Letter To The People - August 2019

Publisher's Commentary
by Rökker

Mama and Papa Rökker enjoying AtwoodFest 2019 - photo by Cynthia Shields

Mama and Papa Rökker enjoying AtwoodFest 2019
photo by Cynthia Shields

AtwoodFest 2019: Here’s the report. It was a hot but fantastic weekend. Saturday’s crowd grew thick by the Rousers, danced through an amazing set of disco favorites by VO5 and stadium like by the time Echoes of Pompeii kicked on their lasers! The entirety of AtwoodFest was electric and the thrill was in the air.

Last month I told you about Mama Rökker retiring from running Mama Rökker’s Band Bistro and to commemorate such an historic occasion I took my mom with me on stage and told her story as thousands cheered for her. Then we introduced the Mayor of Madison, Satya Rhodes-Conway, who was present to introduce the headlining band Echoes of Pompeii who went on to perform the music of Pink Floyd to a hungry crowd that loved every minute of the show. During Wish You Were Here, the entire crowd sung with the band and then the band stopped and just let the crowd sing the verse. I saw more than one tear stained eye.

There was another retirement announcement by radio personality Gabby Parsons as she introduced Steely Dane. She will be moving to Vermont by the end of the year and after working for 40 years in radio and helping countless local bands the audience recognized her work with a roar of applause. We salute Gabby and wish her well on her new adventure, please say hi to Bernie for me!

Max Ink Radio: Turn on, Tune in, and… unplug from politics with Max Ink Radio on Saturday nights with Jimmy K and myself, Rökker, on Talk 92.7FM. The new show has been a great platform for us to play music from local artists and preview their shows around the Madcity area. We usually feature 2 or 3 interviews during the show so we can get a deeper view into the artists and the scene. Another thing that is interesting is being able to play music from local bands who have long since broken up and now their music can live again on Max Ink Radio. If you would like to submit show info and music for on air consideration you can email maxinkradio@gmail.com.

Adventures with Nikko and Lizzie: Summer is here and Lizzie, our resident college student, has been hitting the road.. or should I say runways, traveling to see friends in far away places like Cancun, Toronto, and LA. Oh the life. September is coming.

Nikko has been working his butt off as a camp counselor and rehearsing and gigging with Black Star Drum Line. When he’s not doing that he’s sleeping.

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