Imagination Encircles the World

A Page of Links to Good Stuff

christophilax
New York-based cultural worker christophilax has produced a number of challenging audio artefacts, including the collaboration with 391, Calculus For Goats, and has earned praise from such well-respected luminaries as Simeon Coxe of the legendary Silver Apples and Robert Poss of Band Of Susans

King Tubby
A music style - or, more correctly, a production style that has possibly had more influence than any other on modern experimental music in all fields is Dub Reggae. The man chiefly responsible for the development of this genre was not a musician but an electronics engineer and remixer by the name of Osbourne Ruddock. Under the alias King Tubby, this wizard of the mixing board is universally acknowledged as the Christopher Wren of Dub - "if you seek his monument, look around you". If you need further convincing, take a listen to the magnificent Shining Dub, where Tubby throws everything (including, by the sound of it, several kitchen sinks) into the mix.
The two sites listed below have informative sections on King Tubby, as well as many links to enable the adventurous to learn more about dub in general, and the other practitioners of the art in particular:

JahSonic offers this page
Perfect Sound Forever magazine has an article on King Tubby

Additionally, one of the best sources for reggae music in all styles is Trojan Records, who have a massive online store. 391 heartily recommend the 2-volume Dub Box Set - a massive total of 100 tracks of room-shaking versions and remixes, spread over 6 CDs.

Dada
Dada was the nihilistic anti-art movement founded in Europe in the years leading up to World War 1, and from which 391 took their name and a large portion of their original inspiration. 391 have since moved their focus away from this movement, but acknowledge there is still much here to inspire. Good starting points for those seeking information are:

Dada Online
The International Dada Archive

Also, 391.org (no connection with us) are helping to keep the spirit of Dada alive into the 21st century.

Marcel Duchamp and Salvador Dalí
The two artists whose influence can still be detected in 391's current creative approach are Duchamp and Dalí. There are many sites dedicated to both of these individuals and their works - the following are merely to be viewed as a starting-off point:

The Marcel Duchamp World Community
MarcelDuchamp.org
Making Sense of Marcel Duchamp

The Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation
Salvador Dalí Art Gallery
VirtualDalí.com

Spam Poetry

"Kristin Thomas is a genius, pure and simple. Anyone who disagrees is a soulless fuckwit with no imagination."
- John C. Hocknell
The best ideas are the simplest, and the idea here is blindingly simple, and blindingly inspired. In the spirit of Duchamp's "readymade" art, Kristin Thomas has taken something overly familiar and totally useless (the subject lines from spam emails) and made them into poetry. Read her poems here