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Steven Alvarado: News

New Music Series - March 28, 2011



Hello world,

I'm excited to share a new music series with you called Mott Street Presents! About once a week or so I'll tape a live performance from my living room in New York and post it here for you to watch, share, download, and "like" on Facebook. I'll be sharing new songs that you won't find anywhere, along with some songs that you know from my albums.

This is by no means a professional taping, it's just me and my video cam just for you. Its like a private concert in your living room. I look forward to your feedback and hearing from you. If you are on Facebook don't forget to use the "like" button. Spread the word!

Below is the first episode. It's a new song called The Aww! Song. I'm posting the lyrics for you too.

-Steven

The Aww! Song
Words & Music Steven Alvarado

You're a Blake-like tragedy
With naked-hysteria
You're an angel-headed hipster
With cock in hand

Aww...

You're a cockamamie-Christian
With dirty little secrets
You're a southern drawl
On a New York street

Aww...

You're full of ambiguities
On roof-top tenements
Where same-sex marriagests
Are hated by polygamists

Evangelists with fetishes
And luggage-carrying rent-boys
And holy holy kisses
Under United States sheets

Aww...


TV Music - January 28, 2011

 

 

I'm on TV! Well, sort of... a TV show called Chris & John go to Camp played my song "It's For You". It's a silly show on MTV's Logo channel but its fun.
The song plays about three or four minutes in, during the volleyball scene. Then at the end of the show they say my name and show my CD cover!

 

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Episode 5: I Want My Dog!

Watch Episode 5: I Want My Dog! free online. Two brawling, bitter exes force Chris and John to come to the rescue.

Winter in New York 2011 - January 21, 2011



Hi friends,
Here's some random photos I snapped while walking around Madison Square Park in New York today. It's cold here! Hope you enjoy.
More news later!

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Happy New Year Everyone! - January 9, 2011

With friends in New York on New Years Eve 2010

With friends in New York City, New Years Eve 2010

Hi all,


Happy New Year!


Well, I don't mean to be such a big tease with my new album project. I know it's been on-again off-again for quite a while now. I have been writing and I have been in the studio, and I have recorded some songs that have turned out great but I seem to keep getting sidetracked by other projects.


At the moment I'm working on TV/Film Licensing for my songs to be placed. I like getting my songs on TV because not only is it great to see them there, it pays the bills.


I'm looking forward to a great year in 2011! I'll keep you posted on the album progress, more tour dates, and anything else that comes up. Just keep checking back!


-Steven


Christmas Time - December 1, 2010

Hi everyone, I try to do this every year at Christmas time. It's an American favorite. Hope you enjoy. -Steven
a charlie brown christmas

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I'm on iTunes new PING! - October 31, 2010


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Hey everyone,

Apple started a new way to follow your favorite artists right in iTunes. It's called PING! And I'm on it. You can easily follow me there and see what I'm listening to. You can also share what you're listening to with me!

The link below will take you right to my artist page, then on the right of the page just click on "Profile." It's that easy.

Steven Alvarado
Steven

On the Road Again - October 24, 2010



Hi Everyone,



It's so nice to be on the road again. It's been a while and I've really been dying to get back out there. As I go I will post video as it's available for you to see from each show.



Here's the first one - this is from my show in Philadelphia, PA. Hope you enjoy.



Send me a note and say hi.



Xo Steven





More Tour Dates - October 6, 2010

Hey all, just added another date.  This one is in New York City.

 

Wednesday, October 27th, 7:30PM.

Googie's Lounge @ The Living Room

154 Ludlow Street

New York, NY 10002

212.533.7237

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Tour Dates - September 17, 2010

 

 

Hi all,

 

I'm hitting the road. I'll be adding more dates but here's the first one:

 

Friday night, October 22nd Fergies Pub in Philadelphia with Daniel Collins/10PM

 

Daniel is a great songwriter who puts together a really good songwriter night. Please check him out here: http://www.facebook.com/dancollinsmusic?ref=ts

 

Hope I see you there!

 

 

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Facebook - September 12, 2010


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Hi All,

Well I finally gave in and have joined Facebook. Yes, Hell froze over. Friend me and say hi.

Steven

Portland, Maine - September 2, 2010



Hi friends, I spent a week up in Maine and played some songs and made some new friends who I adore. Here are some photos. Left to right: Steven on Stage ☆ Derek in Drag ☆ Ken & Derek ☆ Ken, Derek, & Steven in a canoe ☆ Colby, Steven & Derek ☆ Ken, Steven, Frank & Robert ☆ Steven, Derek, Ken, Ryan, & David.



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Hope Nunnery - August 3, 2010

Hi everyone,

I came across an artist in the studio the other day that I really love. Her name is Hope Nunnery. She's amazing and I think you may like her too. I would call her sound "Mountain Music". As you know, I'm big on lyrics and it seems like few people know how to write them anymore. Ms Nunnery certainly knows how. Check this is out:

"Mama got a black eye, she staring out the window
Puffin on a Pell Mell, coffee getting colder, she
Big and fat and pretty, better than a movie star
Mama sweet foot tapping to the sound of the soft guitars."

That's from a song called Little Pink Radio.

You can find her here: www.hopenunnery.com
And see her below.

-Steven

Airplay on Folkcast! - June 27, 2010

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Hi Everyone,

 

There's a great Podcast in the UK called Folkcast.  They just aired their season finally and featured my song See You Again to close the show.  I encourage you to listen the entire show but if you must, you can skip ahead to the last three or four minutes to catch the song.

 

More news later!

 

Steven

 

Blogging Again - June 6, 2010

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Hi everyone,


Just a quick announcement to tell you about my new Blog called Monkey Grin.


Here is the description of what it's all about: "Welcome to Monkey Grind, my Blog. I've tried my hand a couple of times at Blogging but never seemed to get it quite right. I think all I was really looking for was an outlet for all the "other" things that I have to say or am interested in. That's what this Blog is all about. To collect & post anything I find interesting. That could mean news, a political issue, music, or a YouTube video I think is funny. I don't intend to post regularly, just whenever I feel like it. So, it's probably best to subscribe if you want to get new posts as they happen. This is my secondary outlet that has nothing to do with my life as a recording & touring musician. But then, on the other hand, I guess you can't really separate the two. This is just a better forum for "everything else" than my music website."


Check it out and leave your comments! http://stevenalvarado.blogspot.com/

-Steven

More Podcast Play! - May 29, 2010



Hi all,

My friends over at HomoPod Radio played me on this weeks show.
I even did a station I.D. for them. I've posted the show below for you to listen.
My song comes on second.

Steven

TV Soundtrack - May 8, 2010

 

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Hi Everyone,

 

A while back the PBS television show Road Trip Nation used some of my music as background on a couple of different episodes.  They have since partnered with Fuel TV and are now doing a Mini Series with short episodes around 7 to 10 minutes or so for television.  My song New York  from Let It Go is featured in episode 5.

 

I've posted the episode below for you to watch.  My song comes on at 3.5 minutes.

 

More news later!

 

 

My Favorite PodCast is Back! - May 4, 2010

 

Hi Everyone,

 

My friends over at HomoPod Radio have been off the air for a while taking a long break and have decide to re-launch the show on May 16th.  Mark Carnahan the host, puts together a really great show every week with some great music.  The show gets a whopping 10,000 downloads a month!  Mark has an eclectic taste in music and I've been the Featured Artist of The Month a couple of times on the show.  We even did an interview for an episode (I think when The Howl Sessions came out) but unfortunately due to technical problems the interview never aired.  Maybe we'll do a new one for you in the near future.  To celebrate the launch I wanted to re-post those episodes that I was on for you.

 

Look for HomoPod Radio on the internet, May 16th!

 

 

 


PART ONE



PART TWO

New Album Review from: Zeitgeist/UK - March 15, 2010



Hi friends,

Let It Go came out in April 2008, yet after almost two years, it continues to get good reviews. This one is from the UK from Zeitgeist/Stuart Hamilton. Zeitgeist is a great music review sight describing itself as an "idiosyncratic collection of music news and reviews", to which I very much agree. (http://www.the-rocker.co.uk/)

Mr. Hamilton reviewed my previous album The Howl Sessions to which he says in this new CD review that he "drooled rather unbecomingly over that one". Any music journalist willing to say something like that has my unwavering respect. I offer a tissue along with my humble thanks for that beautifully written and enthusiastic musical evaluation. I also send my thanks for reviewing Let It Go and offering his influential stamp of approval.

The Howl Sessions is definitely the album that sort of put me on the map (I'm still obscure) and it garnered an enormous amount of positive press. I still love that album and all of those reviews are still posted here on my sight. Let It Go has also done extremely well and is still going strong. While both albums sold well, Let It Go surpassed The Howl Sessions total sales after about three months of its release and is still selling (mostly through downloads at iTunes). The new review from Zeitgeist is below as well as the original review of The Howl Sessions.

Enjoy,

Steven


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Let it go - small cvr

STEVEN ALVARADO
Let It Go
Mott St Records


It's been a while since Mr Alvarado and I crossed path. In fact, it was way back in 2005 when I got more than a wee bit excited about his "The Howl Sessions" release. I drooled rather unbecomingly over that one.

This record sees him creating his "record about heartbreak", which is always fertile ground for a singer / songwriter. Of course, it can also get self-indulgent and narcissistic but that's, thankfully, not the case here.

There are some really delightful tunes here with 'Nobody Knows' bringing back some very unhappy memories. Git. However, he does get a bit more chipper on 'New York', one of the few outward looking moments on offer. He's also put together another top-notch band for this album with Marc Ribot, Kenny Wollesen, Rob Burger and Joe Quigley having served time with the likes of T-Bone Burnett, Norah Jones. Beth Orton and Lisa Loeb, amongst others.

If you only listen to one song before making your mind up, then take a listen to 'Blue'. That should make your decision very easy indeed.

-Stuart Hamilton/Zeitgeist





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REVIEW: Steven Alvarado
The Howl Sessions (Mott Street)

Solo album 3, in a recording career going back to 1991 isn’t a frenetic release schedule, but it’s worth waiting for something this good.

His vocal style alone would make this worthwhile, even if he was singing the equivalent of the telephone directory, for his warm, lived in voice, is a treat. However, he knows how to write a memorable tune as well. Amongst the many highlights here are the tragic “Morphillia (A Girl I Knew)” and “Wish You Were Here (Postcards From Hell)”, which show a depth of lyricism rarely heard these days. How can you go wrong with an opening stanza of;

You told me I’m going to Hell
I’m finally here and doing swell
I’ll send you a card ‘wish you were here’
‘umm humm, down here

He is well respected enough to be able to call on some well connected players to help bring his vision to life, with Rob Burger (Rufus Wainwright, Norah Jones) on organ, Joe Quigley, (Shawn Colvin, Lisa Loeb) on bass, Mike Presta, (Counting Crows, Melissa Etheridge) on drums and Richard Barone, (Lou Reed, Patti Smith) on bongo's, amongst others.

But it’s to his credit that his songs and voice rise above the backing to make a righteous claim for respect in his own right. A truly excellent release.

-Zeitgeist (LONDON)

Winter in New York - March 3, 2010



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Hi friends,

Well it's been quite a winter here in New York City. We've had record snow fall and I can tell you that I am ready for summer. I think we are about done with the snow after this last storm and I am very much looking forward to the warmer weather of Spring. The good thing about winter is that I am forced to stay in a lot and there is not much else to do but write songs, so that's what I've been doing!!

More news later...

Steven


New Songs-New Look - January 13, 2010

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Hi everyone,

Happy New Year!! It's a new decade, can you believe it? And what a great start I'm off to! I wrote two songs last night!

I guess it's official, I'm writing a new album. I usually like to keep that to myself for a while until I have most of it written, but what the hell... I figure I may as well tell everyone since I'm so excited about it.

Well, the songs are pretty damn good (if I do say so myself). I get the feeling this is going to be a really good album. The songs are from the heart, as always. I can't wait to share them with you. I hope to be in the studio by this summer.

As you know, once I get in the groove, I usually write pretty fast, two or three songs a day. Maybe a new album out by 2011? That sounds like pretty realistic to me.

Also, hope you like the minor website update we did. Changed the color and the cover page.

More news later,

Steven

Fun With Camcorders - December 13, 2009

Hi All,

I was fooling around with my camcorder and made this little music video of "Get This Far" for you. I shot it in my living room here in my New York apartment. It's by no means professional, it's just for fun.

I had fun making it so I hope you enjoy it. Go to YouTube and give it a bunch of stars!

-Steven

Winter 2009 - December 10, 2009

Hi friends,

I posted this last year and it was a big hit so I thought I'd do it again. It's "A Charlie Brown Christmas". Hope you enjoy it.

Happy Christmas & New Years everyone.

Steven


a charlie brown christmas

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Holiday Season! - November 24, 2009






Thanksgiving Turkey



Hi Everyone,

Just a quick note. It’s holiday season. Many in America will be celebrating Thanksgiving this weekend and then comes Christmas around the world. As most of you know, I’m not exactly religious, so giving thanks to some sort of god, seems a little silly to me and celebrating the birth of Christ is just plain vulgar. Especially since Christianity has such a violent and bloody history. I’m mean really—they hate and discriminate against EVERYONE!!

With that said, on the brighter side, I hope all of you spend this time of year enjoying the people, friends & family that you love and that mean the most to you. That’s all we really have in this life I think.

And may we have peace on earth, someday… (because as it turns out, Obama is going to continue both Bush wars.) I guess Lying politicians come in every package.

-Steven

Internet Touring? - November 12, 2009

Globe-Internet
Hi everyone,

So I’ve been considering something really cool. Launching a World-Tour via the internet.

Let me explain. What I’m talking about is a city-by-city tour web-cast from my New York City apartment. You would email me, we would schedule a date, you would gather your friends together at your place, and I would play a show in your living room right over the internet! I would play a different city each night and keep “touring” indefinitely.

You’ll need video-chat capability at home, but that’s easy enough. If you have a web-cam on your computer we could use Skype or Apple iChat/video.

I have always embraced technology and the internet has been an wonderful instrument for me distributing my music around the world. I’ve used it to book tours and sell CD’s & downloads, so it only makes sense that I would do an internet-tour.

Are you intrigued? I know I am! If you want to host an “Internet House Concert” at your place, email me and lets talk about it! You can be located anywhere in the world as long as you have an internet connection with video-chat capability.

This is an experiment, so if I get enough inquiries I’ll go forward. These shows will be free, so don’t be shy, send me an email!

I look forward to your emails.

stevenalvarado@yahoo.com

Steven

Hot Review in Limewire! - October 5, 2009

Hi All,

Let It Go got a really great review in LimeWire!  As most of you know, the new album has been out for over a year now.  It's nice knowing that it's still getting reviewed!

Have a look HERE


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"On his third album, Let It Go, New York City singer-songwriter Steven Alvarado plumbs the emotional depths to come up with perhaps his most intimate, affecting offering yet. If there's one thing Alvarado seems to have learned over the years, it's the value of concision — Let It Go's ten songs take up less than half an hour. Quality trumps quantity, though, as Alvarado employs his rough-edged, emotive voice on a batch of tunes that dig way down into the dark underbelly of human emotions. The truths he comes up with aren't always pretty, but the sounds with which he frames them are consistently compelling. With a sort of post-Elvis Costello power-pop/folk-rock songwriting aesthetic, he offers indelible melodies to match every emotional sucker punch here. And while much of the album features little beyond Alvarado's own acoustic guitar and incisive singing to put the song across, when he does add other colors, he doesn't mess around: accompanists include Tom Waits' guitar genius Marc Ribot and quirky, inventive drummer-to-the-stars Kenny Wolleson."

 

-By Jim Allen, LimeWire Store

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