Kristi Kates

Features Kristi Kates Memorial Day:: More Than Just a Picnic
By Kristi Kates
Contrary to the belief of thousands of happy three-day weekenders and
returning summer visitors, there’s a lot more to Memorial Day weekend than
just picnics, parties, and retail sales.

Music Kristi Kates Taking Flight:A new festival that’s for the birds
By Kristi Kates
“When I was younger, I grew up birding around Northern Michigan and
the Whitefish Point area with my father, Jim Porter,” explains concert
producer Sam Porter. “The love for nature and wildlife that grew out
of that experience is my personal inspiration for this event.”

Music Kristi Kates The Energizer:Blues rocker Laith Al-Saadi gets a charge out of connecting
By Kristi Kates
Guitarist/singer/songwriter Laith Al-Saadi hasn’t had a real job since
he was 15.
“Not having a day job is a great motivator to make sure that you keep
working (on your music),” Al-Saadi explains with a chuckle. “My last
and only ‘real job’ was working at a Sbarro in Briarwood Mall in Ann
Arbor,” he continues, “but as soon as I realized that I could make
money doing what I loved, I was out of there. My high school blues
band, Blue Vinyl, built up a solid following, and I put all my
energies into booking us and writing material for the band.”

Music Kristi Kates Big Band Bill plays Charlevoix:Trumpeter brings memories of playing with the greats
By Kristi Kates
It was Bill Hart’s fourth grade year in Iowa, where his parents owned
a service station. Traveling big bands would stop on their way to and
from gigs to grab some gas and perhaps an ice-cold Coca-Cola; all of
them seemed pretty exotic to the little boy.

Music Kristi Kates Arctic Monkeys - My Propeller - Domino
Of remarkable note for a mere 4-song EP (likely a fan-placating measure until the next AM album is well underway), My Propeller’s title track is the definite standout here, taken directly from the band’s last full-length, Humbug, and showcasing the English band’s new, California-inflected sound, in part courtesy of new producer Josh Homme. Accompanying the single are quirky “The Afternoon’s Hat,” the guitar-heavy “Joining the Dots,” and the danceable, confident “Don’t Forget Whose Legs You’re On.”

Modern Rock Kristi Kates Roots Welcome DJ Jazzy Jeff, Bajah to Picnic
The Roots 3rd Annual Picnic Event is set to take place at Philadelphia’s Festival Pier on Saturday, June, 5, so if you’re a hip-hop fan plan and have been eyeing a trip to Philly, now’s the time. The all-day concert will feature sets from DJ Jazzy jeff, Pattern is Movement, Tune-Yards, MM Jamboys, Bajah and the Dry Eye Crew, and of course The Roots themselves; The Roots will also continue their tradition of backing another legendary group for a live set (last year it was Public Enemy), so stay tuned...

Music Kristi Kates White Stripes - Under Great Northern Lights- Warner Bros.
Recorded while Jack and Meg White undertook an ambitious tour across every province and territory in Canada, this album is the audio accompaniment to the film of the same name, capturing the Stripes’ emotional performances on all levels, from bowling alley sets to legendary theater venues. You’ll get familiar and more obscure tracks, from “Seven Nation Army” through “Icky Thump,” all presented with the powerful dual attack that this duo is capable of, and that’s less frequently captured on more controlled, sterile studio recordings.

Modern Rock Kristi Kates Get Your Tix Now for the White Stripes... Ballet?
Composer Joby Talbot released an album called Aluminum back in 2006, on which he recorded his covers of ten White Stripes songs alongside XL Recordings’ Richard Russell, a set that made a small rumble in the U.S. Unbeknownst to most White Stripes fans, however, Talbot also spent part of 2006 working with choreographer Wayne McGregor to put together a little something called Chroma, an actual ballet set to similar orchestral versions of Talbot’s interpretations of White Stripes songs. Got all that? As for actually seeing Chroma, you’ll have to road trip to Toronto, where the ballet will premiere November 24 at the Four Seasons Center for the Performing Arts as part of the National Ballet of Canada’s 2010-2011 season.

Music Kristi Kates Big Phony - Kicking Punching Bags - BPM
Big Phony, aka NYC-Los Angeles coast-hopper Bobby Choy, has quietly stayed under the radar, crafting folk-pop tracks overloaded with catchy melody after catchy melody, all equally understated via Choy’s carefully wistful, mellow performance skills. Songs like the concise “Short Intermission,” “Talk of the Town,” and live, self-deprecating favorite “Girls Like You Don’t Go For Guys Like Me” recollect the folk-pop stylings of Elliott Smith, while his voice echoes that of Sean Lennon or Smith himself; he probably won’t remain under the radar for long.

Modern Rock Kristi Kates Killers, Williams Join Davies on Kinks Covers Set
The Kinks’ Ray Davies is prepping to release a new album late in 2010, in part inspired by last year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concert, where Davies shared the stage with Metallica, who covered a couple of Kinks songs. For the new disc, Davies has already recruited The Killers, Lucinda Williams, and Jon Bon Jovi

Music Kristi Kates Jazz meets Boogie:Matthew Ball wraps up Dennos concert season
By Kristi Kates
Called both “the Gen-X arrival to this uniquely American art form” and
“The Boogie-Woogie Kid,” pianist Matthew Ball specializes in the blues and
- yes, boogie-woogie piano - and will be performing at the Dennos Museum
Center as the wrap-up to the 2009-2010 Dennos concert season.

Music Kristi Kates Keane - Night Train - Island
Serving as a mini follow-up to Keane’s 2008 set, Perfect Symmetry, this EP shows off both what’s best about the band as well as their ability to infuse new elements into their distinctive sound. Recorded on the fly during the band’s last tour, the new songs echo many of the places they traveled, from the South American horns of “Looking Back” to the appearance of Canadian/Somali rapper K’Naan (“Stop for a Minute.”) Songwriter extraordinaire Tim Rice-Oxley even throws in some solid vocals next to Tom Chaplin’s own impressive ones.

Art Kristi Kates Lewis and Clark make the trek to Petoskey
By Kristi Kates
During the first few years of the 1800s, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark embarked on the first serious overland expedition taken across the United States. Now, those intrepid explorers are making a trip to Petoskey with an exhibit at the public library.
With help from Sacajawea (a Shoshone woman who acted as interpreter and guide) and her husband, Toussaint Charbonneau, Lewis and Clark helped set the groundwork for the westward expansion of the U.S., and traveled through many sovereign Indian nations along the way.
They weren’t the first to explore the American West; but they were the first scientific expedition that did so in an official capacity. Their voyage of discovery and the culture of Native America will be celebrated at the Petoskey exhibit.

Modern Rock Kristi Kates Sting Blends Rock With Orchestral on Tour
If you’ve always wanted to see legendary Police bassist/singer/solo artist Sting in concert, now’s your chance; Gordon Sumner himself will be hitting the road this year to perform both his own solo songs and Police tunes complete with an orchestra. Accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, Sting will be reworking tracks like “Every Breath You Take” and “Russians” as symphonic arrangements on a tour that will kick off in Vancouver, BC on June 2, and will continue through L.A. (6/15) and Chicago’s Ravinia Festival (7/17 and 7/18), among other dates...

Dining Kristi Kates Late Nights and Classic Cars at the Flap Jack Café
By Kristi Kates
Residents of Petoskey and summer visitors probably remember the Flap Jack
Shacks, which opened in Traverse City back in the late ‘60s and in
Petoskey around 1978. The Petoskey Flap Jack Shack relocated to its
current location on Mitchell Street in 1985, and was run by the Bender
family until Scott Gibson of Gibson Enterprises acquired the restaurant in
June of 2007.