Tegan dedicates a song "...for all the ex's that we don't like...."

And remember - no hangover makes a happy new year. Happy 2008!

Source: chelsme

Tegan and Sara on LATV.

Source: HardcoreWithABullet

Sara talks about Gladiators and about a dream she had (influenced by Dexter).

Source: boguspenguin

Happy Holidays!

Sara talking about her Mom and Bruce -- the 1980's awesome family.

Source: squissymussy87

As you all know, Tegan is participating in the Spin.com book club. Here's what she had to say about the December pick (An Anthropologist on Mars):

"Somehow he made reading about people who lost their sight and their ability to see color, and their ability to make new memory (due to a grapefruit sized tumor on the frontal lobe of a hippie-turned-Hare Krishna) seem sweet and endearing, and not completely tragic." (read full review at Spin.com)



Note: Amazon link/image will not appear if you have an adblocker (i.e. ABP) installed.

Banter In Review (2007)

Year Banter In Review (2007):

The Con leaked all over the Internet. Let's be honest -- some of us listened in but we vowed to buy legit copies once it was officially released.

Sara participated in rapid eye movement therapy during the rehearsal process. After 26 years, she had a third party confirm that Tegan exists and talked a lot about her Mom...and Tegan! (who really does exist).

They kicked off the tour on July 14, 2007 in Victoria, British Columbia. On this leg of the tour they played The Con from back to front.

Only a few days into the tour, Tegan was already finding Sara's constant talking to be nerve wracking. According to Tegan, they had a hella inappropriate and awkward evening in Seattle.

While in San Francisco, Sara remembered a traumatic moment from her 22nd birthday.

They encountered the "vagina" yeller at Amoeba Records.

The Con was officially released on July 24th. "The album debuted at number 34 on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling about 19,000 copies in its first week. On week 2, the album fell out of the top 50, at #69, selling about 10,000 that week, totaling at 29,000." [source]

It was a sad day when Sara and Emy's pet goldfish died. Sara dedicated a song to him.

They picked up a third vocalist at the Fingerprints In-Store.

Hunter visited Malibu to play the shaker.

They played at Old Fort York / Rogers Picnic despite their fear of outdoor festivals.

They played Back In Your Head on Conan. Holy, that dude is tall, eh?

Sara made up her own rule at Hiro Ballroom about camera usage.

Dan's hair looked awesome.

A rowdy crowd in Brooklyn made Sara sad.

They performed a concert from WXPN and World Café Live in Philadelphia.

Al threw up after drinking vodka red bulls.

They were playing 2 hour shows and the "talking tour" was still annoying Tegan and also tiring out the band.

Tegan confessed to being a picky eater and gagging when she eats certain foods. In Detroit, Sara made fun of the way Tegan pronounced ava-CAD-o. As a result, no one heard the end of the avacado story until later in the tour.

They started to work on momentum.

Off to Europe they went! They visited the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, and Denmark.

They got crazy and climbed on their amps.

Ted celebrated his birthday in Komedia, Brighton.

Tegan didn't accuse a former neighbor of breaking into her house.

An interview with Kim Stolz popped up on MTV.

Sara ran out of things to say "for once."

They found out how fit they are.

Sara got emotional (or was it fe-motional?) on the way to London.

Tegan refused to play "My Number."

They play at the Malmo Festival and admired the attractive people.

In Munich, Tegan confessed to going through a phase where she wore MC Hammer pants and dressed up as a clown. Hey, whatever.

The microphone malfunctioned in Germany.

The new Tegan and Sara website launched.

They took some time off. Tegan attended a couple of concerts by choice, saw an art exhibit, floated fully clothed in a lake, visited the Vancouver Aquarium, and otherwise had a good time. [see blog entry]

Dan (bass player) went MIA but Shaun appeared.

Tegan and Sara turned 27! and celebrated their birthday in Vancouver.

They covered Umbrella in Victoria. Fans everywhere went nuts looking for the clip on YouTube.

Tegan and Sara encountered "tweekers" at the Red Deer concert. Sara went "Alberta" after an audience member caused the microphone stand to hit her in the face.

Sara verbally spanked someone in Toronto.

Tegan finally finished the story about ava-cad-os.

Sara admitted to being "cruel" to a couple of birds. PETA went psycho. Okay, just kidding about PETA.

Tegan and Sara were the artist of the week on MTV.

The video of The Con was released.

The break up was announced.

Sara shot a video with The Reason.

They spent 24 long hours in the tour bus driving from Tuscon to Boulder.

Sara scared Tegan by rambling about a monkey study on college radio.

I'll Take the Blame EP was released digitally (in some countries) on November 13th.

They were featured on NPR's Bryant Park Project.

YeboTV streamed the Columbus, Ohio show.

A fan fainted in the audience. Tegan offered her water bottle and Sara directed security.

Tegan (and company) hauled ass out of a restaurant in Seattle.

Tegan wore blue flashing glasses during Floorplan.

They flew to Australia.

Some people were under the weather.

Kaki King played with them.

Chris (the sound guy) celebrated his birthday in Australia.

Tegan released her 2007 in Review.

Sara had a fun time in the Ice Bar but Tegan refused to pay the $40.

Finally, the last show after being on tour for six months.

Wow, that was one hell of a tour!

Other Random Tidbits:

There were some mistakes:
[link], [link], [link], [link], [link], [link], [link], [link]

Along the way, they came up with different methods of dealing with the audience:
the verbal sprinkler method, yelling song titles in a group, being a crowd specialist, a verbal spanking, and finally...going Alberta.

There were random yellers and other behavior from audience members:
[So Jealous Guy], [The Vagina Girl], [Where Did All The Trees Go?], [Cute/Hot], [Gigantic Man Voice], [My Number], [Living Room].

And sometimes they talked about this behavior- [I Love You], [The Whistle], [New Castle/Fucking It Up] [You're Hot].

Random items were thrown on the stage:
bras, gum, a ring, undies, hockey pucks, paper, glasses, flowers, water bottle, etc.

Plus, the spin-off of Forest Fone launched. Six episodes of Trailer Talk have aired but someone might be over it.

If you read this far --
What was your favorite banter clip from 2007?

Talking about the pronunciation of "Living Room".

Source: RastaRach

More about the Ice Bar and Sara breaking her Blackberry.

Tegan "invented" a drink.

Ptosis runs in the family.

etc.

Source: reanon

Tegan talking about it being their last show.

Source: reanon

Tegan chats.

Source: reanon

Sara claims Tegan was mean to her all day.

Source: reanon

Tegan makes fun of Sara for going to the Ice Bar.

Source: reanon

Sara felt bad about saying her Mom looked like a prostitute in the 80's.

Source: marchingstars

"2007 In Review
By Tegan R. Quin!

1. Top 5 songs:

Turn it up - Robots in Disguise
I just love these guys so much. I've been listening to them for 4 years now and I love everything they have ever put out. They are wicked weird.

Challengers - The New Pornographers
A more mellow record from one of my favourite bands, but I love every song,
especially this one and Go Places. So worth owning.

Music is my hot, hot sex - CSS
I love this record. Gets me very excited to play. I have it on our playlist for before we go on stage.

Starts with One - Shiny Toy Guns
I saw a live performance of this song on MTV in Canada and I just loved the song. I really love the record as well.

On my way back home again - Jim Ward
I think Jim is a genius. I love Sparta, I was a huge fan of At The Drive In as well...but this EP is my favourite thing to come out of this man to date. Brilliant.

2. Top 10 Records:

Challengers - The New Pornographers
This is a great record. I listened to it in my bunk in Europe this summer night after night. My favourite lyric is " no matter the mess you are, you're mine okay". Breaks my heart.

Jim Ward - Quiet EP
I honestly believe Jim is a genius. His voice gives me goose bumps. "I find it hard to turn you off when you're not here". Probably sums up my past love addict behaviour better than even I could.

The National - Boxer
I love every song on this record. I was so late on the National. I feel intense guilt about this. I intend on being a super fan to make up for it.

The Blow - Paper Television
True Affection and Parentheses are two of my favourites off this record. Genius. Sweet in a way I can't ever possibly be. I listen and pretend I'm someone different.

Northern State - Can I Keep This Pen?
We've been touring around North America with Northern State for months now. I asked them to tour with us specifically because I think this record is so important. I think they are 3 of the most talented women in our business. They put on a great show and they made one of the strongest offerings of 07 in my humble opinion.

Bonde do Role - With Lazers
I saw a special on these guys up in Canada. They have great energy and I think this is an amazing first record.

Against Me - New Wave
I am a huge stalker-fan of this band. I love this record. Not just because I sang on it and Butch Vig produced, but because I think Tom is an amazing writer. One of a kind. He's going to change our generation.

Bat For Lashes - Fur and Gold
This record haunted me this summer. The song Prescilla would get stuck in my head for days on end. It drove me absolutely nuts. In a good way.

The Killers - Sams Town
I don't know if this came out in 07. But if it didn't, it should have. I listen to this record daily.

Junior Boys - So this is goodbye
Same goes for Junior Boys so this is goodbye. I'm pretty sure I was late to this party too. But I love them. I love this record. It gives me stomach pains. It is also the record we listened to every night on the way home from the studio
when we were making The Con.

3. Top 5 Live Shows:

Northern State – Stubbs (Austin, Texas)
They said Mother Fucker so many times it made me cry I was laughing so hard. They worked that crowd as if it was their own and honestly those 2000 fans that were there to see Tegan and Sara converted to Northern State fans...one by one....by the end of the set it felt like we should all just go home. Genius.

Against Me - Croatian Cultural Center (Vancouver, BC)
One of my favourite shows of all time. I sang along like I was 15 and alone in my bedroom. They make me so happy.

Tom Waits - Bridge School Benefit (Mountain View, CA)
Haunting, intelligent and hilarious. I watched side stage in awe. Truly amazing.

Bus Driver - Richards on Richards (Vancouver, BC)
This totally surprised me. I was there to see Coco Rosie and I was blown off my feet. It was audio assault and I loved every second of it.

The Streets – Montreal, Quebec
I think this man is amazing. Watching him perform was a dream. I had to pull strings to get tickets. I was in town visiting Sara and found out about the shows hours before. I stood in the middle of the club and wished I was a boy...so I could be him."

Tegan (briefly) talks about breaking up with her girlfriend of five years.

Source: gookgirl

Tegan talks about when their Mom came with them to Australia.

Source: evilchick666

Talking starts around 1:20 or so.

Introduction of the band.

Source: pillowpop

"My side project with Hunter is mainly just stalled because I am so busy right now. But we have a record ready to release. We'll see what happens. I can't wait to get home and write some more stuff..so perhaps it will be stalled even longer..." (read full interview with Tegan).

Banter needs a make over, don't you think?

If you have any comments/suggestions or a desire to help -- contact me (myspace or tegan.sara.banter@gmail.com) or leave a comment.

They sing Happy Birthday to Chris the sound guy.

Source: mammotht

Sara wrote Monday Monday Monday song during an 80's phase.

Source: : mammotht

They welcome back Kaki King.

Source: mammotht

The oldies section.

Source: mammotht

Sara inquires as to whether the audience can understand them.

Source: mammotht

Sara doesn't own a Weird Al album.

Source: mammotht

Tegan talks about what she was analyzing while singing a song.

Source: mammotht

“I can tell those ‘I think you’re hot’ people a mile away. They’re usually belligerent by the bar, going, ‘You’re sooo hooot.’ I’m like, ‘This is not a rodeo. You did not come here to lassoo me.” (read full interview with Sara).

Sara talking about being in Australia and a little bit about the weather.

Source: mammotht

Tegan talking about having violent diarrhea on a flight (Perth to Melbourne).

Source: mrg54

Talking about getting Kaki King to play on The Con and the Internet situation in Australia.

Source: mrg54

The first time they've played these songs with Kaki King.

Source: mrg54

Tegan charms the audience in Malibu.

Source: StereoStef

Sara talking about playing at venues without chairs and having a very sad day.

Source: StereoStef

Clip from 2006.

"Holy vocal audience."

Sara tries to tell a story over the random yellers.

Source: pillowpop

KEXP 90.3 Interview:

Part I.
Part II.
Part III.
Part IV.

Sara talks about Lez Zepplin.

Source: bornentertainer66

Tegan needs self soothing time throughout the day and twenty minutes of cringing time in the morning.

Source: nagoooyen

Random Question:

What song would you love to hear Tegan and Sara cover?

Sara wrote BIYH without a tuner.

Source: bornentertainer66

Sara talks about driving on the tour bus for 24 hours, trying to order off the kids menu, and blowing a tire.

Source: bornentertainer66

They sort of answer a question about what super hero they would be (Well, Sara talks about a story on This American Life) and they talk about how they write music.

Source: bornentertainer66

They answer some questions from the audience ("What was your first guitar?" and "Are you following the U.S. political campaigns?").

Also, they submitted a song to Rock The Vote.

Source: bornentertainer66

Tegan comments on the Cancer Bats and how Sara struck up a friendship with them.

Source: bornentertainer66

Tegan gets the audience to hug their partners/friends in the audience.

Source: bornentertainer66

Sara talks about the audience sounding like waves.


Source: bornentertainer66

Tegan talks about her Hallmark song and being the "packing robot" type prior to going on tour. Sara comments about dating the packing robot type.

Source: bornentertainer66

Sara talks about Man Band.

Source: marchingstars

Clapping for Northern State.

Source: marchingstars

Sara talks about The Rock Life.

Source: marchingstars

Sara talking about their first legit show and beer in a coffin.

Source: ffaffan

Lots o' stuff thrown on stage in Berkeley (candy, glasses, hockey pucks).

Source: ffaffan

Tegan just joined the band.

Source: kawasakichick355

Tegan talking about being awkward at a restaurant.

Source: kawasakichick355

Tegan explaining why she goofed up Take Me Anywhere.

Source: algae

At Borders in Ann Arbor.

Little chat before City Girl...more banter at 3:16....Sara describes what type of cat they would be, etc.

Source: mHeubel

Sara talks about a grade eight locker room situation.

Source: wojo4hitz

Tegan dedicates a song to people who brought them homemade cookies.

Source: wojo4hitz

Stuff is thrown on the stage in North Carolina.

Source: wojo4hitz

Sara chatting about the bolt she installed on her bedroom door.

Source: wojo4hitz

Tegan and Sara at Borders in Ann Arbor.

Little chat about reality TV.

Source: mHeubel

"The twins say that this is also the first record they have made without time constraints. 'It actually feels like the first real Tegan and Sara record,' Tegan says. 'Most people don't really make their first album until our age anyway. We just started really young. Every single note on the album was methodically thought out and played or approved by us.'

When it comes to their live show, the quick-witted duo often employ shrewd wit and sarcasm to deal with any hecklers. Another trademark of the group is their humorous onstage bickering. The two, who are close friends, engage in plenty of acerbic bantering at each other. This stems from what they say is an intense obligation to entertain and close the gap between audience and performer. Sometimes, however, they must simply just play their songs." (read full article)

"People will put really expensive mics in front of you, and it sounds like shit. A lot of my demos I recorded with like a $40 microphone that I got in high school so I could play live. The vocals for instance on “I Was Married,” all the vocals and background vocals are vocals that I recorded with my $40 mic in my closet. There are electric guitar parts, all the noodling stuff, and a lot of the melodies on the album. I don’t have like 50,000 pedals. I have an overdrive and a digital delay, and I’ll sit there and spin the knobs tiny, tiny millimeters until I get a sound." (read full interview with Sara).

Tegan explains her reaction to Sara's ramble on a monkey study (see this thread on .ca for audio).

Source: loveunderlined

Tegan talks about people smoking in doors in Kentucky Georgia and Sara wants to wear a unitard.

Source: loveunderlined

ABC Interview.

Source: redneckdixiechick22

Watch them play "Back In Your Head" in the studios of 88.3 The Current.

Source: 893TheCurrent

Someone ("Shithead.") threw a water bottle on stage.

Source: fluffyxhotcakes

"YeboTV Hiked up to Detroit and chatted with Tegan and Sara about their songs 'The Con' and 'Back in Your Head.'" (watch).

"How do you prevent yourselves from doing the same things over and over again when performing?

I don’t sit at home and practice my guitar or practice my piano. That might be holding me back from becoming a bigger, stronger, better musician, but I think it’s what keeps me fresh and passionate about writing music and playing music. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to have a lot of feeling behind it. We change our set list a lot and we’ve got five records worth of songs plus b-sides and covers that we’re constantly trying out and changing around. I think that the banter and the storytelling element of our show, which is somewhat of a necessity at this point, ‘cuz we just really love to connect with our audience...we’re both storytellers by nature." (read full interview with Tegan).

"Amanda: Has Tegan ever written a song that you have just disliked and not wanted on the album?

Sara: Sure, yes of course, we are very honest with each other. If I write something that Tegan isn’t into it doesn’t bother me, if I really love the song and she doesn’t get it I will ask her to listen to it more and then get back to me. But for the most part we have been writing music since we were 14, and there is only a handful of songs that I have ever really hated that Tegan has written. For the most part I am a huge fan of what she does and I think that she would say the same thing about me so we are quite lucky." (read full interview).

FYI: The Tegan and Sara knit scarf is now available at Maple Music.

"Sara Quin wouldn’t want to date herself … or any other musician, for that matter.

The 27-year-old songstress — one twin sister half of indie pop darlings Tegan and Sara — drew inspiration from a struggling relationship for songs she contributed to the group’s latest release, The Con. Over quirky pop melodies, Sara’s lyrics candidly detail her self-described inadequate relationship skills in songs like “Relief Next to Me” (”I’m not proud that nothing will seem easy about me”) and first single “Back in Your Head” (”I’m not unfaithful, but I’ll stray”).

The latter half of the duo discussed her relationship insecurities during an interview on a break from a recent tour stop in Chicago. She touched on the band’s rabid international fan base, her love/hate relationship with their early albums and the link between their live shows and dental hygiene." (read full article at Blast Magazine).

586 people voted for their favorite music video.

Here are the final results:

The Con	269 (45%)
Back In Your Head	79 (13%)
Walking With A Ghost	17 (2%)
Speak Slow	113 (19%)
Living Room	74 (12%)
Monday, Monday, Monday	21 (3%)
I Hear Noises	13 (2%)

New poll coming....as soon as I think of something. Any ideas?

Clip from 2005...

Sara's encounter with the police while hanging out with DJ Hate.

Source: stricken24

What happens when someone faints in the audience (I kind of sort of feel bad posting this) PLUS a story about Sara fainting.

Source: fbtmomeg

“It’s very difficult for me now to look back on that time and not feel such an intense wave of nostalgia. A lot of things were happening at that period of my life, and in Tegan’s life as well. I was in a relationship but my relationship was in great distress and it was sort of in the process of ending..." (read full article with Sara).

"I have a side project with Hunter Burgan [of AFI]. It’s really interesting to not have to write emotionally," says Tegan. "I’ve always written so emotionally and everything has always been so intense and important…very, ‘My livelihood rests on this song…Sara’s livelihood…I need to write the most powerful song ever for Tegan and Sara.’ And then I have this side project where I’m like, ‘What rhymes with harm? Arm!’ I love it. It’s so fun because I can write without inhibitions. Because I was doing that at the same time as writing The Con, I was changing hats a lot. So some of that uninhibited-free writing got into Tegan and Sara stuff, and then some of my emotional, intense, self-absorbed, narcissistic, self-loathing made its way into that side project." (read full article with Tegan)

Tegan entertains the audience while Sara figures out why her guitar isn't working.

Source: paramorefans

Sara chatting about not having her drivers license and what she would do in a case of emergency.

Source: paramorefans

Sara tells a story about a friend who made a bookshelf out of a piece of garbage.

Source: paramorefans

Sara talks about how she handles being short at concerts.

Source: paramorefans

Tegan gets excited to play Soil Soil and tells a story about her Dad.

Source: paramorefans

Sara talks about Smashing Pumpkins, her stylish bedroom at seventeen, not being smart enough to wait at at the venue to get an autograph, etc.

Source: paramorefans

Sara's bra sometimes flies right off her body.

Source: paramorefans

Tegan talks about being put on hold by her love interest (at the time).

Source: inanis