AS220 Kills It Dead, Week of Easter

Here's the d, team. Reba here, from such entities as Rock n Roll, Stuff Around Town, and AS220. I've been graciously invited by my favorite moderator and yours to share with LOTSOFNOISE the weekly happs at the AS2000, which I regularly email to a couple thousand of my closest friends. Looking forward to seeing you here in the blogosphere every Thursday from now on, as well as at shows probably every night this weekend. (Hey Schneider- each of my posts to the front page count for 10 of yours in the forums. I'll see your 1,023 in Hell!) Here it is, folks: The story downtown this week:


Readers, brace yourselves. Its about to get real. Your Auntie Reba isn't one to throw around superlatives willy-nilly, but the upcoming week at AS220 is so riveting, so profoundly myriad and great, so encrusted in blood and glitter, and so close to my own heart that I find myself incapable of maintaining my characteristic stolid and icily professional disengagement from the matters at hand. For those taking notes, mark these as the headers: "Week of 4/1: Armageddon Becomes a Reality; All of Reba's Bands Play/Resurrection Never Felt So Good; AS220 Foils The Man/Builds Android/Kicks Out The Jams; Performance Art Makes a Comeback/Punkers and Hippies Rejoice."

On to the gritty: This Friday is going to be a firestorm of awesomeness. Armageddon is nigh, and it may be the best one yet. The Bombettes join us from Sweden to remind us that other peoples can be far more hardcore, and far more attractive than ourselves. Providence supergroup Arcing precedes them (Don't stand too close to those riffs! They're sharp!) as well as my personal heroes, Butcherings. Blood Sacrifice will open. What they lack in a MySpace page they make up for in sensory immersion. The following evening offers something entirely divergent: AS220 March Artist in Residence Hana van der Kolk presents a series of choreographed movement sequences exploring the dynamics, relationships, and personal histories of particular duos. "The Third Thing," starting at 6 pm for exactly zero dollars, will feature such favored Providence teams as Andrew Oesch and Susan Sakash, and Human Beast/marriage collaborators Maralie Armstrong and Eli Milholland. Believe me when I relate to you, readers, that after stopping by a brief rehearsal of this project, your Auntie Reba was thrown into an existential tailspin, bike rode home crying, and was forced to read her own tarot desperately seeking answers to the debilitating questions of cosmic isolation for over two hours. Thats a true story. Do not miss this performance. Right around the corner is Easter Sunday, and to celebrate, we've decided to resurrect mind-blowing rock shows. Rock isn't Dead; It Is Risen! Not only is this evening conducive to festive floral semi-formal wear, but also promises a host of phenomenal acts: Bellows heads it up, and they've hinted that show-goers may want to bring their hymnals for sing-a-longs. You'll want it, after Holy Sheet. I've yet to find anything to get their stains out, but I've heard that baking soda works... Dadaist mathers Normal Love is making the trek from Philly, and it's no wonder: with newish Providence resident/other worldly expatriate performative humorist Diana Joy sharing her rousing accordion break-up songs, gothic sound-scapes, and glistening grill, who could miss this show? Not I, for I've weaseled my own way onto the bill! The triumphant debut of Whore Paint is imminent! As though this holiday extravaganza could not get more epic, Xander Marro has graciously agreed to screen her first and most adorably themed film, "The Bunny Movie." Egg hunt still pending. Don't think for a second that the magic ends there. Tuesday night promises more devastatingly good looking European punkers, as posh Frenchman Gunslingers join Lifers and Psonen.

"Reba," you're surely saying, "the madness must stop there. After that sort of weekend, how could AS220 possibly seek to top their own best?" I'll tell you how, readers. Thursday evening, we unveil the answer to all of our prayers and yours. Our crack team of computer nerds and rockers, after months of work underground in a top secret bunker, have emerged with AS220's finest work of fabrication to date: the AS220 Jukebox! We're super proud of this, team, and soon you will be too. Here's the deal: We need some hot jams to play in our bar, and you know we love to keep it ASCAP free. Through our digital Jukebox, all of you local players/screamers/crooners can upload your jams and get them played, and an endless stream of drinkers and show-goers can bask in the warm glow of your righteous licks. To know everything you ever wanted and more about this magic, and to load your music into our system, visit as220.org/jukebox. Do it! For the love of God, get some music into our saloon. Bar patrons, select your favorite local hits with the knowledge that your quarter will find its way to a real live musician. (Can Best Buy make you the same offer?!) We're having a listening/kickoff party on Thursday the 8th at 7, and the first 10 people to upload via our website this week are getting a free beer at the party. Unless you want it to be all Made in Mexico all the time, you'll get in there and get it done! That same night promises all kinds of experimental theater and film in our performance space, and the grand re-opening of Wheels down the road. I'm not sure if I can handle it.

I'll keep you no longer, readers. You've got Easter dresses to choose, albums to upload, Europeans to outdo... I'll leave you to it. For a full listing of of AS220 shows this week, visit our calendar online. Until next week, away!