Flake in the City - Part 3
Laurie Anderson, Béla Fleck, vintage Fred Frith and a swanky loft party with Jesse Harris!
Sup lovers?
This is Part 3 of 4 from my continuing tales of 16 days in New York City.
9/9 Monday - WNYC Centennial Celebration, SummerStage in Central Park
A string of public radio personalities introduce the various artists for tonight's program. I'm here primarily for Laurie Anderson and Sexmob, so I will skip over the performances by Freestyle Love Supreme, mxmtoon, and Nada Surf.
I did really enjoy how between each segment there was a trivia round where contestants answer pretty basic questions to win merch for the audience, which is then slingshotted into the crowd to the sounds of air horns. The crowd is excited whenever the free T-shirts are slingshotted really far. Folks are waving silently to get the attention of the slingshotters while the trivia is on. It’s so gloriously American that I can’t stop smiling about it.
Laurie Anderson and Sexmob first come out for a little chat. Laurie calls Amelia Earhart "the first blogger." She only performs two songs with the band, but the first one is "Only an Expert,” and that tune is such a banger. It’s funky, mysterious, groovy, uplifting, tense, and cheeky, in that spunky way that can only be pulled off by Laurie.
Steve Bernstein totally slays the trombone, and trumpet. Sexmob is such a tight little band, and so exciting! For the second tune, Laurie whips out the violin and sways it to life. It's a duet with a Lou Reed sample, acapella. The combination of the reverberant, passionate violin over the haunting vocals, distorted guitar, and epic drums from Kenny Wollesen make for an all too brief but moving piece. I couldn’t help feeling like I was just aching for them to play more. Considering this was a free concert, I guess I got my money's worth. It’s like when shops offer you a free sample of the goods and then after a lil taste you immediately wanna buy it cause it was so good… come back Laurie!!
I hung around a bit waiting to see if Kenny was still kicking about, but unfortunately we missed each other this time. Not to worry. We would get our chance to catch up later on at… and I always feel weird typing this… Jesse Harris’s cool Loft Party.
9/10 Tuesday - BEAT Trio, The Blue Note
Béla Fleck (banjo), Edmar Castañeda (harp), Antonio Sanchez (drums)
Word on the street is that Antonio has a good head of hair. I'll be the judge of that.
"This is our first gig, so as Chick Corea used to say, 'Welcome to the rehearsal.'" There is a slight delay in showtime due to Edmar needing a stand light for his sheet music. Off we go with a sultry, Latin, upbeat number, led by banjo with harp and drums on rhythm section. One thing for sure, I ain't never saw nobody thrash a harp like dat. Wowa-wiwa. The Latino flair is strong with this one… it's kinda bizarre hearing a banjo in this context but frankly I'm living for it. Suddenly it all becomes apparent why that harp sounds as unique as it does. There's a set of three effect pedals being used.
Antonio plays like he's sucking on an extremely sour "warhead" or gummi worm, or some other super sour lolly. Beyond that, he has an arsenal of kit - two flat little snares, a regular snare, three toms, and a good handful of various rides, crashes, and hi-hats - some with holes, some with other cymbals on top of other cymbals… why not? Jesus, the more the merrier.
The third track has a galloping triplet feel. Edmar is one with his instrument - granted, he has a smile on his face - the unit is almost as big as his entire body. Suffice to say: his instrument is a large one.
This music is gloriously joyous. It's such a happy vibe. I say this a lot but I always feel like "How can anyone dislike this?" In much the same way as a John Zorn Dreamers record has mass appeal.
Not to speak too soon, Antonio comes out ripping one of the most controlled and dynamic drum solos I think I've ever seen. His command of the silence between machine gun bursts of impossibly fast rolls is so commanding and, well… it’s pretty hot. There's something about the sour gummi face and the slightly raised eyebrows along with the ridiculous talent that just screams "hot." Okay, and the gun-show. Sure. I'll admit it. Bro has kind of a lot goin' on for him. Either that or the wine is kicking in.
Let's inspect the others for a moment… It's super fun watching the playoff between Béla and Edmar - the array of questions and answers they throw at each other through their faces…
Edmar tells a story about how he broke his hand: "Now I'm better! … Now they call me the Robocop of the harp." - The moral to the story is "Don't give up," and the next composition, by him, “Whispers of Resilience”, is in dedication to this sentiment. This is the first proper ballad of the set, and you can see in Edmar’s face that it means a lot to him. I've never heard a harp sound so rock 'n' roll - it’s electric, and it sings not like an Angel, but a demon. Amazing. Same goes for the banjo. This is no bluegrass instrument tonight. It's actually quite emotional. Béla is taking all cues from Edmar for this special piece and with an inquisitive eye he looks up. And Edmar nods. The silver banjo plectrums reflect off Bella's hand like a mini disco ball in the tiny spotlights.
"I think we'll follow that with something insipid,” says Béla, and they play a song called “Insipid.”
Did I mention how frickin tiny this jazz hole is? Sardines. But we are in the front row, so to be enclosed in the same tin as these three sweeties is not so bad. They are all happily married though, so… there’s that old chestnut. *sigh*
Dang.
Anyhoo, here’s a video someone took from one of the following nights of the same residency. Sounds great. Pic is basically just Béla’s back.
9/11 - Jesse Harris’s Loft Party, West Broadway, Manhattan
Sometimes you look at your surroundings and you wonder to yourself, "How the fuck did my life choices lead me to this exact place, at this exact moment in time?" As an Australian girl who grew up in rural Victoria, who emigrated to even more rural Bavaria, I can't help but wonder what on earth I must have done to end up in Jesse Harris's loft party/concert night in a fifth floor apartment in downtown Soho, New York. But hey… here I am.
I greeted Jesse with a bracelet that read “COOL ASS LOFT PARTY” which he enjoyed, and helped myself to a glass of box wine. I had stupidly eaten before I arrived, but the noodle shop was doing a deal where if you gave them a Google review, you get a free tote bag that says “I like my noodle pulled!” so that was kind of a no-brainer.
I'm perched on the edge of a fuck-off gorgeous, huge sofa, trying not to stare at all of the pretty things too much. The swanky Jazz is piped through a swanky turntable, and Jesse lights a bunch of swanky candles and suddenly the place is even more "lit." I'm a little bit shy. Just gotta be careful to go easy on the Grüner Veltliner from the swanky box.
The pressed metal ceilings with exposed sprinklers are pretty AF and the sound is apparently gonna be amaze-balls, so I'm looking forward to hearing the private concerts begin. 🙂 <- This is me, I'm like, smiling awkwardly, in anticipation… there are musicians everywhere. Some carrying their music sheets, but most are just chin-waggin’ and chit-chattin’.
I have a talk with some Juilliard students. One argues: "Why is there no support act in classical concerts?!?” (Later in the week I brought this topic up with a musician who shall remain nameless who claimed that there is a strict heirachy system in classical, and that you “Do not fuck with the system,” adding threateningly: “I would like to see you try.”)
It’s September 11 and the view out the window is bonkers. You can see the lights that shoot up into the heavens in memorial, and it’s quite a sight to behold. Photos do not do justice.
So… let the musical entertainment for the evening begin.
Julia Elsas, Kenny Wollesen, Kirk Knuffke, and Madeleine Ventrice-Knuffke
The quartet whistle softly on precious homemade instruments with great focus, invoking a deep relaxed spiritual introduction. Knowing and understanding Kenny's passion for DIY and handmade instruments, it's interesting to see how this same passion is such a presence in his partner. It’s so sweet that the two of them have found each other, and that they connect so intimately through their love of handmade musical instruments. Sometimes the hoots and wails can be mistaken for exotic bird calls. When Kenny accompanies on homemade marimba and drums, a primal decorative cave-music is achieved. Yes there is an inherent hippyish LSD-friendly vibe to the earthiness of the ceramic sounds, which obviously comes from a place of love. Peace, love, and all that jazz. The ceramic wind chimes are rotated slowly. It's quite a contrast to the '20s party swing we were listening to on wax earlier.
The thing I love most about their work is just how bold of a move it is to cut the party, and make all the attendees pay attention to a mostly beat-less display of whistles and clay pipes. There are a couple sniggers from the onlookers but the band can certainly appreciate the absurdity. The crowd goes apeshit and the vinyl is back on - a moody brand of pop-ballad. I’m pleased to have been witness to this little clay sampler.
“Maryam Turkey”
Before long it’s time for act two of the evening. The familiar homey combo of shaker, simple electric and acoustic guitar, pretty, breathy vocals, and a muted, somehow subtle trumpet evoke a sweet stillness in the kitchen- onlookers are particularly mesmerized, others have respectfully quiet conversations- the singer, Maryam, is a sweetie and is humbly proud to announce the new piece she wrote with Jessie and Kenny. Dang - she’s keeping good company there!
“Anson Jones”
The brushes are out for a soulful ballad during Act #3 and it's hitting just right. Again, Kenny and Jesse are accompanying this sultry, lovely young woman on the piano, plus a gorgeous upright bass. This music has a mass appeal, and the combination of the understated vocal performance with the casual, even effortless songwriting is really supportive of it. It's quite amusing for me to see Kenny with his homemade shakers accompanying the rather poppy ditties. On paper you might think it sounds funny, but the accessible music peppered with the cyclical shakers is really cute. But it's not kitschy cute. There is a maturity to it that carries on throughout and that prevents it from getting uninteresting.
“Andrew Kamel”
I dunno who Andrew Kamel is, but apparently tonight is his night. He comes out first with Anson for a very tight version of "Lay Lady Lay." The two voices together are rich in purity and clarity, highlighting their special talents, and high-class skill, obviously honed in through a great many years of education and practice.
Andrew’s nine-or-so-piece string section accompaniment sounds dangerously professional! Kenny provides a malleted companion to a Beatle-esque ballad. It's rather elite and dramatic, but in a very palatable way. Andrew’s vocals remind me of a breathier McCartney. My parents would be all over this. After a few wines, I find myself becoming sentimental, but string and piano singer/songwriter ballads will do that, won't they? I believe Andrew will have a lot of success with this.
Afterwards Jesse performs a guitar ballad in French, which is also accompanied by the string section. Obviously it’s incredible, but for me it’s like "woah," because it's all so classy, along with the impressive real estate and stuff... Despite being slightly in over my head, I am still so very grateful that Jesse invited me to this party. I'll just keep trying not to spill any wine on this nice couch.
Also, I met a really feisty and hilarious young woman by the name of Aayushi Karnik. She is a Juilliard graduate for jazz git, and she had my sides splitting from laughter for the duration of the party. For your convenience, here’s a little clip of her effortlessly shredding and another one of a suave jazz composition she wrote and performed with her septet. She is one to look out for in future, without a *shred* of a doubt. Ha ha! See what I did there?
While I was in New York, I also did a little music mag shopping, so as a bonus today, I am including some scans of a vintage article from the 1986 May/June issue of OPTION, featuring Fred Frith! Hope you enjoy this cheeky time capsule…
If you are having trouble viewing the scans, just try it out on desktop with this link.
That’s gonna be it from me today lovers. As always, hit up fladik.net for all your fan wares, zines and needs, and don’t forget, if you like what you’re reading, you can always upgrade to “paid” to support my writing AND score yourself one of our members-only “Classic Guide to Strategy” car bumper stickers.
Till next time - Flake OUT!
xoxoxo
Flake
CEO Fladik