Wallace & Gromit Take Musical Marvels On The Road

After their hugely popular BBC Prom at the Royal Albert Hall this summer, Wallace & Gromit hit the road with Musical Marvels, a new family show with performances taking place at the Brighton Dome (30th March) and London's Hammersmith Apollo (31st March, 1st April) over Easter 2013.

Wallace & Gromit's Musical Marvels, , a joint production between BBC Worldwide and Aardman Animations, is a family show with the audience invited behind the scenes as Wallace prepares to perform his Proms commission 'My Concerto in Eee Lad'. Specially-filmed Wallace & Gromit animated scenes reveal the duo's backstage exploits as the Aurora Orchestra keep the audience entertained with classical favourites.

Following the interval there will be a special screening of the multi-award winning Wallace & Gromit film A Matter of Loaf and Death with the soundtrack performed live.

Merlin Crossingham, Creative Director of the show says; "I am delighted that Wallace & Gromit's Musical Marvels is going on the road, after such a fabulous premiere as part of the 2012 BBC Proms. It is brilliant that more audiences will get the chance to experience this great show, featuring live orchestral music and bespoke W&G animation."

Wallace & Gromit's continued success beyond the animated TV stories includes a daily strip in The Sun, produced by Titan Comics, written by Bambos Georgiou and drawn by Mychailo Kazybrid.

• Tickets for Wallace & Gromit's Musical Marvels are on sale now from www.wallaceandgromitmusicalmarvels.com

 

Drokk's Debut Gig at Orbital Comics announced

Geoff Barrow and Ben Salisbury will be performing extracts from the new record, Drokk - Music Inspired By Mega-City One, released on Invada UK, at Orbital Comics on the 16th May.

As we've previously reported, this project kicked off when Barrow and Salisbury revisited and started expanding upon some of their early material, deciding to continue writing what was essentially soundtrack music.  Barrow, along with album designer and long term friend, Marc Bessant, were both avid 2000AD readers from a young age, and the sprawling metropolis and classic stories of Mega-City One seemed the ideal inspiration for this ‘soundtrack’.

Although Mega-City One has been brought to life in great detail over many years by the acclaimed work of writers and artists alike, the creators of Drokk feel there's still huge scope for readers to have their own vision/soundtrack of the city. Rather than intending to be the definitive sound of Mega-City One (could there be a ‘definitive sound’ of a city so vast, changeable and varied?), Drokk is Barrow and Salisbury’s personal, outsider’s’ interpretation.

Drokk was written in a six month period between Barrow’s Portishead world tour and Salisbury’s composing jobs for the BBC.  Although it is a soundtrack of sorts, Barrow and Salisbury instinctively felt that music for MC1 should steer clear of the rich orchestration common to many contemporary film scores.

Barrow and Salisbury instinctively felt that music for MC1 should steer clear of the rich orchestration common to many contemporary film scores.  Even for electronica the music is purposefully stark and spare, with the majority of tracks created exclusively on the Oberhiem 2 Voice Synthesizer (a 1975 classic keyboard), and its onboard sequencer used to create rhythm and drum sounds.

The only exception are a handful of tracks which combine the synth with digitally manipulated and time-stretched performances of acoustic instruments - such as piano, violin, mandolin, ukelele, voice and hammered dulcimer.

"2000AD is delighted that Judge Dredd continues to inspire artists in the year of the character's 35th anniversary, especially such high profile talents as Geoff and Ben," said a 2000AD spokesperson. "You can tell, from their vision of the Big Meg, that they're massive fans of the strip."

Comic costume call for Kendal Calling Music Festival

Image via Happy Slap Boutique

The massive music event Kendal Calling has just announced its the fancy dress theme for 2012 will be Fairy Tales and Comic Books, a magical all encompassing theme that will see the site transform on Saturday, with the entire congregation encouraged to get involved.

Tickets have been getting snapped up for this year's festival and a full to bursting line up has already been unveiled that includes Dizzee Rascal, James, Maximo Park, Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip, We Are Scientists, The View and many more.

For the third year, Kendal Calling reveal a fancy dress theme that has been a huge success in previous years with revellers showing incredible innovation and imagination in designing and donning costumes.

"Getting dressed up for a festival is all about becoming another version of you," a spokesperson explains. "An exaggerated, bold and colourful character. So this year we are transforming the Deer Park into another world with our theme Fairy Tales and Comic Books."

With the backdrop of the stunning Lake District, Kendal Calling expects to see everyone from the Pied Piper to Wolverine, Little Red Riding Hood to Catwoman, the Gingerbread to Tin Tin all partying together and this years theme will make the event even more of a surreal wonderland of fun and frolics than ever before.

The fun and frolics continues at Kendal Calling in the crazy world of the Happy Slap Boutique. This area will be like no other and is where anything goes, and is the home of electro swing and eclectic music. A haven to transform into creatures and characters, the Happy Slap face-painting boutique will get revelers ready to be immersed in magical worlds, dazzled by spectacular cabaret shows, wowed by our travelling circus and entertained in ways you never thought possible.

Happy Slap Boutique present a world of fairy tales and mischief full of secrets to explore and discover, keeping the entertainment going all weekend. Bump into Jack Sprat, a narcoleptic Sleeping Beauty or climb up Rapunzel's hair and witness their take on your classic fairy tales. Performers will be traveling around the festival doing walk-about performance where it’s least expected with music, song, dance and ridiculousness.

As night falls, Happy Slap Boutique will transform into a plethora of circus, fire and glow performances alongside clowning, grotesque burlesque, world famous 'Rave Aerobics' and surprise acts that keep buzzing all night.

DJs Ocelus, Tom Excell, Dan The Hat, Wolfie Rassmatazz, Magic Lantern, Vinyl Rights Experience, Mikey J and very special guests will spin a genre defying mix of electro swing, jungle, Balkan, breakbeat, house & electro.

"The only music we can guarantee are upbeat party tunes," the organisers say. "Check out Happy Slap Radio for exclusive mixes."

The music and activities in the Kendal Calling meadow span 11 diverse stages and areas, situated in a close-knit site that means you’re never far from your friends.

• Kendal Calling, Friday 27th – Sunday 29th July 2012, Lowther Deer Park, Hackthorpe, The Lake District. Adults £105, £50 11-15 year-olds, under 11's free. Tickets available at www.ticketline.co.uk.

• More info: www.kendalcalling.com