Passive/Aggressive

Excepter artist talk i København: “beat-survival and how to make it in the avantgarde”

August 28 2012

“I have been asked to give an artist talk
on the request of the Danish government
in exchange for my ticket here and back [laughter]

I have been asked to talk about beat-survival,
and how to make it in the avantgarde under today’s economy
which I will refer to the OD Beatnick, Mr. Allen Ginsberg
whom I never got to meet,
except his boyfriend
– at least that’s what he said, he was –
outside a punk show in the lower east-side of New York City…”

John Fell Ryan, hovedmand i New York-gruppen Excepter og i øvrigt stor The Shining-fan, har været i København siden Sejerø Festival på et kort dansk arbejdslegat. Fredag aften gav han en artist talk (ca.) Insula på Blågårdsgade. Eller rettere. JFR holdt et 70 minutters oplæg, fortalte gennem skiftende effekter om musikken/avantgardens udvikling i New York og kontaktmikrofoner, tegnede skitser og spillede en masse plader fundet i kasserne langs væggende i forretningen.

“…a better lesson can never be learned
especially in the world of music
where people will sell anything for anything

a free drink can cost you your career

but why are we talking about money
when it is obvious there isnt any here
why do musicians constantly pass the talk about the money
even in the Wire Magazine
where we famously talked about money in our interview
it cost us every relationship
they found out the truth
we have been blowing the big ones
on big tours to nowhere, west coast, didn’t care you know

I’m talking about a band, an avantgarde band
that even writes singles
a single costs just as much as an album
it is the same amount of plastic and the same amount of cover
but you can only charge half as much for it
but why? because there is less time involved, less effort?
less music?
is music sold by the yard? scratch paper, butcher paper?
is music worth the paper it is printed on?”

Hør hele John Fell Ryans artist talk: