Justin Marra talks during movies. Not in a negative way. More in like a “Oh no she didn’t!” way. Why do I still invite him, when I know halfway through the film, I’m going to hear a sarcastic, “Oh yeah, you should TOTALLY trust THAT guy!” interrupting the flow of a perfectly crafted scene? The […]
Boston Calling takes over as the hub of the music world in the northeast every Memorial Day Weekend. At The Motif, we obviously specialize in covering events in Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts, but every now and then it is good to extend out of one’s comfort zone. Like the other day, I was ordering […]
When a new jazz venue pops up in the area, it’s important to shine a light on them so they can flourish. So when Scott Abrahamson reached out to me to discuss the new live music offerings at Toti’s in Seekonk, I wanted to find out more. Our interview is lightly edited. Ben Shaw: Tell me […]
1. Members of the Providence Gay Men’s Chorus pose for a picture. 2. The Eastern Medicine Singers are all smiles 3. Award Winners Senior Discount 4. Our MCs John and Bettysioux 5. Cowboy and Lady perform beautifully 6. Briana White, winner of Americana Singer//Songwriter, poses for a picture 7. Hope Anchor rocking the stage 8. […]
Unscramble the names of these 2018 Motif Music Award Winners. See pages 12-21 of our Music Awards Issue for a cheat sheet. 1. rata shnane 2. show tabou lieharc 3. epho chanro 4. lamsyas robsallae 5. het sticpacoce 6. tucacs takact 7. rainab thew 8. shayirrap enequ 9. and rettimo Answers: 1. Tara Hansen, 2. How’s About Charlie, 3. Hope Anchor, 4. […]
The weather was nearly perfect. And it was a Tuesday night. Two things that should each result in people not piling into a crowded music venue for the evening. Yet that’s what they did on May 8 to witness and take part in the annual Motif Music Awards. It is a rare and wonderful thing, […]
Okee dokee folks… So, the other day I saw that one of my friends mentioned something about Neil Young tickets going on sale. That immediately caught my attention and I began trying to acquire tickets. I haven’t been this excited about seeing a show since my first Neil Young concert back in the ’70s. I […]
The definition of fire dancing — a performer dancing with objects such as knives, sticks and swinging rope set ablaze — might scare some people, but not Amanda Salemi, who has been a fire dancer for roughly three years. Salemi had very little dance training before falling in love with the flame at age 28. Salemi […]
Ten more musicians have been given the highest honor a local musician can receive in RI (other than a Motif Music Award): An induction into the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame. This year’s Hall of Fame class includes musical artists, music educators and production specialists. David Blue, Tom Ghent, James Montgomery, Paul Murphy, Mike […]
Belly — Dove Set your wayback machine to the burgeoning alt-rock era, when in both the pre- and post-Nirvana periods, Aquidneck Island proved a very fertile talent pool. Throwing Muses was formed by Newport songwriters Kristin Hersh and Tanya Donelly in the ‘80s, and saw some success before Donelly left the band to form Belly […]