KATE CARROLL

I have only been a member of the Facebook group Rock ‘n Rhode for a few months but in that short period of time I’ve been extremely impressed with its creator and administrator, Kate Carroll. She is one busy woman. Besides Rock ‘n Rhode, Carroll also manages another group, BitchBoard and a page dedicated to the memory of a deceased high school friend. All the while working several jobs.

The group Rock ‘n Rhode is all about the music scene in Rhode Island and adjacent states. The site focuses on all genres of music and is a soundboard for local and national bands to list their upcoming gigs, record releases and pertinent information.

What really fascinated me the most is Carroll’s humanity. She “likes” almost all the posts listed. She publicly wishes “Happy Birthday” to many of the group’s members and maintains a data base of the bands who subscribe. Her posts are always optimistic and up lifting, She is eager to assist any member of the group that needs help.

Caroll has subcategorized the group into multiple topics such as Events, Rhode Houses (Venues), Rhode Work (Musician/s Wanted), etc. so anyone can easily navigate the site for specifics. She is constantly improving the site.

 

The following is an interview on the reason why Carroll is so enthusiastic about life and the New England music arena.

AMP: As a member of Rock ‘n Rhode I am constantly amazed by the amount of local music info there is on the website you’ve created. How did it start?

CARROLL: About six years ago a Facebook post shared the devastating news that a close high school friend had passed away. I had only seen him twice since graduating in ’84 but I had always figured we would hang out “someday”. His death was a huge reality check for me. My all work/no play ways took up my best years. I began to realize that I hadn’t been to a single class reunion. His wake was much like a reunion for me and other like minded classmates and I talked about getting together to honor our fallen friend in a positive way. I created a page called Tribute Dinner for Rob Dill and used it to plan and hold a get together at a nightclub. That first event led to several others, including seeing a handful of my high school friends playing in their bands. The page name was changed to CHSE (Cranston High School East) Friends and I continued to share events and inviting alum musicians. That was the beginning.

AMP: Let me know about BitchBoard?

CARROLL: The first group I created was Bitchboard, which began as a secret group with only two high school friends and I as members. In it I put my B.A. in psychology to good use and gave my friends and myself personality tests. I also dug out my old astrology wheel and read their zodiac profiles. Since the three of us had practical metaphysical interests such as lunar phases, ghost tours and astrology I kept adding content that interested us. It also kept us in the loop with local events. Speaking of astrology I am a Virgo and we are known for liking things organized and efficient, lol. So I created albums with pages in BitchBoard which made it easier to find posts of interest without all the tedious feed-scrolling. Soon I changed BitchBoard to an open group.

AMP: What about Rock ‘n Rhode?

CARROLL: The more local bands I saw, the more I wanted to see. Why are local bands my preference over nationals? As a teenager I spent enough money attending concerts at the Civic Center to finance a college education. And I never once met a famous musician. They were never approachable. Local bands playing local venues cost anywhere from zero to twenty dollars tops. I have met and become friends with hundreds of amazingly talented local musicians and my musician friends mean the world to me. Not surprisingly the Local Bands and Local Venues albums in BitchBoard were my favorites. The forty members of BitchBoard commented and messaged me appreciative words that encouraged me to keep my small group active. The week of Thanksgiving, 2017, my favorite local venue; JR’s Fastlane, inside the Madri Gras Multi-Club, closed its doors. I wasn’t the only one devastated. The local music scene took a hard hit as bands struggled to stay relevant while scrambling to score gigs at the dwindling number of open venues. This was the biggest catalyst that got me thinking that I needed to create a new group that featured topics relevant exclusively to the local music scene. Why not I thought. I’ve got an extra day off, lol. That weekend Rock ‘n Rhode was born. The name came to me while I was preparing a turkey dinner for my family. Well, more accurately after consuming three glasses of wine while cooking a turkey dinner. Once I had the group name, the punny album names came easily. I might have even been sober, lol. Rhode Rage~Local Bands, Rhode Houses~Local Venues, etc.

AMP: You are sponsoring an event called Rock ‘n Rhode Festival 2. Can you give us further info?

CARROLL: The Rock ‘n Rhode festival was born when my buddy Nino Trovato, who is the drummer and one of the founding members of local original metal band Matthias Steele, messaged me in January of 2017 about the possibility of having a showcase featuring live local bands. He went on to say that he felt that with the relative success of the Rock ‘n Rhode group that I would make a great event coordinator.  Although flattered, I was a bit dubious that I was qualified and capable of pulling off such a thing…..until….Nino said “maybe we can make it a fundraiser”. For me that was the hook. How great would it be if Nino and I could organize an event that would not only help keep local music alive and well (RNR’s mission) and also raise money and awareness for worthwhile charities. Mind you, Nino wanted to “talk” about this but I sprung into action. I posted an announcement in RNR asking its members to vote for their favorite artists. Nino and I didn’t vote or nominated since we were event coordinators. The results were posted, bands contacted and we put together our lineup. This took a lot of juggling since many of the nominated bands were already booked elsewhere but we got it done.

This year’s RNRF2 lineup was created a little differently. Nino and I offered the gig to the bands who expressed an interest in being a part of RNRF2. Many tossed their hats in the ring at RNRF1 in 2018. We are stilling getting request which is so cool and we are using those bands as alternates should other bands back out. Gotta say, I have been blown away at the generous spirit of our local musicians that so many bands would be interested in working an unpaid gig. And not only are they not earning any money when playing a charity event but give up the opportunity to work a paying gig elsewhere. Not to mention the countless hours of practice and the commute (some drive two hours each way). It’s truly admirable. And not only just the bands but also the sound engineers, lighting techs and volunteers. Everyone pulls together as a team.

AMP: So what’s next for Rock ‘n Rhode?

CARROLL: As for the future of Rock ‘n Rhode, I will continue to run the group as long there are members. I’m in it for the long haul. For me it’s a labor of love. Nearly all the feedback has been positive. and I could not be happier about that. As of this very second RNR has 1343 members which includes seven brand new members just this week. I am beyond grateful for my members and for local music. For me, Rock ‘n Rhode will go on.

I want to thank Kate not only for taking the time to participate in this blog but also for all the hard work she put in making sure local musicians get heard. She is beyond amazing.

 

 

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