I've been running across a lot of one-man bands in the last little bit, and Tippy's the latest. No cymbals strapped to his knees or anything, but he's generally good for a load of home-made instruments and DIY punk music. I last saw Tippy perform ten or more years ago in Edmonton, playing a set for Mosh Fest that was interrupted by a naked guy streaking through the Butterdome. Thankfully there was no nudity on this occassion. He's big on environmental pieces, and performed a wide variety of pieces, sometimes with support from friends. A fair amount of improvisation occurs, with the loops and a certain amount of chance... Water bottle maraca drumsticks, beating on tin cans, 8 second delay loops, and human beatbox. Vocals enter the loop, and Tippy continually builds on the loop, layering dozens of voices and sounds, producing a wall of sound. Toy horns, found objects, and duct tape all factor into the performance. "I only have an eight second loop. There's only so much you can do with eight seconds..." Tippy offered. He did a LOT with only eight seconds. The event was a Book and CD release party for Tippy's kids activity book. He works days with kids, playing festivals, and travels regularly to perform. Nights he reserves for "playing punk music for adults." He produced a piece of tissue from a toilet seat cover, and proceded to play "Oh Canada!" demanding that the audience participate by singing along. I'm not the only person that doesn't know the official bilingual version it would appear. Playing a national anthem on toilet accessories could likely be considered a statement of some sort. Who knew a digeridoo could be punk rock? Tippy had a friend on stage to provide assistance with one of a half dozen large wind pipes that were stowed at the rear of the stage. Vinny the digeridoo player... There's no way to look cool playing accordian or digeridoo unfortunately, though the sound was pretty impressive. With 8 seconds of loop and a mouth organ, you too can produce hillbilly techno, as Tippy proved. Everything from a short cover of "Mexican Radio" on mouth organ to a bit of guitar based Russian gypsy folk song. Excellent and varied show.

Elsewhere

By Richard Murray
Photos : Tippy A GoGo website
Published : August 9, 2004.