zulu winter

Le Voyage Dans La Lune by Georges Melies - Rework By Maria in the Shower

2012-03-03T10:39:00.000-08:00

A little while ago I stumbled upon this film and it renewed my fascination in Georges Melies. A visionary of his time, Le Voyage Dans La Lune (A trip to the Moon) is one of the earliest sci-fi films created and due to an animated sequence at the end, is also one of the earliest animations on film. Georges Melies had intended to release this in America and hopefully make some money. However, Thomas Edison stole a copy and released it first, making loadsa wonga and leaving Melies bankrupt when he died.

This video has a reworked soundtrack by a group called 'Maria in the Shower, who I don't know much about. However, the music is appropriately made and beautifully fits the film. The voiceover by Bruno Hubert is the main reason I fell in love with this version. A very humorous french drawl that gave me the giggles the whole way through.

Interestingly The Smashing Pumpkins used this as inspiration for their vid Tonight Tonight, and recently Air have created a soundtrack for a hand coloured version of the film. Apparently this was found in 1993 in a barn in France. You can watch it here, and I advise you to do so as it is very good.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Nx8hVGzSO4&feature=related

Enjoy!

Iain

Hitchcock Dream Sequences

2012-02-21T02:48:00.000-08:00

Morning,

Check out the two ace Hitchcock dream sequences below. The Spellbound one was created by Dali which is fairly obvious! The Vertigo one was designed by John Ferren a slightly lesser know American Abstract Expressionist.

I've been enjoying Hitchcock a lot lately and these are two major reasons why. Recommend you watch both films if you haven't done so already.

Spellbound (1945)

Vertigo (1958)

Henry

The Master and Margarita

2012-02-09T15:39:00.000-08:00

Yo,

I just remembered that I have tickets booked for Complicite's adaption of The Master and Margarita at the Barbican and I'm very excited... The original novel written by Mikhail Bulgakov is a damn fine book with one of the best opening scenes I've read in along time and Complicite in my humble opinion are one of the best production companies around. A very enticing opportunity indeed.

I was never the most avid theatre goer. Haunted by memories of turgid productions dragged to as a child, I equated theatre trips with a desire to drop ice cream on the heads below, desperately plotting some drama to aid an escape or generally becoming insanely bored and fidgety. I don't think I really got over this trauma until I went to see a Disappearing Number in 2007 or 2008. This was one of the rare times I have witnessed a delayed emotional response to the arts. People (I'll be honest and say 'we') didn't cry at the end because it was sad. We cried when we left the entire Barbican complex because we were utterly spent. We'd been so successfully sucked in by the story that you're not given a proper chance to react to the beauty of the images, movement and sound you've experienced until the curtain goes down.

Complicite seem to be obsessed with assaulting the audience on every single level possible without you really knowing it. This is a sound installation, concert and dance as much as it is a play. That they manage to do everything so differently, providing such a rich sensory experience whilst never losing sight of the need to remain enthralling and true to a riveting narrative is freakin genius.

Don't go expecting to have the same experience. Just go because you shouldn't miss this. Everything I have seen by them has been astonishing and different and The Master and Margarita will be no different.

Enough of my blathering. Go and get a ticket before they sell out: http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=12872

http://www.complicite.org/flash/

Henry

We Should Be Swimming Video

2012-02-08T05:40:00.000-08:00

Hey,

Here's our vid for new single We Should Be Swimming. Single comes out on 27th Feb and vid can be seen here and on youtube and the like.

Big thanks to Cagoule who made the video and the dancers Freya and Jo who nearly died of hypothermia.

Don't forget we also have a NME awards on 27th to celebrate the release. All deets on blog post below!

Find info on Cagoule here: http://www.cagoule.tv/

ZW

NME Awards Show at Cargo

2012-02-03T03:44:00.000-08:00

Just a quick sunny Friday message to let you know that tickets are now on sale for our next London headline show. This will be an NME Awards Show at the lovely Cargo on Rivington Street in Shoreditch on Monday 27th February.

Tickets are available now HERE so grab yours quick...

F.C. Judd

2012-01-24T05:45:00.000-08:00

Public Information Records have released a collection of F.C. Judd's music on an excellent collection called Electronics Without Tears (Great Title!) The previous stuff I had from him were all hissy vinyl rips, but these are all cleaned up and in excellent condition.

Mr Judd is often overlooked in the world of early electronics but his output and development in the field is just as crucial as Ms Derbyshire and Ms Oram and the rest of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.

More info can be found at their website and below is a little sampler from the album:

F.C. Judd - Electronics Without Tears by Public Information

I've also just come across this program for those with a MAC: Berna. 'It is a software simulation of a late 1950s electroacoustic music studio. Oscillators, filters, modulators, tape recorders, mixers, are all packed in a easy-to-use interface with historical accuracy.' so says the blurb, but I'm still very far from mastering it or producing any satisfying sound on it what so ever! But I'm sure its possible.

Dom

Henry Walton - Bucket Drop 1956

2012-01-19T02:12:00.001-08:00

The Serpentine Dance + Colour Filters

2012-01-16T01:41:00.000-08:00

I stumbled across this video on Bradford Cox’s excellent blog, and like him became ever so slightly enthralled by it.

After a bit of research I discovered that the dancer is Loie Fuller who invented this dance known as the Serpentine Dance. The dance is beautiful in itself, but for me I was more intrigued by the quality of the film and the use of colour filters. I think the film is probably shot on an Edison Kinetoscope, which was one of Edison’s earliest film cameras, apparently lots of the earliest films featured dancers in flowing robes as the movement was easier to capture. The colour filters, I guess are just to add colour to a black and white film, but I was wondering whether anyone had any further info on this process? Are there any masters of the artform and is anyone doing anything similar today?

Here’s another good example, the girl looks a bit like Florence Welsh though!

I also came across this photo of an Indian Maharaja which has used the same colouring effects. Again any information would be greatly received:

Dom

New Single - We Should Be Swimming

2012-01-12T14:30:00.000-08:00

We are very pleased to announce our second single 'We Should Be Swimming' which will be released on 27th February by the lovely folks at Play It Again Sam Records.

Listen to it below...

We Should Be Swimming by Zulu Winter

Musical Friends # 9 - Rain Dog

2012-01-09T01:47:00.000-08:00

Beyond Their Years by Rain Dog
One to Love by Rain Dog

I first met Sam aka Rain Dog whilst studying Art at Newcastle Uni. We hit it off immediately, and if you think his music is good he is just as good a painter.

When we new each other well he used to spend his time painting, building massive speaker systems with a friend and making crazy dubstep remixes of Bon Iver and Joanna Newsom songs, which I have on my computer and are bloody brilliant.

He has just released his ep 'See Hear' on netlabel Cut. A fairly new label whose quote
“Most netlabels have a stigma attached to them leading people to assume that because the music is free, it’s low quality. Cut has set out to debunk that myth.”

I can only believe because after hearing Rain Dogs stuff and checking out their catalogue, I had to have it all. Somehow they have managed to release some the best Chillwave, Ambstep, Dub, whatever you want to call it, Ambient techy electronic music I have heard for a long time.

Anyway check out Rain Dog, turn your sub up and walk on his watery glitchy tech beats into the reverberating setting sun. These songs are expertly crafted, from the ambient wash of layers, melodics and solid structures to the deep dub rhythms. This is a great EP. Perfect for a Sunday morning, in fact any morning, or really late night, which I suppose is the same thing.

A Zulu Winter remix.......... I think it needs to happen, keep your ears to the ground.

To hear more:

Rain Dog on Soundcloud
http://soundcloud.com/rain_dog

Cut Records
http://cutmusic.org/releases/cut006.php

Cheers and happy new year! I hope its gonna be a big one.

Iain

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964)

2011-12-25T14:45:00.000-08:00

A christmas present for you all... The christmas classic Santa Claus Conquers the Martians!!!!

Santa Claus! Martians! Could a film give anymore?!

Apparently this normally features pretty high on lists about the worst films ever made which in my eyes is another great reason to watch it...

Merry Crimbo.

Henry x

Musical Friends # 8 - Clean George IV

2011-12-17T06:21:00.000-08:00

Everybody seems to be writing about records of year at the moment so ours for 2011 is Clean George IV's 'God Save the Clean'.
After taking some time out to study Classical music composition George has finally released his debut album, and its a cracker! Some of the best lyrics we've heard which sit upon well crafted pop gems, you need this in your life! Buy the record from Tenement Records

Haunts # 2 - The Pool

2011-12-09T05:35:00.000-08:00

Over the past couple of days we have been recording 'We Should Be Swimming' in Miloko's The Pool. Amazingly, none of us realised what a slice of serendipity this was until we actually started running the song, at which point many very poor jokes began to flow (ahem). I would write some down but they're of the tired, boring, slightly watered down (double ahem) variety rather than the 'bad funny' variety.

Anyhow, as a slightly tardy continuation of this blog's series 'Haunts', I thought I'd give a little low down of The Pool. The live room here is enormous, littered with rare synths, drums, amps, as well as a beautiful 1962 P-bass, which Iain has been caressing for the past few days. There's also a rumour that Lana Del Ray is mixing next door, although we're now sure it's a rumour after spending an unfeasible amount of time hanging in the corridors and still catching no sight of her (Lana, if you're reading this and at The Pool, pop your head in). Anyhow, here's a few pics. We'll upload a vid once the hard work has been done.

Toodle loo

Will

P.S - Many thanks to Henry Crallan, co-founder of Moloko Studios.

Live room set up

Keys world

Dom

Ian's choices

Knob-twiddling

Do You Remember Dolly Bell? (1981)

2011-12-08T11:46:00.000-08:00

Whilst we recently made our way to Paris for a show I watched the below film. Dom was driving, Guy asleep, Will and Iain watching something else. The glamour of the road!

Anyway, it's a great film and someone has kindly or rudely put the whole thing on youtube. I watched it, loved it and had to turn to the window to hide a few tears.

Henry x

'Do You Remember Dolly Bell?' by Emir Kusturica (1981)

Movember, the last day......

2011-11-30T03:39:00.000-08:00

Just a quick one to say thanks to all that donated, Team Zulu Winter and friends raised a grand total of £574 not too shabby an effort. Here is the final photo of my tash and of the team front runner Tom who raised the most out of all of us. Well done Tom, your tash is legendary. You are a true man.
Till next year.......

Iain.

Musical Friends # 7 - Braids

2011-11-26T06:26:00.000-08:00

We had the pleasure of supporting the lovely Braids on a few european dates recently and bejesus I hope it happens again. The live show is one of the best I've seen in awhile and the fact that they remain so unassuming and modest whilst being insanely talented just made me like them all the more.

Their debut 'Native Speaker' is best enjoyed on headphones but to get the full effect you need to see them live soon as.

Thanks Braids!

The Ice Book

2011-11-21T12:57:00.000-08:00

I came across this video clip below as a recommendation from flat mate and it immediately drew me in...

The Ice Book (HD) from Davy and Kristin McGuire on Vimeo.

It's created by Davy and Kristin McGuire and was originally run as a theatre production in miniature. It's interesting that it came about as an accident... it was concieved as a device for demonstrating a show to potential producers and then happily became a show of it's own - an intimate experience for a small audience.

They manage to create a really magical world with a very simple concept of combining tiny cardboard cut-outs with cleverly placed projections. Really loving the way they play with light and shade.

They're forthcoming production will be an adaptation of Howl's Moving Castle running at The Southwark Playhouse from 28th November. Think I'll try and get down to that...

Guy

BBC Maida Vale Session

2011-11-11T09:04:00.000-08:00

We dropped into the Maida Vale Studios on Monday to record a mid-tour session for the BBC and laid down 4 tracks live.

Watch You Deserve Better below and you can check out the other 3 HERE...

Many thanks to Miti and George for the recording - it was a pleasure working with you.

Guy

XOYO Show with Givers

2011-11-02T13:14:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who made it down to our first headline show at CAMP Basement last night.

We are pleased to announce that we have added an extra London Show to our touring this month.

We will be supporting Givers at XOYO in Shoreditch next Tuesday 8th November. This again will be put on by the lovely people at Eat Your Own Ears and you can get tickets HERE

Hopefully see you there.

Guy

Day 1 -The Shave

2011-11-01T05:16:00.000-07:00

My face is cold.

I look young again.

The hair of age and days gone by

gone,

bye.

I am consoled only by the wheel,

It tells me that good times, like the bad,

and hair,

come and go.

Iain

The Moustache Arises into the Bright Night! The Month of Movember is Upon Us.

2011-10-31T10:54:00.000-07:00

EVERY NOVEMBER THE MEN OF THIS WORLD STEP UP TO THE PLATE. WE

HOLD ARM IN ARM AND SHARE THE LOVE OF THE GREATEST INVENTION TO

ADORN ONES FACE, THE MOUSTACHE.

WE DO THIS NOT JUST BECAUSE OF THE PLEASURE OF RUNNING OUR

FINGERS THROUGH THE FINELY SCULPTED BRISTLES NO NO. NOR FOR THE

COPIOUS AMOUNT OF FEMALE ATTENTION A DISTINGUISHED LOOKING FACIAL

LOVE SLUG CAN BRING. NO!

WE DO IT TO RAISE MONEY FOR A GREAT

CAUSE PROSTATE CANCER.

Ok so I have decided to do Movember this month. A few of you may know that I do often sport the ol' tash, however the mainly embarrassing fact for me is having to shave tomorrow and look once again like a prepubescent child. I shall however be strong! noble! and active in gaining sponsorship. I will try to blog with photographic updates when I can. Here is a photo of me now; a before shot if you like.

I am doing this to raise money for prostate cancer, a very good cause that needs our support. For more information go here.

If you feel like taking part please visit the website and sign up to my team : Zulu Winter and Friends. It will be the best thing you have done for a long time.

Or if you fancy sponsoring me on my task then go here.

To finish, I thought I would leave you with some of the most valiant efforts of all time:

Cheers

Iain

The White Review

2011-10-28T08:29:00.000-07:00

Arts and literature journals are tricky to get excited about. Firstly, there aren't many left, as most have realised how much more appetising magazines are to the majority of readers (pictures and sexy production vs text and cheap paper), and secondly the potential for pretension in a journal is often a little off-putting. So, it is with great joy that I present The White Review, a beautifully constructed quarterly arts journal that covers everything from short fiction to contemporary sculpture.

Inspired by La Revue Blanche, a Parisian magazine which ran from 1899 to 1903, The White Review was conceived by two friends of mine, Ben Eastham and Jacques Testard. It is now on its third issue with a fourth on the way, and has so far managed to secure interviews with the likes of William Boyd and Will Self, as well as discovering newer writing talent such as Paddy Langley. Below is an extract from a short story called Rehearsal Room by KJ Orr, published in the current issue.

He was one of those people you see every day and start to believe you know when in fact you don’t. You have the arrogance to believe they’re part of the fabric of your day because you exchange a glance or a smile. You feel they have somehow become part of your life when in fact you have almost nothing to do with them and know nothing about them and haven’t made any particular effort with them at all.

He had close-cropped hair. He had black eyes. There was a kind of fluidity to them. They were bright, alert, mobile eyes.

He swept our floor each day. Before the company rehearsed he swept the floor meticulously – I might even say with love. It was part of the ritual of the day to thoroughly clean the working space. It was part of our company ethic and of the notion we had of discipline. We believed that discipline must matter in the kind of theatre we were hoping to create. We didn’t think you could just rock up to rehearsal. Preparing the space was as important as the rehearsal itself.

He swept our floor. He swept it with such love that we stopped sweeping. Before, the task had always been shared. It was part of our ethic that it should be shared. Each actor would be pleased to sweep because each actor knew that sweeping was part of the process of approaching any piece of theatre: the preparation of the space and the readiness for work.

Will

Taxi!

2011-10-27T16:11:00.001-07:00

Thanks to the good folk at Black Cab Sessions.

Never Leave Video

2011-10-13T02:32:00.000-07:00

Zulu Winter - Never Leave from David Higgs on Vimeo.

So here it is, our debut video! Many thanks to David Higgs who directed it Jon Baker who lent an artist eye and starred in it alongside Nefeli Sidiropoulou.

Director: David Higgs
Director of Photography: Jon Baker jon-baker.co.uk
Assisted by: Nefeli Sidiropoulou nefelisidiropoulou.wordpress.com
Edit & Post: David Higgs

The Artist's Body

2011-10-05T05:25:00.000-07:00

Been flicking through 'The Artist's Body' by Tracey Warr, which collects several images and short essays on how Artists have used their bodies. Lots of intriguing subjects tackled and far too many disturbing images to show here, including the infamous self portrait by Robert Mapplethorpe and Marina Abramovic's 'Rhythm 0' where she stood by a table and offered herself passively to spectators with the simple instruction: 'There are seventy-two objects on the table that can be used on me as desired. I am the object.' The objects included a bullet and a gun. Anyhow lots of cool stuff which will make you question your perception of the body and art but also far too much mutilation!

Below is 'Plank Piece I & II' by Charles Ray. Making sculpture an activity rather than an object. I sometimes feel a bit like this piece!

Below is 'Artist Shit' by Piero Manzoni, which needs no explanation! Each container was sold by weight for their equivalent price in gold.

Dom

The Shout - 1978

2011-10-03T03:25:00.000-07:00

I hope John Hurt finds that stone!

Dom

Happy Birthday Trish - 28th September 1968

2011-09-28T14:40:00.000-07:00

The Song Before the Song Comes Out by James Broadcast

Zulu Winter Radio Mix # 3

2011-09-23T08:16:00.000-07:00

Listen or download below:

Zulu Winter Radio Mix # 3 by henryzulu

Angel Sigh - Spiritualized
Bells - Electrelane
Homelessness - Emahoy Tsegue-Maryam Guebrou
Journey In Satchidananda - Alice Coltrane
I'm Glad There Is You - Dick Hyman & Mary Mayo
Laugh Laugh - Beau Brummels
Andy - Maureen Tucker
Johnny Be Good - Roys & The Devils Motorcycle
Hippie Hippie Hourrah - Jacques Du Tronc
Buried At Sea - Echo Lake
I Get Nervous - Lower Dens

Henry x

Single Release Party!

2011-09-22T04:47:00.000-07:00

We are pleased to announce that we will be playing our first headline show in honour of our debut single at CAMP Basement in London, just off Old Street roundabout, on 1st November.

More details to be announced soon, but get you're tickets early to avoid disappointment: Tickets!

You can also now pre-order the single from Rough Trade: Never Leave

ZW on Pitchfork!

2011-09-19T10:16:00.000-07:00

Very excited that Pitchfork featured Let's Move Back To Front and Never Leave on their site today. Cheers to them...

http://www.pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/12437-lets-move-back-to-front/

Both tracks are now available to buy from iTunes as well but if you're a vinyl head then pick up your copy of the 7" from Double Denim's store.

iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/never-leave-lets-move-back/id466212401?ign-mpt=uo%3D4

7": http://doubledenimrecords.bigcartel.com/product/dd008-zulu-winter-never-leave-let-s-move-back-to-front-7-pre-order

Musical Friends # 6 - Outfit

2011-09-16T07:24:00.000-07:00

We had the pleasure of supporting these guys on Monday eve and they're bloody lovely. Great band.

Double Denim released their single 'Two Islands' last month which you can buy form here: http://doubledenimrecords.bigcartel.com/product/dd007-outfit-two-islands-vehicles

Make sure you buy ours as well though right?

Have a listen:DD007 A1: Outfit // Two Islands by Double Denim Records

Musical Friends # 5 - Green Realm

2011-09-16T07:06:00.000-07:00

A friend sent me this rehearsal recording a few days back and you can now download it if you like. Quality of the recording is obviously a little shit (Sorry Frank) but listen to those guitars go. Also a little in love with the melody:

Trainlin Halo by Green Realm by henryzulu

More music here: http://soundcloud.com/greenrealm

Maybe you want to watch this video while you listen to it?

Zulu Winter 1st Single with Double Denim Records

2011-09-12T06:40:00.000-07:00

DD008 A1: Zulu Winter // Never Leave by Double Denim Records

We are mega pleased to announce that we'll be releasing our 1st single on November 7th with the lovely and excellent Double Denim Records. The 7" will lead with 'Never Leave' and 'Let's Move Back To Front' will feature on the 2nd side.

Follow the link to see what they say.

Single also available from Rough Trade Stores, click Here to find out more.

Hopefully see many of you tonight at the Shacklewell gig with Outfit.

Henry x

David Higgs' The Last Ten

2011-09-08T02:25:00.000-07:00

Hemingway once wrote how a short story should be like an iceberg; it's crux lying just beneath the surface. It's an interesting theory, and one that proved very useful for a writer who was obsessed with brevity. Why waste words making meaning entirely evident when it is more enjoyable for a reader to invest and interpret their own meaning?

Of course, this theory not only applies to writing, but all compact art forms: pop songs, short films, short plays. David Higgs' The Last Ten is a fine example of such a theory in practice. Dave is a long-term friend and collaborator of ZW's, and will be working with us more in the future. The plot of his latest film is simple: a man comes home to find his wife in bed with someone else. He gets angry and varying levels of violence ensue. But it is not what we see on screen that is intriguing, rather what we do not. The piece is made up of only one shot - that of a stairwell in an art deco block of flats - and all the main events take place in the surrounding flats. We only see the fall out from these events and are therefore only granted the 'tip' of the film's content. Watch out for the film at this year's film festivals, and check out the trailer below:

THE LAST TEN - TEASER from David Higgs on Vimeo.

Will

Daisies - Vera Chytilova

2011-09-07T03:34:00.000-07:00

What's this about? Freedom, Anarchy, Women's position in the world, life under a dictatorship... god knows but it's a visual delight and a lot of fun!

- Nobody understands anything.

- Nobody understands us.

-Everything's spoiled in the world.

-You know, if everything's spoiled...

-Well

-We'll be spoiled too.

Dom

Merce Cunningham Dance Company

2011-08-26T05:05:00.000-07:00

The Merce Cunningham Dance Company is coming to the Barbican in London from 5th till the 8th of October this year. This will be your last chance to see the company perform in the UK before they disband at the end of the year.

These performances include pieces he worked on with John Cage, Andy Warhol and Brian Eno. Due to the way that this type of dance is taught it is often very rare that they're work survives after their death, so I can't stress enough how important it is that you witness this before its lost forever. Videos do not really do his work justice they are pieces that must be seen live. I do however quite enjoy this interview with Merce and John Cage:

Dom

Zulu Winter @ Hoxton Bar & Kitchen, 14th September (£7.50)

2011-08-25T03:51:00.000-07:00

If you can't make the Shacklewell show we're supporting Clock Opera two days later at the Hoxton Bar and Kitchen.

Bit more expensive this one unfortunately but we'll promise to make it worth your while. I hear Clock Opera are pretty tasty live too..

Both of these are nights are put on by Eat Your Owns Ears who never fail to deliver!

See here for all info and ticket links.

Henry x

Zulu Winter @ Shacklewell Arms, Dalston, 12th September, Free

2011-08-19T07:46:00.000-07:00

Freakin finally we're playing a show. We'll be supporting Outfit when they celebrate the release of their damn fine 'Two Islands' 7 on Double Denim Records.

We're big fans of the DD boys and Outfit so delighted to be involved.

We'll be on at 9pm and Outfit shortly after 10pm and it's free. The Shacklewell Arms is here. More gigs will be posted soon just keep checking the tag 'ZW Gigs' on the right of the blog.

You need to get your free tickets apparently so go here.

Henry

Dick Hyman & Mary Mayo - Moon Gas (1963)

2011-08-19T02:34:00.000-07:00

Probably one of my favourite albums from the 60's but largely unknown. I've been trying to track this down on vinyl for a number of years. If you have it please sell it to me.

Listen to 'I'm Glad There Is You' loud for full effect. Beautiful. And Dick Hyman has to be a contender for best musicians name. Ever.

Download the album here.

Henry

In Loving Memory of My Beloved Hackney

2011-08-10T15:16:00.000-07:00

Photo courtesy of Tanya Millard

JINX

2011-08-02T04:25:00.000-07:00

I have been reading the blog now for some time and I feel the need to give something a little different to psychedelic drone music and bonkers videos and obscure literature. It was my birthday when we gave you Silver Tongue so I have decided to give the world a bit of knowledge about what gets me going, it is time to get back to the grass roots of culture, and to display an art-form which I believe to be one of the greatest.

It amalgamates art through letters, and words, as well as visually with images, and through phonetics too, and has inspired artists throughout the years through Pop Art and Graffiti as well as typography. More recently it has been converted into film although a lot of the attempts have in my view not been successful, (however I still always watch them). It is of course the greatly overlooked, deemed immature and not worthy, world of Graphic Novels.

The novel that I am going to enlighten you about first is in my opinion one of the most different and best I have ever read. Its called Jinx, the basic story is one of a female bounty hunter falling for a crook, and the various hi-jinx that ensue. However it is not just the story that amazed me. The true greatness of this novel comes through in the dialogue, (akin to something out of a Linklater film) and how the text is set out in a completely unique and unconventional style.

There are moments where the plot is put aside an you jump from conversation to conversation, enjoying discussions from peoples lives be they something philosophical, or commenting upon life, or even just slagging off David Hasslehoff.

Jinx is carefully set out, pictorially it is all in black and white, lending instantly dramatic overtones, half the images are spliced with photography which gives the artist and writer/ one man genius, Michael Bendis a totally unique and gritty style. A bit like grime. Anyway I'm babbling and this is borrrrring. If you can click on the images to zoom in and read a bit of the Hasslehoff rant, funny stuff.

Iain

p.s. of course the views expressed in this novel are not Zulu Winter's.

The Colour of Pomegranates

2011-07-25T04:52:00.000-07:00

The Colour of Pomegrantes by Sergei Paradjanov is being rereleased on DVD by Second Sight later this summer, printed from a remarkably improved print, thus making those vivid images even stronger!

Paradjanov is one of my favorite film makers, the shots he uses are stunning, and I dare not try to describe why, I only suggest that you see for yourself. Three films that I would recommend are 'Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors', ' The Legend of the Suram Fortress' and of course 'The Colour of Pomegrantes'. Pomegrantes tells the story of Sayat Nova, the Armenian national poet, through a series of almost static tableau shots, perhaps painting the poet in biblical terms. These tableau reveal the poet's coming of age, discovery of the female form, his falling in love, entering a monetary and ultimately his death.

Paradjanov's personal life could easily fill another blog, but suffice to say I do believe he was sent to a gulag after 'Pomegrantes' came out partly due to the religious imagery used and also because his film making style didn't fit in with the principles of 'Social Realism' laid out by the Communist Party at the time. To create such an individual cinematic vision is one thing, but to do it in the environment of those times is something else.

The images below are from the Colour of Pomegranates:

Dom

Talking Aliens with Dan Ackroyd

2011-07-15T06:43:00.000-07:00

We all trust Dan Ackroyd don't we? He was in Blues Brothers which automatically means his is a voice to listen to, take seriously and ponder for days after.

With that in mind, I give you a friday treat: Dan Aykroyd Unplugged on UFOs!

Here's the blurb from UFOlogist David Sereda which is equally great:

'2001 was a real space odyssey for me. Instead of flying on a spaceship to the moon, Jupiter, or beyond the solar system, I met Dan Aykroyd for the first time to talk about UFOs. That’s when I knew I had to sit him down in front of the camera, just let him talk about the truth and make a documentary film out of it. Because if I didn’t no one would believe we had this amazing conversation. In this long conversation with Dan Aykroyd about UFOs, I thought it was like Einstein was hiding inside of a comic genius, just so that if he told us the real truth he wouldn’t have to believe it. If Einstein had told us UFOs were real, would we have believed *him*? He never spoke about it. But Dan Aykroyd speaks about UFOs as if he were a full professor on the subject.'

Henry

Glenn Branca - Lesson No. 1 for Electric Guitar (1980)

2011-07-12T05:33:00.000-07:00

What a song title!

This has really been getting me for the last couple of weeks. Basically for those of you not in the know Glenn Branca is a pretty cosmic avant-garde composer that focused upon drone and repitition, layering guitars with various tunings at loud volumes. Branca has been releasing solo work from start of the 1980's and continues to offer jams up today.

This track comes from his first album 'Lesson No.1' and should be listened to at a volume that's slightly annoying for anyone else around you. Therefore, pick your times as I don't want you blaming me when you have a noise complaint on your hands. Also some people have babies... Like my sister who just had a baby. Congratulations...

Incidentally Dom (from ZW) gave me Branca's 2nd record 'The Ascension (1981)' around 2 years ago and which I never connected to that strongly. Going to blow the dust off that one and give it another spin.

Lastly Branca released the first offerings by Sonic Youth whose Lee Ranaldo & Thurston Moore can be heard playing on track 3 'Bad Smells' of 'Lesson No.1' which was added as a bonus track on the 2004 reissue but that was originally recorded in 1982.

Henry
Download

Jordan Belson - Allures

2011-07-05T06:36:00.000-07:00

Found it!

I posted a blog about Jordan Belson before, but wasn't able to demonstrate his genius, however I have now stumbled across his wonderful film Allures... Enjoy!

Dom

Zulu Winter Radio Mix # 2

2011-07-01T03:59:00.000-07:00

Zulu Winter Radio Mix # 2 by Dom Zulu

Moose Lake - Carter Burwell
Trafelato - Ennio Morricone
March of Time (version 2) - Frank Reidy / Eric Allen
Stream (Alternate)- Piero Umiliani
Natty Dub - King Tubby
I Want - Vashti Bunyan
Halloween Theme - Main Title - John Carpenter
Lazy Day Croquet - Alice In Wonderland - Ravi Shankar
4 Minute Warning - Radiohead

Simon Armitage for Poet Laureate

2011-06-29T02:50:00.000-07:00

This is more of an homage than a post. Occasionally, you find an artist, writer or musician who has the depth and vision required to consistently bring their world alive. One of these people is Simon Armitage, an increasingly famous Yorkshire man whose darkly amusing poetry tackles everything from football (get it), to the beauty of the Yorkshire dales, to domestic abuse. Reading his work reveals the glorious complication of life's cruelty, kindness, love and hatred: nothing is ever one dimensional. As fantastic as Carol Ann Duffy may be, I was baffled when she was made poet laureate in 2009, and would not be at all surprised if Armitage declined an offer. Either way, we should be thankful that the UK has two such incredible poets; it's just that I consider one to be more incredible than the other.

What is more, Armitage's love of Morrissey recently coerced him into forming a band of his own, The Scaremongers, whose output is testament to the old adage of sticking to what you know best. Simon, a suggestion: put the guitar down and continue writing poems like this.

Poem

And if it snowed and snow covered the drive

he took a spade and tossed it to one side.

And always tucked his daughter up at night

And slippered her the one time that she lied.

And every week he tipped up half his wage.

And what he didn't spend each week he saved.

And praised his wife for every meal she made.

And once, for laughing, punched her in the face.

And for his mum he hired a private nurse.

And every Sunday taxied her to church.

And he blubbed when she went from bad to worse.

And twice he lifted ten quid from her purse.

Here's how they rated him when they looked back:

sometimes he did this, sometimes he did that.

Will

Haunts - Fortress Studios

2011-06-23T04:58:00.000-07:00

Back in 2009 on a fateful summer evening we met Ed Banton at a Damo Suzuki show at The Legion. At that time Ed was eye deep in recordings for his band Honrada (see musical friends #1) and had been working/living in a dark, 3rd storey studio space just off the City Road. I went to visit him there the week after to check out what he was up to and discuss a possible collaboration. Some hours later after many pool games and a few too many beers I’d had my initiation to Fortress Studios... Little were we to know that 3 years on this would be the home and headquarters of Zulu Winter.

Fortress is one of those rare and precious studios in London that really provides a strong community for the artists based there. I think ramshackle would be the most accurate word to describe the atmosphere. The actual recording studio has certainly thrown the odd technical hitch our way and the general hygiene and cleanliness definitely leaves a lot to be desired. However it’s these quirks and roughness around the edges that give the place its charm. Not to mention the array of colourful characters that walk the corridors at all hours. It’s certainly a place with a rich history of passers through – Legends include Primal Scream playing an intimate show in the basement during a two day party. Or how about the time the studio manager was reported to be half way through throwing away an old door with a painting on it, only to be hastily informed ‘hey, that’s a Banksy, you’ll make a killing off that’. (shortly after he sold the door for several thousand). It seems very often we meet people who have a connection to Fortress - whether it is an odd rehearsal some years back, a session in the studio or a night spent in bar everyone’s got a story.

Complete with 4th storey roof terrace, dingy bar and very questionable art exhibitions taking place throughout the stairwell, it’s got that unique charm that to be frank often tips over into squalor. We’ve certainly had our ups and down’s stuffed in a hot dark room at Fortress over the past couple of years. But it’s been an important home for our musical tinkering and sonic jams. We can only hope that it continues to offer the good spirits and community environment that carves it out from the mundane. Keep up the good fight Shaun Harvey.

Guy

Musical Friends # 4 - La Shark

2011-06-14T02:36:00.000-07:00

Thought I might start this out with a video. Actions speak louder than words apparently.

We had the pleasure of sharing a space with La Shark last year and although they have moved onto pastures anew, they're still going to feature in our musical friends series. So forgiving...

La Shark make music only they could make; a sleazy, manic and hysterical take on pop that you'll be inclined to think is a little peculiar until your jaw obediently turns the rest of your face into some sort of smacked-out bondage loving grin. You'll experience this freakish reaction at an abnormal level when you see them live which you should do as soon as possible. Most other bands are unimaginative, tired and boring in comparison.

For live shows etc check out: http://lashark.com/

Henry

Let's Move Back to Front

2011-06-05T10:13:00.000-07:00

I'm very pleased to announce the posting of our first track. It's called Let's Move Back to Front and here it is.....

We'll be posting further tracks and info on upcoming shows here soon so watch this space. Hope you enjoy it.

Let's Move Back to Front by Zulu Winter

What You Say?

2011-05-30T06:05:00.000-07:00

Communication

NICHI NICHI KORE KO NICHI: EVERY DAY IS A BEAUTIFUL DAY

What if I ask thirty-two questions?

What if I stop asking now and then?

Will that make things clear?

Is communication something made clear?

What is communication?

Music, what does that communicate?

Is what’s clear to me clear to you?

Is music just sounds?

Then what does it communicate?

Is a truck passing by music?

If I can see it, do I have to hear it too?

If I don’t hear it, does it still communicate?

If while I see it I can’t hear it, but something else, say an egg beater, because I’m inside looking out, does the truck communicate or the egg-beater, which communicates?

Which is more musical, a truck passing by a factory or a truck passing by a music school?

Are the people inside the school musical and the ones outside unmusical?

What if the ones inside can’t hear very well, would that change my question?

Do you know what I mean by inside the school?

Are sounds just sounds or are they Beethoven?

People aren’t sounds, are they?

Is there such a thing as silence?

Even if I get away from people, do I still have to listen to something?

Say I’m off in the woods, do I have to listen to a stream babbling?

Is there always something to hear, never any peace and quiet?

If my head is full of harmony, melody and rhythm what happens to me when the telephone rings, to my piece and quiet, I mean?

And if it was European harmony, melody and rhythm in my head, what has happened to the history of, say, Javanese music, with respect, that is to say, to my head?

Are we getting anywhere asking questions?

Where are we going?

Is this the twenty-eighth question?

Are there any important questions?

‘How do you need to cautiously proceed in dualistic terms?’

Do I have two more questions?

And, now, do I have none?

(An extract from John Cage’s lecture on Communication c.1958)

Dom

Jordan Belson

2011-05-20T09:03:00.000-07:00

Last week myself and my friend David Higgs watched a series of films at Tate Modern by Jordan Belson on the recommendation of Peter's Strickland's blog:

What we saw was rather wonderful! The films were presented by The Center for Visual Music, who also represent Jordan and are currently restoring a number of his works: They also sell a DVD which is recommended.

He came across as a fascinating, full of life character, but what really struck me was the fact that these films were being produced so long ago. My favorite moment from the Q&A afterwards was when someone politely asked whether he had ever 'experimented on his body?' To which we were informed that some years ago he had started but as yet has not finished a film called LSD! Remember though it's not the drugs that make the great art!

He was influenced by and worked alongside artists including James and John Whitney, Harry Smith and Oskar Fischinger who perhaps is best known for him work on Disney's Fantasia. Below is a 1961 film called 'Allures' and below that a film made by James Whitney.
Dom

Allures by escaton82

The Fountain Head by Ayn Rand (1943)

2011-05-17T04:07:00.000-07:00

Recently read The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand (1943) and would highly recommend it but especially to those in the arts.

The Fountainhead is about an architect called Howard Roark, who despite his considerable talent refuses to conform to society’s rules and norms and therefore consigns himself to a career of being humiliated, cheated, dismissed and despised by the collective mass that feel threatened by what is perceived as his egotistical and arrogant behavior. By standing endlessly and unwaveringly by his own ideas and beliefs Roark is seen by the collective as existing for himself only and a society that requires total selfless behavior in order to abide by it’s rules of membership, sets out to break him.

The book like any, has its flaws and Rand’s theory of Objectivity is no exception but for a tale about integrity and standing by your own beliefs and standards in a world that so often celebrates mediocrity you may not read anything better for some time. The fact that this was written in 1943 and remains relevant now, perhaps even more soon, is an interesting reminder of what modern society celebrates. Also, the novel contains a love story that is very different from the usual pap. But don’t expect bondage and safety words. It’s not that sort of different. But not a million miles away…

If you’re actually going to read the book (it’s fairly long) then don’t watch the below (from a film) or read the link. The film’s alright but nothing compared to the book and I would recommend you only watch it after reading it. As always.

Howard Roark's closing speech:
http://www.nasonart.com/personal/lifelessons/fountainhead.html

Henry

Musical Friends # 3 - Still Corners

2011-05-05T05:08:00.000-07:00

I’ve been meaning to write ‘Musical Friends # 3’ for a long time now but so much has been going on in the world of Still Corners they are progressing faster than I can type. Yet here I go.

Still corners are a 5 piece who have recently signed to Sub Pop (1 of 2 British bands on the label) and have recently returned from a triumphant tour with Papercuts and a grueling 10 shows in 4 days at SXSW. I was going to start writing what about what they sound like but I’m a bit crap at that so just think of the following words; ethereal, motorik grooves, haunting, colourful, still, projections, listen to the below and go see them live.

Also, Paul Mayhew the drummer used to drum in Roy and The Devil’s Motorcycle and Honrada (see Musical Friends # 1 & 2). Paul, you have completed the holy trinity son!

This is isn't an official video but I quite liked it all the same so there you go.

Henry

You Feeling Lucky Punk?

2011-05-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

Recently saw Dirty Harry on TV and was reminded what a great soundtrack it had. Composed by the great Lalo Schifrin who also wrote the Mission Impossible theme and the soundtrack for Bullitt amongst other great scores. Partially enjoying the drum sound and the dissonant strings: Dirty Harry Soundtrack
Dom

'Roy and The Devils Motorcycle' come to London

2011-04-15T07:05:00.000-07:00

Yo.

Awhile back I wrote a little piece on a band called Roy and The Devils Motorcycle: http://zuluwinter.blogspot.com/2011/01/musical-friends-2-roy-and-devils.html Well, they are coming to London and a good friend Paul Mayhew (drummer in new sub pop band 'Still Corners http://zuluwinter.blogspot.com/2011/01/musical-friends-2-roy-and-devils.html and I have the pleasure of putting on their shows.

On Monday 18th April they're are playing The Social on Little Portland Street (4 pounds, on about 9pm) and then on 23rd April they'll be doing their thing at the Second Floor Cafe in Netil House http://www.netilhouse.com/spaces/3/16 Broadway Market, Hackney. Both of these gigs are highly recommended. There is no one else doing what they do as well as they do. The last gig I saw them would feature in my top 5 all time gigs. Dom Zulu will also be djing at the social. That's worth the visit alone.

Any questions email us at zuluwintermusic@gmail.com
p.s There's a rumour Pete Kember as a fan of Roys will be appearing at one of the shows. For those of you thinking who on earth is that, he's more usually referred to as Sonic Boom. Yes, that Sonic Boom, founder of Spacemen 3. If you still don't come down with all of the above on offer, you should probably leave London.

Henry

2011-03-18T06:11:00.000-07:00

This was actually my first ever favorite record! What can I say I was young and foolish. If you thought Thom Yorke's dance moves were good on the Lotus Flower vid, then check out Rod's! I also love the early 90s phenomenon of using cartoon animation with real people, there's always a moment when the singer tries to interact with the animation and ends up looking like they're slightly short sighted. Lastly look out for the savagely trained pop star attack dog that causes serious injury to Vanilla Ice, Madonna, Sinead O'Connor and Michael Jackson! Elton John appears as well but I'm not sure why and of course being a Rod Stewart song there's also a bit of football.

Sorry about the low quality, but hopefully the quality of the song shines though!

Dom

Nina Simone - What a woman!

2011-02-26T07:18:00.000-08:00

Toodle Pip

Henry

Holy Cow This Is Good

2011-02-04T03:54:00.000-08:00

If you have seen anything better than this recently, speak now or forever hold your johnson.

MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.

You can see his website here: http://www.blublu.org/

Henry x

Musical Friends # 2 - Roy and The Devils Motorcycle

2011-01-28T13:33:00.000-08:00

Once in a while a band comes along that eases the pain of missing out on seeing such bands as The Velvet Underground and Spaceman 3 in their prime. I never got to see either of those bands but seeing one ‘Roy and The Devils Motorcycle’ made that ok. I first came across them about 2 years ago when Honrada (see http://zuluwinter.blogspot.com/2010/12/musical-friends.html) supported them at the Legion in Old Street and then had the pleasure of seeing them again in that same venue, a year later.

Consisting of 3 Swiss brothers (guitars) and what seems to be an oft changing drummer, they took Old Street by the scruff of the neck and it gave it a good old shake down. Saturated in blues, garage and psychedelia, they've honed a focused, raw and hypnotic sound from blissed out blues to raging garage / psychedelia. I hadn’t seen a band manage to create such an intense and hypnotic mood so effortlessly and am not sure I’ve seen it since. The weird thing about Roy’s is that their intensity and ability to be that hypnotic is so unexpected. You don’t expect it from looking at them and you don’t get it from talking to them but when they play it seems that this is the only thing they could ever truly do or love. Many people say that about bands but it’s normally codswallop. With them it’s deserved, you can’t explain it but when they play everything about them makes sense and that they do so, without any hint of pretension or of being ‘retro’ is testament to this. Great on record, a complete and utter revelation live, this is a band you have to see.

Luckily for you, they’re coming back to the UK in April and we’ll hopefully be putting on their London show. No concrete details yet but keep your eyes peeled. Details, regardless of who puts it on, will follow.

http://www.myspace.com/royandthedevilsmotorcycle
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Roy-the-Devils-Motorcycle/418048269656

Here's a little video. You can't see anything but listen to those guitars!! Lots more on myspaz etc...

Henry

Peace and Love

2011-01-27T14:46:00.000-08:00

Just to remind ourselves that we don't actually argue that badly I thought I post these:

Liam kind of predicts their demise here:

Dom

Covers Playlist

2011-01-16T15:08:00.000-08:00

A little while ago we toyed with the idea of covering Medium Medium's 'Hungry So Angry' and while we haven't actually done it (yet) it got me onto considering the question of; what are the all time greatest covers?

While in no way am I suggesting this is a definite list of those greatest covers, I'm confident some would appear on the all time list created by someone, somewhere, that knows better.

Playlist is in below spotify link as couldn't soundcloud due to rights and then youtube of Medium Medium. Apologies if you're not a spotify user. May rapidshare in next couple of days.

spotify:user:henrymolotov:playlist:6LJEmS297juDh50xS7CX4Q

Tracklisting:

(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction - Devo (Rolling Stones)

Pablo Picasso - David Bowie (The Modern Lovers)

Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds - William Shatner (The Bealtes)

As Tears Go By - Nancy Sinatra (Rolling Stones)

The End - Nico (The Doors)

Little Honda - Yo La Tengo (Beach Boys)

Under The Boardwalk - Tom Tom Club (The Drifters)

Subterranean Homesick Blues The Walkmen / Pussy Cats (Bob Dylan)

The Partisan - Electrelane (Anna Marly and Emmanuel d'Astier de la Vigerie)

Working In A Coal Mine - Devo (Allen Toussaint / Lee Dorsey)

Ceremony - Galaxie 500 (New Order)

Heroes - TV on the Radio (David Bowie)

Que Sera Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) - Sly & The Family Stone (Doris Day)

Mr. Tamborine Man - William Shatner (Bob Dylan)

(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction - Cat Power (Rolling Stones)

My Boys - Taken By Trees (Animal Collective)

Jackie - Scott Walker (Jacques Brel)

Leonard Cohen - The partisan (Anna Marly and Emmanuel d'Astier de la Vigerie)

p.s If I've got anything wrong with original artists etc, point out my stupidity by commenting below.

Henry

The Late Junction

2011-01-07T06:42:00.000-08:00

I’ve always been a fan of late night radio, there’s an intimacy and warmth not found on daytime radio, and it’s also a place for the unusual and the unexpected. I was weaned, like many, on the dulcet tones of John Peel’s Radio 1 show, where even if he didn’t play anything you liked you were sure to be entertained by some strange musing about meeting Morrissey at a service station or the fact that he had hung a shoe from the ceiling to teach his kids about surrealism. I also listened because I knew that there was a good chance I would hear something I had never heard before and from that moment on would have to listen to again and again.

There will never be a show like Peel’s again, however I would like to recommend The Late Junction on Radio 3 for anyone still searching for a show to fill that particular shaped hole in their hearts. The music is more jazz and modern composition orientated, but the show is delivered, by its variety of hosts, with a gentle sense of humour and with an obvious passion for the music they play. They often have loose themes for the show which in themselves can inspire, on their breakfast-orientated show they played a 5 minute recording of an egg being fried, which when I found myself frying an egg with Henry led to the invention of the 4’33 game where you wait in silence and appreciate the sound around you, harder than it sounds particularly when you’re inclined to giggle! The latest show’s theme is ‘Music for implausible events’ two themes which the hosts came up with were music for ‘A coming of age disco where only cover versions are played’ and rather more ominously ‘Music for Judgement Day’. Any ideas?

Dom

For Further Listening:

The Late Junction

Also recommended:

Resonance Fm

Zulu Winter Radio Mix # 1

2011-01-07T06:37:00.000-08:00

Zulu Winter Radio Mix # 1 by Dom Zulu
Invenzione Per John - Ennio Morricone
Imagine - Martin Martin
Interesting Results - Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
Tanzmusik - Kraftwerk
They say I'm something Different - Betty Davis
Love Dance Of The Saroos - Joe Meek & The Blue Men
The Times To Come - London Phogg
Yellow Wings - Keepaway
Keeping Up - Arthur Russell
Sisters, O Sisters - Yoko Ono
Fotomodelle - Piero Umiliani
Lorelei - Cocteau Twins
Toc - Tom Zé
Send My Love To Lucy - The Toyshop
60/40 - Nico
Cloud Song - The United States Of America
Program Me - Bruce Haack
She cracked - Modern Lovers
Taiso - Yellow Magic Orchestra

The Dust Blows Forward and The Dust Blows Back

2010-12-24T04:19:00.000-08:00

There's ole Gray with 'er dove-winged hat
Threre's ole Green with her sewing machine
Where's the bobbin at?
Tote'n old grain in uh printed sack
The dust blows forward 'n dust blows back
And the wind blows black thru the sky
And the smokestack blows up in suns eye
What am I gonna die?
Uh white flake riverboat just flew by
Bubbles popped big
'n uh lipstick Kleenex hung on uh pointed forked twig
Reminds of the bobby girls
Never was my hobby girls
Hand full uh worms and uh pole fishin'
Cork bobbin' like uh hot red bulb
'n uh blue jay squeaks
His beak open an inch above uh creek
Gone fishin' for a week
Well I put down my bush
'n I took of my pants 'n felt free
The breeze blowin' up me 'n up the canyon
Far as I could see
It's night now and the moon looks like uh dandelion
It's black now 'n the blackbird's feedin' on rice
'n his red wings look diamonds 'n lice
I can hear the mice toes scamperin'
Gophers rumblin' in pile crater rock hole
One red bean stuck in the bottom of uh tin bowl
Hot coffee from uh krimpt up can

Me 'n my girl named Bimbo Limbo Spam

Originally made available at Justin Sherill's Home Page Replica

Musical Friends # 1 - Honrada

2010-12-17T09:58:00.000-08:00

Hear's another track for you, this time provided by close friend Ed Banton. Ed has been writing on his own for a decade and a half but has only reared his head in the public arena these last three years in the form of Honrada. Akin to the oft ruthless mark e smith, Honrada has seen numerous line ups with a long long list of various ex drummers, guitarists, and bassists but has these last 2 years found a permanent line up of sorts who intermitenly pop up in various live venues.

Describing a friends band who you have played in and currently still play in is a difficult exercise. However, I would explain Honrada as such: My Bloody Valentine were famous for the part of their live set know as the Holocaust where they would play a part of a particular song that now escapes me, for about 12 minutes at an extreme volume. Kevin Sheilds has said that the point of this exercise was that they would only stop the onslaught once every person in that room had given themselves completely to the sound and entered a different mind and aural set in which the mind began to imagine or would hear something completely different within the barrage of noise. People have described going into trance like states where once they had become accustomed to the extreme level of sound, they would begin to hear melody lines skipping over the surface of the wall of sound, imagined or otherwise. This trick is not uncommon in music and can be linked to the notion that the gap in-between in notes is just if not more important than the choice of notes you play. Every frequency and note played has an affect on the others and the result can be that you will hear a whole composition of melodies and lines that are not being played. For me this is Honrada as an entirety. I have had the experience of listening to a mix of Ed's after a little magic rollup and could swear that I heard the music in 3D with oboes, flutes and strings coming at me from all around the room! In response to those that say I was just tripping because I was stoned are missing the point and it's worth noting I can't smoke much these days anyway and definitely stay away from what those pesky kids seem to smoke. The point is that the music is exploratory and as such enables you to explore the depths and collages of sound like any explorer would foray into an unknow jungle or wilderness. You just need your mind to open a little and allow it to start making it's own interpretations of the sound and soon it will just to become just another instrument. Reading this back I've realised you probably now think of me as a weird old hippy which I am definitely not but it's the only way I can describe what Ed does, why he does it and what Honrada attempt to create live.

I know Ed will probably read this and then I'll become another ex-member so I thought it wise to ask for his thoughts and got this back. Make of it what you want: 'Described by people who know what they're talking about (ie not you if you're reading this blog) as alternately 'a backward space orgasm' and 'a spaceship in a hurricane' - Honrada offer more imagination and colour than most - on record they go from 15 minute spectral kraut bliss to 3minute minimal systems bleep, hodge maneovres and straight out the back dust. Live they're a minute as a second with a table and chairs no compromise altitude. A bit like pushing your grandad down the stairs and telling people he slipped, it's once in a lifetime moment you'd have to be a serious fucking moron to resist. Are you really that European? No - Honrada is your real life Jenny.' So there you go.

Plus, Julian assange is a fan. Below track is called Bark which is probably the darkest thing Honrada have done to date but live, is a personal favorite of mine. More will follow over the coming months. Henry.

Bark by henryzulu

The Rise and Rise of Home Recording: But Is It All Music To Our Ears?

2010-12-11T02:42:00.000-08:00

Home recording is no longer the reserve of geeks and professionals. The cheapest PC can now run programmes with the same processing power as that of the most glamorous studio of the late Nineties, allowing anybody to record, produce, and mix their own material for next to nothing. Free recording programmes can be downloaded from a raft of sites, and if you buy a Mac you get Garageband as part of the package. What is more, home recording is romantic: the success of Bon Iver’s 2007 For Emma Forever Ago no doubt rested partly on it being the product of a three month retreat into the Wyoming wilderness with nothing but a guitar and a laptop.

But despite the freedom technology has given musicians, and the unique and interesting sound it can lend a recording, home-production has done strange things to the concept of a ‘good recording’. Much of such a concept is subjective; if the recording moves you, or makes you want to dance, or makes you want to meet the artist, or does the song justice, then it is doing its job. But there are other factors. Producers and engineers talk about ‘listener’s fatigue’ – if the treble is too accentuated then the track will sound very good for a short amount of time then become tiring to listen to. Similarly, mixing – the process through which all the seperate parts or tracks are made to sit together - is essential if the recording is going to be balanced. Neither of these processes can be done well without some unbearably costly equipment.

It is easy to point out the recordings that suffer from this syndrome. Bird Brain, the first album by alt-folk blogosphere darling TuneYards, was recorded with a PC, a dictaphone, and a copy of a free programme called Audacity. It’s pop at its most enthralling, and on first listen the lack of equipment seems to be a virtue: revving engines are chopped up to become beats, distorted voices are twisted into keyboard melodies. But after the fourth or fifth song the trashiness begins to jar, and by the album’s close not even her sublime song-writing and instrumentation can disguise the fact that the recording, no matter how inventive, is plain annoying. This is never more obvious than if you go and see her live, where the songs sound almost orchestral.

Now, by this logic it would seem that home production is a ‘bad thing’: it’s unlikely that anyone recording at home will be able to afford the equipment needed to avoid the recording being trashy or muddled. But this isn’t necessarily true: recording at home can give character – something unique that being in a studio sometimes smooths out too much. The risk though is that bad quality recordings become the norm, meaning that we cease to appreciate what good, well-engineered recordings have: depth. Will.

Broadcast - The Album Reborn?

2010-12-03T02:54:00.000-08:00

A point that is often forgotten when people talk about preferring vinyl to cds or mp3s, is that records were originally conceived for recording music and sound whereas cassette tapes, cds and mp3 have all been inventions to help reduce production costs and improve storage. The vinyl was an idea to complement sound, while later developments have in a sense been to serve the market. I’m not bemoaning a lost golden age, I’m much happier finding obscure mp3 on the internet than I would be in my 1930s home winding up my gramophone, however the reliance that music has on technology has led to some interesting places.

The vinyl record placed a platform on which musician and artists could perform on and within, this led to the album as a piece of work being around 40 minutes long, the best of which created an atmosphere or a world in which the listener could be immersed. Cds and mp3 have transformed this idea, no longer is there a set length of time or even a need for a collection of songs, just download the one you like.

However we still believe in the worth of an ‘album’ and I believe that Broadcast are bringing a fresh approach to this perhaps out moded form. Their latest two releases ‘Investigating Witch Trials in the Radio Age’ (An EP, but hopefully gets my point across!) and their tour cd ‘Mother is the Milky Way’, are both wonderfully balanced pieces of work with strong narratives which strengthen the individual songs contained within them. You are immediately engrossed in their world, songs and sounds merge like a child’s kaleidoscope, there is a disorientating sense that all is not well, that these works are messages from another time. Songs are obscured by unanswered telephones, a wistful melody is interrupted by a jaunty harpsichord, strange children’s rhythms, the manic voice of a man speaking in tongues, meandering synth lines and the sound of an oboe searching for a tune in the next door room all saturate the listener. Those of us who share an obsession with Broadcast will undoubtedly know of the many precursors and influences that the band have absorbed, but their approach to recording is both intriguing and inspiring, as it should be! Their live show are also defeating the expectations placed on a modern 'rock' band, but more on that another time. Until then wrap yourselves in as much of Broadcast as you can. Dom.

Some interesting links:

Broadcast’s web page: http://futurecrayon.blogspot.com/
Ghost Box: http://www.ghostbox.co.uk/

Below an audio trailer for ‘Investigating Witch Cults in the Radio Age’:

A relatively recent Broadcast live show:

Didcot Parkway

2010-11-28T06:52:00.000-08:00

I was sent this piece by a couple of friends who along with myself, used to frequently travel past this station as kids. An appropriate sonic soundscape I think! Henry.

The piece is called Didcot Parkway.

Didcot Parkway by henryzulu

Space, Boobs and Electronica

2010-11-10T03:00:00.000-08:00

Morning. Cracking music video to share with you this morning. A close friend's girlfriend sent me this shortly after I became single and obviously thought I may need a bit of female nakedness in my new and lonely life. Much appreciated.

If the guy stopped singing and someone else with a not so annoying voice took over, I'd be totally in love with this song. Henry.

EL GUINCHO | Bombay from MGdM | Marc Gómez del Moral on Vimeo.

Made me think of Jackson and His Computer Band who I haven't listened to in a while:

That made me think of this St. Albans chap:

End

Clean out those ears!

2010-10-21T04:42:00.000-07:00

About 3 months ago I was given a book entitled The Tuning of the World (The Soundscape) (1977) by R Murray Schafer. If you are interested in sound and acoustics in a general sense, this is a must. Dealing with the changes to our soundscapes throughout history Schafer provides us with an account and history of sound that was previously lacking. You can trace the history and changes to pretty much any medium bar sound which presents Schafer with the unenviable task of researching and drawing conclusions on the state of sound before recording into existence.

One idea he presents is that in moving from a hi-fi state (a smaller of sounds with a higher sonic quality) to a lo-fi state (numerous sounds and of a lesser sonic quality) we are becoming inept at identifying the most important and meaningful of sounds which historically have acted as alarms, signals, warnings and indicators. We are replacing natural sounds of beauty with monotone expressionless drones and beeps of poor quality and little significance; the standardization of tone. It's not hard to see this in evidence as you trudge your way through modern life. He presents many arguments along these lines and will draw your attention to evidence and books along the way. Not all the arguments are totally convincing and some are clearly out of date yet they will still be things that you've probably not thought about before.

This subject has potential to be a thankless, unconvincing and humourless exercise yet Schafer avoids these potential problems with his ability to make you think about sound but more importantly hear and listen in a way you've never thought possible... Clean out your ears and get listening!

Born on 18th July 1933, Schafer is a Canadian composer, soundscapes writer, music educator and environmentalist and coined the term schizophonia in 1969, the splitting of a sound from its source or the condition caused by this split: "We have split the sound from the maker of the sound. Sounds have been torn from their natural sockets and given an amplified and independent existence. Vocal sound, for instance, is no longer tied to a hole in the head but is free to issue from anywhere in the landscape." Henry.

Catherine Christer Hennix - The Forgotten Minimalist

2010-09-25T12:17:00.000-07:00

A Swedish-American composer, philosopher, scientist and visual artist associated with drone minimal music who oft stressed the importance of mathematics in music.

Each to their own but personally I would hunt down any interviews with her or get a copy of the this month's wire article as that's when she's at her most interesting. The below album is an acquired taste and definitely wouldn't be of interest to most people without some background inflab. A very interesting women to read about though that's for sure!

I would write more but to be honest this guy has already done a better job:

http://ghostcapital.blogspot.com/2010/09/catherine-christer-hennix-electric.html

Henry

Children Underground

2010-09-25T11:55:00.000-07:00

More people should watch this. 'Children Underground' is a 2001 documentary directed by Edet Belzberg and is focused upon a group of Romanian street children living in an underground station in Bucharest in the late 90's. It's a incredibly difficult piece of film to watch but one that is more than worth watching. More than once you'll find yourself questioning the crew's refusal to intervene in certain situations...

Although the home conditions from which these young people fled are repugnant to our sensibilities, it's clear there is more to their endurance of street life... When one boy is asked what he likes best about living in the streets, he thinks a moment and then shouts, "I get to live FREE!" and does a little dance to illustrate. A fascinating insight into the effects of ill advised post communist laws. To use another's words: It hurt my heart. Henry.