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Sneak Attack: Ragged Claws @ the Beat Kitchen

Sunday September 19th

Ribbons

Weye

Ragged Claws

Caulfield

8 p.m. $8 21+

The Beat Kitchen

2100 W. Belmont

Fresko: An Exhibition to Benefit Haitian Artists

We're returning to our de-facto home base to perform again. Art @ Cole's is hosting an art exhibit featuring paintings by three artists from Jacmel, Haiti. The show is being hung now, and will be on display until October 2nd. The reception on Monday, September 13th will most definitely be an incredible evening. These artists are friends of mine and are all really talented. Jean Marie Charles, Prince Luc, and Rose Marie Lamour have paintings on display. All of them lost their homes in the earthquake and this show is a tribute to the work they continue to do as well as an opportunity to support them as they rebuild their lives. Click here to get some more info on the show. We're also playing a set that night. It's going to include some Haitian music and some never before heard tunes. We're also working on a Shakespeare song that totally celebrates the end of summer. Here's a song about Haitian girls to get you in the mood for some high art from the high hills of the third world.

Paul

18 VFK [vrè fanm kreyòl].mp3

Ragged Claws @ Cole's w/ the War at Sea

First and foremost let it be known we'll be playing at Cole's on Sunday night. The show starts at 6:30 and we'll be joined by our friend and life-partner The War at Sea. It's free as usual and we'll also be joined by all-star guitarist Andrew Trim, who just moved to the Chi from Boulder. It's sort of an after party for the Milwaukee Avenue Arts Fest, so when your tired of wondering whether your innocently supporting local art or aiding and abetting in the spread of gentrification, come drink your troubles away as we sing about songs that have very little to do with the matrices of cultural power in good ol' Logan's Square. We've been away from the blog for a while, but we're turning over a new leaf, and we promise to keep this dream alive. I'd hate to see such a painful pun die a slow death like that. Speaking of leaves, the Fey Series is gearing up for a second release. Be on the lookout for some totally hot charitable vinyl on sale this next month.
love,
Paul

Abbey Pub, Reckless, and the end of winter.

We are excited to announce that Reckless Records is selling our Fey 7 inches. If you're afraid of future crimes and don't want to pay with your credit card, you can swing by any of the Reckless locations in Chicago and pick one up there. The clerk will undoubtedly approve of your philanthropy and good taste and you can feel good about supporting such a venerable institution.

We are also pumped to announce a benefit Show at the Abbey Pub on April 7th. The bill is looking pretty eclectic with a slew of artists much more versed in gettin' down than yours truly. It's 10 bucks but this show is going to be so much fun I can't even tell you. Here's a little sneak peak at Chicago's next big deal.

April 7th @ The Abbey Pub

10$ (it all goes to charity)

Big Splashes, Ragged Claws, Jams Dean, Sequoia, Eyes Like Architecture, Panda Riot, EnJoy, Goodlife Music, GrG & Kli

In the meantime, here's a song you may not have heard. We've been playin' a different version around lately, but here's the original. As an artist in the midwest, you would think I'd have developed a somewhat poetic appreciation for winter by now. Not the case. I hate winter and from the moment it starts snowing, I want it to be over. In celebration of the imminent spring, here's a sad song about winter making my life more difficult.

Winter Face.mp3

Fey 7" CD Release Show Wednesday 3/17

We're super excited to release our first ever physical actual thing as Ragged Claws. It's happening on Wednesday at Ronny's venerable center for the performing arts. You can read the previous post or go to the official website for info on the 7". It's a split with Michael Noyce who will also be gracing us with a performance. It will be really wonderful to finally get these into your hands and start the charity wagon moving. Come help us celebrate a good cause and also celebrate my new freedom from employment. Oh busking, you earn such an honest wage.

Wednesday 3/17 @ Ronny's
2101 N. California Ave. Chicago, IL
Ragged Claws
Mike Noyce
Brier Rabbit
The Mother Z's

Birthday Kate Bush Cover

Paul forgot to mention that the show was also on his birthday! So happy belated birthday to Paul! As a gift I recorded one of his favorite songs (or at least one of his favorite songs to play on juke boxes, eg. at the beloved Deuce Deuce Ultra Lounge) in commemoration of his glorious quarter century. Listen to it! I used Garage Band, that great democratizing force of man and technology. Garage Band, (like anything furthering the cause of democratization) imbues all that it produces with an aura of the lowest common denominator, or at least a subtle averaging/distribution of quality (which I adamantly support as being of The Good). And I used the sweet microphone that Paul bought me for my own birthday back in the day, the merits of which however did not overcome my significant technological handicaps. I’m sure that’s enough of a disclaimer; I beg of you to look kindly upon my efforts, and I only hope that Kate Bush listens to it and wants to be my new best friend. It's bound to happen some day. Happy Happy Birthday Paul! ~Kimberly

running up that hill cover.mp3

Benefit Show Tonight, Jan. 31st

Haiti has held a special place in our heart for a long time and in the wake of the earthquake we want to help out our fellow musicians who have been effected. Tonight at Cole's Bar (2338 N. Milwaukee) we're playing with some friends of ours to raise money to help the students and teachers of the Ste. Trinite School of Music that was destroyed in the Quake. The show is free, but there will be tons of opportunities to support the school. Cash donations, proceeds from the bar, sales from cds and food, as well as the sales of some haitian art will all go directly to the hands of people in need. It's been a while, but what a great time to reignite the Ragged Claws flame that has perhaps dimmed, but burns nonetheless. Love and happiness.
Sunday, Jan. 31st.
8pm Cole's Bar
2338 n. Milwaukee
Ragged Claws
War at Sea
Mike Noyce
Story of Everest
Free as hell.

Discovery! and a Soundgarden song.

Today was my day off from work, so I decided to go downtown and get some stuff done. The first thing I did today was visit City Hall and get a street performer license. This is something I've talked about doing for a while, but haven't gotten around to. It's $100, which is a little steep if you ask me, but hopefully I can get that back in a few days if I'm diligent. Once I make a $100 we'll get one for Kimberly and Ragged Claws will be busking all over town like its our job. I guess it will be in a way. Keep a look out for some cowboy songs and melancholy folk tunes echoing through the subway or mingling with the sounds of cars and buses and electronic clicks of digital cameras. After I had my license in hand (which looked slightly craft-fairish after having laid down 100 bones for the damn thing) I felt strangely accomplished. 'I'll reward myself with a drink!' I thought. Well, I had some Canadian Club left over from last night's pizza party and went to 7 eleven for a mixer/chaser. Without thinking about the consequences I went with the iced coffee - a concoction which tastes somewhere between nesquik and yoohoo - and boy did I luck out. I should preface this by saying that I've always been a fan of Brass Monkeys (tm). The glorious mix of Old English* and orange juice (the poor man's mimosa as I like to call it) has resulted in many a great evening over the past few years - a drink to be enjoyed guilt-free (albeit shame-free) and a bit of class and refinement for the classless and unrefined. Well, my fellow brownbaggers and old style connossieurs, there is a new bum cocktail to rival the brass monkey and bring joy to those with refined tastes and shallow wallets. I give you the 'White Corsican' or the poor man's white russian. Go forth and be merry.
White Corsican:
2 1/2 shots Blended Whiskey
12 ounces of 7 eleven iced coffee (mocha flavor is preferred, but feel free to experiment with French Vanilla)

notes:It's preferred that you grab a spare cup and tuck it under the iced coffee at the time of purchase. when you find a secluded spot to sit and mix discreetly, poor the whiskey into the empty cup and transfer the contents from the other cup into the whiskey cup. This makes for a more homogenous mixture and thus ensures that your White Corsican will be good to the last drop.
PK

Black Hole Sun.mp3

Ragged Claws Daytrotter session

Check out our Daytrotter session that posted today. We're pretty pumped about it. Click Here! If you don't know, Daytrotter is a recording studio that has a music blog. There's tons of awesome recordings for free and they're all recorded live at the Daytrotter studio in Rock Island, IL. Personally I think the bonnie 'prince' billy session contains some of his best recordings. Download our songs (almost all of which we haven't recorded before) and then check out the rest of the site.

p.s. if you wandered over here for the first time be sure to download our free e.p. on Common Cloud Records right here: The Sleepwalker e.p.

Benefit Show this Friday, May 29th

This Friday we've got a benefit show we're playing at the Oasis in Grayslake, IL (151 N. Hawley St). We're playing as well as our friends Venna, Zach Petrini and the Broken Bones among others. There's art and jazz music going on at 4:00 p.m. so come by and peruse some art and meet some people. There are certain things in life that are simply too important for my usual bumbling irreverence. While the irony and the lack of meaning that seems to flow through much of the indie scene (like an air pocket swimming lethally through the blood stream) is great for a Saturday night it is often difficult to do something overtly serious and meaningful in the presence of such overwhelming light-heartedness (and its so coooool!). Haiti has been a kind of obsession for me ever since I went there in the summer of '06. I've taught music mainly at the Dessaix Baptiste School of music in Jacmel Haiti and a little bit at the Saint Trinity School in Port Au Prince. Haiti has not made me into an open hearted optimist, but somewhat of an embittered realist. I believe that the problems facing this country (compounded by a 200 year history of marginilization and injustice) are unimaginable to most people. Having spent a fair amount of time there, the depth of the problems there and the reality of their effects continue to move me and challenge my ways of thinking. That being said, the music schools that I've worked with are rays of light in a really dark place. Amidst all of the difficulties present in the lives of the students, they are given the opportunity to discover their artistic inclinations and their capability to create something beautiful. I won't delve too deep into my beleifs about music and the expansion of ones perception of beauty, but I assure you that I think music is incomparably powerful and yet understand its limitations. The School in Jacmel feeds a need that is less tangible than the social and economic needs of Haiti, but one that is nonetheless deprived and hungry. The call of the spirit, the endless pursuit of beauty that we in our country can mingle with and call upon as we wish (at least more easily). Kimberly and I are going there in July to work with Jean Marie, an artist who lives just outside Jacmel, and we'll be teaching at the School there. More on that as the time approaches. In the meantime, please come over to the Oasis this Friday. You'll be glad you came.

PK

p.s. It kinda sucks that I feel like we need to post music now to get you to read this. Is this true? Either way, here's another composition of mine. It's called Wood and Stone. It's kind of like a remix or something of the hymn "Great is thy Faithfulness." Musings on my religious education and the persistence of certain images and ideas throughout so many strange times. Lindsey Crabb is playing Cello and Megan Karls is Playing Violin.

wood and stone.mp3

Song: Down there by the train

We're back from New York. We had a real good time hanging out in Brooklyn. We spent some time catching up with friends and comparing Brooklyn to Logan Square. I said its too scummy, Kimberly enjoyed the scum. I think that's kind of why we're friends. Anyhow I figured I'd upload this song. It's another song recorded into the little mic on my laptop. Tom Waits recorded this song on his Orphans album and my former roommate Dylan showed it to me once. It's one of those very few songs that is so great and wonderful that I can listen to it over and over and it doesn't seem any less incredible. The image is one of this train takin' everyone to heaven and all the vagabonds (all the low-lifes from the drug-fiends and the whores to Judas Iscariot and John Wilkes Booth) know the one place where the train goes slow and they can all jump aboard. Guilt has always been a theme in my life having grown up in a christian household and dealing with a wide range of Christian people having a hand in my education. I didn't realize how much that feeling can still linger until I found myself listening to this song and getting choked up. (whatever, yeah okay sometimes I get choked up. so what, huh?)
Johnny Cash recorded a version of this song once and it suits him, having always been a voice for the rough-necks himself. I'm not as pretty as Scarlet Johansen, but I'm pretty sure I could drink her under the table.

PK

Down there by the train.mp3

Second City Risers (Off to New York)

The goal of this coming month was to go out on tour. This has been a bit of a disappointment as we attempted our first trek across the eastern seaboard and were unable to bring it all together. Nonetheless, we stand undaunted and will be taking a short vacation/trip to New York to play a show with two colleagues of mine. We're playing at the Stain Bar in Brooklyn with He Can Jog and Bryan Teoh and plan to do a little recording for a day or two with these dudes as well.

I met Erik Schoster and Bryan Teoh back at Lawrence University and the two of these guys introduced me to electronic music. I've dipped in and out of the world myself, and the great computer crash of '06 brought an abrubt end to anything I was hoping to accomplish with it. Looking back on it and seeing what these guys are doing now, I couldn't have had a better introduction into the whole world of computer music. I've recently stepped back from almost everything digital and/or electronic (though for better or worse I've been known to indulge in loops and gadgets in the past). This is not to say that I'm an acoustic purist or anything like that. I came to the realization that if I was to do anything really monumental with computers I would need a kind of dedication (obsession?) that I really wasn't capable of (needless to say I felt the same way about jazz). Bryan gave me a bunch of software only some of which I was able to make any sense of. He also made a beat to a Braille cover of Smashing Pumpkin's perfect. He was on the verge of world-wide superstardom with his 8 bit Betty among other things. Now he's started channeling his computer skills/aeshtetics into video art. Erik (aka He Can Jog) can turn endless lines of code toss in some discarded scratches and blips of tape hiss and create something that is musical and personal. Here's a track of his that I've always liked. It's minimal, raw, and it moves me. Do yourself a favor and download the albums he's got up for free. Do the world a favor and purchase his latest album. See you when we get back.

PK

09 michael frederick rathbun (nuevamente llego el invierno, y es dificil regresar del sur...).mp3

P.S. I don't want to leave Kimberly Hanging. My opinions regarding feminism and music are continually shaping and folding in on themselves and therefore my contributions to the discussion are usually questions. Specifically the question about the correct male response to these issues. I'm not sure what the correct response is (beyond being mindful and resisting ambivalence), though I put forth evidence that at the very best displays the awkwardness the often accompanies male musicians trying to be pro-feminist and at the very worst reinforces the stereotypes that perpetuate the problem. I give you the newly married Mrs. Ben Lee.

rant

speaking of the wild west, a lot of things have been making me mad lately. actually, the wild west doesn't make me that mad. it's the time and place where lawlessness allowed relative freedom and power for women-- along with the unfettered exploitation of women of course. like bad ass calamity jane on deadwood, or belle star. but yeah, actually, the unfettered exploitation and objectification, medicalization and capitalisation of women's bodies in the late nineteenth century does make me mad...a lot of things, man. specifically, "rock and roll"* has been making me mad lately. or rather the spectre of the phallus which pervades it. i am serious.

today i read about marnie stern's kissing booth, which reminded me of going to see marnie stern back in october. let me explain for a moment in case you are not familiar: marnie stern is the sickest, baddest, most rocking guitarist i have seen in a very long time. the only word is disgusting. she is also very pretty, but mostly just badass all yelling and sweating and shredding. in any case, at this concert in october, in between songs some douche bag yelled out "you're a babe!", which despite being true is beside the point. i couldn't help myself, and yelled "fuck you dude! you're a sick guitarist marnie!". my point being that one should not have to be a pretty woman to be a good musician, and one should not be admired for looking nice while playing, but rather for playing well. or incredibly disgusting, as the case may be. there is this amazing musician in front of you and you want to tell her how hot she is? really?

but then it struck me: what if a room full of mesmerized hipster boys (attending what is always a cockfest, on stage and in the audience), is actually the perfect (post)feminist fuck you to all those hysterical girls swooning over elvis and the beatles that made us all look so bad? so my question is: sexuality? or rather sexiness? that almost solely female space of cultural value, seen usually as objectifying and devaluing women, could its certain strategic deployment engender an appropriate and well earned power? could it be a good way to try and pay parking tickets? did that douche and those awkward fans too terrified to kiss her actually make us look better? and really, am i just a little bit jealous that she didn't have a kissing booth when i saw her play?

hugz

kz

*except yukon ho!. yukon ho! is amazing, listen to them right now.

Song: Yukon Ho! (by: Yukon Ho!)

I've been watching a lot of HBO's Deadwood lately and it's gotten me really pumped up about the wild west. More specifically it reminds me of my own experience as a prospector. Long ago I journeyd west with a dream. Armed with the bare essentials and an unwavering eye on the prize I, along with 4 other worthy men, took to the frontier with nothing but the furious beats pounding out our each step. It wasn't gold we were looking for, but the rock wherein the gold lay hidden. 5 worthy travelers equipped with guitars, drums, and a late model moog synth, we sought our treasure out west. That is, the west side of the Fox River where the booze poured late into the evening and the unfortified walls shook with unfettered post-teen angst. The band was Yukon Ho! and the music we made is fast becoming a forgotten dream. I occasionally get snippets of melodies in my head as I play and can't seem to place them. Then as if Jip the squirrel is reading my mind from outside my window, he begins to tap furiously on the wood of the porch and I'm swept up in a dusty whirlwind of wild dance beats and spastic guitar strums the likes of which I'm sure I will never hear again. Here's a taste of Yukon Ho! A battle cry if you will. Should you choose to uncover more of this epic journey of old, I hear there are still remnants of this great band of adventurers laying dorment in the forgotten corners of the new frontier.

PK

01 Yukon Ho!.mp3

A note on Billy Idol

Who determines the meaning of a work of art? Can a long-held erroneous interpretation of a time-honored (and thoroughly scrutinized) classic hold any weight in the greater artistic field? I offer no simple answer, though I pose an example.
Years ago my friend Adam and I would hold 30 minute dance parties in one of our dorm rooms (usually his, because he had a sweet stereo). Despite having only 30 minutes to work with each week, our playlist remained pretty consistent. The Flashdance Soundtrack was a staple of our short-lived rituals, as was Billy Idol's 'Rebel Yell.' One of the tracks off this record that always interested me was 'Flesh For Fantasy.' One part in particular always caught my attention. In the pre-chorus section of the song Billy sang (at least to my ears) the following:

Face to face, about to bite
You see and feel my sex-a-tite.

I didn't think much of it. I thought it hilarious that Billy Idol made up his own word for Sexual Appetite, and was kind of disturbed by the cannabalistic overtones it provided. I even pointed this out to my friends over the past few years whenever this song happened to surface in some grocery store or my place of employment. Well, this came up in conversation once, and a skeptical friend of mine decided to look up the lyrics. The truth be told, I had been wrong all these years. Mr. Idol was actually singing;

Face to face, back to back
You see and feel my sex attack.

I was devestated to find that I had been wrong all these years. (the blow was softened by the realization that I had in fact invented the word sex-a-tite.) I immediately started criticizing the tasteless placement of 'Sex' and 'Attack' in the same line, but I think I was just bitter.

Moving on, the first line of one of our songs is "I'm the crackin' underneath your feet." The song is about King Phillip. My friend mark thought I said "I'm the Kraken underneath your feet." Do you know what a Kraken is? It's way cooler than 'crackin'. From now on I'm saying Kraken. Or not.

What have we learned? Not a whole lot.
PK

Song: Somewhere I Have Never Travelled

this is a song i wrote for class, but i really like it. i am playing the piano, and my dear friend elizabeth hanley steiner is singing. it is set to part of an e. e. cummings poem of the same title, which is also the first line of the poem, like all his other poems. anyway, it is one of my favorites, but i especially wanted to set this one because of the subtle structural and thematic repetitions which i thought would work well for a song. it was kind of long, so i only used part of it. not very kosher of me. but the parts i took out are about flowers and snow, which in my opinion are way lamer metaphors for love than travelling. but i am not as famous as e. e. cummings so he probably knows better. anyway, it is a really sweet love poem, about one of those quiet nearly inarticulable moments of intense perception of something beautiful. hope this is a good antidote to paul's (moft goode and trewe) rant. life sucks, but some things are nice.

KS

Somewhere I Have Never Travelled.mp3

Demo: A Whole New Third World

I know we've skirted around the issue for a while here at the Ragged Blog, but its time to own up. The phones are ringing and everyone wants to know; where does Ragged Claws go to find inspiration? What is it that drives you? What angers you? What's your message? I'm going to keep the media guessing on the other three and focus on the third question right now. I got off work today around 5 pm and have to return for a work meeting at 10. No, no, its nothing like that. I work at a restaurant that sells soup. Soup, and nothing else. It's called the soupbox. You should stop by some time. Really, its a ton of fun.

Speaking of things that drive me to drink, I've spent the past 3 hours wandering around one of Chicago's many thinly veiled wastelands known as Lakeview East. From the last few hours, I've compiled a list of things that frustrate me. They don't just erk me, or annoy me. They strike me as evil. Not the evil that we like to block out of our heads and pretend doesn't exist. I'm talking about the evil that is so sly and swift that it creeps into our lives and convinces us that things are actually pretty great and we should look on the bright side, while it silently sucks out our souls and eventually shapes our way of life. Let me explain a little;

The Chicago Transit Authority: I only have $1.50 in my pocket and need to get to work. I'm forced to go take out money from an ATM (the cta doesn't take cards), buy something from the gas station (the cta doesn't give change) and then pay 2.25 to ride 3 miles on a train that is running late (the cta is horribly unreliable). The technology to offer unlimited passes everywhere and purchasable with a credit card was invented at least 20 years ago. The cta chooses not to use it because they make more money this way. Thanks for lookin' out, Chicago. I appreciate it.

Small Businesses that make me feel guilty: That's wonderful that you are privately owned. However, nobody's dog needs organic home-made baked goods. Sustainable living is not sustainable if it doubles the cost of something most people don't want and can't afford anyway. Finally, I think I can live a full and healthy life, having never consumed wheat grass, but thanks for the tip.

Clothing Store Parties: This is an oxymoron. Unabashed materialism and eerily soft t-shirts and jeans that cost $100 just because of some crooked/urban-ish/graffiti-esque logo are no cause for celebration. Never.

Citibank Student Loans: Citibank calls me more than any of my friends or family members. Nobody who loaned $17,000 to a college-age future-alcoholic music major should expect payment or any of my respect. $25 million dollars from tax-payers and I can't get one late-fee taken away. Have you no shame, Citigroup?

Taxing my vices: The cigarette tax has now expanded to include tobacco as well. This means that a pouch of rolling tobacco cost $4.50 yesterday at the 7eleven by my work and today it cost $8.50. I know its just cigarettes, but it elicited a deep sigh of resignation on my part as I coughed up the money.

The third world: It's there. So are all these things. [dissonance]

These are just little things, but I can't shake the feeling sometimes that I just don't meld with the city I'm living in. I don't really want to start an argument with business owners about the merits of their products or start bombing banks, so instead I channel my frustration through songs and words. It seems a little childish sometimes. Anyway, here's a little song I recorded on the little talk-back mic on my laptop. It's not as ironic as it sounds.

p.s. While I was working one day a bum walked into the soupbox and asked if I wanted to buy a homemade banjo for 3 dollars. I said yes. It was half a coconut on a stick with a bunch of wires tied to it that more or less twanged when you hit them. I don't know if he actually made it, but it seemed fated. Anyhow, that's what comes in at the end of this song. I just cranked up some phony distortion on the track.

PK

A whole new third world.mp3

Song: Lengthen your stride

Tomorrow (Thursday, March 26th) we are playing at the Elbo Room here in Chicago. We're playing with two violinists from Kimberly's string quartet (The Sleeping Bear Quartet). Tiffany and Emi are amazing and it's going to be pretty epic should you choose to attend. We're playing a new song for us, though its from a few years back. I wrote this while I was in Thin Cities and we played it on our last tour though never recorded it. Maybe once we record a real version of it, I'll tell the back story. It's pretty amusing and only slightly charming, but worth hearing. Anyway, I was kind of obsessed with key changes of a third (the song works its way from F to Db and then to D minor) and I wanted to write a string quartet version of the song. I added an intro and a couple transition parts and the ending changed from being a sort of dance break to a more dirge-y thing, but that's cool I guess. Yeah, so that happened and then I found myself playing with string players again and figured why not do the song with the quartet. High art (strings etc.) and low art (songs w/ dance breaks) merging to make . . . medium art (strings + dirge breaks + overly serious lyrics diluted with irony). Whatever, point is I've had this little arrangement sitting around for a while and we'll probably play it tomorrow night. Only if you come though.
Here's a recording of the string quartet version of Lengthen Your Stride. Some Lawrence University pals Amelia, Skyler, Daphne, and Lindsey are playing the strings. You can hear me sitting nervously off to the side of the stage.

PK

01 Lengthen Your Stride.mp3