Quietly yet steadily, Black Market—lurking beneath Mesa Street Grill off Robinson and Mesa—has been building up its reputation as a great place for live music. From sporadic Sunday nights featuring local acts, the venue is poised to become a regular stop for bands traveling nationwide, hoping to lure them to actually stop in El Paso and perform rather than zoom straight through on I-10. This effort kicks off on Monday, Oct. 20, when Los Angeles quartet Health takes the stage at Black Market.
Recently booked to open for industrial rock legends Nine Inch Nails on their massive U.S. tour, Health (http://www.healthnoise.com/) will be something to witness in a space as small as Black Market. The band enjoys performing for fans but gets a kick out of introducing their noise to newbies. “People who've never seen us are especially fun [to perform for] for the shock value and challenge of winning them over,” says bassist John Famiglietti. “Fans are there for you and that speaks for itself, but very often in certain cities, it’s the same reaction for both. A lot of fans who've never seen us live always tell us afterward they didn't think it would be like that at all. I’m not sure what they expected, but whatevs.”
And whatever the reason, word about Health as a must-see/hear is out. The Boston Phoenix named Health “Best New Band from California” for 2008 and they’ve also been slotted by indie darlings Of Montreal as openers for their tour. Health comes from the gritty, DIY punk scene of Los Angeles and recorded their debut album in one of the genre’s most hallowed venues, The Smell, capturing a heart-stopping vibe that reminds you of what rock ‘n’ roll is supposed to be about. Combined with a polish that only today’s technology could achieve, Health’s music is a unique bridge between rock’s stripped-down roots and a future built on mind-blowing innovation.
Their sound has caught the attention of big names aside from NIN (and it’s a well-known fact that uber-picky NIN ringleader Trent Reznor hand-picks all bands joining them on tour—another validation for Health). “[Flaming Lips vocalist] Wayne Coyne came to our Oklahoma City show to watch, so I guess big rock stars are still on the lookout for new music, which is really surprising and cool,” says Famiglietti. “[Of Montreal vocalist] Kevin Barnes' producer-agent gave him a copy of the CD and he sent us a playful MySpace message, then we got to meet him in person at SXSW. A month later, we got the invite for their Skeletal Lamping tour.”
Unlike many bands that only know El Paso as a sign off the highway, Health has been here before. It all started about three months ago with a scheduled gig that was cancelled at the 11th hour, after which a group of El Paso fans approached the band at their Austin show to ask what it would take to bring the band back. “We asked if they could get a house show together last minute,” recalls Famiglietti. “A really cool kid with an extremely chill mother let us do a show at his house, collected donations and let us crash there. The show was awesome. In the morning his mom cooked us a delicious Mexican breakfast. We wanted to make sure we came back to El Paso this time.”
So if you’re 21 or over and have $5, you can catch Monday’s (Oct. 20th) show and get the first taste of what Black Market hopes to do from now on. Local bands supporting Health include Dozal Brothers, OK Chimp and Eufonico Fringe, with DJ Dirty B spinning in between. Doors open at 8 p.m. with the first band hitting the stage at 9 p.m.. More details about this show and what’s coming up in the future can be found at http://www.myspace.com/blackmarketelpaso.
More Information: Visit the Black Market website
