LISTENING to the sounds of a lipstick isn’t a typical musical experience.

But hundreds of people are donning headphones in Huddersfield to do just that.

The Electric Walk involves walking round the town centre to experience the electric sounds made by cash machines, street furniture and make-up.

The walk, commissioned by German sound artist, musician and composer Christina Kubisch, is running all this week as part of the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival from the Lawrence Batley Theatre.

She has explored the hidden electromagnetic acoustic landscape of the town centre and created a fascinating guided walk for audiences to enjoy.

From starting off listening to a flat screen television in Curry’s to tuning in to the cosmetic counter at Boots the walk is as bizarre as it is interesting.

I joined Huddersfield University fine arts lecturer Laidin Cooke and students Christabel Mitchell, Stacey Robinson and Lucy Charles for the walk.

Laidin had seen a similar project before, but for her third year fine arts students it was a new concept to listen to security systems and retail displays.

Stacey said: “I didn’t think I would enjoy it, but I really did.

“I’ve never seen or heard anything like it before.

“It’s not what I’d call normal art, but it is different and interesting.

“As an artist I see the noise abstractly through colour and lines, so this is a new concept.

“I think it has inspired me and although I’m not sure how much of it I would use in my own work I do appreciate what the artist has done.”

Obviously, participants will feel incredibly self-conscious wearing huge headphones while walking round shops and getting on the Free Town Bus to tune into the magnetic sounds of Huddersfield.

But it is an experience that will open not only open your eyes but also your ears to the sounds made by street furniture, shop displays and advertising boards.

The most interesting aspect of the Electric Walk is the sound emitting from Huddersfield Parish Church.

I was expecting a series of spooky sounds, so I was surprised to hear a magnetic energy unlike anything else.

The Electric Walk is one of the more unique events running as part of the festival.

And it proves what the artist said; that nothing appears the way it sounds and nothing sounds the way it appears.

The Electric Walk runs until Sunday from the Festival Hub at the Lawrence Batley Theatre on Queen Street between 10am until 5pm.