A few months ago, I shared a short documentary film I produced that focused on South Florida indie rock band Honeyvoid. Part of that shoot included filming a few live music sessions. So allow me to present Honeyvoid performing their original song “There You Are”, recorded live at OnStage Studios in Boca Raton (special thanks to my daughter Miranda for handling “Camera #2” duties).
Enjoy (and stay safe out there!)
Here’s a short documentary film I produced about the band –
The Coronavirus pandemic has been tough on us all – some far worse than others. So first of all, I hope this post finds you all doing well – keeping your heads above water and finding ways to make the most out of what has been an unusually challenging time.
Like many of you, I found myself with far less to do and far fewer places to go when the shutdowns began in March of 2020. After a few months, I found myself bored a good portion of the time and for a creative person like myself, that ain’t good. Gotta keep the saw sharp, you know? But what to do?
Then I came upon a Facebook post from the lead singer of a South Florida based indie rock band that compelled me to reach out to her. After a listen to their terrific debut album on Spotify and an initial chat that revealed a rather remarkable past, we decided to move forward with a short documentary video where she would share her story and I would profile the band through a series of live performances. I mean, I needed something to do and this sounded like fun.
The singer’s name was Sammy Jo and the band is called Honeyvoid. I started taping interviews with her and her fellow bandmates this past summer and we wrapped up a series of live tapings in the fall. What I found myself with was Sammy Jo’s haunting story of drug addiction, depression, and her journey to recovery (not to mention the band’s bassist Jonathan) and how music played a role in their respective “salvations”.
And then there are the band’s live music performances which are pretty dynamic.
I was really just looking for something creative to do and what I ended up with is something very special – with some very special people. In this time of Coronavirus, Sammy Jo’s story reminds us that there really isn’t a hole deep enough that we can’t crawl out of if we really want to. It’s a short film I’m very proud of.
Additional music for the film came via audiio.com – a relatively new (but really great) resource for filmmakers looking for cinematic music and sound effects. More on them in a future post…
I don’t do a whole lot of music videos but when I stumbled upon South Florida’s own Honeyvoid, their dynamic lead singer Sammy Jo, and their excellent debut album, I felt compelled to reach out to the band and explore the possibilities of working together. Part one of that process is this live acoustic performance video I shot and edited of their original song “Icarus”. There is more to come, including a short documentary story about the band and Sammy Jo’s battle with addiction and depression, so stay tuned. Enjoy the video – and let us know what you think of it, yes?
Akokán is a Yoruba word used by Cubans to mean “from the heart” or “soul”, so it was no surprise that Cuba’s Orquesta Akokán lit up the stage at NYC’s Le Poisson Rouge a couple of weeks ago with a blazing presentation of deeply soulful mambo reminiscent of Benny Moré and banda gigante of the 1940’s and 50’s. Orquesta Akokán is a big band collective of all-star Cuban and New York musicians led by Cuban born and raised singer José “Pepito” Gomez. I was fortunate to catch them live as they are currently on tour supporting their new (and recently Latín American Music Award nominated) self-titled album.
The album was recorded at Havana, Cuba’s famed Areito studios. Built in the early 1940s to exact audio specifications by a recording engineer, it has played host to virtually every single Cuban musician of note for almost 75 years. In 1996, the Buena Vista Social Club phenomenon put the studio back on the map and since then, many Cubans and non-Cubans have recorded inside the legendary wood paneled room. The album is available on Brooklyn’s Daptone Records and you can give it a listen on Spotify.
Was in NYC (again) this past weekend and back (again) at my favorite place for live music, Le Poisson Rouge in the West Village. The reason why? To catch Katie Crutchfield’s lo-fi folk/rock music project, better known as Waxahatchee. I first stumbled upon Waxahatchee (named after a creek in Crutchfield’s homestate of Alabama) after her second album “Cerulean Salt” made #22 on Pitchfork magazine’s “Best Albums of 2013” list. Gave it a listen on Spotify and I was hooked.
Waxahatchee has since released “Ivy Tripp” (2015) and “Out in the Storm” (2017) to critical acclaim and her latest stripped-down acoustic EP “Great Thunder” which revisits six tracks she recorded in 2012 as a short-lived member of Great Thunder, a band she formed with bassist Keith Spencer. It’s this very stripped-down sound that Crutchfield brought to Le Poisson Rouge this past Monday evening. It was one of the best live shows I’ve ever attended – even Mrs. Perez was smiling ear to ear after the show.
Alas, we missed the opening acts of country/folk singer/songwriter Anna St. Louis and Justin Sullivan’s dreamy lo-fi pop outfit Night Stop but they joined Crutchfield on stage for several tracks on bass and drums. Give these acts a listen.
Waxahatchee is currently on tour at a city near you – check her out (you can thank me afterwards).
Le Poisson Rouge is one of a few live music venues that can put on shown “in the round”, where the band is surrounded on all sides by the crowd. That they also have one of the best sound systems of any live music venue in NYC as well as a truly eclectic offering of music and art, makes a visit to the former home of the historic Village Gate a must for any music lover in NYC. Nuff said.
Remember what it was like to buy vinyl records? In most cases, you went out and picked up an LP based on hearing a song on the radio. There was no Spotify to check and see if all the other songs sucked or not, you bought that record and hoped for the best. For a Death/Thrash Metal Head like myself, LPs were usually purchased on word of mouth and/or the most badass album cover you found. And when you brought that record home, undressed it (lyrics, yay!!!), laid it down on your turntable and dropped that needle, you’d sit in your room, lyric sheet in hand and just listen. It was a beautiful thing, a personal thing, something you could feel in your hands. And no, those days aren’t over.
This past weekend, I took the family to Sweat Records, Miami’s unofficial headquarters for indie music. They offer a wide variety of new and used LPs, turntables, headphones, record accessories, a few CDs, and a curated selection of magazines, books, gifts, and local music. It’s become not only a music store, but a cafe and event space that hosts everything from vegan brunches to movie nights.
This weekend, they were celebrating another milestone, their new in-house record label called (what else?) Sweat Records Records. The event featured performances from two of their newest acts, goth/folk outfit Dracula and all-girl, lo-fi pop band Las Nubes at legendary local punk venue Churchill’s Pub (est. 1979) which happens to be right next door.
Now, I grew up in record stores; my first vinyl record purchase being Billy Joel’s “Glass Houses” (which me an my buddy Jose bought at Crazy Eddie’s in the Bronx and went half and half on). As a teenager, Bleecker Bob’s Records in the West Village became a weekly stop for the latest Death Metal imports and when I was 20, I worked at Tower Records on West 4th and Broadway for a year (best job I ever had). So, I thought it would be nice to bring my daughter to an actual record store (she’s a music nerd like her father) to see how people used to buy music way, way back in the days before CDs, Napster and Spotify.
Sweat Records was established in March 2005 by two best friends – long-time DJ, music retail nerd, and club/concert promoter Lauren (Lolo) Reskin and ex-WVUM DJ/current criminal defense attorney Sara Yousuf. Since then, Sweat has played a vital role in instigating and promoting a renaissance of growth and activity in Miami’s cultural landscape.
Sweat survived its first location being destroyed by Hurricane Wilma in October 2005 and moved into a small temporary warehouse space in the back of Churchill’s Pub. In 2006, Sara Yousuf left to be a full-time Public Defender and new partner Jason Jimenez came on board in 2007 to help usher in a new era and location for Sweat Records.
In late 2007 Sweat moved into their current expanded and fully-stocked storefront located at 5505 NE 2nd Ave., and in 2011 they launched the e-commerce site SweatShopMiami.com to offer the shop’s made-in-Miami merchandise to a global audience. Over the years, Sweat Records has been visited by the likes of Iggy Pop, Ian MacKaye (Fugazi/Dischord), Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth, Fred Schneider of the B-52’s, Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys/Alternative Tentacles), Jim Jarmusch and many others.
As you all know by now, I never travel without my camera and a few good lenses so here are a few photographs I snapped during an afternoon well spent at Sweat Records…
My two girls “diggin’ in the crates”
Plenty of people searching for vinyl (it’s made quite a comeback over the past several years) and plenty of Sweat Records merchandise guarded over by this guy here…
In-store music by DJ Richie Hell
Drinks by Deep Eddy Vodka
Complimentary eats by 222 Taco (guacamole just didn’t look good in black and white)
Oh, yeah – some guy named Iggy Pop dropped by as well…
“Can I get your attention please?” Sweat Records co-founder Lauren (Lolo) Reskin asking the guest to head next door to Churchill’s Pub to check out the first band, Dracula…
Back inside Sweat, my daughter finally decided on her first vinyl record purchases, a remastered 180 gram vinyl edition of Prince’s “Purple Rain” and a triple vinyl pressing of Kanye West’s “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy”. I picked up what just might be my two favorite albums, a digitally remastered two-disc vinyl edition of the Cure’s “Disintegration” and a remastered 180 gram vinyl edition of “Heaven or Las Vegas” by the Cocteau Twins. Now to get ourselves a good turntable!
Before heading back home, I snapped a photograph of a very pleased Lauren Reskin (I mean, how would you know she had purple hair if the photograph was in black and white?)
Sweat Records are open noon to 10pm Monday through Saturday and noon to 5pm Sunday, excluding major holidays. Visit their website for upcoming events and stop by for your vinyl fix…
Back in the summer of 2008, I documented the inaugural year of a unique four-week summer program for teenagers in Miami that focused on the history and philosophy of Hip Hop and its four main elements: DJing, MCing, B-boying/girling, and Urban Art. The camp was called PATH (Preserving, Archiving and Teaching Hip Hop History) and was the brainchild of long-time Miami hip hop artist Brimstone127 who after several years of trying, finally found a home (and funding) for the program via Miami Light Project, a not-for-profit cultural arts organization.
The film I completed from that first year went on to win the ‘Best Florida Film’ award at the 2010 Sunscreen Film Festival – the award presented to me by none other than John Travolta himself (watch the award presentation HERE and you can watch the original PATH film HERE). The award launched my fledgling video production business to a whole new level while the PATH program continued but struggled to secure funding the next few years.
The good news is that PATH is alive and well and going stronger than ever. It completed its 10th year this past summer (and I’ve been documenting the camp yet again these past two years – stay tuned) and celebrated with an anniversary performance right back where it started, Miami Light Project.
Here’s a sample of what this life-changing camp is all about – a performance by the program’s “emcee” class with lyrics they all wrote themselves. Just a little taste before the documentary film is completed sometime in early 2019. To learn more or to support this dynamic program, visit www.pathtohiphop.org. Enjoy the video…
PATH Hip Hop Summer Academy 10 Year Anniversary Celebration from DanPerezFilms on Vimeo.
For those of you who checked out my previous post on Saturday Sessions, you’ll recall that I kinda stumbled upon it while looking for a nearby event to try out a few new lenses I had purchased. What I ended up stumbling upon was a community event that kinda just blew me away.
Saturday Sessions is a FREE(!) community event held at The Megaphone, an outdoor area in North West Gardens in Fort Lauderdale. The event goes down every first Saturday of the month from 5pm-8pm and just celebrated its one year anniversary this past July. Saturday Sessions brings together up and coming artists for an afternoon of spoken word, live music, art, local vendors and businesses. The event is presented by Art Prevails Project, a not-for-profit 501(c)3 arts organization committed to impacting South Florida and beyond by providing engaging and authentic artistic and cultural experiences through performance and education.
The man in charge (and event emcee) is Darius Daughtry, poet, playwright, director, educator and the Founder and Artistic Director at Art Prevails Project. I let him know after my first visit that I would return and return I did. But this time, instead of just snapping photos, I shot some video that clearly illustrates the type of talent this event draws. Now, like I said before, the event is free but as you can see if you watch the short video below, you’re getting so much more than what you “pay” for.
Check out the video then get over to Saturday Sessions THIS SATURDAY, AUGUST 4 @ 5PM. See you there…
Art Prevails Project presents 'Saturday Sessions' from DanPerezFilms on Vimeo.
Since moving to South Florida from NYC 15 years ago, I really don’t get out all that much. Despite numerous Floridians telling me not to worry (“One by one, they’re gonna follow you down here”), all my friends and family are still in New York. Every single one of them. Moreover, during the past 12 years, I’ve worked from home so I got no co-workers to meet up with for a drink after work. I can live with that one. Sure we’ve traveled to some pretty cool places over the years but it’s pretty much been Mrs. Perez and my daughter Miranda; and so far, we still manage to all get along just fine when we do go out.
This past weekend, however, Mrs. Perez was down in Puerto Rico visiting her father and my daughter was working until closing at a local restaurant where she just started working, which left me looking for something to do on a Friday night. Now, I love live music and I love taking my camera to a show. In NYC, I’m at a live show at Le Poisson Rouge on Bleecker Street about every other night (I mean, I KNOW people there) but here in South Florida, I’ve been rather hesitant to check out a place I’ve never been to (comes with age, I guess). That said, I came across this live music event called “All Out! Fest” at a place called 1306 Miami this past weekend which featured a lineup of several up-and-coming local bands. My interest was piqued…
Checking on the bands that were playing, I came across an Instagram video from a young lady who goes by the name Lo Artiz, an independent artist from Miami. Video impressed the hell out of me so I decided I was gonna take my chances and head on down to see the show. And I was bringing my camera and a few good lenses with me. First live show I’ve gone to in Miami by myself. Seriously. Sure I felt weird buying that one ticket at the door, my almost 50 year old, balding-head self looking around at a room full of mostly twenty-somethings. I got over it pretty quickly, though.
As for Lo Artiz? She did not disappoint. I mean, her set was smoking hot (and that had nothing to do with her taking the stage “au naturel”). This young lady possesses a dynamic voice and a “Joplinesque” eneregy (you can watch and listen to her performing a smoldering cover of Joplin’s “Ball and Chain” HERE). And the band? On point. Soulful. Janice herself would have been smiling. Oh, and right before her set, I caught another band on the rise, a funk/blues outfit called Remyz. Another terrific band worth checking out. Got pics of both – Enjoy…
[Photographs taken with the Lumix GH4 with a combination of Lumix G 20mm 1.7, vintage Super Takumar 50mm 1.4, and the Tokina 11-16 2.8 and Canon EF 85mm 1.8 using Metabones Speedbooster adapter]
This past weekend (and for the third year in a row), Mrs. Perez and I attended the RedEye Music and Art festival presented by Artserve, a Fort Lauderdale based nonprofit organization that provides ongoing programs, facilities and services to empower local artists to help improve the cultural fabric of the community in South Florida.
RedeyeBEYOND (as it was named this year) serves as a fundraiser for ArtServe to support programs for at-risk youth, underserved populations, and local artists. Live bands, indie films, spoken word, live art, stand-up comedy, and art in all its forms converge at this truly unique event in Fort Lauderdale.
To learn more about ArtServe (and how you can get involved in next year’s event) visit their website at www.artserve.org. To check out the photographs (you know I never attend this event without my camera and a few good lenses), simply scroll on down the page. And yes, the arts are alive and well in Fort Lauderdale – see you next year…
First things first, there was plenty of art to view and purchase…
Artist April Saler at her mixed media installation
Dancers? Yup.
Live body painting? Yup. Courtesy of Bonnie & Clyde Body Arts
Free fortune cookies handed out by performance drag artist Akrylika Fabriziocruz? Check.
Henna tattoos by artist Dita Sharp? Check.
Virtual reality gaming station? Of course.
Some guy playing a tuba? Yeah, that too.
Every girl, just the way she is, has something about her worth noticing. So artist Lori Pratico (photo above) started Girl Noticed, a community mural project that travels the globe to spread awareness about the positive impact the act of “noticing” a girl has.
Mrs. Perez making friends with The Killer Robots, a costume band from Orlando…
Stand-up comedy, spoken-word, and live painting…
And like I said before, plenty of art to peruse and/or purchase…
And plenty of live music.
Oh, and this robot. That’s a wrap – see you next year…
