When I arrived at 11199955, I wasn't sure I was at the right place. From the outside, the venue appeared totally anonymous, a blank white surface apart from a small sign which read 195. I entered through an unmarked doorway, wandering through a hallway scattered with young people, some smoking cigarettes, others just hanging out. I walked into the dimly lit main room. To my right was a wall-length bar. In the front of the room was a raised stage framed by a large projection screen, which read "INSTANT CULT FILMS" in white typeface against an aquamarine background.It was the first showcase of Festival Nrmal, a five-day music festival in Monterrey, Mexico, a rich, cosmopolitan city less than 150 miles from the Texas border. Co-curated by Nrmal and New York independent show organizer Todd Patrick, the festival presented a diverse lineup of acts from Mexico and abroad, focusing on emerging Latin American and U.S. bands. Festival passes cost just 350 pesos, the equivalent of about £19, which included access to the main event on Saturday, March 9 and more intimate showcases and afterparties throughout the week.This showcase, called Never Really Malicious, was a collaboration of ObjectNotFound, a nonprofit show space, art school and residency program founded by Monterrey-based visual artist Ruben Gutierrez, and the Netherlands contemporary audiovisual arts nonprofit Impakt.Read the rest on Noisey
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