Cooler Night #2: renounce/remember featuring Coi_n, Sodomahigomorra, Maya Berman, and Lucy York

Cooler Night #2: renounce/remember, curated and with performances by Voluminous Arts residents Mercury Symbol and Yvonne LeBien, will take place on Monday, July 24th

For the second Cooler Night, at CARA, a group of artists invited by Mercury Symbol and Yvonne LeBien  will be in ceremony in an environment composed of Maya Berman’s modular, multichannel speaker array. Lucy York, Coi_n, and Sodomahigomorra will join Mercury Symbol and Yvonne LeBien in a sonic summoning of overlapping signals and voices—the immersive ambisonic system provoking embodiments of sampling as ancestry, and personal sonic histories that defy linearity.

Attendees (you!) are invited to bring a small object to place on one of two altars—one of remembrance, and the other of acceptance or renunciation, contributing to this temporary zone of congregated transmissions, spherical harmonics, and feedback.

your grief
a sullen hand
rising up
from dark water
the light rippling, curdling
into the outlines
what was once your body,
form into void.
time perverts memory,
memory
sinks

your body
dispersed;
i squint
into the murkiness
trying desperately
to hold the shape
of my love for you:
an eternal return—-
cresting against the shores
of
forever.
—Mercury Symbol

To the cis straight people who might be reading this: what would you do if the fascists were pounding on the doors trying to stop us? Would you fight for us? Die for us? What would you sacrifice? Because that’s where our music has already begun. —Yvonne LeBien

Cooler Nights is part of our summer program bloom how you must, wild until we are free, and is inspired by Voluminous Arts Founder Gavilán Rayna Russom's memories of the free, artist-curated “Monday Nite” series that took place between 1993 and 2001 at The Cooler, a club in the pre-gentrification Meatpacking District, not far from CARA. Instigated by Voluminous Arts’ work during the summer program, Cooler Nights at CARA aim to reconnect with and revitalize the legacy of our neighborhood, referencing the history of The Cooler and bringing in the voices of contemporary artists.

Learn more about Cooler Nights here!

More about the artists

Maya Berman is an audio engineer, bass player, and speaker builder specializing in immersive sound. Her work uses the formats of ambisonics and wave field synthesis on speaker arrays of her own design and construction.

Coi_n is an extraordinary music artist hailing from the vibrant streets of Brooklyn, New York. Fusing elements of hardcore, gabber, breakcore, power electronics, hip-hop, and punk influences, Coi_n creates a sound that is as punishing as it is intense. However, Coi_n's artistry is not confined to recordings; it is an experience that demands to be witnessed live.

With no recorded material to date, Coi_n stands as a testament to the belief that true musical expression can only be fully grasped when experienced in the moment. This approach showcases Coi_n's dedication to delivering an immersive and authentic performance that captivates audiences. Coi_n's live shows are renowned for their raw energy and unfiltered intensity. The artist's ability to seamlessly blend genres creates a sonic experience that pushes boundaries and defies expectations. Coi_n's artistry serves as a reminder of the power of live music and the transformative experiences it can create. To truly comprehend the essence of Coi_n's music, one must be present to witness the artist's punishing and intense performances firsthand.

Hailing from Chile and based in New York, trans DJ Sodomahigomorra’s eclectic repertoire transmutates the contagious rhythms of Abya Yala; Reggaeton, Dembow, Baile Funky and Guaracha flirt with techno and electroclash to create a melancholic body dialogue that invites the diaspora to dance. Performing sometimes under the pseudonym of Boy Puta, Sodomahigomorra is a celebrated curator and resident DJ of the underground collective Chaos Computer. They crafts an immersive playground that radiates an unpretentious spirit of liberated joy, placing the desires of the displaced diaspora, fugitive bodies, himbos, and whores at the forefront.

Lucy York is an experimental electric guitarist working at the intersection of fusion, harsh noise, and heavy metal. She seeks to expand the sonic and playable ranges of her instrument as well as to create forbidding musical landscapes that challenge a violently transphobic world. She performs at and is involved in DIY music spaces in Brooklyn.