Cafe Oto, London, UK The venue is plunged into darkness. A sonic assault ensues. The processed drums strike the ear with an industrial regularity. The sound is heavy and repetitive like endless rows of pumpjacks nodding in an oil field. Coloured spotlights frame Vymethoxy Redspiders… Read More
All posts filed under “Review”
NikNak
Kings Place, London, UK Themes of metamorphosis abound in NikNak’s immersive performance. The concert begins with a meditation that resets the mood of the room. Many in the audience feel inclined to sit or lie on the floor. Piano loops and birdsong are embellished by… Read More
Wilbury Radio
The Storeroom, Letchworth Garden City, UKPhoto: Karma Please by Dugald Muir. Founded in 1903 by the English urban planner Ebenezer Howard, Letchworth Garden City was the world’s first purpose-built alternative to the overcrowded and polluted conditions of industrialised cities. The utopian project aimed to reconnect… Read More
Cyborg Soloists
Cafe Oto, London, UKPhoto by Sisi Burn Zubin Kanga’s Steel on Bone begins with the composer attacking the venue’s piano strings with a pair of metallic rods. The percussive sounds are sampled in real time and manipulated by the composer’s movements. With the help of… Read More
On Screen: Artūras Barysas
Image: Rimgaudas Karvelis in Akivaizdu, bet neįtikėtina, 1982 Restored short films 1972-82Artūras Barysas (Director)Art-Film / LRT Mediateka 2022 Artūras Barysas was a filmmaker and vocalist who, along with his group Ir Visa Tai Kas Yra Gražu Yra Gražu, had a profound influence on the Lithuanian… Read More
Field Of Dreams: Listening After Nature By Mark Peter Wright
In a new book published by Bloomsbury, sound artist Mark Peter Wright unpacks the knotty politics of field recording. Images of Tellenes Wind Farm, Norway courtesy of the author. Where is the field in field recording? Does it begin when the recordist enters the location, when they… Read More
Model Home
Model HomeCafe Oto, London, UK Model Home is a duo from Washington, DC who make improvised avant rap infused with punk energy. Since 2018 they have released over 20 albums, most of which are unceremoniously titled in ascending numerical order. Consisting of producer Pat Cain… Read More
Tickling In My Head: ASMR At The Design Museum
With a tingle running down the back of his spine, Ilia Rogatchevski explores the world of ASMR at London’s Design Museum. All photos: Ed Reeve for the Design Museum. In the centre of the Design Museum’s subterranean exhibition space is a room constructed from scaffolding… Read More
Off The Wall: Art, Photography, & The Album Sleeve
A new exhibition at The Photographers’ Gallery sheds new light on the relationship between records and their covers. Exhibition photographs by the author. “In the very beginning, I was hanging books on the walls like art pieces,” explains Antoine de Beaupré over email. “I realised… Read More
Deliaphonic
Coventry Cathedral & Drapers Hall, Coventry, UK Deliaphonic celebrates the life, work and legacy of pioneering electronic musician and Coventry native Delia Derbyshire. Prior to her death in 2001, Derbyshire envisioned creating an event – along with Spacemen 3’s Peter Kember – called Multi-sensory Electronic… Read More