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| Huge Lewis's album cover |
This week's collection of IHearIC videos from May 2013 features a return of The Combined Efforts Men's Chorus as well as Iowa City staple, Dana T. Plus, former Iowa City rock band, Huge Lewis.
"The Men’s Choir was founded in 2012. Since that time they have performed at many local venues, often with a variety of other musical groups. They also perform in all Combined Efforts productions." - from the Men's Choir page on the Combined Efforts website
Combined Efforts' Men's Choir's home page:
http://combinedefforts.org/mens-choir/
Combined Efforts on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/CombinedEffortsTheatre/
"It’s only hearsay, but Dana T is the bandleader for a late-night talk show that films in an alternate universe Studio 54. Carl Sagan is a guest every night. Catering is mostly dragonfruit. It’s all very casual, yet very intense.
"The other rumors are true: Dana T makes delightfully odd music that 'draws you in, even as it baffles you.' (Little Village Magazine, Nov. 2015). The sonic trademarks are horns and strings fighting alongside melodic, Motown bass-lines. The drumming is frenetic and the guitar parts are shape-shifting monsters, fuzzed-to-heck riffs one moment and a clean spank the next.
"It’s an arrangement style that isn’t too far from early Scott Walker or the Beach Boys, but the sound itself is a lush funk, a series of ethereally pretty vocals slinging it all together on the griddle. There’s a chaotic sort of satisfaction and kismet to it all, as if questions and answers have been written on separate scraps of paper, hurled in the air, and correctly landed on top of one another.
"His birthday is October 13, 1990. On his 12th birthday, Nelly had the #1 song in America—and, yet, Dana T still felt the need to make music. So he did. He even got a degree in it from the University of Iowa. With his day-job at Flat Black Studios in Iowa City and the generosity of his talent and personality, it’s safe to say he’s been able to cherry-pick from the region’s best musicians in building his wall of groove.
"Since 2012, he’s been traveling the USA performing solo and with counterculture weirdo saxophonist Curt Oren by his side. His debut record, tiny mind MASSIVE soul, was released in early 2016. The follow-up, Harsh Forever, is another album of ever-evolving, darkly cosmic disco coming out in the spring 2018."
- from Dana T's Facebook page
Dana T's home page:
http://www.danatelsrow.com/
Dana T on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/danapalant/
"Music this carefully constructed and carelessly implemented could be off-putting, but Huge Lewis isn’t. Part of their aesthetic is to ride right up to the edge of being annoying. They hint at this by naming themselves after the second most annoying pop rock vocalist ever, Huey Lewis (the first being Eddie Money). Other Iowa City bands set out to damage their audience’s hearing without bothering to properly tune their guitars; it’s no innovation. But Huge Lewis imbues every chord progression on Ascending Into Heaven with tricky modulations that go back to the Beatles and Big Star. Nothing here is a two-chord piss take.
"All this slap-dashery hangs together, just. Lurking in this basement junk pile of an album is surprisingly sophisticated song-craft. There are bands (Jesus & Mary Chain comes to mind) that were ruined by achieving technical proficiency. Huge Lewis’ songs could actually survive more careful treatment, but they’re kind of great just as they are: both baffling and ingratiating."
- from a Kent Williams review of Huge Lewis's record on the Little Village website
Huge Lewis on Bandcamp:
https://hugelewis.bandcamp.com/
PREVIOUSLY ON IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE:
AUDIBLE FARM PODCAST - Episode 19: Erich Tran
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2019/01/audible-farm-podcast-episode-19-erich.html
FESTER RAGE VIDEOS - Buick McSnake (Brad Roth and Troy Ulrich) on Halloween 2008 http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2019/01/fester-rage-videos-buick-mcsnake-brad.html
IHEARIC PODCAST - Episode 58: Mill Show Preview (01/20/2019)
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2019/01/ihearic-podcast-episode-58-mill-show.html
IOWA BASEMENT TAPES - #29 1-17-2019
https://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2019/01/iowa-basement-tapes-29-1-17-2019.html
YOUR OWN PRIVATE IOWA - Episode 42: Goldblums/The Vahnevants
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2019/01/your-own-private-iowa-episode-42.html
THREE RANDOMLY PICKED PREVIOUS POSTS....
IHEARIC VIDEOS - Some Blues and A Chorus
https://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2018/05/ihearic-videos-some-blues-and-chorus.html
DSM UNPLUGGED - Chris Ranallo on Jan 6, 2016
https://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2018/06/dsm-unplugged-chris-ranallo-on-jan-6.html
IHEARIC PODCAST - Episode 26: Feed Me Weird Things (06/03/2018)
https://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2018/06/ihearic-podcast-episode-26-feed-me.html
OTHER IMSC WEBSITES AND LINKS:
Feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/IowaMusicShowcase
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Iowa-Music-Showcase/364796883703114
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/iamusicshowcase
Instagram:
https://instagram.com/iowamusicshowcase
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