Now Be Here X

Archival presents NOW BE HERE! A night of musical improvisation featuring some of L.A.'s finest musicians performing improvised compositions on the spot, hosted by Dustin Bookatz.

Players

• Dustin Bookatz is a South African-born bassist, composer, and producer from Sydney, Australia, who has toured and recorded with artists like Pearl Charles and Michael Rault, Hero Fisher and Wim, and created Now, Be Here! as a culmination of his musical journey.
  
  
• M.A. Tiesenga is a composer, visual artist, sound artist, multi-instrumentalist, and improviser who uses expanded notation systems as inquiries into new sonic and relational possibilities. Their work explores the interplay between the procedure and enaction of scores within collaborative performance contexts, and sculpts that interplay into different sonic idioms. Tiesenga’s compositional collaborations include work with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Wild Up, Théâtre Musical Tokyo, Long Beach Opera, Kunsthalle for Music, SPEAK Percussion, Dog Star Orchestra, Ensemble Supermusique, and ensembles at the Eastman School of Music, New England Conservatory, California Institute for the Arts, Yale University, and Darmstädter Ferienkurse.
  
  
• Aaron Steele — Aaron Gilbert Steele is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, writer and producer, having collaborated/worked with artists like Harry Styles, Leon Bridges, Hayley Williams, Gabriel Black, Jose James and many others. Born to Panamanian immigrant parents in the Bronx and raised on African American gospel and Latinx songs, his exposure to genre-spanning, culturally diverse records shaped his love of music.
  
  
• Doug Organ — an award-winning audio producer, multi-instrumentalist, and composer from Edmonton, Alberta, who studied under Steve Albini, and has worked with artists such as Tegan and Sara, Kendrick Lamar, and Baby Keem, composing for film and TV and performing with bands like Antibalas and Pearl Charles.
  
  
• Emily Elkin Cellist extraordinaire from Buffalo NY originally. Played with Yeah Yeah Yeahs, currently with Conan Gray. Played with Sharon Von Etten, Angel Olsen, and many others.
  
  
• Connor Gallagher From Tucson, AZ, Connor is a prodigious pedal steel player and played on tracks by Lana Del Ray and Weyes Blood. Tours with Tim Heidecker and Calexico. Also runs his own improvised nights and shows, as well as a country night at club Tee Gee.
  
  
• Taylor Plenn is a Los Angeles–based saxophonist and flautist whose work moves between indie pop, experimental music, improvisation, and live performance. He has performed with Tim Heidecker, Dynasty Handbag, David Sabastian, and Julius Smack, and has appeared as part of Dynasty Handbag’s Weirdo Night at Zebulon.
  
  
• Taylor Blake Multi-instrumentalist Taylor Blake plays sax, flute, keys and bass, has their own jazz quartet and is a musical director. They can often be found doing front of house sound at Scribble.
  

Event description

“Now Be Here started from conversations amongst friends about seeking a fresh alchemy within
our oversaturated culture. I wanted something cathartic and dangerous
and was a little bored of shows with too much perfection in them, too
much focus over the image, the package, the outcome. I wanted something
visceral.

I never know what will happen when we do these shows. I walk into the
space with these wonderful musicians, the audience gathers and we just
let it fly. The goal obscure by design, but the intention very true. To
tap into the purity of now, the vulnerability of what it means to be
human and to create an impression completely unique to this place and
this time.”
Dustin Bookatz