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

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Mat Shoare + Spinning Records with Judy Mills
+ Contracting An Issue + Music from MXM2015

1. “Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / 1980
[Wednesday MidDay Medley’s theme song]

We started the show with bands playing the 2nd Annual MixMaster Music Conference & Showcase, Saturday, May 2, in The Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire, Lawrence, KS. Hosted by Silly Goose Records, the events include: Industry Panels, Workshops, and a Live Showcase featuring: Nicholas St. James, LION, La Guerre, Jessica Paige, CS Luxem, Pink Royal, and Westerners. More info at: http://www.MXM2015.com

2. Pink Royal – “Taste of Meaning”
from: Taps / Silly Goose Records / April 11, 2015
[alt-electro-rock-pop from Lawrence, Kansas, with Dylan James Guthrie on vocals, Steven LaCour on guitar, Josh Dorrell on guitar, Alex Hartmann on drums, Nick Carswell on bass guitar & keyboards, and Zak Pischnotte on Saxophones. Originally founded by Henry Burling (drums), Steve LaCour and John Killeen (bass) and the addition of Chad “Mustard” Smith of the band Dumptruck Butterlips on vocals. When Henry returned to England, and Chad Smith went on the road with his other musical projects, Pink Royal journeyed through various concoctions, eventually settling on the current line up.]

[Pink Royal play The Bottleneck, in Lawrence, Sat. May 2, for Mix Master Conference & Showcase.]

10:07

3. Westerners – “Tetris”
from: Westerners [EP] / The Record Machine / March 24, 2014
[Mitch Hewlett, Josh Hartranft, Matt Mirsch, Ben Childs. Recorded and produced at Element Recording by Joel Nanos. Members of the band come from all over: the east coast, London, Kansas City, bonded by an arbitrary move to a farmhouse in nowhere, Kansas, and an almost decade long friendship. In 2013 the band enlisting a friend and local band director who was then recently discharged from the US Coast Huard to fill out their sound. Westerners emerged on the local music scene with their high energy performances.]

[Westerners also play The Bottleneck, Lawrence, Sat. May 2, for Mix Master Conference & Showcase.]

4. CS Luxem – “Richland Silt”
from: June Igloo / Whatever Forever / Cassette Release Jan. 31, 2014 / Digital Release: July 17 2013]
[Experimental ghost folk psychedelic soul from Lawrence, Kansas. Recorded at SeedCo Studios in Lawrence, KS during May and June of 2013. CS Luxem on vocals, guitar, & bass; Andrew Fredrick on guitars & drums; Mark Rockwell on drums. Recording Engineered by: Brian Miller, Rolf Petermann, Andrew Frederick, and Mark Rockwell. Mastering by: Brian Miller.]

[CS Luxem play The Bottleneck, Lawrence, Sat. May 2, for Mix Master Conference & Showcase.]

10:15 – Interview with Allison Webber and Gk Callahan

Allison Webber and Gk Callahan

Allison Webber is a freelance photographer based in San Francisco, her personal work focuses on fine art documentary and portraits shot with multiple different film cameras. Her work has been shown in galleries in San Francisco, Portland and Vermont. Webber’s editorial work centers mostly on the cocktail industry on the west coast and portraits for artists, chefs, bartenders and distillers. Her images have been published in Juxtapose Magazine, Food and Wine and online in The Wall Street Journal, and other notable sites.

Gk Callahan is a trans-media artist. He earned his MFA in social practice at California College of the Arts and his BFA in painting at the San Francisco Art Institute. Creating cultural change through social engagement, Gk focuses on humanitarian issues around public health. Gk is the founder of The Please Touch Community Garden in San Francisco; and has produced various exhibitions in galleries and alternative spaces throughout the Bay Area. He has taught art to the blind and visually impaired, as well as to grade school children, within the non-profit arts sector, and has facilitated several community based public murals around the San Francisco Bay area.

Allison Webber and Gk Callahan joined us to discuss Contracting an Issue – A social awareness project and performance, April 29, at 6:00 pm, at LikeMe Lighthouse, at 3909 Main St. Contracting An Issue – Kansas City, is a spoken-word documentary performance collaboration with Cat Mahari composed of local stories and questions about HIV/AIDS here in KC.

Gk Callahan, recently wrote in his blog about, “Why do you do this kind of work? Why HIV/AIDS?”

[From Gk’s blog site at contractinganissue.com: “There are many answers. My mom likes to joke that I picked two of the hardest and worst paying careers because I am a glutton for punishment. Currently, I spend my days working on a participatory art practice; this sort of art form (social practice) “for me” blends social work and art. It is a difficult medium to finance and promote, but recently, this project was, in a very uneasy way, validated. This form of validation is sad. I don’t want this to come across as gossip or the airing of dirty laundry, but even with the grief I feel, the validation that the work I am struggling to produce is making an impact lets me know that I must keep going, even if sometimes it feels like I am talking to a wall.”]

Have you ever had someone tell you that they have contracted HIV?

Allison Webber’s passion has always been about capturing the honest moments in between, fleshing out the day to day with narratives on the people and the places they inhabit.

Contracting An Issue – Kansas City, is a spoken-word documentary performance collaboration with Cat Mahari composed of local stories and questions about HIV/AIDS here in KC.

Cat Mahari is part of the Charlotte Street Foundation Studio Residency Program. She is a dancer and performance artist whose work is based in exploring collaboration, practice, and research of known and unknown movement disciplines, video projects, and music. She has performed nationally and internationally. In 2011, she received her MA from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, London, UK. Johnson focuses on issues of communication-relationship paradigms. Her investigations utilize, convey, and present a diversity of processes pertaining to individuality and culture. She is both self-taught and has had guided training in urban dance, ballet, and contemporary movements, and utilizes lived experience across a spectrum of politics, society, and culture.

The Cast has been rehearsing this past week and last.

Material, text, was created from interviews.

HIV testing will be offered on-site at this event and will be free, CONFIDENTIAL HIV testing. Sufficient accommodations will be made to provide a confidential testing experience, from KC CARE staff) look forward to attending the event!

Gk has also built expertise in cultural development, working at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts under the Curator of Public Programs in the Community Engagement Department, and with the City of San Francisco working on public health policies.

In reference to Gk’s last project the Please Touch Community Garden –
“A bright red needle dispensary box was placed just outside the garden gates. Once installed, the number of needles found around the lot dropped dramatically. The needles were one of the bigger problems the team faced at the beginning of the project. Over 2,000 used needles were collected initially, and for a long time after the initial clean up, five to fifteen needles a day would need disposal. It was a biohazard, it was scary, and in its own way an epidemic. It was one of those said angels, and the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, who were instrumental in helping get the sharps dispensary box installed. It was the needles that led Callahan to his next project . . .
The needles are a byproduct of combating the AIDS epidemic; they are the aftermath of saving lives. It was a moment for him where an issue he had only known to fear as a sort of boogie monster manifested itself as a reality. The accumulation of needles forced him to see something that has always been in his face. He wondered where had the culture that formerly addressed this issue gone? Had it moved? Had the fear of something still very real become sedated by it’s own presence? So he began investigating and listening to people’s stories, they were so enlightening; he felt they needed to be shared. The idea for the Contracting An Issue project was born from the waste and challenge of creating a garden on a blighted lot. ”

Contracting an Issue – A social awareness project and performance, Tonight, at 6:00 pm, at LikeMe Lighthouse, at 3909 Main St. Contracting An Issue – Kansas City, is a spoken-word documentary performance collaboration with Cat Mahari composed of local stories and questions about HIV/AIDS here in KC. . More info at: http://www.contractinganissue.com.

10:29 – Underwriting

10:31 – Interview with Mat Shoare

5. Mat Shoare– “Murder”
from: Murder – Single (from Right As Rain) / Indep / Digital Single released: February 26, 2015
[KC based singer-songwriter Mat Shoare’s 3rd full length solo release, ‘Right As Rain” will be releaed May 5.]

[Mat Shoare Band, play recordBar, 1020 Westport Rd, Fri, May 1, 10:00 w/ Major Games, KnifeCrime]

Mat Shoare is a singer, guitarist, band leader, and record label founder. As a songwriter he has been nominated for a Pitch Music Award. He is one of our favorite Kansas City based musicians. Mat Shoare joins us to share tracks from his third solo release ‘Right As Rain” that will be officially released on Tuesday, May 5. Mat’s new music video for his song “Murder” premiered on PopMatters.com. Mat has also released several EPs with The Empty Spaces, who won a Pitch Music Award for Best Garage Band. Mat Shoare Band, plays recordBar, 1020 Westport Rd, Friday, May 1, at 10:00 with Major Games, Knife Crime.

Mat prefers the homemade sound and feel in his recordings, like his last recording, Right As Rain, was recorded in multiple rooms, the basement, and living room of his house with Ross Brown, with whom he recorded and mixed the recordings.

The album was mastered by Mike Nolte at Westend Studios.

Ross Brown plays drums on Matt’s previous solo album “Domestic Partnership” and also with The Empty Spaces and Mat Shoare Band.

Shoare admits that “In Good Time” is one of his favorite tracks from Right as Rain.

Wild Honey Pie premiered the new music video for “In Good Time.”

http://www.thewildhoneypie.com/matt-shoares-melancholic-melodies-have-us-swooning-premiere/

From Wild Honey Pie.com:
The video capitalizes on the track’s incredibly cinematic feel, cutting quickly between vintage and current footage of a man wandering around his own town. Of the visual Shoare says: “This video was put together by Shae Mermis in Kansas City. We compiled some found footage that we thought fit the vibe for the song and also shot some cool footage of our own that mirrors the album artwork and also links up in a cool way with out found footage. The song is supposed to be kind of dreamy and foggy…so we went there with the video too.”

10:42

6. Mat Shoare– “In Good Time”
from: In Good Time – Single (from Right As Rain) / Indep / Digital Single released: April 17, 15
[KC based singer-songwriter Mat Shoare’s 3rd full length solo release, ‘Right As Rain” will be releaed May 5.]

[Mat Shoare Band, play recordBar, 1020 Westport Rd, Fri, May 1, 10:00 w/ Major Games, Knife Crime]

10:46

Mat Shoare’s last record, “Domestic Partnership” was released Dec 11, 2012.

Mat is the cofounder of Golden Sound Records, an independent, Kansas City based record label with his friends Jerad Tomasino and Ross Brown.

Mat’s previous band The Empty Spaces released two EPs including 2012’s “Party Line” which was part of our 112 Best Recordings of 2012.

10:50

7. Mat Shoare– “All You Need Is Love” (LIVE) 
Also available on Right As Rain / Indep / May 5, 20155
[Inspired a challenge to write a song in two minutes, to write a song for his girlfriend, and inspired by a man holding up signs outside the Sprint Center after the Paul McCartney concert.]

Mat toured the Pacific Coast Highway while also vacationing.

10:56

8. Mat Shoare– “Nothing Like You”
from: Right As Rain / Indep / May 5, 2015
[KC based singer-songwriter Mat Shoare’s 3rd full length solo release, ‘Right As Rain” will be releaed May 5.]

[Mat Shoare Band, play recordBar, 1020 Westport Rd, Fri, May 1, 10:00 w/ Major Games, KnifeCrime]

11:00 – Station ID

Judy Mills has been a waitress, a student, a teacher, a poet, a corporate road warrior and a corporate retail slave. Judy Mills opened Mills Record Company, a new independent record store, about two years ago, at 314 Westport Road, in Kansas City. A year later she expanded into the next door space to allow for used records and a new stage where bands play nearly every week, in special in-store performances. Mills Record Company recently hosted multiple bands outside in the parking lot and inside on stage for Record Store Day, and The Middle of The Map Fest. The store also hosts an very helpful website: http://www.millsrecordcompany.com with in depth reviews of live shows and new musical releases, photographs, and a calendar of events. Judy Mills returns to Wednesday MidDay Medley, for our second hour, as our special guest producer.

11:03

9. Bright Light Social Hour – “Sweet Madelene”
from: Space Is Still the Space / Frenchkiss Records / March 10, 2015
[Psychedelic rock band from Austin, Texas. The current line up includes: Jack O’Brien – vocals, bass (2004–present), Curtis Roush – vocals, guitar (2004–present), Joseph Mirasole – drums (2006–present), Edward Braillif – synthesizers, guitar (2013–present). Born out of a university art-rock collective, the band first gained attention in Austin from their incendiary live performances and innovative vision of rock and roll, melding southern rock, hard-dance, psychedelic blues, and deep-soul. Their self-titled debut album led to heightening critical acclaim, national touring, and a rare sweep of six awards at the SXSW 2011 Austin Music Awards, including Band of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year (“Detroit”).]

10. Drugs and Attics “Unknown name track”
from: DNA / Independent / To be released soon, 2015
[Smoky, blue garage – filled party tunes. Brett Livingston on drums, Andrew Paluga on bass, Willie Jordan on lead vocals. Drugs and Attics release their debut EP Meltr in 2014, reportedly recorded using cell phones.]

[Drugs and Attics play Middle East, Thursday, May 14 at 8:00 pm, with Chasm, and Penicillin Baby.]

11. Bummer – “Dude Baby”
from: Spank / High Dive Records / Expected soon, 2015

12. Bummer – “Double Stairway”
from: Spank / High Dive Records / Expected soon, 2015
[Neanderthal music from Olathe Kansas. Bummer is Matt Perrin, vocals and guitar, Mike Gustafson bass and Sam Hutchinson, drums. ]

13. Nature Boys – “Coast to Coast” (7″ Vinyl)
from: Coast To Coast – Single B side to “Pissy Wind” Replay Records / April 2015
[Dedicated to the memory of Blaik Fischer and Zack Isom. Kansas City trio formed in September 2009. Danny Fischer on guitar/vocals, Suzanne Hogan on bass/vocals, Alex Moss on drums. Recorded at Cool Devices in Texas. More info at: http://www.natureboysrocknroll.com ]

14. The Uncouth – “KC United” (7″ Vinyl)
from: KC United – Single / Too Much Rock / April 29, 2015
[Kansas City based 80’s-esque punk trio formed by: Cody Blanchard on bass/vocals, Todd Rainey on drums/vocal, and CJ Wilson on guitar/vocals.]

[Too Much Rock, a music blog site created by Sid Sowder in 1997, where he shares his photos & videos & comments of the live music shows he attends. Sid also posts podcasts! The Too Much Rock Single Series is a collection of 45 RPM singles that feature one original song with one cover song selected by Too Much Rock for the band. 500 limited edition copies are pressed and given to the band to sell as merchandise at shows and at local record stores. Schwervon!, Rev Gusto, and Josh Berwanger Band have all recorded for the Too Much Rock Single Series. More info at: http://www.toomuchrock.com]

[Too Much Rock Single Release In Store Performance @ Mills Record Company, on May 15.]

11:35 – Underwriting

15. Thee Tsunamis – “Female Trouble”
from: Saturday Night Sweetheart / Maganetic South Recordings / May 26, 2015
[from Bloomington, Indiana. Betsy-guitar, Josie-bass, Sharlene-drums. More street-grit than surfside, Thee Tsunamis blend girl-group bubblegum with feral punk, hugging every hairpen turn of Kim Fowley’s twisted, trashbucket heart along the way. ]

16. Marriages – “The Liar”
from: Sholam / Sargent House / April 7, 2015
[Debut full-length record from Los Angeles, California based, rock band from that formed in 2012. The band is composed of vocalist and guitarist Emma Ruth Rundle, bassist Greg Burns and drummer Andrew Clinco. They released their EP Kitsune in 2012.]

17. Morcheeba – “Part of the Process”
from: Big Calm / China Records – Sire Records / March 13, 1998
[upcoming re-issue]
[British band, consisting of Skye Edwards and the brothers Paul and Ross Godfrey. They mix influences from trip hop, rock, adult contemporary, folk-rock and downtempo. They have produced eight regular studio albums since 1995, two of which reached the UK top ten, the most recent Head Up High was released in 2013.[1] Edwards left the band in 2003, after which the brothers used a number of singers before reconvening as a trio in 2007. They recruit additional members for their live-performances and have toured internationally.]

18. Tracey Thorn “Under the Ivy”
from: Under The Ivy – Single B-side to “Running up the Hill” / Strange Feeling / Dec. 28, 2014
[Tracey Thorn of Everyone But The Girl covers Kate Bush in a digital only release after seeing Kate’s new show and writing the review.]

Judy Mills, thanks for being with us on WMM.

Judy Mills record store, Mills Record Company is located at 314 Westport Road, in Kansas City, with all of the latest new vinyl releases and thousands of used records, and a stage where bands play nearly every week, in special in-store performances. Their website: http://www.millsrecordcompany.com offers ib depth reviews of live shows and new musical releases, photographs, and a calendar of events.

11:57

Because we witnessed Peter Hook perform the music of Joy Division at Middle of The Map Fest…

18. Joy Division – “Transmission”
from: Permanent / London Records / May 8, 1995 [compilation album]
[Debut single originally released on 7″ vinyl in October 1979 by record label Factory. It was re-released as a 12″ single with a different sleeve in December 1980. Joy Division consisted of singer Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. Formed by Sumner and Hook right after they attended a Sex Pistols gig, Joy Division transcended their punk roots to pioneer a complex post-punk sound that incorporated synthesizers, dub-influenced production values, and haunting melodies. Their self-released 1978 debut EP, An Ideal for Living, drew the attention of the Manchester television personality Tony Wilson. Joy Division’s debut album Unknown Pleasures was released in 1979 on Wilson’s independent label Factory Records. Aided by Martin Hannett’s sparse production, it was a critical success with the British music press. Despite this early acclaim, Curtis suffered from severe depression and personal difficulties, including a broken marriage and epilepsy. In particular he found it increasingly difficult to perform at live concerts, during which he often suffered seizures. In May 1980, on the eve of the band’s debut American tour, Curtis, aged 23, committed suicide. Closer, Joy Division’s second and final album was released two months later; the album and preceding single “Love Will Tear Us Apart” became the band’s highest charting releases. After Curtis’s death, the remaining members continued as New Order, achieving critical and commercial success. Joy Division are seen as one of the most influential bands of the late 1970s.]

Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Next week on Wed, May 6 Ivory Black joins us to play LIVE in our 90.1 FM Studios, plus Howard Iceberg will drop by to share new music and talk about his CD Release at CODA on May 9th, and Jamie Searle of My Brothers and Sisters will visit with us and share details about the 90.1FM Spring Dance, Saturday, May 9, at 8:00pm, at The Tank Room 1813 Grand Blvd, Kansas City, Missouri, featuring 6 Dance Bands: The Starhaven Rounders, Grupo Aztlan, The Late Night Callers, My Brothers & Sisters, The Old No. 5′s, AY MusiK and Special Guests: The Marching Cobras at 9:00pm. Info at KKFI.ORG

90.1 FM’s crystal clear, 100,000 watt signal, delivers some of the best quality of sound you will hear in the metro radio airwaves.

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
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Show #575