Convergence MMX Announces the San Francisco Debut of Le Butcherettes 2010 “Sin, Sin, Sin” U.S. Tour

PRESS CONTACT: ANN BLANKENSHIP – PRODUCER
E-mail: convergencefest@gmail.com
Web: www.convergencefest.com
Tel: 415-244-8250
Fax: 815-425-8910

San Francisco, California – May 18, 2010 – In only 3 short years Le Butcherettes has created an international buzz. In 2009 the band was voted as best performance at the Indie-O-Awards and in 2010 band leader, Teri Gender Bender (aka Teresa Suarez), was selected as one of only 2 performers from Mexico to participate in the 2010 Red Bull Academy in London (the other performer was art-rocker Juan Son) This coming June, Le Butcherettes will be one of the featured at the Sonar Festival in Barcelona, Spain as part of the Red Bull Academy Showcase.

Le Butcherettes Video “I’m Queen”

I’m Queen (Acoustic) – MP3

The band has also been garnering recognition from more established indie acts such as The Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs and The Dead Weather who both invited Le Butcherettes as support on their tours through Mexico. Musical mentorship has also come from Mars Volta founder and producer Omar Rodriquez-Lopez who has produced their debut LP “Sin, Sin, Sin”.

First known as a girl band, Le Butcherettes was created in 2007 by vocalist/guitarist Teresa Suarez who hails from Guadalajara, Mexico. Quick acclaim was achieved in the Mexican underground scene for their live act which included the band dressed in 50′s women’s attire, referring to women as being slaves performing household chores, using brooms, feather dusters and bloody aprons.

This year, Le Butcherettes will be performing in San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco as part of the U.S. leg of their “Sin, Sin, Sin” tour. The San Francisco date will include performances for both CONVERGENCE MMX and the Mission Creek Music & Arts Festival. The Mission Creek performance will be an acoustic “short set” including a poetry reading from Teri Gender Bender’s new book “El Caparazon Perdido” (The Lost Carcass).

CONVERGENCE FEST THEN & NOW

After a rather inauspicious start in 2008, CONVERGENCE continues its mission to present the best in emerging indie talent from throughout the Americas.

“The first CONVERGENCE was a bit of a fiasco”, recalls producer, Ann Blankenship. “The venue owner with whom we had been dealing, cancelled out on all 3 of the concerts on the day of the first show, so there was a lot of frantic relocating of shows, shuffling etc. The shows still went on as planned and I’m proud to say that in 10 years of promoting concerts, I’ve yet to cancel a show.”

Now looking forward, with a fiscal sponsorship from Intersection of the Arts, one of San Francisco’s oldest and most prestigious arts organizations, CONVERGENCE plans to come into its own by providing the only international indie arts programming in Northern California that is geared towards a younger, more cosmopolitan urban audience.

WHAT’S IN THE WORKS: 2010, 2011,2012…

2010 – This summer, in partnership with the 14th Annual Mission Creek Music & Arts Festival, CONVERGENCE is presenting a preview party hosted by international urban trendsetter and tastemaker, DJ Marcelo Baez of Nacotheque fame to launch its 2011 programming season. Also appearing in addition to Le Butcherettes will be Monstruobot from Spain, Gema de los Deseos and local SF favorites, Los Murderachis – a mariachi punk band.

In addition to the fantastic live entertainment, the party will feature free tequila tastings from Corralejo Tequila distillery and authentic Guadalajaran cuisine provided by Tres Agaves Restaurant.

The goal of this party will be to strengthen CONVERGENCE’s branding by allying itself with those that share in this project’s vision to support young international progressive artists, musicians and filmmakers and to increase public awareness of and support for the arts.

2011 – CONVERGENCE is planning an ambitious 2011 programming season in which the nature of time will be the overall theme. CONVERGENCE MMXI will explore the nature of time in a variety of aspects – from love and nostalgia to food and art. Festival goers will become time travelers bouncing from era to era in a series of themed events…

IN THE WORKS FOR 2011:

• An expanded film component including a retrospective of the works of Alejandro Jodorowsky, “Voy a Explotar” by Gerardo Naranjo and an original silent film with live musical accompaniment.
• 2011’s musical programming will also reflect the diversity of styles represented in the Latin alternative genre from techno rock to folksy tropicalismo to groovy retro pop. Bands on our 2011 “wish list “ include:
  • Zoe: Futurist indie rock from Mexico’s premiere alternative rock band.
  • Jovenes y Sexys: Dreamy, folksy tropicalismo pop from Venezuelan sexy kids Cheky and Loocila. Their melodies are lyrical, sweet and subtle. JyS has received considerable critical praise for their EP “Bruno” tracks of which have been featured on movie soundtracks Rudi y Cursi and Voy a Explotar.
  • Los Fancy Free: Los Fancy Free are a groovy, psychedelic indie band from Mexico City. The group is powered by Swedish-Mexicano front man Martin Thulin aka Menonita Rock.

2012 – One of the principal goals of CONVERGENCE from the outset has been to hold an outdoor festival featuring exemplary emerging international artists. Many if not most mainstream American venues and festivals present only a few international artists in their lineups and only if they are well established. CONVERGENCE prides itself in supporting and promoting international artists that aren’t well established yet here in the U.S. but are well on their way to making their mark internationally.

Future CONVERGENCE performances will also encourage more audience-performer engagement. There will be presentations where the delineations between audience and performer are blurred. CONVERGENCE 2011 will present more of what is generally not seen from many mainstream artists, which, is a performance that surprises the fans and the artists themselves.

ABOUT THE PRODUCER AND CONVERGENCE

For over a decade, Ann Blankenship has been highly active in supporting her local arts community. In 2001 she was asked to join the Carnaval San Francisco Advisory Board where she assisted with event production and sponsorship development. Participation in Carnaval San Francisco exposed her to the many musical traditions of the Americas and fed up with the rather homogenous sounds of mainstream American pop she began venturing beyond musical borders to discover what else was happening musically throughout the Americas.

In 2007, Ms. Blankenship created The Brown Note Latin Rock Project to promote independent Latin alternative rock groups. That year she produced and presented her first concert – “Music for Smart People”. This concert featured the groups Volumen Cero, Luminous Family Trust and Los Abandoned.

Ms. Blankenship currently partners with the Mission Creek Music & Arts Festival in developing their Latin and international music programming. In 2008 she produced for Mission Creek, the first CONVERGENCE concert series, which featured 13 bands including The May Fire, Monte Negro and Sergio Iglesias and The Latin Love Machine. In 2009, CONVERGENCE expanded its programming with its first international headliner Juan Son from Guadalajara Mexico, a premier of the documentary “Rhythmic Uprising” and a Latin alternative band showcase called “AlterLatino”.

CONVERGENCE strives to support emerging Bay Area and international talent, to firmly establish continuous “indie-national” programming in the San Francisco Bay Area and to encourage collaborations and foster community between alternative and independent artists locally, nationally and internationally.

ABOUT OUR SPONSORS & EVENT PARTNERS

INTERSECTION FOR THE ARTS is San Francisco’s oldest alternative art space (est. 1965) and has a long history of presenting new and experimental work in the fields of literature, theater, music, dance, and the visual arts. Intersection’s mission is also to nurture and support the San Francisco-Bay Area’s cultural community through service, technical support, and mentorship programs. Intersection provides a place where provocative ideas, diverse art forms, artists, and audiences can intersect one another. – www.theintersection.org

MISSION CREEK MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL is an annual collaborative effort presented by a consortium of local independent concert promoters, musicians, artists, filmmakers, dancers and multi-media performance artists. Through this forum, Mission Creek strives to foster community among local Bay Area artists showcase emerging artists and musicians and bring innovative and diverse programming to a wider audience. Bay Area artist and musician, Jeff Ray, is the Founder and Executive Producer. www.mcmf.org

TRES AGAVES is a celebration of the spirit of Jalisco, Mexico. Through a commitment to quality food and drink, we share our passion for the traditions of this unforgettable region. After all, Jalisco is more than just an idyllic landscape of rolling blue agave fields. It’s the birthplace of Mariachi and sombreros. And perhaps most importantly, it’s the home of the vibrant culture that gave us the world’s most distinctive and wonderful spirit: Tequila. – www.tresagaves.com

TEQUILA CORRALEJO – Hacienda Corralejo was founded in 1755 and was the first commercial producer of tequila in Mexico. Today, over 200 years later, production continues at Corralejo much as it did in the past. Corralejo Tequila takes pride in its heritage as the top quality, handcrafted producer of Mexico’s first and finest tequila. Blind tasted in Mexico City against the country’s 21 top tequilas, Corralejo Reposado Tequila won the Grand Award in 1997. www.tequilacorralejo.com

FLIP VIDEO CONVERGENCE is excited to partner with the FLIP Spotlight program in filming and documenting this year’s events! www.theflip.com

CALL FOR SPONSORSHIPS

CONVERGENCE is eager to partner with companies that share its vision in supporting cutting edge artists from throughout the Americas and Beyond. To inquire about sponsorship opportunities for your company, please contact CONVERGENCE producer Ann Blankenship at convergencefest@gmail.com.

FAST FACTS

CALENDAR EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

Leave a Reply