On May 6, downtown Manhattan's Le Poisson Rouge will host a benefit show for New Zealand punk originator Chris Knox, who suffered a series of strokes last year.
The big news: Reclusive Neutral Milk Hotel leader Jeff Mangum will make an extremely rare appearance at the show, playing a "very short acoustic set." According to the show's publicist, Mangum "is doing the show specifically to help raise money for his close friend and it's not the start of a comeback." Still, Jeff Mangum! Live! This doesn't happen every day. Or every year. Or ever, really.
Other acts playing the benefit include Yo La Tengo, TV on the Radio's Kyp Malone, Portastatic, Claudia Gonson of the Magnetic Fields, Sharon Van Etten, Dimmer, and Knox's fellow New Zealanders Robert Scott and David Kilgour of the Clean (who will each do solo sets, along with a Clean set). Most of the performers also contributed to the recent Knox covers disc Stroke.
Portions of the show will be recorded to be broadcast on WFMU and New Zealand radio stations at a later date. Tickets will go on sale on Kickstarter.com on Tuesday, March 30.
