KATHLEEN FRANCES

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PHOTO BOOTH KATHLEEN FRANCES Just click on the links below:

Kathleen Frances is a Bristolian songwriter who is set to release her debut EP 'Through The Blue' on March 2nd. The artwork and photography for the EP were all created in collaboration with her twin sister Michaela Frances. In the interview below, they speak about what inspired their photography choices, the arduous process behind film photography and their relationship as twins.

Can you tell me about your relationship as twins? How

close are you to one another?

Michaela: I mean we're pretty close. There's a thing isn't there about some twins not being very close out of not wanting to be associated with each other all the time. We have different enough personalities that we don't ever really clash.

Kathleen: Well, we do sometimes but it's not often. I also think because we're not identical twins it is a bit different. I guess, it means we can be really honest with each other about things and that can be really helpful in the creative process as one of us can just say 'I don't like that that's crap' and nobody is offended. I think as well because I don't have that much experience doing photoshoots, I sometimes just feel really uncomfortable in front of the camera. And also there's so many things where I'm like, 'eurgh, I don't like my face like that, cringe, cringe, cringe', whereas I know you know what I like and that's really helpful. photos and scan them, I look at them and know instantly whether you're going to like them or not [laughs].

Have you been working together creatively throughout your lives? Does anything you've done together particularly stand out?

K: This one makes me laugh because I just think about the school plays we did because we both really love drama. Really, the photography has been a nice way of doing it because it's for my music and your photography so it's really nice to come together like that.

M: It's very nice to have different creative pathways that still overlap because then you still have your own ownership over each of those things.

Did you have any specific influences? How did they influence the work?

M: When we were looking at different ways of experimenting with film there was a lot of stuff I was seeing through social media but one person that really stood out to me was a guy called Jeremy Lachance. He's done a lot of experimenting with film and making prints where you have scratches on the negative. He also uses different media on film to evoke a different feeling from the photograph. I really liked that work and it really stuck with me. We also wanted to choose locations where there were structures or things in the background or the distance, things that had been abandoned or areas that looked like that. That's what brought the haunting element in to the pictures and artwork. A lot of that was influenced by William Christenberry and Jason Lee.

The debut EP 'Through The Blue' is out on March 2nd.

NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH KYIV, UKRAINE

WITH ANNA HELLER

INTRODUCTION

Hello, this is Anna, Oana Oama or @oanawhoama which is my nickname on social media. I’m an audiovisual artist from Ukraine and I produce experimental electronic music, sound design, digital art and videos. I have been studying vocals and piano at classical music school as well as arts, design and architecture. In music school, I’ve also learned how to play guitar, bass and synths. For me, music starts from an arrangement. You probably don’t know me, so I’ll add a few links that you can check out. My mini album and a set of remixes are ready to drop in February. I have a few projects with my friend called Pitch Patrol, BVVVDMO, Jasmine Liqueur and I also curate an electronic music label, OBRIY, which we have founded in 2021 to create our aesthetic visual world.

I temporarily live in Chernihiv and there’s literally nothing interesting to talk about here, so I will tell you more about another city nearby which I’ve been living in for a long time and still visit for projects and partying — Kyiv. Even though the music industry in the country is still not as developed as in the UK, France, Germany etc, it definitely has its unique flavour.

FAVOURITE ARTIST & PERSON

Of course, I want to say some words about my music partner and master at this point.

Sasha Crime, which is his main alias, has a lot of projects and experience in music production, sound design and engineering. I met this person when I was just learning electronics, and he taught me a lot of stuff. I saw him working on commercials, pop hits, rap songs, soundtracks and sound design for movies, intelligent electronic music and a lot of other things. I was also a part of some projects and definitely recommend this person as a great sound producer!

He also started learning digital arts last year, so I started to respect this guy even more.

IT ALL STARTS AT FUSION JAMS

One of the most fascinating cultural things in Kyiv that I am excited to highlight is FUSION Jams, an independent music community and a platform for open-minded jazz/soul/ hip-hop inspired musicians to play together, share their vision, meet soulmates and express themselves through improvisation. There were generally two types of jams in Kyiv before: “professionals only” with all that tricky classical/jazz stuff and extra snobbery, or “totally amateur” events where musicians could feel a little confused and disappointed due to all the chaos during the process. ‘FUSION’ takes its place right in the middle, between those extreme points. It’s a place for artists who already have some kind of music background but still want to discover something new about the sound and each other. No judgement, no bullying - just fun and communication through music. FUSION became a place where artists can meet for the first time, and then you see them forming a band or recording something together in a few weeks or stuff like that. Amazing, isn't it? I took part in two events at the very beginning of the FUSION era. It felt like a huge underground flow of passion and wild energy from musicians as well as people who just came to check out what was going on. I started struggling with mental health back then, so I couldn't join any more events, but I feel grateful and proud of how much they have accomplished. Fusion is not a regular thing, so you can check out their social media account for upcoming events, and you will have to sign up to join one of them as a musician. You can also just come to listen to this magic and feel the vibe as a guest - definitely an unforgettable experience when you are in Kyiv!

instagram.com/fusionjams

TO EAT, DRINK, PREPARTY

There are a lot of different cafés and bars to hang out in Kyiv, both cosy and conceptual ones. What do you expect from the capital of Ukraine! But I can recommend some If you eat no meat, and you're on your feet. ORANGUTAN is a lovely vegetarian sandwich bar for you to have a quick lunch. They have 3 locations, a photo zone with neon lights and plants at one of them. You can also go to Kyiv Food Market for plenty of different types of street food and bars. China HI is the most aesthetic and tasty Chinese food in town. Milk Bar for breakfasts and desserts. I would also recommend visiting Kosatka if you want some traditional food, drinks and listening to music on vinyl. I also like HVLV, a bar where they invite some interesting artists and DJ’s to play.

LET'S DANCE!

If you want to party hard - you can go to Closer! where you can find local DJ’s and guests from around the world. They curate some festivals as well. Strichka festival in spring with three floors of different types of music. Brave Factory in the summer and Black Factory (avant-garde electronic music festival - the Last one was December 2021)

There are also interesting festivals like Rhythm Buro, a hybrid experience of dance music and visuals. One of the Rhythm Buro founders is a Ukrainian DJ, electronic producer and influencer, Vera Logdanidi, whom I respect as an artist and Ukrainian electronic scene activist. She has also created Kashtan Radio and Label to support local electronic music, not limited by genre definition.

LGBTQ+ SCENE AND COMMUNITIES

As our country makes its first steps towards tolerance and inclusion, it’s still dangerous to be queer in Ukraine sometimes. There are a few places and clubs where LGBTQ+ members can feel free, there is also the KyivPride organisation created by the government to promote full human rights for LGBT+ people in Ukraine. But you should be careful anyway.

RECORD LABELS & RADIO

So, I really want to share the story of our label OBRIY and I hope that you’ll be interested, especially if you are a musician! We are just starting out in the industry but we already have some original releases on the label. This year we are going to focus more on visual accompaniment to music so all of us started learning different methods of digital art production. The main idea is to create an alternative space for music on the edge of different genres and cultures and to explore a whole range of sounds.

KASHTAN record label and the radio created by Ukrainian DJ, electronic producer and influencer Vera Logdanidi to support local electronic music not limited by genre definition.

Another one I’m gonna mention is a conceptual label called Mysticrax. I like the story behind the label as well as its visual style. MYSTICRAX is a parallel world, more technologically advanced, and each release is a kind of communication between this future world and ours. They have ambient, experimental and dance electronic. The music is released digitally and physically. Mysticrax is like a collection of science-fiction novels expressed in music. In 2021 they’d released a various artist compilation and designed a flash stick with “DJ TOOL” engraving, which I think is cool and funny.

You can also check our 20ft radio based in Kyiv to explore Ukrainian (but not only) electronic artists.

www.20ftradio.net

THE HOUSE OF CULTURE “MASTERSKAYA”

This is a creative space, created for the development of young and original musicians. It was founded by the famous Ukrainian musician and producer Ivan Dorn. There you can rent a few studios for your recording, production and mastering needs. There is plenty of modern analogue equipment, so you will have fun! They also do workshops and showcases for young talents and have a YouTube channel where they review new music demos they receive from people in Ukraine and near countries.

MODULE EXCHANGE ELECTRONIC EDUCATION

This is electronic music online/offline courses and community curated by local experts. instagram.com/

module.exchang

I mostly buy music online, but there is a vinyl store called DISKULTURA you can visit. There, you can find about 10k releases of different genres. The guys who run that place are cheerful and openminded. instagram.com/

diskultura

HISTORICAL FACTS

Well, I won’t tell you the whole history of the city, but I can tell you about the time I was growing up in Kyiv. In 2013, I was in high school studying arts when Euromaidan started, it suddenly became dangerous to visit some cultural places and to just hang out downtown. A lot of things changed in the creative industries as well. After this, the war with Russia started and culminated with the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in 2014. Since the invasion, we have been living in stress and confusion. Now the situation in the country is quite dangerous. As I am writing this, about 100,000 Russian troops have been deployed near Ukraine. The media says: “Ukrainian people are living in a state of constant emotional terror, trying to go day-byday with routine tasks while starting to plan evacuation strategies and packing emergency bags.” This is how it is. Nonetheless, I am really proud that our people still try to create beautiful things and develop the culture during these tough times.

LINKS soundcloud.com/oanaoama

obriy.bandcamp.com fresh electronic minimal music