A win-win situation

During and after the wildfires, the music community rallied to host benefits for firefighters, fire victims and the Red Cross. 91X turned its “Concert from the Crypt,” featuring Louis XIV and Transfer, into a benefit for the firefighters fund, while various venues have hosted or will be hosting benefits of their own. One such benefit will be at The Alibi in Hillcrest on Friday, Nov. 9, featuring The Fascination, Cabron, Behind the Wagon, Death on Mars and Pen and Ink.
There are other ways to help, and metal producer Colin Richardson (As I Lay Dying, Bullet for My Valentine) has created an interesting way to encourage musicians to donate to the Red Cross. Richardson—whose ex-wife/manager Lora and the couple’s teenage daughter were forced to evacuate from Fallbrook for nearly a week while he was in England—will listen to a one-song demo by any unsigned band that donates $50 to the Red Cross, and he’ll send back a brief critique. “If we really love what we hear, we will recommend you to some of the A&R folks we work with,” Lora Richardson wrote in an announcement.

Interested bands should click on over to Lora’s MySpace page (MS/lorarichardson) and send her a message requesting an e-mail address, to which they should send a link to their music and a Red Cross “thank you” note for their donation.

Notes from the smoking patio

The San Diego HAT Awards (Honoring Acoustic Talent) were announced last week. The awards are considered a complement to the San Diego Music Awards, which have only a couple awards for a style that covers many genres. Of the winners, only one band earned honors at both the HATs and the SDMAs. The Coyote Problem walked away with a HAT award for Best Alt-County and an SDMA for Best Americana or Country Album for their release California.

Singer Peter Bolland has been active in the music community for years, not only as a musician but also as a producer of events under the name Broken Hill Productions. One such event is “Neilfest,” which started out as a group of friends celebrating the music of Neil Young on his birthday and became an annual event. The first four events were held at Dizzy’s, but that venue is undergoing renovations and a retrofit, so this year’s event has moved O’Connells. Performing Neil Young tunes and some originals at “Neilfest V: A Celebration of the Songs of Neil Young” will be The Coyote Problem, Gregory Page, Sara Petite, Lisa Sanders and Christopher Dale. The event, scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 13, will be hosted by KPRI morning-show host Madison. MS/peterbolland, MS/gregorypage, MS/sarapetite, MS/lisasandersmyspace, MS/christopherdalemusic.

Speaking of O’Connells, the bar was recently remodeled and the bathrooms expanded. O’Connells continued hosting nightly music during the renovations, but patrons had to use port-a-potties located in the parking lot or attempt to cross the street to use the crapper at the Morena Club. With the new facilities, O’Connells is back in tip-top shape and becoming more aggressive with its live-music lineups, including a two-day music festival last weekend that featured more than 25 bands and benefited the Red Cross and fire victims. www.oconnellsbar-sd.com.

Various San Diego musicians are joining forces to create a super-band called Supabad, a tribute to James Brown. Taking the mic will be Latanya Lockett, Jose Sinatra, Elijah Emmanuel and Alley Stewart of Wise Monkey Orchestra. The vocalists will be backed by a band comprising members of The Revelations, The Greyboy Allstars and Wise Monkey Orchestra, among others. The event goes down at Winston’s on Friday, Nov. 9 with a break-dancing exhibition between sets. MS/supabadtheband.

Musician, producer, radio-jingle composer Rafter Roberts has been keeping himself pretty busy lately. He helped record the latest release from Castanets, in addition to recording more than 20 of his own songs with his band, Rafter, which during recent performances has consisted of just him and his girlfriend, drummer Lizeth Santos, formerly of Red Pony Clock. As a challenge to one another, Roberts and Santos have committed to a creation every day. For her, its photography; for him, it’s a recorded song. The project has resulted in Asthmatic Kitty, the label to which Rafter is signed, hosting a downloadable song each week. Another song, “Magic,” is available for download from the taste-making blog You Ain’t No Picasso to hold fans over until Jan. 22, 2008, when Asthmatic Kitty will release Rafter’s next full-length album, sexdeathcassette. ms/rafterroberts, www.asthmatickitty.com, www.youaintnopicasso.com.

FM 94/9 deejay Michael Halloran was tightlipped when asked about the band being created by the station to open 94/9’s five-year-anniversary show at 4th & B on Saturday, Nov. 10. The show, featuring The Hives, Feist and VHS or Beta, is sold out. “There’s nothing to say about it, really—it’s nothing you can pre-review or anything,” he said. “You’ll just have to be there to see.” What has been revealed is that John Reis (Rocket from the Crypt), aka Swami, thought the station needed its own band. According to some on-air banter, the band might comprise upwards of nine station employees including deejays Tim Pyles, Halloran, Swami, Boomer and Anya Marina, among others. In the same chatter, it was revealed that the group will have multiple vocalists, percussionists and guitarists and will perform a three-song set of covers. The band is, for now, unnamed. To catch a glimpse of their debut (and final?) performance, early arrival to 4th & B is recommended. www.fm949sd.com.