Marlon Asher & Jah Melody in Oslo
Friday June 05th 2009, 11:50 am
Filed under: Good things, Music, Video
Posted by: Georgia

For the past ten days my brother C*POP and my almost-brother Walt have been following Trinidad and Tobago recording artists Maximus Dan, Jah Melody and Marlon Asher as the three tour various cities in Europe. C*POP and Walt have been sending frequent updates, photos and videos which they’ve been posting at the Beach House Entertainment Facebook page. This video, the fourth in the series, is

a montage of scenes of the T&T Entertainment Co contingent leaving Berlin, arriving in Oslo, the June 3 show The Source Club in Oslo featuring Marlon Asher and Jah Melody, and the deejays who rushed to record dubplates with the two artists the day after

I also think it’s the best of the series yet. See the complete set of Europe tour videos here.



cut+clear carnival #6 – brain and bamsee is one
Wednesday February 18th 2009, 11:22 am
Filed under: Arts & culture, Music, Photo, Podcast, Sounds & Vibes, Travel
Posted by: Georgia

cut+clear carnival #6
Wendell Manwarren, Jeffrey Chock, Stanton Kewley and Roger Roberts in front of Jeffrey’s house on Clifford Street, Belmont, Trinidad

 
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Episode #6 arrives a day late courtesy of the carnival week frenzy, which is not to say the show is without substance. Au contraire: in the final episode in the cut+clear carnival 2009 series, the members of 3canal and I visit with photographer, carnival connoisseur and Belmont native Jeffrey Chock at his home on Clifford Street for a chat about the carnival of yesteryear, the philosophical underpinnings of the changes taking place in today’s version of the festival, and—naturally—the experience of photographing one of the world’s most visually spectacular events.

This week’s 3canal track: “Paradise” remixed by Keshav Chandradath Singh

LINKS

  • 3canal’s web site
  • Download 3canal’s 2009 release, JOY+FIRE at Trinidadtunes.com
  • 3canal on iTunes
  • 3canal on Facebook
  • 3canal on Twitter


  • cut+clear carnival #5 – carnival is woman
    Tuesday February 10th 2009, 1:23 pm
    Filed under: Music, Photo, Podcast, Sounds & Vibes
    Posted by: Georgia

    cut+clear carnival episode #5

     
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    Trust the cut+clear carnival podcast’s most freewheeling and raucous show to date to be the one featuring women (it’s also the first CFR episode to feature explicit language!). In episode #5 the members of 3canal and I sit down backstage at Queen’s Hall with Cecilia Salazar, Dionne McNicol and Elisha Bartels, three key members of the 3canal Show, and discuss matters ranging from performing while pregnant to the banning of songs featuring “daggerin’” from the Jamaican airwaves. We also remember the late, great John Isaacs, the fourth member of 3canal, on the ninth anniversary of his passing.

    Previews of this year’s edition of the 3canal Show begin on Thursday 12 February, 2009 at Queen’s Hall, Port of Spain, Trinidad. The full run begins on Monday 16 February.

    This week’s 3canal track: “Where Do We Go From Here” from the album “Joy+Fire”

    LINKS

  • 3canal’s web site
  • Limited time offer! Download 3canal’s 2009 release, JOY+FIRE for FREE at Trinidadtunes.com
  • 3canal on iTunes
  • 3canal on Facebook
  • 3canal on Twitter


  • cut+clear carnival #3 – pelham & pan
    Wednesday January 28th 2009, 1:08 am
    Filed under: Music, Photo, Podcast, Sounds & Vibes
    Posted by: Georgia

    cut+clear carnival - pelham and pan
    Stanton Kewley, Pelham Goddard and Wendell Manwarren at Pelham’s home in St. James, Trinidad

    In cut+clear carnival episode #3 we visit veteran producer and steel orchestra arranger, Pelham Goddard, at his home in St. James for a chat about the evolution of music for steel orchestras and 3canal’s foray into the steel band arena with Pelham and the Exodus Steel Orchestra. In addition, Wendell treats us to a series of audio vignettes explaining certain aspects of the steel band scene in Trinidad and Tobago.

    This week’s 3canal track: “Festival Time”

    LINKS

  • Pelham Goddard on Pan on the Net
  • 3canal’s web site
  • Limited time offer! Download 3canal’s 2009 release, JOY+FIRE for FREE at Trinidadtunes.com
  • 3canal on iTunes
  • 3canal on Facebook
  • 3canal on Twitter
  •  
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    cut+clear carnival #2 – hosts & promoters
    Tuesday January 20th 2009, 12:25 am
    Filed under: Arts & culture, Music, Photo, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia

    cut+clear carnival episode #2 - hosts & promoters
    (L to R) Curtis Popplewell, Stanton Kewley, Walt Lovelace, Wendell Manwarren, Roger Roberts in front of cut+clear productions HQ, Woodbrook, Trinidad

     
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    On episode #2 of the cut+clear carnival podcast 3canal and I chat with Curtis “C*POP” Popplewell and Walt Lovelace, the men behind the Beach House Carnival fête and some of the country’s most original music video work.

    Tune in to hear Curtis and Walt hold forth on why they prefer not to be referred to as fête promoters and the state of music video production in the country.

    This week’s 3canal track: “Joy+Fire”, from the album of the same name.

    LINKS

  • Web site of Beach House, Curtis and Walt’s fête “hosting” outfit
  • 3canal videos by Walt Lovelace: Boom Up History, A Happy Song, Mud Madness, Salt
  • 3canal’s web site
  • Limited time offer! Download 3canal’s 2009 release, JOY+FIRE for FREE at Trinidadtunes.com
  • 3canal on iTunes
  • 3canal on Facebook
  • 3canal on Twitter


  • cut+clear carnival #1 – pilot
    Tuesday January 13th 2009, 1:48 pm
    Filed under: Arts & culture, Music, Photo, Podcast, Sounds & Vibes
    Posted by: Georgia

    For the 2009 carnival season I’ve teamed up with 3canal to produce a series of down and dirty (dutty?) podcasts called cut+clear carnival. We’re keeping it deliberately simple and free-flowing: the plan is for us to meet on Mondays, riff for 15 or so minutes on things carnival-related, preferably with a guest, then have the show edited and uploaded by Tuesday.

     
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    In this pilot episode Roger Roberts and Wendell Manwarren of 3canal shoot the breeze with MPC wizard Keshav Chandradath Singh of the cut+clear crew and Canboulay.

    See you at the launch of 3canal’s 2009 release, Joy+Fire, on Sunday 19 January at 6pm at the Queen’s Hall Courtyard, Port of Spain, Trinidad!

    3canal’s web site
    3canal at Trinidadtunes.com
    3canal on iTunes
    3canal on Facebook
    3canal on Twitter



    Caribbean Free Radio #47 – 3canal: Womex or bust!
    Saturday September 29th 2007, 3:50 pm
    Filed under: Music, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia

    3canal ReThePublic concert
    3canal at the ReThePublic concert, September 2007. Photo by Jason Hagley

     
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    In episode #47 I drop in on CFR’s house band, 3canal, to chat with Roger Roberts and Wendell Manwarren about last week’s ReThePublic concert; the band’s upcoming appearance at the WOMEX world music festival in Seville, Spain; and how 3canal learned to stop worrying and love Facebook.

    Links

  • - 3canal’s web site
  • - 3canal on Facebook
  • - 3canal on iTunes
  • - WOMEX – the World Music expo
  • - Want to help 3canal get to Womex? Send an e-mail to 3canal@gmail.com or visit Roger Roberts’ Facebook page for information about donating.


  • Wearing a hole in the iPod
    Monday August 20th 2007, 11:06 pm
    Filed under: Music
    Posted by: Georgia

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    M.I.A. in T&T
    Saturday July 21st 2007, 2:21 pm
    Filed under: Music
    Posted by: Georgia

    ". . . in Trinidad, I was trying to make a song that wasn't very soca-ish, but I was in a soca environment with soca producers who were having a lot of soca stuff going on. I wasn't thinking about American clubs at the time, about what sort of stuff they were listening to, what kids in Paris were listening to. I was just there in the moment in Trinidad. It had the ups and downs: the basic chorus, soca for the tempo, and you just fuck around with that. You create a new way to feel music."

    Singer M.I.A., explaining, in The Village Voice, why she was lurking around Studio Film Club last year (or was it earlier this year?). Maybe I’ll like Kala, her upcoming album, better than I did Arular.

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    Links de Dimanche
    Sunday October 22nd 2006, 11:57 am
    Filed under: Music, Snippets, Tech
    Posted by: Georgia

    - In today’s Trinidad Express, BC Pires talks with artist Steve Ouditt about the festivals of Divali and Eid-Ul-Fitr in the Trinidadian context.

    - Guadeloupean saxophonist Jacques Schwarz-Bart’s MySpace page. His latest album, Soné Ka-La, gorgeously synthesises Guadeloupean gwoka and all that jazz (full-length music samples are available at MySpace).

    And while we’re on the subject of great saxophonists, the New York Times yesterday runs a moving article about Sonny Rollins — who’s now 76 — as he comes to terms with the death of his wife and (reluctantly) embraces technolological change.

    - My photos from last night’s Divali dinner at Omi and Lalo’s are up on Flickr. They’re a bit on the dark side, and again, will be more appreciated by those who know the people in them. But I do deconstruct a dinner plate.

    - And here’s one from the tech files: last night, in my quest for a method of cheating the upload date on a few of my photos so they wouldn’t appear at the top of my Flickr photostream, I came across h4ppierphotos, which worked like a dream.

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    A few links
    Saturday October 21st 2006, 2:30 pm
    Filed under: Music, Snippets
    Posted by: Georgia

    - The music video for Jamaican artist Gyptian’s “Beautiful Lady” is one of the Editor’s Picks today at video-sharing site Revver. Interesting that VP Records is using Revver . . . The piece is packed with ads, of course.

    - Reporters Sans Frontières has released a new report on the Internet in Cuba.

    - “Bird of Night”, the chamber opera by Trinidadian composer Dominique LeGendre (who was the subject of CFR podcast #38 — those were the days, weren’t they?), opened this past Thursday at London’s Royal Opera House. The show runs till October 28. (Hat tip to Titilayo).



    Ralph Thamar – “Fe Van”
    Tuesday September 12th 2006, 7:52 pm
    Filed under: General, Music, Video
    Posted by: Georgia

    I touched upon my Martinique experiences some time ago at the dormant-but-not-in-fact-dead Caribbean Free Photo. In that post I mentioned the group Malavoi, whose music, I said, “features prominently on the soundtrack to my Martinique days.”

    Yesterday I happened to come across the MySpace page of Ralph Thamar, Malavoi’s former lead singer. Around the time I arrived in Martinique Thamar was just starting his solo career, and I recall once having somehow gotten seated at a table (probably due to some screw-up in the seating plan) with him and Edith Léfel and Marijosé Alie at a bizarre event called “La Nuit des Stars” that was being televised by RFO Martinique. Those were some strange times, indeed.

    I no longer keep up with French Caribbean music like I used to, and this video for the song “Fe Van” reminded me of what I might be missing. Accompanying Thamar on piano is Mario Canonge, another fine Martiniquan musician whom I had the good fortune of meeting briefly last year, when he played with the band Sakésho at a jazz festival here in Trinidad.

    “Fe Van”, incidentally, is from Thamar’s 2005 album Alma y Corazon.

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    “Running with the Dogs” – Orange Sky (video)
    Wednesday August 09th 2006, 10:22 pm
    Filed under: Music, Video
    Posted by: Georgia

    My talented amigo Walt Lovelace sent me this video he directed for Trinidadian rock band Orange Sky’s “Running with the Dogs” a couple of weeks ago, and insisted I post it on CFR. (”Don’t I need permission?” I asked. “You have my permission,” he replied.)

    So here it is. The snake is real, and so is the lightbulb.

    Upstairs, Orange Sky’s latest album, is available at Amazon.com.

     
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    Caribbean Free Radio #44 – “Caribeana Imperia”
    Sunday July 16th 2006, 11:05 pm
    Filed under: Music, Photo, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia


    Photos courtesy 3canal
    This album is powered by BubbleShareAdd to my blog

    “It’s quite an exciting little thing,” Wendell Manwarren of 3canal told me over the phone yesterday as we discussed “Caribeana Imperia“, the show the band has been preparing over the past few weeks in Washington DC. That’s almost certainly an understatement. “Caribeana Imperia” opened on Thursday 13 July and from all reports audiences had no difficulty getting into the groove.

    In CFR #44 the three members of 3canal — Wendell, Roger and Stanton — and choreographer Dave Williams fill me in on the details over the telephone from their DC headquarters.

    “Caribeana Imperia” runs at the Gala Hispanic Theatre in Washington DC from Thursday-Sunday until July 30. The show is directed by Hugo Medrano and Wendell Manwarren.

    Mentioned in the episode are the Caribbean writers Martin Carter, V.S. Naipaul, Derek Walcott and Earl Lovelace.

    The song played in the episode is “Imperia” by 3canal. Purchase your 3canal CDs at CDBaby.

    Listen to the podcast by using the player at the top of the post or access it using any of these methods:
    Download MP3 | RSS | iTunes | Subscribe via Odeo

    Please consider supporting us by buying a CFR t-shirt, and if you’re an Amazon.com shopper, you can also support CFR by initating your purchases by clicking on any of the Amazon.com links on the site.

    We’re always tickled as well when you check out Caribbean Free Photo, our photoblog, or put yourself on our Frappr map.

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    “A Happy Song” – 3canal
    Tuesday July 04th 2006, 7:05 pm
    Filed under: Music, Video
    Posted by: Georgia

    Digging around in my Libsyn archives today, I came across this 2005 video for 3canal’s “A Happy Song”, which I’d compressed and uploaded ages ago but never did anything with. I figure now’s as good a time as any to unveil it. The video was directed by Walt Lovelace and Wendell Manwarren.

    “Happy Song” is from the CD Jab Jab Say — grab yourself a copy at CD Baby.

    In other 3canal news, according to the reports out of Washington DC, preparations for the show “Caribeana” are going swimmingly.

     
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    Caribbean Free Radio #42 – Germany 2006 preview with Wendell Manwarren
    Tuesday April 25th 2006, 1:11 am
    Filed under: Music, Photo, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia


    This album is powered by BubbleShare

    CFR is back! And what better way to celebrate my return to podcasting than by paying a visit to cut+clear productions, headquarters of 3canal, CFR’s “house band”.

    This time the topic isn’t the band but rather band member Wendell Manwarren, who was in Germany a few weeks ago appearing in a soon-to-be-released television documentary which aims to “capture the vibe” in the FIFA World Cup 2006 host country ahead of the arrival of the Soca Warriors (Trinidad & Tobago’s football team) and the legions of Trini fans in June. Wendell shares with us the highlights of his whirlwind tour (seven cities in 2 1/2 weeks!) and explains why there’s now a pink rhino covered in blue devils gracing the streets of Dortmund. We also play two tracks from 3canal Vibes, the group’s 2006 album, which you can purchase online at CDBaby.

    Play the podcast using this link:
    Or access it using any of these methods:
    Download MP3 | RSS | Subscribe via iTunes | Subscribe via Odeo

    Please consider supporting us by buying a CFR t-shirt, and if you’re an Amazon.com shopper, you can also support CFR by initating your purchases by clicking on any of the Amazon.com links on the site.

    We’re always tickled as well when you check out Caribbean Free Photo, our photoblog, or put yourself on our Frappr map.

    And while you’re at it, now would also be a great time to purchase one of these Limited Edition Commemorative World Cup Warriors t-shirts from 3canal’s 3line t-shirt collection:

    3canalshirt1.jpg 3canalshirt2.jpg

    And get the latest Soca Warriors news and analysis at the Soca Warriors Forum and the Trinidad & Tobago World Cup Blog.

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    Caribbean Free Radio #41 – Bahia Calling
    Monday January 23rd 2006, 6:44 pm
    Filed under: Music, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia

    Salvador
    The Bay of All Saints, Salvador da Bahia by Patricia Carmo

    Inspired by a line from David Rudder’s “Bahia Girl” about the affinities between Trinidad and Brazil, I get on Skype with my friend Gillian Marcelle during her sojourn in the enchanting Bahian capital, Salvador, and learn a bit about the land of capoeira and Carnaval (and caipirinhas!).

    Play this episode using this link:

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    Or access CFR using any of these methods:
    Download MP3 | RSS | Subscribe via iTunes | Subscribe via Odeo

    Links:
    Bahia Online | Flickr Bahia cluster

    Music played in this show:
    “Bahia Girl” by David Rudder from the CD No Restrictions | “Ilê que fala de amor” by Margareth Menezes from the CD Gente de Festa | “Maria Caipirinha” by Carlinhos Brown from the CD Candyall Beat | “Tarde em Itapua” by Quarteto em Cy from the CD Canta Brasil

    Please consider supporting us by buying a CFR t-shirt, and if you’re an Amazon.com shopper, you can also support CFR by initating your purchases by clicking on any of the Amazon.com links on the site.

    We’re always tickled as well when you check out Caribbean Free Photo, our photoblog, or put yourself on our Frappr map.

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    Caribbean Free Radio #40 – Vibesing it up with 3Canal
    Friday January 20th 2006, 10:05 pm
    Filed under: Music, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia

    EPISODE 40 FINDS ME sounding like I’m just coming off a bout of ‘flu (which I am) and 3canal in a feisty mood as we discuss the football-inspired “Vibes It Up”, their second release for the Carnival season, talk about their upcoming variety show and ponder the champagne-and-caviar road down which Carnival seems to be travelling. Lots of raised voices and cross talk and few punches pulled.

    Play this episode using this link:

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    Or access CFR using any of these methods:
    Download MP3 | RSS | Subscribe via iTunes | Subscribe via Odeo

    Links:
    3Canal’s web site | Download “web mixes” of “Rise” and “Vibes It Up”.

    Please consider supporting us by buying a CFR t-shirt, and if you’re an Amazon.com shopper, you can also support CFR by initating your purchases by clicking on any of the Amazon.com links on the site.

    We’re always tickled as well when you check out Caribbean Free Photo, our photoblog, or put yourself on our Frappr map.

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    Caribbean Free Radio #39 – A Taste of Parang
    Saturday December 24th 2005, 1:40 pm
    Filed under: Music, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia

    parang

    When the Christmas season rolls around, English-speaking Trinidad starts singing in Spanish. Episode #39 explains – briefly – the whys and wherefores of the musical form known as parang and offers a sampling of parang tunes by Los Parranderos de UWI.

    Play this episode using this link:

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    Or access CFR using any of these methods:
    Download MP3 | RSS | Subscribe via iTunes | Subscribe via Odeo

    Links:
    “The Sound of Christmas” – 1997 Article on parang by yours truly (PDF format (1.8 MB) – first published in Caribbean Beat) | Buy Los Parranderos de UWI’s Mi Parranda at Rhyner’s Caribbean Music Online Store

    Please consider supporting us by buying a CFR t-shirt, and if you’re an Amazon.com shopper, you can also support CFR by initating your purchases by clicking on any of the Amazon.com links on the site.

    We’re always tickled as well when you check out Caribbean Free Photo, our photoblog, Caribbean Free Video, our vidcast, or put yourself on our Frappr map.

    Happy Holidays!

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    Caribbean Free Radio #38 – A visit with Dominique Le Gendre
    Sunday December 18th 2005, 5:28 pm
    Filed under: Music, Podcast
    Posted by: Georgia

    Dominique Le Gendre
    Dominique Le Gendre at home in London

    Domnique Le Gendre & Chris Willis
    Dominique Le Gendre with Royal Opera House accompanist Chris Willis

    CFR gets classical in episode #38, as I visit with Trinidad-born composer Dominique Le Gendre at her home in London. I chat with Dominique about her early musical influences, about Caribbeanness and the classical tradition, her experiences as a Associate Artist at the Royal Opera House and her chamber opera “Bird of Night”, which is set to debut at the Royal Opera House in October 2006.

    Play this episode using this link:

    powered by ODEO

    Or access CFR using any of these methods:
    Download MP3 | RSS | Subscribe via iTunes | Subscribe via Odeo

    Links:
    The Complete Arkangel Shakespeare: 38 Fully-Dramatized Plays – audio version of the Bard’s complete works, scored by Dominique | Royal Opera House

    Please consider supporting us by buying a CFR t-shirt, and if you plan on doing any of your holiday shopping at Amazon.com, do support CFR by initating your purchases by clicking on any of the Amazon.com links on the site.

    We’re always tickled as well when you check out Caribbean Free Photo, our photoblog, Caribbean Free Video, our vidcast, or put yourself on our Frappr map.

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