headspace magazine

1 WINTER 2012 - 2013 HEADSPACEMAG.COM

2 HEADSPACEMAG.COM WINTER 2012 - 2013 3 WINTER 2012 - 2013 HEADSPACEMAG.COM


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greens

munchies

tunes

spaced out

founder / editor - in - chiefAlessandro Satta

[email protected]

chief executive officerTim Dougherty

[email protected]

creative directorJoe Gurreri

[email protected]

copy editorBecky Blumenthal

[email protected]

illustratorsRoss Marinaro

rmarinaroart.comJohn Warner

jduballstars.com

contributing photographerMolly Hall

graphic designersJason Waggaman

contributing writers Arianna Hall-Reinhard

Mandie PandarellaShawn “Fox” Rybacki

Juan VilaMattie CassadyJesse Bellosi

Delores KingstonMary Jo GurreriCarly Shields

Kaley Iacovetta

Letter from the editor

contents WINTER 2012-2013

5 Letter From the Editor

6 Comix Corner -Fresh Joke -Word search

7 Rocks With A Fox Uncovering the roots of rutilated quartz By Shawn “Fox” Rybacki

8 A Head of the Game Featuring Butchy Sochorow A.K.A Asian Jerry Interview by Alessandro Satta

10 Creating Cold Frames For Winter Veggies By Arianna Hall-Reinhard

12 Holiday recipes - Matzo Ball Soup By Mattie Cassady - Grandma’s Pork and Sauerkraut By Dolores Kingston - Vegan Eggnog By Carly Shields - Sherbet Punch By Mary Jo Gurreri

14 RJD2: The Turntablism Jedi Interview by Tim Dougherty

16 Dopapod Breaches Our Headspace Written and interviewed by Jesse Bellosi

18 The Afrobeat Takeover Of Pennsylvania Interview by Becky Blumenthal

20 The MiZtery Of The Lost Americana By Mattie Cassady

21 All You Need Is Furball Love By Kaley Iacovetta

22 Plans For The End Of The World By our Facebook fans!

24 Maurice Sendak Exhibit By Juan Vila

26 Legalization: Cracking a window on the foggy hype By Johnny Good

28 Artist Showcase: John F Interview by Mandie Pandarella

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10If you are reading this message either the world will self-destruct in a few days or nothing substantial happened on December 21, 2012, and we continue to live our lives in this amazing era of human history. Most rational people ignored the media hype, attempting to scare us into thinking the world would end. Many did their own research and discovered the true significance of the prophecy. Those people are not worried at the prospect of December 21; rather they are excited to be alive during this period of great change. The ability of the internet to allow instantaneous information exchange has helped connect people of the world in ways we could have never previously imagined. We live in a time where mass populations have access to unlimited information at the touch of a button. This availability of information to those who seek it could very well be a driving force behind the great shift in consciousness associated with 2012. Headspace Magazine encourages you to use the technology at your fingertips to further your intellectual self and empower your community to effect actual change. We have the power to make our lives better but, it takes daily conscious effort. Technology is a double-edged sword. As much as it has connected people in certain ways, it has driven them apart in others. That’s why we feel it’s very important that we keep publishing a printed copy of Headspace Magazine. The face-to-face connection we achieve with our readers by handing out physical copies and hearing what you have to say about previous issues pushes us to keep going and keep improving. In 2013 beware of replacing your personal connections with digital ones. These are the connections that brought us together in the first place.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

-Alessandro Satta

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Uncovering the Roots of Rutilated Quartz

During a recent Reiki session shared with a friend, I was inspired to dedicate this issue’s gem article to rutilated quartz. When rutile grows inside quartz, it forms needle or thread-like inclusions that may appear silver or gold, but are actually tita-nium based. Rutile can also grow in other stones such as corundum. Sometimes, these inclusions help refract light into the shape of a star, forming the ever-popular star rubies and star sapphires. These highly sought after crystals can be easily synthesized, so make sure to familiarize yourself with the real deal if you’re look-ing to purchase. Rutile has a hardness of six on the Mohs scale. Common deposits are found in Brazil, Norway, Madagascar, Pakistan, and even in the U.S. so be on the look-out! Tourmalated quartz (black inclusions) and actinolite in quartz (green inclusions) are stones that are commonly confused with rutilated quartz.

Rutilated quartz has always been a stone I keep close to my heart. There are few specimens I’ve come across that I haven’t completely fallen in love with. Ironically, a nickname for this crystal is “fleches d’amour,” meaning “arrows of love.” There have been several occasions when feelings I’ve had of loneliness, sadness or confusion about my life’s path were relieved after meditating with rutilated quartz. Somehow the pressure of life just lifted. There is a tenderness surrounding this stone that emanates true comfort. If you find yourself coming home after work or school feeling lost, angry and drained, this stone may be the hug you need. Quartz has always been regarded as “programmable,” meaning with enough intention and focus a piece of quartz can actually learn to hold specific mes-sages, quite like a note in a bottle. These messages may come from the Earth or from people who have spent significant amounts of time with a given crystal. I am

coming to learn that these hidden mes-sages play an intricate role in the comfort that is associated with rutilated quartz. If you feel the presence of a spirit nearby when you work with this crystal, do not be surprised. More times than not, I have found assistance from spirit guides during Reiki sessions or meditations while in-cluding this stone. Rutilated quartz is also associated with reflecting negativity of all kinds. Pairing it with black tourmaline might prove to be a powerful combina-tion that would protect you and preserve positivity enabling you to safely decide the right courses of action you should take. Since it is said to work with the solar plexus and root chakras, it would probably help with dispelling fatigue or sluggishness and promote confidence. If you’ve got some tough decisions to make, rutilated quartz is definitely a powerful ally.

Written and photos by Shawn “Fox” Rybacki

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QuartzHolidayMatzoFrameHeadGuitar

ApocalypseLegal

RecordWorld

ElectronicWild

CharitySaxophone

Artist

Try figuring out this word search!

Illustrations by Ross Marinaro


a head of thegame“I want to give back

some of the knowledge that I have picked up along the

way. It helps me and

makes me a better

player.”

parking lotparking lot

HS: How long have you been in the jam scene?

BS: I’ve been playing music in the Philly jam scene for about 17 years, but I was playing for 10 years before that down by the Jersey shore. I started playing live music around 1986 or ‘87.

HS: How did you discover the scene?

BS: I got into the Grateful Dead in sixth grade and finally went to see them live when I was 16.

HS: How many Dead shows have you been to?

BS: 236 I think, or somewhere around that, definitely over 200. I started doing tour in the spring of ’87, but I missed two shows on that tour. I did that year’s Fall tour from beginning to end. The last three shows were in Philly and I got really sick for the last two, but I decided to go any-way because I had to do the whole tour. So that was my first tour, but I did like two other full ones. I would say I caught the most in 1987, probably around 52 shows. I’m including Garcia Band shows in there

too. They did something like a 15-night run at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in New York City and I caught seven of them. I started seeing Jerry play in 1984 and kept going back till ‘95.

HS: What is Splintered Sunlight and when did you join them?

BS: Splintered Sunlight started in 1992 with the help of Jerry Horan, one of our drummers, who is the only original member, and I joined the band in 1995. Some fans of the Grateful Dead started this group called the Wharf Rats for the

Featuring Butchy SochorowA.K.A. Asian Jerry

sober Deadheads. A friend of mine, who knew I played Jerry, was talking to one of these Wharf Rats, one of the drummers in Splintered, and he was saying the band needed someone who could play lead and do Jerry parts. My friend told him he knew the perfect guy and he hooked me up with Splintered Sunlight. So it was actually through the sober Wharf Rats that I joined the band.It was a long drive for me because they were playing in Philadelphia and I lived at the Jersey shore, so I was driving like an hour and half to practice and to play gigs, but I thought it was great. It was perfect for me because I wanted to be in a real Dead band with two drummers and that’s what they had so I was like, “I’m sold; I’ll play”. So I did everything I could to keep playing with them. We started playing all over the place and got successful pretty fast. We played with everyone on the jam circuit from the Disco Biscuits to Moe to Widespread Panic. You name it and we played with them. We started playing venues like the Electric Factory which is what led to us playing at Brownies 23 East in Ardmore.

HS: What do you think of the nickname Asian Jerry?

BS: It’s cool man, ya know. It’s what I am, so if it helps people to identify me then that’s cool. It’s an honor that people have an endearing nickname for me.

HS: Where is your family from originally?

BS: Mongolia, I was born in America but my parents were from Mongolia. My father was born while his parents were moving away from Mongolia. They lived in Germany until he was 16 and they were able to move to the U.S.

HS: How long have you been teaching?

BS: I’ve been teaching people guitar all my life, but professionally for six years.

HS: Why and how did you get into teaching?

BS: I’m interested in learning myself and by teaching I learn as well as help teach other people music. I’ve been lis-tening to music since I was a little baby. I started playing the keyboards first, and then moved on to guitar. Once I took

guitar lessons, well that was it. I want to give back some of the knowledge that I have picked up along the way. It helps me and makes me a better player.Sometimes I do a jam camp as well. This gives me the chance to show young kids how to play music. I’ve done that a couple of times and it’s great. That’s what I really, really love to do. It’s kind of like a school of rock type thing. It’s all about giving back and that’s just how I like to do it. It’s fun and hopefully I can make a dollar along the way and pay some bills.

HS: What are your goals and aspirations for the future?

BS: Well you know Splintered is celebrating our 20th anniversary this month at Brownies in Ardmore on December 23. This is the band I want to die in. There is nowhere else I’d rather be than Splintered Sunlight. Everything that I wanted from a band musically is satisfied by Splintered, so if we continue to do what we have been doing for the past 20 years, I’m happy. The Philly area is so rich with so many jam band fans that we could play around here the rest of our lives and be satisfied. Plenty of bands go out and tour but we are a little older than most of them and we are really happy with the way things are.

HS: Tell us a little bit about your acoustic nights.

BS: We do Wednesday in West Chester at the Social Lounge. On and off in Philly too. They’re a lot of fun. It gives me the chance to play with a variety of musicians and we get to play all kinds of different stuff. I have had people like Ronnie Penque from New Riders of the Purple Sage and Mike Miz sit in with me. It keeps things interesting.

HS: What is your favorite thing to read while on the john?

BS: Headspace Magazine of course, what else is there to read?

HS: Do you have anything to add?

BS: I’m just really proud of the band for making it this far and am excited for the New Year. I have hopes for good things in the New Year.

Interview by Alessandro SattaPhotos by Tim Dougherty andJoe Gurreri


As the weather gets colder and vibrant summer gardens start to lose steam, you may be wondering how to keep your supply of fresh, local produce going well into the chilly winter. There are plenty of season-extending options to keep your veggies thriving long after summer fades. For those with extra cash on-hand greenhouses are a solid choice, but they can be costly to build and maintain. For those with ample outdoor space, hoop houses are cost effective and can be used as large format season extenders (think DIY plastic sheeting stretched over a simple metal, wooden, or PVC frame to protect your row crops). For the rest of us city gardeners, tight on dollars and backyard space, there are cold frames. A cold frame is essentially a covered box that lets in plenty of sunlight. Sounds simple enough, but cold frames can actually pack quite a season-extending punch. Each cold frame creates a microclimate within the limits of its confines, insulating the soil and blocking the wind. With even the most basic set up, cold frames are often several degrees warmer than the outside tem-perature, keeping your precious veggies cozy enough to survive

a moderate frost. Cold frame construction is a DIY dream. They are straightfor-ward to build and cheap to execute. Almost any materials will do, you can easily use salvaged supplies or whatever happens to be lying around. The basic concept of a cold frame starts with a raised bed. You can convert your pre-existing raised beds into a cold season veggie oasis by adding a transparent cover. If you’ve yet to embark on the raised bed adventure, lo-cate some untreated scrap lumber and build a square or rectan-gular bottomless frame. Naturally rot-resistant cedar, cypress, and redwood are optimal picks for cold frames. Other options for cold frame walls include stone, brick, concrete, cinder blocks, and hay bales. Even salvaged claw foot tubs will work if you line the bottom with gravel to ensure adequate drainage.Once your cold frame base is complete, it’s time to top it off with the all-important transparent cover. Trash-picked win-dows make an excellent transparent lid for cold frames, free of charge. Keep the window panes attached to their frame for enhanced stability, but be aware that many older windows frames are covered with lead-based paint, bad news for edible

plants and gardeners alike. If you’re concerned about the possibility of lead paint, almost any transparent material will work: fiberglass, polyeth-ylene, or flexible greenhouse coverings. No fancy tools or techniques are necessary to secure the cover to the base. Simply place the cover on top of the cold frame base, make sure you’ve got a solid fit, and minimize any remaining gaps. For the mechanically inclined, the cover can be secured onto the cold frame base with hinges. First, place your shiny new cold frame in an area that receives good sunlight. This is more important than you think, so take time to watch the winter sun move through your yard/available space and choose a location that gets at least eight hours of direct sunlight a day. Word of warning: if daytime temperatures rise above 50°F be sure to remove the cold frame cover, otherwise you’re cold season crops will shrivel under the unbearable heat. Remember to replace the cover by nightfall or your veggies could be lost to the cold. Now that you have the cold frame constructed it’s time to get planting. Fill the cold frame with 8-12 inches of your favorite mix of soil, compost, and vermiculite. Plant cold season veggies like spinach, lettuce, kale, bok choy, and other salad greens in early fall and you’ll be eating fresh, tasty salads all winter long. Another option is to transplant the last of your surviving warm season crops into your cold frame to squeeze an extra month or two of productive life out of them. In early spring, cold frames can serve as an excellent place to direct seed, becoming a warm sanctuary for new seedlings prior to transplantation. For more informa-tion about cold frames, the best veggies to grow in Philly, and when to start planting, check out the educational materials, expert advice and workshops offered through the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.

Written by Arianna Hall-ReinhardPhotos by Molly Hall

Creating Cold Frames QBQfor Winter VeggiesQBQ

greensgreens


Munchies

-5 qt chicken stock-2 medium-sized Russet potatoes-1 lb baby carrots, whole-½ onion, sliced1- bunch of celery stalks, sliced-12 oz Baby Bella mushrooms

-6 cloves garlic-3 tbsp fresh dill-3 tbsp fresh parsley-1 cup matzo meal or finely ground matzo-4 eggs, beaten-2 tbsp vegetable oil-2 tsp salt

-5 cups almond milk-1 tbsp vanilla extract-2 tbsp agave nectar or honey-2 tbsp maple syrup-2 tsp ground nutmeg -¼ tsp ground cinnamon -pinch of ground cloves

LOTS OF WHISKEY (or bourbon or rum)

Instructions:Mix and chill, serve over ice!

Holiday Recipes

-1 gallon of 100% fruit juice fruit punch (preferably juicy juice)

-2 liter bottle of ginger ale

-Your choice of sherbet as much as you want to cover the top

Instructions: Mix liquids in punch bowl and float sherbet on top.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 325°F 1. Place pork loin in large roasting pan, fat side up. Sprinkle with all the salt and pepper.

2. Pour Sauerkraut around the pork loin. Add chopped onions and apples to the sauerkraut. Add remaining ingredients, except the sausage links and mashed potatoes. MIX WELL.

3. Bake uncovered for 1 hour.

4. Bake covered for an additional hour.

5. Add the sausage links and bake covered until the pork loin’s internal temperature reaches 185°F and the sausage links are cooked thoroughly, about another 30-60 minutes.

Giorgio’s Sausage and Chestnut Stuffing (Correction from issue 6)

2 lbs. ground beef3 Italian sausages, skins removed½ medium onion-minced3 tsp. Italian parsley-chopped8 chestnuts oven or fire roasted, cut into pieces½ cup dry white wine1 beaten egg¼ tsp. nutmeg

Mix all ingredients until thoroughly combined.Salt and pepper to taste if desiredThis should stuff a 16-18 lbs. turkey. Adjust recipe for larger/smaller birds.Bake turkey according to its weight.

Photos by Joe GurreriIllustration by Ross Marinaro

-2 onions, chopped -10 whole black peppercorns-2 medium cooking apples, peeled and chopped -12 whole cloves-2 cups chicken broth-1 cup dry white wine

-4 to 5 lbs. pork loin -1/4 cup gin or -6 juniper berries-2 tbsp salt -4, 1-lb cans or 2 qt fresh sauerkraut-1 tsp black pepper -1 lb mashed potatoes-18 breakfast sausage links

Instructions:

1. Bring chicken stock to a rolling boil. Reduce to medium heat.

2. Add carrots, celery, potatoes, garlic cloves and salt and pepper to taste. Let cook for 10 minutes.

3. Add parsley, 1 ½ tbsp dill, onions, and mushrooms.

4. In mixing bowl combine eggs, matzo meal (or ground matzo), oil, remaining 1 ½ tbsp dill, and salt. Add two tbsp of broth from soup and mix until uniform. You may also add pepper and garlic powder/salt to taste. Place bowl in freezer and wait five minutes.

5. Remove mix from freezer. Wet your fingers and roll chilled mix into balls slightly smaller than a golf ball. Drop each into soup.

6. Continue cooking for 10-12 more minutes. Remove from heat and enjoy this Hanukkah treat!


RJD2 (born Ramble John “RJ” Krohn) is now one of the top DJs on the planet. With a musical career spanning the past decade and multiple al-bums, each moving in its own different direction, from trip-hop to experimental hip-hop, his music is known worldwide. Blending samples with produced beats and even live instruments and vocals, RJD2 has traversed beyond the standard DJ category. He has evolved into a true turntablist, a songwriter whose main instru-ment is the turntable. RJD2’s latest tour lists only four shows, and since he lives in our fine city, Philly is one of those lucky enough to host him December 29th at the Theater of the Liv-ing Arts on South Street. This is followed by a stop in NYC at the Gramercy Theater on New Year’s Eve. Headspace caught up with RJ to pick his brain about his music and his live performances.

HS: When you perform live is it a pre-made set list or more on-the-fly?

RJD2: There are chunks that are pre-pre-pared, sort of like routines that are planned out. So I know that this will work out with this or this, and I can get this in key with this other thing. So those elements of it I can’t freestyle because they’re planned out. See, like Radiohead can’t put the lyr-ics for one song onto another song. But those chunks can move around, so those pieces I can freestyle with.

HS: Okay, so you don’t have a planned set, you just go for it? But there are certain parts you can use in different places throughout the song?

RJD2: Yeah. And I’ve done all of the combinations at this point in time, so I know they’ve worked multiple times, and will work again. So I know I don’t need to really plan it out.

HS: Do you still use all of your own vinyl to perform? Any Serato or CDJ’s ever thrown in? What other equipment do you use?

RJD2: MPC, vinyl, Serato, and visuals are the main tools in the live set. I’ll have my drummer with me on the 29th too, so that always adds a fun dimension to it.

HS: Do you still live in Philadelphia? What’s your opinion of Philadelphia’s music scene?

RJD2: Yup. Hip-hop music seems to be alive and well here, and there are some bands I like. I don’t spend every night in music clubs, so I’m probably not too tuned in to the goings on here, but there are a lot of venues, and always new acts coming out, so it seems quite healthy to me.

HS: What made you go with your own record label, Electrical Connections? That was an interesting direction; how has it changed what you play versus what you don’t? Does it affect your live show or the creative direction you go in?

RJD2: It doesn’t affect the live shows, but it does affect the creative direction of what I’ve done since I’ve started the label. It was really just the most elegant solution to a sequence of problems- that’s how the label started. I had gotten a hold of my master recordings back from Def Jux and I had finished a new album, so I needed a way to both reissue those old records — keep them in print — as well as a way to put out my new album. So for at least those two reasons and also some smaller reasons as well that I don’t really need to go into, but the most elegant solution for that was to just start a label and that’s what I did. It’s not a traditional record label in the sense that it’s like I’m looking to sign artists. That’s not the intent.

HS: So it enables you to experiment more and move in your own direction?

RJD2:Yeah, it’s a vehicle for me to be able to do what I want. So to fully com-plete that question, it allowed me to do more things, like put out the “Insane War-rior” album or the “Icebird” album or things that you know I can do in a timely fashion because I don’t have to clear them with a record label or find a label to put them out. You know, there are records that might not necessarily be mass-marketable in this economy, but the label just allows me to put them out, which is the goal.

RJD2

HS: What makes you decide the direction or collaboration you’re going to go with? Like with Aaron Livingston on Icebird, where did that collaboration come from?

RJD2: You know, we had a mutual friend and I had heard some of his music and I loved it. I like the idea of doing a record with one vocalist. So that just kind of happened very organically and naturally.

HS: Alright, so do you see yourself going in the direction of more vocalist collaboration or other projects?

RJD2: I don’t know. I haven’t really put too much thought into it. I mean, soul music and rock music are a huge part of what I love, so I think that’s going to be a thing that I’d want moving forward. If I make records for another 10 years, I’d want to incorporate that in some fashion. But at the same time, I feel like one of the beauties of the landscape of electronic music now is that you can make a record that’s basically just beats. That can be your whole album and you don’t have to have rappers featured on it and it can do well. Whether it’s dub-step, or whatever the fuck else, blog-house or what-ever, there’s like a

myriad of electronic sub-genres that you name where people put out albums and they’re not slathered with vocalists. So I feel like the world is your oyster for people in my field to a certain degree.

HS: Songs like “Ghostwriter” and “Good Times pt. 2” are fan favorites and ev-eryone expects to hear those at your show.

RJD2: I’ve gotten over the need to keep it fresh for myself for those particular tunes. I mean, there’s a way they just seem to work best and that’s that. There’s only so much you can do to change it. I mean there are new elements to the set, so these are the things I put into the set that keep it challenging for me, so that keeps it fresh. And honestly, it’s nice to have older songs that I know the routines inside and out for, they kind of give me a chance to breathe and collect my thoughts for a sec-ond before things get a little more mentally engaging.

HS: You’ve been doing this for a while now and elec-

tronic music is exploding in many different genres.

Are you influenced by other artists’ new mate-rial? You’re probably a big influence to many artists out there right now.

RJD2: I think it’s both inspiring and challenging. I feel two ways about it: there’s an aspect of it that’s like, oh wow, there’s these new production techniques and new sounds, so that’s exciting to me as a fan, and that’s also exciting to me as a producer in the sense that they’re things I can sort of “steal” and incorporate. So I look forward to delving into new production techniques and figuring out how I can incorporate them, but at the same time, I don’t feel threatened by it. It’s like, to give you an example, in the modern landscape of rap music, it would be really hard to use a drum break off of a record. That type of a sound in modern rap makes it sound dated. Like, for all intents and purposes at this point, that’s a dated sound. It sounds like you’re trying to make something RZA or Pete Rock would make. That’s one of these things where I feel like it’s the nature of music, and the way that becomes a threat is because it’s one step towards making that type of music sound obsolete.

HS: Any future plans like a new album or big tour you would like to tell us about?

RJD2:Yup, I’m in the midst of my next album right now. It’s coming along quite well. I don’t want to talk about the content before people get a chance to hear it; I like to go into records with fresh ears as a fan, so I want to continue that into my own records as well.

Interview by Tim Dougherty Photos by Joe Gurreri

tunes tunes

HEADSPACEMAG.COM WINTER 2012 - 2013 14 WINTER 2012 - 2013 hEADSPACEMAG.COM 15

The Turntablism Jedi


Dopapod breaches our Headspace

A rush of synth-laden, intricate grooves is making its way to Philadelphia just one day before New Year’s Eve. Dopapod, formed in Boston in 2007, has been combining elements of funk, rock, and fusion into a sound that is uniquely their own. The recently restructured band, now features Neal Evans taking over for former drummer Michelangelo Carruba. Dopapod has since moved their headquarters to Brooklyn and are making quite a splash in the jam band and livetronica circuits. On the road since early September, the band recently embarked on a 50+ show tour including major circuits on the East Coast as well as the Midwest. Their current tour will wind down with a visit to the Trocadero Theater on December 30 in support of Papadosio. Headspace Magazine caught up with Rob Compa, guitarist and founding member of Dopapod, and spoke about the band’s experiences on the road, the release of their upcoming album “Redivider,” and their experiences in working with other artists.

How’s the tour? Have you been playing any new material?

It’s been going great. We hit a lot of new markets. The Midwest, we kind of just tapped into. We’ve been there before but this is the first time we’ve seriously tapped into the Midwest and played shows. It’s hard to write new tunes on the road, but we have written one new track during this tour. It’s really tough to do it cause there’s no real rehearsal time; you really just get a sound check and that’s it. But we got a new tune together and we took 2 days off just to rehearse for our Halloween show and we were able to write a new song in that time too. We’re happy with it. It’s called “Psycho Nature” and it is definitely fun. It’s basically a hard rock jam. It’s straightforward; we love it.

Will it be on the new album?

No, the new album is already done. All the playing is finished and basically all that’s left is for it to get mastered and then it’ll be out in December.

Have you played anything from that (“Redivider”) on the tour?

Oh yeah. With new songs, once they’re there, we don’t really waste any time putting them into the live rotation. We don’t really shelve them until the album is out. When you’re in a band on the road touring all the time there’s nothing like new material to revitalize your set. We don’t have the patience to just shelve a song and wait until the album is out so that people hear it for the first time on the album. As soon as it’s ready, we’ll play it live. So it’s all stuff that people have seen at shows before, but we put a lot of time to make the arrangements a little more album worthy and went to town on experimenting with overdubs and weird sounds we’re not able to do live. I used 5 different guitars on some of those songs: acoustic, nylon strings, different electric guitars, just to get the right sound. We all did our little bits of experimenting to take advantage of the studio so that they are not the same songs you hear live. They’re the same tunes but we arrange them differently and overdub them and make them really crazy.

According to your recent set lists it looks like you’ve been doing a lot of covers on this tour.

Yeah, we do a lot of covers I suppose. We love them, they’re fun and they’re good practice.

Can you tell me about the first time you’ve ever played in Philly?

The first time we ever played in Philly was at this little place on Girard Avenue called The Fire. It’s interesting. It’s a little place. No offense to the people at the Fire, but it’s kind of dive-y and dingy. Basically the only people in the audience were Eli, our keyboardist’s friends from high school because he grew up outside of Philadelphia. We played there a bunch of times. I think we did World Café a couple times and we’ve been at the Blockley about four or five times. Now we’re moving up to the Troc, which we’re super excited for.

Have you worked with Papadosio before?

We have, a bunch of times. They’re really great friends of ours. Just on this very tour at the end of September we did four shows in a row with them, which were all just a blast. We did Burlington, Vermont, New York City, Syracuse, a festival in Maine, and we’ve done a bunch of other ones with them too. And we’ve played their festival Rootwire before, which is just an awesome festival. They write amazing music and we’re all big fans of what they do. We’re psyched to be doing those shows with them for New Years.You’ve played Camp Bisco, Catskill Chill, Steal Your Fest…

Do you like the festival scene as op-posed to other venues?

They’re different. I like the festival scene more because of the hang that’s involved and the concept of community. It’s great, you see every band that you’re friends with and that you cross heads with on the road. Basically we all intersect at a festival for three days and get to play songs and sit in with each other. When we’re not playing we eat food and drink beer and party together. As far as the music, we’ve had some really good experiences playing at festivals, but a lot of the time it can be a little stressful because you get rushed up there without much of a sound check. And your set is usually shorter so you have to make it

a little more straightforward. It’s just dif-ferent. Sets like that a lot of the time are a lot more like you get in, you play your songs, and you get out, because there’s not as much time for experimentation. Whereas with clubs, we’ll have the whole night to do whatever we want. We’ll stretch a song out as long as we feel like and experiment a little more. Both are good in different ways and I suppose I like both equally for different reasons.

How do you prepare for months on the road?

I didn’t personally. I kind of just hopped in a van with nothing but a backpack with some clothes in it and a guitar, and we were off. If we can we like to rehearse before we get on the road so that we can have some new material and some new covers. If you’re on the road long enough playing the same songs every night you get “song cabin fever” so to speak. I think there’s other things involved that I don’t have as much to do with that are more on the business or production side that takes a lot of work to prepare. I know Luke, our sound and light guy, spends a lot of time organizing all his shit to get ready for the tour; he’s an organizational freak. Then the business stuff (merchan-dise, contracts) I don’t really know much about, but a lot of work goes into that. Then the rest of us in the band kind of just hop in the van, and we’re off.

So on your last album “Drawn Onward” you had Gabriel Marin of Consider the Source sit in on the track “Bahbi.” Does anyone sit-in on this album?

There’s one track. I’m not sure if it made it onto the finished product or not. We were talking about maybe not including it. But it’s a newer song called “Sonic,” and we had our old drummer, Mi-chelangelo Car-ruba, who was our drummer until 2010 sit in. He came back and played on that song; him and Neal set

up two drum kits in the same room and played together and that was really cool. It was great to play with Mikey again. I think even if it’s not on the album we’ll release it as a bonus track. I think that’s the only sit in on the album.

Where do you guys gather inspiration for writing new song?

From other people’s songs a lot. Eli is the main writer and he writes on his comput-er. A lot of the time, he’ll hear something from some artist (and I do it too), but he’ll find something he likes about what they do, maybe the groove or a chord progression or something, and he’ll take just a little bit, just enough of that song for inspiration. He makes it original and makes it Dopapod, but I feel like it’s a good way to do things; to find inspiration from other things that have been done in the past and then embellish them, and make them progressive. Make them, your own. I think that’s a big shot of inspira-tion. And from each other to and from our improvisation sometimes, we’ll just gather ideas for a new song. I think those are the most useful places to find inspiration.

Interview by Jesse BellosiPhotos by Joe Gurreri Design by Tim Dougherty

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Tunes

The AfrobeatTakeover of Pennsylvania

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Miles Davis once said, “Afrobeat will be one of the musics of the future.” Well the future is now, and the place is Philly. For those who don’t know, Afrobeat is a melodic fusion of jazz, funk, Yoruba music and vocals. On January 24, 2013, Olufeka Olufemi Anikulapa Kuti, commonly known as Femi Kuti will be at World Café Live with his group, Femi Kuti and the Positive Force. Just a few days later, Grammy winning artists, Ladysmith Black Mambazo will be bringing their brand of Afrobeat to Philadelphia. If you are unfamiliar with Afrobeat and would like a fine introduction then consider at-tending either event. Fela Kuti, a Nigerian multi-instru-mentalist, was one of the main creators of Afrobeat. Femi Kuti desires to make his mark beyond his status as heir to his father’s African-influenced musical throne. He strove to distinguish himself and is now an award-winning Nigerian musician whose songs show his commitment to social and political causes. He started his band, the Positive Force, after having played for several years in his father’s band. Since then he has released album after album of music in his own jazz infused afrobeat style, and has been nominated for Grammy awards on several occasions. When he comes in January, he will be supporting his most recent Gram-my nominated album, “Africa for Africa” and his upcoming studio album, “No Place for My Dream”. Ladysmith Black Mambazo brings together isicathamiya and mbube. Isicathamiya, which is pronounced with a click in the middle, is a type of music that hails from the mines of South Africa. Mbube is African choral music made up of com-plex melodies and harmonies. This Zulu acapella has being reigning world-wide for over 50 years. Think you haven’t heard them? You may have unknowingly listened to

Ladysmith Black Mambazo when you were chilling to Paul Simon’s “Homeless” from the album Graceland on vinyl. Ladysmith Black Mambazo was started by Joseph Shabalala in the early 1960s, with Ladysmith being the name of Shabalala’s rural hometown; Black being a reference to oxen and Mambazo being the Zulu word for axe, a symbol of the group’s ability to “chop down” any singing rival who might challenge them. Shabalala who is still the leader of the group, started the group in Durban, South Africa. Rather than political messages, Shabalala wants his music to be, “as much about preservation of musical heritage as it is about entertainment.” To learn more about Ladysmith Black Mambazo Headspace caught up with Albert Mazibuko, a Mambazo member since 1969. HS: The group started in 1960. Since then, what have been some of the most memorable aspects of the group’s career?

AM: Well, Joseph Shabalala did begin the group in 1960. The members of the group changed a lot until about 1974 as Joseph was trying many voices to fit the sound he was looking for. The group he

had together in 1974 was mostly together through Graceland and until about 1993. Then some members retired and Joseph had four of his sons join the group. So, the group of people playing with us now has been together for almost twenty years. I would say three very significant moments for us were, of course, when we met and recorded with Paul Simon for his Graceland album, then when Nelson Mandela was released from prison and he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, he asked us to join him in Oslo to receive the award. That was extraordinary. As well, when we won our first Grammy Award, in 1988, this was a tremendous moment for our career. HS: What would you call your type of music?

AM: Our singing is called Isicathameya. It originated in a style called Mbube and then was further developed in the mines of South Africa during the 1950’s. At that time men from many different cultures were working in the mines and living together in hostels. It was there that the different styles of Mbube came together and formed a new style.

HS: You have recorded more than 50 albums; with what albums would you suggest the Ladysmith Black Mambazo novice begin?

AM: Shaka Zulu from 1987. This was our first release for the Western world and it won our first Grammy Award. I would then suggest listening to our most recent CD, Songs from a Zulu Farm. HS: It is the goal of the Ladysmith Black Mambazo Foundation to teach young Zulu South African children about their traditional culture and music. What specific actions is the organization taking? How can Headspace Magazine readers be involved?

AM: Right now the Foundation is not at work as the financial problems in South Africa have affected many good causes. What we ask everyone to do is pay attention to all that is going

on in South Africa as we continue to struggle in our new country and if you see a way you can help, please do.

HS: Any upcoming albums or anything else you want to let people know about?

AM: Actually we have many new projects coming out over the next few years. We took “Songs From A Zulu Farm” and have created a children’s story CD that has dialogue and parts of the songs from the original CD. It’s the story of a grown man who left his family and their farm when he was young and he now realizes how important his family and roots are. We think it’s a beautiful way for kids to learn about themselves and South Africa. We’re also working on a CD of American Gospel songs, which will feature a well-known American female singer. Our next CD is a special CD for us. It’s called “No More Sorrow: A Tribute to Nellie Shabalala, Our Angel in Heaven” and features us singing with the departed wife of our leader, Joseph Shabalala. Nellie had recorded a CD in 2001 with her woman’s group and we went into the studio and sang with her on those songs. We think it’s a beautiful recording featuring not only our voices but some beautiful female voices. That will be released in late 2013.

HS: If you’ve performed in Philadelphia before, what is your favorite thing to do in our city? Any favorite places to eat?

AM: We have probably performed in Philadelphia about twenty times, maybe more. It’s a beautiful city and we love it very much. Would it be silly for me to say a Philly cheesesteak is my favorite food there? I remember when we first came there someone told me I had to try it and I really loved it. Something you can only get in Philadelphia.

HS: What is your favorite new music?

AM: Personally outside of South African music I love to listen to American Country music. Dolly Parton is a favorite of mine. Not very new, I know, but neither am I. HS: What does the word “Headspace” make you think of?

AM: I guess it makes me think about what my mind is thinking about at any specific time. Right now I’m thinking about coming back to the USA to sing for our friends and fans. I’m very excited. Join Ladysmith Black Mambazo as they perform at Longwood Gardens on January 26 and the Musicfest Café in Bethlehem on January 27. Tickets to the Longwood Gardens show are available for $42 at www.longwoodgardens.org. Tickets for Musicfest Café start at $35 and can be found at www.artsquest.org. Dinner is available at both perfor-mances.

Written and interview by Becky Blumenthal

Photo by Lulls Leal

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Tunes

.....MiZ.....The MiZtery of the lost Americana [By Mattie Cassady]

In 1969, Jim Morrison predicted machine music would dominate the future, an era currently known as now. While there is no judgment to be made here—this is simply what “the future” holds—it leaves one yearning for samplings of the old, the pure, the truly American, if we even know what that is anymore. For those with such a yearning, how-ever, the sounds of times almost-forgot-ten are not lost, and many are alive, well, and young, keeping that sound thriving. One such artist is Miz, who returns to Love City’s World Café Live this January after months spent touring up and down the coast and breaking their way deep into Midwest territory. With a sound that is Tim Reynolds meets Robert Randolph meets Taj Mahal, and a voice reminiscent of Guster’s ten-der harmonies, Mike “Miz” is not just an incredible musician, but a true virtuoso of the American sound. They manage to bring the roots of jazz and blues into our day and age rather than simply taking rock and roll back to its roots. This has helped them create tunes that really pluck the heartstrings of true musical composition. Playing alongside local talent and working on his own solo career, Mike Mi-zwinski (founder and lead guitarist) was spotted by and invited to tour with the band Gongzilla in 2008. During this time he was gifted with the opportunity to work alongside bands like Moe, Umphrey’s McGee and Crosby, Stills and Nash just to name a few.

In 2010, Mizwinksi returned to his personal projects, and soon after helped form his current band, Miz. Since their inception Miz has exploded onto the jam scene. Their single, “East Hope Avenue,” helped them reach number seven on Jambands.com music charts in November 2011. Mizwinski first blew me away this summer at the “In and Out of the Garden Festival,” a small, one-day, Grateful Dead centered festival on a farm in Morrisville, PA. After a heady disco nap I had missed most of the night’s great bands and caught only the end of the headlining act. Refreshed, I wandered over to the late-night campfire jam to find Mike Mizwinski playing a duo with a keyboardist. From that first slide of “Sugar Magnolia,” I was hooked. Having stood right in front of him and watched him rock my favorite tunes in a way only Jerry Garcia could, I was shocked to see him on the bill for the mega-fest Gathering of the Vibes. Such is the nature of Miz. “I just simply love to play music,” Mizwinski told Headspace. “It doesn’t matter if it’s for 20 people or 2,000. I love making music; jamming and meeting new people. I like to think [of] my fans as friends. I love having such a personal connection with so many people.” Miz, with special guests to be announced, make their grand return to our great city on January 19, 2013. “Philly is always a real treat for us,” he said. “Some of our most enthusiastic fans…live in Philly.” “Some of our favorite bands to pair with,” he went on to say, “are Yarn, Cabi-net, Big Daddy Love & Tiny Boxes.” Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at the World Café Ticket office or online at www.tickets.worldcafelive.com.

Angry faces. Numb fingers. Strangers shouting obscenities at you. Yes, folks, it’s winter in Philadelphia again. We’re all cold and bitter, curs-ing the Earth for revolving and praying for sunlight. We think we’ve got it bad. But what about those little stray kittens freezing their paws off out there? Or all the

droopy eyed pups shivering alone in metal cages? What if there was a way to aid our furry little friends and brush off our own winter blues? Enter Fur Ball: 2013. Themed “All You Need is Love,” the event celebrates “the era when flower power reigned and tie dye was the trend.” Hosted by the Morris Animal Refuge

(MAR), this event promises far-out cock-tails via open bar, groovy get-downs, and a

righteous silent auction and raffle. All proceeds go straight to the refuge and they hope “to raise

vital funds and awareness to the abandoned pets of Philadelphia.” Founded in 1874 by Elizabeth Morris, the non-profit refuge “provides a full range of preventive, protective and adoption services for abused, ne-glected and abandoned animals.” Programs include low cost spay/neuter, foster care, and a lifesaver fund for special needs animals.

Located at 1242 Lombard Street, the refuge is run and maintained by a dedicated staff and animal-loving volunteers who seek to, as adoption coordina-tor Kerri Taylor put it, “speak for those who can’t speak for

themselves.”The joy of providing a

loving home for an animal is enough to keep Jim DePaul,

MAR’s general manager, committed to the cause. “All these animals are unwanted or

stray. People get rid of them when they move. They have this throw away pet mentality. We are pretty care-

ful where we adopt our animals. When we find a home, we make sure it’s a permanent home. That’s what gets me

here every day.” This year will be the Refuge’s 16th Fur Ball fundraiser.

“Originally it was a costume ball,” says DePaul. “People would come dressed as animals.” Don’t worry; donning

your furriest frocks is no longer a requirement unless you feel so inclined.

The event will be held Saturday February 16, 2013, at the University of the Arts, located at 320 South Broad

St., from 8pm-12am. Tickets are divided into two tiers. “Strawberry Fields” (General Admission) tickets are $100 and include a 4 hour open bar (8pm - 12am). “Yellow Submarine” tickets are $150 and include a 5 hour open bar (7pm - 12am), a reserved seat and a gift. Tickets can be purchased at the Refuge or online at: www.upcomingevents.com/philadelphia/philly-fur-ball

For more information about animal adoption and surren-der, volunteering, or donating, please visit the Refuge’s website at www.morrisanimalrefuge.org.

Written by Kaley IacovettaDesign by Jason WaggamanPhotos by Joe Gurreri

‘East Hope Avenue’ cover:Photo by Doug SeymourDesign by Steve Keller


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Plans For

With December 21, 2012, looming close on the horizon, many are getting caught up in the mass hysteria surrounding the much maligned date. Prophecies of doom and gloom have been plastered all over the internet and mass media more and more lately. We here at Headspace do not believe these lies propagated by the mass media. Regardless we took to the interwebs and asked our fans what their plans were for the “end of the world.” Here is what you had to say.

Ben Yankin: flying a really big kite Mike Russo: bending fire

Chad Coxe: drinking a PBR, Surprised ? Pat King: Looting the houses of all the people who are locked in their Doomsday shelters.

Justin Kise: pheasant hunting..... Hassan Azeez: pooping my pants

Robert F Budnick: praying that my Phish tickets don’t go to waste

Melissa Mees: We are throwing an Arma-Get-Down!! It’s the 10th annual 8-Leg-ged-Cat-Family Party, and we’re not messin’

around this year!!.

Nigel Greenawalt: buying stock in plan B Agent Zero: we all gon die! ................eventually

Christian McGill: Leaving in a few days to go down to Mexico. Going to be hanging out in Palenque for most of the month. They’ve got Mayan ruins and I’ve heard that particular types

of fungus grow wild year round. I plan on spending the alignment standing on a temple with my thumb out trying to flag down a passing intergalactic vessel.


Maurice Sendak: Where the wild things came from and beyond...Walking into the Maurice Sendak: A Legacy exhibition at the Rosenbach Museum, I was immediately overwhelmed by a sense of awe. Spanning over 65 years, the work of Maurice Sendak (most popularly known for Where the Wild Things Are) is a fantastic blend of magical elements mixed with the reality of everyday life, all permeated by a sense of childlike wonder. There is a common thread of mischievousness and merriment which can be sensed in his work. The Maurice Sendak: A Legacy exhibition was installed at the Rosenbach after the death of

Maurice Sendak on May 8, 2012. The exhibition began on June 10 and will run until May 26, 2013, as a three-part series of rotating installations. Different pieces from Sendak’s long career will be shown during each installation, in order to minimize the amount of light to which the work is exposed for preservation purposes. His work currently on display is the second installation, composed mostly of visual images with very little inter-pretive text. During an interview with Judith M. Guston, Curator and Head of Collections at the Rosenbach Mu-seum, she commented that, “The

exhibition was intentionally designed with very little interpretive text so that visitors could absorb the visual effect of Sendak’s work.” In this way, visitors to the museum are completely engulfed with the visual impact of the work and are able to draw their own conclusions about what Sendak wished to convey. Sendak utilized a wide span of themes throughout his career, with a seemingly effortless shift between the completely surreal to the ultra realistic. Many of his works depict happy, beautiful children caught in the struggle between the imagination of childhood and the mun-dane realities of everyday existence. The depth of style throughout his work reflects these two worlds, spanning from sim-ple images of ink on paper to complex, interwoven canvases infused with color and texture. In the exhibition, you can also find a mural which Sendak painted in the apartment of a friend in New York for a children’s playroom. The mural was donated to the Rosenbach Museum and relocated to the exhibition after a four year restoration project. The restoration and relocation project is documented in an interactive video display which can be seen at the exhibition. Shortly after the death of this beloved writer and illustrator, the museum opened up its doors for two days to people who wanted to share their experiences with Sendak’s work and celebrate his life.

The event was a “mixture of sadness and joy,” says Guston. “It seems that everyone has appreciated being able to celebrate the legacy of Maurice Sendak and share the experiences of what his work has meant to them.” The exhibi-tion allows visitors to fully experience Sendak’s legacy by exposing them to the enormous breadth of his work, spanning many different generations. “It is interest-ing how different age groups of visitors have gravitated towards different parts of the exhibition,” says Guston. “It’s as if these different generations of visitors feel a sense of ownership over the period of Sendak’s work which they experienced in their own lives.” However, the exhibition also allows visitors to experience and ap-preciate other periods of Sendak’s work, those with which they were not previously familiar. To check out Maurice Sendak: A Legacy, visit the Rosenbach Museum at 2008-2010 Delancey Place, Philadelphia. You can learn more about the exhibition and other current or upcoming exhibitions at http://www.rosenbach.org.

Written by Juan Vila

Photos by (Left page from top to bottom):Susan Beard Design,Final drawing for Where the Wild Things Are. Pen and ink, watercolor. © 1963, renewed 1991 by Maurice Sendak, Final drawing for Outside Over There. Pencil, pen and ink, watercolor. © 1978 by Maurice Sendak.

(RIght page)Top left and right: Susan Beard DesignTop Middle: Dummy book for Sarah’s Room. Pen and ink, watercolor. © 1963 by Maurice Sendak. Bottom left: Final drawing for Open House for Butterflies. Pen and ink. © 1960 by Maurice Sendak. Bottom right: Preliminary drawing for Time magazine. Pencil. Gift of Justin Schiller. © 1988 by Maurice Sendak.

Final drawing for Somebody Else’s Nut Tree. Pen and ink. © 1958 by Maurice Sendak.

Final drawing for In the Night Kitchen. Watercolor with acetate overlay. © 1970 by Maurice Sendak.

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LegalizationCracking a window on the foggy hype

With the recent votes in Washington and Colorado to legalize marijuana for recreational use, the issue of prohibition has returned to the forefront of public consciousness. Although the full repercussions of these votes have not been made entirely clear, these initiatives are a step toward chang-ing the archaic marijuana prohibition laws that have plagued our country and state for decades. But don’t just drop all your plans and move to Boulder yet. The Federal government currently still considers marijuana a Schedule 1 controlled substance, ranking it among other drugs such as heroin and crystal meth. Therefore they may pursue legal means to force states to follow federal law. President Obama and the Justice Department have not taken a firm stance on the legalization issue. In Washington State, a spokesman for Gov. Chris Gregoire said, “we are entering un-charted waters and many questions lie ahead as we work to implement this law. Because marijuana is still illegal at the federal level, we are un-

sure how the federal government will proceed.” Denver attorney Robert Corry told the crowd at the National Marijuana Business Conference, “Silence equals consent. The time for the federal government to talk about marijuana legalization is over. The election has passed. Marijuana got 50,000 more votes than Obama on Tuesday. Don’t think they didn’t notice that.” However, Corry quickly added a warning about the federal govern-ment’s true power when he said, “Let’s face it: the federal govern-ment is a fearsome force. They have the guns, they have the jails, [and] they have the power.” While these issues may seem far removed from our situation here on the east coast, realistically the actions taken now will have a prominent effect on our legislation. While New Jersey has approved medical marijuana, they have yet to implement an efficient delivery or sales system. This show of con-fidence may give state lawmak-ers in Jersey the push they need to establish an effective and fair way for people to obtain medical

marijuana. Here in Pennsylvania there is hope for marijuana reform on the horizon as well. A 2010 Franklin & Marshall survey showed that 80 percent of Pennsylvanians favored legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes. This is quite a large percentage in a state that is often much divided along partisan lines on critical issues. “We’re sending around the co-sponsorship memo,” says state Senator Daylin Leach, who has been one of the strongest proponents of legalization in PA. “Hopefully, we’ll get all those who co-sponsored the bill last year to do it again and get new people, as well. It’s becoming clearer that you can be open about supporting medical options.” “It’s a tragedy that people are being denied medical marijuana because of irrational wives’ tales and a disregard for sound science,” Senator Leach said. He claims it is “inevitable” that a legalization bill will eventually become law in PA. “Discussions have already started with politicians in Harrisburg about crafting a comprehensive legalization bill,” says Chris Goldstein, a local marijuana advocate who serves on the board of directors of the Philly chapter of NORML. “[A bill] that would cover medical use, industrial hemp and regulated and recreational cannabis. We expect more info in December, and a bill introduction in early 2013.” “National polling shows a majority of Americans support full legalization,” Goldstein continues. According to a poll released this week by Public Policy Polling, 58 percent of Americans favor legalization. “I think that as other states move forward, PA residents and politicians will not want to be left behind.”

Written by Johnny Good

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Artist Showcase

featuring...

How long have you been on your artistic adventure or has it been a constant evolution throughout your lifetime?

I have been “arting” my whole life. It simply became an outlet for focusing/being. The content I create is always influenced by the time and the location in which it’s cre-ated. The motivation for artwork comes from the idea of an endless opportunity.

What is your medium of choice?

I use Faber-Castell pens, specifically PITT artist pens in black India, and of course sharpie. Basically I enjoy any-thing involving sharpie markers. I love using sharpies on all surfaces, and then framing the result.

I hear you’re involved with the event Popular Science. On your website I saw you were listed at Fluid Nightclub in September. Tell me about your affiliation with the electronic music scene.

Wow...this question is big. Somehow I was in the right place at the right time and have been afforded the opportunity to watch some of the strongest producers, performers and DJs make their rise to greatness in Philadelphia. If you can find the connection between

BoldNewBreedRecords, DJ PHSH, and DR.EW, then you are one step closer to understanding. On a random stroll through the Philadelphia area, how likely is it I would see a JohnF original?

If you stop into the Raven Lounge at 1718 Sansom Street, in Center City Philly you will definitely find some gems. I prefer to say very little about this, so that I don’t spoil the visual surprise. But there are 3 floors hand-drawn in the theme of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven”. Your artwork is printed on T-shirts too?

I have art prints, stretched canvases, T-shirts, iPhone cases, and stationary available featuring my work. All for sale at http://society6.com/JohnFtheArtist. JOHNFtheSTUDIO is my studio, located in New Hope, PA.

Do you have any future appearances scheduled?

I will be having a gallery opening and studio visits in late 2012 to early 2013. JOHNFtheGALLERY is my gallery.

Interview by Mandie Pandarella

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