LOS ANGELES (Top40 Charts/ Sippy Cups Official Website/ www.thesippycups.com) - Flanked by giant puppets and juggling unicyclists, and swirling in electric colors and pogo-dancing preschoolers, THE SIPPY CUPS craft a pint-size version of a magical mystery tour. The San Francisco kid-rock band even parents rave about will take its show on the road this spring, performing at the SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST music conference in Austin, Texas, and playing weekend daytime shows at six renowned West Coast rock venues. See reverse for a complete list of dates.
In a review of The Sippy Cups' new album ELECTRIC STORYLAND, Wired magazine wrote, "The Sippy Cups harness the childlike euphoria of psychedelia and the energy of power pop to deliver music that passes a crucial test: Repeated listenings won't drive the parents mad." Created by three dads living in a coastal town just south of San Francisco, The Sippy Cups' first gig was a fundraiser for a community-built playground in their own neighborhood. Gradually, the band has moved from recasting cult classics by the likes of Velvet Underground, David Bowie, the Kinks, the Beatles, and the Ramones as shout-out requests for the under-eight set to writing and performing their own original munchkin-ready anthems. Two years later, most shows sell out in advance, while the band's CDs do a brisk business on the iTunes Music Store and CDBaby.com.
ELECTRIC STORYLAND is The Sippy Cups' first full-length, all-original album. Children's music blog Zooglobble ranked the disc No 6 on their top releases of 2006, saying, "ELECTRIC STORYLAND is... a winning album retaining the spirit of music from 30 years ago or more but giving it its own youthful energy." Previewing a packed show at the House of Blues in Hollywood last fall, the Los Angeles Times wrote, "With their animated performances and whimsical songs about magical toast and flower towers, the Sippy Cups aim to be the Flaming Lips of the toddler set." The San Jose Mercury News wrote, "The Sippy Cups' early afternoon showtimes are kid-friendly, and juice boxes are available along with adult beverages. With puppets, Sippy Cups characters and [Doug] Nolan's juggling, the group's concerts are a grand presentation that entertains visually and aurally." Cookie magazine called ELECTRIC STORYLAND "a deliriously funky menu of psychedelia" and "the Sgt. Pepper's of kid music." And the San Francisco Chronicle called them "every parent's favorite kid rock band and quite possibly the illegitimate offspring of The Cat in the Hat and Joey Ramone."
The Sippy Cups are represented for North America by New York-based talent agency LITTLE BIG MAN / PARADIGM. Agency president MARTY DIAMOND said, "I've wanted to get involved in the kids' music business, but it wasn't until The Sippy Cups came along that it really made sense. They are that marriage of fun, performance art and great music that transcends the monotony and even drudgery of most kids' music, and we're looking forward to exploring the possibilities."
PAUL GODWIN, singer and keyboardist for The Sippy Cups, says of the band's early success, "Parents come to a show and they're really excited about the music - it's not just something they tolerate because it's good for their kids. This generation of parents in their 30s and 40s wants to re-experience their rock 'n' roll years and share it with their kids. That's what's going on here: parents and kids getting into the same music. Now we're taking it from San Francisco to the rest of the world - but it may not curb the population explosion!"
THE SIPPY CUPS PERFORMANCE ITINERARY, SPRING 2007:
March 11 - San Francisco CA - Brava Theatre Center (2 shows, 1 & 4 p.m.)
March 17 - Austin TX - Town Lake Stage (SXSW)
April 7 - San Francisco CA - AT&T Park (12 noon) *
April 14 - Los Angeles CA - House Of Blues (10 a.m.)
April 14 - Anaheim CA - House Of Blues (4 p.m.)
April 15 - San Diego CA - House Of Blues (5 p.m.)
April 22 - San Francisco CA - Bimbo's 365 Club (2 shows, 1 & 4 p.m.)
May 5 - Portland OR - Aladdin Theatre
May 6 - Seattle WA - Moore Theatre
* dugout concert before Giants-Dodgers baseball game
