Tag Archives: folk punk

Homeless Gospel Choir Returns! Grey Gordon Returns! – K.I.O’.F. – April 12th

Leave a reply

Kalamazoo sometimes is a great place for getting together with your friends to get sad, contemplative, pensive, nostalgic. That might not sound like a great time if you’re not well acquainted with the folk music that comes out of this town, or that tours in, but if you are you know it’s one of the more compelling musical experiences around.

Homeless Gospel Choir – the band one man band of Derek Zanetti out of Pittsburgh, PA – last played in Kalamazoo over 2 years ago while on tour with Harley Poe. Crammed in a livingroom packed to the gills, and no PA, HGC captivated an audience mostly unfamiliar with his work. His writing is relatable – a conemplative inner self struggling with an indifferent and dishonest world. But don’t let my shoddy words try and explain, here’s a video

Grey Gordon – on tour with HGC, previously played in Kalamazoo at the Corner Record Shop traveling with Jason Anderson. Grey’s music is sweetly sad and melancholy – like your favorite songs you forgot brought back new. You may not know the songs, but they’re likely to strike you as nostalgic.

This show will also be supported by locals Arms Akimbo – your local friend and sad story songwriter, and Axel Quinlan – folk songwriter in the wrong era singing to you regardless

This show is at The Kalamazoo Institute O’ Farts (not to be confused with the KIA). Contact DITkalamazoo@gmail.com for the address. Show is at 8:00. Bring dollars for the outta towners. Be excellent to your hosts and friends and friends you haven’t even met yet.

KCAC / Peace Center Benefit – Nostalgic and Folksy Edition – 3.29 – Milhouse

1 Reply

Maybe if you were in Kalamazoo in 2008, you went to Rocketstar Cafe. Primarily a coffee shop, sometimes also hosting all ages shows of a variety of genres. Maybe at that time you, like me, saw Ghost Mice and Eric Ayotte play a lovely and energetic folk show.

Photo by Jes Kramer

And if you’re familiar with Kalamazoo, you’ll also know that accessible venues have had a hell of a time remaining open. Shortly after this, Rocketstar ceased to be. Other spots have come and gone through the years, and many houses have picked up the slack – though not in a particularly legal or accessible way either.

Around the time of this Ghost Mice show, there was talk of creating the Kalamazoo Collective Arts Center. Tons of work was done on creating bylaws for this all ages art space, but when nailing down a location became exceedingly difficult, the project fizzled out. But now it’s back! A new group of people are picking up where the originators left off, and are looking to create an affordable, accessible space for all art and all ages.

And also through this all, the Kalamazoo Peace Center has offered a space on campus for music, radical discussion, workshops and speakers. This sort of activity goes hand in hand with the not-for-profit, DIY ethic that is entrenched in the Kalamazoo music scene.

The KCAC and Peace Center are looking for your support, and have thrown together a nostalgic show for the purpose! Featuring:

THE ALMANAC SHOUTERS  – Formed in 2009, the Almanac Shouters are a local band, playing their first (and only planned) show in almost 2 years. They’re a loud folk band with reflective and metaphoric lyrics you can scream and dance to. The line up for this show features Axel Quinlan, Fiona Dickinson, Nola Wiersma, and Rory Svekric.

GHOST MICE – A band synonymous with Plan-It-X Records, a DIY label known for the slogan “If It Ain’t Cheap, It Ain’t Punk” and putting out some of the best of folk and pop punk over the last 20 years. Ghost Mice are straightfoward and honest songwriters whose earnest dedication to their words is compelling.

THE MINOR KIND – Eric Ayotte, folk song writer and short film enthusiast, has a new project and this is it. It’s a country band, it’s sweet, you’ll like it.

This show also features a ROOT BEER KEG for all who donate. Please be excellent to eachother and respect the house! The show is likely to be packed, so make sure to take care of those around you.

9:00 PM start time. Putting the punc back in punctual. Email ditkalamazoo@gmail.com for the address.

So Many People and All The Wrong Instruments – The Story of Goofpunks @ Milhouse 7.17

Leave a reply

Pat “The Bunny,” former Vermont turned Arizona based musician has been touring through Kalamazoo for years, under a few different guises. His current songwriting outfit is a large, plugged in, rag-tag group called RAMSHACKLE GLORY, who will be making their second appearance at Milhouse. Ramshackle sings songs about recovery, shelter, and state resistance. Though the subject matter can be heavy, if you’re not dancing, you’re probably missing the point.

On tour with Ramshackle are their buddies from Portland, OR THE TAXPAYERS. The Taxpayers have coined the term goof punk for what they do, and their live performance reflects that wholeheartedly.  A band with a higher energy level than these folks would be difficult to find. This will be The Taxpayers first time in Kalamazoo, so show them a warm welcome.

Finally, local support provided by JEREMY RUGGLES & THE DEAD EGOS. Jeremy has been writing strange folk songs for many years in the area, with a myriad of musicians accompanying. The Dead Egos will be yet another large band based out a folk tradition, but definitely choosing to stray far from it.

Show is kicking off at 9:00. BRING DONATIONS FOR THE TOURING BANDS. It is not cheap to move that many people and instruments across the country. Respect the house, the band, the folks around you, yourself, your community.

Folk Of All Sorts Tonight @ Kalamazoo Institute o’ Farts (Former Full House 2.0) 5-17

Leave a reply

From the ethereal to the angular, the Kalamazoo Institute o’ Farts will be covering many forms of folk and folk influenced tonight.

DEAR RABBIT – jangly gypsy vaudvillian onslaught traveling from Colorado.

LINCOLN COUNTY WAR – local folk punk duo, meshing gruff and distraught with beautiful violin.

DEEP WATERS – a band of folk players making dreamy spacy and (potentially) keyboardy sounds.

ARMS AKIMBO – a one man band of dwelling on the past while simultaneously getting up and moving on.

This show is at 8:00 PM. Bring a couple of dollars for the touring folks.

For the address, email ditkalamazoo@gmail.com

Oh, Dear Rabbit, not deer rabbit. Sorry, Jackalope!

Ghost Mice of Plan-it-X Return To Kalamazoo at Full House (2.0) 3/24/13

Leave a reply
ghostmice

Ghost Mice playing in Kalamazoo almost exactly 5 years ago at Rocketstar Cafe. Photo by Jes Kramer.

It’s been almost four years since the acoustic duo Ghost Mice (featuring Chris Clavin, co-founder of the almost 20 years standing record label Plan-it-X) have been in Kalamazoo Michigan. Not too long after that tour, Ghost Mice called a hiatus, mostly due to fiddle player Hannah having a kiddo. Chris did several solo tours since then, a couple of which he ended up playing wonderful shows in Kalamazoo. However, they’re back as the original band and they’ve got a new album  “All We’ve Got Is Eachother,” with a fuller sound than previous, and they are just as sweet of folks as they’ve ever been.

Speaking of new albums, also on the bill for this show is local guitar and violin duo Lincoln County War, who will be releasing their first ever recordings at this show! Though LCW has been playing locally for roughly three years, the only recorded material of theirs can be found mostly on dodgy youtube videos, so come to this show to purchase at a super affordable price, properly recorded versions of these songs. Though the set up for LCW and Ghost Mice are similar, the sound is much different. Although they could both be classified as “folk punk,” Lincoln County features an angrier, harsher tone, more akin with Andrew Jackson Jihad, or if Nick Cave’s Murder Ballads were stripped down.

Long-time Kalamazoo underground composer Travis of Circle, Get Square will also be performing. Whether Travis is currently living in Kalamazoo or anywhere else, if he is performing in Kalamazoo, he is treated and appreciated like a dear local. Stylistically shifting from lo-fi keyboard pop tunes to full, melancholic folk songs, Circle, Get Square is a dynamic project that if you haven’t yet seen, you’re definitely not going to want to miss.

Finally, Arms Akimbo will also be performing to round out this acoustic endeavor. Though this project is the newest locally, Topher, the singer/songwriter of this one man project, has been writing and performing for many years, and for several different musical stylings. Here you will find introspective folk songs, fitting perfectly into the mix of this show.

You can see excellent samples of all three locals by browing through http://www.DITsessions.com

This show will start at 7PM on Sunday the 24th, and is the first show at this location! If you don’t know where it is, shoot an email to DIT. Please bring donations for the touring group (or even some dollars for merch), and please respect the household.