Cape Cinema aims to expand indie music concerts

Eric Hart, director of the Cape Cinema in Dennis, remembers the moment when he knew his iconic movie palace could be home to not just indie movies, but indie music, too. It was his second concert season, and Hart was still testing the waters with a very limited schedule. The band was the Dirty Projectors. 

“The place was jammed. It was a Saturday in April, when there was no one on Cape. But it was sold out and the audience was in the aisles dancing to the music. The band brought down the house,” recalls Hart. 

The next day Hart heard a popular DJ in Boston describe the event, which went viral on social media and You Tube. “He said, ‘I just returned from Coachella, but I saw a band on Cape Cod this weekend that was better than anything I saw there.’ I think that show defined how you present edgy music, and if you could get the right band and audience you could create a magical event. People are still talking about that show,” says Hart. 

Hart hopes to continue that magic this season, beginning with San Fermin, who will perform Saturday night. Described as an “avant-pop” eight-piece Brooklyn, N.Y.-based band, San Fermin recently released a new album called “Jackrabbit.” Opening for San Fermin is Australian indie-folk duo Luluc, also based in Brooklyn, which recently released its second album, “Passerby.” 

“San Fermin and Luluc both have musical roots that the older generation can identify with, but they have an edgy style that attracts a younger audience. And that’s really what I’m looking for,” says Hart.

Hart describes San Fermin’s music as unusual and unconventional. “It has a unique edge to it. It’s not guitar or power-driven, rather, almost indie jazz, if such a thing exists.” 

Most people think of the Cape Cinema as a place to find less commercial and independent foreign films, art films, and the occasional live telecast from the Metropolitan Opera. But over the past few years the Cinema has evolved as an occasional venue for emerging indie music acts. Hart thinks it’s a good fit. The indie, less commercially driven, mindset that the Cape Cinema applies to its movie selections also applies to music, he says.    

The music series began several years ago when Hart was chatting with a friend, singer songwriter Ingrid Michaelson. She suggested he present a concert, and offered to perform. Hart, who had seen Michaelson on stage in Greenwich Village, took a chance. The concert was a success.

“I thought, this is the type of music that no one else is doing on the Cape. It’s edgy, indie, which is what the Cape Cinema was founded on for film. Michaelson kind of represented that.”

That success led to more performances, including Bon Iver and St. Vincent. Many of those acts now play to huge audiences, which leads some to suggest that the Cape Cinema is a good place to catch emerging stars before they outgrow smaller local venues.

 Since those early years, the Cape Cinema has established a reputation as a place where bands can perform in exchange for an opportunity to rehearse prior to going on tour. Hart finds the band members a place to stay, as well.

One of those early artists, Michaelson, returned in the second season to rehearse for three days and then perform a concert.

“What came out of that was an appearance with an organization called The Artist’s Den, where musicians play in unusual places and they televise concerts. Why not the Cape Cinema, I thought? They filmed the show and had a reception at the Cape Cod Museum of Art and filmed that, and it ended up on PBS and over a million people have seen it.”

According to Hart, musicians are drawn to the unique Cape Cinema. They like its art deco quality, and the old-fashioned effort of bringing an audience together in a special space.

Originally, the management that oversees the Cape Playhouse, which owns the Cape Cinema, expressed concerns about crowds, and it limited concerts to one or two a year. But that has since changed, and the management is now in favor of live music, says Hart, who hopes to work up to four or five shows a year.

It will be a challenge, because shows are expensive to produce. There’s lighting and sound equipment, and artists need housing at the height of the season. Hart hopes to form a nonprofit organization to raise money to subsidize the concerts and to obtain sponsors if possible.

The Cape Cod demographic is another challenge. Hart said musical performers must have cross-over appeal, to both younger and older audiences, to sell out a show.

“Once I can establish myself as having a consistent venue for this type of music, the better chance I’m going to have to bring name bands to the Cinema,” he says.

Raise a glass to Devil's Brew

Wearing blue coveralls and holding a long-handled scrub brush, Matthew Belson stands on a raised platform and cleans the inside of a large stainless steel kettle. Add a respirator and he might resemble Walter White from the hit TV show, “Breaking Bad.”

 “I get that a lot,” laughs Belson. But the comparison ends there. Rather than breaking anything bad, he’s brewing something good. Something very good.

 Belson, 43, and Mike Segerson, 40, both of Harwich, are co-founders of Devil’s Purse Brewing Company, which will open soon on Great Western Road in South Dennis. In preparation, Belson and Segerson, together with their first employee, Tim Reilly, also of Harwich, have been busy brewing every day, building up inventory to ship to bars and pubs across the Cape.

 The emphasis is on premium craft beer, made from quality grains from the U.K., Belgium and Germany, and hops from the Pacific Northwest, New Zealand and Europe. Segerson describes their four standard beers as flavorful but not heavy.

 The two met five years ago, through their wives, and quickly discovered a shared interest: malted beverages. It helped they were both foodies, as well.

 At the time, Belson was working as a journalist (he's a former reporter and editor for The Cape Codder), and Segerson worked at Truro Vineyards, having studied wine through Boston University’s Elizabeth Bishop Wine Studies Program. Within two months of meeting, they were making home brews in their kitchens.

The first batch was produced in Mike’s home, then in Chatham. It wasn’t long before they decided that brewing craft beers could be a good way to make a living.

 It’s not a new idea. Craft breweries are flourishing. Segerson reports there are more than 3,000 in the country now, with a new one opening every day.

 “Everything we did as home brewers was aimed at eventually opening a brewery,” recalls Belson. That means developing and testing recipes, and learning the process on a bigger scale.

 “We have spent a lot, I mean a lot, of time brewing together and all we talked about was beer and how amazing it would be to open up our own small craft brewery,” says Segerson.

 In an inspired moment after their second home brew, Segerson came up with the name, Devil’s Purse. He remembered seeing the skate, or shark egg cases, while collecting shells on the Outer Beach as a child. “I’d always see them and I asked my mother. She said, ‘that’s a devil’s purse.’ They’re also referred to as mermaid’s purses, but devil’s purse is a cooler name.”

 “The light bulb went off,’ says Belson. Following that came the serious task of creating a business plan.

 “We did a tremendous amount of due diligence,” Belson adds. That included exhaustive research into the very best craft beers. The pair attended craft beer conferences and seminars, and visited well-established craft breweries around the country. Other beer makers, they said, we very generous in sharing insight and information.

 Just as the name, Devil’s Purse, conjures many associations, the names of individual brews, which Segerson describes as American-influenced ales as well as classic European ales and lagers, are drawn from the sea and the shore.

 Surfman’s Check ESB refers to the old Lifesaving Service, whose members would receive a small check to prove they had completed their rounds. There’s also Pollock Rip IPA and Handline Kolsch. In addition to their four core brews they also plan to introduce Skywave Provisional Saison in the fall.

 “We really want to capture the authentic spirit of the people who live here,” says Belson, who served as a public affairs specialist in the Coast Guard Reserve.

 In late 2014, they moved into a 5,500-square-foot industrial space on Great Western Road in South Dennis and began building the seven-barrel brewery.

 The first test batch was produced in late February, and since then they've put in long days to brew enough beer for the official launch of the brand this month.

 Devil’s Purse beer is available in two sizes of kegs, as well as in refillable 64 oz. glass jugs or “growlers.” Some special batches are bottle conditioned in Champagne style bottles.

 Belson says working with the town of Dennis has been exceptional.

 “This whole process has definitely been a journey. Like any start-up business there have been highs and lows, too many to count,” he says. “When we finally tasted our first few beers which we produced on a commercial brewing system, it was really satisfying.”

HOW TO BREAK THE MOLD IN CARING FOR YOUR BOOKS

The other day, while browsing through my bookshelves, I discovered mold - I think it was mold - on a first edition of Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves. (Not that I'm a collector of first editions, but I do have a fairly large collection of PGW's works that I don't want to lose.) Alarmed, I called Jim Visbeck, owner of Isaiah Thomas Books & Prints in Cotuit.

Moisture is a common problem on the Cape, he reported, and yes, it can lead to mold. When a book gets damp, the stuff starts growing.

 "If you're lucky, the mold is just on the outside," said Visbeck. "A soft-bristle brush should remove it."

If mold starts growing inside the book, that's another story. It can be treated with chemicals by a book restorer, says Pam Talin, who, with her brother, Jim, runs the Talin Bookbindery in Yarmouthport. Short of that, she recommends going outside, donning a surgical mask and brushing the spores off each page with a soft brush. 

To prevent mold and mildew, avoid extreme humidity. Ideally, says Talin, that means having central air conditioning. Don’t store books in basements and along exterior walls. Good air circulation also helps.

“Don’t keep books wrapped in plastic,” advised Visbeck. “Books have to breathe.” Sun will kill the mold, he says, but it may also cause the book to warp. 

As a self-acknowledged bibliomaniac (I love books. I hoard them. I scoop them up at library sales and used book stores and smuggle them into the house when my wife isn’t looking), I wondered what other book diseases lurk out there. What injuries might befall my favorite titles, and how can I protect them?

Just as extreme humidity can damage books, so can extreme temperatures. Heat can dry out a book’s binding, glue, and paper.  Talin advises book owners not to store their books in the attic, where it can be very hot.  Cranking up the heat in the winter can also make for a very hot and dry environment, not good for your library.
 
Insects can also be a problem. Talin says silverfish are partial to the starch found in paper, and crickets devour books. 

“Insects are attracted to the glue,” said Visbeck. “Since all glues are different, one book will be eaten and another will not.”

The solution is to not store books where there are lots of bugs, like damp cellars. Uninsulated summer cottages can also be very buggy, observes Visbeck. 

According to At Home with Books, by Estelle Ellis, Caroline Seebohm and Christopher Simon Sykes, books suspected of carrying termites, beetles or other vermin may be frozen before introducing them into your library. To do this, make sure the books are dry, then wrap them in plastic bags and place them in the freezer to kills insects and their larvae. 

Mice and rats like to nibble on books, too. They generally go for the binding, perhaps attracted by the glue.  So can cats and dogs. “You’d be surprised how many people bring in books that have been chewed by dogs,” said Talin. 

If a book is attacked by a mouse, don’t return the book to the same location on the shelf after you have it repaired, advises Jim Talin. And don’t keep valuable books where cats, dogs and rodents can get at them.

Juvenile humans also damage books. A 2-year-old will think nothing of expressing himself with red crayons throughout the pages of a leather-bound set of Charles Dickens when your back is turned. “If you’ve got somethingreally wonderful, put it up high, away from prying hands,” suggested Visbeck. (But not so high that it is subjected to too much heat and dries out.)

Dust certainly makes a library’s enemies list.  “Dust will settle and seep into the paper,” Visbeck warned. Keep your books dust-free by occasional dusting or vacuuming.

Visbeck doesn’t advise putting dust covers on your books, as the material in the dust cover might damage the book. The brown grocery bag paper used by children to cover their textbooks is full of acid, he says.

“From a collector’s point of view, if the dust cover is not native to the book, it’s superfluous,” said Visbeck. (An original dust jacket in good condition, however, may double the value of a book.)

Acid content in paper can be a serious problem, according to Jim Talin. It causes paper to turn brown and brittle. De-acidifiers can be applied, but it’s a costly process, one that you would only do for a very valuable book.

“Some papers are woefully acidic, and no matter what you do, after a while they will go,” lamented Visbeck.

If a book is damaged – by insects, heat, or plain old wear and tear – repairs can be made by a good bookbinder.  Books can be rebound, or, especially if they are valuable, they can be restored.  

Don’t try to repair them with household tape and glue, cautions Pam Talin.  If you don’t use archival tape and glue, she said, “it’s better not to do anything.”

Talin says she rebinds a wide variety of books, from rare and valuable ones to self-published family cookbooks. The cost to rebind a book, she says, starts at $50. Books can also be protected by placing them in custom or ready-made boxes.

Store books upright on a bookshelf, away from direct sunlight, advises Visbeck. Unless they can be well supported upright, very large books, says Pam Talin, should rest flat on their sides, so they don’t sag. When handling a large book, like a family bible, she suggests you support the cover well. “Don’t just let it drop open,” she said.

That’s about it. Dust, bugs, mice, dogs, heat, moisture, children, all can do terrible damage to your library, but that damage can be prevented, and repaired if necessary. 

Oh, I almost forgot, my Wodehouse. The organic matter, thankfully, didn’t spread to The Clicking of Cuthbert or Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit. The mold came off easily, and the slim volume is as clean as if Jeeves had dusted it himself. My books are safe. I can sit in my little library, listening for mice, and read.
 
“God, as I once heard Jeeves put it, was in His heaven and all right with the world. (He added, I remember, some guff about larks and snails, but that is a side issue and need not detain us.)”