Snooker legend Steve Davis to play synth gig at cathedral | NESMAG

Back when there have been fewer UK tv channels than non-red balls on a snooker desk, Steve Davis was king of the inexperienced baize.

He was the participant many liked to hate, together with his impassive, robotic type making him a family title who gained six world titles in the course of the 80s.

That similar “uninteresting” persona was even lampooned by infamous ITV puppet present Spitting Image – a doubtful honour normally reserved for heads of state, prime rating politicians and Hollywood celebrities.

Who then would have foreseen Davis finally rebrand as one of many nation’s prime DJs, performing in every single place from the Glastonbury Festival to supporting Britpop giants Blur at Wembley Stadium?

Not solely that, the 66-year-old Londoner can even be showing on the fortieth Brecon Jazz Festival this weekend.

There he might be joined by long-time musical collaborator Gaz Williams, the duo promising an “utterly unique” immersive sound and lightweight expertise on the city’s cathedral on Saturday, 10 August.

But moderately than a set of turntables, each might be taking part in a modular synthesizer – to the uninitiated, a baffling field of switches, dials, sliders and wires – to create hypnotic soundscapes of loops, samples drones and textures.

“What we do isn’t jazz as such, but we are improvising and that’s very jazz-like,” mentioned Davis, who now lives simply the opposite aspect of the Severn Bridge.

“I also used to improvise whenever I played snooker because I never knew what the next shot was going to be.

“So I’m nonetheless doing precisely what I’ve completed all my life actually.”

But, as Davis freely admitted, that still doesn’t make the image of him playing gigs rather than potting balls any less incongruous.

“When I retired from the snooker world I began hanging out increasingly more with my musician buddies, after which I began DJing,” he mentioned.

“I’d play traditional dance bangers principally, a little bit of techno and a few stuff from the great finish of rock.”

But then he saw someone playing a modular synth at a club in Soho and “started disappearing down that specific rabbit gap”.

“I keep in mind considering, ‘that factor does not actually have a keyboard, so the place are the sounds coming from?’,” Davis added.

“I made a decision to research additional and acquired completely hooked.”

Hailing from near Wrexham, Gaz Williams first met the snooker icon via a mutual acquaintance at the 2016 Greenman festival in Powys.

He described playing a modular synth – get ready, here comes the science bit – as “sending random voltage by way of totally different modules, which clamp and form it”.

“We’re channelling vibrations to sculpt one thing musical, and at Brecon we’ll be performing three 20 minute items on the competition’s new Mindset stage,” he said.

“Each of these items is a tough sketch which we’ll play about with and increase upon – basically we’re asking the viewers to return with us on a journey and see what occurs.”

Davis added: “There are simpler methods to play music, however therein lies the problem.

“I love the fact that we’re not totally in control and that much of what comes out is a happy accident.”

It is definitely gentle years away from Snooker Loopy, the 1986 Chas ‘n’ Dave stumble on which Davis featured, alongside such different nice gamers as Dennis Taylor and Terry Griffiths.

“I’m sure there are some who’ll see me doing all this and think I’ve lost the plot,” he mentioned of his newest offbeat enterprise.

“But if that curiosity factor attracts to our shows the sort of people who might not have come otherwise, then that’s great.

“I haven’t got the ego to demand anybody take me significantly as a musician.

“I’m perfectly happy being a bit of a novelty.”