7:00PM ANIMATORS BAMcinématek 30 Lafayette Avenue Brooklyn NY 11217 tel. 718.636.4100 Directions $10 members, $15 general public
Warsaw jazz/electronics group Baaba will perform a genre-bending live score to a selection of Polish classic animated films. The compilation offers a captivating look into the metaphorical and stylistically rich world of Polish animation from the 50s to the early 70s, incorporating currents in national graphic arts, painting, puppetry and experimental theater.
9:00PM THE OPTION OF SILENCE ISSUE Project Room 110 Livingston St. (Entrance at 22 Boerum Place) Brooklyn, NY 11201 Directions $10 advance / $12 at door
A night of distinctive female artists working with experimental sounds. LA resident Julia Holterand Norway's Jenny Hval both combine avant-garde structures with music at the edge of pop; they also work with explicit lyrics exploring sex and gender, subverting expectations. Holter's "Tragedy" and Hval's "Viscera" were among 2011's best albums. New Yorker Julia Kentperforms work for solo cello.
9:00 PM Julia Holter 9:15 PM Julia Kent 10:00 PM Jenny Hval Thursday, April 19, 2012
6:00PM Unsound LABS: Artist Talk - Monolake Presented with The Wire Magazine Goethe-Institut Wyoming Building 5 E. 3rd St (btw. Bowery & Second Ave.) New York, NY 10003 tel. 212.439.8700 Directions Free
German techno artist and co-developer of Ableton Live software Robert Henkediscusses his many modes of work with sound. From his home base in Berlin, Henke has made iconic minimal-techno since the mid-90s and continues to refine the form in terms of conceptual approach and presentation, including a Live Surround performance to follow at Unsound on Friday. In conversation with Andy Battaglia.
Two exciting duos exploring the edges of sound, melding psychedelic dub, synth pop, noise and other influences. Peaking Lightsfuse a lo-fi sound indebted to Jamaician dub pioneers to rock that reaches beyond to create a rich sonic tapestry, while Poland'sLXMP will use percussion and triggered synths to interpret Herbie Hancock's 1983 album "Future Shock.
07:30 PM LXMP 08:30 PM Peaking Lights
11:00 PM SINGULARITY (Le) Poisson Rouge 158 Bleecker St. (at Thompson St.) New York, NY 10012 tel. 212.228.4854 Directions $15 advance / $20 at door
Some of the most celebrated acts working in exploratory realms of music, creating often extreme sounds wherein genres implode, becoming something exciting and new. Norway's Next Life fuses ear-shredding black metal, noise and electronics, Hype Williams combine performance art with bass mutations, and Actress takes dance music to its most experimental limits, turning it in upon itself.
01:15 AM Actress ( LIVE ) 11:30 PM Next Life ( LIVE ) 12:15 AM Hype Williams ( LIVE ) Friday, April 20, 2012
6:00PM Unsound LABS: Panel - East of Berlin, Music in External Contexts Presented with The Wire Magazine Goethe-Institut Wyoming Building 5 E. 3rd St (btw. Bowery & Second Ave.) New York, NY 10003 tel. 212.439.8700 Directions Free
In mind of Unsound's commitment to international exchange, a panel of visiting artists, festival organizers and label heads discuss the makeup of different kinds of music-culture infrastructure, past and present, in Poland, Ukraine and points beyond Western Europe. Featuring Unsound organizer Gosia Plysa and the performing musicians Kotra, Denis Kolokol and Macio Moretti. Moderated by Daphne Carr.
6:00 PM TRUE HORIZONS (Le) Poisson Rouge 158 Bleecker St. (at Thompson St.) New York, NY 10012 tel. 212.228.4854 Directions $15 advance / $20 at door
Berlin's legendary POLE and LA artist Sun Arawexplore very different sounds indebted to dub; while the former works dub basslines into minimal electronic music, the latter warps dub sound into a fusion of afrobeat, psychedelic drone and more. Inner Tube opens, with Mark Mcguire of Emeralds and Spencer Clarke creating a guitair/synth duo inspired by Australian surf movies from the 80s.
07:00 PM Inner Tube 08:00 PM Pole 09:00 PM Sun Araw
10:00 PM THE BUNKER AT UNSOUND FESTIVAL NEW YORK WARSAW Warsaw at Polish National Home 261 Driggs Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11222 tel. 718.387.0505 Directions $20 advance
The Bunker presents an impressive program focusing on all LIVE shows. German electronic music titan Monolakewill drop jaws with his Live Surround adventure, while UK duo Demdike Stare explore the dark outer-edges of experimental/club music. Brooklyners ITALand Laurel Halo favor warped, idiosyncratic dance sounds, which attach as well to Chicago's Hieroglyphic Being. Zemi17opens.
01:50 AM Demdike Stare ( LIVE ) 03:00 AM Monolake ( LIVE ) 10:00 PM Zemi17 ( LIVE ) 11:00 PM Laurel Halo ( LIVE ) 11:55 PM ITAL ( LIVE ) 12:45 AM Hieroglyphic Being ( LIVE ) Saturday, April 21, 2012
1:00PM Unsound LABS: Screening of ICON EYE & Discussion Presented with The Wire Magazine Film Anthology Archives 32 Second Avenue New York, NY 10003 tel. 212.505.5181 Directions $9
ICON EYE documents the travels of Sun Arawto Jamaica to collaborate with legendary dub reggae group The Congos. The film serves as a dream-like companion piece to a new album of intergenerational communion and creation. A post-screening discussion will feature Sun Araw's Cameron Stallones, director Tony Lowe and project producer Matt Werth. Moderated by Andy Battaglia.
3:15PM Unsound LABS: Presentation Dave Tompkins on Sustained Decay: A Natural History of Bass Music in Miami Presented with The Wire Magazine Goethe-Institut Wyoming Building 5 E. 3rd St (btw. Bowery & Second Ave.) New York, NY 10003 tel. 212.439.8700 Directions Free
Author Dave Tompkins presents a cultural, geological and political history of 80s Miami, propagating from bass. A distortion of terms and technology to recording engineers, “sustained decay” speaks to properties of 808 bass as well as a sub-history of Miami’s foundation and development—from microscopic fossils to man-made beaches, riots and roller-rinks to cocaine and coral reefs.
4:00PM Unsound LABS Music Program 1 ISSUE Project Room 110 Livingston St. (Entrance at 22 Boerum Place) Brooklyn, NY 11201 Directions Free
Unsound LABs concerts feature collaborations between musicians of different kinds working together for the first time in a series of unique free performances. Curated to cross borders related to matters of sound and geography, this year's program pairs artists from Eastern Europe and Scandinavia with musicians from the U.S.
4:30PM Unsound LABS: Presentation Stefan Betke on the Art of Mastering Presented with The Wire Magazine Goethe-Institut Wyoming Building 5 E. 3rd St (btw. Bowery & Second Ave.) New York, NY 10003 tel. 212.439.8700 Directions Free
Stefan Betke, fabled figure behind dub-techno act Pole and engineer at Scape Studios in Berlin, discusses his philosophy of mastering with theoretical excursions into the science of sound for analogue and digital formats. Betke will survey his own experience beginning at Dubplates & Mastering and up through his recent acquisition of a Neumann VMS 70 cutting lathe to offer vinyl mastering again.
7:00PM TRANSGRESSION presented with The Blackened Music Series West Park Presbyterian Church 165 West 86th Street New York, NY 10024 Map Subway: 1 to 86th Street; A, B, C to 86th Street Tickets: $20 advance / $25 at door
One of the key festival events sees LA dark ambient overlord Lustmord join forces with Norwegian electronic music pioneer Biosphere. They present the world premiere of the Unsound-commissioned piece TRINITY, exploring the first tests of nuclear weapons in the New Mexico desert. Poland’s Jacaszekopens with his trio, performing haunting works from his new album “Glimmer,” released on Ghostly.
10:00PM BASS MUTATIONS Presented with Dub War and Percussion Lab Indiescreen $20 advance / $25 at door
BASS MUTATIONS is a legendary series at both Krakow and NY Unsound. Explore bass music’s latest evolutions with 2562 from the Netherlands and Helsinki's Teeth, both making live U.S debuts. Stateside talent includes Nguzunguzu, Distal and Throwing Snow, while Praveen (of Percussion Lab) performs with Machinedrum in a Sepalcure Live A/V show. DaveQ(of Dub War) opens with a DJ set.
01:00 AM Sepalcure ( LIVE A/V SET ) 02:00 AM Distal ( DJ ) 03:00 AM 2562 ( LIVE ) 04:00 AM Nguzunguzu ( DJ ) 05:00 AM DaveQ ( DJ ) 11:00 PM Throwing Snow ( DJ ) 12:00 AM Teeth ( LIVE ) Sunday, April 22, 2012
1:00 PM Unsound LABS: Talk - Stuart Argabright Presented with The Wire Magazine Goethe-Institut Wyoming Building 5 E. 3rd St (btw. Bowery & Second Ave.) New York, NY 10003 tel. 212.439.8700 Directions Free
Stuart Argabright has been a Zelig-like figure in New York since the 80s, when he began work with prescient acts including Ike Yard, Death Comet Crew, Dominatrix and Black Rain. Subjects to be discussed include stalking the East Village of yore, performing with New Order in 81 at the Ukrainian National Home and working with sci-fi writer William Gibson. In conversation with Dave Tompkins.
2:30 PM Unsound LABS: Presentation Jeremy Grimshaw on The Music and Mysticism of La Monte Young Presented with The Wire Magazine Goethe-Institut Wyoming Building
5 E. 3rd St (btw. Bowery & Second Ave.)
New York, NY 10003
tel. 212.439.8700 Directions
Free
Jeremy Grimshaw gained rare access to reclusive minimalist composer La Monte Young while researching his new book Draw a Straight Line and Follow It. He worked in Young's Tribeca "Dream House" and pored over his archives, before the bond grew contentious and Young disavowed the book. Grimshaw will discuss Young in terms of Vedic mysticism and Mormon esoterica, psychedelia and psychoacoustics.
4:00PM Unsound LABS: Talk Biosphere & Lustmord on TRINITY Presented with The Wire Magazine Goethe-Institut Wyoming Building
5 E. 3rd St (btw. Bowery & Second Ave.)
New York, NY 10003
tel. 212.439.8700 Directions
Free
For their Unsound-commissioned project "TRINITY," Norwegian electronic-musician Biosphereand LA-based dark-ambient overlord Lustmord traveled to the desert in New Mexico, where they surveyed sites of early nuclear testing around Los Alamos National Laboratory. Here they will talk about their journey—and how it informed the sites and sounds incorporated in their new piece to premiere in New York.
4:00PM Unsound LABS Music Program 2 ISSUE Project Room 110 Livingston St. (Entrance at 22 Boerum Place) Brooklyn, NY 11201 Directions Free
Unsound LABS concerts feature collaborations between musicians of different kinds working together for the first time in a series of unique free performances. Curated to cross borders related to matters of sound and geography, this year's program pairs artists from Eastern Europe and Scandinavia with musicians from the U.S.
9:00PM FADE OUT - UNSOUND FESTIVAL NEW YORK CLOSING PARTY Glasslands 289 Kent Avenue New York, NY 11211, tel. 718.599.1450 Map Subway: L to Bedford Avenue $10
Unsound's closing party starts with Polish trio Napszyklat's mix of experimental sounds, noise and hip hop - with lyrics in their native tongue. Estonian avant-pop artist Maria Minerva of the Not Not Fun label will perform her first NY show, followed by an eclectic Disco Hermetics DJ set from Sun Araw vs. Heat Waveand Krakow's very ownEltron John. Enjoy!
