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One of my favorite local bands, Christopher the Conquered, opened the night and the energy from the crowd fueled the show. Chris Ford was so successful in evoking feeling from his soulful lyrics that I almost felt awkward taking pictures during his set! Colloquial conversation filled the gaps between songs such as The Truth is On It’s Way and Chris and his Black Gold Brass Band clearly won over the audience.

Building on Mission Creek’s tradition of literature, Michael Zapruder’s Pink Thunder was a unique experience combining music and poetry. Instead of a traditional singer-songwriter set, Michael used other writers’ poems in the Pink Thunder project and turned them into songs. By doing this, he bridges the gap between music and poetry.

I felt that this connection was extremely powerful and effective and definitely opened my mind to poems I wouldn’t have heard otherwise. He musically performed poems such as “Twins” and “Pennsylvania.” After one of his performances, he commented that he realized how ridiculous some of the works sounded once he read them out loud—something extremely unique to hear at a concert!

The night was a great cornerstone in the puzzle that is the Mission Creek Festival. Local Iowa music and poetry: what the festival is all about!

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Christopher the Conquered might be one of the busiest artists at the Mission Creek Festival this week. Between his Thursday show at the Blue Moose with Leslie & The Ly’s and Kimya Dawson, his live taping of Iowa Public Radio’s “Java Blend” on Friday, and his inevitable appearance at the KRUI Mission Creek Lounge, Chris Ford will be a busy man. And that seems to be the norm for him.

After two solo records, Christopher the Conquered formed his Black Gold Brass Band to accompany him on his latest effort, The Fate of A Good Man. The album will be released on April 17 on Maximum Ames Records, which he co-founded in 2011 with Black Gold Brass Band member Nate Logsdon.

Recently, Ford and his bandmates worked with directors Ashley Tape Fleming and her husband Patrick Tape Fleming (of Iowa’s own Poison Control Center) to create the video for “Free to Try (Not Always To Do)”. The video explores what it means to be an artist rather than a business man—both of which are roles Ford balances in his daily life.

The post Track of the Week: “Free to Try (But Not Always To Do)” by Christopher the Conquered & His Black Gold Brass Band appeared first on KRUI Radio.