Marsden Hartley once wrote of the challenges of inhabiting New Mexico in a letter to Alfred Stieglitz. "This country is very beautiful and also difficult... It is not a country of light on things. It is a country of things in light, therefore it is a country of form, with a new presentation of light as problem." New Mexico remains a beautiful, difficult land.
Noise music isn't for everyone. But, for those of us that it is for, well, there's nothing else quite like it. I could get all academic and prattle on about perception or signals and signatures, but what it really comes down to is a visceral reaction to sound. If you're of the noise-lovin' persuasion, New Mexico — and Burque in particular — is a damn fine place to call home. Things in Light is pleased to present our twentieth podcast, Mostly Noise Mix, featuring Summer Assassins (Raven Chacon and John Dieterich), Anna Mall, Postcommodity, William Fowler Collins, Luperci, Father of the Flood, TAHNZzz, Cinik, and Dan K. See the full track listing below.
1. Summer Assassins - Creeping of the Foul (excerpt)
2. Anna Mall - Vivre Se Vie
3. Postcommodity - Piles of Cougar Pelts (excerpt)
4. William Fowler Collins - Slow Motion Prayer Circle
5. Luperci - Excarnation III
6. Father of the Flood - The Wind Which Carries Your Scent
7. TAHNZzz - Ground Levels
8. Cinik - The Scene in Which the Villain Escapes
9. Dan K. - CLONÆZÆPÆM
It's hard to draw a perfect heptagram. Console yourself by attending the Third Not-Really-Annual Crabwalk on Thursday evening at the P & J (202 Harvard SE). But what is a crabwalk, exactly? Event organizer DJ Caterwaul briefed Things in Light on the structure and history of the crabwalk. Crabwalks gather a diverse group of musicians - typically five, primarily local - in a performance space and then the musicians play in round-robin, usually pentagram, fashion. The audience is positioned at the center of this vortex. The musicians often band together for an improv session by the end of the performance.
"I think this is the most musically diverse of all the crabwalks that have happened. Hip hop, singer/songwriter, metal, sound collage, noise, experimental, and chiptune music are all represented here, plus some stray subgenres, I reckon," said DJ Caterwaul. This year's crabwalk features seven musical elements. It's formula is : Bud Melvin's "8-bit hacked Gameboy accompanied by banjo/uke" + Chemtrail Pilot's "lone wolf hip hop" + Cinik's "solo-experimental-[ism]" + Iceolus' "proggy high desert 'burnt sienna' metal" + Javelina's songstress Emma Arsonist + Las Cruces-based Lobsterbreath's "mad scientist culture jamming" + a guest appearance by Alan George Ledergerber's Blacker Guise.
According to Bud Melvin (the Grave of Nobody's Darling, Lionhead Bunny, Phantom Lake), "In a crabwalk, the groups form a circle as the primordial point. The audience goes wherever it will. I walk in with a plan and the plan becomes useless, as I end up changing songs at the last minute to compliment or contrast what came immediately before and what maybe my unconscious knows is next."
Cinik said, "Even though I play live occasionally, I'm still always a bit uncomfortable playing for an audience, but, for once, I feel totally comfortable because this group event has a strong purpose -- to illustrate that Albuquerque has an excellently diverse music scene. The concept is less about the traditional performer audience relationship and more about communicating what Albuquerque has going for it."
According to Greg Markham (Roñoso, Iceolus, Prison of Sound), "This event shows our capacity to have seemingly contradicting genres compliment each other. Meanwhile, an audience in the middle is given a ride through five, and now with this year seven, different sonic entities. And, in the end, when all the sounds converge, we hope that if we haven't treaded upon new ground, we can all come out inspired."
The Third Not-Really-Annual Crabwalk will commence at the P&J (202 Harvard SE) on Thursday night at 8 p.m. and end by 11 p.m. All-ages. Donations for the P&J and local artists are welcome.
Scroll on for video of the artists performing at this year's Crabwalk.
American Modernist painter Marsden Hartley once wrote of the challenges of inhabiting New Mexico in a letter to Georgia O'Keeffe's husband, photographer and promoter Alfred Stieglitz. Hartley wrote: "This country is very beautiful and also difficult... It is not a country of light on things. It is a country of things in light, therefore it is a country of form, with a new presentation of light as problem." While time has passed since Hartley penned these words, New Mexico remains a beautiful, difficult land.
TIL Publisher Samantha Anne Carrillo
TIL Editor Rudolfo Carrillo
Things in Light Editor in Chief Rudolfo Carrillo currently serves as music & news editor for Weekly Alibi. Carrillo earned his bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from the University of New Mexico. His work has appeared in a wide range of publications, including daily newspapers, literary magazines and alt-weeklies. His personal weblog, Infinity Report, was recognized as one of the best blogs in New Mexico in 2007. At the latest Southwest Popular/American Culture Association conference, Carrillo chaired the experimental writing workshop.
