Oct. 19-22, 2006

For four days in October, over 70 musical experiments from Chico, San Francisco, Sacramento and beyond will take over Chico, CA. The 1078 Gallery will host the bulk of the festivities, and Crux Art Collective, Moxie’s Café/Gallery, 24 Hr Drive-By Gallery, Tower Records, Has Beans Coffee & Tea, Paradise Lost Video and the Serenity Center will be joining the party as well. See full roster, bio info, and schedule at www.myspace.com/palaisideal.

Le Palais Idéal: The Ideal Castle

Ferdinand Cheval was a postman from Hauterives, France who, one day in 1879 while walking his route, tripped on a strange looking stone. The stone intrigued him so he picked it up and put it in his pocket. Cheval returned the following day to collect more of the curious rocks, and he just never stopped. For the next 33 years he collected small and large stones from along his postal route and used them with cement and lime to build an ornate and surreal castle that he had daydreamed about on those long walks delivering the mail. Cheval had no experience building or sculpting and his neighbors quickly labeled him insane, yet he stuck to his vision and—working alone for those 33 years—completed his “fairy-like palace beyond imagination�: Le Palais Idéal.

Another dream: A large collection of musical oddballs and innovators gather together in the sleepy college town of Chico, Calif. and take the place over for a few days under the banner of Palais Idéal: A Festival of Adventurous, Strange and Visionary Music. This is not merely an experimental music festival; this is a an occasion for weirdness of all stripes and for braveness in the name of new ideas: art rock, experimental, free jazz, noise, improv, outsider, visionary, electronica, ambient, broken folk, homemade instruments, multi-media, performance art, adventurous rock, post rock and whatever else is out there.

Everything is welcome, and over 70 performers will be there:

Palais Idéal will be happening in the midst of Artoberfest, which is an effort by the city and local arts organizations to make the month of October into a power-packed festival of arts that will showcase Chico, Calif. as a desirable arts destination. The vision for Palais Idéal is to build a fun and highly visible castle that will function as an unpredictable irregular heartbeat for the month’s festivities.

Tickets

Four-day pass:

-$40 in advance: www.chicotickets.com and at 1078 Gallery (820 Broadway)

-$45 night of first show, Thurs. Oct. 19 (at 1078 Gallery)

Individual shows:

-$3 to $8 (call venues to check availability)

-Mid-afternoon shows on Fri., Sat. & Sun. are free