What's In It For Me?

Wednesday 17th Feb - Saturday 27th Mar 2010

WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME?

NEW DISPLAY STRATEGIES

Whats in it for me?

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New Display Strategies present Whats in it for me?, an alternative history of exhibitions, artefacts, artists, their public and the few that buy things.

New Display Strategies is a think-tank formed in 2008 to generate creative strategies for exhibiting cultural artefacts in an age of academic and corporate collaboration. NDS pride themselves on dislocating a culture via its representative artefacts and their means of display. NDSs charge is to re-edit history from their position of pantheistic ornate excess; in doing so producing rich masterplans that can sustain complex and successful institutions.*

Whats in it for me? is part of NDSs ongoing historical reading of the decorative arts over the past 5000 years. NDS will map out their alternative history for artists and craftspeople marked by a sustained examination of their interaction with social, intellectual and divine elites. The pyramid, both a symbol of society and as a space ship/celestial vehicle, is a dominant motif in their research. Via pyramidal projection, the viewer will be transported from ancient Egypt to the literati of the enlightenment, making a brief stop with the doomed l'honnete hommes of the French aristocracy, before finishing amidst the brouhaha of post-modern furniture design.

Whats in it for me? celebrates a longstanding cross-cultural heritage of exploitation in the creation of public culture and decorative art, exploring how power has shaped and determined artistic production throughout history and how this age-old tradition of cultural exploitation is painstakingly maintained to this day. As Marshall McLuhan once said: good taste is the refuge for the witless.

From the sans-culottes to the sans-papier, New Display Strategies takes a sans limites approach to the roles of the haves and have-nots in cultural production.

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*The title of a collaboratively authored text produced by New Display Strategies in 2008. The text can be downloaded as a pdf above.

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Whats in it for me? extends and enhances themes explored in NDSs previous presentations at Auto Italia South East and the John Jones Project Space. For more information visit: www.newdisplaystrategies.tk

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New Display Strategies: Whats in it for me? Is the eighth exhibition in an ongoing programme curated for Seventeens basement space by Paul Pieroni. The exhibition will run concurrently with Graham Dolphins solo exhibition Burn Away Fade Out in the main space.

SEVENTEEN 17 KINGSLAND ROAD LONDON E2 8AA

E : info@seventeengallery.com

T : 44 (0)20 77295777

F : 44 (0)20 77294083

An Ode To Basket Mouth...

Disagreement means no agreement,

In Lagos, Accra and Conakry,

100,000 men marching like the man,
revolution not chaos is the plan,
International thieves and political beasts,
No nation, one nation, one Africa,
You won't die, can't die... In fact, you're not dead,
Left turn, right turn, about turn,
Let's start again,
Basket Mouth, what are you going to sing about?
Colonialism, Subliminism and historical hypnotism.
From Alagbon Close to the Atlantic Ocean,
shallow thoughts and rivers ahead,
From Kalakuta to the shrine,
Your message plays close to the mind,
Teacher, Father, Son, Master,
Fela's horn calms the disaster.
On the second day of August a continent mourned,
but you didn't die that day, in fact; you were born.

Rap thrown by: Ade Bankole// Image courtesy of: Lemi Ghariokwu

Kool G Rap: Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams

In today's hip-hop world of half-hearted lyricism, over-zealous hype men and instant legend status, let's take a step back and appreciate a true master. Out of and always representing the neighbourhood of Corona Queens, NYC, his name is Nathaniel Wilson a.k.a Kool G Rap, the "G" representing “Genius” and by law, its not a boast if you are actually telling the truth, as it is in this case. Without dropping any of his infamous verses or tracks here (collectively, they range from being too numerous to mention, too vicious in their content to straight up outrageous), let's give mention to DJ Polo and The Juice Crew, as the Kool G Rap story isn’t complete without with their presence. DJ Polo, with whom G Rap started laying down tracks way back in mid-1980’s and his click the Juice Crew, originated by Cold Chillin’ supremo Marley Marl, and that also served as the stable for the likes of Big Daddy Kane and the Biz Markie.

Armed with a trademark lisp and a unique multi-syllabic rhyming delivery, often imitated but never surpassed since, G Rap’s wordplay, story telling prowess and subtlety were legendary. Where his contemporary the Notorious BIG famously name checked Robin Leach, G Rap did too but with more delicate eloquence. In between legendary albums such as 'Road to the Riches', 'Wanted: Dead Or Alive' and '4, 5, 6' some with the aid of Polo and some without, G Rap found the time to appear on other artist tracks on numerous occasions and more often than not, made them his own, most famously on Mobb Deep’s ’The Realest’, M.O.P’s ’Stick To Your Guns’ and Papoose’s ‘Thug Connection’. With Italian mobster references so popular in rap, he could claim to the innovator of such a culture culminating with his third solo album being entitled 'The Giancana Story'. No other rapper since hip-hop’s conception has ever made the word “mother****er” sound so refined and poetic

While MTV, that indispensable source of real hip-hop (wink!) could only grant the man with an "honourable mention” on their greatest hip-hop artists of all time list, the real irony is those that flood the list probably wouldn’t have picked up a mic without G Rap’s influence.

I’m not saying he is the best but, I easily could. Don’t take this a sermon, this is just a message to the new school and those that don’t know, the real blueprint was made by this man. With the recent passing of Michael Jackson still fresh in our minds, let’s not wait until Kool G Rap is six feet deep before we elevate him to where he should be, and that’s as a King of this art form. Big Pun, Notorious B.I.G etc, legends though they may be, are simply tenants in G Rap’s building and the rent is still definitely due. Genius.

words: Ade Bankole

Pop Song Of The Decade... According to bespoke

Drums please!

And the award goes to Scissor Sister's 2004 version of 'Comfortably Numb', however I am shocked that its taken me this long to realise it.

Best known as a tune for the great Pink Floyd and how fitting they would pop up here too. The 'sisters' and vocalist Jake Shears do make it their own but without treading on the toes of the original.

Its rare for me to listen to a song from start to finish. Maybe its the world we live in, everyone's a dj, whether playing in a club or just fucking around with your itunes, songs dont really get the airplay they deserve.

Anyway, I happened to be waiting for someone in a cafe recently and the aforementioned song came on the air. The way its built up, the vocals, instrumentals, everything is just a monumental effort on the part of the Scissor Sisters (and producer Tiga). Yes, it sounds like a Bee Gees joint at times but so what, the Bee Gees had it going on.
Seriously listen to it again and you'll get the idea of what i'm saying, its almost perfect. At no point do you think: "this or that could have been done this way etc etc"

A great pop song, is like a time capsule. In a hundred years, you could listen to this tune and get a feel for what the music climate was like in the noughties. Pop, techno, disco, soul etc and a spot of sampling to boot but whether this is a sample may be a BIG understatement, but really there are so many layers to this song, its all there.
This song really encapsulates different styles, both musical and in life.

Now who did I send this award out to?

Words: Mason

Pa's Delights

A little lowdown on some records that my Dad used to own, because they are now unofficially mine.






1. 'Gumbe' by E.K. Nyame.

I recently found out my father speaks some Ghanaian dialects (as well as Igbo and some Arabic) and this is a great highlife tune, built on the call and response tradition found in African and Latin music. E.K.Nyame (pictured) was a great band leader in his day and is seen as a major player in the highlife genre. If you find any of his records then yeah

2. 'Amigo' by Black Slate.

Somewhere in the vaults of this site is a piece on Black Slate and finding this 7" the inspiration for it This here is a grooving, bouncy reggae tune straight out of the crate. Funny how the singer pronounces Amigo as "Omigo", I love this tune, one of the few reggae numbers I can stomach.

3. 'No, No, Joe' by Silver Connection

Anyway, here is a Big disco tune I found in his box. I'll confess, I love disco, or pretty much anything with audacious strings providing the pulse to it. Think Love Unlimited Orchestra and anything made from the same roll of fabric. That moment in Serge Gainsbourg's 'Melody' when the strings come in (I time it just after the 3 minute mark on the track) might just be my favourite moment in music period.


Words: Karim Buchannon

Simbad & Titonton Duvante present… ‘AVANTI’

If form is temporary and class permanent, then 2004‘s AVANTI, yes 2004, is one example that solidifies the rule.
The architects of this filthy, bouncy, dancefloor jump-off; globe-trotting, piano and alto sax proficient Producer/DJ Simbad aka Marathon Man/Les Barons and NYC-resident Titonton Duvante, a pioneering figure in America’s broken beat scene and a well-schooled pupil in the traditions of early Detroit techno.
Having collected over 5 years worth of crate dust and debris, AVANTI is still as relevant, still as fresh and still as capable getting you up off your seat, period. Hell if it comes across corny, but it really is just ‘one of them ones‘. And deservedly so, it finds its way onto the pages of bespoke.
As Simbad explains: “Music can kill you. But it also has the power to heal too. Time is a true test of anything’s worth. On this track, we tried ‘keeping it analogue’ and the results are there to be heard and felt.”
Being a spontaneous reaction, AVANTI sometimes emit’s a scruffy and unkept sound but it also manages to retain a certain euphoric sincerity. It also resonates like an ever-evolving work-in-progress but one that could also happily contradict itself by sounding like a representation of ’that’ moment in time.
The creation of this track was far from spiritual nor did it knock on the door of the cosmos, it’s just the familiar story of two musicians working towards a common goal but simultaneously challenging the others creativity.
From the sanctuary of Simbad’s east London studio and accompanied by real 1980’s synths, keyboards, drums, and some home-cooked scats and vocals, his and Duvante’s creative water broke, and AVANTI was born. "We just jammed in the studio, playing
live keyboards, at times simultaneously and recording it all over a ruff beat we made quickly, it was very spontaneous and that’s why we had to divide it into a few parts!
“My method usually involves lots of live instruments, drums, horns, perx, and old-style keyboards like Roland Sh-09, Prophet 600, old pedals, old analog desk (Studio Master 24/8) and loads of outboard equipments (compressors & reverbs) although I don’t use these much anymore. Mainly it’s all recorded in Logic 4.7 on a G4 Mac or in Logic 7 on G4 PowerBook. Monitor wise, a Tannoy Little Red 1979. Usually my gear comes and goes, luckily a few friends lend me bits for a while so the studio set-up varies from season to season."
AVANTI is an encounter of different cultural styles; dancefloor, boogie, techno, whatever etc and wherever you wish to file it under. But more significantly, it’s a sign of our musical times. Inspired by, and inspiring to, any artists who dare to mix and expand the colours of your mind. Work-in-progress or the finished article? Maybe the paint has yet to dry on this collaboration.


words: Karim Buchannon