The Common Couch

Storytellers FINALS!

cjt — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 10:14:20 +0000

SAVE THE DAY – an acoustic showcase

cjt — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:12:04 +0000

Hey guys,

It’s been a while since I wrote to you guys. Many things are happening at the moment… in just two days I will be moving out of my current apartment saying goodbye to my studio/living room which became the character of The Common Couch…

But old things go and new things usher in as we roll with the punches…

Been playing much around town, mainly at the Spleen Bar on 41 Bourke Street. Met a whole bunch of cool musicians! Recently recorded a vocal track with a producer friend who has entered the same song into a competition in the US. Fingers crossed!

BUT more importantly, there is a showcase coming up…

The Storytellers @ Chaise Lounge.

I have registered myself for this competition. Basically it will put me in front of booking agents who run tours for names like The Whitlams, Jon Stevens (once frontman of INXS), Ash Grunwald, Little Birdy and etc… They are looking for acoustic acts to play support for future tours.

For more info, please visit

http://myspace.com/mlgpresents

If you are an acoustic singer songwriter, it might be worth giving this a go yourself =)

So here’s the thing. I will be given pre-sale tickets to the event – the first showcase night will be 5th August 2009 – Wednesday. They are going at $12.00. One of the criteria of the competition also looks at how many tickets I manage to sell to my base of listeners, so this is rather crucial.

I will play the showcase on 5th August and would want you to be there for this coming out party! Winning or not is not the heart of the matter but the opportunity to meet people who are doing the same thing as I am doing…

So, send me an email @ charlesjtan@gmail.com to register your interest and as soon as I get the tickets you will get first priority.

When times change, opportunity knocks…

for the acoustic symphony in all of us…
Charles J Tan

New on YouTube!

cjt — Sat, 23 May 2009 00:09:40 +0000

Haven’t been around this couch for a while. BUT, fret not, here are two new videos – an original and a cover song by Eric Hutchinson!

Original NEW Song… “Times A-Changin’”

Eric Hutchinson’s – “Ok It’s Alright With Me”

Sunday Sessions – THIS SUNDAY!

cjt — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 02:46:54 +0000

Sunday Sessions @ Miss Libertine is a celebration of Independent Music in the Melbourne Metro area, aiming to provide a platform for musicians and music lovers alike to come together and experience the vibrant indie music scene, and much more.

On Sunday afternoon, the 19th April 2009, Sunday Sessions will be taking over all of Miss Libertine to celebrate independent music, with live acoustic acts in both the front bar, and on the stage! That’s right…

18 ACTS & 2 STAGES OVER 5 HOURS OF LIVE MUSIC!!

Broken Scar
Tim McMillan
The Vulpine
Allan Pascual
Scarletta
Scene At The Movies
Charles J Tan
Asami Koike
Nobody
Daphne Khoo
Note To Self
Root16
Kieran Christopherson
Kapow Dolores
Hannah Elisabeth
Ai Hui
David a Duo
Tam Matlekowski

Event URL: http://www.myspace.com/fullvalveentertainment

Promotions: Full Valve Entertainment
Contact: Giulia Tan
Phone: 0423528732
Email: giulia_tan@hotmail.com

Ticket Information:
18 live indie acts over 5 hours on 2 stages!!
Price: $12
Ticket URL: At The Door

Here’s the promo video i made… =)

Episode 11 – Live @ Cafe Crema

cjt — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 03:51:04 +0000

Can I hear a welcome home? If you’ve missed the show at Cafe Crema, where were you? Not worry, not worry, we got technology and you is going to listen to them live on this podcast!

Some new arrangements on the material you’ve heard so far. And here’s that youtube video (thank you Sam!) for the song, LUCKY by Jason Mraz & Colbie Callait. Dueting with me is Sarah Ann Tay. This video is dedicated to Ivy & Stephen who recently tied the knot at the beautiful Abbotsford Convent. Thank you for the dumplings! =)

Episode 10 – Singapore and all things new…

cjt — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 05:17:20 +0000

Hey folks! By the time you read this I would be in Singapore! Just thought I’d do a short podcast before I leave, play some recordings I’ve wanted to air for a while now. If you are in Singapore, come 4th Feb at Monsoon Asia Gallery for an Open Mic night. I’m playing! I’m also looking for more gigs to play so stay tuned on charlesjtan.com for gig schedules.

Talking about websites, thecommoncouch.com is now live! That’s the only URL you need to remember from now on!

For those in Melbourne, keep 27th Feb penciled in your diaries as Crema will be kick starting the year’s acoustic series for 2009 on that date! I’ll be headlining the show with special guests Asami Koike (with Zach Tay) and Teresa Yong!

And don’t forget 19th Feb as well for TheLimelight at Miss Libertine. Check out details at Full Valve Entertainment.

Listen here…
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Episode 9 – Artist Feature: SceneAtTheMovies

cjt — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 16:15:46 +0000

HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY! Say hello to the boys who spent more than 13 weeks on the Malaysian HitzFM charts… Scene At The Movies. This week’s podcast, featuring the band members, Rohan (Bass, Vocals), Dharen (Guitar, Vocals), David (Drums) – the three piece punk rock outfit!

Also launching their music video for their new single, “Fall” on YouTube (see below), shot professionally at the RMIT Studios in Melbourne City. Listen to the podcast featuring the singles and watch the video and tell your friends about the cool stuff happening here!

PS: For those of oriental descent, Happy Lunar New Year too!

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Stay in touch with the band at their MySpace site.

Episode 8: The Limelight Open Micers Show [Dec/Jan]

cjt — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 15:24:00 +0000

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE! I hope you had a great holiday and looking forward to a brand new year of great things to come. Here at The Common Couch, many new things are set to happen with a new image and design soon. So stay tuned.

New Episode for the New Year – once again, the guys from Full Valve Entertainment, Kevin & Lionel joins me for another episode of the Limelight Podcast series on The Common Couch. This week’s show comes in two parts featuring music from 7 artists!

Part One – Review [DEC] Limelight: Featuring Music by BrokenScar, Charles J Tan & LightFM musical challenge winner Josh Sperring. All live tracks recorded at Miss Libertine, 11th Dec 2008 by Benny, DJ BTWO.

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Part Two – Preview [Jan] Limelight: Featuring preview tracks by Nobody, Allan Pascual, The Vulpine & Asami Koike.

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The Next Limelight is on 15th January 2009, THIS Thursday at Miss Libertine, 34 Franklin Street, Melbourne Australia. Make sure you don’t miss this one as it is going to be a great lineup of artists featured in Part Two of this episode as well as Carmen Tong, recently returning from an overseas stint.

Episode 7: The Limelight Podcast

cjt — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:03:45 +0000

The guys at Full Valve Entertainment joins me this week to put out the first Limelight Podcast – featuring live independent music from The Limelight Open Micers at Miss Libertine. If you haven’t been to one of the shows, you have got to be missing out! But fret not, the next one coming up real soon. 11th December, Thursday. 7pm at Miss Libertine, 34 Franklin Street Melbourne. $6 entry. And I’m playing at this one. =)

This week’s podcast features music from Broken Scar, Charles J Tan, Asami Koike, The Vulpine & Nobody.

Here’s the snippet of what happens on those Thursday nights. To sign up for the mailing list, join the FVE Facebook Group or FVE myspace site.

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Remember, the EP – An Acoustic Preamble is still available with a special bundle of 5 CDs for the price of 4. Details here.

Episode 6 – Female Songwriter Features & That Christmas Special

cjt — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 00:18:30 +0000

This week we feature music from 2 independent female singer songwriters. Christmas EP Special – buy 5 CDs for the price of 4. Click here to launch store or Email us to order.

Play Episode 6… all 24 minutes of independent music goodness.

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Web links mentioned in the podcast…

Jane Lui – San Francisco based singer songwriter
Leng Te – Melbourne based singer songwriter
Ai Hui – playing at Crema 28th Nov – check out her CD at Tiger Music.

Remember 28th November – Friday Night Live at Cafe Crema. 488 Swanston Street, Carlton. Doors open at 8.00pm.