Sessioned Out

The culmination of four Transplant Sessions witnessed the idyllic settings of Transplant transported to a wider audience and through a larger platform earlier this month. On the 22nd August the Transplant Sessions was hosted by Landmark, Bergen Kunsthall for a showcase of Nordic-themed electronic music and visual talent. DJ and Transplant Sessions coordinator Uraki Riddim curated an evening worth of musical and visual performances featuring acts from France and Scotland to local Bergen acts on the up and established. DJ Asel started the evening with a finely woven set of electronic music from near and far and following a light and occasionally indie and ambient stream. His record selection was complemented perfectly by the breathtaking landscaped visuals of vj Birk (from local night VJ picks the DJ) who combined three projectors seamlessly to make a whole wall of imagery that sucked onlookers in to another place. I followed on from Asel with some chopped up beats through to nu-disco and house before going back to back with Slabs of the Tabernacle's talented resident Brian D'Souza prior to his live set. We were guided visually by Oslo based French designer vj Julie Arrive whose cinematic borrowed and occasionally cheeky work added a click and a clack to the bang bang of the music. Brian's live set took in a wide selection of influences from afrobeat, italo to house and techno and kicked off a host of revelers to shake and move on the dance floor. To take things up to top kilter, and close the night, Nabovarsel resident Sanhueza and Tobii live made sure nobody left the dance floor with a latin wrapped mix of house that took in tribal, deep and electronica edges. Keep an ear out for these guys!

There will be some podcasts and video footage available by the end of this week courtesy of Brian D'Souza and visual artist Ling Lee. Meantime, if you happen to be in Norway this September get yourself over to Bergen for one of the most interesting and welcoming compact electronic music festivals in Europe - Ekko Fest. Amongst those playing is a relative homecoming gig for Royksopp, there first in Bergen for almost ten years, Bergen's new house sensation Tobii live and the spaced out acid disco of US based Nite Jewell. You can check the full line-up and order tickets here. For UK based music afficionados be sure to get up North to Aberdeen for DO IT!'s October session at Cellar bar which will include the UK debut of Brian D'Souza's new live work, myself and vj Julie Arrive.

Sub-Urban Dexterity

Last week at Landmark, Bergen Kunsthall rocked! Over 200 heads were in attendance to see a line-up that wouldn't have been out of place as a mini festival. The roster included some spectacular landscaped visuals by VJ picks The DJ's vj Birk, Ekko Fest organizer DJ Asel, myself (DJ Uraki Riddim) accompanied by Julie Arrive's visuals, an exclusive debut for Brian D'Souza's new live work and a Norge treat in the form of Nabovarsel starlets Sanhueza and Tobii live. Big thanks to those who performed and attended. Check out some pics from the party below;

Photos: (from top: dj Asel & vj Birk, Uraki Riddim, Brian D'Souza & vj Julie Arrive, Sanhueza & Tobii live) by Ed Barber.

Scratch It!

Having provided a platform for collaboration between Finnish VJs the Vixen VJs and myself, DJ Uraki Riddim, for the first Transplant Session we decided to go for a similar music and visual combination for Session # 2. Instead of a typical VJ and DJ set-up however, we took influence from an era of hip-hop that produced movements of not only music but dance, art and fashion. Our second session explored the history of the 'Scratch' and intended to reinterpret it's raw essence in a new format. Scratching in a musical sense, is the expression and manipulation of records to make new sounds and rhythms. It is an aspect of turntabilsm, performance DJing, and one of hip-hop's art forms. Other hip-hop art forms include break dancing, street art and MCing. Regular jam sessions brought these four art forms together and it is in this spirit that designer, artist and my work colleague Jan Brauer and I came together to create the 'Scratch' themed night that included an exclusive showing of Doug Pray's excellent documentary film 'Scratch' and first public showcase of Jan Brauer utilizing his scratch board technique live while I spun some classic and new hip-hop, electronica and dub beats.

Hailing originally from near Leipzig and following a working period in New York, Brauer moved to Dale I Sunnfjord on the west coast of Norway to work with Ralston&Bau design studio and Trasnplant's innovation and design center. For the duration of his stay he has attentively developed a unique scratch board technique to further communicate his deep, twisted and occasionally wicked humorous illustrative style. You can check out some images of the stunning final scratch board piece from this night and some of his other work's here. Brauer is also part of a mobile, playful and provocative graphic collective named Gono Gono and you can check out some of their works here.
Photo: Jan Brauer at work during Transplant Sessions #2 by Leon Vaarheim.

Nordic Visions

Earlier this month I had the pleasure of sharing a stage with Finland's Vixen vjs as part of a new venture in Norway by the name of Transplant Sessions. I spun records as part of the DO IT! collective, under my dj guise Uraki Riddim, and organized the event at Transplant's innovation and design center in Dale I Sunnfjord on the West coast of Norway. Transplant Sessions is a platform for electronic music and visual talent from Nordic countries to showcase themselves through live performance and documentation of their work online. Transplant Sessions' first guest, Badass Bambi from Vixen vjs, represented Finland and on the night provided a beautiful, colourful and abstract re-interpretation of the Transplant venue's idyllic surrounding landscape.

Vixen vjs are originally from Tampere, said to be Finland's equivalent to Manchester, where they have been performing with the local Plauge dj collective at their Off The Hook club night and their very own Pikku Sisko Disko parties (little Sister disco). Vixens are two female vjs, Pony Revenger and Badass Bambi aka Video-Jukka-Paula aka artist Paula Lehtonen. Their attitude and style is unique but, also representative of a significant number of smaller DIY club nights and parties sprouting up throughout the world. It was a pleasure working with the Vixens and it is certain that DO IT! and Vixen vjs will be colloborating again at some point later this year when their busy schedule allows. Before Vixens bring their visual venom to Scottish shores, or wherever else a future colaboration takes form, check out Paula Lehtonen's own personal artistic output on her website here.