Exile in Dunganville

How many bands do you know in today’s musical landscape that has an actual mission statement? Not very many would be my guess. Of course, like most rules, there are always exceptions. That exception is a band that goes by the name of Volatile Baby.

This all-female trio, comprised of Brenda Gambill, Allison Modafferi, and Gina Stewart, has been plugging away in the Charlotte music scene for a few years now. Their friendship is strongly grounded in their collective love of the arts. That’s actually how they met.

All three women worked in theater together long before making music became a topic of interest. It just so happens that the music and harmonies they create are simply byproducts of their strong friendship.

Volatile Baby released their first full-length album Traveling Light on Silver Meteor Records in May 2006. The album contains eleven tracks and even features a guest appearance from country great Carlene Carter on the first track “50 Miles of Elbow Room”.

When you first listen, it’s the vocal harmonies that grab you first. However, once this album grabs you, it won’t let you go. As you go in for repeated listens, you can really appreciate the instrumentation that permeates the album. String instruments (cello, violin), the clarinet, harmonica, and the auto harp fit nicely with the piano and guitar arrangements.

Their website clearly identifies their mission statement for all to see. It reads “to lift spirits and vibrations of the room with music, lyrics and vocal harmonies at each performance”. With the release of Traveling Light, I think the girls can agree they’ve accomplished their mission.

While I may have taken a break from posting my thoughts and musings, another cat just down the road from me has decided to do the opposite.  Michael Evans is a relatively new columnist at Charlotte's Uptown Magazine and is writing a music column for them each month.  I can't think of anyone more passionate or qualified to write about the state of our strong music scene in Charlotte than Mike. 

Please check out his latest column on the Americana music scene in the Charlotte area in the November edition of Uptown Magazine.  

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• Radio stations switching formats to all Christmas all the time is not a surprise by any means. Radio stations all over the country do this very thing. Hearing Christmas tunes in early November is bad enough, but to make matters worse, an old man sitting behind me decided he had to hum along with it. Maybe Charlie Brown was right. Christmas is getting too commericial...

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