In Love With Leaving - Festivus Edition

ALBUM UPDATE:

Cougars in America became Cougars in the Studio in November and soon enough we will have a 3-song EP ready for your ears! I think Paolo took some pictures so I will upload them as soon as I fix my computer.

COMPUTER UPDATE:

Irregular electricity has zapped my means of updating the blog but i'll do my best to post pictures/videos/news as I get them - you can help by emailing me things I can post! A funny aside for anyone who has seen where I live: the computer repair man asked me if I live in Africa when he saw the state of my computer's fried interior.

CONCERT UPDATE:

In Brussels I'm playing a bunch of solo shows over the next month.
These include:

Friday Dec. 7 - El Turco, Place de Londres, 19h-21h

Sunday Dec. 16 - Lava Café, St Gery, 20h

Saturday, January 19 - 12 Chaises, St Gilles, 20h ***POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE***

CANADA UPDATE:

I'm going home for Christmas and staying for a month - stay tuned for details about any of the small concerts I hope to play while I'm home.

GENERAL UPDATE:

All is well!
If you want to listen to me trying to speak French about various things cougar-related and not with Nicolas, Dany and the DI crew at Radio ALMA, you can! They "got to know me" a couple weeks ago and you can listen by clicking HERE. They also let me pick the music and play songs on the guitar. I still have not had a chance to listen (see computer update, above) so I can only hope I didn't swear or sing off-key or tell jokes that weren't very funny.

A busy week in Brussels

I'm coming to 'visit' Brussels very soon. In addition to seeing good friends, having a laugh about lunch, and imagining the world above parking 58, this means playing a few concerts. Just to keep things interesting, there will be a different line-up each time, so none will be like the others. I look forward to seeing you at one or all of these eventful events. Also, we will be recording for a new demo CD while I'm back so hopefully the next time I can try to sell it to you :)

BUT NOW...................

...OR RATHER...

....................VERY SOON

Thursday, October 25th

Concert Pour Ici

3rd Floor of Mr. Wong (Nicolas Bucci's house)

€ HAT

An acoustic living room concert with Cougars in America performing as a trio:

Paolo Melindi - Contrabasse 

Erik Schoepen - General wizard of stringed instruments 

Scott Hamilton - Guitar + Vocals = Guitocals

Places for this concert are limited, please email Nicolas (buccinicolas@gmail.com) or send him a message on the FACEBOOK SOCIAL FRIEND NETWORK EVENT PAGE.

Friday, October 26th

Urban Ecoogy Centre

Apero-Acoustique

€ au chapeau

A solo concert featuring Scott Hamilton and his loop-station, kazoo, harmonicas, stylophone, melodica, etc. This is how Cougars in America started... Not to mention, how it will probably end ; I play old songs and new songs in preparation for a small solo-tour I am making around some familiar places. Here is the FACEBOOK SOCIAL FRIEND NETWORK EVENT PAGE.

Thursday, November 1st

Cougars in America BAND

Espacio ON

€ 4 Entry (Free Exit)

The whole band! Similar to but not exactly like the one shown on the youtube internet television channel; nominally related to but not quite as seen on the facebook social friend network; in the form of yet more multidimensional then they appear on the flickr web photo sharing application; COUGARS IN AMERICA BAND packs a whallop.

Giacomo Pelli - Drums

Erik Schoepen - Banjo, Mandolin, Steel Guitar

Paolo Melindi - Contrabass

Scott Hamitlon - Guitocals

Share the FACEBOOK SOCIAL FRIEND NETWORK EVENT PAGE with your most social friends or become entranced by our promotional image in 400dpi high resolution AND RGB colour:

More concerts TBA soon.

First solo concert in... 9 months?

Wish me luck!!!

The Long Road Home!

After a month on the road I'm on my way back to Brussels! Travelling 7500km with 2 bands, official documentarian, driver (qui Guida? Antonio guida), a 24 hour cocktail bar (and the barman, of course), the Dean of the university of Smastro, Tico, and a few friends who joined us along the way in a van with most but not all of the windows has been oodles of fun, but I'm ready to come back to Brussels! Pictures and videos of the tour are on the way. 

For now, here are some concerts to look forward to:

August 30th

Lausanne, CH - Cougars in the Garden

https://www.facebook.com/events/277942625652922/

Sept 1st

Frankfurt, DE - Private Party following the 100 car car chase

Sept 7th

Brussels, BE - Concours Circuit @ Botanique

http://www.botanique.be/activite/eliminatoires-concours-circuit-2012-another-belgian-band-beautiful-badness-cougars-america-

Sept 13th

Brussels, BE - Rock Classic Bar

https://www.facebook.com/events/481059015240479/

The Endless Beards of Summer 2012

On the road again in Italy with
BENITO BAND
ANTONIO & FRIENDS
and
COUGARS IN AMERICA

July 27@Spazio 4,Piacenza

July 28@Bascherdeis, Vernasca
July 29@Bascherdeis, Vernasca

July 31@Circolo Ribalta,Vignola

August 1@Circola Aurora, Firenze - SOLD OUT

August 3@Marianiello Jazz Cafe,Sorrento

August 4@Countryclub Primi faggi, Santo Stefano in Aspromonte

August 5@Oceanomare, San Leone,Agrigento

August 7@Baia, Lido Rossello, Agrigento 

August 10@Notte sotto le stelle, Santa Elisabetta

August 11@Bacco Wine, Raffadali

August 12@Oceanomare, San Leone, Agrigento

August 15@Steccato di Cutro - Beach Party with Bruno Selecta!
August 17@Pineta Belvedere, Santa Cesarea di Terme
August 21 - Barrueca!!!! Santa Caterina LE

Last Minute Gigs in Brussels!

...Because things keep popping up when you least expect them :)

First, a return to the Urban Ecology Centre in Uccle on Friday, July 6th. 

It starts with a barbecue around 17h30 and we should be on a couple hours after that.

On Monday, July 9th, we will play a special living room concert alongside a screening of a documentary of the Hard Rain Project.

Rue Blaes 96, B22 - 20h00.

Stay Tuned!

There are no concerts this week because I'm going to play in Norway with Benito Band. BUT please enjoy this video of 'The Tower' from a concert in May (Thanks for the video, Avud!) and check back soon for details of the forthcoming summer tour from Belgium to Sicily and back again :) 

The next concerts in Brussels will be on July 8th in the gazebo (kiosk) of parc central with Emmanuele from the Marichka Connection and then on July 12th at a screening of a documentary from the hard rain project - more details to follow...

Where have all the cougars gone?

They're coming back! Good news for people who like cougars in america because cougar populations are on the rebound: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-18425472

Also, here is a video from my concert at the imprimerie ephémère in Brussels this weekend:

Keep posted for last minute concerts in Brussels and information about the summer tour!

Cougar Coiffure

Thursday June 7th, 20h00

Concert at Coiffure Liliane

247 Rue Haute au Centre Bruegel

Also on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/events/472808766069202/

Cougars on the Road...

Last weekend, Cougars in America went on a small road trip to Maastricht and Koln to play concerts in magical locations!

First, we went to a garden in Maastricht to participate in the 3rd edition of Nightscapes. We played in this garden set up by Landbouwbelang amidst some post-industrial rubble:

After a long night animated by the Serious Beans Project, we drank a lot of coffee and drove to Koln to play in St. Michael's church as part of the Art & Amen festival that was taking place all around Brusselerplatz:

Here are some videos from the concert in the garden:

BIG thanks to Jos and Cat from Nightscapes and Ben from Popanz Productions for making this possible! 

Cougars on a rampage....

After a crazy week of concerts, I'm taking a break for a week and then coming back with another crazy week of concerts :)

May 25 - Apéro Acoustique
Centre d'écologie Urbaine
Chaussée de Waterloo, 789
UCCLE 
https://www.facebook.com/events/252962831477716/

June 1 - Itinerant 'Nightscapes' party in Maastricht

June 2 - St Michael Kirche am Brusseler Platz, Koln
https://www.facebook.com/events/340878239316387/

June 7 - Coiffure Liliane, Centre Culturel Breugel, Rue Haute, Brussels

June 16 - Amsterdam - Nuit Blanche
De Ruyterkade 127
1011 AC

The River at YO Fest with Cougars in America BAND

Concerts this Week: YO Fest and Parcours d'Artiste

See you soon, Brussels!

Cougars in the Hammam via Record and Ride

Last week I got a surprise email from Nicholas O'Brien who is on a 5-month-Alan-Lomax-on-a-bicycle-styled music pilgrimage through Europe. The idea is to record as many artists as possible while cycling around and meeting great people. I loved this idea and had band practice planned with Paolo in the hammam, so we invited Nicholas over for carbonnades, Chimay, and Cougars. This impromptu concert was recorded and made downloadable for your listening pleasure. Enjoy!!!


Find out more about Nicholas' Record and Ride Project here: http://record-and-ride.com/

May 4 Concert + Live Recording at Windows

Mark your calendars because this is the day you've been waiting for! This concert is going to be recorded and distributed at the same price as the concert: Prix Libre! Hope to see you there.

WINDOWS

Rue Philippe de Champagne 50

Doors at 20h30.

Concert at 21h00.

Also on Facebook..

UPDATE: The Cougars in America BAND is playing and the concert will be followed by the Panga Party... So timing just became a little bit more important and the concert will actually start at 21h00. See you there!

Howlin Wolf Singer Songwriter Sessions Continue....

After touring through Germany in January with Chris Klopfer, I've happily become part of the Howlin' Wolf Singer-Songwriter circuit.  With great pleasure, I will continue hosting international artists in the intimate confines of La Belladone - a charming maison de maitre turned cafe in upper St. Gilles, Rue Moritz 17A.

JEFF LANG

http://www.jefflang.com.au/

...est un auteur compositeur interprete Australien en tournée avec son 14ième Album.

A guitarist, singer and songwriter, Jeff has built up a reputation for startlingly original performances, working without a set list and allowing the unique energy of each night to shape the songs.

"Seeing Jeff Lang was like being at church for three hours - a totally sacred event. He's the man as far as I'm concerned." John Butler

"Lang’s music is as fiercely original as it is moving." Guitar Player Magazine

"Lang is really the godfather of an Australia-based back-to-basics blues movement that now encompasses the John Butler Trio, Ash Grunwald and Xavier Rudd." Bruce Elder, Sydney Morning Herald

DIAR

http://vimeo.com/25904960

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNzgpjZdI9s

http://diarboy.com/

Diar was born in Jakarta, Indonesia, in year 1986. He attended local catholic schools and started to study economic in Cologne, Germany, in year 2005.

Since time has told and things have changed, he found himself now, deeply, in another world that he never thought before it was going to appear.

COUGARS IN AMERICA

http://cougarsinamerica.blogspot.com

Brussels-based singer-songwriter Scott Hamilton hosts the evening and presents his original blend of Pop Sauvage. Bonnie Prince Billy meets Sufjan Stevens meets your grandmother and thanks her for the delicious cookies.

Cougars in America BAND Live in the Hammam!

All Aboard

After years of wondering why musicians in Brussels don't hop on the train to Strasbroug once a month with everyone else, this cat will be swimming in the cosmic soup with an old friend and fellow humanimal, General Bazaar, in search of the answer to that timeless question: Why not?


April 17 and 18, 2012
Le Grincheux
27 Rue Vieux Marché aux Vins
67000 Strasbourg

Breaths of Paradise Re-re-recorded

Rattle on you writer of emotions 

Conjure up the motions in my feet 

Make them carry endlessly and one before the other 

Take them out the door and march them through the streets

Weave your words into a singing fabric 

Make me whistle as I dress myself in colours bold and ready 

Take me by the shoulders as the wings which you have placed upon them 

Lift me up and hold them cool and steady

Tell me of the man they shot in Brixton 

Tell me so I know what they have done 

Tell me that they put a hole into one of my brothers 

And the blood that spilled out flowed through everyone

I think I saw an angel 

I think I saw an angel 

I think I saw an angel in the sky

So sing for me a memory of everything that's missing 

And I'll join you in the distance when we're back to where we came from 

Living carelessly indifferent cause all the wrong's impossible 

And the hope I thought I lost is born again

And I'll know you're an angel with light shining through your wisdom 

By the way that you go floating through the air 

Margarita, all the things you never said 

Take me with you when you're flying over there

I think I saw an angel 

I think I saw an angel 

I think I saw an angel in the sky

I think I saw an angel 

I think I saw an angel 

I think I saw an angel in the sky

A War Made For Two

I don't want to love you anymore than I do

Oh I don't want to love you anymore than I do

Our love is a war made for two

That's me and you

How many ways could you be callous?

How many days could you be true?

I'm trapped in this haze of mallice and shame

Of loving you to

You could take it on the shoulder

Take it lightly on the chin

Take a break or get it over

with you I don't know where to begin

But I don't want to love you anymore than I do

Oh I don't want to love you anymore than I do

Our love is a war made for two

That's me and you

Our love is a war made for two

That's me and you

In This Age of Hope and Golden Mountains Re-re-re-recorded

Girl you can't lead this life of lingerie and credit cards

You never chose this life nor does it choose for you
Only certain kind of people think that only certain kind of people
Ought to have what's good for me and you


So let me cast aside your diamond rings and fashion magazines
You don't need them and there is no place they're taking you
Everybody knows that everybody knows the rules
Darling that's no good for me and you


die-dee-die-dee-die-dee-die just don't leave that rifle empty
Oh oh oh oh oh oh no there's no getting over you
Plea-ea-ea-ea-ea-ease please, please come town do your senses
Tear down your fences, your walls, crawling over you


How deep is the well you've been drinking from?
How fast can you go down and see?
Is it sure enough to last beyond this century?
Pure enough to wash your conscience clean


I see 7 billion miners digging holes in you, girl
Me, I can't be bothered
Lend me some of yours I'll send you some of somone else's
Pennies for your thoughts, connecting all the dots


die-dee-die-dee-die-dee-die just don't leave that rifle empty
Oh oh oh oh oh oh no there's no getting over you
Plea-ea-ea-ea-ea-ease please, please come town do your senses
Tear down your fences, your walls, crawling over you

Techno-logical

After a tumultuous 3 months of stolen computers, lost recordings, and general disarray, this cat is back online! Everything from this blog, youtube and soundcloud now has a new home: http://flavors.me/cougarsinamerica

See you soon with more concert dates, recordings, and videos...

Cougars in America BAND

Moving ever onward and upward, Cougars in America will grow into the boots of a pop-sauvage trio with the addition of David Koczij on drums and Paolo Melindi on contrabasse. The transformation takes place before your very eyes at Bonnefooi on Wednesday, February 8th, 2012 at 22h00. Don't miss it!

On the Road Again: Ger-MANIA

This year starts off with a short tour with Koln-based Popanz Productions and singer-songwriter Chris Klopfer.

January 14th, 2012 - Amsterdam TBA

January 15th, 2012 - LE COQ, Brussels, BE
January 18th, 2012 - THAV, Hildesheim, D

January 19th, 2012 - HEIFISCHBECKEN, Bremen, D
January 20th, 2012 - GELEGENHEITEN, Berlin, D
January 21st, 2012 - HASENSCHAUKEL, Hamburg, D
January 22nd, 2012 - ANALOG SOUL, Leipzig, D