ProjecKt 2's Smokin' Debut

03/10/1998 3:00 AM, Yahoo! Music
Bruce Haring

(3/10/98) - ProjecKt 2, the new art-rock instrumental conglomeration of Trey Gunn and former King Crimson members Robert Fripp and Adrian Belew, literally had a smoking debut during the Nashville Entertainment Association-sponsored Extravaganza conference in late February.

The band closed out an evening of showcases at the Cannery, a former warehouse and cannery which has been used as a music club since the '80s. The venue has been little-used in recent years, however, and perhaps we know why: despite the room's 30-foot ceilings, smoke machines used at the end of Nashville rock band Dinah Shore Jr.'s set so polluted the club's air that the Cannery resembled a tear gas attack as people ran for the windows and exits to gulp fresh air.

Attempts by club managers to clear the smoke by opening windows and bringing in huge fans backfired when a diesel trail parked--with its engines running--just behind the club. Although the show was delayed 30 minutes to allow the room to air out, the combination of diesel fumes and smoke still prompted club managers to make the unusual request that folks "help out the band" and refrain from smoking during their set. Maybe the folks in California are onto something with their ban on smoking in clubs?