4/23/2012 MinneCulture

Five stories from our 10,000 Fresh Voices series:

1. Medical quackery at the Science Museum
Produced by Will Wright
X-ray and CAT-scan machines are part of today's medical landscape, but have you heard of the Orgone Energy Accumulator? Psychograph? Or Prostate Gland-Warmer? The Minnesota Science Museum houses a collection of dubious medical devices, but were these really designed to work? KFAI producer Will Wright takes a tour.

2. Alissa Barthel & Punk Rawk Labs
Produced by Cyn Collins
Punk Rawk Labs is a Minneapolis-based company specializing in living cuisine. Owner Alissa Barthel graduated with the inaugural class of the Matthew Kenney Academy, a culinary facility that specializes in raw food cuisine, then started her own line of products. In addition to her food business, Alissa writes a blog and produces an online "uncooking" show. For more information, visit punkrawklabs.net. Produced for KFAI by Cyn Collins.

3. Guante takes his message to school
Produced by Eric Blom
Guante is a spoken word and hip-hop artist, progressive activist, and educator from St. Paul. He curates the "Hip Hop Against Homophobia" concert series, taking his message to high schools, colleges and stages around the region. KFAI producer Eric Blom has more.

4. The Lila Ammons Jazz Quintet
Produced by Britt Aamodt
Lila Ammons grew up in Chicago--one of the hotbeds of American music. Trained in classical music, she was never far from her family roots in jazz. Her uncle Gene was a jazz player, and her grandfather Albert Ammons was one of the great boogie woogie piano players of the 1930s. Since 2010, Lila has been jazzing up the Twin Cities music scene with the Lila Ammons Jazz Quintent. KFAI's Britt Aamodt talks to Ammons and saxophonist Dean Brewington.

5. Toki Wright
Produced by Cristeta Boarini
Twin Cities hip-hop artist Toki Wright is a dynamic force on stage and in the recording studio. He's also an instructor at McNally Smith College of Music in St. Paul. KFAI producer Cristeta Boarini caught up with Toki to talk about his latest projects.