The Music Tapes to take The Orbiting Human Circus (Of The Air) on a tour (of the land)

Hold that Mangumian worship in check for the time being. Surely one can appreciate the alluring quirkiness of his friend Julian Koster, who, in addition to standing alongside Mangum in Neutral Milk Hotel and in the Elephant 6 Collective, has managed his own narrative-minded band called The Music Tapes for two decades+ now. And given that the band has become widely known for its storytelling, it’s no surprise that Koster would eventually discover and create the hit podcast-based quasi-drama The Orbiting Human Circus (Of The Air).

Supported by Night Vale Presents, the show follows a romantic (not in the love-y sense) janitor (played by Koster) as he chronically interrupts a radio show hosted at the top of the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately, many of the drama’s musical intra-tales of vital crickets and reciting/resuscitating platypuses had previously been limited to that podcast. But now, Koster’s invented wonder will be having a more direct effect on its audience, because the whole Orbiting Human Circus is going on tour…with support from The Music Tapes!

Followers of the latter have grown to expect extraordinary features with each performance (such as actual carnival games), and this upcoming tour is promising nothing less. The press release — as well as the details accompanying Orbiting Human Circus’s recent EP release — have the situation pretty well covered:

The audience is invited to walk into the world of the Orbiting Human Circus and spend an evening with the show’s lead character—the hapless Janitor ofthe Eiffel Tower, played by Koster—who will attempt, and fail, to clean each evening’s venue, as surreal events, songs, and magic simply happen all around him and the audience in the most unexpected ways.

Check out episode 1 of the podcast’s first season down below if you still need to get acquainted with the interiors of Kostner’s mind palace (Season 2 of the show is currently happening!), followed by the full run of tour dates.

The Orbiting Human Circus (Of The Air) on the road:

05.02.17 - Baltimore, MD - The Metro Gallery
05.03.17 - Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Small’s Theatre
05.04.17 - Cincinnati, OH - Woodward Theater
05.05.17 - Bloomington, IN - The Bishop
05.06.17 - Chicago, IL - Subterranean
05.07.17 - Minneapolis, MN - Ceder Cultural Center
05.09.17 - Omaha, NE - The Waiting Room
05.10.17 - Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge
05.11.17 - Salt Lake City, UT - Metro Bar
05.12.17 - Boise, ID - The Olympic
05.13.17 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
05.14.17 - Seattle, WA - The Vera Project
05.16.17 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
05.18.17 - Los Angeles, CA - Bootleg Theater
05.20.17 - Phoenix, AZ - The Trunk Space
05.22.17 - Dallas, TX - Club Dada
05.23.17 - Austin, TX - The North Door
05.24.17 - Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall
05.25.17 - New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa
05.26.17 - Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn
05.27.17 - Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club
05.30.17 - Asheville, NC - The Grey Eagle
05.31.17 - Durham, NC - Motorco

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