Sarah Silverman Gets Serious

How I came to love one of my favorite comedians even more:

Consequences of Gay Marriage

In light of our recent Prop 8 victory (Go Team Gay!), I though I’d share this lol moment with you all, courtesy of GraphJam:

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LOL.

Thank you, Facebook.

Thao and Mirah at Music Hall of Williamsburg

Out singer-songwriter Mirah and rocker chick Thao played Music Hall of Williamsburg last night as a part of their summer touring act, Thao and Mirah with the Most of all. The girls, backed by a band, played an epic 25-song set together, doing a well-paced mix of one another’s songs and living up to the original press release’s claim that they “…mix and match voices, songs from their respective catalogs, idea flashes, and dear friends to conjure a superband collaboration…” (not that I ever doubted them).

The show was alternately subdued and raucous (though, in truth, mostly raucous), and by the encore, everybody was dancing their heart out, including the adorable lesbian couple to my left. (Really, they were like the cutest couple ever.) Other highlights included: Thao singing Mirah’s classic “Recommendation,” the girls telling us that we were a much better audience than Boston, Thao going apeshit on the bongos, and Mirah’s dance moves.

Full setlist and more pictures AFTER THE JUMP…

Perfume Genius Signed to Matador Records

My latest queer indie music obsession, Perfume Genius, was signed to Matador Records yesterday. Seattle-based Mike Hadreas’ one man act has been getting a lot of buzz in the music blogosphere lately and it ‘s no surprise to me that a label like Matador picked up this melancholic Pacific Northwesterner’s full-length debut, Learning. I’ve had the eerily beautiful “Mr. Peterson,” about an affair with a high school teacher, on replay for weeks. Lines like “He let me smoke weed in his truck/if I could convince him I loved him enough” really speak to me (wonder why…).

Matablog writes:

‘Learning’ is a home recording as stark, haunting and downright jarring as any we’ve heard ;  harrowing personal stories laid atop unshakable minor-key melodies, we’ve been obsessed with Hadreas’ songs for months and have a sneaking suspicion more than a few of you will have a similar reaction. Actually, a cursory trip around the the internet reveals all sorts of reactions, and while it would be tempting to cobble together the long and varied list of iconic artists Perfume Genius has already been compared to, none of that means anything compared to laying in bed listening to ‘Learning’ at 2am.

Congratulations to Hadreas, and here’s to another win for Team Gay. Keep your eyes and ears open for Perfume Genius on my Big Gay Indie Mixtape, vol. 2, and be sure to check out his album. Listen to the title track, available for free download on Matablog, to get a taste of the magic, and if you like what you hear (which you will), go see him play at Glasslands next month.

What’s Gay About Summer TV?

What ISN’T gay about summer TV? might be a better question. Here’s some of the new and returning shows I’m most excited about:

1. Vampire fans rejoice. True Blood, the best worst show on television is back with its third season. The show boasts more man candy than virtually any other program this summer, not to mention some beautiful women (though their bare, perfectly-sculpted bodies don’t seem to get as much screen time). Lucky for True Blood‘s legions of gay male superfans, this scene from the premiere on Sunday suggests that this season might be the gayest yet [**spoiler alert**]:

Catch True Blood every Sunday at 9pm EST on HBO.

2. A couple weeks ago I wrote a post on the launch party for Planet Green’s new reality show, The Fabulous Beekman Boys, and tonight the much-anticipated show premieres. I’ve had the chance to see two episodes already and can’t recommend Beekman Boys enough–who knew watching two gay Manhattanites do a turn as gentlemen farmers upstate could be so entertaining?! The editing is great and the Beekman boys are pretty interesting characters in their own right. Josh Kilmer-Purcell is the best-selling author of I Am Not Myself These Days, Candy Everybody Wants, and now The Bucolic Plague (about his experiences on the Beekman Farm), and his partner Brent Ridge is a double-threat M.D/M.B.A. who is no stranger to TV, formerly Dr. Brent of the Martha Stewart empire. Watch a musical promo and clips of “Brentzilla,” PLUS a link to the first episode after the jump:

I Love Iceland

via Queerty

The “Fabulous Beekman” Launch Party

Wednesday night I had the pleasure of attending the launch party for the new Planet Green series The Fabulous Beekman Boys, premiering June 16 at 9pm ET. The new reality show chronicles the (mis)adventures of power couple Josh Kilmer-Purcell and Brent Ridge, who have traded in their high-paced, city slicker lives to bring an upstate New York farm back to life and develop a new organic lifestyle brand, Beekman 1802. The boys, who are committed to sustainability and bringing people a little closer to what they eat, call their farm “a shared experiment in seasonal living.”

The launch was hosted at the trendy (and organic/local!) restaurant, abckitchen, and was a smashing success! Waiter circulated throughout the two-hour event, offering wine, vodka-tonic-lemonades–the featured the cocktail of evening–and a variety of delicious h’ors deurves made with ingredients fresh from the Beekman Farm. The bite of asparagus was unbelievably tender and the miniature dill and goat cheese pizza was to die for–I had two slices! Not surprisingly, the farm’s artisanal goat cheese Beekman 1802 Blaak is one of their most popular products, along with the biggest seller, their beautiful goat-milk soap. (The “After the Sun” bar I received in my gift bag smells so good I don’t even want to use it!)

(from L to R) Josh Kilmer-Purcell, Isabella Rossellini, Planet Green President & GM Laura Michalchyshyn, and Brent Ridge. Credit: Alex Oliveira/Planet Green.

Actresses Isabella Rossellini and Robin Byrd (who was absolutely lovely) were both in attendance, as well as a couple of Bravo’s own Real Housewives, and the dishy Philippe Cousteau. The crowd seemed to be mostly people from the TV and PR worlds, but Amber Harris, manager of digital communications for Discovery, introduced me to fellow bloggers Nicole and Allie, of Linus’s Blanket and Hist-Fic Chick, respectively. (Check their great book blogs out!)

The lovely (from L to R): Alison Rudnick, Director of Corporate Communications for Discovery; Nicole of Linus's Blanket; Amber Harris, Manager of Digital Communications for Discovery; and Allie of Hist-Fic Chick.

We also got the chance to chat briefly with one of the Fabulous Beekman Boys himself, Josh Kilmer-Purcell. Kilmer-Purcell, author and ad-man, wrote the best-selling 2006 memoir I Am Not Myself These Days, about his double-life in the ’90s as a young advertising professional by day and a successful drag queen and club performer by night. (His drag persona, Aqua, was famous for her clear plastic breasts filled with water and inhabited by live gold fish.) He told us just how much he loved social networking sites and that he had been using them to his advantage since the days when MySpace was still en vogue. By the time his first book came out, he had amassed “a small army” of loyal social networking friends and fans who engaged in guerilla tactics to promote I Am Not Myself These Days, moving copies to the front table of bookstores all over. Kilmer-Purcell has since published Candy Everybody Wants, a novel, and most recently, The Bucolic Plague, a memoir about his experiences with Brent Ridge on the Beekman Farm. I received a copy of this one in the gift bag and can’t wait to read it!

As for the series itself? After the party I had the chance to watch two promotional episodes and am already hooked. The Beekman property in historic Sharon Springs, NY is absolutely breathtaking, the Boys’ banter is hilarious, and the antics (both human and animal) are sure to entertain. The comedy of the fish-out-water story is something every New Yorker can appreciate and I know I’ll be tuning in for the premiere on June 16 (Planet Green, 9pm EST). With a show as good as their cheese, I predict The Fabulous Beekman Boys will be a summer hit.

More pictures after the jump.

Josh Kilmer-Purcell (L) and Brent Ridge (R). Credit: Alex Oliveira/Planet Green.

McDonald’s: Come As You Are

This made me smile:

As did the highest rated comment, by Dreathrevolution: “this doesnt make sense gays are vegetarians.”

“Bad Questions” with Calpernia Addams

An oldie but goodie!  Actress and activist Calpernia Addams walks us through fifteen or so questions she’s frequently asked that offend her as a transsexual woman.  While the video may not apply to everyone trans, it certainly provides a good set of guidelines and a reminder of the importance of tact, and is funny to boot! My favorite might be #13: “Hey, I know this person named (whatever) back in (wherever) who’s transsexual. Do you know them?”