Last Monday (Dec 15) was an important day for both Jesse "Luscious" Townley and the City of Berkeley. It was the date when, immediately before the first Rent Board meeting since the November 4th election in which Townley got elected to office, that the punk rocker-turned-politician got sworn in to his new position as City of Berkeley Rent Board Commissioner. One of five elected to this position, Townley stands out because of his rich and colorful background and unprecedented deep rooted commitment to Berkeley and its citizens.

Townley, who migrated to Berkeley from Philadelphia back in 1989, initially came out West to attend the San Francisco Anarchist Gatheriing -- but he liked it so much in Berkeley that he never left. From 1989 to 1990 he published the punk zine Berkeley Sucks. Over the years he has volunteered countless hours at 924 Gilman Street. He has also played on the stage at Gilman as a member of such East Bay punk bands as Blatz, The Gr'ups, The Criminals, and most recently The Frisk (who appeared on the Amoeba Music Compilation series). Over the years Jesse has also gained invaluable experience putting in time at local punk labels. He has worked at both Lookout Records and Alternative Tentacles (where he still works) and for a time, along with his partner Kamala, ran his own label Zafio Records.

Jean Marie's songs are warm and cozy; they kinda feel like curling up fireside and dreamily gazing out a glowing window. Thus, their music is perfect for the winter chill we are currently experiencing! What better time than now, when we are besieged by hail and frigid winds, to tap into lead Jean Marie-er Jem's brain to bring on the warmth and find out what and who inspires her? Read on to find out about her love of Riotgrrl, the East Bay, and...Mariah Carey!?

Miss Ess: What made you want to play music? How did you get started?

Jem: My mother has a love affair with music and is an amateur singer, so she sacrificed and saved to give my brother and I piano lessons, music lessons, etc, so there would be music in the house. She did this with the intent that we would simply appreciate it as a pastime, but as adults, we both chose to follow music as our path...which means, rich happy hearts, but sad empty pockets.

I started writing my own songs in high school. I was really inspired by the Riot Grrl movement and especially Courtney Love. I was just starting to play guitar when I saw Hole perform at a radio-sponsored Christmas show in 1994. Courtney was beautiful, dramatic, and absolutely enthralling. Her guitar playing and her singing was basic and sloppy, but because of that, revolutionary. It didn't matter what the chords were or where you placed your fingers or whether you sung in tune or not -- what mattered was that your voice and story was being told.

Citay is one band of many sounds. It is also the brain child of one Ezra Feinberg. Here, Ezra shares the inspirations behind the fusion of sounds that make up Citay, how one U2 cover utterly changed his life and why the NYC scene is easier to appreciate for him now that he's a San Francisco resident. To hear songs by Citay, check out their Myspace page here. Citay's album Little Kingdom happens to be both fantastic and available at Amoeba Music.


Miss Ess: How did you develop the sound of Citay? It sounds like many elements coming together seamlessly -- did you consciously bring together different sounds and influences, or is Citay more of an amalgamation of sounds you hear in your head, or something else entirely?

Ezra: Well I started by layering acoustic guitar chords in open tunings with harmonized electric guitar leads. I wanted it to have elements of spacier acoustic music with elements of heavier rock in the way that a lot of acid rock and early heavy metal bands did in the early 70s. But I'm really into vocal harmonies and pop songs, so I added those and it gave it an airier feel. I just started putting these elements together and the songs took on structure as I worked them through. I started working on Citay in the summer of 2004 and it's the same writing process now. I definitely think Citay is an amalgamation of sounds I hear in my head. It's basically my favorite aspects of my favorite music rolled into a new song.

Scott Walker
Years of Employment: "Since the turn of the century."
Jazz floor dude

Miss Ess: What initially got you into jazz?

SW: A horrible answer: I don't remember. Most probably, like many people, it was a mid-era Miles Davis [record]. Pinpointing which one, twenty something years down the road, I would only be guessing.

ME: What album do you consider to be the pinnacle of the form?

SW: To me, there are different forms: Free/Avant, Bop, Trad, so I am tempted to answer one example for each, but won't at risk of boring/alienating readers. I would say an early [Thelonious] Monk recording: one of the late 40s sessions.

ME: What present-day jazz artists do you enjoy?

SW: Seeing Marilyn Crispell last week was pretty heavy: solo piano. I like solo piano stuff a lot, it's kind of like listening to a demo of a song -- it's distilled down to an essence, whether it's Fats Waller, Monk, or Sun Ra. It's hard, because like blues, jazz is so much about re-releases and focusing on history, standards, and regurgitation.

Is there a jazz record you love that crept up on you-- maybe one you didn't love it at first but grew to adore?

I didn't like electric Miles Davis when I first heard it. It was probably parallel to when people first hear electric Dylan: "Is he really serious/allowed to do this?" Now I listen to the electric stuff more often than the acoustic.

Multi-talented Japanese-born hip-hop artist Shing02, who has called the Bay Area home for the past 18 years, has relocated to Los Angeles. "It's for a fresh start," the MC/DJ/producer/musician & musical instrument creator (the Faderboard, which Japanese DJ equipment company Vestax manufacture, is his invention) recently announced to surprised Bay Area friends. The artist was raised in Japan and England before moving to California at age 15.

But Shing02 had been away from the Bay for much of 2008 already, spending six months this year touring in Japan. Up until his move away he was living in North Oakland. This weekend Shing02 returns to his beloved Bay Area to do two special Halloween shows later today (10/31/08). At 6:30PM he will perform at the Halloween Hip Hop Showcase at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park along with his ensemble Kosmic Renaissance. The show is free and all ages. Then after that show Shing02 will head over to the Ahoy! Ninjas! party at G3 Lounge (in SF's Richmond District at 3910 Geary @ 3rd Ave.) to do an emcee set for this second show which opens at 9PM and goes til 2AM ($15 or $10 in costume). Yesterday, as Shing02 was prepping for his trip to the Bay, I caught up with him at his new LA home to ask a few quick questions about music, LA vs the Bay, his tour of Japan this year, and what to expect at his two shows today.

Amoeblog: You said you left the Bay Area for  "a fresh start." Is LA providing that for you?