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Venn 2008

Thu 5 – Sun 8 Jun

Bristol’s now legendary eclectic music festival comes to Arnolfini and a myriad of other Bristol venues during one glorious weekend in June. Pick up a full programme or visit www.vennfestival.com for full details and advance tickets. Tickets on the day are available from Arnolfini box office.

Fri 6 Jun 6.00pm

Matmos / Wildbirds & Peacedrums / Pole / The Wailingest Cats / John Wall / Chris Cundy / Twocsinak / Banjo or Freakout / Totek / Chew Magna

£10 adv (includes entry to Start The Bus till 3am)

Tonight’s Venn assembly contains a unique mix of musical DNA – as exemplified by headliners Matmos, who arrive in the mood for monster synth jams and cosmic pop. Wildbirds & Peacedrums provide a stripped-to-the-bone Nina Simone shakedown with drums, glockenspiel and voice. John Wall reassembles modern electric compositions. Pole provides an immersive 21st Century space-dub continuum and there is rock ‘n’ roll with The Wailingest Cats. Dada, feedback and wild jazz gets mixed in Arnolfini’s Dark Studio. The music continues with neon anthems, dance and wonky (p)arty at Start The Bus (on Corn Street).

Sat 7 Jun 2.00pm – 11.30pm

Rachel Unthank & The Winterset / Fuck Buttons / Philip Jeck / The Blessing / Infinite Livez vs Stade / Hauschka / One More Grain / Tractor / Koen Holtkamp / Olo Worms / Pausal / Corey Orbison / Simon Whetham / Fungus Moth + many, many more

£12 adv (includes entry to all Venn Side 1 venues – see Venn programme for more)

Bear witness to modern musical overlap in full, exhilarating effect on this epic day out. Windswept folk segues into widescreen jazz, angle-grinder rock morphs into avant-turntablism, piano recitals fade into eccentric hip-hop and then returning Bristol heroes Fuck Buttons apply a euphoric post-rave finish. Saturday also includes a Dirty Electronics Ensemble workshop (make your own instrument and perform with it!), art and interventions.

Sun 8 Jun 2.00pm – 9.00pm

Phil Minton’s ‘Century FC’ / Anni Rossi / Werner Herzog’s ‘Fitzcarraldo’ / ‘Hammerfest’ – I am the Mighty Jungulator / Sunburned Hand of the Man / The Helicoentrics / Flying Lotus / Evil Kitty DJs / Anton Maiof / Vilms / More acts, films & talks TBA

£8 adv (includes entry to all venues)

One hundred feral voices are conducted by Phil Minton at 2.00pm and 3.00pm. There is a cinematic

trip down the Amazon with Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo, I Am The Mighty Jungulator reconfigure excerpts of

early-cinema pioneer R W Paul into new film presented with narrator and unique live-score. There is a collective new-interface jam with N.I.P. Plus the heavy psych-funk of The Heliocentrics and Sunburned Hand of The Man. Meanwhile solo turns of wildly different, but equally show-stopping flavours come from Anni Rossi and Warp’s Flying Lotus. Meanwhile, new film strand VILM pins Venn-related moving images to the big screen.