Electronica Night @ The Winners Lounge - 24th April 2008

Variety:the Condiment of Existence

Posted to Swindon Music.co.uk Fri 25 Apr 2008 08:50 by Lazarus.

They say that variety is the spice of life. So in an effort to experience a new condiment of existence, I ventured down to the Winners Lounge (I have trouble calling in "Legends Lounge" and not visualising King Arthur and Cu Chullain having a cheeky pint in the corner) to soak what Swindon had to offer from the world of Electronica. As someone whose only forays into the world of keyboard trickery is the occasional bit of Underworld of a Sunday morning as we bimble around the flat, this was very much uncharted territory.

This brand of Electronic music, by its very nature is hardly a stimulating performance, one man hunched over a keyboard and computer doesn’t lend itself to spontaneous rioting or frenzied attacks of the whirling dervish, but as each player was employing the use of projected visuals it became more of a show that it otherwise might have been.

First up was Edge Effect. Otherwise known as Andy, you had an idea of his inspirations from his look before he even touched a key or twiddled a knob. He attire said one word. Goth. No bad thing as far as I was concerned. He music lined up neatly behind this image as predicted. The Edge Effect show is a sort of ambient Darkwave, if there is such a thing, haunting washes of echoing organic sounds oozed around each other, as one bank of noise melted away another rose to take its place. Very chilled in a dark and melancholy sort of way and all set to a set of Byronic visuals of ancient woodlands and graveyards, candles and ruined castles. All in all, a very mellow way to kick off the night.

Next up was the one act that I had heard of, 4m33s, I had checked out on myspace and liked what I heard. His approach was slightly different. One long semi-improvised piece of music built from live keyboard sounds and a frenzy of pre assembled music files from the trusty laptop. His was a very industrial arrangement, angular and at times aggressive but fitting the visuals nicely. These were in the form of an Orwellian set of images of steelworks and blast furnaces. A set of stark and foreboding music, where you could almost taste hot metal and sweat in the air.

Awen managed to take the night into what seemed to be more user-friendly territory. The visuals suggested a trippy psychedelic space vibe and the music soon followed suit. There was a touch of the Blade Runner soundtrack about it, in the way that he employed sounds bites of saxophone and snippets of voice, as well as futuristic sounds and ambient washes. As his set progressed the dynamic became more changeable, peaks and troughs came and went and soon dance beats were worked in until we had something that would have appealed to the wide-eyed dance crusaders. A set of slow building sounds that paid off in the end and some stunning visuals to boot.

As I said, its not the most audience friendly music for live performance, it almost seems as if you should be doing more that just sitting and taking in the show. Edge Effect would have been a great backdrop to a medieval banquet; 4m33s would have worked well with a contemporary dance company and Awen made me feel as if I should be in the dance tent of a festival with the sun coming up behind me. Still it was all a new experience and I'm glad I came along.

Its a shame, despite the best efforts of the promotors that the night was so poorly attended. In a town fairly dominant with "four guys and guitars" sort of bands, it will always be a struggle to promote niche genres such as this. Maybe such an event needs a slightly different angle of attack, rather than run it as a regular gig incorporate it into other activites such as those I have hinted at. I don't know, if I had the answersI wouldnt just be writing about it. It's a challenge that I look forward to watching to see how it develops. Whatever the outcome, its refreshing to see that some people still have the courage to do something different, both as performers and organisers.