Shirokuma : Part One.
Secret Moves at The Midnight Chess Club

"Pull the lever, see a chamber lead the way…to the candle flames and the secret games…"

Shirokuma discovered the Midnight Chess Club six months ago, whilst passing through a local quarry in the meandering approach of an evening constitutional. As he searched for interesting leaves to stitch together to make a cloak for his girlfriend he sipped a steaming flask of Rooibos tea, and pondered his recent travels. He wondering how many more parts of the journey were to be undertaken whilst wearing the ceremonial painted fox mask that had been passed down to him by the great avatar herself.

The chipped white, black and red replica which was now inside his backpack looked both funny and faintly sinister. The image lingered in his mind for a time, and Shirokuma began to ponder the significance of this primal colour scheme to his work. Nothing was immediately apparent, except for the observation that colours of this mask closely matched the design of the 1987 model Sony Dictaphone which he always carried.

The early ghosts that Shirokuma had captured on this primitive, yet reliable portable recording unit had songs of their own. He had coaxed melodies from the hiss and tones of accidents and the months formative to his name. Shirokuma...The Polar Bear. On A Rock Of Ice In Deep Space, reborn in summer and on and on. BBC Radio 1's subway genie, DJ John Peel had played over ten of these early recordings during 2000 and 2001 (see biog. extras for details) . The Digital Dragonfly CD....an explosion of beeps and sweetness and then what ?

Back to The Midnight Chess Club. Shirokuma heard whispers from a stone. A lever in a rock in the quarry. It hadn't been there before. He pulled it. He noticed a thin slit open in the rock, which grew wider to a door. He dropped his flask and stumbled backwards. Losing his balance he landed in the soft leaves, and the fox mask rolled out of his bag. It had begun to glow. Scarlet. Was this the place ? It would seem so. The place of what, exactly ?

He blanked his mind for a moment in order to clear his thoughts. Disobediently, they resumed where they had left off. The tape recorder. Standing, he switched it on. Collecting his possessions up, then walking back towards the door, Shirokuma faltered for a moment, before pushing hard. It swung open with a noise that can now be heard on the introduction to the track "Cool Pillow". The air from the door blew cool, like the other side of a pillow. He saw flickering candles…heard faint laughter, chattering, and flute noises echo up out of the passage way. He walked forwards and stooped to step inside. Following the passage for about 200 feet, it began to get warmer. Suddenly the stairway leveled out onto a stone landing.

In the centre of this room was a Moondial. There was absolutely no natural light. Curious. Shirokuma reached back and lifted a candle torch from the wall. He brought it towards the moondial and peered at it's inscription.

"The Midnight Chess Club"

There was only one mark on the dial.

A voice called from the far end of the room. Flutes and laughter continued.

"Shirokuma. Welcome. I hope you have the Fox with you ! It's our Masque Ball this evening !"

He saw no one, yet the room became lighter. At the far end, Shirokuma could now see four identical doors. A voice again. This time male.

"Choose your own adventure. And Put The Mask On !!!!"

Reaching into his bag, Shirokuma pulled the still glowing Fox mask. It seemed to be smiling slightly broader than usual. He put it on.

The songs of "Secret Moves At The Midnight Chess Club" LP tell part one of the evening's subsequent events……