Cara Jean Wahlers: Press

2010 in Review: Local roots

Posted by Rob Nichols on Wed, Dec 29, 2010 at 1:00 PM

Best local album: Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido, Goodnight Charlotte
How did this quiet, intelligent, duet-like release from an acoustic guitar player and cello player get to the top of my roots-rock/Americana list already brimming with worthy candidates? And especially from a guy (me) who unabashedly thrills at the gritty side of loud guitars, drums and the Hammond B-3? It happened because Wahlers's hauntingly beautiful music and lyrics evoke black-and-white movies and Grover Parido's cello quietly cuts into your heart.
Other favorites: Bobbie Lancaster, S/T; Scott Kellogg, Silver In Their Veins; Rusty Bladen, Homegrown Treasures, Jethro Easyfields, Bloodletting

Best non-local album: Paul Thorn, Pimps & Preachers
A truthful, soulful, storytelling writer in the John Hiatt mold who brings a seen-it-all voice to the songs, and can still make them rock. Thorn creates goosebumps with only his acoustic guitar and lyrics. Gumbo blues mixes with moments of straight ahead rock and roll, and usually with a lyric that twists and turns its way into your ear. The title cut offers Thorn's ironic take on right and wrong.
Other favorites: Alejandro Escovedo, Street Songs of Love; Tom Petty, Mojo; Justin Townes Earle, Harlem River Blues; Mic Harrison and The High Score, Great Commotion; Kid Rock, Born Free; Jamey Johnson, The Guitar Song; The Gaslight Anthem, American Slang; Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, S/T

Favorite NUVO interview: Charlie Daniels
We talked via cell as he sat in his tour bus outside an Oklahoma concert hall. The country music legend gave thoughtful answers and was unfailingly polite. It felt like an interview with someone who knew his place in country music was secure. Was he political? Not party-specific; more idea-based. He pointed out the good and bad on both sides, despite his reputation as a right wing-leaning fiddle player. But we mostly talked music and concerts. Daniels has been on the road for almost 50 years. He just has knowledge, man. It was like interviewing Willie Nelson's younger, non-stoner brother. When it was all done, he said, “Thanks," and remarked he was "going to go exercise.”
Other favorites: Rev. Peyton, former (and returning?) Mellencamp guitar player Larry Crane, Truth and Salvage Co.'s Tim Jones

Best show: Truth & Salvage Co. at Birdy's
Without question, my favorite show of 2010, and a small club opportunity for Indy to see the crazy-talented band of players who channel the rural rock and woodsy harmonies of The Band more than any other influence. The boys slide in some pre-"Hotel California" Eagles sounds and have a healthy tendency to play Black Crowes-influenced weedy rock and roll. The unmistakable connection between musicians on stage pushed the Birdy's show to become musically magical. I interviewed singer and guitar player Tim Jones a week before the show, and the once Bloomington-based leader of Old Pike, now California man, had a throwback spirit that oozed through my cell phone. He talked of his love of music, love of playing gigs and love for his band. It certainly proved truthful, and translated into the best show of the year.
Other favorites: The Gaslight Anthem at The Vogue, Elizabeth Cook at Stadium Tavern, John Mellencamp at Hinkle Fieldhouse

Best album you probably didn’t hear: Southside Johnny, Pills and Ammo
The 2010 record from the "other" Jersey guy (sorry Jon Bon Jovi) makes a case for the legend that is Asbury Park music. Southside Johnny Lyon has been playing music for more than 40 years. He’s to be applauded for making an album like this which is full of retro vibe and new energy. Southside and the Jukes have a reputation for being a consistent live act, and Lyon has remained true to his don’t-mess-with-me, “ah, fuggedaboutit” stage persona. This is his best album since the glory days. Warm production, vocal shouts and the freakin' Jukes horns. Nice.
Other Forgotten Favorites: Peter Wolf, Midnight Souvenirs; John Prine, In Person & On Stage; John Hiatt, The Open Road

Tags: cara jean wahlers, grover parido, goodnight charlotte, paul thorn, pimps & preachers, charlie daniels, truth & salvage co, tim jones, southside johnny, pills and ammo, year in review, Feature

Ladies Night: Writers Round at Locals Only

On Saturday, singer-songwriters Kim Taylor, Kate Lamont, Cara Jean Wahlers, and Bobbie Lancaster will participate in a Nashville-style songwriters round at Locals Only. The show represents the first time Cincinatti musician Kim Taylor has performed as a solo artist in Indy and it could possibly be the last time Indy native Kate Lamont will perform in Indy for a long while, as she’s in the process of relocating to San Francisco.

If you haven’t heard of Kim Taylor, odds are you’ve heard her soulful, country- and folk-inspired tunes on T.V. shows like “Justified,” “Flashpoint,” “Smallville,” “Army Wives,” “One Tree Hill” and others. And if you listen to pop or country music, you’ve probably already heard songs that she’s co-written; she’s collaborated with songwriters who write for artists like Lee Anne Womack and Miley Cyrus and she’s soon heading to Epic Records to showcase some of her latest work.

The recent ascension of producer L.A. Reid to the CEO position at Epic has opened up songwriting opportunities for Taylor. One of Epic’s A&R’s with whom she’s been friends for years has a close relationship with Reid, a music business connection which could potentially result in Taylor writing full-time for some of Epic’s artists.

“That’s a whole world I’ve been trying to nudge my way into for a while,” said Taylor. “I’ve been making my own way with my songs for a couple of years, but I get really excited working with other artists; that’s kind of my goal.”

Taylor and Lamont met in 2010 through Over the Rhine drummer Devin Ashley when Taylor was touring with the band. Since then, Lamont has been working as one of Taylor’s back-up singers. Though their individual musical styles are pretty differentµTaylor plays folk- and country-inspired pop, Lamont is more R&B-influencedµboth artists agree their voices are complimentary.

“Our voices blend really well together,” said Taylor in an interview last week. “There are tonal similarities, and I tend to be a pretty husky singer, while she has a more crystal-clear, pitch-perfect voice.”

The two haven’t co-written anything as yet, though Taylor says they’ve discussed the idea.

“It’ll be a little harder now that she’s moving to San Francisco,” joked Taylor.

Lamont has played in a number of different bands since 1999 including Fuzz, which she founded with Devin Ashley, Mab Lab and Blueprint Music, before releasing her first solo album After the Traffic in 2010. After releasing her latest EP Quality at the Broad Ripple Music Fest, she says she still has a full album’s length worth of material that she’s written with Ashley. She's currently in the process of recording, as she moves out to the West Coast.

Having worked and played music in the Indianapolis area for most of her adult life, Lamont is hoping the move to San Francisco will enable her to gain access to the film industry, where she hopes to write music on commission for film and T.V. She says the move was prompted in part by her friendship with Taylor.

“Kim Taylor is thriving in [the film and TV] world right now,” said Lamont. “She’s kind of my inspiration.”

Also at the songwriters round will be Indy’s own Cara Jean Wahlers and Bloomington-based Bobbie Lancaster. Wahlers’ debut album, Goodnight Charlotte (2010), which she recorded with cellist Grover Parido, was voted Best Local Roots Album this year by NUVO and has gained national attention from press outlets like NYC’s Village Voice. She and Parido also wrote the score for the award-winning 2010 independent film Paradise Recovered, which was filmed in Southern Indiana.

“Kate and Bobbie and I have been performing in close proximity to each other for years, and have shared bills several times, but we've not been on stage together, the three of us, really ever,” said Wahlers. “I'm really excited to welcome Kim Taylor to town, too. She's got a great voice and great songs, and it's a lot of fun sitting in a line with other writers, trading songs and sharing stories.”

Lancaster has released two solo albums and two children’s albums. Her most recent release, Live, came out this year. A regular on the local circuit, she’s recently appeared in Tim Grimm’s Hoosier Dylan, Springsteen, Hank & Johnny Tribute shows, as well as the John Prine tribute show, Pure Prine. She’s also currently at work on an album with the Millbranch Theory and a series of children’s books.

“I really respect Bobbie's music and energy. She's an absolute joy to be around and to share the stage with,” said Wahlers, of Lancaster.

With such a stellar line-up, the night promises to be the best showcase of female singer-songwriters to come to Indianapolis a long while.

“We’re really honored to have Kim playing at Locals Only,” said Lamont. “Cara Jean and Bobbie are both quality songwriters. That’s why we’re doing this Songwriters in the Round; because we’re not just singers, but [also] songwriters.”

Lamont said she and the other ladies will be playing stripped-down sets; she with her beloved Fender-Rhodes piano and the others with their guitars.

“Kim will probably play my piano as well,” she adds, with a hopeful tone.

Ten top local songs

Posted by Scott Shoger on Tue, Dec 28, 2010 at 2:23 PM

About a month and a half back, Dan Fahrner at Musical Family Tree asked me to pick my ten favorite songs of the year by local artists. And two weeks after his deadline, I turned in this list. They remain some of my favorite songs, though I could add about 20 more. Over at Musical Family Tree, you can read picks by movers and shakers in the local music world enlisted with the same task, and download the mixtape that collates all of our choices, which features plenty of artists featured on my list, but only one of my favorite songs.

Liz Janes — "Up from Down," Say Goodbye
Lovely, concise word painting, Janes’s un-centered, soulful vocals matched by restless electronics and playful, skittering guitar by Chris Schlarb.

We Are Hex — "Birthplace of the Mystics," Hail the Goer
A screeching synth saws as Jilly Weiss howls about life in a wasteland that might be located in our city’s post-industrial zones. Angry, dissatisfied art punk.

Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band — "Redbuds," The Wages
A reflection on aging (“I’m older now than the start of this song”) with perfect momentum and texture, washboard, harmonica and drums gently pushing the Rev. towards maturity.

Time for Three — "Hide and Seek," Three Fervent Travelers
Only one member (Zach De Pue) of the classical-soloist-caliber trio lives locally, but the group is in residence with the ISO — and this is an achingly pretty reading of the Imogen Heap song.

Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido — "Orange Blossoms," Goodnight Charlotte
It’s all about the details — the orange blossoms, sure, but also morning breath that reminds of Canadian beer and a jar of fireflies.

Frank Glover — "Modern Times," Abacus
Unfairly excerpted from a thoughtful, album-length work, but a stand-out for an insistent industrial rhythm that can’t quite dehumanize Glover’s sax.

The Maple Trio — "Octopi," Samara
The outstanding, if somewhat elusive, string trio features cellist Parido on a track with a hard-sawing, mock-dramatic opening. Parido’s second appearance on this list.

Everything Now — "Imagine 2040," Laminar Excursion Monthly EP
The latter picks are imperfect but fun, this one a countrified look into the future along the lines of “In the Year 2525” from a Crossroads of America EP of the month series.

Marmoset — "Doo Wop"
Side A of a cassingle on Joyful Noise has Jorma Whittaker crooning an anti-soul ballad fractured by social anxiety.

Burnt Ones — "Gonna Listen to T Rex (All Night Long)," Black Teeth & Golden Tongues
A catchy, simple, insistent ’60s-style pop song covered in a thick blanket of fuzz, recorded and released before the band moved west.

The Best of 2010: Top 10 Local Albums
10:37 AM, Dec 23, 2010 |

http://www.gannettonline.com/external/scripts/momslikeme/?siteid=5588

Written by David Lindquist

1. Margot & the Nuclear So and So's, "Buzzard"

While a band's reinvention serves as this album's theme, vocalist-songwriter Richard Edwards retains a wealth of positives from old-school Margot. He's willing to be an unpleasant narrator in the name of delivering truths (see "Claws Off" and "Lunatic, Lunatic, Lunatic"), and jagged electric guitars seamlessly supplant exotic arrangements of the past.
2. We Are Hex, "Hail the Goer"

Recipe for a spooky, minimalist masterpiece: The volatile howl of Jill Weiss plus the strident rhythms of Brandon Beaver, mixed with Matt Hagan's shiny guitar licks, splattered against Trevor Wathen's bass lines of dread.
3. Cara Jean Wahlers, "Goodnight Charlotte"

Lyrical gems punctuate this pure-voiced collection of folk songs. "Sunburned shoulders and sticky hands, we ate steak out of lawn chairs," paints one vivid picture, and multi- instrumentalist Grover Parido crafts engaging sonic textures throughout.
4. The Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band, "The Wages"

Indiana's ambassadors of country blues scored their first underground hit single with "Clap Your Hands," and the rest of "The Wages" encapsulates the Big Damn Band's good advice: Do your best, mind your manners, and listen to the Rev's red-hot resonator guitar.
5. The Fuglees, "F-Bomb"

The ever-irreverent Fuglees stick to two topics the trio knows best: "Relationships and rockin'," as vocalist-bass player Andy Kuhn says. Guitarist-vocalist Erich Anderson is responsible for "F-Bomb's" signature state-of-the-male address, "Chump."
6. Mic Sol & Ace One, "The Light"

It's a blast to try to keep pace with the pop-culture riffing heard on this collaboration of hip-hop standouts. Hundreds of inventive rhymes are matched to retro soul and funk samples.
7. Healing Sixes, "Bluejay"

The fourth album by Healing Sixes is a collection of bruising guitar workouts bookended by two impressive departures: unplugged opener "Bluejay on the Wrenhouse" and closing ballad "That's Alright."

8. Hero Jr., "Hero Jr."

Beyond being a radio-ready overview of modern guitar rock, "Hero Jr." exhibits its share of wit. "There's a time and a place where your best chance is your worst case," Evan Haughey sings.
9. The Cocaine Wolves, "Royal Feast"

Boasting the swing of Thin Lizzy and the aggression of early Metallica, the Cocaine Wolves brandish Muncie pride on tracks such as "Balls City" -- a title that refers to the industrialist Ball brothers of yesteryear.
10. Andy D, "Songs in the Key of Magic"

Fans of Andrew WK and Lady Gaga should step into this party-starting time machine that's obsessed with the '80s.

Embracing the season of the year-end list
8:16 PM, Dec. 26, 2010

For music journalists, December is the most judgmental month. Year-end lists must be whittled, refined and slotted.

My listing happily increased by one this year, as Musical Family Tree assembled its first-ever “Favorite Songs of 2010″ online mixtape. The four-member voting panel included MFT’s Dan Fahrner, My Old Kentucky Blog’s Craig “Dodge” Lile, Nuvo’s Scott Shoger and myself. The results and the songs can be viewed and downloaded (for free) here.

I’m also pleased to be a longtime contributor to the Village Voice Pazz & Jop poll — a survey of more than 1,000 critics that’s been around since the 1970s.

My albums ballot for Pazz & Jop:

1. Kanye West, “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.”

2. Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s, “Buzzard.”

3. The Black Keys, “Brothers.”

4. We Are Hex, “Hail the Goer.”

5. The Hold Steady, “Heaven is Whenever.”

6. Cara Jean Wahlers, “Goodnight Charlotte.”

7. Arcade Fire, “The Suburbs.”

8. The Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band, “The Wages.”

9. Grinderman, “Grinderman 2″ (Band leader Nick Cave is pictured at left).

10. Fuglees, “F-Bomb.”

Pazz & Jop compiles a year-end list for songs, and I admit to having a difficult time coming up with 10 tunes worthy of inclusion. (After submitting my ballot, I realized that “Empire State of Mind” took top Pazz & Jop honors in 2009. Still, I doubt I’m the only critic to vote for this song in consecutive years. If given the chance for a do-over, I’d sub Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” for “Empire”).

My ballot: Lady Gaga, “Bad Romance”; Cee-Lo Green, “F— You!”; Jay-Z & Alicia Keys, “Empire State of Mind”; the Black Keys, “Tighten Up”; Miranda Lambert, “Only Prettier”; the Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band, “Clap Your Hands”; Sade, “Soldier of Love”; John Mellencamp, “Right Behind Me”; the Hold Steady, “Rock Problems”; and the Whigs, “In the Dark.”

Finally, today’s Sunday Star published year-end lists related to news, sports and arts & entertainment.

I contributed a Top 5 list of concerts I reviewed in 2010. If it were a Top 7 list, the Indy Jazz Fest performance by Preservation Hall Jazz Band and the Lilith Fair appearance by Mary J. Blige wouldn’t be on the outside looking in. Check out the Top 5 here.

My Top 10 list of Indiana recordings made The Star, too. I plucked five albums from this list for Pazz & Jop, and the other five can be discovered here.

Friendly Folk
By Steven Furlow
sfurlow@thetimes24-7.com

Saturday saw the opening of the Bluestone Folk School's 2001 concert series featuring Cara Jean Whalers, (bottom) who too command of the capacity crowd at Noble Coffee and Tea in downtown Noblesville. Wahlers joined musician Evan Slusher, (top) for a song during his set.

That's right folks...

We went there. We created a list of our favorite local songs of 2010. By "we", I mean: Dan Fahrner, Dodge from My Old Kentucky Blog, Scott Shoger from Nuvo and Dave Lindquist from the Indy Star. We each listed our favorite local songs from the year (at the bottom) and then compiled a master list which is presented directly below. This list is not a categorization of anything having to do with the word "best", but rather a collection of our favorite releases of 2010. Enjoy!



Download Here - http://bit.ly/MFTfav

Stream Here - http://musicalfamilytree.com/band/mft_mixtape



Oreo Jones - Good Times
Cara Jean Wahlers - Black Dog
We Are Hex - Cutter/Giver
Big Damn Band - Clap Your Hands
Margot - Lunatic, Lunatic, Lunatic
Andy D - Bump in the Nite
Kate Lamont - Surplus
Frank Glover — "Modern Times," Abacus
Burnt Ones - Bury Me in Smoke
Hero Jr. - Shake It Out



This was a "Banner" year for Indiana music within almost every genre imaginable and we at MFT were elated at the chance to listen to and catalog as much as we possibly could. Let's take a look back, shall we?



Oreo Jones - Good Times - Oreo Jones literally exploded onto the scene early in the year with a fun-filled EP colored with 90's nostalgia that gave the crew behind Heavy Gun Blog an opportunity to flex their promotional muscle far beyond the community they've built from scratch. A few hours and a few hundred tweets after the release of "Good Times", the song had catapulted to the top of national bloggregator Hype Machine.



Cara Jean Wahlers - Black Dog - Cara Wahlers has been performing solo as a singer-songwriter in addition to her band, 19Clark25, for several years, but 2010 saw the huge pay-off from all of that experience in the form of one of the most elegant narrative records this town has seen for some time. On "Goodnight Charlotte", Wahlers' excellent melding of prose and melody is truly complimented and elevated by the cello work of collaborator Grover Parido. Listen to the entire record here in the archive.



We Are Hex - Cutter/Giver - We Are Hex may have been THE Indiana indie rock band to truly knock it out of the park this year. They spent the last few years building their live show into a startling and epic experience and in 2010 their recorded material finally caught up. They released full length "Hail the Goer" this summer on Roaring Colonel Records to a whirlwind of local and even national praise. Listen to the whole record in the archive.



Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band - Clap Your Hands - While the Rev never seems to actually slow down, 2010 saw his Big Damn Band speed up tremendously: full length "The Wages" released in May and the band embarked immediately on the Warped Tour which saw them playing to their largest crowds yet. Don't worry, they've played about every American city in between since.



Margot and the Nuclear So and So's - Lunatic, Lunatic, Lunatic - Margot may have seen the most immediate success this year with an interesting strategy.. They released their 3rd full length, Buzzard, on their own label and essentially managed the entire operation internally. With a lineup change and a huge national tour, odds are that our once-hometown indie rock heroes (now based in Chicago, unfortunately) saw some real income from this release. It doesn't hurt that the record is great, either.



Andy D - Bump in the Night - Andy D is an absolute blast, plain and simple. Not only is he an excellent showman with some of the most clever and hilarious lyrical content out there, but he's also a humble and jovial human being. If you have yet to see him live, do yourself and a favor and give into his fantasy world full of unicorns and neon mullets. You won't be sorry.



Kate Lamont - Surplus - You may know Kate from her previous projects, Mab Lab and Blueprint Music, or even from the Earth House Collective. You may not know exactly how talented she is if you haven't yet listened to her excellent solo debut, After the Traffic. It's a mix of soulful down-tempo gems that utilize perhaps the most powerful musical combo: an amazing voice and well written songs. Her live show is the true icing on the cake when she brings drummer Devon Ashley along.



Frank Glover - Modern Times - MFT rarely pushes beyond rock and punk, but in order to truly grasp Indiana's full spectrum of musical culture and heritage we must acknowledge Jazz (along with SO many additional genres that aren't represented here). Frank Glover is an example of a contemporary jazz artist pushing international boundaries from the confines of central Indiana. His new record, Abacus, is a wonderful amalgamation of jazz, fusion and classical composition that's represented within three movements.



Burnt Ones - Bury Me in Smoke - Burnt Ones are relative newcomers to the local indie rock scene that played their cards smart. They released a strong full length, "Black Teeth Golden Tongues", this summer, went on tour, got plenty of local and national attention and then moved to San Fransisco before anyone could get enough. Let's hope they can repeat this success on the west coast.



Hero Jr. - Shake it Out - These guys also seemed to stumble on a formula for local success right out of the gate: write a strong, catchy record, promote like hell and then play only the biggest shows you can get your hands on. It's only a matter of time before X103 takes them under their wing.



Dodge:
Andy D - Hey Tina!
Slothpop - One (Laundromatinee.com session)
Burnt Ones - Gonna Listen To T.Rex All Night Long
Burnt Ones - Bury Me In Smoke
We Are Hex - Cutter/Giver
jasha - The Devil's Own
Dreamers Of The Ghetto - Phone Call
Vacation Club - Gettin' Man
Margot & The Nuclear So & Sos - Lunatic, Lunatic, Lunatic
Jookabox - Eyes Of The Fly
Oreo Jones - Good Times
Neon Love Life - Whiskey



Dave Lindquist:
Margot -- "Claws Off"
We Are Hex -- "Gold/Silver"
Cara Jean Wahlers -- "Black Dog"
Big Damn Band -- "Everything's Raising"
Fuglees -- "Chump"
Mic Sol & Ace One -- "Royal Heist"
Healing Sixes -- "Superhot"
Hero Jr. -- "Shake It Out"
The Cocaine Wolves -- "Showstopper"
Andy D -- "Bump in the Nite"


Dan Fahrner:
Prizzy Prizzy Please - Large Hadron Collider
Kaiser Cartel - Ready to Go
Bears of Blue River - Crayola
Mystikos Quintet - Fem Blanc (Kaiton Slusher Remix)
Margot - Lunatic
Jascha - The Devil’s Own
Rodeo Ruby Love - America’s Funniest Home Videos
TJ Reynolds (ft. Sarah Grain) - Sincerity
Kate Lamont - Surplus
Old Flames - Yoko Box
We Are Hex - Cutter/Giver


Scott Shoger:
Liz Janes — "Up from Down," Say Goodbye
We Are Hex — "Birthplace of the Mystics," Hail the Goer
Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band — "Redbuds," The Wages
Time for Three — "Hide and Seek," Three Fervent Travelers
Cara Jean Wahlers — "Orange Blossoms," Goodnight Charlotte
Frank Glover — "Modern Times," Abacus
The Maple Trio — "Octopi," Samara
Everything Now — "Imagine 2040," Laminar Excursion Monthly EP
Marmoset — "Doo Wop"
Burnt Ones — "Gonna Listen to T Rex (All Night Long)," Black Teeth & Golden Tongues

After singer/songwriter Cara Jean Wahlers saw cellist Grover Parido perform with Blueprint Music a few years ago, she talked to him about working together. It led to the duo's collaboration on Goodnight Charlotte, Wahler's new 12-song collection, featuring her vocals and guitar, and Parido's cello, piano and bass.

It's a stunningly beautiful set of quiet-yet-engaging songs anchored by Wahler's in-you-ear vocals and Parido's achingly gorgeous sound. Whether his contribution is part of the background, or a solo that creeps from the background and engulfs the listener, his playing is pointed and pretty, soulful and satisfying.

The album is music for your head and your heart. Think "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down" for the 2010's.

The opening song, "Chinatown," reveals the gifts both players bring. Wahlers is a cinematic writer who builds scenes in songs that a listener's mind can see. Rain on a face. Trinkets in a pocket. Throughout, Parido adds weight to chord changes, and slides forward when warranted.

Wahlers best moments come when she drops details on the listener.

On "Orange Blossom", she sings how "pine needles sting my bare feet."

On "California", she compares a love to AM radio, both "barely able to stay in tune".

On "Mark's On The Earth", she sings: "I am tired of trying to prove that I am beautiful, burning for you. I am tired of trying to prove that I am good enough - broken hearts can burn too"

Wahlers works inside a pleasing Joni Mitchell/Ricki Lee Jones/Emmylou Harris template - more West coast than rural - though a hint of Indiana in her voice helps anchor a sound more organic than shiny. Parido's piano visits regularly and then backs off. There's space in the album's soundscape for instruments to appear and then recede - a sympathetic mix that provides room for voice, piano, cello and Wahler's anchoring guitar work.

"Black Dog, "about falling in love with Steven and his dog, may be the best song on the album. And yes, Wahlers references the Led Zeppelin song near the end of her tune, supported by Parido's Zep-like lines.

Not sure if anyone will make a smarter, lovelier record in 2010. Wahlers and Parido have created an intelligent and gentle record, hearfelt and soulful in it's quiet beauty.

Celebrated Sounds

By David Lindquist on August 05, 2010

Cara Jean Wahlers' new album, Goodnight Charlotte, includes carefully crafted, insightful songs about mature relationships.(Photo provided by www.carajeanwahlers.com)
Indiana album review

Cara Jean Wahlers

"Goodnight Charlotte"

www.carajeanwahlers.com

In a nutshell: "Goodnight Charlotte" is a measured, pure-voiced collection of grown-up relationship songs.

Fan finder:
Anyone who appreciates the literate observations of Carrie Newcomer and the intense truths of Lucinda Williams should give "Charlotte" a spin.

That's a keeper:
Wahlers' song "Black Dog" employs memory to create a captivating link between the Led Zeppelin tune of the same name and a bygone college romance.

Didn't see it coming:
The album's packaging credits "Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido" as makers of this music, but the value of Parido's contributions on cello still manages to surprise. Far from a predictable singer-songwriter-with-an-acoustic-guitar project, "Charlotte" delivers plenty of sonic textures to maintain a listener's interest.

Selling points:
The lyrics of "Charlotte" prove that details are more universal than generalities. Three gems: "Sunburned shoulders and sticky hands, we ate steak out of lawn chairs" from the song "Orange Blossoms"; "A hundred paperback novels stacked up by your bed, for a world you prefer 'cause it's all in your head"; and "We'll dance like we are still in seventh grade," from "Chinatown."

Paradise Recovered: Heartland premiere for Indiana film
by Scott Shoger

Andie got out when she was 18, and headed straight off to school, determined to figure out just what it was she escaped. Esther, well, she just got kicked out, and things are looking a little more rocky.

Their stories are similar, but don't assume that Andie Redwine's script for the new film Paradise Recovered is auto-biographical. Yes, she left a fundamentalist, cult-like Christian church when she came of age. And her film depicts a lead character, Esther, whom we meet right around the time that she's been excommunicated from a similarly repressive church, and left to fend for herself on the streets of Bloomington.

But Redwine, a writer, producer and stay-at-home mother of four living near Bedford, says the film she wrote and co-produced is based on not one story, but many: the story of her own quest for knowledge and self-identity, the oral histories of those coping with spiritual abuse and trying to adjust to the outside world, the Biblical parable of the Good Samaritan.

It's also the story of an ultra low-budget feature by a first-time screenwriter — and a director, Storme Wood, helming his full-length film — finding success in established festivals. The 96-minute dramatic film is an official selection of this year's Heartland Film Festival, where it will make its world premiere. It will screen later this month at the screenwriter-focused Austin Film Festival, and will appear on a Los Angeles screen in November as part of the social justice-centric Film Courage Interactive series.

Austin is calling Paradise Recovered one of its own — Wood and some of the crew and cast hail from Austin, and the film is part of this year's Austin Screens lineup, the local component of the Austin Film Festival's program. But Indiana could also stake its claim. The majority of the film was shot on location in Bloomington and southern Indiana, including a closing scene in Indiana University's Showalter Fountain. And the soundtrack is almost entirely supplied by Indiana-based artists, including local singer-songwriter Cara Jean Wahlers.

The way Redwine tells it, Paradise Recovered was 11 years in the making, and the natural outgrowth of her attempt to understand the fundamentalist Christian organization in which she grew up. Among other goals she has for the film, she hopes that it will reach people who are in the same situation as Esther — cast out of a church without job skills, social support or an adequate understanding of the outside world.

A Prophetic Watchman

Paradise Recovered opens with a day-in-the-life sequence chronicling the times of Esther (Heather del Rio), a young woman completely devoted to a family (not her own) and her church, a fundamentalist religious group named Prophetic Watchman Industries International. She flyers for the church, stapling up hectoring calls to listen to a church service broadcast on local television. She acts as nanny to a younger child, teaching her the story of The Good Samaritan via flannelgraph. She attends a service held in a local VFW Hall, where a sermon by a modern-day, fire-and-brimstone shouter is supplemented by a video message recorded from on high by the church's founder and lawgiver, William F. Vanderbilt.

And her life is dictated by rules — arbitrary, capricious, extra-Biblical rules, almost all of them thou shalt nots rather than thou shalls. Thou shalt not eat pork. Women shall not teach nor assume positions of power in the church. Thou shalt not swim; thou shalt not imbibe alcohol; thou shalt not watch movies.

The organization is fictional, a distillation of 18 different Christian groups, according to Redwine. Her list of groups, which she declines to reveal, citing legal concerns, includes those ranging "from the very large, you-would-recognize-the-name groups, to the small little church on the corner where someone told me, 'This preacher is really crazy. It's just really high-demand; you should really check this out.'"

Redwine emphasizes that her film considers only a certain slice of organizations that might be considered cults, explaining that cultic experiences aren't "limited to the Christian experience, but we couldn't cover every cult angle. So we chose the Christian experience because that's the one — I did anyway, in writing the script — because I felt like that's the one that most connected with audiences in the middle of America."

And of course, Redwine also ended up writing about the fundamentalist Christian experience because she has first-hand knowledge of it. She's been a member and a critic, and she's devoted her intellectual energies towards understanding why people might join these organizations.

Redwine: "A lot of people watch televangelists and they're like, 'Really? This is a charade.' But to someone who's desperate, who just lost somebody, who's up in the middle of the night and their defenses are down and they're watching this guy or woman, and this person seems to really be hitting them where they live, because they're good at it, then they kind of get hooked that way."
Esther (Heather del Rio) asks for forgiveness from her pastor (Andre Sensenig) and the congregation of her church in a still from "Paradise Recovered."

Living in tension

"I grew up in a group that I'd rather not name," says the Muncie-born Redwine, a funny, attention-deficient talker with an irrepressible positive energy that one imagines busting through any chains that would bind.

"My parents were young when they got married, and they were attracted to this group because it was a family, and there were a lot of people who cared about them. The people that I grew up with are some of the finest people who have ever walked: They are nice, kind, generous, giving, self-sacrificial, devout, loving. It's not them that I have the problem with."

Rather, "It's the people that orchestrated all of that to keep my parents giving them money, and then making everyone's salvation conditional upon whether or not you were following them."

And those conditions imposed upon members of Redwine's organization would change over time. Women were forbidden to wear makeup, until they weren't, after which time they were once again forbidden. Families were discouraged from vaccinating their children, although Redwine's mother went against the directive. Members were prohibited from seeking the services of a psychotherapist or psychologist. Redwine believes a close friend and church member who committed suicide could have benefited from mental health services.

"When I was 18, I left the group with the help of my friends," Redwine continues. "It wasn't for me. And it was very difficult, because I knew if I left, all those people I was telling you about wouldn't be allowed to talk to me."

But Redwine was never estranged from her family, and after several years, a loosening of church rules made it possible for her to contact church members who had previously cut off all communication. And she's careful to note that she was "fortunate" when compared to others, and didn't suffer the sort of physical or sexual abuse that she later discovered was inflicted on members of her same church.

And if some things were off-limits in Redwine's home, creative writing never was: "I was four years old when I wrote my first story. It was about Batman and Robin and Batgirl. And it went like this, 'One day, Batgirl was in the kitchen making soup. Robin didn't know. Batman didn't either. The end.' And then there was an extensive About the Author section, because clearly, that was the most important part."

St. Louis was the first stop for Redwine as she embarked on what she calls the "How Many Colleges Can You Go To Before You Actually Graduate Plan." She ended up living in a house with a couple of guys upon leaving the church, as does her character Esther. Philosophy was the first course of study, and in the attempt to counter the extra-biblical teachings of her youth with more mainstream theology, she attended seminary before she was through with her studies. The seminary was in Austin, which she found an appealing city: "It was a place where there were all these ideas, and people seemed very comfortable living in the tension between different faiths."

During those years at seminary, Redwine started researching her own experience, contributing to message board threads where people were comparing experiences. She eventually interviewed nearly a hundred men and women about their time in fundamentalist Christian groups, an experience that allowed her to see the similarties between authoritarian groups with ostensibly divergent philosophies.

And while her journey from the church to the outside world was without undue trauma, she sympathizes with those who don't have a support system, people like Esther who lack the skills necessary to adjust.

"If you're kicked out of the one place that's supposed to help you, and they said to you, 'If you ever leave this church you're going to become a drug addict or alcoholic...' The only thing you know to do in the world is go out and party and be self-destructive. You don't know how to live a life of balance that's healthy, because the world has been so black and white, and when you're thrust into the black, you think you have to start slamming shots."

Sahara Mart: the great equalizer

Talking with Redwine, one gets the feeling that, at a certain point in her life, she was going to tell the story of Paradise Recovered one way or another, and that it was just a matter of how. And the how began to take shape, as she relates it, when she was shopping at a health food store in Bloomington.

"I shop at a health food store because I'm vegan. So I was at Sahara Mart, and I saw this woman who was a Mennonite — she had the cap and the dress. I didn't really think much about it, and I stopped in the aisle. Then this guy walks up — he's dreaded out, tatted out — and he's standing next to her, and she asks him a question and he answered it. And I thought, that wouldn't happen in any other place in America other than a health food store, because they have that in common. And I thought that was an intriguing place to go."

Redwine puts that idea in the mouth of her character, Gabriel, who manages the film's version of Sahara Mart: "The point on the ideological spectrum where far-left bohemians and right-wing fundamentalists meet is a health food store."

And thus, the movie begins to roll along when Esther proposes that she might work at a health food store in order to raise money for the church. Worldviews collide when she establishes a relationship with her boss Gabriel (Dane Seth Hurlburt), a philosophy major who instantiates all the evils of the life of the mind for Esther. When Esther is kicked out of the house after being caught in a state of undress with her host family's demagogic son and branded a loose woman, Gabriel plays the Good Samaritan, and takes Esther in. Gabriel and his roommate Mark (Oliver Luke) initiate Esther in the "sins" of the world, introducing her to birthday parties, pork, dating and movies.

Redwine initially planned on telling the story of Paradise Recovered as a novel, but a high-school friend and producer, Dennis Hennelly, impressed upon her that she ought to write a film. Redwine countered to Hennelly: "'I don't really know anything about writing a screenplay.' And he said, 'Well, I do.' My first screenplay was dreadful, terrible, awful."

But Redwine had help from both Hennelly and Storme Wood, an Austin-area director whom Redwine had met while she lived in the city. At first, Redwine only asked Wood for help with the script. But stars aligned, and Wood agreed to direct. "I had been working on this project for about 10 years, and Storme had been looking for a feature to direct for about 10 years," Redwine says.

Wood sees a similar serendipity: "It was kind of like Andie wrote this script that was the movie I always wanted to make. It fit the style and the tone of the thing I always imagined would be great to do.

"I was always drawn to these movies that are stripped down and raw, about real people and real situations," Wood, a stay-at-home parent like Redwine, continues. "That part of this story really drew me in. The other part was that there was humor and life in this script. It was nice that it had this kind of life in there, even though it was about something that could have been really melodramatic."

Redwine was home schooling her four children while she wrote the film — she's careful to note that she didn't do so for ideological reasons, but rather because she wanted to establish an emotional connection with two children she and her husband had recently adopted. So she worked in her free moments: From 5 a.m. until the kids woke up around 7 a.m.; every other Saturday at a Starbucks in Bedford. She stole dialogue and character names while sitting at the coffee shop, taking some lines word-for-word from overheard conversations.

The script went through 27 revisions — all of them "purposeful," according to Redwine — before it was locked in as a shooting script.
Gabriel (left, Dane Seth Hurlburt) misdirects two church members, played by Austin Chittim and Wendy Zavaleta, who have come to reclaim lost parishioner Esther.

Avoiding heat stroke

The team originally planned to shoot in Austin. But a day spent by Wood and Redwine in the Indiana countryside changed their minds.

"Storme said, 'Andie, why don't we shoot here. It's beautiful,'" according to Redwine, whose list of reasons for why Southern Indiana was the perfect place to shoot the majority of the film includes: "A: It's beautiful; southern Indiana is gorgeous country. B: It's where I wrote the story, so that's interesting. But also there's all these little small towns around here that have great theaters that you can four-wall and do events. The other part is, there are a lot of people in Indiana that will go see a movie that was shot in Indiana, versus a movie that some writer from Indiana wrote that was shot in Austin. Austin people will go see a movie regardless, because they support independent film there."

The July 2009 shoot lasted 17 days altogether — 13 days in Bloomington, and an additional 4 in Austin, where interiors of Gabriel and his roommate Mark's house were filmed. For Redwine, they were the, "Longest 13 days in my life. It felt like two years."

With a $70,000 budget, there wasn't much room for error, or for extra help. The on-set crew was principally comprised of Wood, Redwine (who produced and evaluated performances during dailies), director of photography David Blue Garcia, who shot on a high-def RED camera provided by first assistant cameraman Julio Quintana, sound guy Jason Young and gaffer Michael Tambasco.

Wood, who has worked professionally in film and video since graduating from the University of Austin's film program in 2001, and was a camera assistant for another film screening at this year's Heartland, the suspense film The Presence, brought talents with him to the shoot that were well-suited to such an intense schedule.

"One of my strengths is managing the clock, and knowing that, if we want to have a movie, we have to shoot something. It's not going to be perfect, but if we don't start rolling now, we're going to get to the end of this and we're not going to have a movie."

He says the day of shooting at a VFW Hall in Oolitic, where scenes depicting Prophetic Watchman Ministry worship services were staged, was the most intense.

"We shot that in less than one day, and that was the hardest thing I've ever done, because we were shooting three scenes simultaneously with over a hundred extras... Being a small movie, we couldn't shut down the places that we went because they were doing us a huge favor by letting us shoot there. I was really praying that all those scenes would cut together, because I wasn't sure that we got everything we needed in all that hectic-ness."

Shooting in Austin was no less difficult, if for different reasons. Redwine: "It was the hottest summer in Austin on record, in July. At one point, it was 117 outside. So what do we do? We shoot in a house, we cut the air, we black tape the windows. Then, because it was a night scene, we shoot lights through the black plastic. We were going outside to get cool. During that four days, I lost like seven pounds. It was a sauna. My job as a producer was: Watch the performances and keep everyone from getting heat stroke."

Wood mentions a couple films as inspirations for the film's visual style: the Mexican road movie Y Tu Mama Tambien and the union-building classic Norma Rae.

"The way the camera is used is great, the way it's a character in the scene, and that shots will continue and reframe," he says of Norma Rae. "And there's really a sense of place in that movie, where you start in that factory and that town; you just get a real sense of what it's like to be there, and that was an inspiration to me for this movie."

When shooting and editing was complete, Redwine, who doesn't tend towards self-deprecation, was pleased with the results: "We're both very proud of the fact that we don't have to apologize for our lack of budget. We used what we had to tell the story."

And she's also committed towards a sustainable, fair business model: "Everybody got paid. Everyone that worked for us got paid. I was shocked — I gave everybody checks, and they were like, 'Thank you.' And I was like, 'You earned this. Why are you thanking me?' People don't pay people."

A Facebook reunion

Redwine took her idea about making Paradise Recovered an Indiana filma step further when it came time to compile the soundtrack. She decided to bring together, in her words, "independent filmmaking and independent music," by using the talents of as many Indiana-based artists as possible.

She started with a suggestion from a couple old college friends, Jeb Banner and PJ Christie of Small Box Design. Why not use Musical Family Tree, their web-based archive of Indiana music past and present, as a resource, they asked?

And so bands active on the Musical Family Tree site — Jookabox, Margot & the Nuclear So and So's, Sardina — made their way into the film. 20-somethings get down during a birthday party to Jookabox's "The One Thing." Shoppers stroll down the aisles of Sahara Mart to the music of Bloomington-based new age band Salaam.

But it took a little longer for Wood and Redwine to find a female musical voice they thought appropriate for the movie, a counterpart to Esther who could amplify and complicate what it was Esther is going through.

And then Redwine happened upon a high school friend, Cara Jean Wahlers, on Facebook. The two performed together in a string quartet while they attended Burris Academy in Muncie — Wahlers on bass, Redwine on violin. But they had lost touch since.

On a whim, she clicked through to Wahlers' site. And she was hooked. Redwine: "We had been looking for this voice for Esther, because it really is a narrative kind of film, and we're listening to this, and it's not like raw that it hurts to listen to, but there's definitely some passion there."

Wahlers initially agreed to allow the filmmakers to use one of her songs, but became more and more involved with the soundtrack as she reconnected with Redwine. Wood and Redwine came to Indianapolis to screen a rough cut for Wahlers in her living room.

And after the credits rolled, Wahlers registered disbelief: "You hear about cults and think, 'That could never be me.' I told Andie that and she said, 'No one ever does. And that's why it's often people exactly like you.' That sent a little shiver up my spine."

Wahlers and cellist Grover Parido came to score the film, contributing instrumental passages and three songs, including one, "I Have Always Loved You," which Wahlers wrote specifically for the film.

Wahlers: "I wanted 'I Have Always Loved You' to be about God and about Gabriel, spiritual and romantic love at the same time — with a little nod admittedly to Dolly Parton. I was Esther when I wrote that, as much as she was me."

Trying on new things

The team behind Paradise Recovered hopes to try more than one method to put their movie in front of viewers and consumers. First, the film-festival model, where they don't count on finding a distributor that will work miracles, but are open to finding a partner who can help share the burden. Then special events, roadshow screenings with live music that will allow the producers, according to Wood, "to make a night out of showing the movie." Then perhaps a small, rolling, art-film style release, followed by video-on-demand and DVD.

Finally, the producers hope that the film might serve as an education tool for counselors and ex-cult groups. Redwine hopes to use some of the movie's profits to create a small foundation that would allow those without sufficient resources to attend Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center, an Ohio-based residential center specializing in the treatment of those who have escaped from, using the Center's definitions, "high-demand religious groups" or "mind control/brainwashing cults."

Paradise Recovered may be structured around the story of the Good Samaritan, and it may occasionally favor characters who make choices that might bring them closer to the Christian faith (a late-scene baptism is staged as a celebratory, carefree experience; a reunion between Gabriel and his minister father sees the wayward son listening respectfully to his dad's grounded, Christian reading of the story's events).

Still, according to Redwine, "I never wanted to label this a Christian film, even though Storme and I do have faith, because then the people that I love who are artists are never going to watch it. I think the viewpoint of the film is tolerance. There are a lot of forces at work in our culture that want us to be polarized, namely because they profit from it."

And in the same vein — and we give you a spoiler alert here — Redwine didn't want to play up the story's sensationalist appeal, which might have allowed her movie to profit from fear in the same way as network TV news magazines or Lifetime-style movies. Esther's story is ultimately a hopeful one.

"We had an earlier version of the script where somebody didn't quite make it," Redwine explains. "It was edgier. I think I went for the positive because, if this intended audience is for ex-cult members, it's sort of like: Well, you don't have any choice but to go hang yourself now. I'd really like to show them that there is hope on the other side, and that it's OK: you can think, you can question, you can try to be the person you can be. You can try on different parts of your personality, and try on new things."

Paradise Recovered screens at 5:30 p.m., Oct. 16 and 7:45 p.m., Oct. 20 at AMC Showcase Indianapolis and at 8:15 p.m., Oct. 18 and 2 p.m., Oct. 21 at AMC Castleton Square.

Cara Jean Wahlers Releases Debut Album, Goodnight Charlotte

Indianapolis, IN--When Cara Jean Wahlers began putting together a collection of her original music in 2006, she soon realized that something was missing. “I knew I didn't want to just do it by myself,” Wahlers says, “but I also didn't want the typical rock band feel.” A year later, the Indiana-based singer/songwriter discovered what she was looking for when she watched veteran cellist Grover Parido perform with Blueprint Music at the Indianapolis Art Center's Riverfront Amphitheatre. “I was just really moved by him,” Wahlers recalls. “He's a very expressive cellist. with wonderful tone and sensibility.” Soon after, Parido joined Wahlers in the studio and the duo began recording Goodnight Charlotte, a hauntingly beautiful debut album that has moved critics and fans alike since its release this past summer. In fact, the album has landed in various 2010 Top 10 lists in Indianapolis and beyond—in the Indy Star, NUVO and Musical Family Tree. Wahlers was also mentioned as a “leader of the pack for 2011” by Dodge from tastemaker site My Old Kentucky Blog.

“(I am) not sure if anyone will make a smarter, lovelier record in 2010,” writes NUVO Newsweekly’s Rob Nichols of Goodnight Charlotte (Nichols just gave it his nod for best album of 2010). “Wahlers and Parido have created an intelligent and gentle record, heartfelt and soulful in its quiet beauty.” Indeed, the collaboration between the two musicians worked out better than either could have hoped, with Parido’s work on the cello, piano and bass seamlessly weaving its way throughout Wahlers’ delicate vocals and acoustic backdrop. “I think we've got a really interesting combination,” Parido says. “Cara's lyrics are very theatrical and visual. That lends itself to the style of cello I play. I'm able to underscore a lot of these images she's presenting.”

For Wahlers, who began playing music and writing songs at an early age, Goodnight Charlotte represents the next step in her promising career. A fourth-generation musician who’s played everything from the accordion and banjo to the auto harp and washboard, Wahlers has drawn comparisons to the likes of Joni Mitchell, Emmylou Harris and Lucinda Williams. Together with Parido, Wahlers also provided the score and three songs for the independent feature-length film, “Paradise Recovered,” which was recently released.

All in all, it’s been a memorable year for Wahlers and Parido, highlighted by the success of Goodnight Charlotte. “I wrote these songs almost in a woodshedding kind of situation, where I sort of shut out all the noises that aren't coming from inside of me,” Wahlers says. “It's very personal and I think that intimacy is reflected in the album.”

For more information, please visit www.carajeanwahlers.com.

LOU'S VIEWS: What to see at this year's Heartland Film Festival

No, I haven’t yet seen all of the 101 features and shorts being screened at this year’s Heartland Film Festival. But I’ve seen enough that—with the help of some colleagues at IBJ Media—I can offer some strong, positive recommendations to get you started in sorting through the offerings (look here for more reviews and scroll down for scene from these films).

Let me first praise “Thunder Soul,” a feature documentary about the Kashmere Stage Band, a Texas high school group from the 1970s that achieved international recognition for its powerhouse funk sound. While the archival material is great (gotta love the fashion and afros), the weight of the film comes from the contemporary efforts of the former band members—some of whom haven’t picked up an instrument in 30 years—to pull together a concert for their beloved teacher, now in his 90s. Outstanding.



“The Parking Lot Movie” sounds like a joke. Do you really want to watch an hour and 20 minutes of overeducated parking attendants discussing their lot in life … and chasing patrons who don’t pay? The answer should be “yes” because, without being pretentious, the film itself says something about our choices, aspirations and inertia. Plus, it’s very funny.

One of the problems I have with many documentaries is that they say everything they need to say in the first 10 minutes. You wonder why they are feature-length instead of segments on “CBS Sunday Morning.” “The Desert of Forbidden Art” is an exception. It focuses on the remarkable collection of primarily Soviet “degenerate” art amassed in creative ways by Igor Savitsky, whose goal was to keep the art safe in a museum he founded in Uzbekistan. Anyone with an interest in art, Russian history or man-beats-the-system stories should give a look.



“Freedom Riders” takes viewers into the hearts and minds of those who made the trek south in the early ’60s to oppose Jim Crow laws, serving as a reminder that the Camelot era was a complicated one where injustice was still a given. And where a handful of brave, very human men and women put themselves at great risk to change this country.



No film fest would be complete without at least one film that takes a journey into an unusual subculture. Enter “Dumbstruck,” which chronicles the lives of six ventriloquists and, in the process of telling engaging stories, also manages to deliver a subtle message about the difference between skill and talent.

While the documentary films—at least those I’ve screened—offered more must-sees, there are also strong fiction films in the mix.

Shot largely in southern Indiana, “Paradise Recovered” concerns a young woman who, after being kicked out of a fundamentalist religious group, tries to maintain her faith in the outside world. The film never pushes too hard, features appealing performances, and allows its characters to have honest discussions about religion and faith. The music of Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido adds just the right aural accent to this world premiere.

Many strong actors appear in “Main Street,” director John Doyle’s film of Horton Foote’s last screenplay. But while Colin Firth, Orlando Bloom, Patricia Clarkson and Andrew McCarthy are all fine, the standout performance comes from Ellen Burstyn. The award-deserving actress plays a woman fallen on financial tough times who has to consider renting a building as a place to store hazardous waste. Foote, who also penned “Trip to Bountiful,” “Tender Mercies” and the screenplay for “To Kill a Mockingbird,” is in good form here, although the film would have been more satisfying if the ending weren’t so rushed.



Another Academy-Award-nominated actress, Melissa Leo (“Frozen River”), gives a rock-solid performance as an unstable flight attendant saddled with caring for a Muslim boy stranded on 9/11 in “The Space Between.” This well-made film—with a strong ending—would have benefited from the child’s being less perfect, but that’s a small complaint. And an unknown cast and an unsparing script helps elevate “Ways to Live Forever,” about a young boy with leukemia staring directly into the face of his mortality.

A&E
A&E Art is created from the world’s largest garbage dump in “Waste Land,” screening at the Heartland Film Festival. Filmmaker Lucy Walker followed artist Vik Muniz for nearly three years for the documentary.

As for those films screened by my fellow IBJ Media colleagues, IBJ Style columnist Gabrielle Poshadlo was enamored with the documentary “Waste Land”: “We’ve all seen lawn ornaments made from rusty coffee cans and railroad spikes at art shows (yawn),” she said. “But Brazilian-born artist Vik Muniz takes that concept to a different level—one where a group of landfill workers in Rio de Janeiro rethink their life path after making garbage art with Muniz. The film depicts a true example of art’s direct contribution to the betterment of society, which really makes you want to Google everything Muniz has ever done—with a box of tissue very close by.”



Indiana Lawyer scribe Rebecca Berfanger got a kick out of “Beyond the Pole,” a mockumentary about two woefully unprepared adventurers trying to make an organic, carbon-neutral, vegetarian trek to the North Pole. “There are obvious similarities to ‘Into the Wild,’” she said. “But the film skillfully uses the fake documentary style of ‘The Office’ and you can’t help but root for the North Pole seekers as they fight frostbite, deal with a downed camera man, encounter a polar bear, and suffer dwindling supplies. The film was shot in Greenland, which gives the film a majestic beauty.”

IBJ Media shooter Perry Reichanadter had good things to say about “Hand Held,” which explored the fall of communism in Romania and the children it affected, through the eyes of a photographer. “The photographer becomes a missionary of sorts, helping the people of Romania over the next 20 years. Inspiring, the film is occasionally confusing—it introduces its interview subjects once, then expects us to remember them—and there are brief graphic images, but I’d still recommend this depressing but hopeful film.”

IBJ intern Joe Jasinski called “Pelada,” “a fitting title meaning both ‘soccer’ and ‘naked’ in Brazil. The film chronicles the travels of two former college soccer players as they scour the globe to find the game’s blood lines, found on the parks of Israel, a prison in Bolivia, the slums of Kenya, the skyscraper roofs of Japan, and everywhere in between. The couple’s interactions are genuine, occasionally awkward, but nonetheless symbolize discovery and establishing commonality. The film documents the human condition orbiting a soccer ball, and makes an impressive attempt at quantifying the realm of the world’s game.”

And IBJ copy editor (and published poet) Bonnie Maurer was taken with “For Once in My Life,” an upbeat documentary about the Spirit of Goodwill Band, made up of members with diverse disabilities. Said Maurer: “It’s the kind of story that comes to life in your heart.”•

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This column appears weekly. Send information on upcoming arts and entertainment events to lharry@ibj.com. Twitter: IBJArts and follow Lou Harry’s A&E blog here.

Had a lot of fun recording this week's show, as is obvious from the number of edits that were made to keep it on-topic and down to the time allotted. I've often felt that featured artist Cara Jean Wahlers' first appearance on the show failed to properly capture her warm, energetic personality -- though, arguably, that was by design, since that episode was dedicated to her Big Roots Show and not her own music. I'm glad that, almost two years later, I finally got the chance to have her back...
Full Description

Had a lot of fun recording this week's show, as is obvious from the number of edits that were made to keep it on-topic and down to the time allotted. I've often felt that featured artist Cara Jean Wahlers' first appearance on the show failed to properly capture her warm, energetic personality -- though, arguably, that was by design, since that episode was dedicated to her Big Roots Show and not her own music. I'm glad that, almost two years later, I finally got the chance to have her back on to fix that particular oversight and showcase some of the new material she alluded to back then. Though traditionally a background and session player, those of us who have caught Cara Jean at her solo shows around town have known of her incredible singing and songwriting ability for a while now, and it's great to finally have some of it captured on an album (and podcast). Goodnight Charlotte, her first release with cellist Grover Parido, beautifully melds Cara Jean's atmospheric guitar, poetic lyrics, and delicate voice with Grover's unmatched ability to add richness and depth to a song as both a background or as a lead instrument, while at the same time not overpowering the other players and voices. The result is a beautiful, textured trip through a range of images, stories, and emotions that is as lush in tone as it is intelligent.

As if all that weren't enough, we have another first for Indy In-Tune this week: a podcast partially dedicated to original Indiana music in film. Andie Redwine joins us to talk about her movie, Paradise Recovered, which premieres at the Heartland Film Festival this coming weekend. The film features music from a number of Indiana recording artists, including of course Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido. With the film already garnering interest from Heartland, the Austin Film Festival, and a few other indie film showcases around the country, the boost of exposure for local, original music is almost as exciting as the success of the film itself.

LOU'S VIEWS: Local music makes 24-hour road trip sound sweet

Lou Harry

August 7, 2010

With apologies to Willie Nelson, the truth is I could wait to get on the road again.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy spending time at the Jersey shore with family—it’s just that getting there (and getting back) is never even close to half the fun. It’s more than 600 miles each way of driving, and when the air conditioner isn’t working and logistics demand overnight drives each way, well, those 13 hours require some careful audio planning to maintain sanity.

My first move on the listening front was to catch up on CDs by Indiana artists—disks that have been collecting on my desk waiting for some concentrating time.

I’ve sung the praises of Bobbie Lancaster in these pages and in my blog before. Whether as a part of the Hoosier Dylan show, on stage at the Phoenix Theatre in “Pure Prine,” or taking the stage at the Broad Ripple Art Fair, Lancaster’s combination of presence and musical talent have captivated me every time I’ve heard her. Her voice is distinct and fresh and avoids the over-twang of a lot of music you find in the Folk or American category. Yet there’s an authenticity to her and a passion that finds the heart of her music, whether it’s a wistful love song or a heavily plotted ballad.

AE BP But I think anyone who loves music can point to occasions when a performer who is effective live doesn’t quite translate to recording. Sometimes, the performance feels too scrubbed by recording—buffing off the edges and imperfections loses the heart. Other times, the orchestrations detract rather than accentuate.

And, of course, sometimes, a band just isn’t as much fun when you don’t have a beer in your hand and/or a crowd of friends around you.

I’m happy to say that Lancaster’s self-titled disc, recorded at Farm Fresh Studios in Bloomington, delivers. Particularly strong is the take-no-prisoners “The Tragic Tale of Maggie Donovan” and the raucous “Oh Carolina.” And, yes, that’s Jennie Devoe providing backup for four of the 10 songs.

So far, so good. In Ohio, I change the pace a little with Gary Walters’ new solo piano disc “Moments in Time.” Walters has been teaching jazz piano at Butler University since 2000, has played on 11 of Carrie Newcomer’s discs and performs with Icarus Ensemble. I still remember with pleasure a post-fireworks Fourth of July performance by Walters at Symphony on the Prairie a few years back. Translation: The guy is versatile.

Here, he skillfully constructs a disc that opens with music by Miles Davis, Oscar Peterson and Arthur Schwartz, closes with Henry Mancini and Richard Rodgers and, in between, highlights his own compositions. I’m not exaggerating when I say that there was no noticeable drop in listening pleasure during the meat of the disc.

Nearing Columbus, Ohio (and with darkness descending), I probably should have put on something upbeat. Instead, I went with “Goodnight Charlotte,” the dreamy new disc from singer/songwriter/guitarist Cara Jean Wahlers and cellist Grover Parido.

There’s both a vulnerable ache and core strength in both Wahlers’ words and her voice. And the match with Parido, a member of the (Re)Collective Company that proved an Indy Fringe hit a few years’ back, is a strong one. This is a low-key disc, so, as the moon rose, the barriers between songs didn’t seem very strong, making this sound more of a gentle, continuous piece than a collection of distinct songs. That’s not a criticism, though, and I look forward to repeat listenings.

But with a bit of West Virginia and all of Pennsylvania ahead, a drastic change was in order. Which meant putting aside the local (I didn’t have any Polka Boy music on hand) and switching to a collection of Prairie Home Companion’s “Pretty Good Joke Shows.” A personal favorite: A police officer sees a car weaving back and forth and he takes off after it, pulls up alongside, and sees an elderly lady knitting as she drives. He can’t believe it and he yells at her, “Pull over! Pull over!” “No,” she says, “it’s a scarf.”

When the jokes ran out, it was time for catching up on recent Broadway cast recordings. “A Little Night Music” has been given a roomy, two-disc treatment that includes some key dialogue, but the performers—including Catherine Zeta-Jones—don’t add much to the work done on the original cast recording by Glynis Johns and Len Cariou. And Leigh Ann Larkin gives an over-obvious read to one of my favorite Sondheim songs, “The Miller’s Son.” I would love to be able to hear the replacement company, currently on Broadway, including Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch.

The recording of the current “Promises, Promises” revival features appealing vocals from Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth, but the Burt Bacharach score doesn’t hold up very well, even punched up with the addition of “I Say a Little Prayer,” and “A House is Not a Home,” two songs not in the original 1968 production.

And that brought me to … the middle of Pennsylvania.

Note to self: Next year, stock up on more local music. Or fly.•
__________

This column appears weekly. Send information on upcoming arts and entertainment events to lharry@ibj.com.

Cara Jean Wahlers: Out of the Background


Cara Jean Wahlers has spent the majority of her time in the Indianapolis music scene in the background.

She's played accordion for The Warner Gear, sung backup and played bass and accordion for Cliff Snyder. Now the elegantly understated chanteuse is striking out on her own with Goodnight Charlotte, a collection of vividly-constructed songs she recorded with cellist Grover Parido.

"The songs are very much autobiographical," Wahlers said over cold green tea in her living room one recent evening. "They come across as being really intimate. And they're not fantastic stories – not that fantastic that they couldn't happen to anyone."

Musical instruments are a big part of Wahlers' living space, which she shares with Anna, a Doberman mix she rescued from the Hamilton County Humane Society. A couple bass guitars, including an upright, stand guard on either side of an old piano in the front room. There's a banjo in the corner next to the couch.

"I like walking around my house playing guitar, and I make up words and all of a sudden there's a song," Wahlers said. "It's really free association."

Some come as easily as while she's driving home from work. Others, not so much. There's one Wahlers has worked on for five years now.

"And when I get it, it's going to be spectacular," she said, arms raised. "No it probably won't be because I'll overwork it. I like to shoot from the hip sometimes. When you write intuitively, things come out in a way you wouldn't expect."

Interlochen and The Beatles

Born in Akron, Wahlers moved to South Bend when she was 6. She attended high school in Muncie (and Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan) before coming to Indy to study at IUPUI's Herron School of Art & Design.

Wahlers is a fourth-generation musician, something that didn't actually occur to her until this year.

"It wasn't something that was this legacy when I was growing up," she said.

Her mom was a wizard on 12-string guitar, Wahlers started on the upright bass at age 7 and her brother took up percussion. Family jams in the living room weren't uncommon. Wahlers has fond memories of taking the train to Cleveland to see symphonies, operas and ballets.

Wahlers studied classical music, but she managed to sneak Beatles songs into her repertoire. She'd even ride her bike to the local Sam Goody to buy sheet music of the day's popular hits to arrange for a string quartet she started.

Torment from peers wasn't uncommon. Then again, all her friends played music, so it never seemed unusual.

"For some reason I didn't quit, and I have no idea why," Wahlers said. "That would've seemed like the path of least resistance. I guess I just got really good at it and decided that's what I'll do."

She wrote silly songs as a kid, but it wasn't until about five years ago that Wahlers was able to finish a composition without making a joke out of it. That was a difficult time in her musical evolution.

"She was frustrated in what she was doing musically," said Greg Ziesemer, a longtime Indianapolis musician and friend of Wahlers. "She had hit a wall. She was working on original material and trying to develop herself as a songwriter. We talked about being true to yourself and to not deny what you're feeling."

Wahlers tapped into that, relying on memories to craft nakedly confessional lyrics about the human spirit and its metamorphosis.

"It's like this big rubber-band ball that keeps getting bigger and bigger so the shape changes and it might be a little different," she said of her words.

Meeting Grover

Such exposure doesn't come without a hitch, and Wahlers fears giving too much away. Wahlers cites the chorus to her song "Marks on the Earth" (follow link to full stream; "I'm tired of trying to prove that I'm beautiful / Burning for you / I'm tired of trying to prove that I'm good enough / Broken hearts can burn, too"). That actually came to Wahlers while at the State Fair, when she felt a little sad. In song it comes across as more epic than it really is.

"Why did I feel the need to say that, then record it and put it on an album?" she said. "That sometimes bothers me. On the other hand, I think it's a really relatable song. A lot of times when we perform it, people really respond."

By we, she means Parido. When Wahlers set about to record her first collection of songs, she felt something was missing.

"I knew I didn't want to just do it by myself, but I also didn't want the typical rock band feel," she said.

Then Wahlers saw Parido play cello with Blueprint Music at the Indianapolis Art Center's Riverfront Amphitheatre.

"I was just really moved by him," she said. "He's a very expressive cellist. He's not someone who just plucks out a bassline. He has a wonderful tone and sensibility."

Wahlers eventually worked up the nerve to ask a mutual friend to introduce them. She asked Parido to play cello on her record and he accepted.

"It's funny because a lot of musicians I play with start out as friends," Wahlers said. "With Grover we started as collaborators and a friendship blossomed out of that."

"I think we've got a really interesting combination," Parido said. "Audiences really seem to respond to it. Cara's lyrics are very theatrical and visual. That lends itself to the style of cello I play. I'm able to underscore a lot of these images she's presenting."

Charlotte in Paradise

Goodnight Charlotte isn't even officially out yet and it's already garnering attention. Andie Redwine, a Bloomington-based writer, recently completed filming a screenplay she wrote called Paradise Recovered, about a young woman's journey and recovery from a fundamentalist Christian sect. Redwine and Wahlers went to high school together but had lost touch.

Redwine specifically wanted cello music her the film. After finding Wahlers on Facebook, she checked out her website and immediately asked to use Goodnight Charlotte as the film's score. Wahlers agreed, figuring it was a short. To her delight, "Paradise Recovered" turned out to be feature-length.

"And it didn't look like she made it with a camcorder either," Wahlers said of Redwine's film. "But it didn't surprise me because she's very sharp."

Aside from Goodnight Charlotte, Wahlers has another iron in the fire. Last year she got a gig playing the Pioneer Village at the State Fair. She was invited back, and asked a couple female musician friends to play with her. This effort has now ballooned to include seven women.

They're calling themselves Alice Chalmers (a play on the antique tractor brand) and the Stick a Cork in Your Jug Band. Fellow bass aficionado Dean Metcalf helped with the name. They perform 10 a.m. to noon Aug. 10 at the fair. Wahlers plays everything from banjo and auto harp to the washboard.

"With string instruments, once you understand the concept of an interval, it's not too terribly hard to pick something else up," she said.

It's more gratification for someone who has emerged from the shadows to forge her own musical path. And despite the many complaints she's heard over the years — there's nowhere to play, there's not enough musicians — Wahlers has found a receptive and supportive network here.

"There's a ton of different venues," she said. "There have been some that have closed, some showcases that have disappeared. But there's house concerts, coffee houses, bluegrass picking circles in someone's backyard. There's a strong community here. We're fortunate to be part of it."

Indianapolis concerts: The week's best live music

Cara Jean Wahlers w/ Jessie Torrisi & The Please Please Me and The Innocent Boys

This Monday night show at the Melody Inn offers a pair of artists who both take a unique approach to arranging folk and country music. Indy’s own Cara Jean Wahlers performs this show solo, but a cello typically punctuates her recorded. Jessie Torrisi & The Please Please Me visit from Austin, TX with an alt-country sound livened by cello and trombone. The Innocent Boys, a group featuring members of Harley Poe and We’re Not Mexican, close the night.

Details: 9 p.m., Sept. 27, $5, Melody Inn, 3826 N Illinois St., (317) 923-4707.

1. Art vs. Art Main Event
2. Built to Spill / Revolt Revolt
3. Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys
4. Elf Power w/ Arrah and the Ferns
5. Devil To Pay w/ Apostle of Solitude, The Resurrection Sorrow, Oso Bear
6. Hawthorne Heights w/ It’s All Happening, The Day After, Call You Out
7. 35th Annual Bill Monroe Bluegrass Hall of Fame & Uncle Pen Days
8. Cara Jean Wahlers w/ Jessie Torrisi & The Please Please Me and The Innocent Boys
9. Hip-Hop Showcase feat. DJ Deadrisk, Echomaker, The Breakdown Kings
10. International Violin Competition of Indianapolis Finals

Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido CD release concert
(+ openers Evan Slusher and Tonos Triad)
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Riverfront Ampitheatre - Indianapolis Art Center
(rain location inside the Art Center)
7:00pm door, 7:30pm show, $10, family friendly, non-smoking, children under 12 free


I’ve been like a little kid waiting for my birthday and been counting down the days in anticipation of the Good Night Charlotte CD release show. Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido will celebrate the release of their first album with an outdoor show on at the Riverfront Ampitheatre at the Art Center. The river is the perfect back drop for these two songbirds.

Cara Jean Wahlers is a fourth generation musician. As a youngster she studied piano and double bass with an eye on classical music. In her early twenties she found her voice as in songwriter, drawing from lessons learned by listening to her parents’ record collection. Simon and Garfunkel gave her an understanding of storytelling, which combined with current day influences – Steve Poltz, Vic Chesnutt, Phil Collins, and Joni Mitchell helped her develop her unique style of songwriting. Wahlers songs reveal a the balance of personal experience and human truth.

Grover Parido is a classically trained cellist who is also well versed in rock and roll, hip-hop and folk music. He is a composer, performer, producer and educator – in his spare time he plays and records with The Maple Trio, Chad Mills and Bill Price – just to name a few.

Cara Jean and Grover connected when she saw him perform with Blueprint Music. She felt that his style would compliment her songs. She was beautifully right. Their collaboration has resulted in amazing music.

The duo recently finished composing the musical score for the feature-length independent film, Paradise Recovered, scheduled to release this fall.

Here are Cara’s words about the new record, “Goodnight Charlotte, is a collection of ten songs written between 2005 and 2009. I wrote most of this album in my head, probably while I was randomly walking or driving somewhere, so it makes sense to me that the cello travels and weaves through it a bit, exploring different terrains, while still remaining familiar and human and guiding you through. It was important to us to create different soundscapes for our listener, while staying true to the general sensibility of our live show. I like driving on the highway - little towns pop up every half and hour or so. Kind of like how memory works - something appears though the windshield, you follow it for a little while and then all of a sudden, you're looking at it getting smaller behind you. That's how things enter and leave my head, I think. The album was born out of rainy afternoons spent walking through antique shops, driving through the woods or simply walking across hardwood floors playing guitar around the house.

"I wrote these songs almost in a woodshedding kind of situation, where I sort of shut out all the noises that aren't coming from inside of me. It's very personal and I think that intimacy is reflected in the album. I feel like Grover's cello arrangements create the room where these songs exist and give them a lot of color and texture."

Dress casually and bring a lawn chairs. The show will be in the Art Center if it rains.
Broad Ripple Brewpub will provide craft beers for purchase. Don’t forget your ID – as of July 1, you can’t be served without it – no matter how old you are.

Check Cara Jean’s Web site for a sneak peek at the new record.


Evan Slusher http://www.myspace.com/evanslusher
Tonos Triad http://tonostriad.com/home.cfm
www.carajeanwahlers.com
www.indplsartcenter.org

Indiana album reviewpick

Cara Jean Wahlers, "Goodnight Charlotte"
David Lindquist

Metromix
August 8, 2010

Critic's Rating:
4/5 Stars

Indiana album review

In a nutshell:
"Goodnight Charlotte" is a measured, pure-voiced collection of grown-up relationship songs.

Fan finder:
Anyone who appreciates the literate observations of Carrie Newcomer and the intense truths of Lucinda Williams should give "Charlotte" a spin.

That's a keeper:
Wahlers' song "Black Dog" employs memory to create a captivating link between the Led Zeppelin tune of the same name and a bygone college romance.

Didn't see it coming:
The album's packaging credits "Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido" as makers of this music, but the value of Parido's contributions on cello still manages to surprise. Far from a predictable singer-songwriter-with-an-acoustic-guitar project, "Charlotte" delivers plenty of sonic textures to maintain a listener's interest.

Selling points:
The lyrics of "Charlotte" prove that details are more universal than generalities. Three gems: "Sunburned shoulders and sticky hands, we ate steak out of lawn chairs" from the song "Orange Blossoms"; "A hundred paperback novels stacked up by your bed, for a world you prefer 'cause it's all in your head"; and "We'll dance like we are still in seventh grade," from "Chinatown."

Cara Jean Wahlers will perform Aug. 20 at St. Thomas Aquinas Sausagefest. (Credit: Photo provided by www.carajeanwahlers.com.)

Cara Jean Wahlers has become a fixture on Indy’s folk and acoustic music scenes. Claiming influences from sources ranging from Simon and Garfunkel to Steve Poltz to Vic Chesnutt, she’s made her mark both performing and promoting the music she loves. With the help of cellist Grover Parido, Wahlers releases her new album, “Goodnight Charlotte,” at this show. The 10-song collection took more than two years to make.

Details: 7 p.m., July 31, $10, Indianapolis Arts Center, 820 East 67th St., (317) 255-2464.

1. The Elms
2. Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival
3. Tokyo Police Club w/ Freelance Whales and Arkells
4. Deadbeats CD Release
5. Curry-palooza
6. Cara Jean Wahlers CD Release
7. The BoDeans
8. Alex Band of The Calling w/ The Last Good Year
9. Bible of the Devil w/ Earthride, Valkyrie and Apostle of Solitude
10. Flatfoot 56

Cara Jean Wahlers to the Rescue

Music is such a big part of a movie. For our favorite films, a few bars of a theme song is all it takes to conjure up fond memories. And so, when making a film of your own, choosing the right music is a huge deal. Add to that the limitations of a micro-budget and we were more than a little concerned when it came time to find the music for Paradise Recovered.

One day when I was deep in it. Surfing the web for music. Listening to song after song. Trying to figure out how, when and where we were going to get great music at a price we could afford. I got an email from Writer/Producer Andie Redwine. It was a link to an unassuming website featuring the music of Cara Jean Wahlers. Andie said that Cara was an old friend. Wanted to know what I thought of her music. I clicked on one of the songs. Guitar, Cello and a beautiful voice. Rootsy and singer songwritery in the best of all possible ways. It was perfect.

I’m so glad to have met Cara and Grover (Grover Parido is the cellist that composes and plays with Cara). I’m so thrilled to have their music in Paradise Recovered. And I’m so excited to be headed to Indianapolis this weekend for the CD release party for their new album, “Goodnight Charlotte.” I can’t wait for people to see our film and hear the tunes that help to make it as good as it is.

In the mean time, check out this cool article about Cara in Indy’s NUVO magazine: http://www.nuvo.net/indianapolis/cara-jean-wahlers-out-of-the-background/Content?oid=1481198

Goodnight Charlotte

We know we still have Kickstarters to thank, but in the midst of this busy long weekend, we wanted to take a minute to update you on a new album release that features some of the songs from Paradise Recovered.

Goodnight Charlotte

This was an amazing show for this amazing new album by Cara Jean Wahlers and Grover Parido.

Some of Team Paradise had the profound opportunity to experience the release party first hand.

Evan Slusher and Tonos Triad opened. Evan has this soulful, amazing sound that brings heart and light to some of the most interesting of lyrics. Total prodigy. Tonos Triad amazed us with their percussion and wowed us with their groove.

And then Cara and Grover took the stage.

With beautiful white lanterns and flags over head and the river rushing behind them, the cicadas joined in with the first song, 'Chinatown'.

Heather and Andie cried a little at 'California'. A Sam Cooke and a Neil Young cover later, we were as hooked as we have ever been on the girl with the velvet voice and the boy with the red cello case.

Of course, Cara and Grover played 'Marks on the Earth,' 'Angels', and a new song written specifically for Paradise Recovered called 'I Have Always Loved You.' The audience loved these, and Team Paradise swelled with pride.

We love, love, LOVE Cara Jean and Grover.

You can purchase this amazing album by clicking on this sentence.

Please do. It will make your heart feel better.

Goodnight Charlotte became one of my favorite records to come out of Indiana half way through my first listen. There are two things that jumped right out at me. Initially I don't listen to details, words, song structure, etc... I pay attention to my gut and by track four the hair on my arms were standing up. This record will make you feel if you feel at all. I also noticed or rather I didn't notice the production of the music. The tracks have been laid out in such a simple understated way that they take nothing away from the songs and Cara's wonderfully nuanced delivery. There's no harsh digital feel, no dripping reverb, no bells & whistles to take you away from what's real. In other words the production gets out of the way so the real work of the record can shine. Most of the songs are simple arrangements of guitar, cello and Cara's solo voice. There is some piano and other bits sprinkled it. It has a great textured feel and at no point does it feel like too little or too much. I love Goodnight Charlotte and I think you should hear it.



All in all it's a fantastic CD and the release will be a very special night for Cara. I'll be there and it would mean a great deal to me if you'd come too. I'll see you in a week folks.

Click the below link to head the IMN Podcast.

Podcast features Apostle of Solitude, Cara Jean Wahlers, Flatfoot 56, IMN PODcast, Salvador Dali Llama Farm, Tad Armstrong, The BoDeans, the Dead Beats, The Elms, The Last Good Year, Tokyo Police Club

Podcast by IMN editor and assistant editor, Steve Hayes and Ryan Williams.

Sisterhood of Uke

Music is a way of life for many families. In my family, it wasn’t unusual for my dad to spend the better part of a Sunday afternoon picking tunes on his guitar, strumming hymns and teasing us with a little Johnny Cash. If more friends and family stopped in for a visit, it wasn’t unusual to find ourselves in the midst of an impromptu “singing”. In my dad’s family, every male played banjo, guitar, mandolin or all three. It was always the men I recall seeing unpacking their instruments at family reunions.

Geoff Davis’s family was exactly the opposite. Until he came along, it was the women in his family who fueled the musical heritage. And, the instrument of choice wasn’t guitar, banjo or even piano. It was the ukulele. You can listen to folklorist John Kay talking to the Geoff Davis about the ukulele tradition in his own family here:

http://www.artisanancestors.com/

He says one of the songs his grandmother played on the ukulele was OH BY JINGO. I have my own fond memories of that song; I’m still trying to figure out how a song about a girl from San Domingo could have such Middle Eastern rhythms, but that’s how it goes. Here’s the incomparable Spike Jones orchestra showing how it’s done:

OH BY JINGO

ALL GIRL BAND

New families can be built around music. A person would be hard-pressed to find a better substitute for a family in the works than the group that is evolving around Indianapolis musician Cara Jean Wahler’s latest brainchild, Alice Chalmers and the Stick a Cork in Your Jug Band. Whenever the group gathers at Cara’s house, there are pastries served on her grandma’s china, lemonade in a punchbowl, girly aprons, and, finally: music.

When she asked me to play ukulele in the all girl band that she was putting together for the Indiana State Fair, I had no idea that I would find myself amidst so many amazingly talented female musicians. There are plenty of times when I find myself just sitting and smiling as the rest of the girls show their terrific stuff; I fear I might be slightly out of my league here, but the other women are helpful, supportive and nonjudgmental. The group includes not only the amazingly talented Ms. Wahlers on guitar, but also gifted musicians such as Stasia Demos, fiddler Holly Smith, Miss Nora Spitznogle on typewriter, Tammy Lieber and the one and only Ms. Jude O’Dell.

Jude O’Dell is a bawdy banjo player who can also squeeze the blues out of her ancient tenor guitar like no girl I’ve ever met. I am thrilled enough to just be around her, let alone have the opportunity to actually play music with a musician and performer of her caliber. She spends most of her time working as a visual artist and playing in Geoff Davis’ Third Satchel Novelty Jazz Band, and she simply bubbles over with gutsy female talent. She can slap and pluck and strum that tiny guitar while she is belting a Memphis Minnie tune, and every one of us is lost in another place for awhile. When she stops singing, we all declare that we want to be just like her. She warns us, Oh no we don’t, but the spell can’t be broken so easily.

There’s another girl who can belt the blues like Memphis Minnie. Ukulele playing Eden from Eden and John’s East River String Band shares Jude‘s affection for Minnie’s ME AND MY CHAUFFEUR BLUES.

East River String band, featuring the fabulous Eden on her resonator ukulele:

UKE IN THE FAMILY

What started as a personal passion has blossomed into a family institution. When I first picked up the ukulele two years ago, I thought I’d fiddle around with it, learn Five Foot Two, Ain’t She Sweet and a handful of Beatles songs and be done with it. But, my enthusiasm couldn’t be contained; by the following Christmas, my cousin, Laura had a uke of her own.

My cousin and I have always been close. Throughout childhood, we shared many passions, took trips with each others’ families, read the same books and enjoyed the same movies and music; as adolescents, we fell obsessively in love with the Beatles and took Nashville and Disney World by storm. Our mothers bought us matching outfits and we wore them without shame. It only made sense that as adults, we would find something new to consume us.

Now uking time is critical time for us. Whenever we get together, we find a way for our four children to entertain themselves, then, out come the ukuleles. While we sometimes find ourselves strumming our own tunes in different parts of a room, there isn’t anything better than when we decide to build on a song together. Such was the case during our most recent visit, when we decided to explore TONIGHT YOU BELONG TO ME, an old 1920s song that was made famous to a new generation when Steve Martin and Bernadette Peters sang it in THE JERK.

We tried the song in three different keys and puzzled over second position chords. In the end, we were strumming it on her screen porch, singing uninhibitedly and harmonizing, too.

Here’s the clip that made the song famous. You need to know that, although Steve Martin is a gifted musician in his own right, he is not playing the ukulele in this scene. That job was given to ukulele jazz pioneer, Mr. Lyle Ritz.

Of course, this all-in-the-family business isn’t reserved just for the girls. My cousin’s husband, inspired by her love of the uke, decided to teach himself how to play guitar. And, my own husband has taken up the ukulele, completely on his own. Armed with a few chords that he learned from our son, and a stack of chord charts, he finally found the song that made him want to give it a try: WILDWOOD FLOWER. It’s a song that is close to my heart: my Kentucky father played it Carter Family-style on his guitar when he was courting my mother.
Our version simply includes the chords (C, F, G7), but it’s the thrill of being able to play a well-loved recognizable song that finally got to my husband. Here’s the fantastic ukulele player, Ken Middleton, playing his own interpretation of the traditional song:

With that one sweet song, family things keep coming back to us.

One evening, not too long ago, as we sat around, holding our treasured ukes, my cousin said: “Here we are, approaching our mid 40s, and all of us trying something new. I think we should promise ourselves that 40 years from now, we’re going to try something else that is new and different, too.” I think that’s a great idea.
In the spirit of all this ukulele playing in our 40s, and in honor of anyone who is bold enough to pick up a new instrument and give it a try, here’s a delightful original song from my Ukulele Underground pal, Mike (a.k.a “lambchop):

MIDDLE AGED GUY WITH A UKULELE:

UKULELE -RELATED HAPPENINGS AND OTHER GOOD THINGS

Indianapolis Ukulele Fans will meet next on Saturday August 7 at the Sam Ash store in Castleton, from 10 AM to 12 noon.

Tuesday, August 10 is Blue Stone Folk School Day at the Indiana State Fair. You’ll get to experience Alice Chalmers and the Stick a Cork in Your Jug Band as well as Geoff Davis’s own Third Satchel Novelty Jazz Band and possibly a performance by Pholly. It will be like old time/ukulele heaven, right in the middle of August! Best of all, it’s also Turkey Hill's get in for two bucks day, so there’s really no excuse not to get there early and stay late, just print this voucher from Turkey Hill’s website: http://www.turkeyhill.com/indianastatefair/2-Tuesday-voucher.pdf

The Blue Stone Folk School Ukulele Society meets the second and fourth Thursday of each month, from 7-9 PM. The next meeting will be Thursday, August 12, at the Judge Stone House, 107 South 8th Street, Noblesville. Bring a uke, a friend and a song.

Concert review: Indianapolis Songwriters Cafe at Earth House, May 16

Posted on May 20, 2009 by Scott Shoger

"Because the folks at the Earth House care so much about music, they won't grind any coffee or make any espresso drinks during the show," Indianapolis Songwriters Café founder Cliff Snyder explained before the beginning of a show that celebrated the one-year anniversary of his songwriters-in-the-round series. Kate Lamont, a songwriter in her own right who also works the coffee bar and manages the Earth House, then joined one of the night's performers, Linda McRae, in a duet for banjo (McRae) and steam pipe (Lamont), McRae picking out a version of "Red River Valley" with Lamont answering in legato spurts.

The Café has been around for a year, but this was its first night at the Earth House. Founded at Boulevard Place Café last May, Snyder and company moved down the road when that Butler-Tarkington restaurant closed in February, moving temporarily to the Indy Hostel. The Earth House celebrated the new arrival with a rich Texas sheet cake topped by a candle, which not only recognized the birthday of the show, but also that of another Earth House regular, cellist Grover Parido.

Two female singer-songwriters - the Vancouver-based McRae and Café collaborator Cara Jean Wahlers - flanked the two guys who performed Saturday night, Snyder during the first set and Born Again Floozies frontman Joey Welch during the second.

McRae, whose gritty but sweet voice was of a piece with the impertinence of her bright red hair and a jutting chin, dug into her marriage and husband's past for some of her most memorable tunes, opening with a ballad about openness and honesty (to avoid being "Gepetto's boy") that led to a distressed chronicle of alcoholism (a line about a "house with no windows" recalling the glorious coldness and architectural concerns of Pete Seeger's "My Father's Mansions"). McRae, whose intonation falls somewhere between a Kentucky twang and Canadian roundness, drew from a wide range of American music, playing a tune inspired by minstrelsy ("Carve Em To the Heart," which thankfully lacked any "ethnic" phrasing), Johnny Cash, her stride-piano playing grandmother and country swing (a rollicking tune framed around the observation that "there's no witnesses in Texas").

The exciting thing about the round format is that both the performer and listener can try to pick out similarities between songs, and it was Wahlers and McRae that were the most interactive. After Wahlers performed her song "End of Everything," a sleepless reflection on the possibility of "cleansing rain" and "rays of hope" changing the political landscape, McRae sang a slightly more downbeat tune of loss and cosmic turnover with a chorus that told of "falling off the edge of the world." And McRae followed a Wahlers tune about hanging out at her grandparents' farm with a song about her own grandmother, who seemed to have lived quite a hectic life.

Wahlers, who, as McRae pointed out on stage, is reluctant to give away her thoughts via storytelling, but spills out memories and visions through song, played one spectacular tune, "Orange Blossoms," that will be on a soon-to-be-completed album. The song, which Wahlers explained was about a once-boyfriend with whom she lived in Naples, Fla., intertwines floral and natural imagery with love songs - the line "your morning breath is Canadian beer and a jar full of fireflies" is a keeper. Her declarative, offhand delivery picks up pace during a sing-song, lightly accented chorus that has just enough "las" to stick easily in one's head. The song is great live, but on a demo with cello, the chorus gracefully sways and dances.

Snyder, who typically performs a song at most Café events, got to take a whole set in the round, opening with a low-key and somewhat mournful lullaby that took advantage of his soft, growly voice, then moving to some more familiar tunes: a ballad about a man who intended to ride out last year's flood in Galveston, a good ole wife-murdering yarn and the title track to his album Fool's Highway, another violent ramblin' man tune that's slowly growing on me.

Born Again Floozies fans may have seen and heard Joey Welch's technique of guitar tapping, which involves keeping both hands on the fingerboard and tapping out notes, creating a percussive and harpsichord-like sound that has a more distinctively rounded attack than if one were to pick out notes over the sound hole (as is typical). Van Halen did it, violinists are sometimes called to do it, and it's somewhat popular in jazz. Listening to Welch solo, it's much easier to hear both the inventiveness of this approach and his easy facility with a guitar. He traces repetitive arpeggios throughout any given song, which ground his often rhymeless and sometimes stream-of-consciousness lyrics, and give his tunes more of a forward momentum than your typical strumming acoustic guitar player.

None of the guitarists Saturday night were content to just strum, though: Wahlers picked out elegant melodies on her choruses and McRae's banjo sounded a lot like Welch's electric guitar.

Welch, a child of the suburbs, played a tune appropriate for the downtown location of the Earth House, a quite funny piece about his urban odyssey walking from Market Square Arena (where he bailed out his friends at a Van Halen concert) to a party up north (to see a girl he wanted to date who he found was accompanied by her boyfriend).