View the rest of Carmelo’s photos of the show here on his flickr.
View a clip from the short film, You’ve Always Meant So Much To Me, here.
Live Report: Wrekmeister Harmonies at Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago
Published: January 9, 2012
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Not to be “that guy,” but the cellist’s name is Tomeka Reid, not Tamika Reed. Either way, she is awesome.
My apologies. I just went with the text list that got sent to me. Thanks for pointing that out!
Please point out if anyone finds what I’m saying to be inaccurate, but anyone who might (and I’m sure there are) disparage a Black Metal Symposium, but take delight in the Wrekmeister Harmonies event seems confused if not downright hypocritical in their choices of how “Metal” should be embraced by “high brow” culture.
I guess I’m a hypocrite then, because this seems like a really interesting way to use aspects of metal in a different compositional way and create something really cool, and a “Black Metal Symposium” seems like an opportunity to desconstruct and subsequently leach away a lot of the visceral, emotional appeal of black metal in favor of intellectual masturbation. And I say this as an academic.
There was theory of (classical) music a few centuries ago and classical music probably survived up to these days. As for myself, having read a bit of the BM theory stuff, it just made me appreciate a few additional layers of ’sensual’ meaning in the metal which I would have loved anyways. I understand you might disagree or be at odds with the basis of the work in continental thought and psychoanalysis, but I don’t believe people would go crazy about it and that bands would have to be doing black or other genres of metal on some kind of textbook-basis. Talent is in my view one thing, debating the “toolkit” and its possibilities another. Cheers.
I’m with the general. While I understand the issues people have with the symposium, reading the work available from it has actually increased my appreciation for black metal because it prompted me to think about the art more, which in turn made me want to listen to it more. Anything that raises interest in an art form is a good thing.
Not to mention that this is ACTUAL music as opposed to guys who don’t actually make music talking about one band somehow usurping 30+ years of musical history…pretty goofy comparing the two!
This sounds like it would’ve been very cool to see, a “black metal symposium”…not so much.
i.e. the revenge of Chicago Beardo Metal via something Isis would of done 4-5 years ago.
People here grow beards not to be hip or whatever but because we get such harsh winters, who needs to shave?
I don’t know about any Symposiums, but I think the idea of seeing a bunch of musicians associated with the world of metal, playing together in this context would’ve been really interesting. Sad that I missed it, and I fucking live here. Shame on me.
I’m all for more of this sort of thing. I’d be more inclined to get out of the house and check something like this out, over the same old show at a rock club. Maybe I’m just old ?
I live here too.
I live here as well and I was intrigued, but with 2 young ones and being generally just tired, I find it hard to find the motivation to get out to these. And I usually regret it. Wish I would’ve went to this. I did make it to the Cobra Lounge on December 30th to see Nachtmystium’s show though.
Looks like beards were the real highlight of the evening.
Though it would have been an interesting show as well.
This is a fascinating idea for a concert that I hope was as entertaining as it sounds.
@Mark — the model of just going to see a band replaying their recorded songs live is getting kind of old, IMO. I’m all for new, more interesting experiences that up the ante.
Does anyone know if there are any videos of this show on the web? I would be interested to see this, a lot of us do not live anywhere close to Chicago.Nevertheless, it’s cool that metal musicians are being involved in more grandiose projects.
@Alee ; I’m all for experiencing new and interesting soundscapes, however seeing a live band is much different than a recording. A live show is about being in the crowd and enjoying the atmosphere. Not only that live music always has more soul and it could cement love for a band; Black Breath. Or a band that you don’t like, you can “it” live ; Deafheaven.
Ouch, lots of grammar errors… “Not only does live music have more soul… or help “get” a band live.
Ooh, this looks cool. The kind of thing I could probably trick my non-metal lady into coming to see, which would be incredibly nice for a change.
In theory this idea seems kind of cool but the way it’s described makes me cringe. I don’t know anything about JR Robinson, but juxtaposing themes (smokestacks vs open desert, cello and violin vs harsh synths) doesn’t make me think “critically acclaimed”. Jeff Whitehead playing drums for 1 minute is the most anticipated moment of the night? And somehow this equates w/ metal history being made? What? Again, maybe this event was great but this piece doesn’t make me understand why at all.
“I don’t know anything about JR Robinson, but juxtaposing themes (smokestacks vs open desert, cello and violin vs harsh synths) doesn’t make me think “critically acclaimed”.”
JR Robinson has performed at places like the MOMA and the Guggenheim before. You can’t just perform at those kind of places if you haven’t had any positive buzz about your body of work. Look his stuff up and enlighten yourself.
“Jeff Whitehead playing drums for 1 minute is the most anticipated moment of the night?”
Jef’s drumming lasted for at least 4-5 minutes. Jef doesn’t perform live, so for a lot of people who went, it’s a huge deal.
“And somehow this equates w/ metal history being made?”
For the Chicago metal scene, which is one of the strongest scenes in the world, it is a historic moment. It’s not too often you get to be invited to perform in a museum setting, and getting that museum’s respect is quite a victory.
J.R. Robinson has never performed at MoMA or the Guggenheim, he has simply recorded ambient sound in these venues as the basis for the soundscape structure. “critically acclaimed?” not so much.