Finally found my camera cord and was able to upload pictures from the past month, including a few from some great concerts I saw up in Iowa City. They are kind of “artsy” because I didn’t want to use a flash and distract the performers. (clicking on any of the pix should take you to them in flickr if you want to see them bigger)

Here’s Melissa Ferrick. She plays FAST.

Here is Coyote Grace backing her up. I met Joe at Song School and he let me borrow his guitar during one of the campground song circles. It was fun to meet Ingrid and see them play together.

Here’s a wide shot of all of them playing together on Melissa’s song “Heartbeat” Apparently this was the first time they played together and afterward made it part of the show each night.

One of Ferron at the Women’s Music Festival.

Kim Char keeping the crowd entertained while the power went out. (city wide, and they found a generator so they could keep going)

Patrice Pike at the Women’s Music Festival.

And finally, here’s one of me with Dar Williams after her concert. Is it just me or do we both have one eye more squinty than the other? That obviously means something for my musical career. heh heh.

When I was at the Song School in August I had the pleasure of taking a creative writing class with performing singer-songwriter Melissa Ferrick. She gave us a great exercise to get the creative juices flowing, and listened to a few people’s songs and gave them feedback.

After the class I mentioned to her that I had a radio show and said I’d be happy to do an interview with her sometime and she said “How about tomorrow?” Luckily I had a digital recorder with me (for recording classes) so I said “Sure!”

The next day Melissa and I managed to fit in a quick interview before her next class and she talked about the artists she was excited to see at the Folks Festival, staying ahead in the indie music industry, plus all about her new album Goodbye Youth.

Goodbye Youth is a departure for Melissa in that it’s just her and the guitar. That’s how most of her fans know and love her in concerts, but she’s never done a studio album that way. From what I’ve heard of it so far, it sounds really great!

The album is released only on iTunes and at concerts starting today, with an “official street date” in January. Sounds like it’s a great way to get the album out in the hands of the fans without having to wait for all the hoops you have to jump through for a traditional album release.

You can preview some tracks on Melissa’s MySpace.

Get the album on iTunes:

I’ll be airing the interview on the Lyrical Venus Radio Hour this week. That’s Tuesday from 9-10 am KRUU-LP 100.1 FM, or kruufm.com for you internet listeners!

P.S. For a little sneak peek into Song School, here’s a video of Melissa working out a song with Sarah Sample (winner of the 2007 Folks Festival Showcase and soon to be guest on Lyrical Venus Radio!). It’s in the tent where I had my class and interview with Melissa. You can see the main Festival stage in the background:

Feed and email readers may need to come to the blog to see the video.

Well, I feel bad for not posting this sooner, but better late than never eh? The Institute for Musical Arts is holding a fundraising auction on eBay. They need $150,000 to complete a state-of-the-art recording studio at their campus in Goshen, MA. The auction has been going on since March 8th, but there is still time to bid on stuff like:

March 28-April 6
Melissa Ferrick guitar
Baumgardner #2 (galley & autographed poster)
Gwen Stefani Harajuku Girl doll
Sevendust/Caitlin Kalafus auto drumsticks
Allison Miller gift set #2 (autographed sticks, autographed publicity photo; autographed copy of Modern Drummer)
Linda Kavars/Kate Millett signed poster
Peter Kitchell art

April 5-April 14
Ann Hackler T-shirt
David Bowie autographed leather jacket
Dar Williams Huss and Dalton guitar
Stefani & Dorsey autographed CD gift set
Diana Jones autographed CDs
Fanny framed/signed photo

Just what is this place you’d be supporting with your auction bids? Here’s some info from their ‘about’ page:

The institute has a nonprofit status of 501(c)3 with a mission to support women and girls in music and music-related businesses. Rooted in the legacy of progressive equal rights movements, IMA’s development is guided by the visions, needs and concerns of women from a diversity of backgrounds and has grown from the need to nourish ourselves and each other.

The 25-acre estate on which IMA is located features a house and several barns all built in the early 1800’s. The largest barn has been converted into a recording, performance and teaching facility. The space accommodates a multitude of artistic endeavors and has a seating capacity of 200, a recording chamber that could hold an orchestra, and housing for up to 25 people. In addition to its summer camps, IMA offers year-round programming in support of its nonprofit mission which, unless otherwise noted, are open to the public.

Go straight to the eBay auction, or first check out the auction page on their website for more details about all the items, and while you are there click around and check out what an awesome institution they have to support music!

So I’m reading about Melissa Ferrick and how she is playing with Ani DiFranco for the “Handful of Dates Tour” this September and I’m thinking, “Oh bummer, with just a few dates it’s probably just big cities.” I click through to the info page and what do I see but

“Iowa City, IA - Hancher Auditorium“

staring back at me from the right hand column. WHOO-HOO!!

They are having a special pre-sale for fans – tickets go on sale 10 days before regular tickets for the rest of the public if you have the secret password.

Other cities included in September:
Buffalo, NY
Lorain, OH
Louisville, KY
Indianapolis, IN
Milwaukee, WN
Chicago, IL

If you’re a lucky one who lives nearby – Congrats!