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Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Chad Radford and WMLB-AM’s Max Arbes chatting about Destroyer, Jay Reatard and Earth — all playing in Atlanta this week.
Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.
Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Rodney Carmichael and WMLB-AM’s Max Arbes discussing the Darfur Now College Tour. Fri., April 25. Free. Screening: 7-9 p.m. Goizueta Business School; Concert: Anthony David, DJ Drama, Janelle Monáe and Novel. 9:30 p.m. Glen Memorial, Emory Univeristy, 1300 Clifton Road. www.darfurnowtour.com/tour/atlanta.
Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.
Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Rodney Carmichael and WMLB-AM’s Max Arbes discussing this year’s music issue — dropping today!
Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.
Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Chad Radford and WMLB-AM’s Max Arbes chatting about Nick Lowe who will playing at the Variety Playhouse tonight. $25. 8 p.m. Variety Playhouse, 1099 Euclid Ave. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com.
Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.
Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Chad Radford and WMLB-AM’s Max Arbes discussing NY transplants Baby Shakes.
Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.
Janelle Monáe is almost finished limbering up in Studio 1 on the first floor of the Atlanta Ballet’s building on West Peachtree, doing her stretches in black leotard and black-and-white floral-print skirt. She has the figure of a ballerina, with a face of brown porcelain and her trademark hair pulled back in a bun.
But this is a world alien to even the interstellar-inspired Monáe. She’s no ballet dancer; she’s a pixie-sized, big-voiced singer from the world of OutKast’s hip-hop and soul. Monáe stares into a wall-to-wall mirror, her reflection moving not to a selection of Tchaikovsky or Prokofiev, but her own song, “Sincerely Jane.”
It’s one of about 10 contemporary songs that will intersect with orchestral music for big, an unprecedented ballet and hip-hop collaboration this weekend between the Atlanta Ballet and OutKast’s Big Boi. In addition to the hip-hop star, artists associated with his Purple Ribbon Entertainment group will perform. Monáe’s the only one who’s actually dancing in the production as well as singing in one of the numbers, so it’s important to nail this down as precisely as possible.
As part of this week’s cover story on the Atlanta Ballet’s collaboration with Big Boi, David Lee Simmons spoke with Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls, a group that had previously worked with the Ballet for Shed your skin.
Read the full cover feature here.
Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Chad Radford and WMLB-AM’s Max Arbes talking about the music scene for the weekend.
Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.
Here is today’s Air Loaf featuring CL’s own Ken Edelstein and Rodney Carmichael chatting about local musician Algebra Bassett. Check her out live at Center Stage Sat., April 12. 7:00 p.m. $30. 404-885-1365. www.centerstage-atlanta.com.
Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.
In Rock On, Kennedy makes the office fun again via describing the strange things going on around him, and inside his own head while working in the music industry.
What were you hoping your book conveyed about the corporate world?
I really attempted to write humorously and with a fair heart about navigating through those little deals with ourselves as we move into adulthood. You start out saying you aren’t going to change and you are going to keep it real. The first job you get you’re like, “OK, I’m going to keep it real but they do want me to wear sweaters and button-up shirts.” It isn’t an easy transition to navigate for any of us coming from an idealist everyday life. You have to figure out how much of yourself do you set aside so you can fit into this corporate structure to succeed. It isn’t an easy thing and I hope I didn’t make it look like anyone who tries seems like a jerk, because I was right there wearing the Prada shoes going, “Yes, I think this makes me look like a sensible adult.”
Abi Berwager speaks with Dan Kennedy
No one knows if Bean Summer’s five-day music festival at Lenny’s is “Beanstock” or “Beanstalk.” It appears differently on every flier. “Spelling is a cheap trick used by the upper classes,” Bean laughs from his downtown art studio. “I have dyslexia, so to me both are correct.”
He’s a slapdash, working-class artist who explores a universe of sound using electronic toys as instruments in the band Toy Party Attack. At any Lenny’s show he can be seen navigating the room, PBR in hand. He stops for a quick greeting before moving on to business. Even at his 29th birthday party at the Drunken Unicorn last Monday, he made a brief appearance before heading back to Lenny’s by 10 p.m.
Read the rest of the feature here.
CL Music Editor Rodney Carmichael speaks with Bean from Toy Party Attack – Download.
Photo by Chad Radford
The queen of drag finally comes full circle – once a hopeful young gay man looking for acceptance, now a returning heroine – on his trip back to Atlanta for the Out on Film premiere of his first self-written and self-produced feature film, Starrbooty.
From his early days as a singer on Atlanta Public Access TV’s “American Music Show” to his transition into the most popular drag queen in the world, RuPaul Charles has always had his sights set on superstardom. Originally from San Diego, he relocated to Atlanta in 1976 and entered Northside School for the Performing Arts. It was an environment that catered to creative misfits and provided both a meeting place and a training ground for the youthful artist. A chance discovery of the “American Music Show,” with its campy drag and irreverent humor, enticed RuPaul to venture into Midtown and explore the burgeoning art and music scene.
In a recent phone interview, RuPaul recalls his early encounters with Dick Richards and James Bond, who produced the show. “That’s where I really got my start. [The show was] like my grandpa and grandma’s house, and it always felt safe there. It was college for me.” The “American Music Show” introduced RuPaul to a fascinating group of like-minded people, and opened a new world to him.
James Kelly speaks with RuPaul – Download.
You may never get to hear what Stat Quo sounds like. For the past two years, the Atlanta rapper’s debut album Statlanta has suffered a series of delays. As of this writing, it was pushed back again from its scheduled Tues., Aug. 28, premiere to sometime in October.
The reason for the delay is that Stat Quo is signed to Aftermath, the storied imprint of hip-hop icon Dr. Dre, and Shady Records, superstar rapper Eminem’s label. (The two companies are housed under Interscope.) Despite having so much industry muscle behind him, Stat has to wait for the proper “setup,” a quixotic mix of underground buzz singles and street promotion that will create the right conditions for a successful release. Right now the label hopes that “G.R.I.T.S. (Girls Raised in the South),” a piano-driven “love” joint, will set things off.
Stat Quo made the press rounds in May in anticipation of the now-passed Aug. 28 release date. When he walked into the Varsity, one of the tellers immediately recognized him. Soon other tellers came from behind the counter and swarmed Stat, asking to take their picture with him. Stat Quo may never get a chance to put out an album and show the world what he can do, but he’s already got plenty of hometown love.
CL staff writer Mosi Reeves and local rapper Stat Quo discuss the artist’s album, among other things, over a basket of onion rings at The Varsity – Download.
Photo by Raquel Olivo
Podcast produced by Alejandro Leal
It’s one of those perfect summer nights: clear and crisp, almost chilly from the afternoon rain and brimming with anticipation. Outside a courtyard just off the Decatur Square, a line of latecomers extends toward the parking lot. They’re waiting to get in. On the other side of the courtyard wall, a few hundred people — mostly twentysomethings, the trendy, pretty types — have congregated on the patio, abuzz with $6 cocktails and pitchers of cheap beer. Inside the darkened club, a dance party is just getting going. Though it’s 2 a.m., there’s a feeling the night is still young.
To read the rest of the story, click here.
Mara Shalhoup interviews DJ Preston Craig – Download.
Photo by Joeff Davis.
Join CL for a very special “Unplugged” performance by country singer Bill Gentry & the 35 Cent Rodeo. Hosted by CL Music Editor Rodney Carmichael, the show includes Gentry’s brother, and CL Senior Editor Scott Freeman, sitting in on guitar. Freeman’s cover story on his brother traces Gentry’s journey from country music newcomer to building Wild Bill’s in Gwinnett County to being on the cusp of getting signed in Nashville.
Bill Gentry performs at CL’s offices – Download.
Photo by Edward Adams / Podcast produced by Edward Adams
Marietta’s Jason “Lefty†Williams never let being born without a right hand hold him back from playing guitar. Performing full-time professionally for two years, he strives for big jazz chords, deep lyrics and danceable grooves with blues and funk orientations.
Before he was old enough for grade school, Williams developed a unique way to play the guitar: “I tore apart one of my prosthetic arms and made my first pick out of the prosthetic arm.
“For me it’s really not about getting famous; I’m happy as long as I get to play my guitar and I can pay my bills. I love playing music, and it wouldn’t matter if there were five people in front of me or 1,000 people in front of me.â€
He gives his band, known (go figure) as the Lefty Williams Band, credit for polishing his original songs: “They take it and make it cool.†Casual Fiasco and Diesel Jones open for the Lefty Williams Band this Friday, June 22, at Smith’s Olde Bar. Doors open at 8 p.m.
(Photo by Joeff Davis)
For a podcast with Lefty Williams, click below. Pictures of Lefty performing at CL’s offices after the jump.
Katrina’s winds blew through New Orleans pianist Jon Cleary’s upper Ninth Ward home, causing roof damage and sending him out on what seemed like an endless tour as Bonnie Raitt’s keyboardist in promotion of her latest CD. So Cleary has been struggling to focus on his work with his own band, the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, hence this four-song EP release he tossed out to fans at Jazz Fest to keep them sated until he can focus on a full-length CD. The songs included here once again show that Cleary is a master of reinterpreting ’70s music through a decidedly funky filter. His cover of Free’s 1970 classic, “All Right Now,” is loaded down with mixes of acoustic-piano barrel-house fills. Another ’70s gem, the Detroit Emeralds’ “Feel the Need in Me,” shows Cleary at his more typical soul-man groove as he twinkles the electric piano that marks his more R&B-fueled work. If these are “sketches,” as Cleary promises in the liner note, I can’t wait for the fleshed-out stuff. 3 stars
David Lee Simmons speaks with Jon Cleary – Download
Podcast produced by Alejandro Leal
People who know Heston call him the gentle giant. He’s the big dude with the voice of an angel. And his June full-length debut, Storyteller, has been a long time coming. The Island of Dominica (British West Indies) native doesn’t fit into the standard soul singer/songwriter box that has birthed many of Atlanta’s recent greats. Instead, he peppers his emotional soul with tinges of reggae and world beat. It all adds up to diverse mix from a heartfelt performer. To hear a taste of his acoustic set, listen to a podcast of his visit to Creative Loafing, which features Billy Odom backing him on guitar.
Photo by Edward Adams
MySpace: Hestonmusic
Podcast produced by Edward Adams
Isia Cooper, live at CL’s offices – Download
Although Isia Cooper has been playing guitar for only two-and-a-half years, the grace of her slow croon and spacious strumming has enchanted a growing scene around her performances. Her debut CD, Sail the Skin (New Street Records) is due out in June. Her collaboration with Duet for Theremin and Lap Steel on www.myspace.com/isiacooper, called “For My Tea,” is an arresting merger of her brittle songwriting and the avant-garde.
Read the rest of the Music Issue 2007 here.
Photo by Alejandro Leal -Â podcast produced by Edward Adams
Juju B. Solomon live at CL’s offices – Download.
To truly grasp Juju B. Solomon’s songs, one must first understand the songwriter Benjamin Solomon and the cultural short-circuits that congeal in his contemplative sound – a sound that shadows the whimsical lurch of traditional folk music. His self-titled debut (New Street Records) is an intimate collection of jaunts that chronicle the experiences of an outsider by bearing witness to social and sexual interactions in India.
Read the rest of the story here.
Photo by Meshakai Wolf – podcast produced by Edward Adams
