In these days of instant/constant communication, where the
artist is encouraged to ‘engage’ with their fans on a daily, if not more
frequent basis, lest they be forgotten and replaced by those who care enough to
share, I stick resolutely to the old fashioned ethos of ‘if you have nothing to
say, don’t say anything at all’. And generally I have nothing much to
say, hence the infrequency of my communication. Also, I can’t imagine
many people would really care what I had for breakfast (Rice Crispies for those
who do) or what I think of the X-Factor finalists or the latest story line on
Eastenders.
So, can you take it that any communication must then be
extremely meaningful right? That every word can be savoured and the next
sentence anticipated, as much as the smell of your favourite meal causes you to
salivate like Pavlov’s dog? (which Twitter tells me was a
Labradoodle…really!?!) Well, I’m not sure I can live up to that promise and,
I also don’t really have that much to say in breaking the silence of the past
few months…. But I do have some small news to share.
At times, your priorities in life change and this has been
one of those times, where making music has taken a back seat. Not to say
it’s been forgotten in any way – the sounds still fill my head and occasionally
make me drift away, but time to get these ideas into some sort of form for
others to listen to has been short. One thing for sure is that if those
sounds make it to recorded media sounding anything like they do in my head,
they are going to be good (in my opinion at least).
Some of those sounds will comprise Y6XV – merry6mas
2013. As the title suggests, this is the 15th merry6mas since
I started in 1999 and is comprised of all new recordings made during
2013. With so many ideas part finished it has ended up being hard to know
where to start, and merry6mas is an exercise in cleansing. Taking some of
the ideas, making them into something and compiling into a tangible
whole. Still in progress this will be released as a limited cdr in time
for your holiday celebrations. A more low key affair than the last two
years of pressed cds (many copies of which remain, he subtly hinted) this will
be going back to the past with a cdr with on-body print in diy sleeve.
Also available now / coming soon….
"Terra Vicina"
A film comprising still and video images from a trip by
Jeronimo Berg-Costa to the town of his birth in northern Italy, soundtracked
with the Yellow6 track ‘and-is’ from the album Music for Pleasure
(released by Rocket Racer in 2002)
Please feel free to share this link. https://vimeo.com/76088311
“5” download e.p. on Silber. In the 5 in 5
series where artists do an ep with a total run time of 5 minutes.
Here’s the press release: “Jon Atwood started
experimenting with the solo guitar experiments & drones that would become
Yellow6 after cutting his teeth in the London punk scene & finding himself
without a band. Fifteen years later it's clear he's better off doing his
own thing. Yellow6 has been on Silber's radar since debuting back in 1998
& we've grown up together trying to carve niches in the drone &
shoegaze & post rock & ambient & noise genres as the terms
referring to the music we make have changed over the years. To be honest,
I'm kind of shocked we haven't worked together before. For 5 Yellow6 uses
piano alongside the ambient guitars the project is known for to make five
minute long tracks into a single cohesive dreamscape. Turn on, tune in,
drone out.
Available to download for a dollar, here & now:
http://www.silbermedia.com/5in5/yellow6-5.shtml
There is a track called ‘Falcon Two’ for an upcoming
compilation for Consouling Sounds – no idea when that will happen but you can
hear my contribution on the SoundCloud page. The theme was ‘drone’ which
there are elements of here. https://soundcloud.com/yellow6/falcon-two
I have an, as yet unwritten, LP planned on Dead Vox but I
have a concept in mind that I would like to stick to….none of the works in
progress meet my thoughts for this LP so it may happen in 2014…watch out for
those daily tweets on progress (or maybe an email in 6 months)
Lastly but sure not leastly, The Retrieval, the movie for
which the music featured on merry6mas 2013 was written, and also features music
from CUT, has been gathering praise and awards from film festivals around the
world. It makes it’s UK debut at the Leeds Film Festival with showings on
11 and 12 November. Director Chris Eska will be there and I will attend
on 11 Nov for my red carpet debut (if they have red carpets in Leeds that is).
Lastly, there are still copies of some previous releases
available from the website (including the last few Sleep of Reason 4LP sets,
CUT, Sounds and Moving Pictures, Merry6mas2011 and 2012 and more). If you
don’t fancy paying those already low prices, make me an offer by email…as long
as it doesn’t cost me more to post than you pay I’ll most likely be happy!
That’s it for the news to date. More soon
Jon/yellow6
While you wait for merry6mas this year, maybe these kind
words from Mark Barton will tempt you to one of the remaining copies of
merry6mas2012 still available:
Safe to say its been way too long since we featured yellow6 in
these pages, its not like we’ve gone off him or anything - we’ve meant to
include him on many a occasion, in fact I do clearly remember last years Xmas
freebie CD - something which Mr Atwood has sent out to fans, admirers and
friends since the tail end of the 90’s by way of a thank you gift - had us
suitable seduced to such an extent it took us till March / April time to stir
ourselves away and actually put pen to paper (or keystroke to screen for those
who can’t recall what a pen is). We say put pen to paper - alas the results /
files are temporarily lost in one of two spectacular laptop crashes we’ve
suffered this year - the yellow6 related incident henceforth summoned
along with a near 30000 word missive to oblivion. So to make amends we
were much taken by the posting of a new cut entitled ‘falcon 2’ on his sound
cloud page. Now for those of you previously unfamiliar with the work of yellow6
- where have you been - he is one of the foremost exponents of sonic
sculpturing, pairing the deft detailed aural articulation of Vinni Reilly to the
mood moving atmospherics of Roy Montgomery he has forged an extensive body of
work aglow in panoramic classicism steeled in mosaics spirited upon a
melancholic resolve that’s forlorn in measured majesty. Best experienced by way
of headphones - that way you get to immerse yourself in the sonic subtext at
play just beneath the surface line - sensitively primed and delicately
despatched the gracefully glacial ‘falcon 2’ finds Mr Atwood shifting ever more
into classically tutored realms. Opening to the ominous vestiges of feedback
shards dissipating into the ether as though a passing storm cloud, from therein
a calm ensues, the minimalist tonalities sketch out a beautifully serene
mellowness of a moment caught in pause, a solitary riff chime hypnotically spirals
atop an ice dripped clock working backdrop, the effect slow and purposeful, the
mood cut finitely with a church like reverence to bathe throughout a stilled
though florally exquisite atmospheric that snoozes with a refined disarming
elegance. Nuff said - get it at www.soundcloud.com/yellow6
More soon (but not THAT soon)
Jon/yellow6
