Oh say can you see it's really such a mess
Every inch of earth is a fighting nest
Giant pencil and lipstick-tube shaped things
Continue to rain and cause screamin' pain
And the arctic stains from silver blue to bloody red
As our feet find the sand
And the sea is straight ahead
Straight up ahead
Well it's too bad that our friends can't be with us today
Well it's too bad
The machine that we built
Would never save us that's what they say
That's why they ain't comin' with us today
And they also said it's impossible
For a man to live and breathe underrwater
Forever was a main complaint
Yeah and they also threw this in my face they said
Anyway you know good and well
It would be beyond the will of god
And the grace of the king
Grace of the king
Yeah Ooo
So my darling and I make love in the sand
To salute the last moment ever on dry land
Our machine it has done it's work played it's part well
Without a scratch on our body when we bid it farewell
Starfish and giant foams greet us with a smile
Before our heads go under we take our last look at the killing noise
Of the out of style
The out of style out of style oh yeah
Oooo
So down and down and down and down we go
Hurry my darlin' we mustn't be late
For the show
Neptune champion games to an aqua world is so my dear
Right this way smiles a mermaid
I can hear Atlantis full of cheer
Atlantis full of cheer
I can hear Atlantis full of cheer
Oh yeah
I was always a Jimi Hendrix freak, from the time I heard "Purple Haze" on AM & FM radio in early 1967. The first time I heard "Purple Haze" on the radio, it sounded like a transmission from another planet! I bought the first Jimi Hendrix Experience album, "Are You Experienced?" in the summer of 1967 and more than 50 years later, it continues to blow my (and many other) mind(s). As do his second ('Axis: Bold as Love') and third ('Electric Ladyland') albums. I've always wanted to catch the Hendrix Experience live and even had a ticket for New Year's 1969 but my parents said no since I was only 15 years old. Damn! Starting with Hendrix's appearance at the Monterey Pop Festival (1967), at Woodstock (1969) and the first Hendrix doc, I've seen dozens of videos of his live performances and some interviews. If I had a time capsule, I would love to go back to see the Hendrix Experience play in 1968 on their US tour with Soft Machine opening. 'Electric Ladyland' was mostly recorded at Hendrix's own studio, with the same name as the album. The studio was/still is on 8th Street in the West Village just east of 6th Avenue. I used to bow when I walked past it during my Fillmore going days (1969-1971). I've listened to this album many, many times and it sounds like a concept record since most of the songs flow together. This song is a cosmic fairy tale about the mortals and gods beneath the ocean in Atlantis. Is it science fiction or just our collective imaginations at work? I recall interviewing Daevid Allen in December of 1978 at the Zu Loft. Mr. Allen was an original member of Soft Machine and hence, was friendly with Hendrix. As per legend, Hendrix wrote 'Foxy Lady' for Allen's wife, Gilli Smythe. Mr. Allen claimed that during a long acid trip at the Bananamoon Observatory in Majorca, he met his descendants from Atlantis, who told him about the Planet Gong and how to heal our planet through glissando / meditation guitar sounds. This is the Atlantis that Jimi Hendrix was talking about. "I can still hear Atlantis full of cheer" is the last lines of this song. We can also hear this, if we listen closely enough. - Question, was the continent of Atlantis real or was it a myth? Time to play my old vinyl copy of 'Electric Ladyland' one more time tonight. - Peace, Love and Cosmic Music - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
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THE DMG 35th ANNIVERSARY IN-STORE CONCERT SERIES Continues with:
Tuesday, June 2nd:
6:30: SEBASTIANO MATTIAZZI - Guitar / SARA SCHOENBECK - Bassoon / MIRANDA AGNEW - Trumpet / COLIN HINTON - Drums
7:30: JON MADOF - Guitar / NATE RAPPAPORT - Drums
8:30: RICH ROSENTHAL - Guitar / DAVE SEWELSON - Bari Sax / ADAM LANE - Bass / NICK NEUBERG - Drums
Monday, June 8th: Rare Monday Night Solo Guitar Series:
6:30: SANDY EWEN - Solo Guitar
7:30: ELLIOTT SHARP - Octal Guitar - CD release Celebration
Tuesday, June 9th:
6:30: s0nic 0penings - patrick brennan - alto sax / HILLIARD GREENE - contrabass / MELANIE DYER - Viola / MICHAEL TA THOMPSON - Drums
7:30: ARON NAMENWIRTH - Guitar / DANIEL CARTER - Reeds - trumpet / JON ROSENBERG - Electronics
8:30: JAMES McKAIN - Baritone Sax / RAS MOSHE - Tenor Sax / EVAN PALMER - Contrabass / MICHAEL LaROCCA - Drums
*******
KEITH TIPPETT FANS, PLEASE NOTE THAT the previously advertised Keith Tippett Bio book was shipped last week and is in transit to us now. If it doesn't get stuck in customs, we should have copies here pretty soon (hopefully). All pre-orders will be fulfilled and we will have a few left after that. Please check out the Keith Tippett tribute CD listed below with Julieb Tippetts & Paul Dunmall playing the music of Keith Tippett. It is great!
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THIS WEEK'S GROOVY SONIC GEMS BEGINS WITH OUR FIRST DOWNLOAD Release:
THE DMG ALL-STARS with THOMAS HEBERER / STEVE SWELL / ADAM LANE / MICHAEL VATCHER - Live at Downtown Music Gallery (Bandcamp DL; DMG-ARC 734; NYC, USA) Friday, May 1, 2026, was the 35th anniversary of Downtown Music Gallery, a momentous occasion for the second oldest record store in Manhattan. I decided to throw a party that Sunday with live music at the store, organizing a group of musicians, hand-picked by yours truly. The line-up included four old friends who had never played together as a quartet: Thomas Heberer on trumpet, Steve Swell on trombone, Adam Lane on contrabass and Michael Vatcher on drums.
I remember thinking that the set felt like a meeting or conversation between old friends. But when I listened back to the recording, I realized its full potential! Close mic’d, and superbly mixed and mastered by Thomas, the balance is perfect between the four musicians. It sounds like the listener is sitting right in front or even in the stage area with the quartet. The friendship, warmth and respect is deeply felt.
Bassist Adam Lane has played at DMG on dozens of occasions and consistently knocks me out no matter who he is playing with. On this recording, he is often at the center of the organic storm, keeping the bottom end centered. You can hear him using effects at times, adding some suspense to the proceedings.
California-bred, Amsterdam-based drummer Michael Vatcher is also a gifted player. Inventive, unpredictable, and with a sly, infectious sense of humor, it is Vatcher who exclaims, “They picked the wrong weather,” which Adam echoes (on Track 2: It Was Here from Where They Launched).
Trumpeter Thomas Heberer (longtime ICP Orchestra member) and trombonist Steve Swell sound like frontline brothers. Both are endlessly stretching, consistently altering their distinctive sounds on their respective horns. They are perfectly matched here.
There is an obvious bond between the players and audience; we are all one together and united like a family. The more I listen to this session, the more it makes me smile. These are the DMG All-Stars, and they are playing in our spiritual home. Come on down to visit on any Tuesday night and join our Cosmic Family Reunion! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
Limited Edition CD copies will be released later this year
Download through bandcamp available on June 1st: https://thomasheberer.bandcamp.com/album/live-at-downtown-music-gallery
COLUMBIA ICEFIELD with NATE WOOLEY / SUSAN ALCORN / AVA MENDOZA / RYAN SAWYER - A Silence Opens (Out of Your Head Records 045; USA) Columbia Icefield features Nare Wooley on trumpet, amplifier, voice & compositions, the late Susan Alcorn on pedal steel guitar, Ava Mendoza on guitar & voice and Ryan Sawyer on drums & voice. 'A Silence Opens' is dedicated to two heroes of Nate Wooley who have passed away in recent times: Ron Miles and Susan Alcorn. These words come from Nate Wooley:
"Death is a lack with weight. At the moment that you realize that someone you love is irrecoverably gone, a small tear in your life opens up. As days go by, the sliver of grief grows, becoming a rift, a gap, a gulley, a canyon. At the point that you feel lost in the immensity of space where that person used to be, the expansion stops; the hole—the vast and airy part of your life that used to be occupied by that person—becomes solid. Maybe it decreases in size, but more likely, your memories grow to occupy its space.
It’s at this point that what was once nothing but lack becomes a thing with density and gravity. The loss of that person holds your body and pulls as you learn to live without them. If you meet this pressure with sadness, it will pull you into the ground. But if you can somehow feel its substance as a gift, a chance to be rooted into a deeper entanglement with life, the heft that you feel becomes an embrace with the person you’ve lost and a reminder to be present with those you can still hold close. This is what we receive when someone we love dies."
This is the third release from Nate Wooley's Columbia Icefield project/band, the first in 2019, the second one in 2022. Mary Halvorson was the original guitarist on the first two discs with Ava Mendoza now taking her place. The loss of Mr. Wooley's two mentors/collaborators is at the center of this music. The music begins quietly with Nate Wooley whistling a sad, poignant intro. Mr. Wooley continues the mournful vibe on solo trumpet on the second piece, playing each note carefully, making each note count. The rest of the quartet slowly enter and play their resolute song as one voice. A brooding guitar riff soon kicks in which is played just right by the great Ava Mendoza, one of Downtown's finest pickers. While the quartet plays that insistent, rockin' riff over and over, Mr. Wooley takes his first extraordinary solo. Ryan Sawyer soon takes his own short yet feisty drum solo which leads into the trumpet, steel & electric guitar playing their heartfelt tribute together. Unexpectedly, the next piece features vocals by Ms. Mendoza singing folk-singer & political activist Victor Jara's "El Derecho". This song was a favorite of Susan Alcorn's and I recall Ryan Sawyer singing it at a Susan Alcorn memorial concert at the Zurcher Gallery last year (2025). "Darken My Door" was written by Ron Miles and it begins with just shakers before the guitar comes in. The shakers have an eerie, ritualistic presence. When the rest of the quartet kick in, it has a most triumphant feel. Both Ms. Alcorn and Ms. Mendoza take incredible solos on this piece, showing off their virtuosity while continuing the proud, churning vibe. A nine piece chorus (with Mary Halvorson, Ava Mendoza, Laura Ortman & others) sings the Victor Jara song together, adding a community vibe to this disc. Ms. Alcorn takes a long, inspired and daredevil steel solo here which is a tribute to her singular sound and approach. Mr. Wooley also takes a great solo with Mr. Sawyers' drums navigating the rapids just right. Wooley also plays the Victor Jara song for multiple trumpets, expanding the melody into a thoughtful, prayer-like dirge. The entire quartet takes off on "You Taste" and rocks hard with the trumpet soaring on top of Ms. Mendoza's crunchy metallic chords. Mr. Wooley's trumpet sounds like a chorus of screaming sirens here, with the quartet churning powerfully as one force. Yowsah! Mr. Wooley also takes a mind-blowing over-the -top solo here, which adds icing to our delicious cake. The final piece is yet another version of Jara's "El Derecho" which is hummed by Nate Wooley with touching restraint and sounds like a perfect conclusion to this wonderful, heartfelt endeavor. A massive effort from everyone involved. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15
TYSHAWN SOREY with ADAM O’FARRILL / MARK SHIM / LEX KORTEN / TYRONE ALLEN III / FAY VICTOR - Members… Don’t! (Pi Recordings 112; USA) Featuring Tyshawn Sorey on drums & arrangements, Adam O'Farrill on trumpet & electronics, Mark Shim on tenor sax, Lex Koren on piano, Tyrone Allen on bass and Fay Victor on vocals for one song. Max Roach started out his career as a preeminent bebop drummer in the 1940's and continuously evolved through jazz's long history. Mr. Roach was a "steadfast advocate for racial justice and equality", releasing the seminal 'We Insist! Max Roach's Freedom Now Suite' in 1961. After the unfortunate assassinations of John & Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Roach recorded and released another great album called 'Members, Don't Git Weary'in 1968, another tribute to racial equality. Polymath drummer, composer and professor, Tyshawn Sorey, decided to take the music of Mr. Roach's album, expand and reinterpret it for his own quintet, premiering it at the Winter Jazz Festival in 2024, at Dizzy's Club and then playing it for four night at the Jazz Gallery, finally nailing it after a good deal of preparation and performance.
Mr. Sorey has organized a formidable quintet here with the frontline horns of Adam O'Farrill on trumpet and Mark Shim on tenor sax, both strong leaders on their own. I listened to the original version of this album last night, which I hadn't heard in a long while and marveled at its strong, thoughtful and well-played music. The original personnel featured pianist Stanley Cowell and trumpeter Charles Tolliver, both of whom went on to organize a great group called Music Inc. and start the Strata-East label. The music was composed by Mr. Roach, Mr. Cowell, Gary Bartz (who plays alto sax on the original) and bassist Jymie Merritt. Each of the five members are integral to the great music here, especially Mr. Roach who plays tremendous drums throughout.
This extensive 2 CD set was recorded live at the Jazz Gallery in NYC in June of 2025. Mr. Sorey decided to rearrange the order of the songs and expand each one from ten to nearly 20 minutes each. Stanley Cowell's "Abstrusions" is first and it starts off freely before the quintet breaks into the theme. Trumpeter Adam O'Farrill and pianist Lex Korten sound great together as the quintet slowly evolves and expands. Besides his many talents, Tyshawn Sorey is a monster drummer and he sounds especially inspired here, navigating the rapids and keeping the rhythmic flow centered. Both trumpeter Adam O'Farrill and tenor saxist Mark Shim take long, inspired solos here. Stanley Cowell's "Effi" is next and it is the one song that I still remeber from when I first listened to this album in the mid 1970's. This version is explosive, with rambunctious playing from the entire quintet. Pianist Lex Korten is in truly fine form here, fired up by Sorey's propulsive drumming. I recall hearing my employee John Mori raving about tenorman Mark Shim in the recent past plus I had heard Mr. Shim on record with Patricia Brennan, Steve Lehman and Vijay Iyer. Mr. Shim takes a number of truly intense and inventive solos here so I hope to check him out live sometime soon. The more I listen to this recording, the more I am knocked out by all five members of this mighty fine quintet. The last song was composed by Max Roach and inspired by a traditional melody, it is also the title piece. The original version featured the great Andy Bey on vocals. Here we have Fay Victor who also does a fine job. Although it is only the end of May (2026), this wonderful 2 CD set should be at the top of the list of best creative jazz records of the year! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
2 CD Set $18
KEITH TIPPETT // HILARY JEFFERY / JULIE TIPPETTS / PAUL DUNMALL / TOBIAS DELIUS / ELENI POULPOU - Green Prism (Discus 197CD; UK) Featuring Julie Tippetts on vocals & lyrics, Paul Dunmall & Tobias Delius on tenor saxes & assorted reeds, Hilary Jeffrey on brass & arrangements and Eleni Poulou on synth. Many of you know that Keith Tippett was the favorite pianist of my former partner Manny, myself and many other serious listeners that read the DMG newsletter. After recording his first three albums (1969-1971), Mr. Tippett went onto to become one of the finest improvising pianists alive. Mr. Tippett composed all or most of the songs from those first three albums as well as the one Mujician large ensemble release from 2000 (called 'The Bristol Concert') and two other large ensemble discs: 'Frames' (Ogun - 1978) and 'First Weaving' (2007). Otherwise his vast catalogue of recordings are mostly freely improvised. Mainly a trombonist, Hilary Jeffery, played in Tippett's Tapestry Orchestra (at Victo in 2002) and collaborated with Mr. Tippett to perform his piece, "Winter's Welcome" which premiered in Berlin in 2019. Sadly, Keith Tippett passed away in 2020. Mr. Jeffery decided to do a tribute to Mr. Tippett by rearranging his music and giving the great Julie Tippetts a chance to sing and write lyrics from six of the eight tracks here. He chose a small stellar line-up with longtime Mujician sax colossus Paul Dunmall plus ICP saxist Tobias Delius and a keyboardist/synth player named Eleni Poulou. Ms. Poulou was a longtime member of The Fall and was married to the Fall's lead singer Mark E. Smith.
A good deal of time and preparation went into making this disc. The personnel and instrumentation changes on each piece. Things begin with "A Song About Gloves", which features a wave of solemn, expanding brass, Paul Dunmall's tenor and Ms. Tippett's haunting voice, together in rich harmonies. Mr. Jeffery has a way of layering several different brass instruments in a rich tapestry with Mr. Dunmall soloing righteously on top. After the release of two solo albums in the early 1070 & a Brian Auger & the Trinity reunion, Ms. Tippetts pretty much gave up singing lyrics for several decades. Since she started collaborating with Martin Archer in 2009, Ms. Tippetts is back to writing lyrics and singing in her older style (late 1960'), when she was in the original Trinity band with Mr. Auger. She has long had an extraordinary, singular and enticing voice, whether singing lyrics or improvising. "Dancing" features tenor & soprano saxes, several trombones and Julie's enchanting voice. "Green Prism Parthers" features Mr. Delius on clarinet, Mr. Jeffery on assorted brass and Ms. Poulou on synth. The music is hushed and quite haunting. Although Ms. Tippetts doesn't sing in this piece, the dense harmonies of the other three musicians is like an older style chorus only style. Ms. Poulou adds some music box sounds to the end of this piece. Ms. Tippett's soulful, charming voice is featured on "In Breath", with several layers of lush brass as a cushion for her voice. "Thoughts" is a superb rendition of a song from the 'Dedicated to you But..." album called "Thoughts to Geoff". The melody is rich and anyone who has heard that Tippett album from 1970 must admit that once you hear that song, you will never forget it. Mr/ Delius tenor sax is featured here with layers of brass, two melodicas, clarinet & tenor sax, supporting Julie's delightful voice. The lyrics to most of these pieces reflect the sadness that Ms. Tippetts feels for the loss of her lifelong husband and soulmate. A superb disc, through and through. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $14 [In stock in 1 week]
PAUL DUNMALL with COREY MWAMBA / STEVEN SAUNDERS / DAVE KANE / MILES LEVIN plus XHOSA COLE - Afraid to Speak; UK) Featuring Paul Dunmall on tenor & soprano saxes, B-flat clarinet & compositions, Steven Saunders on electric guitar, Corey Mwamba on vibes, Xhosa Cole on concert flute & piccolo (1 track), Dave Kane on contrabass and Miles Levin on drums. After releasing a deluge of discs (200 ) of mostly improv sessions, British sax colossus Paul Dunmall has slowed down over the past few years, with just 2 or three discs per year on labels like FMR, Rogue Art, 577 & Discus. Mr. Dunmall has spent more time writing and/or directing different groups in recent times rather than mostly doing free/improv dates with smaller groups. For this disc, Mr. Dunmall organized a fine quintet with reeds wiz Xhosa Cole added on one piece. All members of the sextet version of this band have worked with Mr. Dunmall previously in other ensembles. Dunmall fans should recall the names here, especially Dave Kane from Spirit Farm, Miles Levin (son of longtime Mujician drummer Tony Levin) and Steven Saunders (from two Dunmall groups in 2021 & 2022).
"I am Afraid to Speak" opens with haunting tenor sax and vibes over a solemn throb of the bass and drums. After the opening section, the sax, guitar and vibes solo around one another in a tight, spiraling fashion. Guitarist Steven Saunders, who has worked with Dunmall a couple of times previously, matches Dunmall's dynamic flow or stream of notes quite well, soloing by himself at times and showing himself to be an inspired, inventive jazz/rock guitarist. At times Saunders will add a bit of sustain to lengthen his notes or lones. Considering that there is no pianist here, vibesman Corey Mwamba continues to weave a busy web of support, soloing and spinning lines at a furious pace throughout. Things calm down for a quieter more reflective piece called, "And am equally afraid not to Speak". The interplay between the guitar, vibes and tenor is often subtle yet quick, showing a mature sense of restraint, something we don't often hear on many of Dunmall's more explosive free/jazz dates. Mr. Dunmall's Trane-like tenor erupts intensely throughout this long piece. "The Doubt in My Mind" smolders in a bluesy, prayer-like way, the vibes playing slow dream-like chords underneath the simmering sounds above. The last =piece, "Narenda" is also laid back and moody with some dynamic flute from Xhosa Cole, eerie electric guitar washes, cerebral vibes and simmering sax from Dunmall. There is an organic flow going on throughout as the sextet casts a hypnotic cloud over all who listen. A most sublime conclusion to a strong, spirit-world of shadows and other ghosts. -
CD $14 [In stock in one week]
LET’S SPIN with CHRIS WILLIAMS / MOSS FREED / RUTH GOLLER / FINLAY PANTER - I Am Alien (Discus 208CD; UK) Let's Spin features Chris Williams on alto & bari saxes & flute, Moss Fried on guitar & baritone guitar, Ruth Goller on bass & voice and Finlay Panter on drums & percussion. Saxist Chris Williams plays sax for a British jazz/rock band called Led Bib, who have ten discs (from 2005 to 2025). Guitarist Moss Freed has played with Charlotte Keeffe and for Orchestra Entropy, both of whom have discs out on the Discus label. Italian-born, London-based bassist, Ruth Goller, has a half dozen discs out including one on International Anthem and one on Relative Pitch. British drummer, Finlay Panter, can be heard on a dozen discs, six of which are from this band, Let's Spin. Each member of the quartet has contributed 1-4 pieces each. Things begin with "Have a Go, Hero". This is a fine rock quartet with tight thoughtfully written pieces. The pieces here are mostly written with tight work for the el bass and drums and intricate guitar and sax playing mostly in unison lines when not taking the occasional solo. Bassist Goller is using some quirky effects (sustain, reverb) on her el bass which gives it a proglike sound, similar to Chris Squire at times. The sax and guitar are often bathed in deep, churning reverb. I haven't listened to much contemporary progressive music in recent times so I can't compare this band to anyone else. The music is tight, well played, thoughtfully composed and even brutal at times, perhaps forceful would be a better word. On "Blockade" the quartet locks into a tight repeating riff with shards of sax and guitar sputtering in between the written patterns. When the guitar and sax play their lines together, they often add a variety of effects to thicken up their sound. There was a period of time in the mid-1970's when jazz/rock/fusion became stale, commercial and/or funky. A few bands escaped this problem by moving away from unnecessary showboating and working on composing more interesting music. Let's Spin sounds like a band that succeeded in doing this. Even with just a few solos, the music remains intriguing in other ways. One of the better and pretty unpredictable bands currently playing electric jazz/rock or something similar. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $14
MESSIANIC TIME with ANDY HAAS / BRENDA REY / JAMES PAUL NADIEN - Messianic Time (Resonant Music 023; USA) Featuring Andy Haas on sax, effects & loops, Brenna Rey on electric bass & effects and James Paul Nadien on drums, percussion, harmonica & voice. I've known saxist Andy for around 40 years and have watched him evolve musically over the long stretch. After playing in a Toronto-based new wave band called Martha & The Muffins, Mr. Haas had spent much of his time experimenting, putting his sax through effects, using loops and improving with a series of different musicians which has changed over time. I've watched the yunguns bassist Brenna Rey and drummer James Paul Nadien also have evolved over the past few years. Aside from working together as the rhythm team for Toadal Package (a brutal, tight, jazz/punk/rock/prog power trio) with two great disc out. Mr. Nadien worked here at DMG for several years and has been an ambitious, in-demand player in recent times. He is a current member of the Flying Luttenbachers, as well as collaborating with Alex Ward, Elijah Shiffer, Allen Lowe and the late Dave Tamura.
This disc was fully improvised in a studio in April of 2025 with no overdubs. This begin with Mr. Haas' alto sax playing a drone which is altered with strange, hypnotic effects. Haas' sax soars on top with a dense layer of electronic effects underneath before Mr. Nadien's powerful drums enter. Ms. Rey is adding some distortion to the bass, giving it a more brooding, powerful sound. Generally most releases by Mr. Haas deal with layers of effects but here Haas' sax blasts on top due to the powerful rhythm team support. Mr. Haas is tsill using effects at times but pushes his tone and playing higher into a more brutal style of free improv. On "The Last Cassandra", he seems to be playing his soprano without effects while there is some eerie effects added to the tasty brew. Mr. Haas adds different effects and each piece, keeping the sound of his sax always mutating. Mr. Haas does a good job of using extended techniques to alter the sound of his sax as well as adding a variety of crazed effects. Mr. Nadien adds some crazed vocals at times while Mr. Haas piles up several layers of effects and manipulation of his sax playing. Nadien also unleashes his powerful, throttling drumming, pushing the pressure level over the top and beyond. No matter how far Mr. Haas pushed things out, he is always centered by doing what he does for so long. The overall effect is often mesmerizing and occasionally disorienting. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $10
MICHAEL FOSTER / CHRISTIAN WEBER / MICHAEL GRIENER - Selections from the Gutter (Relative Pitch RPR 1269; USA) Featuring Michael Foster on saxes, Christian Weber on bass and Michael Griener on drums. Recorded in Berlin in May of 2023. Multiphonic sax and circular breathing explorations emerged from John Gilmore, Marshall Allen & John Coltrane in the early 1960's, from Roscoe Mitchell, Anthony Braxton & Evan Parker in the late 1960's early 1970's and from John Zorn, Ned Rothenberg and other in the early 1980's and beyond. Since the turn of the millenium, we've seen/heard from a new batch of reed explorers like Jim Denley, Chris Pitsiokos, Sam Newsome and Michael Foster. Both Mr. Newsome and Mr. Foster have been using all sorts of tubes between their mouthpieces and their saxes. Swiss bassist Christian Weber and German drummer Michael Griener can be heard on some two dozens discs each, as well as being the rhythm team for Ellery Eskelin and Aki Takase.
This is an ever-engaging, sprawling trio of spirited free exploration. Mr. Foster starts out exploring the lower end of tenor sax range while the bass and drums spin tightly and quickly around him. Mr. Foster keeps varying his approach, tongue-slapping and popping his notes or sounds, slurring and bending certain notes... with Weber and Griener matching his explorations wherever they go. In the last section of the first piece, the trio slow down to a more cerebral, haunting exploration. The second piece, "Dark Chase", begins with Foster creating a series of breath-like sounds while Weber taps his bass strings percussively and Griener plays sparsely on the drums. As the tempo and explorations speed up, the trio take off spinning a web of tight fractured sounds together. This piece keeps escalating and erupting tightly together throughout, the trio sounds like one spirit/force. Mr. Foster switches to soprano sax on this piece, creating long, spiraling lines, quietly for one section and then spinning freely in the next. When European jazz artists started to play free/jazz in the mid 1960's, it was a new development and took time to evolve. American free/jazz evolved from the roots of more mainstream jazz, cool jazz, third stream, blues, gospel and other freer realms. Euro and Japanese free/jazz evolved in its own way based on the way their version of jazz had evolved and expanded over time. For myself, there seemed to be a difference between American and non-American free/jazz. In the UK, there was a term for free/music called insect music, which has its own sound. It's been 60 sixty years since free/jazz erupted and now it is found all over the world. It is a language unto itself so what we have is/are free/music explorers from different cultures, genres, genders and religions, who work together to cross or erase the barriers that politicians have set up to divide us. Hende, what we have here is a formidable free trio who work together extremely well. Bravo! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $13
QUAGMIRE with NINA DE HENEY / KARIN JOHANSSON / HENRIK WARTEL and CHRISTER BOTHEN - Rörane (Relative Pitch Records RPR 1278; USA) Featuring Christer Bothen on bass clarinet & contrabass clarinet, Karin Johansson on piano, prepared piano & zither, Nina de Heney on contrabass and Henrik Wartel on drums. Christer Bothén is an elder Swedish musician who played with Don Cherry in the Bitter Funeral Beer Band in the early 1970's. Mr. Bothén has around ten records as a leader and has worked more recently with the Fire! Orchestra and Oren Ambarchi. Quagmire are a Swiss/Swedish trio with an earlier disc from 2019. Although I wasn't familiar with any of the members of this trio, all three members keep busy in a variety of other projects according to Discogs. This disc was recorded at Rorane Studio in Bottna, Sweden.
When this disc opens, we hear the distant tapping of metals, haunting bowed bass, growling bass clarinet and rubbed strings inside the piano. The overall sound is quite hypnotic or trance-like. We hear a series of long drone-like sounds plus sparse percussion. Contrabass clarinets are relatively rare instruments and we've only had two musicians play them here at the store: Ben Goldberg is the one I remember. Much of the music here is restrained and suspense-filled. The music is consistently slow moving, organic and careful as it unfolds. There are sounds which seem ghost-like and hard to tell who is playing which instrument. I know that Christer Bothén also plays duoss N'gouni so there are some sounds here which could be that or perhaps a zither. On "Tyfta", it sounds like we are having a spell cast over us from another dreamworld place. The sounds are shimmering, simmering, droning, shifting, ritualistic percussion-wise and quietly Cosmic. If you are into trance music like the Natural Information Society, then you should love this sonic treasure. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $13
JEAN-CLAUDE ELOY - Galaxies Full-Electro (Hors Territories HT 021CD; France) Galaxies (Warsaw version), electro-acoustic alone. Fully electro-acoustic version of "Anâhata/Galaxies" realized on the composer's personal computer from the original electro-acoustic recordings of this work. Jean-Claude Eloy: "In 1994 I had (for purely practical reasons) to remove these big electro-acoustic parts making up the two 'Galaxies' works from the piece they were connected with until then: Part III of my Anâhata cycle, entitled Nimîlana-Unmîlana ('that which awakens -- that which slumbers'). An electro-acoustic work integrating instrumental acoustic parts that required the performance of a Shô player from Japan. Those electro-acoustic parts were substantial enough to warrant a new configuration ensuring their stand-alone nature, independent of whether a performer was available or not. Therefore I used (apart from the two 'Galaxies') a set of particular sounds that I had generated during that production (all of them resulting from Shô sampled sound processing and modulations) entitled 'sons d'infinitude' ('sounds of indefiniteness'). These sustained sounds were very fixed, quite contemplative, almost motionless or maintained through short fluctuations that were more or less regular. They were five of them altogether. Four of them were grouped together into a consistent set and occurred after the first Galaxy, before the Shô solo. I had used them to compose a sequence called 'Awakening,' which formed the first Shô appearance in the version realized for the Donaueschingen Festival in 1990. The fifth one took place at the end of the second 'Galaxy' and was used to support the conclusion played on the Ô-Shô. In this purely electro-acoustic version the first four 'sons d'infinitude' came quite naturally as a 'bridge' between both Galaxies. The fifth sound kept its conclusive place, making it bigger and using it as a genuine 'extension sound' that could be infinite, with no limit!"
CD $16
JEAN-CLAUDE ELOY - Electro-Anahata (Hors Territories HT 019-020; France) Electro-Anâhata (1986-1994). Fully electro-acoustic version of "Anâhata" realized on Jean-Claude Eloy's personal computer from the original electro-acoustic recordings of this work. Electro-acoustic works of a contemplative nature. Electro-acoustic parts alone of Âhata-Anâhata (struck sound -- unstruck sound) including a new unreleased part. Electronic music studios where the original "Anâhata" was produced (1984-86): Studio of the Sweelinck Conservatory of Music, Amsterdam (1984 and 1986), the entire production (pre-recorded material processing, new material generation, premixing) and all final mixing processes; Tokyo-Gakuso studio, Tokyo (1983): for the Shô and Ô-Shô (traditional mouth organs from Japan) sampling with Mayumi Miyata. Conny's Studio, Neuenkirchen, near Cologne (1984) with Asian Sound and Michael W. Ranta: metal percussion instrument sampling, including Bonshôs (Buddhist temple bells from Japan) sampling.
2 CD Set $22
CHAD FOWLER / MATT LAVELLE - Whirlpool (Mahakala Music 096; USA) Blending exploratory jazz with deeply personal free improv expression, the quartet of Chad Fowler, Matt Lavelle, Ken Filiano, and Bobby Kapp engage in a volatile and spiritually charged dialogue using rare horns, elastic rhythm, and richly textural interplay, evoking ritual, memory, transformation, and collective discovery through instrumental gesture, harmolodic freedom, and emotionally raw exchange.
CD $14
EVA-MARIE HOUBEN // NATE WOOLEY - Chanting Ballads (Wandelweiser Records EWR-2505; Austria) Commissioned for the for/with series, Eva-Maria Houben presents a long-form work for Nate Wooley's trumpet, voice, and whistling, where sparse, precisely placed tones unfold in a meditative arc, expanding from an early performance into a deeply considered exploration of pure timbre, attentive listening, and the subtle interplay between composition and free improv.
CD $14.00
PIERRE FAVRE TRIO with IRENE SCHWEIZER / GEORGE MRAZ - Bird Food (Songs 004CD; Switzerland) Captured in 1968 in Zurich and long shelved before its recent discovery, this early trio session brings Pierre Favre, Irene Schweizer, and George Mraz together in a concise, fiery set of attentive free jazz, balancing Ornette Coleman's title piece with Schweizer's compositions, where dynamic interplay and acute listening reveal a nascent yet fully engaged collective voice.
CD $16
LP SECTION:
ERIKM / PIERRE BASTIEN - Observations (Sub Rosa SR 587LP; Belgium) Limited edition of 250. Textured sleeve. Marbled yellow flame color. Jean Dubuffet used to define his music as something disordered and dirty. But here, it is a Dubuffet returning from a long journey in Africa, with haunting rhythms that reach trance-like states, corrupted by ErikM's UK Drill.
"With one exception, this disc is a recording of a concert given at the Ateliers Claus in Brussels in March 2024. It was preceded by three short hours of improvisation the day before and the day before that, during which ErikM and I made a series of careful observations of each other's playing. It must be said that neither of us had skimped on transporting a few cases, the contents of which would have allowed us to play several concerts in a row without ever repeating ourselves. Erik had brought his turntables to Brussels, as well as sophisticated electronic machines, accompanied by a virtually infinite sound bank. For my part, I had both a mechanical orchestra and a range of acoustic instruments at my disposal. In two sessions, we eliminated the superfluous and the ineffective. On the evening of the concert, it was through close observation-of each sound, each direction taken by one or the other, each intention, each break-that we composed this record in the moment: vigilant and scrutinizing, like the pairs of eyes on the cover of this album." - Pierre Bastien
LP $26
MICK HARRIS / MARTYN BATES - Murder Ballads [Incest Songs](Sub Rosa SR 514LP; Belgium) Following Murder Ballads [Drift] (2021, SR 506LP) and Murder Ballads [Passages], (2022, SR 510LP) here is the last chapter of the trilogy: Murder Ballads [Incest Songs]. First time on LP vinyl. Textured sleeve with marbled vinyl. Incest Songs is the final chapter of the Murder Ballads trilogy, and its most fully realized expression. Where Drift and Passages explored the post-isolationist frame through voice and single instrument, this third volume dispenses with that approach entirely, opening instead onto a more labyrinthine sonic architecture -- one built from overlapping, saturating, blurring voices, all of them Martyn Bates'. The decision feels both inevitable and quietly inspired. Bates' vocalizations unfold as layered calls and responses, muted and distant echoes, sung whispers and counter-melodies, ultimately resolving into a mesmeric conversation of musical inferences and correspondences. There is a mellifluous, dream-like quality to the whole -- infused with that characteristic stillness that slow, hypnotic unfolding of gossamer subtlety -- yet never quite losing a certain drugged, disquieting beauty beneath its surface. Incest Songs pushes the post-isolationist form further out than either of its predecessors, innovating and extemporizing with a dazzling assurance. And yet, remarkably, this remains a territory still almost entirely unexplored by other artists -- the sole province, it seems, of M.J. Harris and Martyn Bates. As Bates himself reflects: "I feel, in personal terms -- listening to it, I think it's easy to detect that the whole thing has been a truly exhilarating experience for the both of us, realizing and developing this strange, sublime creature of ours -- and now I guess it's up to others to take up the challenge, to build on what we've done -- and I think that there are still SO MANY fantastic possibilities." Re-emerging thirty years after its initial inception -- somewhat surprisingly, Murder Ballads [Incest Songs] still remains/exists in an area overlooked by other artists, an area that truly still remains the sole province of M.J. Harris/Martyn Bates.
2 LP Set $34
THE HANDOVER - New Old Medicine (Sublime Frequencies SF133LP; Earth) Hot on the heels of their spectacular self-titled debut album, The Handover is back with their second long form composition, New Old Medicine. Aly Eissa (oud), Ayman Asfour (violin), and Jonas Cambien (vintage organ/synth) have been cutting their teeth on the international touring circuit for the past two years, landing from town to town in their seductive spaceship to blow people's minds and then dematerialize into the void. An outline for a new piece began to emerge along the route and late last year during a stop in Berlin, this metamorphosis of the trio's sound was recorded in pristine form by Rabih Beaini at Morphine Studios. Attempting to define the music is not as important as allowing it to define itself -- from person to person, village to village. All we can do is suggest what may resonate to lure you into the arena; psychedelic, folkloric, Egyptian, etc., as these excerpts from the liner notes suggest: "Though one long piece, New Old Medicine moves through several unofficial chapters. It originates in the psychic depths with a pensive melody. Gradually solidifying, the organ's first solo ushers the piece into a swaying, reverent dance. This dance nears its end with a vigorously percussive section on oud, handing it off to the violin for a climactic solo. A momentary pause, then the rhythm thickens, and the musicians ride untethered through the midnight. This frenzy is followed by a calm repose on placid water. But this calm is merely a deep inhale before the final charged ascent into cosmic rapture." Don't sleep on this one! Limited edition vinyl pressing with two-page insert including liner notes by Tucker Wiedenkeller.
LP $28
BEATRIZ FERREYRA - A Distracted God (Room 40 4246LP; Australia) A note from Lawrence English: "Beatriz Ferreyra is a sonic world builder. For six decades she has been responsible for the creation of works that inhabit a place between the living world and the subliminal zones of the unconscious. Her compositions forge new realities, constructed piece by piece, from fragments of places and things we know, reedited and refocused to create something few of us might even imagine possible. Ferreyra's life in sound has transcended from the analog to the digital and back again. She is equally at home with tape manipulation as she is with digital transformations and it is this sense of material agnosticism which has lent her work such a personal quality. She pursues sound in the absolute, and allows it to guide her curiosity. A Distracted God collects three works from Ferreyra, each one a microcosm of listenership that speaks to her wholly consuming practice in sound. The edition takes in both tape and computer-based works, which reveal the very particular ways within which Ferreyra has explored and shaped sound. She remains one of the true pioneers of her generation, a fearless and relentless maker for whom the totality of sound's affect is forever front of mind." Cut at 45 RPM.
LP $32
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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 BLGallanter@gmail.com
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THE STONE is NOW LOCATED AT THE NEW SCHOOL, Here is upcoming schedule:
THE STONE RESIDENCIES / SARA SERPA / MAY 27-30
5/27 Wednesday
8:30 pm - QUARTET WITH STRING QUARTET: Sara Serpa (voice) Sarah Elizabeth Charles (voice) Aubrey Johnson (voice) Qasim Naqvi (modular synth) and the Bergamot String Quartet
5/28 Thursday
8:30 pm - TRIO: Sara Serpa (voice) Ikue Mori (electronics) Erik Friedlander (cello)
5/29 Friday
8:30 pm- QUARTET: Sara Serpa (voice) Andre Matos (guitar) Craig Taborn (piano)
5/30 Saturday
8:30 pm - DUO: Sara Serpa (voice) Matt Mitchell (piano)
THE STONE RESIDENCIES / CYRO BAPTISTA / JUNE 3-6
6/3 Wednesday
8:30pm - TRIO: Cyro Baptista (percussion) Kaoru Watanabe (flute, percussion) Tim Keiper (drums, percussion)
6/4 Thursday
8:30 pm - ENSEMBLE: Cyro Baptista (percussion) Shunzo Ono (trumpet) Quintin Zoto (guitar) and friends
6/5 Friday
8:30 pm - SOLO: Cyro Baptista (percussion, voice)
6/6 Saturday
8:30 pm - SEXTET: Cyro Baptista (percussion) Felipe Hostins (accordion) Zé Luis Oliveira (woodwinds) Scott Kettner (drums) Jason Fratticelli (bass) Junior Karegato (percussion)
THE STONE is located in
The New School at the Glass Box Theatre
55 West 13th Street - near 6th ave
For more info: https://thestonenyc.com/calendar.php?month=1
LIVE MUSIC
wed-sat - music at 8:30pm
ADMISSION - $20 per set
unless otherwise noted
cash only payment
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