Sam’s Saloon has Schmegma, Evil 10 Submission, and Gash Hound on stage Saturday night for what promises to be loud and metallic entertainment. Charming names, boys.
Deano’s Vino has TenFoot Band tonight and the Last Drop Juggers tomorrow. Expect it to be quieter than Sam’s Saloon. That’s not a qualitative judgment, mind you - I merely speak in terms of decibels.
The new episode of the IMN podcast is up - download it here or listen at the site.
Or, in the future, tune in to the HD2 channel of WFYI’s broadcast signal. We’re joining the lineup for their new channel later this fall, so we’re tightening up the show a bit in preparation. Let me know what you think.
For those keeping score, that’s the podcast itself plus broadcasts on Purdue student radio and HD public radio here in Indy. I’m sure a huge media network is only days away, really.
EDIT: The first broadcast takes place today at 4pm - listen on your HD radio or at WFYI’s homepage!
The most recent issue of Bass Player magazine has a feature article on Wayman Tisdale and his celebrated smooth jazz career following his time in the NBA (including several great years right here in Indianapolis). It also mentioned his recovery from bone cancer, and he mentioned everything seemed to be fine now. Unfortunately, there seems to have been a minor setback, and Tisdale recently had part of his leg removed in order to combat the disease. Tisdale maintains a decent touring and recording schedule, so here’s hoping he makes a speedy recovery and can get back to playing what he loves.
The only problem with this article was that it put a subpar Boyz II Men song in my head. Otherwise, I loved the fact that the Detroit Free Press took some time off from their mayoral hijinks to highlight some of the great contributions bassists from both Detroit and Philadelphia have made to jazz and popular music. It’s nothing fans haven’t read before, but it’s still much-due recognition.
Coincidentally, I was listening to Philly product Stanley Clarke’s new project with Marcus Miller and Victor Wooten today. “SMV” sounds like . . . well, Stanley Clarke and Victor Wooten joining in on a Marcus Miller-produced album, which is exactly how it’s billed on the album. Fans will know exactly what they’re getting into, and I don’t see much of a market outside of that, honestly. Still, decent listening.
Now I have to go pound my head with something until that Boyz II Men song leaves.
I spent a little time working with iZotope’s iDrum (the hip-hop edition - I am not a club kid) this weekend, and it gets decent marks from me. It’s still not up to “live” performance level (which makes me rethink my initial objections to BeatMaker), but it is a handy drum machine application. My only complaints are that the kits don’t come with a blank slate (you have to go in and edit pre-created beats or save the kits under another name and edit those) and there’s no real export function. The samples are passable, though, and the interface is easy enough to deal with once you get used to it.
It also makes a handy metronome, if nothing else. I’m not sure why metronomes and “guitar toolboxes” with tuning notes, chord charts, etc. are the first thing to pop up in portable devices (a grand tradition started with the Palm series), but they’re always the first thing listed when I look up music apps. A couple of bucks more, and you’ve got something with a little more variety and usefulness. Just a changeable sample alone is worth the price; metronomes are valuable tools, but the makers still use an annoying click or beep instead of something more aurally satisfactory. And it beats the cheap standalone I had to buy for the bass book photo shoot last year.
Sidenote: This weekend’s Zombiefest at Key Cinemas was a joy to attend. My colleagues and I weren’t able to stay through the bitter end, but we took in the majority of the films with zeal and gusto.
