SENSORIA
27th May 2011
7.30pm €10 BYOB
SENSORIA
nights of experimental and emerging music and performance
PACIFIC 231 (Fr, Rotorelief)
WITHERING ZITHERING (Ed Devane, Fyed, Meljoann)
A MECHANICAL TURK (Hulk)
PACIFIC 231
Pacific 231 is the project of Pierre Jolivet, a French musician now residing in Ireland. It came into existence in the early 80s and belonged to the first wave of industrial groups. Early albums were released by Le Syndicat, Cause And Effect & Bunker Records. Invaluable assistance in due time was given by Psyclones with whom Pierre recorded a couple of albums under the Psy 231 moniker, which were released on their label Ladd-Frith.
While the early Pacific 231 albums like “Thulé Apocalypse” and “Unusual Perversions” show us the bridge between power electronics and old school industrial, the later ones are much more experimental in sound and appeals to quite another perception type — in no way to some numb stupor and paralyzing fear but to a complex balance of concentration and relaxation, governed by the harmony of resonances and transitional processes. The research was made on highly organic and self-consumed struggle occuring on the speculative level. Pierre is extremely exact in dealing with musical matter, slightly elucidating only those areas that do not bring danger though are not particularly flattering to your ears. His focus is primarily on sound – awkward, free of gloss but not free of sonic charm.
Recently Pierre’s activity has slowed and his style has undergone substantial changes, moving far from noise music into the sphere of experimental electronics and synthetic sound.
WITHERING ZYTHERING
Zither – a musical stringed instrument with strings stretched over a flat sounding board.
Wither – to render speechless or incapable of action.
Withering Zithering is the name given to Ed Devane’s zither music project. Working in tandem with his more rhythmic work, this music has until quite recently remained unheard to all but its creator. Whereas most of the music released under the name Ed Devane is relatively noisy, rhythmic, and machine-like, Withering Zithering is lush, ambient and organic. Using a home made zither and hands, metal bars and sticks to manipulate this source, Devane shows a side to his music only hinted at on his official releases. This music is predominantly made in the evenings, in the hour or two before bedtime. This sense of calm is reflected in pieces such as “Slipstreams” and “Clear”.
A MECHANICAL TURK
Thomas Haugh records under the name Hulk. He has produced two albums for OSAKA records (Silver thread of ghosts – 2005 and Rise of a Mystery Tide – 2008) as well as producing materials for labels such as Melodic, Static Caravan and Expanding Records. He has also remixed works by other artists, most notable Efterklang from their most recent album. A MECHANICAL TURK is a new departure into darker more experimental territory.