Hempfest 2009

Mother Trucker showed up at Hempfest, the first time I'd seen her since Love Your Mother up at Lolo. Of course, I had to have the Captain's Booty, for old times sake.

Several local bands are named after natural disasters, and the best I've heard is Rising Waters. I didn't even know who they were until this event. I immediately recognized Mike Avery up front, because he does the open mike at Sean Kelly's on Mondays.

The line up for Hempfest was top quality from start to finish, including some old favorites.

Ruthie sang and danced, and it doesn't get any better than that.

Speaking of Ruthie, she has teamed up with Tonsofun to create a dynamic hip-hop duo. They played the Palace on Tuesday, September 15.

Just the tip of the iceberg. There are three sets, on flickr, for this blog posting, titled Rising Waters @Hempfest 2009, Zeppo @Hempfest 2009 and Dynamic New Hip-Hop Duo.

Where Art Meets Toys

If you think your hipnhot, but you haven't been to this spot, guess what (?) you're not.

Recently this business celebrated a birthday. Some parents consider the place scary, and others complain it promotes smoking. Is Deathbot scary? I don't think so. The cigarette smoking is very much a caricature, not a promotion.

I think the whole thing's a hoot, and check regularly to see what is new.

Here is the Sue of Tsunami, and her loyal side-kick.

And here is a small portion of the crowd who showed up for the party on Tuesday, September 8, 2009.

Sartorial Splendor

Seeing Schmed with Andrea at the Top Hat reminded me of a performance by his band, Secret Powers, 10 days earlier at the Palace. Schmed told me that night he hoped I had some good photos, because he had spent extra time getting his wardrobe just right. So, here's Schmed in all his sartorial splendor on Tuesday, September 8, 2009, at the Palace.

He went the extra mile that night, trading off the keyboard to play guitar. He also plays a mean accordion.

Andrea's CD Party Rocks Top Hat

Andrea Harsell's latest CD, Rock and Roll Love Child, was released at the Top Hat last Friday (Sep 18, 2009). The lady herself not only starred at the event, but served as MC.

Noted members of the music scene and Andrea's band watched another group with interest.

Wolf Redboy, with Lee MacAfee at his side, stirred the crowd and prepped them for Andrea's performance.

Then Andrea and her band the Night Lights took the stage and rocked it.

The crowd loved every minute.

Andrea even had a trumpet for the evening, as Mike Milch of Zeppo, played along.

Mason Jar String Band finished the evening, which from start to end had to be rated a huge success.

It is time to toot my own horn just a little bit. My photos are on the front and back of the new CD, and more adorn the fanfold insert with the lyrics and credits. None are reproduced here. My suggestion: buy the CD and have a look.

Each of the three bands featured in this post has a set on the flickr archive. Check them out for a more complete view of this event.

Bands may purchase any photo from the archive as a full-sized, printable jpeg, pdf or tif file for posters, flyers, ads, album covers and personal use. Email the Kitchenpoet to explain what you want and why. Rates will remain reasonable, until Rolling Stone comes calling. I'm still open to barter, at this point, also.

Tuesday Open Mike @Brooks and Browns

Open mike every Tuesday, 7-10pm, at Brooks and Browns.

Teri Llovet and Louis Bond have the open mike at Brooks and Browns going full steam ahead. They organize the event, maintain the sound and provide back up for any performer who wants it. Teri plays the bass, and, it seems, Louis plays damn near everything. How many songs does this man know?

"Where is Brooks and Browns?" you ask. B&B is the bar in the Holiday Inn, at the end of Pattee by the park. There's a restaurant named Riverbend and the bar on the lower level in back, with a patio and access from the lawn. The music has moved inside to avoid tuning problems caused by cooler weather. You can order from the restaurant menu in the bar. The burgers are large enough to be intimidating, and the sweet potato fries are good.

This is a good place for musicians to learn their chops. The support is professional and the atmosphere friendly.