If you haven’t heard by now, the Pigs (Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs) are returning to the Hare and Hounds in March 2019, promising a raucous night of amped riffs and demonic drumming with #SSFest18 favourites Cattle. 

Over HALF of these tickets have already been sold. Get yours now!

Equal parts head and guts, Cattle are an all screaming, all dancing noise-groove wall of sound, with stomach churning riffs and double drumming that will take you through hell with a hip-shake. Formed in 2012, Cattle have shared a stage with the likes of True Widow, dälek, Terminal Cheesecake, Zeus and Bong to name but a few, and melted faces off at this year’s Supersonic Festival.

“Not ones to mess about, Cattle are straight in with the fierce two-drum assault. It’s bracing and glorious. It rattles your bones. Their percussive force is irresistible and they have that liberating wave of filthy, distorting noise-thing going on.”- Echoes and Dust on Cattle, Supersonic Festival 2018

One drums, another one drums, bass, vocals, tootle pipe and sound rod, the Leeds quintet Cattle occupies that rare space where an utter lack of pretence and theatrical noise-rock volatility intersect. Live, the band launch into an intense set of ecstatic noise, saxophone skronk, and highly percussive, sludgy grooves.

Listen for yourselves in our Supersonic Round-Up Podcast: Part 1

This is bound to be a one of a kind gig, and, with the Pigs’ new album ‘King of Cowards’ and international shows selling out, might be the last time you get to see them in such an intimate space.

Over HALF of these tickets have already been sold. DON’T MISS OUUUUTTTT, get yours now!

We’re so chuffed to be bringing Pigs (Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs) back to the Supersonic stage for our 15th anniversary year!

It’s fair to say that Supersonic has a long pigstery with this Geordie group. Since their first performance in 2017, we have hosted Pigsx7 at Hare and Hounds earlier this year (along with ever raucous Grey Hairs and Youth Man) and frontman Matt Baty (owner of Box Records) was lead vocals in our #SSFest18 Saturday supergroup. This is on top of their sell out shows throughout the UK and Europe.

Pigs frontman Baty at Supersonic Festival 2018, Supersonic Supergroup (photo by Joe Singh)

“70s heavy metal is played both straight and as some kind of art project”- The Guardian, 4 stars

It’s so great to see this band getting the recognition they deserve. After recently creating an incredible mix of leftfield music for Stuart Maconie’s Freak Zone Playlist, BBC 6 Music named their sell out album ‘King of Cowards’ album of the day in October last year.

This second album does its damnedest to take the consciousness to its very limits. The period since Pigs’ Rocket Recordings 2017 debut ‘Feed The Rats’ – a mighty tsunami of rancorous riffage and unholy abjection that wowed critics and wreckheads alike – has seen the band build on their incendiary live reputation far and wide. Perhaps the most relentlessly head-caving outfit of the present, alarmingly fertile, Newcastle scene, the band have all been busying themselves in a variety of activities, with Baty running Box Records (home of underground luminaries like Lower Slaughter, Casual Nun and Terminal Cheesecake) and both himself and bassist John-Michael Hedley playing in Richard Dawson’s band (a Supersonic alum who also guests on the album), and guitarist Sam Grant has been working hard on a new incarnation of Blank Studios, which began its life with the recording of this very album.

This opus sees the band entering a new phase as a sleeker yet still more dangerous swineherd, with ex-Gnod and Queer’d Science drummer Chris Morley joining the ranks and a new approach being taken to its creation. The Iggy-esque drive to dementia, Sabbath-esque squalor and Motörhead-style dirt may still be present and correct yet the songs are leaner, the longdrawn-out riff-fests sharpened into addictive hammer blows and the nihilistic dirges of yore alchemically transformed into an uplifting and inviting barrage of hedonistic abandon.

We can’t wait to welcome the pigs back to the Hare and Hounds in March, where they’ll be joined by #SSFest18 favourites Cattle for yet another night of stormy amps and demonic drumming.

Although tickets for this show have SOLD OUT, don’t miss your chance to catch them at this year’s festival. Get them tickets NOOOOOOOWWWW!

We’re super excited for our show at Vivid Projects as part of Outlands Tour 3. Get to know the artists and involved in the upcoming part club night/ part installation…

Grischa Lichtenberger is an electronic music producer, visual and installation artist living in Berlin. Having grown up in a withdrawn farmhouse, his artistic approach developed from surveying the landscape, and despite a fairly concise release history, Grischa Lichtenberger is an artist whose work is both intriguing and beguiling in equal measure. His compositions are often referenced in the context of artists like Autechre or Aphex Twin, yet have a sense of being developed in isolation and against popular trends.

The aggressive tone in his sound gives an emotional depth to the musical structure – a hermetic idiosyncrasy of rhythm and melodies that implement a personal handwriting into the arrangement and sound elements. The music aims toward introspective moods on the dance floor, tumbling between funky, highly energetic beats and trembling, concerning melodies that reach out to the individual listener.

His immersive live performances oscillate between abrasive, aggressive compositions and intricate structures of beat and melody. Technology appears in the mix, but definitely not as a perfect, mathematically defined form. Instead, he speaks in hyperlinks, misusing gear and feeding computers into other computers to form feedback loops. He’s finding a unique and creative materialism in digitalised music, making something very physical, that carves its way into your ears.

COME SEE FOR YOURSELF!! Get tickets NOW to see them live on November 9th.

We had an interesting and thought provoking time at Hello Culture: Remix last week for BBC’s digital cities.

The day gave arts organisations and artists a chance to discuss the highs and lows of digital content creation, a day of thinking and of getting practical about how technology is transforming our culture.

The day featured a panel on creating music through digital means, with artists such as #SSFest18’s Sam Underwood (Connected Devices) and Sarah Farmer (Ideas of Noise) discussing the impact technology has had on music and what the hell that means.

In reality, digi stuff has enabled immediate changes to how we access and work with music. It’s enabled us to share far and wide, save it for ourselves in tidy hard drives as opposed to shelves and shelves of records. Technology and digital culture has opened our eyes to countless possibilities of making and experiencing music, ways which are multi-disciplinary, multi-levelled, and, yes, continuously experimental (which we’re always fans of).

Lets look at the upcoming Outlands Tour 3 show with DRIFT ft. KYOKA / GRISCHA LICHTENBERGER / YTAC as an example. Within this performance, the crowd and performers will be monitored by motion sensors and microphones within the room to determine the visuals to be projected during the live set. Technology, in this sense, is the driver of this live performance. It is technology- that of the electronic music and receptive installation work- which will inform the audience experience.

Electric Campfire 2013 VillaMassimo – Kyoka

Like it or lump it, digitalisation has happened, and WILL continue to grow, impacting on how we access music in our everyday lives. But is this exciting, or borderline creepy? Let us know your thoughts.

In the mean time, experience it for yourself at the upcoming Outlands show at Vivid Projects, November 9th. TICKETS on sale NOW!

As part of Outlands Tour 3, join us for a crash course in reactive shaders with creative technologists wetgenes

@STEAMhouse,108 Digbeth, Birmingham

Friday 26th October 2018

1-4 pm

wetgenes, the feral games developers and the creative technologists behind the DRIFT aspect of the OUTLANDS upcoming tour, will be gently introducing the OpenGL Shading Language in a workshop at STEAMhouse, Birmingham, where you will be creating your own interactive digital pieces responding to improvised movement and sound. No prior programming knowledge is required to benefit from the session!

wetgenes are Bradford-based duo and long-term collaborators Shi and Kriss. They are self taught fierce believers of simple, open and accessible tech for all. The symbiotic relationship with computer language allows them to carve visions and dreams in the cold, rational environments of the digital medium; experimenting with the bleeding edge and the obsolete. Their recent work has explored neuroscience and synaesthesia, including developing an interactive installation experimenting with sound through touch, visuals and movement via augmented reality using sand, commissioned by the National Science and Media Museum.

The modern use of “shader” was introduced to the public by Pixar with their “RenderMan Interface Specification, Version 3.0” originally published in May 1988. It now runs in browsers, mobile phones, games consoles, laptops and tech such as Raspberry Pi for demoscene, games development, music videos, films, live coding, audio sets and more. wetgenes believe that Reactive Art advances the medium; its emergent nature evolves according to exposed states, changing and adapting as opposed to Static Art which is created to be viewed, consumed and digested by gaze or study.

The workshop will be taking place at STEAMhouse in Digbeth, a new centre for creative and collaborative innovation and cultural production. Developed by Birmingham City University in partnership with Eastside Projects, and funded by the European Regional Development Fund and Arts Council England, STEAMhouse runs a range of programmes and houses facilities including co-working and project spaces and the Production Space – a substantial, new makerspace with equipment and technicians to support production and prototyping in a range of media.

We will look briefly at the history of shaders and how these techniques are used in the industry right now, driving innovation in computer hardware research and development. The workshop will end with a quick show & tell.

Participants are advised to bring a laptop with a working camera and microphone. You will be using ShaderToy for the entire duration of the workshop. Modern laptops should be able to load the website but please check before coming.

Where necessary, we will collaborate in groups.

This workshop is part of OUTLANDS upcoming UK Tour: DRIFT ft. KYOKA / GRISCHA LICHTENBERGER / YTAC

There are VERY LIMITED spaces for this workshop. To reserve a space, please email alice@capsule.org.uk with ‘wetgenes’ as the subject.

Only 6 weeks to go until Outlands Tour 3 comes to Vivid Projects on Friday 9th November 2018! GET YOUR TICKETS NOW

Part club, part installation; join us for a night of heavy electronics, hypno-chaotic grooves and pristine frequency control within a unique, audio-visual environment, DRIFT ft. acclaimed German electronic label Raster artists Kyoka, Grischa Lichtenberger with support from key figure of the shady EIS HAUS collective YTAC sets forth an intoxicating, hyper-sensory digital experience.

Electric Campfire 2013 VillaMassimo – Kyoka

DRIFT will take shape within a specially constructed space at Vivid Projects, Digbeth, where motion sensors and microphones monitor the room, the crowd and the performers. The observations are fed to a central ‘brain’, which responds by projecting fevered machine-dreams back onto people and walls – the audience and the performance influence the visuals; feedback ensues, chaos builds. Inside this generated environment, artists Kyoka and Grischa Lichtenberger from acclaimed German electronic music record label Raster will diffuse their visions of experimental dancefloors.

DRIFT is an immersive environment developed in collaboration by feral games developers and digital art technologists wetgenes and our fellow Outlands partner Fuse Art Space. Now in its second build version following an original commission by the British Science Festival in 2014, the system is housed within a specially constructed reflective enclosure which, with motion sensors and mics, monitor the room, the crowd, the performers. These then feed audio and visual observations to an array of processors, which converts the data to graphics and projects these graphics back onto the walls and people.

DRIFT technologists wetgenes will be facilitating workshops in the weeks leading up to the UK Tour, shining a light on the artistic and technological processes within the live performance. SO KEEP AN EAR OUT for upcoming info on the artists/ collectives involved, and how to take advantage of this unique opportunity…

TICKETS TICKETS TICKETS

LISTEN TO OUR NEW PODCAST RELEASE:

We continue to reminisce on the wonder that was #SSFest18 with very special guests and good pals Youth Man, who played their second Supersonic this year on the raucous third stage. Talking hometown Brum, Supersonic experiences, Chavterparty at The Adam and Eve, Afropunk, Avril Lavigne and of course their new 5 song EP released on Alcopop Records.

(Video credit: Tom Wagstaff and team)

Get over to our Youtube channel now for more live footage: https://www.youtube.com/user/SupersonicFestival

As if that weren’t enough, we keep the treats coming with live recordings from this year’s festival, and Youth Man pick out their current listening pleasures. Prick those ears and join your hosts Anna Palmer and Alice Tomlinson as we guide you back down memory lane…

Daniel Higgs I Moor Mother I Vanishing Twin I Gum Takes Tooth I Youth Man I Clipping I Eartheater I Matters I Iggy and The Stooges

Wear it loud and proud! VISIT OUR SHOP NOW >>>

Kaila wearing Supersonic 2018 Dennis McNett wolf tee

On Friday 14th September, team Supersonic were thrilled to present another night of leftfield oddities in Birmingham’s King’s Heath, with the all mighty return of Surgeon, Steve Davis & Kavus Torabi and DJ Bus Replacement Service in partnership with The Hare and Hounds.

With the opening of its doors, the night kicked off with a set from DJ Bus Replacement Service (aka Doris Woo) that was always going to transcend your typical dance floor. She is an artist like no other, donning a rubber mask in the likeness of North Korean “Supreme Leader” Kim Jong-Un, swerving with dexterity from novelty detritus, rare pop gems and genre-mutating mash-ups into hammering techno, acid and hardcore. At one point, she even gave audiences an enlightening tour through Detroit Zoo…

Woo’s bizarre set left us bewildered and exhilarated, just in time for the stage take over of six-times world snooker champion and a former member of two of the planet’s oddest bands (Cardiacs and Gong) to the stage.

Steve Davis with Iranian multi-instrumentalist and experimental rock composer Kavus Torabi packed the room with their eclectic dance mix- from Techno, to Northern Soul, to Melodic Drone for good measure. It’s a pairing which for years has guaranteed weary, worn out legs, with Steve and Kavus having first met at a Paris gig by veteran prog rockers Magma, and ending up having joined forces on Steve’s excellent Interesting Alternative Show, on Essex-based radio station Phoenix FM.

To top off the night, Birmingham techno legend Surgeon (AKA Anthony Child) satisfied an increasingly hyped crowd with his selection of left-field tunes for some solid dancefloor wizardry. Surgeon’s set was relentless, sharing pacey tempos and rhythms till the end of the night. This closing set showed House of God DJ at his absolute rawest, playing to an ever energetic Supersonic audience!

Thanks again to all you reprobates who came down, and to Hare and Hounds for hosting another smashing night.

Till next time…

(film by T.A.Wagstaff film and photography)

Here’s the new video release from our MOOG Sound Lab series hosted at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire as part of Supersonic Festival 2018. Gum Takes Tooth were joined by Wayne Adams of Big Lad for a 2 day residency in the lab. 

GUM TAKES TOOTH took to the Supersonic stage on the Sunday afternoon of the festival this year, following their immersive time in the lab.

Whatever they had originally planned for us that Sunday was soon chucked out the window after inspiration found them via the oscillations transmitted by the wall of MOOG synthesizers over the course of those 2 days. They delivered an absolute belter of a set, getting the Supersonic crowd well and truly warmed up for the festival finale. At Supersonic, we were dead chuffed to see these artists revel in this unique opportunity.

“an exercise in extreme electronica, taking on techno structures and reconfiguring to a dramatic extent. Filled with energy, the band moved confidently through this maniacal set and set the bar fairly high.” – Pop Matters

“Supersonic is an absolute champion among festivals, a unique and precious thing, a banquet for the musically curious.” – Echoes and Dust Magazine.

As live footage from Supersonic Festival 2018 is released, we reminisce on the wonder that was the weekend of June 22nd-24th, Digbeth Birmingham. A culmination of a years work towards brining the UK the most exciting new underground acts, whilst simultaneously heralding experimental pioneers from across the globe. We still can’t quite get our head around what a mind-bending, life-altering few days it was. And the mango curry, of course.

Hosted by Anna Palmer and Alice Tomlinson, this will be the first part in a roundup series, playing out live sets from the festival itself, talking favourite performances and festival moments plus a brand new track from one of our featured artists. With music from:

Cattle | Yunohana Variations | Youth Man | Nik Void | Factory Floor | Deaf Kids | Shirley Collins | Yves Tumor | Yerba Mansa | Giant Swan |

Stay tuned for more in the coming weeks!

Get over to our Youtube channel now for live footage released so far

And check out our Mixcloud for previous podcasts

Every year in July, the French city of Avignon is transformed into something of a performance in itself: it becomes a home of venues, placing art in such legendary spaces of the main courtyard of the Popes’ Palace to the streets themselves, always alive with it’s thousands of spectators and artists alike. Last week, Capsule’s Audience Development Assistant Alice headed to Festival D’Avignon to experience this for herself, an opportunity which was made available to her through her placement within the Weston Jerwood Bursaries Scheme. She had a great time. 

In Festival D’Avignon‘s mission statement, the festival is described as ‘a popular and contemporary artistic adventure’, bringing together general public and international creation in the making of a truly unique alliance, predominantly around dance and theatre. It is ‘a state of mind’, a place which encourages discussion, reflection, ultimately building a community of open-mindedness within a living, breathing culture.

This was my first visit to Festival D’Avignon, and I was taken by just how much this statement resonated in practice. From the visual ecstasy of the body through Sasha Waltz’s Kreatur, to the intimate, powerful creation of Rocio Molina Grito Palao, discussing female homosexuality and the desire to have children through flamenco. There is definitely a dialogue here. The live performances, and their messages, become living, tangible things, surpassing the native language of individual artists and their hosts. It is a dialogue which I had accessed at the boundary blurring BE Festival (Birmingham European Festival) only the week before, and a dialogue which is certainly not dissimilar to that of our beloved Supersonic.

It’s also worth noting that before this June I’d never been to Supersonic Festival before either. I started my placement with Capsule not only as a new member of the team, but also as a new pair of eyes and ears (…talk about a baptism by fire!). My role was created / is designed to look at what makes Supersonic so special to so many people. Without wanting to make you cringe, what I found to be so unique about our festival was its sense of family: those who come back each year to celebrate risk-ta king, experimental performance. It is a family of audience and artist alike, of young and old, from all corners of the city, the UK, and beyond.

When thinking of how best to talk about my time at Avignon, everything seemed to hark back to communion, that of the shared experience often promised within the sphere of a festival. The beauty of what I found in Festival D’Avignon lay in the fact that no matter who I was, where I was from, being a part of an arts festival meant stepping into a realm in which these needn’t matter. If #SSFest18 and the processional work of artist in residence Dennis McNett had taught me anything, it was that a festival is a realm which places you outside of individuation and into a greater whole. It is a space for connecting, reconnecting and sharing experiences w hich go beyond the everyday, sometimes beyond what is comfortable, often beyond what you know.

In a post-Brexit world of misunderstandings and misinformation, it seems essential- now more than ever- to be celebrating cultural exchange, and acknowledging what can be learnt from international art and performance- particularly in what it can teach you about human experience. Through the language of a festival, cultures can be connected in a way that reminds us of how much of the international can be found in our domestic spaces. For me, I am reminded of how much richer, and more electric these spaces become when such boundaries are blurred. Having an open mind is key, but it is by meeting international ideas with open arms- in the way which Festival D’Avignon and Supersonic do- that can prove most rewarding.

Photos by Katja Ogrin, Joe Singh and Mark Rhodes

WOW! To all of you who had your faces melted off by Supersonic 2018, our hearts are completely warmed- THANK YOU! We couldn’t have asked for a better weekend full of mind bending, life altering music and art, paired with fun and frolics shared amongst a loving, open minded community – something much needed in our current times.

Huge thanks and congratulations to our hard-working Supersonic team and volunteers who every year go beyond the call of duty to make it happen, and to our incredible artists and audience alike who elevate the whole experience to something unlike any other. 

We will start posting up our Supersonic Collective memory (first started in 2009)- where we’d love to hear from you! Send your comments, blog links and photos to alice@capsule.org.uk with some of your highlights. Keep checking back as we add more content and share your weekend memories.

SUPERSONIC QUESTIONNAIRE

We know that people who come to SUPERSONIC are a knowledgeable and opinionated lot so we’d like to ask for your assistance to develop and improve the next festival by answering a few questions about you and your experience. This should take no more than a few minutes of your time, and your feedback is greatly appreciated.

Your answers here will aid us in keeping our work going and in making sure new and interesting artists will keep coming to the festival – so your input really does matter in making SUPERSONIC work.

>> https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/H9LDG87 <<

REVIEW

BBC Radio 3 recorded live sets at Supersonic Festival- https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0b7hrwb

“Put your headphones and space helmets on for otherworldly music, mystical sounds, and transcendent live highlights from Supersonic Festival.”

The Arts Desk – 5 star review- https://www.theartsdesk.com/node/81602/view

“Supersonic Festival 2018 – Birmingham waves the flag for New Weird Britain Another vintage year for Digbeth’s annual showcase of the sonically strange…as audience members from around the UK, America, Japan and other far-flung parts of the globe got together to celebrate the weird and the wonderful.”

The Guardian – 4 star review- https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/jun/25/supersonic-festival-review-birmingham-shirley-collins

“Supersonic is a festival of cross-genre pollination, but also one that questions what genre is.”

The Skinny Magazine – 5 star review- http://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/live-music/reviews/supersonic-2018-the-review

“Supersonic, you knocked it out the park once again. It’s so important to have this annual citybreak of adventurous sounds from yesterday and tomorrow. And we already can’t wait to return in 2019.’

Clash Magazine- https://www.clashmusic.com/live/live-report-supersonic-festival-2018

“there’s an undeniable sense that Supersonic is incomparable to any other UK music festival.”

The Quietus- http://thequietus.com/articles/24904-supersonic-2018-live-report-gazelle-twin-shirley-collins-modern-ritual-moor-mother

“Supersonic are not so much who I’m writing this piece for as a reason I’m writing it. That is to say: the festival’s approach to choosing lineups is a prototype of how I prefer to envisage music’s underground. A space of interactivity rather than cramped, glowering sects, where sufficient imagination can cook up a conceptual link between any two given acts. In 2018, music fans are way less rigid in their tastes than they used to be. The reasons for this are complex, although not so complex that I can’t say ‘mainly because of the internet’, but on a micro level, many identifiable entities have helped to get listeners to swerve across multiple lanes. Supersonic is, I feel, one of them.”

Flush The Fashion- http://www.flushthefashion.com/music/supersonic-festival-22-24-june-2018-birmingham/

“Since its inaugural event in 2003, Supersonic has grown to be one of Europe’s standout alternative festivals. Centred around The Custard Factory and the industrial warehouses of Digbeth in Birmingham, Supersonic has constantly evolved to fulfil its mission statement of providing experimental music for curious audiences….That’s why there is no festival like Supersonic and that’s why it has built a loyal following over the last 15 years – long may it continue.”

Fighting Boredom- http://www.fighting-boredom.co.uk/live-review/supersonic-festival-2018-friday-live-review/

“Fighting Boredom’s favourite festival is here again. Set in the Custard Factory in Birmingham, Supersonic festival is where we come to hear old favourites, discover new inspiration and immerse ourselves in the best place ‘for curious audiences’.”

Pop Matters- https://www.popmatters.com/supersonic-festival-2018-2586958730.html

“In 2018, Supersonic returned with an impressive line-up, one of the strongest in its history. From extravagant producer Yves Tumor, score master Mark Korven, instrument aficionados Mario Batkovic and Andrea Belfi, to legendary folk singer Shirley Collins, psychedelic gurus Dwarfs of East Agouza, punk legends the Ex, and black metal masters Wolves in the Throne Room, Supersonic extended its grasp.”

Echoes and Dust- https://www.echoesanddust.com/2018/07/supersonic-festival/

“Supersonic is an absolute champion among festivals, a unique and precious thing, a banquet for the musically curious.”

What’s on Brum- 5 star review – https://whatson.guide/2018/06/28/supersonic-festival-review/

“Supersonic promotes the most challenging and experimental music. Whether it’s brutalising electronica, hard EDM, noise, doom psyche or bombastic black metal, it’s here. If there’s anything more extreme, no doubt it would eventually end up at Supersonic. This is a festival not afraid to take chances.”

“For me, Supersonic festival has not only stood out from others of its kind by pushing its scope away from the one dimensional trap that is indicative of most music based festivals, but has programmed things people might not be aware of.

“And due to the nature of the event itself, those in attendance tend to be open to investigate those things.

“It’s an amazing feeling to be allowed the opportunity to present sound and visual works within the framework of an established festival that gives trust to others to bring in outside perspectives.” – Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe, Supersonic 2018 Guest Curator

PREVIEWS

The Skinny- http://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/live-music/previews/supersonic-2018-preview-mix

“Since being founded in 2003, the festival continues to draw from some of the more hidden corners of the underground – never ceasing to challenge and surprise, but somehow managing to remain accessible and inviting too.”

The Quietus- http://thequietus.com/articles/24126-supersonic-2018-gazelle-twin

Clash Magazine- https://www.clashmusic.com/live/preview-supersonic-festival-2018

“For years now, Birmingham festival Supersonic has been at the forefront of radical music, hosting fierce artists of myriad disciplines. This year looks no different.”

I Heart Noise- http://ihrtn.net/preview-supersonic-festival-2018/

“On a personal note, I have attended the festival several times as a paying punter and I’ve never come away having not fallen in love with several “new” (to these ears, anyway) bands that I’ve witnessed over the two-and-a-bit days.”

Counteract Magazine- http://www.fighting-boredom.co.uk/live-preview/supersonic-festival-2018-day-tickets-and-lineup-information/

“Fighting Boredom’s musical highlight of the year is coming up very soon now. Supersonic Festival never fails to give us unexpected new music to explore, old favourites that always impress and a weekend of immersion into art and events.”

Louder- https://www.loudersound.com/news/supersonic-festival-adds-more-bands-to-2018-lineup

Music and Riots Magazine- http://musicandriots.com/supersonic-festival-2018-lineup-unveiled/

“This year Supersonic is championing an array of ambitious, fiercely independent, and progressive artists, each committed to doing things in their own unique way.”

As part of Supersonic Festival 2018 in Birmingham, U.K., a procession of creatures and objects from the mind of Dennis McNett filled the streets. The major project from the artist used the festival musicians (and audience) for an immersive parade experience in the style of work by the artist, who has crafted this style under the moniker “Wolfbat. Musicians included Rattle, Agathe Max and Deaf Kids from Brazil as well as our audience who took part in a series of workshops to craft costumes and masks alongside Dennis.

Watch the film below.

Yunohana Variations: YOSHIMIO / SUSIE IBARRA / ROBERT AIKI AUBREY LOWE

Three improvisational luminaries; multi-instrumentalist YoshimiO (Boredoms, OOIOO, SAICOBAB), avant-garde percussionist Susie Ibarra, and artist Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe (Lichens) perform together as Yunohana Variations for the first time in the UK.

YoshimiO is a drummer and member of the revolutionary group Boredoms. She is the leader of the experimental band OOIOO, a member of Free Kitten with Kim Gordon (ex. Sonic Youth), and most recently the vocalist in SAICOBAB.

Susie Ibarra, is one of the most significant percussionists and composers of our time, known for her work as a performer within contemporary, avant-garde, jazz, classical, and world music, and performs in the band Dreamtime Ensemble. Ibarra studied with jazz luminaries Earl Buster Smith (of Sun Ra Arkestra), Vernel Fournier and Milford Graves, and Philippine Kulintang gong-chime music with Danongan Kalanduyan. She has performed with the likes of: John Zorn, Dave Douglas, Yo La Tengo, Ikue Mori and recent works include a sound installation for Ai Weiwei.

Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice is strongly rooted in exploration of moments and the hypnagogic state. Movement and gesture play key factors within this process, and in the performance realm are focused on by voice and modular synthesizer. A fixture of Chicago’s experimental community throughout the 90s and early 2000s, Robert has also performed under the name Lichens, is a member of the legendary band Om, and has an impressive portfolio of collaborations, which extends to the film world with his score for pseudo-documentary A Spell To Ward Off The Darkness, directed by Ben Russell and Ben Rivers (which Robert also appears in).

Thu 28th June          Cambridge, Cambridge Junction 
Fri 29th June              Milton Keynes, MK Gallery
Sat 30th June            Bristol, Arnolfini, promoted by Qu Junktions  
Sun 1st July                Manchester, Soup Kitchen, promoted by Fat Out
Mon 2nd July              Bradford, Fuse Art Space
Weds 4th July            Plymouth, KARST, promoted by KARST

TICKETS: Purchased via links above.

SUNDAY TICKETS AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR
BOX OFFICE IS OPEN FROM 3PM
LOCATED ON FLOODGATE STREET IN DIGBETH

***TONIGHT****

FAKA PERFORMANCE REPLACED BY SUPERSONIC SUPER GROUP

“We regret to inform you that our Visa application process has been unsuccessful. The error was with us applying through the wrong category. We now have very little time to pursue another application / appeal their decision and we are afraid it will no longer be possible to play at Supersonic Festival.

The place to fill your boots and bellies- the Market Place and courtyard, around and outside Stage 1, will be hosting delicious treats to fuel weary festival feet. Be sure to make a visit to these delicious spots which cater for all, including vegans, celiacs, sweet tooths and straight up carnivors …

Beet The System

Beet the System are a Vegan Worker Co-operative from Brum. They make the best organic #FreshTempeh you’ve ever tasted and they are chuffed to be fuelling Supersonic Festival again with some amazing gastronomic delights!

OPM 

Original Patty Men: Birmingham’s own Patty Pimps and Purveyors of Filth return to their street food origins to provide you with real quality burgers.

SRI-LICIOUS

Combining fresh ingredients with tasty spices, Sri-Licious prepare every element of their dishes lovingly from scratch. From the roti bread in their Kothu Roti, to the Short Eats and tasty Sambols, Sri-Licious is passionate about bringing the unique and amazing flavours of Sri-Lanka to you. There’s something for everyone with vegan and gluten-free options available!

Supersonic Tea Room

Expect an array of epicurean delights to be found in our Tea Room from vegan sweet treats to Sabbath Bloody Sabbath Marys to fuel your Sunday. Take a load off those tired festival feet and enjoy a range of Supersonic friends who will be spinning the wheels of steel for your listening pleasure.

Sarah Farmer and Andrew Woodhead curate a feast of experimental sounds from the Midlands and beyond, and this weekend they will be hosting a Friday stage and intimate pop-up concerts throughout Supersonic Festival! With a programme spanning free improv, electronica, sound art, noise, contemporary classical and more, there will be a mixture of performances, installations, workshops and participation areas, this event is a teaser for the brand new Ideas of Noise Festival taking place in Birmingham, August 3rd-5th.

Find below the talents playing on the Friday stage, as well as Noise Shed times for the rest of the weekend…

Bombyx Mori

London-based Dee Byrne and Ed Riches bring Bombyx Mori to Supersonic Festival – a voyage of spontaneous improvisation spiced with electronics. Sonic cookery.

Dee Byrne – Saxophone, Electronics, Visuals

Ed Riches – Guitar, Electronics

Dee Byrne is a saxophonist, composer and improviser based in London. Her own group Entropi released its second album ‘Moment Frozen’ in September 2017 on Whirlwind Recordings to critical acclaim (‘Intense, muscular jazz voyage.’ ★★★★ The Guardian). The quintet completed a successful ten-date UK tour in Autumn 2017 with an album launch at Kings Place in London and performances at EFG London Jazz Festival (Pizza Express Jazz Club, Soho) and Cambridge Jazz Festival. Dee was featured in the ‘Taking Off’ section in the December/January edition of Jazzwise magazine. Dee also co-runs LUME, a small artist-run organisation with a focus on the creation of new original/improvised music. LUME’s offshoot record label Luminous releases projects by co-founders Dee and Cath Roberts.

Ed Riches has been guitarist and musical director for world tours with Grammy winning artist Bilal, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson’s ‘Suite for Ma Dukes’ Orchestra, DJ Jazzy Jeff’s Playlist Sessions. He leads his own project ‘Local Authority’ which has featured at Red Bull Music Academy, Love Supreme Jazz Festival and Jazz Re:freshed. He has also been an integral soloist and accompanist for Ayanna Witter Johnson, Zara McFarlane, Marsha Ambrosius, Mica Paris, Ntjam Rosie, Beth Rowley, Vels Trio, Jacqui Dankworth, Nailah Porter, Omar, The London Horns and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Onin

Onin is the collaborative duo of James L Malone and Joe Wright, which explores analogue and digital electronics in highly volatile improvised music.

Joe Wright – Saxophone and Dynamic Feedback

James Malone – Guitar

Richard Scott/Sarah Farmer/Andrew Woodhead

An improvising trio where strings meet electronics.

Sarah Farmer – Violin/Cello

Richard Scott – Viola

Andrew Woodhead – Electronics

Sarah Farmer is a violinist and sound artist based in Birmingham. Sarah spends most of her playing time performing contemporary scored and improvised music and playing in folk and jazz inspired bands. Interests include noise, texture, spacetime and DIY.

Richard Scott is a viola player and visual artist based in Birmingham with interests in pattern, liminality and varying modes of perception and control. His musical activities are split between improvising, contemporary scored music and playing traditional Scandinavian music on the fiddle.

Born and raised in South Yorkshire, Andrew Woodhead is now a highly active member of Birmingham’s thriving Jazz/Creative Music scene. As well as performing on Piano and Live Electronics, he also curates Fizzle, a fortnightly happening of Improvised Music at the Lamp Tavern, Birmingham.

Onin + Scott/Farmer/Woodhesd

Born from the Birmingham/London Improvisers Exchange Project (Jan 2019), Onin and Scott/Farmer/Woodhead come together to present a collaborative set encompassing Free Improv, Soundscapes, Feedback and Harsh Noise.

Steve Tromans Dead As Dillinger

Steve Tromans – Piano/Keyboard

Richard Scott – Violin/Vocals

Tymoteusz Jozwiak – Drums

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IT’S ONLY 5 DAYS AWAY UNTIL SUPERSONIC FESTIVAL 2018!!

You’ve got your ticket, now what? Have a read over our FAQs to help you plan for this weekend…

Box office opening times to pick up your wristbands – located on Floodgate St, Birmingham B5 5SR
Friday 21:00 – 23:30
Saturday 16:00 – 22:00
Sunday 15:00 – 20:30

Timings and full schedule HERE

Children

Whist Supersonic Festival doesn’t have a specific children and young people offer, children aged 10 years and under are welcome to accompany adults attending the festival for free. If you are planning on bringing children with you please contact us in advance via anna@capsule.org.uk and we will reserve sufficient numbers of wristbands at our festival Box Office. We request that all children in attendance at the festival must be accompanied by an adult at all times, have their own ear defender equipment and be off site by 9pm.

Supersonic Kids Gigs are perfect events for children and their families. More information about events taking place later this year will be available soon.

Accommodation: “Where can I live for the weekend?”
We have negotiated a number of special rates for Supersonic visitors, you can read all about that here https://supersonicfestival.com/info/hotels/

Alcohol: “Can I bring my own alcohol?”
Unfortunately not, you may be searched on arrival and if you are found to be carrying drinks, these will be confiscated. There will be licensed bars which have a selection of vegan friendly ales + spirts + soft drinks on the festival site. If you look under 21, please bring some photo ID along.

Food
We have a food court plus a tea room on site, which will cater for vegetarians and vegans alike as well as meat eaters.

This year we’ll be filling bellies with SriLicious, Beet The System and Original Patty Men (OPM). You’ll find their stalls in the courtyard to the festival Market Place.

Cash Points
There are only a few ATM machines in Digbeth, so you might want to take out money prior to arriving at the festival site. There are two free cash machines located near-by at:

Nisa | Digbeth High Street | B5 5NR (about a 3 minute walk from the festival site) which is open until midnight daily

Birmingham Coach Station which is open 24hrs

Directions: “How do I get to Supersonic Festival?”
The central hub of Supersonic Festival is held at the The Crossing Floodgate St, Birmingham B5 5SR.

Smoking
Normal smoking rules apply: you can smoke in any outdoor area on site, you cannot smoke inside any enclosed public buildings.

Parking
There are a number of 24 hr car parks around Digbeth and about a 5 mins walk away from the festival site.
Green Parking Ltd, Digbeth High Street, Oxford Street, Birmingham B5 6DY

Taxis
There are loads of taxi firms in Birmingham – Here’s numbers for a couple of them:

Atlas Cars 0121-643-8888

Ambassador Cars 0121-449-8888

T.O.A. 0121-444-8888

Royal Cars 0121-444-8888

We have a bunch of amazing and entertaining stuff for you to do before we open the doors at Supersonic Festival 2018 and best of all they are all free.

FRIDAY
MOOG SOUNDLAB PERFORMANCE PROGRAMME
THE ROYAL BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATOIRE
200 JENNENS RD / BIRMINGHAM B4 7XR / FREE ENTRY
1400 – 1500 MOOR MOTHER IN CONVERSATION
1530 – 1630 SIMON HALL VOYAGE FOOG PHAT MOOG SURROUND SOUND DIFFUSION SEAN CLANCY
1630 – 1730 JAMES DOOLEY AND TOM TEBBY JAMES DOOLEY OPEN INSTALLATION
————————————————————————————–
TALKS : IF WET SALON
18.30 – 20.30 / FREE ENTRY
CENTRALA / UNIT 4 MINERVA WORKS / 158 FAZELEY ST | B5 5RT
Musical instrument maker Sam Underwood will host a special event that will provide a peek behind the scenes of a number of projects appearing as part of this year’s festival. Find out what drove Sam and Graham Dunning to collaborate on this work. Other artists include Brian Duffy AKA Modified Toy Orchestra, Farmer Glitch, Kathy Hinde and Mark Korven. In addition Centrala have a great selection of beverages to get your Supersonic weekend started.
————————————————————————————–
PERFORMANCE
FERRIC LUX PRESENTS A LINE BETWEEN THE HEAVENS & THE SOIL
VIVID PROJECTS / 16 MINERVA WORKS / 158 FAZELEY ST / B5 5RS
FRIDAY 22 JUNE / 20.00 / FREE
Exponent of blackened techno and ritual Ferric Lux returns to unleash an unholy mix of ambient noise, esoteric techno and black metal, scored over distorted, flickering images received from another plane. An event not for the faint hearted.
Approximate duration 40 minutes.

SATURDAY

VISCERISTAHOOD
VIVID PROJECTS / 16 MINERVA WORKS / 158 FAZELEY ST / B5 5RS
SATURDAY 23 JUNE / 15.00 – 17.00 / FREE
Performances and interventions from the Visceristahood will occur during the closing hours of HER HORROR … don’t be scared, now.

MOOG SOUNDLAB PERFORMANCE PROGRAMME
THE ROYAL BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATOIRE
200 JENNENS RD |BIRMINGHAM B4 7XR | FREE ENTRY
1400 – 1530  JAMES DOOLEY AND TOM TEBBY
————————————————————————————–

SUNDAY

PERFORMANCE MELODY OF NOSTALGIA
14.00 / FREE
CENTRALA / UNIT 4 MINERVA WORKS / 158 FAZELEY ST | B5 5RT
Polish artist, Anna Jochymek is bringing a male choir to Centrala to perform her immersive sound artwork Melody of Nostalgia; vocally interpreting digital recordings of Eastern European Migrant Women’s singing their nostalgia songs.

MOOG SOUNDLAB PERFORMANCE PROGRAMME
THE ROYAL BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATOIRE
200 JENNENS RD |BIRMINGHAM B4 7XR | FREE ENTRY
12.30 – 1500 JAMES DOOLEY OPEN INSTALLATION

ONE WEEK TO GO YOU LOT!

Supersonic Festival 2018 runs from June 22nd – 24th in Digbeth, Birmingham.
Box office is located on Floodgate Street | Digbeth | B5 5SR
Box office opening times to pick up your wristbands

Friday 21:00 – 23:30
Saturday 16:00 – 22:00
Sunday 15:00 – 20:30

TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE VIA https://supersonicfestival.com/product-category/supersonic/