Greek bassist on probationary period

Our new bassist Romanos, due to debut with us this Friday 22nd June at this wonderful Swansong in Camberwell, is on his probationary period to see how he copes with the strain, the pressure, David's piano fairy looking over his shoulder, etc. Without a doubt he is a brave man, with his fretless 5 string, and less than a handful of rehearsals. He didn't believe at first that we had over 35 pieces but we do. He will be playing in the new number based on an ancient ringtone, as well as Teenage Sluts, written and sung by SPeW, Jack Horner's Lesson sung by Jonas and Actual Chords, sung by David (yes sung). See you there.

Piano Fairy

3 new songs at our next gig on 19th June at Roadtrip and the Workshop:

Teenage Sluts

Hi corruptibles/fans. In our new song, Teenage Sluts, SPeW takes the floor while Jonas drums and David plays the piano so well. He's taking lessons from the fairy at the bottom of the garden at his home in Milk and Cookie Land. 

Jack Horner's Lesson

Jonas sings this great tune that is familiar but sad. He learned it from a jolly fox that teaches sophisticated morons history in a particular famous high school in America, to give young impressionable students the pleasure of learning something they are required to know. 

Actual Chords

David is taking one more liberty. Think Spiritualised on no drugs.

Tonight: SPeW at the Horse Hospital with Miss Roberts and Marina Sic-Bich

Tonight our very own Gardyloo SPeW is guesting with Miss Roberts: "Tonight at The Horse Hospital, Russell Square, Gardyloo Spew, Marina Sic-Bich and myself, experimenting! Wear sturdy underwear." 
With new photography by Kurt Tong
http://www.thehorsehospital.com/now/lfp-the-queen-the-chairman-and-i-kurt-tong/
http://themissroberts.wordpress.com/
The Horse Hospital
Colonnade, Bloomsbury
London WC1N 1JD

New tracks online from Sunday night

A antique shop owner who frequents Gentleman's Clubs and a man who speaks in financial terms to express his love to someone, these are two new two characters added to our Soundcloud page which we performed both on Sunday night, to a group of people who like music.

Arnold Whisker, is man who hobnobs with the decent crust of the metropolis he lives in in order to improve his social standing in casual society and to see how he can make the law work for him. What goes on in the sophisticated doors of the city? Here we try to peer back the curtains of and see them for how they might be. Have you ever seen someone who owns where he lives, seems to be above it in some way? If so, you could be looking at this man.

Fragile Alliance is a quarterly report of two people's love for one another. Bank statements are some of the most romantic documents in our culture, expressing what pure emotion alone cannot hope to convey. Here, in this song we try to bring out the warm embrace of economic terms in a shape which the listener may find moving. What to you may look like a list of figures is actually an unknown poetry which transcends the human heart in and translates it into a complicated series of diagrams and graphs. The data gleamed from these analyses is often far more passionate than the average tale related by a Mills and Boon novel. But still in figures there is an unbridgeable distance the city has not yet managed to cross, and it is this dilemma that forms the backbone of the most fragile alliance between two souls.

Pop over to Soundcloud now to hear more from these curious and confused characters.

http://soundcloud.com/protagonistsdg

Rehearsal Promises goodies for June 18th

We had another morning rehearsal at half nine this morning and it brought ripening fruit: since his vocalising was well received on Monday night, Jonas will sing another new song at the next show on June 18th at Hoxton Underbelly which promises to be a ground smelling success. It's called Bunny Trap

Bunny Trap is about snares and critters and their relations. The character is known as Busy Squeakle, a hair-bander. His real name is not known so much. In his hair bands, he tries to get his own words in, but isn't even indy enough for indy, yet. While wrestling with his career he much reckon with the realer realities of composting and rodents, contemplate hunter-gathering and wonder why sugar is so attractive.

We worked on another piece has not been performed, called Single Minister, vocalised by David, which you can expect on June 18th. A march and honey-walking slow jam supports David's character who lives on the 14th floor, so rich, and it's so hard to be rich, the prime minister wishes they could be poor, like everyone does. Child support is so humbling...
Also, What's Gotten Into you Boy found another bridge over to I Am Meat via some montuno-like piano rhythms. We may not perform this again in favour of something fresh.
Any requests, drop them by. We feature new material at every show. There will be feedback forms for you to scribble all your fortunes and misgivings, disappointments, and forgotten appointments, on. Oh, and the best improv band in England. Oh, and a WE, probably the most exciting band we've put on thus far in 4 Reprobate Revues:

http://www.kollectiv.co.uk/WE/index.html

Oh, and FOUL GEESE! Maybe they should have that title. So well-ill-suited we are...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCn9jzbVJo4&feature=relmfu

http://www.myspace.com/foulgeese

The A Band

http://www.thewire.co.uk/details/artists/?artist=4626
http://www.myspace.com/72692603
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Band

Reprobate Revue 3 Set List / details for RR4

Last night at Reprobate Revue 3 we splattered the Hoxton Underbelly with mutually enjoyed fireflames of joy (And Galactivity); thanks to The Balloons, One True Dog, Flange Zoo and Aja Voodoo (The A Band referencing a Balloons song, Deja Voodoo) this was our set list:

Arnold Whisker
I Am Meat
Your Slimy Beauty
Fragile Alliance
Mr Nemo
Doom Radio

The next Reprobate Revue at Hoxton Underbelly is on Monday June 18th and will feature


WE 
http://www.kollectiv.co.uk/WE/index.html

Foul Geese
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCn9jzbVJo4&feature=relmfu
http://www.myspace.com/foulgeese

The A Band

http://www.thewire.co.uk/details/artists/?artist=4626
http://www.myspace.com/72692603
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Band

...and yours truly
We are so thrilled to share a stage with these dychlosmical bands

Anonymous Review of PDG in general

We appreciate the review below, from a source who wishes to remain anonymous. The picture is a flyer for our next gig on Sunday evening in Hoxton, London.

"I'm gradually starting to learn how to appreciate this different form of music, but it sure don't come easy!

Unfortunately, however I must confess that the morbid, monotone voice-over is very much not to my liking.

I think that perhaps one has to be in a particular frame of mind in a particular type of company to be able to get anything from it other than total depression. But then, I'm an old fogey musically so what the hell."

an ill considered blog post...

...is better than none.

So what's new?

Well, everyday there is inevitably something new to discuss, even if it is only describing how a piece of dust moved from one side of your room to another part of it. But physics does not concern us here. Protagonists do. Regarding this we have a new show to share with you all (wait, who actually reads this thing? not even sure I do), on 16th April we play Reprobate Revue at Hoxton Underbelly, n1 6nu. Show starts at 7.30pm, for the price of 5 pounds (or 3 before 8pm) and of course your time. Apparently they have some damn fine seats, a floor on which to dance, and a super dancefloor. We're on early, so you know what to do. You also get fab music from Olympic Clampdown, Psycho Yogi, and Book of Buzz. Yum.

We shall also be debuting some new material about an upcoming sporting event in the London area. Can you guess what it is? Here are some clues: it's a summer event that costs roughly 11 billion pounds, is going to cause havoc on the transport system, and will have some pretty heavy security protecting it (553 million pounds of it, in all).  Did you guess correctly? Yes, that's right, it's Wimbledon.

We will also be unveiling a new band member at the gig, they don't want to be name at the moment, but those who come down may have the chance of accidentally looking at he/she.

All right, that's your lot. Come down and stay cynical. PDG X.

Kazuya Ohtani Update

Our dear friend, and ex-member, guitarist/keyboardist/composer Kazuya Ohtani now lives in his native home of Hiroshima, Japan. Since leaving the UK he enjoyed some time with family in a more rural place than London, and is eager to tell of what he's now working on: Project NOW! for the total abolition of nuclear weapons.

Project NOW! Total Abolition of Nuclear Weapons Project

http://www.p-now.com/?lang=en

http://soundcloud.com/kazuy-1 is still the place to hear his music. There is always something new and beautiful there.


Kazuya, playing guitar and mostly piano with PDG, spontaneously composed a lot of the ideas that the band rearranges now. This includes New Jersey Cutters (guitar), the bassline of Come On Baby, Show Me Something, Another Digital Hit, Mr. Nemo, Compass Lost, Nobodys Only, and even My Private Anarchy which has changed almost completely (all originally piano). The rough EVENING EDITION EP, released for the Japan Tsunami Appeal in April of 2011 at Protagonists of David Gadsdon's first live performance, consisted of piano compositions by Kaz. 


Kaz inspired the atmosphere for Fragile Alliance in early 2011, one that has only been performed without drums at MIRROR MIRROR, Ryans Bar, London on 26.1.12. 


Come and listen Febuary 19th at the Underbelly in Hoxton, London, opening for anarchistwood. £5, £3 before 8pm. With Patricide and Lunar Engine (Buck from Book of Buzz singing!)


http://www.facebook.com/events/168865883216197/

Protagonists Improvise with Graham Dunning's Open Sound Group

On August 25 of 2011, Protagonists were cordially invited by the drummer and all-rounder Graham Dunning, and underwent an experiment to improvise with Open Sound Group in his warehouse in Manor House, London, in an amalgamation of characters who had mostly never met. The instrumental and sound exploration was so exciting - the soundscape, wide and all-inclusive of harmony, sound, rhythm and textures, some melody... so multifariously caught between the electronic and acoustic, the musical and almost 'foley'. But it wouldn't have been if not for the attentiveness of all the players listening so well to the whole sound we were making. That was a relief for those of us who had played in free improv groups where a noise competition catches more popularity. The recording was made on a stereo portable recorder only, and remastered by Jonas Golland months later, now re-released at the link below.

It took many minutes of forgetting the time for David to begin speaking, to find the right moment to start his controlled speech improvisation. What resulted is track 3 ('3 Open Sound Group - OSG02 Three', download link below), a patched-together experience of illusory modernity (oh well that's what I made of it). I love the helplessness of the images in the world of the music. Words and images David collaged together from the free daily London strew he ripped as he read, while the wondrous background textures created only by everyone at once, and the sporadic events within it, conversed with him the way a whole city ambience would if it could focus its light and potent imaginings small around the little utterance. It's very meditative, and references things from the text that it denotes but doesn't connote. It's really worth a listen, I've not heard aught like it.




SUMMARY


"Participants at the event were: James Alaska, Tom Mudd, Andrea Night of Pan, Colin Webster, David Gadsdon, Jonas Golland, Sharen Sum, Justin Paton, Carlos Slazenger, Caveman Joe, Cathy Gerber and Graham Dunning.

Instruments used included prepared piano, gamelan, violin, saxophone, laptops, turntables, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, spoken word, drums, didley bow, synthesizers and voices."




FREE DOWNLOAD
http://www.archive.org/details/OpenSoundGroup-WarehouseOne

COMPETITION TO SUBMIT NEW MUSIC TO OSG


for details, visit http://opensoundgroup.wordpress.com/:

"To celebrate a year of nine releases and over 1800 downloads I'm putting together a compilation of tracks from some of my favourite artists, musicians, improvisers, noise makers and composers - that means YOU!"

Airplay on Hello Goodbye Show with Dexter Bentley, Resonance 104.4 FM

Hello
Protagonist will air on the Hello Goodbye Show with Dexter Bentley at 12pm today Saturday 14th of January, "re-airing a selection of our favourite pieces of music recorded live here on Hello GoodBye throughout 2011." PDG was one, but we've sent in other tracks for him to choose from if he's in the mood. We've given him a choice between a remaster of a FIRST EDITION track or a new live one from Monday Jan 9, 2012 at Spoonful of Poison, Kings Cross.
Tune in at www.ResonanceFM.com or at 104.4 FM and if you missed the show, a day or two later it should be at this site http://podcasts.resonancefm.com/
Goodbye

Where to continue.... Perverts Union

Aside from 2 gigs this month at Spoonful of Poison, Monday Jan 9th at Star of Kings, Kings Cross, and headlining at Ryans Bar on Jan 26th, and continued recording of our next release, we've become acquainted with Tony Elephant, our didactic talkshow host character. He has had a lot to say about an experience he had in a sleazy part of town. In Perverts Union, Tony confesses all... Our team presented the 8 minute audio piece to the London Animators Club on weds night (Their website: http://londonanimationclub.com/), because we feel the piece needs an animator or abstract video artist whom naturally gleans an imagery concept. We are looking for the right artist, and do have some budget. If you are a visual artist and like to work to narration, come and have a listen to the Perverts Union excerpt at www.reverbnation.com/protagonists