“The question isn’t ‘What have we done well?’, it’s ‘What can we do next?’” – Editor-in-chief Christopher Torpey
In June 2019, Bido Lito! will publish the 100th edition of their magazine. Over the last nine years they have continuously produced a free monthly new music and creative culture physical magazine. In a time when print’s death knell has been repeatedly rung, they have been steadfast in their promotion of independent culture, physical media and the forward facing creatives in our city. True to form, they want to use this opportunity to look to the future, both through the 100th issue itself and via a series of projects.
The temptation at such a landmark is to look back – through the fug of nostalgia – at what has been achieved over a century of editions. This is not what they will be doing. Today, our city’s creative community faces a unique set of challenges. To mark the occasion of reaching 100 editions Bido Lito! will be taking the opportunity to look forward, asking the following question: What will Liverpool’s new music and creative culture look like in 2028, in another 100 editions’ time? As a community what do we foresee; a dystopian, culture-less nightmare or a utopian, Technicolor dream? What will be the key issues and challenges, opportunities and changes we’ll be grappling with in 2028?
Through a series of projects, bido100! will explore our fast-paced and unpredictable, tech-laced future and look to learn what we can do differently today to help shape a better, creative tomorrow. From LightNight on 17th May to our festival Inside Pages on 22nd June, they’ll be exploring these themes through events and projects which include:
Ritual 2.0 – an immersive walk-through installation at Moorfields station as part of LightNight 2019 produced by visual artist Sam Wiehl and musician Forest Swords. Produced in partnership with Merseyrail. 17th May
Pow Wow! – a discursive event at the Bluecoat which includes high profile speakers discussing the future of culture in Liverpool. Pow Wow! includes the inaugural Roger Eagle Memorial Lecture delivered by Bill Drummond and Pow Wow! Discussion, featuring representatives from the worlds of art, politics and journalism casting their minds forward to what the world has in store for our creative future. 7th June
Inside Pages – a festival at Constellations with the best of the next generation of local acts and some international headliners. Confirmed acts so far include three of this year’s Bido Lito! cover artists Clinic, XamVolo, Eyesore & The Jinx and The Mysterines. 22nd June
AI Audio Lab – an interactive installation which will run for the month of the programme and puts audience members in this world of automated creativity. We invite you to step into a virtual recording studio and, using a series of simple commands, control the creation of an Artificial Intelligence-composed piece of music, in a genre of your choice. Dates TBC
Special Edition 100th Issue – as well as all this, we will of course be producing a special souvenir issue of the magazine which drills into all the topics surrounding the central theme of the project.
Editor-in-chief Christopher Torpey said: “I can still remember the thrill when the first issue landed, and the feeling that we’d finally done it, achieved what we’d set out do. But that was just the first step, where the wheels started turning for Bido Lito!. And we’ve been carried along by this cycle ever since, constantly looking forwards for the next big thing. The weird journey has given us some amazing experiences, not least working with the Justified Ancients of Mumu on their return in 2017. But it’ll always be those artist discoveries that will stick in my memory longest: the first time I heard Death At Sea, Beija Flo and Beach Skulls; seeing XamoVolo performing with a metal band or the coming-of-age of Strange Collective; and getting to interview local community heavyweights like Bill Ryder-Jones, Forest Swords and Stealing Sheep, who helped throw the door open for so many other talented Merseyside artists to follow in their footsteps. The monthly cycle has always kept us on our toes, continually looking forwards. That’s an ethos that I credit for helping us to keep things fresh and new, a prevailing wind that’s prevented us from getting stale. When a new issue lands, that’s always the start of a new chapter for us; the question isn’t ‘What have we done well this month?’, it’s ‘What can we do next?’”
For more information go to bidolito.co.uk/bido100