This museum rocks (in an Epcot kind of way)

By GINA VIVINETTO

Revised September 8, 2000

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 3, 2000

Amidst the mist of Seattle looms the Experience Music Project, where visitors can groove to a primal American form of expression with eyes, ears and their own hands.

SEATTLE -- Allow me to be your unofficial tour guide through the Experience Music Project, the new interactive rock 'n' roll museum created by Paul Allen -- better known as the other guy who founded Microsoft.

Allen says EMP is a rock 'n' roll "university," aiming to educate visitors, celebrate the art form and let mere civilians create their own tunes.

New section makes debut Welcome to Sunday Arts, a new section of the St. Petersburg Times where you'll find the latest news and trends in music, theater, film, television and the visual arts.

Anyway, Allen shelled out $240-million on this puppy. So we'll call it whatever he wants.

That's right, $240-million, more than $100-million alone for the kooky building. The guy who designed this weird pile of stainless steel and painted aluminum shingles says it represents "the energy and fluidity of music."

Most Seattlites think EMP looks like a giant gob of Jell-O. Or maybe the wreck of the Partridge Family bus.

The exoskeleton of the Experience Music Project took $100-million of the $240-million total cost. Architect Frank Gehry says the kooky building represents “the energy and fluidity of music.”

Originally Allen wanted EMP to be a monument to his hero Jimi Hendrix, but the focus widened. Allen actually purchased everything you see here. Nothing is donated. Elvis' motorcycle jacket? Allen bought it. Bo Diddley's red square Gretsch? Cha-ching. Sold to the man with the mousepad.

But it's not difficult for Allen to stock this place -- Forbes rated him the fourth-richest person in the world. EMP is Allen's party and he'll buy what he wants to. Okay group, before we get started, please line up for your high-tech fanny packs and earphones. Included is a personal hand-held computer. Point that thingamajig at the icons on exhibit walls, and you'll hear about what you're viewing.

Oh, stop grumbling about how we're taking a wonderfully noisy, sometimes messy, communal art form and turning it into a geek's paradise. The headsets look cool.

While waiting in line for your fanny packs, enjoy the ambient music. Above your heads there's an ever-changing video montage of important (but sometimes obscure) rockers. EMP is into championing marginalized artists. Unfortunately, in the montage, EMP doesn't indicate who anyone is. So, if you can't recognize Fats Domino -- and let's face it, kids, how many of us can? -- or Liz Phair -- ditto, old-timers -- tough luck.

Okay, got on those fanny packs? Kind of heavy, huh? Tell me how you feel about them in three hours, when you've exhausted yourself trying to get your money's worth. Although at $20 a pop, the tickets aren't too steep, am I right, gang?

Now, slip on the headphones and suddenly everything your companions say is rendered incomprehensible, or at least like the voices of the adults on Peanuts.

Don't worry if you feel like you're walking around in a bubble; everyone else at EMP does, too.

Okay, ready?

First floor: Cool artifacts

The first floor here is called the Northwest Passage. It's entirely Seattle-centric, which isn't really tough to pull off, since the city has so much musical history. Remember Louie, Louie? Here's the Stratocaster the Kingsmen used on that recording. Some other items from the Ventures, a Tacoma band, and old costumes worn by Paul Revere and the Raiders are over there.

Visitors carry MEGs, or museum exhibit guides, which allow them to listen to music or hear about an exhibit’s history.

See that velvet coat around the corner? That belonged to Nancy Wilson of Heart, another Seattle band. Let's not forget Quensyrche, too.

Step around the corner for the grunge display. EMP made a point not to flip out over Kurt Cobain and Nirvana. You'll see that the band is represented equally with Pearl Jam and Soundgarden and other grunge giants of the early 1990s. EMP curators are pretty hip. They also gathered guitars and other memorabilia from the Riot Grrrl feminist punk movement in nearby Olympia. There's stuff from Bikini Kill and Sleater-Kinney.

Inside this next room is the Jimi Hendrix Gallery (whispering), though personally I've never been inside since the line is always so darn long. I hear there's a film chronicling Hendrix's youth in Seattle and his early days playing with Little Richard. Of course, it also shows his triumphant performance at the Monterey Pop fest.

The gallery also features the guitar Hendrix used to play The Star-Spangled Banner at Woodstock, handwritten lyrics and recording equipment from Electric Ladyland studios.

Second floor: Making magic

As we move to the second floor, notice "Roots and Branches," a funky two-story sculpture of guitars.

Upstairs is where the magic happens, where you get to do the interactive stuff. That is, as long as you have a lot of time and patience for these lines.

If you're inspired by seeing Grandmaster Flash's turntable in the impressive hip hop exhibit, by all means get in the line to the Sound Lab and turn the knobs and mix a song yourself.

In a way, EMP is the Epcot-ization of rock 'n' roll. Krist Novoselic, that big goony bassist from Nirvana, expressed concern that EMP was going to be like a rock 'n' roll theme park. But he and that Eddie Vedder and those Seattle rockers are too serious. I mean, have a little fun, right?

Regular folks, too, may take issue with some of this. It's kind of freaky that John and Jane Q. Public and their 7-year-old kid can play programmed instruments that make no mistakes. The "band" is cheered on by a virtual audience.

Kind of makes the unique artistry of Hendrix or Cobain less daunting, huh? It proves, through technology, that anyone can be an artist. Or at least a rock star.

For a few bucks, the Publics can get their fake band name printed out on a Ticketmaster ticket. For $9.95 they can even print up a band poster.

Come on! This is fun!

Also on the second floor is EMP's Milestones exhibit, more memorabilia from artists outside the Northwest. Notice, despite that hideous red embroidered cowboy shirt worn by Eric Clapton and his famous "Brownie" Fender Strat, most of EMP's artifacts are American. The Beatles? The Stones? Who cares?

Allen wanted to keep things American. Guess what? Splish splash, he's the one with all the cash. Around the corner, you'll see that fabulous pink boa Janis Joplin wore on the cover of Pearl. EMP has other Janis clothes: velvet bell bottoms, a fringed shoulder bag.

Did you see the guitars played by Chuck Berry and Carl Perkins? The one ol' Hank Williams used? EMP knows its roots. And the contemporary scene.

The Hip Hop Nation exhibit shows how "down" EMP is, thank goodness, since rap is woefully unrepresented at that Hall of Fame joint in Cleveland.

EMP features a cool graffiti street art retrospective and outfits worn by hip hop stars such as the Notorious B.I.G., who was, as you can see, B.I.G.

See that studded trench coat behind the glass? That belonged to early '80s rap pioneer Grandmaster Melle Mel. In the same display is a costume worn by Queen Latifah and one worn by Will Smith in Wild, Wild West.

Why is Smith represented by an outfit from a motion picture and not something from his music? The larger question is, what the heck is Will Smith doing in a music museum?

Check out this punk exhibit with artifacts from the Ramones and the New York Dolls, all those original Punk magazines and -- get this -- an early 1980s letter from the mother of 15-year-old Tommy Stinson giving him permission to tour as the bassist for the Replacements.

Maybe some of you who have success in the Sound Lab will require such a letter someday.

Go ahead, make a speech about rock 'n' roll as "art." Whine about how you can't get your little hand-held computer to work. Ponder the strangeness of cleaning up the danger and rebellion of rock and making it fit for the museum-going masses.

EMP can teach you a lot about the history of rock, what was once dangerous, groundbreaking and inspiring. It also can teach you this: With enough money and technology, and the right clothes, anyone can make dreams come true.

And, really, if that's not the spirit of rock 'n' roll circa 2000, I don't know what is.

To reach Gina Vivinetto e-mail gina@sptimes.com

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