By Michael Swanger michael@dmcityview.com

Organizers hope people flag a ride to Crossroads

For years, local music fans have wished Des Moines could take advantage of its unique positioning at the crossroads of Interstates 35 and 80. The old adage is that a lot of great bands drive by Des Moines en route to destinations like Chicago, Minneapolis and Kansas City, but not enough of them stop here to play. But Kathryn Dickel, co-founder of IowaTIX, hopes next Wednesday’s second annual free Crossroads Entertainment Conference and Showcase will not only draw some much-needed attention to the Greater Des Moines (and Iowa) music scene, but some day might serve music professionals throughout the Midwest.

“Nobody is celebrating the local talent here, and we wanted to identify that in our community,” Dickel said. “That’s where the showcase got rolling last year. Because Des Moines is well positioned in terms of its distance between major cities, we could build a conference in the upper Midwest at some point that could be like our own South-By-Southwest [a popular music conference in Austin, Texas].”

Talk about improving the Des Moines music scene has been a hot topic the last few years with the arrival of newly-formed groups like the Greater Des Moines Music Coalition and the city council appointed advisory board the Des Moines Music Commission. Both groups are partnering to bring the proposed 80/35 Music Festival to the Western Gateway park next summer. Dickel said Des Moines’ music scene is at a crossroads.

“At IowaTIX we talk to a lot of profit and non-profit people in the industry, and these people never talk to each other. Statewide we don’t talk to each other. So we decided to do something to bring them together,” she said.

Dickel said the Crossroads Entertainment Conference and Showcase, billed as “The Iowa Entertainment Industry Conference,” is aimed at entertainment professionals across the state working in music, theater, comedy, film, special events, sports, tourism and food and beverage. Seminars on ticketing (10 a.m.), screenwriting (11:30 a.m.), film (1 p.m.) and music (4:30 p.m., Greater Des Moines Music Coalition’s Music University) will be held at the Fourth Street Theatre, 214 4th St. People’s Court will host the conference’s evening affairs including a networking event, starting at 6 p.m., followed by a film showcase at 8 p.m., a marketing competition awards presentation at 8:30 p.m., and a music showcase at 9 p.m. featuring local acts like Tanner Taylor (9 p.m.), Mr. Baber’s Neighbors (10 p.m.), On A Pale Horse (10:30 p.m.), Aeon Gray (11 p.m.), Wreckage of the Modern City (11:30 p.m.) and Sid Wilson a.k.a DJ Starscream (midnight-1 a.m.).

Last year, the conference attracted about 100 music professionals. Dickel hopes the addition of the seminars and the marketing design competition, where six local bands selected by Dickel and the Coalition were paired with marketing students from Drake University to help them better promote their music, will boost attendance to the event to more than 500 people.

“Our hope is to grow,” Dickel said. “Next year, we want to open the marketing competition to include several universities and bands and to include film. It’s about bringing the entertainment industry together, not just one genre of entertainment because we all make a huge impact on the economy.”

For more information, visit www.myspace.com/crossroadsiowa.

Scene notes

Lesser Known Saint’s third annual tribute to Dimebag Darrell, the former guitarist for Pantera and Damageplan who was shot and killed on stage in December 2005, will celebrate Darrell’s influence on the band as it performs two sets of Pantera music on Saturday at 9:30 p.m. at the Vaudeville Mews. Two Minneapolis-based bands will open the show, including Casanatra, which will perform a tribute to Black Sabbath, and The Body Beneath, which will play a Decapitated tribute set. Admission is $5. Proceeds benefit the Dimebag Memorial Fund and VH1 Save The Music Foundation. … Local veteran rockers Axis will probably be happy to see 2007 come to a close. On June 17, their guitarist of eight years, Donny Norman, died from lung cancer. His last gig was June 8 at Terrible’s Lakeside Casino in Osceola. Then the band lost three friends, including musician-sound technician Jon Weisenburger on Aug. 10, drummer Larry Chambers on Sept. 11 and musician Gary Smith on Oct. 1. Now in its 19th year, Axis continues to press forward. You can see them play Friday at Terrible’s at 8 p.m. and Saturday at 9 p.m. at D’s Main Gate in Des Moines. … The second annual Jingle Bell Bash, featuring the husband-wife duo of Mark McVey and Christy Tarr, will be held Dec. 6-9 at the Scottish Rite Consistory, Sixth Avenue and Park Street. More than 150 volunteers with choirs, dance troupes, swing dancers and comedy acts will also perform. Proceeds benefit The Boys and Girls Club of Iowa. Tickets for the dinner, show and cast party are $50. Call 953-2355. … The Des Moines Music Commission is looking for a replacement for Sam Summers who recently left the advisory board due to time commitments. The person must be under 30. The next DMMC meeting is Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at the downtown Des Moines Armory Building. … Communities and organizations have until Feb. 1 to apply to the Iowa Arts Council for fiscal year 2009 Iowa Community Cultural Grants. Visit www.culturalaffairs.org for details. … A look at some entertainment scheduled for 2008: Dark Star Orchestra Feb. 8 at the Val Air Ballroom, Bill Cosby May 17 at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines, and country music rebels The Charlie Daniels Band and Shooter Jennings Aug. 12 at the Iowa State Fair. … Buddy Guy’s concerts are as educational as they are entertaining. But if you missed his recent show in Des Moines and want to learn more about the history of the Chicago blues scene, you can download for free a multimedia audio tour narrated by Guy that explores Chicago’s musical roots by visiting www.downloadchicagotours.com. The free 50-minute tour combines an interactive map, tour stop directions, archival photos, video, music clips and interviews. In just six months, more than 100,000 have downloaded the podcast. …Finally, on a lighter note: Music fans in the United States have been talking about the CD sales competition between Kayne West and 50 Cent, but most people don’t know that West is also embroiled in a similar feud with alt-country singer Mark Olson in Norway. That’s right, the founding member of The Jayhawks explains in a press release, “I said I would retire, just plain stop making records, if I didn’t outsell him in Norway. Luckily, my fans still believe in the power of romantic folk-rock.” After selling hundreds of copies of his solo opus, “The Salvation Blues,” to Scandinavian fans Olson clearly has trumped West’s “Graduation” in the battle for Norway’s esteemed audiophiles. “We always secretly knew that when squared off, Mark would totally top Kayne…Victory is spelled O-L-S-O-N and man, it’s sweeeeet,” said HackTone Records’ David Gorman.

The fifth annual Nada Silent Night, a benefit for the U.S. Marine Corps Toys For Tots, will be held Friday at 8 p.m. at Hoyt Sherman. The benefit concert features performances by The Nadas, Dick Prall, The Josh Davis Band and a special guest appearance by the Cranberries' Dolores O'Riordan. In addition to purchasing a ticket, patrons are required to bring a toy or monetary donation to benefit Toys For Tots. A post-show VIP party will be held at People's Court & Taft's at 11 p.m. CV

The second annual free Crossroads Entertainment Conference and Showcase will feature performances by six local music acts including Sid Wilson a.k.a. DJ Starscream (pictured). The event will be held Wednesday, Dec. 5 at the Fourth Street Theatre and People’s Court. Visit www.myspace.com/crossroadsiowa.

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