Reptile Palace Orchestra

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The Reptile Palace Orchestra [1] is an eclectic worldbeat [2] band based in Madison, Wisconsin which specializes in lounge, klezmer and other Eastern European music. It began in 1994 with a gig at the Club de Wash, and since that time has become a notable fixture in the Madison music scene. Membership has varied, but the current line-up consists of Maggie Weiser, Biff Blumfumgagnge, Seth Blair, Kia Karlen, Bill Feeny, Robert Schoville, Greg Smith and Ed Feeny, and included Sigtryggur Baldursson [3] of Sugarcubes/Björk fame on their first 2 Omnium releases, Iguana iguana and HWY X [4]

Contents

Worldwide sources include their Greenman Review, [5] their Ink 19 interview by Holly Day, [6] their Dirty Linen appearance, [7] their Inside World Music interview by Paula E. Kirman, [8] a 2003 cover story in Maximum Ink [9] and an appearance in Snapshotmusic's FolkLib Index listing. [10] They also appeared on Balkans Without Borders [11] which benefitted the non-profit Doctors Without Borders organization. [12]

Among the traditional Folk dance material, the group has a song dedicated to the Freshwater Drum. Boiled in Lead members Drew Miller and Robin Adnan Anders have both played with the Reptiles, and Biff has played with Boiled in Lead. The Reptiles also share membership (Kia, Greg and Geoff Brady) with Yid Vicious a notable Madison Klezmer band.

Discography

Related Research Articles

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David Krakauer American clarinetist

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Merima Ključo accordionist

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Boiled in Lead is a rock/world-music band based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and founded in 1983. Tim Walters of MusicHound Folk called the group "the most important folk-rock band to appear since the 1970s." Influential record producer and musician Steve Albini called the band's self-titled first album "the most impressive debut record from a rock band I've heard all year." Their style, sometimes called "rock 'n' reel," is heavily influenced by Celtic music, folk, and punk rock, and has drawn them praise as one of the few American bands of the 1980s and 1990s to expand on Fairport Convention's rocked-up take on traditional folk. Folk Roots magazine noted that Boiled in Lead's "folk-punk" approach synthesized the idealistic and archival approach of 1960s folk music with the burgeoning American alternative-rock scene of the early 1980s typified by Hüsker Dü and R.E.M. The band also incorporates a plethora of international musical traditions, including Russian, Turkish, Bulgarian, Scottish, Vietnamese, Hungarian, African, klezmer, and gypsy music. Boiled in Lead has been hailed as a pioneering bridge between American rock and international music, and a precursor to Gogol Bordello and other gypsy-punk bands. While most heavily active in the 1980s and 1990s, the group is still performing today, including annual St. Patrick's Day concerts in Minneapolis. Over the course of its career, Boiled in Lead has released nearly a dozen albums and EPs, most recently 2012's The Well Below.

<i>Orb</i> (Boiled in Lead album) 1990 studio album by Boiled in Lead

Orb is the fourth album by Minneapolis Celtic rock band Boiled in Lead. It was produced by Hijaz Mustapha of British worldbeat band 3 Mustaphas 3. Orb found Boiled in Lead exploring a wider range of traditional music styles than ever before, moving beyond the confines of the Fairport Convention-influenced Celtic rock of previous albums and adding material from Albania, Romania, Macedonia, Sweden, Appalachia, and Thailand. The album's title reflects this, suggesting an embrace of a truly global musical perspective. Bassist Drew Miller attributed the widening of the band's sound to the eye-opening realization that their European audiences were just as comfortable with American musical styles as with any European forms. "We came to the decision that since we're Americans, there's no reason we have to play all Irish material. So we don't." Brett Durand Atwood of Gavin Report praised the album's eclecticism, calling it "a one-world sonic showcase for the tunes of our brothers, sisters, and ancestors." Besides the many world-music influences, Orb also delves into punk rock and psychobilly with guitarist/vocalist Todd Menton's "Tape Decks All Over Hell."

Kleztory

Kleztory is a klezmer and world music ensemble founded in 2000 and based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. While remaining respectful of the rich heritage of klezmer, Kleztory takes the liberty of arranging parts of the traditional repertoire. This gives their music their own personal uniqueness and flavor. Kleztory is influenced by many sources of inspiration including jazz, classical, gypsy, country, folk and blues. The ensemble were awarded both the Opus Prize in 2007 as the best Jazz / World Music album of the year in Québec for Nomade, and the Fürth Klezmer Prize at the 3rd International Jewish Music Festival in Amsterdam in 2012.

<i>Songs from The Gypsy</i> 1995 studio album by Boiled in Lead

Songs From the Gypsy is the sixth album by Minneapolis Celtic rock band Boiled in Lead, and its second with lead singer/guitarist Adam Stemple. It is a song cycle based on a Hungarian folk tale, written largely by Stemple and his Cats Laughing bandmate Steven Brust several years prior to Boiled in Lead's recording. Brust, who is best known as a fantasy novelist, collaborated with writer Megan Lindholm on a novel, The Gypsy, based on the songs. Boiled in Lead's album is considered the soundtrack to the novel. Brust had previously co-written two songs on Boiled in Lead's 1994 album Antler Dance, and had released a 1993 solo album, A Rose for Iconoclastes.

References

  1. decent introduction to RPO on this non-commercial music site Archived May 4, 2005, at the Wayback Machine
  2. "RPO introduced and the source of the eclectic worldbeat quote". Answers.com. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  3. "Siggi documented as Reptile members in this non-trivial release of Omnium Records, part of RYKO". Noside.com. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  4. List of Siggi's collaborations – "HWY X" and "Iguana, iguana" Reptile Palace Orchestra albums documented
  5. reviewer. "Greenman Review of Reptile Palace documenting Biff, Siggi and the Omnium releases". Greenmanreview.com. Archived from the original on February 5, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  6. "Ink 19 article". Ink 19 article. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  7. Dirty Linen Archived February 3, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  8. "Paula Kirman interviews the RPO". Insideworldmusic.com. April 1, 1994. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  9. "Maxink Reptiles Cover story by Andrew Frey". Maximumink.com. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  10. Doug Henkle. "Snapshotmusic lists Reptile Palace Orchestra as Bulgarian Folk music". Folklib.net. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  11. "Balkans Without Borders". Omnium.com. Archived from the original on September 1, 2000. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
  12. "Balkans Without Borders explained and Reptiles documented". Omnium.com. Archived from the original on January 19, 2000. Retrieved December 12, 2011.