We are fans here at MMR of Fleet Foxes, and very much enjoyed their recent appearance at High Noon Saloon (opening for Blitzen Trapper). So we were delighted to see them scheduled to be play again at the Memorial Union Terrace on Friday night!

We also encourage you to get there early and see Extra Golden – who is scheduled to start at 6:40pm! Extra Golden is an international collaboration between Kenyan and American musicians playing an innovative combination of east African benga guitar pop and American rock. The band has five singers, all trading off on lead vocals duty from song to song, and three guitarists trading off on rhythm and lead roles, some times doing all at once.

This will be the band's second US tour, and their most recent release - Hera Ma Nono (Thrill Jockey) - was recorded during the band's first US tour in fall of 2006, which was the Kenyan members' first trip outside of east Africa.

Their first album was 2006's Ok-Oyot System, recorded mostly in one afternoon at a Nairobi nightclub. Ok-oyot is Luo for "It's not easy," Luo being the ethnic group and native language of Extra Golden's Kenyan members and the benga tradition. . . Well things have certainly not been easy for Extra Golden, from the death of original singer and co-founder Otieno Jagwasi in 2004, to the visa difficulties on the last tour that were solved only with the help of Illinois Senator Barack Obama (a Luo descendant), and more recently the political and ethnic crisis in Kenya after the recent presidential elections. (You may have heard of those difficulties and the support Extra Golden received from their fans around the world recently on NPR's All Things Considered.)

For those of you planning to attend the 10,000 Lakes Music Festival – Extra Golden will be performing Wednesday, 7/23 at 9:30p on the Barn Stage!