View From The Crow's Nest

From deep within our engine room, we're pleased to bring you another Ink edition of the Northwest's longest-running magazine whose staff is known to consume its mascot's relations on festive occasions.

All anthropophagy aside, since emerging in a seaswell of good intentions three years ago the Tentacle has struggled with the inescapable question of what kinds of music we (and you) are supporting with this venture and what do we mean when we call it "creative" music, anyway? Our use of the term has at times become a bone of contention for some listeners and musicians who justifiably believe it is up to them to determine what qualifies as creative music.

In this, the "Polemic Issue" of the Ink, we try to make clearer why we define our purview as "Northwest Creative Music," and present the thoughts of many others involved with Northwest music as musicians, critics, or journalists when asked to comment on the same topic. We hope you'll enjoy pondering the question, and if you feel moved to react (positively or negatively) in writing, we encourage you to articulate a harpoon our way at tentacle@tentacle.org.

As we await the (so we've been told) official denial of our application to the IRS for tax-exempt status (talk about procrastination -- these guys make campaign-finance reformers look like fast-food fry cooks), we must continue to rely heavily on advertising and individual donations. Please look deep within your pockets and help out this completely volunteer-produced community-service organ with a contribution to us at our onshore address (see the isolation tank on the back cover).

And speaking of dubloons, the Tentacle is seeking individual(s) with a bit of spare time and the requisite expertise to assist us with applying for grants from various federal, state, and local funding bodies. If you have experience and can volunteer some time, please contact us at: tentacle@tentacle.org.

And speaking of volunteers . . . We are seeking an Advertising Manager (gulp). Yes, until we are able to secure more grants and private donations, the magazine requires a steady stream of ads. The nice part about it is that the businesses who advertise in our pages are connected to Northwest creative music and deserve to be supported. We know that digging up ads can be hard work, but the reward for a modest amount of effort is before you. Please let us know if you'd like to help.

Thanks to Susie Kozawa and Patti Deuter for their generous contributions. Thanks also to all of our distributors and advertisers throughout the region, to Ffej for a once-only full-page Noise-Lovin' Ned, and a special thanks to Mike O'Connor for this issue's fine cover illustration, "The Tentacular Inquisition."