Aaron Lee Tasjan Live at Southgate House Revival in support of Freedy Johnston on 2/26

Aaron Lee Tasjan
Aaron Lee Tasjan

Photo by Curtis Wayne Millard

Freedy Johnston with Aaron Lee Tasjan
2/26/2013
Southgate House Revival, 111 E 6th St, Newport, KY
18+, 7pm doors, 8pm show, $10 ADV, $12 DOS – VERY LIMITED SEATING
BUY TICKETS

“You keep playing guitar like that and I’ll break your fingers,” is what Tad Kubler, lead guitarist of The Hold Steady, whispered into the ear of Aaron Lee Tasjan after seeing him at a local New York gig some years ago.  While Tasjan, a native of New Albany, Ohio now living in New York, has worked with everyone from Peter Yarrow to The New York Dolls as a guitarist, he’s now receiving nods and accolades for his work as a songwriter.

2013 will kick off with Tasjan’s song “Apathy Junkie,” being featured in the film The Way, Way Back starring Steve Carell and continue with a short tour supporting another of America’s great songwriters, Freedy Johnston.  The tour will include stops in Vienna, Va, Asbury Park, NJ, Pittsburgh, PA, Columbus, OH and Cincinnati, OH.  

As a live performer, Tasjan’s stories between songs, often humorous and at least half true, take us back to the days of Arlo Guthrie or John Prine, while his songs about eating junk food and taking drugs or how it seems everything around us is in some way broken, offer stunning lyrical accounts and insights.  “They say Jesus was a carpenter, that he got up every day and went to work.  He spent his fixing what he could, then met his death with a hammer and wood,” he sings on “Everything That I Have Is Broken” off of his latest EP The Thinking Man’s Filth out on First Of Three Records/IODA.  Filth received much critical praise with The Examiner.com naming it to their best of 2012 collection noting, “Tasjan is a master at putting the written word to music…it amazes me as to why he has not become a house hold name,”-Chris Martin, www.theexaminer.com.

In addition to all this, Tasjan was recently featured on the record Songs We Wish We’d Written 2 by Texas country superstar, Pat Green.  Green recorded Tasjan’s song “Streets Of Galilee” then invited Tasjan to sing and play guitar with Green on the track.  Tasjan again received much praise in the media for his contribution to the record which shot to number 15 on the US Billboard Country charts.  “For all the well-known songs featured on the covers CD, the highlight is the relatively obscure but finely crafted “Streets of Galilee” by up-and-comer Aaron Lee Tasjan, who more than holds his own swapping verses with Green,” said The Oaklahoman’s Brandy McDonnell.  The covers record also features songs written by Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, Lyle Lovett, Shelby Lynn and Todd Snider.

Catch Aaron Lee Tasjan in his element, live on stage at one of these upcoming performances with Freedy Johnston.  Visit www.aaronleetasjan.com for more.

February 19th Vienna, VA Jammin’ Java supporting Freedy Johnston 8pm.

February 20th Asbury Park, NJ The Saint supporting Freedy Johnston 8pm.

February 24th Pittsburgh, PA Club Cafe supporting Freedy Johnston 8pm.

February 25th Columbus, OH Woodlands Tavern co-bill w/ Freedy Johnston 8pm.

February 26th Cincinnati, OH Southgate House supporting Freedy Johnston 8pm.

www.aaronleetasjan.com