For Kids and By Kids Album Release Party
Englert Theatre — Saturday, March 28 at 3 p.m.
A celebration of kids, community and local music takes place this Saturday at the Englert to mark the release of the album For Kids and By Kids. The album is compiled and produced by University of Iowa Communication Studies professor and parent of a four-year-old son, Kembrew McLeod. The show is backed by an official(ish) “rocklamation” by the Iowa City Council that renames Iowa City to ‘Iowa Rock City’ on Saturday, March 28.
The release party will include performances by some of the album’s contributors such as the Prairie Green Preschoolers, Family Folk Machine, Katie Roche and Neon Daisies, a band formed by girls participating in last summer’s Girls Rock! Iowa City camp program. There will also be over 1,000 free copies available of the album (also available free to download.)
The 24-track album was created and developed by McLeod and his wife and editor at The Iowa Review, Lynne Nugent. When their son, Alasdair, was born there was a panic between the two, wondering how they would find the time to be involved in the music scene while also parenting a child. They quickly found a huge network of families in a similar situation, inspiring them to put together the For Kids and By Kids album.
“We hope that the many more [youths] who hear this album will be inspired to pick up an instrument, form their own bands, or do something else creative,” McLeod and Nugent write in the front pages of the album’s insert. The album release party seems the perfect opportunity to get kids started on this path.
