Transistor Six

TRANSISTOR SIX is the musical project of Frances Castle, a British girl that is far more popular in her country due to her paintings, and by forming part of the Stuckism Art Movement, which has received a lot of press coverage lately, and which also lodges some other musicians/artists like Billy Childish from the HEADCOATS or Sexton Ming.

But the most important thing for us is that Frances also makes music, with very little equipment but with a lot of imagination and charm. Her discography so far is very reduced, only a single for the Black Bean and Placenta label from US, plus several songs in compilations.

The intruments used by Frances to make music are just a computer, and old organ and assorted samples from records she finds in second hand shops. And the result is a mixture of country, space music and old sixties pop. According to her own words, TRANSISTOR SIX’ music is " old -new music, using the best sounds, found and sampled and stolen from the past to make new music for today".

The first song 'The Post Office Tower' is about a building in London now called the Telecom Tower, it was built in the 1960's and it really has the spirit of that age. When it first opened it had a revolving restaurant on the top floor, but in the 1970's it had to be closed because of the fear terrorist bombs. This song is about wishing that the restaurant was still turning, that the idea and the glamour was still there, and wondering what it would be like to go up there and have London Spin beneath you.

The second song 'Graham Goofers Singing Machine' is about a 15 year old boy who invents a machine that can sing like an angel. He makes the machine out of bits and pieces he finds around the house. Its really just a song about amazing things coming from unusual places.

The music of both songs is as magical and endearing as the texts, proving again that imagination is much more useful than the most sophisticated equipment if you want to make fresh, new music.