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| Lisa and Bob onstage in Newcastle, 2016 |
The BellRays' self-titled cassette also came out in 1990. Both the cassette and the Rosethorns' LP were produced by Tony Bramel (aka Tony Fate), who was the frontman of early 80's punk band The Sins. Tony soon joined The Bellrays, and he and Vennum began writing songs that blended punk, soul, funk and garage rock influences.
In 2003, Lisa Kekaula was one of several guest vocalists on the Basement Jaxx album Kish Kash and The Crystal Method's Legion Of Boom. This was followed by further collaborations with Basement Jaxx, The Bloody Beetroots, and other EDM artists.
Lisa has also guested with some gnarly guitarists, including Detroit legends Dennis Coffey and Wayne Kramer. She sang with the DKT-MC5 for several years.
In 2014, Stooges guitarist James Williamson released Re-Licked, with new versions of songs from Kill City. Again, Lisa Kekaula was one of the guest vocalists. The album was followed by a 2016 single of new songs by Kekaula and Williamson.
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Lisa with Mark Arm and Wayne Kramer in 2006 |
Last year, The BellRays recorded a version of "Teaching You The Fear" for the Really Red tribute album. Lisa Kekaula and Bob Vennum host frequent online events, and January 2021, Lisa was a guest on Lydia Lunch's podcast.
Christmas is coming, and The BellRays have an album of seasonal songs! Like many artists, they had to cancel a lot of shows, so buy something from their store and make their Christmas a little brighter.
PHOTOS: The Northern Echo (top); Jim Dyson (bottom)
Guest Spots: Lisa Kekaula
ReplyDeletehttps://tinyurl.com/kekaula
Great post, Endlessly Fucking Emus...............lol. I'm a couple of hours from you in the mountains nearby. Don't know how you guys make it down there in the Silly. I lived there for years. Played with Will Shatter in A3I, the Ophelias, Rubbermaid, Slow Poisoners, etc.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I live where you think I do, unless you're in the Blue Ridge Mountains. If you were there, I would be happy to visit you and those Endlessly Fucking Emus.
DeleteYou might enjoy this interview with Michael Dean from Bomb, or you might hate it.
http://www.furious.com/perfect/bomb.html
I thought from something I read here that you live in SF. Sorry about that. I still like Michael Dean. I played in two bands with him. One in SF. One in LA. I'm in his 30 Dollar Music School. I tell kids how to negotiate buying equipment. Thanks for sharing.
DeleteCool!
ReplyDeleteDanke!
ReplyDeleteLisa is a powerhouse vocalist. I lept at the chance to Dl this collection. Now I will listen to it as I ice my ankle down. Worth it. Thank you so much!
Sorry to hear of your injury. However, all downloads are non-refundable. Unzip at your own risk. Never drink and download, or operate heavy machinery while extracting compressed files.
DeleteAnkle is healed but now all my cranial matter is everywhere since this set blew my mind. I had not heard most of these as they are collaborations with artist in genres I don't listen to very often. Now I have a bridge to new musical experiences. Thank you for hepping this old cat to new treats!
DeleteHappy to be of service in sharing "a bridge to new musical experiences," which is a fine way to phrase it. You may be an old cat, but you have an open mind and a appreciation for a gifted singer. In the end, labels and genres like "EDM" don't really matter. Musicians are drawn to voices like Lisa's. She in turn brings passion and beauty to anything she chooses to sing, and the result is that our minds get blown and our spirits get lifted.
DeleteMy attention span was starting to wane quickly, short as it is, with all the EDM references but was swiftly revived by name-checking Dennis Coffey and Wayne Kramer. Pretty much skipped to the link after the James Williamson/Kill City references (clickbait!). Hey, there's Mark Arm too! I think he slept on my couch once if I recall. I'll get to this one of these days after I finish working my way through the Tom Petty comps (I've made it to track 11 of the Damn the Torpedoes so far! Of course, that's the one I started with so ...)
ReplyDeleteI'm not an EDM fan either, but Lisa K's voice lights up everything it touches, and some of the Basement Jaxx songs are really just funk and soul. But I like her best as a rock singer. Her voice on "I Got A Right" is pure fire.
DeleteThe self-titled Dennis Coffey album from 2011 is a lot of fun. One of the tracks has Rachel Nagy from the Detroit Cobras and Mick Collins (Dirtbombs) in a duet on Funkadelic's "I'll Bet You".
Speaking of duets, the punk band ADZ did a fun version of the Johnny Cash song "Jackson" with Lisa Kekaula and Tony Reflex (aka Tony Adolescent). It didn't really fit with the rest of this compilation, but it's good!
I only knew of her work with the GREAT James Williamson. So I'm happy to DL this. Two questions though 1.You got any stray guitar destroyer tracks by Mr. Williamson? And what is EDM?
ReplyDelete"Never Far From Where The Wild Things Are" (the b-side of his 2016 single with Lisa Kekaula) may fit the bill, if you haven't heard it.
DeleteEDM stands for Electronic Dance Music. You may have been happier not knowing that one!
Tracklist:
ReplyDeleteU Don't Know Me (with Basement Jaxx)
Leave The Past Behind (with the Baldwin Brothers)
Let's Boogie (with Variety Lab)
Stay Close (with Basement Jaxx)
Good Luck (with Basement Jaxx and Metropole Orkest)
Somebody's Been Sleeping (with Dennis Coffey)
What Would We Be (with Goodluck)
Can't Find Your Love (with Badge And Talkalot)
Born Under A Bad Sign (with Dollhouse)
She Makes My Blood Burn (with The Flaming Sideburns)
The Saddest Thing To Say (with The Legendary Tigerman)
I Got A Right (with James Williamson)
Heavy Liquid (with James Williamson)
Never Far From Where The Wild Things Are (with James Williamson)
Cult Of Personality (with Jeff Widelski)
High And Low (with The Crystal Method)
Realizer (with The Crystal Method)
Talkin' In My Sleep (with The Bloody Beetroots)
Buggin' Out (with Nifty)
Mystery Of Love (with 1ateB)
I put all the EDM stuff at the end. "Let's Boogie" is really catchy:
https://youtu.be/IN-4pe1neCM
And the live "Good Luck" with the orchestra and the backup singers is magnificent:
https://youtu.be/XU-r80nhmsA