HIGHLY RECOMMENDED NEW RELEASES mostly instrumental. A FEW SHORT REVIEWS TO FOLLOW:  
 

• 1.DEREK BAILEY-PAT METHENY-GREGG BENDIAN-PAUL WERTICO-The Sign of 4 (KFW 197) 3cd set for $20.
• 2.BILL FRISELL-Nashville (Nonesuch 79415) $14. feat. Jerry Douglas, Robin Holcomb & Alison Krause's unit
• 3.HENRY THREADGILL & MAKE A MOVE-Where's Your Cup? (Columbia 67617) $14. produced by Laswell
• 4.PAUL SCHUTZE & PHANTOM CITY-Site Anubis (Big Cat 106) $14. w/ Laswell, Coxhill, Priester, Bjorkenheim
• 5.JOHN ZORN-Filmworks IV S/M & More (Tzadik 7310) $14. w/ Ribot, Quine, Baron, Baptista, Emanuel
• 6.MIKE PATTON-Pranzo Oltranzista (Tzadik 7022) $14. w/ Zorn, Ribot, Friedlander & Winant
• 7.KEIJI HAINO/LOREN MAZZACANE CONNORS-Vol. 2 (Menlo Park 7005) $8. recorded by me @ the Cooler
• 8.STEPHEN VITIELLO-chairs not stairs (HDCD-2221) $10. layers of somber, spooky, mutant guitars!
• 9.ELTON DEAN/ROSWELL RUDD QT.-Rumors of an Incident (Slamcd 223) $17. two long pieces
• 10.DIRK MONT CAMPBELL-Music from a Round Tower (ESD 81212) $14. bassist from Egg/Groundhogs
• 11.MUHAL RICHARD ABRAMS-Song for All (Black Saint 120161) $16. w/ Craig Harris & Eddie Allen
• 12.SONNY SIMMONS-American Jungle (Qwest 46543) $14. qt. w/ Reggie Workman & Cindy Blackman
• 13.JIM O'ROURKE VOICECRACK GUNTER MULLER-table chair & hatstand (for 4 ears 820) $17. quiet!?!
• 14.ROSWELL RUDD TRIO-The Unheard Herbie Nichols Vol. 1 (CIMP #133) $14. superb says Slim
• 15.HANK ROBERTS-22 Years from Now (Level Green 22001) $14. solo cello & voice, very nice, welcome back
• 16.ELTON DEAN/KEITH TIPPETT QUINT-Bladik (Cuneiform Rune 92) $14. w/ Roswell Rudd, all improv
• 17.BLAST-Stringy Rugs (Cune. 95) $14. Dutch qt. inspired by Beefheart/Henry Cow/Dr. Nerve
• 18.HAPPY FAMILY-Toscco (Cune. 93) $14. amazing jap post punk/prog insanity!!
• 19.BOB DRAKE-Little Black Train (ReR CTA 6) $15. from Thinking Plaque & Hail, 2nd great solo effort
• 20.ARTHUR BLYTHE/DAVID EYGES/BRUCE DITMAS-Synergy (In & Out 77033) $14. loft jazz improv!!

It seems the Bill Frisell fans I know are pretty well divided on how much they love or hate Frisell's newer, quieter, gentler direction. NASHVILLE is a sort of bluegrass effort, with Bill playing mostly acoustic guitar & restrained electric. His back up unit is Alison Krause's fine finger pickin' group, dobro wizard Jerry Douglas & the sad, lovely voice of Robin Holcomb on 3 trax (another first for Frisell). While I find this effort beautiful, my pals Raymond & Bill are yawning.  

Henry Threadgill's current quintet Make A Move are one of the hottest groups I've seen live in recent years. Producer Bill Laswell captures their unique spirited burning energy on this new cd , "Where's Your Cup?". Each piece begins with Tony Cedras' wonderful harmonium or accordian & Stomu's perfect el. bass. Both Threadgill & guitarist-Brandon Ross, pull off many truly inspired solos throughout, at times reminding me of early Mahavishnu Orchestra. A gem to behold!  

MORE HIGHLY RECOMMENDED NEW RELEASES mostly vocal efforts:  
 

• 1.MEREDITH MONK-Volcano Songs (ECM 1589) $14. excellent collected vocal works, some piano
• 2.BETH ORTON-Trailer Park (Dedicated 61702) $14. exquisite Brit female folky w/ superb arrangements
• 3.LORI CARSON-Everything I Touch (Restless 72923) $14. precious, touching, fragile, lovely...
• 4.YO LA TENGO-I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One (Matador OLE 222) $13. oft mellow & moody & rockin' as well
• 5.LO GALLUCCIO-Being Visited (KFW 186) $13. odd, quirky, cool, stark, weird & magical female singer
• 6.CLASSIC DEFUNKT-Live (GrassRoots 0001) $10. w/ Kelvyn Bell, Ronnie Drayton & Kim Clarke. smokin'!!
• 7.MARK EITZEL-West (Warner Bros. 46602) $14. not as depressing as usual, my fave singer/songwriter
• 8.BLOCK-Lead Me Not into Penn Station (Burning Bush 70014) $14. solid effort from local folk/rock wonder & palomine
• 9.KEVIN COYNE-Knocking on your Brain (Golden Hind 70192) $28. 2cd set German import w/ Gary Lucas on 2 trax!!
• 10.RUN ON-No Way (Matador OLE 229) $13. more melodic & song oriented, Alan Licht 's guitar still mesmerizing
• 11.THE JAYHAWKS-Sound of Lies (american) $14. except for the Byrds reissues, this is thee roots rock cd of '97!!
• 12.WHITE ELEPHANTS & GOLDEN DUCKS-Enchanting Musical Treasures from Burma (Shanachie 64087) $14. incredible!!

ZORNnews: "Traditions in East Asian Bar Bands" cd (Tzadik 7114) has been delayed due to a manufacturing error & will be out in July. On May 22nd there will be only one new Tzadik cd-the much anticipated BURT BACHARACH tribute 2cd set feat. a host of downtowners. There are also two new Avant cd's out at the same time-SAFT/VU's Ragged Jack (#068) w/ Jim Black & Andrew D'Angelo and ALVA's Fair-Haired Guillotine (#072)-wacky avant pop from Florida Gigwise ZORN will be doing a duo gig with his old pal Eugene Chadbourne, with the Phil Minton duo opening on May 13th at the Knit. He'll also be doing a rare improv set w/ Rova's Larry Ochs, Dave Douglas & guests on May 20th also at the Knit. While yours truly will be attending the unbelievable Victoriaville fest in Quebec, ZORN's Bar Kokhba chamber Masada will also be at the Knit for 4 nites, May 15-18.  

ZEENA PARKINS is a harpist extraordinaire & one whose composing talents just get better & better. Every release of hers is great, every solo powerful. On May 11th the Spit Orchestra will be performing pieces by Zeena & Annie Gosfield at the Kitchen. Zeena has a solo cd coming out on Atavistic in the fall. The third part of Zeena's trilogy ("Isabelle" & "Mouth=Maul"were the 1st parts) will be a radio play called "The Opium War", will be released on Einstein Records also this fall & will feature Tenko, Ikue, E. Sharp, Chris Cochrane & Catherine Jauniaux.  

Steven Joerg used to do A&R for Homestead, signing David S. Ware, Matt Shipp & William Hooker. He recently left Homestead to start his own label-AUM Fidelity. His first release will be by the David S. Ware Qt., entitled "Wisdom of Uncertainty" with new wonder drummer Susie Ibarra. It is due out in late June. He has three other projects in the works as well: Joe Morris Trio with Joe's Boston rhythm team, Other Dimensions in Music (Roy Campbell, Daniel Carter, William Parker & Rashid Bakr) new studio recording & the Whit Dickey Trio (Rob Brown & Chris Lightcap). A recent Other Dimensions gig with Matt Shipp as a guest at the Knit was one of the hottest sets of the year!! Congrats & best of luck to Steven..  

Hail, friends of the Empire.The rest of you... beware. Welcome once again to MIKESSPACE (for those of you receiving this for the 1st time, please feel free to request back issues). By way of introduction, I am Emperor Mike- future leader of America and in my alloted space I choose to discuss Music, Women, TV, etc. Seems I'm just an ordinary guy with interests like your own, so... please let me rule.  

Enough groveling. This edition of MS begins with the DEDICATION. This one goes out to Olivia G. who has proven herself to be a True Friend of the Empire and Neosporin which has saved a couple of favored body parts of mine.  

On to DESERT ISLAND __________ . First up is the DI Miscellaneous list sent by CK a longtime Newsletter subscriber and one of my all-time favorite industry persons. Almost verbatim...  

"I'm emailing you on Monday morning with a frustrated attitude and wishing that I could be stranded on a desert island with the following intellectual, visual, and aural stimulation and otherwise...(predictably, in no particular order...)"  
 

• 1. The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon
• 2. Sex, Art, and American Culture by Camille Paglia
• 3. Views from a Tortured Libido by Robert Williams
• 4. The Melvins: 10 Songs
• 5. everything recorded by Rites of Spring
• 6. Scream: This Side Up
• 7. Rollins Band: Lifetime
• 8. The James Brown Complete Box Set
• 9. Bad Brains: Black Dots
• 10. A lifetime subscription and unlimited spending dollars with the Good Vibrations mail order catalog (didn't you say I was on a desert island?)

My own pick for this edition's DI __________ is Industrial/Dance/etc.  
 

• 1. Skinny Puppy- Too Dark Park (played this every day for 3 years)
• 2. Scorn- Ellipsis (proof that remix albums can be great)
• 3. Frontline Assembly- Tactical Neural Implant (still playing "Gun" regularly 4 years later)
• 4. Nine Inch Nails- Broken EP (call me a sellout, this thing still rocks)
• 5. KMFDM- AUIOE (Murder and ya don't stop)
• 6. FearFactory- Fear is the Mindkiller (Industrial/Techno vs. Death Metal. Godly!!!)
• 7. Heavy Water Factory- Author Of Pain (this WILL be a classic)
• 8. Ministry- Land Of Rape And Honey (why not?)
• 9. Skinny Puppy- Vivisect VI (Harsh Stone White still guts uh... gets me)
• 10. Godflesh- Slavestate (Justin Broadrick goes dancefloor)

Onward to REVIEW HAIKU also known as HAIKU REVIEW. This is where I get to flex my poetic/sarcastic muscles, mix Robert Christgau, Daria Morgendorfer and medeival Japanese culture into 17 syllables AND sell stuff to you so I can get paid. Life is good when it's this simple. Included with each poem is the band-title-label and the Recommended If You Like (RIYL) section.  

But first, the Too-Good-For-Just-17-Syllables-Go-Out-And-Buy-It-NOW-!!! review goes to- Hooverphonic's "A New Stereophonic Sound Spectacular". I know little about this Belgian 4 piece except that their music is one of the most intoxicating, hypnotic blends of ambience, indie rock, and dubby trance that has ever graced my ears. I've played this thing 4 times a day, end to end for the last 2 weeks and I still can't get enough of it. Imagine Debbie Harry and the Edge jamming with Curve remixed by Portishead. If this is trip-hop then I'm a trip-hop fan. Can U dig?  
 

Chemical Brothers- Dig Your Own Hole- (Astralwerks)  
(RIYL: Terminator X/Public Enemy without Chuck and Flav)  

not a fan before 
converted by this album 
that kicks butt each time 

Robert Rich/Alio Die- Fissures- (Fathom/Hola Cyn)  
(RIYL: brooding, shivers, last year's Stalker collab with Lustmord)  

earthy chills galore 
still warm enough to enjoy 
on those rainy Sundays 

Joey Beltram- Live Mix- (Logic Records) 
(RIYL: minimalist electronica, LFO, Maurizio)  

JB mixing here 
his beats along with others 
completists only

Tuu- Mesh- (Fathom)  
(RIYL: Steve Roach circa '89-93, O Yuki Conjugate)  

what you have here is 
organic electronics 
done to perfection 

Various Artists- Dreamhouse: Celestial Epics- (Never Records) 
(RIYL: Robert Miles' "Children", Dance Mix USA infomercials)  

trance meets Eurohouse  
excellence blunts the cliches 
waiting in these grooves 

Daft Punk- s/t- (Virgin) 
(RIYL: disco's comeback, adventurous production styles)  

the dance world needs this 
blend of Chic and the Bomb Squad 
Chemical Brothers lite 

Noise Unit- Drill- (Metropolis) 
(RIYL: anything in my DI picks)  

here words do fail me 
buy it for track one alone 
the rest is gravy 

Delirium- Karma- (Nettwerk)  
(RIYL: early Enigma, Sarah McLachlan) "critique in 2 parts"  

entrancing vocals 
float gently from your speakers 
on mellow club beats 

hear this siren call 
walk fearlessly from your stress 
and drown in this bliss

Atari Teenage Riot- Burn, Berlin, Burn!- (DHR/Grand Royal) 
(RIYL: the Industrial Strength label, stress)  

distorted vocals 
thrash metal and punk samples 
breakbeat gabber-core 

Various Artists- Sunshine State of Mind- (FFRR) (RIYL: the California Dreaming comp from a few years back)  

Floridians 
doing dance music so right 
across many styles 

Death Squad- theological genocide (Spastik Kommunikations)  
(RIYL: pre-dental visit anxiety, nerve damage)  

recommended if 
Namanax raping Merzbow 
is your cup of tea

empirion- advanced technology- (wanted/XL Recordings)  
(RIYL: hard trance done well enough to set your teeth on edge with jealousy because in a million years your sorry projects could never write music this good. Was that too personal?)  

imagine with me 
Underworld but edgier 
or Prodigy tamed 

Hanzel Und Gretel- Transmissions from Uranus- (Energy Records) 
(RIYL: Pop Will Eat Itself's later output, funky industrial)  

if you need a fix 
this will get you through the night 
but you'll fiend again

Achtung!!! The mighty NEUROSIS will be playing here in NYC at Irving Plaza on 6/21. Irving Plaza boasts a decent sized stage with better than average lighting that will present the band much better than CBGB or Vinyl could on their last blast through NYC. This multimedia trudge through emotional scarring, spiritual searching and crushing, tribal-metal density should not be missed, especially when it's only $12. Supporting them will be Unsane and EYEHATEGOD. This is the best thing to happen to extreme metal since Voivod.  

Ciao for Niao,  

EM2K- Emperor Mike 2000: A New Monarch For A New Millenium