Monthly Archives: May 2014

Saturday, May 31st – Dust From 1000 Years / Fiona Dickinson / Peter Cook / Misery Loves Co. @ Milhouse

It’s a beautiful day, and if that weather person ain’t a damn lie, it’s fixin’ to be a gorgeous night.  If you’re looking to get out of the house, Milhouse in the Vine Neighborhood has 4 acts performing in their basement for your eyes and ears to feast upon.

Bloomington, Indiana’s Dust From 1000 Years are returning to Kalamazoo for the first time in 4 years.  By college town standards, that’s an entire generation later.  Well, there’s a reason it’s been so long: Dust From 1000 Years are reunited after an extended absence from performing.  If you were familiar with their music before, it has retained that forlorn sense of ennui and contempt in attitude and remains spacious yet grungy in sound.

The song “Party Song” from their new release ‘Moon’ sums up their outlook quite well:

http://shyb.bandcamp.com/track/party-song

Kalamazoo’s English rose Fiona Dickinson is on board for this one.  Whether her performance shall be with a full band or solo acoustic remains to be disclosed.

Peter Cook, currently of Kalamazoo’s Boring People, will appear to play a few covers and older songs from past bands he’s been in.

Josh Miller, Milhouse resident and Seventeen Again/Forget The Times guitarist will be performing as Misery Loves Co., just he and a drummer.  The act is definitely NOT this Misery Loves Co.

Milhouse is located in the Vine Neighborhood.  If you don’t know the address, you can message ditkalamazoo@gmail.com or post on the Milhouse Facebook (recommended)https://www.facebook.com/groups/milhouse/ that you need to be sent the address.  While there is no entry fee, we suggest bringing a few dollars to donate to the touring band.  It’s a hard life there out on the road, gas is expensive.  Things should be getting underway around 9 p.m.!  See you there!

Tonight at the Vine Neighborhood Association: Overly Polite Tornadoes, Gifts or Creatures, Cardboard Highway, Nathan K.

It’s safe to say that if you’re a fan of Kalamazoo music, you’ve probably seen the members of Overly Polite Tornadoes before, even if you hadn’t yet heard of OPT.

Overly Polite Tornadoes are two sixths of Kalamazoo’s shoegaze mainstays, Glowfriends.

Take a couple minutes and listen to OPT cover 20/20’s “The People in your Life”:

And if you like OPT, then you’ll probably also like Cardboard Highway, who is also performing tonight. Here’s a representative track from their Silverware EP:

Nathan K.  will be making the trek from Ypsilanti for this show as well, to play indie folk of varying tempos on a variety of topics, from intense relationships to the melancholy details of everyday life. Here’s the title track from his 2012 album “Dishes”:

Also rolling into Kalamazoo from westbound I-94 is Gifts or Creatures, whose Americana  tunes and cinematic soundscapes have been echoing through the midwest since 2010. Take a listen to “Relics & Ghosts” from their 2013 album Yesteryear Western Darkness:

Or better yet, have a look at this live performance of Woodrow, from the same album:

This all starts at 7:30 tonight (May 30th) at the Vine Neighborhood Association at 511 West Vine St (between Fourth Coast and Chenery Auditorium)

$5 suggested donation – all ages

Get directionsRSVP on Facebook

Noise Show At Corner Record Shop Tonight!

Corner Record Shop has got it going on! They’re hosting another premium Ambient Noise adventure featuring some local favorites and an out of town heavy hitter.

Doors at 8pm
Music at 9:30
All Ages
Bring money for the touring artist
BYOB (no jerks)
Buy records
Respect.

CRS is at 1710 West Main (Tiffany’s Village)
This will be one of the last shows before the store moves down to the Vine Neighborhood on July 1st. Enjoy while it lasts!

CITY HARVEST BLACK 

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Rochester, NY’s finest noise musician, Joel aka City Harvest Black will be gracing us with his presence. This is the real deal. No half stepping. Joel lays down some of the best ambient sounds, textures and moods you’ll ever witness. Kalamazoo is lucky to have him!

FTT Lite

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Sean & Josh from Forget The Times are playing as a duo tonight. Just guitars, drones and shred (no drums).

SAXSQUATCH

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Kalamazoo’s favorite Sax man will be skronkin’ it up and kickin’ off the festivities.

SID REDLIN

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Longtime Kalamazoo noise champion. Sid will be laying down those heavy synth loops the only way he knows how.

Folk For Many Folks – Axel & Marcus Quinlan, Ugly Brothers, Lousy Trouts, Deep Waters – 5.27

Louie’s Trophy House will be the place for fans of acoustic music from across the board. Be it gruff of ethereal, there’s something for all tastes. The night is particularly exciting, as two Milwaukee bands are making their first trek to Kalamazoo.

UGLY BROTHERS are a large band of rag tag soulful folk singers. For fans of The Avett Brothers, Elvis Perkins, and Tik Tok, but a bit more rough around the edges than those examples – not that they are not fine players – just a tangible authenticity in their style.

LOUSY TROUTS on the other hand, are quite reminiscent of Lonesome Crowded West era Modest Mouse – but all acoustic and refreshingly new to your ears.

Also this night, not so lousy, not so trouty, not so ugly, but definitely brothers – Axel and Marcus Quinlan will be playing their first set as a duo since August. Axel is the former songwriter for The Almanac Shouters, and has been working on a large body of solo work for the last couple of years. Each show is a glimpse into some portion of what is to be a cohesive concept album.

Also backing up the traveling acts would be the profoundly ethereal Deep Waters – a project started by talented local musician DSK as a keyboard project – many of the songs are now often performed live on acoustic guitar. Meditate and contemplate, get pensive but not sad.

Bring yourself, bring your friends, bring five dollars, bring what is left of your show worn ears. Tip the waitstaff and give the sound engineer a high five.

5/23 – Kyckstands, ProConPro, Ghost Bunnies, Byjr., Lost Years @ Shakespeares

A buffet of upbeat local pop-punk and indie-pop bands are taking the stage at Shakespeare’s TONIGHT. Local yokels Kyckstands are reuniting to play the lower level with special guests ProConPro, Ghost Bunnies, Byjr., and, hailing from the deepest darkest recesses of Indiana, Lost Years.

This is the perfect type of music for a great night out at the bar. Also a great opportunity to see some amazing Kalamazoo locals, along with Lost Years which is a spunky Indie Punk Rock four piece.

The KCAC presents the first ‘Summer Skillshare’!

The KCAC presents our very first event of this year’s Summer Skillshares:

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Organic & Urban Gardening
with Gina of Under the Stone Garden and Katie of Tabitha Farms
3pm to 6pm
@ The Vine Neighborhood Association (509 Vine Street)


This 3-hour class will cover simple principles of organic gardening that you need to know to achieve basic success growing vegetables and herbs. Gina Wertz and Katie Pearson, local farmers, will cover soil health, plant and seed spacings, planting schedules (when to plant what), trellising, and organic pest/weed/disease management. We will also plant some seeds and transplant some baby plants, either in pots or a nearby community garden, for you to take home. We may also do some hands-on gardening work, such as weeding or bed preparation. Come prepared with anything you need to work in the dirt – gloves, boots or sneakers, your own trowel (the hand-size shovel), sunglasses, a jacket (in case its cold or windy), a few containers for starting seeds (yogurt or Solo cups will do), and any seeds you’d like to plant or share. Gina will bring potting soil, extra transplants, extra seeds, and a few gardening tools to demonstrate. The class will start indoors at the Vine Neighborhood Association and move outdoors if weather permits. There will be a minimum donation of $5 to attend, but if you cannot donate but want to attend, please come talk to a board member beforehand. Please register at www.theKCAC.org.

We are also looking for people to assist the workshop facilitators and to help with setup and tear down! If you are interested in volunteering with the KCAC, please fill out our volunteer app and submit to TheKCAC@gmail.com

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Keep on the lookout for our next skillshares happening each Saturday from May 24 until June 28. See you there!

Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O with PERHAPS and Brown Company at Louie’s in Kalamazoo on Monday May 19th 2014

On May 19th 2014 at Louie’s Trophy House Grill in Kalamazoo, what you are going to experience is “an ass kickin’ bud whippin’ far out drop dead cool music from another solar system when the ancient gods still ruled the earth!”

Acid Mothers Temple and the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. was founded by Kawabata Makoto, who serves as the antenna and amplifier of mind-altering psychedelic sound from around the cosmos. AMT has been touring the world since the 90s, inducing trance-like states in human minds, whether 100% sober or wildly chemically altered.

AMT’s music regularly contains long drone sections with spacey synthesizers slicing the atmosphere with a sharp glissando, twinkling grey noise, or a fiery low fuzz:

Sometimes the cosmic message comes in forms which require no electronics, or even instruments. In this 2013 performance in British Columbia, the group quiet their hands, and deliver an a capella section:

But it’s not all hookahs and rhythmic nodding – just a few minutes later in that same performance, a savage frenzy of shredded guitar, harsh synthesizer, crashing cymbals, and moon-patrol bass lines:

Coming along for the ride with AMT is “PERHAPS”, a band whose music not a divine message from ancient gods, but rather a carefully composed complex combination of jazz, progressive rock, classical, and noise. At moments, PERHAPS has technically precise but pleasing (almost jammy) guitar-riff driven sections such as this one near the start of their “Volume One” album:

For contrast, consider this chaotic-yet-sparse passage from later in that same piece:

But Kalamazoo is not just a consumer of experimental music! We are a supplier, and on that evening we’ll be supplying a healthy dose of driving rhythms, feedback, slow builds, phasers set to “wide sweep”, and windy atmospheric sounds, by Brown Company. If you want to cut straight to the badassery, see how hard Brown Company rocks on “Edwards” from their upcoming 2014 album:

If you want to see the details of how they arrived there, listen to the much longer “Tidal” from that same pre-release.

This 18+ show is getting started on Monday May 19th at 8pm at Louie’s, RSVP on Facebook to make your friends jealous!

Tickets are $10 in advance, or $12 at the door (if there are any left).

The Mushmen, The Sailor Kicks, and Joe Disastr at Old Dog Tavern Saturday May 17 2014

Kalamazoo’s most notorious punk/ska band The Mushmen will be blowing up the toilets at Old Dog Tavern with their friends The Sailor Kicks, and Joe Disastr.

Joe Disastr is a folk-punker from Illinois who’s got a pocket full of familiar melodies as well as some originals. Here’s a quieter moment from his live set:

Grand Rapids’ Sailor Kicks play uptempo americana with smooth harmonies, occasional horn flourishes, and guitar + bass that’ll transport you back to 1997.

Finally, The Mushmen have been skanking their way to the top of Kalamazoo’s music scene with their all-in high energy live show. Here’s a full length video for their song “Buy the ticket, take the ride”

For a peek at what these dudes look like up close and in person, check them out performing “Sleep” live at 89.1 WIDR-FM:

I honestly thought Benji might leap through my monitor and tackle me to the ground. But he’s a sweetheart, come give him a hug this Saturday at 8pm at the Old Dog Tavern.

Let ’em know how many of your smiling faces they can expect to see bobbing in the front row by RSVPing to the Mushmen & Friends Facebook event.

Talvisota, No Reason, Dad Jeans, Green River Company @ Cooter Mansion 5/16 9pm

Making noise at Cooter Mansion with some local and regional bands.  The first of many shows to come this summer at the esteemed Cooter Mansion.  Bring your friends, bring your dads!

Featuring:

Dad Jeans                                                                       https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dad-Jeans/428123767313433                                           Some Funky kids from Gobles High School making Emo Punk music.  This is certainly not their debut to the DIT scene, they have been floating around like little cherubs for the past couple months making every man, woman, and child fall in love with their screamy punk filled arrows.  Talented well beyond their years, make sure you make it to the show to check them out.

Talvisota                                                                                                                                             Way neat mathy 2 piece featuring Aric Smejkal and Matt George making their debut at this show.  Born out of the rubble of the Dandy Chums.
https://www.facebook.com/TalvisotaKalamazoo

No Reason
From Plainwell, these kids got SPUNK.  Listen to their EP.  It will blow your mind that a couple of high school kids came up with this stuff.  Seriously what the hell.
http://noreasonplainwell.bandcamp.com/

Green River Company
The Green River Company is an Alternative Indie Blues Post-Garage Punk Revival band based out of Owosso, Michigan formed in June of 2013.  They made their Kalamazoo debut at Hullabazoo this year and they basically almost tore the place down.  Check em out.
https://www.facebook.com/TheGreenRiverCompany/info