MUTEK Festival Announces Second Wave of Performers

New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ MUTEK Official Website) Three weeks after a strong global reception for its first wave of performers, MUTEK 2012 returns with a second wave that is equally strong in fleshing out the festival's scope. Joining the growing pool of talent converging on Montreal from May 30th - June 3rd are respected pioneers, hotly tipped emerging artists, adventurous sonic manipulators, and a significant number of Canadian artists who represent the wealth of digital creativity currently at work in this country. MUTEK's second wave features:

A Guy Called Gerald [UK] / Alicia Hush [CA] / Atheus [CA] / Benoit & Sergio [US] / Bernardino Femminielli [CA] / Clark [UK] / Container [US] / Deniz Kurtel [US] / DKMD [CA] / Esprits Frappeurs [CA] / K.A.N.T.N.A.G.A.N.O. [CA] / Keith Fullerton Whitman [US] / Krause Duo [DE] / Larry James [CA] / Le Révélateur [CA] / LeBoeuf et LaViolette [CA] / Magnanime [CA] / Martin Tétreault & Nancy Tobin présentent Této [CA] / Mort [CA] / Michel Plamondon [CA] / Nelly-Eve Rajotte [CA] / Salva [US] / Sendai [BE] / Shlohmo [US] / Sibian & Faun [CA] / Simon Called Peter [CA] / Solvent [CA] / The Gulf Stream [CA] / Tonepushers [CA] / Valentin Stip [CA] / Wolf + Lamb [US]

Leading off today's announcement is British acid-techno producer A Guy Called Gerald, a central figure in the first incarnation of legendary trio 808 State, whose appearance at MUTEK constitutes not only a Canadian premiere of his "Live In Session", but also the famed producer's first show in the country in over five years. At the other end of the spectrum is American composer Keith Fullerton Whitman, considered by many to be one of his generation's most critically acclaimed disciples of electronic music's avant-garde classical roots.

Whitman will be joining Toronto synth-electro veteran Solvent (Jason Amm), who returns to the festival after a decade's absence. Amm will be leading a showcase that includes Whitman, UK Warp act Clark, American indie-techno producer Container, and more, to take place at Montreal's new Satosphere, a truly original planetarium-style dome for digital-arts performance. This showcase will be filmed for the upcoming feature-length documentary "I Dream of Wires", which explores the resurgence of the modular synthesizer. In the month of May, MUTEK TV will be featuring exclusive weekly excerpts from the film.

MUTEK's new partnership with Red Bull Music Academy, which began with a successful cross-Canadian tour, comes to full fruition with a three-day Red Bull Music Academy Stage at this year's festival. Of the exciting collaboration, Red Bull Canada's Culture Marketing Manager André de Pape says, "MUTEK as a festival provides an exciting opportunity for collaboration with Red Bull Music Academy. Both organizations focus on pioneering artists, unique performances, and music discovery. Our stage will feature participants from past Red Bull Music Academies, in addition to contemporary artists who've helped to shape the sound of 2012 and beyond. It's a diverse lineup that will bring some exciting artists to MUTEK and will look forward to the Red Bull Music Academy in New York this fall." That line-up features new names announced today, such as bass practitioners Salva, Shlohmo, and Sibian & Fuan, as well as techno producers SENDAI (featuring Peter Van Hoesen). They join previously announced figures such as Kode9, Nouveau Palais, Paul White, BNJMN, Nautiluss, Danuel Tate, and Kink.



No MUTEK festival is complete without international talents on the verge of critical breakthroughs, and today's additions build upon that reputation in spades. This year the festival spotlights a new generation of exciting American producers, among them Brooklyn label bosses Wolf+Lamb and their current roster highlight Deniz Kurtel, as well as DFA-affiliates Benoit & Sergio. From Europe's electronic scene, the festival adds Germany's long-running Krause Duo, a pair closely connected to a family tree that includes The Wighnomy Brothers and Mathias Kaden.

As always, the festival's commitment to homegrown artists who explore the fringes of sound manipulation stands strong, and this edition's reach spans further across the country than ever before. Montreal's enigmatic dark ambient and dub techno producer ATHEUS, a well respected figure on the international scene, makes a MUTEK debut performing his first-ever live set in his hometown. Longtime Quebecois favourites Martin Tétreault (appearing this time with Nancy Tobin) and K.A.N.T.N.A.G.A.N.O. return to showcase new works. Winnipeg is represented by minimal-techno duo Tonepushers, while Larry James constitutes a collaboration between Vancouver's Max Ulis and Edmonton's Ryan Trann. Toronto's upcoming talents have a fitting ambassador in Alicia Hush, of the Hushlamb Free Range Radio Show.

All this and more makes up the second wave of performers for what is shaping up to be a banner 13th edition for MUTEK. More performers, along with full showcase details and individual tickets, will be made available on April 17th. Discount passes for MUTEK 2012 are currently available at www.mutek.org until April 17th, at which point the prices rise. A five-day festival passport costs $195 (+ txs & sc), while a weekend pass costs $110 (+ txs & sc).
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Avant_MUTEK Soirée Announced for Montreal's New Satosphere
April 19: Pole, Demdike Stare, Jacaszek, and Miles

MUTEK is proud to announce an AVANT_MUTEK event in Montreal on April 19th. In collaboration with the Society for Arts and Technology, this hometown thank-you event will feature international artists Pole, Demdike Stare, Jacaszek, and Miles performing in the brand-new, state-of-the-art Satosphere.

Over the course of the night, audiences will be led through the embryonic beginnings of an A/Visions audio-visual performance to the energy and innovation of a full-fledged Nocturne. The soirée begins with Jacaszek, who arrives to Montreal courtesy of the Polish Cultural Institute of New York, accompanied by two classical instrumentalists and a visual artist. He'll be followed by Demdike Stare, who proved to be unequivocal festival favourites at MUTEK 2010. Then, Pole's Stefan Betke returns to his musical roots by flooding the dome with his minimal, electronic dub compositions. The showcase continues well into the wee hours with Whittaker, who will also perform a solo set as Miles, presenting another dimension of his musical passions.

The lineup for the night is presented under the banner of I.C.A.S. (International Cities for Advanced Sound), which will hold its next annual meeting at MUTEK_2012. The program for the AVANT_MUTEK night was developed in close collaboration with Unsound Festival (Krakow and New York) and Communikey (Boulder, Colorado).

Line-up:
Jacaszek (PL)
Demdike Stare (UK)
Pole (DE)
Miles (UK)

Immersive visual performance :
Zef & Santo (CA)
Diagraf (CA)

Date: April 19, 2012
Time: 10pm
Place: SAT, 1201 St. Laurent Blvd.
Cost: Advance 25$ (+taxes & service charge) / Door 35$

Pre-sale tickets available online here.

More details here.
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MUTEK @ Goethe Institut
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of German culture abroad

MUTEK is incredibly pleased to part of the Goethe Institut's 50th anniversary celebrations. The Institut has been an indispensable supporter of MUTEK's activities over the years. MUTEK has curated a signature line-up for the Montreal edition of the celebrations, taking place April 24th. The best part... it's totally free!

On the Bill:
Barbara Preisinger [DE]
Dewalta [DE]
Stephen Beaupre [CA]
VJ MA [CA]

Date: April 24, 2012
Time: 9 PM
Place: Goethe Institut, 418 Sherbrooke St E
Cost: Free
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Special Contests by MUTEK and Roland

MUTEK Launches the "Fill The Music Box" Contest
Sound Creation contest for under-30s begins accepting entries April 2nd

As part of its 13th edition, MUTEK is proud to announce the launch of a sound creation contest, in collaboration with Propellerhead, which will be accepting entries from April 2nd to May 2nd.

Under the "Fill The Music Box" theme, this contest is open to anyone under the age of 30, residing in the provinces of Quebec or Ontario. From April 2nd - May 2nd, 2012, participants are invited to submit an original composition, ranging in length from 3 to 30 minutes.

Ten creations, selected by a jury comprised of Patti Schmidt (curator, MUTEK), Yuani Fragata (producer, Bande à part) and Ben Shemie (artist, Suuns), will be broadcast on www.mutek.org
for the entire duration of the festival. During this time, the public will be invited to vote for and ultimately designate three winners who will be awarded prizes offered by Propellerhead.

Information and rules available here.
Participation form available here.

Roland Launches 5th Annual Synth Contest
Compose, submit and win! (Maybe...)

For musicians, the synthesizer is the ultimate inspiration station - a source of creativity with limitless potential. Whether you use hardware or soft synths to dream up your sonic creations, Roland wants to hear from you!
Send to Roland your best, synth-focused compositions for the chance to win gear, recognition and exposure!

Contest closes Friday, May 4th, 2012.

Grand Prize:
A Jupiter-80 Prize Pack worth over $7,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to MUTEK, Canada's premier electronic music festival, to be featured at the Pre-Nocturne Roland Showcase and to experience the royal treatment of a MUTEK artist!

More info: https://www.roland.ca/synthcontest/index.html

Tickets for MUTEK available via mutek.org

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