Upcoming at Dorchester Art Project is a total immersion of the senses. This four-band show features music from local acts Animal Hospital, Jeff Cox and Ruby Luna. Touring artist from Osaka, Japan, SiMoN is headlining the bill.
Osaka-born SiMoN’s music is described as “inspired music,” by Stereolab’s Laetitia Sadier, and is a delightful addition to the local bill. Tamada’s work is a lo-fi mashup of different elements of stylistic pop. Recent single, “Beautiful Love” (2018) is a slow, ballad-esque jam with jazzy guitar chords and filtered vocals.
Yuichiro Tamada has been actively pursuing music his whole life. In his early teens, he played in numerous alternative rock bands, and eventually began SiMoN in 2004. Since then, he has played over 900 shows, all over the world. Tamada has shared stages with artists likes Dinosaur Jr., Nina Persson of The Cardigans, and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah.
Animal Hospital is a project by Kevin Micka that similarly delves into contemporary rock and pop, as well as more conceptual work. Although often he plays alone, Micka is exploratory in the way that he transforms his songs into live performances. He has experimented with “large ensemble formats and sound installation,” (Micka).
Micka played his ambient record, Memory (2009) on a Japanese tour with SiMoN. The record’s gentle, emotive sound is created by drawn out string sections and arhythmic drums.
Experimental electronic noise artist Jeff Cox utilizes trumpet, exposing darkness in repetitive beats. His compositions are layered with organic instrumental sounds. He attributes his sound to combining an academic music skill set with life experience.
Although his main influence is jazz, and his main project is an acoustic sextet, his solo work is without true melody or harmony. This endeavor into noise music, Cox says, is “a way of approaching music that feels like [he’s] engaging with [the] world and attempting to represent [his] worldview within it.”
Primarily dormant until recently, Ruby Luna is a side project to the electro pop band Citrusphere. Brainchild of Angel Rose and her friend Samantha, the pair play off each others strengths. Their live performances have included “interactive performance art elements,” where the audience is encouraged to participate (Rose). The band is working on a way to incorporate the collective space they find with an audience into the recording process.
Songs from freak folk record, Heirloom (2018) include layered pitched down vocals over Angel’s soft harmonies and acoustic guitar. Since their most recent release, Ruby Luna has been quite active. They are planning to travel to Valencia, Spain to continue working on a new EP. These new songs have been the focus of recent live performances.
The lineup features a combination of electronic and organic instruments as well as visual art projections by Kira City. The digital work’s purpose is to “massage your eyeballs,” (Kira Solomon). Her art has been featured alongside music at festivals like PAXeast and MAGfest and is self-described as being immersed in the “geek/nerd scene,” (Solomon). Her designs are articulate, abstract and mesmerizing.
This is an all ages event taking place at Dorchester Art Project on Saturday, February 23rd from 7-10PM. $10 suggested donation at the door.
