IHEARIC VIDEOS - Dana T, a Choir, and a Rock Band

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.

FESTER RAGE VIDEOS - Buick McSnake (Brad Roth and Troy Ulrich) on Halloween 2008

Buick McSnake was a 90s and 00s band featuring Brad Roth and Lonnie Ulrich, both staples of the Des Moines music scene, having worked together since the 80s, most notably in ATOY/A  Testament of Youth.

IOWA BASEMENT TAPES - #29 1-17-2019

This is the first of a new weekly feature. It is a show Kristian Day, a long time artist of many genres, does featuring the metal, punk, and alternative music of our state.

Night Listeners -
Iowa Basement Tapes is back this week and its super heavy! I found the remains of the old Iowa Hadcore.com site which is now iowahardcore.blogger.com and found all kinds of goodies including The Tanks, Solid Attitude, and Through Hard Times. Good Ol' Bensmasher also informed me that Sludgeplow's Turned Earth album got remastered and re-released this past October. GET IT. A shout out to The Ruralists in Sioux City for sending me their album.

Catch us every Thursday from 9PM -10PM on 98.9 FM KFMG-LP DES MOINES & KCOE COE COLLEGE CEDAR RAPIDS.
-Kristian
#trustkristianday
www.kristianday.com | bandcamp.com/kristianday

The Tanks - "24 Hour Revenge Fantasy" / Slippin Pills (Iowa City)
Solid Attitude - "Smoking Sheets" / BB Gun Picnic (Iowa City)
Through Hard Times - "Brighter Days" / Moving On (Iowa City)
Waverly - "What We Are" / Fledging (Iowa City)
Sludgeplow - "Gut Fountain" / Turned Earth (Cedar Rapids)
The Ruralists - "Ghost" / Birth of Birds (Sioux City)
Telekinetic Yeti - "Beneath The Black Sun / Abominable (Dubuque)
Captain Three Leg -"Fith Column" / The Last C3L Tape (Ottumwa)
The Blendours - "Fairy Tale Love" / Bloated Saturday Compilation (Des Moines)
Harsh Times - "Dear Abby" / Bloated Saturday Compilation (Davenport)
Pink Neighbor - "Green Light Nights" / Green Light Nights (Grinnell)
Space Burial - "Pills" / Space Burial (Dubuque)

DES MOINES IS NOT BORING - The Vahnevants: Bum Out!

Starting today, we have a new irregular series we will feature from time to time. We will present some old articles from Dave Murphy's music column, Beats for the Soul, from the old website, Des Moines is not Boring. This particular piece is taken from Mar 19, 2015.

The last album I reviewed was the heartbreaking, ethereal, expertly-produced, full length debut from Annalibera, Nevermind I Love You. All those adjectives I used to describe it are absolutely correct and also will not be used to describe The Vahnevants’ Bum Out! That’s not a bad thing, but whereas Annalibera have floated out of the ether on a chariot made of dreams and driven by unicorns, The Vahnevants have sort of plowed their way onto the scene piloting a ’57 Chevy with mismatched doors and engine troubles. Both certainly make for memorable experiences.

GRIFFLETV - Poison Control Center Live at The Maintenance Shop in Ames on May 1, 2010

GriffleTV was a YouTube show that ran from May 2010 to Mar 2011 featuring local bands in live perfromances. We will feature some of these videos from time to time.

"The Poison Control Center is a band from Ames, Iowa.

"The band's indie rock sound is strongly influenced by bands of the 1960s, such as The Beatles and The Beach Boys, but they have also touched upon more unrelated genres since their inception. Their earlier recordings show influence of the lo-fi sound and pop sensibilities of indie rock bands of the 1990s, such as Guided by Voices and Pavement, although recent albums have featured more polished production."
- from their Wikipedia page

"The Poison Control Center have long been considered one of Iowa's personal favorite local bands. The creation of Patrick Tape Fleming and many of his friends, the band's inspiration has stood as one of Iowa's music scene's key ideals: community and friendship. Though the numbers and band members have changed throughout the years, the band has continued to release music in a more condensed version, having most recently released 2011's Stranger Ballet. The band is best known nowadays to consist of Patrick Tape Fleming on guitar and vocals as well as Devin Frank, who also plays guitar and sings, Joe Terry, who plays bass and sings (and does a cool thing with a trumpet and some swingin' hips), and Dave Olson, who plays drums (... and he sings, too). Though some of the members have moved away, the band still likes to get together to entertain the masses, doing cartwheels, standing on their heads while shredding through guitar solos, dancing in the crowd, and leading many a sing-a-long with the crowd (basically, putting on legendary rock shows). The PCC have spawned many other great bands around Iowa INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: Mantis Pincers, Gloom Balloon, and Histo (technically, not an Iowa band, but we still have love for Don). The PCC have also had special guests perform with them, such as Bob Nastanovich of Pavement, and Paul Shaffer from Late Night with David Letterman."
- from their page in DMMC's Music Directory

YOUR OWN PRIVATE IOWA - Episode 31: Halfloves

"Hailed as 'the best currently active rock band in Iowa' by the Iowa Informer, indie rock outfit Halfloves offers a variety of songs on their self-titled debut album made with renowned producer Brandon Darner (Imagine Dragons, The Envy Corps). Halfloves mixes pop sensibilities with heady textures and space to create an emotionally charged sound."
- from their Bandcamp page

This episode was recorded back at the end of March when the guys from Halfloves were rolling through Ames. This is probably the goofiest and one of the most fun epsiodes I had recording. Half of what you hear the band didnt know they were being recorded so it created a good sense of general humor. I had a blast hanging out with these guys again!!

FESTER RAGE VIDEOS: Mike Sangster and Sinister Sons at a house show in 2008

Though the video says "Tres Siniestro Hombres", the band was basically Sinister Sons, a three piece outfit of lead singer/guitarist, Mike Sangster. Most Iowans would probably know him best as "the other singer and guitarist" in The Hollowmen. He also had a band named Head Candy in the 90s.

In this version of Sinister Sons, or Tres Siniestro Hombres, Mike is joined by Greg Honnold, probably best known for Drednex, on bass and Troy Urich, probably best known for The Delstars, on drums.

IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE PODCAST - Episode 62: Music of Sump Pump Records, Part 2 of 2

This episode, we just continue presenting some of the different and various artists that you can find on the Des Moines record label, Sump Pump Records.

You can catch the first part here - http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/2018/03/episode-61-music-of-sump-pump-records.html

Sump Pump Records NOT only produces their own records, but distributes a shit ton of Iowa music that you can find on their web page right here - http://sumppumprecords.com/promoted-1/

And they also feature videos from their records - http://sumppumprecords.com/videos-1/ - and a list of shows their bands are performing - http://sumppumprecords.com/events/

And in case, you didn't read the little history we presented last episode, here's how they describe themselves on their "About us" page on their website:

"SUMP PUMP RECORDS WAS FOUNDED IN 1998 BY DAN HUTCHISON, BRIAN WIKSELL AND BILL HEARD. WE RELEASED A VINYL 7" EP FOR WHY MAKE CLOCKS IN 1998 AND A FULL-LENGTH CD FOR CHAD O'NEALL IN 2000...THEN WE GOT PREOCCUPIED WITH OUR BANDS.

"NOW, IT'S A 5 WAY PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN DAN, BRIAN, WILL TARBOX, CHUCK HOFFMAN & TOM REELITZ RELEASING RECORDS WITH A DIY APPROACH, BY OURSELVES AND OTHER BANDS WE LOVE."

Artwork by Stutterin Jimmy

YOUR OWN PRIVATE IOWA - Episode 23: Moonrabbit

Last Week Joshua and Sascha from Moonrabbit came by the studio and we played some tracks off their upcoming EP!! These guys had some hilarious stories to tell and it was a blast getting to talk to them.

This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm. All Recordings done in the Studio at [88.5 KURE Ames Alternative].

YOUR OWN PRIVATE IOWA is a podcast produced and hosted by Richard Sutton. We feature any new episodes the Wednesday after they were recorded.

IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE PODCAST - Episode 61: Music of Sump Pump Records, Part 1 of 2

This month on the Iowa Music Showcase podcast, we present to you a sampling of some of the offerings you can find from Des Moines record label, Sump Pump Records.


This actually started with Chuck Hoffman of Sump Pump sending me a few submissions. So I suggested he send a few more and we could do an episode. He and one of his partners in crime at Sump Pump, Tom Reelitz, ended up sending me enough material for two episodes!

So, if any of you are involved in a record label based somewhere in our fair state, feel free to get a hold of me here at iowamusicshowcase@gmail.com! I'll be happy to promote any of your Iowa (or Omaha, Quad Cities, and Sioux Falls) artists!

Cover by Stutterin Jimmy

But back to Sump Pump Records!

"The story of Sump Pump Records officially begins in 1998 when Dan Hutchison and Bill Heard formed the label to release the debut 7" EP of Why Make Clocks, then a duo of Hutchison and Brian Wiksell. A second release, Chad O'Neal's Evolution No. 9 CD, followed in 2001 before the label went dormant as its proprietors focused on their bands.

"In 2013, Hutchison embarked on a project of his own devising to release a compilation of music from artists based in Des Moines recorded entirely on 4-track cassette. Recording the majority of the tracks himself in his own basement, Hutchison enlisted Wiksell and a few other trusted former members of Why Make Clocks to re-launch Sump Pump Records for its release.

"Since then, Sump Pump Records has produced an eclectic selection of vinyl releases, and amassed a distribution inventory of other releases, largely by artists based in, rooted in, or connected in some way with the label's home state of Iowa, all available through their online store at sumppumprecords.com."
- from an email sent to us

FESTER RAGE VIDEOS - House of Large Sizes at People's in Des Moines on Dec 30, 2007

"A succinct dadaist approach to contemporary power trio dynamics"
- from Joe Carducci from "Rock and the Pop Narcotic"

"House of Large Sizes is by far the most successful, prolific, and well-known band in the history of the Cedar Valley. Began in September of 1986 by core members Dave Deibler and Barb Schilf, the band released 8 full length albums and a smattering of EPs and singles. They have toured the country extensively, most notably with ex-Pixies front man Frank Black.

"They were signed to Columbia Records in 1994 and released their major label debut, My Ass-Kicking Life, on that label. Due to internal mismanagement at the label, they did not receive the support and attention for their record, and they left the label as a result. Undetered, they continued to play music and make records with What Are Records? and The Tyros Label until 2003.

"The band broke up due for unknown reasons in late 2003. Barb and Dave currently own and operate Mohair Pear, a vintage/retro clothing store on College Hill in Cedar Falls."
- from their page on the Secret History of the Cedar Valley website

"House of Large Sizes was an alternative rock band from Cedar Falls, Iowa, in the United States. The band's lineup was primarily Dave Deibler and Barb Schilf, and featured a number of drummers throughout the group's run...

"House of Large Sizes, often abbreviated HOLS, played a unique style of rock with a driving beat, lots of rhythmic changes, unexpected rests and false endings. Although the group's music was unusual, it drew on common influences--punk rock, funk and heavy metal. Punk shows itself in the short duration of many HOLS songs. The gut-level emotional energy of the music (largely attributable to Deibler's voice and guitar style) and the band's DIY ethic also show their punk roots. Deviating from the DIY standard, HOLS released one album, 'My Ass Kicking Life,' on Red Decibel/Columbia in 1993. They worked primarily with small labels like WAR (What Are Records?) and Toxic Shock or released recordings on their own.

"Funk can be heard in Schilf 's bass playing and the throbbing, danceable rhythms of the music. Heavy metal elements are present in Deibler's powerful guitar technique and the short musical phrases from which the songs are constructed."
- from their Wikipedia page

OTHER SOURCES: The Des Moines 4 Track Compilation Vol​.​1

Coming up next week, we have our first of two episodes highlighting the music from the Iowa record label, Sump Pump Records.

In the meantime, to help sorta give you a taste of what's to come, we are presenting a special compilation album that they put out.

"This compilation features 13 Des Moines bands recorded from April 2013-Feb. 2014, on a Tascam MKII 4 Track Cassette Portastudio. Comes packaged in a beautifully screen printed black & white sleeve illustrated by John Huffman. Package also contains a full download of the LP, liner notes and a collage..."

"I wanted to release a compilation that was representative of the music of Des Moines, regardless of age, genre, personal connections, etc. All the bands were asked to contribute one unreleased song 4 minutes or less (give or take a little). The decision to use the 4 track to record them was to level the playing field for everyone: creating a consistency by allowing access to the same engineer & equipment, the same options and the same limitations. I wanted to capture a black and white snapshot of what these bands sound like when you're standing right in front of them.

All tracks were recorded by Dan Hutchison on the same Tascam 414 MKII 4 Track cassette Portastudio."
- from the compilation's Bandcamp page

In case you're interested, Sump Pump Records also released a compilation of Madison artists:
https://sumppumprecords.bandcamp.com/album/mesmerized-in-madison-2

UPDATE: The Madison compilation was mistakenly said to have been made by Sump Pump Records instead of just released by them. Thanks for correcting, Dan Hutchison!

And a 4-track album of artists from across the country:
https://sumppumprecords.bandcamp.com/album/the-national-4-track-compilation

Sump Pump Records' home page:
http://sumppumprecords.com/

Sump Pump Records on Bandcamp:
https://sumppumprecords.bandcamp.com/

More OTHER SOURCES posts from IMSC:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/Other%20Sources

More IMSC posts featuring compilation albums:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/compilation%20albums

More IMSC posts featuring Sump Pump Records:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/Sump%20Pump%20Records

More IMSC post featuring Des Moines area artists:
http://iowamusicshowcasesongs.blogspot.com/search/label/Des%20Moines%20area

Album cover by John Huffman

YOUR OWN PRIVATE IOWA - Episode 24: Jared Miller

Jared Miller, former guitarist in Audio Spaghetti joined me in the studio for a great chat about recording in Johnny Cash's studio, our mutual love of Half Japanese, goth girls and body oil, and his beautifully well used guitar! I had a blast getting to know Jared and listening to his "Doom Country"

This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm All Recordings done in the Studio at [88.5 KURE Ames Alternative]


More episodes of Your Own Private Iowa:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/YOUR%20OWN%20PRIVATE%20IOWA

More IMSC posts featuring interviews:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/interviews

More IMSC posts featuring alternative music:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/altenative%20musics

YOUR OWN PRIVATE IOWA - Episode 17: Bryon and Rachel Dudley

Last week Bryon and Rachel Dudley joined me in the studio to gab about their projects and the life of running a small record label out of Ames, Nova Labs. It was a great talk with some fantastic songs by the pair, and they even played some new records! I really had fun sitting down with these friends of mine and getting to know them better!

This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm All Recordings done in the Studio at [88.5 KURE Ames Alternative]

IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE PODCAST - Episode 59: Favorites of 2017 (and The State of The Website Speech)

Howdy all! And welcome to Year 4 of this website and podcast! It was 3 years ago on Jan 4, 2015, when the first post and podcast went up.s

Oh, how things have changed! This website was originally just a place to put the podcast. But since then, I've add playlists from Spotify, YouTube, SoundCloud, and BandCamp, and soon ReverbNation, to our repertoire! And also, on the occasional post about Other Sources, you can hear and find Iowa music, like compilation albums, other podcasts, other websites, among other places.

And now, starting since last month, we have added a new interview podcast, Your Own Private Iowa, featuring one- to two-hour interviews from Richard Sutton with Iowa musicians. And once a week, we present a video of a live performance from an Iowa jazz or classical act on Jazzman Joe Videos. And once a month, we present a video of an alternative act on our Fester Rage Videos.

And soon, we will be reprinting Culture Myth articles from former Cityview music writer, Chad Taylor!

Also, on the Iowa Music Showcase podcasts, I manage to get covers by Iowa artists or photographers on them! This is a trend I would like to continue. So if you know any Iowa artists or photographers who would be interested, please send them my way!

IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE PODCAST - Episode 58: Happy Hawkeye Holidays 2017, Part 3 of 3 - Scrooge

Ho ho ho! We bring the last of this year's Holidays episodes.

And as in previous years, this episode features some situations and language that some of you may not want to hear. So you have been warned.

The rest of you I hope enjoy this last collection of festive musical frivolities.

And be back next week as we present a whole bunch of playlists featuring Iowa's own songs of the season!


IMSC posts featuring the holidays:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/holidays

To download the podcast, right click on the link below and hit "Save as...":
https://archive.org/download/IowaMusicShowcaseEpisode58/Iowa%20Music%20Showcase%20-%20Episode%2058_.mp3

Art by John Leech
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Leech_(caricaturist)

IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE PODCAST - Episode 56: Happy Hawkeye Holidays 2017, Part 1 of 3: Nestor

Ho ho ho! Once again it's time for Santa OlderMusicGeek to send away that crazy Evil Doctor OlderMusicGeek, and usher in the Holiday Season - with a capital H and S!

As we've done on the two previous years, the first episode brings the quieter and mellower Holiday tunes, mostly folk and acoustic works, but a couple of surprises in there, a Christmas tune from metal guitarist Ivan Dimitrienko and a rousing version of "Jolly Old St Nicholas" from The Wire Frames!

So grab yourself some hot cocoa, Coca-Cola, or eggnog, depending how you like to celebrate the holidays, relax, and get into the holiday spirit with some Iowa music.


Other IMSC posts involving The Holidays:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/holidays

Other IMSC posts with folk music:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/folk%20music

Other IMSC post with acoustic music:
http://iowamusicshowcase.blogspot.com/search/label/acoustic

To download the podcast, right click on the link below and hit "Save as...":
https://archive.org/download/IowaMusicShowcaseEpisode56/Iowa%20Music%20Showcase%20-%20Episode%2056_.mp3

IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE PODCAST - Episode 55: Happy Hawkeye Halloween 2017, Part 4 of 4 - The Black Angels and Other Iowa Evil Spirits

Welcome back, you who dare come for a fourth and final installment of horrific hymns from the musical children of the corn.

We have quite the rock collection for you in this terminal installment, 90s punk, 10s punk, bluesy grunge rock, indie pop rock, lo-fi buzz punk, old style heavy metal, and just plain old horror rock. But all tunes to bring a chill to your back.


And to help with that back-chilling, we give you a little presentation of Iowa's evil spirits.

Some may not know this, but Iowa has NOT just one black angel in their graveyards, but TWO! One in Iowa City and one in Council Bluffs.

The one in Oakland Cemetary in Iowa City has many legends attached, such as that it went from bronze to black of the evil of Teresa Feldevert. Her husband's grave is where the angel sits.

It is said that any girls who kisses its feet will die in six months, unless she is a virgin. And supposably, if a pregnant woman walks under the wings, she will miscarry.


The other one is in Fairview Cemetary, or "The Old Burial Grounds", in Council Bluffs. This cemetary originally started as Native American burial grounds.

This statue is based on a spirtual being to have visited Ruth Ann Dodge, wife of the chief engineer of The Union Pacific Railroad, three times before she died.

The myths of this statue include that it comes to life and flies around, it shoots fire from its eyes after midnight, children who run behind her base diappear forever, and those who stare into her eyes at midnight will die early.

Iowa City musician, Kate Kane, did a song about it. I didn't put it on this podcast, because I played it in an earlier Halloween episode and I've already accidentally put one of her songs on two Halloween episodes! But you can hear it here - http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=930553&songID=7397908


At The Edinburgh Manor, abandoned now but once housed the insane, in Scott Grove, Iowa, a spirit< nicknamed The Joker, is said to reside. He apparently enjoys choking visitors.


And in Fort Dodge, at The Banwell Bridge or "Terror Bridge", you might bump into a floating head. This is supposed to be the head of a woman who hung her children from the bridge where they got hit by a train.

But watch out if you go there, it has been told that the head likes to try to run and scare people of the bridge. And reports have been given of a furry creature spotted under the bridge.


And before The Evil Doctor OlderMusicGeek leaves for another year, I would like to thank Dean Sturtevant for providing all four covers of our Halloween podcasts this year. Especially the first one, where he only had a day's notice!


So with those haunted histories floating in your mind, please enjoy the last installment of Iowa's tunes of terror....

Art by Dean Sturtevant

http://greenunicornart.com/

https://www.facebook.com/GreenUnicornArt/

IOWA MUSIC SHOWCASE PODCAST - Episode 50: Nepotism

Sorry! I have been helping the missus get the house ready to sell and get ourselves ready to move, so that why this is so late! Sorry again!

I was trying to decide what to do for my 50th episode for a while. I thought about doing my favorites, but I've played most of them already.

Then I saw that Brian Compos, for the Pants Off Podcast's 100th episode, had Brian Campos as the guest! I thought if he can get away with being so narcissistic, I could get away with being self-centered and playing a bunch of people I know.

So this episode features music acts that have either a friend of mine, a family member, or a family member of a friend.

Well, all except one. It has a member who has the same name as an old high school friend of mine. And I only found out last week that it wasn't his band!

So, yes, this episode once again proves it doesn't matter what you know or if you're talented.  Long as you have connections, you too - after 49 episodes and almost 3 years - could appear in one of my podcasts!


To download this podcast, right click on the link below and hit "Save as...":
https://archive.org/download/IowaMusicShowcaseEpisode50/Iowa%20Music%20Showcase%20-%20Episode%2050_.mp3

Cover by Dan OlderMusicGeek using BitStrips

PLAYLISTS: Random Iowa Music YouTube Playlist 2

Just another in a series of playlists featuring Iowa music picked at random. This time from YouTube.

The random selector picked some punk, alternative music, metal, and singer/songwriters.

If you're an Iowa (or Omaha, Quad Cities, or Sioux Falls) music act, and you have a YouTube channel, let me know and I'll follow you!