April 22, 2007
A ROSE IN HER TEETH/AND A LAMPSHADE CROWN
We read in the Version Fest listing in the paper that Paper Rad was playing the art show at 7. Turned out that the video show was at 7 and the band were listed at the wrong time in reverse order. The people at the door said they hadn't played, but were playing "soon".
The art shows theme was "fantasy worlds" or something similar. Which if you have been following the art the last 2-3 years, is kind of a given. Some of the paintings and drawings were compelling and interesting. A bunch of them looked the same, which is to say that the little dude in Lightning Bolts art has had a far influential reach. Isn't Matt cute in his hat?
D&D diaramas were well represented. As were dudes in bathrobes and girls who like to mosh to techno.
Lots of kids were dressed as wizards and Zena-ish faeries, but Ashen was not. Going to the party looking like a party is always a good look. As is representing for drunken hunters everywhere, and engineering an outfit that conveys the almost-there spring weather of the past week.
I have not been to a party in 5 years without running into these three. Just looking at Rotten Milk (R) makes me feel all of my 30 years rather acutely.
Cody built this giant skull castle in four days.
The cardboard tunnel with a beast face held together entirely by yarn was my favorite thing there. Second favorite: the full size functioning catapult with "BFE" carved into it; it ammo was a pile of dirty stuffed animals.
There was also a "life sized" hanging stuffed dragon with it's mouth was shooting patriotic streamers. Ben got caught vogueing in it's fire.
Later, they boarded up the Paper Rad display because people kept using it as a phone booth.
After 5 and a half hours, Paper Rad had still not played. We were a little pissed.
We left JR alone so he could talk to girls, and bided our time by driving out past the airport to the Krispy Kreme. I am still very sick with bronchitis, or amateur pnuemonia, boogie-woogie flu of some sort and need treats like donuts and tea for strength. We were the only people in the KK who were not super-stoned teenagers wolfing down dozens.
When we came back, Warhammer was playing, the place was packed and this kid in a sort of grunge-minotaur costume and his friend in a cardboard stockade were dumping Elmers glue all over their hands and trying to get people to shake them. I can appreciate that; sometimes I feel like I was born with that sort of urge, you know?
Finally, I found Edmar, who was running the show and he explained that Paper Rad had instead of playing had decided to do a DJ set a few hours earlier, and we must have missed it. I think he might have been lying. Or joking. It didn't matter. We left the kids to thier fantasy world and headed home to bed.