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, January 20, 2021

New & MidCoastal Releases
Sam Wells + Barry Lee

1. “Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
   from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979
   [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]

2. We Are King – “Space Oddity”
   from: “Space Oddity” – Single / BEE Music / January 8, 2021
   [We are KING is an American R&B vocal girl group based in Los Angeles, California, featuring identical twin sisters Amber and Paris Strother and their close friend Anita Bias. The Strother sisters are the nieces of the Minneapolis, Minnesota-based electric bluesman, Percy Strother, who died in 2005 and are originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota; Bias was born and raised in Los Angeles. The self-contained trio first appeared in 2011, when, on March 1, they independently released their The Story, a three-song EP that captured the attention and garnered support from a number of artists including Phonte of The Foreign Exchange, Questlove, Erykah Badu, and eventually Prince, who invited the two to open for him at his 21-Night Stand Tour at the Los Angeles Forum. Prince subsequently became the girls’ mentor and advisor, providing them with managerial support until 2013. King founded their company King Creative in 2013, releasing their teaser single “In the Meantime” the same year, premiered by Billboard, and followed up with their second single, “Mister Chameleon” in 2014. On February 5, 2016, the trio released their debut studio album, We Are King, to critical acclaim. The album was nominated for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 59th Grammy Awards, making King the first independent band to be nominated in that category. We Are King was also included on mid-year and year-end lists by Rolling Stone, Time, Billboard, NPR, Spin, Newsday and Pitchfork among others. // Released on David Bowie’s birthday, January 8, 2021, their cover of his surprise 1972 hit ‘Space Oddity’ is a paean to this wholly singular and somewhat eccentric anthem. Smooth, subtle and assured, We Are KING’s version remains true to the original, while blending in just enough soul to make it their own. “There were so many amazing Bowie compositions to choose from but Space Oddity has always been our favorite- it’s so visual; it has always felt like time travel in a song. It tells such a vivid and imaginative story of Major Tom’s trip through space and it was such a cool experience to reimagine what it’d be like on the voyage” – We Are KING. BBE Music announces forthcoming David Bowie tribute album ‘Modern Love’ with first single ‘Space Oddity’ reinterpreted by Grammy-nominated twin sisters We Are KING. ‘Modern Love’ offers a fresh look at David Bowie’s diverse and transcendent back catalogue. The project is curated by Music Exec & DJ Drew McFadden, alongside BBE Music founder Peter Adarkwah.]

3. Monta At Odds – “Embrace the Night”
   from: A Great Conjunction EP / The Record Machine / December 18, 2020
   [Monta At Odds released A GREAT CONJUNCTION their new 5-song EP on December 18, 2020, just in time for the rare ‘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. “Embrace The Night” opens the EP with an opulent chug alongside synth ponderings and Krystof Nemeth’s homesick guitar. Teri Quinn then expressively vocalizes a paean to galactic connection, scanning for signals from the stars. Expansive space-rock follows in the form of “The Gods Are Conspiring.” Alexander Thomas’s drums rumble as the brothers Delaney and Dedric Moore layer on synths, bass, and other treatments with mind-altering results. “Elegant Approach” is a wind-up, all ‘sturm und drang’ and some heavy jazz rhythms (courtesy of drummer Matthew Heinrich) until morphing into a bass-lined melodic sound-trip. “Advent of a New Trigon” seems to coincide with the actual pairing of Saturn and Jupiter, Teri Quinn casting regenerative spells to the horizon with her voice and lyrics. And the EP closes with “Slide Away Gradually,” an instrumental callback to “Embrace The Night” which underscores the endless cycles of nature, the Great Conjunction certain to occur again and again and again. 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.” 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 Shapiro and Teri Quinn 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 Oct 19, 2018.]

4. Charlotte Bumgarner – “Honey Touch”
   from: Honey Touch – Single / Manor Records / December 11, 2020
   [Written & performed by Charlotte Bumgarner. Harmony, synth, production, mixing & mastering by Drew Richardson.. // Charlotte is a singer/songwriter born and raised in Tulsa. She has been playing the local Tulsa scene for about 2-3 years as a solo artist and for about a year with her band Graveyard Party. Charlotte’s sound can be described as a mix of many influences, but is mostly a emo singer/songwriter & folky fusion. Charlotte is also a big activist for female equality & rights and tries to integrate that into my songwriting and my footprint in the scene in general.// In 2018 Charlotte began self-recording and releasing her own music with the single “where are you” and night blooming flowers EP. From then on Charlotte continued playing throughout the local Tulsa scene as well as branching out and touring regionally as much as possible. In the spring of 2020 prior to signing with Manor Records, Charlotte self-released an acoustic set for RSU radio EP that first introduced us to her upcoming single “Honey Touch”. After signing to the label, Charlotte’s plan is to release a three-track single series beginning with this release, followed up by her debut album later in the year 2021. KOSU Radio called Charlotte a “passionate about young women being taken seriously and making the music scene a safer place for everyone.” More info at http://www.manorrecords.com]

5. Christena Graves – “Give Me A Minute”
   from: “Give Me A Minute” – Single / Christena Graves / January 15, 2021
   [“Give Me A Minute” is from her album, Finding My Footing, to be released February 11, 2021. More info at: christenagravesmusic.com // Christena Graves writes songs in order to make sense of her world. Her lyrics are a mixture of a heartfelt acknowledgment of the pain and suffering in life, balanced by the steadying force of committed relationships. Growing up in a coastal area of western Michigan, Christena draws from her deep connection with the natural world to help frame the difficulty of the human emotional landscape. “Nature brings focus for me. I rely on it to color my lyrics.” She found her musical beginning learning to sing harmonies with her older brothers and sisters. Music was an important part of her family and they would often sing hymns together. She fondly remembers the day her oldest brother sat her on the kitchen counter and taught her to sing harmony to Jingle Bells. It was a moment that gave fuel to her love of singing. // After leaving Michigan to attend college in Missouri, she met her husband Brandon and joined the band Waterdeep as the keyboard player. After touring for several years, she stepped away from the band to raise their children. Songwriting became a release to help process the struggles of life. Eventually, she was writing songs for her church community and helping lead music on Sunday mornings. Once the kids were old enough, Christena and Brandon decided to form a new project and return to making music in a bigger way. // 2019 marked the beginning of the Christena Graves Band and the ground work being laid for her return to the music industry. In mid 2020 Greg Lafollette, a long time musical friend, moved back to KC from Nashville where he had built a successful career as an artist and producer. Greg offered his help to record a collections of songs that have become her new record. The album is titled, Finding My Footing. A nod to the difficulty of reengaging in a music business that has changed dramatically over the last 20 years but also a humble acceptance that life can be hard at times but it is important to keep moving forward. // The release of Finding My Footing will mark her first full length solo album since 1996 and her first project ever as a band leader. The songs are stories of loss, fear, struggle, and joy. “This project ended up being much more than just making a good record. I spent a lot of time in self reflection—maybe I should call it a mid-life moment. I questioned my ability and worth as an artist, as a woman, and a human. It has been difficult to go through but I am learning so much about myself. I am happy with where I am and I am proud of what I’ve said with this album.”]

6. Grand Marquis – “Take A Deep Breath”
   from: “Take A Deep Breath” – Single / Grand Marquis / December 19, 2020
   [Bryan Redmond on lead vocals, soprano, alto, tenor & baritone saxophones; Ben Ruth on upright bass, sousaphone, backing vocals; Chad Boydston on trumpet, backing vocals; Ryan Wurtz on electric and acoustic guitars; Trevor Turla on trombone, backing vocals; Natalie Bates on drums, backing vocals. Formed in 1998, Grand Marquis has since become solidly rooted in the Kansas City music scene as one of the hardest-working bands in the region, playing over 100 shows per year! The group has performed from coast to coast, released 8 albums: “Brighter Days” in 2018, “Blues and Trouble” in 2013, “The Sun Session” in 2011, “Hold On To Me” in 2010, “One More Day” on 2007, “Grand Marquis” in 2004, “Le Chant Du Diable Bleu” in 2002, and “Burlesk” in 2000, including a 7″ 45 rpm vinyl record/CD combo recorded at the legendary Sun Studio in Memphis, TN. They also released the single “I Can’t Put You Down” on Teenage Heart Records. With their own versatile and thoroughly entertaining brand of American Roots, Blues and Prohibition-Era Jazz, the Grand Marquis are consistently finding themselves in high demand. More info at: http://www.grandmarquis.net]

7. Kian Bryne – “Morning Glow”
   from: Morning Glow / Kian Byrne Music / December 4, 2020
   [New 12-song album from Kian Byrne who released the single. “All The Love” on February 7, 2020. Kian Byrne is a Kansas City based multi-instrumentalist. He plays drums in The Elders, and drums for Hi-Lüx, and bass for The New Riddim, and for YUM. This is a follow-up to Kian Byrne’s solo EP “Up & Down” released July 11, 2018, part of WMM’s 118 Best Recordings of 2018. Info at: http://www.kianbyrnemusic.com]

10:28 – Underwriting

8. Maggie Rogers – “Anybody”
   from: Notes from the Archive: Recordings 2011-2016 (With Commentary) / DeBay Sounds / December 18, 2020
   [Margaret Debay Rogers was born April 25, 1994. She is an American singer-songwriter and record producer from Easton, Maryland. Her big break came when her song “Alaska” was played to Pharrell Williams during a master class at New York University’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music. She was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2020. // Maggie Rogers grew up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland along the banks of the Miles River in Easton, Talbot County, Maryland. Her father is a now-retired Ford Motor Company dealer and her mother, a former nurse, is now an end-of-life doula. She began playing harp at age seven and loved the music of Gustav Holst and Antonio Vivaldi. Her mother would play neo-soul artists such as Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill. By the time she was in middle school, Rogers had added piano and guitar to her repertoire and began songwriting in eighth grade. For high school, she attended St. Andrew’s School in Middletown, Delaware as well as The Gunston School on the Corsica River in Centreville, Queen Anne’s County, Maryland. At school, she played harp in the orchestra, sang in the choir, joined a jazz band, learned banjo and became interested in folk music, and taught herself how to program. She also spent many summers during her formative years at a rural camp in Maine.// The summer after her junior year, Rogers attended a Berklee College of Music program and won the program’s songwriting contest, which spurred her to focus on writing. During her senior year, she recorded what became her first album, The Echo (2012). Rogers included her demos as part of her application to New York University’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music. She secured admission and started in 2012. // At NYU, Rogers considered a career in music journalism, and in her freshman year, Rogers interned for music journalist Lizzy Goodman for whom she transcribed and edited hundreds of hours of interviews with major musicians and journalists, which would be later compiled into Goodman’s 2017 book Meet Me in the Bathroom. // Rogers released another folk album, Blood Ballet (2014), during her sophomore year at the school. Folk blog EarToTheGround Music explained that the album “…begs for listeners to confront deep personal emotions.” // Rogers studied abroad in France while at NYU and after friends convinced her to go clubbing while they were in Berlin, her eyes opened to a new genre and she discovered a love for dance music. When she returned home, Rogers was ready to make new music and merge her folk style with electronic production. // In 2016, after two years of writer’s block, Rogers wrote “Alaska”, a song she wrote in fifteen minutes about a National Outdoor Leadership School course. She played the song for Pharrell Williams in a master class he taught at her school, and a video of a visibly moved Williams listening to the song went viral that June, resulting in millions of views as well as hundreds of thousands of plays of The Echo and Blood Ballet. // Rogers graduated from New York University’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music in May 2016 with a degree in music engineering and production and English. // After the Pharrell video went viral, several different record labels tried to sign Rogers. She ended up negotiating a contract with Capitol Records where “she licenses her music to them through her own imprint, Debay Sounds.” As a result, she has more control over her sound and image than many artists at a similar place in their music careers. // Rogers’ EP, Now That the Light Is Fading, was released on February 17, 2017. She released her major-label debut album, Heard It In a Past Life, in January 2019. The album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200. // In April 2019, Rogers covered the Taylor Swift song “Tim McGraw” as a Spotify Single. She told Rolling Stone, “This song so distinctly belongs to one of – I think, personally – the greatest living songwriters.”// Rogers made her television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on February 15, 2017, Saturday Night Live debut on November 3, 2018 and Today Show debut on July 12, 2019. //Rogers cites Carrie Brownstein, Patti Smith, Kim Gordon, and Björk as her musical inspirations, while prominent singers Brandi Carlile and Sharon Van Etten – whom she calls her “musical big sisters” – have become mentors. // She guested with Dead & Company, performing “Friend of the Devil” and “The Weight” on November 1, 2019 at Madison Square Garden. // Rogers earned a nomination for Best New Artist at the 62nd Grammy Awards. // Rogers performed during the 2020 Democratic National Convention, appearing remotely from Scarborough, Maine due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. She was introduced by Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives and 2020 US Senate candidate from Maine Sara Gideon. // On November 13, 2020, Rogers collaborated with Phoebe Bridgers on a cover of the Goo Goo Dolls’ 1998 single “Iris”, which Bridgers said she would make if Donald Trump lost the 2020 United States elections. The song was released as a one-day exclusive on Bandcamp and was downloaded 28,000 times, with all proceeds going to Fair Fight Action. // On December 18, 2020, Rogers released Notes from the Archive: Recordings 2011-2016 via her label Debay Sounds. The album is a compilation of songs she wrote and recorded in the past ten years of her recording career. Some of the songs are from her independently released first two albums: The Echo and Blood Ballet. Other songs are from her previously unreleased 2016 rock EP and a band she was previously in with Holden Jaffe, Del Water Gap. The album was released along with a deluxe version in which Rogers provides an auditory commentary talking through each stage of her music career that the songs in that section reflect. More info at: http://www.maggieragers.com]

9. The Hermanos Brothers – “The Day The Earth Stood Still”
   from: Absentee Ballads / Howard Iceberg / November 25, 2020
   [15-song album from The Hermanos Brothers, an imaginary band drawn from real life bands with: Howard Iceberg (from Howard Iceberg & The Titanics) on vocals & guitar; Chad Brothers (from Old Sound, Shapiro Brothers, and Super Massive Blackholes) on guitar and harmony vocals; Andrew “Mojo” Morris (from The Matchsellers) on mandolin, banjo, guitar, harmony vocals; and Julie “Bates Motel” (from The Matchsellers) on fiddle & harmony vocals. Howard writes: “In the bright days of 2019, just before Pandemia, we hung out in Chad’s basement on three afternoons. Howard brought a couple dozen new songs, played them once, then we all played them once, then Chad pressed ‘Record’ and we went at it.” All songs are first or second takes, to filter out any vestige of artistry. These are some of them. All words and music by Howard Iceberg. Recorded and mixed by Chad Brothers at The Sub-Basement, except tracks 3, 10, and 12 mixed by Andrew Morris. Artwork and layout by Julie “Bates Motel.”. More info at: https://thehermanosbrothers.bandcamp.com.%5D

10. Mensa Deathsquad – “Nothing Is Ever Enough”
    from: Cyclist / Gran Cavalera / February 23, 2021
    [First single from the second album from Mensa Deathsquad. Brandon Phillips laid in a Kansas City hospital through the winter of 2019-2020 as his own album release (the unintentionally but appropriately named Patient Zero by his alt-synthwave band Mensa Deathsquad) passed by in the outside world. The first tracks from his debut album Patient Zero were premiering and, chained to a Luciferian merry-go-round of post-operative infections, Brandon strained through the pharmaceutical blur to do promotion for his record, emailing editors and scraping together the necessary pieces they needed. Since his surgery a month prior had gone sideways, and the time, energy, and planning for things like photos, videos and shows had been blown to smithereens, all he had left to look forward to beyond the IVs and the machines that go “ping” was this premiere and the street date. And then came COVID-19, like a rogue wave, to finish off the aimless Mensa Deathsquad sailboat. // But Brandon didn’t die and the boat didn’t sink. As the squall receded and the wanton eye of cruel gods passed over him, Brandon clung to the boat and swore revenge… // As the aphorism goes, “revenge is sweet” and thus Brandon and his Mensa Deathsquad will have the triumphant last laugh. Holed up in the spare bedroom of his apartment in Kansas City with an open wound in his abdomen, two surgical drains, and a severely compromised immune system, Brandon slipped back into his Mensa Deathsquad persona and began working on what would become his newest full length album, Cyclist. // The music that emerged from Brandon’s isolation and illness is a raw, nearly garage-rock take on darkwave and a perfect continuation of what he had begun on Patient Zero. Launching with the one-two punch of electro-punk noir in “Nothing Is Ever Enough” and “Therapist” before the pounding synth-rock of “The Disappointment Of The Christ,” Brandon fixes his furious eyes upon the provocative hypocrisy and violence that results from American Christianity. // A heady package of nudge nudges and intellectual ruminations (a trademark of Brandon’s past as a smartpunk upstart in such seminal bands as The Gadjits and Architects), Cyclist carries both a powerful music punch, a cultural rummaging through pop culture, and a run through his ever-evolving intellect. A knowing wink to fans of the seminal vampire flick The Lost Boy, “Join Us, Michael” is at once a seething appraisal of a world scorched and defiled by an older generation and a musical love letter to that pivotal ‘80s vampire movie soundtrack. “Leap Year (Chaos Reigns)” which began as a Siouxsie & the Banshees-inspired jam serves as Cyclist’s true north – the story of a drug-fueled wrinkle in time that brought the entire cyclical nature of existence into visibility one fateful night. “End Of The World” is dance-floor nihilist electro-rock blending angular post-punk guitar with the nostalgia of neon synths and electroclash drums, while “Takes One To Know One” slowly approaches the thunderstorm of toxic relationships, soulful vocals, tech house kick drums, and grimey-as-hell bass. // As a fitting conclusion to the tour de force through his psyche, Cyclist closes with yet another two-track charge, the swaggering post-electro sneer at celebrity social media, “Famous” followed by the throbbing Giorgio Moroder-via-Tech House cover of Iggy Pop’s classic “The Passenger.” “It was important to me that I cover ‘The Passenger’ as a letter of intent.” Says Brandon. “The electronic music that I daydream about, always has that Stooges layer of dirt and shop grease on it. That’s what I wanted for Cyclist.” The result is a triumph over the storm, as Mensa Deathsquad sails, unvanquished, into victory. More info at: https://mensadeathsquad.bandcamp.com or https://facebook.com/MensaDeathsquad.%5D

11. Miss Boating – “It’s A Lie”
    from: “It’s A Lie” – Single / Miss Boating / December 31, 2020
    [Miss Boating is: Charlie Colborne on keyboards, guitar, vocals; Bill Belzer: drums, vocals; Phil Dickey on bass; Aaron Jones on trombone; Tim Gillespie on saxophone. With Pat Conway on samba orchestra. Ross Brown covered engineering & mixing for The Vhargon Sidestep. Mike Nolte handled all of the mastering New single from Miss Boating who released their debut The Vhargon Sidestep on January 1, 2020 and was part of WMM’s 120 Best Recordings of 2020. From the ashes of their former band The Sleazebeats, Charles Colborne & Bill Belzer faced a difficult 2019 when combined with the death of Charlie’s own beloved mother, their friend & bassist Evan Vhargon died. The band wrote that they “were lost when Evan passed.” Through the tough times Bill & Charlie kept playing and wrote that they “were blown away when Phil Dickey wanted to jam with us. The jamming turned into something more and we were going again. We couldn’t be more thankful and humbled.” Phil is part of the bands Dragon Inn 3, and Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin. . Charles Colborne & Bill Belzer were our guests on WMM on April 1, 2020. More info at: https://missboating.bandcamp.com%5D

12. No Thanks – “Wildflowers”
    from: Submerger / Black Site Records / October 31, 2020
    [Omaha Nebraska based band. Produced by No Thanks. Recorded, Engineered, and Mixed by Mathew Carroll at Little Machine (Omaha, NE). Mastered by Mike Nolte at Eureka Mastering (Portland, OR). Vinyl Mastered by Chris Muth at Taloowa Corp. (Yonkers, NY). Photography by Jacob Greve (Omaha, NE). BS-15 More info at: http://www.black-site.org. No Thanks formed in 2013, the fever dream of high school friends Michael Huber (guitar), Cam Stout (bass), and Castro Turf (vocals). After self-releasing a couple of singles, Gabe Cohen replaced the original drummer and the band began hitting the road in 2015. Always advocating for affordable, safe shows, Leftist politics, and captivating punk music, No Thanks has played nearly every DIY scene in the Midwest and made one hot summer tour to Florida. Notable festival appearances include Lincoln Calling, Goth Night in Lawrence, KS, Tü Fest in St. Louis, and the Nebraska Hardcore Showcase. The band’s furious and engaging live performances have earned them shows with such acts as Protomartyr, Ceremony, Screaming Females, Gouge Away, Ex-Cult, Plack Blague, See Through Dresses, and DRI. // In 2016, the band recorded their first EP, Position, in mom’s basement, and in early 2018, released their first full-length album, The Trial, which earned them the title of “Best Punk Band in Nebraska” by Kerrang!. In March 2020, with the pandemic just starting to unfold, the band released the single “Lurch” b/w “Burn the Body” followed up in July by the split album, Live at Brothers Lounge, with fellow Omaha punks, The Natural States.]

13. BCCC – “Psycho Killer”
    from: “Psycho Killer” – Single / Brad Cox / January 9, 2021.
    [BCCC is 6-year old Cecilla Cox on vocals, trumpet, and E flat peck horn; and Brad Cox on vocals, and all other instruments. More info at: https://bccc.bandcamp.com%5D

14. 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.]

15. Regina Del Carmen – “Don’t Mess Up My High”
    from: 29 / Regina Del Carmen / September 28, 2020
    [Second album from 20 year old singer songwriter who released The High Priestess Mixtape on September 16, 2019. More info at: https://soundcloud.com/reginadelcarmen%5D

11:00 – Station ID

16. Sam Wells – “For The Deflated”
    from: For The Deflated / French Exit Records / December 31, 2020
    [Earlier this year on April 21, 2020, Sam Wells released her single “Sugar” produced at the Lawrence Kansas Public Library recording studio. It was only a decade ago, Sam Wells sat in her bedroom learning the Corrine Bailey Ray classic “Put Your Records On”. This was all it took to ignite a lifetime love affair with music. Now based in Lawrence KS, the singer-songwriter brings her Folk-Americana sound to the greater Kansas City area. With her smooth and sultry voice and the warm tones of a baritone ukulele, she shares stories of love, loss and everything in between. Originally from Phoenix, Arizona, Sam Wells is now based in Lawrence, Kansas where she is bringing her music to the greater Kansas City area, in many venues, and now in live stream shows. Folk Americana singer and songwriter Sam Wells joins us to talk about her first two singles, “Lesson Learned” (her debut) and “Sugar” (her latest) that is “full of energy and funk.” These two tracks are leading up to the release of Sam’s first EP, “For The Deflated.” More info at: http://www.whoissamwells.com. Sam Wells was on WMM on May 13, 2020.]

11:04 – Interview with Sam Wells

Kansas City, based singer songwriter Sam Wells has shared stages with Betsy Phillips, Kelly Hunt, Andrew Ryan, The Zack Pietrini Band, and The Phantastics. She was featured as a composer and performer in the Kansas City Repertory Theater production of “Ghost Light” performed on the lawn of The Nelson Atkin Museum of Art in October, 2020. Sam has also performed in Troostival (2020), Kansas City Porchfest (2019) and Jamdemic. In 2019, Wells released her debut single “Lesson Learned.” In early 2020 Wells released her second single “Sugar” producer and engineered by Riley Corbin. Sam Wells released of her debut EP, For The Deflated, on December 31, 2020 on French Exit Records. more info at: http://www.whoissamwells.com

Sam Wells thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

Since we last had Sam on the show on May 13, 2020 to talk about her single “Sugar” she has been very busy, despite all of the challenges of the pandemic.

Sam worked as a composer and performer in the Kansas City Repertory Theater production of “Ghost Light” performed on the lawn of The Nelson Atkin Museum of Art in October, 2020. Collaborating with our friends Maria Vasquez Boyd and Madisen Ward.

Sam also was part of Troostival organized by Kemet Coleman featuring an amazing line up of Kansas City bands and performers.

For The Deflated is Sam’s debut EP release. Riley Corbin served as producer and engineer for the new record.

Originally from Phoenix, Arizona, Sam Wells is now based in downtown Kansas City , Missouri .

Folk Americana singer and songwriter Sam Wells joined us on May 13, 2020 to talk about her first two singles, “Lesson Learned” (her debut) and “Sugar that is “full of energy and funk.” These two tracks are leading up to the release of her new EP.

Sam Wells thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

Sam’s first EP, “For The Deflated”, was released at midnight on December 31, 2020. More information at: http://www.whoissamwells.com

11:19

17. Sam Wells – “Taking Chances”
    from: For The Deflated / French Exit Records / December 31, 2020
    [Earlier this year on April 21, 2020, Sam Wells released her single “Sugar” produced at the Lawrence Kansas Public Library recording studio. It was only a decade ago, Sam Wells sat in her bedroom learning the Corrine Bailey Ray classic “Put Your Records On”. This was all it took to ignite a lifetime love affair with music. Now based in Lawrence KS, the singer-songwriter brings her Folk-Americana sound to the greater Kansas City area. With her smooth and sultry voice and the warm tones of a baritone ukulele, she shares stories of love, loss and everything in between. Originally from Phoenix, Arizona, Sam Wells is now based in Lawrence, Kansas where she is bringing her music to the greater Kansas City area, in many venues, and now in live stream shows. Folk Americana singer and songwriter Sam Wells joins us to talk about her first two singles, “Lesson Learned” (her debut) and “Sugar” (her latest) that is “full of energy and funk.” These two tracks are leading up to the release of Sam’s first EP, “For The Deflated.” More info at: http://www.whoissamwells.com.]

18. Stevie Wonder – “I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever)”
    from: Talking Book / Tamla / October 28, 1972
    [Co-written and performed by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder and Yvonne Wright, This is the last track on Stevie Wonder’s glorious fifteenth studio album Talking Book from 1972, on the Tamla label for Motown Records. This album and Music of My Mind are widely noted as being the signal recordings of Wonder’s “classic period”. The sound of the album is sharply defined by Wonder’s keyboard work, especially with the synthesizers he incorporated. His use of the Hohner clavinet model C on “Superstition” is widely regarded as one of the definitive tracks featuring the instrument. // Relying less on Motown’s head Berry Gordy for musical direction and expression, Talking Book is often considered as the beginning of the turning point in Wonder’s career from a youthful prodigy to an independent and experimental artist. Speaking on the album in 2000, Wonder said, “It wasn’t so much that I wanted to say anything except where I wanted to just express various many things that I felt—the political point of view that I have, the social point of view that I have, the passions, emotion and love that I felt, compassion, the fun of love that I felt, the whole thing in the beginning with a joyful love and then the pain of love.” // Talking Book peaked at number three on the Billboard Top LPs chart and finished at number three on the Billboard 200 Albums Year-End of 1972. The album’s first track “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and Easy Listening chart. The album’s first single, “Superstition”, also reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart. Talking Book earned Wonder his first Grammy Award, with “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” winning Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the 16th Grammy Awards. “Superstition” also won Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song.][Stevland Hardaway Morris was born May 13, 1950, and known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. Stevie Wonder was the third of five children born to Lula Mae Hardaway, and the second of Hardaway’s two children with Calvin Judkins. He was born six weeks premature which, along with the oxygen-rich atmosphere in the hospital incubator, resulted in retinopathy of prematurity, a condition in which the growth of the eyes is aborted and causes the retinas to detach, so he became blind. // When Wonder was four, his mother divorced his father and moved with her (then) three children to Detroit, Michigan, where Wonder sang as a child in a choir at the Whitestone Baptist Church. She changed her name back to Lula Hardaway and later changed her son’s surname to Morris, partly because of relatives. Wonder has retained Morris as his legal surname. He began playing instruments at an early age, including piano, harmonica, and drums. // As a child, Wonder attended Fitzgerald Elementary School. After his first album was released, he enrolled in Michigan School for the Blind.A prominent figure in popular music during the second half of the 20th century, Wonder is one of the most successful songwriters and musicians. A virtual one-man band, his use of synthesizers and further electronic musical instruments during the 1970s reshaped the conventions of R&B. He also helped drive the genre into the album era, crafting his LPs as cohesive, consistent socially conscious statements with complex compositions. Wonder is often hailed as a “genius”, and has been credited as a pioneer and influence to musicians of various genres including rhythm and blues, pop, soul, gospel, funk and jazz. // Blind since shortly after his birth, Wonder was a child prodigy known as Little Stevie Wonder, leading him to sign with Motown’s Tamla label at the age of 11. In 1963, the single “Fingertips” was a number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 when Wonder was 13, making him the youngest artist ever to top the chart. Wonder’s critical success was at its peak in the 1970s. His “classic period” began in 1972 with the releases of Music of My Mind and Talking Book, the latter featuring “Superstition”, which is one of the most distinctive and famous examples of the sound of the Hohner Clavinet keyboard. His works Innervisions (1973), Fulfillingness’ First Finale (1974) and Songs in the Key of Life (1976) all won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, making him the tied-record holder for the most Album of the Year wins, with three. He is also the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases. // Wonder’s “classic period”, which culminated in 1976, was marked by his funky keyboard style, personal control of production, and use of integrated series of songs to make concept albums. In 1979, Wonder used Computer Music Inc.’s early music sampler, the Melodian, on his soundtrack album Stevie Wonder’s Journey Through “The Secret Life of Plants”. This was his first digital recording and one of the earliest popular albums to use the technology, which Wonder used for all subsequent recordings. The pioneering stylistics of Wonder’s 1970s albums are widely regarded as having influenced the shape of pop music in the following decade. // Wonder has sold over 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He has won 22 Grammy Awards. He was the first Motown artist and second African-American musician to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song, for the 1984 film The Woman in Red. Wonder has been inducted into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame, and has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday a federal holiday in the United States. In 2009, he was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace. In 2014, he was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.]

11:28 – Underwriting

19. Barry Lee & The Mystic Arrows – “The Rest Of My Life”
    from: A Belated Legacy / Barry Lee / November 27, 2020
    [Written by Dalton Howard. The album is dedicated to the loving emory of Caroline Louise Lee and Helen Virginia Lee. Recorded at Roll Away The Stone studios in Independence, MO. Barry Lee is host of Signal to Noise heard Friday nights at 9:00 here on KKFI 90.1 FM. Barry has been a longtime programmer at KKFI. Barry Lee has organized multiple benefit concerts for KKFI including his annual Beatles Tribute shows, A Tribute to Pete Seeger, and special “Collaborations” recordings. It was while playing in a tribute to Neil Young that Barry and friends formed Broken Arrows, a 5-piece band that has released their multiple records, including “Street Flowers” in August of 2018 to critical acclaim, before the band broke up. Barry Lee is also part of the band The Jubilee Mystics who have released 2 albums.]

11:35 – Interview with Barry Lee

Barry Lee joins us on the phone to share details about his new album, A Belated Legacy, released in November 27, 2020. Barry Lee is part of the Lawrence based band, The Jubilee Mystics, and he has released albums with the band Broken Arrows who were formed after a Neil Young Tribute. Barry Lee is a longtime host & producer of Signal To Noise, heard Friday nights at 9:00 PM on 90.1 FM KKFI. Barry Lee has organized multiple Beatles Tribute Shows, tributes to The Byrds, Pete Seeger and others, as benefits for KKFI where Barry also served as Station Manager for several years.

Barry Lee thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

You released this album as a semi-biographical chronical of your life in this past year of 2020. “The Rest of My Life” was written by a Lawrence area songwriter named Dalton Howard. What can you tell us about dalton and why you included that song.

2020 was a challenging for all of us and Barry survived the year and lived to sing about it.

In Early 2020 Barry Lee contracted COVID – 19. After his recovery he decided to record some songs for a record he wanted to leave behind if he hadn’t survived the plague.

Barry Lee started recording tracks at Roll Away The Stone studios in Independence, MO. In June. These were all songs that meant something to Barry personally. “A Belated Legacy” was produced by Dave Storms

Barry Lee wanted to record with as many musical friends as possible, so you hear Betse Ellis, Clarke Wyatt, Brad Growcock, Scott Gribble, Gary Paredes, Til Willis, Maria Anthony, Paul Lemon, Kristina Ning, Alan Murphy, Fred Potter, Darrell Lea, Dave Tanner, as well as members of Broken Arrows and The Jubilee Mystics on this record.

“Dearest” was the first single release. It was aired over the New Year’s weekend around the world via the syndicated Ice Cream Man radio show. Also, “License To Kill” has aired on Tasty Brew on KKFI and on The Scene on 102.7 FM in KC.

Barry Lee has been working on an anthology of Broken Arrows recordings to come out next year on Big Stir Records in LA. Barry compiled a two cd set of previously unreleased Broken Arrows recordings of cover versions, jams, original songs from scores of hours of rehearsal recordings between the years 2015 and 2019. Barry Lee is releasing “Dearest” b/w “When You Came To Say Goodbye” as a single early this year on Big Stir Records.

“Legacy” was co-written by Barry Lee and Cheri Woods

Barry Lee thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

11:48

20. Barry Lee & The Mystic Arrows – “Legacy”
    from: A Belated Legacy / Barry Lee / November 27, 2020
    [Written by Barry Lee and Cheri Woods. The album is dedicated to the loving emory of Caroline Louise Lee and Helen Virginia Lee. Recorded at Roll Away The Stone studios in Independence, MO. Barry Lee is host of Signal to Noise heard Friday nights at 9:00 here on KKFI 90.1 FM. Barry has been a longtime programmer at KKFI. Barry Lee has organized multiple benefit concerts for KKFI including his annual Beatles Tribute shows, A Tribute to Pete Seeger, and special “Collaborations” recordings. It was while playing in a tribute to Neil Young that Barry and friends formed Broken Arrows, a 5-piece band that has released their multiple records, including “Street Flowers” in August of 2018 to critical acclaim, before the band broke up. Barry Lee is also part of the band The Jubilee Mystics who have released 2 albums.]

21. Lazy Projector – “Windows”
    from: “Windows” – Single / Lazy Projectors / December 4, 2020
    [All music by Lazy Projector. Mixed and Engineered by Tell Pryor. Drums Recorded at Element Studios. Mastered by Mike Wells. “Windows” will be featured on Lazy Projector’s upcoming album to be released in 2021.Lazy Projector released their debut album, “evoco” in 2018. As reported by Michelle Bacon for 90.9 The Bridge when they premiered the new video on December 2, 2020, the new song was “written and recorded shortly after the death of George Floyd, the prismatic video for “Windows” reflects on the protest effort against systemic racism in the middle of the stay-at-home orders.” Band leader and songwriter Aaron Shinn said, “Although many were able to participate in person, others could only be part of the effort through social media and technology, it put into perspective how connected we actually are, even during times when we can feel more isolated than ever. We now have windows into everyone’s lives, cities and homes, and are able to travel miles through them.” More info at http://www.lazyprojector.com]

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

Next week, on Wednesday, January 27 we will play more New & MidCoastal Releases. PLUS, we’ll talk with Lily B. Moonflower about her new single on Lost Cowgirl Records. We’ll also talk with Jeremiah James Gonzales and Jill McKeever join us to share new music from their band Redder Moon. AND, We also talk with singer songwriter Charlotte Baumgarner about her new singles being released through Manor Records.

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/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1

Show #873