Home
Biography
Images
Downloads
Radio & Podcasts
Bookings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PEOPLE LIKE US
A Retrospective Exhibition


alt.gallery, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

Opening Night: 15 May 2008, 6 - 8pm
Exhibition: 16 May - 12 July 2008

alt.gallery (entry via alt.vinyl) 61/62 Thornton Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4AW.
Tel +44 (0) 191 222 1213 / mail at altgallery dot org

http://www.altgallery.org/

Opening hours: Monday - Saturday 10am - 6pm / Thursday 10am - 8pm
Admission Free

alt.gallery is pleased to announce the first retrospective exhibition of work by People Like Us (aka Vicki Bennett).  

For the past seventeen years British artist Vicki Bennett has been an influential figure in the field of audio visual collage, through her innovative sampling, appropriating and cutting up of found footage and archives.

Using collage as her main form of expression, she creates audio recordings, films and radio shows that communicate a humorous, dark and often surreal view on life. The exhibition will focus on the concept of collage, showing an edited selection of her work, including twenty album releases, numerous singles and remixes, live sets, seven films and over a hundred and fifty radio shows.

These collages mix, manipulate and rework original sources from both the experimental and popular worlds of music, film, television and radio.   People Like Us believe in open access to archives for creative use, and have made work using footage from the Prelinger Archives, The Internet Archive, and A/V Geeks. In 2006 she was the first artist to be given unrestricted access to the entire BBC Archive.

People Like Us have previously shown work at Tate Modern, Sydney Opera House, Pompidou Centre and Sonar, and performed radio sessions for John Peel and Mixing It. The ongoing sound art radio show 'Do or DIY' on WFMU has had over three quarters of a million hits since 2003. The People Like Us back catalogue is available for free download hosted by UbuWeb.

Every week during the exhibition a different collection of special downloads from the People Like Us archive will be available from the gallery, bring your memory stick along for a free take away!

A specially commissioned essay by Dr. Drew Daniel of Matmos accompanies the exhibition.

The exhibition will also launch a new CD curated by Vicki Bennett for Sonic Arts Network called 'Smiling Through My Teeth', a compilation of humorous music and sound art.

SPECIAL EVENTS

People Like Us Special on WFMU
Thursday 15 May, 11pm-midnight (UK time)

www.wfmu.org/playlists/ER

To celebrate the exhibition opening Ergo Phizmiz hosts a People Like Us Special on his show 'Phuj Phactory' on WFMU, both on terrestrial radio and live internet stream.

People Like Us Talk and Screening
Friday 16 May, 7:30pm

Star and Shadow Cinema, Stepney Bank, Newcastle

www.starandshadow.org.uk

Vicki Bennett presents a selection of films by People Like Us.
http://www.starandshadow.org.uk/shared/may2008/ss_film.2008-04-24.1110768667/

The Late Shows: Smiling Through My Teeth CD Launch
Saturday 17 May, 7pm-11pm

alt.gallery

www.altgallery.org

The exhibition will also launch the new CD "Smiling Through My Teeth" guest curated by Vicki Bennett for Sonic Arts Network, a compilation of humorous music and sound art.

The Late Shows form part of NewcastleGateshead's world-class festivals and events programme. www.thelateshows.org.uk

7 June 2008
People Like Us DJ set as part of Matmos festival at Beaconsfield, London

Admission: £15 (£12 concessions)
Special price for all three nights: £35 (£30 concessions)

Saturday 7 June 8pm-1am: THE SOFT PINK TRUTH Drew Daniel‚s solo upbeat dance project plus Nitewreckers (Dave Ball), PEOPLE LIKE US, Le Couteau Jaune, DJ Tendraw, Max Tundra DJ, Howard Jacques in residence plus surprise guests and Mark Dean's film Jane/Fonda. 

Sunday 8 June 7.30pm-11pm: MATMOS Classic Matmos improv set with Jay Lesser plus Kaffe Matthews, Stephen Gosh, Stephen Thrower, Mark Dean, Howard Jacques in residence plus surprise guests 

Monday 9 June 7.30pm-12 midnight: MATMOS and CARTERTUTTI Live set with Jay Lesser and highlights from the new album Supreme Balloon plus CarterTutti, Howard Jacques in residence and more surprise guests. 

Book tickets now: advanced tickets can be purchased securely with Paypal via the Beaconsfield website (details below).

Beaconsfield, 22 Newport Street, Vauxhall, London, SE11 6AY
Tube: Vauxhall  
Buses: 3 (W.End)  77 (Waterloo)  344 (Liverpool St)  360 (Elephant & Castle)
Tel: 020 7582 6465   Email: info at beaconsfield.ltd.uk
http://www.beaconsfield.ltd.uk/

30 April 2008
2 new albums - Rhapsody in Glue and Smiling Through My Teeth

We're been having a mad rush to get the new album finished, mastered and have it in place on the night of the opening of the People Like Us Retrospective in Newcastle. The album title is "Rhapsody in Glue" - an online-only release available at a budget price from 15th May at bleep.com with no digital rights management so you can share it with ease. Once this is available from there we will post the information here and to our mailing list. The starting point of this album was the podcast series Codpaste, which has now been more than expanded upon to make a full album's worth of leestening pleasure.

In the meantime the People Like Us-curated Sonic Arts Network CD "Smiling Through My Teeth" is also currently being pressed, ready for the launch night, also in Newcastle. There will be a full mailout in mid-May, if you wish to receive this please subscribe to our mailing list.

14 April 2008
PLU and Ergo Live at York - mp3 excerpt

Download it here - thanks Tony Myatt for recording this.

10 April 2008
DO or DIY 3 Hour Special on WFMU

DO or DIY with People Like Us will be broadcasting a 3 hour long web-only special on WFMU on Thursday 10th April from 6-9am NY time.
That's 11am-2pm UK time!

Tune in live here and check out the live playlisting from Vicki.

The show will be archived at http://wfmu.org/playlists/PL afterwards and will arrive as a podcast if you are subscribed to DO or DIY at wfmu.org.

22 March 2008
US premiere of Work, Rest & Play at Other Cinema, SF

As part of their new spring schedule, Other Cinema will be presenting an evening of Expanded Cinema, including a US premiere of People Like Us's triptych Work, Rest & Play. If you are in the area go and enjoy the delights of Other Cinema, hosted by your host with the most, Craig Baldwin.

20 March 2008
What's next, you may well ask?

Whoooooshhh... well actually not at all! For the next 6 weeks People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz will be developing all the beginnings of songs forming in the Codpaste into something nice and solid, such as an album! Also Vicki is preparing various artworks, designs etc for a full People Like Us Retrospective in a gallery from May to July, details coming up on that in the next couple of weeks. Also DO and DIY continues as a WFMU podcast. Our gig went down very well at Sightsonic, so we are now officially available to book as a duo concert, if you happen to have the venue and the money. Or rather then money and the venue. Here are a couple of pictures from the Sightsonic concert in York's beautiful National Centre For Early Music.


People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz Live at Sightsonic

14-15 March 2008
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz play...
SightSonic 2008 - York International Festival of Digital Arts

We are pleased to People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz will be playing a double bill, both separately and also a rare duo performance as part of York International Festival of Digital Arts. This will take place at the National Centre for Early Music on Friday 14th March between 7.30pm and 9.30pm. More info and tickets available at the SightSonic website. On 15th March Vicki will also be doing an artist talk, also as part of the festival at York St John University (YSJU), in Fountains Lecture Theatre. The talk is scheduled for around 11.30am, and will last about an hour.

10 March 2008
The Return of Codpaste

After three weeks off for the WFMU marathon and to catch up in general, Codpaste podcast on WFMU returns! The episode on the 10th March is the penultimate edition, with a grand extended finale, busting it's way to your podcast inbox on the 17th March. After this, although the podcast ends, the project is FAR from over, in fact it's just the beginning of the next chapter, when Vicki and Ergo make an album from the material!

Codpaste page
WFMU playlists

3 December 2007 - March 2008

We are pleased to announce Codpaste - a new weekly podcast series brought to you by People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz, who will be teaming up and trying to compose collage music for you... with emphasis on the word "trying." It's reasonably rare that music is broadcast to you when it's not all finished, polished and dusted, but we're going to spew out the guts and gore to you, dear listener, so do bring a spoon.

From Monday 3rd December 2007, WFMU will be hosting the podcasts of:

(i) audio sources, the tracks used as the basis for the collage in the episode
(ii) sketches, mixes, and collages combining track elements with added instrumentation, electronics, vocals, etc.
(iii) fragments, layers, and multitracks of the collage compositions

These elements will be tied together by snippets of light-hearted, tangential conversations and introductions and occasional mental overload and verbal meltdown.

Subscribe to this free weekly podcast by visiting WFMU's Podcast page. Or you can go straight to iTunes, go to the menu bar, then Advanced, then Subscribe to Podcast and paste this in http://wfmu.org/podcast/CT.xml and iTunes will do the rest for you. The podcast proper starts on Monday 3rd December, but in the meantime you'll get a little welcome message.

We're having great fun recording this and we think it will reflect in the program. Do try it out here -

Episode 1 - 3rd December 2007 - Cartoon Music - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25395
Episode 2 - 10th December 2007 - The Chase - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25405
Episode 3 - 17th December 2007 - Hooked On Classics - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25406
Episode 4 - 24th December 2007 - ThEdit - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25429
Episode 5 - 31st December 2007 - Fwms Bo Wo - http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25530
Episode 6 - 7th January 2008 - Snow Day - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25533
Episode 7 - 14th January 2008 - Banjos, Pots, Pans and Squeezeboxes - http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25819
Episode 8 - 21st January 2008 - Collage - http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25942
Episode 9 - 28th January 2008 - I Can't Tell A Waltz From A Tango - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25966

Episode 10 - 4th February 2008 - Nana Mouskouri - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25655
Episode 11 - 11th February 2008 - Song Song - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/25970
Episode 12 - 18th February 2008 - Comedy - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/26276
Episode 13 - 10th March 2008 - Easy Listening - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/26488
Episode 14 - 17th March 2008 - Finale - http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/26515 - and at the WFMU blog

Further program information can be found here.

28 February 2008
DO or DIY returns to your podcast inbox

After a few weeks off, DO or DIY with People Like Us has returned, and will continue to return every two weeks for the next few weeks, and then after that will return weekly. Playlists and Archives remain at http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/PL

25 February - 9 March 2008
WFMU Fundraising Marathon 2008

Happy Birthday to WFMU! The oldest freeform radio station is now 50 Years Old!! But this is not an excuse to become complacent. WFMU needs you.We at WFMU rely on our listeners to show appreciation for the station during these two weeks of the year in order to pay for all the costs involved in running the station, getting the radio shows, internet streams and podcasts to you. We hope you appreciate how special and unique WFMU is, and even in it's 50th year, it should by no means be taken for granted. There are so many things that are no longer existing because of the lack of attention and care from so many people that often benefit the most from such creative endeavours. Please pledge now to WFMU, and help us to keep making this work. Put your money where your mouse is, we know we are. We, People Like Us don't know what we would do without our friends and listeners at WFMU.

WFMU
How This Works...
Support Freeform Radio!
Your Name
Your Email
Your Pledge $
Add this banner to your site!

More information here

28 February - 8 March 2008
Now Hear This

We are pleased to announce that Forma have commissioned People Like Us to make a series of new soundworks for "Now Hear This", which forms part of the larger AV Festival.

Now Hear This is a series of site–specific audio works presented in various public spaces across Middlesbrough. Encompassing several new commissions, the project features audio works by artists selected for their various interests in the complex relationships between sound, space and location. Adopting diverse modes of broadcast and public address, Now Hear This offers a range of listening experiences and unexpected sonic interventions into our everyday urban environment, creating surprising and engaging encounters with broadcast material. Commissions include new sound works by British artists Marcus Coates, Zoe Irvine and People Like Us.

Pair up with People Like Us for a series of misfiring musical arrangements, exploring the entertaining aspects of miscommunication, disharmony, bad connections and missed calls.

Vicki Bennett (aka People Like Us) will produce a series of short audio works to be broadcast via Bluetooth in Middlesbrough Town Centre. These brief musical compositions explore the humorous side to communication breakdowns in all their varied and surprising forms. These tracks, in mp3 form, are available now for download, day by day, as they are released on location into the ether. Get them at http://www.nowhearthis.org.uk/

To experience Breaking Waves, take a Bluetooth enabled device (such as a mobile phone) within close proximity of the Bluetooth broadcaster – look out for the poster site situated in front of Bhs on Linthorpe Road, in Middlesbrough's central shopping area. The broadcaster will emit a notification that gives the option to download and listen.

23 December 2007 (from)
Listen to DO or DIY in Australian national radio!

Starting 23rd December for several weeks of their summer season on ABC Radio National, the radio program The Night Air will be rebroadcasting People Like Us's show, DO or DIY on WFMU - this means you can tune in on your transistor radio or online, or listen afterwards to the archive. Go along to their website now and check it out - the program details for the first episode are here. People Like Us guested on The Night Air back in 2001, alongside friends Irene Moon and The Evolution Control Committee - you can hear that here.

3 December 2007 - March 2008
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz
Special podcast series:
Codpaste
advance news - starting 3rd December on WFMU

People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz will be making an album... but it will be different to usual processes - we are going to let you in on the whole thing and document the making as a series of weekly podcasts, the first starting on 3rd December. More info pages coming very soon now!

6 November 2007
DO or DIY resumes!

After a month off, we have now resumed weekly podcasting of DO or DIY on WFMU - the next podcast will hit your iTunes next time you open it up, if you are already subscribed. You can subscribe for free by opening up iTunes, going to the menu at the top of your screen, clicking on Advanced, then Subscribe to Podcast, then copy this from below and paste it in.

http://wfmu.org/podcast/PL.xml

Then it will arrive all by itself. Amazing.

4 October 2007
Final DO or DIY radio show of the season
with d
ownloadable album on WFMU blog

In keeping with what is now becoming a tradition, the last on air edition of DO or DIY with People Like Us is being delivered alongside an album
sized chunk of a megamix with the bitesize title of "Wet Sounds - The Best Of All Things Particularly Avant Retard 2007". Not only that, but it has
fantastico artwork and a delectable bonus 15 minutes on top of what we are playing on the last show of the season. AND no mic breaks prattling on
while you're trying to relax and realign your soul to this calming and cooling sonic breeze. People Like Us will be taking the next season off, but will resume podcasting in November, after a short break, so stay detuned.

Listen to an archive after the show

Go to the WFMU blog after the show and download the album

22 September 2007
See "Work, Rest & Play" in Sheffield this Winter

Earlier this year Vicki completed a 3-screen A/V piece called "Work, Rest & Play" for Lovebytes, and we now can tell you that it will be presented by Lovebytes with Millennium Galleries from 7th November 2007 to 15th February 2008 in the foyer of Millennium Galleries in Sheffield. After this point we want to make it available for film festival distribution, like previous works. 


2 August 2007
Download "Honeysuckle Boulevard" at the WFMU Blog!

The online edition of People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz's album, "Honeysuckle Boulevard", which came out at the beginning of 2007 as a free ten inch vinyl release and is now deleted, can now be downloaded for free at the WFMU Blog here. It includes vinyl label artwork, an info text file and also two bonus tracks. The bonus tracks have never before been made available for release or download.

Download the audio either as a zip file containing all the tracks, or grab each individual MP3. So off you go now to the WFMU Blog at http://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2007/08/honesuckle-boul.html

28 June 2007
"Perpetuum Mobile" packaging mentioned in De:Bug

De:Bug have done a feature on the packaging of our album, in relation to our manufacturing it on a very local level in India.
http://www.de-bug.de/texte/4953.html

10 June 2007
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz podcasts

Vicki and Ergo are pleased to announce that they will be working on a podcast series through the next year - details coming up sometime next month. To keep up to date on this why not subscribe to the mailing list.

10 June 2007
"Perpetuum Mobile" reviews

Our album has been getting some great reviews, scroll to the bottom section here to have a look.

8 June 2007
"On The Rooftops Of London" for sale

Due to popular demand we've made a CD Single available of the radio session we did for Mixing It on BBC Radio 3, since otherwise it would never be heard again since Mixing It is no more on the station. You can get it here.

7 June - 4 October 2007
People Like Us return to the WFMU Summer Season

People Like Us will return to terrestrial radio and their one hour weekly show for the Summer Season on WFMU. The show starts on Thursday 7th June and will run weekly until 4 October, when People Like Us will revert back to making podcast only shows for the Winter Season. Tune in live every week and follow the accuplaylist at 6pm Thursdays NY time, that is 11pm Thursdays UK time. Alternatively you can tune in afterwards, and to archive shows, at http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/PL. You can also subscribe as ever to the ongoing podcast (copy and paste this link into iTunes/Advanced)Here's the New WFMU Schedule

1 June 2007
People Like Us 20 minute megamix on Radio Eins

People Like Us have done an exclusive mix for Ocean Club Radio on Radio Eins in Berlin - it will be aired between 23:00 and 1:00 on Radio Eins 95.8fm, and repeated Sunday nights at 1am (both Berlin time). The show is also archived, follow the links below.Radio Eins - Ocean Club Radio
Archive - once it's been aired
Playlist:People Like Us - Intro
People Like Us - People Like You
People Like Us - Blue Bayou
People Like Us - Music Of Your Own
People Like Us - Blue Bayou
People Like Us - Gongexeva
People Like Us - The Doody Waltz
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz - A Bastards Waltz
People Like Us - Stand By Your
People Like Us - Bran Mash & Crushed Beans (excerpt)
People Like Us - Bier Bier Bier Downtown
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz - Bad Restaurant Boogie
People Like Us - Bran Mash & Crushed Beans (excerpt)
People Like Us - We're Going To Be Around

1 June 2007
Selling our last few copies of "Honeysuckle Boulevard" 10 inch

That's right - we have a few left, and are selling them through our websites at a reasonable price. Sorry, we can't afford to give anymore away for free, the offer was strictly until 31 March and we are now over budget... as usual!Buy Honeysuckle Boulevard here

18 May 2007
People Like Us previewed new work at Lovebytes

Showroom Cinema 3, Sheffield
Vicki Bennett introduced a special preview of "Work, Rest & Play". This 14 minute long three screen video work, combining animation and re-contextualised found film footage, has been commissioned by Lovebytes and Sheffield's Millennium Galleries for exhibition in Autumn 2007. Website information hereStills here:


11 May 2007
People Like Us featured in new sonic art book

Vicki Bennett/People Like Us will be featured significantly in a new book entitled "The Fundamentals of Sonic Art and Design" by Tony Gibbs. You can buy it from many retailers including Amazon. More info here: "Sonic Art and Sound Design is a technical and conceptually creative field with no one comprehensive definition; it encompasses music technology, computer programming, fine art and performance. It engages with the art of sound in ground breaking and exciting ways. The Fundamentals of Sonic Art and Sound Design by Tony Gibbs is the first academic book of its kind and defines and teaches this subject in a creative and stimulating way. It explores the worlds of sonic art and sound design through their history and development as distinct subjects. Looking at new and radical approaches to sound recording, performance, installation works and exhibition. AVA proudly present The Fundamentals of Sonic Art and Sound Design as the first academic text book that not only challenges whatÕs currently available but as with all AVA titles is created to visually stimulate as well as educate through an informative, comprehensive introduction to this exciting new subject."

23 April 2007
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz
"Perpetuum Mobile" CD

Buy it here.
Hear a sneak preview of "Soggy Style" by People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz
and "Ghosts Before Breakfast" by People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz
Huw Stephens has been playiing this on his radio show on BBC Radio 1.Press Release:

PEOPLE LIKE US & ERGO PHIZMIZ "PERPETUUM MOBILE"

"Perpetuum Mobile" is the result of a uniquely schizophrenic "open source" compositional process: the UK's finest collage composers (collage-posers?) Ergo Phizmiz and People Like Us (aka Vicki Bennett) uploaded files to a shared server, downloaded and processed each other's work, and flung the resulting fragments back at each other. The result is an interpenetrating audio-collage so intricate that neither party can recall who did what to whom. So far, so avant-garde; but what makes this record different is that Ergo and Vicki then wrote and sang their own vocals on top of their Frankenstein creation. Here you will find slyly absurdist lyrics replete with monkeys, carousels, trousers, apple trees, tinkling bells, dogs, sausages, whiskey, and cannibalism. No matter how fraught with trauma, these ballads and ditties are sung with a straight face and mixed front and center, and the results feel like 1930s British music hall standards from an alternate universe: half Ivor Cutler, half George Formby. The astonishing thing is that for all this jiggery-pokery, "Perpetuum Mobile" makes for an exhilarating, remarkably fresh pop album. It works.On "Ghosts Before Breakfast" Ergo and Vicki proudly declare that they've got "quite a selection of pastry", and if the profusion of cuckoo clocks, gunshots, horn farts, string vamps, and digital malfeasance which go hurtling through this opening track is any indication, that's no idle boast. For sheer cornucopia of sonic raw materials, this track's avalanche of information sets the tone for the overflowing, manic record that follows. There's far too much to fully parse, but among the highlights: "Beyond Perpetuum" pushes off from the Comedian Harmonists' take on the 19th century compositional craze for "moto perpetuo" runs of continuous notes at a rapid tempo, and folds found piano, voice and strings into an interlocking array of M.C. Escher harmonic stairways. "Air Hostess" is detourned lounge pop that stitches together Nelson Riddle's "Ya Ya" theme to "Lolita", "Walk Right In", light operettas, organ, bachelor pad cha cha and mambo, and nervously twitching shards of Louis Armstrong. "Pierrot's Persecution Mania" bravely explores the possibilities of a Montparnasse-via-Dixieland hybrid of can-can and bluegrass, with ridiculous canned strings colliding with jew's harp boings, while "Soggy Style" rides banjo twangs, a digital bossa nova breakdown, and the "whooo-ooes" nicked from Terry Stafford's "Suspicion". Living up to the perpetual motion of its title and cock-a-hoop cover art, this is a frantically energetic music whose layered repetitions become cumulatively more disorienting and preposterous as they loop back. "Perpetuum Mobile" goes beyond the stealth-oldies nostalgia of the mashup scene and the "culture-jamming" rhetoric of plunderphonics, and shows Mr. Ergo and Ms. Vicki to be a potent, if Surrealist, songwriting team, and together they braid oddly affecting vocals and their trademark stolen audio into twenty-first century pop. Like the perpetual motion machines for which it is named, this collaboration will run and run and run and run and run and run and run . . .

21 March 2007
New weekly free People Like Us podcast begins

As a stopgap between Summer Season broadcasts and 3 hour occasional webcasts on WFMU we have decided to start a weekly podcast through wfmu.org. At the moment if you are subscribed to the PLU podcast at the fmu site you will be receiving archived shows from the last season of DO or DIY and the occasional three hour show. But shortly after the end of the WFMU marathon you will be able to receive around 15 to 20 mins of DO or DIY programming every Wednesday or every time you open up your iTunes after each Wednesday. You don't have to do a thing once you have subscribed. Subscribe to the DO or DIY with People Like Us podcast at the link below. There is also simple technical information for first time podcast subscribers.http://wfmu.org/podcastThere is a direct link here:
http://wfmu.org/podcast/PL.xml - copy and paste that link into iTunes/Advanced/Subscribe to Podcast...

25 March 2007
Honeysuckle Boulevard offer now expired.

If we sent you a voucher already then you can still collect your copy from your store by 31 March, and not after. All records left sitting in the stores are now SPOKEN FOR, by people who already requested and received their vouchers.

19 March 2007
WFMU lives another year!

Thanks to everybody who pledged and helped push us over our goal!! As of 12:15 AM Monday, we had surpassed our goal by seven thousand dollars and can now busy ourselves with the promise of another year of great freeform radio! You are the most wonderful audience in the world and we are proud to be here for you now and into tomorrow. Onward!!!

8-15 March 2007
WFMU Fundraising Marathon - keep WFMU on the air forever!

If you have been listening to People Like Us you will no doubt know what a great part WFMU plays in the upkeep of not only the creative output of People Like Us and colleagues such as Ergo Phizmiz, but you will also know about the demise of other important outlets of eclectic programming such as Mixing It on Radio 3, and Brave New Waves. WFMU is the mother ship of all things freeform and is completely listener sponsored. We do not answer to the whims of shallow controllers of radio stations because we have our OWN fantastic manager and program director! Please support WFMU with more than your ears, because we give an awwful lot. For nothing. Because nothing is everything to us. Click below to see the whole range of lovely DJ gifts that you will receive in exchange for your pledges of 10 dollars or more. You can also pay by in many different ways, including by Paypal.

http://www.wfmu.org/marathon/

2 March 2007
Artwork for Perpetuum Mobile now finished...

15 February 2007
DO or DIY 3 Hour Special on WFMU

The next DO or DIY will be on WFMU from 6-9am NY time - that is 11am-2pm UK time, on 15th February.It is archived here

9 February 2007
People Like Us Session on BBC Radio 3's "Mixing It"
10.15pm (UK time)

People Like Us are pleased to announce the forthcoming broadcast of a 20 minute long session of brand new material, plus a special "show remix" of for Radio 3's best experimental music show "Mixing It". Over the last 16 years, Mixing It have been a big supporter of PLU, and we are very sad (and somewhat outraged) that it is being axed by the BBC next month for no good reason that we could possibly imagine. Our session will be aired on the last programme of the show.Mixing It Website
Playlist

2 February 2007
5 New Hours of mp3s
by People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz!

Using the internet and file sharing as our primary means of communication and collaboration, People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz have produced this material over a period of almost a year (Spring-Winter 2006-7).

These recordings document a collaborative R+D process using live performance (with vintage dansette turntables and vinyl dubplates), a CDr album ("Boots!"), a 10" vinyl record ("Honeysuckle Boulevard", available here between January and March 2007), and a CD album ("Perpetuum Mobile" - to be released on Soleilmoon Recordings on 23 April 2007). Pop across to UbuWeb to see it as the main feature, and it's also linked on our own site download page.

4 January 2007
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz CD
"Perpetuum Mobile" released on 23 April 2007

In Spring 2007 we are pleased to announce the release of a brand new full length CD - for general release/sale worldwide, on Soleilmoon Recordings. It is now finished and ready to be manufactured, and we are very pleased with the results - a leap forward. The artwork is currently being printed in Bombay... here



Hear a sneak preview here of "Soggy Style" by People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz

20 December 2006
Download a seasonal radio show
on the WFMU website

Here is another chance to not only hear but download the Xmas edition of DO or DIY with People Like Us from 2003, with Special Guest and now WFMU DJ, Ergo Phizmiz!Êhttp://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2006/12/people_like_us_.html

14th December 2006
3 Hour Special of DO or DIY on WFMU

People Like Us broadcast a web-only edition of DO or DIY on WFMU on 14th December.
Find the show archived here

17 November 2006
Prelinger Library link

Libraries are far more than the place where people tell you to shut up. These days the library is the place that can and should and would hold vast archives, not only of books, but films, audio recordings, scores, scripts, stills, data... in fact they already do. But can we get to most of them? No we can't. Copyright laws and outdated licenses prevent us from accessing much of what should be either public domain or available for reference and reflection. One such example of a REAL library is this one. Keep up to date with their good work, and their fight to keep things open and available for all of us to prosper, create and share... and grow as a result rather than fade into obscurity in a barren culture!

http://prelingerlibrary.blogspot.com/

11 November 2006
People Like Us and Ergo Phizmiz 10"
"Honeysuckle Boulevard" now exists

As mentioned in our October 2006 update - Ergo Phizmiz and People Like Us are releasing a free 10".We will be releasing the list of stores in January along with details on how to obtain a voucher to collect one 10" record for free. If you are a store and were interested in stocking the records, sorry - but we now have enough hosts in the UK, Continent and US.If you want to stay up to date on this project and are interested in getting a copy of the record then subscribe to our MAILING LIST and we will keep you up to date (in early January)

(Thanks to Irene Moon for helping this page to not be 200 miles wide. Grrr)

13 October 2006
Sneak preview of new CD
"All Together Now"

You can buy it below, but here's a preview from our new CD - it would be the title track if it was the title..
DOWNLOAD "Stand By Your"

People Like Us New Release
Only available HERE:

all together now

All Together Now
CD Released October 2006
Mailorder Only

People Like Us proudly present 27 minutes of new songs following visits to several music libraries, and appropriating favourites from the western world into a musical pantomime. All new material recorded in 2006, never before released in any form.Contains:

1. Blue Bayou
2. Everyday
3. Crazy
4. Stand By Your
5. Green, Green Grass
6. I Walk The Line
7. Singin' In The Shower

UK
CD price: $14

Buy in UK
EUROPE
CD price: $15

Buy in rest of Europe
ELSEWHERE
CD price: $18

Buy in rest of world


 

 

You can buy the People Like Us DVD
"Story Without End" HERE:

story without end

Story Without End DVD
Released Autumn 2005
4 Short Films by People Like Us
Design by Joerg Hartmannsgruber
& People Like Us
Sonic Arts Network proudly presents a collection of short films by leading British A/V artist People Like Us, a true champion of a particularly English sense of humour.
The DVD shows a journey though a multi-layered 20th Century, represented by bright eyed and enthusiastic images of the modern world, concluding with the new Sonic Arts Network commission 'Story Without End'. Comes in beautiful fold out packaging.

Contains:
We Edit Life
The RemoteController
Resemblage
Story Without End

UK
DVD price: $18

Buy in UK
EUROPE
DVD price: $20

Buy in rest of Europe
ELSEWHERE
DVD price: $23

Buy in rest of world

 

2 October 2006
DOwnloadable DO or DIY on WFMU

To commemorate our summer season of DO or DIY on WFMU we have made available a special downloadable "album" of the best of DO or DIY on WFMU. We will be skipping the next (Winter) season in order to pursue other projects so grab it while you can (not that it's going anywhere) in mp3 form here at WFMU's BEWARE THE BLOG.

Also, while we take the season off you can access the show's archives (which number over 60 hours now) here at http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/PL

October 2006
People Like Us & Ergo Phizmiz update
Honeysuckle Boulevard 10"

We are currently preparing material for a free 10" which will be available in selected worldwide record stores. The music is pretty much ready now and we are getting final confirmations from the stores, which are so far in the UK, on the continent and in the US.

Background to the project

The project started off as a live concert/collaboration (funded by PRS Foundation and Arts Council England), then the second stage of this is a free vinyl project. 1.5 hours of music has been made already, and once other projects (namely our residencies and BBC radio work) are completed this will have a third stage in the form of a full length... proper CD, to be released in Spring 2007. The record will be obtainable in the form of a free voucher which customers can get direct from us, following advertising which will identify your nearest hosting store. You can then specify which store you want to pick up your record from. We have been funded by the Arts Council of England for this interesting exercise, which we are doing as a humourous rebellion against people like ourselves who download all our music and don't go to record stores any more! But we are making our record free so to encourage them that they can still visit record stores. We are hoping to have 10 record stores in Europe/the US to each host the records (we have confirmations from 8 now). This is a non-commercial and fun/ridiculous exercise which has been very well received by record stores and music/art boffins alike. This will happen in the next few months - but only after we have secured the shops. This is intended to be in the spirit of music sharing but working with real shops and people rather than the faceless internet.

Online hosting

Once our records are available we will also be putting a bunch of music online for free download, including the recording of our live concert in Isle of Wight.

Meanwhile, here are some pictures of our concert from Summer 2006, click on the picture to see a larger one.

 

21 August 2006
Girl Monster - Chicks on Speed Records

People Like Us has a new track, "Fom Fom" featured on the triple album "Girl Monster", released on Chicks on Speed Records. You can see the full line up and read all about it at www.girlmonster.net

11 June 2006
The Observer

People Like Us was featured in the Sunday edition of the UK national newspaper The Observer - interviewed by Killion Fox, in a special on UK innovators in music.
Here is the online edition.
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,,1794725,00.html
(scans for reference only here, here and here)

June-October 2006
DO or DIY returns for the WFMU Summer Schedule 2006!

People Like Us on WFMU

From Monday 19 June at 7pm NY time, that is midnight Monday evening in the UK, People Like Us will resume their residency at New Jersey's WFMU for the summer schedule (until October 2006). There will be a weekly live accuplaylist and you can tune in live using iTunes, Realplaye or Windows Media player. Alternatively, the show is archived indefinitely at the above link once broadcast.This show will be Podcast. Subscribe here once the season is started.
http://podcast.wfmu.org/

Go to the new WFMU schedule now

May 2006
New mp3 for download - People Like Us & Felix Kubin collaboration

People Like Us and Felix Kubin, Artists in Residence, FACT (2004) - Molaradio

Recorded as part of Vicki and Felix's residency at FACT in Liverpool in February 2004, spending two weeks with selected 12 year old pupils from Croxteth Comprehensive School, making a half hour radio piece with them. We've not been able to make it available before this point, but now we feel that people should hear it. We encourage you to play this on the radio!

Thanks to FACT, Bosco, Croxteth Comprehensive School, and particular thanks to Ross, Maria, Shaun, Natalie, Adam, Michael, David, Amy, Chantelle, Laura and some of the infant voices who we are unable to identify.

Go to the People Like Us download page


March 2006
People Like Us awarded artist placement to work with Creative Archive at the BBC

http://creativearchive.bbc.co.uk/news/archives/2006/03/artists_awarded_1.html
http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/pressnews/press_detail.php?rid=0&sid=&browse=recent&id=603 The BBC and Arts Council England have announced the names of the two artists who will be given access to archive material in order to produce original works of art. Vicki Bennett and Chris Dorley-Brown will both take up four-month placements which will be funded by Arts Council England and hosted by the BBC. Vicki will be given unrestricted access to the entire BBC archive, whilst Chris will be working with material released by the BBC and other members of the Creative Archive Licence Group. Both will be given free reign to manipulate, mix and rework the material to create a series of artworks. Vicki has been working with remixing video for the past 15 years under the name People Like Us and has had work exhibited at the Tate Modern and Sydney Opera House. The results of her placement will be shown within the BBC. If the material can be cleared, it will be exhibited more widely. Commenting on her placement, Vicki said: "As an artist working with found footage, my interest lies in the appropriating and collaging of media in hope of gaining some kind of insight, reflection and evaluation as to where we stand in relation to when the original material was made. By taking something apart and putting it in a new location it can shed new light on both where we have come from and where we stand and should go next. This is why it is so very important that archives should be accessible, in the way that libraries are." Chris, who works almost exclusively with archival film, audio and photographic material has recently won the Prix Italia Award. The results of his placement will be exhibited and available for download though this website Chris said: "My work is reliant on interesting archive sources. The BBC archive is probably the one I fantasies about the most, so for me the opportunity to undertake this placement is one I value highly. The opening of this and other archives by the Creative Archive Licence Group goes against the grain in these days of commercial monopolisation, but I feel that the BBC, its audiences and the creative community can benefit in new and wonderful ways from this gesture."The aim of these placements is to highlight and stimulate the inspirational possibilities of the Creative Archive Licence, a collaboration between the BBC, the BFI, Channel 4, the Open University, Teachers' TV, the Community Channel and MLA (Museums, Libraries and Archives). Under the licence, the public can download moving images, audio and stills and rework them creatively for non-commercial use. John Willis, Director of Factual & Learning BBC explains: "The calibre and volume of applicants for these placements has been extraordinary. Both Vicki and Chris are hugely talented artists and have championed this field for quite some time, we are very lucky to be able to welcome them to the BBC. We hope that their work will both help inspire new thinking in the artistic community and demonstrate the creative possibilities of the Creative Archive Licence." Kim Evans, Executive Director, Arts, Arts Council England, commented further: "The overwhelming response shows just how engaged many of today's artists are with issues of ownership, downloading, distribution, remixing and the public domain. The visionary new approach to culture marked by the Creative Archive License has clearly captured their imagination and we look forward to seeing the results of Vicki's and Chris's placements."- 22 March 2006

February 2006
People Like Us and Ergo Phizmiz "BOOTS"

People Like Us and Ergo Phizmiz are pleased to announce that they have received a PRS Foundation Live Connections Award to create a live music piece, which we will be doing this summer. More later on that. PLU and Ergo will also be creating a FREE compact disc this summer for release in autumn.

 

14 December 2005
DO or DIY 3 Hour Special on WFMU

DO or DIY with People Like Us will be broadcasting a 3 hour long web-only special on WFMU on 14 December from 6-9am NY time. That's lunchtime for Europeans. Either way you'll be eating, so tune in here. The show will be archived at http://wfmu.org/playlists/PL afterwards.

<