As Ben McElroy’s year-long ‘Allotment Tapes’ project winds to a close, he shares news of its 10th and 11th instalments.

ALLOTMENT TAPES #10 – CHARLIE COMES TO NOTTINGHAM – OUT NOW

October’s tape documents the day when DIY instrument maker Charlie Eden (of Sonics For Sculptures) came to Nottingham to lead a workshop at Ecoworks and a jam. I had originally contacted Charlie to be involved in a funding bid… didn’t get the bid, but he very kindly offered to come up for a day anyway.
A slightly longer tape, this one… all improvised and recorded live onsite. (Listen below)

ALLOTMENT TAPES #11 – THE TREES LISTEN TO THE MUSIC… (WITH CHNAR & HASSAN) – OUT FRIDAY 27 NOVEMBER

The penultimate tape (after a bit of a seasonal downpour) visits the growing space of wife and husband (and consummate hosts) Chnar and Hassan. Their space is used to grow, and eat, a wide variety of fruit and veg… often to cook the foods of northern Iraq, where they are originally from.
They are also very welcoming and always have some food on the go for guests, who are also treated to some songs on the saz from Hassan.
With regards to the first track, Rat Alley is the colloquial name for one of the avenues onsite, and there are, indeed, a lot of rats… Often a point of contention between those who see them as a part of nature and those who choose to see them as ‘vermin.’
This tape marks the last conversation of the project… but there will be one final tape in the new year (will leave December to Wham!/Mariah/Low), a winter special featuring some very special guest musicians musically musing about the darker months.

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Ben first introduced and contextualised the project for us back in April — read here.

Visit Ben’s website here / follow him on Substack & Instagram.