Down to The Wire: Baker benefit for homeless DIY space
By Melanie Barnes, Entertainment Writer
February 22, 2008 | 7:44 p.m.
The event is free, but donations are welcome, and those involved with The Wire wouldn’t have it any other way. The Wire, formerly located at 21 Kern St., is a place where community members and students can make art and music in a non-profit-driven space.
“The Wire is whatever you want it to be,” said senior Max Wheeler, who has been booking shows for The Wire as a means of fundraising. “I love what The Wire is. It becomes the kind of place that you want to explore.”
Esskyma, hailing from Zanesville, Ohio, is a four-person post-rock instrumental band influenced by the likes of Mogwai and Sigur Rós. With their uniquely sad yet hopeful sound, Esskyma’s long and often intense tracks grab a hold of the listener and take him or her away into a world of their own.
“We like to create a feeling that you’re not going to get with any other band,” drummer Evan Lilly said. “Vocals help the audience understand the meaning for other bands, but we have a takeaway message that everyone can interpret differently.”
Solo singer and songwriter Kevin Meyer is the man behind Zephuros, a band whose songs possess brilliantly sleepy lyrics that rival poetry, disguising hauntingly dark undertones with bright images of nature’s creatures. Influences from Sufjan Stevens as well as Iron & Wine are clearly heard through his gentle crooning and guitar-picking.
Lunavelis, voted one of the "Ten Bands to Watch in 2008” by the Cleveland Free Times, picks up the mood with fun, dance-pop energy tunes. Chris Feran, whose weapons of choice are guitar and vocals, describes their sound as the magic that would occur “if Harry Potter traded his wand for a synthesizer.”
“Athens has a great music scene,” Feran said. “We’ve been looking to play there for a while, and now we have that opportunity.”
Senior Brian Ostrander, promotions director for ACRN, is responsible for bringing these bands together to make this benefit possible.
“As a student organization, ACRN has the resources, like Baker Center, to help The Wire,” Ostrander said. “The more money we raise, the faster The Wire will be back.”
Ostrander describes The Wire as a place that Athens needs to provide support for touring bands looking for a place to stay or play for the night, as well as an intimate set-up for meeting new and interesting people.
“It’s like DIY, but you do it with everyone,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to find new music in a space that’s not based around money or alcohol. There is a real camaraderie.”
In addition to concerts, The Wire was also host to a bike repair shop, a free-radical library featuring alternative literature, and vegan cooking.
“There are very few places left where you can be yourself and you don’t have to buy something to have a good time,” Wheeler said. “You can just exist and learn how to make french fries or read a book.”
The Wire may be temporarily homeless, but it currently resides in the hearts of those who have been working hard to finally give this space a stable foundation. Enjoy the music or simply drop off a donation at 8 p.m., Friday, Feb. 22 in Baker Theater.
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