It's a rough time here in NYC for people presenting live music. Tonic,
the primary venue in the city for experimental live music (including,
especially, out-there electronics) is in big trouble: rent that's
doubled in 7 years, tripled insurance rates, a robbery, failing
facilities, and a collapsed sewage line. (Plague of locusts? That may
be next.) And it sounds like they need over $100,000. In, oh say, the next few weeks. Check the Tonic
site for more on how they're fighting back: contributions and benefits.
With the benefit tonight at $8, at least helping them is affordable.
And if that weren't enough bad news for the Apple, WKCR-FM 89.9 is $250,000 in debt.
(Now your paltry $100,000 doesn't sound so bad, huh, Tonic?) They're
having trouble getting any support from the Columbia University campus
at which they're based. For those of you who don't know it, KCR is a
vital link to experimental music, new music, Southeast Asian music, and
some of the best jazz programming in the country.
Here's hoping these guys can fight back. If you take advantage of KCR
over the Internet from elsewhere in the world, please donate, and New
Yorkers, Tonic may well be worth bailing out.