The Gate presents a performance by improvisatory music troop Jamaica!! alongside noise-rock stalwarts Sly & The Family Drone, with support from rapper 2Decks. Expect semi-controlled chaos and a celebration of the joys of truly open, spontaneous and collaborative music-making.

The Gate is an arts project for adults with learning disabilities operating out of West London. Born at the Gate in 2016, Jamaica!! generates psychedelic sound experiences with everyday objects and homemade instruments. John’s unpredictable minimalistic guitar meshes with Brian’s sonorous keyboard harmonies; Mary plays the homemade spring box; Jason, the homemade one-string fretless stick; and MC Simon lyrically leads the listener into the deepest layers of the mind.

Collaborating with Jamaica!! are Sly & the Family Drone, a primal orchestra of drum rhythms, radiophonic oscillator noise and electronically-abstracted vocals. Using only drums and processed cassettes, Sly & the Family Drone incorporate elements of avant-garde music and sound art in their performance. Supporting Jamaica!! and Sly & The Family Drone are rock/rap outfit 2Decks, who have a reputation for blowing expectations of what ‘learning disability’ means.

‘Jamaica!! make music in our own way. We come up with different sounds with strange instruments to have it sound however we want, not being technical, just doing it to make our own style of music.’ – Josh (Jamaica!!/2Decks)

‘We make a noise, then we make a noise again, I do singing with it.’ – Mary (Jamaica!!)

‘The ampersand is obligatory.’ – Sly & the Family Drone

‘The most badass rapper with a learning disability and the most reliable musicians ever.’ –Darren (2Decks)

This live performance night is programmed alongside the exhibition Morag Keil: Moarg Kiel. Morag Keil is an art teacher at the Gate.