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Ikue Mori + Maja S.K. Ratkje
Tour Dates:
28 March - Newcastle
The Cluny,
Lime St, NE1 2PQ
8pm, £10
www.tuskmusic.co.uk
www.avfestival.co.uk
29 March - Ulverston
The Studio,
Lanternhouse,
The Ellers, LA12 0AA
7pm, £5
www.lanternhouse.org
www.octopuscollective.org
30 March - London
Cafe Oto
18-22 Ashwin St,
Dalston, E8 3DL
8pm, £10
www.cafeoto.co.uk
31 March - Belfast
Black Box
18-22 Hill St, BT12LA
10pm, £10
www.movingonmusic.co.uk
Sound and Music, [no.signal] and TUSK Music are delighted to bring together the electrifying improvisors Ikue Mori and Maja S.K. Ratkje for their first ever duo performances together.
This unmissable string of dates brings together two truly iconic female figures of high-grade musical experimentation. Having pursued unseen angles in rock music in the late-seventies with the legendary DNA, the Japanese-born Mori has become one of the world’s most celebrated and respected improv auteurs, while since the turn of the century the Norwegian Ratkje has dazzled with her maverick vocal work, feted compositions and thrilling explorations of pure noise. These four rooms will be filled with wild sonic colours, forged by a pair of musicians who span two generations of fearlessly inventive soundcraft.
Ikue Mori left Tokyo for New York in 1977, began playing the drums and soon formed the legendary No Wave band DNA with Arto Lindsay and Tim Wright, appearing on the highly influential compilation No New York.
DNA dissolved in the early 80s and Mori began experimenting with drum machines, developing a singular improv style with an instrument people rarely associate with instant composition. As her technique evolved, she moved onto working with a laptop around 2000.
Over the past 3 decades, Mori has accrued an impressive reputation as an improvisor, testified by her stellar cast of collaborators, including John Zorn, Kim Gordon, Jim O’Rourke, Zeena Parkins, Mike Patton, Thurston Moore and an impressive discography courtesy of labels such as Tzadik and Mego. She regularly performs with Parkins as the duo Phantom Orchard and in various combinations with Zorn, and is a member of the trio Death Ambient with Fred Frith and Kato Hideki.
Over 3 decades since her first impact on avant garde music, Ikue Mori’s influence on musical explorers of all generations is still profound.
“Ikue Mori is one of the most respected musicians in the downtown scene, renowned for her abilities as an accomplished composer and improviser and as one of the foremost electronic music innovators.” (allmusic)
Maja S.K. Ratkje approaches music making with a broad palette and rare profundity. A graduate in composition from the Norwegian State Academy Of Music, her music is performed around the world by Oslo Sinfonietta, The Norwegian Radio Orchestra and many more.
Ratkje is also a major force in the world of noise and improvisation and is renowned for her solo performances, her work as part of groups such as SPUNK and Fe-mail and collaborations with artists such as Jazzkammer, Joelle Leandre, Jaap Blonk, Zeena Parkins and Stephen O’Malley.
Ratkje has an impressive discography of albums for labels such as Rune Grammofon, Important and ECM, and it is perhaps her album for John Zorn’s Tzadik label, River Mouth Echoes, that best exemplifies the considerable dynamic range of her work. A collection of tracks recorded over a decade, it includes orchestral pieces, electro-acoustic compositions, voice manipulations and sheer harsh noise and perfectly showcases the breadth of her musical ambition.
“Anyone who has seen or heard Ratkje perform live will know what a superb musician she is, and one who can genuinely be said to be extending the expressive range of the voice through technical and technological means…. Her work is celebratory and inclusive, an energising rallying call to those who are curious enough to peek out from behind the curtain of mainstream mediocrity.” (The Wire)