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

Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Ivory Blue + More New & MidCoastal Releases

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. Cynthia Erivo – “What In The World”
   from: Ch. 1 Vs. 1 / Verve Records – UMG / September 17, 2021 – February 25, 2022 (on vinyl)
   [Debut album from British singer-songwriter & actress, born Jan. 8, 1987. Erivo was the winner of the 2016 Tony Award, for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical, for the Revival of The Color Purple, on Broadway// Cynthia Erivo is the recipient of several accolades, including a Daytime Emmy Award, a Grammy Award and a Tony Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. // Erivo began acting in a 2011 stage production of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. She gained recognition for starring in the Broadway revival of The Color Purple from 2015 to 2017, for which she won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. Erivo ventured into films in 2018, playing roles in the heist film Widows and the thriller Bad Times at the El Royale. For her portrayal of American abolitionist Harriet Tubman in the biopic Harriet (2019), Erivo received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress; she also wrote and performed the song “Stand Up” on its soundtrack, which garnered her a nomination in the Best Original Song category. // On TV, Erivo had her first role in the British series Chewing Gum (2015). She starred in the crime drama miniseries The Outsider (2020), and received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her portrayal of Aretha Franklin in National Geographic’s anthology series Genius: Aretha (2021).]

3. Prairie Brigade – “Is This How The World Ends?”
   from: “Is This How The World Ends?” – Single / Prairie Brigade / February 22, 2022
   [Debut single from Prairie Brigade a KC band born in late 2021 with Kristie Stremel on vocals & guitar, Chris Meck on guitar & vocals, John Hobson on guitar & bass & vocals, Ryan McCall on electric piano & vocals, and Tom Hudson on drums. Prairie Brigade’s first album will be released April 12, 2022. Info: http://www.prairiebrigade.bandcamp.com or http://www.prairiebrigademusic.con]

4. Big Thief – “Simulation Swarm”
   from: Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You / 4AD / February 11, 2022
   [Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You is the 5th studio album by the American band Big Thief, released as a double album through 4AD on Feb. 11, 2022. Produced by drummer James Krivchenia, the album features 20 songs which were recorded over five months in four different locations across the United States. The album’s release was preceded by 8 singles. It received acclaim from critics upon release and entered the top forty in several territories, including Australia, Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, the USA and the UK. // In 2019, Big Thief left Saddle Creek and signed to 4AD, releasing two studio albums: U.F.O.F. in May 2019 and Two Hands in Oct. 2019. The albums were the band’s most successful and acclaimed to date: U.F.O.F. received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album and both albums appeared on the Billboard 200 chart, with Two Hands peaking at 113. Their song “Not” from Two Hands was named by many publications as one of the year’s best songs and was nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards. Big Thief toured in support of the albums until March 2020, when their European tour was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Drummer James Krivchenia released a solo album titled A New Found Relaxation in June 2020. In October 2020, Lenker released two solo albums: Songs and Instrumentals. Guitarist Buck Meek released his second solo album Two Saviors in January 2021. // Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You album was produced by drummer James Krivchenia, who conceived the concept behind its recording. In late 2019, while at a hotel in Copenhagen, Krivchenia presented the band with the concept that they would travel to four different locations: Upstate New York, Topanga Canyon in California, the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, and the Colorado mountains. They would record at four different studios with four separate engineers, and go to each place with a specific sonic plan in mind. Krivchenia’s intent was to capture a full expression of Lenker’s songwriting and the band onto a single album. Krivchenia’s production handling also marks the band’s first album not produced by their longtime collaborator Andrew Sarlo. // The band recorded over the span of five months, resulting in 45 complete songs which were ultimately edited down to the album’s 20 tracks. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the band initially quarantined in the Vermont woods for two weeks in July 2020. The 1st session was in July and August 2020 at Sam Evian’s Flying Cloud Recordings in Upstate New York. The 2nd session was with Shawn Everett in Oct. 2020 at Five Star Studios in Topanga, California. The third session was with engineer Dom Monks, who previously engineered U.F.O.F. and Two Hands; the session took place in Nov. 2020 at MusicGardens – Studio In The Clouds in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, located just outside Telluride. The fourth and final session was in Dec. 2020 at Scott McMicken’s Press On Studio in Tucson, Arizona. Mat Davidson, a former member of the Low Anthem and a longtime friend of the band who performs under the moniker Twain, was invited to contribute to the recordings in Arizona. Davidson had previously featured on the band’s second studio album, Capacity (2017), with his vocals & fiddle performances featuring heavily throughout the Arizona Dragon New Warm Mountain recordings, marking the first time the band incorporated a fifth instrumentalist for such a substantial contribution]

5. The Creepy Jingles – “Connundrum and Bass”
from: “Connundrum and Bass” – Single / High Dive Records / February 25, 2022
[This is the second single from band’s upcoming 11-track, full-length debut, TAKE ME AT MY WORD PLAY scheduled for release in March 25, 2022. “Trojan Horse Girl” was the firsr single released February 11, 2022 and this followed the stand alone single “Throwing In The Femme Fatale” released November 18, 2021. As lead singer Jocelyn Olivia Nixon Nixon, who is a transgender woman, told 90.9 The Bridge, “This is one of those songs we wanted to make space for and share because it was a favorite little oddball of ours, it’s a bit outside the box of what we normally do.” Nixon continued, “I wrote it to appear vague enough where it could be about a song, idea or a person that gets stuck inside your crawl space,” the song was about her own mindset before transitioning. “…This overwhelming thought about showing the world who I really was, because I couldn’t ignore it anymore.” The Creepy Jingles released their Debut EP on High Dive Records on May 3, 2019. The release was in the top tenof WMM’s 119 Best Recordings of 2019. From High Dive Records website: “The brainchild of singer/ songwriter, Jocelyn Olivia Nixon acts to guide the listener thru a self-actualized Mono-myth of forging identity thru Bizarre arcane cosmic poetry coupled with the wordplay of a wry smile and eccentric wit. Drummer Nick Robertson charges the group forward with a fiery fueled obsidian backbeat. Adam York delivers pulsing bass lines that the compliment the songs and his partner in the rhythm section. Rounding out the band is Guitarist Travis McKenzie who generously spins a holographic spectrum of color that lift the catchy Brit pop melodies that effortlessly dance about the rapidly changing landscapes of New York Garage Rock and 60s/70s folk music. Beware The Creepy Jingles, their siren call is coming from inside the house.”]

[Jocelyn Olivia Nixon of The Creepy Jingles will join us on WMM on March 23, 2022]

[The Creepy Jingles play Replay Lounge on March 26, 2022 at 10:00 PM with Miki P & The Swallowtails, LK Ultra, and LYXE]

6. Hurray For The Riff Raff – “RHODODENDRON”
   from: LIFE ON EARTH / Nonesuch Records / February 18, 2017
   [Hurray for the Riff Raff is an American folk-blues and Americana band from New Orleans, Louisiana formed by lead singer and songwriter Alynda Segarra. Segarra was raised by her aunt Nereida in the Bronx where she developed an early appreciation for doo-wop and Motown. She is of Puerto Rican descent. Her mother was former New York City Deputy Mayor Ninfa Segarra. Segarra became a regular attendee of hardcore punk shows at ABC No Rio when she was young. She left her home in the Bronx at age 17, spending time crossing North America, hopping freight trains. During this time, around 2007, Segarra became a part of the Dead Man Street Orchestra, a band that was documented in a photo essay by Time Magazine in 2007. After two self-released albums, 2008’s It Don’t Mean I Don’t Love You and 2010’s Young Blood Blues, Hurray for the Riff Raff released a self-titled CD composed of Segarra’s favorite songs from those records on Loose Music in Europe on March 21, 2011. Tracks from the band’s debut release received airplay on BBC Radio 2 and BBC 6 Music. In February 2011, the band were featured in an article in The Times, based around the HBO TV series, Treme, with their track “Daniella” being listed in their selection of New Orleans’ essential songs. In May 2012, Hurray for the Riff Raff released Look Out Mama on their own label, Born to Win Records. Loose Music released Look Out Mama in Europe on August 20, 2012. The album was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee at The Bomb Shelter Studios and produced by Andrija Tokic (Alabama Shakes).In February 2014, Hurray for the Riff Raff had their ATO Records debut, Small Town Heroes. The record features original songs written or co-written by Segarra, and features fiddler Yosi Perlstein, keyboard player Casey McAllister, and two members of The Deslondes: Sam Doores on guitar and Dan Cutler on bass. On March 10, 2017 Hurray For The Riff Raff released The Navigator onATO Records. ]

7. Miles Bonny & C. Scott – “Nowhere to Hide”
   from: “Nowhere to Hide” – Single / Innate Sounds / February 25, 2022,
   [Miles Bonny was born November 7, 1980, in New York City, to his parents Anne Grothe and Francis Bonny, a broadway musician. His grandmother, Helen Bonny, was a music therapist. In 1981, Bonny moved to Teaneck, New Jersey where he attended Teaneck High School. Miles Bonny is a record producer, singer-songwriter, trumpeter, and DJ. Originally from New Jersey, Bonny began producing and creating hip hop while living in the midwest in the late 1990s, and founded the hip-hop group SoundsGood with rapper Joe Good in 2000. He has released a number of solo albums, and has collaborated with musicians such as Deep Thinkers, Ces Cru, and Sage Francis. He operates the record label InnateSounds, and in 2010 Bonny won the Pitch Music Award for DJ Hip-Hop in Kansas City. Currently based in New Mexico, Bonny frequently tours as a DJ and performer. // Bonny moved to Lawrence, Kansas to attend the University of Kansas in 1999. There he began producing music and started the regional hip hop website Lawrencehiphop.com, which helped bring media attention to the region’s hip hop artists.[5] He has also worked on collaborative projects with Approach (Al Japro) and iD (The Find). During this period an internship with Sub Verse Music led Miles becoming more acquainted with the New York independent hip hop scene, which informed his ability to later start his own label, INnatesounds. // Additionally, he co-founded the hip-hop group SoundsGood in 2000 with Kansas City-based rapper Joe Good.[5] In the early years of SoundsGood the group was well known in the “house party” scene.[citation needed] After the pair released a 12-song eponymous debut LP in 2002,[5] they released Biscuits & Gravy in 2005. Miles released an instrumental version of Biscuits & Gravy in 2007, after Joe Good had left the hip-hop scene. In 2008, Miles released another SoundsGood LP using material recorded between the band’s debut and Biscuits. // Miles moved to Kansas City, Missouri in 2005. That year he produced the track “Comin For You” for rap artist Reach, which was chosen by a panel of judges including DJ Premier for Scion’s NextUp competition. That same year he received international recognition in Scratch Magazine’s Hydrosonic’s section. // In 2006, Miles released his debut solo project, Smell Smoke? According to The Pitch, the main single from the album, “Miles Gets Open,” is a “soulful, jazzy tune, on which Bonny himself plays trumpet, showcases his jazz upbringing in New Jersey, where his father, now a woodworker, used to work nights as a musician across the river in New York City.” // In 2007 he produced and recorded for musicians such as Reggie B, Deep Thinkers, and John Brewer, all of whom are members of the hip-hop collective Innate Sounds.[6] That year he also made the beat for “Call Me Francois” on Sage Francis’ album Human the Death Dance, released on Epitaph Records. // He released the “Miles Gets Open” 7″ & Closer Love EP in conjunction with the German-based Melting Pot Music in 2007.[7] Miles’ next work, Steveland, was released on December 15, 2007, and is a five-song album with Miles singing and playing the horns over a 2002 tribute to Stevie Wonder by indie producer Madlib. // In 2010, he won the Pitch Music Award for DJ Hip-Hop in Kansas City. // Bonny released Egg Black EP with producer B.Lewis on April 3, 2012, and he was nominated for a 2013 Amadeus Award (Austria) for his S3 project.[8] He has performed internationally in countries such as Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, Australia, New Zealand, and Austria. // In 2021 he released Lumberjack Soul 2. He is currently working on a duo album with wife Shhor in Taos, New Mexico. // In 2013 Bonny moved to Tres Piedras, New Mexico. His home is solar-paneled and handbuilt using materials such as wood, straw bales, and adobe. Bonny has a separate career as a social worker. More info at: http://www.milesbonny.com]

8. Faith Maddox – “Bloody Maple”
   from: “Bloody Maple” – Single / French Exit Records / February 18, 2022
   [Faith Maddox released the 9-song album SUBTLE HAUNTINGS on February 25, 2022, Faith Maddox on vocals/guitar/bass and Jared Crowley on drums. The album was recorded by Faith Maddox, it was mixed & mastered by Joel Martin. Faith Maddox is a 21-year-old artist currently living in Lawrence, Kansas. A self-taught guitarist and writer, Maddox’s work explores themes of gender, mortality, and nature, often weaving literary references between fingerpicked melodies. Her music is not easily boxed in, taking influence from math rock, jazz, folk, and slowcore. She is an avid fan of Fleabag, Joan Didion, and anything green. Faith Maddox released the 9-song album SUBTLE HAUNTINGS on February 25, 2022, Faith Maddox on vocals/guitar/bass and Jared Crowley on drums. The album was recorded by Faith Maddox, it was mixed & mastered by Joel Martin. Info: http://www.faithmaddox.bandcamp.com]

10:28 – Underwriting

9. Kadesh Flow – “Future Ex (feat. Vincent Orsolini & DJ Skittlez)”
   from: “Future Ex (feat. Vincent Orsolini & DJ Skittlez)”– Single / Ryan Jamaal Davis / Feb. 14, 2021
   [Produced: Kadesh Flow, Vincent Orsolini. Written & Performed: Kadesh Flow, Vincent Orsolini, DJ Skittlez. Mixed & Mastered: Vincent Orsolini, Kadesh Flow. This is one of over 22 new singles Kadesh Flow has released in the last 14 months: Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “Soft Side,” on Jan. 21, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released, “Assumptions feat. Shubzilla,” on Jan. 29, 2021. Kadesh Flow released, “Frosty,” on February 12, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “Cry For Me 2,” February 12, 2021. Kadesh Flow released, “Not on My Watch,” on February 19, 2021, Inspired by Lord Beerus (Dragonball Super). Kadesh Flow released, “Held Me Longer,” on Marc written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released, “Your Dream Isn’t Always Yours,” on March 12, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “Forgot About Me,” on March 14, 2021. Kadesh Flow released, “Take Backs (feat. Ryan Heinlein),” on March 26, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow & The Enclave released, “But Hope” on March 26, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released the single, “I Don’t Care” on April 9, 2021, written, performed, mixed and mastered by Kadesh Flow. Produced by D. Professor. Kadesh Flow released the single, “That Way” on April 16, 2021, written, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow, and produced by Dominique “Bassman” Saunders. Kadesh Flow released the new single, “So Far” on April 23, 2021, written, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow and produced by Dominique “Bassman” Sanders. Kadesh Flow released the single, “On Target” on April 30, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed and mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released the single ”Lighten Up”on May 7, 2021, written, produced, performed, mixed & mastered by Kadesh Flow. Kadesh Flow released the single “Elegant” on May 21, 2021. Written, Produced, Performed, Mixed & Mastered by Kadesh Flow. This is his 16th single the year, so far. Kadesh Flow released the 13-track album ROOM SERVICE 2, on July 19, 2021. Kadesh Flow released the single “Coming For Your Neck” on August 20, 2021. Written, Produced, Performed, Mixed & Mastered by Kadesh Flow. This is his 17th single the year. Kadesh Flow released the single “Easy” on August 27, 2021. Written, Produced, Performed, Mixed & Mastered by Kadesh Flow. This is his 18th single the year. Kadesh Flow released the single “Fiend” on Sept. 4, 2021. Written, Performed, Mixed & Mastered by Kadesh Flow. Produced by Dominique Sanders. This is his 19th single the year. Kadesh Flow released the single, “No Options (feat Jamar Rose)” on Nov.12, 2021. Kadesh Flow released the single, “Gardens Out The Gutter” on Dec. 3, 2021. This is one of 22 singles and a 13 track album that Kadesh Flow has released so far this year. Written, Performed, Mixed & Mastered: Kadesh Flow. Instrumental: Dominique Sanders. Kadesh Flow released the single, “CHOICE (The Cost)” on December 17, 2021. Written, Performed, Mixed & Mastered: Kadesh Flow. Instrumental: Dominique Sanders. This is one of 22 singles and a 13 track album that Kadesh Flow has released so far this year. Kadesh Flow is Ryan Davis is a rapper with an MBA. He is an emcee, producer, & trombonist. At age 11, he began rapping and playing trombone within two weeks of one another. His music has been featured on network television in multiple countries and territories across Southeast Asia. Kadesh performs as a solo hip hop artist. He also plays with The Phantastics, and Marcus Lewis Big Band. Kadesh Flow played the 17th Annual Crossroads Music Fest, Saturday, September 11, as part of Deshica Rage (with Kadesh Flow & Jessica Paige) at 10:00 PM on Community Lending of America Stage at Lemonade Park. Kadesh Flow was on WMM on Oct. 21, 2020. More info at: http://www.kadeshflow.com ]

[In partnership with KKFI, Deshica Rage (Kadesh Flow & Jessica Paige) play In The Lounge at The Folly Theatre, on Tuesday.\, March 8, 2022 at 7:00 PM.]

[Kadesh Flow Plays Boulevardia Friday, June 17 with The Phantastics, Sat. June 18 as part of Deshica Rage (with Kadesh Flow & Jessica Paige), and on the same night in a closing set with Trevor Turla.]

10. Eiko Ishibashi – “Drive My Car (Hiroshima)”
    from: Drive My Car Original Soundtrack (with bonus tracks) / NEWHERE MUSIC / August 18, 2021
    [Eiko Ishibashi is a Japanese singer-songwriter and musician. She has frequently worked with Jim O’Rourke, with O’Rourke producing several of her albums and Ishibashi playing on his album Simple Songs. Together with Tatsuhisa Yamamoto they formed the band Kafka’s Ibiki. // In 2016, she released the album Kouen Kyoudai, a collaboration with the Japanese noise musician Masami Akita (better known as Merzbow). She composed the music for the 2019 anime Blade of the Immortal. In 2021, she composed the music for the film Drive My Car, directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. // Drive My Car is a 2021 Japanese drama film co-written and directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. It is primarily based on Haruki Murakami’s short story of the same name from his 2014 collection Men Without Women, while taking inspiration from other stories in it. The film follows Yūsuke Kafuku (played by Hidetoshi Nishijima) as he directs a multilingual production of Uncle Vanya in Hiroshima and grapples with the death of his wife, Oto. // Drive My Car had its world premiere at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d’Or and won three awards, including Best Screenplay. The film received widespread critical acclaim, with many declaring it one of the best films of 2021. It earned four nominations at the 94th Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best International Feature Film, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It is the first Japanese film nominated for Best Picture. At the 79th Golden Globe Awards, the film won Best Foreign Language Film.]

11. Trevor Turla – “Let Go”
    rom: “Let Go” – Single / Trevor Turla / February 17, 2022
    [Second signal his year from Trevore Turla who previously released, “And We Continue” on January 27, 2022. We first played Trevor Turla on WMM on July 29, 2020. His track “Busted” was released on a compilation titled KANSAS CITY SYZYGY that featured over 25 Kansas City-based musicians who came together to create a compilation of music created during the shutdown of the world in the Spring of 2020. // Originally from Wichita, Kansas, Trevor Turla is now lives in Kansas City. Trevor defines himself as a musician. He started playing his first instrument, the bagpipes, at the age of 8 and hasn’t stopped the pursuit of music since. He received his Bachelor’s in Jazz Studies for trombone from the UMKC Conservatory of Music. Trevor now creates music full time by playing, recording, and holding clinics around the United States. Trevor plays and sings in numerous bands, including Jake Wells, Grand Marquis, Miki P, Fritz Hutchison, and LA Jones. He is the founder, lead singer and trombonist for the band Sulu Moon. More info at http://www.trevorturla.com.]

[Trevor Turla Plays Boulevardia Friday, June 18 with Kadesh Flow in a closing set.]

12. Erik J. Pearson – “Scotch & Soda”
    from: “Scotch & Soda” – Single / Mexican Summer / January 7, 2022
    [Written by: Erik J. Pearson. Produced by: Adam Bartling, Erik Pearson. Guitars & Bass: Erik J. Pearson. Drums: Adam Bartling. Recorded at Razortone Recording Company. At different points in his life, Erik J. Pearson dipped his toes into a variety of musical endeavors and worn a number of ill-fitting hats. In his youth, he joined a metal band, was later a a side-man in a church band, once the frontman for a folk-guitar duo, and even tried his hand as a singer-songwriter. Through it all, Erik’s love and talent for fingerstyle guitar stood out front, until it was no longer deniable this was his intended path. Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac served as Erik’s initial exposure to fingerstyle guitar, which paved the way for two decades of musical consumption and formal education. Aside from rockers like Buckingham and Knopfler, Erik also counts Bert Jansch, Leo Kottke, Andy McKee, Chet Atkins, Tommy Emmanuel, and Jon Gomm among his inspirations. Erik J. Pearson released the single “A Dream for Two” on February 4, 2022. More information at http://www.erikjpearson.bandcamp.com.]

13. Beach House – “Once Twice Melody”
    from: Once Twice Melody / Sub Pop Records / February 18, 2022
    [In November 2021, the band announced their eighth studio album Once Twice Melody, to be released released on February 18, 2022. The 18-track double album was released in four “chapters”. The first chapter was released on November 10, 2021, with the following three chapters released on December 8, 2021, January 19, 2022, and February 18, 2022. The band will tour the album in 2022.[59Beach House is an American musical duo formed in Baltimore, Maryland in 2004. The band consists of vocalist and keyboardist Victoria Legrand and guitarist, keyboardist, and backup vocalist Alex Scally. // Their self-titled debut album was released in 2006 to critical acclaim and has been followed by Devotion (2008), Teen Dream (2010), Bloom (2012), Depression Cherry (2015), Thank Your Lucky Stars (2015), B-sides and Rarities (2017), 7 (2018), and Once Twice Melody (2022). // Vocalist and organist Victoria Legrand, who graduated from Vassar College in 2003, and guitarist Alex Scally, who graduated from Oberlin College in 2004, formed the band in 2004 after meeting in Baltimore’s indie rock scene, producing music composed largely of organ, programmed drums, and steel guitar. Of the origins of the band name Scally said: “We’d been writing music, and we had all these songs, and then there was that moment where you say ‘what do we call ourselves?’ We tried to intellectualize it, and it didn’t work. There were different plant-names, Wisteria, that kind of thing. Stupid stuff. But, once we stopped trying, it just came out, it just happened. And it just seemed perfect.” In an interview with Pitchfork, Legrand addressed their being a two-member status thus: “It’s a way to challenge ourselves: What do you do when it’s just the two of you? … One of the reasons this has been such a fulfilling experience for me is that with two people, it’s so much easier to achieve things that feel exciting and new.” // In August 2006, their song “Apple Orchard” was featured on a Pitchfork MP3 mixtape. By October 2006 the band’s self-titled debut album, Beach House, was released through Carpark Records, and was ranked 16th on Pitchfork’s Best Albums of that year. The album was recorded on a 4-track over a two day period in Scally’s basement.]

14. Fritz Hutchison – “Ladder Shake (Feat. Bodacious Thang)”
    rom: “Ladder Shake (Feat. Bodacious Thang)”- Single / Manor Records / February 25, 2022
    [Recently signed by Manor Records Multi-instrumentalist Fritz Hutchison was born May 27, 1991. His second solo album, MOVIE NIGHT will be is released on April.15, 2022 through Manor Records. A life-long resident of KC Since 2008 he’s been part of multiple bands playing drums with: She’s a Keeper, Freight Train Rabbit Killer, and Grand Marquis. As a guitarist he has played along side True Lions, J Ashley Miller, Lauren Krum, Miki P, Calvin Arsenia. A decade of lending an ear and a hand to other musicians Fritz Hutchison released his debut solo album Wide Wild Acres on Center Cut Records on March 27, 2020. Written & performed by Fritz Hutchison. Produced by Fritz Hutchison & Joel Nanos. Recorded & mixed in KC by Joel Nanos at Element Recording Studio. Mastered by Collin Jordan at The Boiler Room in Chicago. Fritz was our guest on WMM on March 25, 2020]

15. Corey Dies in the End – “Island”
    from: “Island” – Single / Joel Kraft / October 6, 2021
    [Corey Dies in the End on vocals, programming, guitars. Nameless Beats on engineering, mixing, mastering. Corey Dies in the End released the single, “Air” o January 26, 2022. Corey Dies in the End is the solo musical project of Corey Vitt who has been playing in Kansas City and Lawrence bands since 2006 playing with Videodisk, Parents, Hidden Pictures, Rooms Without Windows, and Beautiful Bodies. More info at: http://www.coreydiesintheend.bandcamp.com]

16. Paul Jesse – “Stuck The Way”
    from: STUCK THIS WAY – EP / Paul Jesse / November 5, 2021
    [Paul Jesse is a 20 year old singer songwriter based in Kansas City, MO. Paul Jesse & X-GD released the single “To The Sky” on February 25, 2022. Paul Jesse released the single, and video for the song,“Gone,” directed by @strife.studios. More info at: https://www.facebook.com/pauljessemusic/ ]

11:00 – Station ID

17. Mensa Deathsquad – “You Will Hear Thunder”
    from: You Will Hear Thunder – Single / Gran Cavalera / March 8, 2022
    [This is the third single from the forthcoming album, YOU WILL HEAR THUNDER. Written, performed and produced by Mensa Deathsquad. Mastered at Element Recording and Mastering. This is a follow up to “Chin Up, Eyes Wide Open” released January 27, 2022. Brandon Phillips of Mensa Deathsquad, writes: “By the time I wrote Chin Up Eyes Wide Open, I was just this little emotional soap bubble, exploding in slow motion. I felt safe in my own skin for the first time in a really long time. This is part of trauma recovery – early on there is this identity crisis that starts in your bone marrow and extends outward into the far reaches of the galaxy and it takes a lot of effort to find yourself again in all that messy tissue and ice cold vastness. By some quirk of luck, I bumped into myself by chance when a friend made a joke about my being exactly her “tall, thin and emotionally unavailable” type. To which I shot back, “Babe, all I am is emotionally available. I am skin and emotions.” Boom. There I was, hiding in plain sight. So “Chin Up, Eyes Wide Open” is a song about my deciding to live that punch line and to just fully embody “skin and emotions” and to never mask that version of myself again. It’s a song about showing up for yourself in all your flawed, fucked up glory.” “Chin Up, Eyes Wide Open” is a follow up to “Light” released November 16, 2021. Brandon Phillips writes, “The electronic music that I daydream about, always has that Stooges layer of dirt and shop grease on it. That’s what I want.” Follow up to CYCLIST, the second album from Mensa Deathsquad released February 23, 2021. The cyclist was released with these notes: 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

18. Deegan Poores – “Again”
    from: “Again” – Single / Deegan Poores / February 11, 2022
    [Writen & produced by Deegan Poores, vocal production by Guanghao Yu. Deegan Poores will release his album “Vanishing” on February 11, 2022. Foolow up single to “Vanishing” released December 19, 2021Deegan Pooresis a singer, songwriter, and producer from Kansas City, Kansas. “Vanishing” was co-produced by Remy Styrk. To see the “Vanishing” video, directed and produced by Remy Styrk visit: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCie5UaItSkEugr7MJ6ubzvg%5D

[Deegan Poores plays Replay Lounge in Lawrence, Kansas on March 3, 2022, at 6:00 PM with Effie, Mellow Phobia, and Spencer Raymond.]

19. MusicbySkippy – “CLR”
    from: MY DYING WISH / Luke Harbur / Oct. 29, 2021
    [musicbyskippy is Luke “Skippy” Harbur’s entertainment project. The Overland Park, Kansas native mixes beatboxing, singing, beat production, rapping, & keyboard playing to entertain all-age audiences. After graduating from Ithaca College in 2018, he moved near home to Kansas City, Missouri, becoming a featured performer for musicians, festivals, corporate & non-profit events, and performance groups. His music passion roots in receiving a life-saving liver transplant at the age of 11 months old. His debut album, my dying wish, is now on all music streaming and purchasing platforms. He hopes you learn something new and experience songs you love.More info at http://www.musicbyskippy.com]

[Luke Harbur will join us LIVE onWednesday MidDay Medley on March 30, 2022]

[Musicbyskippy will play Boulevardia, Saturday, June 18, 2022.]

20. Dimension Bill Edwards – “Lady Lost Love”
    from: SUSTENANCE / Gordophonic Records / February 10, 2022
    [Dimension Bill Edwards released their single,“Surrealberry Hill” on Fat Tuesday, February 16, 2021. The single was inspired by band members move from the West 39th street area to Strawberry Hill in Kansas City, Kansas. The spoken word portion of the song is Matt reading from the Egyptian Book of The Dead. The release coincided with an amazing “Float House” that Melissa created for Mardi Gras in Pandemic times. Dimension Bill Edwards is a band that kind of organically formed through live performances at the Walnut Valley Folk Festival and the last set of the festival “Heavy Petting ZO0” held in the Pecan Grove an the band mameber’s association with the band KC Bearfighters. Dimension Bill Edwards is: Matt Weinman on lyrics, vocals & guitar; Melissa Weinman on lyrics, vocals & dance moves; Grant Buell on keyboards & accordion; Mallory Edson on violin; Phil Craven on bass & recording engineer; (John Bersuch on drums for “Surrealberry Hill”) ; Ike Golets on drums for future recordings and live performances. Matt and Melissa met John Bersuch when he moved in next door to them in Strawberry Hill on New Years Eve 2019. Grant Buell and Melissa Weinman are also in the band Good Time Charley. Phil Craven and Mallory Edson and Ike Goletz are also in the band, Whiskey for the Lady. Band members found a wooden sign that read” Dimension Bill Edwards? behinds Cupini’s on West 43rd Street. No one know what the sign was from or what it meant, but they decided to use this for the name of their band. More info at: http://www.dimensionbilledwards.bandcamp.com]

[Melissa Weinman, and Matt Weinman of Dimension Bill Edwards, join us on WMM on March 16.]

Cinnamon Trio:

21. Eydie Gorme & Los Panchos -“Piel Canela”
    from: Amour / CBS – Columbia / June, 1964
    [Recorded In New York February 14, 18 and 19, 1964. Hecho en México ℗1964. Guitar – Alfredo Gil, Chucho Navarro, Johnny Albino The trio became one of the leading exponents of the bolero and the romantic ballad in Latin America. Its current members are Chucho Navarro Jr., Eduardo Beristian and Misael Reyes. A characteristic instrument of Los Panchos and other Mexican tríos románticos since the 1950s is the requinto guitar, which is smaller and tuned higher than a standard guitar and was popularized by Alfredo Gil. Requinto solos found in many bolero recordings by Los Panchos. Los Panchos first met in 1944 in New York City.[1] The three original members were Chucho Navarro, and Alfredo Gil, both from Mexico, and Hernando Avilés from Puerto Rico. All three played guitar and contributed vocally. Los Panchos reached fame with their romantic songs, especially in Latin America where they are still regarded as one of the top trios of all time. They sold millions of records in Latin America and other countries. In the 1940s they collaborated with Alfredo Antonini’s Viva America Orchestra with the orchestral accordionist John Serry Sr. in a recording of “La palma” (a cueca) and “Rosa negra” (a conga) for Pilotone Records (#45 5067, #45 5069). They also appeared in around 50 movies, mostly during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. Los Panchos began touring internationally in 1946 and would relocate later that same year to Mexico City. They were welcomed with open arms and XEW-AM, the most popular radio station in Mexico City, reserved a time slot for their music. In 1951, Los Panchos launched another international tour across Latin America. Julito Rodríguez joined the group in 1952; he was replaced by Johnny Albino in 1958. Johnny Albino and Chucho Navarro—Miguel Poventud and Yomo Toro were studio musicians for CBS—famously worked with singer Eydie Gorme on a series of bestselling albums in the 1960s. The Albino era was one of the most prosperous ones for Los Panchos whose classic albums are very popular among Los Panchos fans still. His departure in 1968 was a tumultuous one, as he did not leave on good terms with the group’s management. In 1971, Ovidio Hernández joined the band as lead vocalist, a part he would fulfill until his untimely passing of complications of meningitis in 1976. Following him, Rafael Basurto Lara joined as lead singer. A very interesting note, and one that not everyone knows about, is that during the illness of Ovidio Hernández and the integration of Rafael Basurto to the trio, Alfredo Gil (the trio’s director) met the Puerto Rican singer, David Ortiz, in New York City, and amazed by the quality of his voice and style, asked him to come to Mexico and sing with Los Panchos. David Ortiz accepted the invitation and was with the Trio Los Panchos for several months. However, after fulfilling several commitments with the trio, David Ortiz returned to New York. Alfredo Gil played with Los Panchos until his retirement in 1981; he died in 1999. Chucho Navarro played with the group until his death in 1993. Currently the trio using the Los Panchos name is the Trio Los Panchos de Chucho Navarro Fundador (“Trio Los Panchos of Founder Chucho Navarro”) under the direction of Chucho Navarro Jr., the son of original Los Panchos member Chucho Navarro.][Eydie Gormé died in 2013 at age 84. Her groundbreaking career in Latin music, highlighted by the 1964 album “Amor” recorded with Trio Los Panchos. When it comes to Latin-music icons, Las Vegas veteran Eydie Gormé isn’t exactly the first name that leaps to mind. But to generations of Hispanics, Gormé is eternally linked with nostalgic sounds in Spanish. The primary reason is “Amor,” her luminous 1964 collaboration with Mexican vocal group Trio Los Panchos. “Most artists have an album or two that define them,” says Texas journalist Ramiro Burr, author of “The Billboard Guide to Tejano and Regional Mexican Music.” “The Beatles have ‘Sgt. Pepper.’ Nirvana has ‘Nevermind.’ For Eydie Gormé, that timeless album is ‘Amor.'” Since its release more than 40 years ago, the disc has never gone out of print. It’s the biggest-selling album in Gormé’s long career. In the ’90s, Sony repackaged the album along with its 1965 sequel, “More Amor,” and the disc made the Latin charts all over again. Gormé’s career in Spanish may seem surprising until one looks at her background. The New York-born singer is the daughter of Sephardic Jews and grew up speaking mainly Spanish at home. Columbia Records President Goddard Lieberson came up with the concept of recording one of his top female vocalists with Los Panchos, a big-selling trio a few years past their prime. “He was a really sophisticated, international man,” Lawrence recalls. “He knew of Eydie’s Spanish background. He thought of Los Panchos, and they were aware of Eydie. They all met in the studio, and it was like they were old friends.” Los Panchos chose the songs. Most of them were established tunes, such as “Piel Canela,” “Amor” and “Cuando Vuelva a Tu Lado,” that had been recorded by scores of artists. “They were drinking a lot of wine on those sessions,” she says with a laugh. “They were lovely people. Drunk, but lovely.” Whatever the reason, the artists had a once-in-a-lifetime chemistry.]

22. Neil Young – “Cinnamon Girl”
    from: Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere / Reprise / May 14, 1969
    [“Cinnamon Girl” is a song by Neil Young. It debuted on the 1969 album Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, which was also Young’s first album with backing band Crazy Horse. Like two other songs from Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, “Cowgirl in the Sand” and “Down by the River”, Young wrote “Cinnamon Girl” while he was suffering from the flu with a high fever at his home in Topanga, California. // This song displays the very prominent role played by Danny Whitten in the sound of Young’s early recordings. The vocals are a duet, with Whitten singing the high harmony against Young’s low harmony. (The 45 rpm single mix of the song, in addition to being in mono and cutting off the guitar outro, features Whitten’s vocal more prominently than the album version.) Young performed the song on his then-recently acquired Gibson Les Paul, “Old Black”. The NME named “Cinnamon Girl” an example of “proto-grunge from 1969”. // The song was written in double drop D tuning (DADGBD). This tuning is used in several of his most famous songs, such as “The Loner”, “The Old Laughing Lady”, “When You Dance I Can Really Love”, “Ohio”, and “Cortez the Killer”. The music features a prominent descending bass guitar line. The song’s “one note guitar solo”, consisting largely of a repeating, sharply played jangling D note, has often been singled out for praise. According to Young “people say that it is a solo with only one note but, in my head, each one of those notes is different. The more you get into it, the more you can hear the differences.” // The lyrics have the singer daydreaming for a girl to love, singing that he waits “between shows” for his lover.[8] Young has said that he wrote the song “for a city girl on peeling pavement coming at me through Phil Ochs’ eyes playing finger cymbals. It was hard to explain to my wife.” The city girl playing finger cymbals is a reference to folk singer Jean Ray. Music critic Johnny Rogan described the lyrics as “exotic and allusive without really saying anything at all.” Critic Toby Creswell describes the lyrics as “cryptic love lyrics” noting that they are sung “over the crunching power of Crazy Horse.” Critic John Mendelsohn felt the song conveyed a message of “desperation begetting brutal vindictiveness,” hinted at by the “almost impenetrably subjective words” but carried strongly by the sound of Crazy Horse’s “heavy, sinister accompaniment.” Introducing the song at a performance associated with Writer’s Week at Whittier College (California) in April, 2015, Los Lobos co-founder Louie Perez said that when he first heard “Cinnamon Girl”, he was sure it was about a Mexican girl. People[according to whom?] have also speculated whether or not the song referred to Jim Morrison’s common-law wife, Pamela Courson. Jim and Pamela were part of the Topanga community around this time, and Pamela had red-brown hair reminiscent of cinnamon. She was a well-known groupie on Sunset Strip prior to meeting Jim. Young has denied, however, that the song refers to her. // According to his autobiography, “Cinnamon Girl” was the first record played by the now-legendary British DJ “Whispering Bob” Harris on his BBC Radio 1 debut in August 1970. // “Cinnamon Girl” was released as a single in 1970, where it reached No. 55 on the Billboard Hot 100.The song peaked at number 34 in Australia. // British music publication NME ranked “Cinnamon Girl”‘s opening chord progression at No. 47 on its “50 Greatest Guitar Riffs Of All Time”. // In an interview with Q, singer Beck named the “Cinnamon Girl” riff as his all-time favourite, equal to Black Sabbath’s “Supernaut”.]

22. Prince – “Cinnamon Girl”
    from: Musicology / NPG / September 7, 2004
    [“Cinnamon Girl” is a song by Prince from his 2004 album Musicology. The single has been released in several formats. On September 6, 2004, the European CD single was released with four tracks: “Cinnamon Girl” (Album version), “Dear Mr. Man” (live at Webster Hall) “United States of Division” (which had been available only as a download) and an MPEG video of the “Dear Mr. Man” performance. Two weeks later, a similar single was released, but without the video. In November of the same year, Prince’s NPG Music Club online retail store sold an Enhanced CD including the audio track, its music video, the lyrics and a five-minute segment of interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. Despite not charting in the US, the single nearly cracked the Top 40 of the UK, reaching number 43. The music video for the song was controversial, especially among conservatives in the United States. In the video, directed by Phil Harder, a Muslim girl (played by New Zealand Māori actress Keisha Castle-Hughes) is depicted as being victimized following the September 11 attacks in 2001 and then dreaming of blowing up an airport with a bomb. While the New York Post described the video as the most tasteless ever, the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee has praised the video for bringing attention to the discrimination faced by Arab-Americans since the attacks.]

11:28 – Underwriting

24. Ivory Blue – “Compound Heart”
    from: “Compound Love / Sound Ballistics Music & Publishing / February 25, 2022
    [Ivory Blue signed a publishing deal with Sound Ballistics Music & Publishing of Atlanta GA on August 18, 2021. This company is managing Ivory and handling all of their publishing. For COMPOUND LOVE Ivory served as songwriter, producer, vocalist and played all instruments with the exception of: Lester Estelle on drums, Klaartje Van Lue on piano, Craig Kew on bass, Lennon Bone on drums, and Marco Pascolini on pedal steel guitar. Nick Poortman served in mixing, with Kurt Festge who also served in mixing & Mastering. KC based singer songwriter and rock & roller, Ivory Blue’s debut EP, Ready Get Set was released in June 2015 and had wide radio airplay on this show and multiple radio and television stations in Kansas City and across the country. Ivory Blue has played Crossroads Music Festival, The Middle of the Map Festival, The Westport Roots Festival, the KCPT Screening of “Real Boy” at The Kansas City Public Library., and Kauffman Stadium. // Ivory Blue was born in 1986 in Peoria Illinois, as Devin James Miclettet. Ivory’s birth mother put them up for adoption at the age of four. Ivory speaks about how it was difficult to find trust in people offering their home to someone denied it for so long, Ivory lived with eight different families. before running away at 15. // Ivory has talked with us about how in their life they have turned to music to express pain. Ivory spent most of their childhood looking for a family. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw Ivory performing in a YouTube video and contacted them, flying them to KC, and adopting Ivory into the Van Lue family. During the past 10 years Ivory came out as “Non-Binary Transgender. // As a multi-instrumentalist, Ivory began refining their performance style, using digital looping pedals to stack harmonies and guitar parts live on stage, giving their solo shows the feel of a full band. In 2011, Ivory settled in Kansas City, MO and quickly began attracting an intense regional following for their strong vocals and incisive, deeply personal lyrics. // By 2013, IVORY BLUE was playing regularly in and around Kansas City and the first EP ‘Ready Get Set’ was released. in 2015. While the EP helped spread the word and got much attention from regional radio and TV stations, a big break would come in 2017. //Ivory entered NeXt2Rock, a nationwide talent search with over 1800 artists/bands who applied to find fresh and promising rock artists. The top 5 national bands battled it off for the win in Los Angeles CA at the legendary Viper Room, with judges Scott Borchetta (BMLG), John Varvatos (fashion designer), Steve Jones (Sex Pistols Guitarist and Host of “Jonesy’s Jukebox”), Desmond Child (Musician, producer), Chris Lord-Alge (producer), Ivory Blue won over the judges and became the grand prize winner! Ivory Ivory won the contest and a one-year record deal with BMLG who re-released the song Ready Get Set from the 2015 EP. Ivory’s 2018 re-release of ‘Ready Get Set’ undauntedly received National and International airplay within weeks. For their upcoming album, IVORY BLUE is producing all the tracks with the exception of Drums and Bass. // On August 18th 2021 Ivory Blue signed a publishing deal with Sound Ballistics Music & Publishing out of Atlanta GA. // Ivory released the singles: “Elite Dreamland,” on Feb. 17, 2021, “Half a Life” on Sept. 20, 2021. Ivory Blue released the video of “Family Table” directed by Mikal Shapiro, on August 21, 2021 and the audio track was released on September 7, 2021. Ivory Blue released the single “Good Changes” on Oct 26, 2021. Ivory Blue released the singles: “Heavy,” “Bad Weather,” “It Must Have Been Me,” “Compound Love,” and “The Start” on December 14, 2021. Ivory Blue joined us on WMM on November 10, September 15, and July 28, in 2021. More info at: https://linktr.ee/ivorybluemusic%5D

11:34 – Interview with Ivory Blue

Musician, songwriter, and producer Ivory Blue joins us to talk about their new debut album, COMPOUND LOVE that was just released on February 25, 2022. Ivory Blue signed a publishing deal with Sound Ballistics Music & Publishing of Atlanta GA on August 18, 2021. This company is managing Ivory and handling all of their publishing. For COMPOUND LOVE Ivory served as songwriter, producer, vocalist and played all instruments with the exception of: Lester Estelle on drums, Klaartje Van Lue on piano, Craig Kew on bass, Lennon Bone on drums, and Marco Pascolini on pedal steel guitar. Nick Poortman served in mixing, with Kurt Festge who also served in mixing & Mastering.More info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com

Ivory Blue thanks for being with us on WMM.

Congratulations on your new album COMPOUND LOVE that was released February 25. 2022.

IVORY BLUE lived a nomadic existence until settling in Kansas City MO and becoming part of the local musical community. After winning a nationwide talent contest in 2017 Ivory Blue started having success with some national and international radio play which continues today.

Ivory Blue was born in 1986 in Peoria Illinois, as Devin James Miclettet. Ivory’s birth mother put them up for adoption at the age of four. Ivory speaks about how it was difficult to find trust in people offering their home to someone denied it for so long, Ivory lived with eight different families. before running away at 15.

Ivory has talked with us about how in their life they have turned to music to express pain. Ivory spent most of their childhood looking for a family. In 2010 Klaartje Van Lue saw Ivory performing in a YouTube video and contacted them, flying them Ivory KC, and adopting Ivory into the Van Lue family. During the past 10 years Ivory came out as “Non-Binary Transgender.

As a multi-instrumentalist, Ivory began refining their performance style, using digital looping pedals to stack harmonies and guitar parts live on stage, giving their solo shows the feel of a full band. In 2011, Ivory settled in Kansas City, MO and quickly began attracting an intense regional following for their strong vocals and incisive, deeply personal lyrics.

By 2013, IVORY BLUE was playing regularly in and around Kansas City and the first EP ‘Ready Get Set’ was released. in 2015. While the EP helped spread the word and got much attention from regional radio and TV stations, a big break would come in 2017.
Ivory entered NeXt2Rock, a nationwide talent search with over 1800 artists/bands who applied to find fresh and promising rock artists.

The top 5 national bands battled it off for the win in Los Angeles CA at the legendary Viper Room, with judges Scott Borchetta (BMLG), John Varvatos (fashion designer), Steve Jones (Sex Pistols Guitarist and Host of “Jonesy’s Jukebox”), Desmond Child (Musician, producer), Chris Lord-Alge (producer), Ivory Blue won over the judges and became the grand prize winner! Ivory

Ivory won the contest and a one-year record deal with BMLG who re-released the song Ready Get Set from the 2015 EP. Ivory’s 2018 re-release of ‘Ready Get Set’ undauntedly received National and International airplay within weeks.

NeXt2Rock Judges Comments about Ivory Blue:

“You got star quality and a lot of potential” by Steve Jones (Sex Pistols Guitarist and Host of “Jonesy’s Jukebox” on KLOS (95.5) Los Angeles, CA, USA)

“Giving us the diamond in the rough we can only dream of, the foundation that’s built underneath it, that’s what music is made from. by Chris Lord-Alge (Engineer/Mixer).

“I love everything about you, you sing what you live, you’re fantastic” by Desmond Child (Musician \ Songwriter and Producer).

“We’ve been waiting for the WOW, and you are the WOW”, “You’re a true artist” by John Varvatos (Fashion Designer and Record Label Head)

“You exude artistry from the minute you step on that stage” by Scott Borchetta – Big Machine Label Group president and CEO.

“There’s something special about you”, “You’re a true artist” by Gavin Rossdale (British musician, singer, lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the rock band BUSH).

Ivory Blue has played Crossroads Music festival, The Middle of the Map Festival, The Westport Roots Festival, Kansas City Public Library, and Kauffman Stadium.

Ivory Blue has been busy in the studio putting together new music for upcoming releases of a new album COMPOUND LOVE and several EPs. In 2020 Ivory released the singles “Elite Dreamland,” (Feb. 17, 2021), “Half a Life” (Sept. 20, 2021), and “Family Tables” on September 7, 2021.

In February 2020 and after studying the craft of recording and self-producing, this amazing singer-songwriter with soaring vocals, passionate love for everyone struggling through life, released ‘Elite Dreamland’. There are no words to describe the incredible artistry behind this song. a single that hits your heart about understanding how it feels to be misunderstood in a world of people that seem to know what they are doing.

IVORY BLUE produces all the tracks with the exception of Drums and Bass. Ivory is currently working with Lester Estelle (Drummer for Kelly Clarkson), Craig Kew (Bass) KC, Kurt Festge (Mastering | Citizen Kane & Vilent Femmes) NC. and Nick Poortman (LA based Los Angeles based Producer, Engineer, Mixer, and Songwriter) Nick has worked alongside producers including Justin Gray, Gil Norton, Big Tank, and Greg Haver on sessions throughout the USA, UK, Europe, and New Zealand.

Ivory Blue released the video of ‘FAMILY TABLES’ on August 21, 2021 and the track was released on September 7, 2021. Ivory Blue is currently finishing the first full length CD/Album ‘Compound Love’ to be released in 2021 as well as the Red Light EP for 2022.

“Family Tables” hit #1 on Banks Radio in Australia the first week of the release. 23 countries have listed on Ivory’s Spotify reports and that after just 1 week released.

Kayden Gorden from The Kayden Gordon Radio Show has asked for a radio interview. The Kayden Gordon show is heard on 60+ stations (FM & Online) across the world.

IVORY BLUE signed with Sound Ballistics Music & Publishing on Aug 18th, 2021. This is a new Publishing Company out of the Atlanta GA area. They have big plans for IVORY BLUE. Ben Baeumert. Founder and CEO is an artist himself with many years of experience in the music industry. He’s already been contacted by a large music supervisor company who said that IVORY BLUE’s music is amazing and that they love everything about the artist and wants to pitch the music to Music Licensees for potential TV, Film, commercials etc. That’s exciting news knowing that this will push music to a lot of listeners.

They were going to take over management for IVORY BLUE per my request, but instead partnered up with us to help the business grow and keep me as sole manager for IVORY BLUE and at their request other artists as well. I am therefore going to continue as Devin’s manager (she actually didn’t want me to hand over to another manager so was so happy about that decision) As far as the other artists, I haven’t made a final decision yet.

https://www.ivorybluemusic.com/post/article-links-on-family-tables
https://www.ionindiemagazine.com

Ivory Blue has been on the WMM 13 times since 2015.

Ivory Blue thanks for being with us on WMM.

Ivory Blue’s new debut album, COMPOUND LOVE was just released on February 25, 2022. Ivory Blue signed a publishing deal with Sound Ballistics Music & Publishing of Atlanta GA on August 18, 2021. This company is managing Ivory and handling all of their publishing. For COMPOUND LOVE Ivory served as songwriter, producer, vocalist and played all instruments with the exception of: Lester Estelle on drums, Klaartje Van Lue on piano, Craig Kew on bass, Lennon Bone on drums, and Marco Pascolini on pedal steel guitar. Nick Poortman served in mixing, with Kurt Festge who also served in mixing & Mastering. More info at: http://www.ivorybluemusic.com

11:53

25. Ivory Blue – “Bad Weather”
    from: “Compound Love / Sound Ballistics Music & Publishing / February 25, 2022

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

Next week on Wednesday, March 9 we welcome Ernest james Zydeco and Julia Othmer who share details about Benefit for The Midwest Innocence Project featuring music by Ernest James Zydeco and singer-songwriter Julia Othmer on Friday, March 11, 2022, 6-10pm, at The Brick Bar, 1727 Mcgee, KCMO.

Also Next week our outgoing MidCoast Radio Project – Board President, Lesley Pories joins us a Guest DJ for our second hour to play some of her favorite music before she leaves Kansas City to move to Gothenburg, Sweden to pursue her new job.

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

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Show #931