American Mars

“Becoming Charlie”

thomas — Wed, 08 May 2013 14:14:01 +0000

Thomas will make his regional film debut tonight with the premier of the film “Becoming Charlie,” directed by Andrew Behm. Thomas plays the father of a troubled youth with big dreams.

Screenings are at 6pm, May 8 and 9, at the Dearborn Performing Arts Center.

Check out the trailer…

Gangplank Records Showcase 5/4/2013

thomas — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 21:55:49 +0000

After a long Winter’s sleep, AM will be performing at the Gangplank Records showcase as part of this year’s MetroTimes Blowout, on Saturday, May 4 at Go! Comedy in Ferndale, MI. Showtime is 8pm.

We’re thrilled to be part of a fantastic bill that includes The Blueflowers, The Barrettes, Touch the Clouds, and The Thornbills.
$20 buys you a 3-day pass to the Ferndale part of the festival, which runs May 2-4. $35 buys a 6-day pass to both the Ferndale and Hamtramck weekend, which runs April 25-27. More ticket info here.

Chasing Vapor

thomas — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 20:36:16 +0000

Strange

New Year’s Eve 2012

thomas — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 18:34:36 +0000

Happy holidays! We’re happy to announce a last minute performance to help bring in the new year. AM will be playing an acoustic set at Imperial in Ferndale, Michigan on New Year’s Eve from 10:45-11:45pm. We’ll be doing some of our own tunes as well as some old-timey covers. Part roadhouse, part taqueria, Imperial is a great place for a mellow new year’s celebration. They just opened this past year to rave reviews and we’re tickled to be playing. Consider coming for dinner and making a night of it!

Merry Christmas!

thomas — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 02:20:13 +0000

We hope this post finds you safe and sound. To add a little cheer to your holiday season, we’ve posted a Christmas favorite that we recorded just a few weeks ago. We hope you like it.

Peace,Thomas, David, Garth, and Alex

Crime and the City Solution 10-19-2012

thomas — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 23:29:43 +0000

American Mars is very pleased to be playing with Crime and the City Solution on Friday, October 19 at the Detroit Institute of Arts. It’s a free show that starts with a set by AM at 7pm followed by Crime at 8:30.

I first saw Simon Bonney and his band in Wim Wenders’ film Wings of Desire. It’s still a haunting performance that if you haven’t seen, or haven’t seen in a while, you should check out (see below).Over the past year, the band recorded a new album, tentatively entitled American Twilight, with our own David Feeny at his studio right here in the motor city. In addition to Bonney, the album also features Detroiters Matt Smith and Troy Gregory, along with Jim White from The Dirty Three and David Eugene Edwards from Sixteen Horsepower and Woven Hand (three of my favorite bands ever!). American Twilight is scheduled to be released early next year on Mute Records.

Bonney’s solo records are also very much worth checking out, particularly if you’re into noir-influenced Americana such as can be found on Forever (1986) and Everyman (1992). Bonney’s name has come up several times over the years in reviews of AM’s work which is something I’ve always been proud of.

This show will be held in the Detroit Institute of Art’s Rivera court, which is a beautiful venue, and we couldn’t be happier to be playing. It should be a great night.

Follow us!

thomas — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 13:54:17 +0000

Hi All!
Just a note to let you know that we’ve added a *follow* button to AM.com so you can have our blog posts emailed to your favorite inbox. You can find the follow button in the lower right-hand corner of the site.

If you have not do done so already, you can also join our email list. This list is used to send out semi-regular updates about shows and such. The list subscription window is at the bottom of the website smack-dab in the middle of the page.

Finally, a bit of underwhelming news. It turns out that AM will NOT be supporting Crime and the City Solution at their upcoming Detroit show on October 19. The show has been moved from the Majestic Theater to the DIA. We’ve heard rumors that DIA security expressed some concerns that they may not be equipped to handle our fans, but who knows? In any case, we apologize for the trouble.

Peace,
t

If I’m Gonna Get Old

thomas — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 23:05:21 +0000

This week we’re pleased to preview the second track from Chasing Vapor, “If I’m Gonna Get Old.” This track was recorded during one of the last sessions for the record and is the second track on the album.You can stream the song in the player and on the album page here.

I’m gonna give my love a flower
Speak my mind, speak my mind
I’m gonna wait out the hour
Take my time, take my time
I can’t see what’s in front of me
Can’t remember what’s behind
Can’t recall for the life of me
All the dust that’s left me blind
If I’m gonna get old
I’m gonna get old with you

I’m gonna mend my suit
With a thread so very fine
I’m gonna fix my boots
Make them shine, make them shine
Gonna get out on the floor
With the woman of my dreams
Gonna hold her hand in mine
Let the spaces in between
If I’m gonna get old
I’m gonna get old with you

I never treated you how I should
Daddy never taught me about romance
But you were smarter than a whip
Sweeter than a sip
You always made me feel like I could dance

I can’t see what’s in front of me
Can’t remember what’s behind
Can’t recall for the life of me
All the dust that’s left me blind
If I’m gonna get old
I’m gonna get old with you

Arts, Beats and Eats

thomas — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 11:00:41 +0000

August 30, 2012

Here’s a reminder that AM plays this Sunday, September 2 at the Arts, Beats, and Eats Festival in Royal Oak, Michigan. We play from 5-6 pm on the Soaring Eagle stage. Admission to the festival is $3 and you can get more info here.

Chasing Vapor is now available across the globe (kind of). You can stream the album for free at Spotify, or purchase both individual tracks or the entire album directly from Americanmars.com or from a list of your favorite online vendors including our label Gangplank Records, Amazon, CDBaby, and Itunes.

Itunes, Spotify, Amazon, Mars

thomas — Sun, 26 Aug 2012 16:48:10 +0000

It’s been just over a week since the official release of Chasing Vapor. Much thanks to everyone who came out to the release show at the Ark in Ann Arbor. Special love to all the nice folks at the Ark and to The Thornbills, who started out the evening with a beautiful set of music.

Chasing Vapor is now widely available across the web and the known universe for listening and/or purchase. That includes AmericanMars.com, Gangplank Records, Itunes, Spotify, Amazon.com, and CD Baby.

Our next show is Sunday, September 2 at the Arts, Beats, and Eats Festival in Royal Oak, MI. We’ll be playing from 5-6pm. Admission to the festival is $3.