23/06/10
- LHP- i, finally mastered and released! CD available
from Ax
Records, downloads from digital-tunes.net
01/01/10
- A brand new track by Lefthandpath called errrm...Kok,
featured on a mix introducing a new genre whose only limit
is the tempo of 111 bpm. you can read more and also download
the mix, here.
16/03/09
- 'LHP - i' the brand new LP, is imminantly available.
just putting the cover together and tweaking the mastering.
'I' is a set of 9 tracks investigating the sonic possibilities
of the I Ching
15/03/09
- 'Left on Standby' by LHP is now available from Ax
Records. 'Left On Standby' is a compilation of Lefthandpath
tracks from previous LPs, remixed, plus a few new ones. All
tracks are abstract, beatless sonic paintings using both computer
generated sounds and ambient field recordings.
Since
the end of 2006 Lefthandpath has joined Q, a culture and media
group based in Mariehamn on Åland in Finland.
From
2004 to 2006 Lefthandpath divided his time between the UK
and France. In June 2004 the Festnoise show on Radio St Ferréol
showcased Lefthandpath with a live interview and an hour of
his music. This led to the co-hosting of Electromenager,
a weekly show going out live on Thursday nights and repeated
in the pre-clubbing slot on Saturdays.
Lefthandpath
can often be found DJing at parties and bars; notable amongst
previous appearances was a well received five hour marathon
solo set as part of the Fête National du Musique at
the Café du Globe, Crest in June 2005 and his set for
Electro Bombanight 2, at the Kiosque à Coulisses,
also in Crest This last event received accolade from the press
who carried a picture
of Lefthandpath himself.
2003
saw Lefthandpath DJing at the Brighton festival and at various
art openings and parties. He also played with the original
Laptop-jam.
During
the winter of 2002, several Lefthandpath tracks were used
in a critically acclaimed theatre production of Personkrets
3:1, in Helsinki, Finland.
background
Lefthandpath is the solo project of Dave Webb. Originally
a guitarist, he began using a drum machine as a metronome
and discovered that programming beats was far more fun than
playing in a thrash metal band. This led not only to the making
of bangin' 303 606 acid techno but also experimenting with
low speed DJing at Zero
Gravity, Club
Dog and Megadog events. On discovering the joys of sampling
and sequencing with an SU10 and Atari ST his music became
increasingly breakbeat orientated; about 8 years ago he purchased
his first PC and hasn't looked back.
Today
his studio consists of a portable minidisc, a stereo microphone
and a laptop running sample manipulation and sequencing software.
He uses only found sounds recorded in the field, computer
generated frequencies and, more recently, self played and
recorded guitar and drum sounds. Sometimes the tunes evolve
from an initial loop which then dictates the tempo and feel
of the track. Sometimes they grow from a concept - maybe a
muse on the sonic possibilities of the periodic table. And
sometimes they just germinate from a beat seed.
i
is an investigation into the sonic possibilities of
the ancient chinese text, the i ching.
I wanted
to create music i could do my tai chi form too and after
reading the I-Ching translated by Master Alfred Huang
i was struck by the chord like structure of the hexagrams
used in it. Using the chinese idea of the 'primal sound'
as my starting point and the sequence of the i ching
hexagrams as my song structure i set to work. Unfortunately
i can't use it to practice my form too, as i get to
involved in the sounds and loose my concentration.
All tracks are abstract, beatless sonic paintings using
both computer generated sounds and ambient field recordings.
Left on
Standby is a compilation of Lefthandpath tracks
from previous LPs, remixed, plus a few new ones.
All tracks are abstract, beatless sonic paintings using
both computer generated sounds and ambient field recordings.
Carteret
Atoll (also known as the Kilinailau Islands or the
Tulun Islands) is a set of small islands located
86 km northeast of Bougainville in the Solomon Islands.
Part of Papua New Guinea, Carteret Atoll is set to become
the first inhabited land permanently evacuated as a
result of rising global sea levels.
For a discription
of the samples used in Carteret Atoll click here
Over an hour
of experimental minimal beats and textures, stripped bare
of all unnecessary frith. Lo-tech hi-fi, somewhere on
the road between organic and industrial.
All the tracks
were built using a variety of sonic sources: 'Found sounds',
binaurally recorded with 'in ear' microphones for true
3D sound quality, of anything from rattling duty free
bottles on a ferry to a thousand guinea fowl chorus; the
computer generated frequencies of colours and even the
odd 'live' musician.
By taking these
original sounds, manipulating them for further sonic uniqueness
and arranging them into patterns and sequences Lefthandpath's
NOT FOR MOVEMENT OF HUMAN BEINGS takes you on a strange
voyage in the quest for the heart of the new.
Whether listening on headphones or at high amplification,
just try not to be moved.
Now and
Then is a compilation of work spanning the last
ten years. From the very old, well '95, Pipe,
Awry, and Nearside to '04 with Inside
the fridge, Dubweiser and Dr Rhythm.
Initially
the tracks were built using a good old Atari ST to sequence
an SU10 sampler, the classic pairing of TB303 and 606
and an old FM synth.
Over the
next few years the analogue gear was sold, unbelievable,
and a Novation super bass station, a portable DAT and
a PC were purchased.
Now, everything
has gone except for a Laptop, portable minidisc and
a MIDI controller keyboard.
Lefthandpath
has always been interested in the 'found sound' - sounds
recorded with microphones in the field or in the studio.
Sounds such as a saucepan full of water hit with a slipper,
wine being opened in the bathroom, a modem dial tone or
the accidentally recorded sound of an ill fitting door
creaking shut can all inspire. The sound of a tattoo needle
buzzing into skin, as in Are You Ready? The sound
of a car driving past, with the mid and high frequencies
removed, gives a heavyweight bassline, like in Spacetrian.
Sometimes just a regular bass guitar string with plenty
of filtering and pitchshifting can give a sound like a
toy piano, hear Void and Substantial. A UHF TV
signal with booster fed straight into the line in of a
sound card gives outstanding results.
Lefthandpath
also likes to experiment with sounds too low or high to
hear but that nevertheless vibrate you all the same, the
'physical frequencies'. Manipulating the Schumann Resonance
frequency, the frequency of the earth's ionosphere, or
simulating frequencies of brain-waves both give mind and
body altering effects. Currently germinating in the lab
are works using the frequencies of colours and deep brain
stimulation using minute resonant frequencies.
Lefthandpath
uses these sounds to create interesting and unique music,
with every sound having an individual quality, depth and
history.
(Of
Gigorian
Chance) "This is a minimalist track best appreciated
wearing headphones because it's constructed from mainly found
sounds recorded with binaural 'in ear' microphones. When listened
to in this way, get an uncannily realistic 3D effect that makes
you feel like you're right there in the room. Dave's approach
is to use original sounds that he comes across day-to-day, then
he employs any tool at his disposal to manipulate them into
something more unusual. The sounds that work best here are the
bass sounds: the de-tuned tom and other sub-sonic stuff you
can here going on down there.
The least successful are the actual drum sounds: the kick, snare
and hi-hats sound too ordinary in the context of this track.
In such a minimalist setting we'd prefer to hear a more interesting
treatment than just the literal room.
We like the thinking and intention behind this track more than
we do the results. Intellectually it's great, but emotionally
it doesn't quite work to our minds." - Yeah but what
do they know!
(Of Spacetrian)
"There are some rum thoughts in this lad's head and no
mistakes. Listening to this on headphones actually made our
eyes water. It's a weird, dub world of clangs and hisses, where
steam-powered robots assemble machines only they know how to
operate. We think. See what you make of it, but make sure someone
knows where you are and what time to expect you back."
"Dave Webb has
embraced a new technology and taken club-electronica to an avant
garde level. The technology in question is called The
8 to 12 Hertz Overture and it allows you to relax and chill
out while pondering about the future, pretty digital music no
matter what form. The album really holds itself together as
a minimalistic mongrel of styles and experiments. The music
fits together seamlessly.Fully enjoyable!"
"You know,
Personkrets 3:1, where your music was in, actually has gone
more or less into Finn-Swedish theatre history as one of the
greatest perfomances ever. With your music in it..."
