If you like timeless classics, check out my latest record on spotify here!

We're getting the band back together! I'm excited to announce that I'll be playing a reunion show with the DC Shwa band at the legendary 9:30 club on Saturday, July 2. It's been almost 2 and a half years since Jim, Justin, Reiter and I played together and we're stoked to be doing it again at one of the best venues in the country. You can read all about the reunion here, and if you're anywhere near DC, I hope you'll join us for what should be an epic night.

Hey guys,
I just got back from some great shows in Texas and Montreal. The spring tour is winding down now with just a few shows left in Philly and New York, and then it'll be back to writing for a bit. Thanks everyone who's come out and made these shows such a big success, and if you have a few minutes, check out my new blog!
Shwa

I'm taking part in a real cool Rebel Spirit Music benefit show for doctors without borders tomorrow and proceeds from binge drinking will go to help those in need. We're getting a recording of the show, and I'll send out an mp3 link to all of the songs we don't butcher (if any!) If you want to come, all you have to do is send an email with your name to RSVP@rebelspiritmusic.com and they'll give you all the other top secret details. Here's what I do know though...

Thursday, October 28
Flux Studios (east village)
doors at 8 p.m.

 

I'm super stoked to be playing a residency every Tuesday night in September at Rockwood Music Hall @ 8 p.m.. We're gonna be trying out all kinds of new songs, covers, and all the hits. Hell yea!

Here's a review of the new album from the good folks at Blogcritics:
"Good Times, Good Times finds a confident Losben reveling in several sub-genres of pop music that had my ears thinking of artists such as Guster and Ben Folds. Melody is king here, and Losben finds many ways to accentuate it...Good Times? Hell yea."
click for full review

The entire album is now streaming for FREE at http://shwa.bandcamp.com. While you're there you can also pick up a signed copy of the CD too.

After more than a year in the making, my new record Good Times, Good Times is finally out today! I'm really proud of this CD and can't wait for you to hear it. You can purchase the record from online retailers including iTunes, Amazon, and CDBaby. If you like it, please help spread the word!

I have a new blog called "Good Times with Shwa Losben"  at http://www.shwamusic.com/blog. I'll be updating it regularly with lyrics, obscure album reviews, recipes, battle stories and more. Let me know if there's anything you'd like to see there! 

We're happy to announce our CD Release Party at Mercury Lounge on Thursday, May 20. This is our biggest show to date and we're sandwiched between some great acts (Val Emmich, Des Roar). Come celebrate the release of Good Times, Good Times with us!

I just got word that I'll be opening for Ben Folds later this month at Lehigh University. I'll post more info on the tour page as soon as they're announced. And thanks again to everyone who came out to the Shwa Band Reunion show at IOTA last weekend. We had a blast.

OMFG. We're reuniting the old DC "Shwa" band for a special show at IOTA Club and Cafe this weekend. If you're anywhere near DC, this is going to be one you don't want to miss!

Thanks so much to everyone who helped out with the Marty's Place AIDS Hospice benefit show. We raised $370.47 that will go directly to the community. Not bad for 1 hour!

Hi guys,
I'll be playing my third (quasi-)annual benefit show for Marty's Place AIDS Hospice tomorrow night at the Zebra Striped Whale in Newtown, PA. The hospice, which is named after my Uncle Marty, provides care for people who often have no other place to go. If you're in the area, come support a great cause!
Shwa

I'm off to Texas for some old-fasioned rock this week. Hope to see you out there!

Hey guys,
While I'm getting ready to put out a new record I'll be playing some shows this spring. I'm super excited to get back to Texas for SXSW this year and return to the East Coast for some long overlooked cities. New dates are still being confirmed so definitely check the tour page for updates!
Shwa

a little while back i was messing around with garageband and did a lo-fi cover of "human nature" by michael jackson. here it is in case you missed it the first time around: humannature.mp3

Hey guys,
I'll be donating 100% of this week's online sales to Haiti Relief. If you want to help and pick up a copy of "Chop Chop" in the process, head here
shwa

All right guys. I have the quasi-final mixes in hand and a top secret album title in mind. It's sounding mighty good if I may say so too. All that's left is mastering and artwork but 2010 is shaping up nicely. Happy new year everyone!

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. With the holiday season officially here, I want to unveil our new holiday single, “All I Want for Chanukah (is Hookers and Blow).” You might remember it from last year, but this is an all-new studio version with hand claps and everything. It was recorded in the same studio where we’re making our record and it features Phil Galitzine, Matt Bogdanow, Jay Rapoport, and Bryan Dunn. And the best part is, it’s free. You can find it here. On the off chance you feel like paying for it or writing a glowing review, you can find it on itunes too!

In other news, we’re having a fire sale on lots of old shwa merch. Copies of “Just a Thought” and “Click Track” are now only $5, and all robot ghost t-shirts and panda shirts are only $10. Let that special someone know you care and buy them a drastically discounted shwa item! Just head to the store section of www.shwamusic.com for all the details. 

Finally, we’re a couple trumpets and a few mixing sessions away from wrapping up the new record. Other than some cameos in NYC, I’m taking a few months off from touring to put the finishing touches on it. Thank you for being so patient guys!

For a long time we've been saying that if you came out to 5 shwa shows, we'd buy you a taco. Last month we made good on our word and had a fan appreciation night at Rockwood Music Hall. Everyone who came was treated to free tacos, nutella brownies, a Boyz II Men cover and more. It was so fun, there's talk of making it an annual tradition!

Hey guys,

Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to our campaign to fund the new record. It was a huge success! We were able to raise $4,565 in 25 days. Because of your help we'll be able to mix the songs we already recorded AND go back into the studio to turn this EP into a full length record. I can't wait to share it all with you!

Shwa

Shwa's hard at work recording a new batch of songs at the Fort in Brooklyn, NY. We're taking our time with this so there are no plans for a release just yet, but it's sounding great. I'll get a bunch of pictures and maybe even music up here to fill you all in soon!

Now you can constantly check out what I'm doing at twitter!

We're returning to one of our favorite venues, Mercury Lounge, next Saturday, March 21. If you're anywhere near New York, this is one you should definitely check out. It's our good friend Bryan Dunn's CD Release Party and our good buddies Emily Easterly and Chris Cubeta are on the bill too. We're on second, but the whole show is gonna be great. It might sell out, so here's a link to get tickets in advance!

here's a nice review from the Rebel Spirit Music folks. if you haven't heard about them, they are a great resource for artists and they put on some great showcases around New York. here's what they had to say:

"Supremely talented and infectious to a fault, Shwa Losben will be performing for us this month and what a blessing it shall prove to be. In timeless storyteller fashion, Losben conjures lucid and suggestive images that run hand in hand with some truly outstanding melodies crafted to perfection and custom-built for airplay. It's easy to forget yourself in his imagery and his tender, brittle vocal - reminiscent of an early Neil Young - but every rousing chorus will bring you back down to earth with a pleasant thud. His songs bare a subtle resemblance to some of the UK's recent bright stars but his unique quality cannot be replicated."

Special thanks to DC-101, DC's biggest modern rock station, for playing our song "Chop Chop" again last night. Thanks for all the continued support!

We're playing our debut show at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC on Friday January 9. This is the same place I saw Radiohead, Elliott Smith, and Wilco among others. It's been a long-time goal to play here and we hope you can join us!

Shwa was recently named the recipient of the Robert Allen Songwriting Award and honored at the ASCAP Foundation's Awards Ceremony at the Lincoln Center. It was awesome.

Here's a free download of my new holiday song, "All I Want for Chanukah (is Hookers and Blow)." It's a live version taken from last week's Rockwood Music Hall show, and if you like it, please spread it around!

Thanks everyone for coming out yesterday and filling the room on a rainy night. Here's an mp3 of "Never too Soon to Compromise" from the show. Ear muffs if you don't like cursing!

wow. thanks everyone for packing the place last night at the living room. it was a blast.

Special thanks to the good folks at SchramDesign for making this fine website. And special thanks to Robyn Shepherd for the "ghosts in love" design. It's part of her crayola series you might have seen on a Shwa flier in the past. Stay tuned for more updates!

Special thanks to USA Today for featuring "Myriah" on their Pop Candy podcast along with some amazing artists including James and David Byrne. You can download it here in iTunes or stream the songs directly here.

I headed back in the studio today to record "Brooklyn Girls". It was my first time recording with the revolving cast of the Cuddlef*cks and I think it was a huge success. Matt Basille, Misty Boyce, Bryan Dunn, and John Embree joined me at Fort Brooklyn to lay down the track with our new engineer buddy, Jim Bentley. It came out sounding pretty much exactly like it sounds when we play it live, which was pretty much the point. I'm not sure when we'll release it to the masses, but I officially have the recording bug again and hopefully it won't be too long before I start making another record.

Thanks to XM Radio for all their continued support. Last night they played "Never Too Soon to Compromise". You can let them know you want to hear more Shwa by going here!

If you're remotely close to New York next week, we're playing a big show at  the Mercury Lounge. You should come!!

Shwa will appear live on the Comcast Network program "Backstage" this Tuesday, May 27 at 8 p.m. Tune in to watch them perform "Myriah", "Good on Paper", and "Here and Now" following an interview. Also on the program is Barbara Walters! The show can be seen regionally from Maine to Virginia on Comcast 8 as well as online here between 8 and 9 p.m.

Wow. New website is finally live! Thanks to Jeff over at Schram Industries for the design. This is exciting!

Lots going on over here. Thanks to everyone who picked up a copy of "Chop Chop" at CDBaby. We sold out of the first batch the first day, but they're fully stocked now!

Lots of good press coming in for the disc too. On Tap Magazine wrote, "The album is haunting, revealing levels past just the usual singer-songwriter ennui. Sounds like Elliot Smith at times, but that’s unfair. Losben is his own man. With the voice and chops worthy of repeated listens, you’ll get lost in this disc. And be glad you did." For the full review and  interview, click here.

Penseyeview.com has a nice interview here as well.

And, DCist.com said, "...the search is over for the next worthwhile troubadour. He could be Ryan Adams without the whiskey or Conor Oberst without the whine. At the end of the day, Losben is an inspired singer-songwriter who holds the promise of carrying more tricks and insight up his sleeve." For the full review, click here.

Thanks so much to everyone who came out to our CD Release Party at IOTA last week. Thanks to you we sold it out well before we took the stage. I'll get some pictures from the show up here asap!