Oklahoma Rock Newsblog

Over the next couple of weeks, we will be counting down the Top 100 Oklahoma Albums of the 2000s. Every weekday, we will unveil another ten Oklahoma albums that helped shape the way Oklahoma music is heard by the outside world.

We asked three dozen musicians, fans and journalists for their opinions on the top albums of the past decade. With their guidance and our own opinions, we compiled what we hope is a decent and fair list.

Hopefully, there’s a good bit of reflection, discovery and enjoyment when listening to these albums through Lala (when available). Enjoy!

40. Matthew Alvin Brown - Rainbow Around the Sun (2006)

Purchase: PayPal

DOWNLOAD: “New York City Girls”

“Regardless of what one thinks of concept albums, Brown’s first solo outing, “Rainbow Around the Sun,” is not pretentious. It is track after track of engaging and colorful pop songs that guide the listener through a story, rather than dragging them.” - Charles Martin (Oklahoma Gazette contributing writer and author of “The Dominant Hand”)

(more…)

On May 2, the Oklahoma History Center will unveil its Oklahoma rock and roll exhibit, Another Hot Oklahoma Night.

The opening will be an all-day extravaganza with dozens of local bands playing three stages (We’ll have more on that later). Watch the video below and get excited to celebrate our state’s rock and roll heritage!

George Lang and NewsOK.tv have unveiled the third installment of the music performance and interview series, “Static”.

This week’s guest is Matthew Alvin Brown.

He talks about his influences and his newest unnamed band with members of The Fellowship Students and Little League Hero. He also plays songs from his solo album.

Purchase Brown’s album Rainbow Around the Sun via PayPal.

Kudos again to Lang and producer/director/videographer Tanner Herriott for another great show.

(more…)

Thanks to the awesome deadCENTER Film Festival, Rainbow Around the Sun and Christmas on Mars will both make their Oklahoma premieres this week.

Today, we’ll highlight Rainbow Around the Sun.

Rainbow Around the Sun, the brainchild of Matthew Alvin Brown, returns to its home state after showings at SXSW and the Florida Film Festival.

Brown and his bandmates from The Fellowship Students provide all the music for the film, stemming from Brown’s solo album, Rainbow Around the Sun.

Zachary Blasto is a hard-drinking, talented songwriter and performer who creates vivid musical fantasies in order to avoid dealing with the downward spiral of his personal life. When faced with the impending death of someone he loves, Zach must choose whether to face the loss or surrender fully to the madness of his imaginary musical world.

SHOWINGS:

Wednesday, June 11 at 9:30pm
• N Lee Ave & W Sheridan Ave (outside)
• FREE!

Friday, June 13 at 5:30pm
• Oklahoma City Museum of Art
• $10 or $5 for Museum members or FREE to deadCENTER passholders.

(more…)

(Click image for the full poster.)

Matt Brown and The Fellowship Students will be doing a rare live performance of Brown’s musical opus, Rainbow Around The Sun (trailer), this Saturday night at The Plaza Theater in Oklahoma City. They will be performing music from Brown’s recent indie rock opera by the same name. The performance begins at 8pm and is FREE! Reservations are required and can be made by calling (405) 524-9312. Donations are accepted.

“The stage thing will be only material that was on Rainbow Around the Sun, the album, and it’ll be a rock show intertwined with a stage show.”

As a prelude to that performance, The Fellowship Students will be performing their non-Rainbow songs tonight at 51st Street Speakeasy in Oklahoma City. It kicks off at 10:30pm and admission is just $5. The show will be recorded for a live album and it may just be one of their final performances.

“As the Fellowship Students go, it’s kind of looking like this may be one of the last hurrahs,” Becannen said. “So I think a good live recording at this time would be good, because it’ll be pretty extensive, maybe a double-disc style, because we have a catalog of 60-plus songs and everything. So we’ll have to be very selective as to what we play and what we ultimately decide to put on the live recording.”

If that just isn’t enough fellowship for you, the film Rainbow Around the Sun will have its Oklahoma City premiere on June 11 during the dead CENTER Film Festival.

- posted by Graham Lee Brewer

‘Rainbow Around the Sun’ made its world premiere Saturday night at the South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas and has is already earning glowing reviews:

…an energetically directed and performed rock opera that’s just as emotionally satisfying and far more engaging than bigger budgeted films made in the same genre.
- slashfilm.com

This is my generation’s “Tommy.” The quality of the visuals, the depth of the music lyrics and the production value is so high, I didn’t think this was an independent film. But not only was it all made in Oklahoma, this is the filmmakers’ first major movie project.
- Dallas/Fort Worth’s CBS 11 News

“Rainbow Around the Sun” evokes the Beatles, the Flaming Lips (Brown and company are from Oklahoma, after all), “Tommy,” and even – at one point - Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator.” It’s a heartfelt effort, and one that should earn Ely, Leland, and company a wider following.
- Film Threat

Also, here’s an NewsOK.tv interview (and a clip from the film) with Matthew Alvin Brown and co-directors Beau Leland and Kevin Ely:

If you’re already in Austin or heading down later this week, be sure to catch a screening:

• Tuesday March 11th @ Alamo Lamar 2. 8pm
• Saturday March 15th @ Alamo Lamar 2. 5pm

UPDATE: Check out some interviews from RealTVFilms at SXSW after the jump!

(more…)

Originally conceived as a video accompaniment for the Matthew Alvin Brown’s solo album, ‘Rainbow Around the Sun’ has become what some are calling “The Indie Rock Opera from Oklahoma”. All songs in the film were written by Brown and recorded with his bandmates of former (?) Oklahoma City band The Fellowship Students.

Based on the album by Matthew Alvin Brown, ‘Rainbow Around the Sun’ tells the story of Zachary Blasto, a hard-drinking musician who creates madcap musical fantasies to avoid dealing with the downward spiral of his personal life. When faced with the loss of someone he loves, Zach must choose whether to face his demons or surrender to the madness of his imaginary world.

In the tradition of classic music films like “Tommy” and “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” ‘Rainbow’ tells its story almost entirely through imagery and song. Scenes are sequenced like songs on a record, seamlessly moving from dramatic moments to honky-tonk performances and fully animated Busby Berkely-style hallucinations. The result is a deeply personal film that plays like a favorite album come to life.

‘Rainbow Around the Sun’ was selected to the IFP Narrative Rough Cut Lab in June of 2007. The film is currently wrapping up post production for a festival premiere in early 2008.