6/13/08 O-Scene Weekend

Featured Event: Emily King and Anthony David

A guitar, a mic and a head full of songs combined with a few beers and a reasonably attentive audience-it’s such a simple formula really, and that’s what makes it so damned hard to pull off.
Before the digitization of all things melodic turned everyone and their momma’s into laptop producers, the easiest way to jump into the industry was as a singer/songwriter: get a halfway decent guitar, a few heartfelt lyrics and a couple of people to listen to you and boom-you’re a musician.
But while a hand full of newbies have successfully pulled off the Joni Mitchell/Traci Chapman steez, the road to Bob Dylanhood is littered with discarded guitar cases, cried in beers and song lyrics scribbled on barroom napkins. But for singer/songwriters Emily King and Anthony David, playing tonight at Q’s lounge in Jack London Square, the road has put them on the highway to success and a possible place among the coffeeshop greats.
22 year old Emily King is a bit of a musical prodigy. After leaving school at 16 because classes were moving too slowly, the ambitious New Yorker got her GED and set out to start her own musical movement that so far has led to international acclaim and a 2007 Grammy nomination for her debut album “East Side Story”. From the beginning, King’s music-nimble guitar playing under soul, jazz and pop melodies that lives somewhere between Corinne Bailey Rae, Norah Jones and Mary J Blige, has been drawn from her life story, independent ideology and desire to make a difference in the world. “I think music is such a revolutionary thing” she says “and that’s what it should be.”
Atlanta’s Anthony David isn’t necessarily out to start a revolution, he just wants to make some good music. “Sometimes (my music) is escapism, sometimes it’s sympathy or emotion,” he explains. “Sometimes it’s grounded in the present and some times it’s taking you away from it.” The modern day troubadour calls his style “Millennium Blues” because of the way it “all goes back to the blues. The lyrics, the music, my using everything from acoustic to hip-hop, the story telling…all of it connects through the blues like a bridge.”
A product of Atlanta’s singer songwriter and spoken word scenes, David is signed to close friend India.Arie’s Soulbird Music label and has worked with some of the ATL’s most prolific performers. When he straps on his guitar southern influences drip from his music like molasses. His guitar playing on his new album “Acey Ducey” has a relaxed, “on the front porch” ease to it, and his lyrical honesty paints a picture of a man who’s comfortable in his skin and with what he has to offer.
David’s songs are impressive without trying to impress. From the duet “Words,” that reveals his musical relationship with Arie, to the “Red Clay Chronicles,” a candid depiction of hustling and city life to “Smoke One,” an ode to kicking back with friends-David says this relaxed, no frills approach to music is the only way he’d ever think of creating.When the young revolutionary from back east meets the laid back southern crooner tonight over dueling guitars, it should be a great meeting of the musical minds as well as an instructional session on how to make this deceptively simple style sound as sweet as we all know it can.-kwan

Emily King and Anthony David
$35
Doors at 6, Show at 8pm
Q’s Lounge
126 Broadway, Oakland, CA
www.eandjbbq.com

2/22 Jesse Boykins III CD Release Party

While I admit I’m not the most R&B friendly music listener, the last couple of years have been good ones for the both the Rhythm and the Blues. The genre’s recovered from a nasty case of Neo Soul that while sometimes inspirational, was the kind of sweet more in line with saccharine than molasses and tended to leave a bad aftertaste.
But in the 41510, hometown darlings Ledisi, Goapele, Keyshia Cole and Jennifer Johns have been making big moves, while the national scene has seen inspiring work from the likes of Erykah Badu, Dwele, Sa-Ra and Martin Luther among others. All have the smoothness required for those late night cuddle sessions, but enough substance that you don’t feel guilty the morning after.
The latest young lion to toss his hat into the ring for nu soul ruler is Brooklyn’s Jesse Boykins III, whose debut EP “Dopamine: My life on My Back” is a purging collection of 8 tracks spawned from a lost love.

Tuesday 1/8 ANDREW CARRIERE & THE ZYDECO ALLSTARS

“A native of Southern Louisiana, accordionist and singer Andrew Carriere brings a long family tradition into his playing. His father was the legendary Creole fiddler “Bebe” Carriere, his uncle was accordionist Eraste Carriere, and cousins Chubby, Calvin, and Roy Carrier are popular in the zydeco arena. Carriere moved to the Bay Area in the ’60s, learned accordion from the late Danny Poullard, and is featured vocalist on the California Cajun Orchestra’s “Not Lonesome Anymore” CD. He performs regularly with the Creole Belles and CZ & the Bon Vivants, and more occasionally in the Cajun Classics.

Carriere’s Cajun/Zydeco Allstars are steel guitarist Billy Wilson, drummer David “Killer” Hymowitz, guitarist Mitch Polzak, and fiddler Marty Jara. The lineup may not seem particularly “traditional” to current followers of Cajun and zydeco, but, Wilson explains, “This is the real tradition that came out of the ’50s and ’60s honky-tonk Cajun bands, where they just had fun and played for dancers. The steel guitar was right there, and fiddles and an occasional lead guitar.” And, of course, the accordion. The repertoire is the standards and classics of Cajun and zydeco, old and new.”

Andrew Carriere and the Zydeco Allstars
$10
Doors at 7:30 p.m.
Cajun/Zydeco dance lesson at 8:00 p.m.
Show at 8:30 p.m.
Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center
1317 San Pablo Ave.
Berkeley, CA 94702
http://www.ashkenaz.com

12/31 New Year’s Eve Events

 

 

-Brass Menazeri

Take heed all ye faithful revelers, your night has arrived! The streets will be filled with merriment, the music will play, the drink will flow and the world will move just a little closer to universal peace, love and understanding-or at the very least we’ll see some fireworks, blow some noisemakers and bond with tons of people you won’t remember in the morning.

From the traditional to the eccentric, the formal to the WTF! there’s a little something in the Novoscene New Year’s Eve guide for however you like get your respective groove on. See you in the New Year!

-kwan

2008 New Year’s Bash w/ DJ Jay-R

$10

8 p.m

White Horse Inn

6551 Telegraph Ave., Oakland

510-652-3820

WhiteHorseBar.com

 

 

Brian Jack & Zydeco Gamblers

$45

9 p.m.

Eagles Hall, 2305 Alameda Ave., Alameda

415-285-6285

SFZydeco.com

 

 

Black Comedy Explosion W/ Earthquake, Lavelle Crawford, Sheryl Underwood, & Rueben Paul.

$39.75-$67.75

10 p.m.

Paramount Theatre,

2025 Broadway, Oakland,

510-465-6400

ParamountTheatre.com

 

Bootie Pirate New Year’s Eve Party w/ Adrian & the Mysterious D, Party Ben, Dada, Smash-Up Derby, DJs Earworm Freddy & King of Pants, & the Indra

$20-$30

9 p.m

DNA Lounge

375 11th St., San Francisco

415-626-1409

DNALounge.com

 

 

Cake W/ the Lovemakers

$69.50-$79.50

9 p.m.

The Warfield

982 Market St., San Francisco

415-775-7722

Oakland AIDS Awareness Week Events

 

December 1 is World AIDS Day and while a recent announcement from UNAIDS and the World Health Organization reported that the percentage of people living with the disease is leveling off, make no mistake, HIV/AIDS is still a very serious worldwide epidemic.

According to the Global Steering Committee of the World AIDS Campaign, over 5700 people died each day from AIDS-related illnesses in 2007. Over 6800 people are still being infected with HIV daily, about 1200 of whom are children under 15 and about 2900 are women 15 years and older.

The city of Oakland has declared this to be AIDS Awareness Week and is sponsoring a series of free events, testings, film screenings and fundraisers through the weekend.

Being safe and getting regular tests play a big part in staying safe.

Below is a list of events and testing centers throughout the town.

-kwan

 

 

Oakland World Aids Week Events

 

Wednesday Nov. 28

HIV and Gospel Music Workshop

During this four-day workshop not only will we learn new music but we will also train members of the community of faith during about the impact of HIV on the church. The leader for the Gospel Music segment of the workshop will be Pastor Jeffrey Williams. We look forward to working with you. We are hopeful that your schedule will allow you to be involved in changing the way HIV education and information gets presented to our community of faith.

$25

5-9pm

Olivet Institutional Missionary Baptist Church

807 27th Street, Oakland CA 94601

 

Get Screened Oakland and East Bay AIDS Walk Community Awards Reception

6-9pm

City Hall

1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza

http://www.getscreenedoakland.org/wedrecp.html

 

Prayer Circle

8pm

City Hall Square

1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza

11/23 Novoscene Weekend

I know it’s Black Friday and you’re all pooped from shopping and stuffing yourselves with stuffing. Well get those keisters back in gear dammit! There’s goin’ out to do! Tonight stop by the AK Press warehouse and hear one our foremost US policy critics get critical, then hop to Berkeley to find out why everything you’ve brought today is wrong. Saturday is a bit more cheerful with spoken word and community celebrations before Sunday comes round with a great reason for all you writers to get out from behind your desks for a few hours. A great way to work off those holiday pounds…

-kwan

11/9 Novoscene Weekend

 

Just another great weekend in the Bay Ares. Start Friday off with a little graffiti and youth art then mix it up with a little high impact monster puppet rock and cap it off with a birthday party for one of the most swellest chicks in the Bay. -kwan

11/2 Novoscene Weekend

Last weekend was all about Ghouls and Goblins and things that go bump when you’re drunk and stumble over them (but maybe that’s just us). This weekend we’re mellowing out with some poetry, a little art, a little soul and jazz and, if you’re feeling really frisky-some spooky surrealist Japanese Anime. For a good cause of course…

Novoscene Weekend

There’s a heaping helping of events all around the town this fine October weekend. We’ve got some scrumptious choir performances with side helpings of dance lecture and hood theater. Some fresh out the oven girl rock along with a little experimental film to wash it down and some sweet, sweet beat poetry to top it off, and that’s just the first course. Pull up a chair, grab a fork and dig in.-kwan

Eulipia Performance Salon 1st Anniversary Finale Gala

Eulipia Performance Salon 1st Anniversary Finale Gala

October 2^nd, 8PM (sharp)

Walter Kitundu

Please join us for this night of celebration and reflection.

Since October 2006, Eulipa/Knot Frum Hear has featured some of the Bay’s innovators in the worlds of word and music and continues to explore alternative spaces through performance, sound, and vision.