Soul junk

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Black Diamond Heavies drummer Van Campbell was at the Air Devils Inn, sitting with bassist/vocalist Eric Makowski, formerly of Austin’s garage rock/soul band the Bloody Tears. They had just met and began talking about starting a new band, “something just for fun,” Campbell says. “Soul music was a part of the conversation, because we thought it would be accessible from a playing standpoint,” the drummer adds. “There are plenty of bands out there that are doing this ‘soul revival’ kind of thing, which is great. I’m glad that, though that was our starting point, we have kind of turned into something that is unique.”

Their seven-piece band, Junk Yard Dogs, has since made a name for themselves through their potent live show over the past couple of years, and now have a record available. The band plays WFPK’s New Year’s Eve show at Headliners, though Campbell clarifies, “There will be guests joining us along the way, and we will be more of a house band than a featured act.”

As a warm-up, they will play on WFPK’s “Live Lunch” Friday at noon. “Normally when we play, it is at various dives around town that are dimly lit and where the patrons are impaired by alcohol. If you like your dirty soul music with a bit more clarity and a sandwich, then you should come on down to ‘Live Lunch,’” says Campbell.

Their record evolved from contemplating covers to writing originals, both together and in smaller groups. They rode up to Detroit to capture their sound with engineer Jim Diamond, who had previously worked with both Campbell and Makowski. “It took a lot of planning ahead to figure out how to make it all work with seven people and a very short window of time, which I was worried about because trying to plan any aspect of a recording session can be ambitious. It turned out to be an amazing experience.”

Asked to name some favorite local bands that don’t include Dogs members, Campbell replies, “It is hard to mention ones we don’t share members with!”

c. 2013 LEO Weekly

People Issue: Franey Miller - The Photographer

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“I’m not really average,” acknowledges Franey Miller, the 18-year-old photographer. “I’m always working — whether it be planning shoots, getting up at 5 a.m. to call magazines in London, or doing all the bookings for every single shoot I produce.”

The recent high-school grad began shooting “with a fashion eye” at 15. She describes her work as “feminine, whimsical and soft but powerful.” Miller began by taking pictures of female friends. As she developed her skills, she found girls easier to use as subjects. “With male models, there’s this constant ‘manly’ vibe going on,” she says. “I’m not opposed to shooting guys, but I just feel more comfortable around girls.”

Some of her female subjects are shown wearing only lingerie; what might seem sketchy coming from a male perspective feels more loving and respectable coming from a young woman. Miller denies having an overt agenda.

“I find it pretty,” she shrugs. “I’m not really trying to subvert anything or make a statement — I just really like the visual of cute undergarments.”

Miller is not in school now, using her time to work on her budding career. “It is a lot of work,” she says, adding that her roommate, boyfriend and supportive mother are all “constant inspiration,” though it is her cats, Prudence and Tupac, who especially “work hard to make models feel at home during hair and makeup when I’m shooting in Louisville.”

She has published photos everywhere from the local zine Tobacco to the highly coveted Vogue Italia. Miller primarily uses social media and phones to make connections, and has recently spent time in the big city. “I have a serious love/hate relationship with New York,” she says. “I love it when I’m not in it.”

Miller feels lonely there now — after traveling alone, she tries to occupy herself with shoots and meetings, but unless a friend is available, she eats, gets around and then goes to sleep alone. Skype calls can only do so much. The city adds its own inspiration and, as one of the fashion and media capitals, it can’t be ignored, but it’s either too busy or too quiet. It’s not home yet.

“The last time I was in New York, I had 16 shoots in 14 days. It’s a lot of hard work, but I know it’s going to be so worth it one day,” says Miller. “I plan to relocate to New York sometime soon. It’s where everything happens, and it’s naturally where I need to be.”

Photo by Serene Conaway

c. 2013 LEO Weekly

People Issue: Daniel Cole - The Promoter

It all started with a “Boogie Nights”-themed birthday party. Daniel Cole enjoyed a night out, and throwing a big party sounded like fun. But Cole quickly realized he was also filling a need in Louisville’s social scene.

“I think it’s fair to say it was fairly risqué for the Fourth Street Live crowd at the time,” says Cole. “Male go-go dancers and dance music DJs were not really commonplace in that circle, especially not in 2007.”

The party was a success, and Cole credits veteran promoter Joey Wagner, then marketing director for Lucky Strike and Felt, for encouraging him. It led Cole to the Fourth Street Live club Hotel, where he was hired as their marketing and events director. “It was a great deal of work, changing the perception of Louisville nightlife,” says Cole, “but that was a great vehicle to do so.” Working with attractions from DJ Steve Aoki to fashion labels to curiosities like Paris Hilton, it was on trend with the MySpace/celeb culture of the time and taught Cole many valuable lessons.

“Of course, not every weekend was a giant event,” he acknowledges. “Many times, it was $100 of decorations from Caulfield’s and a motivated staff who liked throwing a theme party.”

After an LGBT networking group hosted a party there, Cole saw a window to expand the club, and the city’s options. “Hard Candy” was born this way there. When Hotel closed, Cole went out on his own as a freelance promoter. “It was quite an adjustment,” he says, as every dollar spent on an event was now coming from his own bank account.

Wagner offered to re-launch “Hard Candy” at the club he now runs, Prime Lounge. It took time to rebuild, but Cole says 2013 was one of his best years. Today “Hard Candy” is again on trend, bringing in many stars of the groundbreaking “RuPaul’s Drag Race” reality series as headliners. The event also expanded to Cincinnati and Lexington this year, with more planned.

Cole will also produce his first large-scale Derby event soon, a dream come true for him. He plans a party catered toward an audience wanting something other than a Maxim/Playboy-esque event at Derbytime.

Meanwhile, he still works part-time in retail management. “One month could be terrific and the next could be underwhelming. You plan and promote as best as you possibly can, but there are always factors you can’t predict.

Photo by Marty Pearl

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c. 2013 LEO Weekly

Some of the best music of 2013 — Part 1

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LEO’s music department asked dozens involved in this city’s scene to share lists of their favorite local music of 2013. Our selection committee was, admittedly, intentionally random — but each is a trusted member of our community. We didn’t exactly stop people on the street (even though many of them are probably in bands, too) for their two cents.

As it shook out, we got many great responses back. Two things we had already suspected were confirmed beyond a reasonable doubt: Louisville loves music, and this year, everyone loved the Debauchees.

Among the people who contributed, almost half put the Debauchees and their debut album, Big Machines and Peculiar Beings (on sonaBLAST! Records), on their list. Whistle Peak singer Billy Petot said, “The Debauchees! Duh! These guys are so much fun. Usually young folks tend to exude a bit too much rage for me, but these young ’uns are just plain f-u-n.” WFPK disc jockey Marion Dries mentioned their song “I’ve Got Energy” as one of her favorite individual songs of this year, noting, “Love the primitive punk ethic in their work.” Bryce Gill, guitarist for the Tunesmiths, called them “great, young talent and sincerely sweet kids. They will make Louisville proud.”

While this might be a surprise to some in a year that also included new albums from Jim James, Bonnie “Prince” Billy and Houndmouth, it shows how our community continues to develop new talent and support it, never sitting still even though there’s a deep bench to rely on.

It’s not a popularity contest, in the literal sense. We here at LEO like to take each song, each record, each show as its own thing; all have unique strengths and weaknesses. We don’t believe there can be a “best” or “worst” when it comes to artistic expression. In this case, we’re just sharing some recommendations.

The name dropped second-most by a jury of their peers was Old Baby. After putting their first record together after only a few months of existence, the all-star rock quintet took longer to make their second album, Love Hangover (on Karate Body Records), achieving a leap up from an already stellar debut and clarifying that this band is for real, not a mere side project (members also play solo and in Young Widows, Jaye Jayle, Sapat and Second Story Man). In his review for LEO, Syd Bishop wrote, “Given Old Baby’s penchant for dark, Americana-tinged songwriting, this is a surprisingly spry album, maintaining an unexpected momentum (given both the subject matter and material) … this Hangover succeeds as a well-crafted testament to the skill of its constituency.”

Following closely behind was a pair of artists who take a different approach to pop and rock, though less differently than it might look on the surface. Cheyenne Mize’s second solo album, Among the Grey (on the North Carolina label Yep Roc) also saw her step up her game. In this week’s music section, WFPK and LEO’s Kyle Meredith shares his thoughts on her achievement.

The young garage-rockers White Reaper received as many mentions as Mize, with “Night Visions Radio” DJ Sam Sneed raving, “My favorite local release of the year is White Reaper’s Conspirator (a 7-inch on Earthbound Records). I am just stoked people in Louisville are making this kind of music!” McKinley Moore, guitarist for Natives, said, “I’m sure someone else has said it already, but White Reaper is awesome.”

Also beloved locally lately was Anwar Sadat. The young punk trio’s first full-length, Gold (on Sophomore Lounge), had singer/guitarist Mark Kramer of Tender Mercy saying about it, “Loud, abrasive and catchy. Who else can do this?” Zach Hart, from the blog We Listen For You, called it, “A thunderous record that doesn’t pocket creativity for the sake of being ‘just another loud band,’” and added, “It’s a perfect artistic document to get the listener ready for Anwar Sadat’s live show ... one of the best live bands going in town today.”

Join us again next week for more of the best of 2013, locally and internationally.

c. 2013 LEO Weekly