V. Vecker tonight at the Anza

Ardent followers of Straight Music Notes know that I just chatted with. V. Vecker - also known as Keith Wecker - to plug tonight's large ensemble performance at the Anza Club, also featuring members of Von Bingen, Basketball, Certain Breeds, Cowards, No Gold, and Sex Negatives. Here's an outtake! I had to ask Vecker - who performed in Seattle with a Glenn Branca large ensemble in 2008 - read more on that here - about Branca's personality, which seems a tad crusty and colourful. His reply was as follows:

“There’s so many people that don’t get paid – you’re volunteering your time, essentially. We could talk with him for hours, just about weird performers and jazz and whatever came up, and he had no problem sorta hanging out and talking with people and working on stuff. But when it came to, like, soundchecks and stuff, he was a fuckin’ monster. I remember when we were setting up the show, they were soundchecking the drums. We were playing in the sculpture garden for the Seattle Art Museum; there’s sort of a natural amphitheatre they built there, and he’s on the top, where the mixing board is, listening to it. They’re doing, I think, just the snare drum, and the tech goes, ‘How’s that?’ through the microphone, over this giant PA system. And Branca is like – ‘uh, it’s good; can you just make it not sound like shit?’ – and just, like, walked away. He's definitely an East Coast man - he's very opinionated!"

Vecker, of course, has also performed in a large ensemble with Anthony Braxton, but... I dunno, between Braxton and Branca, I'm the kind of guy who opts to ask about Branca. Hope the large ensemble performance tonight goes well - I've squandered my concert-going resources for the time being!