Live From SugarHill Studios – Episode 16
Live From SugarHill Studios – Episode 15
The Umbrella Man
Suzanna Choffel and The Umbrella Man are the musical guests. Community guest and ‘audience of one’ is KPFT 90.1 FM’s host Rhonda Garner. She’s been highlighting local and regional talent on her radio program RadioACTIVE, along with co-host Phil Schawe, for six years and is the co-creator of The SugarHill Sessions. The hour-long show features performances recorded live in SugarHill’s historic Studio A and interviews with Hosts Dan Workman and Rosa Guerrero.
Suzanna Choffel is a singer/songwriter from Austin whose unique sound has been described as equal parts Beat poetry, smoky soul grooves and indie-pop eccentricity. Think Feist meets Erykah Badu. In Spring 2009, Suzanna won the “Best Indie Band” prize at the Austin Music Awards SXSW as well as 2nd Place in the “AAA” category of the prestigious International Songwriting Competition. Previously, Suzanna was selected by The State Of Texas to represent contemporary music in Texas On Tour, a countrywide traveling show promoting Texas tourism.
The Umbrella Man is a Gulf Coast combo fronted by esteemed bassist, Nick Gaitan. Nick has won Houston Press Music Awards “Best Bassist” title from 2004 – 2008 consecutively.
Additionally, he also plays and tours with Country music legend Billy Joe Shaver, who recently recorded “I’ve Found my Weakness in You”, composed by Gaitan. The group performs “a gumbo of styles” including Country, Rockabilly, Swamp pop and Conjunto and are currently working on their debut album.
Wild Moccasins
Tyagaraja and Wild Moccasins are the musical guests. Community guest and ‘audience of one’ is photographer Mark C. Austin – Mark has covered nearly every major music festival from Bonnaroo, Voodoo Music Fest to Coachella and Jazz Fest and his work has been featured in publications like SPIN, Paste, Rolling Stone and Village Voice Media. His images are currently on display in 5 different permanent exhibits at the Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas.
The hour-long show features performances by the artists and in-depth interviews with hosts Rosa Guerrero and award-winning record producer Dan Workman.
Tyagaraja is a singer/songwriter from the Houston and Austin areas. His voice, songwriting and lyrical content display the teachings he has absorbed from pilgrimages to India and his travels across the United States. His first band, Million Year Dance, won Album of the Year in the 2008 Houston Press Music Awards. His first full-length solo album An Open Book is due out in late March 2010.
Wild Moccasins are Winners of Best EP in the 2009 Houston Press Music Awards, the band just returned from an East Coast/Midwest Tour which found them recording sessions like Daytrotter, My Old Kentucky Blog, WOXY, BreakThru Radio and If You Make It. The band is recording their first full-length and getting ready to represent Houston at SXSW 2010.
Live From SugarHill Studios – Episode 13
Paul English Jazz Trio
Peekaboo Theory
Jazz Trio Paul English, Dennis Dotson & Brennan Nase as well as experimental indie rockers Peekaboo Theory are the musical guests. Community guest and ‘audience of one’ – a 17 year veteran of creative direction and design whose work covers print, web design, video, photography and writing is Henry “Von Wolffe” Davis, who also acts as the Live Music Examiner for Examiner.com.
The program includes short sets and candid interviews with Rosa Guerrero and award-winning record producer, Dan Workman. Live from SugarHill Studios is a collaborative effort between Zenfilm, OutboundMusic.com and SugarHill Recording Studios.
Paul English is an established composer, producer and educator, is known to Texas audiences as a jazz pianist who has performed and recorded with such greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Arnett Cobb, David Liebman, Mark O?Connor and Kirk Whalum. As a studio musician, he has appeared on over 350 recordings of various genres and has produced a number of mostly jazz and classical recordings including arrangements and orchestrations for country music legends, Willie Nelson, Johnny Bush and Ray Price.
Peekaboo Theory has been serving refreshing audible treats, slaughtering boundaries and stereotypes linked to their sound. The band has gained loyalty, respect and critical acclaim of fans and media alike with raw talent in the national music scene, boasting a resume of live shows everywhere from Albuquerque to Los Angeles to New York City.
Live From SugarHill Studios – Episode 12
Winter Wallace
Texas songwriter Tody Castillo’s sound has been compared to Tom Petty, Ron Sexsmith, Ryan Adams and Rufus Wainwright with the vocal stylings of Jeff Buckley, Fran Healy and Jeff Tweedy. When Steve Earle first heard Tody’s music while shopping for producers for his critically acclaimed album Townes, its claimed that one listen gave Earle enough confidence to hire Houston producer Steve Christensen for the project. Castillo’s new album Windhorse was born out of personal tragedy, yet teeming with hope.
According to the Houston Press, Winter Wallace is a phenomenally genteel indie band that has a certain Ingrid Michaelson/Cat Power quality to them, with similarities stretching beyond similar song format or quirky clothing accessories or soft colors on their MySpace pages: they are legitimately talented. Their first EP, entitled Lisa, was produced by Dan Workman.
Live from SugarHill Studios is a collaborative effort between Zenfilm, OutboundMusic.com and SugarHill Recording Studios. Happy Holidays!
