Casiotone for the Painfully Alone New Album - "etiquette" - Will Be Out In Mars By The German Label - Tomlab.

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone is the musical alias of 26 year old American film school drop-out Owen Ashworth. Ashworth began making music in 1997 after he realized that song-making was a far more cost-effective means of storytelling than film-making.

Using only battery operated keyboards and electronics as instruments, Ashworth has created a hybrid strain of raw, emotional, and very homemade synth pop that is as influenced as much by film and literature as by its more obvious musical counterparts. CFTPA's claustrophobic two-minute character studies shudder with reverbed beats, blown-out chords, simple-but-infectous melodies, layered beneath the sometimes funny but always heartbreaking lyrics of Ashworth's sighing baritone.

With two albums, a film score, countless compilation appearances, and more than a dozen tours (with bands like The Rapture, Xiu Xiu, Kill Me Tomorrow, and Cass McCombs) under his belt, Ashworth has built a great deal of anticipation for his third and best album, Twinkle Echo, due in September 2003 from the Tomlab label.
Ashworth currently resides in San Francisco, California, where he believes in ghosts.

"Although my songs are mainly fiction," says Ashworth from a tour stop in California, "I think they are in some way documenting the lives of people not too different from me. I like to think of [my songs] as tiny, honest tragedies in the lives of fairly average young people. I hope that they are stories that people can relate to."

"My favorite songs have always been the sad ones," Ashworth admits. "I love Hank Williams and the Carter Family and things like that. There's something really satisfying about a really depressing song. Those are the ones that stick with you, I think." (Description from the label page).



Home Page

His Space

Label Page

Label Space

Listen To The New Album At Soulseduction

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A Cool Interview With This Guy Published By No Fi Radio:

q = quin (no-fi "guy")
o = owen (the music guy)

q: you might be tired of answering this question, so i will get it out of the way immediately... can you tell us how casiotone for the painfully alone came about?

o: i got a $100,000 grant from the german government to create some very professional sounding dance music so i bought a gold plated 4 track.

q: were the germans happy knowing where their money went?

o: Dieses ist inacceptable! Wir wnschen unsere Geldrckseite! Ziehen Sie bitte in Erwgung die demtigende Verbrauchssteuer!

q: you started film school, what are your top 5 favorite films of all time?

o: night of the hunter.

q: i love that film...this band called young people does a great cover of the song from that movie. (sings) "dream, little one, dream..." what are 4 more favorite films of yours?

o: Hair Eaters 1, 2, 3 and 5...haven't seen 4.

q: what do you find disturbing?

o: baby opossums running across the road at night!!!

q: have you ever hit one?

o: no i don't drive at night.

q: if you were going to build a robot, what would the three main components consist of?

o: i believe the only thing robots will ever accomplish is "accidentally" murdering the people they were designed to serve. no thanks!

q: i agree with you actually. but, do you think a robot could ever be used for good?

o: Ein Roboter geht in einen Stab, aber er glaubt, da keine Schmerz fr ihn blo ein Roboter sind Dieser Witz bersetzt nicht gut!

q: what's a typical day like in the life of owen?

o: wake up brush teeth eat one egg call my bros drive fast drink a beer high five pick up chicks jump off a bridge drink a beer eat a pizza play a show count $$$$$$ pop champagne fall asleep on white leather couch.

q: who are some of your favorite local bands from where you live?

o: the papercuts and anything david enos.

q: what is the wildest thing you have ever done?

o: i jumped through the fire once.

q: (amazed) really? what fire?

o: the ring of fire.

q: ok, this is the part of the interview where i say the name of a band or artist and you say the first thing that comes to mind.

(ahem)

q: atom and his package

o: probably a nice guy.

q: this song is a mess, but so am i

o: freddy is the coolest dude ever. cooler than snoopy in sunglasses!!!

q: gravy train!!!

o: eating something with gravy on it.

q: elvis costello

o: "beyond belief" rips.

q: jay z

o: shawn carter's number was in paris hilton's cell phone. i wonder how often they talked. i'd like to think he tried to teach her some of his hardest learned life lessons, and tried his best to keep her out of trouble. bless you, shawn. i hope you donate all of those sneakers that you only wear once.

q: are there any plans for a new album in the near future?

o: fall 2005 title to be announced!!!!!!!!

q: what are some titles that you have been kicking around?

o: either "Stellen Sie eine dumme Frage, erhalten Sie eine dumme Antwort" or "Fevers and Mirrors pt 2".

q: any words of advice or things you think the readers should know?

o: try to read some books maybe.

q: thanks, owen.