‘What are you doing this weekend?’

‘Nothing.’

‘That’s Impossible.’

‘Why do you say that?’

‘Well, you just said you’re DOING nothing, which essentially means you’re doing SOMETHING, as NOTHING is indeed a SOMETHING.’

‘Okay, well, in that case, I’m doing something?’

‘What something?’

‘Nothing.’

‘At this conversational plateau, I predict a philosophical roundabout — we’ve established that your nothing is something, but consider for a moment that without nothing there’d be no something, and without something, there’d be no nothing. The problem we must face is that “nothing” is both physically and psychologically incomprehensible; our idea of “nothing” is based purely on interpretations of what emptiness could be.’

‘Well, in that case, could one also argue that if one can’t exist without the other then they are in fact one and the same? Consider Yin and Yang — the moon and the sun, order and chaos. Those little dots in the big blobs? They’re the nucleus of the cell, mate. They’re the proof that one’s always on the other’s mind (if we’re scraping the barrel and assuming the simple definition of the nucleus as the ‘brain of the cell’.) If you showed me Yin or Yang, alone, I’d assume you’re trying to show me a rather rudimentary illustration of generic meat. Together as one, however, they make up one of the most recognisable psy-trance symbols to Date.’

‘You’ve got a point, but without the TWO, you’d have no ONE.’

‘Indeed, but without the ONE, there’d be no TWO.’

‘Touché.’

METZ are coming to China again, and people are getting excited. One would hope the sale of ear protection might have seen a temporary surge, but, the majority are still in the dark with regards to sonic assault and the aftermath of such masochistic thrills. For now, we’ll call those thrills ‘tinnitus’. Consider this a PSA — bring earplugs.

According to Merriam Webster’s Dictionary, ‘Art’ is:

Over the years, I’ve come to a much broader definition of art as the ‘organization of sensorial stimuli in time and space’. Unfortunately, by definition, this means that that guy that crashed the party with the guitar playing the Wonderwall for the hundredth time is also doing the art.*

(Hayden Menzies modelling his Ludwig Legacy Maple in Vintage Black Oyster)

When not beating the shit out of drums for METZ, Hayden Menzies also conjures up some pretty wacky creations. Via the joys of electronic mail, some questions were answered as to the how, the who, what, where, when, and the why. Whilst these were being answered, Ceridwen Brown of Ugly Girls (and previous Loreli posts) let loose the knowledge bomb of her own artistic accolades.

(Ceridwen Brown is yet to find herself on the Ludwig website. She can, however, be found over at tomtommag.com)

D: With regards to “subcultures” within the genres of art (both visual and audial), do you feel particular environmental influences play a part in the illustrations/music you create?

H: I’m not sure any particular sub-genre is a constant influence on my art. Visually, I love a wide array of stuff. From Alberto Giacometti to Steam Boat Mickey “rubber hose” animation.

(Hayden Menzies — Unlovable 6 — https://haydenmenziesart.bigcartel.com/)

One of the luxuries of being an artist and playing in a band is being exposed to a lot of different styles of work, both visually and sonically. It’s always neat to see different processes behind the creations, but the main influence is that there are so many darned possibilities.

D: Being both an artist and musician, do you find the two sides of your career ever compliment and or clash with each other?

HM: They never seem to clash. They can be intertwined at times if I do a t-shirt or poster or something, but I like that they can exist separately from each other. They don’t need to crowd each other or compete for my attention. That strips the enjoyment away from them.

CB: I guess most of the art and design stuff I’ve done since moving here has been wrapped up in the music scene as well. Quite early into playing shows we realized that the venues were either not putting too much interest into the poster design, or leaving it up to the bands. This created an opportunity for us to make art with a purpose, that could be seen and shared. The quick turnaround time is a creative challenge in itself — producing something for a reason.

(A selection of Ceridwen’s recent/not so recent posters)

CB: One earlier poster was based on this weird figurative collage Casey (Ugly Girls vocalist) randomly sent me, and loads of people commented on it. After that we kind of went down a collage-spiral, from full-size collages to the collection of elements which we’d sit around and cut up. It was a medium we’d all enjoyed before.

D: From personal experience, being commissioned to design gig posters is a real honour, and also sometimes very time consuming/quite a lot of pressure. How do you go about deciding what to put, and where for these specific pieces?

H: It’s always flattering when someone asks me to be involved in making posters and shirts or records covers… I like to collaborate with whoever’s asking as much as I can to make sure they are getting what they want out of it, but also allows me to cater to my strengths. Digital-based work is not my strong suit for example, so if they want something that can be manipulated endlessly, or has elaborate effects, I like being able to talk through it and know my role and where my contributions will be most effective and then let them take over.

CB: The collage elements provide a base for the artwork for Ugly Girls posters, and more recently the Dirty Fingers “How’d I Turn So Bad?” cover***. We used to play a lot with them, and they liked our posters so after sending a few ideas we found one that they stuck with. They kind of like the lo-fi aesthetic which is slightly different from the Ugly Girls style.

If you buy the record there’s a huge poster that pulls out with all the lyrics on one side (which was a fucking nightmare) and a picture of this girl which is actually a really small scan from a 1994 National Geographic about Shanghai, which I picked up randomly from a bookshop in Barbados a couple of years ago.

D: From DJs carefully beat-matching vinyl to creating loops and subtly utilizing effects with software, it can be argued that it’s only the tune selection that really counts. In your opinion, could the same principle be applied to analogue vs digital art? To what extent do you prefer either of the two?

H: I think either are valid forms of expression. Both approaches require tools to achieve an artistic vision. Whatever tools those may be. I prefer analogue resources like pencils and brushes, paint and ink…but that’s because I’m more familiar with them. I have to physically figure out how to make a mark on a surface that is to my liking.

(https://www.instagram.com/hayden_menzies/)

Get dirty, trial and error… I don’t have the experience with digital formats to be confident creating a piece from scratch, but I’ve seen what can be done with technology and it’s inspiring and sometimes makes me envious.

CB: I tend to scan the elements and arrange them in photoshop, it allows for a lot more freedom as to what can be done. A combination of the two.

D: As the creative circles of both art and music within and between Beijing and Shanghai continue to merge, there’s still an apparent gap between the two cities. This is a gap that a few of us are making extra efforts to build a metaphorical bridge between. Art as a MOVEMENT should be shared, loved and encouraged by all involved, to what extent would you agree with this statement?

H: I can’t comment with any authority regarding these 2 cities in particular, but I think art and music communities alike can maintain identity and independence while benefitting from sharing their artistic efforts. Putting on art shows/punk shows for each other, making collaborative work etc.

I would agree, in the broad sense, that art in general, should be shared and celebrated as much as possible and cross barriers whenever possible, but that can depend on the outlook of the individual artist I suppose.

CB: Beijing’s always welcomed us with open arms, and I love Beijing because it feels like there’s more of a grassroots creative community there, in Shanghai the underground scene seems…more underground.

(Throwback to a previous post**, in which Ugly Girls’ Ceridwen and Casey were welcomed with open arms)

CB: I think it’s a lot about what you can and can’t access. I’m sure there’s tons of stuff in Shanghai that I’m just unaware of. Axiang, the drummer that used to be in Lao Ayi (Old Aunty) that now plays in Kaiselu is an artist and always shares flyers for things that seem underground etc. I think I need to make more of an effort. We’ve got Idle Beats that kind of have the monopoly of what people consider to be cool art coming out of Shanghai, and they have the screen-printing workshops but they always seem to be “the morning after the night before”, where I think my brain might not be the right place.

(For Wechat users, extract the QR here^^^)

D: It’s quite funny because you kind of know that if (as a Beijinger) you’re in Shanghai, you’ll see other BJ-ren in Specters. I suppose it’s the same with the SH-ren at School Bar or Temple?

CB: Yeah, we should set up some sort of cultural exchange. Swap for a couple of weeks, see what we can produce.

D: Okay, so thinking of cultural exchange, how would you determine the differences between localized and globalised sharing?

CB: Basement six are other people worth mentioning in Shanghai — they’re non-profit and not business driven, like a lot of others. Self-funded art exhibitions and openings and stuff. Uptown Records have zines and stuff — Sacco and Sophia from Uptown are great people building these bridges too.

H: Given the state of technology, I’m not sure there is much of a difference between localized and globalised sharing anymore. The ability to share beautiful things like art and culture is just as easy whether it’s with someone 10 miles away, or 10 countries away. When used wisely and compassionately, that can be a tremendous asset in building art communities and providing a platform for art and artists wherever they may be.

(Bill Bailey modelling Ugly Girls’ “Fuck Boss” jacket)

D: Speaking to you now Ceridwen, Ugly Girls were rather cheeky with their merchandise. But, speaking of sharing, you gifted the right part man, part troll. Did you know Hayden designed the METZ 2018 Tour T-shirt?

CB: It’s my birthday that night, so hopefully someone will get me one…I don’t want all of our clothes to be tie-dyed, Dan. We’re enjoying our Octopoulpe T-shirts, but I’ll probably keep my white T white for this one. You can do what you want.

That’s so boring. I’m going to tie-dye the SHIT out of this one.

…

*John Cage said ‘If something is boring after two minutes, try it for four. If still boring, then eight. Then sixteen. Then thirty-two. Eventually one discovers that it is not boring at all.’ — should you find yourself in a similar situation, consider this pearl of wisdom your one-way ticket to a free-entrance contemporary-contemplation-station.

** Download Wechat, Extract the following “LoReLi” QR, “View history”, scroll down, tap CHINA GRRRRRLLLLLLL

***

(http://downloads.maybemars.org/album/howd-i-turn-so-bad)