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, March 31, 2021
New & MidCoastal Releases + Nan Turner + J. Jerome Searle + Chris Hudson + Sondra Freeman
Wild Women of Kansas City
Mark plays more New & MidCoastal Releases from: Nan + The One Nite Stands, Gullywasher, Julia Othmer, Elexa Dawson, J. Jerome, Melissa Backstrom, Jametatone, Sam Wells, Wild Women of Kansas City, Slights, Frogpond, Vitreous Humor, Art of Flying, Japanese Breakfast, and Star Feminine Band.
At 10:15 Sondra Freeman shares details about Midwest Music Foundation’s 3rd Annual Spring Donation Drive – April 3-10, with a Livestream Concert Saturday, April 3, 2021 at 8:00 PM featuring: Jessica Paige, Slights, Sam Wells, The Uncouth. Find the streaming link on MMF’s Facebook and YouTube pages, and recordBar’s Facebook page. The MMF Spring Donation Drive will help those affected both physically and financially by the coronavirus and other health related emergencies and help MMF resume Musicians’ Health Care Clinics. Info at: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org
At 10:30 Mark talks with Chris Hudson about his band Gullywasher‘s new album, HOLDING THE DAWNING, released on March 15, 2021. Chris Hudson is a guitarist, artist, music teacher, singer-songwriter and band leader of Gullywasher and The Bard Owls. He also performs with Julie Bennett Hume in the duo The Multiverse. Chris attended the Conservatory of Music at UMKC in the 1990s where he studied classical guitar. He has been teaching guitar and music since finishing college. He currently works for Kansas City Young Audiences as a teaching artist, coordinating the Garage Band Classes for kids. More info at: http://www.gullywasherkc.com
At 11:00 we talk with J. Jerome aka Jamie Searle producer, composer, musician, singer, songwriter and band leader of My Brothers and Sisters and his former band, It’s Over. J. Jerome released the single “Steady One” on January 19, 2021. J. Jerome released the single, “Through My Skin”, on February 19, 2021 featuring Melissa Backstrom Searle who is married to Jamie and also sings for My Brothers and Sisters. J. Jerome released the 5-track EP Blap Kit, on February, 21, 2021. MY BROTHERS & SISTERS also released a reimagined version of, “Folsom Prison” on February 26, 2021. More info at: http://www.jsearlemusic.com or http://www.jjeromechromatic.bandcamp.com
At 11:30 AM Mark talks with singer-songwriter-drummer-dancer-actress, Nan Turner about her new release from Nan + The One Nite Stands, HIGH-CALIBER released February 19, 2021. Last year Nan released the single, “Desert Nites”, on May 22, 2020. Nan released her solo EP, CHAMPS AND LOSERS, VERSION 2, on July 12, 2019. Nan Turner is one half of the critically acclaimed band Schwervon! Nan has been called the “Lucy Ricardo of Indie Rock.” More Info at: http://www.nanturner.bandcamp.com
Nan Turner photo by Ailecia Ruscin of Oh! Snap! Photography!
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
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, March 24, 2021
Special Guest Producer Nico Gray + Special Guest Katy Guillen
Nico Gray Portrait by: Jan McNiel
Wednesday MidDay Medley welcomes back to the show, Nico Gray, as “Guest Producer.” Nico is a writer, performance artist, and has worked as an actor with KC Rep, Gorilla Theatre, 8th St. Cafe Theatre, Actor’s Craft, and Big Bang Buffet. He appeared in HBO’s Truman and you can see him as a drunken sailor smoking a cigarette stumbling down the hallways of Union Station in the Robert Altman film Kansas City. Nico has worked for Theatre League, The Midland Theatre and is currently a marketing & advertising consultant with Union Station and the Marketing Director for Fringe Festival KC and WaterFire KC. For WMM Nico Gray has co-hosted several of fund drive shows, Glam Rock show, Bowie Tribute Shows, and our 700th show. Today is his 10th appearance as Guest Producer.
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Valerie June —“Starlight Ethereal Silence” from: The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers / June Tunes-Concord Records / March 12, 2021 [5th full length album co-produced by Jack Splash and Valerie June. Valerie June Hockett was born January 10, 1982), known as Valerie June, is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Her sound encompasses a mixture of folk, blues, gospel, soul, country, Appalachian and bluegrass. She is signed to Concord Music Group worldwide. // Born in Jackson, Tennessee on January 10, 1982, June is the oldest of five children. As a child growing up in Humboldt, June was exposed to gospel music at her local church and R&B and soul music via her father, Emerson Hockett. As a teenager, her first job was with her father, owner of Hockett Construction in West Tennessee, and a part-time promoter for gospel singers and Prince, K-Ci & JoJo, and Bobby Womack. She helped by hanging posters in town. Her father died in late 2016. // June relocated to Memphis in 2000 and began recording and performing at the age of 19, initially with her then-husband Michael Joyner, in the duo Bella Sun. After her marriage ended, she began working as a solo artist, combining blues, gospel and Appalachian folk in a style that she describes as “organic moonshine roots music”, and learning guitar, banjo, and lap-steel guitar. She became associated with the Memphis-based Broken String Collective. // In 2009 she was a featured artist on MTV’s online series $5 Cover (following the lives of Memphis musicians attempting to make ends meet), and in 2010 she recorded the EP Valerie June and the Tennessee Express, a collaboration with Old Crow Medicine Show. // In 2011 she was honored by the Memphis and Shelby County Music Commission at the Emissaries of Memphis Music event. She raised funds to record an album with producer Craig Street via Kickstarter.com, raising $15,000 in 60 days. Later that year she relocated from Memphis to Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Shortly after, record producer Kevin Augunas introduced June to Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys, which led to the recording of June’s album Pushin’ Against a Stone in July 2011, which was co-written and produced by Dan Auerbach and Kevin Augunas. // In 2012, June performed with producer John Forté on a collaboration called Water Suites (on the hip-hop-blues song “Give Me Water”), and with Meshell Ndegeocello on the song “Be My Husband”. She contributed The Wandering’s 2012 album Go on Now, You Can’t Stay Here: Mississippi Folk Music Volume III. In 2012 she performed in the UK for the first time, playing at Bestival and appearing on Later… with Jools Holland. // She has received substantial radio play in Europe on BBC Radio 6, including a feature on Cerys on 6 with Cerys Matthews. Mary Anne Hobbs of XFM has said of June: “This woman has already touched my heart, she really, really has.” // In February 2013, June was invited to support Jake Bugg on the UK leg of his tour. In March 2013, June performed two nights at South By Southwest. The first performance was on March 14 as part of the Heartbreaker Banquet. On March 16, June performed again, this time as part of The Revival Tour. Rolling Stone June’s second album, The Order of Time one of the 50 Best Albums of 2017, citing “her handsomely idiosyncratic brand of Americana, steeped deep in electric blues and old-time folk, gilded in country twang and gospel yearning….a blend of spacey hippie soul, blues and folk with June’s pinched, modern-Appalachian voice at the center”. In a 2017 interview, Bob Dylan was asked what artists he listened to and respected; June was among the artists he mentioned in reply.More info at: http://www.valeriejune.com]
Valerie June —“Home Inside” from: The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers / June Tunes-Concord Records / March 12, 2021
Elvis Costello —“Revolution 49” from: Hey Clockface / Concord Records / October 30, 2020 [Hey Clockface is the 31st studio album by English singer-songwriter Elvis Costello. The album was released on 30 October 2020 by Concord Records. Declan Patrick MacManus, OBE was born August 25, 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter. He has won multiple awards in his career, including Grammy Awards in 1999 and 2020, and has twice been nominated for the Brit Award for Best British Male Artist. In 2003, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Costello number 80 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. Costello began his career as part of London’s pub rock scene in the early 1970s and later became associated with the first wave of the British punk and new wave movement that emerged in the mid-to-late 1970s. His critically acclaimed debut album My Aim Is True was released in 1977. Shortly after recording it, he formed the Attractions as his backing band. His second album This Year’s Model was released in 1978, and was ranked number 11 by Rolling Stone on its list of the best albums from 1967 to 1987. His third album Armed Forces was released in 1979, and features his highest-charting single, “Oliver’s Army” (number 2 in the UK). His first three albums all appeared on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Costello and the Attractions toured and recorded together for the better part of a decade, though differences between them caused a split by 1986. Much of Costello’s work since has been as a solo artist, though reunions with members of the Attractions have been credited to the group over the years. Costello’s lyrics employ a wide vocabulary and frequent wordplay. His music has drawn on many diverse genres; one critic described him as a “pop encyclopaedia”, able to “reinvent the past in his own image”. Costello has co-written several original songs for motion pictures, including “God Give Me Strength” from Grace of My Heart (1996, with Burt Bacharach) and “The Scarlet Tide” from Cold Mountain (2003, with T-Bone Burnett). For the latter, Elvis was nominated (along with Burnett) for the Academy Award for Best Original Song and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.]
Sharon Van Etten – “Let Go” rom: Let Go – Single / Jagjaguwar / October 13, 2020 [Sharon Katharine Van Etten was born February 26, 1981. She is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She has released five studio albums, the latest of which is Remind Me Tomorrow (2019). // Van Etten was born in Belleville, New Jersey, the middle child of five. She lived in Nutley, New Jersey, then moved to Clinton, New Jersey as a pre-teen. She attended North Hunterdon High School, at which she participated in the chorus and performed in stage musicals. // Later, she moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee to attend Middle Tennessee State University and studied recording, but dropped out after a year. She ended up working at the Red Rose, a coffee and record shop and music venue in Murfreesboro for about five years. She fell into an abusive relationship with a rock musician who discouraged her from writing songs. After five years, she left in the middle of the night with whatever she could carry. She showed up to her parents’ house on Thanksgiving Day and her mother answered the door, holding the dishes she’s about to put on the table, to find her black-sheep middle child, who hasn’t spoken to her in ages, standing on the doorstep. // In 2004, she moved back to New Jersey, where she worked at Perryville Wine and Spirits, then moved to New York City in 2005. She lived in Brooklyn for a number of years, in the suburban neighborhood of Ditmas Park.// Van Etten self-released handmade CDs until 2009, when her debut studio recording was released. Before her studio debut, she worked at Astor Wines and as a publicist at Ba Da Bing Records. // Van Etten’s debut, Because I Was in Love, was released on May 26, 2009, on Language of Stone, and was manufactured and distributed by Drag City. Because I Was in Love was produced by Greg Weeks at Hexham Head studio in Philadelphia. // On September 21, 2010, Van Etten released her second album, epic, on Ba Da Bing Records. With no set band at the time, Van Etten called on friends Jeffrey Kish, Dave Hartley, Jessica Larrabee, and Andy LaPlant of She Keeps Bees, Cat Martino, Meg Baird, Jim Callan, and Brian Christinzio. The first song recorded for the album was “Love More”, recorded in December 2009 by producer Brian McTear for Weathervane Music’s Shaking Through documentary video series. The remainder of the album was produced by Brian McTear with engineer Amy Morrissey in May 2010 at Miner Street Recordings in Philadelphia. NPR described it as possessing “a fuller sound compared to the super-spare arrangements on her first two self-produced albums, but epic still feels incredibly intimate, with lots of room to breathe and unfold.” // Van Etten’s third studio album, Tramp, was released on February 7, 2012, on Jagjaguwar. Tramp was produced by The National’s Aaron Dessner and recorded in his home studio in Brooklyn, New York. Additional recording took place at Miner Street Recordings in Philadelphia, where the album was also mixed with Engineers and Mixers Brian McTear and Jonathan Low. The album features musicians Doug Keith, Thomas Bartlett, Bryan Devendorf, Bryce Dessner, Matt Barrick, Rob Moose, Julianna Barwick, Peter Silberman, Logan Coale, Clarice Jensen, Ben Lanz, Zach Condon, and Jenn Wasner. // May 2014 brought about the release of Van Etten’s fourth studio album, titled Are We There, on Jagjaguwar. Van Etten produced the record with Stewart Lerman, with the guidance of bandmate and manager Zeke Hutchins. Most of the recording was done at Hobo Sound Studios in Weehawken, New Jersey, with piano tracks being recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. The record features musicians Zeke Hutchins, Doug Keith, Heather Woods Broderick, Dave Hartley, Adam Granduciel, Marisa Anderson, Stuart D. Bogie, Mickey Free, Mary Lattimore, Little Isidor, Jacob Morris, Torres’ Mackenzie Scott, Shearwater’s Jonathan Meiburg, Lower Dens’ Jana Hunter, and Efterklang touring member Peter Broderick. The EP I Don’t Want to Let You Down, a compilation of songs that were not included on Are We There, was released on Jagjaguwar in 2015. // On October 2, 2018, Van Etten released a new track entitled “Comeback Kid” and announced her next album Remind Me Tomorrow, released on January 18, 2019.[16] On February 28, 2019, Van Etten appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show to perform the single “Seventeen”. // On April 22, 2020, Van Etten played bass and sang harmony as the three surviving members of Fountains of Wayne performed in a televised benefit with various New Jersey-affiliated musicians to raise funds for COVID-19 relief. She filled the role left vacant by the COVID-19-related death of Adam Schlesinger a few weeks earlier. She and the other three members of the band played simultaneously from remote locations. The band played the song “Hackensack” from the album Welcome Interstate Managers. // On May 15, 2020, Van Etten dropped a cover of (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding? with Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme. // Van Etten’s music is characterized by a heavy use of harmonies. Pitchfork described her songs as having “echoes of folk tradition.” NPR Music asserts: “Her songs are heartfelt without being overly earnest; her poetry is plainspoken but not overt, and her elegant voice is wrapped in enough rasp and sorrow to keep from sounding too pure or confident.” With “Comeback Kid” and Remind Me Tomorrow, she introduced electronic sounds into her music. // Since 2016, Van Etten has appeared in both seasons of the Netflix drama The OA as Rachel, a fellow abductee along with Prairie in Dr. Percy’s basement lab/terrarium. Rachel and the other captives are subjected to after-life experiments while conspiring over a period of years to possibly escape, and at one point, Rachel sings a song of remembrance. Van Etten also appeared in episode six of the 2017 Twin Peaks series on Showtime. // Van Etten made her feature film debut with a supporting role in Never Rarely Sometimes Always directed by Eliza Hittman, for which she also wrote and performed the original track ‘Staring at a Mountain’. // Van Etten had her first child, a son, in 2017 with her romantic partner Zeke Hutchins. Hutchins used to be her drummer and then became her manager. After living in New York City for 15 years, she moved with her family to Los Angeles in Sept 2019. More info at: http://www.sharonvanetten.com]
Art d’Ecco – “Nothing Ever Changes” (Vinyl) from: Day Fevers / Your Face Records / 2016 [Will be on upcoming release IN STANDARD DEFINITION to be released April 23, 2021. 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.]
Miley Cyrus —“Sweet Jane” from: MTV Unplugged Presents Miley Cyrus Backyard Sessions / You Tube / October 16, 2020 [The Backyard Sessions are a series of music videos released by Miley Cyrus on YouTube in 2012, 2015 and 2020. The 2015 series coincided with the formation of Cyrus’s philanthropic organization, the Happy Hippie Foundation, and were billed as “Happy Hippie Presents Backyard Sessions”. // On October 16, 2020, Cyrus premiered a full Backyard Sessions concert on MTV. Her band called themselves “Miley Cyrus and the Social Distancers,” and all members except the singers wore masks in performance. On October 17, she posted six concert videos to her YouTube channel. Four were covers: “Gimme More” by Britney Spears, “Communication” by The Cardigans, “Sweet Jane” by the Velvet Underground, and “Just Breathe” by Pearl Jam. She also posted a live version of her song “Midnight Sky” from her album Plastic Hearts and a duet with her sister Noah Cyrus of Noah’s song “I Got So High That I Saw Jesus.” During the concert, she also performed a cover of Jackson Browne’s “These Days,” but this was not uploaded to Cyrus’s channel in October. // Miley Ray Cyrus was born Destiny Hope Cyrus, on November 23, 1992. She is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Noted for her distinctive raspy voice, her music spans a range of styles, from pop and country pop to hip hop, experimental and rock. Cyrus has attained the most US Billboard 200 top-five albums in the 21st century by a female artist, with a total of thirteen entries. Her personal life, public image, and performances have often sparked controversy and received widespread media coverage. // Cyrus, a daughter of country music singer Billy Ray Cyrus, emerged as a teen idol while portraying the title character of the Disney Channel television series Hannah Montana (2006–2011). As Hannah Montana, she attained two number-one and three top-five soundtracks on the US Billboard 200, including the US Billboard Hot 100 top-ten single “He Could Be the One.” Cyrus’s own discography includes the US number-one albums Meet Miley Cyrus (2007), Breakout (2008), and Bangerz (2013); the top-five releases Can’t Be Tamed (2010), Younger Now (2017), Plastic Hearts (2020) and the free album Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz (2015). Cyrus’s EPs The Time of Our Lives (2009) and She Is Coming (2019) also debuted in the top-five. Plastic Hearts became Cyrus’s most acclaimed album, and her first entry on the Billboard Rock Chart, debuting atop the chart. It included the lead single “Midnight Sky”. Her other singles include the US top ten-charting “See You Again”, “7 Things”, “The Climb”, “Party in the U.S.A.”, “Can’t Be Tamed”, “We Can’t Stop”, “Malibu”; and the chart-topping “Wrecking Ball”. “Party in the U.S.A.” was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). // Cyrus’s career accolades include entries on the Time 100 list in 2008 and 2014, MTV’s Best Artist of 2013 Award, and placement on Billboard’s Greatest of All Time Artists Chart in 2019. She is often regarded as one of the few examples of successful child actors-turned-singers. As an actress, Cyrus has made appearances in the animated film Bolt (2008) and the feature films Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009) and The Last Song (2010). On television, Cyrus served as a coach on the singing competition series The Voice across two seasons and starred in an episode of the Netflix series Black Mirror (2019). Cyrus is an advocate for animal rights and adopted a vegan lifestyle in 2014; she founded the non-profit Happy Hippie Foundation in 2014, which focuses on youth homelessness and the LGBT community.]
Magon – “Coucou My Friend” rom: Hour After Hour / T.Rex Recordings / January 29, 2021 [Isreali born, Paris, France based. Written & composed by Magon except: “Aerodynamic” by Magon & Alexa Rotarescu, “Coucou My Friend” by Magon & Alexa & Yvonne Rotarescu. Recorded, mixed & mastered by Magon. Magon on vocals, guitars, bass, drums, & percussions; Ferdinand De Fournoux on drums, & percs; Nimrod Goldfarb on guitar, bass, & percussions; Alexa Rotarescu on vocals. http://www.magon.bandcamp.com]
10:28 – Underwriting
Maxence Cyrin – “Where Is My Mind” from: Novö Piano / Kwaidan Records / April 12, 2010 [French pianist and composer living in Paris. As a child, Cyrin studied classical piano at a conservatory. In his teenage years, he was exposed to new-wave and techno, greatly influencing his first recordings, also made during these years. He subsequently made recordings with independent electro labels.[1] A few years later, he recorded an LP of piano compositions titled Instants on independent record label Sine Terra Firma, which has also released Yann Tiersen’s debut album. // In 2005, he released his first album Modern Rhapsodies on FCom, the label founded by DJ Laurent Garnier, in which he arranged for solo piano tracks from Massive Attack, Depeche Mode, Moby, and Aphex Twin. He also composed scores for silent movies, such as Jean Epstein’s 1923 film Cœur fidèle. // Novö Piano, Cyrin’s second album, was released in 2009 through Kwaidan Records and produced by Marc Collin of Nouvelle Vague. It contains cover songs of Pixies, Nirvana, Daft Punk, and MGMT, among others. As of 2017, the music video for Cyrin’s cover of Pixies’ “Where Is My Mind?” has been viewed over seven million times on YouTube – his version of the song was used in the TV shows The Leftovers, Mr. Robot and black-ish in addition to the TV spot for the video game Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End. It also features in the 2015 film Man Up. // In 2012, the album The Fantasist was released on the record label EOS Records. It is, at the same time, a musical self-portrait and an imaginary movie soundtrack. // In 2014, he signed with the new classical record label Evidence Classics, founded by sound engineer Nicolas Bartholomée (Aparté). In 2015, he released the album Nocturnes, a collection of ten compositions for solo piano. // Cyrin’s album Novö Piano 2 was released on November 13, 2015, and is another collection of solo piano covers. // In June 2016, he performed in the USA for 3 weeks.// In September 2017, Apple used his piano version of Arcade Fire’s song “No Cars Go” for the inauguration of The Steve Jobs Theater. // He is currently working on a new album of personal compositions with piano and strings. // He is regularly involved in world of fashion, composing and playing for shows including Chanel, Lanvin, Valentino, Margiela, and Hermès. ]
Madlib – “Hopprock” from: Sound Ancestors / Madlib Invazion / January 29, 2021 [Sound Ancestors is a studio album by American musician Madlib. It was produced by Madlib, it was arranged, edited and mastered by Four Tet. The album debuted at number 153 on the Billboard 200 in the United States. // Otis Jackson Jr. (born October 24, 1973), known professionally as Madlib, is an American DJ, music producer, multi-instrumentalist, and rapper. One of the most prolific and critically acclaimed hip hop producers of the 2000s, he is widely known for his collaborations with MF DOOM (as Madvillain), J Dilla (as Jaylib), and Freddie Gibbs (as MadGibbs). Madlib has described himself as a “DJ first, producer second, and MC last.” // Otis Jackson, Jr. was born in Oxnard, California, to musician parents Otis Jackson, Sr. and Dora Sinesca Jackson. He sampled his first song at 11 years old, sourced from his father’s collection. His younger brother is the producer and rapper Michael “Oh No” Jackson. His uncle is the jazz trumpeter Jon Faddis. He was raised in Oxnard, where he began his music career. // In the early 1990s, Madlib formed a loose-knit collective composed of rappers who worked with him in his Oxnard-based “Crate Diggas Palace” studio. This collective was composed primarily of his friends, and became known as CDP. Madlib’s first commercially released music was production for the rap group Tha Alkaholiks in 1993. He went on to record music of his own with the group Lootpack. Their 12-inch EP Ill Psyche Move was released by Madlib’s father in 1995 on a label also called Crate Diggas Palace. This record caught the attention of Peanut Butter Wolf, founder of the Stones Throw Records label, who signed the group in 1998. // Lootpack’s 1999 debut album Soundpieces: Da Antidote ushered in a string of releases on Stones Throw centering on Madlib’s production work which would continue for a decade. His first solo work, The Unseen, under the guise of Quasimoto, came in 2000. The album was met with critical acclaim and named by Spin as one of the top 20 albums of the year. //In 2001, Madlib moved away from hip hop music and began a series of releases from Yesterdays New Quintet, a jazz-based, hip hop and electronic-influenced quintet made up of alter-egos or fictional musicians played by Madlib. Over the next several years, through several record releases on Stones Throw and other labels, the growing number of pseudonyms and fictional players came to be known as Yesterdays Universe. Madlib was later invited to remix tracks from the Blue Note Records archive in 2003, which he released as Shades of Blue. In addition to the remixes, the album contained newly recorded interpretations of Blue Note originals, many of which were credited to members of Yesterdays New Quintet. Beginning with the 2007 album The Funky Side of Life by Yesterdays New Quintet spin-off group Sound Directions, the Yesterdays Universe also began incorporating additional session musicians who were not pseudonyms of Madlib. // Returning to hip hop music in 2003, Madlib announced two collaborative projects. He joined hip hop producer J Dilla in a duo known as Jaylib, which released Champion Sound. Madlib then collaborated with rapper MF DOOM, known together as Madvillain. Produced by using a Boss SP-303 and a turntable, their 2004 album Madvillainy was highly anticipated and well-received, topping many critics’ year-end lists. // The 2005 Quasimoto album The Further Adventures of Lord Quas met with warm reception and continued the Quasimoto tradition of using vocal samples from Melvin Van Peebles, who is credited on the album liner notes as a collaborator. Throughout the rest of the decade Madlib continued to release jazz material simultaneously with his hip hop work: Perseverance with Percee P, Liberation with Talib Kweli, Sujinho with Ivan Conti of Azymuth, his own instrumental hip hop series Beat Konducta, In Search of Stoney Jackson with Strong Arm Steady, O. J. Simpson with Guilty Simpson, and production work for artists such as Erykah Badu and De La Soul. // In 2010, Madlib announced his own imprint called Madlib Invazion, formed to release a music series called Madlib Medicine Show. The series would ultimately take over two years to complete, culminating with 13 album releases and several vinyl-only EPs spanning hip-hop, jazz, remixes, and multi-genre DJ mixtapes. The label has continued to release records outside of the original series. In 2011, Madlib composed the film score for the A Tribe Called Quest documentary film Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest. Madlib also produced “Cadillacs” with Snoop Dogg for his mixtape That’s My Work Volume 3, released on February 27, 2014. // Freddie Gibbs and Madlib announced plans for a collaboration album late in 2011 with the release of an EP titled Thuggin, which was followed by a second EP titled Shame on June 22, 2012 and a third EP titled Deeper on September 24, 2013. The duo’s full-length collaboration album Piñata was released on March 18, 2014 to widespread critical acclaim. The pair, later known as MadGibbs, released a follow-up album titled Bandana on June 28, 2019. // In a 2010 interview with LA Weekly, Madlib stated that Kanye West put five of his beats on hold for the album he was working on at the time. While none of the beats were used, Madlib did take part in the recording sessions for the album, which evolved from Good Ass Job to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. He was also rumored to be involved in West’s collaboration album with Jay-Z entitled Watch the Throne, but ultimately was not. West was interviewed as part of the 2014 Stones Throw documentary film Our Vinyl Weighs A Ton, in which he opens up about working with Madlib and wanting more of his beats for future projects. // On January 18, 2016, West released the Madlib-produced “No More Parties in L.A.” featuring Kendrick Lamar on SoundCloud as part of his GOOD Fridays series. According to reports, the track originated from the recording sessions for My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy in 2010. West also recited a few lines from the track in the Our Vinyl Weighs A Ton interview. “No More Parties in L.A.” appears on his seventh album, which underwent several name changes: So Help Me God, SWISH, and Waves, before finally being released as The Life of Pablo on February 12, 2016. West also hinted at the possibility of future collaborations with Madlib via Twitter thanking him for sending over six beat CDs. // Following Mac Miller’s death, Chicago producer Thelonious Martin claimed on February 20, 2019, that Mac Miller and Madlib were reportedly working on an album together, called MacLib. Madlib addressed this statement on March 19, 2019, stating that he had recorded an EP with Mac Miller between 2015 and 2017, but that there was no plans of releasing the EP. However, Madlib added during an interview on June 3, 2019, that if Mac Miller’s estate gives him the right to, he will release the EP. On February 8, 2020, a MacLib song was leaked. // During an interview on Chrome Children, Madlib stated that his most significant musical influences include Miles Davis, Sun Ra, and David Axelrod. Some of his hip-hop influences are Large Professor, Marley Marl, Paul C, DJ Pooh, and Dr. Dre. More info at: Madlib at stonesthrow.com]
Wax Tailor – “Never Forget” from: The Shadow of Their Suns / Lab’ Oratoire / January 8, 2021 [Jean-Christophe Le Saoût was born July 19, 1975, in Vernon, Normandy. He is better known by the stage name Wax Tailor, is a French trip hop producer from Vernon, Normandy. He has released six studio albums collaborating with other artists. // After being a host on French radio in the Paris suburb of Mantes-La-Jolie, Le Saoût started the French Rap band La Formule in the 1990s. He created his label Lab’Oratoire in 1998 and produced records from La Formule as well as Break Beat compilations and a collaboration with the Swedish band Looptroop. He began working on the Wax Tailor project in 2001, first appearing on a remix of Looptroop and La Formule’s “Deep Under Water”. // In 2004, JC Le Saoût launched the Wax Tailor concept with an EP, “Lost the Way”, that gained the attention of DJ’s and music critics in his home country. // In 2005, Wax Tailor released his first album “Tales of the Forgotten Melodies”. The album has never left the Electronic Album sales charts on iTunes since its release. // In 2007, Wax Tailor released his second album “Hope & Sorrow” and had his first crossover hit single with “Positively Inclined”. // In 2008 in France, he was selected in the Victoires de la musique as “best electronic music album of the year” and won the 7th annual Independent Music Awards Vox Pop vote for best Dance/Electronica album.// In 2009, Wax Tailor came back with “Say Yes”, his first single on his new album In The Mood For Life released on September 21, featuring with Charlie Winston, Charlotte Savary, Sara Genn, Dionne Charles, A State Of Mind, Mattic, Ali Harter, and Speech Defect. // In 2012, after three years of touring around the world, Wax Tailor released “Dusty Rainbow from the Dark”, narrated by Don McCorkindale, who voiced the BBC’s serialized version of the classic TV show “The Avengers”.// In 2014, To celebrate the 10th anniversary of his career, Wax Tailor launched the “Phonovisions Symphonic Orchestra’. Alongside a 35-piece orchestra and a 17-person choir, Wax Tailor embarked on an ambitious re-orchestration of 27 highlights from his 4 albums, to present them in a completely different setting. After a sold-out European tour, the Phonovisions Symphonic Orchestra was chosen to play 3 shows for the re-opening of the prestigious Teatro Colon in Bogota, accompanied by the National Symphonic Orchestra of Colombia. // In 2016, Wax Tailor released his fifth album “By Any Beats Necessary”. The title references the Malcolm X phrase “By Any Means Necessary”, which was inspired by Sartre’s play “Dirty Hands”. Wax Tailor invited on this album Ghostface Killah from the Wu Tang Clan, R.A. The Rugged Man, A-F-R-O, Token, T // In 2017, following the release of “By Any Beats Necessary”, Wax Tailor went on a long world tour. During this tour, he came up with the idea of having this album remixed. Established producers such as Ollie Teeba (The Herbaliser) or the US duo Du-Rites (J-Zone) as well as a cohort of rising artists such as ProleteR, Soul Square, The Geek x Vrv, Poldoore, Kognitif, Fatbabs, Madwreck, Benji Blow, Le Parasite were selected by Wax Tailor to keep a general musical cohesiveness to the project and bring new life to the original album. // In 2021, Wax Tailor released his sixth record – “The Shadow Of Their Suns” with musicians like Del The Funky Homosapien, Gil Scott-Heron, D Smoke, among others. Monre infor http://www.waxtailor.com]
Mind The Beatz (ZOËN & DJFysh) – “French Connection” from: Night Cuts (An Original Beatz Soundtrack / Dora Dorovitch / March 5, 2020 [Hip-hop duet composed of ZOËN on the beatz and FYSH on the Turntables, MIND THE BEATZ announces the release of its first album “NIGHTS CUTS” in March 2020 on DORA DOROVITCH RECORDS. // At the end of their 2018 tour, Mind The Beatz decided to record their first album. This was recorded in emergency, from November 2018 to April 2019, between diapers, bottles and short nights. Indeed, zoën and fysh respectively become dad for the second time, it was built in the middle of a limited schedule, with itchy eyes and full of dark circles. // Thus, several coffee makers later, the group gave birth to NIGHTS CUTS, an 11tracks album with nocturnal and cinematic aromas. Oscillating between soundtrack samples and old school breakbeats, through trip hop songs with palpable tension, NIGHTS CUTS is an ideal record for escaping, feeling, breathing and traveling (but surely at night). // zoën produced the beatz; fysh on turntables; Cisko on bass guitar on tracks 2, 3, 6, 8 and 11. Recorded at home between November 2018 and April 2019. All tracks mixed by zoën, except 3 and 10, mixed by Fabien De Macedo. Mastering by Jérôme Trichard and Séverin Chaline @ studio du village brûlé. More info t: http://www.mindthebeatz.bandcamp.com]
Various Artists – “Underdog” from: Television’s Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 / TVT Records / 1986 [originally recorded in 1964] [Television’s Greatest Hits – 65 More TV Themes From The 50s & 60s is the second volume of the Television’s Greatest Hits series of compilation albums by TVT Records. // Underdog is an American animated television series that ran from October 3, 1964, to March 4, 1967 starting on the NBC network until 1966, with the rest of the run on CBS, under the primary sponsorship of General Mills, for a run of 62 episodes. The show continued in syndication until 1973. // Underdog, Shoeshine Boy’s heroic alter ego, appears whenever love interest Sweet Polly Purebred is being victimized by such villains as Simon Bar Sinister or Riff Raff. Underdog nearly always speaks in rhyming couplets, as in “There’s no need to fear, Underdog is here!” His voice was supplied by Wally Cox. // The show is also remembered for its title song, “Underdog,” which was arranged and produced by Robert Weitz, with lyrics by Chester Stover, W. Watts Biggers, Treadwell Covington, and Joseph Harris. Several notable covers of the theme song have been made. The original song was sung by Robert Ragaini. He explained, “As a struggling singer in New York, I’d gotten a job singing a theme song for a newly proposed TV cartoon series named ‘Underdog.” I went to the studio, I think “O.D.O.” on West 54th Street, sang as part of the backup group (ah-ooo, ah-ooo), then quickly sang the theme song over the track and left. I remember how pleased I was that I’d taken that mouthful of words and made them understandable. Oh yes, they paid me 50 dollars. No contract – I wasn’t yet a member of SAG – and I was thrilled to get it. Until I heard it again, year after year. By then I’d become a successful jingle singer and I knew what I should have been making. When it came out as the music track of a Reebok commercial I filed a claim with the Screen Actors Guild, but of course I had no documentation. A friend did give me an Underdog T-shirt. I wore it once, but when a man I passed on West 14th Street started singing the song, I retired it.]
Wax Tailor – “Shining Underdog (feat. Boog Brown)” from: The Shadow of Their Suns / Lab’ Oratoire / January 8, 2021
Drab City – “Working For The Men” from: Good Songs For Bad People / Bella Union / June 12, 2020 [A heady air of dislocation envelops Drab City’s debut album, where songs of innocence and experience merge with dub, hip-hop, dream-pop and jazzy soundtrack vibes to intoxicating effect. Drab City are fixated on social alienation, violent revenge, and (perhaps) romantic love as salvation; topics not new in music, but listening to Drab City in 2020, one is struck by how uncommon they’ve become. Lyrically, these songs often project punkish angst and resentment. “Working For the Men” is a degraded service worker’s revenge ballad, imagining male tormenters brought to a violent end. “Hand On My Pocket” tells of a destitute, wandering youth. One night she meets a stranger on a desert road, and is told of a nearby city where a soft, rich citizenry make easy targets. Class war is palpable. Other songs are more opaque, but seem to speak of being the black sheep of the family, or being weighed down by the dullness of hometown life. Yet the casual listener might not notice the violence as the music itself is far from abrasive. Dreamy and ethereal, a foundation of flute, vibraphone, and jazzy guitar chord melody can switch to drum machines or funk-inflected girl-group pop at a moment’s notice. It’s a flurry of 20th century references, combining and recombining at such a schizophrenic pace, the overall effect is something that could only be conjured in our frenzied present. At once catchy and unfamiliar, the melodic, welcoming soundscapes are a Trojan horse for the band’s antisocial outlook.]
Mongo Santamaria – “El Pussy Cat” from: El Pussy Cat / Columbia / 1965 [16th album as a leader, of 43 albums from 1952 to 1998. // Ramón “Mongo” Santamaría Rodríguez (April 7, 1917 – February 1, 2003) was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga and boogaloo dance crazes of the 1960s. His biggest hit was his rendition of Herbie Hancock’s “Watermelon Man”, which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. From the 1970s, he recorded mainly salsa and Latin jazz, before retiring in the late 1990s. // Mongo learned to play the congas as an amateur rumba musician in the streets of Havana. He then learned the bongos from Clemente “Chicho” Piquero and toured with various successful bands such as the Lecuona Cuban Boys and Sonora Matancera. In 1950, he moved to New York City, where he became Tito Puente’s conguero and in 1957 he joined Cal Tjader’s band. He then formed his own charanga, while at the same time recording some of the first rumba and Santería music albums. By the end of the decade, he had his first pachanga hit, “Para ti”. He then became a pioneer of boogaloo with “Watermelon Man” and later signed record deals with Columbia, Atlantic and Fania. He collaborated with salsa artists and became a member of the Fania All-Stars, often showcasing his conga solos against Ray Barretto. In his later years, Santamaría recorded mostly Latin jazz for Concord Jazz and Chesky Records. // Santamaría learned rumba as a kid in the streets of Havana’s Jesús María neighborhood. He reminisced: “In the neighborhood where I came from we had all kinds of music, mostly from Africa. We did not leave it alone; we changed it our way. The music we made dealt with religion and conversation. The drum was our tool and we used it for everything”. Gerard points out: “Santamaría, like other drummers of his generation, learned music in the streets by observing different drummers. When he started playing professionally, he learned on the job. His approach was utilitarian, not theoretical”. Santamaría was mentored on bongos and congas by Clemente “Chicho” Piquero, who played in Beny Moré’s band. He recalled: “I would go with Chicho and play the tumbadora and also the [quinto]. I would play everything because I learned a lot from Chicho—because he could play everything”. // Santamaría recorded some of the very first recorded folkloric rumbas. Because he recorded for mainstream jazz labels, his folkloric records were consist-ently available to the public. Santamaría’s albums tended to list the personnel and their instruments; so record buyers came to know other Cuban rumberos, such as Armando Peraza, Francisco Aguabella, Julito Collazo, Carlos Vidal Bolado, Modesto Duran and Pablo Mozo. The 10 inch 33 1/3 rpm phonorecord Afro-Cuban Drums by Santamaría was recorded in SMC’s New York City studios on November 3, 1952. Santamaría’s next recordings with folkloric rumba were on Changó (re-issued as Drums and Chants) recorded in New York (1954). Yambú (1958), Mongo (1959), and Bembé (1960) followed. // Santamaría did not analyze his personal style: “When I play I don’t know how I do it, or what I do … I just play”. The following example is an excerpt from a quinto performance by Santamaría on his composition “Mi guaguancó” (1959). The excerpt shows variations on two main motifs, marked as A and B. Santamaría’s repetition of what is typically a secondary phrase (B), makes it the primary motif here. // Santamaría began playing bongos with Septeto Beloña in 1937. In the 1940s he worked in the house band of the prestigious Tropicana nightclub. When Chicho could not go on the tour in Mexico in the late 1940s, he recommended Santamaría for the job. Mexico opened Santamaría up to the wider world beyond his island home. After returning from Mexico in 1950, Santamaría moved to New York City, where he became Tito Puente’s conga player. In 1957 Mongo Santamaría joined Cal Tjader’s Latin jazz combo. // In 1959 Santamaría recorded “Afro Blue,” the first jazz standard built upon a typical African 3:2 cross-rhythm, or hemiola. The song begins with the bass repeatedly playing 6 cross-beats per each measure of 12/8, or 6 cross-beats per 4 main beats—6:4 (two cells of 3:2). The following example shows the original ostinato “Afro Blue” bass line. The slashed noteheads indicate the main beats (not bass notes), where you would normally tap your foot to “keep time.” // In 1960 Santamaría went to Havana, Cuba with Willie Bobo to record two albums “Mongo In Havana” and “Bembe y Nuestro Hombre En La Habana.” After recording, he returned to New York City to form the charanga orquestra La Sabrosa. // In late 1962 Chick Corea had given notice and Santamaría needed a pianist to fill in for the upcoming weekend gigs. Herbie Hancock got the temporary job. Hancock recalls what happened the night that Santamaría discovered “Watermelon Man”, the only tune of Santamaría’s to reach the top of the pop charts: [Jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd] “came to this supper club to see how I was doing. Anyway, during one of the intermissions, Donald had a conversation with Mongo, something about, ‘What are the examples of the common thread between Afro-Cuban or Afro-Latin music and African-American jazz?’ Mongo said he hadn’t really heard a thing that really links it together, he was still searching for it. And I wasn’t paying much attention to that conversation, it was a little too heavy for me at the time. But then all of a sudden Donald Byrd says, ‘Herbie, what don’t you play ‘Watermelon Man’ for Mongo?’ And I’m thinking, ‘What does that have to do with the conversation they’re talking about?’ I thought it was a little funky jazz tune. So I started playing it, and then Mongo, he got up and he said, ‘Keep playing it!’ He went on the stage, and playing his congas, and it fit like a glove fits on a hand, it just fit perfectly. The bass player looked at my left hand for the bass line, and he learned that. Little by little, the audience was getting up from their tables, and they all got on the dance floor. Pretty soon the dance floor was filled with people, laughing and shrieking, and was having a great time, and they were saying, ‘This is a hit! This is fantastic!’ It was like a movie! So after that, Mongo said ‘Can I record this?’ I said ‘By all means.’ And he recorded it, and it became a big hit. That’s how it happened. The sudden success of the song (which Mongo Santamaria recorded on December 17, 1962) propelled Santamaría into his niche of blending Afro-Cuban and African American music. Santamaría went on to record Cuban-flavored versions of popular music R&B and Motown songs. // On February 1, 2003 Santamaria died in Miami, Florida, after suffering a stroke, at the age of 85. He is buried in Woodlawn Park Cemetery and Mausoleum (now Caballero Rivero Woodlawn Park North Cemetery and Mausoleum) in Miami, Florida.]
The Cure – “The Lovecats” from: Acoustic Hits / Fiction Records / April 22, 2017 [Originally released on CD in 2001 through the “Greatest Hits” compilation as bonus disc of the 2xCD limited edition. Recorded 13th August 13, 2001 at Olympic Studios, London. Released on double album vinyl LP, by Fiction Records in 2017 // The Love Cats” (sometimes rendered as “The Lovecats”) is a song by English rock band The Cure, released as a stand-alone single in October 1983. It was the band’s first Top 10 hit in the UK, peaking at number 7. It also reached number 6 on the Australian chart in early 1984. The single later appeared on the compilation album Japanese Whispers, released in December 1983. // At the time the song was written, Robert Smith was very interested in the work of Australian author Patrick White. According to a number of his fans, Smith was inspired to write “The Love Cats” after reading White’s novel The Vivisector (1970), although this claim is difficult to verify. In the novel, the protagonist, Hurtle, is appalled when his lover’s husband drowns a sack of stray cats. White draws a parallel between the way in which the cats are discarded, and the treatment of certain characters in the book; by extension, the cats symbolize the most innocent and vulnerable members of society, and the casual cruelty with which they sometimes meet their fate // The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex, in 1978. The band members have changed several times, and guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith is the only constant member. The band’s debut album was Three Imaginary Boys (1979) and this, along with several early singles, placed the band in the post-punk and new wave movements that had sprung up in the United Kingdom. Beginning with their second album, Seventeen Seconds (1980), the band adopted a new, increasingly dark and tormented style, which, together with Smith’s stage look, had a strong influence on the emerging genre of gothic rock as well as the subculture that eventually formed around the genre. // Following the release of their fourth album Pornography in 1982, the band’s future was uncertain. Smith was keen to move past the gloomy reputation his band had acquired, introducing a greater pop sensibility into the band’s music. Songs such as “Let’s Go to Bed” (1982), “The Love Cats” (1983), “In between Days” (1985), “Close To Me” (1985), “Just Like Heaven” (1987), “Lovesong” (1989), and “Friday I’m in Love” (1992) aided the band in receiving commercial popularity. The band have released 13 studio albums, two EPs, over 30 singles, and have sold over 30 million albums worldwide. // The Cure were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.]
Yusuf/Cat Stevens – “Longer Boats” from: Tea For The Tillerman 2 / Cat-O-Log Records – A&M / September 18, 2020 [Tea for the Tillerman 2 (stylised as Tea for the Tillerman²) is the sixteenth studio album by singer-songwriter Yusuf / Cat Stevens, released on 18 September 2020. It is a re-imagining of his hit 1970 album Tea for the Tillerman. // Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou; 21 July 1948), commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens, Yusuf, and Yusuf / Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His musical style consists of folk, pop, rock, and, in his later career, Islamic music, before returning to secular music in 2006. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. // His 1967 debut album and its title song “Matthew and Son” both reached top ten in the UK charts. Stevens’ albums Tea for the Tillerman (1970) and Teaser and the Firecat (1971) were certified triple platinum in the US. His 1972 album Catch Bull at Four spent weeks at the top of several major charts. He earned ASCAP songwriting awards in 2005 and 2006 for “The First Cut Is the Deepest”, and the song has been a hit for four artists. His other hit songs include “Father and Son”, “Wild World”, “Moonshadow”, “Peace Train”, and “Morning Has Broken”. // In December 1977, Stevens converted to Islam and adopted the name Yusuf Islam the following year. In 1979, he auctioned all of his guitars for charity. He has since bought back at least one of these guitars as a result of the efforts of his son Yoriyos, and left his musical career to devote himself to educational and philanthropic causes in the Muslim community. He was embroiled in a long-running controversy regarding comments he made in 1989 about the death fatwa on author Salman Rushdie. His current stance is that he never supported the fatwa: “I was cleverly framed by certain questions. I never supported the fatwa.” He has received two honorary doctorates and awards for promoting peace as well as other humanitarian awards. // In 2006, he returned to pop music – releasing his first new studio album of new pop songs in 28 years, entitled An Other Cup. With that release and subsequent ones, he dropped the surname “Islam” from the album cover art – using the stage name Yusuf as a mononym. In 2009, he released the album Roadsinger and, in 2014, he released the album Tell ‘Em I’m Gone and began his first US tour since 1978. His second North American tour since his resurgence, featuring 12 shows in intimate venues, ran from 12 September to 7 October 2016. In 2017, he released the album The Laughing Apple, now using the stage name Yusuf / Cat Stevens, using the Cat Stevens name for the first time in 39 years. In September 2020, he released Tea for the Tillerman 2, a reimagining of his classic album Tea for the Tillerman to celebrate its 50th anniversary. More info at: http://www.catstevens.com]
11:02 – Station ID
Gabriels – “In Loving Memory” from: Love and Hate in a Different Time – EP / Gabriels / December 4, 2020 [Gabriels is an LA based group consisting of lead singer Jacob Lusk and producers Ari Balouzian and Ryan Hope. Love and Hate in a Different Time is about how we appear to be losing the ability to peacefully be together in a space and express ourselves. Together. We have always endured agendas of hate, hardship and war but we have in someway always found a way to be together and put aside our differences. However in recent times with the development of the technology/disinformation it appears this is tested. // The video is a history of the complex relationship between the film camera and people dancing together. How we used to be able to get through things in the worst of times and has this development of technology been a good thing? Has it in fact caused us to lose this sensibility of being able to put differences to the side and just be together peacefully? // The effort we would go to connect with each other / compared to now the super fast throw away instant feel these moments have become. More info at: http://www.gabriels.bandcamp.com]
Gil Scott-Heron & Makaya McCraven – “Running” from: We’re New Again: A Reimagining by Makaya McCraven / XL Recordings / 2020 [Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011) was an American soul and jazz poet, musician, and author, known primarily for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jackson featured a musical fusion of jazz, blues, and soul, as well as lyrical content concerning social and political issues of the time, delivered in both rapping and melismatic vocal styles by Scott-Heron. His own term for himself was “bluesologist”, which he defined as “a scientist who is concerned with the origin of the blues.” He is considered by many to be the first rapper ever. // His music, most notably on the albums Pieces of a Man and Winter in America in the early 1970s, influenced and foreshadowed later African-American music genres such as hip hop and neo soul. His recording work received much critical acclaim, especially for “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”. AllMusic’s John Bush called him “one of the most important progenitors of rap music,” stating that “his aggressive, no-nonsense street poetry inspired a legion of intelligent rappers while his engaging songwriting skills placed him square in the R&B charts later in his career.” // Scott-Heron remained active until his death, and in 2010 released his first new album in 16 years, entitled I’m New Here. A memoir he had been working on for years up to the time of his death, The Last Holiday, was published posthumously in January 2012. Scott-Heron received a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. He also is included in the exhibits at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) that officially opened on September 24, 2016, on the National Mall, and in an NMAAHC publication, Dream a World Anew. // Gil Scott-Heron was born in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Bobbie Scott, was an opera singer who performed with the Oratorio Society of New York. Scott-Heron’s father, Gil Heron, nicknamed “The Black Arrow”, was a Jamaican soccer player who in the 1950s became the first black man to play for Celtic Football Club in Glasgow, Scotland. Gil’s parents separated in his early childhood and he was sent to live with his maternal grandmother, Lillie Scott, in Jackson, Tennessee. When Scott-Heron was 12 years old, his grandmother died and he returned to live with his mother in The Bronx in New York City. He enrolled at DeWitt Clinton High School, but later transferred to The Fieldston School[9] after impressing the head of the English department with one of his writings and earning a full scholarship. As one of five black students at the prestigious school, Scott-Heron was faced with alienation and a significant socioeconomic gap. During his admissions interview at Fieldston, an administrator asked him, “‘How would you feel if you see one of your classmates go by in a limousine while you’re walking up the hill from the subway?’ And [he] said, ‘Same way as you. Y’all can’t afford no limousine. How do you feel?'” This type of intractable boldness would become a hallmark of Scott-Heron’s later recordings. // After completing his secondary education, Scott-Heron decided to attend Lincoln University in Pennsylvania because Langston Hughes (his most important literary influence) was an alumnus. It was here that Scott-Heron met Brian Jackson, with whom he formed the band Black & Blues. After about two years at Lincoln, Scott-Heron took a year off to write the novels The Vulture and The Nigger Factory. Scott-Heron was very heavily influenced by the Black Arts Movement. The Last Poets, a group associated with the Black Arts Movement performed at Lincoln in 1969 and Abiodun Oyewole of that Harlem group said Scott-Heron asked him after the performance, “Listen, can I start a group like you guys?” Scott-Heron returned to New York City, settling in Chelsea, Manhattan. The Vulture was published by the World Publishing Company in 1970 to positive reviews. // Although Scott-Heron never completed his undergraduate degree, he was admitted to the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University, where he received an M.A. in creative writing in 1972. His master’s thesis was titled Circle of Stone. Beginning in 1972, Scott-Heron taught literature and creative writing for several years as a full-time lecturer at University of the District of Columbia (then known as Federal City College) in Washington, D.C. while maintaining his music career. // Scott-Heron began his recording career with the LP Small Talk at 125th and Lenox in 1970. Bob Thiele of Flying Dutchman Records produced the album, and Scott-Heron was accompanied by Eddie Knowles and Charlie Saunders on conga and David Barnes on percussion and vocals. The album’s 14 tracks dealt with themes such as the superficiality of television and mass consumerism, the hypocrisy of some would-be black revolutionaries, and white middle-class ignorance of the difficulties faced by inner-city residents. In the liner notes, Scott-Heron acknowledged as influences Richie Havens, John Coltrane, Otis Redding, Jose Feliciano, Billie Holiday, Langston Hughes, Malcolm X, Huey Newton, Nina Simone, and long-time collaborator Brian Jackson. // Scott-Heron’s 1971 album Pieces of a Man used more conventional song structures than the loose, spoken-word feel of Small Talk. He was joined by Jackson, Johnny Pate as conductor, Ron Carter on bass and bass guitar, drummer Bernard “Pretty” Purdie, Burt Jones playing electric guitar, and Hubert Laws on flute and saxophone, with Thiele producing again. Scott-Heron’s third album, Free Will, was released in 1972. Jackson, Purdie, Laws, Knowles, and Saunders all returned to play on Free Will and were joined by Jerry Jemmott playing bass, David Spinozza on guitar, and Horace Ott (arranger and conductor). Carter later said about Scott-Heron’s voice: “He wasn’t a great singer, but, with that voice, if he had whispered it would have been dynamic. It was a voice like you would have for Shakespeare.”// 1974 saw another LP collaboration with Brian Jackson, the critically acclaimed opus Winter in America, with Bob Adams on drums and Danny Bowens on bass. The album contained Scott-Heron’s most cohesive material and featured more of Jackson’s creative input than his previous albums had. Winter in America has been regarded by many critics as the two musicians’ most artistic effort. The following year, Scott-Heron and Jackson released Midnight Band: The First Minute of a New Day. 1975 saw the release of the single “Johannesburg”, a rallying cry to the issue of apartheid in South Africa. The song would be re-issued, in 12″-single form, together with “Waiting for the Axe to Fall” and “B-movie” in 1983. // A live album, It’s Your World, followed in 1976 and a recording of spoken poetry, The Mind of Gil Scott-Heron, was released in 1978. Another success followed with the hit single “Angel Dust”, which he recorded as a single with producer Malcolm Cecil. “Angel Dust” peaked at No. 15 on the R&B charts in 1978. // In 1979, Scott-Heron played at the No Nukes concerts at Madison Square Garden. The concerts were organized by Musicians United for Safe Energy to protest the use of nuclear energy following the Three Mile Island accident. Scott-Heron’s song “We Almost Lost Detroit” was included in the No Nukes album of concert highlights. It alluded to a previous nuclear power plant accident and was also the title of a book by John G. Fuller. Scott-Heron was a frequent critic of President Ronald Reagan and his conservative policies. // Scott-Heron recorded and released four albums during the 1980s: 1980 and Real Eyes (1980), Reflections (1981) and Moving Target (1982). In February 1982, Ron Holloway joined the ensemble to play tenor saxophone. He toured extensively with Scott-Heron and contributed to his next album, Moving Target the same year. His tenor accompaniment is a prominent feature of the songs “Fast Lane” and “Black History/The World”. Holloway continued with Scott-Heron until the summer of 1989, when he left to join Dizzy Gillespie. Several years later, Scott-Heron would make cameo appearances on two of Ron Holloway’s CDs: Scorcher (1996) and Groove Update (1998), both on the Fantasy/Milestone label. // Scott-Heron was dropped by Arista Records in 1985 and quit recording, though he continued to tour. The same year he helped compose and sang “Let Me See Your I.D.” on the Artists United Against Apartheid album Sun City, containing the famous line: “The first time I heard there was trouble in the Middle East, I thought they were talking about Pittsburgh.” The song compares racial tensions in the U.S. with those in apartheid-era South Africa, implying that the U.S. was not too far ahead in race relations. In 1993, he signed to TVT Records and released Spirits, an album that included the seminal track “‘Message to the Messengers”. The first track on the album criticized the rap artists of the day. Scott-Heron is known in many circles as “the Godfather of rap” and is widely considered to be one of the genre’s founding fathers. Given the political consciousness that lies at the foundation of his work, he can also be called a founder of political rap. Message to the Messengers was a plea for the new generation of rappers to speak for change rather than perpetuate the current social situation, and to be more articulate and artistic. Regarding hip hop music in the 1990s, he said in an interview: They need to study music. I played in several bands before I began my career as a poet. There’s a big difference between putting words over some music, and blending those same words into the music. There’s not a lot of humor. They use a lot of slang and colloquialisms, and you don’t really see inside the person. Instead, you just get a lot of posturing.— Gil Scott-Heron // In 2001, Scott-Heron was sentenced to one to three years imprisonment in a New York State prison fo possession of cocaine. While out of jail in 2002, he appeared on the Blazing Arrow album by Blackalicious.He was released on parole in 2003, the year BBC TV broadcast the documentary Gil Scott-Heron: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised—Scott-Heron was arrested for possession of a crack pipe during the editing of the film in October 2003 and received a six-month prison sentence. // On July 5, 2006, Scott-Heron was sentenced to two to four years in a New York State prison for violating a plea deal on a drug-possession charge by leaving a drug rehabilitation center. He claimed that he left because the clinic refused to supply him with HIV medication. This story led to the presumption that the artist was HIV positive, subsequently confirmed in a 2008 interview. Originally sentenced to serve until July 13, 2009, he was paroled on May 23, 2007. // After his release, Scott-Heron began performing live again, starting with a show at SOB’s restaurant and nightclub in New York on September 13, 2007. On stage, he stated that he and his musicians were working on a new album and that he had resumed writing a book titled The Last Holiday, previously on long-term hiatus, about Stevie Wonder and his successful attempt to have the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. declared a federally recognized holiday in the United States. // Malik Al Nasir dedicated a collection of poetry to Scott-Heron titled Ordinary Guy that contained a foreword by Jalal Mansur Nuriddin of The Last Poets. Scott-Heron recorded one of the poems in Nasir’s book entitled Black & Blue in 2006. // In April 2009, on BBC Radio 4, poet Lemn Sissay presented a half-hour documentary on Gil Scott-Heron entitled Pieces of a Man, having interviewed Gil Scott-Heron in New York a month earlier. Pieces of a Man was the first UK announcement from Scott-Heron of his forthcoming album and return to form. In November 2009, the BBC’s Newsnight interviewed Scott-Heron for a feature titled The Legendary Godfather of Rap Returns. In 2009, a new Gil Scott-Heron website, gilscottheron.net, was launched with a new track “Where Did the Night Go” made available as a free download from the site. // In 2010, Scott-Heron was booked to perform in Tel Aviv, Israel, but this attracted criticism from pro-Palestinian activists, who stated: “Your performance in Israel would be the equivalent to having performed in Sun City during South Africa’s apartheid era… We hope that you will not play apartheid Israel”. Scott-Heron responded by canceling the performance. // Scott-Heron released his album I’m New Here on independent label XL Recordings on February 9, 2010. Produced by XL label owner Richard Russell, I’m New Here was Scott-Heron’s first studio album in 16 years. The pair started recording the album in 2007, with the majority of the record being recorded over the 12 months leading up to the release date with engineer Lawson White at Clinton Studios in New York. I’m New Here is 28 minutes long with 15 tracks; however, casual asides and observations collected during recording sessions are included as interludes. // The album attracted critical acclaim, with The Guardian’s Jude Rogers declaring it one of the “best of the next decade”, while some have called the record “reverent” and “intimate”, due to Scott-Heron’s half-sung, half-spoken delivery of his poetry. In a music review for public radio network NPR, Will Hermes stated: “Comeback records always worry me, especially when they’re made by one of my heroes … But I was haunted by this record … He’s made a record not without hope but which doesn’t come with any easy or comforting answers. In that way, the man is clearly still committed to speaking the truth”. Writing for music website Music OMH, Darren Lee provided a more mixed assessment of the album, describing it as rewarding and stunning, but he also states that the album’s brevity prevents it “from being an unassailable masterpiece”. // Scott-Heron described himself as a mere participant in an interview with The New Yorker: This is Richard’s CD. My only knowledge when I got to the studio was how he seemed to have wanted this for a long time. You’re in a position to have somebody do something that they really want to do, and it was not something that would hurt me or damage me—why not? All the dreams you show up in are not your own. // The remix version of the album, We’re New Here, was released in 2011, featuring production by English musician Jamie xx, who reworked material from the original album. Like the original album, We’re New Here received critical acclaim. // In April 2014, XL Recordings announced a third album from the I’m New Here sessions, titled Nothing New. The album consists of stripped-down piano and vocal recordings and was released in conjunction with Record Store Day on April 19, 2014. // “Gil Scott-Heron released poems as songs, recorded songs that were based on his earliest poems and writings, wrote novels and became a hero to many for his music, activism and his anger. There is always the anger – an often beautiful, passionate anger. An often awkward anger. A very soulful anger. And often it is a very sad anger. But it is the pervasive mood, theme and feeling within his work – and around his work, hovering, piercing, occasionally weighing down; often lifting the work up, helping to place it in your face. And for all the preaching and warning signs in his work, the last two decades of Gil Scott-Heron’s life to date have seen him succumb to the pressures and demons he has so often warned others about.” – Fairfax New Zealand, February 2010 // Scott-Heron died on the afternoon of May 27, 2011, at St. Luke’s Hospital, New York City, after becoming ill upon returning from a European trip. Scott-Heron had confirmed previous press speculation about his health, when he disclosed in a 2008 New York Magazine interview that he had been HIV-positive for several years, and that he had been previously hospitalized for pneumonia. // He was survived by his firstborn daughter, Raquiyah “Nia” Kelly Heron, from his relationship with Pat Kelly; his son Rumal Rackley, from his relationship with Lurma Rackley; daughter Gia Scott-Heron, from his marriage to Brenda Sykes; and daughter Chegianna Newton, who was 13 years old at the time of her father’s death. He is also survived by his sister Gayle; brother Denis Heron, who once managed Scott-Heron; his uncle, Roy Heron; and nephew Terrance Kelly, an actor and rapper who performs as Mr. Cheeks, and who was a member of Lost Boyz. Before his death, Scott-Heron had been in talks with Portuguese director Pedro Costa to participate in his film Horse Money as a screenwriter, composer and actor. // After Scott-Heron’s death, Malik Al Nasir told The Guardian’s Simon Hattenstone of the kindness that Scott-Heron had showed him throughout his adult life since meeting the poet backstage at a gig in Liverpool in 1984. The BBC World Service covered the story on their Outlook program with Matthew Bannister, which took the story global. It was subsequently covered in other media such as BBC Radio 4’s Saturday Live, where jazz musician Al Jarreau paid tribute to Gil, and was mentioned the U.S. edition of Rolling Stone and The Huffington Post. Malik & the O.G’s performed a tribute to Scott-Heron at the Liverpool International Music Festival in 2013 with jazz composer Orphy Robinson of The Jazz Warriors and Rod Youngs from Gil’s band The Amnesia Express. Another tribute was performed at St. Georges Hall in Liverpool on August 27, 2015, called “The Revolution will be Live!”, curated by Malik Al Nasir and Richard McGinnis for Yesternight Productions. The event featured Talib Kweli, Aswad, The Christians, Malik & the O.G’s, Sophia Ben-Yousef and Cleveland Watkiss as well as DJ 2Kind and poet, actor, and radio DJ Craig Charles. The tribute was the opening event for 2015 Liverpool International Music Festival. // In response to Scott-Heron’s death, Public Enemy’s Chuck D stated “RIP GSH…and we do what we do and how we do because of you” on his Twitter account. His UK publisher, Jamie Byng, called him “one of the most inspiring people I’ve ever met”. On hearing of the death, R&B singer Usher stated: “I just learned of the loss of a very important poet…R.I.P., Gil Scott-Heron. The revolution will be live!!”. Richard Russell, who produced Scott-Heron’s final studio album, called him a “father figure of sorts to me”, while Eminem stated: “He influenced all of hip-hop”. Lupe Fiasco wrote a poem about Scott-Heron that was published on his website. // Scott-Heron’s memorial service was held at Riverside Church in New York City on June 2, 2011, where Kanye West performed “Lost in the World” and “Who Will Survive in America”, two songs from West’s album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. The studio album version of West’s “Who Will Survive in America” features a spoken-word excerpt by Scott-Heron. Scott-Heron is buried at Kensico Cemetery in Westchester County in New York. // Scott-Heron was honored posthumously in 2012 by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Charlotte Fox, member of the Washington, DC NARAS and president of Genesis Poets Music, nominated Scott-Heron for the award, while the letter of support came from Grammy award winner and Grammy Hall of Fame inductee Bill Withers. // Scott-Heron’s memoir, The Last Holiday, was published in January 2012. In her review for the Los Angeles Times, professor of English and journalism Lynell George wrote: The Last Holiday is as much about his life as it is about context, the theater of late 20th century America — from Jim Crow to the Reagan ’80s and from Beale Street to 57th Street. The narrative is not, however, a rise-and-fall retelling of Scott-Heron’s life and career. It doesn’t connect all the dots. It moves off-the-beat, at its own speed … This approach to revelation lends the book an episodic quality, like oral storytelling does. It winds around, it repeats itself.]
Sault – “Don’t Shoot Guns Down” from: Untitled (Black Is) / Forever Living Originals / June 19, 2020 [Third studio album from British rhythm and blues musical group. Originally released for free as a digital download and proceeds from subsequent sales went to charity. The album has been met with positive critical reception. // The editorial staff of AllMusic gave this album four out of five stars, with reviewer Andy Kellman calling it “an urgent outpouring of grief, anger, affirmation, and consolation, virtually anything seems possible for their future”. Marcus J. Moore of NPR notes that the album’s lyrics explore the entirety of the black experience, including anger at the killing of African-Americans by the police to sorrow at mourning and the intimacy of daily life. Gordon Rutherford of Louder Than War gave this five out of five bombs, calling it a “zeitgeist” and the album of the year made of “powerful, potent protest album that is musically magnificent”. Tom Doyle of Mojo scored Untitled (Black Is) four out of five stars, calling it “another masterwork from a group with no peers”. In Q, Steve Yates gave the album four out of five stars, summing it up as “beautiful and potent stuff”. Lizzie Manno of Paste declared it an “album-of-the-year contender” and “a revolutionary soundtrack to 2020”. Salem Collo-Julin of Chicago Reader echoed these sentiments, calling this album the “soundtrack for the 2020 revolution” because the “revelatory jazz-soaked soul music on Untitled is a call to action”. Writing for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Dan DeLuca gave the release 3.5 out of four stars, calling it “a seductive listen” whose powerful lyrics timed with a Juneteenth release and roots in several black genres of music “raise… a fist against oppression and celebrates collective strength”. BBC 6 Music named this album as their number one recommended album of 2020. // Sault are a pseudonymous British music collective that make a mixture of rhythm and blues, house and disco. Despite critical acclaim, they eschew interaction with the media. // They frequently foreground black-centric issues. // Their first four albums credit Inflo as producer; winner of Ivor Novello awards for his work on Little Simz’ Grey Area and as co-writer of Michael Kiwanuka’s “Black Man in a White World”. More info at: http://www.sault.global]
Sault – “Little Boy” from: Untitled (Rise) / Forever Living Originals / September 19, 2020 [Untitled (Rise) is the fourth studio album from British rhythm and blues musical group Sault. The album has been met with positive critical reception.// Untitled (Rise) was met with universal acclaim reviews from critics noted at review aggregator Metacritic. This release received a weighted average score of 93 out of 100, based on six reviews. Alexis Petridis of The Guardian gave the album five out of five stars, saying that Sault had released the best album of the year again, following Untitled (Black Is) and points out the exceptional musicianship, writing that the album “hardly yields highlights because the quality never wavers: whoever’s involved, it feels like they’ve been galvanised to the top of their game”. Jem Aswad of Variety accentuates how timely the work is, with the worldwide response to the George Floyd protests and struggles of black peoples in the United States and United Kingdom, writing, “Sault seduces listeners, drawing them in with beautiful sounds, and then hits them with uncompromisingly direct lyrics and messages that startle them into thinking about things they might not normally think about… [their music] is definitively 2020, by, for and about these times”. In Clash, Robin Murray gave this album nine out of 10, also noting how the lyrics discuss contemporaneous issues, noting the diverse musical influences, from Brazilian rhythm to 1980s “boogie shimmer”. Jeremy Monroe of Beats Per Minute scored this 81 out of 100, calling listening to Untitled (Rise) a “thrilling experience” with a spiritual dimension. Gordon Rutherford of Louder Than War gave this 4.5 out of five bombs, calling it a “another stab at winning the award for album of the year”, following Untitled (Black Is). Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Andy Kellman felt that it was Sault’s “most striking and affecting work yet.” // Sault are a pseudonymous British music collective that make a mixture of rhythm and blues, house and disco. Despite critical acclaim, they eschew interaction with the media. They frequently foreground black-centric issues. Their first four albums credit Inflo as producer; winner of Ivor Novello awards for his work on Little Simz’ Grey Area and as co-writer of Michael Kiwanuka’s “Black Man in a White World”.]
Midnight Sister – “Sirens” from: Painting the Roses / Jagjaguwar / January 15, 2021 [Midnight Sister is a band from Los Angeles, California. The duo of multi-disciplinary Los Angeles artists Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian revive their oddish pop institute with a gorgeous 70s silver screen waltz. More info at: http://www.facebook.com/midnightsistermusic%5D
DUO – “Lolita, No!” from: Duo / LiTA- AWAL Recordings / December 18, 2020 [Duo is composer & lyricist: Luke Pritchard and composer & lyricist: Ellie Rose. more info at: http://www.facebook.com/weareduomusic%5D
La Femme – “Disconnexion” from: Paradigmes / Born Bad Records – Disque Pointu / April 2, 2021 Romainville France based. Paradigmes is the 3rd album of La Femme. It features 15 tracks including Paradigme, Cool Colorado, and signs the return of the band, four years after Mystère. // La femme was born during the X years in Biarritz, when Sasha and Marlon started composing on their guitars music they recorded on Garage Band. Together they ride surfboards, pianos and synthetiseur as they gave a try to various styles, from 60s yéyé French pop to Californian surf music. Marlon moved to Paris, and there he met Sam, who played bass. Together they formed SOS Mademoiselle along with Olivier Peynot, and played vintage French rock, as Sasha was practising his scales in reverb feed surf band « Les redoutables! // After getting his grade, Sasha joined his friends in Paris, where they discovered French cold wave and synth pop, Marie & Les Garcons being one of their favourite. They polished a style that could be described as one of these following : Surf wave, Bizarre wave, strange wave, weird witch wave, silly mental wave or Psycho tropical Berlin ». In fact anything you want as long as it ends with « wave ». And the boys created LA FEMME. // La Femme has no frontier, neither in her style nor in her voice. She’s always on a quest for new sounds, images and sensations. // Joined in 2010 by drummer Noé and female singer Clémence, La femme formed its first live roster in few days after French rider and artist Pandora Decoster asks them to play on stage for a big surf contest in Biarritz. From her hazy and changing background, La femme takes shape and release that same year its first anthem « Sur la Planche », a song that was made to be hummed and whistled while ridding a board. // La femme uncovers, boys, girls, plenty of option, a bit of mystery, loads of energy. // Later she released her second EP, Paris 2012. In the music video she produced for this song, she blows down the effeil tower as a symbol, it’s time to go ans see something else. // After swilling Paris bars, La femme goes for a tour in USA, en mode journey, and come back in France with improved reputation where they play for various festival. Soon joined by fancy rhythm drummer Nunez Ritter Von Merguez aka « La Sauterelle » and gorgeous singer Clara Luciani, La femme takes for a ride around Europe : from beyond the grave to Berlin, by London, Bruxelles and Roubaix. // Cryptic and Mysterious, La femme is in perpetual motion and the band, based around full time and up-to-date boys (Sasha, Marlon, Sam), invites over the course of its wish and needs in studio a whole cast of female singer : Clémence, Clara, Marilu, Jeanne… // Sooner this year, La femme released a self titled EP, that went by along with a 11 minutes long psychedelic music video, an epic and baroque short film for tracks « La femme, Hypsoline », preceding the release of her first album in April. // La femme was born during the X years in Biarritz, when Sasha and Marlon started composing on their guitars music they recorded on Garage Band. Together they ride surfboards, pianos and synthetiseur as they gave a try to various styles, from 60s yéyé French pop to Californian surf music. Marlon moved to Paris, and there he met Sam, who played bass. Together they formed SOS Mademoiselle along with Olivier Peynot, and played vintage French rock, as Sasha was practising his scales in reverb feed surf band « Les redoutables! » // After getting his grade, Sasha joined his friends in Paris, where they discovered French cold wave and synth pop, Marie & Les Garcons being one of their favourite. They polished a style that could be described as one of these following : Surf wave, Bizarre wave, strange wave, weird witch wave, silly mental wave or Psycho tropical Berlin ». In fact anything you want as long as it ends with « wave ». // La Femme has no frontier, neither in her style nor in her voice. She’s always on a quest for new sounds, images and sensations. // Joined in 2010 by drummer Noé and female singer Clémence, La femme formed its first live roster in few days after French rider and artist Pandora Decoster asks them to play on stage for a big surf contest in Biarritz. From her hazy and changing background, La femme takes shape and release that same year its first anthem « Sur la Planche », a song that was made to be hummed and whistled while ridding a board. // Later she released her second EP, Paris 2012. In the music video she produced for this song, she blows down the effeil tower as a symbol, it’s time to go ans see something else. // After swilling Paris bars, La femme goes for a tour in USA, en mode journey, and come back in France with improved reputation where they play for various festival. Soon joined by fancy rhythm drummer Nunez Ritter Von Merguez aka « La Sauterelle » and gorgeous singer Clara Luciani, La femme takes for a ride around Europe : from beyond the grave to Berlin, by London, Bruxelles and Roubaix. // Cryptic and Mysterious, La femme is in perpetual motion and the band, based around full time and up-to-date boys (Sasha, Marlon, Sam), invites over the course of its wish and needs in studio a whole cast of female singer : Clémence, Clara, Marilu, Jeanne… // Sooner this year, La femme released a self titled EP, that went by along with a 11 minutes long psychedelic music video, an epic and baroque short film for tracks « La femme, Hypsoline », preceding the release of her first album in April : « Psycho Tropical Berlin »: // It’s the story of a couple who slipped chaos and survives by watching each other. Le Danger est partout – Peril is all around as written in the booklet. // Rock and pop, rococo bahaus, fed from multiples influences (Krafwerk, Elli & Jacno) La Femme just want to please you. Generous and welcoming, she stretches you her white hand in the dark, if you grasp it, it could be the shiver of you life.It’s the story of a couple who slipped chaos and survives by watching each other. Le Danger est partout – Peril is all around as written in the booklet. // Rock and pop, rococo bahaus, fed from multiples influences (Krafwerk, Elli & Jacno) La Femme just want to please you. Generous and welcoming, she stretches you her white hand in the dark, if you grasp it, it could be the shiver of you life.
11:28 – Underwriting
Katy Guillen & The Drive – “No Control” from: Dream Girl EP / Katy Guillen / March 20, 2020 [7-song EP from Katy Guillen & The Drive, the latest project dedicated to Guillen’s songwriting that is founded on the creative spark and chemistry between Katy Guillen & Stephanie Williams. With Guillen on guitar & vocals and Williams on drums, the two sculpt a sound that recalls bands like Led Zeppelin, The Bangles, and Band of Skulls. In 2012, Guillen & Williams formed Katy Guillen and The Girls, and began to build a foundation of touring and recording that carried them through six years and produced three full-length albums: Katy Guillen & the Girls, Heavy Days, and Remember What You Knew Before. Between 2012 and 2018, they traveled the United States extensively, performed at the International Montreal Jazz Festival, toured Sweden, and supported major acts like The Doobie Brothers, Robin Trower, and Heartless Bastards. In these 6 years playing together, Guillen & Williams created a dynamic, sound informed by Guillen’s mesmerizing, emotive guitar style and poignant arrangements, and an equally captivating live show that showcased Williams’ technical, melodic style, resulting in a powerful on-stage chemistry. In addition to the compelling synergy formed by years of playing together, the two developed a method of working together on Guillen’s songs that only deepened their artistic connection, propelling them to forge a path to a new plateau in their music. KG & The Drive push ahead with a melodic, heavy, and soulful sound while maintaining the edge of the artist’s rock ‘n’ roll and blues roots. Katy Guillen joined us on WMM on March 18, 2020.]
11:33 – Interview with Katy Guillen
We are now joined by Katy Guillen of the band Katy Guillen and The Drive, that featuring the creative spark and chemistry between Katy Guillen on guitar & vocals, and Stephanie Williams on drums. Since 2012 the band have sculpted a sound that recalls bands like Led Zeppelin, The Bangles, and Band of Skulls. Katy Guillen and Stephanie Williams are also principle players in the Kansas City Band That Fell to Earth playing annual tribute shows to David Bowie with an all- star area band including their frequent collaborator and friend Michelle Bacon who produces these annual shows. Last year the bnd released the 7-song EP Dream Girl on March 20, 2020 just as the COVID 19 Pandemic Quarantine started, and halted all touring and live music venues. Katy Guillen join us to share all of the details about the big LIVESTREAM Concert this Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 PM live from recordBar’s stage. The concert will feature multiple cameras by XO Blackwater and full live production and sound from Paul Malinowski of Massive Sound Studios.
Katy Guillen thanks or being with us on WMM
Go to http://www.therecordbar.com for tickets to Katy Guillen and The Girls LIVESTREAM Concert this Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 PM live from recordBar’s stage.
In 2012, Guillen & Williams formed Katy Guillen and The Girls, and began to build a foundation of touring and recording that carried them through six years and produced three full-length albums. Between 2012 and 2018, they traveled the United States extensively, performed at the International Montreal Jazz Festival, toured Sweden, and supported major acts like The Doobie Brothers, Robin Trower, and Heartless Bastards.
KG & The Drive push ahead with a melodic, heavy, and soulful sound while maintaining the edge of Katy Guillen’s rock ‘n’ roll and blues roots. Guillen calls their genre-bending style “indie soul-rock.”
Katy Guillen & The Girls – Remember What You Knew Before (2018)
Katy Guillen & The Girls – Heavy Days (2016)
Katy Guillen & The Girls – Self-Titled (2014)
(Katy & Go-Go – When I Get Away) (2013)
In early January 2020 we saw the 4th annual The Band That Fell to Earth Tribute shows at recordBar. Katy Guillen and Stephanie Williams are also principle players in the Kansas City Band That Fell to Earth playing annual tribute shows to David Bowie with an all- star area band including their frequent collaborator and friend Michelle bacon who produces these annual shows.
In early January Katy Guillen & The Drive recently played Feb 14 in St Petersburg, FL; Frb. 14, Tampa, FL Feb. 15; Goodland, FL Feb. 16; Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea VI. February 18 – 22 .
We last interviewed Katy Guillen on WMM on March 18, 2020, just before the released of the band’s 7-song EP, Dream Girl on March 20, 2020 just as the COVID 19 Pandemic Quarantine started, and halted all touring and live music venues.
Katy Guillen & The Drive’s Dream Girl showcases Guillen’s songwriting and is founded on the energetic creative spark and long time chemistry between Katy Guillen and Stephanie Williams. With Guillen on guitar and vocals and Williams on drums, the two sculpt a sound that recalls bands like Led Zeppelin, The Bangles, and Band of Skulls.
In 2012, Guillen and Williams formed Katy Guillen and The Girls, and began to build a foundation of touring and recording that carried them through six years and produced three full-length albums and two EPs. More info at: http://katyguillenmusic.com/
Between 2012 and 2018, they traveled the United States extensively, performed at the International Montreal Jazz Festival, toured Sweden, and supported major acts like The Doobie Brothers, Robin Trower, and Heartless Bastards. The Katy Guillen and The Drive LIVESTREAM Concert is this Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 PM performing live from recordBar’s stage. The concert will feature multiple cameras filmed by XO Blackwater and full live production and magical sound from Paul Malinowski of Massive Sound Studios
Ticket sales from this livestream are going directly into the cost for recording their new album this spring.
Go to http://www.therecordbar.com for tickets to Katy Guillen and The Girls LIVESTREAM Concert this Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 PM live from recordBar’s stage.
Katy Guillen is one of our most frequent and most favorite guests. She has been on WMM at least 8 times now since 2010 when we first interviewed her as a member of the band the B’Dinas.
September 22, 2010 with The B’Dinas
February 22, 2012 with The B’Dinas
November 20, 2013 for our 500th Show
September 3, 2014 for Katy Guillen & The Girls CD Release at Knuckleheads
Nay 4, 2016 Our 12th Anniversary Show!
November 8, 2017 7. March 18, 2020 for Katy Guillen and The Drive – Dream Girl EP Release
In these 7 years playing together, Guillen and Williams created a dynamic, driving sound informed by Guillen’s mesmerizing, emotive guitar style and poignant arrangements, and an equally captivating live show that showcased Williams’ technical, melodic style, resulting in a powerful on-stage chemistry.
In addition to the compelling synergy formed by years of playing together, the two developed a method of working together on Guillen’s songs that only deepened their artistic connection, propelling them to forge a path to a new plateau in their music.
Into the next decade KG & The Drive push ahead with a melodic, heavy, and soulful sound while maintaining the edge of the artist’s rock ‘n’ roll and blue
Katy Guillen is known as one of Kansas City premiere musicians. We first met her as part of the band The B’Dina’s.
Katy Guillen, thanks or being with us on WMM
The Katy Guillen and The Drive LIVESTREAM Concert is this Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 PM live from recordBar’s stage. The concert will feature multiple cameras by XO Blackwater and full live production and sound from Paul Malinowski of Massive Sound Studios.
Go to http://www.therecordbar.com for tickets to Katy Guillen and The Girls LIVESTREAM Concert this Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 PM live from recordBar’s stage.
11:46
Katy Guillen & The Drive – “Dream Girl” from: Dream Girl EP / Katy Guillen / March 20, 2020 [New 7 song EP from Katy Guillen & The Drive, the latest project dedicated to Guillen’s songwriting that is founded on the creative spark and chemistry between Katy Guillen & Stephanie Williams. With Guillen on guitar & vocals and Williams on drums, the two sculpt a sound that recalls bands like Led Zeppelin, The Bangles, and Band of Skulls. In 2012, Guillen & Williams formed Katy Guillen and The Girls, and began to build a foundation of touring and recording that carried them through six years and produced three full-length albums: Katy Guillen & the Girls, Heavy Days, and Remember What You Knew Before. Between 2012 and 2018, they traveled the United States extensively, performed at the International Montreal Jazz Festival, toured Sweden, and supported major acts like The Doobie Brothers, Robin Trower, and Heartless Bastards. In these 6 years playing together, Guillen & Williams created a dynamic, sound informed by Guillen’s mesmerizing, emotive guitar style and poignant arrangements, and an equally captivating live show that showcased Williams’ technical, melodic style, resulting in a powerful on-stage chemistry. In addition to the compelling synergy formed by years of playing together, the two developed a method of working together on Guillen’s songs that only deepened their artistic connection, propelling them to forge a path to a new plateau in their music. KG & The Drive push ahead with a melodic, heavy, and soulful sound while maintaining the edge of the artist’s rock ‘n’ roll and blues roots. Katy Guillen joined us on WMM on March 18, 2020.]
Philippe Cohen Solal & Mike Lindsay – “We’ll Never Say Goodbye (feat. Adam Glover & Hanna Peel)” from: Outsider / Ya Basta! Records / March 12, 2021 [Outsider is an album of ten astonishing pop songs, five years in the making, and inspired by America’s most celebrated outsider artist Henry Darger, whose lyrics, written over 50 years ago, have been set to music for the first time and brought into the present day. Darger’s artwork has been lovingly and faithfully reproduced across all the outsider visual assets. Outsider is the brainchild of Philippe Cohen Solal, the million-selling artist, producer and composer behind Gotan Project, who has been given exclusive, unprecedented access to Henry Darger’s life and works. He has brought together the Mercury Prize winning producer Mike Lindsay of acid folk group Tunng, to co-write and co-produce the album, bringing in the acclaimed Hannah Peel (The Magnetic North, Game of Thrones) for the brass and strings instrumentation and backing vocals depicting Darger’s child characters The Vivian Girls, and Adam Glover for the lush, crooning lead vocals, that reflect the inner voice of Darger himself through the original lyrics.]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on Wednesday, March 31 we talk with Sondra Freeman about Midwest Music Foundation’s 3rd Annual Spring Donation Drive (Apr 3-10) with a Livestream Concert Saturday, April 3, 2021 at 8:00 PM featuring: Jessica Paige, Slights, Sam Wells, The Uncouth. More info at http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org // We also talk with musician Chris Hudson about his band Gullywasher’s new album, Holding the Dawning, released on March 15, 2021. More info at: http://www.gullywasherkc.com // We also talk with J. Jerome aka Jamie Searle about his slew of new recordings and releases with his band My Brothers and Sisters and others. More info at: http://www.jjeromechromatic.bandcamp.com // And we talk with singer songwriter drumm er dancer actress Nan Turner about her new release from Nan + The one Nite Stands – High – Caliber, released on February 19, 2021.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
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, March 24, 2021
Special Guest Producer Nico Gray + Special Guest Katy Guillen
Mark welcomes back Nico Gray, for his 10th time as “Guest Producer” for WMM. Nico is a writer, performance artist, and actor who has performed with KC Rep, Gorilla Theatre, 8th St. Cafe Theatre, Actor’s Craft, and Big Bang Buffet. Nico has worked for Theatre League, The Midland Theatre, and is currently a marketing & advertising consultant with Union Station, KC Fringe, and KC Creates. Nico grew up in KC but has lived in Chicago, New York, and Marseille.
Nico will feature tracks from: Valerie June, Elvis Costello, Sharon Van Etten, Art d’Ecco, Madlib, Wax Tailor, Mind The Beatz, Drab City, Gabriels, Gil Scott-Heron, Sault, Midnight Sister, Miley Cyrus, Magon, Maxene Cyri, DUO, LA FEMME, Mongo Santamaria, Reitzell/Beggs, The Cure, Yusus/Cat Stevens, Philippe Cohen Solal & Mike Lindsay.
At 11:30 AM Mark talks with Katy Guillen of Katy Guillen and The Drive who will share all of the details about the big LIVESTREAM Concert this Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 PM performing live from recordBar’s stage. The concert will feature multiple cameras filmed by XO Blackwater and full live production and magical sound from Paul Malinowski of Massive Sound Studios. Ticket sales from this livestream are going directly into the cost for recording their new album this spring. More info at: http://katyguillenmusic.com/
Nico Gray Portrait by: Jan McNiel
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
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, March 17, 2021
New & MidCoastal Releases + R.I.Peter + Club Sinister + Everett The Grey
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
The Freedom Affair – “Don’t Shoot” from: Freedom is Love / Sunflower Soul / Sept. 25, 2020 / [Released on vinyl March 2021] [“Freedom Is Love” is the debut album from Kansas City’s newest soul juggernaut, The Freedom Affair. The album explores themes of love, heartache, empowerment, and togetherness through a varying landscape of hard-hitting funk, luscious soul, and everything in between. The Freedom Affair is a unique collective featuring 3 powerhouse female vocalists in front of a dynamic 6-piece band. On “Freedom Is Love”, each of the ladies get their time to shine individually, but the magic is on full display when all 3 come together in unison and harmony, symbolically embodying the messages that they sing about. The album was recorded and produced by Chris Hazelton, utilizing the best of vintage and new recording technologies to create an authentic experience, befitting of a soul record that would have been relevant 50 years ago as much as it will be 50 years from now. The Freedom Affair is: Misha Roberts on vocals; Paula Saunders on vocals; Seyko Groves on vocals; Cole Bales on guitar, sitar (Track 3); Branden Moser on guitar; Chris Hazelton on bass guitar, organ (Tracks 1, 2, 9, & 10), Tambourine (Track 1), Glockenspiel (Track 3), & Chimes (Track 4); Dave Brick on drums; Pete Carroll on trumpet; Brett Jackson on tenor sax, baritone sax (Tracks 1 & 5), & tambourine (Tracks 5, 6, & 8). Additional Musicians: Pat Conway on Congas (Tracks 1, 3, & 6), Alyssa Bell on viola (Tracks 3, 4, & 7), Elizabeth Codd on violin (Tracks 3 & 4), Matt Bennett on violin (Tracks 3 & 7), John Wickersham on timpani (Track 4), Pamela Baskin-Watson on piano (Track 10), Nick Howell on tambourine (Track 10), The Freedom Family Choir (Track 10): Misha Roberts, Erica Hazelton, Seyko Groves, Paula Saunders, Jordyn Saunders, Cole Bales, and Chris Hazelton. All Horn & String Arrangements by Chris Hazelton except: “Heartaches Don’t Come Easy” and “Give A Little Love” by Pete Carroll & Brett Jackson, and “Don’t Shoot” by Chris Hazelton & Allyssa Bell. Produced, Recorded, & Mixed by Chris Hazelton. Assistant Produced by Dave Brick. Rhythm Section on Track 10 recorded by Chad Meise. Mastered by JJ Golden. Cover Artwork by Matthew “Mo” Manley. Front cover photograph of civil rights protesters in Kansas City, MO (April 9th, 1968). The Freedom Affair and their track “Rise Up” were selected to be part of Colemine Records 3xLP box set, “Soul Slabs Vol. 2” a Record Store Day Exclusive, released April 13, 2019. Colemine writes: “The Freedom Affair is a freight train of KC soul! Dirty, funky drums, gritty horns, and the combined vocals of Misha Roberts, Seyko Groves, and Paula Saunders to put this band over the top. Politically charged soul music for the dancefloor!”]
[The Freedom Affair plays Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming (NW corner of Wyoming & 17th St.), behind Voltaire, on Saturday, April 10, at 6:00 PM. Lemonade Park is a limited capacity socially distanced outdoor venue created in partnership between recordBar, Voltaire, and Moxie Catering.]
The Roseline – “Seven Hundred Second Chances” from: “Seven Hundred Second Chances” – Single / Alt Country Club / April 2, 2021 [First single and title track from their upcoming record, Seven Hundred Second Chances. The track features Colin Halliburton on lead vocals, acoustic guitar, & aux percussion; Bradley McKellip on mandolin & electric guitars; Colin Jones on bass; Jim Piller on drums; Chase Horseman on piano and organ; and Heidi Gluck on background vocals. It was recorded and produced by Joel Nanos at Element Recording Studios in Kansas City, Missouri. Lead singer and songwriter Colin Halliburton writes, “This song came together relatively quickly when I brought the acoustic skeleton to the band. It has a comfortable groove and familiarity to it, but we tried to make it all our own with little sonic touches like the sustaining fuzz note and the chimey, vintage vibe of the bridge. Lyrically, I’m exploring the corruptibility of humans and examining my own privilege, while also noting that we should all be aspiring to the greatness of teachers.” // The Roseline are a Lawrence, KS, based alt-country, Americana, rock band, formed by Colin Halliburton with friends in 2005. The Roseline released their 6th album GOOD / GRIEF on April 3, 2021. The Roseline released BLOOD on September 29, 2017; and TOWNIE on June 19, 2015. The band has toured the US and Halliburton has completed two European solo tours thus far, taking him through Poland, Germany, Belgium, and The Netherlands. Colin Halliburton joined us on WMM on March 25, 2020. More info at: https://roselinemusic.com/%5D
Goat Girl – “Badibaba” from: On All Fours / Rough Trade Records / January 29, 2021 [The third single “Badibaba” was released on 19 January 2021. L.E.D., the band’s guitarist, said of the single: “Badibaba is a song about environmental catastrophe and the pessimism and self-destruction that this causes to the human spirit. It touches on how the Earth’s existence is controlled by exploitative systems, and the feeling of existential helplessness this induces.” On All Fours is the second studio album by English band Goat Girl. The album was recorded in early-2020 in South London with producer Dan Carey. //Goat Girl are an English post-punk band from South London. Their initial lineup consisted of lead vocalist and guitarist Clottie Cream (Lottie Pendlebury), guitarist and occasional lead vocalist L.E.D. (Ellie Rose Davies), bassist Naima Jelly (Naima Redina-Bock) and drummer Rosy Bones (Rosy Jones). UK music magazine DIY describe them as being “imbued with an innate ability to voice the socio-political concerns of their peers with wit and style”. In 2019, bassist Holy Hole (Holly Mullineaux) joined the band, replacing Naima Jelly. // The band played early gigs in The Windmill, Brixton and named themselves after comedian Bill Hicks’ character ‘Goat Boy’. They signed a deal with Rough Trade Records on July 24, 2016 – the day after the UK’s Brexit referendum – and put out a couple of singles prior to the release of their debut album two years later. During this time, they also supported The Fall in their final London show before Mark E. Smith’s death, at the 100 Club on 27 July 2017. // Their self-titled debut album was released in April 2018. Featuring 19 tracks, it was well-received by the music press. Pitchfork described it as “absurd, playful, and more than a little unsettling, sounding at times like a less romantic Libertines,”going on to say the album, “appears daunting but proves to be light and accessible, with plenty of offbeat wit and many an unexpected twist down gothic country roads.” The Guardian called it, “a weird, wily and unpredictable record, getting under the surface of things.” The band played on the John Peel stage at the Glastonbury Festival 2019.]
Chess Club – “On Deck, at Bat” from: You’re Lucky I Like You / Black-Site / March 23, 2021 [All songs written and produced by the members of Chess Club: Cooper Avery on drums, David Krejci on bass, and Griffin Nelson on guitar & vocals. Recorded at Weights + Measures Soundlab, Kansas City, MO. Mixed & mastered by Duane Trower. Vinyl Mastering by Chris Muth at Taloowa Corp. Yonkers, NY. Kansan-Emo-Math-Pop – Sometimes with blast beats. Formed in 2014 Chess Club prides itself on the mantra of DIY or DIE, booking its own shows and producing its own recordings. In that spirit, the band treats every show as if it were a house party, breaking down the partition between performer and crowd to create an up close and personal experience. Chess Club released their 10-song debut album, HIT THE BALL on June 9, 2018 through Black-Site. Chess Club released the 6-song debut EP, HI SAD on Jan. 29, 2016. http://www.black-site.org ]
Greg LaFollette – “Learning To Fly” from: Learning To Fly – Single / Late Model Leadfoot Music / February 26, 2021 [Greg LaFollette’s version of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ classic song, Learning To Fly, was released as a single and will also be part of Greg’s upcoming album, THESE DAYS. Singer songwriter, teacher, Greg LaFollette moved to Kansas City from Nashville in the summer of 2020. Greg LaFollette has also played with the Summer Breeze: a Tribute to Yacht Rock with Billy Brimblecom and as well as being in the house band for Thundergong! the annual fundraiser/concert for Steps of Faith Foundation.// Greg LaFollette has had over 2,000,000 plays on Spotify. LaFollette has been involved in more than one hundred records in his career. He has worked with Andrew Peterson, Audrey Assad, Sara Groves, Leslie Jordan of All Sons and Daughters, Robbie Seay Band and many others. He has been featured in multiple prominent podcasts and published in CCM Magazine, The Rabbit Room, Relevant Magazine, and The Gospel Coalition. His previous records have garnered much attention and have been supported by church partnerships across the US. LaFollette has had multiple placements in international advertising campaigns, and has contributed many songs to others’ records. More info at: https://greglafollette.com/home%5D
Valerie June – “African Proverb” from: The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers / June Tunes-Concord Records / March 12, 2021
Valerie June – “Call Me A Fool (feat. Carla Thomas)” from: The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers / June Tunes-Concord Records / March 12, 2021 [5th full length album co-produced by Jack Splash and Valerie June. Valerie June Hockett was born January 10, 1982), known as Valerie June, is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Her sound encompasses a mixture of folk, blues, gospel, soul, country, Appalachian and bluegrass. She is signed to Concord Music Group worldwide. // Born in Jackson, Tennessee on January 10, 1982, June is the oldest of five children. As a child growing up in Humboldt, June was exposed to gospel music at her local church and R&B and soul music via her father, Emerson Hockett. As a teenager, her first job was with her father, owner of Hockett Construction in West Tennessee, and a part-time promoter for gospel singers and Prince, K-Ci & JoJo, and Bobby Womack. She helped by hanging posters in town. Her father died in late 2016. // June relocated to Memphis in 2000 and began recording and performing at the age of 19, initially with her then-husband Michael Joyner, in the duo Bella Sun. After her marriage ended, she began working as a solo artist, combining blues, gospel and Appalachian folk in a style that she describes as “organic moonshine roots music”, and learning guitar, banjo, and lap-steel guitar. She became associated with the Memphis-based Broken String Collective. // In 2009 she was a featured artist on MTV’s online series $5 Cover (following the lives of Memphis musicians attempting to make ends meet), and in 2010 she recorded the EP Valerie June and the Tennessee Express, a collaboration with Old Crow Medicine Show. // In 2011 she was honored by the Memphis and Shelby County Music Commission at the Emissaries of Memphis Music event. She raised funds to record an album with producer Craig Street via Kickstarter.com, raising $15,000 in 60 days. Later that year she relocated from Memphis to Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Shortly after, record producer Kevin Augunas introduced June to Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys, which led to the recording of June’s album Pushin’ Against a Stone in July 2011, which was co-written and produced by Dan Auerbach and Kevin Augunas. // In 2012, June performed with producer John Forté on a collaboration called Water Suites (on the hip-hop-blues song “Give Me Water”), and with Meshell Ndegeocello on the song “Be My Husband”. She contributed The Wandering’s 2012 album Go on Now, You Can’t Stay Here: Mississippi Folk Music Volume III. In 2012 she performed in the UK for the first time, playing at Bestival and appearing on Later… with Jools Holland. // She has received substantial radio play in Europe on BBC Radio 6, including a feature on Cerys on 6 with Cerys Matthews. Mary Anne Hobbs of XFM has said of June: “This woman has already touched my heart, she really, really has.” // In February 2013, June was invited to support Jake Bugg on the UK leg of his tour. In March 2013, June performed two nights at South By Southwest. The first performance was on March 14 as part of the Heartbreaker Banquet. On March 16, June performed again, this time as part of The Revival Tour. Rolling Stone June’s second album, The Order of Time one of the 50 Best Albums of 2017, citing “her handsomely idiosyncratic brand of Americana, steeped deep in electric blues and old-time folk, gilded in country twang and gospel yearning….a blend of spacey hippie soul, blues and folk with June’s pinched, modern-Appalachian voice at the center”. In a 2017 interview, Bob Dylan was asked what artists he listened to and respected; June was among the artists he mentioned in reply.More info at: http://www.valeriejune.com]
10:28 – Underwriting
Club Sinister – “Beyond Bleeding” from: Club Sinister / Club Sinister / January 22, 2021 [Self titled debut release from Club Sinister, formed by Alex Horton & Ian Weidner in early 2020. Alex & Ian met in middle school and have been friends ever since. The two spent ten years sharpening their songwriting by playing in a variety of bands from indie rock to metal. While they played together in previous bands, this is their first project as a duo since relocating to Kansas City a few years ago. The duo have always been drawn to darker music and imagery, but the desperate and unsettling nature of the EP really mirrors the the past year that many have experienced. Club Sinister released their 6-track EP, Club Sinister on January 22, 2021. More info at: http://www.clubsinister.bandcamp.com]
10:34 – Interview with Alex Horton & Ian Weidner of Club Sinister
Alex Horton & Ian Weidner, join us on the phone to talk about their band Club Sinister, and their new self titled, debut EP. Alex & Ian formed Club Sinister in early 2020. They met in middle school and have been friends ever since. The two spent ten years sharpening their songwriting by playing in a variety of other bands from indie rock to metal. While they played together in previous bands, this is their first project as a duo since relocating to Kansas City a few years ago. Club Sinister released their 6-track EP, Club Sinister on January 22, 2021. More info at: http://www.clubsinister.bandcamp.com
Alex Horton & Ian Weidner thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Alex Horton is originally from Tulsa Oklahoma.
Ian Weidner went to middle school with Alex but then moved to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for High School.
Alex Horton & Ian Weidner met up again in college at The University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma.
from http://www.secretmeeting.co.uk : Alex says that the seed for the Club may have been planted long ago when the pair met in middle school. After spending their high school careers apart, they met back up in university and were in a rock band together called Colorblind. Ian echoes this, saying that they have always played music together very naturally: ‘If anything, I am surprised that it took us this long to get something new started.’ As if to prove out the sentiment, the band is already about to drop a new self-titled EP to ring in 2021 – mere months after embarking on a new journey that has challenged them to write and see music in different ways.
The two spent ten years sharpening their songwriting by playing in a variety of bands from indie rock to metal. Alex & Ian played in the Norman, Oklahoma band, Colorblind.
While they played together in previous bands, this is their first project as a duo since relocating to Kansas City a few years ago.
Alex & Ian formed Club Sinister in early 2020.
The duo have always been drawn to darker music and imagery, but the desperate and unsettling nature of the EP really mirrors the past year that many have experienced.
from http://www.secretmeeting.co.uk : But it turns out that even lifelong friends with years of musical partnership between them can be surprised while in the act of creating. In the writing of (their song) “Sheol,” Ian says their original aim ended up shifting significantly. ‘We were both relatively sure that it was going to be a more 80’s post-punk style song with fake drums and a driving synth throughout. Obviously, as we continued writing songs, we went in a pretty different direction.’ Alex’s biggest surprise was in the EP’s closing track, Creeping Towards the Deep End, and how it turned out different than originally expected. ‘I thought it was going to be too much of a bummer, but, after some tweaking, we ended up really liking the way it turned out.’
Alex Horton & Ian Weidner thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Club Sinister – “Creeping Towards the Deep End” from: Club Sinister / Club Sinister / January 22, 2021 [Self titled debut release from Club Sinister, formed by Alex Horton & Ian Weidner in early 2020. Alex & Ian met in middle school and have been friends ever since. The two spent ten years sharpening their songwriting by playing in a variety of bands from indie rock to metal. While they played together in previous bands, this is their first project as a duo since relocating to Kansas City a few years ago. The duo have always been drawn to darker music and imagery, but the desperate and unsettling nature of the EP really mirrors the the past year that many have experienced. Club Sinister released their 6-track EP, Club Sinister on January 22, 2021. More info at: http://www.clubsinister.bandcamp.com]
J. Jerome – “Through My Skin (feat. Melissa Backstrom)” from: Through My Skin (feat. Melissa Backstrom) – Single / Chromatic Contact / Feb. 19, 2021 [J. Jerome is the moniker of Jamie Searle the band leader of My Brothers and Sisters and his former band It’s Over. Melissa Backstrom Searle is married to Jamie and also is a lead singer for My Brothers and Sisters. J. Jerome is released the new single “Steady One” on January 19, 2021. J.Jerome released the 5-track EP Blap Kit, on February, 21, 2021. MY BROTHERS & SISTERS released reimagined version of the song, “Folsom Prison” (Johnny Cash) on February 26, 2021. Jamie Searle will be on WMM on March 31, 2021. More info at: http://www.jsearlemusic.com or http://www.jjeromechromatic.bandcamp.com]
Blondie – “Picture This” from: Parallel Lines / Chrysalis Records / September 23, 1978 [Blondie is an American rock band co-founded by singer Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band were pioneers in the American punk and then the new wave scene of the mid-1970s in New York. Their first two albums contained strong elements of these genres, and although highly successful in the United Kingdom and Australia, Blondie was regarded as an underground band in the United States until the release of Parallel Lines in 1978. Over the next three years, the band achieved several hit singles including “Heart of Glass”, “Call Me”, “Rapture” and “The Tide Is High”. The band became noted for its eclectic mix of musical styles, incorporating elements of disco, pop, reggae, and early rap music. // Blondie disbanded after the release of its sixth studio album, The Hunter, in 1982. Debbie Harry continued to pursue a solo career with varied results after taking a few years off to care for partner Chris Stein, who was diagnosed with pemphigus, a rare autoimmune disease of the skin. The band re-formed in 1997, achieving renewed success and a number one single in the United Kingdom with “Maria” in 1999, exactly 20 years after their first UK No. 1 single (“Heart of Glass”). // The group toured and performed throughout the world during the following years, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. Blondie has sold around 40 million records worldwide and is still active. The band’s eleventh studio album, Pollinator, was released on May 5, 2017. // Parallel Lines is the third studio album by American rock band Blondie. It was released in September 1978, by Chrysalis Records to international commercial success. The album reached No. 1 in the United Kingdom in February 1979 and proved to be the band’s commercial breakthrough in the United States, where it reached No. 6 in April 1979. In Billboard magazine, Parallel Lines was listed at No. 9 in the top pop albums year-end chart of 1979. The album spawned several successful singles, notably the international hit “Heart of Glass”. “Musically, Blondie were hopelessly horrible when we first began rehearsing for Parallel Lines, and in terms of my attitude they didn’t know what had hit them. I basically went in there like Adolf Hitler and said, ‘You are going to make a great record, and that means you’re going to start playing better.'” said Mike Chapman, in an interview for Sound on Sound, recalling Blondie’s initial musical inexperience. In February 1978, Blondie released their second studio album Plastic Letters. It was their last album produced by Richard Gottehrer, whose sound had formed the basis of Blondie’s new wave and punk output. During a tour of the west coast of the US in support of Plastic Letters, Blondie encountered Australian producer Mike Chapman in California. Peter Leeds, Blondie’s manager, conspired with Chrysalis Records to encourage Chapman to work with Blondie on new music. Drummer Clem Burke recalls feeling enthusiastic about the proposition, believing Chapman could create innovative and eclectic records. However, lead vocalist Debbie Harry was far less enthusiastic about Chapman’s involvement as she knew him only by reputation; according to Chapman, her animosity towards him was because “they were New York. [He] was L.A.”. Harry’s cautiousness abated after she played Chapman early cuts of “Heart of Glass” and “Sunday Girl” and he was impressed.
11:00 – Station ID
R.I.Peter – “In Your Eyes” from: In Your Eyes – Single / Manor Records / February 26, 2021 [2nd single form R. I.Peter’s up coming 12-track album release, SOFT SERVE, coming out March 19, 2021 from Manor Records. Earlier this year R.I. Peter released the single, “Green House” on February 5, 2021. On April 10, 2020 R.I.Peter released the singles: “Cruis’n” and “Rising Sun” through Manor Records. Kansas City based musician and songwriter Peter Beatty also plays in the band Momma’s Boy, and before that was in Rev Gusto that was formed with Jerry Frederick, Sam Frederick, Shaun Crowley; and Quinn Hernandez on drums while they were in high school at Saint James Academy. Peter studied at University of Kansas. Peter released the debut EP solo project R.I.Peter on July 5, 2019. Manor Records described R.I.Peter’s music saying, “It’s like if you took video game music and mashed it with Fleet Foxes or something. electronic pop ambient america folk mystic Both of the songs were written by Peter Beatty. More info t http://www.manorrecords.com .]
[R.I.Peter and Manor Records are hosting a SOFT SERVE Listening Party, on Friday, March 19, at 8:00 PM. Go to: ripeter.party]
11:04 – Interview with R.I.Peter / Peter Beatty
Peter Beatty joins us to talk about his musical project: R.I.Peter and his new 12-track album, SOFT SERVE, to be released from Manor Records on March 19, 2021. R.I.Peter has already released the new singles: “In Your Eyes,” and “Green House” in February. Kansas City based musician and songwriter Peter Beatty also plays in the band Momma’s Boy, and before that was in the band Rev Gusto. Peter studied at University of Kansas. Peter Beatty released his debut EP solo project R.I.Peter on July 5, 2019. More info at http://www.manorrecords.com
Peter Beatty, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
We last talked with Peter on April 22, 2020 after the release of his cassingles: “Cruis’n” / “Rising Sun” on Manor Records. These singles followed his self titled 5-song EP debut, that was released July 5, 2019. And now R.I.Peter is back with the release of his new 12-track album, SOFT SERVE, from Manor Records on Friday, March 19, 2021.
Prior to the COVID-19 shut-down R.I.Peter had been touring with Chloe Jacobson. Last March Peter’s restaurant work ended because of COVID-19 shut downs, Peter devoted nearly 8 months creating the songs for SOFT SERVE.
Promo photos for Peter’s release were shot by Quinn Hernandez, who is also the drummer in the band Momma’s Boy. All the promo material sent out about the new release has been sent by Shaun Crowley who plays guitar in the band Momma’s boy. We talked with Peter about how does it feel to have a music label run by band-mates from all of these years. They are like brothers. They’ve played together since high school at Saint James Academy.
Mark talked with Peter about the efforts Manor Records is making to release new music and introduce new artists. Manor Records is a young Kansas City based record label, with many young artists, bringing a new generation to the area music community. Peter shared how great it is as a member of Rev. Gusto and Momma’s Boy to be part of something that grew bigger and became influential and a resource for so many artists.
SOFT SERVE cover
On SOFT SERVE Peter played almost every instrument on every track. Momm’s Boy band mate, Jerad Bajkowski played bass on one of the tracks.
SOFT SERVE will be released this Friday, March 19, through Manor Records. People can learn more about R.I.Peter and SOFT SERVE at http://www.ripeter.bandcamp.com. The new album will also be released on a limited edition cassette.
R.I.Peter and Manor Records are hosting a SOFT SERVE Listening Party, on Fridy, March 19, at 8:00 PM. Go to: ripeter.party
We’re seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. Warm weather is coming and safe social distancing – outdoor venues are opening. As more and more people get vaccinated we are getting closer to returning to a new normal. Peter said what he is most looking forward to is a hot sweaty mosh with his friends.
Peter Beatty, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
SOFT SERVE will be released this Friday, March 19, through Manor Records. People can learn more about R.I.Peter and SOFT SERVE at http://www.ripeter.bandcamp.com.
11:17
R.I.Peter – “Green House” from: “Green House” – Single / Manor Records / February 5, 2021 [1st single form R. I.Peter’s up coming 12-track album release, SOFT SERVE, coming out on March 19, 2021 from Manor Records. Earlier this year R.I. Peter released the single, “In Your Eyes” on February 26, 2021. On April 10, 2020 R.I.Peter released the singles: “Cruis’n” and “Rising Sun” through Manor Records. Kansas City based musician and songwriter Peter Beatty also plays in the band Momma’s Boy, and before that was in Rev Gusto that was formed with Jerry Frederick, Sam Frederick, Shaun Crowley; and Quinn Hernandez on drums while they were in high school at Saint James Academy. Peter studied at University of Kansas. Peter released the debut EP solo project R.I.Peter on July 5, 2019. Manor Records described R.I.Peter’s music saying, “It’s like if you took video game music and mashed it with Fleet Foxes or something. electronic pop ambient america folk mystic Both of the songs were written by Peter Beatty. More info t http://www.manorrecords.com ]
[R.I.Peter and Manor Records are hosting a SOFT SERVE Listening Party, on Friday, March 19, at 8:00 PM. Go to: ripeter.party]
Rob Rice – “Swipe Right (feat. Clint Ashlock & Eva Louise Hall)” from: and the Devil’s Threesome / Mongrel Manor Records / March 21, 2021 [Another song from the debut EP of Rob Rice titled, and the Devil’s Threesome to be released March 21, 2021. Singer/songwriter Rob Rice is a Kansas City native with a spark of millennial magic, his dusty acoustic music transitions from barn-burning ballads to soothing serenades, all of which contain notes of love, loss, and lust whilst learning to live with oneself through it all. On his debut EP and the Devil’s Threesome, Rob humbly assumes the role of choirmaster to a caravan of iconic Kansas City artists and musicians (12 in total) to create unique trios for each song, meditating and musing on the woes and wins of yesteryear. With instrumentation ranging from harp (Calvin Arsenia) and cello (Ezgi Karakus) to piano (Mark Lowrey) and layered vocals (Miki P), the collection remains cohesive with Rob’s compelling vocal melodies, introspective lyrics, and folky guitar. // and the Devil’s Threesome is a collection of six original songs Rob has composed and recorded that features a female and additional male accompaniment to showcase (hence the Devil’s Threesome. We first played Rob Ricelast year when his track “Serial Lover” was part of the KC Syzygy Compilation released July 17, 2020. Info at: http://www.robricemakesmusic.com Rob Rice will be with us on WMM on April 14, 2021]
Lava Dreams – “You’re The One” from: “You’re The One” – Single / RIOT / February 26, 2021 [Solo artist Lava Dreams aka Julia Hamilton writes songs influenced by pop, soul, RnB, jazz, trap, house, funk, reggae, rock, and world music. Lava Dreams is planning to release an 11-song album later this year and will be releasing a new single every month leading up to the release. This is the 2nd single and follow up to, “The Amazing Wave” released January 8, 2021 through R.I.O.T. LLC Music and produced by Duncan Burnett. Lava Dreams released their debut EP “Good Energy + Focus” on June 13, 2020. Written by Lava Dreams and produced by Duncan Burnett. Solo artist Lava Dreams aka Julia Hamilton is from Kansas City, MO, her guitar-based music is both dreamy & electric. Lava Dreams began writing lyrics and melodies as a young child. Growing up, she learned to play her first guitar chords from her father – who played around the house and in local bars. After playing guitar and singing in several Kansas City bands as a teenager, she set out to become a solo artist in 2018. Julia Hamilton is also a film maker who received her Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Film from Avila Unversity. You can listen to Lava Dreams on Spotify, iTunes, Tidal, Deezer, Google Play, YouTube Music, SoundCloud, Bandcamp, or at LavaDreamsMusic.com. Lava Dreams joined us on WMM on April 22, 2020. More info at: http://www.LavaDreamsMusic.com]
11:28 – Underwriting
Everett The Grey – “Riddles (Radio Edit)” from: “Riddles” – Single / Alex Hill / February 3, 2021 [Everett The Grey is a genre-bending musician based out of Kansas City who fuses elements of rock, hip-hop, and electronic music to create a unique scenery of sound. Everett The Grey is also know as Alex Hill, a musician and medical student at Kansas University Medical Center. Everett The Grey released the EP, PARAGON, in 2019, and is currently working on his follow up album, I Don’t Want Your Help, is set for release in 2021. Everett The Grey has been featured in The Pitch and played over on 90.1 The Bridge.]
11:34 – Interview with Everette The Grey
Everett The Grey, is a genre-bending musician based out of Kansas City who fuses elements of rock, hip-hop, and electronic music to create a unique scenery of sound. Everett The Grey is also know as Alex Hill, a musician who is also a medical student at University of Kansas School of Medicine. Alex is in his third year at KU studying to become a Physician. Alex studied Pre-Medical Biology at Pittsburg State University where he also studied Philosopy and chemistry and graduated in 2017. Everett The Grey released the debut EP “Paragon” on May 31, 2019. His follow up album, I Don’t Want Your Help, is set for release in 2021. Everett The Grey has been featured in The Pitch and played over on 90.1 The Bridge.
Everette The Grey thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Everette The Grey is the moniker of Alex Hill, who grew up in Joplin, Missouri. He studied Pre-Medical Biology at Pittsburg State University where he also studied Philosophy and Chemistry and graduated in 2017.
Alex moved to Kansas City to attend the University of Kansas School of Medicine where he is in his third year of studying to become an Emergency Room Physician.
Alex shared with us the balancing act between medical school and a music career, and that he is also a dad of a young son and baby daughter. He shared that he has a strong work ethic and that he puts his children first, before everything else.
Everett The Grey singles “Riddles” and “Pillow Cases” will both end up on his upcoming album, I Don’t Want Your Help, set for release in 2021?
Everett The Grey records his tracks, at a recording studio in Joplin, Missouri. He played almost all of the instruments and wrote all the music.
Everett The Grey talked about the music scene in Joplin.
Everett The Grey embrace multiple genres of music in his songs. On stage he is seen fronting the band playing electric guitar and singing. The electric guitar was his first instrument. His mom gave him a Guitar Hero and an electric guitar when he was in Middle school. He played in heavy mental bands in high school.
Everett The Grey thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Everett The Grey released the single “Pillow Cases” on December 18, 2021 and the single “Riddles” on February 3, 2021. Both songs will be on his new album I Don’t Want Your Help, set for release in 2021. And you can learn more about his earlier releases at: http://www.everettthegrey.bandcamp.com
11:46
Everett The Grey – “Pillow Cases (Radio Edit)” from: “Pillow Cases” – Single / Alex Hill / December 18, 2020 [Everett The Grey is a genre-bending musician based out of Kansas City who fuses elements of rock, hip-hop, and electronic music to create a unique scenery of sound. Everett The Grey is also know as Alex Hill, a musician and medical student at Kansas University Medical Center. Everett The Grey released the EP, PARAGON, in 2019, and is currently working on his follow up album, I Don’t Want Your Help, is set for release in 2021. Everett The Grey has been featured in The Pitch and played over on 90.1 The Bridge.]
Joy Zimmerman – “We’ll Hold The Light” from: “We’ll Hold The Light” – Single / Cultivate Joy Records / January 25, 2021 [We’ll Hold the Light – Music & Lyrics by Joy Zimmerman. Recorded, Mixed & Mastered: Duane Trower, Weights and Measures Soundlab, Kansas City, MO. Joy Zimmerman on vocals, guitar & violin, Ryan Dugan on guitar, bass, & harmony vocals; Beau Bledsoe on dobro; and Christine Broxterman on cello. Joy Zimmerman writes: “We’ll Hold the Light is a song of gratitude for the brave, selfless work of health care workers and first responders every day and especially during this pandemic. Facing unprecedented and life-threatening conditions, they have provided steadfast care for us all. I was inspired to write this song from my front row seat to heroism. My spouse, Linda, is an anesthesiologist at a Level 1 Trauma Center, safety net hospital, so I have witnessed the toll of long, stressful shifts within an overtaxed medical system.” // “Working all night at the hospital is like time out of time. The outside world, which includes your loved ones and friends, goes on without you. You miss dinner, bedtime, gatherings of friends, special events. And you are immersed in trauma, illness, grief, loneliness that those outside your work life will never know. The chasm between the two parts of your life sometimes feels immense…” ~Dr. Linda Dill // Joy Zimmmerman continues: “How do health care workers and first responders handle the sights and sounds they experience, the vicarious trauma, the grief? Let’s make sure our gratitude is backed by a strong commitment to adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), mental health services and other support. I encourage you to join me in making a donation to your local YMCA Covid-19 Emergency Child Care Services for Essential Workers. These program offer child care and other services at 1,000 sites nationwide for families of medical personnel, essential employees and first responders. https://www.ymca.net/emergency-child-care-services. Joy Zimmerman released her 12-song album, PUZZLING BRUSH, on February 12, 2021. We’ll Hold the Light is available for free download at joyzimmermanmusic.com. Please share with healthcare workers and first responders in your world.]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on Wednesday, March 24, 2021 Nico Gray joins us as Guest Producer. AND, at 11:30 Katy Guillen and Stephanie Williams of Katy Guillen and The Drive, join us live.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
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, March 17, 2021
New & MidCoastal Releases + R.I.Peter + Club Sinister + Everett The Grey
WMM plays more New & MidCoastal Releases from: The Freedom Affair, The Roseline, Lava Dreams, Chess Club, R.I.Peter, Rob Rice with Clint Ashlock & Eva Louise Hall, Everett The Grey, Joy Zimmerman, J. Jerome with Melissa Backstrom, Club Sinister, Greg LaFollette, Valerie June & Carla Thomas, Goat Girl, and Blondie.
At 10:30 Alex Horton & Ian Weidner of the band, Club Sinister, talk about their new self titled, debut EP. Alex & Ian formed Club Sinister in early 2020. They met in middle school and have been friends ever since. The two spent ten years sharpening their songwriting by playing in a variety of bands from indie rock to metal. While they played together in previous bands, this is their first project as a duo since relocating to Kansas City a few years ago. The duo have always been drawn to darker music and imagery, but the desperate and unsettling nature of the EP really mirrors the past year that many have experienced. More info at: https://linktr.ee/clubsinister
At 11:00 Peter Beatty joins us to talk about his musical project: R.I.Peter and his new 12-track album, SOFT SERVE, from Manor Records on March 19, 2021. R.I.Peter has already released the new singles “In Your Eyes,” and “Green House” in February. Kansas City based musician and songwriter Peter Beatty also plays in the band Momma’s Boy, and before that was in the band Rev Gusto. Peter studied at University of Kansas. Peter Beatty released his debut EP solo project R.I.Peter on July 5, 2019.More info at http://www.manorrecords.com
At 11:30 AM Mark talks with Everett The Grey, a genre-bending musician based out of Kansas City. Everett the Grey fuses elements of rock, hip-hop, and electronic music to create a unique scenery of sound. Everett The Grey is also know as Alex Hill, a musician who is also a medical student at Kansas University Medical Center. Everett The Grey released the debut EP “Paragon” on May 31, 2019. His follow up album, I Don’t Want Your Help, is set for release in 2021. Everett The Grey has been featured in The Pitch and played over on 90.1 The Bridge.
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
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, March 10, 2021
New & MidCoastal Releases + Sarah Magill + Dan Jones + Juliette Frost
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Monta At Odds – “When I’m Gone (feat. Teri Quinn)” from: When I’m Gone – Single / The Record Machine / March 5, 2021 [Monta At Odds returns with another blast of sonics with their latest single, “When I’m Gone.” Monta At Odds has traced its adventure from its inception to vocalist Teri Quinn’s addition to their sleek, indie-Tronic cascade of the band’s latest recording. An electric drum punch and layers of buzzing synths anchor Quinn’s pleading words, depositing the fact that “we both know you’ll feel better when I’m gone.” It’s the hard choice of ending a relationship and hanging on for dear life. // Monta At Odds is a Kansas City combo led by the brothers Dedric and Delaney Moore. The two have played music together all their lives and have been exploring the Monta At Odds sound since the band’s debut in 2000. Dedric’s pulsing, melodic bass and Delaney’s artfully unhinged synthesizers frame the band’s central character, which is fleshed out by a talented cast of musicians and collaborators. The result is a heady sonic pool that has been inscrutably referred to as ‘Ummagumma meets Arthur Russell’s mutant disco at Vangelis’s house.’ // 2020 finds the addition of acclaimed vocalists, guitarists, and songwriters Mikal Shapiro and Teri Quinn to the band’s lineup. With Mikal and Teri’s otherworldly vocal contributions, Monta At Odds continues to push their alternate reality into streamlined consciousness. Lucas Behrens on guitar and synth and Matthew Heinrich on drums both rounds out the stellar lineup. The group released Zen Diagram in May of 2020 as a more post-punk leaning follow-up to Argentum Dreams. Expect minimal rhythms set to maximum noise, shoegazed guitar signals, slo-mo psychedelic darkwave, endless dub echo, and extended-cut warped disco. Live musicians manipulating time and space via knob turning, cymbal cracking, and pedal pushing as they interlock into hypnotic moments of heavenly bliss that seem to hold forever, captivating the mind. // This single is a follow-up to the December 18, 2020 released A GREAT CONJUNCTION their 5-song EP released just in to coincide with the ‘double-planet’ convergence of Jupiter and Saturn on December 21 which last occurred in 1226. These tunes form a soundtrack to the planetary event, five songs linked together by the vastness of space and as a meditation on our infinitesimal place in the universe. The EP featured Krystof Nemeth, Teri Quinn, Alexander Thomas, Dedric Moore and Matthew Heinrich. Monta At Odds released their 4-song EP Zen Diagram last year on May 1, 2020. Monta At Odd’s seventh full-length album, Peak of Eternal Light, is to be released in 2021 on The Record Machine. In late 2020 Monta At Odds released the single “When Stars Grow Old.” Monta At Odds released their 6th full length album Argentum Dreams on Oct 19, 2018. More info at: http://www.facebook.com/montaatodds%5D
KNIFE CRIME — “Lump Sum” From: Lovely Gary / Black-Site / April 13, 2021 [After spending months at Massive Sounds studio with producer Paul Malinowski in 2019 and then waiting out the worst of the pandemic’s stranglehold, Knife Crime’s debut album, Lovely Gary, is ready. Finally. // Knife Crime is a band of four veterans of Kansas City’s music community. Going back to the early 1990s, founding brothers Byron Huhmann on guitars, piano & lead vocals; Brad Huhmann on bass & vocals, have played with a small legion of bands, including TV Fifty, Onward Crispin Glover, the Dark Circles, Truck Stop Love, Red Kate and Lushbox. Jake Cardwell on drums & percussion came aboard in 2012, and has played drums for Reflector, the Belles, the Caves and the Conquerors. In 2018, multi-instrumentalist Jeremiah James Gonzalez on guitar & vocals joined, bringing along a resume that includes Elevator Division, Monta at Odds, Be/Non, Umberto, Rhunes and Redder Moon. Songs by Knife Crime. Recorded & mixed by Paul Malinowski, at Massive Sound Studios, Shawnee, KS Mastering by Mike Nolte, Eureka Mastering, Portland, Oregon. Additional mastering & lacquer cutting: Chris Muth, Taloowa Corp., Yonkers, NY. Vinyl Manufacturing: Kindercore Vinyl, Athens, GA. // Follow up to their single release “Falcon” on January 8, 2020. Produced by Knife Crime. Mastered by Dave Gaume at Element Recording Studios. Knife Ccrime is a 4-piece Kansas City based band formed on January 19, 2011. More info at: http://www.black-site.org]
[Knife Crime plays Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming (NW corner of Wyoming & 17th St.), behind Voltaire, on Friday, April 30, at 6:00 PM with Emmaline Twist and Dan Jones and the Squids. Lemonade Park is a limited capacity socially distanced outdoor venue created in partnership between recordBar, Voltaire, and Moxie Catering.]
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio – “Inner City Blues” from: Coleman Records Presents: Brighter Days Ahead / Colemine / February 19, 2021 [Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) by Marvin Gaye & James Nyx Jr. released Sept. 16, 1971.// From label owner Terry Cole, “It was on March 16, 2020 that we closed up our storefront as the reality of a worldwide pandemic began to spread across the Midwest. We had no idea how it was going to impact our shop, our label, or the artists we represent. We were all fortunate to have our family members stay safe and healthy; however, the livelihood of many of our friends and artists were drastically and immediately impacted. No tours, no live performances, record shops closed, pressing plants shut down, etc. And while the level of uncertainty was unnerving, from that uncertainty came the idea for Brighter Days Ahead. We knew we wanted to continue to release new music, but proceeding with our heavy 2020 release schedule as planned seemed ill advised. So the idea was to release individual tracks from many of our artists on a weekly basis and as a musical family, we could all help shine light on each individual artist weekly. Strength in numbers! So throughout the summer and into the fall, that’s what we did. We released several dozen tracks and the weekly announcements certainly garnered a strong sense of community for our artists and fans alike. We’re very proud to present Brighter Days Ahead: a compilation from our talented stable of artists on both our Colemine and Karma Chief imprints.” Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio – “Inner City Blues” was the b-side of their a-side single “Fo Sho” released Sept. 22, 2020 and from Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio’s 2nd studio album, I TOLD YOU SO, released January 29, 2021 on Colemine Records. // Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio specialize in the lost art of “feel good music.” The ingredients of this intoxicating cocktail include a big helping of the 1960s organ jazz stylings of Jimmy Smith and Baby Face Willette; a pinch of the snappy soul strut of Booker T. The M.G.’s and The Meters; and sprinkles Motown, Stax Records, blues, and cosmic Jimi Hendrix-style guitar. It’s a soul-jazz concoction that goes straight to your heart and head makes your body break out in a sweat. // The band features organist Delvon Lamarr, a self-taught virtuosic musician, with perfect pitch who taught himself jazz and has effortlessly been able to play a multitude of instruments. On guitar is the dynamo Jimmy James who eases through Steve Cropper-style chanking guitar, volcanic acid-rock freak-out lead playing, and slinky Grant Green style jazz. From Reno, Nevada is drummer Dan Weiss (also of the powerhouse soul and funk collective The Sextones). Dan’s smoldering pocket-groove drumming locks in the trio’s explosive chemistry. // Founded by Lamarr’s wife and manager Amy Novo, the trio started from humble beginnings in 2015, but since then has released two Billboard charting albums and toured the world to sold out venues.]
Amythyst Kiah – “Black Myself” from: Black Myself – Single / Rounder Records / February 19, 2021 [With an unforgettable voice that’s both unfettered and exquisitely controlled, the Tennessee-bred singer/ songwriter expands on the uncompromising artistry she most recently revealed as part of Our Native Daughters, an all-women-of-color supergroup whose Kiah-penned standout “Black Myself” earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best American Roots Song and won Song of the Year at the 2019 Folk Alliance International Awards. When met with the transcendent quality of her newly elevated sound, what emerges is an extraordinary vessel for Kiah’s songwriting: a raw yet nuanced examination of grief, alienation, and the hard-won triumph of total self-acceptance. // This new studio version of “Black Myself” is a glorious collision of two vastly different worlds: the iconoclastic alt-rock that first sparked her musical passion, and the roots/old-time-music scene. Produced by Tony Berg (Phoebe Bridgers, Amos Lee, Andrew Bird) the track was recorded at the legendary Sound City Studios in Los Angeles. More info at: http://www.amythystkiah.com]
John Velghe and The Prodigal Sons – “Pissed Off 2AM” from: Pissed Off 2AM b/w Cripple Side of Town, Billy Clubs and Mercy / John Velghe / Feb 19, 2021 [All proceeds will be donated to the Austin Mutual Aid http://www.gofundme.com/f/kick-the-cold-austin-mutal-aid. // LINER NOTES from John Velghe: Alejandro had just released “Pissed Off 2AM” from this album, With These Hands, when I met him in 1996 at Liberty Hall in Lawrence, Kansas. For me, this song has always been nine stories at once. // I rediscovered it in the middle of a pandemic when it reminded me of my friends and how much I miss my band. In the winter of 2020, Al’s lyrics sounded like he could have written them that same week in 2020; longing for those 2AM drives from one stage to the next in a van stuffed with mates and instruments but not much sleep or sense. The drives where you forget the songs until the next night and instead remember movies, or baseball players, or which Wu Tang album is the best. // So I talked to the Prodigal Sons and asked them if they were into recording a cover of it. They were game as always; a luxury I’ve grown accustomed to over the last 10 years and one I swear I’ll never take for granted again. // As we were wrapping up tracks a winter storm laid waste to Texas leaving my family and dearest friends without power, water, or food for days. My friend Bobby Daniel sent me a photos. In it, the East side of Austin (The “Cripple Side of Town”) was dark as a midnight reservoir. But on the other side of I35, Downtown Austin’s hotels and office buildings twinkled and glowed like Manhattan during dinner hour. “Pissed Off 2AM” took on a tenth story. // So we all pitched in and finished this track up so we can release it today and try to scape together even a little bit of money to help our friends in Austin. // For the first several years I knew him, Alejandro sort of served as the Musical Mayor of Austin. Bringing bands like ours and others from all over the world in to play his showcases at SXSW. It only seemed right that we’d try to return that favor and make this cover into some kind of civic act for a city that has always welcomed us with such grace and sweetness. // Working on this song was almost agonizing at times because it just kept reminding me of how much I miss my band. For some of them life has completely changed since the start of the pandemic; a breakup, one in locked-down in Paris for months, one adopting a foster son, and I learned one has an illness that puts him into a high-risk category for Covid while two of them contracted the virus over the last few months. Our lives have all changed too much in the past 11 months of what I was promised would be stasis. // One of my favorite pastimes at our shows is to turn away from the mic and watch my bandmates play. Just to watch my favorite musicians play music; to be an audience member with the best view. There were times I’d be mixing this in tears from wishing to see the Prodigal Sons making music again. But I would hit these points while mixing where I’d see them like they were in the room with me. I’d see Hermon playing trumpet with Sam and Mike Walker right next to him. Josh seated at his steel right in front of them. Chris or Mike singing backup while playing something I could only fake at. // The whole process wrapped up on a Kansas City day when the temperature finally rose above freezing after 10 of single digits and snow; interminable cloud cover and wither. While my friends and family in Texas were still without power and water, to their North we are finally starting to feel the sun. // This day, like Alejandro’s song, reminds me that after a long long freeze, the sun will come to cold places. That 2AM will yield to 10PM, and we’ll take those stages again, sweat, laugh, drink and maybe bleed if we’re lucky. I will see my mates, and we will make music, because that’s all we have between us. Info at: http://www.johnvelghe.com]
Jillian Riscoe – “People in The Real World” from: People in The Real World – Single / Avenue Record Company / March 5, 2021 [Singing and performing since the age of 7, Jillian has had her share of success. The Kansas City native singer/songwriter and musician has toured and performed across the United States, including the NAMM show, major sporting events, the Grammy Museum Music Revolution Project, and the CDBaby DIY Musician’s Conference. She has received regional music awards, secured national radio airplay, and opened up for artists like Pat Benatar, Rick Springfield, Lisa Loeb, Everclear, Tantric, Stabbing Westward. Jillian Riscoe is learning to fly again. The award-winning soulful rock and pop vocalist is writing new songs about resilience and courage. It’s all a part of her own recovery from a difficult relationship that endured the deep throws of abuse and alcoholism. // But far from internalizing her struggles, she is using music to share her story and connect with others. “I love that with music, there are infinite possibilities of creation and self-expression,” says Riscoe. “Music has been there for me through everything, and I hope mine can be there for others as well.” More information at: http://www.jillianriscoe.com]
[Jilian Riscoe plays Seresto® Stage Live! at Bar K, 501 Berkley Parkway, Kansas City, MO on Saturday, March 13, at 2:00 PM]
[Jilian Riscoe plays a free Concert Saturday, March 27, at 7:00 PM at Harley’s Hideaway Bar & Grill, 12200 Johnson Drive, Shawnee Kansas 66216]
10:29 – Underwriting
Quiet Takes – “San Fidel” from: “San Fidel” – EP / Sarah Magill / March 5, 2021 [Sarah Magill released “San Fidel” under her moniker, Quiet Takes. Written by Sarah Magill. Produced by David Bennett and Sarah Magill. Vocals and keys by Sarah Magill on vocals & keyboards, David Bennett on guitars and bass, Ian Thompson on additional keyboards & synthesizers, Kyle Rausch on drums, and Bryan Koehler on percussion. Engineered and mixed by David Bennett at Aorist Studios in Kansas City, MO. Mastered by Zach Hanson. Cover image by Shawn Brackbill. Sarah Magill released her single “Wanted (The Dirty Windshield Version)” on May 1, 2020. . Sarah Magill released Ahem, a 4-song EP, on December 11, 2020. The songs were originally released under her old project name MYRY, in November 2018. Quiet Takes (formerly MYRY) is an on-going collaborative music project by Sarah Magill a writer & musician based in KC. She performs with a rotating cast of friends—although these stay-at-home days, she is playing solo. In KC, she is known for hosting house shows and co-founding Rubix, a performance art collective. MYRY’s first EP, AHEM, was released in 2018. Sarah released four of MYRY’s songs from that 2018 EP release as Quiet Takes singles in 2020. Sarah Magill was a guest on WMM on May 13, 2020. More info at: https://quiettakes.com ]
San Fidel EP Cover Photo by: Shawn Brackbill
10:35 – Interview with Sarah Magill
Musician and songwriter Sarah Magill joins us live to talk about her music project Quiet Takes, and the new EP, San Fidel, released on March 5, 2021. Sarah performs with a rotating cast of friends—although these stay-at-home days, she is playing solo. In KC, she is known for hosting house shows and co-founding Rubix, a performance art collective. More info at: https://quiettakes.com.
Sarah Magill Thanks for being with us again on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Last time we talked with Sarah was on May 13, 2020, just after she released the single, “Wanted (The Dirty Windshield Version)” on May 1, 2020. A different version of “Wanted” is part of your new 5-song EP “San Fidel”
“Wanted (The Dirty Windshield Version)” was one of our favorite singles of 2020.
Sarah Magill writes: “Wanted” lives in the ellipses between acknowledging you want something you can’t have…and letting that desire go. The plan was to put this stripped-down version out in the fall after releasing its more produced twin on an EP this summer, but then everything changed. Beyond the pandemic’s catastrophic casualties, we are all grappling with lesser losses: plans, jobs, dreams, relationships, routines, shows, savings, physical touch. It seemed right to put this version out now. Sometimes we only realize what we want when it’s absent. That’s the gift in the grief, but it stings, doesn’t it? Music & Lyrics by Sarah Magill. Produced by David Bennett. Vocals & keyboards by Sarah Magill, guitars, & bass by David Bennett. Extra keyboards by Ian Thompson. Engineered & mixed by David Bennett at Aorist Studios in KCMO. Mastered by Zach Hanson.
The plan was to put this stripped-down version out in the fall after releasing its more produced twin on an EP this summer, but then everything changed. Beyond the pandemic’s catastrophic casualties, we are all grappling with lesser losses: plans, jobs, dreams, relationships, routines, shows, savings, physical touch. It seemed right to put this version out now. Sometimes we only realize what we want when it’s absent. That’s the gift in the grief, but it stings, doesn’t it?
Born (drums, guitar, bass, synths, layered harmonizing vocals)
San Fidel was engineered and mixed by David Bennett at Aorist Studios in Kansas City, MO. Quiet Takes is an on-going collaborative music project by Sarah Magill a writer & musician based in KC.
Written by Sarah Magill. Produced by David Bennett and Sarah Magill.
Sarah Magill on vocals & keyboards. David Bennett on guitars and bass, Ian Thompson on additional keyboards & synthesizers, Kyle Rausch on drums Bryan Koehler on percussion.
Engineered and mixed by David Bennett at Aorist Studios in Kansas City, MO. Mastered by Zach Hanson. San Fidel, Sarah’s Liner Notes:
On San Fidel, the new EP from Quiet Takes, Midwestern introvert Sarah Magill weaves threads of intimate, soft-focus synth-pop, minimal breaks, and uplifting piano ballad into a melodic cozy sweater—ready to be wrapped snugly around our bruised psyches. Her languid, captivating vocals slide gracefully from woozy coo to ethereal shimmer. As Magill calls it, Quiet Takes is “music for feelers.”
Sarah Magill
Magill grew up the small-town version of classically trained. Her first piano teacher lived two miles down the road from her southwest Iowa farm. “She told me it doesn’t matter if you make mistakes as long as you can feel the music,” says Magill, “but it took me years to understand what she was talking about.” Magill wrote songs in her head and sang them into corn cribs, competed in piano contests, and played in high school and college bands. One of them made a valiant charge at the music industry, only to crash and burn after a few records.
Eventually, with a corporate writing job keeping the lights on, Magill tried to be satisfied just going to shows and watching other people play. It was no good; she was still in love with creating music. . “I accepted the fact that nothing else was ever going to make me happy, so I started making music again” she explains. “I had been friends with musician/producer David Bennett for years and always admired his work in Akkilles. Sometime in early 2018, I called him up, we met at my favorite coffee shop, and off we went on the first batch of songs that became my record Ahem (2018)”.
In the space between the Ahem EP and tracking San Fidel, Magill found herself in the midst of a deluge of upheaval. Friends moved away and other relationships morphed, shifted and strained under lives taking different directions. Her instinctive reaction to the chaos was to redouble her focus on songwriting. Committing to making art in any way demands getting comfortable with longing and loneliness. San Fidel is an exploration of that process. Of learning to feel both those things without shame. Of the ongoing struggle just to feel it, without trying to explain it or judge it or tidy it up.
San Fidel was written, literally, on the road. Magill pulls melodies from the ether while driving. She sings nonsense words that flash by on road signs or passing trucks, charting a found-sound audio trip diary into her phone. “The chorus to “San Fidel” was written like that” explains Magill. “I was driving past San Fidel, New Mexico, and singing to myself. Later, I found a picture of an old San Fidel curio shop online, and I started imagining what it would have been like to live there, to work in that curio shop, right when Route 66 was dying…that feeling that something is ending and you have no idea what’s ahead. All you have is the present. No promises. And maybe these people were holding on a little longer, dancing in the fantasy a bit before they had to face reality.”
When the time came to track, Magill once again returned to David Bennett and Aorist Studios in Kansas City, MO. Produced by Magill and Bennett (who also plays guitars and bass on the record), San Fidel features additional keys and synth by Ian Thompson (Akkilles), drums by Kyle Rausch (Shy Boys), and percussion by Bryan Koehler (Akkilles). The record was engineered and mixed by Bennett, and mastered by Zach Hanson (Bon Iver, S. Carey).
Artists often create work that proves prescient. With San Fidel, Quiet Takes has delivered a soundtrack to the process of learning to sit with loneliness and longing. While no one anticipated those would be lessons learned globally in this turbulent year, we are lucky to have San Fidel to help guide us through.
Quiet Takes was most recently called MYRY. Myry music that was released in November 2018.was re-released by Sarah Magill, under the name: Quiet Takes released on December 11, 2020. // Music & Lyrics by Sarah Magill (More) and Sarah Magill and David Bennett (Problem, Don’t Make Plans and Just Just Just). // Vocals & keys by Sarah Magill on vocals & keyboards, David Bennett on guitars & bass, Drew little on drums & percussion. Produced, engineered & mixed by David Bennett at Aorist Studios in Kansas City, Missouri. Mastered by Zach Hanson. Artwork by Joe Hoog
During these stay-at-home days of COVID-19 Sarah is creating solo works.
In Kansas City, she is known for hosting house shows and co-founding Rubix, a performance art collective.
Sarah Magill Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Musician and songwriter Sarah Magill just released the new EP San Fidel, on March 5, 2021. More info at http://www.quiettakes.com
10:48
Quiet Takes – “Born” from: “San Fidel” – EP / Sarah Magill / March 5, 2021 [Sarah Magill released “San Fidel” under her moniker, Quiet Takes. Written by Sarah Magill. Produced by David Bennett and Sarah Magill. Vocals and keys by Sarah Magill on vocals & keyboards, David Bennett on guitars and bass, Ian Thompson on additional keyboards & synthesizers, Kyle Rausch on drums, and Bryan Koehler on percussion. Engineered and mixed by David Bennett at Aorist Studios in Kansas City, MO. Mastered by Zach Hanson. Cover image by Shawn Brackbill. Sarah Magill released her single “Wanted (The Dirty Windshield Version)” on May 1, 2020. . Sarah Magill released Ahem, a 4-song EP, on December 11, 2020. The songs were originally released under her old project name MYRY, in November 2018. Quiet Takes (formerly MYRY) is an on-going collaborative music project by Sarah Magill a writer & musician based in KC. She performs with a rotating cast of friends—although these stay-at-home days, she is playing solo. In KC, she is known for hosting house shows and co-founding Rubix, a performance art collective. MYRY’s first EP, AHEM, was released in 2018. Sarah released four of MYRY’s songs from that 2018 EP release as Quiet Takes singles in 2020. Sarah Magill was a guest on WMM on May 13, 2020. More info at: https://quiettakes.com ]
Asterales – “Offline” from: Offline – Single / Asterales / February 26, 2021 [Kansas City based leftfield, experimental, electronica music maker, also known as Nate Holt. Since 2016 Asterales has released the 5-track EP, WORK HOURS on September 6, 2016 in collaboration with Aikido Bray, Leo Minor, Katlyn Conroy, and Tanner Walle, with synthesizers, production, recording, engineering and mastering by Etan Tioh for Datura Records. This was followed by the 3-track EP, Fragments, released February 3, 2017. Asterales released the single A.M. on February 4, 2017. Asterales released the 10-track album, OUTSIDE THE BOX on October 31, 2017. Asterales released the singles: “BRKFST 4 BTLVRS” on October 31, 2017; and “Soft Spheres” on April 21, 2018. Asterales released the 10-track album ORBITAL DEBRIS: VOL. 1 on August 14, 2020 on Mr. Furious Records. Asterales released the single “ASTR_40”on August 26, 2020. Asterales released the 4-song EP EXTRA JUNK on December 4, 2020 through Mr. Furious Records. Asterales released the singles: “Solstice Song” on December 21, 2020, and “Desire (Tanner Walle) – Asterales Remix” on January 29, 2021. More information at http://www.asterales.bandcamp.com]
Riley The Musician – “99″ from: “99” – Single / Riley The Musician / February 15, 2021 [Riley The Musician is a non-binary, KC based producer, electronica music maker, producer, & DJ. This is the first single of the upcoming album Montana. Riley The Producer released the 5-track EP TEENAGE HEART- THROB on June 29, 2018. Riley The Producer released the 13-track album ART IS DEAD, on June 6, 2019. Riley The Producer released the 7-track EP, ANA KENNEDY, on July 10, 2020. Riley The Producer released the 7-track EP, ANA KENNEDY DEMOS, on Sept. 4, 2020. Riley The Producer released the 2-track Single, “Iced Out” b/w “Ice Out (Slowed)” on Sept. 16, 2020. More info at: https://linktr.ee/rileythemusician
11:00 – Station ID
Dan Jones and The Squids – “The Rhythm and The Rhyme” from: Serve Without Delay / Dan Jones / February 5, 2021 [Recorded Friday, November 13, 2020 in a LIVE STREAMING SHOW at recordBAR, with Paul Malinowski: live sound & recording engineer. Mixed and edited by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sound, Shawnee Kansas. Mastered by Tom Nunes at Atomic Disc. Dan Jones on guitar & vocals, Matt Ronan on drums & vocals; Steve Tulipana on bass & vocals. All songs by Daniel Sherman Jones (BMI), except “I Wanna Be You” by Ed Cole SERVE WITHOUT DELAY, is the new Dan Jones and The Squids live album of NEW songs, 14 live tracks and 7 home recordings. Their 2019/2020 release, We Live In A World That Is Out Of This World, is included. // In 2020 the band didn’t get to play out much, so they hunkered down and worked up a double album’s worth of new tunes. It was a weekly woodshed-workshop that culminated with a live-streamed live-album show on November 13, 2020 at recordBAR. Paul Malinowski engineered and mixed. //Jones is among the hardworking lifers with taste and talent, keeping the dream alive that music matters. This is the Kansas City singer/songwriter’s seventh LP over two decades, starting in Eugene, OR before returning to his native, non-coastal home. His bio speaks of support gigs with Mike Watt (who plays these Squids on his radio show), Dinosaur Jr., Steve Wynn, John Doe, Tav Falco, Pedaljets, Peter Case, and Minus 5, all hinted at in his fine music. But what he/they most remind of is Watt’s influence The Urinals/100 Flowers, in the way he breaks out homey tunes in the rush of spikier energy—like “My Favorite Lounge,” which spits guitar glory with gusto following tight circular riffs, while hailing soulful, sweaty dives with honest bands. It’s where you’d want to catch Jones and his cephalopods, happily blasting away. // Dan Jones and The Squids released We Live In A World That Is Out Of This World, on December 6, 2019. It was Recorded at Temple Sounds in KCMO, 2018-2019. Engineered. by JB Moreland. Produced by Dan Jones and The Squids and JB Moreland. Mastered by Tom Nunes at Atomic Disc. With Dan Jones on acoustic & electric guitars, keyboard, lead vocals + drums/bass on “Love/Life”; Matt Ronan on drums, percussion, vocals; Alex Alexander on electric guitar, vocals; Steve Tulipana on bass, vocals; Joey Slab on poem and spiel on “Beach, Please”; Scot Sperry on electric slide guitar on “Love/Life”; Donna Jones on lyrics to “The Violet Man.” More info at: http://www.danjones1.bandcamp.com)]
[Dan Jones and the Squids play Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming (NW corner of Wyoming & 17th St.), behind Voltaire, on Friday, April 30, at 6:00 PM with Emmaline Twist and Knife Crime. Lemonade Park is a limited capacity socially distanced outdoor venue created in partnership between recordBar, Voltaire, and Moxie Catering.]
11:02 – Interview with Dan Jones
Dan Jones joins us live to share details about the new live album, Serve Without Delay, from his band, Dan Jones and The Squids, released on February 5, 2021. This is the Kansas City singer songwriter’s 7th album over two decades, starting in Eugene, Oregon before returning to his native, non-coastal home. Dan Jones has played onstage with Mike Watt (who plays these Squids on his radio show), Dinosaur Jr., Steve Wynn, John Doe, Tav Falco, Pedaljets, Peter Case, and Minus 5. More info at: http://www.danjones1.bandcamp.com
Dan Jones, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Serve Without Delay, was performed and recorded on Friday, November 13, 2020 in a Live Streaming Show from recordBar.
These are new songs, performed live, recorded, edited and mixed by Paul Malinowski of Massive Sound Studios.
It features Dan Jones on guitar & vocals, Matt Ronan on drums & vocals, and Steve Tulipana on bass & vocals.
Dan Jones was on WMM on March 11, 2020 with Matt Ronan of the band to share music and information about Dan Jones & The Squids and their last studio album “We Live In A World That Is Out Of This World” released on December 21, 2019 with: Dan Jones & The Squids includes Dan Jones on acoustic & electric guitars, keyboard, lead vocals; Matt Ronan on drums, percussion & vocals; Alex Alexander on electric guitar & vocals; and Steve Tulipana on bass & vocals.
You can find Dan’s graphic art on Pillows, Rock and Roll Postcards, Coffee Mugs, Music
Dan Jones is an artist, Dan Jones is a musician, Dan Jones is a journalist. On Dan’s website he has a section called TENTACLES where he interviews friends with really fun questions.
We borrowed a few of his questions and turned the tables on Dan
What’s your favorite record right now?
Dan Jones: “The Gun Club – MIAMI, is one I’ve never really had. I bought a copy at Sister Anne’s, about a month or so ago. Man I love that. I read his autobiography (Jeffrey Lee Pierce), and collected lyrics that my buddy Jeff gave me. I’ve just been really immersed in that album. I just love it.”
[Note: The Gun Club were a post-punk band from Los Angeles, California, which existed from 1979 to 1996. Created and led by singer-songwriter and guitarist Jeffrey Lee Pierce, they were notable as one of the first bands in the punk rock subculture to incorporate influences from blues, rockabilly, and country music. The Gun Club has been called a “tribal psychobilly blues” band, as well as initiators of the punk blues sound cowpunk – “He (Pierce) took Robert Johnson and pre-war acoustic blues and ‘punkified’ it. Up until then bands were drawing on Iggy + The Stooges and the New York Dolls but he took it back so much further for inspiration. // Miami is the second studio album by The Gun Club, released in 1982. It was released on Blondie guitarist Chris Stein’s label, Animal Records. Stein also produced the album. // Debbie Harry appears as a backing singer on various tracks on the album under the pseudonym “D.H. Laurence Jr.” The album front cover photograph doesn’t include Rob Ritter who had already left the band. Before leaving, Ritter first taught all the bass-lines to his ex-Bags bandmate Patricia Morrison. // Billy Idol had met up with Pierce in an L.A. bar around the time of Miami and later revealed his commercial hit “White Wedding” had been an attempt to emulate the Gun Club’s “Mother of Earth” from the Miami album.]
How do you take care of your creative practice and stay inspired and energized?
Dan Jones: “That’s a good question.”
Mark: “You wrote it!”
Dan Jones: “I’m fairly routine orientated, so I get up every morning and write. I’ve been doing that for 25 years. Inspired by ‘The Artist’s Way’ the book. I try to exercise. I try to get in few treadmill workouts a week, and I watch movies, and for me it’s about breaking through the workaholism, and have time for friends, ZOOM Calls and calling friends, that helps me a lot, but I think a lot of how I stay energized is watching art movies on Canopy, things like that. It helps me disengage and renew.”
What’s a brick and mortar business you’ve always wanted to work at, something you’d even do for free?
Dan Jones: “My two life-long answers would be Record Stores and or Book Stores, or some combination of both. Lately I’ve thought about a rubber stamp store or sticker store. Like a sticker, rubber stamp and postcard shop. (Laughing) Like retiring in a little coastal city and have a little shop you know where you can sell funky stuff like that.”
Originally from KC, many years lived in Eugene Oregon, and now back in KC. Eugene seems like it’s own little bohemian paradise what do you miss most of your former home?
Dan Jones: “It is. It has sort of a college footprint like Lawrence, and Boulder, and Madison, you know with a liberal enclave. It may not have two, or three, or four ‘world class’ examples of some thing, but there’s always one world class bakery, or one world class bookstore, or one artist or whatever, you know? It is a culturally dense place, full of really cool people, very eclectic, and punk rock and definitely hippy culture for sure. I mean The Grateful Dead’s family roots being from there.
Mark: “What do you miss about Eugene?”
Dan Jones: “I miss the people and my friends, and July and August, that time of year. You trudge through all kinds of bad weather to be alive. Organic farms are hopping and bike riding is great, and swimming holes are great. It’s a special place, but not year round.”
Dan Jones is a punk-influenced rock and roll singer-songwriter living in KC, Missouri.
Dan Jones thanks or being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Dan Jones and The Squids released their new live album, Serve Without Delay, on February 5, 2021. More info at http://www.danjonesmusic.com.
11:15
Dan Jones and The Squids – “Shook Loose” from: Serve Without Delay / Dan Jones / February 5, 2021 [Recorded Friday, November 13, 2020 in a LIVE STREAMING SHOW at recordBAR, with Paul Malinowski: live sound & recording engineer. Mixed and edited by Paul Malinowski at Massive Sound, Shawnee Kansas. Mastered by Tom Nunes at Atomic Disc. Dan Jones on guitar & vocals, Matt Ronan on drums & vocals; Steve Tulipana on bass & vocals. All songs by Daniel Sherman Jones (BMI), except “I Wanna Be You” by Ed Cole SERVE WITHOUT DELAY, is the new Dan Jones and The Squids live album of NEW songs, 14 live tracks and 7 home recordings. Their 2019/2020 release, We Live In A World That Is Out Of This World, is included. // In 2020 the band didn’t get to play out much, so they hunkered down and worked up a double album’s worth of new tunes. It was a weekly woodshed-workshop that culminated with a live-streamed live-album show on November 13, 2020 at recordBAR. Paul Malinowski engineered and mixed. //Jones is among the hardworking lifers with taste and talent, keeping the dream alive that music matters. This is the Kansas City singer/songwriter’s seventh LP over two decades, starting in Eugene, OR before returning to his native, non-coastal home. His bio speaks of support gigs with Mike Watt (who plays these Squids on his radio show), Dinosaur Jr., Steve Wynn, John Doe, Tav Falco, Pedaljets, Peter Case, and Minus 5, all hinted at in his fine music. But what he/they most remind of is Watt’s influence The Urinals/100 Flowers, in the way he breaks out homey tunes in the rush of spikier energy—like “My Favorite Lounge,” which spits guitar glory with gusto following tight circular riffs, while hailing soulful, sweaty dives with honest bands. It’s where you’d want to catch Jones and his cephalopods, happily blasting away. // Dan Jones and The Squids released We Live In A World That Is Out Of This World, on December 6, 2019. It was Recorded at Temple Sounds in KCMO, 2018-2019. Engineered. by JB Moreland. Produced by Dan Jones and The Squids and JB Moreland. Mastered by Tom Nunes at Atomic Disc. With Dan Jones on acoustic & electric guitars, keyboard, lead vocals + drums/bass on “Love/Life”; Matt Ronan on drums, percussion, vocals; Alex Alexander on electric guitar, vocals; Steve Tulipana on bass, vocals; Joey Slab on poem and spiel on “Beach, Please”; Scot Sperry on electric slide guitar on “Love/Life”; Donna Jones on lyrics to “The Violet Man.” More info at: http://www.danjones1.bandcamp.com)]
[Dan Jones and the Squids play Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming (NW corner of Wyoming & 17th St.), behind Voltaire, on Friday, April 30, at 6:00 PM with Emmaline Twist and Knife Crime. Lemonade Park is a limited capacity socially distanced outdoor venue created in partnership between recordBar, Voltaire, and Moxie Catering.]
11:17
Krystle Warren & The Crew – “Dear Landlord” from: The Crew EP / Parlour Door Music / September 15, 2020 [Through isolation came unity. The Crew is Lakecia Benjamin, Matthew Silberman, Jacob Snider, Joe Blaxx, Solomon Dorsey, Zach Djanikian, Cassorla, Krystle Warren, and Ben Kane. They have recorded unique versions of classic songs with the hope of encouraging the rallying cries of The Moment: the movement of the people. // In the lockdown of their homes, they sewed together their interpretations of “Bein’ Green” (based upon Ray Charles’ rendition); “Gimme Some Truth” (a mighty John Lennon composition); “Dear Landlord” (a scathing indictment from the blistering pen of Bob Dylan); and “Rhythm of Life”, (a timeless statement originally performed by Oleta Adams). // A portion of the proceeds from The Crew. EP will be donated to the various causes and organizations. From Billboard.com: Singer-songwriter Krystle Warren has made a powerful statement about the struggle for Black equality with the help of Kermit the Frog’s iconic song “Bein’ Green” (written by Joe Raposo). // The moving five-minute clip, over which Warren sings her rendition of the 1970 song — since recorded by Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and others — sprang from a covers EP she recorded during the pandemic with a group of musicians known as The Crew. Warren embarked on the project after her forthcoming album with her regular group, The Faculty, was put on hold due to COVID-19. The EP, which tackles themes of racial injustice in the wake of nationwide Black Lives Matter protests this summer, also includes a cover of John Lennon’s “Gimme Some Truth.” // The “Bein’ Green” video weaves in footage of this year’s Black Lives Matter protests, and also includes a heartbreaking montage of young Black children choosing white dolls over dark-skinned ones. It additionally features archival footage of such transformative Black figures as James Baldwin, Angela Davis, Malcom X, Nina Simone, Marsha P. Johnson and Al Sharpton, as well as victims of police brutality including Sandra Bland, George Floyd and Eric Garner. It ends with a clip from a speech by civil rights activist Ella Baker. // “‘Bein’ Green,’ it’s such a gorgeous song, and it says so, so much,” says Warren. “I began thinking about what I wanted it to express visually before we started [recording the song]. Essentially — it’s not easy being Black. That’s what Ray Charles was saying, and we felt it needed to be said again.” // Warren, who now resides in Paris, began performing in her native Kansas City at the age of 16 before moving to New York City, where she started busking on the streets and later formed her regular band, The Faculty. She and the group have recorded several full-length albums, including 2009’s Circles, 2012’s Love Songs and 2017’s Three the Hard Way. Her next album is slated for release this winter. // A large percentage of proceeds from sales of the EP — which is available for digital downloads via Warren’s website now and released on all streaming platforms next Friday — will be donated to the ACLU. Krystle Warren joined us live on WMM on September 23, 2020.]
Andra Day – “Tigress & Tweed” from: The United States vs. Billie Holiday (Music from the Motion Picture) / Warner Records / Feb. 19, 2021 [Cassandra Monique Batie was born Dec. 30, 1984, known by her stage name Andra Day, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. From San Diego, California, her debut album, Cheers to the Fall, was released in 2015 and peaked at number 48 on the US Billboard 200 chart. At the 2016 Grammy Awards, the album was nominated for Best R&B Album and the album’s main single, “Rise Up”, was nominated for Best R&B Performance. Day also appeared alongside Stevie Wonder, who is partially credited for her discovery, in an ad for Apple TV in late 2015. Her Cheers to the Fall Tour began in November 2016. // In 2021, she portrayed Billie Holiday in the biopic The United States vs. Billie Holiday, for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama and was also nominated for Best Original Song. Her stage name was inspired by Holiday, whose nickname was “Lady Day”. // Day was born on December 30, 1984, in Edmonds, Washington. She moved to Southern California at age three, and grew up in and around San Diego, California, with her family. She began singing at a young age at the First United Methodist Church in Chula Vista, California. Day also began taking dance lessons at age 5 (a discipline she continued into her 20s). She attended Valencia Park Elementary School which she credits with fostering her interest in performing arts. At age 12, Day was introduced to the sounds of jazz vocalists such as Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Dinah Washington, all of whom she counts as early influences on her sound. Day attended the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts in Paradise Hills where she graduated in 2003]
Ivy Roots – “Truth about each other” from: LOVE ART GROWTH 2 / Ivy Roots / December 16, 2020 [Ivy Roots released the single “Home” on April 22, 2020. KC native singer songwriter, who plays piano & guitar, and produces beats. Her style ranges from R & B, Neo Soul, Hip Hop, Acoustic, & Pop. The acoustic guitar strumming songstress draws from her inspirations; Stevie Wonder, Lauryn Hill, Deangelo, and India Arie. Ivy Roots studied audio engineering at Kansas City, Kansas Community College. She toured in a 5-piece reggae band, played regional festivals, Los Angeles, and collaborated with film & performance. She also sang in a vocal jazz group at a performing arts jazz festival at Lincoln Center in NYC, before releasing her first album “Bad Intuition” and beginning her solo career. In 2019 Ivy Roots released her EP Love Art Growth on June 5, 2019 where she collaborated with Eddie Moore. Ivy Roots released her debut album Bad Intuition on April 14, 2016. Written & produced by Ivy.]
11:28 – Underwriting
Juliette Frost – “dull box” from: New 6-song EP / Juliette Frost / Unreleased [Juliette Frost about her new 6-song EP that was created in a 5-day recording session, last December in Los Angeles, with musician, bassist, & producer Dominique Sanders. The songs, written by Juliette, feature her vocals layered in harmonies, beats and soundscapes. On April 18, 2020 Juliette released Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys, her 19-track, debut, recorded in her bedroom, sampling sounds from her own cats meowing and purring, among others. Juliette Frost is the daughter of opera and jazz vocalist Emily Frost and nationally known Hip Hop Beatboxer Adrian “A-Train” Frost. ]
11:34 – Interview with Juliette Frost
16-year old vocalist, songwriter, & visual artist, Juliette Frost joins us to talk about her new 6-song EP that was created in a 5-day recording session, last December in Los Angeles, with musician, bassist, & producer Dominique Sanders. The songs, written by Juliette, feature her vocals layered in harmonies, beats & soundscapes. Less than a year ago, on April 18, 2020, Juliette released, Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys, her 19-track, debut, recorded in her bedroom, sampling sounds from her own cats meowing and purring, among others. Juliette Frost is the daughter of opera and jazz vocalist Emily Frost and nationally known Hip Hop Beatboxer Adrian “A-Train” Frost.
Juliette Frost thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Last December Juliette spent 5 days in a recording studio with jazz musician, bassist, and producer Dominique Sanders recording songs for a new EP.
On April 18, 2020, Juliette Frost released Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys – The 19-track, self produced, debut album. She recorded the album in her bedroom, sampling sounds from her own cats meowing and purring, among others.
Juliette has had the opportunity to see the recording process from two very different perspectives: in a recording studio in LA, and in her own private bedroom, working by herself. Juliette says that she prefers the alone time, in her bedroom process, because she can translate her ideas into reality, much faster.
When Juliette was making the music for, Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys, she really wasn’t thinking of putting out an album. She was just creating music, and before she knew it she had all of these songs.
Many of the songs on this album Juliette has been working on for several years.
Juliette says she realized her musical passion, and that she had the abilities to create music and songs when she was in middle school.
We asked Juliette if going to LA last December was welcome relief from the COVID-19 Pandemic? Juliette says that she is thankful for COVID-19 and the shut down, because if gave her the opportunity to stop and realize.
16-year old artist and musician, Juilette Frost, is a Junior at Shawnee Mission North High School. Juliette is not only a songwriter and producer of music but she is also a visual artist who created amazing collage art, and is also a painter and fine artist.
Juliette grew up surrounded by music in her home, Juliette is the daughter of opera and jazz vocalist Emily Frost and nationally known Hip Hop Beatboxer Adrian “A-Train” Frost. Growing up Juliette thought that every kid had parents who were musicians. She didn’t realize until getting older and talking with friends that her family was different and special. Having a mom and dad who were professional musicians had an effect because Juliette grew up surrounded by music.
In addition to the album, Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys, Juliette Frost also released the single “burd,” on February 8, 2021.
Juliette Frost thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Juliette Frost released Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys – her 19-track, self produced, debut album on April 18, 2020. In addition to the album, Juliette Frost also released the single “burd,” on February 8, 2021.
11:47
Juliette Frost – “rain” from: New 6-song EP / Juliette Frost / Unreleased [Juliette Frost about her new 6-song EP that was created in a 5-day recording session, last December in Los Angeles, with musician, bassist, & producer Dominique Sanders. The songs, written by Juliette, feature her vocals layered in harmonies, beats and soundscapes. On April 18, 2020 Juliette released Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys, her 19-track, debut, recorded in her bedroom, sampling sounds from her own cats meowing and purring, among others. Juliette Frost is the daughter of opera and jazz vocalist Emily Frost and nationally known Hip Hop Beatboxer Adrian “A-Train” Frost.]
Shadow Figures – “Oppress” from: “Oppress” – Single / Shadow Figures / January 1, 2021 [Imagined by husband and wife creative duo, Dallas & Jade Gutschenritter (aka Jade The Libra), Shadow Figures was created as a vessel to provide an alternate perspective on the convergence of senses. With little interest in conforming to specific genres, Shadow Figures instead seek to break conventions, focusing more on inducing a particular feeling or capturing a specific mood.]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on Wednesday, March 17, 2021 we talk with members of the band Club Sinister. At 11:00 we talk with R.I.Peter about his new album on Manor Records, and at 11:30 Everette The Grey joins us to share his new single.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
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, March 10, 2021
New & MidCoastal Releases + Sarah Magill + Dan Jones + Juliette Frost
WMM plays more New & MidCoastal Releases from: Knife Crime, Monta At Odds, Krystle Warren, Dan Jones and the Squids, Quiet Takes, John Velghe and The Prodigal Sons, Juliette Frost, Jillian Riscoe, Riley The Musician, Ivy Roots, Shadow Figures, Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, Amethyst Kiah, Asterales, and Andra Day.
Quiet Takes
At 10:30 AM Mark talks with musician and songwriter Sarah Magill about her music project Quiet Takes and the new EP San Fidel, released on March 5, 2021. “San Fidel” was engineered and mixed by David Bennett at Aorist Studios in Kansas City, MO. Quiet Takes is an on-going collaborative music project by Sarah Magill a writer & musician based in KC. She performs with a rotating cast of friends—although these stay-at-home days, she is playing solo. In KC, she is known for hosting house shows and co-founding Rubix, a performance art collective. More info at: https://quiettakes.com.
At 11:00 Dan Jones of Dan Jones and The Squids joins us live to shares details about the new live album, Serve Without Delay, released on February 5, 2021 and recorded one year earlier, just before the shut down on Friday, February 13, 2020 at recordBAR. Recorded, edited and mixed by Paul Malinowski of Massive Sound Studios. It features Dan Jones on guitar & vocals, Matt Ronan on drums & vocals, and Steve Tulipana on bass & vocals. This is the Kansas City singer songwriter’s seventh album over two decades, starting in Eugene, Oregon before returning to his native, non-coastal home. Dan Jones has played onstage with Mike Watt (who plays these Squids on his radio show), Dinosaur Jr., Steve Wynn, John Doe, Tav Falco, Pedaljets, Peter Case, and Minus 5. More info at: http://www.danjones1.bandcamp.com
At 11:30 AM Mark talks with 16-year old vocalist, songwriter, and visual artist, Juliette Frost about her new 6-song EP that was created in a 5-day recording session, last December in Los Angeles, with musician, bassist, & producer Dominique Sanders. The songs, written by Juliette, feature her vocals layered in harmonies, beats and soundscapes. On April 18, 2020 Juliette released Subterranean.Egyptian.Sea.Monkeys, her 19-track, debut, recorded in her bedroom, sampling sounds from her own cats meowing and purring, among others. Juliette Frost is the daughter of opera and jazz vocalist Emily Frost and nationally known Hip Hop Beatboxer Adrian “A-Train” Frost.
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
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, March 3, 2021
New & MidCoastal Releases + Robert Moore + Cuee
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
The Besnard Lakes – “Feuds With Guns” from: The Besnard Lakes Are The Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings / FatCat Records / January 29, 2021 [6th studio album by Canadian psychedelic rock band The Besnard Lakes. The music featured on this album was originally written ten years prior as a single track film score. It it the band’s first ever double album. The Besnard Lakes are a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Formed in 2003 by the husband and wife team of Jace Lasek and Olga Goreas, the band also includes Kevin Laing (drums), Richard White (guitar), Sheenah Ko (keyboards) and Robbie MacArthur (guitar). // The band are currently a six-piece centered around the atmospheric songs of Lasek and Goreas, whose expansive sound draws from numerous aspects of rock ‘n’ roll history. The band’s name comes from Besnard Lake in North-Central Saskatchewan. The band’s second album, The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse was recorded at singer Lasek’s own Breakglass Studios, with members of Stars, The Dears and Godspeed You! Black Emperor/Silver Mt. Zion making guest appearances. It was nominated for the 2007 Polaris Music Prize. Many songs on The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse are prefaced by recordings from shortwave radio number stations as first made popular in recordings such as The Conet Project. // A third studio album, The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night, was released on Jagjaguwar on March 9, 2010. A 12″ record featuring album track “Albatross” and “Four Long Lines” was released on February 9, 2010. This album was a shortlisted nominee for the 2010 Polaris Music Prize. // The band wrote their first film score for the film Sympathy for Delicious, from actor/director Mark Ruffalo. They also wrote and performed the score for the National Film Board of Canada web documentary Welcome to Pine Point. The collaboration came about when Lasek was approached by the website’s co-creator Mike Simons, an old friend from high school. The soundtrack includes their reworking of the Trooper single, “We’re Here for a Good Time (Not a Long Time)”. The group released their score for Welcome to Pine Point as a twelve-inch EP entitled You Lived in the City. The album also features a previously unreleased outtake from their score for the film Memories Corner entitled “The Corner.]
Nan & the One Nite Stands – “Yeah (Radio Edit)” from: High – Caliber / Nan Turner / February 19, 2021 [All songs by Nan Turner. // “Yeah” is track 1, on this 5-song EP // Initial Engineering on songs 2 and 5 by Mark Ospovat @ Speakersonic Studios, Brooklyn and on songs 1, 3, and 4, by Pat Tomek @ Largely Studios, KCMO. All songs co-engineered, mixed, and co-produced by Chase Horseman @Element Studios, Kansas City, MO. Mastered by Ian Dobyns. // The One Nite Stands who played on these songs! Lizz Weiler on bass on 1, 3, and 4; Pat Tomek on drums on 1, 3, and 4; Mark Ospovat on bass on 2 and 5; Don Dawn + Tracy Flowers on backing vocals on 2, 4, and 5; Chase Horseman on keyboards, guitar, and co-production on 1-5. // Thanks to Mark O, Pat, Chase, Ian, Lizz, Don Dawn, Tracy, Peter Gallagher, and Frida the Dog. Xtra BigThanks to: Chase Horseman for sonic textures + production magic. Kimya Dawson, Bertrand “BP” Perrot, MMM, and Sun Ra for Tour Dawg “Space is the Place” Inspiration. // Follow up to the single “Desert Nights” released May 22, 2020, written by Nan Turner, and recorded by Mark “Dragon” Ospovat @ SpeakerSonic Studios in Brooklyn, NY. Additional recording and mixing and production by Chase Horseman @ Winky World Studios in Kansas City, MO. Mastered by Ian Dobyns. On July 12, 2019, Nan Turner released her solo EP, Champs and Losers, Version 2. Recorded, Mixed, and Co-Produced at Winky World in Kansas City, by Chase Horseman. Mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side Music, New Windsor, NY. Ian Dobyns plays drums and Chase Horseman plays bass. Nan Turner is also one half of the critically acclaimed band Schwervon! Nan has been called the “Lucy Ricardo of Indie Rock. Her music has been described as “Tone Loc meets the Velvet Underground.” More Info at: http://www.nanturner.bandcamp.com >> Nan Turner will be with us on WMM on March 31.]
They Call Me Sauce – “Liberation Excercise No. 1” from: Liberation Excersize No. 1” – Single / I Got The Sauce / February 15, 2021 [Mixed and Mastered by Royce “Sauce” Handy for I Got The Sauce Studio. Produced by Whiteboi Beats. Royce “Sauce” Handy is a rapper, songwriter, beat maker, designer, teacher, MC, business owner, social media manager, husband, father, and community organizer. He has worked with AdHoc Group Against Crime, Teens in Transition, Storytellers Inc., Arts Tech, Mid-America Regional Council, UMKC, Rep. Brandon Ellington, and former KC Mayor, Sly James. He is co-owner of The Rap Asylum, We are RAP, and owner of Melanin Connoisseur. In 2017 Sauce released his EP, Summer Sauce, part of WMM’s 117 Best Recordings of 2017. In 2018 Sauce released Soul Food 4. In 2019 his collective NuBvckCity w/ Kartez Marcel, Mae C, & VP3 released “All Night” / “Alive”. This was #1 on WMM’s 39 Favorite Singles of 2019. In 2020 They Call Me Sauce released 5 Singles including “Make You Sing [feat. Love, Mae C]” on March 27, 2020. Sauce was on WMM on April 29, 2020]
Geneva Jacuzzi – “Clothes on The Bed” from: Lamaze / Mexican Summer / February 26, 2021 [reissued Out Of Print 2010 Debut] [Geneva Jacuzzi is a pop artist working in the strange paradise of angels, Los Angeles. An early pioneer of the modern lo-fi bedroom pop terrain, she is a notable figure in the underground scenes in Hollywood and Los Angeles, with her influence spreading worldwide in the pop, noise, and independent art communities. Geneva directs and produces music videos (Julia Holter, Nite Jewel, Frankie Rose) and video art installations, designs and produces her own sets and wardrobe, and choreographs her stage performances. // LAMAZE is Geneva’s 2010 debut, a document of the development of her musical style: from her first appearance in 2004 up to 2009. Venerated as canon among her devotees and a coveted relic among fans and collectors of pop artifacts and rarities, it is among the first lo-fi pop recordings that became the lexicon of the new music frontier. // Geneva Jacuzzi is well known for her uncompromisingly obtuse synth-driven pop and one-of-a-kind performance art that is comprised of one time only spectacles and installations. Her works have been presented in famous art institutions such as the Museum of Contemporary Art, MOCA, The Broad Museum, Vooruit, Kampnagel, and numerous other venues across the globe. She has developed a very focused cult following in the art AND music scenes. She was originally well known for her multitude of self-released home recordings but also released a full length Lamaze in 2010 to much acclaim. Her most recent album Technophelia (Medical Records) is the culmination of a hybrid of DIY and professional studio recordings. Her lyrics describe blood thrown onto fire, clown-like machines in search of sadness, and the raging monologues of elemental beings, while her videos and live performances depict the shattering of self into a variety of personas, all played by Jacuzzi. More info at: http://www.genevajacuzzi.com]
Claire Adams – “Calico Skies” from: Words Of Love / Claire Adams / February 5, 2021 [Recorded and Produced by Claire Adams at Casa 34 in Guadalajara, Jalisco. Mixed and Mastered by Duane Trower at Weights + Measures in Kansas City, MO. Cover Photo by Hugo Parasol. ‘So This Is Love’ written by Mack David, Al Hoffman, and Jerry Livingston. ‘Pocketful Of Rainbows’ written by Ben Weisman. ‘Till There Was You’ written by Meredith Wilson. “Words of Love” written by Claire Adams. ‘Calico Skies’ written by Paul McCartney. This new EP is a follow up to the Claire Adams album YOU KNOW I KNOW YOU, released April 24, 2020, including 10 songs all written by Claire Adams. Recorded at The Blue House in Kansas City, MO. Additional tracking at MARZ Studios in Nederland, TX. Mixed & mastered at Weights + Measures Soundlab in KCMO. Written by Claire Adams, with Claire Adams on guitars, bass, and vocals; Alyssa Murray on keyboards & vocals; and Fritz Hutchison on drums & vocals. Musically curious and multifaceted, Claire Adams has spent more than a decade touring, recording and songwriting to hone her melodic instincts and vision. A bassist, guitarist, singer and songwriter, Adams has lent a discerning ear and versatility to a number of projects. Claire Adams has collaborated with the KC based string quartet Rewound, jazz pianist Alyssa Murray & drummer Fritz Hutchinson. Claire Adams also plays guitar with True Lions. More info at: http://www.claireadamsmusic.com Claire Adams will be with us on WMM on April 7!]
True Lions – “Communion Day (feat. Teri Quinn)” from: Communion Day – Single / Manor Records / March 5, 2021 [1st single from True Lions debut album, “The Fempire Strikes Back,” to be released on April 9, 2021. Alisön Hawkins on keytar & vocals; Adee Rocket Dancy on cello & vocals; Claire Adams on guitar, Elizabeth Kosko on drums & percussion; Iona DeWalt on synthesizers; Miki P on guitar & vocals, and Teri Quinn on bass & vocals. Recorded at Deep Space Co-op. Tracking & engineering by Ross Brown at Escape Pod Audio. Mixing and mastering by Joel Nanos at Element Recording. In 2019 True Lions released their EP debut, “Cute at Best,” on February 5, 2019. They followed up with q second EP called. You’re Not Invited, released on November 9, 2019. For these recordings True Lions was: Alison Hawkins on guitar, synth, and vocals; Elizabeth Kosko on percussion, vocals; Mikala Petillo on bass, vocals; Claire Adams on guitar, vocals; Leslie Butsch on saxophone, Ezgi Karakus on cello; and Teri Quinn on vocals. All songs written by True Lions and produced by Claire Adams and Alison Hawkins. Tracking & Engineering by Claire Adams. Mixing and Mastering by Ian Dobyns and Chase Horseman.. More info at: http://www.manorrecords.com Alisön Hawkins will be our guest on WMM on April 7. 2021.]
R.I.Peter – “In Your Eyes” from: In Your Eyes – Single / Manor Records / February 26, 2021 [2nd single form R. I.Peter’s up coming 12-track album release, SOFT SERVE, coming this spring from Manor Records. Earlier this year R.I. Peter released the single, “Green House” on February 5, 2021. On April 10, 2020 R.I.Peter released the singles: “Cruis’n” and “Rising Sun” through Manor Records. Kansas City based musician and songwriter Peter Beatty also plays in the band Momma’s Boy, and before that was in Rev Gusto that was formed with Jerry Frederick, Sam Frederick, Shaun Crowley; and Quinn Hernandez on drums while they were in high school at Saint James Academy. Peter studied at University of Kansas. Peter released the debut EP solo project R.I.Peter on July 5, 2019. Manor Records described R.I.Peter’s music saying, “It’s like if you took video game music and mashed it with Fleet Foxes or something. electronic pop ambient america folk mystic Both of the songs were written by Peter Beatty. More info t http://www.manorrecords.com R.I.Peter will be with us on WMM on March 17, 2021.]
10:29 – Underwriting
David Luther – “Home To Kansas City” from: “Home To Kansas City” – Single / Grand Central Bell Records / February 3, 2021 [Recorded and produced by David George and Pat Tomek (The Rainmakers). He released his debut EP David Luther in 2009, recorded in Nashville with Nielson Hubbard and Garrison Starr. On 2017 David Joined David George & A Crooked Mile serving as a touring guitarist and back up vocalist. David is releasing several singles this year including the release of “The World’s Gonna Change,” a previous collaboration with Academy Award and Golden Globe winning songwriter Tom Whitlock. Info at: http://www.thedavidluther.com]
David Luther – “With Us Love” from: David Luther – EP / David Luther / July 22, 2011 [David Luther’s debut EP, David Luther, was recorded in Nashville with Nielson Hubbard and Garrison Starr.]
Rob Rice – “Tiny Window (feat. Calvin Arsenia & Ezgi Karakus)” from: “Tiny Window” – Single / Rob Rice / March 3, 2021 [1st single from the debut EP of Rob Rice titled, and the Devil’s Threesome to be released March 21, 2021.. Singer/songwriter Rob Rice is a Kansas City native with a spark of millennial magic, his dusty acoustic music transitions from barn-burning ballads to soothing serenades, all of which contain notes of love, loss, and lust whilst learning to live with oneself through it all. On his debut EP and the Devil’s Threesome, Rob humbly assumes the role of choirmaster to a caravan of iconic Kansas City artists and musicians (12 in total) to create unique trios for each song, meditating and musing on the woes and wins of yesteryear. With instrumentation ranging from harp (Calvin Arsenia) and cello (Ezgi Karakus) to piano (Mark Lowrey) and layered vocals (Miki P), the collection remains cohesive with Rob’s compelling vocal melodies, introspective lyrics, and folky guitar. // and the Devil’s Threesome is a collection of six original songs Rob has composed and recorded that features a female and additional male accompaniment to showcase (hence the Devil’s Threesome. We first played Rob Ricelast year when his track “Serial Lover” was part of the KC Syzygy Compilation released July 17, 2020. Info at: http://www.robricemakesmusic.com Rob Rice will be with us on WMM on April 14, 2021]
Rob Rice & the Devil’s Threesome – “Serial Lover” from: Kansas City Syzygy / Kansas City Syzygy / July 17, 2020 [Lead singer songwriter Rob Rice told us that “’Serial Lover’ is based on a conversation he had with a dear friend around relationships, specifically monogamous vs. polyamorous, and opening our eyes to learn more about the others experience. This song is one of 6 that Rob is working to finish up this summer and release later this year under the album name ‘And The Devil’s Threesome’. This is a collection of six original songs Rob has composed and recorded that features a female and additional male accompaniment to showcase (hence the Devil’s Threesome…) Here is a sample of the first four tracks and the names of artists/musicians who have collaborated on this project 1. “Tiny Window” with Calvin Arsenia (Harp and Vocals) and Ezgi Karakus (Cello); 2. “There’s A Devil Inside Me” with Landon Hambright (Upright and Vocals) and Rachael Feeley (Vocals); 3. “Thinking of Another” with Teri Quinn (Clarinet and Vocals) and Stephen Roper (Drums, Electronics and Vocals); And 4. “Serial Lover” with Coleen Dieker (Violin and Vocals) and Robert Castillo (Upright Bass and Vocals). Rob Rice is finalizing the last two tracks and we are working to have rob on WMM when he is ready for the release. /// Though COVID-19 may have shut down innumerable business and altered our lives forever, one thing it couldn’t stop is the creative drive and spirit in the world’s artists. Kansas City Syzygy is a glimpse into the music created in the middle of the map in the middle of a pandemic. Mastering by J Ashley Miller. Design by JC Franco. Direction by Robert Castillo. Over 25 Kansas City-based musicians came together to create “Kansas City Syzygy,” a compilation of music created during the shutdown of the world in the Spring of 2020. “Syzygy” is a term most commonly used in astronomy and is defined as “connected or corresponding events.” Album designer JC Franco states “like planets or stars aligning, so did our lives.” The nineteen songs on the album span the entire spectrum of music. Calvin Arsenia’s “Painted Ladies” is a dreamscape sung form his voice and harp, while Seth Andrew Davis’ “No Place But Home” invokes scenes of an underground dance club. Some musicians are collaborating for the first time on this album, as demonstrated on “Abyss.” Local electronic musician Chris Crabtree and Robert Castillo, bandleader of the groove jazz ensemble The Sextet, worked together with vocalist Audrey Chopin to create an experimental piece of EDM-adjacent music. Songs like “The Virus” by KC hip-hop artist Kemet Coleman comments on the impact of the coronavirus, as well as the virus that is racial injustice in America that has received global attention during the past months. The album can be purchased from Bandcamp beginning July 17, 2020. All proceeds will be donated to KC Tenants, a local nonprofit organized to ensure that everyone in KC has a safe, accessible, and truly affordable home.]
10:51
Look for these special guests on upcoming editions of Wednesday MidDay Medley on KKFI 90.1 FM: Sarah Magill, Dan Jones, Juliette Frost, Alex Horton & Ian Weidner of Club Sinister, R.I.Peter (Peter Beatty), Everett The Grey, Nico Gray, Katy Guillen & Stephanie Williams of Katy Guillen and The Drive, Chris Hudson, J Jerome Searle, Nan Turner, Claire Adams, Alisön Hawkins, Jen Harris & Vanessa Aricco, Rob Rice, MG Salazar, Sherman Breneman, members of the band Dimension Bill Edwards, Aaron Rhodes, Michael J C Taylor, Shawn Stewart, Jillian Riscoe, Judy Mills and more!
10:55
Everett The Grey – “Riddles (Radio Edit)” from: “Riddles” – Single / Alex Hill / February 3, 2021 [Everett The Grey is a Kansas City based hip hop artist. Everett The Grey is also know as Alex Hill, a musician and medical student at Kansas University Medical Center. Everett The Grey combines Rock, Hip Hop, folk, and other genres into his own individual sound. Everett The Grey released the EP, PARAGON, in 2019, and is currently working on his next tape set for a summer release. Everett The Grey has been featured in The Pitch and played over on 90.1 The Bridge. Everett The Grey joins us on WMM on March 17.]
10:58 – Community Voices – Gilda’s Club
11:00 – Station ID
Cuee – “Ain’t Going Back (feat. Joel Leoj)” [Radio Edit] from: Ain’t Going Back (feat. Joel Leoj) – Single / Cuee / February 14, 2021 [Follow up to “Who’s Back “ single released August 12, 2020. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Cuee is a 27 year old Lawrence based hip-hop artist emcee, and educator. In the last 5 years Cuee has wowed audiences in Lawrence and KC for his critically acclaimed musical releases and live performances. Cuee exhibits an energetic and fun, yet smooth and motivational edge to his style of music. Drawing major influence from hip-hop artists such as Jay Z, Kanye West and Chance The Rapper, one could see why his storytelling essence fuses with harmonic flows. His fan favorites include Shook, Blessed, and Feeling Lucky from Cuee’s 2018 album, Shameless. Cuee is currently working to release an new album titled, “Gospel.”Cuee received his Master’s Degree in Higher Education Administration from the University of Kansas. Cuee is also a recently graduate of Artist Inc. Cuee was our guest on WMM on August 12, 2020 to share music from his new album! More info at: http://www.officialcuee.com ]
11:03 – Interview with CUEE
Lawrence based hip-hop artist Cuee is a rapper with a Master’s Degree. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Cuee has wowed audiences in Lawrence and KC with exciting live performances. And since 2017 Cuee has released two critically acclaimed albums, an EP, multiple singles, and is working on releasing a new album called, GOSPEL, set for release this spring. Cuee received his Master’s Degree in Higher Education Administration from the University of Kansas. Cuee is also a graduate of Artist Inc.
Cuee Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
Mark: “We last talked with you on August 12, 2020, when you released the single “Who’s Back,” and also shared with us a 2020 re-recording and remix of the track, “Shook”. Last year “Shook” landed on an official Spotify playlist dedicated to transgender, non-binary and gender-fluid musicians across the globe including Kim Petras and Lex Allen. How did you find out about that?”
Cuee: “It happened during Pride Month. Spotify sent out a note that said, ‘Hey Cuee you hit a high note this month.” I didn’t even know what that meant, and I looked up to discover he had over 24,000 listeners during the month of June on Spotify. I was trying to figure out what happened. I did a little research, I logged onto my instagram account, I was starting to get a flood of followers. I was just tracing it back and I landed on a Spotify playlist, it was an editorial playlist so he couldn’t find out who put him on there. Someone found me.”
Mark: “The new single, “Ain’t Going Back” features Cuee’s friend Joel Leoj who is originally from Florida, but after moving to Chicago, became friends with Cuee in school, and recently moved to Lawrence to make music and collaborate on recordings with Cuee.”
Cuee: “We have known each other since high school, we started a Hip Hop culture club in our high school, to bring music, kinda having a place to chill after school, write music together as a community. That’s how we started.”
Cuee: “I moved out here to Kansas, to go to school, he stayed back in Miami, and then we kind of connected back, maybe about two years ago, and hit it off really strong. We decided we wanted to pursue this music thing together. We decided let’s just do this. So he said he was going to move to Lawrence. I didn’t believe him at first, until he showed up on my doorstep, and I was like, Wow, you are here, let’s do this.”
Joel Leoj has already dropped a new album, JOEY IN WONDERLAND was released on January 31, 2021. Cuee is a featured guest emcee on the tracks “Eden” and “No Debate.”
Mark: “In the last five years you have received a Master’s Degree, released around 30 different musical tracks, legally changed your name, and have transitioned physically and vocally. We’re you prepared for your new voice to arrive behind the mic?”
Cuee: “It was a shocking experience, but also it was validating. I didn’t know what my voice would sound like, after I got behind the mic, a few months in, but once I heard the playback I was pretty satisfied about what I heard. Everything I heard kind of matched up to the sound I thought I heard in the beginning, you know. I was really nervous to release music. I thought about re-branding and all of these things, and I decided that the best way to go about these things was to be open and honest, my true self, be authentic. So I guess that kind of prepared me to go behind a mic and release,“Ain’t Going Back” which is the first track I’ve released since the transition. “
“Ain’t Going Back” will be part of GOSPEL the album Cuee is getting ready to release in late spring of 2021.
Mark: “The video for “Ain’t Going Back” takes place in a church, and is a declaration of freedom, and identity, while also paying respect. How was the track created in the studio and what was it like translating the song into a video that was shot in a church.”
Cuee: “The track was created in the studio working on music together with Joel and I, we always work on these things together, and we all knew that I had this album coming out called Gospel, and I was looking for any material that sounded great. Once we got done recording it, and the engineer pressed playback on the final version, we looked at each other and said I think this is one for Gospel. The track was just created, we kind of got the beat from the engineer, and then we wrote to it. “
“People saying I’ve changed, I told them that I’ve evolved, crossing over so you know I can ball.” – from “Ain’t Going Back”
Cuee: “For the video I took a lot of time thinking about symbolism, how symbolic can I make this? ‘Queerness’ in a church, you know, is very…different, I mean I wanted to bring that into that space, and freedom into that space, allow that space to be seen and heard by other people who traditionally wont take up that space.”
Mark: “We just finished Black History Month, I for one, believe we must teach Black History all year long, to make up for all those years where Black History and LGBTQIA History has been erased. Representation is so important, do you feel the extra responsibility of being a representative of a Black Transgender Hip Hop Artist with a Master’s Degree?”
Cuee: “Definitely with that title. I feel like a lot of people probably aren’t as open, as brave, as comfortable or feel safe enough to do what I’m doing. And I think it is an extra responsibility. In my ballpark to make sure I’m just honest about this, to show people what it’s all about.”
Mark talked about how Fally Afani introduced Cuee to Mark through the radio.
Mark: “Where does your courage comes from?”
Cuee: “I think honestly my courage comes from the idea that I really have nothing to lose. I feel supported. I’m happy, and I think when you are happy that reflects on everyone else. “
Mark: “What do you love about Music?”
Cuee: “I think I love the connection and the community and the language that music brings between people, I think it builds and forms great relationships. A lot of peole can get along by listening to music. That’s what I love most about it, it is a beautiful language.”
Mark: “What’s next?”
Cuee: “Gospel is in the works right now, projected for late spring. I wanted it to be early spring but I want the album to be perfect, so I’m still working on it. I do have a couple features out there with Royal Chief and Joel Leoj, so you’ll want to look out for it.”
Cuee Discography:
THE EVOLUTION OF MIXTAPE – 7-track Album – November 3, 2016 “Summer Jam (feat. Lil Bro)” – Single – February 21, 2017 “Long Day” – Single – March 21, 2017 MASTER’S CAP – 6-track EP – May 14, 2017 “Netflix and Chill” with J Brooks & Joi – Single – August 9, 2017 SHAMELESS – 10-track Album – November 28, 2018 “Shook” – Single – June, 2020 “Who’s Back” – Single – August 12, 2020 “Ain’t Going Back (feat. Joel Leoj)” – Single – February 14, 2021
Originally from Chicago, Illinois.Cuee is a 27 year old Lawrence based hip-hop artist, emcee, producer, and educator. Cuee has gained fans over the last six years in Lawrence and Kansas City for his critically acclaimed musical releases and live performances.
Cuee received his Master’s Degree in Higher Education Administration from the University of Kansas where he also works. Cuee is also a recent graduate of Artist Inc.
CUEE Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley
11:15
Cuee – “Shook (2020 Remix)” originally from: Shameless / Cuee / Nov. 23, 2018 / [Re-recorded & re-mixed – Aug. 2020] [Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Cuee is a 27 year old Lawrence based hip-hop artist emcee, and educator. In the last 5 years Cuee has wowed audiences in Lawrence and KC for his critically acclaimed musical releases and live performances. Cuee exhibits an energetic and fun, yet smooth and motivational edge to his style of music. Drawing major influence from hip-hop artists such as Jay Z, Kanye West and Chance The Rapper, one could see why his storytelling essence fuses with harmonic flows. His fan favorites include Shook, Blessed, and Feeling Lucky from Cuee’s 2018 album, Shameless. Cuee is currently working to release an new album titled, “Gospel.”Cuee received his Master’s Degree in Higher Education Administration from the University of Kansas. Cuee is also a recently graduate of Artist Inc. ]
Dream & PmBata – “Road Trip” from: “Road Trip” – Single / Dream Music / February 4, 2021 [“Road Trip” has gotten over 13 million spins on Spotify. Dream is a hip hop/rap project that has released two EPs an several singles. PmBata is Parker Bata also has a new single with DJ Diddy & Jack Omstead called “Better with U.” PmBata released the 8-song album 808 FACADES in 2018, and the 12-song album THE MUSEUM in 2019. He has also released 1ps and the solo artist or as a featured artist. More info at: https://www.instagram.com/pmbata/ or https://linktr.ee/pmbata%5D
Dimension Bill Edwards – “Surrealberry Hill” from: Surrealberry Hill – Single / Mello Music Group / February 16, 2021 [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. Grant Buell and Melissa Weinman are also in the band Good Time Charley. Phil Craven and Mallory Edson are also in the band, Whiskey for the Lady. This track will be on their debut album coming (hopefully) this summer. https://soundcloud.com/user-127889442/surrealberry-hill%5D
Other Americans – “Kink Wave” from: Paranoid Fiction / Gran Calavera Records / February 9, 2021 [New 8-song EP follow up to the band’s October 19, 2019 release OA2. The band 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 Kansas City. All remixes by Mensa Deathsquad. Hailing from the musical hotbeds of Kansas City, MO, and Lawrence, KS, the electro-alternative OTHER AMERICANS are comprised of members of such regional luminaries as The Architects, Latenight Callers, The Philistines, Radar State and Brandon Phillips and The Condition. 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.”]
11:28 – Underwriting
The Damned – “Love Song” from: Machine Gun Etiquette / Ace Records / November 2, 1979 [3rd studio album from the Damned. The group’s first since reforming with a new lineup of Dave Vanian on vocals, Captain Sensible on lead guitar, Rat Scabies on drums and Tank frontman Algy Ward on bass guitar. On Machine Gun Etiquette, the band brought more variety to their punk rock. The voice at the album’s start is Jack Howarth, taken from his 1971 album ‘Ow Do’, a recording of Lancastrian monologues. The mispronounced album name would later be used in fusion with Thee Headcoats name as the Japanese band name Thee Michelle Gun Elephant by their former bassist. // Formed in London, England, in 1976 by lead vocalist Dave Vanian, guitarist Brian James, bassist (and later guitarist) Captain Sensible, and drummer Rat Scabies. They were the first punk band from the UK to release a single, “New Rose” (1976), release an album, Damned Damned Damned (1977), and tour the USA. They have 9 singles that charted on UK Singles Chart Top 40. // They briefly broke up after Music for Pleasure (1977), the follow-up to their debut album, was critically dismissed. They reformed without Brian James, and released Machine Gun Etiquette (1979). In the 1980s they released 4 studio albums, The Black Album (1980), Strawberries (1982), Phantasmagoria (1985), and Anything (1986), which saw the band moving towards a gothic rock. The latter 2 albums did not feature Captain Sensible, who had left in 1984. In 1988, James & Sensible rejoined to play a series of reunions. One of which was released the next year as the live album Final Damnation. // The Damned reformed for a tour in 1991. In 1995, they released a new album, Not of This Earth, which was Scabies’s last. This was followed by Grave Disorder (2001), So, Who’s Paranoid? (2008), and their most recent, and the first to crack the UK’s Official Charts’ top 10, landing at #7, Evil Spirits (2018). Despite going through numerous lineup changes, the formation of Vanian, Sensible, keyboardist Monty Oxymoron, drummer Pinch and bassist Stu West had been together from 2004 until 2017, when West left the band and former bassist Paul Gray rejoined. // As one of the first gothic bands with lead singer Vanian’s vampire-themed costume, baritone singing voice & dark lyrics, The Damned were a major influence on the goth subculture. More info at: http://www.officialdamned.com]
11:34 – Interview with Robert Moore
Robert Moore is the host and producer of Sonic Spectrum, now airing Saturdays, 6:00 to 8:00 PM, on 90.9 The Bridge. The show was created in 2003 by Robert Moore who has a 30-year career in the music business, working for various record labels and founding his own in 2006 — OxBlood Records — which featured KC artists such as Ghosty, American Catastrophe and the Pedaljets. In addition to his work with artists like R.E.M., Los Lobos and Concrete Blonde, he has experience in music publishing, consulting, teaching, podcasting, and in broadcasting as a music and program director.
Robert Moore thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
We had asked Robert what track we should play right before our interview, and he chose, The Damned – “Love Song,” from their break-through album, Machine Gun Etiquette, from 1979/1980. Mark asked Robert what that song meant to him.
Robert Moore: “That album is one of my top 2 or 3 albums of all time, for sentimental reasons. It’s just an album I always went back to from start to finish. That specific track, the voice you hear at the beginning, (Jack Howarth) saying ‘Ladies and Gentleman Ow Do,’ I put that at the beginning of every mixtape I made in the 1980s, as my signature. It’s just a real big song for me personally.”
Mark: “Congratulations on Sonic Spectrum, 18 years is a long run for a radio show, but it is almost unheard of, having a radio show continually broadcasting, but on three different radio stations, in the same market, bouncing from public radio, to commercial radio, and back to a different public radio station. Did you ever imagine this would be the journey, when you started the show back in 2003.”
Robert Moore: “Oh not at all. I’m like the Gaylord Perry of radio. Some listeners wont get the reference, but yeah, it work’s for me.” (Gaylord Perry played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for eight different teams from 1962 to 1983.)
Mark: “When you started Sonic Spectrum in 2003, on KCUR 89.3 it was a whole different world musically, and socially. The Bridge didn’t really exist in it’s present form, but you kept a steady ship through it all, ‘playing cutting-edge classics’ and also doing the work of sifting through all the new releases and sharing the very best with your listeners. What has kept you going all of these years?”
Robert Moore: “I guess, just my love of sharing music. It’s pretty much what I’ve done since I was a kid. You know, like I mentioned the mixtape thing, and then going into the record industry in the 1980s. It’s just been my drive all my adult life. I’m just really lucky to do it. I honestly thought, when the The Buzz was basically changing formats and getting rid of most of us, I pretty much was resigned to the fact, that the show was done, and it was fine. It’s cool, we had a nice run. But, when The Bridge reached out, it was good to be back in non-commercial radio. It is such a different atmosphere.”
Mark: “You have broadcast 8 episodes of Sonic Spectrum on The Bridge – 90.9 FM, so far. I love the way you kicked off your first show on The Bridge, on January 9, 2021, with “Do You Remember Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio? from The Ramones, “D.J.” from David Bowie, “Left of The Dial” from The Replacements, “Good To Be Back Home” from Charles Bradley, and “Thank you (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” not by Sly & The Family Stone, but instead by the post punk band, Magazine, from 1980, which was a great lead into the Bowie Tribute that followed. You’ve talked about how you put a lot of time and thought into your playlists. Can you share some secrets about your process?”
Robert Moore: “Oh god. Um well, somebody with OCD, when it comes to music, it’s not easy. I spend 4 or 5 hours on one set, which is basically 6 songs. And then, if I don’t feel it by the end of that set, I will scrap it and start all over again. So it just depends on what inspires me that week. I try to create a unique set, with roots and progressions throughout the set. Each song will be linked somehow to another, whether it be personnel, a producer, or a style, or sound. Like I said it might be something that inspired me during that week, or an event that happened that will inspire a set. It’s just really from week to week, it varies completely. Whatever is in the air for me.”
Mark: “One of the biggest reasons I ended up doing a radio show at KKFI was because of a mutual friend we shared named, Anne Winter who we lost about 11 years ago. I think she did as much to try to talk me out of doing a show on KKFI as she did to try to support me and share her talents with me. She helped create KKFI while also building her Record Store Recycled Sounds, just down the street from here. Anne was a big influence on you, is that not true?”
Robert Moore: “Oh God yes, to say the least. She was the big sister I never had. She was the whole reason I was at KKFI. She urged me to run for the board of directors there. I then was General Manager for a bit. She definitely helped me get the confidence I needed to do a radio show on KCUR. I worked for Recycled Sounds as well. Yeah, she was there through a lot of very important events in my life. My son, the first one, when he was born, she was there in the hospital. She was such an amazing friend, and amazing supporter. Someone I always bounced any idea I had off of her.”
Mark: “I think about her (Anne Winter) a lot, and I know you do too. I’ve seen some of your posts where you wrote about how Anne came to you, in a dream of you had the night before, and how it was like a gift. I love that she got you involved at KKFI and that at one point you were the General Manager at KKFI.”
Robert Moore: “Yeah, a long time ago.”
Mark: “You’ve had the experience of community radio and all of your experience with public radio, because at KCUR you served as Music Director as well as being host of Sonic Spectrum. Isn’t that right?”
Robert Moore: “Yes, I sure did. And I also was as a reporter there as well. It was a great place to really dip your toes into every aspect of radio. It was a great learning experience.”
Mark: “When I first started producing Wednesday MidDay Medley I thought I could just play all of my favorite music that I never got to hear on commercial radio, but as the weeks rolled by, musicians and local record label folk, and writers, and organizers, started asking if they could come on the show to share information about their projects. Slowly I began to learn about the Kansas City Music Community. I remember having you on the show to share what you were doing with OxBlood Records and feature the OxBlood Compilation and music from Ghosty and Pedaljets, and American Catastrophe and Be/Non, and Roman Numerals. That compilation was an early road map for me in learning about the KC Music Community. Starting a record label is a huge task, and in 2005 / 2006 there really wasn’t that many area labels to support the bands, especially compared with the present. Can you share why you launched OxBlood, and what was the biggest lesson you learned from that experience?”
Robert Moore: “Oh. Don’t put a second mortgage on your house, that is probably the most important lesson. It was just a moment in time. At that time to me, Kansas City’s music scene, as well as Lawrence, was just thriving. 2006 it was such an exciting time, with so many bands. A very good friend of mine, at the time, was a former musician from the band Frogpond…Megan Hamilton. We were just sitting one night at Harry’s Bar & Tables talking and said, ‘let’s do it. Let’s start a label and start promoting the Kansas City scene!’ And the next thing we knew we were investing in the record label, and putting out some records. It was right at the time when CDs were just kind of on their way out, and everything was going to digital. So we kind of screwed ourselves on that. We has purchased a ton of CDs, that we didn’t need. So we learned a lot about the business. It wasn’t as easy to get the bands out of town touring, as we hoped, to promote the albums and things like that. But I’m definitely proud of what we did. We put out four albums. And I definitely stand by all four.”
Mark: “You, are a child of California, what has kept you in the midwest all of these years? How do you deal 8 degrees below zero?”
Robert Moore: The cold I don’t mind, It is really the summers I hate. I can’t handle the humidity. I really am miserable in the summer, and parts of the spring, due to allergies. Winter is actually refreshing to me because I don’t have to worry about allergies. It took time to get used to it definitely. I enjoy the seasons. It is something I never grew up with, so I like it. You feel a little more wiser after every winter. So I like it.”
Mark: “You are also a dad of two sons. One son is now 23 years old, the other son, Charlie is 8 years old. Do your children influence the way you listen to music?”
Robert Moore: “Yeah, I think so. My oldest son especially, he is totally into hip hop, obsessed. So he turns me onto a lot of the underground modern hip hop that I don’t get much exposure to, so that’s helped a lot. My youngest, he is on the spectrum. He is obsessed with music constantly, and he sings to himself a lot, so he definitely has the music bug as well. It is in the blood.”
Mark: “What do you love about Music?”
Robert Moore: “Oh God, to me it is just another emotion. It is just part of us. It’s very hard to explain. People say it’s art, and stuff like that, but to me it is just an extension of us as humans.”
Mark: “Nowadays people are ‘renting’ music with Spotify and Apple Music and all of these places, and I’m not always a big fan of that myself. I’ve read where people will watch a movie or a TV show, maybe once or twice, but music is different, because people want to hear songs over and over again, and treasure them, and make them part of a playlist, or part of a mixtape. How have all of the changes in the music industry effected you? What do you think about where the music industry is headed?”
Robert Moore: “The vinyl resurgence has been nice. I like that end of it. To me it’s a much more personal way to collect music. I remember vinyl growing up with it in the seventies and laying there, studying the album cover and reading the liner notes and everything, while you’re listening to the record. It is just a whole different experience than clicking on your computer or something to listen to a song. There is nothing visual there, so that’s different. As far as digital, it took me a while to embrace, especially because I was a former record label owner, and how much entities like Spotify and iTunes rip-off artists. It’s very hard to support, but also as a DJ, that goes out on events now and then, I also know how Spotify is useful and makes my life easier. It’s a double edged sword. You can’t get away from it, but it’s also unfair.”
Mark: “We live in a town that loves music and I think I counted 12 record stores that we have in the metro area, if you count places like, It’s A Beautiful Day, that also sell vinyl records. It’s kind of a thriving industry. Friends of mine who have started record stores are doing really well. It’s kind of good to be in a town that loves music. From KCUR, to The Buzz, to The Bridge, you have had a wild ride in radio. What do you say to those folk who say, radio is dead.”
Robert Moore: “You know I’ve been hearing that the entire time I’ve been working in radio, and I’ve been in radio since 1993. It’s ridiculous. I also look at the podcast craze whether it’s ‘true crime’ or ‘music’ or anything. That is just an extension of radio too, whether it’s terrestrial or not. Radio is also my favorite medium for hearing a story. That’s why I loved working at an NPR station. The way they tell stories on the radio is unlike sny other. This American Life and others, pretty much started the whole podcast trend. I mean people can say that terrestrial radio is dead. That’s fine, but the ‘left of the dial’, the ones like us will always be here. The corporates will come and go, and you wont be able to tell the difference, from format to format, and it doesn’t really matter, they are kind of just selling schlock anyway. But I think non-commercial radio will be fine. I think a lot of people still seek it out.”
Mark: “The Band That Fell To Earth has been happening for several years now, and producer Michelle Bacon credits a Sonic Spectum Bowie Tribute at the old recordBar that you curated, as the embryo of this event. Will you be doing more Sonic Spectrum Events?”
Robert Moore: “I hope so, when the clubs start opening again.”
Mark: “I noticed on The Bridge that you are doing more interviews again. Does Public Radio open the door for you to do more creative things with your show again?”
Robert Moore: “Yes, definitely. Going back to non-com has opened up the boundaries for me. I was never given specific boundaries at The BUZZ, but you know you do have to keep a demographic in mind. And so I did push the boundaries there, but definitely not as much as I can at a triple A station. I mean I love what The Bridge is doing. They throw me curves all the time, to see what they throw in there new and old. They have a set up that is just amazing, so I really look forward to doing in-studio performances and interviews like I did at KCUR. The BUZZ was just a different animal. You’ve got six stations, in one huge building, so the studios are constantly in use by the shows. So I really didn’t have the chance to get in there like I would at KCUR, and can do now at The Bridge.”
Mark: “Robert Moore, I really hope you will want to back on our show again soon. Please know you are always welcome, Congratulations on the new home of Sonic Spectrum.”
Robert Moore thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.
Field Division – “Manifest” from: “Manifest” – Single / Field Division / February 26, 2021 [Laurel Canyon tinged psychedelic folkrock and transcendent dream pop. Written, performed, and produced by Field Division. Field Division is Evelyn Taylor on lyrics, vocals, keyboard, high-strung acoustic guitar; and Nicholas Frampton on mixing, engineering, vocals, drums, bass, nylon guitar, high-strung, baritone guitar acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion, & keyboards; with Evan Jacobs on prophet synthesizer. Mastered by Matt Pence @ Echo Lab Studios. Laurel Canyon tinged psychedelic folkrock and transcendent dream pop.Recorded at home in IA. Additional recording @ Redwood Studio in Denton, TX. More info at: http://www.fielddivisionmusic.com]
The Fey – “Wolf Of The Wild” from: “Wolf of The Wild” – Single / The Record Machine / February 12, 2021 [New single that follows their last single, “Tear It off” released August 7, 2020. The Fey released “Lost In My Head” pn August 2, 2019, that followed the band’s July 13, 2018 EP Strawberry Lemonade. The Fey is a Rock/Soul sextet based in Lincoln, Nebraska. The band has created 3 EP’s under the alias “AZP”, but have recently made a name change to, The Fey. Charles Hull, Founder and Managing Director, Silver Street Records writes, The Fey is: Zach Watkins on lead/backup vocals, keys, percussion; Ishma Valenti on rap vocals; Trey Shotkoske on drums; Michael Rogers on guitars; John Fucinaro on bass, and Ludwing Siebenhor. Additional Backup vocals by Jasmin Ondap and Aly Millanes. Engineered and mixed by James Fleege at Silver Street. Mastered by Doug Van Sloun at Focus Mastering. Produced by Zach Watkins and James Fleege at Silver Street. Album art by Zach Watkins]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on Wednesday, March 10, 2021 we will talk with musician and songwriter Sarah Magill about her music project Quiet Takes and the new EP, San Fidel. We will also talk with Dan Jones about his band, Dan Jones and The Squids and their new live album, Serve Without Delay. And we will talk with 16-year old Juliette Frost about her new music she recorded in Los Angeles with musician and producer Dominique Saunders.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
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, March 3, 2021
New & MidCoastal Releases + Robert Moore + Cuee + David Luther
WMM plays more New & MidCoastal Releases from: Cuee, Nan + the One Nite Stands, Rob Rice, Other Americans, They Call Me Sauce, True Lions, R.I.Peter, Claire Adams, Everette The Grey, Dimension Bill Edwards, The Fey, Dream & PmBata, David Luther, Field Division, The Besnard Lakes, Geneva Jacuzzi, and The Damned.
At 10:30 Mark talks with singer songwriter David Luther about his new single, “Home To Kansas City” released through Grand Central Bell Records on February 3, 2021, and was recorded and produced by David George and Pat Tomek (The Rainmakers). David Luther released his debut EP David Luther in 2009, recorded in Nashville with Nielson Hubbard and Garrison Starr. On 2017 David Joined David George & A Crooked Mile serving as a touring guitarist and back up vocalist. David is releasing several singles this year including the release of “The World’s Gonna Change,” a previous collaboration with Academy Award and Golden Globe winning songwriter Tom Whitlock. More info at: http://www.thedavidluther.com
At 11:00 Lawrence based hip-hop artist emcee, Cuee shares his new single, “Ain’t Going Back” featuring Joel Leoj. The new single is part of a new album coming in March that is a follow up to “Who’s Back “ Cuee’s last single released August 12, 2020. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Cuee has wowed audiences in Lawrence and KC for his critically acclaimed musical releases and live performances. Cuee lists hip-hop artists such as Jay Z, Kanye West and Chance The Rapper as major influences. Cuee received his Master’s Degree in Higher Education Administration from the University of Kansas. Cuee is also a recently graduate of Artist Inc. More info at: http://www.officialcuee.com
At 11:30 Mark talks with Robert Moore host of Sonic Spectrum, Saturdays, 6:00 to 8:00 PM, on 90.9 The Bridge. Sonic Spectrum is a long running weekly freeform music program, known for cutting-edge classics from past and present. The show was created in 2003 by Robert Moore who has a 30-year career in the music business, working for various record labels and founding his own in 2006 — OxBlood Records — which featured KC artists such as Ghosty, American Catastrophe and the Pedaljets. In addition to his work with artists like R.E.M., Los Lobos and Concrete Blonde, he has experience in music publishing, consulting, teaching, podcasting, and in broadcasting as a music and program director. More info at: http://www.bridge909.org/shows/sonicspectrum
On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org
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, February 24, 2021
Spinning Records With Marion Merritt
Mark welcomes Marion Merritt, of Records With Merritt, who joins us as “Guest Producer.” Marion Merritt is our most frequent contributor to WMM. For nearly 17 years Marion has been sharing her sonic discoveries and information from her musically-encyclopedic brain on Wednesday MidDay Medley. Bringing music that is just not played on other radio stations. Marion grew up in Los Angeles, and St. Louis. She went to college in Columbia, Missouri. She studied art and musical engineering. After nearly two decades of managing Kansas City’s largest music department store, Marion left the corporate world and went Independent. With her partner Ann Stewart, Marion is the proprietor of Records With Merritt, a minority owned business at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, that features new vinyl. More information at: http://www.recordwithmerritt.com
“Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks” from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979 [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]
Dimitri From Paris – “Prologue” from: Sacrebleu / Atlantic / 2001
Morgan Delt – “Some Sunsick Day” from: Phase Zero / Sub Pop / August 26, 2016 [From SubPop.com: The invocation of classic west coast psychedelia that permeates Morgan Delt’s Sub Pop debut LP feels like a continuous sunrise, never concealing its influences yet perfectly putting its songs through a gauzy lens that blurs and obscures. Is such a thing even possible after witnessing umpteen reverb-jockeys creating their own take on the genre? Can anything truly different be done in the realm of being both original and reverent, wearing favorite records and artists’ moves on one’s sleeve? Definitely the case with our man here. After releasing a 6-song cassette in 2013 followed by a full length for the Trouble In Mind label, the California native now fine-tunes his sound world outwardly rather than honing in on a specific trajectory, allowing all of said influences to coexist together in a unique yet undoubtedly Californian vision. // The resulting 10-song collection, performed entirely by Delt, recorded in his Topanga Canyon studio and then mastered by JJ Golden, is a home-fi construction with a more subtle, braintickling character than its predecessor, and somewhat reflects a realist take on the flower power fantasy of 1967. Doused in echo and haze, slow chords lap in like Pacific waves, flanked by gentle whispers of multi-tracked, cooing vox, phased guitars and fuzz that calmly surrounds the listener’s head less than it jabs at the cortex. Opener “I Don’t Wanna See What’s Happening Outside” is almost the sharpest-sounding number on the record with jittery, choogling guitar that makes its dry solo run upfront, appearing mid-song out of a fog. The sense of home experimentation amidst the lo-fidelity and oozy layers of vocals almost brings to mind Christine McVie’s lush pacification of Lindsey Buckingham’s deliberate New Wave pot-stirring on Tusk, but unlike that record, Delt’s futurism fog can’t help but nod to Sunset acid of days of yore. One doesn’t need to listen close to extract healthy doses of Notorious Byrd Brothers, Curt Boettcher, Terry Riley, and Buffalo Springfield in the stew with a solid line of fluttery electronics that fizzle in and out of the floaty arrangements. “Sun Powers” hits the deck like a lift-off from a ‘70s UK sci-fi TV show, sunny tremolo zipping in circles around warm Zombies-like vocals coming out of some kinda cave, lovely melodies and words overriding any turbulence or background FX. // The great thing about Delt’s approach to such history is (and sorry to sound harsh) that unlike too many of his so-called L.A. psych-rock peers, there’s no costume involved, no application of a conjured identity to match a specific image. He’s no psychedelic Civil War re-enactor, so to speak. It’s subtle and tactful revisionism without using psychedelia as a crutch/easy marketing tool and letting the sounds come out and make their own case. So many ideas and levels of activity move around the ascents and descents of songs like “Age of the Birdman” (an ode to the survivors of Easter Island’s environmental collapse) and the flowing “Another Person” that you’re just asked to lay down and let it all cover you over rather than contemplate much else. Yet there’s a certain acknowledgement that the beauty must be preserved by proactive consciousness/action in the world. // It takes a creative mind to hone in on a song like “Escape Capsule” without wearing out well-trodden use of tablas and electric drones. More often than not it all traditionally can fall into Beatles or Spacemen 3 terrain, but on this song Delt can transport what would normally be a dark-n-druggy blanket into a much more optimistic and friendly listening experience. Despite his voice being channelled through hallucinatory effects, it’s warm and inviting, projecting a sense of hope (particularly in “Some Sunsick Day,” which evokes the hopeful “We’ll Meet Again” as the world explodes at the end of Dr. Strangelove, later covered by the Byrds). It’s more or less just an invite to watch the sun rise too.]
Arlo Parks – “Collapsed in Sunbeams” from: Collapsed in Sunbeams / Transgressive Records / January 29, 2021
Arlo Parks – “Hurt” from: Collapsed in Sunbeams / Transgressive Records / January 29, 2021 [Anaïs Oluwatoyin Estelle Marinho was on August 9, 2000. She is known professionally as Arlo Parks, is a British singer-songwriter and poet. Her debut studio album, Collapsed in Sunbeams, was released in 2021 to critical acclaim and peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart. // Anaïs Oluwatoyin Estelle Marinho was born on 9 August 2000 and raised in Hammersmith, West London. She is half Nigerian, quarter Chadian and quarter French. Her mother was born in Paris. Marinho learnt to speak French before she did English. // Parks chose her stage name in the manner of King Krule and Frank Ocean. In 2018, she began uploading demos to BBC Music Introducing which caught the attention of BBC Radio 1 DJ Jess Iszatt who distributed these demos to Ali Raymond of Beatnik Creative, who soon began managing Parks. She made her solo debut when she released the song “Cola” through Beatnik Records in November 2018, and announced the release of her debut EP, Super Sad Generation. She told Line of Best Fit that the song is “a reminder that betrayal is inevitable when it comes to pretty people that think flowers fix everything.” Olivia Swash wrote that the vocals on the song “flourish thanks to [Parks’] creative writing background, with her delicate tone taking centre stage against the gently plodding guitars and soft crackle of vinyl.” By November 2019, the song had amassed over three million streams on Spotify. // Following the release of “Cola”, Parks signed to Transgressive Records. She released the title track of her upcoming EP, Super Sad Generation, in January 2019. Robin Murray told Clash that the song portrays an “astute, nuanced creative control that also utilises word-play that speaks of youthful emotions spinning out of control.” Her third single, “Romantic Garbage”, was released in March 2019, before the release of the full four-track EP, Super Sad Generation in early April 2019. The EP was recorded in her home in South West London and an Airbnb in the Angel district of London. // Parks performed her first-ever gig at The Great Escape in Brighton in May 2019, and has gone on to perform on the BBC Music Introducing stage at Glastonbury Festival in late June 2019, as well as at Latitude Festival in July 2019. She embarked on her first tour supporting Jordan Rakei on the UK leg of his tour in September 2019. Throughout the last half of 2019 Parks released the songs “George”, “Second Guessing”, “Sophie”, and “Angel’s Song” ahead of her second EP, Sophie Sean Kerwick told DIY that the five-track EP “oozes with the hang-ups of heartbreak and mortality; a topic that seems to overshadow many gen-Z musicians.” // Parks embarked on her first headlining tour of Europe in February/March 2020, but could not complete it due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In May 2020, Parks released the singles “Eugene” and “Black Dog”, which were well received during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, the latter of which became BBC Radio 1’s Tune of the Week. Parks made the front cover of NME in late July 2020. She won the AIM Independent Music Award for One to Watch in 2020 in August 2020, after losing the same award to Georgia a year before. Parks and Moses Boyd made the front cover of Music Week for the publication’s indie takeover special following the AIM Awards ceremony. Parks released her debut album, Collapsed in Sunbeams, on 29 January 2021. // Parks is openly bisexual and is based in London. She was educated at Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith and completed her A Levels in early 2019. In her auto-biographical blurb on her Spotify profile, Parks claimed that she spent most of secondary school “feeling like that black kid who couldn’t dance for shit, listening to too much emo music and crushing on some girl in her Spanish class.” // Parks has named Sylvia Plath and Joni Mitchell as among her influences. More info at: http://www.arloparksofficial.com]
Masego & FKJ – “Tadow” from: Lady Lady / EQT / September 7, 2018 [Released on Caroline Record 2019] [Lady Lady is the debut studio album by Jamaican-American singer Masego. In an interview with Billboard, Masego refers to the style of this album as TrapHouseJazz, and also said “my previous projects have different energy, and I feel like I’ve graduated to a more mature version of myself — my beard’s almost connected, my man body’s comin’ in.” The album guest features production from FKJ, SiR, Tiffany Gouché, and De’ Wayne Jackson. Production was handled by Masego, Kojoa Asamoah, Jasper, Jah, Justin Bryant, Oliver Jonas Bergqvist, Sounwave, and French Kiwi Juice. // Micah Davis was born June 8, 1993, He is known professionally as Masego (ma-seh-go), is a known for incorporating the saxophone into his music. Masego released two EPs in 2016, The Pink Polo EP with Medasin, and Loose Thoughts. He gained widespread attention with his collaborative record with FKJ called “Tadow” in 2017. In 2018, he released his debut album Lady Lady. Micah Davis was born to a Jamaican father and an African-American mother. His father was in the U.S. Air Force and his mother was an entrepreneur. Both his mother and father were also pastors and he was raised in a non-denominational Christian home. The military travels eventually led his family to Virginia. At a young age, the drums became the first instrument he learned how to play without formal lessons. Davis has spoken about learning the piano, sax, and various drum machines. In high school, Davis adopted and translated the name Little blessing to Masego as it was given to him as a church name and it is related to South Africa. Davis attended Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia before leaving to focus solely on his musical career.In 2015, Masego released the collaborative extended play, The Pink Polo EP with Medasin, spawning the single “Girls That Dance”. The next year, he released his EP Loose Thoughts. On November 13, 2020 he release the EP Studying Abroad. More info at: http://www.masegomusic.com]
Sarathy Korwar – “Elephant Hangover (feat. Upaj Collective)” from: Night Dreamer Direct-To-Disc Sessions (feat. Upaj Collective) / Night Dreamer / November 27, 2020 [Released on Vinyl in 2021] [Sarathy Korwar is a US-born, Indian-raised, London-based drummer, percussionist, composer and bandleader. He works predominantly in a jazz and Indo jazz field but also incorporates elements of hip-hop, and other fusions. // Born in the US, Korwar grew up in Chennai and Ahmedabad in India and began studying tabla aged 10. He later moved to Pune to study Geology from Fergusson College, Pune before making the decision to dedicate his time to music, continuing to study tabla with Rajeev Devasthali as well as translating his skills to the western drum kit and playing as a session musician. He then moved to London and continued his studies with Sanju Sahai at SOAS. // In 2016 Korwar released the album Day To Day on the Ninja Tune label. This record incorporated field recordings of the Siddi people of Southern India blended with his own compositions drawing from contemporary jazz and electronic music. // He leads the UPAJ Collective, a collective of Eastern and Western musicians formed play a residency at London’s Jazz Cafe. The group recorded the live album My East Is Your West at London’s Church Of Sound, released on Gearbox Records on 9 November 2018. The group performed compositions by jazz musicians Alice Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders and Joe Henderson as well as Indian classical music and Indo jazz. // On 26 July 2019 Korwar released his second studio album, More Arriving through The Leaf Label. Recorded over three years in Mumbai and London, the album incorporates rappers from Mumbai and New Delhi with spoken word and his own Indian classical influence and jazz instrumentation. The album featured the Jamaican-Indian rapper Delhi Sultanate, the London poet Zia Ahmed and the Abu Dhabi writer Deepak Unnikrishnan among others. Korwar describes the album as a protest record and said: “This is what Indian music sounds like to me right now, and that means incorporating multiple brown voices. If anyone has a problem with that, they should be questioning what they think Indian music should be.”[ // Korwar has collaborated with Shabaka Hutchings, clarinettist Arun Ghosh and producer Hieroglyphic Being, as well as groups Penya and Ill Considered. He has toured with Kamasi Washington, Yussef Kamaal and Moses Boyd. // In 2016 Korwar was selected for the Steve Reid Foundation’s mentorship programme, a charitable foundation set up by Gilles Peterson.]
Hallelujah Chicken Run Band – “Kare Nanhasi” from: Take One: Hallelujah Chicken Run Band /Analog Africa / December 11, 2020 [From http://www.analogafrica.bandcamp.com: In 1972, the country of Rhodesia – as Zimbabwe was then known – was in the middle of a long-simmering struggle for independence from British colonial rule. In the hotels and nightclubs of the capital, bands could make a living playing a mix of Afro-Rock, Cha-Cha-Cha and Congolese Rumba. But as the desire for independence grew stronger, a number of Zimbabwean musicians began to look to their own culture for inspiration. They began to emulate the staccato sound and looping melodies of the mbira (thumb piano) on their electric guitars, and to replicate the insistent shaker rhythms on the hi-hat; they also started to sing in the Shona language and to add overtly political messages to their lyrics (safe in the knowledge that the predominantly white minority government wouldn’t understand them). From this collision of electric instruments and indigenous traditions, a new style of Zimbabwean popular music – later known as Chimurenga, from the Shona word for ‘struggle’ – was born. And there were few bands more essential to the development of this music than the Hallelujah Chicken Run Band. // The band came into being when a young trumpet player named Daram Karanga offered to assemble a group to entertain the workers at a copper mine in the town of Mhangura. The original line-up – which included legendary singer Thomas Mapfumo, who would bring the sounds of Chimurenga to the world in the early 1980s with his band the Blacks Unlimited, and Joshua Hlomayi, one of the pioneers of mbira- style guitar – started out playing the Rumba and Afro-Rock styles popular in the capital. Although this was a hit with the white owners of the mine, the workers greeted it with indifference. But when they started adding electric arrangements of traditional Shona music to their repertoire, the audience went wild. // With the addition of “Zim” sounds to their arsenal, the HCR Band became unstoppable. Their reputation spread quickly and, in 1974, they were invited to the capital to compete in a national music contest organised by the South-African Teal label. Not only did they win the competition, but they also attracted the attention of famed producer Crispen Matema, who quickly organised their first recording sessions. On their first day at Jameson House studios, they recorded half a dozen songs, including “Ngoma Yarira” and “Murembo”, two singles that would alter the course of Zimbabwean popular music. // During the next five years, the band would relocate from their small mining town to the capital city, go through numerous line-up changes and pay a few more visits to the recording studio, without ever losing the raucous urgency that had transformed them from popular entertainers into titans of Zimbabwean culture. Take One collects the HCR Band’s biggest hits along with several rare tracks recorded between 1974 and 1979, all painstakingly remastered from original master tapes and vinyl sources; originally released on CD by Analog Africa in 2006, this essential music is now available on LP for the first time since the 1970s. More info at: http://www.analogafrica.com]
10:33 – Underwriting
Swamp Dogg – “Sleeping Without You Is a Dragg (feat. Justin Vernon & Jenny Lewis)” from: Sorry You Couldn’t Make It / Joyful Noise Records / March 6, 2020
Swamp Dogg & John Prine – “Please Let Me Go Round Again” from: Sorry You Couldn’t Make It / Joyful Noise Records / March 6, 2020 [Jerry Williams Jr. was born July 12, 1942. He is generally credited under the pseudonym Swamp Dogg after 1970, is an American soul and R&B singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. Williams has been described as “one of the great cult figures of 20th century American music.” // After recording as Little Jerry and Little Jerry Williams in the 1950s and 1960s, he reinvented himself as Swamp Dogg, releasing a series of satirical, offbeat, and eccentric recordings, as well as continuing to write and produce for other musicians. He debuted his new sound on the Total Destruction To Your Mind album in 1970. In the 1980s, he helped to develop Alonzo Williams’ World Class Wreckin’ CRU, which produced Dr. Dre among others. He continues to make music, releasing Love, Loss & Autotune on Joyful Noise Recordings in 2018, and Sorry You Couldn’t Make It in 202. // Williams was born in Portsmouth, Virginia. He made his first recording, “HTD Blues (Hardsick Troublesome Downout Blues)”, for the Mechanic record label in 1954, when he was aged 12, with his parents and uncle and backing musicians, and was regularly hired to play private parties. From 1960, he released occasional singles for a variety of labels, including the self-written “I’m The Lover Man” in 1964, which was first issued on the Southern Sound label and was then picked up by the larger Loma label, almost breaking into the national Billboard Hot 100. He also wrote successfully for other musicians, including “Big Party” for Barbara and the Browns. // As Little Jerry Williams, he had his first national chart success in 1966, when “Baby You’re My Everything”, which he co-wrote and produced, was released on the Calla label and rose to #32 on the R&B chart, again just missing the Hot 100. He released several more singles on Calla through to 1967, by now credited simply as Jerry Williams, but with little commercial success, although some of his records such as “If You Ask Me (Because I Love You)” later became staples of the Northern Soul movement in the UK. // By late 1967 he started working in A&R and other duties for the Musicor label in New York. In 1968 he co-wrote, with Charlie Foxx, Gene Pitney’s up-tempo hit, “She’s a Heartbreaker”, which Williams also claimed to have produced, saying: “I produced the motherfuck out of it… [and] Charlie Foxx put me down on the label as “vocal arranger.” What the fuck is that? When they took out full-page ads in Billboard and Cashbox, there was a picture of Charlie on one side and a picture of Gene Pitney on the other and no mention of me.” // Later in 1968 Williams began working as a producer at Atlantic Records with Jerry Wexler and Phil Walden, on artists including Patti LaBelle & the Blue Belles, though he found the administration frustrating.[5] He established a songwriting partnership with Gary Anderson, who performed as Gary U.S. Bonds, and the pair wrote the R&B chart hits “To the Other Woman (I’m the Other Woman)” by Doris Duke, and “She Didn’t Know (She Kept on Talking)” by Dee Dee Warwick. He also recorded a single, “I Got What It Takes”, in a duo with Brooks O’Dell, and released two singles under his own name on the Cotillion label, a subsidiary of Atlantic. // Swamp Dogg Williams later wrote:I became Swamp Dogg in 1970 in order to have an alter-ego and someone to occupy the body while the search party was out looking for Jerry Williams, who was mentally missing in action due to certain pressures, mal-treatments and failure to get paid royalties on over fifty single records…. Most all of the tracks included were recorded in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and Macon, Georgia, which brings me to how the name Swamp Dogg came about. Jerry Wexler, Atlantic Records v.p. and producer/innovator second to none, was recording in the newly discovered mecca of funk Muscle Shoals, Alabama. He coined the term “Swamp Music” for this awesome funk predominately played by all white musicians accompanying the R’n’B institutions e.g., Wilson Pickett, Aretha Franklin, King Curtis… I was also using the same “swamp” players. I was tired of being a jukebox, singing all of the hits by Chuck Jackson, Ben E. King, etc., and being an R’n’B second banana. I couldn’t dance as good as Joe Tex, wasn’t pretty like Tommy Hunt, couldn’t compare vocally to Jackie Wilson and I didn’t have the sex appeal of Daffy Duck. I wanted to sing about everything and anything and not be pigeonholed by the industry. So I came up with the name Dogg because a dog can do anything, and anything a dog does never comes as a real surprise; if he sleeps on the sofa, shits on the rug, pisses on the drapes, chews up your slippers, humps your mother-in-law’s leg, jumps on your new clothes and licks your face, he’s never gotten out of character. You understand what he did, you curse while making allowances for him but your love for him never diminishes. Commencing in 1970, I sung about sex, niggers, love, rednecks, war, peace, dead flies, home wreckers, Sly Stone, my daughters, politics, revolution and blood transfusions (just to name a few), and never got out of character. Recording in Alabama and sincerely singing/writing about items that interested me, gave birth to the name Swamp Dogg. // Having adopted his moniker before Snoop Dogg was born he has claimed to be “the original D-O double G.” // In 1970 he emerged in his new Swamp Dogg persona, with two singles on Wally Roker’s Canyon label, “Mama’s Baby, Daddy’s Maybe”, again co-written with Bonds, and “Synthetic World”. He also produced the first Swamp Dogg album, Total Destruction to Your Mind. The album sleeve showed Williams sitting in his underwear on a pile of garbage. Williams’ new direction apparently followed an LSD trip, and was inspired by the radical politics of the time and by Frank Zappa’s use of satire, while showing his own expertise in, and commitment to, deep soul and R&B music. According to Allmusic: “In sheer musical terms, Swamp Dogg is pure Southern soul, anchored on tight grooves and accentuated by horns, but the Dogg is as much about message as music…” Although not a commercial success at the time, Swamp Dogg started to develop a cult following and eventually the album sold enough to achieve gold record status. Record critic Robert Christgau wrote that “Soul-seekers like myself are moderately mad for the obscure” album and has called it “legendary”. It was reissued in 2013 by Alive Naturalsound Records. // Around the same time, one of the songs Williams had co-written with Gary Bonds, “She’s All I Got”, became a top-ten R&B hit for Freddie North, and was recorded with even greater success by country star Johnny Paycheck, whose version reached #2 on the country music chart in late 1971. In a later interview on NPR’s Studio 360, Williams stated he was raised on country music: “Black music didn’t start ’til 10 at night until 4 in the morning and I was in bed by then… If you strip my tracks, take away all the horns and guitar licks, what you have is a country song.” However, he also continued to write and produce deep soul songs for other musicians, including Z. Z. Hill and Irma Thomas. In 1971 in collaboration with co-producer and writer the legendary George Semper he released “Monster Walk Pt. 1 and 2” by the Rhythm ‘N’ Blues Classical Funk Band on Mankind Records label. Produced for Jerry Williams Productions, Inc.and in spite of modest sales the record once again demonstrated his entrepreneurial skill as an artist. // As Swamp Dogg, he was signed by Elektra Records for his second album, Rat On! in 1971. The sleeve showed him on the back of a giant white rat, and has frequently been ranked as one of the worst album covers of all time. Sales were relatively poor, and he joined Jane Fonda’s anti-Vietnam War Free the Army tour. His next albums Cuffed, Collared and Tagged (1972) and Gag a Maggott (recorded at the TK Studio in 1973) were released on smaller labels, though his 1974 album, Have You Heard This Story??, was issued by Island Records. In 1977 he had another minor R&B hit with “My Heart Just Can’t Stop Dancing”, credited to Swamp Dogg & the Riders of the New Funk. He continued to release albums through the 1970s and into the mid-1980s as Swamp Dogg, on various small independent labels and in a variety of styles including disco and country and maintained a healthy cult following. He also set up his own publishing and recording company, Swamp Dogg Entertainment Group (SDEG). // In 1999, “Slow Slow Disco” was sampled by Kid Rock on the track “I Got One for Ya”, sparking a revival of interest in Swamp Dogg, who began performing live gigs for the first time. Several other of his recordings were sampled, and in 2009 he released two new albums, Give Em as Little as You Can…As Often as You Have To…Or…A Tribute to Rock N Roll, and An Awful Christmas and a Lousy New Year. He also released some further singles, and a compilation album of the best of his work as both Little Jerry Williams and Swamp Dogg, It’s All Good, was released in 2009. Most of his early Swamp Dogg albums have also been reissued on CD. // Swamp Dogg released a full-length album of new songs in 2014, The White Man Made Me Do It, which Williams described as being a sort of sequel to Total Destruction To Your Mind. Shortly thereafter, Swamp Dogg teamed up with Ryan Olson from Poliça to produce the tracks for his 2018 album Love, Loss & Autotune, Justin Vernon (aka Bon Iver) fine-tuning the vocal tracks. The song also features instrumentation by Guitar Shorty. The music video for “I’ll Pretend” premiered at NPR and was later featured at Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, Spin and elsewhere. Swamp Dogg described the song as a character study about “a guy sitting in a restaurant by himself losing his fucking mind because he’s hoping his woman is gonna walk by, but she’s at a Ramada Inn somewhere fucking somebody else to death.” // In 2020, he released the album Sorry You Couldn’t Make It, a country-styled record recorded in Nashville with producer Ryan Olson and musicians including Justin Vernon, John Prine, and Jenny Lewis. More info at: http://www.theswampdogg.com]
Tune-Yards – “SIGNS (Detroit’s Theme)” from: Sorry To Bother You (Original Score) / 4AD / April 19, 2019 [Tune-Yards (stylized as tUnE-yArDs) is the American, Oakland, California–based music project of musician Merrill Garbus (born March 3, 1979), with long-time collaborator, bassist Nate Brenner. Garbus’s music draws from an eclectic variety of sources and utilizes elements such as loop pedals, ukulele, vocals, and lo-fi percussion. Tune-Yards’ 2011 album Whokill was ranked the number one album of that year in The Village Voice’s annual Pazz and Jop critic’s poll. // The album Nikki Nack was released in 2014, with its first single, “Water Fountain”, being picked up by Google Pixel in 2016 for an advertising campaign. The album I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life was released in January 2018. At the same time, the Tune-Yards provided an atmospheric score for the sci fi film Sorry to Bother You. // Garbus was born in 1979 and was raised in New York City and in New Canaan, Connecticut. She attended Smith College. She was a puppeteer for the Sandglass Theater in Vermont and lived in Montreal where she played ukulele in the band Sister Suvi with guitarist Patrick Gregoire and drummer Nico Dann. Merrill’s sister Ruth Garbus is also a musician who has played solo and in the band Happy Birthday. After releasing her first Tune-Yards album in 2008, she moved to Oakland, California, where her partner in Tune-Yards, Nate Brenner, also lives. // The first Tune-Yards album, Bird-Brains (stylized as BiRd-BrAiNs) was originally self-released by Garbus on recycled cassette tape. It was recorded using only a handheld voice recorder. A limited edition vinyl was released in June 2009, via the Portland-based imprint Marriage Records. In July 2009, it was announced that Tune-Yards had signed to 4AD, and a limited edition pressing of Bird-Brains was released on August 17, 2009. A full worldwide release followed on November 16, 2009 (and November 17 in North America). The autumn 2009 pressing was remastered at Abbey Road Studios by Christian Wright, and includes two new bonus tracks: “Want Me To” and “Real Live Flesh.” // A second album, Whokill (stylized as w h o k i l l), was released on April 19, 2011. A single from it, “Bizness”, came out in February 2011. It was produced by Garbus and engineered by Eli Crews at New, Improved Studios in Oakland, California. Applying the live approach to Garbus’ studio work for the first time, Garbus works with bass player Nate Brenner, who co-wrote some of the album’s songs. Comparing the act to Sonic Youth, Frontier Psychiatrist said, “if Bird-Brains was Garbus’ Evol, a record bursting with musical ideas that attempted to subvert the notion of song, who kill is Garbus’ Sister, a record that embraces the traditional pop song as a vehicle to convey those ideas.” The album as well as singles “Bizness” and “Gangsta” received mention on many top 2011 album and song lists, including Time, Rolling Stone, Spin, and the New York Times. In early 2012, the Village Voice’s annual “Pazz and Jop” poll of critics named Whokill the No. 1 album of 2011. The song “Fiya” is featured on a 2010 commercial for the Blackberry Torch, while the song “Gangsta” has been used in the television shows Orange Is the New Black, Letterkenny, Weeds and The Good Wife and the song “Bizness” was used in Season 3 of Transparent. // Garbus started recording material for her third LP during the latter half of 2013, with a working title of Sink-o. A May 6, 2014 release date was later announced with the title Nikki Nack. The album spawned three singles, including “Water Fountain”, which was featured in the soundtrack for EA Sports video game FIFA 15 as well as in a 2016 commercial for the Google Pixel. // A 4th album was released on January 19, 2018, called I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life. The album showed more of an electronic influence. The single “Look at Your Hands” was released earlier, in October 2017, followed by “Heart Attack” in January. // The Tune-Yards scored the satiric sci fi film Sorry to Bother You (2018). The film was shown at Sundance in January, then began a theatrical run in July. Its soundtrack songs are performed by the Coup, fronted by the film’s director, Boots Riley. Riley said he started working with the Tune-Yards in “early 2015” to create the film’s score, with demo tracks already available before the script was complete, and before the start of principal photography. Riley said he was attracted to Garbus’s voice, and to the band’s “unorthodox use of percussion and vocal layering. More info at: http://www.tune-yards.com]
Sharon Van Etten – “On Your Way Now” from: On Your Way Now – Single / Jagjaguwar / February 12, 2021 [Sharon Katharine Van Etten was born February 26, 1981. She is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She has released five studio albums, the latest of which is Remind Me Tomorrow (2019). // Van Etten was born in Belleville, New Jersey, the middle child of five. She lived in Nutley, New Jersey, then moved to Clinton, New Jersey as a pre-teen. She attended North Hunterdon High School, at which she participated in the chorus and performed in stage musicals. // Later, she moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee to attend Middle Tennessee State University and studied recording, but dropped out after a year. She ended up working at the Red Rose, a coffee and record shop and music venue in Murfreesboro for about five years. She fell into an abusive relationship with a rock musician who discouraged her from writing songs. After five years, she left in the middle of the night with whatever she could carry. She showed up to her parents’ house on Thanksgiving Day and her mother answered the door, holding the dishes she’s about to put on the table, to find her black-sheep middle child, who hasn’t spoken to her in ages, standing on the doorstep. // In 2004, she moved back to New Jersey, where she worked at Perryville Wine and Spirits, then moved to New York City in 2005. She lived in Brooklyn for a number of years, in the suburban neighborhood of Ditmas Park. // Van Etten self-released handmade CDs until 2009, when her debut studio recording was released.Before her studio debut, she worked at Astor Wines and as a publicist at Ba Da Bing Records. // Van Etten’s debut, Because I Was in Love, was released on May 26, 2009, on Language of Stone, and was manufactured and distributed by Drag City. Because I Was in Love was produced by Greg Weeks at Hexham Head studio in Philadelphia. // On September 21, 2010, Van Etten released her second album, epic, on Ba Da Bing Records. With no set band at the time, Van Etten called on friends Jeffrey Kish, Dave Hartley, Jessica Larrabee, and Andy LaPlant of She Keeps Bees, Cat Martino, Meg Baird, Jim Callan, and Brian Christinzio. The first song recorded for the album was “Love More”, recorded in December 2009 by producer Brian McTear for Weathervane Music’s Shaking Through documentary video series. The remainder of the album was produced by Brian McTear with engineer Amy Morrissey in May 2010 at Miner Street Recordings in Philadelphia. NPR described it as possessing “a fuller sound compared to the super-spare arrangements on her first two self-produced albums, but epic still feels incredibly intimate, with lots of room to breathe and unfold.” // Van Etten’s third studio album, Tramp, was released on February 7, 2012, on Jagjaguwar. Tramp was produced by The National’s Aaron Dessner and recorded in his home studio in Brooklyn, New York. Additional recording took place at Miner Street Recordings in Philadelphia, where the album was also mixed with Engineers and Mixers Brian McTear and Jonathan Low. The album features musicians Doug Keith, Thomas Bartlett, Bryan Devendorf, Bryce Dessner, Matt Barrick, Rob Moose, Julianna Barwick, Peter Silberman, Logan Coale, Clarice Jensen, Ben Lanz, Zach Condon, and Jenn Wasner. // May 2014 brought about the release of Van Etten’s fourth studio album, titled Are We There, on Jagjaguwar. Van Etten produced the record with Stewart Lerman, with the guidance of bandmate and manager Zeke Hutchins. Most of the recording was done at Hobo Sound Studios in Weehawken, New Jersey, with piano tracks being recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. The record features musicians Zeke Hutchins, Doug Keith, Heather Woods Broderick, Dave Hartley, Adam Granduciel, Marisa Anderson, Stuart D. Bogie, Mickey Free, Mary Lattimore, Little Isidor, Jacob Morris, Torres’ Mackenzie Scott, Shearwater’s Jonathan Meiburg, Lower Dens’ Jana Hunter, and Efterklang touring member Peter Broderick. The EP I Don’t Want to Let You Down, a compilation of songs that were not included on Are We There, was released on Jagjaguwar in 2015. // On October 2, 2018, Van Etten released a new track entitled “Comeback Kid” and announced her next album Remind Me Tomorrow, released on January 18, 2019. On February 28, 2019, Van Etten appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show to perform the single “Seventeen”. // On April 22, 2020, Van Etten played bass and sang harmony as the three surviving members of Fountains of Wayne performed in a televised benefit with various New Jersey-affiliated musicians to raise funds for COVID-19 relief. She filled the role left vacant by the COVID-19-related death of Adam Schlesinger a few weeks earlier. She and the other three members of the band played simultaneously from remote locations. The band played the song “Hackensack” from the album Welcome Interstate Managers. // On May 15, 2020, Van Etten dropped a cover of (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding? with Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme. // Van Etten’s music is characterized by a heavy use of harmonies. Pitchfork described her songs as having “echoes of folk tradition.” NPR Music asserts: “Her songs are heartfelt without being overly earnest; her poetry is plainspoken but not overt, and her elegant voice is wrapped in enough rasp and sorrow to keep from sounding too pure or confident.” With “Comeback Kid” and Remind Me Tomorrow, she introduced electronic sounds into her music. // Since 2016, Van Etten has appeared in both seasons of the Netflix drama The OA as Rachel, a fellow abductee along with Prairie in Dr. Percy’s basement lab/terrarium. Rachel and the other captives are subjected to after-life experiments while conspiring over a period of years to possibly escape, and at one point, Rachel sings a song of remembrance. Van Etten also appeared in episode six of the 2017 Twin Peaks series on Showtime. // Van Etten made her feature film debut with a supporting role in Never Rarely Sometimes Always directed by Eliza Hittman, for which she also wrote and performed the original track ‘Staring at a Mountain’. // Van Etten had her first child, a son, in 2017 with her romantic partner Zeke Hutchins. Hutchins used to be her drummer and then became her manager. After living in New York City for 15 years, she moved with her family to Los Angeles in Sept 2019. More info at: http://www.sharonvanetten.com]
Sia – “Courage to Change” from: Music – Songs From and Inspired By the Motion Picture / Atlantic / 2021 [Sia Kate Isobelle Furler was born December 18, 1975. She is an Australian singer, songwriter, voice actress and director. She started her career as a singer in the acid jazz band Crisp in the mid-1990s in Adelaide. In 1997, when Crisp disbanded, she released her debut studio album, titled OnlySee, in Australia. She moved to London, England, and provided vocals for the British duo Zero 7. Sia released her second studio album, Healing Is Difficult, in 2000, and her third studio album, Colour the Small One, in 2004. // Sia relocated to New York City in 2005 and toured in the United States. Her fourth and fifth studio albums, Some People Have Real Problems and We Are Born, were released in 2008 and 2010, respectively. Each was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association and attracted wider notice than her earlier albums. Uncomfortable with her growing fame, Sia took a hiatus from performing, during which she focused on songwriting for other artists, producing successful collaborations “Titanium” (with David Guetta), “Diamonds” (with Rihanna) and “Wild Ones” (with Flo Rida). // In 2014, Sia broke through as a solo recording artist when her sixth studio album, 1000 Forms of Fear, debuted at No 1 in the U.S. Billboard 200 and generated the top-ten single “Chandelier” and a trilogy of music videos co-directed by Sia and starring child dancer Maddie Ziegler. Since then, Sia has usually worn a wig that obscures her face to protect her privacy. Her 7th studio album, This Is Acting (2016), spawned her first Billboard Hot 100 number one single, “Cheap Thrills”. The same year, Sia gave her Nostalgic for the Present Tour, which incorporated dancing by Ziegler and others and other performance art elements. Her eighth studio album, Everyday Is Christmas, was released in 2017 and reissued in 2018 with three bonus tracks. In 2018, she collaborated with Labrinth and Diplo in the group LSD, and they released their self-titled debut album in April 2019. // Sia wrote and directed a feature film, titled Music, which was released in early 2021 alongside an album, Music – Songs from and Inspired by the Motion Picture. Among the accolades received by Sia are nearly a dozen ARIA Awards, 9 Grammy Award nominations and an MTV Video Music Award. // Sia Kate Isobelle Furler’s father, Phil Colson, is a musician, and her mother, Loene Furler, is an art lecturer. Sia is the niece of actor-singer Kevin Colson. Sia said that as a child she imitated the performing style of Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder and Sting, whom she cites as early influences. She attended Adelaide High School. In the mid-1990s, Sia started a career as a singer in the local acid jazz band Crisp. Sia collaborated with the band and contributed vocals to their album Word and the Deal (1996) and EP Delirium (1997). In 1997 Crisp disbanded, and Sia released her debut studio album, OnlySee, on Flavoured Records, in Australia, on December 23. The album sold about 1,200 copies. Unlike her later albums, OnlySee was marketed under her full name, “Sia Furler”. It was produced by Jesse Flavell. // After Crisp disbanded in 1997, Sia moved to London, where she performed as a background vocalist for British band Jamiroquai. She also provided vocals for English downtempo group Zero 7 on their first three studio albums and toured with the group. On Zero 7’s 2001 album Simple Things, Sia contributed vocals to two tracks including the single “Destiny”, which peaked at No. 30 on the UK Singles Chart. In 2004, she provided vocals for Zero 7 on “Somersault” and “Speed Dial No. 2” (from the album When It Falls). In 2006, Sia again collaborated with Zero 7 for the group’s third album, The Garden and hence she is regarded as the “unofficial” lead singer of Zero 7. // In 2000, Sia signed a recording contract with Sony Music’s sub-label Dance Pool and released her first single, “Taken for Granted”, which peaked at No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart. In 2001, she released her second solo album, Healing Is Difficult, which blends retro jazz and soul music and lyrically discusses Sia’s dealing with the death of her first love affair. Displeased with the promotion of the album, Sia fired her manager, left Sony Music and signed with Go! Beat, a subsidiary of Universal Music Group (UMG). At the APRA Awards of 2002, Sia won the Breakthrough Songwriter category alongside Brisbane pop duo Aneiki’s Jennifer Waite and Grant Wallis. // In 2004, Sia released her third studio album, Colour the Small One. The album employs a mixture of acoustic instruments and electronic backing to her material. The album spawned four singles, including “Don’t Bring Me Down” and “Breathe Me”, the latter of which charted in the United Kingdom, Denmark and France. // Dissatisfied with Colour the Small One’s poor marketing and the album’s struggle to connect with a mainstream audience, Sia relocated to New York City in 2005. During that time, “Breathe Me” appeared in the final scene of the U.S. HBO television series Six Feet Under, which helped increase Sia’s fame in the United States. Consequently, Sia’s manager, David Enthoven, set up a tour across the country to maintain her career. // In 2007, Sia released a live album titled Lady Croissant, which included eight live songs from her April 2006 performance at the Bowery Ballroom in New York and one new studio recording—”Pictures”. A year later, she left Zero 7 on friendly terms, replaced by Eska Mtungwazi as the band’s frontwoman. Sia released her fourth studio album, Some People Have Real Problems on January 8, 2008. The album peaked at No. 41 in Australia and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. It charted at No. 26 on the US Billboard 200, becoming Sia’s first to chart in the United States. Some People Have Real Problems yielded four singles, including “The Girl You Lost to Cocaine”. It peaked at No. 11 in the Netherlands and No. 12 in Spain; it additionally reached No. 8 on the US Hot Dance Club Songs. Another single from the album was “Soon We’ll Be Found”. // In May 2009, Sia released TV Is My Parent on DVD, which includes a live concert at New York’s Hiro Ballroom, four music videos and behind-the-scene footage.At the ARIA Music Awards of 2009, Sia won the Best Music DVD category for TV Is My Parent. She also received a nomination for Best Breakthrough Artist Album for Some People Have Real Problems. // In 2009, American singer Christina Aguilera approached Sia about writing ballads for Aguilera’s then-upcoming sixth studio album. The final product, Bionic, includes three songs co-written by Sia. Later in 2010, Sia also co-wrote “Bound to You” for the soundtrack of the film Burlesque, which starred Aguilera and Cher. The song was nominated for Best Original Song at the 68th Golden Globe Awards. In May 2011, Sia appeared on the inaugural season of the U.S. version of The Voice as an adviser for Aguilera, who served as a vocal coach and judge. // In June 2010, Sia released her fifth studio album, We Are Born. The release peaked at No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The release of the album was preceded by three singles: the lead single, “You’ve Changed”, was released in December 2009 and charted at No. 31 in Australia. The follow-up single, “Clap Your Hands”, peaked at No. 17 in Australia, No. 10 in the Netherlands and No. 27 in Switzerland. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2010, We Are Born earned Sia two categories won: Best Independent Release and Best Pop Release. Meanwhile, at the 2011 APRA Music Awards, Sia received a nomination for Song of the Year for “Clap Your Hands”. To promote We Are Born, Sia embarked on the We Meaning You Tour, which visited North America and Europe in April–May 2010. She followed this with the We Are Born Tour, which visited Australia in February 2011 and North America in July–August 2011. // Following the success of We Are Born, Sia became uncomfortable with her growing fame. She later told The New York Times: “I just wanted to have a private life. Once, as my friend was telling me they had cancer, someone came up and asked, in the middle of the conversation, if they could take a photograph with me. You get me? That’s enough, right?” She refused to do promos for her tours, began to wear a mask on stage and became increasingly dependent on drugs and alcohol on the road; she considered suicide. Sia fired Enthoven and hired Jonathan Daniel, who suggested that she write songs for other artists. // Sia retired as a recording artist and began a career as a songwriter. She soon penned “Titanium” for American singer Alicia Keys, but it was later sent to David Guetta, who included Sia’s original demo vocals on the song and released it as a single in 2011. “Titanium” peaked within the top ten of record charts in the United States, Australia and numerous European regions. However, Sia recalled: “I never even knew it was gonna happen, and I was really upset. Because I had just retired, I was trying to be a pop songwriter, not an artist.” From 2011 to 2013, Sia also co-wrote songs for many recording artists, including Beyoncé, Kylie Minogue, Flo Rida and Rihanna. Her collaboration with Flo Rida, “Wild Ones”, peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was the tenth best-selling song of 2012 globally. In March 2012, Sia released a “greatest hits” album, Best Of…, in Australia. // In October 2013, Sia released “Elastic Heart” featuring The Weeknd and Diplo for the soundtrack of the American film The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013). Sia executive-produced Brooke Candy’s debut EP, Opulence, released in May 2014, and co-wrote 3 songs on the EP. In July 2014, Sia released her own sixth studio album, 1000 Forms of Fear. She again collaborated with Greg Kurstin. The album debuted at No. 1 in the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 52,000 copies. By October 2015, it was certified gold by the RIAA denoting 500,000 equivalent-album units sold in the United States. The record peaked at No. 1 in Australia and reached the top ten of charts in numerous European regions. It was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry and gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. By early 2016, the album had sold 1 million copies worldwide. // 1000 Forms of Fear’s lead single, “Chandelier” was released in March 2014. The song peaked at No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Sia’s first entry on that chart as a lead artist. Elsewhere, the song experienced similar commercial success, ranking in the top ten of the record charts in Australia and numerous European regions. As of January 2015, the single had sold 2 million copies in the United States. “Eye of the Needle” and “Big Girls Cry” were released as the second and third singles from the album, respectively, in June 2014. In January 2015, Sia released a solo version of “Elastic Heart” as the fourth single from 1000 Forms of Fear; it eventually reached the top 20 on the Hot 100. At the 57th Annual Grammy Awards (2015), Sia received four nominations for “Chandelier”: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Pop Solo Performance and Best Music Video. // For performances of songs from 1000 Forms of Fear, Sia chose not to show her face, either facing away from audiences or hiding it behind oversized platinum blonde wigs. In videos for the singles “Chandelier”, “Elastic Heart” and “Big Girls Cry”, choreographed by Ryan Heffington and co-directed by Sia and Daniel Askill, and in many of the promotional live performances, child dancer Maddie Ziegler performed as a proxy for Sia in bobbed blonde wigs similar to Sia’s familiar hairstyle. The three videos have received a total of more than 3 billion views on Vevo. Sia explained to Kristen Wiig in an interview in Interview magazine that she decided to conceal her face to avoid a celebrity lifestyle and maintain some privacy: “I’m trying to have some control over my image. And I’m allowed to maintain some modicum of privacy. But also I would like not to be picked apart or for people to observe when I put on ten pounds or take off ten pounds or I have a hair extension out of place or my fake tan is botched. Most people don’t have to be under that pressure, and I’d like to be one of them.” The video for Elastic Heart “courted controversy and plaudits in equal measure”, with some commentators perceiving it to have paedophilic undertones due to the relative ages of the dancers. Sia explained that the two dancers represented “warring ‘Sia’ self states”, but she nevertheless apologized on Twitter to anyone who was “triggered”. Gia Kourlas wrote in The New York Times in 2016 that Sia’s collaborations with Heffington have “done more to raise the standards of dance in pop music than nearly any current artist integrating the forms”. The “Chandelier” video was ranked as the 10th “greatest music video” of the 2010s by Billboard. // In 2014, Sia contributed to the soundtrack to the 2014 film adaptation of the Broadway musical Annie. Sia, along with producer Greg Kurstin, wrote three new songs for the film as well as re-working songs from the musical. Sia, Kurstin and Annie director Will Gluck were nominated at the 72nd Golden Globe Awards for Best Original Song for one of the film’s original songs, “Opportunity”. // In an interview with NME in February 2015, Sia revealed that she had completed the follow-up to 1000 Forms of Fear, entitled This Is Acting. The album was another collaboration with producer and co-writer Greg Kurstin. Furler said that she released 1000 Forms of Fear to free herself from her record deal and had planned simply to write for other artists, but the album’s success spurred her to continue writing her own music. The same month, alongside the digital deluxe release of 1000 Forms of Fear, she released a mobile game, Bob Job. “Alive” from This Is Acting was co-written by Adele and had originally been intended for Adele’s third album. // In November, Sia collaborated with composer J. Ralph on the soundtrack of the environmental documentary Racing Extinction, co-writing and singing the song “One Candle”. She also released two more songs from the album, “Bird Set Free” and “One Million Bullets”. “Cheap Thrills” and “Reaper” were subsequently released as promotional singles for the album. Eventually, the single “Cheap Thrills”, featuring Sean Paul, reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Sia released two videos for the song, one of which features Ziegler and two male dancers, while the other, featuring Sean Paul, shows a 1950s style teen dance party; it has accumulated more than 1.4 billion views. // In April 2016, Sia gave a widely acclaimed performance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival that went viral online. Her performance received an effusively positive critical reception as “one of the greatest moments in Coachella’s 17-year history”, and it was consistently noted as one of the best performances of the 2016 festival. The performance was her first full concert since 2011. In May 2016, Sia made a surprise appearance on the finale for Survivor: Kaôh Rōng where she donated $50,000 to contestant Tai Trang. She donated another $50,000 to an animal charity of his choice, noting that the two share a mutual love of animals. // In June 2016, Sia gave a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado, featuring Ziegler. From May to August, Sia performed in nearly a dozen festival and other concerts in America and European and Middle Eastern countries, including Portugal, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Hungary, Romania, Poland, the United Kingdom, Russia, Lebanon and Israel. In September 2016, she released a single, “The Greatest”, with vocals from American hip hop recording artist Kendrick Lamar. A video was released the same day featuring Ziegler – the dancer’s fifth video collaboration with Sia and Heffington. The two performed the song with several other dancers, and also performed “Chandelier”, live the next day at the Apple annual fall event, drawing media attention. The videos that Sia has posted to her YouTube channel have accumulated a total of more than 9 billion views, and the channel has more than 17 million subscribers. // Sia gave her Nostalgic for the Present Tour in North America from September to November 2016, featuring Ziegler. As at Coachella and subsequent live performances, Sia appeared at the back of the stage with her familiar wig covering her face, while her dancers performed Heffington’s choreography synchronized with prerecorded videos played on big screens. The tour received a warm reaction: “She let her dancers own center stage, carrying out one skit/performance after another as Sia delivered the soundtrack. … It defied all the regular rules of pop concerts, which are usually designed to focus every ounce of the audience’s attention on the star of the show. Yet, Sia’s bold gamble paid off, resulting in one of the most daringly original and wholly satisfying shows of 2016.” Ed Masley of The Arizona Republic described the show as “part performance art, part interpretive dance. … [Sia] sounded amazing. … There’s so much raw emotion in her songs. And you can definitely hear that in her voice, but it becomes more visceral when you can also read it in the faces of her dancers, especially Ziegler. … The entire performance was brilliantly staged, with one song flowing seamlessly into another”. Sia released the deluxe edition of This Is Acting in October 2016, which includes three new tracks, a remix version of “Move Your Body” and a solo version of “The Greatest”. She was nominated for three 2017 Grammy Awards. Sia co-wrote and performed on a platinum-selling single, “Dusk Till Dawn”, by Zayn Malik. // Sia performed in concert at the close of the Dubai World Cup in March 2017, together with her dancers, led by Ziegler. They gave a second leg of the Nostalgic for the Present Tour, her first stadium tour in Australasia, in late 2017. // In 2017, Sia moved from RCA to Atlantic Records. She released a new album, Everyday Is Christmas, on Atlantic and Monkey Puzzle in November 2017. The album features original songs co-written and co-produced with Kurstin. She promoted it by releasing the single “Santa’s Coming for Us” and the track “Snowman”, which she performed during the finale of the 13th season of The Voice and on The Ellen DeGeneres Show together with Maddie Ziegler. In November 2018, Sia released the deluxe edition of the album, containing three bonus tracks, as a Target exclusive. // In 2018, Sia collaborated with English musician Labrinth and American DJ/record producer Diplo, under the name LSD, to release four songs, which were then released as an EP called Mountains on Spotify. The group released an album, Labrinth, Sia & Diplo Present… LSD, in April 2019, containing the same four songs, five new songs and a previously released remix of their track “Genius” with Lil Wayne. Also in 2018, Sia was one of the narrators of Australian animal rights documentary Dominion, and shared in a 2018 Award of Excellence from the Hollywood International Independent Documentary Awards. // Sia’s ninth album, Music – Songs from and Inspired by the Motion Picture, was released in February 2021 in connection with the release of her film, Music. Sia also plans to release her tenth album, Reasonable Woman, in 2021. // At the start of her career, with the bands Crisp and Jamiroquai, Sia performed “acid jazz” in Australia and later in London. With her first solo single, “Taken for Granted”, she experimented with trip hop. When she joined Zero 7, she sang downtempo numbers. // With Colour the Small One (2004) and Some People Have Real Problems (2007) she moved into jazz and folktronica, although the album’s biggest hit, “Breathe Me”, is described as alternative rock and a power ballad. Some People Have Real Problems expanded her connection with indie pop. Sia stated, “Colour the Small One … couldn’t be more derivative of Kings of Convenience and James Taylor and the things that Zero 7 were playing on the [tour] bus. I’m very easily influenced.” // In 2009, after leaving Zero 7, Sia dedicated herself entirely to her solo career. We Are Born (2010), incorporated various pop styles, including synthpop and R&B, with introspective themes accompanied by more insistent and livelier rhythms. 1000 Forms of Fear (2014) consolidated her connection with pop (with traces of electropop, reggae and hip-hop) This Is Acting is mostly composed of songs written by Sia with other female pop artists in mind, but the artists did not include the songs on their albums. Sia described songwriting for others as “play-acting.” The Guardian’s Kitty Empire commented that the latter album “provides an obvious counterpoint to Sia’s more personal album of 2014, 1000 Forms of Fear, whose stonking single, “Chandelier”, tackled her intoxicated past. This Is Acting makes plain the fact of manufacture – a process akin to bespoke tailoring.” // This Is Acting (2016) alternates more reggae and electropop with more introspective themes. In her 2016 live performances, Sia’s music is part of performance-art-like shows that involve dance and theatrical effects. For an MTV News writer “Sia’s throaty, slurred vocals are her norm”, while a The Fader contributor noted “In the Billboard Hot 100 landscape, Sia’s songwriting voice, which deals with depression and addiction, is singular—her actual voice even more so.” Everyday Is Christmas (2017), Sia’s first release of Christmas music is a pop album that gives old-fashioned holiday music “some 21st century pop gloss”. National Public Radio called Sia “the 21st century’s most resilient songwriter”. // Sia has received an array of accolades, including ARIA Awards, an MTV Video Music Award and nine nominations for Grammy Awards. // Sia lent her voice to the show South Park in its eighteenth season. In episode 3 entitled “The Cissy”, she portrayed Lorde in a parody song in the episode entitled “Push (Feeling Good on a Wednesday)”. In 2016 Sia covered “Blackbird” by The Beatles for the Netflix original series Beat Bugs. She appeared in the 2017 animated film My Little Pony: The Movie as the voice of “pop star” character Songbird Serenade. She also contributed an original song, “Rainbow”, to the film’s soundtrack. // Sia wrote the songs for the soundtrack to the 2018 musical film Vox Lux, with a score by Scott Walker. She wrote a screenplay, based on a story that she had written in 2007, for the 2021 musical film, Music, which stars Ziegler, Kate Hudson and Leslie Odom Jr. Sia also directed the film and wrote its soundtrack. The film was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy at the 78th Golden Globe Awards. // Following the disbandment of Crisp in 1997, Sia decided to move to London to follow her relationship with boyfriend Dan Pontifex. Several weeks later, while on a stopover in Thailand, she received the news that Pontifex had died after being in a car accident in London. She returned to Australia, but soon she received a call from one of Pontifex’s former housemates, who invited her to stay in London. Her 2001 album Healing Is Difficult lyrically deals with Pontifex’s death: “I was pretty fucked up after Dan died. I couldn’t really feel anything. I could intellectualise a lot of stuff; that I had a purpose, that I was loved, but I couldn’t actually feel anything.” Sia recalled the effect of his death in a 2007 interview for The Sunday Times: “We were all devastated, so we got shit-faced on drugs and Special Brew. Unfortunately, that bender lasted six years for me.” // In 2008, Sia discussed her sexual orientation in interviews and revealed her relationship with JD Samson; they broke up in 2011. When asked about her sexuality in 2009, she said, “I’ve always dated boys and girls and anything in between. I don’t care what gender you are, it’s about people. … I’ve always been… well, flexible is the word I would use.” Sia identified as queer on Twitter in 2013. // Sia has suffered from depression, addictions to painkillers and alcohol, and had contemplated suicide, going as far as to write a suicide note. In 2010, Sia cancelled various promotional events and shows due to her poor health. She cited extreme lethargy and panic attacks and considered retiring permanently from performing and touring. She stated that she had been diagnosed with Graves’ disease – an autoimmune disorder characterized by an over-active thyroid. Later that year, in an ARIA Awards interview, Sia said her health was improving after rest and thyroid hormone replacement therapy. In 2019, Sia revealed that she suffers from Ehlers–Danlos syndrome. // Sia married documentary filmmaker Erik Anders Lang at her home in Palm Springs, California, in August 2014.The couple revealed their separation in December 2016. During a 2014 appearance on The Howard Stern Show, Sia was asked if she was religious, to which she responded, “I believe in a Higher Power and it’s called ‘Whatever Dude’ and he’s a queer, surfing Santa that’s a bit like my grandpa, so yes.” In the same interview, she stated that she is a feminist and that Whatever Dude divinely inspired the lyrics she wrote for Rihanna’s song “Diamonds”. One of Sia’s tattoos, on her hand, reads “Whatever Dude”. Sia is a cousin of Australian Christian rock musician Peter Furler. // In 2019, Sia adopted two African-American boys who were ageing out of the foster care system.In July 2020, Sia announced that she had become a grandmother when one of her two 19-year-old sons had fathered twins. // Sia “has long been an advocate for animals”. She has participated in campaigns to protest against large-scale pet breeding and encourage people to spay or neuter their pets. She performed her song “I’m in Here” at the Beagle Freedom Project Gala, in 2013, and wrote the song “Free the Animal” for public service announcements supporting “cruelty-free … fashion” in 2015. For her 2016 Nostalgic for the Present Tour, Sia partnered with various rescue organisations to conduct a dog adoption fair at each of her concerts. In 2017, she released another PSA[buzzword] to encourage pet adoption. She is a narrator of the animal rights documentary Dominion. More info at: http://www.sismusic.net]
10:59 – Station ID
Calvin Keys – “B. E.” from: Shawn-Neeq / Black Jazz Records / 1971 [Real Gone Music / December 11, 2020 / 2021] [Calvin Keys is an American jazz guitarist, known for the several albums he released for Black Jazz Records. Keys has performed and recorded with Ray Charles, Ahmad Jamal, John Handy, Bobby Hutcherson, Eddie Marshall, Sonny Stitt, Pharoah Sanders, Joe Henderson and Leon Williams. From: http://www.amazon.com: Calvin Keys’s 1971 debut album for the Black Jazz Records label announced the arrival of a new star in the jazz guitar firmament. Keys had spent the ’60s backing up the crème de la crème of jazz organists’Jimmy Smith, Jimmy McGriff, Jack McDuff, Richard ‘Groove’ Holmes’but for his first record as a leader, he was eager to play with a piano player instead. So he recruited one of the best’Larry Nash, who, besides being a member of the L.A. Express, played with everybody from Eddie Harris to Bill Withers to Etta James. Bassist Lawrence Evans, drummer Bob Braye, and flautist-songwriter Owen Marshall rounded out the group on Shawn-Neeq, which might remind some of Pat Metheny’s early work (Metheny acknowledges Keys as an influence), or Grant Green. But what gives Shawn-Neeq extra depth is that it comes from the heart; as Keys says in Pat Thomas’ liner notes, which feature an interview with the artist: ‘My thing was, I write about some of the experiences that I’ve had in my life.’ Keys has since become a fixture in the Bay Area jazz scene; this is the album that started his journey. Another gem from the celebrated Black Jazz catalog, freshly remastered for CD and vinyl by Mike Milchner at Sonic Vision and ready to be savored!]
Roland Haynes – “Eglise” from: 2nd Wave / Snow Dog Records / 1975 [Real Gone Music / August 27, 2020] [From: http://www.amazon.com: This 1975 album is one of a kind in lots of ways. First, it’s keyboardist Roland Haynes’ only album. But more importantly, Second Wave has a sound’and line-up’unlike pretty much any other jazz fusion album to come out before or since. Anchored by a fantastic rhythm section of Carl Burnett (Cal Tjader, Vince Guaraldi and most notably Gene Harris and The Three Sounds) and Henry ‘The Skipper’ Franklin (leader on a couple of Black Jazz titles still to come, plus Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, Hugh Masekela, and many others), the album features dueling Fender Rhodes tickled by Haynes and Kirk Lightsey, who played with everyone from Chet Baker to Pharoah Sanders to Sonny Stitt, not to mention a bunch of Black Jazz dates. The cascading sound of the two electric pianos, one (Lightsey’s) often driven through a wah-wah pedal, gives Second Wave a special vibe all its own; there are not horns or guitars getting in the way of these mindblowing keyboard jams. Some folks might hear a little ’70s-era Miles Davis when Joe Zawinul, Chick Corea, Keith Jarrett and/or Herbie Hancock were in the band, and Hancock’s own Head Hunters album comes to mind (as well later fusion dudes like Jan Hammer and Bill Bruford), but Second Wave is sui generis. Our Real Gone reissue is remastered for CD and vinyl by Mike Milchner at Sonic Vision, with LP lacquer cutting by Clint Holley and Dave Polster at Well Made Music, and features new liner notes by Pat Thomas, author of Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965-1975, that include a couple of quotes from drummer Burnett and bassist Franklin. First ever time reissued on vinyl!]
Rudolph Johnson – “Sylvia Ann” from: Spring Rain / Black Jazz Records / 1971 [Real Gone December 11, 2020 / 2021] [From: http://www.amazon.com: Columbus, Ohio’s Rudolph Johnson drew comparisons to John Coltrane during his career; like the jazz legend in his later years, Johnson eschewed drugs or alcohol and spent his time every day either meditating and rehearsing on his horn. You can definitely hear a little bit of Coltrane in Johnson’s playing on this, his 1971 debut release for the Black Jazz label, the first of two he recorded for the imprint and the first he recorded as a leader after some sideman work (most notably for organist Jimmy McGriff); his ability to explore the upper registers and overtones of his tenor sax while retaining control is quite striking. Of course, this being a Black Jazz release, along with the bebop sounds of ‘Sylvia Ann’ and the mid-’60s Blue Note stylings of ‘Sylvia Ann,’ there’s the soul jazz of ‘Diswa’ and the groove funk of ‘Devon Jean,’ all played by, as is typical on Black Jazz releases, by top-notch sidemen including drummer Raymond Pounds, who’s played with everybody from Stevie Wonder to Pharoah Sanders to Bob Dylan, and pianist John Barnes, whose work is very familiar to Motown fans (Supremes, Temptations, Marvin Gaye). Bassist Reggie Jackson, who appeared on the Walter Bishop, Jr. Coral Keys record we previously released, rounds out the quartet. First vinyl reissue of another stellar Black Jazz release, remastered for CD and vinyl by Mike Milchner at Sonic Vision and featuring liner notes by Pat Thomas, author of Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965-1975!]
Eugene McDaniels – “Outlaw (Edited)” from: Outlaw / Atlantic Records / February 1970 [Reissued Real Gone Music / 2020] Eugene Booker McDaniels was born February 12, 1935 and died July 29, 2011. He was an American singer and songwriter. He had his greatest recording success in the early 1960s, and had continued success as a songwriter with songs including “Compared to What” and Roberta Flack’s “Feel Like Makin’ Love”. // Born in Kansas City, Kansas, United States, McDaniels grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. As well as singing gospel music in church, he developed a love of jazz, and learned to play the saxophone and trumpet. After forming a singing group, the Echoes of Joy, later known as the Sultans, in his teens, he studied at the University of Omaha Conservatory of Music before joining the Mississippi Piney Woods Singers, with whom he toured in California. // In California, McDaniels began singing in jazz clubs, achieving recognition with the Les McCann Trio, and came to the attention of Sy Waronker of Liberty Records. // After recording two unsuccessful singles and an album, McDaniels teamed with producer Snuff Garrett, with whom he recorded his first hit, “A Hundred Pounds of Clay”, which reached number 3 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart in early 1961 and sold over one million copies, earning gold disc status. Its follow-up, “A Tear”, was less successful but his third single with Garrett, “Tower of Strength”, co-written by Burt Bacharach, reached number 5 and won McDaniels his second gold record. “Tower of Strength” reached number 49 in the UK Singles Chart, losing out to Frankie Vaughan’s chart-topping version. // In 1962, McDaniels appeared performing “Another Tear Falls” in the movie It’s Trad, Dad! directed by Richard Lester. He continued to have hit records, including “Chip Chip”, “Point Of No Return”, and “Spanish Lace”, each in 1962, but his suave style of singing gradually became less fashionable. In 1965 “Point Of No Return” was recorded by the British R&B band Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames on their UK Columbia EP Fame At Last. Also in 1965, McDaniels moved to Columbia Records, with little success, and in 1968, after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, he left the US to live in Denmark and Sweden, where he concentrated on songwriting. // After the late 1960s, McDaniels turned his attention to a more black consciousness form, and his best-known song in this genre was “Compared to What”, a jazz-soul protest song made famous (and into a hit) by Les McCann and Eddie Harris on their album Swiss Movement and also covered by Roberta Flack, Ray Charles, Della Reese, John Legend, the Roots, Sweetwater, and others. He returned to the US in 1971 and recorded thereafter as Eugene McDaniels. // McDaniels also attained the top spot on the chart as a songwriter. In 1974, Roberta Flack reached number 1 with his “Feel Like Makin’ Love” (not to be confused with the Bad Company song of the same name), which received a Grammy Award nomination. McDaniels also received a BMI award for outstanding radio airplay; at the time of the award, the song had already had over five million plays. // In the early 1970s, McDaniels recorded on the Atlantic label, which released his albums Headless Heroes of the Apocalypse and Outlaw. // In the 1980s, McDaniels recorded an album with the percussionist Terry Silverlight, which has not yet been released. In 2005, McDaniels released Screams & Whispers on his own record label. // In 2009, it was announced that McDaniels was to release a new album, Evolution’s Child, which featured his lyrics, and a number of songs composed or arranged with pianist Ted Brancato. Some of the songs featured jazz musician Ron Carter on concert bass and Terri Lyne Carrington on drums. McDaniel’s “Jagger the Dagger” was featured on the Tribe Vibes breakbeat compilation album, after it had been sampled by A Tribe Called Quest. // McDaniels also appeared in films. They included It’s Trad, Dad! (1962, released in the United States as Ring-A-Ding Rhythm), which was directed by Richard Lester. McDaniels also appeared in The Young Swingers (1963). He is briefly seen singing in the choir in the 1974 film Uptown Saturday Night. He was the original voice actor for “Nasus”, a champion in the computer game League of Legends. // In 2010 he launched a series of YouTube videos on his website, featuring his music and thoughts on some of his creations. // McDaniels lived as a self-described “hermit” in the state of Maine. // McDaniels died peacefully on July 29, 2011, at his home, survived by his third wife and six children. More info at: http://www.genemcdaniels.com]
Roberta Flack – “Compared to What” from: First Take / Atlantic / June 20, 1969 [Reissued 1995 / Atlantic] [Roberta Cleopatra Flack was born February 10, 1937. She is an American singer. She is known for her No. 1 singles “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”, “Killing Me Softly with His Song”, “Feel Like Makin’ Love”; and “Where Is the Love” and “The Closer I Get to You”, two of her many duets with Donny Hathaway. // Flack is the only solo artist to win the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in two consecutive years: “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” won at the 1973 Grammys and “Killing Me Softly with His Song” won at the 1974 Grammys. // Flack lived with a musical family, born in Black Mountain, North Carolina to parents Laron Flack, a Veterans Administration draftsman, and Irene Council Flack a church organist, on February 10, 1937 (some sources also say 1939 – 1940 Census states Roberta was 3 years old) and raised in Arlington, Virginia. Growing up she often accompanied the choir of Lomax African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church by playing hymns and spirituals on piano, but she also enjoyed going to the “Baptist church down the street” to listen to contemporary gospel music, such as that performed by Mahalia Jackson and Sam Cooke. // When Flack was nine, she started taking an interest in playing the piano,[6] and during her early teens, Flack so excelled at classical piano that Howard University awarded her a full music scholarship. By age 15, she entered Howard University, making her one of the youngest students ever to enroll there. She eventually changed her major from piano to voice, and became an assistant conductor of the university choir. Her direction of a production of Aida received a standing ovation from the Howard University faculty. Flack is a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority and was made an honorary member of Tau Beta Sigma by the Eta Delta Chapter at Howard University for her outstanding work in promoting music education. // Roberta Flack became a student teacher at a school near Chevy Chase, Maryland. She graduated from Howard University at 19 and began graduate studies in music, but the sudden death of her father forced her to take a job teaching music and English in Farmville, North Carolina. // Before becoming a professional singer-songwriter, Flack returned to Washington, D.C. and taught at Banneker, Browne, and Rabaut Junior High Schools. She also taught private piano lessons out of her home on Euclid St. NW. During this period, her music career began to take shape on evenings and weekends in Washington, D.C. area night spots. At the Tivoli Club, she accompanied opera singers at the piano. During intermissions, she would sing blues, folk, and pop standards in a back room, accompanying herself on the piano. Later, she performed several nights a week at the 1520 Club, again providing her own piano accompaniment. Around this time, her voice teacher, Frederick “Wilkie” Wilkerson, told her that he saw a brighter future for her in pop music than in the classics. She modified her repertoire accordingly and her reputation spread.[citation needed] Flack began singing professionally after being hired to perform regularly at Mr. Henry’s Restaurant, on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC in 1968. // The atmosphere in Mr. Henry’s was welcoming and the club turned into a showcase for the young music teacher. Her voice mesmerized locals and word spread. A-list entertainers who were appearing in town would come in late at night to hear her sing. // As restaurant owner Henry Yaffe recalled, “She told me if I could give her work there three nights a week, she would quit teaching.” He did and she did. // To meet Roberta’s exacting standards, Yaffe transformed the apartment above the bar into the Roberta Flack Room. “I got the oak paneling from the old Dodge Hotel near Union Station. I put in heavy upholstered chairs, sort of a conservative style from the 50s and an acoustical system designed especially for Roberta. She was very demanding. She was a perfectionist.” // Les McCann discovered Flack singing and playing jazz in a Washington nightclub. He later said on the liner notes of what would be her first album First Take noted below, “Her voice touched, tapped, trapped, and kicked every emotion I’ve ever known. I laughed, cried, and screamed for more…she alone had the voice.” Very quickly, he arranged an audition for her with Atlantic Records, during which she played 42 songs in 3 hours for producer Joel Dorn. In November 1968, she recorded 39 song demos in less than 10 hours. Three months later, Atlantic reportedly recorded Flack’s debut album, First Take, in a mere 10 hours. Flack later spoke of those studio sessions as a “very naive and beautiful approach… I was comfortable with the music because I had worked on all these songs for all the years I had worked at Mr. Henry’s.” // In 1971, Flack participated in the legendary Soul to Soul concert film by Denis Sanders, which was headlined by Wilson Pickett, along with Ike & Tina Turner, Santana, The Staple Singers, Les McCann, Eddie Harris, The Voices of Harlem, and others. The U.S. delegation of musical artists was invited to perform for 14th anniversary of African independence in Ghana. The film was digitally reissued on DVD and CD in 2004 but Flack declined permission for her image and recording to be included for unknown reasons. Her a cappella performance of the traditional spiritual “Oh Freedom” retitled “Freedom Song” on the original Soul to Soul LP soundtrack is only available in the VHS version of the film. // Flack’s cover version of “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” hit number 76 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972. Her Atlantic recordings did not sell particularly well, until actor/director Clint Eastwood chose a song from First Take, “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” written by Ewan MacColl, for the sound track of his directorial debut Play Misty for Me; it became the biggest hit of the year for 1972, spending six consecutive weeks at #1 and earning Flack a million-selling Gold disc. It finished the year as Billboard’s top song of 1972. The First Take album also went to #1 and eventually sold 1.9 million copies in the United States. Eastwood, who paid $2,000 for the use of the song in the film, has remained an admirer and friend of Flack’s ever since. It was awarded the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1973. In 1983, she recorded the end music to the Dirty Harry film Sudden Impact at Eastwood’s request. // In 1972, Flack began recording regularly with Donny Hathaway, scoring hits such as the Grammy-winning “Where Is the Love” (1972) and later “The Closer I Get to You” (1978), both million-selling gold singles. Flack and Hathaway recorded several duets together, including two LPs, until Hathaway’s 1979 death. // On her own, Flack scored her second #1 hit in 1973, “Killing Me Softly with His Song” written by Charles Fox, Norman Gimbel and Lori Lieberman. It was awarded both Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the 1974 Grammy Awards. Its parent album was Flack’s biggest-selling disc, eventually earning double platinum certification. In 1974, Flack released “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” which became her third and final #1 hit to date on the Hot 100. That same year, Flack sang the lead on a Sherman Brothers song called “Freedom”, which featured prominently at the opening and closing of the movie Huckleberry Finn. Also in that same year, she performed “When We Grow Up” with a teenage Michael Jackson on the 1974 television special, Free to Be… You and Me. Then, in her only film role, she served as the narrator for The Legend of John Henry. // Flack had a 1982 hit single with “Making Love”, written by Burt Bacharach (the title track of the 1982 film of the same name), which reached #13. She began working with Peabo Bryson with more limited success, charting as high as #5 on the R&B chart (plus #16 Pop and #4 Adult Contemporary) with “Tonight, I Celebrate My Love” in 1983. Her next two singles with Bryson, “You’re Looking Like Love To Me” and “I Just Came Here To Dance,” fared better on adult contemporary (AC) radio than on pop or R&B radio. // In 1986, Flack sang the theme song entitled “Together Through the Years” for the NBC television series Valerie, later known as The Hogan Family. The song was used throughout the show’s six seasons. In 1987 Flack supplied the voice of Michael Jackson’s mother in the 18-minute short film for Bad. Oasis was released in 1988 and failed to make an impact with pop audiences, though the title track reached #1 on the R&B chart and a remix of “Uh-Uh Ooh-Ooh Look Out (Here It Comes)” topped the dance chart in 1989. Flack found herself again in the US Top 10 with the hit song “Set the Night to Music”, a 1991 duet with Jamaican vocalist Maxi Priest that peaked at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and #2 AC. Flack’s smooth R&B sound lent itself easily to Easy Listening airplay during the 1970s, and she has had four #1 AC hits. // In 1999, a star with Flack’s name was placed on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. That same year, she gave a concert tour in South Africa; the final performance was attended by President Nelson Mandela. In 2010, she appeared on the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, singing a duet of “Where Is The Love” with Maxwell. ” In February 2012, Flack released Let it Be Roberta, an album of Beatles covers including “Hey Jude” and “Let It Be”. It was her first recording in over eight years. Flack knew John Lennon and Yoko Ono, as both households moved in 1975 into The Dakota apartment building in New York City, and had apartments across the hall from each other. Flack has stated that she has already been asked to do a second album of Beatles covers. She is currently involved in an interpretative album of the Beatles’ classics. // At age 80, Flack made her most recent recording, Running, the closing credits song of the 2018 feature documentary 3100: Run and Become with music and lyrics by Michael A. Levine. // Flack’s minimalist, classically trained approach to her songs was seen by a number of critics as lacking in grit and uncharacteristic of soul music. According to music scholar Jason King, her work was regularly described with the adjectives “boring”, “depressing”, “lifeless”, “studied”, and “calculated”; AllMusic’s Steve Huey said it has been called “classy, urbane, reserved, smooth, and sophisticated”. In 1971, Village Voice critic Robert Christgau reported that “Flack is generally regarded as the most significant new black woman singer since Aretha Franklin, and at moments she sounds kind, intelligent, and very likable. But she often exhibits the gratuitous gentility you’d expect of someone who says ‘between you and I.'” // Reviewing her body of work from the 1970s, he later argued that the singer “has nothing whatsoever to do with rock and roll or rhythm and blues and almost nothing to do with soul”, comparing her middle-of-the-road aesthetic to Barry Manilow but with better taste, which he believed does not necessarily guarantee more enduring music: “In the long run, pop lies are improved by vulgarity.” // Flack is a member of the Artist Empowerment Coalition, which advocates the right of artists to control their creative properties. She is also a spokeswoman for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; her appearance in commercials for the ASPCA featured “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”. In the Bronx section of New York City, the Hyde Leadership Charter School’s after-school music program is called “The Roberta Flack School of Music” and is in partnership with Flack, who founded the school, which provides free music education to underprivileged students. // Between 1966 and 1972, she was married to Steve Novosel. Together, they had a son, Bernard Wright, who became a successful funk and jazz keyboardist and producer. Flack is the aunt of professional ice skater Rory Flack. // According to DNA analysis, she is of Cameroonian descent. // On April 20, 2018, Flack was appearing onstage at the Apollo Theater at a benefit for the Jazz Foundation of America. She became ill, left the stage, and was rushed to the Harlem Hospital Center. In a statement, her manager announced that Flack had suffered a stroke a few years prior and still was not feeling well, but was “doing fine” and being kept overnight for medical observation. More info at http://www.robertaflack.com]
11:29 – Underwriting
T.P Orchestre Poly Rythmo De Cotonou – “Aiha Ni Kpe We” from: Benin Vol. 4 –Yehouessi Leopold Batteur / Acid Jazz / 2021 [Orig. release Jan. 1, 1978] [Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou is a band from Cotonou, Benin which plays afrobeat, funk, soukous and other styles, often based on Vodun rhythms. The group is sometimes referred to as “Tout Puissant” (French for “All Mighty”) Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou first formed by bandleader Clément Mélomé in 1968 under the name “Orchestre Poly-Disco” in the coastal town of Cotonou, Benin. Their debut album was originally released in 1973. From the late 1960s through the early 1980s, the group recorded around 500 songs in a variety of musical styles for various Beninese record labels. A compilation of their back catalogue released on the Popular African Music label in 2003, followed by The Kings of Benin Urban Groove on Soundway Records the following year. A series of compilations released by Analog Africa beginning in 2008 brought the band to greater global attention. This interest led the band to reform and tour internationally in 2009, and release two new studio albums: Cotonou Club, in 2011 and Madjafalao in 2016. In its heyday the Orchestre Poly-Rythmo released several dozen LPs and singles. The following discography refers only to the publications of recent years.]
Femi Kuti and Made Kuti – “Stop the Hate” om: Legacy + / Partisan Records / February 5, 2021 [Son and Grandson on Afrobeat pioneer and prolific Nigerian artist Fela Kuti. // Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti (born 16 June 1962), popularly known as Femi Kuti, is a Nigerian musician born in London and raised in Lagos. He is the eldest son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti and a grandchild of political campaigner, women’s rights activist and traditional aristocrat Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti.// Femi Kuti began his musical career playing in his father’s band, Egypt 80. In 1986, Femi started his own band, Positive Force, establishing himself as an artist independent of his father’s massive legacy. // Femi Anikulapo Kuti was born in London to Fela and Remilekun (Remi) Ransome-Kuti (née Taylor; 1961–1985), and grew up in the former Nigerian capital, Lagos. His mother soon left his father, taking Femi to live with her. In 1977, however, Femi chose to move in with his father. Femi started playing the saxophone at the age of 15 and eventually became a member of his father’s band. He studied at Baptist Academy and Igbobi College. // Like his father, Femi has made commitments to social and political causes throughout his career. Femi’s grandmother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, was a political campaigner and women’s rights activist. Though Femi is the son of an international icon, he considers his mother, Remilekun Taylor, to be his greatest influence. // He created his own band, Positive Force, in the late 1980s with Dele Sosimi (Gbedu Resurrection), former keyboard player of Fela Anikulapo Kuti. His international career began in 1988 when he was invited by the French Cultural Centre in Lagos and Christian Mousset to perform at the Festival d’Angoulême (France), the New Morning Club in Paris and the Moers Festival in Germany. // In 2001, Femi collaborated on his album Fight to Win with a number of US musicians, including Common, Mos Def, and Jaguar Wright. // Also in 2002, Femi contributed a remake of his father’s classic song “Water No Get Enemy” to Red Hot & Riot, a compilation CD in tribute to Fela Kuti that was released by the Red Hot Organization and MCA. Femi’s track was created in collaboration with hip-hop and R&B artists D’Angelo, Macy Gray, The Soultronics, Nile Rodgers and Roy Hargrove, and all proceeds from the CD were donated to charities dedicated to raising AIDS awareness or fighting the disease. // Femi Kuti’s voice is featured in the videogame Grand Theft Auto IV, where he is the host of radio station IF 99 (International Funk 99, described as “playing a great selection of classics from West Africa, the US and elsewhere”). // In similar fashion as his father, there have been complaints of Kuti’s criticism of his homeland Nigeria, specifically in the song “Sorry Sorry” along with “What Will Tomorrow Bring” and “97”. // Femi has been nominated for a Grammy award four times in the world music category in 2003, 2010, 2012 and 2013 but has never won. // On December 19, 2014 a management deal between Chocolate City Music Group and Femi Kuti was reached. The news was announced via the Chocolate City Music official Instagram account, as well as Audu Maikori social media accounts. // On February 5, 2021, Femi Kuti and his son, Made Kuti, released their two-album project, Legacy+ under Partisan Records. The project includes Femi’s eleventh album Stop the Hate and Made’s debut album For(e)ward. // Femi, the son of Afrobeat singer and political activist Fela Kuti, inherited his father’s zeal for both music and activism. He started playing the saxophone and keyboard with his father’s band when he was 16 and stepped into the spotlight, writing and singing after his father’s demise. Femi remains politically inclined grooving to high energy funk, jazz and traditional African-fueled songs about political corruption, poverty and primitive living conditions suffered by most inhabitants in Nigeria’s oil-rich nation. // Femi Kuti’s album Africa for Africa emphasized “Bad Government” as a problem in Africa. Before the 2011 elections in Nigeria, he reached out to the people that there was “no difference between the three candidates contesting for the presidential seat in Nigeria”. He added, “we could say we’re moving in the democratic process. And it’s probably better than going to war, but corruption is still very rampant. The people are hungry and sick. And the government controls the media, so it can’t be critical”. // Kuti also said: “It’s a very hypocritical situation. People settle for putting a meal on the table, but they don’t know that the rest of the world doesn’t suffer every day from power outages and water shortage. Nigerians don’t even know about the history of African slavery, because it’s not included in the text books.” He echoed the same sentiments in the 2015 elections by releasing a remix to the song “Politics Na Big Business” featuring Tuface Idiibia and Sound Sultan through his management company, Chocolate City. // Kuti’s song “Make We Remember” calls on people to remember the words of his father and “great black people”, who fought for the emancipation of Africa. For a very long time, Femi has been using music to inspire, change and motivate African people. More info at: http://www.femikuti.com]
Ghost Funk Orchestra – “Fuzzy Logic” from: An Ode To Escapism / Karma Chief – Colemine Records / November 13, 2020 [Where will you hide when the world around you is closing in? On their latest LP, GFO invites you to close your eyes and take a dive into your subconscious. Strings and horns float around from ear to ear while their three sirens explore themes of isolation, fear of the unknown, and the fabrication of self-image. It’s a soulful psychedelic journey that picks up sonically where “A Song For Paul” left off. The drums are heavier, the arrangements are more intricate, and the vocal harmonies soar over a bed of odd time signature grooves. This is an album that’s meant to be listened to in the dark. So won’t you join them? You’re not scared…..are you? // Composed, arranged, and produced by Seth Applebaum; vocals by: Lo Gwynn, Romi Hanoch, and Megan Mancini; horns by: Brian Plautz on flute), Billy Aukstik on muted trumpet), Rich Seibert on trumpet & baritone), James Kelly on trombone), Stephen Chen on baritone sax & b-flat clarinet), and David Valbuena on bass clarinet; strings by Ally Jenkins on violin 1), Gokce Rem on violin 2), Tia Allen on viola, Andrew Borkowski on cello 1), and Sam Qqiggins on cello 2; voiceover: Alba Ponce De Leon; guests: Julian Applebaum on guitar on track 9, bass on track 17, Kam Franklin on vocals on track 16, Sean Pastorok on additional cello on track 5. ‘little bird’ voices: Matt Gibbs, Jennifer Kennedy, Chris & Gina Marksbury and Pet Mazza. Recorded at GHOSTLOAD SOUND & STUDIO G. Vocals recorded at SEIGEL. More info at: http://www.ghostfunkorchestra.com]
BeBe & CeCe Winans – “You’ve Got a Friend (feat. Aretha Franklin)” from: Tapestry Revisited: A Tribute to Carole King / Atlantic / 1995 [“You’ve Got a Friend” is a 1971 song written by Carole King. It was first recorded by King and included in her album Tapestry. Another well-known version is by James Taylor from his album Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon. His was released as a single in 1971 reaching number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 4 on the UK Singles Chart. The two versions were recorded simultaneously in 1971 with shared musicians. // “You’ve Got a Friend” won Grammy Awards both for Taylor (Best Male Pop Vocal Performance) and King (Song of the Year). Dozens of other artists have recorded the song over the years, including Dusty Springfield, Michael Jackson, Anne Murray and Donny Hathaway. // James Taylor and Carole King at the 2010 Troubadour Reunion Tour. “You’ve Got a Friend” was written by Carole King during the January 1971 recording sessions for her own album Tapestry and James Taylor’s album Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon. King has stated that “the song was as close to pure inspiration as I’ve ever experienced. The song wrote itself. It was written by something outside myself, through me.” According to Taylor, King told him that the song was a response to a line in Taylor’s earlier song “Fire and Rain” that “I’ve seen lonely times when I could not find a friend.” King’s album was recorded in an overlap with Taylor’s, and King, Danny Kortchmar, and Joni Mitchell perform on both. The song is included on both albums; King said in a 1972 interview that she “didn’t write it with James or anybody really specifically in mind. But when James heard it he really liked it and wanted to record it”. // Taylor’s version was released as a single, and reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 4 on the UK Singles Chart. The James Taylor version also spent one week at the top of the Easy Listening charts. Billboard ranked it as the No. 17 song for 1971. // During the recording process, Taylor also offered to his Apple Records labelmate Mary Hopkin a chance to record the song, which she turned down, a decision she later said she strongly regretted. // James Taylor and Carole King performed “You’ve Got a Friend” together in 2010 during their Troubadour Reunion Tour. In 2015, Taylor performed an acoustic rendition of the song at Hôtel de Ville, Paris at the invitation of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo in tribute to the victims of the January 2015 Île-de-France attacks // This song was also recorded by Aretha Franklin for her 1972 live gospel performance Amazing Grace, although it was released on that album as part of a medley with “Precious Lord, Take My Hand”. This version of the song became known to a wider audience with the 2018 release of the documentary featuring film of those concerts, also titled Amazing Grace. Rhino Records released Amazing Grace: The Complete Recordings on 4 LPs and 2 CDs in March 2019. // BeBe & CeCe Winans are an American gospel music brother and sister duo. BeBe and CeCe Winans are the seventh and eighth of the Winans family’s ten children, most of whom have had gospel music careers. Together, they have received several awards, including three Grammys. // While BeBe and CeCe were in high school, four of their elder brothers formed the successful gospel group The Winans. Initially known as The Winans Part II, BeBe and CeCe first appeared in the public eye when they debuted in 1982 as part of the singing group The PTL Singers on the Christian television show The PTL Club. They were introduced by Jim Bakker, and recorded their first album Lord Lift Us Up as a duo for PTL Records. // BeBe and CeCe left the PTL Singers in 1987 to pursue a musical career and that same year, Sparrow Records offered the two siblings a Gospel recording contract. Their mainstream debut release was the self-titled album BeBe & CeCe Winans. It was produced by Keith Thomas, who would go on to produce Amy Grant and Vanessa L. Williams. The debut record gave them their first R&B hit, “I.O.U. Me”, which topped R&B and inspirational charts and generated Grammy nominations, and Dove and Stellar Awards. CeCe also earned a Grammy for “Best Soul Gospel Performance, Female” for the song “For Always.” // They were one of the first African American artists to receive significant airplay on contemporary Christian music radio stations and the second African American artists to receive the Dove Award in the Group of the Year category. // With the release of their second LP Heaven, they remained steadily popular with R&B audiences, spawning 3 R&B hit singles including two No. 1 singles. The pair became the first Gospel artists to see their album reach No. 1 on the Billboard sales charts in 1988. The title track also reached No. 12 on the Billboard R&B singles chart. // Other hits from the album included “Lost Without You” and “Celebrate New Life,” one of two album tracks featuring superstar and family friend Whitney Houston.The album reached the R&B Top Ten, went to No. 95 on the Pop Charts and was certified Gold. // The release of their 1991 album Different Lifestyles brought their biggest success to date. It featured the singles “Addictive Love” and a cover of The Staple Singers’ “I’ll Take You There” featuring Mavis Staples. Both singles topped the R&B chart. Rapper MC Hammer was featured on the single “The Blood” at the height of his career. In 1992, the song peaked at No. 8 on Billboard’s Christian Adult Contemporary chart. // A holiday release titled First Christmas followed in 1993. This album showcased BeBe’s production skills and led to him doing production work with Whitney Houston on the soundtrack for the movie The Bodyguard as well as production and writing music for artists such as Gladys Knight, Bobby Brown, The Clark Sisters and his younger sisters Angie and Debbie Winans. // 1994 saw the release of their studio album Relationships, featuring the notable singles “If Anything Ever Happened To You,” “Love of My Life,” and “Stay With Me.” This album conveyed a more personal approach, in CeCe’s words: “A lot of people think we’re supposed to be perfect, but we’re people too, we go through hurt [and] pain. We get songs through experiences and as we reveal these things, people are touched.” // In 2009, Still was BeBe & CeCe’s first album in more than 15 years. Premiering 12 new songs, the album’s lead single was “Close to You”. The album won two Grammy Awards: Best Gospel Performance (the song “Grace”) and Best Gospel R&B Album. // As a duo, BeBe and CeCe Winans’ accolades include three Grammy Awards, nine Dove Awards, two NAACP Image awards, two Soul Train Music Awards, numerous Stellar Awards, three Gold albums, and one Platinum album.]
Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now” from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]
Next week on Wednesday, March 3, we welcome guests: singer songwriter David Luther, Hip Hop MC and producer Cuee, and host of Sonic Spectrum now on 90.9 The Bridge, Robert Moore.
Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information. Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org
Wednesday MidDay Medley 