William Onyeabor, 1946-2017. Mind and Percolate to present panel on mental health in music. Simon Reynolds on activist writer Mark Fisher.
RIP William Onyeabor. This week we lost the enigmatic, Nigerian-born afro-synth pioneer. The artist behind cult hit ‘Fantastic Man’ self-released all his music between 1977 and 1985 then became a born again Christian and never really spoke of his art again, even after David Byrne’s Luaka Bop label made him famous with the crate-digging cognoscenti. Read more about the fascinating character in this Pitchfork tribute.
Simon Reynolds on activist writer Mark Fisher. After long suffering with depression, the man behind the caustic, challenging and thought-provoking K-Punk blog took his own life last week. Few spoke about music with such intellect and vision, and his presence will be sorely missed, as elegantly noted by Simon Reynolds for the Guardian.
Sonnox & Avid collaborate for online plugin course. Leading audio plugin manufacturer Sonnox has teamed up with Avid to launch an online course that gives users a thorough and practical understanding of how to best use their products. The seven part, $50 course will be available from February 15th and pairs clear illustrations with practical sessions before culminating in an online test and useful qualification. Find out the full specs over at the Sonnox website.
Mind x Percolate present: Mental Health in Music Panel. As dance music grows up and becomes more honest with itself, mental health awareness grows. This three-hour panel aims to further de-stigmatise, discuss and outline support around the issues facing sufferers in the industry and beyond. DJ Ben Pearce plus PRs and life coaches will all offer their personal experiences and insight at Oval Space, London on January 24th. More info can be found here.