Graz Austria: 2003 Cultural Capital of Europe

Day 7 – July 7, 2003

Tourists for a Day
We got to be tourists for a day. Below are some images of the city as we just kinda strolled around for a while.

Beach of the Half Normal	Eric Strikes a Pose
Clothes at Acconci	Herrengasse
In the distance is the Lift to Mary	Don’t remember what this building is
Approaching Hauptplatz	Stepping back to avoid the tram

The Art of Masochism

If masochism did not already have a place in the social and sexual history of the world, it would after this exhibition called Phantom der Lust. The exhibit was at Neue Galerie which was closed on the day I tried to go. Luckily the doors were unlocked, so we went in anyway.

There was not much to see on this day but we had some fun with our cameras. Eric and Hilary eventually got to experience the whole thing though.

This is an intense depiction of Masoch and his affinity for being physically and mentally abused in the name of sexual gratification. Perhaps there is a political message behind this. The world’s citizens are all abused for the pleasure of those above us. Or it is just a critical view of pain as pleasure between two or more consenting adults. Either way, it’s disturbing.

Airplane Parts and Building
Upon leaving the Phantom Der Lust exhibit, we stumbled across a most interesting work from American artist Nancy Rubins.

This massive structure is made up of piece of old war planes. Originally displayed in San Diego (1994) under the title "Building and Airplane Parts", it is now in Graz and renamed "Airplane Parts and Building."

Images of Airplan Parts and Building, Nancy Rubins

The Homeless Worldcup

The Homeless
World Cup of Street Soccer was conceived by INSP (International
Network of Street Papers) and incorporated the help of many
sponsors. This event brought together teams of homeless soccer
players from all over the world. Their intention was to stimulate
awareness of the growing problem of homelessness as well as
build character and confidence in the players.

The opening match was between Holland and Germany. Holland
won 14 to 0 and this seemed to be very amusing to the Austrian
people. Of course we were there to show our support for the
New York Team. They won half of their games. Didn’t make it
to the finals but did far better than anyone had expected.

The event would run for a week in a small stadium that was
built in Hauptplatz, the main pedestrian square of the city.
The crowds were typically enthusiastic European fans. Loud
and proud. Some of the musical talent in between matches,
from Jazz to Afro-Brazilian, was pretty impressive as well.

Harris Pankin [streetsoccer.org]

The BBC had been documenting the participation of one of
the NY players. Goalkeeper Harris Pankin was the singer of
the band Letch Patrol and a bit of a legend in the NY punk
scene. Eric had run into him at one of the soccer matches.

Harris asked if he could sing with us at our final performance.
The guys from the BBC said that if Harris sings, they would
film it and possibly use it in the documentary. So of course
we said yes.

The Jersey Beat Graz Connection:
We wanted to find out more about Harris by doing a bit of
research on the web later that night. When we searched for
his band Letch Patrol, the top result was that of an article
written by Jim Testa for the NJ zine Jersey
Beat. I thought that it was amazing to be so many miles
from NJ and still getting my info about music from Mr. Testa.
:)

Deep thoughts … Big beer! [h.gilles]

We stopped by an outdoor cafe to have a couple of beers.
We were waiting for Norbert to call and tell us how to get
to the rehearsal studio.

Today was the day we would get to hear our new Austrian rhythm
section. Two very talented players would be joining us for
a couple of shows later that week. Anne Weinhardt on drums
and Albi Klinger on bass.

As luck would have it, the cafe we chose was only a couple
of blocks away from the studio.

Anne and Albi were rehearsing with the group Portnoy. A Buzzcocks
meets prog-rock ensemble with a storm brewing beneath, above
and all around the surface. Norbert also plays guitar and
sings back-up for Portnoy.

Anne	Eric singing w/Norbert
Albi	Group learning a new tune
Enjoying the show [h.gilles]	My own special Graz postcard

Damn that Yaegermeister!
There was a bottle of Yaegermeister floating about the studio. Eric had found it for only €7.50 in the local store. We were all convinced that it was priced wrong. Whatever the reason for the low price, we all took part in finishing this bottle. Some more than others. I personally do not care for Yaeger. It’s like drinking cough syrup. I still had quite a bit of it.

After this we went to a bar (who would’ve thought) where I decided to switch off of the beer. I instead ordered a Jack and Coke. One word of warning. Most bars in Europe make lousy highballs. In NY the amount of liquor is based on many diverse factors. Flirting with the bartender, how cute you are, how well you tip, etc. However, in Europe the drinks are for the most part made very scientifically. It’s alomost like watching a chemist at work as they make a drink that is precisely 1 part liquor 2 parts soda and very little ice.

Realizing that the syrupy sweet coke, the lack of ice and minute amount of Jack was not mixing well with the Yaeger in my belly, I did the unthinkable. I drank water for the rest of the night.

As many have confessed to in the past, there is something in Yaegermeister that makes people prone to fighting. In our case it was thankfully verbal and not physical. It was still unpleasant to return to Norbert’s flat and sit for hours with all of us yelling angrily at each other. The night ended on a rare sour note but all was fine the next day.

July 2003
Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
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6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	Graz Links