Music, Theater, Film, TV, Books, Arts & Culture
archive of published
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by Robert Urban
Feature Articles
- Rockin' OUT IN THE WOODS - Easton Mountain Music Fest (August 2011)
- Rocking OUT - Male Musicians Straddle the Closet (July 17, 2007)
- Gay visibility in the 2007-08 TV Pilot Season (May 7, 2007)
- Powerful Gay Men in Hollywood (Jan 23, 2007)
- Conservative Republican Barry Goldwater's Pro-gay Legacy (Sept 14, 2006)
- The making of NIGHT LISTENER Interview with TONI COLLETTE, PATRICK STETTNER & ARMISTEAD MAUPIN (Aug 2, 2006)
- " Taking the Homophobia out of Hip-Hop" (June 1, 2006)
- " X-MEN - Are Gays and Lesbians the Real X-Men?" (May 16, 2006)
- " The Fresh Fruit Festival Awards Gala" (NYC - April 24, 2006)
- " The Case of Morrissey" (April 15, 2006)
- " Gay Men Survive - and Thrive - on Reality TV" (March 28, 2006)
- " Olympic Skater JOHNNY WEIR" (Feb 20, 2005)
- " Brokeback Mountain Tops List of Gay Films Likely to Be Oscar Nominees (Jan 30, 2005)
- " Gay Jazz Artists of Distinction" - A look at four excellent out gay musicians, including legend Andy Bey. (Jan 2, 2005)
- " Gay Pop Keyboardists" - A look at some popular queer indie keyboardists. (Oct 26 2005)
- " Gay Drummers Rock" - Nine accomplished gay male rock drummers from across the U.S. (Sept 22 2005)
"Robert, thank YOU for doing such a marvelous job, man! Hope I finally get on the same bill with you one of these days! Big furry bear hugs, bro!" - Mike Fass (Drummer Bear)- " TV'S UNDER THE PINK CARPET and its star news correspondant CLOVER HONEY" (DEC 2005)
"Thank you so much Robert! I love and appreciate it soooo much. I told the under the pink carpet people and they are thrilled!" - Clover Honey- " Gay Singers with Soul And Social Conscience: BUTTAFLYSOUL, NHOJJ and MANCHILDBLACK" (DEC 2005)
- " CBGB's Gay Presence - A Queer Rocker Remembers" (Sept 9 2005)
- " 3 Pop Singers to Watch - Ari Gold - Matthew Duffy - Mike Ricard" (Sept. 2005)
- " Wolfgang Busch's film documentary HOW DO I LOOK" (July 2005)
- " Lesbian Moms Rock at Mamapalooza" (June 2005)
- " 3rd Annual Butterfly Awards and Benefit Auction" - held on april 27th 2005 (May 2005)
- " THE 2005 Fresh Fruit Awards Festival" - The "Fruities!" held on April 18th, 2005 (April 2005)
- " THE TRANSGENDER ROCK EXPLOSION" - A look at some of the exciting new trans musicians making waves across the country. (March 2005)
- " Gay Stereotypes, Homophobia and On-Screen Villains: A Match Made in Hollywood?" (Feb 2005)
- "FREDDIE MERCURY & QUEEN: PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE IMPRESSIONS" - More than a decade after his death from AIDS, rock legend Freddy Mercury's legacy lives on. (Feb 2005)
- "GAY HIP-HOP TAKES OFF" - Four queer rappers (Scott Free, Dutchboy, Saturn and soce) who are taking the once exclusively hetero art form and making it their own. (Feb 2005)
Film Reviews
- WILD TIGERS I HAVE KNOWN (March 6, 2007)
- BROKEN SKY (Jan 16, 2007)
- THE ARCHITECT (Nov 30, 2006)
- BOY'S LIFE DVD Collection (Nov 22, 2006)
- FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION (Nov 16, 2006)
- Lust, Love, Libido & Liberation: It's BOYS LIFE! (Nov 22, 2006)
- EATING OUT 2: SLOPPY SECONDS (Nov 21, 2006)
- RUNNING WITH SCISSORS (October 19, 2006)
- SHORTBUS (October 3, 2006)
- ANOTHER GAY MOVIE (August 14, 2006)
- THE NIGHT LISTENER (August 3, 2006)
- QUEER DUCK - THE MOVIE (July 18, 2006)
- GO WEST (July 13, 2006)
- The CONRAD BOYS/director JUSTIN LO interview (June 19, 2006)
Robert: Thank you, for such a substantive and friendly feature article on the film and myself. I'm gonna print out several copies and tell all my family members to read it. I'm really proud of it and appreciate the support so much. :) Best Regards, JUSTIN LO
- STRANGERS WITH CANDY (June 5, 2006)
- X-MEN: THE LAST STAND (May 26, 2006)
- BOY CULTURE (May 17, 2006)
- FAT GIRLS (May 8, 2006)
- ADAM & STEVE (March 30, 2006)
- THE MATADOR (Jan 25, 2006)
- THREE OF HEARTS (Dec 21, 2005)
- THE DYING GAUL (Nov 28, 2005)
- KISS KISS, BANG BANG (Nov 8, 2005)
- NEVER BEEN THAWED (Oct 27, 2005)
- LOGGERHEADS (10/13/05)
- CAPOTE (10/3/05)
- GARCON STUPIDE (Sept. 14, 2005)
- MY BROTHER NIKHIL (August 2005)
"Hi - This is Onir the director of My Brother Nikhil. I read your review and am deeply touched. It is very beautifully written and gives me a lot of encouragement. best wishes" - Onir
- Nicole Conn's film documentary LITTLE MAN (July 2005)
- Wolfgang Busch's film documentary HOW DO I LOOK (July 2005)
Television Reviews
- BILLY STRAYHORN: LUSH LIFE PBS documentary (Feb 6 2007)
- The Amazing Race's New Season Features Two Gay Contestants (Feb 28, 2006)
- PROJECT RUNWAY - Season Two Struts to an End (Feb 22, 2006)
- Gay Weddings on PARTY PARTY (Jan 23, 2006)
- Food Network Stars: DAN SMITH & STEVE McDONAGH of Party Hearty (Jan 26, 2006)
- Celebrity Fit Club 3: How Low Can You Go? (Jan 4, 2006)
- PROJECT RUNWAY Project Runway's Second Season Begins (Dec 12 2005)
CD Reviews
- Good Clean Fun - DON HARVEY (June 2008)
"Words can't express my gratitude for your review of my CD. I was walking around on a cloud all day after reading it. You got it! - thanks for making the time to listen to my music and being so thoughtful in your comments. Your opinions on what to cut were right on target, and got me unstuck at a critical time. No one else who heard it said anything like "song A sounds a lot like song B, which is a better song, so drop A." And, you did it kindly. The world needs more guys like you, Robert" . - DON HARVEY
- The Pink Album - Chicago based rock artist SCOTT FREE (April 2008)
- Woke Up this Morning - DAN MANJOVI (March 2008)
- Morrissey's Ringleader of the Tormentors (April 14, 2006)
- ERASURE's new CD Union Street and interview with ANDY BELL (April 4, 2006)
- Hip-Hop Poet BARON Troubled Man (Dec 2005)
"thanx so much for the review... I LOVE IT.. and glad that you really enjoyed my work" - BARON
- JOHNNY DANGEROUS Dangerous Liaisons (July 2005)
- TORI FIXX Marry Me (June 2005)
- RUBBERLEGS Bounces Back! Legwarmers Reheated - updated review April (2005)
- TG MUSIC SOCIETY - "TG MUSIC SOCIETY COMPILATION VOL. 1" (2005)
- KEYTH LAWRENCE and the PURPLE CIRCLE - "FIGURES" (2005)
- ANDY NORTHRUP - "CARDBOARD LOGIC" (2005)
"Robert, you caught most, if not all, of what exists in my writing and makes it meaningful for me and hopefully to others. Damn, you’ve made me so proud and validated me in a way that I’ll always be grateful for. I marveled at the insight. Thank you". - Andy Northrup
- FRANK GRIMALDI - "BALANCE" (2005)
"Thanks!!! It's a really cool review." - F. Grimaldi- SCANDELLE - Live Performance and CD review (2004)
"I am truly honored. You have given me renewed strength and faith in my blessings! Thank you" - SCANDELLE- BILLI & PATTI - "love & other 4 letter words" (2004)
All I can say is - wow! - PATTI B.- JULIE CLARK - FEEL FREE (2004)
"THANK YOU so very much for taking the time to listen and write such a lovely, heartfelt review. I absolutely love it" - Julie Clark- CORINNE CURCIO - NOW (2004)
"Robert THANK YOU SO MUCH! What a great review - It's wonderful to have such a talented musician as yourself appreciate what I do. I'm thrilled as can be". - Corinne Curcio- RUBBERLEGS - LEG WARMERS - REHEATED (2004)
- SCOTT FREE - THE LIVING DEAD (2001)
- *V*I*R*G*O* - MODERATE EXTREMISM (2002)
- JERRY RABUSHKA - PIANO 362 (2003)
- PHIL JACKSON/PARADOX ONE - DIMENSION OF MIRACLES (2003
- RICHARD ISEN - LET IT FALL (2001)
Theater/Stage Reviews
- Stephen Temperley's - SOUVENIR (Dec 21, 2005) B'way play - “Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins"
- Michael Feldman's - JEW PAIN (August 2005)
- Jade Esteban Estrada's - ICONS (2002) for www.stonewallsociety.com
"Opening night was a huge success! Thanks again for your review of the show I really appreciate it". - Jade Esteban Estrada- Jade Esteban Estrada's - ICONS (2005) for www.AfterElton.com
- JUST US BOYS - 8/4/03 NYC
Live-in-Concert Reviews
- The TRANSGENDER ROCK EXPLOSION - live at Bowery Poetry Club, NYC - 7/16/05
- The NYC GAY MEN'S CHORUS - "A Great Generation" - Avery Fisher Hall, NYC - 3/8/04
"Thank you for your beautiful and thoughtful review.. and for your time and work. It is reassuring to know that our work will have some permanent documenation by a thoughtful critic". - Joan Lipkin, lyricist- THE MARCH - live at CB's Gallery, NYC - 10/28/03
- Urban Productions BOLDLY Presents - KIM CHAR live at Meow Mix, NYC - 8/17/03
- Urban Productions BOLDLY Presents - Robert Urban Band - Sister Funk - KFM Band - Meghan Cary - Marshall Zarne - 2/16/03 NYC
- LISA JACKSON live at Don Hill's, NYC - LISA JACKSON & BOY FRIDAY BAND - 5/21/2002
Book Reviews
- EQUAL TO THE EARTH - Poems by Jee Leong Koh - February, 2009
"Hey Robert, Thanks for the thoughtful and generous review. I feel you have your finger on the pulse of the book. Appreciate your careful reading. Best, ". Jee
"Robert, Thank you for this insightful and caring review! " - Roxy - publisher, POETS WEAR PRADA- Brokeback Mountain Sparks Interest In Gay Books With Western Themes - "FRONTIERS", "GAY COWBOYS", "FARM BOYS" April 6, 2006
- When I Knew - edited by Robert Trachtenberg- 2/1/06
- Mahu - by Neil S. Plakcy- 11/3/05
- Hitting Hard - by Michelangelo Signorile - 9/29/05
- Breakfast with Tiffany - by Edwin John Wintle - 9/1/05
Conference Papers/Lectures
- Homo Hip Hop Worldwide/Taking the Homophobia out of Hip-Hop - paper presented at TRINITY COLLEGE INTERNATIONAL HIP-HOP CONFERENCE - HARTFORD, CT - www.trinityhiphop.org
On Friday April 21st, Saturday the 22nd, and Sunday the 23rd, 2006, Trinity College in Hartford, CT. will be hosting the first ever International Hip Hop Conference and Festival of this size in the United States. With representation from every continent, emceeing in up to ten different languages, multiple film screenings of award winning documentaries, and presentations/lectures on hip hop worldwide and other relevant subjects, this event will be monumental.
- Gay Male Hip-Hop Artists - paper presented at LEHMAN COLLEGE HIP-HOP CONFERENCE, Friday, Oct 21, 2005 - CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK
From the Streets to the Classroom: Conference Explores Hip-Hop's Global Impact Oct. 21 While hip-hop may have started in the Bronx over 30 years ago, its roots have since spread globally, influencing everything from art forms to social movements and politics. Over 40 scholars and practitioners will gather on the Lehman campus on Friday, October 21, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. for a conference that will examine the meaning and significance of hip-hop. Sponsored by the Department of Sociology
Interviews/Profiles
- RENO 911: MIAMI - interview with the film's stars (Feb 23, 2007)
- Interview with HIP-HOP: BEYOND BEATS & RHYMES filmmmaker Byron Hurt (Feb 1, 2007)
- Bob and Jack's 53 Year Adventure (Jan 9, 2007)
"Robert: Your article was the best, most thoughtful writing, that I have seen about this film. Thank-you so much for the time you took to craft it. I have been out of the country and just read it this morning. I thought after three years that I knew everything about Bob and Jack. It is truly a testiment to your reporting that your article offered information that even I did not know about. And the feeling you gave the facts is how I feel about Bob and Jack too. Best of luck in everything," - Stu Maddux, Director, Bob and Jack's 52-Year Adventure.
- Parker Posie asks FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION (Nov 16, 2006)
- Interview with The Amazing Race's TOM & TERRY (Oct 10, 2006)
- Father & Daughter team DUKE & LAURA from the Amazing Race (Oct 4, 2006)
- The Getting to Know the Amazing Race's Gay Teammates TOM and TERRY (Sept 19, 2006)
- Profile of the author/screenwriter ARMISTEAD MAUPIN (August 14, 2006)
- Profile of the film WTC VIEW and it's director PATRICK SLOAN (August 9, 2006)
"A fine piece of writing Robert and a great support to the film." - Brian Sloan
- THE CONRAD BOYS director JUSTIN LO interview (June 19, 2006)
"Robert: Thank you, for such a substantive and friendly feature article on the film and myself. I'm gonna print out several copies and tell all my family members to read it. I'm really proud of it and appreciate the support so much. :)" Best Regards, JUSTIN LO
- ERASURE's new CD Union Street and interview with ANDY BELL (April 4, 2006)
- Food Network Stars: DAN SMITH & STEVE McDONAGH of Party Hearty (Jan 26, 2006)
- Gay Sex in the 70s Director JOSEPH LOVETT (Dec 28 2005)
- Gay Country on the Rise with American Pride - TV producer LARRY DVOSKIN (Dec 23 2005)
"Hey Robbie, It's great!, Really really a great article, perfect timing - Thank u so much for everything". - LARRY DVOSKIN- Hip-Hop Poet BARON Troubled Man (Dec 2005)
- LOGGERHEADS Film Director TIM KIRKMAN (10/13/05)
- " Gay Drummers Talk" - drummers Dave Montana, Mike Fass, Chris Ohnesorge, and Luis Illades (Sept 22 2005)
- "The Men of Sirius OutQ Radio" - Interviews with John McMullen, Charlie Dyer and Jeremy Hovies (May 2005)
Interviews/Reviews by Robert Urban for GAY GUITARISTS WORLDWIDE
Interview - guitarist singer/songwriter PETE STURMAN (January, 2010) Now THAT's a good interview! .....:-) - JD Doyle, QUEER MUSIC HERITAGE radio
Interview - guitarist singer/songwriter NHOJJ (December 2009) Oh wow - this is great!!! thank you Robert - I'm posting it to my facebook page now:) Love & Light Nhojj
Interview & music review - guitarist singer/songwriter CORRINE CURCIO (Sept 2009) Interview & music review - guitarist singer/songwriter SUZY WEDGE (May-June 2009) Interview - guitarist singer/songwriter STEVE REEDER (March 2009) Interview - guitarist singer/songwriter LiANNA (January 2009) Interview & music review - Parker and Marlon Banjo of Zerocrop (Sept - Oct 2008) "Thanks Robert this is absolutely great. Thank you so much for the lovely review too. It was very interesting to answer these questions. A lot of these issues are not things I think about very much, just get on with. I had no idea you would use as much as this. best regards, and thanks again" . - PARKER
Interview & music review - guitarist BARRY GOSNELL (July - Aug) 2008) Interview & music review - bassist guitarist songwriter/singer DON HARVEY (June 2008) "Words can't express my gratitude for your review of my CD. I was walking around on a cloud all day after reading it. You got it! - thanks for making the time to listen to my music and being so thoughtful in your comments. Your opinions on what to cut were right on target, and got me unstuck at a critical time. No one else who heard it said anything like "song A sounds a lot like song B, which is a better song, so drop A." And, you did it kindly. The world needs more guys like you, Robert" . - DON HARVEY
Interview - guitarist singer/songwriter ZEROCROP (sept-oct 2008) Interview - guitarist BARRY GOSNELL (July 2008) Interview - bassist, guitarist, singer, songwriter DON HARVEY (June 2008) Interview - guitarist singer/songwriter JENNY SLATER (April 2008) Interview & music review - singer/songwriter keyboardist guitarist DAN MANJOVI (March 2008) Interview - keyboardist "keytarist" ERIC MORRIS (Dec 2007) Interview - guitarist DONNA AUSTIN (Nov 2007) Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist LINQ (Oct 2007) Interview - heavy metal bassist TEMPEST (Aug 2007) Interview - singer/songwiter guitarist MICHAEL VAN LONDON (July 2007 Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist VANGE DURST (June 2007) Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist ROBERT GERMAN (April-May 2007) Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist CARLYN HUTCHINS (March 2007) Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist BRADY EARNHART (Feb 2007) Interview - heavy metal guitarist VENNESSA ST. JOHN (Jan 2007) Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist MORRY CAMPBELL (Dec 2006) Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist NEDRA JOHNSON (Nov 2006) Interview - bassist RICARDO RODRIGUEZ (Oct 2006) Interview - singer/songwriter guitarist SANDY RAPP (Aug/Sept 2006) Interview - RACHELL WILLHITE (July 2006) Interview - LINDA NUNEZ (June 2006) Interview - DAVID VECTOR (May 2006) Interview - ERIKA KULNYS (April 2006) Interview - LISA KOFFEE (March 2006) Interview - ROBERT URBAN interviewed by Pam DeGroff of TG Forum Magazine (Feb 2006) Interview - SUN BELL (Jan 2006) Greetings Robert, Thank you so much for the sweet remarks and kudos about my hard work and achievements in music. I truly appreciate your support. Sometimes I feel very isolated in this music business and kindness like yours comes through at opportune moments. PeaceRocker ~ Sun
Interview - LEXXXIS of VIBRALUX (Dec 2005) Interview - CAROL JADZIA of OESTROGENIX in the U.K. (Nov 2005) Interview - GERARD SLOOVEN of FORESTSOUND STUDIOS in Holland (Nov 2005) Interview - KIYA HEARTWOOD of WISHING CHAIR (Sept 2005) Interview - KRYSTIN HERRINGTON of GURLFRIENDZ (August 2005) Interview - CHRIS TAYLOR of (the)fundamentalists (July 2005) "This is an awesome group-and thanks again for the interview/feature!! you rock, robert!" - Chris of the fundamentalists
Interview - JAMIE ANDERSON Singer-songwriter-guitarist (June 2005) Interview - Singer-songwriter-guitarist LISA JACKSON & band BOY FRIDAY (May 2005) Interview - Southwest guitarist/multi-instrumentalist extraordinairre BRUCE MATTHEWS (April 2005) Interview - Florida based guitarist PATTI B. of the acoustic country rock duo BILLI & PATTI (March 2005) Interview - MARILYN & SARAFINA of San-Francisco based rock group LIPSTICK CONSPIRACY (Feb 2005) Interview - NYC based rocker NICOLA (Jan 2005) Interview - Chicago based rock artist SCOTT FREE (Dec 2004)
For review & interview consideration send CDs and press kits to:
Robert Urban, URBAN PRODUCTIONS, 134 West 95th Street, Suite #1, NYC NY 10025
Music & Arts writings by Robert Urban have been published at: