Bunnygrunt is an act seated right where it wants to be: walking the thin line between musical obsession and hobby, obscurity and fame. "For the most part, the band I thought about being in when I was a kid--this is pretty much that band," says guitarist Matt Harnish. "I guess I didn't really have the super rock-star-selling-out-stadiums dreams. I had the dreams of 'I'm going to be this cool cult dude, and I'm going to be kind of famous to a few people.'"

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Eat at Alice's, noon tomorrow.

You can keep your Turkey Day Game. Hell, you can keep your turkey. For generations of St. Louisans, Thanksgiving Day's sweetest meat is served at noon when Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant" settles in for its beloved annual eighteen-minute residency at KSHE 95.

"If we weren't to play 'Alice's Restaurant' at noon Thanksgiving Day like we're going to, the following day, as the head of programming, I would probably find my car covered with left-over mashed sweet potatoes," says KSHE's Rick Balis. "Of course, that's probably the best place for left-over mashed sweet potatoes," he concedes.

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Bob Reuter (front) and Bassamp (back) of KDHX's Bob's Scratchy Records. Photo by David Mitchell

Every Friday afternoon, St. Louis listens to his sporadic and scratchy radio show and tries to dissect host Bob Reuter. Perhaps we should leave this task to the professionals. Trying to comprehend Reuter is like trying to piece together a four piece puzzle with no corners.

See also:
-The Complete Bob Reuter Interview
-Best Music Radio Program - 2012: Bob's Scratchy Records

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Courtesy of Webster University

Webster Students working on the SSL Duality console in Webster's Studio A.

Settled in Webster Groves, Webster University is making big noise in the sound recording field. For 24 years, the University's Department of Audio Aesthetics and Technology has been offering professional quality recordings to international and local musicians.

Webster's classes take a hand on approach to music production, bringing in performers for each class. Webster has recorded an array of musicians from international to local status. Jorge Morel, a classical Hispanic guitarist, appeared at the studio. Local musicians the Union Electric, Kim Massey, Illphonics and the Orbz have also been a part of the class sessions. After 24 years, the list of recording artists is extremely extensive.

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All artwork by Adam Watkins

Ed. Now that the dust has settled on this weekend' three-day Tower Groove LP release epic, we'd like to leave you with one last thought about the collective (for now). Hopefully this information on the artwork adorning the vinyl you bought will give you something to think about as you're spinning through its 21 tracks.

The newly minted musicians' collective Tower Groove Records is still in its infancy, but its 22 bands (so far) and four founders have big ambitions for its future. Or at least open minds. But before they released any music, last weekend's double-LP compilation included, they needed a logo that would speak equally for all of those first bands and the score that will feature on the next record. Below, Tone Rodent's Adam Watkins walks RFT Music through the symbolism of the group's artwork, both accidental and overt -- and what exactly is going on in the album cover above.

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There are plenty of musicians who died before getting definitive time in the musical spotlight. Tega -- a rapper who was affiliated with Nelly's St. Lunatics -- is sadly in that category, as he passed on while he was in the midst of climbing the musical ladder.

Tega -- whose real name was Oretga Devon Henderson -- was part of Da Camp, a rap group that often performed with Nelly and Murphy Lee. By 2009 the group had put out some mixtapes and was in the process of completing a full-length album.

But by the end of May of that year, Tega had died after succumbing to injuries sustained in a shooting.

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Castle Ballroom St. Louis Facebook page

Will a thoughtful developer bring the Castle Ballroom back into working shape?

The Castle Ballroom - one of St. Louis' few remaining links its jazzy musical past - is in need of a buyer. And despite some challenges, boosters see potential to rehabilitate the facility to its former glory.

Located at 2839 Olive St., the Castle Ballroom was one of the first dance halls that targeted an African-American audience. The building hosted a number of legendary musical acts such as Miles Davis, Louie Armstrong, Jimmy Forest, Clark Terry, Ernie Wilkins, Duke Ellington and Count Basie.

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BeatlesTrivia.com

George Harrison spent a small part of 1963 visiting his sister - Louise Harrison - in Benton, Illinois.

Beatlemania is arguably the most expansive musical frenzy in modern history, so it's not surprising that places big and small would try to latch on to every bit of the Fab Four's legacy.

But it may be a revelation to some that the mania extended to Benton, Illinois, a smallish town located in the Land of Lincoln's nether regions. George Harrison spent a small part of 1963 visiting his sister, who had moved to America after marrying a mining engineer. George stayed at Louise Harrison's 113 McCann Street bungalow for a short time before jettisoning off into rock immortality.

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Overshadowed in death by the passing of Don Cornelius of Soul Train, St. Louis R&B and gospel singer David Peaston also died on February 1, 2012, from complications from diabetes. He was 54.

Peaston was part of St. Louis gospel royalty. His mother was Martha Bass, singer in the foundational gospel group the Clara Ward Singers, and his sister was Fontella Bass, who needs no introduction.

With his agile, deceptively devastating high tenor voice, Peaston received his break after a move to New York and his celebrated appearances on the Showtime at the Apollo TV series. His signature performance number was "God Bless the Child," a song that he utterly transformed, drawing on jazz scatting and a creamy phrasing that would boil over into something else entirely, something only a very great sacred singer can harness and set free.

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RFT File Photo

Mississippi Nights threw its final jam session on January 19, 2007. The venerable venue near the Mississippi River hosted a wide assortment of legendary artists over its history.

In theory, music venues are interchangeable. If one especially great place shuts down, another spot surely will rise elsewhere.

But there's something disquieting about the closure of an especially memorable venue. Even years later, I'm still bummed about how Shattered - a Columbia, Missouri, institution - was, well, shuttered. A pool hall just isn't a suitable substitute for an up-and-coming band or an outstanding 80s night.

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