Plant43 - Vaulted Arches - Live at Bleep43 (2021)

This 40-minute live set was recorded straight from the mixing desk in the beautiful crypt of St James’ Church in London on 9th June 2018. The music was all composed in advance and performed in one take on the day using Ableton to conduct the ‘band’: my Roland SH101 and Korg MS2000 on sparkly arps, Elektron Analog 4 on drones and some VSTs providing some big pads and the odd bit of percussion (and one cheeky four-to-the-floor kick drum).

The set was performed as part of Bleep43’s event at the Crypt on the Green, a unique location tucked away in the back streets of Clerkenwell. Our aim was to produce an experience that took its influence from the halcyon days of ambient rooms, whilst also providing a platform for electronic musicians to articulate themselves outside the confines of more traditional venues. Audience members were encouraged to relax and stretch out, help themselves to a mug of tea and enjoy a more intimate way of engaging with the music. It was an amazing day and I had a lot of fun playing alongside Datassette, Jo Johnson, Ali Wade and Jonathan Fitoussi.

It’s only recently that I’ve found the time to give the recording some attention, tweaking the low end to add back in low notes that were filtered out on the day due to the extremely bass heavy rig we hired for the day and adding a little reverb from my Eventide Space to simulate the ambience of the crypt with it’s vaulted ceiling that was our home for the day.