XV WROCLAW INDUSTRIAL FESTIVAL

The composer Vladimír Hirsch and the audio experimentalist Tom Saivon began working together as "Aghiatrias" in 1999, treating the undertaking as a form of diversion from their other joint initiative – the symphonic industrial project Skrol – and referring to the sounds created under this name as integrated music.  The group's compositions, whose essential principle is to attain a consonance of contemporary classical music with industrial and dark ambient genres, are filled with a rich assortment of sonic structures. In Aghiatrias's take on these two seemingly disparate aesthetics, they merge and attain complete sonic homogeneity, at the same time broadening their limits by entering entirely new territories of the sound art. Here, tonality turns into atonality, the classical music legacy transforms into post-industrial anarchy, while the orchestral sound meets noise-like soundscapes complemented by the mezzo-soprano of Martina Sanollova, who supports the project both in the studio and during live performances. 

Based in Hamburg, Asmus Tietchens is unquestionably one of the most important composers of contemporary avant-garde music. Interested in experimental music and musique concrètesince his very childhood, he started making his first compositions already in 1965, using all sorts of electronic instruments, synthesizers and tape loops. The music he creates cannot be pigeonholed within a single genre – virtually each of his compositions came into being through pursuit of the abstract idea of "absolute music" and came about as a result of a mathematical process of formal exercises and experiments carried out within strictly defined boundaries and sets of principles. Still faithful to the sonic experiments in the spirit of works by Karlheinz Stockhausen and other avant-garde classics, who also inspired many industrial music makers, he creates his own world where everything can be found – structures resembling primordial electronic music, sonic glitches, changeable rhythms, cathedral-like ambient sounds, or nostalgic melodies. Sam Tietchens states that his music has no message other than a purely aesthetic one, being created for a narrow audience, i.e. those who want music to deliver something more than just an easy listening experience.

Since 2004, the US artist Clay Ruby has been making music under the moniker Burial Hex. His compositions are difficult to pigeonhole, drawing on various, sometimes disparate, aesthetics and music genres. Here, radical and aggressive power electronics meets Tangerine Dreamesque space sounds and the feel of other electronic undertakings of the 70's of the 20th century; the orchestral tones of the organ resound against the backdrop of minimal techno inspired trance rhythms, while krautrock-like psychedelia merges with bleak ambient soundscapes. Burial Hex creates a dark atmosphere that contrasts with the sophisticated and sleek instrumentation, while the constant rhythms are interrupted by walls of chaotic noise. Ruby makes music drawing on many inspirations, not only of a sonic nature – from classical chamber music of the 19th century to industrial music; from Howard Phillip Lovecraft's stories to the feel of Italian horror films of the 70's; from Alejandro Jodorowski's surrealism to the grotesque of David Lynch; from Nietzsche's philosophy to the works of postmodern art.

Mark Crumby, a figure well-known and distinguished across the whole industrial genre, has been active since early 90's and known for both his solo output as Cathedra, Binary, or Dust Orchestra as well as work with bands including Konstruktivists, Oppenheimer MKII and Ghost Actor. All of the projects saw him exploring diverse territories of contemporary industrial-soaked and experimental electronic music. His latest incarnation is Codex Empire, where he presents his own virtuoso take on a merger of the industrial aesthetic and techno music. The project, which had its debut in 2015 in the form of an EP released by aufnahme + wiedergabe, was shortly recognised by both audiences and critics alike, putting it on a par with Ancient Methods, Raime, Demdike Stare or Haxan Cloak – other interesting projects combining measured beats with dark and noisy atmospheres. Codex Empire means heavy beats, constant rhythms and slow transformations – a fresh and energetic mixture of techno, post-punk and industrial sounds.

DAF – which stands for Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft – is a living legend. There are few groups in music history whose influence is equal to that of DAF, set up in 1978 by Gabi Delgado Lopez and Robert Görl – two enthusiasts determined to create something completely new, something that would rock the foundations of music to come. But for DAF, there would be no New German Wave as we know it today, with the famous promoter John Peel referring to them as the grandfathers of techno music. They are the actual pioneers of electropunk and an essential inspiration for numerous synthpop musicians. If it hadn't been for their contribution, a completely new genre combining features of industrial music and punk, i.e. EBM, would not have come into being. DAF is a group that looked far ahead into the future, being the direct link between avant-garde punk and electronic music. One cannot simply copy DAF's style – the pulsating synthesizer music with energy equal to that of the best among punk rock bands, the unsettling rhythmicity and distinctive and dense sound combined with original lyrics became the outfit's trademarks and an unattainable model for many other musicians. DAF is unquestionably one of the most important groups that came with the wave of the punk rebellion, one that even now, in the new century, can surprise us with its fresh and powerful sound.

Started DJing and promoting clubs and concerts in 1995. For over 20 years Eric has been integral to organising some of the most important underground clubs and concerts in Dublin namely The Tower and Finisterre. Concerts that have been promoted under the Tower Promotions banner: New Model Army, Front 242, Boyd Rice/NON, Sol Invictus, Blood Axis, Dive, The Levellers, Whitehouse, Job Karma, Der Blutharsch, Nosferatu, London After Midnight, Vendemmian, Spahn Ranch, Sieben, This Burning Effigy, Bain Wolfkind, Faith and the Muse etc. etc...
Eric has DJ'd at many international events and clubs: Schlagstrom festival, Wave Gotik Treffen Festival, Whitby Gothic Weekend, Duncker, Slimelight, Blutenrausch, Resurrection club, Semi resident DJ for Wroclaw Industrial Festival.
Eric is now based in Dresden, Germany and co organises the annual Tower Transmissions festival. In the last 6 years the festival has grown into one of the most respected festival in the Industrial field. Bands that have played at TT include Genocide Organ, Club Moral, Sutcliffe Jugend, Grunt, Consumer Electronics, IRM, Thorofon, Ramleh, Nordvargr, The New Blockaders, Nikolas Schreck, Bizarre Uproar, Brighter Death Now, and many many more.

Wiktor Skok - this name come to mind when you’re thinking: „Lodz’s underground”. Still present since the 80’s. Witnessed the decline of city's industry he became a true Stakhanov of bruitist music. Promoting numbers of D.I.Y. industrial electro parties, inviting bands and artists from abroad, organising punk shows in bunkers, warehouses tunnels and old factories he became one of the most active scensters of Poland’s underground. He promote machine culture and esthetics from the year zero. His discoteca output differs from pounding strong industrial beat, rhythm’n’noise, EBM just to electro punk and sweet ultra danceable electroclash. A great admirator of Expressionism and Film Noir, his musical tastes go from SPK, Esplendor Geometrico and Slogun by Front Line Assembly to John Foxx or Adult. Besides he is the singer of the most (in)famous polish industrial band Jude, publish his own zine Plus Ultra and try to make a living writing articles and revievs to some mags and actively DJing around. An explosive in an urban decay. 

The beginnings of FOLKSTROM – a project founded by Henrik Nordvargr, known for musical undertakings including Maschinenzimmer 412, Pouppée Fabrikk, Toroidh or Vargr – go back to the year 1999, since when he has been one of the most celebrated industrial projects hailing from Sweden. Over the years of its activity, Folkstorm has been continually evolving from the classical martial industrial aesthetic towards more sophisticated areas, merging rhythm-fuelled noise evoking the punk ethos with aggressive and energetic vocals. Despite all of those aesthetic shifts, the music of Folkstrom still remains a radical project. Regardless of whether one will label it martial or power electronics, and however much the albums differ from one another, each of them has this one common characteristic – an abundance of sounds mercilessly affecting the listener's all senses. This is, to put it simply, a brutal and primal force deprived of gentleness or calm. That is complemented by the lyrics shouted out by Björkk, also devoid of mercy, most often touching on the subject or war and giving a critical view on political ideologies.

The Greek-originated word "holotrop" (which may be translated into "striving for the whole"), was first used by the prominent Czech psychologist Stanislav Grof – the creator of transpersonal psychology and a pioneer of research into therapeutical applications of altered states of consciousness. The breathing method he developed and named holotropic enabled access to altered states of consciousness. The method combines deep and quickened breathing, as well as relaxation and music as supporting elements. It was his concept that inspired the name of the ritualistic psychedelic project of Toni Burner, a musician and sound therapist from Berlin, who draws on Grof's ideas, shamen's knowledge and his own trips, both in the real world and the psychedelic ones, as well as teachings of altered states of consciousness, to try using sounds and music to evoke visions in normal conditions unattainable by the human psyche. Thanks to the unique combination of sounds of electronic and acoustic instruments, Holotrop explores the boundaries between reality and dream, intellect and feelings, ecstasy and meditation.

It's impossible to use just a few sentences to give an in-depth description of the whole cultural and culture-shaping activity which Konrad Becker has for years been involved in. As early as since the 70's of the 20th century, this man of many talents hailing from Austria has been active in the field of electronic media as an interdisciplinary researcher, artist, author, composer, performer, curator, producer and organiser, fulfilling himself wherever the presence and impact of new media can be seen. As far as sound art is concerned, he has been remembered first as the originator of the legendary project Monoton, whose debut album Monotonprodukt07, released in 1982, is considered to be one of the most important records of the 20th century. Balancing on the boundaries of sound art, psychoacoustics and the contemporary dance culture, Becker's project has evolved over years, touching on a whole range of genres and undergoing many aesthetic changes. Monoton is not an ordinary music project – it's more of scientific and sonic exploration of the psychoactive properties of a minimal and monotonous sound with its psychosocial contexts.

Paweł Starzec's and Michał Turowski's project Mazut came into being in 2013, but over two years it chiefly consisted in hours of talk about the band's future sound. The original idea of recording live bass and drums was abandoned, while both musicians, who in the meantime were busy with their solo projects, combined their experiences to create a completely new musical concept of their duo. Mazut means an abundance of colourful effects, a toy keyboard, laptop, vintage radio receivers, dictaphones, magnetic tapes found among trash or bought at flea markets, a Unitra cassette player, samplers, synthesizers, drum machines, a four track cassette recorder, and a truckload of other gear. In their always improvised and thus unrepeatable pieces, the band members explore dark and musty territories of minimal beat music, where dirty and crude lo-fi acid techno intertwines with industrial feedback. All of this is spiced up with sampled text which adds to their sound's dark feel whatever it actually is – be it extracts from fairy tales, a speech by a war murderer, or a manipulative pep talk.

Founded as an initiative of Kim Larsen, the Danish project Of the Wand & the Moon is proof that there are still exceptional musicians who can breathe something new and fresh into the neofolk movement, by many hailed as fossilised, dead or, at best, eating itself – even more so when looking at the deluge of almost identical bands merely copying the genre's classics and one another. Each of the outfit's records has met with enthusiasm – both on the part of critics and audiences, while the album The Lone Descent released in 2011 was hailed a masterpiece on a par with the work by the masters of the genre such as Death In June, Current 93 or Sol Invictus. Songs by Of the Wand & the Moon can be thought of as model for the entire neofolk genre, delivering melancholic, multidimensional, acoustic music with lyrics drawing on heathen beliefs and traditions as well as rune motifs inherent in the work of other artists from this background and playing a significant role in the music, lyrics and the project's album artwork. Larsen's delicate voice tells stories of love and hate, betrayal and death, and life in all of its manifestations. 

Psychic TV came into being in the London borough of Hackney in 1982, when Genesis P-Orridge, encouraged by his friend Alex Fergusson of the punk band Alternative TV and initially reluctant, got back to active service to create new music following the disbanding of Throbbing Gristle in 1981. Six months after that, with another TG renegade Peter Christopherson on board, the original line-up of the new project crystallised. Already in the early phase of its existence, Psychic TV presented a highly innovative and invariably provocative music, merging elements of psychedelia and dance music with the industrial sound, for which Genesis coined the term "hyperdelic". Unquestionably, Psychic TV cannot be called an ordinary music group – it's closer to a conglomeration of artists fulfilling themselves in various areas of art, where music – as being in the foreground – is merely the most visible one. Psychic TV is first and foremost a phenomenon that – manifesting itself in diverse guises for over three decades – still invariably affects the minds of new generations, not only in terms of sound but also intellectually, mystically and psychedelically.

When discussing the Russian industrial scene, one cannot fail to mention Reutoff – one of the most prominent representatives of the genre from behind our Eastern border. Active already for nearly two decades, the project has developed its unique style, merging elements of dark ambient music, hypnotic percussion rhythms and really catchy melodies into a whole that is intelligently composed and harmonious in every respect.  Reutoff's music evokes an entire panopticon of border states of consciousness developing in the listener's mind. The decadence-soaked pieces are filled with a range of feelings and emotions entailing multiple dimensions – industrial rhythms are intertwined with melodies resembling classic waltz, the circus-like grotesque meets ambient sounds, while dreamy jazz swinging merges with dark and epic electronic music. Certainly, the project's place of origin is essential to its musicians – all of the members come from Reutov, a satellite town on the outskirts of Moscow. The artists, inspired by the space of the town and its vicinity – being of psychogeographical significance to them, unanimously admit that it is still stimulating them and kindling their creativity.

POGŁOS(REVERBERATION)
The film „Reverberation” comprises recordings of five music performances that took place in peripheral spaces of Silesia. The performances were held in temporary “non-places” of undetermined statuses. These areas became filled with unwanted music – unpleasant noise driven out of urban spaces. The premise behind the film project involved seeking new contexts for marginal sound; the consecutive segments-concerts made up a tale of man’s acting in a space, while the noise generated by the artists became a metaphor of man’s interference with the environment.  Screenplay, direction and editing: Radek Sirko duration: 40 minutes, year of release: 2015

Right after the screening - discussion with the director Radek Sirko.

musicians: Sebastian Harmazy (VILGOĆ), Sergei Khanolaynen (MAAAA), Dawid Kowalski (PURGIST), Konrad Materek (REZ EPO), Robert Skrzyński (MICROMELANCOLIÉ), Bartosz Zaskórski (MCHY I POROSTY)
cameras: Piotr Kopernok, Bartosz Królik, Grzegorz Łazuka, Natalia Pietsch, Dominik Ritszel, Mikołaj Syguda
technicians: Bartosz Odrobiński, Krzysztof Sokół

production manager: Joanna Plewnia

written, directed and edited by Radek Sirko

running time: 40 minutes

FREE ENTRY

No ideas, no changes, no development, no entertainment, and no remorse – is a manifesto underpinning the music of Vomir, a project of Romain Perrot, one of the creators and most important representatives of the harsh noise wall aesthetics. While most noise musicians strive to head for increasingly extreme solutions, i.e. play louder and louder and introduce more and more sudden changes and effects, Perrot tries to maximally simplify his music and creates a construction comprising static noise, interference, drones and acoustic creaks integrated into a uniform wall of monotonous sound. Vomir is not only a challenge mounted to the exclusively noise oriented aesthetic, which in this dimension is already reaching the limits of listenability – it is also extreme opposition to the mass culture and a choice consisting in withdrawal, isolation, and immersion in complete noise.  A wall of noise exists as long as the noise is complete, constant and thoroughly continuous, with no changes and fluctuations of the sound – this is how Perrot tries to create static noise resonating with him himself.