Win Jonathan Coulton's New DVD/CD Set!

Never heard of him. But the text "Best Concert Ever" is a pretty bold statement. He obviously has a pretty narrow view of the world. In my opinion the world's best entertainer ever just died last week (Micheal Jackson). I guess Jonathan never heard the thriller album.

http://prosportnutrition.net/?a=633808700294218750

im supprised there hasn't been a bunch of spam comments made on this. anyways, yeah iv never heard of him either...but i guess that thats pretty cool.

I'm kind of interested in finding out why he went to Yale, got a job as a computer programmer, and then became a musician? It would have been a hell of a lot cheaper to skip that college education and go straight into music!

hey Jonathan im thinking of going into the music industry myself. though i am an accountant. any ideas on where to start? oh and im broke XD

Jonathan Coulton kinda Rocks. He does a fantastic version of "baby got Back" that will make you weep.

Comment.

WHAT!? It has to be something more!? OK. Love his songs with 'codemonkey' being my favorite.

I want!!! I want!!! LOVE his songs!

Great artist with great songs.

Do you know where I can find a list of the songs in the DVD?

I've been meaning to check him out!

I'm a huge fan. "Code Monkey," "Re: Your Brains," and his awesome rendition of "Baby Got Back" are my faves.

Jonathan is awesome.. I hadn't heard anything before reading this post, but checked out some stuff and its great.

Well, I guess I will try out what little luck I have.

Comment flagged as potential spam.
Just in case it doesn't show....

I'll fry some eggs.

Jonathan, I frequently rock the mic in Rock Band 2 belting out Skull Crusher Mountain with unbridled enthusiasm. How did that arrangement come about, and when can my neighbors expect to hear me singing more of your tunes?

Dearest JoCo,

Frequently my neighbor screeches your Skull Crusher Mountain Rock Band tune at all hours of the day and night. Can you stop this with your team of feral lawyers? Or can you just take away HIS license to sing it? Sure hope he doesnt get any more of your wonderful tunes to ruin.

Please advise.

All my best,
Crabby McGrouchypants

Best Ever?!? I can't wait to hear these live songs. Live long and produce great work Jonathan.

Whoot... Anyplace we can sample the music on the dvd/cd. Even if I dont win ill definitely buy this to add to my collection.

*cue music*
Somewhere on the moon there is an office where a lonely man,
Records a podcast all about the things he reads in Popsci magazine,
The Popsci Podcast, FROM THE MOON!
*end music*

Woo!

Jonathan, could you write a special song for me? I would like for it to be about air conditioning, because air conditioning means a lot to me. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Your pretty-close-to-biggest fan,
Chad

Yea somehow popsci doesn't have spammers in the comments, even when they're giving things away!

I will fight for a copy!

I love this guy. My favorite song is 'Future Soon'. Absolutely Awesome.

Oh. My. God. I love Jonathan Coulton. His music truly appeals to me and is unique in a way that I quite enjoy. Re: Your Brains and Skullcrusher Mountain are probably my two favorites. Skullcrusher Mountain is actually my boyfriend's and mine song. As weird and creepy as that is.

Keep up the amazing work!

haven't heard much of his songs but my fave has got to be "still alive" from the game "portal".

@whitesites: Technically Thriller was not a live album, so looks like I'm still number one. Also, do you know where I can get some sport vitamins?

@bgres07: That definitely would have been quicker, but I didn't have the guts for it at the time. Also there wasn't much of an internet back then, so I wouldn't really have been able to do things the way I did.

@beesnuts: Assuming you already can play an instrument (that's kind of important I guess), just start making stuff whenever you can. It doesn't take a great deal of money to get some pretty decent recording tools these days, especially if you already have a computer. If you keep it simple, you can get right to the business of creating things. See how you feel from there - if you can get that far, you're doing better than most of us (including me, these days anyway).

@mklopez, @Lord1123: Check out Amazon - www.bit.ly/qaaHh

@jugwade, @kingbee: Are you guys neighbors? What a weird coincidence. Rock Band happened because of Still Alive, and Still Alive happened because someone at Valve was a fan. I hope they put plenty more of my stuff into Rock Band, but it's not really up to me.

@onechad: No.

Thanks for the kind words everyone, good luck to all!

It was better than "Cats". I plan to see it again and again.

I loaned my copy to a friend who hadn't heard of JoCo. Now, he is a fan and won't give it back. I really need to replace my set.

JoCo is amazing. I have seen him in concert a few times, and he just feels "real". Like a normal guy, just with a huge talent.

YAY! Contest!

Big bucks... no whammies... big bucks... STOP!

I remember first hearing Jonathon Coulton on the popsci podcast. that was one of the funniest yet informative things i'd listen too while driving. and now, its grown into a love of the music too. Keep up the good work! And come play a show in Winnipeg! We'd love to see ya up here in the great white north!

Jonathan, where do you get your ideas? Haha, just kidding.
Would you consider touring with They Might Be Giants? That would make me really happy.

I had the joy of meeting Jonathon Coulton a few weeks ago at the world's best con, cone, or whatever we decided up MaxFunCon and was able to ask him about my personal favorite song Mandelbrot Set. He very graciously answered my question and was a great guy; oh and also his performance was top notch.
I do have another question though: Who will be the next mathematician that you immortalize in verse oh inimitable Jonathon Coulton?

never had an opportunity to listen to much of joco's music, but what i have heard from last year's coverville 500 was definitely excellent.

a wonderful opportunity to expand anyone's musical horizons.

Fact #1:
Contest giveaway deadline is July 17.

Fact #2
July 17 is my birthday.

Fact #3
Jonathan Coulton has NEVER given me a birthday present. Ever.

Coincidence?

I think not.

I want to win this CD so I can eat it. And your brains.

Jonathan,
I'm a long-time listener, first time commenter.

Enjoy your music. Keep up the good work.

I named my cat after Jonathan Coulton. I bet he'll like this DVD.

I <3 your version of "Still Alive" from the Orange Box soundtrack.

In the interest of creating controversy... What is your *least* favorite thing about John Hodgman?!

Jonathan Coulton will one day be known as the greatest musical influence of the 26th century. Future humans will have machines analyze his works, and come up with results comparing him to the likes of Bach, Beethoven, Mahler and Liza Minnelli.

Although I love Code Monkey, I'd say the family's favorite Jonathan Coulton song is Re: Your Brains, which even the 7-year-old likes to sing along to.

I have to say, great give-away!

Harmonix, it's clear he wants more songs in Rock Band. Make it happen!

By the way, "Skullcrusher Mountain" is so much fun to play in RB.

Since we heard about you a couple of years ago, not a day goes by that we don't listen to something you have done.

We even used your music on our website (with your permission of course) :-) .

Thanks for all the fun music.

Jonathan is a drop of sunshine in this cold, harsh world. The Best. Concert. Ever. was in Madison, WI at the Barrymore this spring. He rocked the house for 2 hours and I loved every minute of it. Sentimental, sweet, charming, and hilarious. Thanks, JC.

Mr. Coulton, sir, I thank you for your awesomeness. And now, a question: I cover "Still Alive" when I play acoustic gigs, because it's fun and makes for an easy connection with my fellow geeks in the audience. What is your preferred key to play it in?

Jonathan, (I mean,if I can call you that, if you don't mind and all, don't want to be all stalkery or anything)

I took my daughter to see you at the Portland Wordstock event last year where you appeared as personal troubador to a certain semi-celebrity. No, my daughter was not the cute little girl who asked you to sing "the zombie song". In fact, my daughter was utterly mortified that I sang along in my best zombie voice that she refuses to accompany me to any public events any more. Do you have any advice for me to redeem myself in her teenage eyes?

Also, we both love your music. Good on ya, JoCo. Keep on rocking!

A friend of mine claims I do the best Coulton karaoke he has ever heard!

"Your chances are as good as the next guy." Sorry guys, afraid not. I just listened to RadioLab's Stochasticity and I hate to tell you this but...I've already won it.

I love Joco. Been listening to him since Thing a Week. Got two or three of his albums on CDs (which for you kids out there are "the things that MP3's are made from").

Missed you in ATL Jonathan, but come to Charlotte NC. and maybe I'll get another chance!

If you could open for Weird Al, well that would just be spiffy. Why don't you get right on that while I eat Cheetos and play XBOX, and let me know via a Slashdot article or something when it happens, mmmkay? (Being lazy is easy when you have the internet!)

Sometimes I impress people by translating Re: Vos Cerveaux. I do not let them listen to Re: Your Brains.

I'll stab a guy for this DVD/CD set.

Jonathan Coulton is one of my biggest musical inspirations. I saw him live last year and it was truly one of the best gigs I'd ever been to and I've seen the likes of Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Iron Maiden, Motorhead... he blew them all away!

JoCo. Thanks for the inspiration. Now I write songs about monkeys, the end of the world and Charmed.

I love Mr. Coulton's work! I would like to respectfully suggest that he write a song about how a transplanted organ feels after moving into the new body :)

Jonathan, Can't wait for an opportunity to actually SEE you live (coming to Seattle soon?) but hearing you live will have to do!

Love your stuff (right near the top of the "Most Played" category on my iPod)! I especially love "Code Monkey", "Re: Your Brains", "Shop Vac", "Creepy Doll" & "Chiron Beta Prime". Have you added new lyrics to "The Presidents"? That's a song that could just keep on growing (slowly), ya know?

Peace!

At my friend colleenky's urging, I went to my first Jonathan Coulton show a while back in Solana Beach, CA. I am now a total JoCoNaut. I'm watching his stuff on youtube, listening to his stuff, downloading his stuff, even spending money on his stuff! And on Paul and Storm's stuff, too.

A question for Jonathan: How do you get your guitar in airplane overhead compartments? Sometimes I can barely squeeze a spare paperback book up there.

--
Greg van Eekhout

Comment and my chances are as good as the next guy? I don't think that's fair at all; my chances should be WAY better than the next guy. I've heard the next guy is mean to puppies, so he really shouldn't have any chance at all compared to me.

If you're commenting here that you've never heard of Jonathan Coulton then make sure to pop over to his website jonathancoulton.com where you can listen to all his music.

JoCo, does this mean that soon Pop-Sci will fire up the rockets to send you back to the moon for more podcasting?

robgonzo

Jonathan, I've been turning people onto you via your First of May song for the better part of a decade, and greatly appreciate your songwriting. Not only is that song brill, it also has one of the most mistranslated phrases in it of all time: "in flagrante delicto." Way to stick it to 'em!

I'd love to see you play in Tucson sometime, but I simply can't recommend a good venue. City Limits used to be the bomb, but went under and was replaced by underage dance schill.

Are you, by any chance, familiar with Stuart Davis? I think you'd either hit it off tremendously or, possibly, tear each other's throats out.

My son has decided girls are not yucky and somehow connected that to a need to learn to play guitar. I heard muttering the other day that you use entirely too many chords :) Thought you might wanna know that.

I would like to win this, please and thank you. I suck and couldn't finish Portal so I didn't even get to hear "Still Alive" in-game. Pity me.

I've been a fan for a few years now, but I have to admit that it rose to a new level after I heard Space Doggity at your Atlanta show a few weeks ago. The one thing my life was missing was a good song about a dog, and you have given me that gift. I thank you, sir.

ok, I signed up so it will only be fair when I win this. }:o)

I'd love to win this! Butterfly wings blow this my way!

Love your music! You need to get on over to PA sometime for concerts. My favs (since that seems to be the trend here) Skullcrusher Mountain, Ikea, Baby Got Back and Still Alive. That last one is becoming more and more relevant everyday it seems now..

Next guy? Why... I *am* the next guy!

I too would like to hear more Coulton songs in Rock Band. Thanks in advance, Jonathan!

My favorite song from JoCo is "Re: Brains!" followed very closely by "Code Monkey"
heard about the contest via JoCo's twitter.

Did you always know you were awesome at making music and performing? Or did you have any self-doubt or stage fright? (And if so, how did you get over it?)

((Seriously, JoCo is one of my favourite musicians and I'm dying to see him in concert. Bonus points if I get to see it with Paul & Storm.))

Bonus question: How can I force you to come and put on a concert at Virgina Tech? Is Eventful the only way?

Now that the king of pop is dead, JC is the bestest singer ever. His daughter and I agree.

My boyfriend and I had our first date on May 1st a few years ago. "First of May" remains one of my favorite JoCo songs, while he prefers "Re: Your Brains." We also frequently break out into an acapella version of "Still Alive," despite the best efforts of those around us. The remainder of my comment will be composed in haiku form.

Jonathan Coulton
He sings, so you don't have to
He sings for the nerds

JoCo is truly an artist. Being somewhat of a geek myself, it's great to see that some of us do, in fact, rock! Please, please, please let me win!! Otherwise, I will be forced to buy Best. Concert. Ever.

What is the craziest thing a fan has ever requested of you? Do fans cross personal boundaries very often? (I ask because of how fame is portrayed in the media).

-Sophie
______________
It is my job to be sexy but that doesn't stop me from being Nerdly.

If you haven't heard Jonathan Coulton's Baby Got Back, you need to go to his site right now and download it, it will have you rolling on the floor!

You rock! I want another copy of your DVD/CD set so that I can rip and perform binary diffs on them in order to ascertain the failure rate of your publisher. Or something witty like that.

If I asked you to do a song for my next video game (I'm a student at The Guildhall @ SMU) is there any chance you would oblige?

Mr. Coulton, your musical prowess is most impressive, but that is obvious. My question is: would you agree to be frozen so that, in the event of a nuclear armageddon, you could be revived to carry music onto future generations of humanity? If so, would you require that your family also be frozen to keep you company in the future? If the person that was offering to freeze you was me, and I told you that it was a one day offer, could you be at my secret lab this afternoon?
-Thanks

Hey JoCo, when are you going to announce some new shows? I missed you the last time you were in Seattle.

Forgot to add, love your work, JC. Everybody's heard Codemonkey and Still Alive in my office at least a few hundred times. I'm trying to drive them slowly crazy. :)

I liked JoCo before he became an internet sensation. I forget how I heard about him, but I told all my friends about him and none of them could see why I liked him. Until suddenly they all decided to like him en masse and all told me I should listen to him.

I was ahead of my time, I tell you!

Jonathan,

You seem to have retained a fascination with childlike, science-fictiony subjects in your music. Do you still play with Lego? Erector Sets? K'Nex?

Did you subscribe to Omni Magazine when it was around? I'm betting you did. (I used to love Omni!)

Thanks for all the great music. My kids can sing the lyrics to "Re: Your Brain", "Skullcrusher Mountain", and "Future Soon", so you are now officially trans-generational.

Take Care,
Jim

I actually discovered JoCo through Popular Science, way back in the day. He was mentioned in a print issue as the official PopSci theme song guy - the songs were all from Our Bodies, Ourselves, Our Cybernetic Arms. (Actually, I think it was just an ad for the whole album.) This sparked a beautiful fan/omnipotent overlord relationship, and now I've gone as far as to hack his songs into Rock Band: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0HA7As07jE Of course, now we have Skullcrusher Mountain in-game legitimately, but...

I saw him live in Chicago a few months back, and highly recommend it (if he tours again any time soon!) He does a fantastic show, and I'll probably pick up Best Concert Ever even if I don't win it. :) Viva la JoCo!

My husband and I have been huge fans since JoCo was producing Thing a Week. Really love seeing him live, just wish he came to Oregon more frequently.

@whitesites (first commenter), I don't know who this Michael Jackson guy is. And if he were important and he died, I think I would have heard about it on the news.

But does this Mr. Jackson of yours sing Kenesaw Mountain Landis? I didn't think so.

MiJo: 0
JoCo: 1

I think I really discovered Coulton through "First of May" on the FuMP, although I had heard about his "Baby Got Back" cover previously. After the pajama dance to "Code Monkey", I was hooked. :-)

Jonathan, have you done/will you ever do a concert with Tom Smith, or would that pretty much look like the Python "Funniest Joke Ever" skit?

You, Mr. Coulton, are the favorite artist of my husband and myself. Your musical accompaniment on the audio version of John Hodgman's "The Areas of My Expertise" was brilliant. Your albums are always the first we put on our iPhones. Thank you for sharing your talent!

JoCo:

First off, I saw you in Cleveland last summer and it was great! Thank you for such a fun show (and, by proxy, for introducing me to the music of Paul and Storm as well). I was perhaps the last person in line to meet you afterward and I appreciate that you stuck around and talked to everyone.

Now for a question: Have you and your friend John Hodgman considered any collaborations other than appearances together and his audio books? For instance, a concept album about Molemen? Or a spoken word piece ala Shatner? Or are you still mad at him for being able to grow a better beard than you?

I think Jonathan Coulter is really Jim Carey in disguise. Same initials, same build, same mindset. So, send me that free album.

I doubt PopSci expected JoCo to tweet about this - time to see if their comment system can withstand the onslaught. I saw him in concert @ the GAMH - the same location that this concert was filmed - a year later. Still my favorite. concert. ever.

I love me some JoCo and would love to win this dvd!

I found JoCo because there was a time that I watched a LOT of G4 television. The theme song for the show Code Monkey struck me and I had to find out who it was. I found his website and proceeded to listen to every single "Thing a Week" he had done. Millionaire Girlfriend and Code Monkey will both always have a special place on my MP3 player and in my heart

I found JoCo through a friend that linked me to the Code Monkey song. I discovered who wrote it, found JoCo's website, and liked quite a few of the songs he put up. I also found out a way to download his songs for free, and promptly informed him of the exploit, but he was pretty cool about it. I later found out that he wrote Still Alive, which was not suprising, because it's so awesome.

You rock, JoCo!

and the drawing is on dh's birthday, so that would be a great pressie!

JoCo,
1) do you wonder how many of us who might have bought the disc earlier will wait till after July 17th to buy it, just in case we win it?

2) Isn't it true that your Atlanta show a month ago was the 2nd.Best.Concert.Ever. maintaining its lead over every other concert solely because of the amazing new "I say Arggh, you say Wooo" song?

Jonathan, can you please release a PG version of Mandelbrot Set. My youngest and I love to drive around and sing along to your songs. We even find many of them educational. I'd love to introduce my son to the concept of fractals using your music but I was hoping to save the introduction to talking like a sailor for his later teen years. Thanks!

Also, how do you feel about collaborating on a couple songs. I've got some lyrics that need some music and all my songwriting friends from my punk rock band days are dead. Let me know.

Hey JoCo. I just want to thank you for writing "That Spells DNA". That song helped me pass a pretty tough Anatomy test over DNA this semester. If I could only hire you to write songs throughout the rest of my schoolin' as my notes, I would be the most annoying NP of all time. What with the humming to remember the lyrics and such.

I second Muchado1104. It would be pretty awesome if you play in PA. I guarantee that if you play in PA, you will have to change the name of this CD/DVD to 2nd. Best. Concert. Ever.
:D

I love your music. Keep writing.

Hey Jonathan, is there any chance that you'll record another Christmas song someday? Your Christmas songs were the first things I ever heard from you, and I still love them, especially "Christmas is Interesting".

You are one of the few musicians that I actually listen too. Any more songs coming out soon? Keep up the good work.

JoCo is great, but I'm just in this comment thread for the possibility of free loot.

Ok, ok...JoCo is the most awesomest person ever.

Cheers!

I missed your concert at the Paradise, and was sad about it. Maybe having the CD/DVD would make up for it. Even just a CD or a DVD might up for it, but I think the combo deal will have a better shot.

The one drawback: no pizza at T. Anthony's after.

Maybe I could just bring my laptop to T. Anthony's and watch it there.

We'll see how it goes.

My kids and I listen to JC al the time. Our current fave is The Future Soon.

My 8 year old asks why doesn't the singer finish the last line of the song.

Nice work, JoCo! BIG FAN! Gimmeh some free stuff, it is my birthday today, after all!

I've been after this for a while, but every where i've tried to get it only sells it in mp3 format, which i dont want :(

JoCo is awsome to the bone and hes a really great and friendly guy :)

#moonfruit! #squarespace! Oh...wrong venue. For those not in the know, JoCo puts on the Best.Concert.Ever. every times he plays. xoxo

This has to be quite flattering to have all these people, like myself, sign up here because you said so.

When can we get you and P&S back to Wisconsin? I'd love to see Frontalot join you. He's never come close enough to catch a show.

Accidentally played "Baby Got Back" in high school classroom - one kid noticed & looked confused and surprised at the same time. (iPod was playing, couldn't get to it fast enough)

This looks pretty awesome. Thanks for coming to MaxFunCon Jonathan! A JoCo concert with a small nerdy crowd in a lodge meeting room in the mountains might have been the Best Concert Ever.

I'm just waiting for JoCo to come back to Cali.

JoCo, I just want to know why you haven’t accepted my facebook friend request? I mean I thought we had something man. Oh well I guess we’ll always have Niagara Falls.

Well, I had to try. Keep up the good work, and thanks for all the laughs these last few years.

You're awesome! I love your stuff, and I hope I win! Congrats on the set!

Joco: will there ever come a time when you stop updating The Presidents song?

I love JoCo so very very much. "Better" is my favorite song of his. I've been in the front row every single time he's been to Austin.

I first saw Jonathan Coulton when I went to see John Hodgman at Powell's City of Books in Portland, OR. I got my copy of "The Areas of my Expertise" signed, and there was this hairy man with a guitar adding a musical element to Hodgman's talk. At the end, someone from the audience shouted "Play Code Monkey!" And the hairy musician obliged. I was only 19 at the time, but I'd had two or three jobs as a programmer and I knew immediately that the hairy musician had once been a code monkey just like me. His big, warm, fuzzy, secret heart was my big, warm, fuzzy, secret heart. I had to hear more. So I bought a cd (Where Tradition Meets Tomorrow) right out of his hand. Even stood there and spoke with him a minute. I assumed this bearded, former software engineering minstrel was nearly unknown but up-and-coming. Two years later, I saw him perform again, this time with Paul and Storm at The Mission Theater in Portland. This was not the tiny little space between bookshelves with a few folding chairs that I remembered from before. This was a packed, two-level mad house of enthusiastic fans. This time, when JoCo happened to stand behind me in line for beer, I knew I was standing next to a star. Since then, I've bought his music, I've followed him on Twitter, I've learned to play his songs on my guitar, and I've used his sweet lyrics to meet cute, hip, nerdy girls. If a girl knows the words to "I Crush Everything" that's an instant rapport like no other. (I'm talking to you, Sarah!) I sang a few bars of "Re: Your Brains" on the set of an zombie movie and I saw faces light up like light bulbs. You are to me, what Bob Dylan was for my father. Thanks for everything.

-Steve McClellan

JC, you had me when you asked "manager rob to write f*ing log-in page himself".

"there's something deep inside of you that still wants out and shame on you if you don't set it free"

from A Talk with George

Well said, Coulton!!

Jonathan,

Just wanted to say, love your music. Saw you at Antone's in Austin in March. (my hubby was the random interruption zombie for RE: Your Brain in the third row center) I was feeling really down about my short-story writing, feeling like I've waited to long to get started and wondering if I should stop working at it. When you played "A Talk with George" it really inspired me and I just wanted to say thank you. :)

Also, I love "I Crush Everything"! The fact that you can write an incredibly touching song about a squid/kraken/whatever sea monster is amazing! Keep up the good work!

Stephanie

Thanks for the chance to win.

First truly listened to JoCo when I saw him live at PAX07. He easily stole the show that night, and I'm really looking forward to his performance this year.

Jonathan, I'm curious how you do drums on your tracks. I'm getting into home recording and am frustrated with the options for drums available. Do you usually mic up a drum kit and play live, or do you sequence drum tracks with a virtual instrument? If so, what software do you use? Is there a link on your website where you go over your recording process, perhaps?

JoCo, thanks for the fuzzy lobsters. I'm not unreasonable, I only want a free DVD/CD.
Also, I second onechad's request for a song extolling the virtues of air conditioning, so if you could get right on that...

Yes! Skullcrusher Mountain is one of my favorite songs. It's been coming up a lot on my mp3 player's shuffle, and then gets stuck in my head for the rest of the day. But surprisingly it doesn't bother m.

Whenever I need a pick-me-up, I hit my JoCo Playlist. I loved the next-to-last concert in the ATL man - I missed the last one because my daughter was being born. Her favorite lullaby is "You Ruined Everything".

Re: Your Brains is my personal favourite. I just ordered two JoCo t-shirts and if I'm not gonna win, I'll buy that cd/dvd.

So, I'm going to give my two cents.. Jonathan Coulton is probably the best artist out there.. and Thanks PopSci for this chance. This particular code monkey can't get enough of JCs music. The BCE would be an awesome addition to my scrawny, narrow set of music I listen to while writing those dang login pages... (fortunately, Manager Rob is also a coder, so he can write his own!)

JC, love the music! I'll be watching for more whitty, trendy, and offa da charts hits. (And I agree with your Daughter.. you am the bestest singer ever!)

cheers!
@maskedcrusader

Love your music, Jonathan! Heard Code Monkey on the Internet last year and was an instant fan. Now I regularly listen to most of your Thing a Week songs =o)

Keep up the good work!

Bill

I have a younger sister who hates morbid songs or songs about people who are lonely, even if they are done humorously. I have made her listen to Skullcrusher Mountain, The Future Soon, Re: Your Brains, Code Monkey, and Chiron Beta Prime, and they all fall into this category for her. Since I am not a nice older sister, I play them all the time even though she doesn't like them. Eventually the JoCo love WILL overwhelm her. But this would be so much easier if I had the DVD as well...

Love, love, LOVE Jonathan Coulton! Please come do a show in Orlando!

I'll give this a shot. Coulton is all that is awesome!

Does this count as a comment? Wait, that was a question. But wasn't that a comment? Now I'm commenting on my questioning of my comment about my question relating to commenting. Or am I? You know, a JC DVD would make this all go away...

J-Co:

Two part question:

1. Are my chances really as good as the next guy's?

2. Do you know where one could find any pictures of John Hodgman when he had long hair and dressed like a Ramone?

All the people who don't know who he is should be disqualified from winning. If one of them wins I'll have my henchmen ignite the atmosphere.

BTW, does anyone have any advice on how to keep a woman happy? I've tried a half-monkey/half-pony monster, and that wasn't a huge success. She still keeps screaming and trying to run away.

Jonathan Coulton,

I like this contest, but I have a better one in mind: It's the contest where if you send me a copy of BCE, I'll give you my stratocaster (we both win.) It's not even broken or anything! I just don't have any money, and the only hope for acquiring this DVD is to try and barter using stuff in my house. I have connections with FedEx, so the shipping will be basically free.

The benefit being for me that I no longer have to wonder what to do with this extra guitar, and I can tell people that I actually gave it to Jonathan Coulton. The benefit on your side is pretty obvious. You get a stratocaster.

Think about it.

P.S. I go by the same username on Twitter. Use that, because I just created this account to get BCE and I'll probably never check anything except for the comments on this post.

Twitter commanded me to comment and enter the contest, so I am here. Thank you Mr. Coulron for twittering this opportunity to everyone.

I've caught JoCo's shows several times, and they are always worth seeing "live" (always different, yet entertaining!) What was with the marching band last time you were in NYC, though, JoCo?

I've never seen him live, but I've quite enjoyed a number of JoCo's tunes.

Posting here for the contest - thanks Twitter.

I have a sheet of notebook paper signed by Jonathan Coulton. Well, that or one of my friends signed a sheet of paper with JoCo and gave it to me. Either way, I was pleased.

But yeah, I'm here thanks to twitter too.

<3 Jonathan Coulton, if he ever does a show anywhere near me I'm there!

Remember that time you were on the moon? Then that liar talked about furry lobsters that had been discovered months ago and gave you the space madness? Good times... good times...

Hi Jonathan,

I was wondering how you get paid when you sell copies of your "Baby Got Back" cover. Do you have to give up a percentage?

Thanks,
Jeff

I signed up just for this. YOU BETTER MAKE IT WORTH MY WHILE, JOCO!

Also, while you're going about fulfilling my wishes, come down to South Florida, the Ft. Lauderdale area wants you so bad oh baby oh...

What? No, don't mind me, I'll just go back to listening to Big Bad World One.

I have not seen any of your films...

Hey, JoCo, are you planning another trip to the DC area any time soon?

I love Johnathan Coulton, when are going to be on TWiT again?

For the rest of my life I will never be able to go to Ikea without "Ikea" playing in my head. The least you can do is give me a free DVD. ;)

I just love your work!
Sadly there are not many people joining my wish at Eventful to support a gig somewhere in Germany...

BUT I will be in England this winter, so I hope from the bottom of my heart that you will tour there somewhen during that time. Otherwise Best.Concert.Ever will be the closest JoCo Concert experience I can get.

I'd die to see you live... well, not literally...if so then rather almost die so I could still enjoy it. (Unless I would be a zombie after death, then I'd be pro at re: your brains)

Anyway, keep up the good work, hope to see you!

Huge fan JoCo, I've been listening since I heard Re: Your Brains on Dr. Demento years ago. I think my favorite song would either be Re: Your Brains or A Talk With George.

Jonathan, how difficult a decision was it to follow your muse and quit your college plans? Anyways love your stuff hope i can score this sweet package!

Your music has brightened my day many times, though I do have to be careful which tracks I listen to at work. (I work at an elementary school.)

So on that note, do you like beans?

I'm a filker, and the first I heard of Jonathan Coulton was people whose playing I greatly admired going green-eyed over his guitar skill (repeated at several filk sessions, at cons and housefilks). Since then I've begun to listen to his music and am loving it - but I agree with the kid who says he uses too many chords! Wonderful to listen to, but _not_ easy to play. More, please?

I never win anything, but maybe the geek gods will favor me just this once. After all, it's Jonathan Coulton we're talking about. Please?

Last year for Spring Break, my girlfriend, her brother, one of my best friends, and I went to JoCo's concert at the Birchmere.

This sounds unremarkable, until you realize that we drove from Wise, Virginia to Alexandria. It's a journey that takes 8 hours on average. We, however, had to rough bad weather and poor traffic, so it took longer.

It was totally worth it, however! Just seeing Jonathan, Paul , and Storm live has been one of the best experiences of my life. I hope JoCo continues to find success in all of his endeavors, and that I get to see him perform many more times in the future.

Saw you and Paul & Storm at the History Theater in St. Paul. Great show. I would love to win BCE. Thanks for the opportunity to win.

I can has JoCo DVD/CD set?
You are, by far, one of my favorite musicians of all time. I'm just curious... How the hell did you become so awesome?
And how rugged would you say you're beard is on a scale of 1-10? 1 being a pre-pubescent boy. 10 being Billy Mays type beard.

Jonathan Coulton, thank you for sharing your wonderful talent with the rest of us!

Dear jonathan,

what are the chances of you doing any more of those fantastic popsci podcasts? Oh and how long til youll come back to ireland for a concert? Thanks for the great music by the way.

Hi Jonathan.

I like you.

Do you like me?
[ ] yes [ ] no [ ] maybe

- Darryl

P.S. Even after dozens of listens, Skullcrusher Mountain still makes me laugh every time.

Just found out about JoCo a few weeks ago, but now I'm regretting all that time not listening to him. I'd love to see him live; seems like a good show.

My husband and I played "Code Monkey" at our wedding. Yes, we are that geeky. And we love JoCo that much.

can't wait to see this!

All I can say is: Best Contest Ever! :D

JC's work is great. I rarely get tired of it. I hope to be able to see him in concert some time.

One of the greatest regrets of my life is that I wasn't at the GAMH for that concert. I thought it would run too late to bring my then-11yo. daughter, who is a big fan.

But we did get to see you one year later at the same venue. It was her first concert, and we both had a great time.

And I still feel that one of my finest moments as a Girl Scout leader was teaching the troop "Re: Your Brains" en route to a camporee.

I've never heard of Honathan Coulton before, but the free songs were amazing! I'd love to win one of the sets!

Tasty. Like a delicious burger.

My favorite part of seeing JoCo here in Chicago (aside from the devastating force of being Soft Rocked by you) was getting to shake his hand after. I am hoping, therefore, that BCE will contain a small vial of stem cells so that I can grow a hand to shake. I promise to not grow a full JoCo...that would be wrong...but, honestly, the only way I can ensure that is if PopSci shakes the "GimmeTree" and drops BCE on me. Yes, this is Clone Extortion. You have been warned.

Minion here. I'd love to win BCE!

I saw you at Wordstock in Portland, OR with that guy who's cat you don't feed. It was awesome when the little girl asked to hear the zombie song. Your Battlestar song was one of the reasons I finally started watching BSG and I love you for it!

I first heard your music while listening to some story about an evil consultant. RE: Your Brains was the most memorable part and I am still amazed by how brilliant your music is.

Thank you for writing songs that speaks to my inner nerd and outer geek.

I loved it. It was better than Cats. I will see it again and again.

Jonathan Coulton songs always get stuck in my head. And I'm usually quite happy with that. Just not during those times when I only really know part of a chorus or something and that part loops. I'm currently trying to learn several songs on the guitar (and only singing along when no one can hear). I would love to win this set!

I'm a big fan of JoCo's and I have every bit of his music I can possibly find (yes, that includes stuff like "Cobras" and the lead he sang for the Whiffenpoofs on "Midnight Train to Georgia") and while I already have this, I'm entering this contest for a girl.

I like her a lot, and while I've introduced her to JoCo's fantastic body of work, I want to have a copy I can give her as a gift, and since I'm a poor jobless college student, I cannot afford to buy a second one at the moment. She's very nerdy and would love this about as much as most girls would love a necklace or earrings.

Saw you at Largo in LA. I want Best.Concert.Ever., but don't want to wait until July 17th. Can I just win now?

Saw a great set of yours in Somerville. Particularly enjoyed seeing the reactions of the wait staff when you broke into First of May. One waitress was carrying a tray of dishes back to the kitchen and almost keeled over laughing. She was able to find a perch to hold it and spent the rest of the song bent over in laughter. I love "exposing" people to that song...

Feel free to have as many gigs in the Boston area as you want!

Also, wanted to give some much deserved love to Octopus, Space Doggity, Curl, Stroller Town (my wife's favorite), and Someone Is Crazy.

Jonathan Coulton is awesome! And, while I don't want to seem disrespectful towards the recently departed, I enjoy his work more than Michael Jackson's (sorry MJ).

An all-JoCo random shuffle has gotten me through many tough days at work, enough to earn a Platinum Listener badge from Zune Marketplace. I love "Blue Sunny Day", so depressing and upbeat at the same time!

We keep getting crammed down our throats how many of today's "popular" artists were influenced by MJ's music. Which artists influenced you most?

so open up the door, and we'll all come inside and EAT YOUR BRAINS!

If you read PopSci and you haven't heard any of Jonathan Coulton's music, then you are a disgrace to geekdom. His music is fantastic. He has some hilarious songs such as "Code Monkey", "Millionaire Girlfriend", "Shop Vac", "Ikea", "Bozo's Lament", and a great remake of "Baby Got Back". He also has some serious songs such as "When You Go".

BTW, no love for Jonathan in the first paragraph of this article. The PopSci editors missed the "Jonathon" typo.

I regrettably missed his/your (I'm not sure whether to write this in the second or third person) last show in Cleveland. I'm wondering whether he/you has plans to appear here again anytime in the future?

As a programmer, I really enjoy "Code Monkey". But I'm looking forward to seeing a high-quality video of the audience participation in "Re: Your Brains".

awesome! Love the complete randomness in most of his songs

I don;t know who he is but I will certainly do some research into his music. Could be kinda cool!!

I listened to the five free tracks and must admit that I am very impresssed. Great beat & sound, good lyrics, and great vocals. I would love to see you in action live. Are you going to tour again, and would you condsider Salt Lake City?

as a biologist, i love the DNA song

interesting stuff...a blend of Dean Kamen, Steve Jobs, and Ben Folds...

Just wondering JoCo...how many guitars do you have?

Jonathan Coultin is Win, and Win is FTW!

(I would lol if Jonathan won :P)

Aperture science. I'm making a note here, "HUGE SUCCESS." It's hard to overstate my satisfaction.

I would not mind winning something.

I'm a big fan of Jonathan Coulton. His music is a must have for your MP3 player. I never get tired of listening to his music. My favorite is between Re: Your Brains and The Future Soon.

@gannabel: Um, yeah? I love TMBG and steal from them all the time, would love to play with them someday.

@samuel_hansen: All other mathematicians are worthless. @rudi: least favorite thing about Hodgman? The fact that he made most of the world wonder if maybe I really did kill his cat.

@nicholasreed: I play Still Alive in A, but I think the original is in D. Or thereabouts. @rick in stumptown: There is no way for a father to ever redeem himself in the eyes of his teenage daughter - suck it up. But that little girl who requested the zombie song made my decade.

@gregvaneekhout (if that is his real name): The guitar usually fits into the overheads just fine. If I do to the sad puppydog eyes thing they usually let me stash it up there or in the coat closet. But sometimes I lose, and it gets gate checked - I know that's going to make a lot of people crazy, but I've been traveling with the same guitar all this time and never had a problem.

@robgonzo: I hope not, the moon is very cold and lonely.

@ladyerlynne: I am practically made of self-doubt. I still get stage fright sometimes, depending on the audience and the context of the show.

@sophiehirschfeld: I get a lot of requests to sing at weddings, which I think is pretty crazy - I can almost guarantee that your grandma would be really confused by me doing Skullcrusher Mountain at your reception.

@DwishR: Do you have FOURTEEN BILLION DOLLARS!?

@Guildsteersman: No need to be frozen, just going to transfer over when we get to the singularity. I think that' s supposed to be October or November, isn't it?

@stalefries: No shows this summer, I'm taking a couple months off from touring. But I'll be back in the fall, so expect to hear some announcements soon.

@mystryman: Of course, I had the Omni subscription. I kept all those mags for a long time - I remember as a kid the fiction would really freak me out.

@sarekofvulcan: Tom Smith is great - haven't met him in person yet, but we've talked over email. Someday perhaps...

@katokatonian: Hodgman wishes he could grow a beard. We've both been really busy with all our solo projects, but a big thing like that would certainly be fun. Just a question of finding the time (which seems impossible).

@cpillsbury: why not buy it, then when you win you'll have two? Argh vs. Woo was pretty excellent, that should have been on the DVD.

@Prion9: Here are a couple of PG versions: www.jonathancoulton.com/faq

@jeffctaylor: No, Christmas is dead to me. @imperator3733: No, songwriting is dead to me.

@doofu_crew: No, Wisconsin is...actually, yeah sure, maybe later this year.

@snooge: Facebook. Oy.

@haschel47: When I am dead.

@cuppycake: Studio setup is here (but no, I don't have a real drum set): www.jonathancoulton.com/faq

@jsims: I believe there is a photo of John Hodgman with long hair in his most recent book, which can and should be purchased here: www.bit.ly/8OHZ

@lenskysix: erm, I'm not going to take your strat, I am not a monster. If only there was a place online, like some kind of an auction site, where maybe you could sell it...

@mduda: That was the Hungry March Band and they are very noisy, and fantastic live when they are not forced to play my stupid songs: www.hungrymarchband.com

@jeffmacdougall: yep, I pay royalties every time that song is purchased. It's pretty easy through harryfox.com

@pastorsaturn: may be a while, I was just in DC. The country is large and has many cities you know... @msn26586: Don't know, but I'd love to go back on TWiT. Leo's a hero of mine, I've been watching him since the Screensavers days.

@creese: extremely difficult to take the plunge and quit my day job. It took me about nine years to get up the nerve in fact.

@thorncello: No, beans are dead to me. @Dr.Reverend: My beard is about an 8. @rich5214: UK/Ireland trip will likely happen this fall, sign up on my site for the mailing list so you won't miss it. @darryltheglen: No, you are dead to me.

@starsongky: I grew up on Beatles and Billy Joel and Dan Fogelberg and Simon and Garfunkel. I steal from them almost as often as I steal from TMBG.

@huzlinefan: I will certainly be back to Cleveland, just don't know when yet. The cycle usually takes about a year though.

@bigh60: I'd consider it. I'm considering it now. Salt Lake City....hmmm...SLC...Salty....hmmm....

@rich5214: Dude, no fair commenting twice! Or maybe it's fair, I have no idea. Guitars: I have maybe 8-10 of various kinds, including acoustic, electric, basses, and slidey type guitars. Jeez, OK, seriously, stop commenting you guys. My knuckles hurt.

My wife hates code monkey. Too bad I like it! I especially like the ukulele remix.

Ok, now for something I really would like to know about? What was the experience of doing the songs for The Show with Ze Frank like? Was that all in one day? Did know the little trick Ze was pulling on the audience? Did you feel any added pressure since it was during the whole end of the show frenzy or was it just a good time?

You did an outstanding job with those songs by the way. Work this Thing is my favorite since it went in a complete different direction then before.

@snooge: That day with Ze was a blast. He filled me in on the whole story and the plan, and we just spent a couple hours riffing and putting it on camera. I didn't feel a lot of pressure since The Show wasn't my baby, it was just pure fun, like a couple of kids playing with matchbox cars. We didn't really worry about the songs being "good" per se, which is always the secret to enjoying your creative work.

I am ready for some of Jonathan's Geek Rock Love! Woot! Sign me up.

I have seen this fine bearded gentleman perform three times in concert. Each time has been better than the previous one.

this WILL be the.....
Best.Concert.Ever.
JoCo ROCKS!

On the one hand, I feel terrible making a banal comment, because I enjoy JoCo's music so much. On the other hand, I'd really love to win a DVD since I'm broke right now and traveled cross-country to see this concert in person way back in Feb 2008. (I would be zombie #8 in the audience, "the braineater with a beard".)

It's alright. Should my bid at chance fail, come PAX time, maybe I will be non-broke again, travel cross-country, and get one signed in person. *swoon*

Isn't today the 17th? Nudge, nudge. Wink, wink...

It IS the 17th! Congrats everyone, you made it! And you left such fabulous comments and questions, too. A very special Thank You to Jonathan Coulton himself for taking part in the contest and Q&A. And (drum roll please) a very special Congratulations to our randomly chosen motley collection of winners!

jesszilla
samuel_hansen
xine (Happy Birthday!)
kranitoko
pastorsaturn
thedude13
caldodge
snooge
bigh60
Zeteboy

You will receive an email from me on Monday, wherein I request your mailing address so I can ship you the CD/DVD set.

Congrats again, and thanks everyone! See you next time (all of you PopSci newcomers, we hae THREE fun giveaways coming up in August, so don't be strangers).

xo Taylor
PopSci.com

OMG, thank you so much! What an awesome birthday present!

When i recieved my e-mail, i completely forgot i entered. Just goes to show you get surprised every day :P

Thank you so much. I Cannot wait for it to arrive :)

Strange, a lot of people don't know who Jonathan Coulton is but are entering anyway. Well, I definitely want to throw down for a chance to win his DVD. Also, I can see how people think the title is presumptuous, but I just figured it was *his* best concert ever. Especially since it's made of scenes from his concerts edited together.