Barry Adamson

In the organizer's words:

Musician, composer, writer, photographer, director. The list of creative professions that Barry Adamson has occupied in his career is long. Whether as a member of Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds, Magazine, Visage, as a guest musician on several albums or with his solo project, Barry Adamson has never limited himself to just one activity. He has worked with Derek Jarman, David Lynch, Oliver Stone, Danny Boyle and Atticus Ross and has made a name for himself in the field of soundtrack and sound design. He has released nine albums and several EPs with his solo project, while his music has also been used in documentaries, TV series, films, commercials and computer games. In addition to the seven soundtracks Barry Adamson has been involved in, he has also remixed tracks for Depeche Mode and Einstürzende Neubauten, among others. The musician's musical horizon covers an almost infinite range between spherical soundtracks, acid jazz, art rock, trip-hop, dark wave and much more. Even a ballet, which was performed again at the Bavarian State Opera in 2022, was written in 2003 based on his music and won an Olivier Award in 2004. In 1992, his album "Soul Prison" was also nominated for a Mercury Music Prize. In June, Barry Adamson will come to Germany for three concerts and will present his new album, which will be released in May 2024, and many classics from his impressive body of work.

Barry Adamson began to develop an interest in music at an early age. He wrote his first song at the age of 10, but initially worked as a graphic designer after school before coming into contact with the punk scene. In 1977, he founded the band Magazine with ex-Buzzcocks singer Howard Devoto, in which Adamson played bass. In 1979, he was briefly part of the new wave band Visage and (after the dissolution of Magazine) joined the band The Birthday Party, from which Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds was formed in 1983. After four albums, Adamson left the band and devoted himself entirely to his solo career from 1987. In 1989, Barry Adamson released his debut EP "The Man With The Golden Arm" via Mute Records - shortly afterwards, his debut album "Moss Side Story" was released, alluding to his birthplace of Moss Side, Manchester, as a concept album soundtrack to a fictional crime film. It quickly became clear how experimental and narrative Barry Adamson's music was, which was further confirmed with the 1992 album "Soul Murder" as well as "Opedipus Schmoedipus" (1996) and "As Above So Below" (1998). After the millennium, "The King Of Nothing Hill" (2002), "Stranger On The Sofa" (2006), "Back To The Cat" (2008), "I Will Set You Free" and "Know Where To Run" (2016) were released. In 2021, Barry Adamson publishes his memoirs under the name "Up Above The City, Down Beneath The Stars" and bears witness to an extraordinary career that is far from over. In the same year, he released his "Steal Away" EP. Two more EPs followed in 2023, "The Big Bamboozle" and "Can't Get Loose", which mesmerize in a cinematic way with dark synthesizer sounds and ethereal vocals and show that the 65-year-old still has a creative fire in him that is far from extinguished.