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OTD in 2015—Beasts of Burden to hold second pre-festival open mic at The Draft

September 6, 2024 By Imko Oaljefanta, TMD Archivist

The DraftIt’s the pre-show to end all pre-shows.

The Beasts of Burden announced today that they will once again hold a pre-festival open mic night on Friday, September 11 at The Draft, the pub by the Wishing Well that the musical group owns.

According to their manager Ignatius Herder, last year’s open mic was so successful that they decided to repeat it.

“If this goes as well [as last year’s], they’re going to make it an annual event,” Herder says.

Originally conceived as a way to “warm up” Park residents in advance of the Beats of Burden Music Festival, which is now in its third year, the event turned into a talent search that netted two new performers at last year’s festival. In addition, the Beasts became mentors to three young musicians, one of whom has now begun a career as a merging artist (merging artists are artists who work in only one field of the arts and who collaborate with one or more other artists who work in another, distinct field).

“That was a total surprise,” Alfredo Ox told The Mammalian Daily yesterday. “Mentoring was the last thing on our minds, and now it’s front and centre.”

This year, Herder says, he’s looking forward to hearing the newest talent, but he doesn’t know if they’ll have the time to take on more than a couple of musicians or singers.

“Of course, it all depends on the quality. There are some performers that you simply can’t say no to,” he said.

The rules for this year’s open mic are the same as last year’s: the Beasts are asking those who wish to play or sing to add their names to a list that will be posted outside their pub on Tuesday morning.

“But whether or not you want to perform, it will be a great time. And be prepared to stay out all night,” Herder advises.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Economy and Business, On This Day, Park Life, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: beasts of burden, beats of burden music festival, music, open mic

On This Day—September 17, 2016: The Endeka Elephant Band plays on without its beloved bassist

September 17, 2023 By Imko Oaljefanta, TMD Archivist

Tembo bassThe ten remaining members of The Endeka Elephant Band took to the stage last night for the first time since the death this past July of their beloved bassist, Zuberi Tembo.

In an emotional mid-set tribute during the first night of the Beats of Burden Music Festival, each member of the band placed a rose at the foot of Tembo’s bass, which stood at the front of the stage for the entirety of their set.

It was a fitting acknowledgement of the Elephant they described as “a gentle soul who loved music and valued freedom.”

“Even though we miss him terribly, we know that Zuberi’s spirit is with us now and will live on forever in the music he made, in the work he did, and in his tireless fight for freedom,” band member Árvakur Fíl said.

The band followed that with a sweet and tearful rendition of “Recollections” and ended their set with “Seismic Connections.” They returned for only one encore: Tembo’s rousing, “Food For All.”

The Endeka Elephant Band returns tonight to play one last set at the festival.


The Beats of Burden Music Festival continues until midnight 18 September 2016.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Park Life, Politics/Law/Crime, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: beats of burden music festival, Elephant murder, Endeka Elephant Band, Zuberi Tembo

On This Day—September 12, 2016: The Beats gets bigger: lineup for music festival’s fourth year announced today

September 12, 2023 By Imko Oaljefanta, TMD Archivist

Beats of Burden logo“Bigger” and “better” were the words most often uttered this morning as Beasts of Burden lead singer Alfredo Ox announced the lineup for the fourth annual Beats of Burden Music Festival.

“We know that bigger isn’t always better, but in this case it is,” Ox told the throng of reporters outside The Draft, the pub that he and his Beasts of Burden bandmates own.

“We asked ourselves, what could make this event better? How do we stay true to our purpose without this becoming just another music festival?”

The answer to that question, Ox said, was to bring the musical and other acts closer to that purpose.

“We want The Park’s refugees, who are the festival’s raison d’être, to always be within your sight or hearing. We want you —no matter what you’re listening to, no matter what you’re watching, no matter what you’re eating—to have our refugees front and centre in your mind. Yes, we want you to have a Whale of a time, and that’s no pun. NIML will be at the festival, down by the Tartan Crab Memorial Pond. But we also want you to remember that this is a charity festival, a festival with a purpose, not just a Porpoise,” he said, as the crowd groaned.

As far as the music lineup goes, many of these groups have performed at the festival before: Inktvis and Krake, Eggie and The Pigs, The Feral Four, The Canary Cousins, Banded Brothers, Spontaneous Generation, NIML, rapper Will.o.be., The Cynics, The Tweeters, Les Chiens Débraillés, GHC, Jargohead, Fish Rap, and The DomEstyx.

But there are newcomers, such as Belles and Whistles and Memes of Production and up-and-comers, including Erdferkel!, plucked just past Friday from the Beats in the Bar (formerly the Open Mic at The Draft), as well as last year’s pick, The Crumb Seekers.

Even bigger musical news comes in the form of Last Stand, the band whose members all hail from endangered species, and ZEAL, who begged off last year’s Celebration of the Winter Solstice because he refused to play at the same event as the SCENTient Beings’ Faramund Stinktier. The Beats will feature both, though they’ll play at different venues.

As well, Ox said he personally invited The Endeka Elephant Band, whose bassist, Zuberi Tembo, was killed this summer on a trip home to Africa. The band agreed to play on two of the three days of the festival, and Ox said he took that as a compliment.

“Zuberi Tembo was a refugee and I think the band wanted to honour that,” he said.

This year’s festival will introduce a new category, Spoken Word Extemporaneous (SWE), which Ox said he’s particularly excited about. And the comedy portion will feature Dalmanik and Woodruff Dalmatio, with a few “surprises” in store for Saturday.

Another first for the festival is the Rodent gymnastic troupe, “Out of the Box.” Ox was also proud to announce that the organizers of the annual Park ART Walk had agreed to resurrect their 2014 exhibit, “From Fear to Freedom,” which highlights the art of The Park’s refugees.

As usual, the Beasts of Burden will take the stage every day and night and they’ll be acting as auctioneers during Saturday night’s gala auction.

With all that, and the “long list of surprises” that Ox boasted about, it’s hard not to believe that this bigger Beats will be even better.


The Beats of Burden Music Festival will take place at venues throughout The Park 16-18 September 2016.

All proceeds from the festival go toward assisting The Park’s refugees.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Economy and Business, Park Life, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: art, beats of burden music festival, charity, music, Refugees

On This Day—August 27, 2016: Belles and Whistles to join lineup at Beats of Burden festival in September

August 27, 2023 By Imko Oaljefanta, TMD Archivist

Beats of Burden logoThe Park’s newest singing duo, Belles and Whistles, confirmed today that they will be performing at this year’s Beats of Burden music festival in September.

The duo, who were secretly mentored by Thisbe and the Barkettes, made their début on June 30 at the Concert for Charity in honour of Enforced Domestication Awareness Month (EDAM). Since then, their manager Retriikka Spanieli says, they’ve been working on producing their first collection of songs, which they describe as “an eclectic mix.”

“The duo has an amazing range and an ability to perform in a multitude of genres,” Spanieli told The Mammalian Daily in a telephone interview.

According to Spanieli, the duo’s main goal at the moment is to convince audiences that they are their own musicians, and not an extension of the Barkettes.

“They love the Barkettes, as we all do, but they have an identity of their own and ambitions beyond becoming a carbon copy of The Park’s most successful singing group,” Spanieli said.

The Beats of Burden Music Festival takes place in The Park September 16-18, 2016.

 

Filed Under: Breaking News, Park Life, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: beats of burden music festival, Belles and Whistles, Thisbe and the Barkettes

The Endeka Elephant Band plays on without its beloved bassist

September 17, 2016 By Johan Slon, TMD Music Reporter

Tembo bass

Zuberi Tembo’s bass stood in front of the band last night at the Beats of Burden Music Festival

The ten remaining members of The Endeka Elephant Band took to the stage last night for the first time since the death this past July of their beloved bassist, Zuberi Tembo.

In an emotional mid-set tribute during the first night of the Beats of Burden Music Festival, each member of the band placed a rose at the foot of Tembo’s bass, which stood at the front of the stage for the entirety of their set.

It was a fitting acknowledgement of the Elephant they described as “a gentle soul who loved music and valued freedom.”

“Even though we miss him terribly, we know that Zuberi’s spirit is with us now and will live on forever in the music he made, in the work he did, and in his tireless fight for freedom,” band member Árvakur Fíl said.

The band followed that with a sweet and tearful rendition of “Recollections” and ended their set with “Seismic Connections.” They returned for only one encore: Tembo’s rousing, “Food For All.”

The Endeka Elephant Band returns tonight to play one last set at the festival.


The Beats of Burden Music Festival continues until midnight 18 September 2016.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Park Life, Politics/Law/Crime, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: beats of burden music festival, Elephant murder, Endeka Elephant Band, Zuberi Tembo

The Beats gets bigger: lineup for music festival’s fourth year announced today

September 12, 2016 By Fiona Lupu, TMD Events Reporter

Beats of Burden logo“Bigger” and “better” were the words most often uttered this morning as Beasts of Burden lead singer Alfredo Ox announced the lineup for the fourth annual Beats of Burden Music Festival.[pullquote]“We want The Park’s refugees, who are the festival’s raison d’être, to always be within your sight or hearing. We want you —no matter what you’re listening to, no matter what you’re watching, no matter what you’re eating—to have our refugees be front and centre in your mind. —Alfredo Ox, on the 2016 Beats of Burden Music Festival[/pullquote]

“We know that bigger isn’t always better, but in this case it is,” Ox told the throng of reporters outside The Draft, the pub that he and his Beasts of Burden bandmates own.

“We asked ourselves, what could make this event better? How do we stay true to our purpose without this becoming just another music festival?”

The answer to that question, Ox said, was to bring the musical and other acts closer to that purpose.

“We want The Park’s refugees, who are the festival’s raison d’être, to always be within your sight or hearing. We want you —no matter what you’re listening to, no matter what you’re watching, no matter what you’re eating—to have our refugees front and centre in your mind. Yes, we want you to have a Whale of a time, and that’s no pun. NIML will be at the festival, down by the Tartan Crab Memorial Pond. But we also want you to remember that this is a charity festival, a festival with a purpose, not just a Porpoise,” he said, as the crowd groaned.

As far as the music lineup goes, many of these groups have performed at the festival before: Inktvis and Krake, Eggie and The Pigs, The Feral Four, The Canary Cousins, Banded Brothers, Spontaneous Generation, NIML, rapper Will.o.be., The Cynics, The Tweeters, Les Chiens Débraillés, GHC, Jargohead, Fish Rap, and The DomEstyx.

But there are newcomers, such as Belles and Whistles and Memes of Production and up-and-comers, including Erdferkel!, plucked just past Friday from the Beats in the Bar (formerly the Open Mic at The Draft), as well as last year’s pick, The Crumb Seekers.

Even bigger musical news comes in the form of Last Stand, the band whose members all hail from endangered species, and ZEAL, who begged off last year’s Celebration of the Winter Solstice because he refused to play at the same event as the SCENTient Beings’ Faramund Stinktier. The Beats will feature both, though they’ll play at different venues.

As well, Ox said he personally invited The Endeka Elephant Band, whose bassist, Zuberi Tembo, was killed this summer on a trip home to Africa. The band agreed to play on two of the three days of the festival, and Ox said he took that as a compliment.

“Zuberi Tembo was a refugee and I think the band wanted to honour that,” he said.

This year’s festival will introduce a new category, Spoken Word Extemporaneous (SWE), which Ox said he’s particularly excited about. And the comedy portion will feature Dalmanik and Woodruff Dalmatio, with a few “surprises” in store for Saturday.

Another first for the festival is the Rodent gymnastic troupe, “Out of the Box.” Ox was also proud to announce that the organizers of the annual Park ART Walk had agreed to resurrect their 2014 exhibit, “From Fear to Freedom,” which highlights the art of The Park’s refugees.

As usual, the Beasts of Burden will take the stage every day and night and they’ll be acting as auctioneers during Saturday night’s gala auction.

With all that, and the “long list of surprises” that Ox boasted about, it’s hard not to believe that this bigger Beats will be even better.


The Beats of Burden Music Festival will take place at venues throughout The Park 16-18 September 2016.

All proceeds from the festival go toward assisting The Park’s refugees.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Economy and Business, Park Life, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: art, beats of burden music festival, charity, music, Refugees

Third time’s a charm as Open Mic at The Draft becomes “Beats in the Bar”

September 6, 2016 By Fiona Lupu, TMD Events Reporter

Draft with borderFor the past two years, it’s been the beats before the Beats but from now on the open mic evening at The Draft will officially be known as “Beats in the Bar.”

“They say the third time’s a charm and we think so too,” the Beasts of Burden posted yesterday on their GooseBook page. The post also confirmed that the Beats in the Bar will officially become an annual event.

“The Department [of Holidays, Festival, and Celebrations] has put it on The Park’s official calendar and so should you,” the Beasts’ lead singer Alfredo Ox told Toro Talk Radio host Yannis Tavros yesterday afternoon.

And he emphasized that “the name has changed, but its purpose hasn’t.”

“We’re still looking for raw talent, unknown artists, and new beats. We still want to showcase the best of the pre-fest at our main event. So, come on out and show us what you’ve got,” he said.

In its short history, the open mic evening has become one of The Park’s biggest talent searches. But it didn’t start out that way, the Beasts’ manager Ignatius Herder says.

According to Herder, the open mic night was originally conceived as a way to “warm up” Park residents in advance of the Beats of Burden Music Festival, which was new and not very well known.

“So Alfredo put out the call to Park musicians and we thought we’d get what would amount to a pre-show, but we couldn’t have been more wrong,” Herder says. “These young, talented, untested musicians came in and blew the whole thing wide open.”

Since then, not only has the evening become a showcase for new talent, but Ox himself has become the  mentor of five young artists.

“That was a total surprise,” Alfredo Ox told The Mammalian Daily last year. “Mentoring was the last thing on our minds when we started this thing.”

The rules for this year’s event are the same as last year: those who wish to play or sing are asked to add their names to a list that will be posted outside The Draft tomorrow morning.

“Whether or not you perform, you will be a great time,” Herder says. “But come prepared to stay out all night.”

Filed Under: Breaking News, Park Life, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: Beats in the Bar, Beats of Burden, beats of burden music festival, The Draft

Belles and Whistles to join lineup at Beats of Burden festival in September

August 27, 2016 By Johan Slon, TMD Music Reporter

Beats of Burden logoThe Park’s newest singing duo, Belles and Whistles, confirmed today that they will be performing at this year’s Beats of Burden music festival in September.

The duo, who were secretly mentored by Thisbe and the Barkettes, made their début on June 30 at the Concert for Charity in honour of Enforced Domestication Awareness Month (EDAM). Since then, their manager Retriikka Spanieli says, they’ve been working on producing their first collection of songs, which they describe as “an eclectic mix.”

“The duo has an amazing range and an ability to perform in a multitude of genres,” Spanieli told The Mammalian Daily in a telephone interview.

According to Spanieli, the duo’s main goal at the moment is to convince audiences that they are their own musicians, and not an extension of the Barkettes.

“They love the Barkettes, as we all do, but they have an identity of their own and ambitions beyond becoming a carbon copy of The Park’s most successful singing group,” Spanieli said.

The Beats of Burden Music Festival takes place in The Park September 16-18, 2016.

 

Filed Under: Breaking News, Park Life, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: beats of burden music festival, Belles and Whistles, Thisbe and the Barkettes

Beasts of Burden to hold second pre-festival open mic at The Draft

September 6, 2015 By Aednat Eilifint, TMD Arts and Entertainment Reporter

The DraftIt’s the pre-show to end all pre-shows.

The Beasts of Burden announced today that they will once again hold a pre-festival open mic night on Friday, September 11 at The Draft, the pub by the Wishing Well that the musical group owns.

According to their manager Ignatius Herder, last year’s open mic was so successful that they decided to repeat it.

“If this goes as well [as last year’s], they’re going to make it an annual event,” Herder says.

Originally conceived as a way to “warm up” Park residents in advance of the Beats of Burden Music Festival, which is now in its third year, the event turned into a talent search that netted two new performers at last year’s festival. In addition, the Beasts became mentors to three young musicians, one of whom has now begun a career as a merging artist (merging artists are artists who work in only one field of the arts and who collaborate with one or more other artists who work in another, distinct field).

“That was a total surprise,” Alfredo Ox told The Mammalian Daily yesterday. “Mentoring was the last thing on our minds, and now it’s front and centre.”

This year, Herder says, he’s looking forward to hearing the newest talent, but he doesn’t know if they’ll have the time to take on more than a couple of musicians or singers.

“Of course, it all depends on the quality. There are some performers that you simply can’t say no to,” he said.

The rules for this year’s open mic are the same as last year’s: the Beasts are asking those who wish to play or sing to add their names to a list that will be posted outside their pub on Tuesday morning.

“But whether or not you want to perform, it will be a great time. And be prepared to stay out all night,” Herder advises.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Economy and Business, Park Life, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: beasts of burden, beats of burden music festival, music, open mic

Jargonhead signs on to rap at Beats of Burden music fest

August 6, 2013 By Johan Slon, TMD Music Reporter

Jargonhead

Legendary Park rapper Jargonhead announced today that he has signed on to rap at the Beats of Burden music festival in September

Legendary Park rapper Jargonhead announced today that he has signed on to rap at the Beats of Burden Music Festival this September.

“I’m all in,” he said in a statement released by his manager this morning.

The rapper, who embarked on his Ducks in a Row tour last Winter has been performing outside The Park for several months. On his return last week, he was advised of the upcoming festival.

“He was so impressed by what the Beasts had done to set this thing up. He called them right away and just about begged them to let him participate,” said his manager Jukka Ankka.

“He said to me, ‘I love the way they think outside the box. They’re really pushing the envelope here and I want to be involved. IMHO, I think this is going to be a game changer,'” Ankka said.

The Beats of Burden Music Festival will take place September 14-16. All proceeds from the festival will go toward assisting The Park’s refugees.

Filed Under: Breaking News, The Arts, Entertainment, and Culture Tagged With: beats of burden music festival

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