Samedi

by Ryan Sparks

Never Records is about to pull the plug on the turntable, but not before a blowout weekend that celebrates the past month in New Orleans and toasts the future of the project.  Ted Riederer’s record shop art installation at 841 Carondelet has spent the last month cutting vinyl of live recordings of over 100 New Orleans artists, from local stars like Katey Red and Helen Gillet to dozens of powerful radar-ready acts like Isidro and Micah McKee & Little Maker.  

Riederer will run through his last sessions this weekend, and when he leaves he’s taking all his records with him, so take the time to get down there before the doors lock up for the last time.

People are welcome to drop by the shop anytime while it’s open to hang out, watch a recording session, and flip through the accumulated stacks of vinyl from New Orleans and Europe. On Friday night, there will be a screening of a documentary filmed about a previous incarnation of Never Records in Derry, Northern Ireland, as well as performances by two artists who have traveled from the UK to take part in the project again: SJ Downes, an acoustic roots and blues player from Liverpool, and Teknopeasant, a banjo-wielding Irish gypsy bluesman.

Sunday night at the Hi Ho Lounge, those two musicians will take part in a Never Records Folk Music Showcase beginning at 7 pm.  Joining them will be locals Gold & the Rush and St. Cecilia's Asylum Chorus.  

Monday night is the Breakdown and Listening Party.  People are encouraged to come by and listen to songs recorded by the New Orleans artists.  This may be your only chance to listen to the cross-current for the time being.  Riederer is still trying to figure out how to best present a digital archive of all his recordings, so after Monday it will be up to the bands themselves to decide what to do with their tracks.  Not everyone has a Bandcamp page.  Catch a few tunes that have already been posted on Riederer’s blog, especially this ridiculous improvisation.

You can also bring a t-shirt with you and get it screen printed for free with a locally-designed Never Records logo, or purchase a readymade shirt featuring a graphic designed by Arturo Vega, the man behind the infamous Ramones logo.  The party will probably go late into the night, but don’t wait ‘til Monday Night Football is over to turn out. Once the doors shut the posters will have to come down, the gear will get packed up, and all that will be left is graffiti, rumors, and silence.  

Stay tuned to NoDef for a full recap of the Never Records experience.