As a former member of British rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, drummer Budgie is used to experimental music. But his new project, The Butterfly Effect: East West Percussive Parade, really pushes the boundaries. 'What I like about this project is that it's free-form - there's no constant pulse,' he says. 'When I proposed the idea to the festival, they placed no restrictions on me. They just wanted me to come and play. It would be crazy to restrict myself when I haven't been asked to - so I've decided to push the boat out.'
The Butterfly Effect, which premieres this weekend at the New Vision Arts Festival, features three drummers from different regions: Budgie, taiko expert Leonard Eto from Japan and percussionist Mabi Thobejane from South Africa. Melodies are added by the cosmically-oriented Japanese guitarist Sugizo and former Banshees guitarist Knox Chandler. Budgie's idea is to improvise rhythms between the drummers on stage and give the guitarists free rein to play what they want over the top. The result should be a far-out fusion of disparate musical styles.
Budgie, 53, has played with each member of the impromptu outfit before and, knowing their musical styles, is confident the mega-jam session will come together on stage.
He worked with Ito on Hai, a 2002 album he recorded with The Creatures, an experimental group Budgie formed with fellow Banshee's singer - and ex-wife - Siouxsie Sioux. Ito plays the barrel-like taiko drums, which Budgie says are very different to Western drums.
'I'd heard Leonard's recordings, but we didn't meet until I was setting up my drums to record The Creatures LP with him,' he says. 'I hadn't seen taiko drums close-up before and found them astonishing. They have a very tight drum head - it's made of buffalo hide stretched over a big piece of wood - but there's still depth to the sound.
'I realised straight away his drumming technique was going to be different from how I'd imagined it. I knew I'd have to listen hard to work out where he was going to go.'