October 08, 2010

TBD Does Story/Stereo

If you want a less-biased take than mine on the awesomeness that is Story/Stereo, check out this article by Ally Schweitzer of TBD. Here's the lede, plus a great photo (credit: TBD staff) of poet Allison Benis White preparing to read on stage...





Story/Stereo at The Writer's Center:
Why rock bands like to play poetry readings  
D.C. musician and producer Chad Clark wants to restore dignity to underground rock music.
"If you're in a rock band, you're traveling around in all these abject, scummy situations. [Rock music is] not treated as a high art form."
But putting underground rock music in a dimly lit auditorium, where a seated, presumably sober audience awaits their performance — now that's dignified. And we haven't even gotten to the poetry part yet.

Later in the article, I even make a cameo appearance:
At last month's event, the evening's ebullient MC, poet Sandra Beasley, scarcely masked her giddiness about sharing a stage with a bunch of rock dudes. "I wish I got to introduce the musical act!" she exclaimed. ("Musical act" being how a Barnard Women Poets Prize winner says "band.")
For the record, I'm not a total nerd. My wording was purposeful: I went with "musical act" because I knew that multiple incarnations of acts featuring John Davis (including a Q And Not U reunion) were about to come to the stage. But we had only advertised it in terms of the one band, Title Tracks, I didn't want to spoil the surprise.


Okay, for the record, I am a total nerd. I can own it.


[Thanks to TBD, full text HERE, and hope to see you at tonight's reading...]

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