The experimental music scene in Brooklyn

1/27/07, The Brooklyn Paper: Take a hike: Experimental music, popular but tough to get to: "Venues for noise rock are constantly changing and expanding throughout Brooklyn, but one of the drawbacks is that getting to some of these spacious locales requires a lot of effort.

'They’re aesthetically pleasing, but off the beaten path,' said Brad Truax, who plays in two local bands, Home and Soldier of Fortune.

When Giffoni throws his 'No Fun Fest,' a four-day festival where musicians come together at the Hook to mesh sounds and instruments, he typically has to hire a shuttle to run back and forth between the Red Hook club and the nearest subway stop a mile away.

Promoters are complicit in keeping electronic music 'out there.'

Todd Patrick, who goes by the moniker Todd P. and is hailed as an essential force in Brooklyn’s experimental scene, tends to keep his venues on the fringes.

'Todd finds places that are sort of far out,' said Truax. 'I had to work to get to [his venues].”'

But the venues have to be isolated, Patrick said.

'Noise is noisy,’ he said. 'It’s hard to find a locale in New York where you can make a ton of noise without someone calling the police.'"

music scene
Brooklyn