Matthew Shaw - The Tower [7" EP]

Recorded during a creative sabbatical by Matthew Shaw who spent two weeks as an artist in residence at the Curfew Tower in Cushendall, Northern Ireland. The Tower is owned by Bill Drummond of the KLF. For years Bill has sentenced artists to live and work in the Tower and to integrate into the community of Cushendall for the duration of their stay. Through an invitation via Caught by the River, so it was that Matthew made his way to The Tower.

“October in Cushendall is cold, November even more so and this was the time I spent inside The Tower. My days were spent either composing and recording, or taking walks down to the coast, past a standing stone and back to a café and library for warmth.

The music composed in The Tower was made using my daily experiences and impressions of Cushendall and the good people that call it home. I recorded squeaking doors, creaking steps, roaring fires, boy racers, snatches of conversations from the pubs, café and streets. My internation was part audio collage and part composition.

The elements were then sculpted together into their final form. I used Bill’s unamplified gold flying V guitar, small hand-held synthesizers and an old 1970’s Moog Prodigy, a loop and reverb pedal plus the natural ambience of The Tower itself. Whilst fighting the cold in as many layers of clothing as I could wear.”

Matthew is an artist & author based in Cornwall. He has worked on performance and art installations in various locations including the Barbican, Charleston House, Bryn Celli Ddu, Barclodiad y Gawres, Glastonbury Festival, Sea Change Festival & The Social. He has collaborated with Brian Catling, Shirley Collins, Jimmy Cauty & Jem Finer, Mark Fry, Mark Stewart / The Pop Group, Jamie Reid, Richard Norris & Justin Robertson. Matthew's book of poetry and photography, Atmosphere of Mona, was published by Annwyn House in 2020 He is also a co-founder of Stone Club with artist and author Lally MacBeth.