Ball of Wax 44 Songs: Levi Fuller – Mirrorful

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Jon Rooney

There are a bunch of different ways you can approach an a capella arrangement. Ainara LeGardon went with an unaccompanied voice singing the lyrics and melody, simple and sparse. Head Ball of Waxer Levi Fuller went another in another direction with his cover of Jawbox’s “Mirrorful,” using his voice to mimic the instruments in a rock ensemble a la the great Michael Winslow from the Police Academy movies. It’s all in there: “weee-ooh wee-ooh” electric guitars, beatbox drums, “doo-doo” bass parts – and it all works. After a few bars you adjust to the simulacra and the song pulls together nicely. On the pre-chorus and chorus, more Levi voices appear like a hydra sprouting heads and the song approaches some giddy heights. Kudos to Levi for going all out with “Mirrorful.”

Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 44 Songs: Ainara LeGardon – Last Day

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Levi Fuller

The 44th volume of Ball of Wax Audio Quarterly – containing only sounds originating from the mouths of humans – starts with this stark, haunting beauty by Ainara LeGardon. “Last Day” opens Ainara’s most recent album, Every Minute, which I’ve listened to enough that it’s hard to think of this song as anything but an opening track, so here we are. You will hear an impressive range of approaches on this collection, ranging from solo ballads to tight, barbershop-style harmonies, to weirdo hip-hop and mind-boggling sound collage, but we start here, with Ainara’s clear, forceful voice and enigmatic, slightly terrifying lyrics. It’s enough to raise the hairs on the back of your neck, and while it may not exactly set the tone for the next 19 tracks, it certainly sets the vocal performance bar pretty high.

Posted in Ball of Wax, Bands You Should Know, Check Out This Song | Tagged | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 44: Saturday, June 11th at the Fremont Abbey!

Posted on May 16, 2016 by Levi Fuller

Ball of Wax 44 poster by Jon RooneyBall of Wax Volume 44 Release Show
The Lonely Coast with Annie Ford / Amanda Winterhalter / Swooning / Virgin of the Birds / Kelly Morgan
Saturday, June 11
Fremont Abbey
All ages / 8:30pm
$8 early discount/$10 advance/$13 door (Ball of Wax 44 CD included with entry)

Please join us as we celebrate the release of Ball of Wax Audio Quarterly Volume 44, an astoundingly diverse collection of tracks made exclusively with the human voice. The show will include both a capella and instrumentally-accompanied performances from several of the contributors to BoW 44, which also features new music from Mts. & Tunnels, Heather Duby, Colin Isler, and many more.

We’ll be rolling out the tracks for Ball of Wax 44 over the next few weeks, so stay tuned! I’m really proud of how this collection turned out, and am super excited to celebrate its release with you all at the beautiful Fremont Abbey. See you there!

Posted in Ball of Wax | Leave a comment

Submit to Ball of Wax 44: Voices Only!

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Levi Fuller
Mouths! Photo by Flickr user Palbo

Mouths! Photo by Flickr user Palbo

I’ve been sitting on this theme for a while, and I’ve decided it’s time to go ahead and pull the trigger. (As per usual, with not nearly enough lead time. Sorry everybody!) Ball of Wax Volume 44, Spring 2016, will consist exclusively of the human voice. You can do whatever you want with it: sing solo, talk, rap, loop/multitrack, sing in a big group, chop and cut and paste the heck out of it . . . you name it, just nothing but voices (or, okay, other mouth sounds).

So send in your submissions! Spread the word! I want to be amazed and delighted and overwhelmed by voices.

Deadline: Please have submissions in by April 24th. (As always, earlier is great and later is probably doable too, just get in touch.) General submission guidelines here.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Dad on the Road: An Interview with Jon Rooney

Posted on March 11, 2016 by Bart Cameron

Jon Rooney, Virgin of the BirdsThis Ball of Wax thing has been fascinating over the years I’ve been involved. One key figure in the shaping of this project has been Jon Rooney, who matched wit and energy with Levi Fuller to grow the presence of this project. Of the many aspects of his character reflected in the site and project—Jon was the first of us to become a father.

This week, Jon and his band Virgin of the Birds set out on a US tour, bringing with them Storm the Palace from the UK. (They complete their tour on Saturday, March 12 at Conor Byrne Pub in Seattle.) While many contributors to this project are touring musicians, this seems like a milestone for a man who usually puts intelligence first and foremost. I asked him for his perspective touring as an otherwise sensible father, husband, and blogger. Continue reading →

Posted in Ball of Wax | Tagged | 3 Comments

On Cadillacs and Confusing Winters: Storm the Palace Travels to Seattle from the United Kingdom

Posted on March 1, 2016 by Bart Cameron

Arnab Ghosal - bath 1Ebullient praise. I am able to contribute less and less frequently to Levi Fuller’s amazing project due to life, rent, etc; however, there are moments when you discover a great band or record, and you realize that you can at least provide a spark of recognition. I now have proof that at least one band we featured appreciated the write-up.

About a year ago, I wrote about a fascinating band in this blog. Now, almost a year later, Storm the Palace is leaving the UK to tour the US. They’re bringing with them a new EP, and they’re traveling with Ball of Wax’s Jon Rooney and his band Virgin of the Birds. Continue reading →

Posted in Ball of Wax, Bands You Should Know, Glocal Scene, Live Music, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 43 Songs: Thad Wenatchee and OK – Last Letter

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Jon Rooney

Though Seattle producer and MC thad wenatchee makes his Ball of Wax debut with “Last Letter,” he’s a prolific member of the Seattle hip hop community, with connections to everything from the Hollow Earth Radio folks to the Filthy Fingers United collaborative project. “Last Letter” pairs wenatchee’s double-tracked vocal delivery with a swirling, throbbing backing track, courtesy producer OK. It’s an immensely well-constructed, exciting song and a great way to close out Volume 43. Let’s hope to hear more from wenatchee on Ball of Wax, and set aside some time to dive into his deep, wide body of work.

Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song | Tagged | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 43 Songs: Thomas Pearo – We’ll Be OK

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Levi Fuller

. . . and then sometimes you just want something simple and beautiful. Vermonter Thomas Pearo‘s looped guitar piece “We’ll Be OK” makes for a lovely bit of musical sorbet (and I mean that absolutely as a good thing) after the rich, giddy noise of the preceding couple tracks, easing us into our initial descent to the end of this volume (to horribly mix and torture a couple of metaphors). According to Thomas, “We’ll Be OK” has its origins in a sad and dark period of his life, but he’s taken that darkness and turned it to light with the easy, loping, peaceful nature of this piece. It’s almost enough to make you think, despite the ample evidence to the contrary, that we will be OK. Almost.

Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song | Tagged | 1 Comment

Ball of Wax 43 Songs: Terwilliger Curves – Doubles the Rainbow

Posted on February 25, 2016 by Jon Rooney

Finally, some tasty retro ’60s freak-out pop on the Ball of Wax. I’m not going to burst my own bubble by Googling band pictures, but in my mind the members of Terwilliger Curves all sport Prince Valiant haircuts and wear striped turtlenecks. Perhaps they all play Vox teardrop guitars and wear Roger McGuinn granny glasses. Nevertheless, “Doubles the Rainbow” is filled with freaky psychedelic goodness. I’m hoping that Terwilliger Curves (that’s how one names a band, Karaoke Hottiez people) splits the geographical difference between their apparent home bases of Portland and Vancouver and plays a show in Seattle. That would be rad.

Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song, Recorded Music | Tagged | Leave a comment

Ball of Wax 43 Songs: The Vardaman Ensemble – Hills & Monuments

Posted on February 25, 2016 by Levi Fuller

If I were better at ever writing album reviews or composing year-end lists of favorite albums, you would have already heard me singing the praises of The Vardaman Ensemble, the skronky post-rock-and-jazz-in-a-blender side project of The Harvey Girls’ Hiram Lucke. Their 2015 EP Unthank Park was an unexpected delight, a blast of cold water to my ears’ face. (Sorry, I’m a little sleep-deprived at the moment, I realize how incoherent that sentence was but I’m leaving it.) There is guitar, there is saxophone, there is a Gameboy, there are tons of effects pedals and herky-jerky stops and starts; it’s all a wonderful burst of controlled chaos – and hey, it’s free/name-your-price! Get the whole EP right here.

I’m hoping The Vardaman Ensemble and Terwilliger Curves (the next track up), both being based in Portland, will play some shows together soon. If they do, you should go and give them a Ball of Wax high five.

Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song, Free Album of the Day | Tagged , | 1 Comment