New music dump: Fats LaBell; Killer Sunset; Stargaze; Carlos Montano w/Fashawn + MC Wicks
Plus, RIP to former radio host + Fresno music supporter Ashton McKiearnan
Here’s a new music dump for the week. Tracks out now.
Antonio (Tony) Montanez just released a song from his solo project Fats LaBell. On Bandcamp, the project is billed as South East Fresno Psych-Soul. “Treasure” hones in on the soul, with a retro vibe in the vocal melody, backing harmonies and guitar work.
As expected, the drum work is stellar.
Montanez should be familiar to those in the scene. He has drummed/is drumming for any number of bands, and in collaboration with musicians, including by not limited to Sun Umbra, Kings of Blackstone, Neptunes, Style Like Revelators, The Jules Winnfield, Danielle Rondero and the Nitty Gritty and Richard Giddens.
Killer Sunset, the rap solo project from The Redcoats frontman Gabriel Francisco, returns with the “Sunrays for Better Days,” EP.
On his debut outing, Francisco proved his ability to pull from (and mimic) his influences (a Slim Shady-era Eminem, for example). Where he had been testing the waters with the genre, the two tracks on “Sunrays for Better Days” feel like Francisco is settling into his own flow (as an emcee and a songwriter).
Carlos Montano delivers another anthem for cruise nights in Fresno. “Riding thru My City” is the “Firme Rolas Mixtape” and is classic Montano — old school funk with R&B hooks and verses from local emcees.
In this case MC Wicks and Fashawn. The video dropped on Thursday.
MC Wicks is also featured “Lights Out,” a new track from Los Angeles emcee producer 8th Kind.
David Ramos performs under the moniker Stargaze and makes indie-rock pop songs out of his bedroom in Fresno, though he does perform live with a band and his latest release was recorded in Los Angeles (possibly in a bedroom there? Who knows?).
“Way U Move” is a slow and moody bit of stripped-down low-fi rock. It’s echoed-out vocals, on top of a simple drum and guitar hook.
The song is off of Stargaze’s upcoming “BedroomPop” EP, out July 8.
Remembrances for Ashton McKiearnan
The death of Ashton McKiearnan has been widely reported at this point.
The 41-year old was killed in a collision in Clovis on Father’s Day, when a car crossed into oncoming traffic. The driver has been charged with DUI.
Those in the Fresno’s music scene remembered McKiearnan from his days at KRZR, where he hosted a Sunday night show dedicated to local rock bands.
“It is difficult to describe how intertwined our community was in our early days. But out of that community we forged lifelong friends that, to this day, we celebrate with hugs and laughter when we reunite at shows and gatherings. Ashton was the first person to interview us on the radio. Our first in-studio performance was on his show. He would host after parties, inviting the entire Stoneshiver family into his home because it was his family, too. We are just so saddened by a loss that does not make any sense.”
E. Curtis Johnson, who helped launch KRZR and worked with McKieranan in the early 2000s, urged former listeners of the station to help with a GoFundMe campaign for McKiearnan’s family.
“He was my assistant and was like a younger brother,” Johnson wrote.
You can see promoter Art Silva talking about McKiernan in this interview from Channel News.
Call for support: Mark and Sandra Blake
Don Heflin, the blues musician and a driving force behind the Central Valley Blues Society, has put a call out for support for Mark Blake.
Blake helped the Blues Society build its online presence in the early 2000s and remained on for technical support when needed. He is also an artist and photographer who helped curate the KJewel gallery and its Fresno City Limits songwriter’s showcase.
Blake’s wife Sandra has had a string of health issues, including cancer and, now, kidney failure (Blake donated his own kidney as part of a donor circle).
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help Blake and his wife with medical bills. You can read more and donate here.
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. If you have anything you think I need to be looking at or listening to, feel free to let me know: jtehee@gmail.com