Big Old Life: Rani Arbo and Daisy Mayhem Visit the Valley

Spring is just around the corner.

I know, because Rani Arbo and Daisy Mayhem will be at the Valley Players for a Saturday night, April 5th performance.

And if you haven’t yet heard their newest CD “Big Old Life,” you’ll
feel spring blowing in on a warm musical wind by the time you leave
downtown Waitsfield this coming week-end.

Anti-Pop Strip Down: Kelly Joe Phelps' Tune-smith Retrofit
Hear more at Kelly Joe Phelps.

I was halfway through my third listen of Kelly Joe Phelps' newest musical project when it hit me.

The guy doesn't have a single repeated chorus or “hooky” moment on the entire CD.

This is news, I thought to myself. After all, we live in a “Baby, hit me one more time” era where, under the dictates of a music industry desperate to hold on to shrinking market share in the age of mp3 downloads and personalized ear buds, the goal of most every popular musician is to “cut through the clutter” in any way possible.

Wagtail's “One Clear Moment”: Two Albums in One

Listen at Wagtail' s web site.

According to percussionist Carter Stowell, it was fellow band member Kristina Stykos who coined the name “Wagtail” as a moniker for one of central Vermont's newest and most engaging acoustic foursomes. I swear there must be something magical in the drinking water out greater Montpelier way. Every time I turn around, my ears pick up the sound of something sonically good and wholesome floating across the breeze from the direction of the state capital.

So who is “Wagtail”? Longtime listeners within the central Vermont music scene probably know Stykos and Stowell (formerly with the band “Ekis”), may be familiar singer/instrumentalist George White, and are no doubt well-versed in the work of the prolific singer/fiddler Susannah Blachly. Put ‘em all together, and you've got “Wagtail” – a foursome that is really two bands ((at least) in one.

Rob's Note: Vermonters will need plenty of good music to get us through the long cold winter ahead. Lewis Franco's new CD delivers warmth, grace, and humor in equal measure, Check it out!

And trave safely this week-end.

THE REVIEW:

Not Pop Music, But “Mom and Pop” Music:
Lewis Franco's “Swinging in Daddyland”

Former Northern Power employee-turned-singer/songwriter Lewis Franco is one of Vermont's best-kept musical secrets. An understated and good-natured family man residing in the greater Montpelier area, Franco is one of the Green Mountains' most gifted musicians, a performer who is able to wrap well-crafted lyrics around catchy musical melodies, and possesses the guitar chops and musical sensibility to match.

The Chandler Music Hall in Randolph may be Vermont's coolest concert venue - the history, the intimate feel, the wonderful acoustics, the sweet little town, the great folks who run the joint - and on September 15, they're kicking off the 100th anniversary of the Chandler with a nine hour "101 Premieres" marathon performance.

Check it out here - and book your tickets now!

9-HOUR MARATHON PERFORMANCE TO KICK OFF CHANDLER CENTENNIAL SEASON

September , 2007 The anything-but-sleepy Vermont town of Randolph (pop. 5,000) will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of its beloved opera house with a rash of special events in 2007 - 2008.There will be 30 music, dance and theatre performances by noted soloists and ensembles, 8 gallery exhibitions, children's programs, the Central Vermont Chamber Music Festival, the New World Festival, the Fiddlehead Festival, and even a softball game between two deadly rivals in Randolph's cultural substratum. Arlo Guthrie will be on hand. So will Natalie MacMaster. The Chiara String Quartet, the Hilliard Ensemble and others will play new works by esteemed local composers, commissioned for the centennial.

A Declaration of Cultural Independence

By Craig Byrne

In Chelsea, Vermont we have two commons, North and South. Each mixes the old and the new. Our North Common is bounded by the church, Chelsea's twin stores, and a mix of stately and not-so stately homes. It also hosts our burgeoning farmer's market every Wednesday in the summer. Our South Common is home to the county courthouse, another mix of houses, Chelsea's public school, and the Wellspring Waldorf School, where two of my three kids are enrolled (the third is more of a mascot, at nearly age 3).

The Waldorf educational philosophy, developed by Rudolf Steiner in 1919, is nicely summed up for me in the title of a lecture given to the Chelsea community recently by Eugene Schwartz, a Waldorf teacher and consultant: “No Childhood Left Behind.” Mr. Schwartz' play on words speaks to the Waldorf belief and concern that children need time to come into the world, to unfold, and that to rush this process deprives children of a necessary process needed to thoroughly master and integrate their “heads, hearts and hands” and enter adulthood fully awake and engaged in life.

This Is Somewhere:
Under Pressure, Grace and the Nocturnals Deliver!

Find out more at the GPN web site.

THE INTERVIEW:

This past month, I conducted an “e-sit down” with all four members of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals to get their thoughts on music, life on the road, their new CD, and breaking into the big time.

Rob: Tell us about making the new CD “This Is Somewhere” – how did the process compare to making "Nothing But The Water" at the barn in Goddard a few years back?

Grace: I'd have to say that the making of NBTW and this record were about as different as any two records have ever been in terms of the process. With “Nothing But the Water,” we tracked at Goddard, in a barn in 5 days. We tracked “This Is Somewhere” in a studio next door to Alicia Keyes and it took 4 months...pretty different."

More talented young Vermonters.

Check out this "802" rap.

Good for a Friday!

Here's the YouTube link.

Life Short Call Now: Bruce Cockburn Plays Chandler!

The last time Canadian acoustic troubadour Bruce Cockburn played the Chandler, he arrived in the midst of a blinding snowstorm.

And so did local Vermonters, who came close to packing the beautiful old music hall in Randolph to catch an earful of Cockburn's tunes.

This year, with spring in the air, Vermonters again have another chance to hear the veteran performer at one of the Green Mountain state's premiere small theaters. With its sprightly acoustics and intimate live feel, Chandler is a venue made for the likes of Cockburn, one of the world's most passionate, gifted, and politically outspoken songwriters.

Good to hear that Grace Potter and the Nocturnals have emerged from winter hibernation with an almost-finished CD, to be launched in July.

Find out more here.

Here's the Nocturnal News:

Welcome to March everyone! (That's mud-season here in VT). As spring approaches, we decided its time to unveil the most recent news from our world.

Our new album, “This Is Somewhere” is almost finished! We are beginning to piece together a whopper of a tour based around our scheduled July release. If we could, we would send you all a copy right now because we are so excited about the final product. However, we still need to piece together the artwork, tour schedule, and all the other vital things that go into putting out a record. The good news is we will be in constant touch by posting new videos, songs, and other special events including the official release of the new record..