NOSTATIC!
NOSTATIC!
MARTIN HALL
ESSAYS
OCTOBER 2012
GAFFA FORLAG (ISBN 978-87-90575-13-7)
Nostatic! is a book gathering Martin Hall’s most extensive essays about the (primarily) European music scene 1977–1984. The book is illustrated by the Danish painter and musician Knud Odde.
The title consists of twelve chapters, articles and essays about the genres punk, postpunk, goth, new romantic, industrial and spoken word that Hall wrote for the Danish music magazine GAFFA during 2011 in relation to a given occasion (such as a jubilee or a reunion of a band).
Martin Hall’s series of writings can be read as a coherent tale about the period and the music scene around 1980, a cultural happening that had great impact on the writer’s own life as a teenager.
Nostatic! is a journalistic enquiry that doesn’t merely present its reader to a line of portraits of bands and artists, but also unravels the influences and circumstances of the era through references to matters such as situationism, amphetamine, French lyricism and Satanism.
Genre: Essays (illustrated)
Pages: 232
Design: Katrine Skriver Christensen
Drawing: Knude Odde
“Martin Hall keeps a fine balance between his vast knowledge and his burning commitment. In short, he writes with style.”
( * * * * * )
Jyllands-Posten (Denmark’s biggest newspaper)
”Martin Hall writes well and appetizing. The book is unsentimental all the way through, interesting and the handling of the individual subjects is distinctly catching.”
( * * * * )
Politiken (the Danish equivalent to The Guardian)
“Outstanding essays: Even at the level of details the book is eminent.”
( * * * * * )
Fyens Stiftstidende (major regional newspaper)
IF POWER ASKS WHY
IF POWER ASKS WHY
ANDREA PELLEGRINI/TANJA ZAPOLSKI/MARTIN HALL
LP/CD
OCTOBER 2012
PANOPTIKON (OPTIK 25)
If Power Asks Why features a line of (at the time newly written) Martin Hall songs performed by the mezzo-soprano Andrea Pellegrini and the classical pianist Tanja Zapolski. The Danish avant-garde ensemble Lydenskab also appears on the recordings.
The album is produced by Martin Hall and the greater part of the songs is arranged by the internationally acclaimed violinist Alexander Zapolski.
1. Dead Horses on a Beach (5:32)
2. Rather Quotable than Honest (3:36)
3. MILFs, Cum and Schopenhauer (4:07)
4. A Garboesque Leaning (4:21)
5. Feeling like a God (4:11)
6. The Stench of Your Pity (5:00)
7. Hope Is a Lack of Information (5:29)
8. Notes on Self-Destruction (4:26)
9. If Power Asks Why (5:40)
DEAD HORSES ON A BEACH
Dead horses on a beach
Red starfish at my feet
This used to be the place
Where we would hide away
The mirrors of the streets
The cafes where we’d meet
All places in the past
Where we would hide away
I used to believe
That there would be a way
I used to believe
That I would find a way
To cure this pain
Dead letters make up words
Scar tissue seals the hurt
This used to be the place
Where we would hide away
I keep running to the shore
I keep calling out for more
Blood-driven to the sand
To see it wash away
Keep running to the shore
To try to see your face
Keep running to the shore
Still trying to find a way
To cure this pain
Life doesn’t cease to amuse just because people die or get crippled
Neither it stops being sad just because someone laughs
Someone sing me a song
Somebody tell me a joke
Make me cry, make me bleed
Make me wake up and see that this dream ain’t for real
All these suicidal wrecks
These aristocrats of death
Keep running to the shore with me
The bodies at my feet
The horses in my dreams
Somebody take them away
Dead horses on a beach
Red starfish at my feet
This used to be the place
Where we would hide away
Keep running to the shore
Keep calling out for more
Blood-driven to the sand
To see it wash away
RATHER QUOTABLE THAN HONEST
Like a beacon in the gutter
Simulation’s your ideal
Rather quotable than honest
Seems to be the way you live
You tell me women fake their orgasms
Men entire relations
Well, I couldn’t really give a damn ‘bout your moral indignation
It’s a sign of constipation
Some Darwinian frustration
You apply divine intention
To your spontaneity
Even add a little reason
To the lack of sanity
You tell me women base their promises
Entirely on emotions
Well, you’re such a great authority
In all your self-indulgence
You’re so stupid it’s insulting
Even your clothing is revolting
Pardon my French
But you’re too lazy to be a nihilist
At best you’ll make a travesty
A tragedy that needs to be unzipped
You’re a male, but you’re a cunt
Second only to no one
Yea right, well take advice
The only thing that alcohol does not preserve for long is the state of dignity
I raise my hand
To swear a sacred oath, to make a toast
For wasted times, for blinded eyes
For tragedies and suicides
Yet the ride was my delight
It’s the story of my life
Oh God, I need advice
Yet, Freedom! yet thy banner, torn, but flying streams like a thunderstorm against the wind
MILFS, CUM AND SCHOPENHAUER
What a wonderful mixture of glamour and pain
In a room with the rich and the famous, the useless and vain
People reading each other like price tags, oh what a game
First the artist’s a painter that drinks, then a wino that paints
Give me MILFs and cum and Schopenhauer any day of the week
Give me white bread and dark beer to avoid more of this
Luciferian figures and shemales wherever you go
Plastic spoons on a table that’s covered with traces of snow
Someone lights up a swaggering reefer, look at him choke
Hear the sound of your brain cells go “pop” by the smell of the smoke
Better check the urban dictionary, the guy is out of hand
His excitement and vocabulary need coordinated plans
Remember that song
They used to play everywhere we went
At airports, in homes
From Zurich to Munich
Girls pulling off their panties
Yet they don’t
They leave you all on your own
Begging for mercy at the throne of the poster stand
From barbarity to decadence at incredible speed
Skip the whole state of civilization to suit current needs
Such a marvellous scientific study, it’s such a relief
‘Cause it proves what I’ve known all along:
That everyone – else – is a hypocrite
A GARBOESQUE LEANING
What a Garboesque leaning towards seclusion
What a glorious way to believe in yourself
What an elegant way to uphold your composure
Such erratic behaviour all veiled in a mist
Sliding down rainbows
Pale moons keep rising
Tongue-tired conversing
In Saturn draped autumns
No more kitchen sink dramas or sweet temptations
No more coloured belief in the way that you liked
All this Vaseline might get it on, but it’s filthy
It’s the caricature of a heart made of gold
Sliding down rainbows
Pale moons keep rising
Tongue-tired conversing
In Saturn draped autumns
Good-looking boys on runaway trains
Hiding their hard-ons with the same old phrase
Still cracking cheeks with wildfire smiles
Suggested behaviour in lingerie styles
There were bags and mags and crazy stuff
We drank some wine and we laughed a lot
We talked about all the glamour and pain
First Lana Turner and then Cheryl Crane
What a Garboesque leaning towards seclusion
What a glorious way to believe in yourself
What an elegant way to uphold your composure
Such erratic behaviour all veiled in a mist
Sliding down rainbows
Pale moons keep rising
FEELING LIKE A GOD
What is not worth saying is what you sing about
What is not worth believing is what you rant about
A failed suicide, you can’t get much lower than that
What is revenge but love caught with its trousers down
Can’t say that you love someone
Then rape them all ferociously
Yet that’s what people do all the time
Forgiveness might appear a little too extravagant
Behaving like a pig while feeling like a god
Feeling like a god
Better to be hated for all of the things you are
Than appreciated for what you are not
Oh vanity, it’s the uncertainty of arrogance
All very cultural, ’cause really nothing’s going on
Can’t say that you love someone
Then rape them all ferociously
Yet that’s what people do all the time
Forgiveness might appear a little too extravagant
Behaving like a pig while feeling like a god
Feeling like a god
What is the perfect pleasure?
Exquisite in its nature
Yet it never satisfies you
Scratch in the surface, you’ll only find a little more
Is there a difference – artist, criminal or whore?
A sympathetic worn-out understanding of living
Won’t get you anywhere, not anywhere at all
Yet you’re feeling like a god
THE STENCH OF YOUR PITY
Don’t make me suffer the stench of your pity
Don’t make me suffer the sound of your voice
Don’t make me embarrassed on behalf of your conscience
Don’t make me offer you any way out
You made me feel so obsolete
You made me feel so incomplete
Half socialite, half necrophile
You only desire what you despise
So absent-minded it seems contemplative
So absent-minded it seems all profound
Convincing the public of your noble nature
Taking advantage of naïve rebounds
Dove of delight, pigeon of peace
Relieving yourself on all you meet
All high and dry, up in the sky
The smell of your piss all over me
HOPE IS A LACK OF INFORMATION
Hope is a lack of information
A spirit of temptation
A flicker inside of each heart
Even though you don’t believe it
Still you’re goaded on to seek it
Revolted by all of its claims
Hope is the absence of summation
Disregarded calculations
A whimper inside of your heart
Though you might want to believe it
It will fail you when you need it
Someone is said to have died for the sake of your lies
Well, be my guest – what a feast, what an armoured belief
Bring out your credos and songs, your perverted mischief
All these excessive delights make you cry like a child
I need to see nothing else than the look in your eyes
It’s so pathetic, my God, it makes me puke at the sight
What does it do to you?
Making a fool of you!
Look what it does to you
Where is the love – and the beauty, the truth we all seek?
But in the mind of the stupid, the feeble and weak
It makes me sick to my stomach, my bones and my core
To see you drool in delusion while begging for more
To see you high as a kite on sedated beliefs
Just a sick little junkie in search of relief
Don’t lay your hands on me!
Hope is leprosy!
Stay away from me
Filthy leprosy
Hope is a lack of information
A mere interpretation
A flicker inside of your heart
NOTES ON SELF-DESTRUCTION
Self-destruction remains
The quickest way to regain
Control over your destiny
It’s so blatantly clear
Give me a rule and I’ll break it
Show me a fool and I’ll shake ’im
Erratic censorship rules
An angry ass ridicules
Time to burn off some fuel
Do-re-mi-pla-ce-bo
Baby, mama, girl, ho
Could you please make up your mind?
Your metaphorical ass kicking is going nowhere
It’s surely not as in Santa comes to town
It’s all men imitating women
Women imitating men
People are imitating other people’s lives
Without the caricature of yourself where would you hide?
I’m gonna tear your playhouse down
So whenever in pain
Self-destruction’s the game
You’ll fake your way into history
Though you’re only a parody
It’s all a matter of spleen
Of downright dirt, be obscene
There ain’t no easy way out
You rave and twist and you shout
Gonna go down real loud
Do-re-mi-pla-ce-bo
Baby, mama, girl, ho
Could you please make up your mind?
Your metaphorical ass kicking is going nowhere
It’s surely not as in Santa comes to town
It’s all men imitating women
Women imitating men
People are imitating other people’s lives
Without the caricature of yourself where would you hide?
I’m gonna tear your playhouse down
Let’s turn the light off now
Let’s pass the night on now
In just a little while
We’ll reach the midnight hour
IF POWER ASKS WHY
If power asks why
Then power is weakness
If silence is shy
Then silence is cheap
For so long
I’ve seemed to manage this role
Consider
How do you short-circuit control?
High status women
And narcissistic men
Articulated
They do it all again
Salon des Refusés
Depressingly out of date
If power asks why
Then power is weakness
If power abides
Then power is lost
To conquer
You need to silence the prey
Relentless
There’s nothing left here to betray
A lover’s rental
Don’t get too serious
If sentimental
You’ll get delirious
Salon des Amateurs
Such a despicable waste
A vague embarrassment at play
Profound desires came too late
Cosmetic changes all the way
The comfort zone of silent hate
A female victim once again
Innocence caught by the male gaze
Such an ambiguous display
Enacted by a renegade
She’s nodding tentatively towards you
Recalling how she once adored you
She’s running out of social graces
She’s running out of fitting phrases
A figure carved out by uncertainty
It’s the veneer of jaded hostility
Just an illumined hunger admiring itself
She’s out of breath
“Excellent melodic material and brilliant arrangements … a great success from start to finish.”
( * * * * * )
Gaffa (Denmark’s biggest music magazine)
”Martin Hall brilliantly stages mezzo-soprano Andrea Pellegrini and pianist Tanja Zapolski in a masquerade of classical lieder and perverted pop.”
Information (the Danish equivalent to The Independent)
“A masterly performed principal work!”
P6 Beat (Danish National Radio)
”Fantastic! An incredibly good record.”
DR2’s Smagsdommerne (the weekly cultural recommendations on Danish National Television)
”A deliciously decadent universe.”
Berlingske Media
”Pellegrini’s warm and enchanting voice has the capacity to melt icebergs.”
Politiken (the Danish equivalent to The Guardian)
”Give yourself the opportunity to be amazed and get this release.”
Tempelores
”Genuinely thrilling … Give it a chance, it’s definitely worth it.”
Santa Sangre Magazine
“Unique.”
Heathen Harvest
“Gorgeous … This is not something you want to miss.”
Brutal Resonance
Nominated for The Danish National Radio’s P2 Award 2013
Andrea Pellegrini: Mezzo-soprano
Tanja Zapolski: Piano
Alexander Zapolski: 1st violin
Anja Zelianodjevo: 2nd violin
Grigoriy Khodos: Viola
Mette Spang-Hanssen: Cello
Ida Bach Jensen: Couble-bass and strings
Thea Vesti Pedersen: Acoustic guitar
Eskild Skovbakke Winding: Percussion, harmonium and percussive piano
Johnny Stage: Electric guitar, mandolin, autoharp and sitar
Ketil Duckert: Trumpet and flugelhorn
Hans Nybo: Bassoon
Martin Hall : Music box, tapes and details
Design: Kenneth Schultz
Photo: Robin Skjoldborg
If Power Asks Why is a series of piano-based “hybrid lieder”, songs all characterized by a high degree of sombre drama – titles such as ”MILFs, Cum and Schopenhauer”, ”Rather Quotable than Honest” and ”Hope is a Lack of Information” might serve to illustrate the lyrical nature of the project.
In terms of content the listener is presented to a collection of passionate objections against the cultural imperatives of our times, in particular any kind of standardised parameter of desire. The album probably contains some of Martin Hall’s most exuberant lyrical work ever.
Andrea Pellegrini is one of Denmark’s most praised and awarded younger mezzo-sopranos. Tanja Zapolski has likewise gained great positive attention as a concert pianist performing with most Danish symphony orchestras. Hall and Pellegrini have earlier collaborated on albums such as Camille (2002), Das Mechanische Klavier (2004) and Hospital Cafeterias (2009), whereas it is the first time Hall works with Zapolski.
If Power Asks Why was released as vinyl-lp as well as cd and received production grants from Danish Arts Foundation (Statens Kunstfonds Tonekunstudvalg), Danish Actors’ Association (Dansk Skuespillerforbund) and Danish Musicians’ Union (Dansk Musikerforbund).
The album was nominated for the Danish National Radio’s P2 Award 2013.
“Excellent melodic material and brilliant arrangements … a great success from start to finish.”
( * * * * * )
Gaffa (Denmark’s biggest music magazine)”Martin Hall brilliantly stages mezzo-soprano Andrea Pellegrini and pianist Tanja Zapolski in a masquerade of classical lieder and perverted pop.”
Information (the Danish equivalent to The Independent)“A masterly performed principal work!”
P6 Beat (Danish National Radio)”Fantastic! An incredibly good record.”
DR2’s Smagsdommerne (the weekly cultural recommendations on Danish National Television)”A deliciously decadent universe.”
Berlingske Media”Pellegrini’s warm and enchanting voice has the capacity to melt icebergs.”
Politiken (the Danish equivalent to The Guardian)”Give yourself the opportunity to be amazed and get this release.”
Tempelores”Genuinely thrilling … Give it a chance, it’s definitely worth it.”
Santa Sangre Magazine“Unique.”
Heathen Harvest“Gorgeous … This is not something you want to miss.”
Brutal ResonanceNominated for the Danish National Radio’s P2 Award 2013
VODKA AND VENERATION
VODKA AND VENERATION
Report by Sara Indrio in relation to Martin Hall’s performance at The Podlasie Opera in Białystok, Poland (June 2012)
Sara Indrio is a Danish-Italian actor, singer, songwriter and percussionist. Her solo works feature several critically acclaimed album releases. During the years she has worked with Martin Hall on several occasions, so although she doesn’t work as a session musician anymore, she agreed to be part of his ensemble at his live performance at the Polish opera house The Podlasie Opera in Białystok in June 2012. This is her report from the tour.
“In Białystok, Poland, there is a new festival called Halfway presenting songwriters of all kinds and all nationalities. In the midst of the serious task of playing Martin Hall’s avantgarde music, I found the great discovery of the attributes of plain bison grass vodka, the genuine veneration for the non-conform and the reminder that there are other currencies than money and some values that cannot be bought.”
I don’t really do session gigs any more. But legendary Martin Hall called and I knew from the ten years I have played with him on and off, that in his vicinity nothing is ever conform. And what are the chances of visiting Białystok in Poland … few in my case. So I joyfully accepted and didn’t regret it for a moment.
The preparations
Every time I come back into a rehearsal room it’s as if time has stood still. It is a mixed feeling of boredom, excitement and natural affinity. But working for Martin puts things in perspective for me as a bandleader and reminds me of things I can do better in my role as such. But then and there I was wonderfully free of responsibility, and I must say, ego. There was no other part for me to play but to fulfil the role as a sideman. Alas had my “chops” only been like in the old days! Martin decided to choose a set containing mostly of fluent, ethereal landscapes that underlined the lyrics instead of being musical structures like we are used to in pop-music. I liked his choice and found it bold. He is a non-conformer which was reflected on the trip.
The trip
Martin is absurdly meticulous. Everything is planned down to the smallest detail and in a radius of 360 degrees. Itinerary, flights, luggage, gear, where to play a bell stroke, set list, lyrics, food and of course his own performance, that I have never seen falter. Naturally, this can cause a certain nervousness since so much has a chance of not turning out exactly as planned. It did, though. And to Martin’s great astonishment we arrived safe and sound to Warsaw, with all the luggage and equipment in place, to the warm but nervous welcome of Rafal, one of Martin Hall’s most devoted fans. We drove for three hours until we reached our destination. The short stretch of road gave the image of a country with poverty and struggle but on the other hand the authenticity of the unspoiled. A romantic vision perhaps …
The fan
Let me tell you, that music may not pay well in money but it pays in other currents. The warmth and hospitable feeling Rafal radiated was touching and unforgettable. For two years he had been working to get Martin Hall to Białystok. And if that is not already sounding absurd, my dear reader, let me elaborate:
The place
Surrounded by farmland and beautiful national parks, Białystok is a town in Poland near the border of Belarus and Lithuania. With its app. 160.000 inhabitants it belongs to the category of many small central eastern European cities that are easily overlooked. Never the less Białystok has traditionally been one of the leading centres of academic, cultural, and artistic life in the Podlasie region in which it is placed. Did you know it among others bred L. L. Zamenhof, the creator of Esperanto, and Albert Sabin, the co-developer of the polio vaccine?
The festival
So Rafal comes from this town and loves intellectual music with an affinity for darkness and passion and in particularly that of Martin Hall. What are the odds of bringing him to Białystok? Here, on Sundays people queue for mass and the jukebox displays the usual and absurd mix of Beyoncé and Local Heavy Rock. So maybe in a weird fashion not so strange after all, come to think of it. But in any case, Białystok lives up to its reputation of being a city with a cultural streak. Volunteers have made a festival called Halfway that present local and international songwriters in the Podlasie Opera House. Rafal saw a window of opportunity and infatuated everyone behind the festival with his love for Martin Hall. As it turns out, Rafal too, is a non-conformer … So we came. We played. And Rafal was in tears.
The afterparty
One more good thing to say about the place was the vodka. In case you haven’t had been drunk on Zubrowka you have something in store. Don’t know of it’s the bison grass in there that does the trick … I spoke fluently French with the Sebastien Schuller band, although I can’t, and hosted the two m2 dance floor for hours. And the best part? I was not hung over!
The return
So I returned to Copenhagen with this trip to add to my bag of fond memories: Such warmth of heart from these people struggling, with no pay but much gain, to bring the world to their little town. A bandleader who delivered an outstanding performance after hours of conversing and keeping track of everything, (not mention the lack of sleep and long travelling hours) and a great musical experience with an almost all girls band. I will try and book a concert for my own band next spring at the Halfway. For you that may not have a chance of coming, seek a chance to hear Alina Orlova and remember that incredible things do happen. I will.
Rehearsal photo taken by Johnny Stage. Concert performance captured by Dominik Kukliński and supplied by kind permission of The Podlasie Opera (Opera i Filharmonia Podlaska – Europejskie Centrum Sztuki). Travel photo featuring Johnny Stage and Sara Indrio (with Hall in the background) taken by Ida Bach Jensen.
PERFORMING APART
PERFORMING APART
MARTIN HALL/TONE
CD
FEBRUARY 2012
REPLIKA (REP 02 )
Performing Apart is a high quality event recording Martin Hall and the Danish electronica act Tone.
The two otherwise unrelated artists collaborated at a concert performance during the Apart Audio-Visual Festival at Platform 4 (Aalborg, Denmark) in September 2009, an arrangement at which names like Goodiepal, Jacob Kierkegaard and White Pony also performed.
1. Introduction (8:46)
2. Devastating Irony (3:51)
3. Pierrot Declining (1:58)
4. Version 8 (8:40)
5. Metabolism at Work (5:31)
6. Eroded Foil (5:14)
7. GFY (1:35)
8. Serienummer (3:53)
9. Explosure (4:02)
10. Yeux d’Océan (6:32)
“An absolutely exciting musical experience.”
( * * * * )
Gaffa – Ole Rosenstand Svidt (September 2009)
“The German recitations, the magnificent opera pieces and the small crackling curls – the sounds blend in and out of each other in a kind of interplaying electronic improvisation that somehow all melts together into a higher form.”
Geiger – Mads Kampp Christiansen (November 2009)
“This is not an album packed with radio hits, and if you know the two names behind the release, this probably won’t come as a surprise. What you get is an hour of atmospheric and mood-filled music which comes around most corners in the emotional register.”
( * * * * )
Gaffa – Ras Bolding (February 2012)
“Striking soundscapes, fragments of speech and at times actually “real” music: Performing Apart is tailor-made for the listener to wear headphones, close their eyes and fold out their ears.”
( * * * * )
Lydtapet – Peter Krogh (February 2012)
“You don’t have to be a neither a connoisseur or a aficionado to realize Martin Hall’s monumental significance to Danish avant-garde culture … the album becomes neither too monotonous nor too fragmented.”
( * * * * )
Undertoner – Jeppe Jørgensen (March 2012)
“Performing Apart is a complex game with sound landscapes and not least with the limits of what music is and can be … a tour de force in electronic audio play. It’s beautifully conceived.”
Geiger – Gudrun Hagen (March 2012)
Martin Hall: Vocals, electronics
Sofie Nielsen: Vocals, electronics
Herbert Zeichner: Pre-recorded recitation
Design: Kenneth Schultz
Photo: Territorium
Performing Apart features equal amounts of online adaptation of original source material and live performance. The sound quality on the album is extraordinary good and the material features fragments from both artists’ former productions as well as a couple of new tracks.
During the performance at the Apart Audio-Visual Festival Kristian Ravn-Ellestad contributed with the visual part of the concert.
PERFORMING APART
PERFORMING APART
MARTIN HALL/TONE
CD
FEBRUARY 2012
REPLIKA (REP 02 )
Performing Apart is a high quality event recording Martin Hall and the Danish electronica act Tone.
The two otherwise unrelated artists collaborated at a concert performance during the Apart Audio-Visual Festival at Platform 4 (Aalborg, Denmark) in September 2009, an arrangement at which names like Goodiepal, Jacob Kierkegaard and White Pony also performed.
1. Introduction (8:46)
2. Devastating Irony (3:51)
3. Pierrot Declining (1:58)
4. Version 8 (8:40)
5. Metabolism at Work (5:31)
6. Eroded Foil (5:14)
7. GFY (1:35)
8. Serienummer (3:53)
9. Explosure (4:02)
10. Yeux d’Océan (6:32)
“An absolutely exciting musical experience.”
( * * * * )
Gaffa – Ole Rosenstand Svidt (September 2009)
“The German recitations, the magnificent opera pieces and the small crackling curls – the sounds blend in and out of each other in a kind of interplaying electronic improvisation that somehow all melts together into a higher form.”
Geiger – Mads Kampp Christiansen (November 2009)
“This is not an album packed with radio hits, and if you know the two names behind the release, this probably won’t come as a surprise. What you get is an hour of atmospheric and mood-filled music which comes around most corners in the emotional register.”
( * * * * )
Gaffa – Ras Bolding (February 2012)
“Striking soundscapes, fragments of speech and at times actually “real” music: Performing Apart is tailor-made for the listener to wear headphones, close their eyes and fold out their ears.”
( * * * * )
Lydtapet – Peter Krogh (February 2012)
“You don’t have to be a neither a connoisseur or a aficionado to realize Martin Hall’s monumental significance to Danish avant-garde culture … the album becomes neither too monotonous nor too fragmented.”
( * * * * )
Undertoner – Jeppe Jørgensen (March 2012)
“Performing Apart is a complex game with sound landscapes and not least with the limits of what music is and can be … a tour de force in electronic audio play. It’s beautifully conceived.”
Geiger – Gudrun Hagen (March 2012)
Martin Hall: Vocals, electronics
Sofie Nielsen: Vocals, electronics
Herbert Zeichner: Pre-recorded recitation
Design: Kenneth Schultz
Photo: Territorium
Performing Apart features equal amounts of online adaptation of original source material and live performance. The sound quality on the album is extraordinary good and the material features fragments from both artists’ former productions as well as a couple of new tracks.
During the performance at the Apart Audio-Visual Festival Kristian Ravn-Ellestad contributed with the visual part of the concert.
PIONEERS WITHOUT A PURPOSE
PIONEERS WITHOUT A PURPOSE
MAGAZINE
JANUARY 2012
GAFFA (ISSN 1901-2624)
In relation to the 30th anniversary of the English post-punk act Crawling Chaos’ debut album The Gas Chair Martin Hall wrote an exclusive essay about the group for Gaffa, Denmark’s biggest music magazine.
The article was part of a series of features that Hall wrote about the British music scene 1977–1984 for Gaffa during 2011 and 2012.
You can find a pdf version of the article here:
THE SOUND OF A LONG GONE EUROPE
THE SOUND OF A LONG GONE EUROPE
MAGAZINE
NOVEMBER 2011
GEIGER (ISSN 1600-8871)
In relation to the 30th anniversary of the Scottish singer, poet and filmmaker Richard Jobson’s spoken word album The Ballad of Etiquette Martin Hall paid homage to the artist with an extensive essay about the man and his art to Danish connoisseur magazine Geiger (#21).
During the eighties Jobson recorded a line of spoken word records on the legendary Belgian label Les Disques du Crépuscule on which he reworked several stories of the French writer Marguerite Duras (1914–1996). It is particularly the literary aspect of Jobson’s artistic endeavours that Hall focuses on in the article.
You can find a pdf version of the essay here:
FILOSOF/DIGTER/MALER
FILOSOF/DIGTER/MALER
VARIOUS ARTISTS
DVD
OCTOBER 2011
GYLDENDAL (9788702118940)
Filosof/Digter/Maler is a dvd-release that gathers three films made by the Danish film director Claus Bohm made in 1996, 2000 and 2003 – the films Filosof (“Philosopher”), Digter (“Poet”) and Maler (“Painter”).
The music for Digter is written and recorded by Martin Hall. The film is a portrait of ten Danish poets who had their debut during the 1990’s.
Digter features the following artists: Nicolaj Stochholm, Naja Marie Aidt, Niels Lyngsø, Annemette Kure Andersen, Morten Søndergaard, Karen Marie Edelfeldt, Janus Kodal, Katrine Marie Guldager, Christian Dorph and Lene Henningsen.
FILOSOF / DIGTER / MALER
FILOSOF/DIGTER/MALER
VARIOUS ARTISTS
DVD
OCTOBER 2011
GYLDENDAL (9788702118940)
Filosof/Digter/Maler is a dvd-release that gathers three films made by the Danish film director Claus Bohm made in 1996, 2000 and 2003 – the films Filosof (“Philosopher”), Digter (“Poet”) and Maler (“Painter”).
The music for Digter is written and recorded by Martin Hall. The film is a portrait of ten Danish poets who had their debut during the 1990’s.
Digter features the following artists: Nicolaj Stochholm, Naja Marie Aidt, Niels Lyngsø, Annemette Kure Andersen, Morten Søndergaard, Karen Marie Edelfeldt, Janus Kodal, Katrine Marie Guldager, Christian Dorph and Lene Henningsen.