Delmag set to play rare all-ages show


By JOSH NIVA
Anchorage Daily News

(Published: February 6, 2004)

It sounds like Santa, the Easter Bunny and the tooth fairy have all arrived early for Anchorage's rock 'n' roll kiddies: Delmag is playing its first all-ages show in nearly a year.

"We suck for not playing all-ages," said Mike Gorder, Delmag's singer-bass player. "We always get someone yelling about all-ages."

To quell the increasing mass of miffed youngsters, the hard-rocking trio has set up a string of all-ages shows that begins at 7:30 tonight when Delmag invades the University of Alaska Anchorage Wolf Den with JEB and Brothers Contra. Tickets are $7 at the door.

The last time Delmag played an all-ages show was in March at the highly successful Smackdown: The Roman Candles vs. Delmag event. Delmag has owned the 21-and-up scene for two years, packing clubs and helping owners sell drinks, but has rarely taken its show out of the bars. Gorder said Delmag leans on the bar scene because the money is good, the venues are reliable and the band's core fan base "wanna drink when they watch us."

Now Delmag hopes to also embrace Anchorage's youth, partly to expand its audience and feed demand and partly to help pay off the making of its most recent CD, which the band recorded in San Francisco.

So how does a band of beer-drinking, hard-rocking 30-somethings tap into Anchorage's underage crowd? Find the hottest young band in town and roll with it. Delmag has done just that, hooking up with JEB.

The bands have played a few bar gigs together in recent months, introducing the crazy JEB kids to the 21-and-up market. Now JEB plans to return the favor, initiating Delmag into JEB's world of dedicated show goers.

"So many of my friends and peers love Delmag but never get to see them," said JEB's Erik Braund. "Everyone I know is psyched to see them finally, after listening to them on ... CDs and MP3s.

"And here you have it, the beginning of Anchorage teens loving Delmag and, hopefully, some 21-plusers liking JEB."

The bands have two more collaborations planned for February: the first at Valley Bistro in Wasilla on Feb. 21 and the second as opening acts for 36 Crazyfists at Egan Center on Feb. 27.

For more on Delmag, visit www.delmag.biz . For more on JEB, visit www.jebonline.com .

Site promotes hip-hop

There's a new kid on the local hip-hop block : www.versatilerecordings.com .

The Anchorage-based Web site was launched this week by hip-hop entrepreneur Joshdee (aka Joshua DeMoss) as part of his Versatile Recordings group, which handles production, distribution and promotion of local hip-hop, rap and R&B.

Joshdee said he has been planning the site for six months and spent six weeks building the site with a team of two techies, Nigel and peak360. The site features pages for news, artists, audio snippets and a forum. Joshdee said future additions will include a picture page and a graffiti page, as well as the inclusion of more local artists.

"We still got mad more dope ideas coming soon," Joshdee warned.

The Versatile Recordings crew has already made its presence known around the state. Last weekend, Joshdee and a group of more than 20 Anchorage hip-hop peeps made the roadie to Fairbanks for a Saturday night show.

Joshdee said the show didn't go well due to audio problems at the venue. And then the real trouble started: It was so cold overnight the crew's vehicles wouldn't start in the morning.

"It was a long trip," Joshdee said. "A lot of partying, some hip-hop bonding and a lot of lessons learned."

Another site gets word out

Here's another new local music Web site to check out : akmusic.cpttripps.com .

The "cpttripps" part of the address is the name of one of the site's creators, CptTripps (aka Jamie Spurgeon). Tripps started the site with friend and fellow music scene-ster Katie-O. The site launched Jan. 27 after three months of construction.

Tripps and Kate-O said the site is all about spreading news about the local scene, from gig announcements and reviews to artist profiles and links.

"The goal is to provide up-to-date, easy-to-use information for people interested in the Alaskan music scene," Tripps said in an e-mail. "I just want to inform people that Alaska has real talent and provide them with the info to witness it."

Seattle looks to Alaska

Anchorage bands, here's your chance to take over Seattle without moving out of your mom's basement in Muldoon.

The folks from the Seattle Music Fest are looking to expand their Northwest reach into Alaska and have requested that Alaska bands apply to be a part of this year's festival, which runs Aug. 13-15 in Alki Beach in West Seattle .

The annual event, headed by the Northwest Programs for the Arts, is a popular regional showcase for up-and-coming pop and rock acts.

"We're excited to hear from new bands, but we haven't received enough applications from Alaska ," said Adam Sheridan, the executive director of Northwest Programs for the Arts. "We've been trying to reach out more to Alaska . We've seen this do amazing things for bands."

Bands participating in the festival receive a 45-minute set. Sheridan said the festival is fertile ground for bands to expand their audience, establish contacts in the industry and possibly find a record label. To apply for consideration in the Seattle Music Fest or for more information about the event, visit www.seattlemusicfest.org or call the festival's toll-free information line at 1-868-208-6293.

Radio station wants CDs

While you're filling out your application for the Seattle Music Fest, you might want to consider dropping off a CD at KNBA-90.3 FM.

The station is calling for local musicians, particularly in the singer-songwriter, folk and alternative genres, to drop most recent CDs off at the station's downtown headquarters. KNBA is compiling local artists for consideration in the station's regular rotation.

KNBA is asking that packages be marked "Attention Lili McGovern" and be accompanied by contact information, three selected tracks that are most radio friendly and a press kit, if available. Packages can also be shipped to KNBA, 818 E. Ninth Ave., Anchorage 99501.

For more on KNBA, visit www.knba.org .

Got music? Want Alaska to hear about it? Get your CDs, press kits and gig announcements to Daily News reporter Josh Niva. He can be reached at 257-4328 or at jniva@adn.com .