Playing live?

[Mino]

Hey guys

I want to know about your experiences playing live as an indie artist/noise enthusiast. Where do you go (no need to specify, just types of venues or other places you play live)? What's your setup like?

I own and operate my own record label, and where I'm situated in the U.S there aren't a lot of noise fans. I believe there's only one place in my city that would (if it doesn't already) host noise artists, but the crowd and interest in noise seems almost non existent. How is it where you live?

[guill pizarro]

I've had great experiences playing noise shows in small towns compared to big cities like DC, Baltimore, NYC and Philly, so don't let that small town fool you to the potential it may have.

Book good shows with varied artists, be a little picky! Be friendly and make connections with those first few people that do show up. Pay the artists!!! last time I played in Philly the venue didn't collect door money because the owner didn't think people would come. People came... Good thing there wasn't a guy on tour from Milwaukee or anything.

I book shows every once in awhile in a small town near me at a restaurant whose owner is a fan of experimental music, it's about an hour north of Philly and people thankfully come out and support. Even if you don't think there is an audience for noise, you might attract someone new entirely to it. After doing that for about 4 years now, I've been able to attract a small following of local weirdos who are happy they don't have to go to the city to see some experimental acts.

[Lauprellim]

I heard a great noise show in Peterborough, Ontario a few weeks ago. Wouldn't think there would be any scene there, but about 30 - 40 enthusiastic people came out to a little art gallery. Super fun!

Luckily I live in Pittsburgh where there are a few people doing awesome weird s***.

[Mino]

Interesting. That's good to hear though. How long are your sets usually? I'm thinking of doing a show for the album "Waste", which is 15 minutes long, so it might be within reasonable time.

[guill pizarro]

15-20 mins is for sure the sweet spot. If there are a lot of acts though, I try to keep it closer to 15.

[Tilthelight]

So playing live has kind of been an interesting thing for me. I quit making music. I was done, in general even with noise. I got invited to perform in a local show with a few other bands from out of town one of which was a noise band. So I went performed for 45 minutes. Now this has become our standard here. Word of mouth, only a few bands, usually two or 3 local and one from out of town. Not a lot of people doing this but enough people who like the raw energy, that we still do it, and then usually chill afterwards. As a whole our biggest local music scenes are metal, and indie rock. Noise finds itself the little sister of the indie scene, that kind of goes unnoticed but gets some attention when our older sibling mentions us.

The first venue I played was a park gazebo. Basements have occurred, and people's homes are most common. We also run guerilla parties/shows in the old obsolete train tunnels mo longer in use. We bring a couple generator down, let people know it's happening, and people go fucking crazy yo loud amplified noise in a tunnel where the sound can't help but reflect and seep into your very being. It's an intense chaotic experience.

[Mino]

That sounds awesome man. I don't think I can get away with anything so cultured like that here without a heavy fine to pay or potential jail time. I have a friend who lives in Missouri and he has no awareness of any noise shows going on, but with it being word of mouth that makes a lot of sense. Was most of your stuff improv or trying to emulate a record? I find most live shows tend to focus on trying to make something authentic and in the moment, as opposed to trying to copy what's already been done. I think that's how a lot of noise guys try to operate.

[Fletcher]

We also run guerilla parties/shows in the old obsolete train tunnels mo longer in use. We bring a couple generator down, let people know it's happening, and people go fucking crazy yo loud amplified noise in a tunnel where the sound can't help but reflect and seep into your very being. It's an intense chaotic experience.

this sounds great. Where abouts in the world are you?

[Tilthelight]

Oh. If we ever got caught busted in the tunnels, people would scatter there would be huge fines and jail time. I think that due to the idea and enforcement here that you grow old work, and die, as your natural path in life, it feels kind of good to just cut loose in an evironment of potential danger.

As for the performance. Some of our friends and other bands do exactly what you say, create chaos in the moment create something authentic. For me my Tascam DP01 is probably my most important piece of kit as my style revolves around it. When I play life I take tracks from the album and record them in, as well I find just sounds and whatnot that I like from my work. I make interactive samples across the 8 tracks. I set up multiple instances of this, in differing lengths for separate pieces of a set. The idea that at the show I can choose which pallet of sound to interact with. So my own sounds that someone may be already familiar with, or not, becomes base sound source. I then both create new sounds live on top of those, as well using different techniques to effects the sampled sounds and create new from them. Which all depends on what I've brought with me to the show. So basically I set up a sonic pallette, half based on my own work, and half, based on new sound creation, as well, I vocals in this chaos. The idea for the way I play is controlled chaos. It's always changing though a year from now I may be not using the DP01 at all.

[Mino]

Definitely some cool responses here. It's given me lots of ideas. When I hit the stage I plan on making some video footage, maybe with some projection/monitor of some images to add to the atmosphere. How do you guys usually perform? Do you do anything to add to the extremity?

[s.p.i.n.]

you aint lived yet till someone pulls the plug

[Tilthelight]

Definitely some cool responses here. It's given me lots of ideas. When I hit the stage I plan on making some video footage, maybe with some projection/monitor of some images to add to the atmosphere. How do you guys usually perform? Do you do anything to add to the extremity?

I'm planning on getting a projector and using a extra large white sheet and pulling it tight. I really want to have visuals but its more of I need to get the money to get a projector together. Most my money these days goes to my indie label.

[s.p.i.n.]

[timdrage]

How is it where you live?

variously:

Noise sets at noise-rock/experimental/anything gigs

Serious free improv shows with good turnouts of people who read the wire

Noise+speedcore+blackmetal rooms at multi-rig warehouse raves

noise sideshow 2nd stage at psych/doom alldayers: https://noiseshed.bandcamp.com/

ultra-underground noise gigs where the only audience is the artists and the unsuspecting venue staff

'Dark' industrial noise/PE festivals with many politically suspicious fellows dressed in black and lots of shouting thru echo fx, and impressive merch tables

Chiptune/circuitbending/glitch/noise club nites

well attended, fully Noise+performance art squat party till 4am on a sunday evening in a totally ruined car garage complex worthy of Tarkovsky's Stalker

Regular 15-minute-a-set events where each act blends into the next collaboratively

any number of drone/noise experimental shows in churches, art galleries etc

Large group sound-art exhibitions

Drunk 2am kicking a fire extinguisher up and down a pedestrian underpass for 10 mins

+ MUCH MORe

it's pretty good tho the noise scene is always in flux and too often any given gig doesn't have the audience size one would statistically expect for a capital city, presumably due to some kind of chronic marketing/communication/promotion issues