Join Lai Power in Grand Union’s Bothy on July’s Digbeth First Friday, for a series of small-group, intimate listening sessions from 6-8pm. Experience high-end audio for free and share music you love with others.
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“Music is magic
Music is time travel
Music is a weapon of peace
By playing music you are casting spells
Spells of love and healing”
We live in a world where society is increasingly orientated towards never ending fun for the rich and nothing but austerity and hardship for everyone else. Lai Power and her friends believe that everything should be for everyone.
One of the areas inequality manifests is the enjoyment of recorded music. Far from the golden era of high fidelity speakers in the 1970s (coincidentally the time when wealth inequality was the lowest it has ever been in Britain), increasingly people are listening to music on cheap headphones and Bluetooth speakers. We are expected to rent (never own) music whilst the musicians who made said music get paid pennies. Simultaneously the rich are using hand crafted, high end audio equipment costing thousands of pounds, boutique vinyl, and high fidelity media. They are living in audio nirvana, so to speak.
Lately, Lai has been investigating bringing the healing and unifying power of music to public spaces. She and the Equaliser soundsystem co-operative began researching and building speakers inspired by the dance music culture of New York, the UK, and Jamaica. They discovered that with enough bodging, and crafting, they could achieve high-end results for a fraction of the price. Punk-Fi if you will.
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Laila will instigate each listening session by playing a track that she has been loving. Then you and the rest of the group, be it friends or strangers, are welcome to put on music that you love, of any genre. We can listen and enjoy together. Chatting is more than welcome, as is sitting, lying down, or relaxed movement, bearing in mind it is a tiny space holding groups of 3-5 people at a time. The music will be played a safe volume only slightly louder than a energetic conversation so we are looking after our ears.
You are welcome to bring vinyl records but there will also be a laptop with streaming services available to maximise participation.
How does the music make you feel? Does it bring up any memories? See if you can hear things you can’t usually hear. What is the role of music in our lives? How does music relate to different times and cultures? How can music bring us together?
About Lai PowerOpen accordion
Lai Power (she/they) is a DJ, producer and organiser proudly from Birmingham. She is a member of Equaliser soundsystem co-operative which is part of Co-operation Birmingham. She puts on a party called Energy Flow in the city. She has friends everywhere.
You can find out more about Lai Power via her website by clicking here.
Access information: This is a free, drop-in event, no booking is required. Grand Union’s Bothy is located in the Minerva Garden by the canal in Minerva Works. The Minerva Garden is up 6 shallow steps, with no level access or handrail. To enter the Bothy, there is another shallow step. Comfortable seats with backs are available within the space.
This event is largely sound-based; if access to sound is something that poses a barrier to you, please get in touch at info@grand-union.org.uk and we can have a conversation about how to make this event work best for you. If you would like to talk about access further, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
