Artist Information Biography Pronounced      Karma - la   A powerful mix of down home bluegrass rock and the soulful sensibilities of folk, Radio-Free Carmela has been performing in Southwestern Florida for the past 10 years to devoted audiences. Though tiny in stature, Carmela's voice reaches out with a kung fu grip to grab the listener and engage them in each storyline. She has the ability to instantly connect with her audience through a combination of insightful banter and a passionate original songbook. Her fan base ranges from very small children to octogenarians.  Her songs range from her work with the midwives in the birth community to her experience with the fickle music industry.   In a crowded and talented folk and acoustic community, Carmela and her band stand out like champs. Never content with your average girl-with-guitar-in-a-coffee-shop sound, Pedicini, et al bring an energetic and flat-out fun attitude to their glances back at the rich and weird catalogue of Americana and country rock derived from the same source.    A guitar player since age 12 and a Floridian by birth, Carmela began writing songs as a young adult in the late 80s. She became truly obsessed with songwriting in the late 1990s while part of the neo-folk group Thread. In October 2007 Radio-Free Carmela and the Transmitters finished recording and mixing the songs penned by Tomara Kafka (a true relative of Franz) as well as their own material.  The result is a CD titled "Americana Tourister" which also includes several guest musicians. It was 2002 when Carmela first assembled the Transmitters to perform a monthly gig at JR's Old Packinghouse Cafe, the local staple for live music from blues to bluegrass. It was also in 2002 that she was dubbed "radio-free" by the band due in part to her gabby nature on stage. Since then RFC & the Ts have graced venues from Miami to NYC. They've done benefit concerts for Community Radio Stations WMNF 88.5 FM (Tampa) and WSLR 96.5 LPFM (Sarasota).  The Transmitters were even Michigan singer/songwriter Wally Pleasant's backup band on his 2005 tour of Florida. Radio-Free Carmela and the Transmitters continue to uphold their reputation for putting on truly engaging live performances. Instrumentation Carmela - Acoustic Guitar, Vocals Doug Conroy - Bass, Backing Vocals Dave Townsend - Drums David Mishkin -  Acoustic and Electric Guitars Jerry Sparkman - Dobro, Mandolin Discography Creative Loafing's Suncoast Summer Jam Sampler (May 2009) Walk The Line compilation Urban Angel Music (Feb. 2009) Chill Out East Coast Edition compilation Quickstar Productions (Oct. 2008) Americana Tourister (Dec. 2007) Links http://www.radiofreecarmela.com our myspace Creative Loafing 2009 Summer music guide Urban Angel Music Quickstar Productions Tomara Kafka (co wrote Americana Tourister album)