PostStockan

Thanks are due to an awful lot of friendly folks who put on a great festival in the Wicklow hills this weekend. KnockanStockan is organised, built and taken care of by volunteers who love music and good times so fair play to them.

My personal experience at first was one of feeling out of place, unprepared, boring and old but once I stopped thinking I actually had any real responsibility to fulfill, I had a smashing time.

The arty tent only sort of happened on Saturday after taking ages to set up on Friday and eventually being taken over as a regular stage due to the cracking Melty Marquee getting blown away Saturday night. Fuck it. When I did get around to doing one of the pieces I'd prepared, there wasn't really anyone there and I'd already realised it wasn't the most fitting thing to present in that setting so yeah, fuck it. I did it how it ought to be done more or less and I know now what work is left to get it ready for the gallery space its being designed for.

Much more satisfying work wise was earlier on the Saturday when I thought it was a bit of a waste sitting in the lovely indian (that's from the country called india) marquee with all these flowing colours and patterns sweeping about in the wind, listening to an iPod on the PA and decided to grab my gear and do a few A Room For Improvement style electroacoustic sound sets. About the same time I decided to that, a deadly painter called Barry Quinn showed up and launched into a lovely live painting session and over the course of his painting and my sound set, enough people wandered in and out, a good few staying to chill out after hearty breakfasts and what not, that I felt like I'd made some contribution to the festivities. It'll DEFO be A Room For Improvement who applies to do any festivals from now on. Until the Icarus Crane is willing to muddy up his sports jacket anyway.

Later some different folks hanging around in the healing tent across the way mentioned that the music had changed favourably into what sounded like my set, so job done.

Also performing in the arty tent were Stephen James Smith, Colm Keegan and Karl Parkinson all doing spoken word. The first too guys I've seen before and they both do a great set and it was cool seeing Mr Parkinson for the first time. I hope to come across his set again. What sets him apart is a of natural dramatic flare which sort of sneaks into his reading without coming over as fruity or pretentious. Good stuff.

I just about managed to get around to see a few of the acts that were either known to me beforehand or recommended by trustworthy folks during the festival but not nearly enough of them. Deadly stuff I actually saw include but are not limited to The Northside Kontraband (or something very like that) - stompin' good fun! Toward slavic type party music, banjo, percussion, heaps of brass and a clarinet. Not a milliion miles from the Ompa music I love so dear - on Sunday evening right after Eric Noon and the Future Gypsies - those two bands in succession will melt yr legs off! Manu Negra eat yr heart out. Seriously good, seriously fun songwriting and bags of energy (backed up by real talent in the individual members). Indeed the Fish Stage was the new Main Stage.

Something I wasn't going to miss was just after that on Sunday night - Marcas Carcas was due to do a longer set than I'd ever seen him do (just seen him twice on his own unplugged) and I was dying to see what he'd do in this setting. Couldn't see really, he had the Tunnel of Fun WEDGED and nearly bouncing the tent spikes out of the ground. Missisipy Wine is still knocking around in my head during quiet moments. Great stuff.

Saturday is a really random blur altogether I have to admit but yeah, loads of talent knocking around. On Friday I actually took my video camera out for a little while until I started to unhinge from work mode and decided to actually enjoy myself a bit and I think I got the odd good tune on tape. I think the guy's name is James Guilmartin who was with his band (don't know what they're called I'm afraid) in the Melty Marquee on Friday eve and really impressed me. I've seen the guy play unplugged on his own too a few times and never totally got into it even though he demonstrates himself to be massively talented, the songs he's doing are really more suited to the format of the band I saw him in, guitar, bass and drums all being played very very well indeed. An eclectic sound for such a simple set up, enough bluesy guitar to even out metally build ups and some great songwriting.
I was in that tent a good bit on Friday (not just cos it was raining mind) and saw some really different stuff. Over all I'd say it was younger talent in that tent, so some really good acts that people will be delighted to hear more and more of in the coming years. Don't know who they are but I'll pick my way through the bands on the festival website to try to find out a little more about some of the bands.

That doesn't really cover anything at all in comparison to the amount of great acts that were about but I'm sitting quite uncomfortably and haven't quite recovered yet.
For this reason, I'm going to relax a bit more and continue the days work which has been small scale drawing in preparation for a refocusing on the exhition in August.

Peas and Love

Today's THIRD entry (I more or less took the day off you see)

Here is the line up for the three days in the Art Tent organised by programmed by Mia Mallow for KnockanStockan festival this weekend (subject to change etc etc)

Friday:
All day: Brian Lynch, Ana Carey, Stephen Lawlor
2.00: Video art and shorts
4.00: Tickle
4.30: Aileen and Aoife (10 minutes)
Icarus Crane
5.00: Frank Wasser
5.30: Karl Parkinson
6.00: Stephen James Smith
6.30: Aileen and Brian Keary
7.00: Hugh Cooney's films.
8.00: Mikey and Matt's music videos, gig footage etc etc.
11.00: Deccys movie choice thing

Saturday:
All day 2-7: Brian Lynch, Ana Carey, Stephen Lawlor and Barry Quinn
2.00: Video art and shorts
4.00: Tickle
4.30: Icarus Crane
Aileen and Aoife (10 mins)
5.00: Frank Wasser
5.30: Colm Keegan
6.00: Stephen James Smith
6.30: Enda MacNally
7.00: Aileen and Brian Keary
7.30: Films from Ray Hyland, Hugh Cooney and David Loder
8.30: Mikey and Matts films.
11.30: Deccys movies

Sunday:
Brian, Ana, Lawlor and Barry all day
2.00: Video art, gig footage, bands music videos, festival footage etc
4.00: Frank Wasser
4.30: Icarus Crane
5.00: Colm Keegan
5.30: Stephen James Smith
6.00: Ophelia
6.30: Mikey and Matts films etc etc
11.00: Deccys

Check out the festival website and myspace for all other info.

I am preparing three different but similar sets for the three days with room for improvisation (and improvement of course) in each, so if yr at the festival, stop by EACH DAY and enjoy. Upon my return I'll hopefully have heaps of bootleg video footage to stick up on the old interweb, for now here is a video from Bray Festival's art arena yesterday of Riona Hartman, a deadly jazz singer with her two accompanists who's names I don't know (sorry).



I've got a few other clips from the show (the previous post feature's my own performance) but I just want to check with the artists before I put them up. Inspite of seriously long hold ups and technical problems and what not, the whole show was lots of fun and ranged from the anarchic cabaret stylings of Rose Lawless to the comedy of Coco Lebush (or something like that), from the one woman drama of Lauren Begaun to the improvised electroacoustics of Kim V Porcelli and the wonderful singing of songs of Eleventy Two. All to be highly recommended. I really enjoyed the show (once we got going).

Fail

Sometimes it just doesn't click.

Immediatly Upcoming

I'm delighted to be going to KnockanStockan to perform some Icarus Crane spoken word on the 24th, 25th and 26th of the month. I'll be on at around 1630 each of those days in the arts tent organised by Mia Mallow of Arty Party fame.

This coming Sunday, the 19th, I'll be doing something similar in the arts arena of Bray Summer Festival and maybe showing some videos. Not too sure.

I have nothing else to say right now.

Just a little procrastination is all

Been procrastinating like a pro the last few days from doing as much work as I should on my drawings. Been making sounds out of words. Actually, since that work is the other part of the show that I'm doing in August, I guess I have been working after all. Nice. I've also changed the look of this blog from Black and Boxy to Open and White. A change is as good as a break eh?

This Sunday, I'm going to do the first full live set of Icarus Crane spoken word with live electronic processing at Bray Summer Festival in the Arts Arena on a day of events MC'd and organised by Rose Lawless, who I'd only vaguely heard of until a few days ago but who I've enjoyed checking out on her site here. So that should be a fun day. I'm also going to bring along a few videos in case there's time that needs filling in, so we'll see what happens with that.

In other news, my entry to the Hilltown New Music festival was rejected but I guess it's just aswell since it was on this weekend too and I'd rather go perform than install. That does look like a good festival though and I'll probably spend some time making a better piece for it for next year. (I went to the site of the festival and took footage and sound samples which I edited together in a day - bit of a longshot)
In other news of rejection, my entry for the RDS student art awards was also rejected rejected rejected. Bitter? Yup, bit him too!
Nah, not bitter - especially when I saw yesterday that my classmate Tanya Harney had been accepted to the show. I hope she wins the 10,000 euro award and buys pints for the class on our return to college. I'm assuming she entered the video she made for the end of year show in May - it was really beautifully made and a lovely idea to start with, so good on her!

When I get round to it, I'll edit this post with the inclusion of the piece I made for Hilltown. Not right now though.

also

Some downbeat electronic music what I make as a hobby. When I can afford the external Midi controllers I would need to do this sort of stuff well as a live set, I'll probably do more with these sequenced type sounds but for now, here's a bit of quirky grooviness for you to enjoy

aWindowTwoLiveSet.mp3

Live Set for Down Load

Here is a free gift of the full A Room For Improvement live set Senryu #4 as performed at the latest Arty Party. For better or worse, this was how it went down on the night.

Senryu4Live.mp3

Also, here are just a few photos of the last few weeks drawings for an upcoming Icarus Crane installation. It's not that I haven't been drawing much mind, it's just that I can't take a photo to save my life.

stop time

I recieved a copy of a bizarrely worded MP4 player manual yesterday from a nice young lady and will be using it as part of the content for an upcoming spoken word / sound art piece. Here's a wee bit of what I've been doing with it today. Very rough.

Samsung Test One Rendered.mp3

flasher

I enjoyed making little clickables of this sort earlier this year as an aside to the project I was working on and have decided to set up a little site in the next few weeks to add an online element to installation I'm working on. I'll be keeping the graphics and texts simple, in line with the drawings from the show.

someNoise

Insomnia strikes
Tenament.mp3

Done with that there now

After performing this piece a few times and reviewing and repairing it, the comments of my tutor Des Ward about how problematic audience participation might be, ring a little in my ears upon retiring this piece in order not to be distracted anymore from further Icarus Crane projector projects. Enjoy footage from various versions...

wordsMakeSounds

A short sample of my developement of the sound portion of an upcoming installation.

guitarPlayer Rendered.mp3


Enjoy