atmospheres 2 takes place at The Museum of Garden History in London, from May 8th to May 12th 2008. You can read about this in The Guardian and a preview in The Londonist here

May 8th

Alex Metcalf - Tree Listening

2030 Marcus Davidson
2050 Philip Jeck & Marcus Davidson
2115 Robert Hampson
2200 Philip Jeck

May 9th

2030 Matt Davies & Simon Whetham
2110 Charles Matthews followed by Fennesz & Charles Matthews
2200 Fennesz

May 12th

Hauntology:
presented by Jon Wozencroft and Mark Fisher

11.00 Opening of the event/doors
11.30 Introduction by Jon Wozencroft & Mark Fisher
11.45 Mark Fisher, Hauntology Now
12.30 Paul Devereux, Landscape and Perception

1.15 Lunch

2.15 Christopher Woodward, The End of London
3.00 Jon Wozencroft, Dead Souls
3.45 Steve Goodman, Stone Tape
4.30 Open Forum

[6.00 - 7.30 Soundchecks]

8.15 The Caretaker
8.45 Kode 9 & The Spaceape
9.45 The Caretaker
10.00 Philip Jeck

[due to unforeseen circumstances, John Foxx is unable to attend]

Tickets can be bought from The Museum of Garden History here

[Timings subject to change at short notice...]

7" vinyl only

Side A: Highway of Diamonds 5:55

Side B: Bleeding Shadow 6:38

Now available in the TouchShop

cut by Jason @ Transition
artwork and photography by Jon Wozencroft

Electric guitars, organ, samples, bells, percussion and motorised cymbal recorded at BJB Studios, Sydney with additional overdubs made at home 2005-2007. Gratitude to Fairport Convention and Boris D Hegenbart.

Oren Ambarchi is a composer and multi-instrumentalist with longstanding interests in transcending conventional instrumental approaches. His work focuses mainly on the exploration of the guitar, "re-routing the instrument into a zone of alien abstraction where it’s no longer easily identifiable as itself. Instead, it’s a laboratory for extended sonic investigation". (The Wire, UK).

This is the next in a new series of 7" vinyl-only releases, 'Touch Sevens'. You can read more about this series here

7" vinyl was the quintessential format for popular music. Today, it is an undervalued and mostly promotional medium, used as a fetishistic signpost to a time of musical authenticity and a "healthy" popular culture. It might seem like another retrograde step to launch a vinyl series just as the download format threatens to dominate, and indeed there is an element of "the rear view mirror"... the generation of Touch artists who grew up with vinyl [and cassette] still feeling a strong emotional attachment to it. This series is more than that... an overtly critical, non-digital statement is supported by treatments of audio work which cannot be applied to digital formats - the sonic texture, the use of a locked groove, the A & the B and the additional dimension of the visual counterpoint. As for the aspect of audience participation, we choose not to specify the RPM on the label, encouraging the listener to experiment with playback options and personal preferences. An attempt to make music that works at both speeds. The front cover might actually be the back cover...

The latest TouchRadio has now been posted

01.05.08

Enrico Coniglio - Sapientumsuperacquis - 23:13 - 192 kbps

As part of an ongoing series of recordings of unusual sounds of the Venice lagoon, these tracks were made on 29th April 2008 at 2100 in a night-depot of boats of the public transport service at “Riva dei Schiavoni”, not far from San Marco square.

Headphones are recommended. Recorded 24/96, with binaural stereo mic.

"Sapientum super acquis" is the title attribuited to the "Magistrato alle acque" of the Serenissima Venetian Republic, an organ istituited on 1501 by the "Council of ten", that had the job of keeping safe the delicate natural/artificial balance of the lagoon, and looking after the "health" of the water.

Today the water is mostly polluted because of Porto Marghera, one of the biggest industrial areas in the whole Europe.

"This is what we’ve been waiting for – the chance to finally present the epic Touch catalogue in digital format. The UK label has long been a favourite of ours and it’s hardly surprising with the sheer volume of quality releases, they almost seem infallible even, with rarely a dud record emerging from their hallowed company. Established in 1981 and adorned with some of the most gorgeous cover-art ever to grace a sleeve, Touch became widely known for its look, fashioned in part by the photography of Jon Wozencroft (who co-runs the label). These simple but devastatingly effective images became synonymous with their respective releases and the label became just as widely appreciated in the art world as in the world of experimental music. It's the music itself though that has set Touch apart from so many other similar labels, and their roster still speaks for itself; Fennesz, Biosphere, Hafler Trio, Oren Ambarchi, Philip Jeck, Rosy Parlane, Jóhann Jóhannsson, BJ Nilsen, Chris Watson, Mika Vainio, Ryoji Ikeda – it reads like a veritable who’s who of contemporary experimental music. Many of these artists seem to have gravitated towards Touch to create their finest works – Fennesz with the seminal ‘Venice’ or Oren Ambarchi with the genre-bending ‘Grapes From the Estate’ whereas others simply found a home they could grow with over many albums; Philip Jeck and Chris Watson for instance, but it is to Touch’s credit that they have managed to build a team of worldwide recording artists this flawless. To conclude, the Touch catalogue is a selection of work we have deep respect for and somehow manage to keep going back to again and again, it’s just that good. Take the time to explore deeper and you won’t be disappointed…"

You can visit the Boomkat website here.

In February & March 2008, an event at Norwich Arts Centre, Norfolk, 'DIY', portrayed some of Jon Wozencroft's Touch cover art. Here are 3 photos from the exhibition, which "explored the contemporary infrastructure for self-promotion and the appeal of the hand-made object."

Date: Wednesday 09.04.2008 19:00
Location: Cabaret Voltaire, Spiegelgasse 1, 8001 Zurich.
contact email fo reservations etc: info@cabaretvoltaire.ch / +41 43 268 57 20
website: http://www.cabaretvoltaire.ch
you can find an announcement in German here

Programme

1900 Chris Watson presents...

1945 Mike Harding Presents Touch

2030 Chris Watson Live