Yea Big’s Neuroplasticity Concert Series Spans Two Days in February at Illinois Art Station
WHAT: Illinois Art Station will host the fifth installment of Yea Big’s Neuroplasticity concert series on Saturday, February 22 and Sunday, February 23. This special two-day concert event is a first for the series and will coincide with Illinois Art Station’s participation in a community-wide Wellness Weekend sponsored by the Bloomington-Normal Hub of Illinois Humanities Envisioning Justice and the South/Midwest tour of visiting Brooklyn-based modular synthesizer artist Matthew Ryals.
WHERE: Illinois Art Station (101 E. Vernon Avenue, Normal, 61761)
WHEN: Saturday, February 22 at 7:00 p.m.
Yea Big’s Neuroplasticity featuring: Estrogen Molotov, Creatian/Heap, and Swim Ignorant Fire
Sunday, February 23 at 7:30 p.m.
Yea Big’s Neuroplasticity featuring: Matthew Ryals with opener King Moosa
HOW:
$20 all-inclusive tickets providing ticket holders with access to both concert events can be purchased at form.jotform.com/IAStation/yea-bigs-neuroplasticity-feb
Tickets will be available at the door ($10 Saturday, $15 Sunday), but presale is preferred. Tickets for this special two-day concert event are being offered Pay-What-You-Can.
WHO:
Yea Big is Stefen Robinson (he/him), sometimes solo, sometimes in collaboration. He’s a father, partner, teacher, multi-instrumentalist music-maker, Buddhist pacifist-anarchist, living in Bloomington, IL. His music runs the gamut from hip-hop to electro-acoustic compositions to free-improvisation. Other projects include Disorganizer and Shoshin Trio.
Matthew Ryals is an award-winning synthesist and composer-improviser based in New York. Working primarily with modular synthesizer, his music explores improvisation, generative composition, cybernetics, and experiments in archiving. Recognized for his tactile approach to synthesis and innovative use of esoteric techniques, Ryals’ recent accolades include a ’22-’23 New Music USA Award and a ’21 IEA Electronic Media Residency. He has released music on Oxtail Recordings, sound as language, SØVN, 3OP, and more. He also co-curates the Brooklyn experimental music series Artifact.
King Moosa (Brian Harrington), born in Rockford, Illinois, is a Bloomington-based hip-hop artivist with a passion for using his music, fine art, and poetry to bring awareness to social injustices, particularly in the area of the juvenile legal system. With his unique sound and captivating lyrics, he has already made a name for himself in the music industry and in the art community. Moosa’s art has been displayed in various cities across the United States, including Chicago, New York, and Miami.
WHY: Yea Big’s Neuroplasticity concert series is hosted every fourth Saturday of the month at Illinois Art Station with a rotating curation of regional and national musical performances within improvisational, experimental, and noise genres. Matthew Ryals will conclude his eight-city South/Midwest tour (including performances in Houston, St. Louis, Minneapolis, and more) at IAS on Sunday. Ryals notes he was inspired to connect with Illinois Art Station as a prospective tour venue based on his association with artists who IAS has hosted previously through Yea Big collaborations. The addition of King Moosa (Brian Harrington) as an opener for Ryals will center themes being explored during the Wellness Weekend presented by Envisioning Justice – a project of Illinois Humanities designed to “leverage arts and humanities to examine mass incarceration and collectively shape a more just future. …Since 2017, Envisioning Justice has created free public arts and humanities programs in partnership with communities and people affected by the carceral system and provided grant funding for individuals, nonprofits, and collectives.” A temporary art installation of works created by community members during the Wellness Weekend will also be on exhibit at Illinois Art Station in time for the Sunday concert.