Wilco Sets June Date for Return Engagement

By Larry MurrayBerkshireOnStage.com
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Solid Sound brought thousands of fans to North Adams last August.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Yeah, they want to build anticipation, and we are going to have to wait another few weeks for the ticket information and official announcement, but the dates for the second annual Solid Sound Festival have been set for June 24-26, 2011.

Happily it will once again be held on the extensive campus of MASS MoCA (Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Arts) in North Adams. Music lovers who attended last year loved the integration of Wilco with cutting-edge contemporary visual arts. Performances included far more than Wilco, and were tucked on small stages between buildings as well as the main stage that was pretty well-hidden from view to all but paid attendees.

The first Solid Sound Festival took place this past Aug. 13-15, 2010, and included a handful of other bands and artists including Mavis Staples and Avi Buffalo, a comedy stage, and special activities for children. Well over 10,000 people attended over the weekend. Towards the end of last year’s event guitarist Jeff Tweedy said "Let's do it again next year," and the crowd endorsed the sentiment. And indeed, Wilco is keeping true to their word.

The event helped put North Adams and the beautiful Berkshires on the radar screens of urban Americans from Chicago to Kalamazoo and pioneered the concept of a weekendlong festival in which attendees could only buy a three-day pass, not individual days. As a result virtually every lodging and campground space in the Northern Berkshires and Southern Vermont sold out prior to the festival, a first for the area. The financial impact of the event was estimated to be somewhere upwards of $1.5 million in extra lodging and restaurant sales.

This year the event is in the June shoulder season, which should make more rooms available since it is well before the high tourist season that begins immediately after their appearance with the opening of Tanglewood, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival and the Williamstown Theatre Festival.

So get out those calendars and block out the dates, more news will surely follow as 2011 gets under way.

More on the arts and theater in the Berkshires can be found at BerkshireonStage.com.

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Armed North Adams Man Arrested Following Domestic Standoff

Staff Reports

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Matthew Parker, a 44-year-old North Adams man, is set to face multiple counts of attempted murder and weapons charges in Northern Berkshire District Court on Friday morning following an hours-long, armed standoff at a Houghton Street home.

The defendant is being arraigned for:

  • Domestic Assault and Battery
  • Assault with the Intent to Murder (3 counts)
  • Carrying a Firearm While Under the Influence of Alcohol (3 counts)
  • Possession of a hi-capacity firearm (4 counts)
  • Improper Storage of a hi-capacity firearm (2 counts)
  • Improper Storage of a firearm (6 counts)

According to a report, on June 10, at approximately 8:42 p.m., officers responded to 365 Houghton St. following a report of a domestic assault and battery. The caller said she and her husband had been involved in a physical altercation.

She said her husband was intoxicated, making suicidal statements about shooting himself, and had access to both a shotgun and a pistol.

Upon arrival, officers made contact with both the caller and Parker. During the encounter, Parker threatened to shoot officers before retreating into the home and refusing to exit.

Officers believed that Parker was armed.

To ensure public safety, police established a perimeter around the home and requested assistance from the Berkshire County Special Response Team (SRT) and North Adams Police crisis negotiators. The Brien Center was also contacted and promptly provided an emergency mental health clinician to assist with the incident.

Special Response Team personnel deployed drones to monitor the residence and provide aerial illumination. During the operation, officers saw Parker exit the house carrying a rifle. He pointed it at the drones, stated a report. Parker subsequently pointed the rifle toward several officers positioned behind their cruisers. After officers attempted to de-escalate the situation, Parker returned inside the residence.

Trained crisis negotiators maintained communication with Parker for several hours in an effort to peacefully resolve the situation. At approximately 2 a.m., Parker ceased communication with negotiators.

Drone operators later observed Parker unconscious in a recliner on the first floor of the residence, with a rifle and shotgun on the floor nearby.

Members of the Berkshire County SRT then executed a coordinated operation. Diversionary devices were deployed through a window while an entry team simultaneously entered the home, secured the firearms, and took the defendant into custody.

A search warrant was executed after Parker was in custody. North Adams Police seized four shotguns, six rifles, two handguns, and thousands or rounds of ammunition from the home.

During the operation, one SRT member sustained a minor injury related to a less-lethal bean bag deployment. Parker also sustained non-life threatening injuries during the arrest and was transported to Berkshire Medical Center for medical evaluation.

"We thank the community for its patience and cooperation throughout this incident, particularly residents in the affected area who complied with temporary shelter-in-place requests," Police Chief Mark Bailey said.  "The North Adams Police Department extends its sincere appreciation to the agencies that provided mutual aid and assisted by handling calls for service during this incident. We are especially grateful to the Berkshire County Special Response Team for its professional and decisive response, the Brien Center for the rapid deployment of a mental health clinician, and our crisis negotiators whose efforts helped maintain dialogue and contributed significantly to the safe resolution of this incident."

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