Wednesday MidDay Medley
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Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

The 114 Best Recordings of 2014
(Part 2 of 4)

Wednesday MidDay Medley presents part-2, of our 4 week special: The 114 Best Recordings of 2014. This is our celebration of the year in music. Based on our own playlists, we’ve compiled representative tracks from our favorite full length and EP recordings of 2014. This year we’ve played over 1000 songs, and hundreds of New & Local Releases. Over 40 of the bands and artists in our “Best of” have joined us live or performed in-studio. We’ve interviewed over 200 local and national guests. 2/3rds of the recordings on our “Best of” list were locally produced. It’s all good!

Tune into 90.1 FM, Wednesdays in December, on the 24th, and 31st with music that represents: The 114 of Best Recordings of 2014!

1. (87) Sleepy Kitty – “What Are You Gonna Do When You Find Bigfoot?
from: Projection Room / Euclid Records / January 14, 2014
[From Chicago and St. Louis. Paige Brubeck on vocals/guitar/keys, and Evan Sult on drums/vocals/tapes. More info at: sleepykittymusic.com. Sleepy Kitty played Middle of the Map Fest.]

2. (86.) The Noise FM – “Scam Artist”
from: Attraction / The Record Machine / January 28, 2014
[Formed in 2005 by Fort Scott, KS. brothers Alex Ward on vocals, keyboard, guitar & Austin Ward on drums, vocals. In 2007 the band moved to Lawrence. In 2010 they relocated to Chicago. The band performs live as a trio with Barry Kidd playing bass.]

3. (85.) The Kansas City Bear Fighters – “You’re In Kansas”
from: The Planet Where We Fell In Love / Little Class Records / August 8, 2014
[Lead singer songwriter Quinn McCue, brother Sean McCue on bass, Jeff Eaton on guitar, Grant Buell on accordion. Founded in the cruel winter of 2007, The KC Bear Fighters first took shape as one lonely man’s homage to music as a salve for the soul. Originally, called “The Denver Broncos” which many considered to be the product of one man’s struggling and genius search for a fire that could crack the deep cavernous walls of his soul.]

[The Kansas City Bear Fighters play The Granada, in Lawrence, Kansas, Friday, December 19 with Ashes to Immortality, and Old Fangled.]

10:12

4. (84.) Truckstop Honeymoon – “List Of Chore”
from: The Madness of Happiness / Independent / April 2, 2014
[Lawrence KS based Michael West & Sara Euliss who relocated after Katrina hit their home in New Orleans.]

5. (83.) Scruffy & The Janitors – “Ms. Crucio”
from: Anglo / This Tall Records / June 13, 2014
[St. Joe based trio of Steven Foster – Vocals/Bass, Teriq Newton – Guitar/Vocals, and Trevin Newton – Drums. Recorded by Kiley Bodenhamer , Mixed by Chad Hasledalen , Mastered by Albert Born. All songs written by Scruffy & The Janitors.]

6. (82.) Wick & The Tricks – “Brooklyn Queens”
from: Tricky [EP] / Independent / July 22, 2014
[Wick Trick – Vocals , Brit Wild – Guitar , Meri Contrary – Guitar , Smooth Stef – Drums. Recorded at Weights and Measures sound lab.]

7. (81.) Sneaky Creeps – “Hypnotist Convention”
from: Negative Space / Big Urges / March 12, 2014
[Recorded, mixed, and Mastered by Joel Nanos of Element Recording, KC, MO. Isaac Ahloe-Bass, Max Crutcher-Drums and yell/talk, Andy Erdrich-Guitar, loops/noises, and yell/talk.]

8. (80) tUnE- yArDs – “Water Fountain”
from: Nikki Nack / 4AD Records / May 6, 2014
[3rd studio release by Merrill Garbus’ experimental solo-project tUnE-yArDs. When performing live, Garbus creates drum loops on the spot, and layers these w/ ukulele, voice, & electric bass played by Nate Brenner. tUnE-yArDs played Starlight Theatre opening for Arcade Fire, April 26.]

10:26 – Underwriting
10:28

9. (79.) Temples – “Shelter Song”
from: Sun Structures / Fat Possum Records / February 11, 2014
[English psychedelic rock band, formed in Kettering, Northamptonshire in 2012, by singer-guitarist James Edward Bagshaw & bassist Thomas Edison Warmsley. They have received considerable press attention during their short existence and have been cited by Johnny Marr and Noel Gallagher as the best new band in Britain.]

10. (78.) Lykke Li – “No Rest For the Wicked (Klangkarussel Remix) ”
from: No Rest For the Wicked (Remixes) EP/ LL Recordings – Atlantic Records / May 30, 2014
[Feat. Klangkarussell in a remix of the lead single from I Never Learn, the third studio album by Swedish recording artist Lykke Li. According to Li, the album is the final installment in a trilogy chronicling “a woman in her twenties and her search for love and herself”, which began with her first two albums, Youth Novels (2008) and Wounded Rhymes (2011). After experiencing “the biggest breakup of her life”, Li moved from Sweden to Los Angeles, where she spent two-and-a-half years in writing I Never Learn. “I made no such plans to make an album. My first instinct was just to try to heal myself and to come back to some sort of life. And then I was so emotionally broken that I just started to write… I love writing, and it was so amazing to get lost in the process. I didn’t think that someone would ever hear it”, she told Billboard. During much of her time in California, Li listened to Van Morrison’s 1968 album Astral Weeks, Harry Nilsson demos, The Band and Dennis Wilson. She described I Never Learn as a collection of “power ballads for the broken”, adding that the album is “about me and the guilt and the shame and the hurt and the pride and the confusion of being a woman. Lykke Li plays Kansas City at the Uptown Theare, Saturday, September 27.]

11. (77.) Ex-Hex – “Hot and Cold”
from: Rips / Merge / October 7, 2014
[Ex Hex is a power trio from Washington, DC. With Wild Flag on hiatus, Mary Timony (Autoclave, Helium) needed a new side project, so she retreated to her basement and started writing. With Laura Harris (The Aquarium, Benjy Ferree) and Betsy Wright from Virginia. ]

12. (76.) Spoon – “Do You”
from: They Want My Soul / Loma Vista Recordings / August 5, 2014
[8th studio album from indie rock band Spoon, formed in Austin, Texas in 1993, by lead singer and guitarist Britt Daniel and drummer Jim Eno, after the two met as members of The Alien Beats. The name Spoon was chosen to honor the 1970s German avant-garde band Can, whose hit song “Spoon” was the theme song to the 1985 movie Das Messer aka Jagged Edge in the United States. The new record is the band’s first album to feature new member Alex Fischel, who plays keyboards and guitar.]

10:45

13. (75.) Beck – “Blue Moon”
from: Morning Phase / Fonograph – Capitol Records / February 25, 2014
[For the recording of Morning Phase, Beck reunited with many of the same musicians with whom he had worked on the critically acclaimed 2002 album Sea Change.]

14. (74.) Prince – “BREAKDOWN”
from: ART OFFICIAL AGE / NPG – Warner Bros. / September 26, 2014
[The 34th studio album in 36 years from the prolific master of music. On April 18, 2014, Prince released a new single entitled, “The Breakdown”. Along with news that a new album was in the works, an expanded edition of Purple Rain would be released for the 30th anniversary, and he has re-signed with his former label, Warner Bros. Records after an 18-year split. He also gained the rights to his master recordings from the 1980s, which had been a point of contention for his initial split with the major label.]

15. (73.) PUJOL – “Circles”
from: Kludge / Saddle Creek Records / May 20, 2014
[Daniel Pujol is based in Nashville, Tennessee. Originally from Tullahoma, TennesseeA kludge is: “A clumsy or inelegant solution to a problem.” “An ill assorted collection of poorly matching parts, forming a distressing whole.” “A crock that works.”In February of 2013, Daniel Pujol set out to write and record the follow-up to his debut album, 2012’s UNITED STATES OF BEING. Pujol and producer Doni Shroader set up shop in Mt. Juliet, TN at The Place: a suicide-prevention center for teens located in a strip mall. They used largely borrowed and donated gear, recording every day from 5pm until 6am, all the while breaking down and setting up the temporary studio every day between office hours. Mixing took place during the building of Battletapes, a two car garage that was in the midst of being converted into an acoustically treated, professional grade tracking room; building permit, construction workers, and all. Following four months of vampiric living and working around conflicting schedules/eccentricities (the band, the engineers, the sun), Daniel, Doni, and Battletapes had finished the album they had been working towards. Recording and mixing happened in a “non-location” where things were being built or set up, in order to work on the album, working around the obstacles the location presented. More info at http://pujoldotcom.com%5D

11:00 – Station ID

16. (72.) King Tuff – “Eyes of the Muse”
from: Black Spell Moon / Sub Pop Records / September 23, 2014
[5th studio release of King Tuff who is Kyle Thomas, who also records with Burger records and is currently on tour in Europe.]

17. (71.) Jack White – “Just One Drink”
from: Lazaretto / Third Man Records / June 10, 2014
[Born the youngest of ten children, raised in Southwest Detroit and a resident of Nashville since 2005, Jack White is one of the most prolific and renowned artists of the past fifteen years. Jack White played The Midland Theatre on August 18, in a SOLD OUT show.]

18. (70.) Brooke Tuley – “Hey Bluebird”
from: FIRST MIDNIGHT / Independent / April 14, 2014
[In October 2013 the Bloodbirds announced they would be going on hiatus as the band’s bassist, Anna St. Louis, was leaving KC for California. In April, Bloodbirds drummer drummer Brooke Tuley released a solo record, produced, mixed and mastered by her husband and Bloodbirds frontman Mike Tuley who wrote on his Facebook page: “Brooke hid away all winter and recorded a slew of jams on our old 4-track. I helped her put them on the computer and gussy them up. Now she put them online! I’m really proud of her and I love her music so much! She’s making a tape to sell, and she’ll be playing shows soon. Be brave, Brooke! YEAH DOGGIE!. The Pitch calls it “a gorgeous, sparse 10-track collection in the vein of Sharon Van Etten’s Tramp, with some discordant, odd and eerie effects a la Cate le Bon. ” Brooke Tuley told Natalie Gallagher and The Pitch, “It [the recording of this record] started this fall after Bloodbirds kind of decided to stop playing music for a while,” Tuley explains over the phone. “I’m pregnant now, so it’s kind of just a project for in the meantime, before the baby comes. I’m five and a half months pregnant, and it started then.]

19. (69.) Conor Oberst – “Zigzagging Toward the Light”
from: Upside Down Mountain / Nonesuch Records / May 16, 2014
[6th solo studio album by singer-songwriter Conor Oberst, (born Feb. 15, 1980) known for his work in Bright Eyes. He’s also played in several other bands: Desaparecidos, Norman Bailer (The Faint), Commander Venus, Park Ave., Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, Arab Strap and Monsters of Folk. Oberst was named the Best Songwriter of 2008 by Rolling Stone magazine. The new record, according to Oberst, is a return to an earlier style of his songwriting. He explains that the album is about language: “It’s more intimate or personal, if you will. Even if all my songs come from the same place, you make different aesthetic decisions along the way. For me, language is a huge part of why I make music. I’m not the greatest guitar player or piano player—I’m not the greatest singer, either—but I feel if I can come up with melodies I like that are fused with poetry I’m proud of, then that’s what I bring to the table. That’s why I’m able to do this.”]

11:16

20. (68.) Federation of Horsepower – “Queen of Rosedale”
from: Hermanos de Sangre / Independent / May 21, 2014
[Gregg Todt – Lead Vocals, Guitar, Hammond Organ, Piano; Johnny Catfish – Bass, Background Vocals ; Chris Fugitt – Drums, Percussion, Background Vocals; Auggie Wolber – Guitar; Christopher Tolle – Guitar, Background Vocals. Additional vocals on “The Queen of Rosedale” – Monique Danielle. Produced by Duane Trower and Federation of Horsepower. Engineered and Mastered by Duane Trower at Weights & Measures Soundlab, Kansas City MO. Cover Art by Gerardo Quetzatl Garcia.]

21. (67.) John Statz and Josh Harty – “Record Spins”
from: 12 August / Money Wolf Music / February 18, 2014
[Recorded unrehearsed, live, with no edits, at Silo Sounds on the south side of Denver, on a free day between shows. John and Josh had played Denver the night before, and only had to drive as far as Fort Collins the next. Josh Harty is originally from North Dakota and John Statz is from Wisconsin. John Statz and Josh Harty played live on the show on February 19.]

22. (66.) Wells The Traveler – “On The Outside”
from: Build It Up / Independent / 2014
[Danny McGaw and Jason Jones. New songs from Manchester, England born, Danny McGaw singer and songwriter, who turned to music when an injury derailed his dreams of becoming a professional soccer player. McGaw moved to the Kc area in 2008. In 2012 Danny released a beautiful solo album called “Eccles Road.” Last year he released “One for the Dreamers” with his band Wells The Traveler. Danny told us that he’ll be releasing physical copies of his new record after he and his family get settled in their new home in California.]

11:28 – Underwriting
11:30

23. (65.) The Phantastics – “Stay With Me”
from: Closer / Silly Goose Records / December 14, 2013
[Debut EP from 8 member musical ensemble that specializes genre-blending hip-hop, mixed with rock, rap, dance, funk, jazz and soul. Formed in December of 2010.]

24. (64.) Carswell & Hope – “Johnny’s Sorry Lot”
from: Carswell & Hope / Silly Goose Records / April 14, 2014
[Debut recording from Lawrence, Kansas band, Nick Carswell, Jason Slote, Dan Hines, Austin Quick. Nick Carswell is a founding member of InterUrban ArtHouse. Silly Goose Records (SGR) was originally founded in Ireland in 2010, by Irish musician and songwriter Nick Carswell. The label released several records and supported bands, coordinating national tours, media and television appearances and PR campaigns. Carswell relocated to Kansas in 2011 and began working with local musicians through the Barrel House piano bar in downtown Lawrence. In January 2013, Silly Goose Records was re-imagined as an independent collective, where artists could collaborate and come together to share experience and resources. Within their first year, bands in the collective have released several EPs, produced and recorded online videos, recorded full-length albums and even incorporated as LLCs. More details at http://www.sillygooserecords.org. Nick Carswell joined us live on the show on March 5.]

25. (63.) The Clementines – “In Yesterday”
from: Someday / Over [EP] / Independent / May 9, 2014
[We first met The Clementines as a duo of Tim Jenkins & Nicole Springer when they played LIVE on WMM April 25, 2012. Since then they’ve become a solid 4-piece band with songwriter Nicole Springer on vocals, rhythm guitar, Tim Jenkins on lead guitar and mandolin, Travis Earnshaw on bass, and Aaron Derington on drums. Nicole Springer grew up in Oak Grove, MO, and graduated H.S. in 2004. She studied Music-Vocal/Choral at Missouri State University, in Springfield, MO. Nicole told The Pitch (Jan. 10, 2012): “I grew up singing in gospel choirs,” she says. “And I still love gospel music, though I’m not religious or anything. I did musicals throughout high school, and I went to school for a year at Missouri State for music education. But I’ve never been in a committed band before this one.”]

[The Clementines play CODA Saturday, December 20, with Miry Wild and Katy Guillen and the Girls.]

26. (62.) Claire and the Crowded Stage – “I Saw It All”
from: Kamikazee / Independent / July 26, 2014
[All songs by Claire Adams. All arrangements by The Crowded Stage: Claire Adams vocals, ukulele, guitar; Katy Guillen guitar, vocals, mandolin; Brent Jamison keys, vocals; Katelyn Boone bass, vocals, keys; Peter Lawless accordion, bass; Jerod Rivers percussion; Stephanie Williams drums; Teri Quinn clarinet, guitar. (additional members include Ben Byard, Mark Laurer and Russell Thorpe. Tecnicolor was Recorded in Kansas City mixed at Sangha Studios by Claire Adams, mastered at Weights + Measures soundlab by Duane Trower. Claire and The Crowded Stage played live on the show on April 23.]

11:47

27. (61.) Violet and the Undercurrents – “Anything You Want”
From: Waves / Nation of Love / April 22, 2014
[Columbia, Missouri based, four-piece, all-female band. Violet and the Undercurrents have been described as “..Sophisticated folk-rockers ..” Members include: Violet Vonder Haar on Lead Vocals and Guitar; Linda Bott on Bass Guitar; Caitlin Lukin on Cello; Phylshawn Johnson on Drums.]

15. (60.) Phylshawn – “Across The Tracks”
from: Across The Tracks [EP] / Nation of Love / August 9, 2014
[Columbia, MO based Phylshawn Johnson is a singer, songwriter, drummer with the band Violet and the Undercurrents, teacher, producer, engineer, label manager for The Nation of Love Records. In 2009, Johnson started an independent label, The Nation of Love, as a way to give artists such as herself, Violet Vonder Haar, Ruth Acuff, and other songwriters a place to create freely and have the support of a musical community. More info at: http://www.nationoflove.com]

28. (59.) The B’Dinas – “Nuts & Bolts”
from: Fruitcakes / Independent / August 2, 2014
[First full length release from The B’ Dinas formed in 2009 with Katy Guillen – guitar/vocals/harmonica; Peter Lawless – bass/vocals/saxophone; Katelyn Jamison – keys/vocals/bass; Tess Jehle-Ray – drums/vocals.]

29. (58.) The Project H – “Not A Person”
from: We Live Among The Lines / Independent / September 8, 2014
[This is the third release from the collective that includes: Clint Ashlock – trumpet, Ryan Heinlein – trombone, Brett Jackson – woodwinds, Matt Leifer – drums, Andrew Ouellette – keys, Dominique Sanders – bass, Jeff Stocks- guitars. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Duane Trower, at Weights and Measures Soundlab, KC, MO. The Project H were winners of the 2014 Pitch Music Award for Best Jazz Ensemble.]

11:59:30

30. Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Sources for notes on tracks:
artist’s websites, wikipedia.org, and where noted.

Next week on December 24 – we’ll continue with part 3 of our 4-week special: The 114 Best Recordings of 2014. We’ll count down #57 through #30 of our list, with music from: Outsides, Diverse, The Sluts, The Dead Girls, The Black Angels, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens, Kirsten Paludan & The Key Party, Phil Neal & The Wornalls, Cadillac Flambé, Hidden Pictures, Your Friend, La Guerre, Allah-Las, Forrester, Leo Welch, My Oh My!, Rosanne Cash, Courtney Barnett, The Sexy Accident, Kangaroo Knife Fight, Cowboy Indian Bear, The Blessed Broke, Lucinda Williams, TV On The Radio, Dum Dum Girls, Various Blonde, and Regina Carter.

Two incredible events:

The Murder Ballad Ball, Friday, December 19 at 6:00 pm at The Dubliner, with: The Silver Maggies, John Velghe & the Prodigal Sons, Freight Train Rabbit Killer, The Hardship Letters, Rural Grit, Mikal Shapiro, The Blackbird Revue & more. This will benefit Midwest Music Foundation.

KINSEY SICKS: OY VEY IN A MANGER, Sunday, December 21, at 7:00 PM at The Folly Theater – 300 West 12th Street – KCMO. Ticket Office 816.474.4444 – http://www.follytheatre.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM
http://www.kkfi.org

Show #556