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noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 19:42:00 +0000

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Breaking radio silence!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 04:03:00 +0000

My goodness, the world keeps turning. I'm still alive and working on creative stuff. I have my first show in quite a while, and I'm extra super excited 'cause I'm making a rare appearance outside the Midwest: I'm going to be playing a set and talking about circuit bending as part of the one year anniversary party for Noisebridge, an awesome hacker/DIY space in San Francisco.
https://www.noisebridge.net/wiki/Year_1_Open_Hacker_House

Friday, October 2
9:15 pm
Noisebridge
2169 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA

february is going fast

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 15:19:00 +0000

It's kind of hard to believe it's going to be March next week already. February has been full of stuff!

The Spark festival was fantastic, as always. It simultaneously makes me happy to live in such a great creative community and like I'm really not doing enough to contribute to it. I spent a lot of my Spark at the Bedlam Theatre, where, embarrassingly, I hadn't been since they changed venues. Their newer space is fantastic- bar, food, a main stage and a lounge, plus overflow space upstairs and a smoking deck! The sound system was great; it had been a while since I really pushed bass into the floor and it was really fun. (Getting a cheer for manipulating a cutoff filter sweep slowly from belly-rumble to audible range will always make me really happy.) I also had folks dancing. As I was the main room opener on a cold Wednesday night, that was likewise awfully satisfying. I'm having a lot of fun with newer, more beat-driven tracks.

Last night I played for What She Said to benefit the female slam poet champs' trip to Detroit for the Women Of The World slam. It was a good time. Good poetry and good beer. I also won a few pounds of nice coffee at the silent auction, so I will be kept in caffeine for a while, hooray! Thanks so much to everyone who came out.

March looks more empty for the time being, which is good- I'll be busy planning and scheming. Tour ideas are sprouting in my head, so please let me know if you think you've got a town I need to visit.

It is snowing like mad today. My evening commitments were canceled due to dangerous driving conditions, which instead makes tonight a night full of pizza and documentary-watching. I can't wait. I leave you with a favorite from one of the late great Minneapolis band Trip Shakespeare:

It's coming down...

Yay!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 05:53:00 +0000

International fan mail is extra awesome!!

Reminder- Spark festival next week. I'm playing at the Bedlam Theatre in Minneapolis starting at 9:30 on Wednesday night!

Flux!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 22:29:00 +0000

Flux down in Rochester was super fun!! A whole Minneapolis crew came down for the show, which was awesome. The art exhibits were also really good (I especially enjoyed the huge found-object pendulums of local artist John Ready), and the DJ's Scott and David played really fun dance music to round out the night. There was a small but dedicated group of folks dancing to club beats with frenetic ballroom dance moves, punctuated with the occasional breakdance. Thanks to everyone who came out and who put the event together; I would do it all again in a heartbeat!

One of my favorite things about spending time in a new city is checking out new restaurants. We stayed overnight before heading back up to St. Paul, which gave us time to wander around and get lunch and poke around some antique stores. So I looked somewhat longingly at really cool antique Edison players and a broken-but-still-awesome-sounding toy player piano. I'd never seen a toy player piano before! I also learned that the best portobello mushroom sandwich in the whole world can be had at Jasper's Alsatian Bistro, which is a nice thing to know, going forward. It might be worth the 1.5 hour drive just to go get that sandwich. It's rare to find vegetarian-friendly French food at all, let alone stuff that's so yummy, so Jasper's was a treat.

Bobby McFerrin!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 00:26:00 +0000

The awesome Chris O. called me last night saying he'd wheedled a ticket for me to see an hour long presentation by Bobby McFerrin at McNally Smith College of Music today. Neat! So, I took lunch early and went up into downtown to see him. The last time I saw Bobby McFerrin, it was as the conductor of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra at the UofM; he conducted two symphonies and did a solo vocal set in between, a retelling of the Wizard of Oz, which he ended by throwing a glass of water on himself and "melting". It was fantastic. It was as much a theatre piece as a musical one. I didn't realize until about halfway through one of the symphonies (Beethoven's 3rd, I think), that he was conducting without a score. I know pretty little about conducting, I only took one class on it and it's not my thing, but I know enough to know that that's pretty badass. He's a really amazing musician. I wouldn't hesitate to call him a genius. And from what I can tell, he's an amazing person as well.

I didn't quite know what the event was going to be, as going was such a last minute thing, but it turned out to be very informal. He'd sing a little bit, and then have a Q and A session, and often questions would lead into musical examples and another little spate of performance and then back into questions. It was really really great, very inspirational right before my show next weekend too. His ideas and approach to performance and especially improvisation resonate with me a lot. I don't begrudge him any of his popular success, but I doubt that a lot of people who know Don't Worry, Be Happy know about the other work he's done, his experience with all these other kinds of genres of music or as an orchestral conductor, or the thoughtful development of his completely distinctive singing style. His thoughts on improvisation spoke to me the most because it's inherent in what I do, but the thoughts on how he developed his style, how he uses a microphone and room tone as instruments in and of themselves, how he uses his hands and chest and breath as percussion, how he developed his technique to imply incredibly complex harmonies with just solo voice. Super, super interesting.

Sorry I've been so quiet here, lately! Post album release was eaten by the holidays. February is going to be a busy music making month, looks like. I'm gearing up for the Flux show in Rochester next week- can't wait! Soon on its heels is the Spark Festival, and then I'll be performing as part of a Spoken Word event later in the month. Yeah!

Music and Politics

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 03:58:00 +0000

Today is an important day! It's the most important election day of my life so far, and it's also the release date of my very first album. The fact that my release day coincided with election day is sort of coincidental, but I rather enjoy it.

I voted today. I hope all of you who are able did so as well. In many ways, I'm excited to see what the future brings.

Airwaves!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 00:08:00 +0000

All of This Is Temporary has been getting some radio play! Thanks to the folks at MN Soundtrack, KFAI and Chris Roberts at The Local Show on the Current.

DEBUT CD RELEASE PARTY!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:56:00 +0000

I'm really excited to announce my cd release, and, of course, it's accompanying par-tay, wrapped up into a great art opening:

Friday, November 7th, 2008
Altered Esthetics Gallery

Level_13: Secret Level

This is the 3rd installment of the classic video game-inspired music and art show at the fantastic local gallery Altered Esthetics, and it's going to be bigger and better and full of awesome. I had a great time at this show in '06, so it's extra exciting that my cd release coincided for this one.

1224 Quincy Street NE
Minneapolis, MN 55414
7pm

FREE!

There will be live music by myself and Mike the 2600 King, my new album All Of This Is Temporary for sale, a Level_13 retrospective compilation cd for sale, a limited edition poster from Burlesque North America, and art! And video games!

I hope you can all make it out, it's going to be a good time.

Altered Esthetics online

Pixelmusic 3000!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Wed, 21 May 2008 12:49:00 +0000

It's always a nice day when the new issue of MAKE shows up. This issue shows you how to make one of theeeese. I had to shove it excitedly in front of the face of my favorite vj when he got home.

more bent fest!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Sun, 18 May 2008 19:43:00 +0000

Video of a portion of my set from Bent fest! Not a bad snip, once I got comfy with the tech. :) This was snagged from Talking Computron over at http://www.getlofi.com - great blog roundups of the whole festival and really great collections of vids and photos.

I have some more thoughtful/less promo-based blogs brewing- thoughts on bein' a lady in a sub-sub-culture dominated by dudes (I'm curious what Beatrix and other ladies have to say about it, too!), as well as one with classical music training- and how that informs what I do as part of such a DIY, experimentation-driven scene; thoughts on the music business and rise of the indies, the explosion of music in the world of the internet and what it means for artists, labels, and copyright... It is a brave, new, ever-interesting world, and I've been thinking it'd be fun to talk about it a little more.

later gators

Spring is buzzing away

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Sun, 18 May 2008 04:02:00 +0000

April and May have been crazytown in Caly-land. It seems I have hit the magic time in my life when nearly everyone I know is getting married, so weddings are big on the scene. So are art events. I'm a bit overdue on the ol' updates. I just came back from another wedding celebration tonight. It was held in a boxing gym, which made a lovelier reception venue than one might anticipate. Pinatas, brownie sundaes, fireworks... good times. Spring has finally sprung in MN, and it's about time. I am enjoying the weather and hoping I get around to getting my motorcycle fixed sometime soon.

Anyway, on the musics- Bent Fest Mpls was really fantastic. I had a great time, I met some great folks, and got really great feedback on my set. I'm hearing rumblings about Bent Fest UK, which would be fantastic!! Huge thanks to Beatrix*Jar, Intermedia Arts, and everyone who played or led a workshop or showed up for concerts and everything, it was really great all around.

I know I've been saying it for a long time, but I'm really very close to completing my album. I'm really excited about that. And a little bit terrified. In a good way. I think.

Bent Fest Starts Tonight!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:14:00 +0000

Reception starts at 7pm, live music starts at 8pm, I go on at 9pm. Beatrix*Jar is headlining a bit past 11pm. This is the 2nd year the festival has happened in Minneapolis, and I'm excited to be a part of it. It's also a nice hometown ego boost to have us as the Midwest stop for a festival that's happening in the cultural hotspots on the coasts. I'm excited to see some of the folks I met at Spark last year and check out some of the workshops later in the weekend. Hope to see you there!

Intermedia Arts
2822 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55408 | 612.871.4444

More info here:
http://www.intermediaarts.org/bent/index.php

Bent Fest and Art Crawl!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:26:00 +0000

The Twin Cities arm of the Bent Festival is coming up! I've heard really good stuff about what happened in LA. The festival kicks off on Thursday, May 1st. I'm playing at 9pm at Intermedia Arts in Uptown:
2822 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55408

More details here: http://www.intermediaarts.org/bent/

This weekend is the St. Paul Art Crawl. This is the first time we've opened our studio, which is simultaneously exciting and daunting. I don't have any specific performances, but I will probably play a live set or two during the weekend if the mood strikes, or set up my new theremin and let people make some goofy noises. ;)

But you should definitely come and say hi and check out S4's fantastic new work!

Lowertown Lofts
Studio 501
255 East Kellogg Blvd #501

Friday 6-10
Saturday 2-10
Sunday 12-5

More information and maps of the Crawl are here:
http://www.stpaulartcrawl.org/pdf/catalog_spring08.pdf

MN Spin, 2x!!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 00:36:00 +0000

MN Spin, a local music contest put together by the folks at mnartists.org, have selected TWO of my tracks for their upcoming compilation cd! I'm extra disappointed that I can't make it to the listening party, as it's the same night I'm playing roller derby.

The last round Dessa Darling of the Doomtree crew chose my track "Unexpected". This round Kate Galloway chose "A Long Time".

Thank you, ladies, I'm honored!

link: http://www.mnartists.org/article.do?rid=183816

New photos!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 21:19:00 +0000

Since I chopped off my dreadlocks, I've wanted to have some photos more representative of what I'm looking like these days. The lovely and talented Cole came to my studio for a shoot, and some of my favorites are now adorning these pages! Very exciting.

The Spark festival is in the rear view mirror, which means I can start to focus on a few other projects- the film score I've been working on is crawling to a close, and I haven't forgotten about the album! There are also a few new live shows coming up in April and May- I'll be playing as part of the Minneapolis vs. St. Paul show at Altered Esthetics and again for the Bent Festival in May.

Spark Fest '08

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:38:00 +0000

The Spark Festival has been fun so far. Thanks to everyone who came out for my set at the Nomad on Wednesday! I haven't been able to make it out to as many things as I'd like, but I did catch the interview with Richard Devine last night, which I enjoyed a lot. I love listening to artists talk about how they work, mostly because it's so much fun to see people excited about what they love. A lot of it felt so familiar, as well: going to shows and scrutinizing what synthesizers were on stage, being introduced to music that changes how you think about sound, scouring music shops for new toys, getting lost in your headphones for hours on end. It also made me want to delve more into modular synths, though, from the video of his studio and from friends who have started their collections, I'm a little afraid of their addictive nature.

I'm planning on catching some more of the Nightlife sets and see what else is coming up. My favorite parts of Spark, almost more than the amazing breadth of art included, are the people and the vibe.

Also, Happy Leap Day! It always makes me think of Pirates of Penzance.

Upcoming...

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 17:07:00 +0000

The Spark festival is almost here! This event is one of my favorite things in the Twin Cities- the breadth of the art and discussion here is really unique, from research papers to chamber style concerts to multimedia theatre to interactive installation to club style concerts. I'm performing for the Spark Nightlife series on Wednesday night, but check out their website for the full schedule. There is tons of stuff going on and almost everything is free and open to the public.

My set is on Wednesday night, February 27th at the Nomad World Pub. Music starts at 9, I go on about 10:45. 501 Cedar Ave S, Minneapolis MN

Further down the road in May, I'm participating in the Minneapolis branch of the Bent Festival; I'll post more details when I have them.

Kitty Cat Klub

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 08:24:00 +0000

Well, that was fun.
Thanks to Beatrix*Jar for inviting me, billmurray8 and dcontaminant and ethel and bitwise and omaha for coming, S4 for being awesome, my gear for cooperating, Tom the Sound Guy, and the Kitty Cat Klub for paying me both in some real money and also in just enough free booze to make it extra fun.

Also, there was Elvis pinball, and that never hurts.

New Toys!

noreply@blogger.com (caly) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 14:36:00 +0000

One of the highlights of my weekend was participating in a circuit bending workshop with Beatrix*Jar. Besides bending being fun, B*J are awesome folks and fun to hang out with. I'd done a bit of bending before, but, having a refresher on both bending and soldering was really nice, and I learned a few things I didn't know before. I'm excited to finish up my now-more-sonically-interesting Speak 'n' Math and debut it at the Spark festival.

Here are some photos!