Music

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In 2014 you can catch Dougie Simpson entertaining a packed room every Sunday at Skully’s with the Flex Crew. But In 1989, the reggae singer was in between groups, kickin’ it at the OG Skankland over on 5th and Cleveland Ave and creepin’ on a come up.

The product of the moment in time is the “Rumors/Worthy Is the Lamb” single that originally dropped in, in 1990 via Chilly Pepper Records. This single is set to be re-released this month on 12 inch vinyl.

The extremely tall, and soft- spoken Simpson explained to me over the weekend why he choose to bust out with this “Rumors” solo- record originally.

Simpson explained, “A guy I respected told me the only way I would get respect as a singer was if I made a record. That was my main impetus for making the record.”

Back in 1989, Dougie had just left the Idren Posse, and had not yet joined Roots Express or the Ark Band. Flex crew was 10 years later.

Idren Posse was a big group around town through various gigs and songs at the time.

In 87, they opened up for Alexander O’Neal, and the Force MD’s.

I had the edgiest/funniest Waka Flocka interview planned. I had interviewed Waka twice before, and also had reviewed his shows back when the Atlanta rap star was playing the Underground Club circuit. The rapport was there.

I had read various interviews where Waka and his Brick Squad Monopoly camp would invite writers to party with them before shows during interviews. Basically, a member of Brick Squad opens a bottle and then tells the writer to help him kill the bottle. After proving his ability to drink, and bonding Wake shows up and hangs out for an interview.

The Park Street venue location of the Columbus show reflected Waka’s market expansion into the EDM circuit from working with Steve Aoki, and Flosstradamus

So I was preparing for a party sort of encounter.

Sunday night I was home messing around on the net. I happened to click on an internet link that brought me to the latest episode of the critically acclaimed documentary series “Love And Hip Hop: Atlanta” on VH1.

Get Right is celebrating it’s 7th Year Anniversary Saturday with another Gallery Hop party at Skully’s. Initially, Get Right was a dance party that took great shape on First Fridays with the combined forces of promoter/social engineer/entrepreneur on the rise Kareem Jackson and two of Columbus’ best deejay’s Detox and Johnny Cashola.

Get Right built a nomadic synergy of the burgeoning fashion, BMX, Hip Hop and skate cultures mixed with the existing Hip Hop cultures: Trap or Die club community, and the Campus/Short North Daymon Dodson/DJ Przm bred Hip Hop kids.

The progressive return was that it had a large cross-section of people frequenting the usually black clubs like Icon, the Red Zone and what was Club Ice.

Eventually Get Right took an on and off home at Skully’s where it will be this Saturday.

On May 17, with the intention of producing a live album, Tim Easton recorded his concert at Natalie's Coal Fired Pizza

JP: How'd you come to pick Natalie's to record a live album?

TE: I am recording most of my shows these days but I figured I would lean into that venue a little more and put up a few extra mics. Basically, I've published 100 songs out there in the world and I think it's time for me to make a double-live, solo acoustic album. Inspired by the Townes Van Zandt one and Doc Watson, who has a live double LP from Cornell University that really taught me a lot. I know it's ridiculous to think anybody would want that much Tim Easton solo acoustic on vinyl but I'm not really concerned about that.

JP: Are you happy with the results?

TE: I haven't heard a note yet, but I had a good time playing the shows so hopefully that translates.

JP: Still plan on releasing it?

TE: I'm going to release a double- live LP somehow someway. Whether it's all Natalie's recordings or not. I'm also recording a lot at a venue called Satori in Mobile, Alabama.

JP: Do you have a title yet?

Jahman Brahman is one of those musical groups that is difficult to categorize.

While they do fall within the realm of Jam Band, their lyrics and arrangements set them apart. Their shows are high energy and they attract a loyal following everywhere they play. After graduating from Ohio State they moved to Asheville, North Carolina to set up their home base and have been touring the country continuously ever since. I recently had the opportunity to ask Rowdy Keelor, drummer and vocalist, a few questions.

PP: You all went to Ohio State and got your start in Columbus. How does it feel when you come back to play?

RK: It's always mixed emotions coming back to CBUS...on one hand it's a glorious homecoming filled with family and friends. On the other, we self impose a little more pressure on ourselves to put on a unique, fresh show.

PP: How many ComFests have you played?

RK: This will be our third ComFest performance. Each one has been amazing and holds a special place in our memory.

PP: Tell us about your Live CD scheduled to be released on this year’s first day of ComFest, Friday, July 27, 2014.

Let me share something that ought to be obvious after 30 years of inflicting my musical opinions on the local long-suffering populace: music gives me a boner. Still. After all these years.

And I mean a big boner. A huge boner. A boner bigger than Boehner. A death-defying, trapeze swinging, no-safety-net-allowed, take-no-prisoners, gotta-have-my-musical-fix of a boner bigger than the Empire State Building with King Kong dancing the watusi on top!

It's really the only thing that soothes the beast inside. However, much as I try Buddhism and/or booze, it's music that...changes me.

OK, so what I'm saying, crudely, is that music supplies the transcendence I need in life.

And when the music is bad or just mediocre? No matter--boner! Sorta. Let's say a disinterested boner. But a boner nevertheless. Maybe bad music is its own special reward in my case because I get to write about how bad it was. And that's always fun because people love blood in their ink. I mean, I am karmic revenge. And I am a passionate bitcher. Thus, I often sport a transcendent, vengeful musical boner.

As any parent knows, finding music you and your child can agree on is a difficult – nay, impossible – task. Put another way, it’s hard to find children’s music that doesn’t make you want to stab yourself in the eye moments before plunging your Subaru into the fiery core of the sun. Decent children’s music exists, of course; Pete Seeger’s Children’s Concert is great, and Sing Along with Putumayo ain’t bad.  But pity the poor son of a bitch who gets something from “Songs for Wiggleworms” stuck in his head; it’s a death sentence for hope and intelligent driving decisions. 

I first saw the Shazzbots at Comfest 2012, when I heard there was a children’s band playing at the Offramp Stage.  My daughter ran up to the band as soon as the music started, jumping around in the balloons and bubbles.  I sat back on the lawn, sipping a Columbus Pale Ale and feeling like a high-quality parent.  Afterwards, I picked up a CD at the merch tent and it quickly became one of my daughter’s favorites. I myself found it tolerable even after serious repetition – if you aren’t a parent, understand that this is high, high praise.

Towards the end of Future’s show at the Newport, the Atlanta rapper thanked Columbus and all of Ohio for being up on his early mixtapes. I have to say that while I wasn’t super deep into the early tapes, I had a bunch of friends who were.

Future was here in support of his new album, Honest which is out on A1 Records.

Columbus does have a knack for being up on the new Atlanta stuff whether it be Gucci Mane, or Rocko before they had hit records on the radio.

It was cool to hear Future be in tune with that.

Before Future hit the stage the Atlanta rapper’s deejay asked the crowd if they were ready to “Turn Up” for Future.

As rhetorical as this question is, the crowd responded with the love that this formality demanded to get the party started correctly.

Future’s deejay was flanked by a series of large lights on both sides that provided a mixture of a leaned-out night club feel, and a retro 70’s rock aura when they would blink on and off.