ARTSMONDAY: Diamonds in the Rough

Perhaps you’ve seen them too, as you wandered up the cafeteria stairs of Quincy House to get yourself yet another typical brain break meal of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They are a distinctly un-preppy, counter-Harvard-culture (un-Harvard might not be specific enough) set of musicians, who hang out by the mailboxes either with an acoustic guitar in hand, a drumstick behind each ear, or a plastic pick, pinched between two pierced lips.

Last Thursday night at 9 p.m., an artistic crowd once again gathered in the Quincy lobby area, before descending into the depths of the basement, where all would perform in the Quincy Cage show.

In the intimate warmth of the basement, three different groups quietly waited for what was supposed to be a short period of time as the stage was set up. After just over half an hour, the delayed show finally began with the one-man band, Avi Varma.

Under red-lights more typical of Amsterdam than Cambridge, Avi Varma accompanied by his acoustic guitar and harmonica, performed several songs—or, perhaps more accurately put, a couple variations of the same song. The limited range of notes and identical beat of each song made the Amerherst College student’s performance the musical equivalent of an Ec10 lecture— exciting material made monotonous and boring.

For his part, Varma mumbled indecipherable lyrics followed by multiple “ladadada’s,” making one of his few comprehensible lines (“I sound like what’s-his-name”) the most painfully ironic moment of his unmemorable performance.

Yet, Avi Varma does not lack musical talent. His soothing voice, coupled with his impressive improvisations on the harmonica, complemented a welcoming opening act that merited the claps it received from the few audience members present.

Later, at 10:15, Music-167: The Band, a group consisting exclusively of Harvard students, took the stage to give an unusual performance, inspired by the music class, “Music 167: Electro-Acoustic Composition,” which the group of six is currently taking. The band’s disjointed set included a variety of seemingly mismatched musical instruments that ranged from a classical violin to the primitive, rhythmic pounding of a fist (this same fist seconds before had also gracefully danced on a laptop’s keyboard).

Although no one in the group sang, two members of the band occasionally interrupted the languid, drawn-out notes of the violin and base with readings of passages of Italo Calvino’s book, Invisible Cities. Perhaps too obscurely poetic to be fully grasped or even enjoyed, the band’s bizarre music, nevertheless, had a calming, almost hypnotic quality, which sadly was periodically obliterated by intentionally jarring outbursts of radio static. There is no need to say that the band continuously kept its audience guessing for what would come next.

Perhaps fortunately, the group to come next was entirely different from Music-167. The Noelles, a group originally from Washington D.C., performed a series of lively rock songs with melodies recalling the cheerfulness of The Beach Boys’ tunes. With its undeniable stage presence and pep, the band boosted the show’s party energy to its highest (granted, this may have been easily accomplished feat after the mellowness of the two preceding acts).

The band’s resurrection of the spirits of the growing crowd was a tour de force that is sure to have made more than one audience member wonder if The Noelles could change their name to Red Bull Something after the show (The band is actually named after a girl.) Although this relatively new band did not have its usual drummer on hand, (he is currently attending high school in D.C.), The Noelles seemed perfectly at ease while on stage— perhaps their comfort is the result of the five other shows they have given over the past three weeks.

It is doubtful that any audience member would contend that this Quincy Cage Show was unforgettable; however, it is also impossible to discard it as musically uninteresting. The show did ultimately showcase a variety of musical performers who were each at some point entertaining, showing off some talent and innovation.

—Reviewer Cara B. Eisenpress can be reached at eisenpr@fas.harvard.edu.