Favorite Sons

We've been faced with some seriously tragic losses of late, Santa Fe. High Mayhem founder Max Friedenberg and Joseph Moncada, whom many knew as Joseph "Santa Fe Pulse," both died this week, and  memorial gatherings are planned for both on Saturday. 

Death is, of course, a part of our lives, but that doesn't mean it hurts any less when it happens. I believe it's important to remember these men in as positive a light as we can, and their impact on our community will surely be felt for years to come.

Following a lengthy battle with fungal meningitis, local social media powerhouse/online marketing coordinator for businesses like Tecolote Café and Rouge Cat Moncada died Monday. Behind him, he leaves a community strengthened through his tireless efforts to bolster the local nightlife and music scenes, as well as a nearly endless list of broken hearts and a legacy of friendships and memories that won't soon be forgotten.

To most, Moncada was better known as either Joseph "Santa Fe Pulse" or Joseph "Pulse NM," his Facebook personas. An outspoken member of the community and believer in a revitalized Santa Fe nightlife (not to mention good food), Moncada used these personas to promote the hell out of the businesses and events he believed in. It was positive.

For others who knew the man outside of his online self, the loss is a staggering one. To scroll through Moncada's Facebook page the last few days has been nothing short of heartrending. And yet, within the countless posts professing love, loss and frustration, a very clear picture emerges. It is of a man who was, at his very core, good.

"Joseph had the empathy of a god among men," close friend Sam Hazous says. "[He] would want everyone who had ever known him to be happy and just be glad that he is not enduring the incredible pain and sorrow that he was going through any longer."

Moncada's efforts even managed to deeply touch those who knew him more professionally. Local promoter/DJ Isaiah Rodriguez worked with Moncada on events at Rouge Cat.

"I feel that we lost a friend, someone who worked hard to entertain and was always very open to helping others do the same," he says. "I will hold his memory dear."

A gathering for Moncada is planned at 2 pm, Saturday, Oct. 18 at Warehouse 21.

And the sad news just keeps on coming, as we learned the worst Wednesday from the brother of local artist/musician/co-founder of High Mayhem Max Friedenberg.

Friedenberg was a good friend to so many Santa Feans—myself included—that it's difficult to believe, and I've been reeling.

I first met Max in my mid-teens when I became heavily involved with the Warehouse 21 concert program (full disclosure: I work there now). He took me, my friends and many others under his wing and taught us the ropes of concert promotion/production, how to operate as sound techs and so much more. He helped us with our graphic design for posters and T-shirts, he helped us navigate the ever-changing landscape of the online music industry; he helped us deal with angry bands.

Friedenberg even went so far as to invite so many terrible teenage bands to perform at High Mayhem back when it was located at his home. Whether you ran into Max himself or any number of his alter egos (which he would disappear into so completely that he'd only respond to the name of the character), there was always an air of good-natured mischief at play. And yet it seemed he was hiding some degree of inner turmoil. There was a sadness just beneath the exterior that could be felt if you knew him long enough or well enough.

Regardless, he never let his demons affect his relationships and, similarly to Moncada, social media exploded with grief following the news of his passing. Of course, I can't speak for everyone who knew the man, but I'll always remember how Max treated me like an equal from day one. For an angry, confused teenager this is huge, and he played a pivotal role in the way I perceive music and performance to this day. Perhaps saddest of all is that Max leaves behind a beautiful young daughter.

He recently posed for photos in a costume he wore as an extra for the film Stanistan, wearing a turban and holding a toy gun in images he posted online on Oct. 4. The next post is from Christopher Friedenberg, who wrote that his brother Max died in a "tragic accident."  A memorial is planned at 10 am Oct. 18 at High Mayhem Emerging Arts, 2811 Siler Lane.

I interviewed Max some years ago for SFR. Over some very large beers at the original Second Street Brewery we laughed about the scene and how things had changed since we had worked so closely together, and I recall the bittersweet feeling that comes from a brief encounter with someone you always wish you'd spend more time with. It was a fantastic conversation that I'll always treasure, and I can think of no better way to describe the many memories I and countless others have of Max Friedenberg than in his own words which, at the time, he used to describe a decade of High Mayhem in Santa Fe.

"It is a good thing. We've lasted. We've stuck."

Santa Fe Reporter