It was just three years ago that Madison was home to experimental independent musicians Peaking Lights and the venerable Nika Roza Danilova, aka Zola Jesus. The Internet buzz was intense as both artists along with Julian Lynch (who still lives here) made the pages of Pitchfork and other tastemaker websites on a regular basis.
I've always had a weakness for drummers. It might be from my days hitting the skins in basement bands long forgotten or the slow takeover at gigs by soulless recorded backing drum tracks. Drummers can have a hard time getting respect.
Tis the season to be jolly and run up large credit card bills. For Robby Schiller of the Blueheels and more recently Little Legend, the annual tradition is to put out a holiday recording. The third installment named The Final Blueheels Christmas Party runs the gamut from traditional to off-the-wall songs. Robby has that distinctive vocal style, a cross between Dylan, Tom Waits and Sammy Llanas of the Bodeans. With the onslaught of winter weather upon us, we checked in with Robby to see what this party is all about.