strange stories

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 7

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Music Collaborations and Swans…

In 2006, at The Permanent Gallery in Brighton, Jay Clifton organised “An Evening With a Theremin” at which three spoken word performers were accompanied by three theremin players. I was paired with Caroline Weeks (formally of Bat For Lashes). Here she is singing about swans:

I was inspired to purchase my own theremin and performed with it on many occasions, putting it through a reverb peddle to create ethereal reverberations:

Here is The Swan played on the theremin:

In 2008, at Brighton’s Phoenix Gallery I performed a monologue and some stories with a live musical saw soundtrack by the excellent multi-instrumentalist Jules Lawrence. Here he is playing the saw:

Here is The Swan played on the saw:

In 2010 at Brighton’s Upstairs at the 3 & 10 venue, I performed a lengthy story with a live soundtrack performed by Sam Walker’s band The Adventurists (harp, double base, percussion, slide guitar). Sam co-wrote and produced the album Zim Zam Zim by the Crazy World of Arthur Brown, which I am very fond of so here it is:

In the same year, I organised and compered The Holistic Cabaret at Brighton’s The Hope, during which I performed with Anna Walkenhorst on trumpet and Rosi Lalor on guitar.

In 2020 I worked with Jules Lawrence again when he asked if I would provide some very short stories for various actors to voice over original soundtracks composed and performed by Jules and fellow multi-instrumentalist Mark Wilson. We made an album of 9 tracks. Here is one of them:

The whole album can be listened to here:

https://mrwilsonlawrencescabinetofcuriosities.bandcamp.com/album/strange-sounding-stories

The recordings proved popular so Jules asked to collaborate again. We made two more albums, again with me providing the words, and actors voicing the stories over music composed by Jules and Mark. Here is the second album:

https://mrwilsonlawrencescabinetofcuriosities.bandcamp.com/album/stranger-sounding-stories

And here is the third album:

https://mrwilsonlawrencescabinetofcuriosities.bandcamp.com/album/strangest-sounding-stories

To be continued…

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 6

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 6

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Rosi’s Tinted Spectacles was a music and spoken word event that ran from 2008 to 2010 in various Brighton venues, beginning in the Hanover Canteen. It was organised and compered by Rosi Lalor. Here she is:

I performed at the event many times, sometimes with celery. Here I am suitably tinted:

As well as performing at regular spoken word events in Brighton, I’ve performed many shows in various odd temporary venues, such as bars, community centres, artist’s open houses, open-air street events, art galleries and even an allotment:

Here are a few of them: In 2009, I performed with one of my paintings stuck to my hand in a performance-art evening at Mocha café…

In 2010, I organised and compered The Christmas Cabaret, performing my stories between folk and jazz acts, in the palatial Brighton Ballrooms in Kemptown (now Proud Cabaret). I made a giant winged egg and hung it at the back of the stage. Here it is:

In 2010, my short story “Dunce” was performed as a monologue by an actor wearing (as the role demanded) a fez, at the New Venture Theatre. He did an excellent job. If only I could remember his name.

You can read “Dunce” for FREE here: https://strangebooks.com/strange-story-weird-fiction/

To be continued…

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 5
The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 7

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 5

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In 2008 I was asked to perform in Brighton’ s Bom-Banes Cafe. From 2008-2017 I performed many shows at Bom-Banes, incorporating my stories, artwork and sounds.

Bom-Banes Cafe is run by Jane Bom-Bane. Here she is:

Here is Jane talking about Bom-Banes Cafe:

Here are a few of the flyers I made:

These were memorable shows. Like they don’t say about the sixties: If you can’t remember it, you weren’t there.

You can visit Bom-Banes here:

Bom-Bane’s

To be continued…

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 4
The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 6

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 4

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In 2007 Dan Pryde-Jarman saw me performing at Tight Lip (see part 3) and asked me to do something similar in his new underground (in both senses of the word) gallery called Grey Area, an artist-run space exhibiting experimental contemporary art. Grey Area existed from 2006 – 12 underneath a Money Shop in the centre of Brighton.

More info about it can be found here: https://danielprydejarman.org/greyarea

I performed at Grey Area regularly between 2007 and 2012. The nature of the space offered an opportunity to create longer performances and tell stories that incorporated my artwork, sounds and sculptures.

Here are some of the flyers I made:

To be continued…

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 3
The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 5

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 3

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Tight Lip was a spoken word night organised by Jay Clifton in Brighton. It began in 2005 at Zoot Street, then The Victory, had forays in Hotel Pelirocco, and HQ gallery in Lewes, but found a regular home in the optimistically named Permanent Gallery in Bedford Place. It was a very cool and well oiled event. Jay would compere and perform as Hammett Story Agency, telling Dashiell Hammett inspired noir detective stories accompanied by Sam Collins playing atmospheric and artful electric guitar. Here are a few of the flyers:

Jay invited me to perform at the first event and I became a regular performer between 2005 and 2008. It was an opportunity to expand my performances and experiment.

Special guests at Tight Lip included musician, journalist, author Max Decharne (Gallon Drunk, The Flaming Stars). I remember him reading from his dictionary of hipster slang…

And journalist and crime novelist Cathi Unsworth. Here is Jay Clifton interviewing her…

And Barry Adamson (of Magazine, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, David Lynch collaborator on Lost Highway etc). He performed a short story called Maida Hell set to his own industrial soundtrack. It could be heard down the street.

https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/1199583.tight-lip-permanent-gallery-brighton-fri-feb-16/

To be continued…

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 2
The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 4

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 2

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In 2005 I became resident storyteller at the Alternative Folk Nights in Brighton’s Duke of York Picturehouse cinema, where unsuspecting cinema goers were treated to my surreal monologues and stories. These evenings took place in the bar and were organised by Felicity Beckett who often provided music. Here she is…

Flick also made the cool and cute flyers. Here are a few of them:

I remember introducing a story by hammering a watch into pieces. It wasn’t a trick.

To be continued…

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 1
The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 3

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 1

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My spoken word adventures began in 1999 at the now legendary arts cinema Brighton Cinematheque on Middle Street where Mel Absolon organised cabarets consisting of short films and performances.

These were eclectic, exciting events. I performed wearing an oversized top hat with holes for eyes and mouth in the spirit of DaDa and Cabaret Voltaire.

I remember one evening a virtual fireplace which filled the cinema screen behind me as I performed suddenly being replaced with the words ‘Not for public screening’. ‘Oh,’ I remember saying, ‘it’s gone out.’

Brighton Cinematheque was a fantastic phenomenon where, in exchange for a pound or for nothing at all, you could see a Kenneth Anger movie, a John Waters double bill or work by local artists such as ourselves. Here is a great article about it… Memories of Brighton Cinematheque: https://www.lazaruscorporation.co.uk/articles/cinematheque-changing-reels

It was during this time that my top hat shrank to a more manageable size and grew an eye.

To be continued…

The Path To Strange Books: Spoken Word Adventures In Legendary Brighton Arts Venues Part 2

Strangest Sounding Stories

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Volume 3 is here: Stories by Mike Russell, performed by various actors, set to original music by Jules Lawrence and Mark Wilson. FREE to listen – just click on the eyes:

Strangest Sounding Stories

Stranger Sounding Stories

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Volume 2 is here!
FREE to listen. Here is the 2nd spoken word album of short stories written by StrangeBooks author Mike Russell, voiced by various actors and set to original music by Jules Lawrence and Mark Wilson. 8 tracks. Click on the eyes to enjoy!

Stranger Sounding Stories