Midday with K

Welcome to Midday with K...again. We are on our way to an improved and more focused experience. We have just set our Mission Statement in the “About “ section and currently building a brand new site at middaywithk.com. We will be expanding our blogging experience by incorporating more from the individuals we love collaborating with. More content, more posts, more media (videos, pictures, art, music, podcasts), and WAY more FUN! Stay tuned!

Want to know how you can be a part of this new direction? Contact Kristen Gogol at [email protected] for more information.

TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN? NO PROBLEM, WE ARE DARKBIRD. LIKE WATER POURED FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, IT’S A SENSE OF SOMETHING SWOOPING, SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL YOU CAN’T QUITE SEE UNTIL IT’S ON YOU, PERCHED LIKE THE MOMENT AFTER, SCAVENGING AND LOVING AND CREATING SOMETHING NEW BEFORE THE SKY IS EMPTY.  

— SCOTT ANDREW JAMES

Join us this Wednesday May 4th on Midday with K, WIIT 88.9FM Chicago for a live interview and performance with DARKBIRD. The show airs 4-6pm CST and streams live at radio.iit.edu or find us on TuneIn.

BIO

DARKBIRD are an indie rock band based out of Austin, Texas. Having stemmed from different corners of the country, it was only a matter of time before these five talented musicians would find each other in the live music capital they now call home. Since the band’s formation, DARKBIRD have played at some of the city’s most renowned venues and have quickly earned a popular reputation amongst the music scene, as they have been asked to return to every venue they’ve played. The five-piece bring a heartbreakingly powerful on stage presence with guitar, melody and lyrically driven arrangements that make way for an indie rock sound that can feel both heavy yet pretty and even sweet. Having been held up in the studio, the band have finally unleashed their debut and much-anticipated EP - “I remember feeling my fingers slip” produced by Austin’s one and only Erik Wofford (The Black Angels, White Denim, Explosions in the Sky). The EP’s first single, “Poison Arrows” has that hook that draws you in from its first quiet moment, holds you captive, then forces you to move your body until its dynamic and almost evil, cathartic end. DARKBIRD’s formation came in 2012 shortly after lead singer Kelly Barnes relocated to Austin, Texas and found Guitarist Brian Cole, unexpectedly, through Craigslist. It didn’t take long – less than a cup of coffee - for the two to realize they shared the same vision for their musical careers and they set out to start recording their first single. Within days they had created their first piece of magic together and started looking for other members to form the band. Chris Young quickly jumped on board as the band’s drummer and he brought with him his long time friend, former band mate and talented base player Chris Spencer. A few months later Michael Martinez joined as the 5th and final Darkbird, completing the outfit on keys. Now with the scrupulously executed recording, DARKBIRD is ready to hit the ground running. This is not only the beginning of something new, cool and sexy as hell but something we’ve been eagerly waiting for its raw, sheer content.

Lead Vocals/ Kelly Barnes

Guitar/ Brian Cole

Drums/ Chris Young

Bass/ Chris Spencer

Keys/ Michael Martinez

Wednesday May 4th

This Wednesday, April 6, 2016, from 4-6pm CST on WIIT 88.9FM Chicago streaming live at radio.iit.edu tune in for a live interview with Blood Red Boots.

Olivia Paul is a 17 year old singer, guitar player, and aspiring songwriter from Hillside, IL. Currently, xe is a junior in high school and a member of two choirs and the praise band which plays during worship during the school week.

Olivia grew up in recording studios with their father, Ken Paul. From a very young age, xe was exposed and drawn to a variety of different kinds of music, but now is mostly drawn to music in various sub-genres of punk and rock. Xe is working to write their own music in hopes of producing it soon, as well as potentially starting a band.

While music is not the primary focus- xe plans to go to school for art as they definitely see it as an important part of their life and would consider it a possible career if the opportunity was present at the right time.

As a native of Northern Michigan, Maria has a strong love for community and a great respect for any arts enrichment opportunities available. As a young girl, she took private music lessons, was a member of a Ballet Company, and performed in productions at local venues.

Maria received a scholarship for voice at Hope College where she completed her first BA. As a professional musician, Maria provided music entertainment for several summers at a fine dining establishment and her services have been obtained on many occasions for weddings and special events.

Maria has also been a member of numerous choirs and performs regularly at her church. A great passion in Maria’s life is teaching private music lessons, which she has done since 2001. Her youngest student is 4 years old and her oldest student is in her 70’s.

Maria has an extreme love for people of all ages and finds great richness in life through building relationships and developing gifts. Maria currently serves as one of the Directors for a local Youth Choir. 

As a singer/songwriter, Maria has been in the process of composing and recording her first album of original works. This is a process that started about 20 years ago, but has had many life interruptions. In culmination, her experiences surviving some of life’s hardest challenges have fed into the deeper meanings and content of her lyrics.

She would describe her sound as very “real” in nature and hopes that the strength she has found through significant sufferings and the joy she has found in continual blessings will help to encourage others.

Visit Midday with K today from 4-6pm CST for a live interview with Ken Paul on Chicago’s WIIT 88.9FM Chicago, streaming live at radio.iit.edu.

Ken has been an engineer and studio tech for over 30 years. He moved to Chicago in 1987 where he met Bad Boy Bill at a music store. He soon became Bad Boy Bill’s engineer and tech, designing the studio that he still uses, and working on records including Reality’s “Yolanda” and “Wanna Get Busy” featuring Kool Rock Steady.

Through the 90s he worked extensively with DJ Sneak on records like Booty Call, Work It and countless others. Ken worked with Andy Adams mixing and mastering records for Strictly Hype and Underground Construction and has also mixed and mastered numerous hip hop records including the Monsters of the Midway compilation and sessions with NewSense from PsychoDrama.

In 2010 a flood destroyed his studio and forced him to take a three year break from recording. Since rebuilding his studio he has continued mixing and mastering and started producing. Recently, he mixed and mastered Eris Drew’s remix of a single for Wolfgang Flur from Kraftwerk and mastered a disco house track from DJ Caveman which is set for release on Fresca Recordings later this year.

JIP is joining us back in the studio this Wednesday at 4:30pm CST on Midday with K WIIT 88.9FM Chicago streams live at radio.iit.edu or find us on the TuneIn app.

JIP performs Shudder on Midday with K

JIP performs Our City by the Lake on Midday with K

getjip.com

JIP has a new album JIP: Last Call (Deluxe Version) and a 7 inch VINYL of “Our City by the Lake”

Join us Wednesday at 5:30pm CST to welcome back Rory Sullivan LIVE in the studio! Also joining us this Wednesday will be co-host Maggie Corbett!

Join us this Wednesday at 4:30pm CST for an interview and LIVE performance with Damen Tolbert of 3rd Damention on Chicago's WIIT 88.9FM streaming live at radio.iit.edu every Wednesday from 4-6pm.

BIO Name: Damen Tolbert From: Chicago, IL Age: 22

I was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago. As a child music was always in my life. My father is a DJ as well as a great singer. I fell in love with the saxophone when I was 10 years old when I heard the Dave Brubeck tune "Take 5." Not too much later I heard the classic Coltrane rendition of "My Favorite Things." There was something about its sound that drew me to it. It wasn't until I was 15, a sophomore in Morgan Park High School, that I was given the chance to play in beginning and marching band under the direction of Mr. Micah Frazier (R.I.P.). I soon found that I had a knack for the instrument and music in general. By the end of my first year playing an instrument, I was already section leader. Jazz was introduced to me that same year when I joined the school jazz band. I immediately understood improvisation since I've always had my own musical ideas. By the next year, I was the most entertaining soloist in the school. By this time, with no solid theoretical knowledge or music arrangement skills, I started writing my own music. My senior year, for the winter concert, I and three of my friends performed "Qristmas Cuartet" (a medley of Christmas tunes using 2 trumpets, an alto, and baritone saxophone).

Thanks to procrastination and divine intervention I was awarded a full marching band scholarship to attend the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB). It was a culture shock and period of self-enlightenment that I will never forget or regret. There I became a member of the Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South under the direction of Mr. John R. Graham. The marching band was very time consuming and physically taxing. It required discipline on and off the field. I immediately joined the school's jazz band where I switched to baritone sax since there were too many altos. Between the marching and jazz band, I quickly gained the respect of my peers and instructors alike. Freshman year, I was awarded the Freshman of the Year title from the band. By the next marching season, I was promoted to section leader; a position that I held for 2 years.

In my 4th year I decided to leave the band for various reasons. Knowing that singing was in my blood, I got voice lessons from Dr. Heidi Gordon, the assistant choir director, in order to prepare myself for try-outs. With quite a bit of difficulty, I was admitted into the UAPB Vesper Choir for my senior year. This experience was much different than being in the band.

Thanks to the time allowances, I was able to focus more on my studies. For my senior project I decided to produce my own album entitled "Into the 3rd Damention" based on my nickname "3-Damentional." This was a work of mostly original music based on the concept of "musical inception." The album features my production, jazz, composition, and poetic talents in various ways.

After graduating from UAPB with a 3.4 GPA in Music: Sound Recording Technology, I decided to continue my education. I now attend Vandercook College of Music going for my Master's degree in Music Education. Since my return to the city, I have performed at several venues. For these gigs I've had to accumulate my own band. First as the "Damen Tolbert Quintet," I called out to my musician friends and family to play with me. Most recently we've expanded to an 11 piece group including a guitarist and 5 vocalists. I felt the "Damen Tolbert Band" sounded very elitist when the band is more of a democratic collage of different personalities. Carrying the concept of "musical inception" over from previous philosophies, we renamed the band "The 3rd Damention."

We are not afraid to play with any style. We perform original music and original arrangements. We play a mix of jazz, rock, funk, r&b, blues, gospel, or whatever comes up in rehearsals.

This Wednesday at 4:30pm tune in to hear Pharaon LIVE on Chicago's Midday with K WIIT 88.9FM streaming live at radio.iit.edu or find us on TuneIn. Pharaon was formed in Chicago in the summer of 2012. The sound most readily falls under the Alternative rock genre and is a cross between Oasis, Radiohead, and Interpol. The most prevalent influences of the band also include, Incubus, The Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, Brian Setzer, Bob Dylan, and the Kinks. As of the moment, they are promoting their debut six track EP, ‘When that Storm Comes’ which was released January of this year. Pharaon composes of Trinity Patton as vocalist, Andrew Weidig as lead guitarist, David Vallejo on percussions, Carlos Zamudio as bassist, and Robert Daniels as rhythm guitarist and songwriter. Andrew sometimes referred to as Quarters or Soul Patch Betty, has the propensity to scribble down his solos at Kumas Corner. Trini-T and Carlos, also known as Pony-T, are fellow Homo sapiens who joined the band ten and seven months ago respectively prior to either of them knowing that they sung like Disney princesses. David often suffers PTSD from recording the drum parts to the EP in an attic where the temperatures reached well over 110 degrees. And Robert. Also known as Morpheus or Django, formed the band on a hunch that someday four Hispanics and a girl from Iowa could make it without playing mariachi music.

Moses Hall will stop by Midday with K today at 5:30pm CST to talk about his upcoming business trip to Dubai and much more!

Each Molehill visit brings something new and exciting to the studio! Find Midday with K on TuneIn or stream LIVE at radio.iit.edu today at 4:30pm CST to hear what new adventures Peter Manhart and Trevor Jones have been on since their last heart-to-heart with us on Chicago's WIIT 88.9FM.