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WHAT’S ON OUR RADAR THIS MONTH.
STAGE
WUSA UP?
?
SOUTH WALES SECRETS #42:
The Brunswick Arms, Swansea
Performance artist Maria Pask takes a
musical tour around the 1970s rock scene of
Swansea in her new documentary Manfinger,
and finds her South Wales Secret on the way.
“I haven’t lived in Wales for 25 years, and
sometime I wonder if the environment has affected
who I am,” states Maria who, originally from
Cardiff, now lives in Amsterdam.
“I saw that Nicky Wire from the Manic Street
Preachers had written an article about this Welsh
word ‘cynefin’,” explains Maria, “it’s basically the
concept of different habitats, and he wrote about
how habitat has shaped the Welsh music identity.
So music from south Wales is more angry, from
west Wales it’s more pastoral and music from north
Wales, which is nearer Manchester and Liverpool,
is more clubby and a bit techno.”
Maria’s documentary Manfinger, cleverly titled by
combing the names of local rock bands Badfinger
and Man, explores the music of Swansea and
includes a series of interviews with characters of
the city’s varied music scene.
“It’s also about ideas of failure and success. Do
these people think they’d succeeded in their music
career or what was important about it? There
was one guy who doesn’t perform in public, he
just makes music. It’s a rebellion against ideas of
stardom and this beautiful dream that you have.
“I was introduce to one lady who’d been married
to Deke Leonard, from Man. I’d seen a lot of
documentaries about Man as a band, and it
BUZZ 08
sounds great and wild and wonderful.
“So I asked her about the low points, and she said
that women weren’t allowed to go on the road
once they got successful. She actually went back
to Swansea because she was homesick.”
Although Maria grew up in Cardiff, she has come
to have a soft spot for the city of Swansea: “I tend
to go for the underdog. I’m more interested in
people a little bit on the fringes, and that’s what I
liked about Swansea. It’s much wilder and more
bohemian than Cardiff, and I responded to that.”
“We interviewed this great musician in Swansea,
Andy Jones, and he talks about this. He mentions
people coming from other countries to Swansea
and saying, it’s all mad here, it’s like Seattle!”
With this new-found love, it is unsurprising
that Maria’s choice of South Wales Secret is a
Swansea one: The Brunswick Arms.
“Everyone knows each other and they play music
there,” states Maria. “We filmed in the pub, we
met in the pub, we ate and drank in the pub, we
socialised in the pub, it was all in the pub!”
Manfinger, Elysium Gallery, Swansea, Fri 11-Sat
26 Apr. Preview event: Dylan Thomas Theatre,
Swansea, Thurs 10 Apr. Info: 01792 516900 /
www.glynnviviangallery.org
Arena-filling
comedians,
often bolstered by their TV
personalities (looking at you,
Miss Hart!), are pushing smaller
acts further and further towards
the