Music At The Manton: Constant Smiles And Ava Mirzadegan

Constant Smiles, led by Ben Jones, began in 2009 in his home of Martha’s Vineyard. Inspired by the scene of the island’s now-defunct community record store, Aboveground Records, the group made their live debut as a noise duo opening for Ralph White (Bad Livers). Fourteen indie-folk albums later, the group’s most recent release, Kenneth Anger, returns to their electronic roots and evokes the eponymous filmmaker with hypnotic, ’80s-inspired synth classics. Anger’s films—which were a silent visual backdrop during Jones’ songwriting sessions—nurtured the group’s most vulnerable expression to date, powerfully examining how rituals and community can heal feelings of isolation.

Ava Mirzadegan opens for Constant Smiles. Mirzadegan writes quiet songs about heartbreak, longing, letting go, and befriending the night sky. Accompanied most often by fingerpicked nylon string guitar, her work rings of unembellished honesty.

Free. This program is presented in collaboration with Belltower Records, North Adams, Massachusetts.