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Album Reviews 20/6/18

Sara Serpa, Recognition: Music for a Silent Film (Biophilia Records)

Serpa, a jazz singer from Portugal, has been a fixture for years, applying her elite-level voice to music that’s always just palatable (and dada) enough to keep influencers on their toes; she even won the No. 1 spot on Downbeat’s 2019 Rising Star Female Vocalist poll, which is, to me, amusing. Her shtick involves “wordless singing,” that is to say there are no recognizable words, just her voice uttering random vowel/consonant sounds. She does this gently and without electronic assistance, instantly captivating anyone in earshot who doesn’t have somewhere else to be. Her sparse but powerful 10th album, probably her most out-there work, is meant to backdrop a documentary she also put together, consisting of Super 8 footage of various scenes of life in 1960s Angola while under Portuguese colonial rule. An odd but ultimately fascinating work offered in memory of the victims of a long-forgotten injustice. A

Used Cassettes, Used Cassettes (Loose Union Records)

This is the purported final album from the surf-garage quartet, which finally disbanded for the same reason that they got together: they’re not from South Korea. You see, the members are from randomly different places — Detroit, South Africa and Canada — and met near Gangnam, where they were probably as surprised as their parents to find massive fame in the country, one highlight of which was starring in their own comic book, which was read by millions. The breakup weighed on their minds while recording this; finality is everywhere in these none-too-upbeat songs, all of which feature their trademark sound (think Coldplay with Raveonettes guitars), downtempo-ed to mark the occasion. It’s not like America didn’t have an opportunity to clue in to these guys; there were pieces in Spin and plenty of other places, but regardless, their legacy does live on as they go about their new lives, once again scattered to the winds (the bassist went off to build a beach hut in Sri Lanka – not shabby, friends). A

Retro Playlist

Eric W. Saeger recommends a couple of albums worth a second look.

In a local music scene almost solely composed of fedora-hat bar-bands that happily and unironically play “Brown Eyed Girl” for fun during rehearsals, my never-ending quest to find a halfway decent techno artist/band has come up bupkis, save for Otto Kinzel’s yeoman efforts to put some industrial-metal-tinged tuneage up on the board. In February I talked about his new single “I Bleed for You” here, a dark but very listenable song with addictive acoustic piano lines and a boss guitar solo.

Since you asked, what would get me really jacked is receiving a message from a local musician or soundsystem who’s released an album or EP that sounds even the remotest bit like something a respectable artist would put out, mindfully rendered both vocally and beat-wise. Maybe I’m missing an act that’s done stuff on one of the Facebook “NH Musicians” or whatnot groups, but to date, I remain unaware of any. You must come unto me, lambs, or I can’t help you get famous.

That reminds me, I totally spaced Tricky’s new EP, 20,20, when it came out on March 6. These three new tunes from the trip-hop pioneer were about as slow as you can go without flatlining, bare bones and morose but nevertheless brimming with, I don’t know, comfort? Opener “Hate This Pain” is an instant classic, driven by a lazy, Jelly Roll Morton-ish piano doodle and a string of expletive-riddled existential mumblings lovingly delivered by Tricky and his backup singer Marta.

If you’re in a local band, now’s a great time to let me know about your EP, your single, whatever’s on your mind. Let me know how you’re holding yourself together without being able to play shows or jam with your homies. Send a recipe for keema matar. Email esaeger@cyberontix.com for fastest response.

PLAYLIST
A seriously abridged compendium of recent and future CD releases

• June 19 is a Friday, meaning brand new music releases, for your brain! Any self-respecting curator of such a weekly announcement list would naturally start this week’s proceedings with Rough and Rowdy Way, the new album from wizened folkie mummy Bob Dylan, so we’ll do that, just to be normal for once. If you don’t know what Dylan sounds like — hey, I once had a girlfriend who couldn’t name one Beatles song, so you just hush — think of Tom Petty with no vocal range whatsoever. If you start there, you must move on to his renown as a poet, and take that on face. A lot of critics have put this album’s advance tunes under a microscope, mostly the 17 interminable minutes of Murder Most Foul, a 17-minute ballad about the assassination of John F. Kennedy, which actually comes off more as a cultural reference name-checking exercise, wherein he mentions Shakespeare, Stevie Nicks, Charlie Chaplin, Jelly Roll Morton and A Nightmare on Elm Street, among others. I couldn’t care less about anachronistic laissez-faire folkies preaching to politically unaware comfortably settled boomer choirs about the ever-mounting perils of this era, but if someone derives a little fleeting comfort from mildly imaginative hot takes lifted from mainstream-media-pundits, like “The age of the antichrist has just begun / it’s 36 hours past judgment day,” I shan’t grumble but simply continue stocking up on Angel Soft and bottled water. I mean, Dylan did stop the Vietnam war, or was it that President Johnson’s enthusiasm ran out after the Tet Offensive? So confusing!

• Whew, I’m sure glad we’re done with that bit, because if we had to revisit some more ’60s flower-power music, I swear I’d … GAHHH, barf, looky there, fam, it’s a new album from shaky-voiced great-great-grandparent Neil Young, called Homegrown (get it?), and this one isn’t even about hot new takes on the current apocalypse, it’s about old hot takes from the old apocalypse, because this was recorded in 1974! I mean, I thought “Ohio” and “Southern Man” were cool songs when I was young enough to ignore his dreadful guitar solos, but I just don’t know if I can take this. Oh well, I suppose it’ll be cool to see what he was doing after he sold out completely in 1972 and released the wussy cowboy-rock single “Heart of Gold,” even while there were all sorts of other apocalypses that were apocalypsin’, and plus, Richard Nixon. Ha ha, the video for the single “Try” starts out with this dude in a yellow shirt and a giant bird in sunglasses — oh wait, that’s a “Limu Emu” car insurance commercial. So this tune is super slow and boring, really heavy on the dobro guitar, like I have this weird urge to chew tobacco, but I’ll bet I wouldn’t really like it.

• Thank goodness, finally a band this week that wasn’t making records during the Abraham Lincoln administration, Protest the Hero, with their new LP, Palimpsest! All progressive-metal heads know that their last album, 2013’s Volition, was a big deal, reaching No. 1 on the U.S. charts, but will this new song, “From the Sky,” be awesome? Huh, I like the drums. It sounds like Pendulum played at double speed. The singer’s too loud in the mix. I like Gogol Bordello a million times more than this, but whatever.

• Finally, fedora-rocker Jason Mraz’s new “slab” Look for the Good is also on the way; let’s see if my Tums has kicked in enough to handle the title track. So in the video he’s chilling in the forest, watching a magic laptop showing guys working at horrible jobs, but in slow-motion so it’s OK, and the lyrics are Brady Bunch platitudes about nice people. The song has a one-drop beat that makes me think of Raffi, not Bob Marley. I think Tums may be the answer here, guys. — Eric W. Saeger

On board

Manchester tabletop game developers working on third game

Bobby Fowler and Brenda Noiseux, best friends and founders of the Manchester-based tabletop game company Almost a Game, say they’re looking forward to reuniting and continuing their work on their third game, which has been put on hold because of Covid-19.

The duo released their first game, Wicked Apples, in 2016. It won the Tabletop Audience Choice Award at that year’s Boston Festival of Indie Games.

Wicked Apples is designed for two to five players ages 12 and up, and takes about 15 to 20 minutes to play. The gameplay is player-versus-player and involves memory, bluffing and luck.

“It’s a very cutthroat, ‘Take that!’ kind of game, where you’re actively trying to knock out your opponents,” Fowler said. “There’s a lot of player interaction.”

Each player starts with a set of four cards representing apples — three good, and one wicked — which they can look at only once. Then, the cards are placed face-down, and the players take turns sliding their cards around to their opponents. At the end of a round, each player must choose one of the “apples” in front of them to eat. Any player who eats a wicked apple is out of the game. Additionally, the good apple cards all have special actions the players must do, which result in the cards being randomly shuffled around.

“As the game goes on, the apples get more and more mixed up, and you have to really try to keep track of where everyone is pushing the different apples in each round,” Fowler said.

The game may end with one winner — the last player standing after all other players have eaten wicked apples and been eliminated — or it may end with no winner, should the last two players both eat a wicked apple in the same round.

“It’s fun that way because then, if you get the sense that you aren’t going to win, you can still say, ‘OK, so how can I take my opponent down with me so that no one will win?’” Noiseux said.

Last December, Almost a Game released its second game, Space Chase. It’s designed for one to six players ages 12 and up, and takes about 30 to 45 minutes to play. Unlike Wicked Apples, Space Chase is a cooperative game, meaning all players work together as one alliance and will collectively win or lose. The gameplay is tile-based and involves using strategy and teamwork.

The players act as a crew aboard a spaceship. Their objective is to outrun an enemy hunter who is tracking their ship. To do that, the players must lay down tiles to create a path to the escape gate. If they reach the escape gate before the hunter reaches them, they win.

“We thought space as a theme would be a good fit for the mechanics of the game,” Fowler said. “There are tiles that are wormholes, which allow you to go from one side of the board to the other; and there are suns on the board, which you have to fly by really fast; so being in space allows players to interact with the tiles and use them in many different ways.”

Fowler and Noiseux met through work and developed a friendship, bonding especially over their mutual interest in tabletop games.

“Neither of our significant others liked to play games and we did, so it became this fun thing that we could do together,” Noiseux said.

Fowler has a passion for art and studied graphic design in college. He does both the design and the artwork for his games, which he said is unusual among game developers.

“Pretty much all game designers design the game, then hire an artist to do the art,” he said. “I get a fun, unique perspective, because as I’m designing a game I’m also thinking about the art. I can make sure that the artwork is reinforcing the design, and that the design is reinforcing the artwork, and that they really come together.”

Noiseux handles the marketing, play-testing and project management, but has been taking a more active role in the creative process for the company’s third game, False Queen, which is still in the early stages of development.

“I’m excited for us to start working together more closely and collaboratively on the designs,” she said.

Almost a Game
Order Wicked Apples ($15) or Space Chase ($45) at almostagame.com.

A little Election Day practice

Making the year ahead in this most unusual coming sports year even more unusual is it’s coming as the presidential election and the Black Lives Matter protest appear to be on a collision course. That took a major step forward last week when NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and USA Soccer broke ranks from their previous stance to back their players’ right to protest. The president immediately and stridently assailed those new stances as unpatriotic and said he won’t be watching. Thus with detractors and proponents on each side it’ll be happening every Sunday and with the election growing closer and closer it will likely be a hot campaign topic all through every following week. That means sports may have a greater direct impact on how people vote for president than it ever has before.

So, to get ready, I’m going to practice my voting technique today by voting on the following items that have been in the news of late.

News Items: Automated Balls and Strikes Good for Baseball?

One of baseball’s coming debates is when the not too far off technology is perfected, should baseball have balls and strikes called by technological automation? When replay first arrived I wasn’t a big fan because I thought it might take the human element out of the game. But with the growing regularity of brutal officiating errors happening all through sports that feeling is gone. Now the concern is just about getting an answer more quickly. I particularly like the idea of a computer calling balls and strikes because it will standardize what a ball and strike is according to what the rulebook says it is over the discretion of each ump on a given night. I vote yes on automated strike zones.

News Item: Do Baseball Players Deserve Leeway On Money Talks?

While I have been critical of baseball for its tone deaf fight over money, I will say comparisons to the other leagues is not quite fair. NBA and NHL players were paid through the end of March and missed just one paycheck. For NFL players it’s looking like they’ll play the entire schedule with some fans in the stands, so they won’t miss any checks and the financial hit won’t be as severe for their owners. Baseball players meanwhile haven’t been paid since last year and with no fans at their park and half the seasonal TV revenue gone they’re facing a vast reduction in pay. Plus with 100 years of documented history in the memory bank, their lack of trust in their owners is well-founded. Since it’s not apples and apples compared with the other sports the vote is to give them a little leeway in this battle. Though my advice is keep clueless nitwits like Blake Snell away from the mike.

News Item: Will Young Patriots Receivers Be Better Without Brady?

One of the stories of actual interest in the relentless Tom Brady or Jarrett Stidham news cycle is will the production of the Patriots’ maligned young receivers improve with a less demanding QB in Tom Brady’s place? It’s food for thought, though it’s more complicated than just that. For one thing, the offense will be dumbed down for Stidham, which will make decision-making on the fly less complex for them as well. That complexity probably contributed to Brady’s much discussed “trust issues” with newcomers. Though I’ve thought that it was more simply being set in his ways and pickiness the last few years when his “I know all the answers to the test mentality was a bit of a double-edged sword. It led to complete command of the offense, but his lack of patience for those who didn’t have that led him away from the young guys in ways he hadn’t earlier in his career when he jelled immediately with Deion Branch, David Givens, Gronk and Aaron Hernandez. So, while they won’t be as good as they were with vintage Brady, I’m a yes that they’ll get more from N’Keal Harry and company with a player closer to their learning curve under center.

News Item: Does Mike Bolsinger Have a Case?

You’ve got to love this one. Former Blue Jays reliever Mike Bolsinger filed suit in February against the Houston Astros for damages to his career. The claim is their sign stealing was behind him being lit up for four runs and four hits in 1/3 of an inning in 2017, which immediately got him sent to the minors for good. So here’s the question for a judge and jury to ponder: Did that one game alone get a guy with 1-7 record over two years when the ERA’s were 6.31 (2017) and 6.61 (2016) demoted to the minors? Sorry, those are journeyman numbers and the kind that get guys sent to the minors all the time. Vote to throw the bogus claim out of court.

News Item: Jeter a Lock for Yanks’ Mt. Rushmore

Saw this one on Facebook when a kid I grew up with posted a picture of Derek Jeter looking up at the Yankees’ Mt. Rushmore like Ruth, Gehrig and DiMaggio were waiting for him to join them as the fourth member. Hey, I like Jeter as much as the next guy and think his adulation in NYC is similar to the Tom Brady GOAT stuff around here. But, sorry, the gushing NYC media making him out to be a cross between Joan of Arc and Charles Lindbergh is way over the top. Even the Brady comparison doesn’t work since TB is (or may be) the greatest at his position while Jeter is not the greatest at his. Though teammate Mariano Rivera was and that’s why he’s higher in my Rushmore voting than Jeter. So with him just ninth on my all-time Yankees list behind Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, the Mick, Yogi, Rivera, Whitey Ford, Bill Dickey and Jeter with either Andy Pettitte or Red Ruffing rounding out the Top 10, it’s a no vote for Jeter.

Justice for all

Thompson organizes Black Lives Matter Nashua

As the racial justice organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire, Jordan Thompson has done a variety of advocacy work, been involved with political campaigns and supported the efforts of other individuals and groups fighting for racial justice throughout the state. The nationwide invigoration and growth of the Black Lives Matter movement following the May 25 killing of George Floyd prompted Thompson to organize Black Lives Matter Nashua. He discussed the group’s mission and the need for more racial justice work in New Hampshire.

Why did you pursue a career in racial justice work?

It’s always been very personal for me. … My family has been deeply involved in politics. … Growing up in the foster care system showed me there’s a real need for the centering of social services. There’s a need to address a lot of disparities in our health care system. Child welfare reform is a major issue that we need to address. After I aged out of the foster care system at 18, I started working with a nonprofit called the National Foster Youth Institute in Washington, D.C. … We wanted to tackle federal legislation to address [child welfare] issues, but also challenged folks to go back to their home states and be the change they wanted to see at a local and state level. Immediately after I came back from Washington, D.C., I decided that I wanted to run for office. I ran twice in New Hampshire, first for moderator, then for the state House, unfortunately losing both times. I lost my primary for the state House by 30 votes; it was a very close race. I had decided that public service is what I wanted to do. I wanted to amplify the efforts and voices of young people of color in New Hampshire.

How did Black Lives Matter Nashua begin?

Of course, I was very saddened by the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. I had worked with Black Lives Matter Manchester, which is a really incredible group … and I felt inspired by that. I knew there were groups in Nashua that wanted to be more engaged in this work. … We formed … in response to the growing need to address racial justice in New Hampshire, specifically in the southern tier. We organized a vigil and protest … and had a really good attendance of over 1,200 people.

What is [its] ongoing mission?

We’ll be continuing … to rethink the role of law enforcement in our communities, to address a list of demands that we intend to present to our congressional delegation in our state and local leadership, and to provide a space for black and brown people to survive and thrive in their communities. We [plan to meet] with members of law enforcement so they can hear from youth that are impacted by these issues; having town halls with our local, state and federal delegations; and trying to lay out clear demands for policy reforms, then holding elected officials accountable to those demands once they’ve been agreed to. … We’re also working with the Greater Nashua NAACP [National Association for the Advancement of Colored People] and Black Lives Matter Manchester … [and] supporting protests and vigils that have popped up in the area and surrounding towns like Merrimack and Londonderry.

How did Black Lives Matter Nashua’s first vigil and protest go?

It went really well. We had a few agitators at the very beginning, but other than that, it was very peaceful. We had an incredible program of speakers [who delivered] inspiring messages. … I’m grateful that we continue to set the standard here in New Hampshire that our protests and demonstrations are peaceful and provide an opportunity for lasting change.

What measures are you taking to ensure safety at these gatherings?

We’re continuing to coordinate with local law enforcement to make them aware of the presence of agitators before they have the opportunity to agitate, and we’re trying to follow a lot of the guidelines that have been set in relation to the pandemic, making sure that folks wear masks and that people are adhering to social distancing.

What are some of the biggest issues affecting people of color in New Hampshire right now?

We suffer from the same issues that black communities face nationwide. There is a lack of access to opportunities, housing [and] quality and accessible education. … Representation is another big one. We do not have representation in local , and because we have such a small demographic of black and brown people in New Hampshire, we really need an entity that is going to be effective in getting our voices heard. … Thankfully, Nashua’s law enforcement has a good working relationship with our members.

How can people get involved?

Attend a protest. Call your representatives with a clear set of demands, and then hold them accountable. … We’re constantly posting content on social media to engage people … who want to call their senators, state representatives and Governor Sununu. We have graphics with very specific action items to give people a script and dialogue to follow. … These are going to be difficult conversations. … Learn how to listen. Realize that you may be coming into this very ignorant, and that’s OK. There’s no such thing as a perfect ally. There’s no such thing as someone who knows every single thing that there is to know about these issues. We’re all learning together. — Angie Sykeny

Back on stage

Country singer Nicole Knox Murphy playing out again

After 10 weeks of playing weekly sets from her home in Candia for Facebook fans, on May 29 Nicole Murphy was elated to finally be back at Auburn Pitts Bar & Grill, the place where she returned to being a country singer after raising a family for 15 years. Guitar in hand and a backing track machine at her side, strumming and singing beneath an outdoor tent, Murphy gave her first performance in front of a live audience since Covid-19 shut down the local music scene in mid-March.

The multiple New Hampshire Country Music Awards winner called the experience “awesome” in a recent phone interview.

“All my regulars came out that weren’t too nervous,” Murphy said, noting that fans gleaned from her Friday night livestreams added a few new faces to the crowd. “It was just a fantastic night; the weather was perfect, and everybody did what they were supposed to do.”

With that return done, Murphy’s calendar is filling up again, even at a few places that are trying live music for the first time. She’s booked a Thursday residency for the rest of June at an events center in Windham that isn’t booking weddings and private parties.

“They’ve decided because of the coronavirus to do a bar and restaurant,” she said. “They have everything set out on their back patio.”

She’s also set to play at a country club in her hometown.

The pandemic hit Murphy’s bottom line hard — to the tune of $6,500 in lost gigs — but the virtual tip jar she set up for online shows helped more than a bit.

“That’s my grocery money,” she said.

When WMUR interviewed her and fellow performer Chad Lamarsh for a story on the state of live music, there was an immediate bump in Facebook Live love.

“The night after, I got like double and triple the money for my tips,” she said. “That was really nice.”

Murphy has at least one more online show on her calendar. Taste of New Hampshire is an annual event that will be virtual for this, its 15th year. A fundraiser for Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Concord and Central New Hampshire, it features a silent auction and live music over five days.

“I’ll record myself for 30 minutes [and] send it to them,” she said. “Then they’ll play it between June 15 and June 19.”

Everything else will be happening at places where she was busy before Covid-19, including Granite Tapas in Hooksett, Main Street Grill in Pittsfield and The Bar in Hudson. Both excitement and trepidation mark her return to live performing.

“I’m looking to be cautious,” she said, concerned that the virus will resurge. “I’m nervous; I’m thinking I’ll book up my calendar again, and then all of a sudden they’ll say, ‘Oh no, we’re back in lockdown and nobody can go out.’”

She spent a lot of her time in quarantine working on new songs, and polishing up a couple. “I’m So Done” was released at the end of May. “The 802,” an ode to her Vermont roots (she was a working musician and a beauty show contestant in her teenage years), will hopefully hit streaming sites in a few weeks.

Developing new material was more relaxing for Murphy than in the past.

“The last couple of projects. … I haven’t had the quietness that I needed to focus on music writing,” she said. “This whole lockdown shut my weekends down, so I just started going up to my music room with a pad of paper and working.”

The extra time at home with her husband was both encouraging and productive.

“Just me and him, doing things that we’ve been wanting to do that we’ve put off because we’ve all been so busy,” she said. “Now that I had all these weekends free, we could work on projects.”

She’s happy it was temporary, however.

“It’s been good that way, but … I really miss singing.”

Nicole Knox Murphy. Photo by Tyke Frost.

Nicole Knox Murphy
Where: Castleton Banquet & Conference Center, 58 Enterprise Dr., Windham
When: Thursday, June 11, June 18 and June 25, 5:30 p.m.
More: facebook.com/nicole.knoxmurphy
Also:
Saturday, June 13, 7 p.m., The Bar, 2B Burnham Road, Hudson
Sunday, June 14, 4 p.m., Cheers, 17 Depot St., Concord
Saturday, June 20, 5:30 p.m., Candia Woods Golf Links, 313 South Road, Candia

Whisked away

New food truck debuts in Loudon

A new food truck rolled into Loudon last week, and as its name and the whisks on its logo suggest, the Whisked Away Cafe wants to “whisk” you away to a different part of the world — or to Grandma’s house — each week with an ever-changing menu of specials that includes creative takes on wraps, sandwiches, burgers, salads, kid-friendly eats and more.

Sisters Korrie Garland and Crystal Hopkins run the truck with their mother, Louise Cloutier. They began offering lunch service on June 2 at a dirt turnaround road on Route 106 in Loudon, steps away from Cascade Campground. You can now find them there every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., where a few dining tables are set up out front.

Fifteen years ago the three women also operated the Bonne Femmes restaurant in downtown Pembroke, a spot that was known in town for its breakfasts, sandwiches and soups. Years after she and Hopkins both had kids of their own, Garland said, they became interested in the freedom a food truck would give them to create different recipes. They ended up finding and purchasing the truck last November.

Prior to starting a regular lunch service last week, the Whisked Away Cafe sold homemade holiday pies late last year and dinners for local delivery in the Pembroke area in March.

“We were doing the deliveries … just to kind of help out the people that didn’t want to or couldn’t leave their homes, so that picked up some steam,” Garland said.

Now, Whisked Away Cafe’s menu features a variety of sandwiches, chicken or steak fajita sandwiches, chicken or seafood salad, and grilled cheese sandwiches called “toasties,” with flavors like jalapeno chicken popper, chicken cordon bleu and Buffalo chicken. There are also breaded chicken fingers, steak fingers, hand-cut french fries and beef, pork or veggie empanadas.

Hopkins said she, her sister and her mother wanted to create a section of the menu that was fun and accessible for kids too. The children’s menu features options like homemade macaroni and cheese and a grilled peanut butter and Fluff sandwich, plus an “octodog” and a “redneck sushi,” both of which come with chips.

“[An octodog] is a hot dog that we slice up so when it cooks it curls up and it looks like a little octopus with legs,” she said. “The redneck sushi is just a slice of ham with cream cheese and a pickle in the middle, so when you roll it up and slice it, it looks like little rolls of sushi.”

Garland said they’ve had several pages of ideas for what will be on their specials menu. They began their first week by featuring a special of pulled pork with homemade barbecue sauce and coleslaw on grilled ciabatta, with either fries or pasta salad as a side.

“Our idea was that we’re ‘whisking’ you away to Mexico, or to your grandma’s house, or to college with a ramen noodle dish,” she said.

For now, Garland said, the trio is sticking with the Tuesday through Thursday schedule. But eventually, she said, they may appear on additional days on the weekends, as well as at events at C-R Helicopters in Nashua, which Cloutier owns with her husband.

Whisked Away Cafe food truck
Where: 485 Route 106 South, Loudon
When: Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
More info: Find them on Facebook @whiskedawayfoodtruck

Block by block

Young artist awarded for virtual replica of Kimball Jenkins Estate

Photo of young man in bowler hat, old fashioned coat, button down and tie, and mustache

Photo of the exterior of the Kimball Jenkin's Estate, a historic Victorian brick home.

A graphic of a Minecraft built 3d model of the exterior of the Kimball Jenkin's Estate, a historic Victorian brick home.

Interior of the Kimball Jenkin's Estate grand wooden staircase with a red carpet runner.

A graphic of a Minecraft built 3d model of the interior of the Kimball Jenkin's Estate grand wooden staircase with a red carpet runner.

Eighteen-year-old Clark Todd was recently named the winner of the very first Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health Artrepeneur Award, given by the New Hampshire Business Committee for the Arts. The award was created to recognize artists who use technology to expand their creative practice and collaborate with other artists and organizations. Todd built a replica of the Kimball Jenkins Estate, a historic building in Concord featuring high Victorian gothic architecture from 1882, on the popular building video game Minecraft. The replica has been used as a promotional piece to raise awareness of the Estate’s fundraising campaign for a $400,000 restoration of the original slate roof of the building. See a video of the replica at vimeo.com/417753858.

What is your connection to Kimball Jenkins?

My mother has been working there for a few years. During that time I took some art classes and went to the summer camp for a year. I’ve also done volunteer work there, including role-playing Amos P. Cutting, the original architect of the house, during historic tours.

Why did you decide to do this project?

I’d said to my mother that the house might be good to build in Minecraft, and she suggested that it might be an interesting showpiece. We never thought in the beginning that it would be as useful as it is now. So, I built it for my own entertainment and as a sort of tribute to the house itself.

What inspires you about Kimball Jenkins’ architecture?

The craftsmanship, the attention to detail in the design, the floorplan, and the build quality are all incredibly good. It feels wonderful just to be in there.

Describe the process of building the replica.

My brother Glen set up the ‘realm’ that the replica is built in, and our friend Nathan got it all ready for exhibition. I did most of the actual building and all the design work. I had copies of the original floor plans, so I recreated them on the ground in-game by placing blocks. Then I dug out the foundation, copied the basement floor plan into it and built up the walls. Next I did the same thing for the first, second and attic floors. At this point I had all the interior walls, window holes and doorways, so I sort of wrapped the whole thing in brick blocks and did some detailing. Then I built the roof, which was at least as hard as working out the floor plans. I built the porches, detailed the interior and exterior and, with a bunch of small alterations, it was done. I don’t know how many hours I put into it, but I ended up working on and off for about four months.

How can people interact with the replica?

You can watch a video of a walkthrough of the build. The realm is currently private, but we’re working on making it possible for people to log in and tour it. Minecraft is three-dimensional, and you can control your in-game character from a first- or third-person perspective. You can move freely, either on the ground or through the air, and can view the exterior of the house or go through the rooms inside.

What would you like people to understand about video games and architecture?

This is difficult to answer. It is true that adults, including people connected to Kimball Jenkins who have seen the video of the replica, showed great interest and maybe gained appreciation for the game. It’s also true that kids who toured the replica during events may have had something familiar to compare the real house to when they went through it. But at the end of the day, Minecraft is just a game. The real structure is infinitely more important. I feel like that’s true with many things. It’s my opinion that the world needs less games and entertainment and more good work and tangible things.

How did it feel to be the recipient of the first Artrepeneur Award?

I was surprised and felt honored. I’ve never been given an award like this before. I’m pleased that my creation was so appreciated.

How long have you been playing Minecraft? What do you enjoy about it?

I’ve been playing about six to eight years, on and off. I mostly enjoy building houses of my own design in the game.

What other kinds of video games do you enjoy?

I’m not into many other video games. I play Minecraft mostly because I’m interested in houses. My real-life interests are greater than my interests in any game. I’m interested in vehicles, tools and machines. I like creating things. Lately I’ve been making masks to donate.

What are you doing now? What are your future plans?

I home-school, and since kindergarten I’ve been pretty much self-taught. I have many interests, and I’m not sure yet what work I’m going to do in the future.

2020 graduates

What they missed most, plus hopes for the future

It has been a strange end to the school year for all students, but especially seniors, many of whom missed out on fun celebrations and saying goodbye to all of their classmates. We talked to a few 2020 college and high school grads (and the mom of a kindergarten grad!) about what they missed most and what their hopes are for the future.

Alycia Ashby
Senior at Manchester School of Technology, which moved its graduation ceremony to June 20 at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium. Alycia will attend Colby-Sawyer College in New London in the fall.

Ever since the fifth grade I have been working toward this moment. Walking across the stage. Grabbing my diploma. Shaking the hands of my admin and educators. Seven years later everything has changed. … I can’t help but marvel at the fact I may not walk across the stage. The Manchester School of Technology was my second home, my happy place, one that I had taken for granted. … I miss going to school. I miss my friends. I miss learning from a physical teacher teaching in the classroom. … I will never get the time back or the experience but one thing I know moving forward is I need balance. … Recent unfortunate events have allowed for many of us to find ourselves again. As we get back to our lives, I hope I can hold on to the me I have found and never take for granted my happy places.

Jessica Aviles
Jessica’s daughter, Evangeline, recently completed kindergarten at Jacques Memorial Elementary School in Milford. On May 29, Jacques hosted a special drive-through “sendoff” reverse parade to commemorate the conclusion of the school year.

Initially, our whole family was feeling uncertain about everything going on. My dad is a dialysis patient so we are used to self-quarantining when we get sick, but never expected it to be for this long. I reached out to fellow mom friends and was grateful for the constant communication from Jacques. … I expected remote learning to be like homeschooling. It was not at all! The most challenging part for Evangeline was being away from her teacher, Miss Casey, and her first set of classmates. For me, it was finding a balance of time and a schedule for her and her sister, Adalaide. [Evangeline] told me her favorite part was that I try to make learning fun, like Miss Casey. … For the fall, we plan to consider the advice of health officials along with Jacques and the state. I expect that Covid-19 will still be around, along with the usual concerns, and we will just have to take extra healthcare measures. We plan to learn and grow from this experience.

Katherine Buck
Communication and politics graduate of Saint Anselm College in Manchester, which has postponed its commencement ceremony. A livestreamed celebratory event for graduates was held on May 16.

Preparing for graduation this year has been a lot different than how I initially planned it at the beginning of the year. I remember talking with my parents trying to decide where we would want to go to celebrate after graduation and how we wanted to be with the families of my roommates one last time. … My roommates and I were looking forward to being able to take those celebratory pictures … with our diplomas in hand, like so many past. … My future plans were to enter into my career. Although this has not changed, it has become increasingly difficult during this time. I remain hopeful and vigilant in my job search and actively work to not be discouraged while looking for jobs.

Samantha Burns
Senior at Merrimack Valley High School, which will have its commencement ceremony on June 13 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. Students and their families will remain in their vehicles throughout the ceremony and will drive around the track, crossing the finish line to signify their official moment of graduation. Burns plans to attend New England College in the fall.

I have been preparing for graduation by making sure I have everything in line as far as [school] work goes, and picking out what I want to wear is a big part. Obviously, graduation is not going to go the same way I expected it to go. I am going to miss seeing the faces in the crowd as each of us walk down the aisle in our caps and gowns, but I believe that our graduation is going to be unique and one that we are all going to remember.

Julissa Castro
English graduate of Nashua Community College, which has moved its commencement to Sept. 26.

This semester was an adventure for me with online classes and working from home. I took six classes this semester so I could finish in time for graduation, which became more challenging when we switched online. … Thankfully, I have been able to manage my time and balance classes and work, and I was able to finish all of my classes with higher marks. … After graduation, I was going to spend my summer volunteering in Honduras, and then I was transferring to a four-year university to finish my bachelor’s degree. I’m attending John Cabot University in Rome. … Now, I have decided to defer for a semester so I could still be able to volunteer once the quarantine is over.

Hope Cataldo
Elementary education graduate of Rivier University in Nashua, which has postponed its commencement ceremony.

I sat down at my computer at the beginning of April and wrote my commencement speech without knowing if I’d ever give it. … I feel with every ounce of my being the desire to be back at my school, my home, with the people who mean the world to me. … At the start of the school, I was so ready to graduate. And now, all I want is to be back. … Before this pandemic began, my plans were the same as any college graduate. I was excited and ready to start my job search. I was going to live in Nashua, at Rivier, working with some of my favorite people. I was focusing my job search mainly in the Nashua area, as I have truly found a home here. Yet once the pandemic hit, that changed. … I conducted my job search in northern New Hampshire and Vermont, where I live. I accepted a job teaching fourth grade in Vermont, which I am so excited about. … I find myself upset when thinking about what could have been, so instead I focus on the positives. I am home, with a family that supports me unconditionally. We are all safe and well and doing our best to continue to be.

Shaun Collupy
Science in Business Management master’s program graduate of Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, which has postponed its commencement ceremonies, with a new date TBD.

At the beginning of the school year, I envisioned planning for graduation to consist of hugs and goodbyes to my friends, professors, and colleagues, spending last moments in my favorite places on campus, and celebration. Come April, preparation for graduation primarily consisted of ensuring my coursework items were completed on time and virtual goodbyes by way of phone calls and video conferences. What I was looking forward to most about graduating was having the opportunity to cheer on my friends and colleagues as they receive their diploma on Commencement Day. … My plans before the pandemic were, and still are, to begin my career with a Boston-based tech company. Although the initial plan was to start my journey [at the company’s headquarters], I am grateful to have committed to an employer who cares about their employees’ success and is providing me with the tools and resources I need to start my journey on time and remotely. I am excited for the physical office location to reopen and [to] have the opportunity to build relationships with my co-workers in person.

Cordell “CJ” Drabble
Senior at John Stark Regional High School in Weare, which will hold its commencement on June 13.

I had initially planned on all my immediate family coming to graduation to see myself and my close friends they’ve watched grow with me graduate. Now I am bringing just my parents. … [I] am just fortunate we are having a graduation, period. … My future plans haven’t changed. I am still going to be attending Army basic training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri this July, and returning home as a New Hampshire National Guard soldier.

Emily Gamache
Senior and class vice president of Campbell High School in Litchfield, which will hold its commencement on June 12. She plans to attend the University of Rhode Island in the fall.

There are many events that I have planned in the past and at the beginning of the school year which are much different from how we have to plan events now. At the start of the school year we could hold in-person meetings [and] talk to different teachers for help while in the building. … Now, everything needs to be thought out in a certain form. We need to make sure people are six feet apart, there is no interaction between different families and friends and there is a certain number of people on the field. … I have attended different graduations in the past and there has always been a powerful energy throughout them. There are so many emotions, hugs and pictures at every graduation. I never thought much about being able to hug my friends until it is now something I am no longer able to do.

Ridge Gonzales
Senior at The Derryfield School in Manchester, which will hold an on-campus commencement ceremony with social distancing guidelines on Aug. 1.

I am looking forward to an in-class graduation in August. It has been very different from beginning to plan to graduate at the beginning of this year. For starters, I think there’s less closure with the physical spaces that students correlate with school. For me, this means I can’t even remember what room my last class was in, [and] I never got to say goodbye, knowing this is the last time I’m going to sit down at this exact library table. I was definitely looking forward to the actual graduation ceremony where everyone is dressed up all nice and there’s a multitude of pictures with family and fellow students. To me, it’s pretty magical knowing that all those people have supported you all for this one last event. … My independent senior project was originally [to] visit different workspaces of people who work in business. However, this changed into Zoom and phone calls, which is still amazing, but not as immersive as I would’ve liked. Beyond high school, I was planning to find a good summer job, but some places are not hiring or even open yet. In regards to college, I’m just hoping I can be there in person for the fall.

Trey Haynes
Senior at Pinkerton Academy in Derry, which will hold a virtual graduation ceremony on June 14, streamed via Facebook live.

I was looking forward to [having] a last day with all my teachers and friends, but it was spent in front of a computer screen. … I also looked forward to hanging out with my friends and going on trips but those will have to be postponed. I still plan on going to college, although it might be online for the first semester, which isn’t what I expected to do. I plan to major in biology at NHTI.

Samantha Jette
Communication graduate of Saint Anselm College in Manchester, which has postponed its commencement ceremony. A livestreamed celebratory event was held May 16.

The last months of senior year [are] usually filled with traditions and activities to commemorate the ending of a great four years. When Saint Anselm closed in March, that meant that a lot of these traditions that my classmates and I have looked forward to would not happen. … While it was difficult to be home knowing I was missing time with my friends that I wouldn’t get back, I am lucky to have had such great experiences at St. A’s over the years. … The pandemic has definitely made my post-grad job search more challenging. At the beginning of the year, my hope was to have a job secured after graduation. Now that graduation has come and gone, I am realizing this may be more difficult than I expected.

Morgan Kidwell
Graduate of Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, which has postponed its commencement ceremonies, with a new date TBD.

I started my senior year off by making lists of what type of career I wanted to have, … where I wanted to relocate to, … and what types of companies I was interested in working for post-graduation. I also had a mindset [of making] every moment of my senior year count, which I definitely did! I was looking forward to … [an] entire day celebrating everything that my friends and I have overcome [and] accomplished over the last four years. We all sacrificed so much, pushed ourselves, and grew into amazing young adults throughout our time at SNHU. I did not have any set plans [for after graduation]. I was still searching for jobs, mostly in Colorado, Texas and Arizona. … I have been actively applying and using connections to inquire about [job] positions, [but] with the current situation in the world, most companies … have completely halted their hiring processes until as late as October. It’s tough, but I have faith I will find the perfect marketing position for me. I am currently doing part-time remote work for my internship … as a digital marketing intern as well as creating a website and curating social media posts for a construction company.

Jillian LaBrecque
Senior at John Stark Regional High School in Weare, which will hold its commencement on June 13. She’ll be attending the University of New Hampshire in the fall.

At the beginning of the year … I expected to be preparing for graduation by performing in my last school concert … and spending this last year with my friends that would soon be going to far away schools for military training. Instead, I am now working at a supermarket and spending several hours per week on Zoom calls. … For everything I lost in connection with concerts, performances and prom, I gained in humility and understanding. I finally understood for the first time what it means to have to sacrifice something important. We sacrificed our proms and large graduation ceremonies … for public safety. … I may never get to experience what I most looked forward to, but in reality what I experienced instead will be significantly more valuable to me in the future. So for that, I am very grateful.

Anna Lapadula
Senior at The Derryfield School in Manchester, which will hold an on-campus commencement ceremony with social distancing guidelines on Aug. 1. She will attend Boston University in the fall.

This past fall, I was focused on getting good grades, making it through the year, and being accepted into one of my top college choices. Graduation passed my mind once, maybe twice. … By the time graduation was actually within sight, I wasn’t allowed to be near people nor leave my house for anything other than essential errands. It wasn’t until a week before the original graduation date that it hit me: I don’t get to celebrate what was supposed to be one of the most momentous days of my personal and academic career, and I definitely won’t get to experience it alongside the people that I love the most and have gone through it all with. I wanted to be able to say that I did it. That I survived 15 years of hard work and dedication to my academics in order to create the future that I wanted for myself. I wanted to be able to look at my parents from the stage with my diploma in my hand and tell them that I didn’t let their unwavering support go to waste. I know that walking across a stage seems irrelevant in the light of a burning world, but I still wish I could’ve closed this chapter of my life in the way I had planned to for 15 years. My plan was to maintain my job through the summer, volunteer at local food banks and shelters, finish moving houses, go on a short road trip with my best friend (and fellow senior) as a “last hurrah” before college. … Now … my summer is shaping up to be a lot of solitary and indoor activities.

Emma Montenero
Senior at Campbell High School in Litchfield, which will hold its 2020 commencement on June 12. She plans to attend the University of New Hampshire in the fall.

Since most of my senior activities have been canceled, this part of the year hasn’t been as exciting as it would have been. My school has put together a different version of graduation for us this year, as we need to follow state orders regarding social distancing. … We don’t have to do rehearsals, there will be no speeches … and we can’t take pictures with classmates at our ceremony. These past couple of months have really made me think about what I’m most grateful for and how much I took certain activities for granted. … My class is only 100 students and we’ve all been together since first grade. I’m grateful that we can still graduate together … even though the rest of town isn’t allowed to come and watch.

Rebecca Oswald
Senior at Campbell High School in Litchfield, which will hold its 2020 commencement on June 12. She plans to attend Sacred Heart University in Connecticut in the fall.

Under the circumstances, planning for graduation this year has been different than what I expected it to be. … I am truly so grateful that as a class we do get a live graduation, and though we don’t have a Senior Week or any of the activities that come with the last month of senior year, we do get to spend that time together and cherish those moments. … After graduation, I was going to go abroad in Europe with my grandparents and truly enjoy my summer before I go off to college in the fall. Sadly, due to the pandemic, I have had the trip to Europe canceled.

Erica Royle
Public health graduate of Rivier University in Nashua, which has postponed its commencement ceremony.

Unfortunately, my time on campus came to an abrupt end when students had to move off campus due to Covid-19. I was devastated. I never thought this was how my senior year was going to end. … Although the seniors at my school were not able to celebrate together in person, my school did an amazing job making all the seniors feel loved with virtual ways to connect during these difficult times. … The thing I was looking forward to the most was getting to walk across the stage, receive my degree and getting to celebrate with my friends and family. … Of course, it would have been amazing to celebrate that accomplishment with a graduation, but I still achieved what I set out to achieve, and that makes me happy. … It was always my goal to secure a job immediately after finishing school, and with a lot of hard work, I was able to accomplish that goal. … On May 4, I started my new job as an intensive case manager at Eliot Community Human Services.

Josh Sargent
Art and human development graduate at Plymouth State University, which has postponed its commencement ceremony.

Graduation this year didn’t go as planned. There was no preparation once Covid-19 hit. … The number one thing I was looking forward to about graduating was seeing my mother’s reaction to me walking across the stage. She deserves that piece of paper for supporting me just as much as I earned it.

Rose Speigel
Senior at The Derryfield School in Manchester, which will hold an on-campus commencement ceremony with social distancing guidelines on Aug. 1. She hopes to attend the New England College Institute of Art and Design in the fall.

I had the idea in my head that I would wrap up my schooling, finish final assignments and then graduate among my peers. Now due to Covid-19, I am not sure what day I will graduate. My school has prepared three different dates throughout this coming fall and winter to hold our commencement ceremony, and there is no determining which date, if any, it will be. … I left school on a Thursday in March assuming I’d be there that Friday, but school was canceled and now it’s June. … It felt like all these years would lead up to those special senior moments, and now it’s been cut short. … As far as I know, NECIAD will have classes on campus in the fall. However, if these plans and courses become online only, I will not attend until they are on campus again … because my intent was to work in a studio with all of the art amenities it has to offer.

Victoria Williams
Senior at Manchester School of Technology, which has moved its graduation ceremony to June 20 at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium.

I started off the year as senior class president and looked forward to making this senior year the best one yet. I intended for graduation to be as heartwarming and memorable as possible but now it [seems] like that really isn’t even my decision anymore. … My original plans after graduation [were] leaving the state and going to college, but with all the colleges closing, I honestly doubt that I will actually be able to. I do still intend on doing what I can to get as close to my long-term goal as possible, but I feel like it is not going to be a cake walk.

Kayleigh Zervos
Graduate of New England College in Henniker, which has postponed its commencement ceremony until Oct. 4, during Alumni Weekend.

I took extra classes so I was able to finish a semester early, allowing me to walk this May, but finish my last semester in the fall. … One of the main reasons I wanted to walk early was the fact that all my best friends and boyfriend are older than me [and are] graduating this year. It was definitely disappointing working so hard by taking extra courses for graduation to be postponed. We always have a senior week the week of graduation … so it was really sad knowing that we’ll never get to experience that together. I was really looking forward to … all of us [being] together one last time before entering the big world. My future plans were to finish my student teaching in the fall and possibly get hired at that school to work until the end of the school year. Otherwise, I would just move to Washington … to live with my boyfriend. If schools don’t open in the fall, I’m not sure whether or not I’ll be able to do student teaching with remote learning or have to wait until the next semester.

Lauren Zervos
Senior at John Stark Regional High School in Weare, which will hold its 2020 commencement on June 13. She’ll be attending the Maine College of Art in the fall.

I initially thought leading up to graduation would be extremely stressful. … Instead, the year ended so quickly I feel like it’s not real. Yesterday was March 13 in my mind. Now it’s June. Preparing for graduation has been quite different because we’ve been saying goodbye over video chat instead of … in person. I still am [attending college] but it might be a little different because of the chance that we would have to begin remotely.

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