The Bleeding Edge: 12/19/2016

Astute readers probably noticed that there was no Bleeding Edge column last week. This seems to be a relatively quiet time for the adventurous (although there was certainly no shortage of adventure at the Center for New Music yesterday afternoon or in Danny Clay’s contemporary rethinking of the chaconne performed by Sarah Cahill at the Hotel Rex this past Wednesday evening). This week brings two offerings, one of which involves belated news of a transition.

One of the regular series of events that this site announced was the Monthly Experimental Music Showcase held in the Haight at Second Act. For those who do not already know, as of November 1, Second Act became the Bindery, which is serving as an annex for the Haight bookstore Booksmith. Second Act events planned by Jack and Betsy Rix will still take place under Booksmith management; and, with the passing of the Second Act Marketplace, those attending events will be able to purchase beer and wine provided by the Alembic.

This, then, will be the setting for the final Monthly Experimental Music Showcase of the year; and it remains to be seen whether the series will continue in 2017. As is almost always the case, the names of the acts tend to be as adventurous as the performances themselves. Assuming that these are still being announced in reverse order of appearance, this month’s acts will be:

• Xome and Tralphaz, providing a “critical mass” of noise and electronics
• I Should Have Cut The Eyes Different, the trio of Hans Grusel, Matt Ingalls, and Bran(…)Pos, performing with Brutallo Sloumberfougx
• The improvised mix of electronic and samples sounds created by Midmight
• Electronic improvisations by Julia Litman-Cleper, performing as Waxy Tomb

The venue is still located at 1727 Haight Street. The performance will begin at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, December 21; and doors will open at 7:45 p.m. Admission will be $5. All proceeds and any additional donations will go directly to relief support organized around the Ghost Ship fire in Oakland. The performance is expected to last about two and one-half hours.

The following night will see the last event organized by Outsound Presents for 2016. This will be the next installment in the LSG (Luggage Store Gallery) Creative Music Series. The program will follow the usual format of two sets of free improvisations. The opening set will be taken by Jack Hertz working in real time with modular synthesizers. He will be followed by the quartet Cosmists, originally formed as a duo by percussionist Mark Pino playing with Andrew Joron on theremin. They were joined by CJ Borosque (Colette McCaslin) adding both trumpet and her own percussion work to the mix. The group is now a quartet with the addition of Thomas Harrison Jr. on bass and electronics.

This performance will begin at 8 p.m. on Thursday, December 22. The Luggage Store Gallery is at 1007 Market Street, directly across from the Golden Gate Theatre at the corner of Golden Gate Avenue and Taylor Street. As always admission will be on a sliding scale between $6 and $15.