Music / Block
Interview: Harmonoise’s Mo Williams
Faced with harrowing images of refugees fleeing their home countries plastered over every website, news report and Facebook feed, it’s easy to feel useless or even numb. When one person can do so little, why even bother?
This seems to be the thought Harmonoise are rallying against. By bringing together musicians and artists in aid of Bristol Refugee Rights, they are helping to raise money for the world’s most vulnerable people, together.
Ahead of the date, organiser and filmmaker Mo Williams offers his hopes for the event.
is needed now More than ever
What did you have in mind when you were programming these artists for this event?
The arts come to the fore through periods of depression or extreme stress, lifting spirits and repairing divides in society so we felt it was an important time to do an exhibition of this positive nature.
It is a collaborative exhibition, full of contrasting work in different mediums with a particularly strong set of images from Sam Ivin of asylum seekers and refugees, acting as a lynchpin with the individual pieces taking on a collective definition.
The music side of things I thought as a chance to create a celebratory atmosphere in what can perhaps be a rather difficult subject to bring to light. Culturally I think this is a very Bristol way of approaching things and we’re lucky to host the artists who have joined us.
What are you most looking forward to seeing?
I’m excited about Patchwork Guilt. Phoenix Mundy is from Bristol but it’s her first time playing here after a number of people have tried to book her, and we’re the fortunate ones who get to host her.
There’s also an allocation of tickets for refugees in Bristol to attend the event so I am looking forward to welcoming them into a warm environment and interested to see what they think of how it all works together.
https://soundcloud.com/patchworkguilt/unwind-1
Why have you chosen Bristol Refugee Rights as the beneficiary of this event?
They are one of the main partners of the Bristol Refugee Festival and having researched the work they carry out with refugees and asylum seekers in the local community, it is evident they understand on a personal level the difficulty those affected go through on a daily basis. The insecurity of not knowing, the inability to settle, contribute and integrate for what can be exceptionally long lengths of time. This is one of the main sentiments of Sam Ivin’s photographic series Lingering Ghosts, where it explores the purgatory of being lost in a system that can degrade one’s identity.
There is also LARA (Lorraine Ayensu Refugee Arts), a project within Bristol Refugee Rights that supports refugee and asylum seeking musicians. The opportunity to be creative within the arts, I believe is one of the most important avenues for communication and understanding that transcends cultural boundaries.
I was upset to hear from the charities I’ve been in contact with that those seeking asylum in Bristol find it hard or even scary to attend music or artistic events here outside of the comfort of community centres. So I hope this can be a bridge to invite them in to an area that is of strong importance to the character of this city.
Do you have a personal connection to the charity?
I have a close friend whose partner was detained in a detention centre for asylum seekers. Obviously this was an incredibly hard thing to go through and it is charities like Bristol Refugee Rights on a ground level that are able to help navigate those who otherwise may not receive or have access to guidance in these issues.
I also don’t think you need a personal connection to take it upon yourself to understand the humanistic side and have a grip on factual information about immigration and asylum. We hope this event will raise awareness and open the conversation up to a wider audience with creativity and we are launching a factual zine by Alice Corner of Born To Be Mild which will break down sensationalist headlines with concrete facts about migration.
Do you think musicians and artists have a duty to be political?
Not necessarily. I think politics can be a highly personal thing and whether that comes through your music/art or not is up to whoever creates it and what their process is. That is not to say music or art that isn’t blatantly political can not have a positive social or political effect. However, I believe everyone, whether an artist or not, has a social responsibility to be well-informed. We can all do better and understand more than we do now.
H a r m o n o i s e featuring SJ Esau, Patchwork Guilt and Block takes place on Saturday, July 15 from 9.30pm to 3.30am, and the exhibition continues into Sunday, July 16 from 12pm – 6pm at the Jam Jar. Tickets for Saturday’s event are £6. Get yours at http://hdfst.uk/E39606, and see the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/events/316947258761556. The exhibition on Sunday is free but donations are appreciated. All profits will be donated to Bristol Refugee Rights.
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