Aural Detritus

I’m playing at Aural Detritus 2014 which Paul Khimasia Morgan is putting on at The Phoenix in Brighton on December 12th. I’ve played at a couple of these and really enjoy them, Gus and I both like gigs in galleries. I think the audiences are maybe more open to challenging work, not because different people go to galleries, but the expectation is different to performing at a rock venue.

I’ll be playing in The Static Memories with Gus and then Paul has asked Nil to do performances between the acts so we’ll be setting up somewhere in the building and doing something.

The Phoenix Gallery is always worth a visit

Here’s the Aural Detritus website

Sheffield and a play on Big Radio

Gus and I travelled to a gig as part of the Discus records concert series with Inclusion Principle. We stayed with Mick Beck who plied us with food and homebrew and then let us play our stuff in his music room. Inclusion Principle – Martin Archer (electronics, saxes), Hervé Perez (electronics, saxes), and Peter Fairclough (percussion) – were excellent, I found their set really inspiring.

We were pleased when we found out that Verity Sharp played a track from the album on BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction a couple of weeks ago.

Some collaborations

Gus suggested a few weeks ago that we organise some collaborations with other improvisors, especially as our collaboration with Mirei is going so well. I think it’s a great idea, a really nice way to expand what we do and bring new ideas into The Static Memories. I’m keen to move on from the album and do some new stuff.

Coincidentally Kath Roberts, LUME organiser and saxophonist, emailed the next day asking if we wanted to collaborate on the Brighton part of the Ripsaw Catfish tour she and Anton Hunter are organising. Of course we said yes and that’s happening on 17th December at The Scope, the night Spirit of Gravity are running at The Caroline of Brunswick. Then we asked vocalist Kay Grant to join us at Club Integral in London on 28th November and she said yes too, which is a brilliant start. Hopefully more to come.

Here’s some stuff about Ripsaw Catfish and The Scope

And about Club Integral and Kay Grant

We’re also really pleased to be playing as part of Discus Records concert series on November 4th with Inclusion Principle. Here’s the stuff on that

LUME

Gus and I drove up to Hackney for a gig at LUME a couple of weeks ago. The venue is Long White Cloud a very nice cafe which likes to show art in the space and serves good food. Anyway, we played with duck-rabbit who where excellent, bending and manipulating sounds they recorded on location with software and home made hardware. Their new album (available on their website) is really worth listening to.

Gus and I were joined by Mirei who had a tiny space to work in but was brilliant, especially her voice work which she has never tried with us before. We did three pieces which was really good and I hope we can carry on like that rather than doing one long piece, I enjoyed resetting myself and diving in afresh (so to speak).

The gig was organised by Cath Roberts and Dee Byrne who were great and I’m pleased that Ripsaw Catfish Cath’s duo with Anton Hunter is coming to Brighton to play at The Scope in December as part of their Shoaling tour. They’ve invited Gus and I to join them for the performance which uses pre arranged sounds and free improvisation. We’re also hoping to get duck-rabbit down in the new year.

LUME

duck-rabbit’s website

Ripsaw Catfish

nil – The golden headress

Chris and I had a couple of beers around the campfire last week and decided we really should get a new album out. We listened to a some recordings Chris made of gigs at The Scope and The Cowley and thought they sounded good to go so The golden headress is now on Bandcamp for free download.

The Scope is the new Spirit of Gravity thing at The Caroline of Brunswick every month, we played at the first one with The Zero Map and Captain Poopdeck and it was a fine and well attended affair. The Cowley gig was one of the many gigs the excellent Graham Newbury has organised in support of Brighton Community Radio and was a cracker with us and some other people.

The Sound Projector

Ed Pinsent played Poppies from the album on his radio show on Resonance. I’m particularly pleased about this one as I really enjoy his show, Ed’s a great presenter and his selections are always interesting to listen to. The show is definitely worth a listen with some great tracks by KK Null, Paul Baran and others; and a lovely piece by Gunnar Lettow and Kohran Erel.

“A fine item…” no less – thank you Ed!

http://www.thesoundprojector.com/

seventy five sounds

Last year I was asked to take part in the 75th anniversary celebrations of Blind Veterans UK’s Brighton centre, a beautiful art deco building on the outskirts of Brighton. I visited the arts workshop, met some of the people who work there and recorded seventy five unique sounds, from drilling and sanding, to the guys talking and the sounds of some of the gadgets they use to help navigate their day to day lives.

I then took the sounds back to my studio (a dining room table in central Brighton) and processed and sequenced them into an exploration of the way we consciously and unconsciously map a space using sound.

We started a Bandcamp netlabel for Spirit of Gravity at the beginning of the year and the finished piece has been just been released as GRAV107

 

Chris and I are performing a piece at a private view showcasing work by the people who use the workshop at the Blind Veterans UK’s Brighton centre on Greenways in Ovingdean, Brighton on 22nd August between 5pm – 7pm. All welcome. We’re planning a Nil style workshop performance using seventy five objects from around the workshop and people will be free to join in and work with us.

Thanks to all at Blind Veterans UK for their support, especially Kath Jones-Romain and everyone in the workshop at the Brighton centre.

Blind Veterans UK’s website

Vital Weekly review

Vital Weekly have given the new album a good review. Saying that, whilst occasionally in need of editing, The bloudy vision of John Farley is ” …an excellent, free (as in: free music and free of any particular improvisational style) album.” I’m pleased with that, thanks to Frans de Waard for the review.

Here’s the review.

Mirei’s show

We enjoyed playing at Mirei’s exhibition a couple of weeks ago. The other performers where intriguing; Colleen Bartley, a movement artist who slowly worked her way up and down a set of steps outside the library, and performance artist Daniella Valz Gen who gave a reading from one of her hand made books.

Really nice appreciative crowd, I tried out Howard’s Roland keyboard amp which sounded great next to Gus’s new Gallien-Krueger.

Here’s a video of the event

 

Mirei Yazawa – The Anatomy of Dreams

Gus and I are playing at the Carnegie Library in Herne Hill next Monday. Mirei is the dancer we performed with at the Dome last December and we’re really pleased that we are going to be working with her again. Mirei is showing some of her paintings and sculptures and we will be accompanying a 20 minute performance piece with her.

Here are the details

Mirei Yazawa exhibition