Prepare yourself for a mind-expanding night of live music and immersive audio-visual performance as Brighton’s own electronic music collective Renude19 presents the world premiere reimagining of Allen Ginsberg’s Howl.
This powerful one-off show breathes new life into Ginsberg’s countercultural masterpiece, created with a full live reading by Ashley Slater (of Freakpower fame) and a genre-blending electronic music soundtrack produced by Ash Huntington with lead vocals from Christabel Cossins. Set inside TOM’s unique In The Box setting, you’ll be surrounded by four walls of visuals created by world-renowned VJ and creative director Bob Jaroc (known for his work with Fatboy Slim, Dua Lipa, and Pete Tong).
This reimagining carries you through a sonically charged journey. Renude19’s rich, genre-blending soundtrack evolves from dark synthwave, through electronica, to house and acid techno-influenced sounds, perfectly amplifying the raw emotion of Ginsberg’s words.
Warning, tickets are limited so snap them up asap!
I caught up with Ashley Slater to chat to him in advance of the performance, of the counterculture masterpiece HOWL.
KK
As part of Renewed 19, you’ve developed this fascinating piece of work and showing for one night at Brighton’s The Old Market based around the counterculture of what I consider to be a masterpiece howl by Allen. Ginsburg, you’re the voice of Ginsburg, I understand.
AS
Yeah. I’m Alan Skin Burger. Yeah.
KK
I like that. So how did this come about? Tell me more.
AS
Well, Ash and I used to hang back in the day. I probably moved out of Brighton about 15 years ago and then moved along the coast to Seaford. Cause it was cheaper. But a few years ago I did a performance of beat poetry and beat writing at the Pompidou Center with a fabulous pianist called Benoit Delbeq, and another guy who did like improvised electronics and stuff like that. It was really heavy but really annoying that the rehearsal was brilliant and the gig was OK. I hate that it’s supposed to be the other. But apparently. The Ginsburg people were in the audience, which I had no idea about.
KK
Wow.
AS
I know. Initially Ash wanted to use samples of Ginsburg and I said “that would probably cost you a huge amount of money”. So he checked with the Ginsburg people and yes, it was going to cost huge amounts of money, so he asked me to do it. We’ve known each other for literally years, probably 30 years, if not more. You know, if I’ve come from anywhere, it’s more the Breaks kind of scenes. So that like, you know, this stuff cams. Norman’s the lighter end of the Breaks scene, but you know. The Cams and Bentley Rhythm Ace and all. That lot. But anyway, we’re all knocking around Brighton during that time, so I was there because of Freak Power and I moved down, I guess, in about 95. So he asked me and I’ll do anything for money! Come on, let’s face it. Who won’t? So I don’t know. I kind of listened to Ginsburg for a while and I found out he had that kind of annoying kind of whiny Brooklyn thing going on. So I just did got ‘that guy’ out for it. I don’t know. Sometimes I listen back and think I could have played with it a bit more maybe but. Like not just done that voice. But it’s too late now, so why am I even thinking about it?
KK
Got to say yes, it’s slightly too late now.
AS
But he’s got a new one on the go, William Burroughs. So I have to figure out what William Burroughs sounds like. All this time, but it took a, you know, it was a lot of back and forth. At first I was just reading it kind of at Ginsburg pace. Then you know, my natural musical instincts kicked in, and I was like, dude, it’s a bit more rhythmic and should we, you know, fit it on the beat a little bit more? Ash was up for that so we did and of course, Christabel who I’ve also known for a long time but you know, we were never in the same room. I think maybe Christabel and Ash were in the same room, but I did the whole thing here in my studio. Studio is a microphone and a computer. That’s it.
I grew up in California. From 1963 to 1977. Basically what happened was in the about the late 60s, all the hippies, who were living in Haight Ashbury, in San Francisco, they were like, “It’s too commercial man. We’re moving” and they did move, up to Humboldt in North County. I grew up in Delaware County. They basically built gigantic marijuana farms in the woods. But for some reason, I was really aware of this counterculture. I had a couple of school friends, even like 5th/6th grade, who were very political. For instance. I mean, the sort of thing you wouldn’t expect to see on a on a wall in a year for a Year 5 classroom is “USA bombs Cambodia” written in there, you know, which is they had started doing hadn’t they?
KK
Yes.
AS
I credit it, that atmosphere, really for quite an early political awakening. And of course, politics and that counterculture movement, they go hand in hand. I mean, the counterculture developed. Really, from disgruntled guys coming back from World War 2 and Korea. And being treated badly, you know, so Kerouac and those kind of people started writing. These guys were the proto hippies. You know, taking drugs, “dropping out”, as Timothy Leary would say. Interestingly, when Freak Power started Norman was also really into this counterculture, and we both read Hunter Thompson and Kerouac and Burroughs and all those notable writers of that era. So I have the connection to it, one way or another.
And yeah, it was fun. I mean, it’s. It was weird because the thing is, Ash played it to the Ginsburg people and they said “oh who’s that doing the voice?” and Ash said “oh, is it blah blah blah”. They replied “oh we saw him in Paris”. Random! So I’m on the Ginsburg family’s radar, which is flattering.
KK
Do you think it’s relevant now?
AS
It’s always relevant.
KK
I agree.
AS
You know, social commentary, which is what that is, is sickeningly relevant, really. You know, I mean again with Freak Power, I look back as long as we wrote 30 years ago and a lot of our songs were a little social political, let’s say. Also I had been involved before. I lived in London all through the 80s and was in this band, Loose Tubes, which was quite a political band. Not as political as like Happy End but white boy political, middle class. You know, I remember having to make embarrassing announcements about the fact that we didn’t like the company that was manufacturing aluminum because they were killing dolphins or something, all that kind of stuff, you know. It was a very democratic bands and I was the front guy for some reason, probably because I’m incredibly funny and handsome (laughs) So I’ve always been political. Until this very day I’m still very engaged in that scene, and I went on the, you know, the all the marches, anti-apartheid. We played outside the South African embassy. You probably remember this too, but like the … what was it called when the Council tax came in that poll tax? The poll tax riots. Yeah, baby, I didn’t break anything, but I was there and it was pretty scary. That was one of the times I’ve been most concerned for my safety.
KK
Yeah, I actually do remember it very well because I was living in London then so.
Thank you for chatting to me Ashley
AS
No, it’s a real pleasure actually, Kairen.
Allen Ginsberg’s Howl: Reimagined by Renude19
Saturday 6 September 2025 19:30 22:30
The Old Market 11a Upper Market Street, Hove, BN3 1AS
Tickets : Early bird £17 (incl £2 venue levy)
https://theoldmarket.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173661075
Age: 14+, under 16s must be accompanied by an adult
