Funny name for this business, wonder how they answer the phone?
Small video big pleasure
The Cad Factory artists Vic and Sarah McEwan have collaborated with local students from the Greater Kengal Small Schools Network to create a unique and cutting edge contemporary performance event on Friday 26 October at the Tootool Silo.
One highlight of working on the CAD Factory's recent production was seeing my footage of the Small Voices Made Loud... rehearsal used on the local news.
Out now!
You should look for my interview in the October issue of Audio Technology.
Or you can read it on your tablet FREE at www.audiotechnology.com.au/tablet
My friends' Enemy
Here's a clip from my friends Heaven the Axe, who are a seriously hard rocking group now based in Melbourne but were formerly an acoustic duo in Wagga Wagga who gave me a lot of support, including playing at the launch of my first Bassling LP SHAKES -- see a pic here.
Buicklayers line
Pretty sure this is meant to be bricklayers line but maybe there are perverts out there who like to be tied to old cars with pink string!
Coming soon to a silo near me
A video I shot with kids from Yerong Creek Primary will be shown as part of this night of short performances, which I'll also be capturing on video. Yep, I'll shoot a video of my video -- how postmodern is that?!
Great Presets remix
Think I like this more than the original, which was also my experience with the Green Velvet remix of their last single.
Got a copy of a book
Every family has their eccentricities but mine has more than its share. And they also love books.At the end of last century when I finished university, my aunt gave me her copy of Herman Hesse's Magister Ludi. And I mean her copy -- she'd actually photocopied the book and had it bound.
Actually it kinda makes me want to read the book, since it's obviously something my aunt enjoyed enough to arrange her own copy at a time when it wasn't easy to secure one.
It's digital
Do it for the fun!
What a thrill to spend your spare time actually building your own color TV!
Channel numbers that flash right on the the screen!
An on-screen digital clock!
Home entertainment electronics and digital circuitry that could lead to extra income, full or part-time.
If this weren't an advert in Playboy from the '70s, I might actually feel sorry for the girlfriend pictured above who looks like she has little to do aside from making coffee -- which I gather is a euphemism.
Recent workshop at Narrandera Library
The video workshop at Narrandera Library went well with eight attending. There was a lot of interest in digital photo manipulation, so I'm hoping to offer an introduction to free software because it'd be a great way for people to learn techniques and they could walk away with the tools to keep going.
The picture above comes from the Narrandera Argus, who also ran an article about my album and upcoming exhibition. Is it a fashion faux pas that I'm wearing the same outfit in both my photographs in that edition?
Portrait from Burning Seed
Almost forgot about this beaut portrait I was given by Sophie, who might've been about 10 years old. She hung out with my daughter and we made a few trips around the site together, dancing at the Alien Welcoming Committee and playing drums at Trash Mansion.
I was stoked to get this portrait because my hair was looking very good that day!
More Burning Seed
One of the ideas that's been on my mind since Burning Seed is the potential for the event to be a rite of passage.
Rites of passage are thought to be a part of socialisation, combining an event with a process of conveying a fundamental concept about the society in which it operates. Arnold van Gennep described rites of passage as having three phases, including a pre-liminal phase (separation), a liminal phase (transition), and a post-liminal phase (reincorporation).
Burning Seed obviously has the part where people are separated, through the camping at a ticketed event. I think the principles of the event, which I discussed earlier, convey a number of interesting experiences around the sense that an individual has a talent distinctly their own which they can offer -- and this might be a liminal phase.
However, I feel the reincorporation aspect as people leave the event and return to their everyday lives needs something to underline the insights gained from Burning Seed. I've got some ideas and wonder whether it would be possible to give a more meaningful and sustained experience from attending.
Rites of passage are thought to be a part of socialisation, combining an event with a process of conveying a fundamental concept about the society in which it operates. Arnold van Gennep described rites of passage as having three phases, including a pre-liminal phase (separation), a liminal phase (transition), and a post-liminal phase (reincorporation).
Burning Seed obviously has the part where people are separated, through the camping at a ticketed event. I think the principles of the event, which I discussed earlier, convey a number of interesting experiences around the sense that an individual has a talent distinctly their own which they can offer -- and this might be a liminal phase.
However, I feel the reincorporation aspect as people leave the event and return to their everyday lives needs something to underline the insights gained from Burning Seed. I've got some ideas and wonder whether it would be possible to give a more meaningful and sustained experience from attending.
Burning Seed
The following review was published in the Narrandera Argus on 4 October 2012
Matong State Forest was once again the venue for the Burning Seed festival, which ran from 26 September to 2 October.
Burning Seed is the Australian version of Burning Man, the famous US festival which creates a temporary city in the Nevada desert. While it sometimes looks and frequently sounds like a music concert, the principles of the event distinguish it from almost everything else on the calendar except the best bits of Christmas, Clean Up Australia Day and Guy Fawkes Night.
The 10 principles of Burning Man focus participants on being good citizens of a short-lived community, united by common ideals rather than a common taste in music like most festivals. The music being played at the various theme camps was eclectic, from acoustic percussion through to blues and folk and, of course, the penetrating 'doof' of electronic dance music, ranging from slow dubstep through to funky house and pummeling psy-trance.
The principles shape the event into something special. For example, the principle of leaving no trace means that Burning Seed is unique in being held within a NSW state forest. Quite an achievement when you consider the focus on fire. This year the organisers consulted with the Rural Fire Service to set a date before harvest and the fire risk season.
Other principles include "radical self-expression," "radical inclusion" and "radical self-reliance" and these mean the event is, well, pretty radical. There are outrageous outfits and, for a few, no outfits at all. For some clothing was optional but for many others it was an opportunity to dazzle.
The principle of decommodification is also wild. None of the theme camp bars, food vendors or brewers of tea and ale would accept money for their goods. There were workshops in a wide range of arts and interests but there was a potency in the idea of gifting that meant that once you received a gift, you felt obligated to share your skills or talent with the greater community. It fostered a feeling of good will that was infectious, with participants actively seeking opportunities to share.
This "experiment in temporary community" used the principles in such a way to create a sense of social cohesion while encouraging self-identity and it was extremely effective. Many were attending their second or third Burning Seed and spoke of how each event saw more and more open tents or people bringing something new. Every spectator was given opportunity to perform and, with only a few hundred people, you began to see how people found roles over the weekend.
One bloke I met explained he'd picked up a hitchhiker the day before and been given a ticket to the festival. He was already planning to attend in 2013 with his daughter because he thought it was important to her education. That weekend he spent a lot of time ensuring the communal fireplace didn't go out and put on a reptile show for the Kids Camp, which probably flouted the no pets rule but was very popular.
A couple of locals from Matong enthused about Burning Seed but were concerned that people in the area didn't understand the philosophy behind the event. They observed that some local visitors had left empty beer cans on the ground rather than leaving no trace. Unless you take the time to read the principles, then it must be bewildering for some residents to understand why people travel from all over Australia to a party amongst their Cypress Pine.
Obviously burning stuff appeals to a lot of these people and the burning of the man on the Saturday (or 'roo this year) and the Temple on the Sunday, as well as all the fire twirling and incendiary sculptures almost make fire a headline feature. They are spectacular blazes but to my mind Burning Seed doesn't really have a headline act or attraction, it brings out the best in those attending. Which is why I'll be going back in 2013 and, if you're game, you should too.
Matong State Forest was once again the venue for the Burning Seed festival, which ran from 26 September to 2 October.
Burning Seed is the Australian version of Burning Man, the famous US festival which creates a temporary city in the Nevada desert. While it sometimes looks and frequently sounds like a music concert, the principles of the event distinguish it from almost everything else on the calendar except the best bits of Christmas, Clean Up Australia Day and Guy Fawkes Night.
The 10 principles of Burning Man focus participants on being good citizens of a short-lived community, united by common ideals rather than a common taste in music like most festivals. The music being played at the various theme camps was eclectic, from acoustic percussion through to blues and folk and, of course, the penetrating 'doof' of electronic dance music, ranging from slow dubstep through to funky house and pummeling psy-trance.
The principles shape the event into something special. For example, the principle of leaving no trace means that Burning Seed is unique in being held within a NSW state forest. Quite an achievement when you consider the focus on fire. This year the organisers consulted with the Rural Fire Service to set a date before harvest and the fire risk season.
Other principles include "radical self-expression," "radical inclusion" and "radical self-reliance" and these mean the event is, well, pretty radical. There are outrageous outfits and, for a few, no outfits at all. For some clothing was optional but for many others it was an opportunity to dazzle.
The principle of decommodification is also wild. None of the theme camp bars, food vendors or brewers of tea and ale would accept money for their goods. There were workshops in a wide range of arts and interests but there was a potency in the idea of gifting that meant that once you received a gift, you felt obligated to share your skills or talent with the greater community. It fostered a feeling of good will that was infectious, with participants actively seeking opportunities to share.
This "experiment in temporary community" used the principles in such a way to create a sense of social cohesion while encouraging self-identity and it was extremely effective. Many were attending their second or third Burning Seed and spoke of how each event saw more and more open tents or people bringing something new. Every spectator was given opportunity to perform and, with only a few hundred people, you began to see how people found roles over the weekend.
One bloke I met explained he'd picked up a hitchhiker the day before and been given a ticket to the festival. He was already planning to attend in 2013 with his daughter because he thought it was important to her education. That weekend he spent a lot of time ensuring the communal fireplace didn't go out and put on a reptile show for the Kids Camp, which probably flouted the no pets rule but was very popular.
A couple of locals from Matong enthused about Burning Seed but were concerned that people in the area didn't understand the philosophy behind the event. They observed that some local visitors had left empty beer cans on the ground rather than leaving no trace. Unless you take the time to read the principles, then it must be bewildering for some residents to understand why people travel from all over Australia to a party amongst their Cypress Pine.
Obviously burning stuff appeals to a lot of these people and the burning of the man on the Saturday (or 'roo this year) and the Temple on the Sunday, as well as all the fire twirling and incendiary sculptures almost make fire a headline feature. They are spectacular blazes but to my mind Burning Seed doesn't really have a headline act or attraction, it brings out the best in those attending. Which is why I'll be going back in 2013 and, if you're game, you should too.
No tales
Hadn't noticed my youngest had his toenails painted to look like mine. It's an interesting contrast, the two feet of different ages with chipped blue polish.I'd saved the file as 'Chips off the old blocks' but keep wondering about the symbolism. My nails were blue to gauge a process of developing apathy about a subject that felt sore. It says so much more now that it's been emulated by my offspring.
Short doco on For 100 Years
For 100 Years from bassling on Vimeo.
This is a two-minute video on my recent album.
It was entered in Rode's competition but is the start of a longer piece that will appear in the For 100 Years exhibition and DVD.
Upcoming video workshop
During the school holidays Western Riverina Arts and Narrandera Library are offering a FREE half-day hands-on workshop that will introduce techniques used by professionals in many creative industries.
Learn how to shoot quality footage, set maximum audio levels and make better movies!
Gain skills and advice on camerawork that applies to both video and photography, as well as insights into getting the best result in post-production and software you can use for your next feature.
This three-hour workshop includes afternoon tea and starts at 1.30pm on Friday 5 October 2012.
Call Narrandera Library on 6959 2128 to book your place ASAP because numbers will be limited. Priority will be given to participants aged over ten years.
Squirrel vs snake
Watching this makes me appreciate the eloquence and knowledge of David Attenborough!
PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THE TROLLS
Pic:A.Haddad
One imagines on the other side of this fence is a sign saying PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THE TROLLS! -- which would be a useful addition to many websites
The Presets' Pacifica
Mentioned the first single off Pacifica a couple of months ago and now I've had a couple of listens to The Presets new album. It's a lot of fun, reminds me more of their first album Beams in the variety of sounds on there. It's more like a compilation.
Apocalypso was a very popular album, for me it was the edge on the production -- or rather, the distortion and white noise (which is more fuzzy than sharp, admittedly).
Recently I heard the tour edition of that album and it had a different track order, which worked surprisingly well but maybe because it pushed back the rawness of My People, which I gather was a very different sounding track before it was re-mixed.
In a interview in Audio Technology magazine, Kim Moyes said the mix of My People was
pretty full-on. It got brutal in the top end and the drums were really small. Initially I was really happy with it -- I thought is sounded like Metallica. It didn't sound like a house track.
Knowing it was going to be the first single, Pav (Steve Pavlovic, Modular Records boss) suggested we give this guy in LA John Fields a try to see what he came up with. We sent him the tune and he mixed it really well. The drums were massive; everything was really aggressive and a lot of the top end had been reined in.
Being the deluxe schmuck I am, it'd be great to hear that earlier draft of the track. Another snippet from that interview is this view of Julian Hamilton's home studio; seriously love the milk crates.
Apocalypso had a sound acorss the tracks in a way that Beams and Pacifica don't. Dunno, I get a sense of tracks on those albums kinda synthesising popular sounds. For example, the Pacifica track Promises is a big single waiting for summer, it kinda reminds me of Friendly Fires or Passion Pit. Anyway, hopefully it'll be a big summer single. And Fast Seconds is another great track, it's been replayed a couple of times in my household. It'll be killer in their live show.
There's a vocal effect on A.O. that reminds me of The Knife and Fever Ray but it doesn't hide the best lyrics, starting with the opening line about a kookaburra sitting in a tree not named. It's an obvious reference to the case brought against Men At Work for referencing the melody to Kookaburra sits in an old gum tree and the following line about feeling "the shame" is one I'll interpret as an admission to theft because I'm pretty sure every musician has stolen.
The remainder of A.O.'s lyrics focus on the state of Sydney and there's a wry line about schizophrenic tourist being shot and the choice line:
little old ladies die afraid and alone
surrounded by yuppies, small bars and coke
The title is a nice reference to the Adults Only tag that was used for classifying mature content on television back in the day; but I also like that those initials stand for Order of Australia -- as if the angry lyrics about the gentrification of Sydney make it a synecdoche for the country.
Pacifica is a strong album, full of pop hooks and synthy programming with some off the grid drumming. Often I get the feeling The Presets are writing for a different demographic than mine but they're a fascinating band to watch, particularly now they're aiming for bigger venues than the clubs they were touring before Apocalypso broke. And that's one other observation, there's something more anthemic about the choruses that makes me think that when I hear them live I'll get a whole new appreciation. Thing is, this time they'll be in a much larger venue.
Blue Moon
With the blue moon soon due as a full moon prepares to shine for the second time this month, I thought I'd offer my tune Blue Moon.
Blue Moon by ShowcaseJase
Old flame never tamed
still alive in my chest
your name sounding plain
could still quicken my breath
It aches a whisper quakes
on my soon remembered lip
as the thought is finished quickly
my guard no longer slipped
Why should I even care?
about something that was never there
Do you remember the blue moon?
it was the night you made me swoon
you probably never knew
you were in another room
Ease back from that flash
brought from the depth of my past
to steal back into
a self-conscious laugh
For your memory will still exist
after this moment has passed
It's my lacklustre tale
of a romance at half-mast
Why should I even care?
about something that was never there
Do you remember the blue moon?
it was the night you made me swoon
you probably never knew
you were in another room
dancing to a different tune
with some other dude
The version above was the demo I made in 2007 and I've re-recorded it a few times. The version I've been meaning to finish is the rocktronica one:
Blue Moon by bassling
Blue Moon by ShowcaseJase
Old flame never tamed
still alive in my chest
your name sounding plain
could still quicken my breath
It aches a whisper quakes
on my soon remembered lip
as the thought is finished quickly
my guard no longer slipped
Why should I even care?
about something that was never there
Do you remember the blue moon?
it was the night you made me swoon
you probably never knew
you were in another room
Ease back from that flash
brought from the depth of my past
to steal back into
a self-conscious laugh
For your memory will still exist
after this moment has passed
It's my lacklustre tale
of a romance at half-mast
Why should I even care?
about something that was never there
Do you remember the blue moon?
it was the night you made me swoon
you probably never knew
you were in another room
dancing to a different tune
with some other dude
The version above was the demo I made in 2007 and I've re-recorded it a few times. The version I've been meaning to finish is the rocktronica one:
Blue Moon by bassling
Bidgee Binge
This video is the first production of my new venture Witch Media. It provides an overview of Think B 4 U Drink, the first initiative as part of Leeton Shire Council's Bidgee Binge project.
Vibrating String
This pic of my partner Jo and I was one we took ahead of our time working with Alan Lamb for the 2006 Unsound Festival. (The lamb here was named Dewkiss by my son and is the subject of this earlier video Battering Ram.)
We were aiming for Australian gothic.
Alan Lamb is a Western Australian artist known for recording telephone wires and making sculptures which respond to the environment. One of these is 'the wires' he built at the property where we were living.
From 2004 to 2009 I recorded over 70 gigabytes of the sound of this large-scale aeolian harp and in 2010 I edited together highlights to create a three-hour recording Vibrating String.
The opening track has about ten minutes of bowing and then the wind plays the rest. Intermingled are the sounds of the environment, including birdsong, cicadas, insects, bats and a lonely frog who sounds like they find a mate near the end.
Kindle owners must be stupid
Am I missing something or does it seem silly to pay more for a virtual book than a real one?
Sound of Not What This Appears
Wagga Art Gallery recently hosted the exhibition This Is Not What It Appears, which was developed by Zeb Schulz for Lismore's Inclusion Arts and Media Centre. As part of the exhibit Zeb organised the recording of an improvised performance and invited me to contribute, which you can hear in the second track above.It was a really fun experience. Musicians included Zeb, Doug Snug, Scott Lea and Adam Chembroyon, with Michael White recording the result to tape.
We were asked to respond to concepts Beauty, Home, Life, Family, Rubbish, Work, Noise, Techno and Truth as Zeb projected these onto the wall. There were three takes with the third being the one that was used. I played electric bass and a laptop running Ableton Live.
Damian Callinan
Saw Damian Callinan perform at The Roxy last night and here's a pic from his interpretive dance sequence.
Embracing racism
My name's Jason and I'm a racist.
Yep, I'm a racist and you probably are too.
The first step in my path toward embracing racism was at university when I read a piece about how people say "I'm not racist but..." right before they make a racist statement. The article put forward an argument that this created an agreed context to be racist because it basically pushed the idea that the real racists were probably Nazis rather than everyday people like you and me.
A year or two later I dated a Nigerian woman and was shocked by the racial comments she'd make. The generalisations I heard about black men and white women were confronting to me. It lead me to say something like "I'm not racist and I'm not sure I can listen to you making these racist comments" before realising that it was easy for me to deny being racist because I don't have to confront racism.
Being a white male in a white patriarchal society is a very privileged position to be in. I rarely encounter racism because mostly I encounter people are also white. If anyone doesn't look me in the eye or gives me attitude, then I'll figure either they're having a bad day or that I am. I don't have to wonder if they're racist because I have a different shade of skin colour than they do.
Malcolm Gladwell wrote a bit on this subject in his book Blink, which is a great read. He found himself surprised at the racist responses he discovered in himself given he had a Jamaican grandparent. In that book he wonders if these responses might explain the high percentage of African-American men in US prisons, given that most sentencing judges are white.
So I've decided to call myself a racist because we should be aware of our biases and try to counterbalance them. I also think the notion of human races is silly given the very small amount of genetic variation there is between us.
Yep, I'm a racist and you probably are too.
The first step in my path toward embracing racism was at university when I read a piece about how people say "I'm not racist but..." right before they make a racist statement. The article put forward an argument that this created an agreed context to be racist because it basically pushed the idea that the real racists were probably Nazis rather than everyday people like you and me.
A year or two later I dated a Nigerian woman and was shocked by the racial comments she'd make. The generalisations I heard about black men and white women were confronting to me. It lead me to say something like "I'm not racist and I'm not sure I can listen to you making these racist comments" before realising that it was easy for me to deny being racist because I don't have to confront racism.
Being a white male in a white patriarchal society is a very privileged position to be in. I rarely encounter racism because mostly I encounter people are also white. If anyone doesn't look me in the eye or gives me attitude, then I'll figure either they're having a bad day or that I am. I don't have to wonder if they're racist because I have a different shade of skin colour than they do.
Malcolm Gladwell wrote a bit on this subject in his book Blink, which is a great read. He found himself surprised at the racist responses he discovered in himself given he had a Jamaican grandparent. In that book he wonders if these responses might explain the high percentage of African-American men in US prisons, given that most sentencing judges are white.
So I've decided to call myself a racist because we should be aware of our biases and try to counterbalance them. I also think the notion of human races is silly given the very small amount of genetic variation there is between us.
Perfecting Sound Forever
Greg Milner's book Perfecting Sound Forever is a great read as well as being a well-researched history of recording technology.
Starting with Edison's wax cylinders and covering the development of the rival Victrola, the introduction of magnetic tape after World War II, then Philips' compact disc and, finally, discussion of the loudness wars initiated by radio stations that have blighted popular music in recent years.
The explanations of the technology were easy enough for me to understand but the highlights seemed to be the people on the periphery who I'd never heard of before, like Leopold Stokowski and John Diamond. The latter has ignited a long-running debate about the effects of listening to digital recordings and there's an interesting quote from Rupert Neve on this topic elsewhere on this blog.
Idea for leftovers
A great idea for leftovers (usually curry in my household) is to store them in those small jars they sell salsa in because it's about a serve. So you can just microwave some rice and mix the leftovers in near the end to warm them up.
And a great technique for cooking rice in a microwave is to put in about half a cup per person and add enough water so that it's about one inch above the rice. Put it on high for about five minutes and then at a lower setting for about that much again. Depending on the microwave you may need to add a little more water and give it another zap until that disappears.
My son promoting Leeton
Surprised to see my youngest made the front page of the local newspaper on this cover promoting Leeton.
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