What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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PRESIDENT Brent A. Powers EDITOR Becca Martin-Brown 479-872-5054 bmartin@nwaonline.com Twitter: NWAbecca REPORTERS Monica Hooper mhooper@nwaonline.com April Wallace awallace@nwaonline.com (479) 770-3746 DESIGNER Deb Harvell ! UP WHAT'S ON THE COVER Khruangbin will play at 9 p.m. Sept. 25 on the North of Oz stage during the FORMAT "For Music + Art + Technology" Festival in Bentonville. The three-piece out of Texas infuses Middle Eastern, funk, R&B and rock rhythms to create their nostalgic, yet new, sound. (COURTESY PHOTO) What's Up! is a publication of the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. year, best emerging artist album and best contemporary blues album. He also won instrumentalist-guitarist and best contemporary blues artist. While his latest album hasn't kicked up as much attention at the first, he has played festivals such as the Chicago Blues Festival, the Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis, the Bonita Blues Festival in Florida and The Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland, and just a week ago he headlined at Bourbon & Beyond in Louisville, Ken., with Kings of Leon, Jason Isbell, Courtney Barnett, Brandi Carlisle, Eric Gales and more. Keep up with Ingram at christonekingfishingram.com. AURALAI Shortly after the FORMAT festival announced that it was coming to Northwest Arkansas, several local musicians such as Serrano-Torres, Amos Cochran and Kayln Fay, among others, started posting mockups of their festival passes across social media. Even some of Northwest Arkansas's local artists will be exhibiting and installing work during the festival. Auralai, whose formal name is Stephanie Russell, is one of the local musicians who will be involved in the festival, playing on the Next Door Stage during the Sept. 24 lineup that includes Alan Power, The Phlegms, Katie Schecter and Black Bananas. "I was incredibly fortunate in how I became affiliated with FORMAT festival. The organization CACHE started a dialogue and connected me with them, and negotiations quickly began," she says. "I have played several large festivals, such as Summerfest in Milwaukee, but I don't think any of them were quite as big as this one, especially in terms of production value. I feel really lucky to be performing at the inaugural FORMAT festival." Auralai has had a busy summer with touring and getting together new material. Over a quick email interview, she says, "I have many singles currently in progress that I hope to start releasing by the end of the year. I like to start a lot of things at once, so I have also been starting to organize an EP recorded completely on an iPhone with GarageBand. I have become fascinated with the concept of the accessibility of music, songwriting and recording. You can be a musician and write songs without knowing how to play an instrument, and you can record an album without having fancy gear or access to a studio. Releasing music these days is so cost-prohibitive, especially with meager earnings from streaming services." Part of her support comes from The House of Songs, which has supported many Northwest Arkansas-based musicians. "I'm on my way to Nashville for Americanafest as I write this, thanks to The House of Songs," she says of her work there. "They have done a lot for me since my move to Arkansas in 2021, and I am so grateful to them and their amazing team for taking such an interest in elevating musicians." Her latest release, "No Way In," is on streaming services now. The song is a slight departure from her lilting, slightly ethereal cello-driven melodies from her previous album, "Songs for Dogs," but her singing voice has grown bolder. "'No Way In' was initially an instrumental song written by my musical companion, Nate Lehner. He has made a habit of creating all of his soundtracks for video projects that he is working on and was excited to show me this soundscape that he produced and recorded. A cello melody came to mind immediately upon hearing it, and then we started toying around with a vocal part. The whole song came together quickly, thanks to Nate for doing 99% of the work." Whatever the future holds, keep up with Auralai at auralai. com. SEPTEMBER 18-24, 2022 WHAT'S UP! 39 COVER STORY The legendary Herbie Hancock will headline the Sept. 25 festivities at FORMAT in Bentonville. (File Photo) Auralai is one of several local musicians who will perform during the FORMAT Festival in Bentonville. The cellist and singer-songwriter will play at 4 p.m. Sept. 24 on the Next Door Stage. Other local musicians appearing at the festival will be The Phlegms, Serrano-Torres, Kayln Fay, Honey Collective and Amos Cochran. Local artists Kat Wilson, Maddy Morphis and Athen Brandon will be part of the lineup of artists. (Courtesy Photo/Mandy Kellogg, Soul Exposure Photography)