Transport Club, Cardiff
Mon 19 June
Colorado native Susan Dietrich Schneider is the living embodiment of an Outsider Artist. She’s been making music since the early 70s, when her and her then husband moved to a cave in Mt. Shasta in order to evade being drafted. They dropped off grid totally, destroying their ID and became self sufficient. She started performing on the streets of San Francisco to support her husband and children.
Playing a junk shop accordion and a Casiotone keyboard, Schneider played skewed covers of well known tracks like The Sweet’s Ballroom Blitz alongside her own material. Her street set up got more elaborate with phase shifters, an echo unit and a light installation, and she eventually recorded some of these treasures.
I first encountered her psych-synth-space-pop via Moo Sick, an awesome zine and CD compilation of outsider art created by musician, filmmaker and raconteur Casey Raymond. The track was a cover of Major Tom, which with her treatment was transformed into a solemn address. If you saw her play at Clwb Ifor Bach in 2014, you know you’re in for a real treat. Performing in a sliver plastic helmet with white wings, expect a mix of original material and covers, her synthesised astral aesthetic fed through a no-fi musical filter. Oh, and she really has been to space… but that’s her tale to share.
Admission: £8/£7 adv. Info: 029 2023 3658 (GT)