20191025

Visited Monstera by Essi Kausalainen at Mad House. I liked the performance and particularly enjoyed a minimalistic stepping dance the performers executed towards the end of the show. It felt like a simplified version of cicapo or some other court dance. Perhaps something enjoyed by Carl Linnaeus in the ballrooms of his era. Linnaeus’ work in starting the modern system of naming organisms had inspired the performance and he was heavily present in a séance-like segment before the dance. In a talk before the show Kausalainen pondered if the act of naming a thing could be read as an attempt to show affection towards it. The step-dance also reminded me of compulsory or involuntary movements people perform when idling (while waiting for a bus etc). The dance informed me of a vegetative movement or motion, which is possibly intrinsic to all living things. The practice of the performers felt like an amplification of this auto-movement and when performed collectively by the group, it felt like a method of building solidarity trough the lowest common nominator (which for me is idling).

Etched and build a Bastl Skis Expander 1u and assembled a Lite2Sound PX unit by Rare Waves. I want to send audio across space using leds and laser beams. Tested it yesterday sending audio form my Disting Mk4 using a bipolar led thing I build and it works well. I’m looking for a red laser which I can use to draw on material surfaces, so that the Lite2Sound converts the shapes of the surface to sound (much like a vinyl needle). I want to hear textures. I used a fee from a wedding gig (manufactured mineral waters, read poetry and served as a bartender) to acquire a spring tank (Accutronics 9EB2C1B) and I’m making made a 1u expanded for the Spring Reverb mkII.

What does sending audio in a laser beam trough parkling water, spatialized by a spring reverb (which feedback agitates the water) sound like? What will the surface of a slab of wood sound like when played like a vinyl? Do grooves of bark sound what they feel like?

20191013

Saw Television by Niko Hallikainen at Mad House Helsinki. He appeared confident and included various stage tech maintenance maneuvers into the performance (toggling lights and the space heating). Seeing the performer crossing the stage, just to turn the heating off before starting their monologue made me feel I was in good hands. He shared an eventful and touching love story but I think an underlying motive of the piece was to explore how virtual spaces can be formed using spoken word. In the beginning Hallikainen confessed the performance was an attempt to build a a temple for a departed lover and described various interiors they had been in: A bar, his home, their home, a strangers home. The hints we were offered to visualize the spaces were subtle. He described things in them (DVD covers, coffee machines), mapped their relations spatially and prompted us to “use our imaginations” if we wanted to sort out how the spaces were configured. His words felt like projections. A magical portal, the TV or screen (emphasized by blue lights on stage) which links all interiors together, was identified using words and a dance. The mood of the performance and the tone of his voice reminded me of the Neuromancer 1994 audiobook.

Visited a Synthetic Youth -event at Cactus. Particularly liked Kanyon2000000 and 8 bits High was super, got me dancing too. They are having a tour in libraries (9.11 Ylöjärvi and Tampere) which is very fitting for music made with keyboards. Kanyon2000000 has a picture online where they are posing in front of the Oodi modular.

20190724

Shopping districts in Helsinki are named after 80ties action series heroes. Redi is always wearing a red bandana, he prefers a shotgun and has a black belt. Tripla drives a three-wheeler and uses a bazooka in a pinch. Their HQ is at the Prisma dojo and their nemesis organization is named The Amazonians of Banggood.

I’ve been doing so much crafts and construction work this summer that the fingerprint ID of my phone doesn’t recognize me. Got new scars too. Currently working on building a dance floor for Mad house, it should be a two person job. Bought a table saw-table and a new circular saw. 1200w!