Fresh Track: The Rough Drafts “Oh My Love”
Little Rock’s The Rough Drafts is brother and sister duo Ike Peters and Katie Mitchell. Peters is no stranger to this space. His band The Coasts is a project that we’ve covered extensively and their debut, self-titled release remains one of my favorites from 2011. The Rough Drafts dropped the debut single from their forthcoming Valley Forge EP this week. Peters and Mitchell had been tossing around the idea of collaborating for a while, before finding a cause upon which to focus their creative efforts. All proceeds from the EP will be donated to the family of Mitchell’s sister-in-law, who is attempting to fund an adoption.
“Oh My Love” finds Peters doing what he does best: writing simple, straightforward songs that you will be certain you’ve been humming since childhood. The latter half of the track is backed by perfectly-arranged fills on trumpet and trombone. The mix and production was handled by Nashville producer Allan Douglas.
“It was me and my sister recording these songs, and then [we sent them to] a great musician and producer in Nashville named Allan Douglas who completely made the songs better,” said Peters. “He did it for free since he has an adopted child and is passionate about the cause, so he deserves a lot of the credit.”
Listen to “Oh My Love” below and name your price for a digital download via The Rough Drafts’ Bandcamp page. Share this track and help spread the word about a terrific new project. Click HERE for more info on the family’s adoption efforts.
Written by Rob Peoni
Video: Open Mike Eagle “Your Backpack Past”
Mike Eagle’s album 4NML HSPTL has stayed in my listening rotation ever since it dropped. The great variety of moods and subject matter makes it an engaging front to back listen, but also provides at least a couple great candidates for any style of mixtape you’re trying to put together. “Your Backpack Past” sees Mike trading verses with Philly MC Has-Lo over an up-tempo Awkard composition. The duo’s tongue-in-cheek verses make fun of old rap heads that are content to jump on the latest trend and act like they were never fans of Gang Starr and Wu-Tang. Open Mike’s play on Frank Zappa’s chorus for ‘Dirty Love’ used for “Your Backpack Past” is brilliant, and a perfect example of why Open Mike Eagle is one of the most interesting rappers around. Check out the new video and pick up Mike’s album over at Circle into Square if you haven’t already.
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Written by John Bugbee
Thought on Tracks 
Friday: Class Actress in Cincinnati
This Friday, the amazing month of Friday night shows at Fountain Square continues as a part of the MidPoint Indie Summer Series with Brooklyn based Class Actress. The project from the mind of Elizabeth Harper is currently still touring on their debut LP in 2011’s Rapprocher. A combination of electronic driven dance pop beats and Elizabeth’s gorgeous voice, the group brings a fun vibe, literally and figuratively, to the “Weekend”. Below, you can preview not only the song just named for the dance floor, but also see Elizabeth slow it down acoustically with “Adolescent Heart” courtesy of Big Ugly Yellow Couch. Whether we’ll get a mix of both styles remains to be seen, the one thing you can count on is that you’ll get your Friday started off right by checking out this FREE show. Class Actress goes on at 9:30 PM, with Vito Emmanuel and Crown opening at 7.
Connect with Class Actress via Facebook | Twitter
Written by Greg Dahman