Hello, my friends. First things first, on the right side, we've added a little tab for our friends on the internet, so maybe give them some clicks. And regarding the titular subject, JAMNESTY! Jamnesty is our school (JMHS)'s Amnesty International club's big spring fundraiser. For those who aren't familiar with Amnesty International, it's an organization that promotes human rights around the world, and works to spread awareness of human rights crises; noble, right? Jamnesty is a kind of music-coffee-house event that features student bands, free coffee, ambiance, and this year, a guest speaker.
This is Jamnesty's third year, and by some miracle of publicity, we managed more than 300 guests. Thanks is due to the astounding talent of the musicians that performed, and the efforts of everyone involved in its preparation. A special thanks to Folabi, the guest speaker, and the Director of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Office of Amnesty International, so pretty darn important. Other awesome folks: Mr. Douds and Mrs. Jones, the teacher sponsors, and Sydney Zwicker and Quinlan Maggio, the presidents.The whole thing was a big hit, and a load of fun for everyone.
So how about a music review? I know Alec is better than me at these, but it's my turn to post, so I'll give it my best shot. We both picked a few to cover, and rather than cover them in the order they played, I'll start with an act that is very special to me.
I should say, Alec wasn't really the head guy for the act, Dan Nothaft was, and they performed under the band name "Concrete Cloud," so that should give you an idea of their sense of humor. At any rate, they were far from professional, but Dan on vocals, harmonica, and keyboard was maybe my favorite performer of the night. I was pretty fond of his original song "Seaglass Woman," wherein he forgot a verse but masterfully recovered. I hope Alec can do a better job of comparing it to some known band, but I found it reminiscent of a band called Beulah. What really did it for me was their cover of Like A Rolling Stone. I'm telling you, folks, Dan Nothaft channeled Bob Dylan like a router channels the internet. To say it in a less weird way, he was super. I felt it, you guys.
Another musician I feel deserves major recognition is Sash Callsen, the opening act, and a vocalist/guitarist for the closing act.
As I recall, he sang a cover or two, and an original song that I seriously dug. He's got a different, sort of high, sort of nasaly singing voice, but it is in no way annoying. I wish I could talk about it in a more intelligent way, because I'm not doing him justice, but he was just a great act to listen to; very relaxing and clearly passionate. If I manage to get a hold of any kind of recording, I will not hesitate to post it.
The last act I'll talk about now is a delightful group of ladies going by Strictly Ornamental.
They started with a cover of an Acid House Kings song, This Heart is a Stone, a fun little diddy and I think it is well described as exactly what you want this band to sound like. The song was very cute, with lighthearted lyrics and some playful glockenspiel action. I greatly enjoyed the singer's (Zoey Jeong) voice; it was vaguely boyish, and sweet and emotive. They followed with a cover of Incubus' Here in My Room, which I actually liked a lot more than the original; and closed with Best Imitation of Myself, by Ben Folds Five. I hope it will suffice to say that while they are a bit of a "girl band" if you know what I mean, they are a very good one. Honestly, I'd like to talk a bit about everyone, but that would be selfish and tiring.
I would like to finish by saying a big ol' thank you to our buddy Grace Tuttle, who provided all of these snazzy pics. So maybe patronize her Flickr, yes? Link's over on the right.
It's all yours, Alec
-Daniel
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