LIVE MUSIC Loren Connors – Café Oto
Johann Johannson – LSO St Lukes
Oxbow – Buffalo Bar
Steve Ignorant – Shepherds Bush
Keith Fullerton Whitman/Rene Hell/Heatsick/Andre Vida – CAMP Basement
Raagnarok – Bethnal Green Working Mens Club
Colorama – Dublin Castle
Bummers of the year were the tragic loss of Trish Keenan from Broadcast and the awful Field Day festival in Hackney.
2012 will see the release of our second album (Mayan calendar permitting).
Posted: May 9th, 2011 | Author:knot | Filed under:I ♥ moozik | Comments Off
This is the first of a new (ir)regular series as I dip into The Untied Knot’s CD/vinyl/mp3 collection and dig out some firm favourites from A to Z.
A is for Astral Social Club
If you’ve never heard one of ASC’s brilliant and bizarrely-named ecstatic electronic noise collages you’re missing a treat. Neil Campbell’s genre-defying sound pile-ups range from warped ADD undanceable beat driven work-outs to shimmering multi-core power drones. I hesitate to use the term psychedelic because of the inevitable peace and love connotations but listening to this music is probably the closest to an aural hallucinogen I’ve ever got.
Campbell is a stalwart of the UK underground and I first ventured upon his music whilst he was at the helm of Vibracathedral Orchestra where the drone aesthetic was in strong evidence. Ever-evolving, he split from them in 2006 to proceed with this stellar monikered largely solo project. The chance to experience Astral Social Club live at the kind of volume that carries you into a synaesthetic maelstrom is one not to be overlooked and has been documented previously by me here.
Posted: October 3rd, 2010 | Author:knot | Filed under:I ♥ moozik | Comments Off
For those of you who’ve been asking about the incidental music from our recent gig, here’s a Spotify playlist featuring about 80% of it.
And here’s the rest on a Youtube playlist.
Posted: April 18th, 2010 | Author:knot | Filed under:I ♥ moozik | Comments Off
Some things are worth waiting for…
The popularity of Céleste Boursier-Mougenot’s installation at The Barbican’s Curve gallery dictates a queue of at least 40 minutes length but a trifling test of your patience is a small price to pay for the delights held within.
The atmosphere of the introductory dark space with giant projections of fingers on fretboards and burbling electronic sounds is compelling enough but one is drawn quickly and magnetically to the end of this tunnel and the forewarned spectacle that awaits. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: October 19th, 2009 | Author:knot | Filed under:I ♥ moozik | Comments Off
Tonight is a band outing for The Untied Knot – me and Matt hop a 91 bus for the long crawl to the nether regions of Crouch End in search of a fix of what the NME once described as a “one-man Love Unlimited Orchestra”. The gig is billed as Liam Hayes and Plush which is the official new moniker for 2009′s “Bright Penny” album. Starting as we (it turns out) mean to go on we commandeer the 2 best seats in the venue, front and centre to the obvious dismay of the too-polite punters behind us. Not terribly English I’m afraid but that’s several ales and a one hour bus journey for yas, if you’re reading guys – sorry… Barring this unforgivable faux-pas, we settle in on our best behaviour as Liam lifts on his Fender Telecaster for the first number. It appears the two Fender Rhodes and upright piano will remain untouched but just before a sense of mild disappointment sets in for both of us, the guitar is discarded for the second song and Mr Hayes is joined by his new right-hand man on duelling Fender Rhodes and synth bass – Mr Jimmy Rowland. I say “mild disappointment” as I would have been more than happy with a solo electric guitar set just like the brilliant one we witnessed at The Luminaire 12 months ago but finer still it is to witness my 4th variant on the Plush live sound since 1998.
Certain people talk about “outsider artists” but Liam Hayes and his music seems to exist in a timeless bubble somewhere on the outskirts of the music scene, untouched by any trends or concessions to the present millennium. Read the rest of this entry »
Richard Youngs and Heather Leigh Murray’s swooping twin guitar maelstrom dissolves into an unaccompanied three word mantra drone and keeps me entranced throughout. I convince my companion “we” actually “could”n’t “do that ourselves” and we grab ourselves another drink.
Thanks to http://mapsadaisical.wordpress.com/ for this nice photo
Neil Campbell’s (a.k.a. Astral Social Club) set is the equivalent of ingesting a supercharged chunk of good acid during an electrical storm. As he plate-spins effects pedals and mic-manipulates layers of dense disjointed (near impossible to) dance (to) music, the visuals sketch out complex ever-changing geometric line patterns. Even the sound of a mobile going off during a subdued section doesn’t detract from this extended episode of sensory euphoria. Sweet.
Skaters have cancelled so Alexander Tucker steps breach-wards with a set of looped cello narratives. I always enjoy his shows and always seem to catch him more by accident then design – this is no exception. The night is cut short as my companion requires a taxi to ferry us across London to last orders at a theatre bar – this, if nothing else is an excuse for tequila. Goodnight.
Posted: August 14th, 2009 | Author:knot | Filed under:I ♥ moozik | Comments Off
On the way to Rough Trade in Brick Lane I cut down Fournier St where I spy for the second time up close; two of our greatest national treasures, Gilbert and George. The first time was many years ago in Streatham Hill when I passed them in the street and on turning round for one final look, found George doing exactly the same thing to me! Anyway, as always, I digress (sort of) which brings me to Chatham’s own punk rock renaissance man – painter, poet, author, musician and of recent years, the very dapper Billy Childish. One of the few men who can carry a moustache and a collarless shirt with any sort of panache.
Childish is at Rough Trade for one of their regular free in-store gigs which make up a significant part of my own gift economy. The introductory abortive poetry set almost descends into farce Read the rest of this entry »
Birmingham’s 7 year old Supersonic festival has gradually expanded to a 3 day line-up but thankfully the best attractions are usually reserved for Saturday. Since All Tomorrow’s Parties descended into self-parody, it has become probably the most credible alternative as the UK’s best festival of international underground music (even if it does feature an unhealthy amount of metal-based garbage). So once again, the afternoon of the 25th of July found me heading up the motorway to the Midlands suppressing the impending trauma of the first coach service back to London at 5am the following morning.
Posted: July 22nd, 2009 | Author:knot | Filed under:I ♥ moozik | Comments Off
This Saturday marks my 4th visit to Capsule’s superlative Supersonic festival in Birmingham.
Because I’m a getting a little bit excited about it here’s a link to 13 live sets from the 2007 edition on Last FM including Oxbow, Mogwai, Voice Of The Seven Woods and Kid 606.
Fender Rhodes and synth bass – Mr Jimmy Rowland. I say “mild disappointment” as I would have been more than happy with a solo electric guitar set just like the brilliant one we witnessed at The Luminaire 12 months ago but finer still it is to witness my 4th variant on the Plush live sound since 1998.
On the way to Rough Trade in Brick Lane I cut down Fournier St where I spy for the second time up close; two of our greatest national treasures, 
This Saturday marks my 4th visit to Capsule’s superlative 