11:00am | As part of the monthly 2nd Saturday Experimental Music Series, hosted by Fingerprints Music and curated by Sumako of LVXEdge.com, poet and music artist Blake T. Honeytwin will be performing this Saturday evening from 9 – 10 PM.
I’ve known Blake for quite some time. He is a long time member of the Hop-Frog Kollectiv, an ever expanding group of artists who regularly collaborate on performances, recordings, and other creative efforts.
I asked Blake how he connected with the Hop-Frog Kollectiv.
Blake: Carl Off and I had known each other through the Goth / Deathrock movement. After a few years of not seeing each other, I ran into him in Las Vegas. After a short while, we both ended up back in California and ran into him again. This time, he, Jeremy, and Eric were doing a little radio show for Cerritos College radio with experimental music / sounds. They invited me to do spoken word on the program, as I had told them about my readings in LV. That’s when they introduced me to Hop-Frog. First I did visuals / projections, then spoken word, and finally percussion and synth.
Sander: What was the scene in Las Vegas like?
Blake: In the late ’90’s, it was very close-knit. The art scene was very brilliant, yet small, as the gleaming beast known as Las Vegas seemed to have the arts in general on its cross-hairs, so to speak. Laser Vida was a really cool art collective. Hand-in-hand was the cafe scene, with great spoken word; it was very deep! My life at that time was a mix of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Leaving Las Vegas! I was at a point of loneliness in my life (kids were living with the ex right after our divorce) and it called me from the darkness.
Sander: So, what was it like when you discovered the Hop Frog guys, and began to work with them?
Blake: The ideas, images, and sounds were very fresh and surreal! It was like we had all broken through the fog of L.A., still coughing, and wandered straight into one of the more surreal David Lynch movies. Thee Dung Mummy series of events was very much a rare phenomenon. There was nothing else like it that I knew of in L.A.
Sander: Take a moment and explain, for those who never got to experience them, what they were.
Blake: Well, they (the Hop-Frog core) rented a theatre / artist space and invited visual artists, musicians, and spoken word artists to come together to share through those outlets. It was a place to share your thoughts on life, and most that were there always had quite a different perspective on life than most.
Sander: I attended some, and performed at some. I have to say that I’ve never been to a more diverse evening, nor have I ever felt more appreciated and accepted as an artist. Those experiences were very meaningful to me.
Blake: Somehow we see what most don’t. I know that’s a generalization, but it’s brotherhood / sisterhood from a completely different dimension. Pretentiousness is also completely thrown out the window! Be real. Be yourself… From the deepest depths of the soul!
Sander: Is the Kollectiv still operational?
Blake: Essentially, we are all still intertwined, yet, we have all spread out like so much fungi! Maybe just a few years ago the spores were released.
Sander: What will you be doing this Saturday?
Blake: I’ll be speaking and singing and playing some percussion. My daughter, Justalisa, will perform on synth. There is also a musician joining on strings, who is from an underground band from LA/NY. Steven is one of my long lost spirit brothers. We will be interpreting some dreams and hallucinations. Very dark dreams where you wake up and your heart is pounding loudly.
— Fingerprints Music is located at 420 East 4th Street. The performance is open to all ages, and is free.
To keep up on all the stuff going on at Fingerprints, visit FingerprintsMusic.com
To discover the world of the Hop-Frog Kollectiv, visit Hop-Frog.com
To find out about upcoming performances in the 2nd Saturday Experimental Music Series, visit LVXEdge.com
Hear a live recording of Blake and the Hop-Frog Kollectiv.