Plvs Vltra

Wondering what that sweet tune in the opening credits of Adventures of a Merch Girl is?

Artist: PLVS VLTRA / Album: Parthenon / Song: "Sweet Tooth"

Parthenon by Plvs Vltra record cover.  Artwork by Yuko Kanatani

"Parthenon" is the debut album of one of our favorite artists, Plvs Vltra.  It's a sugar-sweet album of catchy pop songs, crafted with expert precision.  We chose the song "Sweet Tooth" as the soundtrack for the "Adventures of a Merch Girl" opening animation.

Most of the album's focus lies on the glowing, ethereal voice that is unmistakably exclusive to Toko Yasuda.

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L to R: Beautiful sunset and beautiful Toko Yasuda.

Toko has been working for years already in established pop acts such as Enon, Blonde Redhead and now touring with St. Vincent handling synthesizer duties for live events. We're so happy to have Toko's work be part of Adventures of a Merch Girl. 

This is an album you definitely want to listen to from start to finish. Enjoy!

Download "Sweet Tooth" and other PLVS VLTRA songs here: Spectrum Spools Records

Get Your Russian Groove On With Ljova

Check out the music featured in Season 1 of Adventures of a Merch Girl so you can rock to some brand new jams.

Artist: Ljova / Album: Lost in Kino / Song: "War Then Peace"

New music, old magic!  Russian born Ljova (Lev Zhurbin) is the author of more than 70 compositions for classical, jazz, and folk ensembles, scores to four feature and over a dozen short films, as well as leading his own ensemble, Ljova and the Kontraband.  His music brings together influences from classical, klezmer, tango, jazz and Gypsy music that we thought was perfect for the character of "Branko Petrovic" (played by Kevin Cristaldi).

How could you not love music that evokes "...an early-morning Hungarian mist in a three-legged race to the village dance at the end of time?"  We couldn't have said it better ourselves.

Composed by Ljova, performed by Romashka, ©2009 Ljova Music (ASCAP) / www.Ljova.com and used by arrangement with Kapustnik Records.

Download Ljova's music here: http://ljova.bandcamp.com/album/lost-in-kino

Yoga VIBES

Check out the music featured in Season 1 of Adventures of a Merch Girl so you can rock to some brand new jams.

Artists: Go-Ray & Duke  / Album: The Yoga Sessions: Go-Ray & Duke / Song: "Karama"

Keep your ears open for a beautiful, other-worldly flute in Episode 4 when the character "Tree" (played by Remy Bennett) performs an ancient negative vibes cleanse on Nancy Drewfus (played by Hannah Wolfe). This is from the musical stylings of "Karama", a song off of the equally calming/energizing yoga album "The Yoga Sessins: Go-Ray & Duke".

L to R: David "Duke Mushroom" Schommer and Rachel Golub.

Go-Ray and Duke put a coin in their karma bank by letting us use their music to bring the moment to life. Check out this album on itunes for the perfect work-out playlist, and soon all your negative vibes will melt away!

This album was made by Yoga Organix Records, (c)(p) Yoga Organix Music, ASCAP.

Download the album here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-yoga-sessions-go-ray-duke/id411248134

This is Merchtopia: A Character Study

So, we're not afraid to admit we've been watching the new Fox reality T.V. series, "Utopia."  You know, the one with 15 people living on a semi-secluded ranch somewhere really, really hot in an undisclosed American location with the catchy adult-contemporary theme song?  Yep, that's the one.  Even if you have no idea what "Utopia" is, we think you'll be able to follow along easily as we transplant our characters from the world of "Adventures of a Merch Girl" into this Utopian "Truman Show" type situation.

The Mile High Merch company consists of 4 employees living in the urban wilderness known as New York City and not 15 people living in sleeping bags in an unfinished barn, but we've had our share of foreign situations, working under pressure and scrounging for food (mostly that's Guy).  We sympathize with these guys as they milk cows, drink moonshine, transport chickens in a chicken transporter (how else?!), skinny dip in the lake and most importantly, share one bathroom.  Here's where the Mile High Merch team would fit in the Utopia pioneers' pecking order:

United Front of Bromance: Guys Like Rob & Rob Likes Guy 

Guy, the Shipping Clerk from Mile High Merch would be best buds with Rob, one of the Utopian pioneers.  They both like to play the guitar at every opportune or inopportune moment and have rock 'n' roll tattoos.  Also, Rob seems to be chilling most of the time while the ladies are milking cows or working in the garden, and his job seems to be elusive at Utopia, the same way Guy's job at Mile High Merch is.  Elusive, yet very important.  We don't really know what it is.  Not exactly.  Oh, and Rob is from New Jersey, so that means they're destined to like each other.  They can talk about their favorite dive bars and live music spots in the city while swapping cool band t-shirts and packets of Ramen and cappuccino-flavored potato chips.

"Guy" from "Adventures of a Merch Girl" on YouTube.

"Rob" from "Utopia" on Fox.

Make Your Mark(eting) Province: Chancey & Kristen

It's a total no-brainer that Mile High Merch Marketing guru, Chancey Reynaldo, and Utopia Marketing guru, Kristen, would become a United State of Utopia.  They both possess a marketing prowess: under Kristen's leadership, the cast of Utopia made $40 at their first money-making scheme, a yoga class called Yogatopia.  Imagine the profit-making potential if they'd had more than one student?  Mind-blowing, we know.  More importantly, Chancey and Kristen both share an urban fashion sense, including big earrings.  They also love to gossip and always choose the side that's most beneficial at that given moment.  Kristen went so far as to proclaim herself a "master manipulator" which we're sure Chancey would attest to, in the best possible way, of course.  These ladies can get things done!

"Chancey" from "Adventures of a Merch Girl" on YouTube

"Kristen" from "Utopia" on Fox.

Isle of Chicken With Her Head Cut Off: Nancy & Bella

The same way it's "poor Nancy" in "Adventures of a Merch Girl,"  it's "poor Bella" in "Utopia."  Misunderstood and trying so hard to rally the troops, Office Manager Nancy of Mile High Merch and Doomsday Prepper (whatever that means) Bella would turn to each other for hugs and words of encouragement.  You know, the ones they give themselves when no one's around but the cameras to catch them muttering softly and giving themselves a back rub.  For those of you who have watched the show, we know that you know what we all know you know what we're talking about.  In charge of the garden and the fraught-with-contention chicken coop, Bella gets no respect when she tells the Utopian pioneers what to do.  It's the same with Nancy when her boss, Walso, puts her in charge of Mile High Merch while he's out.  Both Bella and Nancy are single and ready to mingle, but we doubt any romance will be in the cards for either of them this season.  We do, however, hope that Bella does not over-stress any of the chickens.

"Nancy" from "Adventures of a Merch Girl" on YouTube

"Bella" from "Utopia" on Fox.

District of Don't Mess With Me: Sheila & Hex

Finally, we have Sheila Haidai, Mile High Merch's Accountant/mysterious foreboding Emo girl, and Hex, the Huntress.  Need we say more than Hex, the Huntress?  We agree Hex seems like a real-life "Katniss Everdeen" from "Hunger Games."  She parties hard, likes to call people bitches when in fights (Bella,) and there's occasional footage of her shooting her bow at a burlap target to drive her "Hunger Games" image home.  Sheila's weapon of choice is the nunchucks, which might come in handy for some weeding in the Utopian garden or breaking up any domestic disputes.  She also knows how to skin a chicken, which would definitely come in handy on the ranch.  One thing is for sure, with their mysterious pasts and a penchant for trouble, Hex and Sheila would surely get along.  Or they'd at least share the black eyeliner and spike jewelry.

"Sheila" from "Adventures of a Merch Girl" on YouTube

"Hex" from "Utopia" on Fox.

While we don't have 24-hour live feeds and 130 cameras as they do on Utopia, we do have Season 1 episodes, including character video blogs, premiering Oct. 1st on an internet connection near you.  

And as a summation of our character study, the Mile High Merch team is decidedly more functional and better showered (minus Guy) than the Utopians.  Tell us what you think: leave us a comment, and we wish you well in your own quest for Utopia in this world!

Get Fancy with Fancy Colors

Check out the music featured in Season 1 of Adventures of a Merch Girl so you can rock to some brand new jams.

Band: Fancy Colors [Remix]  / Song: "Lullaybe" by Alexandra Stewart

If you don't know about Fancy Colors, an ultra cool, versatile indie band out of Brooklyn, you're definitely missing out! They have several albums, as well as imaginative remixes of several songs, one of which called "Lullaybe" by Alexandra Stewart we thought was perfect for our final episode. We used "Lullabye" in our version of an Ophelia cameo from Shakespeare's "Hamlet".

Alexandra Stewart (looking a bit Ophelia-esque herself!)

"Lullaybe" was produced by Fancy Colors, mixed by Zac Colwell and mastered by Steve Wall. Be sure to check out their tunes on Soundcloud, and you can thank us later.

Listen to "Lullabye" and other Fancy Colors remixes here: http://www.fancycolorsmusic.com/

Why Rock 'n' Roll Will Never Die: Black Bunny

Check out the music featured in Season 1 of Adventures of a Merch Girl so you can rock to some brand new jams.

Band: Black Bunny / Album: Chasing the Ghost / Song: "Rise"

We love this melodic rock trio!  

Black Bunny Songwriters Brandon Wilde & Chris Foley teamed up with drummer Brad Gunyon to collaborate on their second release, with songs ranging in style from Cheap Trick to RadioHead.

We used Track One on the album, the song "Rise", as the character Jayden Woodcock's theme song.

Jonathan Holtzman as Jayden Woodcock.

It makes us want to rock out with a cigarette and leather jacket every time we hear it and hope it has the same magical effect on you.

Click here to download: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/blackbunny2

The Launch of "Adventures of a Merch Girl" Web Series

Many of you may remember us from last fall as we embarked on a jam-packed production schedule to create an original web series from the ground up.  With a shoestring budget and a big dream, we had an absolute blast making Adventures of a Merch Girl.  Some of you contributed to our Indiegogo campaign last November to help us get our series off the ground, many of you read our e-mails, looked at our pictures, "liked" us (it's real if it's on Facebook, right???) and came to our post-production party at Rockwood Music Hall in NYC in April.  A few of you even let us borrow your nun chucks or gave us bubble wrap.  Even if you did none of those things, you're reading this now, and that's all that counts.  We are living in the here and now, after all, and it seems like a pretty good place to be.

After almost a year of editing, working, moving to the west coast, sailing around the world on a cruise ship and having a baby, we're proud to birth the whimsical tale of 4 young go-getters who make up the employees of Mile High Merch, a fictitious indie t-shirt design company in New York City.  

Adventures of a Merch Girl is not just a non-linear comedic web series about a merch company.  It's about 4 completely different and outlandish characters (with good hair) who are stuffed into the same apartment when they can't afford their office space and the weirdness that ensues.  Narcissistic indie band rockers, psychedelic flower children and Yugoslavian thug sublettors all take Mile High Merch by storm, but the team is determined to hold down the fort.  That is, until their absentee boss, Walso, gets back.  By the way, where IS Walso?

Loaded with crazy characters, accents, improv, 1980's references and underdog charm, we're happy to begin the countdown to our Season 1 launch.  

To whet your appetite, we'd like to introduce you to the talented cast and crew.  Each week we'll also be featuring the musicians who contributed to the awesome soundtrack we know you'll dig in Season 1.

You can find it ALL on our brand-spanking-new website: www.merchgirlwebseries.com

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L to R: Eli Bridges as Guy, Rosalynn Le as Sheila Haidai, Hannah Wolfe as Nancy Drewfus and Shereen Macklin as Chancey Reynaldo.  Photo by Kevin Cristaldi.

Oh, and it's not too late to "like" us at www.facebook.com/merchgirlwebseries or "follow" us on Twitter @girlmerch.  Thanks!

Sincerely,

Adventures of a Merch Girl xoxo