Key Wilde was an illustrator long before he recorded music for kids. So the fact that Key Wilde and Mr. Clarke shows now have some visual accompaniment makes perfect sense. A bunch of video from their Saturday show at the 92Y Tribeca have been posted to YouTube and while the mechanics of the video aren't quite worked out (check out the mouse work on the always-awesome "Rattlin' Can" after the jump), it just makes their shows even better. Their debut album Rise and Shine comes out later this summer on Little Monster Records -- here's a surprisingly nimble "Big Pet Pig" from the album.
Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke - "Big Pet Pig"
Live Video: Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke
I've got tons of video and pictures from this weekend's StinkFest 2009, but it's going to take me awhile to upload it all. Please have patience -- I'll get to it all eventually, I promise.
Also, I have a point-and-shoot digital camera without a powerful lens. My photos are pretty bad. So J.P. Stephens from the band Lunch Money whose camera (and eye) are much better than mine has given his permission to use his photos. All photos here are his, and if you want to see more of his work, visit him at Lumos Studio.
At some point during the KindieFest (StinkFest 2009) set of Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke, a longtime reader of the site came up to me and said, "I know you kept telling me about these guys, but I never really paid attention. Now I get it -- they're great!" As someone who's been singing the praises of the band for more than a couple years, I was happy to hear they'd secured themselves a new fan. Now, with their debut Rise and Shine! ready to be the latest Little Monster Records release (hopefully in July), it's time for more folks to join in.
So, yeah, the duo, given the extra muscle of a bassist and drummer, rocked. One of my favorite tracks from the very beginning, "Rattling Can," has been given a punk-bluegrass sheen. And it's totally awesome.
Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke - "Rattlin' Can"
One more video after the jump...The Barry Louis Polisar Tribute Album: Potentially Awesome
No, that's not the name -- it's my verdict.
I've known for awhile of the tribute album consisting of Barry Louis Polisar covers, produced by Polisar's son Evan Aaron Cohen of the Radioactive Chicken Heads. But now it's got a name -- We're Not Kidding -- and, more importantly for the purposes of this website, songs for your listening pleasure.
I use that phrase "listening pleasure" advisedly, because the songs I've spun thus far have been uniformly winning. I started out with the familiar names -- Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke, Elizabeth Street, Tor Hyams, Ham & Burger, The Boogers -- and all of those tunes worth the time. (Check out the electric guitar on Key Wilde and Mr. Clarke track.) And then I moved to the unfamliar, the top of the page. After 4 songs, some fabulous, none less than interesting, that's when I realized that this could be, well, potentially awesome.
A 2-CD set could be too much Barry Lou, but the combination of Polisar's songwriting with the varied musical approaches and high quality production (never Polisar's strength) make me very eager to hear the final product, set to be released this year.
Key Wilde, Mr. Clarke, and a Greasy Little Monster
One of the cool parts of doing the kids music website thing is that folks let slip all sorts of interesting news via Facebook or in e-mails to me. News about shows, albums, collaborations, etc.
Of course, unless somebody specifically says, "run with that" I don't actually mention it on the site. If I don't have something public to cite, then, well, I don't post.
So I'm glad that I finally -- finally! -- get to announce, like, three different bits of news I've known for a some time now. Four, maybe -- depends how you're counting.
First, and most importantly, the great duo Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke have signed with Little Monster Records. That's the cover for the album -- Rise and Shine! -- that'll be coming out later this spring at the top. If you haven't heard their stuff, I highly recommend that you get on over to their site and listen to some older versions of the tracks on the CD (all the tracks have been subsequently modified in some way for the album).
But that's not all...KidVid Tournament 2008: Renee & Jeremy vs. Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke
It's the battle of the ampersands in the Ella Jenkins Region, the last of the 4 KidVid '08 Regions to be decided -- the #1 seed Renee & Jeremy's "It's A Big World" (the title track from their debut CD of the same name) versus the #2 seed Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke's "I Had A Little Dog" (from their forthcoming - eventually - CD).
You know the rules by now -- one vote per family in the comments below, due by 9 PM tonight (Friday). As always, vote nice, y'all.
Renee & Jeremy - "It's A Big World"
Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke - "I Had A Little Dog"
And In The Day's Second KidVid '08 Matchup...
... It's a matchup from the Ella Jenkins Region — the #2 seed “I Had a Little Dog” from Key Wilde & Mr. Clarke (from their as-yet-unreleased CD) versus the #3 seed “Animal Alphabet Song” from The Hollow Trees (off their Welcome to Nelsonville release).
Watch the videos and vote here, not in the comments to this post.
