Racer Sessions Festival 2012
January 6th, 2012
Approximately two years ago, several members of the Table & Chairs family set out to revive a beloved and inspiring free-improvisation jam session that once took place at the historic Blue Moon Tavern in Seattle’s University District. Being that Café Racer was already a regular gathering place and performance space for many T&C musicians, it only seemed right to resurrect the session there.
On the weekend of January 13th, we celebrate the two-year anniversary of the Racer Sessions! We’ve hosted dozens of curators, recorded and documented hundreds of hours of music, drank millions of beers, and will continue to do so as long as we breathe.
In honor of this monumental day, T&C is excited to host our very first Racer Sessions Festival. We’ll be presenting three full nights of live music featuring long-standing T&C bands as well as some incredible new additions.
Thanks to all of you who have supported the Racer Sessions and helped build this amazing community of improvising artists!
We are also really excited to be releasing two brand new records:
RACER SESSIONS CURATOR COMPILATION, VOL. TWO - A diverse sampling of works originally performed by Racer Sessions curators in 2011, Vol. Two features music by Andy Clausen, Chris Icasiano, Seth Alexander, Wally Shoup, Kate Olson and Naomi Siegel duo, and Rob Hanlon. This assemblage of contrasting artists is exemplary of the broad spectrum of aesthetics and influences that come together each week at the Racer Sessions.
WA, CROSS THE CENTER - Led by two of Seattle’s most iconic avant improvisers, multi-instrumentalist Simon Henneman and percussionist Gregg Keplinger, WA is the newest addition to the T&C family. Cross the Center is a savage release with gritty, studio-sculpted textures that splinter on impact. This amazing recorded work churns with each musical event in an alluring combination of nocturnal moods and nicotine-ravaged bellows. The click and clack sounds ping like nails falling on a shed roof, but there’s subtlety too. Instruments push and pull from the corners of the room into a pillar of bright sound. Henneman and Stout’s guitar bends wail and moan while Keplinger’s drums dot, slam and smear the grooves on each song. The addition of percussionist Sean Lane gives WA a timbral spectrum that makes Cross the Center a truly crafted record.
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SCHEDULE:
FRIDAY, JANUARY 13th, 2012, 9:00 PM - $5-15 suggested donation
Brandon Lucia - Drummer and computer wizard Brandon Lucia will perform a piece written for his music-generating program, the Chango.
Smallface - Keyboardist Aaron Otheim and cellist David Balatero blur the lines between the electronic and the acoustic; the composed and the improvised; the light and the dark.
Bad Luck - Chris Icasiano. Neil Welch. Drums. Saxophone. Evil.
After-party: Garrett Sand curates the VHS sessions at Die Alone. Join us after the show for a selection of his favorite films.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 14th, 9:00 PM - WA, Cross the Center CD Release Show - $5-15 suggested donation
Chemical Clock - Cameron Sharif, Ray Larsen, Mark Hunter, Evan Woodle. “Fierce, abrasive, angular and breathtakingly precise…”—The Seattle Times
WA - Henneman. Keplinger. ‘nuff said.
Burn List - Greg Sinibaldi, Cuong Vu, Aaron Otheim, Chris Icasiano. The veterans meet the young blood.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15th, 8:00 PM - No cover charge
Neil Welch curates the Racer Session with a new piece written for his Sleeper Ensemble.
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Café Racer - 5828 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98105
