Nightflying, The Entertainment Guide
May, 2006
My-Tea Kind Mania!
---Sondra Goode
Imagine three sisters-bass and drums and washboard- holding down the
rhythm, setting the plane for all-original vocals and unique guitar
licks with an energy unlike anything this generation has seen.
My-Tea Kind features Bonnie Paine on vocals, washboard, djembe, bells,
tambourine and bullhorn; Sarah Garde on drums; James Townsend on
guitar, vocals and musical saw; and Anna Paine on bass.
The sisters have been playing together from the time they were nine
years old, forming My-Tea Kind with Townsend in April of 2004.
Influences include everything from Taj Mahal, New Grass Revival and
Jimi Hendrix to Violent Femmes, Jane’s Addiction, and Beck. With
approximately 50 original songs and having recently recorded with Mike
West in January 06', a tour is in the works.
This band has performed with such artists as Mountain of Venus, Asylum
Street Spankers, Shanti Groove, Vince Herman, Kirk Rundstrom Band and
Split Lip Rayfield, as well as headlining the Rockharvest Festival in
August of 2005.
After winning the Battlerusa battle of the bands in Tulsa, Oklahoma,
My-Tea Kind went on to conquer the final Battlerusa in Lawrence,
Kansas. This victory guarantees them a slot at Wakarusa Music Festival
in June alongside several other very talented performers such as Les
Claypool, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Gov't Mule, Yonder Mountain
String Bank, Keller Williams, and the list goes on and on and on.
My-Tea Kind will also get a track on the Wakarusa compilation CD.
My-Tea Kind enjoys entertaining the crowd with original, energetic
music along with various antics which may include dance-off's in which
prizes are given away, audience members brought onto stage to
participate in songs, or even having "the cheerleaders" smother James
Townsend in honey.
If that weren't enough excitement, the band is getting ready to release
their first CD. My-Tea Kind is scheduled to kick off their CD release
tour May 10th at George's. The band is already getting airplay on
Tulsa's NPR program Folk Salad, which refers to the band as
"vivacious." Hopefully soon, My-Tea Kind will also be in rotation on
KXUA. There are already a couple of DJ's who play the band on their
shows. My-Tea Kind has also been featured on the cover of the April
issue of The Current, which provides Eastern Oklahoma with news of
entertainment happenings in the area.
The reasons for the group's stellar accomplishments become obvious once
you see them play. Their music, which has been described as obscure
folk root rock, inspires. Past shows have been known to involve gypsy
fire dancers and artists on stage drawing to the music. My-Tea Kind's
performances are more than a show, they are an all around experience.
My-Tea Kind is a breath of fresh air in Fayetteville. Not only is their
sound one of a kind, their fans are one of a kind, and that in and of
itself always makes for an interesting show.
For more information, visit them at www.myteakind.com or
www.myspace.com/myteakind.