Monthly Archives: September 2011

7th NY Gypsy Festival at Drom (NY)

Tomorrow the official kick-off of the annual Gypsy fete with Gabby Young & Other Animal’s return to New York on Thurs, Sept 9. From klezmer hip-hop to flamenco funk, Balkan blues to circus swing and indie-pop there is a little something for everyone at the 3-week festival this time around. Drom in downtown Manhattan is gearing up to host all of the shows under one roof this year and you can still buy $45 festival passes here or join our Facebook page where we will be giving away a few festival passes starting tomorrow!

The Ebony Hillibillies – a New York subway platform institution since the late 1980s!

Date: September 7, 2011
Venue: 34th St. Hearald Square (NY) MTA station
Text by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

Today I was on my way to meet my wife at 43th Street and 6th Avenue. I was in a hurry because I didn’t want to keep my wife waiting outside in the rain. Just before the exit I heard some music behind me. I just turned around and saw a quartet – The Ebony Hillibillies – of interest looking guys playing a kind of acoustic, folky roots music. Instantly I took out my I phone and shot them for a couple of minutes. In a situation like this I usually would approach the band and ask for a short interview, but…my wife was waiting for me outside in the rain. Whom should I give priority my wife or this band? Of course my wife, right?

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The award-winning documentary “The Hand of Fatima” is now available on DVD!

This personal documentary about music critic Robert Palmer and his musical family, The Master Musicians of Jajouka, was a Critic’s Pick at New York Magazine, who called it “deeply compelling.” The documentary, which screened at New York’s Anthology Film Archives as well as at a broad range of film festivals in 2009 and 2010, features interviews with Anthony DeCurtis, Stephen Davis, Donovan, Bill Laswell, Yoko Ono, Genesis P. Orridge, and Randy Weston as well as a performance by The Master Musicians of Jajouka led by Bachir Attar. Directed by Robert Palmer’s daughter, Augusta Palmer, The Hand of Fatima combines live action footage of the her 2007 visit to the village of Jajouka with animations and archival images that bring to life her father’s 1970s experiences in the Moroccan village of Jajouka, as well as his subsequent trips there with Ornette Coleman and others.

Buy the DVD now on Amazon.com or Buy it at The Hand of Fatima website

 

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Music listings – 9/5 through 9/11

1. Lukas Ligeti – Elliott Sharp Duo

Date: Monday, September 5, 2011
Time: 8pm
Venue: the University of the Streets (130 east 7th street. 2nd floor. NY)
Ticket: $10
Genre: Jazz/improve

Guitarist/saxophonist/electronicist/unpredictable multi-instrumentalist Elliott Sharp and drummer Lukas Ligeti join forces for an exploration of freely-improvised polymeters, fractal proportions, and exploding microscopic soundscapes. drawing on free and open skies of all kinds – jazz, conceptual, new music, etc., they open the doors to musical vistas yet unseen.

 2. TALIBAM !

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Soundfest At Val Du Lakes – an old music festival fairground was reopened

Date: June 20th, 2011
Location: Mears, Michigan

Text by Jim Hoey

This summer in Michigan, something went down around Mears, Michigan, a small town near the Great Lakes and one of the largest area of dunes in the country. An old music festival fairground was reopened, called Val Du Lakes, one which used to host bands like Aerosmith and Metallica back in its heyday.

Bill Cosby: great flow and best footwear at the fest. Photo courtesy of Jim Hoey

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