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, October 16, 2019

Krystle Warren, Brad Cox of Owen/Cox Dance Group
+ More Favorite MidCoastal Releases of 2019
+ Betse Ellis + Marion Merritt

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

2. Other Americans – “Neon Sunrise (Glitchjoy Remix)”
from: OA2 / AWAL Records / October 19, 2019
[New EP follow up to the band’s debut self-titled EP from June 29, 2018. Julie Berndsen on lead vocals, Adam Phillips on drums, Brandon Phillips on guitar, Michelle Bacon on bass. Produced by Brandon Phillips. Engineered by Joel Nanos. Recorded at Element Recording Studios in Kansas City. All remixes by Mensa Deathsquad. Hailing from the musical hotbeds of Kansas City, MO, and Lawrence, KS, the electro-alternative OTHER AMERICANS are comprised of members of such regional luminaries as The Architects, Latenight Callers, The Philistines, Radar State and Brandon Phillips and The Condition. Other Americans is a virtual Midwestern supergroup. The cohorts first crossed paths in when a mutual friend and matchmaker introduced Brandon Phillips to vocalist Julie Berndsen “We were all looking for something new to do musically, recalls Brandon. “The way I remember it, a mutual friend (KC music producer Joel Nanos) told me that Julie was looking to start something new and I sent her a note about it. We had tacos to see if we liked each other.”]

[Other Americans play OA2 EP Release w/ Emmaline Twist, Sat, Oct 19, 9:PM, miniBar, 3810 Brdway.]

10:04 – Fall Fund Drive w/ Special Guest Co-Hosts: Betse Ellis & Marion Merritt

Betse Ellis is originally from Fayetteville, Arkansas. She received her Bachelors of Arts in Music and a Bachelors of Arts in English, from the University of Missouri – Kansas City. She has been playing the Violin for over 40 years, with over 20 years playing fiddle and also working as a teacher of music. Betse was one of the founding members of the critically acclaimed and internationally known band, The Wilders. Betse has released two solo records, and for the last several years is recording and performing with her partner, multi-instrumentalist Clarke Wyatt, as Betse & Clarke. Betse Ellis is also a member of the Short Round Stringband, the 5-piece band that released a 14-track album this year called, Ain’t No Part of Nothin’ that is a musical tribute to Bill Monroe.

Betse Ellis, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Marion Merritt is our most frequent contributor to WMM, She grew up in Los Angeles, and St. Louis. She went to college in Columbia, Missouri. She studied art and musical engineering, and is a avid lover of classic films and punk rock music. She saw Talking Heads on their first U.S. tour when they played One Block West, in 1978. For 15 years she has been sharing her musical discoveries and information from her musically-encyclopedic brain on Wednesday MidDay Medley. Marion has joined us for every on-air fund drive to help raise funds for the MidCoast Radio Project. With her patrner Ann Stewart, Marion is the proprietor of Records With Merritt, at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, Missouri. Records With Merritt features new vinyl releases, in-store performances from young and upcoming bands, holds meetings for a vinyl listening club, and was once the location for a wedding and a 30th birthday party. More information at: http://www.recordwithmerritt.com

Marion Merritt thank you for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

10:12

4. Calvin Arsenia – “Falling Over”
from: L.A. Sessions / Center Cut Records / September 20, 2019
Produced by Tony Braunagel (he also delivers exquisite percussion on LA Sessions) with Paul Brown on guitar, Mike Finnigan on keyboards, Freddie Washington on bass, and David Garfield on piano. Between them, the five musicians have worked with some of music’s most iconic names, including Jimi Hendrix, George Benson, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Leonard Cohen, Bonnie Raitt, Chuck Loeb, Rickie Lee Jones, Buddy Guy, The Neville Brothers From Center Cut Record Press Release: “It was a thrill for me to work with such legendary players,” says Calvin. “Not only were they incredibly talented, but I got off a plane straight from Australia, hit the studio, and they were more than ready to get to that place where you honor the songs, leaving their egos at the door and honoring what the muses tell them. It was one of the best recording experiences I ever had.” Calvin’s production M.O. on previous recordings was to piece together songs “like pieces of a puzzle” and “layer them over several sessions.” He believes the immediacy of the LA Sessions, and having the instrumentation all happening in the “same emotional space together as a band,” powerfully served the intimacy of the album, particularly on the reflective “Back To You.” “It’s one of the most vulnerable songs on the album, and it always plays that way in my live set, and the guys were able to help me capture that,” he says. “The song is a very heartfelt admission of guilt, I think. But it’s done in a way people usually don’t want to talk about. Breakup songs are usually angry and lashing out and this is a very sober-minded take on it. It’s not something we usually want to admit, surrendering or admitting defeat in a relationship, because everyone thinks you’re always going to make it through, and this is saying ‘no we didn’t…but it’s OK.’” Born in Orlando, Florida, his creative journey really began when he moved to the KC suburb of Olathe, teaching himself the guitar, and eventually the harp. He learned his signature instrument at the age of 20 after he couldn’t find a harpist as determined as him to meld folk, rock, classical, rap and R&B into the irresistible fusion which has become his calling card in the Kansas City music scene and beyond. His passion for stretching the boundaries of musical expression saw him transform a trip to Edinburgh, Scotland’s Fringe Festival early in his career into a life-changing music mission, with an Edinburgh church offering him a role as musical liaison between the church and the city that would change his life. Two years and 300 shows later, Calvin returned to Kansas City reborn as a humanistic songwriter/performer whose impassioned and conceptual stage shows (regularly sold-out in Kansas City, currently catching fire on the West Coast with a diverse following across Europe), are collaborative, costumed-culture-bridging spectacles which In KC Magazine has hailed as ‘equal parts opera, symphony, musical theatre, rock show, all built around its creator: a charismatic 6-foot-7-inch harpist with a natural stage command and knack for gilding gold and painting lilies.’ Calvin’s 2018 national debut, Cantaloupe (Center Cut Records), has been acclaimed for melding diverse textures into an alluring signature sound for the adventurous artist. Most recently, Calvin performed live at L.A.’s The Mint, showcasing the songs on LA Sessions with the musicians who collaborated with him on the album. Says Calvin: “It’s such a special experience to play with them. To be able to perform these songs in front of an audience and do this for a living – to have made a career out of something I love is so amazing – it is an honor that I never take for granted.” On September 15, 2018 Calvin released Cantaloupe on Center Cut Records. Calvin released Honeydew on June 28, an EP including a remix of three of the songs from Cantaloupe.]

[Calvin Arsenia plays The Heart of the Matter, Sat, Oct 19 at 7 PM at Trinity United Methodist Church 620 E. Armour Blvd, KCMO, The final in Trinity’s series celebrating 100 years on Armour Blvd.]

4. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear – “Back to the North”
from: Started With a Family / Starts With Music, LLC / September 6. 2019
[Produced with Grammy-winner Nathan Chapman at iconic Blackbird Studios in Nashville. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear have garnered international acclaim, and new fans from all over the world. They signed with Glassnote Records and recorded their debut full length album in Nashville with acclaimed producer Jim Abiss. They performed their debut single “Silent Movies” on The Late Show with David Letterman, they’ve toured across the United States, and Europe, more than once. They were featured on CBS Sunday Morning, NBC’s The Today Show, and “Later With Jools Holland and played Bonnaroo, Pilgramage, and the Newport Folk Festival, and the Ryman Theatre, in Nashville. Ruth Ward has continually performed throughout her life, mostly in coffee shops and open mics, for over 30 years, even recording a solo record. In the midst of this she got married and became a mom, and was busy raising a family. Madisen Ward was born in Oklahoma, and grew up in the outskirts of Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated from William Chrisman High School in 2007. Madisen’s journey to become a musician, was “melodically passed down” through the songs of his mother, where Madisen grew up watching his mom perform at local coffee shops. Eventually he began to learn to play the guitar, and poured his talent for writing into the music to create original songs. They began playing Madisen’s original songs along with the occassional cover of a classic track, reinterpreted in their own incredibly beautiful performace of two voices and two guitars in harmony and orchestration. Their debut album, The Skeleton Crew, was released May 9, 2015 and was our most played record that year and was #1 on WMM’s The 115 Best Recordings of 2015. Their follow up EP Radio Winners was released July 27, 2018 and recieved critical acclaim.] [Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear played Crossroads Music Fest, Sat., Sept 7,, Crossroads KC, with Shy Boys, Split Lip Rayfield, The Freedom Affair.]

[Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear, recently played The High Watt, Nashville, Saturday, October 12, and Levitt Shell, Memphis, Sunday, October 13.]

10:20 – Pledge Break #2 – [7 Minutes]

Our WMM Fall Fund Drive Team: Marion Merritt and Betse Ellis

We just heard Calvin Arsenia and Madisen Ward and The Mama Bear. Wednesday MidDay Medley was the first radio show to ever play their music. Calvin has been a guest on WMM 15 times and MadisenWard and the Mama Bear have been on the show 8 times. We not only play the music but we let you know where to see these artists perform live in KC and around the country. We offer information about when the music was released, who contributed to the recordings and information about these artists. Our playlists are posted on http://www.kkfi.org, http://www.spinitron.com, http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM, https://twitter.com/MarkTManning, and playlists dating back for the last 8 years are available at http://www.wednesdaymiddaymedley.org.

10:27 – Underwriting

5. Krystle Warren & The Faculty – “Tuesday Morning”
from: Love Songs- A Time to Refrain from Embracing (Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace) / Parlour Door Music / April 9, 2012 UK]
[Originally from KC, Krystle learned to play the guitar by listening to Rubber Soul & Revolver from The Beatles. Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career in collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace” a recording from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections.]

10:31 – Interview with Krystle Warren, Brad Cox and Jonathan Anderson

Krystle Warren, Brad Cox and Jonathan Anderson join us to talk about the world premiere dance work by the Owen/Cox Dance Group set to a live performance of singer/songwriter Krystle Warren’s acclaimed double album, “Love Songs” Saturday, October 19, at 8:00 PM and Sunday, October 20, at 2:00 PM, at The Polsky Theatre at Carlsen Center at Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd, OPKS. For more info you can contact: http://www.owencoxdance.org

Krystle Warren, Brad Cox & Jennifer Owen thanks for being withus on WMM

Krystle Warren began her musical career in KC in 2001 collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label – Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played “Later with Jools Holland,” garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music to release her double album: “Love Songs,” from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 27 musicians including her band, The Faculty. Krystle’s most recent release, Three The Hard Way was co-producing by Ben Kane (D’Angelo) and was #1 on WMM’s 117 Best Recordings of 2017.

Composer and arranger Brad Cox is co-founder of Owen/Cox Dance Group and founder and director of The People’s Liberation Big Band of Greater Kansas City, a musicians’ collective dedicated to the performance of new large ensemble jazz music. Cox’s musical influences range from liturgical chant and traditional folkloric music to popular music and free jazz, with a particular interest in the communal aspects of music making. A composer in the uniquely American Ellington tradition, he has dedicated his work to forming creative collaborative relationships with musicians and to writing music for those musicians. Cox studied composition at UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance under James Mobberley and Gerald Kemner and is a recipient of the 2010 Charlotte Street Foundation Generative Performing Artist Award and the 2009 Tanne Foundation Award.

Jonathan Anderson is a freelance professional musician who lives in San Francisco. He played keyboards on the 2012 double album “Love Songs”. He has played with Krystle in multiple live concerts including her Sunday, October 6, 2013 concert on the City Stage of The Power & Light District in Kansas City a band that also included Brad Cox, Jeff Harshbarger and Mike Stover.

Krystle Warren, Brad Cox, and Jonathan Anderson thanks for being with us on WMM

Brad Cox is currently active with the following ensembles: The People’s Liberation Big Band of Greater Kansas City–a musicians’ collective dedicated to the creation and performance of new large ensemble jazz. //// Owen/Cox Dance Group–a contemporary dance ensemble lead by Jennifer Owen focussed on creative collaborations among dancers, musicians, composers and visual artists. //// Brad Cox Octet–an eight-piece ensemble made up of two saxophonists, two bass players, two drummers, and two keyboardists

Jennifer Owen is Artistic Director of Owen/Cox Dance Group, an ensemble she co-founded with composer Brad Cox in 2007. She has choreographed over fifty new works for Owen/Cox Dance Group, including two commissions by the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, and works commissioned by Island Moving Co. of Newport, RI, Kansas City Dance Festival, Kansas City Baroque Consortium, and Kansas City Chamber Orchestra. She has also created nine new works for Kansas City Ballet’s In the Wings choreographic workshop, and a winning entry for the 2006 Columbus Choreography Project. Owen is the recipient of a 2000 Princess Grace Honorarium. Prior to founding Owen/Cox Dance Group, Owen enjoyed a 13-year international ballet career. After training with Pacific Northwest Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet School, School of American Ballet, and the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, she went on to dance with the Russian State Ballet, Moscow Renaissance Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Hong Kong Ballet, BalletMet, and was a guest artist with the National Ballet of Turkmenistan. She has performed principal roles in Giselle, Don Quixote, George Balanchine’s Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux and Donizetti Variations, and the central pas de deux in Todd Bolender’s Arena.

Owen/Cox Dance Group is a 501 (c) 3 not for profit corporation with a mission is to create new music and dance collaborations, to present high-quality contemporary dance performances with live music, and to engage as wide an audience as possible through affordable live performance, education and outreach programs

The world premiere dance work by the Owen/Cox Dance Group set to a live performance of singer/songwriter Krystle Warren’s acclaimed double album, “Love Songs” on Saturday, October 19, at 8:00 PM and Sunday, October 20, at 2:00 PM, at Polsky Theatre at Carlsen Center at Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd, OPKS. For more info you can contact: http://www.owencoxdance.org

10:42

6. Krystle Warren & The Faculty – “Fool Me Once”
from: Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace (Love Songs- A Time to Refrain from Embracing) / Parlour Door Music / April 9, 2012]

10:45 – Pledge Break #3

Our WMM Fall Fund Drive Team: Marion Merritt and Betse Ellis

We just heard Krystle Warren. KKFI and Mark Manning were some of the very first to play Krystle’s music on the radio. Mark first interviewed Krystle Warren for The Tenth Voice, back 2002. Mark waited several hours during a winter snow storm, at a huge party where Krystle played with her band including her longtime friend Solomon Dorsey on bass. The show was a benefit show, in a packed, smoke filled apartment, near Community Christian Church across the hall from where Solomon lived. When the show was over Solomon gave Mark a 2-song demo CD, that contained some of Krystle Warren & The Faculty’s ‘s first recorded music, including a song called “Chanel #5.” Krystle has since gone on to be known all over the world, but still maintains contact with her hometown of Kansas City. Krystle’s critically acclaimed album, Three The Hard Way was #1 on WMM’s 117 Best Recordings of 2017. Wednesday MidDay Medley was one of the first radio shows to play tracks from Krystle’s album, before it was released. Krystle came on the show months before the release, to share music that was the inspiration for the recording.

Now, more than ever, Independent, Community Media is important for our world Along with our stellar National Public Affairs shows like Democracy Now, we offer programs specifically produced for the LGBTQIA collective communities, Women’s issues, Native American news and culture, Middle Eastern music and information, latino programming, African American public affairs and community news, labor and worker’s unions, our prison population and justice system, environmental programming, visual and literary arts, and performing arts.

We are The Voice of The Community – 90.1 offers 102 different radio programs. 84 of these programs are locally created and produced and hosted and engineered and written by over 100 different people, who create content, and personally handcraft each show, each week. There are 147 hours each week of locally produced handcrafted programs.

You we not find this kind of representative diversity anywhere else on your radio dial. or from any singular source on your computer. It is very special. It needs to be nourished and kept alive.

10:52

7. Krystle Warren & The Faculty – “Forever Is a Long Time”
from: Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace (Love Songs- A Time to Refrain from Embracing) / Parlour Door Music / April 9, 2012 UK]
[Originally from KC, Krystle learned to play the guitar by listening to Rubber Soul & Revolver from The Beatles. Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career in collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace” a recording from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections.]

10:56 – Station ID

10:56 – More Interview with Krystle Warren & Jonathan Anderson

Krystle Warren, Brad Cox, and Jonathan Anderson join us to talk about the world premiere of Owen/Cox Dance Group: Love Songs featuring new original choreography by Jennifer C. Owen, brought to life by the amazing dance company of Owen/Cox, to all 24 songs from Krystle’s critically acclaimed double album “Love Songs,” performed LIVE by Krystle Warren, with a 12 piece band of many of Kansas City’s very best musicians.

Owen/Cox Dance Group is a 501 (c) 3 not for profit corporation with a mission is to create new music and dance collaborations, to present high-quality contemporary dance performances with live music, and to engage as wide an audience as possible through affordable live performance, education and outreach programs

Love Songs: “A Time You May Embrace” and “A Time to Refrain from Embracing” is a double album recording, of songs written by Krystle Warren (12 songs on each album) from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 27 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections.

The world premiere dance work by the Owen/Cox Dance Group set to a live performance of singer/songwriter Krystle Warren’s acclaimed double album, “Love Songs” is Saturday, October 19, at 8:00 PM and Sunday, October 20, at 2:00 PM, at Polsky Theatre at Carlsen Center at Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd, OPKS. For more info you can contact: http://www.owencoxdance.org

11:07

3. Krystle Warren & The Faculty – “Born In The Fall”
from: A Time To Keep Love Songs EP / Parlour Door Music / August 12, 2011 [UK]
[This EP came out before Krystle Warren’s 2012 European release, double album: Love Songs – A Time You May Embrace & Love Songs – A Time to Refrain from Embracing came from a 13 day recording session in Brooklyn, where she recorded the 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections. Krystle wrote the songs, and produced the vinyl release. This EP contained three songs from the Love Songs set, plus two other tracks “Sunbeams” which a different version of this song was part of Nezbeat’s collaborative release “From The Huge Silence” from 2005, and “Born in The Fall” of which a different more acoustic version can be found as a bonus track on the Japanese CD release of “Three The Hard Way.” Originally from Kansas City, Krystle learned to play the guitar by listening to Rubber Soul & Revolver from The Beatles. Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs.” Krystle release her last album, Three The Hard Way on Parlour Door Music on August 18, 2017. Produced by Krystle Warren and Ben Kane (D’Angelo, Emily King, PJ Morton). Recorded, engineered, and mixed by Ben Kane. Written & performed by Krystle Warren. For this record Krystle decided to play every instrument and vocals & back up vocals, “playing bass, drums, lap steel, piano, guitar, and vocals directly to analog tape. She and Ben Kane recorded in Villetaneuse, France, a small town on the outskirts of Paris in a vintage 70s era studio that offered just the right, rich sound to suggest the musical foundation for the record, and to do justice to the duo’s carefully balanced arrangements.” Three The Hard Way was #1 on WMM’s 117 Best Recordings of 2017.]

11:10 – Pledge Break #4

Our WMM Fall Fund Drive Team: Marion Merritt and Betse Ellis

KKFI’s Mission Statement: KKFI is the Kansas City area’s independent, noncommercial community radio station. We seek to stimulate, educate and entertain our audience, to reflect the diversity of the local and world community, and to provide a channel for individuals and groups, issues and music that have been overlooked, suppressed or under-represented by other media.

KKFI’s Philosophy Statement: KKFI is committed to diversity in programming and discourse and seeks to create a climate of mutual respect and collaboration among volunteers and staff.

11:17

9. The Black Creatures – “wretched (it goes)”
from: “Wild Echoes / The Black Creatures / September 30, 2019
[Darkpop hip-hop musical pulling elements from sci-fi to tell an inter-dimensional story. Xavier Martin and Jade Green have made an impression of the KC music community with their videos and songs, live shows in clubs, art galleries, record stores, area music festivals and shows in surrounding areas. They’ve released an EP, an album, several singles.]

[The Black Creatures play Minibar, 3810 Broadway Blvd, KCMO Wednesday, October 16, at 9:00 PM, with Domineko, Lincoln Marshall, and Neak]

10. Lincoln Marshall – “Falling Up”
from: Wisdom / Datura Records / October 18, 2017
[Written By: Milkdrop & Approach. Produced, Sequenced, Recorded, Mixed & Mastered By: Aikido Bray. Additional keyboards & atmosphere by Asterales, guitar by Ross Williams, horns by Miles Bonny, live drums & percussion by Aikido Bray. Artwork, Photography & Layout Design By: The Art My Life Imitates

[Lincoln Marshall play Minibar, 3810 Broadway Blvd, KCMO Wednesday, October 16, at 9:00 PM, with Domineko, Black Creatures, and Neak]

11. Stacy Busch – “When / Time”
from: When / Time – Single / Stacy Busch / October 3, 2019
[“When/Time” is the flagship piece for a new collaboration between Stacy Busch, Andi Meyer, Sascha Groschang and J.J. Pearse coming next spring. Stacy will be performing this live along with an all new set on October 17, at 8:00 pm at Westport Coffee House at my show called “She Shed.” I’ll also be performing this song at the ArtsKC Awards Luncheon in February. 30 year old Stacy Busch is originally from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. She is a multimedia artist & performer. Her collaborative concert experiences are designed to be provocative and accessible to cultivate broader artistic interest and, reach under-served and/or misrepresented communities. Stacy is the founder and president of No Divide KC, an arts and social justice non-profit that creates artistic events for various social causes. Stacy’s work has been performed nationally as well as in France and Iceland. She recently partnered with Gilda’s Club KC, Owen/Cox Dance and Charlotte Street Foundation to compose and perform the music for “Collective: Our Stories of Cancer.” In 2018, her service with No Divide KC will include partnerships with the Kansas City Ballet School and the Johnson County Library. Stacy’s work has been performed at: the Kansas City Fringe Festival, Art in the Loop Kansas City, the experimental concert series ArtSounds, the Lyric Opera of Kansas City and UMKC Composer’s Guild Concerts. She has partnered with the Kansas City Streetcar, the UMKC dance program, Charlotte Street Foundation and the electronic music non-profit KcEMA. In addition to Kansas City, Stacy’s work has been featured at the University of Colorado-Boulder, the University of Michigan, Western Michigan University, Central Michigan University. It has also been performed by ensembles including: Bent Frequency, the Beo String Quartet and the Zodiac Trio. She is a two-time ArtSounds Grant recipient, a UMKC Women’s Council Grant recipient and was a CITS Scholar at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Stacy received her Masters in Music in composition from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and her Bachelors in Music in composition from Western Michigan University. Her teachers include Rome Prize winners Paul Rudy and James Mobberley as well as Pulitzer Prize winners Zhou Long and Chen Yi. Other influential teachers include Guggenheim Fellow Curtis Curtis-Smith, Christopher Biggs and Lisa Coons. Prior to studying music, Stacy studied print journalism at Boston University.]

[Stacy Busch is presenting “She Shed” Thursday, October 17, at 8:00 pm at Westport Coffee House, 4010 Pennsylvania, KCMO, Featuring J.J. Pearse and pieces written by Kalli Siringas. This is a No Divide KC production. All proceeds will go towards No Divide KC and our 2020 programming.]

11:27 – Underwriting

11:29 – Pledge Break #5

Our Fall Fund Drive Show with Marion Merritt, & Betse Ellis.

We offer loads and loads of information about what is going on in the community. Not only does this show interview nearly 200 guest each year, not only do we play nearly 1000 different songs with nearly half of those being locally produced, but we also shine a light on area not-for-profit theatre companies, art museums & galleries, area festivals, service organizations, area record labels and record stores, the area music scene, arts scene, theatre scene, literary arts scene, political action scene.

In just this past year, we’ve featured segments shining a light on: The Black Archives of Mid America, Olathe Public Library’s Music Series, InterUrban ArtHouse Queer Story Telling, Middle of The Map Fest, Outer Reaches Fest, Troost Fest, North KC Music Fest, Porch Fest KC, Crossroads Music Fest, Manor Fest, Lawrence Field Day Fest, KC PrideFest, Midwest Music Foundation, MidCoast Takeover, Playlist Play, Kansas City Public Library, GLAMA, MOCSA, Topeka Women’s Correctional Facility, The Midwest Innocence Project, Record Store Day, Folk Alliance International Conference, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., George Washington Carver, Kansas City Art Institute, Bach Aria Soloist, KC Gamelan Genta Kasturi, Owen Cox Dance Group, American Jazz Museum, Never Records, KC Fringe Theatre Fest, Late Night Theatre, Girls Rock! and the Annual Girls Rock! Camp, The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, Apocalypse Meow, Union Station, Plaza Art Fair, Center Cut Records, Black Site Records, Haymaker Records, The Record Machine, Datura Records, Too Much Rock, Revolution Records, Sister Anne’s Records, Mills Record Company, Josey Records, Records With Merritt, Squeezebox Theatre, Crossroads KC, The Midland Theatre, Johnson County Performing Arts Series, Shelf Life, The Lesbian & Gay Film Festival, The Band That Fell To Earth A Tribute To David Bowie, The Kauffman Center for The Performing Arts, UMKC Conservatory of Music,

11:36

12. Mike McCoy’s Trompe-l’œil – “The Hard Way”
from: Eyein’ Lies / Mike McCoy’s Trompe-l’œil / July 19, 2019
[Formed in Austin, Texas in August 2015, Band Members include: Andrew Duplantis, Jacob Schulze, Travis Garaffa, David Garrett, and Mike McCoy. Kansas native and Austin resident Mike McCoy is a man for all seasons. A gifted singer, composer, songwriter, social commentator and conceptual artist from the heartland, McCoy has been making music for more than 30 years, incorporating a whiplash array of styles and genres from country-roots to punk to performance art and power pop. All overlap in McCoy’s world. Mike founded the KC power-pop band Cher UK (Cargo/FistPuppet) & (Red Decibel/Columbia Records) in the mid 1990s and has fronted other quirky conceptual bands (often, tongue planted firmly in cheek) such as the Black Rabbits of Lawrence, Kansas, and two Austin critics’ darlings, the American People and the Service Industry. Mike is also a prolific solo artist whose latest venture, The Death Bus (digital release only), harkens back to his earliest and perhaps most natural milieu — roots/country/balladeer expanding his solo repertoire and he hopes to wrap up the year with a new record. A religion studies and art-history graduate of TCU, fund-raising researcher at Yale, a carpenter/designer in Austin, an online “word contortionist” and a former museum administrator in KC, McCoy’s truest calling is the crafting of songs. He’s a hayseed intellectual-philosopher whose compositions strike the right balance of plaintive and high-brow, sardonic and humble. McCoy brings a singular, poet’s sensibility to the music equation. He writes about a wonderful waitress in a rundown town who has the power to make or break your stay (“if you treat her well, you might get what you want…”), about an immigrant woman whose dreams of America lead her to a lonesome life as a domestic (“feather duster I believe her, no one sees the way I see her…”), about American apathy and how winter is a submarine (“winter is a submarine — I lay inside and I no longer dream…”). In most of McCoy’s songs, there is something deeply wistful, despite the freighted narratives and their dizzying wordplay. He’s a serious guy and he writes about serious stuff. Yet in the lyrics and in the spaces between words and melody, you can almost hear that lone whistle blow in the dark of a heartlands night; you hear a style of writing that combines political commentary and snarky populism with an inextinguishable belief that somehow, with the right blend of gumption and fortitude, we humans might just pull off something good. He’s equal parts punk-rock-Americana — a strange brew of Bob Dylan, Iggy Pop, John Mellencamp, Ramones and Burl Ives. But no matter in what incarnation you encounter Mike McCoy, you’ll find he’s driven by the same basic themes: ideas and ideals of humanity, principles and hopes, outrage and indignation, absurdism and dadaism, puns and poetry and parody, with a large dose of red-white-and-blue wishful thinking.]

13. Short Round Stringband – “The One I Love is Gone”
from: Ain’t No Part of Nothin’ / Short Round Stringband / July 19, 2019
[From the debut album from the pan-Missouri band with a refreshing approach to old time music: Short Round Stringband is the coming together of two musical couples and a bassist with Kansas roots. The band members are Kelly Wells and Ryan Spearman (The Aching Hearts, St. Louis), Betse Ellis and Clarke Wyatt (Betse & Clarke, Kansas City), and Chris DeVictor (Konza Swamp and more). With deep connections to old-time, country and Ozark tunes and songs, Short Round Stringband takes you on a moving journey through the sounds and stories of the American experience.]

[Short Round Stringband play Pilgrim’s Progression Dance Weekend, Friday, November 15th, 7:00 PM, East Lawrence Recreation Center, 1245 E 15th St, Lawrence, KS]

[Betse & Clarke Return to Open Range Concerts, Sunday, November 3, at 3:00 PM in Paola, Kansas]

[Betse & Clarke play an Old Time Party, Wed, Nov. 6, 7:00 PM, at The Ship, 1217 Union Ave, KCMO.]

19. Making Movies – “Delilah (ft. Rubén Blades)”
from: ameri’kana / 3/2 Recordings / May 24, 2019
[Produced by Steve Berlin and Ben Yonas. 3rd full length release from KC based 4-piece band and made up of two sets of brothers: Enrique Chi on guitar and lead vocals; Diego Chi on bass & vocals; Juan-Carlos Chaurand on percussion & keyboards; and Andres Chaurand on drums. The band draws their influences from the origins of their families: Santiago, Panama, and Kansas City, Missouri, and Guadalajara, Mexico. The notes for this album read: “ameri’kana is a canary in a coal mine, the watchman at the tower. It is a desire to remember where we come from and assure that we better ourselves in every step along our journey. Every chapter is an example, a reason to not be silent and not accept corrupt leaders as something inevitable. ameri’kana is based on faith, faith that every person on this continent carries within themselves the ability to grow, to awaken their consciousness and merits the the same rights. We were accomplices to get ourselves to this point so we will have to be accomplices in the solutions.” This was their follow up released to their critically acclaimed I Am Another You, released May 26, 2017. The quartet has toured with Arcade Fire, Thievery Corporation, Cold War Kids, Los Lobos, Ozomatli, Tennis, Sergio Mendoza of Calexico, Rodrigo y Gabriela, and Hurray for the Riff Raff.]

[Making Movies are currently on an extensive US Tour with shows all through October and November bringing the band back home to KC for another special New Year’s Eve show at The Truman 601 E. Truman Road, KCMO, Tuesday, December 31, 2019 at 9:00 PM. More info at: http://www.mkngmvs.com]

11:47 – Pledge Break #6

Fall Fund Drive Show with Marion Merritt, & Betse Ellis.

Driving in your car, at the office, at the gym, in your garage, in your cubicle, in your art space, on your iPod, at your construction site, in your kitchen, in your barn, YOU can take 90.1 with you, as your companion. 90.1 FM is generally a good date. Good for a few laughs, fun to dance with, always interested in good conversation. Isn’t 90.1 FM KKFI worth a few dollars a day, or a week? So many people tune in to kkfi.org everyday, but studies show, that less than 1 percent actually donate to keep this miracle of broadcasting alive. Your support means that you will help bring this programming to folks who could not donate at this time, for whatever the reason.

This is your chance to put your money where your ears are. Please help keep this part of our public airwaves alive for our community to enjoy, free from commercials, free from religious sermonizing, free from extremely conservative and slanted right wing “talk radio,” and free from corporately “owned and cloned” robotic affiliates that play the same 15 songs everyday at the same time. YOU deserve better. YOU deserve radio that really reflects our great city, and tells the story of our great music scene, and performing arts scene, and labor rights, and women’s issues, and LBGT information, and programming specifically produced for Latinos and African Americans, working people, Jazz lovers. Support the free-form spirit that is 90.1 FM KKFI!

Marion Merritt, Betse Ellis, Thank You! Thank you to everyone who called in!

11:55

15. Thighmaster – “Aerobicise”
from: Aerobicise – Single / High Dive Records / August 9, 2019
[Debut single from Thighmaster a Lawrence, Kansas based band formed by Maxfield Yoder (formerly of the bands: Dean Monkey & the Dropouts, Plains) on guitar & vocals, Max Lock on vocals, Max Smith on tambourine & vocals, Esteban Gomez –on bass, Jennifer Graham on drums, and Jake Little on guitar. Thighmaster recently signed with KC based label High Dive Records. The band is resurrecting the song-writing demons that have long haunted Mayfield Yoder. Thighmaster truly is garage pop for cool grandparents. Now you too can have shapely thighs in minutes a day. “Aerobicise” was Tracked, Mixed and Mastered by Ross Williams and written by Thighmaster.]

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

Next week on October 23 – Marion Merritt returns as Guest Producer with more sonic discoveries and information from her musically-encyclodedic-brain. Also joining us is musician, singer, songwriter, producer, Shawn Stewart, and artist, actor, designer, performance artist, Late Night Theatre alum, Jon “Piggy” Cupit.

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

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

On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or
STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #807