Santa Fe’s Dick Rosemont tells the tale of folk music at the Center for Contemporary Arts
The sub-genrefication of music has gotten out of hand these days, but there was once a time when it was much easier to identify what you were hearing by vibes rather than nitpicking audio elements. Take folk music, for instance, a genre that might seem complicated but that, according to Santa Fean Dick Rosemont, “would refer to the songs that were handed from player to player and weren’t written down or copyrighted.”
Rosemont attempts to make even more sense of the folk tradition with his forthcoming talk History of Folk Music from 1920s-1960s through the Renesan Institute for Lifelong Learning. Rosemont has become known for his well-researched dives into music history, and by tracing folk from early progenitors like The Carter Family and Leadbelly through Pete Seeger, The Kingston Trio, Bob Dylan and beyond, he finds common ground in a genre formerly known as country—and as “hillbilly music,” before that, according to Rosemont.
“I like knowing the backstory of things,” he tells SFR, “and how the culture informed what was going on. Like how radio became a big thing in the ’20s and suddenly people could hear music that wasn’t local to them.”
Rosemont will focus on American folk (the world of British folk its own ball of wax, he notes), including well-known and lesser-known musicians spanning that 50-ish years between the 1920s and late-1960s. He’s precisely the guy you want to learn about music with, too, as Rosemont’s Originals Project—one that sources popular songs and records to their often obscure origins—is a painstakingly researched affair crafted by a borderline obsessive music-lover.
“To me, folk music can be indigenous music from anywhere in the world,” Rosemont explains. “There’s not a clear-cut definition.” Even so, you’re bound to leave knowing more than when you sat down. (Alex De Vore)
Dick Rosemont: History of Folk Music 1920s-1960s: 10 am-noon Thursday, April 3. $25. Center for Contemporary Arts, 1050 Old Pecos Trail, (505) 982-1338
CDMX Vibrations
Courtesy Lensic 360
Hailing from Mexico City, Sonido Gallo Negro—or Black Rooster Sound as it translates is set to grace Santa Fe with a visit in the midst of their US tour. The seven-piece band craftfully blends cumbia rhythms with textured layers of psychedelic tropical melodies from their homeland. The energetic blend of congas, guitar, electric organs, analog synthesizers and hypnotic visuals serve as a channel transporting listeners into the buzzing streets of Mexico City, but on acid. A song like “Cumbia Triste,” for example, encapsulates the energy of a cumbia-fueled, late-night dance party out on the streets that you don’t want to miss. (Adam Ferguson)
Sonida Gallo Negro: 7:30 pm. Wednesday, Apr. 2. $20-$25. Tumbleroot Brewery & Distillery, 2791 Agua Fria St., (505) 393-5135
Youthful Visions
Courtesy Monte del Soul Charter School
Students from Monte del Sol Charter School have been hard at work this year preparing for their Dragon Fest Art Show exhibit, and it finally opens this Friday. “I get excited as their art teacher to watch the growth and the confidence being developed in these students in their ability to make art,” educator Leslie Waltzer tells SFR. The artwork on display ranges from paintings, collage, ceramics, metal work, masks, shadow boxes and so much more. Plus, the opening reception includes baked goods along with live music presented by the students. When you’re planning your Friday night gallery rounds, add this one to the list and support kids making rad art. (AF)
Dragon Fest Art Show (Opening): 5:30 pm. Friday, Apr. 4. Free. El Museo Cultural, 555 Camino de La Familia, (505) 992-0591
So Graceful
Courtesy Pinelopi Gerasimou
In writer Dan Ozzi’s most excellent 2021 book Sellout, we learn that Against Me! might just have been the last legitimate punk rock band to get the red carpet treatment from the record labels. Much of that boiled down to frontwoman Laura Jane Grace’s high-energy impact and political leanings—tenets she’s kept with her all the way to her newest band, The Mississippi Medicals. Not only does the band feature Grace’s trademark “I’m not a fucking cop,” style doled out in a slightly more folky manner (it’s still punk, though), members from The Ergs and Drive-By Truckers round out the lineup. As of this writing, the show had miraculously not sold out. (ADV)
Laura Jane Grace and the Mississippi Medicals: 7 pm Tuesday, April 8. $37.87. Meow Wolf, 1352 Rufina Circle, (866) 636-9969
