It was an ambitious year for music in Lexington and in Kentucky in 2012. Below are a few of the most popular highlights.
The year kicked off with a successful fundraising campaign from Lexington’s beloved March Madness Marching Band to perform again at HONK! Texas in Austin.
Louisville native Will Oldham (Bonnie Prince Billy) came to Lexington to play a benefit for Appalshop’s WMMT, and later in the fall, Norton released his autobiography, Will Oldham on Bonnie Prince Billy, which he says will serve as his “last interview.”
Evan Albert covered the tenth anniversary of Louisville’s enormously popular Forecastle Festival this summer, including an interview with the festival curators, Kentucky natives, My Morning Jacket. He also previewed the first year of Richmond’s Jubilo Festival, and attended Harrodsburg’s Terrapin Hill Festival (the festival that made national news for allegations that ex-Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart had assaulted a Nicholasville man at the festival, a man who has since reportedly filed a lawsuit against Hart).
Raj Ranade covered everything from WRFL’s Boomslang 2012 to Bruce Springsteen at Louisville’s Yum Center, and his Pitchfork 2012 coverage included an interview with interview with Alex Zhang Hungtai of Dirty Beaches here. He also completed what would turn out to be one of the last interviews with the Olivia Tremor Control’s Bill Doss. Doss died suddenly at the age of 43 a few weeks later. A cofounder of The Elephant 6, along with his childhood friend (and longtime Lexington, Kentucky resident) Robert Schneider of The Apples in Stereo, spoke with great enthusiasm of his future recording plans in the interview.
Louisville musician Jason Noble — Rachel’s, Rodan, Shipping News — died at the age of 40 earlier this year, while undergoing cancer treatment in Maryland.
Newport’s legendary music venue, the historic Southgate House re-opened in a new location as The Southgate House Revival.
The WRFL Tower Sculpture, by Prof. Garry Bibbs was dedicated on the University of Kentucky student center lawn.
We covered Louisville’s Pleased to Meet Me film project all summer; Lexpatriate Archie Borders’ new movie stars Aimee Mann, Joe Henry, X’s John Doe and more. And now the trailer is out.
November marked the culmination of two long-in-development local music projects.
The 10 in 20 recording project saw the release of a long-awaited album and a giant reunion show at Cosmic Charlie’s. And decades-in-the-making, the Paul K “bio-pic” finally premiered at the Kentucky Theatre.
2012 wound down with the annual performance of “The Last Waltz” at Buster’s, with an added tribute to the Late Great Levon Helm, who died earlier this year.
