Swaddled tight in the electrified buckskin of their classic rock-n-roll forefathers, our five Washington braves set out to blanket America in a hot winter blizzard. Don't be fooled by the silk strands tucked behind their ears: what the maps don't tell you is that all-night drives make for better lives, deer come out of nowhere, and what parents don't know (night after night) won't kill them.

The Lonely H spent their graduation summer [2007] touring coast-to-coast in support of their new record and got a glimmer of the mission they were born to undertake. Tour is a magical place where every stage, no matter how high, is a new opportunity to deliver the goods. Armed with melodies that sound like letters to Penthouse etched on colored vinyl, the band lifted, lightened, and gave rise to every technical challenge. Bulletins started coming in over the wire from fans and bloggers [MSNBC, The New York Post, CMJ]. So, from Memphis to Manhattan went pockets full of picks, licks, pianos, and the living-loving swagger that has happily intoxicated the Pacific Northwest the last few years.

Thanks to these starlit marauders, Port Angeles can sometimes sound like the good parts of 1970's Los Angeles depending what Saturday night they're home. Idling the van for a wise fall quarter at the University Of Washington, the H cracked books and fantasized with giddy relief about their soon-to-be-months out on the road in 2008. They can handle it, mama. Not only did they survive the twelfth grade riding ferries to play rock shows on school nights, they simultaneously penned and released two albums with heart and heat to match [Kick Upstairs (2006) and Hair (2007) ­ The Control Group].

See you next year...without a signed permission slip.

"The achingly epic vocal and lead piano belongs in a stadium full of bell bottoms and lighters raised heavenward." ­MSNBC

"Taut live shows swirled with swank three-part vocal harmonies earned the band a 'don't miss this' reputation." ­SPIN

"Truly infectious old-school rock n' roll." ­The New York Post

"Talk about overachievers." ­CMJ

Due to a series of horrible events that transpired last Saturday (i.e. someone throwing a bottle through the window, breaking and/or carving the restaurant tables, tagging the bathrooms, kids getting caught drinking outside by the police and someone stealing my microphones and stands and yet again breaking my P.A., etc.), The Vista will no longer be all-ages. I tried my best, but the management is not budging on this and to be honest I can't really blame them.

Jon Fussell

Booking Agent

Happy Merry

Xmas shows plus the usual rock, jazz, punk etc. There are 12 shopping days until Xmas, but don't start counting those partridges yet, not unless you're part of the Christmas bird count. "The Twelve Days of Christmas" you hear about in song this time of year start on Christmas Day and run until Epiphany (the day the wise guys came to call). What with the proximity to the big day, the entertainment is rolling into full holidaze mode with diminishing club action amid dancing mice and visions of sugarplums. (What other time of year do people attend ballet performances?) Up at the Van Duzer Friday, they have Tomáseen Foley’s A Celtic Christmas, with Xmas stories and all sorts of Irishness — pennywhistles, stepdancing — you get the picture. Unfortunately Riverdance has permanently spoiled Irish dancing for me, and I can't hear a pennywhistle without thinking of those horrid Irish Spring soap commercials.

I'm thinking A Very Playhouse Christmas may be more my speed. If you haven't heard about it, it's a holiday-themed music/comedy review going into its second (and final) weekend at the Arcata Playhouse. The director is David Ferney who runs the Playhouse; his wife, Jackie Dandeneau, is one of three stars of the show, which David explained is a direct result of Jackie's feelings for the holiday season. "Jackie loves everything about Christmas," David told me, admitting that he just kind of likes it. "And she's always wanted to do a Christmasy show," he continued. In the show Jackie is Mrs. O.R. Ganize, an obsessive/compulsive type who organizes a Christmas show with help from her aerobics instructor Babbette LeJoie (Elizabeth Masters), an '80s New Jersey type who David describes as "over-the-top bubbly." Dell'Arte vet Tyler Olsen plays Mr. S.K. Rooge IX, who, as you might guess, is the Scrooge-ish anti-Xmas foil, in this case one who's intent on a politically correct holiday. The interactions of the trio provide a framework for slapstick, silliness and songs, with the always-amazing Tim Randles at the keyboard providing soundtrack and backing. They've also worked in a collection of guests including Tara Caraiso, Sarah Cory, Lewis Armin-Hoiland, the Blue Lake Children's Choir and the Arcata Interfaith Gospel Choir. (The AIGC will be at the Playhouse Friday night; they're also singing on the Arcata Plaza earlier for Arts! Arcata. And they have their own holiday show in at the Presbyterian Church in Eureka Saturday evening.) The always enchanting Lila Nelson is in the Playhouse show Saturday, and, notes David, just confirmed for the Sunday matinee, "the lovely and talented Beti Trauth," who saw the review last weekend and was recruited on the spot. Come early or stay late for eggnog, hot cider and cookies.

The lovely, talented and tattooed alt. chanteuse Universalia Jane writes saying, "Jane here to let ya know that we (Universalia Jane and the Jet Set) are playing the Logger Bar with Tanuki (Tanuki is playing last) on the 15th of December. It will start directly after the Dell'Arte holiday show, The Hunting of the Snark, which probably, means around 9:30-ish." I've heard good things about Dell'Arte's musical adaptation of Lewis Carroll's strange nonsense poem and about Deric's new band Tanuki. And Jane is just plain great. The combination should make for a fine Saturday night.

More seasonality: The theatrical folks from Shake The Bard are taping Static and Starlight: A Holiday Radio Show by Tim McDermond at the Accident Gallery Friday and Saturday. If you miss it or want to relive the experience, tune to KGOE (1480 AM) or KKDS (97.7 FM) on Sunday, Dec. 16, at 4 p.m.

The Pearl Lounge celebrates its second anniversary on Saturday, Dec. 15, with a performance by the band that opened the place, Humboldt Time with Michael Curran on drums, Jim Wilde guitar, Sam Maez trumpet, Jimmy Durchslag trombone and Geoff Daugherty bass. If you haven't heard of them and can't figure it out from the array of instruments, Humboldt Time is a jazz band. They also play the night before at Cecil's. "The world tour," says Michael, who's feeling just fine a year after heart surgery laid him low. Since entertainment at the Pearl veers from jazz to alt. rock to DJ dance music, the second anniversary weekend also includes a Friday night party with DJ Danny and Zanapod.

More jazz? Are you a player? The Graves hosts another Sunday Open Jazz Jam Session on Dec. 17 (starting at 2 p.m.) with a core trio, Al Macy on piano, Shao Way Wu bass, Simon Lucas drums, and whoever else shows up. (They're looking for vocalists in particular.)

If you're a fan of the Compost Mountain Boys and have been jonesing for the return of their once-a-month bluegrass-Thursday at Humboldt Brews, well this is it. They're back Dec. 13. Friday at Humboldt Brews, it's a new band, Humboldt Buds (new name anyway) with the master guitar jammer Rubin Diaz, his old friend from Tunesmiths Tim Stretton on keys and a rhythm section with Marty Holland on bass, and Mike Meyers on drums.

Saturday Humboldt Brews jumps to another genre with a show featuring the fine local world beat/hip hop/funk fusion band WoMama with special guests Bloco Frimeza adding a spicy taste of samba. I got a couple of reminders about that show, one from WoMama frontman Jesse Jonathon and another from Bloco drummer Melody Walker. Melody was worried that I was "offended by [her] uppityness" last week re: the trouble at Muddy's (I wasn't) and says she's resigned to an end to music at Muddy's. "Now I'm trying to think of more creative long-term solutions to the ultimate problem of a lack of venues (esp. all-ages) in Arcata, and where the hell the Menstruals will wander along to now." And she wanted me to know about her senior recital this Thursday at Fulkerson Recital Hall (at 5 p.m.). "I'm doing a mix of classical art song and opera, and South Indian classical, plus a pre-looped presentation of Meredith Monk's "Panda Chant II". In the second half of the recital I will be joined by AkaBella and then Bloco Firmeza to do some folkloric singing and playing." Eclectic enough for you?.

Anna Banana Hamilton celebrates her 60th birthday Saturday at the Riverwood Inn singing and rabble rousing with her band, The Wild Cattahoulas, named for a breed of dogs that interbred with wolves. Joining in for the fun, local folkies The Hohstadts and SoHum swingers Off the Charts. Happy birthday Anna! (Are you still mad at me?)

Along with an announcement of Saturday's show at the Mateel, The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (see calendar section for details), the Mateel sent along a teaser for next year's events, among them a Feb. 8, blast of psychedelic wildness from George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic. Tickets are on sale now.

Now that The Common Vice have moved from 19th century rock opera, bandleader Lord Brett Baily (of Que La fame) is celebrating the release of a Victorian Modesty as Performed by The Common Vice CD with a gala event at the Jambalaya Friday night (post-Arts! Arcata). They invite you to "party like it's 1899." And as noted on the poster, "In addition to their gracious performance you will be astounded by the musical delights of the stately gentlemen of Strix Vega." Sounds delightful. The Rubberneckers count down continues: Friday's show at Big Pete's is their third to last performance ever. (Didn't Led Zeppelin say they'd never perform again 27 years ago?) Joining the 'Neckers for the show at Pete's is Ghostwriter, aka Steve Schecter, a country blues/punk songwriter from Oregon/Texas. I dig his song "People," from a recent album he did with Boxcar Satan. It's a bit scary however as he growls, "People. You can't live with 'em and you just can't kill 'em 'less you want to go to prison."

Saturday night's show at the Alibi is the last rock thing there until next year. What with this being the year of the Portland invasion, it features a doom-psyche-metal trio from the City of Roses called Paranaut along with locals Dragged by Horses. The Arcata rockers have a new album in the can. Deep in the Woods is due out on Chicago's High Wheel Records (home of Walking Bicycles) on Feb. 5, and no, it's not a new CD — it will be pressed on 180g vinyl (that's heavy) and released as an MP3 collection. (For preview tracks check the DbH MySpace.)

The Vista continues its role as home of all ages punk and/or metal with a four-band show Thursday including This Moment In Black History from Cleveland, Kill The Switch, Sick Bitch, and Instant Asshole (mostly tending toward punk). Saturday they have a more metallic lineup with Slaughterbox, Conducting From The Grave, Killgasm, Fate and Dungeon Master. In between (on Friday) it's something slightly different, a show featuring SHIM from Seattle, a band with a neo-classic rock sound and vocals that are sung rather than shouted. There's a bit of grunge in there, a touch of metal, kind of garage rocky, but not lo-fi. Since no one goes to shows without a local opener (or so I'm told) the earthy Arcata/Manila-folk/punk quartet Henpecker is also on the bill. (Not that they are not worthy in their own right.)

It's the time of year for Xmas parties. The Metro is having theirs at Six Rivers Sunday, Dec. 16, and inviting friends and supporters. Gini (the owner) notes, "Our three in-house Djs: Itchie Fingaz, DJ Red and Masta Shredda will all take turns on the tables and battle for the title of best DJ. (They've been talking about doing this since they were all hired.) God only knows what they'll come up with to play, but no matter what it's gonna be fun!" Hey, isn't that what the holidaze are all about?

And as Little Jimmy from Henpecker says, "Merry Max Consumerism!" (Be careful with those credit cards.)

Pinback is a band comprised of two principal players: Armistead Burwell Smith IV (Zach) and Rob Crow. Pinback started as a part-time endeavor back in 1998, when Zach's band Three Mile Pilot went on an extended hiatus and Rob found time away from his other musical interests (mainly Thingy and Heavy Vegetable). After recording their self-titled debut, released by Ace Fu in 1999, Pinback became a fully realized project.

The next few years saw an increase in Pinback activity. The released a number of albums and EPs on a variety of record labels most notably Blue Screen Life in 2000 and Summer in Abaddon in 2003. Abaddon hit the scene like high tide gliding in, whirling around listeners, full of beautiful intensity. It found its place in the hearts of a crazy amount of people worldwide following the success of the single “Fortress,” and rightfully so. Between record releases, Pinback toured as a full band, hitting points across North America and Europe.

The bands latest release, Autumn of the Seraphs, pushes forward and upward. Its melodies are more dynamic and aggressive, while still gently pulling you back in again and again. While entirely recorded in the band’s home studios once again, this record is tighter, the drumming more immediate and crisp. Those duties were shared by Mario Rubalcaba (Rocket from the Crypt) and Chris Prescott (No Knife), and it’s a marked difference from Pinback’s previous releases. “Good to Sea” is the jam of Indian summer. “Walters” saunters its way to a buzzy guitar breakdown while “Subbing for Eden” works steadily toward each climactic chorus. It’s Pinback’s best yet, and it’s going to take you over.

Returning to Arcata from a recent sold out gig at Humbrews and warming up the stage is MC Chris. From voicing characters on the Cartoon Network (MC Pee Pants on Aqua Teen Hunger Force and various characters on Adult Swim amongst others) MC Chris is now one of the leading lights in the Nerd Core hip-hop movement.

For more information and credit card orders call CenterArts at 826-3928

Note: This event is restricted to those who are at least 18 years old or a current HSU student with ID

Iceage Cobra are known in and around Seattle for being rock purists. Always growing tighter as a band with each show, these guys are sure to inspire fist-pumpin' and drink-spillin' all over the place. And with "Brilliant Ideas from Amazing People", their debut full-length, released on Seattle-indie Heavy Soul Records, they plan to extend their reach and get people all over the U.S. talking up their ferocious, sweaty brand of rock.

Here's a bit more information on the bandŠ Iceage Cobra. The name alone evokes the sort of bent creativity and tongue-in-cheek self confidence you might hope to find in a new band, but it doesn't tell you everything you need to know... Iceage Cobra came roaring into Seattle from Spokane, WA like the other Northwest rock greats from outta nowhere. Melvins, Malfunkshun, Nirvana... Iceage Cobra. They don't grow this kinda stuff in the big city. Small towns often breed the bands that start modern revolutions - and Iceage Cobra has what it takes to incite a movement. Iceage Cobra could never have existed before now. Their influences span the decades before them, but their popular live show is far from being a retro revue. It's a blast of youth and rhythm and charisma and humor and overdriven riffs - an irresistible rock n' roll gumbo with fat chunks of soul that get stuck in your teeth and follow you home. Iceage Cobra. Revolution. Rock n' Roll. Soul.

One of the more entertaining new bands in Seattle, Iceage Cobra bring the rock in a big way with a high-energy mix of garage-rock, punk, metal, and even a bit of rap, powered by gonzo guitar riffs, multiple time changes, and ass-shaking beats.² - Don Yates, Music Director KEXP 90.3

". . . shamelessly spastic blend of classic rock riffage, '70s soul, and dance-inducing backbeats" -Hannah Levin, The Stranger

THE ABOVE FREE SERVICE IS AVAILABLE UNTIL 6 AM ON THE 1ST,NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE AND THIS YEAR YOU AND YOUR CAR GOES HOME FOR FREE TAKE THIS HAND NUMBER WITH YOU

Thanks to the generous financial support of a collection of concerned community members who are underwriting expenses on these events without risk to MCC and for the full benefit of the Mateel, it is possible to present this Season even given the community center’s current financial and staffing status. Still a work in progress, many confirmed events are already on tap for 2008 and will offer a diverse array of arts and entertainment that is both local and world-renown. A sampling of these events includes:

- January 19- Just Another Hangover Tour (comedy from Seattle)

- February 8- George Clinton & Parliament/ Funkadelic (tickets on sale now)

- March 1- Delta Nove (Latin funk in a dual benefit for MCC & KMUD)

- March 15- 4th annual Irish Gold Peace Benefit & Brew

- March 21/22- Random People Monologues Project

- April 4- Katchafire & Tchiya Amet (indigenous reggae from New Zealand)

- May 2 or 3- Homegrown Hip Hop vol. 5

- May 9/10- Aging Project

- May 31/ June 1- 32nd annual Summer Arts & Music Festival (Benbow Lake)

More events, programs, and festivals are also in the planning stages now and will be announced as confirmed. Tickets are currently on sale for Just Another Hangover Tour with professional Seattle-based comedians, Heneghen, Scot Shields, and Roger Lizaola on January 19th. These tickets are available only at Redway Liquor, Wild Horse Records, and online at www.inticketing.com for a price of $10 in advance. Tickets for George Clinton & Parliament/Funkadelic on February 8 are also on sale now at the usual local outlets and online at www.inticketing.com for a price of $75. Mateel Community Center members receive a $5 discount when purchased in advance at the Mateel office only. This show is expected to sell out quickly so don’t delay if you want to guarantee your place in the audience when the legendary George Clinton and P-Funk “tear the roof off the sucka” in this exclusive North Coast appearance.

For more information on the events and programs of the Mateel Community Center, visit www.mateel.org or call 923-3368. To help in supporting Mateel’s $75,000 year end fundraising goal, mail your tax deductible donation to MCC, POB 1910, Redway, CA 95560 or make a deposit in the Mateel’s donation account (#13010) at the Community Credit Union in Garberville. Community support is critical to ensuring another successful year of Mateel rentals and programming in 2008.

EVENT: Reggae on the River (festival)

DATE: August 3rd, 4th and 5th

CONTACT: 2b1 Multimedia Productions

(415) 861-1520 or Mateel Community Center

(707) 923-3368

REGGAE on the River Victory on Control of Festival Permit REGGAE on the River moves forward to save event for local community

[Humboldt County, CA May 4, 2007]

The Humboldt Planning Commissioners held steady in their support for the community last evening by confirming through actions, that the Mateel Community Center is still the applicant and holder of the permit for this year’s festival. “We appreciate the planning commission taking the action necessary to maintain the integrity of the decision making process to help guide the community through this controversy.” said Boots Hughston of 2b1 Multimedia, the producer for Reggae on the River. This clears the way for the Mateel, owners of the festival-- for over twenty three years, and its’ production partner, 2b1 Multimedia to successfully confirm its right to produce the festival this year and beyond.

The festival is a crucial part of the social and economic goodwill for the local Southern Humboldt community, a community which has much pride in their support over the years for building and maintaining a healthy nonprofit sector in a rural area with limited governmental services. For over twenty-three years the Mateel Community Center has used their largest fundraiser to distribute the goodwill of the festival by developing diverse cultural arts, theater, and music programs for the surrounding communities. Programming includes items like the Mateel Meal for those without resources and acclaimed theatrical performances by local youth through Recycled Youth.

Taunya Stapp, Executive Director of the Mateel Community Center said, “We are grateful to the commission and acknowledge the difficulty of the job, the changes requested, and we are fully up to the task. We have taken their words to heart and we hope to have any remaining issues resolved prior to the deadline set with the Mateel and Reggae on the River prevailing.”

Alright, so TONIGHT, as it's Thursday, there is free live jazz at Big Pete's at 8. There also is open mic at Sacred Grounds at 8 (come earlier to sign up), as hosted by birthday boy Chris Parreira. Youn Joo Sim is playing a free show at the Fulkerson at 6, and Afromassive is playing at Muddy's at 9 for $3. The Empty Bottle Boys are playing at Old Town Coffee and Chocolates at 7.

This FRIDAY The Bucky Walters in conjunction with The Freelove Circus is hosting a end-of-semester bash at Muddy's at 8 for $7. Skipper is playing at Sacred Grounds at 7:30 ($2 to $5 suggested donation), and Autumn Royals and The Little Still Not Big Enough are playing at Big Pete's at 7. I'll be out of town, but if I were around you could bet I'd be at the Six Rivers High School Ballroom Blitz benefit at the Bayside Grange. There will be auctions, booths, and music by The Rubberneckers, The Ravens, AkaBella, Power Toast, and 8/01 Warning. The event starts at 7 and costs $10 for adults and $3 to $5 for students. Seabury Gould is hosting another kirtan and sacred singing workshop at the Community Yoga Center at 7 for $8 to $12 on sliding scale. This is your last chance to see HLOC's "The Full Monty," which plays at the CR Forum Theatre at 7:30 for $12 general and $10 for students. Earlier in the day there the CR dance classes are giving their final starting at 3, and that performance is free. "Ghost of the Hart" continues at the Ferndale Rep, call 786-5483 for reservations and information. "But We Digress," a Bollywood performance, starts at the D Street Community Center at 8 for $5. Anslinger is playing with Tsu Tain Guu Faitaa at Out of the Sun at 7:30 for $5, and The Retroactives are playing at Mosgo's at 6:30. Plinny the Elder, Craig Peters, Paul Baribeau (last show before he moves!), Shelby Sifers, and more are playing at an end-of-the-semester beach party at Moonstone Beach at 7.

If you're looking for something to do this SATURDAY and you can't/don't want to go to a bar, check out Japanese band Bleach03, Lozen from Tacoma, and locals The Baby Arms at The Accident Gallery. Doors open at 8, music starts at 9, and admission is $7. The Dancing Outlaws are playing at Mosgo's at 6, and the Green Life Evolution Center is hosting a family concert with storytelling by Seabury Gould. That starts at 7 and costs $5. The Arcata Vet's Hall is hosting an Old Fashioned Square Dance at 8 with music by The Striped Pig Stringband and calling by Michael Ismerio. Earlier in the day Magnolia is playing Farmer's Market on the Arcata Plaza. Steve Lloyd is playing at Mosgo's at 7. Has Beans is hosting an open mic at 6:30, and Ali Harter and Ryan McClellan are playing at Sacred Grounds at 7:30.

From the title of the band's most recent album, Astor in Paris, I'd initially guessed that the concept might be something like tango nuevo master Astor Piazzolla teaming with the Hot Club of Paris.

Not exactly, according to accordionist Courtney Von Drehle, who explained that the album was named for a tune on the record. "For that tune, I imagined what it would be like if Astor Piazzolla were born in France, and played nuevo musette or something lie that."

In the beginning the band was a trio with Courtney on accordion, violinist/trumpeter Béla Balogh, and a cellist. Courtney and Béla had been playing together in Lobe, an "art rock" band, up until 1996. "We had learned some Eastern European tunes," said Courtney, "and I convinced Béla we should go out busking."

Truth is, if 3 Leg Torso reminded me of any bands I've heard, it would be the street bands that played for tips at various points on our Italian vacation. (The guys were relieved that I was not reminded of Borat.)

"I didn't really want to force our music on strangers," said Béla, but in a moment of weakness he agreed. For some reason while arranging the gigs, the guys would adopt faux accents in imitation on Béla's Hungarian grandmother.

"I'd call and say, 'Hello, meester,' and we'd go out. We'd dress in hokey clothing..." said Béla.

"And we'd use those accents whenever we'd talk with people," interjected Courtney.

"So we called it meestering," Béla noted.

Courtney continued, "It did have some Borat elements although this was way before Borat, and sometimes people would press us asking, 'Where are you from?'"

"Ve are not from here," concluded Béla.

They may not be from here, but 3 Leg Torso is coming here -- for a show at the Jambalaya on Tuesday, June 12. Be there. I will.

It's a grey drippy morning, doesn't really feel like summer (and technically it's still spring), but for nightclubs that rely on the college crowd, the post-graduation summer lull is kicking in. Humboldt Brews is closed until August, using the slow time for a remodel. Others are curtailing their hours. The Red Fox Tavern for example, is only open weekends except for special occasions. (There's one this week and we'll get to it.) It may not be summer-related, but Sacred Grounds is closing for good after one more week. Having said all that, there's plenty going on this week.

We'll start with Sacred Grounds, but first a correction: When I mentioned the pending closure in recent column, I suggested that former barista Deric Mendes (the talented musician who starred in the Hedwig thing) might be looking for other employment. Well, the day that Hum hit the street, I bought some books from Deric at Northtown Books, where he'd just started working. Without really complaining, he let me know that he has not worked at Sacred Grounds since last year.

Sacred Grounds has at least one more show, an all ages Placebo thing on Friday (early) with a couple of cool out-of-town bands. I caught Kickball last time they played Sacred Grounds and loved them. They're a bouncy alt. pop combo from Olympia with that Olympian kind of sound (and a great drummer) who suggest, "be your own fucking rainbow." They recently toured Europe with a French band, clara clara, who are now over here touring with them. That one's a trio: keys/drums/bass, with a semi-crunchy dance-friendly sound or as they put it, "Une basse, une batterie et un bontempi leur suffisent à distiller une noise bordélique et ma foi étonnamment dansante."

As noted above, the Red Fox Tavern is closed most of the week this summer (Sundays through Wednesdays) except for special occasions, and this Monday's show is truly special. Anyone who pays attention to country music has heard of The Tennessee Three, typically used as a suffix, as in: Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Three. Actually, in the very beginning it was the Tennessee Two, which was guitarist Luther Perkins and bassman Marshall Grant. Drummer W.S. Holland joined in 1960 making Three. Luther died in a fire in 1968, just before Johnny got his own network TV show and hit his second wind. Guitarist Bob Wootton took Luther's place, and that was the Cash band until Marshall left in 1980. Bob and W.S. were with Johnny until he died in 2003 (not long before they were supposed to play Arcata BTW). Today's "Three" still includes W.S. Holland on drums and Bob Wootton on guitar -- with help from Bob's wife Vicky Wootton on rhythm guitar and vocals, their daughter Scarlett on vocals, and Lisa Horngren on upright bass and vocals. The five of them play Johnny's material and some of their own including a song, “You Walked Tall,” which has gotten some airplay of late. Guess who it's about. The Rubberneckers open the show, and I imagine they're jazzed about it. Despite the student exodus, the café closest to campus, Muddy's Hot Cup, has an almost full schedule. This week it's improv comedy benefiting the Shakespeare company Shake the Bard on Thursday, Feminasti DJ Blancatron spinning house Friday (she's also at the Alibi Sunday), Rooster McClintock getting all twangy and shit on Saturday with Jay Dirt opening, Scatter the Mud's Celtic session Sunday, the usual Wandering Menstruals Monday and a songwriter night on Wednesday with Gregory Alan Isakov, Reed Foehl and Curtis Thompson from Kulica. Wait, what about the Tuesday jazz thing with Susie and Shao Way? That's moving to Thursdays.

What local musician do you suppose has had the most national (and international) press in recent months? My educated guess says it's Saint John Hunt, leader of the blues/rock outfit St. John and the Sinners, who play Friday at the Red Fox, and twice Saturday: at the veteran's North Coast Stand Down and at Blue Lake Casino. And no, he's not in the papers because of the band. It's because he knows who killed JFK, or at least he knows what his dad told him -- his dad being E. Howard Hunt, "a 27-year career CIA executive officer and covert operative most well-known his role in the Watergate affair," as St. John puts it on his website (www.saintjohnhunt.com), where you can buy his book, Bond of Secrecy, and a DVD interview revealing some big secrets. Not having heard the Sinners yet, I'm not sure what secrets are concealed or revealed in their music.

The Redwood Run is the ticket for power-packed rock/blues this weekend with Gregg Allman, Joe Bonamassa, Joan Jett and Molly Hatchet among those playing for bikers and just plain music fans down in Piercy.

You may have heard that young blues guitar ripper Corby Yates has taken up residency somewhere east of here out Highway 299. He's on the coast Friday and Saturday shredding at Cher-Ae Heights. (On second thought, is he still considered young?)

My favorite local shredders Dragged by Horses get heavy at the Alibi Saturday, joined by Santa Cruz psyche rockers, El Sonido, who describe their crashing sound as "liquid."

Jazzy/jammy guitarist Will Bernard plays that same night (Saturday) at the Red Fox. I signed up for Will's e-list at some show long ago and since have followed his rise in the jam world gigging with the heavies, Stanton Moore, Robert Walter, Lonnie Smith, John Medeski, guys like that. For this show he's fronting his own band, Motherbug. Should be good.

You'd think the Reggae biz would calm down, but it hasn't. I ran into Mateel board member Bob Stern at the Summer Arts Fest Saturday and asked him what's up with Reggae on the River vs. Reggae Rising. "They're going to try to put on a festival; we're going to try to stop them," is how he put it. Next salvos will be heard at the Planning Commish this Thursday.

The latest: Mateel supporters calling for boycotts of any nonprofit planning on having a booth at Reggae Rising. And how do you boycott a nonprofit anyway? Maybe when your house is on fire you don't call the local VFD? Sorry if this sounds like a broken record, but how about a little peace in the neighborhood?

People Productions and the Dimmick Ranch are pleased with the outcome of last nights Humboldt County Planning Commission meeting at which the Reggae Rising Music Festival was given the green light to move forward, despite the Mateel Community Center's attempt to have the planning commission revoke the CUP. "I'd just hate to see this thing die" stated Commissioner Bruce Emad.

Reggae Rising Music Festival is a benefit for the Southern Humboldt community and will carry on the 23 year tradition of being one of the largest fundraiser for its non-profits. To date there are 20 non-profits signed on including; all of the volunteer fire departments, Beginnings Montessori School, KMUD Radio, Schools Foundation, Garberville Town Square, Trees Foundation, Vets For Peace and the Veterans of Foreign War to name a few. In addition to the support of the local non-profits the festival also has been given the green light from county agencies including; the Mendocino and Humboldt County Sheriff's department, Cal Trans, California Highway Patrol, Army Corps of Engineers, Forestry Service and Cal. Fire (formerly known as CDF).

Reggae Rising Music Festival will take place on August 3rd, 4th, 5th and features 3-days of camping and world renowned reggae music on 100 acres that includes; The Dimmick Ranch and French's Camp, situated along the picturesque Eel River. This year's festival is dedicated to the "Music" and the lineup promises to be unparalleled, and includes:

FRIDAY AUGUST 3rd ANTHONY B FANTAN MOJAH COLLIE BUDDZ ABYSSINIANS HEAVYWEIGHT DUB CHAMPION QUEEN OMEGA STREETSTOTHEHILL WISDOM

SATURDAY AUGUST 4th SLY & ROBBIE AND THE TAXI GANG with HORACE ANDY ZIGGY MARLEY CHERINE ANDERSON MORGAN HERITAGE TANYA STEPHENS RICHIE SPICE SOUL MAJESTIC

SUNDAY AUGUST 5th DAMIAN MARLEY STEPHEN MARLEY STEEL PULSE FREDDIE MCGREGOR RICHIE STEPHENS ISHI DUBE

More Artists to be Announced!

TICKETS AND CAMPING ARE ON SALE NOW and can be purchased online with a credit card by visiting our website at www.reggae rising.com. For more information on Reggae Rising call the hotline at 707-923-4583.

Whild in the Streets

Whild Peach guitarist David Whild wasn't quite sure what the band was doing in Bozeman, Montana. "We're further and further from home everyday," he said when I called him at a Bozeman motel. Home is Atlanta, Georgia, and has been since Whild and his musical partner Peach moved there from Dallas in 1994. "The thing we did in Dallas, we were called Deep Elem, it was an original thing with our own songs, just totally alternative anything. At that time there was nobody doing what we was doing and we ran into a lot of resistance, people who didn't understand a black band playing this alternative rock funk kind of thing. It was funky, but didn't fit any certain category."

Whatever it was, someone at Capital Records liked it and the label brought the band to Georgia -- unfortunately the deal went south before there was a record in the can. "They had some changes, staff shakeups," said Whild, "so we got out of our deal, but we stayed in Atlanta."

The timing was right. While west coast and east coast hip hop factions still ruled, the dirty south was on the rise and Atlanta was at the heart of things with producers cranking out hits. "We started playing around town and evolved more toward hip hop and people started asking us to do sessions and that kind of thing. That's how we hooked up with Organized Noize and The Dungeon Family, then Goodie Mob and Outkast. We ended up playing on their records, writing with them and singing and touring. Once Outkast started going on tours and doing all these TV shows and going around the world, that took up two years at least, so we didn't do anything as Whild Peach for a while."

Whild and Peach worked with André Benjamin (aka Dre) and Antwan "Big Boi" Patton of Outkast from their second album on, a whirlwind period that culminated in the 2004 double-disc, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, which sold 5 million copies, and became the first rap album to win a Grammy as Album of the Year. It also marked a transition point for Outkast. "Once Speakerboxxx/ Love Below came out Dre didn't really want to tour," said Whild, "so we had to do our own thing. That's when we started gigging again. And here we are out on the road."

The road brings Whild Peach to Eureka this Thursday, June 14, to play some “slunky” music at Red Fox Tavern. If soul/funk/rock is what you're into you should check it.

The second year of Jazz In June At Benbow Inn begins this weekend. In some ways it's a direct descendent of something called the Rites of Spring Jazz Festival, put together almost three decades ago by the Backwoods Jazz Association, a group SoHum jazz fans and players. That evolved into Jazz on the Lake, a big event at Benbow that fell by the wayside a few years back.

"Last year the idea came back. John Porter asked about seeing Jazz on the Lake revived," said Jim Wilde, who works by day as accountant for the Benbow Inn and plays jazz guitar at nights, at least when there's somewhere to play. Needless to say, Jazz on the Lake was good for business at Benbow. Plans were hatched, and a major headliner was lined up, then the Backwoods Jazz folks got cold feet. No one was ready to put up the required cash. Instead, Wilde explained, "We decided to do music on the patio instead." It went well and this year it's back with two almost solid weeks in June and more to come in August.

Wilde handled the booking. "I just called my favorite people, they all said, 'Heck yeah,'" said the guitar player. Things kick off Saturday, June 16, with guitarist Bruce Forman leading a trio including scatting bassist with Kristin Korb and veteran drummer Joe La Barbera. The jazz keeps rolling Sunday, June 17, with the Sheldon Brown Quintet featuring Brown on sax and clarinet and guitarist Dave MacNab.

Tuesday, June 19, it's SoHum's own Humboldt Time with Wilde on guitar, Michael Curran on drums, Geoff Daugherty on bass, Jimmy Durchslag on trombone and Sam Maez on trumpet. The Sam Maez Quartet plays Wednesday, June 20, that's Humboldt Time minus the trombone, then next Thursday, June 21, catch the latest incarnation of Equinox, a combo drawing on Backwoods Jazz members, formed to open a Jazz on the Lake show years ago, which includes all of Humboldt Time plus Francis Vanek and Les Scher on saxophones. The jazz series continues every night except Mondays through the end of June. Wilde recommends reservations since some shows will sell out. Call the Inn for details.

Things are looking up for the building at 47 West 3rd Street, home of Synapsis, Empire Squared, and The Placebo. Plans are afoot to bring the currently shuttered warehouse up to code so it can once again become a performance space, and the city seems to be going along with their ideas. They take the plans to the planning commission some time this summer. Of course the work is going to cost money, thus the benefit this Friday, June 15, at 321 Coffee, something they're calling an "Instant Art Show" with a crew of artists creating (and selling) work on the spot while DJ Raj spins arty music. Bring cash so you can take some art home.

Live music in Fieldbrook? That's right, the Fieldbrook Store begins a summer series this Friday, June 15, with those ubiquitous youngsters Steel Toed Slippers. Next Friday, June 22, is open mic night, Wrangletown plays old timey June 29, and there's more to come. Saturday is the annual Arcata Bay Oyster Festival on the plaza with too many mollusks, and music by those ragin' Cajuns The Bayous Swamis, bluesman Earl Thomas (who is also singing at Holy Trinity Church on Sunday; see calendar for details) and Kulica. The always-groovy Kulica also plays Friday night at Red Fox Tavern opening for ekoostik hookah a relatively venerable jamband out of Ohio (15 plus years old) with the usual mix of psychedelic rock, blues, funk, jazz and bluegrass. The band is at the Fox for a two night run with local reggae rockers Mobile Chiefing Unit opening Saturday night. Alert all Scandinavian Celtic rock fans: Your favorite band, Tempest, is playing Saturday night at the Blue Lake Casino's Sapphire Palace -- for free.

Apple Barner from Gold Beach offer "cow-tipping, sheep-poking funk" Saturday at Six Rivers. They explain that growing up on the extreme southwest coast of Oregon in the shadow of the Siskiyou Mountains meant, "There is no underlying regional musical style such as those found in the Deep South, farm country, or the inner-city. It's kind of a no-man's land down here. The rest of Oregon forgets about us, and we don't belong to northern California. We just do our own thing." The result is music that they promise, "is somewhat based on reality or a form of it," including, "some songs you might find you even like."

Norm from Bad Kitty Productions is at it again, this time bringing Detroit-based psychobilly/gothabilly madmen the Koffin Kats to the Boiler Room Sunday, June 17. Wear black. With all due respect to KHUM-FM, the only local commercial station I tune in regularly, I have to say that the "radio without the rules" slogan is pretty much a relative thing. The deejays abide by less rules than most, but there's always the FCC regulations to think of and the potential fine for saying fuck or shit or some other arbitrarily banned word is huge. The pirates of the Humboldt Free Radio Alliance on the other hand ignore all rules. Fuck that. Since the low-power broadcasters at 99.9-FM don't have pledge drives like public stations, they throw the occasional benefit, typically at the Alibi, like the one Saturday night with renegade hillbilly Jay Dirt and Henpecker, who are either an anti-war folk punk band, an anti-folk war punk band or an anti-funk polka band, allegedly from Manila, but in truth from all over the map. Wherever they're from they're funny. Support your local pirates and be there.

What exactly does that mean? Well, Judgement Yard is a compound/recording studio in the August Town, a rough section of Kingston, home to the dancehall vocalist Sizzla. The young dancehall artist Joseph Shepherd lives there, as do Congo Judah, Bobo David, and dub plate producer John Marcus -- all of them record for Sizzla and all are performing at both shows. David House is home to the JA-based dancehall star, Capleton, aka "The Prophet," who is coming here with his Prophecy Band and an artist known as Jah Thunder.

If the names sound kind of biblical, it's no mistake. All of them are Rastafarians, and most of them follow the path of the Bobo Ashanti, "the Priestly Order of Rastafari," whose members adhere to strict religious guidelines and typically wear their dreadlocks wrapped in turbans.

You might remember the last time Capleton was scheduled to play locally, a Fall 2004 show at Humboldt State that stirred controversy and was ultimately cancelled. Along with Sizzla, Beenie Man and five other Jamaican artists, Capleton had been accused of advocating violence against homosexuals through his lyrics and placed on a blacklist by the gay rights group OutRage! as part of its "Stop Murder Music" campaign.

Capleton is known as "The Fiyah Man" for his tendency to call down biblical fire and brimstone on sinners of all sorts. Asked about the OutRage! allegations before the 2004 show, he claimed he was basically misunderstood. "When Capleton say `burn' or when Capleton say `more fire,' it's not on a destructive level," he told me. "It's not saying to go out there and kill no one or murder people or destroy people. This fire is all about the purification of humanity and the uplifting of the people."

The Murder Music campaign was fairly successful, resulting in the cancellation of numerous concerts, in fact most of Capleton's 2004 tour, along with many shows by other targeted performers. OutRage! estimates income losses for the various blacklisted reggae artists at upwards of $5 million. But all of that is over as of June 13, at least for some on the list.

A press release from OutRage! declares, "Three of the world's top reggae/dancehall singers have renounced homophobia and condemned violence against lesbians and gay men." It goes on to explain that Capleton, Sizzla and Beenie Man have signed something called "the Reggae Compassionate Act" in a deal between top reggae promoters and Stop Murder Music activists.

Said OutRage leader Peter Tatchell, “The singers' rejection of homophobia and sexism is an important milestone. We rejoice at their new commitment to music without prejudice.”

The pledge reads in part: "We, as artists, are committed to a holistic and healthy existence in the world, and to respect to the utmost the human and natural world. We pledge that our music will continue to contribute positively to the world dialogue on peace, respect and justice for all. To this end, we agree to not make statements or perform songs that incite hatred or violence against anyone from any community."

While signing puts an end to the campaign against the three artists, Outrage! is still asking for boycotts for others who did not sign: Elephant Man, TOK, Bounty Killa, Vybz Kartel and Buju Banton. The overall effect of all this on reggae in general is hard to judge.

Warren Smith, the concert promoter who put on the recent Sierra Nevada World Music Festival, says he has seen a contraction in the reggae audience in recent years. He blames this at least in part on "fundamentalist Bobo types" who have become dancehall staples.

"All of I sudden I realized these people have more in common with George Bush than they do with me," said Smith. "They're fundamentalist Christians. They're very sexist towards women. They're anti-gay." As a result, he figures, "The younger generations are not embracing [reggae] like they used to. There's been a negative reaction to the whole stance on gays... and the fact that some of these artists take a Bible on stage and start quoting from it. It's no longer the cool music, and I think we're starting to feel that in the business... I really think the Rasta thing has run its course."

Will this alleged anti-Rasta reaction take hold in Humboldt? It's doubtful. This is still dread country. An on-again-off-again concert at the Mateel last Sept. featuring Buju Banton sold out easily, and truth be told, when Capleton speaks of "fiyah," locals are more likely to think of lighting their spliffs than of hellfire.

The Mad River Festival rolls on out in Blue Lake heading inexorably toward the Humboldt Folklife Fest, which starts July 15. (The Journal is some sort of media sponsor.) A few things this week might put you in the mood. First there's a film, Lomax: The Songhunter, playing at the Morris Graves Museum Thursday, July 5. It details the life of Alan Lomax, an influential figure in the history of folk music, the son of musicologist/folklorist John Lomax, and like his father a collector of songs. Patrick Cleary of the Humboldt Folklife Society leads a discussion following the film.

Then on Friday, July 6, the Mad River Fest presents the first of three "Bands Out Back" concerts in the Rooney Amphitheater, with Blue Lake-based groove/folk/rock band Kulica on the stage out back behind the old Oddfellows Hall that houses Dell'Arte.

Saturday the Band Out Back is an ad hoc combo called The Greenhorns assembled by the continually amazing Gregg Moore to play original music he composed as a live soundtrack for the great Buster Keaton comedy The General, a tale of a man who loves his train and is willing to go through hell to save it (which come to think of it fits right in with this week's cover story). Fred Belénger, Chris Larson, Susie Laraine, Julie Froblom and Dell'Arte's resident sound designer Tim Gray complete the Greenhorns band. BTW, if you saw Tartuffe, Gregg was the multi-instrumentalist wearing the extremely floppy hat. He also plays Portuguese folk-inspired jazz as part of the festival's Acoustic Jazz Night Wednesday, July 18.

Meanwhile Saturday, back at the Graves, it's Arts Alive! night featuring a Folklife Festival Preview with Circle Time music by Lisa Monet, songs by Melody Walker (featured on Folklife's Songwriter's Night, July 17) and neo-old timey tunes by Old Dog. (Lisa and Old Dog both play at Folklife's All Day Free Festival July 21.)

Big Pete's Pizza in Northtown celebrates its 2nd anniversary on July 5 (has it really been that long?) with a jam session including members of Moo-Got-2, Bump Foundation and (Little) Pete's band, Nucleus. No cover, happy hour all night. Sounds like a blast.

Got a note from an old friend, Coleman who moved up to the Snoqualmie Valley in Washington a few years ago. The former guitarist/bassman for now-defunct Humboldt County bands like The Yowling Zygotes and The Cow Persuaders is coming back for a show at Muddy's Hot Cup Saturday, July 7, with the acoustic trio, Ask Sophie, which also includes Snoqualmie cohorts Joe Burgener on harp and Cal Christensen on percussion playing eclectic folk, Americana and old country music, "leaning toward songs that tell stories of outlaws, criminals, outcasts, and misfits." They share the bill with a new band, No Not Yet, which includes Coleman's friend Peggy Martinez.

A missive from (Rutabaga) Queen Monica notes, "In case you are mentioning Los Olvidados in the Hum for this week, you might like to know that they'll be playing live at 1 p.m. Saturday, in the KSLG studio. I caught them last year sometime, at the Alibi, and adored them."

Well I was thinking of mentioning the band from Moorpark (down in Ventura County), in part because I like the classic Luis Buñuel film they borrowed their name from. After visiting their MySpace, I now know that they're a slightly folky, somewhat moody rock band with a classic SoCal flavor, as if the music of The Eagles, The Heartbreakers and The Burrito Bros, was somehow genetically imprinted on them. A bio on another site (purevolume.com/losolividados) tells me that the main players have known each other basically forever, or at least since they played in little league together. "flash forward about 10 years. two film students were bored after their old band faded out. the quiet one wrote a few songs and asked the other to help flesh them out with some of the [queen] latifah flavor we all once knew. the two began rehearsing and playing shows and (unwisely?) stole their name from a buñuel film knowing it would confuse a few and most likely be unpronounceable to most. they are not the forgotten." Jay Dirt opens the show for them at the Alibi Saturday night many hours after they play on the radio. Don't forget.

The memory of that night came back when I heard that legendary O.C. punks Social Distortion are coming to the Eureka Municipal Auditorium Saturday, July 14. That's what the band's music is like. Led by the intense Mike Ness, Social D was part of the late '70s wave of Cali punk alongside bands like Black Flag, The Dead Kennedys and Bad Religion.

Comrades have fallen by the wayside, but, with a few breaks for rehab and the like, Ness has been at it ever since. At 45, the thoroughly tattooed guitarist is no longer a young punk, but that didn't keep him off his skateboard, and last year he fell off and broke his arm rendering him unable to play guitar. No worries: His friends stepped in as the band continued touring, first Ron Emory from TSOL, then Bryan Small from another fiery punk outfit The Hangmen. They've just released a new EP, The Hangmen In the City, produced by Ness and they're part of the current Social D tour. Also on the bill at the Muni: The Heart Attacks, a "scuzz rock" five-piece from Atlanta described by lead singer Chase as "a gang of pirate gypsy crackhead smart-mouthed snot-nosed rock & roll misfits." �

Meanwhile across town, it's The 5 Browns, who could be described as a classical novelty act. The family band, two brothers and three sisters, all play piano and all of them are pretty good. What's novel is they all play at the same time. That's right, five pianos on stage at once. They do some duo numbers and solos, but the main deal is pounding out warhorses from the classical repertoire all together on five Steinway grand pianos. What occurred to me was the fact that there probably are not five concert-ready Steinway grands in the county. No problem, the Browns travel with a truckload of them and will bring them to the Arkley Center Saturday evening.

Vocalese jazzman Bill Allison leads Redwood Jazz Voices in their first performance Thursday, July 12, at Muddy's Hot Cup with Dave Wilson on bass and Mike LaBolle on percussion. The young vocal ensemble includes Bill's son, Clay Allison, Lorenza Simmons (Madi's daughter) and Calista LaBolle (Mike's daughter). "All kids who grew up in households with pro musicians," Bill points out, adding, "They're all in tune to it."

Seattle nerdcore semi-star Matt Kenall used to call his one-man-band Capital Steps, but the similarly named comedy troupe complained, so now he calls himself Square Wail. He's at the Jambalaya that same Thursday on his "I'm Not Listening" tour playing loopy dance tunes he creates with a pile of gadgets, but mostly with a Nintendo Gameboy. No, really. Dj[hexWarrior] opens, playing out for the first time.

Friday at the Jam, it's yet another band from Portland, Wooden Nickle, a trio with guitars, drums and a laptop who craft cool, dark, haunted alt. folk/rock/country songs intermittently spiked with guitar feedback, hand claps and digital trickery. Deejay Jen Savage offers a preview on KSLG that afternoon at 1 p.m. Locals Laden Swallow open the show at the Jam with songs from their Awaken CD.

The Venerable Lord Bret Bailey from Que La/The Common Vice tells me he's been branching beyond rock opera with C. Vice. See what he's up to at the Pearl Friday. Deric Mendes' new band shares the bill.

There's art and music Friday at the big purplish foundry in Aldergrove Industrial Park known as Unauthorized Art. Percussionist Jesse Jonathon is the music guy out there, renting rehearsal space for some of the worldly bands he's in: WoMama, Afromassive, Dun Dun Fare, the Janky Mallets and Bloco Firmeza. The Arts! Arcata gallery opening that evening features sharp sculptures by Seth Magnusen and pix by photographer Christopher Cook including shots of various local bands. The music? "We're starting with a local songwriter, Rebekah Downey, then the jazz trio Weather Machine, then WoMama and The Janky Mallets ending midnight-ish. It's all a fundraiser for the building," says Jonathan, promising, "It's gonna be fun."

If you've been following the Synapsis/Empire Squared saga, you know it's actually going pretty well. Says Carmen Olson, the sexy Synapsis trapeze artist/stilt walker, "It looks like we're going to get the Conditional Use Permit we're applying for, so soon we'll do the fire exits and ADA compliance stuff required, and then we reopen. We have an architect working for us, John Ash, he's top notch. He read about it in the paper and called us to volunteer his time. He's drawing up the plans, then we'll have an idea how much we'll need. We're hoping to get a grant from the Humboldt Are Foundation, but in the meantime we're trying to get some money together." To that end, they're reviving Tsirkus Picaresque as Tsirkus Burlesque for a cabaret-style show Saturday, July 14, at the Dancenter in Arcata's Old Creamery. "It starts at 8:30 with a fire show and silent art auction," says Carmen, "then they'll be a burlesquey-style circus show. Between acts we'll auction off more art live. We'll have trapeze, fabric aerials, hula hooping, a clowning striptease, and other stuff. DJ-dancing after. It's kind of risqu� so it's adults only."

It's got to be bittersweet. Yer Dog's long-awaited CD release party at the Alibi Saturday is also the band's last show ever. "We'll be playing with The Ravens which should be loads of fun," says Pete. "We're encouraging everyone coming out to dress in the best formal wear, suits, tuxes, evening gowns... recreating a ballroom dance party." Don't know if that's possible in the confines of the Alibi, but it sounds different.

Coming up next Wednesday, July 18, at the Indigo, The Soul of John Black, with John �JB� Bigham, formerly of Fishbone, who has dug into his roots in recent years to come up with a new twist on the blues�call it alt. blues. Meanwhile at Muddy's Hot Cup, it's 8traC, an alt. funk outfit from Boulder with stunning blonde vocalist Chantel Mead out front and guitar work and samples from Derek VanScoten who came through town a few years back with a funk trio called Element37. (Think he likes names with numbers?) Same night at Mazzotti's: jazzy electro-acoustic jams by the Eric McFadden Trio with Eric McF supplying flamenco/Hendrix-inspired guitar riffs backed by stand-up bass and drums.

A reminder: Don't forget next Monday, July 16, is the next vote for Steel Toed Slippers on their way to TV stardom. Vote for them (more than once) at www.cbsnews.com up until noon Wednesday.

As you perhaps read elsewhere in this paper, it's Blues by the Bay weekend. If you listened to "The South Side," Chas Lewis' blues show on KHSU last Friday night, you got a taste of some of the artists who will be playing. You would have heard more this week, except the show will not be on. Chas is the radio name for KHSU's longtime development director Charles Horn, and he was summarily dismissed from his position Monday. The man who's described by colleagues as "the glue that holds the station together," won't even be allowed to volunteer as a deejay. Don't be surprised if things come a bit unglued at KHSU in the coming weeks as they struggle to fill his shoes. Good luck, both to Chas and those at the station.

Last weekend the bands played music to a packed house way out in the middle of, well, way past Willow Creek in a little bar called Simon Legree's.

At the end of the night, still serving drinks to a packed house, Simon Legree's bartender, Ceasar, decided to pay the band $50 less than they agreed to be paid for the night.

Now, fifty bucks may not seem like a lot, but, really, come on Ceasar ... fifty bucks?

Insult me again, Ceasar.

If I were the band I wouldn't grace them with my presence again. Seems to me that it's a matter of principle.

Fifty bucks, Ceasar?

Fifty bucks?

Hey, fifty bicks will pay for a bit of gas to get the band out of your dive.

I decided to call a member of the Doctor Squid band to see if they had any dealings with the notorious bar owners at Simon Legree's.

Bobby Martinez, drummer for Dr Squid, was more than happy to tell us a story about the seedy bar.

"Ceasar invited us to play during a summer night last year. We were happy to make the hour and a half drive out to middle of nowhere to play for folks. We figured that people way out there probably didn't get to hear a live band very often, so we were happy to make the drive and play music for an evening".

But Martinez added "at the end of the night they knocked a hundred bucks off our original agreement for pay. I had to go to the guys and break the news. It's no fun when musicians have to play for next to nothing. I'll never play there again".

Kevin Held, keyboardist for the Roadmasters, agrees.

"I love playing music, but, hey, fifty bucks will get me home after the gig!"

I told him the mythic tale of the British band's founding by mates who'd met in a line at the employment office; the name, UB40, borrowed from the unemployment benefit form filled out when they went on the dole; their instruments purchased with the settlement lead singer Ali Campbell received after a bar fight. As I said, the tape served as an introduction to reggae for my dishwasher, and it did so for many others, as sales in excess of 55 million attest. A couple of decades and 23 albums into their career, the band is still going strong, still speaking up on issues of the day with songs like "Plenty More" and "War Poem," from the most recent album, Who You Fighting For.

UB40's '80s Britpop take on Jamaican reggae is not exactly roots stylee, but it has the feel and the consciousness of classic reggae, and the band has always drawn heavily on reggae's past in their repertoire mixing covers of favorite Jamaican tunes with originals. "Red Red Wine," UB40's biggest hit stateside, was in fact, a cover of a cover, although the band did not know it when they recorded it; they'd only heard the version by the Jamaican singer Tony Tribe and didn't realize Tony borrowed it from Neil Diamond.

Speaking of covers, the band is seeking to distance itself from a copyright dispute involving heiress and media darling Paris Hilton. You may have missed it, but Paris released a record last year with a single, "Stars Are Blind," whose melody sounds a whole lot like an old UB40 hit, "Kingston Town." Here's the deal: While it's more than likely that whoever borrowed the tune heard it on the UB40 record, it's not their dispute since theirs was a cover and they hold no copyright claim. Following media reports that the band was suing Paris, an official press release was issued stating, "UB40 are in no way associated or party to any legal action being bought against Ms. Hilton in relation to the song 'Kingston Town.' Any speculated legal action taking place against Ms. Hilton would be entirely at the instigation of the original songwriter’s music publisher." The statement went on to add, "However, UB40 have always acknowledged, respected and supported the rights of songwriters and their vitally important contribution in the musical process."

I imagine there might be some red, red wine on hand when UB40 makes its first Humboldt appearance on Tuesday, August 14, Benbow Lake State Recreation Area. Come early if you want to hear Elan, a Cali reggae singer who did a stint as lead singer for the legendary Wailers.

Need I mention that this concert (which BTW is produced by People Productions) follows pretty closely on the heels of that other big reggae concert down SoHum way? For those who were expecting some sort of Reggae review, well, I had big fun, and the music was great aside from the fact that there was too much of it. (I slept through a couple of sets.) And from what I saw everything was irie production-wise. My saying so will undoubtedly continue to raise the ire of the Reggaetista troll army who now have me pegged as an "embedded reporter," perhaps because I missed the Truth flotilla float-by. Sorry, I was having a good time and lost rack of time. But I'll see you online. (More on Reggae at rotrblog.blogspot.com when I get to it.)

Those who just can't get enough of that one-drop beat have a cupla others options this week: The inimitable Twinkle Brothers are at Mazzotti's Friday with Ishi Dube and Massagana opening. (Ishi and company killed at Reggae Sunday.) Then there's Afro Omega, a reggae/dub/rock outfit from Salt Lake City of all places, playing Monday at the Indigo Lounge. Vocalist/songwriter Elisa, aka Miss Omega takes the lead. They're on their way south after playing the Northwest World Reggae Festival up in Oregon, an event that a few of the local Rising boycotters will surely attend.

Up from L.A. for a show Thursday, Aug. 9, at Six Rivers, a tres cool duo called Bitter:Sweet. Beatmeister Kiran Shahani lays down trip hop grooves bordering on lounge pop creating a lush platform for sultry vocalist Shana Halligan. A track from their debut disc, The Mating Game, made it onto the soundtrack for The Devil Wears Prada. Album two, The Remix Game, is, you guessed it, a remix collection with Thievery Corporation among those enlisted for mixology. This could be the sleeper show of the week.

Also on Thursday, another Bad Kitty psychobilly joint the Boiler Room with Three Bad Jacks from L.A. and The Sick Shooters straight outta Ukiah.

Thursday at an undisclosed location, local drone mavens Starving Weirdos host a potluck for Philly psyche/folk band Fursaxa and Family Underground, a group of Danes who erect a wall of drone. Sound interesting? Send an e-mail to starvingweirdos@yahoo.com for further details.

For some reason I don't quite understand, many 20- and 30-somethings are like totally into '80s nostalgia. You may find some of them at Blue Lake Casino Friday to hear the Tommy Tutone Duo (unplugged) playing hits like "867-5309/Jenny" and... Well I know they'll play that one.

The Red Fox Tavern is back in action after a summer hiatus imposed by your friendly neighborhood ABC. Thursday it's the return of jazz-punky vibraphone player Mike Dillon from Hairy Apes BMX etc. and his band, Mike Dillon's Go-Go Jungle. Next Wednesday, Aug. 15, it's an evening of underground hip hop with 2-Mex, Life Rexall, Existereo and Pickstur-One plus Itchie Fingaz on the wheels of steel. ($12/$8) Coming up: a return engagement by Marc Ford from the Black Crowes on Aug. 18.

Accident Gallery goes hip hop this month. Friday get schooled as movie night features Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme, a doc on freestyle rappers and Wild Style seminal flick from 1983 about graf artists, breakdancers and rappers in the Bronx. Saturday is MC Night with J the Sarge (who rocked the mic during Sub Sab's excellent set at Reggae) plus Nac One, Callous and too many others to name.

Friday at the Jambalaya, it's the psychedelic/roots/rock/soul jamband Izabella headlining and Nucleus/Sub Sab drummer Pete Ciotti opening with his singer/songwriter thing. Sunday at the Jam catch crazy ass bass monster Freekbase, a protégé of the supremely funkadelic Boots Collins. He shares the bill with local slapbass master Chris Matheos and his band. Chris and co. are back again Monday to lead the new Jambalaya Funk Jam. Then on Tuesday at the Jam it's Sweet Crude Bill and the Lighthouse Nautical Society, a rockin' country punk outfit founded on a Virginia art commune on tour with songster Ian Thomas. Local Rasta-folk/punk combo Henpecker open the show.

Another local kid makes good: Tuesday morning Eureka-born "pop soul" singer/songwriter Sara Bareilles sang her hit song "Love Song" on The Today Show and talked with the host about writing "honest" music. The song was given away on iTunes leading to a No. 1 slot on the download site for her Epic album, Little Voice. Check the vid of her Today performance at today.msnbc.msn.com/id/20161429 and you'll find that she does not have a little voice at all, on the contrary. Bigger things are surely coming for Sara, who is 27, so "kid" maybe a misnomer, except for the fact that her proud dad called me when her album came out. The question: When is she coming home to sing? I promise I'll let you know when I find out.

A video for the band's cover version of the old Stones' tune "Down Home Girl" shows OCMS busking on the street in what seems to be New York City, initially being told to move along by a sympathetic cop who lets on that he likes their music. They dutifully cross the street with their guitars, banjo and standup bass and start again as city life grinds on. At the end an old guy wonders, "Are these the Sex Pistols?" The band does not correct him, answering, "How'd you know?"

Now it's not likely you'll see OCMS busking on the Arcata Plaza, but there's a grain of truth in the vid. The band got its start in NYC and played on the street and in dive bars for some time before they got their big break, a mythic meeting with Doc Watson (coming soon to CenterArts BTW) in front of a North Carolina pharmacy that led to a slot on Doc's annual Merlefest (named for his late son, not Mr. Haggard, BTW, although OCMS later toured with that Merle).

Moving up in the world they relocated to Nashville and eventually got to play the Grand Ole Opry, which is about as big as it gets in the country scene. A couple of albums and a coupla hundred thousand units later and they're playing all the big festivals, Bonnaroo, Telluride, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage and so on; they're regulars on Prairie Home Companion and CMT is playing their videos. That country-blues take on "Down Home Girl" crossed over to Triple-A radio and won them new fans at home and abroad.

After working their way down the West Cost they head for Europe for the fall, returning late Oct. just in time for another visit to the Ryman, home of the Opry, and my guess is they're having a grand ole time.

If you're thinking of going, you might want to act now. I'm told the show's close to selling out. Tickets are also moving fast for the return engagement by Portland's loungey orchestra Pink Martini (playing Sept. 9), also for blues legend B.B. King (Sept. 11), the Celtic Christmas show (Dec. 14) and especially for the Cirque du Soleil/Pickle Family spin-off Cirque Works in Birdhouse Factory (Sept. 25).

Coming (relatively) soon to CenterArts, jazzy chanteuse Madeleine Peyroux (Aug. 28) funky world music by Zap Mama (Aug. 31), jazz guitar giant John McLaughlin (Sept. 23), Mickey Hart's spacey Planet Drum (Sept. 30), then in one week in Oct. a veritable festival of American music with the above mentioned Doc Watson (Oct. 4), Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby (Oct. 7), Bela Fleck and the Flecktones (Oct. 8) and Solid Blues, a mini-fest in itself with Mavis Staples, Charlie Musselwhite, The North Mississippi All-Stars and New Orleans-style pianist Joe Krown (Oct. 10).

Now the truth is, between the music styles and the prices, the CenterArts season is not really designed for HSU students. Their on-campus musical needs are met more by Associated Students Presents, whose season also opens this coming week with a visit by the funky San Fran Afrobeat band Albino!, playing at the Depot Wednesday, Aug. 22. AS Presents has beaucoup coolness on the horizon including the 7th annual Fall Harvest Festival Sept. 9, with a double dose of neo-old timey: Hot Buttered Rum and Devil Makes Three. Then it's a turntablist's dream with DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist reunited for their Hard Sell tour (Sept. 17) followed immediately by an indie rock one-two with Built to Spill and those old school alt. masters Camper Van Beethoven (Sept. 18). There's still more old timey with the ladies known as Uncle Earl plus local opener Huckleberry Flint (Oct. 16), then (drum roll please) a visit by alt. rock royalty: Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth fame, playing at the Depot of all places (Oct. 26).

Coming Thursday to the Indigo Lounge, Peruvian-born "activist rapper" Felipe Coronel aka Immortal Technique. Raised on the mean streets of NYC, I.T. latched on to the political side of hip hop. Classic example: his most famous record, "Bin Laden," produced by DJ Green Lantern with Mos Def making a guest appearance, in which I.T. puts the blame for 9/11 squarely on the shoulders of the Bush admin. (He buys onto the controlled demolition of the World Trade Center.) Diabolic and DJ GI Joe complete the bill.

Earlier in the evening the Thursday Old Town Boardwalk Summer Concerts roll on, this time with hot Cajun swing fiddler Tom Rigney and Flambeau. Meanwhile the Power 96 Battle of the Bands is almost over. The winner plays next Thursday.

McKinleyville has it's own parallel Concerts in the Park in Pierson Park Thursdays, this week with that jazzy incarnation of Dr. Squid, Mr. Calamari’s Jazz Machine, next week with bluegrass by Compost Mountain Boys.

Seattle's Datura Blues play the Jambalaya Friday night with Washington neighbors, Mindless Thuggs, a band described by D.B.'s Ryan Jones as playing "freeform, droney improv rock" (which might also describe his band). Datura Blues got its start in Arcata in 1999 led by Jones who'd played in rock bands while in high school. Since the turn of the century says Jones, "We've gone from a quieter ambient sound to something more aggressive and rough around the edges. It's what I'd call psyche-rock, a mix of experimental sounds and rock 'n' roll." You might think new roughness came from moving to Seattle, grunge central. Not so, says Jones. "It had more to do with living in Prague. I lived there for a year and worked as a DJ playing fast music all the time. I had never explored that high tempo world in my own music." He's figuring eight Daturas on stage at the Jam Friday, five from Seattle plus a few old friends who are still in town. When the tour ends Jones is following the Dynamite Sweater plan, "Movin' to Portland."

The Felice Brothers are a rough-hewn, honest Americana band from somewhere along the shores of the Hudson River in New York. (Several of them are actually brothers; you can tell by the way they play.) They're traveling the country in a beat-up bus packed with drums, guitars, a fiddle and an accordion, driving to Humboldt all the way from Omaha to sing about whiskey and bad women on Friday at Six Rivers.

For rock in several flavors hit the Alibi Saturday where The Ravens mix rock and soul, Oakland's Rock N Roll Adventure Kids kick it lo-fi and The Shankers out of Chico play punky rockabilly.

Saturday is solo acoustic night at the Jambalaya with local boys Clay Smith from The Rubberneckers and Bret Bailey from Que La and The Common Vice strummin' and singing, hosting guests Nick and Heather Riffbroker from The Riffbrokers out of Seattle and Robert Szeles from L.A.'s Kiss The Girl.

That night at the Red Fox marks the return of guitarist Marc Ford from the Black Crowes. 'Nuff said.

The mural created on the wall below Wildberries is done and the Summer Youth Mural Project is throwing a block party Sunday afternoon to celebrate. Stop by for Wild food (from the store), jugband blues by Likely Story and samba drumming by The Janky Mallets.

Need a shot of reggae? Try Reggae Monday at Big Pete's with SelectaTruth and DJ Knutz spinning reggae, hip hop and funk.

The "Funk The West Coast" Tour hits Humboldt next week, landing at the Pearl Tuesday, then moving to the Jambalaya Wednesday. It's a joint venture by Indubious, a reggae/funk/acid jazz trio out of San Francisco with brothers Spencer and Evan Burton on bass and keys, on the road with Teddy Presberg and his Red Note Revivalists, a jazz/funk/jam band from Portland led by guitarist/composer/Ropeadope recording artist Presberg. Says Presberg, “There will be a lot of room for collaborating and jamming."

The Benbow Summer Jazz Series resumes where it left off in June bringing jazz almost every night to the Inn starting Saturday with guitarist Sheryl Bailey and her trio, followed by the Mary Jo Casasanta Quintet on Sunday; the Sam Maez Quartet Tuesday; pianist Larry Vukovich and his trio Wednesday and so on until the end of the month. Cool music on a summer night beneath the redwoods. What else could you ask for?

When we spoke on a recent weekday morning Marie was in New York City, far from home, preparing for an American tour in support of her latest album, Supermoon, a cross-country journey that brings her to Arcata on Friday, Aug. 31, for a show at the Van Duzer, then in a few weeks, to Black Oak Ranch near Laytonville, for Earthdance, an event she calls "a psychedelic world," remembering a previous Earthdance performance.

We started out talking about home. It's a complicated thing for her. Home is Brussels, Belgium, where she was raised, but also in a different way, the Congo where she was born. The transition was not exactly easy. Her Belgian father insisted that her mother take the family away from the political turmoil that was raging in what was then the Belgian Congo. But, she explained, "He did not have a chance to come with us because he was captured. He was a prisoner of the rebels for a while, then they killed him. My mom had escaped with us, the little babies and children, and took us to Belgium."

She says memories of her homeland lingered. "When I was around 18, I didn't know why, but I was unconsciously attracted by the sound of the Pygmies. First, I should tell that before they escaped to Belgium, a lot of Belgian people hid themselves in the forest with the Pygmies and the Pygmies protected them. The rebels were afraid of the forest. So my family stayed a while with the Pygmies before we came to Belgium. So when I was 18, my ears were attracted to this sound of the Pygmies. I asked my mother about it, and I wanted to know more about the story of my father, why he was killed and where, so I decided to go back to the Congo, looking for answers about him. What I found was that I must become a musician. The sound of the Pygmies held some deep meaning for me, so when I came back to Belgium I created Zap Mama."

She did not really find exact answers to the questions about her father. "I found that human beings are strange. That's the answer. I found that there are good and bad people everywhere. I grew up straight away at the age of 18, and I knew that nothing is the fault of one person. Yes, sometimes one person can be the cause of a disaster, sure. But why does one man do something wrong? Why does one man kill another? I don't know that there is an answer to that."

Did she find home? Not really. "You know when I went back to Congo, I thought I would have a welcome like I was part of the family, part of the country, but that was not the case. They treated me like a Belgian come to visit as a tourist. I saw that that is not especially a place to call home. With my family, my husband, my children, the people I love — that is home."

The opening track on Supermoon "1,000 Ways," speaks of a thousand million people with a thousand ways to talk, "a thousand kinds of people, a thousand kinds of deals, a thousand ways to share, a thousand ways to hate and to love. A thousand people die, a thousand ones survive, a thousand ways to feel, to be a human being." And, she concludes, ultimately one must find his or her own way. Marie has found hers in Zap Mama.

Bad Kitty Productions has been bringing crazy rockabilly and the like to various local bars for some time now. This Thursday, Aug. 30, they shift gears slightly to offer a "Psychobilly Doubleheader" at the Manila Community Center for an all ages crowd. The Koffin Kats from Detroit team up with Zombie Ghost Train, a blast of costumed madness from the land down under (specifically Sydney) touring behind a brand new CD, Dealing the Death Card. Bad Kitty's Norm promises, "The band's live show is the perfect blend of charm and horror and is guaranteed to get the crowd swirling."

Fans of the fine bluegrass/gospel outfit, Huckleberry Flint take note. As detailed here once before, fiddler Marybeth Taylor has been living down in S.F., so the band hasn't had many local gigs of late. That said, you may want to make a reservation for dinner at Café Brio this Friday, Aug. 31, where Huck'll be playing outside for sidewalk café diners.

One time Arcata city council candidate Rob Amerman has been telling me about his new band, The Zygoats, for months now, and I had planned to make it to the Jambalaya last Friday for their debut performance and CD release party (how does that work?), which it turned out was also the debut of Ryan's new band, Angel's Share, but — I guess I crashed early. Next chance to see the hard-rockin' Zygoats is Saturday at the Alibi where they share the bill with Hexe, a heavy-duty guitar/drum duo who are working their way down the coast on their way back home to Oakland.

New on the reggae (not Reggae) front: The New Jerusalem Band debuts Friday at Mosgo's led by Madi Simmons. "It's roots with conscious lyrics, even some lover's rock," says Madi, who notes that there are two other singers beside him, a woman who goes by the name Omega Fire, and a cat who calls himself Haznebukuk.

Coming Tuesday, Sept. 4, to Six Rivers, The Salvador Santana Band. And yes, Salvador is related to that other Santana, Carlos — he's his son. While he followed dad's footsteps into a music career, he did not take up the guitar he was given when he was five, instead he settled on keyboards. He has an album done, but not yet released. In the meantime he's been working the festival circuit (Bonnaroo, High Sierra) and earlier this year contributed a track to A Song For My Father, a Father's Day album put out by Target stores. The compilation, which also includes cuts by Ky-Mani Marley, Ivan Neville, Devon Allman and others, opens with Carlos' classic, "Evil Ways."

Also on Tuesday, at Muddy's Hot Cup, Magnolia Electric Co. on their way south after playing Bumbershoot, the massive Labor Day festival in Seattle. MEC is the current nom de band of Jason Molina, a globetrotting ex-Ohioan who formerly recorded as Songs: Ohia. He's just released the Sojourner box set on Secretly Canadian, an ambitious collection that includes four CDs, all new material, each disc recorded with a different lineup in a different place (including the legendary Sun Studios), plus a tour DVD documenting the sojourner's life on the road, a few postcards and a commemorative medallion. The music? I'd describe it as plaintive, stately folk rock, with shades of Will Oldham, or maybe Neil Young (but with a stronger voice). Jason and Co. are on the road with Golden Boots out of Tucson Ariz., who describe themselves variously at a Goth country band and as a "crumbly western, alt. alt. country band." Fair warning: show up early — Muddy's will fill up for this one, as well it should.

One-person play grapples with the nature of ‘proof’

How important is all the stuff?

"Losing Things: A Cautionary Tale" wonders whether the habit of collecting might be a way in which a person can attempt to come to grips with nearly dying, the memory of which seems to be dependent upon other means than her own memory.

Wendy Butler wrote and performs this one-woman play. John Heckel serves as what he calls an "assistant" in this production’s development.

The play will be performed on Tuesday, Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. in the meeting room at Humboldt County Library, 1313 Third St., Eureka.

Admission is free. The short play will have no intermission.

In the play the audience will be introduced to Myrtle, who is intent on collecting everything that might help provide "proof." But, Drea would rather be done with it; there is a question raised as to what length she is determined to go to make it end. The two challenge one another on the importance of what Myrtle considers the "evidence."

Wendy herself must mediate between the two.

Is resolution possible?

Butler, a Eureka resident, has worked as a journalist in Humboldt County for the past decade. She has covered arts and news stories for several local publications, including the Times-Standard, Arcata Eye, McKinleyville Press and North Coast Journal. For several years she was a staff reporter and arts editor with The Humboldt Beacon. She is currently arts editor and news reporter with The Eureka Reporter newspaper.

She also produces and hosts the weekly art interview program "Artwaves" for KHSU public radio, based at Humboldt State University.

Butler has written and performed original work locally.

The plays include "The Light Police" (2000). The multiple-character play was part of Plays-In-Progress’ "A Voice of Her Own: Celebrating Women in the Theatre," an annual festival dedicated to women’s works. It was held at World Premiere Theatre in Eureka.

In 2001, Butler partnered with dancer/instructor Bonnie Hossack for "Going Forward," part of the bi-annual "Two Left Feet Dance Project," a festival for writers, dancers and choreographers held at Arcata’s Dancenter.

In 2003, Butler took part in Humboldt Arts Council’s "Saturday Nights at the Morris Graves" performing arts series. She wrote and performed "Light on Eight Tracks," a tribute to her 8-track player/recorder.

John Heckel, a retiring longtime theater professor at Humboldt State University has directed a significant number of productions during his tenure with the HSU Department of Theatre, Film and Dance. Most recently those are Bertolt Brecht’s “Mother Courage and Her Children” (2006) and 2007’s “Cloud 9” by Caryl Churchill.

EVENT: EOTO

PLACE: Red Fox Tavern/ Eureka, California

CONTACT: Matthew Beck/ Passion Presents

TELE/FAX: 707-822-0996

info@passionpresents.com

EOTO (feat. Michael Travis & Jason Hann of String Cheese Incident) makes Eureka appearance 9/24/2007!!

Jason Hann and Michael Travis (percussionist and drummer from the band The String Cheese Incident) make up this brand new 100% improvised live Breakbeat/ House/ Drum n Bass/ Trip Hop project. Drawing from the ethos of some of the great DJ's and computer artists of the world, they use cutting edge technology to create truly original and melodic dance music in the moment, with the undeniable power of live drums. The music is all created on the spot, recorded, then mixed and remixed LIVE to create an ever evolving musical experience. Since the project is 100% improvised, every night promises to be a unique dance experience. Hann and Travis play different roles in this band than in SCI. Jason plays the drum kit, percussion and sampler, while Travis is in charge of the tonal elements, playing bass, guitar, keyboards, as well as hand percussion and live mixing.

Michael Travis is a pioneer in the art of modern improvisational jam-rock drumming. He is especially known for his groundbreaking work on playing both hand drums and the drum kit simultaneously. As the drummer for the highly accomplished band, The String Cheese Incident, he has developed a unique style that is very supportive of a free jam aesthetic while still always laying it down. He further develops that approach in EOTO by being super solid to the point of emulating grooves that some of the best programmers and DJs would create, except with that elusive human feel. Travis has played along side some of the worlds greatest drummers while playing with String Cheese including Trilok Gurtu, Babatunde Olatunji, and Bill Kruetzman; & he has collaborated with many other artists including Keller Williams, Karl Denson, Steve Kimock, Warren Haynes, & Bela Fleck. With EOTO, he gets to stretch-out into brand-new territory; Handing over the rhythmic element to Jason, Trav is finally able to test out his melodic chops, playing the electric bass, electric guitar, keyboards, & samplers in addition to his EOTO mini-kit during the duo's spontaneous compositions.

Jason Hann is an accomplished composer/percussionist/ drummer who has been playing professionally since the age of 12. Growing up in Miami, Florida, he was exposed early to international music through his father, who is also a musician. Combined with his Colombian heritage through his mom, Jason grew up embracing rhythms from all parts of the globe. Music has taken him around the world, studying first hand in countries such as Mali, Ghana, Haiti, and Korea, both learning and performing folkloric and contemporary music of the land. A dynamic performer, Jason has also produced, composed, recorded, and toured internationally within many different genres of music including Rock, R&B, Pop, Hip Hop/Rap, Jazz, Latin, Latin-Jazz, Flamenco, African, Persian, Electronica, Techno, Brazilian, Indian and other fusions of World music. Other than EOTO, Jason has recently expressed his musical energy through his band, The String Cheese Incident, all of his fellow band members respectful side-projects, as well as other artists such as Loreena McKinnet, Vinx, his solo electronica/ all- percussion recordings, & Jason also continues to hit road with the legendary soul man, Issac Hayes, when possible. With a diverse background of musical collaborations that also include Youssou N'Dour, Keller Williams, Rickie Lee Jones, and Dr. Dre, it is evident Jason has no plans to cease living in the musical moment.

www.myspace.com/eoto music

If you are a fan of the blues you’ll want to make sure that you are in attendance for this ground breaking event. Solid Blues brings together legends and upstarts in an evening of America’s home grown music. From her early days belting out the lead vocals on hits like “Respect Yourself” with The Staple Singers to soulful solo recordings, Mavis Staples always delivers show-stopping performances. Charlie Musselwhite, one of the greatest living blues harmonica players, has won blues music’s highest honor, the W. C. Handy Award, a phenomenal 18 times. The North Mississippi All-Stars are a fast-rising, young trio known for their exciting, contemporary take on the blues. New Orleans-style pianist Joe Krown rounds out the show. The Village Voice called Mavis Staples “one of the great female voices.” She has become an inspirational force in modern popular culture and music. Inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, she received three Grammy® nominations in 2004, a Grammy® Lifetime Achievement Award and 3 W.C. Handy Awards in 2005, and the NEA's National Heritage Fellowship Award in 2006.

Charlie Musselwhite has been called “The world's greatest living blues harmonica player” by the New York Press. Eight-time Grammy®-nominee and eighteen-time W. C. Handy Award-winner, Charlie has also won Lifetime Achievement Awards from The Monterey Blues Festival. Charlie's latest CD, Delta Hardware, was called “an early candidate for blues record of the year” by All Music Guide.

North Mississippi Allstars won three Grammy® nominations for Best Contemporary Blues Album for their debut recording, Shake Hands with Shorty in 2001, Phantom 51 in 2003, and their latest recording, Electric Blue Watermelon, in 2005.

New Orleans styled piano and Hammond B-3 player, Joe Krown is a favorite of the Crescent City and has won numerous awards there for his recordings and performances. He held the keyboard chair with Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown & Gate's Express from 1992 until Gatemouth's passing in the fall of 2005 and has performed and recorded with innumerable other artists including Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton and B. B. King. Joe's latest CD is Livin' Large with the Joe Krown Organ Combo.

Snoop Dog and Crew

Potluck

Thursday, October 25th, 2007

Eureka Municipal Auditorium

1120 F. Street

Eureka, Ca. 95501

Doors 7:30pm

Tickets on sale October 1st

$75.00 Advance

THIS SHOW WILL SELL OUT IN ADVANCE!! GET YOUR TICKETS EARLY.. Outlets: Arcata: The Metro, The Works... Eureka: The Works... Redway: Redway Liquors..Garberville: Wild Horse Records...Laytonville: PARK'N'TAKIT...Willits: Leaves of Grass...Mendocino: Twist... Ukiah: Ukiah Food Coop

online sales with In-tickets..

For information call the People at 707-923-4599

Official After Party..... Red Fox Tavern, Eureka...11:00pm

Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby are touring in support of their eponymous debut album which was released earlier this year. The collaboration of country and bluegrass legend Ricky Skaggs with renowned pianist and songwriter (not to mention Virginia native) Bruce Hornsby was described by the Springfield Republican as being “one of the most intriguing and imaginative projects either has ever taken on.”

"It's one of the most memorable projects I've ever done," raves Skaggs, and Hornsby agrees: "Ricky Skaggs is a deep musical soul, one of the great keepers of the traditional and mountain music flame. It was so inspiring (and educational) to make this record with these virtuoso musicians. And equally important, I learned a lot about Porter Wagoner and Lester Flatt, and we had a lot of laughs.

"The cross pollination was a great gift to both of us," continues Skaggs. "Bruce turned me on to his heroes like Bud Powell, Bill Evans, Keith Jarrett... I turned him on to Roscoe Holcomb, Doc Boggs, some old banjo players and singers from the mountains of Kentucky, Carolina, and Tennessee... "

Backed by Skaggs' ace band Kentucky Thunder, the show will draw from deep roots in mountain music -- adding piano and Hornsby's inimitable songwriting to the core bluegrass lineup of mandolin, guitar, bass, fiddle, and banjo.

Eleven-time Grammy Award winner Ricky Skaggs is affectionately known as one of bluegrass music's most recognized ambassadors. From his beginnings in bluegrass, he went on to put his own stamp on the mainstream country format, resulting in twelve #1 hits and eight Country Music Association Awards. 1997 marked Ricky Skaggs' triumphant return to bluegrass and the establishment of his own Skaggs Family Records label, which has gone on to break new sales records in the genre. Now in his 36th year as a professional musician, he continues to record and tour with his band Kentucky Thunder as one of music's most sought after live performers.

Grammy winner with sales of more than ten million albums to date, for more than two decades Bruce Hornsby has been praised as a virtuoso pianist, singer-songwriter, and band leader. Known as a musicians's musician in addition to his remarkable career as a recording artist, Hornsby has collaborated with artists from Roger Waters and the Grateful Dead to Bob Dylan and Branford Marsalis.

For more information and credit card orders call CenterArts at 826-3928

The group brings Indian, Iranian, Jewish, Moroccan and Syrian musicians together to explore and celebrate the common sound and spiritual heritage of the Near East region's ancient cultures.

Eliyahu & Qadim play music from throughout the Near East: Turkey, Israel, Yemen, Azerbaijan, Armenia, India, Morocco, and Iran, and are acclaimed for performances rendered with passion, authentic musicianship and spirituality. Qadim is a word found both in Arabic and Hebrew meaning "ancient past" and "that which precedes" as well as "forward movement" and "that which will come" -- an apt name for the bridging of cultures and bringing old traditions to a contemporary world. HFS presents the return of Eliyahu Sills and Qadim on Sunday, October 7th at the Arcata Presbyterian Church (11th and G Streets). Led by Berkeley-based neyzen and bassist Eliyahu Sills, the quartet's instrumentation features oud, bansuri, saz, frame drums, tablas and song.

The group brings Indian, Iranian, Jewish, Moroccan and Syrian musicians together to explore and celebrate the common sound and spiritual heritage of the Near East region's ancient cultures.

Eliyahu & Qadim play music from throughout the Near East: Turkey, Israel, Yemen, Azerbaijan, Armenia, India, Morocco, and Iran, and are acclaimed for performances rendered with passion, authentic musicianship and spirituality. Qadim is a word found both in Arabic and Hebrew meaning "ancient past" and "that which precedes" as well as "forward movement" and "that which will come" -- an apt name for the bridging of cultures and bringing old traditions to a contemporary world.

Tickets are available at The Metro, Wildwood Music, The Works, and online at http://www.humboldtfolklife.org. Admission for the show is $15 general, and $12 for Folklife Society members and students. Show is at 7 pm, doors open at 6:30 pm. Check out Eliyahu's website for soundclips:

http://www.eliyahusills.com.

Tickets are available at The Metro, Wildwood Music, The Works, and online at http://www.humboldtfolklife.org. Admission for the show is $15 and $12 for Folklife Society members and students. Show is at 7 pm, doors open at 6:30 pm. Check out Eliyahu's website for soundclips:

http://www.eliyahusills.com.

He doesn't lay claim to inventing reggae, but Frederick "Toots" Hibbert says he gave the Jamaican music style it's name. Born in a town called May Ten in the hills far from Kingston, Toots headed for the lights of the city when he was still a teenager. As he tells the tale, "I'm from the countryside. I grew up in the church with my parents; dad and mom would preach. I sang in the choir, grew up in that you know. People told me I could be a singer so one day after I become a big young man I got myself to Kingston." It was the ska era when Toots hit Kingston. As predicted he found work as a singer and put together a vocal group called The Maytals. "My music was a little different because of my voice, because of the sound I have," he recalled. "I can sing R&B, I can sing country, I can sing blues. And I invented the word reggae." How? "The music was playing in Jamaica for a long time. Then this rhythm come up, this different rhythm. Nobody knew what to call it. People called it different names like 'blue beat' and 'boogie beat.' One day we were sitting around and this word just comes up — reggae — because in Jamaica they would say, if a girl not looking good you call her streggae; if a boy not looking good you call him streggae. It's a nickname, slang for people who don't dress properly. I shortened it a little, said, 'Let's do the reggae.' It was a different vibe." The raggedy music called reggae took hold and Toots and the Maytals have been at it for decades, injecting the gospel sound he grew up with to prove that "Reggae Got Soul" as he put it in another song. Ready to feel the Maytals vibe? He's back in Humboldt Thursday, Oct. 4, for a show at the Indigo Lounge.

There's more reggae, plus rock and trance DJS Saturday at Southern Humboldt Community Park. Irie Boogie features assorted Humboldt and Mendo bands including Ishi Dube and Massagana, Self Fulfilling Prophecies, Soulevity and assorted irie DJs.

The CenterArts concert juggernaut comes on strong this week with four majors shows in the course of a week. First up is folk music icon Doc Watson playing at the Van Duzer Thursday, Oct. 4. The blind flatpicking guitarist with a rich baritone voice broke through nationally during the folk boom of the early '60s after playing the Newport Folk Festival and revived his career in the '70s when the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band enlisted him for their Will the Circle Be Unbroken album. He's been going ever since although he did slow down a bit after his son (and music partner) Merle died in a tractor accident in the '80s. This tour finds him sharing the stage with David Holt, a multi-instrumentalist/storyteller/historian who worked with Doc on his autobiographic 3-CD set, Legacy.

Next up is a Sunday show featuring what might seem an unlikely pairing: jazzy pianist Bruce Hornsby and bluegrass mandolin master Ricky Skaggs. Of course if you know a bit about Hornsby it makes more sense. He was born in Virginia, so the Southern sound is part of him, and he can play with just about anyone. He was with the Grateful Dead for a time and has worked with everyone from Bob Dylan and Bonnie Raitt to Don Henley and Willie Nelson. What will it sound like? Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby, the eponymous album they put out earlier this year, mostly leans toward the country side and they're touring with Ricky' band Kentucky Thunder, so expect jazzy bluegrass, not the other way around.

Hornsby has also worked with Béla Fleck, master of the mutant banjo, who returns to the Van Duzer stage Monday with The Flecktones. How do you describe a band led by a banjo player that includes a super-funky bassist like Victor Wooten, Victor's brother, who calls himself Future Man, on a homemade electronic rhythm thing called a drumitar, and a sax/flute player like Jeff Coffin? Well the band's latest album, The Hidden Land, won the 2006 Grammy for Contemporary Jazz, which doesn't quite hit it for me. I asked Béla if "contemporary jazz" is where he sees the band fitting into the musical spectrum. "Well it's funny," he replied. "The genre known as contemporary jazz usually includes music that I wouldn't include myself with, for instance Kenny G, etc. Yet the truth of the words 'contemporary jazz' actually fit the Flecktones music pretty well: We are contemporary and there is a lot of jazz in us."

Last up in the CenterArts blast of American music is a show Wednesday, Oct. 10, at the Van Duzer called Solid Blues. This one is something of a mini-blues fest with a couple of stars who hit the blues scene in the '60s: soulful vocalist Mavis Staples from The Staple Singers (remember ""I'll Take You There" and "Respect Yourself"?) and blues harmonica master Charlie Musselwhite, plus the dynamite country blues trio the North Mississippi All-Stars, who have become darlings of the jamband set, and funky New Orleans-style keyboardist Joe Krown, who played in Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown's band until the bluesman passed in 2005.

Also in a blues mode: WC Handy Award-winning guitar dynamo Joe Louis Walker and his band The Bosstalkers play at the Riverwood Inn Saturday, Oct. 6.

Got a note this week from Morgan, the blues-playing mechanic at Redwood Auto who fixed my car a few months back. (It's still running.) He wanted me to know that his band, Black Cat Bone, is playing its first public gig (aside from the Jambalaya blues jam) at Blue Lake Casino's Steelhead Lounge Friday night, sharing the bill with the jammy Papa Bear. The show is sort of a preview of Saturday's Bikes by the Bay at Halverson Park where both bands are playing. (B.C. Bone at 1 p.m., P. Bear at 2:45, a tattoo show in between.) Morgan didn't mention it, but the Bikes by the Bay website calls the band Bad Cat Bone and Donna Landry, so I guess she's their singer.

Something different? Eliyahu and Qadim perform music "inspired by ancient mystical music of the Near East" at Arcata Presbyterian Church Sunday. Bandleader Eliyahu plays a Middle Eastern reed flute called the nay and the bansuri, a bamboo flute from India. The band's name, Qadim, is Arabic and/or Hebrew for 'Eastern wind,' but also 'ancient' and 'that which will come.' It brings together musicians from India and the Middle East to, as the band puts it, "celebrate the common musical and spiritual heritage of the now troubled region's ancient cultures."

This birthday party invite (of sorts) came via e-mail: "Yes. I'm turning 40 this Friday, Oct. 5th. To celebrate, I will be spinning a free show at Mazzotti's that night. (10 p.m.-2 a.m.) Could you please include this in the calendar please? You could call it "DJ Red's 40th Birthday Bash" or words to that effect. Thank you! - Red." OK, done. No gifts required and please none of those stupid "over the hill" banners or balloons. Party dresses and those little pointy hats are fine however.

The e-mail subject line put it this way: "Iceage Cobra's bassist leaves band; band continues on with first half of West Coast tour." Despite the fact that the Seattle rockers released their debut album, Brilliant Ideas from Amazing People, earlier this year, bassist Brad Kaufman has called it quits on the eve of a tour. Most of the band's dates have been cancelled, but they're still coming here for two shows, playing Friday at the Vista with Angel's Share and The Zac Institute and Saturday at the Alibi with The Common Vice. Joe Reineke, former lead singer/guitarist of The Meices, is handling bass chores for the semi-aborted tour. After that the band is auditioning for a new bass player. Need a job?

The Dewayn Brothers play at Jambalaya Saturday? What is a Dewayn Brother? The question is asked and answered on the Kansas band's website. "Well its four brothers and a sister hell bent on pickin’ fast and partying hard! With rippin’ banjo, mando, guitar and thumpin’ bass all we need is the sweet voice of sis Jamie Lee and its a sound and a show you’ll love to see!" Incidentally, as best as I can tell they're not actually related.

It's local alt. night Saturday at Muddy's Hot Cup with Kumsar, Goodwin, Weigand, Jackson and Clark (formerly the little still not big enough) opening for Universalia Jane and the Jet Set and Deric Mendes' new band, Tanuki, with members of Strix Vega and The Lowlights. What's a tanuki? Wikipedia says it's a raccoon/badger-like creature from Japanese folklore, "reputed to be mischievous and jolly, a master of disguise and shapeshifting, but somewhat gullible and absent-minded."

Wednesday, Oct. 10, at Muddy's Hot Cup it's alt. folk by Taarka Duo with David and Enion Tiller, a striped down (no drums) version of "seismic gypsy hypno-grass" trio Taarka.

More alt. that same night at the Accident Gallery with locals The Monster Women and Scout Niblett, a minimalist solo artist originally from England who records for Secretly Canadian Records, often with the help of famed producer Steve Albini. Other associates include Magnolia Electric Co. (who were just in town) and Will Oldham, who sings with her on her most recent album, This Fool Can Die Now. This one could be the sleeper show of the week.

Who is Thurston Moore? As they put it semi-succinctly on the Ecstatic Peace! promo for his latest album, "Thurston Moore, for those of you just visiting planet Earth, has been playing music and liberating whatever ossifying standards rock 'n’ roll becomes threatened by since the late '70s when he walked the downtown jungle of punk/post-punk/no wave NYC and started the band Sonic Youth. Ever since he and the band have consistently stayed true to the authenticity and creativity of radical rock 'n' roll idealism."

(For the uninitiated we'll point out that post-punk is just what it sounds like, while "no wave" is the polar opposite of new wave, the music you hear at those ubiquitous '80s night record parties.)

Moore joined forces with guitarist Lee Renaldo early on. They both played with avant-garde composer Glenn Branca whose drone symphonies with multiple guitars in unusual tunings are often sited as influential on the Sonic sound.

Branca's influence and Moore's creative/authentic ethic often spill over into side and solo projects. They are in also evidence in the work by a wild collection of artists released on Moore's Ecstatic Peace! label, among them MV & EE, The Magik Markers and Mouthus, all bands that have played locally this year alongside Humboldt's droning Starving Weirdos. The February show with MV & EE and the Weirdos also included Charalambides, a husband and wife duo with Tom and Christina Carter. I mention this because Christina shows up singing harmony on Thurston's latest album, Trees Outside The Academy, and she's half of yet another E. Peace! duo, Scorces, with Heather Leigh Murray (another Charalambides associate). Scorces is the opening act for Moore's show Friday, Oct. 26, at The Depot (downstairs in the University Center).

All of the bands/musicians above, the ever youthful Moore included, are operating outside the mainstream crafting idiosyncratic music that defies easy categorization. Let's just say it's alt. something.

It's hard to say exactly what kind of music Thurston might play Friday, but one can guess he'll draw material from Trees Outside The Academy, which is just a month old. It may surprise Sonic Youth fans in that it's not loud, dissonant or shot through with electric guitar feedback. Recorded at the home of J. Mascis of Dinosaur Jr., it's a collection of songs in the folk vein (well, alt. folk anyway) with violin (Samara Lubelski from MV & EE), rather calm drums (Steve Shelley from S. Youth), and Thurston on acoustic guitars playing music that comes from a place he describes as "the new weird America." Expect a touring outfit that includes Shelley and Lubelski plus Christopher Brokaw (from Codeine) and bassist Matt Heyner. The record has a screech here and there, but mostly it's stuff you might describe as nice, not a word you typically ascribe to the Youth — and no, that's not a bad thing.

Halloween proper doesn't come until next Wednesday, but the costumed madness in the clubs and various Halloweeny events start early. There's some sort of list in the calendar, but it seems de rigueur to offer some of the highlights here too.

Sweet Melody Walker called to say, "The Luscious Ladies are doing a Halloween show at Muddy's next Saturday (Oct. 27). We're calling it 'Ghouls Gone Wild.' It'll be a costume party cabaret ball thing. Halloween repertoire. Of course we ladies will be in crazy sexy costumes; we're encouraging the rest of the crowd to do so as well. We'll have a contest with various categories with awesome prizes. We'll have apple bobbing with organic apples from the Farmers' Market, and we'll have tricks and treats for all the ghouls and boy-eez. It's going to be so spectacular." I'm so glad she didn't use the word spooktacular.

A Halloween Harvest Costume Ball at the Mattole Grange in Petrolia that night includes Cajun food plus music by Electric Mudd and The Nucleus, all to benefit the Mattole Salmon Group's restoration efforts.

Latin dance alert: Red Fox's Saturday Halloween Blowout reassembles Humboldt's favorite AfroCuban salsa band, Ponche!

Also on Saturday, the annual KMUD Halloween Boogie at the Mateel, this year featuring Los Duggans from Echo Park playing what an O.C. deejay describes as "Appalachian/metal/blues/punk, distorted guitars raging with banjo, gut bucket beating along with a modern drum kit." They're on tour with Old Bull, a like-minded political alt. country punk band also from down L.A. way. As usual this is a family event (kids free) with costumes, sweets and all that.

That's just the tip of the iceberg for Saturday, check the Music and More listings for costume parties in clubs too numerous to mention. Jumping forward to Wednesday, the real Halloween: You've got murder ballads by the spooky Pine Box Boys at the annual pirate costume party at Six Rivers. There's a Passion show at the Red Fox with stringy jamgrass by The Bucky Walters and Greensky Bluegrass. Moo-Got-2 is throwing a funky Halloween Bash at Muddy's Hot Cup. And last but far from least, the Jambalaya has a Blue Lake invasion, a Halloween Ball with The Brendas, Tainted Zucchini and The Rubberneckers. The three bands are all friends, all are theatrical in nature (The Brendas are always in costume) and what with the various Dell'Artesian connections this should be a wild one.

You say you don't want to dress up in a costume? There are other things to do. There's the Humboldt Baykeeper Birthday Bash Friday, Oct. 26, at the Arcata Community Center. It starts early with dinner awards, speeches and all that, but you could opt to show up late (and pay much less) just to hear the West African Highlife Band. The Oakland-based outfit is all-star all-African quintet led by Ken Okulolo of Kotoja, who originally came over with King Sunny Ade. There's Nii Armah Hammond from Hedzoleh Soundz out of Ghana and Nigerian guitarist Soji Odukogbe played for years with the late great Fela Anikulapo Kuti. This is the real deal.

Also on Friday, Mad River Brewing Co. celebrates the annual release of its gold medal-winning seasonal brew, John Barleycorn Ale with a party at the plant in Blue Lake. Expect beer, barbeque and music by Kulica.

Guitarist Wolf Navarro debuts his latest project — appropriately named the Wolf Navarro Project — on Thursday at Jambalaya. Joining Wolf for some folk jazz fusion are Marcus Messina (from Mobile Chiefing Unit) on keys and guitar, Eric Andrews on bass and Simon Lucas on drums. Watch for a CD coming soon.

They seem to be 20-somethings; otherwise you might mistake Seattle's The Blakes for one of those obscure jangley psyche-rock garage bands from the '60s you find on a Nuggets compilation. At least that's the feel on their eponymous CD. The fact that they're named for visionary poet William Blake makes me like them even more. Catch them Friday at the Jam (with Zak Institute opening) or earlier that day when they play live on K-Slug.

Between the dark themes, growling vocals, monstrous guitars, pounding drums and often twisted imagery, modern metal in its many forms seems perfect for the All Hallows season. It's way before the holiday, but San Francisco stoner rockers Floating Goat and Walken roar Thursday at the Alibi. Saturday the Alibi hosts Portland's Facepilot, who lay down thunderous chords propelled by driving drums, backing your classic distorted roaring Satanic metal vocals. They're on a brief tour with Humboldt's heaviest band, Dragged by Horses.

There's metal plus punk across the Plaza Saturday at Mazzotti's. Rocktoberfest brings together Oceanside punks Pig Champion, Sacto thrashers Awaiting the Apocalypse and locals Entheogen and Forcefed Trauma.

Ready to repent? Earl Thomas takes you to church on Sunday singing with the True Gospel Singers at the Arkley Center to raise money for the National AIDS Day Marathon.

My favorite folky Lila Nelson is at Muddy's Hot Cup that night joined by Kenny Edwards the veteran songwriter (from the Stone Poneys etc.) who has been working with Lila on her next record.

Coming Monday, Oct. 29, to the Jambalaya, mad accordionist Jason Webley on his The Cost of Living CD release tour with several alt. folk bands, Ribbons, Led to Sea and Quilken, whose members also play on Jason's new album.

Yes, I, reggae moves ever forward, this week with hot Jamaican sing-jay Lutan Fyah, whose dancehall hit "Save The Juvenile" topped the Kingston charts earlier this year. He's at Indigo Friday night, a show presented by 2b1 Multimedia. As you might recall, way back in March Lutan was among the headliners booked by 2b1 for the ill-fated Reggae on the River 2007.

Is semi-related news, a note came in over the weekend from former Mateel E.D. Taunya Stapp. It seems her lawyer friend Robert Highley has filed the required papers to renew the Reggae on the River® trademark for 10 more years. Will there be a RotR 2008? Time will tell.

One more thing, don't forget Snoop Dogg and his posse are at the Muni Thursday, Oct. 25. When I checked before press time there were a few tickets left, but not many. Should be a rager, same with the after party at Indigo. Be there or be square. And don't forget, there ain't nuthin' wrong with being square — if that's your thing.

FOUND comes to town

It all began with a profanity laced note found tucked under the windshield wiper of Davy Rothbart's car one "cold as fuck" Chicago night in 1999. So it comes as no surprise that the last time Davy was in town, he began his FOUND Magazine reading with the seminal "Page me later" find. Davy read the note with feeling, driving home the irony with a pregnant pause before the p.s.

Mario, I fucking hate you
You said you had to work
then whys your car HERE
at HER place??
You’re a fucking LIAR
I hate you
I fucking hate you
Amber
p.s. Page me later

The fact that Amber mistook Davy's car for Mario's made the note both sad and funny. He shared it with his hipster friends and they too came up with sad/funny/ironic finds: similar notes, off-the-wall photos and other ephemera. Davy and his buddy Jason Bitner assembled them zine-style adding minimal typewritten explanations, initially figuring on just making copies for the contributors. Instead a copy shop employee who must have found it all fascinating gave him an extra 700 copies gratis. The extras were distributed leading to more finds sent Davy's way and a cottage industry was born. FOUND Magazine is published not quite annually. There's a website with a new "Find of the Day" posted daily, several books: Found: The Best Lost, Tossed, and Forgotten Items, a similarly titled sequel and two photo books, the most recent being Found Polaroids. There are CDs, FOUND greeting cards and an X-rated spin-off mag, Dirty Found, now up to its 3rd edition. The recently released FOUND No. 5 is a theme issue focusing on crime related finds, profusely illustrated with mug shots and the like. It goes in unusual directions with some long form finds like the series of letters detailing the often sad FBI career of one Elmer I. Jacobson including a personal reprimand from J. Edgar Hoover over the loss of his service revolver (and a demand for $28.91 to pay for it). Then there are the FOUND tours, cross country, even international road trips that find Davy reading all sorts of finds, including some submitted by audience members, with his brother, Peter Rothbart, along to play guitar and sing songs based on FOUND notes.

ARTIST INFORMATION

Bryan Horne -- upright bass, vocals

Nat Keefe – guitar, vocals

Zachary Matthews – mandolin, fiddle, vocals

Aaron Redner - fiddle, mandolin, vocals

Erik Yates – banjo, flute, accordion, clarinet, vocals

In a world where we face issues that present potential global impact and where our collective consciousness is being pulled in a thousand directions, wheeling in sensory overload and immersed in confusion, there is an overwhelming need for a sense of direction and inspiration toward organic and sustainable alternatives. In the highly saturated music scene of today, Hot Buttered Rum has emerged as one of the leaders of a musical movement toward these organic and sustainable roots.

With one foot in the door paying homage to traditions of folk, Americana and bluegrass, and the other wildly kicking out in every direction of the musical universe, Hot Buttered Rum is the perfect candidate to lead this evolution. The band itself, which started on a backpacking adventure, has matured into a national touring act, and is the very embodiment of the terms "organic and sustainable." Their "practice what they preach" mantra has caught on both musically and in the approach to how we define the term, lifestyle.

Aaron Redner, Bryan Horne, Erik Yates, Nat Keefe and Zac Matthews are Hot Buttered Rum. Former schoolmates and long time friends who grew up together in California, Hot Buttered Rum is a way of life for these five virtuosos. Their sound is as familiar and inviting as it is fresh and original, seamlessly weaving elements of folk, rock, reggae and bluegrass within the fabric of intelligent songwriting. Their commitment to taking roots music into uncharted territory has not gone unnoticed. Their newest album, WELL-OILED MACHINE (Harmonized Records), has received glowing accolades from critics and fans, and features bluegrass legends Peter Rowan, Mike Marshall, and Darol Anger. The songs are laden with hooks, melodies and thought provoking lyrics that can only be described as timeless. This is not necessarily defined as "bluegrass" or even traditional "roots" music, rather HBR is defined as a true synthesis of many genres set free on its own musical course. Rest assured. This ship is captained by the best of hands and visionaries who are unafraid of straying out of the norm. This willingness to explore “outside the box”, both musically and in their lifestyle choices, has helped create the kind of interest in Hot Buttered Rum, usually reserved for avant-garde composers and entrepreneurs, many years ahead of the rest of the world, coaxing their audience to follow them headlong into the great unknown.

On a mission of change and armed with conviction, HBR’s legitimacy as a truly unique musical act is only furthered by the band's passionate commitment to using alternative fuels in an effort to lessen their ecological footprint on the environment. In a world where concern is rising over the value and scarcity of our finite natural resources, it is comforting to know that Hot Buttered Rum is making the effort to lighten their impact while en route to their 150 plus shows they play coast to coast each year.

HBR NOTABLES

-- Appearances in Summer 2006 at: Bonnaroo Music Festival, High Sierra Music Festival, Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival, Langerado Music Festival, Suwannee SpringFest, Wakarusa Music Festival, 10,000 Lakes Music Festival, Smilefest, the Harmony Festival, All Good Music Festival, Columbia Gorge Bluegrass Festival, Bristol Rhythm and Roots Festival

-- Opening for Little Feat in Summer 2006

-- Co-headlined the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco (Feb 2006)

-- Headlined 2 sold out Great American Music Hall performances

-- Opened for Michael Franti and Spearhead, Phil Lesh and Friends, Peter Rowan and Tony Rice Quartet, Yonder Mountain String Band, the String Cheese Incident

-- Past Performances at: Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Newport Folk Festival, South by Southwest Music Festival, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, Riverbend Festival,Whole Earth Festival, San Francisco Bluegrass & Old Time Festival.

-- Recorded sophomore studio album, Well Oiled Machine, produced by Mike Marshall and recorded by dB Dave Dennison.

-- Continuing to tour successfully approximately 175 dates yearly nationwide and developing a devoted and ever-expanding fan base.

DISCOGRAPHY Well Oiled Machine (Feb 2006) In These Parts (2004) Live at The Freight & Salvage (2002)

Brown died of pneumonia, said his friend Shaye Harty, president of the nonprofit group that organizes the Kinetic Sculpture Race, a three-day competition co-founded by Brown that features wacky wheeled contraptions.

The event started in 1969 when Brown turned his son's tricycle into a decorated five-wheeled "Pentacycle" and another local artist challenged him to a race through downtown Ferndale that drew six other participants, Harty said.

The annual race is 38 miles. Over the years, the tradition expanded to other U.S. cities and as far away as Australia, Harty said.

Born in Oklahoma on Feb. 27, 1933, Brown moved to Los Angeles as a boy and learned to weld while working as an airplane mechanic. In 1962, he moved to Humboldt County, where he opened Hobart Galleries in Eureka to represent local artists.

His wire sculptures were shown in museums and collected by Ronald Reagan and Johnny Carson, among others.

Brown, who suffered from rheumatoid arthritis, retired from racing several years ago and had been in declining health since suffering a stroke in May.

Here is a list of their remaining shows.

Nov 10 2007 Caspar Inn with the Kerosene Kondors Caspar, California

Nov 14 2007 The Vista with The Monster Women and RTX...ALL AGES SHOW Eureka, California

Nov 16 2007 The Jambalaya with Joe Lally (Ex-Fugazi) and Capillary Action Arcata, California

Dec 14 2007 Big Petes with Ghostwriter ALL AGES SHOW A rcata, California

Jan 3 2008 Jambalaya...LAST 2 Rubberneckers Shows PART 1: Acoustic Show with Rooster McClintock Arcata, California

My co-worker Heidi asked me a question at the office the other day, something along the lines of 'Do you know anything about a band from Canada coming to town? I can't remember the name but my friend says they're good.'

'Are they Quebecois?' I wondered. I'd heard about that show. She didn't think that was it. She promised to forward me the e-mail from her friend, Lisa. Subject: "good concert coming your way." It got straight to the point: "hi Heidi - you should see this band when they come to Arcata."

What followed was a band list letter from Moira Smiley saying, "Hi everyone! moira smiley & VOCO have shows up & down the West Coast comin' up! Exciting things happening here, and we'll keep you posted when it comes close to you!"

A MySpace link followed and an itinerary showing a North Coast jaunt including a show at the venerable Freight and Salvage followed by one on Thursday at the Jambalaya sponsored by Humboldt Folklife.

I clicked on the MySpace link and listened to a couple of songs. I liked what I heard. The first, "Dying Californian," begins with a choral group using harmonies a la The Bulgarian State Radio and Television Female Vocal Choir, but run backwards. Moira comes in singing a sad song reminiscent of an old Appalachian ballad; before it ends, there's some subtle banjo picking. Subsequent numbers show off a Sweet Honey in the Rock gospel style, almost a cappella, something they call, "post-folk vocal symphonies and dancesongs," with low key bass and mysterious percussion. Moira Smiley provides accordion and banjo; Jess Basta and Christine Enns supply "body percussion"; Jessica Catron cello/electronics; John Ballinger banjo, clarinet and percussion. Everyone sings.

I don't know what it shows, but Luminescent Orchestrii is on their "Friends" list, and I love that band. With that additional recommendation I sent Moira an e-mail with something like a virtual interview. She responded almost immediately.

Who are you? Moira Smiley

Where are you from? Originally Vermont, now Los Angeles.

What do you do? Sing, write music, play accordion & banjo, arrange strange old music.

Why do you do what you do? always have - better'n laying carpet, i guess - really, is there any better job than to do what you love?

What are you working on? new songs, arranging old American hymns, writing new body percussion, thinking about clowning...

When will you be here? I'm bringing my band, moira smiley & VOCO to Jambalaya, for a 7:30 p.m. show Thur. Nov. 15th sponsored by Humboldt Folklife Society. We're also going to sing live on KHUM radio at 3:30 that same Thursday!

Who's that? VOCO is my five-piece band doing sweet stompin' rebel harmony soaked in Eastern Europe and Appalachia. Cello, banjo, accordion, percussion and body percussion.

What’s next? Bartok arrangements of the "Mikrokosmos.

Anything else you want to add? That's kinda fun - like a quiz! - Moira."

And I'll add one more thing. There's no Canadian connection; Heidi miss-remembered. The band is from Los Angeles. Don't hold that against them.

Pay special note to the start time. Most Jambalaya shows start after dinner; this one is during, and it's one of two separate shows that night. Later on it's one of Humboldt finest hip hop outfits, Subliminal Sabotage. They help close out something called Snow Day, a big too-doo around town that starts with Pro Sport and the Outdoor Store hauling in a whole bunch of snow, and not like when people come back from winter trips out 299 with snow in the back of a pick-up so they can throw snowballs, this is a huge pile, five tons, enough for pro snowboarders to strut their stuff. They call it a "Rail Jam," whatever that is. (I'm sure snowboarders know.) That's in the afternoon on the Plaza. There's also a couple of snowboarding movies at the Minor in the evening, then the "D.C. VIP Afterhours Party" with Sub/Sab ending a wild night at the Jam.

You might expect the NoHum/SoHum Sub/Sab to be part of Homegrown Hip Hop Vol. 4, Harvest Edition 2007, the all ages thing Saturday at the Mateel, but they're not. Representing the homegrown side are Eureka rappers Nac One and Lil' Sic and crews from Mendo, the funky North Coast Underground from Point Arena, Some of the Truest from Mendocino (the town) and the Mendo Green Team, plus the Humboldt Rockers breakdancers. The headliners are imports: Planet Asia, aka King Medallions (born Jason Green) is from Fresno via San Fran. I'm pretty sure he's not Asian, but Haji Springer is. He's a hyphy-style dude outta Oakland who lays down comical raps often mocking his Indian descent (that's India Indian, not Native American, BTW).

The Mateel is jumping this week. Friday night Linda Tillery and the Cultural Heritage Choir plays for a KMUD/Feet First Dancers run benefit/charity auction for The Igoma Project supporting some sort of clinic in Tanzania. Old timers might remember Tillery from her days with The Loading Zone, a kick-ass blues/soul outfit that played around the Bay Area in the '60s and '70s. Now she's into gospel, again a la Sweet Honey. Tillery calls it "survival music." She explains, "This music, particularly the spirituals, has kept Black people alive through slavery, night rider's raids and segregation. This is the music that has been used as a support for just about every political movement in this country. People take spirituals, reword them and march together in the name of freedom and justice."

Coming up on Tuesday, Nov. 20, at the Mateel, the Mateel Community Center Annual Membership Meeting, which according to the nonprofit's website includes "a 2006 financial report and current state of the organization summary, hall and event review for '06/'07, and a board of directors’ report along with a community input section, board candidate nominations and more." It was an eventful year for the Mateel, not all of it that good, and the reports should make for an interesting meeting.

Also in the benefit vein: an Arcata House Benefit Dance Party Saturday evening at the Bayside Grange with Cajun music by The Bayou Swamis and eclectic dance music by The Joyce Hough Band. As Joyce points out, this is the first public performance by the band in more than two years, and who knows when you'll get to hear them again. Plus it's a good cause, helping to house families down on their luck.

And there's yet another benefit: A Sunday noontime show with stringy jams by The Bucky Walters supporting the Arcata Educational Farm.

Remember last week I mentioned the return tour of Capillary Action, the guys who played at the Jambalaya with that crazy Czech band? As noted they're back at the Jam Friday, this time with former Fugazi bassist Joe Lally, who as far as I can tell, now plays solo with bass and laptop. Local support comes from The Rubberneckers, and I'm sad to report, this is going to be one of the band's last shows — ever. A fan list e-mail from Clay tells the tale: "OK kids, here's the scoop. There are [four] 'Neckers' shows left and that be all. Burton is leaving with his family for Thailand on Jan. 6 for an unknown amount of time, and we couldn't consider replacing him. We're playing as much as we can to get in all the rocking and raging that's possible. Then we call it quits. It was fun while it lasted. Get to one/all of these gigs cuz there won't be no more."

That's four gigs to go: Friday at the Jam, a Dec. 14, all ages thing at Big Pete's with Ghostwriter, and two Jan. shows at the Jam. More on them later. Ready for some holiday cheer? Noonanight Productions presents Pagan Christmas at Arcata's Portuguese Hall Saturday, Nov. 17, with Subliminal Sabotage, Space Cowboys DJs, funk/soul from the Bay by Monophonics, and The Glitch Mob, a crunky alt. hip hop/electronica crew that rips it up. Showtime @ 9, 20 bucks at the door, 21+ only. Reggae? How 'bout three shows the same night? Friday Indigo Lounge has Jamaican dancehall from Norrisman, Jah Thunder and Stevie Culture. Meanwhile locals Juce mix reggae and hip hop at Six Rivers, and the Red Fox brings in Cali reggae, a band called Rebelution from Santa Barbara. Saturday at the Red Fox: Soul Majestic, a white dread band from Santa Cruz who played RotR a few years back. Not bad as I recall. It doesn't sound possible, but a note from Afromassive bassist Aaron Bortz confirms it: The truly massive band will crowd onto the stage of Muddy's Hot Cup Friday night to blast some killer Afrobeat. Last time I saw Afromassive they filled the huge stage at the KBR with a line of horns, many percussionists and some seriously funky dudes from various local outfits, all of them laying into tunes from the Fela Kuti songbook or similar fare creating a really big, really funky sound. Incidentally, this is the second Muddy show that night: Touring Americana-ish songwriters Mike Press (from San Diego) and Jeremy Moses Curtis (from Rhode Island) play earlier.

Also at Muddy's, a Tuesday, Nov. 20, show featuring Scottish singer/guitarist Alasdair Roberts, who plays something you might call alt. Celtic. The roots are evident, but his songs tend toward skewed dirges. He records for Drag City, and has worked with Jason Molina and Will Oldham, facts that mean little to the Celtic folks, but speak volumes to the alt. crowd. Also on the bill, Charalambides, one of those alt. guitar duos that came to town in the past to play with the Starving Weirdos.

Hey, turns out there is a band coming from Canada: Montreal noise rockers AIDS Wolf play a Wednesday, Thanksgiving eve show at the Vista with thelittlestillnotbigenough opening. You can get an idea where A-Wolf is coming from by studying their "9 Principals." The last one: No. 9. "Become the Weird Punks. Remember when punk was weird and when weird was punk. Destroy genre straight jackets and move out of the comfortable. Confrontation with norms and expectations is where the AIDS Wolf family is most at home."

This Tuesday, November 20th, the Mateel Community Center will hold its’ annual membership meeting. The event is open to all current MCC members and membership sign-ups will be taken at the door (although it is now too late to sign up and also vote in the upcoming board election). The event will begin at 5:30pm with snacks and refreshments and the meeting will be called to order at 6pm. It will feature an introduction of the board and volunteer staff, a variety of Mateel committee reports, plans for the coming year, nominations for the board of directors, and a Q&A session. The meeting’s adjournment is set for 7:30pm depending on the number of member questions. Afterwards, stick around for an informal gathering where you’ll have an opportunity to meet the board candidates (all candidate nominations must be made and accepted by the close of the meeting to be eligible). For more information visit www.mateel.org or call 923-3368 and don’t miss this chance to help direct the future of your Mateel Community Center.

--------------------------------- Give Thanks Reggae Showcase & Mateel Benefit This Friday

What: Give Thanks- A NorCal Reggae Showcase & Benefit To Rehire Key MCC Staff by 2008

When: Friday, November 23rd (7pm-1am)

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

Who: Creation, Tchiya Amet & The Lighthouse Band, & Massawa w/ Stevie Culture

Why: A benefit to help raise the $75,000 needed to ensure Mateel operations thru June 2008

Give Thanks Reggae Showcase & Mateel Benefit This Friday

This Friday, November 23rd, the Mateel Community Center in Redway presents Give Thanks, a NorCal reggae showcase and fundraiser to rehire key Mateel staff positions and ensure all rental events and MCC programs through June of 2008. Featuring the irie roots and dancehall sounds of Creation, Tchiya Amet & The Lighthouse Band, and Massawa with Stevie Culture, Give Thanks offers up the best in regional reggae talent while providing an opportunity to reflect on the importance of the Mateel to our local community. Creation has been one of the Bay Area’s premier reggae outfits for nearly 20 years and performs a combination of roots, dancehall, and dub fronted by the talented island-bred vocalists, Israel Powerhouse and Rahsul Culture Man. Accompanied by horns and a top shelf rhythm section, Creation has a repertoire of more than 200 songs and mixes a strong West Indies vibe into their original roots rock reggae.

Coming from the wilds of Mendocino County, Tchiya Amet is a First Nations Cherokee whose spiritual message and soulful, jazz-tinged reggae have received international attention through the albums, Rise Again Truth and Black Turtle Island, and drawn comparisons as Sade’s reggae-fied counterpart. She has wowed crowds at Reggae on the River and the Summer Arts & Music Festival and will be making her first ever Mateel performance along with her ultra-tight ensemble, The Lighthouse Band.

Massawa are Southern Humboldt/ Northern Mendocino’s reggae ambassadors and will kick off the evening’s entertainment. In addition to an impressive songbook of original material, they have backed many top names in reggae music and, on this outing, will support rising Jamaican star, Stevie Culture, who performs a mix of roots and conscious dancehall and is touring in support of his recent release, Top Class. Doors open at 7pm and music rolls from 7:30 to 1:00am for what is sure to be a funky reggae party. An ital Jamaican style dinner by Sue Moloney will be available for purchase along with desserts, beer, wine, and other refreshments. Admission is sliding scale at the door with a minimum donation of $12. All proceeds will directly support the Mateel Community Center’s $75,000 year end fundraising goal, so come enjoy some awesome NorCal reggae while helping put a sustainable staffing model in place at the Mateel. For more info, visit www.mateel.org or call 923-3368 and don’t miss Give Thanks this Friday, November 23rd at the one-and-only Mateel Community Center.

------------------------------- What: 31st annual Winter Arts Faire

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

When: December 8th & 9th, 2007

Why: It’s the best holiday shopping opportunity in southern Humboldt!

31st annual Winter Arts Faire At Mateel December 8th & 9th

Coming up on Saturday and Sunday, December 8th and 9th, the Mateel Community Center in Redway is proud to present the 31st annual Winter Arts Faire in a celebration of the down home Humboldt holidays. Bringing holiday cheer to southern Humboldt for more than 30 years, this beloved family event will feature nearly 60 handmade artisan booths, home-style local cuisine, diverse musical entertainment, children’s storytelling, and a visit from Santa both days. The Winter Arts Faire is also the best holiday shopping opportunity in southern Humboldt and a great place to mingle with friends before settling in to the winter season. It will also be one of your last opportunities to help in supporting MCC’s $75,000 year end fundraising goal, which will be used to ensure 4 part time staff positions beginning in January and all rental events and programs through June of 2008.

The 31st annual Winter Arts Faire will be open from 10am to 6pm both days, and costs only $7 per day or $10 for the weekend pass. 2007/ 2008 Mateel Community Center members get in free, as do those under 12 and over 65. Mateel memberships will also be on sale at the door for those wishing to take advantage of the free admission benefit. Attendees are encouraged to join in the community spirit with a donation for the Food Pantry and/ or Toys 4 Tots. Please only bring new, unwrapped toys for Toys 4 Tots and canned, non-perishable foods (no home-canned goods) for the Food Pantry. For more information call 923-3368 or visit www.mateel.org and don’t miss the 31st annual Winter Arts Faire on Saturday and Sunday, December 8th and 9th at the Mateel Community Center.

----------------

CenterArts presents Circus Oz on Sunday, December 9th at 2 and 8 p.m. in the Van Duzer Theatre, HSU. “The hottest show in town,” The Sunday Times. Circus Oz delivers a rock ‘n’ roll, animal free circus is two hours of breathtaking death defying stunts, awe-inspiring acrobatic performances, sparkling comedy and a live band that will leave you begging for more. “Not to be missed,” Financial Times of London. Tickets are $45 general, $35 Senior/child, $32 HSU students. Tickets are available at the University Ticket Office at HSU, the Works in Eureka/Arcata and The Metro.

Circus Oz was founded in late 1977 as an amalgamation of two already successful Australian groups, Soapbox Circus and the New Circus. The principles that were the heart of the original Circus Oz philosophy are still reflected in their performances today: collective ownership and creation, gender equity, a uniquely Australian signature, and team-work.

The founding members of Circus Oz loved the skills and tricks of traditional circus but wanted to make a new sort of show that a contemporary audience could relate to, adding elements of rock'n'roll, popular theatre and satire. They wanted it to be funny, irreverent and spectacular, a celebration of the group as a bunch of multi-skilled individual women and men, rather than a hierarchy of stars. Above all, they didn't want to take themselves too seriously. They sewed and welded together their own circus tent, got together a collection of old trucks and caravans and went on the road. Circus Oz was a fresh and original voice in circus and the company was immediately popular with Australian audiences. Within a few years, they began to tour internationally, with visits to New Guinea and Europe.

Since that time Circus Oz has performed in 26 different countries, across five continents to over two million people. They have broken box office records at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and represented Australia at scores of international festivals. They have performed on 42nd Street, at the Tivoli Gardens, in a refugee camp in the West Bank, in indigenous communities in the Australian desert, and in a glass opera house in the Brazilian rainforest. Along the way they have translated parts of the show into scores of languages from Hindi and Japanese to Danish.

In the mid-1980s new contemporary circus and physical theatre troupes began to appear across the world, in the wake of Circus Oz. It was at this time that Circus Oz itself underwent a major skills development phase through intensive training with acrobats from China's Nanjing Acrobatic Troupe. Many of the skills learnt over the years from the Chinese, such as pole-climbing and hula-hoop, continue to flavour the show, albeit reinterpreted and presented in a distinctly Circus Oz style. Only one of the founding members still performs with the company, and yet, as new waves of people have joined Circus Oz over the years, they have embraced the company's co-operative style and philosophy and made it their own.

The overall tenor of the performance has remained consistent over the years. There are usually eleven to thirteen performers (normally with at least two specialized musicians) who present an intimate spectacle of unrelenting energy, humor, multi-skill playing, surreal imagery, grace, and strength, fully integrated with a live and original musical score. Circus Oz continues at the forefront of international contemporary circus. Its performances today are as distinctive and dynamic as its touring program - the recent critically-acclaimed sell-out season on Broadway being followed by a successful tour of small Australian regional towns. The Circus Oz show is continuously revitalized with the injection of new ideas, skills and people.

For more information and credit card orders call CenterArts at 826-3928

--------------

December 20-21, 2007 | Humboldt Brews Arcata, CA

Blue Turtle Seduction out of South Lake Tahoe, California has built a concrete fan base over the last four years, solidified by consistent touring. This schedule has allowed for, not only the refining of their live performances, but also their song crafting, adding to their large repertoire of original songs. Blue Turtle's music guarantees to move your feet with rhythms and thought-provoking lyrics that push the limits of its style and genre.

BTS' performances celebrate many different levels of live music as the crowd's enthusiasm combines with driving beats and layered lyrics. BTS has broken new ground this year, including playing in front of two sold-out crowds at the San Francisco Fillmore and releasing Deep See Rodeo, their 2nd studio album. The band travels in a 40-foot motor coach that has been outfitted to run on recycled vegetable oil, allowing the use of free, restaurant waste oil, burning much cleaner than traditional fuel. While blazing this trail at such a frenetic pace, BTS will be recording every performance. The results will yield a live release due out in the near future, capturing these musical jewels born from the High Sierra's. The songs tell stories that reflect like emeralds off of Lake Tahoe, the mountain paradise these Turtles call home.

There is no way to slow these Turtles down. Over Halloween weekend, Blue Turtle Seduction hosted the 2nd annual Las Tortugas: Dance of the Dead featuring much of the West coast's top-notch talent and conducted opening duties for Tea Leaf Green in the Southeast. The band will perform at Denver's Quixote's before heading to San Francisco for their Hitchhikers' Guide to the 12 Galaxies New Year's Eve run. Poke your head in on a BTS show near you and open yourself up, then ask yourself "have I been seduced?"

KRFH, Humboldt State University’s student-operated radio station, is holding a local-music rock concert on Fri Nov 30 in the Depot from 7pm – 11pm.

The show will feature local Humboldt County acts such as This Dying Wish from Garberville, Emilia’s Rose from McKinleyville, Reluctant Hero from Fortuna, and Laden Swallow from Arcata.

“KRFH has had an amazing semester, so we’re topping it off with a really big party to say thank you to our listeners, supporters and crew”, said KRFH station manager, Daniel Giannotta.

All community members and HSU students are invited to attend. The admission is $5 and tickets are available at the door. For more information about the event, visit www.krfh.net.

Drawing heavily from north Mississippi trance blues, a bit from the hills of Appalachia and stealing energy from punkabilly, Portland Oregon duo Hillstomp create a raucous hill country blues stomp with a fiery youth and vigor. It comes clanging and tumbling out of an assortment of vintage mics, buckets, cans and BBQ lids drenched in rambunctious slide guitar.

In the spring of 2001, Hillstomp was born in a basement (of course) in Portland, OR. It was the bastard child of Henry Kammerer and John Johnson's mutual need to make music and drink beer. Within a few weeks the Guitar/"Drum" duo played their first open mic to a rousing and slightly scary response. Unfortunately, John's drumset (cardboard box, plastic bucket and Weber grill lid) didn't survive the ordeal, so the pair went back under the basement stairs to build some new drums and practice.

In June 2002, Hillstomp emerged from the dust and dark with a raucous brand of hill country blues rock stomp. It is a visceral music that makes you want to stomp your feet, shake your butt and love your neighbor. Whether playing original songs, traditionals, or the occasional revamped blues classic, Hillstomp has duct-taped together a distinctive sound that quickly bubbled upward in Portland's roots, blues and alternative-music circles. Their do-it-yourself brand of minimal gothic junkbox blues differs drastically from the 12-bar blues style listened to by your uncle. A whole different approach.

Following two E.P's, in 2004, Hillstomp revealed their first full-length self-released album One Word to a sold out and nearly rabid crowd at the White Eagle Saloon in Portland. The album was met with favorable reviews from far and wide, and obtained airplay at over 150 radio stations across the USA.

While Hillstomp toured behind this CD, they found the time to record, The Woman that Ended the World, which was released in October 2005. The album received rave reviews nationally (Magnet), overseas (UK, Norway & Italy), and debuted at #15 on the USA¹s Roots Airplay chart. Locally, the album was chosen as the Best Local Album of the year by the Willamette Week, (Portland¹s largest weekly) ahead of indie favorites The Decemberists and Sleater-Kinney. The album was also rated Top 50 of 2006 by UK¹s Blues Matters magazine.

In 2006, Hillstomp was invited overseas where they wowed the crowds at the Open House Blues Festival in Belfast and the Spitz Festival of Blues in London, and in 2007, they performed in Italy. They¹ve been featured on BBC and Italian radio. Hillstomp continues touring non-stop in the United States: They¹ve developed fanbases in cities up and down the West coast and performed as far east as Detroit. Along the way, they¹ve shared bills with Split Lip Rayfield, Avett Brothers, Scott Biram, Michelle Malone, I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch in the House, Lucero, Two Gallants, and Drag the River, to name a few. They¹ve also showcased their live act on local radio shows across the country including OPB¹s LiveWire.

Their new release, After Two But Before Five, wails into existence and rumbles into the RL Burnside song, "Goin Down South" with the crowd howling as the show begins. The CD features favorites of Hillstomp¹s past two releases while showcasing new gems like "Dark Clouds a-Risin¹" by Fred McDowell, "Rollin¹ & Tumblin¹" and the shoe-stompin¹ closer "Stewball". You can wait for Hillstomp to come to your town or pick up this CD and slip it into your playerŠand Hillstomp will never leave your living room again.

Swaddled tight in the electrified buckskin of their classic rock-n-roll forefathers, our five Washington braves set out to blanket America in a hot winter blizzard. Don't be fooled by the silk strands tucked behind their ears: what the maps don't tell you is that all-night drives make for better lives, deer come out of nowhere, and what parents don't know (night after night) won't kill them.

The Lonely H spent their graduation summer [2007] touring coast-to-coast in support of their new record and got a glimmer of the mission they were born to undertake. Tour is a magical place where every stage, no matter how high, is a new opportunity to deliver the goods. Armed with melodies that sound like letters to Penthouse etched on colored vinyl, the band lifted, lightened, and gave rise to every technical challenge. Bulletins started coming in over the wire from fans and bloggers [MSNBC, The New York Post, CMJ]. So, from Memphis to Manhattan went pockets full of picks, licks, pianos, and the living-loving swagger that has happily intoxicated the Pacific Northwest the last few years.

Thanks to these starlit marauders, Port Angeles can sometimes sound like the good parts of 1970's Los Angeles depending what Saturday night they're home. Idling the van for a wise fall quarter at the University Of Washington, the H cracked books and fantasized with giddy relief about their soon-to-be-months out on the road in 2008. They can handle it, mama. Not only did they survive the twelfth grade riding ferries to play rock shows on school nights, they simultaneously penned and released two albums with heart and heat to match [Kick Upstairs (2006) and Hair (2007) ­ The Control Group].

See you next year...without a signed permission slip.

"The achingly epic vocal and lead piano belongs in a stadium full of bell bottoms and lighters raised heavenward." ­MSNBC

"Taut live shows swirled with swank three-part vocal harmonies earned the band a 'don't miss this' reputation." ­SPIN

"Truly infectious old-school rock n' roll." ­The New York Post

"Talk about overachievers." ­CMJ

On Friday, February 8th the Mothership will be landing in Redway as the one and only George Clinton and Parliament/ Funkadelic make their first ever Humboldt County appearance at the Mateel Community Center’s Black & Red Ball. Guaranteed to be a marathon evening of cosmic funk featuring more than 30 costumed musicians orchestrated by the legendary George Clinton (aka Dr. Funkenstein), this show is sure to be one of the Mateel’s all-time concerts to remember. Additionally, this event will feature the return of the Mateel tradition of the Black & Red Ball, which sees the hall swanked out in these namesake colors with hopes that attendees do the same.

The Ramblers consist of Dan McClung slappin' the upright bass and blowin' the harmonica, Jenny Harada playing the fiddle, Joe Schulte choppin' the mandolin and singing along with Matt Hyman pickin' the guitar and singing with Dale Largent holding it down on percussion.

“The Best band I saw at 4 Peaks on Sat. was Bend’s own Americana string band the Moon Mountain Ramblers”. Ben Salmon (music reporter the Bulletin) ”They're self-described “high-desert soulgrass”. Built on more of a jazz and blues, than bluegrass foundation, the combo likes to embark on polyphonic sprees and improvisational interludes”. (Joe Ross, music writer Bluegrass Now) Voted the "Best Band in Central Oregon for 2004" by The Source

The Moon Mountain Ramblers have performed at festivals throughout Oregon including: the Sisters Folk Festival, Siskiyou Bluegrass Festival, Northwest String Summit, 4 Peaks Music Festival, Prospect Bluegrass Festival, Bend Brew along with other festivals.

The Ramblers have also been featured at these venues: Les Schwab Amphitheatre, the Grove, Tower Theatre, the Domino Room, the Old Stone Church, McMenamins -St. Francis School (Bend, Or.) the LaurelThirst, the Goodfoot, McMenamins -Edgefield’s, Grand Lodge, Rock Creek Tavern (PDX) Alex's Resturant (Ashland, Or.) Cozmic Pizza (Eugene,Or) Pine Meadow Ranch (Sisters, Or.)

The Ramblers have shared the stage with: The David Grisman Quintet, John Reischman and the Jaybirds, Jackstraw, the Gourds, Hot Buttered Rum, New Monsoon, Sneakin’ Out, Taarka and others.

For Immediate Release:

[Humboldt, County, CA January 22, 2008]

Early Bird Tickets for this years Reggae Rising Music Festival go on sale Thursday, January 24th at 4:20PM on the Reggae Rising Website www.reggaerising.com.

The festival takes place on August 1st, 2nd and 3rd at the Dimmick Ranch and French’s Camp in Piercy, California and will feature three days of camping and world renowned reggae music, situated along the picturesque Eel River.

Show: Reggae Rising Music Festival 2nd Annual Where: Dimmick Ranch / Frenchs Camp When: August 1st, 2nd, 3rd Early Bird Tickets: On Sale January 24th @ 4:20PM

Early Bird Tickets are Three (3) Day General Admission Tickets. Limited quantity available. Get yours before they're gone.

VIP Upgrades will be available in the near future as will camping. Stay tuned for details.

The first artist lineup announcements are close at hand so keep an eye on the website!

“The South Side” is an energetic and satisfying mix of classic Blues, Rhythm and Blues and Soul music from the last fifty-plus years along with new releases and occasional artist interviews and tributes. Host Chas Lewis – a musician himself – also maintains a companion website at www.thesouthside.org which includes playlists from each week’s show as well as a large collection of links and information for blues fans.

Weekly show playlists are also posted with the Roots Music Report, on the Blues-L listserv and the Yahoo Group, Blues-dj.

For six-plus years, The South Side aired on a local public radio station, moving to top-rated commercial station KHUM in August of 2007.

With studios in Ferndale, CA, KHUM, “Radio Without the Rules,” can be heard in Humboldt County and parts of Mendocino, Trinity and Del Norte Counties at 104.3 and 104.7 FM and streaming online at www.khum.com.

Unless you're up to date on the world of contemporary jazz, the names Myra Melford and Marty Ehrilch may not mean much to you. New Yorker magazine included the duo's 2007 release, Spark!, on a short list of the best of the year. Pianist Melford has also earned acclaim for her work with Trio M, where she works with bassist Mark Dresser and drummer Matt Wilson. Saturday, Jan. 26, the always-forward thinking Redwood Jazz Alliance brings both the duo and the trio to Arcata for a show at Fulkerson Recital Hall that will also include a combination of the two, an unnamed quartet with all four M's.

Melford called from her Berkeley home to talk about the show, about jazz in general, and the "progressive jazz" she plays. I asked what she thought about the New Yorker review where the music she made with clarinet/saxophone player Ehrilch was described as "thorny."

"I think of it as quite melodic actually," she said with just a hint of defensiveness. "We use a lot of melodies and harmonic chord progressions and different kinds of grooves. It's not like traditional straight-ahead jazz by any means. But it's using song form a lot. We base out improvisations off of songs that Marty and I each write. And since we have both been influenced by a lot of the more experimental music of the '60s and beyond, our improvisational vocabulary includes that kind of thing the New Yorker refers to as 'thorny,' those kinds of textures or whatever. But I would say it's just that there's a lot of exuberance in the music, a lot of energy. That's how I think about it."

As Melford noted, the starting point for a new kind of jazz was innovative '60s improvisers like Henry Threadgill, the Art Ensemble of Chicago and the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians. I wondered, where is jazz going now? "It's always going somewhere," she answered. "It's hard to say where. For me? Well, I don't know. I think I'm on this path where I'm always looking for new sounds — that may mean new instruments or new combinations of instruments, new approaches or strategies for improvisation."

(For more of the conversation with Melford check the North Coast Journal Blogthing at ncjournal.wordpress.com.)

Thursday at Humboldt Brews, catch Del Mar, featuring drummer Bud Gaugh of Sublime fame. Note: The seaside name Del Mar reflects the band's oceanic Dick Dale-style surf sound, not their home base: They're touring out of Reno, this time out on the road with Sacto-based power rock trio SexRat.

Add this to the you-learn-something-new-every-day file. I was at a loss translating the acronym in the p.r. (press release) from HFRA (Humboldt Free Radio Alliance) for a Friday night Alibi show describing Trigger Renegade's music as "NWOBHM-inspired rock." Wikipedia informs me that NWOBHM stands for New Wave of British Heavy Metal, a sound that emerged in the late in the UK, "as a reaction in part to the decline of early heavy metal bands such as Deep Purple and Black Sabbath. The NWOBHM toned down the blues influences of earlier acts, upped the tempo, and adopted a tougher sound, taking a more hardcore approach." The Alibi show also includes The Zygoats playing some sort of post-NWOBHM music.

If you've been to The Works lately you might have seen the petition demanding a reunion of The Hitch, a beloved local metal quartet who have been on a long hiatus. Those who can't wait may want to hit the show at the Alibi Saturday with Machete and Side Iron since each band includes a former Hitch member. There's definitely a metallic taste in the music of Oakland-based Tempest, who typically describe themselves as a Celtic band. Watch Norwegian front man Lief Sorbye launch into a shredding solo on his double-necked electric mando Saturday at Blue Lake Casino and you'll know his roots are in rock. Blue Lake groove rockers Kulica are getting back into the gigging swing. Friday at Red Fox Tavern they share the bill with youngsters Steel Toed Slippers, who are gearing up for a big show in February marking their first CD release. More on that later.

Friday at Six Rivers: Hellbound Glory, a band out of Aberdeen Wash. via Reno playing a sort of neo-outlaw country they call "scumbag country" with songs about drinking, drugs, hard livin' ("like a head-on collision") and general rowdiness. As they brag on their MySpace, they are "officially banned from [Reno bar] Shea's Tavern for kickin' over pitchers and raisin' a ruckus." Also on Friday, a return visit to Calvary Lutheran in Eureka by the young San Francisco Opera Center Singers as part of the ongoing Eureka Chamber Music Series. More singing Friday at the Jambalaya as assorted rockers go acoustic getting all introspective and singer/songwritery. Well, maybe. Clay Smith from the dear departed Rubberneckers, Bret Bailey from Que La and Common Vice, Brett "the Truck" Schuler from Henpecker and Pete Ciotti from The Nucleus all have a few songs so sing. We'll see how acoustic they keep it. The just-mentioned Pete celebrates his 30th birthday Saturday doing what he loves to do, playing drums with The Nucleus. His b-day party at Humboldt Brews also includes a set by gypsy-jammers Absynth Quintet. Earlier in the evening, Ryan Roberts from Absynth will be at Libation with that other gypsy jazz combo, the Tom Toohey Trio. And the night before (Friday), members of both those bands play with the fiddlin' Rob and Joli of Cuckoo's Nest for the Westhaven Center's annual "Django Swing Concert" celebrating Django Reinhardt's birthday. It's blues time Saturday at the Jam with "string-twanging" guitarist Catfish Keith, a man who loves his National Reso-Phonic guitars (he's an official dealer) and plays them with relish.

Monday is not typically a big night for music, but this coming Monday, Jan. 28, brings a couple of touring acts to town. At the Jambalaya you have Woven, an ambient electronic rock outfit from L.A. who put out a couple of discs for Interscope. They share the bill with Deric Mendes' band, Tanuki. As Deric explains the band name was chosen because the mythical Japanese creature the tanuki had shapeshifting abilities. From the beginning, that was the plan for the band. "We originally started with acoustic guitar and cello," said Deric, "but we're getting to be more of a rock band. I've gone to electric and added more distortion. Now it's more a Brain Eno-inspired rock band." And a last minute addition to the Red Fox calendar brings Def Jux rapper Mr. Lif back to town for a Monday night show also including DJ Choc-Won, J the Sarge and others, for an evening of "industrial polka sprinkled with a wee bit o' bagpipe," according to the promoter, who adds, "it's really hip-hop in case you didn't know."

At the Mateel Friday, Taz presents "Blow Big," a Bay Area hip hop showcase with Indian rapper Haji Springer, Dubee, J-Diggs, Crest Creepaz, Bavgate, The Jacka, Rydah J Clyde, Miami Da Most and others. A bar upstairs for the 21+ crowd benefits the Mateel.

Did you miss seeing Clinton at Redwood Acres? Tickets for the Mateel visit by the other Clinton, Funkadelic's (George) Clinton, are about half gone. Get 'em while you can.

Benjy and Heather Wertheimer, aka Shantala, come to Arcata's Community Yoga Center Tuesday, Jan. 29, for an evening of the sacred Indian call and response chanting known as Kirtan. As Benjy explains, Kirtan is a yoga practice. "Most people think of yoga as postures or breathing, but there are so many other kinds, including the Indian classical tradition that I come from, Nada Yoga, the yoga of sound and vibration. Nada Yoga finds a beautiful meeting ground with Bhakti Yoga, which is the yoga of pure love and devotion in the Kirtan. The focus is on becoming aware of our essence and opening the heart."

Speaking of open hearts, my favorite folkrockers, Joanne Rand and the Rhythm of the Open Hearts play Friday at Mosgo's. Ali Nelson opens.

Reggae? You got it Tuesday at the Red Fox with D.C.-based SoJa mixing in a bit of dub. Humboldt's own Jah Sun opens. Reggae clash? You've got that too. A note from Dimmick Ranch indicates that the efforts to settle the Mateel v. People Productions/Dimmick Ranch legal dispute out of court have failed. (See reggaeblog.wordpress.com for details.) That means the two sides will lay out their respective cases before an arbitration judge starting Monday, Jan. 28, at 9 a.m. at the Red Lion in Eureka. Proceedings are open to the public. Meanwhile, a note comes from People Productions announcing that "Early bird tickets for this years Reggae Rising Music Festival go on sale Thursday, Jan. 24, at 4:20 p.m. on the Reggae Rising website (www.reggaerising.com)." Reggae Rising is planned for the first weekend in August, same as lat year, and the same as Reggae on the River before it. According to Mateel board member Garth Epling, the main sticking point in negotiations regarding the lease for Dimmick Ranch was the fact that "the Mateel wants to preserve its ability to put on a local festival using the Reggae on the River name." As a result of the negotiation breakdown, the warring parties seem to be opting for what the Mateel's lawyer, Bill Bragg, describes as "the nuclear option." Well, I guess that's one way to achieve peace.

This year’s lineup promises to be unparalleled, and we're proud to announce: UB40, Junior Reid with Andrew & Wada Blood, Don Carlos, Gentleman, Tanya Stephens, SPECIAL BLACK UHURU set featuring DON CARLOS and JUNIOR REID with SLY & ROBBIE. Please check our website frequently as this is only the beginning!!! Many more acts TBA.

Early Bird tickets are ON SALE TODAY @ 4:20PM and can be purchased online with a credit card by visiting our website at www.reggaerising.com.

For more information on Reggae Rising call the hotline at 707-923-4583.

At the heart of this new plan is expanded use of the hall and a new rental fee structure designed to encourage diverse usage of the space throughout the week. Weekend for-profit rentals are now offered at $1250 and weekdays are $1000. Non-profit renters will still receive a subsidized fee of $600 for weekends and $400 on weekdays. Current interest in the calendar is high, and as much advance notice as possible will allow for the best range of date options, especially on Fridays and Saturdays. The MCC hall and its’ commercial kitchen are also available for a price of $50 per hour for those looking to do classes, food preparation, meetings, or low impact events.

Additionally, the Mateel office will now offer a variety of event related services to accommodate the needs of hall renters. Among these are discount color printing of posters and brochures, local event marketing services, and a variety of hall and stage configurations to accommodate renter needs. Call the Mateel office at 923-3368 or send an email to office@mateel.org to express your interest in calendar dates or any of the above services.

Memberships are also still the lifeblood of the organization and, with nearly 300 members already signed up for 2008, it is looking like the goal of 1000 members by the end of the year is well within reach. New membership categories have been added and the 2008 structure offers an individual membership for $30 ($15 for teens/ seniors), family for $55, business for $100, and lifetime for $1000. All memberships come with one vote in the board of directors election (family memberships receive two), discounts on Mateel sponsored events and merchandise, monthly event emails, and lots more. Also look for a big spring membership drive happening soon throughout Humboldt and Mendocino counties.

To become a member or renew your membership in advance of the spring drive please come by the Mateel office. Business hours are from 10am to 5pm Tuesday through Friday and this is also your one stop shop for MCC gear, tickets to Mateel sponsored events, general information, copier services, or to sign up as a volunteer. Volunteer energy is always needed at events, for office coverage, at the regular Wednesday work party, and as hall liaisons. Immediate needs are for responsible people who can commit to one day a week helping with secretarial duties in the office and for people somewhat familiar with the hall to train to act as hall liaisons at various rental events.

Tickets are on sale now at the usual local outlets and online at www.inticketing.com for a price of $75. 2008 MCC members receive a $5 discount when purchased in advance at the Mateel office in Redway. Doors open at 8pm and show starts at 8:30. A variety of finger foods, desserts, refreshments, beer and wine will be available for purchase. So dig out your finest and funkiest black and red attire and get your tickets for George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic at the one and only Mateel Community Center on Friday, February 8th. For more information contact the Mateel office at 923-3368 or via email at office@mateel.org. All proceeds from this event benefit MCC and will support ongoing efforts to keep the hall open and programs alive.

The performer application deadline is Wednesday, March 5th and all applications must be postmarked by this date to be considered eligible. Applicants will then be notified of their festival status in April.

Applications for crafters, commercial and non-profit food vendors, and information booths are not available at this time, but will be available online by mid-February. To receive a vendor application when available, call Ashley at 923-3368 ext. 31 or send an email with your name and address to vendorinfo@mateel.org.

For more info on the 32nd annual Summer Arts & Music Festival at Benbow Lake, check out the festival’s website at www.mateel.org or call (707) 923-3368.

Everyone else who hears Porter Batiste Stoltz believes, too, which is why their fall tour dates, and the prospect of a new album from the group, is reason to get excited. There’s no denying the trio’s pedigree, and their chops are miles wide and oceans deep.

The band’s debut album, Expanding the Funkin’ Universe (2005), offered funk, groove, fusion, rock, hyphenated style freakout. The new album promises to feature more focus and less wild-eyed indulgence. Porter explains “We’ve taken a real step forward in the groove and we learned some things from the first record that’s made this next one really special.” Stay tuned for information on the new album release as it becomes available.

GEORGE PORTER JR.

Few bass players in the history of modern New Orleans music are as storied as George Porter Jr. Back in 1965, Porter joined on with the Meters, considered by many to be the ultimate fusion of rock, funk and R&B, and gained recognition as one of the scene’s elite bass players. www.georgeporterjr.com

RUSSELL BATISTE JR.

As a member of one of N’awlins legendary musical families, Russell Batiste Jr. knows his way around a sound stage. He’s played multiple instruments, and has been at the drum kit since the age of four. Russell joined the Funky Meters in 1989 and, like Porter, has played with a wide variety of performers.

www.russellbatiste.com

BRIAN STOLTZ

Brian Stoltz’s playing is a perfect fusion of virtuosity, emotion, and instinct, and the combination has helped him to develop a reputation as one of New Orleans’ most sought after guitar players. Stoltz originally made a name for himself with the Neville Brothers, then later the Funky Meters with Batiste and Porter.

www.brianstoltz.com

(2) Freshwater Bluegrass Jam on First Thursdays

(3) Save the Date! -- Karan Casey in March

(4) Festival Call

(1) Square Dance

Our next Square Dance will be Friday, February 22nd, starting at 8 pm at the Arcata Veterans' Memorial Building (14th & J Streets). Tara Stetz will call with The Striped Pig String Band. Admission is $7 general, $6 HFS members; kids and seniors are admitted free of charge. For more information, please call Tara at 442-3646.

(2) Bluegrass Jam

The Freshwater Grange Bluegrass Jam begins at 7 pm on the first Thursday of every month. The first hour, from 7-8 pm, is open to any level of bluegrass player. After 8 pm, the jam will progress to an advanced player's circle. People who are still developing their playing and singing skills will be welcome to stay and listen (instead of participating) during the later set.

The Freshwater Grange is located at 49 Grange Road in Freshwater, near Garfield School, just a few miles up Freshwater Road from 3 Corners. For more information, please call Judy at 443-4258. Hope to see you there!

(3) Karan Casey Band

We're working to bring Irish singer Karan Casey back to Humboldt the first week in March, so pencil it in on your musical calendar! Karan has one of the best voices to come out of Ireland -- she was the lead singer for Solas, is a guest with Lunasa, and is the featured vocalist for Paul Winter's latest Grammy winner -- and she is bringing a cellist, guitarist and pianist on this tour. Should be fabulous! Video and sounds are at http://www.folkloreproductions.com/KaranCasey.html We'll let you know the final details as soon as we have them.

(4) Festival Call

If you are interested in playing this year's 30th Annual Folklife Festival and haven't contacted us yet, please let us know by February 15th by emailing folk@humboldtfolklife.org. We will need a demo if you have not played a Folklife event in recent years -- so please send us an mp3 or drop a cd to the PO Box this week with your current work!

(HFS, Attn. Festival; PO Box 1061, Arcata, CA 95518)

See you at the Music!

He's the master of the psychedelic funk he branded funkadelic, the spacey Captain of the Mothership. With James gone, you could say George Clinton is the funkiest man on Earth. The music he made with various iterations of his bands Parliament and Funkadelic was sampled left, right and sideways to become the basis of hip hop. Did he reap the profits? Not yet, but he's working on it. When we talked last week, he detailed the status of his court cases. He has the lawyer from the Hendrix estate working to reassert the rights to his back catalogue and associated royalties. He's won his first case and is awaiting a damage judgment. And when he becomes a millionaire, what's his plan? "I'll just go around doing shows, having fun funkin," he told me. Isn't that what you're already doing? "I'm not going to learn any new habits. I'll just keep funking it up, going fishing, maybe I'll buy me some Viagra."

Just what does that word funk mean to you?

"It's what you do to survive. You do the best you can, then funk it. It's an attitude. You funk it, hang loose. It's the Force. You do the best you can, take some blues and start jammin' — that's funk music. You just get in and jam and get funky. You don't blow your mind about it, you just do the best you can."

But when you got going at the end of the '60s it seemed like you were all about blowing minds.

"You see it was a positive blow then. You'd get fucked up and it was positive, but then it started becoming literal, and people were thinking they had to be crazy to do this. You got to be in charge of your crazy so whatever you funk up, you're still in control. It's not always easy."

And you have no regrets?

"Nah. I'm having a ball. In the pursuit of happiness, I'm successful. I don't ever want to catch it. The pursuit is what it's about. I'm still going after it."

Experience George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic in full pursuit Friday, Feb. 8, at the Mateel Community Center. Come dressed to impress: It's also the Mateel’s Black and Red Ball. Elsewhere on Friday, young rockers Steel Toed Slippers celebrate the release of their first CD, The Mixerfish Album, at Mazzotti's. I have no idea what a mixerfish might be, and what are Steel Toed Slippers anyway? Vocalist Emily Totten is somewhat vague, offering, "besides the name of our band a type of footwear I suppose." Drummer Matt Moss does not go much further saying, "I guess you could say, there are four of them in the whole world." Guitarist Will Nicoll gets deeper, "They're heavy but comfortable, intriguing but accessible and slightly assimilated, ponderable, but solid." Bobby Amirkhan, aka BassFury waxes poetic suggesting, "They're all the rage in Sweden. You may have thought clogs were in fashion there, but don't be fooled by shoe propaganda, they're all about the Steel Toed Slippers over there. But seriously, we're just a group of young and passionate musicians who want to make people think with our music while they dance and rock out." Note: The Mazzotti's show is all ages, so STS' high school classmates are welcome.

How 'bout some alt. hip hop? Head to the Red Fox Friday for a Portland crew including Sleep and Zelly Rock and Jon the Baptist and Peg Leg (of Science Non Fiction). Our own Republican Duck Hunters open. (I'm guessing you can read more about this one in the T-S' Northern Lights, since one of the Hunters is now the editor.)

Has it really only been a year since David Ferney and Jacqueline Dandeneau established the Arcata Playhouse? I guess so. They're celebrating the first anniversary Friday with Clüb Shampoo, a sometimes comic musical review with Lila Nelson, Jeff DeMark, Glasnost Gypsy Band, The Brendas, Joyce Hough and Fred Neighbor and many more.

Fans of the Neville Brothers and New Orleans funk in general will want to catch the PBS show Thursday at Red Fox. No, not the TV PBS, this is Porter-Batiste-Stoltz, as in George Porter Jr., bass player from The Meters, drummer Russell Batiste Jr. from The Funky Meters, and Brian Stoltz, guitarist for the Neville Bros.

It's Prom Night Saturday at the Vista. Well, not really, more like a dress-up Valentine show celebrating the return of former locals The Ian Fays, who are making it big (well, bigger) in San Francisco. They share the bill with former bandmate Julia Cupp's fine band The Broken Hearts and another iteration of thelittlestillnotbigenough. Formal wear encouraged. They'll have a photo corner for those who want souvenirs.

They're calling Saturday's show at the Pearl Lounge "The Portland Bluegrass Invasion," and the three bands, Whiskey Puppy, Chickweed and Clampit, Gaddis & Buck, are on their way home from the San Francisco Bluegrass & Old Time Festival — but be forewarned: The bands from Oregon are more alt. old timey than straight-ahead bluegrass. For real bluegrass try The Del McCoury Band, who play the night before at HSU (more details in the calendar section) or for the local version, Thursday, Feb. 7, is the Compost Mountain Boys monthly gig at Humboldt Brews. Don't know how it happened, but that day is also the first in a monthly series of first-Thursday-of-the-month Humboldt Folklife Society Bluegrass Jams held at the Freshwater Grange with fiddler Judy Hageman hosting. If it lines up that way every month, y'all might wanna think about moving the Folklife Jam to another night.

After a semi-soft opening, Aunty Mo's kicks in to seven-day mode this week, running noon-2 a.m. daily. DJ Joe-E spins what new owner Justin describes as "totally gay dance music" on Thursdays, former ELFS DJ, Blancatron is there Saturdays and DJ Miyagi takes it back to the '80s Sundays. The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence host a grand opening Mystery Ball Mardi-Gras Masquerade Ball and Coat Drive this Sunday at noon. Bring a coat, sleeping bag or warm blanket for the homeless and you get in for just $2.

It was 10 years ago when San Diego indie rockers Armistead Burwell "Zach" Smith IV (of Three Mile Pilot) and Rob Crow (from Thingy and Heavy Vegetable) joined forces as Pinback. While Rob has been here a few times, I don't recall the duo ever playing Humboldt. That changes Monday, Feb. 11, when Pinback hits the Kate Buchanan Room with geek/gangsta rapper Chris Ward IV, aka mc chris.

Blue Cheer's debut album, Vincebus Eruptum, provided the soundtrack for countless high school stoner parties circa 1968. Forty years later the power trio is still playing the psychedelic blues and hard rock that eventually came to be known as heavy metal and/or stoner rock. Local stoner metal band Machete opens for them Monday at Six Rivers.

Remove all but the drummer and percussionist from the jamband String Cheese Incident, add some synths and looping devices and you get EOTO, (End of Time Observatory). Groove to the burbling rhythms of Michael Travis and Jason Hann Monday at the Red Fox.

Wednesday at the above mentioned Arcata Playhouse, an evening of politically-charged folk with ace songwriter/deep thinker/activist/poet Jim Page, on the road with Citizen Band, who note on their website, "Our guiding vision is simple. We believe that capitalism sucks and there are all these fucking greedy capitalists bent on ruling the world and wreaking destruction on all living things. The fight to change all this is long, hard, and sometimes sickening and laughter is the only medicine that everyone can afford. So we go for laughter in quantity (especially since we’re not that good at music)."

Feb. 6 is the day Bob Marley was born. There's a touch of irony in the fact that I'll spend much of his birthday in a room at the Red Lion, where warring parties battle over Reggae contracts in front of the grandson of the late Chief Justice Earl Warren.

The following Wednesday, Feb. 13, Sonoma-based reggae band Groundation brings its 8th annual Bob Marley Tribute Tour to Humboldt Brews. Special guest for the all-Marley music tour is guitarist, Will Bernard, who is up for a Grammy for his album, Party Hats. Incidentally, the disc features Groundation's drum/bass team Paul Spina and Ryan Newman on several tracks.

By chance that's also the day for the weekly Wednesday reggae night at Jambalaya featuring One Wise Sound with Aka Boom. And, in an unfortunate bit of counter programming, Wednesday is the day for High Voltage Reggae at Blue Lake Casino's Wave with your hosts Jah Sun and Ishi Dube (I'm told their back-up band is killer). I don't recall which club declared Reggae Wednesdays first. Let's hope it won't take a lawsuit to decide which show survives.

If you have cable TV and tune it to Access Humboldt Channel 12 this Friday at 10 p.m. you can catch Ishi on the debut of Live with Passion, a local music show hosted by Steve Watts of Passion Presents and a woman described in their p.r. as "the lovely Katie Mae." In the future the bi-weekly show will showcase music by Jah Sun, Moo-Got-2, Subliminal Sabotage and Mobile Chiefing Unit, maybe even the Steve Watts Band. Out on the town Friday night? Catch rebroadcasts Sundays at 11 p.m. and Thursdays at midnight. Live music at home? Now there's a conundrum.

CenterArts presents Greg Brown, who The Washington Post called “. . .one of the best singer-songwriters in America,” on Saturday, March 8th at 8 p.m. in the Van Duzer Theatre, HSU. Greg Brown has proven to be one of Humboldt County’s favorite folk musicians, and the Utne Reader called him “one of the truly great musicians of our time.” Tickets are $35 general, $33 Senior/child, $25 HSU students. Tickets are available at the University Ticket Office at HSU, the Works in Eureka/Arcata and The Metro.

Greg Brown was born in the Hacklebarney section of southeastern Iowa and raised by a family that made words and music a way of life. His seasoned songwriting, storytelling and music are deeply rooted in that place. He moves audiences with warmth, humor, a thundering voice, and his unpretentious musical vision.

At 18, Greg won a contest to play an opening set for singer Eric Andersen in Iowa City, who then encouraged him to head east. Moving to New York, Greg landed a job at Gerdes Folk City in the Village running hootenannies. He recorded a couple of albums on his own then began working on A Prairie Home Companion and touring nationally.

Greg’s music is an intricate mix. It’s no wonder — he is an intricate mix of a person. Though a touring musician for over thirty years, he has never abandoned those things that move him deeply — family, home, poetry and the natural world. Music and words flow through him and he uses them to paint simple yet powerful images on a canvas of gospel, blues, country, rock, and jazz.

Greg formed a long lasting relationship with the Mid-Western record label Redhouse Records and released his sixteenth album with them in 1984 with, Milk of the Moon. In 1992 Greg released Dream Café which was also a huge critical success. The Washington Post called it an “unassuming triumph,” and in the opinion of Z Magazine, it rivaled Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks.

1994’s The Poet Game saw significant national radio play and earned not only critical raves, but also the Indie award for singer-songwriter Album of the Year. The Live One, released the next year, proved to be a fan favorite capturing the humor, warmth, insights, and spirit of his legendary live shows.

Greg continues to stay busy writing, recording and performing, and with the release of his new album The Evening Call, he will be performing at festivals and theaters across North America including a stop in the Van Duzer Theatre on March 8th.

For more than thirty years, Ladysmith Black Mambazo have married the intricate rhythms and harmonies of their native South African musical traditions to the sounds and sentiments of Christian gospel music. The result is a musical and spiritual alchemy that has touched a worldwide audience representing every corner of the religious, cultural and ethnic landscape. Their musical efforts over the past three decades have garnered praise and accolades within the recording industry, but also solidified their identity as a cultural force to be reckoned with.

Assembled in the early 1960s in South Africa by Joseph Shabalala – then a young farmboy turned factory worker – the group took the name Ladysmith Black Mambazo – Ladysmith being the name of Shabalala’s rural hometown; Black being a reference to oxen, the strongest of all farm animals; and Mambazo being the Zulu word for axe, a symbol of the group’s ability to “chop down” any singing rival who might challenge them. Their collective voices were so tight and their harmonies so polished that they were eventually banned from competitions – although they were welcome to participate strictly as entertainers.

In the mid-1980s, Paul Simon visited South Africa and incorporated Black Mambazo’s rich tenor/alto/bass harmonies into his Graceland album – a landmark 1986 recording that was considered seminal in introducing world music to mainstream audiences. A year later, Simon produced Black Mambazo’s first U.S. release, Shaka Zulu, which won a Grammy in 1988 for Best Traditional Folk Album. Since then, the group has scored eight more Grammy nominations.

In addition to their work with Paul Simon, Ladysmith Black Mambazo has recorded with numerous artists from around the world, including Stevie Wonder, Dolly Parton, The Wynans, George Clinton and Ben Harper. In addition, Black Mambazo has been invited to perform at many special occasions. By special invitation from South African President Nelson Mandela, they performed for the Queen of England and the Royal Family at the Royal Albert Hall in London. The group has also performed at two Nobel Peace Prize Ceremonies, a concert for Pope John Paul II in Rome, the South African Presidential inaugurations, the 1996 Summer Olympics and many other special events.

The group celebrated twelve years of democracy in the Republic of South Africa with the January 2006 release of Long Walk to Freedom, a collection of twelve new recordings of classic Mambazo songs with numerous special guests, including Melissa Etheridge, Emmylou Harris, Sarah McLachlan and Zap Mama.

The newest offering by Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a tribute to Shaka Zulu, the iconic South African warrior who united numerous regional tribes in the late 1800s and became the first king of the Zulu nation. Ilembe: Honoring Shaka Zulu.

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

When: Saturday, March 1st (Doors- 7pm/ Music- 8pm)

Why: Great Latin funk, samba, and salsa to support the Mateel Community Center

Ponche! Opens For Delta Nove March 1st at Mateel

Freshly added to the Mateel Community Center’s evening with SoCal jam band, Delta Nove, on Saturday, March 1st, will be Humboldt’s favorite salsa band, Ponche!. Rounding out this spicy Latin line-up, Ponche’s Cuban style timba will be the perfect compliment to Delta Nove’s psychedelic samba, funk, and rock, which has earned them acclaim by both Relix Magazine and Jambase as one of the “top 10 bands to watch.”

Tickets will be available at the door only for a sliding scale donation. The minimum donation is $18 for MCC members and $20 general. Door proceeds support both the Mateel Community Center and Delta Nove. Doors open at 7pm with a gourmet dinner available for purchase and music will begin at 8:00. Stay tuned for more information soon and don’t miss what is sure to be an awesome musical mélange with Delta Nove and Ponche! on Saturday, March 1st. For more information call 923-3368 or visit www.mateel.org. To hear Delta Nove’s music visit

www.myspace.com/mateelcc or go to www.deltanoveband.com.

Who: Judy Mowatt & Winston Jarrett with The Demolition Squad

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

When: Saturday, March 8 (Doors-7pm/ Music-8pm)

Why: Real Roots Reggae in a celebration of International Women’s Day

SoHum Soul Revival Brings Classic Roots Reggae To Mateel March 8

On Saturday, March 8th, Friends of Reggae On The River present The SoHum Soul Revival at the Mateel Community Center in Redway. A spirited celebration in honor of International Women’s Day, this evening of roots reggae will feature two of the genre’s legendary artists. Headlining will be the one-and-only Judy Mowatt, who will return to SoHum for her first local performance in more than 10 years. Known for both her impressive solo career as well as her role as one of Bob Marley’s original backing vocalists, Judy Mowatt is revered as one of the true matriarchs of reggae music. Opening the show will be the classic Studio One recording artist, Winston Jarrett, for what is sure to be a night of real roots music with band support by The Demolition Squad.

Tickets for The SoHum Soul Revival are currently available online at www.inticketing.com and will hit the usual local outlets by Friday, February 22nd. Price is $25 in advance for MCC members, $30 general advance, and $35 at the door if available. Tickets for this show are expected to sell out, so purchasing your tickets in advance is advised. Don’t miss this chance to see two of reggae’s most enduring artists while celebrating International Women’s Day to support the Mateel Community Center. Doors open at 7pm and an ital dinner by Sue Moloney will benefit WISH. For more information on The SoHum Soul Revival call 923-3368 or visit either www.mateel.org or www.myspace.com/mateelcc.

Applications for handmade crafters, commercial and non-profit food vendors, and non-profit information booths interested in participating in the 32nd annual Summer Arts and Music Festival at Benbow Lake are now available and spaces come in a variety of sizes and prices. Handmade craft booths cost $140 for a 5x10 space, $190 for a 10x10 space, and $225 for a 10x10 corner location. Non-profit information booths are offered at $80 for a 5x10 space and $120 for a 10x10 space. Food booths are all 10x10 in size and are priced at $200 for non-profits and $270 for commercial vendors. To receive a vendor application, call the Mateel office at 923-3368 ext. 31 or send an email with your name and address to vendorinfo@mateel.org. You can also download a vendor application from the Summer Arts page of www.mateel.org. The deadline for vendors is Monday, March 31st and applications must be postmarked by this date to be eligible.

Applications are also currently available for entertainers of all varieties interested in participating in the event. Talent applications are available from the Summer Arts page of www.mateel.org or by mail. To receive a talent application by mail, call the Mateel office at 923-3368 and one will be sent to you. A complete talent application includes a CD or DVD and press kit and must be received by Wednesday, March 5th. For more information on the 32nd annual Summer Arts & Music Festival at Benbow Lake State Recreation Area on May 31st and June 1st, check out the festival’s website at www.mateel.org or call (707) 923-3368.

Kottke’s ability to embrace folk idioms and pop melodies as readily as he assimilates jazz and classical influences makes him unique among guitar virtuosi. Over the years, Kottke has worked in the studio and shared concert stages with everyone from songwriters Lyle Lovett, John Fahey, and Rickie Lee Jones, to jazz musicians Paco de Lucia, John McLaughlin and Joe Pass. “My music is maybe hard to categorize,” Kottke allows. “It doesn’t fit conveniently into the bins at record stores. That works for me, though... I don’t rise and fall with trends. Most listeners seem to have room for this stuff.”

- March 15- 4th annual Irish Gold Benefit & Brew

- March 21/ 22/ 23- Random People Monologues Project

What: The SoHum Soul Revival

Who: Judy Mowatt & Winston Jarrett with The Demolition Squad

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

When: Saturday, March 8 (Doors-7pm/ Music-8pm)

Why: Real Roots Reggae in a celebration of International Women’s Day

Judy Mowatt & Winston Jarrett at Mateel This Saturday March 8th

This Saturday, March 8th, Friends of Reggae On The River and MCC proudly present The SoHum Soul Revival at the Mateel Community Center in Redway and tickets are still on sale at local outlets and online at www.inticketing.com.

A roots reggae celebration in honor of International Women’s Day, this special evening will feature two of the genre’s legendary artists. Headlining The SoHum Soul Revival will be the one-and-only Judy Mowatt, who will return to Humboldt for her first local performance in more than 10 years. Known as the “international queen of reggae music” she has had a long and illustrious career both as a solo artist and as one of Bob Marley’s original backing vocalists in the I-Threes. She recorded 6 classic albums between her 1974 debut, Mellow Mood, and her conversion from Rastafarianism to Christianity in 1995. Her 1978 release, Black Woman, is one of the genre’s all-time great albums and also the first to be recorded at Tuff Gong Studios. She also received a Grammy nomination for her 1985 classic, Working Wonders, and was the genre’s first female to be honored with this distinction. While still putting her music to the beat of a solid reggae rhythm, the three albums Judy has recorded since 1995 are pure gospel and truly showcase the depth of her soulful voice in a setting that is equally engaging as her secular work.

Opening the show will be the classic Studio One recording artist, Winston Jarrett, for what is sure to be a night of real roots music. A founding member of the seminal reggae powerhouse, Alton Ellis & The Flames, it is Winston’s voice that punctuates these timeless recordings. He has also been a prolific artist in his own right, with more than 50 years as a professional musician under his belt and over 100 hit releases in Jamaica and England under both his own name and a variety of pseudonyms including Righteous Holmes, The Soul Stars, and T-Man, among others.

Band support for both Judy Mowatt and Winston Jarrett will be provided by The Demolition Squad, a crack ensemble of top NorCal reggae musicians. Judy’s set will be further rounded out with the inclusion of her keyboardist, Othneil Lewis, and a 3-part harmony section also traveling from Jamaica (which features Judy’s daughter and musical sensation in her own right, Yeshemabeth McGreggor).

Tickets for The SoHum Soul Revival are priced at $25 in advance for MCC members (at the office only) and $30 general advance at the usual local outlets. Tickets at the door will be $35 if available. This show is expected to sell out and purchasing your tickets in advance is advised so that you won’t miss this chance to see two of reggae’s most enduring artists while celebrating International Women’s Day to support the Mateel. Doors open at 7pm and an ital Jamaican style dinner by Sue Moloney will benefit WISH. A ceremony to honor women around the globe will begin at 7:30pm and music starts at 8:00. For more information on The SoHum Soul Revival call 923-3368 or visit either www.mateel.org or www.myspace.com/mateelcc.

What: 4th annual Irish Gold Benefit & Brew

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

When: Saturday, March 15th (6pm to midnight)

Why: Music, food, great local beers, and a benefit for three local non-profits

Irish Gold Benefit & Brew Celebrates St. Paddy’s At Mateel March 15th

On Saturday, March 15th the Mateel Community Center in Redway will get in the St. Paddy’s spirit at the 4th annual Irish Gold Benefit & Brew. A lively microbrew tasting event and benefit for the Mateel and three local non-profits, this year’s Irish Gold will feature internationally renowned Celtic rock innovators, Tempest; the tribal Celtic fusion of Bay Area favorites, The Druid Sisters Tea Party; and acoustic Irish music by Humboldt’s own Scatter The Mud Band, plus a traditional Irish dinner and unlimited free tasters from more than 8 local microbreweries.

Doors open, dinner begins, and beers pour from 6pm. The free beer tasting runs from 6pm to 8:30pm, with pints available for purchase between 8:30 and 11pm. A pot o’gold benefits Beginnings Inc., Whale Gulch School’s playground fund, and the Southern Humboldt Community Park. Admission is at the door only and costs $20 with beer tasting and $15 without. This event is open to 21 & over only with valid ID. For more info call 923-3368 or go to either www.mateel.org or www.myspace.com/mateelcc and don’t miss the best little brew fest in Humboldt at the Mateel Community Center’s 4th annual Irish Gold Benefit & Brew on Saturday, March 15th.

Random People Present Even More True Lies & Confessions March 21, 22 & 23

The Random People’s Monologue Project is back for its third year of community- generated theater, only this year it is call the Monologue/ Dialogue Project because fewer than half of the scripts are monologues. The majority or the scripts call for 2 or 3 actors, which is quite a change from previous years, and will certainly add a new dimension to the show. The production is entitled Even More True Lies & Confessions and will be performed at the Mateel Community Center in Redway on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, March 21, 22, and 23. Doors for the Friday and Saturday shows open at 8pm. Sunday will feature a matinee only with doors at 2pm. The show is for adults only and admission is at the door with a sliding scale of $12 to $20 to support the program. Those with questions about the show or interest in volunteering should contact Jenny Edwards at 923-7880 or Susan Alexander at 923-2978. Random People Monologues Project is a program of the Mateel Community Center and is further made possible by community support. Don’t miss what is sure to be another interesting look into the lives of our SoHum neighbors as the Random People’s Monologue/ Dialogue Project present Even More True Lies & Confessions at the Mateel on March 21, 22 and 23.

EVENT: A St. Patrick's Day

Celebration featuring MOBILE CHIEFING UNIT

VENUE: Humboldt Brews/Arcata, CA

DETAILS: 10pm, $7 adv/day of show, 21+ w. ID

CONTACT: Katie Mae Richardson/

Passion Presents

TELE/EMAIL: (707) 832-6944/

kmpassionp@gmail.com

MOBILE CHIEFING UNIT

www.myspace.com/mcu

Spawned from the creative fertility of the Phish scene - founding members Michael Beck and Jason Miller were longtime employees of the bands philanthropic arm, The Water Wheel Foundation.)

Since joining forces with bass player Ryan Jones in Kalamazoo, MI in the late 90's, Mobile Chiefing Unit has proven themselves as a much needed beacon of positivity in tumultuous political times. Their debut record, Smell the Reggae (2002) was recorded at Western Michigan University Sound Studios and is an uplifting blend of conscious lyrics, driving reggae rhythms , and psychedelic musical exploration. Which quickly made them a staple of the bustling Kalamazoo music scene and landing them a headlining spot the Dunegrass & Blues Festival.

Realizing a life long dream to head west - The core of the band relocated to Arcata, CA in 2003 and is starting to make waves in the local music scene with unprecedented local support. They have shared the stage with such musical legends as Jimmy Cliff, Clinton Fearon,Israel Vibration, members of moe. and many more.

Their second full length album, "Dreams We Have Today", recorded at McKinleyville, CA's Bongo Boy Studios was released in September of 2007. The album was mastered by Paul Stubblebine, a bay area luminary, who has lent his studio magic to such legendary arists as: Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Taj Mahal, The Grateful Dead, Santana, Sam Bush and David Grisman and countless others. UPDATE: MCU was recently featured as part of the TV series "Live with Passion" on APEG Channel 12. The series features one hour of live music an interviews with the band from Passion Presents studio in Arcata.

It's not hard to imagine Iowan folksinger Greg Brown climbing out of a dusty, battered pick-up truck parked down some lonesome road, pulling an equally battered guitar and canvas bag full of fishing tackle from the back and ambling down an overgrown path looking for a hole where they're biting.

That's the picture he paints in a talking blues number called "Eugene" on his latest album, The Evening Call. As longtime sideman Bo Ramsey picks out a guitar pattern reminiscent of a burbling mountain stream, Brown lays out plans for a fishing trip, working his way through a check list: bamboo rod, hip boots and a book of flies, "Take along my Gibson J-45 made by women during World War II, coffee-stained stack of maps, a little propane stove, a pile of old quilts, can opener, kipper snacks, smoked oysters, gunpowder tea, copper tea pot and a good sharp knife.

"Sometimes you have to go look for your life," he offers, the first of a few flashes of fishing stream philosophy in his gravelly ramble. After a brief harmonica interlude he continues with the plan:

"You know I’ll park by some rivers, cook up some rice and beans, read Ferlinghetti out loud, talk to the moon, tell her all my love tales — she’s heard them, many times; I’ll make up some new juicer parts — drink cold whiskey from a tin cup, sit in a lawn chair, fiddling with my memories, close my eyes and see. Sometimes you gotta go not look for nothing."

Before he's done he's touched on "the blandification of our whole situation," and world peace while making his way east through Nevada and Utah heading for the Ozarks in search of brook trout and "the sounds old Mother Earth still makes all on her own." You just know he'll find that nothing and it will be something. It's a Zen thing.

Greg Brown and Bo Ramsey are back in town this weekend to play a few songs and telling a few stories on Saturday evening on the stage of the Van Duzer Theater. Expect an opening set from Bo. Sunday morning they hit Hwy. 299 driving on over to Chico. Maybe they'll stop along the way and see if they're biting, maybe not.

Call it California country, or alt. country; Bartenders Bible plays cry-in-your-beer music shot through with lap steel and banjo, drawing on twin SoCal traditions: Flying Burrito/Byrds hippie twang rock and Bakersfield outlaw style a la Merle Haggard and Buck Owens. According to B. Bible keyboard player/banjo man Matt Strachota, Gram Parsons and his shrine in Joshua Tree played a role in the band's latest CD, The Rim Rock Recording Sessions.

"We recorded the album at this place out by Joshua Tree called Pioneertown," said Strachota, calling from the band's home base in San Diego. "It was built by Roy Rogers and Gene Autry in the '40s. It has these Old West storefronts where they shot films. Behind the storefronts were bowling alleys and bars. It's still there, but the only thing operational is a restaurant/bar called Pappy and Harriet's Palace. Our bass player Jim bought a place a mile or so away; technically the area is called Rim Rock. It's high desert. We wanted to record out there so we basically just took a studio to Rim Rock and set up in his house. We took Paul Jenkins from Blackheart Procession out there to engineer it. Of course we had to take a little trip out to the Gram Parsons memorial, the place where they burned his body."

The Rim Rock songs speak of broken hearts, lonely truck drivers, hot dry desert days with vultures circling. And yes, you can sense Gram's ashes blowing in the wind. This weekend Bartenders Bible takes to the road heading north. Catch them when they stop for a show at the Pearl Saturday on their way to Washington. Elsewhere Saturday you have an unusually eclectic collection of concerts spread around the county: the worldly Gamelan X is at Fulkerson Hall (more on that show in the calendar), Irish singer/harpist Annette Griffin and the McBride Irish Dancers playing for a pre-St. Pat's "Best of Ireland" show at the Arkley Center and The Scotia Ragtime Band with music from the ragtime and World War I eras at the Fortuna Monday Club.

The seemingly tireless Pete Ciotti called to say, "Me and Lenny [Pettinelli, aka Nipsy] are releasing our Day Go CD Mangia this weekend. The band name is a play on words being we're both Italian — it's I-talian music done sort of funk style with the wacky Nipsy twist." The Day Go CD release party is Friday at Humboldt Brews with Murdockulous opening.

Catch the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra earlier Friday at the Van Duzer, a Redwood Jazz Alliance joint that's discussed by my man Maxwell in our review section this week.

For your weekly dose of underground hip hop check the Traveling Circuits Tour out of NYC coming to Humboldt Brews Thursday with The Metermaids, Bisc One and Domer.

Saturday the hip hop action moves to the Red Fox for a display of “revolutionary lyricism” by A.P.O.S.T.L.E. from Heavyweight Dub Champions with DJ Quest, Resident Anti-Hero and Humboldt's own J La Sarge.

Experience something a little different Sunday, March 9, at the Westhaven Center for the Arts: Zoe and Kim Boekbinder, aka the ecogroovy sister cabaret act Vermillion Lies, are up from Oakland to play "amazing music on random instruments" from their brand spanking new CD, What's in the Box?

Deep Groove Society presents a special edition of Sundaze on Sunday at the Jambalaya with "phonomental" SoCal Dj/producer Simply Jeff.

How about back-to-back stringband shows at Humboldt Brews? Huckleberry Flint plays one of its infrequent local gigs Sunday, followed by a Monday show by The Hackensaw Boys from Charlottesville, Virginia, a little town in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The H-Boys have been rambling around playing wild jammy post-bluegrass for about nine years; don't miss 'em if that's your thing.

Also on Monday, Big Pete's Pizza rocks out with Weezer covers by Weepel plus heavy instrumetal music by 33 1/3.

Tuesday at the Red Fox it's guitar wiz Steve Kimock and Friends, with the current friends being a particularly stellar bunch. There's Melvin Seals from JGB on B-3 organ, bassist Hutch Hutchinson from Bonnie Raitt's band, Steve’s son John Morgan Kimock on drums, plus Billy Goodman from The Goodman Brothers handling vocals. Kimock watchers will remember that Billy and his bro were the ones who brought Steve west 30-someodd years ago.

HSU's NORML chapter celebrates "Legalize It" Day at the Van Duzer Wednesday, March 12, with speakers in the afternoon starting at 4:20 including Jack "The Emperor Wears No Clothes" Herer and Rev. Eddy Lepp. Later on (9-ish) there's music by AfroMassive and Subliminal Sabotage.

Meanwhile Wednesday the High Voltage Reggae show at Blue Lake Casino's Wave brings in special guest Winstrong, the Soul Rebel, a Mendo-based chanter originally out of Surinam.

And in other Reggae related business, the Mateel Community Center, in association with Friends of Reggae on the River presents The SoHum Soul Revival on Saturday, March 8, at the Mateel. Despite the name, it's not a soul music concert, it's a reggae show in honor of International Women’s Day featuring Judy Mowatt, a singer who made her name initially as one of the I-Threes, the backup vocal group for Bob Marley and the Wailers. Judy is bringing her keyboard player and own harmony vocalists, including her daughter Shema (by ex-husband Freddie McGregor), otherwise she'll be backed by The Demolition Squad, a reconfiguration of Hoy Kersh's band Massawa with Hoy's son Shasta Kersh on bass, Brody Forester on guitar and a few Jamaican musicians. The D-Squad will also back co-headliner Winston Jarrett, a Jamaican veteran who was part of Alton Ellis' band The Flames back in the day. Come early for an ital dinner prepared by Sue Moloney.

You may have heard that the organizers were a bit worried when, right after the event was announced, PG&E announced that the Redway area's power would be shut off for transformer repair work for 12 hours that just happened to fall in the middle of showtime. According to the Mateel staffer Justin Crellin, that problem has been solved. The planned outage has been rescheduled. Crellin also noted that the Friends of the Reggae on the River listed on the posters is a support group for Mateel operations. He emphasized that the show is not raising funds to support the Mateel's lawsuit against Tom Dimmick and People Productions.

For those who have not been paying attention, the Reggae suit hearings are on hiatus, at least until St. Patrick's Day. In the meantime there's the annual Reggae-related public hearing before the Humboldt County Planning Commission coming up Thursday, March 6, which includes a review of the annual report for what is officially described as "the 2007 Reggae on the River/Reggae Rising Music Festival."

As detailed in the public notice, "The Planning Comm. will be setting the attendance levels for the 2008 event; the applicant is requesting ticket sales be allowed to increase back to the 2006 levels of 12,000, and with the commensurate increase in staff and volunteers, the total number of persons at the event would be 14,400 persons."

Judging from what happened at similar commission meetings last year, I'm guessing we might see the ongoing resistance from the Mateel side go public once again. While the Reggae War is on break in the courts, it rages on in SoHum, particularly in the blogosphere, and there's no end in sight. One love? Forget it.

- Spring member drive

- Summer Arts talent applications extended

- Irish Gold final psa (March 15)

- Random People Monologues (Mar 21-23)

- Katchafire and Tchiya Amet (April 4)

Mateel Spring Membership Drive Happening Now Mateel Spring Membership Drive Happening Now The Mateel Community Center kicks off its Spring Membership Drive on March 1st. To join, visit one of the volunteers tabling at Smart in Redway, Jacob Garber Square in Garberville, the Arcata Co-op, and the Post Office in Laytonville. You can also stop by the office in Redway or download a membership form online at www.mateel.org. Family, business, and lifetime memberships are also available. To learn more about the benefits of being a member and the programs and services of the Mateel Community Center, check out the website at www.mateel.org . The goal is to reach 1,000 members for 2008. Help spread the love and join today!

What: 4th annual Irish Gold Benefit & Brew

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

When: Saturday, March 15th (6pm to midnight)

Why: Music, food, great local beers, and a benefit for three local non-profits

Irish Gold Benefit & Brew Celebrates St. Paddy’s This Saturday At Mateel

This Saturday, March 15th, the Mateel Community Center in Redway will once again get in the St. Paddy’s spirit at the 4th annual Irish Gold Benefit & Brew. A lively microbrew tasting event and benefit for both the Mateel and three local non-profits, this year’s Irish Gold is set to be the biggest and best yet and will feature internationally renowned Celtic rockers, Tempest; the tribal Celtic fusion of Bay Area favorites, The Druid Sisters Tea Party; and traditional acoustic music by Humboldt’s premier Celtic ensemble, Scatter The Mud; plus an Irish dinner and unlimited free tasters from more than 8 local microbreweries.

Doors open, dinner begins, and beers pour from 6pm. The free beer tasting runs from 6pm to 8:30pm, with pints available for purchase between 8:30 and 11pm. The dinner will offer options of corned beef and cabbage or vegetarian Shepard’s pie with traditional accompaniments. A variety of free hors d’oeuvres will also be available to help soak up the beer tasters.

Admission is at the door only and costs $20 with beer tasting and $15 without. This event is open to 21 & over only with valid ID. A pot o’gold offers the opportunity to donate dollars to support the work of Beginnings Inc., Whale Gulch School’s playground fund, and the Southern Humboldt Community Park. For more info call 923-3368 or go to either www.mateel.org or www.myspace.com/mateelcc and don’t miss the best little brew fest in Humboldt at the Mateel Community Center’s 4th annual Irish Gold Benefit & Brew on Saturday, March 15th.

Summer Arts Talent Application Deadline Extended

The application for performers interested in participating in the 32nd annual Summer Arts & Music Festival has been extended one week. The new performer deadline is now Friday, March 15 and all applications must be received in the Mateel office by this date to be eligible. Applications can be downloaded from the Summer Arts page of www.mateel.org or picked up at office.

Applications are also still available for handmade crafters, commercial and non-profit food vendors, and non-profit info booths interested in participating in the festival. Spaces come in a variety of sizes and prices. Handmade craft booths cost $140 for a 5x10 space, $190 for a 10x10 space, and $225 for a 10x10 corner location. Non-profit information booths are offered at $80 for a 5x10 space and $120 for a 10x10 space. Food booths are all 10x10 in size and are priced at $200 for non-profits and $270 for commercial vendors. To receive a vendor application, call the Mateel office at 923-3368 ext. 31 or send an email with your name and contact info to vendorinfo@mateel.org. You can also download a vendor application from the Summer Arts page of www.mateel.org. The deadline for vendors is Monday, March 31st and applications must be postmarked by this date to be eligible.

For more information on the 32nd annual Summer Arts & Music Festival at Benbow Lake State Recreation Area on May 31st and June 1st, check out the festival’s website at www.mateel.org or call (707) 923-3368.

Even More True Lies & Confessions Comes To Mateel March 21, 22 & 23

With Random People Monologue/ Dialogue Project’s third season now in full swing, twenty-five local writers, directors, and actors are rehearsing and getting ready to present their latest theatrical work . This year’s show is called Even More! True Lies and Confessions and it is being supported by the Mateel Community Center, a grant from the North Coast Cultural Trust, and by you, our neighbors.

The eleven scripts being performed cover topics ranging from a comedic piece entitled "Divorce Therapy" to an account of one woman's experience in Nazi-occupied France; from the confusion resulting when two people talk to each other and to other people on their cell phones, to a script dealing with the afterlife. Come and enjoy a lively evening of great theater created by your friends and neighbors of Southern Humboldt County. The two 8:00pm performances are Friday and Saturday, March 21 and 22. Doors open at 7:30. There is a matinee on Sunday at 2:00pm; doors open at 1:30. Admission is sliding scale at the door with a donation of $12-20 to support the program. Beer, wine, soft drinks, and desserts will be available for purchase. For more info call the Mateel at 923-3368.

New Zealand’s Katchafire Brings Indigenous Reggae To Mateel April 4

On Friday, April 4th, the Mateel Community Center in Redway is proud to present an evening of indigenous reggae with Katchafire and Tchiya Amet & The Lighthouse Band. Hailing from New Zealand, Katchafire is one of the hottest groups from the southern hemisphere and are currently exploding on the international scene. This will be their highly anticipated first tour of the western U.S., and this performance at the Mateel will be one of the tour’s highlights. Comprised of full blooded Maoris, the native people of New Zealand, Katchafire infuses an infectious island vibe into their high energy roots reggae which is sure to be a hit with Humboldt audiences.

Opening the show will be Mendocino County favorite, Tchiya Amet and The Lighthouse Band. A First Nations Cherokee, her conscious music is a soulful and jazzy take on roots reggae and will be the perfect accompaniment to Katchafire. DJ Sister Yasmin will also spin her Crucial Dance Riddims throughout the evening.

DJ Larry Trask will be hosting from the campus and visiting with the students. The Blind Boys of Alabama will make an appearance on Trask's show in the late afternoon.

"I'm excited to get this chance to have the Blind Boys of Alabama on my show," said Trask. "I think we'll be able to talk with them a little bit and we'll listen to a little bit of their soundcheck."

The Blind Boys of Alabama are scheduled to play Friday night at the Van Duzer Theatre at HSU. The gospel group was formed in 1939 and founding member Jimmy Carter still leads the band.

EVENT: Mad Professor also DJ Dub Cowboy

VENUE: Red Fox Tavern/Eureka, CA

DETAILS: 10pm, $20 adv., 21+ w. ID

CONTACT: Katie Mae Richardson/ Passion Presents

TELE/EMAIL: (707) 832-6944/

kmpassionp@gmail.com

MAD PROFESSOR

http://www.ariwa.com/artists/madprof.htm

On the content of his character, and by the results of his recordings, he is one of the sanest record producers. The name Mad Professor was first given by friends at school, who were amazed by the experiments he carried out as a youth. Having built a radio and telephone system at the age of 10 years, it was no surprise that his interest and subsequent career in electronics along with a love of Motown, Philadelphia International, Treasure Isle and music of all types propelled him onward. The early Eighties, having built his own mixing desk, had launched Mad Professor along with the Ariwa Studio/ label from his front room in Thornton Heath. Early works include sessions with Ruts DC, Reggae Regulars, Merger, Jimmy Lindsay, Mikey Dread, Johnny Clarke and many more international artists. DUB ME CRAZY, the first in a 12 part series of albums, was to become his beacon for the label. With an episode being issued every year, the titles all told a different story. Beyond the Realms of dub – Dub me crazy Pt2, The African Connection – Dub me crazy Pt3, and Dub me crazy Pt 7 – Adventures of a dub sampler. The distinct variation and surprising sound effects were unique for this time. Dub, and the cool sound and clarity of his mixing encouraging many artists to the growing label.

By the mid - Eighties, the studio / label moved from its launch base of Peckham to Whitehorse Lane, South Norwood where it is still located. At this time he incorporated remix projects for the Orb, 400 Blows, Beats International (Lindy Layton), Sade and Brilliant. A heavy schedule of touring Germany, Holland, France, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Spain Austria, Italy, Yugoslavia, USA, Canada and Japan, while still managing to produce the various artists’ projects was an enormous workload. The label by then had a healthy 104 albums with more in the infancy stage of planning. By the mid Nineties, Mad Professor’s profile increased to legendary status After remixing Massive Attack’s second album, Protection. No Protection was instantly received by all corners of the globe, benefiting from Virgin / EMI international launch pad. Professor’s personal Dub tours were increased to be a major part of his schedule, along with further remixes which include: Clementine, Tracy Spencer, The Boom, Danny Red, Depeche Mode, Jamiroqui, Rancid, KLF, Beastie Boys, Cidade Negra, Perry Farrell (Jane’s Addiction) along with the Massive Attack dub extravaganza all benefiting from the Mad Professor touch. Production work for various major labels include: Sony Music, EMI, Arista, Warner Brothers, Capitol Record, and Virgin Records. In 1998 the Ariwa record catalogue contained over 155 titles including over 30 dub albums from Mad Professor, 3 albums from U-Roy including the classic True Born African, 7 albums from the Upsetter, Lee Scratch Perry and many classic Lovers Rock albums, including Country Life - Sandra Cross, If I gave my heart - John Mclean, Black with Sugar – Kofi. By the end of the Nineties, Mad Professor’s Ariwa label gained international notoriety in many territories throughout the world. Mainly known for its Dub, roots and Techno / drum and bass catalogue.

The turn of the century saw new releases from Lee Scratch Perry – Techno Party, Macka B – Global Messenger, Mad Professor – Trix in the mix. By 2004 Mad Professor worked with Sly & Robbie at Ariwa, where the Taxi gang laid down their versions of Ariwa rhythms. Over 100 rhythms were recorded. An album titled The Dub Revolutionarys was released by Sanctuary Records owned Trojan Label. Some of those rhythms also formed the backbone for the next album from Horace Andy From the Roots. Also released by Trojan, this is Horace’s third album for Ariwa Sounds. Around this time Mad Prof collaborated with Mafia & Fluxy to produce Dancehall Dub, as well as 2 Sci Fi Dub albums. From Mars with Dub followed by A new galaxy of Dub. By the year 2005 the Ariwa catalogue passed the 200 figure, bumped up by new albums from Max Romeo, U-Roy and young protégée Joe Ariwa.

Fresh demand for the dub show has taken the Ariwa Sound to many far flung places. In 2003 Mad Professor was invited to play at the Greenpeace festival in Manáus, Brazil. Since then, Mad Professor has become an annual visitor to South America, Playing also Argentina, Chile, and Venezuela, Australia, New Zealand, Estonia, Portugal. In 2005 the dub show played Seoul in Korea, driving several hundreds of fans crazy to the warbler sounds. Bangkok in Thailand in 2006 and Goa in India in 2007, courtesy of the Big Chill. the Mad Traveller also played Dakar, courtesy of the Senegalese govt. Mad Professor is also involved in the Back to Africa festival, an annual celebration in the Gambia, committed to the positive movement of descendants of Africans, back to Africa.

For more on ariwa and Mad Professor,please check www.ariwa.com

EVENT: The Itals also DJ Dub Cowboy

VENUE: Red Fox Tavern/Eureka, CA

DETAILS: 10pm, $20 adv., 21+ w. ID

CONTACT: Katie Mae Richardson/ Passion Presents

TELE/EMAIL: (707) 832-6944/ kmpassionp@gmail.com

THE ITALS

www.myspace.com/theitals

Out of Savana La Mar, Jamaica, Keith Porter and The Itals are some of the toughest, most consistant touring artists in the reggae genre. These minstrels have the drive, perseverance and humility to reach to the farthest outposts, where many of their counterparts never go. For this sacrifice they are duly rewarded with the love and respect of the people. Keith Porter, Kada Porter and David Isaacs are the singers for this vocal trio. Known for their tight harmonies and uplifting songs of glory, these reggae messengers have been going fresh and strong all over the world since the early eighties. After many hard years on the road, they are still youthful and in good health. Keith Porter has proven himself to be one of the strongest men in the business whose endurance is remarkable. Keith “never gets weary”. The Itals are true samples of the “Rasta Philosophy”. March / April 2008, they will be touring North America again. “Got to reveal. Got to reveal. Truth that is hid – has got to reveal”, chant the Itals. “Sing farewell to my enemies. Sing farewell to my enemies – Alphas love is over me.” The Itals sing songs to make us remember God and focus on His great blessings to humanity. Just for the gift of hearing, we could never be thankful enough. “Temptation is a thing trying to keep me away from Jah glory. I love, I love, I love - Jah glory.” When the Itals hit the stage, Jah glory is on. Long before the Itals were a spark in their producer’s eye, Keith Porter recorded his first hit single, “Hitey Titey”, with the Westmorelites on the Studio One label in 1967. Around 1969, Keith became lead singer for a band named Soul Hermit, backed by Eugene Gray and Wignal Henry on guitars, and Reginald Seewell and Nash on base and drums. They played in numerous entertainment sectors of Jamaica until Owen Sinclair put together a new band in 1971. Called Future Generation, the band was composed of Dalton James and Roy Hilton on drums, Devon Henry on keyboards, Eugene Gray, guitar, Scott on sax, and Keith on vocals. They performed all over Jamaica for X amount of years, singing all styles of music, American R&B and love songs and native Jamaican songs.

Tiring of the club scene around 1975, Keith ran into Ronnie Davis on Orange Street in Kingston and asked him who was auditioning. Ronnie gave him a cassette with a rhythm he’d just had a hit on. “I was so happy with that rhythm I didn’t look any further,” says Keith. “In less than a week I had written Ina Disa Time and came back to Kingston to record it for Lloyd Campbell’s SpiderMan label. Lloyd felt it needed some harmonies with my lead, so Ronnie and I both added harmony parts. There was no intention of forming a group called the Itals; the record first came out as Keith Porter. After the song was on its way to becoming a hit in Jamaica, we all went out to do some promotion. Lloyd, Ronnie, myself and Brian Thomas of RJR were sitting out back in the cantina, when Brian said ‘why not call them the Itals’, because now there was more than one person singing. Everyone liked that name. It sounded good, so all of a sudden, Itals was a group. It was never intentional. I’ve always wondered if the name was the result of Brian noticing how strict I was about the food I ate, strictly Ital.” Campbell quickly repressed the record as ‘the Itals’ to meet demand. Today the song remains the Itals' signature tune, and has been described by Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones as “the perfect reggae track”. It is included on the Rolling Stones’ Artist Choice CD, released in 2003, available through Starbucks Coffee from Hear Music, a division of EMI, and in selected major chains. The success of "Ina Disa Time" saw the group return to the studio with the addition of Lloyd Ricketts singing a third harmony part on a series of superb recordings for the SpiderMan label. Tunes like "Don't Wake The Lion," "Brutal," and "Temptation" followed on 7” release in Jamaica and New York in ’77 and ‘78, establishing the Itals among the best Jamaican singers and songwriters. The Itals were twice finalists in the Jamaica Festival Song Competition, and their 1981 tune, "Jamaican Style," earned them a place at Reggae Sunsplash that year. 1982 saw the release of the first Itals' album, "Brutal Out Deh" on Nighthawk Records. The Itals toured the US and Canada backed by the Roots Radics. Their second album, "Give Me Power," was released to critical acclaim and hit #1 on CMJ's Reggae Route chart. In 1985, Pollstar Magazine placed them in the top 100 artists of the year.

Their third album, "Early Recordings," gathers together all the Itals' early singles and several rare pre-Itals tracks for a collector's feast from Nighthawk. The Itals' fourth recording, "Rasta Philosophy," won a Grammy nomination for best reggae album in 1987, followed by "Cool And Dread." Next came the Rhythm Safari album “Easy to Catch”, followed by “Modern Age” on Ras Records. The Itals continued touring throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Over the years, the Itals have performed countless shows worldwide. Although the background harmonies sometimes change, they always sound as sweet as ever, backing the original Itals lead vocalist, Keith Porter. Now, with the release of “Mi Livity,” Mr. Porter steps a little further out front and demonstrates why good reggae music allows no labels or limitations.

EVENT: Great American Taxi wsg Barry Sless, opening set by Victor Barnes

VENUE: Humboldt Brews/Arcata, CA

DETAILS: 9:30pm, $10 adv. $12 day of show, 21+ w. ID

CONTACT: Katie Mae Richardson/ Passion Presents

TELE/EMAIL: (707) 832-6944/

kmpassionp@gmail.com

GREAT AMERICAN TAXI

www.greatamericantaxi.net Your head would spin adding up all the miles the members of Great American Taxi have traveled individually, and in just over two years together they’ve added a whole lot more to their travelogues. From their home in the high country of Colorado to the shores of the Pacific and back again through the grain belt of the Midwest heading further east to the Atlantic Ocean, Taxi has ridden the highways and biways spinning yarns and delivering high octane music to all who show up at their live shows and consume their 21st century Americana sound. From the bars, clubs and theaters to the main stage of Wakarusa to late night sets at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, up north to the 10,000 Lakes Festival via Summer Camp, and out west to the High Sierra Music Fest, the band has carved out their own territory in a very short time. Audiences are instantly immersed in their their folk and country sensibilities while they are fed large doses of improvisation and rock and roll. Touring relentlessy in 2007 supporting their debut CD release “Streets of Gold,” and with over 200 plus shows behind them in their short time together, Great American Taxi has built a hefty following the old fashioned way. With front-man Vince Herman at the wheel people will recognize threads of the Leftover Salmon fabric all the while being driven by original songwriting and musicianship from guitarist/vocalist Jefferson Hamer and keyboardist/vocalist Chad Staehly. The rhythm section and axles of the ride are supplied by well-seasoned veterans Jake Coffin on drums/vocals and Edwin Hurwitz on bass guitar. Jake spent years on the road with Dan Bern and Edwin clocked many miles with 90’s jambands Shockra and Skin. Great American Taxi traffics their collective past helping create their new Americana without borders brand of music.

BARRY SLESS

When it comes to playing western swing and boogie-woogie pedal steel, Barry Sless is unsurpassed. Barry can swing with the best of 'em - whether it's soaring on a high pedal steel harmonic or doing some soulful playing on the guitar. When Barry is not touring with the The Dead, Phil Lesh & Friends,David Nelson Band, and most recently Great American Taxi, toursnationally as a member of Moonalice. Moonalice is another all-star band featuring Hot Tuna pianist Pete Sears, and former Kingfish drummer Jimmy Sanchez.

Kicking off the month, on the weekend of April 4th and 5th, will be back to back nights of music and comedy. Friday, April 4th will feature an evening of indigenous reggae with New Zealand’s top band and emerging international superstars, Katchafire, along with Mendo favorites, Tchiya Amet & The Lighthouse Band, and the Crucial Dance Riddims of DJ Sister Yasmin. Tickets are on sale now at the usual local outlets and online at www.inticketing.com for only $20 MCC members or $22 advance.

The next evening, on Saturday, April 5th, get ready for Seattle Comedy Night Part 2. A follow up to the successful Just Another Hangover Comedy Tour that made a stop at Mateel back in January, Seattle Comedy Night Part 2 will feature talented Seattle based comedians, Harold Gomez (winner of the Seattle International Comedy Competition) and Colin Dillon (of Howard Stern’s Killers of Comedy Tour). Rounding out the bill will be the psychedelic cowboy comedy of California’s own, Jesse X. Tickets for this event are sliding scale at the door only with a minimum donation of $12 MCC members and $14 general.

Then on Friday, April 11th, MCC will host the first ever Mateel Poker and Blackjack Tournament, which offers participants the opportunity to test their skills against other players in these two favorite games with proceeds supporting the Mateel Community Center. Buy-in for the Texas Hold’em poker tournament is $75 per participant with an opportunity for a second buy-in after the first elimination round. Buy-in for the blackjack tournament is $50, also with a second buy-in opportunity. Space in each tournament is limited and interested participants are encouraged to contact the Mateel office ASAP to sign up or for more information.

The following weekend on Saturday, April 19th, MCC will present Women of Humboldt County and Their Art. The largest showing of female fine artists from Humboldt County ever, this mixed media event will host more than 30 of the most accomplished local female fine artists as the Mateel is transformed into a beautiful art gallery. This afternoon event will be open from 3pm to 8pm and will also feature a Humboldt County wine tasting with selections poured by Riverbend Cellars, Whitethorn Winery, Briceland Vineyards, and Elk Prarie Vineyards, plus music by Humboldt Time and Folks of Thorne. Admission is $25 at the door and includes a commemorative wine glass, free wine tasting and hors d’oeuvres, and an opportunity to purchase and enjoy fine art and fine wines produced right here in Humboldt County.

And the Mateel Community Center’s in-house offerings for April will culminate with The Humboldt 420 Blowout on Sunday, April 20th. A co-production of MCC and Bonus Entertainment, this event will celebrate the 420 holiday with a night of top notch reggae music. Headlining the bill will be Jamaican dancehall favorite, Fantan Mojah, along with the roots reggae of Jah Sun, Elhadji, Ras Indio, and Demolition Squad, plus DJ Jungliss and much more. Tickets for The Humboldt 420 Blowout are available now at the usual local outlets and online at www.inticketing.com for a price of $25 MCC members and $30 advance with all proceeds supporting the Mateel’s new sound system fund. Additionally, the Mateel Community Center will host a number of rental events throughout April. Visit www.mateel.org or www.myspace.com/mateelcc for a complete list of happenings at the Mateel in April and beyond. For more information on any of the events above or the MCC in general, call (707) 923-3368. See you around the Mateel for an action packed April.

During the summer of 2008, G.P.G.D.S. will perform at numerous festivals including Bonnaroo, Mountain Jam, and Wakarusa.

Giant Panda played 180 shows in 2007. In November they completed a six week national tour, including ten west coast dates.

Formed in 2001, this Rochester, New York based group has made a name for themselves through hard work on the road. The band plays a unique blend of roots reggae, dub, and afrobeat, with just the right mix of dark and light to keep you on your toes.

G.P.G.D.S. is receiving regular airplay on Sirius and XM Radio.

Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad has opened for reggae greats Toots And The Maytals, The Wailers, Lee Scratch Perry, Morgan Heritage, Yellowman, The Meditations, Mad Professor, and Edi Fitzroy. They've been joined on stage by members of Brazilian Girls, Thievery Corporation, Umphrey's McGee, John Brown's Body, and String Cheese Incident.

"This is some of the most intense roots reggae we've ever heard..."

- Metro Pulse, Knoxville TN

"Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad creates some of the freshest, most addictive reggae this side of Jamaica."

- CD Baby

"...heavy, air-tight dub and roots reggae pressure..."

- Fritz Hahn, Washington Post

The GIANT PANDA GUERILLA DUB SQUAD will appear Sunday, March 30 @ Humboldt Brews at 9 PM for two sets. 21 and older, tickets are $8. Humboldt Brews is at 856 10th Street in Arcata.

For more info call 707-826-2739

March 21st--HCAR Presents An Evening With Matthew Cook A Concert For World Down Syndrome Day At The Arkley Center For The Performing Arts 8:00 PM

� Tickets available at the Arkley Center Box Office

And on-line at:

http://www.arkleycenter.com/main_view.php?id=58   

The Greyboy Allstars first came together 15 years ago at the Green Circle Bar in San Diego, a club that's now gone like a cool breeze. A DJ who calls himself Greyboy spun funk, soul and boogaloo jazz records there. A scene developed and there was a call for live music. With the help of saxophonist Karl Denson, who'd played with Lenny Kravitz, Greyboy assembled an all-star combo drawing players from various area bands, among them guitarist Mike Andrews aka Elgin Park, bassist Chris Stillwell, drummer Zak Najor, and organist Robert Walter.

"The Green Circle was cool," recalled Walter, when I caught up with him via cell at his relatively new home in New Orleans. "It was in a sort of crappy part of town, off the beaten path with no other clubs around. It was kind of a hipster bar where people dressed up. They had a few touring acts. Greyboy was the DJ, he played every weekend and also on Wednesdays. Wednesday was our night; he'd play before us and after, and we'd play two big sets."

Greyboy wasn't really in the band but served a role that Walter described as "spiritual advisor" and a "taste thermometer."

"He helped us avoid any tackiness in the style. He was all about a certain era of records, which was basically soul-funk and jazz records from like 1967-1972. That was the golden age that influenced us. So we got turned onto all this music, and from there we insinuated our own personalities into it and it became something else. But that's how it started, as a tribute to Prestige and Blue Note funky jazz records."

In 1995 the band released an album called West Coast Boogaloo with Fred Wesley from James Brown's band producing. The Greyboy Allstars took off, although when they hit the road, Greyboy typically stayed at home. Over time the various players spun off on what they deemed "sidecar projects." Elgin put a rock band together under his nom de plume. Walter formed a combo he called Robert Walter's 20th Congress, then there was Karl Denson's Tiny Universe. The Greyboy association ultimately fell by the wayside, as the various players became stars in the then-nascent jamband scene. Walter and Denson in particular became notional stars in that scene. Then a couple of years ago the Allstars decided to reassemble for a tour, then for an album, What Happened to Television? with Greyboy at the helm. It was a natural thing to do, and almost inevitable. Says Walter, "For me personally — and I don't know if Karl feels the same, but I have a feeling he does — doing those other things is great because I get to play more of my own music and push my aesthetic and all that, but as far as a band, I've always been trying to chase this sound, trying to have a band that sounds as good as this one. You know, there's something about the interaction of players and the democratic nature of the group that makes it easier and better sounding than other things. You might have some idea you can't pursue because we still go for a narrow aesthetic, but when you get in a room and start playing a groove, it just — it just sounds great."

It's true. The music sounds great, as funky as ever, kinda jammy and very cool. The Greyboy Allstars are now preparing for a spring tour (it's spring as of 5:58 p.m. Thursday), reassembling once more to hit the road with almost all of the original line-up (Najor has been replaced by drummer Aaron Redfield). A West Coast jaunt brings the boys to Eureka on Monday, March 24, for a show at Red Fox Tavern with an added bonus: Underground hip hop artist Busdriver opens.

Oakland-based jazz saxophonist Phillip Greenlief has a new project going. He spent some time watching moody films by Michelangelo Antonioni, Red Desert, L'Eclisse and L'Avventura, all of them starring the stunning actress Monica Vitti. As he watched with the sound on mute, he composed spontaneous soundtracks. He then brought in a rhythm section, a duo known as duo B. with Lisa Mezzacappa on contrabass and Jason Levis on drums and percussion. The trio, dubbed Citta di Vitti, also performs compositions written by Nino Rota for the films of Federico Fellini. They'll be playing these soundtracks Saturday, March 22, at Avalon during the dinner hour and on March 23, at Muddy's Hot Cup during what would qualify as Sunday brunch. Make this music your own soundtrack.

Is anyone still playing ska? Well, yes. Boss 501, a six-piece comprised of Chico State students, plays ska and rocksteady along with primal reggae and dub at the Jambalaya on Thursday. Local feral jazz band Dogbone opens.

For roots and culture style reggae stop by Six Rivers Friday where Jamaican-born New Yorker Sister Carol, aka Mother Culture, brings in The Yellow Wall Dub Squad, a team of JA-studio vets, and special guest Ms. Annicia Banks. Humboldt transplant Elhadji (from Senegal) opens. Also in the reggae mode and also playing Friday, Amha Baraka and the Living Man Band, led by a singer out of Washington D.C. via San Francisco.

The local rock 'n' rollerskate crowd gathers Friday at Aunty Mo’s Lounge (formerly Indigo, Club West before that) for the Redwood Rollers roller derby team benefit art and dessert auction/rock show featuring heaviness from Dragged by Horses and Side Iron, very indie rock by Arrogant Hare and feminist punk by Kill the Switch. Young rockers Steel Toed Slippers play at an Equinox election event Friday at Beginnings Octagon for apple grower/Supes candidate Clif Clendenen. STS also joins up with above-mentioned punkers Kill the Switch, post-punk rockers This Dying Wish and Portland psyche metal duo Palo Verde for a Placebo show (yes, all ages) Saturday at the Ink People space in the back of the Muni.

Later that night (Placebo shows end early by design), it's more Portland metal with Facepilot (on the stoner rock side) along with Tacoma sludge rock duo Lozen. What, no local support?

Paul from the arty alt. rock band No Not Yet (who I have no heard yet) writes to say NNY is playing Saturday at the Jambalaya with Tao Jonesers and the punky The Baby Arms, "Or if you prefer, one really complicated band: No Baby Joneser Arms, Not Tao Yet."

Are you missing The Rubberneckers? Two of them, Clay Smith (the one who's not a journalist) and Brendan Otto play Monday at Big Pete's. Across town Monday at the Arcata Playhouse saucy comedy duo Cass King and John Woods aka The Wet Spots offer a somewhat kinky sex-ed vaudeville/music review.

Since Leftover Salmon spawned and floated downstream a few years back, guitarist Vince Herman has turned his attention to a new project, Great American Taxi, pursuing a slightly less "polyethnic" take on Americana. For the current GAT tour, which comes to the Red Fox Tuesday, the band also includes pedal-steel player Barry Sless from the David Nelson Band, Phil and Friends, The Dead, etc. Added bonus, they're on the road with Colorado-based Victor Barnes, who offer "insurgent bluegrass" as the opening act. Those in search of high-toned entertainment might want to take in the Tchaikovsky Perm Ballet performance of Romeo and Juliet Tuesday at the Van Duzer. Is this the real deal? Well, the Russian dance troupe travels with a full orchestra instead of a CD player, if that's any indication.

Next Thursday, March 27, marks the 16th Annual Taste of Main Street, a mobile grazing party with nibblers ranging among 21 sites in downtown and Old Town Eureka. The night also marks the beginning of this year's Redwood Coast Jazz Festival, about which you'll hear much more next week. The kick-off is a Big Band Dance at the Adorni with music by Swing Fever, a quarter century old band from the By Area that swings on tunes by Duke, the Count, Gershwin, Porter and the like. Ready to swing? This is the start of a long weekend made for dancers.

I got an e-mail the other day from Folklifer/songster Joel Sonenshein. He's coordinating a house concert featuring Audrey Auld-Mezera, an Australian expat songwriter who lives in Bolinas (in Marin County) and sings like she's from the South instead of the land down under. She'll be in town next Friday, March 28, with ace guitar player Andrew Hardin, who played for many years with Texas folky Tom Russell. The house concerts work like this: Joel sends the details out via e-mail to a hundred or so people. They pass it along to friends; everyone needs to e-mail or call to set up a reservation and to find out whose house the show is at. Having attended a few of these shows, I can testify that it's an incredibly intimate way to experience music up close and personal. Over the weekend Joel called me asking for help with a little disaster. Something went haywire in his e-mail program: All of his e-mail is irretrievably lost and so is his e-mail list. He's not sure who's coming to this show and he can't inquire. Now computers are pretty much black boxes to me — I can't fix his e-mail — but I can do this, post the house party man's e-mail address: joel@asis.com. Going to see Audrey? Were you on the list before? Want to be on it now? Drop him a line and help him resurrect his list.

The Asylum Street Spankers van was in Arizona heading west when I rang Christina Marrs, the band's saw player (and vocalist, tenor guitarist, banjo and uke player) on her cell.

We started off talking about Asylum Street, a thoroughfare in the Spankers' hometown Austin, Texas. "It's the street that goes by the asylum," said Christina. "They call it the state hospital now, and they call Asylum St. Guadalupe or The Drag. But if you look at an old map of Austin you see the asylum way out on the outskirts of town and one little road that goes out to it. Now of course, it's quite central." In the beginning, 14 years ago, Christina and Wammo, the band's other lead vocalist and washboard player, would busk on Asylum St. and play in Austin clubs with a 10-piece acoustic jug band.

"When we started out we did a lot more covers, old country blues, jug band tunes, that kind of thing," said Christina. "Original songs started getting added to the repertoire, but we still do old tunes along with our own. Our records tend to be mostly original, but the live shows include older stuff and even more recent stuff that isn't ours."

Among the original tunes is a send-up of the song "Tie a Yellow Ribbon,' updated as "Stick Magnetic Ribbons on Your SUV." According to Christina the topical song written a few years ago has fallen from the repertoire, as the gung ho stickers seem to have disappeared of late. "And as far as the Spankers being political, it only happens when the opportunity arises to be humorous about it, to have fun with it and make fun of the situation — that's really the only time we're ever going to get very political. With our crowd and our demographic, it's just preaching to the choir."

What is their crowd and demographic? "Oh, I'd say the average age is probably about 35, but that spans a lot. We like to say we have both kinds of blue hair at our shows."

The common thread of that crowd is probably a sense of humor. So, what could be more appropriate than seeing the Spankers on Tuesday, April Fool's Day? That's when the band's Left Coast tour hits Humboldt Brews. As Eureka prepares to batten down the hatches for Jazz Fest weekend and the onslaught of blue-haired dancing Dixielanders and zoot-suited youngsters (and everything in between), the rest of the county goes on with business as usual.

Jazz may be in the air, but the Red Fox is reggae central with the classic Jamaican trio The Itals on Friday. Last I heard, Keith Porter was the last original Ital still carrying the torch forward, his daughter Kada among those singing harmony. Saturday the Fox has Neil Fraser, aka Mad Professor, the crazy (like a fox) British dub master. The Prof typically travels with a suitcase full of electronic gadgets and a stack of DATs — that's all he needs to rock the party. Sunday it's Midwestern reggae with Jah Roots led by an irie cat who calls himself Ras Josh. Humboldt's own Jah Sun takes the mic as a special guest.

Meanwhile in Arcata, Humboldt Brews offers a solid weekend starting with Berkeley neo-Afrobeat band Albino! on Thursday. Friday it's something jazzy: Mike Kaptitan's Miles Davis tribute Miles Ahead.

Saturday HumBrews brings in The Easy, a reggae-ish rock band from Maui that includes former Humboldt local Jeff Thorpe, who once played bass with the funky Doctor Jiveslice and The Bump Foundation. Jeff wrote describing The Easy as, "a unique Hawaiian rock and roll musical experience fronted by an amazing ukulele playing singer-songwriter." He also noted that the opening act is an all-star mash-up of Bump Foundation and Moo-Got-2, dubbed Bumping the Moo.

Sunday at HumBrews it's Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, a band from Rochester NY with a killer name, playing something they call "North American international body music," which is to say reggae/Afrobeat/jamband/dub. They're pretty damn good judging from the tunes posted on MySpace (playing as I type).

UKEsperience, Humboldt's finest (and only) ukulele jamband, has returned from the 2008 Waikoloa Ukulele Festival in Hawaii, home of all things uke. Check out their tans Saturday at Six Rivers, where they play with special guest Nick Russo.

Remember in last week's Hum I mentioned that Colorado "insurgent bluegrass" band Victor Barnes was opening for Great American Taxi? Victor Barnes is back (or still here) to headline a show Thursday at Jambalaya with Steel Toed Slippers opening and DJ Chico spinning between.

The latest in the endless stream of Portland imports comes to the Jam Friday. The Quick and Easy Boys is an unusual country/rock/funk power trio mixing Hendrix licks with Hank Williams twang and Meters-style funk. Very cool. Bonus: local psychedelic-folk treasure Joanne Rand opens with Robert Franklin on guitar.

The Yay Area meets Humboldt at the Mateel Friday night with one of the founders of the Hyphy Movement, E-40, sharing the stage with homegrown acts including Potluck, Cool Nutz, Da Grindaz and DJ Itchie Fingaz.

Ready to dance? The Bay Area Balkan band Brass Menazeri plays for folkdancers Saturday at Redwood Raks, the newly named space in the Old Arcata Creamery Building. At the same time at Freshwater Grange, it's an "Old Time Country Dance" with music by The Country Pretenders and The Bayside Quartet with Katie Belknap on piano, Jim Cornwell on guitar and mandolin, and Judy Hageman and Brooks Otis on fiddles. (Bayside Q also plays next Saturday at the Graves for Arts Alive!)

Friends of salmon and wild rivers take note: The quasi-Celtic Druid Sisters Tea Party plays a benefit for the valiant efforts of the Friends of the Eel River Saturday at Mazzotti’s.

Tech Williams of "Do Som Bout It" Productions, takes the party outdoors on Sunday afternoon bringing something called "The Brigade" (a hip hop crew?) to Eureka's Carson Park, "right in the smack middle of town between the one ways; y'all know were it's at," as Tech puts it. He also notes, somewhat poetically, "If it rain, this will not go down, so pray for sun, so we can have fun."

The local hard rock crowd gathers Sunday evening at the Boiler Room to remember Matt Evans, drummer for Cycle of Violence, who died in February at the age of 26. The Social Ills, Anslinger, The Baby Arms and No Cigar offer heartfelt loudness for the occasion.

You might recall a show back in February with local "instrumetalists" 33 1/3 playing to raise cash to offset legal fees in a copyright infringement lawsuit that has Eugene doom metal trio, Middian locked in battle with members of a Milwaukee-based metal band called Midian. While the suit drags on, the Oregonian band is resolute, declaring on their MySpace, "The underground metal community's love has simply been overwhelming. With your help and support, Middian will stand triumphant against this truly evil attack on our persons and families." Show your support Sunday when 33 1/3 and Middian play at the Alibi.

The insider show for next week is definitely the Two Part Beast gig Monday, March 31, at the Accident Gallery. Two Part Beast is fronted by Imaad Wassif, a Lou Barlow associate who was in alaska! and The New Folk Implosion, and also served as touring guitarist for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Imaad and 2-Part have a new album out, Strange Hexes, described by booking agent Michelle (of Panache) as "heavy-psyche-folk-rock with eastern modal influence." The Broken Hearts and Monster Women provide local support for Monday's show.

The talk of the town this Monday was the upcoming Willie Nelson gig in SoHum set for August 31, the Sunday of Labor Day weekend. People Productions has Benbow Lake State Park reserved for the date, and that's how it's listed on Willie's website, but the preferred plan is to use Dimmick Ranch, the new home of Reggae, provided the Planning Commission signs off on an expanded permit. Since Tom Dimmick and People Productions are still locked in a legal battle with the Mateel over the lease for the site, and the Mateel folks are making waves with the Planning Comm., the ranch idea is by no means a done deal. But it is certain that the show will happen one place or the other. And no, I don't know when tickets will go on sale.

I'm sure this will come as bad news to Glenn Maxon of Redwood Coast Music Festivals. Monday morning we were talking about his decision to move the date for Blues by the Bay from mid-July to Labor Day weekend, in part to pull in the just returning HSU crowd, but also to put the two-day fest on a three-day weekend, one where Glenn saw no local competition. He's got British blues legend John Mayall as Sunday's headliner. Will Willie steal the boomer crowd? I guess we'll see.

Redwood Coast Jazz Fest evolves.

The Redwood Coast Jazz Festival has come a long way since it began as a traditional Dixieland festival in the '90s. Now in its 18th year, the festival has had to evolve or face extinction.

"Before I got here they actually took Dixieland out of the [festival] title, but they did not really make major changes to the bands they booked," said Redwood Coast Festivals executive director Glenn Maxon, adding, "We're widening the jazz genres some more."

Of course the festival has indeed evolved over the years, adding blues, Cajun music, neo-swing, even bluegrass to the mix. The major addition this year is a sit down jazz concert Friday night at the Arkley Center featuring what Maxon sees as "modern jazz." Specifically that means the Brubeck Brothers Quartet, with two of jazz icon Dave Brubeck's sons — Daniel Brubeck on drums and Chris Brubeck on trombone and bass — plus guitarist Mike DeMicco and pianist Chuck Lamb. Also on the bill Friday at the Arkley Center, Incendio, a Los Angeles-based Latin jazz fusion quartet following along the lines of the Gipsy Kings. Admission for the Friday night show is $40 without a general festival ticket, $10 if you have an all-weekend ticket ($75) or an all-day Friday ticket ($30).

"We're a jazz festival and this gives us something for everybody — I hope," said Maxon. "We're trying to attract the younger audience. We've had some great swing jazz shows with Big Bad Voodoo Daddy headlining last year, Cherry Poppin' Daddies the year before that and we have Lavay Smith this year. "

In addition to past festival faves Lavay Smith and her Red Hot Skillet Lickers, the Saturday night dance party at the Muni includes the energetic jump swing of Steve Lucky and the Rhumba Bums featuring Miss Carmen Getit, and a band led by blues guitarist/singer J.C. Smith (no relation to Lavay). Admission for the Saturday night show is $30 without a general festival ticket, $5 if you have an all-day Saturday ticket ($40) or a three-day ticket.

Another show available to those without general tickets is the silent movie. This year the film is Tramp, Tramp, Tramp, a classic from 1926 with the baby-faced comic Harry Langdon in the lead, a young Joan Crawford in a supporting role and Frank Capra writing and co-directing. The five-piece Pastime Silent Movie Orchestra, a spin-off from the Humboldt Ragtime Band, provides a live sound track. Film admission is just $5, free with a jazz fest ticket. Showtimes are 4:30 p.m. on Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday (right after local old timey band Huckleberry Flint) and at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, with all shows at the Arkley Center. For a jazz fest teaser there's the opening ceremony Friday at noon at the Arkley Center with two trad bands, Titan Hot 7 and Blue Street — and free admission. Blue Street also plays at the Sunday morning hymnals at the Adorni Center, another free show. Uptown Lowdown also plays for free Sunday at the First United Methodist Church (at 520 Del Norte St., Eureka).

Another change this year is in the array of venues. Ownership of Indigo/Club West (now Auntie Mo's) was in question when the festival was booked, so that one's out. The Eureka Theater has also been dropped. All of the tent venues disappeared a couple of years ago, and of course the Eureka Inn remains closed. Maxon's solution to the drop in available spaces was to add two buildings at Redwood Acres into the mix. Franceschi Hall (the big building where the flea market is held) will have swing and Cajun bands (Gator Beat and Tom Rigney) along with a smattering of trad (traditional Dixieland) jazz. The Vickers Building next door (aka the Home Ec building) will have an almost exclusively trad line-up (same with the Red Lion). As Maxon points out, Redwood Acres also has an RV park and there is still a small circle of seniors who follow their favorite Dixieland bands like Deadheads traveling from festival to festival. A pair of shuttles will run from venue to venue downtown; a third bus will loop out to Redwood Acres on a regular basis. While there have been a decent number of ticket sales from out-of-towners, Maxon admits that advance ticket sales are slow overall. "I'm sure it's the economy — $4 a gallon for gas doesn't help," he said. He's counting on the locals to support the festival, and with it something he sees as key: youth music programs at local schools. With budget cuts looming across the education world, the added boost that comes from the festival proceeds is more important than ever. "Everyone knows that a higher percentage of music students go on to college. To make it in music you have to learn to practice and work hard," said Maxon. "We're out there supporting the music programs all over the county."

For further ticket information and other details call festival headquarters at 445-3378. For a full schedule of events for this weekend's Redwood Coast Jazz Festival, go to www.redwoodjazz.org.

- Bob Doran

For more information contact 826-4411

AS PRESENTS HIP HOP 101 FEATURING BROTHER ALI AND MEMBERS OF THE LIVING LEGENDS

AS Presents “Hip Hop 101” featuring Brother Ali, Scarub, LuckyIam, Eligh from the Living Legends crew and Northern State on Thursday, May 8th at 8 p.m. in the Kate Buchanan Room, Humboldt State University. With a rubber-cement flow halfway between Slug's and Slim Shady's, and the ability to count himself as the planet's foremost albino Muslim rapper, Brother Ali is certainly a rare persona in the hip-hop universe. Politically aware and on topic Ali is a force to be reckoned with. Scarub, LuckyIam and Eligh are founding members of the influential Living Legends crew. Tickets are $25 general and $12.50 HSU students. Tickets are available at the University Ticket Office at HSU.

For more information and credit card orders call CenterArts at 826-3928 Note: This event is restricted to those who are at least 18 years old or a current HSU student with ID

Hope to see you at at the music!

(1) Audrey Auld-Mezera House Concert - Friday, March 28th

(2) A Wild Weekend of Balkan Dance, March 29th-30th

(3) Folkdance Festival, April 4th-6th

(4) HFS on KHSU, April 6th

--------------------------

(1) Audrey Auld-Mezera House Concert - Friday, March 28th

On Friday evening, Audrey Auld-Mezera returns to Humboldt County for an intimate house concert in Arcata, accompanied by virtuoso guitar player Andrew Hardin. Audrey, a transplanted Aussie now living in Bolinas, describes her songs as "music with the dirt left on."

Audrey is popular with other musicians: Kasey Chambers, Bill Chambers, Fred Eaglesmith, Mary Gauthier and Nina Gerber appear on Audrey's recordings, and The Waifs count themselves among her many fans. Fred Eaglesmith calls her "one of the most honest original artists I know." Jimmy La Fave says that "Audrey is the real deal. I call her the Australian songbird. She has that wide-open sound & it's easy to relate to her music because she sings from the soul."

Andrew is a internationally admired guitarist, and a veteran of country, rock, and blues acts as well as the singer-songwriter circuit. Guitar Player's assessment? Andrew "... is electrifyingly high on emotion. He is one of the finest players in the country."

Admission to the house concert with Audrey and Andrew is a donation of $15; all proceeds go to performers. To reserve a seat, email Joel Sonenshein at joel@asis.com or call at 839-7063.

(2) A Wild Weekend of Balkan Dance, March 29th-30th

Shoshanna presents the Brass Menazeri in a Balkan Dance party, Saturday, March 29th from 8-11 pm @ Redwood Raks. The Brass Menazeri ("Menagerie") is the Bay Area's Balkan Romani ("Gypsy") powerhouse Brass Band. They cascade through music of the Serbian, Macedonian, Greek and Rajasthani Roma with wild rhythms, soulful vocals and hot improvisations. The Brass Menazeri is a shining example of traditional Balkan repertoire combined with new sensibilities, innovative arrangements and original compositions at the hands and lips of American devotees. Come get your Balkan Dancing Groove on! Admission is $10 general/$8 students and seniors at the door. Opening the show will be dance artists Rose Harden and Deb Rubin, who are at the forefront of San Francisco's cutting edge belly dance scene. Rose and Deb are also teaching tribal fusion belly dance workshops on Sunday -- more details are here:

http://www.shoshannaland.com/rose-deb.html

Redwood Raks is Shoshanna's new studio, at 824 L Street in Arcata -- on L between 8th & 9th Streets. (It is located in the Old Creamery Building, previously the location of the Dancenter.)

(3) The Folkdance Festival Returns April 4th-6th at the Bayside Grange

This festival only happens every two years, and this year's program is not to be missed! The 2008 festival features five dance classes, 12 bands, and multiple music workshops!

There will be:

* A Friday evening potluck, live music party and kafana

* Workshops in dance, instruments and singing, all day Saturday

* Live music party, concert and kafana Saturday night

* Food and treats by Rhonda Wiedenbeck and Jeff O'Connor! * Jam sessions

* A Sunday morning brunch, dance review and sing-along

* Vendors offering recordings and other items

* Great company and a lot of fun!

Check out the full schedule & registration info online at http://www.arcatafolkdancefestival.org or call 822-8045 for more information.

(4) HFS and KHSU

Folklife will be participating in the KHSU spring pledge drive on Sunday, April 6th, from 4-6 pm. We'll be in the studio to talk about the 30th annual festival and other exciting events coming this year, and will bring a few of our favorite bands with us! It's a great time to renew your pledge to keeping public radio alive. From the incredible diversity of music programming, local and national news, and cool new projects like Bright Moments with The Redwood Jazz Alliance group, KHSU serves a unique and important community role. We hope you'll tune in, and give us a ring!

--------------------------

Coming soon... square dance details for April, Folklife Festival schedule and more! Thanks for being a part of the music!

A southern hemisphere sensation now taking the world by storm, Katchafire is a band poised to take it to the top. From humble beginnings as a family band playing the music of Bob Marley and other classic reggae artists, Katchafire has evolved to become one of the freshest voices in modern reggae music. An all-Maori band (the native people of New Zealand), they infuse an infectious and unmistakable island groove into their conscious, original roots reggae. With three platinum albums under their belt in their home country and a reputation for marathon, high energy performances, this will be the group’s first major tour of the Western U.S. and a highly anticipated one for stateside fans. Mendo favorites, Tchiya Amet and the Lighthouse Band will open with their jazzy and soulful brand of roots reggae. A First Nations Cherokee, Tchiya Amet also blends heavy doses of Native American musical and cultural influences into her music. She has won over crowds at local events such as Reggae on the River and the Summer Arts and Music Festival, and was a highlight of the Mateel Community Center’s Give Thanks NorCal reggae showcase last November.

Doors open at 7pm with the Crucial Dance Riddims of DJ Sister Yasmin. Tickets are on sale now at the usual local outlets and online at www.inticketing.com for a price of $20 MCC members or $22 general.

Tickets at the door will be sliding scale to support MCC with a minimum donation of $25. Visit www.mateel.org or call 923-3368 for more info and don’t miss Katchafire and Tchiya Amet for what is sure to be an awesome night of indigenous reggae at the Mateel Community Center this Friday, April 4th.

EVENT: An acoustic evening with JoAnne Rand (Jackie Greene Aftershow)

VENUE: Red Fox Tavern/Eureka, CA

DETAILS: 11pm, $5 cover, $3 with Jackie Greene ticket, 21+ w. ID

JOANNE RAND www.joannerand.com

Just try to peg Joanne Rand's music, it's impossible: radical, classical, earth-based, politico-spiritual, folk-rock "song poetry" of the ages, written for the masses, but really appealing to the individual. Rand's twenty-plus year career includes performances with Bonnie Raitt, John Hartford, Janis Ian, members of the Grateful Dead, John Trudell, Floyd Westerman, Ralph Nader, and the McGarrigle sisters.

"Once upon a time a pigtailed kid with a big stick stood on a Georgia Mountaintop, singing the birds right out of the trees. At sixteen she began a big zigzag all over this country and beyond: Florida, London, Chicago, Santa Fe, Alaska, the Amazon. Then she hit the Pacific Northwest and a certain wild river captured her heart.

To this river is dedicated Joanne Rand's seventh self-produced album. Into the River is all about claiming your life, diving from the head into the heart. "Dive in! The river is yours, the river is now, river of life." In an age of uncertainty, Rand evokes the human values of love, compassion and courage.

During the late 1980s this same river gave Rand the guts to come out as a radical singer songwriter, winning fans throughout the US.

"Joanne Rand¹s singing raises your hair – elegance and fierceness in the same deep breath." –Gary Snyder.

She has been performing nationally and recording ever since, weaving her life into her work: from the loss of her brother (songwriter, Jordan Rand, whose songs grace her albums), to the birth of her daughter, Georgia. Rand, whose style has been dubbed Psychedelic-Folk-Revival and Acoustic Ritual spins songs of transformation and grassroots power. From audiences of 60,000 to personal appearances for hospice patients, weddings and birthing mothers, Rand moves hearts along a wide spectrum of human existence.

With roots in classical piano, gospel and the politico-folk-rock music of her youth, as well as indigenous songs and chants, Rand's career has included performances with Bonnie Raitt, Richie Havens, Janis Ian and members of the former Grateful Dead. During the 1990s Rand anchored Seattle's hometown music scene. At the same time Rand's quartet was voted Best Acoustic Band in Sonoma County by a California reader's poll. In 2002 she was proclaimed Sebastopol, CA's Official Folk Singer by the city Mayor.

Joanne has since returned to Humboldt, and recently released "Where Our Power Lies", a new album that contains 14 songs featuring Steve Kimock, members of Copper Wimmin, 2 full bands and so much more. Inspired by wild characters, wild rivers and mountains, this CD is her best yet!

Under Rothrock’s leadership, Aijala added electric guitar to the album, while Austin, milked an old ‘70s amplifier for feedback with an acoustic mandolin. Ambient noise accompanies the disc-ending “Wind’s On Fire.” The cinematic instrumental “Midwest Gospel Radio” was born out of Rothrock’s request for a spiritual number. Says Aijala, “Tom’s input certainly gave the songs a new and interesting feel.” On the upbeat, rousing, first single “How ‘Bout You?” and “Classic Situation,” the band also brought into the fold Elvis Costello drummer Pete Thomas, who changed the sensibility of the record, says Ben. “All of a sudden, our perspective got a little broader. His drumming shows up fundamentally and very subtly in places throughout the record. I’ll leave that up to the listener to find these. We ended up with an album that’s got rippin’ bluegrass on it, but approached in a non-traditional way, which really appeals to me because we are not a traditional band. It’s always been forward-thinking and this is the first time we’ve captured that in the studio."

As a result, the always progressive Yonder Mountain continues to close the gap between bluegrass and rock: With its dueling electric guitar/banjo solo section, “How ‘Bout You?” has the goods to turn people on to a new way of thinking about how a banjo can be played. “There are places where the banjo and the mandolin become rock instruments,” says Kaufmann. “Angel,” meanwhile, could be dubbed “hard-folk” “That’s a song where we draw from personal influences that bridge—for us—our love of heavier rock music, with lyrical imagery that’s clearly traditional,” Kaufmann continues. “There’s a fiddle in the solo section, but it’s clearly channeling the spirits of the rock guitar gods.”

Fusing traditional elements and modern techniques, the disc’s leadoff cut, “Sidewalk Stars,” appropriately and perfectly captures the spirit of Yonder Mountain on this album. A few of the tracks were worked up live, and a few come from outside sources. “I Ain’t Been Myself in Years” was written by band friend Benny Galloway, and “East Nashville Easter” was penned by Austin and lauded singer/songwriter Todd Snider. And it’s in songs like the latter where the band’s experimentations make even more sense.

Twisting and bending their sound with a rock producer was a natural next step for a group of guys who actually grew up on rock music. Comprised of Colorado transplants that grew up in the Midwest or Northeast, none of the band members had backgrounds in bluegrass music, but rather discovered it through old and new records and fellow musicians during college.

But it was indeed their new and growing love for bluegrass that quite unexpectedly brought the four players together during a free-for-all jam session at The Verve, a bar outside of Boulder, in 1998. Once they met, they knew they were onto something. “It was an eye-opening experience because we heard a unique sound,” says Johnston. “Something coalesced that night.”

Emphasizing song craft and unafraid to push its boundaries, things began snowballing quickly. In 1999, the band debuted with Elevation, produced by Grammy-winning dobro player Sally Van Meter and released (like each of its previous studio discs) on their own Frog Pad Records. Yonder Mountain returned in 2001 with Town by Town, helmed by Grammy Award winning songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Tim O’Brien. Van Meter was back behind the boards for the 2003 set Old Hands, a concept album of sorts that featured the songwriting of Benny “Burle” Galloway. Featured on the evocative tunes about cowboys, miners and all sorts of hard-livin’ Western folk were O’Brien, lauded fiddleman Darol Anger (Bela Fleck, David Grisman Quintet, Vassar Clements) and dobro player Jerry Douglas (Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris).

In between those studio discs, the band released Mountain Tracks Volume 1-IV, issued on Frog Pad Records, and each capturing the energy of its increasingly popular live shows. With little radio support, Yonder Mountain has become one of the fastest rising touring bands in the country, its fanbase having ballooned over the past five years through steady gigging and high-profile festival sets, all of which are full of improv and none of which feature the same set list. “Now that we’re maturing as performers, our improvisation is more beholden to playing with good tone, good feel, good timing,” says Johnston. It can’t be understated just what the band has achieved with that untraditional banjo/bass/mandolin/guitar line-up. Using bluegrass as its bedrock, the band has grown like few rock bands even do these days. “It’s funny,” says Austin. “But now we’re playing before 4,000 people in Denver. Last year, we played before 700 people in Atlanta and we recently sold-out a 3,000 seat venue there!” Added Kaufman, “ I think there’s just something about the banjo that makes people feel good.”

“[This album] probably represents us more than any other record we’ve done,” states Aijala, “because it incorporates more of our musical influences than ever before. It’s a really cool thing to be a part of and I’ll never take for granted just how lucky we are to do what we do. It makes me more excited for the future.”

The annual event is a benefit for KRFH.NET, HSU’s student-run radio station.

Bands who place first and second in the battle will receive cash prizes of $300 and $200, respectively. The first and second place winners will also be guaranteed the two performing spots at the 2008 Sustainable Living Arts and Music Festival on April 27.

The first place winners are chosen at the event by a four-member panel of KRFH student managers, and second place winners chosen by a peoples’ choice vote. Ballots are included with the price of an admission ticket.

“We are excited to continue this community event and our partnership with the Sustainable Living Arts and Music Festival,” said Station Manager, Daniel Giannotta. “We welcome any and all bands to apply to compete for the 2008 Best Band in Humboldt title.”

Interested bands are invited to apply by visiting www.krfh.net, where the electronic entry form is posted. The deadline for entry is Friday, April 11, 2008.

For more information, or to enter the battle, please visit www.krfh.net.

EVENT: Eric McFadden Trio wsg Bernie Worrell (Talking Heads/Parliament)

VENUE: Red Fox Tavern/Eureka, CA

DETAILS: 10pm, $18 adv. $20 day of show, 21+ w. ID

CONTACT: Katie Mae Richardson/ Passion Presents

TELE/EMAIL: (707) 832-6944/ kmpassionp@gmail.com

BERNIE WORRELL www.bernieworrell.com Bernie Worrell first came to prominence as a founding member and musical director of Parliament/ Funkadelic.While this massively influential supergroup was radically altering the course of music, he was radically charting the course of emerging keyboard technology during the golden age of analog synthesis. Among the key ingredients in his sonic stew were perfect pitch and a well-honed facility with the classical canon.

A child prodigy who began studying piano at the tender age of three, performed his first classical concert at the age of 4, wrote his first Concerto at the age of eight and performed with the Washington Symphony Orchestra at ten. His classical studies would continue throughout his adolescence, including private lessons at the Julliard School of Music, before Majoring in Classical Piano at the New England Conservatory of Music.

Upon leaving the Conservatory, Worrell served for several years as Musical Director for Maxine Brown before joining George Clinton's Parliament/Funkadelic crew. Worrell then proceeded to provide this freewheeling collective with a structural foundation which, while occasionally implied, was ever present. At the same time, he explored and expanded his own musical ideas in every conceivable direction with a brazenness which was both revolutionary and evolutionary. From fanciful forays on clavinet which leapt without warming from guttural gulps to squiggly squeals to liquid Minimoogª bass-lines which herded listeners to the dance floor, it all represented new musical language. All the while, his rapid advancements of the synthesizer's potential were actually traceable to his classical foundation. "When the synthesizers came about, my having been brought up classically - knowing a full range of orchestra, tympanis and everything, I knew how it sounded and what it felt like. So, if I'm playing a horn arrangement on the keyboard or strings, it really sounds like real strings or horns, because I know how to phrase it - how a string phrases, different attacks from the aperture for horns, for the trumpets, sax, or trombones." The hits were many: Flashlight, Atomic Dog, Aqua Boogie, Cosmic Slop, and Red Hot Mama are only a few of the Parliament/Funkadelic classics which Worrell co-wrote, played, and co-produced on literally dozens of albums - not to mention his years of wild P-Funk performances, which quickly became the stuff of lore.

After departing Parliament/Funkadelic, he resurfaced with the revamped Talking Heads lineup for several albums, including the Name of This Band is Talking Heads, Speaking in Tongues, and Jonathan Demme's dazzling concert film, Stop Making Sense. Worrell's ominous colorings, this time delivered via new digital keyboards such as the Prophet 5, were central to the recasting of group leader David Bryne's musical ideas through African rhythms.

In the years since he left Talking Heads, Worrell has been a phenomenally prolific studio musician, serving as a primary change-agent in the many experimental works of producer bill Laswell while contributing his singular flair to projects the likes of Keith Richards, The Pretenders, Jack Bruce, Deee-Lite and Bootsy's New Rubber Band. At the same time, he has been among the most sampled musicians ever, with Digital Underground, De La Soul, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, DMX and countless others having acknowledged his timeless grooves by building their tunes around his signature riffs.

Worrell also released a series of critically acclaimed solo efforts including Funk of Ages, Blacktronic Science, Pieces of WOO/The Other Side and Free Agent: A Spaced Odyssey. He has become quite a sensation on the jam band circuit, playing with groups ranging from Warren Haynes' Gov't Mule to Laswell's Material and Praxis conglomerations.

In 1997, Worrell was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with Parliament/Funkadelic (Talking Heads would follow five years later). That same year, he launched his own group, Bernie Worrell and the WOO Warriors, which has performed all over the US and abroad to rave reviews. The in-concert energy of this ensemble has twice been captured on live albums: Bernie Worrell and the WOO Warriors Live (1998) and True DAT (2002).

Worrell's work has also continued to surface in other places. In 1993, when David Letterman moved his program to CBS, Worrell helped launch the CBS Orchestra with Paul Shaffer. He co-wrote the score for the cult classic, Car 54, Where Are You? and other films, including the Ice Cube vehicle, Friday. In 2003, his music was featured in the NBC television mini-series, Kingpin.

The "Wizard of WOO" continues to wear many hats as effortlessly as he mixes musical forms, performing with both Mos Def's Black Jack Johnson band and Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains - while at the same time, continuing to perform from time-to-time as "special Guest" with Clinton's P-Funk All-Stars.

ERIC MCFADDEN TRIO

www.ericmcfaddentrio.com

Like protagonists from some epic western novel, the Eric McFadden Trio arrives on the jaded contemporary music scene preceded by anxious rumors and curious anticipation. A veteran of celebrated underground bands including Liar, the Eric McFadden Experience, Alien Lovestock and IZM, Eric McFadden's sinister songs, vampiric vocals and flamenco-rock guitar improvisations have made him an icon along America's western seaboard. Lest you dismiss the preceding as absurd hyperbole, consider the fact that McFadden has performed and recorded with the lordly likes of Bo Diddley, the late Joe Strummer, Widespread Panic, psychobilly rockers The Reverend Horton Heat, blues troubadour Keb Mo', Rolling Stone Ron Wood, Primus kahuna Les Claypool and others. He was voted "Best Guitarist" by the New Mexico Weekly and "Guitarist of the Year" by San Francisco's Zero magazine. And in 2000, McFadden was recruited as a touring member of George Clinton's P-Funk All Stars, a distinction that thrusts McFadden into the pantheon of funk-rock guitar idols.

EVENT: LOTUS with special guest GRAM RABBIT

VENUE: Red Fox Tavern/Eureka, CA

DETAILS: 10pm, $10 cover 21+ w. ID

CONTACT: Katie Mae Richardson/Passion Presents

TELE/EMAIL: (707) 832-6944/ kmpassionp@gmail.com

LOTUS www.lotusvibes.com

Link to Press Photo:

http://lotusvibes.com/HTML/promo.php Lotus, a five-piece ensemble, creates astonishingly danceable soundscapes. The music is heavily influenced by electronic music such as jazzy-house and drum 'n' bass and is mixed with elements of jazz, funk, and ethnic music from India, Africa, and Latin America. Lotus' seamless mixes and interlocking rhythms play like a DJ, but with a human touch. The result is a sophisticated yet accessible dance music with the ability to react instantaneously to the crowd and atmosphere of a room and that appeals to fans of live music, funk and jazz, as well as piquing the interest of electronic music communities.

Since its inception in 1999 Lotus has grown exponentially. The group gained a dedicated fan base by touring throughout the Midwest with excursions to Colorado and the east from 1999-2002. In June of 2002 Lotus relocated to Philadelphia in order to expand its touring schedule. Since the move Lotus has been growing internationally. Regular touring, word of mouth from devoted fans who trade Lotus's music across the country (and globe), and media attention have opened many new markets as familiar ones continue to grow. Lotus' most recent cross-country jaunt during this past Winter 2005 showcased just how well the band has grown by word of mouth and internet communities. They sold out venues such as the Fox Theatre in Boulder on their first true headline in the room, sold out Tribeca Rocks Club in NYC, supported the North American leg of the Ozric Tentacles tour, and closed it out with an opening slot for Michael Franti & Spearhead at Univ. of CO. This summer sess the band debuting at High Sierra Music Festival, All Good Music Festival, the 25th Annual Fat Tire Bike Week and returning to perform a late night set at Smilefest. The band has been featured in Relix magazine, SF Examiner, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Times Leader Weekender, Fort Collins Weekly, Hittin' the Note magazine, Jambase.com, Jambands.com, The Onion, as well as many more regional magazines, newspapers, websites and specialty radio shows. Lotus's debut album VIBES, released in Feb. 2002, captures moments recorded live in concert during the fall of 2001. The first pressing of VIBES sold out in February of 2003. In March 2003 Lotus signed a record deal with Harmonized Records with national distribution through the Home Grown Music Network joining a strong independent roster of the Motet, Garaj Mahal, The Codetalkers and Perpetual Groove. The album Germination was released in May 2003 and instantly made it to ..2 on the Home Grown Music Network Charts. The eagerly anticipated debut studio release Nomad hit the streets on September 21 on Harmonized Records, showcasing a pristine and reworked sound not yet heard from the band. With only 3 months to work with, the album was the fan choice of 2004 as it sold more via Home Grown than any other disc for the year.

Lotus continues to evolve both musically and professionally. The use of some of the newest digital technology as well as classic vintage sounds along with a musical vision that grows from show to show makes every night a new experience. The fresh, creative, and mature sounds of these talented musicians are not to be missed.

GRAM RABBIT www.gramrabbit.com An eclectic group from Joshua Tree, CA, words cannot describe the splendor that is Gram rabbit.

AS PRESENTS ANNOUNCES ADDITONAL DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE TICKETS RELEASED

AS Presents Announces additional Death Cab for Cutie tickets released today for their show Monday, April 21st at 9 p.m. in the Van Duzer Theatre, Humboldt State University. Bellingham, WA, indie pop quartet Death Cab for Cutie began in 1997 as the solo project of singer/guitarist Ben Gibbard. The underground success of the cassette You Can Play These Songs' Chords inspired Gibbard to recruit a full-time band, and in the summer of 1998, Death Cab for Cutie issued their debut LP, Something About Airplanes, to much acclaim from indie circles. After a lengthy courtship with Barsuk, the group inked a deal with Atlantic and released their label debut, Plans, in August of 2005. It sold nearly 90,000 copies during its first week of release, entering the US album chart at number four. Tickets are $30 general and $25 HSU students. Tickets are available at the University Ticket Office at HSU, the Works in Eureka/Arcata and The Metro. For more information and credit card orders call CenterArts at 826-3928 Note: This event is restricted to those who are at least 18 years old or a current HSU student with ID

1st place - Sour Cream

2nd place - Svelte Velvet

Both bands will be performing at the Sustainable Living Arts and Music Festival on Sunday, April 27.

SLAMfest, a zero-waste event, will take place on the Humboldt State soccer field beginning at 11:00am.

For more information regarding SLAMfest, visit: http://www.myspace.com/hsuslamfest

Where: Mateel Community Center (Redway, CA)

When: Saturday, May 3 (Doors- 8pm)

Who: Souls of Mischief, Myka 9, Subliminal Sabotage, and more!

Why: Conscious Cali-based hip hop to support the Mateel!

Homegrown Hip Hop vol. 5 Brings Conscious Hip Hop To Mateel May 3

On Saturday, May 3rd, the Mateel Community Center in Redway will present Homegrown Hip Hop vol. 5, a twice annual celebration of the best in Cali-based conscious hip hop.

The Spring 08 edition will feature Oakland based hip hop pioneers, Souls of Mischief (of Hieroglyphics fame), along with Myka 9 (of Haiku D’Etat), Subliminal Sabotage, Whosane, J The Sarge, and Onetribe. Also featured will be DJ Just One and DJ Elements, with MC 2Son running the proceedings. Doors open at 8pm with music until 1am.

Tickets are on sale now at the usual local outlets and online at www.inticketing.com for a price of $20 in advance. MCC members and teens receive a $2 discount when purchased in advance at the Mateel office in Redway. Admission at the door will be $25. A selection of snack foods and desserts will be available to benefit the Mateel Meal and a 21 & over bar will be upstairs.

For more information contact the Mateel Community Center at 923-3368 or visit either www.mateel.org or www.myspace.com/mateelcc

Portland, Oregon-based singer-songwriter Casey Neill is touring in support of his latest full-length, "Brooklyn Bridge" (In Music We Trust). "Brooklyn Bridge" features guest appearances by The Decemberists¹ Jennie Conlee and Chris Funk (both play in a Pogues tribute band Neill fronts entitled KMRIA), John Wesley Harding, Eric "Roscoe" Ambel (of Steve Earle and The Dukes), Erin McKeown, and others.

"Brooklyn Bridge" moves from indie-rock to Celtic, from pop-rock to Americana, all with an earnest, punk mindset that few singer-songwriters can touch - and mean it - when weaving through various genres not only on the same album, but sometimes on the same song.

The 12-track collection of songs was produced by legendary Scottish fiddler player Johnny Cunninghan, well-regarded in the Celtic and folk worlds as a top-notch player and producer (among many others, he produced Solas, an Irish folk supergroup that covered one of Neill¹s songs), his reach going as far as punk band The Dropkick Murphys, who have previously tapped Cunningham to work with them.

Neill met Cunningham in 1993 and the two began working together when Cunningham produced Neill¹s second full-length, "Skree" (Appleseed Recordings). Later, it would be Cunningham that convinced Neill to play electric and make a record that encompassed all his influences - from The Pogues and New Model Army to PJ Harvey, Fugazi, and legends Nick Cave and Bruce Springsteen, in addition to his folk and Celtic ones.

"Brooklyn Bridge" would be a long, exhausting road, but ultimately rewarding one for Neill. The exhausting and most devastating, and reason for the delay in completing the record, was the untimely death Cunningham, who died of a heart attack on December 15, 2003.

"We had 12 finished songs in 2003 and we had begun to shop it. I had moved to back Brooklyn from Portland, Oregon. Johnny and I put a band together in the city to perform the material. We played a residency at the Living Room in October of that year," recalls Neill, discussing the completion of "Brooklyn Bridge" before Cunningham's death. "Johnny passed away suddenly that December and it was devastating. Two nights before he died, we sat in our local pub, the 11th Street Bar, and he gave me a talking to about life and music and his faith in this record. It was almost like he knew he was on his way out. I recorded a few more songs and edited the project since, always trying to imagine what his calls would be."

From the title track, which opens the album, "a love song for a girl and for the city", as Neill puts it, to the rocking "We Are The City" ("another New York City anthem inspired by the underground community on the Lower East Side in the 90s"). Through the Celtic-infused folk-rock of "The Holy Land", a song that takes place in 19th century New York and tells the story of a John and a prostitute dancing in Water Street outside of Kit Burns' Sportsman's Hall, a notorious venue where rat fights took place, Neill has a knack for storytelling and engaging his audience, all while giving them something to emerge themselves into and forget their worries for awhile.

"Next door to Sportsman's Hall was a brothel run by John Allen where hymns were sung in the main room. Both Burns and Allen were hated by the moral and religious establishment of the day," explains Neill about the song.

One song Neill likes to talk about is "Watch For Me", a bleak break-up song, but one where the melody doesn't get lost or forgotten in the bleakness. Something that worried Johnny so, "Johnny instructed me to party 'til dawn the night before the sessions so I'd sound like hell, like Mark Lanegan, because we were concerned it was going to be too pretty".

Neill also wrote "King Neptune" after Cunningham's passing and added it to the album.

"I wrote the song for Johnny and recorded it with his brother Phil playing piano and accordion. I wrote it for a tribute show we did for him at Town Hall in New York," Neill explains. "The summer before he died he went to the Coney Island Mermaid Parade dressed as King Neptune."

It was a long road to see "Brooklyn Bridge" through, but one that helped shape and give the record its sound. Neill is happy to finally pay homage to Cunningham once again, putting out the record he believed in so much to the world and allowing them to hear it.

With "Brooklyn Bridge" soon to be released, Neill and his band are gearing up to tour in support of the record and will tour both in the summer and the fall.

EVENT: sub-ID with special guests Danny Corn & James Christopher

VENUE: Red Fox Tavern, Eureka CA

DETAILS: 10:30pm, $10 cover 21+ w. ID

CONTACT: Katie Mae Richardson/Passion Presents

TELE/EMAIL: (707) 832-6944/ kmpassionp@gmail.com

Sub ID www.sub-id.com

http://www.jameschristopher.com/

sub-ID is the soundtrack to the modern world. Their music bridges the gap between DJ culture and the improvisational elements of jazz. sub-ID’s sound represents the juxtaposition of their musical influences: organic and electronic, improvised and composed, traditional and contemporary. Live, sub-ID combines relentless dance grooves and psychedelic imagery and lights, with unforgettable melodies and soaring solos creating a concert experience that is completely unique. This is creativity that knows no boundaries in terms of origin and destination. sub-ID's sound design and production skills have been used in virtual instruments, music software, commercials, and commissioned pieces, in addition to working with other artists on albums, remixes, and various collaborations. One fans recent blog says it all, “sub-ID is not just a band...it's theater. Theater of sound...sound that takes over the bones and sinew till they have a mind of their own and they jig me on the dance floor like a marionette.”

After meeting in music school, Brad Bowden and Alana Rocklin began playing music together in 1999. While living in Chicago, they started their first digital studio creating an atmosphere that would lead to the beginnings of sub-ID and newpolyphony productions. During this time they performed regularly with fusion/electronica group The All Rectangle, which included artists such as AACM saxophonist/pianist Ari Brown, and Garaj Mahal guitarist Fareed Haque. Brad and Alana produced The All Rectangle’s debut CD “Ke Ala Mano (The Way of the Shark),” which was distributed by Thrill Jockey Records and received rave reviews from Jazz Times, Billboard Magazine, and The Wire. They performed regularly in Chicago sharing bills with STS9 (Sound Tribe Sector 9), The Chicago Underground, and The Slip. Since moving to Nashville, TN in 2001, the duo has worked with a variety of different artists both together and separately. Alana is one of the most in-demand touring and session bassists in music city, and Brad’s production skills have been tapped for a variety of sessions in Nashville’s premier studios. Artists and projects they have recently worked with include: Nanci Griffith, Toontrack Music, Clyde Stubblefield, Jabo Starks, Willie Weeks, Victor Wooten, Futureman, Jeff Coffin, Bela Fleck, Kirk Whalum, Suzy Bogguss, Kofi Burbridge, Greg Osby, Steve Smith, Chester Thompson, Count Bass D, Chuck Ainlay, The Grand Ole Opry, BET, CMT, TN Lottery and many others.

Since forming in 2005, sub-ID has quickly become a favorite amongst underground electronic/new music fans and musicians. Their remix of “Better Day” was the first single on STS9’s critically acclaimed remix record “Artifact: Perspectives”, appearing alongside artists such as Bill Laswell, Ming & FS, Richard Devine and Slicker just to name a few. It was their remix that attracted STS9’s 1320 Records and led to sub-ID being the first artists to sign with the bands label. Since signing with 1320, sub-ID joined STS9 on their fall 2006 national tour playing to thousands across the country. The tour included 22 cities in all the major markets and venues throughout the country, including a sold out crowd at the historic Red Rocks Amphitheatre. In addition, sub-ID has shared bills with Jurassic 5, Prefuse 73, Tortoise, Digable Planets, RJD2, Richard Devine, Telefon Tel Aviv, Edit, and more. The group recently concluded their 2007 fall tour, sharing dates with the Pnuma Trio and STS9. This included sold out concerts throughout this beautiful country in the midwest, south, and east coast. 2008 will see the release of their highly anticipated debut recording entitled “BFF” along with a slew of original productions, remixes, collaborations, ep’s, videos, and conceptual products!!!

When they are gone, they are gone. Get them now!

Click Here to order online or visit one of our local Ticket Outlets.

ARTIST LINEUP: JUST ADDED

We're proud to announce the latest additions to the Reggae Rising 2008 artist lineup. Joining us this year will be:

Julian Marley and the Uprising Band Blue King Brown

Cham

Natural Vibrations

Medicine Drum with Greg Ellis and Rara Avis

Rebelution Soul Majestic

Lion Camp showcase featuring Ishi Dube and Jah Sun

Jade Steel & Emerald Triangle

Click Here to view the complete 2008 Artist Lineup

Including profile pages with bios, audio, and more!

More artists to be announced so check the website often.

Artist lineup subject to change.

BONUS ATTRACTIONS

High Altitude Dancehall Club: The Dancehall Club features a completely redesigned yard and Live Performances by some of today's hottest Dancehall acts. Dancehall Club artists to be announced.

South Beach Dome: After the main stage is closed, the South Beach Dome marches on till morning. Featuring DJ's and Special Guest MC's, a favorite for those looking to keep the music going all night long.

Upgraded VIP Lounge: In a New Location with New Amenities

AUTHORIZED REGGAE RISING TICKET OUTLETS :

Streetlight Records

3979 24th Street

San Francisco, CA 94114

Streetlight Records

939 Pacific Avenue

Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Streetlight Records

980 South Bascom Avenue

San Jose, CA 95128

The Last Record Store

1899 Mendocino Ave

Santa Rosa, CA 95401

Ukiah Natural Foods

721 S State St

Ukiah, CA 95482

The Works 213 F Street

Eureka, CA 95501

The Works

987 H Street

Arcata, CA 95521

The Metro

858 G St

Arcata, CA 95521

Wild Horse

760 Redwood Drive

Garberville, CA 95542

Reggae Rising Music Festival

Yvonne Hendrix Publicity Coordinator

email: yhendrix@reggaerising.com phone: 707-223-2889

website: ReggaeRising.com

2. Southern Square Dance - Saturday, April 26th

3. Recorders Northcoast Workshop & Concert - Saturday, April 26th

4. PATTY LARKIN with Peter Mulvey - TUESDAY, APRIL 29th (tickets online now!)

5. Big Baddy Two Sues - Saturday, May 3rd

1. Scatter the Mud Release Party

Celtic session leaders Seabury Gould and Judy Hageman play for Scatter the Mud's release party, at Gallagher's Irish Pub and Restaurant (139 2nd Street, Old Town Eureka). The party starts at 8 pm and admission is free! Seabury will play Irish bouzouki, guitar, bamboo flute and vocals; Judy will be on fiddle and viola; and Alan Morden will play guitar, mandolin, bodhran and vocals.

2. April Southern Square Dance

Saturday, April 26th, starting at 8 pm at the Freshwater Grange is an HFS Southern Square Dance with dynamic caller Tara Stetz and the Striped Pig Stringband. Admission is $7 general, $6 for HFS members, and kids and seniors are free. For more information, please call Tara Stetz at 442-3646.

3. Fire and Ice: Workshop for Recorders, Flutes and Strings

Recorders Northcoast is sponsoring a day-long workshop for recorders, flutes and all string instruments entitled "Fire and Ice: A Medieval and Traditional Musical Journey South and North" on Saturday, April 26th from 10 am - 4 pm at the Humboldt Area Foundation. Instructors Eileen Hadidian and Shira Kammen will lead separate workshops, as well as an ensemble workshop for all instruments. The cost of the event is $55 for the day, with a $10 discount for HFS and ARS members.

Then at Mosgo's at 7 pm, Recorders Northcoast will present a "Celtic Spirit" concert with Eileen Hadidian, Shira Kammen and guests. Admission is $3 for the show.

4. Patty Larkin with Peter Mulvey

Tuesday, April 29th hails the return of the incredible Patty Larkin at the Arcata Playhouse, with Peter Mulvey opening! Admission is $15 general, $13 HFS members. The show is at 8 pm, with doors at 7:30 pm.

Tickets are available at Wildwood Music, The Metro and The Works - and ONLINE at http://www.humboldtfolklife.org/order.html (Online tickets will be held for you at the door.) This show is a co-production of HFS and the Arcata Playhouse's Four on the Floor Productions. (Note: our last email mistakenly listed this show on the 28th.)

5. Big Baddy Two Sues at Baykeeper

Don't miss HFS performers at the Humboldt Baykeeper office in Old Town, monthly at Arts Alive! May 3rd is Big Baddy Two Sues and Friends. Playing trad all over the map, the Sues run the gamut from Irish and English to French, Quebecois and Acadian, plus anything else that fits. The struggle for them both is to keep the number of instruments to what they can each easily carry in one trip!

The two Bad Sues are generally known as Susan Anderson and Sue Moon. Sue Moon is a southern Humboldt fiddler and button accordionist, and also one of our region's most popular dance callers. Folklife Society founder Susan Anderson plays fiddle, flutes, whistles & button accordions. The two Sues have played with the Contra Band, Macchu Picchu, Pasture Prime, and the Rolling Scones.

EUREKA SHOW: Gary Reynolds & The Brides of Obscurity in Eureka, May 5th at Brogi's Boiler Room

Seattle, Washington-based Gary Reynolds and the Brides of Obscurity, fronted by studio owner, engineer, and producer Gary Reynolds (vocals, guitar, piano), and including members Don Durham (guitar, vocals), Justin Friesen (bass, piano, vocals), Perry Morgan (drums), and Jeremy Manley (organ, vocals), deliver slightly psychedelic indie-rock with a heavy pop leaning on their sophomore full-length, "Santiago¹s Vest", recorded at Reynolds¹ Seattle studio, Electrokitty Studio.

Gary Reynolds and the Brides of Obscurity will celebrate the release of "Santiago's Vest" March 8th at Sunset Tavern. Show is $7.00 and doors at 8pm, show starts at 9pm. Also on the bill are Curtains for You and Dept. of Energy. "Santiago¹s Vest is a powerful collection of space-pop done by rockers, a group of men who know their way around psychedelic and pop history, but sometimes just want to have fun and play a catchy power-pop tune.

"The songs on ŒSantiago¹s Vest¹ were recorded with an entirely different approach [than our previous releases]. We got together and learned the songs in the studio, mainly aiming to keep only the drums and bass. Then we made up parts and added colors. The full-length is more produced, too. I think it¹s safe to say that everyone in the band likes this record best".

For Gary Reynolds and the Brides of Obscurity, they felt this was the best way to approach it. A relatively new band, they used "Santiago¹s Vest" to figure out how to work together in the studio.

Reynolds says one of the things he¹ s most proud of is that, "we figured out how to take a happy little pop song and twist it. We also figured out how to take something that may have leaned more towards a rock sort of thing and pull it into a more twisted approach."

The record was purposely mixed with the bass guitar way up in the balance, using "Abbey Road" as a mix reference. The result is a record that has a lot more bass guitar than most modern recordings. This also means that you can¹t get it as loud as other CDs, which is exactly what Reynolds and the band wanted.

"We¹re avoiding the Œloudness war¹ that¹s currently going on. We didn¹t compress the thing to oblivion either," he says with a smile.

"We¹ve always had a nostalgic feel to our music," Reynolds says without hesitation. "Not on purpose, but that¹s just the way things turn out. On this record it opens up and sound a bit more current without losing its appeal."

"Brooklyn Bridge" moves from indie-rock to Celtic, from pop-rock to Americana, all with an earnest, punk mindset that few singer-songwriters can touch - and mean it - when weaving through various genres not only on the same album, but sometimes on the same song. The 12-track collection of songs was produced by legendary Scottish fiddler player Johnny Cunninghan, well-regarded in the Celtic and folk worlds as a top-notch player and producer (among many others, he produced Solas, an Irish folk supergroup that covered one of Neill¹s songs), his reach going as far as punk band The Dropkick Murphys, who have previously tapped Cunningham to work with them.

Where: HUMBOLDT BREWS 856 10TH ST. ARCATA, CA

Show Details: 21+, $10, 10:30PM

Web site: www.deltanoveband.com, www.myspace.com/deltanoveband

Delta Nove are coming to Arcata!! The Long Beach, CA, based band has no boundaries and induces dancing and grinning with their lively stage presence and contagious grooves. Heavily focusing on reggae, Brazilian, ska and rock styles, their endeavors reflect a passion and drive for music that truly expands the mind.

The band consists of five extremely talented musicians playing an array of instruments that are as culturally distinct as their music. They have four self-produced albums under their belts with a new one released in June entitled “The Future is When,” which captures the band’s very diverse musical style and songwriting.

"Delta Nove has one foot deeply rooted in funk, with monster chops and amazingly rich arrangements, while the other kicks with reggae, Latin, soul, and straight ahead rock,” said a journalist for the OC Weekly.

Delta Nove’s steady road to success includes a rigorous touring schedule throughout the United States. They continue to build a steady fan base, performing at massive music festivals such as High Sierra, Wakarusa, 10,000 Lakes, Earthdance, among others. They’ve also graced the stages of impressive venues like the House of Blues, the Knitting Factory, The Troubador and Key Club in Los Angeles.

Celebrate an evening of “world funk” with Delta Nove!

The minimalist, bass-heavy, effects-laden variation on reggae known as dub has some serious aficionados (this writer among them), but not a lot of people listen to it. The exception may be the music of Jamaican dub master Overton Brown, better known as Scientist, or The Scientist. Millions have been listening to his album, Scientist Rids the World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires, but, for a time, he did not even know about it.

As he explained in a call to his home studio in Southern California, "I was standing in a supermarket one day, and a boy recognized me. He says, 'Mommy, Mommy, that's The Scientist. We have his music on our videogame.' I was wondering what the hell he was talking 'bout. He says, "Yes, your music is on Grand Theft Auto.' I didn't know what it was."

To be specific, about half of Scientist's Curse of the Vampires album, recorded in the early '80s, was used as content for a radio station called K-JAH in Grand Theft Auto III, a controversial shoot-em-up videogame for Playstation 2 (and other systems) created by Rockstar Games.

The game has sold in the millions internationally, but as Scientist put it, "I wasn't getting any money." Not until he hired some lawyers to sue Greensleeves Records, the British label that licensed his music without telling him or giving him a piece of the action.

He admits that he has better name recognition because of GTA, but he has mixed feelings about it. "I'm hoping kids don't think I'm a gangbanger or that I endorse shooting police officers. I never played the game, but everyone tells me about it. I don't understand why they have someone who steals a car and shoots up the place, then he's listening to reggae and Rastafari on the radio."

Scientist got his start as an engineer (his father was a radio/TV repairman) and as a teen, after training with King Tubby (one the inventors of dub), he took the genre into new realms. He still does engineering work (when we spoke he was in the middle of designing a circuit board for an amplifier). And when he's not in court (suits are pending all over the world) he goes on the occasional reggae tour to work as dubwise soundman extraordinaire.

That's what's bringing him to Arcata Thursday, May 1, a show at Mazzotti's: Wild Wild West Reggae Dub 420 Spring Tour '08 includes UK reggae stars Michael Prophet (who sings on the Curse record) and Sammy Dread, Jamaican vocalist Johnny Clarke and Hawaiian Lyon (from Hawaii of course), all backed by The Raggasouljahs, with Lesterfari of Boom Shaka on guitar, the great Santa Davis on drums, and a full horn section, all engineered live by Scientist.

Speaking of dub, Heavyweight Dub Champion is back in town for a two-night run Friday and Saturday at the Red Fox. The trio is on what they call a "Deep Deep Dub" instrumental tour, which means no chanters or rappers, just tripped-out dub.

About that Cowboy Junkies show at Van Duzer on May Day (Thursday the 1st): If you're familiar with the Timmins family band from Canada, it's probably because of The Trinity Session, an album of slo-mo covers and originals from 1988 that was pretty much the only time C.J. broke into the U.S. market. To celebrate the album's 20th anniversary, the band returned to the Trinity Church with a few friends (Ryan Adams, Vic Chesnutt and Natalie Merchant) to "re-interpret" that record as Trinity Revisited. So, if you request some of the old songs, chances are they'll remember them. Monahans, a moody rock duo from Austin/S.F., opens.

The poster for the Thrones/SubArachnoid Space show Thursday at the Alibi looks like something from the psychedelic '60s, and it makes sense. Portland's neo-psyche instrumentalists SubArachnoid Space pull the tradition into the here and now with long, loose spirals of darkness. Likewise Thrones, which is basically bassist Joe Preston formerly of The Melvins.

Also on Thursday, Long Beach jamband Delta Nove returns to Humboldt Brews for some "world funk."

Friday at the Pearl Lounge, it's another episode of Miles Ahead with keyboardist Mike Kapitan and friends (Brad Werren handling Miles' trumpet parts) in "a tribute to the music of Miles Davis starting from the Kind Of Blue era to the rockin' psychedelic explorations of the Bitches Brew and Live/Evil period." Very cool stuff.

Meanwhile at Fulkerson Hall, the Humboldt Symphony presents its spring concert including contemporary composer Robert Bradshaw's "Trumpet Concerto" with Gil Cline on trumpet. The rest of the program veers widely, from Baroque by Telemann, to Gershwin and Stravinsky.

For a different (let's say smoother) style of trumpet, you have Chris Botti playing Friday at the Arkley Center. The jazzy Portland-born Grammy winner's latest is titled Italia, so expect some of that flavor.

Next door at Auntie Mo’s, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are throwing a benefit for HIV Kids and the AIDS taskforce: Mo's Betta Disco Drag Dance Party has what you'd expect, folks in drag dancing to disco, but also drag racing on Big Wheels (really?) and a bike raffle.

Songstress Joanne Rand is back at the Jambalaya Friday with her band The Rhythm of the Open Hearts and a special guest: former Jam owner Joyce Hough. ("I'm Joanne's back-up singer," says Joyce.)

Over at Mosgo's, Amy Obenski, from Santa Cruz, offers what she describes as "introspective jazzy folk-rock with ethereal vocals."

The Miracle Show takes its Dead tribute to the Wave Friday. No cover, but bring a coupla quarters and maybe a miracle will happen.

Break-dancing fool Reckless Rex of Humboldt Rockers (a break-dance troupe) celebrates the 4th anniversary of the Rockers with Battle Time 2, a hip hop show/break-dance contest on Friday from afternoon until midnight at the Bayside Grange, with grand prizes (as in $1,000) and big name judges: BBoy Machine and BBoy Bebe (who also lead workshops this Saturday at Redwood Raks). They have Itchie Fingaz on the tables and some fine MCs including Z-Man (from S.F.), Eureka's Nac One, Dirty Rats outta Fortuna, and J the Sarge.

J the Sarge is about to drop a disc with Myka 9, a team-up they call Magic Heart Genies. Both of them are on the bill for Homegrown Hip Hop Vol. 5 on Saturday at the Mateel. Souls of Mischief from the Oakland-based Hieroglyphics collective headline the show, which also features Brooklyn's Whosane and Humboldt homies Subliminal Sabotage, with DJ Just One and DJ Elements on the wheels of steel.

Same time, different city, Tech Williams's Do Som Bout It crew turns the Eureka Vet's Hall into party central with hip hop action upstairs and down including DJ Assassin among others.

The Blue Ox Mill has it's annual May Day Living History and Artisan Fair all day Saturday with the usual crafty demos and tons of music: bluegrass by The Compost Mountain Boys (also playing Saturday for HSU's Compost Festival), cowboy tunes by The Tumbleweeds, old timey by Striped Pig String Band and the Empty Bottle Boys, jugband tunes by Likely Story and Celtic by Hearthfire and Moonstone.

Got kids? Think about taking them to hear Red Grammer on Saturday afternoon at the Arkley Center. Red is a Grammy-winning kids' entertainer, a former folky (he was once a Limeliter) who started writing songs for his own kids, then kept with it. Are your kids 4th or 5th graders? They get in free. Why? "Parents don't take kids to things when they're that age," says Holly, a mom who's been bringing Red to the area for a few years, basically so her son (a 5th grader) can hear him sing. "Red's music relates to kids that age. He's all about tolerance and cultural diversity, but he can't do that music if he has to just keep the babies in their chairs." Expect appearances by some local kids (and adults) and don't worry about being hit over the head with a message. Red makes it all fun.

The first ever Bike to the Beach Folk Festival takes place Saturday afternoon at Rogers Market in McKinleyville, just off the Hammond Trail. Organizer (and musician) Bob Smith invites you to "celebrate our trail systems and our bike friendly roadways and recreation areas," and listen to tunes by Moonsong Band, Kindred Spirits, The Highclass Hobo Society and Backwoods Capo.

The Broken Hearts are breaking up. "It's very sad," says Julia Cupp, the band's lead singer. "I'm leaving for Portland at the end of summer, Zak [McLongstreet, guitarist/accordionist] is going traveling at the beginning of summer. We're going on tour at the end of May with The Ian Fays, starting in S.F. and ending in Vegas, but we're just doing one more local show." That's Saturday (Arts Alive! night) at the Pearl Lounge.

Thelittlestillnotbigenough opens. Something exotic? San Francisco's Gamelan Sekar Jaya plays traditional and not-so traditional Balinese gamelan music Saturday at HSU's Fulkerson Recital Hall. (Costumed dancers too.)

Or how about Raquay and The Cavemen, a progressive Middle Eastern bellydance-style band from Brooklyn, led by red hot dumbek player Raquy Danziger playing Tuesday, May 6, at Six Rivers, a show presented by Shoshanna. (I'm guessing there'll be costumed dancers at this one too.)

Also on Tuesday, Andrew McKnight, a "songpoet" from Virginia's Shenandoah Valley sings heartfelt, topical songpoems from his latest, Something Worth Standing For at the Westhaven Center for the Arts.

Cool/esoteric show of the week: a four-way bill Tuesday at the Pearl featuring two Arcata alt. bands, Brother Mitya (aka John Thomas) and The Beat Nun (Maddy Shernock and friends) plus two touring duos, I Heart Lung and ellul. I Heart Lung is guitarist Chris Schlarb and drummer Tom Steck producing music they refer to as "refined chaos," leaning toward drone with jazzy guitar, subtle percussion, "improvisation and predestination," as they put