Knockdown Center Announces First Outline of 2023, Two Nights Featuring Matmos, Jlin, Pan Daijing's US Debut, Meth Math, Joe Rainey & Golin on April 29th, Plus Standing on the Corner, Makaya McCraven, Laraaji & Liv.e on May 13thÂ
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Today, Knockdown Center announces its first Outline festival of 2023: a multi-day event featuring Matmos, Jlin, Meth Math, Joe Rainey, Golin, and the US debut of Chinese artist Pan Daijing in the Atrium on Saturday, April 29th, before Standing on the Corner, Makaya McCraven, Laraaji and Liv.e kick off a bustling schedule of spring/summer shows in the backyard Ruins on Saturday, May 13th. Since Outline's start in the early months of 2020, the quarterly live music festival has become the flagship series of Queens, NY's most creative, cross-disciplinary venue for art and performance. Using the changing seasons as a way to highlight the expressive power of music, Outline leans into the expansive potential of the 50,000 square-foot space. Find tickets and more information HERE.
Hailed as "a shrewdly programmed showcase that prizes novel sounds over boldface names" (The New Yorker), Outline's eclectic lineups are curated with an intuitive chemistry that breaks the bounds of any one genre. The combination of artists "ranges from underrecognized elders to buzzy up-and-comers" (The New York Times): glitch pioneers Matmos headline a celebration of darker moods, experimental electronics and cutting edge dance, while co-headliners Standing on the Corner and Makaya McCraven open Knockdown Center's outdoor stage with a warmer spree of lush, contemporary jazz-informed composition. In between the two nights, Outline will unveil a newly commissioned FiftyTwo Ft. wall-based artwork by Mark Mulroney curated by Maspeth's Mrs. Gallery. Additionally, in the coming weeks and months Knockdown Center will also welcome Young Nudy, Kerri Chandler, a comedy and club night benefiting the Ali Forney Center, Mr. G, Eric Andre's 40th Birthday Party, DJ Harvey, WIRE FESTIVAL, Hot Chip, Panda Bear & Sonic Boom, and more listed here: knockdown.center/upcoming
"Outline expresses the wide breadth of music we love, by utilizing the full advantages of one of the most singular architectural spaces in New York City nightlife. The opportunity to showcase avant-garde electronic music in a gothic night club setting and then contemporary jazz in a spacious backyard, at the same location, two weeks apart, is an uncommon luxury," says Jeff Klingman, Outline creator and Knockdown Center's Talent Buyer for Live Music. "No two Outlines are the same, but there's a common thread. These are cutting edge, uncompromising artists no matter what kind of show we're presenting. Everyone we put on is doing something singular and unique."
From the historic former factory floor that now serves as the 3,100-capacity Main Space, to the century-old concrete Ruins that are about to come alive for a spring and summer full of Pride events, open-air concerts, communal gatherings and other non-stop parties, Knockdown Center's shifting stages and labyrinthine layout continually transform to enhance and react to each performance. Outline brings out the best in both its artists and the venue's physical design. While past editions have featured Arooj Aftab with Riz Ahmed, as well as Boy Harsher, Claire Rousay, Doss, ESG, Florist, Jessy Lanza, Julia Holter, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Lightning Bolt, Magdalena Bay, Matthew E. White & Lonnie Holley, the US debuts of Giant Swan, Loraine James and other moments fans will never witness anywhere else, Knockdown Center is preparing for its most eclectic and high-profile year of programming yet. Stay tuned for more updates and venue news coming soon.
Outline: April 29th
Matmos
Jlin
Pan Daijing (U.S. Debut)
Meth Math
Joe Rainey
Golin
Outline: May 13th
Standing on the Corner
Makaya McCraven
Laraaji
Liv.e
About Knockdown Center
Featuring programming of diverse formats and media, Knockdown Center aims to create a radically cross-disciplinary environment. The particularity of our architectural environment and history leads us to gravitate toward projects that demonstrate a sensitive reactivity to site and environment. This 50,000 square-foot building has seen continuous use for more than 100 years: first as the Gleason-Tiebout glass factory, then as Manhattan Door factory. It is named for the Knock-Down door frame that was invented here in 1956 by Samuel Sklar and remains an industry standard to this day. The frame could be shipped in pieces — or "knocked down" — and installed into existing walls, revolutionizing the speed and efficiency of building construction. The factory has since remained in the Sklar family and is again a site for innovation. Having undergone a renovation that is equal parts preservationist and state of the art, Knockdown Center now produces and hosts cultural events and exhibitions that respond to its unique architecture and dimensions.
Follow Knockdown Center
For more information, contact Matt Hanks, Greg Jakubik or Annie Mickum at
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