Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/341807
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 6 JULY 2014 THIS WEEK 29 WHAT'S ON ORGANISED under the auspices of Humanities, Medicine and Sci- ences Programme (HUMS) at the University of Malta, the Star Trek academic symposium – a brainchild of Victor Grech and David Zammit – will present a multidisciplinary perspective on Gene Rodenberry's enduring science fiction property which, having begun on television in 1966, continues to grace the silver screen – albeit in a different itera- tion – to this day. Boasting speakers from America, the United Kingdom, France and Malta – who range from a variety of fields including the humanities, medicine and military – the confer- ence will use the futuristic utopia of Star Trek to discuss issues related to ethics, science and perceptions of popular culture. Commenting on how the symposi- um will put into practice the HUMS programme – which obliquely echoes Starfleet's own mission to "boldly go where no man has gone before" in its aim to "explore and encourage the interfaces between the humanities, medicine and the sciences, and facilitate and dissemi- nate cross-disciplinary research" – the symposium's co-organiser David Zammit was confident about the enduring relevance of Star Trek as a touchstone of contemporary popu- lar culture. "One only needs to look just how well-attended Star Trek conventions across the globe tend to be, to real- ise that it remains popular across all ages," Zammit said. Making reference to the recently- rebooted Star Trek franchise – Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Dark- ness (2013) – Zammit said that while the slick and updated JJ Abrams-di- rected films "strayed from the clas- sic Star Trek path", "the five series and 10 films from the original sto- ryline are still selling strong. "But I still feel and hope that we will again see another series that will follow in the old timeline," he added. For more information and regis- tration details log on to http://www. startreksymposium.com/ ARSHA Our are a non-profit or- ganisation and federation working at the interstices of art and technol- ogy, especially sound art, new media, experimental contemporary music. They organise concerts, events, train- ing and other things they (and our public) find interesting. As Pinkpube or as Arsha Our they brought people like underground leg- endary live act Samuli Kemmpi and Dopplereffekt, missing-his-Ritalin hyperactive DJ Gaslamp Killer or Demdike Stare, whose eerie meander- ings are as rooted in visual represen- tations of 60s to 80s giallo and ham- mer horror as they are in electronic music. Their latest offering was the French 'r'n'brie' slacker TG Gondard live at the British Legion. They host WRBR events – regular meetings and improv sessions by some of Malta's boldest and hairiest experi- mental and electronic musicians and used to run (a now archived) netlabel called Pinkpube. On July 11, they're bringing over the mighty – and equally hirsute – Basic House, the solo project of Opal Tapes' founder, Stephen Bishop. Opal Tapes was voted label of the month in a large number of music platforms including The Wire, Resi- dent Advisor, Self-Titled, Red Bull Music Academy and FACT and went from a small underground cassette label to a... very big underground cas- sette label. Described as "a mainstay of Eng- land's North-East DIY scene", Ba- sic House is a blend of hazy house, techno, esoteric, ambient and drone musics. His highly acclaimed de- but album was released by Digitalis Records and he since followed it up with several other equally acclaimed releases. What few know about Bishop is that he wrote his thesis on the acoustic properties of the Hypogeum in Hal Saflieni. His set will, in fact, refer- ence these same acoustic properties to present something a bit different to his other sets. Bishop will also give an informal talk/Q&A session about the acous- tic properties of the Hypogeum and similar structures, and will also field questions about Opal Tapes. The performance, which is part- funded by the British Council, will be taking place at the Buskett Roadhouse on July 11. Doors open at 21:00. For more information log on to http://bit.ly/BasicHouseMalta and Arsha Our Facebook page: http://bit.ly/ArshaOurFB To boldly go… Beats of the hypogeum and beyond The Dolmen Hotel is Qawra will next week play host to a unique event next week, as the very first Star Trek academic symposium will take place over July 10 and 11 Art-music group Arsha Our bring over cult British musician Stephen Bishop for Buskett Roadhouse performance Stephen Bishop of Opal Tapes