Weekly Rochester Events #284: Years of Chinese Tibet

Thursday, June 17, 2004

I basically spent Thursday afternoon and evening, and most of Friday afternoon setting up for the Synaesthesia show at The All-Purpose Room (#8 in the Public Market, off N. Union St.) It was a kind-of nice change ... I was just finding the next thing to do that needed to be done and doing it. Friday's show went well ... amost trouble-free. All the performances were good and the art was interesting. I liked having the video projection on the wall that faced the entrance so when you walk in, you got a sense of "the dynamic" immediately. PETE's video piece projected onto screens over the windows behind the bands was great. It looked like a studdering image of magnified video, but it was sufficiently abstract in a still sense to continue to draw interest. Plus you could see it from outside as well, and it even projected flickering images onto the parking lot.

By 2 a.m. or so the last band had finished and the DJ's started. There were three guys spinning on six tables. DJ's are okay for a while for me, but I just don't get into it. However, I had brought my bike with the trailer—my cynical assumption being that if I didn't bring the trailer, I would be there close to the opening time of The Rochester Public Market and I could have gotten my fruit shopping done, but if I did bring it, I would have to drag it back home and return again in the morning.

Well, I wasted some time cleaning things up a bit, and I ended up making it to the dawn. By 4 a.m. the crews at the vegetable places were a little perturbed we were partying all night. Most of the audience had left by 3:30 or 4, but a few stayed on. When the cheese shop owner arrived around 4:30, we found out we had danced so hard it dislodged the frosted lamp globe over the counter which smashed on the ground ... he wasn't too happy, but after cleaning up the mess and promising to replace the globe, he was at least able to get on with his busiest day without staying irritated about his morning surprise. Anyway, I made it all the way until 5 a.m. when the market opened, got my apples and bananas and biked home. I got 5 hours or so of sleep before getting up to go to O'Bagelo's (165 State Street)

Saturday afternoon I was back at The All-Purpose Room (#8 in the Public Market, off N. Union St.) for "Day 2." I brought my photos and got them set up and lighted. I also brought my X-10-based lighting kit and set it up in the stairwell with a program to cycle through colors every hour or so. Unfortunately it flaked out: the Marrick, Ltd. LynX10 box kept reporting errors ... after an hour or so, I figured out that the video projector was causing interference. While people were coming in, I was still setting up and I finally did get it working. That wasn't much fun, but at least it did something. It seemed like everyone was still setting up something as 8 p.m. came and went.

Anyway, I think Saturday night looked better than Friday, but the overall vibe was better on Friday. I really liked The Ready Mades—they were this great ... umm ... band from Syracuse. See, they set up instruments and have the audience get in a line, and on cue, the first person in line moves to the first instrument and anyone on subsequent instruments moves as well ... then the audience plays until the next cue (which, by the way, was a forward-backward video loop of the guy's face melting off at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.) They handed out a pamphlet titled So, I'm in the Ready-Mades? so people understood. Unlike a corporate "team-building experience" this was fun because the people setting it up did not feign expertise.

The other interesting highlight was Nuuj's performance as Sheet where he bashes around a piece of sheet metal with a contact microphone connected to effects, yielding a pained, high-volume feedback. I could hear his performance from the other gate past all the buildings.

In addition, I won the Jay Lincoln untitled picture of Jerry from Lux Lounge (666 South Ave.) in the art raffle to benefit The All-Purpose Room (#8 in the Public Market, off N. Union St.)

So anyway, this "collective" thing is somewhat new to me. At least the version that Synaesthesia created. The key thing is there is nobody in charge. Unfortunately, the people who started it had ideas of what they wanted, and they tended to impose their will in a subtle but ultimately authoritarian manner, yet they refused to clearly define their ideology. That part was pretty frustrating. Also, there was a lot of friction about whose stuff goes where and what order the bands were to play. I didn't get it—if you were concerned, you should have been involved more in the setup ... I was way more involved with setup than the amount I cared, so I mostly shrugged it off. It is definitely not a place for fragile egos.

Anyway, in an unrelated but amusing anecdote, I think I have a way to separate the concept of "sarcastic" from "sardonic." My friends Jan and Shannon are getting married next month and they went to apply for their marriage license. Shannon wanted to keep her middle name and last name, and add Jan's last name as a second last-name. Well, New York doesn't allow people to have more than three names. A sarcastic response might have been "Right, because it's impossible that someone would want to have four names." However, Jan replied in a sardonic way by stating simply, "What would George Herbert Walker Bush do?"

T H U R S D A Y

Fleet Party in the Park will be at High Falls Festival Site (Browns Race and Commercial St.) tonight starting at 5:30 p.m. featuring The Duke Robillard Band with special guest John Hammond. [source: City Hall press release] Tonight's another LITalk at Verb Café at Writers and Books (740 University Ave.) starting at 7 p.m. with the long title, An Awful Rowing in Eden in Toward God: Comparing the Spiritual World Views of Anne Sexton and Emily Dickinson with Patricia Roth Schwartz. [source: Writers and Books calendar] At The Rochester Public Library (115 South Ave.) starting at 7 p.m. is a session titled Do I Need a Patent? where you learn to do patent searches and other such nonsense. [source: Rochester Public Library calendar] The Dryden Theater at George Eastman House (900 East Ave.) will be showing Les amants criminels (Criminal Lovers) starting at 8 p.m. A haunting film about a young couple who get involved in a life of crime and murder. [source: Eastman House calendar] Blues For The Red Sun, and metal/punk-rock band Fallguy will be at The Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave.) starting around 9:30 p.m. [source: Bug Jar calendar] Pure Kona Poetry Open Mic Night is at Daily Perks (389 Gregory St.) tonight starting at 7:30. [source: Daily Perks calendar] The relatively recently formed reggae band Bear Bones will be at Tonic (East Avenue near Alexander) starting around 9:30 p.m. [source: band e-mail] Over at Montage Grille (50 Chestnut St.) starting around 9 p.m. is Dave Rivello's 12-Piece Jazz Ensemble [source: Montage e-mail]

F R I D A Y

Tonight at 7 p.m. is Rhythm Nights at High Falls Festival Site (Browns Race and Commercial St.) with blues band Joe Beard Family Blues Reunion for free. [source: City Hall press release] Tonight at Daily Perks (389 Gregory St.) is VocalaCity starting around 8 p.m. [source: Daily Perks calendar] Tonight and tomorrow at Downstairs Cabaret (172 West Main St.) is Nuts and Bolts Improv Troupe (see their site at ImprovAmerica too) starting around 8 p.m. [source: Downstairs Cabaret calendar] Tonight at The Blue Room (293 Alexander St.) is Banned from the Tavern starting around 7 p.m. [source: WBER calendar] Today through Sunday is the Maplewood Rose Festival at The Maplewood Rose Garden (Driving Park and Lake Ave.) which was designated as a park (as opposed to part of Seneca Park) 100 years ago in 1904. The festival includes Lower Gorge tours all day, an art exhibition and sale, Brass Taxi at 6:30 p.m. tonight, Erie Canal Barber Shop Chorus at 12:15 p.m. on Saturday, Uncle Joe's Medicine Show at 1:30 p.m. n Sunday, and The Dady Brothers at 4 p.m. on Sunday. [source: City Hall press release] The Dryden Theater at George Eastman House (900 East Ave.) will be showing Planet of the Apes starting at 8 p.m. You've seen all the parodies and homages ... now see the original on a new 35mm print. [source: Eastman House calendar] Tonight at The Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave.) starting at 6 p.m. is the opening reception for Scene Dreams from Behind My Minds Eye by Sean O'Connor. [source: the proverbial grapevine] Tonight at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que (99 Court St.) is the 1960's-style rock-and-roll of The Hirisers starting around 10 p.m. [source: Dinosaur Bar-B-Que calendar] Tonight at The Club at Water Street (204 N. Water St.) is surf-rock influenced punk rock from The Priests, and St. Phillip's Escalator starting around 10 p.m. [source: Water Street calendar] Tonight's another East End Fest (East Ave., near Scio and Richmond St. near Main St.) featuring a bunch of party- and cover-bands. Uncle Plum will be at the stage by Milestones at 9 p.m. and The United Booty Foundation will play all night at the East Ave. stage. [source: Freetime]

S A T U R D A Y

O'Bagelo's, 165 State Street, noon. Today's the The Surplus Vehicle and Equipment Auction at The City Surplus Yard (210 Colfax St.) held by The Reynolds Auction Company. The auction begins at 9 a.m. with a preview starting at 8. Ordinarily there are two each year, but the one last fall was cancelled because of the arrival of a new fleet of police vehicles, so this one will be twice as big as usual. Some advice about bidding: in the past, the first vehicles sold among a lot of identical vehicles went for cheapest. [source: Reynold's Auction website] In case you've got some time and either need fewer points on your license or cheaper car insurance, RIT (One Lomb Memorial Dr., campus map image) is hosting the 6-Hour Defensive Driving Course - NYS Point Insurance Reduction Program today from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the CIMS Building, #70, Room 1435. [source: RIT Events Calendar site] Monty's Krown (875 Monroe Ave.) will be hosting a benefit to keep the bar open (apparently someone ran off with all the money in the bank.) Anyway, the lineup is: awesome punk-rock band The QUiTTERS, great punk-rock from The Grinders, punk-rock/hard-rock band The UV Rays, The White Devils, Baba Yaga, everlasting everyband, The Peachy Neachys , great metal band Sulaco, good punk band with an Irish slant, Tom Foolery and the Shenanigans, and NoFX cover band The Moron Brothers starting around 7 p.m. [source: Monty's Krown calendar] Updated: Today is the opening of a new show by Sean Pelletier titled Construct/Construction at The All-Purpose Room (#8 in the Public Market, off N. Union St.) from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. The show runs through July 10 and is apparently original drawings of "robot assisted" art. [source: All-Purpose Room calendar] Today from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Abundance Cooperative Market (62 Marshall St.) is The Art of Somalian Cuisine cooking demonstration by Somalian native, Fatma Sheekh. [source: Abundance Co-op calendar] Folk singer and feminist wit Christine Lavin will be performing in the Eisenhart Auditorium at Rochester Museum & Science Center (657 East Ave.) starting around 8 p.m. [source: WITR calendar] The Dryden Theater at George Eastman House (900 East Ave.) will be showing Heaven's Gate starting at 8 p.m. Another of the "Beautiful Losers," the film is about the fight for immigrants' rights in Wyoming. [source: Eastman House calendar] Tonight at Tiki Bob's Cantina (60 Browns Race, in the Centers at High Falls) is wicked fun percussive groove-rock band, The BuddhaHood starting around 10 p.m. [source: band e-mail] Tonight at The Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave.) is the CD release party for very good acoustic-rock/groove-rock band Gregory Paul and the Autumdivers, and decent acoustic rocker Andy Schmitz starting around 10:45 p.m. [source: Bug Jar calendar] Over at Starry Nites (696 University Ave., formerly Moonbeans) starting around 9 p.m. is Lisa Dotolo. [source: Freetime] Excellent instrumental funk band The Filthy Funk and another band to-be-announced will be at Richmond's (21 Richmond St.) starting around 10:30 p.m. [source: Freetime]

S U N D A Y

Father's Day This afternoon at 1 p.m. is another of the City's Sunday Serenades at Washington Square Park (across Woodbury from Geva Theater) featuring the The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra Brass Quintet. The rain location is The Dugan Center at St. Mary's Church (15 Saint Marys Pl.) across the street. [source: City Hall press release] Today's the last day to see the Water Street Music Hall (204 N. Water St.) presentation of the live rock musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch at 3 p.m. Over at Montage Grille (50 Chestnut St.) tonight is The Eggmark Film Festival 4 sponsored by Eggwork Productions starting at 7 p.m. They'll be showing short films including Matt Ehlers' imperfect (unless he edited it since I saw it in March) but funny Who's Your Daddy? and Hole in the Wall, nauseatingly juvenile short films from Animatus Studio (34 Winthrop St) including Su & Mo: Lost In Animation, and Sharks in the Water (directed by Dave Puls) the very funny short The Lazy Assassin (directed by Jennifer Goyette) and Finding Hermann (directed by Eric Robinson.) It's one of the few free things you'll find at the Montage ... well, 'cept for donations. [source: Eggwork e-mail] Over at The Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave.) starting around 6:30 p.m. is a second night to benefit Monty's Krown (yes, at the Bug Jar) with awesome rock-and-roll from Low Ton, even more from Bee Eater, punk-rock from The Grinders (again) competent gritty rock from The Franks, ambient/power-pop band Hinkley, very standard fast rock from Bitpart, punk-rock from Piehole, super fun punk-rock band The Flour City Knuckleheads, and very good punk-rock from The Emersons. [source: Bug Jar calendar] Open Mic Night at On the Rocks (1551 Mount Hope Ave., formerly Michael's and before that Trios.) [source: Freetime]

M O N D A Y

In the Canalside Shelter at Genesee Valley Park (Hawthorn Dr.) is a punk-rock show starting at 3 p.m. featuring Vöetsek from California, Michigan's Forever Youth, Spoonful Of Vicodin, The Rare Ones, Fatality and two more. [source: flyer found at the Bug Jar] The Bop Shop (274 N. Goodman St., in Village Gate Square) will be hosting the Gebhard Ullman / Steve Swell Quartet featuring Hill Greene and Barry Altschul starting around 8 p.m. [source: Bop Shop calendar] Over at The Little (240 East Ave.) tonight is another installment of the Emerging Filmmaker Series at 9:30 p.m. [source: Little Theatre e-mail] Excellent experimental jazz band TatYana will be playing tonight at Alexandria Mediterranean Cuisine (120 East Ave., formerly Aria) starting at 10. [source: the proverbial grapevine]

T U E S D A Y

Madhouse free-for-all on-stage mosh from The Laundryroom Squelchers, Dave Cross, semi-melodic fast-paced noise from Pengo, Nuuj, The Unicorns, The Arcade Fire, The Race, and Leilani Swafford will be at The Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave.) starting around 9 p.m. [source: Bug Jar calendar] Over at Brü Brewery and Restaurant (300 State St., formerly Empire Brewing) starting around 10 p.m. is Mike Z and Drum. [source: Freetime] Daily Perks (389 Gregory St.) is hosting an Acoustic Open Mic from 8 to 10. For this one, there's no microphones and it's pretty open ended. [source: Daily Perks calendar]

W E D N E S D A Y

The Dryden Theater at George Eastman House (900 East Ave.) will be showing Mahanagar (The Big City) starting at 8 p.m. A look at India and the limits imposed on the role of women. [source: Eastman House calendar] Today at Starry Nites (696 University Ave., formerly Moonbeans) is the Starry Nites Summerfest 2004 with wine tasting, tea leaves readings, Lumiere and The Gypsy Jazz Trio. Poor People United meets tonight and every Wednesday at 7 at St. Joseph's House of Hospitality (402 South Ave.) [source: the proverbial grapevine] Tonight from 8 to 10 is an Open-Mic Comedy Night at Daily Perks (389 Gregory St.) While once it was a workshop type of environment, it's now more-or-less a regular open mic ... by default it's still a place to try out new stuff. [source: Daily Perks calendar]