the dotmatrix project

I tried to make this post brief.  For a more detailed account of the night’s performances, check out Nash Roberts’s take on the evening.  Also, for the newbies, here’s our promo entrance page to sign up for an account with Amiestreet and receive free money to support our local artists.

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April 2009 marked the thirteenth show in the series and the one year anniversary of the dotmatrix project.  This show was truly special.  We had two exceptional performances that evening.  Each expressing it’s own unique sound.  Each featuring an incredibly talented female vocalist/pianist.

Filthybird

Photo by Mark Smith

Renee Mendoza (with vocals and on keyboard) and Brian Haran (on electric guitar) got married a while back and their band took a little hiatus.  We were very proud to have gotten the chance to welcome them back to the stage in Greensboro, NC.  Shawn Smith (on drums) and Mike Duehring (on bass) fill out out the other half of Filthybird.

Filthybird has been described as “loud, yet subtle and distinctly joyful rock.”  They are, for all intents and purposes, a Psychedelic Folk Rock band.  Their music is simultaneously mental and emotional.  Their performance, I think, can best be described as “unfettered and electrifying.”

Photo by Mark Smith

Right now, you can check out their DMP set on AmieStreet.  Be on the lookout for more great music from these guys.  Get Filthybird!

Photo by Kevin Belton

ALBUM CREDITS
Recording Engineers: Don Ravon, Dan Bayer
Mixing Engineer: Don Ravon
Cover Design: Sean Coon
Cover Photograph: Kevin Belton

Albina Savoy

Photo by Mark Smith

Albina Savoy is a three-piece collaboration with Crystal Bright (primarily on keys), Barry Cantrell (on guitar), and Jon McLean (on double bass).  The group also utilizes accordion, cello and the saw to create sweetly layered compositions.  They opened the April DMP show with their sweet, soothing and dramatic style.

As Nash Roberts eloquently describes, much of their set included songs demonstrating “not only attention to melody, but striking lyricism.”  A perfect example is Emeline, a song featuring Barry Cantrell on lead vocals.  It whispers at the soul of the philosopher left to reflect on love and loss and the human experience.

Photos by Mark Smith

Unfortunately, their performance that evening was one of the last opportunities to hear Albina Savoy live. The three-piece is no longer performing together.  However, as is the case with most musicians I know, that doesn’t mean Barry, Jon or Crystal won’t be making a splash elsewhere on the music scene.  Be on the lookout for future projects.  For now, you can enjoy some of their work together by checking out their live album on AmieStreet or Last.Fm.

Photo by Kevin Belton

ALBUM CREDITS
Recording Engineers: Don Ravon, Dan Bayer
Mixing Engineer: Dan Bayer
Cover Design: Sean Coon
Cover Photograph: Kevin Belton

Photo by Stephen Charles

The exhibit… is up.

That was only a few months in the making.

This Friday night @ The Green Bean is the exhibit’s opening, featuring the music of past DMP performers: Laurelyn Dossett, Mr. Rozzi and Eating The Invaders. We’re also going to screen a slew of DMP music videos created by the ever talented All Aces Media, Ioannis Batsios, Jason Marc Pierce, Jennifer Graves, Bret Jones and Michael McQueen.

As far as the exhibit goes, we have 29 large format photographs on display, shot by 9 local photographers across 8 monthly shows, which will stay on the walls until September 27th.

Friday night, the entire month… it’s our way of both celebrating and promoting the talent found within our own community.

We do hope you can come out and enjoy it with us.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t introduce our featured photographers, so here they are:

DMP PHOTOGRAPHERS (These are the folk who signed up with us to shoot specific shows and then uploaded their high-res shots to the DMP flickr photostream under a Creative Commons license, which in turn furthers our mission)
		Kevin Belton flickr account Email | Voice: 336.816.8571 Kevin is a professional product photographer for the High Point furniture industry, second camera for John Leonard Photography for weddings and special events. He has been shooting themed based ideas in the last year or so featuring addiction, fashion, and music. Art is his passion and the camera is his medium.
		Stephen Charles CharlesMedia Photography Email | Voice: 336.682.9517 Stephen Charles began taking photographs in 1983 with a 35mm Canon Sure Shot. With the advent of Digital SLRs he has pursued photography as a growing passion, with a desire for letting candid captured moments tell the story.
		Jessi Hagood Jessi Hagood Photography Email Jessi Hagood is a native of Eden, NC and works primarily in the Greensboro area as a Wedding and Portrait Photographer. Recently her work has involved photographing Bodybuilding and Figure Competitions, soon to be featured in Muscle and Fitness Magazine and in an upcoming episode of MTV Made.
		Doug Klesch Doug Klesch Photography Email | Voice: 336.542.3071 Doug is a refugee from the cubicle farms of corporate America. Failing to have sapped all creative energy from him over more than a decade, his overlords released him back to the world. He gratefully returns wielding a camera.
		Elizabeth Lemon Elizabeth Lemon Photography Email | Voice: 719.244.3518 A recent graduate from the photography program at Randolph Community College, Elizabeth is adjusting to life outside a classroom. She is pursuing fine art and documentary photography with rediscovered inspiration and a tool box of new knowledge.
		Alex Maness Alex Maness Photography Email | Voice: 336.707.6121 Alex Maness, local boy done good, likes to travel and explore, but keeps Greensboro, NC as his center of gravity. He runs a photography business shooting for magazines and advertisers, as well as his own documentary projects.
		Mark Smith flickr account Email | Voice: 336.414.4721 Mark’s first inkling that photography could be fun was when his parents brought out the dreaded slides of their jaunts overseas. Once Mark could afford it, he bought a Pentax ME Super and “that was that.” These days, Mark happily takes sports and beach pictures as well as the live music events at DMP.
COMMUNITY PHOTOGRAPHERS (Talented, local photogs who came out to shows and documented the evening)
		Carolyn de Berry Carolyn de Berry Photography | Email Monkeywhale Productions | Email A Connecticut native and graduate of Guilford College and the Commercial Photography Program at Randolph Community College, Carolyn is a freelance photographer and assistant living in Greensboro, NC. She is also the production photographer and studio manager for Monkeywhale Productions.
		Allen Martin MartiniVision Email | Voice: 917.687.1912 Greensboro native Allen Martin is a photographer and designer who has recently relocated back to his home town after 18 years in NYC. A camera owner since adolescence, for the last several years Allen has focused on fashion, fine art and entertainment photography.

SPECIAL THANKS TO:

• Katie Southard, Owner of The Green Bean
• Elizabeth Lemon, for matting, framing and curating the show
• Laurelyn Dossett, Mr. Rozzi and Eating The Invaders, for generously donating their talent at the exhibit opening
• Don Ravon for running sound at the exhibit opening
• Don Ravon & Dan Bayer for mixing the music video tracks
• Ioannis Batsios, Blake Faucette, Michael McQueen and Bret Jones for scrambling to produce their music videos on time
• Andy Coon for helping prep the music video DVD
• Allen Martin for the beautiful show poster
• All of our talented photographers, many of whom aren’t represented in this show. You can see their all of their work at our flickr spot

A SUPER SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR FRAME SPONSORS:

• Mark Wagoner Productions
  Email | Voice: 888.854.0406
• 243 Framing
  243 E. Salisbury St., Asheboro, NC. 27203
  336.629.5101
• Martin’s Frame and Art
  336.274.2426

Subterranean Bums’ continually shifting lineup both layered and stripped their folk format. Friends jumped on and offstage with new instruments to add to the mix of songs like “World Full of Downers” and “Oklahoma Thunderstorm.”

Off with the electric bass and on with the horns. Now let’s get some upright bass.

Photo by alex maness

Their show at The Burro on May 28^th was blissfully youthful Americana. It was something in the same vein of The Avett Brothers before they became the Avett Brothers, though perhaps more pharmaceutical, so to speak.

Wiry vocals, jittery melodies, outbursts and prone to lampooning, it was a performance that literally had the babies in the crowd dancing along. Seriously, I saw it with my own eyes. You must be doing something right when that happens, right?

Photo by Mark Smith

Sticking with the friends theme, there was no shortage of supporters both on stage and in the crowd for the Subterranean Bums/Eating the Invaders show. You couldn’t help raise your glass to the music of Eating the Invaders. They write suburban hymns which are best enjoyed while drankin’, which was especially fitting for a show at The Burro. Their songs are played seemingly for fun’s sake. This seems obvious, but it’s not every band’s MO. It’s easy to tell when a group plays songs regardless of audience reception–though it’s important to note that the audience certainly enjoyed themselves as much as the band did that night.

Photo by alex maness

Where the crisp trumpet of Steve Jackson was often showcased in the music of Subterranean Bums, Eating the Invaders music isn’t the same without the harmonica of David “Driveway” Moore. Rumor has it, he even snuck in a kazoo solo.

All in all, a great night accompanied by friends and acquaintances, offstage and on. And maybe a few cabaret dancers thrown in there for good measure.

Photo by Mark Smith

From the May 28th ETI set….

Marshall Owen, picking at the speed of sound.

And one shot of most of ETI….

Matty, Marshall and “Driveway” Moore belt out a chorus.

Jack Carter in a James Dean moment


Gael McKeon shines on bass.

For more of Mark’s work, check his Flickr spot

Renee Mendoza Haran fronting Filthybird.

More of Mark’s work can be found at his flickr spot.

Barry Cantrell on the mic.

See more of Mark’s work at his flickr spot.

David “Driveway” Moore harmonizes during one of Bruce’s songs.

Check out more of Mark’s work at his flickr spot.

Mark makes Jim look practically angelic in this shot; something that Jim will most likely have a good laugh about if he comes across this post.

Visit Mark’s flickr page to see more of his work.

Slim Perkins, slappin’ away at his stand up bass.

For more of Mark’s work, check out his flickr spot.