Posted By Sadie Williams on Tue, Nov 15, 2016 at 6:24 PM

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Generator

A floor plan for the new incarnation of Generator

Inside 40 Sears Lane, a new maker facility is gradually taking shape. The massive warehouse owned by Champlain College will be the new home of Burlington's Generator.  The member-based makerspace, which provides community, resources and room for creatives to grow, is losing its quarters in Memorial Auditorium due to structural issues in the building.

The new location is expected to open on January 2. But, as a tour today revealed, it's got a long way to go to be ready.

Tags: Maker space , Generator , Lars Hasselblad Torres , champlain college , Image , Web Only

Posted By Jordan Adams on Tue, Nov 15, 2016 at 10:16 AM

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Stevie Wonder, 'Songs in the Key of Life'

In case you missed it last winter, Vermont's APEX Ensemble are reconvening to perform their selected interpretations from Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life. The band previously performed their selections at the Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center in February, 2016. Now the troupe is headed to ArtsRiot in Burlington, on Saturday, November 19.

Tags: APEX Ensemble , Dan Liptak , Stevie Wonder , TURNmusic , Image , Video , Web Only

Posted By Dan Bolles on Mon, Nov 14, 2016 at 12:55 PM

It's Monday, which means it's time for your weekly dose of locavore levity: the Joke of the Week! This week's joke comes from South Burlington's Owen Foley. Take it away, Owen …

I'm thinking about opening a business that serves two separate needs. Maybe a laundromat that's also a bar, or a bookstore that's also a bar, or a restaurant that's also a truck. Even my food truck is going to serve fusion cuisine. I'm thinking Vietnamese and Italian food. Gonna call it Pho-gettaboutit.

About that joke

Says Foley: This joke is simple word play, it is dumb but I love it so much. The smart, sophisticated, and tremendously good looking audiences of Burlington also seem to enjoy it.

Tags: Owen Foley , Image , Web Only

Posted By Dan Bolles on Fri, Nov 11, 2016 at 2:24 PM

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Andy Tenille

M.C. Taylor

On Heart Like a Levee, the new album from North Carolina's Hiss Golden Messenger, songwriter M.C. Taylor attempts to reconcile the two seemingly at-odds aspects of his being: that of a touring musician and a dedicated family man. The record unfolds with quiet southern charm. It's both playful and brooding, with subtly dynamic rhythmic ideas couched in dusty folk rock.

In the middle of it all is Taylor, his reedy voice giving life to poignant thoughts on love, art and family with a novelist's eye for detail. The work is profoundly stirring and ultimately affirming.

Touring in support of that record — and an accompanying bonus album called Vestapol — Hiss Golden Messenger play on Friday, November 11, at the Higher Ground Ballroom in South Burlington. Seven Days recently spoke with Taylor by phone to discuss the albums, his fascination with southern culture and his affinity for the guitars of Burlington luthier Creston Lea.

Tags: Hiss Golden Messenger , M.C. Taylor , Creston Electric , Image , Web Only

Posted By Amelia Devoid on Fri, Nov 11, 2016 at 1:04 PM

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Ryan Storm

Cover of 'Northern Songs'

Hey everyone. It's hard to want to write about music at a time like this, when there are much more important things to think about. Local music has been the last concept on my mind. However, while watching protest live streams and comforting friends last night, a song of solidarity surfaced in my consciousness. That song is "We Won't Survive" by Vermonters Chris Weisman and Greg Davis.

Tags: Chris Weisman , Greg Davis , experimental , folk , Burlington , Brattleboro , Image , Web Only

Posted By Jordan Adams on Tue, Nov 8, 2016 at 6:30 AM

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Bloom Machine Photography

Radio Bean community

Radio Bean just celebrated its 16th birthday with its annual all-day music marathon. On Saturday, November 5, starting at 8 a.m, a total of 88 bands played on two stages. I decided I was going to be there. All. Day. What follows is a real-time diary of my thoughts, feelings and observations over the course of the 18+ hours I spent there.

Tags: radio bean , light club lamp shop , live music , lee anderson , week bitch , static circus , mickey western , tree sampson , silver bridget , matt hagen mc , osaba , kat wright , madaila , Image , Web Only

Posted By Jordan Adams on Mon, Nov 7, 2016 at 11:02 AM

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Jordan Adams

The band, L-R: Max Bronstein-Paritz, Andriana Chobot, Tom Whitney, Nate Venet, Matt Guzowski, Rob O'Dea, Marie Claire Johnson, Tom Walters

Burlington's Lyric Theatre is getting ready to throw the biggest rock show it has ever thrown. Actually, it's probably the only rock show the local theater company has put on in its 43 year of operation: The Who's Tommy, based on the iconic rock album of the same name. While Lyric has dabbled with rock operas and rock and roll musicals in the past, such as Bye Bye Birdie, Rent, Grease and Jesus Christ Superstar, Tommy will be the first attempt at creating a bona fide concert experience.

Tags: Lyric Theatre , Tommy , the Who , Pete Townshend , music , theater , Nate Venet , Image , Web Only

Posted By Dan Bolles on Mon, Nov 7, 2016 at 9:49 AM

It's Monday, which means it's time for your weekly dose of locavore levity: the Joke of the Week! This week's joke comes from Burlington's Tim Bridge. Take it away, Tim …

I was dumped recently. And it sucks being broken up with. It does. It only sucks more when you're sitting on a couch, being broken up with, and multiple times in the conversation you have the thought, That's a good point.

No one wants to be broken up with. I feel like the best case scenario is being able to say, "Screw it, man, that girl was crazy." Or, "Who cares, girl. That guy was an asshole."

No one wants to be like, "Nah, this makes sense for you."

About that joke

Says Bridge: Writing jokes about how sad you feel is a pretty great way to get over how sad you feel.

I was broken up with. It made a comical amount of sense when it was explained why I was being broken up with. So I made it into a joke in order to convince myself that everything was going to be okay, which it totally, definitely, 100%, completely is.

I'm fine.

Tags: Tim Bridge , Image , Web Only

Posted By Sadie Williams on Sat, Nov 5, 2016 at 2:13 PM

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Peter Moore

On a website called Chivomengro, a group of Champlain College students  publishes essays, cultural reviews, something  kind of like news, and original art. The tagline for the site calls it "a nonfiction semi-literary entity devoted to pasta and angst." The "about us" section says it's a "purveyor of collegiate whatever."  Despite those waggish descriptions, the site has existed since 2012, is evolving and has become more organized. But it's still angsty, and often hilarious.

Chivomengro's latest edition includes a review of Bon Iver's new album, a piece by Walter Proulx called "Fucking Space" (did you know NASA is apparently working on a way to travel faster than the speed of light?), and site manager Peter Moore's reflective essay on the indescribable nature of certain experiences. Like their writers, the pieces are a little awkward and a lot endearing. And they're smart.

Tags: college , students , writing , websites , humor , Image , Web Only

Posted By Amelia Devoid on Fri, Nov 4, 2016 at 6:30 AM

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Griffin Jones

Sci-Fi's 'Big Ag' DIY aesthetic is on point.

Hello, my little raindrops! I am so glad you have joined me for another extra soggy edition of Playtime. Today I would like to introduce you to the mysterious whiz-kid producer, Sci-Fi.  

Tags: Bennington , pop , lo-fi , garage rock , indie , Griffin Jones , Image , Web Only