Pub Can Records

“Three things are necessary,” wrote Thomas Aquinas, “for the salvation of man: to know what he ought to believe; to know what he ought to desire; and to know what he ought to do.” It could be said that Topography of a Bird, the charming full-length debut from singer-songwriter Mark Rice, is an exploration of that path to enlightenment.

Freelance writer and editor of Twenty Pounds of Headlines, Nick DiUlio reviews Mark Rice’s latest release, Topography of a Bird. Head on over to Twenty Pounds of Headlines to read what he has to say.

This is Mark, Verien and Dave’s performance of “Ohio” from the CD release party in Pittsburgh. A special thanks must go out to Tim Young and Nick DiUlio for the use of their cameras, and especially to Nick for his awesome camera work. Nick must also be given credit as co-producer along with Dave Young, as the two met at Widget Studios and cranked this baby out in an evening. We hope to see more great work like this from them in the near future. So let us know what you all think. Leave a comment here at the bottom, and then head on over to YouTube and leave a comment there. We need each and every one of you to help start this revolution!

On April 11th, just 2 weeks away, we will be throwing a party at the Union Project in Pittsburgh, PA, to celebrate one of our proudest moments in Pub Can’s humble existence. Mark Rice, our first signed artist, after about 3 years of hard work and patience, has just completed his first full length album, along with the guidance of producer, Dave Young. Mark and a number of friends will be sharing the stage to provide a great atmosphere of music and entertainment, while the new CDs and other special hand made items will be available for purchase. Come prepared to support Mark and show your love for his music, as we celebrate such a wonderful achievement.

“TOPOGRAPHY OF A BIRD” CD Release Party
Saturday, April 11th, 2009
7:00pm-10:00pm

The Union Project
801 North Negley Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 1520

Check out the Union Project online.

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The new record hasn’t even released yet and already folks are raving about it. Two podcasts featured songs from Mark Rice’s “Topography Of A Bird” this week. The first being The Music Discovery Podcast from CD Baby and the second being The Iron City Rocks Podcast.

CD BABY MUSIC DISCOVERY PODCAST - check out their website here

“… the vocals take this record to the next level…”

The CD Baby Music Discovery Podcast was doing an episode on quirky children’s music, but before getting into the main content of the show, they played 2 editor’s picks, the first of which being Mark’s song “Tuscan Sun”.

IRON CITY ROCKS PODCAST - check out their website here

“… quite possibly one of the best songs we’ve had on this podcast…”

READ BEFORE YOU CLICK! - Iron City Rocks is a podcast dedicated to promoting Pittsburgh’s own rock and metal music. Interestingly enough, Mark, on a whim, sent a record on over to the guys at Iron City Rocks, not necessarily expecting a dig at all. But at the very end of the segment, they chose to make Mark’s song “Save Me Tonight” number 5 of only 5 songs featured in the podcast. I might add humorously that this is probably the only radio format that could get into such an album track as the very six-and-a-half minute song itself.

Mark Rice’s upcoming Pub Can release “Topography Of A Bird” will be widely available on April 11th after the CD release party being held at the Union Project in Pittsburgh, PA.

Pre-order your copy today!

Many said that this day would never come… well, maybe not. But if you’ve followed the last 2 years of this project at all, you know that we intended for this record to be completed long before now and never really had a grasp on when we could expect to be finished with it. Originally slated for January of 2008, the record took a long hiatus while we worked out schedule conflicts and other things that come with operating a growing small business. But today we have reason to celebrate because the record is finished and we now have boxes full of the beautiful discs just waiting to be sent to all of our wonderful Mark Rice fans everywhere.

The official release date is set for April 11th, 2009. There will be a party held at the Union Project in Mark’s new hometown, Pittsburgh, PA commemorating the event. Musicians and artists from Mark’s old hometown, Philadelphia, PA as well as the record’s producer, Dave Young and his wife Kristine Young representing their first Pub Can Records recording artist will be among the many convened to celebrate Mark’s great and long-awaited achievement.

The CDs are currently available for purchase HERE for $12.00 plus tax which includes the cost of shipping. These pre-ordered CDs will be sent out the week leading up to the April 11th release party in Pittsburgh. We encourage everyone to pre-order their copy today, and to those of you who already placed their order, thank you very much. We certainly appreciate all of your support.

Mark, who recently moved to the ‘Burgh (Pittsburgh, that is) to pursue work opportunities, is coming back to Philly for one night at the Burlap and Bean! The ‘Burgh is a place he knows well and he even references it and the whole region in an autobiographical song called Ohio. Come out to support Mark as this is one of his only shows in Philly for some time. He’ll be playing with his trusty side-kick and producer Dave Young. You can’t beat a free show and great fair trade coffee.

Burlap and Bean
Shops at Springton Pointe
204 South Newtown Street Rd
Newtown Square, PA 19073
• 484-427-4547

written by Kristine Young

So it all started with an idea. I had a week to myself without my husband, and I needed something do to for a “girls’ night out.” My friend’s husband was away with my husband, and so we thought we ought to do something fun. Well, my idea of fun is going to a show, and what I mean by “show” is a concert. So I started to look through all the venue listings around Philly and landed on the Tin Angel’s website. I love the comfortable and intimate setting, so I looked to see who was playing during my “bachelorette” week. I didn’t see anyone that I was familiar with or had any immediate interest in seeing, but one listing caught my eye. So I clicked the link…

I think that even though I only saw one person in the photo for that particular night’s entertainment, I must have assumed it was a band. When the website loaded, I soon realized that what I came to was just for one person – Griffin House. He had a few songs streaming on the website so I soon learned that I liked Griffin House. I emailed my friend with the idea and his link. She too concluded that she enjoyed what she heard and we made a plan for March 5th.

When we got to the Tin Angel we found the place was packed. That’s always a good sign, and even though we weren’t familiar with Griffin, apparently lots of other people were. The opening band, Sons of William, in their own right, were quite good and captured the attention of the crowd. They had a catchy sound, and the ingenious thing about this band was that they doubled as Griffin’s backing band. When Griffin got on stage, he went right into his songs. Any chit-chat came later in the set. He has a way of writing songs that tell stories, so I suppose he doesn’t need to tell any in between songs. His songs aren’t the most complicated things. Still, they are simple and have a truth about them, and I think that is one of his strengths. He conveys the emotions of these stories with his expressive voice and he paints vivid pictures for us. Throughout the night he won me over. He’s still young yet, I believe he’s 26, and this tour was to start promoting his new album, Flying Upside Down, which comes out in stores later this month. He announced that he was selling Flying Upside Down at his shows, which at this point was at least a month and half before the official store release date. I can’t always purchase music at shows, but that night I decided to go for it and bought the new album. I wanted to be able to take this kind of music with me. It was more than one nice evening in a nice place.

Now having spent some serious time digesting the album, I find that Flying Upside Down has really stood the test. I immediately enjoyed it, but it wasn’t just a flash in the pan kind of thing. It’s held up under multiple listens. “I Remember (It’s Happening Again)” the second song on the album, deals with the issue of war. It’s a thoughtful piece that isn’t too heavy handed. A major theme found in his songs is love and romance. I suppose that’s fitting given his age, and I find it to be endearing. He has songs that deal with the pursuit of love in “Let Me In” and “The Guy That Says Goodbye To You Is Out Of His Mind”, of failed relationships with “One Thing” and being alone in “Lonely One.” When I listen to Griffin sing, I hear shades of Neil Diamond, Bruce Springsteen and even a little bit of Bono. That’s not to say that he sounds much like any of these giants, but every so often I just get a slight hint of it.

Griffin is clearly a singer songwriter by trade, but his album is not sparse. It’s richly orchestrated with touches of piano, organ and strings while staying true to a pop rock model. And, Griffin has more on his mind than just women. “Hanging On (Tom’s Song) is about the loss of a loved one when he was young. In the last song “Waiting For The Rain To Come Down” he deals with his internal struggles, his apparent faith and his dependence on God. Griffin writes songs that bely his age. I would suggest to you to check out his music. I don’t feel that he breaks any new ground with this record, but it’s very enjoyable. I for one was very glad that his name caught my eye, and I gave him a chance.

Liz Dieleman will be playing a show this Saturday evening at the Hideout Brewing Company in Grand Rapids, MI. Those of you from Pennsylvania wishing to see her play may decide to make the trip to show your support… But then again, the price of gas… Nonetheless, it is great to see her doing well and continuing to play out.

I have no information other than what is listed here, but I just wanted to keep everyone updated as to her happenings. For more info, check out her myspace: http://www.myspace.com/lizdieleman

The Project for Nuclear Awareness presents Peace Jam 2008, a youth-focused concert featuring local Philadelphia acoustic musicians. All concert proceeds will support our Youth Leadership Network, which aims to educate and empower college students and young adults, aged 18-30, to support public awareness of, and action on, nuclear weapons policy.

Come on out on April 3rd to show your support of a worthy cause and check out Mark Rice along with other great local philly artists. This will actually be the first time Mark has played out formally since taking his hiatus to work on his upcoming full-length 2008 release. Singing with him at the show will be newly found band member, Sissy Clemens, and of course his trusty sidekick and producer, Dave Young.

World Cafe Live (upstairs)
3025 Walnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104

Also Performing:

Oud Blues

Katie Barbato and the SleepWells

Dan Collins

The Parsnip Revolt

Liz Dieleman, who a little while ago left the east coast for a short time to pursue academic and other interests in Michigan, has returned to rock The Big Apple. She will be playing at 169 Bar on Thursday, October 25th at 10:00pm. This is her first time to play New York City and as rumors have it, it sounds as though she may be taking up residency there.

169 Bar
Rutgers St and East Broadway,
New York City, NY 10002

Mark Rice and Pub Can have recently begun planning for a full length record rumored to release sometime in early 2008. In the meantime, Rice has decided to take a breather from the late nights and difficult-to-organize rehearsals. Instead, Rice plans to use his time to concentrate on carefully designing the sound he hears in his head for this upcoming release.

There is no official date yet, but there are rumors of a big release party and other great things to look forward to from Mark come 2008.

Come on out to the Tritone on South St. this Thursday night July 19th at 10pm for some great music. Mark Rice will have Verien Brotzman and Dave Young along to accompany him. This is one you won’t want to miss.

The Tritone
1508 South St
Philadelphia, PA 19146

If you are aware of this issue already, go here http://xpn.org/petition/ and sign the petition. If you want to know more, read on…

Streaming Internet radio is one of the most artistically beneficial innovations of the last decade and the United States Government (that’s yours and mine) has decided to all but shut the practice down completely. How? By allowing the U.S. Board of Copyrights and Royalties to raise the rates these streaming stations must pay. Before this hike, Internet radio stations (which range from monoliths such as AOL and Yahoo to college students in a dorm room with a laptop annd stack of CDs) had to pay 12% of their proceeds to the government. To put this in perspective, satellite radio (XM and Sirius) pay 7% and terrestrial radio (you know, the steaming pile of worthless, banal, commercial-ridden crap you get when you dial into that box in your car’s dashboard) pays NOTHING. As though this weren’t injustice enough, the government has decided to raise the rates for I-radio even more, making it thoroughly cost prohibitive for a large majority of these stations to function. That means if you’re a fan of Pandora, for example, you’re going to be very sad very soon. Better get used to hearing, “Hey this is Slick Rick Rocky and his Morning Buzz Babes bringing you the greatest in the 80s, 90s and today. Hey, how ’bout a little Bachman Turner Overdrive to get you goin’ this fine Friday morning! B-b-b-baby, you just ain’t s-s-s-seen nothin’ yet! YOW!”

All who wish to be forced to live in that world again, raise your digital hands…right. Thought so.

This is not only a matter of artistic democracy. This is a revolution my friends, a call to tell this government of ours, “No, we will not let you herd us like intellectual sheep into your same tired, worn-out stables.” Internet radio is a wonderful medium, one that has benefited artists and listeners in ways previously unfathomable, and it is here to stay!

So, if any of this rings true, follow the above link to XPN’s website (whose online streaming radio, by the way, would come under the axe of this draconian measure if things don’t change) and sign the petition to save Internet radio. It takes less than a minute.

“Lights out. Gorilla radio!”

Please pass this LINK TO PETITION on to anyone you think may want to take up arms.

Come on out to the Tritone on South St. this Thursday night June 21st at 10pm for some great music. Mark Rice will have Verien Brotzman and Dave Young along to accompany him. This is one you won’t want to miss.

The Tritone
1508 South St
Philadelphia, PA 19146

It has been about a month since we last saw Verien on the scene. Reports are that he’s been in the studio working on tracks for a new full length, but he confirms that the work has been slow. Apparently, circumstances have been a little rough for the poor guy.

This friday night, May 25th, he will be gracing the town of Roxborough with his presence. And what a presence it is! This guy really knows how to have a good time. Come on out to the Crossroads and start your Memorial Day weekend off right.

Crossroads Coffee House
6156 Ridge Avenue
Roxborough, PA

Mark will be at the Bubble Tea House in University City (Philadelphia) tonight to play for all of the guests of this wonderful establishment. Check out the Bubble Tea House on myspace. They have all types of beverage available as well as wonderful food. The best part of the show is that it is entirely FREE to attend. Most of the time we pay 5 or 6 bucks to see Mark play in places where there is standing room only. This time you pay nothing, and you can enjoy a table or booth to relax and socialize at while you listen to the sweet sounds of marks soothing voice pumped through the house pa system.

Click here for Directions.

The Tritone
1508 South Street
Philadelphia, PA

Come see Mark Rice with band at the Raven Lounge this Monday night. Show begins at 9pm. Click below for directions.

The Raven Lounge
1718 Sansom St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103

The Verien show at the Crossroads Coffeehouse in Roxborough scheduled for this Friday, March 30th has been cancelled.

For those of you planning to hit the Raven Lounge this evening, March 19th, there has been a scheduling error and there will no longer be an appearance made by Rice and band. However, it looks as though there may be another date to replace it for Monday night, April 2nd. We will post more when we recieve confirmation.

We’ve just booked some new shows. Click on the “shows” tab above and find out when you can see Mark and Verien hit the stage.

VERIEN steps onto the stage for a night of sweet love and romance. Bring your significant other to the luxurious Mansion at Rittenhouse on Valentine’s Day night to see VERIEN at 11pm. Doors open at 9pm and cover is 5 dollars.

The Mansion at Rittenhouse
121 S. 19th St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103

This Sunday night will be an opportunity that no one will want to miss out on. Mark Rice and Band will be headlining an evening of great local talent in a bar that is just as much in the heart of old city as it is in the heart of the Philly music scene. The Khyber, on Second and Market, has hosted just about every band whether local or not, and on Sunday night Mark Rice has a chance to make his debut on that very stage.

Doors will be opening up at 8pm, and Mark is expected to go on sometime after 11:30pm. Joining him will be percussionist Verien Brotzman and guitarist Dave Young, and they will be playing for somewhere around 45 minutes to an hour.

Come on down Sunday night and show your support!

be with you tonight mark rice 2005 (2007 re-release) $5.00

Being the perfectionist that producer Dave Young is known for, at no surprise came his recent statements of dissatisfaction with the outcome of the Mark Rice 2005 EP release, “Be With You Tonight”. He was recently quoted (although noted on loose authority) saying, “I would have never allowed that out of my studio had I not been tied up and outright robbed by Mark’s croonies!”. Since this statement, slight investigation has provided reason to believe that no such croonies actually exist. However, Young’s passion for complete and utter perfection rings through his passionate claims.

In following up with these sentiments, Young has convinced Rice and company to agree to a 2007 Pub Can re-release of the 2005 EP having been touched up in the mixing lab and completely re-masterd. Throw in a 2-panel full-color insert with liner notes and a jewel case, and this record becomes a great opportunity to own a piece of Mark Rice history(still in the making), and all for the same low price of $5 US.

Check out more of Mark’s stuff on his artist page.