What is polka? According to the dozens of people interviewed for an upcoming polka music documentary, the answer is easy: It’s Happiness. That’s the title of the film that Craig DiBiase and Timm Gable have been working on for the past year, which has taken them all over the country to meet musicians, dancers, and enthusiasts who just can’t get enough of polka. According to DiBiase, the director:
“I wanted to make a film that informed mainstream America what polka is really about; the family atmosphere, one’s heritage and the amount of fun at these festivals, but at the same time still please the polka community with musical performances from their favorite bands. The main point of the film is to show the eccentric personalities of the polka world and prove there’s a younger generation out there polka dancing.”
The film grew out of a conversation with John Pinter, president of the Wisconsin Polka Boosters, after he’d seen the duo’s work on a Pabst Blue Ribbon commercial incorporating polka dancers. The filmmakers showed the trailer at Pulaski Polka Days last week (after filming there last year) and are busy entering film festivals and looking for a distributor. Until “It’s Happiness” arrives at your local multiplex, you can watch the trailer on the official site:
Gogol Bordello is a band known for chaotic live shows and music that blends Eastern European melody with punk bravado and cabaret flair. Founder and singer Eugene Hutz came to the US from the Ukraine with his family in the early 1990s and learned English in large part by listening to Johnny Cash records. Now living in New York City, Hutz has surrounded himself with an impressive band incorporating violin, saxophone, and, of course, accordion (from their excellent accordionist, Yuri Lemeshev).
Their latest album, Gypsy Punks: Underground World Strike, is polished, but still manages to capture some of the intensity of their live show. To appreciate Gogol Bordello, though, you really need to see them as well as hear them. Here’s a clip of the band performing two songs (“Not a Crime” and “60 Revolutions”) during their appearance on Later… with Jools Holland last month:
Playing New Super Mario Bros. when you should be practicing your accordion? (Okay, maybe that’s only me.) What if you could somehow combine your love of video games with some squeezebox practice? That’s what this guy has done — check out his solo accordion rendition of the theme from Super Mario Bros.:
Not bad for someone who, according to his Youtube profile, only started playing a month ago. Check out his other videos, including his versions of the Zelda and Tetris themes.
Ever wondered how Britney Spears’ “Toxic” or Radiohead’s “Paranoid Android” would sound if they were played on solo accordion? Well, thanks to accordionist Martin White, you no longer have to wonder. Martin’s made a name for himself playing whimsical covers of popular songs on accordion, and has appeared in a number of segments for The Culture Show on BBC 2. Here’s an unaired clip of Martin doing Alice Cooper’s “Poison”:
Lest you think Martin’s just a novelty act, check out his website and his albums of original music (usually instrumental, but there are a couple Edgar Allen Poe poems put to music as well). This tune from his Mystery Fax Machine Girl album shows there’s a definitely a serious musician in there… somewhere.
After Lordi’s Eurovision 2006 victory, I’ve jumped head-first into the Finnish metal scene. I’ve grown my hair long, invited friends over for animal sacrifices… you know, the usual stuff. During my conversion, I stumbled across Korpiklaani, another Finnish metal band, but with fewer theatrics and more folk flavor than Lordi. Korpiklaani mixes a healthy dose of accordion and fiddle in their head banging music, as evidenced in this video for “Hunting Song” (from their “Voice of Wilderness” album).
I’d love to find more hard rock/metal bands that incorporate the accordion — leave a comment if you have any good ones to share.
Watch out ladies, Dick Contino, the “world’s most handsome accordion player,” is on the prowl. Contino performed in Chicago last night and the local CBS affiliate did a segment on him titled “Accordion-Playing Hunk Pushes The Right Buttons”. Seriously. Watch the accompanying video and listen to Dick talk about being an original “American Idol” and how Colonel Tom Parker used his moves to coach Elvis.
In related Dick Contino news, Anna and I recently received a VHS copy of his movie, “Daddy-O”, as a wedding gift. That’s right — the same film that was once featured, and mocked mercilessly, on Mystery Science Theater 3000. Needless to say, as soon as we can manage to sit through the whole thing, we’ll post our review here.
Culann’s Hounds at the San Francisco Accordion Festival uploaded by banjoheadIf you felt an earthquake in the Bay Area on Sunday afternoon, it was probably caused by the foot-stomping, booty-shaking good time had by everyone at the 16th annual San Francisco Accordion Festival. Here’s a roundup of audio/visual highlights from the weekend:
“Squeeze Play” is a juicy cover story about the 2006 festival from Sunday’s SF Chronicle Datebook (the pink section), with quotes from local squeezebox luminaries like Tom Torriglia (the festival organizer), Big Lou, and Paul Rogers of TDA. Be sure to check out the accompanying photo gallery, too.
Jan Sluizer from Westwood One Radio did an interview with Tom (MP3, 1.5 MB) at the festival.
Jamin posted a fantastic short video that includes an interview with Skyler of Accordion Apocalypse and some festival performance clips. (I love the shot of all the bemused onlookers watching from above the courtyard.)
Flickr user melastmohican also posted a bunch of festival photos, including shots of TDA, Kielbasia, and Bella Ciao.
I’ll update this list as I find more, but it sure looks like everyone had a fantastic time. Tom deserves a gigantic thank you from the local squeezebox community both for putting the festival together, and for his tireless promotion of accordions everywhere. Thanks Tom!
Surfing YouTube has become one of my favorite pasttimes and yesterday it paid off when I found a handful of video clips from manic accordionist Jason Webley‘s recent appearance (May 11) in Davis, CA. In this clip, he’s playing “May Day”, though he takes a break in the middle to teach the audience how to dance the “Gnomie” (and play a snippet of “If You Don’t Know Me By Now”):
In other Jason Webley news, his new vinyl EP/bonus CD, “Eleven Saints”, comes out on June 2nd and it’s a collaborative songwriting effort with Seattle poet Jay Thompson. Jason’s also holding his 2nd annual Camp Tomato — a one-day smorgasbord of tomato-themed fun and activities — at Seattle’s Woodland Park on June 3rd.
I’ve been meaning to write about the Main Squeeze Accordion Orchestra, and after reading this great insider’s view of the group by Main Squeezer Rachel Zoll, I can’t hold back anymore. Main Squeeze is a 15-woman, all-female, all-accordion band from New York City that plays everything from Bach to Kurt Weill to Queen. If you’re thinking to yourself, “Wow, that sounds like the best thing ever!”, you are absolutely right.
The orchestra was founded in 2002 by Walter Kuhr, owner of Main Squeeze Accordions in New York, when “one night, after attending an accordion festival, Kuhr dreamt he was the conductor of an all-female accordion orchestra… not just any all-female accordion orchestra, but an orchestra of unsurpassable quality.” It sounds like the dream, complete with glossy accordions and pigtails, has been realized.
If you’re in the New York area, you can catch the Main Squeeze Accordion Orchestra on Friday, April 21st at Moe Pitkins. If you’re not so fortunate, you can settle for these audio and video clips (check their site for more):
Further proof of the accordion’s universal reach — I stumbled upon this clip of Goto Izumi, accordionist and vocalist for Japanese band Nekomushi, from a recent solo show in Hiroshima. I have no idea what she’s singing (or what those baby dolls are doing there), but the message would probably be lost in translation anyway.
