The Flanuary-Noise event was held at the Iowa Music Store in downtown Ames on Jan. 30.

Before I even neared the Iowa Music Store, I could hear the performance from the street and realized I wouldn’t have even known where it was otherwise. A small door led to a set of stairs and a cramped hallway with the Iowa Music Store at the end, rattling the entire hallway. I didn’t know what to expect upon entering but was very satisfied with the welcoming atmosphere of the small venue. Serving as a local music shop during the day and a venue at night, the Iowa Music store sells a wide variety of local music and band merchandise.

The opening group, Stratum, kicked off the night of noise. I was impressed by how accurately described the group was by member Bryon Dudley, as a “strata of ages” and how that description related to their sound. Two of the three members also run Nova Labs, a local Ames label who hosted the event to celebrate the release of several albums, including one of Stratum’s.

The Cryogenic Strawberries, consisting of Rev. Eddie DeSade, used what looked like it could be the world’s smallest pink piano, a laptop and an amplifier to perform a short but electrifying set. The group released a four-disk album titled “15 Years of Failure” with Nova Labs at the show.

The one-man project Moulttrigger was next to take the stage. Moulttrigger worked with Nova Labs to re-release his tape titled “Birds” on a CD. Jan. 30 was the first time Dave Wren, the lone member of Moulttrigger, had performed material from the album at a live show. When performing, Wren was very involved with his tools. He sat on his feet, moving from pedals to knobs and switches to electrify the sound coming out of the amplifier and create his own unique noise. 

Bob Bucko Jr., or BBJr, traveled from Dubuque to share his music at the Flanuary-Noise event. Though BBJr did not have a new release Jan. 30, the Iowa Music Store already sells some of his work. BBJr used an array of sounds, including some warped guitar noises and eerie vocals. Almost everyone in the room was completely calm and invested in BBJr’s piece, sitting on the ground and swaying to the noise.

After the last performance, I almost didn’t know what to do with myself. I was so immersed in the performances and was left wanting to hear more. Noise music is overlooked as a genre and should be more widely recognized. I am excited to see what other noise shows might emerge in Ames and hope to see the fan base continue to grow for this unique genre.