FR ££
A WAR ON BOREDOM Art //Live Music//Dancefloor//Socials //Culture//Ideas//City Guide
October//November 2010
CULT URE IS OUR WEA PON 2
Words: Joanne Coates
T he success and notoriety of Cardiff’s musical talent and live music scene has been characterised by an unstable series of peaks and troughs over the years. Despite there being no lack of talent and enthusiasm for making music and playing shows, Cardiff has possibly struggled more than other major British cities to develop and promote its burgeoning live music scene, often overshadowed by larger UK cities. The past eighteen months have brought difficulties for some local venues in the city. Low attendance at gigs, the closure of The Point in Cardiff Bay and more recently the Barfly in the city centre, with noise complaints also threatening the license of The Globe in Roath, appeared to stunt Cardiff’s ambitions of providing a diverse array of live music and supporting new talent. Despite recent setbacks, there is plenty to suggest that Cardiff is more than able to support local and touring acts through the opening of new venues such as Cardiff Arts Institute and the expansion of live music programmes into venues such as Ten Feet Tall. Problems with The Globe were resolved through successful negotiation with the council, benefit shows and donations from the public, demonstrating considerable community support for local venues. This support has secured the future of a growing number of live music venues in the city, who are increasingly hosting a diverse range of acts, both locally based and from further afield. The Swn Festival, due to stage it’s fourth annual event in a variety of Cardiff venues this October, has done much to combine those more established Welsh acts with those just starting out. The Swn brand has been successful not only in raising the profile of Welsh artists throughout the country, but has helped provide a focal point in the music calendar for Cardiff, garnering national attention. The combination of both Welsh and English language acts within the festival line-up has done much to reinforce the integration of the languages. The scene is underpinned by strong press coverage of local events and upcoming acts, through print publications such as Buzz, The Miniature Music Press and Gair Rhydd/Quench, alongside a significant amount of internet based press and blogging, providing comprehensive promotion of venues and gigs, whilst raising the profile of local acts. The city has faced some challenges in its attempts to develop live music in recent times and make a name for itself, but with the growing number of venues, events, promoters and local press comes the opportunity to promote homegrown, independent artists, and establish Cardiff as a hub for promoting and hosting live music in the UK.
3
Weekly Regulars
Editorial
Blah Blah Blah...
Here’s a run down of the weekly nights at the Institute. For full listings and specials turn to pages 7 & 11 Mondays
Newspaper Club Every Monday we get together to create the Institute newspaper, photographers, designers, illustrators, artists, writers -unite in an explosion of creativity.
There are two Cardiffs to choose from. A vibrant, creative, interesting, interested city with a multi-cultural heritage spanning centuries. OR a carbon copy of every other corporate colony, the like of which engulf these fair isles, sucking life and squeezing pennies from its citizens and leaving nothing but twenty four hour drinking and super casinos for solace. Take your pick... The revolution will not be televised; the revolution will not be televised, You will not be able to stay home, brother. You will not be able to plug in, turn on and cop out. You will not be able to lose yourself on skag and skip, Skip out for beer during commercials, Because the revolution will not be televised. The fair city of Cardiff is a City of two faces. The consumer induced corporate greed of the ever growing religious cathedrals of shopping, Identical luxury flats and identical high street brands that try to fill the void in our complicated existence, but it’s easy to navigate a different path, scratch the s u r - face and you’ll find the other Car-
diff one of personality full of independent bars, cafés, boutique vintage markets, underground bank vault raves and an eclectic mix of Cardiff folk with a welcoming heart.
Which side are you on? It’s your choice you can support the soulless luxury lego land of our designed future that’s eager to drain the last few pounds from your bank account, or you can be part of the social fabric of your city, join in, get involved, take part,…do something. You know there is something else right? You can feel it... well you’ve just found it.
cardiffartsinstitute.org
7pm//Free Fridays Tuesdays
Life Drawing Open life drawing sessions with one male and one female model in individual and joint poses every Tuesday. This low cost weekly session is a must for all local artists. Models rotated week on week and a good way to meet models to discuss private projects. Art materials available at each session.
The canteen serves “Institutional Classics” from 12PM - 9PM everyday from Boutique Burgers to Sunday Roasts to Shame your mother...
Social Club:
Future Fridays has the hottest and most fun dancefloor action in town, all powered by our badass Funktion1 Soundsystem with a turned up load of pumping bass. (Curated by Kaptin and upstairs by CityBass)ass)
A social club for the next generation, free wi-fi, coffee & cake, meeting room and wide range of social activities.
7pm - 8.30pm//£5 donation
Tuesdays
Saturdays
Come Dancing (from November)
Saturday Night Live
A brand new social fixture whether you’re single, on a date or friends out for a laugh. Come Dancing is the place to learn some amazing dance moves from the Lindy Hop and Swing to Hip-Hop and even Tango.
Canteen:
Future Fridays
Resident DJs // Stacey Steve French // Kaptin is Dead // The Towel // Orange Elvis10PM 4AM // Free before 11PM with regulars card. Drinks Offer : Vodka & Mixer £2
Expect hand-picked bands that put the show back into show business each and every week. Rock n Roll/ Dub/ Ska/ Big Beat/ Baille Funk/ Bhangra/ Rockabilly/ Afrobeat/ ElectroSwing/ Balkan Beats.
Sundays
No Sweat
The Big Recovery Project
Our weekly live music social staple, delivering you wholesome local bands and magical treats from a far that will feed your imagination and lighten up your life. Think laid back festival vibes and been bags it’s free - all you have to do is come along and smile...
Meet up over a late Sunday Roast, or just laze around with fellow hungover friends on the Sofas*. Leftfield DJs, our Interactive cut & paste Sunday Newspaper Collage and the make & do craft box.
9pm//Free
12 - 9pm//Sunday Roasts to shame your mother (while they last)
* Just ask for our extensive list of boardgames
Drink: International beers, local ales, extensive spirit range and TIKI cocktail bar. Weekly drinks offers for all regular card holders.
Cardiff Arts Institute Cardiffartsinstitute is a joint project between 580 Ltd the people behind Nation of Shopkeepers (Leeds), Start the Bus (Bristol) and The Lock Tavern (Camden) and the Welsh collective Something Creatives who dreamed up (Milgi, Secret Carnival, Northcote Lane Market and The World Famous Big Love Inflatable Church). 29 Park Place, Cardiff CF10 3DQ Cardiff SU
Cathays Park
National Museum Wales
City Hall
ntes rd De Na leva Bou
ce
Wednesdays
Supporting local musicians and promoters while bringing the best national and international acts. Powered by Funktion 1 Soundsystem
Pla
10PM - 4AM // Free before 11PM with regulars card. Drinks Offer: 4 Red Stripe £10
Music Room:
k Par
8-10pm/£4 Drinks Offer: Three Bellinis £10
Cardiff Castle
tel. (029) 20 231 252 mail@cardiffartsinstitute.org Sunday - Thursday 12pm - 12am Friday - Saturday 12pm - 4am
Contributors:
Design:
Spike// Kaptin// Matt the Hat// Kai ‘Galles’ Jones// Adam Corner// Tim Fisher// Alex Vlahos// Tom Cullen// John Norton// Joanne Coates// Sam Jones// Mab Jones// Rhodri Brooks// Steve Francis// Dan Mitchell// Linda Cheek// Huw Stephens// John Rostron// James Hitchen// Iain Sellar// Dan Green...
marcheatleydesign.com
The Institute online:
Advertising:
cardiffartsinstitute.org mail@cardiffartsinstitute.org twitter.com/cardiffarts facebook.com/cardiffartsinstitute youtube.com/user/cardiffarts soundcloud.com/cardiffartsinstitute mixcloud.com/cai
Thanks to: Stephanie Britton// Dan Strange, Grant, Aisling// Asha// Josh// Peter Hunt// Jack Doran// Gemma White...
Cover Photography: Jon Pountney 4
Make a night of it every Wednesday chefs curry a drink and free live music from 9PM
Cardiff Arts Institute: A space to explore creative vision and push the boundaries of what it means to live, work and play in Cardiff right now. Join bands, musicians, artists, poets, comedians, DJs, thinkers, drinkers and party people on a new adventure.
ads@cardiffartsinstitute.org
Published by: Something Creatives LTD
Printed by: Newspaper Club
Legal bit: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express permission of Something Creatives LTD
Interview: Kai Galles Jones
How Swn is Now? John Rostron has been a pivotal part of the Cardiff music scene for as long as anyone can remember. He’s edited Buzz, ran legendary Clwb Ifor Bach nights, P’Tang Yang Kipperbang Yeah! and the Dudes Abide, brought the likes of La Roux, Zombie Zombie and Mogwai to town with Forecast.Also promoted Cerys Matthews, Richard James and Martin Carr all via Plug Two and released music by Truckers of Husk, Soft Hearted Scientists and Marissa Nadler on My Kung Fu. In 2007 he was in South by South West in Texas with Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens when they started discussing the lack of a similar event on the streets of Cardiff. The result was Swn, Cardiff’s annual music crawl festival. As Swn returns for its fourth year in October, we asked John to talk us through the festival’s history. Huw Stephens and I were in South By South West and our discussion was about SXSW being brilliant and why isn’t there something great in Cardiff... We talked about things that had gone on in Cardiff, like Compass Point and when Green Day and Bryan Adams played in Coopers Field and we talked about things had been and gone but nothing had stayed. And we talked about Radio One Live in Cardiff in 2000 and how good that was for Cardiff. We came back and got on with it sort of straight away... We spent about 2 months thinking about a name and then we spent from June to November putting it together. We were trying to do all our other work and we’d never put on a festival like that before. We had no money, no backing, but it worked. It was like a ten-way learning curve.. I’d promoted gigs before, plenty of gigs, but never put on a festival and never put on a multivenue festival. So putting on a hundred and whatever it was bands isn’t a hundred times the work of one band, it’s like ten thousand times. It was called Diff-fest for ages.… It’s awful isn’t it? And then it was called Nodwn for a while, which has a similar meaning, but we weren’t sure. It came down to us really needing to commit to a name because we needed to put tickets on sale. We knew we
wanted to have a Welsh name and Huw suggested Swn. I like short one word things. We’ve lost money every year, but less every year. If you were to look at Swn as a business it’s madness. Apart from a few people who do things like production,no one gets paid. I don’t get paid, I don’t earn a penny from Swn. Infact I put money in. So does Huw, obviously. But I think we’re turning the corner now. People want to invest in us and are starting to understand what we do and want to be a part of it, and are understanding that we need money or sponsorship or products and are giving us those things. So that’s taking the pressure off a bit. It’s difficult saying no to bands that have played before.… We want to try and encourage the people who are doing things now, not people who have been around for ages. And that’s kind of our strength and our weakness. It’s hard. I could namecheck Future of the Left or Los Campesinos or Euros Childs or Super Furry Animals and Gruf Rhys. None of them are playing this year, because we’re looking at what fits and what’s right and to make sure it’s not the same bands playing year in year out just because they’re Welsh. We’ve always understood it’s also about the industry, it’s about trying to promote the venues... We couldn’t use Ten Foot Tall once because they had a noise-abatement order so we found Kaz Bar, this dingy bar opposite Clwb Ifor Bach. We put a PA in and we had three brilliants nights in there. As a result of that Clwb Ifor Bach bought it and it turned into Y Fuwch Goch, which now promotes Welsh language stuff and a big part of that is live music. It’s nice to see more people promote at the
Gate and the National Museum have done more things with music as a result of the involvement with Swn. We’ve taken that upon ourselves as our being our role, to try and spread the word that live music events can be good and fun can add some mixture to their programming. People come to Swn because they know some of the people on the bill, but increasingly people are coming because they don’t know anyone. That’s fantastic and they’re walking away and they’re liking bands. Not all of them but they like some of them. Not everyone is going to go all the way down to the Norwegian Church in the rain to see MV and EE, but if we put them on in one weekend in Cardiff and it’s free and everybody’s going because it’s Swn.. it’s like ‘come in here and see this band and if you don’t like them you can jump across to here and see another band.’ It’s really hard to pick special moments because when the festival’s on we don’t really see much of it. We saw 20 minutes of Young Marble Giants at the Reardon Smith Theatre and it was brilliant and I could have been there all night. I saw like ten or fifteen minutes of Euros playing there as well which was absolutely amazing. Clare Maguire downstairs at Glo Bar in the second year was phenomenal. Clearly unknown, unsigned, second ever gig, forty people there watching on a Sunday afternoon at 2pm, of which 38 were A&R. And she got this million pound deal or whatever it was off the back of it. I’m a massive fan of Los Campesinos and Gareth’s comments from the stage will always stick with me.… He really gets what we do, he knows that you have to give back, it’s not just about ‘how big is my fee or I am I going to
get headline status?’. He feels the responsibility as a band to talk about other bands. So we gave them a stage and they curated it. And it says something that Dananananaykroyd, who could have had a headline slot somewhere else opted to play under Los Campesinos, taking a smaller fee as a result. And he was onstage singing our praises and that meant a lot to us. The band ‘Y Morgrug’ made me cry... I was trying not to cry, then Guto Brychan of Clwb Ifor, turned round and he was crying, that set me off then I turned round and Huw Stephens is crying, we were all crying. So good were these four eleven year olds playing at the Model Inn. It’s the best one this year, which I really hate thinking because you feel bad about what’s gone before. There’s just too much this year. Perfume Genius will be amazing, Swans, Beach Fossils who were my favourite band of SXSW. And those three bands are all playing at the same time so straight away, three amazing things. There’s so much good stuff locally. There’s this little band called Houdini Dax that I’ve fallen in love with. Drains, I’m really looking forward to. Kutosis. Then Islet are going to have a headline slot and that’s really important. Man Without Country have got a big slot and then we’ve got Kids in Glass Houses and Blackout curating a load of bands. They’ve picked a brilliant list of bands. Basically, everything is a highlight. Swn runs from 21-23 October. Full line-up and information at www.swnfest.com
Monday 18th
Toro Y Moi Doors 7.30pm//£tbc
Thursday 21st
Crash.Disco
Shake Aletti// Nedry
Doors 7.30pm//SWN Wristbands FREE//£4 others
Friday 22nd
Noson Electroneg
Dam Mantle// Quinoline Yellow// Cian Ciaran
Doors 7pm//SWN wristbands FREE//£4 others
Saturday 23rd
Zoo Pop All-dayer
Alphabet Backwards// John Mouse// OK// Henrys Funeral shoe// To The Bones Doors 2.30pm//SWN Wristbands FREE//£4 others
To keep you fuelled up for the festival we’re offering a 10% discount on all food for SWN wristband holders from the 20th - 27th October.
5
Here come the rude boys... If you think theatre is inaccessible, expensive, irrelevant and boring; Undeb Theatre beg to differ...
Here to change your mind. Theatre is something that is often overlooked. Where as the cinemas are booming with popularity, theatres in Britain are struggling to survive but new companies in Wales are looking to change that and Cardiff’s Undeb Theatre is at the forefront of that movement. They create theatre that can truly claim to be accessible utilising every available room to stage their exciting performances. Tom Cullen and Alex Vlahos founded Undeb in October 2009. Both from Cardiff, the pair met during their Actors training at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, where their passion for new theatre was nurtured. Tom, 25, and Alex, 22, started the company as a reaction; both working as Actors the pair became frustrated by the lack of theatre that spoke
to them. The companies aim is to provide new theatre that is a document of our society, our time. Not playing to demographics, but merely placing our flagpole in histories timeline.
entertaining theatre Cardiff’s seen.” - Guardian
Undeb host large scale events not only including theatre but stand-up, music, performance poetry and live-art in non-theatre venues, where their audiences can enjoy the entertainment with a pint in their hand and have a dance afterwards. The company in its first year has already worked with some of Britain’s most exciting creative talents and has also given platform for new talents to emerge. Each event has been greeted with greater popularity and a refinement in their work, playing host to some of Wales’ finest theatre this year.
Already having collaborated with companies such as National Theatre Wales and Nabokov, Undeb are planning a full-scale assault; they have several plays in development and are looking to build on the critical success of their first full length production ‘Straight’, hosted by Cardiff Arts Institute/ Tactile Bosch. Keep your eyes peeled for this company, even if you’re not a theatregoer, we guarantee you they are not to be missed.
“The
most
“Over spilling with creativity and as fresh as a simile, this is fast-theatre at it’s finest” - Buzz Magazine
After launching our company in October 2009 with an all day event in Ten-Feet Tall, CAI approached us. They wooed us with their ethos and we jumped at the chance to join their bandwagon. Now that we’re together we can’t imagine it any other way. What do your events entail? We host a mixture of events. We believe that if it doesn’t excite and surprise us it isn’t worth doing. Our events are a celebration of all things brilliant and awful with our world. They include a mish-mash of short plays, stand-up, music, performance poetry and live art; all sorts really! We have just put on our first fulllength play and have a few more ready to unleash…
6
just a couple of mates putting on events and having a great time doing it! Biggest achievement so far? This year we’ve put on 29 short plays, 1 full-length play, a short film and had numerous poets, bands, stand-ups and artists work with us. We’re learning every time we hold an event. As long as we continue to get new audience and new theatregoers we will always be achieving what we set out to do. It’s all a bit nuts really! What do you wish to achieve in the future? To continue to evolve as we have been doing. Its hard to say where we are heading, because if it doesn’t surprise us, then what is the point of doing it? Maybe in two years you can ask us that question.
How do you feel your first year has gone?
How do you feel about the current Cardiff theatre scene?
Brilliantly. We only set it up as a hobby, something to facilitate what we thought was missing in the Welsh theatre scene and it still surprises us when people call us a theatre company. We’re
Immensely positive. One of the main reasons we set up Undeb was after being inspired by another Cardiff based theatre company Dirty Protest, who’s
After our sell out production of Heart of Darkness earlier this year, Give It A Name are straight back at you with a new piece of work. Expect trademark G.I.A.N.T style immersion, invention and interaction. This time we will be in Rockin’ Chair Bar and Grill, in Riverside, Cardiff. Come early for excellent Caribbean food and a seat by the pool (table). Relax and be transported back to the real 1980’s. Life for a young mixed race guy growing up in Splott was not a lot like Dallas, but at times it was like the OK Corral. And the music was way better. In fact Roddy would tell you that the music saved his life...
RUDE is a brand new Ska Musical and we have an amazing team coming together for this one: Music Director: Eric ‘Me One’ Martin aka MC Eric has worked with Guru, the late great Lynden David Hall, and Capleton as well as famously making Pump Up the Jam with Technotronic. Art Director Tim Dickel’s work ranges from music videos for Roots Manuva and Diana Ross, to Dr Who. Directed by rising star James Williams, with an excellent cast including Dean Rehman and John Norton, and a full live band. All this, with a great story by veteran of the Cardiff Reggae scene and original rudeboy Tony Wright.
Rude opens Wed 9th December
unpredictable,
Late night music sessions after the show on weekends feat. special guests to be announced
Interview with Undeb Theatre How did your CAI residency come about?
There’s a new Tory government. Jobs are hard to come by. The weather isn’t up to much. But somewhere in a makeshift club, people are dancing to a new tune. It’s 1980. The place is Cardiff. The music is Ska. John Norton introduces Give It A Name’s new production “RUDE”
Tickets from Chapter box office www.chapter.org brilliant work made Undeb an achievable goal. There is a real buzz around Cardiff at the moment in every aspect of the art world and theatre has its foot firmly wedged in that door. Companies like Dirty Protest, Balloon, Jam Bones, BigLittleCity…we are just pleased to be part of it all.
Undeb-Velopment: Warehouse Festival 13th-14th Nov 2010 Undeb Theatre will be hosting a festival reading of four new plays currently being developed by the brilliant new company. The performances will be taking place in warehouses around Cardiff. Expect raw, exciting pieces, brilliant performances and a tiptop party afterwards. Find out more: undebtheatre.co.uk
‘GIVE IT A NAME’ THEATRE GROUP Give It A Name was set up in 2007 by John Norton and Matthew Wright after working together on A Bucket Rider, which John produced for Steepways at Chapter, in 2006. That had all started some 10 years before when John found a record of Lotte Lenya reading Kafka stories...
How have you found working as a company?
We pinned down the ever-prowling John Norton, company director, creative producer and performer for ‘Give it a Name’.
Also, James Willams directed Heart of Darkness and will now direct RUDE. We’ve also had the pleasure of creating work with are underground music legend Somatik, actors Beth House, Zoe Davies and Sule Rimi, lighting designer Rachel Mortimer, and designers Mary Drummond and Laura Harold. So theres always a sense of nuturing ideas and working closely as a collective.
What’s drives the company? The company’s mission is to create exciting and risk-taking work which is personally and socially engaged, with the audience at its core. Although its fair to say, Music is at the very heart of what we do.
We work as a loose but growing ensemble, collaborating with all sorts of practitioners who inspire us. Actor Dean Rehman has been with us since the beginning, as has Phil Mackenzie from Sherman Cymru New Artists Development.
Dancefloor Live Music Socials Culture Special Events
October Friday 1st
Future Fridays//Traffic :
Cirque Du Traffique Roll Up! Roll Up! for the first Traffic of the season and it’s B-O-N-K-E-R-S! come forth all clowns, ring masters, lions, elephants, acrobats and candy floss, it’s time for a TRAFFIC mash-up. With 3 massive headline sets from Kanji Kinetic, Squire Of Gothos and Vid Warren, a juggling, harMonic / flute playing Beatboxer of the highest order. Prizes for best Circus costume plus amazing clown outfits for sale, courtesy of Hocus Pocus.
with a general all round work out, utilising the physical, mental and creative parts of your brain that other pub quizzes just can’t reach! FREE to play and fabulous prizes to be Won! 4pm-6pm
At your own Risk :
The Kabeedies “Music can make people feel many different things, some makes you feel sad, some makes you think, The Kabeedies simply make you want to dance around the room, forget your troubles and have a bloody good time.” Clash Magazine. Support from They Came From Japan & Were No Heroes.
‘In Full Swing’ It’s taking the nation by storm and putting the fun back into dance music-“Electro Swing” is the incredible new sound that’s taking over the dancefloor. ‘In Full Swing’ is a new Monthly residency at Cardiff Arts Institute and is the only place in the City to discover the craze that’s on everyone’s lips and hips. Taking original Swing samples as jumping-off points, the Institute is proud to present totally re-invented swing hits that are fully cooked up for the modern dancefloor. Expect more than just the music, “In Full Swing” bring you the full re-mixed vintage experience from our live lindy-hop futuristic breakdance crew. Doors 9pm//£4
Sunday 3rd
Cardiff Design Festival:
Designer Takeover A one-day takeover at The Institute, starting with our Monthly market (first Sunday of the Month) the ‘Carbootique’ for all your boot sale pick-ups. Plus a furniture up-cycling session ‘to fix-up and mend all those broken and unloved items. ‘Designer Lego Wars ‘ with competing architecture students, graphic designers and artistic collectives. Bring a team and take the challenge! Prizes to be won.. 3pm-6pm // FREE
The Institute:
Squeaky Hill Pub Quiz A Sunday Institution returns: Squeaky Hill Pub Quiz, are back! Catch them at the Institute on the third Sunday of every month. The only quiz that provides you
No Sweat:
Little Comets Stokes William Greg Roberts Coinciding with a new release, Isles, Little Comets will be blasting their infectious upbeat tunes all across the UK. Gathering the pace, swiftness and warmth to counteract the burgeoning autumnal shades - these guys will sweep you off your feet! 7pm//£5 adv tickets: http://is.gd/fityQ
Friday 15th Monday 4th
Jam Bones:
Secret Carnival:
Sunday 10th
Doors 8pm//£3adv
Doors 9pm//£4
Saturday 2nd
regulars)
Attila the Stockbroker’ Punk; poet; polemic-spouting spoken word legend and, along with John Cooper Clarke and Henry Rollins, one of the major pop-lit-performers of our time. Catch him at The Institute on his 30th Anniversary tour. Doors 7.30pm/£5 adv
Friday 8th
Future Fridays
Ghost Poet & Astrosnooze Since charming his way into Gilles Peterson’s All Winners Broadcast with his blazed out poetical journeys over off kilter beats, Midlands raised/London based, MC Ghostpoet has been signed up to Peterson’s Brownswood Label and working with the likes of ultra-cool pop producer / songstress Micachu. We also have Astrosnooze, whose party blends have been played by the likes of DJ Yoda, Krafty Kuts and A Skillz. 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Saturday 9th
Ba-Ba-Boom :
Sadio Cissokho Ba-Ba-Boom! go one step further this Month putting on a huge artist from Senegal.Sadio Cissokho and his band play thundering sets in the clubs of Senegal’s capital, Dakar and now we get that energy distilled straight onto Institute dancefloor. West African bass grooves, Sadio playing his Griot Kora, and Casamance drumkit sounds bring this exquisite evening to life. 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3
Future Fridays :
Tomb Crew Ital Lion Packing out stages from London to New York and launching ‘dancefloor destroying’ mixes of anything bass heavy - from Bmore to Dubstep, Garage, Grime, Electro-house and Old Skool. Everyone from grime heads to indie kids to their host of high profile supporters (Toddla T, Crookers, Sinden, Brodinski, DJ Yoda, Joe Hot Chip, etc) - will attest, Tomb Crew are very much the inebriated and debauched sound of Fun. Alongside them is one of the Godfathers of Dubstep in Wales, Ital Lion, still very much an important part of the scene. 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Saturday 16th
Secret Carnival :
Lazy Habits Captain Accident Fresh from rocking just about every Festival under the sun, Lazy Habits return to the Institute and we can’t wait. One of the tightest live Hip-hop bands you’re likely to see and even The Sunday Newspaper had to admit that “their infectious ska meets hip-hop meets big band meets MC-ing genius, morphs into the best house party that your parents never wanted you to have.” 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Sunday 17th
The Institute:
Alternative Freshers Fayre After the cattle-market of the official freshers FREEbie-fest, we unroll a totally different set
of stalls with our ‘Alternative Freshers Fayre’. All independent stallholders, traders, artists, designers, craft-makers eager to show off their wares - please get in touch. 2pm-4pm//FREE info@milgilounge.com
Monday 18th
Swn:
Toro Y Moi Toro y Moi is a South Carolinian artist/musician/creator obsessed on capturing every nuance or spark of inspiration that ignites in his sun-baked mind. His lo-fi tunes are a varied assortment of ideas, meandering between funk bass-slapped grooves and slowed-down synth pop. Its natural instrumentation and swelling vocal patterns beautifully warping like a weak radio transmission or some snapped photos of a hazy afternoon that quickly capturing a sentiment and bottled. 7.30pm/£tbc
ing the Dubstep world apart with tracks such as Sick As Sin and Timewarp. Now living in Berlin, this Cardiff born and bred producer has invaded the record bags of: Radio One DJs such as Mary Anne Hobbs, Huw Stephens and Rob Da Bank. Backed up by the One Mission crew who shall be rinsing out some heavyweight Dubstep and Drum N Bass, this is going to be a big homecoming party indeed. Midnight//£4
Saturday 23rd
SWN Festival:
Zoo Pop All Dayer Cardiff indie Collective, Zoo Pop, curates a daytime event of musical splendour for SWN festival 2010. This charming daytime event features such illuminaries Alphabet Backwards // John Mouse // OK // Henrys Funeral shoe // To the Bones. The perfect Swn daytime tonic. 2.30pm//SWN wristbands FREE (£4 otherwise)
Thursday 21st Tuesday 26th
SWN:
Crash.Disco Shake Alleti Nedry Our evening of kaleidoscopic sounds kicks off with 18 yr-old Crash.Disco making chiptune music with Gameboys and Guitars. Followed by Electro-Disco-NuRave Double act, Shake Aletti and culminating with London-based three-piece, Nedry. Who are intent on offering twitchiness, ethereal vocals and occasional instances of raucous guitar in the confines of The Institute. Treats. Doors 7.30pm//SWN wristbands FREE//£4 otherwise
Friday 22nd
Future Fridays & SWN:
Noson Electroneg Electroneg is a music collective with its primary function to draw attention to leftfield and electronic music from Wales and the rest of the known universe. The Swn night is the first Electroneg live night and the evening’s programming will feature artists from the forthcoming compilation album. Expect electronic music in all its noisy forms featuring Dam Mantle, Quinoline Yellow & Cian Ciaran. Doors 7pm/SWN wristbands FREE/£4 otherwise
One Mission:
Stagga & Residents With a truly distinct sound of his own, Stagga has been tear-
No Sweat:
Spicy Special Mixing it up with a Tuesday slot this week, the flawless No Sweat ,delivers another sack full of acoustic wonderment from the heart of the Welsh capital. No sweat ‘discount’ bowl of curry on offer tonight! 9pm//FREE
Wednesday 27th
The Institute:
Mount Kimbie Responsible for one of the most acclaimed albums of the year, ‘Crooks and Lovers’, Mount Kimbie sound evolves through a patchwork of crackling electronica, swooning neosoul echoes and warm, snaking bass-lines. Oozing with emotion and echoing ambient soundscapes that take the listener to an entirely different place-this is something very special indeed. Doors 8pm//£5 adv tickets: http://is.gd/fiuvT
Thursday 26th
Miniature Music Press:
King Porter Stomp In packed festival tents all over the country, King Porter Stomp have brought their own blend of ska-funk-dub and afro-beat with a rare coating of well crafted conscious rhymes. With massive horn lines, heavy bass and intricate guitar work - this will be a huge show! The perfect postSwn knee jerk.
Doors 8pm//£3
Friday 29th
The Institute Voodoo Island Weekender:
Kaptin vs Moneyshot (r3) Round 3 after two knock out draws at The Institute and Start The Bus, resident for Ninja Tune’s Solid Steel Radio, ex XFM Jockey and DJ Yoda favourite, DJ Moneyshot goes back to back with our very own Kaptin, the legendary bearded party starter and Chrome Kid. This was originally planned to be a duel to the death, but as we’re bringing them back from the dead (zombie style) they’re just going to keep going and going til their limbs fall off. 9pm-4am//£4
Saturday 30th
The Institute Voodoo Island Weekender:
Gecko The Leano As we go deeper into Zombie Territory on this Halloween Weekender, we have live music strong enough to awaken the dead. Gecko have been likened to ‘The King Blues meets Bedouin Sound-clash with a touch of Jamie-T’. Described as ‘fearlessly cross(ing), folk, reggae and hip hop, beautifully detailing life, love and Friendship. Raw, talented and one of the best songwriters in the UK.’ Plus upstairs 9pm-4am//£4
Sunday 31st
The Institute Voodoo Island Weekender:
‘Scared Stiff’ A Frightfully entertaining night of debauchery with a hot burlesque performance to stir those perverse spirits. Featuring ‘Burlesque Cardiff Dancers’ Miss FooFoo LaBelle and The Broken Dolls. Special guest DJ set from Darren Smith (ex-FFAF) & Hey!Tonight .Plus live performance from female rock duo Sweet Manics. Doors 7.30pm//Tickets £TBC
Dirtbox
Halloween Special Comedy Evening Cardiff’s secret comedy cavern, Dirtbox is the comedy night that thinks outside the box. It gathers sketches, stand-up and film references and cuts it all up into bite-sized chunks, served on a platter of idiocy! Its rarely predictable and always sells out! Doors 7.30pm//£3 7
We’ve had a busy year all told and we’re looking forward to many more. As ever we extend the invitation to you to lead us where you want to go next. We’re all ears (and eye-bags)
cardiffartsinstitute.org Cardiff Arts Institute Est. November 2009
CONRANK// MR B GENTLEMAN RHYMER// DUTTY MOONSHINE// MONEYSHOT// KAPTIN// COME DANCING CREW// JOSEPHINE// RUBY SAMBA
A Pair Of Shorts & A Large Rum Abstract Soundz Adam Corner Afro Cluster Afro Cluster Andy Votel Ashley Beedle Ashley Beedle Babyhead Backbeat Soundsystem Balloon Bang Bang Eche
Baobinga & Id Barefoot Dance Of The Sea Barry Hole’s Hitlist Bass Clef Beach House Beatbox Major Ben Steer Benin City Benjamin One Benji & The Greats Bethan Elfyn Bill Brewster Black Coast Rodeo
Black Russian BLK JKS Blue Daisy Bodega Brovaz Bok Bok & Manara Bo Ningen Brackles Bright Light Bright Light Broken Vinyl Club Brothel Creepers C.R.S.T. C.U.M. Cantaloop
Carl Forecast Casper C (Bloggers Delight) Cat Mouse Cat Cate Le Bon Central Spillz Chesus & Rodski Chew Lips Chris Summerill Chrome Kids Circa Regnatonat Colourbox Comanechi Curtamos
D’taba Dan Strange Darkhouse Family Dave Jones & Sean Mccabe Dead Residents Decimals Designer Violence Deville Diddy Dig! Dirty Revolution Disablists Diverse Concepts Diversify Django Django DJ DSK DJ Frank Gossner DJ Jaffa Doc Daneeka Don Leisure Don’t Tread On Spiders Double Dagger Dr Meaker Dregz Drokkr
Dub In The Pub Djs Dvrsfy Ed Cox Eliphino Ellie Goulding Engine Earz Erland And The Carnival Eugene Capper Evening Chorus Evils First Degree Burns Flux=Rad Friendship Futureboogie Galaxie 500 Ganglians Gideon Conn Glass Diamond Gringo Starr Hail! The Planes Hélélé Henry’s Funeral Shoe Herman Chapelle High Rankin Hit Or Miss
Hosko Houdini Dax Hunters Huw Evans Huwie Price Hyener Hyetal Illosophy Islet Ital Lion Ital Tek Jayou Jazzsteppa Jeremy Ellis Aka Ayro Joe Blow Joe Driscoll Johnny Cage & The Voodoo Groove John Mouse Jon Carter Jon Kennedy Jonathan Powell Jont Joseph & David Joshua Morgan Joy Formidable
Juxtaposition Kaptin Katapulto Kelvin Andrews King Alexander King Louis Collective Kingthing Klezmer Kollectiv Last Japan Lex Umbra Linton Brown Little Comets Lost & Found Lou Noble & The Sauce Louis Boston Love Parry Iii Lowri Evans Lubi J Maddie Jones Magenta Man Of The Hour Mankala Matt The Hat Matthew Joseph May68
Metabeats Minotaur Shock Moneyshot Monky Monotonix Mother Mae I? Mr Healan Mucky Chops Mumdance New Exhibition Of Noise Nic Thomas No Sweat Norma The Jaguar OK Omega66 Onemandub Oort Kuiper Orange Elvis Osian Owain K Pacheko Pangaea Part Wild Horses Mane On Both Sides Paul B
Pete Fowler Pharmacy Phat Phil Cooper Pirate Soundsystem Plastic Thumbs Poirier + Face T Polka Party Project 13 Project Serpo Rachel K Collier Rat Tash Collective Reecha Rob Needham Rock Lottery Rogora Khart Samoans Sarah Sweeney Saturdays Kids Sharks Don’t Sleep She Keeps Bees Sicknote Skamma Skunkadelic Souljuice Sound Of Rum Southside Johnny
Standard Fare Steve French Stokes William Talons Tanya Morgan The Amigos The Apples The Brothel Creepers The Correspondants The Disablists The Gentle Good The Hats The Hi-Class Joes The Joy Collective The Keys The Leano The Method The New Residents The Resonators The Rinky Dinks Three Syllables Three Trapped Tigers Tomb Crew Totally Extinct Enormous Dinosaurs Trash Kit
Ukelele Nights Undeb Theatre Underpass Uprising Soundsystem Voice Of The Seven Thunders Vvolves. Wax Fang We Have Band We’re No Heroes We/Are/Animal White Noise Sound Whyteleaf Wolf People Wonderbrass Wonky Disco Y Niwl Yaje Zwolf Sorry if we left anyone out. There’s always next year... CIA x
Dancefloor Live Music Socials Culture Special Events Words: Kaptin
November Tuesday 2nd
Come Dancing:
Come Dancing Taster Session A FREE taster session for a brand new social fixture. ‘Come Dancing’ is the place to learn some amazing dance moves from the Lindy Hop and Swing to Hip-Hop and even Tango. We’ll also be holding special ‘Come Dancing’ weekend events where you’ll get a chance to show off your new moves. 8-10pm//FREE
Friday 5th
The Institute 1st Birthday Weekender & Traffic:
Conrank & Special Guests Shanghai based Drumstep pioneer Conrank is a Beatboxer and MTV host who mashes up Hip-Hop, DnB , Dubstep and Jungle with his own beats, basslines and tracks to create something entirely energetic and eclectic. Releases due on High Rankin’s Suicide Dub Label, a collaboration with Killa Kela and a growing reputation with clubbers across Europe and Asia make this a must-see. Birthday Weekend Drinks offer it’s a party - Skittles Vodka and lemonade £2, Blackberry Gin & Juice £2 Alcoholic Popsicles £3.00 jelly shots £2.00 Saturday 6th
The Institute 1st Birthday Weekender & In Full Swing:
Mr B Gentleman Rhymer Dutty Moonshine// Moneyshot// Kaptin// Come Dancing Crew ‘In Full Swing’ is a new monthly residency at Cardiff Arts Institute and is the only place in the City to discover the craze that’s on everyone’s lips and hips. Taking original Swing samples as jumping-off points, the Institute is proud to present totally re-invented swing hits that are fully cooked up for the modern dancefloor. 1920’s - Gin & Juice: £2 Tom Collins: £4 9pm-4am//£5
Sunday 7th
Sunday 14th
Friday 26th
The Institute 1st Birthday Weekender
The Golden Owl :
Future Fridays & City Bass :
The Sunday Session feat. Josephine Ruby Samba Josephine is a new folk-tropic voice forged in the heart of northern England. A patchwork of influences from West African high life to her local heroes Morrisey & Marr, from the inspirational activist Odetta to US lo-fi folk music have been channelled through her sound.Ed Harcourt is simply astounded and Guy Garvey has declared her sound as ‘remarkable’. 7.30pm//£tbc
Friday 12th
Future Fridays:
Shortstuff
(Planet Mu / Ramp) Shortstuff has proven himself to be a leading light in the ‘post’ Dubstep world alongside collaborators such as Hyetal and Brackles (with whom he runs Blunted Robots). Definitely an artist to be experiencing right now. 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Saturday 13th
Undeb Theatre:
Undeb-Velopment (Warehouse Fringe Festival)
Undeb Theatre will be hosting a festival reading of four new plays currently being developed by the brilliant new company. The performances will be taking place in warehouses around Cardiff. Expect raw, exciting pieces, brilliant performances and a tip-top party afterwards.
Once a solo craft penned by lead vocalist Hugo Manuel in bedrooms and backrooms when possible, now very much becoming a more habitual band, finding comfort in their own ways. New songs which have been road tested to date, conjure a carnival of celebratory whirr, rousing and uplifting, all the while remaining unostentatiously affirming. 7.30pm/£tbc
Friday 19th
Future Fridays & Associated Minds:
Sonny Jim Whilst many proclaimed the death of Hip-hop, Associated Minds creativity and enthusiasm in their stable kept them off the fatality list. Here they bring Battle Rhyme Veteran - Sonny Jim, who has toured with The Streets and Plan B amongst others. His album features a dream team of guest appearances inc. Foreign Beggars, Jehst and Mercury Nominated/Mobo Winning, Soweto Kinch. 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Saturday 20th
The Institute :
Derwyddon Dr Gonzo A great Funk/Ska 10 piece band who have rocked the festival stages of Bestival, Latitude and Wakestock. Well respected on the Welsh Language scene, having reached number 1 on the Welsh Language Music Chart. Always tons of fun!
Call for details: (029)20 231252
9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Saturday 13th
Thursday 25th
Ba-Ba-Boom :
The Miniature Music Press :
RSVP (Bhangra) Little Fish Blistering Bhangra focused for the dancefloor, through the working of traditional Bhangra with Asian and Arabic Jazz, Funk, Hip Hop, and Drum & Bass: R.S.V.P. are bringing a whole new party flavour to the Cardiff Arts Institute. Check the Dhol drums as this 7-piece fly. Ba-Ba-Boom DJs keep the party varied til 4. 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
10
Jonquil
Special Guests The MMP loves music. Old and new. Borrowed and blue. Harp and kazoo. But when finding bands for these The Institute nights it mostly loves music that will cascade you into revelry of intellectual dance. You will be aware of your body’s movements. You may even question them philosophically. But you will still do them regardless. Join us on our tumultuous trek towards the terrific. See you there on the 25th. 8pm//£tbc
Cooly G The first lady of Bass Music touches down with her infectious blend of UK Funky, Dubstep, Techno and Deep House. Signed to Kode 9’s Hyperdub label, she has become a true phenomenon in the past couple of years, gaining a reputation as one of the country’s top new producers and a top class DJ to boot. 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Saturday 27th
The Secret Carnival :
Smerins AntiSocial Club One of the most respected Festival bands on the planet, Bristol’s legendary, Smerins Anti-Social Club use their killer horns section, heavy beats, assshaking bass and infectious blend of funk and ska to attract the kind of sell-out shows that ‘make your granny tremble with excitement.’ 9pm-4am//£2 b4 11pm (Regulars FREE)//£4 after (£3 regulars)
Sunday 28th
Dirtbox:
An evening of comedy Cardiff’s most cherished underground comedy cavern, Dirtbox, is the comedy night that thinks outside the box. It gathers sketches, stand-up and film references and cuts it all up into bite-sized chunks, served on a platter of idiocy! Its rarely predictable and always sells out! Doors 7.30pm//£3
December Saturday 4th
In Full Swing:
The Correspondents Fred Snow & Top Shelf Jazz// Moneyshot// Kaptin// Matt the Hat// Come Dancing Crew Pioneers of the Electro Swing genre and long-time friends of The Institute, The Correspondents take to the stage to dazzle and delight. 9pm-4am//£5
The ElectroSwing Thing So what do you get if you cross the Speakeasy dance music of prohibition era America with the Beats, Rhymes and Basslines of today’s clubland? Well if we are to take a rather sideways glance at it all we can find lounging tenuously somewhere in the middle, a phenomenon known as ElectroSwing. The name is often simultaneously spurned and embraced by those acts which have fallen under its umbrella and who grace the compilations of the same name. Whilst the daddys of the scene such as G Swing and Parov Stellar are largely House influenced, acts such as The Correspondents, Chinese Man and Swedish crew, Movits draw a touch more heavily on the Hiphop side. You even have Dutty Monshine stepping into the Dubstep arena . Regardless of the beats however, all carry the infectious bounce and, "swing", of legends such as Benny Goodman and Count Basie, remixed and reimagined for the modern clubber. This often Dadaist dip into the past can be taken to all elements though. Vintage shops are on the rise and certain 20s and 30s fashions have already had something of a High Street revival, whilst in
the meantime, rappers such as Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer or Mr Bruce from the Correspondents are more likely to be seen in blazers and boaters than hoodies and caps. Particularly in the UK, the scene is ripe for the adoption of a British dandy’s impeccable style and panache. But why stop with just the music and clothes though? How good would it be to see dances such as the Charleston reinterpreted through modern Street Dance? There’s already a crossover, with many of today’s Breakdancers introducing touches of it into their repertoire. If you’re one of them then there’s now the perfect opportunity to throw down some Lindy Hip-hop dance routines, or for any budding Chaps and Ladies to break out their Tweed Suits and Flapper Dresses, as CAI’s new night that that is set to take the parties of the past to the raves of the future gets, ‘In Full Swing’. Catch In Full Swing at Cardiff Arts Insititute on the 2nd October, 6th November and 4th December.
VE. VE.LO VE.LO E.LOVE. O .L E OV .LOV .LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE. O .LOVE LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. O OVE.L .L . LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L .LOVE E V O O .L .L .L LOVE OVE.LOVE .LOVE OVE.LOVE. E V O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. O OVE.L .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E V O O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E V O O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E V O O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E V O O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E O OV .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E O OV .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E O OV .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E O OV .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L O OVE .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L O OVE .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L O OVE .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. O OVE.L .L . LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L .LOVE E V O O .L .L .L LOVE OVE.LOVE .LOVE OVE.LOVE. E V O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. O OVE.L .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L OVE. .L E V O O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L VE.LOVE.L O .L LOVE OVE.LOVE.L .L LOVE
Photographs: Linda G Cheek. Concept & interview: Tim Fisher
Alternative Cardiff
Cardiff Arts Institute closed its eyes, clicked its heels three times, and guess where it ended up? Only bloody Cardiff... Cardiff, Alabama, USA – population 82. Institute scribe Tim Fisher reached out to Cardiff, Alabama, using only his wits and the internet, and the wonderful Linda G Cheek returned the virtual hand of friendship.
Exclusively for the inaugural Cardiff Arts Institute magazine, Linda snapped these pictures of life and culture in Cardiff Alabama. Imagine how different things might have been if you’d have taken a wrong turn and ended up in the heart of Dixieland instead of the Vale of Glamorgan.
South Wales
Alabama
Population
336,200
82
Largest age group
20 to 24
Mostly old (all the kids have moved away).
Music scene
Everything from Dubstep to folk.
Country music.
Shops
Independent traders and big high street names on offer.
None (there was one - but it closed).
Distractions
Ice skating rink, Olympic size swimming pool, Millennium Stadium sports and concerts, Cardiff bay
Ice Skating rink, Endzone Sports Grille in neighbouring Brookside, Hunting, Going to church
Roots
An international port with one of the UK’s oldest multicultural communities.
A mining community where folks can leave their doors unlocked.
Recent history
The city centre has undergone a major redevelopment and is now home to the new St Davids 2 shopping centre.
Severe floods in 2003 left many homes submerged and abandoned by their owners.
Do
Visit the National Museum Wales
Listen to the Handsome Family
Don’t...
wear a truckers hat anymore
dis’ truckers hats
Visit cardiffartsinstitute.org for full listings, music, videos, photos, blogs and more... 11
Words: Adam Corner
Interview: Mab Jones
Mount Kimbie Ears of 2010, rejoice: it’s been a vintage year for forward thinking electronic music. The past twelve months have furnished us with the swirling melodies of Caribou’s Swim, the joyous clicks n bleeps of Four Tet’s There is Love in You, and a barrage of boundary-pushing bass music from labels like Hyperdub, Hemlock and Night Slugs. Sitting somewhere near the top of this mouth-watering list of are Mount Kimbie the duo responsible for Crooks & Lovers, one of the most critically-acclaimed albums of the year. The Mount Kimbie sound is a patchwork of influences – crackling electronica, swooning neosoul echoes and warm, snaking bass lines. Crooks & Lovers is what Massive Attack might have sounded like if instead of immersing themselves in the gloominess of trip hop, they had embraced the restless rhythms of two-step. When I caught up with one half of Mount Kimbie, Dom Maker, the band had just returned from a two week blitz of European dates. “We’ve been playing a few dates with the XX, a big festival called Lowlands in Holland, and a gig that was basically at the base of Mount Vesuvius in Italy. It really surprises me that people know our songs in these places, but it seems to go down really well” said Dom.
“Our label and press team have done a great job of getting our name out and getting us interviews. But when we got reviewed in The Sun that was just insane” laughs Dom, “I think the fact that the indie crowd have picked up on us as well as the DJs helps too.” There’s no doubt that dubstep started the revolution in electronic bass music that is currently taking place, but having splintered established dance floor genres into a thousand pieces, now only the trace elements of dubstep can be found in the wreckage left behind – a process that Mount Kimbie represent better than anyone else.
12
“Dubstep was the reason we started making music”, said Dom. “We met at university in Brighton and started going to dubstep nights instead of the Fresher’s Week stuff that was
Stockbroker Punk; poet; polemic-spouting spoken word legend and, along with John Cooper Clarke and Henry Rollins, one of the major poplit-performers of our time. Taking his name from his first ever job as a stockbroker’s clerk, Attila has riled and rocked against all things Corporate, Capitalist, and Crapsome for 3 decades now. In advance of his 30th anniversary gig at Cardiff Arts Institute in October, we asked the man a few timely Qs.
blazing producers like Joy Orbison and James Blake, the band are ensuring that British electronic music is in rude health. “James Blake was part of the Mount Kimbie band at first, he played live with us. We met before he had really released anything, but we heard a recording he’d made of a horn section doing (jump-up dubstep anthem) Cockney Thug. We realised we had to get in touch with him! Now he’s blowing up
So - what made you become a poet? I always knew that I wanted to express myself using words and music. I started off as the bass player in punk bands, but was also writing songs and poems, and when the bands split I decided to have a go at performing these on my own in the changeover spaces between bands at gigs. The first one was at Bush Fair Playbarn in Harlow in 1980, and it went very well. Music press interest, a record deal and 2 Peel sessions followed... 30 years and about 2,700 gigs later, here I am!
Although some of the tracks on Crooks & Lovers have been destroying discerning dance floors across the country, the bulk of the album is made up of meandering loops, fused to soft, twinkling melodies. It’s an unashamedly experimental album, but the reward for repeated listening is body of work that cap-
Can you tell us who your influences are?
“In a way Hot Flush is more of a techno label now – moving to Berlin changed the emphasis of the label’s music, and you can hear it in Scuba’s albums. Sometimes its like he pushes the boat out so far that at first noone knows what to make of it, then its like ‘this is the freshest thing ever’, and I’ve got massive respect for that.” tures everything that is good about electronic music in 2010. Mount Kimbie’s label Hot Flush, helmed by the pioneering DJ and producer Scuba, was there at the very beginning of the dubstep revolution. Via a detour through Berlin techno, Hot Flush has kept things moving in the best possible way, providing a platform for the innovative sounds of Mount Kimbie to flourish Of course, Mount Kimbie know a thing or two about fresh sounds. Alongside other trail-
big time on his own, and we’ve both got loads on, so it seemed natural to go our separate ways for now. But we’re definitely planning to work again in the future.” The prospect of future Mount Kimbie/James Blake hookups is a mouth watering one. But for now, Cardiff has the excitement of Mount Kimbie’s first live show in Wales to look forward to...
My father Bill, who was a wonderful comic poet, the great Hilaire Belloc and The Clash. (Lots more as the years have gone by, but that’s what got me going!)
GRUB UP
Monday to Saturday
It’s a feeling that the band are going to have to quickly get used to: they have received fawning praise from the unlikeliest of places.
on. But our label, Hot Flush, are one of the labels that have just become more and more creative over the years, and that’s given us a great opportunity to develop our own sound.”
Atilla the
You’re doing quite a few dates in Wales. What are your links with here? I have done loads of gigs in Wales through the years, although I am from Sussex and don’t speak Welsh (apart
from a certain Monty Python phrase!) I did quite a lot of gigs in the Welsh independent music scene with Anhrefn and Datblygu, and organised gigs for them in England. Stupid question but – what would the ultimate Attila tour Tshirt say?
2016 WORLD TOUR CELEBRATING GLOBAL PEACE, SOCIALISM AND BRIGHTON FC’S LEAGUE AND CUP DOUBLE! The final word is probably best left to poet Ian MacMillan. His view of Attila? In one word: “magnificent”. Come and see one of the high-priests of spoken word, and even win the chance to read with him yourself in our poetry prize draw. All welcome, from huns to honeys, brickies to brokers. You’ll be glad you made the investment.
Enjoy any two meals from our all new menu for just £10 Monday to Saturday. Tasty treats...
Mount Kimbie grace the stage at Cardiff Arts Institute on Wednesday 27th October. Get your tickets early this is a white-hot gig not to be missed. http://is.gd/fiuvT
Attila will be at Cardiff Arts Institute on Monday 4th October. Doors open at 7.30pm and tickets cost £5 on the door. See www.jambones.webs.com for details, or contact jambonesevents@gmail.com
Photographs: Rhodri Brooks
e “ T h is t e c a pl portan son m er s the at i p s ’ a the ture. It two th . For of as e phs set pic the e e f gra h s th a in t age o photo own ither i ates th tioni d e r e / r la e ent r n ma thes g on odd, that c the re ironm lean- e d v o e ke , lyin isn’t r n l w a ma t e a ly lo m ple ce of the s exp h our ecific itions nt.” a l m d exa : the p ixture graph e wit it, sp mpos onme con he o to in av vir irs s se rmat, pira- t, i sta ’s the m e pho we h s with and c an en h rt m fo s ins men n e es rb es , it sta o act ue. Th eractio urselv shap his u t to mediu e draw the m u d e o t o g l i n h d b t , a n A k intr and in hold ossib an a a r . is m n wo zine raits. p e fm t f.He 5m a ship how w at the tion o rdif sing 3 his ow mag al por a a k C r e u l o u d l o n s o a m n y b l o u l t a a d S fro un ber ing ain coll , an cto and uth.M d print Rolling g and O ing gh the d l e t o o n tin u ars Plym ng a from res in la thro 2 ye hy in velopi raphy s, inte stitute 2 u s In ro s i ograp . De otog rts mo t h lm ook iff A i Br g pho with fi hite p ing hu d r r d a inC Rho tudyin shoot and w on tak ork g k rs o sw i yea nues t ’s blac ntratin h e ti 0 e of con rom 6 y conc som f g s n u biti tion ri is b xhi d be e Rho l l i w dri Rho
13
Words: Sam Jones
ZOMBIES... an appreciation
Zombies never get old... They might rot a little and the odd appendage might fall off, but as a genre we never grow tired of gut munching, brain eating, walking cadavers because they are the greatest screen monsters we have. You can’t turn a Zombie into a romantic teen heart throb and suck all the blood from him. Twilight has attempted to repurpose the Vampire genre as a Mormon inflected hymn to the preservation of virginity. Dracula has become a advocate of ‘True Love Waits’. This will never happen with Zombies because you’d have to be a special kind of weird to want to give your precious flower to a rotted corpse with zero personality. Another advantage of the screen Zombie is that films in the genre don’t lend themselves too easily to happy endings. The main problem I always had with a lot of teen marketed horror movies is that someone has to survive the assault of the masked psycho and avenge the rest of the good looking, all
American kids or that whatever plague or pestilence has befallen the sleepy heartland town will be swept away so we can all sleep at night. The best thing about Zombie movies is that Zombies don’t stop, don’t get bored, need no sleep and can never sate their hunger. Most Zombie films begin with the breakdown of modern society and offer no solutions at the end. Maybe one or two people might escape in a Helicopter running on fumes but where will they run to? Short of finding an island to live out your last days in isolation, the apocalyptic visions of modern Zombie films have no cheery final reel, only the idea of life spent being pursued by former members of your own species.
Some people say director Lucio Fulci was a sick minded journeyman hack, I say he was a horror film genius who directed at least one stone classic with The Beyond. Where some say this tale of the gates of hell opening in the basement of a New Orleans Hotel makes little sense, I say the director boldly plays with space and time to create a fever dream nightmare of melted faces, clockwork spiders, blind soothsayers and bleak hell dimensions, not forgetting a brace of his classic mud caked Zombies for good measure. Gory, grim, bleak and surreal, The Beyond gains eternal notoriety due to its inclusion on the infamous Video Nasty list.
THE HORDE
FIVE ZOMBIE FILMS FOR REEL FREAKS
Zombie Cocktail As Halloween hauls its carcass ever closer, and to coincide with the launch of their new Tiki Bar menu, Cardiff Arts Institute’s James Hitchin introduces us to a catatonic classic and pays tribute to its inventor. 14
THE BEYOND
The French are very good at churning out hyper-violent crime movies in which shady Eastern European gangsters remove parts of each other with pliers. They are also extremely talented at producing closeto-the-bone horror endurance tests like Frontiers. The Horde takes elements of both when it places vengeful cops and a shady criminal gang in a run-
Donn Beach, a.k.a. Don the Beachcomber invented more than ninety original tropical rum concoctions and singlehandedly shaped the Polynesian style of bar and restaurant known collectively as “Tiki” Tiki culture culminated with the most infamous drink of the period, the Zombie. Beach concocted it one afternoon for a friend who had dropped by his restaurant before flying to San Francisco. The friend left after having consumed three of them. He returned several days later to complain that he had been turned into a zombie for his entire trip.
down housing block just before the stinking undead mass descend. Close quartered Zombie combat, vomit inducing gore and a cast of unsympathetic survivors make The Horde a must see for horror enthusiasts.
GRAPES OF DEATH French Art house Exploitation director Jean Rollin is better known for films featuring sapphic Vampire girls floating down desolate beaches in seethrough smocks but in 1978 he created a uniquely French Zombie flick with Grapes of Death, a low budget horror yarn in which the pesticides sprayed on the local vineyard are turning the people into flesh-crazed killers. Despite occasionally ropey gore effects, the director’s trademark ethereal atmospherics are in place and while the stately pace of his films can be off putting for new fans, Grapes of Death is still an original and fresh take on Zombie Genre conventions.
Donn Beach was very cautious with the recipes of his original cocktails. His instructions for his bartenders contained coded references to ingredients such as “Donn’s Mix”, the contents of which were only known to him. As a result of Beach’s secrecy and the enormous popularity of these drinks during the Tiki craze, countless variations on the Zombie emerged. The Institute has its own Zombie mix in tribute to Donn, it contains a heavy mix of 5 rums, absinthe and a few other little treats such as falernum, and as such we enforce a strict two per customer rule.
Voodoo
THE LIVING DEAD AT THE MANCHESTER MORGUE
Weekender
A startling Spanish Zombie effort from the 70s that hangs its gory sickness on an ecofriendly plot device about new technology that uses “ultrasonic radiations” to destroy countryside pests. The movie is an exercise in violent exploitation and bleakness, featuring one the most bigoted small town cops in cinema history and a flat refusal to provide an upbeat ending. Although the Zombie genre is dominated by the twin kings of undead cheap thrills Lucio Fulci and George A. Romero, director Jorge Grau’s entry is a bold, uncompromising classic if you can get around the wayward dubbing and occasional moments of shaky dialogue.
Fri 29th - Sun 31st Oct A full weekend of jaw-dropping entertainment voodoo majick & a free bottle of champagne for the best fancy dress costume.
Kaptin v
Moneyshot (DJ Soundclash) Matt the Hat (DJ)
Gecko
MULBERRY STREET
The Leano
Given the slightly inaccurate title ‘Zombie Virus On Mulberry Street’ for its UK DVD release, this low budget recent effort from the United States is actually about a virulent rat disease that turns bite victims into slathering half-rodent, halfhuman monsters with a drive to kill. To all intents and purposes, this is a zombie movie with its attendant braces of genre clichés in which the virus spreads through an apartment building in Manhattan. A tight gang of likeable characters now have to survive in isolation as New York is ceded to the undead horde while constant rolling news seeds the film with uncomfortable echoes of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.
Miss FooFoo LaBelle
To get yourself in the undead mood, why not sit back and soak up the sounds of this Zombie playlist? http://is.gd/fm87c
(Live Burlesque)
Dirtbox
Live Comedy Halloween Special
DEAD FAMOUS FANCY DRESS THEME
TIKI Cocktail Specials Zombie Shooter Specials
15
join the war on boredom at cardiffartsinstitute.org