We like very much! Getting excited now! 

“For Pram, it was a nostalgia for a time when people were optimistic about the future” – Rosie Cuckston.

The five-piece experimentalists really do sum up Kismet’s Retro-Afro-Futurism, which takes place on 26th May at PST from 10pm..… And I might even include a song or two of theirs in my DJ set!

Below is an article I wrote last year. It previewed the fifth Flatpack Festival in 2011, in which Pram performed at the opening show of….

Flatpack is a yearly film festival that takes place across Birmingham, from the MAC to The Hippodrome to The Custard Factory.

Now entering a fifth year, it is unlike any other festival of its kind, with a large variation of experimental films, installation art, music videos, documentaries and animations, each bringing their own unique audience.

This year, Birmingham’s own soundtrack extraordinaires Pram will be opening the festival with their Film Ficciones collaboration entitled Shadow Shows.

With a career spanning over 20 years and each album containing a different influential intake of genres ranging between hip-hop, classical and exotica, five piece wonderers Pram develop their own individual black and white, nightmarish ghostly sounds.

“Its a great opportunity to present Shadow Shows in a formal theatrical setting, in what could be a template for a tour in 2012.” Explains multi-instrumentalist Matt Eaton, who has taken the idea to the next level, after previously piloting the show at Supersonic Festival ’09 and Schlachtfest ’10 [in Germany].

Matt continues, “Our mission was to devise a show for theatrical venues in the UK, and Flatpack presents us with the chance to do this for the first time”, with the show taking place at The Patrick Centre, which is located inside the Hippodrome Theatre.

A rotating, cylinder-shaped orchestral wind machine had been built especially for the night, and will definitely be causing quite the storm!

“It’s taken a couple of month to build as my weekend project” says percussionist Laurence Hunt.

“It’s origins lie within theatre as a sound effect prop, which I am led to believe can be traced back to the Baroque period. Along side the wind the machine there are also some other foley style sound effects that will be taking place live.”

“We have an animation section as well” Matt adds.

Pram have been collaborating with Scott Johnston’s alter ego Film Ficciones for as long as I can remember, but when did this creative relationship actually begin?

“We actually began [the collaboration] in Supersonic 2003”, says Matt.

“We had just started out with our instrumental set and that was the first show we did with Scott, we’ve been pretty tight with him ever since. I’ve worked with him on his installations and short films as a designer.”

Though the music and art cross over doesn’t end there, as multi-instrumentalist Max Simpson implies light-heartedly “Rentaghost, the Opera!” as a project he’d love to pursue, a very interesting concept which could see Pram entering the world of children’s comedy!

With the topic of spirits afoot, Laurence adds, “I saw a ghost!, or a schnapps related hallucination………

“[It was in] a small town in the deepest darkest Bavaria, [Germany] where we did a lot of work on Shadow Shows, we were incredibly well looked after by some passionate people who took us to the devils bridge and piled us with local schnapps.”

A sight which contains the intoxication of spirits in both meanings, as Laurence discusses the inspirational surroundings that are clearly present within Pram’s creepy Victorian, folklore sound.

But of course, there are plenty of other music inspirations that feed into the Pram anomaly.

“My current influences are 70s Bhangra, prepared piano and old UK hip hop”, says Matt.

“The best single thing for me in music is the first 2 hours, if you can get anywhere near that original idea in your head by the end, you’ve done pretty well.”

Laurence adds, “I’ve been experimenting with recording techniques and trying out new percussion gadgets like the ‘cow crusher’ which I won in a raffle at the national drum fair.

“The whole writing process is an exciting journey because things can happen by chance and completely change your initial perception of the final destination.”

With only a few weeks to go until Flatpack Festival, 23^rd of March is definitely a date to write on your calendars.

Shadow Shows will delve its audience back to the days of black and white imagery and enchanting expressionist horror, harking back to the night when Germany’s devils bridge was once expecting to steal a soul. 

United States of America bask in pre-retro-futurism, and influenced many bands from the nineties who were similar in vein. This included Stereolab, St Etienne, and of course Broadcast, who wouldn’t have sounded the same without them.

Who knows, maybe Mack will play Garden of Earthly Delights when Sensateria returns on 26th May at PST. He might even capture a new era of aspiring musicians, who can follow in Broadcast’s footsteps and further the retro-futurism scene……

But for now, here’s the highly underrated sound of both United States of America and Broadcast…..

Sensateria returns in the main room at PST, as part of Kismet’s Retro-Afro-Futurism on 26th May.

Read the full article below……

http://areamagazine.wordpress.com/2012/05/11/sensateria-returns-26-5-12-at-club-pst/

Birmingham’s renowned psychedelic club Sensateria returns this month, after an eighteen year hiatus. The sixties themed club night began in 1984 and ran for ten years, moving to and from venues such as The Fantasy Club, The Powerhouse [now the closed Oceana], The Hummingbird [nowBirmingham Ballroom], Digbeth Civic Hall Institute [now HMV Institute] and Snobs.

“I used to just hire a room and completely dress the place in oil wheels and parachutes, and it just became more and more popular”, says Mark ‘Mack’ MacDonald, who is the brains behind Sensateria, which is returning on 26th May at PST, Lombard Street, Digbeth.

“I did everything myself, all the artwork, I printed the posters and put them up around Birmingham. I used to set off early with a bucket of paste, a bag and a brush, putting these posters up over walls.

“The posters were unreadable on purpose. Sometimes I didn’t even put the venue on it, and it was still packed!”, he says.

The Sensateria inspired a wide range of musicians to take influence from the sixties psych aesthetic, specifically the late great Trish Keenan and her band Broadcast, who were regulars at the club night.

“We all met in the Sensateria”, says Tim Felton of Broadcast/Seeland.

“I played Garden of Earthly Delights by United States of America”, says Mack.

“That was when Jam [James Cargill] and Trish [Keenan] [of Broadcast] met. “It was at that moment in their heads; they just formed a band. They just got it straight away.”

Sensateria also brought in live music and big names from the likes of Spacemen 3 and The Sea Urchins. The nights were heavily focused on sixties psychedelic artwork, which were created by Mack himself.

“I didn’t just want it to be a piss up in a club”, says Mack. “I’d make people go to [record shops] Swordfish and The Plastic Factory [which no longer exists] to get there tickets.

“With each ticket, I’d make a lucky bag of games. One ticket was a printed t-shirt, so you’d have to wear the t-shirt to get in. Another was a pair of batman glasses, which I put red and blue lenses in to make a 3D effect, and another was a cassette which had an hours worth of music on it from the club.

“I can’t quite believe this now, but if I hadn’t brought the tickets into Swordfish the week before, I’d bring them in on the actual day of the gig, and people would be queuing up with these lucky bags I’d made!

“I also did some really mad stuff, like Charles Manson coat hangers. So when you put the top of your shirt on the coat hanger, Charles Manson was wearing your clothes!”, he says.

“There was nothing more sixties than Sensateria, apart from actually going back in time to the sixties!”, says Matt Eaton from Pram.

Sensateria returns on 26th May at club PST in the main room, as part of Kismet’s Retro-Afro-Futurism. 10 pm – late. £4.

PST, 71 Lombard Street, Birmingham, B12 0QU.

Read ‘Something in the Water’ magazine issue 1 online here.

What if science fiction was reality? 
What if we’d moved to Mars? 
What if robots lived amongst us? 
What if we owned flying cars?

Prepare yourself for a night of cosmic wonders with Kismet at PST on the roof, as we take you into a future that never was.

The term ‘Retro-Futurism’ was coined by Brian Duffy to explain his music project Stylophonic with Robert Shaw, which fused glam rock and synthesisers.

This term also developed into a music scene predominantly in Birmingham, which included the bands Broadcast, Pram, Plone, Novak, Avrocar and Magnetophone (and most famously, outside of Birmingham, Stereolab and St Etienne)

With future hip-hop, 60s psych, psych-funk and electronica DJ sets, Kismet aims to delve deeper into the themes of retro-futurism, bringing a new depth to its meaning.

Kismet are also delighted to announce that Mark ‘Mack’ Macdonald will be Djing on the night, who will be bringing along some of his famous visuals.
Mack ran the renowned club Sensateria in Birmingham from 1984-1994. The 60s psych-themed events offered an alternative night out for non-strict-mods and non-strict-rockers in the 80s, and brought live performances from the likes of Spacemen 3.

Sensateria also influenced Birmingham’s own retro-futurists/analogue synth icons Broadcast, and became a melting-pot of ideas for the Retro-Futurism movement.

Retro-Afro-Futurism is in conjunction with the ‘Something in the Water’ magazine launch, featuring an in depth article with Broadcast, Plone, Pram, Tele:Funken, Brian Duffy, Seeland, Stereolab and Mack (Sensateria) about the Birmingham underground movement.

DJ sets on the roof from:

Bobbalin’ Hot (Rea River Soul/psych funk, afro-funk)

Helix The Space Cat (future hip-hop)

Roscillator (electronica)

DJing in the main room and visuals from:

Mark ‘Mack’ MacDonald (Sensateria/Klub Catusi)

£4

Reblogged from :

Hot off the cyber-press, the running order for our Celestial Cinematic Kotch is here!

Proceedings will, er, proceed at midday with herbal teas, Kismet cakes and samosa’s mmmmm, all in the midst of a Fantastical art/sound installation showpiece.

We have also scoured the region to bring you a wide selection of some amazing independent short films that we will be showcasing on the day.

Read more… 515 more words

Hot off the cyber-press, the running order for our Celestial Cinematic Kotch is here!

Proceedings will, er, proceed at midday with herbal teas, Kismet cakes and samosa’s mmmmm, all in the midst of a Fantastical art/sound installation showpiece.

We have also scoured the region to bring you a wide selection of some amazing independent short films that we will be showcasing on the day.

Oh, and did I mention it’s FREE entry.  Oh, and just to spoil you a little bit more, we’ll be screening the modern cult music documentary,”MADE IN BIRMINGHAM”, and the groundbreaking cinematic masterpiece, that is”"BARAKA”.

SHOWTIMES

1pm

Luv in the Black Country

Dir: Matthew Carter
Running Time: 14:44

Cinematic documentary that travels down the romantic Black Country canals speaking to five different people who pass along the way about the first time they fell in love. The film is a lyrical love letter to the Black Country, its people and their fading identity.

1.15pm

Internalised 

Dir: Jazz Virk
Running Time: 10:15

Produced for the Sci-Fi 48hr film challenge.

Each team was given the TITLE, a line of DIALOGUE, and told to source a PROP, they then had 2 days to write, shoot, edit and deliver a complete film.

1.30pm

Wilhelm the Dwarf Vampire

Dir: Carsum Dim
Running Time: 8:01

Award winning film about a young dwarf vampire’s struggle to pass his Monster exams. Following a final warning from the Monster Inspector he sets off to find a first victim to bite.  Filmed at the historic Aston Hall in Birmingham.

1.40pm

Copier

Dir: Samantha Harrie
Running Time: 13:34

The story of teenager Stacey, a gifted inventor, who finds a discarded photocopier and accidentally invents a 3D copier that can make exact copies of absolutely anything, including people.  She realises it might give her the solution to the tough business of growing up in a broken home.

1.55pm

All consuming Love (Man in a Cat)

Dir: Louis Hudson
Running Time: 8:52

A tiny man who lives inside a cat becomes obsessed with the cat’s new owner. When the man finds out a woman his own size has been watching everything from afar he realizes he doesn’t need to be alone anymore.

2:15pm

Art and Sound Live Animated Mash Up

Bobbie Gardner, Stina Jones, Leon Trimble

Running Time: 60 mins

What do you get when you splice cute and slightly odd images, fantastical sounds and a VJ? Pop down and you shall see.

INTERMISSION

3:30pm

Made In Birmingham

Dir: Debbie Aston
Running Tine: 60 mins

Reggae, Punk and Bhangra musicians from Birmingham discuss their distinctive musical styles and reflect on how music has played its own role in fostering a new sense of collective identity in the city. Including interviews and archives from Steel Pulse, UB40, Swami, Au Pairs and Nightingales.

INTERMISSION

4.45pm

Baraka

Dir: Ron Fricke

Running Time: 96 mins

From the master of time-lapse photography and large format cinematography, US director Ron Ron Fricke’s cult classic, Baraka.

An ancient Sufi word with forms in many languages, Baraka translates as a “blessing”, or as the “breath of essence of life from which the evolutionary process unfolds”.  Kismet has been granted exclusive rights to screen this masterpiece, so come and witness a transcendently poetic tour of the globe, shot in breathtaking 70 mm entirely without dialogue, just amazing sound and images, on six continents and in 24 countries, exploring the formation and evolution of Earth, the ascendance of man and the consequences of technology. ok? super.

Hope to see you there!

Freelance graphic designer and illustrator Stina Jones is the face behind some very familiar work across Birmingham. From a piece depicting Gilbert & Sullivan in The Victoria pub (John Bright St) to work further afield with HTC mobiles, Stina is a non-stop creative who is always seeking out new projects.

This Saturday, 17^th March, Stina’s latest illustrations will be exhibited in the newly established cafe & arts hub Kismet (based in club PST, Lombard Street), for their Celestial Cinematic Kotch event, in conjunction with Flatpack Film Festival.

“The project started after Bobbie Gardner approached me with an audio sketch in February”, says Stina.

“She asked if I’d be interested in teaming up with her and Leon Trimble to put together a visual backdrop for the event. Since then, I’ve been working closely with the two of them to illustrate a surreal and celestial landscape inspired by the tune, which Leon is animating to accompany Bobbie’s audio track.

“I’m really excited to see how Leon has translated the illustrations and can’t wait to see the finished piece at the event this weekend.”

Stina often describes her work as “cute, fun and a little bit strange”, something that definitely sums up her work from my perspective as well.

“I always knew I wanted a career in doing something creative”, she continues.

“There’s a lot of influences in my work. I’d say the surrealist movement and pop culture has had the biggest influence.”

Stina has now illustrated for three of the Bitters & Twisted venues across Birmingham, with her illustration in The Victoria kick starting her relationship with these familiar Birmingham hangouts.

“The interior design firm who were refurbishing The Victoria got in touch via Twitter after seeing my Daily Doodle project [a project that saw Stina create 365 doodles, raising nearly £800 and counting for the charity Shelter in 2010]”, she says.

“They asked if I was available to create a black and white illustration of the composers Gilbert & Sullivan for a last minute fitting next to the bar. The illustration was well received and led to me being hired again by the firm to create one off pieces for both The Island Bar and The Rose Villa Tavern.”

Stina also set up her own design agency Creative Elements in 2007, which provides digital design, web development, print design and illustration services to creative industries across the world.

“I set the agency up after finding myself out of work and struggling to find any relevant positions locally”, she says.

“I’d started freelancing to fill the employment gap and found the response to be very positive. So the natural progression was to set up the agency, with an aim in bringing more freelancers on board, complimenting skill sets and offering a more comprehensive range of services to our clients.  

“We’ve been involved with some fantastic projects throughout the years and look forward to seeing what the next few years hold”, she concludes.

Make sure you come down to Kismet, located at the forefront of club PST, Lombard Street, on 17^th March between 12pm and 6pm. Here, you will experience some surreal, celestial illustrations by Stina, accompanied by Bobbie Gardner’s audio and Leon Trimble’s animation.

Kismet’s Celestial Cinematic Kotch. In conjunction with Flatpack Festival.

17^th March 12pm – 6pm

More info on the event here.

]]> http://kismetbrum.wordpress.com/2012/03/13/stina-jones-interview-for-the-celstial-cinematic-kotch/feed/ 0 rossjcotton Movember 162058_237555143005121_2110421403_n Gilbert-and-Sullivan-Illustration RoseVilla http://kismetbrum.wordpress.com/2012/03/12/pineapple-muffins-at-kismet-this-sat/ http://kismetbrum.wordpress.com/2012/03/12/pineapple-muffins-at-kismet-this-sat/#comments Mon, 12 Mar 2012 14:00:42 +0000 rosieo12 http://kismetbrum.wordpress.com/?p=136 Continue reading →]]> In celebration of all things Kismet, for our Celestial Cinematic Kotch this Saturday 17th March we will be featuring a selection of muffins all home baked from fresh ingredients.

This time round will feature a selection of pineapple, carrot cake, and finally blueberry muffins all displayed around the space.

Today’s focus is on the benefits of the good old pineapple.

Pineapples contain antioxidants that reduce the oxidative damage caused by free radicals. Its fiber will fill you up and might help keep you regular too!

Pineapple is also a sweet way to get your manganese, which is one of many bone-strengthening minerals and a star player when it comes to protecting you against free radical damages via its role in the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase.
You also get a decent amount of copper and thiamin, plus more than a third of your recommended vitamin C needs.
Vitamin C contained in Pineapple is an antioxidant, but it also helps keep your immune system in tip-top shape by increasing your resistance against colds, flu, and other infectious diseases.

So, don’t forget to grab a Pineapple muffin when you pop in on Saturday!

Jasmine plants vary in their species between shrubs and vines. They are found natively in tropical regions such as the Himalayas and Northeast, South and Southeast Asia. The flower opens at night and is generally picked during morning when the petals close. Jasmine has been known as the ‘queen of all flowers’ since ancient times, and the name comes from the Persia ‘yasmin’, which means ‘a fragrant flower’.

The human use of the flower dates back to 960 AD, with the Chinese Emperor of the Sung Dynasty ordering it to be planted in his palace grounds so that he could enjoy it’s fragrance. In the 1400s, it was then planted for kings of Afghanistan, Nepal and Persia for the same reason. So the flower certainly holds a large royal heritage!! After this, it was introduced to Egypt and was used in perfume. This quickly made the fragrant little flower become very popular amongst many countries, and so it spread to Turkey, Greece, Algeria and Morocco. It finally reached Western Europe through Spain, Italy and France in 1600 and didn’t make it’s way to Britain until the late 17th century.

Jasmine has also been used as a tea since ancient times by the Chinese, Arabians and Indians for it’s spiritual powers. To this day, it is still used to treat headaches, insomnia and for it’s anaesthetic properties. Jasmine is the perfect tea to help fight off the common cold, as well as relaxing people who suffer from stress and nervousness.

So come down to Kismet on 17^th March for Flatpack Festival and drink pure Jasmine Flower tea with us while watching a few films. You’ll be able to bask in it’s royal and spiritual history with every sip, and it’s sure to give your general well-being a beneficiary boost!