In New Albany, where we’re all here because we’re not all there, the cat herding has been more difficult than usual lately. However, the crazed critters just may be getting the hang of some recommended synchronicity. Faust took six months of my life in exchange for the bargain, but who's counting lifespans, anyway?
On Sunday, May 25, there is a big musical event planned for New Albany. A downtown festival called Boomtown Ball will run from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., and then at 8:00 p.m., the band Houndmouth will play a sold-out “homecoming” show at The Grand.
The Boomtown Ball/Cats in Single File portion of the day has been occupying much of my time. As usual (read: as envisioned by the organizers), the plan is deceptively simple. The city closes certain streets, Production Simple books musical acts to perform on a temporary stage, the Flea Off market sets up shop, and voila – fest time, with adult libations.
That last part is the kicker, necessitating the parsing of various Indiana state alcoholic beverage laws and the disposition of permits, while consulting with lawyers and insurance agents, with commensurate, delicate calculations of who, where, when, what, why and how. Not everyone understands how the world works, and the process of rectification has been exhausting, but in the end, fervent negotiations are yielding quantifiable results.
Ultimately, I believe the Boomtown day will make perfect sense, and the cause of localism in beverage vending and consumer satisfaction will be advanced; imperfectly, perhaps, but with potentially valuable lessons learned.
Please mark these dates on your calendars:
First: Houndmouth Week (sic) in New Albany, circa May 19-25. Downtown bars and restaurants will be planning their own special promotions and events to whet appetites for the Boomtown Ball on May 25th.
Next: The Boomtown Ball itself, taking place downtown on Bank and Market Streets on the 25th, as described above.
Finally: The Houndmouth show itself. As noted, it is sold out, but I’ll hazard a guess that the party will proceed much later into the evening after the show at those late-night establishments operating nearby, i.e., the Irish Exit, Wick’s and Liquidz.
NABC hopes to run through a few kegs of Houndmouth Ale during the course of these various celebrations.
But you already inferred that, didn’t you?
No comments:
Post a Comment