Arts&Culture

E V E R Y T H I N G

Marianarchy is a music show.

Marianarchy is a remembrance of Marianne Psota, who died in 2004 at the age of 37.

Marianarchy is a benefit for the family of Gary Setzer, who died of throat cancer on March 7.

Marianarchy is a wake. Marianarchy is a celebration of life. Marianarchy is recognition of tragedy. It’s booze, it’s art, it’s friends, it’s family.

Marianarchy is an unusually rich cultural event for Northern Nevada.

This year, the benefit show will be held May 18-19 at Jub Jub’s Thirst Parlor, 71 S. Wells Ave. It will feature some 26 bands. Two of Reno’s most iconic bands from the ’90s will headline: Phat Couch on Friday night, at 12:30 a.m. (technically Saturday morning); and GunShot Licker at 11:45 p.m. on Saturday night.

Nick Ramirez is Marianarchy’s point man, although truth be told, there are many heads to this spear. And while he was a member of Phat Couch, and many other noted Reno bands in the years before and since, he was also Marianne Psota’s partner, so he has seniority there. But he wasn’t one of those Reno artists who developed a certain notoriety and/or fame and moved to Portland or Nashville or Los Angeles or into some obscure apartment to chase his demons. No, he’s been in Reno, making new bands and glorifying and edifying the Reno music scene with his and his partners’podcast “The Worst Little Podcast in the World,” www.worstlittlepodcast.com.

These days, he plays with—not including Phat Couch and Gunshot Licker—Candyshoppe, Hella ACapella, Liverscars and Present. His YouTube channel can be found at astronot69.

Ramirez freely acknowledges that this show means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. At this moment, in addition to the nuts and bolts of putting on a show of this magnitude, he seems focused on the soul of the show, the benefit.

“We had planned on doing it for Gary before he passed away in March,” he said. “We decided to go with that and to give Jules [Setzer] the money for all the medical expenses.”

NEW by D. Brian Burghart brianb@newsreview.com Gary Setzer, another long-time musical Renoite, was perhaps best known as GunShot Licker’s drummer through the ’90s. “I’d rather not have these parties,” Ramirez said. “Fucking cancer, man. Nobody’s immune. Cancer’s kind of taken over [as the disease fought by the benefit]. We’ve had some successes, Chris Tenniere and Stacey Spain’s kid are both cancer-free. We’ve had some setbacks.” But even for Ramirez, it’s a party. A big, big party with a heart. “It’s a celebration of the music that Marianne loved,” he said. “Marianne loved local music.” When Psota was suddenly taken ill, Ramirez said many people came out to love and help her. She was well known throughout the community for her music promotion and as a bartender at venues like the Blue Lamp and the Zephyr Bar. Two of Reno’s biggest bands from the ’90s will join some two dozen new bands to perform at this year’s Marianarchy benefit.

GUNSHOTLICKER

For a time, the Blue Lamp was the cultural medulla oblongata of Northern Nevada. The first Marianarchy was for her.

“It’s the people and the music and the love and support,” he said. Psota died of a seizure after years of battling epilepsy. “For me, it’s cathartic every year. It celebrates her. It’s not like it ever goes away. I like it. It’s cool. The first few years after Mary was gone, it was really, really sad. It still really hurts, but when we do this, I kind of feel like she’s still around. For those who never knew her, it’s like they’re being introduced to her, and we won’t let that fade away.

“Plus, it’s a great excuse to get a bunch of cool bands together.”

GunShot Licker with Stacey (Tolle) Rosa will be one of the cool bands that will be getting together to help out a stricken comrade’s family. She’s in Austin, Texas, where she runs a restaurant and plays with the band The People vs. De La Rosa.

“The last one was bittersweet as well,”

PHATCOUCH she said. GunShot Licker headlined a benefit in December at Davidson’s Distillery. “Gary was real sick. I was hoping he’d be well-enough to play with us, but … all of our fallen soldiers.” There’s a Reno cliché that says people can never get away from Reno—they can leave, but they’ll always return. Rosa, while she’s looking forward to the visit, doesn’t necessarily subscribe to that theory. “I miss the time when I was there more than I miss the town,” she said. “Everything was so easy and so fun: bartending in great bars, playing in a great band. But I don’t really miss the city itself. People here are so proud of their city. It’s just so much healthier without the 24-hour lifestyle. There’s just so much music. You can see a great band any night of the week, but it still has a rural feel.” But of course, no story that mentions the words “Phat Couch” would be complete without a parting shot from the indefatigable singer Steve Foht: “I feel a lot of things, but mostly I’m just looking forward to playing a show with my favorite people, to play in front of my favorite people to play for, and more importantly, being myself when I do it. It has been a long time since that has happened.” Ω