Bring the noise

Graphic by The Miami Hurricane
Graphic by The Miami Hurricane

Churchill’s is hosting a free, three-day long party this weekend, and you’re invited. Just don’t expect to leave with your eardrums even remotely intact.

Tucked inside Little Haiti, the iconic venue will host the International Noise Conference for the second year running from Thursday through Saturday, featuring an array of noise bands from all over the nation.

Noise bands are sometimes difficult to describe, but are always awesome to listen to. It is suffice to say there are no rules, genre specifications or conventional sounds. However, you can always count on cacophony and extreme volume. So brace yourself for an insane combination of synthesizer experimentations, brazen guitar tunes, the occasional saxophonist and even some wild performance art.

“I’ve been going to Churchill’s shows since I was 14,” Miami native and UM alumna Kelley Tighe-Fleisher said. “I used to sneak in or use friends’ IDs when the entry was 18+. It was, for many years, an epicenter of my social life.”

Churchill’s Pub is a local haunt that has been serving underground music fans since 1979. Many bands that are now internationally known got their start on the Churchill’s stage. A meeting ground for locals, Churchill’s is a beloved venue because of the familiar faces and cheap prices for concerts.

The event’s all-noise lineup has a few major standouts. Clang Quartet, the one-man show from Nashville, Tenn., are an International Noise Conference regular. Clang Quartet’s set is a percussive tour de force, combining broken cymbals, drums and some homemade instruments to, get this, praise God. Yes, a Christian noise band. The Fun, hailing from Philadelphia, are even kookier. A process-based sound performance duo with a penchant for performance art, The Fun exude a vaguely creepy, otherworldly vibe that isn’t altogether unpleasant.  And finally, the Miami-based Laundry Room Squelchers, who close the opening night of the Noise Conference every year and consistently put on a crazy show.

The three-day event will have performances on the stage inside and on the back patio’s stage. There will even be an open mic portion on Saturday.

“I will try to get on the open mic stage,” local musician Julian Del Rio said. “It would be a lot of fun to perform in front of everyone that is coming to the conference.”

The conference will kick off at 9 p.m. on Thursday, and bands will perform until around 3 a.m. The show will continue on Friday night, break during the day, and then continue with its last night of performances on Saturday.

Amanda Gomez may be contacted at agomez@themiamihurricane.com and Caroline Helmers may be contacted at chelmers@themiamihurricane.com.


International Noise Conference

Churchill’s Pub 5501 NE 2nd Ave, Miami

18+.

No Cover