Last night stereotypes collided on stage at Mars Café, the result, magic. OK that’s a little cheesy. Things got off to a great start, and for the first time an early start on Scented Vinyl. Chris Ranallo and Izzy Dunfore actually performed at the beginning of the show this time, so Chris could take off early and cheer on his brother on Fox’s “Paradise Hotel”; leaving the rest to Izzy.
Chris and Izzy have collaborated on a number of songs in the past year, including a couple on Izzy’s brand new self-titled album and a couple that have yet to be released, until now. They got the night started with a rare acoustic performance of a new song, “Down For You”, which you can download now for free. Chris has been working on and performing new songs for an album, which will hopefully be out sometime in the next year, more info at www.rktunes.com
After the performance we got right into the records, starting with a recent purchase at ZZZ Records and one of my favorites, Beck’s “Sea Change”. After a few tracks off of that, I had the chance to really have some fun with the music; Izzy is not a collector of records so the night’s music was totally up to me. I did take a stab at some albums that I thought he would enjoy, and since Izzy listens to everything, I did pretty well.
Here is some of what we played…
Joe Byrd and the Field Hippies - The American Metaphysical Circus Led Zeppelin – III Beach Boys – Cruisin Radio Moscow – S/T Stevie Wonder – Songs in the Key of Life Flaming Lips – Yoshimi Battle the Pink Robots Bob Marley – Rastaman Vibrations
I was pretty excited last night not just for the show, but to get my hands on a copy of Izzy’s new album which was released at the end of last year. Recorded by Sid Wilson (DJ Starscream) and out on his label, Tuff Bong Records, the album was one Iowa’s best of 2007. The album also features contributions from DJ Starscream, Chris Ranallo, 105.1 Channel Q’s Brandi Power and more. You can pick it up on iTunes, CDBaby or Izzy’s website www.izzydunfore.com
Of course another great way to buy the album would be to go to a show, and there is more than enough of his calendar for this Spring. Izzy Dunfore is getting ready to embark on a three month coast-to-coast tour with over 60 dates scheduled, including one in Iowa in May. His last show before the tour will be this Saturday night in Newton.
