Shredding in the Desert: Tinariwen @ Cats Cradle 3.20.14

"Welcome to the desert," said Tinariwen's Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni, the singer in palest blue robes who orchestrated our clapping with his elegant gestures and spacious dance moves. The Carrboro, North Carolina audience swarmed in unison as if to say, "Yes please. Take me to your campfire."

Frontman and founder Ibrahim Ag Alhabib, he of the trademark loose mane, was missing, as on other recent U.S. tours. I heard it said it's due to visa problems. Fear not, though, filling his lead guitar and vocalist shoes is Sadam Iyar Imarhan, who sounds and even looks eerily like a younger version of Ibrahim. Sadam doesn't speak much English, but a Mauritanian friend helped me to understand he's been with the group for just one month, and is a cousin of bandmember Hassan (not currently on the tour). All the rest of Tinariwen are long-time members.

 

There was exciting chemistry between Sadam and bassist Eyadou Ag Leche. Roostering about with their axes, they played off each other and even broke into occasional smiles, causing slight ruptures in Tinariwen's usual onstage demeanor--a powderkeg of reserve, ecstatic awareness rippling beneath a calm surface.

"Desert Blues" is at once perfectly evocative, and yet somehow a woefully inadequate label to describe the the Tuareg sound. The analogy makes historic and visceral sense but only gets you part way there. There's call and response singing, and what seems (to this unstudied observer) to be quite elaborate polyrhythmic and formal structures. Above all, the poetic trancey vibe is unlike anything else, and highly addictive. But as trancey as it gets, it always feels like the songs follow ancient forms. Nonetheless, there's plenty of room in there for ecstatic transport, and a quality of being fully in the moment.

This kind of jibes with something Eyadou told me after the set. Still looking incredibly youthful after 15 years with the band, he told me Tuaregs think differently about age and time.

"In the desert, we don't [celebrate] birthdays. I am living today. Every day is my happy birthday." 

--Tinariwen bassist Eyadou Ag Leche

For the encore set, Abdallah took up guitars and lead vocal for some acoustic and electric stuff. Here's a few moments featuring bass and guitar solos from Eyadou and Abdallah:



The new album is called Emmaar; the vinyl edition with free CD inside sold for $25 at the merch table.

LINKS:

Tinariwen band webpage

The Great Peace: KAIRABA releases 2nd CD at Cats Cradle, 3/14

Diali Cissokho & Kaira Ba had the audience it deserved Friday night:  a Cradle full of people who know the band, and passionately share in its music. This CD release party for its eponymous second CD, which translates “Kaira Ba” as The Great Peace, turned out more of a euphoric frenzy. Fully in command, the 6-piece plus special guests enjoyed the richly deserved moment, three years since their inaugural show at the Nightlight in February 2011.

The throbbing pulse of Orquesta GarDel had only recently faded, and salsa dancers ebbed from the floor, as we waited for Kaira Ba to set up and go on. GarDel played a strong opening set, with its out-of-town members Brevan Hampden (timbales) and Andy Kleindienst (trombone), both on sabbatical to attend grad school, in the house and representing. Some of these faces—conguero Atiba Rorie, saxophonist Tim Smith—would stick around to lend an assist later.

Two koras with their gourd shells ornamented, one with a beautiful painting of Africa, the other studded with the name KAIRABA, leaned in repose at a place of honor center stage. Corralled around them:  a panoply of hand drums of different sizes and origins—sabar, thiol, djembes, congas, dundun, calabash. Amps, guitars, drumset and upright bass set the stage to ready mode. Grabbing prime spots near the edge of the stage, Kaira Ba’s international fanbase came ready to party in looks that ranged from jeans and beards, to palazzo pants and sequined halter tops, tweed hats and hand dyed finery.

The members of the band came onstage drumming, also sporting diverse attire from skinny ties, pearl-button shirts and Converse to bare feet and vibrant patchwork garments. The same Senegalese patchwork fabric provided the cover art for the album, and probably speaks to the band’s grown together, hybrid Carolina-African roots.

Running tunes from the new album took us to Senegal right away, starting with the upbeat “Fallou” and “Bamba Wotena.” Some Americans pogo’ed, while a few Wolof speakers in the crowd got Cissokho’s references to people and places back home and sang along. For the third tune, Cissokho’s wife Hilary emerged to sing soprano backup and maintained that role. Cissokho’s kora and John Westmoreland’s guitar conversed back and forth, and the percussion powerhouse of Austin McCall, Will Ridenour, and at times even bassist Jonathan Henderson, was shored up by the group’s newest member, Mame Cheikh Njigal Dieng. Dieng, a professional musician from Senegal, recently moved to Durham and recorded on The Great Peace.

“We had the music written by the time Cheikh came in, but there were a few songs where we had hit some walls,” said Ridenour, post-show, about the Fidelitorium sessions. “He said, ‘why don’t you try this?’ Suddenly there were no walls anymore.”

Gabriele Pelli recreated his role as a guest on the session at the CD release party, adding haunting fiddle motifs to the spiritual tour de force “Alanole” (“No One Can Know God.”) Cissokho paused then to say his thank yous, while Ridenour retuned his kora for another intense slowburner, “Mere Khadi.” A horn set followed, with trumpeter Zack Rider, trombonist Quran Karriem, and saxophonist Tim Smith elevating the soul revue aspect of tunes like “Al Hadji” and “Mbolo.” If anything, this move was even more successful live than on the album, and one can hope to hear more brass in Kaira Ba’s future.

An encore set began with “Sida” (“AIDS”), an understated reverie featuring kora, guitar and Pelli’s violin, before taking a turn for the rambunctious. The band pumped a carnaval-like backbeat as a shirtless Cissokho bathed his face and body in a pile of broken glass, jumping and rolling around in a fearsome display. The celebratory night closed with “Jabu,” a rouser from the first CD Resonance, which ties Cissokho’s love for his family in Senegal to the love he feels for, and from, U.S. audiences.

The post-show love fest included not only friends, but total strangers offering the band members their thanks, pressing the flesh and getting CDs signed. A lot of bands say they are going to take their sophomore album to the next level; Diali Cissokho & Kaira Ba worked hard to actually do that, and it shows.

LINKS:

Listen to the CDs at Kaira Ba Music

Desert Blues: TINARIWEN This Sunday (11/13)

Tinariwen means "deserts" in Tomashek, the language of the Tuareg, a nomadic people who inhabit the Sahel regions of Northern and West Africa. It's also the name of a Tuareg band from Mali that makes hypnotic, guitar-driven "desert blues" their calling card. They play this Sunday (11/13) at The Cat's Cradle; intoxicating, Swiss singer/songwriter Sophie Hunger opens the 8 pm show.


Tinariwen on tour last month in Los Angeles. Photo (c) Timothy Norris.

Formed originally in 1979, Tinariwen broke out as an international touring band ten years ago, and has since produced five albums. Their latest, Tassili, takes its name from an Algerian region of spare beauty where they recorded outdoors and an impromptu tent studio. As that method suggests, they are returning to acoustic roots on this album. Here's a documentary about the process:



A bit more plugged in, here's a nice little rocker from their last album Imidiwan: Companions (2008):



Sit around the virtual campfire this Sunday (11/13) at Cat's Cradle; advance tix $22, day of show $25.

LINKS:

Cat's Cradle, Sunday, November 13, 8 pm TINARIWEN
Tinariwen artist website
Sophie Hunger artist myspace (opener)

Halloween Treat: West African/Jazz FREE SHOW TONIGHT (10/31) by The Brand New Life

The Brand New Life is blend of jazz improvisation and West African mbalax and Afrobeat. For a Halloween treat, the Greensboro band plays a FREE SHOW TONIGHT (10/31) at 11 pm at The Station in Carrboro.

To learn more about how this band got together, read my profile in The Independent earlier this year. The last time I saw them, at Shakori Hills in October, they were seriously on fire, with heavy mbalax grooves by their Senegalese talking drummer, Mamadou Mbengue, following on the heels of jazz tunes with crazy meters. Mamadou takes a solo at the end of this clip of the BNL live at 2011 Floydfest:



LINKS:

Facebook event page: Halloween (10/31) with The Brand New Life
Venue calendar: The Station in Carrboro

Africa Calling: Angelique Kidjo SUNDAY (10/16)

Afropop Amazon: Angelique Kidjo (photo: Andrzej Pilarczyk)

There's been such a wealth of great African music in town this month. Although I had to miss Bassekou Kouyate at Duke this Friday, I did this preview for dP's blog The Thread.

I did get a chance to see most of the Mau a Malawi: Stories of AIDS project at UNC that same evening. What a dedicated group of musicians, student actors, and volunteers. To mention only some is to slight all, but the vocalists in particular are so wonderful; I'm now a huge Lizzy Ross fan. To read more about the Mau a Malawi concept album, see my Indy story about it here. To visit the Stories of AIDS webpage, go here, where you can download the album for a donation to the arts-based charity Talents of the Malawian Child. It's for a good cause, yes; but just as importantly, it's great original music that deserves to be widely heard.

As a preview to that evening, Peter Mawanga, the Malawian co-producer of Mau of Malawi, gave a sweet, free show at The Station on Wednesday prior. Some of the guys from Kairaba backed him up, as well as others from the show. I got to get a good look and listen to Peter's "Jozi," his custom-made South African guitar. He and Mau a Malawi collaborator Andrew Finn Magill are still actively songwriting, and they played one song that they had written only 2 days before, dedicated to "those women who go through so much," in Peter's words, "before being forced to sell their bodies on the streets in a country that is ravaged by HIV and AIDS. This song is for those ladies." How rare and moving it was to hear a man speak about sex workers with such compassion; I felt like I was understanding the song, although the lyrics were in Chichewa. That IS the univeral power of music to communicate beyond language, a gift Peter has in great measure.

Kairaba played an opening set, intense as usual; one hears them growing in confidence, as they are about to head into the studio this week to record a first album. Kairaba's spiritual head, Diali Cissokho, always wins a crowd. His euphoric moment in the show this time came when he (somehow) balanced his kora upside down, and still managed to played it. I didn't have the stamina to take in Kairaba and Toubab Krewe out at Shakori Hills last weekend, but from what I hear, Diali did a surprise, walk-on vocal with one of Toubab Krewe's songs--the instrumental just happened to be a song he knew from Senegal. I wish I could have been there to see THAT. Lesson learned--always expect the unexpected from this charismatic griot of Carrboro.

The African music streak ain't over. Beninese singer Angelique Kidjo hits UNC's Memorial Hall this Sunday (10/16). Here's my Indy pick writeup about her. I saw Kidjo a few years back, touring with Santana at Walnut Creek. The global pop diva still commands respect as a strong voice from, and for, Africa. I was really stunned by this bare, unplugged duo performance that shows just how strong that voice is:



LINK:

Angelique Kidjo @ UNC Memorial Hall, Sunday (10/16) at 7: 30 pm; tickets $10 (student) to $39 price range.

MORE INFORMATION ON AFRICAN MUSIC:

Listen to Bonjour Africa, Sundays 4-6 PM on WNCU 90.7 FM with host Bouna Ndiaye

CMF: The Remix

Carrboro Music Festival, you are always so beautiful. My review comes a week late, but I've spent all that time soaking in the good energy that overflowed into the streets last Sunday (9/27).


Celtic Tim Smith




Reggae Tim Smith

Everyone has their own CMF, whether one targets bands to see, or just wanders the 25 in- and outdoor venues for hours without a plan. I did a little of both; saw both Tim Smiths get together (that could have ruptured space/time, but we were lucky), and found myself strangely attracted to bluegrass and oldtime music. It's all that fingerpicking and harmony.


Rough Cut


The Gravy Boys



The Gravy Boys are high on that list. They practice something that old-time salsa and Latin bands used to do, a phenomenon I call "three men on a mic." There's something sweet about that ear-tuned harmony and close attention to group dynamic. Sing it for me, Gravy Boys:



Looking at their calendar, I see The Gravy Boys are coming to The Blue Note Grill on Bus. 15-501 in Durham, this Thursday, Oct. 6--a free show, from 7-9 pm.


These two videos capture that freewheeling, Weaver Street spirit. I am informed that the hula hooper accompanying Tim's band is Julia Hartsell Crews:

Tim Smith Band


Climb Jacob's Ladder


It was my first time seeing Climb Jacob's Ladder, a band I've never been able to figure out how it sounds just from reading descriptions. I can see why: extremely eclectic and socially conscious, the band alludes to Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley, and other 70s landmarks, but never stays in one place for very long.

Saludos Compay at Tyler's Parking Lot has become an 8 pm tradition. I don't have any photos or videos (it was dark by then) but a good time was had, as always.

Kairaba @ Talullas; World Beat Fest TONIGHT (5/27)

Diali Cissokho & Kairaba @ Shakori Hills in April

The sensation I am recommending to everyone these days is Kairaba, a newly formed African band from the 'boros--Pittsboro, Carrboro, and Mbouror, Senegal. Diali Keba Cissokho is the griot to watch on the local music scene, having assembled a soulful trailblazer in Kairaba.

Kora, vocal, electric guitar, bass, drumset, djembe, dun dun and talking drum form the basis of this experimental sextet, whose members include Diali's nephew Sidya Cissokho, Midtown Dickens' Jonathan Henderson, jazz guitarist John Westmoreland, and longtime students of African rhythm Austin McCall and Will Ridenour.

The band name means "peace and love," a powerful, one-word concept in Manding. Will dissected it grammatically for me Thursday night:

Kaira = peace
-ba = a suffix meaning "big, great," therefore,
Kairaba = the big peace, or "peace to every living thing on earth."

Whoa.

The no-cover show was Kairaba's second at Talulla's, an event slated to repeat itself, for the time being, every other Thursday at 10 pm.

Andrew Magill, a fiddle player and former member of Charanga Carolina, joined the band last night for a few numbers. Here's audio capture of Andrew sitting on the last tune of the evening:



Catch KAIRABA again TONIGHT, Friday (5/27) at The Cat's Cradle's World Beat Fest, opening at 9:15 pm for DIFFERENT DRUM and DUB ADDIS.

Replay: Bomba Estereo Tour Through Carrboro

In case you missed it:

Bomba Estereo live at the Cat's Cradle on Wednesday:

Sacred Steel Conference Starts THURSDAY (3/17)

The Southern Sacred Steel Conference kicks off this Thursday (3/17) with a free front porch concert at UNC's Center for the Study of the American South. The Allen Boys perform between 5-7 pm. The free, public concert includes an audience conversation moderated by folklorist Robert Stone.

Facebook event page: The Allen Boys, Music on the Porch Series

Ticketed events get going on Friday (3/18) the Artscenter, which is hosting the conference exploring steel-guitar-based Black gospel music, with strongholds in Florida and Western NC. Folklorist Stone, who has documented the genre in photographs currently on exhibition at the Artscenter, will give several lectures. On Saturday, headlining artists will give steel guitar master classes. The conference ends Sunday morning with a worship service.


The Lee Boys

Evening concert headliners include The Lee Boys and Aubrey Ghent; see The Artscenter website for details and ticket info!

Artscenter: Link to all Sacred Steel Conference events

Conference Weekend Pass Pricing Here

Indy article by Spencer Griffith: "Southern Sacred Steel Conference Debuts"

Review: Los Amigos Bring the Sexy to Carrboro (2/25)

Although the Cradle wasn't completely sold out, the front of the house was jammed tight with pogo-ing, flagwaving fans by the time I got to Los Amigos Invisibles, about half an hour in to their show. Caught the tail end of this salsa tune on my way in:



A local Venezuelan delegation had brought them a cake that afternoon in honor of the band's twentieth anniversary. All the Amigos were there, except Jose Torres (whom I interviewed for their 2004 Zinga Son record); he had to go home to Spain unexpectedly, so a good pal of DJ Afro's was filling in on bass. Like Los Lobos, another idiosyncratic Latin fusion band, Los Amigos have kept the same close-knit core all these years.





LAI live is like a blender mixing música popular, from the hip to the corny, into a psychedelic milkshake. Before you've fully processed that snippet of an old bolero, they're off to quoting familiar funk hooks, bouncey Europop choruses and organ riffs from sporting events, all swirling in and around their own songs in a non-stop flow.





I got some facetime with DJ Afro after the show, and we talked about vinyl collecting and Venezuelan salsa rarities. He still does a podcast, DJ Afro y su rumba barata, which is broadcast in Caracas, Panama and Mexico City. We agreed that there should be a wiki database for music, similar to the IMDb for movies. Fellow music nerds, any ideas on how to make that happen?



This is my longest clip, a merengue marathon including the song "El Baile del Sobón" from Arepa 3000:

Peruvian Dance Party: Tropic Orchestra

Backlogged video from the vault: Tropic Orchestra performing at the Peruvian Independence Day Celebration back in July:



Rey Riera, seen on guiro here, has since taken over the bass position from Jeff Nelson. This gig was missing a trombonist, so Tamahl Gorham stepped in to double up on trumpets. Andres Leon takes a piano solo at the 3:30 min mark.

This was fun for me, my first time at the Peruvian American Coalition's yearly dinner/dance event at the Carrboro Century Center. For $20 it was a big plate of tasty Peruvian food, plus entertainment. The Peruvians have a healthy appetite for salsa, as well, and even after a full meal, they didn't hesitate to take to the dance floor. Here's a view of the scene as Tropic plays "La Murga":



LINKS:

Tropic Orchestra performs once this Saturday (9/18): at the Cary Caribbean Festival, around 5 pm. (An evening gig at the Copacabana in Raleigh, advertised here earlier, has been cancelled.) See calendar (right sidebar) for details.

CONTACTS:

If you would like to learn more about the Peruvian American Coalition, here are some local numbers you can call:

Durham (919) 672-6624
Chapel Hill (919) 308-8586
Raleigh (919) 641-5489
Cary (919) 414-7516


Jaime Roman sits in with Tropic Orchestra as a young girl, who performed later in the program as Selena, looks on. July 24, 2010 at Peruvian Independence Day Celebration.

Dap Mania Hits Cradle

It's been a few years since I last saw Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings. The show hasn't changed much, but her stature as a crossover phenom has: Sharon's been all over the late night talk shows, mainstream R&B radio and The Apollo Theater in recent days. I'm happy to be paying out a little more if it keeps Miss Jones in sequins and fringe. That lady is a short stack of dynamite, and I, like so many others who caught Dap fever at the Cradle last night, refuse to maintain a safe distance.







Still, I'm a little wistful for the days when you could just walk up and pay your money. A capacity crowd at the Cradle is a little frightening to tell the truth, a lot like a packed flight. Sure, there IS a bathroom, if you can get to it. Mostly, it just wasn't worth it to move around except in place.

You could move around on stage, however, if you were lucky enough to be handpicked from the crowd. The former corrections officer Jones kept order among the more boisterous volunteers, including a wannabe Isadora Duncan, mouthing "WTF!" to the crowd behind the ballerina's back. A really nice young man named Chauncey caught special favor by giving Sharon the Oshun treatment with a large Spanish fan. This, this, was appropriate homage for the Queen of Dap, and as due reward, she tapped him on each shoulder with the fan; arise, Sir Chauncey, Knight of the Dap Kingdom.

Here's another lucky fellow, laying claim to the Americas with Sharon on an adamant, "This Land is Your Land":



Opening act Fitz and the Tantrums was a perfect fit, with a 60s Motownish retro sound that was light, uptight and all right. It was kind of like The Killers with addition of a young Diana Ross/Martha Reeves. Female vocalist Noelle Scaggs told me afterwards she has followed Sharon for years, so it's a thrill to be opening for her.

Scaggs is also a tambourine virtuoso, and I say that with highest admiration. Sharon brought her out for the encore, which started with a bari sax solo-led rendition of "I'll Be There." Here's ten minutes of it, including band role call for the Dap Kings:



I bought Sharon's two most recent albums, to complete my 4-vinyl set, and stayed until the throngs dispersed to get them signed. I saw sick piles of money being counted behind the merch table as they were closing out for the night.

Godspeed, Miss Jones. Thank you for stopping in our town.

Groove Experiments: Chris Boerner Trio

There are so many talented musicians in this area, it's insane. Guitarist Chris Boerner is my latest fix: his experimental jazz gives me the happiest high I've come across lately that isn't Afro-Cuban.


Chris Boerner Trio @ The Station

Boerner, a Duke Jazz Studies grad, plays once a month at The Station with the trio made up of drummer Nick Baglio and bassist Damon Brown. Brown teaches bass at NCCU, and exploits a 6-string for Boerner's trio gigs. Baglio, son of Steam drummer Dick Baglio, has been mad touring lately with Michael Jackson tribute band Who's Bad?, and has a secret past as a timbalero, a legacy of his student days at the University of Miami.

I knew there was something...



Yep, every good drummer knows clave, but not even every Latin drummer can mess around with it productively, without violating its spirit. The trio plays improvisationally, everything from Monk to Radiohead. And even when pushing the meter across barlines, they never drop the groove, as Boerner's bopping head attests. When they allude to styles--samba, New Orleans second-line, guitar rock, reggae--it's witty and minimal, and somehow always soaked in funk. Boerner achieves upper octaves, electronic sounds, and distortion using a suitcase full of pedals:



Though metrically and harmonically playful, Boerner's music always remains groove-based and groove-driven. No wonder I like it. Those are qualities of a lot of timba and Afro-Cuban jazz. Brain and booty are in full agreement: this music feels good.

Here's Monk's "Bye-Ya" from the first set (low-light video, but it achieves sound capture):



They closed their second set with "Faceplant," a Boerner original:




The Station, a Carrboro bar on the tracks near Weaver Street Market, has indoor/outdoor spaces and mixes funky DIY decor with antique wood bar fixtures. See their no-cover music schedule here.

Under One Sun

One of 160 bands performing for free at Carrboro Music Festival this Sunday (9/20), One Sun is a jazz fusion project of Saludos Compay pianist Erich Lieth. He is joined here by Drew Pilant (percussion), Padmini Hands (Brazilian and South Asian vocals), Jay Miller (saxophone) and Victor Murillo (guitar), at Weaver Street Market last weekend:



Victor, who moved back to Ecuador this week, takes a final guitar solo at minute 3:15.

Moonlit Mellow Montuno

Saludos Compay at Caffe Driade

Driade's wine garden (they sell beer and coffees too) is a hot date spot and hang out when Saludos Compay plays once a month. The combo turns on guitars, voices and hand percussion--no timbales or horns--so it's a campfire atmosphere, a place to sip and converse while enjoying the primal groove of Cuban rhythm. There is something of the fairy tale to this color-lit, woodland setting, so if you are inclined to dance, this enclave is romantic.

It's with a mix of sad and happy that I bid public farewell to Victor Murillo, who played classical guitar with Saludos on Friday. Sad to be losing his talents as a multi-instrumentalist (and an excellent salsa dancer), and happy for a wonderful guy who is excited to be moving back to his home and family in Ecuador. Victor leaves Monday, but promises to be back to visit in November for a previously scheduled gig; in the meantime, abrazos y deseos para todo lo mejor!


Victor (far left) keeping an eagle eye on rhythm section leader Erich Lieth at June's Fiesta Latina. Also pictured: Lisa Lindsay and Arturo Velasquez.

Last Hurrah: Victor Murillo will perform with Erich Lieth's One Sun on the Carrboro Lawn in front of Weaver Street Market this Sunday (9/13) from 11 am - 1 pm.

carrboro conga line

Post update: Tambor Vivo concert at the Century Center now has video of the closing comparsa.

Tambor Vivo THIS WEDNESDAY (7/29)

Follow the drums to the Century Center this Wednesday, where Tambor Vivo, Beverly Botsford's Afro Cuban percussion ensemble, will be performing as part of Carrboro Parks & Rec's Summerdipity concert series:

WHAT: Tambor Vivo at Carrboro "Summerdipity" Concert Series
WHEN: Wednesday (7/29), 7:30-9 pm
WHERE: Century Center, 100 N. Greensboro St, Carrboro
COST: $3/person

I can find no website for this series but recent concerts have charged this admission fee; awaiting confirmation from Carrboro officials.

UPDATE CORRECTION: There is no group rate as previously advertised. Cost is $3 per person. More info on the Carrboro City webpage here.

Tambor Vivo is expanding, with recent additions of Andy Kleindienst (bass/trombone) and Alfredo Morua Averhoff (Cuban percussion, voice). Expect to see live dancing of the Cuban folkloric style of rumba guaguanco from Paso dancers.

Can't think of a better way to spend $3. The drum lives!


Update, posted 8/5:

Video of the closing number--a comparsa. Beverly shows off her aerial shekere skills!

Groovy x 2: Cratediggers' Alert

Two record sales are happening this weekend in the Chapel Hill/Carrboro groove zone:



UNC-Chapel Hill Libraries are having a record sale to benefit the Southern Folklife Collections on Saturday (4/4) 9:30 am - Noon in the Wilson Library.

Then on Sunday, from Noon - 6 pm, the city of Carrboro hosts their biannual Carrboro CD and Record Show, in the Century Center.

Enter free.

UNC acquires major artwork by Cornelio Campos

I am a big fan of painter Cornelio Campos and was DELIGHTED to hear from him, at the end of last year, that UNC was buying one of his large canvases. It's about time, not only that he achieve that kind of institutional recognition, but that a local entity with the resources to do so snap up some of his major work and keep it on display here, locally, on a permanent basis.

Now, this press release came from Sharon Mujica:

Sunday, March 22, 2009, 5:00-6:30 at CHICLE,
Talk and display - HIS ART by local artist Cornelio Campos

About the Artist:
Cornelio Campos has worked and lived in his native Mexico, in California, and now lives in Durham, NC. He is an electrician by trade and the founder of Los Viejitos, a dance group from his native Mexico. His paintings include expressive narratives of his beloved home town of Cheran, in the state of Michoacan in Central Mexico, and of his immigrant experiences in the US. He has drawn since he was a young child, and began to paint at the age of 10. He attended art classes in Cheran, taught by Panfilo Macias, and CREA Summer School in Guadalajara, Jalisco.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has recently purchased one of his paintings and it may be seen at the Campus YMCA.

Artist's Statement:
"My paintings are inspired by the nostalgia I have for my home town of Cheran, Mexico, my family, and the customs I grew up with. I also see my paintings as a tool for sharing my indigenous background, and for offering a teaching lesson to people here in the United States. I currently do two types of art; one which is folkloric, and the other would be considered political. In these pieces I address the issues faced by people from Central and South America — the lingering cultural significance of Spanish colonization, and the experience of creating a life in a new country. I would describe this work as narrative – a free expression of what I think about – a way to respond to what is happening in society in general, and the status of immigrants in the US." — Cornelio Campos
======

Please call us at (919) 933-0398 if you want more information.

CHICLE, or the Chapel Hill Institute of Cultural and Language Education, is located above the Weaver Street Market in Carrboro.

Salsa Inaugural Ball TONIGHT

Orquesta GarDel plays FREE tonight as part of Carrboro festivities in honor of Barack Obama's inauguration.

ORQUESTA GARDEL
Sunday (1/18), 8:30-9:45 pm
Century Center, Carrboro

UPDATE added 1/26:

Just like being there...only darker. Underexposed footage of The Beast at a related inaugural ball at Carrboro's The Station. The visual is a bit of a throwaway, but the audio of their salsa-inspired tune "Translation" is pretty decent. For those who don't know, The Beast is Pierce Freelon's live hiphop group featuring the gardelicious talents of Pete Kimosh (bass) and Eric Hirsh (keyboards) plus Stephen Coffman on drums. Tim Smith sits in on saxophone.



Prior to this, GarDel's set at the Century Center for an audience of dancers, hippies and hula hoopers was energetic and relaxed. Just what everyone needed in the New Year and the new administration. This is such a great venue for live music and dancing, it's a pity we don't get to hear salsa there more often.