news 2007 - scroll down for 2005/6 items
[for previous news see eric's discography site]

To subscribe to an occasional email of my news, write to
douglas@benfo.demon.co.uk


UPDATE & GENERAL BULLETIN: FEBRUARY 07

Salutations from Brentford, West London

- Miscellaneous and some reflections - a look at 2006 and into 2007

* I haven't actually done one of these bulletins since this time last year! Early 2006 I purchased a new laptop (my previous one disappeared in the Estonian Incident), so I have been slowly working on new music (mainly for performances) my blog and fine-tuning, in fact rebuilding, this website; in the interim I migrated to the the ubiquitous myspace, and decided to try and keep a random, and often non-music-related personal blog. Anyway, see http://www.myspace.com/sicutdb or better still, subscribe to http://blog.myspace.com/sicutdb for lists and photos links from my life (has an rss feed for the geeky of you).

* I have been working on new material, and its been moving in a more sombre, reflective, mainly non-rhythmic direction. You can hear from the new 'Brownfield Vol. 1' EP I have put on this site. (see 'downloads ^ new' in menu on left). Also, I put some tracks up from my archive (see 'downloads ^ archive' in menu on left). These new tracks, and the older tracks I have put up are FREE, BUT I am suggesting a 1 Euro donation per track. Anyone who makes a donation of minimum 6 Euros (ie min 5 tracks) via Paypal to me, I will send a classic Suburbs of Hell CD to, for FREE.

* There is an exclusive SI-CUT.DB track, 'Estuary' , on a new Highpoint Lowlife (http://www.highpointlowlife.com) label compilation 'Analog For Architecture' exclusively available from Bleep.com (http://www.bleep.com/?bleep=HPLL022). And the album also comes in a DVDr version! btw The Highpoint Lowlife SI-CUT.DB album 'Find Some Shade' is now on Bleep also.

* There are some new photos up now of Estonia - my sojourn in the hospital in Tallinn - and this year's trip to Iceland. See 'gallery' 2 & 3 in the menu on the left.

* A FREE compilation download album is at http://www.fractalspin.com/choons, 'Teh Choons' ,with Praveen, Marshall Watson, a SI-CUT.DB track, plus a host of others. The track from me is 'Crosshatch' - now gone from this site but you can still get it on this comp; enjoy.

* Other tracks for future release include a SI-CUT.DB track, 'corsair', for an upcoming Miso compilation (via the Glaswegian club Miso, www.ilovemiso.com).

* Unsound (http://www.unsound.pl) in Poland have commisioned some SI-CUT.DB ring tones for mobile phones, now up, next to Burnt Freidmann, Scanner, Atom Heart, Alva Noto, Jason Forrest, Felix Kubin, Keith Fullerton Whitman, Richard Chartier, Pole, Luomo and a host of others, see http://www.toneshared.com. Some great sounds for your new iphone!

* Remix no. 1: illuminati's album 'Meta Medica' (Lotta Continua CD), released January 2007 contains a SI-CUT.DB remix of the illuminati track 'phenology'. http://www.myspace.com/daveclarksonilluminati

* Remix no. 2: there's a special remix of SI-CUT.DB remix of SCANNER's 'nightjam' (http://www.nightjam.org.uk/) project, put together in collaboration homeless young people; other remixers include Hakan Libdo, Pete Lockett, Troy Banarzi and Stephen Vitiello . These are now available at http://nightjam.org.uk/remixes

* I have been invited to work with Nitin Sawhney (http://www.nitinsawhney.com) on his 'Aftershock' project, which will be in the format of a workshop, some recording and composing, and then the presentation of a piece at various venues; this will happen mid-2007, more info to come.

* Other works in progress: some SI-CUT.DB material - green energy inspired dance material, no less! - has been commissioned by a new 12" vinyl label set by Wang Inc, see http://www.playonlegs.com/.

* There are also 2 free downloads from the SI-CUT.DB 'Offices of Night' vol. 1 (Fallt) album I've recently discovered at http://www.fallt.com/offices/index.html. Volumes 2 & 3 to come.

* Some of the new completed material above has been submitted for airplay at on Polar Radio FM (see diary http://www.interpolar.org/now.html) - a special radio project in Antarctica! Also the SI-CUT.DB remix of Jem Finer's Longplayer project was mentioned in dispatches at Disquiet webzine, (http://www.disquiet.com/), sorry the track is now not on this website, but it did sit here for 2 years!


LIVE SET BONANZA (and see below for performances.)

* There is a CD album of a live SI-CUT.DB set released in japan this autumn, this is a performance recorded at Rhiz, Vienna, last year and is on the Tokyo-based RealJoker label. See http://realjoker.or.tp/ & http://fat32.org

* Also 2005's SI-CUT.DB Mutek festival performance in Montreal is available to hear online via Samuraifm alongside Monolake, Pheek and Luci. Click on: http://www.samurai.fm/mutek/. Some great 2006 sets by Pole and others too.

* Plus at http://www.micro.com.es there's now a live SI-CUT.DB set recorded in Newcastle in 2002, scroll sideways to see it, there's a lot of good stuff there! And an excerpt of a live set for the PEAM festival in Pescara, Italy last December should be up shortly, if not now, at http://www.digicult.it/podcast/.

PHOTOS a-go-go!

* My performance at Sheffields Lovebytes Festival, where we held a mini Sprawl showcase, featuring myself, Leafcutter John and my Sprawl partner Iris Garrelfs. There are a few photos here: Lovebytes 2006 here and here. And some more here and finally here.

* This autumn I visited Vancouver, Canada to play the New Forms festival, some great photos of the festival (thanks Basic_sounds!) are here. Performance pic of me here by Sanches.

* Meanwhile the SonicRecycler2 event that Sprawl and Brentford Recycling Action Group put together with Watermans Art Centre was a great success back in April 2006, fantastic sets by Tunng, AM/PM, Janek Schaefer and the Bohman Brothers. Photos here. Thanks Thorsten for these, and here's to a fab SonicRecycler3.


TENNIS SEASON

* TENNIS, ie myself and Ben Edwards/Benge are back in action. We have 2 new tracks on the latest BiP_HOp Generation v. 8 [ cat. bleep 32] next to new exclusive tracks by MURCOF, MITCHELL AKIYAMA, MINAMO, TU M' & STRINGS OF CONSCIOUSNESS. More info at http://www.bip-hop.com. This compilation has also been nominated in the french QWARTZ awards.

* The triMIX project (a CD + DVD) put together by TJ Norris (http://www.tjnorris.net), is now out; this includes tracks by Xela, Scanner, Mokira, TU M', Asmus Tietchens, S.E.T.I. and others, and includes the exclusive Tennis track 'Rina's Ribena'. See http://innova.mu/artist1.asp?skuID=269 for full info.

* TENNIS also played the ELECTROCHELOU* & PROJECT 101 festival in Paris last October. See listing below.


SPRAWLS

* After 10 years of doing Sprawls monthly, Iris and I decided to put together Sprawls just for special events. Last year, as well as our birthday event with Taylor Deupree and Richard Chartier (pics by failme here), we put on the showcase at Lovebytes, curated another SonicRecycler, collaborated with [no-signal] on a Christopher Willits / Beddoes performance, and returned to the Charterhouse bar last September for a one-off 'regular' Sprawl (with Jodi Cave, Chris Cobilis, Segue and Vanishing Breed). Last xmas, as in 2005, we threw some sunday free Advent Sprawls (Iris's photos here, one of which was reviewed on the furthernoise website. Next year we are planning more Interplays and SonicRecycler3. Keep an eye on the Sprawl website


FUTURE PERFORMANCES

MARCH 24
SI-CUT.DB dj set
Qwartz Awards Party 2
Paris, France
http://www.qwartz.org/

MAY 5, 2007
(curator/producer)
SonicRecycler3
live: Boduf Songs (Kranky), Rothko (Lo/Bip Hop), Stephan Mathieu (Touch), David Cunningham
djs: Jasmine Guffond (Minit/Staubgold), [no.signal], Ed Pinsent (Sound Projector)
films: Cedrick Eymenier (sountrack by Fennesz), Semiconductor, Janek Schaefer, U-sun/Boris D Hegenbart-Matsui
Watermans Art Centre, Brentford, London, UK
http://www.watermans.org.uk
http://www.sprawl.org.uk
http://www.myspace.com/sonicrecycler

MAY 12, 2007
SI-CUT.DB live set
with Illuminati, Disco Operating System, and VJ Fusion
Burst Couch at Futuresonic festival 2007
Britons Protection Hotel, Great Bridgwater St,
Manchester, UK


PREVIOUS PERFORMANCES (2006 - early 2007)

FEB 2, 2007
SI-CUT.DB live set
Arctic Circle at Tate Britain
Mill Bank, London, UK
Tate Britain website

DECEMBER 17 2006
(curator/producer/dj)
IMAGINATION & MY MOTHER
MICHAEL SANTOS
IRIS GARRELFS, SI-CUT.DB - djs
Advent Sprawl no 3, Charterhouse bar
38 Charterhouse Street, London EC1
FREE. 2pm-7pm
www.sprawl.org.uk

DECEMBER 10 2006
(curator/producer/dj)
ROBERT HAMPSON
SIMON LONGO
JONATHAN BURNIP, IRIS GARRELFS, SI-CUT.DB - djs
Advent Sprawl no 2, Charterhouse bar
38 Charterhouse Street, London EC1
FREE. 2pm-7pm
www.sprawl.org.uk

DECEMBER 8 2006
SI-CUT.DB live
PEAM 2006 festival
Ecoteca, Pescara, Italy
www.artificialia.com/Peam2006

DECEMBER 3 2006
(curator/producer/dj)
BEDDOES
MANDELBROT
FAIL HDJ, IRIS GARRELFS, SI-CUT.DB - djs
Advent Sprawl no 1, Charterhouse bar
38 Charterhouse Street, London EC1
FREE. 2pm-7pm
www.sprawl.org.uk

NOV 17 2006
SI-CUT.DB live set
with Stephan Mathieu, Scion, Marco Passarani, Freeform, Mapstation
TRANSIT 06 festival
Chiasso [Train Station] Switzerland
www.transitfestival.ch

OCT 27 2006
SI-CUT.DB live set
ELECTROCHELOU* & PROJECT 101 festival
Paris, France

OCT 26 2006
TENNIS live set
ELECTROCHELOU* & PROJECT 101 festival
Paris, France

OCT 21 2006
SI-CUT.DB live
with Touch 25 artists: Fennesz, Biosphere, Rosy Parlane, Philip Jeck
Sightsonic festival, Theatre Royal
York, UK

SEPT 29 2006
SI-CUT.DB dj set
Ginglik, Shepherds Bush, London UK

SEPT 21 2006
SI-CUT.DB live set
with Mitchell Akiyama, Jan Jelenik
New Forms Festival
Open Studios
Vancouver, Canada

SEPTEMBER 13 2006
(curator/producer)
Sprawl at the Charterhouse Bar
JODI CAVE, VANISHING BREED
SEGUE, CHRIS COBILIS
DJs: IRIS GARRELFS & SI-CUT.DB
Sprawl, Charterhouse bar
38 Charterhouse Street, London EC1

AUGUST 15 2006
(curator/producer)
DE SONIS Vol 7 event
by [no.signal] & sprawl
CHRISTOPHER WILLITS
Beddoes (Australia) live
Sheikh Ahmed (Failme/absorb) dj
THE FLEAPIT, 49 Columbia Road
London, E2 7RG

JUNE 3 2006
SI-CUT.DB dj set
djs Sheikh Ahmed (Failme/Absorb)
+ DJ Chinchilla (germany)
Biddle Bros, 88 Lower Clapton Road,
London, E5 0QR, UK

MAY 19 2006
SI-CUT.DB
SmekkleysaSM/BadTaste Gallery, Laugavegur 59,
Reykjavik, Iceland

MAY 18 2006
SI-CUT.DB [dj set]
Sirkus, Klapparstigur 30,
Reykjavik, Iceland

APR 8 2006
(curator/producer)
SonicRecycler2
live sets Janek Scaefefer, Tunng, Bohman Bros, AM/PM
films: Dfuse/Beck, St Etienne's Finisterre,
djs: Iris Garrelfs, Ben Eshmade, Hermeet Chadha, Jem Finer
Watermans Art Centre, Brentford, London, UK

MAR 23 2006
SI-CUT.DB live set
with Leafcutter John, Iris Garrelfs
Lovebytes festival
Showroom cinema
Sheffield, Yorks, UK

JAN 25 2006
SI-CUT.DB cdr dj set
with djs Scanner, Iris Garrelfs, Tony Morley
ICA, The Mall, London, UK

JAN 13 2006
SI-CUT.DB live set
with Pan Sonic, Taylor Deupree, Richard Chartier
The Sage, Hall2, Gateshead
Newcastle, UK

JAN 12 2006
SI-CUT.DB live set
(and curator/producer)
Sprawl 10th anniversary event
with Iris Garrelfs, Taylor Deupree, Richard Chartier
Yacht Club, Temple Pier, Victoria Embankment,
London, UK



FEBRUARY 06 BULLETIN

Greetings from Brentford, West London

ABOUT THIS

* I have been planning to update my news on this website but as you may have heard, I was unfortunately attacked and hospitalized the day after performing in Tallinn, Estonia (a great city and great gig tho), and my laptop was stolen....so I currently migrated temporarily to
http://www.myspace.com/sicutdb until I get up and running properly again...I would like to thank everyone who has sent me their best wishes; healthwise I am almost back to normal...technologically, back on my cranky old 0S9 Mac for a while. Yes, and I know Myspace is ubiquitous already, but its just a temporary blog measure, there's some music up there too...

SUMMING UP

* I have been nominated for Qwartz Electronic Music Awards Edition 2 as an artist/producer in France, winner to be announced on March 24th 2006, see:
http://www.qwartz.org/vote/jury.php?id=&prix=Dj%20Producteur So its between me, Ritchie Hawtin and Helius Zhamiq. A big surprise, but a pleasant one, even to be nominated.

* My last SI-CUT.DB album 'From Tears' (Bip Hop) appeared at the number 28 position in textura's (
http://www.textura.org) year-end '2005 Top Albums' list in its December issue. In addition, the website also gave me a nice mention in its Mutek 05 festival review: "The day's chilled vibe extended into the evening, with si-cut.db (Douglas Benford) initiating the festival's closing concert with two slow, beatless cuts from 'FromTears: Beach Archive'. Much like the album, his hypnotic digi-dub teemed with smears, ripples, crackles, and snake-like rattles and offered a refreshing stylistic change from the festival's other sounds." http://www.textura.org/newreviewspages/mutek2005.htm

* On a rather odd note, the Ministry of Sound picked up on a track from 'From Tears', 'Polite Society' and have included it (edited, mind you) on their latest Chill Out Sessions album, next to Boards of Canada, Leo Sayer (!), Badly Drawn Boy, Morecheeba, Lemon Jelly, Royksopp etc
http://www.ministryofsound.com/music/albums/MinistryofSound-TheChilloutSession06 Bang goes my microsound credibility...

* At the beginning of December I actually completed the latest SI-CUT.DB track 'Winter Cabin', especially commissioned for the Chiller Cabinet show on the UK's Classic FM radio station, and it was played twice in mid-december. Hopefully this track will emerge at a later date on release or as a download....

* There will be exclusive SI-CUT.DB material on a Frequenzen compilation project, a Resonancefm fundraising CD; its an excerpt recorded at Resonance FM for the Frequenzen show, next to tracks by AGF, Scanner, Music for One, John Chantler, Steinbruchel and others....its a 'Ltd ed.' of a few hundred. More info via
http://www.frequenzen.co.uk

* If you happen across St Etienne's super film featuring London in all its grime, 'Finisterre', you will be as surprised as I was that 'B92' - the track produced by my good self, with Ben Edwards on engineering duty - is the very first track in the film. The film will also be shown at Sprawl's SonicRecycler2, see below...
http://plexi.co.uk/finisterre.html

* On a lighter note, I recently did an interview with punk-archive website
http://www.noclass.co.uk. I am not sure what it says about me, but it is a bit tongue in cheek: http://www.noclass.co.uk/db.html

* A small blast-from-the-past: there's a small excerpt of a SI-CUT.DB live set at the Synch festival, Greece, in 2004, with visuals/video work by Saul Saguatti
http://www.vjcentral.it/index.php?option=com_multidisplay&Itemid=82&task=view&id=6


FUTURE SI-CUT:

* The will be a new SI-CUT track for a Miso CD track, to be confirmed... I have work to do.
http://www.deepburnt.com/ilovemisomixtape.htm.
Its a series...some good names on there.

* The Granny'Ark / SI-CUT collaboration is still progressing, we've completed a few tracks (one sadly lost forever in my Estonian Incident). My 2nd collaboration with Stephan Mathieu is in a semi-complete stage too, but all will be revealed one day...

* A DVD collaboration of SI-CUT.DB music and visual artist Pixelwrangler has been proposed, for release on the Bip Hop label (
http://www.bip-hop.com). There should be a SI-CUT.DB track in the back ground ('Nostalgiam') up now or soon on the Pixelwrangler website (http://www.pixelwrangler.ca). Previously my performances at Dis-patch, E-life and next up the Lovebytes festival, have also used these visuals.

* Fallt (
http://www.fallt.com) are still holding onto the Offices at Night remixes. No idea when or if this will surface, but the final remixes, all completed are by Alex Wendt, Mike Cooper, Mitchell Akiyama, Ian Andrews, Sebastien Roux, T'um, Stephan Mathieu, Motion, Mapstation, & Akira Rebelais.


SPRAWL

* After celebrating our 10 year anniversary of Sprawl beginnings, Iris and I have decided to discontinue Sprawls on a monthly basis, its wearing us down/out, and we are now concentrating on special events e.g. SonicRecyclers, Interplays, plus the odd collaboration with the Sonic Arts Network, and one offs like our evening at Lovebytes (see below). We had an amazing sold-out 10th birthday Sprawl at the Yacht Club, a moored boat, with our special guests Taylor Deupree and Richard Chartier, see
http://www.flickr.com/photos/failme/sets/1832275/ (thanks to Sheikh for the photos), followed by a fun night with Scanner and Tony Morley (of Leaf) at our ICA Electronic Lounge/Sprawl collision...We also had a page in the Wire magazine, where we described out Epiphany of the Sprawl beginnings and its long journey...here's the original text: http://www.sprawl.org.uk/AboutFrame.html. The Wire also put up some Mp3 extracts of Sprawl recordings, still up at (scroll down) http://www.thewire.co.uk/web/mp3specials.php

TENNIS

* The 2 exclusive Tennis tracks ('open sesame' & 'a guide to losing') will appear in April on the BiP_HOp Generation v.8 compilation (
http://www.bip-hop.com) alongside tracks by Murcof, Un Caddie Renverse dans l'herbe, Tu'M, Minamo, & Mitchell Akiyama

* Meanwhile the 'triMIX: Tribryd Installation Soundtracks Deconstructed' album is currently being mastered, for an early fall release, again with an exclusive Tennis track, 'Rina's Ribena' alongside pieces by Ultra Milkmaids, Illusion of Safety, TU M', S.E.T.I., Xela, Frans de Waard, Scanner, Andreas Tilliander and others info:
tjnorris@gmail.com

PERFORMANCES

Previous:

DEC 2 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB live. visual: Pixelwrangler
w. Frank Bretschneider, Sebastien Roux + others
'e-life 2005' festival
http://www.e-life2005.com/
Madrid, Spain

DEC 22 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB live set
Hellemani Krts / Kinomaja
Tallinn, Estonia

JAN 12 / 2006
SI-CUT.DB live set
Sprawl 10th anniversary event
with Iris Garrelfs, Taylor Deupree, Richard Chartier
Yacht Club, Temple Pier, Victoria Embankment,
London, UK

JAN 13 / 2006
SI-CUT.DB cdr&fx set
with Pan Sonic, Taylor Deupree, Richard Chartier
The Sage, Hall2, Gateshead
Newcastle, UK

JAN 25 / 2006
SI-CUT.DB
with Scanner, Iris Garrelfs, Tony Morley (dj)
ICA, The Mall, London, UK

UPCOMING & RADIO:

MAR 10 / 2006
Sprawl SMALL PIECES radio show
on Resonance FM / 104.4 fm and
http://www.resonancefm.com
midnight / 00:00 GMT - 01:00

MAR 23 / 2006
SI-CUT.DB live
with Leafcutter John, Iris Garrelfs
Lovebytes festival
Showroom cinema
http://www.lovebytes.org.uk

MAR 31 / 2006
Sprawl SMALL PIECES radio show
on Resonance FM / 104.4 fm and
http://www.resonancefm.com
midnight / 00:00 GMT - 01:00

APR 8 / 2006
(curator)
SonicRecycler2
with live acts Janek Scaefefer, Tunng, Bohman Bros, AM/PM,
films: dfuse/Beck, StEtienne's Finisterre, iris garrelfs,
djs ben eshmade, Hermeet Chadha, jem finer
Watermans Art Centre, Brentford, London, UK
http://www.sprawl.org.uk


AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 05 BULLETIN

Greetings from Brentford, West London

London has, as you might imagine, an edgey & hot mood since '7/7'
...unsettling times.


SPRAWL

* After our summer break, we are back at the Charterhouse on Sept 14; its a great line up, more to come this autumn/winter. Next year: Sprawl is 10! There'll be more Interplays and a SonicRecycler2, see below for our Small Pieces Resonance FM radio listings. For the September info see http://www.sprawl.org.uk


RELEASED & REVIEWED

* My latest SI-CUT.DB CD 'From Tears: Beach Archive' (Bip Hop) album has been getting scores of very nice reviews in the WIRE magazine etc, here's THE MILK FACTORY one: http://www.themilkfactory.co.uk/reviews/sicutdb_beacharchive.htm

* The MUTEK 05 compilation is now in the shops with great tracks by Monolake, FM3, Taylor Deupree, Kapital Band 1, Richard Chartier and an exclusive SI-CUT.DB piece 'gameplan2', its available here:
http://www.boomkat.com/item.cfm?id=18232
http://www.juno.co.uk/ppps/products/186729-01.htm
http://www.amazon.co.uk
http://www.smallfish.co.uk

*There's a nice review of my SI-CUT.DB performance at MUTEK, Montreal in June here too: http://igloomag.com/doc.php?task=view&id=1038&category=features


DOWNLOADS A GO GO

* SI-CUT.DB & Tennis Bip Hop releases are now available at ITUNES http://www.itunes.com

* Just found 2 MATHIEU/BENFORD tracks still available FREE at http://www.fallt.com/+/vs/0002/index.html taken from the very wonderful 'und.and' CD Reciprocess v2 (Bip Hop/Fallt)


IN PROGRESS

* DRECK records have commission some SI-CUT.DB loops for their website; previous contributers include Sutekh, Janek Schaefer & Atom.tm
http://www.dreck-records.com

* Next up will be some post-production for ILLUMINATI a track called 'Phrenology'
http://www.lotta-continua.co.uk/illuminati.htm

* The infamous GRANNY'ARK/SI-CUT.DB project continues apace; strangley disco.


PERFORMANCES

SEPT 4 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live
Boston Manor Park festival, Brentford, London, UK
12pm-4pm info: douglas@benfo.demon.co.uk

SEPT 9/10/11 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live
Bestival festival, SENSE 3D stage, Isle of Wight, UK
http://www.bestival.net

SEPT 18 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB live (+ Portable & more) set time: 5.30-6.30pm
SENSE 3D @ London Electronica Festival,
Tate Modern Gardens, London, UK
http://www.thamesfestival.org

OCT 8 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB live, visuals by PIXELWRANGLER
+ Murcof, Stephan Mathieu, dj ip@bip-hop.com & more
Dis-patch, Belgrade, Serbia
plus presentation on '10 years of Sprawl' by d.benford
http://www.dis-patch.com
http://www.belgradeyard.com

DEC 22 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB live - the xmas one. tbc
Tallinn, Estonia

other performances in London and Budapest TBA


RADIO

SEPT 2 / 2005
SPRAWL'S SMALL PIECES SHOW presented by
Douglas Benford & Iris Garrelfs, midnight - 01:00
London time. On Resonace FM 104.4 fm and
streamed at
http://www.resonancefm.com

SEPT 23 / 2005
SPRAWL'S SMALL PIECES SHOW.
details as above, with special guest BRIAN O'REILLY
http://www.resonancefm.com

OCT 28 / 2005
SPRAWL'S SMALL PIECES SHOW.
details as above
http://www.resonancefm.com


MAY/JUNE 05 NEWS:

I am in a brief lull before the travelling chaos begins...so here goes:

MUTEK

* For those of you attending this year's 6th Edition of the Montreal Mutek festival, i will be performing a SI-CUT.DB set on the finale night, 5th june, (i will there 4th-6th if you want to say hello). There is also a Mutek compilation album alongside the festival, which will have the exclusive SI-CUT.DB track 'Gameplan2'. http://mutek.ca


'FROM TEARS'

* My new si-cut.db album 'From Tears: Beach Archive' on Bip Hop has been unleashed as you may or may not know, info at http://www.bip-hop.com (Iris Garrelfs debut is also out too). It consists of 11 new tracks, mastered by Twerk, plus a video collaboration with Pixelwrangler, sleeve design by me, with photos by artist Julia Hamilton & Pixelwrangler. Here is one of the many nice reviews: http://www.kultureflash.net/archive/122/default.htm#features
it can be bought at shops and
http://www.amazon.co.uk
http://www.play.com
http://www.smallfish.co.uk
http://www.warprecords.com/mart/
http://www.u-cover.com/mailorder/


INTERVIEW

* There is an interview with me going up on the June edition Canadian-based webzine (& review of 'From tears' i think) Textura. This is up 1st June at http://www.textura.org/archives/interviews/tenquestionssicutdb.htm


TRACKS/MISC

* Eric Frans has just recently updated my si-cut.db discography, for your perusal http://home.earthlink.net/~efrans/benford/sicut.html

* This years Synch festival in Greece has an brilliant line up (Fennesz etc); I played there last year, and those attending should look out for the Synch compilation with a short track SI-CUT.DB track on it 'regretful (edit)' http://www.synch.gr

* There is an exclusive SI-CUT.DB track, 'no tab', on the album free-to-download 'Crossways' wonderful Thinner net label, who also have available material by Vladislav Delay & the like. See:
http://www.thinnerism.com/releases.php?label=thn
http://www.thinnerism.com

* A SI-CUT.DB liveset and pretty odd photo of yours truly is also up at
http://www.studiobook.net/mambo/index.php?option=content&task=vie

* Sprawl, btw, will be back in September...to celebrate our 10th birthday next year, we have some nice plans, with more Interplays. This years Interplay 3 was phenomenally great, here are some memories of it: http://www.sprawl.org.uk/interplay.html


PERFORMANCES

* Here is a list of my upcoming performances (& the Small Pieces radio show of course)

JUNE 3 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live + Tomas Jirku (BackGround)
Fire Light Lullabies, JEWEL OF INDIA,
52 Alexander St. Vancouver, Canada
http://www.ambientalchemy.com/june3.htm

JUNE 5 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live
MUTEK 2005: 6th Edition: Montreal, Canada
http://mutek.ca

JUNE 10 / 2005
douglas benford and iris garrelfs present the
Sprawl Small Pieces radio show on Resonance FM
104.4 fm and net broadcast (24:00-1:00 bst)
http://www.resonancefm.com

JUNE 16 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live + John Chantler + Alexander Wendt
Nordstern/SoundLounge, Basel International Art Fair
Basel, Switzerland.
http://www.artbasel.com

JUNE 17 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live + Bernhard Fleischman (Morr Music) dj
Rhiz, Vienna, Austria
http://rhiz.org/

JUNE 20 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live
si-cut.db vs douglas benford 'wrestles-his-own-80s-
pop-history-to-the-ground-and-destroys-it-to-bits'
Bonnington Centre, upstairs at Bonnington Cafe
11 Vauxhall Grove, London SW8, UK

JUNE 29 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live + Tigrics
hive@ FACT, 88 Wood Street, Liverpool, L14DQ, UK
http://www.thehivecollective.co.uk
http://www.fact.co.uk

JUNE 30 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live + Tigrics
instore show, (free)
Smallfish Shop, 329 Old Street, London EC1V 9LE, UK
http://www.smallfish.co.uk/html/actual.asp

JULY 6 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB - live + Tigrics
Fontbar, Manchester, UK
http://www.fontbar.com/

JULY 8 / 2005
douglas benford and iris garrelfs present the
Sprawl Small Pieces radio show on Resonance FM
104.4 fm and net broadcast (24:00-1:00 bst)
http://www.resonancefm.com


LAST BULLETIN:

The SI-CUT.DB new year bulletin (january 2005)

Dear pals

Welcome to my occasional SI-CUT.DB news bulletin, with a slightly post-holiday slant as I recently completed a winter track for the Highpoint Lowlife label; read on...douglas benford

* Goodbye 2004:
Firstly, on global events, my thoughts go out to the victims and their families of the terrible Indian Ocean disaster.

For myself, looking back at things on musical level, this year I have felt my life has been very privileged, whilst having to catch my breath during the crazy ups and downs of my personal life.

* TRAVEL:
I have had an amazing times last year in (gulp): Greece, France, Canada, Russia, Belgium, Latvia, Scotland, England and Slovenia, including some great gigs alongside Pole, Thomas Fehlmann & Stephan Mathieu. As well as meeting some inspired musicians & making some inspirational new friends (hello Felix K., Granny Ark, Antonelli E., Donnacha C., Gavin S., Tuner, and countless others) in Vancouver, Lille, Athens & Tours, and being involved in the fantastic R-32 radio telescope project (http://www.virac.lv) near Riga; clambering about this old piece of Soviet hardware was amazing.
There was also Jem Finer's Longplayer project (http://www.longplayer.org.) For both these latter projects I constructed some pieces.

* RELEASES:
Especially heartwarming was the reception to my CDs 'Find Some Shade' (http://www.highpointlowlife.com/hpll006.shtml/), amazingly almost 4000 downloads of one of the tracks too, followed by 'Offices at Night' (volume 1, originals - now an http://www.fallt.com/offices/ ongoing project too, see below) and Reciprocess v2 (http://www.fallt.com/summit/index.html) with Stephan Mathieu, which has some our best work on... see below for more on these. see also http://www.bip-hop.com/
http://www.posteverything.com/artists/release.php?id=7274

* PROBABLY THE LAST SI-CUT.DB ALBUM for a while: 2 years in the making, my 2nd full Bip Hop album, 'FROM TEARS: BEACH ARCHIVE' (CD, http://www.bip-hop.com/) is about to be released. Twerk, aka Shawn Hatfield was on mastering duties. He wrote me 'Man, what a piece of work.' & Thanks to Philippe Petit @ Bip hop for his continuing. support in my creative endeavours. The album contains a short film 'Belonging', a collaboration with Vancouver-based Pixelwrangler (dir. Jon Anastasiades, http://www.pixelwrangler.ca).

* SPRAWL: Iris Garrelfs and I are proud to reach our 9th year of Sprawls, with a double whammy of birthday one on january 12th, then the 3rd Interplay 9-10th february, with a ridiculously good line up see http://www.sprawl.org.uk/EventFrame.htm. An Interplay compilation will be issued by the nascent Sprawl imprint, featuring the best of those previous live interplay collaborative sessions.

* NET/RADIO : Iris recently designed a nice new website for Sprawl, and now we also have a new site address http://www.sprawl.org.uk. In addition we recently joined forces with [no signal], slow sound system, Dfuse & Highpoint Lowlife to present the Small Pieces slot on fridays at midnight on Resonance FM 104.4 (http://www.resonancefm.com) - the best radio station in the world, easily.

* PEEL: A very sad thing last year was obviously the passing of John Peel, someone who I grew up listening to, who continually played my output (my teenage Wasp-synthesiser-fueled angst from 1980 onwards!) and I was chuffed to have him phone me up on a couple of occasions.


DOWNLOAD HEAVEN

* WINTER TRACK. a new si-cut.db track 'snow at night' is on Looking Back Ain't No Way Forward [ Xmas Compilation 2004 ] http://www.highpointlowlife.com/downloads.php The whole compilation is free, and a lovely thing it is too..

* STILL UP is my si-cut remix of a track ("Mates To Some Pilgrim") by Rashamon, free from Highpoint Lowlife again at: http://www.highpointlowlife.com/downloads.php (Am I allowed to like my own work this much?)

* FORGET YE NOT

There are some more SI-CUT.DB downloads (various) thru http://www.emusic.com, http://www.emusic.com/artist/11551/11551277.html and also Tennis 'FURLINES' downloads (includes remixes), http://www.emusic.com/artist/11551/11551278.html both released on http://www.bip-hop.com/


* NEW COMPILATION TRACKS - on CD

* The SI-CUT.DB remix of Pan/tone's 'Sans Adore' on Pan/tone double CD 'newfound urban calm' on Bip Hop [bleep 26/27] http://www.bip-hop.com available at http://www.warprecords.com/?section=mart

* RT-32 Acoustic.Space.Lab: Radio Astronomy DVD/CD just out has tracks constructed data from the VIRAC radio telescope I visited in Latvia. There are tracks by SI-CUT.DB, TENNIS, IRIS GARRELFS, SCANNER, kaffe matthews, rosy parlane + many more. See http://acoustic.space.re-lab.net, and http://rixc.lv


* FUTURE

* The wonderful free download label Thinner/Autoplate (who have released a Vladislav Delay EP) just commissioned a SI-CUT.DB track. 'No tab' will be available on a compilation also featuring Gustavo Lamas, Martin Jarl, Andreas Tilliander, Move D keep an eye on... TBA. http://www.thinnerism.com

* I recently did a very nice si-cut 'reconstruction' of some of Brighton-based cello player Bela Emerson's work (http://www.cellobela.com), from her album Kissing Nettles and this should be seeing the light of day in 2005.

* The SI-CUT.DB 'Offices at Night' album versions (vol 1, originals) was released by Fallt this year, (http://www.fallt.com/offices/ ) and versions 2 - a download project is already coming together with versions of my tracks (vol 2) by AKIRA RABELAIS, SEBASTIAN ROUX, MIKE COOPER, MOTION, MAPSTATION, IAN ANDREWS and T UM' already in. Volume 3 of Offices will be myself remaking the original (recorded in 2000) album vol 1 Artwork by Fehler.

* 2 new SI-CUT.DB tracks will appear on a 12" for the 1.8 label's locked groove project, together with 2 tracks by VENETIAN SNARES. http://www.1pt8.tk/

* Some SI-CUT.DB tracks have also been commissioned by the Greek Synch festival (http://www.synch.gr) and Glasgow's infamous Miso club (http://www.ilovemiso.com), each for new compilations linked to these events.


ANYONE FOR TENNIS?

Tennis = myself + Ben Edwards (aka Benge) of course.

* AS well as the new RT-32 CD (see above) which Tennis created a new track 'Soviet Military Rhodes,' implementing the Virac telescope audio recordings, the kptmichigan mix of 'debonair content' (Bip Hop) appears on a kptmichigan 'S/T' compilation to be released on Aesthetics. Details at
http://acoustic.space.re-lab.net
http://www.aesthetics-usa.com
http://www.bip-hop.com/

* New Tennis tracks recently recorded by Tennis due out also are 'rena's ribena' for TJ Norris's Trybryd Unmix project (http://www.tjnorris.net/home.htm) and Bip Hop Generation V8 (http://www.bip-hop.com/ ), 2 tracks: 'a guide to losing' & 'open sesame' - the latter using Linux code extracts spoken electronically (thanks to Adam Hyde)


COLLABORATIONS

* Other people I have tentative plans to work with in 2005 include Vancouver based Michelle Irving aka Granny Ark (featured on excellent The Corporation doc) who records for Zora Lanson (http://www.zoralanson.net); Stephan Mathieu again - we were both very happy with Reciprocess v +/ 2 - and also LA-basedtransmedia artist Naomi Spellman (http://34N118W.net.) As well as these, an extract of my 2003 live collaboration 'airport hell' with Marc Weiser (Rechenzenrum) from Interplay will also seeing the light of day on the Sprawl imprint.


MISC.

* There is a recent slightly tongue in cheek interview with my good self at
http://www.miscreat.com/forums/cms_view_article.php?aid=251

* A live SI-CUT.DB set recorded about a year, at the Spirit Of Gravity event at the Freebutt, Brighton, should be up at the this Lille-based website, alongside Portable etc shortly (er, once i send them the CD of it). See http://www.studiobook.net


2005 performances (jan - feb)

**
JAN 14 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB live
Bip_Hop night with DJ Philippe Petit
Bern (Reset electronic)

JAN 15 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB live
Bip_Hop night with DJ Philippe Petit
Delemont (SAS)

JAN 25 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB + Iris Garrelfs + Rashamon
Freebutt, Brighton
http://www.spiritofgravity.com

FEB 10 / 2005
SI-CUT.DB in collaboration with Stephan Mathieu.
INTERPLAY 2005, Spitz, London
http://www.sprawl.org.uk

previous news at eric's site
http://home.earthlink.net/~efrans/benford/