| Yokomono
- the Staalplaat Mono Erosive Surround Sound Installation.
Yokomono consists of 10 small car-shaped record players, a corresponding
set of FM radios and two mixing desks. The cars, known as "vinyl
killers," have been customised with wireless FM transmitters.
As they spin around the vinyl, they transmit their signal to
the FM radios tuned to a special Yokomono frequency. This transmission
is then mixed, edited and manipulated in real-time by members
of the Staalplaat Soundsystem.
Yokomono is a simple installation and may seem like nothing
more than a DJ set featuring 10 turntables. But each link in
the performance chain is subject to variation, adding chaos,
randomness and risk. First off, the "vinyl killers"
are monophonic and deliver very poor sound quality. Second,
their large size makes it hard to select which track is playing,
kind of like playing a turntable blindfolded. The real fun begins
when you realise the "killers" are battery-powered
and run at different speeds depending on the strength of their
batteries. As the performance develops, the "killers"
slowly die. Battery charge also affects FM transmission and
transmitting 10 channels at the same time further disturbs the
overall sound balance. A combination of these factors makes
the entire installation hard to control, which contributes to
Yokomono's uniqueness and charm.
For larger Yokomono installations, we hook the feed up to 200
radios. By arranging the radios into 10 groups, it becomes possible
to explore the architectural dimensions of the performance space.
Sometimes small radios are placed on a moving model train, which
drives thru the space and allows us to create a kinetic visual
and audible "map" of the Yokomono transmissions.
Yokomono has been performed in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Budapest,
Montreal, Moscow, Nante and St. Petersburg. Each time it is
presented in a different form to make best use of the location
and performance space.
we still consider Yokomono as work in progress. Next step will
be to add a wireless video component to the setup.
Yokomono discography
1. Second Yokomono 12" lock groove
record in crystal clear vinyl.
One side of this record the Staalplaat Soundsystem has made
55 loops of digital silence, the deterioration and damaging
will generate the sound. so we will play the sound that were
making, vinyl live so to say. For the other side we have invited
11 other artist to make 5 loops: Anton Nikkilä,
Charlemagne Palestine, Fennesz, fm3, Ignaz, Ilpo, Justin Bennett,
Michael von Hausswolff, Phill Niblock, Radian and Tim Hecker.
2. First Yokomono 12" lock groove
record in red vinyl,
Each side consist of 11 groups of 5 different loops. For one
side of this record Staalplaat Soundsystem has select loops
and for the other side we have invited: Freiband, Heimir
Bjorgulfsson, Jim O'Rourke, John Hegre, Kozo Inada, Danmarks
AEldste Sangskat onsker, Massimo, Nerve Net Noise, Pimmon, Radboud
Mens, Rechenzentrum.
More info on Yokomono
by Melanie Uerlings (she works for the Singuhr sound gallery
in Berlin), 06.01.2004 (in german)
Dutch transelation of the
text by Melanie Uerlings
Selected YOKOMONO shows
-Mono Erosive Surround Sound Installation "format 5
-signaturen elektronischer klangkunst with Pedro Bericat 01
July - 21 June, 2001 Berlin.
-Go Public' live set at club transmediale. 02 6 Feb. 2002 Berlin.
-Zeppelin sound art festival soundinstallation 26 Feb-3 March
2002 Barcelona.
-Speel Goed at 'Pitch-Mutating
Turntables', A Performance and installation at the Argos Festival
18 - 26 October 2002 Brussels.
-I.D.E.A.L festival at le lieu unique, a live
set with Massimo 21 March 2003 Nantes.
-Yokomono video presentation at the First New Media Art Festival
Thailand 28 March - 13 April 2003 Chiangmai.
- A Performance plus Installation in der Reihe
"soundart im VOXXX" 31 Mai -13 July 2003 Chemnitz.
- live at garage festival, with Carsten Stabenow 01 Aug. 2003
Stralsund
-Fluxfest live set with Radboud Mens at the Centraal museum
24 Okt 2003 Utrecht
-EARATIONAL 2004 festival
A Performance and a new Installation in ARTiS
from15 Feb till 28 March Hertogenbosch
Mutek Montreal-Yokomono- June 1 - till
5 2005
Detali Zvuka Festival Kiev-Yokomono Live set-May
7 2005
SKIF St. Petersburg/ DOM Moscow- 2Yokomono Live sets-April
21 & 24 / 27 2005
Soundbridges Festival Vienna/Ultrasound Fest Budapest-2
Yokomono Live sets -March. 23th & 25th 2005
The transmediale workspace at the House of World Cultures Berlin-Yokomono
Live set- January 30 2005
Netmage 05 performed at Cassero via Don Minzoni 18 Bologna-Yokomono
Live set - January 27 2005
Perss
I n German
1.Yokomono Mono Erosive Surround Sound format 5 : Berliner
zeitung
2. Yokomono Mono Erosive Surround Sound format 5: Die
Welt
3. Yokomono Mono Erosive Surround Sound format 5: TAZ
02-06-01
4. Yokomono Mono Erosive Surround Sound format 5: TAZ
20-06-01
In Dutch
1. ‘Tracks & Traces’ festival at Paradiso: haarlems_db
2. Tracks & Traces’ festival at Paradiso:
de groene
3. EARATIONAL 2004 festival a new yokomono Installation in ARTiS;
NRC
4 . EARATIONAL 2004 festival a new yokomono Installation in
ARTiS :Brabants
dagblad
5 . EARATIONAL 2004 festival a new yokomono Installation in
ARTiS Bossche_Omroep
6 . EARATIONAL 2004 festival a new yokomono Installation in
ARTiS :Stadsblad
7 . EARATIONAL 2004 festival a new yokomono Installation in
ARTiS :Vlucht Magazine
Thanks to:Tivoli PAL and Bral Reststoff-Bearbeitungs
GmbH for the radio's
With suport of:
PCS Electronics,
RAZY
WORKS, The Ernst Paul Lehmann Patentwerk (Nürnberg,
D) and the singuhr - hörgalerie
in parochial (Berlin, D). |
  yokomono
in chemnitz |
