David Ellis’ exhibition at (Le) Poisson Rouge is a misnomer. It consists of a handful of sculptures wrought from records (and their sleeves) that are neat bits of ornamental design but that don’t invite any kind of reflection. The same is true of his “movement sculpture”, which comes off like a sneaker commercial. Perhaps noticing this, someone tacked on a looped playback of Ellis’ collaboration with Italian street artist Blu.

The opening was followed by a show with performances by Prefuse 73, Jon Hopkins and  MIXHELL. Not much happened. The high point turned out to be a set of horror-inspired stuff from Jon Hopkins, in which he used the venue’s cavernous interior and well-spread speaker system to creepy and then chest-rattling effect. Prefuse 73 played a rambling, messy set that was disappointing coming from such royalty. One sequence, a sustained sampling of guitar solos (including some Hendrix), was smart if totally undanceable. He was probably just drunk, or bored, as were we.

Tomorrow night, to celebrate the opening of Recollect, NY-based artist David Ellis‘ show at (Le) Poisson Rouge, the gallery and club is hosting a free party featuring performances by Prefuse 73, Jon Hopkins and DJ duo MIXHELL from Sao Paulo. Doors open at 8pm.  Recollect will be at (Le) Poisson Rouge until February 12th.

No Age have come to represent a certain lo-fi, DIY aesthetic that draws a lot of parallels with the Sonic Youth-led art-punk community of the 1980’s. Like that band, No Age are more punk in spirit than sound – behind that wall of fuzz and feedback are solid power-pop tunes a la The Thermals or, at their most melodic, Cheap Trick. The songs played here tonight pulled evenly from their two full-lengths, Weirdo Rippers and Nouns, as well as their excellent new EP, Losing Feeling. Opener “Teen Creeps” seemed a direct nod to their predominantly angst-ridden, straight edge audience, who repaid the gesture by aggressively smashing into each other and yelling random compliments (“I love your shoes, Randy!”) for the rest of the night. But you can hardly blame them for being so enthused. For two people, No Age make a lot of racket, and their minimalist setup – Dean Spunt on drums/vocals/loops, Randy Randall on guitar – lends songs like “Here Should Be My Home” and “Every Artist Needs A Tragedy” a sense of urgency largely absent from their studio counterparts. By the time they played “Boy Void,” by far their most balls-to-the-wall moment, it was clear that everyone in the audience was much more exhausted than the band was.

In contrast, instrumental tracks like “Keechie” and “Aim At The Airport” found the group exploring more textural soundscapes, employing ambient loops with walls of feedback until the two became indistinguishable. Often these instrumental breaks would lead them back the other way again, into pop territory, and the fact that they so effortlessly straddle the line between the abstract and the accessible is what makes No Age so appealing. Nouns was one of the best records of 2008, while new tracks like “You’re A Target” are so effortlessly good it makes one wonder if it really is that easy for these guys. Either way, this show was a captivating recap on an already stunning career, despite the fact that these guys have been around for less than five years.

No Age played at (Le) Poisson Rouge in New York on Wednesday, October 14th.

No Age will be playing with Woods and Silk Flowers at Le Poisson Rouge on Bleecker St. on Wednesday night.

Last Friday, Barbara Sukowa and The X-Patsys took the stage at Le Poisson Rouge to perform Devouring Time: A Song and Spoken Word Journey into Night, presented by Performa. What began as a buzz emanating from Anthony Coleman’s keyboards gradually built to an atonal howl as the rest of the band — Robert Longo, Jon Kessler, Knox Chandler, Sean Conly and Anton Fier — added to the din. After a few notes played on harmonica, the audience was plunged into the dark world of the classic Reverend Gary Davis song “Death Don’t Have No Mercy in This Land.” From there it was a wild, exhilarating performance that took many unexpected turns, from German poetry by Andreas Gryphius, to Shakespeare. English translations designed by Andrew Ohanesian were projected behind the band.

The musical selections were from all over the map as Barbara Sukowa, an award-winning actress and Grammy-nominated singer best known for her work with Fassbinder, delivered a tour de force performance. The music included everything from quiet etherial sound effects to pounding blues and rock to folk music — all played with equal commitment. In one piece the verses sounded like a German folk song switching abruptly to “Ring of Fire” for the choruses. At the end of the set they played a medley of Patsy Cline songs which were deconstructed and reassembled to illustrate the themes of the performance: love, aging and death.

Photo by Virginia Parrott.