projects • events • musician's  support

Sounds Phenomenal - A History

2000

2000: Time for a change

Live Music

Sounds Phenomenal 2000: Music Industry Conference

2000 saw Sounds Phenomenal changing shape in a number of ways, mainly through direction and personnel.

Through funding received from the Government’s Single Regeneration Budget, The Hangleton & Knoll Project set up AudioActive - a youth music project designed to provide young people from the local area with access to opportunities and training in music making, and building on the work already done by Sounds Phenomenal.

Dom Pates joined SP to volunteer for helping with the organising of the third Music Industry Conference. A change in personnel meant that he was to devise the programme for this conference and organise the event himself (with the help of a very capable team around him). In accepting this role, it also meant undertaking stewardship of Sounds Phenomenal from that point onwards; as a vehicle that would diversify from it’s original aims yet continue to help musicians.  

Brighton College of Technology invited the use of their premises for the third Sounds Phenomenal Music Industry Conference. Given the handover of responsibilities and the time frame needed to organise the event properly, the entire Conference programme, including the additional feature of a week of live music in the run-up to the day of the main event, had to be started and finished within three months. However, the good name that Sounds Phenomenal had built itself around Brighton meant that many people were willing to once again donate their time or services to what was becoming an established part of the local calendar.

With funding from the National Lottery's Awards 4 All scheme and additional sponsorship from Groovy Gecko and Waterstone's, the Sounds Phenomenal 2000 programme went ahead in the October of that year, attracting up to 3000 people across the range of events held. The conference itself, at the end of the week, was once again intended to demystify the music business and offer Brighton's up-and-coming talent an opportunity to meet and question leading industry luminaries. The day was divided between seminars from industry professionals and figures from the local scene, and a number of workshops providing training in many different instruments/music making techniques. It culminated in a gig at the college's Tower Theatre that included Kriminal Kollective, a collection of musicians pooled from the college's own Popular Music course students.

Live Music

The showcase of the best of Brighton’s live music was held at two venues across the town.  It incorporated the return of live music to Sussex University after an absence of many years, and was also used as a platform for the live launch of 'The Metway Sessions', an initiative whereby band demos were put to a panel of local music industry and the best ones were chosen to record free at Metway Studios and broadcast on Surf 107's 'Totally Wired' programme. The other venue was The Freebutt, situated in the town itself.

Featured acts included:

Birdhouse	Platform	Supercoolwater	Snorkel	Flying Machine

The first night at East Slope was featured in The Argus, Brighton's newspaper, who offered this review:

"Monday night's launch at the East Slope Bar featured three bands, starting with Shark, formerly known as 5 Amp Fuse. Amid a muddle of beer and banter the crowd cheered the three-piece, who offer Johnny Cash tunes alongside their own blend of indie crossed with occasional Monkees-style harmonies.

As the floor grew stickier, Platform stepped on stage and gradually stunned the crowd with a style that made me think how Radiohead might sound if they were ever happy.

With the venue sweating and straining to full capacity, Things To Do For Boys presented their cheeky stage and song drama as a finale to the evening's music. Favourites included A Tale Of The Unexpected and El Torro/The Bull, whose lyrics, "bless my soul to alcohol", were well chosen for the event."

Review by Laura Hills; with thanks to The Argus.

Conference Programme: Seminar/Workshop Listings

© Sounds Phenomenal, 2003

Top