river cities' reader - issue 889 - august 20, 2015

8/20/2019 River Cities' Reader - Issue 889 - August 20, 2015

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River Cities’ Reader • Vol. 22 No. 889 • August 20 - September 2, 20152 Business • Politics • Arts • Culture • Now You Know • RiverCitiesReader.com

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River Cities’ Reader • Vol. 22 No. 889 • August 20 - September 2, 2015 3Business • Politics • Arts • Culture • Now You Know • RiverCitiesReader.com

It doesn’t take a lawyer to

figure that our framers did

not intend that people could

have their homes taken from

them without having access

to the original jurisdiction of

the superior court.

GUEST COMMENTARY by Scott E. StafneScottStafne.com

Judge Denies Homeowners Their Due ProcessEditor’s note: While the following blog posting from Washington attorney Scott Stafne (bornand raised in Bettendorf) concerns Washingtonstate jurisdiction, it is still highly instructive for all of us on how the courts contributeto foreclosure inequities, resulting in thedestruction of not only the middle class but of property rights under our Constitution.

In Washington state, there are thousandsof families having their homes fraudulently foreclosed on, most without due process from

the courts – which are tasked with protectingdue process under the state and federalconstitutions. Recently an appeals judgein Washington ruled in favor of bypassingdue process, further enabling nonjudicial foreclosures.

Nonjudicial foreclosures allow a lenderto foreclose on a property without a court proceeding. The only way for an owner to fight this type of foreclosure is to file a lawsuit.Often, nonjudicial foreclosures occur withoutthe participation, or even knowledge, of theowners(s). Only 32 states permit nonjudicial foreclosures. While Iowa and Illinois are notamong them, Iowa has a provision known as“alternative nonjudicial foreclosure,” which permits the owner(s) to request a nonjudicial

foreclosure to avoid court (RCReader.com/y/ foreclosure1).

It is important to understand these remediesthat exist for lenders and how they impact property owners’ rights, because legislatorscould eventually allow their use without us(Iowans and Illinoisans) knowing, especially ifwe are not paying attention. Most mortgagescontain language that provides mortgagees’consent to these remedies, but sadly mostbuyers are clueless about what they are actually

agreeing to.

The United States Constitution is thesupreme law of the United States.

Each of its 50 states also has its ownconstitution by which the government andofficials of each state are governed. Under ourtraditions of government, the meaning of theprovisions of a constitution is determined bythe judicial branch of government.

Judges often interpret constitutionalprovisions differently. But most start theirinterpretation with the language of theconstitution. I read an MSNBC articlerecently (RCReader.com/y/foreclosure2)that stated: “Supreme Court Justice AntoninScalia took the stage at Southern Methodist

University Monday night and argued theConstitution is ‘not a living document’ and is‘dead, dead, dead.’

“Justice Scalia discussed how childrenwould visit the Supreme Court and refer tothe Constitution as a‘living document’ butthat the Constitutionis, in fact, ‘dead.’ Astaunch conservativeand ‘textualist,’ Scalia

believes the law mustbe taken literallyand that the originalmeaning of theConstitution is thebest way to interpretit.”

Regardless ofwhether one believesthat a constitution is a“dead” document or “living organic law,” it isaxiomatic that its interpretation must beginwith the exact language of the constitutionfocused by the historical context in which itwas written.

Unfortunately for us in the State ofWashington, judges appear not inclined to

consider constitutional language or historicalcontext when construing the nature andextent of judicial responsibilities.

A decision (RCReader.com/y/foreclosure3)by Judge Michael J. Trickey of Division 1

of the WashingtonCourt of Appeals(who ran unopposedfor re-election in2014 [RCReader.com/y/foreclosure4])

illustratesWashingtoncourts’ failure tomeaningfully addressthe constitutionalissues that comebefore them.

In this opinion, thecourt acknowledgesthat the constitution

gives superior courts original jurisdictionover all cases involving title and possessionof real estate. But then it goes on to state thatthis does not matter, because the nonjudicialforeclosures are based on a contractual

Continued On Page 16

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4/24


Chicago Mayor Will Likely

Help End State Stalemate

by Rich Miller

CapitolFax.comILLINOIS POLITICS

The absurd facade of this long-runningstate-government impasse might best besummed up with two brief statements.

(1) Governor Bruce Rauner to Democrats:Just support my plans to eviscerate organizedlabor and I’ll give you the rare privilege of voting to raise everybody’s income taxes.

(2) Democrats to Rauner: Just acceptour piddly little workers’compensation reforms

and we’ll let you put allRepublican legislators on anincome-tax-hike bill, whichyou can then, of course,gleefully sign into law.

Those two statementsbring to mind a long-agodescription of the playWaiting for Godot . It was,the reviewer wrote, a playin which “nothing happens,twice.”

Ain’t that the truth.Neither of these things will ever happen.

I have heard some portray this standoff assomething like a religious war, in which eachside is so wedded to their own core beliefstructures – particularly when it comes tolabor unions (Rauner against, Democrats for)– that all rapprochement is impossible.

But as hard-line as the summer hasmost certainly appeared, I am increasinglyconvinced that this overtime session isn’t quite

as simple as either of those comparisons.For instance, Rauner talks a good game, but

he often backs off. He repeatedly threatened toshut down the government during last year’scampaign, but he has instead done everythingpossible to avoid a shutdown after vetoingmost of the budget in June.

The governor has railed against unions butnegotiated a state contract with the Teamsters,which even includes collecting “fair share”fees that he believes are unconstitutional.

He has made innumerable cuts that werequickly restored, whether through executivefiat, legislation he supports, or court cases hebacks.

House Speaker Michael Madigan likewisetalks a very good game about “protectingthe middle class,” but he hasn’t always been awhite knight for his core constituency groups.He flipped on his much-favored trial lawyersand rammed through medical-malpractice-lawsuit reforms last decade, for instance.

The speaker made a deal that undercuttrade unions at McCormick Place, when askedto by Chicago’s mayor. He muscled througha Tier 2 pension plan for state workers andteachers. That resulted in the unions’ boycottof Madigan in the 2010 campaign – which

then led to the 2011 legislative educationreforms (also pushed by the Chicago mayorand people such as Bruce Rauner) aimedmostly at teachers and their unions, alongwith legislation to cut back the number ofstate workers represented by AFSCME and asecond batch of pension reform.

To me, the key here is Chicago MayorRahm Emanuel. If hereally is privately asking for

some legislative limits onteacher-union collective-bargaining powers – as thegovernor has been tellingreporters and anyone elsewho will listen – then youcan expect the speaker andthe Senate president willeventually go along.

Why would theygo along? That’s whatDemocratic leaders fromChicago usually do when

their mayor needs them. Not every time, butit’s a pretty safe bet.

And because Emanuel has not as of thiswriting actually denied the governor’s claimabout what he really wants, I’m guessing thegovernor is probably telling the truth – or atleast a version close enough to reality to finallysmoke out the mayor and have him prod histwo leaders to start moving on a resolutionthat can be applied statewide. As you know,

the governor refuses to even talk about abudget until he gets some of his “TurnaroundAgenda” passed, and keeping the teacherunions in check could go a long way towardthat goal.

Until then, I think the Democraticleadership is content to continue its slowwalk to oblivion and watch the governor’spoll numbers move inexorably down, whilegalvanizing organized labor behind theDemocratic Party like never before.

And as long as Rauner can keep most ofgovernment functioning, I don’t think he’sprepared to make any major deals, either.

So the Democrats and the mayor and thegovernor could all choose to wait until thestuff really hits the fan later this month andinto next month, when state government’srapidly deteriorating condition could verywell excuse an ugly deal in the minds of theirrespective constituencies.

Or they could just stick their necksout, act like statesmen, and hammer out acompromise before the pain really begins.

Nah.

Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax (a daily political newsletter) and CapitolFax.com.

If Rahm Emanuel is

privately asking for

limits on collective-

bargaining powers,

you can expect that

Democratic leaders will

eventually go along.

Upon reading your article “WhatNext for the Blues Fest?” (seeRiver Cities’ Reader Issue 887, July

23-August 5, 2015), here are my thoughts:First, in the early years, the Blues

Fest mainly booked local and area acts.Many good musicians rehearsed forhours to give excellent performances for very small compensation. There was noadmission at the gate, the festival bands

pleased the crowds, and, thanks to selflessmusicians and organizers such as JasonStuart (now of Cobalt Blue), the thrill wasdefinitely there.

Then the fest grew, and many more-expensive national acts were booked,thus replacing most of the local acts. Atsome point, a local band pretty muchhad to win an Iowa Blues Challenge to beaccepted as a Blues Fest act. Most of thegood performance times (later in the day)

were given to the national acts. Featuringmore local blues musicians and bandswould definitely be in alignment with theMississippi Valley Blues Society’s charterof fostering education and keeping the

[email protected]

Blues Fest Should Scale Back

and Embrace Local Actsblues alive. So why not book more localacts, but pay them better for their effortsand support?

It is never wise to spend more thanyou are bringing in. So why not scaleback? Make the fest a day shorter untilit builds. Many excellent and supportivelocal musicians that have been edged outof the festival could be resentful. It maynot be easy to win back their support

and participation, but it’s worth a try.Let’s begin by hiring and even honoringlocal musicians such as Jason Stuart whohelped build the Mississippi Valley BluesFest.

Every article I’ve read concentrateson the negative effects of weather,flooding, and lax fundraising. Yes, theseare important, but as restructuring ofthe fest occurs, other factors need to beconsidered.

The thrill may be gone, but just for now.

Larry Huntley

Local Blues Fest participant and fan

of the blues

LETTERS


5/24


Platt, on the other hand,is among those who channel

their Addams Family TVpersonas but don’t letthe sitcom dictate theirperformances. His Gomezremains a flirt with a f lair forthe dramatic, but the actorshapes him with additionalempathy and what I callhis signature “Platt pauses.”(The actor has a tendencyto pause mid-sentenceand repeat a word beforecontinuing – he might, forexample, say “It’s just thatI ... I want to talk to you” –and this technique helps hisline deliveries seem sincere

rather than recited.) Jason’s real-lifewife Erin Platt, whose Morticia is stilla curvy, confident sexpot, is also moreself-absorbed and jealous, leaning moretoward Anjelica Huston’s film portrayalthan Carolyn Jones’. And Nancy Teerlinck

alters her portrayal so that she seemsmore of an off-her-rocker than odd-duckGrandma Addams, and elicits quite a fewlaughs for it.

Playing Lucas’ parents Mal and AliceBeineke are David Miller and JenniferSondgeroth, and although Mal doesn’t offerMiller much to work with – he’s mostly acareer-minded dud – the actor lends hima nuanced pride in his former youthfulglories. Sondgeroth, though, seems to

relish Alice’s ditzy demeanor, and pullsoff fantastic physical comedy that makesAlice’s limbs look as dopey as her brain.While The Addams Family may not emergeamong my favorite musicals, the DistrictTheatre’s production is loaded with laughsand filled with strong performances, andwhile I doubt I’ll remember the musicalmuch, I will recall having a good time atthis presentation.

The Addams Family runs at the DistrictTheatre (1724 Fourth Avenue, RockIsland) through August 30, and moreinformation and tickets are availableby calling (309)235-1654 or visitingDistrictTheatre.com.

can meet. Meanwhile, Uncle Fester(James Fairchild) plans to ensure thatlove conquers all with the help of theAddams’ ancestors, portrayed withghoulish delight by Aaron Lord, MarkRuebling, and Linda Ruebling beneathNici Bennett’s and Spencer Fillman’s

impressive makeup. The show’s mainproblem, though, is that composerAndrew Lippa’s songs rarely matchthe characters’ familiar personalities;when Gomez (Jason Platt) sang thesweet, loving number “Happy/Sad” toWednesday, I kept thinking, “There’s noway Gomez would sing this!” The tunesare fine-to-great, especially Fester’s “ TheMoon & Me,” but most of them belong ina different musical altogether.

What’s enjoyable about this staging,though, is its blend of characterizationsthat mimic those from the originalseries and characterizations that reachbeyond them. Fairchild, a true joy inthis production, perfectly matches TV’sFester, while Christopher Tracy doesa spot-on Pugsley. The enrapturingSara Wegener’s deadpan deliveries asLurch, meanwhile, are captivating, asis the marvelous costume designed bySara Kutzli and Wegener herself, with

the performer standing on stilts forheight and wearing shoulder pads forproportion. (When a set piece hit achandelier on Friday, Wegener simplyreached up and steadied it.)

Taking The AddamsFamily as a sign,

I’m excited aboutthe District Theatre’sfuture in downtown RockIsland’s former Argus building, and while thereare still a few growingpains to overcome, thecompany is clearly off to agood start.

This new locationallows plenty ofperformance space, anddirector/scenic designerTristan Layne Tapscotttakes full advantage herewith a hinged backdropthat folds in on itselfto allow for quick, mere-seconds-longchanges from outside the Addams’ houseto its interior. Equally welcome areTapscott’s scene changes. His directionfinds actors simply moving to the sidesof the playing area and continuing their

songs while the set is altered, allowing theperformance to be seamless rather thanpeppered with stopping points that pullyou out of the story.

I cannot, though, adequately assessdesigner Anthony Natarelli’s lightingeffects, because they aren’t beingemployed properly, having been set toolow and, mostly, too far in the back ofthe theatre. While television’s premiermacabre family should be in shade,

here the effect seems less intentionalthan unavoidable. And as much as theactors are in shadow, so, too, are their voices murky. The performance space, atpresent, lacks sound dampening, whichmeans voices tend to bounce around, andI missed lines and lyrics as a result.

While I liked The Addams Familyoverall, it’s also the rare musical inwhich I prefer the book to the music,with writers’ Marshall Brickman’s and

Eric Elice’s tale echoing the jokey shtickof the sitcom. Here, Wednesday (LivLyman, in lovely voice) is older and inlove with the comparatively normalLucas (the charming Natarelli), andinvites him to dinner so their families

The Addams Family , at the District Theatre through August 30

Boy Meets GhoulBy Thom White

[email protected]

Erin and Jason Platt in The Addams Family

THEATRE

Vol. 21 · No. 889 Aug. 20 - Sep. 2, 2015

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6/24


Daytrotter’s Founder Brings His Savvy and Connections to River Roots Live, the Ballpark (Maybe), a New Venue (Probably), and ...

Moeller’s Moves

In June, Codfish Hollow Barn in Maquo-keta hosted a show with Conor Oberst ofBright Eyes. The concert didn’t have Sean

Moeller’s or Daytrotter’s name on it, but thelink was clear enough.

“I made that show happen,” Moeller saidearlier this month.

Moeller founded Daytrotter.com in2006 as a source for exclusive live-in-the-studio recordings, and the vast majorityof its thousands of sessions over the pastnine years have been recorded in the QuadCities. But even though concerts are notDaytrotter’s product, they are an increasinglycommon and visible fringe benefit for theQuad Cities, and the Oberst performanceillustrates the reciprocal relationshipbetween the internationally known Web siteand local shows.

Moeller said he’d been trying to get Oberstin for a session since Daytrotter began – butit only happened because of Codfish Hollow.

“I got a Daytrotter session out of ConorOberst,” Moeller said. “That’s why I did it.... I’m not going to not do that. ... I’m goingto help make that happen so that I canget something for Daytrotter from ConorOberst.”

Over the past decade, much of the impactDaytrotter has had on the Quad Citieshas been easily discerned – although it’sinfrequently been explicit, and often it’sindirect. Rozz-Tox’s lineup is littered with

Daytrotter bands. Codfish Hollow concertstypically feature some of Moeller’s favoritebands.

More and more, however, Moeller isputting his name on his work. For nearlya year, he’s booked and hosted MoellerMondays shows at Rozz-Tox. Last yearhe began shows at Davenport’s RenwickMansion under the same banner, and thisyear he started doing concerts at the VillageTheatre in Davenport.

“It’s a promoter thing,” he explained aboutthe decision to create a Moeller brand. “It’slike a [prestigious] record label. People dobelieve in certain promoters. ...

“I think I tried to stay behind the nameDaytrotter for the longest time. I’d goto places and I’d just be introduced asDaytrotter. ‘This is Daytrotter.’”

Of course, the Web site is more than just Moeller. He has a business partner andseveral engineers, and he said the work ofillustrator Johnnie Cluney is essential to theidentity. And because Daytrotter is a mediacompany and not a concert organizer andpromoter, the name doesn’t naturally fit withshows that Moeller books or otherwise helpswith.

So he said he wondered: “Why the hell amI not building up my own name a little bit? ...I’m just trying to be a facilitator. I’m puttingmy name out there because why shouldn’tI? There has to be something I put it under.I want to be associated with the good thingsthat I’m bringing to town, not for an egosituation. There has to be somebody to

validate something that’s coming to town.... You still need somebody to put a stampon it.”

Daytrotter itself plans to get back into thebusiness of one-time local shows with theopening (likely this fall) of its new recordingstudio and live-music venue in downtownDavenport – although that’s no guaranteegiven the history of the renovation project.

So Moeller’s behind-the-scenes workcontinues. He booked artists for theSeptember 6 East Fest at Davenport’s BREWin the Village.

He and Quad Cities River Bandits

Managing Partner Dave Heller are planningto present concerts at Modern WoodmenPark, possibly starting this fall.

And Moeller said he booked three ofthe four headliners for this year’s RiverRoots Live festival: rising country starKacey Musgraves, legendary R&B singerMavis Staples, and the indie-pop outfitHellogoodbye. “If you look at this year’slineup, there’s a lot of my fingerprints all overit,” he said.

That’s not modest, but the man has noreason to be. For all that he’s done withDaytrotter, Sean Moeller has also reshapedthe local music scene when it comes totouring artists.

Collecting Spaces“My job used to be different five years

ago,” Moeller explained about how heapproaches Daytrotter. “I don’t really writeany more. I was eating up all of my daytrying to do these essays about bands. ... Partof me still likes [and] wants to be a writer.But I guess I realized what I’m best at, andwhat I’m best at is pulling people together.I’m just best at making things happen ...

“I’m already working in that world. Somuch of everything I do now is just booking.It’s all about logistics ... . It’s figuring outroutes and when I can get people through. ...

“I’ve streamlined everything. ... I’m ableto invest more time in really trying to getpeople here.”

And by “here,” Moeller means theQuad Cities. Although Daytrotter recordsin studios in London and Nashville, forexample, “85 percent of everything stillhappens here” at two Rock Island locations

Daytrotter presently uses, he said.And “it’s so much easier to get somebody

to come to town [with a show] – especiallya band that maybe doesn’t have muchmoney, doesn’t have any money. I canpoint somebody to Redstone Room, or Ican maybe do something at the RenwickMansion. Or maybe ... it works that we do abarn show. ...

“Everything that I’m doing still revolvesaround trying to get somebody here ... for

Daytrotter. If I have this other ... tool to use... it kind of kills two birds.”

So Moeller, especially in the past year,has been building relationships that givehim access to new venues. “It’s been reallyinteresting,” he said, “because I feel like I do

have some opportunities. I look at all thespaces I’m sort of collecting.”

The idea is that with more potentialconcert outlets – each with its own characterand capacity – he has more options in termsof the artists he can bring in. Rozz-Tox isa great place for many acts, but it can onlyhold 100 people. Codfish Hollow Barn holds500 people.

The Daytrotter space in the Renwick

building at 324 Brady Street will have aconcert capacity right in the middle ofthose– assuming it ever opens.

And if River Roots Live and ModernWoodmen Park become long-term partners,Moeller would have the venue portfolio tobring in musical artists that are much largerdraws.

It helps a great deal that he has areputation among bands and in the musicbusiness, and the pull of sessions forDaytrotter, and loads of friendships he’sfostered through Daytrotter. That meanshe can often overcome barriers to shows –whether it’s a reticent booking agent or atoo-high price tag.

Dale Watson, for instance, was lured to aMoeller Monday show at Rozz-Tox in Junewith a door-split arrangement that onlyguaranteed him $400 – far less than hisgoing rate. (He ended up making far morethan the guarantee.)

“Dale Watson’s on a bus,” Moeller said.

“There’s no chance he can even drivesomewhere for less than $2,000. ... He camebecause he liked us, because he wanted todo it.”

And at the local level, Moeller’s statusas a plugged-in taste-maker brings willingpartners.

Jason Gilliland, director of events forthe Downtown Davenport Partnership anddirector of River Roots Live, said the festivalsought out Moeller to help book performers

because “Sean’s been doing some reallygreat things with Daytrotter and MoellerMondays.” His presence gave River RootsLive “opportunities to bring in artists wemight not have access to, or might not beaware of.”

Gililand wouldn’t confirm which actsMoeller had a hand in securing for theAugust 28 and 29 event, but he did sayDaytrotter’s chief booked some directly,opened communication channels with

others, and sometimes just encouraged aband to accept an offer to play: “He’s beenpart of the conversations with a lot of these.”

Moeller, he added, gives River Roots Livea better chance to get “the best music outthere” and “broaden our horizons.” And it

COVER STORY

Photo: Kevin Schafer - KRichardPhoto.com

Willy Mason performing at Codfish Hollow Barn in 2013 as part of the Communion Tour

Photo by Matt Erickson (MRE-Photography.com)


7/24


by Jeff Ignatius

[email protected]

gives a larger stage and audience to musicalartists that might otherwise be playing clubsin the Quad Cities.

Plans for Modern Woodmen Park areonly in their infancy at this point, but Hellerwrote in an e-mail that “Sean and I are botheager to do something with live music atthe ballpark, probably right after the seasonends in that window between late Septemberand Halloween. That doesn’t leave us a lotof time, but we are trying to put somethingtogether. If it does not happen this season, Iam confident we will get something done fornext season. ... Sean and I are going to try ashard as we can ... .”

Heller added that he’s talked only withMoeller about booking acts. “He’s the best:smart, knowledgeable, creative, insightful,and collaborative – all the qualities onewould want in a partner and a friend, whichis how I think of Sean. He also loves theQuad Cities, is a good family man, and [is]

a blast to hang out with. What more couldanyone ask?”

“Give Me Your Mondays” While there’s a new energy building

from Moeller’s work in live music in theQuad Cities, the central idea of a symbioticrelationship between Daytrotter sessionsand local concerts has existed since the site’sbeginning.

When Moeller started the site in 2006,he wanted to establish the Quad Cities as aplace to stop and do a session. Yet even inthe early months, he steered a Daytrotterband to the Redstone Room.

Over the next few years, Moeller hostedDaytrotter-branded shows at Huckleberry’sand other small venues – including visits byAmos Lee, Bon Iver, and Vampire Weekend.Getting acts of that caliber in Rock Island’sintimate pizza parlor, he said, was “crazy”– but it speaks to the cachet Daytrotter hadbuilt even at that early stage. “I still can bankon what I’ve done at Huckleberry’s,” Moellersaid. “They’re still amazing feathers in mycap.”

And in 2008 Moeller scored a coup witha Spoon-headlined show at the CapitolTheatre. In an e-mail prior to that show,Moeller told me that the band and itsmanager “have always wanted to do asession, but it just never worked. We finallyhad a way to do it with the availability of the

Capitol. We’re going to be able to bring a lotof people like that here now thanks to thattheatre.”

Once Wolfgang’s Vault bought a majoritystake in Daytrotter in 2008, however,

stand-alone local shows officially tied

to Daytrotter mostly stopped. Moeller

booked small Daytrotter Barnstormer tours

that often included Codfish Hollow, and

Daytrotter’s alliance with the Communion

Tour organization often resulted in shows at

RIBCO.

Then came Moeller Mondays at Rozz- Continued On Page 16

Tox. It started as a one-off event lastSeptember – a birthday party for Moeller,and an anniversary gift for his wife. “It wasour 10th anniversary, and so I booked abunch of people my wife and I love,” Moellersaid. “And so I flew in a few people, gota couple other people to come to town.And just kind of planned this really great

10th-anniversary surprise for my wife. ... Wedidn’t tell anybody who was playing.”

From that genesis, Moeller has underhis own name been booking shows everyMonday at Rozz-Tox – and occasionally ondifferent days of the week at other venues,such as August 13’s Christian Lee Hutson


8/24


Six years ago, Iwrote a less-than-glowing

review of the QuadCities band RudePunch’s Killin’ It ,highlighting thestrength of one songas a contrast to theremainder. Overall,I faulted the album

for “a lack of imagi-nation.”With an opening like that, you can

probably guess what’s coming next. Therock-y reggae outfit is back with a newrecord – Lovers Rock – and it represents amajor leap forward, with levels of polish,arrangement detail, and nuance that make iteasy to look past its generic trappings.

The phrase “lack of imagination” stillapplies in some senses. Two songs fromKillin’ It – albeit the best tracks, “Rockfor Me” and “Payment” – have been re-recorded for Lovers Rock. That album titlereferences a romantic subgenre of reggae,which is an accurate enough description butis way too on the nose for a record name.

And despite hints on Lovers Rock thatRude Punch – guitarist/songwriter/singerBrady Jager, drummer/singer Adam Tucker,former bassist Al Sweet, and current bassist/singer Jack Hill – could be an expansiverockers-without-borders trio, the new

record still feels overly rutted in reggae. Itworks as a stylistic base, yet it’s constrainingfor the band’s talents – a too-comfortabledefault.

Those complaints are minor, though. Allof Lovers Rock’s eight tracks are compelling,and clocking in at less than 33 minutes, thealbum breezes past with plentiful pleasures– with impeccable grooves, playfulness inthe production, smart sequencing, and justenough detours from reggae.

Jager wrote that the new record wasintended to introduce Rude Punch toa larger market, calling it the “first realprofessional effort we’ve done. ... Thisalbum was geared more toward the‘national audience,’ all the people that we’vebuilt our network to over the past f ive yearssince the last release. We wanted to give ourbest material to give our first-time listenersand people that have been waiting to hearwhat we sound like.”

In that sense, the title and stylisticsafeness are appropriate, and the concisionfeels like a carefully crafted distillation.

Opener “1993” is loaded with two-decades-old references – and is aboutrecording songs on cassette from the radio

by Jeff Ignatius

[email protected]

Distilled PleasuresRude Punch, Lovers Rock ; August 21 at the Redstone Room

– yet Jager’s vocalshave a keeningimmediacy,helping thesong transcendnostalgia; he seemsto be channelingthe heightenedemotions of a kid.The track’s subtlesitar-y flourish is a

great little touch.The ska-like horns of “Contact” bring theband from the early 1990s to the middle ofthat decade, but the song is no pastiche; theexpert chorus has timeless pop appeal.

And that’s the real draw of Rude Punch’snew album. Even when the music errs onthe rote side, the band knows how to gooseit just right. The call-and-response male/female vocals of “Closer” have a creamysexiness, a ridiculously effective come-onin song.

“Run Around” feels like an expansionof “Closer,” with the quicker tempo, rockguitar, and keys suggesting somethingmore complicated, and the lyricsconfirming it in detailing the ups anddowns of a relationship. Yet despite thesubject matter, the band and Jager’ssinging keep the tone light, and it’s amongthe most joyous trod-upon-lover songsI’ve heard – somebody so in love that he’shappy to absorb some punishment.

And after six tracks of pretty straightreggae rock, the band lets loose with aone-two punch of songs that build on thebase without being beholden to it.

“Bring Me to Life,” lyrically, is a diatribeagainst music not played on traditionalband instruments (“I’ll pull the plugon this PA and you’ll see / That silentcomputer and a no-talent DJ”), yet thebreak sells it – starting in the vein of thePolice before a full-on rock assault.

And “Payment,” as on Killin’ It , is asuperlative melding of reggae and jamrock – lean in its infectious, musculargroove and tight and patient in itseloquent bridge, with sharp punctuation inthe chorus. Lovers Rock is wholly effective,but it soars when Rude Punch – on thefinal two songs – broadens its palette.

Rude Punch will perform an album-releaseshow on Friday, August 21, at the Redstone

Room (129 Main Street, Davenport;RiverMusicExperience.org). The 8 p.m. all-ages show also features Fairhaven. Cover is $7.

For more information on Rude Punch, visitFacebook.com/rudepunch.

MUSIC

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9/24


Apoorlywrittenscript

isn’t enoughto derail theRichmond HillBarn Theatre’sDown to Earth.While I’venever beforethought “Too

much exposi-tion!” as muchas I did duringThursday’sperformance,I still enjoyeddirector JoeDePauw’spresentation of playwright Bettye Knapp’sweak “comedy fantasy” about angelscoming to Earth.

Knapp starts us off in Heaven asthree angels are about to descend, twoof them to collect souls and the thirdsimply tagging along. While delightfulin their roles as Agnes, Pilone, andWilfred, Richmond Hill’s A.J. Evans, JoshWielenga, and Greg Bouljon are taskedwith explaining the rules of Down toEarth’s universe, in which angels musteither return with the souls they’re sentto collect or remain on Earth until theycan find others willing to join them in

Heaven. If the play’s exposition were assimply put as that previous sentence, Iwouldn’t have minded. However, Knappuses an entire scene of awkward dialogueto set up her plot, and as talented as theangels’ portrayers are, they struggle tomake their conversation sound sincere.

What’s beautiful about that openingscene, though, is the combination of setdesigner Mollie A. Schmelzer’s cloudon which the angels stand and designer

Jennifer Kingry’s lighting effects. Themoving light on the tufts of cottonystuffing – which surround a circularplatform painted to resemble clouds –makes it look as if the three angels arespinning atop the set piece. However,both that piece and the actors areimmobile, and it’s merely the lighting thatcreates this illusion – one that had merepeatedly looking down at the platformto make sure it wasn’t, in actuality,

spinning. This is true theatrical magic.Once we’re on Earth, we meet SusanPhilhower’s Augusta Applegate, anelderly, wealthy woman who houses oneof the souls meant to be collected. And Iwas shocked by Philhower’s performance,

THEATRE By Thom [email protected]

On the Side of the AngelsDown to Earth, at the Richmond Hill Barn Theatre through August 23

because, here,she portraysan olderwoman inher waningyears as ifchannelingKatharineHepburn inher waningyears. I’m used

to adoringPhilhowerin her moreenergeticroles, such asher rich bitchPatsy Pricein Richmond

Hill’s 2010 Christmas Belles and hersprightly Hillary Hudson in 2011’s Sex,Please, We’re 60. To see her playingsomeone far more decrepit was a surpriseand attests to Philhower’s abilities asan actor, and has me hoping the BarnTheatre soon stages a version of GreatExpectations with Philhower in the role ofMrs. Havisham. (And if Philhower wereto play Dickens’ iconic role, then I’d castDana Skiles as Pip, given her simple butgenuine turn as Augusta’s long-sufferingmaid Diana. Lacking any pretense, Skilesseems to settle into her part with ease, asif it takes absolutely no effort for her to

flesh out a character with heart.)The other soul to be collected is that

of Herman Howell (Stan Weimer),Augusta’s considerably less wealthyneighbor. It struck me during Thursday’sperformance that Weimer’s Herman ismuch like Jurassic Park’s John Hammondif he fell on hard times and lost a bit of his jolly edge. That’s to say that Weimer hasthe charm of Richard Attenborough, if amore subdued Attenborough, and makes

a wonderful counterpart to Philhower’sstingy Augusta.

In Knapp’s story, Augusta isbeleaguered by relatives who show up tocare for her (Molly McLaughlin’s Orphaand Catherine Przybyla’s Ruthie) or whostop by to request loans (Schmelzer’sMillie, Victor Angelo’s Baxter, andElizabeth Buzard’s June). Among thoseguests, Przybyla – after a few dull earlyappearances – comes most alive after

Ruthie’s inhibitions are freed, her hair islet down (literally and figuratively), andshe begins chasing after her cousin June’slove interest Richard (a blandly deadpan

Catherine Przybyla, Josh Wielenga, and Andrew Roseman


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10/24


Somewherenear themidpoint

of GenesiusGuild’s Peace,the lead-ing characterTrygaeus – ascharactersroutinely do in

Lincoln Park’slate-summerslapsticks –suddenly realized that the play he was indidn’t really have a plot. One of his scenepartners, though, told him that perhapsthat was a good thing. After all, without aplot, “maybe we won’t get reviewed.” Nicetry, Guild.

What that hopeful soul didn’t add isthat even if the show were critiqued bythe duly acknowledged “Thom, David,and Jonathan” (or, y’know, someoneelse), it wouldn’t matter in the slightest.Because as frequenters of these season-closers know, there are no other playsin the area, or likely on Earth, as whollyreview-proof as director/adapter DonWooten’s Greek-comedy spoofs. Withtheir cheeky swipes at pop culture, jabs at local and national politicians,references to area landmarks and mediafixtures, song parodies, dancing girls, and

climactic Mack Sennett chases blendedwith smidgens of their original texts(in Peace’s case, Aristophanes’ 421 BCcomedy), Wooten’s annual larks arrivepre-sold, and we audiences know justwhat we’re in for. We also know that thegenially self-effacing results will findtheir sources of humor slapdash andrandom, that as many gambits will endin groans as guffaws, and that the castmembers, en masse, will amble through

the proceedings like happy deer inheadlights. Saying you’d appreciate theseone-act entertainments more if theywere more polished is like saying you’dappreciate water more if it weren’t quiteso wet.

Even under such endearingly goofycircumstances, there’s no joy in watchingactors struggle with lines, and, on a fewoccasions, Friday’s under-rehearsed-by-necessity readings and stage actions led

to moments of discomfort. (Whether itwas the fault of a dropped cue or tardyentrance I don’t know, but at one pointthere was an awkward, five-secondsilence before a character raced on stageand said, ironically, “I got here as fast

THEATRE By Mike [email protected]

War and ... . Wait. Where’d She Go?Peace, at Lincoln Park

as I could.”)Yet moreoften thannot, Peace’smaking-it-up-as-we-go-along vibe exudeda sprightly,sincere,

talent-showcharm. Thesemid-August

staples aren’t meant to be nights oflofty, ennobling theatuh; they’re meantto be silly, celebratory, lampshade-on-the-head parties. And after back-to-back presentations of Oedipus Rexand Macbeth, who could begrudgeGenesius Guild’s participants or patronsfor wanting to indulge in ridiculouswordplay, togas with sneakers, and theoccasional Donald Trump gag?

Friday’s production began, however,with music, as Michael Callahan, MarkHerrin, Gary Schocker, and GeoffUntiedt performed a barbershop-quartetsalute to Genesius Guild’s “Dirty Plays,”a lyrics-by-Wooten ditty also employedin 2014’s Plutus. Let’s hear it for revivals:The song was a smile- and chuckle-inducing treat, and the foursome’s laterrenditions of “My Wild Irish Rose” and

their closing recognition of the Guild’simpending 60th season were even morewelcome. In general, there appeared tobe fewer-than-usual musical numbersin Peace, but Tyler Henning’s, GaryAdkins’, and Stephen Laurel’s openerwas enjoyable, and I loved it when a trioof Techies (Hannah Rettig, KatherineSavely, and Kathryn Wherry) arrived tolyrically bemoan the shabby treatment ofthe Guild’s behind-the-scenes talent, their

names in show programs traditionallymisspelled.

What plot there was concerned theoft-thwarted efforts of Trygaeus (DougAdkins) to locate the k idnapped Peace(Melinda Turley), and while those whodemand a solid narrative might’vebristled – and were certainly attendingthe wrong production – this farcicalodyssey kept yielding terrific things.Chief among them was the kidnapper

War, who was played by Jacob Lund, ayoung actor slight in frame but grand inhilariously maniacal cackle. By design,the sketch-comedy nature of Wooten’s

Bob Hanske, Doug Adkins, Gary Adkins, and Stephen Laurel



11/24


cinematic surprise of the summer. Nofilm that casts the British Cavill as anAmerican, the Swedish Vikander as aGerman, the American Armie Hammeras a Russian, and the AustralianElizabeth Debicki as a ... not -Australiancan be accused of undue seriousness,and the joy of The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

lies in the glorious insouciance. This is amovie that finds international terroristsplanning to detonate a stolen nuclearwarhead, and at their most anxious,characters treat this scenario as anannoying inconvenience that threatensto disrupt cocktail hour – which Imean as the hugest of compliments.The repartee is as speedy, clever, andpointless as the chase sequences, andyou can feel the well-dressed cast’scollective relief at having precisely zeroresponsibilities beyond being cheerfullyblithe and ridiculously good-looking.Ex Machina’s Vikander has alreadyproven she can be much more thanthat, so the movie’s casualness looksbest on Cavill, whose clipped, stylizedstodginess is hilarious, and Hammer,whose exaggerated Russian deliveriesare pricelessly moose-and-squirrel. Ipromise if Hollywood ever gets aroundto Lone Ranger V. Superman: Faster

Than a Silver Bullet , the results won’t benearly this much fun.

For reviews of Fantastic Four, TheGift, Ricki & the Flash, Shaun theSheep Movie, Amy, Infinitely PolarBear, and other current releases, visitRiverCitiesReader.com.

Follow Mike on Twitter at Twitter.com/ MikeSchulzNow.

Movie Re views by Mike Schulz • [email protected]

STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON

In the N.W.A. bio-pic Straight OuttaCompton, long after the professional andpersonal flame-outs between Eazy-E (JasonMitchell) and Ice Cube (O’Shea Jackson Jr.,playing his real-life father), the two rappersrun into each other at a club, and Eazy,seeking reconciliation, tells Cube he saw

him in Boyz n the Hood . Cube reminds hisformer friend that Eazy publicly called themovie “an after-school special,” and Eazy,knowing he’s caught, simply grins andsays, “Man, you know I like after-schoolspecials.” (As it must, this initially tenseencounter ends in a hug.) Given the f ilm’sexpectedly harsh language, constant threatsof violence, and poolisde and hotel-roomdebaucheries that only platinum-sellingalbums can buy, I was amazed to find its

own resemblence to an after-school specialthe most surprising thing about director F.Gary Gray’s musical drama. But whatever –I, too, like after-school specials.

Not all of Straight Outta Comptonfeels watered-down. (Hell, its very firstscene finds a battering ram tearing aneighborhood domicile to shreds.) Theearly N.W.A. concerts, with crowdsincited into fist-pumping release, arebreathtakingly alive and make the late’80s look far more exciting than theyretrospectively feel. And there are strong,scary scenes throughout, including everysingle one of the musicians’ run-ins withlaw enforcement; one particularly ugly,horrifying encounter finds three policeofficers forcing the musicians, at gunpoint,to lie face-down on the sidewalk for theheinous crime of eating their lunchesoutside their recording studio. (Thiscomplexly infuriating sequence, with thechief offender among the cops a black

man, is all theargument thefilm needsfor the originof N.W.A.’scontroversialanthem “F--- tha Police.”)

Yet whilethe movie isengaging andeffective, it’shard not tonotice its presentation following the genre’straditional rags-to-riches formula tooneatly. The humble beginnings, the luckybreak, the meteoric rise, the corrupted-power downfalls, the redemption, thehopeful finale, and all of the associatedaccoutrements – shady business deals,drugs, arrests, illness, death – areaccounted for, as are the unfortunateelisions. I of course anticipated the filmfocusing primarily on Eazy, Cube, andDr. Dre (Corey Hawkins) but didn’t reallythink N.W.A.’s two other original members– DJ Yella (Neil Brown Jr.) and MC Ren(Aldis Hodge) – would emerge as suchafterthoughts.

Still, I may just be feeling spoiledbecause the last three months have already

delivered three musical biographies –Love & Mercy and the documentaries

Amy and What Happened, Miss Simone?– more formally adventurous and lessTV-sentimental than Gray’s movie. Andthere is a lot to enjoy in this epically scaled(145-minute) achievement, from themarvelous Mitchell’s early, atonal attemptsat rapping to the insinuating malevolenceof R. Marcos Taylor’s Suge Knight to theeerily accurate re-creations of the 1992 Los

Angeles riots.So chalk upanother 2015genre winner inStraight OuttaCompton. Butas the furiouslyexcellent Paul

Giamattiplays N.W.A.’suntrustworthymanager sosoon after

playing Brian Wilson’s untrustworthyphysician in Love & Mercy , a word ofwarning to other musicians: If you seeGiamatti coming, walk quickly in the otherdirection.

THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.Had you asked me the plot of directorGuy Ritchie’s action comedy The Man fromU.N.C.L.E. five minutes after I watched it– even while I was watching it – I wouldn’thave been able to help you. But I’m notsure that Ritchie’s and Lionel Wigram’sscript, based on TV’s 1964-8 spy series, isat all to blame, considering I had so manyquestions beyond “What’s going on here?”rattling around my brain. Such as “When,

exactly, did Henry Cavill grow a funnybone?” And “How, exactly, did AliciaVikander go from unknown to invaluableso quickly?” And “Where, exactly, is theline drawn between a god-awful Russianaccent and a brilliant one?”

It landed just under the wire, but I’mdelighted to report that Ritchie’s proudlyinconsequential and carefree diversion– like an Austin Powers movie played(mostly) straight – may be the happiest

Rap Sessions

Corey Hawkins, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Jason Mitchell, Neil

Brown Jr., and Aldis Hodge in Straight Outta Compton

by Mike Schulz • [email protected] Mike Schulz • [email protected]


12/24


What’s Happenin’LiteratureThe Crawford County Sketchbook Release PartyTheo’s Java Club

Monday, August 24, 6-8 p.m.

Davenport author Tom Janikowskiwill celebrate the national releaseof his debut novel The Crawford County

Sketchbook with an August 24 party at the

Rock Island venue Theo’s Java Club. And

when I ask Janikowski what he tells people

when they want to know what the book

is about, he answers, with a laugh, “I tell

them it’s about 300 pages.” So, clearly, he’s

funny.

Just as clearly, he might have a ways

to go in mastering the art of PR. Because

when discussing his book’s impending

publication by Pasadena, California’s

Red Hen Press, Janikowski says, “I had

a few different novels that my agent wasshopping around at the same time, and this

is kind of like my least favorite of them.”

He laughs again. “I mean, I was pretty

pumped, of course. I was thrilled . But when

I found out it was The Crawford County

Sketchbook [being published], I couldn’t get

over it. ‘What do they want that one for?’”

The book landing at number seven on

Entertainment Weekly ’s latest Must List

and its rave from Kirkus Reviews might

give some indication. (It might also makeyou wonder just how good Janikowski’s

other novels are if this is the “least” of

them.) Describing The Crawford County

Sketchbook as “grotesque tales of the

struggle between good

and evil from a darkcorner of the American

heartland,” Kirkus

states that its author

“does his best Faulker

impression here, using

a blend of baroque

Southern classicism and redneck patois”

to create “a character-rich settlement

somewhere in the rural South.” The review

goes on to say, “The novel’s exaggerated

portrayals, distorted narrative threads, andflamboyant brand of Southern Gothic will

ring the bells of a certain literary-minded

audience,” and that appears to be exactly

the demographic Janikowski was aiming

for.

“People always ask me what genre it

is,” he says, “because so many people are

reading genre fiction these days. But it’s

not ‘genre.’ It’s literary fiction. So it kind of

deals with life, as literary fiction does, and

it’s an episodic novel ... . If you’re familiar

with Sherwood Anderson’sWinesburg,

Ohio, it’s kind of in that style. Which isn’t

really a popular form of writing these days,

but that’s how it came together.“I think that’s how it got published,” he

says of Crawford County . “They thought

it was strange enough that people would

think it’s experimental. But actually the

style is about 100 years old.”

Give or take a few years, Janikowski’s

most direct influences are, too. “I love

the Lost Generation” he says, referencingfavorite authors such as F. Scott Fitzgerald

and Ernest Hemingway. “Jokingly, I always

tell people that I only read dead authors.

I don’t , but I do seek out the old, I guess.

And

lot ofGene

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MusicCodfish Hollow BarnstormerCodfish Hollow Barn

Thursday, August 27, 7 p.m.

Apicture, as we all know, is wortha thousand words. But it’s 2015,for Pete’s sake: Why have we not yet

come up with a pithy motto for how

many words a link is worth?

I ask because, on August 27, Maquoketa’sCodfish Hollow Barn will be hosting its latest

Codfish Hollow Barnstormer, and I’m notcertain that pictures – or biographical data, or

superlatives – can paint an accurate picture of the

supremely gifted independent musicians set toperform.

Included on the lineup is the Cincinnati-based

pop artist Jane Decker (pictured), who begantouring with her band Belle Historie at age 16

and found herself as a contestant on season four

of NBC’s The Voice. According to UnderTheGun.net, Decker’s song stylings “just flutter from her

throat into the air like butterflies lifted off of field

grass by a gentle breeze.”Joining her in Maquoketa is the Nashville-

based singer/songwriter Liza Anne, whose

sophomore release – the aptly titled TWO – found its May release greeted with raves. Nylon

magazine called it “a stunningly somber album ...

turning even the smallest emotion into fleetingsong,” and Diffuser.fm wrote that the album’s

roots-Americana sound suggests “brooding so

deep it transcends individual grief and taps into

ancient strains of sorrow.”

Codfish Hollow’s third talent is alternative-

pop singer/songwriter Josiah (surname Leming),

who bears the distinction of being the

only American Idolcontestant ever toland a major-label record deal without

making the show’s “Top 24” lineup.

Daytrotter’s Sean Moeller, writing in

Paste magazine, called the season-

seven hopeful and former Warner

Bros. Records artist “a young man who

knows his way around sorrow and joy

better than most men three times his

age.”

And Houston native and Boston College

graduate Samuel Proffitt is also on theBarnstormer docket. His delicate blends of

piano, synth, and vocals led Noisey.Vice.com

to describe his January release Blue Notebook

No. 10 as “a beautiful, poised debut collection,”

and TheMusicNinja.com to write that Proffitt

“accurately portrays the smooth and sultry sounds

of pain, anguish, love, hope, and heartbreak that

all of us so desperately want to connect with.”

But beyond joining together on August 27

for what’s certain to be an unforgettable night of

indie music, what else do these four young artistshave in common? Why, that’d be 2015 recording

sessions for the Rock Island-based Daytrotter!

So I’ll leave it up to you to determine how many

words links are worth.

For Jane Decker’s August Daytrotter session,

visit RCReader.com/y/decker.

For Liza Anne’s May Daytrotter session, visit

RCReader.com/y/lizaanne.

For Josiah’s March Daytrotter session, visit

RCReader.com/y/josiah.

For Samuel Proffit’s April Daytrotter session,

visit RCReader.com/y/proffitt.

And for more on August 27’s entire

Codfish Hollow kit and kaboodle, visit

CodfishHollowBarnstormers.com.


13/24


MUSICThursday, August 20 – Bobby

Long. British folk-rock singer/

songwriter in concert. Rozz-Tox(2108 Third Avenue, Rock Island).

8 p.m. $8-12. For information, call

(309)200-0978 or visit RozzTox.com.

Friday, August 21, through

Sunday, August 23 –

Polyrhythms Jazz & Heritage

Festival. Community celebration

featuring the Jesse White Tumblers,

food vendors, arts and crafts,information booths, and concerts

with Nnenna Freelon, Billy Branch

& the Sons of Blues, and Soul

Storm. Friday and Saturday: Martin

Luther King Park (601 Ninth Street,

Rock Island). Sunday: River Music

Experience (129 Main Street,

Davenport). Free. For information,

visit Polyrhythms.ning.com.

Friday, August 21 – Rude Punch

CD Release Show. Reggae androck musicians in concert, withan opening set by Fairhaven. The

Redstone Room (129 Main Street,

Davenport). 8 p.m. $7. For ticketsand information, call (563)326-1333

or visit RiverMusicExperience.com.

Friday, August 21, and

Saturday, August 22 – Rock the

River Reunion. Outdoor festival

with concert sets by Who Cares andElectric Shock on Friday, and Stone

Tattoo and Threshold on Saturday.

Cleveland Park (207 WashingtonStreet, Cleveland, Illinois). Friday

What ElseIs Happenin’

by Mike Schulz

[email protected]


MusicStill Standing & Friends Benefit ConcertRiver Music Experience

Saturday, August 22, 1:30 – 9:15 p.m.

“When we started this band,” saysStill Standing co-founder/guitarist Justin Young, “we decided that wedidn’t want to just make music that we love.We also wanted to reach out and make a

positive impact on our community.” On August 22,Young and his bandmates will be doing just that, andhave recruited some friends to help. Actually, many,many, many friends.

The Still Standing & Friends Benefit Concert,taking place at Davenport’s River Music Experience,will find its headlining hardcore rockers (pictured)performing a half-hour set at 7:45 p.m. But beginningat 1:30 p.m., no fewer than 13 additional rock, punk,and metal outfits will join them for the daylong event:Fairhaven, The Easy Mark, Condor & Jaybird, 9th

Street Memory, Sleepwell, Calm Is Key, Straight Up,Those Dirty Thieves, Cut the Tongue, BareBones,Peer Pressure, Doppelganger, and Heavyweight.

With tickets $10 at the door, that averages outto attendees paying roughly 71 cents per group ...which is roughly 71 cents more than each groupwill receive for its participation. “Every one of thesebands is donating their time 100 percent and notgetting paid for any of it,” says Young, the benefit’sevent planner. “The heavier type of music we playtends to get a negative outlook, but some peoplereally don’t realize that a lot of bands like us havea very positive message, and have very bigheartedpeople.”

The concert’s primary beneficiaries are the familyof Jake and Karleigh Moulton, friends of Youngwhom he calls “great people and even greater parents.

This year, their twin girls Harper and Hayden were

born, but due to complications with the pregnancy,they were born at only 25 weeks. They weren’t surethe girls were going to make it, but they both pulled

through.”However, Young adds,

“Hayden had heart surgeryat only four weeks old, and afew days ago was diagnosedwith torticollis, which affectsher neck. And the left side ofHarper’s head is totally flat,

so at six months she’ll have to be put into a head-shaping helmet. Somewhat recently, the girls werefinally allowed to come home from the hospital aftermonths spend in the NICU, but they’re both still onoxygen and will have to be monitored for heart andlung issues for at least the first couple years of theirlives.

“This family has countless medical bills that theycould really use help with, and we’re more thanhappy to reach out and help. Years back, I lost my sonCayden, who was born with trisomy 18. I was only

able to spend a few days with him before he passed, sothis type of benefits hits home very close to me.”In addition to the Moulton family, a portion

of the concert’s proceeds will go toward GenesisMedical Center’s “Family Connects” program for areanewborns, and the benefit will also boast raffles andsilent auctions with items donated by West MusicQuad Cities, GreenLight Photography, and other localbusinesses. Plus, of course, all that music.

“I’m hoping this event might get some peopleexcited and invested in the [metal/rock/punk] scenethat normally wouldn’t check these shows out,” says

Young. “Some of the best nights of my life were atthese shows. Great bands. Great people.”

For more information on the Still Standing &Friends Benefit Concert, call (563)326-1333 or visitRiverMusicExperience.org.

think my writing tends to embrace a

the same things that a lot of the Lostation authors did. Moral philosophy

etaphysics and epistemology ... .”

a laugh, he adds,

t know if that’s accurate or not, but if

t enough times ... !”

wford County ’s national release

nd Janikowski and his wife Shelly,

end of the month, traveling to

signings in Portland, Seattle, Santa

ca, Los Angeles, and New York City.

he coolest thing,” he says, “is thaten asked to read at the Iowa City

Fair, which is huge. I’ll be one of the

ed authors on the third of October,

k, and I’m actually more pumped

that than anything on the West

. Iowa City has such a rich literary

y – it’s the only UNESCO City of

ture in North America – and I’m just

tely honored to be asked to that.”

Janikowski clearly has reason to

ate on Theo’s on August 24, where

e signing copies of his debutation and perhaps reading excerpts

his work “if someone twists my

actually wasn’t going to be doing

ing in the Midwest for a while, but I

ht, ‘Oh, we should just have a little

And I know Theo, and he said we

do whatever I wanted to do at his

And I said, ‘Well, as long as I can

cake ... .’”

r not: There will be cake.

re details on the author are availableJanikowski.com, and more

ation on The Crawford County

book’s release party is available by

g Theo’s at (309)788-5282.


14/24


5:30 p.m., Saturday

6:30 p.m. Forinformation,

visit the event’s

Facebook page.Saturday,

August 22 –

Future Bass Fest.

Third-annual

concert event with

three stages ofbass music, featuring sets by Porn &

Chicken, Zebo, DVNK Sinatrv, Sullivan

King, Al NeOn, and others. Rock IslandBrewing Company (1815 Second

Avenue, Rock Island). 6 p.m. $15-20.

For information, call (309)793-1999 orvisit RIBCO.com.

Saturday, August 22 – Night

Ranger. Concert with the ’80s rockers.Quad-Cities Waterfront Convention

Center (2021 State Street, Bettendorf).

7:30 p.m. $40. For information, call(800)843-4573 or visit QCWCC.com.

Friday, August 28, and Saturday,August 29 – River Roots Live.

Eleventh-annual weekend celebration

of roots music featuring workshops,

children’sactivities, the

annual Ribfest,

and concertsets by Mavis

Staples, Kacey

Musgraves,Hellogoodbye,

the Yonder

Mountain SpringBand, and others.

LeClaire Park

(400 Beiderbecke Drive, Davenport).11 a.m. gates. Free before 3 p.m.

Afterward, $10-15 per day, $15-20 for

the weekend. For information, visitRiverRootsLive.com.

Friday, August 28 – James Leg.

Rock musician in concert, with

opening sets by Killshakes andRunaway Dorothy. Rock Island Brewing

Company (1815 Second Avenue, RockIsland). 9 p.m. $8. For information, call

(309)793-1999 or visit RIBCO.com.Friday, August 28, and Saturday,

August 29 – Iowa Soul Festival.

Annual weekend celebration of African

and African-American dance, music,food, and culture, with a Friday set

by concert headliners Sharon Jones

& the Dap-Kings. Downtown IowaCity. Friday 5 p.m. gates, Saturday

11 a.m. gates. For information, visit

SummerOfTheArts.com.Friday, August 28 – The Tallest

Man on Earth.

Concert with thealternative folk

rocker, with an

opening set byLady Lamb. Englert

Theatre (221 East

Washington Street,Iowa City). 8 p.m.

$30. For tickets and

information, call(319)688-2653 or visit Englert.org.

Saturday, August 29 – The Happy

Together Tour. Concert event with The Turtles featuring Flo & Eddie,

The Association, Paul Revere & the

Raiders lead singer Mark Lindsay, TheGrass Roots, The Buckinghams, and

The Cowsills. Riverside Casino & Event

Center (3184 Highway 22, Riverside).7:30 p.m. $30-60. For tickets and

information, call (877)677-3456 or visit

RiversideCasinoAndResort.com.

THEATREThursday, August 20, throughSunday, September 6 – Waiting for

the Parade. John Murrell’s drama aboutthe lives of fivewomen during WorldWar II. Old CreameryStudio Theatre(3023 220th Trail,Amana). Thursdayand Sunday 2 p.m.,Friday and Saturday7:30 p.m. $18.50-28. For tickets andinformation, call(319)622-6262 or

visit OldCreamery.com.

COMEDY Friday, August 21 – Angel Salazar.

An evening of stand-up with thecomedian and Scarface actor. Col

Ballroom (1012 West Fourth Street,

Davenport). 8 p.m. For information,call (563)322-4431 or visit QC Nightlife

Entertainment’s Facebook page.Saturday, August 22 – Mike

Super: Magic & Illusion. Feats of

prestidigitation and comedy with the

touring entertainer. Orpheum Theatre(57 South Kellogg Street, Galesburg).

7:30 p.m. $18-30. For tickets and

information, call (309)342-2299 or visit TheOrpheum.org.

Thursday, August 27, throughSunday, August 30 – Red Skelton:

The Legend Continues. Tom Mullica

performs a tribute to the legendary

comic. Old Creamery Theatre (39

38th Avenue,

Amana). Thursday

through

Sunday 2 p.m.,additional

show Saturday

7:30 p.m.$18.50-28.50.

For tickets and

information,call (319)622-

6262 or visit

OldCreamery.com.

EXHIBITWednesday,

August 26,

through Friday, October 30 – Whata Relief! Variations on Printmaking.Exhibit showcasing relief-printmakingpractices from different perspectives,periods, and processes, featuring

works by Janet Taylor and JosephLappie alongside Ukiyo-e prints fromthe museum’s collection. Augustana

Teaching Museum of Art (3703 SeventhAvenue, Rock Island). Noon-4 p.m.Wednesday through Saturday. Free. Forinformation, call (309)793-7323 or visitAugustana.edu/artmuseum.

MOVIESThursday, August 20 – Urban

Exposure Summer Film Program

Premiere Night. Young filmmakers

from the Quad Cities area screen their

locally produced works in an eventfeaturing a post-film Q&A with the

youths and

independentfilmmakers

Jonathan

Burnett andJeremy Wernli.

Figge Art

Museum’sJohn Deere

Auditorium

(225 WestSecond Street,

Davenport). 5 p.m. Free. For

information, call (563)326-7804 or visitFiggeArtMuseum.org.

EVENTSFriday, August 21 – United

Neighbors Inc. Fundraising Gala.Annual event featuring St. Ambrose

University President Sister JoanLescinski as guest speaker, Davenport

Mayor Bill Gluba as a special honoree,

music by Smooth

Groove and DJ DocAnderson, live and

silent auctions, and

more. DavenportRiverCenter (136

East Third Street,

Davenport). 5 p.m.doors and hors

d’oeuvres, 7 p.m.

gala. $40. For ticketsand information, call

(563)322-7363 or visit

UnitedNeighbors.com.Saturday, August

22 – State Street

Market Party.

Inaugural activity for

City Square featuring

vendors, live music, arts and crafts,and more. City Square (State Street

in Bettendorf across from the Quad-

Cities Waterfront Convention Center).10 a.m.-3 p.m. Free. For information,

e-mail [email protected], August 30 – QC Ride for

the Cure. Eighth-annual motorcycle/

auto fun ride benefiting Gilda’s

Club of the Quad Cities, with stopsat numerous Quad Cities venues

and an evening party at Jumer’s

Casino & Hotel that includes asilent auction, 50/50 drawing, and

other raffles. Jumer’s Casino & Hotel

(777 Jumer Drive, Rock Island).9 a.m. $20-25 rider registration,

$5-10 passenger registration. For

information, call (563)326-7504 or visitQCRideForTheCure.org.

Sunday, August 30 – Farm Days

in the Village. Familyevent featuring a pettingzoo, rope making, a GatorRaffle, pedal tractors, atractor ride-around, wagonrides, live entertainment,and more. Village of East

Davenport. 10 a.m.-4 p.m.Free. For information, visitVillageOfEastDavenport.com.

Sunday, August 30 –Going to the River to Pray:

The Quad Cities Standing United

Against Hate. An outdoor celebrationof unity and prayer designed to fightracism, gang violence, homophobia,anti-Semitism, and religiousintolerance, held simultaneously at

Davenport’s LeClaire Park, Bettendorf’sLeach Park, Moline’s Butterworth Park,and Rock Island’s Sunset Marina Park .5-9 p.m. For information, call (563)324-8281 or visit MCCQC.org.

Continued From Page 13

What Else Is Happenin’

Bobby Long @ Rozz-Tox - August 20

James Leg @ RIBCO - August 28

Nnenna Freelon @ Polyrhythms Jazz and

Heritage Festival - August 23

Night Ranger @ Quad-Cities

Waterfront Convention Center -

August 22


15/24


It struck me,during Satur-day’s matinée

performance ofBig River at theTimber Lake Play-house, that theatreis my church,considering Irepeatedly wantedto raise my handsin praise and shout“Amen!” at variouspoints, and in waysI used to whileattending Sunday services in my youngeryears. Theatre, for me, is a spiritual experi-ence, and this Big River served as a big-tentrevival that reminded me of that truth.

It certainly helped that composerRoger Miller’s bluegrass songs are tingedwith gospel and stir the soul in ways thatchurch-worship music has the capacity to.

And director Courtney Crouse’s cast wasin near-perfect voice, eliciting goosebumpsup and down my arms as they harmonizedon “Muddy Water,” “River in the Rain,” and“Free at Last,” in particular. This telling ofMark Twain’s The Adventures of HuckleberryFinn is moving not only for the music, butalso for the lessons William Hauptmanincorporates into his book, particularlywhen it comes to the inner struggle ofHuck (Grant Alexander Brown) in helping

escaped slave Jim (Charles Benson) makehis way to freedom along the MississippiRiver.

On scenic designer Benjamin Lipinski’srelatively minimalist set, which merelyboasts some layered outcroppings alongthe sides of the stage and a large tree in thecenter, Crouse avoids literal scene changes,and lets the story unfold through the actors’work. There is, of course, the integralraft that floats by way of the production’s

spinning stage, but otherwise, the setprovides just enough to allude to localesrather than mirror them.

What’s also remarkable about thispresentation is James Beaudry’s “musicalstaging,” as the cast members themselvesplay guitars, an accordian, a banjo,a mandolin, and even a washboard.Under the music direction of MichaelUselmann, the actors, at times, fluidly andbeautifully break the fourth wall to pluckan instrument out of thin air and playa song. This is also a mark of Crouse’sstorytelling overall, as Huck and othersoccasionally address the audience fullyaware that there is an audience to address,moving between our world and theirs as if

THEATRE By Thom [email protected]

Huckleberry GoodBig River , at the Timber Lake Playhouse through August 23

by magic.There are few

actors who havethe distinction ofbeing touted asa “Timber Lakefavorite” for me,and while I meanno slight to anyother performers,I consider Brown

one of mine. He’sexceptional atcharacter parts,having elicited

hearty laughs as Inspector Kemp in lastyear’s Young Frankenstein and thrillingme as Corny Collins in this summer’sHairspray . Here, he abandons any shtickor pretense in favor of a passionate andsincere Huck, and even more notable isthe energy with which he attacks the part,working up quite a sweat fairly quickly as

he skips and races across the stage. There’s aline he delivers toward the end of Big River that goes, “If I’d-a known what trouble itwas gonna be to enact this history, I neverwould’ve tackled it. And I ain’t a-goin’ to nomore.” It thought that an understandablesentiment if by “trouble” he meant“energetic effort,” and by “history” he meant“musical” … and then I realized Brownhad to do it al l over again that night. That’s impressive. I’ve seen actors perform with

abandon, but few to the degree with whichBrown plays Huck.

Similarly laudable is the depth ofBenson’s hope and pain as Jim. Thosefeelings are as palpable as his vocalsare rousing, while John Chase strucktrue terror in my heart as Papp Finn,Huck’s drunken, abusive father; as Chasestaggered across stage and delivered hislines with manic anger, I truly feared forHuck. In a similar vein, I believed Matt

W. Miles’ Duke was in true pain when hewas tarred and feathered and cried out atHuck’s touch. And as he’s so persuasivein his calls to piracy and murder amongthe boys, I’d follow Chandler Smith’sTom Sawyer anywhere. This is onemesmerizing cast delivering a story ina way that struck the core of my heart.I already loved Big River going into thisproduction, but coming out of it, I loved iteven more.

Big River runs at the Timber Lake Playhouse(8215 Black Oak Road, Mt. Carroll) through

August 23, and more information and ticketsare available by calling (815)244-2035 orvisiting TimberLakePlayhouse.org.

Grant Alexander Brown and Charles Benson

1901: The Year That Set the Arts & Crafts

Movement in MotionMovement in MotionMovement in Motion A presentation by

Bruce Johnson,

renowned home decor

expert & TV personality!

German American

Heritage Center

712 W. 2nd St.

Davenport

322-8844 gahc.org

Sun. Aug 16th 2pmSun. Aug 16th 2pmSun. Aug 16th 2pm


16/24


Judge Denies

HomeownersTheir Due Process

“power of sale” clause. A “power of sale” is aprovision in a mortgage that allows lendersto take both title and possession of landupon the borrower’s default.

But Trickey’s analysis is more than alittle bit shallow because the WashingtonTerritory had always prohibited enforcement

of power-of-sale clauses right up until thetime the constitution was enacted in 1889.

Our founders then enacted thisprohibition as part of Washington’sconstitution to make sure the legislaturecould not allow Washingtonians to besubjected to such clauses in the future.Article II, section 28 of Washington’sconstitution states: “The legislature isprohibited from enacting any private orspecial laws in the following cases: ... (9)

From giving effect to invalid deeds, wills, orother instruments.”

The most notorious invalid deeds atthe time this provision of Washington’sconstitution was written were deeds of trustthat contained a power-of-sale clause. Thisprovision was included in the constitutionspecifically to prevent such clauses frombeing enacted by the legislature.

The framers of Washington’s constitution,almost a third of whom were lawyers,

intentionally gave superior courts boththe authority and responsibility to resolvedisputes about the title and possessionof land judicially. Indeed, our founderscould not have been any clearer that allforeclosures in Washington were subjectto the original jurisdiction of the superiorcourts and needed to be resolved by judges.

The first sentence of Article IV, section 6as passed in 1889 stated: “The superior courtshall have original jurisdiction in all cases inequity and in all cases at law which involvethe title or possession of real property ... .”

Check out the court’s opinion and ourmotion to reconsider (RCReader.com/y/foreclosure5). I do not believe it takes alawyer to figure that our framers did notintend that people could have their homestaken from them without having access to theoriginal jurisdiction of the superior court.

Read “The Story of Mortgage Law”written by J.H. Chapin and published in theHarvard Law Review in 1890 (RCReader.

com/y/foreclosure6). The article documentsthat in 1889, when Washington’s constitutionwas written, American equity law outlawednonjudicial foreclosures of deeds of trustwith power-of-sale clauses.

Moeller’s Movesby Jeff Ignatius

[email protected]

show at the Village Theatre.

“Sean came to me with this great idea,”said Benjamin Fawks, Rozz-Tox’s co-ownerand primary booker. “Basically, he came tome and said, ‘Give me your Mondays, andthis is what I want to do.’” At that point,Rozz-Tox was closed on Mondays.

For the most part, he added, MoellerMonday performers “don’t play little cafeslike this. Anywhere.”

That direct Moeller involvement wassomething different, but more than

anything, he has enlivened the Quad Citiesmusic scene simply by having Daytrotter’shome base here. He steers bands to local

venues for possible shows.

Building SomethingOne of those venues is Codfish Hollow

Barn, which has put on dozens of concertswith more than 150 different musicalartists since mid-2009.

Tiffany Biehl, who runs the barn music

venue with her husband on her family’sMaquoketa farm, said she thought “itwould be cool to do something with it,besides have hay and cows down below.”

But when a friend e-mailed sayingMoeller was looking for barn venues, “wehad never heard of Daytrotter at that point.... I kind of just ignored him.”

That friend was persistent, however,and Moeller visited the barn, and 10 dayslater Codfish Hollow hosted its first live

music since a dance celebrating its 1954construction.

Biehl said that she booked all 11 CodfishHollow shows last year, but mostly she’scollaborated with Moeller on lineupsand booking. “He gets some acts; and Iget some acts; and I tell him who I want,and he contacts them; or I tell him whoI want, and he’s like, ‘Oh, yeah, go for it,’and I get them. We work together to bookeverything.”

The venue began selling alcohol atshows this year, and Biehl said she mightbe breaking even on concerts at this point.But “it’s so amazing what’s happening,even if I was losing all of my money, I stillwouldn’t quit doing it.”

Unlike Biehl, Fawks was well aware ofMoeller and Daytrotter when he openedRozz-Tox in 2011.

He looked around the country for citiesto locate a new business similar to the onein China that he still owns. “It all cameback to a hometown vibe,” said the Molinenative. “I wanted to be a part of buildingsomething rather than hopping intosomething that’s already existing.”

Capitalizing on Daytrotter’s home

base was part of that. Outside of Moeller

Mondays concerts, Fawks does nearly all ofRozz-Tox’s booking and doesn’t coordinateit with Moeller. But there’s an undeniableand mutually beneficial relationship withDaytrotter.

“Why go it alone when here you havethis resource just down the street that canshuttle people over to you?” Moeller said.“All these bands [coming in to Daytrotter]have no place to play” in the Quad Cities.

“They hit me up,” Fawks said of bands.

“That’s kind of been the case since thebeginning. We filled this void of a smalllittle venue that was open to pretty muchanything ... .

“I pick and choose” which bands tobook, Fawks said. “I can do that becausethere’s such a large volume of bands thatare just coming through here. And a largemajority of those are doing sessions forDaytrotter.”

Sometimes things go the other way.In May, Fawks booked the Chinese bandChui Wan. “They didn’t have a Daytrotter,and we got them a Daytrotter session, andit was their first Chinese band,” Fawks said.

One of Daytrotter’s recording studiosis next door to Rozz-Tox, and Fawksoffers bands who play his establishmentfree lodging in the hostel upstairs. Bandswithout Rozz-Tox shows can spend a nightthere for $10 a bed.

“Before this [Rozz-Tox] existed,” Fawkssaid, “it was totally worth it just to come

to the Quad Cities and do a Daytrottersession. And I think it still is

river cities' reader - issue 889 - august 20, 2015

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