News

Cage Against The Machine Enters The Top 20

• 17th Dec 2010

The cage has been opened! This week John Cage’s 4’33” (Cage Against The Machine) hugely anticipated release entered the charts at No.19! From Zane Lowe to La Roux, Gail Porter to Phil Jupitus to The Prodigy celebrities have been pouring out in favour of the campaign with almost political zeal! There has been a massive rallying call from established British festivals such as Reading and Leeds, The Secret Garden Party and The Big Chill urging their communities to buy the track and make it No.1, not just as a vote for musical integrity but to raise desperately needed money for all the nominated charities in the process. Every minute of the days news, views and messages of support are reaching CATM HQ from all over the country and the world, even a prime time dutch tv show has been talking about the stir CATM have caused in the UK. Its now a global cause!

Cage Against The Machine was started by London-based artist Dave Hilliard in the summer 2010 as a grassroots Facebook campaign to get John Cage's famous “silent” composition 4'33″ to number one this Christmas. The idea soon reached tens of thousands of people and attracted media attention from all the national daily newspapers and radio stations around the world including The Sun, Mail, Guardian, MSN, Channel 5’s The Wright Stuff to name a few. The campaign stepped up a gear in October 2010 with the help of Eddy Temple Morris (XFM broadcaster and ambassador for BTA), Joe Hutchinson (Ou Est Le Swimming Pool) and Mark Jones (Wall Of Sound) who joined forces to rally some of the most influential artists, producers and directors around today to make Hilliard’s vision a reality.

All the proceeds from sales will go to five charities. These music-related charities were chosen by the Cage Against The Machine Facebook community's organisers as something they feel John Cage would have whole heartedly approved of. These are not fluffy or ‘sexy’ charities but five charities who are pitifully underfunded and desperate for funds to help research cures and improve awareness.

Lastly, a noteworthy menation has been that all this week at 4:33 pm and 4:33am local time Kilford The Music Painter has been curating an online installation of his 4'33″ music painting that he created during the recording of Cage Against The Machine. The painting (which is void of paint) automatically exhibits on link for exactly 4 minutes and 33 seconds.