News & Notes

Ever an army of one, Illusion of Joy will be one of nine performers slated for Gorilla Productions Battle of the Bands at The Altar Bar in Pittsburgh’s Strip District on Sunday, August 15^th. This is an all-ages event with the doors opening at 4:00PM, lasting well into the night with with ten bands total and a scheduled wrap-up of 11:30PM. Audience members will be able to vote for their favourite musicians. Tickets are $8 in advance and $12 at the door the day of the show. Tickets can be purchased online by clicking the “buy now” button below:

Directions:

Show flyer:

Recently added to Patricia Wake’s and Illusion of Joy’s long weekend excursion outside of Pennsylvania is a show in Potsdam, New York. Both musicians will be performing at Hurley’s Night Club (located on the SUNY Potsdam campus) on Thursday, April 15^th as dual headliners before Hurley’s weekly open-mic night. This show is free and open to all ages.

Also, if you’re in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Patricia Wake and Illusion of Joy will be at Rebel Sound Records the following night, Friday, April 16^th. Here are directions to both venues:

On Friday, April 16^th, fellow Pittsburgh, PA musicians Illusion of Joy and Patricia Wake will be performing at Rebel Sound Records in Pittsfield, MA for a one-off show. Billed by the venue as “A Night of Top Musical Talent,” this event includes a total of seven performers. The list of talent includes three Pittsfield musicians: Ally LaRoche, Matt Cimini and Matt Anish. In addition to that, two bands currently on tour – California and Dead Lights are also on the bill. And, of course, there remains the aforementioned Patricia Wake and Illusion of Joy.

Tickets for this show are $7 for students with ID and $8 for all others. Here’s how to get to Rebel Sound Records:

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Let your friends know that you’re going:
RSVP on Facebook
RSVP on Last.fm

Illusion of Joy is one of many independent bands/musicians selling CDs and digital downloads via CD Baby. This message recently appeared in our collective email in-boxes:

The earthquake and its aftermath in Haiti have touched all of our lives. Many in the CD Baby family have already contributed as individuals, but we wanted to do more to help the victims of the horrible earthquake tragedy. By selling your music on CD Baby, you can help raise funds towards those affected by the disaster.

Starting on Monday, January 25th and continuing for two weeks, we will donate $1 of our cut from every CD sale through our website, and $1 from every download sale over $8.99 on our site, to the American Red Cross and to Mercy Corps, a Portland-based relief organization with a large presence in Haiti. With your help, we hope to raise tens of thousands of dollars. Since the donation will be taken out of OUR cut of sales, you will still earn the normal amount per CD and download sale. If you’d like to help out as well, consider letting your fan base know that a portion of your sales will go to these fine organizations.

Please donate directly
I also urge you to make your own direct donation if you haven’t done so yet. Together, we can make a difference. Please click below to make your tax deductible donation right now.

Mercy Corps donation form

American Red Cross donation form

Text “Haiti” to 90999 and a $10 donation will be charged to your phone bill.

On behalf of all CD Baby employees, I thank you for helping out during this time of great human tragedy in Haiti.

Sincerely,
Brian Felsen
President, CD Baby

There you have it. If you were considering purchasing an Illusion of Joy CD, this is one time where you’d be encouraged to do so offsite. Alternately, if you were not in the market for a CD, then there remain the above links to two fine humanitarian organisations.

The December holidays are upon us and here at illusionofjoy.net we are not above ignoring the often religious aspects of these holidays in favour of crass commercialism. There is no better way to let your loved ones know that you indeed love them than with material possessions; and what better material possession can one give another than the gift of independent music? That’s a rhetorical question – there is no better gift than that of independent music. As such, here are a few things you should bear in mind when making purchases from illusionofjoy.net…

Shop early (shop often)

All shipping charges are included in the price of every item being sold on the site. However, in order to keep costs reasonable, the actual shipping is done via the United States Postal Service. This means that it generally takes three to five business days for a package to arrive at its destination. During the holiday season, this time may increase as mail volume increases. Please plan accordingly and order early if you have a holiday deadline to meet. Items can not be shipped overnight and no guarantees for arrival times can be made.

Coupon savings

Throughout the holiday season in 2009, a promotion is running at illusionofjoy.net where any purchases made through the site are subject to a ten percent discount when the coupon code “iojxmas2009″ is used. There is a limit of one code per customer. This offer will expire at the end of December and can not be combined with other offers.

Gift-wrapping

Gift-wrapping is available free of charge for any CD purchased during this time. Be sure to include a note with your order indicating to whom and from whom the package is being given so that said information can filled out on the wrapping card. Without a note, all packages will simply be wrapped without a card, leaving everyone surprised and possibly confused. Gift wrap patterns and colours are random but generic enough to be appropriate for any holiday.

Overall, have a happy, safe and hassle-free holiday season. If you have any questions or concerns regarding purchases from this website, do not hesitate to contact us.