Which makes it all the more bizarre that the shy songsmith has reportedly scheduled a set during the Music Lovers' Field Companion Festival, curated by Barry Esson. The title of the festival is taken from the last piece featured in John Cage's 1961 book Silence and will be held in the four-hundred-seat Sage Center on May 22 in Newcastle, England. The only official press announcement, until now, occurred in Wire, which casually mentioned Jandek's name alongside the other artists, and the festival's website has no other information about the performance. So, just like with most everything Jandek does, we know effectively nothing in advance. Will Jandek be playing solo or with others? Will he recoil in the face of flash photography? Is this the start of some kind of actual touring?

The only clues are in Jandek's first (as far as we know) live performance, which took place in Scotland in October, 2004. His presence at the show was never officially announced; and no one who attended the show was informed who was playing. A cryptic reference to a "mystery guest" and "representative from Corwood Industries" provided the perfect accompaniment to Jandek's already secretive approach. The set lasted one hour with Jandek playing guitar alongside a band that'd rehearsed his set once. He refused to stay in the same hotel as the other musicians and only watched one other band: Six Organs of Admittance. He didn't attend the post-show party and the only people he would speak to were his promoter, his supporting band, and his partner.

Jandek Live [unofficial, of course]: http://tisue.net/jandek/live.html