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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2005)
BY BRETT CAMPBELL Celtic Convocation The music of summer festivals Cynic that I am, I admit to being put off by the name of the annual Faerieworlds Festival , which this year comes to Secret House Winery outside Eugene on July 23 and 24. But what matters is the music, and in that department, the festival has scored big with its headliner, the spellbinding contemporary Irish singer/pianist Karan Casey and her band. Since her days fronting the Irish/ American supergroup Solas, Casey has drawn worldwide raves for her bell-like soprano, which seems equally at home cover- ing traditional Celtic and English ballads, Appalachian folk tunes and modern singers from Billy Bragg to Billie Holiday. Recent Karan Casey shows, including several at our own recently- closed Café Paradiso, have featured more of her own socially conscious songwriting, but it’s that gossamer voice and her deft use of it that put her in the pantheon of modern Celtic chanteuses such as Mary Black, Susan McKeown and so many others. The festival also includes another frequent Eugene visitor, the agile Portland-based fid- dler Kevin Burke with Ged Foley . One of the world’s greatest Celtic fiddlers, Burke (who plays Saturday) alone is worth the price of admission. Along with Casey, Sunday’s lineup features another silly name/great music combo, Magical Strings (Celtic harp and more), Country Fair vets Trillian Green (flute, cello, and percussion virtuoso Jarrod Kaplan), Eugene’s (deservedly) most popular band, the Sugar Beets , and many more Northwest-based Celtic ensembles. Check www.faerieworlds.com for the full schedule. A different kind of festival happens Friday, July 22, when Joint Forces Dance Company brings two dozen international dancers downtown for a community dance bash. The dancing, the culmination of a weeklong workshop taught by Eugene cho- reographer (and Guggenheim grantee) Alito Alessi , starts at 4 pm at the downtown library, moves to Broadway Plaza and then the Hult Center. It continues that night at the WOW Hall, where the dancers will join the jazz-funk-electronica ensemble Eleven Eyes . If you haven’t caught this energetic group yet, this is a great opportunity to expe- rience one of Eugene’s hottest bands. On July 21, the WOW brings another jazz influenced group, Philadelphia’s eccentric (or “deranged” as one review calls them) Need New Body , whose wild and wacky combina- tion of free noise, funk, punk, jazz, ethnic and bluegrass influences, eccentric costumes and props, and more might appeal to fans of uncat- egorizable acts from Zappa on down. The show features similarly strange yet compelling experimental rock from the more convention- al new wavish (remember that?) Aerodrone (see story on p. 27) to Chicago’s intriguingly off-center Pit er Pat (compared to Blonde Redhead), featuring spacey vocalist Fay Davis-Jeffers, and Eugene’s one-man industri- al triphopper, Unkle Nancy . This sounds like a show for listeners who want to explore the outer reaches of rock-based music. For a mellower jazz experience, you can hear singer Cynthia Beal with pianist and UO music prof Steve Larson performing ballads, blues and Latin love songs at the latest dona- tion-only MusEvening performance at the UO Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art on Wednesday, July 27 from 6:30-8 pm. Anyone who caught Scott Cossu ’s set at Country Fair knows what a lively show the Olympia based pianist/composer puts on. Pigeonholed as a new- ager thanks to his early association with Windham Hill, Cossu is far more than a gloopy mellowmeister. His music runs on barrelhouse boogie woogie, uptempo jazz, blues, mambo and other Latin rhythms, in part based on his field research in Andean music. He won’t have Jarrod Kaplan or David Jacobs- Strain for his show at Luna on July 30, but he will be joined by fab flutist Ann Lindquist for what promises to be a delicious show. Luna features another Washington-based instrumental master on July 28, when Eduardo Mendonça brings his percussive Afro-Brazilian guitaristry and vocals to town. A star in his native Bahia, Mendonça leads the Seattle-based band Show Brazil! and his solo recordings feature a more upbeat brand of bossa than that purveyed by some of our other recent Brazilian visitors. You can hear another Brazilian-influenced guitar master, Eugene’s own Craig Einhorn , at Eugene Wine Cellars on August 3. And African music fans should check out Eugene’s Jennifer Kyker and Zimbabwe’s Musekiwa Chingodza , who’ll play duets on mbira (a harp-like plucked instrument) at Cozmic Pizza on July 29. Both these musicians have studied and performed Zimbabwean music for years, and this should be a treat for world music fans. ew VE Fantastic Four PG-13 SHOWTIMES FOR FRIDAY JULY 22 THROUGH THURSDAY JULY 28, 2005 Mr. & Mrs. Smith PG-13 Bad News Bears PG-13 Bewitched PG-13 (1:30, 1:55, 4:15, 4:45) 7:00, 7:20, 9:35, 9:55 The Island PG-13 (1:00, 1:45, 4:00, 5:00) 7:00, 8:10, 10:00, 10:40 FRI & SAT Wedding Crashers R DOUBLE FEATURE (12:00, 1:30, 2:30, 4:15, 5:15) 7:00, SATURDAY, JULY 23, 2005: 8:00, 9:30 (1:15, 4:10) 7:05, 10:00 (12:15, 2:40, 5:05) 7:30, 9:55 Batman Begins PG-13 (1:00, 4:00) 7:00, 9:55 Star War Episode 3 PG-13 (12:45, 3:50) 7:00, 10:00 Must Love Dogs PG-13 7:00 followed by Batman Begins PG-13 9:55 () Bargain Shows Advanced Tickets now on sale at theater and Fandango.com. 1-800-FANDANGO and our box office ©2005 PABST BREWING COMPANY CARMIKE 12 CORVALLIS OR DOORS AND BOX OFFICE OPEN 11:30AM DAILY. Saltlick Saltlick is an original indie-rock band with a coun- try twang. Lead singer Steve Taddei‘s unique voice is distinctive, backed up by three part harmonies creating a sound reminiscent of Bob Dylan and The Band with echoes of the 1980’s Athens, GA scene. Saltlick patches it’s influences of garage rock and traditional country into the quilt work of America’s cultural heritage while providing their audiences with first quality entertainment. (1:20, 1:55, 4:15, 4:50) 7:10, 8:00, 9:50, 10:30 FRI & SAT JULY 21, 2005 23
