In 2002, I had the pleasure to invite David Toop and Scanner (Robin Rimbaud) to Australia, to take part in the REV festival at the Brisbane Powerhouse. During that visit we recorded a piece called A Picturesque View, Ignored alongside my friends Heinz Riegler and Tam Patton (we performed at that time as I/O3).
Early the following year, I set out for what was my first series of international performances. In December 2002 I performed at Tokyo’s Offsite Gallery, and a week later I found myself in the UK where I reconnected with both David and Robin. Apart from some wonderful discussions and meals shared over those crisp winter days, we also joined for a performance as part of the Sprawl series, an electronic music event programmed by Douglas Benford.
I am positive each of us maintain very different memories of that evening. Mine are no doubt somewhat coloured by my bewilderment of performing in London with two folks I held in the highest regard. In that moment it felt like something utterly unthinkable.
Having had cause to revisit the recording earlier this year, I was teleported back to this period with a sense of force. Sharing the work with David and Robin, I think we were all struck by the recordings character and the exchange. It captures a each of us at a very particular moment in our creative lives. A simple encounter that has held its relevance over the decades. – Lawrence English