Max Middle Sound Project at the Ottawa Fringe [Melanie Little article, Ottawa Citizen/Artscape annc]

[artlist at artengine.ca]

THE MAX MIDDLE SOUND PROJECT

at the 2004 OTTAWA INTERNATIONAL FRINGE FESTIVAL

VENUE:
Café Nostalgica
603 Cumberland Street
University of Ottawa campus
Ottawa, ON

SHOW TIMES:
Friday, June 18th 8-8:50pm
Monday, June 21st, 8-8:50pm
Tuesday, June 22nd, 8-8:50pm
Wednesday, June 23rd, 8-8:50pm
Thursday, June 24th, 8-8:50pm
Friday, June 25th 8-8:50pm

www.MAXMIDDLE.COM
--

'Like it or not: Poet promises something different every night'
The Ottawa Citizen 
Sunday, June 13, 2004 
Page: C11 
Section: The Citizen's Weekly: Reading 
Byline: Melanie Little 
Source: The Ottawa Citizen 

Mark Robertson has just given a quick preview of the show he's bringing to
the Ottawa Fringe Festival. A woman, a fellow artist, sits down and says: "I
have no idea what you said, but it was interesting. I think I heard words in
there." 

Welcome to the Max Middle Sound Project.

During the past year, Mark Robertson, nom de plume Max Middle, has been
quietly making a name for himself, reading at open mike sets around Ottawa
and intriguing audiences with his dense, aurally arresting poetry. In
January, he launched A Creation Song, a long poem in chapbook form, with
above/ground press. It's an ambitious, dazzling piece; while it uses
traditional creation myth as a springboard, its joy is in how it spills out
of its shell, its skewed, playful syntax, freewheeling soundscapes.

A small sample: "Best alone left on the pot to boil out the answer to a
bulldozer; / the chalk oil choke throttle west fluttered a glance towards /
oh, and off the ruffle, tottle or dawdle, shift, thanks mixing / new snow
puffed louder peeled on the purchased affluence of / powdering a powerful
person on the nose on the loose."

Middle's poetry reinvents language as song, revelling in equal parts beauty
and silliness. "I'm really interested in the opportunity to explore speech
as a musical form," he says. "Speech has a sort of uncomfortable place
bridging music and poetry." One gets the feeling that Middle is very happy
in uncomfortable places.

His poetry at the Fringe promises to be even more anarchic than his work for
the page. This past year, Middle curated a series of events called
MediumRAW, combining sound poetry, performance art, noise and live music,
and the wild results of these shows were the inspiration for the Max Middle
Sound Project.

Fringe audiences can expect only the unexpected. Middle will perform poetry
alongside a revolving series of musicians playing everything from
traditional instruments to the analog synthesizer to the didgeridoo. There
will also be "found" instruments -- the shovel, for instance ("a shovel is
kind of fun," he giggles, "especially a snow shovel").

The emphasis, with both the music and the poetry, will be on inspiration and
exploration. "Something different will happen each night," assures Middle.

What you are sure not to see is the kind of rock-star poet and backing
musician setup typical of mainstream spoken word performances. Middle, also
a musician, wants to burst open musical and linguistic conventions alike,
and in the unexpected hybrids that can form through their cross-pollination.

For audiences accustomed to choosing their Fringe outings based on the "safe
bet" recommendations of critics, the gamble here might be a little daunting.
But chance is at the heart of the kinds of investigations Middle loves.

The Ottawa Fringe begins June 18 and continues Monday through Friday, June
21-25 (all shows at 8 p.m.) Fittingly, the Project will be held at this
year's only Bring-Your-Own Venue: Cafe Nostalgica at 603 Cumberland. In
keeping with Nostalgica's policy, whether and what you pay is up to you.

Melanie Little is an Ottawa writer.
--

Ottawa Fringe (w/ Max Middle Sound Project) featured on:
June 20th, Sunday artscape. CBC Radio Two 103.1,
with Gary Hayes (btwn noon-1pm)
http://ottawa.cbc.ca/artscape/index.html