In early days, I had no idea how noise could be played live. Then I saw Con-Dom, and though yeah, playback the noise from tape and few additional sounds and vocals and that's it. Well, it worked for couple shows. almost 10 years ago made decision to start actually doing it live. At first I didn't know what exactly was necessary to get sound right. Synth and couple samples didn't turn out very good from clean PA sound. I moved into using sampler. Where sound would be what I wanted and could manipulate length of songs and effects/adjustments of loops. At some point thought this is too safe. Too much just standing with everything relying on pre-prepared sounds. Changed ideas into simple set of making all live with minimal gear, based on feedback and metal junk and loops made on the spot. Later realized this was ok for 10-15 minutes, but to do decent 20-30 minutes set, it couldn't be just all random. Returned to sampler. And occasionally mixes of everything above.
After peforming row of shows in short period of time in Finland and sweden, I thought this is it. With the ideas and gear, I've done what can be done, and if I'm to perform live again as Grunt, it should be something new what won't have just routine methods and sounds.
I like live noise to great extent, but my problem is often the lack of visual stimulation. I'm all for video background and action, yet the most wanted would be to be able to see straight connection of action & sound. Where it's not just guy standing on stage and sound happening regardless. Be it ipod playback. Sampler. CDR. Lap-top. To be able to see that when someone does THIS, it causes THAT. Which means basically physical objects & instruments, where perhaps even exaggerated moves and tools are the key elements. And that artists also have the technical know-how, where they can make it work. Nothing more embarressing to watch, that guys with all the gear and shit on stage, and can't get anything audible. Clean acoustic sounds from stage, not captured into any of the gear...
Examples of good noise would be like pre-backing tapes Prurient. Where basically 2 microphones, extreme feedback and vocals would create extremely intense noise. Emil Beaulieau, where turntable, contact-mic+distortion pedal and few other things including goofy theatrical action where you simply can follow the creation of noise on the spot. Hater, where it depends on the show, but stripped down focus on specific thing, grinding the mic or whatever, where result of action and sound is direct. Schimpfluch Gruppe - 5 years ago or something, body action, contact mics, creaking wooden chairs being smashed on stage. Putrefier - with the noiseguitar type instrument abuse and instense pedal works. Incapacitants, with full on noise bliss, where everything just attacks on you. Sound and physical action. Bizarre Uproar, where loops created on spot, broken glass, metal objects and performance/action at its best is seamless solid piece of filthy art. Government Alpha, where despite the chaospad/row of pedals type of set up, his touch & its results in sound seems totally controlled at finest quality. Keränen, who's the master of taking creaky and junky noise sounds, often small but very "concrete" things. You see speaker element on table, where contact mic is bouncing on top of it as result of violent feedback. It's creates direct visual connection of the sound, equipment, ideas and how it interacts with artist. Lasse Marhaug with his "bass-mic whip". Manic Depression doing his modified walkman tape noise performance. Small Cruel Party doing sound installation, where underwater microphones in bowls full of liquids, stones, bubbling medicine pills... DSM playing sets with simply contact mics and toys & tools that make mechanical resonating sounds,...............
List could go on and on and on.. and then I think of the guy, who is there with sampler. And all you see is the pushing loop on. And later off. Or same with lap-top. Or CDR player.
I know some material is just impossible to re-create on stage as it should be, without some sort of playback options. But this is the kind of thing what personally has been obstacle for my own motivation to perform lately. Difficulty of getting enough equipment if playing outside your own region. Settling for some sort of substitutes & quick solutions. Ending up doing very easy, very routine job. Even if that's not audiences view and perhaps its something they haven't seen or hear, if you can't be personally satisfied, it doesn't seem ideal situation, but something requiring new approach. Especially escaping your own ideas of how live show should present your work would be essential.
I can appreciate good sound with nothing else. But the reality in most parts of world simply is, that live show somewhere with crowds of drunken misfits, it needs to be loud, direct and physical. If its something what requires to sit down in quiet, there isn't probably that much possibilities. When I saw John Wiese play in Finland, he did it well. It was very nicely played with lots of stereo tricks and on-stage sound manipulations with contact mics etc. No really action, so if there would have been chairs and more... ehm.. academic feeling instead of rock club, perhaps it would have been even better.
