AGF, Gazelle Twin, People Like Us and Decibel Ensemble are amongst the leading talent programmed for the second edition of Leeds-based cutting-edge festival
Returning to Leeds from 12-23 March 2018, Sounds Like THIS presents ground-breaking music, sound art and visual installations by leading artists and emerging talent.
Created by Leeds College of Music, Sounds Like THIS has been awarded Arts Council England Grants for the Arts funding to assist with producing the 2018 edition of the festival, which will see the event expand to six independent venues across Leeds.
AGF
Antye Greie-Ripatti, aka AGF, goes by the moniker of ‘poemproducer.’ A composer, producer, sound artist, curator, poet and feminist, she explores speech and spoken word within the depths of electronic music. Set to perform at LCoM’s state-of-the-art concert hall, ‘The Venue’, AGF’s work is both tender and aggressive. Her unique approach to the human voice is just one reason for her notable popularity.
Gazelle Twin
Gazelle Twin’s acclaimed audiovisual live show Kingdom Come will be showcased at Leeds’ Brudenell Social Club. Inspired by J.G Ballard's final novel and exploring tribalism, social conditioning and fascism in the contemporary suburban and consumer landscape, the performance features two vocalists on treadmills silhouetted against a series of mesmerising short films.
People Like Us
Working under the name People Like Us, Vicki Bennett specialises in the manipulation and reworking of original sources from both the experimental and popular worlds of music, film and radio. This audiovisual concert at Leeds’ Hyde Park Picture House commemorates the 25th year of People Like Us publishing work.
Decibel Ensemble
Decibel Ensemble, formed by composer Ed Bennett, plays contemporary music combining a direct amplified instrumental ensemble sound with electronics, improvisation and theatrical works. With support from PRS Foundation Beyond Borders, Decibel Ensemble will perform a full concert programme including recent work Togetherness, which explores contradictory notions of independence, pluralism and unity in music, culture and society.
The festival will also include the Sounds Human conference, which will celebrate and evaluate the personal and social benefits of musical engagement, and explore how this forms a vital part of what it means to be human.
Festival Director Dr Paul Abbott says; “We’re absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to build on last year’s festival and make Sounds Like THIS even bigger and better for 2018.
Sounds Like THIS gives a voice to new and exciting music which is traditionally under-represented in the mainstream, and funding from Arts Council England will allow us the opportunity to bring even more diverse and eclectic ground-breaking artists to Leeds
We’re thoroughly excited to programme an event which brings something completely different to the cultural offering of our city. Sounds Like THIS looks to the future of music, and celebrates artists who take risks and push boundaries.”
The inaugural outing of Sounds Like THIS took place in March 2017, which saw performances from Rival Consoles, A Man Called Adam, Gabriel Prokofiev, Elsa Justel, and Jazz North newcomers and LCoM alumni J Frisco.
Nina Baptiste, Senior Relationship Manager, Arts Council England said “I’m really pleased that the Sounds Like THIS festival is returning to Leeds next March bringing with it more opportunities for electronic music artists and, in particular, female artists. The line-up so far looks exciting and I’m delighted that we have supported the festival’s development through our National Lottery funded Grants for the Arts programme.”
More info and acts to be announced in January 2018. An open call for artists will follow shortly. Early bird tickets will be on sale throughout January 2018, you can register for early bird tickets here: www.soundslikethis.co.uk
