GussetBLOG

MP3 Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 17:40:00 +0000

My Braindance Podcast, promised last week, eventually appeared here. It even features contributions from spoksey and both of the respective Mrs Ps.

Legowelt - Amiga 500 Tapes
[individual mp3s on website or 104MB zip on sendspace]

AV Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 06:41:00 +0000

Quick early video post as I have a podcast to record. I'll update when its done. In the meantime, here's a nice collection of stuff via the V-Atak audiovisual label:

TEMPORARY TEMPLE - A/V ritual
Click through to watch on the site.

Botborg presents "PSNKY Test Subject #1 : Connection to the Photosonicneurokineasthograph"

"Botborg is a practical demonstration of the theories of Dr Arkady Botborger (1923-81), founder of the 'occult' science of Photosonicneurokineasthography - translated as "writing the movement of nerves through use of sound and light". Raw electronic signals are fused and rewired to create intensely visceral experiences of sound-colour synaesthesia."

zombieflesheater visual

MoDuLe VxD "Arcade's revenge"

MP3 Friday: Photography Special

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 22:12:00 +0000

Interview with French Kite Aerial Photographer Emmanuel Colonnier [webpage with 20MB MP3]

Note there's 3mins of silence about 2/3 of the way through you'll need to skip.

Zarias Photography Critique [video podcast]
Well worth the time to watch these. Even if you aren't aiming to sell your pictures, which is an assumption here, there is still some great advice.
[thanks Iain]

Photosounder.com - Image-sound editor & synthesizer

MP3, er, Monday

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:11:00 +0000

I'm on holiday, what do you expect. I've got a house to paint.

"The latest instalment of Skip to the End is now available at www.thejuxtaposition.co.uk/skiptotheend.html
I'm afraid it's a bit **** so be careful about when and where you listen to it.
Pete"
[55MB MP3 & tracklist on webpage]

More Braindance Podcasts

"Jazari is essentially an automated, electromechanical percussion ensemble, controlled using two Nintendo Wii controllers. It consists of a MacBook, a bunch of Arduino boards and a room full of drums fitted with solenoids and motors, and software written in MAX and Java which parses input from the Wii controls and plays the drums. The software is also capable of improvising with the human operator, by imitating, riffing off and mutating what he plays.

"Jazari was developed by a guy named Patrick Flanagan, who had been playing around with algorithmic composition, only to discover that people don't want to hear about algorithms, but do want to see a good live show. Anyway, here there are two videos: one of a Jazari performance (think robot samba float, conducted by a guy waving Wiimotes around; the music has a distinctly Afro-Brazilian feel to it), and one of Flanagan explaining how it works."
[Text via Null Device]

Worth watching for the eyebrows alone:

New Polar Bear album is out now! Samples on Boomkat.
Also new Monster X download EP, although I'm holding out for teh rumoured vinyl release of this.
Also need to get my ears around The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation CD asap

FACT magazine:
"Autechre have recorded our 122nd exclusive FACT mix. Autechre. Do we really need to explain who they are?"

Introducing the WRONGAMIN noise maker. (via leafcutter)

Disigned and built by Leafcutter John. Full schematic at http://www.leafcutterjohn.com

The Wrongamin is an excellent, easy to build sound maker that can create a range of sounds. From crackles not unlike the sound of a dusty old record to a deep hungry animal growl heard through several out of control AM radios.

Bonus: Anti-paedophilia protest reggae

MP3 Friday (is back!)

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 06:05:00 +0000

It's been a while.

Sunwarped Records "HURRICANE HELICOPTER" Compilation [55MB zip]
01 - Modem - Winter's Debilitating Grip
02 - Menagam - Water Dumps
03 - captainmarmalade - two ghosts eating a pancake
04 - Exillon - Chapi Chapo Remix
05 - shift tab - dim lot
06 - Solypsis - oil spill
07 - Not Breathing - Ball Hammerer Dub
08 - Terminal 11 - Self Exorcism

More Braindance Podcasts - this applies every week, keep an eye on this link.

Bedroom Research have launched a new website. Check the Discotek page. (Having said that I just tested some random links and some of them are dead, hopefully that'll be sorted soon.)

Kettel - Raafstep on soundcloud

This one slipped the net a few weeks ago:
Raoul Sinier - Taste My Mix

Miike Teknoist says:
"The vast majority of dubstep i think sucks but Septic Insurgent makes 'music' from a genre that doesnt see alot (quite cheap coming from a gabber/breakcore enthusiast innit ;) anyway, keep your eyes peeled for tracks from him on my new techno label out soon.. also, get your peepers round the awesome guest artwork from Harry Shotton.
ninjacolumboZoMbFREE8-SEPTICINSURGENT-Analemma [38MB zip]

RIP McQueen

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 19:26:00 +0000

Alexander McQueen's suicide last week came as a shock to me. I was a massive fan of his designs and will miss the left-field thinking, way-out designs, theatrical displays and humour he brought to the fashion world. Once you hear about the death of his mother the week before, remember Isabella Bow's suicide last year, and read any of the many other opinion pieces in any given paper the surprise will diminish, but the loss is no smaller.

Ignorant neigh sayers and fashion haters may have used the occasion to shout abuse about him having deserved it simply for having worked in fashion, and all sorts of conspiracy theories have started crawling out of the woodwork. For example, in the Beeb's Six ways Alexander McQueen changed fashion you'll see someone has commented, "Why no mention of the enormous amount of satanic symbolism in his designs?" as if it were one of the most significant things he had done.

Intrigued enough to see what evidence there was of this a quick google led my inevitably to the Lada Ga Ga forum, catalyst of some of the most whacked out celebrity conspiracies theories on the net. There we find out that by using a pentagram on the runway and his use of chess pieces in his chess themed show (how else?) shows "satanic Illuminati symbolism everywhere. I'm not saying he was mind controlled or programmed but he was definitely into the occult."

It sounds like bollocks to me but I know I loved his work. The two videos above are great examples of his work although I'd also urge you to (re)watch his robotic work and engineering, this retrospective, and his Bjork video. I'm sure we will still be feeling his influence for years to come.

R.I.P.

Project Mapping

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 19:08:00 +0000

Project Mapping has a great range of local and national rail maps with clean and innovative ideas about presentation of information. Check it out.

"A rail network map isn't just about how to get from A to B. A rail network map is about the identity of the business or organisation running services on those lines. It's what makes one operator distinct from another, it's what gives different systems their individual identity.

"Too much current map design is based slavishly on the London Underground map principles and not enough creative thinking goes into the interpretation of complex modern travel systems.

"This website is being developed as a resource portal for rail maps for education, to stimulate debate, present new ideas, criticise and congratulate.

"It is also a promotional site for new maps by Andrew Smithers. Andrew grew up in London fascinated by the tube map, and the Project Mapping name evolved from his graphic design consultancy."

The Future of Electronic Music

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 07:40:00 +0000

Unsound Festival Artists Predict the Future of Electronic Music
There are some good observations and ideas in here. For example:

Petre Inspirescu: "There should be a long discussion on this subject. I think the future is always bright and electronic music will be more diverse and experimental as we evolve. Promoters play a very important role in this because they have the opportunity to enlarge the perspective of audience�s by organizing more artistic events to educate the people."

Jacaszek: "Trends are changing with no mercy. To keep this artistic balance, innovation should not dominate our creative thinking. To do something original now, we should, rather, take from what�s close to us (local tradition, the deepness of our souls) and then express that with contemporary artistic language."

Newworldaquarium: "That�s one of the big questions in life! [Looking back to] punk, it became clear that you didn�t need an education to play music, and with house and techno it seemed you didn�t have to have a band either. With electronic music today, I guess you don�t even need an instrument anymore, and maybe some day writing a piece of music will be as common as writing something for your blog or a Facebook status-update. For me, it somehow has always been like that."

Mike Huckaby: "My motto is this: Always do what your peers cannot, and will not, do. If you adhere to this, you will always [be able to] reinvent yourself."

There's more on the link above.

Link Dump

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:19:00 +0000

Witches and Jedis put hex on UK census

"The 2011 census is likely to be Britain�s last following concerns that the 209-year-old survey is unable to cope with the nation�s rapidly changing population � and respondents� lies.

"When a voluntary question on faith was asked for the first time at the 2001 census, 390,127 respondents drew inspiration from Star Wars and stated their religion as �Jedi� or �Jedi Knight� � more than the number of people who said they were Jewish or Buddhist. Some 7,227 people declared themselves as witches, adherents of the pagan religion of Wicca"

I gave my religion as Jedi last time round in the hope of preventing them from asking such a stupid question again. Looks like it was more successful than I imagined. Although the transient population is a larger factor in the flaws with the current survey.

The conscience stifled by Amnesty

When Gita Sahgal questioned the human rights group�s links to Islamic radicals, it suspended her. Now she fears for her safety.

"Last week Gita Sahgal, a highly respected lifelong human rights activist and head of Amnesty�s gender unit, told The Sunday Times of her concerns about Amnesty�s relationship with Cageprisoners, an organisation headed by Moazzam Begg, a former Guantanamo internee.

"Since his release in 2005, Begg has spoken alongside Amnesty at a number of events and accompanied the organisation to a meeting at Downing Street last month. Sahgal felt the closeness of the relationship between Amnesty and Cageprisoners � which appears to give succour to those who believe in global jihad � was a threat to Amnesty�s integrity. �To be appearing on platforms with Britain�s most famous supporter of the Taliban, whom we treat as a human rights defender, is a gross error of judgment,� she wrote to Amnesty�s leaders following the Downing Street visit."

Interesting. It's getting into the same murky water that free speech campaigners got into when they started delivering the BNP leaflets that the posties refused to. It's also worth noting that the Times seem to have an axe to grind on this issue. I searched their website for articles about Amnesty and the first five hits were attacks on it. (Thats a live search link and will change over time.)

Doctor Who in war with Planet Maggie

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 21:10:00 +0000

The Times today reported on how, "A former Timelord has revealed how he and left-wing scriptwriters used the series to attack Thatcher"

"Sylvester McCoy, the actor who played Doctor Who for two years in the 1980s, has revealed that left-wing scriptwriters hired by the BBC wrote propaganda into the plots in an attempt to undermine Margaret Thatcher�s premiership.

"His revelation will reinforce suspicions about antipathy within the corporation to Thatcher�s government. Norman Tebbit, then the Tory party chairman, claimed at the time that the BBC was in the hands of a �Marxist mafia�."

Hardly a surprise. It's more amazing that the Times seems so scandalised by it. In another 20 years they might suddenly notice the Gay Rights angle Russell T Davies spent his time at the helm shoe-horning into every episode.

MP3 Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 10:08:00 +0000

Quiet week. Have been away on work.
The new Braindance forum, which Pidgin has set up in place of the now defunct Planet Mu board, has hit the ground running with a weekly BrainPodDanceCast series. The first two are available here, including track listings. [~140MB each]

Pete says:
"A new Skip to the End has appeared at www.thejuxtaposition.co.uk. It's a bit SAD in places, but give it a go see what you think."
[Tracklisting and 58MB MP3 on page]

MP3 Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:53:00 +0000

There's a live video collection from Alt Vault experimental improvised noise/electronica nights here on Vimeo. Including yours truly at Mr Wolfs/The Junction last November. The visuals are all mine too btw.

Gusset from non verbal on Vimeo.

GOTO 10

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 20:47:00 +0000

/mode +v noise, the ever expanding ASCII based music platform

I saw the /mode +v noise installation by GOTO10 at the Arnolfini earlier today and loved it. Use the IRC link (remember that?) to listen in real time and influence the generative score.

It was made using Puredyne

Puredyne is aimed at creative people, looking for tools outside the standard. It provides the best experimental creative applications alongside a solid set of graphic, audio and video tools in a fast, minimal package. For everything from sound art to innovative filmmaking.

Puredyne is optimised for use in realtime audio and video processing. It distinguishes itself by offering a low latency kernel and the high responsiveness needed by artists working in this field.

Puredyne is based on Ubuntu and Debian Live. All packages provided by Puredyne can be used if you are running this flavour of GNU/Linux. Use, share, copy, modify, join the development team or fork :)

Software highlights

audio: puredata, supercollider, csound, chuck, ladspa plugins, ardour, audacity, ecasound, �
graphics: gimp, inkscape, fluxus, freej, processing + extras, imagemagick, gthumb, gphoto2, �
multimedia: mplayer, vlc, avidemux, kino, mencoder, transcode, luvcview, xawtv, recordmydesktop, �
streaming: icecast2, ices2, ffmpeg2theora, oggfwd, darkice, darksnow, gstreamer, dvswitch, �
network: firefox, links2, network-manager, wireless-tools, ssh, telnet, gftp, irssi, nfs, �
devel: gcc, make, patchutils, subversion, mercurial, bzr, emacs-goodies-el, java jdk, python, �

�and much more.

Anatoly Zenkov

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:48:00 +0000

I don't usually write posts about fellow flickr users but something really caught me with Anatoly Zenkov's work. I'm not a fan of overly photoshopped work (it has it's place but it's just a tool) but this selection shows of processing and manipulating techniques, starting from good photography as a base and working on it in Processing / Flash / Java.

Persistent pyramids (via Anatoly Zenkov)
"Persistent Pyramids was made with flash application that I made specially for this project."

Chocolate Factory (via Anatoly Zenkov)
"That's it! First step in processing."

Mouse pointer track (via Anatoly Zenkov)
"Mouse pointer track after 3 hours of working in Photoshop. Black circles are pointer stops (not clicks)."
Jave applet code for the click tracker is in the comments.
[originally found via grom]

Reblogged with permission. Click through to see the original flickr pages and the rest of the stream. Go on, show some love.

Lost in the Shelves

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 10:00:00 +0000

Great post over on the flickr blog of book and library related photos. Some of places I've posted before, some great new finds. Worth a look.

Black Swan Closed Again

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 09:54:00 +0000

It's closed again. So this Saturday's gig is cancelled. =[

I may have posted this already but I've created a Save the Black Swan flickr group, to run alongside the facebook group.

MP3 Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 09:07:00 +0000

OverClockHeadZ say:
"Hello every one,
We are proud to release the first OverClockHeadZ coproduction release:
MechaKucha - Messiah?
Label: NO-TEK Records
Catalog#: NO-TEK 018
Format: Vinyl, 12"
Country: France
Released: 25 Dec 2009
Genre: Electronic
Style: Speedcore, Hardcore, Breakcore

Tracklist
A1 What I'm Searching For 4:20
A2 Kiss Me I'm A Sociopath 2:14
B1 Making Blue Screen 4:00
B2 Flushdown 2:55
B3 Wesside Fucker 3:43

Credits
Artwork By - Brilliant Beast & Neurobug
Notes
Coproduction No-tek Overclockheadz
Thanks to all friends everywhere, you know who you are! No name-dropping needed. Underground is a state of mind and a way of living, not a brand or whatever commercial bullshit, never forget this, cause life always give people what they deserve.

www.discogs.com/release/2053493

Extract from the rec: www.myspace.com/mech4kuch4 => track: Making blue screen

Now available from toolbox en 3 coloured versions:
black: http://www.toolboxrecords.com/en/product/11197/hardcore/No-Tek-18-Black/
red: http://www.toolboxrecords.com/en/product/11195/hardcore/No-Tek-18-Red/
brown: http://www.toolboxrecords.com/en/product/11196/hardcore/No-Tek-18-Brown/

Thanks for your attention

Have a nice day.

D-phaz"

_____

NIN say (or said, as I meant to post this a couple of weeks ago):
"Our 2008 Lights In The Sky tour was an ambitious multimedia production on a scale well beyond anything we'd ever attempted before. Everyone involved was extremely proud of how it came together, and we were devastated when, for a variety of reasons, we were unable to capture it professionally for a theatrical or commercial release. As a "plan B" of sorts, early last year we released a massive 405gb free download of raw HD footage captured at three different shows during the tour. The idea was to get the footage out in the wild and see what our notoriously enterprising fans could do with it. There were no rules. No strings attached. This was a gift, and an experiment, and for the past year we've watched it come to life in more ways than we could have ever imagined."

Another Version of the Truth: The Gift

"12 months,
a core team of dozens (with a network of thousands)
spanning 3 continents,
4 languages,
5 specialist teams,
countless sleepless nights...

It's finally here.

Filmed in Sacramento, Portland, and Victoria by the Nine Inch Nails team, edited and produced by their fans, The Gift is a stunning work in 1080p High Definition video with 5.1 Surround Sound, multi-language subtitles, and artistically-driven ethics."

_____

_____

the orb: dolly unit

"a crazy full-steam-ahead video for "dolly unit" from the new orb album "baghdad batteries"... filmed and photographed in battersea power station and beamish open air museum with a smattering of archive footage courtesy of the prelinger archives... imagine battersea power station having a restless dream... the album's available from http://www.maliciousdamage.biz/shop/ plus most other shops on cd & download"

_____

Simon Reynolds: on the Hardcore Continuum
"Illustrated by seminal tracks, revered journalist Simon Reynolds outlines his oft-quoted theory of a 'hardcore-continuum' that links all the UK's rapidly changing electronic music genres.
The talk at FACT was run in association with the Wire Magazine, and part of the Ding Dong exhibition."

_____

Handmade Electronic Music � Mini Book Review
Handmade Electronic Music - The Art of Hardware Hacking - Second Edition with DVD
by Nicolas Collins, reviewed by Leafcutter John
Includes example videos

Black Swan Update

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 09:02:00 +0000

The legendary Black Swan has been temporarily closed down over Christmas and New Year but it has won the second licensing appeal!

This also means that the next Gusset gig IS BACK ON! Opening hours will be reduced to 3am as of 21 days from the hearing (14.01.10) but that will not affect this gig.

google.cn

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 09:18:00 +0000

Forgot to pass this on a couple of days ago...

I guess its good news for those concerned about Google's presence in China. Seems things are getting worse rather than better (the official line was the hoped to improve the situation over time) so they are as good as giving up. Shame the goal of bringing information to the people wasn't reached and sad to see the extent the government (presumably) will go to to infringe human rights and prevent activism.

"Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis. In mid-December, we detected a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted in the theft of intellectual property from Google. However, it soon became clear that what at first appeared to be solely a security incident--albeit a significant one--was something quite different.

"First, this attack was not just on Google. As part of our investigation we have discovered that at least twenty other large companies from a wide range of businesses--including the Internet, finance, technology, media and chemical sectors--have been similarly targeted. ...

"Second, we have evidence to suggest that a primary goal of the attackers was accessing the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. Based on our investigation to date we believe their attack did not achieve that objective. ...

"Third, as part of this investigation but independent of the attack on Google, we have discovered that the accounts of dozens of U.S.-, China- and Europe-based Gmail users who are advocates of human rights in China appear to have been routinely accessed by third parties. These accounts have not been accessed through any security breach at Google, but most likely via phishing scams or malware placed on the users' computers."

Click through to read on.

Stop and Search and Stop

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 09:21:00 +0000

European court condemns police misuse of stop and search
The Guardian reports on "Officers using Terrorism Act against citizens on 'a hunch' means serious risk of discrimination, say judges"

"The home secretary, Alan Johnson, app�ears to be in serious trouble over a ruling today by the European court of human rights against the unlawful police use of �counter-terrorism stop and search powers on peace protesters and photographers."

MP3 Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 07:00:00 +0000

I met Benji Bower last week. He plays the staggering collection of instruments below to provide his live one man soundtrack to Ali Baba & The Forty Thieves show at the Tobacco Factory, Bristol. Taken with permission. (The show is highly recommended (by me) btw although my nephew only enjoyed it "middle".)

From the programme:
"Benji is a composer, multi-instrumentalist and producer. He is a founding member of Unforscene and UFS productions. Theatre credits include: Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me, We're Going on a Bear Hunt (Bristol Old Vic), Aesop's Fables, Stickman (Scamp Theatre), Strange Case (Bristol Old Vic / Pervasive Media), Ugly Duckling (Tobacco Factory), City of One, Jolity Farm (Myrtle Theatre), TV credits as composer include Colut of a Suicide Bomber (Channel 4), Cmonics Britannia, Rude Britain (BBC4), Blown Apart (BBC2). As Unforscene: Sulston Connection, Pacific Heights, New World Disorder (Kudos), Fingers and Thumbs (Tru Thoughts)."

Check out Unforscene and UFS Productions

The fascinating looking spiky thing to the right of the photo is a waterphone.

"The Waterphone was invented and is patented by Richard Waters (pat.#3896696). Each instrument is unique and made to order. Richard personally makes, tunes, signs and dates each Waterphone. The sound of the Waterphone has been compared to the haunting melodies of the Humpback Whale and voices from inner/outer space. Waterphones have been described as acoustic synthesizers, Waterharps, a musical �Aladdin's Lamp�, and �Whalephones�."

The ongoing competition page includes recordings of what people can do with it that are definitely worth listening to.

As I've recently bought a Gristleism I'm interested in this hack:
Gristleism modified with LFO pitch modulation and sample trigger
by ASMO
The official site even has a mods page.

9 Countries - Mashed ambiance, soundscaping across Asia. A Wax Audio production

"9 Countries was recorded on location in Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Tibet, India, Egypt and Greece between October 2005 and March 2007 by Tom Compagnoni. What you hear has been entirely assembled from these field recordings, no additional samples used.
"Recorded, edited, mixed, re-mixed, mashed and mastered by Tom Compagnoni 2005-2009"

And last but not least... A new Bug Brand video:

Atheist Ireland

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 10:49:00 +0000

In support of our athiest friends in Irland I am republishing the following in full from http://blasphemy.ie/2010/01/01/atheist-ireland-publishes-25-blasphemous-quotes/

From today, 1 January 2010, the new Irish blasphemy law becomes operational, and we begin our campaign to have it repealed. Blasphemy is now a crime punishable by a �25,000 fine. The new law defines blasphemy as publishing or uttering matter that is grossly abusive or insulting in relation to matters held sacred by any religion, thereby intentionally causing outrage among a substantial number of adherents of that religion, with some defences permitted.

This new law is both silly and dangerous. It is silly because medieval religious laws have no place in a modern secular republic, where the criminal law should protect people and not ideas. And it is dangerous because it incentives religious outrage, and because Islamic States led by Pakistan are already using the wording of this Irish law to promote new blasphemy laws at UN level.

We believe in the golden rule: that we have a right to be treated justly, and that we have a responsibility to treat other people justly. Blasphemy laws are unjust: they silence people in order to protect ideas. In a civilised society, people have a right to to express and to hear ideas about religion even if other people find those ideas to be outrageous.

Publication of 25 blasphemous quotes

In this context we now publish a list of 25 blasphemous quotes, which have previously been published by or uttered by or attributed to Jesus Christ, Muhammad, Mark Twain, Tom Lehrer, Randy Newman, James Kirkup, Monty Python, Rev Ian Paisley, Conor Cruise O�Brien, Frank Zappa, Salman Rushdie, Bjork, Amanda Donohoe, George Carlin, Paul Woodfull, Jerry Springer the Opera, Tim Minchin, Richard Dawkins, Pope Benedict XVI, Christopher Hitchens, PZ Myers, Ian O�Doherty, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O�Connor and Dermot Ahern.

Despite these quotes being abusive and insulting in relation to matters held sacred by various religions, we unreservedly support the right of these people to have published or uttered them, and we unreservedly support the right of any Irish citizen to make comparable statements about matters held sacred by any religion without fear of being criminalised, and without having to prove to a court that a reasonable person would find any particular value in the statement.

Campaign begins to repeal the Irish blasphemy law

We ask Fianna Fail and the Green Party to repeal their anachronistic blasphemy law, as part of the revision of the Defamation Act that is included within the Act. We ask them to hold a referendum to remove the reference to blasphemy from the Irish Constitution.

We also ask all TDs and Senators to support a referendum to remove references to God from the Irish Constitution, including the clauses that prevent atheists from being appointed as President of Ireland or as a Judge without swearing a religious oath asking God to direct them in their work.

If you run a website, blog or other media publication, please feel free to republish this statement and the list of quotes yourself, in order to show your support for the campaign to repeal the Irish blasphemy law and to promote a rational, ethical, secular Ireland.

List of 25 Blasphemous Quotes Published by Atheist Ireland

1. Jesus Christ, when asked if he was the son of God, in Matthew 26:64: �Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.� According to the Christian Bible, the Jewish chief priests and elders and council deemed this statement by Jesus to be blasphemous, and they sentenced Jesus to death for saying it.

2. Jesus Christ, talking to Jews about their God, in John 8:44: �Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.� This is one of several chapters in the Christian Bible that can give a scriptural foundation to Christian anti-Semitism. The first part of John 8, the story of �whoever is without sin cast the first stone�, was not in the original version, but was added centuries later. The original John 8 is a debate between Jesus and some Jews. In brief, Jesus calls the Jews who disbelieve him sons of the Devil, the Jews try to stone him, and Jesus runs away and hides.

3. Muhammad, quoted in Hadith of Bukhari, Vol 1 Book 8 Hadith 427: �May Allah curse the Jews and Christians for they built the places of worship at the graves of their prophets.� This quote is attributed to Muhammad on his death-bed as a warning to Muslims not to copy this practice of the Jews and Christians. It is one of several passages in the Koran and in Hadith that can give a scriptural foundation to Islamic anti-Semitism, including the assertion in Sura 5:60 that Allah cursed Jews and turned some of them into apes and swine.

4. Mark Twain, describing the Christian Bible in Letters from the Earth, 1909: �Also it has another name � The Word of God. For the Christian thinks every word of it was dictated by God. It is full of interest. It has noble poetry in it; and some clever fables; and some blood-drenched history; and some good morals; and a wealth of obscenity; and upwards of a thousand lies� But you notice that when the Lord God of Heaven and Earth, adored Father of Man, goes to war, there is no limit. He is totally without mercy � he, who is called the Fountain of Mercy. He slays, slays, slays! All the men, all the beasts, all the boys, all the babies; also all the women and all the girls, except those that have not been deflowered. He makes no distinction between innocent and guilty� What the insane Father required was blood and misery; he was indifferent as to who furnished it.� Twain�s book was published posthumously in 1939. His daughter, Clara Clemens, at first objected to it being published, but later changed her mind in 1960 when she believed that public opinion had grown more tolerant of the expression of such ideas. That was half a century before Fianna Fail and the Green Party imposed a new blasphemy law on the people of Ireland.

5. Tom Lehrer, The Vatican Rag, 1963: �Get in line in that processional, step into that small confessional. There, the guy who�s got religion�ll tell you if your sin�s original. If it is, try playing it safer, drink the wine and chew the wafer. Two, four, six, eight, time to transubstantiate!�

6. Randy Newman, God�s Song, 1972: �And the Lord said: I burn down your cities � how blind you must be. I take from you your children, and you say how blessed are we. You all must be crazy to put your faith in me. That�s why I love mankind.�

7. James Kirkup, The Love That Dares to Speak its Name, 1976: �While they prepared the tomb I kept guard over him. His mother and the Magdalen had gone to fetch clean linen to shroud his nakedness. I was alone with him� I laid my lips around the tip of that great cock, the instrument of our salvation, our eternal joy. The shaft, still throbbed, anointed with death�s final ejaculation.� This extract is from a poem that led to the last successful blasphemy prosecution in Britain, when Denis Lemon was given a suspended prison sentence after he published it in the now-defunct magazine Gay News. In 2002, a public reading of the poem, on the steps of St. Martin-in-the-Fields church in Trafalgar Square, failed to lead to any prosecution. In 2008, the British Parliament abolished the common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel.

8. Matthias, son of Deuteronomy of Gath, in Monty Python�s Life of Brian, 1979: �Look, I had a lovely supper, and all I said to my wife was that piece of halibut was good enough for Jehovah.�

9. Rev Ian Paisley MEP to the Pope in the European Parliament, 1988: �I denounce you as the Antichrist.� Paisley�s website describes the Antichrist as being �a liar, the true son of the father of lies, the original liar from the beginning� he will imitate Christ, a diabolical imitation, Satan transformed into an angel of light, which will deceive the world.�

10. Conor Cruise O�Brien, 1989: �In the last century the Arab thinker Jamal al-Afghani wrote: �Every Muslim is sick and his only remedy is in the Koran.� Unfortunately the sickness gets worse the more the remedy is taken.�

11. Frank Zappa, 1989: �If you want to get together in any exclusive situation and have people love you, fine � but to hang all this desperate sociology on the idea of The Cloud-Guy who has The Big Book, who knows if you�ve been bad or good � and cares about any of it � to hang it all on that, folks, is the chimpanzee part of the brain working.�

12. Salman Rushdie, 1990: �The idea of the sacred is quite simply one of the most conservative notions in any culture, because it seeks to turn other ideas � uncertainty, progress, change � into crimes.� In 1989, Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa ordering Muslims to kill Rushdie because of blasphemous passages in Rushdie�s novel The Satanic Verses.

13. Bjork, 1995: �I do not believe in religion, but if I had to choose one it would be Buddhism. It seems more livable, closer to men� I�ve been reading about reincarnation, and the Buddhists say we come back as animals and they refer to them as lesser beings. Well, animals aren�t lesser beings, they�re just like us. So I say fuck the Buddhists.�

14. Amanda Donohoe on her role in the Ken Russell movie Lair of the White Worm, 1995: �Spitting on Christ was a great deal of fun. I can�t embrace a male god who has persecuted female sexuality throughout the ages, and that persecution still goes on today all over the world.�

15. George Carlin, 1999: �Religion easily has the greatest bullshit story ever told. Think about it. Religion has actually convinced people that there�s an invisible man living in the sky who watches everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he does not want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever �til the end of time! But He loves you. He loves you, and He needs money! He always needs money! He�s all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing, and all-wise, somehow just can�t handle money! Religion takes in billions of dollars, they pay no taxes, and they always need a little more. Now, talk about a good bullshit story. Holy Shit!�

16. Paul Woodfull as Ding Dong Denny O�Reilly, The Ballad of Jaysus Christ, 2000: �He said me ma�s a virgin and sure no one disagreed, Cause they knew a lad who walks on water�s handy with his feet� Jaysus oh Jaysus, as cool as bleedin� ice, With all the scrubbers in Israel he could not be enticed, Jaysus oh Jaysus, it�s funny you never rode, Cause it�s you I do be shoutin� for each time I shoot me load.�

17. Jesus Christ, in Jerry Springer The Opera, 2003: �Actually, I�m a bit gay.� In 2005, the Christian Institute tried to bring a prosecution against the BBC for screening Jerry Springer the Opera, but the UK courts refused to issue a summons.

18. Tim Minchin, Ten-foot Cock and a Few Hundred Virgins, 2005: �So you�re gonna live in paradise, With a ten-foot cock and a few hundred virgins, So you�re gonna sacrifice your life, For a shot at the greener grass, And when the Lord comes down with his shiny rod of judgment, He�s gonna kick my heathen ass.�

19. Richard Dawkins in The God Delusion, 2006: �The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.� In 2007 Turkish publisher Erol Karaaslan was charged with the crime of insulting believers for publishing a Turkish translation of The God Delusion. He was acquitted in 2008, but another charge was brought in 2009. Karaaslan told the court that �it is a right to criticise religions and beliefs as part of the freedom of thought and expression.�

20. Pope Benedict XVI quoting a 14th century Byzantine emperor, 2006: �Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.� This statement has already led to both outrage and condemnation of the outrage. The Organisation of the Islamic Conference, the world�s largest Muslim body, said it was a �character assassination of the prophet Muhammad�. The Malaysian Prime Minister said that �the Pope must not take lightly the spread of outrage that has been created.� Pakistan�s foreign Ministry spokesperson said that �anyone who describes Islam as a religion as intolerant encourages violence�. The European Commission said that �reactions which are disproportionate and which are tantamount to rejecting freedom of speech are unacceptable.�

21. Christopher Hitchens in God is not Great, 2007: �There is some question as to whether Islam is a separate religion at all� Islam when examined is not much more than a rather obvious and ill-arranged set of plagiarisms, helping itself from earlier books and traditions as occasion appeared to require� It makes immense claims for itself, invokes prostrate submission or �surrender� as a maxim to its adherents, and demands deference and respect from nonbelievers into the bargain. There is nothing-absolutely nothing-in its teachings that can even begin to justify such arrogance and presumption.�

22. PZ Myers, on the Roman Catholic communion host, 2008: �You would not believe how many people are writing to me, insisting that these horrible little crackers (they look like flattened bits of styrofoam) are literally pieces of their god, and that this omnipotent being who created the universe can actually be seriously harmed by some third-rate liberal intellectual at a third-rate university� However, inspired by an old woodcut of Jews stabbing the host, I thought of a simple, quick thing to do: I pierced it with a rusty nail (I hope Jesus�s tetanus shots are up to date). And then I simply threw it in the trash, followed by the classic, decorative items of trash cans everywhere, old coffeegrounds and a banana peel.�

23. Ian O�Doherty, 2009: �(If defamation of religion was illegal) it would be a crime for me to say that the notion of transubstantiation is so ridiculous that even a small child should be able to see the insanity and utter physical impossibility of a piece of bread and some wine somehow taking on corporeal form. It would be a crime for me to say that Islam is a backward desert superstition that has no place in modern, enlightened Europe and it would be a crime to point out that Jewish settlers in Israel who believe they have a God given right to take the land are, frankly, mad. All the above assertions will, no doubt, offend someone or other.�

24. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O�Connor, 2009: �Whether a person is atheist or any other, there is in fact in my view something not totally human if they leave out the transcendent� we call it God� I think that if you leave that out you are not fully human.� Because atheism is not a religion, the Irish blasphemy law does not protect atheists from abusive and insulting statements about their fundamental beliefs. While atheists are not seeking such protection, we include the statement here to point out that it is discriminatory that this law does not hold all citizens equal.

25. Dermot Ahern, Irish Minister for Justice, introducing his blasphemy law at an Oireachtas Justice Committee meeting, 2009, and referring to comments made about him personally: �They are blasphemous.� Deputy Pat Rabbitte replied: �Given the Minister�s self-image, it could very well be that we are blaspheming,� and Minister Ahern replied: �Deputy Rabbitte says that I am close to the baby Jesus, I am so pure.� So here we have an Irish Justice Minister joking about himself being blasphemed, at a parliamentary Justice Committee discussing his own blasphemy law, that could make his own jokes illegal.

Finally, as a bonus, Micheal Martin, Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, opposing attempts by Islamic States to make defamation of religion a crime at UN level, 2009: �We believe that the concept of defamation of religion is not consistent with the promotion and protection of human rights. It can be used to justify arbitrary limitations on, or the denial of, freedom of expression. Indeed, Ireland considers that freedom of expression is a key and inherent element in the manifestation of freedom of thought and conscience and as such is complementary to freedom of religion or belief.� Just months after Minister Martin made this comment, his colleague Dermot Ahern introduced Ireland�s new blasphemy law.

MP3 New Year's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 15:50:00 +0000

"The Skip to the End review of the decade is now on line at www.thejuxtaposition.co.uk/skiptotheend.html [tracklist etc.]
It's a personal look back at the last 10 years which is tricky seeing as I have difficulty remembering what I did last week. Consequently there are some blatant ommissions (no Venetian Snares, Rotator, Dub Step or Ukuleles - you've probably had enough of them from previous casts) and it's 25% longer than normal.
Feel free to skip to the end of all the opinionated text that accompanies the track list.
Hope you enjoy it and have a Happy New Year.
Pete"
Direct link [70MB MP3]

Jon Rose plays 'The Fence' at the Viitasaari 'Time of Music' Festival
Embedded audio on that page ^

Yes, it really is someone playing a barbed wire fence like a violin. And it sounds amazing. See the Relative Violins page for some other fantastical instruments.

Spectra Liquid site says:
"HO HO HO! Christmas would be nothing without gifts. Therefore, we and our newly signed artist, Frank Riggio, decided to give you his second album, Anamorphose, for FREE! That's right, 14 tracks of cinematic, experimental electronica, ranging from nu-jazz to film score soundtrack atmospheres and detailed sound design patterns are now available in both mp3 and wav. Only a few months before Frank's first CD-release on Spectraliquid, he couldn't provide the label and his own fans with a better gift than this.

"Download it here, spread the word and prepare yourselves for his next album on Spectraliquid, expected to hit the stores in March 2010."
[WARNING: 800MB ZIP containing Wavs, MP3s and artwork]

IJO - 'Verbal Dance' EP BITPEP002DL [webpage with 50MB zip]
"Bit-Phalanx's veteran Acid-Jazz, Drill & Bass Lithuanian compiles six of his favourite unreleased tracks from 2005 - 2009 that demonstrate his harsher, mentalist tendencies."

The 12 Days of Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:05:00 +0000

My nephew is staying with us at the moment and is keen to sign the 12 Days of Christmas, up the the appropriate day, to us each morning. In an effort to remember all of the lyrics, as my BBC micro singing version obviously didn't burn it in adequately during my childhood, I looked it up.

The first google hit, which I will not link to as I don't want to increase it's page ranking, was a Christian carols page that claimed religious symbolism to each of the days:

1 True Love refers to God
2 Turtle Doves refers to the Old and New Testaments
3 French Hens refers to Faith, Hope and Charity, the Theological Virtues
4 Calling Birds refers to the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
5 Golden Rings refers to the first Five Books of the Old Testament, the "Pentateuch", which gives the history of man's fall from grace.
6 Geese A-laying refers to the six days of creation
7 Swans A-swimming refers to the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments
8 Maids A-milking refers to the eight beatitudes
9 Ladies Dancing refers to the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
10 Lords A-leaping refers to the ten commandments
11 Pipers Piping refers to the eleven faithful apostles
12 Drummers Drumming refers to the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed

This all sounds slightly dubious to me. A few hits down the ratings we find the wikipedia page. No more reliable a source but it does include the following text:

"The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes indicates there are suggestions that "the gifts have significance, as representing the food or sport for each month of the year. Importance [certainly has] long been attached to the Twelve Days, when, for instance, the weather on each day was carefully observed to see what it would be in the corresponding month of the coming year. Nevertheless, whatever the ultimate origin of the chant, it seems probable [that] the lines that survive today both in England and France are merely an irreligious travesty."^[2]

"A bit of modern folklore claims that the song's lyrics were written as a "catechism song" to help young Catholics learn their faith, at a time when practicing Catholicism was discouraged in England (1558 until 1829). There is no substantive primary evidence supporting this claim, and no evidence that the claim is historical, or "anything but a fanciful modern day speculation."^[1]

"In fact, variations in lyrics provide evidence against the "catechism song" origin. For example, the four Gospels often are described as the "four calling birds," when in fact the phrase "calling birds" is a modern (probably 20th century) phonetic misunderstanding of "colly birds" (blackbirds).^{[original research?]}"

So, the song is probably irreverent but it's not entirely clear. I'd definitely take any religious claims with a large pinch of salt.

For a more surreal take on it the brilliant 12 Days themed Why Bother? interviews between Peter Cook and Chris Morris, which is a gem of improvised comedy. [It's available on CD and in text form.]

The Christ sketch is a great example:

Reading List 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Dan) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 08:56:00 +0000

It's that time again:

Stuart Maconie - Pies and Prejudice (hangover from last year)
Kurt Vonnegut Jr - Slaughterhouse Five (again)
Lewis Carol - Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass
Oliver Sacks - Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain
Kurt Vonnegut Jr - Breakfast of Champions
Stuart Maconie - Cider with Roadies
Naomi Klein - Shock Doctrine
James R. Blandford - P.J. Harvey: Siren Rising
Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons - Watchmen
Hunter S. Thompson - Fear & Loathing in Las Vagas
Larry Elliott and Dan Atkinson - The Gods That Failed
Philip K. Dick - Radio Free Albemuth
Stephen Morris - In Search of Bristol
Richard Matheson - I Am Legend
Frank Skinner - Frank Skinner on the Road: Love, Stand-up Comedy and the Queen of the Night
Geoff Manaugh - Bldgblog Book: Architectural Conjecture, Urban Speculation, Landscape Futures
Sun-Tzu - The Art of War
Kurt Vonnegut - Mother Night
William S. Burroughs - Junky
David Edmonds & John Eidinow - Bobby Fischer Goes To War
Ralph Steadman - Doodaaa: The Balletic Art of Gavin Twinge - A Triography
Gore Vidal - Myra Breckinridge
J.G. Ballard - Crash
Peter Cook - Tragically I Was an Only Twin (ed. William Cook)
Richard Beard - Becoming Drusilla: One Life, Two Friends, Three Genders

2008, 2007, 2006