Great video shot last summer by some of Akron’s most creative folks, Todd V & Blue Green. Chrissie Hynde models RCC as she shows off her favorite spots in the Rubber City!
Chrissie Hynde’s Akron from Blue Green on Vimeo.
You are currently browsing articles tagged Musica.
Yesterday I complained foolishly about the snow & Mother Nature’s yearly beating we get each winter. When I turned on the news this morning, I felt like a real jerk…we could have it so much worse. For the second time in little over a month, the western hemisphere has been struck by a catastrophic earthquake- this time 8.8 on the Richter scale. Now before someone raises a stink about us not having blogged about the tragedy in Haiti- if you’ll notice, we really didn’t do much blogging last month due to transitions/movements. What happened in Haiti was terrible, and it is really great how much of the world has banded together to raise money, food, supplies, and volunteer work to help the people in need. Now sadly, the same is needed in Chile, where the 8.8 quake hit. It is still too early on to tell what kind of damage has been done and the number of lives affected. As soon as I heard, I contacted a friend in New York who has friends & family in Chile- he hasn’t been able to reach them. Plus, the earthquake is not the only tragedy today; because of the magnitude of the earthquake, waves traveling at the speed of an air jetliner are headed toward Hawaii- a tsunami is coming. Safety warnings have gone out in Hawaii, California, and all the way up the coast to Alaska. The tsunami is expected to hit Hawaii at 11:19am local time, 4:19pm EST. We can only hope and pray that people find safe shelter from the storm.
Yesterday we got in t-shirts for a benefit at Musica, “Akron Rocks for Haiti”. A great mix of local musicians are getting together to raise funds & awareness for the American Red Cross/Haiti Relief fund, including Umojah Nation, House Popes, Ryan Humbert, Roxxymoron, Freez-R-Burn, and Peep. I was planning to blog about them today, little did I realize there would be much more to talk about. It’s likely that relief & aid for Chile & the Pacific will be addressed at the show as well. If you haven’t contributed to the relief efforts in Haiti, now is the time. The Red Cross will be in need of more supplies/funds/help due to today’s events. Call your local American Red Cross (there’s one on West Market St), Google, find out how you can help.
If you’ve been at the front of a local store, restaurant, bar chances are you’ve seen the stacks of free flyers, postcards, and newspapers. You’re probably very familiar with Scene Magazine, Earth Watch, etc. There’s a new kid on the block (well actually two, but Buzzbin Magazine deserves and will get a post all of its own very soon). The new kid that I am talking about now is The Independent, which began local printing & distribution this past fall. The captain of the Independent ship is local writer James Renner. I became a big fan of James’ work at Scene Magazine and later the Free Times. After a merger of Scene and the Free Times (if you recall I had a brief stint at Scene at that time too), James decided to start his own completely local paper. In addition, James is the author of two true-crime books, Amy: My Search for Her Killer, about the tragic kidnapping & murder of Amy Mihaljevic, a Bay Village girl in 1989; and The Serial Killer’s Apprentice, a collection of unsolved mysteries in NEO- with a few in/about Akron.
(Especially this week) Pick up a copy of The Independent! This week’s cover story is titled “20 Reasons We Love Akron”. On the cover is our lovely friend Maya from Musica/Mocha Maiden who is modeling our Survival shirt like no other. Flip to the cover story inside & you’ll see Maya wearing Route 8. You’ll also see the “Top 20″ list of Akron, with RCC at #16. XTC…that seedy “Gentelman’s” club on Brittain Rd. is #14…proving that in a game of shirts vs. skins, skins wins. Alright, well I thought that was funny. Anyway, The Independent is a wonderful publication, and a great place to read the things that mainstream publications might be afraid to write about. And it’s FREE!!!
Yesterday I wrote about the unfortunate budget cuts the city needed to make. 21 people lost jobs, and the city lost a few beloved community programs. While nothing can cushion the blow of a lay-off (we can only hope once there is room in the budget that these folks can return to their jobs), we still have city programs that will continue to grow & help grow Akron- like the Downtown Artwalk. Organized by the Downtown Akron Partnership, the artwalk is held the first Saturday night of every month. Dozens of downtown/north side galleries & shops stay open late and feature the latest & greatest on the Akron art scene. There’s even a free trolley that drops artwalkers off at each location (though on a nice night, it’s a great trip on foot). There’s no cost to attend the Artwalk, though you may want to pick up a painting, sculpture, or a few dozen t-shirts. Plus, this month there is a live concert at 111 North Main St (in the CarGear parking lot- across from Luigi’s) featuring Mike Lenz, Ryan Humbert, and our good friends Maid Myriad. There will also be street performers walking about downtown for your enjoyment. The Artwalk is always a good time, and even won a prestigious Zenith Award for Hospitality Partnership back in May.
Come down this Saturday and check out all of the stops, including WE Gallery, Urban Kanvas, Mocha Maiden & Musica, and of course RCC!
There are not enough words to describe how much we love Akron & its wonderful people. It is because of the people in this town and their shared love of this city, that a small business based on Akron pride can flourish (especially in this economy). It is so great to meet different people everyday who come into the store, share their memories and favorite things of Akron. We also get a lot of people who are visiting from out of town- whether they used to live here, are visiting relatives or even in town for business- it is so great to see people that love this place!
In addition to the amazing business support we’ve seen, we’d also like to thank the fine folks of this town for voting us ‘Runner-Up for Best Boutique’ and Honorable Mention for ‘Best Specialty Store’ in Akron Life & Leisure Magazine. Congratulations to the ‘Best Boutique’ winner, Revival up in Highland Square & ‘Best Specialty Store’ West Point Market. Our good friend Noto downstairs received an honorable mention for Best Boutique; Musica was Runner-Up for ‘Best Live Music Venue’; Mocha Maiden received an Honorable Mention for ‘Best Coffee’; and our friends over at The Beauty Lounge and Salon at the Point received Honorable Mentions for ‘Best Women’s Haircut’. If you haven’t picked up the ‘Best of Akron’ issue that just came out, you should. It highlights some of the area’s best establishments, with 95% or more on the list being locally owned. You’ll be reminded of some of the great places in Akron, and even learn of some you didn’t know about before.
We love Akron, all the people, places, things, and any other nouns I may be excluding. We pledge to continue to provide you, along with our sister Made in Akron, the best Akron products you can get. We are always looking for ways to grow and improve, and would love feedback of any form! We <3 you Akron!!!
Musica has some fantastic shows lined up this weekend. Our good friends The Marble Champs are playing tonight with Collidescope- so if you missed them at RCC a couple of weeks ago, get down there tonight. Tomorrow night, RCC’s own JCK is throwing his birthday bash. His band Maid Myriad will be playing, along with Eyes on Edmond, Vinny Vegas, and Asleep.
Come down for some good times and great local rock! And make sure you stop upstairs before the shows and check out RCC!
Saturday night RCC hosted The Marble Champs live in-store as part of the first of many local music shows. The band played an hour and a half set of all original songs. It was a really great set, and a lot of people turned out to see TMC and come by for the Downtown Artwalk.
If you missed out on seeing TMC for free in-store, you can always check out one of their area gigs. They’ll be at our downstairs neighbor, Musica, on May 22nd. Tickets are $6ish. They’ll also be playing out east in Kent on June 26th at the Outpost.
Rubber City Clothing has certainly been known to cause a good laugh, start a conversation, or piss some people off when they see “Where the Weak are Killed and Eaten” (here’s a hint, if you don’t like it…don’t look at it; and I’ll refrain from quoting Redd Fox or Red Foreman); but now our designs are INSPIRING!!!!We got an email from an RCC fan saying that he loved our ‘Marble Champ‘ design so much, that he named his band after it! Originally created as a witty design for the American Toy Marble Museum here in Downtown Akron (Yes, Akron has a Marble Museum. And yes, it is really cool), the mischievous freckled boy in the tilted crown inspired David Purcell of Kent to name his new band ‘The Marble Champs.’ He put up a post on his blog, Radio Free Newport yesterday about the new band and details about their debut show at our neighbor downstairs, Musica. Check out The Mable Champs next weekend & stop by RCC to pick up a little t-shirt inspiration for yourself!
2009 03 01
Introducing The Marble Champs
Back in December, I asked for name suggestions for my new band. Many of ideas were already taken, including Lazy Diamonds, Free Radicals, and even, as a commenter noted, Four Dead In Ohio (and c’mon, folks, I work about 1/10 mile from where it happened — do you really think that would work?). Some were pretty good and made it into the running, including: Furnace Run, Graveltag, Devil Strips, and Rubber City Rollers.
My favorite for awhile was The Goodyear Saints, inspired in part by driving behind a Goodyear truck on the way to KSU one day. But it felt a little too obvious and my bandmates weren’t blown away by it.
Early on, Amy suggested something to do with marbles, given that the American Toy Marble Museum is in downtown Akron (Kent, you suggested the Akron Marbles!). There are some interesting terms associated with the game, but nothing stuck…until I was doing my Christmas shopping at Rubber City Clothing, a shop that makes fabulous t-shirts about Akron (Chrissie has worn RCC shirts onstage and in every bit of promo for the new record). I saw a t-shirt with this great drawing of a slightly deranged-looking kid wearing a crown with the words, “Marble Champion.” Not long after, The Marble Champs were christened. It fits all of the rules I posted and early feedback on it from friends is good.
We debut at Musica on Saturday, March 14. We’ll open for the Tofu Fighters and go on right at 9pm. Please sign up to our mailing list and check out some rough basement rehearsal recordings at our MySpace page. (Incidentally, this is the same club where I saw the Joseph Arthur show that inspired me not to quit.)
I am very excited about playing out again. This will be my first real gig in two years, the longest break since I started playing out regularly 22 years ago. The band is starting to come together and my new bandmates are great guys. I have some new songs and a groovy, purple Jazzmaster. Music is fun again.
However, it is also a strange period for me. This is the first time since college where our new friends don’t know me as a musician. The band and I are complete unknowns in Akron’s music scene (save for Michael, our guitarist, who plays in a very good, well-known band called The House Popes). And for the first time in nearly ten years, when the original version of Pike 27 debuted, I will take the stage with guys I have not known for long; for those of you who saw the brothers-in-arms collective of Pike, you’ll understand what I mean. As Professor Richey might say about a particular structural equation model, “there are more unknowns than knowns.”
Thanks again for the name ideas — some might work their way into songs. And c’mon out if you’re in the area, I think we’ll be pretty good.
Cheers,
dp”
Please help make Rubber City Clothing Akron’s best boutique! Akron Life & Leisure is holding their sixth annual “Best of Akron” poll. Categories include the best of entertainment, food, shopping, and services in the greater Akron area. While you’re at it, vote for some of our friends, like Winslow for best local band; Mocha Maiden for best coffee; Musica for best music venue; and more. Click here to place your vote!
Thanks in advance! RCC loves Akron and we know Akron loves RCC!
Cleveland Fox 8’s morning show, That’s Life with Robin Swoboda is airing a special on the best places to go in Ohio’s most charmingly cool city. I’m obviously talking about Akron, and of course RCC is one of the best places to visit!
See us this Monday, February 16th at 10am. Along with us, some of our great neighbors like WE Gallery, Mocha Maiden, Uncorked, Musica, and Noto; as well as Don Drumm & West Point Market will be featured.
This is going to show that Akron is waaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more than Cleveland’s little sister to the south. I’ll get the video up asap. Catch it live (or DVR/Tivo…if you must).