Robert Inhuman Q+A for Independent Eye (Cincinnati OH) January 2005

http://www.goxray.com/index.php?id=708&cat=6

Independent Eye: Spencer told me you are currently booking a lot of shows. When did you begin booking experimental noise shows in Cincinnati?

Robert: I started booking in 2002, although in a very clumsy manner as most people do before they understand all the variables that come into play when setting up a show properly. I think I began helping out touring bands a year later, but it wasn't until I toured for the first time (summer 2004) that I understood the crucial need for people in a city to help touring artists to the extend of their ability. It's rough traveling with a less than popular music - every little shred of help is crucial.

What are some of the good venues to play experimental music in Cincinnati? What kind of places are these...I was under the impression that a lot of shows in Cinci are based in art galleries and loft space. Any truth to this? Are there also bars, clubs, house shows, places like that?

Places come and go all the time. Harder times, like the past year or two, are when a lot more venues are closing than those opening. Yeah there have been times when artspaces like SSNOVA (now the Mockbee) have been consistently open to help us, but at the moment we seem to be resorting to the few open-minded bar venues in town. Southgate House (over in Newport) is currently the best place because the staff is totally open to obscure acts and is very quick to give a free date. But Southgate and the other bar places are all of course not 'all ages' and that hurts a lot will a new wave of teens becoming really interested in noise, experimental, anything not on popular radio. House venues, like bars, are often not welcoming to these genres, but once in a while we still get a house to do a show even if just once or twice. There are, needless to say, several venues we are not welcome at in any way/shape/form at this point also... whatever, they can suck it with their cover bands.

Who are some of the big acts in Cincinnati? Could you name me for your favorite Cinci weirdo/noise acts, and give me a one-or two sentence description?

Iovae is a total sound wizard/freak. He uses short wave radios, oscillators, guns, pyrotechnics, the "hell frequency", and has even recorded the Sun (available on cassette from Ore Records). He is totally our unsung hero in terms of intriguing work, brainstorming for noise community development, and being a great dude in general to everyone involved. He is the primarily programmer for Art Damage Radio and has allowed me and some other younger kids to co-host the show.

Ultra//Vires is from Dayton but since there isn't a strong "scene" up there they frequent the Cincinnati gigs. I love these guys because they are not egotistical or hipster-ish and they produce some of the most crushing powernoise and doom in Ohio. It has all the intensity both sonically and lyrically as most powerelectronics, yet fortunately without the embarrassing insecurity. U//V is coming very much from a healthy punk and grindcore influence.

Burning Star Core is Spencer Yeh with any combination of accompanying musicians. I am most fond of his solo vocal and violin work which can range quite legitimately from noise to psychedelic to a classic avant style; it can be very aggressive yet simultaneously beautiful and charming. Spencer deserves the recognition he has been building internationally over the years; he is a great inspiration to us here in Cincinnati.

Realicide is the crew I started in 2002 and has been growing more realized and focused year by year. Everyone involved has been in the teens and early twenties age range. Since 2003 we have focused largely on spin-offs of conventional hardcore punk and techno - operating more specifically in genres such as grindcore, gabber speedcore, and harsh noise. I operate the band and accompanying label (Realicide Youth Records) as somewhat of a youth outreach to younger kids who need options to break away from the values endorsed by their peers and families etc. Really it's just punk ethics for the current times.

How long have you been involved with this kind of music? Have you noticed a shift in the type of people who go to shows in your town in the time from when you started and the present?

I think I started going to noise/experimental events right after high school (I was a late bloomer sort of) so like 2000 at the earliest. I met Johnny Rucker who told me about Art Damage Radio and that totally opened up the door to knowing about local events and current artists. Uncle Dave Lewis was still hosting many of the shows when I began listening. A year later I started working the door at Madlab in Columbus and it was a huge time for Madlab to have a couple avant-whatever style gigs per week. I saw Reynolds and didn't even know who they were for instance. I saw a lot of shows throughout 2001. As for a shift in audience I dunno - people come and go - some gigs seem a bit too clique-ish sometimes but that has a lot to do with the way they are promoted... Noise is almost a fad at times and that affects the nature of the audience; sometimes a bit too much namedrop he-said/she-said but it's really never as bad here as in some other states... lately in 2005 I feel like the shows have been getting a really good balance of knowledgeable long-running patrons and first-time curious folk. I've been pretty happy with audiences this year in Cinci.

If a touring experimental band wants to play a show in Cincinnati, what venues or people should they contact?

I'd suggest contacting me (although I'll be moving to St Louis later this year), Spencer, or Ron Iovae. We can either help directly or point to people who can. There are several more people who do shows on and off around here. I'd definitely also recommend throwing an ad with contact info on the Art Damage bulletin linked on www.artdamage.org That has helped people in the past. You could contact the Southgate House or other venues but you really want someone else to handle the lineup and promotion in most cases. 

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