Denton, 3.12.2025

What a difference three weeks can make. Last time we were in li'l d for Joan of Bark Presents, temperatures were in the 20s. Last night, they were hovering in the 70s, comfortable enough that the back doors to the Rubber Room could be left open to provide ventilation and more seating for the decent-sized (30-plus) crowd. I bogarted a couple of minutes to present an Asian Media Crew shirt to honorary member Larry Hill (aka Animals Mistaken for Monsters), who does yeoman work shooting video of the music scene in Denton and Dallas (we haven't seen him in Fort Worth yet, but that's a temporary condition), and make a brief pitch about the Ides of Trump postcard campaign (wherein folks are encouraged to write postcards telling our wannabe "emperor" what they think of his rule, and mail them on the date Julius Caesar was assassinated).

Singer-songwriter Grae Gonzalez led off with a caveat that "one of these things is not like the others," but their engaging set won over the hardened experimental music cognoscenti as well as friends and family members who'd come out to support Grae. Self-accompanying on baritone uke, Grae sang a selection of witty, conversational self-penned numbers from their upcoming EP (recorded by estimable engineer Michael Briggs), interspersing the songs with self-deprecating stories. In a month when I've been fixated on songs and singers (most recently: Patti Smith), I couldn't help but be impressed by Grae's compositions -- rooted in classic Tin Pan Alley style (including one dedicated to their partner Aaron Gonzalez, who had to miss the gig due to his grandmother's passing in Missouri), and the full, rich, friendly and inviting voice in which they were rendered. Grae's cover of Paul Simon's "The Boxer" only missed the ABC Sports Olympic theme viola solo; maybe next time they can whistle it?

Veteran improvisers Kristina Smith and Will Frenkel are longtime friends but had never collaborated before this evening. They took their time creating a spacious, minimalist soundscape in which every gesture from Smith's amplified and electronically treated voice, her accordion and bass guitar, Frenkel's cello and what looked like a video game controller, resonated deeply. When they finished their set, it seemed to have passed in an instant. 

 

Photo by Taylor Collins.

Cereboso is the solo performing rubric of the aforementioned electronic musician/audio engineer Michael Briggs (Lorelei K). Originally scheduled to perform in a duo with Aaron Gonzalez, he replanned his set as a solo venture when Aaron was called away by the passing of his grandmother. Briggs brought extra speakers along to the Rubber Room, striving to create a surround sound type ambience, and when it was time, he used only his voice and software to create his trademark dark, juddering blast of noise, like icebergs colliding or tectonic plates shifting. An immersive experience, but of brief enough duration not to overwhelm the uninitiated.

To close the show, nothing says "Fight the Power" quite like a Black trans noise guitarist, and Angel wasted no time in getting down to it, following a brief dedication to Grae Gonzalez, unleashing a torrent of distortion and feedback, using a violently percussive right hand attack, and occasionally coaxing atonal moans from mercilessly stretched strings. It was a sonic exorcism and the perfect palate cleanser to send us back into the cool night air. Angel also has a duo project, Rrose Selavies, with vocalist Arturo Velazquez. Their Justin Lemons-recorded self-titled debut is available digitally and on cassette via Bandcamp. Keiji Haino would understand. 

Next Joan of Bark Presents is scheduled for April 30. Don't you dare miss it.