Sime Gezus

Dome Island is that rarest of things on Lake George, an undisturbed piece of the original wilderness.  And on August 20, the committee that has worked quietly for more than fifty years to maintain it in a natural state will host a fundraiser to support  its conservation efforts.

“Hip Hop for Rip Rap,” a benefit for the Dome Island Preserve Committee, will be held on August 20 at the Brass Ring in Bolton Landing.

Five acts affiliated with the upstate New York record label Sub-Bombin will perform from 9 pm to midnight. A donation of $5 per person will be collected at the door.

“One hundred percent of the proceeds will be dedicated to rip rapping so that Dome Isand will be protected from erosion,” said Henry Caldwell, the chairman of the Dome Island Preserve Committee.

According to Caldwell, conservation pioneer John Apperson began rip rapping the island in 1917 after a landslide. Apperson purchased the island in 1939 and donated it to the Nature Conservancy in 1956.

Rawhead. Matt Granger Photo.

In recent years, the Dome Island Committee and the Eastern New York Nature Conservancy, which continues to own Dome Island,  have funded many projects and programs to study and protect the larger Lake George eco-system, said Caldwell.

But, he said, Dome Island itself remains the focus of the Committee’s attention.

“We’ve funded studies of mercury pollution and wildlife corridors. We’ve supported the Adirondack Research Library, which houses important documents about the early history of conservation on Lake George. But our first priority is Dome Island,” said Caldwell.

“We’re grateful to Sub-Bombin Records and its talented stable of artists for this generous donation of time and energy,” said Caldwell.

According to Collin Badger,  who helped found Sub-Bombin in 2005,  the label began as a collective of hip-hoppers, electro-rockers, dj’s and dub-heads, who now collaborate on records and in live performances.

Based in Glens Falls, the label first attracted national attention when one of its acts, the electronic duo Charle Everywhere, was signed by a major independent label in 2009 and changed its name to Phantogram.

Sub-Bombin’s most recent release is “Psychpomp” by Rawhead, an instrumentalist who will be among the performers at the August 20 benefit.

M.R. Blackout

Issued originally as an LP, Psychpomp is “a fresh, aural eardrum experience,” according to Brooklyn-based music critic Adam Winters.

Complementing Rawhead’s beat-laden electronica at the benefit will be emcees M.R. Blackout and Sime Gezus, electronic duo Mr. Owl and Midas DJing throughout the evening.

“Even though our music is urban rooted, we love the outdoors, especially Lake George,” said Collin Badger. “Coming to Bolton Landing and a new venue is very exciting, and we know our audience will appreciate the opportunity to do something for the lake.”