Audible Edge '24: I make big noise and make small sound, I am in the air and on the ground, I'm out of sight and can be found. What am I?

Part of the Audible Edge Festival of Exploratory Music. View the full program at ae.tonelist.com.au.

I make big noise … is a relaxed late arvo concert celebrating the close of the festival. Expansive sound collage, poetic reflections, and playful new collaborations provide a soft final landing place for those at the end of a big festival weekend; or a perfect Sunday outing for homebodies! This all-ages, families-welcome gig is set up with free catering by Teeter and Manna, interactive activities, outdoor space and room to stretch out, and no alcohol (but cups of tea and yummy drinks by Strangelove).

This concert is also an album launch for Tone List’s 40th release by Jenny Hickinbotham. Jenny’s songs and poetry are cheeky and singular. They are joyous creative outbursts that often reflect her day-to-day life, idiosyncratic worldly observations, and her lived experience of hearing voices. Jenny will perform live in collaboration with local enigmas Chris Cobilis and Lana Rothnie. As a never-before-heard trio they are bound to cause a ruckus in the best way. 

Composer Simon Charles and John Kinsella, one of this continent’s foremost poets, debut a new collaboration. Using field recordings, analogue tape, musical notation and poetry, Simon and John have made tender traces of the suspension bridge in York, on Ballardong boodja. Their work attends to the bridge and how it relates to its surroundings, unravelling multiple meanings and connections. The piece will be performed by the two artists accompanied by long-time collaborators Jameson Feakes, Rebecca Lane & Jon Heilbron.

At the top of the show is the debut of tenforward, the duo of Lyndon Blue (Heathcote Blue, Leafy Suburbs) and Jessyca Hutchens (Jane Harris). Both wordsmiths, folk stars and gentle weirdos in their own right, their two unique sensibilities combine to make tender-hearted ditties.

Good vibes supplied in-between sets by DJ Ayo Busari, who plays tunes from the orbit of dancehall, house, hip-hop, RnB and Afro remix culture, augmented with live percussion.

At any point during the gig, get stuck into Emilie Monty’s Sonic Scavenger Hunt, from which this gig takes its name. This is a self-directed activity set amongst the eucalyptus, galahs and red bricks surrounding Sullivan Hall, for kids of all ages. Put on your thinking hats, silly hats and sun smart hats and join in to discover and delight in hidden treats.

Accessibility

Tone List have an accessibility form that can be used to make requests for AUSLAN interpreters, accessible taxi transfers to and from events, and other specific provisions. Find it at ae.tonelist.com.au/accessibility.

Content warnings: Please note that Jenny Hickinbotham's performance involves discussion of mental illness and traumatic experience.

The Sullivan Hall is a wheelchair accessible venue, accessible via the footpath on inclined but smooth terrain. The music will mostly be at a comfortable volume but may occasionally be very quiet or a little loud. It will be well-lit with natural light. The event is alcohol-free and all ages. There will be free food available including gluten-free and vegan options, and non-alcoholic drinks for sale. There are two accessible all-gender bathrooms located outside the venue, connected via a footpath. The venue is spacious and windows and doors can be kept open throughout most of the performances for the duration. Some of the quieter performances will involve the doors and windows being closed, and then re-opened after the performance. There is no dedicated indoor check-out space, but you can go outside into the garden, or even across the road into the park. Emilie Monty's work gives the opportunity to check out and do a focussed listening activity by yourself or with a few friends whenever you feel like it.

Acknowledgments

Audible Edge is presented by Tone List, a Boorloo-based label for exploratory music.

Audible Edge is proudly supported by the Western Australian government through the Department of Local Government, Sports and Cultural Industries, the Australian Cultural Fund and the Goethe Institut.

Audible Edge’s venue and presenting partners are Cool Change Contemporary, Goolugatup Heathcote, WA Museum Boola Bardip, The Flaming Galah, Pneumatic, Portal Tapes, PS Art Space, The Bird, the State Library of Western Australia, Astral Weeks and Local and Aesthetic.