Mike Nikolich writes15 Minutes with Superfyre

Ayme “Superfrye” Frye is a popular CHIRP DJ (Mondays 9am – noon) and an accomplished musician. Her trio will be playing with 8-bit crEEps at CHIRP Night at the Whistler this Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 8 pm.

We caught up Superfyre to ask her what’s in store for her upcoming performance.

Q  Ayme, you’re a DJ, musician and podcaster. How do you manage to channel so many interests and do them so well?

A “I am an explorer and I have had the chance to live in cool places like Alaska, Costa Rica, Montana, Japan and Spain. I’ve been trained by exceptional musicians like Hamid Drake, Kelan Phil Cohran, Rockin’ Johnny Burgin, and Thomas De Utrera. I’m finally ready to focus on music full-time and I have put together a great band.”

Q Who was your biggest musical mentor?

A “Thomas taught me flamenco guitar. I studied varies hand-drumming styles with Hamid. Johnny taught me blues guitar. But Kelan is my biggest mentor. He was a jazz trumpeter with Sun Ra Arkestra. I went to see Kelan give a talk about astronomy and do a beautiful performance of his own compositions with his sons at Northwestern University. His music literally moved me to tears, so I wrote him a letter and asked if I could study with him. He responded by asking for my astrological chart. Kelan started by teaching me the clarinet, and then focused on voice lessons. I was heartbroken when he passed away last summer.”

Q You clearly love blues and roots music. What kind of music are you writing these days?

A “I am currently writing a slow blues song and just wrote a loungy Roy Orbinesque song. Flamenco was the first style of guitar I played, and it creeps into my songs. My first band was called Johnny LaRue. I played flamenco guitar and my bandmates Michelle Hurban and Rose Sobol played rockabilly. We put the two styles of music together and called it flamenco-billy. It was a riot!”

Q What do you have planned for CHIRP Night at the Whistler?

A “I will be playing with Leslie Walle Santos on drums; I’ve known him for years, and bassist Kevin Brady. Leslie and Kevin also play in The Dry Look, as well as with me.  I will open on solo guitar and bring the band up. We will mostly play originals, but I may toss in a cover song or two.”

Superfrye and 8-bit CrEEps will perform at CHIRP Night at the Whistler at 8 pm on Wednesday, Feb. 28. Tickets are free, but you need to RSVP to this 21+ show.

You can listen to Mike Nikolich every Friday from noon to 3 pm on CHIRP-107.1 FM

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