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WPR September 2008 NEWSLETTER
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At The Edge, The Blue Side, Jazz Odyssey, and Kalihwiyo'se
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WHAT YOU'LL FIND BELOW:
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* AT THE EDGE – AirSculpture
* THE BLUE SIDE - Grafton Blues Fest
* JAZZ ODYSSEY – New Jazz Odyssey Webpage
* KALIHWIYO'SE – Flying Feather Band
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At The Edge with Michael Brown
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* Recently featured on the At the Edge playlist was the group AirSculpture. They are a UK based electronic music group. Its members - Adrian Beasley, John Christian and Peter Ruczynski - established it in the mid-1990s as a reaction to a music scene that no longer reflected their tastes. The energy and edge of ‘70s had become diluted into a mélange of clinical digital sounds played over safe pre-recorded backing.
Most of AirSculpture's music is created live on stage, improvised with little or no pre-planning. Over time it has evolved to a unique sound melding driving Berlin School rhythms with engaging, flowing melodies; or sometimes moving into darker ambient realms; or shifting gear with danceable beats.
The band has released seven full length albums; of these five are live recordings reflecting the live nature of the music. There have also been numerous tracks released on compilation albums. Some of their albums include: “Burn” 2008, “Tranceatlantic” 2005, “Quirk Soup” 2001, “Okefenokee” 2001, “Fjord Transit” 2000, “Thunderhead” 1998, “Europa” 1997, “Attrition System” 1996, and “Impossible Geometries” 1995.
A recent collaborative project called Cosmic Smokers, included the members of AirSculpture along with Paul Nagle, Grant Middleton, and Andy Bloyce. The simple idea was to bring a set of musicians together for the first time, give them some rehearsal time and to present the results as a concert. For more information on AirSculpture, visit their website: http://www.airsculpture.com/index.html.
Check out what At the Edge has to offer on WPNE 89.3 FM and
WHND 89.7 FM from 10p-12mid every Monday. At the show’s website you will find weekly playlists and additional information http://wpr.org/regions/gby/edge.cfm.
At The Edge with Michael Brown can be heard every
Monday night from 10 p.m. to midnight
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The Blue Side with Mary Flynn
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* A lot of news on the Blue Side newswire this time around! As with
most things in blues, the celebrations of life are mixed with
acknowledgements of those passing on.
*The Grafton Blues Fest is coming up September 19-20, 2008. The city
of Grafton has focused efforts on noting the important place that
Grafton played in early blues recording. The downtown area has been
transformed into a beautiful blues tribute plaza. The Paramount
Restaurant features blues acts regularly and is the central music
venue for after-fest fun. Next year’s festival will be held August
20-21, 2008. To see the great line-up for 2008, visit
http://www.graftonblues.org/.
*Koko Taylor’s band was in a serious van accident in August in
Wisconsin. Several band members were seriously injured; several
remain in the hospital at the time of this newsletter. You can learn
more and find out how you can help contribute to a fund to help pay
for some of their hospital bills by visiting
http://www.kokotaylor.com/news.html and
http://todayschicagoblues.blogspot.com/2008/09/koko-taylors-band-how-to-help.html.
*A familiar face on Wisconsin music scene, Little Smokey Smothers, is
ailing these days and finding it more difficult to get out and around.
He has performed at The Roadhouse of Downtown Carlsville, Blues In
The Park (Green Bay), Summerfest, and The Up and Under (Milwaukee),
among many venues. He was recognized by Elvin Bishop at the Aurora
Blues Fest in June as his mentor and friend. He was a vanguard on the
Chicago blues scene in the early 1960’s when he brought Mike
Bloomfield and Paul Butterfield on stage with him. They later moved
onto California and fame while Smokey stayed behind in Chicago to
raise his family. He had earlier played guitar for many years for
Howlin’ Wolf. He re-emerged with a vengeance in the 1980’s, touring
with The Legendary Blues Band, Elvin Bishop, and his own band. He
recorded many fine recording during this latest period as well on
Ichiban, Black Magic, Cross Cut, and Alligator. Find out more about
Smokey at
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=177305103.
*Two Blue Side favorites, Phil Guy and Little Arthur Duncan, passed
away on the same date: August 20, 2008. Phil Guy was an energetic
performer, gifted vocalist, and accomplished guitarist. He arrived in
Chicago later than some well-known blues artists, and quickly
established himself on the music scene. He was in the house band of
the lauded Theresa’s club and toured for many years backing his
brother, Buddy, and Jr. Wells. That’s Phil Guy you hear on many of
Jr. Wells classic tracks heard on The Blue Side. Check out the web
for more info and background on this personable artist who truly was,
as he once sang, one of the last of the blues singers. Try this
link to start with: http://www.philguynothrmule.com/.
*Little Arthur Duncan was a formidable Chicago character--deep talent
along with deep compassion. Arthur once said that his first club--The
Artesia Lounge--was named for a woman who had died and he wanted to
keep her memory and name alive. He moved that club and opened a
second--Artesia II, which later was renamed The Backscratcher Social
Club. Little Arthur celebrated his birthday each year with an
outstanding variety of food that he prepared himself and served at his
club. This past year, his birthday spread was laid out at Rosa’s
Lounge. Little Arthur had just celebrated a DVD release on Delmark
Records and was looking forward to touring in support of it. He
suffered a severe bout of dizziness in April, and soon was diagnosed
with a brain tumor. His friends, Rick Kraher and Twist Turner, kept
his numerous friends updated regularly and provided support to both
Arthur and his family during this difficult time. Learn more about
Little Arthur by visiting the Delmark Records website and also by
clicking on this link: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm
fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=216816748.
Each Tuesday, you can hear great blues on The Blue Side on WPNE 89.3 FM and
WHND 89.7 FM from 10p-12mid. Check out The Blue Side website for the
playlist of what you hear each week (updated by the end of each
show--no waiting!) and visit The Blue Side Essential List for updates
on sources to find music, articles, and music at
http://www.wpr.org/regions/gby/BlueSide.cfm.
The Blue Side with Mary Flynn can be heard every
Tuesday night from 10 p.m. to midnight
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Jazz Odyssey with Chris Kuborn
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*Chris Kuborn, WPR Jazz Odyssey host, is in the midst of completing his own show website – www.jazzodc.com. This work-in-progress will feature a daily synopsis of each episode of Jazz Odyssey and will be available with links to the various artists. In the next couple of months, Chris has decided to put together a jazz calendar featuring jazz festivals, gigs, and activities going on in the jazz world of the northeastern Wisconsin region. If you have any events that you would like posted on Chris’s WPR website or on his jazz calendar in the next couple of months, please feel free to email lisa.andre@wpr.org. Check out Chris’s website www.jazzodc.com for more information.
Tune in to Jazz Odyssey each Wednesday on WPNE 89.3 FM and
WHND 89.7 FM from 10p-12mid. Check out The Jazz Odyssey website for the weekly
playlist at http://wpr.org/regions/gby/jazzodc/.
Jazz Odyssey with Chris Kuborn can be heard every
Wednesday night from 10 p.m. to midnight
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Kalihwiyo'se with Chris Powless and Richie Plass
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*Richie Plass, WPR host of Kalihwiyo'se, is the drummer and vocalist of the Flying Feather Band that was recently featured at the Indian Summer Festival.
Hailing from the Menominee Indian Reservation in northern Wisconsin,
the Flying Feather Band has been together since 2002. But, the total years of music and performance time on stage numbers three decades.
The main goal of the Flying Feather Band, according to bass player/singer, Waubano is, "We always try our best to make sure the audience has a good time and a lot of fun." If you've ever seen the band perform live, you already know that both of these goals are met at each performance.
Besides Waubano, the make up of the band is Dave "Napos" Turney on Guitar and Richie Plass on drums and vocals. The band is also honored to have various friends perform with them at many shows. Victor Beaudreau was their original lead guitar player and he also appears on the band's first recording, "Lost In Nashville.” The past two years, former NAMMY Award winner (and fellow Menominee) Wade Fernandez has been performing with the band.
The band's highlight performance of each of the past years has been at Indian Summer Festival in Milwaukee, WI. The band has earned a great reputation as being the host of the annual, "Fiddle and Jig Contest." From the jokes and great humor shared during the competitions to being the back-up band for various entertainers, the Flying Feather Band is called upon not only at this major event, but venues all across the country. This year has marked the third year that the band has hosted the "Drum Jam" at Indian Summer Fest.
The Flying Feather Band has shared the stage with many notable Native entertainers over the years. The list includes Bill Miller, Keith Secola, Wade Fernandez and Mitch Walking Elk, just to name a few. Their experience, talent, and goal is to bring their audiences a good time to fuel their combined energies.
Look for the release of the new CD, "Back Home On The Rez With Boogie" in late September, early October. The CD is a "LIVE" recording done in honor of Menominee Tribal Elder, Ted "Boogie" Conger. As drummer Richie Plass has stated, "Boogie was the first musician I had ever seen. I was maybe seven or eight years old. I actually got to play with Boogie, Pete and Louie when I was in high school and about three years after that. Those guys taught me so much about music and how to play. I owe a lot of where I am today because of these gentlemen."
"Back Home On The Rez With Boogie" includes Richie, Waubano, Dave, Wade and Boogie. The music runs from old jazz to rock-n-roll to blues to country rock. Richie stated, "A good friend of ours from Nashville who is a record promoter told us that this recording is the best "LIVE" recording he's heard in over 25 years. He said there's no screaming guitar and loud crowd noise. It’s just great music by a great assembly of musicians and you can tell the crowd is having a good time." This is a solid gesture to the band that they have stayed their course in their recording.
For more information about the Flying Feather Band, check out their MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/flyingfeatherband.
*In store for you each Thursday is Kalihwiyo’se heard on WPNE 89.3 FM and WHND 89.7 FM from 10p-12mid. Check out their website for weekly playlists and events in the northeastern Wisconsin region at http://wpr.org/regions/gby/Kalihwiyo'se.cfm
Kalihwiyo'se with Chris Powless and Richie Plass can be heard every
Thursday night from 10 p.m. to midnight
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