A Conversation with Christopher the Conquered

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A BRIEF Q & A WITH CHRIS THE CONQUERED: Jillian Danto
The first time I met Chris was during the last Finals Fever Reliever that we had at the now-perished 121 N Main location of The Aquadome. At the time I was a total newbie to the music scene in Kirksville, and even though I’m not a performer, I was still super intimidated by the entire idea of going to my first live show. Surprisingly, the first person to calm my nerves was Chris Ford from Chris the Conquered. Besides for his fantastic musical ability, he is genuinely a nice person, a trait that is rare to find anywhere in the electronic age. The very brief interview below is not only a love letter to Chris’s music, but to the old Aqua-location. It was a beautiful location that had some wonderful musicians pass through it.
Jillian: How did your band form, or, how did you decide to go into the music industry individually?
Chris: I’ve been playing music since a young age. I started playing in my own bands in high school as an extension of music in school. I formed Christopher the Conquered when I started writing my own songs for self-therapeutic reasons. 🙂
JD: What are the latest projects or tours you are planning for the future?
CF: I just came off three tours and am planning:
-A studio album to be released in 2015 (being worked on now at Ardent Studios in Memphis)
-A live album to be released in the next year
-A dance party 7″ and digital single
-A number of music videos
-Touring around the US and in Europe for the next year.
JD: Who are your inspirations?
CF: Randy Newman, Jonathan Richman, John Lennon, The Poison Control Center
JD: Talk about the songwriting and recording process and what makes this record different
CF: Hm. Well my new record is the first time I’ve really tried to make something for the people that might listen to it rather than myself. Songwriting is just figuring out how to say something we’re all thinking in a way no one has said before. Recording is capturing that in the most deliberate way possible to communicate the feeling to as many people as possible.
JD: What are the main themes of the music you have released?
CF: Humanism. Empathy. Perception of reality.
JD: If there’s anything else you’d like to mention, like fun facts, that’s cool…
CF: Music is one of the greatest things ever.
JD: Where are you located and what is your primary contact information for booking?
CF: Des Moines, Iowa! christophertheconquered.com is the entrance to the rabbit hole. ctconquered@gmail.com

What Would You do With a Radio Station?

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    When talking to people about Rural Felicity, I often get asked what our goals are. I tell them that our goal is to educate Kirksville on local arts and collaborate with the community to bring more arts to Kirksville. Currently, Rural Felicity also has an emphasis in the folk arts. With the radio station, we’ll have a listing of events supporting arts in Kirksville (no matter how insignificant) at the top of every hour. Because Kirksville doesn’t have a means to represent all of the Kirksville local arts, we would be providing a service that is absolutely necessary and that no-one else can do.

     Rural Felicity, as a radio station, will also emphasize five types of music; blues, folk, classical, bands from the mid-west, and whatever else you want to put on the radio. If you consider that a for moment, its actually quite amazing that citizens of Kirksville could get such an opportunity. By, “whatever else you want to put on the radio,” we don’t mean a request line or a personal specialty show, although both of which will most certainly be available. By “whatever else you want to put on the radio,” we mean that as a member of Rural Felicity you have voting rights similar to those who schedule programs and run the station. A completely democratic system of a public service. An actual, true, local service. So, we ask you. What would you do with a radio station?

     Rural Felicity appreciates your support and contributions. If you have questions or comments please e-mail RuralFelicity@gmail.com and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible. We are more than eager to hear from you.

 

 Sincerely,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Rural Felicity – 106.3 KRFR