We seem to love broken voices in general: vocal cords eroded by whiskey and screaming, the junked-out weakness of certain horn players, distortion which signifies surpassing the capabilities of a tube or a speaker—voices that distort, damage, but (at least in performance) don’t actually die.
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Wednesday - August 18, 2021
Two girls learning a song at the Miraculous Love Kids music school, Kabul, Afghanistan, April 22, 2017.
(Haroon Sabawoon/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
quote of the day
We seem to love broken voices in general: vocal cords eroded by whiskey and screaming, the junked-out weakness of certain horn players, distortion which signifies surpassing the capabilities of a tube or a speaker—voices that distort, damage, but (at least in performance) don’t actually die.
Marc Ribot, "Unstrung: Rants and Stories of a Noise Guitarist"
rantnrave://
Choose or Lose

Three facts about New Zealand: 1) It's home to the most successful live act of 2021, the five-piece pop band SIX60, which was selling out stadiums as early as February, long before most of the world was even thinking about resuming live music on any kind of normal schedule. 2) It went into a nationwide lockdown Tuesday, closing all schools and nonessential businesses for three days—seven days in the country's biggest city, Auckland—because a Covid-19 case was discovered. One case. In the entire country. 3) Kiwis are complaining about vaccines—not that they don't want them, but that many can't get them yet.

All those things are related.

If you *can* get a vaccine but you haven't yet, get it, please, Wear a mask, please. Support live music, please. All these things are related, too. And those are my choices. We all have choices. Freedom! '21. But not all choices are good choices.

In the US, where the virus continues to spread like a TikTok challenge, the mainstream live music industry—artists, venues and promoters, with help from public officials—is in the process of making what, in my humble opinion, is a good choice. No vaccine (or negative Covid test), no ticket. Simple. Easy to understand, even if you don't agree with it. Easy to follow (ditto). It's by no means a universal choice. Not all artists and venues are onboard, and there are a few governors determined to prevent it from happening, in the name of what they say is freedom from government mandates (even as they impose their own equal and opposite government mandates). But the country's two biggest concert promoters, LIVE NATION and AEG, have imposed vaccine mandates on all their venues and festivals. New York City this week began requiring proof of vaccination (and a photo ID) for entry to all indoor performances. Los Angeles has resisted a vaccination requirement, but is requiring masks at all big *outdoor* gatherings. Indie venues in cities from Philadelphia to Milwaukee to Nashville to Austin are working out their own protocols, and artists are increasingly demanding vaccinated (or, at a minimum, negative-Covid-tested) audiences. Plenty of other artists have simply canceled shows and tours, saying the risk isn't worth the reward.

All of this is good public *and* private policy, serving a crucial business interest: making sure artists and their fans are comfortable walking into clubs, arenas and stadiums.

There will be pockets of resistance, which can't be dismissed out of hand (vaccine mandater BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN on the anti-vaxxers protesting outside his Broadway show: "I'm responsible for the safety of my audience. But it's hard, confusing times, so I actually have some feelings for the folks who were outside"). But they *should* be dismissed gently. Vaccines are available, at least here in the US, and they work. Using live music as an incentive to make resisters reconsider their resistance is fair and potentially game-changing for segments of the population that need that incentive. At recent performances, KANYE WEST and GARTH BROOKS offered on-the-spot vaccinations to fans, and in both cases the results were embarrassing. Almost no one took up either artist's offer. But it was unclear why anyone would: They had their tickets and were already at the show, and the Covid vaccine, which takes weeks to kick in, wasn't going to provide any protection while they were there. Next time around—if there is a next time around—offer the vaccines well in advance of the performances and don't make them optional. Let's see what the uptake is then.

Vaccine requirements put an extra burden on venues, who have to enforce them. But they're already checking tickets and/or IDs and/or bags, and at the events where my vaccine card has been checked in the past month or so, including a large Broadway theater and a small Brooklyn club, the process has been quick and smooth. Talking about it, in my experience, has been a lot more fraught than actually doing it. And doing it now may be our best chance for not having to do it later. MusicSET: "Keep Feeling Vaccination: Live Music's New Rules of Engagement."

I Will 'Dare'

A confession: Yes, that set title was the second time this summer I've punned the same way on the same HUMAN LEAGUE song title. I am not sorry.

Do Not Leave the Door Open

ANDERSON.PAAK's "When I'm gone, please don't release any posthumous albums or songs" tattoo is timely, funny and genius, but I'm wondering if he's contemplated that when he's in fact gone, there won't be any way for anyone to see those instructions inked on his arm... Why do so many tours skip Detroit?... Don't stop thinking about who exactly owns CHRISTINE MCVIE's songwriting catalog... How to preserve jazz homes... Opening statements are scheduled for today in R. KELLY's trial in federal court in Brooklyn on a variety of charges involving sexual abuse and exploitation.

Rest in Peace

British promoter/publicist/manager STUART LYON.

Matty Karas (@troubledoll), curator
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what we’re into
Music of the day
"Jama Narenji"
Zohra
Also known as the Afghan Women's Orchestra, performing in 2016 in Kabul.
YouTube
Video of the day
"Gala Concert 2021"
Afghanistan National Institute of Music
Students of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music perform music composed or originally performed by Afghan women.
YouTube
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