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By: Wilfred Brandt
Date: 6th Feb 08
Format: Book
Motivation: Pimp your coffee table
What:
New York Noise: Art and Music From the New York Underground 1978-1988
Where:
Metropolis, Lvl 3, Curtin House, 252 Swanston St, Melbourne
Who:
Soul Jazz Press
How much:
Around $55
1978 New York was a very different place. Junkies, trannies, punk bands... junkie tranny punk bands.
New York Noise showcases the whole flea-ridden scene in photographer Paula Court's crisp, cool black and white. Beyond the obvious underground luminaries (Haring, Basquiat, Cindy Sherman), there's stacks of snaps of cult faves (Suicide, Jim Jarmusch, Ann Magnuson, ESG) and a plethora of lovable old weirdos to investigate (Yoshiko Chuma and the School of Hard Knocks??)
From painters to break dancers to filmmakers to poets, these photos traverse as many genres as the artists themselves. It's like a Fuck You Heroes for the downtown New York scene. There's also a smattering of written remembrances from the subjects themselves. See this as a sad glimpse of an uninhibited cultural incubator lost to high rents and high-rises, or an inspiring ode to what still could be.