The Philadelphia Art Museum has an ongoing concert series call Art After 5
. I’ve never gone to it. I love the Art Museum but I usually go on Sundays when it’s free. Usually because I’m broke but also because it’s like church to me. It’s the only place I get those churchy feelings since before I figured they were making all that up shit up. Let’s not get too heavy into it.

But it’s also the anniversary of the Japan’s 3/11 disaster (already yesterday there), and the Japan Society donation box over on the right is not going anywhere. One of their members recorded their moment of silence this afternoon:

A moment of silence for Tohoku 3/11 at Japan Society by suteebu

There’s nothing else I can say about it.

The museum did not have a moment of silence. It was the day before. That would be a bit much, wouldn’t it? They had a rock show to put on. (It was creepily silent in the rest of the museum I wondered off in after the show, never seen it so empty.) I came in halfway during the first set and the modest setup thundered through the entire lobby of the west entrance. The front hall where they performed is marble floor-to-ceiling and that ceiling is 100-foot high. (I’m guessing.) It’s not the ideal place for a rock band. There were some mic feedback issues but overall the sound was nothing as bad as say, the cheap seats at Madison Square Garden. Here is my watercolor impression of the band from the marble staircase/bleacher seating:

I’ve been trying to not pressure myself into carrying around a real camera again, but that is obviously bullshit. I’m just being lazy now. See that glitch in there? Happens all the time now to some degree when I send something to flicker or email. Sometimes the result is interesting. Here it isn’t. And the lens is obviously wacked. Whatever, you get the idea. It’s a weird setup. You got some tables on the sides too, they had like, art food: wine, hors d’oeuvres, etc. As a former art student I am a great lover of art food, when free. Here it was not. I did without.

Now you might be thinking, this is all pretty Not Punk Rock. No…if you think Punk is a list of should and shouldn’ts, I guess not. None of my various contradictory sensibilities were offended. I think punk is about reality and the reality is that hall is an alternative venue. And I think the Museum is a place for any kind of work which you mentally have to put in it’s own context. That said, the people who insisted on getting served while in the bleacher seats where a bit distracting. I’m strictly a cafeteria-eater at this place. I can’t get into the upper-class aspect of it. (Literally.) Even waiters seem like a class above me. Sometimes I think, one day that could me…a waiter. Damn. It is but a dream, and I remain…a fool. What?

I got up closer for the encore, but I don’t know what I was thinking with this overglaze. Did I mention a kid was dancing up front the whole time so they let him play maracas? That happened. It was him and then a hippie grandmother and then maybe some secretaries? That’s probably wrong, but they were some professionally attired middle-aged women in there too on the dance floor for the last couple numbers. Then a fight broke out, the curtains were lit on fire, and they smashed the Archer statue with their guitars, rode it down the steps and straight out the front door, marble chunks flying everywhere. Nah, that last part didn’t happen. That’d make the news.

Someone from Philly’s Japan American Society posted this video on twitter:

I’m in the shot somewhere. Big time fame. %