Yes, it’s true, I’m sad to say. The Slug was stolen from WonderRoot Gallery on Friday, December 4. According to the staff, they were getting ready to hang for the ASIFA Animation Benefit Show…he was there at 10am, and at 4pm they noticed he was gone. I’m pretty sad, as I wanted him to meet everyone and perhaps do a little PR for me – he was supposed to hang for the duration of the show, the month of December.
I came Friday for the opening night and noticed my Nut piece was hanging, but the Slug wasn’t. I inquired, they said they’d look into it. Several days later, no leads. No slime trails. He’s a slug, right, can’t get that far, which is why he must’ve been slug-napped. Ok, had to throw that in to cheer myself up.
I know it’s not a Boccioni sculpture, or even art in some people’s eyes, but you just shouldn’t steal. On the plus side, it’s motivated me to make more…if people will steal it, maybe some moral people will pay a little money.
So sadly, there will be no slime for Christmas. If you have any leads, please let me know. I had a business card taped to the back, and my name signed as well.

I wanted to let you know about a FREE upcoming art/film show this Friday, October 2nd at Wonderroot (www.wonderroot.org). Its a exhibition which includes 20 b&w fiber prints and a 16mm film called Mothers of a Nation produced by Clear Films. The exhibition is about a group of Ugandan women living with HIV who, despite the suffering and isolation that comes with having the disease have united to empower themselves through sustainable farming methods. My cousin, Ansley, shot the movie and stills this winter and spring while she worked on a sustainable agriculture project with the group of women in Jinja, Uganda.

The film and exhibition relays an important message not only to people suffering with HIV, but to everyone around the world. Sustainable agriculture, organic food and information about the importance of nutrition are not often topic of conversation in under served communities, including those of Atlanta.

They have partnered with two non-profits, one of which is an Atlanta based organization called The Ugandan American Partnership Organization (www.theuapo.org) and Development in Gardening (www.developmentingardening. org). Wonderroot is an important place for the exhibition to be held because of its mission to unite artists and community to inspire positive social change.

 Click here for a sneak peak of a trailer of the film and more info on the FREE Friday night show.  Great date night cultural activity to add to your social calendar.  Hope to see you there!

Let me begin this post by emphasizes how incredibly happening WonderRoot is, both as a venue and just as a place in general. I have yet to come away from the place without a fuzzy feeling inside. It has the feeling of a big old house your grandma might live in (if your grandma was really fucking hip)..it just has that musty kind of smell to it that puts me at ease. It’s a two level house with a small art gallery and recording studio upstairs and an area in the basement where bands play. I say area because there is no distinction between the stage and where the crowd is.Before the show started as i wondered the house I walked in on all the band members eating at a big ol’ table together and it warmed my heart.

The first band to start playing was Bo Hatchet and boy did the howl. The band consists of three members, and while none really have any defined instrument, Alex seems to do much of the yelpin’. There sound could be classified as blues folk if it were played by a drunken madman, with the frontman being similar to Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock.It’s hard to describe just how much these get into their performance without seeing the show in person. Myspace lends little credit to their manic performances; one song, “We’ve Got Mice in the House” sees Bo Hatchet frontman using his fiddle to shoot of theoretical vermin.  Not having a drum set, the “drummer” banged on the ground and the ceiling pipes.

Bo Hatchet, Taken from their Myspace

After several soulful symphonies with lots of stagecraft and hollerin’ before getting to my favourite,”Lord Send me to the Moon!” that ended with the whole audience humming along. I still have it stuck in my head!

After a smoke break (at WonderRoot, it’s set, smoke, set, smoke, etc.) Revolutionary Youth stepped up to bat. They are your typical Screamo/Metal band. Lots of drums, guitar, bass and completely indescernable lyrics shouted an inch from the mic. Despite this the crowd seemed pretty into them and they kept up interesting enough stage banter. I usually don’t like this kind of stuff but they played solid and the bassist was especially funky.

After another smoke in the grungy parking lot, a band called “the Wild” (or atleast I’m guessing that from the flier, although they made no mention of themselves) set up. These guys were tight, and the room was tighter. I would guess about 60 people jammed in the immensly hot cellar as the wild played tuneful pop songs with a revolutionary incentive.  The band consists of two female singers and a lead dude. They really got the place moving (as much as hipsters move) and I even sang along as the chorus shouted for “a hard change to come”. Despite how catchy they seemed though I soon left as it was becoming increasing and unbearably hot inside.

For $5 you can’t beat a WonderRoot show. This seemed especially true tonight as the bands were very diversive ranging from twangy folk, to heavy screamo and even melodic pop. If only they’d get some fans!

WonderRoot has tons of workshops announced for the next few months, instructing things like “winter cycling” and “Adobe Photoshop.” These topics are entirely unhelpful to me, WonderRoot. I want you to offer classes in the one thing I need to learn immediately: tap dancing. I really need an excuse to buy these.

This way, many years from now when our grandchildren ask us what it was like during those months of unemployment after we lost our jobs as tax attorneys and assistant visionary coordinators, we can honestly answer, “Hear tell, honey child, of when times were so hard during The Economic Recession of the Late Aughts that we couldn’t even watch Bromance on MTV.com because the next door neighbors, ‘TraceyFam5011,’ were foreclosed out of their own home and we couldn’t steal their wireless anymore. Fortified by nothing but Trader Joe’s breakfast soysage for protein and stockpiled Sparks for empty carbs, we entertained and warmed ourselves through those devastating 45 degree winter days the best way we knew how – gluing some bottlecaps to the soles of our Tigers, sewing together some brightly colored rags, and putting on a show down at the community center!”

Hey everyone…if you happen to come across this… Straight from the Art will soon be expanding into a monthly format. That’s right! Come at your own volition, but we will be at WonderRoot every last Saturday of the month. We’ll try out at three-hour stint, since last month we went well past the delegated two-hour. The theme for the next SFTA roundtable (which will be on January 31st, time TBD) will be MARKETING and DEVELOPMENT.   If you have any input or have a speaker in mind that could be particularly helpful, please let me know! Also, if you’re interested in coming, you can RSVP by posting a comment on this update. I’ll be posting more specific info in the near future!

In Oct. ‘04, I made the move from Wilmington, NC to Atlanta, GA. I had lived in Wimington for 15 years and had become very involved in their small yet thriving independent music scene. While there, I played in a few bands, I started a label (eskimo kiss) and also lent a hand to organizing the WE (Wilmington Exchange) Festival for several years. This was a very rewarding experience, as the WE Fest gets to the heart of what independent music is really about (that is, the MUSIC, not the “industry”) and has grown to be much like a family reunion.

My experiences with WE Fest were so inspiring that I vowed to do something similar when I moved to Atlanta. The downside for running an indie label in Wilmington, at least to me, was that no one seemed to really “get it.” We were really the only indierock-based label in town, to my knowledge anyway, and I think because of that it was a little tough to get a lot of support. And it’s not that we thought we were changing the world or anything, but at the same time we were doing a little more than just making mix tapes for folks (not that there’s anything wrong with that). We were doing our part to help create a SCENE, a community … and in doing so we not only released some great music from bands like Gerty, Goner, Audio Explorations… but we also booked a ton of shows, bringing under-appreciated artists such as Matt Pond PA, The Mountain Goats, AM/FM and countless others to our tiny town on the coast, a town that was typically out of the way for touring bands and therefore often ignored.

When I moved to Atlanta and started researching the local music scene, I quickly noticed two things: 1.) there were a lot of other labels here! Folks doing the same sort of thing I was trying to do, expose people to great independent music; and 2.) there were also some awesome venues and promoters bringing to town some really great bands.

I was quickly inspired, and even a little overwhelmed, with all the local music possibilities. But one thing I didn’t really see was something tying it all together. With so many local labels, why not join forces with them, make some new friends, and help expose more people to all the great music that’s available in their own backyards? And thus, on that winter day in my Decatur apartment, the beginnings of The Other Sound was hatched. I didn’t really know any of the other label heads in town personally, but that didn’t stop me from blindly emailing folks to try to get some helpers. The idea was well-received, and I before I knew it Goodnight Records, Two Sheds Music and Lazyline Media were all onboard, and we were planning a music festival!

Since then, we’ve had three Other Sound festivals; this year marks the forth. And while my new marriage, recent enrollment in grad school, and life in general has prevented me from being as involved this year (the fine folks at Containment Theory Records are now at the helm), I’m still as passionate as ever about indie music, especially the stuff coming out of Atlanta. So that’s why I’m urging you to come out and be part of something pretty dang great, if I do say so myself. It starts tonight at WonderRoot (please come out early to see North Elementary kick things off at 8:30!), continues tomorrow night at Star Bar, and finally wraps up on Saturday night at The EARL. Hope to see lots of you there!

This morning I stopped by the Post Office on the way to work, to mail a package. As I walked in I noticed a lady putting a package together to mail, I smiled at her and she said good morning. I walked on up to the counter, made some small talk with the postal clerk, gave him my package and turned to leave. As I was walking out, the lady said “Ma’am;” I kept walking as I didn’t think she was talking to me. She said it again, a little louder so I turned around. She was holding what looked like some lotions and asked me if I ever used foot lotion or foot scrub. For a minute I thought she was trying to sell me something, or maybe she wanted my opinion on them or something. I said “sometimes,” and then she proceeded to offer them to me. Said she was about to return them but then thought if she could give them to someone who could use them, she’d rather do that.

I told her she should send them back if she’s able to get a refund and she said she wasn’t worried about that. “When someone does something nice sometimes it seems weird but we have to bless each other sometimes,” she said. I smiled, thanked her and tried to offer her some money, but she wouldn’t take it. Asked her her name (Kay) and told her mine, thanked her again, and told her to have a great day.

As I walked to my car I was just overcome with this really happy feeling. It really is weird sometimes if a complete stranger just does some random nice thing for you. But it shouldn’t be. It should be the norm.

I thought about the movie and concept of “paying it forward,” and vowed to do something nice for someone today. Just last night after reading the blurb about WonderRoot in Southeast Performer, I thought about contacting them and seeing what I could do to help them. So I started this morning by giving them a small donation.

I haven’t been to WonderRoot’s new space yet, but I really appreciate their cause. If you’re unfamiliar with the organization, as their mission statement reads they are “committed to uniting artists and community to inspire positive social change.” Their community services include programs to help artists produce and distribute their work, beautification projects, and (the program I’m probably most interested in helping with) youth art education and mentoring.

For more info on WonderRoot you can visit their website at www.wonderroot.org. And while it might sound a little cheesy, or weird, it’s a really great feeling when some random stranger does something nice for you. But it’s an even better feeling when you do some good for someone else. There are many organizations that need my help, I just happened to choose this one today because I have a personal interest in it. And my donation wasn’t much, but I do intend to help them in other ways. Hopefully this post will inspire you to do something nice today too.