2008-03-29 Springsteen Seattle 1091

Originally uploaded by albabe

“Nils just played my pants off!” she said as the band launched into “She’s the One”. I could see why, as Nils’ scorching guitar work on “Because the Night” lived up to the hype its been getting during this tour. As a Springsteen fan since ‘84, and a longtime tour veteran, I was proud of my friend’s newfound love for the band. “I just fell in love with Nils,” she said, and I knew I had a new convert. Her first tour, Abby drove with me 8 hours to Seattle from Missoula for her Bruce baptism. She was not originally a fan, and I tried to prime her on the drive over with as many of my Bruce CDs as I could grab on the way out the door. She did me proud, rocking out, singingalong with some of the songs she recognized, and even calling out “Waiting on a Sunny Day” before I recognized it.

When we arrived at the venue, ticketless and soaked from the rainy walk over from the hotel, I was skeptical she would have a good time, though. I had bought tickets in the parkinglot before,paying well below face value for them. (The last time I saw The Boss, in Jersey, back in 2002, I paid $15). She, however, had never arrived at a show without tickets before, and was getting nervous after we had turned down three different scalpers asking $100 a pop. On our second pass around the complex, she was nearing her last nerve, so when the scalper walked towards us I was ready to deal.

“Got tickets? Need tickets?” he said.

“What do they cost?” I asked.

“Don’t waste my time. What’s your budget,” he said.

“$60,” I said. He countered, I countered. We ended up paying $140 for a pair in section 211.Nosebleeds, I know, but factoring in the “convenience charge” Ticketmaster charges, we still paid below retail.We made it into the venue, and she waited for another friend from Missoula who had been to the Portland show while I went to check out the seats. When I returned to them, we eventually balked at the $7 beers that we couldn’t take to our seats, and headed up towards our seats around 8. The show, slated to begin at 7.30, was finally underway just a little after 8.30.And what a show.

I had been warned that it was different from any E Street show I had ever seen, and those reports were right. Absent was Dany Federici, recovering from melanoma treatment. In his stead was Charles Giordano, the Sessions Band keyboardist and accordionist. Patty was also thankfully absent as well, back in Jersey dealing with the teenagers who had “kegs of beer rolling up the driveway, and 100 pizzas were delivered. Pot cookies were coming out of the oven. Patty’ll take care of that. She’s got that shit down.” At least she’s got something down. Lord knows she hasn’t figured out how to be a part of the E Street Band.

From the flubbed opening strains of Jimmy Cliff’s “Trapped”, of which Bruce said, “A little panic, good for the band,” Bruce Springsteen helped us celebrate “the final curtain on eight years of magic tricks” for a little over two hours. It was a politically charged show, with a heavy focus on the new stuff. The favorites, some coming from scrawled request signs in the crowd, (”Tenth Avenue Freeze Out”), some coming as audibles,others, as evidenced by the handwritten setlist posted on brucespringsteen.net, were planned out. But “Point Blank”? Amazing. Sandwiched between “Your Own Worst Enemy” and “Devil’s Arcade”, this gem hasn’t been played with the E Streeters since June 14, 2003 in Denmark. The re-working of”Reason to Believe”, for me, was the favorite. Bruce re-invented it as a driving, foot-stomping rollick, haunted by his opening imploration to “SSSSHHHHHHHHH” before the harmonica intro, and punctuated by the haunting treatment of his voice through some sort of effects pedal. Incredible.

I talked to ‘ole Abby today, and she confessed that she couldn’t stop singing Bruce all day.”When are you going to let me borrow some CDs?” she wanted to know. Wait until I give her,thanks to the power of the Internet, the entire show at 203 kbps.

Thanks Bruce, and thanks E Street Band.

wilma: the next 100 years

Originally uploaded by Chris Lombardi

The Big Sky Documentary Film Festival is coming to town next week. here’s a short primer for all of the filmmakers and filmwatchers who will be descending on the Garden City.

Historical

People interested in the historical buildings of Missoula should definitely check out the definitive list offered by The Missoula Downtown Association. It details 15 different buildings within walking distance of The Wilma Theater, as well as listing 20 other buildings close by. In addition, 4 distinct historical neighborhoods within walking distance of the theater are described, as well as a listing of another 4 neighborhoods, most within walking distance as well. Visit the Missoula Downtown Association [link]. If you’ve got access to wheels, you might be interested in Fort Missoula [link]. The Historical Museum at Fort Missoula was established in 1975 to collect, preserve, and interpret the history of Missoula County, Fort Missoula, and the timber products industry in western Montana.

Dining in Missoula

When you get to town, you can pick up a copy of The Missoula Independent [link] (found in red drop-boxes around town) for a more definitive listing of restaurants. I’m going to list a few here according to the specials they have on specific days, and then list a couple of other favorites.

• Sundays and Mondays: The Old Post Pub [link] - burger and a beer for $6
• Wednesdays: Sushi Hana [link] - $1 sushi
• Saturdays: The Old Post Pub - Fish Taco and Choice of Any Mexican Beer or Margarita for $8.00

On days when there is no special in which I’m interested, I find myself splitting a healthy serving of pasta with a friend over at Sean Kelly’s [link], grabbing a cheap burrito at Taco del Sol [link], walking south across the bridge for some great Italian at Mambo Italiano [link] or, if it’s between the hours of 5.15 and 6.15 p.m., catching a burger at 515 [link].

Breakfast? It’s The Shack [link], Dauphine’s [link], The Hob Nob [link] (great lunches, too!), or, if it’s a late night after the bars, breakfast at The Oxford [link], the oldest bar in Missoula.

Drinking Establishments

Speaking of bars, Missoula has many of them. I’ll let you discover them on your own, but wanted to list a few of note here.

• Al’s and Vic’s [link] is the oldest bar in Missoula at its original location with its original name.
• Charlie B’s, owned and operated by a Vietnam vet who does a lot for the local vets, and is one helluva guy in general.
• The Rhino [link] - great smoking bar with the best ventilation in town of all of the smoking bars. Features a huge selection of 50 beers as well as a decent Scotch menu.

The locals discuss their favorite bars over here [link].

Brew Pubs

Missoula is home to three great brewpubs, each wonderful in its own right. Check ‘em all out:

• The Kettlehouse [link]
• Bayern Brewing [link]
• Big Sky Brewing [link]

Music and Dancing

Yeah, but where can I DANCE? Ah. Glad you asked. The venues for hearing music in Missoula are shrinking, but two of my favorites are The Badlander [link], which has been through many different incarnations in Missoula’s history, and The Union Club [link], a Union bar that has live music on the weekends.

More local discussion of best music venues here [link] (YRMV)

You’ll also find dancing at AmVets [link], with live DJs spinning the tunes.

If you’re into local music, while the venues to see music may be shrinking, the music scene here in Missoula is blowing up. Locals discuss their favorites here. [link].

Someone asked me about where to shop in Missoula, but I typically find myself at the Goodwill or some other hidden away thrift shop, so I’m no good at answering that one.

This is most certainly not a definitive list, but meant to be a jumping off point. Any other locals want to weigh in and list some of their favorites?

Music

Originally uploaded by ~Brix

• The Grudge - Tool
• A Goodbye Rye - Richard Buckner
• Give out but Don’t Give Up - Primal Scream
• Is there a Ghost - Band of Horses
• Your Reverie - Kelley Stoltz

“Well, it’s one louder, isn’t it? It’s not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You’re on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you’re on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?” - Nigel

Originally uploaded by fd

When I first arrived in Missoula, I discovered KBGA, a hit-or-miss college station here in town. hit-or-miss because it’s a student run station that has a high turnover rate of DJs because they are all volunteer, and, well, that’s just the nature of the beast isn’t it.

I called the station one day, wanting to know how I could become a DJ. I jumped through all of the hoops, until I became Marcus Maximus, the 2AM to 6AM guy on Tuesday nights/ Wednesday mornings.

I left town for a while, was on the road for my job, and upon my return, I claimed an open slot on the radio and began playing only free, legally downloaded music. The paperwork for that was a huge PITA, and I soon burnt out on it. There was a short stint with Original Gimp doing a punk show called Girls on Skateboards before I finally gave up my permanent slot.

Now, when the mood strikes, I swing by the station to see if there are any open shifts. There were plenty this holiday break, and I landed one on New Years Day.

Here, submitted for your approval, is a recording of that show. Well, part of it, anyway. Download it, listen to it, listen some more, and let me know what you think in the comments.

Apologies in advance for: forgetting how to work the phones, the PSAs and local advertising.

Thanks, and happy listening.

—————-SETLIST and MP3 below———————————

MARCUS MAXIMUS ON KBGA MISOSULA - GRAB THE MP3 HERE. [link]

Opens with DAFT PUNK

1. Frankie Teardrop - Suicide
2. Radiohead Mashup
3. Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie - Black Flag
4. Point Blank - Bruce Springsteen
5. Selections from Pornosonic: Unheard Music from 1970s Porn  (With excerpts from Sun Ra’s Discipline, Noam Chomsky and Paris Hilton/Bansky “That’s Hot” mashup)
6. Providence/Tazer Floyd mashup - Godspeed! You Black Emperor
7. Life Worth Living - Uncle Tupelo
8. Screw Top Wine - John Dendy, Live at Liquid Planet, Missoula, MT
9. Buildin’ Somethin’ Up - John Dendy, Live at Liquid Planet, Missoula, MT
10. Don’t Make Me a Target - Spoon
11. Singin’ the Blues - Tricky
12. Mirror in the Bathroom - The Beat
13. We Will Not Be Lovers - The Waterboys
14. Waiting Around to Die - Be Good Tanyas
15.  4 A.M. - Richard Buckner (cut off)

It used to be that I’d do it once a year, and I always dreaded it.  I had five of those CD binders because I’d thrown away all of my jewel boxes.  I traveled a lot, and this was in the days before most of my music is digital.   I’m talking about, of course, the sorting of the CDs.  Mine were sprawling out of their cases and scattered all over one of the shelves in my living room and generally contributing to a look of disaray.

I loaded up iTunes with two episodes of This American life and set to work.  One good thing, I told myself, is that I’ve since consolidated CDs to get rid of three out of the five binders, so the sorting should be less.  I got all of them at least placed in the correct alphabetical piles, but actually alphabetizing them is for another day.

Meantime, I found a handful of mix CDs that I haven’t listened to in years.  I’ll load ‘em up in the car stereo and give them a spin over the next few days, but I thought you might appreciate some of the titles (not all mine).

Do *you* have any good mix CD titles?  Let me know in the comments.

1. Caffeine + Nicotine
2. Nicotine + Caffeine
3. Fallen Angels
4. Return of the Grievous Angle
5. Namaste
6. Strip Mall Hell
7. Absence of Faith
8. Tall and Smiley
9. Polishing Windows in a Car Wreck
10. Melancholy Madness
11. Acid Lust
12. Porchsitting in Missoula
13. Get Wrecked! Music for Dancing

The Agents had a constant presence. The seemed to be everywhere at once. They reminded us of an ambiguous “constant threat”, and spoke in urgent tones, always careful to be painfully polite, thanking us for our cooperation as they herded us from one space to the next.

“Why do the questions never change? Why are you asking yourself the same questions? What is your purpose? Where do you want to end up? Why do you think you are different than them? Why is it always about you?

“Am I different?”

Two women and a man stand imposingly over another man, who is seated. The seated man holds his head in his hands and is having a monologue with himself, asking questions about himself, his purpose. The questions are influenced by the barking interrogation of the three standing above him, one holding a harsh light over him. The seated man is dressed as a young professional, while the three who relentlessly question him, interrupting each other, creating confusion, creating a heightened sense of anxiety in the man. The evening built up to this point quickly, as Agents dressed in black, wearing dark sunglasses and earbuds ominously in place walked hurriedly and confidently throughout the gallery space, snapping instructions at guests, informing us that we must “clear the area” and “move along” but without telling us why. And no one asked why. Some of us knew what was transpiring that night at the Missoula Art Museum, others did not, but the feeling of fear and intimidation was very real. The interrogation lasted only a few minutes before the crowd was dispersed and the Agents cleared the gallery space again. They reconvened in the lobby of the gallery. One began reciting the First Amendment very loudly, while others whistled Yankee Doodle Dandy over top of his commanding voice. It all felt very Brave New World or 1984.

Immediately after all of the heaviness and orchestrated confusion, the sunglasses came off, the red clown noses appeared, and the gathered were invited into a performance of Peace, Joy and Celebration. A strip of cloth descended from the ceiling, and the crowd was invited to “grab on”, as we were led, by members of the OFA, into the performance space. The performance space was warm and welcoming, featuring a backdrop created by Jonathan Marquis and Adelaide Every, The Fabric of Our Lives, an abstract quilt of assembled fabric gathered from the Missoula community.

Pennies on the Ground - song and improvised structure by Catlin Hill

“no window open, no lamp lit, no light switch, no ladder up no rug down, no pans laughin, no kettles cryin, no pennies on the ground”

Heidi Junkersfield opened the performance by teaching us how to sing these words together, binding us as an impromptu micro-community within the larger community of Missoula for the evening’s performance. We sang these lines together in almost a chant before Jill Beauchesne performed a poem accompanied by Hill on violin and Nathan Zavalney on guitar while Anya Cloud played off of Beauchense’ words in a beautiful interpretive dance. The piece, Red Hawk on the Power Line, used familiar geographic imagery from Missoula’s North Side neighborhood to convey a sense of place and loneliness in the individual mind. I think. Sometimes I don’t “get” poetry, but I like the feel of it anyway.

Dakini Mind - conceived by Junkersfield and Penelope Baquero

“You are not balanced enough!” One woman shouts at the other. They are two halves of the individual self, battling it out for us to see. One, recites a litany of intentions that hold no weight because they are not backed up with action. Intentions of change, of becoming a better person, of wanting to be good in the struggle of daily life. It’s a familiar internal struggle that many of us have, and can lead to depression or redemption. We are eternally at odds with ourselves, and the two women in the spotlight shine a harsh light on our internal struggles by acting it out for us. But there are glimpses of harmony within this dissonance, as they danced together, embracing each other tenderly, before violently pushing each other away. The piece was an “exploration of three feminine mystical beings — Kali, Pachamama and Dakini” that included enough humor to allow the viewer to acknowledge seeing himself within the piece and encourage him to keep up the fight, to not give up. Dakini Mind finishes with Junkersfield running in place, talking out loud, trying to convince herself that she has it together, that she is strong. And then Baquero delivers the punchline: “I’m strong and I’m not even running.”

The Manual - collaborative piece created by the male members of OFA
“Man” as commodity. If the Male had a user manual, what would it look like? And who would use it? Men themselves, so they could better learn how to be men, but also the women in their lives, so that they could better understand this odd creature, “Man”. The Manual explores this idea by presenting four specimens of males: The Magician, The Lover, The Warrior, and The Politician (the Trickster?). Each is led to believe he can be a Real Man if he follows a certain set of guidelines, and each man in turn follows these guidelines and is ultimately undone by them.

The Magician is introduced to us, and is a cocky, confident young man. He is shown, by our colorful host, Mark Morante, the true path to manhood is Rock and Roll, and is deluded by the images projected onto the screen that this is his True Destiny. As the lights come up, and the images fade, he discovers a guitar in his hands. He begins to play it, writes a quick song, and the loud music kicks in. He Rawks Out. He keeps Rawking Out, until he is revealed to be a sham by a playful clown who shows him that the microphone into which he is “singing” is unplugged. The Lover, then, is brainwashed into believing that in order to be a Man he must regal the women with his tenderness, virility and charm. He chooses a woman at random from the crowd and begins to dance with her to Prince’s “Purple Rain”, but is ultimately distracted by the appearance of a mirror, which he takes, dropping the woman, dancing with his own reflection. The Warrior then comes to the stage and watches propaganda on the screen which convinces him that to be a Real Man, he must Make The Ultimate Sacrifice and become a Soldier. The clowns return, this time somberly, carrying his dead body from the stage. Finally, The Politician arrives, eager, hopeful and self-assured. After he is shown images on the screen of “great leaders”, he stands up and begins schmoozing and pumping the hands of his devoted, but, then, sadly, begins accepting graft from the Clown Lobbyists and he too is led from the stage.

So what is the answer? How can one be a True Man?

Peace.

The screen flickers images of peaceful protests, anti-war messages as a beautiful cover of John Lennon’s Imagine plays. (Anyone who was there know who sang this?) All of the OFA are now on the stage dancing together, with recognizable elements from Tai Chi and yoga infused into the dance.

The OpenField Artists is an Interdisciplinary art collective which uses dance, theater, spoken word, music, video and visual art to explore themes such as Myth, Cultural Identity, and Consumption. Through experimentation, improvisation and the presentation of original works, they create experiences that involve the public in a variety of ways.

OFA:
Heidi Junkersfeld
Jonathan Marquis
Naga Nataka
Abbey Stevens
Nathan Zavalney
Catlin Hill
Thaddeus Haas
Jason Gutzmer
Penelope Baquero
Adelade Every
Anya Cloud
Mark Morante
Jill Beauchesne

I’ve written about The Open Field Artists before. You’ll have another opportunity to see them this week at Artini, at the Missoula Art Musuem starting at 5.30PM. From their email invite:

“There will be 13 of us presenting at Artini this coming Thursday the 15th. We have been preparing for this since summer. There will be improv throughout the space as well as set pieces up in the Native American Art Gallery. Adelade and Jonathan have created hanging structures which will also be in the space. Our first show is from 5:30-7pm. Then a talk from the visiting artist until 7:30. Then again we have another show from 7:30-8:30. We will have a brief talk-balk opportunity from 8:30-8:50.
Below is a list of who is involved, photo, and a brief description….

Peace…and always…Muchas Gracias

Words Used for the Creation of Works for MAM’s November Artini:

revolution. community. oppression. freedom. revolution.

Secret Agents will watching the space, the people. The public should be prepared for questioning. Revolutionary clowns appear with a Technicolor Dragon which will lead humanity toward a further acceptance of self inside-of-other! Perhaps we are connected (Earth). Perhaps we should being doing more. Perhaps…Listening, Questioning, Celebrating.

The OpenField Artists is an Interdisciplinary art collective which uses dance, theatre, spoken word, music, video and visual art to explore themes such as Myth, Cultural Identity, and Consumption. Through experimentation, improvisation and the presentation of original works, they create experiences that involve the public in a variety of ways.

OFA:
Heidi Junkersfeld
Jonathan Marquis
Naga Nataka
Abbey Stevens
Nathan Zavalney
Catlin Hill
Thaddeus Haas
Jason Gutzmer
Penelope Baquero
Adelade Every
Anya Cloud
Mark Morante
Jill Beauchesne”

Check them out on YouTube.

THE ALBUM WILL COME AS A 48.4MB ZIP FILE CONTAINING 10 X 160KBPS DRM FREE MP3s.

All you have to do is perform a Google News search for “Radiohead”, and you’ll see that much is already being written about their decision to make their new album “In Rainbows” available for download at a cost of, well, whatever you’re willing to pay as a consumer. Yes, this is revolutionary, but let’s take a closer look, and then let’s draw some parallels before deciding what, if anything other artists can learn from Radiohead’s bold move.

Free art has been available for a long time. I have degraded images of some of my art available for your viewing. How am I to stop you from “stealing” it by downloading it to your local machine, or even making prints of it yourself? I can’t stop that. (If you DO decide that is the route you’re going to take, please consider making a donation of whatever amount you’re comfortable with). I’ve also given away my artwork for free before. Sometimes, I don’t know who the recipient of the free art is. Other times, I have the pleasure of meeting the cheapskate art lover. Either way, I look at it as a way to spread the joy of art, as well as getting my name out there. If I made enough money to hire an accountant, I’d have him write off the free art at whatever value I assign to it and claim it on my taxes as a marketing expense.
Street musicians and performers have been using the “give what you’re comfortable giving” business model for years. Sometimes, they even make enough to get by. Even restaurants sometimes give away free food to entice you into coming into the restaurant and experiencing the art of their chefs, for example.

In the case of the restaurants, they are hoping that you’ll come into their establishment and buy more food. Similarly, Radiohead is offering their music for free, if you want it. But, as they say in the email which they send to folks who have signed up to download the album tomorrow, the songs will only be ripped at 160KBPS. I like my digital music at 192 or better, and I’ll bet that audiophile fans of Radiohead are willing to pony up some cash for an actual CD of the music, as there are rumors floating around that Radiohead will sign with a label to distribute the album in 2008. Think you can avoid the lines getting the digital version? Nope, there’s even a digital queue:

But can visual artists, for example, afford to give away their best work for free? Maybe degraded digital copies of it, sure, but originals? No, I don’t think they can. And I’ll go one step further and ask all artists who are just getting started not to underprice their artwork. Doing so de-values artwork by other artists of the same caliber and makes the art-buying public thank that paying full value for art is not necessary. I was in a gallery over the weekend at which the featured artist was selling small 5″x7″ framed original watercolors for less than $100. An original is worth more than that, my friend.

For more about how to price artwork, have a look at this article.

Donate and Support the Artist

If you found this article useful, please consider making a small donation. I accept donations in any amount, none are too small or too large. All donations and gifts will be used to further my artwork. Donations are easy to give online, via Paypal or if you would like to work out any other method of supporting your local arts, please contact me directly via email.

1. Radio Nowhere - Bruce Springsteen
2. Good Morning Little Schoolgirl - The Yardbirds
3. Girls of Summer - Aerosmith
4. Drown - Son Volt
5. High Tension Wire - Dead Boys