Resume

Grant Fanning

31-- Condie St.

Richmond, Va. 23221

(757) 472-----

fanningga@vcu.edu

grantfanning@hotmail.com

Experience:

• Music director and Radio D.J. at WRIR-LP 97.3 Richmond Indie Radio
• Contributor for the Virginia Commonwealth University newspaper, The Commonwealth Times
• Member of the 2007 VCU InSight production team
• Volunteer for Nightmare Records

Education:

• Bachelor’s of Science degree in broadcast journalism in progress at Virginia. Commonwealth University
• Associate’s of Science diploma from Tidewater Community College, December, 2005
• Advanced diploma, Kempsville High School, Virginia Beach, Va. 2003

Skills:

• Intermediate skill in Spanish
• Radio broadcast equipment operator
• Experience with Digidesign Pro Tools, Adobe Audition/Cool Edit Pro 2.0, Adobe Photoshop CS3, Adobe Premiere Pro 2.0, other photo/audio/video editing software

Awards:

• Member of Phi Theta Kappa, international honor society, 2005

References:

• Jessica Stevens, music program director at WRIR

804.622.----

• Karen Bolipata, executive editor of The Commonwealth Times

804.828.----

• Jonah Weingarten, professional pianist

802.522.----

• Scott Griffin, guitar teacher

757.630.----

• Noah Martin, professional bassist

757.418.----

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Story sample

B·A·M brings the bands

GRANT FANNING- Contributing Writer

Issue date: 10/4/07

[Click to enlarge]

The Viva La Bands tour brought Cradle of Filth, GWAR, CKY and Vains of Jenna to Virginia as the tour stopped off in Norfolk on Wednesday, Sept. 26.

Organized by Bam Margera and Rockstar energy drink, the Viva La Bands tour springs from the compilation album of the same name, "Viva La Bands, Volume 2," featuring Children of Bodom, The 69 Eyes, Viking Skull and CKY, among others.

The tour began Sept. 24 in Baltimore and made its third stop at the NorVa in Norfolk. I had a chance to sit down with Jess Margera, Matt Deis and Chad Ginsburg of CKY to talk about the tour, Bam and touring in Europe.

Grant: I've got to ask this. Is Bam going to attend tonight?

Chad: Well, contractually he's only contracted to be at 12 shows. He was at the first two shows. I don't know where he is tonight. Half the time, I'd want him on our bus. Not all the time, unless he wants to chip in, because he's the one that's going to be vomiting on everything.

Grant: So are you having fun with GWAR on the road?

Chad: They put on a great show. GWAR is worth the ticket price alone, and for Richmond, you know, you should be proud because GWAR's done a lot. Everyone knows who GWAR is.

Matt: They still support Richmond as much as they can, too, with all the stuff that they've done, like recording other bands in Richmond. They are a great band in many ways. Grant: How did Cradle of Filth jump on this tour? I heard they were added last minute.

Jess: Yeah, actually Children of Bodom was supposed to be headlining this thing, but they got all busy with s--- over in Finland and I don't know. Cradle jumped on.

Grant: What is CKY up to right now? Tell me a bit about your last release, "An Answer Can Be Found," and what's up with the new record.

Chad: Our last album was the last record we did with Island Records, and it was fine. It's another CKY record that we're proud of. However it's received, it gets received. It gets more positive responses these days as people give it more time. The new record's going to be really sick. I built my own studio this time, and the new record company … there's going to be a lot of new possibilities.

Grant: Any tentative release dates? How close are you to being finished?

Matt: When it's done, it'll be done. We're not going to try to be one of those bands that just sit around and let it happen.

Chad: The label would love it whenever we can give it to them. But, as (the) Christmas season passes, we'll still be working on it.

Grant: Chad, you run all the audio for Radio Bam, Bam's weekly radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio. Are you going to be doing the show while on tour?

Chad: Yeah, I have a mobile radio show on the bus. I got to wait 'til Bam realizes that we're on tour right now. This Monday's show is up in the air, but I'm ready.

Grant: You guys played the East Coast Surfing Championships in Virginia Beach this past August. Tell me about that.

Matt: It was 15,000 people down at the beach, at minimum. The sun was setting over the horizon, and the waves were coming in. It was the recipe for the perfect show.

Chad: It was free too, which makes it even more of a recipe for a perfect show.

Grant: You've been touring in Europe for a while. How do you like touring over there?

Matt: You know how, like, over here, if your friends, whether you're in to rap or rock or whatever, if your friends are like "Hey, you want to go to the bar and just grab a drink?" you know, and everyone can do that.Over there it's like "Hey, do you want to go check out this rock band?" and whether you like rock, it's just something they do over there that's communal and social.

Chad: It's hard to make money over there. Our money is not worth much, plus we spend a lot to eat. So when a band comes over here to tour they have to charge several more dollars for T-shirts.

The Viva La Bands tour will be rolling across the country until its final stop in Worcester, Mass., on Nov. 3.

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Virginia Beach takes a trip to Bucketheadland

Grant Fanning

Issue date: 10/2/06

Media Credit: Grant Fanning

Straight from the chicken coop, Buckethead arrived at The Jewish Mother in Virginia Beach on Friday night to a restless crowd of 300.

I've been listening to Buckethead for a few years now, and I've got to tell you, I still don't know what is up with this guy. Little is known about his identity, other than his name is Brian Carroll, and he hails from Colma, Calif., a place where supposedly the dead outnumber the living. You will never find a picture of him without his mask on other than a small newspaper clipping from the 1980s.

He's played with Bootsy Collins, Les Claypool, funk keyboardist Bernie Worrell, jazz great Jonas Hellborg, Guns N' Roses and even did an album with Viggo Mortensen. Buckethead is definitely all over the place musically, and definitely not something that would work on the radio.

Buckethead has recorded four albums this year alone. His discography is becoming more and more Zappa-esque by the year, playing under the names Cobra Strike, Cornbugs, Praxis and Death Cube K (an anagram for Buckethead to prevent a lawsuit from Sony) among others.

Since his short stint with Guns N' Roses from 2000 to 2004, his underground cult following has continued to grow.

Buckethead sort of zombie-walks onto the stage, picks up his beautiful all-white Les Paul guitar and begins to play immediately. His set-up is very barebones, with his drummer Pinchface off to the side of the stage and magic pipe bass player That One Guy to his left. Buckethead gets his name from the KFC bucket on his head that can be seen in almost every single picture of the guitar monster you can find, along with his Mike Meyers Halloween mask.

If you like guitar players, you will enjoy watching Buckethead. If you like weird, funky music, you will enjoy watching Buckethead. This guy can play every style you can think of: funk, rock, metal, blues, classical, acoustic ballads. He even takes a break from guitar to noodle around on the bass guitar. By watching him on bass you would never be able to tell that guitar is his primary instrument. Buckethead is also skilled in the arts of break-dancing and nunchucking, which he will proudly display for his fans at his shows.

Buckethead is a one-of-a-kind character and performer. Never breaking his character on stage, he acts like a creepy, frightened kid when something needs to be fixed on stage. Big B dropped his pick once during the third song, and he just looked at his hand as if he just killed a man. He slowly bent down to pick his plectrum off the ground, never stopping the music with this left hand and continued to rock with the rest of the band.

For those who are looking to check out Buckethead, be warned. The music isn't going to have catchy choruses and melodic vocals. I think most of his albums are without vocals anyway. It is guitar music for guitar people. I recommend checking out "Monsters and robots," "Colma" and either one of the "Bucketheadland" albums, which take you on a psycho music journey through his fantasy horror theme park. The work he did with Colonel Claypool's Bucket of Bernie Brains, featuring Les Claypool, Brain and Bernie Worrell, is a lot more musical and still retains a ton of crazy bucket shred. You can also check out Corn Bugs, The Deli Creeps, and Praxis for more weird musical adventures to open up your mind.

I highly recommend going to check out Buckethead whenever he comes around. He rarely comes south of the D.C. area so it is definitely worth the trip, whenever you can make it.

Enjoy your stay at Bucketheadland!

Story sample

Bev's Ice Cream Hopes to Freeze out the Competition

By Grant Fanning

When looking for a cool treat during a hot day of shopping in Carytown, sweet tooths had one place in mind – Bev’s Ice Cream.

That is, until Ben & Jerry’s ice cream shop moved in next door.

According to Bev’s employees Grace Howard and Heidi Krizansky, “Bev” isn’t worried one bit.

“We have a pretty loyal following. I think we’ll be OK,” Howard said, scooping ice cream.

Ben & Jerry’s, a brand born out of a renovated gas station in Burlington, Vt., and now one of the nation’s largest ice creameries, opened its doors to Carytown shoppers and neighbors in mid-September.

It wasn’t the first time Ben & Jerry’s has scooped frozen desserts in Carytown. About a decade ago, the national chain opened a store in a similar location – but then closed it.

According to Krizansky, business is still good.

“It really hasn’t affected us at all,” she said. “Richmond is all about local business. I think that it will make a difference with tourists, people who don’t know our logo. They’ll see Ben and Jerry’s first, and they’ll go there.”

Exuding confidence, Krizansky said Bev’s can count on its loyal customers – and on the owners of nearby stores – for support.

“The merchants in Carytown have been so helpful; they direct so many customers and tourists here. People are upset about it, so I don’t really feel like it affects us much,” Krizansky said.

Bev’s Ice Cream, 2911 W. Cary St., is just a few doors down from the freshly painted Ben & Jerry’s, displaying a color palette of cool pastels, a mural of Carytown, tables and benches for outdoor seating, and even its own parking lot.

Bill Busching, owner and operator, jumped at the location at 2901 W. Cary St. when the opportunity arose.

“We had been looking for a place here for nearly two years,” Busching said.

Its close proximity to the staple shop for neighborhood ice cream didn’t concern him.

“If such an opportunity is there, we are going to jump on it. It’s a perfect location. We will see what happens,” Busching said.

Whether or not Bev’s will have a hard time competing with the big ice cream giant remains to be seen, but history tells us that Bev’s ice cream has a winning record against Ben & Jerry’s.

In 1999, Ben & Jerry’s opened a store in Carytown and closed shortly thereafter. This may be why Bev’s employees aren’t worried about a little competition moving in next door. There aren’t many large chains in Carytown save for the occasional convenience store or bank. Richmonders and Fan dwellers alike seem to shun against large chains moving in.

“It kind of upsets me that they moved in so close. I love Bev’s,” Jessie Tyler, a student and local resident, said of the new competition.

“I hope Bev’s wins. I love their ice cream.”

While strong support for locally owned shops is present in Carytown, the trend has slightly shifted in other parts of the Fan. Earlier this year, Wired Café on N. Robinson St. closed down shortly after coffee goliath Starbucks moved in one block away.

Story sample

King's X rules the Beach

Grant Fanning

Issue date: 11/9/06

Media Credit: Grant Fanning

Power rock trio King's X logged yet another show Sunday in support of this year's "Ogre Tones" at Steppin' Out Nite Club in Virginia Beach. Playing for nearly two hours, King's X focused primarily on their newest album, "Ogre Tones," with crowd pleasers such as "Alone," "Bebop" and "Sooner or Later."

Steppin' Out is a night club and bar with a very intimate atmosphere. With a low stage and approximately 100 to 150 people in attendance, the band felt right at home in Virginia Beach.

This was their second time at the Beach in less than six months.

"A lot of you people probably know each other by now," singer and bassist Doug Pinnick said to the crowd. "You always show King's X much love."

King's X kept a very loose attitude throughout the show, always chatting with audience members in between songs and giving toasts to fans in the front. Doug even brought out his famous 12-string bass guitar upon request from a girl standing in the front row.

Musically, the band stayed loose but remained a professional-sounding rock band. I don't think King's X can be touched when it comes to performing three-part vocal harmonies live. They are tonally perfect as a live band.

"We've been together for 22 years," Doug said, followed by massive applause. "Our sound guy has been with us from the beginning as well. He makes us sound better than we really are. We call him the fourth member of the band."

King's X lost a chunk of their Christian fan base after Doug Pinnick revealed that he was a homosexual in a magazine interview in 1998.

Guitarist Ty Tabor has said that King's X is not a Christian band, despite writing many lyrics with a clear spiritual influence. Tabor says this comes from the individual faith of the members rather than an attempt to cash in on a religious sect.

"It doesn't matter what you believe in, as long as you believe in yourself," Pinnick told the crowd in between songs. "If you don't believe in yourself, how can you love yourself? How can you love another?"

After 22 years, King's X is still going strong with the same lineup since day one and they show no sign of slowing down.

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Guitar gods pay visit to D.C.

Grant Fanning

Issue date: 4/16/07

The 2007 incarnation of Joe Satriani's G3 tour wound down with a show Friday at Washington, D.C.'s famous Warner Theater, one night before the tour's final date in Sayreville, N.J.

In its 11th year, the G3 tour is Joe Satriani's annual live music show where "Satch" is joined by two guitar monsters to perform around North America, Europe, South America and Australia, blowing the minds of fans and aspiring guitarists everywhere.

The show truly was a guitar player's dream come true.

This year is Mr. Big and Racer X alum Paul Gilbert's first full G3 tour and as a newcomer, he truly blew the roof off the place with his high-energy show.

Gilbert is accompanied by his former Racer X partner in crime, guitarist Bruce Bouillet. Joining Gilbert, Petrucci and Satriani on stage for a final jam session, Bouillet proved that he hasn't slowed down at all and definitely doesn't have a problem hanging with the big boys.

Gilbert's towering presence and insane command of the guitar definitely netted the most surprising crowd reaction of the three separate sets.

John Petrucci is every progressive metal head's favorite guitar player. A founding member of Dream Theater, Petrucci is commonly known for his lightning fast licks and intimidating picking hand.

Petrucci's set consisted of a number of tracks from his only solo release, "Suspended Animation," which ranged from the super chunky "Jaws of Life" to the melodic guitar ballad that he wrote with Dream Theater keyboardist Jordan Rudess, titled "Lost Without You."

At age 50, Joe Satriani has absolutely nothing to prove. Since picking up the guitar at the age of 14, he has taught many guitarists the art of music through the six-stringed instrument, most notably Metallica's Kirk Hammett and guitar god Steve Vai.

His set exploded with tracks from throughout his 20-year solo career, including songs from "Surfing With The Alien," "Flying In a Blue Dream" and "Crystal Planet."

Though all three of these sets were great, the true glory of these G3 shows comes at the end. All three guitarists come together during the end of Satriani's set to give what we all want to see; a mighty jam-session.

Petrucci and Gilbert join Satch's band on stage to perform a set of classic Hendrix tunes, Satch's "Goin' Down" and "Jumping Jack Flash" from the Rolling Stones, each with super-extended solo sections split up between the three guitar heroes.

Getting to witness these three guitarists mix and meld with their distinct styles is the most exciting aspect of these shows. Petrucci's intimidating speed is matched only by Gilbert's percussive, super-tight picking style, followed by Satriani's unmistakable style and grace.

The interaction between the three is the reason why the entire crowd is on its feet the entire time, as they get to witness the tail end of an amazing tour.

One of the hilarious moments of the show was during the "Purple Haze" jam. Paul Gilbert jokingly acted intimidated by Petrucci's over-the-top speed. Gilbert then threw his guitar picks away and picked up his famous hand drill power tool with a guitar pick attached to the drill bit and shreds away his strings.

The G3 2007 show was nothing short of amazing. Getting to see my favorite guitarist, Paul Gilbert, appear in his first full G3 tour along with John Petrucci and Joe Satriani was a dream come true for me, not to mention catching the tour on one of its last dates.