Work for festival starts in earnest
NX35 widens scope for second year with free Flaming Lips concert
12:08 AM CST on Monday, January 18, 2010
By Candace Carlisle / Staff Writer
Chris Flemmons tipped his shot glass to the music-filled ceiling in a
toast, as someone said, “Let’s make this … rock,”clinked his glass and
took a swallow.
The festival founder and organizer of the North by 35 Music Conferette
wasn’t alone.
Rocking it out, most of the 100 festival volunteers for the second
annual event attended Sunday’s volunteer orientation and kickoff party
at Dan’s Silverleaf, where small teams met to discuss plans for the
upcoming March festival.
Courtesy photo/Danny Fulgencio
Surrounded by other volunteers, Bethany Merren listens as North by 35
administrators instruct the crowd at the NX35 Music Conferette kickoff
party at Dan's Silverleaf in Denton on Sunday evening.
This year’s festival will feature a free outdoor show by the Flaming
Lips — the critically lauded experimental rock band from Norman, Okla. —
expected to draw an estimated 20,000 fans to the area. The outdoor show
also will feature Denton band Midlake, whose third album is due out in
February.
After spending many nights sleeping at the NX35 headquarters on Cedar
Street, Flemmons said he’s been relying on the numerous volunteers who
showed up Sunday to help with the details and logistics of the event to
make it a success.
“This is a Denton music event, and the people working this have a
tremendous amount of ownership,” Flemmons said. “If they didn’t care, it
would not come off like it will.”
The long-term success of the March 11-14 “conferette” will rest on the
shoulders of reliable volunteers, he said, who will help with small
details ranging from noise and safety to trash and waste.
Denton city officials have been heavily involved in the planning process
of the walkable event, which will include closing down Hickory Street
for the Flaming Lips concert. Organizers plan to set up an outdoor stage
at the corner of Hickory and Industrial Street.
City officials are concerned about closing down the street, but the
concert and the entire NX35 event will help bolster Denton’s profile and
the local economy, said Linda Ratliff, the city’s economic development
director.
“We’ve read all over that Denton is a little Austin, but maybe someday
Austin will be called a big Denton,” Ratliff said. “This festival will
bring a lot of economic benefits to the area as people stay in our
hotels and eat at our restaurants. This is the same thing as a big
conference, but even more so, since this is more than one day.”
While the four-day music festival will add another revenue stream to the
local economy in the short term, the possibility of making Denton a more
attractive place to live could have long-term impact, said Michael
Seman, a research associate at the Institute of Urban Studies at the
University of Texas at Arlington.
“There is a stronger possibility by having the festival in Denton, it
could make the city a more attractive place for corporate relocations,”
said Seman, a Denton resident. “It’s another amenity people consume.”
Dan Mojica, co-owner of Dan’s Silverleaf, said he was impressed with the
number of volunteers who showed up Sunday and feels those numbers bode
well for the festival.
“It makes me proud to be part of the Denton experience,” Mojica said.
“Denton is such a phenomenal community.”
That community, the Square, local restaurants and bars will all be
showcased during the Flaming Lips show, which is a huge deal for the
music scene, he said.
Festival volunteer Isaac Hoskins, whose band the Heelers will be
performing during the festival, said the Flaming Lips show will embody
what Denton stands for — “a very eclectic, somewhat eccentric,
definitely different show.”
Volunteering is something that’s important for him to do for the music
community.
“Denton’s done a lot for me, growing up as an artist,” Hoskins said.
CANDACE CARLISLE can be reached at 940-566-6889. Her e-mail address
is ccarlisle@dentonrc.com
.
Preliminary list of bands playing NX35, March 11-14:
A Shoreline Dream
AM Ramblers
Andrew Tinker
The Angelus
Autumn Owls
Babar
Baruch the Scribe
BigBang
Birds & Batteries
The Bizarro Kids
The Black Angels
Br’er
Bridges & Blinking Lights
Burywood
Caleb Ian Campbell
Colourmusic
Contingency Clause
Curvette
The Cut-Off
Daniel Folmer
Dear Human
Delmore Pilcrow
The Demigs
The Diamond Center
Dim Locator
Doug Gillard
Drug Mountain
Dust Congress
Eaton Lake Tonics
Fishboy
The Flaming Lips
Florene
The Fox and the Bird
Frontier Ruckus
Fur
Galapaghost
Giggle Party
GioSafari
Grandfather Child
Green Corn Revival
Guitar George Trio
Handbrake
The Hand Combine
Har Herrar
Haunting Oboe Music
The Heelers
Hotel Hotel
I-45
Icarus Himself
Jacob Metcalf
Jenn Gooch
Jessie Frye
Joe Gideon & the Shark
Jupiter One
Kaboom
The Laughing
Little Birds
The Low Lows
Manned Missiles
Matthew and the Arrogant Sea
Midlake
Monastery
Moth Fight
Museum Creatures
Naptime Shake
Natalia Mallo
Native Lights
New Science Projects
The Night
North Highlands
OK Sweetheart
Ola Podrida
Ormonde
Pattern Is Movement
Paul Benjaman Band
Peoplodian
The Phuss
The Polycorns
Quiet Company
Record Hop
Rio Rasco
The River Mouth
Robot Arm
Roy Robertson
RTB2
Sarah Jaffe
Sarah Reddington
Sarah Renfro
Savage and the Big Beat
Sleep Whale
Slow Burners
Smile Smile
Sore Losers
Spooky Folk
Stardeath and White Dwarfs
Strangers Family Band
Sunnybrook
This Old House
Thunder Power
Tre Orsi
Trespassers William
Unwed Sailor
Via Audio
The Virgin Wolves
Warren Jackson Hearne
Welcome Signs
The Wellington Lights
Western Giants
White Drugs
Young and Brave
Zlam Dunk
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