Wednesday MidDay Medley
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org

Wednesday, December 21, 2022

The 120 Best Recordings of 2022
(Part 3 of 4)

1. “Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
   from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
   [WMM’s adopted theme song in honor of Bob Fossee]

WMM presents part-three, of our four-week special: The 120 Best Recordings of 2022. Based on playlists of this little ole radio show, we’ve compiled representative tracks from our favorite full-length albums and EP recordings of 2022. We realize these “Best of” lists can seem subjective, so we ask that you please accept our list as a celebration of the year in music.

In 2022 we’ve broadcast nearly 900 different tracks on WMM over our 100,000 watts of 90.1 FM Community Radio Airwaves. Over 500 of these tracks were from New & MidCoastal Releases. We played tracks from National Releases, and MidCoastal Releases. 80 of the representative tracks in our “Best of” list are from MidCoastal Releases. We conducted over 120 interviews with 120 special guests. 50 of the bands and artists in our “Best of” list have joined us as guests on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

Tune into Wednesday MidDay Medley throughout December for our 4-week series: The 120 Best Recordings of 2022. This is our celebration of the year in music when we were able to survey over 600 area musical releases.

2. (#60.) The Brian Jonestown Massacre – “Don’t Let Me Get In Your Way”
   from: Fire Doesn’t Grow on Trees / A Records / June 24, 2022
   [The Band’s 19th album and one of two released this year including THE FUTURE IS YOUR PAST. The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American musical project and band led and started by Anton Newcombe. It was formed in San Francisco in 1990. // The group was the subject of the 2004 documentary film called Dig!, and have gained media notoriety for their tumultuous working relationships as well as the erratic behavior of Newcombe. The collective has released 19 albums, five compilation albums, five live albums, 13 EPs, 18 singles as well as two various-artist compilation albums to date. // The bandname is a portmanteau of deceased Rolling Stones founder Brian Jones and the 1978 Jonestown Massacre.]

3. (#59.) Ibibio Sound Machine – “Freedom”
   from: Electricity / Merge Records / March 25, 2022
   [Ibibio Sound Machine is an English electronic afro-funk band from London. Formed in 2013, the band currently consists of vocalist Eno Williams. Their latest album Electricity was produced by English syth pop collaboration Hot Chip.The name of the band itself finds influence from Eno Williams’ Nigerian mother, whose native tongue was Ibibio.]

4. (#58.) Sylvan Esso – “Your Reality”
   from: No Rules Sandy / Loma Vista Recordings – Concord / August 12, 2022
   [On May 19, 2022, the band released the single “Sunburn” on streaming services, with album artwork including “Sylvan Esso IIII”. In an interview with Stereogum Sanborn described the first three Sylvan Esso albums as “a completed trilogy, with “Your Reality” as a first glimpse at a new chapter for the band.” On July 24, 2022, the band released “Your Reality” and announced that their fourth studio, titled No Rules Sandy would released on August 12, 2022. The album title is a reference to Nick Sanborn’s nickname and the band’s ethos for writing the album. The album was recorded in January 2022 at a makeshift studio in a rental house with pickups recorded at their North Carolina studio named Betty’s. The album received generally positive reviews, with a score of 75 on Metacritic and Jon Pareles of The New York Times describing the album as having “spirit of try-anything, knob-twirling whimsy. // Sylvan Esso is an American electronic pop duo from Durham, North Carolina, formed in 2013. The band consists of singer Amelia Meath (born July 2, 1988) and producer Nick Sanborn (born March 8, 1983). Amelia Meath performs vocals, production, lyrics. Nick Sanborn performs instrumentals, and production. Meath and Sanborn married in June 2016 They made their debut with the single “Hey Mami” and released their eponymous debut album on Partisan Records on May 12, 2014, which reached No. 39 on the Billboard 200. They released their second album What Now with Loma Vista Recordings on April 28, 2017, which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Album. // Lead singer Amelia Meath, who was at the time involved with her trio, Mountain Man, created the vocals to the song called “Play It Right”. She later met electronic music producer Nick Sanborn (who played bass in band Megafaun) in Milwaukee at the Cactus Club, performing at the time solo as Made of Oak, and asked him to make a rendering of her single, Play It Right, in his own way. From 2012 to 2013, the band slowly formed. Meath had returned from a year-and-a-half tour with Feist and was looking for an affordable place to live, thus landing in Durham with Sanborn and began making their album, with all of their songs being recorded in Sanborn’s apartment bedroom. The band derived the first part of its name, “wikt: sylvan” from a character in an early iOS game titled “Sword and Sworcery”.]

5. (#57.) Bartees Strange – “Tours”
   from: Heavy Heart / 4AD / October 2, 2020
   [Bartees Leon Cox Jr., known by his stage name Bartees Strange, is an American musician. Cox was born in Ipswich, England, raised in Mustang, Oklahoma, but is now based in Washington D.C.. In March of 2020, Cox released an EP of songs by The National that were re-imagined by him, titled Say Goodbye to Pretty Boy. Cox was named an Artist To Watch by Stereogum in September 2020 and released his first full-length album on October 2, 2020 titled Live Forever. The album is a mix of hip hop, indie rock, and jazz music. The album received universal acclaim from reviews. Bartees Strange participated in the 2020 Thursday Signals V2 live show. Cox was born in Ipswich, England, to a military father and opera-singer mother. The family moved from England to Germany, Greenland and various US states before settling in Mustang, Oklahoma, USA when he was aged 12. Before becoming a musician, Cox worked as the director of communications for a nonprofit environmental organization in Washington D.C.] [Bartees Strange played Kansas City at Grinders, on Sunday, May 8, opening for Carseat Headrest.]

6. (#56.) Back Alley Brass Band – “Pass The Peas (Party People)”
   from: Back Alley Brass Band / Back Alley Brass Band / March 25, 2022
   [This is the debut full-length studio album by Back Alley Brass Band. The Back Alley Brass Band is a Kansas City take on a funky brass band. The 9-piece band is a hard hitting music power house that starts a party wherever they play. More information at: http://www.backalleybrass.com The Back Alley Brass Band played an Album Release Party on March 26, 2022, at 8:00 PM at the Rino in North Kansas City, 314 Armour Rd, North Kansas City, MO. with Trevor Turla Opening.]

[The Back Alley Brass Band plays recordBar, 1520 Grand, KCMO on January 7, 2023.]

[The Back Alley Brass Band play Mardi Gras at The Ship, 1221 Union Ave, KCMO, WEST BOTTOMS, Feb. 11, 2023.]

7. (#55.) Glass Bandit – “Adam Savage”
   from: Vacancy EP / Glass Bandit / January 21, 2022
   [Originally based out of KC, Glass Bandit as a band relocated to Austin, Texas. The band calls themselves the “first family of fusion funk.” “We’ve grown into a small traveling circus of writers, arrangers, and musicians capable of putting on a show that defies expectations and is sure to get you dancing. This 8 piece band can turn a bad night into a good night, and a good night into a banger.” – They write. More info at http://www.glassbanditmusic.com.]

8. (#54.) FKA Twigs – “Careless (feat. daniel caesar)”
   from: CAPRISONGS / Young Recordings / January 14, 2021
   [Caprisongs is a mixtape by English singer-songwriter FKA Twigs. The mixtape features guest appearances from Pa Salieu, the Weeknd, Shygirl, Dystopia, Rema, Daniel Caesar, Jorja Smith, and Unknown T.[1][2][3] The production is handled by El Guincho, who co-executive produced the mixtape alongside Twigs, as well as Arca, Cirkut, and Mike Dean, among others.[3] The mixtape was supported by one single, “Tears in the Club”, which features the Weeknd, and one promotional single, “Jealousy”, which features Rema. Follow up to FKA Twigs Novenber 8, 2019 album MAGDALENE, which was #29 on WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019. Tahliah Debrett Barnett was born on January 16, 1988. She is known professionally as FKA Twigs. She is a British singer and songwriter, raised in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire. She became a backup dancer after moving to South London when she was 17 years old. She made her musical debut with the extended plays EP1 (2012) and EP2 (2013). Her debut studio album, LP1, was released in August 2014 to critical acclaim, peaking at number 16 on the UK Albums Chart and number 30 on the US Billboard 200. It was later nominated for the 2014 Mercury Prize. She released the M3LL155X EP in 2015 to further critical praise, as well as her second studio album Magdalene four years later. Her work has been described as “genre-bending”, drawing on various genres including electronic music, trip hop, R&B, and avant-garde. Her work has been compared to the work of Tricky as well as Kate Bush, Janet Jackson, The xx, and Massive Attack, while Slate described her work as distinctive in a way that rises above her influences. The Wall Street Journal described her as “an heir to futuristic R&B muses like Aaliyah, Missy Elliott and others under the progressive sway of producer Timbaland.” Describing her artistry, she said: “I am not restricted by any musical genre. I like to experiment with sounds, generating emotions while putting my voice on certain atmospheres […] I found my own way of playing punk. I like industrial sounds and incorporating everyday life’s sounds like a car alarm.” FKA Twigs has been associated with the alternative R&B tag, though she herself has rejected the R&B label as related to her race: “It’s just because I’m mixed race. When I first released music and no one knew what I looked like, I would read comments like: ‘I’ve never heard anything like this before, it’s not in a genre.’ And then my picture came out six months later, now she’s an R&B singer. I share certain sonic threads with classical music; my song ‘Preface’ is like a hymn. So let’s talk about that. If I was white and blonde and said I went to church all the time, you’d be talking about the ‘choral aspect’. But you’re not talking about that because I’m a mixed-race girl from south London.” The first singers who influenced FKA Twigs were Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Marvin Gaye. When she started composing songs, she wanted to reproduce music she liked: “every bit of music that I made sounded like a pastiche of Siouxsie and the Banshees or Adam Ant. But through that I discovered myself”. In an interview after being shortlisted for the 2014 Mercury Prize, Twigs cited GERMFREE ADOLESCENTS by X-Ray Spex as her favorite album of all time.]

10:28 – Underwriting

9. (#53.) Lazy Projector – “Cruisin'”
   from: Future Fiction / Lazy Projector / August 19, 2022
   [Written and recorded by Lazy Projector. Aaron Shinn on guitars, vocals, keyboards; Adam Mcgill on bass guitar; Jordan Shinn on guitar, backing vocals. Lazy Projector released their singles, “Hookworms” on April 2, 2021 and “Windows” on December 4, 2020. “Cruisin’”, ”Hookworms” and “Windows” all ended up featured on Lazy Projector’s sophomore album, FUTURE FICTION. The album was 2+ years in the making with a majority recorded in our home studios. The album mixes a variety of time periods, with influences from the 50’s and 60’s to current. The album was self-produced and primarily engineered and mixed by Tell Pryor. The band began collecting ideas in late 2019 and started the recording process in early 2020, passing ideas back and forth from Aaron’s home studio and Tell’s. Lazy Projector, a Kansas City based indie rock group that currently consists of Aaron Shinn on vocals & guitar, Tell Pryor on guitar, Dustin Mott on drums, Luke Caddy on bass, and Jonny Ulasien on keyboards. Lazy Projector influences include bands such as Spoon, Dr. Dog, Wilco, the National, Toro y Moi, Kevin Morby, and Big Thief, to name a few. Lazy Projector released their debut album, “evoco” in 2018. Lazy Projector played an album release show at the Recordbar, 1520 Grand, KCMO, on Friday, August 26, with Mark Ronning, (playing a modular set), and No Magic (from Lawrence). Alex from the band Heads or Heads will be doing visuals and projections for the show. More info at http://www.lazyprojector.com]

10. (#52.) Static Phantoms – “Bathed in a Blue Light”
    from: BATHED IN A BLUE LIGHT [EP] / The Record Machine / November 11, 2022
    [Debut 6-tack EP from Static Phantoms who are: Dedric Moore on synths, drum programming, backing vocals, & production; and Krysztof Nemeth on baritone guitar, bass, synths, lead vocals. The Pandemic offered Dedric Moore and Krysztof Nemeth the opportunity to pass the time and get creative in the studio exploring the music and themes of New Wave music of the 1980s. Those who follow the bands: Monta at Odds, The Republic Tigers, Emmaline Twist know about the passion Dedric and Krystoff bring their synths and guitars. As Static Phantoms, the duo is influenced by the 1080s trailblazing bands: The Glove, Tones on Tail, Tears For Fears, and Soft Cell. WMM premiered “Bathed in Bluer Light” on February 2, 2022. The first single from the EP, BATHED IN A BLUE LIGHT. Their 2nd single “Ghostwalk was released March 18, 2022.]

11. (#51.) Kristin Hamilton – “Touch of Blue”
    from: Touch Of Blue / Kristin Hamilton / April 23, 2022
    [Written by Kristin Hamilton, with Kristin Hamilton on lead vocal & acoustic guitar, Jessica Salleyon drums, Greg Gagnon on double bass, Wurlitzer, Telecaster. Produced by Greg Gagnon – ShapeNote Studios. Mastered by Joel Nanos – Element Recording. Kristin Hamilton released her debut album, TOUCH OF BLUE with a Special Album Release Concert, Sunday, May 1, at 6:00 PM, at Acoustic Alcove, 1901 NW Blue Pkwy, Unity Village, MO. /// Kristin Hamilton’s Touch Of Blue is her debut solo album featuring her father, Rocky Cathcart, her two teens, Isaac and Lucy Gray Hamilton, her new band The Heat; comprised of Jessica Salley, Greg Gagnon, & Leah Sproul of Cowtown Country Club, and Devon Teran of The Timbers. This album also features special guest Chris Hudson of Gullywasher and members of Kristin’s former project Under The Big Oak Tree, Simon Fink, Jason Riley and Doug Ward.]

12. (#50.) Til Willis & Erratic Cowboy – “Be Driven”
    from: Grinding of The Stars / Til Willis / November 4, 2022
    [Recorded in a 122 year old barn, Grinding of the Stars highlights the band as a trio, stripped down and rugged. It’s the dark twin to their last album, Dirtflowers. Til Willis on guitars & vocals, Eric Binkley on bass, Austin Sinkler on drums. Recorded/Mixed/Produced by Til Willis. Mastered by John Hruska. Cover art by David Huddleston. Til Willis was born in the heat of 1980, and has been making music for a long time. On December 6, 2019 Til Willis & Erratic Cowboy released DIRTFLOWERS. On March 19, 2020 Til Willis & Erratic Cowboy released the 5-song EP CONFIDENTIAL BEDROOM. On June 5, 2020, Til Willis released Live at KVPH, a 13-song release recorded live at Kaw Valley Public House in Lawrence, Kansas on January 25, 2020. On October 30, 2020 Til Willis released SMALL GUARANTEES his 6-track EP collaboration with experimental music-maker Selvedge aka Chance Dibben.]

13. (#49.) Freight Train Rabbit Killer – “Pharmaceuticals”
    from: Hammer of Judgement / Haymaker Records / April 30, 2022
    [Freight Train Rabbit Killer, a musical duet made up of Kristopher Bruders (Freight Train) and Mark Smeltzer (Rabbit Killer). Described as “Apocalyptic Roots” or “Doom Blues” their intense and riveting live shows are accompanied by suits and masks. For this album, the duo is accompanied by accomplished multi-instrumentalists and solo recording artists Jason Beers and Fritz Hutchison. The Hammer of Judgment recording session was a one-of-a-kind pseudo-live studio album, utilizing an interactive crowd of dedicated fans experiencing the recording process first-hand with all the bells and whistles of a professional recording studio (isolated tracking, overdubs, post-production, etc.). Tickets were sold in advance and the session was captured at GFM Modern Recording in Blue Springs, Missouri in April 2019. Post-production work, a global pandemic, and national independent record pressing delays pushed the release back three years from the recording date, but the end results made it worth the wait. Freight Train Rabbit Killer played a special Vinyl Release Party at The Fifth Floor, Saturday, April 30 at 8:00 PM, at 1106 Santa Fe St., KCMO, in the West Bottoms, with Drop A Grand, and Teri Quinn. More info at http://www.haymakerrecords.net]

14. (#48.) Dimension Bill Edwards – “Lady Lost Love”
    from: SUSTENANCE / Gordophonic Records / February 10, 2022
    [Dimension Bill Edwards released their single,“Surrealberry Hill” on Fat Tuesday, February 16, 2021. The single was inspired by band members move from the West 39th street area to Strawberry Hill in Kansas City, Kansas. The spoken word portion of the song is Matt reading from the Egyptian Book of The Dead. The release coincided with an amazing “Float House” that Melissa created for Mardi Gras in Pandemic times. Dimension Bill Edwards is a band that kind of organically formed through live performances at the Walnut Valley Folk Festival and the last set of the festival “Heavy Petting ZO0” held in the Pecan Grove an the band mameber’s association with the band KC Bearfighters. Dimension Bill Edwards is: Matt Weinman on lyrics, vocals & guitar; Melissa Weinman on lyrics, vocals & dance moves; Grant Buell on keyboards & accordion; Mallory Edson on violin; Phil Craven on bass & recording engineer; (John Bersuch on drums for “Surrealberry Hill”) ; Ike Golets on drums for future recordings and live performances. Matt and Melissa met John Bersuch when he moved in next door to them in Strawberry Hill on New Years Eve 2019. Grant Buell and Melissa Weinman are also in the band Good Time Charley. Phil Craven and Mallory Edson and Ike Goletz are also in the band, Whiskey for the Lady. Band members found a wooden sign that read” Dimension Bill Edwards? behinds Cupini’s on West 43rd Street. No one know what the sign was from or what it meant, but they decided to use this for the name of their band. More info at: http://www.dimensionbilledwards.bandcamp.com]

15. (#47.) Fritz Hutchison – “Ladder Shake (Feat. Bodacious Thang)”
    from: MOVIE NIGHT / Manor Records / April 15, 2022
    [2nd solo album from multi-instrumentalist Fritz Hutchison who was born May 27, 1991 . A life-long resident of KC. Since 2008 he’s been part of the bands: She’s a Keeper, Freight Train Rabbit Killer, and Grand Marquis. As a guitarist he has played along side True Lions, J Ashley Miller, Lauren Krum, Miki P, Calvin Arsenia. A decade of lending an ear and a hand to other musicians Fritz Hutchison released his debut solo album Wide Wild Acres on Center Cut Records on March 27, 2020. Written & performed by Fritz Hutchison. Produced by Fritz Hutchison & Joel Nanos. Recorded & mixed in KC by Joel Nanos at Element Recording Studio. Fritz was our guest on WMM on March 25, 2020]

16. (#46.) Toro Y Moi – “Mississippi”
    from: MAHAL / Dead Oceans / April 29, 2022
    [Chaz Bear (born Chazwick Bradley Bundick; November 7, 1986), known professionally as Toro y Moi, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and graphic designer. He is often recognized as a spearhead of the chillwave genre in the 2010s, alongside contemporaries Washed Out and Neon Indian, although his music has explored various styles since. His stage name is a multilingual expression consisting of the Spanish words toro and y (meaning “bull” and “and”, respectively) and the French word moi (meaning “me”).]

10:58 – Station ID

17. (#45.) Horsegirl – “Anti-glory”
    from: Versions of Modern Performance / Matador Records / June 3, 2022
    [Horsegirl is an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois. The band members are Nora Cheng, Penelope Lowenstein, and Gigi Reece. The group is currently signed to Matador Records. ]

18. (#44.) Art d’Ecco – “Only Ones”
    from: After The Head Rush / Paper Bag Records Records / June 24, 2022
    [Last year Art d’Ecco released IN STANDARD DEFINITION on April 23, 2021 that was one of WMM 120 Best Releases of 2021. Art d’Ecco is based in British Columbia, “There’s more than a little David Bowie in both the sonic and fashion leanings of Art d’Ecco, a performer who fluidly crosses musical and gender lines, creating highly memorable tracks — and sporting an unforgettable look. Often labelled “neo glam,” the music boasts hints of everything from ’50s pop to psychedelics, from Velvet Underground-era art rock to Grimes-inspired electronics.” – CBC Music Art d’Ecco freleased the album Trespasser on Paper Bag Records on October 12, 2018. When d’Ecco moved into his grandmother’s cottage on one of the islands, he hadn’t planned on creating a new project. But, as it often does, circumstance charted his course. His grandmother, living with Alzheimer’s, suffered a related phenomenon called ‘sundowning,’ which triggers increased agitation and anxiety around sunset. “The only way to calm this lady down was to sit down at the piano,” says d’Ecco. He would play “Bohemian Rhapsody,” passing it off as Beethoven. After she was relocated, d’Ecco remained in the empty house where he had played as a child. Draped in memory, he gravitated toward the piano, spending the long, lonesome, quiet nights on the bench before the instrument. This is where Art d’Ecco was created. He relocated to a new cottage, built a studio and barricaded himself with copies of Deerhunter’s Cryptograms, Bowie’s Low, and choice krautrock records. In this solitude, d’Ecco would chase tones for hours. The result is a richly-realized confluence of the ferocious spark of those trailblazers and a distinct sadness, with d’Ecco as mad scientist, stitching together these delicious fragments and animating them. Art d’Ecco was our guest on September 29, 2021.]

19. (#43.) Six Percent – “Passages”
    from: Death of Yesterday / Six Percent / September 23, 2022
    [Produced, Engineered and Mixed by Josh Barber. Music and Lyrics by Six Percent. Mastered by Drew Lavyne. Recorded at B24 Studios. Six Percent is an American punk rock band formed in 1995, in Kansas City, Missouri. Since it’s inception, the band has had regional success, blending their unique sound of punk rock and horns with high-energy live performances. There have been various member changes over the years, but the core remains the same today. ]

20. (#42.) Serene Fiend – “Don’t Want to Die”
    from: Elegies and Effigies / Joel Bonner / August 25, 2022
    [Serene Fiend is an artist from Lawrence, KS whose sounds focus on industrial and pop but dabble in heavy metal, ambient, and minimalist sub-genres. // Serene Fiend’s long overdue first full-length album, Elegies and Effigies exists on a continuum ranging from industrial to pop with sprinkles of death metal and glam mixed in – “industrial death pop” for short. // The track list explores topics of introspection, self-destruction, grief, resilience, and self-betterment. Over its course, the album references itself melodically and lyrically through motifs and evolving context, benefiting repeat listens and granular focus. It is a bleak album, but centers around a thread of hope and optimism. // Written, performed, recorded, mixed, and mastered by Joel Bonner. // The synthesizer solo on “Unto Myself” was written and performed by Daniel Glascock. // Guitar solo on “Don’t Want To Die” written and performed by Sam Piper. // “Something About Us” originally written and recorded by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo // Artwork by Joel Bonner . Info at http://www.serenefiend.bandcamp.com]

21. (#41.) Belle & The Vertigo Waves – “Love In Remission”
    from: LORELAI / Drop Out Records / May 28, 2022
    [Belle & The Vertigo Waves is the sonic brainchild of Belle Loux. She resides in KCMO, and is slowly attempting world domination. Members include Belle Loux on lead vocals, John Loux on guitar. Belle & The Vertigo Waves released “Love In Remission” as a Single on March 25, 2022. The band released the single “Stand Down” on January 21, 2022. Belle & The Vertigo Waves released their debut album, ALIGNED on Drop Out Records on Oct. 6, 2017. “About the album, Belle told Michelle Bacon at The Bridge, “Many of the tunes had been written around five years prior, when I was just 15 or 16.” Belle had only played them as a solo artist with occasional accompaniment from her dad, guitarist John Loux, & keyboardist Charlie Hibberd. In 2017, she hired the two musicians and a couple other friends to track “Aligned,” dubbing the project Belle and the Vertigo Waves, in the hopes that she’d eventually assemble a live band. “Recording was a surreal and emotional experience. Playing the songs with a band was like seeing them come to life,” she said. “I knew there was no way I could be a solo artist anymore, because I fell in love with the full band sound so much.” The music of Belle & The Vertigo Waves have been described as having an “1980s pop-laden sound.” which drew local attention in 2018. Belle has said that in the past 4 years the band has grown to have more of a darker, glam rock sound, grittier and grungier. Their sound is influenced by three generations of musicians in the band, Belle’s growth as a songwriter and singer, and through the band’s work with engineer and producer Paul Malinowski. Belle & The Vertigo Waves released their single, “Fear or Faith” on June 7, 2019 on Drop Out Records. Belle & The Vertigo Waves released their single, “Pulse” on April 17, 2020 on Drop Out Records. Belle & The Vertigo Waves released their single, “Beat Me To The Punch” on Drop Out Records on Oct. 29, 2021. Belle & The Vertigo Waves joined us on WMM on Feb 5, 2020 and June 26, 2019. More info at: http://www.thevertigowaves.com]

22. (#40.) Mensa Deathsquad – “Chin Up Eyes Wide Open”
    from: YOU WILL HEAR THUNDER / Gran Cavalera / April 12, 2022
    [This is the ongoing creative engine of Kansas City-based darkwave artist Brandon Phillips – the soft human center of Mensa Deathsquad writes: “Mensa Deathsquad is fundamentally about two things, Dark dance music optimized for sweaty catharsis and the most ragged, unpolished emotional honesty I can bring.” On June 13, 2022 Mensa Deathsquad released the single “Come Say Hello.”On April 12, 2022 Mensa Deathsquad released the 14-track album, YOU WILL HEAR THUNDER, Written, performed and produced by Mensa Deathsquad. Mastered at Element Recording and Mastering. Brandon Phillips of Mensa Deathsquad, writes: “By the time I wrote Chin Up Eyes Wide Open,” (second single from YOU WILL HEAR THUNDER) I was just this little emotional soap bubble, exploding in slow motion. I felt safe in my own skin for the first time in a really long time. This is part of trauma recovery – early on there is this identity crisis that starts in your bone marrow and extends outward into the far reaches of the galaxy and it takes a lot of effort to find yourself again in all that messy tissue and ice cold vastness. By some quirk of luck, I bumped into myself by chance when a friend made a joke about my being exactly her “tall, thin and emotionally unavailable” type. To which I shot back, “Babe, all I am is emotionally available. I am skin and emotions.” Boom. There I was, hiding in plain sight. So “Chin Up, Eyes Wide Open” is a song about my deciding to live that punch line and to just fully embody “skin and emotions” and to never mask that version of myself again. It’s a song about showing up for yourself in all your flawed, fucked up glory.” “Chin Up, Eyes Wide Open” is a follow up to “Light” released November 16, 2021. Brandon Phillips writes, “The electronic music that I daydream about, always has that Stooges layer of dirt and shop grease on it. That’s what I want.” Follow up to CYCLIST, the second album from Mensa Deathsquad released February 23, 2021. The cyclist was released with these notes: Brandon Phillips laid in a Kansas City hospital through the winter of 2019-2020 as his own album release (the unintentionally but appropriately named Patient Zero by his alt-synthwave band Mensa Deathsquad) passed by in the outside world. The first tracks from his debut album Patient Zero were premiering and, chained to a Luciferian merry-go-round of post-operative infections, Brandon strained through the pharmaceutical blur to do promotion for his record, emailing editors and scraping together the necessary pieces they needed. Since his surgery a month prior had gone sideways, and the time, energy, and planning for things like photos, videos and shows had been blown to smithereens, all he had left to look forward to beyond the IVs and the machines that go “ping” was this premiere and the street date. And then came COVID-19, like a rogue wave, to finish off the aimless Mensa Deathsquad sailboat. // But Brandon didn’t die and the boat didn’t sink. As the squall receded and the wanton eye of cruel gods passed over him, Brandon clung to the boat and swore revenge… // As the aphorism goes, “revenge is sweet” and thus Brandon and his Mensa Deathsquad will have the triumphant last laugh. Holed up in the spare bedroom of his apartment in Kansas City with an open wound in his abdomen, two surgical drains, and a severely compromised immune system, Brandon slipped back into his Mensa Deathsquad persona and began working on what would become his newest full length album, Cyclist. // The music that emerged from Brandon’s isolation and illness is a raw, nearly garage-rock take on darkwave and a perfect continuation of what he had begun on Patient Zero. Launching with the one-two punch of electro-punk noir in “Nothing Is Ever Enough” and “Therapist” before the pounding synth-rock of “The Disappointment Of The Christ,” Brandon fixes his furious eyes upon the provocative hypocrisy and violence that results from American Christianity. // A heady package of nudge nudges and intellectual ruminations (a trademark of Brandon’s past as a smartpunk upstart in such seminal bands as The Gadjits and Architects), Cyclist carries both a powerful music punch, a cultural rummaging through pop culture, and a run through his ever-evolving intellect. A knowing wink to fans of the seminal vampire flick The Lost Boy, “Join Us, Michael” is at once a seething appraisal of a world scorched and defiled by an older generation and a musical love letter to that pivotal ‘80s vampire movie soundtrack. “Leap Year (Chaos Reigns)” which began as a Siouxsie & the Banshees-inspired jam serves as Cyclist’s true north – the story of a drug-fueled wrinkle in time that brought the entire cyclical nature of existence into visibility one fateful night. “End Of The World” is dance-floor nihilist electro-rock blending angular post-punk guitar with the nostalgia of neon synths and electroclash drums, while “Takes One To Know One” slowly approaches the thunderstorm of toxic relationships, soulful vocals, tech house kick drums, and grimey-as-hell bass. // As a fitting conclusion to the tour de force through his psyche, Cyclist closes with yet another two-track charge, the swaggering post-electro sneer at celebrity social media, “Famous” followed by the throbbing Giorgio Moroder-via-Tech House cover of Iggy Pop’s classic “The Passenger.” “It was important to me that I cover ‘The Passenger’ as a letter of intent.” Says Brandon. “The electronic music that I daydream about, always has that Stooges layer of dirt and shop grease on it. That’s what I wanted for Cyclist.” The result is a triumph over the storm, as Mensa Deathsquad sails, unvanquished, into victory. More info at: https://mensadeathsquad.bandcamp.com or https://facebook.com/MensaDeathsquad.%5D

23. (#39.) Other Americans – “I Don’t Want To Be This”
    from: Last Dance / Gran Calavera Records / October 10, 2022
    [ Other Americans released Paraniod Fiction on Gran Calavera Records on February 9, 2021. They released their 8-song EP OA2 on October 19, 2019. O.A. released their debut EP, Other Americans on June 29, 2018. Julie Berndsen on lead vocals, Adam Phillips on drums, Brandon Phillips on guitar, Michelle Bacon on bass. Produced by Brandon Philllips. Engineered by Joel Nanos. Recorded at Element Recording Studios in KC. . Hailing from KCMO and Lawrence, KS, the electro-alternative OTHER AMERICANS are comprised of members of The Architects, Latenight Callers, Frogpond, Radar State and Brandon Phillips and The Condition. The band first appeared on the scene in 2018 with a self-titled debut EP and a dynamic and explosive live show that combined 120 Minutes-inspired alterna-classicism with infectious, electro danceability. Other Americans is a virtual Midwestern supergroup. The cohorts first crossed paths in when a mutual friend and matchmaker introduced Brandon Phillips to vocalist Julie Berndsen “We were all looking for something new to do musically, recalls Brandon. “The way I remember it, a mutual friend (KC music producer Joel Nanos) told me that Julie was looking to start something new and I sent her a note about it. We had tacos to see if we liked each other.”]

24. (#38.) Anaïs Mitchell – “Bright Star”
    from: AnaÏs Mitchell / Anaïs Mitchell – BMG / January 28, 2022
    [Anaïs Mitchell is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell, released on January 28, 2022, through BMG Rights Management, her first release on the label. It is her first studio album of new material since Young Man in America (2012), as well as her first studio album following her Tony Award-winning musical Hadestown. The album features musical contributions from Michael Lewis, JT Bates, Thomas Bartlett, Aaron Dessner and Nico Muhly. // “Bright Star” was released as the album’s first single on October 28, 2021. It is an indie folk song “about looking back on years of restless pursuit and making peace with the source of that longing: the Muse, the Great Unknown, the One That Got Away – those things that motivate us that we never can touch.” It impacted adult alternative radio on January 10, 2022. // Album opener “Brooklyn Bridge” was released as the second single from the album on December 2, 2021. Of the song, Mitchell said “Having left New York, I was able to write a love letter to it in a way I never could when I was living there. It was like, fuck it. This is how I feel. There is nothing more beautiful than riding over one of the New York bridges at night next to someone who inspires you.” // “On Your Way (Felix Song)” was released as the third single on January 12, 2022. Dedicated to the late Felix McTeigue, Mitchell said of him “We briefly had the same manager in our early ‘hustling days’ of trying to get a songwriter career going. I can picture us playing at the old Living Room on the lower east side, and me being one of five people in Felix’s audience, and vice versa. Felix was really fearless and present, he always had a guitar on his back, he was always writing something, he loved the act of just rushing headlong into writing, recording, not overthinking it. It’s a lesson I’ll return to for the rest of my life.” // Mitchell will tour the album across the United States and Europe in 2022, with her band Bonny Light Horseman joining her for some American dates. // Anaïs Mitchell was born March 26, 1981. She is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including Hadestown (2010), Young Man in America (2012), Child Ballads (2013), and Anaïs Mitchell (2022). // She developed her album Hadestown into a stage musical (together with director Rachel Chavkin), which received its US debut at New York Theatre Workshop in summer 2016, and its Canadian debut at the Citadel Theatre, Edmonton the following year. The show opened at London’s National Theatre in November 2018 and then on Broadway on April 17, 2019, at the Walter Kerr Theatre. The Broadway production of Hadestown won eight Tony Awards in 2019 including the Tony Award for Best Musical. Mitchell received the Tony Award for Best Original Score; she was also nominated for Best Book of a Musical. The Broadway cast album of the show took home the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album in 2020. Mitchell’s first book, Working on a Song: The Lyrics of Hadestown, was published by Plume Books on October 6, 2020. Mitchell was included in Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2020. // Mitchell is a member of the band Bonny Light Horseman, whose self-titled debut was released in 2020 . // Mitchell’s father is a novelist and college professor and named her after author Anaïs Nin. She grew up on Treleven farm in Addison County, Vermont. She was raised Quaker. Her mother was Deputy Secretary of Vermont’s Agency of Human Services. After traveling to the Middle East, Europe and Latin America as a child, she attended Middlebury College. Having begun writing her first songs at the age of 17, around 1998, Mitchell won the New Folk award in 2003, when she was 22, at the Kerrville Folk Festival. Her album Hymns for the Exiled was released on Chicago’s Waterbug Records label in 2004. This recording attracted the attention of singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco, who signed her to the Righteous Babe Records label. // In 2006 Mitchell debuted a draft of her “folk opera” Hadestown, which she wrote in collaboration with arranger Michael Chorney and director Ben T. Matchstick. A revised version of Hadestown was staged in 2007. Her third album, The Brightness, was released that same year on Righteous Babe Records. // Her album Hadestown, produced by Todd Sickafoose, was released in spring 2010 to favorable reviews. Described as “the story of Orpheus and Eurydice set in post-apocalyptic Depression-era America, the album includes guest appearances by Ani DiFranco, Greg Brown, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, Ben Knox Miller of The Low Anthem, and The Haden Triplets (Petra, Rachel, and Tanya Haden). // Mitchell continued quietly working on a stage version of Hadestown while also writing and recording new material. In early 2012, she released Young Man in America on Wilderland Records. Mitchell opened the North American leg of Bon Iver’s autumn 2012 tour, which included two sold-out shows at Radio City Music Hall. The album was largely praised by critics as “genre-defying” and her “second consecutive masterpiece.” // In late 2012, Mitchell completed recording seven songs from the collection of Child Ballads, compiled by Francis James Child, with fellow musician Jefferson Hamer. The album, produced by Gary Paczosa, was released in February 2013, winning a BBC Radio 2 Folk Award for Best Traditional Song. This was followed in 2014 by xoa, for which Mitchell re-recorded a number of her older songs using only guitar and vocals. This stripped back album included some songs from Hadestown which were recorded for the first time in Mitchell’s own voice, as well as three brand new songs.// In summer 2016, the newly expanded theatrical version of Hadestown opened at New York Theatre Workshop with Vogue magazine predicting that “Hadestown will be your next musical theatre obsession”. The following year, it received its Canadian premiere at The Citadel Theatre, Edmonton, and in April 2018, London’s National Theatre announced that it would present a three-month run during the winter ahead of the show’s Broadway transfer. Hadestown opened on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on April 17, 2019. // In 2019, Mitchell was appearing as part of a three-piece “supergroup” called Bonny Light Horseman, consisting of herself, Eric D. Johnson of Fruit Bats and guitarist Josh Kaufman. The group’s self-titled debut album was released on January 24, 2020. // In June 2021, America supergroup Big Red Machine announced their second studio album, How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last? which features Mitchell’s guest vocals in three of its tracks: “Latter Days”, “Phoenix”, and “New Auburn”. // Mitchell married Noah Hahn in 2006. They have two daughters, Ramona and Rosetta.]

11:26 – Underwriting

25. (#37.) Weyes Blood – “Grapevine (Radio Edit)”
    from: And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow / Sub Pop / November 18, 2022
    [Natalie Laura Mering (born June 11, 1988), is known professionally as Weyes Blood. She is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. She was primarily raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. She has been performing her own material under variations of the name Weyes Blood since 2003. // Her music has undergone significant changes throughout her career. She has been involved in the underground noise music scene and was briefly bassist of the Portland, Oregon-based group Jackie-O Motherfucker and was singer for the band Satanized. As Weyes Blood she made two self-released albums, changing to Weyes Blood to release The Outside Room (2011) on microlabel Not Not Fun Records. She then signed a recording contract with independent label Mexican Summer, releasing The Innocents (2014) and Front Row Seat to Earth (2016). She released her fourth studio album, Titanic Rising (2019) on Sub Pop, to critical acclaim. Her fifth studio album, And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow, was released on Sub Pop on November 18, 2022. // Natalie Laura Mering was born on June 11, 1988 in Santa Monica, California, into a deeply religious born again Pentecostal Christian family. Commenting on her upbringing, Mering said: “I was raised in a real spiritual, Bible Belt household. So I developed my own cynicism because there are always things in the Bible that really bum me out…. I became really obsessed with the Kids in the Hall as a kid, and they had Scott Thompson, who’s like the one gay member. I remember having this feeling that ‘Oh, Scott Thompson isn’t going to heaven? How could that be?’ That was my first big tipoff that something wasn’t quite right with dogmatic Christianity. And then I was just trying to undo it at the age of 12.” // Mering’s family moved several times throughout her childhood; she spent her early life in Scotts Valley, California before they settled in Doylestown, Pennsylvania in 1999, where she attended high school. Both her older brothers and parents are musicians and music played an important part in her upbringing. Her father, Sumner Mering, is a musician and guitarist who was in the Los Angeles new wave band Sumner in the late 1970s. // At the age of 15, Mering began using the moniker Wise Blood (a reference to the 1952 Flannery O’Connor novel) to write songs. She changed to Weyes Bluhd on several self-released records before changing the spelling to Weyes Blood. After finishing high school, Mering relocated to Portland, Oregon to attend Lewis & Clark College, where she majored in music and had a radio show on the campus radio station. However, Mering dropped out after her first year of studies. She subsequently began touring the underground music scene, performing as a bassist in the Portland-based band Jackie-O Motherfucker and playing keyboards and singing with noise rock band Satanized. // In 2011, she released her debut studio album The Outside Room as Weyes Blood and the Dark Juices on Not Not Fun Records. Uncut magazine described the album as ”devotional and ethereal, but with an edge”, while Beatbots found it “an impressive and ambitious album”. Mering released her second studio album in October 2014 called The Innocents, which was released through Mexican Summer. It was recorded in rural Pennsylvania, Mering’s apartment and Gary’s Electric Studio in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. It included contributions by Jacob Brunner (drums) and James Strong (bass). Mering described the theme of the album as being “about my first real relationship that went really awry.” // 2014–2021: Front Row Seat to Earth and Titanic Rising : After the album’s release, Mering relocated from New York to Los Angeles, California. She commented: “I was in New York alone: no friends, no money, no record deal at the time. Literally I had nothing.” In 2016, she released her third studio album Front Row Seat to Earth, on Mexican Summer to critical acclaim, and toured throughout Europe and the States. NPR wrote that the album reexamines “intimacy and idealism in ways that showcase Mering’s gift for measuring and mediating heady emotions.” Mering stated the songs on the album were largely inspired by the isolation she felt while living in New York. //n February 12, 2019, a new studio album titled Titanic Rising was announced and available to pre-order on her website, along with dates of her upcoming tour. The album was released by Sub Pop on April 5, 2019 to critical acclaim. Mering describes Titanic Rising as “The Kinks meet WWII or Bob Seger meets Enya.” Other influences include Kate Bush and Karen Carpenter of the Carpenters. Titanic Rising is described as a record about romantic disappointment, damaged reality, and finding hope. // record received high placements on year-end and decade-end lists from publications such as Pitchfork, Uproxx, Paste, Uncut, Dazed, The Guardian, and NPR. On July 16, 2019, she had her TV debut on Late Night with Seth Meyers, where she performed her single “Everyday” from Titanic Rising. Live performance highlights include sold-out tours in the US and Europe, as well as opening for Kacey Musgraves in the fall of 2019 and singing with Lana Del Rey at the Hollywood Bowl. // Mering heavily involved in the 2020 Tim Heidecker concept album Fear of Death, singing on all twelve tracks, co-writing two and receiving a co-producer credit. She received wider attention when she featured (along with Zella Day) on the closing track of the 2021 Lana Del Rey studio album Chemtrails over the Country Club, a cover of the Joni Mitchell song “For Free”. // On October 29, 2020, she helped canvass for the Democratic Socialists of America. // On September 12, 2022, Mering announced her fifth studio album And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow would be released on November 18, 2022, and released its lead single “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody” the same day. In promotion of the album she will embark on the In Holy Flux Tour across North America and Europe in 2023.The second single, “Grapevine”, followed on October 11, 2022.]

26. (#36.) Just Angel – “Intent”
    from: Just Angel: Pt. 2 {EP] / Just Angel / December 25, 2021
    [Just Angel is a Kansas City based, Singer, musician, songwriter, dancer, and creative artist, Just Angel. Her powerful voice has been called, “Passionate … Soulful… and Inspiring.” Her music finds its home in Rock, Jazz, and Alternative, and she has found a way to incorporate those genres within her love with Soul and R&B. Just Angel has performed with My Brothers & Sisters. Just Angel and her band, The Wades can be found rocking stages with her original songs from her recordings and eclectic takes on popular music. She released her debut EP, JUST ANGEL, PART 1 on December 24, 2020. She released her follow up EP, JUST ANGEL, PART 2 on December 25, 2021. She also contributed vocals to the recent Sisterbot record. More info at: https://linktr.ee/JustAngel_TigerLilyStar. Just Angel and The Wades played SOLSOUL FEST 2022 presented by Arquesta Del SolSoul Friday September 30, doors open at 7:00 PM, at Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming St., KCMO, West Bottoms, featuring: The Phantastics, Regina Del Carmen, Jass, Ebony Tusks, Collidescope, Arquesta Del SolSoul and DJ SKEM]

27. (#35.) Asterales – “Let Go vocal redux (Feat. Kirsten Paludan)”
    from: FUTURESPECTIVE / Datura Records / March 25, 2022
    [Produced, mixed & mastered by Asterales. KC based leftfield, experimental, electronica music maker, also known as Nate Holt. Asterales eleased the 5-track EP, WORK HOURS on Sept. 6, 2016 in collaboration with Aikido Bray, Leo Minor, Katlyn Conroy, and Tanner Walle, with synthesizers, production, recording, engineering & mastering by Etan Tioh for Datura Records. This was followed by the 3-track EP, FRAGMENTS, released Feb. 3, 2017. Asterales released the single A.M. on Feb. 4, 2017. Asterales released the 10-track album, OUTSIDE THE BOX on Oct. 31, 2017. Asterales released the singles: “Brkfst 4 Btlvrs” on Oct. 31, 2017; and “Soft Spheres” on April 21, 2018. Asterales released the 10-track album ORBITAL DEBRIS: VOL. 1 on Aug. 14, 2020 on Mr. Furious Records. Asterales released the single “ASTR_40” on Aug. 26, 2020. Asterales released the 4-song EP EXTRA JUNK on Dec. 4, 2020 through Mr. Furious Records. Asterales released the singles: “Solstice Song” on Dec. 21, 2020, and “Desire (Tanner Walle) – Asterales Remix” on Jan. 29, 2021. Asterales released the single “Offline” on Feb. 26, 2021. Asterales released the single, “Beauty In The Distance feat. Heidi Gluck)” on March 31, 2021. Produced & mixed by Asterales, vocals by Heidi Gluck. lyrics by Approach, mastered by Royce Diamond. Asterales released the single, “So Easy (feat. Royce Diamond)” on April 30, 2021. Asterales released the single, “Let Go” on May 31, 2021. Produced, mixed & mastered by Asterales, lyrics by Royce Diamond, vocals by Asterales. Asterales released the single, “Paraglider” on June 30, 2021. Produced, mixed & mastered by Asterales. Asterales released the single, “Kinugemi” on July 31, 2021. Produced, mixed and mastered by Asterales. Asterales released the single, “Variable Stars Pt. 1″ on August 30, 2021. Produced, mixed & mastered by Asterales. Asterales released the remix single, “She Left (Asterales Remix)” on Sept. 2, 2021, produced by Asterales. Remix artwork by Gordon Leadfoot & Asterales. Asterales released the single, “P​@​!​omAr​-​1” on September 28, 2021. Produced, mixed and mastered by Asterales. More info at: http://www.asterales.bandcamp.com Asterales released the remix single, “Cory Phillips & the Band of Light – Give & the Take (Asterales Remix)” on October 1, 2021. “Give & the Take” was written by Cory Phillips coryphillipsmusic.com “Give & the Take – Asterales Remix” Produced by Asterales. Asterales released the single, “Calling Me (feat. Ghostmind)” on October 31, 2021. Produced, mixed & mastered by Asterales. Vocals and guitar performed and recorded by Ghostmind. Lyrics by Ghostmind. Artwork by Asterales. Asterales released the single “Your World or Mine (Feat. Approach)” on November 30, 2021. Produced, mixed and mastered by Asterales. Lyrics and vocals by Approach. Asterales released “Right Here, This Moment (feat. Royce Diamond & Maria Cuevas)” on December 31, 2021, produced, mixed & mastered by Asterales. Lyrics & vocals by Royce Diamond. Background vocals by Maria Cuevas (of Maria The Mexican). One of 14 singles Asterales released in 2021. More information at http://www.asterales.bandcamp.com]

28. (#34.) Rue – “Liv Tyler (feat. TyFaizon of The Blackstarkids)”
    from: WE’RE HAVING SO MUCH FUN (EP) / Bedroom Records / March 4, 2022
    [Rue is a 20-year old, pop-traditional artist out of Lawrence, Kansas. She collaborated with members of BLACKSTARKIDS to create this new EP. Rue played Manor Fest 4, Weekend One, Friday, May 20 at The Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St., Lawrence, KS at 7:00 PM with DoubleDrag, Midwestern, and Dunes Day. More info at: IG: @ruerising]

29. (#33.) Hermon Mehari – “Who Dared It”
    from: ASMARA / Komos Jazz – Studio Pigalle / November 18, 2022
    [Hermon Mehari on trumpet; Peter Schlamb on piano, vibraphone; Luca Fattorini on double bass; Gautier Garrigue on drums; Faytinga on vocals on Milobe Lawa Furda and Tanafaqit. Music composed and arranged by Hermon Mehari except MILOBE – LAWA. FURDA, music composed by Hermon Mehari and Faytinga. Lyrics on Tenafaqit and Milobe – Lawa Furda by FAYTINGA. // Recorded and mixed by Félix Rémy in March 2022 at Studio Pigalle, Paris // Mastered by Frank Merritt at The Carvery London. // Cover artwork by Lossapardo. // ‘A loving thanks to the family: Mehari Zehaie, Rigat Ghebre, Joseph Mehari, Tefsai Tsehaie, Turu Negash, Benyam and Aaron Tesfai’ // “Who dared it,” the album’s opening track, is a tribute to the city Hermon Mehari’s father grew up in, MENDEFERA. It also pays homage to the courage of this man who dared leave his native land, Eritrea. He departed in 1979, in the midst of a war against Ethiopia. Arriving in Italy after a perilous journey, he met his future wife in a refugee camp located in the ‘country of the Red Sea’, and left with her for the United States, country where Hermon was born some thirty- five years ago. // The trumpetist, trained in jazz in one of its heartlands – Kansas City, waited until the global pandemic to explore the musical aspects of his ancestral culture. // Under lockdown, alone in the Corrèze region of Southwestern France, he played with the rhythms, melodies and scales he had heard as a child, in his home and at community celebrations. The result was a track with electronic inflections featured on his previous album – A Change for The Dreamlike. // In September 2021, during the recording of Sélène Saint-Aimé’ second album, an artist Hermon accompanies on record and on stage, Antoine Rajon suggested he compose an album entirely dedicated to his family heritage. All the tracks on ASMARA, bring us back to Eritrea – a country Hermon visited only once, at the age of 5. The sights, sounds and smells of this lone voyage inspired the composition I Remember Eritrea. The only duo on the record showcases the deep musical symbiosis he maintains with long-time friend, Peter Schlamb – a pianist and vibraphonist who has worked in the USA with musicians such as Logan Richardson, Ben Van Gelder and Aaron Parks. // Gautier Garrigue, a drummer who has played with Henri Texier and David Enhco, manages to claim the traditional rhythms we hear all through the album as his own, propelled by the driving basslines of double bass player Luca Fattorini – a musician from Italy now living in Paris. // Faytinga lends her vocals to two tracks. Lauded during the war of independence, where she fought, weapons in hand, she has since become one of the strongest and most popular voices in Eritrea. // Milobe is a lullaby recorded for French label Cobalt in 2000 and rearranged by the trumpetist. Tanafaqit, unfolding over a composition by Hermon, is a paeon to exile where Faytinga uses nostalgia to conjure up a motherland she has been divorced from since moving to Switzerland. // Though we are familiar with Ethiopian jazz, whose tradition is long-lasting, Asmara constitutes an original experience of jazz inspired by the folklore of various Eritrean peoples. Beyond the political conflicts that oppose their leaders, the populations of these two nations claim a common & fraternal allegiance to Abyssinian culture, as expressed by Hermon on: Call Me Habesha!]

[Hermon Mehari will join us LIVE on Wednesday MidDay Medley on February 15, at 11:00 AM]

[Hermon Mehari plays The Folly Theatre on Saturday February 18, 2023]

30. (#32.) Amado Espinoza – “From la Cancha to Shinjuku”
    from: Q’ansas / Amado Espinoza / July 6, 2022
    [Amado Espinoza Quartet brings Andean soul to the American heartland. Amado plays traditional Andean instruments – the charango and sikus, as well as the mandolin and didgeridoo. He teams up with Andres Ramirez on percussion, Tina Bilberry on violin, and Johnny Hamil on bass, to bring a contemporary electric feel to Amado’s dynamic compositions. Expanding ideas of sound, texture and space, they invoke the musical ancestors of us all and activate the music that is alive in all our DNA. The journey is both ritual and joyous celebration. Amado Espinoza Quartet premiered their new album, Q’ansas with an Album Release Show, at the Record Bar, Friday, July 15, 2022, with special guest Julia Othmer.]

31. (#31.) Arquesta Del SolSoul – “Six Second Sunz (Radio edit)”
    from: Arquesta Del SolSoul / Arquesta Del SolSoul / August 16, 2022
    [ 7-track, debut album. They call themselves, “African Futurist Genre Killerz from the Middle of the Map bringing an innovative multidimensional sound inspired by our founding musical ancestors to decolonize and time bend indigenous sounds of the Caribbean, Latin America, West, Central, and Southern Africa.” Members include Les Izmore, Jessica Ayala, Brad Williams, Chalis O’Neal, Jade Green, & Hadiza. Aa KC-based Cosmic music collective teleporting through Indigeneity, Decolonization and Freedom. Their sound brings a multidimensional portal of Rhythm and Rock, Hip-Hop, R&B, Afro-Latin percussion, and Spoken Word inspired by our founding musical ancestors to decolonize and spacetime bend indigenous sounds of the Caribbean, Latin America, West, Central, and Southern Africa. // Arquesta Del SolSoul play SOLSOUL FEST 2022 presented by Arquesta Del SolSoul Friday September 30, doors open at 7:00 PM, at Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming St., KCMO, West Bottoms, featuring: The Phantastics, Ebony Tusks, Jass, Regina Del Carmen, JUST ANGEL & The Wades, Collidescope, and DJ SKEME. // More information at: http://www.arquestadelsolsoul.bandcamp.com http://www.instagram.com/arquestadelsolsoul%5D

32. Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
    from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957] NEXT WEEK, On December 28, we will bring you part 4 of our 4-week special: The 120 Best Recordings of 2022. We will count down #30 through #1 with tracks from: Plains, LYXE, Hembree, The Moose, The Grisly Hand, Scott Hrabko and The Rabbits, Carswell & Hope, Flare Tha Rebel, Monta At Odds, Eddie Moore, Kevin Morby, Stephonne, Ivory Blue, Making Movies, The Creepy Jingles, Katy Guillen & The Drive, BLACKSTARKIDS, The Black Creatures, The Black Angels, Samara Joy, Spoon, Big Thief, Drugdealer, Dander Mouse & Black Thought, Mavis Staples & Levon Helm, Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupol, Aldous Harding, The Elders, Melody’s Echo Chamber, and Wet Leg.

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Find our playlists for the past 10 years at: http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org

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Show #973