SPOTLIGHT UPONST KBGA'S NAKED MISSOULA SHOW.

This is a repost of something we put together about our favorite radio station, KBGA. We'll be slow-trickling some review of our favorite programs over the next couple months.

If you're in your thirties or forties, you probably know this feeling: lots of things you thought you understood now are completely different and it's a little hard to talk intelligently about them. It has to do mostly with the internet, and I guess more broadly "technology," whatever that exactly means. Don't worry though, I won't be taking you into any theoretical rabbit hole discussing technology. Other, better writers will continue to do that job. Most of the things I'm referencing have specifically to do with media, here's my short list: radio, TV, record labels. All of 'em are different. Having high speed internet means you don't have to watch whatever M.A.S.H. rerun's on on Sunday afternoon, or whatever the analog is to that in radio or record label terms. Goddamn, it's obviously more than kind of awesome.

On the flip side though, in a place like Missoula, Montana we run the risk of turning our focuses too broad, and missing out on the folks locally putting in the time to make music, art or even curate radio shows. This is probably a good time for a disclaimer, I do a show on KBGA, alternating Thursdays from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. I'll let somebody else write about it.
 
Anyhow, each of the things (radio, TV, record labels) from my original premise are kind of simple concepts: sound over airwaves, pictures and sounds, people releasing music. But if you look at what the internet has done to them your head kind of spins. Like I said before, whatever. All of this is kind of a long way around to an introductory statement, here: I think more people need to listen to KBGA, and with greater regularity. For a town with such A) a deeply-ingrained independent, noncommercial bent, and B) rich source of curated (mostly musical) content, I think KBGA should be kind of ruling the roost a little more. I mean, I'm not expecting the secretaries with the Mountain locked in to change their behavior, but I'd like a few more folks to tune in when High Life, or Dane, or The Mermaid, or Dave Martens, Rashid, Hana Montana, Bryan Ramirez, or Dirty Flannel, or Gang of Fun (etc., etc.) are on. So, rather than just bitch about it, I'm going to use this miniature bully pulpit to introduce, or in some cases I'm sure, re-introduce you to some of my favorite regular shows on KBGA. Like any good radio station, you do have to kind of figure out when your shows are on. If all this is brand new to you: KBGA is a UM student and community volunteer run station that broadcasts at 89.9 FM, and streams at KBGA.org , several DJs archive their shows, but there isn't any central directory for that at the moment.

I said I was gonna write about somebody's show, and now here I am about three paragraphs in... Uggh. Well, howbout this: I'll keep it short. Every Friday from 2:00-4:00 PM, airs Naked Missoula with DJ La Dane. Dane's tastes lean toward the garage and noisy punk end of the spectrum, though there's more to it than some dude with only the latest Hozac whatever. Dane started his broadcasting career in 2010, and has introduced me to more, and more excellent bands than I can begin to remember. An average show has some stuff like: blown out masked weirdos Francis Harold and the Holograms, local Shags-cum-Ronnettes deal Needlecraft, SF super group Thee Oh Sees, Local one-man weirdo Abe Coley, Timmy from Clone Defects newish group Human Eye, Jay Reatard's Lost Sounds, Running etc. He's recently started archiving shows here. I suggest digging in, and tuning in.

OH, SEE. IT'S WATT YOU THOUGHT IT WOULD BE.
Thunderbroom spiel Mascis Iggy Stooge Asheton Dwyer. California. Uber alles. Double Nickels. The Master's Bedroom.

This is what's happening in Missoula next week. If you're a punk/psych fan, it's fuckin' Christmas. Mike Watt and the Missing Men are rad. And they play Monday October 1st at Zoo City Apparel. Their most recent work is a short-songed ode to a Hieronymus Bosch painting. Seriously. And it's good. Not ponderous or noodling. Succinct and on. Gonna rule. And this week, the guys playing bass for the Stooges in Florence, Italy this week. Mike Watt of course played bass for the Minutemen, a band whose The Punchline record I only continue to grow an appreciation for. They fuckin' Jammed Econo, and wrote the book on being friends, and a band in that order.

Then, on October 2nd thee Oh Sees play with Sic Alps also at Zoo City. Both are good bands. Sic Alps are a washed out blast of who-cares-what-audiences-think psychedelia, with a kind of self-containedness and vibe you don't experience this far out of the '90s, man. The Oh Sees are great. You know 'em. Mostly because of Brigid. Who's Yin gives the band it's yang, or less hippier, whose melodies basically make the stuff sublime. Sorry to be gushy. it's just true. Radical Missoula groups Shahs, back to a two-piece. and Needlecraft, now with a bassist! open.

Tickets for both shows are at Ear Candy and Zoo City Apparel. Both are all-ages. Ye' of fewer years, get out in force, please.

DAN DEACON'S AMERICA.
I guess that could've been a smarmier title, something like "it's ... we just live in it.." but what does that shit mean anyway? Dan Deacon, a dude I consider a friendly, and a friend, just put out a record called simply America. And it's pretty good. Dan's 2007 record, Spiderman of the Rings is ingenious, a Marquee Moon or uh, Into the Vortex career-definer in a lot of ways. This new one is more of a grower, but because of that, it's got a depth that I think's gonna make it last a lot longer as a piece of art. I'm still just working my way around it, which is to say, I think I've listened through the record about two times as a whole, and to different songs a few more times.

I found the statement here, on his website kind of moving. Reminded me of my first real time abroad as a sort-of-adult of 25, heading to a pretty foreign place as a Peace Corps volunteer. You know you're not supposed to tell everybody your country's great and has everything figured out, but you also miss a lot of things about it, and I, personally, hadn't thought of myself as particularly from a country prior to that. And, good, bad and in-between,  I was proud to be an American, a guy from a community that has a lot going for it, has plenty of shit wrong with it, but you've got to be from somewhere. I don't like colonialism, and appreciate the sentiment that in a world as commercial as this one, and country at the forefront of that err, whole deal, it takes a more than minor act of resistance to actively equate one's Americanness with positive things like say: Shat Upon Zine, Humpy, the Fireballs of Freedom, Jay's Upstairs, Zoo City Apparel, the Ole Beck 209 VFW, the Lab, Disgruntled Nation, Ass-End Offend, Hammerhead, Needlecraft, Fugazi, the Missoula Art Museum, the river trail, Minor Bird Records, the Missoula Independent, the Rattlesnake Wilderness, Lightning Bolt, Shahs, fucking Lightning Bolt, Custody Battle and Dan Deacon rather than say, Coca Cola Budweiser, Tom Cruise and whatever other mass culture has got the better budget and is hugely vying for what the world sees as "America." By being an American who can represent a place, it's people, music, culture, food, festivals and all that, I think you kind of hack a little piece out of the commercial neo-colonialism that just creeps out of this place. So, I'm taking a huge leap in equating Dan's album explanation with all this, but it struck a chord. Sure, Pitchfork's fawning and NPR's gonna do a feature, but don't be a hater. The guy's legit, DIY and just made a great piece of art.

I normally go in for rock and punk records, but what I like about a band like Vaz, their visceral crush of energy and power, I also get off a record like this and performance like Dan's the first night of Total Fest XI. I saw Torche guys gleefully pulling Ben from Helms Alee and Harkonen into the sweaty pulse of folks going apeshit and dancing. And that made me stoked. It's also got a pretty couple of pictures of Lake Placid and Bryce Canyon on the record. (Josh V.)

TOTAL THANK YOUS

Not to be over dramatic or anything, but for three days the world stopped. Total Fest XI was one helluva great time. From the moment that Thursday's BBQ kicked off at Kiwanis, it was apparent that the weekend would be full of good will, laughs, kick ass music, and ... beer.

This is in no way a summary of the weekend and the overwhelming amount of raditude that happened between Thursday and Saturday (we'll have more of that later, and you can catch Josh Vanek's quick hits below). For now, we only want to extend our undying gratitude to the number of people that made this possible. Seriously, Total Fest would be an empty vessel without all of the amazing people that put their time, effort, money, and artistry in to making this happen each year. If you have photos or anecdotes that you'd like to share, hit us up on Facebook.

Thank you to the following:

The Bands:

Abe Coley, Bacon & Egg, The Be Helds, The Best Westerns, Big Eyes, Brain Tumors, Broken Water, Buddy Jackson, Bugs, Buildings, Cousins, Criminal Code, Dan Deacon, Dikes of Holland, Dreamdecay, The Funeral & The Twilight, Gay Witch Abortion, Guantanamo Baywatch, Harkonen, International Playboys, Iron Lung, King Elephant, Lecherous Gaze, Lozen, The Magpies, MjolniirDXP, Needlecraft, No Fi Soul Rebellion, Rock n Roll Adventure Kids, Sandrider, Sedan, Shane Hickey & His Magical Ukele .. and Jerry, Spencer, Swamp Wolf, Tacocat, Tenement, Tidal Horn, Torche, Unnatural Helpers, VTO, Walls, White Walls

Our Sponsors:

Andrew Kemmis Photography, Astarna Web Development, Betty's Divine, Big Dipper, Biga Pizza, Black Coffee Roasting Co., Boom Swagger, Burns St. Bistro, Ear Candy Music, Edge of the World, Garage Tees, Garden City Lady Arm Wrestlers, Good Food Store, Hell House Sound, Home Resource, Howsyournetwork.com, KBGA, Kent Bros., Kettle House, Le Petit Outre, Missoula Copy Center, Missoula Independent, MissoulaEvents.net, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Philly West, Piece of Mind, Razorcake Magazine, Selvedge Studio, Shakespeare & Co., Statriot Designs, The Green Light, Zombie Tools

Our Volunteers:

Sophie Bergum, Ted Cook, Emily Denman, Matt Hogan, Travis Ibey, Keith Moore, Scott Moore, Jesi Noe, Katie Oly, Bryan Ramirez, Jazmine Raymond, PJ Rogalski, Charlie Struna, Elisha Thomas, Julie Tompkins, Jon Van Dyke, Kevin Wright, and the Hellgate Rollergirls: Ali Carlson Kelly, Sarah Christenson, Krissy Frost, Andrea Kuehn, Kari Neal, Aimee Miklovic, and Charlie Struna

Our Helping Hands:

Andy Kemis for the fantastic photography. Matt LaRubio and Ryan Mundt for the awesome poster art. Amanda Browder for the mezmerizing Spelunca, and ZCA, Selvedge studio, and all the people who donated t-shirts and came out for the community sew days. Jenn Tachovsy and Greg Twigg for hosting the BBQs, Jason McMackin & Burns St. Bistro Crew, Tom Dailey, Jonathon Richter, and Wes St. John for helping to prepare, transport and sling the food stuffs. Brian Ramirez for organizing the Record Swap, and Jon Thomas for running sound in the hot sun. Last, but not least, all the kind folks who opened their doors to provide housing for the bands.

The Venues:

Chris & the Zoo City Apparel Crew, Nicole & The Top Hat Staff, Shawna & the VFW staff, Charlie and the Big Dipper, and Colin, Tish, Andrew & the Badlander / Palace Staff. Jenny and the Central.

The Organizing Committee:

Lou Beard, Paul Hansbarger, Josh Harteis, Marty Hill, Niki Vanek, Josh Vanek, Colin Johnson, Travis Morss, Greg Ragan, Kevin Sherwood, Erin Sipe, Kari Workman

and, You!  

See you next year.

HOLY FUCKING SHIT. NICE TOTAL, PEOPLE.
Sorry about taking the profanity gloves off you know, hopefully that's not alienating the all-agers and parents. I honestly only mean it for the emphasis, and not offensively. Here's the deal though: what a freakin' blast of a weekend. From Dan Deacon and the Best Westerns to Iron Lung, Gay Witch Abortion, Sedan to I don't know, Harkonen, we got slayed by great tunes, hugged by great friends and blew our cash on a pretty good pile of records we're only just getting into. Here are my (Josh Vanek's) in no way all-inclusive just-fest highlights:

1) Meeting Brain Tumors at the Thursday barbecue while Bryan Ramirez played noise rock and I had a cold Eddy Out from TF sponsors Kettlehouse. Nicest, shittiestly blown out and blasting band of Total Fest.
2) King Elephant. First band of the fest and they cranked out forlorn, high energy punk full-on. Love the way Booster drums.
3) Listening to the Best Westerns while I worked the door. Didn't see what was going on on stage, but I loved the way they sounded. I like this song in particular. Is that a tuba?
4) Picking up Dan Deacon from the airport, bringing him to the Good Food Store (Total Fest sponsor) and having a cup of Black Coffee (Total Fest sponsor also) and talking some shop. Dan organized Whartscape for years, knows what it's all about, and has been doing his thing seriously DIY-style for years. He just released a great new record called America too.
5) 5 unique copies of the Bugs' first LP Goin Places with hand-drawn covers, purchased at the Record Swap. Eventually selling 'em in the Wantage distro.
6) Lecherous Gaze. 
7) the 5 minutes of Swamp Wolf I saw. Jeezus.
8) Gay Witch Abortion. Dude, I felt like Bill Clinton was president again. And that the Cows might show up with blow up doll masks on, and a dented reveille trumpet.
9) Abe Coley at the Record Swap.
10) The fact that the Havoc distro was at the VFW and they had the Heratys and Mauser LPs, and a Direct Control 7".
11) The fact that the Iron Lung Records catalog traveled with Iron Lung, and that they had the Total Control LP and No Statik 7".
11) Harkonen. Jeez-luh-wheez, what a rad show.
12) Dreamdecay at the VFW.

This is a pretty un-inclusive list frankly, but you know, it's a start. Need also to make a serious nod to Josh Harteis and Paul Hanbarger, the new Total Fest head dudes. They did a good job, and made the transition all too seamlessly. Also, KBGA is our radio station. Let that be on the record. Without a station on which you can hear two straight hours of Total Fest bands, content, stories and interviews, Total Fest ain't what it is. They helped us get Torche and Dan out this year, and KBGA is a powerhouse of community-involved and oriented radio station, run entirely by UM students and volunteers. I wish KBGA.org had a show archive page, because between Tom Helgerson, Tom Daily, Dave Martens, Reggie Herbert, Niki, Julie, Dawn, Dane, Chris Justice, Kevin Sherwood and Hana Montana, you pretty much got your bases covered for all the great music you need in a week. Lots of the specialty DJs are using Mixcloud, so if you hear somebody you like on the stream, dig around on the internet and you might find something like this. Oh, and while we're giving mega-shouts, let's thank Biga Pizza, whose hosting of the Total Feast allows us to keep on our mission of doing Total Fest all-ages. It's a real big solid they do for us, and it's noticed. Pushing publish now, knowing it's way too short a re-cap. Like I said, one dude's only.

WHAT DO SWAMP WOLF, ZOMBIE TOOLS AND TIDAL HORN HAVE IN COMMON?
Other than we're talking about 'em here, and they've got something to do with Total Fest this year? Yes, that's the full question. Well, let's start at the begining: I was gonna say "metal" but I just read in the Missoua Independent that Tidal Horn don't consider themselves "metal." Well, Tidal Horn, that's tough, you're kind of what we'd (very flatteringly) call "party metal." You've got the riffs, you cover Dio. You gallop. That's the evidence. That's enough to us. Won't get all into the degrees of metallitude here, but that's what we'd call 'em. And they're a damn fine band, all that explanation of what they play aside. 

We're in for a dark, heavy, black treat with this Swamp Wolf addition to tonight's show. Check this shit out. Man, I need a shower after listening to this. It's like getting spit on by Cronos or something. How does Flagstaff continue to do this?

Finally, the bros of Zombie Tools, a first time Total Fest sponsor, are a feral lot. Often seen with black under their fingernails from working on the forge, bowler hats ala Clockwork Orange, and you know, (pretty good) scotch on their breath. You see, Zombie Tools to the uninitiated is Missoula's own full-on, un-ironic hand-crafted sword company. These guys take this shit so entirely seriously, it's actually pretty incredible. Their whole m.o. is based around the idea that when the shit goes down, eventually you'll run out of ammunition, and will need a reliable, simple weapon, that will effectively be your tool for surviving whatever harshness the world's throwing your way. Not terrible, if a bit err fatalistic, logic. They've got some great youtube vids of their katanas in acton, hacking the shit out of Pabst cans mostly. Thanks Zombie Tools.

 WESTSIDE STALWARTS: BURNS ST. BISTRO AND GARAGE TEES
Bou-yah-ka-shah. Check yourself, etc. Couple more notable sponsors we're gonna do a pretty aggressive online backslap to: Garage Tees and newcomer Burns St. Bistro. We'll keep it brief, just the facts and soforth. Missoula's westside is our mixted-est neighborhood. Lots of trailerparks, low-moderate income folks, and frankly a ton of spunk, culture and awesome weirdos. And deep among the weirdos are the fellers (mostly fellers) of Burns St. Bistro and Garage Tees, a bistro and screen printing shop, respectively. Where to start?

Well, "BSB" as we'll call it to save time is the long-time brain child of Jason McMackin, Cameron Williams, Hunter and some other bitchin co-conspirators. They're located on Burns St., in the same building as the Missoula Food Co-Op. They do excellent breakfasts, serve Black Coffee (we think) and feature among other insanely delicious "scratch-made" sandwiches, all manner of things with their signature candied bacon. Have breakfast there. Stay for lunch.  Honestly, it's some of the best we got, and it won't crush the rest of your day like that chicken fried steak with J.J.'s.

Second up is Garage Tees, the printshop owned by Aaron Farseth and Christian Goss. Located in the Warehouse Mall, these guys are responsible for all Total Fest apparel printing. And they do a great job at it. They're always about helping bands get merch together affordably, know a good price-point when they see it, and do great, consistent and timely work. Bring 'em a job! This shirt on the right here's an example of some of their work.

There, now go see King Elephant.