March 20 @ The Lighthouse, Washington, DC

The first inkling I get that The Lighthouse is, in fact, a house where people live and not er, some other sort of venue is when they send an email that says we have to start at 8pm because we can't disturb the neighbors, and also we should come early because they are making dinner for everyone. Since the place is about fifteen minutes from Stefan's place, we do not have strange directional problems, and we arrive right on time. It is totally a house. A nice, big one, though!

We run into the members of Sonic Circus, and they tell us we can just start unloading... and so we do. Everything goes in the basement. The PA hasn't arrived yet, so I do the amount of set-up that I can do without it. I'm done in about fifteen minutes, and so we go up and have dinner. It's nice and relaxing. Dinner is vegan and very good. They made applesauce from scratch, partly because their band name is Fantasy Apple Pipe Machine.

We chat and stuff. Layne is teaching music for Quaker kids and teaching them how to make instruments. I wish I had a teacher like that in junior high. I also talk with Mike from Sonic Circus and we find out we know lots of the same people and play the same venues. He even met Katia and Charlie during ICMC 2006.

Initially, I was scheduled in third place, but I end up playing last due to the fact that I claim I am not particularly loud. Anyways, we all go down to the basement to watch Sonic Circus. Their first piece is very cool and unexpected. It is for bassoon and turntables, and it was pretty rocking. I've never seen anyone rock out on a bassoon before. The rest of the set is also very solid, and in particular, they play this awesome video along with a Terry Riley piece. Later, Stefan tells me that for a while, it even matched with the color of the music in his mind. (context: he has synesthesia)

Next up: The Fantasy Apple Pipe Machine is interesting. Layne is playing a mic'd styrofoam box with pipes laid on top. As he hits the box, the pipes start rolling off and he has to constantly keep them steady and put them back. It is very precarious. That is probably my favorite part of watching the band. I say so later, but he seems very nonplussed when I mention it. It occurs to me briefly that others may not share a similar interest in things going wrong and dangerous performance situations.

Then, Sejayno. They seem humorous, which is nice. I am not sure which parts are serious and which parts are not sometimes. Their homemade instruments look incredibly interesting.

Then me. I start with Error of My Ways. I accidentally start the guitar parts twice, which throws me at first. But, it works, actually. Its very interesting. I try to follow only one guitar part for my voice parts. This time, the synth really does stop working (it is supposed to that, I know. I programmed it in). It is frustrating. It is also softer because it is competing against two copies of the guitar.

things that breathe and Study in Losing Control go especially well that night. There's something about performing things a lot that makes them go better. Huh! It is mystery. (no, not really). Lastly, I do balancing act. Unfortunately, the speakers are placed for maximum feedback, the song is more about me trying to find the place with the least amount of feedback than trying to find the dot. It is sort of different piece than I intended and yet the same arc. Oh, I fail in preventing feedback. I am thinking of just taking out some of the ways the voice affects the piece. It sounds pretty awesome in ideal conditions but that's happened... once.

Oh, and before I play balancing act one of the people watching asks me about my technology, in progressive questions.
him: Is that Supercollider?
me: No, its C++
him: Is that Supercollider?
me: yes.
him: version 3?
me: 3.1, actually.

Entertaining, I'm sure.

ETA: Wanted to add, that although this gig was at a party, it still had one of the better turn-outs I've seen!