Modified Toy Orchestra are a collection of abandoned and reconstructed Childrens electronic toys, conducted by a selection of musicians.
Its rare to hear an electronic record that has no midi, no sampling, no synthesizers, no laptops, in fact no conventional instruments of any kind, yet Toygopop by the Modified Toy Orchestra is just that.
Available now from www.warmcircuit.com - a music label dedicated to Outsider Electronics and Mutant Pop.
The Album "Toygopop" is now available to DOWNLOAD from Bleep.com.
Brian Duffy, award winning sound artist and creator of the Modified Toy Orchestra, has been at the forefront of a world wide underground movement called circuit bending which involves rescuing childrens electronic toys from car boot sales, and converting them into new strange and wonderfully sophisticated musical instruments. Taking them apart, he finds new connections hidden within each toys circuits that reveal new sounds, exposing the surplus value of redundant technology. The toys are then reassembled including switches and dials with which to control this surplus value. The results of this process can be shockingly beautiful, funny and extreme and have led to Brian being labelled a genius, a madman, and a national treasure.
Toygopop has been five years in the making - two years building the toy instruments and learning how to play them, and three years discovering and collaging combinations of sounds and musical phrases (Brian calls this process collaborating with the third mind of the machine ) to create a strange yet accessible album that is unlike anything else you are ever likely to hear - sometimes funny, sometimes moving, sometimes dark and disturbing.
Rescuing electronic childrens toys from car boot sales and thrift shops, Duffy chops and channels the wiring inside to produce a marvellous range of strange new sounds. Under his influence, SpeaknSpell and TouchnTell are transformed into Delphic oracles, offering impassive mythic revelations on the catchy Fantastic Little Blue World and the gnomic pop insistence of This is the Monkey. Where is my Sock turns the act of getting dressed into an existential enquiry. The Wire
This music is a wonderfully forward-moving electronic soundscape that gobbles up beats and squeaks without regard for their actual source. Very pleasurable stuff. The Wire
Brian Duffy is a national treasure. Mute
Another angle that makes SONAR a yearly addiction for some is the surprise factor. Even if you manage to map out a schedule you continue to wind up hearing something utterly unexpected that blows your mind. This year the winners of the What the f*ck is this but I love it award goes to the British tech-nerd ensemble known as the Modified Toy Orchestra. I never in my life thought I would hear a Kraftwerk cover performed on rewired dolls and altered plastic toy guitars. An unexpected treat that has made me a massive fan. livesets.com
Brian Duffy and the Modified Toy Orchestra are converting plenty of people to their skewed vision. Texas Instruments' Speak and Spell machines sound like proclamations from the Great Horned One himself. And various people bully kiddys Fisher Price toys into making the kind of noises that would cause most pre-teens to burst into tears. But this is no avant noise irritation. Duffy and co find beauty, terror and melody where, by rights, they should just sound like the prelude to your dad yelling 'Keep it down you noisy bastards!' playlouder.com
Effortlessly enjoyable. Birminghams Modified Toy Orchestra is something of a local legend, producing strangely beautiful electronica from discarded playthings. Brian Duffy walks a fine line between genius and madman. Like a nine volt Frankenstein. Just amazing. Zero Tolerance
Ive seen Devo and Kraftwerk play live, and these guys blow them away! Tony Wilson
The Modified Toy Orchestra is my favourite album so far this year, no bullshit - it is very beautiful, poignant and daring brilliant! Martin Ware, Heaven 17
its been a great 2007 for the MTO, we have had some great gigs at some amazing venues
20 Jan 2007, Paris - point ephemere
"octopus" festival of invented instruments
08 Mar 2007, UK London- purcell room/south bank
ether festival
19 mar 2007, Seville – Teatro lope de vega
zemos 98 festival
06 Apr 2007, UK London - tate Britain
cybersonica -late at the tate
26 Apr 2007 UK Cambridge – the junction
Enter unknown territories festival
24 May 2007, UK Birmingham – barfly
supersonic festival preview
29 May 2007, Vienna- ORF-RadioKulturhaus
under construction festival
02 Jun 2007, Rome – palazzo dei congressi
dissonanze festival
09 Jun 2007, UK Suffolk - bentwater airbase
faster than sound festival
14 Jul 2007, UK Birmingham- custard factory
supersonic festival
10 Aug 2007, UK Leicester – de montford hall
summer sundae festival
05 Sept 2007, Italy - cividale, Rive Creative.
15 Oct 2007, UK Birmingham Town Hall.
Re-opening festival.
17 Oct 2007, UK SheffieldHallam University,
Future of sound.
19 Oct 2007, Utrecht Holland Kikker Theatre,
Rumor Festival,
09 Nov 2007, UK London, British Libary
Future of sound.
"black star" performed at zemos98 festival seville , march 2007
"freeno and olaf" performed at zemos98 festival seville , march 2007
mto on "tracks" arte channel france, from performance at octopus festival Paris
report from italian tv , modified toy orchestra at dissonanze rome 2007
your music is remarkably well executed. i listen to a lot of stuff from people using circuit bent instruments, and your ability to shape songs with a pop sensibility while retaining some of the textural elements of bent sounds deserves mad respect. nice job guys.
There is a video of you guys playing live at Custard Factory in 2006 on youtube. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Hn7jLNDEWII. Its from a mobile phone recording so its bad quality but its still a piece of great history :)))
hello and thank you for adding us to the pile of devotees. really like your music, especially "this is the monkey" ! makes me so manic i wanna set fire to my old school through gritted teeth. inspired! aoe
