both Eagle vs Shark and Flight of The Conchords. If you want to read the whole thing starting with Eagle vs Shark then go HERE, if you want to skip the E v S blurb and get to the Conchords stuff, go HERE
June 8 2007 - Let the mayhem begin. Or at the very least, slightly chaotic... maybe a little hectic perhaps?
TV Guide has a mention of the Conchords and the HBO show also. And lo, I've another scan for you. Click here or image for full size scan Awww Jemaine broke his arm for the show! Or at least got something like an arrow in it? (Bret suffered that injury during the BBC radio series I seem to recall.... ) Thanks to Andria for the scans :)
And to finish up some pics of the goodies from the Austin screening party. Thanks to poptartgirl for these :)
I'll call the one on the left Jemaine, the other Bret ....
O wait a minute.... crudlet :|
June 6 2007 - Conchords goodness abounds!
Conchords appearing on Conan - June 19th. I'll put up the TV listing once it puts in an appearance.
More promo clips from the upcoming HBO show. Looks promising anyways. And for no extra charge on the normal no charge, you can download them here also :)
June 2 2007 - The Distant Future EP - In the not so distant future!
SubPop have announced a Conchords EP. Finally! And a full length CD hopefully out before the end of the year.
Sub Pop says 'On August 7, 2007, we will be releasing a Flight of the Conchords EP, entitled The Distant Future! Here’s the track listing:
Business Time
If You’re Into It
Crying
Beautiful Girl (live)
Robots (live)
I'm not to sure what I think of the track listing for the EP. Its to tie in with the HBO series so it makes sense to include these songs. Business Time seems to be a favourite of many thanks to internet clips and is often quoted back to the guys. Its an old song however dating from 2003/04. I've not listened to it in eons as it was never a favourite of mine. Crying, Beautiful Girl and Robots (Humans Are Dead) have all been used in the first episode of the HBO Conchords series. Means people will be familiar with them by the time the EP comes out. Of those three songs Robots is the only one already widely known on the internet. Crying has never really made it out there, but was put to good use in the 2005 BBC radio series and in live shows back in 2003 (or was that 2004). Beautiful Girl is a more recent song, first performed in early 2006. If You're Into It dates from 2003/04 and was used in the Conchords live shows and in the BBC radio series. It will also make an appearance in the HBO series. Studio tracks will be interesting to hear anyways.
For more Conchords songs, check out the Sound and Vision pages.
Once again gravity defies them or else Jemaine is taking the expression 'keeping an ear to the gound' a little to literally. By Sam Erickson
31.05.07 - Read what everyone else thinks about the Conchords and their pilot. I have!
Since HBO launched the Conchords TV pilot online people all over the world have an opinion about them and it! Blogs and websites have given space to the Conchords. Most of them praise the guys and thinks they are wonderful, amazingly funny, good looking (some of the ladies use the word 'hot' I do believe) and extremely talented. That there is some monster ego stroking waffle, so lets hope the rest of the series lives up to expectations.
Read what everyone else in blogworld is saying about the Conchords show, in no particular order - TV Squad - EW Popwatch - Spare Room - LAist - Vulture err, ok so only 5 blog people but hey, I guess I talk about a lot of people blogging the Conchords. Not only do I talk about it, I talk about it a lot.
Yeah, I do talk about it a lot. I talk about reading lots of blogs. A lot.
OK, so someone has to stop me here cause I am having a lot of fun talking about blogs! And talking about having lots of fun to. Yeah.... *knowing nod*
21.05.07 - Conchords overload (in other words, you can watch the HBO pilot everywhere)
Check out the rest of the HBO Conchords promotions department's hard work here on HBO . Do TheArseOfTheInter... I mean MySpace thing here.
New HBO Conchords ad online. Thanks again Vanessa.
Canadian TV has bought the Conchords HBO series and will air it sometime this summer by the looks of it. Read it on Reuters Canada. Those in New Zealand wondering when they will see it, tune in to Prime later in the year. Read about the Prime news here on What The Folk!
Blogs are going into overdrive with mentions of the Conchords thanks to the HBO push on them. Cool to see . Except now my eyes are worn out. And still wishing people would learn to spell Brit and Germaine correctly.
16.05.07 - omg the Conchords are tiny! HBO episode online to view
The HBO programme promotion department (or whatever it calls itself, but I'm calling it that) has been working overtime. For those that use TheArseOfTheInter... I mean MySpace, HBO has set up a Conchords page to promote the forthcoming TV series. Nifty marketing at the userbase if I do say so myself ;) And wooooo!
So, if you want to watch the premiere episode on a teenytiny screen, therefore making the Conchords appear really tiny, go HERE. Other goodies can also be found there. Thanks D for the heads up :)
And no, don't ask me what I thought of it, because I've not seen it and don't plan to. My eyes don't do tiny or TheArseOfTheInter... I mean MySpace. I'm waiting for it to air on TV properly ta very much. Read other peoples reactions and discuss on the What The Folk! forum
Next up, an interesting article tells about the whys of HBO airing the pilot episode this way. Turns out that from next Monday, it'll be in lots more places and people can share it - legally! About bloody time HBO :> Wooo. Article says 'users can legally share the full episode, which will be portable via codes that allow them to embed the episode on blogs, websites, and social networking profiles.' Looks to me like HBO are branching out into new and as yet uncharted areas of home entertainment with this streaming and sharing set up. And as the Conchords have a bit of a cult following globally and are popular on places such as TheArseOfTheInter... I mean MySpace, it seems to make sense for HBO to try out something new via those places. Test dummies r us you lot :p
10.05.07 - Read this and weep!
HBO Flight of The Conchords screening previews! Yes they briefly existed....
June 6*Update* They came, they got a bit pissed thanks to free drinks, they saw the pilot, they laughed a bit, collected the freebies and then it was over. The preview screenings were no more. But fun was had by those that went, even if it did rain lots in Philly!
Stick men ahoy!
07.05.07 - I'm a bit weird and spend too much time here - but you already knew that right?
Its official. I can waste hours tinkering with stuff here on What The Folk! Tweaking pages, tidying code or researching for news updates. This however is a step to far in dedication :p I've updated the Conchords HBO page with a cast, crew and partial episode list (more updates to follow as they come in). Talk about hardly known actors appearing in this series. Some are so unknown I could not find a picture anywhere so resorted to using this guys (? ladies) pic!
Whoever you are, your possibly stunning good looks shall remain a mystery.. for now
Anyways, it took me a while. So go appreciate the fruits of my hard work. Please :)
06.05.07 - Conchords gigs - New York & Philadelphia - June 12, 13 & 14 - LA July 11
Conchords gigs are appearing round the US. All around the time the new HBO series airs and (hopefully) when the new album is released. Five so far. Here is hoping a few more are planned.
Gigs listed in Philadelphia and New York in June and LA in July. Full Conchords gig info over on the Gig Info page. SOLD OUT
Is it me or do I read too much into things? Looking at the gig locations, I wonder if the gig in LA is the last we will see of the Conchords in the US for a while before taking a well earned break from all things Conchord like. I'm half expecting them to fly back to New Zealand from LA once the gigs are all completed. But then again, I'm not an oracle of all things Conchords so chose to ignore this train of thought :p
The Conchords have released an album already then? Why yes they have. Two infact! First this one....
Available from Smoke CD's in New Zealand (price is NZ $ people :p ) Self funded by the guys back in 2002. Help support them by buying it legally :)
And then this one... (although its a BBC release if you want to be technical)
27.04.07 - Jemaine wrote all the songs! Rhys blogs
Check out the new Conchords HBO page here on What The Folk! Choc stuffed with screencaps, clips, downloads and er some other stuff.
Next, Rhys Darby, friend and fellow comedian of Bret and Jemaine posted to his blog about the Conchords show recently (Rhys plays the part of the bands manager)- 'Well we're over half way through shooting 'Flight of the Conchords' for HBO. It's been an absolute blast. I've seen rough cuts of the first few episodes and I'm very happy with how its all looking. I feel I can safely say that if you're a Conchords fan then you'll faint with delight.
The three of us have done so much improvising around our scenes that sometimes it causes us to fall off the handle laughing and we forget there's twenty or so crew standing around us waiting to move to the next location. I'm sure there'll be lots of deleted scenes and bloopers for the dvd.
Things are getting pretty exciting now with the promos starting on TV and the word on street starting to spread.
I can't help wondering what life will be like for me in a couple of months time???'
DVD!! Would be nice, but first HBO need to get it together and release the Conchords One Night Stand episode! Come on HBO, its been long enough! Or are they waiting to cash in if the series is a hit? *mutters*
HBO Conchords promo
Bu bu but what did they do to Pencils In The Wind? (the song in the clip about the tape of love and sticking it together) One of my favourite Conchords songs no less! Its gone all studio sounding. Are they not allowed to use the word 'sellotape' in it? Or maybe its not a word the US audience would be familiar with? Its a UK and NZ thing according to Wiki :| I am already missing the insaneness of that song at the end. Live its brilliantly mad and the CD live version goes further into the realms of bonkers sounding. Somehow that HBO snippet fell short for me :/ I can only wait and see how the song turns out in the series once it airs. I think it comes down to the difference between the live and studio recordings and I know which I prefer.
Yeah, I know. However I don't often gripe about stuff the guys do, but every now and again something doesn't work for me and I can't help but wonder. This time I am wondering out loud to you all.
24.04.07 - The not so distant future - The year 2007
Screencap goodness from the HBO promo clips.
Don't you dare call them square! Well ok if you must. More kind of oblong though....
No doubt HBO will be showing them morning noon and night in the run up to June, if the past week or so is anything to go by. Anyone records any of them, feel free to send them in to me
One of the many promos for Flight of The Conchords HBO series.
12.04.07 - News for New Zealand fans - FoTC and Eagle vs Shark snippets
NZ Listener reported in its March 31- April 6 edition that TV3 in New Zealand were interested in picking up the Conchords HBO series. The blurb (scroll to end of page) read 'Kiwi folk parody duo Flight of the Conchords are currently filming their self-titled HBO series, which is scheduled to screen in the US from June 1. TV3 has expressed an interest in acquiring the series, having been the only channel here to take any notice of Flight of the Conchords (it screened an Inside New Zealand documentary last year)'.
However, the very latest Listener edition to hit the shelves apparently says that Prime TV in New Zealand have bought the rights and will be showing it there.
UPDATE April 13 - NZ Listener says 'Prime TV has beaten TVNZ and TV3 to the punch by acquiring the Flight of the Conchords’ HBO series, which the folk-parody comedy duo are currently filming in the US. The channel plans to screen the series later in the year, probably in partnership with the comedy it has commissioned from the Gibson Group, Paradise.'
The Listener also has the Conchords article from December 2006 online incase you missed it. If you want to see the magazine scans with pics, view them here on What The Folk!
07.04.07 - The Conchords want your apartment! Get cleaning... or or just... chuck stuff under thesofa/bed/rug
I'm back from wafting round the south of France (it was lovely thanks) I have some news updates for you. Quite a bit in fact, so get comfy.
First up - The Conchords want your apartment! But only if its 'great' (I read that as meaning cool) and in a certain neighbourhood. Whats wrong with tiny, cramped, windowless and damp I ask you! Its in keeping with the 'trying to earn a crust in New York' style I reckon they are going with.
Location details of the apartment signs - Metropolitan Ave. and Berry St. in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Others apartment signs are within a few blocks radius of this. Thanks to Will for the info.
Thanks to Will for the pic. Can't read the small teeny tiny print? Click HERE for full size image or read on.......
Do you have a great apartment? Show it off on HBO.
Dear Neighbor,
Home Box Office is producing a new television series titled 'Flight of The Conchords'. The series is a scripted half hour comedy based on the popular two-man-band from New Zealand, the Conchords. We are currently scouting possible filming locations in your neighbourhood. We are looking for apartments, preferably on the 1st or 2nd floor.
If you are interested please call me at (### ### ####) to discuss the details of our project. If your property is used we will pay a location fee. We are fully insured and working in full co-operation with the New York Mayor's Office for Film. Thanks for your consideration.
Next up, US gig confirmed - June 30 2007 - Seattle :20 Funny Festival at the McCaw Hall/Seattle Center. Tickets go on sale Friday April 13 at 9am. The Conchords are headlining the Funny :> Click for ticket booking information
Yes you too can see the guys looking this thrilled and animated when you see them live! Pic by D R Cochran
And thanks to Meli who dropped me a note to let me know Bic Runga posted to her Arse of the inter... MySpace page recently and mentioned about stopping by and seeing the Conchords on set in Brooklyn - 'Caught up with the Flight of the Conchords in NY, visited their set in Brooklyn. It's like the Young Ones set, or like Ernie and Berts apartment. They're making a 12 part comedy series for HBO about a New Zealand band trying to make it in America. It looks like a lot of fun, they've made a music video for every episode!'
Music video for every episode eh. I wonder which songs they used or if they wrote new ones.
O and Happy belated Birthday toBATS theatre. Celebrating 18 years this past week. A local Welly venue the Conchords have performed at in the past. And hopefully again in the future... speaking of which... although its from the past, they sing about the future in the past and talk about the present, although now the past, if you want to be picky. Yeah I do know what I'm talking about :| As does Jemaine. Watch and see!
Humans Are Dead/Robots
Thanks to some nifty time tripping the Conchords tell all about Bowie and his songs.
Bowie
And if you've made it this far and have not seen the Conchords HBO One Night Stand performance, all 30 (give or take a couple) minutes of it, its now on Google Video
26.03.07 - Conchords filming today in Prospect Park West
Filming today in/near Prospect Park West between 3rd and 4th St's. So I am informed. GoogleMap of the area
Thanks to a uhhh a certain Kiwi who shall remain nameless for the heads up :D
NZ Stuff ran a Dominion Post article on the filming recently. Apparently its a veritable Kiwi fest on set. Oooerr! Taika Waititi will be directing a couple of episodes, one which he has written himself and another written by Duncan Sarkies, a fellow Kiwi who wrote Scarfies which starred one Taika Waititi.... see... Kiwi fest!
And there appears to be an album release to tie in with the series airing. A double helping of Conchord goodness arriving soon.... Read the article here
24.03.07 - Nobody panic! Its months away yet.... Panic! Its months away yet!
Hence me not getting off my arse sooner to post these news snippets.
First up, its been written in Variety (so it must be true) that the Conchords HBO series will air this summer.
Now, I did some digging and here is where it gets interesting.... StarNewsOnline reports a Sunday evening 10.30pm time slot for the Conchords show? If my powers of deduction are correct, it'll hopefully begin airing June 17 or thereafter. The article talks about the new line up to replace the Sunday night void left by The Sopranos. 'John', Big Love, Entourage and Flight of The Conchords are earmarked into the schedule apparently. The article (just the important stuff here) says -
'Though that does not sound like a genre that would have built-in appeal — like, say, gangster stories — “John” has been fast-tracked, moving into production quicker than anything HBO has done. It is also getting a blessed push-off on June 10 at 10 p.m. immediately after the final scene of “The Sopranos.” “John” will emerge as a new signature show for the channel, becoming the 9 p.m. centerpiece of an expanded three-hour Sunday block running through the summer. Previously HBO had filled only the 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. block with original series; starting in June that will begin at 8 p.m.....
....Bracketing “John” at 8 and 10 p.m. will be HBO’s two most-talked about returning series, the drama “Big Love,” with its family of increasingly desperate polygamists, and the comedy “Entourage,” which, with its adventures of footloose young men in Hollywood, ranks as HBO’s chief holdover cultural phenomenon.
HBO will be adding a new comedy at 10:30 p.m., “Flight of the Conchords,” about a singing duo from New Zealand encountering life in New York.'
Pic - Amy Tierney
17.03.07 - The Classic turns 10
'Eh?' I hear you say. Well, it might not mean much to most of the planet, but The Classic in Auckland, home of live New Zealand comedy celebrated 10 years in business this very week!
The Classic was home to Conchord gigs in their early days, and some since then :p and can boast a huge list of performers past and present. Conchords cohorts Rhys Darby, Taika Cohen (Waititi) Arj Barker, Daniel Kitson and goodness knows how many others have all performed there.
Congratulations to The Classic! Looking forward to the next 10!
14.03.07 - I've seen a sign! Conchords HBO filming underway - tomorrow!
No actual sightings of the Conchords themselves yet, but there was a sign! The HBO show is apparently going to be filming in Berry tomorrow, March 15. Blogger Will says the sign is 'up by the tennis courts on Berry' if that means anything to New Yorkers who might want to amble along to see if they can have a squizz at the goings on. My quick bit of digging turned up Berry in Brooklyn..... you can do the rest of the detective work from there I am sure. I don't live in New York to be of much use for giving out directions :p
09.03.07 - It might be ancient, but its still funny
Flight of The Conchords - Something Special For The Ladies
If memory serves me correct, this is an Australian TV series called Stand Up from 2004. Or maybe not. I'll have to ask. Anyway, song is from the 2002 season and on the Folk The World CD, but the guys have refined it and it sounds way better here. Jemaine asking "is that possible?" at the start had me cracking up. Enjoy!
08.03.07 - L&P still world famous in New Zealand
L&P have recently added a new bit to their campaign and Jemaine is once again providing the voiceover. Check out thenew L&P radio ads. Six to choose from. Thanks to our resident zombie, Mr Zombie for pointing me to this.
I also reported last November that Jemaine lent his dulcet tones to the L&P TV advertising campaign. Much amused. Shame Jemaine never appeared in the Stubbies ad himself. His voiceover cracks me up, but his appearance, his legs appearance, would have been classic.
Go visit L&P, world famous in New Zealand since ages ago or click HERE for a Jemaine mp3. Watch the Stubbies ad with Jemaine voiceover below. Men in shorts! Men in tight shorts! Stubbies!
04.03.07 - HBO series inches ever forward
How do I know this? Well, one Rhys Darby has recently relocated to New York. Handy that, as he is appearing in the HBO series as the Conchords manager. Filming is due to begin this month. Any news comes in, I'll be sure to share.
15.02.07 - Snippets snippets everywhere
People in New Zealand can now purchase the Conchords BBC radio show CD over there. Marbecks is stocking it. Other countries can order the CD online from the following sites listed on the Shop Til You Drop page
A few blogs are mentioning What The Folk! and the HBO news I posted here recently. Rumours.... pfffft ;) Read it over on The Coming and TV Squad. Cheers for the mentions! And if anyone asks what news I'll throw a brick... over there.... Or I'll send you to the write up to catch up - HBO news
14.01.07 - Pssssst! New year, new news. Read it here first!
Exclusive news snippet! - The Conchords are busy in LA writing their HBO script. Yes, you know that. But did you know that it starts filming in March sometime. I don't have a definite start date, but I hear that is when Bret and Jemaine should begin filming in New York. Looking at around four months filming time for the 12 part series.Wooo!
And on to other news - A few people have been emailing asking if the Conchords are playing any gigs in the near future. Well, I asked them and alas, no, they don't have any planned. Too busy writing the HBO show and recording at the moment and they sadly don't have the time for gigs or even social lives.
And of that long awaited second Conchords album.... its still in the works for 2007. The guys mentioned (when letting me know about the gigs) they are busy recording at the moment, so who knows, it may well be the album they are working on. If anything new comes my way on this story, I'll be sure to share. Thanks to the guys for the album news update. I know 2007 has 11 and a bit months left, but it gives us something to look forward to Conchords wise.
Stuff reports a story titled Which tribe are you? The Conchords apparently fall in 'The Cuba Street Tribe' = Funky. The definition reads ' The hipster tribe on the cutting edge of cool, where "new" is the greatest virtue, being labelled mainstream the greatest fear and self-expression the preoccupation. In the 1980s it was the vanguard of espresso, in the 1990s of body piercing and tattoos - Found in: Bohemian areas of our largest cities attending art schools and the coolest gigs.'
And to wrap things up today, the Wellingtonista had its first Annual Wellingtonista Awards for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence! back in December 2006. And woo the Conchords were winners in category 17 - Damn I'm proud you're from Wellington entertainer(s): You know that all the nominees from this category are probably all in bed together right now, don’t you? Take a minute to think about that visual. Hott. This was an extremely close race, with Fat Freddy’s Drop being one point below a three-way tie for the top. And the winners are: The Phoenix Foundation and Flight of the Conchords.
07.01.07 - NZ Listener Conchords article. Result!
Remember I mentioned the guys were interviewed for the NZ Listener a while back? Nope? Ah well, there has been such a deluge of Conchords news lately you probably missed it *stares*
The interview ran in the late December 2006 issue of the NZ Listener.
Snippets from the article include - TV3 in New Zealand are hoping to screen the HBO One Night Stand show this year. Only two years behind the times guys, but its getting to you there. The Conchords also talk about their frustration with TV comedy (or lack of it) on NZ television.
The guys talk a little about their fans, being based in LA and how 'Hollywood' they now are.
'Whether they'll have time to give their fans when the show rolls is another matter, but for now, McKenzie says, the Conchords appreciate their fans for how committed they are. "Should be committed" Clement adds.' Awww you guys *sniff*
Bret delights in ergonomic chairs (have to say I do also) and Jemaine reflects on the joys of a basketball hoop and both give a little insight into their present schedule and who is working with them on their HBO series. Have to say, I'm impressed by the choice of director, James Bobin, (living in the UK I watched The 11 O'Clock Show and Ali G) and anyone, ANYONE, who has worked writing for Futurama is alright by me. Anyone being one Eric Kaplan
And yes, tis I, your humble webmistress looking not so pretty in pink on one of the pages there. I was interviewed for the article, and as soon as I put the phone down worried I had sounded like a madwoman. After 20 minutes or so of talking to myself about it, I decided to stop worrying and went outside to talk to my chickens instead. I'm relieved to see I appear sane in the article. What The Folk! gets a mention too, cool beans. Thanks Sarah.
So, without further ado, I give you four pages (all with text) of Conchords. Left to right, top to bottom, click on the image to open the full size scan. Enjoy!
Anyone wanting to discuss the article can do so on the WTF! forums
Thank you Sarah Barnett for the article. And thanks Meli for scanning it and sending it in.
03.01.07 - What is this? How the hell do you write about claymation sheep!
'Baa baa baa baa bloody baa'
Yes, you may well ask! A sheep with perfect teeth? Such a pearly set of nashers. How is this possible and what on earth does this picture have to do with the Conchords? Does the fact its a project Jemaine has been working on help?
The Pen short film series was developed by Guy Capper and Jemaine using stop-motion claymation techniques. That explains it then eh. Being shown soon in New Zealand.
It provides a 'glimpse of rural life through the eyes of two very blokey, very kiwi sheep. Their conversational meanderings provide a NZ-centric comment on such universal themes as male sexuality, life and death and employment conditions. These four short films - Life After Death, The Pen, Getting Shorn and the World Premiere of How to Baa - are a celebration of the iconic kiwi bloke. It's not fashionable or politically correct, but these films celebrate the good things about owning a Swandri, a slab of beer, and your own set of clippers.' (Taken from here )
The episodes are being shown at the Cuba St Carnival on February 23 2007 - 9.15 pm to 9.30 pm. World premiere of Pen 4 apparently.
The UK DVD release of Eagle vs Shark will be January 21 2008 I am informed. Thanks to Emma for the tip off. Pre order from 
The Fix recently ran a Conchords article online and also have a Murray Hewitt/Rhys Darby one, which I forgot to mention :| Anyways, go 
Bret and Jemaine getting ready to hit the shelves. 
The Conchords also clocked up another first a couple of days ago, being the number one subscribed podcast on iTunes. 
HBO and the Conchords have agreed to a second season!
I broke my own techno weenie skills on this here cap by filling a rectangle with colour AND then made it a bit transparent. Genius am I! 
Le baguette.... 
) so if you are on LJ and worshi... I mean ador... erm think Bret is ok and want to worship and adore him, then go check it out and help liven the place up a bit. Or else set up your own community and 
And no, I don't wonder if they are all used...
Jemaine still not quite able to master the one fingered salute :p
'Baa baa baa baa bloody baa' 'Baaaaa ba?'
Our intrepid fan and the wonder sign!
Bret and Jemaine x 2!
Thanks to Geaux Tiger for this South Park folkparody duo likeness. View the full size on the 
Read 
Selling out! Murray/Brian 
The cute one and the cute one with glasses 
Flight of The Conchords bathed in pink light at the TLA on June 12, 2007
The stripey sweater strikes a pose 
Guitar hugging folk parodists 
I'll call the one on the left Jemaine, the other Bret .... 
O wait a minute.... crudlet :|
Whoever you are, your possibly stunning good looks shall remain a mystery.. for now
FoTC BBC 6 part radio series. Classic. 
Yes you too can see the guys looking this thrilled and animated when you see them live! 
People in New Zealand can now purchase the Conchords BBC radio show CD over there. 
'Baa baa baa baa bloody baa' 
