Discovery alert: 1980s Christian jazz/funk band Omega Sunrise
Plus, a tour stop from Portland 'Heavyweight' Isabeau Waiaʻu Walker and a check on new releases.
Nothing makes me happier than stumbling upon some section of Fresno music that I’ve never heard before. It’s a reminder that the world is bigger and been around a lot longer than the time I’ve been paying attention.
So, the band Omega Sunrise.
This comes via Ragin’ Records, who posted this picture of an album sleeve with just enough information to pull me down a rabbit hole.
Apparently, Fresno had a record label in the 1980s, which released “Feel the Change,” the first of two albums from the band. According to this bio from guitarist/singer Mark Seibert, Omega Sunshine “recorded and toured from 1979 through 1986.”
“Feel the Change” was recorded in 1983 and released on New Jerusalem Records (it was re-released on CD 2009). Copies of the original record sell for upwards of $250 (or $50-plus for the cassette) on Discogs.
Based on my listening of “Feel the Change,” Omega Sunrise is a funk/jazz/smooth sax/easy listening band that seems appropriate for the times. It would likely be considered a Christian band, based on the lyrical themes (in songs like Celestial Funk, for example).
The band saw some success with it second album “Run the Night,” which was recorded over a period of about six-weeks in 1985 as one of (if not the) first major session at the just-opened Maximus Recording Studios. That album was put out by Morada Records, a Christian music label out Nashville that also had an office in LA.
The band spent the next years out on tour, before a break up in 1986. It’s final show was at the Wild Blue.
Ragin’ Records has a still-sealed copy of “Feel the Change” (or it did) as of May 5.
Upcoming: Isabeau Waia’u Walker w/Fats LaBell at Tower District Records
Antonio Montañez flagged me to this show he’s performing next Sunday alongside Portland singer Isabeau Waia’u Walker. He’ll be pulling double duty; playing a set in Waiaʻu Walker backing band, and then with his own project Fats LaBell.
Montañez and Waiaʻu Walker know each other from their time together playing with Y La Bamba (doing drums and backing vocals, respectively).
Here, we get a taste of each of their solo projects.
Waiaʻu Walker is touring in support of her album “Heavyweight,” which was released in October. She plays the night before at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, to give you a sense of the opportunity you’re missing by not seeing her in a little record store doing what appears to be a kind of one-off set with friends.
The show starts at 6 p.m. and is free, although donations will be accepted (and should be given).
New releases: Victim of Propaganda, Pansy Party, Ryan Gregory Tallman
Here’s a trio of new releases as of early May 2025.
“Shotgun (Slow Bleed),” Victim of Propaganda
In 2018, Victim of Propaganda released “Stalking Nature,” a three-song, nearly 45-minute album made of field recording loops topped with some singing and spoken word. “Shotgun (Slow Bleed)” takes one of that album’s 13-minute ambient soundscape and reimagines it as a dark, sub-three minute pop song. You’ll love if: Like me, you are a sucker for hand claps.
The song was released May 1 and is available at Bandcamp.
“B.B.W. (Party at Erick’s),” Pansy Party
Pansy Party’s most recent single sees the band really working the pop aspect of its pop-punk billing. There’s a lot that’s weirdly appealing packed into this three and half minutes; the percussion under beat that pops in and out, the drag of reverb through the intro, the gratuitous cursing as the song ends.
But mostly, this works as a showcase for vocalist Erick Rosales II.
“B.B.W. (Party at Erick’s)” was released May 3 and is available across platforms.
“Everything Hums,” Ryan Gregory Tallman
“Everything Hums,” set itself up to be the very thing it promises; “a reflection on the constant, often unnoticed frequencies that surround and shape us,” as Ryan Gregory Tallman puts it in the album’s liner notes (or whatever the Bandcamp equivalent is called.
“It’s about tuning into those quiet resonances that connect everything.”
The 15-songs layer electronic (and organic) sounds with subtle melodies and some percussions into a 50-ish minute ambient soundscape that seems like it should be enjoyed in a single run, as opposed to taking the songs piece meal (as I’ve been doing).
That said, you will find your favorite moments.
“Everything Hums” is available on Bandcamp and across digital platforms.
That’s it for this week. Remember you can now hear me on the Homegrown Show Sundays at 8 p.m. on New Rock 104.1 FM. Tonight, I’m solo in the studio with new music and releases. Follow my other writing at The Fresno Bee. If you have anything you think I need to be looking at or listening to, feel free to let me know: jtehee@gmail.com