Racer Session #532 | Grand Re-Open Session | October 17th, 2021
Welcome back, improvisers! We have so much to tell you.
First off, a moment of love for our Zoom Sessions. We had a great time partnering with Lakebottom Sound in Missoula to present the Racer Sessions (WA) and Free Sessions (MT) online this last year. Bill Kautz, Jennine Long, and Naomi Siegel were great producers-in-crime. Not only did our production team span three states, but we were able to present artists based in nine states and three countries, and make new friends in over a dozen different states. In any other year that kind of thing couldn’t happen with the same frequency that we did it. And that’s really cool.
Now we get to come back to in-person sessions! A lot of things are the same: Racer Sessions is still and always will be free and open to the public. It’s still all-ages. And we’re keeping the opening set, jam-to-follow format so we can keep presenting exciting music for you and all the friends we’ve yet to meet.
First big change: Cafe Racer moved! For many good reasons, our venue pals said goodbye to the space on Roosevelt and Ravenna. That’s a big change and whatever you’re feeling about it is valid. We are personally very excited to see them at their new space on Capitol Hill - 1510 11th Ave. Some of the reasons we are happy about it:
It’s more accessible by bus and light rail, and it’s more central to the city as a whole. Parking is also free on Sundays, if you still wanna drive!
It’s well-built for presenting music, and Racer’s mission to present DIY and left-of-center music remains the same.
It’s right next door to our friends, Vermillion Art Bar!
Second big change: new time and frequency! We are now presenting the session from 7pm-9pm, every 1st & 3rd Sunday. An earlier session makes the overall hang - opening set, jam, and socializing afterward - fully all ages. It also makes it easier to attend other Sunday sessions in our community, like the Couth Buzzard session and Angry Beaver session. A session with less frequency helps our production team better present the session for you and the artists by giving us time to plan and time to rest! And makes the two sessions that happen each month feel a little more intentional. Every now and then we’ll do a 5th Sunday event — more on that soon! In the mean time, some upcoming sessions you can look forward to:
Sunday November 7th: Jim Knodle FiveTette - this session was supposed to happen on 3/15/2020 and now finally gets to go on!
Sunday November 21st: Denzel Mendoza presents his Portland-based trio Illegal Son
Sunday December 5th: Briggan Krauss (NYC) & Wayne Horvitz (SEA) play duo
Sunday December 19th: the Annual T&C Holiday Show!
Third big change: COVID-19 safety precautions. We’re still not out of the woods, but venues around Seattle have seen a lot of success in putting health guidelines in place. We’re all for it. We want you to know that proof of vaccination will be required for every person at every session, and you’ll need to be wearing your mask if you’re not actively drinking, eating, or playing a wind instrument. Masks you can wear while playing and bell covers are not required but are strongly encouraged!
Those are the big details. We have even more things to share with you, but we’ll save it for Sunday. If you feel ready to venture out, see some friends, and play some music, please: join us! This Sunday, 10/17, we’ll be forgoing the opening set to put the focus on playing together. We can’t wait to see you!
