Tag Archives: Brian Ritchie

Long Weekend short film

7 Jul

This 16 minutes short-film was made from the performance that was commissioned by Brian Ritchie for MONA FOMA 2016 in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. The live version, just like this film version, was narrated by Craig San Roque with music by Joshua Santospirito, with visuals projected onto the big screen at the Odeon Theatre and then repeated again at Cinemona in the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in January, 2016.

The art and story in this film is extracted from the award-winning graphic novel of the same name, which can be purchased from sankessto.com/product/the-long-weekend-in-alice-springs The Long Weekend is the cult favourite graphic novel, adapted from an original 2004 essay that explores the Jungian concept of the cultural complex; an idea about group behaviour that was left largely unexplored until very recently in the academic world.

Neil Gaiman – “this Australian graphic novel is the best thing I’ve been handed to read in ages”

The Australian Review – “… one of the oddest and most rewarding Australian comics that has yet appeared”

Joshua’s website is at – joshuasantospiritoart.com

Sound recording for the film are by Matt Warren

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Neil Gaiman

28 Jan

At MONA FOMA in January I found Neil Gaiman with a little help from festival curator Brian Ritchie – it gave me the opportunity to hand Mr Gaiman a copy of my book The Long Weekend in Alice Springs. Now Hobart is a small town, and all my friends were at that amazing festival (you should come – MONA FOMA is a freak of a good time): and I had a bit of intel that Neil Gaiman had been sighted coming out the jumping castle, and down at the cafe reading it … so it was nice to hear he’d had a look.

A week or two later – he tweets this ->

Neil Gaiman Twitter

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Recording from MONA FOMA

22 Jan

I played as part of the Hobart Improv Collective in an hour long relentless set – it was freaking unreal
You can download the set here if you want to listen – there’s a little Miles Davis, there’s some freaking weird noises – Pip Stafford harnessed a crystal: go figure that one out.

HIC MOFO

The image for the HIC was smuggled up by Sally Rees.

 

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MOFO 2014

13 Jan

MOFO 2014

Heya – I’m taking part in the MONA FOMA again here in Hobart in 2014
– this time as part of the great and wonderful HOBART IMPROV COLLECTIVE on Sunday the 19th at 7pm at MAC2 – you should totally come down and watch and jeer! (and cheer)
(pic below mashed up by the wonderful Sally Rees)

HIC MOFO

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The Shipwright & the Banshee

20 Jan

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The S&B was first performed by Chris Downes and Josh Santospirito as part of the 2011 Sound to Light evening which pitted a visual artist with a sound artist. Josh approached Chris in early 2011 about doing something together and they slowly developed the idea of performing a ghost story based on the Derwent River near Hobart, Tasmania.

Chris came up with the slow-burning 20 minute story of a young Shipwright meeting a banshee on the banks of Derwent River and Josh wrote the music and created the soundtrack and the music that he also performed. The story was cobbled together from various myths about banshee’s.

The second performance was at Chugnut (comics camp) in Victoria on the 31st of March 2012 where it was watched by every comicer worth a damn in the country (except for all the others) … who loved it.

The performance was then dissected for its weak points and turned into an interstellar monster with the addition of the idea of having an animated component along with Chris’s drawing … then we decided against that.

Then we asked Brian Ritchie (of the Violent Femmes) to include it in the MONA FOMA – an awesomely amazing music and art festival in Hobart, Australia … where Chris and I both live. The video is from the performance at the Rosny Barn as part of the festival.

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Drive West Today’s 2012 wrap up

22 Dec

DWT had the most prolific year ever in 2012 with 15 concerts, some tours of mainland Australia and Europe and two mini-albums released.

I gotta say that the gig where I played best was the NOW now concert in August, but unfortunately there is no recording … it is slowly flowing out into the stars, mingled with other noise from Sydney at that time.

Some other highlight gigs this year were

the Pontevedra gig in Galicia, Spain, where I met some absolutely lovely people and played to a very attentive crowd

the recent gig in Hobart where I played with Matt Warren in a sort-of impromptu arrangement – the first gig of the Hovering Waitresses.

A concert in May at the Moonah Arts Centre where I worked in some sports commentary from a Carlton Blues game which worked a TREAT!!

I’d like to thank all the people I played with on various tours and whatnot, people who helped gigs happen and people who came and told me they liked my music! Met some rad people and had a blast. Big thanks to the beautiful Nadine Kessler for supporting me and making great tour posters. xxoo

2013 starts with an exciting gig where I will be playing with cartoonist Chris Downes as he draws the images for a ghost/horror story at the Rosny Barn as part of MONA FOMA 2013 … hopefully as an artist at the festival I can sidle up to David Byrne and get someone to take a sneaky pic when I hug him by stealth!!

thanks guys!!!

jxo

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MONA FOMA 2013

5 Oct

I shall be playing at this wonderful festival with Christopher Downes!! Announced today … I’m most excited about David Byrne and the Dirty Projectors … I’ll have to try and meet them and not be a ridiculous blubbering fan when I ask them to sign my forehead.

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Edge radio benefit gig poster

5 Jun

I banged this one out this week for Edge Radio – youth radio here in Hobart that I spent two years being a presenter for. I’m also a regular member of the Hobart Improv Collective who will be playing with the Tasmanian Improvised Orchestra (I need to change the name on the poster tonight). The monster is eating a Shakuhachi … which I shall leave as a Hobartian in-joke for you to wonder about.

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Acousmatic Ecology series of videos

4 Mar

Later this year (2012) I shall be travelling to Europe and hopefully playing a few shows within this series of music. Recently played on the roof of Mona (see last blog) and the response appears to have been very positive which is nice: that was an outdoors gig, very chilled out and as, a consequence, less intense than this particular video. Highlight was playing with Brian Ritchie at the end – he chose the Beatles song – Within you, without you, which was a fave of mine in my adolescent years and it totally took me back.

This particular video was filmed at our house in Tasmania in front of the amazing wallpaper in our bedroom, Nadine helped me choose clothing that camouflaged me in with the surroundings, as Acousmatic sound is sound one hears without seeing an originating cause. Without any furniture in the room – the acoustics were phenomenal with the old Tassie Oak floorboards that we uncovered throughout the house.

Details of any concerts in Europe to be announced here.

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DWT at MONA market

22 Feb

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