Mount Vernon Arts Lab interviewed by Mark Pilkington
Last week, I posted about "occulture" music, a genre of electronica inspired by anomalous phenomena, fantastic fiction, and the occult. One of the artists I mentioned is Mount Vernon Arts Lab, aka Drew Mulholland, a Glasgow-based musician with a penchant for sacred sites and strange locales. The column from Arthur magazine that I linked to in my post listed Mulholland's album "Seance at Hobbs Lane" as essential listening in the occulture genre. The album includes Mulholland's collaborations with members of Coil, Portishead, Add N to X, and others. Turns out, my friend Mark Pilkington of Strange Attractor Journal interviewed Mulholland in 2001. Fortean Times republished Mark's interview this summer to coincide with the release of "Seance of Hobbs Lane." From the interview:
Previously on BB:
• Occulture music Link
• John Balance, RIP Link
Link to interview, Link to buy "Seance at Hobbs Lane"What are the roots of your interest in the ‘power of place’? Do you think this can be a literal power, like a form of energy, or is it a psychological – or psychogeographical – effect? Or both?!
It’s something that I’ve only rediscovered recently. As a much younger gentleman I sued to explore our local area, which was quite strange at that time. World War II air raid shelters, bomb craters, abandoned railway tunnels, anything off the beaten track. I think this is the sort of thing most boys do. But after playing at the nuclear command bunker a few years ago I started to be fascinated by not only derelict military structures but also obscure urban stuff and then discovering that there was a kind of network of urban trespass fanzines and web sites, and a subject called psychogeography. For me this took in everything from visiting the location of The Wicker Man’s climax to the scene of the ambush of Percy Toplis, the Monocled Mutineer, to the bombing range used by 633 Squadron. It was the alternative away day aspect that appealed to me. What would you rather do? Have a drink in the Green Man or watch Eastenders?...
You’ve played gigs in some unusual places. What has been your favourite and what would be your ultimate gig venue? How do you do live gigs?
The disused nuclear bunker (in Scotland) was quite far out although after I played there I went exploring and came across a locked room that only contained a table and a submachine gun. They also have a chapel down there and some of the locals have been married in it, which is too far out even for me! My ultimate gig would have to be Hobbs Lane Underground station!
Previously on BB:
• Occulture music Link
• John Balance, RIP Link
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"Power of place" = whatever expectations you bring with you.
There's something disconcertedly SPINAL TAP-ISH about all this...
Great stuff!The environment that we grow up in is never static,constantly changing, but our memories of these sites remain idealised,fixed in time.it is through work like this that we can gain a greater understanding of who we are and were we came from,which cant be a bad thing.......
bit disappointed at F.B thought ye wer more open minded that !?
anny hoo
FESTIVITIES!!!
This whole "occulture" phenomenon is interesting. Verging on both the ridiculous and liminal. A good place to be these days...
Merry Christmas and all, but I think "Hobs Lane" is spelled with only one "l." Or are you guys right and the album cover wrong?
The Charles Bridge in Prague; there's a center of occulture and a major power spot. I brought no expectations to the bridge and was quickly schooled. The Dalai Lama once stood on the Charles Bridge and announced, "This is the center of the universe." Of course, maybe he says that everywhere...
Just been reading a bunch of essays from The Wire (collected in Undercurrents) and they outline a few different occult influences in 20th century audio, from the early interpretations of radio static as messages from beyond to people like Harry Smith.
BUT
The reason I'm posting is to give an Australian perspective on the idea of responding to places through music. Some aboriginal tribes share an idea of songlines, where music would be heard people alone in isolated areas.
AND
There's a top bloke called Alan Lamb who recorded telegraph poles outside Perth. Some of his tracks provided spooky noises in the horror flick Wolf Creek. His aeolian harp recordings are a really interesting example of a landscape soundscape.
If you're interested in seeing one in action, I've got a video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko4rBbMc59M and a bunch of recordings at http://www.soundclick.com/aeolianharp