Nubalees Interviews SFB v8 WORKS

(set: $Memory to 5) ##Strangers From Birth archive Nubalees is from the future. The funny thing about memory is that it is corrupted by time. It fails, you remember details wrong. Each and every time you tell an old story, the brain creates new connections. How you feel now, becomes tangled with the memory and it creates a new one - saves it over the old one. Nubalees, a giant robot from the future, has travelled back into the past to this moment, to ask the band Strangers From Birth about how it all started - even though Nubalees was there as a [[time historian]], well, a [[time tourist->time historian]] Fine. Nubalees was there [[by accident->time historian]], but that is a different story.

##ORIGINS NUBALEES When did you start making music together? MASS 1996. I was already making music on my Atari ST, by myself. Bjurn would come round with his bass and bug me until agreed to let him play on something. NUBALEES What made you decide to work together? BJURN Well, I’d heard Mass’s music. [[It sounded like a fractal brain virus.->Second]] [[It sounded like a dolphin acid party.->Second]] [[It sounded like a reggae laser.->Second2]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) ###...ORIGINS ###continued MASS Which in the 90s was a good thing. BJURN Yeah. MASS //Gestures toward Nubalees.// And then you appeared in my studio, out of a time-portal from the future and offered us a record deal. NUBALEES Yes. (link-replace: "PLAY RECORDING") [Music plays in a small studio room. Mass and Bjurn chat and drink tea. All is suddenly drowned out by an enormous explosion. An inhuman voice slices through the howl of the space and time being torn apart by the portal. INHUMAN ROBOT VOICE (text-style: "rumble")[Deal!] BJURN What does it want? MASS [[I think it wants to make some kind of deal.->third2]] [[I think it's a rip in the space-time continuum.->third]] RECORDING ENDS]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) ##CITIES IN FLIGHT NUBALEES When you wrote Cities in Flight, was this before or after we spent the weekend in the hovering Megacity of Brighton and Hove and Portslade? MASS This was written in 2007 BJURN That’s a hundred years before the Megacity. We’d been reading James Blish. NUBALEES [[The historian?->The historian?2]] MASS [[The futurist?->The historian?]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) ###...CITIES IN FLIGHT ###continued BJURN Same thing. MASS Not really. NUBALEES Error. BJURN Interestingly, we fell off the edge of the megacity and got to hear the actual sound of a city in flight. NUBALEES Did it sound like your song? MASS [[No.]] BJURN [[No.]]

##ELECTRONIC CASH PRIZE WIN PUZZLE NUBALEES What is a hot-spot not? BJURN [[A hotspot!]] MASS Argh! [[A good spot!]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) Although technically correct, this saddens you. Click the sorry button below to proceed. [[sorry->A good spot!2]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) ###...ELECTRONIC CASH PRIZE WIN PUZZLE ###continued NUBALEES //A good spot// would have made more logical sense. But is in fact wrong. BJURN Late 20th Century gameshow crowds didn’t make a lot of sense. NUBALEES They appear to have been chosen for their ability to sit for long periods of time and clap on cue. MASS I love (link-reveal: "Strike It Lucky")[, Catchphrase, Family Fortunes, Crimewatch, Fifteen to One, Every Second Counts and Going For Gold.] Their theme tunes have been a major influence on me. NUBALEES So, //no Wipeout//, no Strangers From Birth? MASS [[You’re right!]] Mass [[That really wipes me out]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) ##CITIES IN FLIGHT again NUBALEES Are those real punches? BJURN Real monks, real punches. MASS Real field recordings. BJURN They can actually ring modulate their cries. [[It spices up their Chi]]. They can actually ring modulate their cries. [[It spices up their Chee]].

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) ###...CITIES IN FLIGHT ###continued again NUBALEES So they are human monks? MASS Real human monks we met in the future on an alien colony. BJURN They claimed they flew there on a mountain-top spaceship that took off from Earth. MASS Real monks lie a lot. NUBALEES They were from Nepal? MASS So they claimed. NUBALEES That happened last year, how did you miss that? 2219, Nepal takes off, lasers China to the ground and blasts off into space. BJURN It’s 2019, not 2219. NUBALEES [[Awkward.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) I don't think that's a thing. [[Were you thinking of Chi?->It spices up their Chi2]] Search results sponsored by Solar Powered Robot City

##PARTIES ARE BEST KEPT FOR THE UNIMAGINABLE WASTELANDS OF INFINITY NUBALEES Was your first album, //Parties Are Best Kept For The Unimaginable Wastelands Of Infinity//, really recorded on the Puzzle Moon of Altair 15? BJURN Yes, shortly before we solved the moon. NUBALEES Something they clearly didn’t expect you to be capable of - and for which you are still wanted by the Altarian government, to this day. MASS How were we supposed to know that if you solved the puzzles the moon would just float off into space? BJURN And that their tidal system would be damaged beyond repair? NUBALEES Well, that would have been covered on the Instruction Moon. BJURN [[I'm sure we both read and fully understood the whole of the Instruction Moon.->We didn’t land there2]] MASS [[We didn’t land there.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) ##NO MORE SONGS ABOUT CRISPS NUBALEES You’ve written a lot of songs about crisps. (click-append: "crisps") [ MASS And biscuits] (click-append: "biscuits") [ BJURN And robots] NUBALEES [[Which explains the song, Crisps, Biscuits and Robots.]] [[Which explains the song, Crisps Aren't Food.->Which explains the song, Crisps, Biscuits and Robots.]] [[Which explains the song, I Remember A Time Before Crisps.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) ###...NO MORE SONGS ABOUT CRISPS ###continued MASS No More Songs About Crisps is a live classic. We used to play this out all the time. BJURN We used to throw crisps into the audience while it played. NUBALEES Ironic. BJURN [[No, Space Raiders.]] BJURN [[No, Transformasnacks.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) ###...ORIGINS ###continued MASS Which in the 90s was a good thing. BJURN Yeah. MASS //Gestures toward Nubalees.// And then you appeared in my studio, out of a time-portal from the future and offered us a record deal. NUBALEES Yes. (link-replace: "PLAY RECORDING") [Music plays in a small studio room. Mass and Bjurn chat and drink tea. All is suddenly drowned out by an enormous explosion. An inhuman voice slices through the howl of the space and time being torn apart by the portal. INHUMAN ROBOT VOICE (text-style: "rumble")[Deal!] BJURN What does it want? MASS [[I think it wants to make some kind of deal.->third2]] [[I think it's a rip in the space-time continuum.->third]] RECORDING ENDS]

(set: $Memorydump to "(if: $Memory is <1) [Your memory is going.] (if: $Memory is 1) [Your memory is going.] (if: $Memory is 2) [Your memory is weak, like school squash.] (if: $Memory is 3) [Your memory is cracking up.] (if: $Memory is 4) [Your memories appear to have taken a battering over the years.] (if: $Memory is 5) [Memory is a slippery thing.] (if: $Memory is 6) [This reminiscing is bringing back memories.] (if: $Memory is 7) [I remember Fads.] (if: $Memory is 8) [I remember a time before nostalgia.] (if: $Memory is 9) [I remember everything...] (if: $Memory is >9) [I remember everything...]") $Memorydump

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) ###...CITIES IN FLIGHT ###continued BJURN Same thing. MASS Not really. NUBALEES Error. BJURN Interestingly, we fell off the edge of the megacity and got to hear the actual sound of a city in flight. NUBALEES Did it sound like your song? MASS [[No.]] BJURN [[No.->No.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) ##CITIES IN FLIGHT NUBALEES When you wrote Cities in Flight, was this before or after we spent the weekend in the hovering Megacity of Brighton and Hove and Portslade? MASS This was written in 2007 BJURN That’s a hundred years before the Megacity. We’d been reading James Blish. NUBALEES [[The historian?->The historian?2]] MASS [[The futurist?->The historian?]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) ##CITIES IN FLIGHT again NUBALEES Are those real punches? BJURN Real monks, real punches. MASS Real field recordings. BJURN They can actually ring modulate their cries. [[It spices up their Chi]]. They can actually ring modulate their cries. [[It spices up their Chee]].

###...ELECTRONIC CASH PRIZE WIN PUZZLE ###continued NUBALEES //A good spot// would have made more logical sense. But is in fact wrong. BJURN Late 20th Century gameshow crowds didn’t make a lot of sense. NUBALEES They appear to have been chosen for their ability to sit for long periods of time and clap on cue. MASS I love (link-reveal: "Strike It Lucky")[, Catchphrase, Family Fortunes, Crimewatch, Fifteen to One, Every Second Counts and Going For Gold.] Their theme tunes have been a major influence on me. NUBALEES So, //no Wipeout//, no Strangers From Birth? MASS [[You’re right!]] Mass [[That really wipes me out]]

###...CITIES IN FLIGHT ###continued again NUBALEES So they are human monks? MASS Real human monks we met in the future on an alien colony. BJURN They claimed they flew there on a mountain-top spaceship that took off from Earth. MASS Real monks lie a lot. NUBALEES They were from Nepal? MASS So they claimed. NUBALEES That happened last year, how did you miss that? 2219, Nepal takes off, lasers China to the ground and blasts off into space. BJURN It’s 2019, not 2219. NUBALEES [[Awkward.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) ##NO MORE SONGS ABOUT CRISPS NUBALEES You’ve written a lot of songs about crisps. (click-append: "crisps") [ MASS And biscuits] (click-append: "biscuits") [ BJURN And robots] NUBALEES [[Which explains the song, Crisps, Biscuits and Robots.]] [[Which explains the song, Crisps Aren't Food.->Which explains the song, Crisps, Biscuits and Robots.]] [[Which explains the song, I Remember A Time Before Crisps.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) ###...NO MORE SONGS ABOUT CRISPS ###continued MASS No More Songs About Crisps is a live classic. We used to play this out all the time. BJURN We used to throw crisps into the audience while it played. NUBALEES Ironic. BJURN [[No, Space Raiders.]] BJURN [[No, Transformasnacks.]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory + 1) (color: blue)[ ##DIAGNOSIS COMPLETE NUBALEES Congratualtions, you have achieved a memory rating of $Memory out of 10. (if: $Memory is <=5)[WARNING Your mind is going.] (else:) [ERROR Your mind is too full of memories - remember to backup regularly.] Thanks for taking the time to talk through a few old memories. (click-replace: "to talk through a few old memories.")[to show how little you remember about anything.] BJURN It's been a lot of fun remembering everything. (click-replace: "t's been a lot of fun remembering everything")[ remember literally nothing] MASS Who would have thought we would still be making music together after all this time? (click-replace: " would have thought we would still be making music together after all this time")[]] (color: red)[##[[The End]]]

(set: $Memory to $Memory - 1) (color: blue)[ ##DIAGNOSIS COMPLETE NUBALEES Congratualtions, you have achieved a memory rating of $Memory out of 10. (if: $Memory is <=5)[WARNING Your mind is going.] (else:) [ERROR Your mind is too full of memories - remember to backup regularly.] Thanks for taking the time to talk through a few old memories. (click-replace: "to talk through a few old memories.")[to show how little you remember about anything.] BJURN It's been a lot of fun remembering everything. (click-replace: "t's been a lot of fun remembering everything")[ remember literally nothing] MASS Who would have thought we would still be making music together after all this time? (click-replace: " would have thought we would still be making music together after all this time")[]] (color: red)[##[[The End]]]

(open-url: "https://soundcloud.com/strangersfrombirth/cities-in-flight")