Category Archives: All Interviews

BURNT SUGAR is a territory band, a neo-tribal thang, a community hang, a society music guild aspiring to the condition of all that is molten, glacial, racial, spacial, oceanic, mythic, antiphonal and telepathic. BURNT SUGAR, THE ARKESTRA CHAMBER is the creation of writer/guitarist/producer GregTate. Employing Conduction, an interpretative system for improvisers developed by Lawrence“ Butch” Morris, Tate guides the band through improvisations on each of its song forms. As a result, each performance is an original mutation in tune with the collective personality of the audience as well as the individual character and talents of the players. In addition to founding and conducting Burnt Sugar, Greg Tate is writer whos work has appeared in publications including The Village Voice, The NewYork Times, Rolling Stone, and Vibe and is the author of the books; Flyboy In The Buttermilk (Simon and Shuster), Everything But The Burden: What White People Are Taking From Black Culture (Broadway/Random House) and Midnight Lightning: Jimi Hendrix and the Black Experience (Acapella). Burnt Sugar performs regularly at the usual hotbed venues in New York, including; Joe’s Pub, Tonic, Symphony Space, The Blue Note, Makor, The Knitting Factory, Galapagos, CBGBs, BAM Café, Aaron Davis Hall, Lotus and The Cutting Room. On July 21st here in Hartford CT at REAL ART WAYS, Greg will bring this electric eclectic groove arkestra into our neighborhood for open minds, dancing souls and thirsty earholes can collaborate in a good listen.

LISTEN HERE TO GREG AND I DISCUSSING THE STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS SOUND PAINTING.

Forro in the Dark is not quite that type of traditional forro band, instead they are bringing an updated style of the music to the hipsters and club-goers of NYC, but the sweaty, excitable vibe is still undeniable.
Supplementing the traditional instrumentation with electric guitars, an array of flutes, modern percussion and other contemporary instruments, along with the help of David Byrne, Bebel Gilberto and Miho Hatori, Forro in the Dark capture the immediate, pleasure-craving core of forro for modern audiences to relieve their stress on the dance floor just like the Brazilian workers of the early 1900s. I reached out to Mauro like so many people do these days and was received openly and before I knew it I was spinning my own copy of bonfires of sao joao, Forro’s latest release. Like the album, Mauro was a delight to speak with and we entertained each others opinions and ideas and really openly talk about this album, the people behind it and hopefully shared an organically cosmic moment via the phone waves.
I invite you to listen to our conversation here.

From August 9th – August 12 at Seaside Park in Bridgeport Connecticut, the 12th annual Gathering of the Vibes will take form and fill your souls with good feelings. The list of bands for this years event is killer to say the least….just to name a few: Bob Weir & Ratdog, Mickey Hart Band, Mr. Buddy Guy, George Clinton & P Funk, Keller Williams, the Wailers, John Brown’s Body, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Dickey Betts & Great Southern and many more. I recently had the chance to talk with Ken Hays, the organizer and founder of this colorful sound scape of music and events. We learn how this event got started, some solid information about the Seaside Park area and Ken gives us a tasty nugget of unannounced news.

Listen to Ken and I gather our vibes here.

I want you all to be sure to open your minds and check out some true genre bending sonic sounds that will work its way into your heartbeat sometime during its spin. Underground Communication by Bassnectar is freeform project that merges music, art, new media, social involvement, and community values; dedicated to a constantly-evolving ethos of collaborative creation, self-reinvention, and boundary-pushing experimentation…now doesn’t that fit like a g-love for greenarrowradio..hmmmmm?
It is unjust for me to drop my feeling about this album or to point you in a direction of any one song…it is one you need to dissect and digest for your self.

For starters, spend a moment in the huh with Bassnectar and MisterG here.

A saxophone legend, Berklee alum, and all-around funk genius, Sam Kininger is building his fan-base and repertoire simultaneously at clubs across the country. Kininger has been in legendary funk/soul groups since the beginning, including, but not limited to Lettuce, Soulive and the Brotherhood of Groove. As a solo artist Sam Kininger has developed a distinctive, organic sound on the saxophone that is strongly expressive. He consistently demonstrates his technical dexterity and rhythmic precision while maintaining an honest and innovative exploration of musical improvisation.
Sam will be bringing his “knock the walls down” sound of funk and groove to the Main Pub in Manchester CT on May 19th and if you like you sax funky, I will see you there.

Check out Sam and I talkin’ turkey here.

April 6th TURNTABLE MADNESS and LIVE REGGAE: Mister Rourke, Axel Foley, DJ Reazon,and Zion Blood: Heading to Tyrone Farm in Pomfret Connecticut.
Prepare yourself for new concepts as scratch musicians Mister Rourke, Axel Foley and DJ Reazon improvise together live on six turntables, manipulating every imaginable noise from their arsenal of samples. Rourke is considered a pioneer of using the turntable in a live band setting. He has performed with his eight piece ensembles Fat Bag, The Formula, and with countless bands in genres including Hip Hop, Funk, Dub Reggae, Free Jazz, Electronica, Blues, Ambient, Moroccan, Trip Hop, R&B, African and even Gospel. His work has earned him three Boston Music Awards, he has been featured in the Boston Globe, jambase.com, Hip Hop Nation, Billboard Magazine, MTVs The Real World and HBO’s The Chris Rock Show. His music has also been used in short films, commercials, video games, made-for television movies, and a variety of local art exhibits. The DJ’s will be joined by Zion Blood, a Boston based progressive dub reggae trio which has been playing in Boston for the past 2 years. Their style is innovative, their compositions are original and the playing is spot on.

Check out my convo with DJ Mister Rourke here.

On April 6th at the Main Pub in Manchester, come on out and witness Toubab Krewe, a fusion of West African music and some “dirty south” influences that combined create a hybrid of rock and roll yet tapped into. The magnetic instrumental quintet formed in early 2005 and has attracted a diverse and devoted national following, captivating crowds everywhere from the Bonnaroo Music Festival and the Blue Note to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The band’s energetic performances and acclaimed self-titled debut have won them praise from the New York Times, Global Rhythm, and Afropop Worldwide. I had the opportunity to speak with percussionist Luke Quaranta recently and would like to introduce some new ears to this splendid sound.

Check out the conversation with Luke Here.

Friday March 23rd and Saturday March 24th, Cherryholmes brings its family style bluegrass show to the stage of Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts at the Storrs campus of the University of Connecticut. The band goes by the family’s surname, and got its start after Jere and Sandy Cherryholmes took the family on a road trip to a bluegrass festival. The trip was meant to be a spirit-lifter after the death of their daughter Shelley. The festival inspired the couple, who were homeschooling their children, to add music to the educational agenda. Molly and B.J. played fiddle, Skip played guitar. Eldest sister Cia, 22, took up banjo and became the band’s singer and songwriter as well. Now, after only four years of performing, Cherryholmes have been signed to country star Ricky Skaggs’ label. The family’s tour bus is headquartered in Goodlettesville, a suburb of Nashville, Tenn., where they moved two years ago. But the bus is rarely in the driveway — the Cherryholmes family is on a stage most nights of the year. And I am pleased to bring a quick conversation with Jerry Cherryholmes, as he was able to step away from rehearsal long enough for a quick chat.

Listen to our conversation here.