SPRING FESTIVALS
With Public Service Broadcasting set to take on the Edinburgh International Science Festival,
Arusa Qureshi chats with J Willgoose, Esq to fi nd out more about space, samples, and the
band’s connection to science
It may be hard to imagine life in 1957 when Sputnik was launched into orbit, or in 1969 when America landed the i rst humans on the moon with Apollo 11. It might be equally difi cult to envisage that childlike-wonder which many felt towards the great unknown and how the very idea of space penetrated every aspect of life and popular culture for years.
London two-piece Public Service Broadcasting aim to transport you back to that momentous era, as well as to many others, to experience the stories that epitomised signii cant periods of our history. Using sound effects, archive footage, propaganda material and various samples, the duo of J Willgoose, Esq and Wrigglesworth present an honest rel ection of life as it once was but with a sense of renewal courtesy of added electronics and looped beats. By taking inspiration from the past, they’re able to innovate in the present, simultaneously encouraging listeners and spectators to engage with historical periods in a new and unexpected way.
‘The music is mostly written in emotional response to the material that we’re writing about, whether it’s the case of having found the material i rst or writing with the aim of i nding something to i t,’ Willgoose explains. ‘It’s a kind of translation of these stories and these bits of our past, and it’s about communicating something from within us.’ The duo have incorporated a number of elements of history in their music, from the i rst expedition up Mount Everest to the invention of colour television, with upcoming third album Every Valley focusing on the mining industry in south Wales. But second album The Race for Space allowed them to undertake a project of mammoth proportions: retelling the story of the Space Race.
‘One of the things that drew me to the Space Race was the fact that it’s a rare case of something that’s technologically really advanced and challenging that we used to do but don’t do anymore,’ Willgoose says. ‘And there’s a kind of sadness to that, I think. On the other side, there’s the straightforward idea of celebrating a remarkable period in human history.’ Opening with a 1962 speech by JFK, the album relives the American v Soviet Space Race, detailing events such as the i rst manned spacel ight in history and the tragic Apollo 1 i re. The album paints a compelling picture of discovery and courage, which Public Service Broadcasting highlight with their immersive and atmospheric landscapes. While having no personal connection to the story of the Space Race, Willgoose notes that there’s a universal connection shared by millions of other people which shouldn’t be easily forgotten.
‘You can’t help but marvel at the engineering and technical feats at the time and something that I can never really get my head around is the bravery that was involved,’ he says. ‘The album was also a slight push against some of the cynicism that surrounds the Space Race these days. It was an attempt to put a bit more of the romanticism back into it and to say it dei nitely happened whether or not someone in a pub told you that there are too many shadows in a photo. It’s one of the most exceptional human achievements ever and so many people refuse to believe it exists which I think tells you a lot about the human race.’
As part of the Edinburgh International Science Festival, Public Service Broadcasting will be taking to the Usher Hall stage to perform The Race for Space from start to i nish, with accompaniment from the National Youth Choir of Scotland and string quintet Mr McFall’s Chamber. Though unusual for the band, the performance is highly i tting as it takes place on Yuri’s Night, the international celebration of space exploration named after Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who became the i rst human to travel into outer space back in 1961. ‘It’s great to be doing our bit to keep Yuri Gagarin’s story and what he achieved alive. His story is obviously many, many times greater than anything that we could ever do but it’s nice to bring people together in a celebration and recognition of those achievements.’ Along with the many talks, workshops, activities and events, this year’s EISF programme invites the public to ‘Get Connected’ to science by interacting with varying disciplines, with different communities and with one another. Such a theme resonates highly with Public Service Broadcasting due to the duo’s belief in strengthening people’s desire for discovering more about the key concepts, historical ideas and scientii c innovations that make up the world around us.
‘I think it’s positive to be encouraging people to engage with science and not to see it as the preserve of an academic elite,’ says Willgoose. ‘The scientii c discipline and the scientii c way of thinking, and of presenting and challenging evidence, is needed now more than ever; the more we can get people involved with that, the better. Being involved in the festival with a musical element is great because it shows that science is something that does have a wide appeal, that it’s not just for a small community. It should be for everybody.’
Public Service Broadcasting: The Race for Space Live, Usher Hall, Edinburgh, Wed 12 Apr. They also play May West Festival, Glasgow Green, Sun 28 May.
1 Apr–31 May 2017 THE LIST 21