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VIBRACATHEDRAL ORCHESTRA, "DABBLING WITH GRAVITY AND WHO YOU ARE"
vhf
"Going out intending to Dig." My first encounter with VibracathedralOrchestra was one of those wonderful moments when music materialisedfrom nowhere to blow my mind. I'd travelled over the Pennines to Leedsto hear New York saxnoise insurrectionists Borbetomagus lock horns andattempt to raze a pub, but first these five scruffy looking localurchins picked up battered old acoustic guitars, switched on an oldradio, bowed cymbals and swapped instruments whilst slowly unfurling arapturous improvised clatter that recalled the early Velvet UndergroundAMMing it up with shards of warped minimalist reflection. "FingernailR'n'B." They've since put out quite a few albums, CD-Rs and singles butthe ones my ears have been most happy to vibrate to have been the onesfor the excellent quirky vhf label. This latest is their most melodicand beautifully mind altering dose of hypnotic freedrone folk yet.There's a celebratory Eastern whirling dervish feel to much of it, butas if the dancer was caught in slow motion. "Mystical Coughing." Theentire recording is permeated with joyful abandon as whistles blow lovecries to drone boxes over clumping Maclise beats and atonal "EuropeanSon" monochords, whilst everything that can be bowed will be bowed!Chains rattle and break. The mood shifting splices between tracks arethe most dazzlingly effective edits they've yet employed. When Iinterviewed them just prior to a gig supporting Low at ManchesterUniversity the most talkative Vibracathedralist Neil Campbell floatedthe notion that every time they play they just carry on from where theyleft off the last time, so it's just one long ever changing lifepathjourney: "He Play All Day Long." However it was Bridget Hayden who hadthe perfect word to describe what their music: "Magic."
"Going out intending to Dig." My first encounter with VibracathedralOrchestra was one of those wonderful moments when music materialisedfrom nowhere to blow my mind. I'd travelled over the Pennines to Leedsto hear New York saxnoise insurrectionists Borbetomagus lock horns andattempt to raze a pub, but first these five scruffy looking localurchins picked up battered old acoustic guitars, switched on an oldradio, bowed cymbals and swapped instruments whilst slowly unfurling arapturous improvised clatter that recalled the early Velvet UndergroundAMMing it up with shards of warped minimalist reflection. "FingernailR'n'B." They've since put out quite a few albums, CD-Rs and singles butthe ones my ears have been most happy to vibrate to have been the onesfor the excellent quirky vhf label. This latest is their most melodicand beautifully mind altering dose of hypnotic freedrone folk yet.There's a celebratory Eastern whirling dervish feel to much of it, butas if the dancer was caught in slow motion. "Mystical Coughing." Theentire recording is permeated with joyful abandon as whistles blow lovecries to drone boxes over clumping Maclise beats and atonal "EuropeanSon" monochords, whilst everything that can be bowed will be bowed!Chains rattle and break. The mood shifting splices between tracks arethe most dazzlingly effective edits they've yet employed. When Iinterviewed them just prior to a gig supporting Low at ManchesterUniversity the most talkative Vibracathedralist Neil Campbell floatedthe notion that every time they play they just carry on from where theyleft off the last time, so it's just one long ever changing lifepathjourney: "He Play All Day Long." However it was Bridget Hayden who hadthe perfect word to describe what their music: "Magic."
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The Eye: RELOADED!
Ten years ago, Brainwashed.com launched The Eye, one of the first regular music oriented video features online. Over the years, close to 150 mini documentaries were produced from live and interview footage with some of the most innovative acts. In the last few weeks, the videos have been re-visited, re-mastered, and re-presented on YouTube. We're excited for the new resolution, sound, and clarity of these features, along with the portability afforded by YouTube. Over the next few weeks we will be randomly selecting features on the home page here of Brainwashed but you can always Start at the beginning and see where it takes you!
