FEED Magazine September 2011 by The FEED

September 2011 Volume 2, Issue 13

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mindblowology

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feedback

Editor-in-Chief: James Johnson

The CUlt

Artist Kelly Green

Moogfest

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Creative Director: Raul Rubiera Jr.

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Art Director: Heather Malone Director of Sales: Janette Greenard

janette@fayettevillefeed.com

Photographers: Jason Ginman Writers: Jaymie Baxley Rachel Schaaf Madeline Lunsford Tasina Ducheneaux Kole Ross

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Tender Fruit

Crystal Bright

zipquest

What You Should Listen to

Game review: Catherine

Book Review the passage

Feed on film

music schedule

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FEED Magazine is published twelve times annually by VERB, LLC. Address: 219 Hay Street, Studio B Fayetteville NC 28301, Web site: www.fayettevillefeed.com No part of this magazine may be reproduced without written permission. Copyright 2011. All images Copyright 2010 VERB, LLC., FEED Magazine, and Raul Rubiera Jr., unless specified otherwise. Publication of an advertisement in FEED Magazine does not constitute an endorsement of the product or service by FEED Magazine, or VERB,LLC. FEED Magazine is a registered trademark used by VERB,LLC. All rights reserved.

tender fruit

Kelly Green

Moogfest

20 Tender Fruit

Touring the 30Treetops

Crystal Bright

Mindblowology

The Walk

hen I was a kid, I had this friend named Roy McClellan. He was easily my best pal in the world. We were 13, so much of our friendship was based around the fact that we enjoyed the same cartoons, he had a pool and that his sister was hot. He lived about four blocks away, but the busy traffic between our houses made me too paranoid to ride a bike (I tended to easily crash into things as I had not yet mastered stopping a bike). So each weekend, I would partake in a lengthy, boring, awkwardly quiet walk to his house. This issue represents the FEED’s walk to Raleigh’s house. The worst were the horn-happy motorists. The dudes who got a kick out of beeping their horn at some random kid, just for the thrill of seeing him jump. There of course were the fenced off barking dogs, who had become so used to my daily trek that their barks began seeming apathetic by the fifth week (“ahem... Bark, bark.. uh, bark... Okay, I’m done.”) and the roadkill, which, as a particularly God fearing child, I was sure to pray for the poor mushed creatures at every opportunity I got... I was a weird kid and like many weird kids, religion messed me up in the head for a while. That weirdness extended to the way in which I entertained myself during this trek. I would usually sing, or come up with elaborate stories, with eccentric characters and fart jokes. Often times my stories would involve Roy or his sister, ‘cause in my head, I was already there. This is why you’ll have noticed in our past 6 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

few issues that the FEED has already started covering some artists in the greater triangle area (Juan Huevos is based in Durham, and last month’s cover was on 9th Wonder who is a Raleigh producer). This month’s issue even has a story on a Greensboro artist (Crystal Bright), and so far the FEED has absolutely no plans of moving our little pub’ up there. I am pointing this out self consciously, because I want our readers in Fayetteville to know that our loyalty has not waned. Yes, we are distracted by Raleigh’s cool new toys, and excited about the opportunity to hang out with Raleigh’s hot sister (which we’ll just call Durham in this scenario), but at the end of the day, Fayetteville is our home. It is where our office is based and it is where all our families happen to be. It’s also where we keep all our cool stuff, and we love our stuff. As the months go on, we’ll be discovering new and exciting artists and people from all around North Carolina, and occasionally even some national artists. The rest of North Carolina has a pretty close knit music scene that Fayetteville has unfortunately rarely been a part of. We hope that by highlighting Fayetteville artists in a magazine that is distributed in Raleigh, and vice versa, we’ll be able to better merge the two. It should be noted that as many long boring treks as I took to go visit Roy at his house, he took just as many to visit me at my house... Only, he rode a bike. - James Johnson, Editor-in-Chief

FEEDback Each month we at the FEED like to take your emails, Facebook messages and angry ransom notes and answer them as best we can. We, however, will not do your history exam for you, so please stop sending us your homework. By Staff Reports

we heard, there is a lot of talk about showing the film during this year’s Hopscotch Music Festival. Keep up with the FEED online at FayettevilleFEED.com or Facebook.com/ FayettevilleFEED and we’ll let you know the second we know something.

Underwater Bawlers:

The following comments are in response to our story, “Prom with no Principles” by Jeremy Anderson from our August issue, in which we talked with metal rockers Phuket Underwater.

Days of Wonder:

The following comments are in response to our story, “The Human Wonder” by James Johnson from our August issue, in which we talked with producer 9th Wonder.

Good interview. I actually met (and photographed) these guys literally right after they did this shoot. They seemed like some cool dudes. :) - Tony Chavez

(I heart) 9th Wonder and the whole crew! Little Brother and The Foreign Exchange! - Bernadette Serra-Rodriguez Big ups to 9th, for keeping real hip hop alive. - Johnny Woodson J-Hop

These guys definitely should have been the main act at the Dillinger show, because the way I see it, Phuket Underwater and Sustainer were the best bands playing that night. I hate that Sustainer broke up or took a break. I wish they’d come back ... - James O’Neal

9th Wonder of the world. Him and Pete Rock are amazing. - Nicholas Castellano

I’d love to take you guys up on that challenge some time, haha. - Randy Williams

9th is a passionate music lover and it shows in his music! SN: That 2011 Nas Track … OMG... Hit! - Todd Freeman

Okay. We want to make something absolutely clear: If there is EVER a giant rocker basketball tournament held anywhere in North Carolina, in which artists sling their guitars aside, and do some NBA Jam style board glass breaking dunks, and follow said dunks up with a kick ass guitar riff, you are to let us know. Immediately. For God’s sakes, this kind of stuff needs to be documented for future generations! Think of the children! - FEED

Good article, fam’. When is the documentary coming out? - Phillip Anthony Brown Thanks for the kind words, folks. As stated in the article, the documentary on 9th Wonder is already out - but where? Viewings of the film are sparse until it is decided whether or not to go with a national distribution. Last

8 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

Scotch Hopping: The following are in response to the FEED’s preview story for the Hopscotch Music Festival

We've all asked ourselves what would we do if given the ability to harness the power of lasers. For most of us that answer is, "fire blindly into a room full of fun house mirrors while cackling madly," but for FEED fan and area photographer Eddie Harris, the answer is: "spell stuff." Thanks to Mr. Harris for sending us yet another photo proving his love of literacy and hatred of walls. Well of course if you don’t see GBV (Guided by Voices), the Flaming Lips, Future Islands and Superchunk, you’re cracked.I’d definitely check out Toro y Moi, Diamond Rings … You have to go see Shawn. PS: Future Islands gets packed to the point of being scary … Get there early. - Page McMillan Taylor

would love to do an interview with Yelawolf. I’m not a huge hip hop / rap fan, but he has skills and growing up the way he did would make for a great interview, I think … Second on the list of artists I’d see would have to be The Flaming Lips though. - Thaddious Dawkins

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THE CULT We comb the cultural wasteland for the latest in crap that isn’t important in the least.

By James Johnson

Bro-suit In the song, “Murder in the City,” North Carolina-based folk singers The Avett Brothers advise that one “always remember that there is nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name.” Meanwhile, brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher of the 1990s alt. rock band Oasis can’t seem to even share a room, as Liam is now communicating with his brother strictly through paid attorney. Yes, for fans of Oasis hoping for a reunion tour, one need only wait outside a London court house, with t-shirt and autograph pen at the ready. Liam is suing Noel for what he claims are false statements made by his bother at an Electric Cinema press conference on July 6, in which Noel had “claimed Oasis pulled out of the 2009 V Festival Chelmsford gig because I had a hangover. That was a lie and I want Oasis fans and others who were at V to know the truth.” Liam also says that Noel “falsely stated that the demise of Oasis followed a massive row in which he claimed I demanded to advertise my clothing range Pretty Green in the Oasis

tour program. The truth is there was no such discussion or row between us. There are many reasons why Oasis split. But it had nothing to do with my clothing range.” Liam added that the point of the lawsuit is not money - but merely an apology … ‘cause court appointed apologies are always the most sincere.

Tyler Perry Presents: Conan

10 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

Reports are out that Conan O’Brien’s new show on TBS (fittingly titled Conan) is floundering in the ratings department, averaging only 958,000 viewers an episode, and dropping 60% since its debut. This is bad news for TBS who invested $12 million into

attempt to “create” a controversy where there is none by lighting a children’s hospital on fire. This isn’t the Austin-based bands first encounter with September 11-related controversy. The band released their album Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever, just a few short weeks before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 ... The album art featured chilling images of an airplane, an angel, soldiers, along with text reading “this plane will crash tomorrow.”... Perhaps instead of trying to get their shows cancelled, we should hire these guys to work with the CIA? Psychic Rock Band Division … CBS is already working on the pilot. the late night legend after O’Brien’s contract with NBC was cut short. Fortunately, TBS isn’t placing the blame on O’Brien’s shoulders (publicly at least), as they seem fairly self aware in the fact that Conan is the only decent thing they seem to have going for them. For years the network has coasted on crappy Tyler Perry comedies and syndicated programming (if you think Leno is a tough act to follow, try following six straight hours of The Big Bang Theory reruns), but now with an actual heavy hitter like O’Brien garnering them attention, the network is having to rethink its strategy. First, TBS has cancelled Lopez Tonight and second they have announced plans to create complimentary new original sitcoms to surround O’Brien with. Here’s hoping for a return of Andy Richter Controls the Universe.

Death to the King. Burger King is doing away with their “creepy King mascot” campaign, and have begun their California Whopper campaign. We’re not

Get Offended in 5, 4, 3, 2 … Instrumental rockers (which is another way of saying “unknown”) Explosions in the Sky are set to perform at the Egyptian Theatre in Boise, Idaho on: September 11! … This is the point in which you are supposed to gasp, according to NBC, whose New York affiliate decided that this constituted real news. We’re journalists, we know. Sometimes its a slow news day, but usually you just bite the bullet and talk about something boring, you don’t

entirely certain what all this campaign with entail, aside from lots of guacamole, but we get the idea that the BK are hoping to present themselves as a healthier alternative to other fast food joints. The first ad for the campaign is a wordless collection of sights and sounds, with vegetables being washed and diced, and pulsating music. The King may be gone, but something tells us that the “creepy” is here to stay. www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 11

12 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

Through the

Looking Glass.

Artist Kelly Green creates as many as 10 impossible things before breakfast.

By Madeline Lunsford

ook up the word “freewheeling” in the dictionary, and you’re likely to stumble across a photo of Fayetteville-based artist, Kelly Green. Green has worked extensively in just about every mode and medium of art imaginable; including traditional canvas work, vinyl toys, clay sculpture, pen and ink and countless other formats. When searching for inspiration, Green will often borrow liberally from childhood memories and interests such as Alice in Wonderland.

FEED: Some of your art couples fairytale imagery with political commentary.

Is this purely aesthetic or do you see connections, between these two seemingly contradictory themes? GREEN: It’s funny, you know, I do do that! (laughs) I guess I can kind of see a connection, because most political stuff that you see is make-believe. We never really know what’s going on, you know? (laughs) The political aspect came up because I’m constantly thinking about politics, because it’s constantly in your face. Making fun of that stuff is a good way for me to absorb it. Combining old subject matter with new subject matter--I know a lot of people probably don’t consider some of that imagery to be political, but to me it definitely could be. [in folklore] the owl is always the “information keeper,” so it could be symbolic of the C.I.A., in a way.

FEED: Alice in Wonderland factors very prominently into a lot your work. What, specifically, resonates with you?

about

this

story

GREEN: For me, it’s mostly a childhood thing. My mother read Alice in Wonderland to me. I recited parts of it, specifically the Jabberwocky, over and over. So, it’s a story I’m really familiar with. So, there’s a sub-conscience influence, I suppose. But Alice is everywhere in pop-culture now. I think that it kind of gets passed along from generation to generation. www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 13

Scan for Kellyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s website www.flyvisions.com

FEED: Countless artists have looked to Alice in Wonderland for inspiration,

but the majority of these renderings tend to skew either toward the creepy and perverse, or a more friendly, psychedelic style. I’ve noticed that you embrace both trends in your art... GREEN: I guess I do “creepy-cute.” It’s all very cute on the surface, but then there’s that whole “little girl lost” aspect, that element of fear... Being lost in a place where you don’t really know what’s going on. I don’t know, when I try to do it one way it sort of comes off as both. (laughs) It may be a sub-conscience thing; I tend to have a lot of “little girls” in my art.

FEED: You work in several different mediums; do you have a preference? Green: I kind of like them all, but I generally favor whatever it is that I’m not supposed to be doing. If I have ten or eight commissions, I won’t want to work on them, so I’ll retreat to an opposite medium.

FEED: Which medium do you consider to be the most difficult to work with? GREEN: They all have their challenges, for sure. I would say pen and ink is the most difficult. I tend to destroy a lot of pens because they’re just so tiny and I’m not very gentle with them. I don’t find the toys to be difficult at all, those just kind of “happen.” Once you really learn a technique, it then becomes simply a matter of learning how to correct stuff when problems arise.

FEED: In your web-store, you sell several fun, interactive items such as puzzles and toys. Do you feel as though it’s important for art to be something that can be embraced and played with? GREEN: Yes, I think it should be. I had to be talked into the puzzles--that was an idea an elf came up with. (laughs) I was initially against the mass-production of my art, but it’s really cool to see so many people have a little piece of my work in their house. To see more of Green’s art, visit: frootkake.jalbum.net or visit her booth on Fourth Friday downtown. www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 15

ASHEVILLE

GETS SYNTHESIZED:

Moogfest

2011

Story by Jaymie Baxley

Photo courtesy of Colin Howe

hen synthesizer pioneer and electronic music architect Robert Moog was quietly spending his twilight years in Asheville, NC, he couldn’t possibly have predicted that his Blue Ridge mountain home would one day host a massive, annual music festival in his honor. Yet, here we are. Moogfest’s second consecutive year in historic, downtown Asheville is poised to be the festival’s biggest and greatest yet. Fresh off their stint headlining Raleigh’s Hopscotch festival, Oklahoma weirdos the Flaming Lips are among the event’s boldestfaced names. Other big acts include TV on the Radio, Moby and Umphrey’s McGee. 16 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

Also: Members of the recently-disbanded LCD Soundsystem — James Murphy and Pat Mahoney — will be presenting an exclusive DJ set (which is probably the closest you’re going to get to an LCD reunion for a while).

In addition to the performances from over 60 unique bands, Moogfest will also feature an assortment of panels, workshops and exhibitions. Most notably, an interactive art-exhibit from producer extraordinaire Brian Eno.

Photo courtesy of Tom Spray

www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 17

Line

Photo courtesy of Jessica Dimmock

Brian Eno, The Flaming Lips, Moby (full band), Passion Pit, STS9, Tangerine Dream, TV on the Radio,, Special Disco Version featuring James Murphy and Pat Mahoney (DFA/LCD Soundsystem), Crystal Castles, Umphrey’s McGee, Chromeo, Amon Tobin: ISAM Live, Ghostland Observatory, Flying Lotus, Suicide Performing Their Legendary First Album “Suicide”, Childish Gambino, M83, Battles, Dan Deacon, St. Vincent, Beats Antique, Holy F**k, The Naked & Famous, Mayer, Hawthorne & The County, Tim Hecker, Zomby, Twin Shadow, Adrian Belew Power Trio, Yacht, Anika, EOTO, SBTRKT, Beak>, The Drums, Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Savoy, Matthew Dear (band), Toro y Moi, Atlas Sound, Kode9, Glasser, Gold Panda, John Maus, Brandt Brauer Frick, Lunzproject Feat. Hans-Joachim Roedelius & Tim Story, Stickmen (Tony Levin & Pat Mastelotto), Austra, CANT, Mimi Goese & Ben Neill, Araabmuzik, Wham City Comedy Tour, Baths, Causing A Tiger, Oneohtrix Point Never, Fareed Haque + MathGames, Moon Duo, Ford & Lopatin, Cloud Canyon, Active Child, Warm Ghost, Grimes, Fine Peduncle.

Scan for Moogfest website

18 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

From new wave revivalists such as Chromeo and M83, to electronic soundscape-weavers such as Antlers and Crystal Castles, to synthrock demigods such as Suicide (who will be performing their landmark, 1977 self-titled debut in its entirety) and Tangerine Dream — the festival will feature performances by a cavalcade of renowned artists who simply would not exist today if not for Robert Moog’s ever-expanding legacy. New York native Robert Moog is credited with developing several of the world’s first widely-used electronic instruments, including the immensely popular Moog synthesizer. Robert Moog’s inventions would become a permanent part of the modern musical vocabulary toward the end of the 1960s, when influential artists like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd and Stevie Wonder began using the instruments to experiment with electronic textures. Moog would spend the latter years of his life in Asheville, NC, where he was diagnosed with a giloblastoma multiforme brain tumor in 2005. He died four months later at the age of 71. The Bob Moog Foundation was then created as a way of continuing his work, by developing electronic music. “I’m an engineer. I see myself as a toolmaker and the musicians are my customers, they use my tools,” Moog once said. If Moogfest’s diverse collection of performers is any indication, business is still booming. Moogfest will take place over Halloween weekend, October 28, 29 and 30. Festival-goers are invited to attend in costume. The festival will span six venues in downtown Asheville: the Asheville Civic Center, Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, Moog Music Factory, Diana Wortham Theatre, YMI Cultural Center and The Orange Peel. Tickets start at $149.50. A small portion of proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to the Robert Moog Foundation. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit Moogfest.com

HowGrow a to

Tender Fruit Story by James Johnson. Photography by Raul Rubiera Jr.

20 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

fter having been at the center of one of indie music’s most public breakups, becoming a country singer and escaping a cult, songwriter Christy Smith branches out with her latest project, Tender Fruit. 34-year-old singer songwriter Christy Smith had a critical success with her band Tender Fruit’s debut album, Flotsam & Krill. The 2010 release was an exercise in artistic freedom, with a diverse collection of non-genre specific tunes that painted an intimate portrait of painful break up. The album’s layered vocals, rhythmic guitar and surprisingly frank lyrics proved a dramatic departure from Smith’s previous band Nola, which even Smith admits was a by-the-numbers alt. country act. While many critics focused on the story behind the album’s creation (a response to ex-boyfriend Justin Vernon of Bon Iver’s own 2007 “break up album,” For Emma, Forever Ago), the story of how a young woman from Nash County North Carolina had gone from small town cult follower, to country artist to experimental folk singer had been almost entirely neglected. The Hole. “It was ... a cultural wasteland.” Those are the words Smith uses to describe Rocky Mount, North Carolina. For 18 years, the artist called this sparsely populated town home. For Smith, who is getting set to release her band’s as yet unnamed sophomore album early next year, Rocky Mount was anything but fertile ground for a burgeoning songwriter. In her heart of hearts Rocky Mount will forever be the place where Smith both lost her faith in God and found her faith in humanity.

She had been raised in what she describes as a cult, which claimed to be Southern Baptist, yet had no actual affiliation with churches outside of the commune. During this time, Smith says that she was made to attend class with the same 15 students each year, while having absolutely no contact with the outside world. For 18 years, Smith was taught hate and fear (the school had even gone so far as to condemn humanitarian Mother Theresa for the crime of being Catholic), but for the ever inquisitive student, these two lessons never quite stuck. It was a Sunday afternoon and I was sitting across from Smith in a Durham diner. The waitress placed our food in front of us, and Smith smiled graciously. Throughout the day I had noticed that Smith was almost always smiling. Not smiling. Beaming. Christy Smith beamed at the waitress. This was her default disposition. Modest, polite and disarmingly cheerful. I had heard that Smith possessed a Southern charm, but I had assumed with her reputation for writing painfully intimate songs which touched on heartbreak and loneliness, as well as her unusual upbringing, that Smith would possess a more cynical world view. The opposite was true. Smith explained her disposition by noting that when one is raised being told that everyone in the world is out to hurt you, and you find out that’s not the case, it is hard not to walk around every day with a sense of relief and appreciation. “People have been so nice to me. For the most part, people are very kind, which was a shock to me,” Smith said, barely appearing to touch her plate. “I saw that movie The www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 21

22 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

Village. That film had a personal impact on me, because I could relate to that feeling when the girl finally climbs over the fence and finds people on the outside. She is struck by how kind their voices are. People, in reality, are kind. There wasn’t this homophobia or racism. People were accepting.” The Seed. For the most part, the students she had grown up with were expected to graduate and move onto ultra conservative schools like Bob Jones University. Somehow, Smith had managed to be accepted to Campbell University, which while still fairly conservative, by the standards of her upbringing was wildly progressive. It was here that Smith first began to see the cracks in the stories she’d been told growing up. During a religious ethics class, a teacher at the university had pointed out to students that there was no text in The Book of Genesis to suggest that the serpent who tempts Eve was Satan, and that Satan wasn’t even mentioned by name in the Bible until much later. “I could quote you all of the books of the Bible, but for some reason we had always been taught that the serpent was Satan,” Smith explained. “I went back after school and reread it, and sure enough, there was no mention of Satan. It was that one little hole in the armor that got me to thinking. I realized I had been lied to about this one thing and began to wonder what else I’d been lied to about ... I had always asked a lot of questions growing up, which wasn’t taken well. They don’t want you thinking for yourself.” The Light. Though not allowed to dance, or listen to the radio, Smith had a love and fascination with the arts growing up. Particularly music. She was classically trained in piano when she was younger, frequently wrote poetry and of course, sang in choir. The very little music she was allowed to listen to was either

gospel, or doo-wap, which though subtle, still has an influence on her music today. Once in college, Smith took advantage of her new found freedoms, learning classical guitar and listening to country music. After graduation, Smith moved to Raleigh where she decided to put all her years of scribbling poetry, singing and playing guitar to use, by starting an altcountry band called Nola. “I actually put an ad in the paper, asking for people interested in helping me put together a band,” Smith recalled. “I got all these weird old dudes calling up saying ‘I wanna be in your band.’ I didn’t know what I was doing.” Nola, being Smith’s first stab at creating music, was, in her words, very formulaic. She noted that most artists go through two to three bands by the time they are 18, and that her upbringing forced her to be a late starter. “It was my first band, and in your first band you try to copy the established artists who inspire you. You copy what you hear, aping your favorite artists,” Smith explained. “It was very different from Tender Fruit. With Tender Fruit I am trying to find my own sound.”

For Smith, the new found freedom allowed her to take risks with song structure and writing that her work with Nola would have never allowed. For example, the album’s title track, “Flotsam & Krill,” had at first been entirely written on drums, as opposed to guitar. “The song was recorded in Raleigh with just me and Justin (Vernon),” said Smith. “I just played it on the drums and started singing over it. All I had was drums and a melody. The song had come together in a very different way than most songs I have written. It was a very good inspiration.”

www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 23

The Tender Fruit. Smith is already at work on the Tender Fruit follow up. The week of our interview the artist was informed that she had been awarded the The North Carolina Arts Council Fellowship grant, which she plans on investing into the creation of her next album, as well as using to fund her upcoming tour. “I didn’t even tell anyone I had applied,” Smith admitted. “I think only one other popular musician has ever won. It is mostly like serious classical musicians. I wanted to find an alternative way of funding stuff for a while. “ Currently Smith is getting set to perform at the Hopscotch Music Festival, on September 8, at King’s Barcade, August 21 and then again at the Milltown, Sept. 25, in Carrboro NC. “I tend to be a pretty laid back person because, having that experience … living the first 19 years of my life being under the sway of this very negative philosophy... I love people,” said Smith. “My lack of ambition may come from the fact that I fought so hard to get freedom. Every day is a gift. I look around and am amazed by how wonderful everything is. It’s nice. I can make my own choices.” For more information, or to download Smith Flotsam & Krill, go to http://thetenderfruit. bandcamp.com/

always asked a always asked a lot of questions grow questions growing up, which wasn’t up, which wasn taken well. They don’t want you well. thinkingThey for taken yourself.” want you thinki yourself.” www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 25

I 26 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

Idle

Hands

We sit down with Crystal Bright and the Silver Hands.

Story by James Johnson. Photography by Raul Rubiera Jr.

n 2009, artist Crystal Bright of Greensboro NC had just wrapped up a two year position as teacher of multi-cultural music and dance at the Greensboro Montessori school. Armed with far too much free time, and a wildly creative mind, Bright saw little other choice but to start writing music for what would become her band’s self titled 2010 debut album, Crystal Bright and the Silver Hands. The music can best be described as mixture of pre-rock genres. Blues, jazz and vaudeville sounds put together using accordions, musical saws, keyboards, guitar, drums and bass. The band is currently getting set to release their follow up L.P, Muses and Bones. Fresh off a performance at the Rock Shop Music Hall in Fayetteville NC, the FEED caught up with Bright, guitarist Diego Diaz and stand-up bass player Sanders Davis to discuss their wildly unique sound, as well as their future plans.

FEED: How exactly collaboration get started?

did

this

Crystal Bright: I was in a band before with my boyfriend ... I don’t recommend it … Long story short, I lost my band, I lost all three members in one month and so I started a new one from scratch. Diego had seen my previous band and apparently liked what he heard, so he was the first to approach me about creating music. Diego Diaz: I thought what she was doing was really different. Even before I saw her playing I wanted to be involved with it. Music like that, playing more traditional instruments – more acoustic instruments, that really interested me. I liked the darker sound as well. Right away I was like, ‘how can I get in this band?’ I heard areas where more ambient guitar sounds could fit in as well.

www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 27

28 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

FEED: How do you describe the sound to people who haven’t heard it?

Bright: It is a little bit more Eastern European, Spanish sounding. I really don’t know. I do whatever I like and whatever sounds good. The influences are Roman music, gypsy music. Tom Waits, the Tiger Lillies. I have listened to a lot of classical stuff too. African stuff. World music.

FEED: What inspired the “Silver Hands” part of your band’s name?

Bright: It came from an old folk tale. It was about a girl who got traded to the devil for financial wealth by her dad. But the girl was too innocent for the devil to take her, as she always kept her hands clean of sin. The devil demanded that her dad cut off her hands, so that he could take her. Even after her hands were removed, the devil was unable to take her. With no hands, she couldn’t work, so she became homeless, and a begger. One day a King saw her and fell in love. He gifted her with silver hands …

FEED: Regionally, your band has become fairly popular

with more than 1,000 fans online. Has that been the result of good marketing? Bright: I think some of it is word of mouth. No matter who comes out, it seems to connect with people. It stretches across cultural boundaries. I have never been part of a click or anything.

FEED: How is the writing process? Is it collaborative?

song very

Diaz: It is virtually all Crystal. I’ll sometimes make some suggestions but she is the song writer. She is pretty open to people throwing in their two cents in .

FEED: How is this new album being released this September, different from your debut?

Bright: It is a lot more developed I’d say. The last album was kind of a rushed project. We were doing a tour in Boston and wanted to have something to sell. This one we are putting a lot more time into not rushing at all. www.The FayettevilleFEED.com | 29

Touring the Treetops

Story by Rachel “Riot” Schaaf. Photography by Jason Ginman

hat started as an offhand remark on the Bryan family’s annual all-guys trip, has become a serious North Carolina attraction for both thrill-seekers and nature-lovers alike. ZipQuest, a canopy and zipline tour, opened in July 2010 and has quickly jumped to the top of the area’s adventure-based attractions. On weekends, ZipQuest can book up to 19 tours, consisting of up to eight people in each tour. The canopy tour is quickly becoming one of Fayetteville’s most popular features. Since the grand opening in July 2010, ZipQuest has been a leading attraction for the area as well as North Carolina and the Southeast as a whole. In August 2009, brothers Eason, Callan, and Russ Bryan were on a guy’s weekend with their father Norwood at a zipline attraction, when Norwood mentioned a zipline would be something they could do with Carver’s Falls, a 50-acre spread of land he’d bought in 1963 in order to preserve and protect it. While Eason thought his father was joking, by February, the group was already consulting with builders. “Dad bought the property to preserve it,” said Eason Bryan, acting operation manager of Zipquest. “All of us are Eagle Scouts, my dad, my two brothers and myself, so we like the outdoors and we want to protect it as best we can. You’ve seen what Fayetteville is, there’s a lot of development. We could do some development out here and probably make a lot more money.” Prior to building ZipQuest, the Easons were not adrenaline junkies or even Zip-line enthusiasts, all three brothers have an entrepreneurial spirit, each owning their own businesses at one point or another. Their father, Norwood, owns Bryan Honda in Fayetteville. The Bryan family consulted with several builders before deciding on S.T.E.P.S., an Ann Arbor, Mich., company who specializes in zip-line and canopy courses. Bryan says one of

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the main reasons they chose S.T.E.P.S. was because they were one of the few true tree artisans. “Some of the other builders like to use telephone poles, S.T.E.P.S. wanted to use live trees and that made the course a lot more unique and also a lot more challenging stuff like that, but I think we ended up with a very pretty project,” Bryan says. One of the unique aspects of the tour is that once a person zips from the first platform, their feet do not touch the ground for the entire 2.5-hour tour. The course is designed to take you through the natural landscape, and includes eight zip-lines, three canopy bridges, and several spiral staircases and landing platforms. All of these are built around trees that already existed on the Carver Falls property. “Only a handful of trees had to come out, that was very minimized in the course design, and we re-used the trees where we could to make benches, parking spaces and other parts of the course. We re-purposed as much as we practically could, “Bryan explained. “We wanted to try to marry adrenaline rush with some education and some ecological aspects.” The ecology of Carver Falls is a bit of a surprise itself, even without ZipQuest. The property boasts a waterfall that is 50 feet high and over 100 feet wide, the only of it’s kind east of the foothills in both Carolinas. ZipQuest guests can expect to see mountain laurel, bald cypress and multiple kinds of wildlife including deer, beaver, turtles and birds. One of the main reasons the Bryans decided on a canopy tour, where guests stay in the air during the entire tour, as opposed to a zip-line only tour, was to minimize foot traffic and human impact on the environment. “The more foot traffic you have, the more problems you’re going to have,” Bryan ...Continued on page 36 32 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

said. “That keeps it more eco-friendly. Other zip-line tours and canopy tours usually have a transportation van. Our design wraps back on itself so you don’t have to do that.” Since opening, ZipQuest has catapulted to the top of the list as a “must-see” zipline attraction. Featured in USA Today and www.ziplinenirvana.com as one of the “Ten Great” ziplines in the United States, people have come as far as Florada, Illinois, and California to ride the zip-line. However, Bryan says a whopping 90 percent of their business comes from North Carolina residents. “We didn’t think we’d actually pull as much from Fayetteville as we actually are, even though Fayetteville is not a tourist destination area. We thought that people would travel from a much farther distance, but we’re finding out that Fayetteville is our largest market, which is great, I’m very excited about that,” says Bryan. From the few hiring notices the company has put out on the internet, they’ve received hundreds of applicants. People are clamoring to work at ZipQuest. Kevin Morales, a ZipQuest guide since March of 2011 was very excited when he found out ZipQuest was hiring. His favorite part of the job is the different groups of people who come through. “We come out here and we get to zip, but honestly we’ve been out here for awhile so the adrenaline kind of simmers down, but the people who come through here bring the whole course back to life,” Morales said. “ I love this place because of the people that come through.” Guests of ZipQuest rave just as much about their guides. David Evans of Fayetteville who celebrated his birthday at the course along with his daughter, sister-in-law and 71-year old mother-in-law said the guides were one of the best parts of the experience.

“The guides were awesome. They knew so much about the ecology of the area and made the experience so much fun,” Evans said.

The tour group that Evans was a part of shows the diversity of the groups that come through. The 8-person group ranged in age from 21 to 71, with customers visiting from Scotland, Hawaii, and North Carolina. “We have a pretty wide range of people,” Bryan says, “Church groups, military, girl and boy scouts, and families. It appeals to everyone”. ZipQuest tours start at $85 per person with military and group discounts available. Reservations can be made at www. zipquest.com. 34 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

by Jaymie Baxley

1. The Weeknd - Thursday Toronto-based crooner the Weeknd, AKA Abel Tesfaye , follows up his spellbinding debut with another solid collection of chilly, nocturnal R&B ballads.

2. Active Child - You Are All I See A gorgeous debut from L.A. electro-soul outfit, Active Child, You Are All I See’s cavernous textures make it equally well-suited for the club and the cathedral.

Kanye West and Jay-Z - Watch the Throne

Watch the Throne, the long-anticipated joint effort between Kanye West and Jay-Z, finds the two hip-hop trailblazers swapping verses with a rejuvenated sense of playfulness and a competitive spirit that’s been sorely lacking from their more recent solo output.

4. Dom - Family of Love Heavily-hyped Worcester, Massachusetts-based indie-pop band Dom return with a suprisingly polished sounding second E.P. Under the watchful eye of established producer Nicolas Vernhes (who has helmed releases by the likes of Animal Collective and Bjork), the group’s formerly candy-coated tunes have be crystalized into pure sugar.

5. War on Drugs - Slave Ambient The hazy, psych-rock slow burners on Slave Ambient, the latest release from rootsy Philadelphia noise-weavers War on Drugs, should provide the perfect soundtrack to the final scenes of Summer. This is the band’s first album in four years and its first without former founding-member, Kurt Vile.

6. Windowspeak - Windowspeak This floaty, self-titled debut album from Brooklyn-based dream-pop trio, Windowspeak, sounds like a lost Mazzy Star record.

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Game Review

Story by Kole Ross of GamingTruth.com

n appropriate subtitle for Catherine would go something like “Not For Everyone” or “Niche Appeal.” By all outward appearances, it’s a frighteningly strange divergence from business as usual for an industry crowded with games that nestle comfortably inside of one genre or another. For those willing to embrace this strangeness, Catherine is a startlingly mature and refreshing game that’s not afraid to tackle adult themes. It does the heart good to know that such a product was given the chance to see the light of day. Vincent is a loser whose girlfriend, Katherine, is pressuring him to settle down. The problem is, Vincent is seduced by a younger woman named Catherine. After this, Vincent starts having horrifying dreams where he must climb towers made of blocks, or else he will die in real life. Those block towers are where you will be spending the majority of your time. As the most game-like part of Catherine, they’re also the most prosaic, and seemingly the least relevant to what’s going on. This isn’t to say that they’re not fun, though. Like any great puzzle game, its difficulty 38 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

progresses along with your comprehension of its mechanics. Each set of towers adds a new type of trap block or power up, and these wrinkles help you learn new ways to manipulate the blocks and forge your path upward. The result is a surprisingly deep game that keeps the curveballs coming until the very end. The puzzles are difficult, though. I floundered on normal mode for a while before bumping it down to easy, which gives you the ability to undo potentially disastrous moves without having to restart at a checkpoint. This reduced the amount of time I spent banging my head against a brick wall, and I encourage you to follow suit. The puzzle sections really shine during the boss stages, where Vincent’s greatest fears and anxieties manifest as gigantic monsters that clamber after him with murder on their minds. Visually and thematically, these bosses are appropriately unsettling. Mechanically, they add a bit of unpredictability to the puzzles, shaking up the established order of How Things Should Work. My major complaint about the puzzle sections is that the controls aren’t always

intuitive. Later puzzles require Vincent to climb around the backside of the towers, rendering him invisible to the camera (no matter how much you rotate it). Combine this with directional controls that seem to reverse at random, and the result is a great deal of fake difficulty. Selective transparency or adding a silhouette of Vincent behind the blocks would have gone a long way towards easing this pain. When Vincent isn’t climbing block towers, he’s dodging pointed questions from Katherine and drowning his sorrows at the bar with his friends. After the requisite cut scenes, Vincent is free to walk around the bar and talk with the other patrons, helping them solve their life problems. This is important, because the men at the bar show up in the nightmares, and your words could determine whether they live or die. It’s the bar that illuminates one important fact: Even though the game is named after a woman, Catherine is about men. All of Vincent’s friends and acquaintances are struggling with some aspect of growing up and committing to an adult life. Helping them navigate these struggles is part of what makes Catherine unique, since no other game has tackled the notion of “maturity” in such a direct and naked way. No game has included drunk texting as a mechanic, either. How Vincent responds to

text messages from Katherine and Catherine can change the way the narrative flows. I like the idea of this, but the execution is ham-fisted. Your potential responses are transparently weighted to be either “good” or “bad”, and a morality meter pops up every time you lean one way or the other. I find myself struggling to conclude this review, since Catherine definitely isn’t for everyone. There’s a lot of meat here, and it’s definitely worth playing, but its essential weirdness will turn a lot of people off. It has more in common with visual novels like Ever17 or 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors than it does with anything I’ve seen on an HD console. After reading this, you probably know whether or not you’re the kind of person Catherine will speak to. If you are, I wholeheartedly recommend it, despite its minor flaws. If you’re not, then I can’t force you to take your medicine.

Rating: 8.5/10

BOOK REVIEW

The Passage

Justin Cronin’s

Story by Tasina Ducheneaux

have a known bias for post-apocalyptic stories and The Passage is one of the best in the genre. The story begins in the “not-too-distant future” with a slightly more hysterical view of the war on terror and the efforts to control threats to the United States. Without giving too much away, the efforts of the powers that be cause the creation of a pseudo science version of “vampires” to emerge and it all just kind of goes to hell after that. We meet some interesting characters in the beginning of the book – a jaded FBI agent, a nun who seems to really hear from God (or someone), and most importantly – The Girl from Nowhere. We see how society starts falling apart in the face of a spiraling crisis and the outlook for the future is pretty bleak. Fast-forward 100 years. The world as we know it is gone and all that appears to be left is one small band of survivors. Personally, I think this is the best part of the book. It’s that post-apocalyptic era that really grabs me. How does one survive after everything we know is gone? How do you re-build a functioning society? How do you throw away all the old rules and make up new ones? Full disclosure, I will watch or read almost any movie, TV show, or book that describes survival in a world gone mad. (The Postman, Lost, and The Road are some recent favorites. And yes, I know everyone hated The Postman. I don’t care!) I have read some other reviews of the book 40 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

and they criticize it as being “yet another vampire story.” I think this characterization is unfair. First of all – the focus of the story is not about dealing with vampires, it’s about dealing with a massive change in the entire world. Secondly, the “vampires” aren’t like traditional vampires (nor do they sparkle). I don’t think it’s really even fair to call them “vampires” as they don’t follow the normal vampire mythos. It’s hard to explain without giving away too much. If you read the 1954 novel I Am Legend by Richard Matheson (or saw either of the movie adaptations) then you have a closer approximation of what these “vampires” are really like. Cronin’s little band of survivors are ekeing out an existence somewhere in California. They are completely cut off from the rest of the world, assuming there is even IS a rest of the world. For all they know, they are all that is left of humanity. Their small little society has created a set of rules and directives, some of which seem a little harsh and unusual, but they have survived. It’s interesting how they have gone back to what seems like an almost Puritan mode of existence with the importance of certain families (households) and their inherited trades and positions in this world. “Auntie” is a very old woman who was a small girl when the world went crazy. She has taken it upon herself to chronicle the world she once knew – just so that it doesn’t all get

lost to memory. This may be an almost futile gesture on her part. There is an interesting passage about a younger female character who finds a set of cheesy romance novels and becomes almost addicted to reading them. The fascination for her is in how these books are written about an age before machines and modern life. She thought the whole world was run by machines and didn’t realize that there was a time before when things were different. The Passage is intended to be the first of a trilogy and even I am not sure where it’s all heading next. The one small criticism I have of this book is that it’s extraordinarily long. I don’t mind a big, epic tome now and then – but you have stay committed to it. At a couple of points I set the book down to…you know… live the rest of my life, and when I went back to it I was a bit confused about where I was in the story and who people were. Hopefully you all are faster readers than I am and also have a solid week to sit and do nothing but dive in.

8 / 10

FEED on Film Tender Fruit Each month the FEED will be participating in a project we’re calling FEED on FILM. Obviously, it is fairly self explanatory but we’ve got word quotas to meet, so allow us to explain anyway. FEED on FILM will feature a video of a different area artist performing - no special effects, no special mics, no camera tricks, just an artist and their art. This month we’re featuring Durham singer songwriter Tender Fruit (aka, Christy Smith), who just so happens to be featured on this month’s cover.

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The

Lobby

Films Opening in September

In a month that is heavy with horror movies that are hoping to cash in on people who just can’t wait for Halloween (Piranha 3DD may just want to cash on people who can’t wait to be done with puberty), the most obvious stand out appears to be 50/50. The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Adam, a 27-year-old man who has been diagnosed with the big C. It co-stars Seth Rogen in the role of best pal, and Bryce Dallas Howard. The film deals with some pretty heavy issues regarding mortality, while at the same time somehow managing to be a Seth Rogen comedy... Wait, isn’t this like the second time that Seth Rogen will be starring as the best friend in a comedy about a man diagnosed with a terminal illness? Apollo 18, Shark Night, Saving Grace Be Jones, The Apparition, Warrior, Contagion, Born to Be a Star, Creature, Straw Dogs, The Intruder, Piranha 3DD, I Don’t Know How She Does It, Abduction, Moneyball, Dolphin Tale, Killer Elite, Dream House, What’s Your Number?, 50/50, Courageous

This month’s FEED on FILM was shot by FEED photo editor Raul Rubiera Jr. (yes, he can do film too).

Music Schedule Dates may be subject to change. Each month we scour the Internet for shows and events in our area, but we just know we’re missing something. Shoot an email to our editor, James@FayettevilleFEED.com and set us straight. We trust that the information we have is accurate when we publish it but anything can change. Be certain to call the venue before making any long treks. - FEED

The Rock Shop Music Hall 128 S King St, Fayetteville, NC (910) 321-ROCK Sept. 1, 6 p.m. KITTIE (Metal) DIRGE WITHIN (Metal) Diamond Plate (Metal) BETRAY YOUR OWN (Metal) Fall River Massacre (Metal) Sept. 2, 8 p.m. A Breath Forgotten (Rock) Sept. 23, 8 p.m., 6 PACK (Rock) Wayne Hancock (Country) Chad Bowden Sept. 24, 8 p.m., CITIZEN KANE (Rock) The Black Cat Lounge 2918 Fort Bragg Rd Fayetteville, NC, 910-339-4654 Sept. 2, 8 p.m. Ethereal Genocide

(Metal) Sept. 3, 8 p.m. Start Again Sustainer (Metal) The Hounds GROUPTHINK (Rock) Sept. 3, 8 p.m. Start Again Sustainer (Metal) The Hounds GROUPTHINK (Rock)

Sept. 10, 8 p.m. The Octane Saints The Luvrs (Rock) The Bamfs (Alternative) Sept. 13, 8 p.m. Lucky Tubb and The Modern Day Troubadou… (Country) Ronnie Hymes & Carolina Freight (Country) Carolina Still (Country) Sept. 17, 8 p.m. Southbound Turnaround JT and the Dragpipes (Rock)

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Sept. 19, 8 p.m. The Swaggerin’ Growlers (Rock) Sept. 22, 8 p.m. Bob Wayne and the Outlaw Carnies (Country) Ronnie Hymes & Carolina Freight (Country) Carolina Still (Country) Sept. 23, 7 p.m. The River City NIGHTMARE (Metal) StellaFlesh (Rock) Sept. 24, 8 p.m. Burning Streets (Rock) The Dielectrics (Rock) The Shotdowns (Other) The SRIs (Alternative) Oct. 1, 8 p.m. PanaCea (Rock) The Pinhook, 117 W Main St, Durham, NC, 919.667.1100 Sept.1,8 p.m. O’Death Lonnie Walker (Alternative) Why Are We Building Such A Big Ship? (Alternative) Sept.2, 10 p.m. The Charming Youngsters (Rock) Lilac Shadows (Pop)

The Toddlers (Alternative) Sept.14, 8 p.m. Gods of Harvest (Alternative) Scarlet Virginia (Folk) First Person Plural (Mike Robinson) (Alternative) Sept.15, 9 p.m. New Town Drunks (Folk) The Cats Cradle 300 E. Main Street, Carrboro, NC. 919-967-9053 Sept.24, 7 p.m. WHY? Serengeti Sept.24, 8 p.m. The Olivia Tremor Control The Music Tapes Sept.27, 6 p.m. Wilco, Nick Lowe Sept.27, 7 p.m. Cut Copy Washed Out Midnight Magic Sept.28, 8 p.m., The Joy Formidable, Fang Island Sept.28, 8 p.m.

BETRAY YOUR OWN Plays the Rock Shop Music Hall on Sptember 1st Jenny Owen Youngs (Pop) Sept.29, 6:30 p.m. N.E.D. MOTORCO MUSIC HALL 723 Rigsbee Ave, Durham, NC, 919 901 0875 Sept. 1, 8 p.m.

Prison Book Club (Rock) American Aquarium (Country) Sept. 18, 12 p.m. Crystal Bright & the Silver Hands (Other) Sept.24, 7 p.m. Cracker (Hip Hop), Motorco Birthday Party,

Cracker! Sept.25, 8 p.m. Pokey LaFarge and the South City Three (Blues)

The Bo-Stevens (Country) Phalanx (Other) Local 506 506 West Franklin Street Chapel Hill, NC (919) 942-5506

Sept.29, 8 p.m. Dark Water Rising (Folk) Delta Rae (Folk)

Sept.1, 9 p.m.

Sept.30, 8 p.m.

VIEUX FARKA TOURE Diali Cissokho &

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Kairaba! (Reggae) Sept.2, 8 p.m. FREAK KITCHEN GALACTIC COWBOY ORCHESTRA CAMERON ALLEN Sept.3, 9 p.m. Lactose Quervo (Rock) George Preston Herrett WOODEN-HEAD Sept.5, 9 p.m. HUNX & HIS PUNX The Cute Lepers (Rock) SOMETHING FIERCE Sept.6, 9:30 p.m. Active Child, COM TRUISE Sept.7. 9 p.m. Arborea (Alternative)

Sept.14, 8 p.m. Cat’s Cradle Presents DAN ANDRIANO... Sept.15, 9:30 p.m., Simplified Sept.16, 9:30 p.m. The Apache Relay (Folk) RIVER CITY EXTENSION Sept.17, 9:30 p.m., Neon Indian (Pop) Sept.18, 8:45 p.m. THE LOW ANTHEM Sept.19, 8 p.m., Sleepercar JIM WARD Sept.20, 9 p.m., Secret Chiefs 3 Sept.21, 9 p.m., NICK 13

Sept.8, 9 p.m. Big Something (Rock)

BRETT DETAR (of the Julianna Theory)

Sept.9, 8 p.m. Shawn Deena (Alternative) Michael Burks (Blues)

Sept.23, 12 a.m. ,The Screaming Crayons (Alternative)

Sept.10, 9 p.m. MIPSO TRIO JIM AVETT THE THOMPSON BROTHERS Sept.11, 8 p.m. MINIATURE TIGERS

Sept.26, 9:30 p.m. Cymbals Eat Guitars (Rock) HOORAY FOR EARTH LYONNAIS Sept.30, 9:30 p.m. Viva Voce (Rock) THE PARSON RED HEADS

Sept.12, 9:30 p.m. NEWVILLAGER 46 | FEED Magazine | September 2011

DID YOU KNOW? Raul Rubiera is currently the Creative Director, Photography Editor and part Owner at FEED Magazine. He has been a professional photographer for over twelve years in Miami, New York and currently North Carolina. He has had the great fortune to study under some of the industry’s best photographers in New York and, even earlier, was trained in the art of photography by his father, Raul Rubiera Sr. Raul Rubiera has worked for or been published by: Time Magazine, Life Magazine, Variety, Washington Post, Miami Herald, New York Times, Orlando Sentinal, People, Us Weekly, Star Magazine, TV Digest, TV Guide, TV.com, Soap Opera Weekly, MTV, VH1, Martha Stewart Living, ABC, NBC, NATAS (EMMY Awards), Goldman Sachs and Perry Ellis among others. James Johnson is an NCPA (North Carolina Press Association) award winning writer who has been writing professionally for more than 10 years. In those years he has served as writer and editor for 10 different publications, including weekly alternatives, daily newspapers, monthly magazines and online publications. In 2009, James founded the FEED Magazine. Today he serves as co-owner and Editor-in-Chief of the FEED. For questions, write to James@fayettevillefeed.com. Staff-writer Jaymie Baxley has been with the FEED since the magazine’s inception. In addition to featured artist profiles, he also handles our monthly “What You Should Listen To” column. Beyond the FEED, Jaymie has written extensively for several regional and national publications, including Slant magazine, Alarm and the Moving Arts Film Journal. For questions, write to Jaymie@faettevillefeed.com.