Music / Feature
The renaissance of synth in the city
James Bragg is a man of many talents.
Performing under the name Hyperdust, the synthesizer player and producer had previously worked for 24 years as a GP partner in Stoke Gifford after moving to Bristol to study medicine.
If that wasn’t enough, five years ago, James retired early from medicine and completed a fine art degree at UWE.
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Now focusing on immersive art, 3D digital landscapes and used VR headsets and multiple projectors (James did the visuals for the Bristol24/7 Ashton Court Mansion Takeover earlier this year), he runs events for other synth players while also being part of an electro duo, Phoenix-Flare, with long time Bristol musician Chris Bird.
Using his talents to highlight other upcoming musicians and producers, the We All Play Synth events are a way for people to discover other talented artists.
“I started a Facebook group called Bristol Synth Freaks several years ago to try to connect together electronic musicians in Bristol and out of that came various synth meetups and events,” James tells Bristol24/7.
“Martin Christie from Huddersfield had the idea of creating what he called EMOM – electronic music open mic. He started arranging one off events in various cities around the UK and in 2017 he held an EMOM in Bristol at a café in Baldwin Street and a few of us attended and performed.”
Out of this came We All Play Synth, from Chris, James and Ant Nasce with Martin Christie’s blessing. There have been 23 EMOMs so far in Bristol, held across different venues before being held at Dareshack for this year’s events.
“The intention is to encourage and facilitate electronic musicians to leave their home studios and give their music a try with a live audience,” James tells us.
The events usually have 10 performers in an evening, who are pre-booked ahead of the show but are not vetted or curated, with an audience of 60-80.
The events promise a unique show with the opportunity to discover exciting talent while also meeting like-minded people.
Of the events, James explains: “They have a strong community feel to them as everyone chats to each other about electronic music, synths and other gadgets.”
Alongside the We All Play Synth events, the team run an electronic music showcase gig with four performers alongside projected visuals.
The last showcase took place on October 11 at Dareshack and featured a range of artists including Sonic Inducer and noodlr.
How do they differ from the usual alternate monthly events?
“We have done the occasional showcase event with three to four acts performing longer sets,” James says.
“These have been a great opportunity to put on a high-quality show of electronic music combined with interactive visuals. We are intending to continue these a few times each year.”
The alternate monthly events welcome an array of performers. photo: James Bragg
When booking artists, the team are looking for quality sound and music – “a performer who is clearly playing live and has considered how they engage with the audience through appearance or interaction.”
“We definitely wanted to focus on performing electronic music live rather than playing back finished produced tracks and this has been very interesting as there is no standard way of playing.
“Some performers like me play a keyboard/synth, others are pressing buttons, twiddling knobs or hitting and waving at home made sensors.
“Some of us are interested in melodies and beats, but others are more interested in creating new sounds and noises.”
Whatever takes your fancy, the We All Play Synth events have it all.
The next event will be held at Dareshack on December 7, tickets are free but can be pre-booked at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/merry-synthmas-2023-a-festive-electronic-music-open-mic-emom
To sign-up to perform at any future events, you can fill in the form at https://form.jotform.com/220984099723365
Main photo: James Bragg
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