48 Cameras

48 Cameras, often referred simply as 48C, is a musical and international collective in a format that varies according to circumstances. It was created in 1984 by both musicians and non-musicians (the line-up varies greatly), some currently living in Belgium, Netherlands, United Kingdom, etc. To this day, 48 Cameras recorded 13 albums, the work being done frequently via the Internet (some of the members have never met), allowing the collective to welcome various guests from diverse cultures and a wide range of disciplines : Annemarie Borg (Antara Project), Rodolphe Burger, Andy Cairns (Therapy?), David Coulter, Michel Delville, Sandy Dillon, Michael Gira, Marcel Kanche, Tom Heasley, Gerard Malanga, Martyn Bates, (Eyeless in Gaza), DJ Olive, Charlemagne Palestine, Philippe Poirier, Nicholas Royle, Eugène Savitzkaya, Robin Rimbaud (Scanner), Malka Spiegel, Vesica Piscis, Aaron Ximm, etc. The music created has been described as being alternative, ambient, art rock, dark, folk, industrial or even psychedelic. Rightly or wrongly, the collective has been compared to bands as Coil, Psychic TV or Current 93.
Paul Buck, the author of the novel "The Honeymoon Killers", was once a member of the collective.
Due to the characteristics of the collective, 48 Cameras has only performed on stage eight times in its 33 years of existence : in Amay, Paris, Nancy, Brussels and Liège. In March 2004, the RTBF’s "Les 100 minutes de Tyan" gave its last second two hours long programme to the collective.
Jean M. Mathoul, one of the members of the collective, once said, paraphrasing David Herbert Lawrence: "Our music could be a music written in a foreign language which we would not totally like to master".
The name of the collective refers to Muybridge and to a Jim Morrison poem : "Muybridge derived his animal subjects from the Philadelphia Zoological Garden, male performers from the University. The women were professional artists' models, also actresses and dancers, parading nude before the 48 cameras" (in "The Lords and the new creatures").
Discography.
The collective has participated in 1999 to Gerard Malanga's album "Up from the archives" issued on the label Sub Rosa and including interventions of William Burroughs, Jack Kerouac, Angus MacLise, Thurston Moore, DJ Olive, Iggy Pop, Andy Warhol, etc.
Current members.
48 Cameras just started the recording of "Songs from the Marriage of Heaven & Hell" according to William Blake with Edward Ka-Spel (Legendary pink dots) on spoken words.
Side projects.
Every member of 48 Cameras has led one or several parallel musical activities.
In 2002, David Coulter (UK) and Jean M. Mathoul (Belgium) recorded with Charlemagne Palestine (USA) by correspondence the album "Maximin" released on Michael Gira 's label, Young God Records.
In the same way, in 2004 David Coulter, Jean M. Mathoul and Charlemagne Palestine also recorded with Michael Gira (USA), and one more time by correspondence, "Gantse Mishpuchah - Music in 3 parts", released on the Italian label Fringes Recording.