Bubblegum Club

Tag: Song’s From The Bath

  • ‘Wear me and make art’: New fashion label Artclub and Friends

    After spending some time thinking about how she could combine her love for fashion, art, music, and desire to work with creatives, young designer Robyn Keyser launched her label Artclub and Friends in November 2016. At the core of the label is ensuring that everything is locally made.

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    As a label they are trying to create clothing that reflects youth culture and the kinds of conversations that young people are having at the moment. This can be seen in their first collection which combines traditionally masculine cuts with colours that are usually translated as feminine colours. The merging of these replicates post-gender conversations which subvert the assumption that there are only two genders and that each of these can only be associated with particular styles. This exploration of gender neutral clothing also comes from a personal space for Robyn. Growing up she considered herself a tomboy and refused to wear the colour pink because of what it represented. However, it has been interesting for her coming into contact with the colour as she has gotten older. This can be seen in the t-shirt which has “Pink is not a gendered colour” printed on it. The vision is to make clothing that people wear because they want to, not because it has been dictated to them.

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    The name Artclub and Friends reflects how Robyn imagines her label being involved in a number of collaborative projects. The tagline ‘Wear me and make art’ captures this desire to collaborate with artists, performers, musicians to create clothing that speaks to a variety of people and can become physical manifestations of her emphasis on working with and caring for people. Their first of these projects was a collaborative t-shirt design with Thor Rixon in conjunction with his launch of ‘Songs from the Bath’. Artclub and Friends is also planning to invite artists to combine their chosen mediums with clothing and curate an exhibition for charity.

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    Paying homage to where she draws inspiration from is part of the foundation of Artclub and Friends. It’s about “understanding inspiration, acknowledging it, giving credit where due. Not just about seeing a trend, adapting. It’s about understanding what you are designing,” Robyn explained.

    Be sure to check out their Instagram page and website to have a look at their first collection and to keep up with what they have planned for the year.

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  • From the Bath to Inner and Outer Space

    I’ll tell you one thing, Song’s From The Bath is a fucking trip. I’ll tell you some more things, I just felt like that was a good way to start. What else do you want to know? Is it a homage to Max Normal’s Songs From The Mall? No, no it is not. Did Thor Rixon actually write it from a bath? Nope, I asked him. He said “The bath is a metaphor.” “Like”, “as”, that sort of thing. Oh, you want to know how the album sounds? I just told you, it’s a fucking trip. Have you ever done psychedelics? Yes? Well there you go. No? Then listen to the album. These songs may not actually be from the bath but they’ll take you to inner and outer space my dudes and dudettes. An adventure of magical musical discovery awaits.

    First though, a warning before you go adventuring: If you just fully don’t like experimental music, then maybe this isn’t the journey for you. Don’t listen to the album and then be like, “Why are there birds chirping? That’s so lame.” This is the type of album that has birds chirping follow hectic rave parts. But also, gentle, ethereal chords that linger and stick with you after being washed out by reverb and literal water as the next song kicks in. So yeah, it’s experimental, and emotional, and eclectic. It’s chaos intricately woven with order. There are layers to this shit. Deep, deep layers.

    If those sound like qualities you like in an album, you still might not be emotionally ready for it. I don’t know where you are in your life. I don’t know how this is going to make you feel. That said, you should listen to it anyway because trying new and experimental things is good for your personal development. Personally, I feel weird. I feel overwhelmed. I feel like I’m staring at the space between stars, contemplating my existence whilst my body slowly floats down through my chair. I feel like that’s a cheesy line, and I’m not even sure what the logistics of ethereal form would be, but bare with me. I’m trying to tell you that Songs From The Bath makes me feel, and it’s going to make you feel too. What will you feel? Well, that’s up to you.

    ‘Songs From The Bath’ contains 7 tracks with featured artists such as; Alice Phoebe Lou, Hlasko, Itai Hakim, Olmo, among many more. The album marks Rixon’s 3rd full body of work after 2014’s ‘Tea Time Favorites’ and 2013’s ‘Shared Folder’. ‘Songs From The Bath’ has also been pressed to vinyl and is available in limited edition blue or standard edition black vinyl, available from Roastin’ Records.

    Rixon will be hosting 2 live and improvised performances of the album which will be held in Cape Town at The Centre For The Book in Gardens on Wednesday the 1st of February and in Johannesburg at The Bioscope Theatre in Maboneng on Saturday the 4th of February. Each showcase will feature; Alice Phoebe Lou, Hlasko, Olmo, Pavlov and more. For more details regarding these events please visit;

    CT – https://www.facebook.com/events/1835599113395368/

    JHB – https://www.facebook.com/events/1785322511793234/

    Tickets will be limited and only available online via Quicket.

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