Tiempo Libre’s Cuban sons fought the odds

Back in Cuba, Jorge Gomez had a lot of time on his hands. During the early ’90s when, he recalls, there was “no work, no food and no hope,” the pianist turned to music. All day.

“In Cuba, most of the time you don’t have anything to do,” Gomez says from his current home in Miami. “So, you rehearse from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. looking for some hope. Nothing happens with your music, but you become a great musician. I only focused on rehearsing and finding a way to leave.”

Charlie Hunter and Ben Goldberg find out what's in store when accidents happen

Charlie Hunter just can’t stay away from home. The jazz funk guru who freakishly pulls triple duty on his custom-made seven and eight-string guitars, busting out bass, rhythm and solo magic, first left for the East Coast in 1996 because, he says, “I just had to go to New York to get my butt kicked, you know? I didn’t want to be 50 years old and feel like I didn’t do that.” Still, the Berkeley native hasn’t left us waning from his radar.

STS9 proves you don’t need words to make a statement

Noam Chomsky is down with electronica. OK, so you might not see the revered scholar waving a glow stick at a Sound Tribe Sector 9 show anytime soon, but you will see him collaborating with our hometown boys in an upcoming documentary. That’s because STS9 walks the walk. Virtually all sound and no talk, the local 5-piece-gone-big, infamous for elaborate orchestrations of instrumental jam band rock with tech-savvy electronica, is all about getting the word out and giving back.

The seasoned folk icon Greg Brown tells it like it is

Greg Brown has got grit. Symbolized by his trademark coarse vocals, that sentiment holds true in how he’s become an underground icon without the commercial success.

Michael Franti talks about Power To The Peaceful, performing in Iraq, wanting to dance, and Obama as President

Michael Franti is one fierce yogi. A decade ago, the dynamically outspoken muscle behind hip hop’s eclectic Spearhead started the 911 Power To The Peaceful festival—a free park concert in his native San Francisco to raise political and social awareness through peaceful activism. That first attempt drew 6,000 people. It currently draws upwards of 60,000 and now features collective yoga practices for the masses before and after the music. Coinciding with this year’s 10th Annual event, his latest album hits stands this week. For All Rebel Rockers, Franti made a concerted effort to infuse vibrant, booty shakin’ beats in his mission to uplift people through dance, after he did just that during a visit to Iraq. Though images of him are often stern and militant, in the following conversation he is humble and poignantly expressive. Preparing for PTTP and his upcoming performance in Santa Cruz on Sept. 18, Franti gives GT insights into the evolution of the festival and the protest icon’s music through his years of international experience.