There is a Paisley Babylon fan page on Facebook…it’s been there for a while but I’ve only recently decided that might be a good place to post little surprises like exclusive tracks, show info, and contact with people who enjoy the dark sonic journeys I’ve been creating.
Join me on Facebook and say hello…and if you’re working on your own like-minded music, do feel free to use that page to get in touch, discuss shows or collaborations, split seven-inches, etc.
–Joe Wallace
BIG thanks to all who came to see the three-theremin spectacle that was last night’s Paisley Babylon performance. I did the opening set as Paisley Babylon and then stayed on stage as half of Binary Partners. It was a very good night indeed and it was nearly two full hours of unusual, hallucinatory entertainment that would have pleased Timothy Leary, William Burroughs, and probably Stephen Stapleton.
Here are some images from the show, there was a full recording of both performances and that will become available at some point. Stay tuned for details.
–Joe Wallace
As all of Paisley Babylon, I write a lot of music using the theremin, and as half of Binary Partners I perform live using the theremin exclusively as of late. My last five shows have featured the theremin as my main instrument, and the one coming this Saturday 1 Feb is no exception.
I will perform theremin duties once more on stage as half of Binary Partners at Jerry’s, located at 1938 W. Division Street in Chicago. This show will likely be the most insane one to date as I’m running a ridiculous number of effects pedals and creating a theremin sound so large and threatening that some could mistake it for natural phenomena.
That’s NOT to say that this is a NOISE show per se–it is NOT that–but with this setup the theremin is capable of damn near weaponized volumes of sound. I prefer to use such things as punctuation, not as the whole sentence, as it were. But the loud-quiet-loud approach worked great for The Pixies, so why not with BP?
I’ve been using the theremin more and more in my soundtrack work and it’s gratifying that more people are interested in these sounds. It should be said, I’m no Clara Rockmore–I have no interest in playing sonatas with my instrument. Call me the J.G. Thirlwell of the theremin and you’re barking up the right tree.
Come out on Saturday to Jerry’s to see what all the fuss is about.
–Joe Wallace
Paisley Babylon has long used the theremin, but as of late the instrument is finding its way to the forefront a lot more. I’ve been debating changing the name to Theremin Babylon, that’s how much I love this instrument. I’ve run Paisley Babylon more or less part time in the last two years due to a variety of concerns including my work in professional audio for film and television, but I feel that pull back into live performing, touring and recording. It’s time for a change.
So Paisley Babylon goes for a bigger footprint, more recording and touring, session work, etc. The theremin is a very big part of all that and I look forward to collaborating with other people on tours, recordings and other projects. The theremin brings such a unique sound to the process that I can’t help but think there are plenty of people out there who want to include it in their recordings.
If you are one of those people, do get in touch–I’d love to discuss your project and what it needs from the theremin. Feel free to e-mail me at jwallace242@gmail.com to talk about projects, shows, and collaboration.
The theremin can be a unique noisemaker and sonic texture instrument, but it also has a lovely instrumental quality all its own. It can be musical as well as noisy, surreal, and psychedelic.
–Joe Wallace