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Afro-Punk Songstress Ebony Bones Makes 'The Musik' -- And Everything Else -- All By Herself

Posted 1/7/09 7:07 pm EST by in Ebony Bones, exclusive


Lily Allen By Daniela Capistrano

U.K. television star, fashionista and Afro-Punk-embracing songstress Ebony Thomas, a.k.a. Ebony Bones, is no stranger to the movement's DIY aesthetic, having crafted all the songs on her upcoming Spring '09 debut album — tentatively titled Bone Idle — in her bedroom.

"Different people wanted to be involved," Ebony explained. "Major labels were excited and driven by all the positive press, but the only way I could keep to my set ideas for sound and inspiration was to be the main producer myself."

Influenced by the punk credo of "Do It Yourself," Bones described the album as "schizo-sounding" and "like me, a collection of contradictions and subjects close to my heart."

During our phone interview, Ebony was working on the album art herself and described her creative process.

"The one thing about taking my time and not rushing into anything is I've been able to have so much more control creatively of the whole project, and that's the real magic for me. I love bands like Funkadelic who made their costumes in their own van and put them on the same night — very DIY."

(You can watch Ebony in our Afro-Punk news brief below.)

(More from Ebony Bones PLUS exclusive video from her recent shoot, after the jump!)
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The Noisettes Talk Afro-Punk, Wild Young Hearts And Their Favorite Artists Of 2008

Posted 12/18/08 4:08 pm EST by in Noisettes


By Daniela Capistrano

The Noisettes want Afro-Punk to come to England.

"We'll look after the lot," frontwoman Shingai winked when we last spoke to the band in October, backstage at the Afro-Punk showcase at the CMJ Festival in New York.

"[Afro-Punks] are such an amazing group of people who are doing something unbelievable," Shingai gushed. "I mean, the standard's good, man. All the events that we've been involved with have had great bands. They put on really interesting, eclectic, amazing events. It's like Earl Greyhound, Santogold, it's great. [Afro-Punk] knows how to show kids a good time. There's nothing like it in England. Nothing."

Guitarist Dan Smith sees the festival as a catalyst, helping to eradicate some old notions. "The [punk] music movement in America has always been perceived as being a white thing, and [Afro-Punk] is making it more inclusive," he said. "It's about people getting a wider understanding of rock and roll and its history and its roots, where it comes from and that anyone can do it. And it can be loads of fun, yeah?"

The CMJ crowd loved the Noisettes' live show (see some of it in the Afro-Punk video below), so we got on the phone with them Wednesday to talk about their new video for "Wild Young Hearts," their spring '09 album of the same name and their list of the artists they fell for in 2008.


We've got the goods on the Noisettes after the jump!
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Janelle Monae Demonstrates The Afro-Punk Attitude -- In Formal Attire

Posted 7/7/08 6:35 pm EST by in Festivals, Janelle_Monáe


Janelle Monáe, Credit: MTV NewsBy Daniela Capistrano

It is not often enough that you see a young black woman in pristine slacks, dress shirt, bowtie, cumber bun and saddle shoes stage dive into a crowd and start a mosh pit.

This past weekend, producer Tami Katzoff and I found ourselves in the thick of Janelle Monáe's set at the fourth annual Afro-Punk Festival, where she joined other amazing musicians, graffiti muralists, BMX riders and skateboarders at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Afro-Punk, an annual event showcasing groundbreaking bands, films and artists, was created by Matthew Morgan and James Spooner, who also made the 2003 documentary "Afro-Punk," which chronicles the subculture. Despite all of the raw energy that is present at the fest, AP still manages to be a safe, family-friendly event where participants are encouraged to register to vote at one of the many community booths.

The highlight of Saturday's AP events was when Janelle closed the show by diving into the audience, crowd-surfing into the middle of everyone and then forming a mosh pit with her fans. She then ran through the crowd, climbed back onstage where she went berserk, Iggy Pop/ David Bowie-style, and slammed her mic stand on the ground, threw water at the crowd and then ran off again, leaving the crowd screaming for more. What a show-woman!

Watch space girl sensation Janelle Monáe crowd surfing in true punk rock fashion after the jump!
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