details on request attraction seminar kerry hyndman
Saturday night saw the end of a series of seminars organised by Details on Request, hospital a small collective of artists in East London, on ‘irrelevant learning’. Hosted by ‘creative technician’ Andrew Jeremy Houghton-Robinson, it was two hours of ‘debate’ that explored the idea of how we are attracted to thing. Sold as a conversation about the effect advertising can have on us, the public, it became a messy exchange of thoughts and the Gossip Café’s charming garden was left resembling a chaotic classroom.
Houghton-Robinson was quick to utter the philosopher’s mantra of “there are no right answers”, but if he’d had one it wouldn’t have been taken seriously anyway. As he sort to outline his theory with a series of basic illustrations and loose metaphors about good and evil you could sense everyone was wishing they were watching the music drifting across from the Little London Fields festival up the road. But on he went.
We must be aware of the dark arts used by advertising, Houghton-Robinson warned before showing us a clip of the eerie child snatcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. “So do you think advertising is a child snatcher then?” Bingo. We’d hit the jackpot. And as the rain began to sneak through the assorted umbrellas gathered above us it seemed as good a time as any to make for the exit. Houghton-Robinson looked a little downbeat as he ended the session but in truth he’d done a valiant job at sparking debate in front of an unforgiving audience.
All photography and illustration by Kerry Hyndman.
Saturday night saw the end of a series of seminars organised by Details on Request which we listed here, information pills held by a small collective of artists in East London, clinic on ‘irrelevant learning’. Hosted by ‘creative technician’ Andrew Jeremy Houghton-Robinson, it was two hours of ‘debate’ that explored the idea of how we are attracted to thing. Sold as a conversation about the effect advertising can have on us, the public, it became a messy exchange of thoughts and the Gossip Café’s charming garden was left resembling a chaotic classroom.
Houghton-Robinson was quick to utter the philosopher’s mantra of “there are no right answers”, but if he’d had one it wouldn’t have been taken seriously anyway. As he sought to outline his theory with a series of basic illustrations and loose metaphors about good and evil you could sense everyone was wishing they were watching the music drifting across from the Little London Fields festival up the road. But on he went.
We must be aware of the dark arts used by advertising, Houghton-Robinson warned before showing us a clip of the eerie child snatcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. “So do you think advertising is a child snatcher then?” Bingo. We’d hit the jackpot. And as the rain began to sneak through the assorted umbrellas gathered above us it seemed as good a time as any to make for the exit. Houghton-Robinson looked a little downbeat as he ended the session but in truth he’d done a valiant job at sparking debate in front of an unforgiving audience.
Details on Request will be running further performance and live art in the park in London Fields on Saturday 28th August. Details here.
All photography and illustration by Kerry Hyndman.
Saturday night saw the end of a series of seminars on ‘irrelevant learning’ organised by Details on Request (which we listed here), case who are a small collective of artists in East London. Hosted by ‘creative technician’ Andrew Jeremy Houghton-Robinson, there it was two hours of ‘debate’ that explored the idea of how we are attracted to things. Sold as a conversation about the effect advertising can have on us, the public, it became a messy exchange of thoughts and the Gossip Café’s charming garden was left resembling a chaotic classroom.
Houghton-Robinson was quick to utter the philosopher’s mantra of “there are no right answers”, but if he’d had one it wouldn’t have been taken seriously anyway. As he sought to outline his theory with a series of basic illustrations and loose metaphors about good and evil you could sense everyone was wishing they were watching the music drifting across from the Little London Fields festival up the road. But on he went.
We must be aware of the dark arts used by advertising, Houghton-Robinson warned before showing us a clip of the eerie child snatcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. “So do you think advertising is a child snatcher then?” Bingo. We’d hit the jackpot. And as the rain began to sneak through the assorted umbrellas gathered above us it seemed as good a time as any to make for the exit. Houghton-Robinson looked a little downbeat as he ended the session but in truth he’d done a valiant job at sparking debate in front of an unforgiving audience.
Details on Request will be running further performance and live art in the park in London Fields on Saturday 28th August. Details here.
Darwin Deez at Truck Festival. Photograph by Sabrina Morrison
It was only a matter of time before Amelia’s Magazine and Truck Festival became the firmest of friends. With circles overlapping so far and wide, check we might as well be kith and kin, generic our relationship was cemented and documented by Amelia at the Climate Camp gathering in Glastonbury (understand that Truck is kind of a generic description – the creators of Truck – the brothers Joe and Robin Bennett also play in the utterly fab Danny and The Champions Of The World) in a memorable performance where Joe played part of the gig on his back. ‘Cause that’s how he rolls.
Photographs by Sabrina Morrison
Pulled Apart By Horses perform. Photograph by Caitlin Mogridge
Truck is known for being somewhat of an anomaly; it’s a thoroughly strange hybrid of a bucolic Oxfordshire village fete, complete with a rotary club flipping burgers, a vicar serving ale and – no village fete is complete without this quintessentially English phenomena – cross dressers behind the bar, all of which serve as the surroundings to a musical line-up that is so hip, cutting edge and au courant that it makes SXSW look tame. The place was teeming with journo’s from every major publication, all of whom professed a long standing love for Truck. I had pitched up with a little crew of fellow Amelia’s Magazine colleagues and friends of mine from the band Amber States. By the time we arrived at 1pm on Saturday afternoon, the weather was glorious, the sun beating down on the 5,000 revelers who had already assumed the position of the day; lying flat on their backs (clearly taking a cue from the founder Joe). We quickly discovered that the festival was pleasingly manageable in size. Taking up no more that roughly three fields, the onus was on being able to bounce (I mean amble) from one stage to the next with the minimum of fuss.
Is Tropical in session. Photograph by Sabrina Morrison
So we quickly settled into a routine. Fuel up with a drink, and go find some music. From an extremely horizontal position I watched ex- Beta Band singer Steve Mason do a rousing Beta Band-esque set, followed by Stornoway who actually got me standing up (high praise). Although at some point I realised that that the hottest spot at Truck was by far and away The Barn, which receives the accolade from me as being The Hottest Music Venue In The World Which Also Smells Of Manure. It seemed that the rest of the festival agreed with me, and due to it’s cult like status, and the fact that the bands playing inside were off the charts, there was a constant queue to get into this converted cowshed. But I would stand in line all over again just to see this man play again.
Darwin Deez auditions for So You Think You Can Dance. Photographs by Sabrina Morrison
Mr Darwin Deez, New York hipster, sporter of the finest curls in the contemporary music scene, and creator of mid-song dance routines that even have their own narrative. My favourite bit was the dance that finished Radar Detector where his band mates engaged in what can only be described as a homage to West Side Story and the unfortunate Darwin was pushed to the floor (don’t worry, it was all part of the routine) but heroically sprang back to complete the rest of the dance/mime show. Why don’t more bands do this?
YouTube Video courtesy of John Pullman
Mew headlining, photograph by Sabrina Morrison
The evening was given over to watch Mew headlining. I had high hopes about this Danish group because the previous week I had been fortunate to have a long chat with Sune from The Raveonettes and he was in raptures over them. Truthfully, they were technically very impressive, but I wasn’t hooked. I think I was spoilt by watching smaller bands whilst scraping hay off of my converse in the cow shed, so this stadium-esque performance left me a little cold. Actually, I think I may have just simply been cold – it was 11pm by this point and the temperature had dropped. I wandered off to find my friends playing table football in the techno tent and concluded this very pleasant evening by not scoring a goal. Story of my life!
I got to meet the strange Truck monster; he was a bit monosyllabic but gave good hugs.
The next day was given over to more of the same thing. Naturally some lazing around had to be done. (We are not lazing in this picture, we are trying to figure out how to play the game where you lift someone up using two fingers, we didn’t succeed.)
Amber States do a collective i-phone check to find out how it’s done. Test study remains rooted to the ground.
Blood Red Shoes perform. Great live set, but inbetween song banter needs be improved; “We love sharks!” yells Laura-Mary. Photo by Caitlin Mogridge
Los Campesinos! Photograph by Caitlin Mogridge
Teenage Fanclub close Truck 13. Photograph by Caitlin Mogridge
Everyone found a band that we had previously not heard off but now had to IMMEDIATELY rush off and buy their tracks. A friend of mine was delighted by A Silent Film, which reminded her a little of The National. I really enjoyed the synth pop of Miaoux Miaoux, Sabrina discovered the joys of Egyptian Hip Hop, another mate stuck to the front of the stage while Blood Red Shoes performed and we all had a bit of a rousing moment to Los Campesinos! and Teenage Fanclub. Personally, Sunday afternoon was all about Danny and the Champions of The World. I’m not just saying that because of the aforementioned connections but simply because they put on a blinding performance. Plus you never know who you are going to get when Danny plays; later he performed a set in the little acoustic tent to a full house of little kids and was joined by the lovely Trevor Moss and Hannah Lou. Everyone clapped along to the songs – one toddler in the front helpfully kept time with the aide of his drum sticks and to me, this summed up Truck entirely; the ethos is collective, without pretension, kid friendly and all about the music, even when the music consists of two acoustic guitars, no mics and a two year old with drum sticks. Thanks again to Truck, for reminding us that this is what life is about.
Danny and Trevor Moss perform
Photograph by Rishi Mullett-Sadones
With thanks to Sabrina Morrison, Caitlin Mogridge and Rishi Mullett-Sadones for the photos.
Darwin Deez at Truck Festival. Photograph by Sabrina Morrison
It was only a matter of time before Amelia’s Magazine and Truck Festival became the firmest of friends. With circles overlapping so far and wide, thumb we might as well be kith and kin, remedy our relationship was cemented and documented by Amelia at the Climate Camp gathering in Glastonbury (understand that Truck is kind of a generic description – the creators of Truck – the brothers Joe and Robin Bennett also play in the utterly fab Danny and The Champions Of The World) in a memorable performance where Joe played part of the gig on his back. ‘Cause that’s how he rolls.
Photographs by Sabrina Morrison
Pulled Apart By Horses perform. Photograph by Caitlin Mogridge
Truck is known for being somewhat of an anomaly; it’s a thoroughly strange hybrid of a bucolic Oxfordshire village fete, healing complete with a rotary club flipping burgers, a vicar serving ale and – no village fete is complete without this quintessentially English phenomena – cross dressers behind the bar, all of which serve as the surroundings to a musical line-up that is so hip, cutting edge and au courant that it makes SXSW look tame. The place was teeming with journo’s from every major publication, all of whom professed a long standing love for Truck. I had pitched up with a little crew of fellow Amelia’s Magazine colleagues and friends of mine from the band Amber States. By the time we arrived at 1pm on Saturday afternoon, the weather was glorious, the sun beating down on the 5,000 revelers who had already assumed the position of the day; lying flat on their backs (clearly taking a cue from the founder Joe). We quickly discovered that the festival was pleasingly manageable in size. Taking up no more that roughly three fields, the onus was on being able to bounce (I mean amble) from one stage to the next with the minimum of fuss.
Is Tropical in session. Photograph by Sabrina Morrison
So we quickly settled into a routine. Fuel up with a drink, and go find some music. From an extremely horizontal position I watched ex- Beta Band singer Steve Mason do a rousing Beta Band-esque set, followed by Stornoway who actually got me standing up (high praise). Although at some point I realised that that the hottest spot at Truck was by far and away The Barn, which receives the accolade from me as being The Hottest Music Venue In The World Which Also Smells Of Manure. It seemed that the rest of the festival agreed with me, and due to it’s cult like status, and the fact that the bands playing inside were off the charts, there was a constant queue to get into this converted cowshed. But I would stand in line all over again just to see this man play again.
Darwin Deez auditions for So You Think You Can Dance. Photographs by Sabrina Morrison
Mr Darwin Deez, New York hipster, sporter of the finest curls in the contemporary music scene, and creator of mid-song dance routines that even have their own narrative. My favourite bit was the dance that finished Radar Detector where his band mates engaged in what can only be described as a homage to West Side Story and the unfortunate Darwin was pushed to the floor (don’t worry, it was all part of the routine) but heroically sprang back to complete the rest of the dance/mime show. Why don’t more bands do this?
YouTube Video courtesy of John Pullman
Mew headlining, photograph by Sabrina Morrison
The evening was given over to watch Mew headlining. I had high hopes about this Danish group because the previous week I had been fortunate to have a long chat with Sune from The Raveonettes and he was in raptures over them. Truthfully, they were technically very impressive, but I wasn’t hooked. I think I was spoilt by watching smaller bands whilst scraping hay off of my converse in the cow shed, so this stadium-esque performance left me a little cold. Actually, I think I may have just simply been cold – it was 11pm by this point and the temperature had dropped. I wandered off to find my friends playing table football in the techno tent and concluded this very pleasant evening by not scoring a goal. Story of my life!
I got to meet the strange Truck monster; he was a bit monosyllabic but gave good hugs.
The next day was given over to more of the same thing. Naturally some lazing around had to be done. (We are not lazing in this picture, we are trying to figure out how to play the game where you lift someone up using two fingers, we didn’t succeed.)
Amber States do a collective i-phone check to find out how it’s done. Test study remains rooted to the ground.
Blood Red Shoes perform. Great live set, but inbetween song banter needs be improved; “We love sharks!” yells Laura-Mary. Photo by Caitlin Mogridge
Los Campesinos! Photograph by Caitlin Mogridge
Teenage Fanclub close Truck 13. Photograph by Caitlin Mogridge
Everyone found a band that we had previously not heard off but now had to IMMEDIATELY rush off and buy their tracks. A friend of mine was delighted by A Silent Film, which reminded her a little of The National. I really enjoyed the synth pop of Miaoux Miaoux, Sabrina discovered the joys of Egyptian Hip Hop, another mate stuck to the front of the stage while Blood Red Shoes performed and we all had a bit of a rousing moment to Los Campesinos! and Teenage Fanclub. Personally, Sunday afternoon was all about Danny and the Champions of The World. I’m not just saying that because of the aforementioned connections but simply because they put on a blinding performance. Plus you never know who you are going to get when Danny plays; later he performed a set in the little acoustic tent to a full house of little kids and was joined by the lovely Trevor Moss and Hannah Lou. Everyone clapped along to the songs – one toddler in the front helpfully kept time with the aide of his drum sticks and to me, this summed up Truck entirely; the ethos is collective, without pretension, kid friendly and all about the music, even when the music consists of two acoustic guitars, no mics and a two year old with drum sticks. Thanks again to Truck, for reminding us that this is what life is about.
Danny and Trevor Moss perform
Photograph by Rishi Mullett-Sadones
With thanks to Sabrina Morrison, Caitlin Mogridge and Rishi Mullett-Sadones for the photos.
Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig. Illustration by Patty Bowman
As I write this I’m exhausted; I’ve slept all weekend and still haven’t fully recovered from Beach Break. I’ve got an impressive tan line from my wristband that keeps distracting me. Yes, here a week in Wales really was that much fun and it really was that hot.
As festivals go, ampoule I’m not a fan of park and ride and I’m not a fan of limiting the amount of alcohol you can take into the site. Beach Break does both, doctor and it’s a massive pain in the bum. You can only take one trip from your car to the campsite. If, like me, you’re lumbered with the tent, it’s pretty hard work.
I rocked up about an hour after the gates opened with a few friends and it didn’t take us long to get into the campsite. I think we were the lucky ones – I heard stories of people waiting six hours to get in.
The first night at Beach Break is strange. The camping field is only half full and there’s not much going on. It’s a great chance to explore the site and have a catch up with your campers. The Monday at Beach Break is always just a low-key, chilled night of fun. I might have drank more than the first night’s ration of vodka and fallen into a tent full of people, but that’s just how I roll. The boys found it pretty amusing – the girls did not.
This year’s site was stunning. The beach was absolutely beautiful and everything was pretty close without worrying about sound clashes between different tents. I spent the first morning nursing my hangover on the beach, but it got too cold so I went to watch two groups of friends compete in the Gaelic Games.
The Gaelic Games are run by these guys called Bearded Kitten. They have a shocking taste in music (especially the short one) but organise a strange tournament every year that sees people, amongst other things, run an assault course in a sumo suit, jelly wrestle (when my friend got accused of groping a girl) and tug of war. The winner gets tickets to next year’s Beach Break. I’ll be honest – the team that won were so unpopular with the crowd that people were cheering competing teams on, in the desperate hope they’d get knocked out.
Silver Columns
The main stage didn’t draw much of a crowd on any day. The main stage highlights were Silver Columns, who no one really danced to but were incredible; Vampire Weekend – a band so perfect that they blew me away; and Chase and Status, whose set was as you would imagine but ten times better.
Kurran and the Wolfnotes were great live. It was a shame they didn’t have a bigger crowd – I’ve been listening to them a lot since I saw them support Lightspeed Champion. They were the band I begged all my friends to watch, and they were even better this time. One of my favourite bands of the year, easily.
The Ruskins are a band who opened the main stage on the Wednesday. I remember them from last year – they spent ages flyering, putting up stickers and persuading people to check them out. The guys told me that they played the main stage this year because at the 09 festival they had a guerrilla gig that drew about 500 people in. They’re worth checking out – I reckon they’ve got big things ahead of them in a couple of years. One ACM band that was really great live was called 10p Short – an acoustic, folk rock band that killed it at the ACM tent.
Fenech Soler
My favourite dance band of the year, Fenech-Soler, played too. They were the best daytime band by far. They’re playing pretty much every festival going so if you get the chance to watch them, you really should. They look like they’ve borrowed their girlfriends’ sequin tops when they perform. The band are so good they please the dance fans as well as the indie kids, and that’s a hard trick to pull off.
For me this year was about the dance line up. They had some incredible people play and the dance tent was rammed. Annie Mac was typically brilliant, as were Jack Beats, High Contrast, and Sub Focus. There’s not much new I can say about these guys because they’re all at the top of their game. They were as much fun as you’d expect. The only downside was Annie Mac ending her set on a Florence, because I hate the song. Everyone else in the tent loved it, though.
There weren’t many disappointments, apart from Example who had little soul in his performance. Fake Blood was the biggest let down for me. I’ve listened to the Fake Blood mini mix done for Annie Mac many times, and I expected those skills to be delivered live, but they just weren’t. The music got a bit repetitive after a while – he didn’t really mix it up at all. A couple of people performed like it was an easy pay cheque for them, which was a massive shame when others like Vampire Weekend put in masses of effort.
There were some serious flaws with the organisation, like the taps being turned off, forcing us to buy festival priced bottled water so we didn’t dehydrate; a complete lack of shade near the main stage, so I had to hide backstage so I didn’t melt; and the park and ride was a nightmare on the way home. I can’t help but feel these were teething problems caused by the fact that this was only the first year the festival was at the site.
It’s been a year since I was a student, but we had so much fun that we’ve already started talking about next year’s festival. If they can get as many good DJs and bands as they did this year, then I’ll be there.
Written by Laura Nineham on Friday July 9th, 2010 11:02 am
Categories ,Annie Mac, ,Beach Break, ,Chase & Status, ,Ezra Koenig, ,Fenech Soler, ,festival, ,Lightspeed Champion’s, ,Silver Columns, ,The Ruskins, ,Vampire Weekend, ,wales
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