Reuben Wu
Reuben Wu (born 1975) is an English photographer, director, music producer and member of the electronic band Ladytron.[1] His role in the band is keyboardist, songwriter and producer.
Reuben Wu | |
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Wu performing at The Metro, Chicago, IL in April 2009. | |
Background information | |
Born | 6 September 1975 |
Origin | Liverpool, England |
Genres | Electronic, synthpop, new wave |
Occupation(s) | Photographer, Director, Musician, industrial designer |
Instruments | Synthesizers |
Years active | 1990s—present |
Labels | Nettwerk |
Associated acts | Ladytron |
Website | www www |
Biography
Wu is a photographer, director, music producer and member of the band Ladytron. Born in Liverpool to parents from Hong Kong, he grew up in north-west England and trained in Industrial Design at Sheffield Hallam University. He met Daniel Hunt in Liverpool in 1994 and formed Ladytron with him in 1999, along with Mira Aroyo and Helen Marnie.
Wu graduated in 1997[2] and finished his MSc in 1998 at the University of Liverpool. He worked as an industrial designer until going full-time with the band in 2002.[3] Wu hand drew the artwork of the UK edition of Ladytron's first album 604 and began to document his travels on tour with the band via photography. His visual art career began in 2012 once the band took a break and he was able to focus full-time on his own creative output.[4] Wu had since created artistic content for GE, Apple's "Shot On iPhone" campaign, Jaguar Land Rover, Google and Interscope amongst others.
Wu and Hunt set up the Liverpool club night in 2003 Evol and bar Korova in 2005.[4]
Wu produced and co-wrote two songs "Birds of Prey" and "Little Dreamer" for Christina Aguilera's 2010 album Bionic.
In 2017, Wu photographed the artwork for Zedd & Alessia Cara's double platinum single "Stay" and Zedd & Liam Payne's single "Get Low" in collaboration with Samuel Burgess-Johnson.
Instruments
During Ladytron's live shows, Reuben Wu plays synthesizers. Korg MS-10 was his primary synthesizer for the first four Ladytron tours.
Wu played live the following instruments for the band:
- Korg MS-10, Roland SH-2 (604 tour);
- Korg MS-10, microKorg (Light & Magic tour);
- Korg MS-10, Korg MS2000B (Witching Hour tour);
- Korg MS-10, Korg MS2000B, Minimoog Voyager (Velocifero tour);
- Minimoog Voyager (Best of 00-10 and Gravity the Seducer tours).
On the early part of the Witching Hour tour, Ladytron used to name their four identical Korg MS2000B to enable easier installation on stage. His MS2000B keyboard was named Gloria.[5]
Discography
Ladytron
- 604 (2001)
- Light & Magic (2002)
- Witching Hour (2005)
- Velocifero (2008)
- Gravity the Seducer (2011)
- Ladytron (2019)
References
- "Made up in China". The Times. News International. 1 January 2005. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
- "SVALBARD 12 inch version By Reuben Wu". Blurb.com. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
- "Designer Downtime". Core77.com. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
- Wright, Jade (25 April 2008). "Ladytron's tour de force". Liverpool Echo. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 30 May 2013.
- "Artist Details". Korg. Archived from the original on 2 January 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
External links
- Reuben Wu's Official Website
- Reuben Wu's Official Instagram
- Interview with The Photographic Journal
- National Geographic: Surreal Desert Landscapes Painted on a Canvas Made of Sky
- The Adventure Photography of Ladytron Co-Founder Reuben Wu
- Reuben Wu discography at Discogs
Media related to Ladytron at Wikimedia Commons - ISO50 feature on Reuben Wu's photography