Since there are a fair amount of Ann Arborites in this cf, I thought it might be kewl to do another type of item. So, what *is* playing at the Ark?73 responses total.
I am going to try to keep up with what is playing at the Ark and other places of live interest about town since I live a bit closer now. Please, help and add as well! =)
Sure, discriminate against the rest of us who live nowhere near A2 :P
Here's part of the September schedule.... Tuesday, September 2, 1997 MORSEL POIGNANT PLECOSTOMUS wsg Pat & Zoo! The first official show of a series that will meld performance art, poetry, avant-garde, funk, and anything else that can come from the creative minds of area performers and artists. Long time local favorites, Morsel with their dreamy and sometimes noisy anti-pop servie on this co-bill with danceable and upbeat Poignant Plecostomus. The latter hits the stage to perform their trademark "progressive instrumental Jazz-boogie fusion". Door: $5 Show begins at 9pm, doors open at 8:30 pm. Wednesday, September 3, 1997 OPEN STAGE Nothing can beat the exhilaration that Ark artists feel when performing for a live audience. HereUs your chance to feel that adrenaline rush for yourself! Sign-up begins at 7:30, but get there early because space goes fast. If youUre not quite ready to make that leap into stardom yet, come see your friends perform or what could be the beginning of a brilliant career. The ArkUs open stage has seen the early years of great talents like Mary Chapin Carpenter, Gilda Radner, David Alan Grier, and even Ann ArborUs own Dick Siegel! DOOR: $3; $2 MEM, ST, SR; Free for UM Students w/ ID Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Thursday, September 4, 1997 GREAT BIG SEA and HUFFAMOOSE TWO WELCOME BACK CONCERTS! Come celebrate the beginning of The ArkUs new season and enjoy both bands for only $14 or just $8 each! U of M Students $5 each show. GREAT BIG SEA Canada's Super-group! 7:30 p.m. HUFFAMOOSE The Band from Philly! 10:00 p.m. TICKETS: $8; $5 U of M Students with ID Shows at 7:30 and 10:00 pm Friday, September 5, 1997 JOHN MCCUTCHEON "Virginia's rustic renaissance man"-Washington Post John McCutcheon appears at The Ark following his latest release, "Nothing to Lose". "McCutcheon uses an incredible variety of musical styles to clothe his original songs in rich imagery and, dare it be said, wisdom" says The Record and the Chicago Tribune refers to him as "...a booster for all that is good in the human race." Don't miss this multi-instrumentalist wonder as he provides you with quality time in a feel-good atmosphere. TICKETS: $15 Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Saturday, September 6, 1997 CLOSED FOR PRIVATE FUNCTION Sunday, September 7, 1997 JUNIOR BROWN wsg JACK INGRAM Junior Brown is embraced by everyone in the music community from alternative rockers to country traditionalists making him at once the most likely and unlikely country music star. He is all about dichotomies, from his music to the way he plays it. He invented the "guit-steel" guitar (a guitar with two necks) just to accommodate his unique guitar playing. His songs vocals with heavy-grit sandpaper baritone are just appetizers for the fireworks that occur on the fretboard. TICKETS: $17.50 Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Tuesday, September 9, 1997 THE BURNS SISTERS, CHUCK BRODSKY, THE MOLLYS An incredible evening of music featuring the beautiful, spirited harmonies of The Burns Sisters; Chuck Brodsky, a masterful songwriter and inviting performer with two albums under his belt; and finally, The Mollys have been described by The Boston Globe as "High hopping, delightfully spicy Celtic-Tex-Mex fusion." An evening of something for everyone! FREE CONCERT!!! Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Wednesday, September 10, 1997 BETTY ALL NEW SHOW !!! If you're still not hip to BETTYUs act, be prepared for one of the most original mixes of music and comedy to be performed on the Ark stage. BETTYUs credits include writing and performing the music for numerous HBO specials including the series, "Real Sex." Drawing from funk, rap, reggae and womenUs prison films, and named in honor of their heroes Betty Rubble, Betty Boop, Betty Crocker and Betty Ford, Alyson Palmer and Bitsy & Amy Ziff have shocked and stunned audiences all over. TICKETS: $15; $7.50 U of M Students with ID Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Thursday, September 11, 1997 DICK GAUGHAN "Scotland's head and conscience"Dirty Linen Born in Glasgow Scotland, Dick Gaughan has toured extensively for the past twenty-five years. In this time, he has been involved with Boys of The Lough, his Scots-Irish band Five Hand Reel, and also with the Scottish super group Clan Alba. He has a velvet voice that utilizes thought provoking songwriting. He is unequivocally "on the left", constantly reminding the masses of the oppressed peoples and what they can do to help. DOOR: $12.50; $11.50 (members, students, seniors) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Friday, September 12, 1997 RFD BOYS Ann Arbor's Favorite Bluegrass Band's First Show Of The Season! Ever since their days attending the University of Michigan together and performing at The Pretzel Bell, people from all over the area have come to hear the music that makes you want to stomp your feet, clap, or get up and dance - traditional bluegrass. Bring your requests and stuff them into "The Boys" own red mailbox or just come to listen to the music and jokes theyUve cooked up for this weekUs bill of fare. Anytime youUre at an RFD Boys show you"re sure to be entertained. DOOR: $9; $8 (members, students, seniors) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Saturday, September 13, 1997 THORNETTA DAVIS Funkified Soulful Diva Returns To Her Blues Roots! If you were the owner of a bopping head or tapping foot at this year's Frog Island Festival, you were treated to an electrified performance by this Detroit grown talent. Her name is spoken with the same reverence usually reserved for the likes of Etta James, Bessie Smith, and Billie Holliday. Now she plays on the intimacy of The Ark backed by Ooh Papa Dop featuring Leonard King, Chris Coltish, and Bob Kise who are sure to bring you the blues in a way you may never have experienced before. DOOR: $13.50; $12.50 (members, students, seniors) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Sunday, September 14, 1997 STUART FRANCKE & MICHAEL McDERMOTT Two of the Midwest's great singer/songwriters! DetroitUs own Stuart Francke plays The Ark for the first time following the release of his new album. Francke has performed his original songs both with a band and solo at festivals and in clubs all over the metro area. His sound crosses over boundaries of folk & rock and his lyrics allow the audience to visit the inside of his head to feel his intensity. His partner in crime for this show is Michael McDermott who come to us from the windy city. His soft visions and creative explorations are coupled with a somewhat rough edge. The partnership should make for an incredible evening! Presented by CIDR, 93.9 FM, The River DOOR: $10; $9 (members, students, seniors) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Tuesday, September 16, 1997 WOMEN ON WAX Radiant Stowaway Production Come to dance to grooves and mixes of Detroit area female DJs. All have been featured in Women On Wax magazine. Door: $5 Show begins at 9 pm, doors open at 8:30 pm. Wednesday, September 17, 1997 THE NIELDS High energy folk rocking family! Wsg MICHELLE MALONE Led by sisters Nerissa and Katryna and fueled by an energetic rhythm section, The Nields galvanize audiences with their high octane mix of folk, rock & roll and pop. You will be amazed by their sheer vibrancy and charisma, not to mention their formidable songcraft. A soon to be legendary band! Michelle Malone is fresh off the Indigo GirlUs summer tour as their support act. DOOR: $10; $5 U of M Students with ID Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Thursday, September 18, 1997 SUZZY ROCHE The Youngest Roche Sister Hits The Road Solo! Along with her sisters, Maggie and Terre, Suzzy Roche has been singing her entire life. Together they released ten albums, graced the stages of Carnegie Hall & The Newport Folk Festival, and have been featured in television programs from Tiny Toons adventures with Porky Pig to the Tracey Ullman show on HBO. Now taking the stage solo, Suzzy brings her deadpan humor, entrancing stage presence, and hilarious epiphanies to create an exceptionally captivating performance. Door: $11; ($10 member, student, senior) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Friday, September 19, 1997 BIG DAVE & THE ULTRASONICS Ann ArborUs Own Nationally Renowned Blues Greats! with Gary Primich Big Dave & The Ultrasonics are known for effortlessly maneuvering their way from U40s jump to New Orleans rumba to B-3 shuffle to lowdown Texas blues, always with an original twist. A Big Dave performance always includes soulful, smoky vocals from Big Dave Steele, outstanding solos from all three frontmen, constant drive and swing from the rhythm section, and an audience screaming for more. Playing with them will be Gary Primich, the portrait of a hard-working, dedicated blues musician with a multi-faceted approach to his blues. DOOR: $11; $10 MEM, ST, SR Door: $11; ($10 member, student, senior) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Saturday, September 20, 1997 DICK SIEGEL Ann Arbor's legendary songwriter! Dick Siegel is the real thing. Through more than two decades he has been the consistently poetic, earnest and hilarious soul of the local songwriting scene. Through his two classic albums, appearances on NPR and as a New Folk winner at Kerrville, the rest of the world is now beginning to discover his eccentric hybrid of folk, country and jazz. Door: $10; ($9 member, student, senior) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Sunday, September 21, 1997 KELLY JOE PHELPS & DAVE ALVIN Acoustic country blues meets blues/folk/rock/r&b format Kelly Joe Phelps occupies a musical landscape somewhere between Blind Willie JohnsonUs burnt down house and SpringsteenUs NEBRASKA. He began as a jazz musician and later turned on to Country blues forcing jazz to take a backseat. Dave Alvin brings his mix of blues, folk, rock, and R&B in acoustic and band formats. He finds that his audiences are usually split between those who want to hear the lyrics and those who want to see him sweat and bash his loud guitar. Hmmm... sounds like an eclectic evening! Door: $11; ($10 member, student, senior) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Tuesday, September 23, 1997 SHAWN MULLINS "A great songwriter and an original thinker."-Kris Kristofferson Hailing from Atlanta, Shawn is constantly on tour and has released seven albums in six years. His last appearance in Ann Arbor brought him to Hill Auditorium in the opening slot for the Indigo Girls. He has also shared the stage with legendary performers like Joan Baez, Roger McGuinn, and Ark favorites like Catie Curtis and Martin Sexton. His performances are filled with uncooked, acoustic music and spoken word. Door: $10; ($9 member, student, senior) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Wednesday, September 24, 1997 OPEN STAGE Nothing can beat the exhilaration that Ark artists feel when performing for a live audience. HereUs your chance to feel that adrenaline rush for yourself! Sign-up begins at 7:30, but get there early because space goes fast. If youUre not quite ready to make that leap into stardom yet, come see your friends perform or what could be the beginning of a brilliant career. The ArkUs open stage has seen the early years of great talents like Mary Chapin Carpenter, Gilda Radner, David Alan Grier, and even Ann ArborUs own Dick Siegel! Door: $3; $2 (members, students, seniors) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Friday, September 26, 1997 THE REV. BILLY C. WURTZ "One of the funniest performers around"-The Nashville Scene wsg/ RFD Boys Rev. Billy C Wirtz stands virtually alone in his craft. Presiding over his First House of Polyester Worship and Horizontal Throbbing Teenage Desire, WirtzU unique sound of blues, boogie-woogie and a dose of rockabilly combined with side-splitting southern satire has the defined the true meaning of entertainment. Door: $11; ($10 member, student, senior) Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Saturday, September 27, 1997 STEVE MOORE "He's a little Joel Grey, a lot Bette Davis"-LA Times Steve Moore manages to find humor in being HIV positive. Despite some fairly explicit talk about his sexual adventures, his humor is mild. HBO developed his act into a television special "Drop Dead Gorgeous (A Tragi-Comedy): The Power of HIV-Positive Thinking." His show is comedy slapping tragedy in the face, and the face and voice-and vision - of stand-up comic Steve Moore are strikingly original and funny. TICKETS: $15 Show begins at 7:30 pm, doors open at 8:00 pm. Sunday, September 28, 1997 DERVISH Irish traditional music with a contemporary edge The Dervish sound is formed around a core of fiddle, flute, and accordion. These lead instruments are then accompanied by strident mandola and bouzouki playing. Much of the fascination that audiences find in Dervish stems from the presence of lead vocalist Cathy Jordan. Jordan possesses a voice deeply evocative of the rich musical traditions of her northwestern Irish home in County Sligo. This music has personality and because it is performed so well it takes on the spirit of the musicians to create an incredible experience of Irish music. TICKETS: $13.50 Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. Tuesday, September 30, 1997 ALISDAIR FRASER & SKYEDANCE "a sound to behold...the sound of expertise"-The Glasgow Herald Skydance combines the forces of six powerhouse instrumentalists, virtuosos in such diverse musical genres as Celtic, Medieval, Baroque, and Rock & Roll music. They are brought together by ScotlandUs renowned fiddle master Alasdair Fraser. Ranging from achingly beautiful airs echoing Gaelic song to wild and joyous dance pieces, the music of Skydance is steeped in Scottish tradition, yet always innovative and alive. TICKETS: $13.50 Show begins at 8 pm, doors open at 7:30 pm. And that as they say is the September lineup. FanTAStic.
Perhaps in the future it would make more sense to just provide a reference to such information rather than include it all directly.
No doubt. :P
Since I can't figure out how to make it unseen unless you want to see it, I apologize, but I thought there was a way to do that!
at the respond or pass prompt, type expurgate <resp #>
Thanks, I'll do that as soon as I log in as top. :-)
Went to the recording concert for Matt Watroba at the Ark last night. He included Neil Woodward on almost all songs (He's the producer) and Robert Jones on a few more. They hope to have the CD out by DEc 1st. Matt watroba known as the host of WDET's "Folks Like Us" show on saturdays at 1pm is alos a class-mate of Mary Ellen Wessels (known to us GREXers and M-neters as 'mew') who put out her own CD "Current Obsessions" over a year ago.
Oh, yeah, I can't seem to resolve www.a2ark.org on Grex's lynx.
I went to the Poignant Plecostomus/Flashpapr/Morsel show last night at the
Ark. I was moderately disgruntled at the start, being as Schoolkids wasn't
selling advance tickets as they had claimed they would, and the show started
pretty late. Other than that, it was wonderful. Flashpapr, a
violin/bass/guitar trio ("look ma, no drums") opened, with two very good
instrumentals and one mediocre song on which the guitarist attempted to sing.
Poignant Plecostomus gave a great show, and I was thrilled to hear them play
my two favorite songs of theirs, "The Symphony of Eating and Shitting" and
"The Renegade Jew". They're a violin/guitar/keyboard/bass/drums band, and
other than that I'm not even *trying* to explain what they sound like.
Unfortunately, I had to leave before Morsel came on. (School night and all
that)
Also unfortunate was my decision to buy a sampler tape of local bands that,
judging from the few tracks I've listened to, is absolute shit. Oh well...
(cut & pasted from Agora Announcements:) I'm encouraging folks in Ann Arbor to come to the FREE CONCERT at the Ark on Tuesday night, 8 pm. It's a bit of a mini folk festival. The artists, in the order I expect them to appear (the reverse of the official billing:) The Mollys: Tex-Mex/Celtic band from Arizona who I like a lot Chuck Brodsky: dark-humored singer-songwriter The Burns Sisters: harmony singers
Polygon was the only Grexer spotted at the free show at the Ark Tuesday night. The Burns Sisters cancelled. The Mollys were even better live than they were on disc; Catherine Zavala is an amazing bundle of energy playing the mandolin non-stop, and their drummer is very solid. It's been a while since I've seen that much exuberant joy on stage. I think the Mexican elements in their style are overshadowing the Celtic ones; however, the band does a very nice adaptation of "All Around My Hat" which opens with accordion quotes from Beethoven's 9th. Next up at the Ark for me: Thursday, Sept. 11: Dick Gaughan, Scotland's greatest man-with-a-guitar.
Well, after a long string in which I haven't seen any Ark concerts which whetted my interest, here's a couple of future dates gleaned from Usenet tour postings: March 22 '98: June Tabor April 21 '98: Battlefield Band
Here's more from the March Ark schedule... lots of shows for me to miss :/
lots of Celtic shows...
March 5: Celtic Fiddle Festival: Kevin Burke, Johnny Cunningham,
Christian LeMaitre (ex-Kornog)
March 7: Mary Jane Lamond: Cape Breton celtic singer best known for
the vocals on Ashley MacIsaac's "Drowsy Maggie"
March 11: Altan: one of the top touring Irish acoustic bands
March 15: Les Barker: Very humorous English singer, I only know him by
reputation
March 26: Victoria Williams & The Original Harmony Ridge Creek Dippers,
presumably including Mark Olson, ex-Jayhawks.
www.a2ark.org if your browser is suitably modern...
I went to the Battlefield Band concert with KRJ, Arabella and Twila! Great Show!
For those who might be interested, a smattering of upcoming Ark shows that I'm interested in: Maddy Prior and Friends , Tuesday, July 7. This is one show you do not want to miss if you, like me, are into British folk music at all. Maddy Prior is (in krj's terms) The Grand Old Lady of British Folk. All I know is that her voice is what seduced me into being a folkie in the first place. Jonathan Edwards, Sunday, July 12. I have heard good things about him since he showed up at the Folk Festival a few years ago. Mustard's Retreat, Saturday, Aug. 1. Local band, with a bent for sf/fantasy lyrics in nearly every show -- but they also do comedy, slice of mid-western life, historical ballads, and story telling. I guess they do it all, and do it well. Rhiannon INSISTS that we go to each and every one of their shows. Anne Hills, Thursday, August 6. I know I like her, but krj is the fan on here, I believe. I'll defer to his description.
Hmm... I might get drafted into going to Mustard's Retreat... if I tell my sister, she'll be dying to go, and I might as well go if she is.
Jonathan Edwards is an amazing entertainer. I`ve never missed a Jonathan-Edwards-at-the-Ark show.
Tonight (Tuesday August 11) is the Old Blind Dogs. Acoustic Scottish group, mostly trad songs and tunes, contemporary percussion work. Their lead singer, Ian Benzie, is pretty good. I've been a fan for several years.
Also, Wednesday August 12 is a Free Show at the Ark, featuring the East Coast band Grey Eye Glances. I know nothing about them, except that I have a friend who is enthusiastic about them. I get the impression they are sort of American-style folk-rock, maybe kinda like early 10,000 Maniacs, sorta kinda... Anyway, it's Free.
The Old Blind Dogs were marvellous. I enjoyed their show very much -- including the saxophone, which I was *not* expecting. The ballads were done really well and the instrumentals cooked.
A Grey Eye Glances cd was played at closing time at the Old Blind Dogs show tonight. Seemed pretty catchy, definitely a stylistic relationship to the early Maniacs. I can't decide yet between that show and the (also free) Gaelic Storm show in East Lansing at the same time.
I'm hoping to be at tomorrow's Dick Gaughan show at the Ark. I usually describe Gaughan as Scotland's finest man with a guitar. His political views, which he does not harp upon in concert, got him banned from the USA for the 12 years of the Reagan and Bush administrations. He's got a web page: http://www.dickalba.demon.co.uk Gaughan is a concert favorite of mine.
And a fine concert he gave too.
On January 14th, at 8:00, Cry, Cry, Cry, formed by Dar Williams and Richard Shindell and Lucy Kaplanski will be performing, with Cliff Eberhardt opening. Tickets are $20, and will be going on sale most likely the day after THanksgiving....(or shortly thereafter....just depends on ticketmaster and the holliday). I'll be there with bells and whistles and lots of people in tow. :)
I`m hoping to play the Ark next year. Cross your fingers for me.
Reviving this fossil item.... There are a few shows of interest in early November: November 2: Rickie Lee Jones. I can't remember who here was interested in hunting down an old Rickie Lee Jones EP. Downside: tix are $30, which is skyrocket high for the Ark. I won't be there, but I'm mentioning it for whoever was interested. November 3: Del McCoury. With the death of Bill Monroe, it seems that the mantle of "Keeper of the old -fashioned Bluegrass Flame" has passed to Del McCoury. I've enjoyed his band on recordings. November 4: Battlefield Band. A grizzled veteran band of Scottish folk revivalists, with some contemporary instrumentation. I've seen them maybe a half-dozen times over the decades. Last time I saw them they were performing mostly new material, having retired their 80s material. I hope to be there, they've been lots of fun over the years.
Wow, Rickie Lee Jones? Hmmm....$30...hmmmm....
The online Ark schedule is : http://www.a2ark.org It requires a Version 3 browser and refuses to work with lynx.
Ack! So far by moving to Chicago I've missed Laurie Anderson and Rickie Lee Jones in under a month! I'll console myself with the fact that I never really liked her live album....
I'll be going to the Rickie Lee Jones show. She's awesome. It's not an Ark show; it's a Prism Productions show at the Ark. Thus the high price.
When is/was the Cliff Ebberhart free show?
November 21: Susana Baca, who some of you know from David Byrne's compilation "The Soul of Black Peru."
hmmm.. might have to go to that..
OK, after a long dry spell we have an Ark show I'm enthusiastic about: The Mollys, Tuesday Feb. 8. And unfortunately this conflicts with the Grexpedition to see Dr. Strangelove... Anyway, the Mollys did a free show at the Ark about four years ago and it was a ton of fun. The band is fronted by an Irish-American woman and a Mexican-American woman, and they bounce back and forth between Irish and Tex-Mex, with loads of accordion. The Mollys have a web page at: http://www.azstarnet.com/~sorenso/ There are some sound clips in there but I have not tried them out.
((and now I learn that the Mollys show also conflicts with a concert by leading English folk traditionalists The Copper Family, up in East Lansing. Sigh sigh sigh.))
((... and I got a whopping all-day sinus headache and didn't get to the Mollys show after all. Rats, phooey, whine whine.))
The Ark packed in way too many good shows this week; I can't go to concerts night after night, no matter how much I'd like to. Sunday was the Richard Thompson concert; I hope to write that up shortly. Tonight (Tuesday) is a free show with Canadian Celtic fiddler Oliver Schroer and Venezuelan guitarist Irene Ferrara. A CD trading pal of mine is enthusiastic about Schroer, so I'll try to make his show. Wednesday is Great Big Sea, Canadian pop-trad performers who sold out the place last time. I'll have to give them a miss. Thursday is Buddy and Julie Miller, who are out there in the place where folk and alt.country intersect. I'm looking forward to their show. Friday is Odetta, and Saturday is Gordon Bok, Ann Mayo Muir and Ed Trickett. Odetta gets squeezed out of my schedule. I'd really like to see Bok Muir & Trickett's folk harmony singing, especially as they are threatening once again to retire the act, but I don't know if I have Saturday night free. In January and February there was only one Ark show I wanted to see, and in the last week of March there are six. Waaaaaah.
The Ark sounds like a live music venue that just closed down here in Gainesville, FL. It was called the Covered Dish, and it was -great-. Really a wide variety of artists came through there, from national acts like the Allman Brothers and The Dirty Dozen Brass Band to lesser know nationally touring acts like Medeski Martin and Wood and the String Cheese Incident to regional bands to Unkle Funkle, a cajun funk blues band, who i occasionally sit in with (the guys in the band live down the street from me and i've been friends with them for 3 years). The owner of the Covered Dish, after over 20 years of bringing wonderful live music to Gainesville, decided to get out of the club owner buisness. He tried for 2 years to get someone to buy it who would continue the live music tradition, to no avail. It will soon reopen with a new owner not as a live music venue, but as a top 40 dance club. Very sad.
boy, that *does* sound like a hot week at the Ark..
I'm carrying around too many unreviewed shows in my head. I had better empty one out to make some room. Irene Ferrara & Oliver Schroer, "Take A Chance Tuesdays," March 28 2000: Ferrara sang much more than I was expecting, almost entirely in Spanish. She's spent quite a few years in America, so her English was as good as yours, if heavily accented. She did a couple of songs in English, including one on the little "quattro?" four-string ukelele-like thing which she claimed was heavily influenced by hip-hop, where she did the percussive bits vocally. Her guitar style was fairly basic, and since I didn't understand the Spanish language songs I felt I was missing quite a bit. At the end of her set she brought out fiddler Oliver Schroer to fill out the sound some more. On the last track they both turned their string instruments into percussion instruments, slapping away at the soundboxes. Oliver Schroer turns out not to be the Celtic fiddler I was expecting, at least not this week. He seems to be somewhere out near the intersection of New Acoustic Music, Aaron Copland and Robyn Holcomb, perhaps? On his opening track, he laid down a Cajun-influenced melody line on his digital recorder, and then he put it into a loop and played variations against it. He used that trick a number of times, to good effect. Another piece was an impressionistic tone poem about his childhood near a river in rural Canada, with some sounds suggesting bug noises. His encore was titled "The Frank Zappa Reel," though I don't know Zappa's work well enough to tell if it really deserves that name. The new recording he was flogging, "O2," is a 2-cd set of solo violin music, presumably electronically enhanced as the concert was. I'll review that later, I hope. I couldn't describe anything Schroer played as Celtic music, so it's probably just as well that none of the Celtic music fans I tried to get to this show turned up. But I really enjoyed the evening, both the music and Schroer's dry Canadian banter with the audience, and I'll be happy to pay for a ticket the next time he's in town.
The next show at the Ark which interests me is JPP & Vasen, on Wednesday April 26. JPP is a Finnish band with four fiddles; Vasen is an exceptionally good Swedish acoustic trio who I've seen and enjoyed before. Hope some of you can be interested in this...
Some upcoming Ark shows which are mildly tempting to me: I'm not enthusiastically endorsing them but I might turn up, and some of you like the Celtic stuff. wednesday, august 9: Carreg Lafar. They have a web page at http://www.carreglafar.co.uk and they seem to be a group of acoustic mostly-traditionalists from Wales. The reviews they have put up on the web page sound promising. friday, august 11: They used to just be The Paperboys, but now they are going to be Tom Landa And The Paperboys. Celtic folk-rock from Vancouver; they were pleasant enough when I saw them a couple years ago, and they might appeal to the Great Big Sea fans. Items I have read about them recently report they are now mixing in a Spaish element in their sound. ??? tuesday, august 15: Lunasa. I know nothing about this band except what's in the Ark calendar. Bass player Trevor Hutchinson has been spectacular when I have seen him play behind Sharon Shannon, so I could go to this show for him alone. This is an all-instrumental group. wednesday, august 23: The Mollys. I have loved this band for years. They were fronted by an Irish-American woman and a Mexican-American woman, and they played Celtic Tex-Mex and it was brilliant. However, earlier this year the Hispanic woman (Catherine Zavala) left the band, so I don't know what to expect for this show. thursday, august 31: The Del McCoury Band. With the passing of Bill Monroe, Del McCoury has become the senior statesman of bluegrass music. There's *even more* Irish music scheduled in August. I remember when the Ark would go into semi-hibernation in August, but this year the schedule is packed. http://www.a2ark.org
hey ken, have you heard if lucinda williams is gonna tour this year...or altan?
Altan seems to tour every year. Don't know about Lucinda. I don't have any hard news.
Well, Ken. Carrieg Lafar sound *brilliant*. (A co-worker loaned me their first CD.) I plan on being there. Tom Landa and the Paperboys are quite good, and their Galician/Mexican/Asturian stuff iis really nice to hear. I saw them already this summer so don'n't plan on seeing them, since I'm also going to LLunasa, Jo Serrapere, and a couple of others.
For happyboy: there is an official Altan web site at http://www.altan.ie The tour schedule is under the "live" link. You might use the "contact the band" e-mail address and ask to receive tour schedules. Right now they are in Europe; they were over for some big Canadian folk festivals, and a show at the Hollywood Bowl, in July. Altan may be getting too popular to be booked at the Ark any more, I'm not sure. There's also a http://www.lucindawilliams.net but it seems to overemphasize flash and underemphasize working with one-year-old copies of Netscape; there is a link for tour info but it doesn't work for me.
yeah...the lucinda site doent really work fer me, thanks fer the altan site.
And this is for Happyboy: From the September Ark schedule: Altan with Tannahill Weavers, at the Michigan Theatre, Tuesday September 19. Tickets $21-$31. ((Heh, I did say they might be too popular to book into the Ark any more.))
awesome!
I picked up tix for a friend for the Altan concert....and a week after the tix went on sale, I got front row. So you probably can still get good tix. Anybdoy know whats playing at the Ark in September? They have nothing posted as of late last week....
Never mind, got on tonight, and they have postings through mid November.
Meg's Tix wishlist:
September 24: Lucy Kaplansky. I just know her from Cry Cry Cry, and
have been wanting to sample her stuff for awhile.
October 3: Karan Casey. Ex singer for Solas. Would be worth seeing
live, even though I wasn't all impressed with the last time I saw her. She
was also sicker than a dog!
October 27: Karen Savoca with Katrina and Nerissa Nields. Doesn't that
just sound like a whole bunch of fun??? :)
November 5: Natalie McMaster. At this point, you all know I like the
Irish stuff. Fiddling, step dancing...how canm I go wrong???
October 19: The Drovers. Duh. :)
September 27: Mary Jane Lammond. I've seen her live before, and she
absolutely rocked. But their timing is a little pissy....she's playing at
the Ark the same night Altan is playing at Michigan Theatre. I really think
that she's going to get screwed out of ticket sales. But this is the concert
that I'll be at. :) She's a lot of fun on stage, too. ("We might as well
just call them Songs about Death and Dying")
*whimper* I KNOW that I'll not be able to afford them all....but the Solas
and GBS get first priority. Then Mary Jane Lammond.....
Wait a second....Dar is supposed to be playing on the 27th.....It's gotta be
Mary Jane Lammond on the 19th, not the 27th. It better be the 19th....I can't
go on the 27th!!!
(meg wanders off to think nasty *want tix* thoughts at the Ark boxoffice)
September 27 is Dar Williams at the Michigan Theatre and Mary Jane Lamond at the Ark. Sorry, meg! I'm not sure how I'll begin to pick things out of the October schedule. Meg, have you considered volunteering to get into some of your shows for free?
The only thing is my work scheduale....I have to work a lot of nights.
Yikes. I don't catch any shows all summer, and then those two show up _the day after_ my classes start. Not fair....not fair...
Dar Williams has an official web page at: http://darwilliams.com Digging down to get the tour schedule, there is a Chicago show listed for September 29 at The Vic. (I'm assuming orinoco is still going to classes in Chicago?) I haven't found the Mary Jane Lamond tour schedule yet. In general, I expect to find most artists playing a Chicago show within a few days of their Ann Arbor or Detroit appearances.
Yay!
Grey Eye Glances will be playing at the Ark on Tues. Oct. 31 (here's your chance to see them krj <g>) A thoroughly enjoyable band, mark this one on your calendar. They'll also be at Schuler's in Grand rapids for an all ages show on Nov. 3 and at Shuba's in Chicago Nov. 5. All the info is on their website, www.greyeyeglances.com
I'll have to see if I can make that. I did pick up a used GEG cd on my last trip to Philadelphia, but it didn't get played before the house swallowed it up. Mary Jane Lamond, Gaelic singer from Cape Breton, at the Ark tonight. I hope to be there.
*whimper* How was she?
Still hoping to write something about Mary Jane Lamond in the Celtic music item. Wednesday, November 15, the Ark is hosting Kate Rusby. Rusby is one of the most prominent young folksingers in Britain, and this is her first American tour. I'm looking forward to a great concert. Rusby's American record company has a web page for her at: http://www.compassrecords.com/rusby.htm
Coming up on Tuesday is Kitka, a group of American women singing Balkan material. Right now they're appearing on Prairie Home Companion, and Garrison Keillor must love them: they got three songs in the first half, plus the background music for a story. We hope to be at their Ark show.
... and it was a very fine show. Kitka's material comes from (check the
CD) Bulgaria, Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Macedonia, and Hungary; I also
recall some songs credited as from Bosnia and Croatia. Eight women,
dressed in a black (faux?) ethnic style for the first half of the
concert, and San Francisco blue and purple dresses and shawls for the
second half -- the outfits reminded me of stuff Leslie orders from
clothing companies in the Bay Area. :)
All unaccompanied harmonies, except for one song where one stringed
instrument was plucked. Gorgeous work. I stole down into a much
closer seat for the second set so the sound could wrap around me.
I think their original inspiration was from the Philip Koutev Choir of
Bulgarian women ("Le Mystere Des Voix Bulgares") and I recognized one
song as a Koutev setting from that classic album. They said they draw
material from recordings, printed music and touring singers, and
often they do their own arrangements. Musicologically they are
probably closer to folk-informed art song than real folk traditions,
though I think all the songs are traditional; the Koutev choral style
was developed as an expression of Communist nationalism.
Kitka are based in Oakland and they have a web page at http://www.kitka.org
and I wish that some of you whose arms I tried to twist could have been there.
The February Ark schedule doesn't leave me too excited. There's a few
shows which might be fun but which I'm not going to preach about.
Greg Brown, for example, usually bores me on CD but I've found him very
fascinating as a live performer. Then there's Ladysmith Black Mambazo
from South Africa -- for $35 a ticket!!
The two shows which interest me the most are at the end of the month:
Sun Feb 25 -- Patrick Street -- Irish (mostly) supergroup with Ged Foley (
(House Band), Andy Irvine (Planxty),
Kevin Burke (Bothy Band) and Jackie Daly
(De Dannan). I'm hoping Irvine will bring
along copies of his new self-released
CD which is getting rave reviews and is
not sold in normal retail channels.
Wed Feb 28 -- International Accordion Night -- with an Irish player, an
English player, and a French Canadian player,
all of whom I've heard of before.
I *love* accordions.
In March, the must-see show will be Irish accordion star Sharon Shannon,
touring to promote her new crossover album.
Hmmm. I am going to try to see Patrick Street in February, as well as my personal fave, Garnet Rogers, appearing with Connie Kaldor. Garnet is one of the most enjoyable and charismatic performers (at least when he's not pissed off at someone -- there was one *memorable* Ark show when he was, and it wasn't pretty... ow. My ears still bleed when I think of it!) I know, and his voice is somewhat indescribable -- because I melt when I hear it.
I wasn't aware Ladysmith Black Mambazo was still together and performing. The last I heard they'd lost an important member when he was killed in a carjacking or something like that. I wouldn't begrudge them their $35 per ticket if you like their music. They're a fairly large group and they've got to travel from South Africa. Since it's been years since the peak of their fame in the USA (just after 'Graceland') I wouldn't expect them to draw huge crowds, so I doubt they'll be making a fortune even at that price.
I'm planning to see Sarah Harmer on the 18th, but that's about it. Nothing else really looks interesting. I was kinda dissappointed.
Some Ark shows coming up I should see but will probably skip:
Tonight: Nickel Creek, hot new young Bluegrass band.
Thursday May 10: Buddy and Julie Miller, the sorta-kinda alt.country duo
who draw comparisons to Richard & Linda Thompson, except that this time
the wife writes the better songs. Buddy has a steady gig as
Emmylou Harris' guitar player. Last year's show was fantastic.
I read somewhere that the Tarbox Ramblers, another great group, opens
for them, but that's not listed on the web page. I may actually
shake off my lethargy for this one.
Friday May 11: John Roberts & Tony Barrand: British folk singers long
resident in the USA.
Dar Williams is next week, but I'd imagine that show is sold out already.
again...what the fuck is alt.country?!
as a banjo player i find that offensive,
APOLOGIZE NOW!!!
}{
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It's a marketing description, you'll have to live with it.
happyboy is sounding like punk.country!
no no no
You have several choices: