Growing

http://www.growingsound.com/

Off the International Radar

http://offtheinternationalradar.com/

Off the International Radar & Holy Fuck – Holy Radar from Hand Drawn Dracula on Vimeo.

Museum London/Friday, January 22, 2010/7pm

Tickets available for purchase here

Artist Biography: The Necks

The Necks (established 1987) are one of the great cult bands of Australia and the world. With next to no publicity, their fourteen albums have sold in their thousands. Chris Abrahams (piano), Tony Buck (drums), and Lloyd Swanton (bass) conjure a chemistry together that defies description in orthodox terms. These three musicians are among the most respected and in-demand in Australia, working in every field from pop to avant-garde. Over 200 albums feature their presence individually or together, but the music of The Necks stands apart from everything else they have done. Featuring lengthy pieces which slowly unravel in the most intoxicating fashion, frequently underpinned by an insistent deep groove, the thirteen albums by The Necks stand up to re-listening time and time again. The deceptive simplicity of their music throws forth new charms on each hearing. Not entirely avant-garde, nor minimalist, nor ambient, nor jazz, the music of The Necks is possibly unique in the world today.

Unclassifiable, the Necks stand aside any other musical act Australia has gave birth to. Neither jazz nor rock, this deceptive piano trio has kept a single line of conduct throughout its career. They usually start playing a very basic melodic and rhythmic figure, and then keep going at it for an hour, gradually introducing microscopic changes and variations. Some critics have compared them to Krautrock groups like Can and Faust. Others find similarities in the works of minimalist composers like LaMonte Young, Tony Conrad, even Philip Glass. The Necks were formed in Sydney, Australia, back in 1987. The original lineup of pianist Chris Abrahams, bassist Lloyd Swanton, and drummer Tony Buck remained stable, even though they all lead busy and highly different careers. Abrahams is an acclaimed session keyboardist who has released a couple of solo piano albums, has written music for film and television, and toured the world in 1993 with the rock group Midnight Oil. Swanton is a much in-demand session jazz bassist and a regular of the jazz festival circuit. He has played in the Benders and the Catholics, and accompanied Stephen Cummings and Sting. Buck spends most of his time in avant-garde circles, with multiple collaborations and projects. His best known engagements have include the trio PERIL and the klezmer-punk group Kletka Red. The Necks’ first album came out in 1989 on their own label, Fish of Milk.
– François Couture, All Music Guide

Artist Biography: Todor Kobakov

Introducing Todor Kobakov, a Toronto based composer-musician-producer who has one foot planted at the centre of Canada’s alternative music scene, and the other placed deep within the world of classical music. Given his rather unique vantage point, it’s no wonder that Pop Music, Kobakov’s solo piano debut, might best be described as a classical album with indie cred. To understand how Pop Music came to be, it’s best to start at the beginning.

Music is quite literally in Todor’s blood. Born in Bulgaria in to a family of classical musicians, training at the piano bench began at home at just four years old. At age six Kobakov was accepted in to the prestigious Sofia School of Music, a full time day school for musically and academically gifted children, where he studied for eleven years. The first half of Todor’s life existed on or around the piano. “I practiced for 6 hours every day” remembers Kobakov, “before school, after school, and after dinner. Then we would play just for fun! It sounds a bit heavy, but it’s quite normal in Eastern Europe…music is just part of the culture.”

Todor Kobakov – Toronto Stories from Todor Kobakov on Vimeo.

Technorati Tags: Arts Festival, australia, Concert Series 01, jazz, LOLA Concert Series, LOLA Fest, London, Museum London, necks, Ontario, pianist, Todor Kobakov, transmorphous sound ensemble

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Artist Biography

Born in London, Patrick got his start playing in punk bands and moving into more ethereal genres of rock/new wave based experimentation after listening to bands like My Bloody Valentine, Cocteau Twins and Slowdive. He released several records under the name Florentine Cruise in the late 90s.

He began producing minimal techno and house music in 2000 and began DJ’ing in 2001 as an experiment in mixing different genres of music together in a club / party atmosphere. The Bunny’s style is completely un-predictable and can even include impromptu mixes of Jazz, Experimental and Ambient music.

Call the Office: Saturday, 10pm – 2am

Rum Runners Lounge: Thursday, 9:30pm – 2am

Artist Biography

Name every female rapper you know, now name all the good ones now, name all the ones who can hold their own with the fellas and write their own rhymes there is only one! Miz Korona. Chances are you caught Miz Korona in the critically acclaimed Curtis Hanson movie 8 Mile- appearing in a pivotal speaking part alongside legendary rap artist Eminem and Xzibit. Miz Korona made an appearance along side 1 of the worlds top selling artist Eminem in the film 8 Mile. Miz Korona plays the role of Vanessa in the scene outside of the factory (Lunch Truck) trading insults wit another hip hop giant Xzibit. Early years Miz Korona began rapping at the Her first free-style rap was created on a bus ride to school. Free-styling was her breakfast, lunch and dinner before she realized how much she enjoyed it. Soon after hearing Run DMC for the first time, Miz Korona wrote her first hip hop song about school. Since her early days she has continued to polish her skills as an inventive lyricist with a riveting stage performance. Miz Koronas debut recording in 1994, was a song titled Psychodelic collaboration with Slum Lowa. Her reputation grew after notable performances at a variety of underground hip-hop clubs throughout Detroit, including seminal rap showdowns at Detroits famed St. Andrews Hall. She has appeared on-stage and in the studio with numerous artist including Indigenous Tribe, whose single Flight 313 helped land a contract with Reflex Records in the United Kingdom. Miz Koronas work is featured on various albums available both domestically and internationally. Korona has also been profiled in New Yorks Village Voice, garnered mention in Rolling Stone, featured in a cover stories in the Detroit News,Metro Times, Real Detroit,Venus Magazine the Detroit Free Press and a host of other articles. This year as well as last, she took top honors as Female Artist of the year in the Detroit Music Awards.

Rum Runners Lounge: Thursday, 9:30pm – 2am

Artist Biography

It is truly rare to find an artist like Invincible. Her spitfire wordplay has gotten her acclaim from Hip Hop fans all across the world, while her active involvement in progressive social change has taken her music beyond entertainment, and towards actualizing the change she wishes to see. Repping Detroit, MI, many are already familiar with her work with Waajeed and the Platinum Pied Pipers, Finale, the all-female ANOMOLIES crew, Black Star, and many others. Dubbed by XXL Magazine as “every A&Rs worst nightmare” for rejecting major label deals and general industry politrix, Invincible started her own record label, EMERGENCE, self-releasing her long-awaited full length LP, ShapeShifters, June, 2008.

Invincible’s versatility shines through on ShapeShifters over production by Waajeed, Black Milk, Lab Techs, House Shoes, and more. She is part of a community on the frontline of innovating the future of music, including featured guests Tiombe Lockhart, Finale, Wordsworth, Indeed, and Buff1. Every track stands alone in style, subject matter and concept. Together, the tracks form a cohesive unit that covers issues related to self and community transformation such as: the journey of a struggling artist, J Dilla and Proof’s legacies, media monopoly, love/hate relationships, gentrification, faith, and beyond. Invincible’s visual lyricism is interwoven with heavy hitting musical backdrops, creating a compelling cinematic sound-scape.

Rogers Main Stage: Saturday, 4:15pm – 5pm

Artist Biography

Elfin Saddle is the evolved musical project of scavenger artists Emi Honda and Jordan McKenzie. Prompted by their need to downsize an accumulation of musical instruments and objects in their migration to Montreal from Victoria, BC, Elfin Saddle focuses on the creative use of a compact array of acoustic instruments, including prepared accordion, banjo, and guitars, musical saw, and ad-hoc percussion setups. Having collaborated for years on various visual art and sound projects, Elfin Saddle is a fresh culmination of the ideas and ideals shared by both artists.

Emi, originally from southern Japan, moved to Vancouver Island in the late 90’s and was immediately fascinated with the lush landscape and local flora. She began gardening and building visually complex, mechanical assemblage sculptures, which she began to exhibit in local galleries. Jordan, who was also living on the island and working a similar vein in art school, happened upon one of these sculptures. Recognizing the eerily similar themes in each other’s work and sharing an affinity for the natural landscape, the two quickly became friends, triggering an extended wave of collaborations.

Sound Stories, a musical project of Jordan’s at the time that incorporated homemade sound machines, prepared records, storytelling, and a revolving cast of friends, was eventually joined by Emi. The two also began playing frequently as a duo and made several recordings that were released on Westhome, Jordan’s own small imprint. They also began to collaborate on unique multi-sensory art installations, comprised of old motors, timers, organs, plants, and other found junk, carefully composed to create bizarre landscapes and dream-like atmospheres and to execute loops of movement and sound. Their series of exhibitions with fellow Victoria artist Scott Evans, received considerable attention.

Since arriving in Montreal in 2006, Elfin Saddle has been steadily gaining audience and acclaim for their original and emotive live performances. Having released Gigantic Mother/Wounded Child on Kill Devil Hills Records in early 2008, they are proud to be releasing their follow-up, Ringing For The Begin Again, on Constellation. A recent addition to their recordings and live performances is Nathan Gage (Shapes and Sizes, owner of Phonopolis record store in Montreal), rounding out their sound with thick drones and subtle bursts on double-bass and tuba. Emi and Jordan are currently working on an extensive stop-motion/time-lapse film, featuring the growth of plants and the animation of a large collection of scavenged objects.

Technorati Tags: elfin saddle, LOLA, Music

Project Description

For LOLA 2009 mrghosty -who performed at LOLA 2007, will be returning with with his partner video artist PO-MO, who together form Hello World. They will be creating customized video sets interpreting and responding to the music on the Rogers Mainstage. They will create these solo and collaborative sets live, based on their interpretation of each band’s sound and image- in some cases collaborating directly with the bands themselves.

Artist Biography

Hello World is the collaboration between Winnipeg VJs PO-MO and mrghosty. Recently they have pooled their different skills and backgrounds to create a live Tandem VJ mix unlike any other. Where PO-MO’s background is in animation and design, mrghosty’s is in video editing and found footage manipulation. Together they create a live video mix that incorporates live programmatic animation manipulation mixed into colour saturated video footage and backgrounds, as well as live camera feed mixing and manipulation. Alone and together, PO-MO and mrghosty have VJed for national and international acts including the Stanton Warriors, Vitamins 4 You, MSTRKRFT, Moses Mayes and many more.

Call The Office: Friday, 11:15pm – 2:00am

http://myspace.com/stopdieremixes