Charlie Cheney w/ Hot Heels Records

Art in the cafe...

Laurel Statz


"The Spectator"


December 2025



Laurel Statz is a painter and Madison area native. Her work, while figurative, is influenced by abstraction and minimalism. The paintings often have a quick and instinctual nature, capturing just what’s needed. While she often times herself to eliminate extra details and over-precision, she has ventured into more detailed works as well. Laurel does not attach narrative to her pieces. Rather, she thinks of them like a journaling process for her scatter-brained psyche. The figures in the pieces are meant to be processing tools for the artist and the viewer. She hopes that seeing these figures helps the...
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Friday, December 1, 2006

Madison ex-pat Cheney Cheney has always been maddeningly prolific, notorious for his "30 songs in 30 days" with the Fabric Indicators and "7 songs in 7 days" at Steel Bridge SongFest this past June. His just released CD "Giant Chicken" includes 3 SteelBridge songs and pitch-ins from local music royalty Lou Berryman, Sean Michael Dargan, Michael Brenneis, Pat MacDonald, and Biff Blumfumgagne. One of his songs is also featured on the upcoming "Steel Bridge Songs Volume 1" CD on Broken Halo Records in February. Cheney's latest songs are biting and sharp-witted in the Warren Zevon or Randy Newman performing songwriter tradition.

Hot Heels Records (band name, not affiliated with any label), is Beatfolk. In the neighborhood of folk, more upbeat, high energy, and aggressive at times. One part poet, one part jazz hustle-bustle, one part punk rock soul.

"Passionate vocals complemented by excellent guitar and Dylanesque harmonica work. This is a terrific debut by an artist with a poetic sensibility" - New Classics

Music