Artist: Castle If
Songs: Polypodium Aureum [edit] + Voyage
Recorded at The Music Gallery (Emergents III), April 7, 2017.
Castle If - Polypodium Aureum [edit]
It was an honour and a thrill to be asked to curate a show in the Music Gallery's Emergents program, giving on-the-cusp artists from different disciplines a chance to put on a "proper show" in the Music Gallery's beautiful church sanctuary environment.† Not only does this give artists access to the full technical support that the Music Gallery's team brings, but it also creates its own sense of occasion. Both artists that I asked to play really took advantage of all those things, elevating their performance and really shining.
Not content to play a "regular" set at this show, Jess Forrest brought a whole new album's worth of music. Inspired by some of the houseplants in her studio space, the wonderful Plant Material draws from 70's synth and library music — and feels right at home in a world where the Syrinx reissues arrived like some sort of misdirected time-traveller landing in these parts and deciding to stick around. Bringing several of those same plants to share the stage, Forrest catered to the sonic resonances of the sanctuary's space in leading off with an extended meditative drone before picking up the tempo.
† It was shortly after this show that it was learned that the Music Gallery is being forced to temporarily re-locate from its home at St. George The Martyr — showing us another way that unfettered condofication impacts the city's cultural life. The MG is a resilient institution that has survived displacement before, but this is still an excellent time to show your support — and to talk to your representatives about what the city and senior governments should be doing to support culture in T.O.
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