The OId Vinyl Factory

Is England first and foremost a live music nation? Can music in this modern era of digital technology be owned? Has new music in fact lost its cutting edge, compared to the radical era of punk and mods? These were the three topics under debate on separate evenings at The Old Vinyl Factory Table Talks in Hayes. Table Talkers included top radio presenters such as Radio 1’s Huw Stephens, the CEO’s of Live Nation and Festival Republic (Britain’s two largest festival organisers), and representatives from Rough Trade, XL Records and Spotify. This impressive line up sat down and evaluated the issues that face British music today, in an extremely influential place for British music- the old site of the HMV/EMI vinyl factory, where iconic records such as those by The Beatles were produced.

Since EMI moved out in the 70s, the buildings on site have been mainly unused- however, an ambitious regeneration by property developers Cathedral Group will transform the site from a few rundown old factory buildings into an exciting mixed-use development. The objective of these Table Talks, which were hosted by broadcaster Emma B, was to draw attention to the stimulating project which will eventually create a flourishing neighbourhood in the heart of Hayes, an area where jobs for local people and innovative new business enterprises are much needed. The regeneration envisages businesses, both big and small, based on site, as well as new homes, cafes, restaurants and a grand new cinema. 

Cathedral group places huge importance on paying homage to the site’s musical history- and what a great history it is. HMV and EMI once employed thousands of people, whose day-to-day work included producing vinyl records of artists such as Pink Floyd, as well as producing some of the UK’s first domestic gramophone and vinyl players. Considering the site’s close connection to sound, I am proud to say that it was my job during the Table Talks to act as a “boom boy”, and hold a microphone to speakers during the debate.

The entire discussion was recorded, and my introduction into the world of podcast recording was short and sweet. A mere five minute tutorial was seen as enough time to learn how to successfully complete the job, and as the first debate began I was thrown in at the deep end. I remembered being advised to “command the floor” and “not to worry if I got in people’s way” as I arm-achingly held my shotgun microphone in front of Eddy Temple Morris, renowned XFM DJ, as he outlined why the sheer volume of unique boutique indie labels means that music has definitely not lost its cutting edge.

I soon learnt that the job was all about listening and reacting accordingly to the discussion, remaining sensitive to the natural ebb and flow of conversation and the sounds it produced. More than once I had to scamper across the room, trailing a long black lead, in order to shoot my microphone in the direction of a member of the audience before their input left their mouth.  Interestingly, the experience of being so finely tuned to sound affected my senses, because afterwards the simple sound of my finger clicking sounded more resonant, and I heard crackles and faults in a PA system where I had not heard them before.

I thoroughly enjoyed the experience over the three days, and I feel like I learnt a lot, not only about how to be a “boom boy” but also about how all the different elements come together to make an event like that successful. For example, the catering team (there were free burgers and drinks), the creative team, the PR team, the lighting team, the sound team, and of course the guests themselves all contributed to the evenings. It was a pleasure meeting some of the more esteemed guests, such as Huw Stephens, as well as the more functional guests, such as Ian the lighting man. And although the project is huge, it was inspiring to see the attention to detail that Cathedral Group were prepared to deliver, in the form of these Table Talks, in order to make such a large scale regeneration personal, innovative and interesting. 

Exit Through the Gift Shop- Banksy

Exit Through the Gift Shop is a documentary film directed by notorious street artist Banksy. The film documents the true story of Thierry Guetta on his artistic journey from an eccentric French thrift store owner living in Los Angeles to a hugely successful artist. Guetta has an obsessive passion for video recording, and he records every waking moment of his life. Although to begin with this mainly consists of running his shop and living with his family, a trip to visit his cousin in Paris changes Thierry’s life forever, and gives new purpose to his obsessive hobby.

Guetta’s cousin is a Parisian street artist called Invader, who creates 2D characters from the arcade game ‘Space Invaders’ out of small, coloured mosaic tiles. Invader then pastes these mosaics onto walls, statues, etc to create an ‘invasion’ wherever they are found. Guetta’s passion for street art begins with Invader and leads to him meeting Shepard Fairey, a successful American artist whose work includes the iconic Barack Obama ‘HOPE’ poster, and the reworked image of professional wrestler Andre the Giant into the popular ‘OBEY Giant’ image.

A piece by Invader in Shoreditch, London

Fairey’s iconic Barack Obama ‘HOPE’ poster in Denver, Colorado

By following and filming Fairey and other street artists in Los Angeles, Guetta develops a reputation as someone who knows the best spots for graffiti art. Therefore, when a certain Bristol born Brit arrives in L.A. for his first American exhibition, Guetta is recommended as someone who can work alongside Banksy. The two immediately become friends, and Guetta is present during Banksy’s controversial Disneyland stunt, when a lifesize replica of a Guantanamo Bay detainee is placed at the California theme park.      

Banksy’s inflatable Guantanamo detainee in Disneyland, California

Allowing Guetta to film him in action went against Banksy’s secretive, undercover persona. However the benefits of having his work on film were obvious because the art was often, due to its nature, transitory. Banksy was under the impression that the footage was going towards a film about street art, however Guetta’s obsession lay solely in filming, and he had never actually watched back the hundreds of tapes he had recorded. Therefore, when Guetta was asked to produce the film, he wildly strung together random short clips, and then impatiently flicked between them, calling his work ‘Life Remote Control.’

Banksy immediately recognised this film was unwatchable, and a colossal waste of the unique and valuable footage Guetta had accumulated. The solution was for Banksy to take Guetta’s footage and produce the film himself (the product of which is Exit Through the Gift Shop). In the meantime, Banksy suggested that Guetta should become an artist in his own right. Although Guetta seemingly lacked any genuine artistic talent, his debut exhibition received great publicity and was an immediate success- mainly due to endorsement from Banksy. Within two months of selling his art, ‘Mr Brainwash’ as Guetta now called himself, had made over a million dollars.

Mr Brainwashes debut exhibition featuring on the cover of LA Weekly, June 2008

The crux of the film is arguably the manner in which Mr Brainwash becomes a massively successful artist overnight. Some have suggested, and the name ‘Mr Brainwash’ supports this theory, that Guetta’s rise to artistic majesty is a complete hoax; a trick played by Banksy and co. to expose the fickle and superficial nature of the art world. Although this conspiracy does seem plausible, partly because much of Mr Brainwashes work resembles that of Banksy, I do not believe this is the case. Instead, I believe it was only apparent afterwards (to Banksy and everyone else) how conclusively Mr Brainwash had undermined the contemporary art scene. In this sense Banksy is similar to the fictional scientist Frankenstein, because both men brought something into the world without being fully aware of the monster it would become.

“I used to encourage everyone I knew to make art; I don’t do that so much anymore” – Banksy