Twenty five years in the music industry is a long time, but that’s exactly how long Philippe Petit, head of French imprint BiP_HOp Records, has been involved with music-related projects. Journalist, record label owner, musician, it all comes under the umbrella of music activism for him. As he celebrates the first ten years of BiP_HOp and his twenty five years of musical activism, Philippe Petit talks to us about the political aspect of his work, how meeting with some of the biggest alternative acts of the early nineties shaped up his vision of what music should be,  giving his artists complete freedom while being available for guidance and help,  and sexual piercings.

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VARIOUS ARTISTS
Bip-Hop Generation Vol. 9
BLEEP37
Bip-Hop Records 2008
11 Tracks. 70mins37secs

Buy: CD

In the ten years that Bip-Hop label boss Philippe Petit has been compiling Bip-Hop Generation volumes, the spectrum of artists and genres represented is pretty impressive: Murcof, Phonem, Accelera Deck, Schneider TM, Goem, Ilpo Väisänen, Wang Inc., Mira Calix, Neotropic, Twine, Taylor Deupree, Si-Cut.db, Bovine Life, Datach’i, Andrew Duke, Fm3, Scanner, Tu M’, Tennis and Petit’s own Strings Of Consciousness are amongst those who have helped make this a truly era-defining series. Continue Reading »

BELA EMERSON
Hespera
BLEEP38
Bip-Hop Records 2008
10 Tracks. 48mins27secs

Bela Emerson is a Brighton-based experimental musician who has gained praises for her spellbinding live performances during which she improvises pieces on the electric cello, using conventional sounds combined with all sorts of additional noises, all sourced from her instrument, which are looped into intricate layers. Unlike Colleen, who has progressively moved toward more traditional musical forms as she has developed her use of acoustic instruments, Emerson continues to combine electro-acoustic and electronic sounds. Continue Reading »

SPACEHEADS AND MAX EASTLEY
A Very Long Way From Anywhere Else
BLEEP35
Bip Hop 2007
08 Tracks. 57mins21secs

The first collaboration between British sound artist Max Eastley and experimental duo Spaceheads dates back to 2001, with the album The Time Of The Ancient Astronaut, released on the ever-excellent French imprint Bip-Hop. Six years on, they reconvene for this second instalment of dense experimental music.

Eastley began to experiment with sound and machines in the late sixties, focusing particularly on natural elements such as wind and water, with great importance given to chance and accidents in his work. Continue Reading »