HONK! after glow
sitting here in the office after only 4 hours of sleep, i'm not even sure where to begin.
first and foremost, i was incredibly moved by the wonderful wedding of prosicated and inahandbasket. they are two of the sweetest people i know, and they had a ceremony that matched their personalities perfectly. i'm honored to be their friend and am so glad i was there to witness their celebration.
for the rest of the weekend i was a part of one of the most splendid and beautiful things i could possibly imagine. if you had the benefit of making it to Davis sq, then you got to be a part of it too. i say that because part of the magic of these bands is that they force you to not be a passive recipient of their music. they literally take it into the streets and bring it right to the people. they emphasize music as a living experience that calls you to join in, to dance and holler, to turn and smile at the people around you.
here i am today, utterly spent and exhausted, yet filled with so much warmth and joy. i was surronded this weekend by some of the nicest and most talented performers i've ever had the chance to meet. i learned so much from them musically by playing with many and personally by sharing stories and basking in the moments of the festival. i'm actually curious what things were like for those that came out for the shows, because my experience was so tied up in being one of these artists. we all took so much pleasure from meeting and getting to know each other, and we ran around all weekend trying to soak in as much of each other's performance as we could.
in any given city, each of these bands are something of an anomaly, yet here we were all kindred spirits. i was asked several times this weekend what this kind of music might be called, but i didn't know where to begin, and when i asked other bands they couldn't really say either. stylistically, there are common threads, but everyone has their own particular flavor and blend of genres. how do you describe music that ranges from the frantic 4 piece Black Bear Combo from Chicago to the enormous spectacle of March Fourth from Portland OR, from the all drum and percussion Cakalak Thunder from Greensboro, NC to the dance jams of the Pink Puffers from Rome, from the old time feel of the Bread & Puppet circus band to the radical gender queer vibe of the Rude Mechanical Orchestra from NYC? it was all a very real manifestation of unbridled self expression, and we were all overjoyed being a part of the whirlwind happening all around us.
somehow we've all ended up being a part of something, and in talking to each other it seems we're really astounded at it and how truly powerful it might be. everyone seems to want to make this world a better place, which is an impossibly daunting task, but they say that by starting with your own community you can begin to make a real change. this weekend some truly wonderful people did that to our neighborhood, and it makes me feel good about the world to know that we're out there all over the place making a jubilant noise and touching lives in our own way while fighting the good fight.
words can't really capture this feeling, so i'll just say thank you HONK! family! i'm really going to miss you and i can hardly wait for next year. :D if anyone's got any pictures, please be sure to share them or point me at the links!
if you live in a city with a HONK! band, go see them, have a great time and support what they're doing in the world!
first and foremost, i was incredibly moved by the wonderful wedding of prosicated and inahandbasket. they are two of the sweetest people i know, and they had a ceremony that matched their personalities perfectly. i'm honored to be their friend and am so glad i was there to witness their celebration.
for the rest of the weekend i was a part of one of the most splendid and beautiful things i could possibly imagine. if you had the benefit of making it to Davis sq, then you got to be a part of it too. i say that because part of the magic of these bands is that they force you to not be a passive recipient of their music. they literally take it into the streets and bring it right to the people. they emphasize music as a living experience that calls you to join in, to dance and holler, to turn and smile at the people around you.
here i am today, utterly spent and exhausted, yet filled with so much warmth and joy. i was surronded this weekend by some of the nicest and most talented performers i've ever had the chance to meet. i learned so much from them musically by playing with many and personally by sharing stories and basking in the moments of the festival. i'm actually curious what things were like for those that came out for the shows, because my experience was so tied up in being one of these artists. we all took so much pleasure from meeting and getting to know each other, and we ran around all weekend trying to soak in as much of each other's performance as we could.
in any given city, each of these bands are something of an anomaly, yet here we were all kindred spirits. i was asked several times this weekend what this kind of music might be called, but i didn't know where to begin, and when i asked other bands they couldn't really say either. stylistically, there are common threads, but everyone has their own particular flavor and blend of genres. how do you describe music that ranges from the frantic 4 piece Black Bear Combo from Chicago to the enormous spectacle of March Fourth from Portland OR, from the all drum and percussion Cakalak Thunder from Greensboro, NC to the dance jams of the Pink Puffers from Rome, from the old time feel of the Bread & Puppet circus band to the radical gender queer vibe of the Rude Mechanical Orchestra from NYC? it was all a very real manifestation of unbridled self expression, and we were all overjoyed being a part of the whirlwind happening all around us.
somehow we've all ended up being a part of something, and in talking to each other it seems we're really astounded at it and how truly powerful it might be. everyone seems to want to make this world a better place, which is an impossibly daunting task, but they say that by starting with your own community you can begin to make a real change. this weekend some truly wonderful people did that to our neighborhood, and it makes me feel good about the world to know that we're out there all over the place making a jubilant noise and touching lives in our own way while fighting the good fight.
words can't really capture this feeling, so i'll just say thank you HONK! family! i'm really going to miss you and i can hardly wait for next year. :D if anyone's got any pictures, please be sure to share them or point me at the links!
if you live in a city with a HONK! band, go see them, have a great time and support what they're doing in the world!