Sunday, March 15, 2009

Israeli trio redefinies rock show in last night of NX35



The last night of NX35 couldn't have been more perfect. Take Denton's Fishboy playing at Banter, The Drams at Boiler Room and two high-energy sets at Hailey's and whoa, whoa, whoa... It goes without saying that Monotonix, a half-naked-mosh-pit-inducing-phenomenon from Israel, put on the best show of the weekend. The one-man band, Show is Rainbow got the energy (and the beard) worked up. Then the Israeli trio tore down the house. Monotonix's set redefined the definition of a rock show. They started at the edge of the floor, drifted to the center of the dance floor, to on top of the crowd, out in the street and back inside. Lead singer, Levi mooned the audience, stole beer from a few unsuspecting guys and successfully sweated on everyone in the club -- and it couldn't have been more appropriate! Why more bands don't take those same liberties is astounding. I'm sold. Thinking back to comic book author, Harvey Pekar's Saturday afternoon discussion about free jazz, he would probably have enjoyed, or at least appreciated Monotonix. Pekar talked about how music and the arts need to be constantly evolving and inventing so they avoid becoming stagnant. NX35 stirred up the setting water in Denton's arts community. While the conferette has plenty of growing to do and a few kinks to work out, overall it was an awesome experience. Fans didn't have to drive to Austin or Dallas to see the more than 100 acts booked and the camaraderie between audience members made the weekend particularly enjoyable. It will be exciting to see how the conferette turns out next year. Order your 2010 tickets in advance, folks. I can guarantee they won't last long.

-Melissa Crowe

Video and pictures courtesy of Rachel Watts

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