For the benefit of Mr. Wolf

John McIntyre, aka Wolf, has been an ardent supporter of — and contributor to — Lansing’s music scene for decades. Both his bands, They’re Dead and Suburban Ants, push the limits sonically, creating a potent dose of experimental brilliance with every inimitable show.  

Back in 2019, McIntyre, now 73, wowed the audience at the Robin Theatre when he played his theremin, using two wolf knives, during a They’re Dead headlining set in which the band played live scores to two films: “Meshes of the Afternoon” (1943) and “At Land” (1944). Local musician Peter Richards booked the eccentric evening. 

“They performed a brand-new, live, improvised score while two short films by 1940s avant-garde pioneer filmmaker Maya Deren screened behind them,” Richards said. “They’re Dead perfectly captured the surrealist mood of Deren’s black-and-white films as they modulated onstage dynamics between a whisper and a howl.”

Now, after performing countless heartfelt shows, McIntyre’s friends will play a show just for him. 

“He is undergoing treatment for a particularly aggressive cancer with no health insurance,” said the show’s organizer, Joe Haines, who will perform as Noizeghost at the benefit. 

(A GoFundMe for Wolf was also launched, readers can donate here).

Haines recalled meeting Wolf in 2009, when he shared a bill with They’re Dead at Basement 414, a now-defunct venue on Michigan Avenue. While Basement 414 closed in 2012, the musicians’ friendship carried on, including hosting shows for each other at the also now-defunct Uncle Sam’s Record Emporium in Old Town, where the two often chatted about their love for music.  

“I remember an awesome conversation about him building a theremin at Bob Moog’s camp,” Haines said.

Now, with medical costs racking up for McIntyre, Haines said he hopes people are ready to donate cash for their friend while enjoying live music from not only his band but also The Plurals, a solo set by Christopher Baratono of Narc Out the Reds and a duo set by Jennifer Toms and Nicholas Merz of a Rueful Noise.  Small Parks was scheduled to perform but had to cancel. 

“I can’t imagine what that bill is running. I want to make a sizable dent, not a drop in the bucket,” Haines said. “This man is due some good fortune. I want to make it rain.”

“He came to almost every show we did since the very beginning,” Haines added. “We play a bit at Displaced Manor, and he once scolded me for not promoting it enough because he missed it. That’s touching to me now. As an ‘elder noiseman,’ I think he saw in us the same drive to explore new territory musically — or just destroy it. We both love putting on weird shows. Having such a huge fan who’s been around and thinks you’re awesome always meant the world to me and my bandmate Josh Such. Wolf, I know you’re reading this, and we love you.” 

As for the nickname “Wolf,” does Haines know its origin story?

“I was sworn secrecy,” he said, “but what the hell: He actually is a wolf.” 

We’ll give McIntyre the last word. Back in 2019, before the aforementioned Robin Theatre show, this is how he described They’re Dead:

“People ask if we’re a Grateful Dead tribute band,” McIntyre said. “We’re more of a George Romero tribute band. The goal is always to produce a horror-movie soundtrack. Sometimes the movie is projected on the wall. Sometimes it is projected on the mind. We have played in art galleries, a bookstore and countless basements. While guest musicians may grace the stage, the core of the band has always been Slow and Wolf. Two theremins, two guitars, zero rehearsals.”