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, November 4, 2020

Music for The Day After + Sondra Freeman & Apocalypse Meow 13 + Blanky + Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume

1. “It’s Showtime Folks”
   from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / Dec. 20, 1979
   [WMM theme]

2. Shea Diamond – “I Am American”
   from: “I Am America” – Single / East West Records / April 23, 2020
   [ShaGasyia “Shea” Diamond was born March 17, 1978. She is a singer, songwriter, and transgender rights activist. Her music is chiefly soul and R&B, and includes elements of blues, rock, hip-hop and folk. Her songwriting has been described as “demonstrating a rare gift to portray raw, dynamic emotion in a way that moves the body as much as the spirit” Her influences include Whitney Houston and Tina Turner. Her debut extended play, Seen It All, was released on June 29, 2018. Diamond was born in Little Rock, Arkansas to a fourteen-year-old mother and was raised by relatives in Memphis, Tennessee before living most of her teenage years and adulthood in Flint, Michigan. She ran away from home at age fourteen and spent time in the foster care system before getting emancipated at seventeen. Growing up she felt immense pressure to act masculine, despite knowing early on that she identified as a woman. She was inspired to become a singer by Tina Turner and worked on her skills while directing her church choir, where she was often chastised for singing too high. At age 20 she robbed a convenience store at gunpoint to pay for gender affirmation surgery. Diamond was in and out of men’s correctional facilities in Michigan between 1999 and 2009. It was in prison that she wrote her song “I Am Her.” While incarcerated, Diamond faced discrimination specifically for her identity as a trans woman. She was kept in protective segregation and lost privileges often to keep her away from the male population. Humiliation, isolation, and misgendering were used as punishment. After watching a video of Diamond performing her song “I Am Her” a cappella at a Trans Lives Matter rally, pop songwriter Justin Tranter was so impressed by her “honesty” and raw vocal talent that he immediately got in contact with her and they began recording music together. Tranter went on to co-sign her to Asylum Records and executive produce and co-write her debut extended play Seen It All, through Asylum Records. Diamond covered “I’d Love to Change the World” by the English rock band Ten Years After for the 2017 television miniseries When We Rise. In December 2018 Diamond joined the Human Rights Campaign’s Equality Rocks campaign. In February 2019 she was nominated for the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Music Artist. In 2019 her song “American Pie” was endorsed by 2020 United States presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg. In June 2019 she was a headliner for the Washington, DC Capital Pride Concert. On June 7, 2019 Diamond released her single “Don’t Shoot”, a song described by Paper as containing, “a message against America’s ongoing gun violence epidemic while also being a reflection Diamond’s experience as a Black trans woman who has been incarcerated and systemically discriminated against”. Diamond’s hand appeared on the original cover of Sam Smith’s third studio album, back when it was known as To Die For. She also appears in the music video for their song “I’m Ready” with Demi Lovato. Diamond’s song “I Am America” provides the theme song for the HBO series EQUAL. The song was released as a single on April 23, 2020.]

3. Phylshawn – “Change The World”
   from: Soul Heart / Nation of Love / September 25, 2020
   [Columbia, MO based Phylshawn Johnson is a singer, songwriter, drummer with the band Violet and the Undercurrents. She is also a 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. With her partner Violet Vonder Haar, Phylshawn Johnson is also a cofounder of the band Violet and the Undercurrents who last year released the critically acclaimed album The Captain, on March 1, 2019. Phylshawn also previously release the EP Accross The tracks on August 9, 2014. ]

4. Calvin Arsenia – “Scars and Stripes”
   from: ‘Scars and Stripes” – Single track / (Center Cut Records) / October 12, 2020 (Unreleased)
   [Born in Orlando, Florida, Calvin’s creative journey really began when he moved to the KC suburb of Olathe, teaching himself the guitar, and eventually the harp. He learned his signature instrument at the age of 20 after he couldn’t find a harpist as determined as him to meld folk, rock, classical, rap and R&B into the irresistible fusion which has become his calling card in KC and beyond. His passion for stretching the boundaries of musical expression saw him transform a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland’s Fringe Festival early in his career into a life-changing music mission, with an Edinburgh church offering him a role as musical liaison between the church and the city that would change his life. Two years and 300 shows later, Calvin returned to Kansas City reborn as a humanistic songwriter / performer whose impassioned and conceptual stage shows (regularly sold-out in Kansas City, currently catching fire on the West Coast with a diverse following across Europe), are collaborative, costumed-culture-bridging spectacles which In KC Magazine has hailed as ‘equal parts opera, symphony, musical theatre, rock show, all built around its creator: a charismatic 6-foot-6-inch harpist with a natural stage command and knack for gilding gold and painting lilies.’ Calvin’s 2018 national debut, Cantaloupe, September 15, 2018 on Center Cut Records, has been acclaimed for melding diverse textures into an alluring signature sound for the adventurous artist. On June 28, 2019 Calvin released Honeydew, an EP including a remix of three songs from Cantaloupe. On December 13, 2019 Calvin released his full length Christmas album “all is calm.” More info at http://www.calvinarsenia.com.]

[Calvin Arsenia plays the Raj Ma Hall, 2829 Eat 7th Street, KCMO, 64124, on Saturday, November 7, at 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM with Jolly Giant and Erin Keller Raj Ma Hall, is an outdoor Kansas City Institution for the Arts bringing you COVID sanctuary, Soul, and a little Funk. Raj Ma Hall is the studio and home of Roger Guibor-MacBride, local sculptor, artist, and community organizer. He presents his Raj Ma Hall CONCERT SERIES as an offering to the community in support of our local Kansas City artists and musicians and an intersection of COVID SAFE outdoor community fellowship and sanctuary. Seating is available in the outdoor setting of 2-tops, 4-tops, and 6-tops, all with a perfect view of the stage from your reserved “balcony box”. Bring your own food and drink and chairs and enjoy the music. $12.50 per person. Limited audience of 50 people. Temperature taken at admission. No touch service, built in Social Distancing with your own “balcony box”, wide and marked pathways, only small musical acts, bathroom attendants who sanitize bathroom after each use. MASK ON WHEN NOT SEATED, STAY BEHIND THE RAILINGS. Free street parking on both sides. Entrance through driveway gate. Your temperature will be taken. You will be escorted to your Balcony. If weather interferes, the show will be at 12:00-3:00 Sun. Oct. 11. All proceeds go to the musicians. ]

5. Monta At Odds – “When Stars Grow Old”
   from: “When Stars Grow Old” / Kosmic City Records / October 19, 2020
   [Monta At Odds released their 4-song EP Zen Diagram earlier this year on May 1, 2020. “When Stars Grow Old.” is from the band’s forthcoming 7th full length album, Peak of Eternal Light, from The Record Machine. Dedric Moore describes the song , “it’s an android of a song, combining the human and the electronic into a sizzling new sonic creation. “When Stars Grow Old” is the sound of humanity visiting new worlds across the dark spaces of time, reconstructing the beat of music through memory and instinct. An ad hoc band plays to the sparkling, unfamiliar sky of a distant world. It’s the music of the future if formed from ghostly, discarded impressions of the past.” The band describes their music as: Mutant Disco, minimal synthwave, post-punk dance, Electronica, Indie, Space Rock, Ambient. Monta At Odds is a psychedelic, experimental indie/space rock/electronic collective based in KCK formed by brothers Dedric and Delaney Moore. Recently the band had added Mikal Shapriro and Teri Quinn and Lucas Behrens to the line up. Past supporting members: Alexander Thomas, Adam Davies, Zach Bozich, Aaron Osborne, Matthew Hayden, Mika Tanaya, Sterling Holman, Bree Plaster; Eric Bessenbacher, Ryan Shank, Jeremiah James, Samer Saba, Doug Hutchinson, Erin O’Neill, Sam Behrens, Sam Hughes, Tom Romero, Caleb Aldrich, John Aldrich. Monta At Odds released their 6th full length album Argentum Dreams on October 19, 2018. ]

[Monta At Odds play Lemonade Social Day 2 with The Republic Tigers, Pala Zolo, and Bad Alaskan on Friday, November 6, at 6:00 PM at Lemonade Park, 1628 Wyoming (NW corner of Wyoming & 17th St.), behind Voltaire. Lemonade Park is a limited capacity socially distanced outdoor venue created in partnership between recordBar, Voltaire, and Moxie Catering.]

6. Daniel Gum – “Blue Light”
   from: Thirteen / Manor Records / October 30, 2020
   [Produced by Mike Crawford and Daniel Gum. All songs written, performed, and mixed by Daniel Gum. Engineered by Mike Crawford. Mastered by Mike Nolte at Eureka Mastering. Daniel Gum is a 23 year old singer-songwriter from Kansas City. Since the age of 12, he has spent the majority of his time writing and recording songs by himself in his room. His most recent project, Moon, on the other hand was recorded by someone else in another room while Daniel was by himself in yet another room. The Moon EP was released December 7, 2019. It was engineered by Mike Crawford and Daniel Gum and mixed by Daniel Gum with piano and accordion by Cole Crawford. Daniel Gun released his EP i’m not dead October 25, 2017, and his 10-song album Reorient on July 31, 2015, with all songs written, recorded and mixed by Daniel Gum who also performed all vocals guitars, drums, piano, bass. harmonica, and programming. The first single from Daniel Gum’s album, Thirteen “Ruin Your Life” was released on September 4, The second single, “In The Worst Ways” was released September 28, 2020. ] [On our July 22, 2020, WMM show we played Daniel Gum’s track, “Tired Saint” from French Exit Records – Black Lives Matter Compilation, released July 6, 2020. French Exit Records was launched two years ago as an independent music label in KCMO, founded by Brad Girard. French Exit Records has released albums for No Magic and Raymond,. BLM Compilation is 22 acts from the area, with all proceeds donated to One Struggle KC’s Liberation Fund, a Black-led coalition of KC activists seeking to connect the struggles of oppressed communities, locally & globally.]

7. LK Ultra – “Pussy Hat”
   from: You’re Not Gonna Like This / LK Ultra / October 2, 2020
   [This track was originally released as a single on July 7, 2020 and now included n the band’s second 4-song EP release that was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Griffin Nelson. Lawrence, Kansas based 4-piece indigenous-fronted, queer music, straight from the birthplace of emo. Formed by Lily Pryor, Inez Robinson, Aoife Conway, and August Hyde. The band is now a 3-piece, Their debut EP “Demos for Bangal was released on March 19, 2019 and was mixed and recorded by Mitchell Hewlett in The Coop.]

10:28 – Underwriting

8. The Multiverse – “Dark Descension”
   from: Songs Of Latter Days / The Multiverse / November 1, 2020
   [The Multiverse is Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume have been playing and creating songs for decades in the KC – Lawrence area. Prolific songwriters with a love of poetry and prose, their music is an eclectic mix of folk, blues and country. For this recording of 13 songs Chris wrote 6 and Julie wrote 6 and they wrote one song together. They play on all songs together with help from the Kansas City acclaimed alternative string duo The Wires with Laurel Morgan parks on violin and Sascha Groschang on cello. Also contributing to the recording was Jason Beers. Chris Hudson also plays solo and with the bands “Gullywasher” and “The Bard Owls”. Julie Bennett Hume plays in the folk duo “The Stray Grays” with Leslie Giggler. Julie and Chris also perform in the group “Lost Cowgirl Revue”. More info at: http://www.themultiversekc.com]

10:35 – Interview with Chris Hudson and Julie Bennett Hume

Chris Hudson a Kansas City Native. He is a classical guitarist, guitarist, musician, composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer songwriter, teacher and visual artist. Chris Hudson is also a teacher through Kansas City Young Audiences. Chris also plays solo and with the bands “Gullywasher” and “The Bard Owls.” Chris was just names Musical Artis of the Month by The Heartland Song Network.

Julie Bennett Hume is a singer-songwriter from Stilwell, Kansas. She has plays bass, guitar, and banjo. Julie is a mom who also teaches German at a local high school and is the producer and host of the KKFI program “River City Chautauqua.” Julie plays in the folk duo “The Stray Grays” with Leslie Giggler. Julie and Chris also perform in the group “Lost Cowgirl Revue”.

Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume have been playing and creating songs for decades in the KC – Lawrence area. Prolific songwriters with a love of poetry and prose, their music is an eclectic mix of folk, blues and country. Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume join us to share music from their new musical project The Multiverse, and their new album, Songs Of Latter Days . More info at: http://www.themultiversekc.com

Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume thanks for being with us on WMM.

Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume have been playing and creating songs for decades in the KC – Lawrence area. Prolific songwriters with a love of poetry and prose, their music is an eclectic mix of folk, blues and country.

How did Chris and Julie meet and why did they form The Multiverse?

For the 13 songs on Songs Of Latter Days, Chris wrote six songs and Julie wrote sic songs and they wrote one song together: “Sahara Winds” .

They play on all songs together with help from the Kansas City acclaimed alternative string duo The Wires with Laurel Morgan parks on violin and Sascha Groschang on cello. Also contributing to the recording was Jason Beers.

We started the segment with the song “Dark Descension” a song that speaks poetically about a specific time and place. Both Chris and Julie are multi-talented, “Renaissance People” who are not only musicians, but also teachers, writers, organizers, and historians. “Songs of Latter Days” contain lyrics about The Holocaust, Nazi documentarian filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, war, sanctuary cities, refugees. Calling this collection “Songs of Latter Days” makes us wonder is this their political album of 2020? Chris and Julie agree and talked about how many of these songs were recorded and put together during the Presidential impeachment. And while current times a an inspiration, Chris talks about growing up in Kansas City and watching the erosion of Unions during the Reagan administration and the loss of security for working people ever since. Chris and Julie both considered the “timeless” quality of each of these songs.

“Songs of Latter Days” was recorded at Weights and Measures with Duane Trower.

10:45

9. The Multiverse – “Sahara Winds”
   from: Songs Of Latter Days / The Multiverse / November 1, 2020
   [The Multiverse is Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume have been playing and creating songs for decades in the KC – Lawrence area. Prolific songwriters with a love of poetry and prose, their music is an eclectic mix of folk, blues and country. For this recording of 13 songs Chris wrote 6 and Julie wrote 6 and they wrote one song together. They play on all songs together with help from the Kansas City acclaimed alternative string duo The Wires with Laurel Morgan parks on violin and Sascha Groschang on cello. Also contributing to the recording was Jason Beers. Chris Hudson also plays solo and with the bands “Gullywasher” and “The Bard Owls”. Julie Bennett Hume plays in the folk duo “The Stray Grays” with Leslie Giggler. Julie and Chris also perform in the group “Lost Cowgirl Revue”. More info at: http://www.themultiversekc.com]

10:47 – Interview with Chris Hudson and Julie Bennett Hume

Chris Hudson is a guitarist, artist, music teacher, singer-songwriter and band leader of Gullywasher and The Bard Owls. He’s been performing and creating music since the Mid 90’s. Chris attended the Conservatory of Music at UMKC in in the 90’s where he studied classical guitar. He has been teaching guitar and music for about the same amount of time. He currently works for Kansas City Young Audiences as a teaching artist there, heading up and running the Garage Band Classes for kids. Chris has recorded solo instrumental classical guitar original work. Gullywasher releases their second album, “Holding the Dawning,” in late 2020.

Chris Hudson welcome back to Wednesday MidDay Medley

Julie Bennett Hume is a singer-songwriter from Lee’s Summit, Missouri. She has been playing folk music for over 35 years in the Lawrence/Kansas City area. She has played bass, guitar, banjo and performed as a vocalist in numerous folk ensembles such as The Alferd Packer Memorial String Band, The Kansas City Cajun Band, The All Night Fiddlers, the Afro- Cuban ensemble Manos , The Euphoria String Band and Table for Three. She currently performs solo and with the duos The Stray Grays (with Leslie Giggler) aas well as the group Lost Cowgirl Revue, which recently toured Germany and the Netherlands. Julie also teaches German at a local high school and is the producer and host of the KKFI program “River City Chautauqua”. She is a board member of the “Heartland Song Network”. Her newest solo CD, Vinegar, was released in Nov of 2019.

Julie Bennett Hume welcome back to Wednesday MidDay Medley.

Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume join us to share music from their new project The Multiverse, and their new album, Songs Of Latter Days. Info at: http://www.themultiversekc.com

DANCING WITH LENI VIDEO DEBUT – October 23 2020 – History is full of minor characters who played a larger role than anyone knew. The Multiverse’s debut single, Dancing with Leni introduces us to one such woman. Helene Bertha Amalie “Leni” Riefenstahl was a German film director, actress, photographer and Nazi sympathizer. A swimmer and an artist, she also became interested in dancing during her childhood, performing across Europe. The song, written by Julie, has a 1930’s German cabaret meets klezmer sensibility ironically sung. Leni documents Hitler’s dictatorial culture through photographs and film. In the video, made by Bill Hume, we see Leni dancing without a care as the Third Reich destroys Europe. The song and video compare what happened then to our current consitutional crisis and the influence of unreliable news sources to twist the truth and fan the flames of fascism.

Chris Hudson also plays solo and with the bands “Gullywasher” and “The Bard Owls”.

Chris Hudson’s band Gullywasher includes Sam Wright on banjo & vocals, Matt Cathlina on bass, and Mark Hamblin on trumpet.

http://www.gullywasher.com /// http://www.chrishudson.bandcamp.com
http://www.juliebennetthume.com /// http://www.thelostcowgirl,com

Julie Bennett Hume plays in the folk duo “The Stray Grays” with Leslie Giggler. Julie and Chris also perform in the group “Lost Cowgirl Revue”.

Julie Bennett Hume – Vinegar / Lost Cowgirl Records released November 1, 2019

Chris Hudson and Julie Bennett Hume welcome back to Wednesday MidDay Medley

Chris Hudson & Julie Bennett Hume are The Multiverse, and their new album, Songs Of Latter Days was just released. Info at: http://www.themultiversekc.com

11:56

10. Julie Bennett Hume – “Vinegar Girl”
    from: Vinegar / Lost Cowgirl Records / November 1, 2019
    [Julie Bennett Hume is a singer-songwriter from Stilwell, Kansas. She has been playing folk music for over 35 years in the Lawrence/Kansas City area. She has played bass, guitar, banjo and sung in numerous folk ensembles such as The Alferd Packer Memorial String Band, The Kansas City Cajun Band, The All Night Fiddlers, the Afro- Cuban ensemble Manos , The Euphoria String Band and Table for Three. She currently performs solo and with the duos The Stray Grays (with Leslie Giggler), The Multiverse (with Chris Hudson), the string band Wolves a’ Howlin’ and the group Lost Cowgirl Revue, which recently toured Germany and the Netherlands. Julie also teaches German part-time at a local high school and is the producer and host of the KKFI program “River City Chautauqua”. Her newest CD, Vinegar, was released in November of 2019.]

11:00 – Station ID

11. Blanky – “Rainbow To Kansas”
    from: No Summertime / Manor Records / October 9, 2020
    [Blanky embodies the languor left of a perfect day gone past. The always evolving musical project has thus far successfully mirrored the tumultuous transition of an agnostic adolescence to a freeing acceptance of life’s unapologetic inhumanity. The result is a dark happiness; simultaneously baffling and enticing. Incubated in a Black Mountain basement and left in the fields ’til full maturity. Blanky has settled in Lawrence, KS by way of Asheville, North Carolina. Southern origins and midwestern sentimentality are bound together in the timeless mindscape provoked by the broad assortment of compositions and styles performed and produced by the band. The ongoing experimentations of Blanky are a testament to their commitment to combining the culture of sharing and adaptation of 60’s folk and the do-it-yourself ethos of contemporary underground music. Blanky’s poignantly devitalized interpretations of rock’n’roll sound both new and familiar. The sense of desolation induced by their work is all so appropriate for an era marked by post-fact disenfranchisement. Recorded in 2019 at El Rancho Morbido in Black Mountain, NC, and Lakehouse Sudios in Asbury Park, NJ. Engineered by Nick Semanchik & Anthony Cunard. Mixed by Anthony Cunard and Kevin Drew. Anthony Cunard on guitar & vocals, Santo Rizzolo on drums, Joseph Makoviecki on bass, Edward Madill on pedal steel.]

11:04 – Interview with Anthony Cunard of Blanky

Max Smith and Anthony Cunard formed Blanky in North Carolina and have since relocated the band to Kansas City, Kansas and now Lawrence, Kansas. Blanky who’ve just released their second album, No Summertime, on October 9, on Manor Records and have added Maxfield Yoder on bass. The album was recorded at El Rancho Morbido in Black Mountain, NC, and Lakehouse Sudios in Asbury Park, NJ. More info at: http://www.blankytheband.com

Anthony Cunard, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Notes on “No Summertime” from Blanky’s Bandcamp page:

Blanky has settled in Lawrence, KS by way of Asheville, North Carolina. ‘Southern origins and midwestern sentimentality are bound together in the timeless mindscape provoked by the broad assortment of compositions and styles performed and produced by the band. “

The ongoing experimentations of Blanky are a testament to their commitment to combining the culture of sharing and adaptation of 60’s folk and the do-it-yourself ethos of contemporary underground music. Blanky’s poignantly devitalized interpretations of rock’n’roll sound both new and familiar. The sense of desolation induced by their work is all so appropriate for an era marked by post-fact disenfranchisement.

Recorded in 2019 at El Rancho Morbido in Black Mountain, NC, and Lakehouse Sudios in Asbury Park, NJ. Engineered by Nick Semanchik & Anthony Cunard. Mixed by Anthony Cunard and Kevin Drew. Anthony Cunard on guitar & vocals, Santo Rizzolo on drums, Joseph Makoviecki on bass, Edward Madill on pedal steel.

Notes from Blanky’s first album “Baby Blue, from 2018 on their Bandcamp page:

The members of Blanky would be like dogs to step on. Yeah, don’t worry, it’s just dogs. Disillusionment is running amok. Jobs we hate are being worked. But, love prevails. Or does it? Blanky would argue that it does. In fact, love might be their personal salvation. The scent of these two sad puppies is on the nose of resentment and a mutual love for creating is the one thing covering their tracks. After repeatedly being told that starting a band with your lover might be the worst possible thing you could attempt; an inevitable train wreck in the making, members Max Smith and Anthony Cunard did it anyways. The pair of underdogs, championing what others have deemed impossible, abandoned the so-called southern oasis of Asheville, NC to be somewhere a little less perfect. Suckers for lifestyles past and urban devitalization, they found no better a place to skip town to than Kansas City, Kansas. Yes, you read correctly, the Kansas side of Kansas City.

As current residents of the pretty-sounding Strawberry Hill neighborhood, Blanky have absolutely no friends, they live alone, and when you hear their music you’ll know that it’s true. The band’s sound combines elements of folk-rock, shoegaze and 90’s alternative, but the voices and lyrics of both Micala and Anthony are the obvious focal points. With vocals on display and melodies at the forefront, Baby Blue, the debut LP of the group offers bedroom pop songs, noise collages, and timeless, sparse duets about love. The pups are used to being alone but are not averse to an audience while they’re howling at the moon. Join them for a show in a city near you!

The band released their 10 song debut album Baby Blue on May 5, 2018. Baby Blue was also recorded by Blanky at The Morbid Ranch in Black Mountain, NC during September and October of 2017. All music and lyrics were written by Micala Smith and Anthony Cunard. With Max Smith on vocals/ Guitar/ Sax/ Organ, and Anthony Cunard on vocals/ Guitar/ Organ/ Drums. Album Artwork was made by Max Smith and Anthony Cunard

Anthony Cunard, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Blanky just released their second album, No Summertime, on October 9, on Manor Records. More info at: http://www.blankytheband.com

11:17

12. Blanky – “I Never Thought I’d Be The One”
    from: No Summertime / Manor Records / October 9, 2020
    [Blanky embodies the languor left of a perfect day gone past. The always evolving musical project has thus far successfully mirrored the tumultuous transition of an agnostic adolescence to a freeing acceptance of life’s unapologetic inhumanity. The result is a dark happiness; simultaneously baffling and enticing. Incubated in a Black Mountain basement and left in the fields ’til full maturity. Blanky has settled in Lawrence, KS by way of Asheville, North Carolina. Southern origins and midwestern sentimentality are bound together in the timeless mindscape provoked by the broad assortment of compositions and styles performed and produced by the band. The ongoing experimentations of Blanky are a testament to their commitment to combining the culture of sharing and adaptation of 60’s folk and the do-it-yourself ethos of contemporary underground music. Blanky’s poignantly devitalized interpretations of rock’n’roll sound both new and familiar. The sense of desolation induced by their work is all so appropriate for an era marked by post-fact disenfranchisement. Recorded in 2019 at El Rancho Morbido in Black Mountain, NC, and Lakehouse Sudios in Asbury Park, NJ. Engineered by Nick Semanchik & Anthony Cunard. Mixed by Anthony Cunard and Kevin Drew. Anthony Cunard on guitar & vocals, Santo Rizzolo on drums, Joseph Makoviecki on bass, Edward Madill on pedal steel.]

13. Jo MacKenzie – “Want You Want Me”
    from: let me give you what i wish i had. EP / Jo MacKenzie / October 3, 2020
    [One of several new singles from 16 year old, Kansas City based singer songwriter, Jo MacKenzie released this year now collected together in a 5 -song EP, written, performed and produced by Jo MacKenzie. Mixed by Harper James. Jo MacKenzie released her Debut EP Proud on November 17, 2018. Along with Proud, Jo Mackenzie released the single “Just Like Rain” on August 18, 2018; “I Should Come with a Warning Sign” on September 28, 2019; and “Alaska” on November 23, 2019 and the single “Suicide Season” on February 1, 2020, and the single “Lose My Face” on April 24, 2020. More info at http://www.jomackenzie.com]

14. Making Movies – “Tired of Giving In (feat. Flor de Toloache)” from: “Tired of Giving In (feat. Flor de Toloache)” – Single / 3/2 Recordings / Oct. 23, 2020
    [New Single from KC based 4-piece band and made up of: Enrique Chi on guitar and lead vocals; Diego Chi on bass & vocals; Juan-Carlos Chaurand on percussion & keyboards; and on drums. The band draws their influences from the origins of their families: Santiago, Panama, and KC Missouri, and Guadalajara, Mexico. Making Movies released the single “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” on March 20, 2020

11:28 – Underwriting

15. Alejandro Escovedo – “Fury and Fire”
    from: The Crossing / Yep Roc Records / September 14, 2019
    [Alejandro Escovedo was born January 10, 1951, in San Antonio, Texas. He is an American rock musician, songwriter, and singer, who has been recording and touring since the late 1970s. His primary instrument is the guitar. He has played in various rock genres, including punk rock, roots rock and alternative country, and is most closely associated with the music scene in Austin, Texas. He comes from a well-known family of musicians. // The son of Mexican immigrants to Texas, Escovedo is from a family that includes several professional musicians, including his brothers (and percussionists) Coke Escovedo and Pete Escovedo, and Sheila E. (Pete’s daughter and Alejandro’s niece). Alejandro’s brother Mario fronted the hard rock band the Dragons, and another brother, Javier, was in the punk rock band the Zeros. // Escovedo began performing in the first-wave punk rock group the Nuns, with Jennifer Miro and Jeff Olener, in San Francisco, California. After Escovedo’s departure, the Nuns recorded an album for Posh Boy Records but had little commercial success. // In the 1980s Escovedo moved to Austin, Texas, where he adopted a roots rock/alternative country style in the bands Rank and File (with Chip and Tony Kinman) and the True Believers (with his brother Javier, Jon Dee Graham and the bass player Denny DeGorio). His first solo albums, Gravity and Thirteen Years, were released in 1992 and 1994, respectively. // In 1997, Escovedo collaborated with Ryan Adams and the band Whiskeytown in recording sessions for their album Strangers Almanac. He sings on “Excuse Me While I Break My Own Heart Tonight”, “Dancing with the Women at the Bar”, and “Not Home Anymore”. As a salute to Escovedo, a cover of a True Believers song written by him is covered by Whiskeytown on the re-released Strangers Almanac (deluxe edition). // In 1998 No Depression magazine named him Artist of the Decade. Escovedo was also involved in a side project that represents his hard-rocking tastes. Buick MacKane released the album The Pawn Shop Years in 1997, hearkening back to his musical roots in the 1970s. // In 1999, Escovedo contributed to a tribute album to Skip Spence, a co-founder of Moby Grape, who was critically ill with cancer. The album, entitled More Oar: A Tribute to the Skip Spence Album, was intended to raise funds to address Spence’s medical bills. The title refers to Spence’s only solo album, Oar (Columbia, 1969). On More Oar, Escovedo contributes his version of Spence’s “Diana”. The critic Rob Brunner commented, “The best contributions come from artists who realize that Spence’s work is as much about atmosphere as words and chords. …Alejandro Escovedo offers an appropriately bleary ‘Diana’, Spence’s darkest song.” (Birdman Records, 1999), was produced by Bill Bentley, a Warner Bros. Records executive and Austin-referenced music producer. // In 2003, after having lived with hepatitis C for many years, Escovedo collapsed onstage in Arizona as a result of the disease. In his long road to recovery, he faced substantial medical bills, which, lacking medical insurance, he could not pay. Friends and admirers around the country organized benefit shows to help him. This effort grew into the album Por Vida: A Tribute to the Songs of Alejandro Escovedo, a two-disc set whose proceeds benefit the Alejandro Escovedo Medical and Living Expense Fund. Contributing musicians included Steve Earle, Jon Dee Graham, Lucinda Williams, John Cale, Jennifer Warnes, Ian Hunter, the Jayhawks, Bob Neuwirth, Son Volt, and Escovedo’s brothers Pete (with Pete’s daughter, Sheila E.), Javier, and Mario (as a member of the Dragons). // In 2005, it became known that Escovedo’s song “Castanets” was included on the iPod playlist of President George W. Bush. Upon learning this, Escovedo announced that he would not play the song again as long it was on Bush’s iPod or until he was out of office. After two “Castanets”-free years, as Bush was nearing the end of his term, Escovedo lifted the moratorium and began performing the song again. // Boxing Mirror came out on May 2, 2006 and included many of the songs he had promoted with the Alejandro Escovedo String Quintet, including Jon Dee Graham. Escovedo went on a short tour with the Quintet, which included a date at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall in early December 2006. // In April 2008, Escovedo changed managers, hiring managers Jon Landau and Barbara Carr. // Escovedo released Real Animal, produced by Tony Visconti, on June 24, 2008. All of the songs were co-written with Chuck Prophet. // In 2009, Escovedo was invited to contribute to a tribute album to the late Doug Sahm. He contributed his version of “Too Little Too Late” to Keep Your Soul: A Tribute to Doug Sahm (Vanguard Records). // In June 2010, Escovedo released Street Songs of Love, also produced by Visconti but released on a new label, featuring songs that were originally presented during “Sessions on South Congress” at the Continental Club in Austin, Texas with his band, The Sensitive Boys. After starting out writing about nothing in particular, the record “ended up being an album about love, the pursuit of a feeling that is forever elusive, mysterious, and addictive,” said Escovedo. A New York Times “critic’s choice” review of Street Songs of Love claimed that, “In another, less fragmented pop era, this would be the album of thoughtful but radio-ready love songs to finally get Mr. Escovedo the big national audience he deserves.”Pareles, Jon (July 4, 2010). New York Times. Nationally syndicated radio shows such as Little Steven Van Zandt’s Underground Garage gave prominent attention to Escovedo and his album, continuing to play the song “Silver Cloud” in particular well into the following year. // In 2014, Escovedo appeared in the movie and contributed to the soundtrack of the movie Veronica Mars, singing an acoustic version of “We Used to Be Friends”. Also that year, he co-produced and co-hosted the SXSW Tribute to Lou Reed with Richard Barone. In 2016 Escovedo mentored the singer-songwriter Jeremy Nail and produced Nail’s new record, “My Mountain”. // In October 2016, Escovedo released the album Burn Something Beautiful, which had been recorded in April of that year with the Minus Five, in Portland, Oregon. In January 2017, Escovedo did a short tour supporting the album, backed by Minus Five members Scott McCaughey, Kurt Bloch, Peter Buck, John Moen, and sometimes Kelly Hogan, all of whom had performed on the album. All songs on Burn Something Beautiful were written by Escovedo, McCaughey, and Buck.]

[Alejandro Escovedo plays Apocalypse Meow 13, Saturday, November 7, 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Apocalypse Meow is Midwest Music Foundation’s primary fundraiser for Abby’s Fund For Musicians’ Health Care, which provides area musicians with emergency health care grants. This year’s event features a virtual concert & online auction, with no live audience. The concert features live sets broadcast from recordBar and pre-recorded performances from: Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Roman Numerals, Kadesh Flow, Brett Anderson of Ha Ha Tonka, Nathan Corsi Band, and HEELS, Plus special guest speakers! Access to the concert stream is free, but donations are encouraged. MMF will livestream from: Midwest Music Foundation Facebook, MMF YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/user/midwestmusicfound, 90.9 The Bridge Facebook, and recordBar Facebook. The online auction runs Nov. 1 thru Nov 28 at: http://www.32auctions.com/meow2020 More info at: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org]

11:32 – Interview with Sondra Freeman

Sondra Freeman is Director of Promotions and Artist Relations for Midwest Music Foundation, a nonprofit created to support music and musicians in Kansas City and the surrounding areas, founded in 2008 by a collective of musicians and music lovers. The Midwest Music Foundation (MMF) unites and empowers the greater Kansas City music community by providing programs and resources to area musicians through outreach, support, education, and health care opportunities. Sondra is instrumental in MMF’s annual events: Apocalypse Meow, MidCoast Takeover and the MidCoast Takeover fundraiser shows, as well as many other collaborative musical events and fundraisers.

Sondra Freeman joins us to share details about Apocalypse Meow 13, Saturday, November 7, 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Apocalypse Meow is Midwest Music Foundation’s primary fundraiser for Abby’s Fund For Musicians’ Health Care, which provides area musicians with emergency health care grants. This year’s event features a virtual concert & online auction, with no live audience. The concert features live sets broadcast from recordBar and pre-recorded performances from: Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Roman Numerals, Kadesh Flow, Brett Anderson of Ha Ha Tonka, Nathan Corsi Band, and HEELS, Plus special guest speakers! Access to the concert stream is free, but donations are encouraged. MMF will livestream from: Midwest Music Foundation Facebook, MMF YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/user/midwestmusicfound, 90.9 The Bridge Facebook, and recordBar Facebook. The online auction runs Nov 1 thru Nov 28 at: http://www.32auctions.com/meow2020 More info at: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org

Sondra Freeman thanks for being with us again on WMM.

The Midwest Music Foundation is proud to present the 13th Annual Apocalypse Meow to benefit Abby’s Fund for Musicians’ Health Care.

Apocalypse Meow is the primary event for Abby’s Fund For Musicians’ Health Care — providing area musicians and industry workers with essential health care grants. The fund has given out more than $240,000 since its inception.

Abby’s Fund for Musicians’ Health Care was named for Abigail Henderson (1977-2013).

Death notice from St. Louis Post Dispatch: Abigail Hope Henderson the Kansas City vocalist who started a nonprofit organization to help musicians pay health-care costs, died on Tuesday, August 27, 2013 of cancer at her home. She was 35. For more than a decade, Abigail was the lead singer of several area bands: Trouble Junction, The Gaslights, Atlantic Fadeout, and Tiny Horse. In 2008 she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She had health insurance, but the cost of the treatments prompted her and her husband Christopher Meck, to start the Midwest Music Foundation which raised funds to help area musicians pau health care costs. “Medical bills can throw you into poverty in a week – in one day,” she said. “There’s nothing like standing in your kitchen opeing a j]hospital bill for $63,000.00 in one day and $47,000.00 the next. After a while you don’t want to open them anymore. Who can pay that?”

Midwest Music Foundation – http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org

Concert features live sets broadcast from recordBar w/pre-recorded performances from:
Alejandro Escovedo + Jon Dee Graham + Roman Numerals + Kadesh Flow + Brett Anderson of Ha Ha Tonka + Nathan Corsi Band + HEELS + Plus special guest speakers!

Access to the concert stream is free, donations are encouraged. MMF will livestream from: Midwest Music Foundation Facebook, 90.9 The Bridge Facebook, and recordBar Facebook, MMF YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/user/midwestmusicfound,

11:40

16. Roman Numerals – “My Life After Death Pt. II”
    from: Roman Numerals / Anodyne Records / 2007
    [Roman Numerals: Shawn Sherrill, Ryan Shank, Steve Tulipana and William Smith.]

[Roman Numerals play Apocalypse Meow 13, Saturday, November 7, 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Apocalypse Meow is Midwest Music Foundation’s primary fundraiser for Abby’s Fund For Musicians’ Health Care, which provides area musicians with emergency health care grants. This year’s event features a virtual concert & online auction, with no live audience. The concert features live sets broadcast from recordBar and pre-recorded performances from: Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Roman Numerals, Kadesh Flow, Brett Anderson of Ha Ha Tonka, Nathan Corsi Band, and HEELS, Plus special guest speakers! Access to the concert stream is free, but donations are encouraged. MMF will livestream from: Midwest Music Foundation Facebook, MMF YouTube, 90.9 The Bridge Facebook, and recordBar Facebook. http://www.youtube.com/user/midwestmusicfound, The online auction runs Nov. 1 – Nov 28: http://www.32auctions.com/meow2020 More info at: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org]

11:42 – More Interview with Sondra Freeman

We are talking with Sondra Freeman about Midwest Music Foundation’s 13th Annual Apocalypse Meow to benefit Abby’s Fund for Musicians’ Health Care which provides area musicians with emergency health care grants. This year’s event features a virtual concert & online auction, with no live audience. The concert features live sets broadcast from recordBar and pre-recorded performances from: Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Roman Numerals, Kadesh Flow, Brett Anderson of Ha Ha Tonka, Nathan Corsi Band, and HEELS, Plus special guest speakers!

Sondra Freeman thanks for being with us again on WMM.

Main Stage sponsored by Too Much Rock

Access to the concert stream is free, but donations are encouraged. MMF will livestream from: Midwest Music Foundation Facebook, MMF YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/user/midwestmusicfound, 90.9 The Bridge Facebook, and recordBar Facebook.

The online auction runs Nov 1 thru Nov 28 at: http://www.32auctions.com/meow2020 More info at: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org

Contact rhonda@midwestmusicfound.org for info or schedule an appt. for health services.

For more info and full list of sponsors visit: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org

Midwest Music Foundation Staff

Rhonda Lyne, Executive Director
Sondra Freeman, Director of Promotions and Artist Relations
Michelle Bacon, Editor
Canyon McClung, Production Specialist
Brenton Cook, Promotions Specialist
Christopher Tate, Technical Officer, Website Specialist
Scott Easterday, Website Administrator, Musician

Midwest Music Foundation Board
Chris Meck, Vice President, Musician and CM2 Audio
Ellen Sherman, Secretary, Chair of Marketing
Eric Barton, General Counsel
Dr. K. Allen Greiner, MD, MPH, Chair of Health + Wellness, University of KS Med Center
Erin Corriveau, MD, MPH, Public Health Officer, University of Kansas Medical Center
Bryant Miller, JD, Chair of Development
Camry Ivory, Musician
Amber Hulet, Volunteer Coordinator, Social Media

Apocalypse Meow is the primary event for Abby’s Fund For Musicians’ Health Care — providing area musicians and industry workers with essential health care grants. The fund has given out more than $240,000 since its inception.

Sondra Freeman thanks for being with us again on WMM.

13th Annual Apocalypse Meow to benefit Abby’s Fund for Musicians’ Health Care which provides area musicians with emergency health care grants. This year’s event features a virtual concert & online auction, with no live audience. The concert features live sets broadcast from recordBar and pre-recorded performances from: Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Roman Numerals, Kadesh Flow, Brett Anderson of Ha Ha Tonka, Nathan Corsi Band, and HEELS, Plus special guest speakers! Access to the concert stream is free, but donations are encouraged. MMF will livestream from: Midwest Music Foundation Facebook, MMF YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/user/midwestmusicfound, 90.9 The Bridge Facebook, and recordBar Facebook. The online auction runs Nov 1 thru Nov 28 at: http://www.32auctions.com/meow2020 More info at: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org

11:53

17. Jon Dee Graham – “Just Like That”
    from: Garage Sale! / Freedom Records / June 26, 2012
    [Jon Dee Graham is a musician, guitarist and songwriter from Austin, Texas. He was born February 28, 1959. Graham was named the Austin Musician of the Year during the South by Southwest (SXSW) music conference in 2006. He was inducted into the Austin Music Hall of Fame three times: as a solo artist in 2000, again in 2008 as a member of The Skunks, and again in 2009 as a member of the True Believers.]

[Jon Dee Graham plays Apocalypse Meow 13, Saturday, November 7, 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Apocalypse Meow is Midwest Music Foundation’s primary fundraiser for Abby’s Fund For Musicians’ Health Care, which provides area musicians with emergency health care grants. This year’s event features a virtual concert & online auction, with no live audience. The concert features live sets broadcast from recordBar and pre-recorded performances from: Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Roman Numerals, Kadesh Flow, Brett Anderson of Ha Ha Tonka, Nathan Corsi Band, and HEELS, Plus special guest speakers! Access to the concert stream is free, but donations are encouraged. MMF will livestream from: Midwest Music Foundation Facebook, MMF YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/user/midwestmusicfound, 90.9 The Bridge Facebook, and recordBar Facebook. The online auction runs Nov. 1 thru Nov 28 at: http://www.32auctions.com/meow2020 More info at: http://www.midwestmusicfoundation.org]

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

Next week on November 11 – We talk with Daniel Gum about his new album “Thirteen” released on Manor Records on October 30, 2020. We also talk with singer songwriter Julia Othmer about her new album of live cover songs called “Seeds.” And we devote our entire second hour to hanging out wth members of the bans Shy Boys and play tracks fro their new album Talk Loud and from their affiliate bands Coney, Full Bloods, ACBs and more.

Thank you to all who donated to Wednesday MidDay Medley and KKFI 90.1 FM during our Fall Fund Drive. Between our on 11/14 and 11/21 air fund drive shows, and our Facebook Fundraiser, we had a total of 50 listeners who donated a total of $2954.00 to support community radio. THANK YOU!!!!

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

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

Black Lives Matter

Show #862