By Sophie Scannell, Music Editor
The struggle of grass roots spaces to keep up with big-money venues is not a new one, but what Megaverse are doing in response is certainly eye-catching to say the least. A classic rock gig is set to be transformed with hypnotic visuals driven by real-time audio from the band and audience. If you’ve ever wanted to take the reigns in creating your personal perfect gig, this might just be your chance.
Megaverse is a Bristol-based, award-winning digital interactive studio that was chosen as part of the Grass Roots Music Venue Innovation competition supported by MusicFutures and the Music Venue Trust. The competition invited companies to create exciting answers to the ongoing questions of the status of grass roots venues, audience connectivity and the future of live music in the UK.
One of these ideas will, quite literally, come to life at Strange Brew on the 28th of February, with Megaverse collaborating with Bristol-born Townhouses, accompanying their gig with visuals that will be generated live throughout, in response to real-time audio and movement, both of the band and the audience themselves.
Townhouses, made up of University of Bristol alumni (and one current student!), are a rock band born straight out of Bristol’s grassroots scene. Now based in London, the indie rockers boast a roaring live energy that continues to breathe life into the gig scene.
However, in an attempt to recognise that audiences across the world (there will also be a considerable audience watching online) want to engage and appreciate live shows in different ways, the Megaverse stage is designed to integrate participation directly into experience, acknowledging ‘the role that technologies can play in shifting and extending its boundaries and its value for grass roots venues.’
If the likes of ABBA Voyage and various holograms at award shows are anything to go by, it seems timely to realise the power technology can have in the future of live music. CoSTAR National lab, under which Megaverse works, is product of a £70 million investment delivered by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, whose work combines state-of-the-art facilities to bolster the growth of creative industries across the UK, something that is sorely needed given the hard time the Arts have been given especially in recent news.
The show is pay-what-you-can and at the student-favourite Strange Brew - one of Bristol’s most loved spots, it is a success story of the grass root venue after the fight they put up at the prospect of its nearly permanent closure during the pandemic.
Tickets to the event can be found on Headfirst!
Featured image: CoSTAR National LabWill you be heading to Strange Brew on the 28th?
