Remix64 Editorial - May 2004

As I sit here, my little fingers typing vaguely comprehensible drivel, I look at the scene, and how different it is from a year ago.

Slay Radio has completely turned itself on its head and become a centrepoint of the scene, providing a community aspect that's almost a weekly BIT Live (with a particular drunken farty team of Zs breaking all listener records!). The combination of the show and the IRC channel at the same time is a genius move, and really gives each show a live vibe that provides real excitement. As for BIT Live itself, well, it seems to be becoming an institution. Which frankly is a bit scary to me, since it started on a whim that I wanted to play C64 music to students in nightclubs (then it mutated into what it eventually became, following the team's interest in live performance). The next BIT Live will be the mother of all concerts: in three parts, it will feature rock/pop in the first bit, culture in the second, and rock in the third. Also, Rob Hubbard is willing to perform again 😊 Yay! (as are Stuck in D'80s and PPOT). The list of acts also includes the C64 Mafia, Mahoney and crew (pray! pray!), the Sensible Crew and Natasha Samsudin. And if we get enough sponsorship, we'll get Perhaps-a-Doobie on stage and unmasked at last. You may be surprised… (or, you may not). It was very difficult finding the venue for this one: weekends in London are booked solid, but the place we found had the right kind of date. I had a bad experience trying to pitch BIT Live to the Institute of Contemporary Arts: you try explaining what we do to a twenty something female arts graduate who's got the job of New Media but who's never heard of a C64. All she saw was a lot of scruffy gits poncing around. The reason for turning down the BIT Live concert was it was too reflective. Her reasoning was that since we all remember the original music, it's merely nostalgia. But if no one remembered it, and twenty-something pretty boys started performing it on Kettles: then it would be art. Remind me never again to try and suck up to the artistic community! Anyway, the list of projects expected this year rolls on: Project Hubbard Project Daglish Project Norman Sex, Drugs and Rock 'n Roll A secret Z Show project and even our magical purveyor of modern retro Sonic Wanderer will be getting in on the CD act and putting extra special effort into it. I can't wait! And no, I haven't forgotten the FTC album, or BIT 4. Or whatever it is I promised to do. But I've been busy, honest! Ironically things are coming to fruition now that should have happened a year ago: Ironstone Partners and Tulip have finally announced an actual product, which hopefully is a precursor of much bigger things to come, plus me and the team struggle slowly towards a complete renovation of C64Audio.com, with a new focus and a new mission. Some of you know what that is, since it's a bit of an open secret, but, PR Man's nightmare that I am, I'd still rather keep it under my hat: I really hate purveying vapourware 😊 Er… that was a bit rambly, sorry. Respex to LMan for keeping this show on the road, and Jan for keeping his show on the road despite the technical problems. Finally finally, thanks to Max Levin for some sponsorship for the BIT 3 repress 😊 He da man! Plus he's done a kick butt remix with da LMan. Kewl!