(l-r : Home Blitz, pic swiped from Testortunes)
Under normal circumstances, a bill featuring Home Blitz (the most important DiMaggio in American cultural history?), Philly’s guitar-overload overlords Purling Hiss, The Mad Scene and a rare appearance by Capsul (original Bailter Space members Hamish Kilgour and Alister Parker in collaborative mode) would contend for show-of-the-year status. And when you put such a roster in the cramped, subterranean confines of NYC’s Cake Shop, next Saturday night (January 22) camping out in front of the venue’s stairwell at 4pm sounds like a smart move (until they politely tell you to come back in a few hours, anyway).
But these are no ordinary circumstances. Some of you might know Letha Melchior Rodman from her tenure in the 1990’s NYC quartet Ruby Falls ; others might know her as a member of husband Dan’s Das Menace. And others might know Leetha as a crazily talented visual artist. If you’ve been blessed to know her for real, you’re already aware I’m talking about one of the planet’s genuine stand-up individuals. A while ago, Leetha was diagnosed with cancer and the event described in the opening paragraph is a benefit to raise funds for her health care. If you can’t make it to the Cake Shop next Saturday, donations are being accepted via PayPal.