Author: scenebygina

Writer. Public Relations. NYC. Colombia.

Lyrics: ‘Keepsake’ by Gaslight Anthem

On By scenebyginaIn family, music, PeopleLeave a comment
Photo via AUX.tv

I’m very fortunate to have grown up with both parents. I didn’t always see it that way. As a kid, I can remember sometimes wishing they’d divorce when they fought because I hated arguments and I figured I’d be allowed to hang out with friends more that way! (They were strict about letting me go anywhere without my brothers.)

I feel guilty for even thinking that way. But I was young and naive. I definitely cherish having them both together and around to this day.

I’m going to assume Gaslight Anthem’s Brian Fallon grew up, in part, without his dad. The lyrics to Keepsake give me goosebumps:

It’s been thirty-one years
Since she’s been in your arms
But don’t worry about Mama
Mama’s got a good heart

And I’m not looking for your love
I’m only sniffing out blood
Just a little taste of where I came from

And at the bottom of this river
Is where I put you down to lay
So I can live with it
And in my heart there are these waters
Where I put you down to lay
While I learn to live with it
Until I’m free

And it’s been all my life
I’ve been wondering on the inside
What we could’ve had
If you’d had a part in my life

Buy the album, read the rest of the lyrics or just listen to the song, here. And in this interview with AOL Spinner, Fallon discusses honesty in his songwriting.

Upcoming in NYC: Young Moms Conference on Sept. 8

On By scenebyginaIn family, New York, PeopleLeave a comment

Northern Manhattan will be home to the very first “Young Moms Conference” this September. The event is being organized by Carolina PIchardo, one of the cofounders of Young Urban Moms (YUM), a blog devoted to young mothers in the NYC area.

I asked Pichardo to tell me how this conference came about.

A young mom herself, Pichardo said she always wanted to display a side of young mothers that has never been demonstrated before. She also wanted to provide a place for young moms to get together.

“YUM, the site, has always the main vehicle, but I know that every once in a while we need to step out from behind our screens and desks and whatever other lofty little places we currently are now and help those that need the real hand-holding,” Pichardo said. “This is that ‘Girl-to-Girl’ conference. Our goal is to make it real, to make it friendly and open, like so many of us. We are a community and we’re here to show it.”

A keynote speaker is expected to be announced in coming weeks.

Other things to expect at the conference are workshops on various family topics presented by area organizations; wellness tips and panels by The SPEACH and Healthy Kids in the Heights; and sessions with A Young Mother’s D.R.E.A.M, a nonprofit whose mission is to assist young/teen moms in completing their education through a one-on-one mentorship program.

And, by the way, according to YUM, there isn’t a strict age limit on who qualifies as a “young mom.” So if you can relate to the topics on their site, you’re a young mom. End of story.

Here are the need-to-know details:

Date: Saturday, September 8th
Time: 1 to 5 p.m.
Location: 3940 Broadway, New York, NY 10032

You must register in advance. Visit the YUM site for information on how to register and to learn about the conference cosponsors.

Outernational on ‘jumpstarting the next wave of revolutionary culture’

On By scenebyginaIn music, New YorkLeave a comment
Photo by Ashley Noelle

“… that’s kind of the essence of Outernational. We’re a band. We’re not a political organization. We may be involved with different things, but as a band, we’re trying to jump start … a next wave of revolutionary culture among a new generation of young people and people all around the world.”

-Miles Solay in the RiverfrontTimes

‘Go to church, work hard, don’t swear.’

On By scenebyginaIn musicLeave a comment

Image

Photo by George Tice/New York Times

I’ll admit I’m a bit obsessed with the Gaslight Anthem, but this New York Times magazine profile on the band by Lizzy Goodman is just too good not to share…

[Brian] Fallon is an only child, born and raised in Red Bank not far from where he lives now. His mother works for a local hospital, and his stepfather worked in a factory. The family rules were simple: go to church, work hard, don’t swear.

Recently [Fallon] said in an interview with a German music magazine that he believes in creationism. People “started freaking out, saying I don’t believe in dinosaurs and I’m such a fool,” he said. “But you say you’re a religious person, and it’s on, bonfire is lit. I thought we’re supposed to live in a tolerant society.”

What distresses Fallon the most is that people assume he’s intolerant. Fallon’s wife, Hollie, is a Jewish girl from the Bronx, and he is a vocal supporter of gay rights and women’s rights. “Bruce has this expression he says all the time: ‘Nobody wins unless everybody wins,’ and I really think that’s true,” Fallon says. “When I was working construction or in a gas station listening to Bruce Springsteen songs, I felt like I’d won, too.”

Read more here. 

EDUCATION: Food for thought

On By scenebyginaIn EducationLeave a comment
Photo via Ourpubliceducation.org

From Fordham professor Mark Naison’s Facebook feed:

“If someone told you that you lived in a country where no leaders would send their children to the schools they designing for 90 percent of the population, you would say you must be talking about a feudal society or third world dictatorship, but unfortunately, you are talking about the United States in 2012. Whether it’s Bill Gates, Michael Bloomberg, Andrew Cuomo, Mitt Romney or Barack Obama, the wealthiest and most politically influential supporters of school reform send their children to private schools where none of the tests and evaluations they are deluging public schools with hold sway. If I was a cynical person, I would say they are trying to transform our children into an obedient low wage labor force that will work for the companies their children will run, but that would be unfair, right?”

Ondatropica at Lincoln Center ‘Out of Doors’

On By scenebyginaIn Colombia, family, music, New York, PeopleLeave a comment
Photo by Gina Vergel

Ondatrópica made its US debut at the Lincoln Center Out Of Doors Festival on July 27 and it was awesome, mostly because I was able to shoot photos right up front. Read Jon Pareles’ (New York Times) review of the show here.

This all-star band featured greats from the golden age of Colombian music including Michi Sarmiento, Alfredito Linares, Pedro Ramayá Beltran, Markitos Micolta and Wilson Vivero, alongside the two musicians who started this wonderful project, Will ‘Quantic’ Holland and Mario Galeano with their bands, Combo Barbaro and Frente Cumbiero.

I got to meet the very humble Quantic as he was manning the merchandise table, where I purchased the band’s self-titled debut album. I told him that his “Original Sound of Original Cumbia” and “Cartagena!” CDs mean a lot to me because my dad loves them and they help to transport him back to Colombia at a time when it’s not easy for him to visit his beloved home country.

My dad has had Parkinson’s disease for more than 10 years now and is quite immobile. He is the person who introduced my brothers and I to Colombian music as he’d blast his records every Saturday when we were growing up. It’s why my younger brother started DJing at 14. It’s why my older brother and I are insane fans of la musica de la costa. It’s why this music is in our blood.

One of the things my dad misses most in life is dancing to the wonderful music from his home country. So I was very happy to tell Quantic his CDs are on REPEAT at my parents’ home in New Jersey. He can’t quite dance; but he sure can bop to it and occasionally digs out his maracas when doing so.

Now my dad will have the opportunity to experience this new Colombian sound. Ondatrópica fuses old with new to create a progressive sound which mixes traditional Colombian styles such as cumbia, gaita and champeta with boogaloo, ska, beat-box, MCs, dub and funk. And we were quite blown away when they played a song with bits of Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man” in it!

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Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto & Geko Jones at LPR

On By scenebyginaIn Colombia, music, New York, PeopleLeave a comment

Masters of Colombian folkloric cumbia, Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto, played Le Poisson Rouge on July 26 and it was a thing of beauty. Lead singer Juan “Chuchita” Fernández may be in his 80s, but he shows no signs of slowing down as he consistently charmed the crowd throughout the nearly two hour performance. And, yes, that front row full of YOUNG LADIES.

Geko Jones, one of the New York tropical scene’s hottest DJs, kept the crowd bailando with sets interspersed with classic Colombian tunes and, of course, various remixes that put a modern take on this amazing music. Check out his latest mixtape here.

A second set by Los Gaiteros included special guest musicians, including some from M.A.K.U. Soundsystem, a Queens based, afroColombian punk, funk and jazz supergroup that I’ll be profiling in Sounds and Colours in the near future.

All photos by me.

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July 26 storm in NYC…

On By scenebyginaIn New York, PeopleLeave a comment
Photo by Ryan Brenizer

… And it’s a beauty because Fordham alum Ryan Brenizer shot it!

Brenizer, an award winning wedding photographer, is frequently hired by Fordham University’s Marketing and Communications offices for news and feature photography. We love when he is free, which is not too often since he’s almost always shooting someone’s special day.

Read all about his work here.

Outernational: The Beginning is Here

On By scenebyginaIn musicLeave a comment

Much has been written about Outernational‘s “Todos Somos Ilegales.” The video for the pro-humanity anthem features Tom Morello, Chad Smith, Residente from Calle 13 and 100 fans proclaiming, “Todos Somos Ilegales!”

But #TODOS isn’t the band’s only music video. Check out “The Beginning is Here,” which was directed by Jessica Habie and produced by Misfit Media’s Nicole Brydson. (Nicole is also Outernational’s web designer/guru.)

This is one of my favorite songs on the album, which you can download by naming your own price here. It was shot while the band was on tour in the Southwest. Check out one of Leo Mintek’s (guitarist) tour diaries here.