Black Flag's Henry Rollins responded on behalf of his 2.13.61 publishing company. He even wrote letters to 35 of his favorite labels – SST, Dischord, Touch and Go, and Lookout! to name four – soliciting suggestions for acts to check out. There's something still mildly adolescent about Webster's demeanor, the bowl haircut and excitement, as if he still needs to grow all the way into his shoes.įostered by the clerks and record label owners working behind the counter – most notably Craig Koon (Rise), Roger Morgan (Unclean), Mark Twistworthy (Twistworthy), and Mark Fagan (Bunkhaus), as well as Paul Streckfus' cassette-only Golden Hour – Webster absorbed an encyclopedic knowledge of underground DIY culture. It's not difficult to imagine a young Webster shuffling through the $1 record room in the back of the late Drag hangout decorated by Daniel Johnston's frog mural. I would literally start from the left side and work my way across the whole store." "I would go up to the counter and say, 'Hey, uh, what should I listen to?' They thought it was hilarious that this kid was asking to look through the 45s. "My mom was a professor at UT, so I would just walk across the street and hang out at Sound Exchange," the 33-year-old native reminisces a few days later, Flying Lotus' Cosmogramma humming in the background. Ben loves what he's doing, and it shows." Society of Friendsīy his own account, Ben Webster didn't have any friends growing up. "It's a musical conversation with him," furthers the Big Boys' Tim Kerr, who helped produce Attack Formation's first two albums and collaborates with Webster in Total Sound Group Direct Action Committee. "The boy has a knack for getting talented people together to make something happen. "Ben's definitely a catalyst for creativity," notes Those Peabodys guitarist Adam Hatley, a longtime fixture in Attack Formation who also records as trap-set collagist Aadm Our Hatley for Insect Records. More importantly, Webster's the founder of Insect Records and leader of Attack Formation, a broken social scene of local musicians with a membership that currently numbers 268. Just one night prior, Butcher Bear – sans costume – hosted the Hot Sh!t Summer Series at Club de Ville, a four-part showcase for Los Angeles- and Texas-based electronic artists. A beat mechanic with a mathematical mind and big band vision, Webster has been a ubiquitous presence on the local music scene for more than a decade. "These are good noises don't be afraid," the Butcher warns the crowd, before closing with a warped rendition of Roberta Flack's "Killing Me Softly With His Song."īeneath the black mesh between the Bear's pointed teeth, the shadowy face of Ben Webster is barely visible. In between band sets, this character anchors the duo of Butcher Bear & Charlie.įrom behind a collapsible DJ rig, he spins grimy beats that sound chopped, screwed, and reassembled, working the crowd in a manner that suggests an Adult Swim rewrite of Yo Gabba Gabba! while Charlie – former Dallas Lyric Opera singer Maricela Mayo – struts through sultry club bangers like "Sex Clock" and "Misbehaving." Beauty and the beast, performance art with a hip-hop soundtrack. The costumed creature made a perfectly odd master of ceremonies for Red 7's Pride Weekend Extravaganza kickoff with Pansy Division and Buzzcocks cover band Orgasm Addicts the first weekend of June, showing up and leaving the gig in character. He looks like an outcast from Gorillaz's Plastic Beach, a six-foot floppy red bear – occasionally baby blue and sporting a bloody apron – with a permanent, sharp-toothed roar and sideways glance. Butcher Bear should be Red River's official mascot.
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