[ratward summer camp 2003 activity notes]

The last few "shows" here have been really great! THANKS to all the performers and volunteers.THANKS to everyone for coming out and supporting the bands!

recent show reports:

-7-12-03-

EMILBEAULIEAU-PRURIENT-IMMACULATE:GROTESQUE-NO-FI-XXO'S-TO KILL A PETTY BOURGEOISIE.

After a few technical difficulties Richmond's TO KILL A PETTY BOURGEOISIE take the floor with some spastic audio cut-up's,blasts of noise rhythms,and suprise beats!
Up next (and just in time) was The XXO's from Chicago,a total now-wave psych-out rock jam.
NO-FI played next just to fill the schedule until... EMIL BEAULIAEU spun,scratched,twitched,tweaked,confused,and convulsed his way through a very lively set of heavy sound abuse."R...RR...RRR...RRRREY POOOOO he chanted,in his hands a phonograph record clearly affirming his mantra with bold white letters painted across the vinyl's black surface "REY POO".He dicates with his index finger motioning the audience to sing along..moments later the needle hits record,in the blaring waves of noise you can barely discern said phrase in the audio,or was it just our imaginations? After the performance one woman asks Emil "Rape Who?",he smirkingly replied "I never even thought of that".
More noise followed with a short,dense set of harshness from Providence,RI's IMMACULATE:GROTESQUE...lots of grinding destruction and guitar pedal abuse (literally!)
And finally a rather disturbing performance by PRURIENT.Piercing high-end feedback pulsating intensely, anxiously,building up into a sudden cathartic blast of pure self-destructive audio violence! His body flailing wildly...like a slam-dancing punker on fire! Mere seconds pass until everything came unplugged,ending the show.... then he quickly ran out of the building,the crowd cheering and screaming.

-7-6-03-

Day Three of Temple of Bon Matin's July 4th weekend mini tour! TEMPLE OF BON MATIN,BAYLIE'S BAND,RADIO ERIS,SUNTEARS ON THE HILL TOP,IGON,SEVENTH GATE,NO-FI.

First up was BAYLIE'S BAND bringing thier brand of wierdo jam-out noisy Boston area garage rock. Next thing you know I found myself in a daze,admiring the cleverly decorated instruments of TEMPLE OF BON MATIN as they were setting up.A gentle guitar melody quietly loops through the air,backed up by swirling synth sounds,like little helicopter leaves spinning to the ground.My concentration is broken by Leslie Q's voice shouting across the room at me as she donned her ratted-out pink bunny ears,she seems to like the four-eyed bunny tattoo idea i scrawled across her arm in black marker.The two drummers start to slowly brew the sounds together.A psychedelic orgy of music was underway,drawing us into it's lush world of colors and patterns,like a misanthropic lullabye.A mystic wave swells to crash your mind...watch the wreckage scatter into a tribalistic acid rock fury. Philly's RADIO ERIS were next.I missed it! Must've been a quiet set because I did'nt hear a thing.From what I was told they played some noise damaged folk music and poetry...like Patti Smith meets Whitehouse!? New Orleans own Jimmy Cousins took a brief time-out from his Pudhouse vacation to treat us to a most well timed SUNTEARS ON THE HILLTOP performance.He set up out on the rooftop and played his acoustic guitar as the sun set,and later he used a ukulele! Scheduled performers who could'nt make it: MARY KNOTT,FRED COLLINS,NUMBER and SCOTT BAILEY. So... why not the death metal sounds of northern VA's Seventh Gate? NO-FI played next,I don't want to review my own band you know.And then IGON finished the evening with thier heavy rock bastard sound.

-5-31-03-

MIX TAPE FOR ADRIAN-HAPPY SCRAPPY:HERO PUP-HORTUS-IGON-NO-FI.
VA Beach's Mix Tape for Adrian went on first...a smooth mix of electronic beats,samples and electric guitar.Follwed by the amazing synth-rock sounds of HAPPY SCRAPPY:HERO PUP,laser light show and fog machine included! Herbie Hancock would be most proud. Harm Stryker was scheduled to play,but had to leave early. HORTUS played a loud ugly set of bass and drum noisecore (not drum and bass noisecore!) They pummel us everytime! IGON played afterwards. Finally NO-FI come across with the usual noise antics,of course when No-fi play everyone clears the room,Party's Over!