Self Portrait/Chest II

Sunday gallery. Chest II - trash on cartoon, dimensions: mystical

Chest II

Chest II, detail

Chest II, detail

Chest II, detail

Chest II, detail

Chest II, detail

Sounds from underground/File N°012

in our tour around the world in a research of underground sounds today we are visiting Borneo. I'm glad to present you a experimental noise maker <<Theo Nugraha>>. you can find much more releases from Nugraha here https://theonugraha.bandcamp.com/music dig it!



0. name of the band 
I use my own name, Theo Nugraha 

1. where are you from? 
I'm from Samarinda (East Borneo) and now I'm living on Palangkaraya (Central Borneo) 

2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use?
I'm using tools like piezo, Casio keys, walkman, music toys, Nintendo DS, Circuit bending etc 

3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene? 
music will always continue grow and always appear something new. It sound interesting. I always be a part in my friend's scene 

4. which is your method of composition? 
Improvisation, emotional, and communication 

5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique? 
Sometimes, I make a good recording if I'm with my friend. But if I do make recording itself, It's gonna be simple because lack of tools 

6. do you play live? how public react to your music? 
Yes, I do. Whatever people thought. I ever see people are enjoyed, and there is also people are watching and then make a question "what was that?" and sometimes people think I do a sound check LOL 

7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you?
more or less like that. For me it's like a painting which sometimes cannot be re-paint. Then as sound documentation or moments for me and my friends. 

Sounds from underground/File N°011

here we come again with wonderful stuff from Eastern Europe,«The Son of a Seagull» is a noisy electronic project from Kiev. A lot of dark wave atmospheres that can bring you out there.




0. name of the band
Name of my current project is «The Son of a Seagull», however it’s very hard to say what I want in frames of one «project». So I got some more stuff under «Ignore the virus» (dark and blind industrial) and «Drama through the virtue» (concrete-ambient both you will be able to find on bandcamp).

1. where are you from?

I born in Town with giant snakes underfoot, which is Kiev. My family lives there from the 16th century and I could be treated as a local. It’s my favorite city and it's worth to have another interview about it. The town had a great no-wave musical background, check "Ivanov down» or «МЕДЛЕННЫЙ РУЛЬ» (slow wheel) and you will be surprised by both of them. Thats artist from 90s, today a lot of shit happens with our stage but I guess its problem of whole post-soviet society. 

2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use?

If we are talking about last album of «The Son of a Seagull»  I was using kind of "analogue wall of sound" method. For drum parts its samples from MFB-503, synths like mopho keyboard, doepfer dark energy 2 and roland alpha juno with guitar pedals. For Drone parts or noises I prefer to use field recordings from my portable zoom h4n mixed with pitched down old 7 inch vinyls from my collection. what else… guitar and jazz bass recorded through the amp on shitty mic with chorus. I’m not using the same gear usually each track contain different extent of each instrument which I mentioned. Sometimes I was using «handmade» synths there. 

3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene?

Well, i think as far as I’m sophisticated listener of different music I can say that I was inspired by many dark wave artists like Störung, Play dead or November Növelet e.t.s. But i can’t say that I’m in the flow of some movement. Of course right now in Kiev we got some sort of «synth» oriented artists but I never spoke with them and to be honest I hate them. I’m staying not in the dark underground with broken furniture and ruins, I’m staying in quiet lone grey room with grey-white striped wallpaper (if you  need to know how my personal studio look like) there you can find me sitting for weeks in process of execution. However, I will not mind if I my material gonna happen in some kind of new fucked up «-wave» genre. Right now I’m fully in dark wave but this is rather way of thinking then style of music.

4. which is your method of composition?

Despite the fact that I have tons of gear (I didn’t mentioned everything from question 2) I prefer to put a lot of attention on my own mental condition. Things which I’m usually doing, done by free jazz approach. I already have this tracks in mind all I need to do it’s just represent it on record. To do it properly it’s much better to assess my condition during the period of recording. For example, understand "what disturbs so much?» or «should I look on the sun so often?». By just asking such sort questions you can establish your own logical chain where you supposed to be in the most comfortable place. Only after understanding of this comfort I can sit and do what I do. Today a lot of musicians are too much bothering about the composition and the technical side of it. I agree, when you have only laptop you can’t understand that you are a magican not a musician or something… but I passed this «laptop» stage with the same philosophy and even simple sequencer is pretty much enough for magic. If I put it unclear just read some lectures of great guy George Gurdjieff and maybe you will understand what I mean here.

5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique?

Technical part in my process is very simple, I’m just using Ableton live to record each instrument and then I mix it by pretty much the same pattern adding echoes, reverbs and sometimes more complicated circuits of effects. Everything which happening «before» is absolute mess. Sometimes I am putting 4-6 guitar overdrives just on one delay and tape player on the start. I never thinking about such stuff I’m just improvising like Cecil Taylor but in studio with equipment.

6. do you play live? how public react to your music?

I can’t say that I got a lot of experience in live because of my town. Of course it's excuse, I was playing live there no more then 10 times as a Dj with sets of trip hop. Today I had played my music only in Warsaw and it's really great because of nice and open people. Today techno rules in Kiev and it's a big shame that nobody interested in my music there. I’m planning to strike back on local stages when i will get some kind of reputation abroad. I don’t know the reaction of people because I’m not interested in this. Reaction is only first stage of understanding and it’s much more essential to get interpretation from listener then simple reaction.

7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you?

I’m doing music since childhood and I can associate it with different episodes in my life. As far as I’m here by «The Son of a Seagull»  material I can say definitely that it brings me on the limb. Place where you able to transform in something else or die in agony. Basically my records it's like something between story and psychological portrait of me in different perspective. For listener it's a great chance to associate it with something else and make new meaning of it.

Images from underground/File N°004

 
horror, disturb, nightmare. today we'll have a bad trip. or a great trip, it's a point of view. anyway it's sure that the art of Thomas Stetson won't leave you untouched. if you can't stop to watch it (like me) more you'll find here https://www.facebook.com/Foul-Apparatus-425423467612094/timeline?ref=page_internal

"Disability & Disease "

1. where are you from?
Originally from Massachusetts U.S.A raised by a working class family and lived in a poor neighborhood. Stuck around the New England area with my wife till 2008 and moved to North Carolina. Currently residing in a trailer park surrounded by degenerate swine.

2. do you use any particular tools/materials/methods during the working process?
Mainly use sharpie pens for the outlining and microns for the detailing, especially in my art journals. On bigger pieces I stain the paper with coffee and ink dye. I don't use color very often. 

3. how is your working process?
OBSESSION 

4. what do you think about the art market nowadays?
Not much. I have little or no contact with other people. 

"Untitled"

5. do you exhibit your works? how do you place yourself in actual art context?
I exhibited my work at two different locations. One of which is an outsider art gallery, not sure if I quite fit in with that crowd. I draw a lot of inspiration from old medical illustrations and artwork by psychotics. 
 
6. is there a common idea that go across all your works?
I put a lot of emphasis on mental illness, really try to make a physical/visual representation of a psychological hell especially of my own. Social Anxiety. Disease. Outsider. Poverty. Malnourished. A young man I met in a psychiatric ward put it best: "It's like pictures from a medical book from the dark ages. They are all infected."

Sounds from underground/File N°010

a debut release of experimental german duo <<Raune & McCartney>>. very, very well done! enjoy!

0. name of the band 

Raune & McCartney.

1. where are you from? 

Pogo McCarntey: Berlin and Münster in Germany.

2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use? 

Pogo McCartney: Previously basses, organ, metal sheets and a lot of effects.

Raune: Mostly an electric bass, synthesizers, various noise generators/boxes, pedals, gongs and other traditional Chinese instruments.

3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene? 

Pogo McCartney: Growing up I needed a sense of security and I saw myself as part of the punk/hardcore scene. This has, of course, influenced my music and me. I still have many friends in that scene. Today, I’d say, I feel have distanced myself from that very scene. Being part of one scene does in a way limit ones freedom. I’ve neglected a variety of inputs (music, art, and other influences), while exclusively focusing on bands and artists that are connected to the punk/hardcore scene.  

Raune: I feel the same way. Most of my friends are somehow connected to the punk/hardcore scene. I still go to shows, but less often. Personally, I still feel connected to that scene, but more to the people, while lowly drifting away from the music. For the past few years I’ve been searching for novel musical input of various kinds, as I got more and more bored of listening to bands, new and old, that apply similar musical patterns. A good friend of mine (also with a punk background), who is into noise music, introduced me to a few artists. Shortly after, I was fascinated by this kind of music - especially noise, drone, ambient etc. But so far, mostly because I have not played live, I don't consider myself to be part of that particular scene, even though it is a vital one.

4. which is your method of composition? 

Pogo McCartney: We don't use any method in particular, and mostly improvise.

Raune: We try to interact while playing/recording. It works quite well, as we both know what the other is doing and which direction he wants to move to.  

5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique? 

Pogo McCartney: Nothing special. I have recorded both of our releases myself. Basically just setting a microphone in front of the speakers with a few additional microphones in the room. The percussive elements are simply connected with contact microphones. No big thing.

6. do you play live? how public react to your music? 

Pogo McCartney: We have performed once. A friend of ours, Hendrik Otremba, who is the singer of my other band, Messer, read an excerpt of his upcoming novel and we provided background music, sound that accompanied the text.

Raune: I am going to play a first show at a festival organized by the guys that run the econore label which released our recordings.

7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you? 

Pogo McCartney: Music, thats the main thing. 

Raune: We do not do this music, because it is fashionable or on vogue. More people seem to like experimental/noise music, because some artists get some attention in the media. We play this music, because we like it. Most importantly, we enjoy working with and exploring sounds.

in the meanwhile in Prague

Self Portrait/Urban Crash

another 3d piece made with trash. enjoy

Urban Crash

Urban Crash, detail

Urban Crash, detail

Urban Crash, detail

Urban Crash, detail

Images from underground/File N°003

for the third scene of "images from underground" we'll explore <<Art of Jude>>. dig it!

"Blood Forest"
acrylic on canvas panel

1. where are you from?
Lake Arthur, Louisiana USA
2. do you use any particular tools/materials/methods during the working process?

"#9 - VI"
edited vintage photo

I use my hands and fingers
 



3. how is your working process?
I'm an impatient painter sometimes... so I quickly paint abstract.
 

"Nothing Much to See Here"

4. what do you think about the art market nowadays?
the art market nowadays needs to expand. we need more art in schools and in the world.

"Crucified Alien #4"
acrylic on canvas

      5. do you exhibit your works? how do you place yourself in actual art context?
no, I don't exhibit my work. I just paint what i feel.

Untitled

6. is there a common idea that go across all your works?
no, not really...

more works of Judson you can find on his facebook right here https://www.facebook.com/juds.art/

Sounds from underground/File N°009

 a dark sound with best elements of industrial - <<Slow Slow Loris>> - it's what you expect should come out from the Berlin scene and I can ensure you won't be disappointed 



on the bandcamp you can get this wonderful black cassette that offers you 50 minutes of pleasure

0. name of the band
Slow Slow Loris
1. where are you from?
we are based in Berlin
2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use?
Our live set up varies from set to set but we always have 3 pedal boards, a sampler, a digital effect board with ableton live, contact mics that amplify sometimes inexplicable objects, and a violin or other stringed instrument. And that all fits nicely into our two flight cases!
But in our studio, it’s a different story. It’s overflowing with digital and analogue synthesizers, guitars, a bass, lots of metal sound sources, many more pedals coz Angie is the pedal queen, a collection of flutes and toys and some mannequin arms.
3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene?
We’re not sure what is going on in the mainstream music world these days, since we are surrounded by a vibrant experimental music scene in Berlin. This scene is composed of different groups with everything from conceptual to laptop to circuit makers and benders to harsh noise industrial people to machine destroyers and re-builders to instrument inventors and so on. We feel like we don't really fit in any of these categories either, but are influenced by all of them.
4. which is your method of composition?
Occasionally, we begin with an idea, but more often than not, we begin quite rawly with improvisation, hoping it will lead us to some unknown delight. For Angie, this has a somatic focus, whereas Robert is more driven by the sound itself.
Sometimes all the sound, melodies, lyrics, and even structure, come instantly. Other times, just one aspect of a song comes out and we continue to develop it through more improvisation.
We record these improvisations and through listening back, we slowly refine and define the song step by step.
5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique?
We tend to record by playing everything in the moment but occasionally, we lay down individual tracks and add layers.
6. do you play live? how public react to your music?
we play live frequently.
often people get emotional.
sometimes people don't understand it.
sometimes people think it is unique, like it’s its own thing.
(we are currently organizing a southern european tour. please get in touch if anyone has suggestions.)
7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you?
journeys of our life and the liberation of its expression...
the meeting of our own reflection..

Sounds from underground/File N°008

  and from Odessa we move to Puerto Rico. a good portion of anarchopunk with <<República Bananera>>. movingly.

Ocupation! Ocupation! Ocupation! 

0. name of band

República Bananera

1. where are you from? 

Northwest coast of Puerto Rico.

2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use? 

For these recordings just my Devlin Imposter guitar (chinese surf guitar replica), a Fender Mustang iii and 2 tom toms. That’s it.

3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene? 

There has been new wave of bands coming out in the last years, we've played great shows together but I wouldn't call it a scene. 

Music nowadays is going through a very tragic situation. But i guess we'll just have to accept it, there won't be anymore Tchaikovskys or Wagners around. 

4. which is your method of composition? 

Most of the time the words come first, which are just lines that come to my mind during any time of the day while I’m thinking about certain subjects. Then I put some riffs to the lyrics and it’s done. I don’t really polish my songs, it’s all very minimalistic, very simple.

5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique?

My principle when it comes to creating (and pretty much life in general) is to stay primitive. Recording ‘techniques’ may vary. Most of the time I capture the live sound with a cheap mic. I don’t really like the direct recording approach. All my recordings are done in a portable digital recorder, where they are mixed too. I like to keep things unsophisticated and as raw as they naturally are; no computer tricks. 

6. do you play live? how public react to your music? 

República Bananera is in early stages, not sure if it will go 'live' but judging from my experience with my other project ‘Madd Blake Y Los Stalins’ I've noticed that people don't know how to react to something different from what they're used to even if they dig it, but after a few songs they get into it.

7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you? 

Perfectly described. This project expresses my thoughts and rejection of the current situation in our country as a colony of the US: cultural destruction, invasion of multinational corporations, resources exploitation and many forms of experimentation... so for me it’s an historical document in a way.

The whole artistic scene is very much focused on trends, ‘coolness’ and fashion. Many people perceive music (and other kinds of art) as some kind of entertainment or background music to get drunk or get high, which results in devaluation; for me is much more than that.

 

República Bananera's debut EP will be out soon on Krampus Records. Don't miss it!

What to do tonight

what to do if tonight you're in Prague https://www.facebook.com/events/1748004238760855/

Sounds from underground/File N°007

we never stay in the same place so today we're moving to Odessa to hear this magical traumatic and psychedelic sound -  СЕСТРА ХАМЕЛЕОН or Sestra Hameleon, it's what will make your weekend special. stay tuned cause underground never sleeps.

 
0. name of the band
СЕСТРА ХАМЕЛЕОН (Ukrainian pronunciation [Sestra Hameleon] “Sister Chameleon”) 
1. where are you from?
We are from Odessa, Ukraine 
2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use?
Soviet bass, expensive electro guitar, drums and karaoke mic. 
3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene?
Today we see our music as a part of the great internet-salad which is full of genres and young blood generation 
4. which is your method of composition?
Write some lyrics from the dreams. Tune the guitar in noise of public humor. Lead your bass to the dark side of snake charming. Muscle atrophy drumming is all we need to be. Just playing on Saturday’s morning. 
5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique?
The main purpose of our music is catching a ghost. We use Portable Audio Digital Recorder 
6. do you play live? how public react to your music?
We like to play live most of all. On 21st January will be a gig at our hometown. With the family again after all these isolation days in empty rooms. Audience clap hands doesn't matter what you are playing. Take your daughter by the hand, be quiet with killing jokes. Let your friends be themselves. Picture masks on the dance floor and drink your fresh juice after working hours. 
7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you?
In childhood we played Indians, now we are playing rockers. These records represent a reflection of inborn wildness.

if you're 21 January in Odessa don't miss it

Self Portrait/Post-Rain

have a good weekend. wir sind kalte sterne

Post-rain

Post-rain,detail

Post-rain,detail

Post-rain,detail

Sounds from underground/File N°006

today I want to present you a recent discover that enthuse me in a way few things could. we're talking about <<ILD I DIT ANSIGT>>
this danish dada project apart of wonderful weird music propose that kind of performance you should see at least one time in your life. I hope I could see them once. let's pray with me.

on their website http://www.ildiditansigt.nu/ you can find more informations and this video that will explain you what I'm talking about



if you think you're cool cause you know Kommissar Hjuler und Mama Bar, ok you're cool, but if you want to be more just throw yourself into ILD I DIT ANSIGT


and now it's time for our classical interview

0. name of the band
ILD I DIT ANSIGT, which is ”fire in your face” or ”your face on fire” in danish.
1. where are you from?
Aarhus, Denmark.
2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use?
Every object we can get our hands on which produces an interesting sound.
Often toys. As for conventional instruments we have used guitars with various effect-pedals, looping pedals and Korg volca synthesizers.
3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene?
We definitely owe a lot to the underground noise, shitcore and performance art scene in Aahus, which has inspired us and allowed for some fun collaborations.
4. which is your method of composition?
Improvisation. We are never able to repeat anything we to. But we think a lot about the visual composition of our performances.
5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique?
We record with phones, cameras, PCs. One advantage is that they are mobile. We sometimes edit improvisations into sound-collages.
6. do you play live? how public react to your music?
Yes. Right now, we are mainly a live-act. A lot of our stuff has not been documented or recorded. People react very differently. It also depends on what we do.

7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you?
Love Gen P. and TOPY. Our performances are rituals. What we do is daDa-ist guerilla-warfare.  thanks to the band for all the material

Sounds from underground/File N°005

we're back to update you about the Seoul music scene today. 1:11. they're cool so just put on the record and listen.

0. name of the band

1:11. You can read it as one eleven, or just ildaesibil.

1. where are you from?

We're both from Seoul.

2. what kind of instruments/equipment you use?

We're guitar/drums duo.

3. what do you think about the music context nowadays and how you place yourself in? do you feel a part of any scene? 

I think rock music is rather decreasing scene, while electronic and other experimental scenes have possibilities to expand. The music I like derive from very small scenes that I've never encountered in real life. Even though there're few music scenes in Seoul, I don't think I've ever met any scene which play music I really like. I owe Youtube and Soulseek, Bandcamp.

4. which is your method of composition? 

We meet once in a while and jam about 2 hrs and get 4 cool songs and forget them.

5. how is your recording approach? do you use some particular record technique? 

I got supported from a movie director, Chan-ki Kim, who recently made a movie called <A murder diary of the bug girl> as I made the music and audio effects in the movie. He was one of the fans of my band, and wanted to make the movie as some kind of musical experiment. We used the money to practice and record in a studio. It was Mushroom Recordings in Seoul, knew this guy for yrs, and was so sure he could record this easy as pie and he did.

6. do you play live? how public react to your music?

We used to play live once or twice in a month, but the drummer John's now at the military and can't meet him a lot. It's a bullshit for guys in the scenes to go to military and spend two yrs in military.

7. Genesis P-Orridge said "Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant.". What do your records represent to you?

I saw a news today that David Bowie died. This old man just had a birthday and got an album released like 3 days ago, and I thought fuck, I should get done my shit together, and uploaded the file on Bandcamp.

  

Self Portrait/Little Venus

some pics to survive the week that is coming. anyway the weekend is also hard to survive

Little Venus

 

 

 

 

Little Venus, detail

Little Venus, detail