First things first, some people still can't get their head round Futuresonic. What is the festival about?
| Futuresonic 2006 | - Futuresonicl runs from Fri 21 Jul to Sun 23 Jul, at venues across Manchester. Check the website for further details and tickets
- The Futuresonic Hub is open Thurs 20 to Sat 22, 4 to 9pm and Sun 23, 12-3pm
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"It’s about people doing creative things with technology. It’s about amazing music. But most importantly, it’s about the unexpected, and the things that people haven’t thought of yet. "We’ve split this year’s festival into two areas. Futuresonic Live is all about the music – live performance, DJs, VJs and everything from electro punk to grime and dubstep in music venues across the city. "Urban Play is all about taking over the city and using the technology that surrounds us for creative ends. It has exhibitions, interactive installations - the Mapchester project we launched in May is a good example, a major conference on locative and creative technologies, artist talks, workshops and more… we’ve even got boat trips along the canal, leaving from Castlefield!" It's the 10th birthday this year. How does it feel to have a decade behind you?
 | | Jamie Lidell at Futuresonic 2005 |
"On a personal level, it is immensely satisfying. And I am excited about what the next ten years will bring." How has the festival changed in those years? "It has changed from being a niche thing, with just a small number of very passionate followers, to something that today touches so many people's lives. "From the first major festival in 1996 to the 10th anniversary festival this year, the focus has evolved, becoming as much about art and social issues as technology and music. Today, the festival is more broadly based, but still with an edge and identity of its own." It's a hard one to pin down, but what have been the best moments in the past 10 years? | "The moon... and back." | | Drew Hemment sums up where the next decade will take Futuresonic |
"They say about the 60s that if you can remember them you weren’t there. Fortunately - or unfortunately - in the age of digital technology, we can record everything, and after a quick check in the archives... "The first festival in 1996 is still, of course, a fond memory, and a high point for me. It was put together on good will and will power, and if I had more sense, I would have known it was a crazy idea - but it was fabulous. "There have been a string of musical highs since then, and likewise in the art events we do, such as 2004 when we staged the Mobile Connections exhibition that is still seen as a benchmark event internationally, the first major exhibition of mobile arts worldwide." Who should we be looking out for this year?
 | | Futuresonic act, Cobra Killer |
"As with all Futuresonic festivals, there’ll be so much happening – over 100 acts and artists, populating everywhere from the Academy to almost every music venue in the Northern Quarter – that it’s hard to recommend any one thing. "Having said that, Friday night’s Music for the Beep Generation, a showcase of Christian Fennesz, Warp Record’s new supergroup, Battles, and Toshio Iwai is going to be something special. It sums up what the festival is about: electrifying live performance from Battles, considered but lush guitar-based electronica from Fennesz, and then the experimental, from one of Japan’s leading artist-musicians, performing a new musical instrument he’s developed with Yamaha. "Elsewhere, there’s the electro-punk duo, Cobra Killer, a down and dirty DMZ dubstep showcase at the Music Box, some of the best local acts at the Futuresonic Lounge in Kro Piccadilly, two great exhibitions at the Museum of Science and Industry…. I could go on and on and on." There's also a Futuresonic hub, how does that work? "At any event, the most interesting moments often happen in the gaps between the gigs, away from the big venues. The Hub is an information point, but it is also a place to hang out in the middle of the Northern Quarter, catch your breath, meet some artists and check out some of the interactive exhibits. "We’ve based the Hub in the new arts space at the former Bambers sewing shop on the corner of Thomas Street and Oldham Street, and this year it’s supported by Sony PSP. If you have your handheld console, you’ll be able to bring it along, plug it in and download a live guide to the festival, as well as music and artworks – and if not, you’ll be able to use the ones that will be available in the hub to play!" So where do you see the next ten years taking Futuresonic? "The moon... and back." |
