Steve played together with Paul Clarvis on his sculptures
for the soundtrack by Alex Heffes for the new Movie State
of Play featuring Russell Crowe, Ben Afleck and Hellen Miram
which is on release 25th March 2009.

Steve is exhibiting mobiles and sculptures and will also perform
a Shamanic solo concert at the Beltine festival in
Telc, Czech Republic 30th April 2009.

Italian film maker Jaro is now making
a documentary of Steve's Metalcraft and music.
Footage so far from Half Machine
in Copenhagen and from December 2008 in Prague.

Steve and Ad Peijnenburg have just finished
recording a new album in Eindhoven in December 2008.
The music has much more space
and is highly atmospheric.
More new about it's release soon.

Steve Has just finished recording and mastering
the latest Metal Moves album.
To be released as Nine Lamps.

Steve has now an agent in the UK working on
future exhibitions in major venues.
New publications are in formation.

Paolo Vinaccia is touring in February with
some of the worlds greatest heavy metal guitarists.
Ronnie Tenko from Norway and Yngwie Malmsteen
from Sweden. Paolo will be performing exclusively
on Steve Hubback's cymbals - including
the 1 meter ride and a selection
of Gothic cymbal and gong sculptures.

Steve will play and have an exhibition at the
The Nox  Obscura festival in Amersfoort,
18 and 19 October, 2008

Skullduggery at Glastonbury with the The Birdman of Alkijazz (Tony Orrell)

Dark Trio Candlelight concert
of atmospheric music at
Old Church St Pancras Road
( NOT St Pancras Church in Euston Road!)
London NW1
(Kings Cross rail, tube bus).

Friday October 10 at 20:30.

Steve Hubback - Self Forged Percussion and Sound Sculpures.

Alan Wilkinson - saxes

Tickets on the door. Black dresscode encouraged

Next exhibition on Castlefest
on 1st 2nd and 3rd of August 2008

Click here

Birdman, Baron and Bat sculptural
percussion trio at Bath Festival 2008.

More pictures of the Bath festival
(taken by Ed Elias)

Percussion shows hits Bath Fringe Festival in June

A special percussion sculpture that Steve created
last August for Half Machine festival has been stolen
from MS Half Machine in Sud Havn in Copenhagen.
This sculpture was permanently installed on
MS Half Machine. We would like it back!

 
Carl Palmer of ELP and Asia has
recently acquired Gothic Gongchyme II.
 
3 New recordings have been mastered.
 
Nine Lamps - Metal Moves (features Birgit Lokke and
Tineke Noordhoek and includes recordings from
a tomb in a well known Parisian cemetery
and London Vaults as well as studios in
Copenhagen, Reykjavik, London and Cardiff)
 
London Vaults - Steve Hubback solo.
Performed in the arches of London Vaults
on gongs and shellgongs of Steve's design
from a unique bronze alloy.
Very atmospherique and trancelike.
To be released on FMR.
In 2006 Paiste AG of Switzerland generously
supplied me with some of their outstanding
Paiste Sound Alloy bronze.
In return I gave them 3 creations
that I forged in this alloy.
 
I created a selection of gongs with hammered
reliefs such as Sword, Celtic Cross and Pentagram.
Other gongs were in my sculptural line
with Pagan horns and hammered ridges.
Also I made 2 ride cymbals, a Shaman Stick,
small Shell gong chymes, a horned gong
Glockenchymes and many smaller forgings.
 
The performances in London Vaults
were the first public exhibition of these works
and the recordings are what you hear on this CD.
 
I'd like to thank Erik Paiste and Paiste AG
Switzerland and Trevor Taylor at FMR in England.
 
Deep Metal Forest - Steve Hubback solo. 
Recorded on Steve's sculptures in the
forest at Coed in Wales.
One track is actually close miked outside
during a storm and the rain creates
the sounds with varying dynamics - a collectors item!

See a new review when you click this line.

Steve recently invited to work with
the White Rope performance group
from Wales in the London Vaults
(Shunt Lounge - next door to te London
Dungeon) During the 7th,8th and 9t of March 2007
in a project called - Dark Lantern - 
Performing in the dark gothic archways
was a perfect venue.
A rather mysterious and deep
atmosphere was experienced. 
Further performances are being negotiated.
www.whiterope.co.uk

CIPHER. ELEMENTAL FORCES
beyond all things
solid earth
the sea flows
new release

theo travis - saxophones, alto flute, clarinet, loops
dave sturt - ac. & el. bass, sound design,
programming
also featuring
steve hubback - gongs, hammer harps,
cymbals, drum, perc.

Steve Wilson from Porcupine Tree
making a boxed LP set only playing on my gongs.

Steve made a new film called
'Gothic Quarter' at the forest in Coed.

Cipher Cd is out next month and
a Welsh label are interested to
release a Metal Moves CD.

Steve will be doing a 1 hour spot
on mixing it for radio wales
on 20.00 sunday 30th of July.

Steve is now artist in residence
at Coed Hills Rural Artspace in Wales.
Creating a sonorous sculpture garden.

The film "Forged From Dreams"
by Tom Swindell is now finished
and being released by FMR.

CD'S Metal Moves 'Illuminator'.
Wonderous Sounds with Erik Qvick and
Undraverk festival featuring Z'ev,
Baschet -Trevor Taylor, Erik Qvick and
Metal Moves are now all available from FMR.

Ambience de la cave a vin
- Steve's solo gong recording in a
French wine cellar last Autumn
is also now released on
Utech Records as a
limited edition release.

STEVE HUBBACK - Ambiance de la cave a vin (Utech)

Strange things happen when a poor writer
is overwhelmed by records, as I had
completely lost track of Steve Hubback's
production since the late eighties; mea culpa.
This recording brought me back to an
intelligent percussionist who works in
anti-pyrotechnical territories,
his minimal economy of movement
giving birth to a rich resonance that
the mind accepts like a necessary law
to restore some degree of discipline in a
disposition that often can become chaotic.
Divided in three parts, the album was
recorded in a wine cellar in France (hence the title)
using three gongs and a stainless steel sculpture
made by the author himself.
While the large part of the CD privileges a
continuous virulent beat exalted by the
natural reverberation of Hubback's
small arsenal, the final movement presents
wider spaces and repeated moments
of stasis which are all the more useful
as a counter-attraction against the
persistent ceremonials of the first two tracks.
It takes a while to appreciate this release,
but it works very well at the end.

Read some new revievs what
people say about Steve cymbals
Click this line to read

dMatt Nolan tells his story

Well, Steve Hubback was offering some limited
edition hand made ridecymbals in bronze.
I was tempted enough by the idea to ask
Steve for a20 inch heavy ride.
Now I clarified the term "heavy" with
the caveat "not just one-dimensional or pingy,
and not requiring me to wallop it
with heavy sticks to get it to open up".

A few weeks later, my cymbal arrived.
Shipped from Iceland to England in no time.
First reactions? Absolutely floored by the visual
appearance of the cymbal. All sorts of creative
touches with the finishing of the cymbal
- lathing and scoring - I especially like the
outer parts of the underside, where the deep
hammering and grinding of the high-spots combine
to produce a beautiful flowing liquid effect.

Less immediately apparent but increasingly
fascinating to me is the complexity of the hammering.
There are at least 3 different hammer-head sizes
applied in different weights and patterns in
different areas of the cymbal and, I guess,
at different stages during the creation.
One set of hammer marks are so small
and deep (at thetop of the bow, before the bell)
that they may even be from a punch.

The cymbal has a nicely defined stick sound,
quite high pitched, but not pingy.
The undertones are deep, dark and earthy.
There are no high frequencies in the wash,
it's all low - it's fantastic! There's a nice
variability due to the totally hand-made nature
of this cymbal that give rise to different
zones on the cymbal. These are most marked in
the bell and upper-bow regions. So, different
apparent fundamental pitches can be
achieved by careful stick placement.

The bell is clear, sharp and useful,
unlike some similar sized bells
on other ride cymbals I've known,
but does not sound detached from the
rest of the cymbal either.
The integration is solid.
The upper-bowregion (where the radial scoring is)
has a nice "hollow" sound to it and 3 or 4
distinct sweet-spot zones. Further out, in the
clean lathed portion, the hollow effect disappears
and the zoning is much less marked.
This is probably the most "normal" part of
the cymbal, but by no means boring.
Towards the outer edge, back in the darker finished
portion, the real lows start to become excited.
And they are real low lows.
Boy, this baby is deep.

There's a surprisingly open
(for a cymbal of this size and weight)
edge crash to be had if you give it enough heft and the shoulder
crash provides a brighter and nicely contrasting retort.
I have found that it makes a lovely trio with
a 22" Istanbul Agop Sultan Pang and a 16"
Sabian HHX Evolution O-Zone Crash.
The three seem well suited in
character even though the other
two are considerably brighter.

I've named this the "treacle" cymbal
(or perhaps "molasses" for anyone
not familiar with English terminology)
as it can be summed up as being
deep, dark and sticky.
A stunning work of art for both
the eyes and the ears - and for
my fingers as they hold the sticks.

Best regards,
Matt Nolan.

Steve just recorded a new album
in Paris. Soon more about it.

Steve is participating with Cipher
(Theo Travis and Dave Sturt) and
visual artist Jim Boxall in the
Elemental forces project for the
Midlands arts Council.
Steve and Jim recently worked at
Coed Hills in South Wales.

View from Coed Hills.

Filming Steve gongmaking in the forest
in the daytime and blacksmithing at the
outside forge by night.
The footage will be part of the visuals
for the performance that will be
premiered next Spring.
In August Cipher will be recording
in London in connection with the project.
Steve is working on some new creations
for this project including a
stainless steel multi planed harp,
one set of tuned gongs,
frame drums and
a large stainless steel mobile.

Solo trance percussion concerts
are being arranged and should happen in
Holland and the UK in September.
Also a solo concert in Iceland in October.

The recording with Steve and Erik Qvick
called 'Wonderous Sounds' is now in
production with FMR records
and should be available in August.

At last the Updated Metal Moves
'Illuminator' (Steve and Bertus Fridael)
recording is also in production at
FMR records and should also be
available in September.

What the press tell
about Steve Hubback

Mike McLatchey 18-September-2002 It's My Head

The bizarrely named It's My Head recorded
their self-titled album in the late 80s, a rather
sparse time for experimental music of this nature.
The band is basically Steve Hubback and
Jorgen Cremonese, both of who play guitars,
keyboards and more. This is music of a very
idiosyncratic nature and likewise difficult to describe.
I detect a lot of the electronic waves and sustained
guitars that you might find on a Richard Pinhas or
Heldon album on one piece only to move onto
another and find awry percussion rattling until
once again an industrial atmosphere sets up a
nu mber of effected guitar sounds in a
completely different mode.
In fact, the duo's strength is the way the fuse
their heavy atmospheres together with an elusive
melodic structure, a balancing act that provides
for great sublimity. The use of percussion is
quite prevalent, including moments of bells, gongs,
and various other hittable objects that I can't describe.
This aspect of the music tends to bring an almost esoteric
solemnity to the proceedings, a quality that is unusual
when juxtaposed with the industial atmospheres
and is really the only remaining quality left as the
last piece moves slowly into incorporeal realms.
Fascinating and hypnotic this is, an album to
which the term "progressive" aptly applies.

These instruments sound so fantastic
and are so unique.
They are full of energy
and atmosphere and look so beautiful, too.
They inspire me very much indeed,
as musician and composer.
It is possible for me to express my music
with Steve's instruments.
They make sound landscapes and
bring fairytales and magic
to my music universe.
They create music themselves.
It is simply a pleasure to play on them!!

Birgit L Larsen

Birgit L Larsen

In a world of mass production,
where instruments sound increasingly sterile,
the cymbals of Steve Hubback live and breathe.
They stimulate all of the senses
, exhuding the care,
skill and love with which
they have been created.
I bet they even taste good!'
Peter Fairclough.
Drummer with The Mike
Westbrook Orchestra,
Shepard Wheel and Keith Tippet.

I would say the cymbals of Steve Hubback
are highly innovative.
They produce different sound qualities and
textures one does not find in other cymbals.
I have had some very interesting experiences
using a doublebass bow on the smaller cymbals
andthe frequencies that are "caught"
are sometimes unpleasantly high
or is simply picking up the other instruments
(i.e saxophone etc) frequencies.
The limitations are set by the musician,
not the instrument.
Also, the visual part of Hubbacks works are
highly artistic where he combines visual
as just an important part
of the instrument as for the audible.

Paal Nielsen Love.

Paal Nielsen Love

Stjärneld (Starlight).

Location: Winterland, Folkets Parken,
Malm�E Sweden

Daily 19.30 from 13 untill 30 december. 2001

Click this picture below to see more.

"The Quest" Steve Hubback.
(spoof recordings - now re issued)

This apparently improvised music
isn't like new age or
avant garde or anything
you'd be instantly familiar with,
rather, it's a subtle and successful
exploration of a new musical language.

Fairfield Woods. Option mag, USA.

Recreator. "Solar Sahara". FMR Records

It's not standard acoustic jazz trio stuff
and all the better for it.
...Definately an album to hear
and a direction worth
these musicicians spending
more time pursuing further.

Jazzwise. June 2002.

Changklang, steel 1998

Frode Gjerstad, Steve Hubback.
"Demystify" FMR Records.

Mr Hubback has forced this saxophone
- percussion discussion
away from the precedents of the past...
Steve Hubback does not construct anything
approaching a conventional drum kit.
This duet is more like listening to
alto sax and aural dance...
As for Frode Gjerstad he is medicine.
Fire and brimstone.
thunder and articulated silence
all run into each other.
Even as I am writing
I know it is likely that a hundred other cd's
are going to come out in the wash
and this well cut gem is going to be
overtaken by a ton of crap.
People will have to go searching
for "Demystify" in ten years from now.
Save yourself the trouble.
Why not get it immediately?
That way there is the satisfaction of
knowing you were in at th beginging.

Steve Day. Avant Magazine, UK 2001.

For Gerhard Kaimer, steel 1994

Metal Moves "Runecarver" FMR Records.

Percussionist/composer Steve Hubback
distinguishes himself in two areas
- as a performer and instrument maker.
As a metal sculptor,
he created the set of metallic instruments
featured on this 11 song collection.
The instruments are fascinating works of art
as well as musical instruments.
The cd has an ethereal quality
that is quite soothing and surreal.
The music might best be described as
world/new age, with extensive use of
ostinato petterns,
metallic timbral changes as points of interest.

Terry O'Mahoney.

Percussive Arts Society.

Older news

The film 'Forged from dreams' about
Steves life and works has been entered
into the D M Davies Award
(check it out on the Web).
It will be premiered in Chapter Arts Center
in Cardiff on the 12th November 2004 at 16.00 hrs.

I just got the official invitation
to create and perform on a soundsculpture
that I will install permenately at
Coed Hills sculpture Park in South Wales
as part of an international art event called
"Habitation, co - habitation".
This takes place on the
15th and 16th of October.

Steve's first book of sculptures
is being published by Soundworld in the UK.

Metal Moves - Illuminator (FMR)
Steve Hubback & Bertus Fridael
- Sonorous sculptures.

This music is like no other, and it should be,
as the instruments are like no other.
Drummer/metalsmith Steve Hubback
hand forged all the gongs, cymbals, chimes,
and bells played here, out of bronze, brass, steel,
and nickle-silver.
There is something exotic,
yet familiar with their sounds.

The opening ?Winterland? features arpeggiated
tuned metal sounds resembling the peeling
of Sunday church bells.
This gives way to more metallic timbres
and crashing sounds, sounding not unlike a foundry.
The Legend? starts off again with arpeggiated metals.
Beautiful harp-like sounds are layered on top,
and then more bell-like sounds on top of that.
The music is hypnotic and serene.
The Alchemist? keeps the mood going
with gongs and tuned clangs
accenting the gentle melody.
The formula here is fairly simple,
with arpeggiated metal percussion layered
with various gongs and chimes,
but the effect never becomes boring,
as the variety of sounds and timbres keeps changing.
Storm and Distant Flares is a collage
of drums and metallic sounds
that echo the songs title.

Things come and go, like thunder rumbling
in the distance, then crashing right next to you.
Then they calm down as a series of chimes enter,
as if blowing in the wind of the storms passing,
giving way to clear skies and rainbows.
The title track, Illuminator, features
blown metal horns of Steve's construction.
These add contrast to the shorter percussive
sounds by their long sounding notes.
One can picture Viking warriors blowing
them out over the sea from the cliff tops.
Bowed string type sounds enter
and wash over the jangling chimes and bells,
like a fog rolling into shore.
This keeps building until you are engulfed
in sound, and then not so much fades away,
as evaporates into the air.

This is music that begs repeated listenings,
as the material is rich in
imagery and sonic scope.
Recommended to all imaginative listeners.

- Michael Bettine

***********************************

Metal Moves - Three Wishes (FMR)

Steve Hubback, Birgit Lökke Larsen,
Tineke Noordhoek - Hubback Sound Sculptures.

This is the latest in a series of Metal Moves
recordings by Iceland based
percussionist/metalsmith Steve Hubback.
This one features his working group
with percussionists Larsen and Noordhoek.
As usual, all the metallic instruments
were hand forged by Hubback.
This gives the group both an
identity and a unique sound.

The opening track, Fire and Steel,
finds drums and percussion played
over a live recording of Hubback
blacksmithing and welding his instruments.
Interspersed throughout are the sounds
of grinders, hammers, crackling fire,
welders, and water quenching burning metal.
Jardin de Illumination starts out with
ringing bell sounds and gongs.
The music is slow and deliberate,
building in intensity as instruments are added.
The sound is reminiscent of
Indonesian Gamelan music.
Swelling gong sounds open Nine Lamps
with arpeggiated metallic percussion
ringing out on top, ebbing and flowing like the tide.
The music builds in intensity only to give way
to skittering percussion sounds
moving over long blown horn tones.

Random Thoughts features dreamy
gamelan gong-like sounds and chimes.
The atmosphere evokes a dark,
metallic rain forest.
The full gamelan effect fills A Charmed Life.
Deep gongs keep the slow rhythmic pace,
while metallic xylophones play on top.
The pace soon quickens and you can
almost see the shadow puppets
dancing across the soundscape.
Montparnasse features a funky rhythm
base played out on various ringing metals.

The title track, Three Wishes, is an
ethereal track that sounds like a
fantastic wind-up music box.
The repeating rhythms and melodies
are hauntingly hypnotic and soothing.
This atmosphere is carried over
to Shaman From Seoul, where ringing chimes
and rattles conjure up spirits,
while Under-Ground is low, moaning gongs
that recede, leaving the air still and waiting.

Hubback has stated that the ideas for
many of his creations come to him
in his dreams, and it is fitting, as much
of the music here has a dream-like quality.
With Larsen and Noordhoek he has found
two percussionists of the same vision,
able to tap into the spiritual wealth
of his marvelous instruments.
This is Metal Moves finest recording to date.
Highly recommended.

- Michael Bettine

"Steve and Swedish drummer Erik Qvick
will present the Festival of wonderous Sounds
on Saterday May 8th at
Salurinn in Kopavogur,Iceland.
The festival is dedicated to
creative percussion and sound sculpture
and will feature sculptures
by Francois and Bernard Baschet
performed by British percussionists
Malcolm Ball and Trevor Taylor.
Metal Moves. Featuring Danish percussionists
Birgit Lökke Larsen and Tineke Noordhoek
and Steve performing on his new sonorous sculptures.
Percussion duo Erik Qvick
and Icelandic drummer Mathias MD Hemstock.
For more information contact
gongmaker2000@yahoo.com

Steve has just forged in 3 days
a 1 meter very, very low, dark ride cymbal
in a special energy alloy for paolo Vinaccia.

Steve has just recorded a duo CD
with Paal Nielsen Love in Oslo in August.

Welsh film maker Tom Swindell was in Oslo
filming a documentary about Steve
which also includes Metal Moves.
Studio recording with Steve and
Paal Nielsen Love and interviews and
comments from Paal Nielsen Love,
Bjorn Andressen, Kjell Fostvedt, Per Talleraas
and also features some interesting
cultural locations.
The film will be released as DVD on FMR
and will also be broadcast on BBC Wales.

Metal Moves have just finished recording
a new album in Copenhagen.
The new line up with Birgit Lokke and
Tineke Noordhoek is the best yet.

Metal Moves will perform
at Sogn Rock Festival
in Oslo on the 23rd of August.

Oslo Universitie will exhibit
8 steel sculptures by
Steve from early January 2003.

The legendary "It's My Head" LP
(released in 1987 on Urania)
is now being remixed by
Jorgen Cremonese in Sweden.
We hope to have it released
on CD early in 2003.

Steve is in the permanent line up
of Dirk Wachtelaers
'Vanishing Pictures'.
Concerts in Belgium next year.
Metal Moves will now feature
Birgit Lokke Larsen
and will record in Oslo
in the next months.

Steve performed at
Peace Festival in Eindhoven
on September 17th 2005

And at the
Storytelling festival
at Coed Hills in Wales
on September 24th 2005.

Zapguz