December 10th Live Stream from Exit/In!

Friends!

We have one more thing for you this year and it's a full-volume, full-impact live stream show one week from today! We're going to play the stage of Nashville's legendary Exit/In! For those who have seen the video for "Stonechild," it's that amazing stage! We'd be so honored to have you in attendance from wherever you are! It will probably be our last live performance for a little while. Get tickets HERE.

Speaking of "Stonechild," Talkhouse published an essay Buick wrote about writing and releasing the song, and about the cultural responsibilities of making work about someone else's life and death. We hope you enjoy it.

Buick also had a live conversation with Robin Little Wing Sigo of the Suquamish Tribal Council on November 25th! Robin graciously spoke to Buick about the impact of Stonechild's death on the Tribal community, the systemic racism involved in the still-unfolding story, and all kinds of other things. We've made the video available on Youtube and you can also find it below!

As always, we'd love to send merch to you or anyone you think deserves the gift of FC this holiday season! We're happy to gift wrap stuff, too - just send us a note when you order!

We are so incredibly grateful to all of you for your support and attention. It's been difficult to be off the road for all of this year, but we have so appreciated being able to stay connected with you in this and other ways. May 2021 bring us more opportunities to see one another. 

We send you love and solidarity!
Buick and Jerry
Friendship Commanders

New Videos / Merch / Rolling Stone!

Dear community!
Thank you for your kind attention and support over these last few weeks! We're so grateful for the reception of "Stonechild" and "Your Reign Is Over." We want to share this piece that Rolling Stone (!!!!) did about it. Unreal!
 
Last week we premiered the video for "Stonechild" at Brooklyn Vegan! You can watch it below. Jerry wrote, directed, shot parts of, and edited it. The narrative shots were performed by Austin Strobel; the performance shots were done at Nashville's EXIT/IN, one of our favorite independent venues, and one that is in danger of closing without support. We hope you enjoy it! And this week on Election Day, we released the lyric video for "Your Reign Is Over"! Also below!

Today is another beloved Bandcamp Friday, which means fees are waived for artists. We do have merch for the new release, and since it's a digital release, we so appreciate all who buy merch to help us offset recording and production costs. All of the merch items come with downloads of the new songs, and the items are all limited edition, only available this time around! Buying the songs themselves is also great!

Last, tonight we're part of a fundraiser for another venue we love, ONCE in Somerville, MA. We're playing a couple of songs live for a great cause. Join us if you're available!

That's it for now. Thank you again for sharing in what we do.

We send you all love and solidarity. The next time you hear from us, we'll have elected a new president. Can't wait.

Our best to you,
Buick and Jerry
Friendship Commanders

New Music Out Today: STONECHILD / YOUR REIGN IS OVER

Dear community!

We are so happy to be connecting with you today. We have brand new work out, a two-song single: STONECHILD / YOUR REIGN IS OVER. This work was written in response to events of the last year and recorded mostly at home. Kurt Ballou mixed the songs, and Brad Boatright mastered them. Ethan McCarthy did the cover art.

“STONECHILD” was written about the circumstances of Stonechild Chiefstick’s death on July 3, 2019. Stonechild was a Chippewa Cree man who was part of the Suquamish Tribal community in Poulsbo, Washington. Stonechild was 39 years old when he was killed, a father of five. He was killed by a white police officer in front of many community members who were gathered to observe the 3rd of July fireworks display. After he died, they held the fireworks anyway. Systemic racism continues to inform the unfolding story and we want to elevate what we can here. We want you to know his name, his life. Cassy Fowler, who speaks in Lushootseed on the track, does so on behalf of Stonechild’s family. The txʷəlšucid (Lushootseed) lyrics were written by txʷəlšucid Cassy Fowler (Suquamish), Zalmai Zahir ʔəswəli (Puyallup), and Chris Duenas (Puyallup). The song was written to acknowledge a life, question a death, and stand in solidarity with a community that has lost someone. We, alongside the people who knew him, demand justice for Stonechild.

“YOUR REIGN IS OVER” was written in a fit of frustration. During a year that has held a pandemic, a revolution for racial justice, economic uncertainty for so many, devastating environmental emergencies, and what is likely the most important presidential election of many of our lifetimes, the song was written to shout-down people who use immense privilege and platform to cause further harm.

More can be read about the new work at Destroy//Exist, where the songs premiered on Friday, October 9. They call the new work, "a pair of very dynamic post-grunge rockers fueled by the events of 2020, drawing its subjects from real-life tragedy." 

The music can be streamed everywhere, and the songs and corresponding custom merch can be purchased from our Bandcamp. The lyrics are also up on Bandcamp.

We appreciate your presence in our lives and your support of our work. May we all move forward with bold intentions to confront and disrupt all forms of bigotry. May we change our culture, one song, one step, and one day at a time.

Our best to you,
Buick and Jerry
Friendship Commanders