There'll be another chance to see Winter Sun Wavelengths with the new soundtrack by Belbury Poly and The Focus Group and another performance by Moon Wiring Club this Thursday in London's fashionable Shoreditch. Its an event hosted by Wire magazine, here's what they say...
The first in a monthly series of salon-type evenings hosted by The Wire at East London’s Cafe Oto venue. For this opening event, Mark Fisher (K-Punk) heads a panel debating the uncanny quality of so much contemporary audio, from spectral disco to dubstep, Hypnagogic pop and beyond. The night will also include screenings of films by Julian House (Ghost Box, The Focus Group) plus DJ Mordant Music. London Cafe Oto, 1 April, 8pm, £4.
Thank you very much indeed from all at Ghost Box, to everyone who came along to Sunday's Belbury Youth Club in Birmingham, especially for those who travelled so far to join in. Nice to have met so many of you.
We'd also like to thank Moon Wiring Club for the beautifully entertaining and entrancing set, (we hope that the journey back through the portal to Clinkskell went smoothly, but we could only hold it open briefly).
We'll have News of the next Youth Club Night soon.
When Andrew Male of Mojo magazine introduced us to the film Penda's Fen, it was unfamiliar to me but one image immediately connected to a haunting memory that had howled around in the back of my label colleague's mind since childhood.
As a (very young) kid in 1974 Julian House had crept down to peep in at the lounge door on the adults only world of post watershed TV. An image of a teenage boy waking from a nightmare only to be met by the malevolent gaze of a demon squatting on his chest seared into his mind and set him scurrying back to bed.
This sweaty seventies rendering of Fuseli's Nightmare is one of the more powerful images in the film but it shouldn't mislead you into thinking this was just another of the era's late night supernatural chillers. Written by David Rudkin and directed by Alan Clarke , it's partly the redemptive story of an awkward outsider coming to terms with his sexuality, but it also deals with the eternal struggle of Christianity and Paganism at the heart of English identity and landscape. Its a truly beautiful piece of visionary mysticism.
Read more at John Coulthart's excellent Feuilleton blog and if you're in Brimingham this Sunday (28th March), come along and see it at aound 6:30 pm at Vivid at The Belbury Youth Club Night.
If you've not heard it yet the very first Podcast from the brilliant Jon Brook's Cafe Kaput can be downloaded here. Jon's playing the very best psych, soundtrack, electronics and library music. Highlights for me included Hot Butter's Slag Solution and Telltale's theme from Rainbow in all its full length glory.
Another radio treat you might have missed was Moon Wiring Club's guest appearance on Jonny Trunk' OST on Resonance. Lots of fun and laughs as usual plus Catweazle, Mike Reid, Ace of Wands, and bad DIY advice. That one's here.
Tickets are now on sale for the Belbury Youth Club Night on Sunday 28th March in Birmingham's Vivid. You can get tickets and details here (there'll also be a limited number of tickets on the door). Starting at 5:00pm there'll be some unsettling TV drama, new animations from Julian House, Public Informations Films, and a new version of the short film Winter Sun Wavelength with a new Focus Group and Belbury Poly soundtrack. Then from around 8:00 in the evening we'll have music from the Ghost Box DJs and special live guest Moon Wiring Club.
Normally the busiest day of the week for me of course, but widening the Belbury spiritual community is vitaly important work. Join us. (parishioners note: there will be no Evensong on the 28th)
My apologies ! It seems that The Advisory Circle will be guesting on the Freakzone on BBC6 on Sunday 7th March (not feb 28th as previuosly announced). Everything else in the previous post still holds true. Probably.
Special guest on Stuart Maconie's Freak Zone this Sunday is Jon Brooks of The Advisory Circle (and verger to the parish). That's BBC6 Music Sunday 28th 5:30 pm or all next week on Listen Again.
Jon pre-recorded the show on Wednesday and by all accounts had a splendid time, amongst tracks from the new album they'll be playing an exclusive Advisory Circle track you won't hear anywhere else.
Talking of JB there's an excellent piece all about musical arrangement on his blog Cafe Kaput which will be of great interest to all you composers and songwriters.
Oh .. and talking of BBC6 I'd urge all of you Facebookers to join the save BBC6 Music group. A truly great cause and well worth a little click to register your support.
Ghost Box is not currently listed in searches under Google. If you visit the website this way rest assured that things are up and running as usual, and you'll still find the site over at:
It seems likely that by pure bad luck we were indexed on the very day the site went down last month. We're doing all we can to get this fixed, so meanwhile don't be fooled into buying any dodgy spook hunting hardware.
no official exisitence
Far more interesting news from Jon Brooks of the Advisory Circle. He'll be giving the us the benefit of his wisdom on all sorts of subjects at his new blog, Cafe Kaput.
The next Belbury Youth Club Night will be held at Vivid in Birmingham on Sunday 28th March as part of the Flatpack festival.
There'll be a mixed schedule of public information films, haunted old TV programmes, and a new version of Julian House's short film Winter Sun Wavelength with a soundtrack by the Focus Group & Belbury Poly and an exhibition of some of Julian House's artwork for Ghost Box.
Then at around 8 o'clock it'll be shoes off and chairs away for a live performance from our special guest Moon Wiring Club, followed by music, movement and more films from the Ghost Box DJs.
5pm until late, £7.00. Tickets will be available from flatpack at the end of February
If you pre-order the vinyl LP you'll get a free download version of the album, (which you'll be able to get a couple of days before the release date). You can listen to some audio clips here .
adapted and read by Lawrence Norfolk with music and sound by Belbury Poly
If you're outside London you can stream it live here or simply use the Resonance Radio widget over on the right hand side of this blog. If you miss the story tonight you'll be able to download it here , for a limited time only.
Our thanks to those of you that noticed that the Ghost Box website was down for a couple of days. There was a small technical problem but everything is now up and running as usual.
His Name Was Legion, Andrew Caldecott's supernatural tale, adapted for radio by Lawrence Norfolk and Belbury Poly, will be aired on Resonance FM on 28th January at midnight.
The story is part of a radio event called Weird Tales for Winter organised by Jonny Mugwump to be broadcast over 8 days from 25th January 2010.
You can listen on 104.4FM if you're in London or otherwise you can stream Resonance live through their website or even easier, via the gizmo over on the right hand side of this very blog. If you miss this story or any of the others you can "listen again" at the Weird Tales for Winter microsite for a week or so after the broadcast. Also Resonance will be running repeats in weeks to come too. The site has only just been set up but we're told more details and info will appear soon. You can also follow events here:
Friend of the parish, Mark Pilkington will be curating the Strange Attractor Salon at Viktor Wynd Fine Art (incorporating The Little Shoppe of Horrors), 11 Mare Street, London, UK, E8 4RP. The residency opens this Thursday, 7th January.
The Salon will incorporate a wide range of media (painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, sound and video) from both trained and untrained artists, including work by Ghost Box's Julian House. The assembled exhibitors all share Strange Attractor’s fascinations with inner space, craft, science (natural and unnatural) and the fantastic.
Confirmed contributing artists are:
Phil Baker * Joel Biroco * Richard Brown * Ossian Brown * John Coulthart * Rod Dickinson * Disinformation * English Heretic * Tessa Farmer * Blue Firth * Alison Gill * Doug Harvey * Josephine Harvatt * Ken Hollings * Stewart Home * Julian House * Ali Hutchinson * Alyssa Joye * Maud Larsson * Gary Lachman * Xtina Lamb * John Lundberg * Man From Uranus * Eleanor Morgan * Frances Morgan * Drew Mulholland * Bridget Nicholls * Oscillatorial Binnage * Katie Owens * Edwin Pouncey * Arik Roper * Gavin Semple * Martin Sexton * USURP * Robert Wallis * Catharyne Ward * Eric Wright *
The Salon opens on 7 January, with an open viewing from 6.30 - 9.30pm.
The gallery's basement houses an eye-popping collection of curiosities drawn from the natural and unnatural worlds that will be open for the launch. More info at:
If like me you love 60's and 70s Eastern European psych rock & pop (and lets face it , who doesn't ?), then you'll love Anywhere Else But Here... a blog bag of You Tube clips. Here's a couple of my favourites:
I'd like to thank everyone who kindly submitted a list of 2009 memorabilia to the parish mag and to wish those of you who enjoyed reading it a merry Yule. Please share your own 09 cultural highlights in the comments below.
Julian House (Graphic Designer, Film maker, the other half of Ghost Box, The Focus Group)
Stuff I've been watching on Youtube
01 Visa de Censure X: Pierre Clémenti
02 Hausu: Nobahiko Obayashi
03 Simon King of the Witches (trailer)
04 Viy: Georgi Kropachyov
05 Les Jeux des Anges: Walerian Borowczyk
06 Les Stronauts: Chris Marker, Walerian Borowczyk
07 OMOZAP2: Jeff Keen
08 Grizzly Bear ' Ready, Able': Allison Schulnik
09 The Devil's Ball: Wladislaw Starewicz
10 Kachi Kachi Yama: Tadanori Yokoo
(also 'ムー一族' I think its by him, weird TV titles, translates as Mu Family to the best of my knowledge)
Mark Pilkington ( writer, curator, priest of the improbable and editor of Strange Attractor )
Ten to remember, 2009
Goblin, Scala
Equinox Festival, Conway Hall
Belbury Youth Club, Shunt
Viktor Wynd's Little Shoppe of Horrors
Secret Rites (Derek Ford, 1971)
I Start Counting (David Greene, 1969)
Hausu (Nobuhiko Obayashi, 1977)
Stanley Chapman RIP
John Keel RIP
John Michell RIP
....and here's something Christmassy from Mr. House's list.
... and this late addition just in from Mark P - RIP Jack Rose of Pelt.
The semi-official companion to the world of Ghost Box records. With news about Ghost Box and related artists or anything else of concern to The Parish Council.
