Fri 8/19 @ 8-10PM
The second edition of the three-part Loaded concert series at MOCA Cleveland, we’ve been assured by one of the curators, will be the most flamboyantly theatrical. And all three in some way play off the themes found in the Mark Mothersbaugh show Myopia, currently on view there.
Chicago’s Ono (pictured) is known for taking other people’s songs and twisting them into new and original shapes, using stagecraft, crazy costumes and a stew of funk, jazz and artfully deployed noise. Founded in 1980, they’ve become noise rock legends, fueling the town’s reputation for producing aggressive, confrontational music. After 25 years of inactivity, the band made a comeback in 2012, allowing newcomers to see what all the fuss was about.
Baltimore quartet House Lords are known for music that’s deceptively accessible yet contains intricate rhythmic structures that reward closer listening. They utilize freeform sax, double drums and custom electric guitars and basses to create music that draws on electronics, improvisation, performance art and even mainstream pop music.
And Cleveland’s Spacebeach is a collaboration of sonic, visual and performance artists who describe their artistic interests as “regional identities, confetti, community constructs, space exploration, the North Coast, mediated bliss, and spontaneous combustion.”
David Russell Stempowski will be handing the video-projection visuals for the evening. The event takes place, weather permitting, on MOCA’s loading dock or, if it doesn’t, in the museum lobby. It’s free and open to all. Touring the museum and seeing the Mothersbaugh exhibit is only $5 from 5-9pm that day.