Ames Women of Rock

The Ames Public Library was host to Maximum Ames Music Festival's Ames Women of Rock on Sunday, a gathering of talented women of all ages and musical experience.The featured “Women of Rock” included Levitation, Michaela Thompson, Lizzy Poppyseed, Amelia Bal and Rebecca Wickert. Artists switched off between songs, choosing their next song on the fly, creating a relaxed atmosphere perfect for a Sunday afternoon show.Floating down on serene vocal harmonies and light ukulele chords, Levitation started the show off with her song “Dandelion.” Levitation took inspiration from her recent trip to New York when writing some of her songs, singing about her struggle as an artist to be unique in the world of music.

“Nostalgia” was a short, melancholic look back at her childhood and how much life has changed since. Levitation’s final song, “Close Elevation,” has been a staple of her sets since she started performing.  

“It’s a very old song, I actually wrote it in fifth grade,” she said.

Singer-songwriter Michaela Thompson followed right after Levitation in the show’s rotation.

“That was beautiful, I almost forgot to come up here,” Thompson said about Levitation’s first song.

Thompson began her set with her original, “Edges,” a more reflective song, accompanied by a somber acoustic guitar that built up for the powerful chorus.

Thompson showed off her songwriting ability in “Lucky” and “Fingertips” before taking to the piano to finish her show with some more experimental tracks. Thompson closed with, the ethereal “Social Conditioning,” a song she had never played before without accompaniment.  

While this is Thompson’s first year performing with Ames Women of Rock, this is her second participating in Maximum Ames.

“Vinyl Grind, they’re a cafe on Main Street, and they do open mics every Sunday night, and that’s a really good way to network, and meet people,” Thompson said. “That’s how I originally got asked to do [Maximum Ames], because of meeting people there.”

Thompson has music available for streaming on her Bandcamp page under the project name Chaemuse.

Ames Women of Rock marked Lizzy Poppyseed’s second performance this year at Maximum Ames. While she normally plays with a full backup band, she performed a solo, stripped-back set Sunday afternoon.

“It’s my first library show, so should I just whisper these songs?” Poppyseed joked at the start of her performance.

An experienced musician, Poppyseed had a strong stage presence, with a carefree attitude in both her songs and her performance. While introducing her final song, Poppyseed spoke to the importance of Ames Women of Rock.

“Now more than ever, it’s important for women to have a microphone, and share our experiences with each other and everyone else,” Poppyseed said.

She closed with a very successful “attempt at being the Springsteen of the midwest,” the song complete with resonating piano chords and impressive vocal runs.

Even though this is Poppyseed’s first year at Maximum Ames, she’s performed around Ames for a while, making appearances at DG’s Tap House and The M-Shop over the years.

Poppyseed is performing at DG’s Tap House Oct. 12 to promote her upcoming album, which will release on Spotify, Apple Music and Bandcamp the same day.

Amelia Bal and Rebecca Wickert, seniors at Gilbert High School, made their Maximum Ames debut performing original songs and covering some of their favorites. Wickert and Bal kept the upbeat feel of OutKast’s “Hey Ya!,” while putting their own spin on the song.

The pair also took on Red Hot Chili Pepper’s classic “Dani California,” and Michael Jackson’s legendary “Billie Jean.” When the duo had run out of prepared material, Bal dug into some of her own original music for her last two songs.

Bal and Wickert have been performing with each other for a while, singing together in choir, and working on their first duet their sophomore year of high school. They came together for Maximum Ames simply because of their love for musical performance.

“Just watching other performers, not like anyone in particular, is really cool because you get to see different styles,” said Wickert. “Especially with [Ames Women of Rock], everyone has a different style."

“Just seeing the way different artists can move people, and sway their emotions, that’s something I wanted to do” Bal said. “Not to be rich and famous, but to be something with my music. [I want] my music to reflect me.”

Jim Coppoc, who ran sound for the show, has been involved with the Maximum Ames Music Festival since its very first year, and has worked on the Ames Women of Rock show since the third year.  

“It was one of the most amazing things that I’ve seen on a stage in Ames,” Coppoc said. “So every year since I have begged the organizers to schedule me at Ames Women of Rock.”

In his five years working at Ames Women of Rock, Coppoc said there are almost never any problems getting everything together.

“This show runs itself,” Coppoc said. “The women who are booked are absolutely amazing … there’s just some sort of magic that comes together around this show and it always works.”

(From Iowa State Daily. Direct Link: https://www.iowastatedaily.com/limelight/maximum-ames-women-rock-max-mamf/article_12ab30d4-c50b-11e8-bc92-2347cab3a9bb.html)