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Shortcuts and Last Suppers
February 17, 2006
By
 Tape Measure
Any two-and-a-half-minute men and women out there looking to film-frame their expressiveness? The 2006 Taos Bentley Film Super 8mm Film Festival is giving people an opportunity to record a “short cut” that will be shown at the Film Festival Presentation (tentatively scheduled for late May). The registration deadline is Feb. 14, though an extension may be granted if scheduling permits. A $30 fee for B&W film or $40 fee for color film will allow participants the one-week loan of a super 8mm camera, one roll of film, and its development. The dates for shooting films will be sometime between late February and early April. For a registration form contact Matt: 751-7345 (mail@jmthomas.net) or Annica: 770-4349 (annicarose@yahoo.com).
Unchained Melody
In these days of Musical Prohibition, where the bootleggers be disc-burners and the Industry Big Brother ready to crack a whip in the name of the Almighty Dollar, it’s always nice to see grassroots-grown independence. Discobolus, a record label based out of Questa, has replaced the leash with a “blue-collar” philosophy: let’s keep the hustle, proletariat. The musicians own and operate the label, which means disc-peddling, distribution, airplay procurement, gig-booking, coffee-making, and other duties rest squarely on their shoulders. The label presently features Art of Flying, Chris Schoen, and Larry Yes.
Art of Flying, the brainchild of David and Anne Costanza, recently completed a successful tour of Italy and Switzerland. Their latest album (they have released five in all) “asifyouwerethesea” was named one of the best releases of 2005 by Denver’s alternative weekly Westword and WFMU in Jersey City, NJ. A subtle and seamless blend of low-key melodies, poetically vested lyricism, and narcotic undulations, asifyouwerethesea epitomizes the group’s capacity to simultaneously soothe and unsettle (like those old lullabies twin-streaming peace and something sinister beneath). If e.e. cummings and Edna St. Vincent Millay joined the Velvet Underground this is what we might have heard. Art of Flying may be playing the Taos Inn in April; check your local listings. For more info about Discobolus and its musicians visit the website at: www.discobolus.net.
Rising with the Sun
A buffet-style alternative to the usual breakfast or brunch fare is offered at Sun and Showers, the Asian bistro across the street from Don Fernando de Taos. Their weekend dim sum buffet (9 a.m.-2 p.m.) offers a medley of traditional Chinese delicacies: fish balls, sesame balls, peach buns, shrimp dumplings, pork buns, plain buns, coconut snowballs, egg custard tarts, spring rolls, hedgehog-shaped buns, shrimp porridge, and more. Essential elements in the Dim Sum experience are the dipping sauces, ranging from sweet to spicy, and tea. At $11.95 per person the buffet is not cheap by Taos standards, but you can sit for hours and eat till your stomach cuts you off. Kiddies four and under eat free.
Reconstruxion Underway
Self-proclaimed “gizmologist,” Steve Storz, is channeling his rad-lab wizardry to the world of print. A 5x8 manifesto-pamphlet of a publication, the Reconstruxion Papers made its January debut as print-sibling to the recently formed Reconstruxion Society. Historically linked to early-20th-century Constructivist themes (abstract artwork made from glass, wire wood, metal, iron, etc.), the Society, and the publication, plan to expose and emphasize modern-day techno-inclined artistry: the scrap heap as the palette, dead machines resurrected as art, science projects with an aesthetic pulse. Storz did most of the writing for Issue #1 (vision statements, a story on Santa-Fe techno-artist Jared Kohn), but it was the hauntingly beautiful Flotsam, by local folk-punk scallawag Les Lokey, that lent a poetic dimension to the Papers. The Reconstruxion Papers will be published monthly, and copies can be picked up free at the Harwood Museum, Wisdom Cup, Caffe Tazza, or the TCA. To find out when the Reconstruxion Society meets next, contact Steve at 751-0642 (adsrecon@storzart.com).
Raise the Curtain
Chamisa Mesa High School’s dramatic players will present Paul Zindel’s “The Effect of Gamma Rays On Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds.” First produced in 1964 (and later made into a film directed by Paul Newman), Zindel’s play is a family drama about an abusive mother, her two daughters, and survival through hopes and dreams. Performances will be at Chamisa Mesa High (69 Blueberry Hill Road), March 2-4 and 9-11, 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 and reservations are strongly recommended (751-0943).
The Last Supper?
The notice on the outer doors of Ronnie Lee’s Supper Club states that they will be closed for an extended period of time. Buzz be heard that Ronnie’s in the red, with that hole widening and on its way to turning black. Will Ronnie’s Supper-powers prevail against the tourist-unfriendly trend of economic drought? Or is this the premature end of the beer-and-wine-license-deprived-giant? Stay tuned. …
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