Russell Woo Ran Away to Join the Circus

In this episode of Kites and Strings, we usher in Season 4 with Noah and Chloe Gose of the three-piece, Americana/folk band from Lincoln Nebraska, The Wildwoods.  We explore all sorts of things, and although we set out to explore what it was like to be married couple, writing music together, performing together, touring together and all that is involved in the business of making music and a band your way of earning a living, what's really interesting is that they have been together, doing all of those things since middle school. 

Yes, Noah and Chloe, who are now married for 5 years, met at a music camp at the ripe old age of 13, and have essentially been performing together since.  And if you know anything about singing and harmonies, you know that what's referred to as "sibling harmony" is a thing.  Listening to The Wildwoods, one hears it, but in this case, it's, been together since 13 harmonies.  In this episode, some of their music is offered and the listener will hear right away that the vocal arrangements are center.

We hope you enjoy this episode of string grabbing and kite flying with Noah and Chloe Gose, who are so genuine and such a joy to have on Kites and Strings.

Oh, and the Wildwoods will be the headliner at the Oct 13, 2023 Trail Mix Concert Series (the series that Steve is involved in.

Trail Mix Concert Series, including the link to purchase tickets to the Oct 13th, 2023:
https://www.trailmixmusic.org/

The Wildwoods website:
https://www.thewildwoodsband.com/

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other original music, in this episode, is by The Wildwoods.  The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

This is a special episode, as we bring back Phoebe Hunt.  It turns out that Phoebe will be playing the Trail Mix Concert Series in Homewood, Illinois, just south of Chicago, and to help promote that event, Steve and Catherine were going to do a quick check in, how ya doing, and lets introduce the re-release of your previous episode.  Well, Phoebe is such an interesting person with lots of stuff going on, so the quick check-in turned into a full-fledged episode, and we're thrilled.

One might be served well by going back to listen to Phoebe's September 2022 Kites and Strings episode, but they will find that this episode is more than suitable as a stand alone, very interesting conversation. We get caught up on some exciting developments in Phoebe's, pandemic-born Ukulele Sprouts business, we explore Phoebe's songwriting, we discuss the power of connection, we go deep talking about past trauma's, self-confidence, and Phoebe's super power.

All-in-all, we have a great time chatting with Phoebe Hunt, the "the soulful songstress with a fiddle" and are happy to release this episode just days before Phoebe releases her newest, solo album, Nothing Else Matters on Thirty Tiger Records.

Trail Mix Concert Series, including the link to purchase Phoebe Hunt tickets for Aug 12th, 2023:
https://www.trailmixmusic.org/

Phoebe's website:
https://phoebehuntmusic.com/
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/phoebehuntmusic
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSgKSBzo1-H39tdqR-ZH0qg

Ukulele Sprouts
https://www.ukulelesprouts.com/

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other original music, in this episode, is by Phoebe Hunt.  The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

In this episode we talk with Kevin Stone, a large scale steel sculptor from Chilliwack, British Columbia.  And when we say "large," we mean it m as is work is upwards of 50 feet or more and needs to be delivered in pieces on multiple semi trailers. A recent piece was a 40' Game of Thrones dragon that blew fire.  That is one of his works going to a private buyer, but his work is also displayed  internationally in public settings. Several of his work has garnered what would be considered viral attention, including his contributions of a huge welded and sculpted portrait-quality Elon Musk head, that was put attached to a huge goat body riding a rocket.  his 85' polished steel Water Dragon has also made quite a splash. 

We have a great chat learning about Kevin's early affinity for hotrods, his coming into the artwork via the trades, and his adapting and flexing between working on his art or customized hotrods.  We also get a sense of just how many things Kevin needs to take into account as he embarks upon creating large-scale public sculptures. Short answer; there are many.

Kevin's website:  http://www.metalanimation.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MetalSculptorKevinStone/
Instagram:  @metal_sculptor_kevin_stone

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other music if from Purple Planet Music at Purpleplanet.com.  The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

Today was an impromptu session. A slight miscommunication with a scheduled guest had Catherine and I just chatting and catching up as we waited for somebody to jump in.  Since we are planning to add a brief Catherine and Steve catching up in most, if not all episodes moving forward, we thought what the hey, lets record.  We had a fun conversation and hit upon some interesting, therapy as an art moments.  And don't worry, we were able to re-schedule with our guest and that episode will be airing in the next couple weeks.  There have been suggestions from some that folks want to hear a bit more about Catherine and I, So if you're one of those,  consider this a bonus episode.    

Steve's Band, Butterfield Creek...  See pics of the new lineup. https://www.butterfieldcreektheband.com
Catherine's new practice on Instagram...  @tattootherapybk

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other music if from Purple Planet Music at Purpleplanet.com.  In this episode we also have a recording of the public domain song, Bile Them Cabbage Down, as performed by the Glascals.  The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

In this episode, Steve and Catherine have a super fun chat with Jen Ash, a soulful pop/ r&b artist, born in Lebanon and raised in France.  After ending her professional basketball career, she decided to follow her true path, moving to Los Angeles in 2018 to pursue her music career.

We explore the benefits of having a team, overcoming the obstacles present within her family, her song-writing process, her exploring other creative outlets and her ideal venue.  We also get some tasty little samples of her music as we explore Jen Ash's string grabbing and kite flying in this episode of Kite and Strings

Jen's website : https://www.jenashmusic.com
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/jenashmusic/
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/jenashmusic
TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@jenashmusic
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/jenashmusic/ & https://www.facebook.com/jennassh/
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiHumBTdPHmi2iw_oBxeppA/videos

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all in this episode feature and are made available through Jen Ash.     The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.  This episode was produced and edited by Steve Ploum at Turning Stones Counseling. 

This episode of Kites and Strings is pretty twisted. We interview Larry Moss, who the Washington Post has called the "best balloon artist in the world.  He has been featured on television shows around the world and recognized by Ripley's Believe It or Not, and has been in the Guinness Book of World Records multiple times.  In addition to the large sculptures that are several stories high and that use tens of thousands of balloons in each, he's also been recognized for his work replicating the art of masters, like Cezanne, Da Vinci, by Leonardo da Vinci,  Botticelli, and Grant Wood. 

Steve and Catherine have a great time chatting with Larry, talking about his work, the qualities of balloons as a medium, his creativity origins story which involves,  party balloons, magic, and music, and his process.   All good stuff.

Larry's website:
https://www.airigami.com/about

Teaching  Artists ROC
https://teachingartistsroc.com/

A really fun time-lapse video of Larry and his crew at work replicating French artist Jean-Honoré Fragonard's The Swing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxZn4vQdlPU

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other music if from Purple Planet Music at Purpleplanet.com.   The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

In this episode we talk with Rachel Rose, an expressive arts educator who authored the book, Creating Stillness: Mindful Art Practices and Stories for Navigating Anxiety, Stress and Fear, published by North Atlantic Books.  We have a great discussion talking about what artmaking can do in the way of establishing mindfulness and to, well, navigate anxiety, fear and stress.  We discuss Rachel's thoughtful and informative book, which is chock-full of meaningful, skillfully written stories used as touchpoints amongst valuable lessons in art.  However, these lessons are not a how-to guide, as it is so much more about the process, preceded by recognizing and avoiding  various obstacles and barriers that so often interfere and get in the way of our using creativity to overcome.

Rachel's website:   https://www.workshopmuse.com/
Vimeo Videos:  https://vimeo.com/user56322087
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/WorkshopMuse/
Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.com/rachelmarierose/

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other music if from Purple Planet Music at Purpleplanet.com.   The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

This is a very special episode, as it is number 100 for Kites and Strings.  Can you believe it... 100 episodes!?  We're so thrilled about reaching this milestone and are really happy with our guest this week. 

We really rose to the challenge of finding something interesting and worthy of our 100th episode.  Our guest on momentous episode person is Uncle Jack, from AskUncleJack fame on TikTok, and more recently, Instagram.  You see, Uncle Jack is in his 100th year, and he and his nephew Damon discuss that and share amazing stories from Uncle Jack's younger years and offer just plain amazing tips on how to live.  All to the tune of over 1.3M TikTok followers and videos that are nearing 27M views (at the time of recording this episode).

Some would argue that Uncle Jack is not a true artist, musician, etc., but to that we call bullshit."  Uncle Jack, who refers to himself as a naturalist, is every bit a creative who has adapted and has found an awe inspiring manner in which to move through this world. Through their work together producing videos, it is easy to see that Uncle Jack and Nephew Damon inspire each other and that their is a genuine desire to help Uncle Jack share his words of wisdom and inspiration with others and the numbers indicate that it is of value.

In this episode we learn about Uncle Jack's relationship with Damon, early stories of childhood and interfacing with animals and nature, and we get such a great feel for how Uncle Jack has made it this far.  In short, we have a great time exploring how Uncle Jack has grabbed his String and flown his Kite for nearly 100 years.

as Nephew Damon says in this podcast, it is expensive being Uncle Jack's age and therefore, they welcome donations through Uncle Jack's gofundme page. That link is listed below along with several other liks to social media

Uncle Jack Links
GoFundMe, https://www.gofundme.com/f/askunclejack
Linktree: @AskUncleJack, https://linktr.ee/askunclejack
TikTok: @AskUncleJack, https://www.tiktok.com/@askunclejack?lang=en
Instagram:  @AskUncleJack, https://www.instagram.com/askunclejack/?hl=en
Uncle Jack's Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5ujj49bxbAGTe7OVyz8ixp?si=1c1edc108aae457a&nd=1

Kites and Strings links:
Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other music if from Purple Planet Music at Purpleplanet.com.   The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

Our guest in this episode is Azuka Muol. She's a 23 year-old digital artist from Lagos Nigeria who, is represented and showing all over Africa. And despite her understanding  the business of art and what it takes to identify those who will someday buy her work, she also realizes that she has a way to worm her ideals into their head. She is recognized for tackling many big subjects such as gender equality, trauma and abuse, to name a few, and we learn that in addition to her digital art, when really loves film and creating worlds and narrative via that medium.

We are wholly impressed by Azula's intelligence and, in the end, feel very comfortable knowing that the likes of her will help direct our planet after earlier generations have fouled it up in such profound ways.

You can find Azuka and her work on the following sites (not an exhaustive list):

Artsy, https://www.artsy.net/artist/azuka-muoh/works-for-sale
Bettershare, https://bettershared.co/collections/azuka-muoh
Christopher Moller Gallery,  https://www.christophermollerart.co.za/artists/azuka-muoh
Linked In, https://www.linkedin.com/in/azukamuoh/?trk=public_profile_browsemap&originalSubdomain=ng
Instagram @azukamuoh
TikTok, @AzukaMuoh

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other music if from Purple Planet Music at Purpleplanet.com.   The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.

Such a fun interview today. We talk with Allegra Levy, a jazz singer from Manhattan who has been the recipient of so much positive press. She's a top 10 rising star jazz vocalist, who said to be able to "sing life back to you," she's been called the "new pin-up girl for cool, " and she's been called "exotic" and "far beyond the ordinary," by the likes of the New Yorker, the New York Times, the Downbeat Critics poll, the Midwest Record, and many more.

She certainly lands in the category of sultry and smoky, but over the last year, she's jumped into writing and recording kids music. Yes, inspired by having had her first child, but it's deeper than that.  We have such a great time learning about Allegra's motivation, her process and how music gets her through.

for more information on Allegra Levy, check out her website. https://www.allegralevy.com/
She's on Facebook @allegralevyjazz, https://www.facebook.com/allegralevyjazz
Linktr.ee/allegrajazz, https://linktr.ee/allegrajazz
Instagram @allegrameanshappy

Here's how you can find Kites and Strings out there in the interwebs.
Kites and Strings Website: https://www.kitesandstrings.com/​
​Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitesandstringspodcast
Instagram: @kites_and_strings, https://www.instagram.com/kites_and_strings/?hl=en

Twitter:   @Kitesandstrings
Instagram:  @Kites_and_strings
email: Kitesandstringspodcast@gmail.com

Kites and Strings' theme music is by Harrison Amer, and all other music in today's episode is by Allegra Levy.  The Kites and Strings logo-design is by Cole Monroe at Blue Stag Creative.