Check Out Our Musical Queer Calendar for Upcoming events
Wondering where to see good local queer women performers? Or maybe queer touring acts? Check our calendar for updates. If you have suggestions for shows we’re missing, please let us know!!
Deep Dark Robot (feat. Linda Perry) playing Great Scott last March
Spotlight on a Touring Band: Nervous But Excited
Nervous But Excited
A pleasantly aggressive folk duo?? Yes, Please. Nervous but Excited is a nationally touring folk duo who just happens to be coming to Boston to play Club Passim on November 6. They are a couple of Midwesterners looking to build their Boston fan base. Give em a whirl eh?
Band Bio:
This Michigan-based pleasantly aggressive folk duo is a unique harmony built upon two songwriters singing genuinely crafted stories with three guitars, a mandolin, a banjo, a ukulele, a harmonica, vaguely choreographed dancing and a glockenspiel. Road warriors to the core since 2005, their endless passion has landed them on stages with folks like Ani Difranco, Iron and Wine and Utah Phillips. Their live show will bounce you through a variety of emotions, always keeping you guessing which is next. You might cry, you’ll definitely laugh, and they hope you’ll leave feeling that your heart has grown just a little larger.
Take a look at a couple of their videos and see what you think:
Rolling in the Deep - Adele cover
Upcoming Show Info:
Nervous but Excited & The Michael J Epstein Memorial
Library
Sunday, November 6, 2011, 8PM
Club Passim, 47 Palmer St.
Cambridge
Can’t make the show and/or wanna learn more?
Queers Unplugged
QWIMB/History Project and Nancy Neon Present:
Queers Unplugged
Flier by Kara Petrucci
Friday September 23, at The Cantab Lounge, Mass Ave. Central Sq. Cambridge
Performers:
First Act on at 9pm
21+
$8
The show is a benefit for QWIMB to help us on our mission to document queer women in Boston’s music scene. The event is also a showcase for some amazing local artists. Fresh upon the success of Queerpalooza, our last event, let’s all come together to make this the our best benefit yet.
Jordan Clements playing Queer Bonanza 2/20
Check Out Steph Barrak’s Video for Painted Face
Steph Barrak
Go Download her Album Fo Free
Michelle Barrett performing at Queerpalooza 5/20/11
Brief Awakening
In Memorium: DJ Kris Kono
- DJ Kris Kono
Recently, Boston’s queer community lost an influential and beloved member with the passing of DJ Kris Kono.
Kris Kono, originally from Hartford, CT, currently residing in Roslindale MA, got her start in the DJ business at her father’s nightclub while in high school. Kris has been spinning at top lesbian parties for over a decade. Kris headlined New York City’s Pride pier dances, Lesbomonde in Montreal, Aqua Girl in South Beach and the Esmé block party in Boston. Locally, she has filled dance floors from Provincetown’s Vixen to Boston’s Lava Bar and Club Lucy in Hartford.
Most recently and for many years, she has the been the event-partner of Kristen Porter’s Dyke Night Productions and resident DJ for their events Second Saturday at Machine, New England’s largest women’s dance party, and Fourth Friday at the Milky Way – both voted Best of
Boston.
She was a Physical Therapist at New England Baptist hospital and leaves behind her partner, Boston Globe writer, Beth Healy.
- DJ Kris Kono & Kristen Porter
Queer Women in Music Boston asked Dyke Night Productions founder, business partner, and close friend Kristen Porter to tell us more about this amazing woman and her influence on Boston’s music scene.
QWIMB: When did you first meet DJ Kris Kono?
I met Kris in Provincetown in 1998. It is a funny story actually which we often joked about. I approached her at a club and asked her out on a date and she turned me down. I figured if she wouldn’t date me, we’d be perfect working together.
QWIMB: How did she get started as a DJ? What was her style like?
Kris got her start as a deejay in high school spinning at her father’s nightclub in Hartford CT. In the women’s community, she had residencies at legendary nights like Club Lucy, Lava Bar, Esme, and Dyke Night. Although her personal taste was house music, at women’s events she played popular dance music and requests.
QWIMB: In a career that spanned 15 years, how did Kono keep up with the changing trends
in music?
It was her passion, so she ate, slept, breathed music. She deejay’d in both the women’s community and the house music community so she kept her finger on both pulses.
QWIMB: What do you think will be her lasting legacy in the scene?
I think her lasting legacy was who she was as a person: a kind, loving, and peaceful soul. Kris had an authentically caring, non-ego bound spirit who truly wanted to work collaboratively. Music moved her and she was passionate about sharing her love with others. Spinning to a room of a thousand women each month brought her great joy – joy that she shared selflessly with all those around her.
QWIMB: Thank you Kristen for helping us memorialize such a treasured member of our community.
Her Legacy Will Live On
Kris’ legacy will continue to live on in the lives of all the people she has touched, as well as in the DJ community itself. The response from Boston’s DJ community has been one of sadness, but also gratitude, for the road that was paved for them by the hard work and dedication of Kris Kono.
“Kris always gave away music to other DJs. She actually offered to download her entire huge library onto CDs and give them to me. Once, when I was about to DJ a large dance with many Latin requests she just handed me the perfect mix of salsa, meringue and bachata.
Her musical tastes were diverse, and she always knew what to play for any given crowd. I loved watching her DJ at Machine and MilkyWay. She seamlessly flowed between old, new, pop, house, club and Latin music.
I admired Kris immensely, as did everyone else. She certainly has been my role model and teacher.
Kris Kono -generous in spirit, musical, and always hitting the right note and finding the right beat. It all came from her huge heart. I miss her so.”
-DJ Ann Rogers
“I first heard DJ Kris Kono at The Vixen in Provincetown back in 1995. I was a New Jersey girl visiting the Cape for the first time. A few years later I moved to Boston to attend law school and there was Kris Kono again, this time at The Lava Bar in downtown Boston. Shortly thereafter I decided to “figure out” how to DJ and I too entered into the gay and lesbian scene as a DJ. It actually wasn’t until a few years into my DJ career that I met Kris. We have similar names and apparently people were getting us confused, Kristin Korpos, Kris Kono, yeah, I guess that could be easy to do!
Kris Kono’s visibility as a DJ in the Boston gay and lesbian community showed me that I could be a DJ too. I thank her for helping me become the DJ that I am today by showing me that it was possible to be a female DJ in a such a male-dominated profession. She paved the way for lesbian DJ’s in the Boston area, she helped create, with the promoters of course, a nightlife for the queer community. Kris Kono was an integral part of the Boston LGBT music scene because it was her music that brought people to the dance floor and kept the parties moving. Her spirit will always be a part of this community… Let the Music Play.”
- DJ Kristin Korpos
“What you need to know is that I have been playing music since 1980. I didn’t meet Kris until the mid to late 90s. She was a sister. Someone who finessed her way up the male dominated club industry ladder like myself with skills and an easy manner. But let me tell you, there was nothing easy about what she accomplished. It was hard work in an unkind environment where if you didn’t eat the bear, the bear would eat you. And that was the thing about Kris, she seemed to be able to maneuver the many obstacles without even ruffling the bear. She followed her muse. And her muse gently and safely guided her. Kris always seemed to exude an air of equanimity no matter what was going on. From my pointof view, it was this state of grace that made Kris special.”
Maryalice Kalaghan
Resident DJ & Vibe Manager
Boatslip Resort
“Kris was always so sweet and willing to entertain my questions about DJing in Boston whenever I felt unsure. She was the barometer by which I measured my own success, and for that I will always be grateful. Kris, you will be missed.”
DJ D’hana Perry
“She taught me that confidence, diversity and attention to detail, opens doors to endless opportunities in life.”
-DJ Kelvin Sylvester
QWIMB would like to thank Kristen Porter for her assistance in assembling this memorium to DJ Kris Kono. We would also like to thank the local DJs who shared their personal thoughts.
Kris will be sorely missed, but not forgotten as we all continue forward on the road built by all those who came before.
Queerpalooza This Friday
Queerpalooza
THIS FRIDAY MAY 20th AT THE MIDWAY CAFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Gunpowder Gelatine, Queen Tribute Band, closes out a long night of music and revelry featuring Shepherdess, Happy Little Clouds, Michelle Barrett, and Nebraska. There will also be stand up comedy by the hilarious Kristin Vallacher throughout the show.
QWIMB will be having a raffle with gift cards from Newbury Comics, Back Bay Bicycles, Kellys Roast Beef, and Erin Daly Photography.
Diffuse 5 (Boston’s guide to queer culture) will be there giving temporary tattoos and helping entertain.
It will be epic. Don’t miss out.
Uh Huh Her Back Again
Uh Huh Her came back to Boston on Saturday as a stop on their nationwide tour. They played the Brighton Music Hall (formerly Harper’s Ferry), which has been featuring some great shows lately, i.e. Wild Flag in March. This is a welcome change from the old club that featured college-themed reggae cover bands and hip-hop for suburbanites. Whoever is doing the booking over there has done nothing but make me happy since the change over.
Uh Huh Her features former Boston resident Camila Grey, a former Berklee student, and Leisha Hailey. Grey was a member of the band Mellowdrone and recently toured with Adam Lambert as a member of his backing band. Hailey was a member of the 90s group The Murmurs and its later reincarnation, Gush. They were joined on stage by a backing drummer and guitarist.
Most people are familiar with UHH’s first record Common Reaction, which was released in 2008. At that time, the band was caught up in a whirlwind of attention stemming from Hailey’s fame as a cast member of Showtime’s the L Word. The record is quite good, but sounds very produced. It has the big sound of a traditional electro-pop record and features a combination of darkness and catchy riffs. The musical talents of the duo were often overshadowed by the excitement of Hailey’s “celesbian” status. There are so few well-known out women that this fact is understandable, but it can be distracting and may be frustrating for the band. While this is true, they have never been anything but patient and accommodating to their many fans, which tells me they have hearts of gold, honestly. They even met with fans after the show to say hi and give autographs.
That said, the new EP they are touring with, Black and Blue, is a strong departure from the polished and pop-friendly first record. It is reminiscent of the concept albums bands were putting out in the 70s. For those too young to know, concept albums are usually guitar-fueled epics with lots of solos and rocking out. What is awesome about this is that so few women (I can’t name any) are responsible for such albums. Women are so often making records dominated by their vocal abilities and not their ability to rock out on guitar and keys. UHH certainly has vocal abilities and they utilize them, but there is something truly empowering about watching women rock out on stage. The EP somehow manages to be accessible to fans interested in more traditional arrangements and those folks (o.k. me) who wish to play air guitar in our bedroom mirrors.
Check out Uh Huh Her’s website to get the EP. A full-length should be released sometime soon with all new material.
Speaking of women who rock, I hope everyone who went to the show saw the opening band, Diamonds Under Fire.
Straightforward rock n’ roll with just enough attitude. They were so awesome I didn’t care that the drummer kept talking about Philly while he was playing in Boston. There hasn’t been enough women in rock since the 90s riot grrl scene and Diamonds Under Fire is a welcome departure from the polished, pop-rock we’ve been subjected to for too long.
Find out more at their website.
Queerpalooza featured this week on HOMOGROUND
Queerpalooza will be featured on Homoground’s podcast this week! Tune in Thursday May 12 at 9pm to Out Impact Radio to listen Live. It will be available on Homoground and on itunes shortly after.
There will be an interview with QWIMB’s founder Tina Lafleur and music by Queerpalooza performers Gunpowder Gelatine, Michelle Barrett, and Happy Little Clouds.
Check it out! Also, any local or national queer bands reading this? Submit your songs to Homoground and help them create their nationwide network of queer artists.
Spotlight on a Local Band: Brief Awakening
Brief Awakening in Salem, MA
Brief Awakening is an all female original alternative rock trio featuring: piano, djembe, drums, acoustic guitar, and bass. In September 2008, Brief Awakening danced into the Boston music scene playing numerous clubs and events such as The Middle East, The Midway, and Wake up the Earth Festival. With unique instrumentation and dual-lead female vocals rich with harmony; Brief Awakening’s sound has been compared to Belle and Sebastian, Fiona Apple and many things in between. Lyrical subjects range from to poetically personal to the fight for equality and justice for all people. Since 2009, Brief Awakening has been organizing a seasonal event called Goddess Fest which brings together musicians, poets, and artists to perform and celebrate women in the arts. (write up courtesy of Kat Arrants)
PRESS: “[Brief Awakening’s Goddess Fest] is lasting proof that all you need to make an evening is some great people in a great space, playing great music.” J. Patrick Brown – The Weekly Dig
“Brief Awakening’s songs are energetic, positive, and driven with substantial depth behind each note and chord.” Emily Smith – The Noise
For other upcoming shows and news check out their Facebook page HERE
To listen to some songs, check out their ReverbNation page HERE
Check out this video of Brief Awakening performing at Big Night Out at the Burren in Somerville, MA on 5/16/11
Our Interview With Out Impact Radio
Tina, founder of QWIMB, was featured on episode three of Executing the Vision on Out Impact Radio. Listen to Bambi Weavil, founder of Out Impact, interview Tina about the project’s roots and directions. Listen Here
Out Impact Radio is an awsome place to find info on music, entertainment, pets, healthy living, LGBT lives, etc. Check it out.
Spectra Events Has Cool Stuff Coming Up
London Bridgez
Thursday May 5, 2011
Spectra Events’ THE BASEMENT Live Music Series is proud to host London Bridgez, national touring spoken-word artist, for a special preview of her summer tour, featuring a LIVE Funk Band and roster of talented local artists.
The writer and performer London Bridgez pushes the expectations of spoken word. “London” is her name. “Bridgez” represents what she does. She builds bridges between poetry and music. London couples her captivating poetry delivery with a live band experience (poetry vocals +keys+ sax+ guitar and drums). London is a self proclaimed Afro Punk Poet & Soul Word Artist.
London Bridgez+Spoken word+Music= Live Art Experience
Opening for London Bridgez is local brownboi hiphop MC, Micah Domingo!
Micah - Brown Boi MC
As an emcee hailing from Boston, Micah attempts to capture raw emotions through lyrics that cut the skin and peel back all the layers, to reveal the blood and guts of what it means to be human. As a transman, he brings his struggle into the hip hop arena, displaying a unique perspective on everything from infatuation, to political revolution.
Visit his Myspace page HERE
Buy your tickets HERE
- Doors open at 7:00PM | Show begins at 8PM
- Featuring London Bridgez Funk Band, Micah Domingo, and others
- This show is for everyone ages 19+
- Tickets are $12 Advances / $15 at the Door
- Group discounts available! Contact Spectra Events for more info
This Description from Event Brite
Also upcoming is:
May 25
Renaissance: Women in Jazz, Funk, Soul, and RnB 90s Dance Party
at Church in Boston
Buy tickets HERE