P R E S S
R E L E A S E S 2006
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April 6, 2006
Local Favorites Perform at MASS MoCA
(North Adams, Mass.) The Books, aka Nick Zammuto and Paul de Jong, bring their unique blend of sampled and acoustic music to MASS MoCA's Club B-10 as part of the museum's Alt Cabaret series on Saturday, May 6, at 8 P.M. With three albums under their belts, along with critical acclaim and lots of buzz, The Books are rising stars and hometown heroes. "Perhaps one of the mostly literally named bands in recent memory, the Books reconstruct the experience of reading through stark but personal instrumentation and sounds," according to San Francisco's Guardian which went on to say, "Take the Books off the shelf, kick off your shoes, and start reading with your ears."
Using an acoustic backbone of cello, guitar and vocals, their performance at MASS MoCA will also include a video projection lovingly synched to the music, assembled from their ever-growing collection of found home movies, outdated instructional videos, and hippie guru lectures. While this is their first performance at MASS MoCA, The Books are no strangers to the campus having spent two weeks in residency at MASS MoCA in January preparing for their current world tour with Clogs. Nick Zammuto and Paul de Jong met in 2000 through a friend when they were living in the same New York City apartment building. Coming from vastly different backgrounds, they soon learned they had a shared love of acoustic music and found sound. They experimented and plunked away until, with some urging by Tom Steinle of Tomlab Records, they recorded what would become their debut album, Thought for Food, in 2002. The Books recorded and released The Lemon of Pink in the fall of 2003 and a year later began recording in an old Victorian home in North Adams, Massachusetts. With the release of Lost and Safe in April 2005, the Books departed from the "folktranica" sound they pioneered in their first two efforts, incorporating a new set of instrumental sounds, including vintage clavinet, as well as homemade electro-acoustic sound sculptures made from drain pipes, filing cabinets, and circular metal plates but still in keeping with their now trademark collaged and organic sound. The performance is supported in part by a grant from the Artists' Resource Trust, a fund of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. Tickets for The Books are $14 in advance or $17 the day of the concert. MASS MoCA members receive a 10% discount. Tickets are available through the MASS MoCA Box Office located off Marshall Street in North Adams, open from 11 A.M. to 5 P.M. Wednesday through Monday. Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling 413.662.2111 during Box Office hours or purchased on line at www.massmoca.org. MASS MoCA, the largest center for contemporary visual and performing arts in the United States, is located off Marshall Street in North Adams on a 13-acre campus of renovated 19th-century factory buildings.
For Immediate Release
Contact: Katherine Myers
(413) 664-4481 x8113
katherine@massmoca.org