Tonsofun Is

On Valentine's Day, Tonsofun opened the iNHUMANS CD release party. His rhythmic rap lured more and more to the dance floor, until his warm up set had made the Badlander too hot, and the crowd was jumping.

iNHUMANS Release CD and Say Good-bye

The iNHUMANS are the latest hot Missoula band to announce their departure for greener pastures and greater fortunes. Missoula's loss will soon be Portland's gain. On Valentine's Day they had the release party for their CD, 97 Lovers, at the Badlander. It was also their farewell performance.
First, there was a sound check...check...check

There was a table, where the new CD and other souvenirs could be bought.

Then came another of their unique and outrageous iNHUMAN events, the last in Missoula for a while.

Kyle started the evening looking very sophisticated, but his image unraveled, as the heat began to build.














Later, Kyle's tux is but a memory. It would be an understatement to say the Badlander was packed that night. It would be accurate to state Kitchenpoet was only one of several photographers present for the event.


The good news, for everyone who loves talented women, is that these three are staying in Missoula. From left to right, Ruthie, Margi and Robin are Heavy Flow. What will they do next?





Ruthie will continue to sing with Zeppo, MT. That group may be seen at the Union Club, on First Friday, for the next few months.

"If you're not pissed off, you aren't paying attention"

Wal-Mart's in the news again. It appears an appeals court may take away the class action classification of their huge discrimination suit. 1.6 million women, who are part of the largest class action suit in history, would be disbanded and forced to pursue individual legal actions.

OK, I confess, I'm not unbiased in this case, because I worked for those fuckers for years, and I think the big bosses in Bentonville are evil. For example, Wal-Mart is aggressive in challenging workers' injury claims. In Washington state, their SOP of denying every claim gave the state reason to take away control of their workers' compensation funds. Wal-Mart has lost in court for failure to pay overtime, not allowing legal breaks and meals, and violating child labor laws.

The current legal process attempts to prove Wal-Mart favored men over women in job benefits. Although two-thirds of Wal-Mart's employees are female, only one-third of management is, and only 15% of store managers are women. Wally world is frantically trying to recruit more women to management positions, while claiming they have no prejudices.

Even male cashiers average being paid more than female cashiers, at W-M. In general, hourly employees have an annual gap in wages of $1,100, with the male gender holding the advantage, while the gap expands to a $14,500 chasm between male and female managers.

This great American institution was founded and run by good old boys, from the South, who thought if women didn't stay in the kitchen, they should at least remain subservient. Were they unfair to women? Hell, yes. They were unfair to every employee they possibly could be, in their perpetual pursuit of profit.

Shit, I'm so mad, I'm starting to alliterate. These are the same assholes, who when they control our government, do everything they can to make the rich richer at the expense of everyone else. Thus, the poor get poorer, and you know the rest.

What has that to do with other news, such as the bail out and the stimulus package? You're smart enough to figure that out.

Back to Old Favorites for First Friday

I had a grandiose itinerary planned for the First Friday of February. A certain amount of fatigue, after a busy week, and a little nap, which lasted too long, led to some list chopping. I did get back to an old favorite, the Celtic Connection and Green Bicycle Tea Room. First Friday produces an Irish folk music jam and a free dark Irish beer. Oh yes, life is sweet.


Afterwards, it was almost time for Zeppo, at the Union Club, and I filled the gap with a burger from Milo's, the cafe in the back of the club. A notable list of Missoula's musicians were among the crowd, with some artists and hipsters seldom seen at the club. It was a to-the-max event.

I didn't get a lot of photos, this time, because I am still concentrating on the video. I taped another hour with at least two full songs with Chuck up front, two with Ruthie, and two of them together. My framing has improved, and I'm looking forward to editing this last batch. Soon, Kitchenpoet will expand to Youtube.

Going Underground in Zootown

Mikey and Allison discuss positioning for their performance.

Mikey and Mariah

Knot Knocked Up blew up the Lab. They capped a four-band event, the first of the year for the underground venue.

Allison and Cassandra.

Check out Allison's homemade percussion kit on the flickr archive.

Mikey is my friend, and I finally captured some good images of her. Check the flickr archive for more.