VOL. 29 ISSUE 45 ISSUE #1296
VOICES / 3 NEWS / 4 THE BIG STORY / 6 ARTS / 14 SCREENS / 16 FOOD / 17 MUSIC / 18 // SOCIAL
Best thing to do during a government shutdown? (Because we know it’ll happen again.)
Nate Woods
Jason Blair
Chris Banta
Switch to the Metric System when nobody is looking.
Import as many Kinder eggs as possible.
Go tear up Golden Corral and lather yourself in chocolate in the fondue fountain. See you there?
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JOHN KRULL is a veteran Indiana journalist and educator.
ONE YEAR DONE
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BY JOHN KRULL // EDITORS@NUVO.NET
omehow, it’s appropriate that President Donald Trump marked his first anniversary in the Oval Office by presiding, enraged and ineffectual, over the collapse of government. The same turbulent forces that fueled Trump’s rise made the shutdown of the federal government inevitable. The divisions and distrust that he discerned and exploited in his march to the White House are the same dynamics that make our unruly land almost impossible to govern. This is not a partisan or an ideological criticism. Anyone with eyes, ears and an observant nature can see we are a country split, fragmented, even close to shattered along cultural, regional, racial, religious, ethnic and ideological lines. At this moment, we are less a nation than a collection of jousting tribes trying to occupy the same geographic space. I hear on a regular basis from readers who disagree with things I have written. These criticisms come from, for lack of better terms, both left and right. When I submit to the temptation to respond to these notes — a habit I’m trying to curtail — by pointing out facts that undermine or at least should modify my critics’ arguments, the reaction inevitably takes one of three forms. My correspondents either ignore the inconvenient facts, deny their truth without offering refuting evidence or argue that the real issue is that people on the other side have done even worse. This is not just anecdotal. Surveys from the Pew Center and other researchers reveal a disturbing and increasing number of Americans react to information that contradicts their beliefs in a distressing way. Instead of re-examining and altering or modifying their beliefs based on new evidence, they deny the validity of the facts and cling to their beliefs even more devoutly. This is troubling on at least three counts. The first is that it indicates that education will not bridge the chasms that divide
us. If learning more does not alter the way we think but instead reinforces our differences, then marshaling evidence just compounds the problem. The second reason this trend is cause for worry is that our nation’s system of government and philosophic underpinnings are products of the age of reason. The founders placed their faith in the pursuit of truth to liberate humanity. Without this organizing faith to unite us, we Americans find ourselves subject to the same angry divisions that have plagued humanity for millennia. Lastly, if there is no shared factual underpinning to our discussions, then we cannot talk or negotiate with each other. The shutdown and the blame game accompanying it are all the evidence we need to prove this. Both sides cannot yield because they listen to and hear only those voices with which they agree. Consider the circularity of the arguments each side advances. Republicans charge that Democrats hold the nation hostage to protect the “dreamers,” those young undocumented immigrants. Democrats contend that it is Republicans who hold the nation hostage, so they can punish innocent young people. The identities of both victims and villains are determined by which side of the partisan divide the observer stands. It’s tempting — and far too easy — to blame President Trump for this breakdown in national coherence and effectiveness, but the truth is he is more a product, rather than an architect, of the increasingly irrational age in which we live. He is, in fact, a near-perfect manifestation of these choleric times. That’s why his tweets resemble howls into the winds that rage all around him, winds he is powerless to quiet or still. His fury feeds on frustration, because he is ensnared by the whirlwind that swirls unchecked in an ugly and destructive age. As are the rest of us. N For more opinion pieces visit nuvo.net/voices
NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // VOICES // 3
BOOZY SUNDAYS
LEGISLATIVE NEWS BITES
An Indiana House committee said yes to Sunday alcohol sales, making it likely the popular measure will become law in the current legislative session. House Bill 1051 passed the House Public Policy
“Allowing expansion of cold beer is pulling the rug from underneath us,” Sinder said. Ricker said he and other supporters of cold beer sales will be back next year to push for similar legislation.
Committee on Jan. 17 by a 12-1 vote. On Monday,
— EMILY KETTERER
Jan. 22 a similar piece of legislation, Senate Bill 1,
would permit packaged liquor, grocery, conve-
D-Austin, supported the initiative, but later ques-
prescription vials.
tioned the bill’s overall assessment of K-12 funding.
“Ninety percent of abusers start in their teens,
agree their students are fully funded,” Goodin said.
very substantial mark, is pilfering,” Cohen said.
“I think there will be some questions about the
why she believes that locks on narcotic prescription
The Indiana Senate passed legislation Thursday, Jan. 18 to ensure that people with medical
on Sundays from noon to 8 p.m. Restaurants that
conditions can use employee restrooms when
gansport, and chair of the committee, decides how
meet requirements to sell alcohol for carryout
public ones are not available.
to proceed.
HB 1051, authored by Rep. Ben Smaltz, would
assurance for people with diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome or Crohn’s disease means they
including restaurants.
won’t have to fear having accidents in public.
— ERICA IRISH AND SHELBY MULLIS
Hoosiers should expect to wait just a little longer before they can purchase cold beer outside of liquor stores. The Senate Public Policy Committee voted 9-1
increase the current age to buy tobacco products
House Bill 1001’s passage as a victory for House
granted access to the restroom in most businesses.
Republicans.
“I don’t think it’s another regulation we need,” said Niemeyer. SB 137 now goes to the House for consideration. — KIRSTEN NIELSEN
“Our top priority for the House Republicans
Teenagers are two times more likely to access they are to go to the streets to get illegal drugs. “Pilfering is the number one way that teenagers initiate drug abuse in our country today,” Amy Levander, chair of Krieg Devault said. She was testifying before the Senate Civil Law
average, Hoosier businesses would save billions of
Bosma said. “That was our very top priority.”
dollars. Currently, the rate of smokers in Indiana is
public schools.
members of the chamber to help Indiana quit
“Under House Bill 1001’s provisions, not a single Hoosier student in the K-12 would experience a reduction in their tuition support,” Siegrist said. Siegrist said these numbers were not accounted for in the state’s biennium budget last session, creating a $16 million shortfall in funding student tuition. Without a solution, schools
which requires pharmacies and pharmacists to sell
experiencing growth could lose around
a committee.
or dispense a schedule II-controlled substance such
$15 per student, she added. Her bill includes a transfer of up to $25
testimony from both sides of the issue. With every
She showed committee members a sample lockable
million from the state’s tuition reserve fund
argument, a counter-argument rose, allowing peo-
vial. Author of the bill, Sen. Jim Merritt, R-Indianap-
in 2018. By 2019, that transfer limit would
ple from each side to make their cases.
olis, said he believes that the idea is for a person
increase to $50 million.
to expand cold beer sales is a vote for gas stations to put liquor stores out of business.
to keep track of his or her own vial to make sure
The purpose of the $348 million tuition
opiates are safe and kept away from teenagers.
reserve fund is to assist in situations like the
Four out of five heroin users today started
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Brinegar is a founding member of the Alliance for a Healthier Indiana, and is working alongside
the first time cold beer sales had been heard by
Jon Sinder, owner of Crown Liquors, said a vote
nearly 50 percent above the national average.
rollment of 6,000 additional students in Indiana’s
Committee Thursday, Jan 18 about Senate Bill 339,
as OxyContin or Percocet, in a lockable container.
not usually strive to be simply average, if Indiana could drop their smoking rate down to just the U.S.
healthy” discussion on the issue, since this was
The committee listened to three hours of
Kevin Brinegar, president of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, said that while he does
ly-funding local public schools this year and next,”
Lafayette, is a response to the unexpected en-
LOCK YOUR BOTTLES
from 18 to 21.
passed unanimously today with House Bill 1001, ful-
The bill, authored by Rep. Sally Siegrist, R-West
store, started the cold beer discussion last year
Ricker said he was disappointed with the bill’s
Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, celebrated
Rick Niemeyer, R-Lowell, say that most people are
pills out of their parents medicine cabinets than
outcome, but said he was grateful for the “good,
If passed, House Bill 1380 would raise the state’s
schools Thursday, Jan. 18.
Jay Ricker, owner of Ricker’s convenience
restaurant permit.
tobacco products.
no longer be an issue.
state law, convenience stores can sell warm beer
when two of his stores sold cold beer under a
Lawmakers in the House passed a “top priority”
cigarette tax by as much as $2 per pack and would
retailers to sell cold beer. Under current Indiana
liquor stores.
well as raising the age at which Hoosiers can buy
FUNDING FOR TINY HOOSIERS measure to provide additional funding to K-12
against Senate Bill 26, which would have permitted
but selling the beverage cold has been left to the
Rep. Charlie Brown, D-Gary, is proposing legislation to increase the tax on a pack of cigarettes as
Emotional distress from public embarrassment will However, opponents of the bill, such as Sen.
LUKEWARM BEER
— ERICA IRISH
PRICIER CIGS — CLAIRE CASTILLO
Supporters of the bill say that having this
carryout on Sundays between noon and 8 p.m.,
HB 1001 passed 96-0. Its counterpart, Senate Bill 189, is advancing in the Senate.
The bill was held until Sen. Randall Head, R-Lo-
Senate Bill 137 passed with a vote of 34-15.
also permit the same stores to sell alcohol for
actual growth of public schools.”
bottles will prevent teens from accessing them.
nience and drug stores to sell alcohol for carryout
would also be permitted to sell on Sundays.
“I don’t think every school corporation would
and the number one source for teen abuse, by a
die every day because of opioid abuse, which is
A … GOOD BATHROOM BILL?
House Minority Leader Rep. Terry Goodin,
CEO of SafeRx and one maker of the locking
Nelson said that 91 people in the United States
passed in the Senate with a 39-10 vote. SB 1, authored by Sen. Ron Alting, R-Lafayette,
with a prescription opioid, said Milton Cohen,
one Indiana schools now face, Siegrist said.
smoking and make Indiana a more attractive place to do business. — EDDIE DREWS
NUVO.NET/NEWS
WE MARCH AGAIN On Saturday, January 20, the one year anniversary of Donald Trump’s inauguration was
marked by a protest by thousands in Downtown Indianapolis and millions across the country. Indianapolis’ Women’s March featured a bevy of social justice advocates as speakers who encouraged participants to engage in collective action around voting registration for the midterm elections.
— KATHERINE COPLEN
MARCHERS MOVED FROM AMERICAN LEGION MALL TO THE STATEHOUSE // PHOTO BY ESTON BAUMER
TERESSA HART SHOWS HER SUPPORT FOR EQUALITY EVERYWHERE AT THE WOMEN’S MARCH IN INDIANAPOLIS. // PHOTOS BY ESTON BAUMER
// PHOTO BY BROOKE MCCALLUM
NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // NEWS // 5
IL LI AM R (L EF T) , W ER W ILC HE // TI TY, GR OV IC W ILC HE R WOR LD EN R AN D CE DR RRY W ILC HE W ILC HE R, LA
// IEW S PAU L THO MAS RIC KIE CLA RK INT ERV
PAUL MIDDLEBROOK //
F Four profiles of early rap renaissance men BY KYLE LONG // MUSIC@NUVO.NET
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or the average music fan in 1979, rap music dropped mysteriously from the sky. It was the year Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight” hit the airwaves. It was one of the first hip-hop songs to be recorded, and its quick ascent on the Billboard charts marked rap music’s arrival within mainstream popular music. While hip-hop’s emergence into pop culture was swift, its incubation period was looooong. The roots of rap music stretch deep into America’s cultural soil. Some of the first murmurs of the genre could be heard in the late ‘60s, when Black poets began merging spoken word with jazz and soul. Records by the The Last Poets, The Watts Prophets, Nikki Giovanni and Gil Scott-Heron clearly anticipate the emergence of rap. But influences came from many directions, including comedians like
Rudy Ray Moore, whose x-rated Dolemite toasts leaned heavily toward the rhythmic language of rap. The most significant influence on the development of hip-hop can be found in the work of ‘70s funk, soul and disco stars like James Brown, Isaac Hayes and George Clinton. Collectively this generation of artists created the musical foundation of hip-hop, while their various individual contributions helped to promote and preserve the culture during its formative years. Many key players from the Indianapolis soul scene of the 1970s played an enormous role in the development of hip-hop, on both a national and local level. And their stories have been buried in history for too long. Let’s fix that. Read on as four of the most compelling Hoosiers personalities of that era share their secrets from the lost history of Indianapolis hip-hop.
NUVO.NET/THEBIGSTORY
Reggie G ri f fin
The legacy of Indy’s late ’70s soul supergroup Manchild is dominated with talk of Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds. That’s understandable, because when Edmonds left Indianapolis in the 1980s he ended up becoming the most successful American songwriter of the late 20th Century. But Manchild was much more than a launching pad for Edmonds’ talents becuase the band was packed with legendary musicians. While Manchild’s leader Reggie Griffin may not have the celebrity status of Edmonds, his accomplishments are just as important. Griffin earned the nickname “Mr. Everything” for his ability to play an impressive array of instruments. He cut his teeth as a professional musician during his teenage years, playing sax with the legendary Indianapolis funk group Billy Ball and The Upsetters. During his time with Ball, Griffin also picked up the guitar. From there his talents expanded manifold. By the early ’80s, Griffin had mastered a variety of early synths and drum machines, and that’s where our story picks up. Griffin’s skill for creating electronic music brought him to the attention of Sugar Hill Records founder and CEO Sylvia Robinson, who hired Griffin as an in-house musician and arranger at Sugar Hill. During his time at the label, Griffin made significant contributions to hip-hop and electronic dance music. In 1982, Griffin became the first American electronic dance music producer to use the term “techno” when he released the electro classic “Mirda Rock” under the name Reggie Griffin and Technofunk. Griffin is one of the unsung pioneers of electronic dance music, and that’s partially due to his avoidance of the limelight. But thanks to my friend Paul Thomas, I was able to catch up with Griffin during the summer of 2017. We spoke at length about his contributions to hip-hop music.
KYLE LONG: I understand your career in hip-hop started as a result of the dissolution of Manchild. REGGIE GRIFFIN: I was the leader of Manchild, but when Kenny Edmonds left the band, I didn’t really feel like it was the same.
But I didn’t want to leave the other guys high and dry. We had some legal issues with the name Manchild, so we changed the name to Redd Hott, and I said to the guys, “I’m gonna help you get a record deal. But I’m also gonna start doing my own thing now.” I’d come in contact with a guy named George Kerr who was helping Redd Hott to record. George happened to be connected with Joe and Sylvia Robinson of Sugar Hill Records in New Jersey. So we went to Sugar Hill to record some rhythm beds for a project. After the session Sylvia Robinson must have asked about me and found out I was the leader of the band and that I played multiple instruments. Because after I flew back to Indianapolis, Sylvia called me and asked if I would come back and help work on a song. I remember the first song that Sylvia asked me to work on. The Sugarhill Gang had come out with one of the biggest records to ever happen, which was “Rapper’s Delight.” That was the first multi-million selling rap record. They were trying to come back with something strong after that record. They’d already started on a song called “Apache”. They had the rhythm section together, and some of the raps were done, but Sylvia really felt like something was missing. So she asked me point blank, “Reggie, what would you do on this?” I sat down and got my Prophet 5 synthesizer out, and I just started putting in all these different filter sweeps and synth parts on it. The rest was history.
KYLE: At that time electronic dance music was an emerging concept. How did you develop such a great mastery of synthesizers and drum machines? REGGIE: I’ll go back to the Manchild days. I was starting to hear those sounds from Stevie Wonder, and other people in the late ‘70s. I remember saying to the band, “We gotta get one of those polyphonic synthesizers. That’s where things are going.” But I guess they didn’t really hear me. I remember Manchild was on a tour of Air Force bases that year, I probably only made $4,000 that whole year, but I took my $4,000 and bought a Prophet 5 synthesizer. [laughs] I learned my way around it. I started adding it to a lot
Love NOTES WE WANT YOUR SAPPY LOVE LETTERS. AND YOUR SASSY LOVE LETTERS. BASICALLY, ALL LETTERS OF LOVE ARE ACCEPTED. NUVO.NET/LOVENOTES LOVE NOTES WILL BE PRINTED IN THE 2.7.18 ISSUE OF NUVO. WITH PRIZES FROM:
NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // THE BIG STORY // 7
The Big Story Continued...
LEFT TO RIGHT: MANCHILD ALBUM ART, MIRDA ROCK BY REGGIE GRIFFIN & TECHNOFUNK, MANCHILD GROUP PICTURE, REGGIE GRIFFIN //
of the things we were we doing. I was pretty much self-taught. Around 1980 or 1981, the LinnDrum and Oberheim DMX came out. That was around the time the Roland TR-808 drum machine came out, but at Sugar Hill we bought an Oberheim DMX. Instantly Sylvia looked at me and said, “I know Reggie can work this thing.” [laughs] So I quickly learned how to get around on it and quickly became the drum programmer, as well as synth programmer, as well as synth player for the whole studio at Sugar Hill. On pretty much everything that came out at Sugar Hill after “Rapper’s Delight,” I did a lot of the arranging, the keyboards, the programming, and production. I did whatever was necessary for them.
KYLE: And you had far more to do with that record than Grandmaster Flash himself. REGGIE: As you know Flash was the DJ. So he liked to orchestrate a lot of the tracks around samples, because that was his forte. He actually wasn’t crazy about that particular song. But Sylvia was adamant about it, and she really felt it could be big. Ed Fletcher, or Duke Bootee as he was known, he wrote the original song. He gave me a lot of input on what he felt it should sound like. But I did design every sound you hear on that track. I played almost all the synthesizer parts. We brought in Doug Wimbish and he doubles on my synth bass. Skip McDonald was on guitar. But most of what you’re hearing is me, as far as the instrumentation.
KYLE: That includes a track that is widely considered the most important rap record ever made, “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Am I correct that you essentially designed the sound of that song? REGGIE: Oh yeah, totally.
KYLE: In 2012 Rolling Stone magazine selected “The Message” as the greatest hip-hop song of all time. The write-up from Rolling Stone lists your contribution to the record, but you weren’t given a credit on the label of the record. Does it bother you
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that your contribution to this song has been largely uncredited? REGGIE: To a degree, I have to be honest. But at that time at Sugar Hill a lot of the credits just didn’t get put on the records. As a matter of fact, I remember that Joey Robinson, who was Sylvia’s son, he would put in the credits: “Reggie Griffin — Prophet.” I always imagined people thought I was some guy who came in with a long beard and a staff. [laughs] But no, it meant Prophet 5 synthesizer. Which was one of the main synthesizers out at the time.
KYLE: In 1982 Sugar Hill released “Scorpio” by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, one of the greatest electro records ever made. I understand “Scorpio” was almost entirely your creation. REGGIE: Yeah, and ironically, I am a Scorpio. Ed from Grandmaster Flash had a lot of ideas for that song, and he and I collaborated back and forth. I did the vocoder on it and I did all of the beats. Instrumentation-wise, I believe “Scorpio” is 100 percent me.
KYLE: In 1982 you released a classic electro single titled “Mirda Rock” under the name Reggie Griffin and Technofunk. “Mirda Rock” hit #66 on the Billboard R&B Hot 100 chart in February of 1983, becoming one of the earliest and most popular electro tracks. Electro was an important genre in the development of electronic dance music. We hear about pioneering electro artists like Afrika Bambaataa in New York, Egyptian Lover in L.A., and Juan Atkins in Detroit. Your contribution to electro is just as important as any of those guys, but I don’t see you receiving equal credit. REGGIE: Well, I was definitely there on the ground floor of it. Actually, if you want to hear something funny, I did “Mirda Rock” almost as a goof. Afrika Bambaataa and the guys had done “Planet Rock,” and Kraftwerk had done their thing in Europe. I was listening to those records and I said, “Oh, I can do that.” [laughs] So I came up with “Mirda Rock.” That ended up being the most successful single of my solo career.
NUVO.NET/THEBIGSTORY RICKIE CLARK // PHOTO COURTESY OF INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER COLLECTION, INDIANA HISTORICAL SOCIETY
KYLE: There are so many classic tracks on Sugar Hill that you helped create, but I want to move on to different area and ask about your involvement with one of the greatest dance records ever made. I’m talking about Chaka Khan’s 1984 recording of “I Feel For You.” It’s my understanding that you had a large role in crafting that record. REGGIE: Oh yeah, unquestionably. I got a call from a lawyer who he told me Arif Mardin was looking for young producers to work on a Chaka Khan record. I was like, “Whoa! Ok.” Arif is one of my idols as far as production. Back in those days there were two guys, Quincy Jones on the West Coast, and Arif Mardin on the East Coast. So I put together a reel of a lot of stuff I’d done for Sugar Hill. Arif listened to it and said, “OK, so this is the kid that’s been doing all these hits that are coming out of New Jersey.” He called me up and we met. He said, “I’m working on this song that Chaka really loves. It’s a song that Prince wrote years ago, but she wants to do it a little different.” Arif had taken a run at arranging it himself, but he wanted to do something that was really
fresh and young. I took the song back to my little spot, and gave it my treatment. I put down the beat, played some bass, played some guitar, I played all the instruments for that matter. I took it back to him and he said, “I love it. Let’s do it.” On that record I ended up doing the drum machine programming. I did the arrangement. A lot of people think Melle Mel wrote the raps, but he didn’t. I wrote the raps. I did the bass, drums, guitar, keyboards, and pretty much all the instruments. But Arif being the perfectionist he is, we went back and listened to the bass line and he wanted to make it a little different. So we took my bass off, and Arif went back and wrote my bass line out and wrote some other parts to it. At the time I didn’t have a bass sequencer, so we called in David Frank from The System. David sequenced the synthesizer bass line and I played Fender bass on top of that. After I did the drum machine programming, we also called in Steve Ferrone from the Average White Band, he played live drums on top of my drum machine. A little bit of trivia, I originally had a
guitar solo on that song. Arif loved where things were going, but he scratched his head and said, “I’m gonna do something different with the guitar solo.” Long story short, he put Stevie Wonder on with a harmonica solo. I said, “If I have to move out of the way for somebody, I’ll move out of the way for Stevie.” [laughs] After Chaka put on her vocals, the rest became history. Tune into WFYI’s Cultural Manifesto in 2018 to hear my full interview with Reggie Griffin, as we discuss his contributions to Tommy Boy Records’ classic 12” single “No Sell Out” featuring samples of Malcom X, and Joan Jett’s 1986 rap crossover “Black Leather.”
R ickie C la rk
Rickie Clark is a shape-shifter. During the ‘70s, he was Rickie “Solid Gold” Clark, a smooth-talking soul DJ on WTLC. In the ’80s, he was Officer Clark, a respected member of the Indianapolis Police Department. Clark was so popular on his
Northeastside beat, some residents dubbed him the “Mayor of Brightwood.” There’s also the businessman Rickie Clark, who managed the legendary Indianapolis soul vocal group Words of Wisdom and founded Indiana Minority Business Magazine. But for me, Clark’s most compelling identity is his unlikely role as a history maker in rap music. In 1980 Clark recorded “Ladies Rights,” the first rap record ever issued in Indianapolis. Clark deepened his connection with hip-hop in 1984 with the release of the electro classic “Time To Throw Down,” featuring incredible production from Circle City Band’s Paul Thomas. With the help of my friend Herman Slaughter I tracked Clark down to learn more about his role as a Hoosier hip-hop pioneer.
KYLE: In 1980 you released “Ladies Rights” on Indy 5 Records. Not only was “Ladies Rights” the first rap record released in Indianapolis, it was among the first hundred or so rap records ever made. Tell me about making “Ladies Rights.” NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // THE BIG STORY // 9
The Big Story Continued...
RICKIE: The recording was done in New Jersey at the Sugar Hill Records studio. In fact, the track was done by the same musicians who had played on the Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight”.
KYLE: I know your records were getting big spins in huge markets from legendary radio DJs like Frankie Crocker. I’m curious why you didn’t continue cutting hip-hop records? RICKIE: I was always more comfortable being in the background. I gave it a shot with “Ladies Rights.” When it started blowing up, I said, “OK, that’s not a bad taste. Let’s try something else later on.” But in the meantime I was working with other artists. People were beginning to pay attention to Babyface. Eric Fearman from the Dazz Band was from Indianapolis and I was trying to help them out. So, I got involved with a lot of other projects.
KYLE: Wood, Brass and Steel? RICKIE: Yes, and George Kerr produced the record. He was part of Sugar Hill Records at the time, I believe he was in the All Platinum Records division. He left Neptune Records, which was Gamble and Huff, to be with Sylvia Robinson at Sugar Hill.
KYLE: George Kerr is a soul music legend. He was a member of Little Anthony and The Imperials and later branched out to producing groups like The Whatnauts. What was his connection to Indianapolis? RICKIE: One of his daughters lived here, and he had a residence here. So George would leave New York on a weekend and come hang out with his daughter. That’s kind of how he and I met. We got connected and George said, “You’ve got a great voice. I think I’ve got a track up in New Jersey for you.” I’m thinking, “Ok, but I’ve always been behind the scenes.” Long story short, I ended up going to Jersey and doing the recording at the Sugar Hill studios.
KYLE: What were you rapping about on “Ladies Rights?” RICKIE: I was rapping about lifting up women. In fact, I got flack from a lot of guys for that song.
KYLE: I’m curious what you really knew about rap music at that point. Hip-hop was a cultural movement that had developed largely in New York. How did you absorb that from Indianapolis? RICKIE: Well, we were playing Grandmaster Flash and Sugarhill Gang records on WTLC. We knew rap music was the new sound. The kids were loving it, and I was loving it too. So I said, “I’m game, let’s do this.” So we did, and to my surprise the record started to take off. I’d hear about it taking off in different markets and I’d hear they were shipping the record overseas, and I’m like, “Huh?” [laughs] You have to remember this record wasn’t heavily
KYLE: “Ladies Rights” was among the first wave of rap records ever released. How do you feel being a foundation element of a music genre that transformed global culture? RICKIE: I feel good about that. I really feel good. I try to keep it low key, but I do get excited about it. I don’t even really know how strong these records are, but I get word from people. I get comments from people living outside the country. I guess it still hasn’t hit me. I still don’t realize the magnitude of what happened with rap music. Watch for my full interview with Rickie Clark later this summer in NUVO as part of my coverage of WTLC’s 50th anniversary.
GROVER WILCHER AND WORLD ENTITY //
planned. We did it in a weekend. That song was written and recorded in one weekend.
KYLE: I understand you were listening to the hit singles coming out on Sugar Hill, but the MCs on those Sugar Hill tracks were immersed in hip-hop culture and had been honing their skills long before cutting those records. How did you get acclimated to the style and delivery of rap so quickly? RICKIE: Divine intervention. I’ve had folks ask me that before, and all I can say is that it was divine intervention.
KYLE: Three years later in 1984 you released your second and final hip-hop record, “Time To Throw Down.” The song was credited as The Rickie Clark Company, and was largely produced and created by Circle City Band’s Paul Thomas. “Time To Throw Down” is an electro classic, and it’s my favorite release in your discogra-
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phy. Tell me about making that record. RICKIE: I heard some of the tracks Paul Thomas was working on in the studio, including Circle City Band’s “Magic,” and I said, “Oh, I like that.” So I went to Paul and said, “Let’s collaborate.” I told him we needed to experiment with something different, and at the time the talk box was beginning to get popular. I liked what Zapp had done with it, and I thought we could do that. So I said, “Let’s do something that’s heavy on the bass, but also funny and has a hook.” So that’s what he came up with in the studio just playing around. Paul was making beats before that became a popular idea. He’s a very creative person.
Grover Wilcher
During the early ‘80s, Grover Wilcher left Indianapolis for California. He’d traveled west for college; his major was business, but music was in his heart. By 1985, Wilcher had written and released his first recording as World Entity, a quartet featuring his three biological brothers. That record was titled “I Found That Love,” an irresistible slice of ‘80s synth-soul. It became a hit in regional radio markets across the United States. “I Found That Love” also brought Wilcher to the attention of Def Jam Records, who recognized his wide set of
NUVO.NET/THEBIGSTORY talents. Wilcher was hired by Def Jam to perform a variety of different roles for the label. Wilcher was on the ground floor at Def Jam when artists like LL Cool J broke into the mainstream of American culture. When Wilcher and his brothers returned to Indianapolis in the late ‘80s, they came home armed with serious music business expertise and an affinity for hip-hop. Back in Indianapolis, the Wilcher brothers continued recording and releasing R&B music as Word Entity, but they also expanded their enterprise into hip-hop. The Wilchers’ work in hip-hop may stand as their greatest contribution to Hoosier culture. I can’t think of another single organization that has done more for the development of Indianapolis hip-hop than the Wilcher brothers. Their many contributions include the development of a widely viewed television program titled Naptown Rap Videos, and the creation a hip-hop record label that made it it cool for rappers to rep Indianapolis in their music. I reached out to Grover Wilcher to discuss his groundbreaking work in Indianapolis hip-hop.
KYLE LONG: Your label Monster Jam produced and released some of the most important records in the history of Indianapolis hip-hop. You were deeply involved in R&B music, so I’m curious to how you started recording and releasing hip-hop? GROVER WILCHER: We had Dub’s Boys Records, which was mainly an R&B and funk company. My brother came to me and said, “Hip-hop is blowing up. We need to get a slice of that. You’ve been on the road with Def Jam artists and you’ve got a good insight on this music. What do you think about doing some hip-hop?” I told him I thought it was a tough market and that hip-hop was just as hard to promote as R&B. But I decided to follow through on it because William was always coming up with good ideas. So, we started a subsidiary of Dub’s Boys Records called Monster Jam Records. We put all our hip-hop stuff on Monster Jam. Back in those days radio really didn’t want to touch hip-hop, and they didn’t want any record labels that promoted hip-hop. So we separated the
R&B from the hip-hop on our labels. I remember there was a kid who was living in the same apartment complex we were in. He had gotten our record “I Found That Love” from his mother. He came up and said, “Wow, can I get an autograph?” He kept hanging around and eventually he said, “I know these guys who are rappers. They’re friends of mine and I was wondering if you guys would be interested in listening to them?” So we went and listened to them. I wasn’t really impressed. But they said, “Well, we also have a DJ.” So they brought out their DJ. I’d been on the road with LL Cool J, and his DJ was the legendary Cut Creator. But this guy, DJ Def came in and took a pair of 1200s and cut the crap out of some records! I said, “Whoa!” I told my brother, “That DJ is good. If we put our minds together and recreate the group, we could probably make something happen.” The name of the group at the time was the Medieval MCs, and they were rapping about Robin Hood and stuff. [laughs] My brother had a meeting with the group and told them, “Man, nobody cares about that Robin Hood stuff! You got to rap about real stuff!” So my brother came up with the name Tibbs St. Posse and he created the look of the group. He reinvented the group. He came to me and said, “I’ve got this idea for a record. We need them to be hard like N.W.A.” He hummed a melody for me and I put that down. Then he put down the drum beat, we had a LinnDrum machine. He told us he wanted to call it “Cracks ‘N’ Haughville.” So we laid the music down and then brought the rappers in. They wrote some lyrics up, and I edited and rewrote some things. We took that record to Harmony Hines at WPZZ and asked her to play it. When she played it their phone lines lit up like a Christmas tree. People thought it was a national group that had come to Indianapolis to rap about Haughville. So that record instantly got play and started blowing up. We were selling boxes of those records. My brother worked that group and they were opening up for MC Hammer and MC Breed. They were in Michigan
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The Big Story Continued...
PAUL MIDDLEBROOK ON THE HITMAKERS //
and they were hitting all over the place. We had a huge success with that group. But we ended up having some disagreements, so we released Tibbs St. Posse from our label. From there we focused on the group BMW. After BMW made ”Pump Ya Fist” we signed them and ended up putting out a couple records on them, like “Ghetto Bounce.” We had several groups on the label at that time. We also had the Prophets of Knowledge who were blowing up. So Monster Jam was not hurting for local Indianapolis rap groups.
KYLE: Hoos-Yer Boyz was another local group you were working with, right? GROVER: Yes, the Hoos-Yer Boyz were like the older brother of the Tibbs St. Posse. The Hoos-Yer Boyz concept was from my brother William and I think I ended up writing most of that album.
KYLE: You and your brothers also booked N.W.A. for their first Indianapolis performance in 1988 at the Tyndall Armory. How did that show come together? GROVER: During my time in California I made a lot of connections in the industry with guys like Dr. Dre and Eazy-E. We all had our records pressed with Macola Records, and we’d see each other when we picked up our records. So we brought N.W.A. to Indianapolis and put them on a bill with Tibbs St. Posse.
KYLE: How were N.W.A. received on their
PAUL MI DD LE BR OO
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first trip to Indianapolis? GROVER: I think Tibbs St. Posse blew them out! But it was a great time. I remember we played basketball with them in Tyndall Armory before the show. Ice Cube and Eazy-E thought they could play some ball, but when we got done playing they said, “What are you guys, professionals?” [laughs] I remember they were carrying a suitcase of guns around, and we took them to the Don’s Guns firing range. We brought N.W.A. to Indianapolis twice, we had a good time with them. Check out my full interview with Grover Wilcher in an upcoming edition of NUVO.
Paul Middlebrook
Paul Middlebrook first came to the attention of Indianapolis music fans as a member of The PHDs. During the 1970s The PHDs shared status with The Vanguards as one of the top soul vocal ensembles in Indianapolis. According to Middlebrook, The PHDs had tighter choreography and sharper wardrobe than any other Naptown act. The PHDs enjoyed great success in Central Indiana, cutting a popular disc for Indy’s legendary soul label Lamp, while splitting concert bills with R&B superstars like the Spinners and The O’Jays. The dawn of the 1980s saw Middlebrook walking away from The PHDs in search of new artistic pursuits. In 1984 Middlebrook released an excellent solo single on the Indianapolis-based Circle City label. In that same year Middlebrook also began a completely different sort of venture, launching a public access variety show called Hit Makers Showcase. What could’ve been a dull exercise in low-budget local television was thwarted by a visionary decision from Middlebrook. During a time when hip-hop was blocked-out from much of the local media, Middlebrook allowed his show to become a platform for the burgeoning Indianapolis hip-hop scene. Scores of amateur Indy rappers and breakdancers appeared on the Hit Makers’ stage through the years, and the program became an underground sensation among Indy’s inner-city youth. Hit Makers also featured occasional cameo appearances from hip-hop icons like De La Soul and Slick Rick, who recorded custom bumpers for the show during tour stops through Indiana. The Hit Makers Showcase documented and preserved the development of Indianapolis hip-hop culture in unprecedented and unparalleled ways. The collection of performances Middlebrook preserved on Hit Makers represents one of the greatest documents of Indiana folk culture that I have ever encountered. I recently caught up with Middlebrook to learn more about his work showcasing early Indianapolis hip-hop on public access TV.
NUVO.NET/THEBIGSTORY KYLE LONG: How long did Hit Makers Showcase run? PAUL MIDDLEBROOK: I started in 1984 and stopped in 1989. KYLE: How often did the show air? PAUL: It ran twice a week. KYLE: Did you produce new episodes every week? PAUL: Yeah, and I had three hours to produce a 30 minute show. But if things went smooth, and all the performers showed up on time, maybe we could produce two shows in that time. We had to set up, and tear down in them three hours — plus run our show! The stakes were high, so I told everybody, “If you mess up, just keep going.” I had everybody in this city on that show. I got Angela Brown. I had Greg Bacon. I had Kenny Dodson. I got Andre Carson, but I can’t show that tape.
KYLE: Right. Andre Carson was a rapper during his younger days. Carson asked you not to release that video? PAUL: Yeah, when he was running to try to get in office he didn’t want that craziness.
KYLE: You gave a lot of young entertainers in this city their first break. PAUL: Yes, and that really inspired them. They saw that something good could come out of all the time they spent rehearsing.
KYLE: Do you know how many episodes of Hit Makers you produced? PAUL: Probably about eighty shows. KYLE: The impact of the show was huge in Indianapolis. I bet people still recognize you today from Hit Makers. PAUL: That has died down a little, but yes I’ll get somebody calling out, “Hey that’s Hit Maker over there! Ain’t that Hit Maker?” [laughs] I thought it was a good thing when they told me the kids was really enjoying it. They’d tell me the kids was getting off the school bus and running home to catch the Hit Makers show. It was on at 4 p.m.
KYLE: You mentioned that Hit Makers was essentially cut live. If there was a mistake, you just had to live with it. I’ve seen some episodes where the performances really went off-course. But regardless of the quality, you were always so gracious and supportive of everyone on the show. I’m curious what was going on in your head when a performance started to fall apart? PAUL: I just tried to keep them calm and let them know everything was alright. It’s easy for something to go wrong. I’ve had shows where something happened and I’d be sweating, like, “Oh my god, did he say that?” It happens, but I learned to deal with it. KYLE: You grew up in the era of classic soul music. When rap music came around, some people from your generation rejected it. But you chose to give hip-hop culture an important platform on your program. I’m curious what your thoughts were on hip-hop at that time, and why you decided to give it exposure? PAUL: Because of the talent. Because of the work people put in to what they did. If you really work hard to do something, you should be noticed. KYLE: So for you, it wasn’t so much about supporting hip-hop music, but a desire to create opportunity for young people? PAUL: Yes, I wanted to create opportunity for young people in the music field. It kept the kids busy. When I had Hit Makers I know the kids was at home rehearsing. They wasn’t out trying to get in trouble. They was trying to do something to get on that show. With all the killings and stuff that’s happening now, we need more of that. Music is an occupation you can pick up, and make you some honest money, and have a positive notoriety. For more on Paul Middlebrook’s work with The PHDs, look out for my contribution to the liner notes of Now Again’s LAMP Records Anthology, scheduled for release later this year. N
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THRU. JAN
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EVENT // Bits & Pieces by Justin Brown WHERE // Athenaeum TICKETS // FREE
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LODZ, WIRES AND SKY, BY LOVING VINCENT DIRECTOR DOROTA KOBIELA //
VAN GOGH, VONNEGUT AND PAMELA BLISS Work by Loving Vincent artists at Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, curated by Pamela Bliss BY DAN GROSSMAN // DGROSSMAN@NUVO.NET
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ndy resident Pamela Bliss was one of 35 artists – out of 5,000 applicants – selected to work on the feature film Loving Vincent after the studio put out a call for artists in March, 2016. After submitting her portfolio to the film’s production team, she was invited to come to their studio in Gdansk, Poland. Loving Vincent was the first-ever animated film to use oil paintings for each of its frames – all 65,000 of them. The film was six years in the making, and the international call for artists was a final push to complete it. “We all knew that this was something special,” says Bliss, who is known locally for her Kurt Vonnegut mural overlooking Mass Ave and her murals of jazz artists. “It was historic.” But, in order to work on the film, she had to first survive the culling process that continued even after she arrived in Gdansk. “All of the artists went through a three-day test,” she says. “And if you didn’t pass the test they sent you home. If you did pass the test, you had to go through a 180-hour training in animation painting in Van Gogh’s style… After the 180 hours they told us whether we were chosen or not. All of the artists were stressed out because we just didn’t know that we were going to stay.” But stay she did, from June through Sept. 2016. And now — after the film’s October, 2017 release, and Golden Globe and Oscar nominations in the best animated film category — Bliss is co-curating an exhibition of personal paintings by 32 fellow Loving Vincent artists, from 10 different countries. WHAT // We cannot speak other than by our paintings WHEN // Friday, Jan. 26, 7 p.m. WHERE // Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, FREE
This exhibition, We cannot speak other than by our paintings, opens Jan. 26 at 7 p.m, at the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library (KVML), free to the public. It ties into the yearlong series of KVML events “Lonesome No More,” relating to the depression that both Van Gogh and Vonnegut suffered from. As part of the opening, Loving Vincent will be shown and Bliss will hold a Q&A after the screening. (The screening is,
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EVENT // Michael Zansky: Deep in the Shallows WHERE // Herron Galleries TICKETS // FREE
unfortunately, sold out.) She will also be present during the exhibition. “I became friends with many of the other artists while I was there,” says Bliss about her experience in Poland. “I lived with them, in the same place, and we worked together every day and while I was there I got the idea to put an art show together because we all have our own arts lives not just creating painted frames in Poland, you know?” she said. When she came back to the States, this idea stayed with her. “I thought it would be very small show but the film director [Hugh Welchman] endorsed the exhibition and so we opened it up to all the artists that painted on the Loving Vincent film and so now there’ a lot more artwork,” she says. “There’s almost too much artwork for this show.” And there’s not a superabundance of display space in KVML, which means the work will have to be displayed salon style – with paintings hanging in vertical rows – a style perhaps more popular in Vincent Van Gogh’s time than it is now. Hugh Welchman had a hand in selecting work for the exhibition. And wife Dorota Kobiela, who is the creator and the co-director of the film, will have work displayed in the show. Bliss, who’ll also have work in the show, is in the planning phase of making it a travelling exhibition. (She has also been invited to the Polish Embassy in Washington D.C. to give a presentation during a screening of the film.) The inspiration for the film came to Kobiela, explains Bliss, after she read through Van Gogh’s letters. “She wanted to do a short film and animate it all by herself, and her husband Hugh realized that it needed to be something much more than a five minute film,” says Bliss. “And so they decided to do a full length feature film. She wrote it [along with Welchman and Jacek Dehnel] and then she started to paint the whole film. Then she figured that it would take her 80 years, so that’s when they started commissioning artists to help and the further they went along the more they realized how much of an effort it took and it slowly developed over six years.” N
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EVENT // Greater Tuna WHERE // Beef & Boards TICKETS // prices vary
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A
fter the election of President Donald Trump, local comedians Erin Carr and Gwen Sunkel felt a call to stand up as women. “The election happened, and it was just a big old bummer for everybody,” Carr says. “I was like, ‘I wanna do something. What can I do?’ As a woman, it felt like we weren’t having a voice for being heard. So I was like, ‘Let’s do a show, and let’s benefit some women’s charities.’” This prompted the start of the co-hosting duo’s all-female comedy showcase Nasty Women 3, a comedy benefit for Planned Parenthood. With two showcases already in the books, Carr and Sunkel are now preparing for the third, which will take place on Thursday, Feb. 1 at the White Rabbit Cabaret. Like previous installments, the showcase will feature female comics of all varieties. Additionally, attendees can receive a five dollar discount on admission by bringing donations of pads and tampons, which will be distributed to women in need via The Damien Center. WHAT // Nasty Women 3 WHEN // Feb. 1, 8 p.m - 10:30 p.m. WHERE // White Rabbit Cabaret TICKETS // $10, or $5 with donation of pads or tampons
GWEN SUNKEL IN BLUE DRESS, ERIN CARR IN RED DRESS //
NASTY COMEDY, NICE CAUSE The Nasty Women comedy show will benefit Planned Parenthood BY SETH JOHNSON // ARTS@NUVO.NET
With several years of comedy experience between them, Carr and Sunkel first started co-hosting shows together at Morty’s Comedy Joint as part of the weekly 10@10 showcase. After those events were discontinued, however, they decided it was time to start something more female-centric. “It was an opportunity to put more women on stage,” says Sunkel about starting up the Nasty Women showcase. “A lot of times you’re on a show as a woman, and you’re one out of one or two women and you feel like the token person. It becomes a thing where it’s like, ‘Oh, well, the only women’s perspective in comedy is that one because that’s the one that’s on that show.’ This is a chance to hear 10 to 12 different women all on the same show, which is great.”
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EVENT // Seasonal Affective Disco WHERE // Newfields TICKETS // $12 members, $15 public
After deciding to make the show a benefit, Planned Parenthood just seemed like the natural beneficiary too. “A lot of the political fallout last year felt very directed toward women,” Sunkel says. “So giving the money to them seems like a good way to politely give Mike Pence the middle finger.” Host of the monthly Go Yuck Yourself show at State Street Pub, Katlin McFee remembers the support she received from Carr upon trying stand-up for the first time. “The very first open mic that I did was at Monkey’s Tale, and Erin was at that mic,” McFee says. “Before it even started, she came up to me, introduced herself and was just extremely supportive. She was like, ‘Yeah, I love to see when there are new females that are starting.’” Since then, McFee has appeared on several shows with Carr, including all three Nasty Women events. “When you’re doing comedy as a female, you often do rooms that are just a bunch of men, and older men on top of that,” McFee says. “You’ll get into situations where people are saying, ‘You have to do this kind of material if you want to do well in that room,’ which sucks. With this show, everyone goes up, and they just say what they want.” In addition to the atmosphere, local comic Carrie Clouse also looks forward to being on a show that’s for a good cause. “When the first one came along, I was so excited because Planned Parenthood and The Damien Center have done so much, and I just wanted to be a part of it,” says Clouse, an Indianapolis native who also appeared at all of the Nasty Women events. “They are such great organizations and make it possible for women to get health screenings or hygiene products.” With all of the positivity that comes out of these Nasty Women showcases, Sunkel hopes all in attendance leave feeling invigorated. “I think laughter is so healing, both for the person laughing and for the person making other people laugh,” she concludes. “I hope that people walk away from this night saying, ‘I had a great time. I feel renewed and rejuvenated, and I also feel empowered.’” N NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // STAGE // 15
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Love NOTES
YOU WRITE THEM. WE PRINT THEM. NUVO.NET/LOVENOTES
E, COFFE DEAR S! UEL U F U O Y LOVE, NUVO
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JUST PEACHY
Call Me by Your Name is sexy and real BY ED JOHNSON-OTT // EJOHNSONOTT@NUVO.NET
P
ick a supporting character in Call Me by Your Name and watch the actor closely. Did you see it? In most films set in picturesque villages, the supporting characters are used as set dressing. There’s no suggestions that the characters did anything before the movie started, or that they will do anything after. Director Luca Guadagnino took a different approach with the adapted screenplay written by James Ivory, based on the 2007 novel by André Aciman. The lead characters of the film are Elio Perlman, (Timothée Chalamet), an Italian teen, and Oliver (Armie Hammer), a student from America, and while we follow them, Guadagnino establishes and maintains a pleasing continuity, in part by giving the supporting characters lives of their own. We don’t see much of those lives, but they help this place feel alive. We start with Elio, a 17-year-old who lives with a pair of wonderful parents in Northern Italy and all is pretty much well. Still he walks around with a petulant look and finds the nearest wall to lean on when anything happens that doesn’t meet his approval. Elio is sexually active. He has a girlfriend. Her name is Marzia. Elio should be a happy young man. His biggest issue is Oliver is staying with Elio’s family for the summer and Elio doesn’t like that he has to share his bedroom with the foreign visitor. He doesn’t like all of the attention that Oliver is receiving. He finds the good looking young man a perfect example of the vulgarity of Americans. Almost instantly Oliver walks through the room slapping hands and saying, “Later.” Elio hates it. This being a movie though, you know what’s going to happen. No problem because it’s done so very well. The tension Elio feels with Oliver fades
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// IMAGE COURTESY OF SONY PICTURES CLASSICS
WHAT // Call Me by Your Name (2018) SHOWING // In wide release (R) ED SAYS // e
over time and Elio finds the handsome American much less vulgar than he initially thought. The icy wall between them melts and is replaced with a fiery passion. Warning: This film is sensual in nature and though there’s no graphic sex, there is lovely sex and lots of smooching. So, if you have problems with public displays of affection, you have been warned. If two guys kissing makes you uncomfortable, maybe it’s a good time for you to go to the bathroom or back to the olden days. I enjoyed the fact that in any of the three languages in the film, the word “gay” is never spoken. Tensions still remain, but this is a place where relationships are judged one at a time. When sexuality is discussed it almost always lives in three categories at once: heterosexual, homosexual and bisexual. As anyone knows who has read a Kinsey study, there are multiple levels of sexuality, not simply the three separated American ones:
gay, straight and bi. As cultures become more civilized we… Idealized reader, I almost went on a fullfledged, climbing on a soap box tangent. I’ve decided I didn’t need to hear it and neither did you. Suffice to say Elio’s parents are nice people — the kind of people who observe their son acting like an ass and gently talk to him. The film debuting this year is poignant. This film gives us a vacation to somewhere wonderful and it gives us just the right amount of squabbling to remind us that disagreeing without becoming ugly is the best way to deal with conflict. A lesson many of us have seemed to forget. Overall, Call Me by Your Name is a charming film, a sexy film and a family story. Though it drags in a couple of spots, it recovers nicely. What else could you want? [Fun Fact: The Academy just announced their 2018 nominees for Oscars and Call Me by Your Name is up for Best Picture at the 90th Academy Awards, Best Actor for Chalamet, Best Adapted Screenplay for Ivory and Best Original Song “Mystery of Love”.] N
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RESTAURANT // Between Brews Foodwerks WHERE // Lunch spot with sandwiches and flatbreads COST // $
EVENT // Three-day Ramen Pop-up WHAT // Japanese ramen master dishes out noodles WHEN // Jan. 26-28 WHERE // Ramen Ray
INDIANA’S GOLDEN PELLET
Four breweries launch beers using Howe Farms and Indy High Bines hop blend BY RITA KOHN // RKOHN@NUVO.NET
I
ndiana’s debut hop blend collaboration will premiere statewide in February in four new brews by Indiana craft breweries. The collaboration — first to feature hops from two separate hop farms — was created by Ryan Gettum and K.C. Lewis at Indy High Bines and Steve Howe at Crown Point-based Howe Farms. So, what’s the backstory for the Howe High Hop Blend and the impetus to test with Indiana breweries located North, Central and South? “Steve Howe and I started kicking around the idea last winter,” K.C. Lewis said. Initially, Lewis described the collaboration as a simple one. On second thought, he added, “Actually, it all involved quite a bit of planning.” He filled in the trajectory of a year-long endeavor. They started informally, testing interest and learned, said Lewis. “The idea to showcase Indiana hops in a collaboration perked the ears of every brewer we talked to.” “We had a target alpha we were looking to hit and started there,” explained Lewis. “Knowing the flavor profile of each of our strains, we started creating a ratio of hops to add to the blend to create Howe High.” “Once the blend was set we sent it to Purdue for lab analysis. We were very excited with the results. Target alpha range was nailed and flavor profile was spot on.” Their first customers, Four Fathers Brewing, Burn ‘Em Brewing, MashCraft and Floyd County Brewing bought up the whole first batch. “It sold out almost immediately,” Lewis said. I asked the brewers what attracted them to take on this challenge of brewing with an unknown blend of five hops harvested and pelletized from two different hop farms.
“Quality, and timing” replied Jason Lacny, owner and brewmaster of Four Fathers Brewing. “I know Steve [Howe], I trust that this collaborative blend of hops will not only live up to its expectations, but will most likely exceed them. “[At Four Fathers] we started talking about this off-the-wall beer concept a couple years back, and had discussions with the gentlemen at Burn ‘Em Brewing. Our idea was to brew with carrot juice and orange juice using some hop blend that would be dank and citrusy. “When I asked Steve [Howe] what were the main characters of the blend, he told me dank and citrusy. My next text was to Steve [Murray, co-founder/brewer] at Burn ‘Em Brewing, and the rest is history.” “MashCraft always is looking to experiment with new products that will create flavor profiles that differentiate our product,” emailed Andrew Castner, MashCraft’s head brewer. “We love partnering with local vendors. We especially love to tell our guests that all four of our house beers are wholly or partly made with hops grown inside the city of Indianapolis limits.” Jeff Coe, head brewer at Floyd County Brewing said, “To be honest, I just thought
THE HOWE HIGH HOP BLEND FEATURES FIVE DIFFERENT HOPS FROM INDY HIGH BINES AND HOWE FARMS. //
it would be fun. I knew this blend would be very limited, so we had a chance to come up with something unique. Plus the idea of supporting local hop growers was something we wanted to do. Keep it local.” I followed up with a question: What in the specification about the hop blend guided you toward creating a recipe? Lacny reports the collaborative ”hoppedup kolsch with carrot and orange juice [will be] crisp and effervescent with a juicy foundation, overflowing with dank, earthy, citrusy hops. We plan to call it ‘Carijuana’.” Lacny and Murray are scheduled to brew
on Jan. 26 for a kolsch to be available late February, on draft as a one-time brew at Four Fathers in Valparaiso and Burn ‘Em Brewing in Michigan City only. Castner, on the other hand, is planning a series of brews with Howe High Hop Blend. “Our first release will be a dryhopped IPA, so we will be analyzing the results more from the flavor side than anything that can be measured. From these early results, we will plan to scale up to larger batches in the future.” Castner envisions his first Howe High IPA recipe will feature “light malt to stay out of the way, and single hopped initially to get a complete idea of the unique flavors from this blend.” The final stage of dry hopping took place mid-January; a launch is expected in February. Coe reports, “All I knew going in to this was the alpha and beta acid levels, along with a somewhat vague flavor/aroma description. ... I knew we wanted to showcase the hops, not just use them as a supporting role. “I went moderately bitter for an IPA, around 60 IBU. I used several hop additions, starting with some first wort hopping, a full kettle boil addition and an equal amount of whirlpool hops. The grain bill was kept simple to showcase the hops. Pale, 2-row and some light caramel just for a bit more color. The beer should finish up at a bit over 7 percent ABV.” Coe noted, “When I brewed the beer, I was struck by the aroma of the hops in the boil. I would call it a very herbal aroma, as opposed to the more common citrus, or tropical fruit aromas common in most of the more recent IPAs being released. “It won’t be a typical IPA,” he finished. It will be interesting to see how it’s received by our customers.” N NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // FOOD+DRINK // 17
SUMMER
COMING UP
2018
EVENT // Country Megaticket WHERE // Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center TICKETS // On sale Friday
MAY
27
EVENT // Indy 500 Snakepit WHERE // Indianapolis Motor Speedway TICKETS // On sale now
ANOTHER YEAR OF WINSPEAR Bloomington-based record label celebrates with showcase BY SETH JOHNSON // MUSIC@NUVO.NET
T
here’s no denying that Indiana is home to some exceptional, internationally recognized record labels, from Joyful Noise Recordings to Secretly Group. Over the past few years, however, a small Bloomington label Winspear has also proven it’s a force to be reckoned with. Releasing music since February of 2015, Winspear has already amassed an impressive catalog of releases from local and regional artists that include Amy O, Duncan Kissinger, Keeps, Kevin Krauter (also of Hoops), The Lemon Twigs, Major Murphy, Pomegranates and many more. To celebrate another successful year in the books, the label is throwing a showcase at the Bishop in Bloomington on Thursday, January 25, giving people a chance to check out live sets from an impressive selection of Winspear acts. Both with their fair share of music industry knowledge, Winspear co-founders Ben Wittkugel and Jared Jones originally met through Indiana University’s Music Industry Networking Club during their freshman year of college. The pair started throwing shows in Bloomington, before eventually deciding to go the label route. “Originally, we started by doing shows, booking shows and putting on shows for local bands and out-of-town bands,” Jones says. “In the back of our minds, I think we always knew that the logical progression was to move towards a label to release local and regional bands that we really like.” This led to their first official Winspear release — a self-titled EP from Evansville’s Thunder Dreamer (slated to play SXSW later this year). Both former interns of Secretly Distribution, Jones, 26, and Wittkugel, 22, admit they’ve greatly benefited from living in Bloomington. “There are a lot
MAJOR MURPHY //
of bands and a lot of shows going on, [so we’ve] just learned how each part of the industry works,” Wittkugel says. He believes the Midwest makes a great home for Winspear. “We’re just finding artists that are still really talented and showing them to the rest of the world,” says Wittkugel, who also books shows for Spirit of ’68 Promotions in Bloomington. “If it’s good and the people are talented, then it’s going to be a good release.” Both Jones and Wittkugel emphasize that Winspear’s success to date is directly tied to the artists on the label. “At the end of the day, it’s nothing that we’re doing,” Jones says. “It’s just the artists making really great music, and people responding to that.” In looking at how far they’ve come in just under three years, the Winspear co-founders are fairly satisfied, especially when considering their limited resources. “I’m happy about how much we’ve put out, even though Ben and I sometimes talk about it and think about how we wish we were able to put out more,” Jones says. “There are all these really great bands that we wanna put out, but the resources just don’t line up some-
18 // MUSIC // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // 100% SUSTAINABLE / RECYCLED PAPER // NUVO.NET
DUNCAN KISSINGER //
WHAT // Winspear Records Review, 18+ WHEN // Jan. 25, 9:30 p.m. WHERE // The Bishop (Bloomington)
times. I’m sure every single record label would say the same thing. You just can’t put out everything.” In the end, the artists on Winspear appreciate their efforts wholeheartedly. “I’m so grateful to them for all the work and energy they put into helping me share my music,” says Amy Oelsner, who makes music under the name Amy O. “Overall, I really appreciate that they’re a label who puts the artist’s creative vision first and that they invest so much of themselves into each project.”
DUNCAN KISSINGER This Indianapolis musician has played in his fair share of notable local bands over the years, from Hotfox to Peter & the Kings. Released via Winspear in September 2017, his debut solo album, Make Time Stop, showcases Kissinger’s knack for writing sharp yet simple songs à la Robert Pollard.
KEVIN KRAUTER Although now only managed by Winspear, Kevin Krauter has released a pair of angelic EPs via the label — 2015’s Magnolia and 2016’s Changes. “I’m no longer releasing music through Winspear itself, but Ben and Jared are still managing me,” Krauter says. “The two of them make such a great team, and they really, really care about the artists they work with.”
ARTISTS PLAYING THE WINSPEAR REVIEW AMY O
MAJOR MURPHY
Fresh off the release of her impressive 2017 album Elastic, this indie-pop singer-songwriter also plays alongside fellow Bloomington badass Erin Tobey in the left-field rock duo Brenda’s Friend. Slated to play at SXSW 2018, Amy O recently teamed up with local visual artist super duo Brain Twins to create an animated video for the Elastic song “History Walking.”
Slated to release a new album this spring, this dream-pop trio from Grand Rapids, Michigan has found a great deal of success on Spotify with their laid-back single “Mary.” “From the beginning, Winspear believed in me as a person and artist, in addition to believing in my music, and that means the world to me,” says Major Murphy vocalist/ guitarist Jacob Bullard. N
WEDNESDAY // 1.24 Matthew McNeal, Chad Lehr, Fountain Square Brewing Co., 21+ Blues Jam, Jon Strahl, Slippery Noodle Inn, 21+ Brendan Wadley, The Brazen Youth, Keller and Cole, Emily Myren, Melody Inn, 21+ The Upside Down, The Bluebird (Bloomington), 21+ Phil Ranelin Quintet, Jazz Kitchen, 21+ Seasonal Affective Disco, Indianapolis Museum of Art, all-ages Night Sister, Milktooth, all-ages
THURSDAY // 1.25 Art Garfunkel, The Palladium at the Center for the Performing Arts, all-ages Chris Shutters Band, Slippery Noodle, 21+ Winspear Review 2018, The Bishop (Bloomington), 18+ Hip-Hop Night, Square Cat Vinyl, all-ages DJ Lockstar, Revel, 21+ Jin-XS, Mousetrap, 21+ Jeff Kelly and The Graveyard Shift, Bronson Wisconsin, Cole Woodruff, Melody Inn, 21+
Mako, Night Lights, Frozen Turtle, The Hi-Fi, 21+ G Jones, Old National Centre, all-ages Latin Dance Party, Jazz Kitchen, 21+ Ortwein Jazztet, Fountain Square Brewing Co., 21+
FRIDAY // 1.26 Justin Duenne and The Midnight, John Barney and The Passengers, Melody Inn, 21+ Spandrels, Moira, Cherrys, Pioneer, 21+ Wife Patrol, Solid State Physicas, I Dream In Evergreen, Melody Inn, 21+ Thunderstruck, The Vogue, 21+ Digital Ethos, Magnetic, Indigo Child, Cam Miller, Mad Pritch, Mousetrap, 21+ Fetty Wap, Old National Centre, all-ages Jack Harlow, The Hi-Fi, 21+ The Bad Plus, Jazz Kitchen, 21+ My Yellow Rickhaw, Four Day Ray Brewing, 21+ The Cadillac Three, The Bluebird (Bloomington), 21+
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SATURDAY // 1.27 We’re. All. We. Got, Square Cat Vinyl, all-ages Spellbound DJ Dance Night, Pioneer, 21+ On the Cinder, State, Annefrankdux, Melody Inn, 21+ Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, James McMurtry, Old National Centre, all-ages Lateralus, The Vogue, 21+ Alex Williams, Bluegill in the Slaw, The Hi-Fi, 21+ Walk the Moon, Old National Centre, all-ages Bumpin’ Uglies, Aaron Kamm and The One Drops, Mousetrap, 21+ Shelby County Sinners, Gideon Wainwright, State Street Pub, 21+
SUNDAY // 1.28 Noah Gundersen, Lizzy Gundersen, The Hi-Fi, 21+
TUESDAY // 1.30 Andrea Gibson, Old National Centre, all-ages Ben Miller Band, The Hi-Fi, 21+
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BY WAYNE BERTSCH
NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // SOUNDCHECK // 19
DAN SAVAGE Listen to Dan’s podcast every week at savagelovecast.com
SAVAGE LOVE BY DAN SAVAGE // VOICES@NUVO.NET
This would, in my opinion, violate our monoga-
I’ve been with my girlfriend “J” for two years. Her
a gifted artist who hasn’t truly dedicated himself
I’m writing you to ask about a friend of mine. He’s
mous commitment and our marriage vows. I enjoy
best friend “M” is a gay man she’s known since high
recently divorced
to his art. It’s as if he’s afraid of success. He’s also
your podcast and I know you often advocate for open
school. M and I have hung out many times. He seems
woman with a high
a so-called “womanizer,” and every time he meets
relationships. But you also emphasize your respect
cool, but lately I’ve been wondering if he and J are
libido. Now that I’m
an interesting woman who’s into him, he inevitably
for monogamy and the validity of monogamous
fucking behind my back.
single, I’ve come out
fucks it up. For this reason and some others (that I
commitments. We are at an impasse. Please advise.
won’t mention), I believe he’s a repressed homosex-
— Throwing Off Expectations
ual. Let’s just assume that he is. Every time we talk,
For starters, J and I rarely have sex anymore.
I’m a
as a kinkster. I quickly
Even a kiss on the cheek happens less than once a
met someone who swept
week. Meanwhile, J’s Facebook feed has pictures of
me off my feet — smart, funny, sexy, proudly pervy,
M grabbing her tits outside of a gay club in front of
and experienced in the BDSM scene — and soon he
maybe once or twice a year, he recounts his latest
DAN: While “love unconditionally” sounds nice,
fuckups with women (and everything else). During
TOE, monogamy was a condition of yours
the last call, I was very close to asking him if he was
going into this marriage (and a valid
her room, even though he lives only a few
role. This was hot as hell at first. I loved taking his
sure about his sexual orientation. I believe that what
one), and being able to express this
miles away. I’ve also recently found out
orders, knowing how much my subservience pleased
makes him unable to face this aspect of his life is
aspect of his sexuality was a stated or
that although M has a strong preference for
him, and surprising myself with just how much pain
interfering with everything else, too. I would like to be
implicit condition of his (and, yes, an
able to talk openly about it with him without hurting
equally valid one). If you’re going
him. Do you have any tips?
to unilaterally alter the terms and
even if they’re not turned on by them,
conditions of your marriage, TOE,
and gay men can sleep with a girl and
— Artist Failing At Relationships
then you’ll need to reopen negotiations
her sister. She told me he’s spent the night in
men, he considers himself bisexual. I understand that everyone loves tits,
actually just… sleep. I also know that her
declared himself as my Dom and I assumed the sub
and humiliation I could take. However, his fantasies quickly took a darker turn. When I say I’m uncomfortable with the extremely transgressive territory he wants to explore, he says, “I’m your master and you take my orders.” I think this is
DAN: Sometimes a cigar isn’t just a cigar — but an
and come to a new agreement with your husband,
antidepressants can kill sex drive. All three things at
shitty form — the bottom should always set the limits.
unsuccessful heterosexual is almost always just that.
one that works for both of you. (Jesus, lady, let him
once feel like more than just coincidence, though. At
When we’re in play, he says that I chose him as my
Unless the details you didn’t share include, say, a
go to the fucking party!)
the very least, the PDAs seem disrespectful. At worst,
top precisely because I wanted to see how far I could
I’m a blind fool who’s been replaced. Am I insecure or
go and that it’s his job to push me out of my comfort
is there something to these worries?
zone. I think he’s twisting my words. Arguing over lim-
massive collection of gay porn or messy closet-case classics like drunken lunges at male friends or running
Someone at work — not my boss — asked me to
for Congress on a “family values” platform, your friend
fuck his wife. He’s a nice guy, his wife is hot, and I’m
— You Pick The Acronym I
its mid-scene makes us both frustrated and angry. I’m
will have to remain in the hetero column for now. That
single. This is a first for me. Besides STI status, what
Gotta Get To Work
not in any physical danger, but his requests (if carried
said, if you believe a solid gay ass pounding would jar
questions should I ask?
out) could ruin some of my existing relationships.
loose the professional and romantic success that has
— Help Interested Straight Boy
thus far eluded your friend, go ahead and ask him if
Understand Lust’s Limitations
DAN: Your girlfriend’s best friend isn’t gay, YPTAIG-
Did I blow it by not giving him a list of my hard
GTW, he’s bisexual — so, yeah, it’s entirely possible M
limits in advance of becoming his sub? Or is he just a
is fucking your girlfriend, since fucking girls is some-
shitty, inconsiderate top trying to take advantage of
friendship, AFAR, but someone who calls only once or
DAN: 1. “Are you a cuckold or is this a hotwife thing?”
thing bisexual guys do and, according to one study,
a novice? After play, he checks in to see if I’m okay,
twice a year to recount his romantic fuckups doesn’t
(Considering your sign-off, HISBULL, either you’ve
they’re better at it. (Australian women who had been
which on the surface looks like great form — aftercare
sound like much of a friend anyway.
assumed he’s a cuckold or he’s told you he is one. If
with both bi and straight guys ranked their bi male
and all — but this also feels manipulative. How can I
he is a cuck, he may want dirty texts and pictures —
partners as more attentive lovers, more emotionally
pull things back to where I’m comfortable? Do I run
or he’ll want to be in the room where it happens. Is
available, and better dads, according to the results of
from the scene — or just this guy?
that okay with you?)
a study published in 2016.)
he’s a “repressed homosexual.” It might cost you his
My husband has a foot fetish. The feel of his tongue between my toes when he “worships” my feet doesn’t arouse me in the least. Rather, it feels like
2. “Have you done this before?” (The reality of
— Tired Of Overreaching From A Shitty Top
But while we can’t know for sure whether M is
another person sleeping with your up-to-now-mo-
fucking J, YPTAIGGTW, we do know who she isn’t
DAN: A top who reopens negotiations about limits and
nogamous spouse can dredge up intense emotions,
fucking: you. If the sex is rare and a kiss — on the
what’s on the BDSM menu during a scene — a time
to grin (or grimace) and bear this odd
e.g., jealousy, sadness, anger, rage. If they’ve done
cheek — is a once-a-week occurrence, it’s time to pull
when the sub will feel tremendous pressure to, well,
aspect of his sexuality before we
this before and enjoyed it, you can jump right in. If
the plug. Yes, antidepressants can be a libido killer.
submit — is not a top you can trust. The same goes for
married, but I cannot continue
they haven’t, maybe start with a make-out session at
They can also be a dodge. If your girlfriend doesn’t
a top who makes demands that, if obeyed, could ruin
to do so. When I told him this, he
a time or in a place where you can’t progress to sex.)
regard the lack of sex as a problem and isn’t working
their sub’s relationships with family, friends, other part-
asked to be allowed to attend “foot
3. “Can I speak directly with your wife?” (You’ll
on a fix — if she’s prioritizing partying with her
ners, etc. Run from this guy, TOOFAST, but not from
want to make sure she isn’t doing this under duress
bisexual bestie over talking to her doc and adjusting
the scene. There are better tops out there. Go find one.
and that she’s into you, and you’ll want to inde-
her meds, if she hasn’t offered you some sort of
himself in the presence of these foot
pendently verify the things he’s told you about their
accommodation/outlet/work-around for the lack of
Listen to Dan’s podcast every
models (and other males!).
arrangement, health, experiences, etc.)
sex — trust your gut and get out.
week at savagelovecast.com
I’m stepping on slugs in the garden barefoot. Our sex life is fine otherwise. I resolved
model” parties. There wouldn’t be intercourse, but he would pleasure
Question? mail@savagelove.com Online: nuvo.net/savagelove
NUVO.NET // 01.24.18 - 01.31.18 // VOICES // 21
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ARIES (March 21-April 19): Anders Haugen competed for the U.S. as a ski jumper in the 1924 Winter Olympics. Although he was an accomplished athlete who had previously set a world record for distance, he won no medals at the games. But wait! Fifty years later, a sports historian discovered that there had a been a scoring mistake back in 1924. In fact, Haugen had done well enough to win the bronze medal. The mistake was rectified, and he finally got his long-postponed award. I foresee a comparable development happening in your life, Aries. Recognition or appreciation you deserved to have received some time ago will finally come your way. TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In 1899, Sobhuza II became King of Swaziland even though he was less than five months old. He kept his job for the next 82 years, and along the way managed to play an important role when his nation gained independence from the colonial rule of the United Kingdom. These days you may feel a bit like Sobhuza did when he was still in diapers, Taurus: not sufficiently prepared or mature for the greater responsibilities that are coming your way. But just as he received competent help in his early years from his uncle and grandmother, I suspect you’ll receive the support you’ll need to ripen. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): In my ideal world, dancing and singing wouldn’t be luxuries practiced primarily by professionals. They would be regular occurrences in our daily routines. We’d dance and sing whenever we needed a break from the numbing trance. We’d whirl and hum to pass the time. We would greet each other with an interpretative movement and a little tune. In schools, dance and song would be a standard part of the curriculum — as important as math and history. That’s my utopian dream, Gemini. What’s yours? In accordance with the astrological omens, I urge you to identify the soul medicine you’d love to incorporate into your everyday regimen. Then go ahead and incorporate it! It’s time for you to get more aggressive about creating the world you want to live in. CANCER (June 21-July 22): Psychology pioneer Carl Jung believed that most of our big problems can never be fully solved. And that’s actually a good thing. Working on them keeps us lively, in a state of constant transformation. It ensures we don’t stagnate. I generally agree with Jung’s high opinion of our problems. We should indeed be grateful for the way they impel us to grow. However, I think that’s irrelevant for you right now. Why? Because you have an unprecedented opportunity to solve and graduate from a major long-running problem. So no, don’t be grateful for it. Get rid of it. Say goodbye to it forever. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Between now and March 21, you will be invited, encouraged, and pushed to deepen your understanding of intimate relationships. You will have the chance to learn much, much more about how to create the kind of togetherness that both comforts and inspires you. Will you take advantage of this eight-week opportunity? I hope so. You may imagine that you have more pressing matters to attend to. But the fact is that cultivating your relationship skills would transform you in ways that would best serve those other pressing matters. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): In December, mass protests broke out in Mashhad, Iran’s secondlargest city. Why? The economy had been gradually worsening. Inflation was slowly but surely exacting a toll. Unemployment was increasing. But one of the immediate triggers for the uprising was a 40-percent hike in the price of eggs. It focused the Iranian people’s collective angst and galvanized a dramatic response. I’m predicting a comparable sequence in your personal future, Virgo. A specific irritant will emerge, motivating you to stop putting up with trends that have been subtly bothering you.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In the late 1980s, Budweiser used a Bull Terrier to promote its Bud Light beer in commercials. The dog, who became mega-famous, was presented as a rich macho party animal named Spuds MacKenzie. The ad campaign was successful, boosting sales 20 percent. But the truth was that the actor playing Spuds was a female dog whose owners called her Evie. To earn money, the poor creature, who was born under the sign of Libra, was forced to assume a false identity. To honor Evie’s memory, and in alignment with current astrological omens, I urge you human Libras to strip away any layers of false identity you’ve been pressured to acquire. Be your Real Self — to the max. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): The giant panda is a bear native to China. In the wild, its diet is 99 percent bamboo. But bamboo is not an energyrich food, which means the creature has to compensate by consuming 20 to 30 pounds of the stuff every day. Because it’s so busy gathering its sustenance, the panda doesn’t have time to do much socializing. I mention this, Scorpio, because I want to offer up the panda as your anti-power animal for the coming weeks. According to my reading of the astrological omens, you should have a diversified approach to getting your needs met — not just in regards to food, but in every other way as well. Variety is not just the spice of life; it’s the essence. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): You’re the star of the “movie” that endlessly unfolds in your imagination. There may be a number of other lead actors and actresses, but few if any have your luster and stature. You also have a supporting cast, as well as a full complement of extras. To generate all the adventure you need, your story needs a lot of dramatis personae. In the coming weeks, I suggest that you be alert for certain minor characters who are primed to start playing a bigger role in your narrative. Consider the possibility of inviting them to say and do more to advance the plot. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Thirty-five miles per hour is typically the highest speed attained by the U.S. Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carriers. That’s not very fast. On the other hand, each ship’s engine generates 190 megawatts, enough to provide the energy needs of 140,000 houses, and can go more than 20 years without refueling. If you don’t mind, I’m going to compare you to one of those aircraft carriers during the next four weeks. You may not be moving fast, but you will have maximum stamina and power. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): The pawpaw is a tasty fruit that blends the flavors of mango, banana, and melon. But you rarely find it in grocery stores. One reason is that the fruit ripens very fast after being picked. Another is that the pollination process is complicated. In response to these issues, a plant scientist named Neal Peterson has been trying to breed the pawpaw to be more commercially viable. Because of his work, cultivated crops have finally begun showing up at some farmers’ markets. I’d like to see you undertake metaphorically similar labors in 2018, Aquarius. I think you’ll have good luck at developing rough potentials into more mature forms of expression. You’ll have skill at turning unruly raw materials into more useful resources. Now is a great time to begin. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): An iceberg is a huge chunk of ice that has cracked away from a glacier and drifted off into the open sea. Only nine percent of it is visible above the waterline. The underwater part, which is most of the iceberg, is basically invisible. You can’t know much about it just by looking at the top. This is an apt metaphor for life itself. Most everyone and everything we encounter is 91 percent mysterious or hidden or inaccessible to our conscious understanding. That’s the weird news, Pisces. The good news is that during the next three weeks you will have an unprecedented ability to get better acquainted with the other 91 percent of anything or anyone you choose to explore.
HOMEWORK: Imagine that you’re still alive in 2090. What’s your life like?
Testify at Freewillastrology.com.
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