DMG Newsletter for Friday, May 11th, 2018

Happy Mothers Day to All of Our Mothers Around the World!
This Sunday is Mothers Day, so call or e-mail or visit your Mom!

And for all of Us Music Freaks: Happy Mothers of Invention Day!
The Mothers of Invention were the Band to Blow My 13 Year Old Mind in 1967!
And make me realize that I was indeed a Freak for Weird Music

Spring Begins and Allows us to Hang Outside, Listening the Birds
Breathing some Fresh Air and Contemplating Life

I am leaving for the Victo New Music Fest (FIMAV) in Quebec Next Week
And Look forward to Spending a week in Canada with Creative Music Family & Friends
Check out the Line-up Here: https://www.fimav.qc.ca/en/edition/schedule
And Check These Discs from Your Weekly DMG Newsletter:

Two Jewels from Henry Threadgill! Tim Berne & Matt Mitchell! Robert Dick & Ulrike Lentz! David Rothenberg / Nicola L. Hein / Hans Tammen! Four 1 from AM: Ensemble SuperMusique! Bernard Falaise Solo Guitar! Joane Hetu’s Joker Chorale! Nous Percons les Quielles! Welf Dorr Unit: Dave Ross / Dmitry Ishenko / Joe Hertenstein! Evil Genius Return! Restroy Two!

Metal Chaos Ensemble! Five New CD’s from Neos! Three LP’s from Harris Eisenstadt! LP’s from Francis Bebey! Jean Dubuffet! Joe Meek! Basil Kirchin! Son House! Visions & Phurpa! Five Day Week Straw People! And lost more!

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Upcoming Sets at Downtown Music Gallery - FREE, every Sunday at 6pm

THE DMG 28TH ANNIVERSARY SERIES OF SONIC CELEBRATIONS Continue with:

Sunday, May 13th:
6pm: JACKDAW: SEAN ALI / ERIKA DICKER / JOE MOFFETT - Contrabass / Violin / trumpet
7pm: WILLIAM PARKER AQUASONIC ENSEMBLE - ‘Lake of Light’ CD Release Celebration! Featuring: JEFF SCHLANGER/ANNE HUMANFELD/LEONID GALAGANOV/WILLIAM PARKER - Aquasonics

Sunday, May 20th: No In-Store - Bruce attending FIMAV Festival!

Sunday, May 27th: No In-store during Vision Festival!

Sunday, June 3rd:
6pm: DAVID AARON / ROB RITCHIE / DAVE GOULD - Soprano Sax / Electric Guitar / Drums
7pm: SAM NEWSOME - Solo Soprano Sax

Sunday, June 10th:
6pm: CARLO COSTA / CHRISTIAN MEAAS SVEDSEN / SAM KULIK - Percussion / Bass / Trombone
7pm: JONATHAN MORITZ / SEAN ALI / CARLO COSTA - Sax / Bass/ Drums

Rare, Monday June 11th:
6:30 - CARTOON JUSTICE With G. CALVIN WESTON/MIKA PONTECORVO/KERSTI ABRAMS/ADRIANE PONTECORVO/MARK PINO/ELIJAH PONTECORVO - Drums/Guitar/Alto Sax/Cello/El. Bass/Waterphone!

Sunday, June 17th:
6pm: PRACTITIONER: BEN GOLDBERG and MICHAEL COLEMAN - CD Release Set
7pm: NICOLA HEIN TRIO

DMG is located at 13 Monroe St. (between Catherine & Market Sts) in a basement below a small gallery. Take the F train to East Broadway or the 6 train to Canal or the B or D to Grand, or the M-15 bus to Madison & Catherine. Come on Down, the Sunday Music Series is Always Free & the Vibes are Always Cosy

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Pi Records started in 2001 with two releases from HENRY THREADGILL, one from each of his current working bands, Make a Move and Zooid. The disc by Make a Move was their last and they soon broke up. Now, nearly 17 years later, Pi is again releasing two discs by the irrepressible Henry Threadgill, composer, sax & flutist and man with a vision. Both are wonderful and well worth exploring…

HENRY THREADGILL With ROMAN FILIU / CURTIS ROBERT MACDONALD / CHRISTOPHER HOFFMAN / DAVID BRYANT / LUIS PERDOMO / DAVID VIRELLES / CRAIG WEINRIB - Double Up, Plays Double Up Plus (Pi Recordings 75; USA) Featuring Curtis Robert MacDonald & Roman Filiu on alto saxes & RF on alto flute, Christopher Hoffman on cello, Jose Davila on tuba, David Bryant, Luis Perdomo & David Virelles on pianos and Craig Weinrib on drums. This is second CD by Mr. Threadgill’s latest ensemble Double Up, after last year’s ‘Old Locks and Irregular Verbs’. The personnel has increased to add a third pianist to the ensemble (the Plus in the title) and their are two members from Zooid (Mr. Davila & Mr. Hoffman) involved as well. Starting with the epic length (nearly 23 minutes), “Game is Up”, there is a method going on here: The octet begin slowly, weaving minimal lines around one another, building carefully, a few notes at a time. It takes some time and patience to hear the arc, current or flow that is running throughout this piece. Unlike previous bands fronted by Mr. Threadgill, this is seems to be more about the way things develop and expand and not about swinging or soloing. Closer to chamber music than jazz. Still, there are some occasional solos (like tuba), but what makes things interesting is the way the band shifts underneath, with harmonium and piano(s) weaving their lines underneath the action above. Mr. Threadgill’s previous band, Make a Move, featured Tony Cedras on harmonium & accordion. Here, ECM pianist David Virelles plays harmonium as well as piano. Although, Mr. Threadgill doesn’t play on this disc, the sound of either or both alto saxes with the harmonium does give this band a sound similar to later Make a Move. This sound is central on the two part “Clear and Distinct from the Other”, with several lines spinning in tight orbits. Every thing comes together for the final piece, “Clear and Distinct”, with several spirals interconnected while one of the pianist sails/solos through the center, staring and stopping as they tight lines around continue to spin. Splendid! Can’t wait to hear the other new one. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15

HENRY THREADGILL 14 or 15 KESTRA: AGG with LIBERTY ELLMAN / CHRISTOPHER HOFFMAN / JOSE DAVILLA / BEN GERSTEIN / JONATHAN FINLAYSON / STEPHANIE RICHARDS / ROMAN FILIU / CURTIS ROBERT MACDONALD / et al - Dirt… And More Dirt (Pi Recordings 73; USA) “Comprised of two full-length works, Dirt… And More Dirt, is composed for Henry Threadgill’s band 14 or 15 Kestra: Agg, which features 15 musicians (guitar, bass, drummers (2), cello, tuba, alto saxophone (3), flute (2), trumpet (2), trombone (2), and piano (2). The works are part of Threadgill’s ongoing exploration for integrating composition with group improvisation, in particular an entirely new system of improvisation based on preconceived series of intervals. They bear the unmistakable stamp of all Threadgill compositions: complex forms, multi-layered counterpoint, rigorous polyphony, and timbral contrasts all wrapped up in a swirl of rhythmic convolution. The use of multiple horns and woodwinds on Dirt… vastly expands the music’s harmonic and tonal palette at Threadgill’s disposal, adding a much wider range of color, texture, and weight. At the age of 73, Threadgill remains at the peak of his powers, yet remains completely open to all possibilities in expanding and refining his craft.” - Pi Records
Henry Threadgill won the Pulitzer Prize in Spring of 2016, one of only three jazz artists to get this honor. Since winning this prize, Mr. Threadgill has increased has doubled his output, as far as releases go. Pi Records released two fine albums last year (2017), ‘In for a Penny…’ by Zooid and ‘Old Locks…’ featuring a new octet. This year Pi has again just released two more gems, ‘Double Up Play Double Up Plus’ and this, a 15 piece orchestra. The ensemble is called the 14 or 15 Kestra and consists of a number of doubles: 2 alto saxes (plus Mr. Threadgill), 2 trumpets, 2 trombones, 2 pianos and 2 drummers. Unlike the other new CD on Pi, Mr. Threadgill is a member of the orchestra here, playing his customary alto sax & flutes. Like much of what Mr. Threadgill composes, this work, which comes in two long parts, starts off modestly with a few instruments repeating what sounds like a simple line. As the piece evolves, a number of duos enter, often one at a time, repeating and embellishing the lines. The first suite, called, “Dirt”, is broken into six smaller parts which feature a series of soloists, who solo while the orchestra weaves layers of lines around them. What is most interesting here is the way that Mr. Threadgill has expanded his ensemble to play several layered but connected lines simultaneously, so there is much to listen to when things pile up. There are several sections where Threadgill increases the activity by having different layers of lines all moving at the same time but always ending up in the same place, before they begin again. Even when certain sections get busy or become more dense, there is an inner sense of calm which centers everything here. Overall, this is a most impressive effort that will be savored for a long while… there are quite a bit of hidden gems found within the “Dirt”. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15

TIM BERNE / MATT MITCHELL - Angel Dusk (Screwgun/Moose Knuckles; USA) Featuring Tim Berne on alto sax and Matt Mitchell on piano. When Matt Mitchell first contacted Tim Berne, nearly a decade ago, he offered to write an arrangement of one of Mr. Berne’s songs. Mr. Berne initially brushed him off and said there wasn’t much written music to look over. Berne soon realized that Mitchell was serious and the two began collaborating. Mr. Berne soon put together a new band called Snakeoil of which Mr. Mitchell is a prominent member. After four fine Snakeoil CDs on the ECM label, Mr. Berne released a solo piano CD by Mr. Mitchell playing the music of Mr. Berne last year. Which brings to this, the new one, a duo disk from Mr. Berne and Mr. Mitchell. One of the things I have always dug about Tim Berne is that each of his bands or CD’s are intense and often based on repeating lines. Now that these two have been working together for so long, we can hear the way they their playing and composing is connected. “Perception/Reception” opens and sounds rather orchestral, the sax and piano seem to be shadowing each other and creating rich, thoughtful harmonies. As this dic unfolds, the two remain connected, tight and exciting like a roller coster ride. Certain sections feature tightly connected themes, always be balancing between furiously paced daredevil turns and changes in direction with the piano adding different shades to the way the sax is moving. Sometimes the sax starts off a piece by itself, with the piano soon doing in to orchestrate the shifting lines that the sax is unleashing. What I dig most about this disc is that it sounds as if everything here is part of a connected fabric, a series of stories that unfold one after the other yet all are somehow connected to an undercurrent. Both of these musicians play as if their life depended on how well they work together. As our current democracy continues to unravel more each day, we need to be inspired by unions of creative spirits that work so well together they show us that humans have still found a way to work perfectly in tandem. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15

ROBERT DICK / ULRIKE LENTZ - Are There? (Mulatta 0037; USA) Featuring Robert Dick on piccolo, alto & bass flutes & flute with Glissando Headjoint and Ulrike Lentz on piccolo, flutes & flute-tubes. Downtown flute virtuoso, Robert Dick, has played in many duos: Mari Kimura (violin), Ursel Schlicht (piano), Tiffany Chang (drums) and Nicola Hein (electric guitar). I hadn’t heard of Ms. Ulrike Lentz before Mr. Dick left us with this disc but it turns out that she has been around and worked with many great musicians: Matthias Schubert, Xu Fengxia, Hans Tammen & many others. It turns out that she is also a flute virtuoso. Listening to this disc, I was struck by the diversity of sounds created by two flutists. Both Mr. Dick and Ms. Lentz switch between a half dozen different flutes, hence their sounds are always changing, their explorations restless. The Glissando Headjoint flute was designed by Robert Dick and allows the flutist to bend notes in a unique way. Both flutists here selectively use this unique flute to produce odd bends and shifts in their notes. The outcome is much diverse and dynamic than many would imagine. Vocals sounds played through the flute, percussive and wind sounds are only a few f the techniques explored here there is so much more to marvel at. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $14

ROBERT DICK // LUCIANO BERIO / CLAUDE DEBUSSEY / KAZUO FUKUSHIMA / ROBERT MORRIS - Ladder of Escape (Babel 9158; Netherlands) "Prince of the postmodern flute, Robert Dick has once again taken the listener on a journey where he or she thought they couldn't be taken. With his revolutionary techniques for extending the tonal possibilities of instruments -- such as multiphonics and other technical modifications -- Dick has presented his chosen instrument in an entirely new light as both a concert instrument and as an instrument to be composed for. While Dick has recorded other composer's works before -- his infamous recording of Jimi Hendrix being a case in point -- he has taken the works of 20th century composers here and juxtaposed them against his own, which stacks up even. One of the most remarkable pieces is Claude Debussy's "Syrinx," played on the bass flute instead of the concert flute using alternative breathing techniques and a radical timbral extension of the transposition to include both registers. Also included is Luciano Berio's "Sequenza," a stunning work that uses tone rows as the basis for interlocuting various pitches in relation to meter and other, less-specific tones. But the most stunning piece on the record is the six-part "Flying Lessons," whereby Dick is able to make full use of his technical innovations as well as infuse his lush emotional commitment into a series of exercises designed to open the instrument's very body up to the psychological breath of the composer/performer. The use of multiphonics here is nothing short of amazing, as on the last of the six parts Dick plays six notes simultaneously, a veritable series of power chords on the instrument. In all this is one of Dick's strongest and most emotionally committed recordings." - Thom Jurek, AMG
CD $22  (last few copies available)

DAVID ROTHENBERG / NICOLA L. HEIN / HANS TAMMEN - Bird Saw Buchla (Clang 058; EEC) Featuring David Rothenberg on clarinets & ipad, Nicola L. Hein on guitar & circular saw and Han Tammen on Buchla Music Easel. This is a unique trio of three musicians from different backgrounds, each of whom has appeared here at DMG on occasion. David Rothenberg plays clarinets, recorded a duo CD with Marilyn Crispell for ECM, an author of books about animal sounds. He spoke here at DMG a couple of weeks ago, discussing an upcoming book by Elliott Sharp… German guitarist, Nicola L. Hein is currently a visiting scholar at Columbia University. Over the past year, he has played at DMG several times with a diverse cast of partners: Chris Pitsiokos (outstanding!), Robert Dick, Viv Corringham and Mia Zabelka. He played differently for each duo. Hans Tammen also plays guitar (on his lap or table top), leads an orchestra and has a guitar quartet. But here he is playing an ancient (?) Buchla Sound Easel, one of the earliest synthesizers. An odd trio, nonetheless…
This is an extraordinary trio: Mr. Rothenberg is an incredible clarinetist, fluttering soft waves of notes, his tone often pure while Mr. Hein adds a stream of percussion banging on his guitar with a object and small circular saw. Mr. Tammen also provides a soft cushion of electronics underneath. At times, it sounds as if Mr. Tammen is on the verge of exploding with select bursts of distortion. The further that Hein on guitar and Tammen on synth push things out, the more Rothernberg adds a more natural balance with his most acoustic playing. All of the song titles have sad natural themes like “Then Cry All Birds and Fishes”. Is there an imbalance between Mother Nature and Technology or between acoustis and electronics sounds??? This is is a perfect example of the way these extremes can work so well together. On one level, very hopeful indeed. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15

Four Fabulous Discs from the Might Ambiances Magnetiques Label!

ENSEMBLE SUPERMUSIQUE With JEAN DEROME/JOANE HETU/BERNARD FALAISE/LORI FREEDMAN/MARTIN TETREAULT/JOSH ZUBOT/ISAIAH CECCARELLI/ et al - Les Porteueses d'O  (Ambiances Magnetiques 239; Canada) Ensemble SuperMusique (ESM) is an ongoing (since 1998) large with a dozen discs on the great Quebec-based Ambiances Magnetiques label which began in 1984 and soon the celebrate their 35th anniversary. This version of ESM features 13 members from Quebec and Ontario including prominent names like Jean Derome (alto sax & flutes), Joane Hetu (alto sax & voice), Scott Thomson (trombone), Bernard Falaise (electric guitar), Isaiah Ceccarelli & Danielle Palardy Roger (percussion). Each disc by ESM features different musician/composers leading the ensemble. For this disc we have three long works led by Danielle Palardy Roger and Joane Hetu (both co-leaders of ESM) and guest composer/director Lisa Cay Miller. ESM has long worked with the idea of the balance between composed and freely improvised musics. In the liner notes, we get an explanation of the intention for each of the composers. Ms. Roger’s “En Arrivant par le Nuage de Oort” is based on a graphic score which represents a journey through space from the Oort Cloud (past Pluto) to the Sun. Our journey begins quietly and is filled with an eerie sense of mystery. The density slowly get thicker throughout, the sounds vibrating, the intensity escalating as we move through space. Ms. Hetu’s “Preoccupant, c’est Preoccupant” deals with the ever-present interference which goes on in our lives. Ms. Hetu provides some minimal seasoning with some consistently weird/hilarious vocal sounds which fit perfectly with the way this piece unfolds, with unexpected bits of interference. Guest composer Lisa Cay Miller’s “Water Carrier” deals with drinking water quality in Canada, especially the dilemma of the First Nations bad water quality. The score itself involves a checkerboard which prompts the players to switch from notated to freely improvised sections. The music sounds like directed improv, focused and engaging, with selects bursts of activity between obviously written sections. What makes Ensemble SuperMusique special is that each of their dozen discs finds a way of harnessing the many different ways that composers and players utilize the balance between written and unwritten extremes. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $14

BERNARD FALAISE - Lezardes et Zebrures (Ambiances Magnetiques AM 237; Canada) "A wonderfully inventive and enjoyable solo guitar album from Montreal guitarist Bernard Falaise, a member of Miriodor, Klaxon Gueule, les Projectionnistes, Diesel and other groups, here mostly focused on acoustic guitar with open turning fed into effects pedals, alongside pieces for electric guitar, glockenspiel and melodica; magnifique! Guitarist Bernard Falaise might be the only musician on this record, but you won’t find here any composition for solo guitar. A good chunk of “lézardes et zébrures”’s basic material features an acoustic guitar played in open tunings and fed into a freezer pedal in order to endlessly play very short loops that sound a little bit as if you were listening to a guitar and organ duo from outer space. Successive layers of instruments — from electric guitar to glockenspiel and melodica — contribute to create a rich sonic universe, at the same time acoustic and electronic, naive and skillful."
CD $14 (This disc is a must-to-buy for those Guitar Fan-adicts out there!)

JOANE HETU / JOKER / CHORALE BRUITISTE - Ou Est-il Donc ce Reve (Ambiances Magnetiques 234; Canada) "It began one bewildering night. A chorus of voices, riding a time machine, chimed together mysteriously, and the night was jolted by apparitions. Thus appeared the oneiric, irrational world inhabited by these twelve singers and, under their conductor’s unusual signals, their siren songs, their tales of sleeping upright, and their magic-in-sound. That night’s exorbitant playfulness and meteoric dreaming produced vertiginous visions and silences: angels eluding the inferno, exalted in the starry night, forgotten or hidden in the darkness, and tangled in this tide of dreams. They had left the quotidian, one bereft of imagination. In this way, Où est-il donc ce rêve? is an amorphous night animated by a series of short dreams, by turns disjointed and crazed, that stave off the horrifying thought of a dreamless world. Genuinely praiseworthy are the tangled counterpoints (often of the involuntary kind) and a few remarkable harmonic fluctuations enriched by an indisputable human warmth." — Touching Extremes (Italy)
CD $14

JEAN DEROME / JOANE HETU / NOUS PERCONS LES ORIELLES - Un Ideal (Ambiances Magnetiques 231; Canada) Featuring Jean Derome on alto sax, flutes, keyboards, melodica, percussion, objects and voice and Jaone Hetu on alto sax, melodica, objects & voice. Besides being a married couple, Ms. Hetu and Mr. Derome, have been long involved in running this, the Ambiances Magnetiques label. The couple also work on each others projects and are both members of Ensemble SuperMusique. ‘Un Ideal’ is the fourth disc by the couple who record under the name, Nous Percons les Oreilles, which means ‘We are the ears’.
Right from the gitgo, we hear several drones, from saxes, voices and perhaps a sampler, with certain notes or phrases looped or just repeated. Both Joane and Jean play an assortment of small objects, whistles and percussive things, carefully creating a web of enchanting sounds. One of the things that this duo excel is their charming double vocals, singing and talking in twisted harmonies, embracing the joyous innocence of children’s rhyming games. I hear what sounds like a collection of wind-up toys, squeeze objects like dolls, kissy or breath-like sounds… silly and fun to listen to. Although both members of the couple play alto sax and have been involved in extended techniques, this music is more about creating short bits of odd sounds, going the music a delightful tongue-in-cheek quality. “Excepte” reminds me of a calliope found at a circus with a handful of kids singing along. This is music to make us smile and forget about the evil clowns in the daily news or blues. Some of this actually had me laughing out loud and that my friend is just what the good doctor ordered. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $14

JEAN DEROME With ENSEMBLE SUPERMUSIQUE / LORI FREEDMAN / JOANE HETU / MICHEL F COTE / DIANE LABROSSE / ALEXANDRE ST-ONGE / MARTIN TETREAULT / et al - Resistances (Ambiances Magnetiques 231; Canada) "Résistances was premiered on May 14, 2015 at the opening of the Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville (FIMAV) and the Année Jean Derome (AJD) — a big series of events supported by CALQ (Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec) and presented throughout the province of Québec to celebrate the composer’s 60th anniversary. This album features both live music recorded during the second Résistances concert — presented by Productions SuperMusique at Montréal’s Gesù on March 16, 2017 — as well as excerpts from the rehearsals of the previous two days, March 14 and 15. 'Résistances' is based on the theme of electricity and is inspired by the research that Jean Derome has done on this subject — from the concepts / ideas of electric current, flow, power and voltage to those of resistance, circuit, motor, pulse and frequency. The composition threads through the same territory that Derome started to explore in the year 2000 with his previous composition Canot-camping and is conceived for a group of improvisers. Although a few short sections of the composition are scored, the bulk of it is improvised. Derome acts as a prompter/conductor using a unique set of 140 hand-signs the musicians/interpreters are familiar with."
CD $14

WELF DORR UNIT With DAVE ROSS / DMITRY ISHENKO / JOE HERTENSTEIN - Blood (Creative Sources 508; Portugal) Featuring Welf Dorr on alto sax & bass clarinet, Dave Ross on guitar, Dmitry Ishenko on bass and Joe Hertenstein on drums. Local (?) reedman, Welf Dorr, just showed up here at DMG last week ((5/6/18) and left us with a couple of discs. I didn’t much about Mr. Dorr, although he has recorded with Sabir Mateen & Blaise Siwula and utilizes the talents of Downtown players we do know and love: Jonathan Finlayson, Shoko Nagai & Kenny Wolleson on Mr. Welf’s earlier CD. For this disc, Mr. Dorr has put together a serious quartet with Dave Ross on guitar (for Ras Moshe & William Hooker), Dmitry Ishenko (for Garrison Fewell & Jeff Platz) on bass and Joe Hertenstein (for HNH & Jon Irabagon) on drums.
The first thing I noticed about this disc was that the cover looks suspiciously like an earlier album cover by James Blood Ulmer, whose song they also cover and whose nickname, ‘Blood’ is the title of this disc. It should come as no surprise that the music does have that earlier Blood Ulmer-like jazz/rock/funk/punk demon drive! There is great fusion and there is lame (commercial) fusion. This is jazz-rock at its best and it rocks hard. I’ve heard the amazing yet often underrated guitarist Dave Ross with Ras Moshe before but not like the way he delivers here, smoking! The title tune, ‘Blood’, has that old Blood-like sly harmelodic groove/vibe: tight, sorta funky and made to help us feel better with that slamming groove. I like the way the quartet slow things down on “Dixie”, with Mr. Dorr switching to some haunting bass clarinet and Mr. Ross playing his guitar like is trying to break a chain that is holding us down. There are several guitar solos by Dave Ross which will blow your mind here, even at a soft volume, that stream of notes dances furiously like a magic carpet ride. Every once in a great while a disc appears and renews my faith in jazz/rock/fusion. This is the one! I am working on getting a gig for this band because I want to check them out live. You best dig in and go along for the ride with those in the know. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $12 (Another treasure for those who love Great Jazz/rock guitar!)

EVIL GENIUS With MAX KUTNER / STAFEN KAC / MIKE LOCKWOOD - Experiments on Human Subjects (Orenda 052; USA) This is the second disc from Evil Genius, an LA-based trio who feature Max Kutner on guitar & bass, Stefan Kac on tuba and Mike Lockwood on drums. All of the pieces on this disc were written by members of the trio: 6 by Mr. Kac, 4 by Mr. Kutner and one by Mr. Lockwood. The first thing I noticed about this disc is that the some of the song titles are ridiculous: “Skateboarders versus Security Guards: Double Agents in a Proxy war Between the Forces of Good and Evil”. Like their first disc, this trio is tight, ferocious and often intense. They remind me at times of the Minutemen, legendary Southern California hardcore punk power trio known for their untra tight, short, prog-like & political songs. On the opener, “Skateboarders…”, the tuba and guitar double up their lines together while the trio navigate some quick changes. I really like the intense, nervous energy going on here. It is pretty rare to hear a group led by a tuba player but this what makes this band so special. The guitarist is also strong and has to play a series of intricate lines with the tuba player, both are part of a tight knit interwoven tapestry. On “Whole Wheat Heroes”, the trio slows down to a swell marching groove with some mighty fine tuba soloing. Both Kutner’s guitar and Mr. Kac’s tuba get loose on the fast-paced punk/prog/rocker called, “Art Lande’s Sound of Love”. Strangely enough, for the last three songs, Evil Genius slow down and show another side to their sound. The piece features some tasty, post surf guitar which sounds great While Vinny Golia’s (LA-based) Nine Winds label has been releasing discs sporadically, newer labels like Orenda and pfMentum have taken up the slack. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15

RESTROY With CHRISTOPHER DAMMANN / JAMES DAVIS / KEVIN DAVIS / PAUL GIALLORENZO / MABEL KWAN / AVREEAYL RA - Restroy (1980 Records; USA) Restroy is James Davis on trumpet & ring modulator, Paul Giallorenzo & Mabel Kwan on keyboards & synth, Christopher Damman on bass & compositions and Avreeayl Ra on drums. A couple of years back, we received two disc in the mail from a couple discs from two related Chicago ensembles, Restroy & the 3, 5, 7 Ensemble. Both were pretty great, although I hadn’t heard of any of the musicians involved beforehand. For this, the second disc from Restroy, the personnel has changed a bit and now includes a couple of more known Chicago musicians: Paul Giallorenzo (with Guillermo Gregorio & a current trio with Jason Stein & Frank Rosaly) and drummer Avreeayl Ra (Ernest dawkins & Nicole Mitchell). Bassist Christopher Dammann wrote 4 or the 7 pieces here, the others appear to be group improvs. “A Line and a Point” begins with a web of strummed bass strings, somber trumpet, eerie organ and simmering percussion. “Close” is laid back and hypnotic, with inspired slow-burning trumpet quietly bathed in effects and a swirling, churning rhythm team providing the constant cushion. “Many Exiles” sounds as if the ensemble were playing in slow motion, giving the vibe a dream-like haze. Mr. Dammann’s contrabass is at the center of most of these pieces, tapping and plucking the strings like they were a part of an ancient ceremony or ritual. He is a most gifted bassist who deserves to be heard elsewhere. Since the trumpet is the lead instrument here, both keyboards are used in interlocking layers, rather sequencer-like in sound with a couple of quietly brain-melting synth solos. On “Grids”, the piano plays a repeating, hypnotic line in the distance while the electronic keyboard/synth add swirls lines on top with Jon Hassell-like or Miles-muted echoed trumpet also floating above the somber storm. The overall effect is one of a churning haze washing over all of us listening. Another raft of hope floating from the Chicago underground scene. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $10

METAL CHAOS ENSEMBLE - Grain Boundaries (Evil Clown 9168; USA) This version of the Metal Chaos Ensemble is just a duo with PEK on alto & tenor saxes, clarinets, tarogato, flute, accordion, theremin and metal & wood percussion and Yuri Zbitnov on drums, balafon, daxophone and assorted metals & wood percussion. Recorded at the Evil Clown Headquarters on January 31st of this year (2018). The Metal Chaos Ensemble is one of several Leap of Faith off-shoot projects the Mr. Peck has put together over the past few years. This is a slimmed down version, reduced to just founding members of Leap of Faith, PEK and Yuri Zbitnov. This disc opens with what sounds like ritualistic percussion: gongs, cymbals, metal, drums, tubular bells… Mr. Peck usually works with one instrument a time, soloing or building things with shifting percussion underneath or around him. PEK uses a sampler or synth, to alter the sound of his different reed instruments, creating a haunting web hypnotic sounds. The ritualistic percussion builds and expands, adding selective bits of echoes to enhance the ghost-like percussion sounds. The overall effect of listening to this music is one of mesmerizing, disorienting and enchanting in a weird sort of way. - Bruce Lee Gallnater, DMG
CD $10

New On NEOS:

JAMES DILLON / GEORG FRIEDRICH HAAS / REBECCA SAUNDERS / et al - Donaueschinger Musiktage 2016 (Neos 116-17; Germany) Neos present Donaueschinger Musiktage 2016. A collection of compositions featuring Rebecca Saunders, Bernhard Gander, Martin Smolka, James Dillon, Franck Bedrossian, Martin Jaggi, and Georg Friedrich Haas. "The first acid tests of the newly formed SWR Symphonieorchester after the fusion, with some high-carat world premieres." --Dirk Wieschollek Fono Forum January 2018/Critic survey 2017
SACD 1 features the world premieres of Rebecca Saunders's "Skin" for soprano and 13 instruments (2015/16) performed by: Juliet Fraser (soprano), Klangforum Wien, and Titus Engel (conductor); Bernhard Gander's "Cold Cadaver with Thirteen Scary Scars" for 21 instruments (2016) performed by: Steamboat Switzerland, Klangforum Wien, and Titus Engel (conductor); and Martin Smolka's "a yell with misprints" two movements for ensemble (2016) performed by ensemble recherche.
SACD 2 features the world premieres of James Dillon's "The Gates" for string quartet and orchestra (2016) performed by Arditti Quartet, SWR Symphonieorchester, and Pierre-André Valade (conductor); Franck Bedrossian's "Twist" for orchestra and electronics (2016) performed by SWR Symphonieorchester, Alejo Pérez (conductor), IRCAM, and Robin Meier (computer music designer); Martin Jaggi's "Caral" for orchestra (2016) performed by SWR Symphonieorchester and Pierre-André Valade (conductor); and of Georg Friedrich Haas's "Konzert für Posaune und Orchester" (2015/16) performed by Mike Svoboda (trombone), SWR Symphonieorchester, and Alejo Pérez (conductor).
2 CD/SA-CD Set $16

NIKOLAUS BRASS - Works for Clarinets and Strings (Neos 11704; Germany) From a conversation between Nikolaus Brass and Das Klarinettenduo, Beate Zelinsky and David Smeyers, in Donaueschingen in 2006, there arouse the double concerto Zeit im Grund, released on two different Neos CDs: Zeit im Grund/Von Wachsender Gegenwart (NEOS 11112CD, 2013) and Double Concertos by Atli Ingolfsson, Adriana Holszky and Nikolaus Brass (NEOS 11708CD, 2017). This has been the beginning of more future collaborations. In 2009 Brass composed his work "Dialoghi d'amore VI" for the duo, which he expanded into a three-movement work in 2011. Later the quintet "SPUR" for string trio and two clarinets was realized through a collaboration between the Munich based TrioCoriolis and Das Klarinettenduo. For the "5. Streichquartett", Beate Zelinsky and David Smeyers started working together with the Minguet Quartett. This inspired Brass for his trio "Strophen", written especially for Beate Zelinsky, David Smeyers and the violist of the quartet, Aroa Sorin. This CD is completed by "Salut" and "Adieu", both works for clarinet solo.
CD $16

MARCUS ANTONIUS WESSELMANN - Solo Works I (Neos 11709; Germany) Unaccompanied solo pieces, like those brought together on the present CD, are in a category by themselves -- for instrumentalists and composers alike. Nowhere else is the musician left on his own to such an extent, left to his own devices. Moreover, there are often special technical difficulties; since the advent of virtuoso performance, the solo piece has always been a preferred venue for stupendous, exposed virtuosity. Such works for a single interpreter play a major role in the oeuvre of Marcus Antonius Wesselmann, already in a quantitative sense with 19 compositions so far. The composer, who lives in Cologne, has consistently explored the possibilities of various ensemble types and sizes in a body of work that has grown steadily over the past thirty years. Alongside a series of ensemble works, he has repeatedly written solo pieces for various instruments, so that today there is a nearly equal balance in his works catalog between ensemble and solo compositions. With the exception of the piano works ("SOLOS 5", "6", "7", "9", "14", and "16"), Wesselmann has so far chosen a different instrumentation for each work -- here flute, percussion, electric guitar, viola, baritone saxophone, or bassoon in the mix, composed in 1991, stands somewhat apart from the series of works introduced on this CD, for this composition for two-channel tape requires no performing soloist. Wesselmann is essentially concerned here -- according to his own formulation of the basic idea of the piece -- with the "connection and/or mediation of musical and scenic sequences." "SOLO 1" features Helen Bledsoe on flute; "SOLO 2" features Dirk Rothbrust on percussion; "SOLO 3" features Mats Bergström on electric guitar; "SOLO 4" features Garth Knox on viola; "SOLO 9" features Simone Otto on baritone saxophone; and "SOLO 10" features Johannes Schwarz on bassoon.
CD $16

RENE WOHLHAUSER - Vocis Imago (Neos 11719; Germany) René Wohlhauser (composition, baritone, piano, conductor) was born in 1954 and grew up in Brienz, Switzerland. Experiences as a rock and jazz musician, lied accompanist, and improviser have accompanied and continue to accompany his principal activity as a composer of contemporary art music (including chamber, orchestral, and stage works). In recent years, Wohlhauser has repeatedly undertaken tours in Europe as a pianist, singer, and conductor with the Duo Simolka -- Wohlhauser and his own Ensemble Polysono. In 2013, Neos began its CD series "Wohlhauser Edition". He teaches composition, music theory, and improvisation at the Basel Academy of Music (and until 1991 at the Lucerne Academy) and as Professor at the Kalaidos Music Academy. The Ensemble Polysono and the Duo Simolka -- Wohlhauser from Basle specialize in the interpretation of current contemporary music. They go on tour each year in Switzerland and several larger cities in Europe (including Basle, Berne, Zurich, Stuttgart, Munich, Hamburg, Weimar, Erfurt, Detmold, Berlin, Paris, London, and Salzburg). Works for various ensemble combinations, performed by the Ensemble Polysono, Egidius Streiff, the Duo Simolka -- Wohlhauser, and the Treiber-Sontòn Caflisch-Müllenbach Trio.
CD $16

LADISLAV KUBIK - Vocal Music (Neos 11703; Germany) This CD, titled Vocal Music, presents a selection of the vocal works for mezzo-soprano and various instrumental settings, composed by the recently deceased Czech composer Ladislav Kubík during the period 2012-2016, complemented with one of his earlier compositions, "River in Spring on a text by Franz Kafka (1996). Kubík's lifelong interest in poetry and prose, demonstrated over the years by his numerous vocal works, ranged from the ancient Latin texts and traditional Japanese poems through Rilke, Pasternak, and Kafka to the 20th century Czech, Slovak, American, and Polish poetry. Equally wide is the range of musical forms and genres that bear the poetic message; they include large choral works as well as miniature songs, various chamber music combinations, and non-traditional vocal applications, sometimes in symbiosis with an electronic component. Amongst these works, a special place in Kubík's compositional output belongs to the works for mezzo-soprano, partially generated and inspired by the composer's collaboration with the notable mezzo-soprano Phyllis Pancella. Three of the included works, "24 Haiku", "To Be a Poet", and "Magdalene", are dedicated to her. Yet, her performance is effectively supported by Taiwanese-American pianist Hui-Ting Yang and the Czech musicians Jitka Hosprová (viola) and Hana Brozová (flute), as well as the excellent and, for new music, always enthusiastic Florida State University Percussion Ensemble with Alexander Jiménez (conductor).
CD $16

VISIONS & PHURPA - Monad (Cyclic Law 100th Cycle; Germany) "Celebrating its 100th release, Cyclic Law presents an exclusive collaboration between label owner Frederic Arbour's long standing project Visions and Russia's most enigmatic ritual formation, led by Alexey Tegin, Phurpa. Merging Phurpa's penetrating organic meditational chants with the slow-shifting, multi-layered textural drones of Visions, this unique joining of forces resulted in a vastly expansive, time bending spiritual ascent to the great emptiness. Channeled primordial sonorities to alter ones deeper psyche, realising the unity with the whole, the elemental cosmic life force that transpierces us."
CD $15

THE FIVE DAY WEEK STRAW PEOPLE - The Five Day Week Straw People (MBT 013; UK)
MORGAN BLUE TOWN (UK) "The Five Day Week Straw People were a one-off, studio-only British psychedelic band that did one rare album in late 1967 (actually released in 1968) for the budget Saga label. Its ten songs were loosely centered around the concept of a typical weekend in the life of typical working British people."
CD $17

THE PERTH COUNTY CONSPIRACY - The Perth County Conspiracy (Flashback 1011; UK) Flashback present a reissue of The Perth County Conspiracy's self-titled album, originally released in 1970. Despite having completed their debut for Columbia just weeks earlier, in August 1970 Cedric Smith, Richard Keelan, Michael Butler, and other Conspirators recorded another album, exclusively for Canadian radio broadcast. For this recording they'd assembled a fine batch of new material, as well as striking arrangements of songs by Bob Dylan, Donovan, and Smokey Robinson. Warm, atmospheric, and slightly mystical, it's a lost psychedelic folk classic. First ever CD issue; Includes a 16-page booklet with a detailed group history and previously unseen images.
CD $17

LP Section! LP Section! LP Section! LP Section! LP Section! LP Section!

Three Great LP’s from HARRIS EISENSTADT on No Business, Now on Sale! These three LP’s usually sell for $24-$27 each but we just got in sale copies and will be selling for $18 each. If you take all three, you can have them for $45!

HARRIS EISENSTADT // MIVOS QUARTET - Whatever Will Happen That Will Also Be (No Business 107; Lithuania) NY free jazz drummer and composer Harris Eisenstadt brings his talents to the compositional world with this four movement suite performed by the Mivos Quartet of Olivia De Prato, Josh Modney, Victor Lowrie and Mariel Roberts, a creative composition blending melodic and textural approaches to the strings in a bold rendering of Eisenstandt's work. Harris Eisenstadt is a diverse composer and drummer, leading several bands at the same time with Canada day the most popular of each. For this LTD edition, LP-only release, Mr. Eisenstadt has composed for the great Mivos (String) Quartet. I’ve spent quite a bit of time listening to string quartet music over the past few years, from John Zorn, Elliott Sharp, Ben Johnston and Elliott Carter. Mr. Eisenstadt’s work, “Whatever Will Happen That Will Also Be” is in four movements. The music is intense, vibrant, with shifting pizzicato strings erupting between a layer of heaving waves. Since Mr. Eisenstadt is a gifted drummer, there is quite a bit of fascinating rhythmic lines going on throughout. I’ve had to listen to this music several times since I find it difficult to describe certain types of chamber music. I do hear that there is a a few thematic lines which are played one way and then turned in different directions. There is a strong balance between those well-written ensemble passages and the occasional single string eruptions. The pressing and production are consistent high quality but it will take some time to fully absorb the way things develop here. At times it sounds as if the soloist is playing one thing while the rest of the quartet is playing other thematic, seesawing lines underneath. Time for another listening session to hear the depths of what is going on here. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG  
LP $18

THE CONVERGENCE QUARTET [TAYLOR HO BYNUM / HARRIS EISENSTADT / ALEXANDER HAWKINS / DOMINIC LASH - Owl Jacket (No Business 84; Lithuania) “Owl Jacket forms the fourth release over a nine year period from the Convergence Quartet. At the outset, few would have predicted that it would become a going concern, uniting as it did two unknown young English improvisers in pianist Alexander Hawkins and bassist Dominic Lash and two of the brighter emerging talents on the New York scene in cornetist Taylor Ho Bynum and drummer Harris Eisenstadt. But the outfit's continued survival demonstrates not only persistence but also commitment to a strong group identity.
And the traits evident on their successful debut Live In Oxford (FMR, 2007) endure even now in a winning formula of road-tested charts which avoid convention and incorporate both improv attitude and individual prowess. Each member is a leader in their own right as well as an audacious instrumentalist, and as is customary each brings charts to the date. Together they breathe unruly life into abstract structures and intellectual rigor into earthy grooves. But they always preserve a link to the jazz tradition in that meter and melody never stay hidden for long.
A notable spark exists in the back and forth between Hawkins and Bynum. The cornetist excels at understated pyrotechnics. He uses whistles, murmurs, grace notes and muted muttering to circumvent expectations, yet remains resolutely musical. For Hawkins, now recognized as one of the leading lights in the British firmament, exhibitions of instrumental technique similarly take a back seat to doing what's needed at any particular moment. Lash and Eisenstadt, who display both poise and pressure, interlock seamlessly, reveling in making complexity seem natural and unforced.
While the drummer's arrangement of the Ghanaian "Dogbe Na Wo Lo" opens proceedings in a gentle stately processional with a lovely restrained solo from Bynum, it's the bassist's "Jacket" which really gives an insight into the collective method. In a pointillist opening section, Bynum's distant squeal is framed by Hawkins' spare chording. But then comes a change as an uneasy meter kicks in. Hawkins makes a dazzling declaration which piles clipped notes one atop another over edgy bass and drums. Bynum drifts in over the busy interplay until it morphs into a series of overlapping stop start strokes which gradually unite at the close.
The influence of Anthony Braxton looms large, manifest in the diversity of approaches to adventurous small ensemble composition. With its marching cadences and Bynum's ersatz bugle fanfares, "Coyote" especially evokes the reed maestro. "Azalpho" maintains a choppy staccato throughout, although everyone digresses from the form in brief bursts while the others tend to the pulse. Giving a neat symmetry, Eisenstadt's rendering of the traditional Gambian song "Mamady Wo Murado Sa" ushers the limited edition LP to an elegant finale, affirming another fine addition to the band's discography.” - nJohn Sharpe, AllAboutJazz
LP $18

HARRIS EISENSTADT NONET With MARK TAYLOR/SARA SCHOENBECK/JASONMEARS et al - Woodblock Prints (No Business 18; Lithuania) “Drummer Harris Eisenstadt is an artist with many approaches to music. Two years ago he released the fantastic "Guewel" with two trumpets and free african rhythms, last year "Canada Day", which received general acclaim, and now he's back with music that really defies categorisation First of all the line-up is quite unusual with Michael McGinnis on clarinet, Jason Mears on alto saxophone, Sara Schoenbeck on bassoon, Mark Taylor on french horn, Brian Drye on trombone, Jay Rozen on tuba, Jonathan Goldberger on electric guitar, Garth Stevenson on acoustic bass, and of course Harris Eisenstadt on drums.
   Second, the music is inspired by Japanese woodblock prints, as depicted on the cover, yet contrastingly, whereas the Japanese art is purposely created against empty space, the density and complexity of Eisenstadt's arrangements are high, with no space for silence, but that is easily compensated by the overall warmth coming from the horn section.
Third, the compositions are tight, with influences even from classical music in some parts, especially so when Schoenbeck's bassoon comes to the foreground, playing in pure chromatic scales without dissonants, but it is equally big band jazz and rock music. The music can be sweet as Glenn Miller yet as raw and wild as free jazz, which it certainly isn't.
   Fourth, Heisenstadt's lets the band play his music. Although there are rhythmic subtleties galore, this is not a drummer's album: it's all about the music: gentle, compelling, expansive, inclusive, refined, but equally hard at moments, full of power and drive, with sound explorations and sonic expressivity that are only to be found in the most adventurous forms of jazz. 
   Since the music cannot be described, ranging from solemn classically sounding chamber jazz full of counterpoint, to exuberant jazz, I will refrain from doing so. I can only say that Eisenstadt again shows what real creativity means. Surely the result of hard work and many, many try-outs before chiseling this music out of the hard block of musical tradition. It was in there all the time, only nobody saw it ..until now. .. and man, these horns sound so wonderful!”
LP $18

FRANCIS BEBEY - Psychedelic Sanza 1982-1984 (Born Bad Records 064; France) Double LP version with printed inner sleeve. Born Bad Records presents the music of Cameroonian musician Francis Bebey, circa 1982-1984. "The first time I saw a sanza (a type of African 'thumb piano'), it was just sitting there on a piece of furniture in my family's living room/dining room -- a space that our father also transformed into a recording studio every day. It seemed more like a box than a musical instrument: a mysterious instrument, which arrived at our house, like many things, in a somewhat miraculous way. The sounds it produced seemed particularly bizarre; to my young musician's ears, trained in Western classical music, it sounded out of tune. That's because, like my brothers and sisters, I had been trained on the piano. I had trouble understanding how anyone could endure these tones and, honestly, our father's passion for 'unusual sounds' did not interest me. I was in secondary school at the time (the very late 1970s) and was not at all oriented toward musical projects. I planned to graduate, and then become a chef. In the early 1980s, my interest in music picked up. I was still undecided about my career. I was content to pursue my 'serious' English studies while hanging out at jazz clubs at les Halles in Paris, where I sometimes joined jam sessions. Next, I put together my first band with professional musicians; I had hidden my age and lack of experience from them. France was just beginning to accept 'world music.' Musicians of every nationality were performing in Paris. It was a wonderful period. My father asked my brother Toups and me to accompany him for a few concerts. In particular, we toured Tunisia together at the time of the 1983 Carthage International Festival. Back then, my father was renowned across the French-speaking world. Everyone looked forward to hearing his humorous songs, like 'Agatha' and 'La condition masculine.' But, behind the scenes, he continued his research concerning electronic music, the sansa, pygmy polyphony, etc. One day he put a sansa in my hands, without saying a word. He was sending me a message: 'Let's see what you can do with it!' That's when I really discovered something. Exploring the instrument and playing, I transcended the 'imperfect' aspect of its sound and began to discover its fascinating potential. Playing the sansa, you enter a world that enraptures you in a very serene and mesmerizing way. I think its sounds evoke a rainbow, with rain falling while the sun shines. A very peaceful feeling. It allows you to make music that truly sounds like life. The sansa is also the instrument that my father and I shared the most because I am a pianist and he was a guitarist. I also share this eminently African instrument with my musician brother, Toups. Our father loved to tell us one of the legends of the sansa: how it even managed to dispel the boredom felt by... the Creator himself! This instrument gives life to the world, to beings and things. I did not participate in the production of the various records that my father devoted to the sansa. He did it himself, you might say, in his 'laboratory.' Yet today, I cannot imagine playing a concert without using a sansa. The piano remains present so that listeners don't become disoriented and wonder about the weird sounds invading their ears! However, I find the eccentric and disturbing side of sansa interesting. And the sansa always affects the audience: in reality, it excites them. The secrets of this instrument are surely its beneficial powers and... its magic!" --Patrick Bebey
2 LP Set $26

JEAN DUBUFFET - Experiences Musicales De Jean Dubuffet (Cacophonic 022; UK)
Cacophonic present an abridged reissue of Experiences Musicales De Jean Dubuffet, originally released by Jean Dubuffet in 1961. If ever a phonographic accomplishment could encapsulate the precise modus operandi of the Cacophonic label, then the Expériences Musicales sessions made by French born painter, sculptor, music maker, wine merchant, and founder of the Art Brut movement, Jean Dubuffet would be a prime candidate. Originally released as an impossibly rare six record box set containing Dubuffet's first long anticipated forays into sound sculpture and spontaneous artistic noise, these intimate early 1960s recordings show a lesser-known side of this important artist's personality and stand up as a vital document in both fields of contemporary art and experimental music. Finally released to a wider audience and presented complete with Dubuffet's signature style artwork, this abridged vinyl edition includes specific selections curated by the artist himself, in conjunction with experimental music pioneer Ilhan Mimaroglu, and showcase what the two leading lights of modern art consider to be the best moments of this historic session. On this limited vinyl pressing Dubuffet succeeds in translating his unique spontaneous creativity and active support of Low Art into musical forms, a process with which he would also collaborate in his dual compositions with Danish avant-gardener Asger Jorn (for a separate series called Musique Phénoménale). Utilizing a wide range of orthodox acoustic instruments ranging from violin and open piano to duck whistles and not musical apparatus this set of eight pieces (culled from a potential twenty tracks made under the Expériences Musicales banner) sees the work of the artist approaching music from the perspective of "a man of 50000 years ago". Recorded at Galleria del Cavallino in Venice Italy during the first months of 1961, these primary experiments with music followed over twenty years of Dubuffet developing his own unconventional artistic persona as an instantly recognizable pioneer of post-war artistic abstraction. The recordings you will find within the grooves of this LP were created without any reference and in the artist own words "without any discipline, without anything that would present the artist from expressing himself freely and for his own good pleasure". Almost sixty years have passed since this sonic objet d'art was first realized, and with all the technology and the advanced science-of-sound, decades of so-called experimental musicians are still struggling to find that Brut energy within their creative endeavors making this early example one of vital existence.
LP $26

FLOWERS FROM THE ASHES - Contemporary Italian Electronic Music (Stroboscopic Artefacts 006; Germany) Double LP version. 180 gram vinyl; Comes in matte-finish, gatefold sleeve; Includes download card. Flowers From The Ashes: Contemporary Italian Electronic Music is the latest multi-artist project to bear the acclaimed Stroboscopic Artefacts imprimatur. There is a sensibility of decadence and corroded grandeur etched within the album, reminding you that historically "decadent" times have nonetheless resulted in some of the boldest acts of individual and collective creativity. Like the "floral" theme that has remained a consistent feature of S.A.'s graphic presentation, the music here equally presents fragility and intensity in a way that really drives home this visual metaphor for good, while still holding out the promise that similar creations will be seeded in the near future. Though many of the artists involved have set of residence outside of their native Italy, all contribute here to make a captivating portrait of a shared spirit and cultural memory. The album opens with "Errori", deceptively fragile sonic ornaments crafted and suspended in space by Blackest Ever Black artist Silvia Kastel. This is followed closely by the mellifluous, warming glow of percussionist Andrea Belfi's "Spitting & Skytouching", and then by the resolute electric bass patterns and luminous fog of "Lux Et Sonus" from Eeri label head Marco Shuttle. Hospital Productions alumnus Ninos Du Brasil enters with a similarly dense, amorphous construction built from tribalistic chants and rhythmic patterns, to be followed by Mannequin label boss Alessandro Adriani's "You Will Not Be There For The End", showcasing his distinctive take on the "paranoiac breakdance" aesthetic of classic EBM. S.A. veteran Chevel comes in with interlacing several percolating synth lines together into a richly conversational piece. The journey continues with "Starving The Mind", an undulating mini-epic from S.A. founder Lucy that is animated by his signature balance of seductiveness and concentration. The bright, biting acid synth tones of "PRV-HH3-X", by Lory D, then takes a sharp right turn into an invisible metropolis ruled by reflective high fashion and hidden intrigue. The imposing architecture of "Virgo Rebellion", designed by modular synth futurist Caterina Barbieri, acts as an excellent companion piece, and sets up the closing "4G" from Spazio Disponibile co-founder Neel -- a crepuscular serenade that accurately sums up much of the foregoing activity.
2 LP Set $36

JOE MEEK - The Emotional, Cosmic & Occult World Of Joe Meek (Mississippi Records 009; USA) "A trip through the productions of pioneering genius Joe Meek. Here we have a mix of hits that have appeared on comps before and real out-there obscurities. Designed to be highly listenable. Never a dull moment amongst these songs that cover subjects close to Joes' heart such as vampires, love (and the lack of it), death, outer space, the human soul, Buddy Holly, and more. Artists featured are The Blue Rondos, The Blue Men, Jason Eddie and the Centremen, The Sound Offs, The Moontrekkers, Johnny Leyton, The Cryin' Shames, Mike Berry, The Outlaws, Chick Lewis, Glenda Collins and even Joe himself warbling out a tune. One time very small pressing so please don't sleep."
LP $15

BASIL KIRCHIN - I Start Counting! (Trunk 068; UK) Sublime unreleased score for the weird cult/brutalist thriller I Start Counting! (1970). Charming, odd, and affecting score by Basil Kirchin, made "in association" with his regular cohorts, Jack Nathan and John A. Coleman. The film was directed by the multi-talented and quite radical David Greene. Greene was also an actor, a successful producer and had already employed the services of Kirchin for his 1967 horror The Shuttered Room and quirky crime thriller The Strange Affair (1968). I Start Counting!, notably starred a 14-year-old Jenny Agutter, is set in brutalist Bracknell, with Agutter's character living in Royal Point, a classic "threepenny bit" of a 1960s tower block. When she ventures away from the safety of this concrete castle on an obsessive, erotically charged journey, her world is turned upside down. As macabre, coming-of-age thriller, the score for I Start Counting! allowed Kirchin to explore more dark edges of film music and composition: as a score, it bubbles along with lots of classic Kirchin hallmarks, but here you are also treated to a beguiling opening song that is lyrically and musically developed and then slowly pulled apart over sequential cues. There is also an unusual Eastern tinge to some of the percussion and Kirchin's distinctive pastoral oddness is here too. His sonic jumps between low drama and high tension are extraordinary, and his use of free jazz to bring about unease is both perfectly simple and effective. Basil's original idea for the opening song was to have it sung by Cilla Black or Jenny Agutter, but in the end Lindsay Moore, the daughter of jazz chum Barbara Moore stepped in. The score is mighty fine but a little short, so included here is more unreleased soundtrack material from the Kirchin archive -- a tape labeled "Third World Documentary". This dates from the early 1980s and was produced for either TV or a festival and musically complements the first score well, even though they are two decades apart. The names of the musicians working here died with Basil, but the drummer for I Start Counting! may well have been Clem Cattini, Evan Parker was more than likely involved with the session, and possibly Derek Bailey too. As for the later recording, there is a distinctive modern "Fairview" sound to the cues and production. Mastered and sequenced by Jon Brooks, AKA The Advisory Circle.”
LP $28

SON HOUSE - Live At Oberlin College, April 15, 1965 (Rockbeat 3389; USA) "Son House is one of the truly legendary figures in blues and folk music He first came to prominence in 1930 when his first 78RPM recordings for the Paramount label were issued. Like many of the greatest blues singers of the 20th century, Son was born and raised in the Delta region is Mississippi and his masterful and innovative slide work was a major influence on many of the other great singers from that region including Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters. Son stopped performing in the late 1940's as he did not relate to the new powerful amplified blues band sound, and felt no one cared to hear the old style classic blues anymore. It wasn't until 1960 that Al Wilson, a devout blues aficionado most famous for leading the blues group, Canned Heat, tracked Son House down in Rochester, New York and encouraged him to perform once again. Until his death in the late 1960's, Son House performed with all the old power and brilliance that gave him the name 'Father of the Blues'. This fantastic recording was recorded 'live' at one of the many successful Son House appearances and the existence of these tapes was only recently discovered. For the first time, not only his brilliant singing and slide guitar can be heard, but a rare glimpse of the man himself, talking intimately to the audience of his lifetime of experience and what the blues mean to him. This is a rare and unusual performance that no blues lover will want to be without."
LP $22

Back in stock:

LEO SMITH / VINNY GOLIA / BERTRAM TURETSKY - Prataksis (Nine Words)
CD $15

BOBBY ZANKEL & THE WONDERFUL SOUND 6 With DAVE BURRELL / STEVE SWELL / WILLIAM PARKER / DIANE MONROE - Celebrating William Parker @ 65 (Not Two 962; Poland)
CD $17

DKV TRIO [HAMID DRAKE/KENT KESSLER/KEN VANDERMARK] - Latitude 41.88 (Not Two 970; Poland)
CD $17

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Bruce Lee Gallanter’s Recommended Gig List for May of 2018:

THE STONE RESIDENCIES - ADAM RUDOLPH - MAY 8–12

5/11 Friday
8:30 pm - Karuna Trio - Ralph M. Jones (soprano and tenor saxes, c and alto flute, bass clarinet, hulusli, ney, bamboo flutes, sibsi) Hamid Drake (drumset, vocal, udu drum, frame drum, congas, bata) Adam Rudolph (handrumset, kongos, djembe, tarija, thumb pianos, sintir, udu drum, multiphonic vocal, percussion, electronics)

5/12 Saturday
8:30 pm - Adam Rudolph’s Moving Pictures - Adam Rudolph (compostions, handrumset, kongos, djembe, tarija, zabumba, thumb pianos, sintir, multiphonic vocal, percussion, electronics) Hamid Drake (drumset, vocal, frame drum, congas, bata) Ralph M. Jones (soprano and tenor saxes, c and alto flute, bass clarinet, husli, ney, bamboo flutes) Kenny Wessel (el. guitar, electronics, banjo) Alexis Marcelo (fender rhodes, piano, percussion) Damon Banks (el. bass, electronics)

THE STONE RESIDENCIES - JOHN KING - MAY 15 – 18

5/15 Tuesday
8:30 pm “Consurgence of Doves” - Cornelius Dufallo (violin) Jennifer Choi (violin) Lev “Ljova” Zhurbin (viola) Yves Dharamraj (cello) John King (oud)

5/16 Wednesday
8:30 pm - Drone-Duos David Behrman, John King (live electronics)

5/17 Thursday
8:30 pm - More Duos - String Noise: Conrad Harris, Pauline Kim Harris (violins) Chris McIntrye, Jen Baker (trombones) Aleksandra Vrebalov, John King (prepared piano 4-hands)
String Noise: Conrad Harris and Pauline Kim Harris premiere “Triple Threat” for 2 violins; Chris McIntrye and Jen Baker premiere a new work for 2 trombones; Aleksandra Vrebalov and John King premiere new pieces for prepared piano 4-hands.

5/18 Friday
8:30 pm - Micro-Operas, “ping” and “WHAT IS THE WORD” (texts by Samuel Beckett) and “A-R-S” (text by Thomas Aquinas)
Joan La Barbara and Gelsey Bell (voices) John King (viola, live electronics)

THE (NEW) STONE is located in The New School’s Glass Box Theatre
55 West 13th street - near 6th ave
All Sets at The New Stone start at 8:30pm Tickets: $20
There are no refreshments or merchandise at The Stone.
Only music. All ages are welcome.
Cash Only at the door. There is no phone.
There is no food or beverage served or allowed
just a serious listening environment.
The Stone is booked purely on a curatorial basis

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The CORNELIA STREET CAFE - 212-989-9319
29 Cornelia St in the heart of the West Greenwich Village, NYC

Friday May 11
8:35PM MARIO PAVONE, DIALECT TRIO - Mario Pavone, bass, comp.; Matt Mitchell, piano; Tyshawn Sorey, drums

Saturday May 12
8:35PM JACOB SACKS QUARTET - Jacob Sacks, piano; Ellery Eskelin, tenor sax; Michael Formanek, bass; Dan Weiss, drums

Sunday May 13
8:01PM DAVID AMBROSIO QUARTET - Tim Hagens, trumpet; Joel Frahm, tenor sax; David Ambrosio, bass; Billy Mintz, drums

Monday, May 14th:
8:30PM QUARTETTO TOMASSINI - Patrisa Tomassini, violin; Lorenza Ponce, violin; Ina Paris, viola; Nelly Rocha, cello

Tuesday May 15
8:00PM LAUREN LEE QUARTET - Lauren Lee, piano, voice, comp.; Brad Mulholland, sax; Marcos Varela, bass; Andy O'Neill, drums
9:30PM BRAD WHITELY QUINTET - Michael Eaton, tenor sax; Tom Guarna, guitar; Brad Whiteley, piano; Matt Pavolka, bass; Kenneth Salters, drums

Wed May 16
8:00PM ISRAELI JAZZ SPOTLIGHT: DANIEL SARID - Daniel Sarid, piano; Nadar Makel, bass; Od Bymet, drums
9:30PM ISRAELI JAZZ SPOTLIGHT: ALMOG SHARVI - Adam O'Farrill, trumpet; Brandon Seabrook, guitar; Micha Gilad, piano; Almog Sharvit, bass; Luckas Koenig, drums

Thursday May 17
8:00PM JESS KORMAN, “STAND CLEAR OF THE CLOSING DOORS”
Jess Korman, piano, voice, comp.; Mark Wade , bass

Friday May 18
8:35PM NOAH PREMINGER & ROB GARCIA, CD RELEASE: CHOPIN PROJECT - Noah Preminger, tenor sax; Nate Radley, guitar; Kim Cass, bass; Rob Garcia, drums

Saturday May 19
6:00PM CATS OUT OF THE BAG - T Xiques, bass; Mark Dziuba, guitar; Megan Gould, violin; Eric Wood, songs, vocals and guitar
8:35PM JEFF DAVIS DRAGON FATHER TRIO - Ben Monder, guitar; Eivind Opsvik, bass; Jeff Davis, drums, comp.

Sunday May 20
6:00PM AN EVENING OF SONG, POETRY, AND MUSIC - Barry Wallenstein, poetry; Alan Rosenthal, piano; Ken Filiano, bass; Robert Silverman, trumpet; Jeremy Carlstedt, drums; Christopher Greggs, guest poet - An Evening of Song, Poetry, and Music image
8:01PM MICHEL REIS TRIO - Michel Reis, piano; Aidan O'Donnell, bass; Colin Stranahan, drums

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I-Beam Presents:

Saturday, May 12th 8:30 PM
Lena Bloch’s Feathery
Lena Bloch – tenor sax
Russ Lossing – piano
Cameron Brown – bass
Billy Mintz – drums

Saturday, May 19th 8:00 PM
DOUBLE FEATURE!
8:00pm -Mara Rosenbloom – piano
Sean Conly – bass
Emilie Lesbros – voice
9:30pm - Sean Conly Trio
Sean Conly – bass & composition
Michael Attias – Alto Saxophone
Tomas Fujiwara – drums
Tea & Cookies included

Friday, May 25th 8:00 PM
Hank Roberts Sextet Stunt Chicken
8:00 pm - Hank Roberts Sextet
Hank Roberts – Cello
Brian Drye – Trombone
Mike McGinnis – Clarinet
Dana Lyn – Violin
Vinnie Sperrazza – Drums
Jacob Sacks – Piano
9:30 pm - Stunt Chicken
playing music from the golden age of Sesame Street
Joe Fiedler – Trombone
Jeff Lederer/Tenor and Soprano Saxophones
Sean Conly/Electric Bass
Michael Sarin/Drums

I-Beam is located at 168 7th Street in Brooklyn, NY 11215 - Directions: SUBWAY: Take the F or R trains to 4th Ave & 9th Street. Walk down 4th ave to 7th street. Make a left on 7th and walk past 3rd ave. We are located on the ground floor, the grey doors to the right of the stairs of #168.

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SHAPESHIFTER - May, 2018:

May 13
7pm: Jinjoo Yoo Trio double bill with Kihong Jang Trio
9:30: Bob Gingery Group
Bob Gingery - bass, 
John Irabagan -saxophone, 
Mike Baggetta - guitar, 
Jeff Hirshfield -drums

May 14:
8:15p - B's Bees -“ Kanata/Dear Charlie" Album Launch Party; Julien Sandiford - guitar / Joe Ferracuti - piano / Alec Safy - bass / Brandon Goodwin - drums 
 
May 16
8pm & 9:15pm: Migros Kulturprozent Presents: Bridging the World: 
Fabian Ziegler and Felix Reyes Double Bill

May 18
7pm: Laszlo Gardony - Solo Piano
8:15p - MSFS Records 10-Year Anniversary Event
MSFS Records’ 10-Years to the Future w/ Sub-Verse, Elliott, Loop 2.4.3
Artists: Sub-Verse
István B’Racz - piano, synthesizers, samplers
Tom Burnett - electric piano, synthesizers, samplers, voice
Thomas Kozumplik - acoustic and electric percussion
original music by the performers
Rachael Elliott 
solo bassoon with István B’Racz, piano
works by Padma Newsome and David Lang
Loop 2.4.3
percussion, electronics, piano

May 18: 
10pm: Ryan Slatko

May 20
9pm: Bright Dog Red
Joe Pignato, drums and concepts
Anthony Berman, bass
Palemen, electronics
Cully, MC
Mike LaBombard, sax
Jarritt Sheel, trumpet

May 21
6:30PM - BREAKING THE ICE
ICE HS Jazz Band
7:15PM - Songwriting class

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Downstairs @ Bushwick Public House
Monday May 14th
7pm Lior Milliger - tenor saxophone
Welf Dorr - alto saxophone
Adam Lane - bass
Jeremy Carlstedt - drums

8pm Stephen Gauci - tenor saxophone
Sandy Ewen - guitar/electronics
Adam Lane - bass

9pm Andrea Wolper - vocals/electronics
Lauren Lee - vocals/electronics

9:30pm Shawn Lovato - bass
Todd Neufeld - guitar/electronics
Colin Hinton - drums

10:30pm Michael Larocca - electronics
Tristan Pollack - guitar/electronics
Zac Jaffee - electronics
Aaron Rubenstein - guitar/electronics

11:15pm Rodrigo Recabarron - drums
Justin Wert - guitar

1288 Myrtle Avenue, Bushwick / bushwickpublichouse.com
(Across the street from M train Central Ave stop)