the-rocket's Blog

Hey Guys and Gals -

My name is Todd Richard, but most people call me the Rocket. I'm a performing and producing drummer, percussionist and DJ. I play with Miss Fairchild, the Sumner McKane Group, and do lots of session work. I have DJ residencies at the White Heart, and am the official DJ for the Maine Roller Derby League (yeah Josh!)

I am a co-founder of wepushbuttons, a community organization that advocates for and supports the electronic and hip hop music community here in Maine, as well as reaching out to show the rest of the world how fresh Portland is for music.

I'm a trustee of the PMF, and I also helped found the Maine Academy of Modern Music with my good friend Jeff Shaw.

Incidentally, I had tried to get a meeting with Jeff Shaw for months to talk about working together. But, it wasn't until we sat down at a conference table together at our first PMF meeting that we actually met face to face. And, we were off from there.. So, PMF brings people together. Seriously.

Great to see you here, Cam, and thanks Josh for starting this thread...

Who is next?

For Immediate Release:

wepushbuttons Presents 2008 WPB Awards

* Maine-based electronic and hip hop music community group hosting annual awards.
* Online ballot open to the public
* Winners announced at Awards presentation November 15th at Space Gallery in Portland

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wepushbuttons, a Portland, Maine-based electronic and hip hop music advocacy group and community forum, announces the launch of the ballot for the 2008 wepushbuttons Awards. The Awards honor exemplars in all areas of electronic music from the local Maine music scene, including categories for Best Hip Hop Act, Best House Act and Best Club DJ. In all, there are roughly 100 nominees in 18 different categories.

The ballot can be found online at:
http://www.wepushbuttons.com/wepushbuttons-awards-08.
Balloting opened on Monday, September 29th, and will continue until October 25th.

To announce the winners, wepushbuttons is presenting their 2nd Annual wepushbuttons Awards show on November 15th at Space Gallery. Doors will open at 8pm and there will be a $5 cover charge. The event will be a celebration, not just of the winners, but of all the nominees and participants in the ever-growing electronic music community in Maine and it’s accomplishments as a whole. There will be several presenters from throughout the music and media communities in Southern Maine, and performers include the Secret Weekend, Pentateuch, A Frame and Mike Clouds, Metris and Vik44, Shupe, Brzowski, Moldy, and Alchera. Taking the mantle from last years’ host Mike Clouds, the 2008 Awards event will be hosted by fellow WPB co-founder Todd the Rocket Richard, also known as DJ rocket.one. The DJ duo Atomik (formerly Brown Jacket Media, aka Jason Keith and Matty T) will be the resident DJs for the Awards.

The event is presented by wepushbuttons.com, a Portland-based webzine/forum/portal site dedicated to uniting and promoting Maine's growing electronic music scene and presenting it to the global community. In addition to their community-based website, wepushbuttons has assembled 2 download-only compilations of outstanding electronic music from here and away, called WPB ecomp. WPB also promotes Maine electronic music via regular showcase nights at large nightclub venues around Portland, and a monthly residency at the White Heart Lounge. wepushbuttons is not genre specific, but instead covers all forms of electronic music: hip hop, techno, house, trip hop, downtempo, DnB, breaks, trance, IDM, leftfield, electro and beyond. There is something for everyone at WPB. Whether a producer or consumer, artist or fan, label head or tech head, all have a place to discuss what's new, interesting, and influential to life and lifestyle in electronic music.

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The 2008 wepushbuttons Awards is sponsored and supported by the Portland Phoenix. Thank you to the Phoenix for their contributions to WPB and the local electronic music community.

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Space Gallery Contact Info:

Space Gallery
538 Congress Street
Portland, ME 04101
207.828.5600
info@space538.org

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Web Resources:

WPB Website:
http://www.wepushbuttons.com

WPB Awards Page & Ballot:
http://www.wepushbuttons.com/wepushbuttons-awards-08

WPB Forum
http://www.brickcitymedia.com/wpbforum/

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