screams, whispers and songs from planet earth

Tag: Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys

Don’t miss The NINES ~ music + art + discovery festival ~ Devens, MA – Saturday, August 10

The NINES Music + Art + Discovery Festival
featuring: Walter Sickert & the Army of Broken Toys, Air Traffic Controller, Shuggie Otis, Matt Pond, Walk Off The Earth, K. Flay, Delta Spirit, Kid Koala, Dr. Dog and Explosions in the Sky
Saturday, August 10 at Willard Field, Devens MA
1:00 PM – 11:00 PM (parking lots open at 11; gates at noon)
::: BUY TICKETS :::

COOL EVENT ALERT! The sleepy little village of Devens, Massachusetts is going to be the home of a dazzling cornucopia of musicians, multimedia artists and comedians on Saturday, August 10th. Because that’s the day that The NINES Music + Art + Discovery Festival rolls into town. In all the flurry of concerts and bigger-name summer festivals, one might inadvertently skip over this brand new music and arts gathering, but that would be a mistake, as it features an impressive line-up of both internationally-known and up-and-coming artists.

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Seeing Out The Year That Was: My 12 Favorite Shows of 2012

A last minute addition: The Magnetic Fields at Symphony Hall for First Night (last night)

A last minute addition: The Magnetic Fields at Symphony Hall for First Night (last night)

It’s a good thing I held off posting this, because I’ve just made it an even dozen in honor of the year that just flew by, 2012. The last one? A band I had the immense pleasure of seeing for the first time, on First Night just last night at the majestic Symphony Hall. [Why do they call it “First Night”? Shouldn’t it be “Last Night”?]

I saw a total of 24 shows this year. Not a whole lot for a music blogger, but I’ll tell you—nearly all of them were spectacular. That’s damn good odds. I’ve heard some people say that 2012 was an awful year. What I’ll say, from my personal perspective, is this: 2012 was a year of massive challenges and difficulties, but the rewards, if you were prepared to step up, and I mean step up in a major way, were equally impressive. It was most definitely not a year for lightweights. But it’s all moving forward, and it’s moving forward quickly. Hold on to something sturdy, because I have a feeling 2013 is going to be just as intense. Remember, with challenge comes opportunity. Happy New Year, everyone.

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How will you spend your Last Day On Earth?

It seems like only yesterday I was wandering around Copley Square wearing my 2012 glasses, taking in a spontaneous Hare Krishna First Night celebration and eating strange little packaged treats handed out by devotees. At that time, the long-anticipated, mysterious Mayan Prophesy was this curious notion still comfortably off in the distance. I decided on that heady evening that I would spend 2012 as if the prophesy were in fact true—that everything would end on December 21. We’re often told that we should always live our lives as if each day were to be our last. So, facing what may have been the final year of my life, or at least the last stretch before some sort of cataclysmic event, did I spend each waking moment in the most meaningful way possible? Did I push myself to the outer limits? Did I reach for the stars in terms of productivity and my search for enlightenment? No, not exactly.

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The Humans (featuring Toyah Willcox) with The Army of Broken Toys at Church of Boston tomorrow night!

photo by Karen Moshowitz

photo by Karen Moshowitz

The Humans with special guest Walter Sickert & The Army Of Broken Toys, Kid Savant
Sunday, September 25 at the Church of Boston
Doors at 7pm; 8pm show | 18+
Tickets: $12 in advance; $15 day of show

There’s so much about Toyah Ann Willcox I never knew. I was familiar with this wild-haired, exotically dressed creature from another planet that was pretty much the norm in the 1980s, though her voice set her apart. I remember her album, The Changeling, released in 1982. It was dark, gothic and sensuous, and a staple of my musical diet at the time. But I had no idea that she was also deeply immersed in an acting career – stage plays, film and television – since the mid ‘70s. She worked with Derek Jarman on his punk film Jubilee and The Tempest, and in 1979’s Quadrophenia. She appeared with Katharine Hepburn in the made-for-television movie The Corn is Green, and in many live theatrical roles. At the same time, she fronted a few bands before embarking on a solo music career in 1985.

A little nostalgia for the old folks…

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