Edmond Dantes
Hold It Local
By Amy Fackler, Cultural Programs Manager
If you’ve ever called the City of Boise, chances are you’ve gone straight through to your intended party or you are transferred quickly to the right person. That’s because of the commitment to exemplary customer service and just the way we roll at the City. However, we do hope that sometime when you call, your loyal civil servant on the other end of the line will need to put you on hold for just a moment. And here’s why: HOLD IT LOCAL — “hold” music by local musicians.
The City of Boise’s Department of Arts & History first started the program in 2009, all because of Ali Ward and other Go Listen Boise pioneers. Ryan Peck (Go Listen Boise and Boise Rock School) created the loops, spliced and diced, waved his magic wand, and – VOILA – the City of Boise had its own local hold music program. And I must note that everyone in the City of Boise supported the project from the start. From the Legal Department to IT and Government Buildings, all were on board to make it a smooth operation.
By 2014, it was time to update the music list. We worked with Stephanie Coyle representing (once again) Go Listen Boise and Ryan Peck. The duo solicited more songs and created new loops, which launched on the City’s phone system in November. We appreciate their hard work and perseverance, as these things don’t just “happen.” It takes time, organization, and follow-through with a lot of musicians and pesky details, such as contracts and voiceovers.
Go Listen Boise is researching how others could play Hold It Local tracks through local businesses and organizations. It remains a work-in-progress, but the overall goal is to gain recognition and awareness of local musicians and how much we value their work in Boise.
Here’s a sample of what you may hear if you ever are fortunate enough to be put on “hold” when you call someone in the City of Boise:
Mississippi Marshall – “Rendevous With The Devil”
Aaron Mark Brown – “There’s A Spring”
Customary- “Hanging On”
Buckskin Bible Revue - “Stuck in a Bus”
Dedicated Servers - “Just Perfect”
A Sea of Glass – “Love”
Finn Riggins – “Benchwarmers”
Marshall Poole - “Crosstops”
Possum Livin – “What Are We Working For”
The Country Club - “Walk Along John”
Edmond Dantes – “Decade”
Boise Rock School – “Our Game”
Bread & Circus - “Crackerjack”
Afrosonics – “Che Che Kule”
Fort Harrison – “Slow”
Matt Hopper & The Roman Candles- “Jakes Pants”
a.k.a. Belle – “Collecting Songbirds”
Sleepy Seeds – “Open Up”
A Seasonal Disguise “D.Y.F.H.D”
Hillfolk Noir- “Don’t Do Me No Good”
This is just a small sample of all the great musicians in Boise and is in no way meant to serve as an exhaustive list. But we hope its enough to whet or reinforce your appetite for Boise music. For more information on the local music scene, visit the Go Listen Boise website. And thanks to all for making HOLD IT LOCAL happen. Boise is the Best!
