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Monday Comics: Psychic TV

Resident cartoonist and CatSynth TV co-host J.B. shares his 1992 “special guest appearance” with the band Psychic TV.

The text from the story in the comics:

CIrca 1994, Psychic TV were one of my tavorile bands. was really Inspired by The lechno-Acid-Trance-Rock Thing They were doing at The time. As fate would have it, the band had moved their base of operations from London to the San Francisco Bay Area (long story…), and were playing around town a lot.

On 29 May, 1992, Psychic TV played at 177 Townsend in San Francisco. Surprisingly, They then had a saxophonisi, Gamall Awad, playing some Free Jazz improvised lines over their thundering electro beats.

This was a revelation. I had a cassette That I would listen To over and over – It had the Pat Metheny /Ornette Coleman album Song X on one side, and PTY’s Towards Thee Infinite Beat on The other. I daydreamed about what it would sound like to weave those two threads together. And here it was!

Jus over Iwo months laler, on Augus 5th, Psychic TV played at The Edge In Palo Allo.

Once again, Gamall was playing with the band. During the performance, Genesis P-Orridge spotled someone in The audience holding up a sitar.

Genesis signalled to this person to join the band onstage.
The sitarist, Chandra Shukla, joined the band onstage for an improvisation.

A few thoughts came to mind. It seemed like audience parlicipation was an option here. And, since the band now had this saxophonist doing some Ornette-flavored alto lines, why not add some Eric Dolphy-type bass clarinet?

decided That I was going to play with The band.

My bass clarinel was in my Truck; I had gone siraighi lo The gig from a Vacuum Tree Head recording session.

I went and grabbed The insirument.

I Told the bouncers,

“The band said that I could play with them”.

Unbelievably, they let me back in.

Chulzpah? Definitely!

When the moment felt right, I “invited myself” onstage, went up To a mic, and look a brief solo.

The band seemed alternately confused and amused by this.

I finished up and jumped off.

Later, Genesis waved both Chandra and I back onslage. There was an Improvisalion wilh myself on bass clarinet, Genesis on shehnai, and Chandra on sitar over one of Fred’s programmed beats.

There is a recordng of all of his out there.

October 12, 2026
Psychic TV and Moira Scar, The Independent, San Francisco

By Jason Berry and Amanda Chaudhary

L’Shana Tova! To start the new year off in a sweet way, we headed down to The Independent on Divisadero in San Francisco to check out Moira Scar and Psychic TV. The Independent, as we soon learned, is housed on the site of the former Kennel Club. We were quite pleased to run into quite a few friends amongst the audience from various communities, including the local experimental and electronic music scenes, and Kearny Street Workshop.

First up was Moira Scar. We saw them about a year ago, and they have continued their musical growth into something most weird and wonderful. The always visually captivating group is headed by Roxy Monoxide (guitar, saxophone, vocals) and LuLu Gamma Ray (synth, vocals), together with Monica Ramos and Aimee Schott on bass and drums, respectively.

With a sound that hearkened back, to these reporters at least, to the great synth-punk bands of yesterday – Tubeway Army, leavened with a dash of 45 Grave – we enjoyed their energetic set. Some elements of spiky, Crimson-style prog seemed to be peeking into their new sound. We counted a 15-beat riff (subdivided 4, 3, 4, 4) and quite liked the way tenor saxophone worked in their sound. Did we mention that the band’s presentation and stagecraft were top-notch? We’ll be keeping an ear out for more of this group.

After a brief intermission, Psychic TV took to the stage.

We will admit a bit of uncertainty on our behalf on how this would turn out. The last time we saw PTV, in the late 90s shortly after the release of Trip Reset, they were, shall we say, less-than-inspired, and certainly unrehearsed. Genesis P-Orridge disbanded the group shortly thereafter for a time. This was the new, improved PTV we saw, or PTV3 as they are now billing themselves. Just as each edition of the band is driven along by the primary composer and musical director (Alex Ferguson, Fred Giannelli, Larry Thrasher), this edition is piloted by drummer and graphic designer Edly O’Dowd. His aesthetic is something new for PTV; gone are the rambling improvisations and sound collages of days past, replaced with a tight, solid band sound. The group focused on material from the recently-reissued albums A Pagan Day and Allegory and Self, starting with a guitar-and-voice rendition of the classic tune “Translucent Carriages”, originally by Pearls Before Swine, before moving onto “She Was Surprised / New Sexuality”, “Just Like Arcadia”, and others. Genesis stuck close to the script, reading the lyrics from a music stand.

The band delivered, and the crowd loved it! We headed back to CatSynth HQ satisfied and exhausted, still worn out from our recent return from NYC. But, more about that soon….

September 23, 2017
A Sad Farewell to Luna (2004-2016)

It is through tears and with the heaviest of hearts that we say goodbye to our beloved Luna. She passed away quietly and peacefully this afternoon.

Since suspending treatment, I have endeavored to keep her happy and comfortable and surrounded by love. The cancer continued to spread and over the past week it was clear just how much pain and difficulty she was in. It was my last gift to her to let her go and be free of the pain. Knowing that, it hasn’t made it any easier to say goodbye.

Luna and I were an inseparable team for over 11 years, years filled with love and fun and adventures. Over time, we became very in tune to each other’s emotions and needs, and have given one another strength and comfort through many challenges and crises. Indeed, she would always be able to instantly when I was sad or in pain, and come over to sit on my chest and provide comforting and healing purrs. This time she isn’t here to do that. Fortunately, I have friends and family, and this wonderful community around CatSynth to draw on. Thank you all for wonderful support you have given during the past year and a half, and beyond.

I am still processing what happened today, and only beginning the grieving process. I will have much more to say over the course of this coming week and in the weeks after that. For now, I leave you some music that speaks to this moment (including the track from Blackstar that we shared on Friday), as well as a modified Mourner’s Kaddish that I will be using, with both Hebrew transliteration and English translation.

RIP Luna (November 30, 2004 [est] – October 31, 2016)

Mourner’s Kaddish (Modified)

Yitga-dal v’yit-ka-dash sh’may raba,
v’yam leech mal-chu-tay,
b’alma deevra chi-roo-tay,
b’chai-yay-chon uv-yo-maychon, uv-cha-yay d’chol bayt yishvay tehval,
ba-a-ga-lah u-viz-man kareev, v’imru oh-meyn.

Y’hay sh’may ra-ba m’va-rach l’olam ool-ol-may ol-may-yah.

Yit-bar-rach v’yish-ta-bach, v’yit-pah-ar v’yit-ro-mam,
v’yit-na-say v’yit-ha-dar, v’yit-a-leh, v’yit’halal
sh’may d’kud sho b’richu;
l’ay-la min kol bir-chatah v’shee-rata,
tush-b’cha-ta v’ne-cheh-mah-tah, da-a-mee-ron b’alma,
v’imru, oh-meyn.

V’hay sh’lo-mo ra-ba min sh’may-yah,
v’chay-im olaynu v’yal kol yishvay tehval
v’imru, oh-mayn.

O-seh shalom bimromahv.
Hu ya-ah-seh shalom.

Aleynu v’yal kol yishvay tehval,
v’imru, oh-mayn.

Mourner’s Kaddish (Amended) — An English Translation

May it be magnified
and may it be sanctified
Your great name

in the world you created according to your will.
May the world establish and fulfill

in your life and in your days
and in the life of all creation

soon
and near in time
and say, Amen.

May your great name be praised
forever, and ever and ever.

May it be praised
and may it be blessed
and may it be glorified
and may it be upraised
and may it be elevated,

and may it be honored
and may it be exalted
and may it be extolled,

the name of the Holy One, Blessed Be,

beyond all words of praise, words of song,
words of blessing, and words of comfort
that are uttered in this world,
and say, Amen.

May there be abundant peace from heaven, and life, for us and for all G-d’s creation; and say, Amen.

May G-d who creates peace in the celestial heights, create peace for us and for all creation; and say, Amen.

Originally posted here]

October 31, 2016