Audio Visuals

While music industry bigwigs fret over declining sales and illegal downloads, deep underground exists an alternate universe where junior label managers deal with more important issues — like, "How much hair can I affix to this cassette case?" Armed with glue guns, tape decks and silk-screens, noise labels such as Fag Tapes, No Sides and Nihilist form a community of outsider artists who are concerned with content and aesthetic. This Tuesday through Sunday (April 15 through 20) at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (3750 Washington Boulevard; 314-535-4660 or www.contemporarystl.org), local music shop Apop Records takes command of the Front Room and brings this underground to the surface with a presentation of the inexpensive, highly collectible "objets d'art" created by today's cassette and vinyl labels. Homemade instruments such as a solar Theremin will be on display, as will an array of interactive looping tapes, zines and other ephemera created. Admission is free on Wednesday and Saturday.
April 15-20, 2008