Yesterday was a physical health day. In the night the Crohn’s attacked passed. I had an obstruction in my ileum and it opened up. That meant I could once again eat following a 48 hour fast. I had my usual post-Crohn’s breakfast, a peanut butter omelet. It’s packed with protein, fat, and calories, while being easy to digest. It’s also delicious. I spent the day on the couch downstairs where it is air-conditioned. I took it as easy as I could as I was getting my strength back. I got my exercising running upstairs to use the bathroom; that’s also part of getting over a Crohn’s attack. For dinner I was got decadent, I added carbs by starting with roasted potatoes with parmesan. That was followed with something to cool off and supply approximately a trillion calories, a chocolate waffle with peanut but spread on it topped by espresso caramel chocolate ice cream and Fox’s U-Bet. There was plenty of garlic bread spread throughout the day.
My entertainment was watching the Mets and Classic Doctor Who. Two exceptional serials, Frontier in Space and Planet of the Daleks, peak Second Doctor. As for the Mets, they won 12-2. Jacob deGrom pitched, he leads the league in ERA and was only 4-2 as the team never scored for him. He gives up a run and a half a game but that’s about what the Mets score for him. If we spread those runs over his other starts deGrom could be 10-0. Brandon Nimmo hit two home runs. He’s become a legitimate star. He is second among NL outfielders in WAR and first in offensive WAR despite missing so many games that he has not had enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title. He should be the starting left fielder in the All-Star Game and deGrom should be the starting pitcher. There are bright spots in this dismal Mets’ season.
I’m working on a new feature of Wise Madness, not a blog post but something permanent; a list musical acts that I feel have not found their full potential audience. There are two criteria, the first is that I love them, the second is that there are people in my musical social life that are either unaware or marginal aware of. I’m using the people I talk to as a proxy for My Gentle Readers. I had a list like this on Fruhead.com and there were hundreds of acts on it. This might grow that large but clearly, I’m not waiting till I have the entire list, it will constantly grow. My plan is to add ten acts at a time and list each group of ten here. The complete list in alphabetical order can be found on the page, “You Probably Haven’t Heard;” The link is in the banner. I would like to find a way to make more easily read. I’m still learning WordPress. The ability to do something like this is part of why I migrated from Diaryland.
How did I decide which acts are in the first ten? Easy, it’s all people that I saw performing, socially, listened to, or wrote about recently. I add to the list as that happens. There are acts that I want to put on but in good conscience can’t; they play at large venues, headline festivals, or just everybody I know knows them. Some leading examples are Dar Williams, the Kennedys, and Rhiannon Giddens. I started this list weeks ago and have been waiting for a day where I don’t have much to write about to post it.
So here is the first installment of You Probably Haven’t Heard.
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- Anais Mitchell: Anaïs wrote the acclaimed musical Hadestown but I still have to explain to people who she is; an original genius that writes songs with incredible depth and poetry. She’s more than a songwriter, she’s a singer and a performer; her album of Child Ballads with Jefferson Hamer is a must listen.
- Belle Hallows: One of my great NERFA discoveries; a folk harmony trio based in Nashville. There are plenty of folk harmony trios but few that do it as well. They are one of those acts where it’s hard to pin down why I love them. It’s not what they do but that they do it so well.
- Bobtown: Another NERFA discovery and one I’m not self-conscious about saying, “I’m with the band.” They are a Brooklyn based quintet with some of the greatest harmony arrangements you’ll ever hear. Few bands are as much fun.
- Carolann Solebello: Carolann puts her soul into her music and she has a beautiful soul. Her songs are filled with beauty and wisdom.
- Crys Matthews: One of my top discoveries of the year; she can do it all. She is best known for her songs of social activism, as a black lesbian married to a while woman in Virginia her life is a social statement to many. She never gets preachy or holier-than-thou and there is more to her music than politics. She wrote one of my favorite lyrics by anyone; “If I were half the person my dog is I’d be twice the human I am.” She’s delightful.
- Cuddle Magic: What kind of music does Cuddle Magic make? The fact that it’s so hard to say is part of their greatness. There are elements of rock, pop, folk, and neuromusic.
- Hawktail: Hawktail is a a chamber folk string band. They play traditional sounding music with the sophistication and skills of classically trained musicians. I have yet to see them as a quartet, but their trio shows as Haas Kowert Tice are among the best I’ve ever heard by anyone. Like Mozart they play music that has always existed.
- Her Crooked Heart: The artist formerly known as Rachel Ries either solo or backed by whoever she is touring with. She writes complex songs that come directly from her heart and mind. There are endless layers of depth.
- Jean Rohe: I have written as much about Jean over the last 8 years as I have of anyone. When I first heard her, I compared her with Anaïs Mitchell, she has that depth. She performs in many configurations; the large End of the World Show band, as a duo with Liam Robinson, and solo. I try and never miss any of them.
- Kristin Andreassen;Kristin started in music as a dancer, a clogger. Her background is trad. The songs she writes are nothing like trad; they are nothing like anyone else writes. They are awash in a sea of metaphor with multiple layers. She also wrote a song called Thirteen Wolverines which is one of the greatest silly songs. She still clogs at shows. When she lived in New York I would see her at least half a dozen times a year, sometimes twice that.
I will continue to add to the list, ten at a time and post them on slow days. Now I have to get ready for today’s adventures.
Wise Madness 