OH YESSS! We are very excited to have the legendary cultural storyteller (and more) David Bramwell back in the house joined by brilliant film maker and writer Jak Hutchcraft.
Expect an evening of strange stories, forgotten histories, remarkable music and big ideas—perfect for anyone fascinated by folklore, counterculture, music and the enduring mysteries of what it means to be human.
Why do we imbue the likes of David Bowie, Bjork and Taylor Swift with god-like status? As the lights dim and performers take to the stage, is it mere escapism from our everyday lives or is there something more profound and ritualised about our need to be entertained?
In this entertaining and thought provoking monologue through the wilder corners of modern entertainment history David Bramwell shares the idea that shamanism never disappeared in western culture. Instead, it donned a cunning disguise and took the ‘show’ on the road, hidden in plain sight in everything from theatre and magic to rock’n’roll.
On a journey spanning over 7,00 years Bramwell explores how the shaman’s ‘death and resurrection show’ is present in everything and everyone from Scrooge, Dr Who, Frida Khalo and David Hoyle to the travelling medicine shows of our ancestors.
Peppered with examples and music from the likes of Nick Cave, Lingua Ingota, Alice Coltrane, Ozzy, David Byrne, Sun Ra, Kate Bush and – of course – Bowie, this talk demonstrates why, in our soul-sick society we need them more than ever before. The show must go on because the show IS the medicine.
David Bramwell is one of Britain’s most distinctive cultural storytellers. A regular contributor to BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4, he is the creator of the long-running Catalyst Club, host of the Adventures in Nutopia podcast, frontman of psychedelic folk band Oddfellow’s Casino, and author of numerous books exploring folklore, psychogeography, outsider culture and Britain’s hidden histories, including The Cult of Water, The Odditorium and The Number 9 Bus to Utopia. His stage and radio work has been performed at festivals and venues across the UK, with The Haunted Moustache winning a Sony Radio Award, and The Number 9 Bus to Utopia receiving the Brighton Fringe Award for Best Comedy.
Plus
Filmmaker Jak Hutchcraft presents What Does Dying Sound Like? — an extraordinary journey through jazz, Jesus Christ, heavy metal, ghosts, the Native American Sioux tribe and near-death experiences. Blending film, music and years of original research, Jak explores the relationship between sound, mortality and the human search for meaning. Director of Fatboy Slim: Right Here, Right Now for Sky Documentaries, Jak has written for The Guardian, VICE, The Quietus and Kerrang!