I'm still laid up with my right leg in plaster from toe to hip after the surgery to pin and repair my very broken tibia (I fell down the stairs) and now that the morphine has run out I'm getting increasingly bored of the view from my living room so I've been pottering with stuff.
So I've made a video for my track off the XPYLON charity compilation (see previous post). The footage is from an old film called 'Our Mr. Sun' - https://archive.org/details/our_mr_sun - from which I edited a few of the animated segments.
I hope you enjoy it and if you do then please consider chucking some cash at the XPYLON compilation. You can grab the album for £7 or individual tracks for a bargain £1 each.
It was a long time coming but my first gig in about 10 years, and indeed first ever solo gig, happened last night. It was an absolute blast.
This was the fifth of these themed nights at The Parrot bar in Carmarthen. So far it's been Nurse With Wound, Sublime Frequencies, Coil & the Esoteric Underground, Sun Ra and now Ambient / Drone night. I played a mix at the Esoteric Underground night but this time out I had a different idea. I'd been saying that I wanted to play a gig or two this year and this seemed like too good an opportunity to miss, particularly as these nights have a dedicated if, let's say select rather than sparse, audience. This meant that my first time making drones on a stage was going to be a nice mellow anonymous little outing where i could ease myself back into the whole live performance thing.
It didn't quite work out that way.
When my name appeared in the event title I had a feeling that that idea was blown...
When my name appeared on the monthly listings I had a stronger inkling...
When Matt's Stretching Horizon's column appeared in the local paper on Wednesday i was fairly sure...
The big orange writing on the sign on the door did nothing to alleviate my fears...
(photo by Rhod)
And when I saw the goodly amount of people who turned up on the night I was certain...
early crowd (Quiet World alumni - Adrian Shenton & Susan Matthews amongst them)
(photo by Si)
later crowd (there're more to the left of shot and at the back right where the comfy seats are)
(photo by Si)
It's really good to see so many people willing and wanting to come out on a Thursday evening to hear something that they probably had no previous idea of just cause they saw a little article in the local paper.
We arrived early to set up and sound check...
(I love my old suitcase - there's a mixing desk and a MfOS:WSG underneath what you can see)
...only to discover we had incompatible plugs - i'm all old-school jack plugs whilst the Parrot's PA is XLR. Luckily this was sorted by the technical genius that is Aled (thanks fella) and everything sounded nice and loud.
this is (a blurry) Aled (who worked the bar and the kitchen from 5 until midnight - kudos)
(photo by Si)
Either side of my performance we had DJ sets from first Simon
I started at around 9:30 and played a 40 minute set in front of a projection of the the pylon I used for the cover of The Prescient Machine sleeve...
(photo by Rhod)
...and the Aurarora videos as made and provided by very buff monkey Mr. Rhod Thomas.
This is Rhod in a gold crash helmet (it's not from the night I just like it).
(photo by Jody)
The set went pretty well, it was a little difficult to hear the subtleties of what was happening from where I was sitting and also there was a gaggle of very loud folks by the bar who talked for most of the set. I was expecting that though - it's a pub after all - so that wasn't any sort of problem for me although a few people mentioned later that they found it annoying - Rhod described one of his video clips as being filled with "the fucking screeching nag guffawing'.
I was so pleased about the projections, I think they really helped create the vibe.
(photo by Rhod)
(photo by Rhod)
(photo by Si)
(photo by Rhod)
(photo by Rhod)
Here's a quick little vid edit
For a first gig back and all nerves aside (I've always got terrible stage fright - even when I'm teaching a new class) I think it went really well. Met lots of new folk and finally got to meet Adrian after several years of typing to each other and had a thoroughly good time.
Many thanks to everyone who came along I hope you enjoyed it (one person told me I sounded like Tool but without the guitars - I think he may have been drunk).
A particular thanks to the Parrot crew - Matt, Si & Al - for being a fantastic bunch of chaps.
Long may these nights continue.
After discovering a problem with the run of the new Heart of Palm album 'Psychopomp' and having to scrap them all. The replacements are all made and ready to go.
it's been a little while since I've had the opportunity to post anything here but I have 5 minutes spare so here goes.
been a turbulent couple of months here. After all the health issues I had last year it was my partners turn this year. It's been a shitty time (for her especially) but she's on the up at the moment.
there's a new issue of Wonderful Wooden Reasons finally gone online. The zine is by far the most time consuming of my hobbies and so it's the one that suffers whenever things go skewiff. I'm going to try and get a few more smaller postings done before the end of the year.
my main mission for this year is to do more with Quiet World. It's off to a good start. three new releases in the last 2 months by myself, Sujo and Susan Matthews. there are loads more lined up but i'm not going to jinx them by mentioning any names until i have the music in my hand.
each release is limited to 50 copies with a signed and numbered QW card. they look real nice and everyone has brought their 'A' game.
The start of the new academic year is rapidly approaching so I'm starting to slide back into work mode and getting as much of my prep done as i can. Several new classes again this year plus the 2nd year of my course (on top of my actual job and the extra classes I took on last year) means I'm going to be pretty busy for the next 30 odd weeks.
As if this wasn't enough there are some fun things in the pipeline for Quiet World. We have a series of new releases lined up by some old friends of QW and some new.
I was kindly asked this week if I'd contribute a label mix to the Exotic Pylon radio show which of course I'm flattered and honoured to do. I spent the other night trying things out and I'm pretty happy with the final result. The only obvious problem is that finances and my DIY ethic have dictated that QW has always been essentially a bit of a vanity project so the mix has ended up looking a tad egocentric but in that sense it does reflect the label I suppose. I'll pass on more info about this when I know it but i really do recommend hitting the link and having a look around. If nothing else go and score some downloads of their magnificent Weird Tales for Winter series, the one by Advisory Circle and Moon Wiring Club is my absolute favourite. The music by Jon Brooks is just sublime.
Also, as I mentioned on the news page over on www.quietworld.co.uk I've now created a page on the site for all the videos people have made for us over the years. the direct link is here.
Make sure you check out the two Aurarora videos (I'm not posting them here as they are widescreen and blogger cuts the right hand side off). They are 2 thirds of an, as yet, unfinished triptych of videos exploring the ecology (both natural and not) of this area. Hopefully the third will see the light of day sometime but it won't be anytime soon.
should be another new issue of Wonderful Wooden Reasons online this weekend too.
Following his solo 'poppy' sample madness of 'Handle This Wino Like He Was Angel' (see Vital Weekly 721) Ian Holloway returns here to his familiar background that of drone music, along with Darren Tate, who is of course known as the man behind Ora. He plays 'squeeze box', guitar and percussion) here, while Holloway takes responsibility for piano, wooden flute and sea recordings. Its divided in two parts, of which the second is the longer piece. The first is an intro like piece for some flowing synthesizer like sounds, and then it goes into the second piece, the main thing. Its hard to recognize many of the instruments used in this tracks, squeeze box? percussion? A guitar, yes, sea sounds, yes, piano too. Its perhaps too easy to say that this is just a beautiful piece of music, but it is. A great slow flow of sounds, a quiet sea on a calm day type of music. Nothing more, nothing less than just that. Nothing new under the burning drone sun, but in these capable hands a great piece of music.
.......................
I'm up to my eyeballs in work here at the moment. Between writing the new issue of WWR (online this coming Sunday all being well) and writing the lectures for the (now three) courses that i'll be teaching come September I'm drowning in work. Lecturing wise I'm trying to get as much done now as i can before i start the 2 year course i'm signed up for in august which will be a ridiculous amount of extra work. hopefully the extra cash will make things feel less of a chore cause i'm brutally skint.
anyway, i've been pottering around quietly with some tunes for the Pendulum 2 (not it's finished title) album i've been planning. i'm four tracks into it and it's sounding pretty good so far. this is one of them. the vid was made on my digital camera walking along Pennard cliffs, Mumbles promenade and Llangennith beach. hope you dig it.
been having a day of busy idleness today watching BSG and making vids for youtube. they're all just single image things except Music Box which is a short video of the track that leads from the gate to the doors of my mothers farm. i'm holding the camera still it's the car that's rolling around. that damn track has already cost us an exhaust and i thought it was getting another at xmas.
it's a warm sultry evening here in Swansea. It feels like there's a storm brewing which would be a welcome relief. i'm not built for the sun or the heat - i have too much surface area - and i'm much happier in spring or autumn - or even winter - than the height of summer.
i've just sent a very enjoyable evening watching the 2nd year performing arts students doing their version of Equus. damn fine it was too. we've been cursed over the last couple of years in the college with performing arts courses full of absolute wankers but this group (and most of the current first years) have been an absolute joy to be around. They were excellent tonight. it's strange when students you like leave (and there're lots of likeable students leaving this week). you want them to have the best of times and go on and live their dreams but at the the same time it's a shame that you'll often never ever see them again. facebook and myspace have changed that somewhat but still.
whilst i'm on the subject of likeable students (although don't tell him i said so), one of our media students, David Strutt, recently made this video for my track 'Tiny Creatures' from the 'Where have we been in the world today?' album. it's only an early edit at the moment as he needs to shoot some more footage but it's a cool start.
one day though someones going to make me a video that doesn't involve static shots of buildings. i suppose it's the curse of writing slow music.
he also did this earlier in the year as a video piece incorporated into a show by the above mentioned Performing Arts students that was toured around the local schools. the music is '50 Pence for Buddha' from my 'Book of Dreams' album.
if you double click either of these vids it'll take you to youtube and i recommend you try out some of his other vids. personally i particularly like his 'ot at the gallery' animation.
new issue of Wonderful Wooden Reasons will be going online in a day or so. been so busy lately that something had to suffer and it was the zine. once term finishes in a weeks time i'll be able to dedicate some time to diminishing the stack of unplayed submissions.
the one thing i have been listening to a hell of a lot this week is the Dinosaur Jr album, Farm. It's a real return to form an absolute blinder of an album. if you were a fan back in the day then you really should give it a go.
