August 2023 | Page 160

LOCAL MARKET Dave ’ s Marketplace , multiple locations	OUTDOOR DINING Terrazza , Smithfield Kay ’ s Restaurant , Woonsocket	LOCALLY OWNED WOMEN ’ S BOUTIQUE With Heart & Soul , Cumberland	BAKERY Gingersnaps Bakery , Lincoln
GARDEN STORE / NURSERY Hattoy ’ s Nursery & Garden Center , Coventry FLORIST Sprigs Flowers , East Greenwich BLACKSTONE VALLEY RESTAURANT Blackie ’ s , Smithfield ASIAN RESTAURANT Asia Grille , Lincoln LATIN RESTAURANT Bandidos Mexican Restaurant , Cumberland ITALIAN RESTAURANT Pat ’ s Italian Restaurant , Johnston VEGAN / VEGETARIAN RESTAURANT Garden Grille , Pawtucket NEW RESTAURANT IN 2022 Koury ’ s Tavern , Cumberland	DINER Modern Diner , Pawtucket BREAKFAST Eggs Up Family Restaurant , Cumberland BURGER Blackie ’ s , Smithfield PIZZA Cumberland House of Pizza , Cumberland SANDWICH SHOP / DELI J ’ s Deli , multiple locations NEIGHBORHOOD BAR The Harmony Cafe , Lincoln COFFEE SHOP Fundati Coffee , Lincoln SPECIALTY FOOD SHOP Divas Dips and Gourmet Treats , Pawtucket INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORE Stillwater Books , Pawtucket *	HAIR SALON Salon Vibes RI , North Providence VINTAGE STORE The Modern Farmhouse , Cumberland CONSIGNMENT STORE Blackbirds Consignment Shop , North Providence GIFT STORE Brown & Hopkins Country Store , Chepachet FITNESS STUDIO The Barre and Yoga Experience , Smithfield ANIMAL SHELTER / RESCUE Burrillville Animal Control Shelter , Burrillville PET SALON / BOUTIQUE Dtails , Smithfield DOGGIE DAY CARE Mind Your Dog , Chepachet	ICE CREAM The Ice Cream Machine , Cumberland LOCAL MUSIC VENUE Blackstone River Theatre , Cumberland LOCAL EVENT Paint and Vino , Pawtucket WINE SHOP Diamond Hill Vineyards , Cumberland LOCAL MARKET Dave ’ s Marketplace , multiple locations GARDEN STORE / NURSERY Jordan ’ s Jungle , Pawtucket FLORIST Valley Falls Flower Shop , Cumberland 🆁 * The Pawtucket location closed in July and is moving to West Warwick .

JAMMING OUT : Rafay Rashid

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Did it take you a long time to write the songs ? The whole thing was written within a matter of a few weeks . I needed to release it ; it was almost like I was on survival mode .

Going through a breakup is tough . It really is , and at the same time , I was dealing with … I ’ m sober now , but I had recorded this about eight months before I got sober . It was the last days of this sort of long run with alcohol and amphetamine use . It was generally a dark time , but it felt like a moment of clarity while writing those songs , and it was a great catharsis for me . It was a very romantic time , even though it was bleak .

I know the photo on the cover of your album is in a graveyard . Is there a reason for that ? I think just because the album represents the end of so many things . The end of a relationship . The end of the days of partying . It felt like I was putting something to rest by putting this album out .

JAMMING OUT : Keith McCurdy

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weekends and travel to towns all over New England . It ’ s a very familiar feeling to pack up my stuff and go to another town and do my thing . The troubadour life is very comfortable for me . I grew up here , but I don ’ t have roots here . My mom is from France and my father is from New York state , and half of his family is from Sicily . His father was a blacktopper and grew up in a wagon . My dad grew up in a trailer . They did paving , and his aunt and his father ’ s sisters did fortunetelling . The palmistry , the cards , they taught it to my grandmother , my nonna . My mother is a very artistic and eccentric person . I come from a family with a colorful history .

How has AS220 helped you with your music career ? I could not afford to live the way I live and do what I do elsewhere . The rents are obscene . AS220 has been a great facilitator for the working artist to be able to survive and thrive . I have been performing at AS220 since I was twenty years old . I have been living there for ten years . Getting accepted for an apartment there was such a big deal for me . I pay rent but I get a huge break , because I qualify . It ’ s very unique . Not a lot of cities have this .

You ’ re working on a new album ? Tell me about that . We are working on a fifth album . I ’ ve been listening to a lot of new music that I wasn ’ t otherwise exposed to . I ’ ve been intrigued by Emma Ruth Rundle . They call her gothic folk , but she ’ s worked with metal bands . It ’ s dark music but it ’ s melodically lush . She inspired me to pick up a baritone and explore lower tunings with the cello and try to go for a bassy , deep , dark sound .

It seems like you collaborate often . Often I ’ ll be bearing the brunt of the writing . I think there ’ s a myth of genius about people who don ’ t want to share the duties of the writing process . I think you do the best work when you collaborate with people . It doesn ’ t take away from your talent . Shakespeare collaborated . It opens up synapses and doors that you wouldn ’ t otherwise have known were there when you collaborate with other people , especially when there is chemistry . I feel like there ’ s great chemistry between Diane , Isabel and I . The two of them together are a joy to watch . — J . C . 🆁🆁

158 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l AUGUST 2023