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| New,
new, new, bands, record label, art, books, media, things... |
 THE
LAZE.... New prog food from the North West, UK tour with USPILON
ACRUX, concept album release, prog as f... here comes a massive outburst
of news direct from the band....
OCTOURBER: “We start our UK tour supporting Upsilon Acrux October 1st.
Yes, that's a fortnight away & YES we are psyched. Upsilon Acrux
are one of the best contemporary avantech acts out there and they are travelling
all the way from LA. Seeing them live is going to be devastating!
We are privileged”. (dates further down)
FEAST OF THE TAIL (Oct 2-3) – “As part of the tour we are playing the all-day
festival Feast Of The Tail in Liverpool. This is part of a two day
extravagonzo festus organised by Samizdat, Meshuggy, Evol & Valhalla.
Headlining the Friday night (curated by Meshuggy & Evol) are HEALTH
(another band from LA) supported by the most excellent Balloons
& others. Headlining the Saturday (Samizdat & Valhalla) are
Upsilon
Acrux with a.P.A.t.T., us, Honey Ride Me A Goat and loads
more supporting. It promises to be the best DIY festival in Liverpool since
records began. It will be taking place in none other than Liverpool's Theatre
of the Absurd: The Kazimier. Hot Rad.”
SPACETIME FABRIC CONDITIONER (Stopping the Nightmare From Not Dying) -
The long overdue concept LP is finally being released. After experiencing
every type of technical nightmare, moving studios countless times and basically
losing faith in reality we have finished it! And to be incredibly
modest... IT SOUNDS BEAST! We are doing a limited CD & VHS release
for the UK tour. We will then be officially releasing it on digipak
& 12" vinyl in November. The artwork is looks absolutely amazing,
we have the genius of Dan McPharlin to thank for that. I have to
say now and will continue saying forever: We couldn't have done it without
our producer extrordinaire Rich Hurst! The patience of this man surpasses
all, nevermind his exquisite string & horn arrangements. He is
now officially the 7th member of The Laze, whether he likes it or not.”
“Extra thanks to Organ Mag (say the band) for playing excerpts from the
LP for 3 weeks running on their show on Resonance FM. Thanks for
the support!!!” – Ha, we haven’t even started, tune in next week, and the
week after (and the week after unless the Resonance bosses kick us off...)
PHANTOM OF THE OPERA – “In further LZZZ news: We have just been commissioned
to compose a new soundtrack for the 1925 silent horror classic Phantom
Of The Opera. We will be performing this live in the big screen at
FACT cinema, obviously beneath the screen while the film is projected.
This is all in celebration of the remastered DVD release. We are
quite possibly going to be on the international DVD release as an alternative
soundtrack, along with Rick Wakeman's version. The performance and
DVD release dates have yet to be announced, it will most likely be toward
the end of the year. We shall keep you informed...
Lots more Laze news and such via www.myspace.com/thelaze.
Here at Organ we think The Laze rule, they are right to say they sound
beast, The Laze are beast! The album was reviewed a couple of weeks ago
and personally, I can’t wait for the tour – THE LAZE, UPSILON ACRUX and
HONEY RIDE ME A GOAT TOGETHER... that might just be too much for one night!
The progggggest thing ever! Proger than a man in a red dress and a foxes
head!
Ah hell, here's the album review again.... it originally ran here back
in August when they sent us a demo version... hence the refrences to the
demo...
ALBUM
REVIEW: THE LAZE – Spacetime Fabric
Conditioner – This isn’t really a demo, this is things in progress and
an early taste of some kind of masterwork and an album almost ready for
release – pay attention serious forward looking cutting edge prog-friendly
labels out there, I think they’re looking for someone to take notice and
put this out - and someone really should, this is seriously good! We’re
talking some kind of instantly attention-demand frontline blend of the
best side of brooding Faith No More fused with the progressive drama and
seriously challenging adventure of classic King Crimson. Radiant keyboards,
moody mountains of imaginative light and shade and stop the boat, the jester,
the lark’s tongue is aspic, all lighthouse keepers and whoever’s helping
young Washington to cut that cherry tree down for one mad-dive prog rock
clock-ticking lawn-mowing minute, stop everything! We have a serious band
here, this just might be the missing link that glues together the classic
English prog of long past days and the forward looking musical adventure
of now. This is cutting edge post-whatever you got for people who understand
the glorious beauty of early Genesis, the dramatic adventure of Van Der
Graaf or classic King Crimson, this is all that kicked in to a slightly
twisted here and now with such gutsy passion, with such understanding of
what this thing we call prog is really about... This is the real deal,
this is proper full-on unashamed cool as f**k cutting edge expertly crafted
dirty-fingered keyboard driven, sax-fuelled twisted English prog rock adventure
and when they get the release details sorted we’ll delve a lot further
in and tell a hell of a lot more about how brilliant it is...
You can catch The Laze on tour in the UK with Upsilon Acrux and Honey Ride
Me A Goat at the start of October, now that is going to be a serious event
of a tour, those three bands together is almost too much! More from www.myspace.com/thelaze
UPSILON
ACRUX OCTOBER UK TOUR, that’s right, one of the finest avant-prog outfits
in the world are heading thing way for the first time ever, LA’s Upsilon
Acrux are coming! The dates: 1st October - Chatham with The Laze
Honey Ride Me A Goat @ Tap N Tin, 2nd - Milton Keynes with The Laze
Action Beat @ The Crown), 3rd – Liverpool with a.P.A.t.T, The Laze and
more, All-day fest @ The Kazimier), 4th - Worcester @ The Firefly, with
The Laze, 5th –TBC, 6th London with The Laze and Honey Ride Me A Goat -
Upset The Rhythm @ Barden's Boudoir, 7th –Leeds with The Laze, That Fucking
Tank and Cowtown @ Brudenell Centre – then off to Ireland... 8th - Dublin
@ The Lower Deck, 9th Cork @ The Quad – www.myspace.com/upsilonacrux
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| D*FACE... |
 LONDON
STREET ARTIST D*FACE TO LAUNCH SOLO EXHIBITION IN NYC - Ludovico Aversion
Therapy / All Your Dreams Are Owned By Us @ Jonathan LeVine Gallery
September 12th October 10, 2009
Press release here says “New York's Jonathan LeVine Gallery is pleased
to present Ludovico Aversion Therapy / All Your Dreams Are Owned By Us,
a solo exhibition of new original works and multiples by the London-based
street artist known as D*Face returning to the gallery for his debut solo
show in the United States; in conjunction with a site-specific, street-level
installation. The show title Ludovico Aversion Therapy references
a futuristic human behaviour reconditioning treatment from A Clockwork
Orange (the 1972 cult-classic film by Stanley Kubrick), in which the patient’s
eyelids are forced open to watch disturbing footage containing subliminal
messages.
Artist statement: “If you've ever wondered what goes on inside of my mind,
this body
of
work is it. A visual interpretation of lucid dreams - the replaying, disassembly
and reconfiguring of images held in one’s mind... it's as much 'Exquisite
Corpse’ as everyday Ludovico Aversion Therapy”
Re-interpreting the exquisite corpse concept, each piece in Ludovico Aversion
Therapy features a singular composite subject created using an amalgamation
of various branded corporate identity mascots combined with classic superhero
characters, interspersed with typography derived from comic book art and
advertising. Having spliced these elements into thin segments of recognisable
information, the artist scrambles the pieces then stacks them vertically,
re-assigning features to form mismatched conglomerate faces and deliver
a powerfully graphic impact. Paintings and etchings in this exhibition
feature the artist’s signature tongue-in-cheek aesthetic, known for creating
two and three-dimensional work using a variety of mediums and techniques.
Incorporating pop iconography with satirical commentary and anti-establishment
values, D*Face questions the increasing turnover and bombardment of imagery
by the media as well as how much (if any and what parts) we recall, digest
and retain. Extracting elements from the endless stream of visual stimuli
absorbed daily by our conscious and subconscious, the artist re-works and
subverts imagery appropriated from comics, currency, corporate advertising,
and cultural figures - drawing from decades of materialistic consumption
in our media-saturated society".
ABOUT THE ARTIST - "D*Face is a London-based sculptor and street artist.
His artwork has been exhibited in galleries and on the streets of cities
around the world. For over ten years, his wall stencils and three dimensional
urban interventions have tested public awareness and resistance when faced
with visual alternatives to corruptive, persuasive commercial advertising.
Reoccurring themes include: celebrity, fame, and mortality. The artist
uses the term aPOPcalyptic to describe his work, which often features images
of cultural icons as a commentary on conspicuous consumption in popular
culture. D*Face’s early artistic inspirations include pop artists such
as Lichtenstein, Haring and Warhol. Additional influences include: punk
music, graffiti, skateboarding and skate magazines featuring graphic artists
like Jim Philips and Pushead.” Find out more about D*Face at www.dface.co.uk,
the gallery is at www.jonathanlevinegallery.com
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| FUNCTION
RECORDS |
 FUNCTION
RECORDS are one of those little labels who’ve been consistently releasing
interesting things for a good few years now. Based in the South of England
and without really shouting and being all tediously scenester and cooler
than you about it, they’ve been building a rather impressive catalogue
of recordings. A more than decent release record and a more than healthy
attitude when it comes to doing those things that keep the underground
networks flowing, evolving and all together alive with good music, art
and cross pollination – something a few others could take note of in these
spam-the-world and don’t bother thinking zineless times of FaceSpace where
even the smallest of bedroom operators think they need to act like a copy
of the corporate product pushing machine. We really have had enough of
all these ego-breeding rich-kid mummy-funded bedroom labels and their mates
with start-up PR companies who think they’re more important that the music
and the bands they claim to care so much about... Function just get out
there and just quietly do it without all the ego and bulpoop and the look
at us aren’t we cool. A refreshing throwback to the best days of zines
and real undergrounds and John Peel and communication, the sprit of contact
and switch the other... And that’s all reflected in the music. They may
not be up there with the genuinely radical cutting edge leaders like Skin
Graft or Cuneiform or taking the daring musical risks of Loaf but they
are releasing solidly good, rather consistent slices of quietly challenging
always interesting alternative mathy indie punky post-whatever...
We could do with a few more like Function, a genuine badge of something
or other and we’re rather pleased to see a batch of new releases from Shane
and co... Right, enough blowing smoke up people’s holes,
let’s dive in and see what’s new...
x |
 LATEST
FUNCTION RELEASES
ALBUM
REVIEW: NITKOWSKI – Chauffeurs (Function) – From London with
some blustery scratchy, rather busy, spiky, mathy alt.rock (and some rather
intriguingly strange looking artwork). Itchy music, itchy and scratchy
and with a sometimes shouty man adding vocals that never push too much
at you – their pecking at your head is kind of positive. This is good,
there’s a lot of this scratch indie shouty mathy rock complexity around
- you’ve got to have an edge these days, a bit of depth to stand out, something
a little more, Nitkowski do... Tumbling up stairs, cantankerously good,
alive with energy , razor sharp, jagged, slightly worrying, mangled and
knotted and if they do have a Don Cabellero feel then we’re talking Don
Cab with a broken bottle and a menacing look in their collective eyes.
Nitkowski have a sense of light and shade, a genuine need to push at the
edges rather than just follow the pack, something good evolving here –
www.myspace.com/nitkowski
SINGLE
REVIEW: ON HISTORIES OF ROSENBERG – On Histories Of Rosenberg
(Function) – A rather refined four track self-titled EP from the Southern
English band. A five piece with a healthy glow about them, I’m guessing
this is their debut. Progressive post-rock Englishness that has a warm
dew-fresh glisten to it, they’re in to those rather current indie-mathy
areas again, that quietly spiralling epicness, those slightly angsty vocal
lines - they have heir own beauty though, a comfort not questioned,
and they understand the power of understated restraint and that a quiet
less is so often so much more than more noise and aggression. Emotional
English indie-prog that takes you out with the leaves and fields and things
awoken. That throaty vocal style again but On Histories have a refined
bit of class and craft to them and without being dramatically different,
these are Impressively hopeful uplifting and sometimes rather beautiful
first moves - www.myspace.com/ofrosenberg
ALBUM
REVIEW: YOU'RE SMILING NOW BUT WE'LL ALL
TURN INTO DEMONS - Contact High With Da Demons (Function) - The awkwardly
named UK band (Portsmouth actually) are back with their latest album and
their first release on Function since 2003’s split with Escanna. They’re
dealing in a fuzzy heady mix of Sabbath psychedelia for Sonic Youth heads,
an alt-rock song-based psych-drone and this is probably their best release
to-date. A positive forward-moving edgy drone, fuzz-punks and Melvins and
Dead Meadow rolling along in a demonically smiling colourful kind of way...
www.myspace.com/thedemons
As
previously reported, Function Records take there turn at RoTa this coming
Saturday afternoon (15th August), the bill this Saturday features EX-LIBRAS,
SLY AND THE FAMILY DRONE, MONROE EFFECT
and YOU’RE SMILING NOW BUT
WE’LL ALL TURN INTO DEMONS. First band on at 4.00pm, all well worth
checking out, free to get in, Nottinghill, London town, over by the Barclays
Bank jsut down the road from the tube, big bold wooden doors and crash
barriers outside are the only real give away to where the basement venue
is...
Meanwhile
NITKOWSKI
playLondon's
93 Feet East along side
KNIFEWORLD (the new band put together by
Kavus, he of Cardiacs, Guapo and such), and 85 BEARS on August 18th.
All of the current Function bands are rather busy in terms of live activity
right now, go explore their already linked MySpace pages or head to the
Function Records main site
Go
see, hear, explore, here – www.functionrecords.com
x |
 17th
JULY 09 - THE ALTERNATIVE PRESS FESTIVAL is almost
upon us, and like we sid a few pages back.... having your cake and lying
in it, all this Organ stuff started with a handmade messy zine, screen
printed covers, tins of spray paint, broken typewriters, inspired by all
the others – Urban Guerrilla, Forearm Smash, Revelatory - hauling bags
full of heavy zines to venues, trading tapes, flyers, Pritt sticks and
typos, dodgy photocopiers, up all night with staplers and silk screens,
soap on stamps, post art, FIN cells, word of mouth... There were hundreds
of handmade zines when we first got the bug, thousands, couldn’t go to
a gig without buying (or trading) one... That spirit is still there somewhere,
some might say not as friendly these days, not as welcoming and arms open
as it was in the 80’s when Organ first saw the light of day, some may say
it died with the internet. No, surely not, that zine spirit and that doing
it yourself feeling of creativity is still there somewhere isn’t it? Sure,
you need to look a little harder to find it these days, it isn’t going
to walk up to you at a gig anymore and when you do eventually find it you
have to battle through what sometimes feels like the elitism and we’re
cooler than you attitude that you sometimes find in the not so healthy
as it once was zine world these days, especially in the we’re more punk
and underground than you and blah blah blah London zine fields...
There was a time when it was a real evolving alternative creative community...
maybe there’s a hint of something to be found at the forthcoming ALTERNATIVE
PRESS FESTIVAL that takes place from July 29th to August 2nd? (although
there seems to be a lot of history errased) Go see, go get involved, add
to it, start a zine, the word is still CREATE isn't it? Find out more here
at
www.alternativepress.org.uk
or http://comicsandzines.wordpress.com
x |
29th May '09: ARTJAM
is now a label, now that sounds like a good thing to us here in the paint-splattered
Organ office. Artjam events are always colourfully good, here’s what they
have to say. “Born in February of 2008, ARTJAM has been splashing out and
damaging clubs across London. Calling on all participants to abandon their
inhibitions somewhere between the door and the keyboards, this original
clubbing experience cuts to the heart of experimental music amid a multi-coloured
palette of paint, glitter glue and beats. Now here at ARTJAM HQ we’re busy
setting up a record label, ready to release some awesome tracks we’ve got
lined up. Keep checking back for more info on artists we’re working with.
ARTJAM xxx” - www.myspace.com/artclubbing
x |
 27th
May '09: More of your Daily Spleen? Is it unbalanced enough?
“Hi, I just added a track to the Organ Readers Spotify thing, a track by
Reverend
Billy And The Church Of Life After Shopping. The two gigs i saw at
the weekend were incredible, especially when everyone went for a sing song
round Tescos. Here’s a video
from Sunday....” Steve Adams
Not one of the last twenty
three CDs that the chewing machine has spat back out have been worth even
the shortest of mentions, make that twenty four now, there’s a lot of very
average things out there getting a lot of hype, wonder why that is? Make
that twenty five.... twenty six.... hang on this twenty seventh one has
something good about it, all skylines on fire and who’s this? Oh, new Low
Anthem single...
REVEREND BILLY,
Who's he then Steve? Looks good....
Statement of Belief:
“Reverend Billy and the Life After Shopping Gospel Choir believe that Consumerism
is overwhelming our lives. The corporations want us to have experiences
only through their products.
Our neighborhoods, "commons" places like stoops and parks and streets and
libraries, are disappearing into the corporatized world of big boxes and
chain stores. But if we "back away from the product" – even a little bit,
well then we Put The Odd Back In God!
The supermodels
fly away and we're left with our original sensuality. So we are singing
and preaching for local economies and real – not mediated through products
– experience.
We like
independent shops where you know the person behind the counter or at least
–you like them enough to share a story. We ask that local activists who
are defending themselves against supermalls, nuke plants, gentrification
– call us and we'll come and put on our "Fabulous Worship!"
Remember children... Love is a Gift Economy!” — The Rev
Mission: “The Church of Life
After Shopping is project of The Immediate Life, a New York based arts
organization using theater, humor, and grassroots organizing to advance
individuals and communities towards a more equitable future - starting
today. We partner with citizens, grassroots organizations and progressive
visionaries to produce dynamic, informed public campaigns that enact our
core values - participatory democracy, ecological sustainability, and the
preservation of vibrant communities and local economies.”
www.revbilly.com
The Reverend Billy
Shopocalypse Tour: carries on tonight at that fine gallery on the waterfront
down there in the West Country: Wed 27th May Arnolfini
Bristol, Thu 28 Liverpool Blue
Coat, Fri 29 Birmingham – Fierce,
Sat 30 London Battersea Arts Centre,
Sun 31 London Limehouse Town Hall. Saturday seems to be some all day festival,
Sunday however, is a free performance at 5.00pm over at the Boxing Club
over in Limehouse at the Town Hall, 646 Commercial St London E14. We'd
never heard of him until this morning, what else have you got for us dear
readers? - www.revbilly.com
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 29th
April '09: Noel wants a mask...
AUSTIN GALLERY AND BENNY’S
BAR can be found at 119A Bethnal Green Road, London, E2. Austin’s is
a bar, cafe and more importantly a rather alternative DIY street art gallery.
Friendly small converted shop of a gallery full of easy chairs, and serving
cakes, toasted ciabatta, home made soup and award winning coffee (they
seem to be very proud of their award winning coffee). The cafe now has
an evening time alter ego as Benny’s Bar. The walls are lined with a whole
manner of good looking rather inspiring street art and alternative creativity,
music is piped through vintage boomboxes and there’s beer garden to the
rear with regularly updated murals. Downstairs is the small basement gallery
which hosts monthly street art exhibitions by both UK and worldwide artists.
Right now the downstairs gallery features a selection of works by rather
impressive French artist SPaRK. There doesn't appear to be a website
for Austin's right now. There's some SPaRK art just down there, well worth
dropping in to the very friendly gallery/cafe if you're passing (which
we were when the colour caught our eye and curiosity pulled us in)...
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