friends,
you may know of my lifelong love for new orleans. my father worked at tulane, my aunt went to tulane and she and her husband lived there and worked for texaco for quite some time. In 1998 I too lived there for a summer, one of the best summers of my life and certainly one of the most influential to me in terms of thinking about the impact of music on a community. I have gone to maybe seven Mardi Gras' celebrations and have marked Magazine Street as the place of my retirement, in 2035.
It was at Tipitina's that I went to my first real punk show, in 1995, to see Fugazi. I stood in line for two hours in the rain next to a man in a lovely ballgown with my boyfriend and we thought it was the most magical place on earth. Tipitina's, I have come to realize through writing a story about them, is one of the most community-minded nightclubs in the country, with mentoring programs for teenagers, with co-op practice spaces and 'band office spaces' and in raising money for various charities. I have yet to hear of Tipitina's status.
It was Prytania Street Theater that gave me my start in film, selling tickets and popcorn with with the surliest and most wonderful group of goth kids, rockabilly robot builders and future art stars one could imagine. I have yet to hear of the Theater's status.
The best DIY events happen because Anthony at Turducken makes them happen. He's a math tutor, show promoter and one hell of a swell guy. He's high and dry in Texas.
Royalty of the 9th Ward Quintron and Miss Pussycat make amazing, bizarre music and avant puppetry. They also run a speakeasy called The SpellCaster Lounge, which was an amazing place for shows and hanging out. The 9th Ward is featured in some of the NYTimes photographs of area's hardest hit. Their press agent said that the couple and their instruments are safe, but that all else may be lost.
I am thinking of trying to put together a benefit for folks hit by this, reaching out from NYC to NOLA. More to come.
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