Seemingly worlds apart, but do Shackleton and T.A.G.C. have more in common than first thought; Middle Eastern influences intertwine with hypnotic rhythms, producing meditative, ritualistic music? However, as is often the case, the similarities only serve to high-light the differences.
I first became aware of Sam Shackleton's work on the Mordant Music label: Stalker, I Want to Eat You, El Din, Pt. 1, etc. Like other interesting musicians in the modern music arena, Shackleton's work has been categorised as Dubstep (see his and Appleblim's (Laurie Osborne) work on their now defunct Skull Disco label). I've never known him to dispute this, but stylistically, we're now moving further and further away from the template. For the most part (relatively) slow rhythms, built from 'ethnic' percussion pads, weave in and out of Middle Eastern melodies, punctuated by nihilistic vocal samples (a reoccurring theme): "The Branch Is Weak". That said, from here-on-in, all bets are off...
"Well, I was making tunes on the computer at pretty much any bpm. Some just noise and experimental style, others ongy-bongy style and I gave a CDr to Ian Hicks of Mordant music. He really liked a tune called Stalker and he decided to put it out on Mordant Music. Anyway, that got picked up on by Rough Trade and they decided to put it on their Best of 2004 CD. I was really amazed that someone liked it, but it gave me confidence to start my own label. Around the same time we'd started going down to FWD. To be honest, I didn't like everything that was being played there, but I really liked some of what Hatcha and Youngsta were playing, especially the more interesting percussive stuff. I suppose that I just started keeping some of my stuff within the 140-147bpm range at that point. So anyway, I thought about starting a label and I had the confidence from the Rough Trade thing and seeing that people were making interesting bass music. I mean I remember when Horror Show and Conference dropped and thought that that was the stuff I was aiming to do"
El Din, Pt. 1 - Picking O'er The Bones - Mordant Music
El Din, Pt. 2 - Picking O'er The Bones - Mordant Music
Further information here, here & here.
Before, after and during Clock DVA, Adolphus (Adi) Newton further expanded his interests/ideas with The Anti Group, or TAG, or preferably T.A.G.C.; The Anti-Group Communications. In some ways T.A.G.C. combines early Jazz inspired Clock DVA material with the later electronic inspired Clock DVA material, but with more of an emphasis on ritualistic music and sonic experimentation, inspired by, amongst other things: "The expansion of Consciousness whether via applied use of computers and audio-visual technology or via arcane systems of Magick or other Occult or esoteric sciences". As infuriatingly inconsistent/infrequent as Newton's output has been, his ability to immerse himself in the subject at hand and present his findings is legendary. Each recording comes with copious sleeve notes, often in additional booklet form, detailing Newton's extensive research. For instance, in the same way that Cabaret Voltaire or Throbbing Gristle's interest in W. S. Burroughs helped introduce the authors work to a new audience, Newton did much the same for many; Aleister Crowley, Countess Elizabeth Bathory, Marcel Duchamp, Albert Camus & Donatien Alphonse François (Marquis de Sade), to name but a few. Most of The Anti Group's back catalogue is criminally over-looked, therefore long out of print, and some of the CD re-releases/compilations, are poorly remastered, which is unfortunate. However, seek and ye shall find...
"The original idea for the Anti Group was devised by A. Newton & S.J. Turner as early as 1978, with the intention of the formation of a multi-dimensional research & development project active in many related areas. research and development of sound/film/video/performance and the documentation of each project was the fundamental “Modeus Operandi”. Underlining this basic idea lays the deeper philosophical and theoretical; The first non theoretical action devised by TAG was the Film “The delivery”, a 16mm tryptych projection and soundtrack , and the Anti theatre performance “The Discussion” designed for five tape recorders and multi-video projection systems. These two works were first presented at the “Der Doelen” center in Rotterdam on Sat. Sep 22nd, 1985. “The delivery” has been exhibited at the “2nd Atonal festival” in “The Ballhaus Tiergarten” Berlin, Feb 18th 1985 where the soundtrack was recorded on a mobile 24 track system. This document was released as the recording “The delivery” on Atonal Records. After these initial performances TAG concentrated on Audio development. it was during this period 1985-1987 that the above recordings were realized along with the highly acclaimed Ambisonic Album “Digitaria” which is a Technological and Ethnological work based on the ideas of the Sabean cults of ancient Khem and the Dogon tribe of Mali. Having worked through these areas, it became the next logical step to move into the application of Psychophysics developing the use of frequencies and Psychoacoustics with computer aided technology"
Ghost Cultures Under Collapse - Digitaria - Side Effects
Pre-Eval - Digitaria - Side Effects
Further information here, here & here.
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