THOMAS CARNACKI
GRALE
THOMAS CARNACKI is a variably-sized organism that has been trundling forward for well over a decade, having been as many as eight individuals, and as few as one. (Or, in some instances, none at all.) Tonight’s instantiation will be on the more modest end of that spectrum, being
Cheryl E. Leonard and Gregory Scharpen. Carnacki’s output tends towards the textural, the durational, the nuanced, and — on occasion — the absurd. Over the years, numerous guests have participated in either live or recorded proceedings, including the likes of Carla Bozulich, Carla Kihlstedt and Matthias Bossi, Emily Jane White, Marielle Jakobsons, irr. app. (ext.), and Moe! Staiano, to name but a few. Carnacki music has somewhat inexplicably found its way into multiple theatrical performances, HBO and PBS documentaries, avant-garde and experimental short films, internationally-touring evenings of dance, the Whitney Biennial, the Illuminated Corridor, 23five’s Activating The Medium festival, and performance venues from the Bay to New York. Around a dozen or so physical releases exist at present to serve as recorded documents of Carnacki’s work, with several more currently looming on the horizon.
GRALE has performed as a multi-faceted and cinematically rooted ensemble, morphing its electric shadows along with its shifting lineups. Initially a duo of Dale Sophiea (MX-80 Sound, O-Type, etc.) and Gregory Hagan (Pale Reverse, Thomas Carnacki Ensemble, Common Eider King Eider, etc.) that sprung from a series of after-hours underground film and music salons in Berkeley, the project grew to include percussionist/composer Nico Sophiea and Dale's longtime collaborator and fellow MX-80 founder Bruce Anderson. Swimming through the whole history of music and sound-work, and often graced by projections courtesy of Lorin Murphy and Jerry Smith, the group ranges from sublime Feldman-esque spacious textures to thunderous beat driven dirges. Closing a circle of some sort, this performance sees Grale return as a duo of Dale and Gregory, in what is in all likelihood their last live performance.
Cost: $10-$25 sliding scale