And so I found myself at the Greenwood Cemetery the other day, following Kenny Wollesen and his marching band group, The Himalayas around. And wow is that an impressive cemetery to behold, one of those attention getting everyone, or at least a lot of people who are famous, this is the place to be, see and be seen cemeteries. And that photo of of their main gate in that photo above is a most beautiful photo in all of its Gothic style. And if I remember correctly, the inscription on that gate read something like “Weep not, for we shall all rise again”. And one of their most beautiful brochures describes their cemetery as a peaceful oasis in the heart of Brooklyn, A National Historic Landmark. Come visit, stay for an eternity. And that cemetery seems almost as big as Prospect Park, that other park to be found in Park Slope in that city, borough of Brooklyn in that state of New York. And according to their map of the Green Wood Cemetery, some of those people who seem to be staying for an eternity are Jean Michel Basquiat, that way cool artist, who possibly could have been called an outsider artist goes mainstream, whose grave I was hoping to see though for some reason it did not happen on this day, Samuel Morse, telegraph inventor, “Boss” William M. Tweed, that symbol for New York politics and all of its corruption, Leonard Bernstein, whose grave was a part of this marching, singing, dancing, puppeteering tour with the Himalayas and The Puppeteers Cooperative that I found myself on, DeWitt Clinton, another person who was on this tour the other day, Peter Cooper, the founder of Cooper Union, Charles Ebbets, Owner, Brooklyn Dodgers, the Brooks Brothers and the list goes on and on. And those crypts, mausoleums and statues to be found there were some the most beautiful statues and monuments an eye could behold. And I could live in one of those mausoleums and catacombs as an apartment if they had a room for available for rent, as hey, it could give me a view of the highest point in Brooklyn with panoramic views of Manhattan, quiet neighbors, and hey, I would not even have to worry about burial when passed, as that mausoleum apartment could be that all in one final resting place. And so back to this event the other day, that event billed itself as the “Green-Wood Awakening”, Giant Puppets Tell All, with the Himalayas and puppeteers cooperative, in some super special performance of “Green-Wood Awakening”, a springtime celebration. And their giant puppets procession that led everyone around with that Himalayas marching band music, on that singing, dancing and historical tour seemed to be lots of family fun for kids and adults alike. And they brought the stories of Greenwood Cemetery to life with music and puppets. And this event seemed like one of those one of a kind events to experience indeed, as where else can one have the opportunity to visit the dead and dance on graves, maybe in New Orleans I hear. And this event cemetery rocked. Have a great grave yard day.
Category Archives: music
North Side
Hey Bloggers, and that North Side Festival is happening this year. I know because that ad I took out of this weeks Village Voice so that I can have something to blah blog about says so. And this festival is four days of music and art in Brooklyn June 11-14. And one can know the weather is getting warmer when outdoor music festivals, upon music festivals upon more music festivals arise. And so another music festival in that City of New York has arrived. And oh, you can friend them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter also if you happen to find yourself as one of those twitterholics these days and times during that web 2.0 user generated content era. And so back to that music festival again, according to this Village Voice ad, some of their performers include Sunset Rubdown, The Hold Steady, The Dodos, Bishop Allen, Brightblack, Morning Light, The Vivian Girls, O Death, and lots, lots more performing at those Brooklyn venues of Zebulon , Rose Live Music , The Knitting Factory, Black Betty, Europa, Union Pool, Glasslands , Monkeytown, Studio B, Public Assembly, Music Hall of Williamsburg, Pete’s Candy Store and more. And according to this Village Voice ad again, there will be showcases curated by Brooklyn Vegan, KEXP, Insound WFUV, French Kiss Records, Sound Fix Records, Gothamist and more. And according to that North Side Festival website, Free Williamsburg, myopenbar.com, Nublu Records, Music Snobbery, Eclipse Booking, 1928 Recordings, record labels, radio stations, independent promoters and more music musicers will be having music showcases as part of this event as well. And this festival North Side Festival Rocks. Have a great music festival day.
Make Music New York
And Make Music New York is happening again this year. I know because that email they sent titled “Make Music New York is Back, Register now to participate” or something like that says so. And according to their website, Make Music New York is described by city officials as “One of the largest musical events in the city’s history,” returns for a third year of free concerts in public spaces throughout the five boroughs of New York City, all on Sunday, June 21st the first day of summer. MMNY takes place simultaneously with similar festivities in more than 327 cities around the world, a global celebration of music making. From 11 in the morning to 10 at night, musicians of all ages,creeds, and musical persuasions, from hip hop to opera, Latin jazz to punk rock, perform on streets, sidewalks, stoops, plazas, cemeteries, parks and gardens. From high school bands to marquee names, MMNY is open to anyone who wants to take part, enjoyed by everyone who wants to attend. And so I thought to sign up again to perform No Police State Girl’s No Police State song in some garden in the East Village as part of this years event. And whether anyone will come to hear that No Police State song, who knows. And some of those other performers that are listed on the Make Music New York website so far include Bluegrass & Beyond, Harry Lime, Koby Hayon Trio, Gospel City, Mass Appeal: Free Jazz Saxophonists, Bob Wright and Harbortown, Elissa Weiss, chantilly, They Gypsy, Eula, Serge Negri, Ian Rock, Benicio and the Del Toros, Oxygen Mobile Unit, The Jazz Collective, Open Music Ensemble, an open jam with Jeffrey Cyphers Wright, Mayumi and friends Yazband, Straphangers, Iconicide, Jonathan Houghton, The High Lows, Any Day Parde, Sarah Riley, Urban Sun, Bowery Poetry Club Follies, at venues like LaGuardia Corner Gardens, Sara Roosevelt Park, Charlie Parker Residence, Staten Island Museum Courtyard, City Hall Park, Astoria Park, Flushing Farms, Central Park Great Hill, goodbye blue monday, Cafe Orwell, C-Town Food Store, Heavenly Crumbs Boutique Bakery, Aperitivo Cafe, Battery Park, Christopher Street, Bedford Avenue, Duane Park, Sheridan Square Garden, Dyker Park, Orchard Beach, Dante Park, LIttle Italy, Frederick Douglass Playground, Seward Park, Tribeca Park, pommes frites, Dias, y Flores COmmunity Garden, Punk Island, Think Coffee, Brooklyn Historical Society, Bushwick Music Studios, Bowery Poetry Club and many, many more performers and venues to come before that schedule is filled up. And this event seems to rock citywide on this day. Have a great Make Music New York day.
A Live Wired Music Event
Hey bloggers, and it’s Live Wired Music events time again. I know because that email I just received in my inbox says so. And Charles Blass and his Live Wired WKCR events seemingly have been all jazz music and beyond all the time for as far as I can remember in my Live Wired Music time. And this time his event is as follows:
artist: Melvin Gibbs’ Elevated Entity
where: Santos Party House, 96 Lafayette St., NYC
when: Friday March 20, 7PM doors
artist: Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber
where: Blue Note, 131 W. 3rd St, NYC
when: Friday March 27, late night 12:30AM
As Brooklyn-based record label LiveWired Music prepares its launch with two releases on March 17 and two more on April 21, flagship artist Melvin Gibbs is gearing up his Elevated Entity collective to storm the stage at Tribeca’s Santos Party House on Friday, March 20 to celebrate the release of Ancients Speak (March 17, LiveWired Music)–a rhythm-rich journey through what Gibbs likes to call the “Black Atlantic Continuum” that stretches from New York to Bahia to West Africa and beyond.
Featuring guest spots from guitarists Pete Cosey (ex-Miles Davis) and Blackbyrd McKnight (P-Funk), keyboardists John Medeski (MMW) and Craig Taborn (Carl Craig), and guest vocals by Antibalas frontman Amayo–among many more–Ancients Speak draws from a seething mass of musical influences. Funk, jazz, hip-hop, Brazilian candomblé and Yoruba drumming styles fuse together in a tight mosaic, with Gibbs leading the way on bass and behind the mixing board, where he’s joined by globe-trotting producer Arto Lindsay and Brazilian groove upstart Kassin. “An exciting ride,” writes Alex Henderson at All Music Guide. “[The] lack of predictability is a big part of the fun, [and] Ancients Speak is certainly a musical roller coaster.”
For his March 20 set at Santos, Gibbs will be joined by Vernon Reid (guitar), Amayo (vocals), Kid Lucky (vox, rhymes and human beatbox), DJ Logic (turntables), Casey Benjamin (sax/keyboards), JT Lewis (drums) and some very special guests.
DJ Lovolution will be on the decks when doors open at 7PM. Tickets can be purchased in advance for $15 at www.santospartyhouse.com. Do yourself a favor and catch this Elevated Entity live–you’ll be levitating for weeks afterward.
For an advance taste of MG and EE, check out “Audio Gumbo” on WKCR-FM in New York City (89.9FM and wkcr.org) between 1 and 5AM early on Thursday March 19. The show will feature special guests Melvin Gibbs, JT Lewis and Kid Lucky.
Flashing ahead a bit, across town the following Friday, Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber will take over the Blue Note as part of the legendary jazz club’s Late Night Groove Series. Burnt Sugar are celebrating their tenth anniversary as a solid fixture on New York’s downtown avant garde scene, and their latest album Making Love to the Dark Ages (March 17, LiveWired Music) is their first full-length studio recording in five years. The major jazz press have already weighed in on Making Love, with DownBeat magazine describing the album as “fluid, funk-fortified music”–a state of being no doubt bolstered by the presence of such heavies as Bruce Mack (synthesizers), Vijay Iyer (piano) and Vernon Reid (guitar) on several of the album’s key tracks.
Founded by conductor, producer, musician and Village Voice icon Greg Tate, Burnt Sugar is a sprawling band of musicians whose prodigious chops cover a wide swath of the experimental soul-jazz spectrum. Anchored by Jared Michael Nickerson (bass), the live version of the group can feature as many as 22 players at any one time, but the stalwarts tend to include Justice Dilla-X (vocals), Mikel Banks (on freak-a-phone), André Lassalle (guitar), Ben Tyree (guitar), Avram Fefer (sax), “Moist” Paula Henderson (baritone sax) and Trevor Holder (drums) as well as singers Lisala and Maya Azucena.
Burnt Sugar will hit the Blue Note stage late night at 12:30AM on Friday, March 27 (which is actually Saturday morning–we know). Tickets are $8 at the door. You’ve been warned.
And these events rock. Have a great Live Wired Music day.
SXSW 2009
Hey bloggers, and that SXSW Music and Media Conference is happening again this year in Austin, Texas. I know because all of those ads in the newspapers, and that guy from the was it the Enroachment marching band who was going there says so. And that is an annual event, as I think I found myself blaghing about this event last year on this blog. And in case you may be wondering what SXSW means, I think it means South by Southwest. And that South by Southwest 2009 festival of music, film, conferences and everything else in between is near And from what I remember, this is one of those end all to be alls in the music scene, I think. And there are seemingly bazillions of participants in this yearly event. And some of this years bands, showcasing artists and performers from that SXSW Festival lineup are Quincy Jones,Abalone Dots, Abe Vigoda,Absinthe Minds, Abstract Rude, ABSU, Ace Enders, A Classic Education,Act Of Congress, A Day To Remember,Afghan Raiders,Afrikan Boy,Afrodita, Afterhours,The Aimless Never Miss, The Airborne Toxic Event, Air Waves,Alash, Alaska in Winter, Alberta Cross, Alesana, Alexandre Grooves, Bishop Allen, All Get Out, Allison, All the Saints,All Tiny Creatures, Dave Alvin, Amazing Baby, Amplified Heat,AmpLive, Anathallo, Ancestors, Anchorsong, Drew Andrews, Kyle Andrews, Amy Annelle, Asakusa Jinta, Greg Ashley Band, Ashu, Mark David Ashworth, Melissa Auf der Maur, Baby Robots, Backseat Goodbye, Mike Badger,Sam Baker,Balaclavas, Balmorhea,Banda de Turistas, The Band of Brotherz, The Band of Heathens, The Baptist Generals, Jill Barber, The Beat Poets,Marco Benevento Trio,Chris Bergson,The Besties,Diane Birch,Andrew Bird,Martina Topley Bird, The Cringe, Laura Critchley, Alela, Doctor Krapula, Julie Doiron, Val Emmich, Empire Isis, The Ettes, The Felice Brothers, Felix Cartal, Douglas Ferguson, Ferraby Lionheart, Ron Flynt, Fol Chen, David Fonseca, Fool’s Gold, Foot Patrol and the rest of the alphabet of performers more. And so it is yet another year in the seasons and cycles of change. And this music festival rocks.
Sounds Like Brooklyn
And that BAM Sounds Like Brooklyn Festival must be happening soon. I know because those updates on my MySpace page that I just noticed some time a while ago says so. And judging by the title of that headline, I gather that festival must be somewhere in Brooklyn in that city of New York. And according to their website, it is. As that MySpace update says that Baye Kouyate is playing at the jazz club, or club Zebulon in Brooklyn as part of this BAM Festival. And that 2009 Festival February 6 through the 14th is 100 and more bands and shows, 13 venues and two weeks. And sure enough that BAM Sounds Like Brooklyn Festival website says more people are playing as part of this festival with participating artists that include Analogue Transit, Beirut, Kaki King, ava luna, The Harlem Shakes, Jon Bibbs, Rose Ellen, Scary Mansion, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Superhuman Happiness, Tracy Bonham and more. And those artists are playing at those venues throughout Brooklyn at Solomon’s Porch, Sputnik, Goodbye Blue Monday, Monkey Town, Bodega, Union Hall, Southpaw, Pete’s Candy Store and more. And this festival rocks. Have a great music festival day.
Live Wired Music
And there is a music event with Live Wired Music happening tomorrow. I know because that email I received from Charles Blass and Colin Faber says so. And from what I recall, Live Wired is all jazz, funk, and WKCR, all music all the time, maybe. And this event is also part of the Winter Jazz Fest, a jazz festival that takes place during the winter at different music venues I guess. And some of those featured artists participating in this event are Burnt Sugar The Arkestra Chamber,Greg Tate, Lisala, Karma Mayet Johnson, Maya Acuzena, Justice Dilla X, Mikel Banks, Lewis Barnes Jr., Micah Gaugh, Avram Fefer, Paula Henderson,Josh Sinton, Dave Smith, W. Myles Reilly, Bruce Mack, Ben Tyree, Asim Barnes, Andre Lassalle, Rene Akan, Mazz Swift, Will Martina, Jason DiMatteo, Jared Michael Nickerson, Trevor Holder, Aaron Parks, Ayelet Rose Gottlieb, Rashied Ali, Charles Gayle, SoCalled, Nation Beat, Melvin Gibbs, Grupo Fantasma,Sexmob, Theo Bleckman, Gary Bartz, Jacob Fred,Jonathan Batiste, Lafayette Gilchrist, Marco Benevento, Robert Glasper, Sarah Morrow, William Parker, Toshi Reagon, Will Calhoun, Claudia Acuna, Dafnis Prietoand more. And this event jazz festival rocks. Have a great music day.
This Hit
Hey Bloggers, in case you happen to be interested, you can now buy Martin at the Sands Budget-priced 1996 box set on Disky featuring 48 of Dino’s best hits for Capitol that includes: ‘That’s Amore’, ‘Volare’, ‘Return To Me’, ‘Cha Cha Cha d’Amour’, ‘Young And Foolish’, ‘Memories Are Made Of This’ and ‘Dream A Little Dream Of Me’. And from what I remember from watching television and listening to the radio, Dean Martin is one of those performance artists with great music.
Nonsense NYC
Hey Bloggers, and it’s events time again. And usually it’s events time again because hey, it’s less writing sometimes when I am trying to figure out what to blah blog about in my blogaholicness on this blog. And I received another one of those Jeff Stark nonsense nyc emails the other day, this really cool event list that seems to be all events in that City of New York all the time. And so one of their weekly events that they have listed for this week seems really cool if you happen to be in the neighborhood, is that:
ABC No Rio Gala Benefit at Angel Orensanz Foundation for the Arts
Join us for cocktails, buffet, burlesque performances, brilliant conversation and spirited bidding in the art auction.
Master of Ceremonies: Reverend Jen. Performance: Hungry March Band, Aurora Boob Realis, Boobie von Trapp, and Jezebel Express.
Auction: Bullet Space, Kathe Burkhart, Michael Cataldi, Mel Chin, Maureen Connor, Martha Cooper, Linus Coraggio, Molly Crabapple, Peggy Cyphers, Bill Daniel, Arnon Ben David, Mike Estabrook, Robert Flynt, Chitra Ganesh, Brian George, Judy Glantzman, Mike Glier, Robert Goldman, Mimi Gross, Hans Haacke, Julie Hair, Jacob Hashimoto, Geoffrey Hendricks, International Graffiti Times, Vandana Jain, Fawad Khan, Barney Kulok, Lady Pink, Anne Arden McDonald, Joseph Nechvatal, Shirin Neshat, Nils Norman, Claes Oldenburg, Alice O’Malley, Tom Otterness, Trevor Paglen, Francis Palazzolo, Anton Perich, Judy Pfaff, Kembra Pfahler, James Romberger, Christy Rupp, Kelly Savage, Kristen Schiele, David Schmidlapp, Andres Serrano, Greg Sholette, Kiki Smith, Chris Stain, Swoon, Seth Tobocman, Marguerite Van Cook, Anton van Dalen, Tom Warren and Lawrence Weiner.
And this event rocks. Have a great art and music day.
The Drumadics
And somehow I found myself commenting today on the Drumadics page “Hey Drumadics, I’ll be playing buckets today at 42nd Street Times Square if you want to come by and check me out”, as if it is some sort of New York City subway musician battle of the bucket bands or something. Though I really do not think I will be playing buckets today at 42nd Street times Square. And that CMJ Music Festival must be happening soon. I know because The Village Voice , New York Press , L Magazine and a bunch of other publications says so. And as usual this CMJ music event seems as if it is the end all to be all of the music world when it comes to all indie rock music and more. And some of the scheduled performers for this years CMJ Music Marathon are:
A Place To Bury Strangers, Beach House, Broken Social Scene, Cool Kids, Crystal Castles, Del McCoury Band, Deerhoof, Donavon Frankenreiter, Gang Gang Dance, Jay Reatard, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Lykke Li, Minus The Bear, Roisin Murphy, The Dears and Yo Majesty,Aggrolites,Akimbo,Al James The Unfazed, Al James the Unfazed and Tenlons Fort,The Albertans, Alex Diaz y Son de la Calle,Alex English,Alex English,Ali Eskandarian,Ali Vegas,Alina Simone, All The Saints, The Alright Ma’s, Amanda Diva,Amazing Baby, Ambulance LTD,America’s Sweetheart,The Amity Front, Amy Miles, An Albatross,An American Chinese, An Horse, Andrea Gibson, Andrew Collberg,Andrew Gerardi Band, Andrew Gibson, Andrew Hoover,Ane Brun,Animal Farm, Animal Hands,Animate Objects, Annie Lynch and the Beekeepers, Annuals, Another Black Day,The Answer, Anthony Green,Apollo Heights, Apollo Run, Arabian Prince,Arbouretum,Ari Gold,Arkadelphia, The Arms,Army Navy,Article A, Arum Rae, The Awkward Stage, Ayurveda, Backseat Goodbye, Bamboo Shoots,Barton Carroll, Battle Circus, Bazaar Royale,Beach House, Bear Hands, Bear In Heaven, Bearsuit, Bel Air,Bell, The Belleville Outfit, Ben Arnold, Ben Burgess Band, Ben Carroll, Ben Weaver, Benji Cossa, Best Friends Forever, Best Fwends, Beyondo, Bill Mike Band,Bird To Prey,Bird To Prey,Birds of Maya,Black Clouds,The Blizzards,The Blooms, Blue Album Group, The Blue Van,Boat People,Bodega Girls, Bonne Aparte,The Bowmans,The Box Social,Bret Mosley,Broken Social Scene,The Bronx,The Bronzed Chorus,Brooke Waggoner,Caitlin Moe,Cale Parks, California King,Cameron Matthews,Canada, Canasta,The Canon Logic,Carcrashlander,Carlon,Carlotta,Carolyn Alroy, The Carps, The Carribean,Casiokids,The Cassidy Project and just way too many more in the alphabet to mention. And this festival rocks. Have a great music day.
No Police State 