Coming to Cape Cod's First Encounter Coffeehouse!
The Nields, that is.
Friends, it’s been over ten years since we performed at First Encounter in Eastham MA. It’s possible that the last time we were there, I Nerissa didn’t even have children. I did bring my kids there once, but that was because we were on an actual vacation––a strange, unpracticed experience for me. I didn’t know what to do on Cape Cod, other than drive to First Encounter. I said, “Wee ones! Behold the little church where Mama comes to do shows”
Now we are finally back. This sweet spot is the holder of so many happy memories of our performances going way back to maybe 1992 or 1993. I remember learning there that Cape Cod had the latest spring of any part of the USA, including Alaska! Did y’all get snow last week?
Also, who’s going to see the eclipse? Tom and I are driving up to Montpelier tomorrow and I’m planning on vlogging it. So follow our Insta to see…oh, wait, that was my next topic to discuss, would you look at that!
Follow us on Instagram to see our Hot Takes
We amuse ourselves. We strive to perhaps amuse you, too, as we venture into the unknown worlds of 10-second videos. Please follow us on Instagram. Why?
As I’m sure you’ve noticed, Facebook is making it increasingly difficult to communicate. Too many ads, too many people you don’t know, too many weird posts about Beatles’ wives (at least, that’s what they feed me).
Instagram is changing too, but in a different way—specifically, they are slower to suggest people for you to follow. So, if we didn’t nudge you, you might not even know we were there! Hello, we ARE! And we’re doing our most interesting tap dances on Instagram! So follow us please! We might move our live shows to Instagram in the near future. Meanwhile, see you at the shows! Next up after Cape Cod is Me & Thee in Marblehead!
Where are we performing next?
April 13 First Encounter Coffeehouse, Eastham MA 7pm show
May 3 Me & Thee Coffeehouse, Marblehead MA
July 5 Hancock Shaker Village, Pittsfield, MA
July 20 Bryn Mawr Twilight Concerts Bryn Mawr PA, o/f Hoots & Hellmouth
August 8 Caffe Lena’s Saratoga Spring, NY
August 22 Fruitlands Harvard, MA with Susan Werner and Seth Glier
October 26 Passim, Cambridge MA
December 14 Stone Soup Coffeehouse Providence RI
Please support the new Iron Horse! They’ve become a nonprofit, and as such need a big boost from all of us to make their (AMAZING) new vision come true! (Please donate to the link above, scroll down and choose “Donate to a team” and then choose “The Nields Team: Easy People.”)
About Matt Farley from the NYTimes article “Why Did This Guy Put a Song About Me on Spotify? By Brett Martin
Below is an excerpt of the article with my [bracketed] comments. This is to give you a quick summary. Because the article is like 5000 words long.
Farley has managed to achieve that most elusive of goals: a decent living creating music [$200,000 a year!]. In 2008, his search-engine optimization project took in $3,000; four years later, it had grown to $24,000…“Poop in my fingernails!” by the Toilet Bowl Cleaners [one of Farley’s “band” names], currently has over 4.4 million streams on Spotify alone. To date, that “band,” and the Odd Man Who Sings About Poop, Puke and Pee, have collectively brought in approximately $469,000 from various platforms. Papa Razzi and the Photogs [another “band” name] has earned $41,000; the Best Birthday Song Band Ever, $38,000; the Guy Who Sings Your Name Over and Over, $80,000… It adds up. Farley quit his day job in 2017.
Friends, please note: although we would DEARLY to be making a real actual upper middle-class income from our Spotify streams, we Nields do NOT write songs about poop, and we do not try to game the Spotify system, but that’s only partly because we aren’t smart enough to do so. Or, rather, we are too busy/lazy/ADD to follow directions. THAT SAID, wouldn’t it be super great if our Spotify numbers went up? Remember how once upon a time “Hi Ho the Rattlin’ Bog” was by far our #1 song on Spotify and “Easy People” was a distant second and we asked you to go nuts listening to “Easy People” and you DID and now it is LEGIT number one? Could you possibly do this for us again, only now just go nuts on any of our current top 10, which are:
As you can see, the order these songs are in is not exactly connected to overall plays. For instance, “Tyrants Always Fall” has more listens than “Jeremy Newborn Street,” and “Love Love Love” has more than “Yesterday’s Girl.” I have no idea if any of this matters a whit, but what I do know is that you playing our songs on Spotify is ultimately great for us. We see that our monthly listens have gone up dramatically in the past year (like from 2000/month to 3000/month, which Tom and Lila tell me is a 50% increase) and we are thrilled!
And that isn’t even why we love you.
Thank you for spreading the word, and please keep playing our songs on Spotify!
Throw Back Thursdays
And on Thursdays—also on Instagram––we aim to bring you a little blast from the past––ours and yours.
We love you! Best fans in the world.
Nerissa & Katryna