I’ll be chairing a really exciting event for Superational, an excellent forum for artists to organise cross-genre collaborations, promote and distribute their work. The event is part of the Hidden Door Festival, and will preview some of the work Superational will be doing.
What: Superational Preview
Where: The Vaults, Market Street, Edinburgh
When: 6-7pm, Thursday 3 April
How Much: FREE, book tickets here.
Just a quick reminder that myself and JO Morgan, last seen collaborating on ‘All Signs’, will be joining Hiva Oa, Lipsync for a Lullabye and a line-up of super talented musicians, writers and visual artists for Decagram, part of DAY 7 (aka Thursday 3 April) of the Hidden Door Festival. It all kicks off at 7pm, see you there!
DECAGRAM is a transcendental fusion of contemporary, classical, post-rock, tribal, noise, dub and hip hop that will eat your brains.
The bill of highly contrasting music artists will collaborate at the transitions between sets, creating a seamless three hours of music set against a spectacular visual feast of short film, animation, improvised visuals, motion graphics and projection mapping.
Programmed by Ed Stack of Ten Tracks
I’ll be reading with some fine folks who have had stuff published in Valve Journal, an excellent literary compendium. Come hang with us on Friday April 11 at The Poetry Club in Glasgow.
Your favourite literary journal (right?) is having a night of fun at The Poetry Club to celebrate all the good people we’ve come across since we began in 2011.
Rounding up some of our favourite writers published in Valve over the last three years, we’ll kick off with readings from some of Scotland’s most dazzling literary talent (and no, we’re not biased at all).
You’ll be treated to words in sentences from:
Moustache owner and mighty wordsmith RYAN VAN WINKLE
Paisley’s finest poet GRAHAM FULTON
MARY MCDONOUGH CLARK, surfer of emotions and ideas
Scottish Book Trust New Writer’s Award-winning LUCY RIBCHESTER, and
Ever-entertaining observer of geriatrics on public transport ANDREW BLAIR
After readings there will be some good old fashioned Valve fun then dancing ’til the wee hours with a DJ set.
Come and be merry with us.
Very pleased to be doing a couple of mega-events at the big Hidden Door Fest in Edinburgh. I totally love the spirit and brilliance of this event and there’s a ton of brilliant stuff to dig into so make sure to get yourself along.
Totally psyched to be on the bill for the upcoming March edition of Rally & Broad: Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright. They’ve got a great lineup this month, including A New International, Kirsty Law, Sian Bevan and the Loud Poets. Friday 21st March at the Counting House, Edinburgh, £5, see you there.
We’re back with one of our most eclectic bills o the season! Feast yer eyes on this un, comrades! On words – Ryan Van Winkle and Sian Bevan! On tunes – Kirsty Law and A New International! PLUS! Those talented squirrels from The Loud Poets!
We’d be delighted for ye all to share our delight at getting such a wonderful bunch of folk to our House. Don’t think twice – get thee there! Cos you’re wonderful too. Blurbs below…
RYAN VAN WINKLE – We are delighted to welcome Ryan Van Winkle back to our House! His critically praised first collection, Tomorrow, We Will Live Here, was published by Salt in 2010 and won the Crashaw Prize. He is currently working on new theatre / poetry experiments with Dan Gorman and Screen Bandita as well as a second collection of poetry.
A NEW INTERNATIONAL – Lush, poetic, bittersweet romanticism; an evocative mixture of cinematic strings, circus lights, carnival and cabaret, music hall, gypsy, chanson, a little bit of folk, a little bit of flamenco, yet with pop at its beating heart – welcome to the world of Glasgow’s finest, A New International.
“Many moments of beauty” – The Independent
“Very original, top stuff” – Richard Hawley
“’Sumptuous European balladeering translated into an urban Scottish setting” – The List
KIRSTY LAW – ‘Beautiful and feisty… it’s a joy to hear a young singer and writer in Scots with such earthy and conversational character to her singing and songs… a young musician doing things her own way’ (Karine Polwart)
SIAN BEVAN – Siân is a kind-of-comedian/
And Introducing
THE LOUD POETS – Young, new, exciting performance poetry group, rapidly gaining notice for their slickly delivered rapid-fire verse.
Hosted by award winning poets and promoters:
Jenny Lindsay
(The Big Word/ Is This Poetry?/BBC Slam Winner 2012) &
Rachel McCrum
(Callum Macdonald Award winner 2013/ BBC Slam Finalist 2012/ 2013)
“What you get from attending nights like this is a strong sense that something as simple as the human voice speaking beautiful words sincerely meant can cut through all the snares and distractions of our modern lives.” (Peter Ross, Scotland on Sunday)
“You look a little like Grayson Perry, dear…”
(Rachel’s Mum)
“I didn’t bring you up to speak like that. F**king hell, darling…”
(Jenny’s Mum)
Kind words in this edition of The Skinny in their review of Adrift @ Summerhall, the AV extravaganza featuring myself and Screen Bandita. Read all those words here.
I’ll be reading/holding forth at the Edinburgh International Science Festival‘s At the Heart of Things this Thursday night at the Informatics Forum, also known as Inspace. We’ll be discussing the importance of the heart both as vital organ/blood-distributor and as the conceptual seat of the emotions. Guess which one I’ll be covering! It’ll be a great show, tickets are free and available for booking on the show’s Eventbrite. Hope to see you there!
Thursday 13th February 2014, 7 for 7.30pm.
Informatics Forum, 10 Crichton Street, Edinburgh EH8 9AB
Launched at the 2012 Edinburgh International Science Festival, LateLab is a creative, social and participatory space for adults where they can make, do and interact with art, science and technology.
Come to LateLab to take part in genuine experiments and get hands on with some fascinating stuff. With talks, performances, films, table top science and creative catering, no two LateLabs are ever the same.
Screen Bandita and myself will be teaming up for some audio-visual shenanigans on Tuesday February 11 at Summerhall, hope to see you there!
Harnessing spoken word, found celluloid film, slides, vintage ephemera and gramophones, Van Winkle and Screen Bandita conjure forth a mesmerising and surreal piece that unfolds and unpacks suitcases of memory, place and experience.
Drawing inspiration from the stories springing from the resonant walls and dusty corners of times past, these archival inquisitors weave a new audio visual tapestry before your very eyes; unravelling stories and episodes suspended in time and illuminating those fragments of presence and memory lingering in and about the ether, left behind by the rich cast of characters who have passed through.
What: Adrift (In the Archive)
Where: Summerhall, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL
When: 7.30-8.15pm, Tuesday February 11
How Much: £5
If you’ve got a bit of time out today, or fancy putting something relaxing in your ears (and maybe eyes), have a listen to ‘water with wind, later fire’, a piece by Hiva Oa featuring words by Mesa Begic and myself from the Commiserate project and pictures by Ania Urbanowska. Enjoy.
Red, Like Our Room Used to Feel had a terrific run at the Melbourne Fringe Festival, and the poet Bronwyn Lovell wrote a really engaged and deep review of the show for Australian Poetry. Have a read if you’re interested in a really thoughtful point of view.
