Mad Scientists of Music Documentary: Recent Episodes
Gareth Stack
A six part series about Irish Experimental Music. Ireland is home to a variety of underground music scenes, from electro acoustic, to new music to noise to free improv. I've interviewed dozens of Irish experimental musicians who are pushing the boundaries of what music is and can be. This series takes you on a tour of the fringes of music, and introduces you to a world of new sounds. It focuses in particular on circuit bending, chiptune, electroacoustic and collaborative music.
This weekend Little Gem Records launched the physical release of my documentary series ‘Mad Scientists of Music‘. The series is available now from Little Gem‘s store (located off Parnell Square, just across from the Ambassador Theatre), on their awesome ‘little gem’ mp3 player format. It’s an extremely limited release – so pick up a copy … Continue reading Concrete Cathedral →
Roger Gregg is a dramatist, poet, musician, actor and performer. Over a long career on radio and theatre, he’s had dozens of plays performed all over the world, and written and recorded numerous radio dramas as ‘Crazy Dog Audio Theatre‘. Today Roger continues to record and perform, with his ‘Bee Loud Glade Cabaret’. Bee Loud … Continue reading The Life & Work of Roger Gregg – Mad Scientists Bonus Episode →
Photos from last nights incredible experimental music night in Twisted Pepper. Featuring Deathness Injection, Siam Collective, Karakara, Infotoxin, Glotchbot, Luxury Mollusc and MarQu VR. More photos below…
The event is called ‘Mad Scientists of Music’, and it’s on Tuesday 16th September in Twisted Pepper. We’ll have chiptune, circuitbending and experimental electro-acoustic noise stuff, from a variety of crazy Irish experimental artists. Acts featured on the night include Deathness Injection, KaraKara, Luxury Mollusc, Siam Collective, MarQu Vr & The Trumpets of Time & … Continue reading Mad Scientists of Music Live – Playlist →
Awesome new poster for the Mad Scientists Gig next week, by Gamepaq founder and A4 Sound member Andrew Edgar.
So last night I was lucky enough to see the incredibly talented radio producer Roman Mars perform a live episode of his show 99% Invisible, at the ever creepy Freemasons Hall in Molesworth St. The event was a part of the inaugural Sounds Alive festival, which brought together a bunch of radio folks like legendary … Continue reading Mad Scientists of Music wins Sounds Alive Prize! →
To celebrate the release of ‘Mad Scientists of Music‘ We’ve put together a fantastic lineup of experimental musicians, in a one evening mini festival in Dublin City Centre. Some of the best and most unique artists from the Irish electroacoustic, noise, chiptune and circuit bending scenes will be performing in a multi-hour experimental extravaganza. Lineup … Continue reading Mad Scientists of Music Live →
The Instrument of the Law‘ examined how changing technology and copyright laws are impacting music. This bonus episode fills in the blanks, addressing additional issues we didn’t get to talk about in detail, like creative commons, the legality of mashups, copyright as a promotional tool, and alternative business models at a time when music sales … Continue reading Copyright Bonus Episode – Mad Scientists of Music →
The final episode of the series looks at the future of Irish experimental music. We find out how techniques like ‘Live Coding’ (where computer programming during a concert, creates the music and visuals in real time), ‘Geocached Music’ (intrepid explorers following clues to discover hidden caches of music in the real world), and new interfaces … Continue reading Postcards from the Edge – Episode 6 – Mad Scientists of Music →
Chuffed to be able to present my first piece for RTE Lyric FM’s ‘Culture File‘ programme. It’s a short on Chipzel, the Chiptune artist profiled in Episode 2 of Mad Scientists of Music. The piece features much of the same material from that report, but presented in a more straightforward way, which was an interesting … Continue reading Chipzel – Culture File Report →
This episode looks at how innovative new ways of making and distributing music are coming into conflict with our legal system. Some argue that copyright and patent laws, created to encourage innovation, are no longer in touch with how artists remix and reinterpret our cultural landscape. Part 1 – Piracy We learn about copyright law, … Continue reading The Instrument of the Law – Episode 5 – Mad Scientists of Music →
A stroll down Killiney beach last Saturday would have taken you on a dark ambient journey. Under the illustrated pier of the old icecream shop huddled a group of alternative sound tinkerers. This was the second ever ‘Seascape Soundscape‘, an occasional non-hierarchical collaboration facilitated by Sebastian Dooris, one half of ambient drone duo ‘Deathness Injection‘ … Continue reading Jocks on Acid →
This episode takes us on a tour of workshops and hack spaces, and explores the relationship of outsider electronic music to the fine art establishment. Teaser – Andrew Edgar takes us on a tour of the A4 Arts Collective. Part 1 – Ed Devane talks about the relationship between self taught musicians, hackers, artists and … Continue reading The Hacker in the Gallery – Episode 4 – Mad Scientists of Music →
The is the first web only bonus episode of Mad Scientists of Music. Focusing on interviews rather than sound, these episodes feature clips, topics and artists there wasn’t space to fit into the radio series. We kick off with early experiences in technology, hearing from a host of folks about how early encounters with computers … Continue reading Bonus Episode – Beginnings – Mad Scientists of Music →
Episode three takes a journey into the underground world of circuit bending. Circuit benders hack children’s toys and dissect cheap archaic electronics, to produce strange new instruments. Circuit bending lies at the intersection of instrument building, grass roots activism and psychedelia. Listeners will learn about the history of circuit bending, a hobby that grew out … Continue reading Toys – Episode 3 – Mad Scientists of Music →
Episode two explores the video game backgrounds of a variety of Irish experimental musicians – how video game culture and ready access to technology influenced their love of music and their aesthetic sensibilities. Chiptune music in particular reappropriates not only the machinery, but also the distinctive sounds of computer games of the 1980’s, and this … Continue reading Growing Up Digital – Episode 2 – Mad Scientists of Music →
Episode one explores how circuit benders, hackers and artists are building teaching and education into their practice. This is a culture as much about sharing as making, and all the artists interviewed run classes and workshops (often at no charge). Children and adults alike attend the ‘maker fairs’ and hacklabs where circuit benders share tips … Continue reading Learning How to Listen – Episode 1 – Mad Scientists of Music →
So, after a very great while, but still much sooner than expected, my first documentary series ‘Mad Scientists of Music‘ is almost here. Quick and dirty promo – featuring the music of Bitwise Operator The final lineup of interviewees is ¡NO!, Deathness Injection, Andrew Edgar, John Leech Siam Collective, MarQu VR, Kieran Dold, Ed Devane … Continue reading Mad Scientists of Music is coming out, next week! →
It’s April and I’m closing in on a final shape for the show. It’s been almost a year since I started preliminary research and interviews for ‘Mad Scientists‘, an enormously self indulgent amount of time to work on a radio documentary series. And yet, I feel I’ve hardly scratched the surface of the Irish experimental … Continue reading ‘Mad Scientists of Music’ – April Update →
I’ve just kicked off production on my new radio series, my first documentary. It’s a 6 * 30 minute show about experimental music in Ireland, entitled ‘Mad Scientists of Music’. Experimental music is a pretty big topic, covering everything from bedroom tinkering with Fruity Loops to technically and aesthetically sophisticated electronic ‘noise’ to Harry Partch … Continue reading New Radio Series in production ‘Mad Scientists of Music’ →