Nectars 5 Year VIP Event

Listen up Vermont music lovers! You will only hear about this here on my blog - yet another reason you should read Vermont Music, share Vermont Music with others, and, most importantly, get in touch with me (via my website - www.RachelCarterPR.com) and fill me in on Vermont music news and happenings!!

Nectars Restaurant & Bar, a staple in the Vermont music community, was sold by original owner Nectar Rorris five years ago to the trio of Damon and Sally Brink and Chris Walsh. Five years later Damon and Sally are celebrating their five year anniversary of Nectars ownership and management (Chris is directing movies in the Caribbean and checks in from afar).

To honor Nectar's friends, patrons, musicians, and other folks, Sally and Damon are hosting a VIP Happy Hour and Vermont Music Blog readers are invited! Simply email me or mention me at the event which is set for Wednesday, January 23rd from 5 - 7 pm. Live music will follow the "happy hour" and is then open to the general public. In return for reading my blog - if you find me at the event I will happily get info on your band and do a Vermont Music Blog post as well as introduce you to any folks you'd like to meet at the event.

Hope to see you there!!!

The Cush

Imagine a foursome of artsy rockers and their rock and roll instruments stumbling upon an empty church on a rainy non-Sunday afternoon. They enter the church and see a vintage pipe organ at the pulpit. Filled with images, thoughts, and musical interludes, they venture to the organ, set up their guitar, bass, and drums and start to play.

This is how I envision The Cush in my head. While their music fits into the more Indie-genre - a genre I do not particularly listen to - it also has glimpses of one of my more favorite bands, My Morning Jacket, which leaves a sort of eerie, mystical ringing in my ears afterwards. Listening to the The Cush evokes a similar state - perhaps that which helps bring images of empty churches to my mind.

The Cush started in Texas, but have made their name and home in Vermont, so I can definitely promote them in the Vermont Music Blog! They are also returning to their roots with a small Texas tour right now, but hopefully they will be back in Burlington for a show or two before they head out and make it big - I have a feeling they are certainly on the verge...plus, whether you like Indie rock or not, their music is developed, orchestrated, and certainly hits a chord when listened to.

Check them out at www.thecush.com (only complaint is you can't use the back button to navigate) and on their My Space, which has recently been updated so bands can post more than four songs - yay!

The Radiator

Holla Holla!

New, free format, independent radio station in town! If you haven't heard yet, now you do - and please help spread the word!!!

105.9 FM - WOMM-LP - The Radiator! Various local artists, musicians, music lovers, and other various peeps have shows during different slots. Think WRUV, except instead of being college supported, it's community supported. Radio Bean folks are the big supporters who helped get it off the ground, which right there shows it's gonna be innovative, eclectic and just plain GOOD.

It just launched and can be heard on the FM dial. The website - www.theradiator.org - is live, but the internet streaming and show roster isn't ready to be up yet - that's for January. So, tune your radios and stay tuned for more from what I predict to keep radio alive and loved in the Queen City and beyond!

And, hey - if you have a show on it - post a comment and let readers know!

Turkey Bouillon Mafia

Death Jam. That is one of the first words that struck me when reading some descriptions Turkey Bouillon Mafia uses to describe themselves. I am not sure if I would use that word to describe the music myself, but it certainly describes the band's personality - as a whole or as the members that make up the band. With the core of guitar, bass, keys, and drums, there is usually an impressive rotating cast of players who get up on stage - from horns to rappers. Check out their website - www.turkeymafia.com (the bouillon is too much of a pain to spell according to inside sources) or My Space Page to see out the cast Who's Who.

I went to see them this past week at Metronome - quite a while since my last show. I have seen these guys since the beginning as back in the early 21st century we all hung at Valencia, a fun little hippie dive bar that is now home to the hip sushi joint, The Asiana House. I also lived across the street from a few of them and enjoyed many fun, "neighborly" interactions with the bouillon lot.

They have since grown into a well-respected touring band bringing a lot of attitude and energy to their shows as well as a harder edge of excellent jam musicianship than many in the jam genre - a big part of what makes them a key player in the Vermont music scene and much farther beyond. The show last week was much more jazz influenced than I remember, a credit to their continuing evolution as a band, which seamlessly was able to transition into a fantastic rock inspired Led Zeppelin tribute. They make you dance, but, more importantly, they make you listen. And what I find to be one of their most endearing qualities - especially for death jam - is their unwavering ability to keep it real like no one else. These guys like being rock stars, are funny and social dudes, and hide behind nothing. Where they go from here - exploring various musical boundaries no doubt - I hope they keep their wit, humor, and death jam realness. Rock On.

Holiday Music Picks

I admit it, I love holiday music. Not cheesy, pop star renditions, but taking traditional secular and religious songs and carols, and creating musical beauty by evoking feeling and giving meaning to the season. This is due to my song inspired background starting with church choir singing to barbershop harmonies which moved to talent show performances and years of chamber chorus, large choirs, musicals, and difficult choral arrangements. For this music, my heart runs deep.

In that spirit, I'd like to share with you all some holiday music performances throughout Vermont this season that I recommend from favorites of my past.

Vermont Symphony Orchestra Holiday Pops Series - What makes a holiday pops concert so enjoyable is the distinctive use of instruments that evoke the sounds of the holidays. It's kind of like relating certain scents to a memory. Performances are December 7, 8, & 9 in Barre, Burlington, and Rutland. Check out www.vso.org for performance details.

The Vermont Mozart Festival - Sure to deliver unique, professional performances during their various seasons throughout the year, the J.S. Bach Christmas Oratorio brings about a beautiful Advent and Christmas musical celebration. Performances are in Stowe and Burlington December 13 and 14 and details are at www.vtmozart.org.

Counterpoint Presents Christmastide - Vermont's professional 12-voice vocal ensemble sings music from the West Indies and Africa to Francis Poulenc's "Four Christmas Motets" and Morton Lauridsen's haunting "O Magnum Mysterium." The group is touring over the state of Vermont now through mid-December. More information is at Counterpoint's website at www.counterpointchorus.com.

Bella Voce - Vermont's women's chamber chorus, Bella Voce, performs Mary Had a Baby - A Suite of Christmas Spirituals, a new Christmas Cantata by Robert DeCormier. Performances are in Stowe and Burlington December 8 and 9. More info is at www.bellavocevt.org.

Lessons and Carols - Lessons and Carols are one of my most favorite holiday music memories. While at Marist College I sang with the chamber choir and performed in the candlelight Lessons and Carols concert every year in the college chapel. It always brought a feeling of magic to me and I greatly look forward to attending one at Middlebury College this season, my first since 1997! The Middlebury College Chamber Singers perform two concerts on December 9 at 4:00 pm and 7:00 pm at the Mead Memorial Chapel on campus. Another Lessons and Carols for those in Southern Vermont is at The Old First Church in Bennington on December 16 at 7:30 pm.

Blanche Moyse Chorale - Also in Southern Vermont, the Blanche Moyse Chorale performs their holiday concert on December 9 at 3:00 pm at the All Souls Church in West Brattleboro. The chorale is the auditioned chorus of the Brattleboro Music Center.

Northsong Winter Music Concert - The Northsong Chamber Choir brings holiday cheer to the Northeast Kingdom with their community oriented concerts on December 8 at 7:30 pm at the Barton United Church and again on December 9 at 4:00 pm at the Newport United Church.

Monteverdi Music School Dessert Reception & Gala Concert - This is another one I will be attending. Christmas music and desserts? Count me in! This concert will be December 14 at 8:00 pm at the T.W. Wood Gallery & Art Center in Montpelier.

Anyone have any others to share?

Swing Noire

I was recently introduced to what I describe as folksy, bluesy, jazz - definitely up my ally. The band, based somewhere in Vermont, is called Swing Noire. Cool name and even cooler sound. I am not even going to paraphrase their great job at press writing, so here is a well written description of the music of Swing Noire:

"Some call the music gypsy jazz, some hot swing, in either case it is acoustic music in the spirit of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli. These two jazz cats from France are credited with bringing this unique music into the world during the 1930's, 1940's, and early 1950's, and creating some of the first jazz-based music outside of the African-American tradition."

Swing Noire is made up of David Gusakov on violin, Rob McCuen of lead guitar, Jim McCuen of double bass, and Jared Volpe on rhythm guitar. More info on these talented and well versed musicians can be found at their website at www.swingnoire.com. You can listen to some of these tunes on their site as well as on their My Space Page.

Hopefully they'll "swing" by Radio Bean sometime soon so I can see them in my backyard. In the meantime, they have two great gigs lined up that are perfectly timed and placed for a warming winter night out:

~ Saturday, December 15th, Carol's Hungry Mind, Middlebury. 7:30-10:30 pm, $10

~ Saturday, January 5th, The Langdon Street Cafe. 8:30-midnight, tips and guest appearance by Kris Gruen

Mmm, this stuff is sexy - bring a date or engage in an I Spy.

State of Mind

What is your State of Mind? What are your Three Needs? These are all questions that, when asked to varying groups of those of us on the never ending quest in search of truth and answers, can lead to thought provoking conversations - the kind you thought you'd have in college, yet somehow that was one expectation that fell short.

This is why I find these questions to be spectacular names for Vermont based music magazine, State of Mind Music Magazine and Burlington based nightspot, The Three Needs. Unfortunately Three Needs does not offer live music, or I would frequent there much more often and would also write about in this blog. Now, State of Mind, they offer music.

According the the most recent issue's editor's note, State of Mind began as a group of friends who kept on touch emailing about shows, making accommodations to travel and see live music, and all things that seem quite similar to those following Phish back in the 90's. This crew, however, (whether it was Phish, I cannot say with authority) took it a step further and created a mailing list which I believe somehow turned into the website, Live Music Beth (archive site). I first learned of and met Live Music Beth when working a PR gig for Nectar's back in 2004, when State of Mind was still a - state of mind.

Not long after that I began seeing Live Music Beth and co-editor Mike (now State of Mike) handing out a black and white newsprint magazine that was copy heavy with extensive articles about well known and not-so-well-known bands, varying a range of genres. These magazines were the first issues of State of Mind. I remember coming out of Higher Ground shows on freezing winter nights and there were Live Music Beth and State of Mike, all bundled up and full of smiles, handing out copy after copy of State of Mind. Some were taken and read, some taken and left on car floors, and unfortunately, many strewn around as litter, similar to fliers you get at larger shows promoting a late night performance of some similar sounding band. I have never actually asked Live Music Beth about these early days, but it would have broken my heart to see that. But still they wrote, and published, and got advertising, and stood outside, show after show, promoting State of Mind...

Now, they have published their 25th issue and have gotten semi-glossy and in color. The style is still lengthy interviews, reviews, and other articles about bands of the day - bands you may not hear about in most other music mediums. And in this day and age of short and sweet, I find it extremely refreshing they have stuck to their state of mind. These are well written articles on music with a backing of honest journalism. And as for that quest for truth - join the it and check out - www.stateofmindmusic.com.

They also have State of Mind Radio and you can befriend them on My Space.

Oh, and you can still see Live Music Beth, State of Mike, and other State of Mind contributors handing out the magazine after shows. Only this time, there is no litter - and that isn't only because the world is greening up. Distribution has saturated the Northeast border at this point and here in Vermont, we can be proud of another music phenomenon that grew out of the Green Mountains.