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Feature

A Collaborative Affair

December 1, 2016

Today we offer

you the premiere

of "Purple Circles",

a song featuring singer

Drea Smith

as well as producers

Banks the Genius,

Noah Sims,

and I.B.C.L.A.S.S.I.C.

This is truly

a Chicago collaborative

affair, with Vibe Dealer

Drea Smith

handling a drowsy

yet hypnotic flow

over the atmospheric

and bass heavy

instrumentation.

It reminds me

of something

Zero 7

and Portishead

might have released

a decade ago.

It reminds me

a futuristic

radio broadcast

found out

in the nothingness

of space.

What a Thursday.

Enjoy the premiere

up above and

check the playlist

of the four artists

that helped

with this track

below.

Over the Garden Wall // A Ten Part Adventure

November 30, 2016

I haven't seen many

(any?)

animated miniseries

but Over the Garden Wall

takes the cake.

All of the cakes.

Originally airing in November

of 2014

over the course of five

consecutive nights,

the show spotlights

a journey with half brothers

Wirt and Greg

as they try their best

to get back home.

Emotional, poetic, vivid,

and with some of the best

original music I've heard

in an animated series.

I honestly have no criticisms

with this show. It's one

for you to watch

by the fireside, as the outdoors

grow colder and kindling

is necessary.

Over the Garden Wall

is a coming of age

tale that covers

imagination, heroism,

love, communication,

and plenty of odd creatures

and lovable beasts along the way.

If you don't shed a tear

during the final episode,

then someone took your soul

a long time ago.

If you need more

from creator Patrick McHale,

check out his limited

Etsy book release

Bags.

I just ordered mine.

Lastly, if you feel

like listening to the music

from the miniseries,

you can enjoy a few tracks

below. For real fans,

the vinyl to the soundtrack

is on eBay for $100.

It's the only thing

on my Christmas list.

Please.

Over The Garden Wall Original Television Soundtrack Music By The Blasting Company Original Artwork by Sam Wolfe Connelly MOND-076 Available on Vinyl, CD and Digital August 2016

Minimalism Blending with Flowers // A Q+A with Kyle by Kyle

November 30, 2016

A back and forth with artist Kyle by Kyle.

Embroidery, Claymation, and Patches // A DIY Interview with Eldo

November 22, 2016

An interview with Colorado artist Eldo.

Icarus & Dragon, Sun & Moon // An Interview with Vagabond Maurice

November 18, 2016

Vagabond Maurice. The name brought me in years ago, and the music kept me around. Last year's album, The Dragon Who Devoured the Moon, still makes the rounds in my iTunes catalog. In preparation for Maurice's upcoming album, Watching Icarus Fly (Nov. 24) and with two singles already available, I spoke with the Chicago MC about movies, books, Bossa Nova, Liberia, and everything else under the star that Icarus tried to reach.

“further melding cosmic imagery through the often-melancholic spirit of autumn, the two arrive with a more energetic sound to the season. ”

Hey, how’s it going? Can you describe your surroundings right now?

At the moment I’m sitting at a desk, or at least the furthest corner of a desk, that is cluttered in music equipment, speakers, monitor and a keyboard. The first issue of the Black Panther comic book is settled on top of one of the speakers, and I’m drinking some black tea while listening to jazz music (Yusef Lateef as I type this, doing some music research and such).

For anyone unfamiliar reading this, explain yourself in a few sentences. Icebreaker shit.

Um, I’m an unapologetic Black Nerd who is literary like a motherfucker – to put it in the least amount of words.

What's a normal week look like for you?

It’s probably reminiscent of the Spike Spiegel/Cowboy Bebop scenario in the sense that there used to be a lot of freelance work and teaching I used to do. Now it’s composed of figuring out the next steps to making the music and writing life sustainable, so my days vary from creative to the practical.

Everyone has a story to tell. What’s your story? You can answer this as precisely or as abstractly as you like.

I don’t think I even get to mention this as often as I’d like to, but I’m the first generation born here in America. My parents are from Liberia. Funny story, they just retired earlier this year and moved back to Africa. Last thing my Pops and Mom said to me was, “Good luck” concerning the election. It’s also dope to have family out of the country, because my Pops always sends me articles about the US to read, so I sort of always have an outside outlook of our country too.

What’s the rest of the year looking like for you?

I’m bout to travel to the West Coast for the first time! Going to LA in December to hang out with Chinsaku and create. A brotha trying to stay up out the cold weather of the Midwest. Although I know it’ll be sort of cold in Cali (I mean, but really, what is even considered cold in Cali?) I know I’ll be good. Midwest tough skin, and all that jazz.

What have you been listening to recently?

A lot of Bossa Nova and Latin Jazz, and just jazz from different countries – a brotha just building up his chops is all.

Quick survey: favorite movie / favorite book / favorite video game.

Goddamn this a hard question. I’d have to narrow it down to Cowboy Bebop: Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door, Black Boy by Richard Wright and Chrono Trigger.

Do you have any advice for artists working on their craft?

Research, analyze and then practice your form, forreal. And make working on your craft a habit. Getting better at what you do is definitely work (that you may enjoy) but don’t forget it’s work. Clock in overtime for them ten thousand hours.

Do you have any final words/thoughts/shout-outs?

“Jesus was black, Ronald Reagan was the devil, and the government is lying about 9-11.”—A rather stellar quote by Huey Freeman, of the The Boondocks.

12.11.16 // Mark Your Calendar

November 16, 2016

It's a solstice celebration

brought to you by

Medicine Woman.

Along with performances

from Via Rosa, Jean Deaux,

Drea Smith, and Kaina

& Burn Twins,

you will get to hear

DJ sets from

nosidam. and Jaro.

Via will also be

selling mini apple pie

cheesecakes.

Bring your favorite holiday

movie and we will have

a raffle to play the selected

film on the big screen

during the show.

Arrive early,

stay late.

Did I mention it's free?

Vessels // An Interview with an American Manic

November 16, 2016

An interview with Darius Airo.

Gravity Falls is a Near Perfect Cartoon Series

November 15, 2016

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It's hard to say whether or not I'm knowledgeable about cartoons. I've been watching them my entire life, but their appearances in my life always arrive in sporadic increments. I might not be the voice of reason for a cartoon show, especially since I haven't seen some might claim to be “essentials” like The Fairly Odd Parents, Invader Zim, Ed, Edd, and Eddy. The list goes on.

That being said, I recently saw vocalist/producer theMIND tweet about the cartoon show Gravity Falls. I read the Wikipedia page, downloaded the first season, digested the first season, downloaded the second season, digested the second season, and here we are. Unfortunately only two seasons exist of this show. I usually lose interest in television shows, but I want nothing more than more episodes of Gravity Falls. Or maybe I don't. It ends as a series should end; with epic, climactic closure. Not only is the show a breath of fresh air for the Disney Channel, but this is a delightful and sharp show. I have no idea what the age group is here, as there are plenty of jokes on impending mortality, existentialism, depression, and more, all the while covering situations like first kiss, puberty, and pet pigs.

To keep it brief: twin siblings (one boy, one girl) stay with their great uncle Stan over the summer. Strange situations begin to unfold. At first, the show hosted standalone episodes, allowing the audience to understand their heroes. Then, the stories begin to connect, mysteries and questions form, and you fall deeper and deeper into a hilarious and witty mystery cartoon. There's also quite a bit of voice actor overlap with Rick and Morty. Some even argue that the two dimensions are connected (WARNING: may contain spoilers). Fascinating, really.

“A 68-hour marathon aired on Disney XD from February 12, 2016, up until the finale on February 15, 2016, with the entire series airing in order. Due to only having 39 episodes before its airing, the show was looped four times to fill the 68-hour slot.”

— Wikipedia

I wouldn't be able to compare Gravity Falls directly to any particular television show (which is a good thing), but plenty of elements of other shows come to mind: Hey Arnold!, Rocko's Modern Life, The Angry Beavers. The humor actually reminds me quite a bit of the humor found inside A Goofy Movie. More than just a tale for kids. But also, a tale for kids.

So if you're trying to be youthful again and laugh at childish things like bottomless pit story time, video game sidekicks, bathing garden gnomes, a person-swapping electric rug, and handfuls of glitter, then dive right in. 40 episodes over two seasons. Find me 40 more enjoyable and cohesive cartoon episodes.

Grab the episodes on Hulu here.

Neon Broadcast 001 // We Try to Relax

November 11, 2016

Over at the Chicago-based music (and news) site TheseDays, I developed a radio segment known as Neon Nightlights. Over the course of twenty two broadcasts, I became better at crafting succinct episodes, improving not only on my GarageBand editing skills but also on my own voice. While this newest development (known simply now as Neon Broadcast) is very similar to my previous efforts (which you can find here), this marks new territory for my broadcast efforts. For now, Neon Broadcast will be a monthly segment, but I might pick it up (or slow it down) depending on where this new website takes me. I'm really pleased with the eclectic yet relaxed tracklisting for this debut segment. As you will come to learn, I always feature artist Alicks (or a l e x) as my background music while I talk. Enjoy the first edition down below.