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Ambient, noise and field recording artist based in Melbourne


"Splitting his composition into different layers to reflect the different elements of Bacon’s painting, the result is a wall of sound of discordant, brain-pounding electronic beats." -  http://www.bidolito.co.uk/content/response-0

Official Pet Shop Boys Soundcloud profile 

Hailing from San Francisco, California, Brian is intimately familiar with how house music has swept over the United States for more than two decades. While the technophile makes his living integrating systems and solving technology problems, his home away from home resides distinctly set behind his MacBook and his Pioneer DJ DDJ-SR2 controller. Brian has instigated many a groove at various venues around the globe, from Vancouver to Palm Springs, Los Angeles to Atlanta, New York to Toronto. He makes regular appearances in San Francisco, of course -- doing what he can to maintain a busy life style set around friends, music, and constant exploration.

"It's a bit of a challenge, but one I thoroughly enjoy" says the young DJ. "San Francisco is uniquely positioned -- we are not only a destination for traveling artists and musicians: we are also artists and musicians ourselves. The real question is, how involved do you want to get?"

By college, Brian was sneaking out of his dorm to play underground parties with his friends. It wasn't the anthem style club tunes that marked the charts at the time -- no, hallmarks of the evening were hard-to-find white labels from local record shops. Brian and Aaron Robinson held practice sessions for hours some weekends, before welcoming in throngs of friends and family to dance the night away.

As Brian's skills took shape, it wasn't long before he found a friend in Orlando-originated DJ Mark Snyder. Now residing in the UK because of advances in career, Mark rounded out Brian's catalog with legendary tracks from Sasha and John Digweed. As Brian and Mark's friendship grew, they began to throw house parties together. House parties turned in to club parties -- and this continued until Brian made the move to San Francisco to explore even more music and friendship.

In 2011, Brian worked with other local DJs to create the Rocket Collective - a fellowship of DJs raising monies for better sound experiences at the Burning Man art festival in Black Rock City, Nevada. He relates the tale fondly: "we had Trevor Sigler and David Sternesky -- two amazing, young, talented guys who would constantly create new and different mixes for us to use live! And of course, we would have all original acts booked with help from Mat Dos Santos." The troupe toured for nearly a year before retiring the project, and setting about their own creative paths.

2015 has proven to be a peak year for the young performer, with performances at Toronto Pride alongside Dave Aude, San Diego Pride for Bearracuda, Vancouver Pride for Ruff, and Atlanta Bear Pride as well. Brian was also selected from a host of world-renowned DJs to perform in the Underground Lounge for the legendary Real Bad party, a true honor given the history and support around the event. As for global recognition, Brian continues his regular collaboration and with Vincent Keith's Mascular Magazine to keep his distinct, recognizable sound available to communities the world over.

 Music by Astrid Williamson and Goya Dress

Solo Albums
Boy For You
Astrid Williamson
Day Of The Lone Wolf
Here Come The Vikings
Pulse
We Go To Dream

With Goya Dress
Bedroom Cinema EP
Ruby EP
Glorious EP
Rooms


“REAL BRITANNIA” – album 3 campaign

2016: 

Ultrasound’s third album, Real Britannia, released on their  CAC (Classic Album Club) label, co-founded by a couple  of  rock’n’roll doctors, actually real life medics and vinyl freaks who bought the band the studio gear they needed to make the record. The lengthiest track on an album that resolutely refuses to pander to 21st century attention spans is a suite of sorts entitled “Blue Remembered Hills”, a lengthy, autobiographical lyrical expression by Tiny that’s doubly apt. It harks back to an ugly/beautiful childhood, a blue remembered Seventies one of bubblegum and concrete and Top of the Pops, of cub scouts and power cuts, civil unrest and hazy summer lawns; it also harks back to a late 20th century culture, in which Ultrasound were themselves late participants, in which maverick, impassioned art was given play in the mainstream.

“I got obsessed with Dennis Potter,” says Tiny. “The way he viewed Britain. I like Dennis Potter because he dared to do things other people wouldn’t - and he was brutally honest. . . you don’t get that window of opportunity now. I saw a documentary about Ken Roach recently. They tried to shut him down, stop him from working. But even if it’s been shut down, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t follow that path.”

Real Britannia is, as its title suggests, a bittersweet, Potter-esque contemplation of this sceptred but septic isle.  Tiny says, was what it means to British, what that means to people. But also to get to grips with this whole idea of nostalgia; harking back to times that never existed. 

From “No Man’s Land”, triggered by the 80s post nuclear drama Threads, with musical nods to both Pere Ubu and even Jethro Tull, to the single “Kon-Tiki”, whose guitars burst fresh from the cupboards of the late 1990s, to “Soul Girl”, Vanessa’s first ever penned contribution to an Ultrasound album, a motorik, affirmative celebration of a force that will not be denied, to “Asylum”, with its vivid, musty fragrance’s of the provinces, Real Britannia is an album that straddles the styles of the late 20th century decades, from segmented Prog to Chicks On Speed-style raw, minimal pop. “It helps the fact that we’re all different ages,” says Tiny. “We all bring something different to the table.”

The love of the labour is reflected in the vinyl packaging, particularly the glorious artwork of the gatefold (tri-fold) sleeve, which broadcasts the demand that this album not be merely cherry picked but treasured as a whole. In that respect, as rocketing vinyl sales demonstrate, Ultrasound are down with the kids. As Tiny says, “You see kids clutching vinyl when they come out of gigs who don’t even own record players because they need something tangible from the experience, in their hands, an artefact.”

What’s more, the album is recorded using analogue processes; it’s about capturing the vibe rather than achieving some clinical, self-defeating and sterile idea of perfection. 

“You can put fast food in your face quickly but you’ll still feel hungry at the end of it,” says Vanessa. “But recording analogue isn’t just some pretentious gesture against the music industry. It’s nourishing. It’s like a dense weave on a steak. A good quality piece of meat doesn’t have air and water in it - whereas a lot of modern music is full of air and water. Hot air”.

“For us, Real Britannia is about putting the needle on the record and going on a spiritual journey with us into light and dark dreams and wash up on the shores of life somehow changed, hopefully for the better. Music is important to us and to our fans. It is not just a chart obsessed “here today” type thing, but has a lasting permanence – a sense of eternity and something that should outlive us all.”

Alternative // Pop  — Scandinavia 

Enquiries: annaofthenorth.info@gmail.com

MGMT -
steve@triplemanagement.com
jake@triplemanagement.com

Management:  
Filip Wilén, filip@budfox.se, Bud Fox Management

US Press: 
Winnie Lam, Columbia Records, winnie.lam@sonymusic.com
Christina Hankin, Columbia Records, christina.hankin@sonymusic.com

UK Press:
Beth Parnell, RCA record, beth.parnell@rcarecords.com

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