Flight of the Conchords Announces 2009 U.S. Tour
The Organic Popularity of New Zealand's Quiet Duo
Jan 30, 2009
Most people have learned about Flight of the Conchords through their HBO show, but they have many fans from their BBC radio show and their live performances. The group won a Grammy Award in 2007 for "The Distant Future." Flight of the Conchords is often billed as a comedy act, but their New Zealand roots are more closely connected to musical theater.
The Flight of the Conchords Organic Popularity
Bret McKenzie, the younger of the two Conchords, is a well-known musician in New Zealand. He was a member of the Black Seeds and a founding member of the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra. He learned a great deal about theater by growing up activly involved in his mother's ballet studio. His fame became world-wide as part of an Internet fan-phenomenon. McKenzie was an elf extra in The Fellowship of the Rings, and one fan noticed him and nicknamed him Figwit (which stands for Frodo is Great ... Who is That?).
The Figwit site was included in massive Lord of the Rings fan sites, and soon Figwit had his own fan base. These fans, researching McKenzie, discovered that he was in a musical duo with Jemaine Clement. When the duo, billed as Flight of the Conchords, performed live, many of McKenzie's "Figwit" fan-base followed, wanting to see the man behind the elven ears.
Jemaine Clement's background is more stage oriented than musical. He was trained as an actor, and lived with McKenzie in college. He is prolific with short film work, and made commericals in New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States before gaining popularity as part of a musical act.
The duo's popularity increased rapidly as videos from their HBO special appeared on Youtube, and HBO then released espisodes of their show online, with commercials and Mel's Blog available as a free Itunes downloads. When the second season of their HBO special appeared, it was made availabla as a free streaming show on Will Ferrell's comedy launch pad site, FunnyorDie.
Commericalization of Flight of the Conchords
The Conchords label, Sub Pop Records, did not do aggressive marketing for "The Distant Future"; the conchords album was priced at approximately $5.00. When HBO became involved, the Conchords became far more commercialized.
HBO replicated their t-shirts to sell online, and although their 2008 Flight of the Conchords CD was sold at a relativly low price (below $10) on Amazon.com and Itunes, the DVD of their show was priced competively by HBO.
2009 Tour Dates
The tour is intended to match the release of the Conchords newest album, which will be distributed by their label, Sub Pop.
- 4/6/09 - Tampa, FL: Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/7/09 - Coral Gables, FL: University of Miami BankUnited Center (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/8/09 - Orlando, FL: UCF Arena (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/10/09 - Nashville, TN: Ryman Auditorium (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/11/09 - Atlanta, GA: Fox Theatre (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/13/09 - Washington, D.C.: Constitution Hall (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/14/09 - New York, NY: Radio City Music Hall (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/17/09 - Boston, MA: Agganis Arena (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/18/09 - Philadelphia, PA: Tower Theatre (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/19/09 - Kent, OH: Kent State University (with Kristen Schaal)
- 4/21/09, 4/22/09 - Toronto, ON: Massey Hall (with Eugene Mirman)
- 4/24/09 - Detroit, MI: Fox Theatre (with Eugene Mirman)
- 4/25/09 - Bloomington, IN: IU Auditorium (with Eugene Mirman)
- 4/26/09 - Madison, WI: Overture Center for the Arts (with Eugene Mirman)
- 4/28/09 - Chicago, IL: Aerie Crown (with Eugene Mirman)
- 4/30/09 - St. Louis, MO: Fox Theatre (with Eugene Mirman)
- 5/2/09 - Milwaukee, WI: Riverside Theatre (with Eugene Mirman)
- 5/3/09 - Minneapolis, MN: Northrop Auditorium (with Eugene Mirman)
- 5/5/09 - Dallas, TX: Nokia Theatre (with Eugene Mirman)
- 5/6/09 - Houston, TX: Jones Hall (with Eugene Mirman)
- 5/7/09 - Austin, TX: Bass Concert Hall (with Eugene Mirman)
- 5/10/09 - Vancouver, BC: Center in Vancouver for the Performing Arts (with Arj Barker)
- 5/11/09, 5/12/09- Seattle, WA: Paramount Theatre (with Arj Barker)
- 5/14/09 - Portland, OR: Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (with Arj Barker)
- 5/16/09 - Denver, CO: Red Rocks Amphitheatre (with Iron& wine and Arj Barker)
- 5/17/09 - Salt Lake City, UT: Abravanel Hall (with Arj Barker)
- 5/19/09 - Phoenix, AZ: Dodge Theatre (with Arj Barker)
- 5/20/09 - San Diego, CA: RIMAC Arena (with Arj Barker)
- 5/22/09 - Santa Barbara, CA: County Bowl (with Arj Barker)
- 5/23/09 - Las Vegas, NV: The Joint (with Arj Barker)
- 5/24/09 - Los Angeles, CA: Greek Theatre (with Arj Barker)
- 5/25/09 - Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Community Theatre (with Arj Barker)
Ed Condran reviewed the Conchord's during their 2008 tour, writing for the Seattle Times before "The Flight of the Conchords Land at Sasquatch" that, "the shows have been standing-room only.... It's not difficult to understand why FOTC tickets are a tough get. Their HBO show is consistently funny and entertaining. Clement and McKenzie possess an undeniable chemistry just like bandmates in a straight act."
Pre-sale information was distributed by the Flight of the Conchords on their email distribution list. Fans can sign up for the list on the group's website.
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