THINGS TO DO INSTEAD OF BOSTON CALLING
Is everyone excited for the next commercialized, commodified, “alternative” music fest to descend on Allston/Brighton this month?! NAHT. Yet again we’re getting blasted with all the hype that surrounds Boston’s (new?) nationally sized music fest - showcasing the best music has to offer?? Yeah right. A small “local” stage? Give me a break. As if having capitalism dripping from every corner of this fest wasn’t enough, here’s a direct fact for your brain matter - a developer of Boston Calling, and so called “supporter of the arts” was and is involved with the closing of the legendary EMF building near Central Square. FUCK that. In the name of actually supporting the foundation of the arts and music scene in this city, how about heading to Somerville instead for a casual stroll through the sonic anomalies that will permeate its streets, stoops, and stairwells for PORCHFEST! For the better part of Saturday the 12th, those who make art and music for the sake of it will be showcasing their talents for any and all passerby. Forget inflated ticket prices and $10 Evian drink your water from the hose like the rest of us and come listen to the true soul of the city. OR invest the cost of that BC ticket into some gas and take a little road trip to Winooski, VT for the next iteration of Waking Windows - a fest with its priorities straight. Spread across the entire town at bookstores, outdoors spaces, record stores, churches, and traditional, intimate music venues, Waking Windows brings an eclectic lineup of TRULY independent music, art, and comedy to their 8th year - as well as workshops, craft fairs, film screenings, and more. Contrary to what Facebook wants you to believe, there’s plenty else out there besides Boston Calling this May. Don’t get lost in the algorithm. —Mike Achille
TRASH IS TRAGIC // PART 2: ZERO WASTE KITCHEN
NATIONAL POSTER RETROSPECTICUS POP-UP @UNION PRESS IN SOMERVILLE 5/56 NOON-5PM
Bop on over to Union Press in Prospect Hill, Somerville May 5th and 6th to check out an array of hand printed posters. Union Press is strengthening the antique tradition on letterpress printing. By using woodblock and metal type, pages are assembled (backwards!) and run through a machine to make all sorts of print material. This is a skill combining mechanics, design aesthetic and lots of patience. They will be hosting the National Poster Retrospecticus and their traveling exhibition. New Prints from the series Forty Nine Parks will be showcased, showcasing letterpress as well as multiple other kinds of print processes. Limited edition prints about each national park have been created for viewers like you to take home, including some quirky variants. Five percent of proceeds from the posters will go to the National Parks Service. Other artists will be showcased, and food and letterpress demos will be available. Union Press has been a long time supporter of Boston Hassle and The Compass, so give them some love for us. Even if you can’t make this pop-up, be sure to check out the shop by making an appointment! [Union Press, UP@unionpress.com, 440 Somerville Ave., Somerville, MA 02143] (This weekend is also Somerville Open Studios, so there will be plenty to see if you need an excuse to make it up there) —Chloe Dubois
COME HANG AT OUR 100 BIRTHDAY 5/31 @ GARMENT DISTRICT
Hello my trashy babies! In the inaugural Trash is Tragic, we learned the basics of trash-free grocery shoppin’. Readers suggest I use PHOTOGRAPHIC TECHNOLOGY to better illustrate the column, so I had Peaches take some photos at the grocery store and GUESS WHAT, we got lectured by the manager. It’s OK. We’re gonna keep doin’ what we’re doin’ and showin’ you how. This month’s Trash is Tragic, we’ll go on an INTIMATE TOUR of my kitchen to learn, in words and pictures, how to TRASH-NEUTRALIZE. Since you live in Massachusetts, you probably already have a PhD in this, but didya know: plastic bags are made of PETROLEUM OIL and take, on average, 1000 YEARS to biodegrade? Average time the “consumer” makes use of that bag? A couple stinkin’ minutes (womp womp). Whilst unemployed, the plastic bag has many years to kill; maybe it’ll take up a hobby and choke a dolphin, 20 seagulls, a school of flounders, ten guppies, two sharks, and constipate a whale before calling it a day. Joking aside, once I began seeing plastic as the logistical waste problem it is, I couldn’t unsee it’s flagrant misuse. I’m just like the little boy in the Sixth Sense, not just because I hang out with Bruce Willis IRL, but because I see the past (oil), present (short-term, cheap item), and future (landfill/dolphin blowhole eternity) of every plastic item I come across. It makes me super fun to hang out with. But hopefully, because I see death everywhere, you don’t have to. Just go to the Hassle website and look for Trash is Tragic! —Melanie Bernier
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UMETSUGU INOUE, JAPAN’S MUSIC MAN, FRI 5/4 - SUN 5/13 @ HARVARD FILM ARCHIVE ALL SCREENINGS $9
There is an old adage when discussing musicals, that goes: “If you can’t say it, you sing it, and if you can’t sing it, you dance it.” This mantra best captures what I find so intoxicating about movie musicals: they craft a depth of emotion which, although perhaps without “realism,” somehow appears more humane and lifelike. In its hyper-emotion, the movie musical can express emotions that mere words and gestures fail to capture. This month, the Harvard Film Archive, along with the Inoue & Tsukioka Movie Foundation, presents a sampling from movie musical master Umetsugu Inoue. Although perhaps not as well-known to Western audiences, Inoue made over one hundred movies in his lifetime in Japan and Hong Kong, and became particularly known for his musicals there. Beginning with Inoue’s first musical blockbuster THE STORMY MAN, The HFA will also screen THE WINNER, THE GREEN MUSIC BOX, THE EAGLE AND THE HAWK, and, finally, the colorful, energetic HONG KONG NOCTURNE. COME FOR THE SONG, BUT STAY FOR THE DANCE. —Nick Perry
PLACES YOU CAN HANG: FRAMER'S WORKSHOP! IN BROOKLINE VILLAGE
You ever get one of those random NIFTS in yer email? I got one (from someone I know and love) so I figured I would follow through for a larf. But lo and behold, it led to a priceless discovery that was right under my nose all along—the Framer’s Workshop in Brookline! This place ranks high on both the chilling and the service charts, making it the definition of a PLACE YOU COULD HANG. No pun intended! You bring a piece of art down there and the friendly and very much with-it staff helps you bring that ish up to HANG STATUS. They cut the glass and the frame and all the hard stuff and YOU have the option of framing the piece (the easy part) yourself with the assistance of the radical FW team. In fact, it costs more to have them do it! So for a discount you get both a framing lesson and the opportunity to hang in Brookline Village which is a rare treat for some of us freaks. There are artists and creatives buzzing around doing their thing, sharing art with each other, and truly enjoying themselves. Only advice is to choose wisely because its not necessarily a cheap endeavor. Pick the piece of art you have that really deserves to be hung and put it in a special place where you will look at it all the time, like above your toilet. It’s a weird lesson but I never would have discovered this goddamn gem had I not gone to 40 South Street who hooked me up with that NIFT shit…So support local businesses, check your dang email and visit the Framers Workshop—you won’t regret it! —Sam P THIS PROGRAM IS SUPPORTED IN PART BY A GRANT FROM THE BOSTON CULTURAL COUNCIL, A LOCAL AGENCY WHICH IS FUNDED BY THE MASSACHUSETTS CULTURAL COUNCIL, AS ADMINSTRATED BY THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF ARTS + CULTURE