Fans of these bands know that they have only two things in common — they’re big in numbers (Israel Darling flexes from Jacob Darden performing solo to a full seven piece act) and they rock.
And that’s enough for me.
Israel Darling’s Appalachian style with Darden’s ponderings on religion and daily life in his songwriting may contrast heavily with The Brand New Life’s dedication to bringing the funk and groove to the party with their big band brass and rhythm section, but hey, that’s what makes the show unique.
DMP will have Don Ravon recording the event, Stephen Charles and Kyle Rhines shooting stills and a film crew headed up by Michael “Mangler” McQueen.
If you’d like to help promote the show, grab the above poster for your Facebook profile picture. If you’re a huge fan (and saint), feel free to grab the large version to print for posting in your dorm, neighborhood, back shed, etc.
When our music director, Don Ravon, booked Randy Furches to participate in our singer/songwriter night last June, I knew very little about his sound. The most I could find about him online was an interesting article the New York Times ran, delving into the subject matter of his song, Poor Ellen Smith — a tune about a distant relative of over a hundred years gone by, Peter DeGraff, who happened to be the last man (legally) hanged in North Carolina.
As it turns out, Randy’s sound is much more of a cross between pop artist and crooner than alternative acoustic. IMO, his vocal delivery is reminiscent of Tom Jones engaged in a footrace with Richard Cheese, and hell, I like Richard Cheese! Collaborations like the one above with local MC King-Kev-O exemplifies Randy’s inclination to toss the genre box aside when making his music.
Aside from all the marketing mumbo jumbo that drives the music “industry” these days, isn’t that what it’s all about?
MUSIC VIDEO CREDITS
Editor: Michael McQueen
Camera: Michael McQueen
Camera: Jeremy Hyler
Camera: Mark Steinberg
Sound: Danny Bayer and Don Ravon
You can check out Randy’s entire live set on Last.fm or support a local musician by picking up the album over at Amie Street.
There’s live original music going on in this town just about any night of the week now, what with all the shows at various bars, coffee shops and performance spaces, but Monday nights find me working the sound board at the Blind Tiger’s world famous Open Band Jam, where bands can sign up in whole or in part, empty spots in the roster being filled by one of the three house musicians on call.
Like most open jams, Monday has its regulars: the wiry art-funk of Carla R; the Trower/Vaughn/Hendrix blues worship of Stickers for Cigarettes; the spacey reggae/hip hop of Xuluprophet; and the duo that plays each week under a different name, but always includes an original titled either “I’m the Batman” or “No More Dead Cops,” but either way it ought to be the theme song for the next installment in the Caped Crusader silver screen franchise. Any and all experimentalism is spelled with a little “E”; it’s what punk must have been like before it started taking itself too seriously. There’s also the house band, and of course my sub-Ed Sullivan MC’ing.
Sometimes I think open mics are the purest form of public musical expression; rough-hewn garage bands bump shoulders with semi-professional part-time pickers, original visions too far out to fully elucidate bang heads with questionable-or-not covers of classic rock chestnuts. Too varied to coalesce into a self-policing “scene,” not polished enough to charge admission to, sometimes teetering on the brink of musical chaos, it’s an opportunity for musicians and audiences alike to take chances on new approaches and new talent.
There are other open mics in town too: Matty Sheets hosts one at the Flatiron, and there are open blues jams at Plum Krazy’s, the Clubhouse and Club Zion. The blues jams, as the name implies, are pretty much rooted in that genre, but still fun nonetheless, and a good chance to work on your chops while meeting other local musicians.
So don’t let your lack of a band, or a missing member, or fear of public performance keep you from going out and being part of Greensboro’s music scene. Open mics are a chance to experiment and hone your craft, or just to play music in public without the stress of having to hunt down regular gigs. Most importantly, it’s fun!
Sometimes, when the band you’ve booked begins to play you instantly know the evening is going to be special. Other times, it happens when you get yelled at by everyone involved.
The Filthybird show, by all accounts, was special.
I had to run back to HQ as the sound check got underway and made it back to the show just prior to Renee starting up. As I heard her last warmup on the keys and vocals, I jumped out of my seat in the packed house and yelled over to Don to turn down the reverb.
NO!!! came from every direction on stage.
Trust your crew was the lesson I learned that night.
MUSIC VIDEO CREDITS
Editor: Blake Faucette
Camera: Andy Coon, Blake Faucette, Sean Coon
Sound: Don Ravon
The live album is available at Amie Street, with all proceeds going to the Filthybird crew.
Everything in the world can be broken down into three nouns. Negativity, positivity, and neutrality.
Now imagine looking up and seeing an atomic bomb being dropped straight onto your brain. Now imagine that, while most atomic bombs are composed of negativity, this one is of a very unique composition. Imagine that this bomb is composed of pure positivity.
Now imagine that this bomb is actually the imprint left on you by one, Clement Mallory, aka Universal Mathematics.
An infinite number of varying descriptions could be used to characterize a performance by this man. Perhaps one in several thousand would even begin to come close to completely accurate.
MUSIC VIDEO CREDITS
Editor: Ioannis Batsios
Camera: Ioannis Batsios, Matt Williams, David Bradley
Sound: Danny Bayer, Don Ravon
Universal Mathematics is more than music, more than poetry, and more than performance. It is a full-blown inspirational experience. When Clement Mallory picks up the microphone, you are intrigued. When he performs, you are entranced. When he puts down the microphone, you are left feeling better about yourself and about life in general. While Mallory seems to identify more as a poet than a musician, and while a good half of his DMP set is spoken word, his performance is less poetry reading and more interactive motivational theater. He makes smiling your only option.
The message throughout this distinct and almost unclassifiable performance is one of love and appreciation. Backed by the immaculate DJ skills of L in Japanese, Clement Mallory seems almost unaware of his audience much of the time. It is almost as if the words flowing from his mouth come forth from a deep well of honesty and compassion. His words seem inspired from his personal experiences, yet, the selflessness of his delivery leaves one with the impression that, more than self-expression, this performance is designed to help us, to make us feel better about who we are. A good example of this can be found in the track, My Love, wherein he states:
Loving you increases my love for me, so I’m going to love you more ’cause I have to love myself.
He seems to do what he does strictly out of a genuine desire to make us all feel happier and more comfortable about who we are.
During the tenure of the performance, Mallory deals with issues ranging from creation, self-reflection, acceptance of our fellow human beings, the importance of teaching ourselves and our children, and the very nature of existence.
In the track, Who am I?, he asks:
Being human, am I characterized differently from any other human being? Do we not all have one head, two eyes, two ears, one nose, one mouth, one neck, two shoulders, two arms, two hands, one chest, one stomach, one gender, defined with private section, two legs and feet?
The answer to the title of this piece comes near the end of the track, right before a moment of too-perfect-to-have-been-planned feedback where he boldly states:
I am God.
It’s a concept piece full of imagery so heavy that it seems to overwhelm even the PA. This track is definitely a highlight of the set.
Placing Universal Mathematics into a musical category is a nearly impossible task.
Clement Mallory is a writer, an MC, a teacher, an outlandish angel. His performance is poetry, it’s hip-hop, it’s motivational speech, it’s emotional release, it’s nearly theatrical in it’s execution. His message is uplifting, it’s inspiring, it’s fun, it’s… dare I say… universal. This man puts on a performance that is more than a performance. It is an intricate spiderweb of imagery and sound that leaves one with a feeling of happiness and well-being.
For the love of love, check out Universal Mathematics at c37words.
Recording Engineer: Don Ravon
Mixing Engineers: Dan Bayer, Don Ravon
Cover Design: Sean Coon
Cover Photograph: Kevin Belton
I’d just like to take this moment to thank everyone who came out last night to The Blind Tiger to check out the Leeves, my band the Raving Knaves, and The Goodbye House, the new project from Matty Sheets, James Marshall Owen, Dave “Driveway” Moore and Randy Seals.
The Goodbye House is a great band, combining elements of all the members’ previous musical directions, but coming together in a real organic way, kinda like one of Elvis Presley’s mashed banana and peanut butter sandwiches.
Here’s a taste:
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And of course the Leeves’ brand of jazz/punk can’t be underestimated either. It was simply a rockin’ night all the way around.
The reason I’m thanking everybody is because, as a local musician, I’ve come to realize that community will get you through times with no money better than money will get you through times of no community. As part of the dotmatrix project, I’ve watched a community grow around local original music, seen more people coming out to shows — despite (or maybe because of) the bad economy — and I’ve watched musicians collaborate on some really great music.
Photo by Paula McLean
Usually I’ve seen this from behind the soundboard, but in the last few months I’ve seen it from the stage, playing with the Knaves, alongside bands such as Switchblade 85, Come Hell or High Water, the Brand New Life and so many others.
In the midst of uncertain times, to be able to get up and play your music in front of and alongside appreciative people is truly a wonderful thing.
IMHO, the coolest aspect of what we do here is our documentation of the music scene, specifically in Greensboro, where I call home. And not just individual shows, but the gestalt of the entire scene as it unfolds over different periods of time.
While some bands find a modicum of success and play for years to come, touring regionally at times, many more bands form, play out locally for a while and disappear into the ether without the notice of more than a handful of friends and family and only the most hardcore music lovers in town.
Albina Savoy falls into such a category.
And while that’s a shame on many levels — their sound was so unique, beautiful in ways that’s hard to describe — at least we have a few reminders of their sound to enjoy.
If you like what you hear in the video, be sure to check out the band’s live album on Last.fm and AmieStreet (all proceeds on AmieStreet go to Albina Savoy).
MUSIC VIDEO CREDITS
Editor: Blake Faucette
Camera: Andy Coon
Camera: Blake Faucette
Camera: Sean Coon
Sound: Danny Bayer
Charles “the cleave” Cleaver intensely works the keyboard as Max Indian closes up another great evening with The Dotmatrix Project. Thanks to all the fans who braved the wind and snow to come and support local North Carolina bands! If you like the photos, you can see more of my work on my blog.
Ryan Gustafson who also plays with The Light Pines and Max Indian, has his own self-named project with a folk/indie style and a lot of heart. If you are interested in seeing more of my work, please feel free to take a look at my blog!
John Pope shares a laugh with Carter Gaj in The Light Pines first live performance on January 29 @ the Duke Coffeehouse. They opened up the night for Ryan Gustafson and Max Indian. All three bands shared a few key members while rotating others, giving each band a sound to set them apart. Fans braved the snowy streets and packed out the venue for an upbeat and entertaining evening. If you would like to see more of my photos I’d love for you to check out my blog!
