shoboshoboshoboshoboshoboshoboshoboshoboshoboshobo!

[imomus]

'I know when to go out, I know when to stay in, get things done' said David Bowie, once upon a time. Well, let's listen to him! It's important to zone your life into organised, introverted, productive bits and dissolute, extraverted, sociable bits. Some people do both in the course of a day (work, then go out) or a week (sedate week, wild weekend), but musicians tend to be much more intensive: three months recording, three months touring, three months ligging and going to gigs, three months masturbating, doing drugs, blogging, or writing for style mags... well, insert the compulsive behaviour tic of your choice.

Right now I'm in introverted, concentrated, productive mode. I'm getting things done. I'm in a relationship and living with a Japanese girl, I'm working hard and have a nice apartment, so there really isn't much reason to go out. (Except to see 'The Triplets of Belleville', which I did the other night.) But that's going to change quite soon. My flatmate just got a job with a fashion designer and will be moving back to London in July. I'm subletting my Berlin apartment and will be wandering for three months from the beginning of next month, hanging out in Barcelona, Paris, London, Tokyo and Hong Kong before returning to Berlin in October.

Right now, because I haven't been going out much, I feel far from the Berlin social scene. Scenes are important. It's nice to feel involved in one, even peripherally. I've been connected to so many, in so many different cities. The Postcard scene in Scotland. Creation and el in London. Loungecore in Berlin and Paris, Shibuya-kei in Tokyo, Electroclash in New York. I wasn't central to any of these scenes. I'm not really a big, bad, bold scenester. But I like to guage what's going on, where it's at, identify the talented people, soak up the glamour, and hang around on the fringes.

So what scene am I in now? Who do I feel close to? Why, Shoboshobo, silly!

What is Shoboshobo?
It's a series of electro-experimental Franco-Japonaise parties and events in Paris. They even have a jingle, listen!

Shoboshobo Jingle mp3

What does Shoboshobo mean?
Japanese is a language with many funny onomatopoeic forms. Shobo shobo is the sound of something running out of energy, decreasing in tension. It's an expression, often, of disappointment. You could say it's the opposite of hype, and, although I'm hyping it here, the Shoboshobo movement really is the opposite of hype. It's a group of friends who do crazy things to amuse each other, not a bunch of artists trying to 'break through'.

Who's in Shoboshobo?
Technically, Shoboshobo is Shobo Shobo, a concert series that's been running in Paris for three years or so. It's run by art teacher and Minifer-founder Mehdi Hercberg. But I'm using the name for a whole extended family, a scene. Some organisations involved are the record shop Bimbo Tower, labels Clapping Music and Active Suspension, web label Evenement, the venue Console, event organisers Buro. The artists involved are people like (Paris) Domotic, Konki Duet, Shinsei, Olamm, Davide Balula, Noak Katoi, Fabriquedecouleurs, Minifer, Erik Zahn, My Jazzy Child, Eric Maillet, Eric Minkinen and Hypo, and (Japan) Gutevolk, Tog, Aoki Takamasa, Yoshihiro Hanno, AUA, ARch, Philippe Chatelain and many others.



How would you characterise the sound, the sensibility?
It's trestle-table electronica, but with a pastoral Japanese, ludic, video game, kiddy-wicked flavour. So there are rubber masks as well as mixers, acoustic guitars as well as keyboards, picnics and country concerts in the daytime as well as smoky noctural events in cellars.

Are these people Momus fans?
Not at all. They're much more likely to cite Fugazi, My Bloody Valentine, Morton Feldman, Moondog, The Magnetic Fields or Neil Young. Check out some of their Desert Island Discs.

What's your personal connection to this scene?
I dated Yoyo, the Tokyo-side organiser of some of the events, when she lived in Paris back in the mid-90s. I've performed at one of the Placard events organised by Buro, and I sing on the new album from Hypo. I've also known Kumi from Konki Duet for a couple of years, Hirono from Gutevolk for yonks, and am friendly with Eric from Discom and both of Tog (one half of Tog is Roddy Schrock, who's rejigged some of my new tracks, and the other half is Robert Duckworth, with whom I'll be staying and laptop touring in Japan over the summer).

What are the shows like?
One (the wonderfully-named Wolfenschmoog) was based on half a dozen networked Wolfenstein players running the sound of the game through Max/MSP patches. Another was a picnic in a park with some schoolchildren. Another, a couple of guys humming scat over Yellow Magic Orchestra tracks. And another, Blacknskatnmate, a sort of supergroup wearing animal masks and doing abstract, satirical black metal. The one I really wish I'd been at was lastminitshoboshobo, held in a courtyard in sleepy Montreuil, and featuring, amongst others, pabarbapapa, 'a midiglitch unit composed with fabriquedecouleurs and minifer' who 'gave a performance using both of them the same midi file "barbapapa" theme song, glitching it.'



Do these Shoboshobo people have any magazines writing about them?
In France, Chronic'Art is the mag most aware of them, not least because some of them write for it. In Japan, it would be After Hours and OK Fred.

I'm going to Paris soon. Can I be a part of this magnificent scene?
Yes, you can. The next Shoboshobo event is on June 24th at Studio 14 Paradis, 14, Rue Paradis, Paris 10e (metro Gare De L'Est). It features My Jazzy Child, Miroque and Yoshio Machida. (Mehdi has just written telling me that two other Japanese artists, Ammakasie Noka and Mayunoniwa, have been parachuted in at the last moment.)

Anything else I should check out, Nick?
Read an interview with Mehdi here, and check out his drawings. Have a look at Khahn-Linh La's photos on the events archive. Olamm's blog is pretty cool. And have a gander at this little video of the minimalist, energetic and crazy Phirip (also of AUA and ARch) from Nagoya, Japan.

Comments

[dorontheos.livejournal.com]

<3

[(Anonymous)]

good luck with your tour in Japan.

bye

Antonin

Shobiz Shobo

[(Anonymous)]

You must be one of the hardest working men is showbiz, with all your blogging, recording etc. We can all certainly benefit from your example in trying to be productive with our time. This isn't a mid-life crisis thing is it ? Being a year younger than you I am certainly aware that you "reap what you sow" to paraphrase one of your current themes. Still one does need to throw wine around from time to time, so good luck with your summer travels...

Richard G

[(Anonymous)]

The guys on the picture look as if they’d need a bit of karaoke, don't they...

[bifteck.livejournal.com]

Wowza! I am really intrigued. It's a shame I won't be in Paris any time soon.

[badspelling.livejournal.com]

i'm really tired and I haven't had time to read the whole thing (i will tomorrow), but I have just a few questions/comments:

what's the scene you mention in London? i just moved here and I'm finding it all a bit strange... I need a scene.

Also, I received a copy of that active suspension/clapping music comp around christmas. it was one of the most amazing cds (well, it was two cds actually) I got sent all year. the diversity took me by surprise, as did the location of the labels. there wasn't much info included and it was a bit of a mystery to me. I wanted to do research with a mind to construct somekind of feature/interview with them/him/her/it but I never got round to it. maybe now I will. more people need to know about this stuff.

[imomus.livejournal.com]

The scene I mention in London peaked 15 years ago and died 10 years ago. You might be able to learn about it on a bus tour or by looking at blue plaques ('Momus ligged here, 1986-1994'). However, you could try visiting:

KASHPOINT, Thursday 17th June 22.30 - 03.30 on the boat called TATTERSHALL CASTLE, north side of The Embankment (opposite the London Eye), Embankment tube, 9 euros £5.83 approx.
Live: Cantankerous, Bishi, 1st Lady Barbara Bush, Can Can Girls
DJs: Bishi, Mr Menthol, OAP...AlkoPop, DiscoMash, LaptopRock

I make no guarantees, though. It's probably all spivs, flounces and pooves.

[automatique.livejournal.com]

Ahem!

I can assure you that Kashpoint suffers no Spivs!

But yeah, lots of flounces and pooves

Scenester...

[(Anonymous)]

Momus,
Forget Shoboshobo.
The amazing Animal Collective scene has finally broke into the big time. Genius group of wandering experimentalists. I don't think they'd let you in though. :(
Remember, it's all happening in New York City, my friend.

Re: Scenester...

[imomus.livejournal.com]

Anonymous, I'm quite aware of Animal Collective. In fact, if you look here (http://www.imomus.com/dailyphoto180402.html) you'll see me partying in Tokyo with Rusty Santos, who produced their new album, Sung Tongs. I met the group last year in Lisbon. I like them a lot, but one group doesn't constitute a scene (unless you're Anticon). And the trouble with New York is that it costs so much to live there that musicians either have to have a day job or be aiming to sign to a big label and make lots of money, which makes them water down their sound. Animal Collective are a rare exception to that rule, and I'm not quite sure how they're doing it. Some of them were working until fairly recently at Other Music.

[queersolitude.livejournal.com]

consider spending time in los angeles, yes?

Re: Scenester...

[(Anonymous)]

Is it really cheaper in Berlin?
Where else is it affordable outside of NYC? What about the buroughs? Would that be too beneath you?
I too believe the Animal Collective are incredible. Sung Tongs blows my mind everytime I listen. Have you had a chance to listen to it, Nick?
What constitutes a scene? I teach with a group of 5 year olds. We create culture product every day. Do we constitute a scene?
I've heard the next scene/city to break in the good ol' US of A will be Portland Oregon. Is this possible?
I'm looking to relocate to somewhere in the world where I, as an unknown painter, can connect to a scene of some sort. Momus, where should I move?
Much love and thought.
Yours out of the range of any conservative gesture whatsoever. T.

[(Anonymous)]

whatever a scene could be: people you feel comfortable with (friends) or people who inspire you and from whom you get new ideas? The people who inspire/d me most are/were those, who are very different from me and with whom I got in contact only by chance and not on purpose. Somehow this seems very logical to me. When you’re rotating around yourself, thinking the things you’ve always been thinking, planning your life as you’ve always been planning. The people you meet or want to get in contact with, are part of this personal plan. The only chance to enlarge your ego-orbit is an unexpected (not necessarily welcomed) hit or disturbance from another planet or another starsystem. I understand that there are some unlogical black holes in this metapher. I am still in the shallow orbit stadium, I’m afraid. What are you doing with the 5 year olds T? ann

[(Anonymous)]

ann
I'm a kindergarten teacher. T

Re: Scenester...

[badspelling.livejournal.com]

I would say that The Animal Collective do belong to a scene--they certainly have a lot of connections to Black Dice. They've toured together twice and are doing so again this summer (http://www.paw-tracks.com). Former member Hisham and Dave (Avey Tare) lived together at one point and maybe still do. Dave also helped Black Dice record some stuff at his parent’s house in Maryland.

Add to this the recently released "They
Keep Me Smiling" (http://www.forcedexposure.com/labels/uunited.acoustic.recordings.html)compilation curated by Hisham which features tracks from Animal Collective, Black Dice, Benji Cossa, Gang Gang Dance, White Magic, Blood on the Wall, etc. It also features a track from a band called Turrestrial Tones, which is reportedly made up of members of Black Dice and Animal Collective.
It's a bloody brilliant album. Maybe you know about this already, because it’s the first release from Uunited Acoustic Recordings, a record label offshoot of clothing line United Bamboo, and there’s a picture of you partying with the founder of this clothing label in the link you gave above (at least I think it the same label).

Having said all this, I’ve only met The Animal Collective once (for this interview (http://discorder.citr.ca/features/animalcoll.html) in August 2003), and I’ve never been to New York either, so I could be completely wrong. But I’m glad that they’ve become reasonably successful because I took a risk and put them on the cover of the magazine (http://discorder.citr.ca) I was editing when no one knew who they were. I just had a feeling that they were an important band.

Re: Scenester...

[imomus.livejournal.com]

That's interesting. It probably is a scene rather like the French one I'm talking about. It was only just beginning when I left NYC. (Rusty Santos played as support at my 'Farewell to New York' show at Joe's Cafe in March 2002.) There are lots of intimate little links. For instance, Rusty Santos is the boyfriend of Miho from United Bamboo, the fashion label, as well as producer of the Animal Collective album. Upstairs from Miho on E. 14th Street lives Hiroshi Sunairi, an artist, who's performed live with Gang Gang Dance... etc...

Anyway, I should ask Rusty for a copy of the comp. And I'll read your interview with AC now.

what do they put in Rhode Island's water fountains?

[bendovacasanova.livejournal.com]

and supposedly Black Dice once shared band members with Lightning Bolt (http://laserbeast.com/), who founded the noise castle Fort Thunder (http://www.fortthunder.org/), which also spawned Forcefield (http://fortthunder.org/music/ff/index.html), Mr Brinkman (http://fortthunder.org/music/brinkman/index.html), and slews of neat comics artists (http://www.fortthunder.org/comix/). that's some scene!

the internationalist flavor of shoboshobo certainly appeals, too. thanks for the information. it's difficult to visualize exactly, and i'm wishing for more music samples.

Re: Scenester...

[imomus.livejournal.com]

(Reads the Animal Collective interview)

Hmm, it's interesting to hear details of their recording techniques and so on, but why do musicians spend so much time in interviews being cautious and denying things? Especially when the denials read as confirmations. They deny-confirm they're scenesters, deny-confirm they do psychedelic drugs, deny-confirm they're college students...

Re: Scenester...

[badspelling.livejournal.com]

I don't know. it makes my job difficult that's for sure. With the animal collective though they were mainly concerned with not upsetting their parents (as concerning the drug question anyway). I think it came off as more cagey on the page/screen than it was at the time. they were really open compared to most. you should try talking to Bill Callahan or The Walkmen--jesus.

I can see why musicians are slightly cagey in a way though. it's an artificial situation, that even as the interviewer I find very weird. In fact, I really dislike the process of interviewing people (the hanging around soundcheck, talking to the managers, trying to not just get the bass player or drummer but the whole band). Whenever I do one I just keep telling myself that some people might find the information I gleen interesting and that it's important to spread the word of good music.