Disappearing Spaces: Impacted Music Spaces in 21st Century London
SATURDAY 08 JULY, 14:00
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Moderator: Emma Warren
Speakers: Ben Campkin, Nathanael Williams, Roger K. Burton (The Horse Hospital), Music Venue Trust
Disappearing Spaces: An exploration of alternative music spaces that have been impacted and/or displaced by the corporate mainstreaming of 21st century London. What can we learn from what came before us, and how do we start working towards a better future?
Whilst not an entirely new phenomena, the speed in which music spaces and venues continue to disappear across London has been put into overdrive. According to figures from the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA), nightclubs are closing at a rate of one every two days (source). Since the turn of the decade we’ve lost staples such as Five Miles, The Astoria, The End, seOne, The Black Cap, Turnmills, The Coronet, Dance Tunnel and The Borderline among many others.
This may be down to changing cultural attitudes, the effect of the pandemic, a shift in the ways people consume music, large scale municipal developments, gentrification, pressures from corporate interests or the result of the current dire economic climate, among a multitude of other factors. This discussion seeks to explore lost music spaces through first hand experiences on a case-by-case basis. What can we learn from previous closures and how can this knowledge be applied to more sustainable models? What does the future of sound and music spaces within the city look like?
Disruptive Frequencies [nonclassical presents]
SATURDAY 08 JULY, 17:00
Panel discussion with Amit Dinesh Patel about Disruptive Frequencies, a new compilation out on Nonclassical and focused on noise, deep bass and experimental sound by Black and South Asian artists.
The panel will be followed by a hybrid DJ Set by dushume, diffused over sound system tracks from Disruptive Frequencies Vinyl and exclusive dushume materials.
Emerging Airwaves: Exploring the Digital Proliferation of Online Radio
SUNDAY 09 JULY, 14:00
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Moderator: Jennifer Lucy Allan
Speakers: Kindred, Resonance FM, Robert Rotifer, Threads Radio
Emerging Airwaves: Exploring the emergence of prominent online radio stations over the last decade in relation to the disappearance of physical spaces.
Continuing from themes discussed in the prior talk, we look at the rise of online-based broadcasting platforms and the ethos behind these. From the pirate and offshore radio ventures of yesteryear, to the transition towards the digital space utilising streaming, social media and podcast distribution.
We try to draw links between the increasing lack of physical sound and music space in London to the recent proliferation of high quality online radio practices springing up throughout the UK. Who are the people behind these stations? What drives these initiatives? Who is their audience? How do these broadcasts give a platform to non-mainstream artists and traditionally underrepresented voices?
AMOENUS Autumn Programme Presentation
SUNDAY 09 JULY, 16:15
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Speakers: Christian Duka
The Kinship event series invites the local community to experience the work of several artists in the fields of electro-acoustic & electronic music, free improvisation, interactive & participatory arts, performance art, AI and autism research, each exploring their creative practice in spatial audio.
PANELLISTS
AMOENUS
Amoenus is an art organisation that facilitates, educates, curates, and promotes immersive art centred around 3D sound. Since 2018, Amoenus has delivered public events and workshops, engaging artists and audiences to further the development of immersive art practices. elements of noise, electro-acoustic composition and sound design coupled with a darkwave aesthetic that incorporates unruly melodies and mysterious lyricism.
https://amoenus.co.uk/
Ed Baxter
CEO Resonance FM, Associate Lecturer London College of Communication, radio artist, producer, writer, instigator, etc etc.
https://www.resonancefm.com
Roger K Burton
Roger is a former Mod whose professional career as an independent stylist, costume designer and art director for film and TV spans 30 years. Roger also owns the Contemporary Wardrobe Collection, a hire company specializing in the supply of vintage street fashion and couture items to the film, TV and fashion industries. In 1993 Roger founded The Horse Hospital, a unique not for profit London based venue promoting rare avant-garde and underground arts, film, fashion, performance and music.
https://www.thehorsehospital.com
Emma Warren
Author of ‘Dance Your Way Home’ ‘Make Some Space’ and ‘Document Your Culture’
Ben Campkin
Ben Campkin is the author of Queer Premises: LGBTQ+ Venues in London Since the 1980s (Bloomsbury Academic, 29 June 2023) and Remaking London: Decline and Regeneration in Urban Culture (2013), which won the Urban Communication Foundation Jane Jacobs Award (2015) and was commended in the Royal Institute of British Architects President’s Awards for Research (2014). He is Professor of Urbanism and Urban History at The Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London, and Co-Director of UCL Urban Laboratory.
https://linktr.ee/bencampkin
