What Noise?

\ Feb 18, 2010

3 min read

In defiance of romantic tradition, this Valentine’s Day the Albuquerque underground attended an early morning noise show at 1kind Studios. It was one of the morning shows that 1kind throws occasionally that encourages breakfast potlucking, coffee drinking and waffle eating.

When I walked into the dimly lit room around 11 a.m. I was confronted by the wafting smell of breakfast and a man smashing a guitar with what appeared to be a mallet in the corner, squeezed between the wall and a piano. The room was filled with an industrial screaming, like supersonic electric drilling or a compression hose.

The first act I saw completely was the local noise duo Baby Shampoo, playing their first show. They shared a sepia-stained 16 mm film upside down, which they had picked up from a thrift store and said was about the Tsunami. Their sounds, made by a horizontal guitar and a few pedals, made an unusual but fitting soundtrack for the film with its images of crashing waves and junkyards. They had edited the end themselves, using watercolors and sharpie for a psychedelic apex to close the set.

Rocket Parlour is a husband-wife noise team that recently moved to Albuquerque after a hiatus in Taos. They are known for their unique homemade instruments. For our show, Lorin Parker opened a box full of buttons and levers and lights, and attached to it a long piece of wood mounted with electrical fixtures. His wife Sarah Seelig is a concert pianist, and she played piano along with him. Their noise made the already dark room seem sinister and creepy; it was fun. Lorin Edwin mentioned that he will be teaching “make your own sythesizer” workshops out of 1kind in March, and possibly out of his space in the Harwood Art Center. Stay posted if you like music and science: www.electricwestern.com.

Local noise experience A Church is not a Hospital sat amid a myriad of pedals and instruments like two kids watching bugs. They were just amazing. I don’t even want to get into it, come see for yourself next time.

The Wild Yaks were not like the others, being a beat-driven rock band on tour from Brooklyn. They played with a friendly and high energy; I caught them warming up by frolicking around the back of the building before they performed. If you missed them this time, or you’ve been missing them since, don’t worry. They are due to return to New Mexico on March 12 on their way to SXSW. I will keep you informed about that.

I, unfortunately, was dragged away before the last two performances. To keep updated on breakfast shows, noise shows and breakfast/noise shows of the future, visit www.myspace.com/albuquerquediy. Or keep checking here.