Welcome to Monotremes
Monotremes is the home of Dance Journeys and Melbourne dj/producer Simon Slieker.
Dance Journeys is Monotremes chief project in 2011. It's about holding up the virtues inherent in dancing to electronic music and celebrating the essence of this industry outside of the nighclub domain.
The Spirit of Monotremes
Philosophically Monotremes is taking up the thread from our ancient tribal past & drawing it through the eye of the needle to this time and place. We see that our future will benefit by us adopting a humble, holistic outlook right now. One wherein we acknowledge the past's effect on the present & the individual's effect on the whole.
Monotremes aims to conduct itself in a spirit of celebration, cohesion & open communication. In this way, may we knit this patchwork into something that will keep more of us warm for longer. And may we dance one hell of a lot in so doing.
The Monotremes Method
Deep: submerged, often underground, possibly hard to find, sometimes covert; operating as a stream of counter-culture, unorthodox: un-ordinary.
Minimal: embodying an emphasis on the stripped back components of sound & rhythm. Re-creation of old forms. Re-interpretation of tradition. Steady in its musical development. Contstant in its progression. Sustained in its release.
Meaning: Where our day to day existence is so often cerebral and insular, our events are physical and social. They function as periodic punctuation marks borne of our need to connect and unite... They are the vehicle through which we come together and celebrate, not that we can, but that we do. This is the attitude with which, we at Monotremes approach our events. Peaceful yet powerful and for those who care to feel it: meaningful.
Why Monotremes?
So perfect is their design, so suited to their surrounds are they, that the Monotremes have not undergone any notable changes in their evolution for 40 million years. The biological order Monotremata is made up of the platypus & the echidna.
Both are endemic to Australia. Both are unobtrusive & quiet of nature, both strike a perfect balance between form & function and both possess super-hero like abilities. Yet for all their similarities the two monotremes are surprisingly different.
The amphibious, sleek Platypus is invested with the superpowers of an electroreception system & pressure sensors in its bill; which together are employed in underwater dives in its hunt for food. When diving it has the capacity to hold its breath for up to 14 minutes at a time. The male platypus packs a venomous spur on its hind leg, a potentially lethal ward against would be adversaries.
The land dwelling echidna is steady, forthright and near impervious to any outside attack; it boasts an armour coat of razor sharp spines, which when combined with its super fast burrowing ability is enough to ward it from any would be predator. Conversely the echidna's prey is afforded no such luxury in its flight from the echidna's searching, sticky tongue, which, being super sensitive & extra long is perfectly suited to extracting food from hard to reach places.
Together these two amazing super heroes make up the Order Monotremata: the animal inspiration behind Monotremes, the production unit.