Ealing Feeder – new exhibit at the Kinetica Art Fair 5-7 February 2010

Posted 22 January 2010 by admin in Exhibits | Robots | Sounds

Juice for the Baby

I’ll be showing off the latest version of my carillon (automatic bell-playing rig) at the Kinetica Art Fair, P3 Gallery, 23 Marylebone Road, London, 5-7 February 2010. You’ll find me on the ArtHertz’ stall Electricity and Ghosts, which gives a sneak preview of our upcoming live show at Battersea Power Station.

Here, it will be playing an electric lullaby, inspired by a delightfully unsettling poem I discovered on the pages of The Electric Age (Vol 1, 1930), a pioneering gadget magazine published by the Electrical Association for Women. The words of the lullaby are inscripted on the piece, along with fragments of domestic circuitry from the time.

I’ll be posting images of the new carillon in a week or so – it features a new figure which may interest anyone who has enjoyed watching my other robotic dolls in action. The words Ealing Feeder come from the control room of Battersea Power Station, which provided London with electricity during the boom years of the fossil fuel age.

Tags: carillon, Ealing Feeder, EAW, Kinetica Art Fair, musical robots

Electricity and Ghosts, featuring Spacedog – live music in Battersea Power Station1

Posted 16 January 2010 by admin in Gigs | Sounds | 6 comments

As the sun sets on Battersea Power Station Spacedog will be playing live in the turbine hall. We’ll be using vocals, theremin and other instruments, including the Ealing Feeder – the latest version of my automatic rig. You can see the Ealing Feeder in action at the Kinetica Art Fair, 5-7 February 2010.

We’re just one of a number of live acts playing in Battersea Power Station – date tbc but fingers crossed for 1 June. Stay posted for more news of this hugely exciting event, including ticket details. For now I can tell you there will be music from Alex Paterson (The Orb), John Foxx and ourselves, an installation from Andy Back, projections from Ian Eames and Mike Coles and many other treats. Curated by Dennis Da Silva and Beverley Bennett, Art Hertz, the event is titled Electricity and Ghosts (after one of Foxx’ classic tracks).

This promo artwork from Gregory Allan will be appearing on an Oyster Card holder near you:

Electricity and Ghosts Oyster Card poster

Here are some of snapshots from our R&D trip to the space. The evening will include projections onto the inner walls of the building:

Battersea Power Station, showing two of the chimneys

Inside Battersea Power Station - on the west side of the turbine hall

Battersea Power Station - cranes for unloading coal

Tags: Art Hertz, Battersea Power Station, Electricity and Ghosts, John Foxx, Kinetica Art Fair, Spacedog, The Orb

News: January 2012

Juice for the Baby, Spacedog's debut album, is here! I'm ducking out of the Kinetica Art Faire this year but am huddled indoors, writing, sleuthing (investigating a recording in the archives) and devising a new biologically-inspired musical instrument - all will be revealed soon.

News: December 2011

Juice for the Baby, Spacedog's debut album, launches in mid-December. Join us for the launch gigs at the Marlborough, Brighton, on 9 December and the Horse Hospital, London, on 14 December.

News: November 2011

A busy month writing and editing the forthcoming Spacedog album - stay tuned for news.

News: October 2011

I'm focusing on my writing this month (so am quite the hermit) but I'm squeezing in the occasional live performance here and there.

I'm looking forward to working with Helen Keen in her Spacetacular on 20th. I'm writing a code-based work for the new label Chordpunch and some owlish music for that fine wordsmith Professor Elemental.

Spacedog are booked into the studio at the end of the month to complete work on our album.

News: September 2011

A busy month writing, preparing a get-together of maker musicians for the Brighton Maker Faire After-show party. I've also been electrifying a teapot for the Chi-Tek - an exhibition by MzTek of female tech artists at the V&A. And with my fellow Spacedog Stephen Hisock, I made an appearance on the 10th Anniversary edition of BBC Click.

News: August 2011

The Spacedog song For Laika is now available on iTunes (and the album is on its way). Meanwhile, we've been busy preparing our set for Green Man, including the first outing of our torch song for Tommy Cooper.

I'm procrastinating over a teapot which I'm going to electrify for a MzTek event at the Victoria and Albert Museum in September.

I took a short trip to a very rainy Edinburgh Fringe where I played at an event for Edinburgh Skeptics in the Royal Observatory and made some plans for a Spacedog show next summer.

Apart from that, I've been busy writing. More news on that shortly, I hope...

News: July 2011

I'm interviewed by Leila Johnston in this month's Wired UK magazine and will be appearing with my fellow Spacedogs at a Wired: The Future of Music on 20 July.

I've rounded up a bumper crop of links and soundclips for my BBC Radio 4 doc The Bird Fancyer's Delight, which is broadcast on 5 and 9 July and is also available on Listen Again. Thanks for all your cheery emails about the doc, to ProjectMoonbase for mentioning it in their podcast PMB038 and for the many national papers who gave the documentary such lovely reviews - I'm glad people enjoyed it! On Sunday 10 July, the doc was featured on Graham Seed's Pick of the Week (Radio 4). A good week!

My latest collaboration with Richard Wiseman is a free and fun magic trick for your iPhone. It's called Paranormality and it's been put together for the launch of his book by the same name in the US. Thanks to Phillis on Derrren Brown's blog for giving the app a mention - thousands of people have now downloaded it and are busy bamboozling their friends.

News: June 2011

Playing theremin for Louise Colborne's homage to Loie Fuller (pioneering cybernetic dancer c1900) and composing sounds for Sonus, an homage to the analogue age with Spacedog, ArtHertz, Rushes Soho Shorts Festival and Ridley Scott Associates. Discovering how easy (or difficult) it is to publicise events in 2011 without Twitter - will report back!

Getting ready for BEAM - a brand new festival of electronics and music at Brunel University (24-26 June). I'll be speaking, running a workshop on optical flow and performing live with my fellow Spacedogs. I'll also be playing a short theremin set at the Speaky Spokey, a new arts salon in Brighton (Wed 22 June).

Putting the finishing touches to a sonic-themed BBC Radio 4 documentary, with producer Neil McCarthy, due for transmission on 5 July 2011.

Playing a short set at the the Absinthe Ball, Lewes, 17 June, and highlights of our Televisor set at Richard Strange's legendary Cabaret Futura, 20 June.

Presenting a workshop for Hack Circus at Interesting, in the Conway Hall, London, 18 June, and performing theremin at a family day at the Science Museum, 19 June.