Interviews from Was Ist Das? MarchFourth in Germany

The Was Ist Das? MarchFourth in Germany documentary film highlights the inner workings of M4 and their recent excursion to Europe in 2010. In large part, what makes the film compelling is the fact that very little media has been produced to highlight the diverse and wonderful personalities of this increasingly popular musical entity. There are copious amounts of fan-provided live clips on YouTube and other online video streaming sites. However, despite their attempt to court media opportunities not much in the way of thought provoking or intelligent discussion with band members exists to date. The Diggable Monkey is here to fill the void...

The interview outtakes from the Was ist Das? film further explore the perspectives of (6) long time band members: John Averill, Amy Hatfield, Dan Stauffer, Nayana Jennings, Sid Simpatico and Scalett Torrance. Each presents a unique view of their role and their experience with what is commonly referred to among band members as simply, "the Project". Out of costume and into a comfy seat, these kids weave a dynamic tale to satisfy among the most die hard of their fans...

As with the 29-minute documentary film, these pieces were developed for online consumption. Their sub 2-minute play duration were designed and fully intended to be consumed in a single sitting. As the editor, selecting comments from the Was Ist Das? interviews was something of a challenge. Much of what was discussed in the retrospective process was potentially useful to enhance the arc of the movie's narrative. We are pleased to release these comments in a more random and revised "short" format, so that viewers can enjoy their presentation in a more anecdotal or personal way. In a sense, we strike more at highlighting the individual rather than the band as a whole.

The eight year journey this tribe has traveled is extremely fertile storytelling soil. From our perspective, this conversational exploration has been a missed opportunity for both the band members and their fans. Our hope is that the series will in some small way help alleviate the expanding bottleneck of interest in "the Project" and recognize the stories of this incredibly unique little slice of humanity.

To see thee 1st installment of the series, "John Talks Family" with John Averill, view the MarchFourth Channel on Vimeo here: http://vimeo.com/diggablemonkey/videos

More info on MarchFourth here:
http://marchfourthmarchingband.com

Hey, Carl. Turn That Suck Knob Down! - Solovox 10-Year Anniversary

"You ever heard of Woo Woo Feild?", my therapist asked. "Nope, I didn't know that there were any other Portland Burners", I replied. "Look this guy up and he'll tell you all about it", he said grinning. "Uh, Ok...".

Way back in 2002, my now ex-wife and I were feeling like seasoned vets heading into our third Burning Man event. A San Francisco crew had adopted us as one of their own, so we didn't really socialize that much with the locals. Basically, there weren't many of us in Portland at the time. Little did we know that the festival's popularity was on the verge of exploding around these parts.

We'd been told that there was a guy named Carl who camped with a large Portland organization out there and that we should look him up. Always keen to explore new Playa connections, we tracked him at the festival that year. The encounter was brief, as he was strapped into a monster parachute making some futile attempt to get his camp set up in a brewing sand storm. We made quick introductions and suggested a rally at some point down the line. In true Burner fleeting fashion, the hang with Carl never came to pass.

It was roughly a full year before I saw him again. In 2003, I ended up across the street from Woonami Village, a Woo Woo Field-style camp on steroids with close to 500 campers. My own freshly minted camp, Monkey Puzzle, got our request honored by the Org for close Woo theme camp placement . As it turned out, my long time friends Dan Cohen and Marcea Wiggins and a few others were Woo refugees looking to exercise what I like to refer as "polycamperous tendencies", so I went along with their site plan to go for an autonomous experience that was deliberately guarded from the Woonami wave.

Late in the week, we'd been up late and were sitting next to our dome across the street from the Woo. Carl suddenly came rolling up on the infamous Woonami bus, playing on top with a live band that had been raging full tilt with hard rock all week. It was deathly quiet at 5 o'clock in the morning and just as the bus was docking, he played some beautiful aria alone on a synth. GORGEOUS! In that moment, I realized the POWER of peaceful classical music played live in the electronica-crazed Black Rock City. I also realized that this was the Solovox personality I'd been hearing about...

Fast forward, Solovox has since played all the major music events that I've produced or co-produced (roughly 10), including most of the little gatherings of what has become a wonderful creative non-entity of post-Burning Man tribes affiliated with MarchFourth Marching Band, the Mobile Groove Bomb project, Water in the Desert and the PDX Bridge Festival to name a few. The Solovox 10-year anniversary Diggable Monkey video will feature Carl as an embedded character in this historical evolution of vibrant Portland counter culture. Since I've been tracking Solovox with a video camera at my shows, kaosmosis events, Howl and others, we've developed quite an impressive 8-year archive of footage.

As we've now assembled the media in preparation for a short retrospective piece, I believe he is the perfect protagonist to illustrate how far we've all come - and how gently our batch of grapes have aged. Don't worry, Carl. We're here to further indulge you on your 10-year anniversary. I'll be sure to keep that Suck Knob turned way down... Looking forward to the show next Friday - and you telling us all about it!

More info on the anniversary show here:
http://www.solovox.com/

Oregon News Article here:
http://oregonmusicnews.com/blog/2011/05/06/qa-pdx-electro-pioneer-turns-10-celebrate-with-solovox/

Water in the Desert - Local Culture Project

Great meeting with Mizu Desierto yesterday regarding a film project documenting The Local Culture Project. I've had the pleasure of working with Mizu a number of years ago on Monkey Puzzle, a multi-year Burning Man theme camp project (2003-2007). Always the instigator, I love collaborating with her. She brings so much energy and inspiration to her Water in the Desert team that it's impossible to not be motivated. Keep your ears to the ground on this one, Folks. We're digging DEEP!!

LOCAL CULTURE PROJECT is a year-long inquiry into the relationships between local communities, foods and the arts working under the hypothesis that all are essential pieces of the sustainable discourse. Currently WITD is developing a documentary film and a series of interactive farm events for a newly acquired 1/2 acre lot in St. Johns, Prior Day Farm. The project has received a 2011 RACC project grant and will partner with PSU in a summer course on the farm site entitled Butoh Dance, Permaculture Design and Sustainability. In July, Portland Center Stage will present a site-specific performance of the project during its JAW Festival. Other proposed activities include urban farm gatherings and performances, workshops and a weeklong camp for kids celebrating the relationships between nature, the garden and creativity. One of the projects leading motivations is to build a bridge between the the local food movements and the fields of somatic inquiry, permaculture design and artistic expression.

We're Big In Belgium...

Well, not quite... As someone that has spent the last twelve years of his working career analyzing and mapping data, I've found my viewer statistics to be particularly interesting to monitor. Perhaps the most interesting aspect for me is the geographic component. Where are people located when viewing my content? When you're sitting behind an editing bench in Portland, you start to wonder how far of a reach your material really gets. I'm happy to say that Diggable Monkey does indeed have a world wide audience! Though I can't see detail below the Country level, I can at least see dispersion at the global level.

Here are the Top Ten numbers from DM's Vimeo profile since the account was opened in early 2009:

1. United States
2. Germany
3. Canada
4. France
5. Great Britain
6. Italy
7. Brazil
8. India
9. Indonesia
10. Netherlands

Diggable Monkey on Daily Motion!

Boy, there's certainly no shortage of methods to host media on the web these days. The trick is finding the time to administer all of these sites. I've discovered that Daily Motion is one of the best ones, in terms of quality and ease of use. I'm not a fan of the advertisements that they put on the front end of my stuff. I suppose I wouldn't mind if they'd kick me down a few pennies for every click... Which begs the question, when are these hosting sites going to figure out how to support their contributors and financially honor their producers? My cat videos are far superior than the average Joe's cat videos... ;-)

DiggableMonkey's videos on Dailymotion

The Trail Mix Series

Diggable Monkey had another opportunity to travel with MarchFourth this past month. In an attempt to bring the band a little closer to the fans, DM developed a little video series - a video blog, if you will. Trail Mix: A Life With Razzle Dazzle is a one-of-a-kind view of a large, ensemble band and their travels across the United States. While one can find many online live videos of the band of their stage performance, there are scant few that show the band interacting off stage. The M4 bus, Razzle Dazzle, is a veritable submarine that moves these musicians from place to place in extremely close proximity for weeks at a time. What better place to catch the off stage action than in their home on wheels?

While M4 can't realistically share everything that happens, they can give interested fans a glimpse of road life and what it takes to keep 22 people crammed on a bus functional. You can find these videos at a number of locations. Click on the Diggable Monkey links below to find the series:


http://vimeo.com/diggablemonkey/videos
http://current.com/tags/90007584_diggable-monkey
http://www.youtube.com/user/DiggableMonkey?feature=mhum

THRESHOLD and the Portland Artist Clinic Blessing

A thoughtful reply to a long thread of responses to Threshold ticket giveaway on the PDX Pipeline.

P,

Your reply resonates with me. Unfortunately, someone at the Pipeline makes the call! It is true that much of our inspiration and collaborators are of the Nevada desert cloth. Our craft has been tuned over many years and now we are deliberately directing the fund cannons to aim back here in the “default world” – where help is needed.

Thank you everyone for interest in Threshold. We are so humbled by the amazing responses we’ve gotten back from people in different circles all over town. We never forget how lucky we are to be in Portland and around such a supportive community. If we don’t see you tonight, we hope we can connect with you all through your ongoing engagement with the Portland Artist Clinic. After the weekend, we all scatter back to our own busy worlds, but PAC remains there for the people!

新年快乐(xīn nián kuài lè) Happy New Year!

Kind Regards,

Kevin Balmer
Diggable Monkey
Threshold Co-Producer

THRESHOLD: CHINESE NEW YEAR (2011)

Diggable Monkey, SijaPdx and Anonymous-i Present
THRESHOLD: CHINESE NEW YEAR
A Benefit for The Portland Artist Clinic

A TWO DAY JOURNEY INTO THE YEAR OF THE RABBIT (2011)
...Join us for the 5th annual Threshold event celebrating the Chinese New Year! The event brings awareness and support to the Portland Artist Clinic, a volunteer organization providing community-based, integrative primary care and urgent health care services to Portland artists and musicians who are unable to attain health insurance or who lack access to primary care through their existing insurance.

Come pull a few soft and furry tricks from the hat...

SAT. Feb. 19th & SUN. Feb. 20th
@ Refuge - 116 SE Yamhill
Portland, OR 97215
http://maps.google.com/

SATURDAY NIGHT, Feb. 19th - 9PM - 4AM

RANDOM RAB
http://www.randomrab.net/

Solovox
http://www.solovox.com/

Manoj
http://www.myspace.com/123533889

Barisone
http://soundcloud.com/barisone

Plumblyne
http://soundcloud.com/plumblyne


SUNDAY NIGHT, Feb. 20th 9PM - 3AM

PLASTICIAN
http://www.myspace.com/plastician

Dj Laura
http://www.myspace.com/djlaura

Anjali
http://www.myspace.com/djanjali

Global Ruckus
http://www.myspace.com/djglobalruckus

Behni Bubu
http://soundcloud.com/behnibubu

+++++++++++++++++++

EYE CANDY PROVIDED BY

KAZUM
http://kazum.org/

THE GOOD TIME GIRLS
http://vimeo.com/8785621

BRIDGETOWN REVUE
http://www.bridgetownrevue.net/

+++++++++++++++++++

STYLIE INTERIORS BY NARAYANI
Starbird Couture
http://www.starbirdcouture.com/

SOUND & LIGHTING DESIGN
Audio Freq & Smart Tech

PROJECTIONS & VIDEO PRODUCTION
Gabe Shaunnessy & Dan Cohen
http://gabesimagination.com/ & http://dc-creativelabs.com/

Smashed Up Soiree
http://www.smashedupsoiree.com/

Daflew
http://www.daflew.com/

Diggable Monkey
http://www.vimeo.com/diggablemonkey

HOT PROMOTIONAL VIDEO HERE:
http://www.vimeo.com/18391997

++++++++++++++++++++

NEWS FLASH!
On Feb. 19th, THRESHOLD will be streamed live from the venue onto the Internet by BMIR - 94.5FM on the Playa! BMIR is powered in part by generous donations from WideOrbit Radio Automation and StreamGuys.

Check them out at the link below:
http://www.bmir.org/

++++++++++++++++++++

Order Tickets Online:
http://threshold2011.eventbrite.com/
Early Bird - $30 or $20/Show (available until Jan. 11)
Pre~sale $35 ALL WEEKEND
Door - $40 night or 20 per night

Asian-inspired dress highly encouraged!

Also walk-in tickets available at the following retail outlets:
FROCK – 1439 NE Alberta St
METRO – 3525 SE Hawthorne Ave

Check the TriMET link below for the best routes by public transit:
http://trimet.org/go/cgi-bin/plantrip.cgi

For more information about Threshold: Chinese New Year, visit our website @ http://www.mythreshold.net/
NOTE: No one under 21 years old will be admitted. Please bring your ID

Brick City vs. Rose City

In my 12 years in Portland, I've come to appreciate the qualities of what sets it apart from other cities in the United States. I had an opportunity to study cities in depth while attending the urban planning graduate program at Portland State U from 2001-2006. Using Portland as our lab, we sliced an diced our way through topics and issues related to place-making, resource management, neighborhoods dynamics, transportation modeling and systems, public involvement and negotiation, statistics and GIS software, site analysis and design, community development, and the various functions of non-profit networks. After 5 1/2 years of study, I graduated from the "2-year" - 80 credit hour program. I know now when I watch the documentary on Newark, NJ, "Brick City", that Portland is but a child's playground compared to the torrential waves that rock the community there. The term "eye-opening" is a great understatement.

Sure, it's difficult to draw the comparisons between these places on a technically descriptive level. After all, Portland and the Newark are on polar opposite sides of the continent; we have unique geographies, demographics, economies all weaving together unique cultural perspectives that define the character of a place. However, one could also argue that at the basic human level, we are similar in many other ways. For example, we are urbanites that wish to feel secure in our homes, feel secure about the local economy and our place within, an ability to exercise personal rights and freedoms related to religion and race, as well as other basic freedoms. What really seems to distinguish the Brick City from the Rose City are the dire challenges faced by citizens driven to action by the out of their sense of sheer frustration. For a generation or more, the overwhelmed communities of Newark are faced a serious choice: pull together to reduce crime and poverty or allow the lawless to continue eating it alive.

A new award-winning documentary, "Brick City" chronicles the activities of Newark's enigmatic mayor, Cory Booker and the municipal apparatus' attempt to control the city's crime. Rarely have I seen a film so effective in it's approach. Indeed, it delivers a front row seat to the drama underway in Newark. I suspect part of my personal interest lies in the director's choice to weave sweeping, gratuitous shots of the city into the narrative. The metaphor of the city's physical condition in connection to the tenuous sense of happiness and hope amongst the people is poignant and stark. If there was ever a brilliant technique using cameras to define the qualities of a place, Marc Levin and Mark Benjamin have hit the jackpot. "Brick City" makes you sit up and take stock in what is possible when people teeter on the brink. Watch and learn, Portland!

Check out Executive Producer Forest Whittaker's, Brick City! For those with Netflix, you're there. For those looking for more basic info, try this link on:

http://www.sundancechannel.com/brick-city/

Explore, Diggable Monkey. Oo Oo!

THRESHOLD: New Years Eve

In mid-February, Diggable Monkey will again co-produce the ever popular, 5th iteration of the Threshold event. Much the same as 2010, our decision to re-create the Chinese New Year - in February, rather than Dec. 31st - is based primarily on our interest to avoid the partying chaos that is the Gregorian calendar New Year date. We really love the shape shift we implemented last year... Not only is the Chinese new year more interesting from a thematic perspective, but it gives us an opportunity to focus community energy and bear light in one of the darkest periods of the winter. It also opens up the possibility that we might also move the date to celebrate another culture's new year!

We've assembled some of the usual suspects to help bring the magic in the Year of the Rabbit: Maria Toth and her gorgeous space at Refuge, SijaPDX on booking and production, Narayani Matson on interior design, Dan Cohen and Gabe Shaunnessy, our projection artists, with Random Rab and Plastician holding down the main headliner spots for a TWO NIGHT EVENT. Typically, we attempt to create a multiple stage environment. Given the configuration of the Refuge space, we will attempt to leverage the middle room for theatrical performances - Kazum, the Good Time Girls, and the Bridgetown Revue. Our production crew includes some of the steadiest hands in the biz. We can't wait to pull another rabbit out of the hat!

Keep your eyes peeled on the website for more details in the coming days: www.mythreshold.net

Logo - Strong Out of the Gate!

This is one of the first real opportunities I've had to design a logo with a competent graphic artist. My friend k8 has been working with me on event/show fliers for a number of years. All told, she's done at least 5 of them for me. There's something really great about having someone with great skills help you see a vision - kind of like the way a hair dresser has a way with one's hair. You might consider seeing someone else, but when it comes to reliability, you don't want to take any chances with unproven help. I commend her work and would recommend her to anyone who needs exceptional graphic designer talent.

The monkey in the image is a caricature. He is born from two worlds: my urban planning and my Burning Man worlds. The two are not mutually exclusive. In fact, I've tried hard to create a synergy between them. My film career started somewhat late in graduate school where I studied planning. It quickly blossomed into various avenues of the Portland art community and now stands poised to swing on the vines of the social media revolution. At the time I started, it seemed highly unlikely that someone with a planning degree would make for a good film maker. A few years into the work, I now feel like that foray was perhaps the smartest career and passion meld I could possibly have made.

Though the Monkey Puzzle tribe has not officially been to the Burning Man festival in over three years, the momentum started with that organization still runs strong in my creative veins. There is very little about MP that I didn't truly love. I owe much inspiration to the people who helped gestate that experience. As for the Diggable City project, over 20 major metro areas around the country (and the world) have referenced the seminal 5-year old document and initiated urban agriculture policies within their own municipalities.

All told, I'd say the Diggable Monkey is starting pretty darn strong out of the gate! oo OO oo

Jane Jacobs Parting Words (2007)

For those of you not familiar with her work, Jane Jacob's is probably half the reason why you love the way Portland, OR (Portlandia) functions. Neil Goldschmidt and Portland planners in the 1970's were all about her persuasion toward smart transportation investment and leveraging the "human-scale" elements of our city. Take a look at the Parting Words documentary and learn more about her fabulous intuition.

Regards,
Diggable Monkey

Video Link:
http://vimeo.com/3314950

March Fourth Marching Band Documentary

The Diggable Monkey film production team is busy hammering out the final edits of the very first short form documentary on the band. From early to late September, the band toured three countries in Europe - Germany, the Netherlands and France. I was fortunate to be embedded as a cameraman with them through the week long Germany portion of the trip. Our primary areas of focus were touring in the regions of Hamburg and small towns in Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen), including the towns of Peine, Hann. Munden and Leer, near the Holland border.

Celebrating its 8th year of operation this coming March, the band shows a maturity in both their playing style and their cohesion as a traveling group of 25 plus members. I was especially proud of how they more than adequately represented our city (and country) abroad.

We'll be submitting an entry into Portland's International Film Festival (PIFF) and potentially other Oregon festivals. Stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks.

Kevin Balmer
Diggable Monkey, Producer

The Nowhere Band - Dear Prudence (2009)

December 19, 2009 - Excerpt from the annual White Album Christmas show at the Bossanova Ballroom. Jason Wells and gang sings "Dear Prudence" to a captive audience.

Video Link:
http://www.vimeo.com/17013672

"Dear Prudence" written by John Lennon
Performed by The Nowhere Band

Camera and edits by Kevin Balmer
© Diggable Monkey Productions

+++++++++

DECEMBER 9th and 10th, 2010
doors at 8, show at 9

WHITE ALBUM CHRISTMAS
a holiday circus spectacular
a tribute to The Beatles
and an annual reunion of the Cascadian Freak Family

at
THE ALBERTA ROSE THEATRE
3000 NE Alberta
tickets and info at
albertarosetheatre.com
wanderlustcircus.com

starring
WANDERLUST CIRCUS
and
THE NOWHERE BAND
Carl Solovox
Miss Sarah King
John Averill (March Fourth)
Dave Camp (Stereovision)
Jason Wells (Trashcan Joe)
Ryan Moore (March Fourth)
and still more
with fab featured circus performers

KAZUM
AWOL DANCE COLLECTIVE
MARCH FOURTH STILTWALKERS
LEAPIN' LOUIE LICHTENSTEIN
RUSSELL BRUNER
BLAKE HICKS
AND MORE!!!

March Fourth Marching Band - Hoo Ha (2010)

Video Link: http://www.vimeo.com/16802729

November 6, 2010 - Unedited video excerpt of the Hoo Ha drum solo performed at 2720, in St. Louis, Missouri. Featuring the March Fourth rhythm section with Ryan Moore (Snare), Richard Cawley (Toms), Jenny DiDonato (Conga), Dan Stauffer (Cymbals) and Alex Yore (Bass Drum).

"Hoo Ha" written by Jason Wells
Performed by March Fourth Marching Band

M4 TV
Camera and Editing by Kevin Balmer
© Diggable Monkey Productions

March Fourth Marching Band TV (2010)

November 4, 2010 - Just another day at the office with the March Fourth Marching Band. The TV broadcast on WGN in Chicago beamed across the US, as many cable subscribers get the channel as part of the basic package. These are behind the scene clips from the session in the studio. As anachronistic as TV media has become, these brief spots were a big coup for the band.

http://www.vimeo.com/16546298


"Dynomite" Written by Robin Jackson
Performed by March Fourth Marching Band
WGN Television Studio 2
Camera and Editing - Kevin Balmer
© Diggable Monkey Productions

PDX Bridge Festival - Fabric and Lighting Installation (2010)

Watch the PDX Bridge Festival production team stop center lane traffic on Multnomah County's 100-year old Hawthorne Bridge to install tension fabric and motion triggered lighting in preparation for the 'Hit the Lights' event tonight (Saturday July 24th) at 9:30pm. Best full pan viewing for the show is likely to be on the Morrison, one bridge to the north. Come and bear witness to a 'first' in our city's history.

Vimeo Link:
http://vimeo.com/13610824

For more information on PDX Bridge Festival, to go:
pdxbridgefestival.org

Kinetic Sculpture Concept: Tucker Teutsch 3.0

Installation Team:
Guildworks - Mar Ricketts, Architect of the Air
guildworks.com/

SmarthTech AV - Chris Herring, Jean Margaret Thomas, Lila Stanphil
smarttechav.com/

Heavy Equipment - Star Rentals
starrentals.com/

Camera and editing by Kevin Balmer
Video production Diggable Monkey Pictures

Dan Cohen Alchemy (2010)

June 24, 2010 - Meet Dan Cohen, one of the country's most prominent large-scale mural painter and fine art sculptor. Scenes and interviews from recent projects, including the recently completed mural of a wetland landscape mural on Wilhelm's Memorial Funeral Home in SE Portland.

From the Regional Arts & Culture Council website:

The Portland Memorial Mausoleum Mural was created as an expansion of the existing Great Blue Heron Mural on the lower west facing wall of the Mausoleum, also applied by ArtFX. The expanded mural covers eight surfaces totaling approximately 43,485 square feet, and is estimated to be the largest mural in the United States. Seen clearly from the OMSI Springwater Trail and I-5, the mural highlights the importance of the 160-acre Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge to the city of Portland’s quality of life, the contribution of the wetland system as a critical element of the city’s green infrastructure, and its contribution to maintaining biodiversity in the city and metropolitan area.

More info on Dan, visit:
dc-creativelabs.com/

Shot with Canon XHA1s
Camera and Editing by Kevin Balmer
© 2010 Diggable Monkey Picutres