Lucky Dragons and The Berg Sans Nipple to play Kids Gigs at Supersonic 2011
It’s hard to imagine to two more perfect bands to play our Supersonic Kids Gigs than Lucky Dragons and The Berg Sans Nipple. These will rule! If everyone isn’t running around clapping and smiling in five minutes, we’ll need to think about refunds.
Lucky Dragons are all about people coming together to make sound, to make an event, to make something new and joyous. It’s not by accident that they refer to their live shows as ‘actions’. They encourage participation and this Supersonic live show promises to be all about (re)discovery and (re)turning to play to learn about ourselves and make new connections. There’s a live video link below and more Lucky Dragons live films are here.
The Berg Sans Nipple are a Frenchman and a Nebraskan. With two drums, synths, samples, a ton of percussion and vocals, their sounds hop-skip past each other, caught in devastatingly beautiful melodies held tight by a mind bending rhythm section. Their new video ‘Changing the Shape’ (link below) is a fantastic twist on the age-old game of exquisite corpse where an image or story is built up person-by-person using instinct and imagination. Let’s play!
We’re pleased to present two live Q&As with acclaimed artists at Supersonic this year. Following in the footsteps of Michael Rother (Neu!) and the Fear of Music panel at Supersonic 2010, Tony Conrad and William Bennett will be taking part in two separate Q&A sessions.
William Bennett will be discussing the influence of West African sounds on his own work, his new Afronoise project as Cut Hands and his music’s inclusion on the Vice film ‘The Vice Guide To Liberia’. Meanwhile, Tony Conrad will be in conversation at this year’s festival with the help of the ever inquisitive The Quietus, discussing his cross artform approach, moving between the world of visual art, film and sound.
After Supersonic closes down on Saturday night, you’ll be too excited to go to bed of course. So why not spend the night in Eastside Projects (bring your own sleeping bag)? Christian Jendreiko and Andrew Moscardo-Parker will be performing a 24-hour guitar & stringed instrument performance from 9pm on Saturday to 9pm on Sunday.
Scored and performed by the Dusseldorf based Jendreiko (also of Apparent Extent label fame) and Birmingham based Moscardo-Parker of Einstellung and Lash Frenzy, the two artists will work with various performers from Birmingham, the UK and Europe to produce an ever-evolving, deep listening experience. Following on from Jendreiko’s 7-hour performance of GOTTESRAUSCHEN (GOD’S WHITE NOISE) : Action for Players, Guitars and Amplifiers in 2010 that coincided with Supersonic 2010, this will be an immersive and exploratory event allowing listeners to lose all sense of themselves.
9pm – 9pm : Saturday 22nd – Sunday 23rd October
Eastside Projects | 86 Heath Mill Lane | B9 4AR
Supersonic photographer James Robinson has captured some amazing images at the festival in the past couple of years. (That’s Kristoph Hahn of Swans above, a man who practically defines the dictionary entry for ‘craggy’.) Robinson has been able to not only shoot live performances , but also develop an on going set of portraits of the artists off stage.
In a time when (for some folk) it can be difficult to think of musicians as people, when popular culture elevates artists to such inaccessible places, Robinson’s photographs get to the core of these musicians as real individuals. His photographs maintain integrity and lose the myth-making nonsense. The exhibition ‘Incarnate‘ at Supersonic 2011 reveals more of Robinson’s work.
To see more of Jamies Supersonic photos check our Flickr group
With exactly 2 weeks until SUPERSONIC FESTIVAL 2011, here is the final of our 3 preview podcasts, lovingly put together by Chris Brumcast to give you a taster of what will be on offer. Enjoy and make sure you help us by spreading the word far & wide and encouraging all ya mates to have a listen.
There are still a ltd number of both weekend & individual day tickets available and they can be purchased from HERE. If you would like further info on any of the artists performing at this years festival or to see what films, exhibitions and workshops we have available see HERE
A number of websites have been asking Capsule for our take on the festival – why we do it, highlights from previous years, things to watch for this year. Check out our take on things below via Rockfeedback and Wiki Festivals.
With just over two weeks until Supersonic 2011, we thought it was worth getting into training with a bit of a warm up.
Prepare yourselves and get lunging. With thanks to Scott Johnston for sending us this beauty
If you’d really like to get into training for Supersonic we have the wonderful Blood Ceremony + Sally performing at the Hare & Hounds this Sunday – more details can be found HERE
Supersonic 2011 marketplace – welcome to our stallholders
Make sure you bring an extra bag or two to Supersonic – you’ll be wanting to stock up on import Neurosis vinyl and that ultra-rare, lathe-cut 8″ comp of Bardo Pond side projects. The one with the hand-stamped foil sleeve? Yeah, that’s the one. These fine people have got all this and more.
LANCASHIRE & SOMERSET
Lancashire and Somerset is humble label, currently living in the hills of Shropshire. They attempt to help and support a growing family of bands like Nathan Bell, Kogumaza (both performing at Supersonic 2011), Enablers, McWatt and previous festival hits Mugstar, all with a like minded ethos based around truthful, honest music. Releasing mainly on the superior format of vinyl, they hope to continue to help this network grow.
FIRST FOLD First Fold is an independent record label specializing in Electronic and Experimental music. First Fold’s focus is to maintain a self regulating and enthusiastic approach to the creation of music and visual media.
BAD EGG RECORDS Bad Egg is an independent, stalwartly DiY label which has been releasing and promoting some of Birmingham’s finest and noises since 2009. Their roster houses local heroes such as Stinky Wizzleteat, Human Hands and Fuck Your Haircut.
BURNING WORLD RECORDS Burning World Records label and mailorder is based in Holland, home of the Roadburn Festival, and mainly focused on vinyl. Black metal, drone, death, stoner, doom – as long as it kicks you in the gut. As a label Burning World is the home of Roadburn Records. They’ve released records by Altar Of Plagues, Yob, Church Of Misery, Lustmord and Neurosis in the past, to name but a few. Coming up are the new Gnaw Their Tongues vinyl and White Hills Live at Roadburn on CD and vinyl.
FUTURE NOISE Future Noise is a Manchester based-label, booking agency and PR company. They work and have worked for the likes of Ufomammut, Charger, Unearthly Trance, Grifter, Morkobot, The Sontaran Experiment, Stuntcock, Lento, Paul Catten, Conan, Domes of Silence, Rise to Thunder, A Man Called Catten, Bastard of the Skies, Black Sun, Undersmile, Siena Root, OvO, Pine Barrens, Privileged to Fail Records, Full Stack Recording Studio, The Sleeping Shaman, Supernatural Cat Recordings and The Malleus Rock Artlab.
HOLY ROAR
Holy Roar Records is an independent record label run by Alex Fitzpatrick and Ellen Godwin. The label began in January 2006 when they moved to London from Birmingham and put out their first release in June 2006. Since then Holy Roar Records has released over 80 CDs, records and tapes. The name is actually derived from a vision Alex had whilst on the hallucinogen LSD. The vision came to Alex, as he listened to Slayer, in the form of a lion with the face of Jesus.
STATIC CARAVAN
Digging out musical treasures at the A + R car boot sale of recorded sound, Static Caravan have been putting out esoteric electronica and folk-pop since the late 1990s. They have worked with Tuung, Hannah Peel, Starless & Bible Black, The Owl Service and Serafina Steer amongst many others.
SOUTHERN
Southern Records has been fiercely fighting the independent corner since the late 1970’s, when the helped anarchist punks and activists CRASS found their own label. Over the years Southern have worked with, amongst many many others, Dischord, Bluurg, Wrong, Subterranean, On-U Sound, Touch & Go, Kranky, Constellation, Ipecac, Anticon, Saddle Creek and Southern Lord. Southern is proud to support Capsule and Supersonic for another year of outstanding boundary-pushing programming. Come and say hello – they’ll have plenty of interesting stuff for sale and love a natter.
COLD SPRING Cold Spring are the UK’s premier Label, Mailorder and Distributor for Industrial & related music: Esoteric, Dark Ambient, Power Electronics, Noise, Ritual, Japanoise, Soundtrack, Neofolk, Doom and experimental music.
The films below aren’t from this year’s stallholders, but they are a celebration of the beautiful world of physical records and record shops!
Our friends over at the ever-excellent ATTN magazine have just published an interesting interview with Carsten Nicolai aka Alva Noto ahead of his appearance at Supersonic 2011. Take a look here.
Supersonic happens at the Custard Factory complex in an area of Birmingham known as Digbeth. Built around the nearby River Rea (for easy access to transportation), the first settlement of what is now Birmingham was in fact established here in the 7th century. Come the Industrial Revolution and Digbeth becomes one of the first centres of industry in Birmingham, beginning a long and important history of successful trading and manufacturing. Nowadays, light industry and creative businesses sit alongside each other in the area.
It’s these interconnected histories and threads that the Sonic Graffiti project explores. All around the area, set into a decaying walls, there are a headphone sockets. Unplug yourself from your own world and plug into sounds from this place and beyond, dark and decayed sounds, pulling you beneath the surface and into the fabric of buildings, past lives and multi-layered histories. The project features sound works by Mr.Underwood – these are contained within the installations with each piece based on a field recording taken close to the site in which you find it. The pieces will require you to interact with them in a variety of ways to trigger or manipulate the sound.
Sonic Graffiti is a co-commission between Capsule and VIVID and is part of an experimental season entitled Crash, stimulated by the vision of J.G. Ballard. Ballard’s writing, particularly on urban utopia/dystopia, frequently covers ground from ecological fears to the sexualisation of technology and from urban ruin to suburban alienation. His universe pervades music, film, fashion, visual arts, architecture and recent philosophical constructs such as psychogeography.
The artist Sam Underwood will tour his Sonic Graffiti project during the festival. Meet him on Friday 21st October at 8pm or Sunday 23rd October at 8pm outside VIVID – and bring headphones.
Ross Cotton, Capsule’s very own Lester Bangs, has produced a classic zine to celebrate this year’s festival. If you’re in Birmingham, pick a copy up on your travels. If not, you’re also in luck because Ross has made it available via the Issuu self-publishing site. Click the link below for loads of pre-festival opinion, interviews, a guide to Birmingham and amazing illustrations.
ARTSCARE podcast featuring Electric Wizard, KARP, Scorn, Lucky Dragons and many more.
Our good friends over at ARTSCARE in Bristol have put together a fantastic new podcast featuring some of the Supersonic acts. ARTSCARE are a DIY crew promoting great unsigned talent from Bristol and beyond. They specialise in limited edition CD runs, online promotion and showcase events for artists and bands who are willing to pitch in, roll their sleeves up and be proactive. Righteous people in other words. Enjoy their sounds here: soundcloud.com/artscarebristol/supersonic-podcast-2011
To make your weekend with us whole, we’ve got an excellent programme of films, exhibitions, talks and workshops. Particularly exciting is the news that Whitehouse/Cut Hands front man William Bennett will be talking about his new project, his West African musical influences and his music’s inclusion on the Vice Guide to Liberia. This talk will then be followed with a screening of the Vice film that examines the dark history of the war torn country and the fate of its people today.
We’ll also be screening an exciting selection of film shorts from the exceptional label, Fonal. The Finnish label includes artists Es, Islaja (pictured), Lau Nau and of course Circle, who will be performing at the festival this year.
Conny Prantera is an artist and illustrator who lives and works in London. Through her intricately detailed drawings, she tells us a story of disquieting and disturbed beauty. Here at Supersonic she will be showing a new piece titled Kore Kosmou, a video installation consisting of photomontage and drawings, meticolously put together frame by frame, animated and synced to a series of purposely created audio loops and drones
Other screenings include a package of late night horror, programmed by Psychotronic Cinema. Responsible for he legendary “All Night Horror Madness” event and the upcoming “All Night Bad Movie Experience” they’ll be bringing ‘Flesh for Frankenstein‘ and ‘Suspiria‘ to the festival as a late night treat.
Birmingham experimental artists and producers SOUNDkitchen will be in residency at the festival, presenting their ‘Cinema for the Ears’. Working in collaboration with BEAST (Birmingham ElectroAcoustic Sound Theatre), they promise a concoction of installations and performances in a site-specific immersive sound sculpture. They will also be contributing the sonic element to the Imperfect Cinema performance on Sunday – creating an alternative documentation of the festival.
Other fantastic local folk getting involved are the Birmingham Zine Festival. Celebrating alternative publications for Supersonic 2011, the festival organisers have invited some of their favourite small press publishers to sell their books, comics and zines, along with an exhibition of zine artwork. Continuing the zine celebrations, there will be ascreening of ‘$100 and a t-shirt’, Joe Biel’s documentary exploring the thoughts and experiences of zine-makers in North America. Also a panel, From a to Zine, featuring Alex Zamora, Nic Bullen and Charlie Woolley will discuss the history of zines, their inspirations and how this feeds into modern DIY creativity and publishing.
Supersonic have commissioned the very talented Simon Fowler of Cataract Op to produce a limited edition print for this year’s festival. Available in an oversized A2 edition of 120, it comes in eye-catching (and possibly mouth-watering) black and metallic silver on 225gsm manilla archival paper. And guess what? It’s only available at the festival, a bargain at £30. You’ll be needing to purchase a ticket to get your hands on this beauty.
Simon Fowler is a London born artist and printmaker, predominantly working with pen and ink and traditional print-making techniques such as lino and vinyl engraving to achieve images of intense detail and expansive beauty. He’s produced recent artwork for Earth, Sunn O))) and Devilman (DJ Scotch Egg/Dokkebi Q) and has recently started producing an ongoing series of limited edition prints for Cafe OTO’s visiting artist residencies. Simon also co-runs Cataract Publisihing with writer and poet Paolo Chianta.
The Quietus: Q&A with editor John Doran
The Quietus is one of Capsule’s favourite sites. Spending a few hours in their company is always a pleasure and mainman John Doran has been involved with Supersonic before, most recently hosting a Q&A with Neu!’s Michael Rother on 2010. Here, we turn the tables and subject him to our own Q&A, courtesy of Ross Cotton.
How would you describe your relationship with Supersonic Festival? Head over heels in love. Luckily my girlfriend feels the same way.
Which acts are you looking forward to most in this year’s line-up, and why? Electric Wizard because they are pure, heavy evil, straight from some kind of black hole of doom. The Skull Defekts (will they find the Higgs Bosun?) will be amazing. Simeon of The Silver Apples is always amazing. WITTR, White Hills and Circle.
What has been your ultimate favourite performance at a previous Supersonic and why? Probably either Beestung Lips in 2008 just because it was so fucked up, exciting and funny, Arbouretum in 2009 or King Midas Sound last year. Or SunnO))). It’s hard to pare it down to one set.
How would you describe Supersonic to a potential, fresh audience? The right balance of pancreas bursting harsh noise, frollicking and cake.
What does Supersonic offer differently compared to any other festival? The compactness of it is a real selling point. There’s always a good vibe there and you’re guaranteed to come away having seen something amazing you weren’t previously aware of.
We’ve announced more new artists since our last Spotify playlist so, to make your listening experience simple and seamless, here’s a link to an updated version. Now with added Mike Watt, Drum Eyes, Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, Klaus Kinski, DJ Scotch Egg, Drumcunt and Orthodox. Enjoy! (But our sincere apologies for those horrible meerkat adverts.)
Rock-a-Rolla: Q&A with editor-in-chief Vuk Valcic For our 12th Q&A we’re going off-piste and instead of talking to the artists performing at Supersonic 2011, we’re checking in with Vuk Valcic, editor of Rock-a-Rolla magazine. Capsule has a long standing relationship with the magazine and we salute their coverage of independent, progressive music. Read on to find out Vuk’s fondest Supersonic memories and why he thinks the festival is essential.
How would you describe your relationship with Supersonic Festival? Rock-A-Rolla has been Supersonic’s media partner since the very early days of the mag – in fact going all the way back to our first year of existence. Capsule have always had a knack for selecting interesting and vital artists, and the line-up has always been spot-on in terms of what we cover in the magazine. We’re also friends and fans.
Which acts are you looking forward to most in this year’s line-up, and why? As always, pretty much all of them, but for my part Secret Chiefs 3, Zombi, Zu93, WITTR, White Hills, Circle, Fire!, Barn Owl and The Skull Defekts are all particularly unmissable. Secret Chiefs 3 should be every festivalgoer’s top priority.
What has been your ultimate favourite performance at a previous Supersonic and why? Tough question. There’s no way I can choose just one, but let’s go with Oxbow Duo and Wolf Eyes in 2007, Asva and Dälek in 2008, and SunnO))) and Thorr’s Hammer in 2009, all of which were memorable for various reasons. And of course Zu a couple of years back – one of the best live bands out there.
How would you describe Supersonic to a potential, fresh audience? In one word: essential. It’s the only festival that keeps getting it right year in, year out. For crucial, cutting-edge underground rock, metal and experimental music, there’s simply no other festival quite like it in the UK. On a more personal note, it’s like getting all the bands you read about in Rock-A-Rolla together in one place for an awesome weekend.
What does Supersonic offer differently compared to any other festival? The line-up is just plain different to any other UK festival you can think of, and it’s always outstanding. It speaks for itself, really. Other than the band selection, the Custard Factory setting makes this a completely different beast to the outdoor festivals doing the rounds – no mud and Portaloos here, just great music and a great atmosphere.
What impact does Supersonic have on Birmingham’s music scene? I think it goes beyond Birmingham – and the UK for that matter. It undoubtedly plays a major part in putting Birmingham on the map and of course brings festivalgoers to the city, which can only be a good thing, but more importantly Supersonic has far-reaching impact on underground music worldwide.
Imperfect Cinema Q&A
For the last day of our film programme week, we spoke to Dan Paolantonio from the DIY film collective Imperfect Cinema to get the low-down on what to expect at Supersonic 2011.
1. Which five words describe what you know about Supersonic?
Eclectic, adventurous, surprising, engaging, cake!
2. What can people expect of Imperfect Cinema at the festival?
A combustible collision of DIY punk ethics and car boot sale film cameras! We hope that our event will not only inspire new context for endangered imaging technologies, but also a form a unique audio-visual documentation of Supersonic, founded in collaboration, and the creative risk of improvised performance! We are absolutely delighted to be working in partnership with Sound Kitchen this year & to continuing Imperfect Cinema’s close working relationship with the inimitable Nicholas Bullen!
3. Why do you explore filmmaking as a medium – what does it do for you that nothing else does?
This is of course the burning question and one which I feel has a real relevance to our appearance at Supersonic this year! Filmmaking for me is actually very much a musical experience, in that it conjures those feelings that I am only otherwise able to experience when listening to music (and as I play the guitar with all the grace & dexterity of a chimp wearing boxing gloves, everyone should actually be incredibly relieved that i am most often found behind a camera rather than in front of a Marshall stack!).
4. Who or what else on the bill are you hoping to see? (And why?)
Where do I start! Barn Owl for their expansive sonic vistas, Wolves in The Throne Room for their unique blend of grim meets green, Drunk in Hell for their single riff bludgeoning, Scorn for that singular low-end, Mike Watt because the old punk in me needs to get over Minutemen, Ore out of sheer curiosity, Silver Apples because I never thought I ever would, and of course Backwards (if only to confirm that this experience will be as utterly dreadful as Nic Bullen’s boasts!).
5. Finally, your essential ‘surviving-Supersonic’ items are…
An open mind, earplugs, optrex, funds for cake, and a calm & discerning eye when considering everything on offer this year!
Blood, Sweat & Vinyl is a documentary film by Kenneth Thomas focussing on the artist-run record labels Hydra Head, Neurot, and Constellation, and their many associated bands. Thomas considers the film to be, in part at least, an answer to those who question where the spirit of punk rock is today. Including the thoughts and experiences of artists like Neurosis, ISIS, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Pelican, Oxbow and Evangelista, the film promises to be an in-depth and illuminating look at the connections and networks built up by artists committed to uncompromised work and self-expression.
Scott Kelly (Neurosis/Neurot): “It’s not just a business we’ve started, it reflects on our entire adult life.” Seldon Hunt: “It’s a strange thing that metal has a strange image of being kind of childish and kind of stupid. In a sense, it’s the 21st and late 20th century equivalent of classical music.” Aaron Turner (Hydra-Head/ISIS): “It’s part of this larger extended network. To me that’s one of the most satisfying parts, just making connections and being involved with the really active, progressive, interesting community of musicians, labels and artists.”
Kenneth Thomas has spent the last 15 years capturing and displaying a unique vision via his multi-disciplinary skills in shooting, directing, editing, and photography. His primary interest is in documentary work which focuses on capturing authentic experiences. Thomas’ previous work includes directing music videos and filming for The Residents, X, The Chameleons UK, Queens of the Stone Age, ISIS, Neurosis, Yanni, Bruce LaBruce, William Shatner and many other artists.
Tomorrow will see the launch of an exciting new commission between VIVID and Capsule:
MR. UNDERWOOD
SONIC GRAFFITI 2011
Walking the streets near to VIVID and Supersonic Festival, the ubiquitous signs of
neglect passing you by, your attention is captured by a symbol you’ve seen somewhere
else before…
Set into a decaying wall there is a headphone socket. You unplug from your own music
and plug yourself into the city. The sounds you hear are of and from this place, dark
and decayed. As you listen you examine the surface before you more closely. You’ve never
paused here in this way before. What beauty you have missed.
A special “Crash EP” featuring four compositions by Mr.Underwood will be
contained within the installations. Each piece is based on a field recording taken
close to the site in which you find it. The EP will be available for download but you
are encouraged to listen to the pieces in situ, as the chance sounds that surround
you at the time of listening are considered part of the compositions. The pieces
will require you to interact with them in a variety of ways to trigger or manipulate
the sound. Go explore! Headphones are available from VIVID during exhibition
opening hours for a small deposit.
Join Mr. Underwood for a special tour, leaving from VIVID on Friday 23
September, 6pm. Meet at VIVID reception at 6pm. Bring your own headphones.
Film week, day 3: ‘Still Before’, a film about Oxbow
‘Still Before’, a film by Manuel Liebeskind, draws the most intimate tour portrait of this exceptional band from San Francisco and is perhaps as close as one can come to the exhaustion of everyday tour life. Here at Capsule HQ we’ve only seen the trailer, but, believe us, that was more than enough to whet our appetites. ‘Still Before’ is also highly notable for being filmed entirely on an iPhone with a 640×480 pixel resolution, probably the first feature-length to be so.
We can’t imagine it would be easy to get close to a band like Oxbow, so how did Liebeskind do it? Turns out he’s their former booking agent, soundman and general man-Friday and thus the band gave him unprecedented access. Through his film, Liebeskind attempts to uncover the obsessions, machinations and thought processes behind making, playing and touring music that embraces art as though its life depended on it. Across five countries, over a dozen shows, and in front of rapt audiences, ‘Still Before’ explore the whys of art creation, the touring life and the motivations for continuing the process over two decades.
Supersonic film week, day 2: Man With A Video Camera
Supersonic 2011 are pleased to present ‘Man With A Video Camera’, a documentary about the Finnish band Circle. Happily, Circle themselves are also performing this year, thus squaring the, um, circle. In fact, although we say ‘documentary’, ‘Man With A Video Camera’ is closer to an anti-documentary. As with, say, ‘Lost In La Mancha’, Terry Gilliam’s film-about-making-a-film-of-Don-Quixote, the actual story appears to be somewhere else, somewhere unplaceable. Perhaps that’s because filmmaker Esko Lönnberg himself has come from elsewhere, into Circle’s world…
Lönnberg left his middle-class job in Sweden and returned to his hometown of Pori, Finland to pursue his artistic desires. The shooting for the film mostly takes place in the countryside where the band is recording their next album. The circumstances turn out to be chaotic and most of the band appear totally uninterested and unengaged. But, Esko tries to keep the crowd together, even though he does not know himself if he is going to end up with fiction or non-fiction. Throughout, Esko captures everything essential and unessential on video while the band plays.
In the end, this unique film tells you all you need to know about documentary-making, its perils and its rewards.
