DeForrest Brown Jr. is a theorist, journalist, curator, visual artist, and, by necessity, a musician. Raised in America’s deep South, he asks difficult questions, which make us look at how we think about race and class, society and history. As Speaker Music, he channels the African American modernist tradition of rhythm and soul music against crushed samples and technological sounds. The project was inspired by Rhythmanalysis, a book of essays by urbanist philosopher Henri Lefebvre, and by considerations of momentum and the ‘chronopolitical’ by British cultural theorist Kodwo Eshu.

He is joined by Phantom Chips (Tara Pattenden), whose work over the past two decades has revolved around a unique and embedded approach to self-made, wearable electronics. These tactile sonic creations become the foundation of her performances, where she invites audience members to wear them, and, by so doing, become part of the emergent noise field.