Poor soldiers too are laborers
And they will kill for coin
When they die who will mourn them
The wretched of the Earth
They call it famine but we know
The land is bountiful
Human animals starving
The wretched of the Earth
When we rebel they crush us under fist and fury
Our leaders face the firing squad
The wretched of the Earth
They know united we will stand
So they divide and rule
Then we turn on our brothers
The wretched of the Earth
They cannot maim or murder us all
Nor prisons can they fill
With the whole of the masses
The wretched of the Earth
For when we speak against their power
They threaten life and limb
To the gallows they send them
The wretched of the Earth
They cannot disappear us all
Nor prisons can they fill
With the whole of the masses
The wretched of the Earth
The second night of the Vision Fest was last Tuesday, June 3rd and it featured five sets of music, dance and performance art all led by women. The leaders were Miriam Parker, gabby fluke-mogul, Amirtha Kidambi, Ellen Christi and Nicole Mitchell. Five strong sets and all were outstanding, inspiring, riveting and thoughtfully composed & organized. The night was long (nearly six hours) and every set knocked me out. Amirtha Kidambi is a vocalist, composer, bandleader and activist and I've long admired whatever she's done. I've caught her on several occasions, like an intense improv duo with Darius Jones, live & on recordings as the lead singer for Mary Halvorson's Code Girl and her own band, the Elder Ones. For this set, Ms. Kidambi knocked the ball out of the park! The title of the set is/was "All Empires Fall" and this is something we should all remember as the fascists try to take over and ruin our fragile planet. Her spoken word introductions to each song were honest, clear-minded and provocative and I agreed with her observations and view of the present and future. Her band featured Matt Nelson & Alfredo Colon on saxes, Lester St. Louis on contrabass (not cello) and Json Nazary on drums. I loved the music they played which was filled with passion and invention. Look out for their next record as it might just be the message/music disc of the year! Please read her words and think about it. We are living in troubling times!
The 2025 VISION FESTIVAL started earlier this week on Monday, June 2nd and is taking place at Roulette in Brooklyn. Hallelujah! I've attended each and every Vision Fest since it began in the early 1990's. It usually takes place in late May or June, not longer after the Victo Fest which I have been attending every year since 1987. As some of you may know, the Victo Fest had problems during the past year and was slimmed down to just one day and two live concerts. I didn't attend as most of Victo friends decided to not schlep there for just two concerts. I often think of these two festivals together since they are close time-wise and both feature more than just music events. Plus, for those of us who attend every year, it is more like a Creative Music Family Reunion as attendees from all of the world come together and celebrate Creative Music, Art, Dance, Poetry, film and a shared spirit of music discovery and inspiration. I've attended three nights so far and each set has been spectacular in different ways. A number of the musicians who play at the Vision Fest don't play often in NYC so they make their yearly sets something special, unique. As much as I love checking out the music, poetry, dance performances, I look forward to hanging out with my ongoing Victo Family! So gald to see you and talk with you all! If you haven't gone this week or previously in the past, you really should attend this year, as it is a once in a lifetime event. It is a long night with five sets so this is quite a bit to take in. It is well worth it, especially as we watch our being planet destroyed by oligarchs, tech bros, fascists and fascist wannabes. I was pretty sick (physical health-wise) for almost two weeks recently and somewhat depressed by health and concerns for our collective present and future. I feel more revitalized now thanks to the kind folks at the Vision Fest. Thanks to all of the musicians, artists, festival organizers (we love you Patricia!) and serious listeners/attendees. We are Family, so come on down and you will be set free! - MC BruceLee at DMG
THE 2025 VISION FESTIVAl continues with:
Thursday, June 5th:
6:30: DAVALOIS FEARON DANCE UP/RIGHT
7:30: IVO PERELMAN & MATTHEW SHIPP STRING TRIO with WILLIAM PARKER / MAT MANERI
8:30: OLIVER LAKE & DJ JAHI SUNDANCE LAKE - Poetry
9:00: SPIRITWORLD with MICHAEL WIMBERLY / OLUYEMI THOMAS / JOE McPHEE / WILLIAM PARKER / LISA SOKOLOV
10pm: MARY HALVORSON’S CANIS MAJOR with DAVE ADEWUMI / HENRY FRASER / TOMAS FUJIWARA!
Friday, June 6th:
5pm: Mini Conference: The Heart to Resist - Art & Activism
7pm: THE FRINGE with GEORGE GARZONE / JOHN LOCKWOOD / FRANCISCO MELA
8pm: PATRICIA NICHOLSON’S SHAMANIC PRINCIPLE: VAL JEANTY / MELANIE DYER / MIRIAM PARKER
9pm: DOYEON KIM QUARTET: MAT MANERI / JOHN HEBERT / SATOSHI TAKEISHI / NICO CADENA
10pm: DAVID MURRAY QUARTET with MARTA SANCHEZ / LUKE STEWART / RUSSELL CARTER
Saturday, June 7th:
6pm: MARILYN CRISPELL
7pm: GERRY HEMINGWAY with EARL HOWARD / BETH WARSHAFSKY
8pm: FAY VICTOR TREE TRINI COLLECTIVE: LYNDON ACHEE / JESSIE COX
9pm: ROB BROWN TRIO WALK ABOUT with JOE MORRIS / JUAN PABLO CARLETTI
10pm: WILLIAM PARKER’S HEALING MESSAGE: HAMID DRAKE / SELENDIS / AAKASH MITTAL / SULA SPIRIT JANET EVANS / MIXASHAWN / FRANK LONDON / AMIR ELSAFFAR…
*************
THE DMG 34th ANNIVERSARY IN-STORE CONCERT CELEBRATION CONTINUES with:
Tuesday, June 10th:
6:30: CHET DOXAS / OLE MATHISON - Sax Duo
7:30: s0nic 0penings: patrick brennan - alto sax / JASON KAO HWANG - Viola / HILLIARD GREENE - Contrabass / MICHAEL TA THOMPSON - Drums
8:30: AYUMI ISHITO / KATE MOHANTY - Reeds Duo
9:30: CRAIG FLANAGAN / NORMANDY SHERWOOD / KEVIN SHEA - Drums
Tuesday, June 17th:
6:30: RICH ROSENTHAL - Guitar / NICK GIANNI - Tenor Sax / ADAM LANE - Contrabass / MARC EDWARDS - Drums
7:30: YONI KRETZMER - Tenor Sax / SHANIR BLUMENKRANZ - ContraBass
8:30: KEN KOBAYASHI - Drumes / ERIN ROGERS - Sax / JEFF MILES - Guitar / MICHAEL GILBERT - Bass
9:30: MICROPLASTIQUE!
*******
DAN WEISS with PETER EVANS / MILES OKAZAKI / PATRICIA BRENNAN - Unclassified Affections (Pi Recordings 108; USA) Featuring Dan Weiss on drums & compositions, Peter Evans on trumpet, Miles Okazaki on guitar, and Patricia Brennan on vibes. Drummer, composer and multi-bandleader, Dan Weiss, never ceases to amaze me whether collaborating with other leaders like Matt Mitchell, Jon Irabagon or Jen Shyu or leading several of his own bands. Each of Mr. Weiss' half-dozen plus releases as a leader are quite different, always bringing new challenges to his well-chosen cast of collaborators. Mr. Weiss's new disc features a fabulous all-star Downtown quartet: Peter Evans on trumpets, Miles Okazaki on guitar, Patricia Brennan on vibes and Mr. Weiss on drums & compositions. The music was written specifically for these players as each one is a master musician on their own turf.
The title track, "Unclassified Affections" is first and begins with Mr. Brennan's cerebral vibes and Mr. Okazaki precise semi-acoustic guitar. Soon Peter Evans enter on subtle, quaint trumpet with Mr. Weiss sizzling cymbals simmers below. This piece is sly sounding and moves slowly, building on a somber groove. Whether speeding up or slowing down, the quartet unites as one haunting, thoughtful unit. On "Holotype", Weiss keeps a furious pace on his cymball while the rest of the quartet play this complex unison lines together. Ms. Brennan takes a short frenzied solo with Weiss punctuating the rhythmic flow. Brennan, Okazaki and Evans keep switching off on quick solos, their lines tangled together tightly. When Weiss takes a drum solo midway, it sounds like a a continuation of the rhythmic flow which is connected throughout the entire piece. "Perfection's Loneliness" is actually a ballad with haunting trumpet, shimmering vibes and exquisite skeletal guitar. I often get the feeling that Dan Weiss is influenced by prog, math rock or metal as far as his writing and bands go (check out his metal band Starebaby!). "Mansions of Madness" has some truly twisted ensemble parts, which keep switching lines. The ever-amazing Peter Evans plays a series of tight fragments which move in unexpected directions. The rest of the quartet join him for a series of spiraling connected sections which seem exhausting to play and to listen to. Peter Evans is a master at extended techniques, hence there are some sounds that I am not sure who is doing what. Is that bowed bass or some sort of odd trumpet windy drone on "Consoled without Consolations"?!?! For "Existence Ticket", Weiss has written several interlocked part which moves in slow motion and come together in different sections. "Dead Wall Revelry" has more of those quick changing sections, unexpected shifts in direction. Even the quieter songs here are filled with some subtle surprises. I have only listened to this disc a couple of times so far and have to do some focused listening to hear the rich rewards buried within. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15 / 3 Sided 2 LP Set $35
BALLISTER with DAVE REMPIS / FRED LONBERG-HOLM / PAAL NILSSEN-LOVE - Smash and Grab (Aerophonic AR 041; USA) Featuring Dave Rempis on tenor, alto & baritone saxes, Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello & electronics and Paal Nilssen-Love on drums & percussion. Recorded at the Catalytic Sound Festival at Elastic Arts in December of 2022. Considering the Chicago sax great Dave Rempis upwards of a dozen different bands that he plays with, Ballister seems to be the most recorded and consistent. Ballister recordings began in 2011 and this is their 11th disc. Aside from the Ballister discs & gigs, Mr. Rempis has worked with both Mr. Lonberg-Holm and Mr. Nilssen Love in other projects like Ken Vandermark's Territory Band and a quartet with Joe McPhee and Brandon Lopez.
This disc consists of three long pieces and it is well-recorded, live and in-your-face! The aptly titled "Smash" erupts right from the opening salvo, the trio burning down the house. Both Rempis' tenor sax and Longberg-Holm's cello are blasting together with Mr. Nilssen Love also kicking up a rhythmic storm. The trio is tight, focused, ferocious, intense and united as one storm force. Midway, the trio calms down to some sparse, spacious interaction. The trio starts "Even More Smashing" with some free restraint which slowly builds throughout. Both Rempis on alto sax and Lonberg-Holm on cello keep spinning their lines tightly around on another while Nilssen-Love weaves his lines underneath. Mr. Lonberg-Holm also adds some effects to his cello at times so that it distorts and sounds like an electric guitar at times, often bending his strings in a variety of odd ways. On "Grab" the trio again reach for the jugular, erupting powerfully together, beyond intense and keep going, reaching for the stars.
CD $15
DAVE REMPIS / JASON ADASIEWICZ / JOSHUA ABRAMS / TYLER DAMON - Propulsion (Aerophonic A44; USA) Featuring Dave Rempis on alto, tenor & bari saxes, Jason Adasiewicz on vibes, Joshua Abrams on bass and Tyler Damon on drums. Chicago sax great, Dave Rempis, has ramped up his solo/leader career/journey ever since the demise of the Vandermark 5, assembling some dozen plus different bands with 45 discs on his own Aerophonic label whose first release came out in 2013. Aside from his Chicago-based cohorts, Mr. Rempis also works with a handful of international players: Paal Nilssen-Love, Elizabeth Harnik, Joe McPhee, etc. This is a Chicago-based quartet, with great resumes: Jason Adasiewicz (duo w/ Peter Brotzmann, solo trib to Roscoe Mitchell) and bass & gimbri great Joshua Abrams (leader of the well-regarded Natural Information Society, a cosmic trance music unit). Drummer Tyler Damon we know mainly from Kuzu, an intense trio with Rempis & Tashi Dorji. This disc was recorded at Elastic Arts in Chicago in August of 2023.
Starting with "Divergence", the vibes, sax and bass create a series of simmering drones. Joson Adasiewicz has become the vibes player to watch over the past few years, making leaps and bounds in the recognition department. Rempis takes each note and stretches it out carefully, often get that spirit/jazz sound in the process. Considering that Josh Abrams' band mostly does their own version of Cosmic Ghost Trance Music, his bass here provides the same function, churning out those repeating patterns or grooves. Mr. Adasiewicz also is a strong collaborator providing chords, lines and drones of support which often hold the quartet together while Rempis solos on top, one section at a time. Each of the three pieces build and evolve through different sections, simmering at points ands then erupting into some explosive free/jazz bouts. As "Divergence" expands and then calms down, Rempis stretches out certain notes in more melodic ways. Each of the three long pieces evolve in organic ways. "Egression" starts with a stunning short unaccompanied sax solo, stark and to the point. Much of these three pieces is/are warm, thoughtful and inviting, very little is too over the top. I am a Spirit/Jazz fan-addict and this is what we find here. Dave Rempis and company have unleashed another classic gem of avant/jazz at it best! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $14
BACK IN STOCK:
It's been 6 years since we first got the below disc in stock.
We've never offered the below accompanying catalogue before now:
ELLIOTT SHARP With GIANCARLO SCHIAFFINI / WALTER PRATI / FRANCESCA GEMMO / GAK SATO / SERGIO ARMAROLI / STEVE PICCOLO - Syzygy (Dodicilune Dischi 418; Italy) Featuring: Elliott Sharp on guitar, computer & compositions, Giancarlo Schiaffini on trombone, Walter Prati on electric cello, Gak Sato on theremin, Sergio Armaroli on vibes, Francesca Gemmo on piano and Steve Piccolo on el. bass & objects. Longtime Downtown composer & multi-instrumentalist, Elliott Sharp, consistently juggles numerous projects, bands, conceptual ideas, while blending different genres or styles. “The images (of the musical scores) in Syzygy were all generated from one page of musical notation and are inextricably linked.. Using a suite of processing strategies, the resultant images remain in a dynamic but oblique relationship with each other, always connected as they metamorphosize. - E. Sharp.
There are two vastly different versions of "Syzygy" on this two disc set, a studio and a live version, each on separate CD's. The seven piece ensemble featured on this two disc sets includes mostly (all?) Italian-based or born musicians, some of whom we know from previous collaborations: Schiaffini (respected elder who has worked w/ Andrea Centazzo, Lol Coxhill & Mario Sciano), Mr. Prati (w/ Evan Parker & Robert Wyatt) and Mr. Piccolo (original bassist for the Lounge Lizards).
Mr. Sharp has gathered a fascinating cast of musicians who are specialists in the blurring the lines between written and improvised music. The studio CD is first and was recorded at Studio II Pollaio in Ronco Biellese, Italy. It begins, quietly, carefully with minimal instrumentation slowly becoming more dense. Since this was recorded in a studio, the balance between the acoustic and electric instruments is well-defined. As the density and tempo increase, we hear several layers emerging and submerging. The interaction between all the members of the septet and flow or currents are fascinating, since they make sense of the way this piece unfolds. At times, its sounds like a ghost or spirit is floating or moving around in the mix, eerie, luminous sounds interweaving with more skeletal-like electric strings. Different combinations of the players come together, having conversations while the flow of ideas move through an organic (sounding) network. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
2 CD Set $30 [Very limited & we have only 5]
ELLIOTT SHARP - Syzygy (Collana Erratum / About Sound; Italy) This is a 44 page catalogue visual art, poetry and text by Steve Piccolo, Sergio Armaroli and Elliott Sharp in English and Italian. Mr. Sharp explains the score for his work "Syzygy" and the poetry often reflects some of the ideas taken from the score/composition. As I listened to the two disc set, I kept reading Mr. Sharp's words as well as the poetry and fascinating artwork on most of the pages of the catalogue. It all fits together just right.
44 page 10" x 10" B&W Catalogue - $25 [Limited Edition & we have just 5 copies]
The great TUM label hails from Finland and has been one of the best Creative Music labels to emerge in the past decade or so. The recordings, production and packaging are all top notch, way better than most smaller Creative Music labels. Their US distributor, City Hall, went under a couple of years ago so they no longer have any US distribution. Since being friendly with the label owner since their early discs were released, we've been able to get some of their titles usually just once a year. We just got in five copies of each of these wonderful Wadada Leo Smith and Milford Graves CD's so they will not last very long so please own now or soon.
MILFORD GRAVES & BILL LASWELL - Space/Time Redemption (TUM 040; Finland) 'Space / Time - Redemption' is the first duo recording by the legendary drummer and percussionist Milford Graves, who first rose to the forefront of improvised music in the mid 1960's as a member of the New York Art Quartet, through his solo and duo percussion performances and recordings and in groups led by Albert Ayler, Sonny Sharrock and many others, and the equally incomparable bassist Bill Laswell, who is known both for his unique bass artistry in groups like Material, Massacre and Last Exit as well as performing and recording with the likes of Ginger Baker, Herbie Hancock, James "Blood" Ulmer and John Zorn and working as a producer of countless sessions ranging from new age or rock influences to jazz and free improvisation. On the five extended improvisations that comprise Space / Time Redemption, Graves and Laswell, who have in recent years occasionally performed live as a duo at The Stone and other New York venues, jointly create a sound world all of their own. The recording took place at Bill Laswell's studios in West Orange, New Jersey.
CD $18
WADADA LEO SMITH / HENRY THREADGILL/ JOHN LINDBERG/ JACK DeJOHNETTE - The Great Lakes Suite (TUM 041; Finland) For this phenomenal two CD set, Wadada Leo Smith wrote quite a bit of music for a new all-star quartet. Both the great bassist John Lindberg and master drummer Jack DeJohnette have worked with Mr. Smith in his amazing Golden Quartet, which has changed personnel throughout the years except for Lindberg who continues to work with Wadada in several units. Henry Threadgill has remained an important bandleader and composer throughout his long career as well as a formidable instrumentalist. He rarely does projects as a sideman (on occasion for Bill Laswell) or collaborator so this disc is a welcome surprise. As I listen to this disc for the second time, I realize what an incredible quartet Wadada has organized. Each of the six lakes get long pieces which range from 10 to 22 minutes. What consistently knocks me out about Mr. Smith is that no matter what, Wadada always sounds inspired and at the top of his game on his trusty trumpet! From those fragile and blues licks to those intense blasts, he never ceases to amaze us with his playing. All four members of this colossal quartet are in fine form here. There are a number of duo sections here that are particularly strong: a great drums & trumpet workout on "Lake Ontario" which then morphs into a fine quartet with strong flute and bass interplay. Although Mr. Smith and Mr. Threadgill have rarely (ever?) played together, they sound like a perfect match, whether playing Wadada's theme are playing tightly around one another. There is way too much great music here to describe (more than 90 minutes) so I will leave you with this: the TUM label also does a wonderful job with packaging, liner notes and presentation. Superb throughout! CD of the year?!?! So far, without a doubt! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
2 CD Set $25
WADADA LEO SMITH / MILFORD GRAVES / BILL LASWELL - Sacred Ceremonies (TUM Box 003; Finland) 'Sacred Ceremonies' brings together three distinct and highly influential movements in contemporary creative music, convening in a once-in-a-lifetime meeting of wholly singular minds. Wadada Leo Smith was a member of the first generation of composers and musicians to come out of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) in Chicago in the 1960s whereas Milford Graves was an important proponent of the "new music" or "free jazz" movement in New York City during the same decade. Bill Laswell in turn was an integral part of the Downtown scene in New York City in the 1970s. From those early days, they have each long since forged a totally unique personal approach to making music and have now together created a collection of music that transcends any easily definable influences.
3 CD Set $65
WADADA LEO SMITH'S GREAT LAKE QUARTET with HENRY THREADGILL / JOHN LINDBERG / JACK DeJOHNETTE / JONATHON HAFFNER / et al - The Chicago Symphonies (TUM 1004; Finland) This is the second release of Wadada Leo Smith's Great Lakes Quartet, the first was a 2 CD set which was released by TUM in 2014. This marvelous box set is an even more ambitious 4 CD set with a thick booklet filled with illuminating liner notes, pictures and an impressive discography of all of Wadada's previous releases. The personnel for the Great Lakes Quartet of Wadada, Henry Threadgill, John Lindberg & Jack DeJohnette remains, although saxist named Jonathon Haffner is added on the last disc. You should certainly recognize the names of all the members of the Great Lakes Quartet, although I know less about Mr. Haffner who has a duo record out with Kenny Wollesen on Tzadik and has worked with Butch Morris and the Nublu Orchestra. There are four symphonies here, one per disc, each one named after a gem: "Gold Diamond" and "Sapphire". Each symphony has 4 or 5 movements and each movement is dedicated to or inspired by mostly Chicago (AACM) or New Orleans musicians of note: the Art Ensemble of Chicago, Muhal Richard Abrams, Anthony Braxton, Leroy Jenkins, Sun Ra, Phil Cohran and many others. This most ambitious undertaking was inspired by a number of important musicians & composers, most of whom grew up in & around Chicago and other places in the midwest. The liner mention that these musicians were influenced and evolved during a particularly difficult period of time which dealt with civil rights, freedom of expression and other outside forces which made life difficult to Creative Musicians to survive and thrive. The Great Lakes Quartet are an impressive force to be reckoned with, all four are great musicians, composers and bandleaders on their own. Their combined lineage/experiences/vision is focus here and the music is consistently engaging through the entire four CD set. Could this be the Great Creative Music box-set of the year?!?!? No doubt about that! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
4 CD Set $75
COSEY FANNI TUTTI - 2t2 (CTI/Conspiracy International CD 2025; UK) Composed, performed and produced by Cosey Fanni Tutti, this nine-track album moves between propulsive beat constructions and expansive electronic explorations, continuing themes from 2019's acclaimed album TUTTI. It is a personal reflection; a sonic realization of her life, drawing on her powerful inner resolve and expressing it through music. The album finds Cosey making sense of some very tough years, dealing with personal bereavements alongside swinging world events. Centering on her own strength and self will, the album's two distinct parts -- one rhythmic, one more meditative -- are connected by an overwhelmingly positive mood. Even in the more melancholic moments, there's a lightness that she explains is an "acknowledgement that it's alright to be sad, that's part of life, but there is so much joy too in our memories of people we lose and in the moments we share with each other. Joy is our resistance." There are also threads from her most recent projects running through 2t2. Cosey's process and the different strands that make up her work form a totality of vision. She goes on to say, "Once you get creating and listening, weaving, collaging sound it's a wonderfully fulfilling feeling that takes you both out of yourself at the same time as essentially deep within." The artwork reflects this idea that the album is a "sound cameo," reflecting the light within the music, and the buzz of life that exists within all of Cosey's work. Musician, artist and author Cosey Fanni Tutti has continually challenged boundaries and conventions through her work. As a founding member of the hugely influential avant-garde band Throbbing Gristle, one half of electronic pioneers Chris and Cosey, and as an artist channeling her experience in pornographic modeling and striptease, her work on the margins has reshaped the mainstream.
CD $16
BACK IN STOCK:
HENRY THREADGILL and BRENT HAYES EDWARDS - Easily Slip into Another World - A Life in Music (Alfred A. Knopf; USA) “It’s rare to come across a new Vietnam War memoir from a major publisher in 2023. Most were written decades ago, when memories were fresh and wounds still raw. That generation of soldiers has begun to pass away. Henry Threadgill’s “Easily Slip Into Another World” is an unusual entrant in the genre. For one thing, this astringent book is only in part about his war experience. The remainder is about his rebellious childhood in Chicago during the 1950s, his apprenticeship in that city’s pyretic music scene and — later, after the war — his variegated career as a composer, saxophonist and flutist touring the world and becoming, along with Ornette Coleman and Wynton Marsalis, one of the few jazz artists to have won a Pulitzer Prize.
There’s more here than an insane war story, in other words. In fact, “Easily Slip Into Another World” is so good a music memoir, in the serious and obstinate manner of those by Miles Davis and Gil Scott-Heron, that it belongs on a high shelf alongside them. But this memoir rises toward, and then falls away from, Threadgill’s war experience. It’s the molten emotional core. Let’s start there. Threadgill enlisted in August 1966, when he was 22. He’d lost his draft deferment because he couldn’t afford to attend Chicago’s American Conservatory of Music full time. He didn’t feel like a soldier. If he volunteered rather than wait to be drafted, he was told, he could continue to play music in the Army. After basic training he was stationed at Fort Riley, in Kansas, in a band that performed at officers’ dances when it wasn’t out on the field playing heroic martial standards to soldiers leaving for combat.
The band got good, and Threadgill’s arrangements (he’d been listening to Thelonious Monk, Igor Stravinsky and Cecil Taylor) grew complicated. When he was asked to arrange a medley of national classics — “God Bless America,” “The Star-Spangled Banner” and others — for an important ceremony, he did so in a manner than added a bit of, in his words, “angularity and dissonance.” He was trying to stretch the music, to see what he could get out of it.
A Catholic archbishop stood up during the event and called the arrangements blasphemous. Top brass snapped to attention. The ceremony was shut down. Threadgill was fired from the band and, to his shock and dismay, shipped off to the Fourth Infantry Division in Pleiku, Vietnam, in the thick of the fighting. A “musical peccadillo,” Threadgill writes, had earned him a probable death sentence.
In Pleiku, Threadgill was nearly killed on multiple occasions. He was in a jeep that overturned, and he permanently injured his back. He spent nights waist-deep in water. His base camp was attacked during the Tet Offensive. There are more strange harbingers than can be counted.
There were a lot of drugs, including the strongest pot imaginable, and plenty of music. Threadgill continued to play in bands and came across others. He makes you reconceptualize the musical template of the Vietnam War. There’s no Hendrix and Creedence in his account; in the jungles around Pleiku, there’s Coltrane and Coleman.
Threadgill gets the worst case of gonorrhea I’ve ever read about. His Army papers are lost and, in a “Catch-22” sort of nightmare, he’s not sure he can prove who he is in order to go home. The madness is endless, and the endlessness is maddening. He isn’t discharged until 1969. He’s a different person.
“Easily Slip Into Another World” is about learning to hear the world, and Vietnam changed the way Threadgill did so. “It’s like I grew a set of antennae over there,” he writes. “When I returned, my reception equipment was different.”
Threadgill wrote this book with Brent Hayes Edwards, a professor of English at Columbia University and a jazz writer. Some of their interview transcripts are included in small snippets, which let you see how close Threadgill’s canny but philosophical speaking voice is to what’s on the page. It’s as if Edwards, as a sensitive amanuensis, guided a ball that was already rolling downhill.
Threadgill has always had a thing with titles. He plucks them out of the air. They insinuate. Among his songs are “Everybody Will Hang by the Leg” and “Spotted Dick Is Pudding.” He writes:
Sometimes a work of art has a shadow title: a provisional nickname or draft label — something you call it as you’re making it, but that doesn’t end up being the final title when it matures. It’s as though the work sloughs them off as it grows the way a snake sheds its skin.
The shadow title of “Easily Slip Into Another World,” he writes, was “Failure Is Everything.” I’m glad he didn’t call it that; too much has been written about creative failure recently, and the shadow title would have made this sound like a book for venture capitalists. But a lot of attention is paid to Threadgill’s own failures, large and small. This is among the reasons that this memoir is the kind of book I’d want to place in the hands of young musicians. It’s also about the obstacles Threadgill intentionally put in his own path.
He could have made an easier career as a sideman. He’s a multi-instrumentalist and has always been in demand. He’s frequently led bands of his own. But he decided early that he wanted to compose, and he fell in instead with the avant-garde art and theater communities in Chicago and in New York. He always made his own path. He peeled off two dozen musical skins. He was mostly a leaver, not a joiner. It was his personality to rock the boats he was supposed to steer.
This book’s first 200 pages are so excellent that, if it had remained about that length, “Easily Slip Into Another World” would have been, in that reviewer’s oxymoron, an instant classic. The last 200 pages drift. Band follows band, tour follows tour, commission follows commission. This is a memoir with a lot of area codes.
But Threadgill writes ardently about the barriers Black composers and classical musicians have faced. He also refuses, most of the time, to ratify the borders between classical music and jazz.bHe makes the case, in his own fashion, that it takes a village to raise a musician. There are roll calls of family members, teachers and stray artists who helped him along the way. The milieu in Chicago meant everything. High schools have band rooms; Threadgill makes you wish every building had a band room.” - Dwight Garner for The NY Times, May 15, 2023
BOOK $35 [400 pages / hard cover]
KALAHARI SURFERS - Own Affairs (Via Parigi 010LP; France) "This is an album made during a crucial period in South Africa's history during which there was a palpable feeling of a slow turning towards the collapse of the apartheid state side by side with an increasingly well-organized culture of resistance through the formation of the United Democratic Front (UDF) and various affiliated bodies. However, as a result, there was increased pushback from the state security establishment, a turning to dirty tricks and the formation of hit squads whose members murdered and tortured many of our friends and created chaos throughout South Africa as well as neighboring countries. This album is situated in this political environment however it took advantage of the new do-it-yourself music technologies available at that time. Technologies that made it possible to make and release records without interference from traditional record company executives. Two musician friends of mine pooled their resources after their respective bands had broken up. Ivan Kadey (National Wake) and Lloyd Ross (Radio Rats) built an eight-track recording studio control room and fitted it out in a second-hand caravan and called it Shifty... All the work on this album was completed there, mainly after hours and mostly alone.... Influences of 1970s progressive/kraut/and psychedelic rock combined with mbaqanga bass styles, early reggae/dub and Indian tabla rhythms. Stockhausen, early Zappa and Holgar Czukay were radio text and shredding influences, and Chris Cutler's band Henry Cow & Art Bears helped me see a way to political expression. Mostly though was the exciting post-punk and no-wave music coming through to us from Europe and America: bands like This Heat, the Mekons, Raincoats, Sonic Youth, and Pere Ubu were immensely important to me.... Most important at that time was the influence of sound recordings I had made and experiences garnered from working as a sound recordist on documentary films. These financed my work and later the studio and were consistent employment throughout the 1980s. Film work also enabled me to experience much of South Africa that was hidden from most. The track 'Independence Day' is a good example; drawn from some time spent in the rural homeland of Venda. This then was the first full length Kalahari Surfers album -- completed in summer of 1984 it was taken to EMI pressing plant but rejected by the cutting engineer as being 'political, pornographic and anti-religious.' Chris Cutler at Recommended Records took up the challenge and released the album through his label. He wrote the original liner note." - Warrick Sony, 2025 Johannesburg
LP $30
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ATTENTION ALL CREATIVE MUSICIANS OUT THERE, Around the world.
If you have a link for some music that you are working on and want to share it with the folks who read the DMG Newsletter, please send the link to DMG at DMG@Downtownmusicgallery.com
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THE STONE RESIDENCIES - A SPECIAL WEEK OF IMPROVISATION AT THE STONE - JUNE 4–7
Four concerts in the style of the original Stone Improv Nights featuring several luminaries from the Downtown Scene, a few young lions, and some extra special surprise guests. Expect the unexpected!
6/4 Wednesday
8:30 pm - IMPROV NIGHT 1 - Ikue Mori (electronics) John Zorn (sax) Simon Hanes (bass) Kenny Wollesen (drums) Jim Staley (trombone) and special guests
6/5 Thursday
8:30 pm - IMPROV NIGHT 2 - Ned Rothenberg (saxophone, clarinet, shakuhachi) Tim Dahl (bass) Ches Smith (drums) and special guests
6/6 Friday
8:30 pm - IMPROV NIGHT 3 - Erik Friedlander (cello) and special guests
6/7 Saturday
8:30 pm - IMPROV NIGHT 4 - Cyro Baptista (percussion) Billy Martin (drums, percussion) Yuka Honda (keyboards, electronics) and special guests
6/10 Tuesday - ADMISSION IS FREE!
8:30 pm - THE STONE STUDENT CONCERTS—Alicia Lindberg Group - Alicia Lindberg (voice, composition) Isaac Grossman (piano) Liam Hastings (bass) Yali Shimoni (drums)
THE STONE RESIDENCIES / LOUIE BELOGENIS / JUNE 11–14
6/11 Wednesday
8:30 pm - Exuberance/Afterlife - Daniel Carter (woodwinds, brass) Louie Belogenis (soprano and tenor saxophones) Hill Greene (bass) Michael Wimberly (drums)
6/12 Thursday
8:30 pm - Dave Douglas, Louie Belogenis, Mark Helias, Kate Gentile; Dave Douglas (trumpet) Louie Belogenis (tenor saxophone) Mark Helias (bass) Kate Gentile (drums)
6/13 Friday
8:30 pm - Terton with Zoh Amba - Louie Belogenis (soprano and tenor saxophones) Zoh Amba (tenor saxophone) Trevor Dunn (bass) Ryan Sawyer (drums)
6/14 Saturday
8:30 pm - Flow Trio with Joe McPhee - Joe McPhee (tenor saxophone) Louie Belogenis (soprano and tenor saxophones) Joe Morris (bass) Charles Downs (drums)
THE STONE is located in
The New School at the Glass Box Theatre
55 West 13th Street - near 6th ave
LIVE MUSIC
wed-sat - music at 8:30pm
ADMISSION - $20 per set
unless otherwise noted
cash only payment
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ESP-Disk’ Concert Series:
June 13 (Friday) at 8 p.m.
Joe Morris & Elliott Sharp -
Release concert for their mind-boggling guitar duo album Realism, due in late May on ESP.
At Loove Annex, 238 North 12th Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
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THIS NOTE COMES FROM MY GOOD BUDDY JOEL HARRISON, Gifted Guitarist and Organizer. His yearly concerts at LPR have been a highlight for myself and other Guitar Freaks…
Dear Guitar Enthusiasts … There's a lot going:
—MIDWESTERNERS: please take note of the below dates. I'm lucky to be playing with two of the greatest B-3 organ players alive, and fantastic drummers as well. https://joelharrison.com/shows/
—On March 14 AGS (Alternative Guitar Summit) recordings releases ANUPAM SHOBHAKAR'S LIQUID REALITY, a tour de force on double neck guitar that fuses Indian music, jazz, and rock. If you like John McLaughlin this is for you. Preorder here: https://agsrecordings.bandcamp.com/
—We have uploaded some GREAT NEW PODCASTS to the AGS youtube channel with Ben Monder, Redd Volkaert, and more to come. Please check it out.
https://www.youtube.com/@alternativeguitarsummit
—For a couple of years I have been working on a major piece entitled "Burn Pit." The orchestration is jazz big band and a 16 person chorus. The subject matter is the deadly toxic burnpits from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that killed or sickened hundreds of thousands of military personnel. To fulfill my obligation to the NY State Council on the Arts and the Governors Office of NY, from whom I received a generous composition grant, I have posted a video discussing and playing excerpts from this work here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulyk1Pgrym8
Don't forget to sign up for our summer camp! Kevin Eubanks, Vernon Reid, Kurt Rosenwinkel, John Scofield...come on! https://www.alternativeguitarsummitcamp.com/ - Joel Harrison
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NEW VIDEOS from GUITAR MASTER HENRY KAISER:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgcxTkoIgQI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAWxt3EJSPw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcvoYygehqE
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From CHRIS CUTLER:
Formerly of HENRY COW, THE ART BEARS, NEWS FOR BABEL & RECOMMENDED RECORDS (ReR) has been creating an ongoing series of podcasts called the Probes series. I am often fascinated at listening to each of these as Mr. Cutler does an incredible job of showing a deep history of Creative Music in the 20th century & beyond. I usually listen to these on the train to NYC that I take to get to work each day. The most recent Probes (#37) was released earlier this year, here are the links:
https://rwm.macba.cat/en/research/probes-37
https://rwm.macba.cat/en/research/probes-36