September 30, 2003

London Cult Band Celebrates Halloween at MASS MoCA

(North Adams, Mass.) This Halloween the Tiger Lillies will redefine 'shock value' in a concert of fiendish depravity at MASS MoCA at 9 P.M. on Friday, October 31. Their dark, sometimes disturbing, but also strangely hysterical lyrics are inspired by lead singer Martin Jacques' years of living above a seedy Soho strip bar and its surrounding area. The songs deal with local strippers, street junkies, and all things carnivalesque; the music takes pity and pokes fun, often in the same breathtaking phrase. According to the Eccentric Observer, "There's a fine line between brilliance and psychosis, and the Tiger Lillies walk it like a drunk on a tightrope."

The Independent London recently declared them "Cult Band of the Year". The New York Times named their Shockheaded Peter -- the soundtrack to an experimental theater piece which garnered Best Director awards in London -- "Album of the Week" in October 1999. The London Soho-based group recently went on world tour with the athletic dance troupe Holy Body Tattoo providing live music for their performance of Circa, a sexy exploration of the ups and downs of relationships, all based on the steps of the tango. The Circa tour included a sold-out performance at MASS MoCA in February 2001.

Initially discovered by Talking Heads leader David Byrne, the Tiger Lillies are a genre all their own. Founder/singer/ songwriter/accordion player Martin Jacques named the group after a London prostitute who always entertained in tiger stripes. His operatic "Criminal Castrato" voice shrills above Adrian Stout's blues/jazz contra bass and Adrian Huge's waltzing percussion. The list of the Tiger Lillies' influences is so long and far-ranging that they can't be considered in the same genre with any one of them, yet each can be easily recognized: Punk, British music-hall, gypsy ballads, French chansons, Left Bank Paris, yodeling, flamenco, Bob Dylan, German cabaret, Brecht, Edith Piaf, Louis Armstrong, Morrissey, and the Smiths to list but a few.

Lickety Split will be open at 8 P.M. for dinner and drinks. Costumes are encouraged. The Tiger Lillies concert is sponsored by Blue Q.

Tickets for The Tiger Lillies are $16 for adults or $10 for students with I.D. MASS MoCA members receive a 10% discount. Tickets are available through the MASS MoCA Box Office located off Marshall Street in North Adams from 11 A.M. until 5 P.M. (closed Tuesdays). Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling 413.662.2111 during Box Office hours or purchased on line at www.massmoca.org.

The performance contains adult themes and content, and is not appropriate for children.

MASS MoCA, housed on a 13-acre campus of restored 19th-century factory buildings, is the largest center for contemporary art in the country. During the winter, MASS MoCA's galleries are open every day except Tuesdays, from 11 A.M. to 5 P.M. Admission is $9 for adults, $3 for children 6-16, free for children under 6 and free for members at all times. For additional information, call (413) 662-2111 or visit www.massmoca.org.

MASS MoCA, the largest center for contemporary visual and performing arts in the United States, is located off Marshall St. 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