Mondo

Is VJ culture making an impact on club design? Are owners incorporating the technology and space to allow VJs a decent set up?

Yes, I would say it is about time promoters took visuals a bit more seriously especially with regards club design. As an architect and visual artist/VJ, I have seen it from both sides of the fence so to speak.

Club owners looking to refit a (new/old) club space always try to find that wow factor and it usually happens within the lighting and audio/visual budget to get that full and flexible effect.

Generally most club promoters accept the usage of good quality robust projectors, slung at high level on the ceiling and a projection surface - white would be good!! - I cant tell you how many clubs I have VJ'd in where we have been told that a green wall is good enough to project on or a small screen the size of a 28"TV.

If visuals are important - big and lots of them is best - and integrating them well needs good design input early on. budgets may be tight but intelligent promoters think carefully about all this right down to what inputs and what a/v mixers the VJ would expect.

With led screens and led curtains becoming more affordable and high impact - they allow the promoter a way to individually theme their night in a positive architectural manner. However with tight spaces and short viewing distances of some clubs - the full effect of resolution is lost and I have seen too many clubs and VJs suffer with clever tech and low res outcome. Keep the led screens for festivals and outdoor installations for now please.

Are clubs and bars attractive to Vs. as performance spaces?
Yes - its a good place to try out new ideas and hear new sounds from young nu-djs.

What is (or what would be) the ideal setup for a VJ entering a club?
a good front on viewing platform - not necessarily on stage but if so a lot of monitors.

Lots of plug points and enough space to put the equipment out without a dj or some punter pushing past every second would be good for starters. Some promoters now have separate VJ booths.

In terms of straight VJ tech (eg. not a/v which I see as different and more in tune with dj tech) - 2x edirol V4s, an old panasonic mx-50 (old skool reliable) and lots of screens pre-patched into a matrix.

What are the best clubs to perform in from a VJ perspective (in terms of layout and/or technology)?
Big expensive clubs with lots of interesting varied spaces to create visuals and engineered spaces within, with punters who appreciate visuals as something conscious  - not just eye candy.
I really like what Drop Beats not Bombs do with the spaces in Custard factory in Birmingham on a big night. Lots to immerse yourself within.

Is VJ culture a worldwide phenomenon?
Yes, it is now

Are there regional differences in style / demand / popularity?
Well the UK was a major driving force in this scene for several years but I fear we have let the baton slip (I put it down to a combination of losing the annual AVIT VJ conference) and probably San Francisco and Japan are ahead slightly at the moment. I don’t know I don’t get too interested in popularity but expect a UK VJ backlash within 2 years - recession helps breads creativity.

Who is pushing the scene forward (performers, collectives, software producers / technology manufacturers)?
I still rate Coldcut, Hexstatic, Dfuse, Light Surgeons, Addictive TV and the always creative Inside-Us-All crew - these guys have the skills, love, industry connections and time to push the envelope with new ideas led by new technologies. They have all ventured into a/v which is where they see their concepts best realised - with audio sync.

It is therefore much harder for "mute" VJs to get realised unless they have a link to a club/band/dj with regular weekly work. This can be tiring, and it is not unusual for VJs to get bored of their VJ clips! I have not seen anything really exceptional from UK VJs for a while - but then we have been spoilt over the last few years and nu-media merges into our lives in many areas – just check the VJing on adverts nowadays. Dubassy, Dr Mo and Lucidhouse are always worth checking out.

In terms of software - Resolume was everyone's choice of late, I am looking into GridPro, and still use Motion Dive with midi - but too be honest we can become slaves to software - the best sets are the ones that use everything and anything to get an effect - from oil wheels to 16mm to 35mm slides as well. The good old Raya collective did this brilliantly back in the day!

in terms of hardware - a fucking fast laptop with Edirol and Panasonic equipment, with Sony or Canon DV cameras - oh - and good quality cabling!

What makes an excellent VJ set?
A well thought out environment that caters for everything equally - a space that considers what punters will be doing, where and when -  what the sounds are doing and where from -  the lighting and visuals, how they enhance the spaces – then the stage is set for performance. from there the VJ needs to add the vibe – a VJ set with lots of repetitive clips is not necessarily a good or bad thing - the same way that a narrative VJ set is or is not, it depends on the event and how it pans out. Shooting your VJ load with all guns blazing does not make a great set – timing is all – and a sense of curiosity in the mix.

I like a semblance of humour and tech ability in a VJ set - with some "how did they do that" moments. The set does not have to be beat matched in my view but it sure does help sometimes. In fact there is an argument for visuals completely at odds with the music at moments in a set – an ultra-slow VJ cinematic moment to nosebleed techno has its uses. The dancing body bounces to the beat whilst the cerebral brain is massaged to another vibration.
If the clever VJ can add a semblance of interactive creative user input from the audience then all the better.
As long as the VJ does it with skill, understanding and joy - and the punters are having a good time – then something is working.

Who’s equipment do you use?
Generally anything that produces a manipulated light effect relevant to the installation in question!!

I have been recently using an Edirol CG8 in an attempt to micro-effect imagery with midi which has had its own aesthetic and style - this has led to more considered pieces and VJ sets.

The Edirol V-4 is a great lightweight compact mixer, and now they have created the enhanced V8 and V-440 that handles HD - but I have not got my hands on that as yet.

As I am in the process of collating and creating a whole new bank of images and clips, and  still want to re-use the vast back catalogue, I  would not mind a chance to get dirty with the new Edirol P-10 visual sampler which allows SD compatibility, and links up all the array of my differing equipment together. Storage and capturing of visual sources, live with real time sampling is very seductive.

Who’s work do you admire most?
I think that bodydataspace (www.bodydataspace.net) are looking ahead to the future in a good way.

Their R&D with sensor based interactive concepts and systems, linked to full body telematic transmission within creative user public input, is something we will all see in future environments.

These ideas should democratise the visual screens we will find littered around our lives already (just look up the escalators on the London Underground) – and push for public participation in a revolutionary new way. Similar to what the Wii did with gaming – there is opportunity to link performance and visuals globally.

Take the visuals out of the clubs and onto the streets for us all to submit and share – and kill off the ego dj and VJ.

bodydataspace also reject the religious tyranny of the 4:3 format and play a lot with 3D screens which I like.

What’s your favoured medium/environment?
My favoured environment is space itself. Like the silence in a musical piece.

Manipulating space with visuals is only one way to change perception and achieve joy.

What work/projects have you done recently?
Currently working on a 7 storey backlit interactive wall, to a building in Barcelona,  with 70 no. backlit  inflatable cushions that can change their graphic state in a binary/analogue way. Hopefully with some clever software programming it should be possible to alter the whole elevation with musical instrumentation, even though the original purpose of the inflatable cushions is as solar shading!

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