Kristoff Krane CD release with DJ Pat Morita, Aby Wolf and Fat Kid Wednesdays
Join the party as Kristoff Krane, known for his pleasantly concoctive performances, seemingly effortless vocal improv-skills and eagerness for direct human connection, celebrates the release of his sophomore solo album debut Hunting For Father at The Cedar. Blending simplistic guitar chords, eerie piano progressions, oddball samples and an amalgam of ambient noise, Krane’s new album is dynamic and moving. His lyrical content retains continuity through an unabashed expression of personal struggle and familiar observations on the world’s hand of chaos and fortune. The songwriting isn’t so much that of an opinionated figure as it is the curiosity of an individual captured amidst the mysterious forces of their universe.
To describe Hunting For Father in those slippery terms we often use would be tough, if not completely erroneous, just as one finds it difficult to capture the depth of feeling for past adventures. On full witness to this album, one might hear little similarities to artists such as Bob Dylan, Kimya Dawson, Beck, Johnny Cash and hip-hop legends like Buck 65, Aceyalone and Eyedea. But to say that anything on this record actually sounds like Bob Dylan, for example, would be misleading. What one can remark, with all certainty, is that Kristoff Krane sounds like Kristoff Krane. If one were pressed for a genre, Hunting For Father might collide between the brackets of something like, “Experimental-Prog-folk-hop.”
To attend a live Krane performance is to participate in the novelty of creation. Krane feeds off of the aggregate consciousness of his audience and often incorporates the vocalizations of volunteers into his act. With his pianos, guitars, hip-hop instrumentals, loop pedals and a cardboard box full of jimmy rigged noise makers, Krane recreates his music with vigor. And, he always leaves room for in-the-moment freestyle sessions featuring the finest musicians and mcs around. On this night, Krane will be supplemented by the talents of J.T. Bates, Graham O’Brien, Jeremy Ylvisaker, Eyedea, visual artist James Penfield and fellow facilitators of an after-school creative writing program, 2009 national slam poet crown holder Guante, and front man of new-found local buzz band, Eric Blair of No Bird Sing.
To note, Hunting For Father is one half of a double album release. The other release, Picking Flowers Next To RoadKill, is a hip-hop driven homage, produced by Strange Matter, featuring Slug, P.O.S. and Eyedea. This album was released May 15th at the 7th St. Entry.
Opening the night will be Dj Pat Morita (aka Adam Linz), singer/songwriter Aby Wolf and avant-garde jazz trio Fat Kid Wednesdays. During the show, close your eyes, and Fat Kid Wednesdays will etch a moving landscape into your conscious clay farm using the most cherished of your childhood memories, and the daydreams of your ancestors, as their canvas. Fat kid Wednesdays is blindingly wonderful, saxophonic purity with rippling bass incautiously driving the wheel, while hauntingly triumphant percussion squeeze your amygdale like a mangy jackal would, were you staring him straight in his bloodshot eyes. Members include: JT Bates on percussion (Alpha Consumer, Face Candy, James Buckley Trio, and The Pines, to name a few) Adam Linz on up-right bass and Michael Lewis on saxophone (Alpha Consumer, Andrew Bird, Happy Apple).
“Fat Kid Wednesdays will drag your face across a rainbow and through the sands of time, only to wash it in an ocean of blissful epiphany." (Will Chenkins, A Universe of Fun).
“The saxophonist, Michael Lewis, the bassist, Adam Linz, and the drummer, JT Bates, have that preternatural mutual responsiveness that comes from an instinctive sympathy, but is developed over time through work, and their exhilarating performance last night revealed both the depth of their individual artistry and the symbiotic wonder of their interplay.” (Richard Brody, The New Yorker)
“Aby Wolf has an American Idol–worthy voice that would likely win her a callback on the show, probably even from hard-to-please judge Simon Cowell. It’s rich, thick, soulful. You can even imagine her singing the national anthem at the Super Bowl. It’s that stirring a sound. The songs on Wolf’s debut album rightfully showcase her pipes. She’s engaging enough musically, as on the rousing R&B–driven number “What U Waitin 4,” to almost make you overlook her writing chops. Her lyrics are gracious, tender, and often gazing well into the future, where she’ll likely be sitting pretty atop the charts." (Jessica Chapman, Minnesota Monthly).
Tickets are on sale now from the Cedar Ticketline (612-338-2674 ext 2), Cedar outlets (Electric Fetus, Irish on Grand, Homestead Pickin' Parlor, Depth of Field), and online at Ticketweb.
$10 Limited seating available.
Kristoff Krane’s distinctive blend of message-driven lyrics, delivered over organic composition and carefully sampled beats, demands attention. A natural born teacher and poet, Krane’s lyrics connect our similarities rather than pointing out our...
Aby released her first album, Sweet Prudence in 2009, receiving the compliments of City Pages' Best Female Vocalist, Best Album, and Best Artist. Since then, she has kept busy performing in various venues around the Twin Cities, as well as singing with...
Major Funders
This activity is made possible in part by a grant provided by the Minnesota State Arts Board, through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature from the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on November 4, 2008
