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experiments in music

Test Tone vol. 20

Flyer

Experiments in music

Test Tone presents vol. 20

February 13, 2007 (Tuesday) 20:00 to 24:00 at Super Deluxe, Nishi Azabu, Tokyo.

Featuring:

groopies

Nobuko Hori and Kyoka make up the glo-fi / no-fi project groopies, and they are sweet, crazy and just a little bit dangerous if you let them loose in your kitchen. Before you know it, you may be faced with a pile of broken eggs, but perhaps some wonderful lemon cookies. You never know.

The project started in Nobuko's bedroom way back in summer 2005, with the help of their 'sick awesome producer' from San Francisco, oneyen guy. These early sessions are filled with the joyful noise of pillowfights and snacks caught in the music console, layering improvised madness over dense stumbling rhythms. Sort of like happily falling down the stairs with your birthday cake.

These days they hum and bounce as a twosome, but their shows may be few and far between as there is talk of an overseas relocation. Catch them while you can while they're still on the island. This special performance includes bonus personnel/member Ben List from dadakingz on visuals, mixing a selection of Nobuko's homemade videos. Eye and ear candy delivered in a charming fireball; just in time for Valentine's day.

groopies
Kyoka on MySpace
Nobuko Hori on MySpace

(e)BOMBERS (circuit bending) + Shantell Martin (live drawing)

They describe themselves as a noise ensemble band. They play circuit-bent instruments of their own making. They carry their own amplification in backpacks assembled with vinyl chloride tubes. They look like the bar band in the very first Star Wars movie should have looked like, if George Lucas was well and truly a fan of Devo. Who are the (e)BOMBERS, and where did they come from?

This project was formed by some of the more brazen participants of the 2005 SSAW (Sound & Software Art Workshop), where the inner workings of complex algorithmic software (such as Max/MSP) is explored in the context of sound. The members, who have hotwired a number of toy instruments, create a unique spectacle meshing their futuristic suits with free-improvisation and random bursts of electronic crackle and buzz.

They describe their instruments as bent in every instance, and if you aren't familiar with the concept, it generally consists of an impulsive operation (or several) on an old electronic noisemaker, producing the aural equivalent of a dying Speak-and-Spell. OK, a simplification, but perhaps you will get a better idea from the member line up:

yang2.0 - Bent Boombox Cello
inafact - Bent SONY CD Walkman Violin
moxuse - Bent Floppy Disk Drive Guitar
KOJI - Bent Angle Aluminum Drone Guitar
ogt~ - Bent VJ (Puredata+GEM)

The name? In their own words: "(e)"pronounces "kakko-e" that means "cool","smart" or "it is groovy" in Japan. Therefore we aimed to do "(e)" performance at this time.

For this unique performance, we have enlisted the help of a very unique artist, Shantell Martin (often going by the name shanteru), to provide live illustrations with the group. Shantell will create a spontaneous artwork during the course of the set, which may grow across the walls and into your hair and/or lamb's wool coat if you don't pay attention. Recently joining a number of international events as a visual artist, this is a perfect chance to see why Shantell's work is gaining ground both here in Japan and abroad. This will be a truly singular collaboration, and should not be missed.

(e)BOMBERS
(e)BOMBERS on YouTube

Shantell Martin on MySpace

Coppe's e.t.c Band

What more can we write about Coppe? The choirs from outer space sent down a delegate to whisper sweet cosmic nothings into our eardrums, and we are just a lucky, lucky planet that she stuck around. We are also monumentally joyous and toasting her return to the Noisy Hole, after she hosted last year's Valentine's Day Test Tone bash with free music from her last release (o yes, and free condoms). Of course, this year, you'll have to stay past 12 a.m. to celebrate V-Day with Coppe, but this year, there is all the more reason to stick around. Coppe will be playing the last set of the evening with an all-star cast of musicians, plucked from Tokyo and beyond. She will be performing songs off of her soon-to-be-released album, helped by her e.t.c. Band, featuring marx (laptop), Peter Slade (bass), Cai (drums), and Ezra Woolnough (sax). An evening with Mango & Sweet Rice should definitely leave you happily humming a inter-planetary tune.

mango & sweetrice
Freeta Collective

26.01.2007. 06:08