Twilight Dance Series: Konono No 1, July 8, 2010

Vol. 2 – Concert Guide

July 8

This week’s act...

Konono No. 1 A taste of African trance music

Presented by Pacific Park

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Konono No. 1

Contents Page. 6

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Welcome!

Taking a wide view

Photo play

A few words from Santa Monica Mayor Bobby Shriver.

Map helps concert-goers navigate this year’s TDS. Locate parking, seating and access to the historic Santa Monica Pier.

Send us your photos! If we like what we see you’ll see your photography in future issues of this guide.

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Konono No. 1 A taste of African trance music The Twilight Dance Series is set for a strong kick-off with a performance by a unique group hailing from Kinshasa, the largest city and capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Africa.

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Spectator guide A survival guide for this year’s TDS. Everything from parking to public safety is detailed in our easy-to-use guide.

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A look back Read about the history of the TDS from the early days to the rocking present.

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To the rescue Community rallies to save the Santa Monica Pier’s Twilight Dance Series.

About this publication This Twilight Dance Series guide has been created as a partnership between the Santa Monica Pier Restoration Corporation and the Santa Monica Daily Press.

Editor: Daniel Archuleta Designer: Darren Ouellette Photography: Wisephotographic.com, Santa Monica Pier Publisher: Ross Furukawa

The Santa Monica Pier Restoration Corporation is a non-profit created in 1983 by the Santa Monica City Council to preserve and enhance the pleasure pier experience for people of all ages and for future generations.

Special thanks: Lenika Cruz, Mike Jennings, Ben Franz-Knight, James Harris, Amber Kessee, Clayton O'Brien, Anne Railsback, Rob Schwenker, Brittney Seeliger, Connie Sommerville, Nick Taborek, Scott Zubor,

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For more information, visit santamonicapier.org, or call (310) 458-8901.

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Welcome

Mission statement

I would like to welcome you to this uniquely Santa Monica event.

For 26 years, the Twilight Dance Series has drawn crowds to the historic Santa Monica Pier, giving this city by the sea an opportunity to shine.

Enjoy the show, the beautiful scenery

Santa Monica Pier Restoration Corp.

Board Members

and the world-class lineup of talent.

Kent Smith, Chair Joel Brand, Vice-chair Anne Elizabeth Biege-Pearson, Eric Faber, Treasurer Allan Lipsky, At Large Ellen Brennan Cindy Bendat Michael Dubin David Newberg

Bobby Shriver Mayor, Santa Monica

Secretary

To preserve and enhance the pleasure pier experience for people of all ages and for future generations.

Staff Ben Franz-Knight, Executive Director Aurora Pi単a, Operations Manager Jim Harris, Community Venue Liaison & Pier Historian Anne Railsback, Acting Marketing/Community Relations Mgr Rosa Flores, Administrative Assistant Bobby Shriver

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Konono No. 1 - Week 1

Hypnotized by the thumb-piano wizards Konono No. 1 a taste of African Bazombo trance music T he Twilight Dance Series is set for a strong kick-off with a performance by a unique group hailing from Kinshasa, the largest city and capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Africa.

The group’s full — and indulgent — name is “L’orchestre folklorique T.P. Konono N°1 de Mingiedi” though “Konono No.1” works just fine as a sobriquet.

Konono No.1 was founded more than 25 years ago by ex-taxi driver Mawangu Mingiedi, a self-described virtuoso of the likembé, which is a traditional African instrument best described in English as a “thumb piano” or “finger xylophone.” That along with three electric likembés (bass, medium, and treble) comprise only a small part of the assemblage of instruments that they employ in their music.

For starters, the band’s amplification of choice is hand-made microphones built from wood and magnets salvaged from old car parts (Mingiedi started with six-volt radios and moved up to 12 volts). Their sound system also features some old-fashioned

Konono No. 1

megaphones. The rhythm section is made up of anything from pots to pans, garbage cans to automobile parts. To round up their line-up, Konono No. 1 also has three singers and dancers. Given Konono No. 1’s unconventional motley structure, “l’orchestre” seems an appropriate appellation.

That much of Konono’s equipment comes from a junkyard provides an image that is nothing short of poetic, evoking imagery of something beautiful arising from the skillful sonic manipulation of “trash.”

In 2004, Konono’s Belgium-based record label, Crammed Discs, released “Congotronics,” the eponymic debut volume in the group’s Congotronics series, earning critical acclaim for the album’s fusion of electronica, dance, and traditional African music that would set the stage for its growing recognition.

Though Konono No. 1’s music had initially reached a limited audience, since “Congotronics” it has surfaced in more mainstream circles. In 2005, the group played at Eurockénnes, France’s largest rock music festival and in 2007, they lent their unique sound to Icelandic musician Bjork’s popular single “Earth Intruders,” from the album “Volta.”

Konono No. 1’s music grants itself access into the recesses of the listener’s mind, much like the hypnotic moan of an aboriginal digiridoo, tapping into something primitively familiar and tweaking it with a more modern electronic sound. The group’s unabashedly lofi, DIY approach has not compromised its original sound in favor of the popular electronic dance aesthetic that it also subscribes to.

A band spokesman noted, “In our culture, music has always been a means to educate society, and it isn’t surprising if the principles which rule music are comparable to those

which rule society.

“We pursue the same ancient logic.”

Konono No. 1’s music vacillates between spacey and frantic, never abandoning its meticulous rhythm. Their music is percussive in the way staccatoes of thunder in the desert are percussive. After all, Konono’s characteristic distortion was a by-product of adapting to its first venue: the noisy, nighttime Kinshasa streets. As the group pounded pavement, it derived its style from the trance music of the Bazombo region on the Congolese/Angolan border and altered it with makeshift amplifiers that inevitably created an element of irresistible sonic fuzz — and it worked. In the band’s case, use of the oft-abused label “experimental” would be completely justified.

Informed by a sensitivity perhaps

cultivated by an organic attitude toward music-making, Konono No. 1 fully escapes the pitfalls of those who try too hard to make “experimental music” and end up creating a convoluted, uninspired mess. If Konono No. 1 is anything, it is inspired.

“In the world music and African music scene, there’s a lot of buzz about them,” said Katharine King, the long-time producer of the Twilight Dance Series. In short, she said, “They’re hot right now.”

The band summed up their own motivation for playing music, saying, “When we play we are free.”

As Santa Monica will soon discover, you don’t need to know what a likembé is to know that it sounds awesome. http://www.myspace.com/kononono1

Konono No. 1

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THE SANTA MONICA POLICE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION PROUD SUPPORTERS OF

25 years of Concerts on the Pier

Thursday, July 1, 2010

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Spectator guide Parking, seating and general FAQ made easy Parking

First aid/lost and found

Parking is available in the 1550 Pacific Coast Highway Lot, on a first-come, firstserved basis. There is no parking permitted on the Pier Parking Deck.

There are also a number of city structures located in nearby Downtown Santa Monica.

For more information, visit the City of Santa Monica’s parking site for directions and pricing. The address is parking.smgov.net/overview.html.

For directions to the Santa Monica Pier, visit santamonicapier.org/location.

If you require first aid or assistance, please visit the pier booth/tent and we will contact the proper authority. If it is an emergency, please call 911. The lost and found will also be located at that location.

Bike valet

Pier contact info

There is a free bike valet located next to the beach bike path just south of the Santa Monica Pier.

Seating Seating is not provided. You are welcome to bring beach chairs and blankets and sit on the pier deck or the beach. We ask that you bring low beach chairs so not to block the view of other concert-goers. Many people do sit on the sand at the beach below the pier deck.

Alcohol consumption is not permitted on public spaces; however, there are several full service bars on the pier and there will be a wine garden at each of the concerts.

Pets Dogs are welcome, but must be on a leash.

Rates start at

88/night

$

Smoking Smoking is permitted in designated areas only. There are two designated smoking areas in the general vicinity of the concert.

One area is designated in the south east corner and one in the south west corner.

Tickets SANTA MONICA PIER

email:

reservations@seaviewhotel.com

310.393.6711 | 1760 Ocean Avenue | Santa Monica, CA

Book On-line Today

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No ticket or reservation is necessary for the concerts. And all of the concerts are free. However, should you find yourself wanting to express your appreciation for the concerts you are welcome to make a tax deductible contribution the Santa Monica Pier Restoration Corporation either by donating online at twilightdance.org or in person at one of the concerts by going to the pier booth.

Weather It never gets really cold, but after the sun goes down it can sometimes get a bit chilly requiring only a sweater or light jacket. It's always a good idea to have something to throw on just in case.

Telephone: (310) 458-8901 Internet: santamonicapier.org Mail: 200 Santa Monica Pier, Suite A Santa Monica, CA. 90401

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Photo play Send us your pics!

The Twilight Dance Series wants you... to send us your photography.

We're asking concert-goers to snap away and send us your best pics. We plan to publish this usergenerated content in subsequent issues of this guide.

You can send us your pictures (in the largest possible format) to mytdspics@gmail.com. Or, you can visit our Facebook page and upload your pics there as well at www.facebook.com Search: Santa Monica Pier

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2010 Twilight Dance Series Week 2, July 15

philosophical, religious, social, and political issues, more typical of a singer-songwriter, Italian cantautore tradition.

Presented by Australian Consulate, V Australia and Tourism Australia

Australia Rocks The Pier!

Ben Lee Pop/Rock Having spent half of his life in the music business, Ben Lee’s quintessential niceness stemming from his Sydney-bred roots has never faded. Call it maturity, but it’s that natural ability to sing from the heart without losing it in the process that makes Lee a true artist. His grasp for the charm of life has never strained, and his mission in crafting meaningful pop music continues on his seventh LP, the very feminine-centric effort “The Rebirth of Venus.”

Jace Everett Singer/Songwriter Indiana-born, Texas-raised, singer/songwriter Jace Everett became enamored by both gospel music and the works of Willie Nelson in his teenage years.

Jace’s upbringing in the evangelical church and his far-flung travels are apparent in his songs: “The church is where I learned about music, played bass and did my first real public singing … where the girls thought I was really cool. I’ve always been attracted to emotionally and spiritually mature themes — philosophically and musically…”

Ry Cuming Pop Singer Born in the small coastal Australian town of Angourie, Ry grew up with a surfboard under one arm and his Dad’s record collection under the other. He quickly developed a love for a number of different styles of music from Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder to Ben Harper and Jack Johnson.

Ana Tijoux

Brother Independent Rockers Fusing signature vocals and guitar with the deep pulse of the didgeridoo, the soaring highs of the bagpipes, and tribal percussion, Brother is wholly original. The band’s powerhouse live performances are an energetic celebration, captivating and engaging the audience from the first song to the last.

Week 3, July 22

Ry Cuming - Week 3

Chilean Rapera Chilean hip-hop artist Ana Tijoux was born in France to a French mother and a Chilean father while they were living in exile during the Pinochet dictatorship. After the return to democracy, the family moved back to Chile.

While studying literature in school, Anita began immersing herself in Santiago’s hiphop underground. Rhyming first in French, then later in Spanish, Tijoux found “… a platform to talk about all kinds of things” in a way that was cathartic.

Presented by KCRW

Jovanotti

Week 4, July 29

Italian Super Star Jovanotti (aka Lorenzo Cherubini) fills stadiums in his native Italy and throughout Latin America. He sets out this summer to bring his synthesis of rap, rock, hip-hop and rock to festivals across America. Jovanotti’s music has transformed from its early roots in rap and hip-hop to a broader hybrid, incorporating pointed lyrics addressing

Presented by KCRW

Kailash Kher’s Kailasa Indian Pop/Rock/Bollywood There is no greater star in Indian popular music today than Kailash Kher, a revered singer whose prodigious vocal gifts and inspiring personality have made him a household name across the subcontinent.

Kailash Kher’s 2004 meteoric rise from a humble upbringing outside of New Delhi to being appointed a judge for the 2008-09 season of “Indian Idol” is nothing less than remarkable. It is also a testament to the strength and appeal of what is undeniably one of the most unique voices in Indian music today.

Week 5, Aug. 5 Presented by Bloomingdale’s Santa Monica

Rickie Lee Jones

Jovanotti - Week 3

Duchess of Coolsville Rickie Lee Jones is one of the most singular artists in today’s music world. A clue to defining her iconoclasm comes from her own family description as “lower-middleclass-hillbilly-hipster.” From her emergence

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on the national scene in 1979, Rickie Lee has become one of the most acclaimed and talented singer/songwriters of our time spanning many genres: folk, rock, jazz, soul, spoken word and pop. Her first self-titled album launched her career and received five Grammy nominations. Her nominations included Best Song, for “Last Chance Texaco,” Best Album, Best Pop Vocal and Best Rock Vocal. As it happened, she won Best New Artist, and her career was launched. Just four months after her debut, Rickie Lee graced the cover of Rolling Stone, and again only 18 months later.

The Lobster welcomes Thursday Night Pier Concerts!

Enjoy the concerts while feasting on our own original Santa Monica Clam Bake picnic to go.

SANTA MONICA CLAM BAKE F

OR

TWO

Starting Thursday Nights 5-7pm ORGANIC COUNTRY FRESH FARMS BABY GREENS FENNEL, CHERRY TOMATOES & SHAVED PARMESAN WITH RED WINE VINAIGRETTE

LOBSTER’S CLAM BAKE STEAMED 1 LB. AMERICAN LOBSTER TAIL & CLAWS, MANILA CLAMS, 6EA MEXICAN WILD SHRIMP, MELTED BUTTER, COCKTAIL SAUCE & LEMON 1/2

MIXED HEIRLOOM POTATOES & CORN ON THE COBB SOUR DOUGH BREAD WITH CHIMICHURRI MIXED COOKIES MUST CALL TO PRE-ORDER | TO-GO ONLY | NO SUBSTITUTIONS $70 (PLUS TAX & GRATUITY)

Week 6, Aug. 12

Soulive Funk Jazz Organ Trio Not many bands can say they’ve recorded with such diverse artists as Chaka Khan, Dave Matthews, Talib Kweli and John Scofield. Nor can many, if any, bands lay claim to opening for The Rolling Stones on one tour and having Stevie Wonder sit in with them on the next.

Soulive - Week 6

TNB boasts a world class rhythm section, great singers and soloist, and an intense stage show. TNB brings people to their feet playing a mix of originals and classic dance tunes which blend soul, blues, R&B and rock ‘n’ roll.

Santa Monica TOBACCO “THE LUXURY TOBACCO SHOP”

Breakestra Hip-Hop Funk Beats Formed by Dr. Miles Tackett, “Musicman,” in 1996, Breakestra began as the house band for the legendary club called The Breaks. The band is rooted in deep funk, soul, jazz fever and musical friendships. A Breakestra show is about dancing and swinging, musicians on stage getting loose and playing serious grooves. Breakestra has a way of invigorating breakbeats, paving the way for the funkily naïve to embrace the rhythmic revolution that James Brown kicked off more than 30 years ago!

Week 8, Aug. 26

Presented by Beatlesfest

Beatlesfest, a three-day tribute that began five years ago, is proud to be a part of the Twilight Dance Series this summer! Abbey Road will open the night with an acoustic set of the Beatles, followed by Los Angelesbased Led Zepagain, as part of the British Invasion.

Presented by Bayside District

Dr. John & the Lower 911

Kailash Kher’s Kailasa - Week 4

Week 7, Aug. 19

Mick Taylor Legendary Guitarist/Former Rolling Stone As one of the most admired and respected guitarists in blues, R&B and rock music, Mick Taylor’s distinctive, elegant slide guitar work graces some of the key albums in rock ‘n’ roll history. Mick Taylor’s biggest impact and recognition came when he joined the ranks of illustrious alumni of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, accepting the Rolling Stones’ offer to replace founding member Brian Jones in 1969. The Stones had already established their reputation as “the greatest rock ’n’ roll band” in the world, having just released the classic “Beggar’s Banquet.”

Taylor quickly added his imprint to the Stones and was present for the legendary concert tours through 1974.

New Orleans Icon An icon of American music born in New Orleans, Dr. John is indelibly linked to the traditions and singularity of the city’s musical and cultural heritage. Mac Rebennack burst onto the rock ‘n’ roll scene in the late 1960s as Dr. John, the Night Tripper, merging the R&B, voodoo rhythms and chants of his native New Orleans to create a persona perfect for the psychedelic era. Over the years he’s thrown in jazz, classic American songbook, zydeco, boogie woogie and rock into the mix.

Eddie Baytos & the Nervis Brothers World Mardi Gras Music Originally from New Orleans Eddie Baytos can be said to be from N’Wahlins via Hollywood.

For more information, visit www.santamonicapier.org

Tom Nolan Band Blues, R&B and Soul One word sums up the Tom Nolan Band’s mission: “Dance!” Long-time local favorites,

LOUNGE

HUMIDORS

Providing the best and most complete selection of tobacco products and accessories.

Our warm and friendly staff provides the best customer service for all our wonderful customers.

Beatlesfest

Week 9, Sept. 2

STORE

Tom Nolan Band - Week 7

Monday-Thursday - 10am to 10pm Friday-Saturday - 10am to midnight, Sunday - 11am to 10pm 1434 4th St. | Santa Monica, CA 90401 | (310) 393-9592

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TDS has deep roots Fall Out Boy

For 26 years, the Twilight Dance Series has rocked the beach

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n front of the familiar landscape of a dark orange sky swirling above a deepening blue sea, Venice began rocking its set, the music filling the air, mixing with the cheers of the crowd and the sounds of the waves crashing against the wooden pilings below.

Surrounded by the local landmarks they’ve known their whole lives, from the old crimson Hot Dog on a Stick stand to the original Muscle Beach, the boys had returned home.

Out of all the famous venues the band performed all over the world, there was something special about the Santa Monica Pier.

“For us the pier is part of the backdrop of our lives growing up,” Kipp Lennon, the lead singer of Venice, which he founded with his brother and cousins, said. “Just seeing the stage and seeing the ocean and sunset and people on the beach, it’s so idyllic that you catch yourself staring at it rather than being in it sometimes.”

Since its inception 26 years ago, the Twilight Dance Series has stood on its own as the premier outdoor summer concert festival in Southern California, attracting thousands of people every Thursday for a free show under the stars and over the ocean.

“For many people on the Westside, it marks the beginning of the summer,” Ben Franz-Knight, the executive director of the Santa Monica Pier Restoration Corp., said.

Its roots can be traced to an eight-day-long event held to promote the pier after one-third of it was taken out by the 1983 storms, including the entire west end.

Save the Pier Week was organized in May of that year to correct the public perception that the pier was no longer standing because of the violent storms just two months prior, hosting a festival that featured a series of concerts, art exhibits, dances and competitions.

The success of the event led to the realization that the pier made a perfect venue for concerts and the following summer, Katharine King, who booked the acts for Save the Pier Week, organized a series of shows that ran for four consecutive weeks, starting with the Beverly Hills Unlisted Jazz Band and concluding with the New West Brass Quintet.

The Santa Monica Arts Commission took notice of the buzz growing around the outdoor concerts and allocated $7,000 to produce an event that would allow dancing on the pier. King, who again was commissioned as the producer of the festival, chose to hold the concerts on Thursday evenings, hoping that in preceding the weekend, it would draw more visitors.

The result was the inaugural Twilight Dance Series, which in 1985 hosted a lineup that included Billy & The Beaters, Downbeat Express and Poncho Sanchez.

Relying on friendships to book musicians on a small budget, King saw the opportunity to hire bigger names starting in 1989 when corporate sponsorships replaced funding from the Arts Commission, bringing in over the next two decades acts like Los Lobos, Patti Smith and Fall Out Boy. The concert has been located on different parts of the pier over the years, moving around the reconstruction work from the storm, starting on the asphalt and later relocating to the panhandle. The stage is currently set up on the south end.

Twilight Dance Series

www.santamonicapier.org The Twilight Dance Series today ranks as one of the premiere outdoor summer concerts in the country, rivaling the Stern Grove Festival in San Francisco and the SummerStage in New York City’s Central Park.

“As far as the number of people, I would say that ours is the biggest,” King said. “We created a monster because it’s become so popular.”

The surge in attendance started in 1990 with one of the biggest names that the series had seen to date — Bo Diddley.

The late singer drew 20,000 people.

The following year brought an unseasonably cold summer, greatly lowering attendance. Smaller crowds lingered for several years until the turn of the century when the visitors came back in droves, this time to picnic on the beach.

The Twilight Dance Series isn’t just a concert but a gathering place for the community, an event where neighbors and friends can catch up while listening to music for several hours, exposing themselves to different genres.

“I think that is the part that I am enchanted with as much as anything, turning people onto a new artist they may not have seen or heard,” King said. “Young people might see an old act from the ‘60s or ‘70s and find out what their parents were talking about all those years.”

The event has also produced fond memories for those who work behind the scenes.

Jim Harris, a pier historian who wrote the recently published book, “Santa Monica Pier: A Century on the Last Great Pleasure Pier,” helps set the stage every week and usually interacts with the bands before the show.

“It’s a privilege to see a lot of things that unfold backstage,” he said. “Those are my favorite parts, just seeing some of those behind the scenes things is special.”

There are several performers who have repeatedly appeared at the pier, including Sanchez, Smith, and Venice, the latter two of whom were a part of the 2009 lineup.

Venice — so named because its members were raised in the neighboring beach community — formed in 1977 as a cover band, performing at high school dances, local parties and clubs until it began creating its own songs.

The band’s first appearance in the Twilight Dance Series in 1991 came just after its first album was released.

“For us it was a real highlight to play that event,” Lennon said. “It was 6 years old by that time and we had been wanting to play it for many years.

“It was a thrill to be out there on the pier.”

Joan Baez

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Early days of the Twilight Dance Series

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To the rescue Santa Monica rallies to save 2010 Twilight Dance Series Swho your true friends are.

ometimes it takes a rough patch to realize

For the Santa Monica Pier's annual Twilight Dance Series, which almost didn’t happen this year after the recession cut into the event’s funding, this summer’s full calendar of concerts is a case in point.

Faced with a $92,000 shortfall to put on the series, local leaders asked for help from the community to save the free concerts.

What they received was an outpouring of support that surprised even the most ardent Twilight Dance Series fans.

“Out of this crisis has come a renewed

awareness of the deep passion and love for these summer concerts throughout the community,” said Ben Franz-Knight, the executive director of the Pier Restoration Corp., which organizes the series.

By showcasing top talent for free in a breathtaking setting next to the Pacific Ocean, TDS has always been about celebrating community. This year, the community gave back.

“I personally was truly humbled by the response. To see people reaching into their pockets and giving donations from $5 up to $5,000 — it showed that across the board, from people that have modest means to people that have more financial resources, this is an important event.”

All told, individual donations topped $30,000. With the flood of community support, new sponsors came out of the woodwork, contributing more than $100,000 — and allowing organizers to put on a full slate of nine summer concerts featuring top-notch acts.

“Only a few months ago, the future of the series appeared bleak and signs were strong

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that it would be canceled,” said Santa Monica City Councilman Richard Bloom. “I am grateful that this wonderful community rose to the challenge, pulled together and saved the series.”

Bloom and his colleagues on the council were also a big part of the effort to save the concerts, donating $35,000 from the council’s budget to put on the event and helping to build momentum for the fundraising drive.

With the council and individual donors piling up, Franz-Knight said he started getting calls from new sponsors who were eager to support an event that was clearly so important to so many people.

The Bayside District Corp., the group that manages and promotes Downtown Santa Monica, came up with $20,000.

Pacific Park, the amusement park located on the iconic Santa Monica Pier, matched that gift to become a major sponsor of the event. National companies also seized the opportunity to partner with the series, with Bloomingdale’s, Naked Juice and Time Warner Cable, among others, signing on as supporting sponsors.

To Bloom, the public support for the series, despite the difficult economic times, shows just how important communitybuilding events like the Twilight Dance Series are— especially when the going gets tough.

“After more than 25 years, the Twilight Dance Series is an enduring summer tradition,” Bloom said. “It has become well known for its world-class location on the water and its consistently eclectic and highquality range of musical performances.”

This year, simply holding the event required extra effort from organizers and community members who support the free concerts alike. But with the weekly events set to begin July 8, it’s already clear to everyone involved the time and expense is sure to be well worth it.

“It’s a labor of love for its producers and the Pier Restoration Corp. staff and board,” Bloom said.

Now in its 26th season, this year, the Twilight Dance Series promises to draw some of the biggest crowds in its history with a diverse group of artists that play everything from rock ‘n’ roll and blues to world music from Australia, India and South America.

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