Tump happenings

So whilst it has been a busy summer with loads going on outside of Tump life, the inner workings of Tump HQ have been busy with new creations.

Firstly, I'm very happy that the new book by Himukalt has been published, Sex Works, and I know Ester worked hard on this over a long period of time.  All sorts of issues along the way, but its finally out.  Im particuarly proud because my interview which was first published in Intrusive Signals zine #3 is featured in the pages of this wonderful book, alongside the well regarded Noise Receptor interview and others. 

There is a ton of content here, including plenty of Ester's collages of herself as well as other women she has worked with, information and reviews of her music, all beautifully presented in a very black print.  Himukalt is a deeply personal project, covering themes of "rage, mania, depression, and lust through noise, voice, and electronics" -  so it might not be for everyone, but I consider myself a fan of this powerfully expressive work.  The music is hard hitting, rhythmic, punishing and expressive.  You might be lucky to still find a copy of the book somewhere but most were sold via Kickstarter.   The first batch were damaged in transit and were available to purchase - keep your eyes peeled if you don't mind a B-grade copy. 

Here's my original zine cover from back in 2022.  The release of the Sex works book has made me nostalgic about getting issue 4 bloody well finished, so it might happen at some point soon.  

Maybe.

Other things i've been upto.... a collaborative track with Stuart Chalmers which was released this Friday.  Of Blood, Moon and Thorn features in Part 8 of Stuart's monthly digital 2025 Resonant Landscapes series, and it was a pleasure to create some sinister sounds to accompany the drumming, gongs and metal gate that Stuart used!  This is a wildly creative dark folklore and land inspired series and I need to spend some more time taking in all the other contributions to the series so far.

 I love that Stuart has taken full inspiration from the land, embracing field recordings and the chaos of nature throughout this body of work, as well as working with a wide variety of collaborators.  I'm really happy with how this track worked out, and at the time of writing, I think an alternative version of this will feature on my forthcoming album.

An update on things......

Hello fine people who look at my blog......

I should probably update this more often.  But basically, my new job, I tend to spend about 90% of my work time now sat at a laptop.  So in the evenings I don't often want to do more of it. 

But anyway...

Slow movements on Intrusive Signals issue 4.  Got a big work project on the go at the moment, but when its done, I should have a bit more brain capacity to get back to zines.  But I have been making art towards it - here's a scan of leaves and lichen I did which will form background of one of the pages.  And I should probably get back in touch with some of the fine folk who wanted to contribute / interview....  if you read this and are interested in doing something for the zine, please get in touch!

For radio show fans, next week is Episode 30 of The Tump Clump, and the last of 2023! Can you believe that.  No / Yes delete as appropriate.  Anyway, in a self indulgent mess, its an hour of exclusive Soloman Tump sounds.  Mainly recent jams of varying audio quality and standards.  Dismal to the core.  Been recording quite a bit lately (with hardware of course, which is good evening non-laptop time).

From those recordings, a track (not featured in the radio show) will be released in a forthcoming digital compilation - more of that soon when I can reveal. 

Kodak Ghosts Run Amok!

Yes, the name of a 1980 track by synth pop outliers Eyeless in Gaza (thanks for the tip-off, Steve of Muhmur Radio), but also an excellent zine coming out of Bristol.  

Being Instagram acquaintances with Matt who creates the zine, it was a pleasure to meet him at Feedback & Frustration in Bristol back in February and grab a copy of Issue 6.  It features and interview with the now sadly defunct Fever 103 (but reborn as Mad Girl so watch this space) and many other wonderful acts of the underground, gothic, electronic and noisy worlds.  Plenty of crossover with Intrusive Signals!

Just before Feedback & Frustration I was asked if I wanted to contribute a track to the forthcoming Issue 6.66 Industrial & Noise compilation. Hot dang yes I would!  The zine itself includes a game, maze, a lush interview with Distraxi (who I made the recent Dartmoor Electronics split CD with) and also an interview with Kelan, who appeared in a past issue of my Snare Rush zine as part of rhythmic ritual duo Salac. 

So it was an absolute pleasure to provide an exclusive track "Foxtormire" for this CDr compilation of which there were only 50 copies.  To be featured alongside such inspiring acts as Distraxi, Knifedoutofexistence, Ecotage and Acts of Worship (who all played the all-day gig in Bristol under one guise or another) is a real coup for me! Additionally, Tommy Creep is responsible for the equally awesome Black Panels Only eurorack zine.  

So the zine in question is most likely sold out now. And I don't think there are any plans to make the compilation available digitally.  So you may not be able to even hear half of the tracks played here, such is life in the DIY world.  I know a few are (or will) be available elsewhere, and I may stick Foxtormire onto bandcamp at some point in the future.

Support DIY and zines and stuff. It's fun. 

appyh ewn eary

Welcome to 2023. 

Some exciting things afoot!

• Tump Clump episode 19 airs on SoundArt radio this week (post to follow with tracklisting and links, etc)
• Soloman Tump collaborative album, produced alongside Paradox Encounter Group coming soon on cassette tape and digital via Tone Burst.
• New audio/visual feast for Wonder Valley Experimental 15 virtual edition
• Intrusive Signals issue 4 - I started making some enquiries and content might start coming together soon.  It will be a slightly smaller page count than previous issues so I dont get stung for postage as bad as issue 3....

Yeah so im pretty busy with my new irl job but i've decided to try and keep up with the zines / music / stuff because I love it.

So, see you soon.

Intrusive Signals #3

The third issue of my latest zine project is assembled and at the printers now. 

All being well, the release date is pencilled in for the next Bandcamp Friday which is 4th March.

Plus I have some stickers on order too....

It's the biggest zine I have made to date - 52 pages long.  It shall be reproduced on 100% recycled paper.

Featuring:

• Chlorine - Instruments, sound art and electronics from the North of England.
• Himukalt - desire, lust, hostility, rage, mania, depression, blood, flesh. Nevada, USA.
• Brachliegen Tapes - Taking a broad brush approach to experimental sound from Kent, UK.
• COLDSORE - Finnish dark drones and bespoke instruments.
• Scum Alice - Dark improvised streaming from Indiana, USA.
• Shaun Robert - Unused computer glitch art from the Institute For Alien Research in the 1990s.
• Lucidet - Texan drone/noise and provider of some unique maze art.
• Tyrannic Horizon  - My story of the Bristolian noise experimenter.
• Jean Toms - Neurographical art from Devon, UK.
• Split releases - I waffle on about why split releases are great.

Each issue will come with a bandcamp download code for Burial Practices by Booticker, courtesy of Brachliegen Tapes, and a code for Palimpsest [Live Documents] by Soloman Tump. 

In addition, the first 30 issues will come with a bandcamp download code for Pollutants VI by COLDSORE.

Final cost TBC but I will keep it as reasonable as I can.

Pre-orders will appear HERE via my limited run page

But also HERE on Bandcamp Friday if you wish to get free music bundled with the zine and also help me from incurring fees!

Things I did in 2021

 

In 2021 I managed to release:

• 2 zines (Intrusive Signals 1 & 2)
• 2 x 3" CDr's (collaborative project as CLAIRVONT "The First" alongside Stone Jaw, and a split with Lee Riley)
• 1 x C38 tape (split with Blackcloudsummoner)
• A live stream video for FEAST#3
• A digital compilation ("The Tump Dump")
• Digital tracks for IFAR and The Bare Lightbulb and another not yet released....
• 8 x hour long radio shows ("The Tump Clump")

Which I am pretty proud of considering everything that has been going on in the world (and in my life too....).  Much respect to my collaborators Blackcloudsummoner, Stone Jaw and Lee Riley.  

In 2022 I look forward to:

• Continuing with the Tump Clump radio shows
• Unleashing guest mixes for other radio shows (2 in the works... not finished yet, sorry)
• Finally (maybe) finishing my concept album with Dansmonsters - no promises hah!
• Releasing Issue 3 of Intrusive Signals zine
• More collaborations.... any takers? HMU.
• Releasing the final part of my Folk-horror trilogy on 3" CDr (following Grim's Ditch and Weland)
• Maybe finally a live performance? Who knows, covid be praised.
• Working on CLAIRVONT "The Second"
• FESTIVALS! CLUBBING! PARTIES! GIGS! PUBS! CUDDLING! Maybe. 

Intrusive Signals Issue #2

 So my new zine is out - as with all previous zines I collate the content, edit and publish them myself.  I used to print them myself, but my poor printer couldn't cope since the print runs got higher so now I sub that part of the job. Although part of me does miss all the folding, stapling, duplex printing alignment errors... actually.... no. Quiet, that small part of me!

Intrusive Signals is an old-school physical zine about music that I like. Made from real paper and posted to your house!

I listen (but not exclusively) to noise, drone, techno, soundart, ambient, industrial, experimental, folk.... and everything else surrounding those spheres.  I bathe in genres and laugh at the niches.  

For the zines I conduct interviews (mainly over e-mail but occasionally in person when circumstances allow) with artists that I have a particular interest in.  If somebody's music has hit a particular chord with me lately then I seek them out and try to get them onboard.  Quite often I am surprised by who I can rope in!

Qebrus was one such example, back in Snare Rush #3.  The bonkers and experimental sound artist was very warming towards my little zine project.  He answered all my questions and was supportive towards the print media.  I was very saddened to learn of his passing some months later and I think my zine was his last ever interview in print.  

I also get to write about events I have been to, reviews of particularly interesting music I have discovered or anything else associated with the music that I like.  

And this is mainly why I love working with the small run print format.  It feels very personal to me, and allows me to connect with fans and artists in a way that nothing else can.  

Once I have written up all the content, I print it out then cut & paste everything back into a "master" copy of the zine alongside the artwork. 

It is time consuming.  It is frustrating.  It can be costly! But ultimately, when the zine is finished and I am posting them out to people all over the world, it is hugely rewarding.

Intrusive Signals #2 contains:

• An interview with Blackcloudsummoner from UK.
• An interview with Neuro... No Neuro from USA.
• An interview with Moss Harvest from Canada, plus some of his photographic work.
• An introduction to Soundart Radio and The Tump Clump radio show.
• A diary of my weekend spent at the Radical Chip Party by Dirty Electronics at Dartington Hall
• Steve Cammack talks about his Muhmur Radio show and his history with Soundart Radio.
• Music For Mental Health - a new compilation by Hreám Recordings, and some words on World Mental Health Day and mindful listening. 
• Collage art by Disco Insolence
• Poetry from Plague Arish and Avant Lawrence Garde
• Techno Topographia - the slight return

The zine is available from Limited Run here  and also via my Bandcamp page.  Both come with a code for bandcamp for you to download / stream my recent split release with Lee Riley. 

Welcome

Having quit Facebook many years ago, Instagram has slowly taken its place in my daily routine.  Whilst I can see the benefits of social media in terms of connecting with like minded souls, there is a largely damaging side to it that I do not particularly want to be part of.

The introduction of "Reels" (essentially TikTok) annoyed me.  I do not want to see any of these things. The ever changing algorithm which decides what to show me rather than just recent posts.... the increasing number of adverts. 

The final straw was on Monday 4th October, when the entire Facebook empire went offline (apparently due to routine maintenance going wrong).  You know what? I was quite happy that Instagram was not working.  Also, my WhatsApp was not "pinging".  

Instead I got my head down and finished up editing Intrusive Signals Issue 2 and then sent it off to the printers.  Time well spent and hugely satisfying to get it finally completed!

I felt a little sadness inside when I woke up the next day to find that all Facebook services had been restored.  Really, already?!

I have felt for a while that my sound, zine and photo posts would be better suited to a blog format where I could elaborate my thoughts a lot more clearly and simply.  I also much prefer typing on my laptop than via my phone. I know I will probably lose a whole bunch of excellent people by leaving Instagram; but my adventures as Soloman Tump have never been about big exposure or making money. Many years ago I ran a tumblr page which was the springboard for my eventual turning to Instagram.  Well, its quite nice to go full circle.  

And so... this blog was formed today. 6th October, 2021. 

I will endeavour to keep this blog updated with news of:

• The Tump Clump, my 4-weekly radio show on Soundart Radio.  Dismal sounds, noises, drones, experimental electronics and the such. 

• Sound experiments and releases by Soloman Tump - my outlet for experimental dismal electronics, using a pile of guitar pedals, the occasional synth and my homemade instruments.

• Zines I am working on - currently Intrusive Signals, previously Snare Rush. All cut and paste monochrome works, assembled and scanned in by hand.  Interviews with artists whose work I find interesting, reviews, art, opinions etc... lovely. 

• Photographs from my adventures across Dartmoor and Devon (and occasionally further afield).

I have a particular interest in local folklore, which manifested in my first 2 solo EP releases as Soloman Tump when I lived in Oxfordshire.  Now in Devon, I hope to draw inspiration from the wonderful rich history of Dartmoor and get some new Tump music created soon. 

So... that acts as a brief introduction. 

Will I regret rage quitting Instagram? Most probably not.  I did not miss Facebook one iota. Over the next week or so I will transfer useful content to here, make sure my "key" contacts are accessible via email or know where I am, then close my account there.  Liberating indeed!

Stay tuned.  Tump Clump 6 is coming next week. 

TUMP