SESSION 17: At Home with Rose

Bailter Space vs The Skeptics

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One hour of Bailter Space followed by one hour of The Skeptics.

It's not noise. It's not drone. But listen and you'll hear the influence both these bands have had on the New Zealand alternative and experimental music scene.

Two amazing and influential New Zealand bands: one still hanging in there in New York and the other sadly short-lived due to the death of singer David D'Ath in 1990.

Both of these bands were outstanding live. I was lucky enough to see The Skeptics play in Timaru many years ago - I think it was about 1984. I didn't know much about them at the time. The small unsophisticated crowd soon turned into a clutch of quietly enthralled people. My jaw dropped. I've been in love with them since. Their songs are surprising. They weren't like anything else that was around at the time. Yes, you can hear the punk coming through, and some influence from the Dunedin sound, but they also had a dark gothic bent. There's even an occasional smattering of reggae beats. They were The Skeptics. And they were pretty fucking incredible.

Read lots about the wonderful Skeptics here, including an obituary for David D'Ath by Chris Matthews.

After The Skeptics disbanded, band members John Halversen and Brent McLaughlan went on to join Bailter Space.

I've seen Bailter Space probably about five times live - two of those times were in the space of a week. They built huge sonic walls – I remember the time my black dress was banging against my legs with the force of the bass (I think my noise-induced hearing loss was partially caused by being too close to the speakers at Bailter Space concerts). These guys were truly loud. But they had an underlying sonic drone and soaring guitars and distorted feedback that are there in lots of the music I love. Really dreamy and shoe-gazer but also with huge sonic strength. Loud and soft all at the same time. Stuff to swoon to. Well, I do.

I've been known to go to sleep at night listening to Bailter Space's Tanker on many occasions...

You can read about Bailter Space on their MySpace page.

Here's my playlist for the two-hour set.

Bailter Space
I'm Love With These Times, Nelsh E.P., Flying Nun (3:20)
One More Reason, Tanker, Flying Nun (3:14)
Tanker, Tanker, Flying Nun (4:16)
Your Invisible Life, Tanker, Flying Nun (4:14)
Morning, Robot World, Flying Nun (4:04)
Galaxy, Vortura, Flying Nun (4:44)
Shadow, Vortura, Flying Nun (4:04)
x, Vortura, Flying Nun (4:48)
Projects, Vortura, Flying Nun (5:07)
Voltage, Wammo, Matador (4:36)
Glimmer, Wammo, Matador (4:07)
Colours, Wammo, Matador (3:02)
Shades, Capsul, Turnbuckle (3:02)
Argonaut, Capsul, Turnbuckle (6:57)
Space X, Solar.3, Turnbuckle (2:57)
Live For You, Solar.3, Turnbuckle (4:12)

The Skeptics
Sensible Shoes, Sensible, Flying Nun (4:26)
Spring, Sensible, Flying Nun (6:24)
Bub, Sensible, Flying Nun (6:00)
Splenal Langwems, Sensible, Flying Nun (3:16)
Men o' War, Sensible, Flying Nun (4:21)
All Sum Nul, Amalgam, Flying Nun (3:48)
Never Tire of Looking at the Stars, Amalgam, Flying Nun (2:22)
Pack Ice, Amalgam, Flying Nun (4:31)
Boo-chang, Chowder Over Wisconsin, Flying Nun (0:22)
Aud Balmoral, Chowder Over Wisconsin, Flying Nun (2:39)
Ponds, Ponds, ULP (3:52)
Two Pot Resin, If I Will I Can, Flying Nun (6:20)
Feeling Bad, III, Flying Nun (4:59)
Affco, III, Flying Nun (4:05)

Warning: this video may disturb! (and may induce vegetarianism)

SESSION 16: At Home With Rose

Two dollar mixture

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Lolly scramble tonight. Couldn't be arsed with a theme, so just some bits and pieces that I like.

First up is a 40-minute turn-up-your-stereo-and-blast-your-neighbours live recording, "Dread the Future", by Neoteric Sound Research Unit No. 0001. Fun and games. From magical to ferocious.

We move from there into lo-fi land puncutated by some nice field recordings from Greece by 5454. Thanks to David Coventry for sending me some tracks - included this week is a guitar piece by him. I love it when people send me stuff!

I've recently been introduced to David Watson, an ex-pat New Zealander living in New York. Thanks to the Fungus boys for pointing me in his direction. I'm very happy about that! David has worked with the likes of John Zorn and Lee Renaldo. According to Wikipedia, he helped start the alt.music festivals in 2001. He makes experimental bagpipe music! Yay for that, I say. I'm a fan of the bagpipes.

I've included some Douglas Lilburn to finish with. I kind of forget about his amazing music. He was the grand-daddy of electro-acoustic in New Zealand.

Neoteric Sound Research Unit No. 0001, Dread the Future, unreleased live recording. (44.05)
The Stumps, Destruction (Excerpt), Lost Weekends, foxglove (0:44)
The Stumps, Convolvulous, Lost Weekends, foxglove (1:33)
Frey, distant_buried, cronica, demo (3:34)
Frey, therefore, cronica, demo (3:04)
Frey, tweening, cronica, demo (2:01)
A Handful of Dust, Masonic Inborn (Parts 2 & 3), Killing Capitalism with Kindness, Turbulence Records (4:11)
Lame And Sorry, Minus Eleven, Le Jazz Non (A Compilation Of Nineties NZ Noise), Corpus Hermeticum. (4:11)
David Coventry, Give Some Love, unreleased (1:20)
5454, Easter Sunday (on location, documentation of service which took place on Easter Sunday 06 in the main church in Kantza, Athens, Greece), Travelogue cdr (3:34)
Pumice, I Want to Fuck Women, Society of Dogs - Pumice/Armpit split CDR
5454, Temporary Misplacement, Travelogue, cdr
Garbage and the Flowers, Born in the Dark Dear, Runner, Next Best Way. (3:56)
Armpit, Youse, tron ii (5:08)
Alistair Galbraith, fall, Morse, Stiltbreeze (3:06)
Alistair Galbraith, Hospice, Arc: Music of Dunedin, Arc (2:22)
Gate (3), To Kiss The Wall, Le Jazz Non (A Compilation Of Nineties NZ Noise), Corpus Hermeticum (3:52)
Alistair Galbraith, Identical, Cry, Emperor Jones (1:46)
David Watson, Sinister 2, Fingering an Idea, XI Records (4:57)
David Watson, Seventh Stomach, Throats, Ecstatic Peace! (2:22)
David Watson, Trachea, Throats, Ecstatic Peace! (1:43)
David Watson, Cutting, Throats, Ecstatic Peace! (3:05)
Douglas Lilburn, three inscapes - no. 1, Complete Electro-Acoustic Works, Atoll (2:35)
Douglas Lilburn, three inscapes - no. 2, Complete Electro-Acoustic Works, Atoll (4:34)
Douglas Lilburn, three inscapes - no. 3, Complete Electro-Acoustic Works, Atoll (4:58)

Dance dance dance to my ten guitar (picks)

Neoteric Sound Research Unit No. 0001

This week I'm going to be playing a live 40-minute recording by the new Wellington noise group Neoteric Sound Research Unit No. 0001. NSRUN 0001 are David Cauchi, Tribby Gonix, Laura Shepard, and Matt Whitwell. This is their first recording. Exciting!

neoteric Rare ~adj. 1. belonging to a new fashion or trend, modern: a neoteric genre. ~n. 2. a new writer or philosopher. [C16: via Late Latin from Greek neoterikos young, fresh, from neoteros younger, more recent, from neos new, recent] – neoterically adv.

The Aesthetics

Last night we went to see The Aesthetics at The Adelaide. It was lots of fun. I drank way too much beer. I enjoyed seeing Matt Middeleton play live as Crude. He's pretty entertaining. I hated the saxophone though. I really really hate noodly sax playing. It's just a thing of mine. It doesn't matter how much people improvise and how much they experiment. It still sounds like a sax. Must have been too much Kenny Gee on the radio in the 80s or something. Anyways, there were a couple of girls who played some really great garagey rock who go by the name of Newtown. They were lots of fun. Lots of power and plenty of balls. I thought they were pretty neat. Nice growly vocals. And yelling not screaming. Zombie Fuck were up next, and they sound good till the screeching vocals start. I wasn't big on that. I don't think I want to see them again. I've seen them once before at Happy and was not keen then either. Well there ya go. You can't like everything. Sorry if you read this, Zombie Fuck. I'm sure you've got your followers.

The Aesthetics were just great. Lots of energy, plenty of people up dancing. Matt Middleton has heaps of mad energy on the stage.

Here's what they have to say about themselves on their website: "Our mission : to keep the moronic in vogue, in focus. To apply our kollective learnings to the infantile and primitive ritual/release that is punk rock, to render the stupid the highest peak of aesthetic life, of life itself. To strip back the layers of self-deception and self-betrayal that is the everyday, the brattish hubub of late modern capitalism and , assisted by all types of poisons, brandish our musical weapons with ugly, stupid, turbulent simplicity. We , the Aesthetics : obviously boys, stupid men, drunk, in trance, yelping and stuffing down food offerings, pissing profits away, we activate a new, deep subconcious stream and , through our group ritual, keep new zealand on it's feet. For if these artists, these madmen, were to be denied their right to performance, the cancer that is 'straight' new zealand society would metastasize exponentally. 'Real men', all hair-product and credit, would wake up one gray morning, pick up a knife, and murder with android indifference. We keep this country on it's feet. We realize and heal these repressed subconcious collective evils bursting at the seams of the 'real world' through our music/ritual. All for no reward. Perhaps a strained, guilty half-smile from a city counsellor. WE ROCK. WE ROCK ON. WE ROCK ON . ONWARD - INTO OUR 30S. OUR 4OS."

It's a shame Pumice was on in the same night. I would have liked to have gone to that gig too. Always a bummer when they coincide.

Floyd the Phenomenal Cat Trophy

I wanna plug this guy. Floyd the Phenomenal Cat Trophy. I found him somehow or other on MySpace and ordered his CD (a data disk actually, of three albums of phenomenally wonderful lo-fi tracks in three handy bit-rates!). His voice is reminiscent of Peter Murphy's of Bauhaus, or even Paul Banks of Interpol. Deep and powerful. He can sing along sweetly, then suddenly roar in a powerful bass growl. Fuck, I love it. His songs are interesting. They have that feeling of Daniel Johnsonesque intimacy. With song titles like "things my robot said in a song for Bedt" and "summer as a fuckface" you know you're gonna want to listen hard and hear his lyrics. The instrumentation is pretty standard but nicely done. Drums, some organ drone, strumming guitar - nothing fancy. But that voice. He's phenomenal alright. Someone sign him! If I had a label, I would.

SESSION 15: At Home With Rose

Lullaby Droneland

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This week's show is for going to sleep to. This drone differs to this drone. Or is it hum?

Sweet dreams. xx

By the way, if anyone wants to chat to me during the show, you can contact me via the Chat facility on Radio23.org.

Claypipe, ~~~, Jewelled Antler Library Vol. 8: Wayside. Jewelled Antler (1:44)
CJA, 5:05, Ironclad, Last Visible Dog (5:10)
Lovely Midget, silent folk song, self titled. Corpus Hermeticum (1:33)
James Kirk, Lips, A Lowtides Rising (Explorations around the theme of NZ acoustic music). Pseudo Arcana (1:59)
Swung, Dudi, Voice and Key. Pseudo Arcana (4:26)
Gate (3), PlQuad.15.1, My Dear Sweet Reluctant Sweetheart. Hell's Half Halo (5:47)
RST, Crystalline, Axes, Last Visible Dog (5:53)
Tim Coster, Mornings, Mornings. Pseudo Arcana (2:36)
Torben Tilly, Droszkhi's Gate, Audio Foundation Audio Files. Creative Commons (5:18)
Rosy Parlane, Part 1, Iris, Touch (19:10)
David Khan, Sunlight (edit), Audio Foundation Audio Files. Creative Commons (5:40)
seht, B3. TDOB, HRRY. Digitalis Recordings (3:52)
seht, jet raga, dronemusic. Celebrate/Psi/Phenomenon (4:09)
seht, valles marineris, The Green Morning. Digitalis Recordings (10:32)
seht, skin, Application Antarctica Download Form. Celebrate/Psi/Phenomenon (18:26)
Lovely Midget, Raudive Rain, North Head. Family Vineyard (5:55)
Kneale.Francis.Milton, Hiss Methodology IV, Hiss Methodologies. Celebrate/Psi/Phenomenon (22:16)

SESSION 14: At Home With Rose

GREG MALCOLM SPECIAL

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Two hours of Greg Malcolm. Selections from five albums. On Radio23 from 7-9pm Tuesday night NZ time.

The playlist includes Greg's new album, out this year: Leather and Lacy

Homesick for Nowhere (Corpus Hermeticum)
Lonely Woman (6:56)
Homesick for Nowhere (5:03)
Chairman Mao (6:49)
Blues for Aida (6:12)
Strawberry Fields (1:33)
Oderbruch (3:59)
Incident at Owl Creek (6:56)

Swimming in it (K-RAA-K)³
Swimming in it (8:07)

Leather And Lacy (Interregnum Records)
Prayer (8:21)
The Crust (9:05)
Art (4:41)
Bone (2:05)
Ducks (7:29)
Blues For Aida (4:41)
Life On It's Way (5:27)

Hung (Celebrate Psi Phenomenon)
Ghost From The Past (4:48)
Drops (1:07)
The Bells (4:11)
Shipwreck (4:22)
Pretty Flash (2:41)
Maltronics (3:15)
Glow (1:45)


What is it, Keith? (Proper Music)
Moral Outlaw (3:31)
It's Popular Music (1:07)
Amazing Grace (1:26)
Art (4:26)
Some Kinda Kiwiana Exhibition (0:55)
Scandal in the Wind (5:37)

(Artwork for cover of What is it, Keith is by Bill Hammond, I noticed.)

An interview from the Christchurch Library website! Heh.

Greg Malcolm at Enjoy Gallery

Tonight we went to the White Fungus Relocation Party (Ron and Mark are off to Taiwan and publishing White Fungus from there). As part of the celebrations, Greg Malcolm made his way up from Christchurch for a one-off performance. I've seen Greg play twice before and really enjoyed his music and his warm-humoured delivery. There's a real playfulness with Greg's music, and none of the serious earnestness that can be kinda annoying with sound artists. It's pretty obvious that he spends a lot of time experimenting with sound. He brings out so many odd items to connect to his guitar in some way (dangling off it, rubbed against it, banging directly onto it) you wonder what he's gonna pull out next. While he strums sweet melodies on his guitar (an amazingly beautiful instrument) his toes are used on two guitars laid flat on the ground in front of him. It's great to watch. I loved it when he laid a marble on the strings of one of the prostate guitars and tipped it gently back and forth, resulting in a sliding drone.

The only downer of the night were the many people creating an irritating drone of their own. I do wonder why people come to performances when all they want to do is chat to their friends. It shows little respect for the artist. We noticed that Greg pumped the volume up quite suddenly at one stage and I picked up a tiny lift of a smile as he did so. Quite right, Greg. But he shouldn't have had to do that.

Because of the perfomance tonight, I've decided that my next show is going to be a Greg Malcolm special. I love his stuff. He's been included on my playlist before. I've been thinking about having single artist shows, so this is the first of those. I'm looking forward to putting it together tomorrow night.