Hampshire Jam 9 Programme

MUSICZEIT
HAMPSHIRE JAM 9
Saturday 13th November 2010
13.30 Doors Open
14.30 Stephan Whitlan
16.00 Ron Boots & Friends
17.15 Break
19.30 The Ωmega Syndicate
21.00 Redshift
(all timings approximate)
www.musiczeit.com
...specialists in lossless downloads - “the best of both worlds...”
Interviewed by Graham Getty, Sept 2010...
How are things in Ireland?
Well, hanging on by the fingernails really! Been out of
work for nearly 3 years now, and with the economic
slump still not bottomed-out, there seems little chance
of there being a construction industry to re-enter for at
least another 2-3 years. The benefits system here is
fairly supportive but not, I think, at a sustainable level
so it will all come crashing down soon. So I've been
looking at moving back to the UK to work full-time as a
pipe organ builder/designer etc for one of the “big four”
English firms. This, if it comes off, would have me in
Durham, Malvern or Northampton - so a bit more
“connected” than I have been these last few years. I still
love the peace & quiet of Ireland, but I have to survive
somehow!
What sort of feedback have you had with your latest
album ‘Triangulation’?
Frankly, almost none. The few reviews that have
surfaced have merely echoed the press-release I wrote.
I've said before that as an artist, this sort of thing is no
help at all. Honest reviews are of much more value (so
you know what NOT to do again!) but I can see that
distributors need to say a CD is “the next big thing...” if
2 • Hampshire Jam 9
they are going to shift any units at all. I have only
supplied stock to 2 outlets and, as yet, it is not available
as a download. I will release it to MusicZeit asap in
order to see if it “flies”. I worked hard on ‘Triangulation’
to not re-tread familiar musical paths, and tried to
concentrate on musical development within tracks
rather than the usual 'Tubular Bells' loop-repeatoverdub routine. I also gave a lot of thought to the
overall shape of the whole CD, so that it is a
(significant) journey from start to finish. I am aware
however that much of this goes un-noticed when you
can just download one track - and maybe the music
loses something once you strip away the context.
Any new albums on the horizon?
No, since the last one hasn't gone anywhere! It sets me
thinking that I should either go back to the beginning &
just churn out the same old stuff, or just give it all up as
a dead loss! I've never released music in order to make
money, but it is much harder these days to make any
sort of impact. I blame all that music software out there
that turns any moron into Mike Oldfied with almost no
effort - and then the ease of putting the (probably awful)
product out there in the marketplace. There is a slim
chance that I might finally release the “long-lost” second
album - probably only as a download - as it sounds a lot
more like ‘Map Reference’ than my current stuff.
What are your memories of the last Hampshire Jam
performance?
That would be HJ4 as Narcosis with Steve Jenkins. A
huge pile of gear, as I remember - which completely
filled his living room while we rehearsed - and all very
“spur of the moment” music. It was also typically “wilful”
as I inverted the usual musical structure of most EM
improvs: start (after the intro) with everything running
full-tilt, and then slowly break it down to an atmospheric
middle section, then ramp back up to the end. I was
surprised that the recording (that Tony Sawford did)
stood up on it's own - often live recordings lose
something in the re-telling - so much so that it appeared
on our Narcosis CD. I remember looking up towards the
end of the piece, as I reached up for the Prophet 5 and
seeing AirSculpture in the audience egging me on - and
John later commenting that when I'd described the
Wurlitzer overture to him, he expected some nice quiet
electric piano noodling, not the full “Reg Dixon”
treatment it turned out to be! Because there was so
much gear (and I can't believe I got it all in my little van
- it wouldn't go back in afterwards!!) I was not properly
doing my usual stage managing, and still feel guilty that
I wasn't helping RMI who were having a serious
“technical”. A lesson learnt, I hope!
happy artists & audience. The event always looks great
(Bob Kiddie has lit ALL the HJ's so far & loves doing it)
and the current PA is one of the best I've heard (in
terms of clarity at volume) for many years.
What's your favourite memory of the HJ's?
Always how chilled every one is! How informal the
event is, chatting with the audience and catching up
with other musicians & old friends. Needless to say the
music is always fantastic, so it's hard to pick out
specific '”sets”, but Redshift's HJ2 performance (which
became ‘Faultline’) is burned into my cortex forever.
What are your plans for the HJ9 concert?
Hopefully keeping the gear to a minimum, so I don't get
absorbed by it. I'm doing a “greatest hits” sort of thing
with a backing tape (OK, iPod!) as it's less stressful
(and gear intensive) than a big improv. As John Dyson
recently suggested: we're all becoming our own “tribute
bands” - so this set will see some old favourites given a
superficial make-over But still the same knackered old
synths (and the same old presets too!).
What's your current synth setup?
You are in some ways the unsung hero of the
Hampshire Jams, the on-the-day organisational
back-bone. Do you enjoy the day or find it
stressful?
Should be: Korg DW8000, Roland D-50, Kurzweil
K2000, SCI Prophet 5 (if it's still alive), Atruria
Minimoog on a PC laptop and a Nord Electro 3 - which
might just replace the Kurzweil....
Provided all the prior planning is done sensibly, the day
is rarely stressful. By using the same PA & Lights every
year it makes things fairly painless. Some things still
trip me up. Last year Mike, the PA man, set the main
mixer on top of the amp racks - which was fine as he's
6 foot 5 tall, but I spotted this too late, & spent the rest
of the day having to climb onto a chair to see/operate
the sound desk! It seems over the years that I also
have taken on the role of PA operator, which is fine as
most artists self-mix, but does place an extra duty on
my shoulders. I always enjoy the day - the pay-off is
Any new purchases?
Yup, after many years of not adding to the collection,
the Nord just had to be had: Hammond, Rhodes,
Wurlitzer (piano this time!), Clavinet, CP70,
Mellotron/Chamberlain, Solina all in one box - a retro
boy's dream!! It's not cheap, but “sounds per pounds”
its top-notch. I've also “acquired” M-Tron Pro and
Virtual String Machine (both by G-Force) recently and
I'm having a lot of fun with them - which is what gear
should do to you. Last, but by no means least, I've just
Hampshire Jam 9 • 3
downloaded (for free!) a 30 stop 2 manual virtual pipe organ - which is
huge fun. I'm working out if I can sneak it into the live set somewhere.....
What's your favourite synth?
Still a (real, working) MiniMoog. The Prophet 5 comes a close second,
but the Moog is still top of the pile! As you may know, I have had to
retire my 2 “hard copies” due to their old age & infirmity, but manage to
make a close (enough) approximation with the Arturia virtual. I used a
new Moog Voyager “old-school” at E-Live the other year, and it's very
good, but still didn't quite do all my old model D's do. I thought the extra
gizmos on the “straight” Voyager were a bit of a distraction - though the
new XL looks a bit more to my liking.
What's your favourite album?
Supertramp - ‘Crime of the Century’ / ‘Crisis what Crisis’.
Elton John - ‘Madman’ / ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’.
Pat Moraz - ‘I’
Mike Oldfield - ‘Hergest Ridge’
Pink Floyd - ‘Dark Side / Wish / Animals’
TD - ‘Encore / Statosfear / Cyclone’ .... you get the idea!
Do you still prefer a physical product or are you warming to the
media-less era?
Hm, I still don't like the idea of downloading music (as a consumer). I
like to have the CD in my hands - look at the pictures, read the notes
etc. I know it's an increasingly “fuddy-duddy” approach, but I'm still just a
material boy... As an artist - apart from the initial cost (and housing the
stock) I still favour producing hard-copy CDs. I still feel that the whole
package is important - and lavish a lot of thought on it. Fine if someone
just wants to rip one track, but I think they are missing part of the
picture. I also can't cope with the idea that all my CD's could disappear
overnight when some hardware crashes - I'd be completely lost!
Any new technology that’s impressed you lately?
The continuing trek into esoteric areas that the hardware modular synth
developers are taking. I long ago lost any interest in the latest all
singing, all dancing mega workstations - too many choices, no real
character. The virtual emulations of classic instruments are still
improving - my chance to enjoy a CS80 or an ARP 2600 without the
wallet (or space) and the aforementioned Moog & Pipe Organ.
I still don't/can't/won't accept the “do it all in the box” approach, though I
admit that I now could, if I HAD to. ‘Triangulation’ saw the sequencing
still in the hands of an Atari (Cubase 2.0!) playing a virtual Moog on the
PC, recorded onto (Garageband on the) Mac - so I've still got a way to
go...
What music have you been listening to recently?
Actually, a bit of everything in my collection - as I have the iPod on all
day on “shuffle”. So I get (once every 3 months) everything I really like
in my collection. I rarely sit down these days to listen to an album all the
way through - and for a while I couldn't get used to not getting the
correct “next track” - but it stops me getting stuck in musical ruts. I still
have a fairly slim EM library - much more trad folk, world and an
enormous amount of classical Organ music. I still follow the DiN
releases with interest, but actually haven't bought any where near the
amount of music I used to...
Any closing comments to your fans out there?
Buy my CD! If you don't, there won't be another....!
4 • Hampshire Jam 9
Ron
Boots
& Friends
Interviewed by Ian Boddy, Sept 2010...
When was your first ever release?
Wow, that was in the end of the 70's but it had nothing
to do with EM. :-) I played in a band where we released
a tape and even an LP, we were a cover band at that
time who also played our own material, very 70's and
80's music like "Echo and the Bunnymen" and "The
Cure". If you talk about Electronic Music then it was
1987 that I released my first cassette. From that time on
I released music very regularly, first CD was in 1990
(Dreamscape).
How has the scene changed over those years?
Quite a lot, from the early 90's to 2000 we had a great
lively scene with the big help of a radio show in
Germany (Schwingungen), Belgium and here in the
Netherlands but in one year all of them disappeared
and we were left with the problem that we could hardly
reach the people that listen to it. It has changed the
scene in The Netherlands and Germany profoundly.
Festivals that first had over 1000 visitors declined and
now have 250 to 300 visitors. Still a healthy number but
I do miss those other days :-).
Music-wise things are also changing with it being all to
easy with software to make music. To many these
sound alike IMHO and with the download culture these
days everybody can throw it into the world. And this
means that there is now an abundance of EM around.
But a lot of it is of poor quality I think. Especially the
recording side is very underrated. I hate MP3!! I think it
is crap to be honest if you compare it to a good format.
So a bad recording on MP3 is my nightmare. I really
think it is destroying a lot and not only in the EM scene!!
Jazz, Classical - actually every music is hurt by it. My
opinion is that a regular CD is still the nicest way to get
music published and if you don't want to invest in this
as a musician why should a listener do it for a MP3!!.
But I understand the other forms.
On the live scene side I am glad there are still guys like
yourself, David Wright and the guys in Germany from
the Electronic Circus putting on shows. We as Groove
have 2 festivals a year, in the spring (E-Day) and fall
(E-Live) that still are valuable. And with the new Internet
radio shows (I have my own Dreamscape radio show)
we are building up a new fan base again. Lets hope we
can “poke up the fire”.
Hampshire Jam 9 • 5
Talk about the Morpheusz project. Why that name
and why this group style?
Morpheusz is born from the concerts I did with Frank
Dorritke aka FD Project, a great guitar player that I met
on E-Day 2009. His way of playing is just what I thought
at that time my music could benefit from so I asked him
to play on a track for a special CD I made for a concert I
did in Bochum in a planetarium. We had a great time
there and really hit it off, and as I was asked by David
Wright to play in Derby that September. I asked Frank
to join me and Harold (my drummer) for that gig. And so
it began.
The live show and the follow up CD Derby was born
with a powerful sound that a lot of people liked. BUT it
was still my music with the adding of Franks guitar. And
after a concert we did in The Netherlands where I also
invited Eric vd Heijden among others there was a sort
of chemistry between our 4 that clicked. Now Morpheus
is in Greek mythology the god of dreams, Morpheus
has the ability to take any human form and appear in
dreams. His true semblance is that of a winged
daemon, imagery shared with many of his siblings.
And that is where we got the name from (with the extra
edition of the Z at the end). With Morpheusz we want to
explore the more edgy side of Electronic Music, faster,
weirder. It is really a group effort, so not a Ron Boots or
Frank Dorritke style but a blend of the 4 musicians
making music. Having an equal share in the process. It
is more raw, more rock and roll. We love it.
6 • Hampshire Jam 9
Talk a bit about the other 3 musicians.
Well Frank has been making music his whole life as far
as I know, he loves Mike Oldfield and Pink Floyd and
you hear that back in his music. He is a wonderful
guitar player and has released about 10 solo CDs to
date. He lives about an hours drive away from me in
Germany but with todays fast Internet and digital
recordings it is easy to work together. But the best thing
about him is he is laid back, cool so to say. A great guy
to be around even for a German :-)
Eric vd Heijden is a friend for over 20 years and a great
romantic musician. We have been making music now
for so long and even with the pause of over 8 years we
had now together everything is fresh but also familiar
again. His musical ideas are as I describe them a
mixture of Vangelis and Yanni. He is also a good
keyboard player and has released up to date 3 CDs.
The great thing about Eric is that we enhance each
other musically. Where I am more the Rhythmic
Sequencer driven musician, more harmonic He has the
melodies and romantic touches and tunes. In the studio
it is like a musical symbioses with him. I feel what he is
going to do and the feeling is visa versa.
Harold vd Heijden is the nephew of Eric and we have
been playing for over 18 years now together. I think he
has contributed on every album I made from 1995 on,
great thing about good drummers is they have a
complete different feeling of rhythm then I have. And he
is Rock steady, right on the sequence. BUT!! most of all
he is my best friend!! This man has even saved my life
once :-). I think he is one of the best drummer in the EM
scene. And now with Morpheusz he is really coming
into his own music. Where before he held back
in my music because I wanted it a certain way he can
now do what he wants, and he loves it.
What's the difference in playing live solo and in a
group format?
Well I never played really solo in the last 10 years,
there was always at least Harold! But with Morpheusz
there is a dynamic that you only get in a group, you fire
each other up so to say. The way we work is that there
is a minor backing from a sequencer that I can change
in tempo and there is the Schrittmacher with its
hardware synths that gives me total control over a
song. As I don't have to play so many parts now I can
really indulge myself in the sequencing stuff. I love that.
And it gives us the freedom to sculpt a song live that
can be different each time. That makes it exciting!! No
gig is the same.
Is the EM scene in the Netherlands the same or
different to the UK?
I think in general it is the same, we have a lot of
customers from the UK with Groove and they buy
basically the same music. Great thing you have in the
UK is the amount of performing bands. ARC, Redshift,
Air Sculpture, RMI, Code Indigo etc etc great names to
have on stage and I know this first hand because at
least 2 times a year we have a UK band play on E-Live
and E-Day.
You guys have a great amount of musicians that really
go for quality!! I love that. What has always struck me
as odd is that Tangerine Dream seems to draw a 3000+
crowed but the festivals you guys put on have trouble
getting enough people in. If you could only tap into
these resource you would have a lively scene. Mind you
I still see the UK as one of the cornerstones of todays
EM scene!!
Talk a bit about your favourite instruments - even if
you don't own them.
The thing is that I am not as big a Synth nerd as many
think I am. I love the Moog sound and the playability of
todays Moog Voyagers, I love Clavia Nords, and
Access Viruses, but also The Roland D50 and the
Wavestation by Korg. I think if I had to choose them at
this stage the Korg Wavestation, Nord Wave or the new
Korg M3 would come on the desert Island (although
there would be no power). But to be honest I had many
many synths over the years and there are still about 30
hardware pieces in the studio but I also like the
software side of syntheses. VST's like Omnisphere,
Stylus, Arturia etc are also great fun to use and they do
sound awesome.
I would say my most important tools in the studio is my
mix setup. A digital Mixing board with over 100 inputs.
Lots of FX processors and outboard like compressors
and EQ's, that combined with the synths soft and hard
make it a joy to work in my studio. I don't see myself
first of all as a musician but as a sound sculpture. That
is why I also like to get involved in all kinds of other
projects. I produce other bands (not just EM but from
classical to Hip hop) and make film music for a few
small film companies in the Netherlands.The song
"Music is my first love" has been written with me in
mind.
And I love the live gigs, they are essential to me for the
energy they give me and the challenge I get from them.
What I would love to do is transform with Morpheusz to
a wider audience, dive into the rock world again. Get
gigs on Gothic and Progrock festivals, I am sure we
would fit there. That said I still love to switch on the
sequencers and go for an hour long sequencer frenzy
to. Or just take my Wavestation and my Nord Electro
and go for the quite ambient road. I have a 7 year old
son called Dylan who loves to join in an ambient piece
with a synth. The other 2 kids I have don't have the
music making gene but he has it!! Even having his first
guitar lessons now so who knows, he could be a nice
edition to Frank in 10 years Ha!!
I hope you all will come and join us on the 13th, and
believe me we will rock the house. And we hope you
Hampshire Jam 9 • 7
Interviewed by Ian Boddy, Oct 2010...
How did The Omega Syndicate start?
David Gurr & Xan Alexander started working together in
2002 but in an effort to expand the band further, they
encouraged other musicians to join a “syndicate” in
which members would pop in & out when they were
available, such members have included such luminaries
as 80’s Synth Veteran, Steve Frost, Javi Canovas &
Paul Nagle as well as Michael Daniel & New Zealand
recording artist Russell Storey. Tonight’s show will
feature Dave & Xan alongside two of the syndicate’s
most established members, Rob Clynes (who’s guitar
was all over “Apocalypse”) & John Sherwood (who has
played on over half of their live performances)
Xan: I came back from work one night and my mum told
me that Colin Jordan (of Kinetik) had phoned and asked
me to do him a huge favour by taking Dave to London
to video Kinetik's performance at Electrofest, to which I
replied of course, no problem. Dave called me the
same night and said he would be at Jodrell Bank for the
FSP gig, so we could meet up and finalise details for
8 • Hampshire Jam 9
the trip. People talk of life changing moments, well, this
was mine.
Dave: As we chatted on the way to & from the show, I
realised that we both had a lot of the same views on
music & as a result I invited him to my house for a
weekend to have a jam. It was only going to be a bit of
fun, but the fun never seemed to stop, so eight years
later, & with a good few extra members, we’re still here.
Rob: Dave and Xan had been making music as The
Syndicate for quite a while before I got involved, and in
fairness they still do a considerable amount without me
and in collaboration with other like minded musicians.
However, my involvement with Dave goes back 25
years when we played in a band together during our
college years. I bumped into Dave in the virtual world
while looking at EM on various websites and just sort of
fell into The Syndicate from there.
John: The Syndicate was already in existence before I
became involved with it. I had seen them live at the
NSC Leicester and was impressed with their style. I've
done several gigs with them, mostly in churches, it must
mean something.
Is this the biggest audience you’ve played to?
How do you feel about going on before Redshift?
Dave: With this band? Yeah! Although it’s not the
biggest crowd I’ve performed in front of personally, in
1977 I played at the Royal Albert Hall… that bit sounds
great until I finish the sentence… in a brass band, on
Tuba.
John: It drives me/us to raise the bar, make a special
effort to impress the audience. We would do that
anyway, but this just adds the spice to it. Hopefully they
will be persuaded to buy some of our CD's, which will
be available at the venue.
John: Yes and probably the most critical as well. I've
not done more than 50 before, albeit in my solo project
guise (4m33s). At Awakenings (in Burton-on-Trent) we
usually get 30-40 in the audience, but of course that's
5-6 times a year, whereas HJ is just the once.
Rob: I have to admit that I have heard very little of
Redshift’s music. I know, from what Dave and various
others have told me, that they are extremely big in the
EM scene but my own knowledge of them is somewhat
limited to Mark Shreeve’s solo material. I've just about
worn out my copy of Legion, it's one of my all time
favourites. So how do I feel? Well honoured to be on
before them and hoping that the crowd appreciate the
difference in our styles of EM.
Xan: This will be the biggest audience I've played to. Up
to this point the largest attendance was at our debut gig
at the NSC in 2004, which incidentally will be six years
to the day of our HJ performance. It’s a great
opportunity to reach a new audience of people who
may not of heard us before.
Rob: Played for around 200 people in a pub beer
garden a couple of years ago as part of a tribute for
friend who had died. I guess the largest before that
would be around 150 people as part of a very short
lived stint with a Manchester based Indie band back in
the 90's.
Dave: Very humble & honoured, I’ve loved Mark’s stuff
since day one & we’ve known each other for many
years (I get a Christmas card every year from him with
a witty message inside) & he shocked the hell out of us
when he turned up to watch our debut gig at the NSC in
Leicester, I know they’re going to blow us away with
that “monster” at the back on the hall, but that doesn’t
mean we have to make it easy for them.
Hampshire Jam 9 • 9
Xan: It's a surreal experience for me. I have been a
big fan of Mark's music for many years and I never
guessed we'd be supporting the mighty Redshift.
You don’t come across as typical ‘Berlin
School’ - no modular synths. Is there a reason
for this?
You’ve played in Liphook before haven’t you?
Rob: No... but looking forward to it.
Dave: Several times although it’s never been on a
Saturday. The Hampshire Jam “Jam” came about
as a way of relieving the boredom for those who
travelled down the night before & found that
Liphook has very little for non-drinking anoraks like
myself, so Jez Creek started the “Jam” so that the
minor-league players (which we still consider
ourselves to be) could have a go at playing there
as well, I think Jez has something up his sleeve for
this year which we are also planning to take part in,
so check the usual places for details & get
yourselves there.
John: Yes, I've played at all the Hampshire Jam
“Jam's” - me, Dave, and Xan have been the
opening segment each time. This is an event on
the Friday before the HJ, I would recommend
anyone in the area to come along.
Xan: The Jam's were fun and great experience.
Last year in the absence of a “jam” we put on our
own event at the Village Hall which was fun.
Dave: Lack of funds, I had a Digisound in the 80’s
but it was bulky & prone to wandering about pitchwise, I have a few Moog synths in the studio so I
can get the fat sound if I require it, but as much as I
love that “classic” Tangerine Dream sound, I
haven’t really used it much for our stuff. That’s
probably why I like Radio Massacre International so
much, they never sounded like Tangerine Dream,
they sounded like Radio Massacre International.
Xan: We don't see ourselves as a BS band, if
anything we prefer to be compared with early 80's
TD (the Schmoelling period). But I’d like to think
that we have our own identity, with a sound that
people recognise as us.
John: I haven't noticed Tangerine Dream using
modulars for decades either, but then they aren't
Berlin School any more either. The Syndicate do
use sequencers and so on, so yes, it is a Berlin
School genre, we're just not as upfront with it. We
do own modulars, but choose not to risk them on
the road, those things are really studio gear, taking
them on the road is asking for trouble. Same with
Mellotrons etc.
Dave: And Expensive!
Phot
10 • Hampshire Jam 9
Rob: I play guitar, (well that's what I tell everyone &
so far they keep falling for it), and although I like
messing around with synths I always return to
guitars. That said, if I win the lottery then I have a
very comprehensive acquisitions list mapped out.
Do you have any plans for future projects?
Dave: I would like to play live with C.H.A.O.S again
(since 1993, we’ve played live once) & perhaps get
some of my solo work out there as well as work I did
with other bands I’m still with & have been with.
However, I would really love to have Mark (Shreeve)
on an Omega track with a sequence on that massive
Moog. (but I’d be too scared to ask him in person, so
if you’re reading this Mark?)
Xan: To work on some more solo stuff and a couple
of collaborations.
Rob: I have some solo ideas that I keep working on
that are far more Prog than EM I just haven't been
brave enough to let anyone have a proper hear of
them yet. I think summer 2011 will be the time for
them to come out. Other than that I hope that we can
find some time to do some studio work in the near
future.
John: I know that Dave is putting together an Omega
live box set, which I would encourage people to snap
up as soon as possible, since there won't be many
of them, so a big rarity value. On a personal level,
my solo project 4m33s will be releasing two more
double albums in the near future, parts 3 and 4 of
The Ritual 'Trilogy'. I'm working on these at the
moment. The label Ambientlive has just released its
100th album, so still going strong, there's a whole
depth of interesting material there, including
compilations featuring exclusive Omega tracks. Take
a visit to www.ambientlive.com
to: Phil Booth
Hampshire Jam 9 • 11
Mark Shreeve interviewed by Graham Getty,
October 2010...
So, what have you been up to lately?
Same old thing really , trying to create music, record it it
etc... Either I do that or I go back to working in an
architects office which is highly unlikely. I was rubbish at it
the first time round.
What are your memories of the last Hampshire Jam
performance?
I suppose the memory that really stands out is the
mechanical failure with one of my sequencers during the
sound-check. The other one still worked OK but losing one
has a greater than 50% effect on the complexity of the
patterns you can create. What is important is the way they
interact with each other, and we lost that ability that night.
To my ears the sequencer lines then sounded a little
lacking in depth, but we survived.
How did the recent trip to the US go with Ian as ARC?
Very well. But very tiring, though age may have had a
hand there. It was organised by Chuck van Zyl who is a
true gentlemen, he even managed to stay cool and calm in
the face of Boddy's incessant whinging. Everyone there
was so helpful and friendly, we also had a wonderful place
to stay and rehearse.
12 • Hampshire Jam 9
Photo: Phil Booth
Also, I believe we were able to borrow every single
instrument with the exception of Ian's Mac. Several
people kindly entrusted us with their expensive
equipment. It saved having to haul any big stuff over
there. After the church gig we did one of Chuck's live
radio concerts which meant finally getting to bed at about
5am after a truly surreal, but entertaining, drive through
the back-streets of Philadelphia.
Do you still get as much of a kick switching on the
Moog (and waiting 3 hours for it to warm up;)?
How did you find using the dotcom modular vs the
Moog?
There are possibly more affordable modular systems
available now than ever before. Is this good for EM?
Well, superficially they look very similar of course, but the
basic operation is very different. The Moog has a totally
unique way of routing master pitch and trigger signals.
The Dot.Com is more like most other modulars in that
respect. It just took a short while to get used to it.
In terms of encouraging people to experiment and craft
sounds that cannot be achieved in any other way then of
course, it's very good. What has to be avoided though is
this "all analogue is good, all digital is bad" mantra that
crops up. Throughout the relatively short history of
synthesisers I would say that most of them are pretty
awful, analogues included. Just because it is an
analogue synthesiser it doesn't prevent it from sounding
thin, cheap and nasty. I would rather use a quality
sounding digital synthesiser than a bad analogue one.
Of course I was already familiar with the sound of the
Dot.Com, Rob Jenkins used one with Redshift some
years ago. Sound-wise it is obviously very different from
the Moog, but I doubt if the intention was to create a
clone anyway. It has it's own sound, and mercifully , it
has extremely stable tuning.
The one section that is identical of course, is the
sequencer. Ergonomically it felt exactly like using the
Moog sequencer, very reassuring.
There are certain instruments whose sound I will always
adore, the Moog sound is one of them. The sheer quality
and richness of the sound still inspires me in a way that
no other synthesiser has ever got close to, despite some
very stupid and ill-informed claims to the contrary.
I guess I'm lucky that I have the use of what, in my
opinion, is the best sounding synthesiser ever. It is very
difficult to get a bad sound from it, although I have
managed to do just that from time to time (I feel the that
bass sequencer sound I had on the track Bleed from the
live album Siren was terrible, I never really got control of
it, it just sounded so bland).
Hampshire Jam 9 • 13
Redshift has, in my opinion, a harder and darker
What would be better for the future of electronic music
would be an influx of younger listeners, but how to achieve atmosphere. At least that is the intention. The
arrangements tend to rise and fall more organically
that? I have no idea, marketing not my thing really.
compared to the more structured ARC tracks. Naturally
Will you be releasing anything new at the concert?
there are always areas where the two overlap, that's
unavoidable. ARC music is generally easier to play live, as
Not this year, though we hope that the material we play on long as I can learn it.
the night (all new) will be suitable for future release.
Any plans to produce any solo material again?
Is James’s absence from the band temporary?
I'm guessing that you are referring to the Legion/Crash
Good question. The honest answer - I have no idea. He is Head/Nocturne style of music from a while back? At this
still living in L.A. which obviously makes it pretty
point in time the answer would have to be no, probably
impossible to play live with us here, from a cost point-ofnot. I don't want to say never because things can change,
view alone it's a non-starter. I still have contact with him,
but at the moment I can't find any real desire to create that
he still retains a love of Redshift music (he kept banging
kind of music again.
on about Halo the last time I spoke to him). Who knows?
Maybe in the future it will be possible to include him in
I think that one of the reasons is that I felt that Nocturne
again, it depends on everyone's geographical location.
reached to place I wanted that music to go, I didn't know
where else to take it afterwards. Legion and Crash Head
What do you think Ian brings to Redshift?
were kind of way-points to get there, though I was never
really happy with the mixes or arrangements of either of
He's a reasonable van driver I suppose. Also (and it is
them. But with Nocturne I felt I said all I wanted to say with
hard to overstate the significance of this) it's so
that style. Having said that, it was fun to play more basic
entertaining to have a real-life Geordie to make fun of all
"analogue" versions of some of those old tracks at our last
the time during rehearsals.
HJ performance.
Ian has been at this music lark for almost as long as I
have, it means he brings all that experience, his own
unique way of creating sounds and notes. Basically, he
brings himself. And, of course, he has a comedy accent.
How would you describe the difference between the
ARC and Redshift output?
I think they are very different. ARC music tends to be
lighter in feel, occasionally melodic even. We often have
very distinct themes develop throughout a piece.
14 • Hampshire Jam 9
Any new technology that’s impressed you lately?
Not much really. Most new stuff seems to be software
based only, which lacks a certain inspiration for me. That's
not to say that I dislike all software "instruments" (I think
Omnisphere is really good), it's just that creating music is
starting to look like people are just surfing the internet,or
answering emails, rather than leaping off a Marshall stack
screaming "Rock and Roll!!". I know which I would find
more appealing. Sitting at and playing a real Fender
Rhodes is so much more satisfying and complete that just
mouse-clicking up yet another tiresome and weak plug-in
version, never mind the vastly superior sound of the real
one. Ian recently gave me a link to a German company
making various sequencer peripherals that would actually
fit inside the Moog. They look really interesting, although
from a listeners point of view they are missing a certain
romance, however they take analogue sequencing onto a
different level.
In terms of delivering music to customers, are you
warming to the media-less download era?
Hmmm. You see, to me music is so important. When I
listen to a piece of music I really listen, that means doing
nothing else. It does not mean playing something back on
my computer in the background while I doing emails. It
means listening to it the best possible quality I can
manage, it means the best possible media on the best
possible audio system.
I read an article in the Times a while back where they said
that for the vast majority of people now, listening to music
meant playing MP3s over fizzy, tinny sounding earpieces
and that many of those younger people had no concept a
what quality audio should sound like. The MP3 had now
become the the standard quality medium. Sorry, but this is
a massive step back in technical terms, NOT forward. It
would be like saying all those years ago, "lets get rid of
vinyl and just have the cassette". It constantly saddens me
that the general public's quality control is limited mainly to
whatever it thinks is most convenient, no other criteria are
applied.
At least companies like MusicZeit give people the option
of the CD-quality FLAC files, I just wish iTunes and the
like had a similar attitude.
Personally I still prefer to have a CD, something physical,
something that retains a sense of significance to actually
own. Music appears to lost it's importance to people. As
Ian once said "People don't really listen to music now so
much as consume it". That's very sad. Like a lot of
musicians I spend a lot of time trying to make the music
sound as good as possible, these days I sometimes
wonder why I go through that agony. Why not just boot up
an illegal copy of Reason and whack out another turgid
example of gutless supermarket electronica? Who is
going to notice the difference on an iPhone?.
Isn't it incredible that, given the advances in technology,
most people are now listening to music at lower quality
level than 20 years ago? Madness. In answer to your
original question, before this extended rant, we do release
MP3s like everyone else, but only because we really don't
have much choice. As a format I still maintain it's the
spawn of the devil. And I haven't even mentioned all those
low-lifes who steal our music too, those idiots are killing
music.
What music have you been listening to recently?
Different styles. Can't stop playing Beethoven's 5th Piano
Concerto, the slow movement is so painfully beautiful it
makes me unhappy even if I'm not. I saw a documentary
on the Small Faces recently and really enjoyed the music
they played. I was a little young for them at the time so it
was nice to see why they had such a reputation.
A couple of years ago we went to see Jarre play at
Birmingham doing the live version of Oxygene, it ranks
alongside Node's Emma ‘94 gig as one of the best
electronic music concerts I've ever seen. No fireworks, no
dumb film-shows or slide projectors and, above all, no
miming. Just four very talented musicians playing all those
wonderful old instruments (and some new ones) as a
band. Fantastic.
Any closing comments to all the Redshift fans out
there?
That's easy. Could I make a request that each one of
them buys 10000 copies of each Redshift album...
....worth a try. ;)
Photo: Phil Booth
Hampshire Jam 9 • 15
Pearl
DiN36
A 30 year retrospective of the music of Ian Boddy
They say a journey begins with a single step. Ian Boddy's journey
began in 1979 when he walked into the studio at Newcastle's Spectro
Arts Workshop. Intrigued by the sounds emanating from the banks of
VCS3 synthesisers and Revox tape recorders, he started a 30 year
odyssey of musical experimentation and adventure. Never following
the mainstream or courting a band-centric musical path he has
nevertheless forged a truly unique musical career.
From the release of his first ever full album on the UK cassette label
Mirage in 1980, he has gone on to issue 23 solo & 24 collaborative
albums, performed over 100 concerts in the UK, The Netherlands,
Germany & USA, composed 11 library music albums for DeWolfe
Music and programmed several sample CD's & virtual instruments.
In 1999 he founded the DiN electronica label which has since become
synonymous with adventurous and eclectic music. There have been
35 titles to date, including albums by Chris Carter, Robert Rich, Tetsu
Inoue, Mark Shreeve, Markus Reuter & Erik Wøllo.
Boddy's influence also extends into sound design where numerous
musicians and film makers have used his sounds in their own music
and soundtracks. He has over 300 library music tracks released via
DeWolfe Music which are used worldwide on a huge variety of TV
shows, documentaries and films.
These statistics are impressive enough however what impresses the
most is Boddy's sheer determination and presence of mind to follow
his own musical path and create music and sounds that offer a very
personal reflection of his own personality.
Pearl is the 36th release on DiN and offers a retrospective of Boddy's
30 year journey.
Released in a limited edition of 1,000 (with the first 300 being signed
& numbered by the artist) , beautifully designed digipak format the
music is split across two discs. "Outer DiN" attempts to bring together
all his work outside of DiN. It includes his solo work stretching all the
way back to the early cassette releases, three DeWolfe library music
tracks and an excerpt of his sound design work.
"Inner DiN" showcases both his solo and collaborative work on the
DiN ambient label. Boddy has mixed both CDs into a continuous mix
of music that provides a fascinating and unique way to experience the
music of a truly original musician.
www.DiN.org.uk
www.ianboddy.com
[email protected]