Podcast: Album releases 6/28/2011
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____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Vince Morris enjoys coming to Bloomington. So much, in fact, that he proposed a new motto for the city.“Your signs should say ‘Bloomington: Absolutely nothing to do with Indiana,’” Morris said, a suggestion the crowd lauded with applause.Morris said he couldn’t remember whether he’d been to the city three or four times — “Call it three and a half,” he said — but he was greeted by an enthusiastic audience that treated him like this was his home.“I like this crowd, this is a hip crowd,” Morris said after firing off a series of jokes about punishing 8-year-olds with a trip to the electric chair. He then mocked earlier audiences for not approving of the joke: “I’m sorry honey, but that man is talking about killing children!”Saturday’s late show was a display of mutual appreciation. While the crowd howled, applauded and egged on Morris, he returned the favor with a healthy dose of banter and compliments.“It’s a really receptive crowd, one of the hippest crowds. They get nuance and subtlety,” he said after the show. “I don’t have to explain any of the jokes, you know what I mean? It’s refreshing, and it throws you off sometimes not having to do that.”Maybe the show’s biggest moment came during a segment about daughters. Morris asked two fathers in the audience for their daughters’ names, and after it was learned both names began with “K,” he quickly spat: “One more ‘K’ and y’all can go to Martinsville.”It was truly a showstopper, with applause loud enough for the act to be over and a din of laughter that made it difficult to hear Morris say, “God dammit that was a good one. I need someone else’s hand to pat me on the back.”There were certainly a lot of those after the show, as at least half of the audience stopped by to talk to Morris following the performance. Travis Heine and Mike Getz, musicians from Indianapolis, thanked him for the set and agreed it was a great show.“I thought he was packed with energy. His facial expressions, movement, everything,” Heine said. “Even his off-color jokes were smart and really well done.”Getz agreed, saying it was their first live standup experience and they were not disappointed.Morris said his time in Bloomington was equally well-spent.“You know this place is a real comedy club,” he said. “It’s one of the few comedy clubs where you can perform comedy as an art form and they still get it.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>While most parts of the IU campus slow to a crawl during the summertime, the Jacobs School of Music kicked off a packed summer schedule this week.“We only know one way to go and that’s full speed. Bloomington has such an enthusiastic arts community of people who come to our shows,” said Tom Wieligman, the executive administrator of instrumental ensembles.The Jacobs’ summer music schedule began on June 20 and will last until August 12. It includes more than 30 different concerts featuring a variety of performances, from the intimate sounds of chamber music to larger, powerful percussion ensembles.“I try to bring people together from our faculty and people who have been associated with IU,” said Mimi Zweig, the director of the string ensemble and coordinator of the chamber music series.The biggest star of the summer schedule is Joshua Bell, a Jacobs School alumnus and Grammy Award-winning violinist considered one of the best in the world. Bell was also born and raised in Bloomington.“I don’t like to name drop, but it certainly starts with Joshua Bell,” Wieligman said. “There aren’t many places that can even get him, and there’s only one place that he can call home. That sets the bar very high.”Aside from Bell, most of the performers are part of the staff at Jacobs, but that doesn’t mean viewers won’t be getting a world class performance.“These are names that are at the top of anyone’s list for these types of summer festivals, and we have them right here,” Wieligman said.There are also workshops running concurrently with the concert schedule. Edward Auer, a music professor in the piano department, is the director of this year’s piano workshop. He will be performing works of Beethoven with his wife in one of the concert performances.“While the program is performance-oriented, its number one focus is education,” Auer said.The level of education the Jacobs School can provide is well-known; a similar level of quality is found in the caliber of the summer performances.“It’s quite magnificent, especially when you include all the other disciplines included in the festival,” Zweig said. “People spend parts of their summer here because of it.”Wieligman echoed her sentiments.“It’s such a great place to live or visit,” he said. “To hear these kinds of performances in this small of a place doesn’t happen anywhere else in the world.”Event listing: Mehnahem Pressler & friends8 p.m. ThursdayAuer Hall$10 general, $5 studentsFestival Orchestra feat. Joshua Bell, violin8 p.m. July 1IU Auditorium$8 student, $15 generalEdward Auer & Junghwa Moon Auer8 p.m. August 2Auer HallFree
Host Adam Lukach kicks off the first ever Arts section podcast by welcoming TV Surveillance's Cory Barker as they heap more insults and collectively laugh at the mess of television that was season one of "The Killing"
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Hai “Howie” Yu was sentenced to five years in prison and one year of probation after pleading guilty to sexual battery and criminal confinement. He will spend 10 years on the sexual offenders registry after his release from prison. In May 2010, Yu was captured on video dragging a mostly naked, highly intoxicated woman into and out of the laundry room at Foster Magee. When asked by witnesses if the victim needed help, Yu claimed that she was okay and that she was a friend of his. The two had met at a party that night. Yu could be seen on video surveillance dragging the victim’s unconscious body into the laundry room. He later dragged her out and left her on the ground outside, mostly naked. Black lace underwear belonging to the victim were found nearby. The victim suffered numerous injuries, including bite marks on her back, thumbprints on her shoulders and thighs and bruises on her genitalia. She was treated for hypothermia at the hospital. “I have been in this business a long time, but I have rarely seen things this shocking,” Monroe County Circuit Judge Teresa Harper said. During the first hearing, IU Police Department Sgt. Leslie Slone gave a minute-by-minute run-down of the video surveillance as the judge watched it on the prosecution’s laptop. While Sgt. Slone was showing the video footage to Judge Harper, Harper at one point gasped at the images being depicted on the tape. This was when Sgt. Slone indicated that the victim was being dragged outside mostly naked. Only the judge, the prosecuting attorneys, the defense attorney and Sgt. Slone could see the video. During the first of two sentencing hearings, Yu and his mother both offered direct apologies to the victim. Howie Yu, while looking directly at the victim, said, “I hope you can get over this and move on and live your life to the fullest. I sincerely apologize. I can’t believe you’re going through this because of me.”The victim explained during the first hearing that the incident had changed her relationship with her friends and negatively impacted her relationship with her parents. “Honestly, they think it’s my fault because I drank. The fact that I had drank should never give someone the power to make a decision for me,” she said as she fought back tears. Her parents did not attend the hearing.After the sentence was announced, Yu’s attorney, Joseph Lozano, said it would be disingenuous to complain that the ruling was unfair, especially considering Yu faced the possibility of 40 years at one point during the trial. He also said he wasn’t sure about an appeal right now but said “Judge Harper obviously very carefully considered her decision.”Monroe County deputy prosecutor Rebecca Veidlinger said the prosecution was satisfied with the outcome, which was almost exactly in line with what the victim and state requested.“By getting a guilty plea, we can hold the perpetrator accountable for these actions,” Veidinger said. “It shows that, as a community, we will not accept this behavior and it’s worthwhile for victims to report these cases. The outcome can have a big benefit.”— Zach Ammerman contributed to this report
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The sky looked bad for most of the day and the radar looked even worse. But Saturday, for some reason, it refused to rain.This lack of precipitation helped make for a crowded Taste of Bloomington during the course of the festival’s eight hours. Many booths ran out of items by 8 p.m., but that didn’t deter the crowds.“The radar looked pretty bad. We had some phone calls from restaurants asking about cancellations,” Ron Stanhouse, the festival’s co-director, said.After record-setting attendance last year, the 2011 edition was even larger. Stanhouse said indications were that about 25 percent more people made their way to Showers Common Plaza this year. It was the first time the festival has been there, which Stanhouse said he thinks helped make for many first-time visitors as well.“We had a number of people tell us it was their first time attending. I think the country stage had a lot to do with that,” he said.The Hoosier Country 105 stage, another new part of the Taste, featured three local acts and also big-label talent Josh Kelley. Stanhouse said it spoke, in part, to the popularity of country music. Alex Giesick, a 2011 IU graduate, didn’t watch the country stage but said it was his first time attending the festival. He came to get Short Stop barbecue.“The food was good. It was kind of crowded and hectic, but that wasn’t a big deal with all the different vendors and stuff going on,” he said.Aside from the country stage, there was also the main stage that crowds in the area loved. Hairbanger’s Ball, an ’80s cover band, had both teenagers and adults visibly rocking, and The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band came on later to close out the festival with more than enough energy to match the crowd.“Josh Kelley is a national act, the highest caliber of entertainment,” Stanhouse said. “But I mean, Reverend Peyton puts on a great act. Those guys were incredible. And Hairbanger’s Ball was dead-on too. Everyone was so into it.”While anyone older than 10 danced to the music, the youngest attendees walked around with faces painted and enjoyed an expanded children’s area. There was definitely something for everyone, and even the vendors enjoyed the atmosphere.“I just thought it was great to have such musical diversity,” Karen Blann said. Blann is banquets coordinator for Chapman’s Restaurant and Bar, which had a booth right by the country stage. Chapman’s stand also took home second place in a contest for best decorated booth.“We hadn’t been in a few years, but we were really busy and had a great time.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Hai “Howie” Yu didn’t say much at his sentencing Friday, just a few words to his lawyer, Joseph Lozano. The surveillance video from March 11, 2010, that recorded him dragging the half-clothed, fully-unconscious victim out of the Foster dormitory spoke loudly enough.Calling the video “shocking to the conscience,” Monroe County Circuit Judge Teresa Harper sentenced Yu to up to five years in prison with one year suspended probation. Yu had previously pleaded guilty to counts of criminal confinement and sexual battery for the incident.The victim was transported after being found outside Foster Magee by IUPD at 3:27 a.m. that morning. According to hospital records, the victim had a blood alcohol level of 0.4.“I have been in this business a long time, but I have rarely seen things this shocking,” Harper said referring to the images she had seen on the video.Friday’s sentencing began late. Both Yu and the victim were in attendance, but neither took the stand.The victim sat in the public area of the courtroom with a friend who consoled and held her for much of the sentencing. She fought back tears at points and quickly left once the hearing was adjourned.“The incredible courage of this victim to provide the information that she did made this outcome a possibility,” Monroe County deputy prosecutor Rebecca Veidlinger said. Veidlinger argued in favor of aggravating the charges of criminal confinement, based on the bruising that was found on the victim when she was examined. Among the mitigating factors presented on Yu’s behalf were documents indicating both academic and voluntary integrity, along with a letter from an Ivy Tech professor recommending his leadership. In the end, it was the video that was the determining factor.“She was obviously unconscious, and you waved off assistance for her, indicated that you were her friend and that you would take care of her,” Harper said.Yu will also spend 10 years as a registered sex offender following his release from prison. During that time he will be required to undergo therapy, along with a list of other requirements and prohibitions.Lozano said it would be disingenuous to complain that the ruling was unfair, especially considering that Yu faced the possibility of 40 years at one point during the trial. He also said he wasn’t sure about an appeal right now, but noted that “ Harper obviously very carefully considered her decision.”Veidlinger said the prosecution was very satisfied with the outcome, which was almost exactly in line with what both the victim and state had requested.“By getting a guilty plea, we can hold the perpetrator accountable for these actions,” she said. “It shows that as a community we will not accept this behavior and it’s worthwhile for victims to report these cases. The outcome can have a big benefit.”Just before the sentence was read, the recorder stopped working, causing several minutes of silence in the room. The only noise came from Yu’s mother, crying in one corner of the room.“I told him the same thing, no matter what happens, no emotion. No emotional outbursts,” Lozano said referring to his advice given to both Yu and his mother.Still crying softly, she held a pen in her hand, breaking it into pieces as more of the verdict was read aloud by Judge Harper.With his 449 days of home detention plus the number of days he had already served in jail when he was originally arrested, both Veidlinger and Lozano said his sentence could be end up being reduced to around two years.“Obviously the judge found some mitigaters, but there was one big aggravator and that’s the nature and circumstances of any case,” Lozano said. “If you’ve seen the video, it speaks for itself.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>More than any other band in recent memory, Cults embodies what can happen when the immediacy and interconnectedness of the music blogosphere perfectly align. Just a couple weeks after posting a whopping three songs to their Bandcamp site, couple Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin found their music moniker turning up all over teh interwebz. Even though the music was a hit, everyone was asking the same question: Who the hell is Cults?The answer starts with some expertly crafted pop music and ends rather abruptly. With a name that’s impossibly difficult to Google, the two maintained a low profile after their accidental rise to fame, waiting to release their debut despite its completion. The eponymous LP is mesmerizing, spanning multiple eras of influence (both 60s and 80s pop) and an everything-in-motion fluidity that sounds almost too easy for two (now former) NYU film students.While it’s certainly catchy, “catchy” pop is cheap and easy. Cults’ particular brand sounds much more charming and often uses exclamation points, like colorful vibraphone percussion or grungy guitar, to cap off their songs. “Go Outside,” the first single that caught music’s collective eye, enchants with a bell line that imitates Follin’s long, arcing vocal melody and keeps the song from ever dragging.Most of the tracks are overcast with reverb and some feature whispering samples of cult leaders like Jim Jones giving speeches. The linchpin of it all, though, is Follin’s voice, deftly capable of juxtaposing soft and sweet or defiant and desperate. The latter presents itself the moment she belts out the first notes of the opener “Abducted” and is assisted by the immediacy of Phil Spector-style production. They enlisted the help of Shane Stoneback of Sleigh Bells fame, if that’s any indicator.Follin and Oblivion do tone it down at times, like on the slower, Supremes-esque “You Know What I Mean” or their make-up/break-up dialogue on “Bumper,” which are their most outright throwback moments. The duo is at their best when keenly optimistic, aided by brilliant melodies like “Oh My God,” no doubt the album’s best track, drenched in reverb and lo-fi sheen.Cults relishes mystery and intrigue, it’s why the LP rejects the inside in favor of the outside, ditching confinement for discovery and liberation. The concept is timeless and, in this case, a wonderfully presented idea that empowers and inspires listeners with deceivingly complex melodies and an unrelenting charm.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Touring is never an easy proposition. It’s long nights followed by longer days and a lot of waking up to unfamiliar surroundings. But it’s even more difficult when you’re a musician and you don’t have instruments. Allo Darlin’ came to The Bishop on Tuesday night with a full band but lacking those musical means.“We’re in a position where we can’t afford a van and stuff to haul around here for four weeks,” bassist Bill Botting said. “We’ve been asking other bands to borrow, not as bad tonight though, we really had a lot of help.”Thanks to show promoter Dan Coleman and Tim Smiley,the sound guy at the Bishop, the group quickly rounded up a few instruments from Russian Recording studios courtesy of Pete Schreiner.“They were actually in the middle of recording the Calumet Reel at the time,” Coleman said. “So I just borrowed whatever wasn’t being used.” They at least worked well enough to play the group’s laid back, twee tunes.With a diminished summer student body, the crowd was smaller in size from top to bottom. Openers Best Friends and Lovers played to handfuls of people who swayed and ingested the performance with a cool enthusiasm.By the time Darlin’ took the stage, audience numbers were certainly at their highest, but the collective calm remained.“It’s definitely a different crowd than the other night,” Darlin’ guitarist Paul Rains said. “We had a sellout in Chicago which we were unprepared for and was really unexpected.“This one was definitely a listening crowd, but we like that. It’s more laid back, there’s room for people to pay attention.”The London-based quartet also consists of drummer Mikey Collins and vocalist Elizabeth Morris, the latter of whom charmed the crowd with her accent and humility, thanking the audience after every song.“This is our first time in Bloomington,” she told the crowd, to which a couple people quickly responded “Come back!”The band was greatly appreciative of the crowd that was there, putting on a set that was tightly executed, especially considering the borrowed instruments. When they finally exited stage left, they did so to warm applause and a shower of hearty thanks and compliments.The show was the second of four shows in June, presented by Spirit of 68, Coleman’s company. Orgone plays at Max’s Place this Friday and Times New Viking rounds out the month on June 30 at The Bishop.July is a much more packed slate that also features some much bigger names, such as Bon Iver, Gang Gang Dance, Kurt Vile and several more. It’s a month that features a diverse collection of genres with one commonality: the ability to put on a great show.“I just happen to have a good run of shows right there in the middle of the month that I’m really excited about,” Coleman said. “July is a big month, a lot like April.”Darlin’ left Bloomington with great impressions, Botting said. “We really didn’t know what to expect. It’s been great, but we didn’t know what sort of town it was.”Botting and the rest Allo Darlin’ learned it’s the kind of town with listening crowds — a town where bands from across the Atlantic can borrow last-minute instruments from down the street.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>As the music of Sarah’s Swing Set reverberated through Fountain Square Mall, adults admired the arts and crafts of the Luna Festival while children clutched ice cream. Both wore smiles as they explored booth after booth.Saturday was the third annual Luna Festival presented by Women Inspire, a Bloomington organization that brings women together to highlight their different talents.“It’s in the same vein as the festival,” said Loni Dishong, director and founder of Women Inspire. “We’re trying to make this the premier festival for women in central and southern Indiana. There’s really nothing else like it in terms of variety and richness of talented women.”Women Inspire has no affiliation with any religious or political entity, simply a love for diversity and education, Dishong said.Though the festival did not occur in 2010 due to a lack of a venue, the 2011 event featured new highs for both vendor and performer numbers. There were 88 vendors and 17 performers at the festival. The vendors featured designers, advocates, artists and various other trades, while the music of the performers ranged from tribal to blues.Bloomington resident Christi Holliday attended the festival and said, “I thought this was an excellent venue for both artists and craft persons to share their talents and wares.”She and two friends from out of town bought tea, potholders, and chocolate and caramel creams. One friend, Lee Annis, said he particularly enjoyed the creams, but thought the festival was all-around great.“It has that small town charm but a collection worthy of a big city,” he said.The organization participates in many community outreach programs but Luna is its largest public program of the year. The Middle Way House was an obvious choice to appear at the festival due to their work with domestically abused women, Middle Way kitchen assistant and caterer Karli Mills said.“We do a lot of luncheons and catering with our food, so they said we were one of their first calls to work the second floor food,” Mills said.While this year’s was in June, next year the festival will make a return to its April origins in order to include students as well. Dishong said she’s excited to bring more people into the fold of the festival and to Women Inspire as a whole.“We teach each other, learn from each other, inspire each other,” she said. “We want to give everyone a chance to shine.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Ryan Hoffman and Bob Taylor’s dream is slowly coming together.The pair opened their studio Volta Glass in 2010, but said they only felt comfortable having an opening ceremony last month. There’s been remodeling for the last five months; and though it’s still not finished, they’re glad to be getting started.“It’s something that we’ve talked about for a long time after doing wholesale for so long,” Taylor said. “So once this place opened up, we scraped up the money and did it.”They possess over 25 years of glassblowing experience between the two of them; and though they’ve been collaborating for about eight years, they hail from very different beginnings.Hoffman, a Hoosier his whole life, attended the University of Southern Indiana where he developed an interest in glassblowing at a local studio. There, he said, he eventually took an apprenticeship and after several years of training went on his own.On the other hand, Taylor hails from Virginia. He took up glassblowing after witnessing a much less professional experience: his friend working in a limited basement studio.“My buddy helped me for about 30 minutes then said, ‘you’re on your own,’”Taylor said. “It wasn’t easy to learn. I just couldn’t find people to watch.”So Taylor said he would watch whenever he could and then compare what he saw to whatever he read in books. It took about two weeks for him to make his first usable piece of glass.Now both of their careers have landed them at Volta.“With the volume of production that we had, it became crazy to give our stuff away to someone else,” Hoffman said. “It’s hard to have friends in this business because people get protective over their skill level and their customers,” added Taylor.Before Volta, both of their work was featured at art galleries, fairs and various shops from New York to California, including Amused Clothing in Bloomington. Amused store manager Ian Wildridge said they’re the first people to undertake a glass studio that he has seen in the area.“Their work is pretty insane,” he said. “I mean they’re household names in the regional scene, like from Chicago to Bloomington.”The two said they see a crossover opportunity in glass that was something of an appealing challenge.“Normally there’s no crossover with form versus function,” Hoffman said. “We think they go hand in hand, side to side. The function is determined by whatever hands buy our piece. We make everything with the same amount of craftsmanship.”That’s part of the reason Volta offers customizable pieces of glass. Hoffman and Taylor both said they want to foster an appreciation for the craft and work with people to create what they want.“There are collectors on both sides, functional and otherwise,” Hoffman said. “We don’t believe there should be a disrespect toward either kind.”The love for the craft and the need to continue learning still spurs both of them, each said.“You actually change forms of matter, from one thing to another and then back again,” Hoffman said. “It’s amazing to me. I still learn daily.“If you quit learning, you quit advancing and you lost artistic integrity, creativity. It’s a circle that leads you nowhere.”Taylor echoed similar sentiments.“I want my learning to go on forever,” he said. “I would take these great classes in Colorado or Washington if I could, but for now I’m just taking care of this place.”The word “volta” is Italian. In the Venetian glassmaking tradition, it means the best possible method of doing something. By combining their abilities, Taylor said, the studio is literally their volta and the best way they know how to create their art.“With glass, it’s hard to nail the exact product because it’s so creative and abstract,” Wildridge said. “Those guys meet demands every time. They’re pretty awesome.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>“Standing room” takes on a different sort of meaning at a children’s play, in that, the children are small enough to all stand without disrupting anyone’s view.At the Cardinal Stage’s production of “A Year with Frog and Toad,” a sold-out crowd of parents and children, saw the latter jumping to their feet and both parties thoroughly enjoying the show, an adaptation of the classic children’s “Frog and Toad” books by Arnold Lobel.“I thought they did a really good job of acting the show,” said child patron Lucia Walker.Walker said her favorite character was the Mouse. The actors’ lively portrayals of these animal characters was one of the highlights of the show. The small cast featured Mike Price and Peter Sipla as Frog and Toad, respectively. It was rounded out by Hana Slevin, Ellen Doyle and Alex Shotts, all of whom played more than one role. “It was my first kid’s show, and the biggest difference is you have to look at the audience constantly,” said Slevin, an IU senior majoring in musical theatre. “It’s very participatory theatre.”Doyle, who is a junior majoring in theatre, said the production required a lot more comedic timing, since there were jokes for both kids and adults.And those jokes came off very well. Shotts’ portrayal of Snail, an ultra-tardy mailman, drew ovations each time he appeared on stage and was still receiving rave reviews in post-show chatter.The production also featured some great stage effects like falling snow and leaves, also flying a kite above the crowd at one point. “You also have to be careful the kids aren’t touching all the props,” said Kimberly Redick, an IU senior who was serving as assistant stage manager for the play.“When I’m flying that kite back there, they’re always trying to get a hold of it.”But probably most telling measure of the show’s delight was the laughter and visible excitement from the kids, whose catcalling at worst was demands for more Frog or Toad.“I just really, really like all the characters,” said Walker.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Andy D looks absurd; donning a jean jacket and a fanny pack, forgoing a shirt and topping it all off with a rattail will have that effect. But the mustached musician, who hails from Indianapolis, has gained a cult following in the area over the last few years, thanks largely in part to that peformance aesthetic and his equally over-the-top shows.Now Andy, whose real name is Andy Duncan, is leaving the area to head to Los Angeles with his wife, who recently got a job out on the West Coast. Duncan plans to pursue his music career there with new avenues and more opportunities to make the same kind of splash he has in central Indiana.“I have a lot of friends out there in the entertainment industry, so hopefully I’ll have a lot of resources,” Duncan said.He has degrees in both anthropology and religious studies.Duncan describes his music as “party music,” which he calls a functional definition in a music landscape where genres are so often muddled. So we caught up with the party guy before he left the area for good to talk about his influences, LA and drunk girls.IDS: Where did music enter into the equation for you?ANDY D: I’ve been doing music since middle school, a weird metal band up in Indianapolis where I grew up. In college I did a noise project, and at the end of college I started doing this. A mutual friend, who later became the producer on my first album, approached me and we laid down a song I had kind of a riff to. But I didn’t have any words. He suggested I start rapping and I wrote it that day and did it at his house. That song became “Rockslow,” which is a song I play all the time now. I thought maybe that my anthropology can help my lyrics if I keep doing this hip-hop thing. I don’t consider myself straight hip-hop, but I am a rapper.IDS: How does anthropology influence your lyrics?ANDY D: It’s looking at humans as a political animal. Modern anthropology deals with our own culture and gender issues, sexuality issues, race issues, and I feel like I play with that a little bit.I have a song called “God Loves Drunk Chicks” as well, and there’s a joke in there about a roofie at the end. I needed it in there to drive home the point that this song is a satire about date rape culture.Drunk chicks, I have this wonderful ambivalence about them. At one point I pity them and at some point I think they’re great. They’re the life of the party and they’re like these shining beams of light like unicorns and no one should ever mess with them. But people do mess with them and take advantage of it. So I’m lamenting date rape culture but also pointing out the absurdities that happen at parties every day.Stuff like that is how I approach all my music. How can I use humor in my lyrics and music to get people to laugh but also think? I mean if they’re laughing, they’re probably closer to dancing, so I want them to dance, laugh and think all at the same time.IDS: What are your own personal influences? ANDY D: Andrew W.K., Prince and the Beastie Boys are my three main influences. Prince is my favorite artist of all time.Andrew W.K. inspired me to do what I do actually.IDS: Where did your look come from?ANDY D: Some from Andrew W.K. But for me, I love bright colors because I grew up in the early 90s. So I love that era, like Salt-n-Pepa, New Kids on the Block. There was neon, there were asymmetrical haircuts, there were lines of hair, people had rattails. So I try to blend that.IDS: What would be your dream merch table?ANDY D: I’ve actually been thinking about doing clip-on rattails. I think that would be rad. We’ve been thinking about doing a headband with a rattail attached to the back with a code on the inside. You can buy the headband and use the code to buy the album. So you can get the album and then wear the headband.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>It’s hard for jams and jobs to coexist, the Main Squeeze will tell you. Practice was put on hold Tuesday when guitarist Max Newman had to work. Later they were going to be minus lead vocalist Corey Frye thanks to his job at Five Guys.See, while the Squeeze, as they refer to it, combines for a big, “funky-feel-good” sound (another Squeeze term), each member of the band has their own matters to worry about. Two members, drummer Reuben Gingrich and bassist Willie Robinson, are still in school and some, like Max and Corey, have jobs. More to the point, this sort of individualism carries over to their personal music tastes as well, which range from Marvin Gaye to Skrillex.“We have so many different influences, you get so much variety,” keyboardist Ben “Smiley” Silverstein said. “Different, obviously, in the best way possible.”The five members maintain distinctly diverse tastes. Frye cites Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye as having a huge influence on his vocals, while Silverstein’s keyboard style is deeply rooted in funk. Then there’s Gingrich, who puts jazz at the top of his list of influences, and Newman, who loves Jimi Hendrix and was a straight blues guitarist until a couple years ago.“We bring in a lot of different sounds, but we have our own, one sound for the band,” Frye said. Other members of the band point to the quality of his soulful lead vocals that help set them apart in a crowded jam band landscape.“Jam isn’t really the point. As diverse as our influences are too — soul, funk, jazz — they are all spontaneous, so in that it helps our jam, funky-feel-good sound,” Newman said.That sound has been making a lot of noise lately, no pun intended. Crowds of 500 to 600 people have been heading to The Bluebird Nightclub to see their most recent shows. Those huge numbers caught the attention of the folks at Summer Camp music festival.“We had planned to compete in their Battle of the Bands for a slot on one of the smaller stages and ended up not being able to,” Smiley said. “But they usually have five or six bands from the Midwest to rep local scenes, and with the numbers we’ve been drawing, they asked us to come rep Bloomington.”Not only will Summer Camp be their biggest venue or performance to date, but it brings along a good deal of exposure.“That’s probably the thing we’re most excited about, for people outside of Bloomington and Indiana to hear what we’re about,” Gingrich said.In their practice room, also a basement, among the Main Squeeze and Beatles posters, there is a giant white board filled with everything they need to remember, from lyrics to setlists. For Summer Camp, the group said they have some special stuff for their performance in mind, including an octopus-speaker and orange slices.“We can’t say too much, but we have some tricks up our sleeve,” Frye said.Before they leave for the festival next weekend, the band has two shows and the release of its first music video for the song “Mixed Up,” produced by Winky Productions. They’re busy, but are all ready for four days at the festival.“Performing at festivals like this is why you play music, we feel like we belong here,” Gingrich said. “But we’re still fans too. The other performers are the bands I’ve listened to and imitated my whole life, so I’m excited to see them too.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>It’s been a long time since we’ve had a proper release from Lil Wayne. Since his epic success of “Tha Carter III” in summer 2008, the New Orleans emcee has been to jail and back, yet still dropped one quality mixtape (“No Ceilings”) and two relatively atrocious LPs (“Rebirth” and “I Am Not A Human”). So when Wayne dropped a bomb on every line of “Six Foot Seven Foot,” it smacked pretty hard for those of us who got on him for lines like “P**** A** N****, I don’t want your gonorrhea.” And yet, the inevitable delay has already graced the release of “TCIV,” pushing it back to June 21. Fortunately we have been given a glimpse at the stupidly awesome cover art, which showcases a photo of what appears to be middle-school Wayne, dressed in “TCIII.” It’s a pivotal album for Wayne, who was whoring himself out before his stead inside, but has come back with a hugely successful tour. The “Carter” franchise carries a lot of weight, but so does a guest list of Drake, Kanye and Rick Ross. So if “TCIV” means a return to the bizarrely goofy bouts of lyrical excellence that Wayne was prone to back in 2008, then all will be right between the critical, commercial and Weezy.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Tyler, The Creator (the leader of the rap collective Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, or OFWGKTA for short), has been setting the music blogosphere ablaze over the last few months with his production and lyrical content. The former is more than capable, often beautiful and certainly the part of his skillset that is most often cited as the best. The latter has become polarizing, refreshing and transgressing as his act has gained momentum. His debut studio album, “Goblin,” has been pushed for a quick release to take advantage of said momentum after signing a deal with XL.If you haven’t heard of Tyler yet, you probably haven’t visited a music blog in six months. Rape jokes, murder stories and assorted bits of juvenile horrorcore are part of the reason Tyler’s blown up. His sensational content has attracted a lot of attention from pretty much everyone on the web. Each of them feels some way about Tyler, but he doesn’t give a f*** and he’ll tell you over and over.“Bastard,” his debut mixtape that he released for free back in 2009, deals heavily with his absent father and is markedly personal when compared to “Yonkers,” the song with the video where Tyler eats a cockroach and later hangs himself. His piano-based production lends a personal element to this dark backpack angst. So, “Goblin” could be a one-trick pony or the unearthing of a carefully brash façade.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Before the crowd even began its standing ovation at Buskirk-Chumley Theater on Tuesday night, applause was already escaping from the palms of the audience.Omer Turkmenoglu’s Prayer for Peace concert was drawing to its conclusion, and the three performers, Turkmenoglu, Shareese Johnson and Arik Luck were belting out their final notes before the enthusiastic crowd leapt to its feet and showered the performers with praise.It was a big moment for Turkmenoglu, who organized the inter-faith concert himself. His idea was to bring together the three Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam in one performance as a means of promoting peace for all people.“I think tonight was a great success,” Turkmenoglu said. “I could not have been more pleased.”The concert was a celebration of peace. It was directly inspired by the peace that Turkmenoglu found once he left his birthplace of Iraq for Turkey in 1994. Having seen both the good and the bad that can come from the mixing of different religions, he sought to find performers from different faiths to promote his message.“Arik was the hardest one to find since I had to find someone who fit musically as well as spiritually,” Turkmenoglu said.Arik Luck, a baritone and Jewish cantor, came on board after Shareese Johnson, a Christian and soprano who hails from Sheffield, Ala.Once Luck heard from Turkmenoglu, he said it wasn’t a question of if he would perform, but how he would fit the concert into his schedule.“The hardest part for me was just finding the time to do it with rehearsals and everything,” Luck said. “But I think it’s my duty, not just as a clergyman, but as a human to promote peace.”Turkmenoglu said he hopes Bloomington is only the first stop on a longer journey to promote his peaceful message.Eventually he wants this concert to reach the White House, a venue he believes would maximize the impact of his dream.“Tonight was the world premiere,” he said with a laugh. “But I hope that this project can continue and go on after this performance.”Luck also hopes that the project has the legs to make it out of Bloomington.“I was really happy to be a part of it now and whatever life it might have in the future,” Luck said.He added that he hoped it benefitted the crowd like it did him.“This type of thing is important for my soul and important for artistic expression,” he said. “I started as an actor, so merging the theater and cantor is a wonderful thing for me.”Some members of the audience confirmed his hopes.“It’s a wonderful cause, and we need all the little steps for peace that we can get,” said Bloomington resident Margaret Squires, who knew Turkmenoglu from his performances at the Players Pub.Many members of the audience were connected with Turkmenoglu and in some way, affected by his message. Turkmenoglu hopes those numbers continue to grow.“It is my dream that this might make a difference,” Turkmenoglu said. “This is about peace between everybody, not just these religions or these people.”
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IDS’ live music blog dishes this week’s best concerts. Catch all the event essentials and show coverage you need to know about at www.idsnews.com/blogs/livebuzz.Krista Detor, Jason Wilbur, Dylan Sneed and Tim Grimm8 p.m.May 9 Player’s PubFour of Bloomington’s finest singer/songwriters combine forces for a mega-show. Experience a different side of Bloomington’s music scene with some of the best songwriting it has to offer.Bloomington Battle of the Bands, preliminary round9 p.m.May 10 The BluebirdOngoing preliminary round for the Bluebird’s Battle of the Bands. Tuesday’s performers include We Hear Voices, E.D!, Blue Rising, Outer Planets, th’Empires and The Mundies.Community Currency’s LP release party8 p.m.May 11The BishopThe brothers Romy, Matt and Nick are household names in Bloomington’s music scene. Under the new moniker Community Currency, they’ve teamed up with Ben Fowler, Evan Galup and Susan Anderson to produce “Labor of Love,” the first CD for the new folk-punk group.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>John Vanderslice, the singer-songwriter who began his career with the band Mk Ultra, has been a solo act since 2000 — the year that began his run of 9 studio albums in 11 years. His most recent work, “White Wilderness,” was released on the Bloomington-based label Dead Oceans. Before he played at The Bishop Thursday with Damien Jurado, we caught up with JV to run down everything from his music to bin Laden to Twitter.IDS: Your previous works had a meticulous sound — Pitchfork has called you a tinkerer. What was it like recording “White Wilderness” in three days?JV: It was very different because I ceded a lot of control to other people, and that was the first time that I’d really done that. There was also a ridiculous time constraint on the record. Everything was mixed down and done in eight days, so it’s essentially a live record. I was listening to a lot of big band stuff, like Duke Ellington and Frank Sinatra, and I really wanted a cohesive, all-in-one-room sort of sound. It was a huge challenge, but once the tape is rolling you just do it. There’s a lot more pre-production though, you can’t really just make shit up.IDS: You’re on Twitter, which has become sort of a polarizing medium for a lot of celebrities. What are your thoughts on it?JV: It’s remarkable how immediate and personal it is. It’s amazing — I forgot my charger in the hotel room, and I put on Twitter that I needed a charger and someone loaned me one. That’s pretty minor but also kind of major. Compared to two years ago, it’s such a bizarre but more efficient way to communicate. And as far as being limited, brevity is a good thing. There’s no cap to content on the Internet except Twitter, so there’s something interesting about that.IDS: Some of your previous works dealt specifically with 9/11 and the aftermath. What was your reaction to the death of Osama bin Laden this week?JV: I had sort of a non-reaction. I don’t think it meant a whole lot to me. Everything is still in place and still going. These people are created for a reason. They’re an important focal point to drive policy, and I don’t really think it’s about individuals. That stuff is all content-driven, and until you understand the reason why people want to attack you or bomb your airports, then it doesn’t matter if one person dies.IDS: You’ve started this audience participation project. What is that all about and how did it happen?JV: Basically I’ve never believed there was a real line between audience and performers. I’d always assumed that at a show there were good musicians and songwriters in the audience. It’s not so rare to get up on stage and play your music; other people do it too. There’s something interesting about not having any barrier between audience and performer. It feels honest and it feels natural. A little chaos is good during a show. Bands can really calcify into a performance, and this catches you a little off guard. It can be terrible and it can be amazing. But it’s important.IDS: Does playing in Bloomington have any special significance since it’s the home of your record label?JV: Oh yeah. For sure. We want to play well, and it’s really important. You want to keep your team excited about what you’re doing. For me, it’s one of the more important shows on the tour.IDS: Everyone talks about touring getting old. Your blog specifically mentions you missing your cats. What are your future plans?JV: Jason (Slota) and I are touring Europe in September. We’re also playing a couple really special shows that are not announced yet. We’ll also start working on the next record which will be another record with the Magik*Magik Orchestra. I definitely have some stuff to take care of at home, and I want to get going on that.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Free Comic Book Day might sound too good to be true, but it most certainly is not. On the first Saturday of May every year, local comic book stores around the country give away comics to anyone who walks into the store. It’s both a celebration of the genre for current fans and a way for aspiring fans to better discover the world of comics.Bloomington’s Vintage Phoenix Comics has participated in Free Comic Book Day every year since its inception 10 years ago. Being that it’s the store’s single biggest sales day of the year, this year will be no exception, manager Matt Traughber said.“We give away thousands of comics, like 3,000 or 4,000, to over 1,000 people,”Traughber said. “Sometimes people buy things, but if not, that’s great. It’s really all about the free comics.”The free comics are not throwaways either. Many authors and artists print or re-print new material especially for the cult holiday, and this year’s comics range from adult-aimed comics, like the “Darkness 2” prequel, to those more for kids, such as “Darkwing Duck.” There are over 35 comics in all. “[Comic Book Day] is about comics being great entertainment, not something to simply hoard or collect,” Traughber said. “I mean you can do that, but the entertainment is what they’re really worth.”Bloomington resident Ian Winningham has been reading comics since the early 2000s. He said he’s picked up some Comic Book Day leftovers in the past, but is considering attending for the first time this year.“I support the idea of the day. Comics can seem like a really expensive hobby, but this is a good way to get people exposed and see it’s not intimidating,” Winningham said.Indeed, sharing and community are aspects of comics that Traughber considers important and encourages.“We try to avoid any sort of clubhouse mentality,” he said. Vintage Comics opens at 11 a.m. Saturday and maintains its regular hours for Free Comic Book Day. It will have some decorations and some contests, but Traughber said Phoenix tries to keep it pretty streamlined because, after all, it is all about the comics.