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Biography
Infobox musical artist |name = :zoviet*france:|image =|caption =|image_size =|years_active = 1980& ndash;present|origin = Newcastle upon Tyne , UK |genre = Dark ambient , post-industrial music|post-industrial , industrial music|industrial , ambient music|ambient |label = Charrm , Red Rhino Records , Staalplaat , DOVentertainment , Soleilmoon |background = group_or_band|website =|associated_acts = Reformed Faction , Rapoon , Dead Voices on Air |current_members = Ben Ponton Mark Warren|past_members = Andy Eardley Lisa Hale Mark Spybey Paolo Di Paolo Peter Jensen Robin Storey Zoviet France (also known as :$OVIET:FRANCE: , Soviet France , :Zoviet-France: and latterly usually written as :Zoviet*France: ) is a prolific music group from Newcastle upon Tyne in north east England . While often dissonant and made of industrial textures, their music also falls into the ambient music category. Formed in 1980, and remaining largely anonymous,Interview with Brent Bambury , CBC Radio , 2 May 1991 the group has had a number of members; presently it consists of co-founder Ben Ponton and Mark Warren. Former members included Neil Ramshaw, Peter Jensen, Robin Storey (who now records as Rapoon ), Lisa Hale, Paolo Di Paolo, Mark Spybey (who now records as Dead Voices on Air ) and Andy Eardley. In 2005 Storey, Spybey and Eardley formed a new group, Reformed Faction .
Their music often consists of droning textures set against fractured rhythms and fleeting dissonant melodies and their earlier recordings have been described as "evoking a cross between musique concrète and tribal music".cite web |url= http://www.scaruffi.com/vol4/zoviet.html#dig |title=Zoviet France |publisher= Piero Scaruffi |accessdate=2008-03-31 Neglected sound sources are frequently used, such as obscure radio broadcasts, toy instruments, and field recordings , often heavily processed or looped. Over time, they have increasingly added electronic elements but without adopting Computer music|computer based composition techniques. In describing their approach to making music, the group has been quoted as saying:
cquote|All audio equipment distorts sound to some degree and, eventually through mechanical and electrical failure, fucks it up. Since indeterminacy as a compositional parameter has been a constant in our work, this often produces what we regard as interesting new developments. Soleilmoon| Soleilmoon Recordings press release, December 2007 The packaging of their early releases was often unconventional, the group employing materials such as Hessian (cloth)|hessian , tar paper and aluminium foil . Since Compact Disc|CD s became the dominant music format, their packaging has been less inventive, although they have since incorporated felt , wood veneer , and decorative pins.
Ram on Lands End (music album)|Lands End and subsequently on Collusion (music album)|Collusion
1985 in music|1985 ( Lands End ) ( audio cassette ) Touch Music|Touch , UK ; 1993 in music|1993 ( Collusion ) ( CD ) The Grey Area of Mute Records , UK / Soleilmoon , U.S.
Sprey on Bad Alchemy nr 4 and subsequently on Collusion
1986 in music|1986 ( Bad Alchemy nr 4 ) (cassette/magazine) Bad Alchemy , West Germany ; 1993 ( Collusion ) (CD) The Grey Area of Mute Records, UK / Soleilmoon, U.S.
Le Mur Mûr Nu on Fight! ( Cathexis Recordings ), subsequently on Absolute ( Parade Amoureuse and Soleilmoon), and subsequently on Collusion
1986 in music|1986 ( Fight! ) ( LP album|LP ) Cathexis Recordings, UK; 1989 in music|1989 ( Absolute ) (CD) Parade Amoureuse, West Germany; 1993 ( Collusion ) (CD) The Grey Area of Mute Records, UK / Soleilmoon, US
First Vigil on '' A Classic Guide To No Man's Land and subsequently on Collusion
1988 in music|1988 (''A Classic Guide To No Man's Land'') (CD) No Man's Land (record label)|No Man's Land , West Germany; 1993 ( Collusion ) (CD) The Grey Area of Mute Records, UK / Soleilmoon, Soleilmoon, U.S.
White Dusk on A Bead To A Small Mouth and subsequently on Collusion
1989 ( A Bead To A Small Mouth ) (LP) Barooni , Netherlands ; 1993 ( Collusion ) (CD) The Grey Area of Mute Records, UK / Soleilmoon, U.S.
Something This Beautiful on Mouvements and subsequently on Collusion
1990 in music|1990 ( Mouvements ) (CD) La Legende des Voix , France ; 1993 ( Collusion ) (CD) The Grey Area of Mute Records, UK / Soleilmoon, U.S.
Voice Print Identification on Objekt 4
1990 (CD) Ladd-Frith , U.S.
Fugitive on Death of Vinyl and subsequently (extended version) on Collusion
1990 ( Death of Vinyl ) (CD) DOVentertainment , Canada ; 1993 ( Collusion ) (CD) The Grey Area of Mute Records, UK / Soleilmoon, U.S.
" unicode|??? ? " a remix of "hôte" by Beefcake, on hôte , ( CD ), m-tronic, France , 2002
Soundtracks
Screen based productions (film and video)
Loud Visual Noises
A film by Stan Brakhage ( United States|U.S. 1987). Includes an excerpt from Cair Camouflet from the album Look into Me . Released on the video 4 Sounds Films by Stan Brakhage (Joel Haertling, United States|U.S. 1990).
Transients #1
A video production by Mark Mushet (Suture Productions, Canada , 1991). Includes excerpts from the album Shadow, Thief of the Sun .
(untitled)
A video production by :Zoviet*France: ( United Kingdom|UK , 1991). A promotional video for the album Shadow, Thief of the Sun produced for television broadcast only.
T-City
A video production by Karas (company)|Karas ( Japan , 1993). Includes excerpts from the album Shadow, Thief of the Sun.
En Scooters Sous Les Mers
A film by JacquesCousteau , soundtrack commissioned by Ian Helliwell (filmmaker)|Ian Helliwell for the Soundtracks for Super-8 film programme (UK 1998).
Commissioned soundtrack title: Silence Des Mers Avec Scooters .
Tyneside Journey
A film by Ravi Deepres (UK 2000).
(untitled)
A video production by :Zoviet*France: (Nuit Et Brouillard, France , 2001). Featured on the Deadly Actions Live Retrospective 1994-1996 video compilation of bands that performed at Deadly Actions festival in France .
A film by Ravi Deepres and Michael Baig Clifford (UK, 2006).
Deadly Cargo
A film by Camcorder Guerillas (UK, 2008).
Performance works and events
(untitled) - A performance by John Smith (performance artist)|John Smith ( United Kingdom|UK , 1996)
in:edit - A contemporary dance production by Saburo Teshigawara and Karas (company)|Karas , (UK, 1996)
Except That I Would Like To Be Rid Of It - A contemporary dance production by Zero Visibility Corp ( Norway , 1997)
The Millennarium - A contemporary dance production by Random Dance Company (UK, 1997)
Hunt Out (Reprise) - A contemporary dance production by Zero Visibility Corp (Norway, 1999)
Aeon - A contemporary dance production by Random Dance Company (UK, 2000)
net/work Narrative(s) - A contemporary dance production by Random Dance Company (UK, 2000)
Telenoia - A contemporary dance production by Random Dance Company (UK, 2000)
The Trilogy Installation - A contemporary dance production by Random Dance Company (UK, 2000)
Confession Time: that cool and immature feeling of total honesty - A contemporary dance production by Zero Visibility Corp (Norway, 2001)
A Tree Full of Monkeys - A collaboration with Simon Armitage commissioned by BBC Radio 3 as a poetry performance to celebrate the opening of Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art , Gateshead , (UK 2002)
' WOW Festival fireworks display - Fireworks display soundtrack ( North Shields , UK, 2003)
Designer Body - A contemporary dance production by Ballet Lorent|balletLORENT (UK, 2007)
The Making of Doubt - A contemporary dance production by Colette Sadler (UK, 2008)
Notable live performances
1 June 2000: A specially invited live performance as part of the celebratory event marking the re-opening of the Tramway (arts centre)|Tramway arts centre, Glasgow , UK
4 April 2003: All Tomorrow's Parties (music festival)|All Tomorrow's Parties 2003 curated by Autechre , Pontin's|Camber Sands , UK (opening act).cite web |url= http://www.atpfestival.com/archive/line_up.php? archive=1& p=& rp= |title=All Tomorrow's Parties Archive 2003 |publisher= All Tomorrow's Parties |accessdate=2008-03-31
29 February 2008: European premiere performance of John Cage|John Cage's Variations VII with Atau Tanaka and Matt Wand, AV Festival , Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art , Gateshead , UK.cite web |url= http://www.avfestival.co.uk/programme/events/variations |title=Variations VII |publisher= AV Festival |accessdate=2008-03-31 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080306232436/ http://www.avfestival.co.uk/programme/events/variations |archivedate = 2008-03-06cite web |url= http://www.balticmill.com/whatsOn/past/ExhibitionDetail.php? exhibID=97 |title=JOHN CAGE 29 February - 2 March 2008 Variations VII |publisher= Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art |accessdate=2008-03-31
18 September 2011: Incubate (festival)|Incubate festival opening for Lustmord in Tilburg , Netherlands .
Selected exhibitions
Resist the Factory , Kulturhuset (LAVA), Stockholm , Sweden , 4 January 1999 - 28 February 1999
A group exhibition featuring album covers by :Zoviet*France:.
Return To Sender , Waygood Gallery , Newcastle upon Tyne , UK , 14 May 2004 - 3 June 2004 Waygood Gallery , Newcastle upon Tyne , UK
A group mail art show featuring Return To Sender by :Zoviet*France:, a physical and audio remix of Elvis Presley 's recording of the song Return to Sender (song)|Return to Sender .
Harry Smith Anthology Remixed , alt.gallery , Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, 9 May 2007 - 4 August 2007
An exhibition which brought together the work of 84 leading artists and musicians, who were invited to make a visual artwork in response to a chosen track from the album release the Anthology of American Folk Music , an anthology edited by New York artist, musicologist and experimental filmmaker Harry Everett Smith|Harry Smith , first published by Folkways in 1952. Featured According To Joe by :Zoviet*France:cite web |url= http://altgallery.org/exhibitions/harry_smith_past.html |title=Harry Smith Anthology Remixed |publisher= alt.gallery |accessdate=2008-03-31 Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot
References
External links
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Zoviet+France discogs.com Zoviet France on discogs|discogs.com , a community-built database of music information
http://www.pooky.u-net.com/Jim/zoviet/ Jim's Music Pages: :zoviet*france, a fan site with discography
http://www.the-edge.ws/zoviet/ The Edge discographies - :zoviet*france: a fan site with discography and information
http://members.optusnet.com.au/~robert2600/azimute/music/zoviet_france_derrida.html an academic essay on Zoviet France and Jacques Derrida by Kane X. Faucher
Category:Ambient music groups Category:Music in Newcastle upon Tyne Category:Musical groups established in 1980 Category:British experimental musical groups Category:British industrial music groups
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