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MORE NEWS FROM ZORNLAND-Tracks for Zorn's next 'Music for Children' release, due out in October, will include three studio pieces recorded by Frith-Zorn-Laswell-Lombardo the day they played at the Knit jazz fest, there will not be a full length cd by this quartet until they record more material. Sitting in with this quartet were guests Bill Frisell & Marc Ribot. This cd will also include pieces by the Masada String Trio and a percussion duo of Cyro Baptista & Joey Baron. This cd looks to be amazing! 1.DAVE DOUGLAS TINY BELL TRIO-songs for wandering souls (W&W 042) This is the fourth wonderful release by our fave trumpeter Dave Douglas and his trusty trio with Brad Shepik on el. guitar and Jim Black on drums. Dave has composed most of these luscious, melancholy beauts except for two covers - Rahsaan Roland Kirk's "Breath-A-Thon" and classical composer Robert Schumann's "Nicht so schnell." What stands out the most throughout this release are the haunting and beautiful tunes that caress our hearts and sooth our (wandering) souls, especially touching is the delightful grace of "One Shot" and the delicate version of the Schumann piece too. The title tune has the trio quietly unfolding like a precious flower opening up to the life-giving force of the sun, three solo sections held together with a natural thread. Dave dips into the Monk-like magic of fractured rhythm on the appropriately titled "Loopy," as well as the nifty Rahsaan piece, originally a solo effort by Mr. Kirk. The fireworks finally erupt towards the end of this release with "Gowanus" and "Ferrous", where the pace quickens, as does the intensity, with powerful solos from each member of the trio. A pure delight and welcome gem from ever-growing catalogue of Dave Douglas treasures. $14. 2.TIM BERNE PARAPHRASE-Please Advise (Screwgun 70011) This is Tim Berne's second Paraphrase release and they are back with a vengeance. Unlike Tim's usual working unit of Bloodcount, whose long and winding pieces have written sections and open-ended structures, Paraphrase is a total improv based trio who includes Drew Gress on double bass, Tom Rainey on drums and Tim's alto & baritone saxes. Anyone who has see them live, knows they know how to work that improv magic and on this amazing cd they do the same. This release has only two extremely long pieces - "Critical Mass" (41:30) and "Good Evening" (25:01), and hence, the trio gets their chance to really stretch out... Recorded live at the Jazzclub in November of 1998, with that in-your-face ambience that all Screwgun cds utilize. The opening blast of bari, bass & drums totally explodes like a herd of wild rhinos charging, but soon winds down to a more contemplative pace with the alto out front. Everything unfolds in a most natural way, an elastic thread holding it all together - with Drew popping those hypnotic harmonics and Tom erupting at the drums, often with his hands only. Things build to a frenzy once again, reminding me of the throttling John Surman Trio of the early 70's! There is a constant building up & down of density, a flow from one section into the next, tension and release, more tension and more release. A never-ending journey through hills and valleys that makes perfect sense. As with all Screwgun cds, also included is Tim's great salsa recipe, which needs at least five different peppers - sound delish! An absolute gift from the heavens for $14. 3.TIM BERNE & ENTEN ELLER-"Melquiades" (Splasch 805) Enten Eller are a superb Italian quartet that finds common ground somewhere between avant/jazz and (UK influenced) progressive rock. Although I am unfamiliar with any of it's four members, the Italian label Splasch consistently uncovers vast amounts of great modern jazz musicians from Italy, who rarely get noticed over here. Besides special guest - Tim Berne on alto sax, the quartet consists of Alberto Mandarini on trumpet/flugel, Maurizio Brunod on el. & acoustic guitars, Giovanni Maier on double bass and Massimo Barbiero on drums. Enten Eller has composed most of the pieces found here, except for two group improvisations. The writing here is pretty diverse. The opening piece is lovely tune for haunting acoustic guitar & quaint alto sax by Berne. This goes directing into "7/13," a sort of high speed chase for burnin' fast el. guitar, yet it stops for a demented section of out sax, guitar w/ effects noise & bowed bass squealing, followed by some subtle muted trumpet, while the rhythm team swing intensely. The unit sink into a Blue Note-ish head on "Caddau", certainly departure for Tim, who pulls off a strong inside solo. It is the drummer who composes the delicate tune here, a refreshingly laid back chamber jazz piece without drums called "Per Emanuela." The two improv pieces, called "Kubrik 1 & 2" show off the wild side of this unit, but still have a sense of purpose at the center, holding it all together. What makes this project so grand is how well Tim fits into all of the proceedings, no matter what direction things develop. Nice to hear Tim in new surroundings, certainly the furthest inside he has gone that I can recall. A nice date on all levels. $15. 4.TIM SPARKS-Neshamah (Tzadik 7138) When John Zorn heard Tim Sparks' solo acoustic guitar versions of the music of Bela Bartok, Zorn was completely blown away. Introduced to Sparks from finger style acoustic guitar great Duck Baker, Zorn challenged Sparks to do a solo cd of klezmer tunes from around the world and this is the result. Tim mentions the thread that runs through all of this music that comes from eastern Europe, the middle-east, the Mediterranean, north Africa and the Americas. All pieces are quite beautiful, delicate yet engaging as Tim embellishes each piece with his a variety of jazz, classical and traditional styles. There is not an uninspired or anything less than engaging piece on each of the 15 tracks. It is rare for something so beautiful to also be so intricate and filled with immense technique. A must for all lovers of that pure acoustic guitar sound! $14. 5.LEE HYLA-Riff and Transfiguration (Tzadik 7048) Zorn refers to Lee Hyla as one of America's most important composers of (modern) concert music, this is Lee's second release for (Avant) one of Zorn's labels. This release features the piano with three works for solo piano and one piece for the Callithumpian Ensemble conducted by (Zorn interpreter) Stephen Drury. "Third Party," Lee's most recent piece here is just under five minutes, but covers a wide range of textures/ideas, from the use of stopped notes inside the piano to the sparse/dense/sparse fractured second half. "Basic Training" was written for and played by Stephen Drury, tracing the development of the piano from neanderthal-like thuds through various transformations, a sort of mini-history of the piano. The ensemble piece, "Amnesia Variance" is the oldest one here and odd instrumentation includes clarinet/bass clarinet, hammered dulcimer, violin, viola, cello and piano. The hammered dulcimer, most often found in folk or ethnic music, even with it's limited range stands out as a vibrating central source in this dark and demanding work. The title piece is the longest & richest piece found here and based on a riff which is transformed throughout its seven movements, a stunning performance by Mia Chung! Completely challenging, both performance and composition-wise, for all four works on this marvelous release. $14. 6.KOREKYOJIN-s/t (Tzadik 7223) This instrumental power trio is led by Ruins mastermind and powerhouse drummer extraordinaire - Tatsuya Yoshida, with startling el. guitarist - Kido Natsuki and el. bassist - Nasuno Mitsuru. The Ruins are merely an el. bass & drum duo, who blew away the Tonic crowd with their extra tight & brutal force just last month. Their leader - Tatsuya, seems to work on more (solo) projects than anyone can keep up with and is a Magma fanatic, as many of his/their recordings show. Korekyojin is fucking amazing! Super tight, stop-on-a-dime frenetic and furious playing, that rarely lets up. Tatsuya composed most of the material here and loves to write incredibly quick, busy and difficult lines that keeps all three players on their toes throughout. The three group improvs show a different side where ethnic drum samples mix well with acoustic guitar and el. bass at a much less frantic pace. Some of this is even reminiscent of the Minutemen, with ultra-quick, tight spew. These cats throw in a number of surprises, crazy funk riffs, occasional jazz grooves and a few mind-blowing guitar solos for the needy. This cd is a feast for those who can deal with their almost relentless intensity. Fusion fans and even some adventurous critics might want to check this out! Are you amongst the few?!? $14. 7.TRONZO GRANELLI EPSTEIN-crunch (Love Slave 101) In the past decade since slide guitar hero Dave Tronzo has come to town, he has been an invaluable and unique addition to each ensemble he has played with - The President, Lounge Lizards, Spanish Fly, his own trio and an assortment of solo and group improv situations, like this here trio. After spending a year in Amsterdam, he is back in the apple and currently fronts an excellent quartet called Slowpoke (w/ Michael Blake, Tony Scherr & Kenny Wollesen) - whose cd on Intuition might not ever be released here - bad news! In the meantime, we have this fine release to savor! This great improv trio consists of J.A. Granelli on basses (son of fine drummer Jerry Granelli & owner of this new label) and Peter Epstein on saxes. Tronzo is a master of weird sounds emanating from his el. guitar, often by using a cup, bottle or other unexpected object as a slide for his guitar. Half of these pieces are group improvs called "Things", often slow and mysterious, with hazy shades and shadows. The trio sounds as if they have been together for a long time, since the improv pieces sound as if they can anticipate each other's moves so well, that the pieces sound composed. Usually one player will provide the pulse or skeletal structure, while the other one or two fly out to the stratosphere. On "Dance of the hillbilly robots," Tronzo starts to add some fuzz & wah effects, sort of Hendrix-like, but more restrained. Peter Epstein plays mostly soprano sax on this cd and has a sly yet soothing tone, usually snaking his way around Tronzo's excursions simpatico. It's been a while since we Tronzo freaks have had some new material, so grab this up, while we try to get ahold of those Slowpoke cds. $12. 8.WILLIAM PARKER/IN ORDER TO SURVIVE-Posium Pendasem (FMP 105) This is a live recording from April of '98 in Berlin with Assif Tsahar on reeds as a guest. Since then, there has been some bad blood this year and now both Susie Ibarra & husband Assif are no longer involved in any of William Parker's projects. A very sad split which is beneficial to no one involved. In Order to Survive is one of the finest out/jazz units to emerge from NY in the 90's and each member is integral to its powerful sound. Rob Brown is on alto sax & flute, Assif Tsahar has been added on tenor sax & bass clarinet, Cooper Moore is on piano, Susie Ibarra was their special drummer and monster bassist William Parker is their leader & main composer. This magnificent music builds to devastating frenzy pretty quickly, as all five players combine forces and erupt into a massive cloud of overwhelming spirits. As Peter Kowald's heart-felt liner notes attest, William's eye of the storm acoustic bass playing as always at the center of the hurricane, pushing all members & providing the glue for the explosive winds surrounding it. Although I have yet to see an article on this amazing pianist - Cooper Moore, he continues to be a force to reckon with; Cooper also has invented & plays a slew of home-made instruments and is also currently a member of Susie's new trio. After an early climax, the action finally slows down, so each member can get his or her turn to build the temple once more and eventually solo as if their lives depended on it! A complete blast for $17!! 9.URI CAINE/TIN PAN ALLEY-The Sidewalks of New York (W&W 038) Uri Caine is at it again! Here is his third concept release for the beautifully packaged Winter & Winter label. First was his ultra successful tribute to Gustav Mahler, then there was that quirky tribute to Wagner, and earlier this year a cd exploring Jewish themes on KFW. This release explores music made in New York around the turn of the century (1892-1915). The Tin Pan Alley Orchestra includes Don Byron, Dave Douglas, Mark Feldman, Ralph Alessi & Josh Roseman, as well as some dozen or so vocalists. All 27 tunes are covers from the likes of George M. Cohan, Scott Joplin, Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, Eubie Blake & W.C. Handy. This is certainly a journey back into the New York of a century ago and my, how things have changed. Remember, all of these tunes pre-date jazz and all the other music styles we have come to love afterwards. There area number of effective interludes where Uri's old-time piano links little vignettes with sounds from the streets of NY, making this one long suite. In many ways, I can hear how this would appeal to our grandparents, since these are the songs of their youth and it is dedicated to Uri's grandfather. Corny you say? Charming I say. This whole work makes me smile. A toast to the good old days... $14. 10.STEVE DALACHINSKY-incomplete directions (KFW 235) In the early days of the old Knitting Factory, there were five of us who could be found at most of the downtown gigs as often as is possible. First there were & still are Stephanie & Irving Stone, who have been going to Zorn gigs longer than my twenty year friendship. Second, there are/is Steve Dalachinsky & his wife - Yuko Otomo, both poets and lovers/supporters of the avant scene. The five of us have ended up on the Knit's permanent guest list, because of our constant support to our second home. When I first met Steve a decade ago, he was more of a jazz head, but has since opened up to many types of modern music, the two of us seem to never tire of going to see/hear as much live music as is possible! Steve is also a fine poet who some of you may recognize as the cranky but lovable mc of the Vision Fest. This is Steve's first release and he reads his eloquent & real poetry, accompanied by solos and duos, the cream of the downtown scene do their best. These musicians include Daniel Carter, Sabir Mateen, Vernon Reid, Thurston Moore, William Parker, Mat Maneri, Susie Ibarra & Assif Tsahar, Matt Shipp, Roy Campbell and Stephanie Stone. The job of the poet is to put into words that which is so special to all of us, that which is too elusive to descibe. Steve does a fine job of illustrating that unique release/spirit we all search for in music. These poems cover the frustration of life in NYC, the pain & confusion of trying to make sense of that which is not fair - friends who die too young and musicians who struggle for survival and recognition. This cd is produced so that the music never obscures the words and all of the poetry is included in the booklet to ponder on it's own. Poems from 'the book of ice', to be absorbed quickly before they melt. A special mazel tov (congradulation) to one of my favorite new music junkies & pals. $13. 11.TODD CAPP & THE IMPROVISING ORCHESTRA-Vol. 1 : Quintessence (Lucky Tiger 10013) Although I attended dozens of loft jazz gigs throughout second half of the 70's, there were so many new players coming to town all the time, that I did miss a few gigs & musicians. Drummer & organizer Todd Capp was one such name that I can't recall. Todd lived in & ran a loft on Reade St. and formed an improv ensemble in the fall of '78. This historic cd/session comes from one such gig in November of that year at the BragrTimes/Tanglewood Gallery downtown. Half of the players here are ones whose names I now know - Ray Anderson, William Parker & Rashid Bakr, yet the other amazing players include names I don't recognize - Arthur Williams on trumpet, James Lott on alto sax, Kim Starner on el. guitar and Augustus Goertz on percussion. The liner notes tell the stories of these musicians then and since, but it is the free spirited music of this long lost gem that really will still blow some minds. Even twenty years back, William Parker was still pumping the bass like a man possessed, pushing the soloist up toward the heavens! In many ways, this music is timeless, this sounds like it could've been from any decade from the 60's onwards. The unknown players are especially a revelation - Arthur Williams' trumpet, James Lott's alto and Kim Starner's el. guitar - all play immense, startling and intense solos. Kim, who now lives in Greece and plays oud, pushes the envelope here from thick noisy shards to quiet jazzy reflections. Much of this reminds me of the 'Wildflower Sessions' five lp set, recorded at Sam Rivers' loft - Studio Rivbea, most of which I attended. This is a cosmic slice of history to be cherished by out/jazz lovers worldwide! $14. 12.MAT MANERI TRIO-So What? (Hatology 529) This has been a great year for violinist Mat Maneri - he has gotten married and moved to Brooklyn, has played incredible duets with Matt Shipp at the Knit last year and with Cecil Taylor at the Library of Congress in February of this year, continues to play extremely challenging music with his father Joe Maneri and el. guitarist Joe Morris, and has just recorded a solo violin cd for ECM! This is Mat's second release for the Hatology label and it features his trio of Matt Shipp on piano and Randy Peterson on drums, two cohorts that Mat has played with for many years. Maneri plays electric violin here (but with no effects) and certainly not like any other jazz violinist I've heard. The title track is of course a Miles Davis standard from the late 50's, the trio also cover three other Miles tunes - I can't recall Mat doing many (any?) covers before, so this is a unique challenge for them and us. The trio appears to deconstruct these hallowed melodies, like the way Ran Blake twists standards into almost unrecognizable nuggets. Mat covers Miles' "Circle" in molasses by slowing it down to a snail's pace, everything/everyone gets thicker as time is suspended. On "Solar" the trio move in the opposite direction by speeding up and almost setting the theme free. The other 5 pieces were composed by Mat Maneri and for me work better without the weight of Miles' melodies holding them down. These distinctive originals provide a free yet closely knit web of invisible structure, where all members of the trio seem to solo simultaneously, yet still cast their spell of golden thread. Dynamic & difficult music for those searching for a pathway through confusion. Say what!?! Say 17 bucks. 13.DAVID MOSS & SERGEY KURYOKHIN-Two for Tea (Long Arms 980101) The strange thing is that I attended the New Music America Fest in Miami in December of '88, where this duo gig took place, but this seemed to have been a mystery gig, that the overall organizer (Joseph Celli) tried to stop, so I didn't even know about it until now. I have long been a fan & friend of percussionist/vocalist/odd character David Moss, since the early days of the downtown scene almost 2 decades back. He has been living in Berlin since '91, records infrequently and comes back to the US to play even less. In the past year, there is that wacky release on Intakt called "Time Stories" featuring five avant singers we all dig and a fun gig at the Kitchen where David improvised with Min Xiao-Fen & Anthony Coleman while the audience consumed food & drink that was cooked in front of us. So he is certainly no stranger to weird gigs! The late Sergey Kuryokhin was an amazing Russian pianist, brilliant/demented big band leader and someone I'm much less familiar with. I can only recall seeing/hearing him once live (duo with Zorn?) at the old Knit and not knowing what to think of his over-the-top piano playing. I dug his duo cd with Henry Kaiser on Ryko, but once again, they both try to hard to do too many different things. Which brings us to this... Sergey commences the gig with a very long solo piano piece that seems to cover a myriad of styles, genres, from Russian folk music themes to dizzyingly quick Nancarrow like passages. Holy shit(!) is about the only response we can make. Does this guy ever come up for air?!? Sergey even reaches into his bag of tricks and pulls out turn-of-the-century songs/segments, a boogie woogie section, romantic pastoral classical episodes, cartoon chase scenes, Khachaturian inspired silliness - one continuous, ridiculous ride through the mountains and valleys of Russian humor and seriousness on solo piano. The duo with David Moss is much shorter and more fun - vocal insanity in which David conjures a variety of bizarre voices-characters. This recording is especially meticulously clean and warm for a live set. Of course, there is a hilarious hip-hop segment, fake opera lunacy and surprises too difficult to describe. A consummate magical offering for all us fine folk who dig this absurd type of prize. $15. 14.JAD FAIR & KRAMER-The Sound of Music (Shimmy5095) Two misunderstood twisted/geniuses, this duo. It really shouldn't surprise me, but this has to be one of lost pop gems of the year. Jad Fair has a ultra-distinctive disturbing/innocent voice that some love (like myself)and some probably hate. Jad also plays twisted/cool guitar, mainly found in his occasionally brilliant band - Half Japanese. Jad just sings here and gets to expand his collection of strange characters while Kramer comes us with all this phenomenal music. "Elinor" sounds like T-Rex in its primitive rockin' silliness. Kramer sound as if he has been listening to 'Ethiopiques 4' on "The Faceless Man" with its cheesy farfisa psych grooviness, backwards guitar & chanting... I hear some Soft Cell and some Suicide on "Sleeping Beauty," two bands not held back by the use of drum machines. Kramer's guitar is often shimmering in all its psychedelic splendor due to his perfected 60's production sound. Great music to sink into, when it doesn't get to spooky like on "Annie Oakley" which gives me the chills. The title track, which ends this cd, is filled with layers of Beatles-esque chiming, mesmerizing guitars - a well placed closer along with Jad's layers of odd vocal sounds. This fine but twisted cd is certain to be ignored by the masses - don't be one of them, you know better. $13. 15.SAM RIVERS' RIVBEA ALL-STAR ORCHESTRA-Inspiration (BMG 64717) w/ Steve Coleman, Greg Osby, Chico Freeman, Gary Thomas, Hamiet Bluitt, Ray Anderson, Joseph Bowie and many more. Everyone raved about this incredible (17 piece) orchestra when they played at Sweet Basil in September of '98. They recorded a wealth of material the following week, this outstanding cd being the first volume to be released - on a major label...will wonders never cease!?! Sam Rivers has been living and teaching in Florida for the past few years, he continues to be an inspiration to many current & former students & fans worldwide. After almost a decade of no new domestic releases, (German based FMP did put out solo, duo & workshop cds) Sam's superb trio of former students - Doug Mathews on bass & Anthony Cole on drums have toured extensively and did self release a fine trio date a couple of years back. The same fine rhythm team are also on this marvelous release. Sam tells us that each of the seven compositions on this cd usually last about 50 minutes long, so pieces have been condensed to fit on this release. Steve Coleman both produced and helped Sam get signed to BMG, so special thanks must go to Steve. Since all three M-Base saxists are on this recording, it sounds as if Sam has been inspired by their unique cyclic funky approach, very much in evidence on "Vines," where all the saxists play exhilarating, short & focused solos. Although these compositions were written over thirty years (with minimal documentation), Sam's vision is what holds this altogether, as well as his distinctive tone & soloing (often on soprano) throughout. Sam has charted a number of pieces in which all the horns swirl in dense textures, with alternating timing, mixing swing, latin & funk in the grooves. Surprisingly, on the both the oldest ("Beatrice" from '68) and newest ("Solace" from '95), Sam has written some twelve lovely melodies that intersect and complement the main theme and show the warm soul at the center of this immense ensemble. The title track is dedicated to and inspired by Sam's former bandleader Dizzy Gillespie and shows Sam's historic thread of jazz history through his adventurous but swinging big band wonder. An absolute winner. $15. 16.CAMPER VAN CHADBOURNE-Used Record Pile (KFW 252) While Eugene solo sets/cds are always a blast, it seems as if his collaborations with bands (Shockabilly, Sun City Girls, Evan Johns...) brings out this best in his crazed output. His work with Camper Van Beethoven was especially great at bringing out the best in both parties. A few months back Dr. Chad got back together with two former CVB members - Jonathon Segal & Victor Krummenacher for three wacky nights at the Knit's Old Office. This groovy cd is a great compilation from four out-of-print CVC lp releases from '87 to '91. Special guests include Bay area's Bruce Ackley (from Rova) on soprano sax and Graham Connah on keyboards (w/ 3 fine but overlooked cds on Rastascan). While Eugene is known to do about half cover tunes in any particular set, here he only does about four out of sixteen, concentrating more on his endearing, hilarious and politically barbed original tunes. Only Dr. Chad could open with a sort-of countrified version of King Crimson's "I Talk to the Wind," a total hoot for those who can laugh at the seriousness surrounding one of prog rock's founders. Another highlight is the ridiculously cool Mothers of Invention medley from 'We're Only in it for the Money,' sure to get a chuckle. Roger McGuinn's "Ballad of Easy Rider" gets a quaint & touching rendition, as does the tears-in-my-beer version of country standard "There Stands the Glass." Dr. Chad's original tunes often show his most effective political satire, both dated by the events of the time, but still provocative since some things never change. The band gets a chance to stretch out, rock out and often go wild on these pieces. My only complaint would be that this cd is indexed for only 8 tracks, when there are twice as many. Could this have been laziness on the part of someone at the Knit? Great stuff anyhow! $13. 17.OTOMO YOSHIHIDE & KESHAVAN MASLAK-Without Kuryokhin (Long Arms 99021) Originally this was supposed to have been a trio tour of Russia with Sergey Kuryokhin on piano, Otomo on turntables & samples and Keshavan on reeds, mini guitar & voice. Sergey's untimely death in 1996 forced the trio to become a duo for two special gigs in St. Petersburg & Moscow in November of '96. This release is from the Moscow gig, half live and half live & remixed by Otomo. Keshavan is also known as Kenny Millions and has that twisted sense of humor that Sergey also loved to dip into. Otomo also seems to be inspired by Sergey's odd & unexpected ever-changing approach, with piano samples possibly from Sergey himself. The live tracks show a thoughtful, minimalist approach which blends silly wordless vocals and funky sax with suspenseful samples and an appreciative audience to egg them on. The remixed live tracks are much wackier, with Otomo's diverse manipulations of Kehavan's sax, clarinet & voice samples. It sometimes sounds as if my cd player is skipping, but this is just Otomo's doing. There is one track of noise explosions for those who need these extremes, but not for too long. Overall, this sounds more like an Otomo excursion, with all of its layered samples weaved together. A piano was placed on stage at both of these gigs in respect for Sergey, his spirit seems to inhabit this fine release. $15. 18.GEORGE SCHULLER QT.-Tenor Tantrums (New World 80522) w/ Tony Malaby & George Garzone on tenor saxes, Ed & George Schuller on acoustic bass & drums. Although each member of this quartet is a veteran, with many years of experience under their collective belts, many of us have only come to know and dig Tony Malaby over the past year or two. I can recall a couple of fine sets with Tony's group which includes Tim Berne at the Old Office & Internet Café this year. George Garzone's monsterous tenor has blown me away in the past with his incredible free-blowing trio - The Fringe & George Russell's Orchestra. Ed Schuller has consistently played great in a dozen or so settings over a decade, but most recently with the Jazz Doctors (led by Billy Bang & Frank Lowe). I've only heard George Schuller with his excellent large ensemble Orange Than Blue, which has included both downtown greats Dave Douglas & Chris Speed. Which brings us to this superb release... George Schuller arranged all & composed all but two of the tunes here. The opener is Ornette's "Free," certainly a difficult piece to pull off, but well done by this fine quartet. The other cover would seem to come from another universe - the rarely heard "Loose Bloose" by Bill Evans, actually shows the quartet's modest lyrical blend of soprano (Tony) and tenor. It is George Schuller's originals that provide even more of a challenge overall. This is a very solid jazz quartet, where each member is an equal part of the seamless formula. The title piece has both tenors swirling fiercely together, while the rhythm section pushes hard from underneath. Guest trumpeter Dave Ballou also blows up a storm on his muted horn on "The Symtons." "Boogie Two Shoes" has a funky groove where both soprano & tenor saxes get down. It is Schuller's fine writing & arranging which often stands out here, providing demanding structures for these cats to rise up to. A slow burner of a fine work. $14. 19.KEITH TIPPETT-Friday the 13th (NRL 10001) As many of you may know, Keith Tippett is and has been my favorite pianist since seeing & hearing him live when I lived in England in late '75-early'76 and hearing his two astounding early records 'Dedicated to You...' and 'Ovary Lodge'. Contrary to what some may think, he was never an actual member of King Crimson, but did play on "Catfood" and Soft Machine did borrow (and even keep Elton Dean) his phenomenal horn section for their 'Third' & 'Fourth' releases. Unfortunately for us Americans, he has only toured the US once - almost a decade ago at the old Knit. Some of us have been lucky enough to see/hear Mr. Tippett play an amazing solo set at the Victoriaville Fest a while back, but it was this year's outstanding concert at Victo by Keith's amazing Mujician quartet that few of will ever forget. Besides the superb Victo solo release, FMP has also released three earlier solo piano records, each one a (sometimes dark) treasure. This release is yet another rare solo piano recital from Japan, recorded on Friday the 13th of June in 1997 and the gods are smiling on us once more! Keith begins at the low end of the piano, filling the air with rumbling, suspense filed, resonant, mysterious, pedal down dark clouds of notes. The ominous rumbling builds slowly as the middle part of the piano is also explored, the fog becomes more & more dense. As the rumbling dies down, Keith begins to punctuate with minimal percussion and a small block of wood inside the piano to mute and make the notes tingle. There is light at the end of the tunnel, a little ray of hope as the fog clears. The second half Keith intersperses quieter sections with occasional lightning flash lines, quite a grand mix of different vibrations. Although this was recorded on Friday the 13th and begins in utter darkness, by the end we've all been transported to a better and more hopeful place. Once more Keith Tippett has taken us on a miraculous journey. Transport yourself with this wonderful Japanese cd for $16. 20.MATT WILSON QUARTET-Smile (Palmetto 2049) This is a perfect title for this very wacky young jazz quartet, that continues to make everyone who encounters them smile. Their leader & drummer Matt Wilson is a much in demand player who Thomas Chapin used for one of his last projects. Andrew D'Angelo, who plays bass clarinet & alto sax, also seems to get around, from Erik Friedlander's Chimera to Saft/Vu (both on Avant). The other two musicians - Joel Frahm on tenor & soprano saxes and Yosuke Inoue on basses, I am unfamiliar with. Even within one tune, you never know which direction/genre these cats will go. "Wooden Eye" goes back & forth between a free section and an r & b stomper section, definitely unexpected surprises are in store. Even the four covers range from cool to corn. Monk's "Boo Boo's Birthday" gets a mellow, unquirky treatment, while Trane's difficult, uptempo standard - "Grand Central" swings at an adrenalin rush pace. Frank Sinatra's 60's hit "Strangers in the Night" gets a lovely, quiet, dreamy rendition and the closer - "I've Found a New Baby" sounds like a dixieland spoof. The other tunes were written by Matt or Andrew and really show the quartet's crazy side. Matt's "A Dusting of Snow" actually sounds like it's title - a rustling of leaves & snowflakes. Andrew's "Big Butt" has sort of an odd funk line, with bass clarinet & tenor chattering to it's finger-snapping beat, while his "Making Babies" also juxtaposes quick double sax squealing with a slower number-counting chorus. Matt wrote the soft, haunting "Daymaker" for his daughter Audrey and it is most endearing. The out/jazz insanity really erupts on "Go Team Go!", which is held together by the fits of drums in sections of solos. All in all, a fun cd , guaranteed to make you 'Smile.' $14. 21.RALPH ALESSI & MODULAR THEATRE-Hissy Fit (Love Slave 102) w/ Ralph Alessi on trumpet, Peter Epstein on saxes, Hank Roberts on cello, Shane Endsley on drums & trumpet and Carl Walker on voice. Although many of us know of great cellist Hank Roberts, saxist Peter Epstein also seems to be becoming more of a known quantity (his trio w/ Dave Tronzo is reviewed above), Ralph Alessi is a name that I am also just becoming familiar with. I just noticed his name on the new Sam Rivers Big Band cd also reviewed up top. This cd is taken from a performance at the Bop Shop in Rochester, NY and from a session at Ralph's house the next day. Since there is no bassist, the drums & cello often provide the bottom end groove. The overall vibe of this cd is one of somber improv, with an understated beat - the trumpet, sax & cello mingle, slowly letting the sparks fly. Their occasional vocalist is also known as "Kokayi" and is the hip-hop type, telling tales of the drudgery of life on line. A few of these pieces take quite a while to build, when they finally do, the trumpet & sax weave hypnotic, circular lines together. "Ice Man" is a nice, short, melancholy cello solo piece. On "Litost" the horns & cello also slowly hover together without the drums, perhaps that's their drummer Shane Endsley on the other trumpet. On Epstein's piece "Ornette's Advice", the energy finally begins to erupt with the drummer pushing harder to kick the horns & cello in high gear. The well needed excitement is a bit too late for a cd that takes too long to get there. This release is mostly good for late night listening. $12. 22.Rabih Abou-Khalil-Yara (enja 9360) Radih is a superb oud player from Lebanon, who seems to have some ten or more fine cds on the enja label, the three or four that I own are all great. He seems to have the knack for always choosing just the right musicians for each release. Sometimes America's best jazz players, sometimes players from Europe or the middle east. On this work, he uses Dominique Pifarely on violin who also plays in French clarinet master Louis Sclavis ensemble, Vincent Courtois on cello and Nabil Khaiat on frame drum. The luxurious music found on 'Yara' was written for a film of the same name for director Yilmaz Arslan, all composed by Rabih. This music is immensely beautiful, completely haunting and mixing quaint ancient melodies with reflective restraint. The violin and cello are a perfect match that enhance Rabih's oud playing throughout the entire cd, while the frame drum also outlines the sly ancient sounding skeletal rhythms. On a number of these pieces, the tempo is faster and Rabih's plays some unforgettable burning oud solos! An exquisite and enchanting release on all levels. The outstanding cover art also adds to this gem with it's gold and silver thread interweaved & embossed so beautifully. All this for $14. 23.BRIAN ENO-Sonora Portraits 1 (Materiali Sonori 90110) Includes a 95 page booklet and cd of rarities. Eno has long been a true renaissance man - sound manipulator & non-musician for Roxy Music, collaborator with Robert Fripp, David Bowie, Robert Wyatt, Jon Hassell, John Cale & Jah Wobble, producer for Talking Heads, Devo, U2, pop star & recording artist in his own right, inventor of the term & type of sound known as ambient music. I have always found most of what he says & does to be quite fascinating. This wonderful release does an a fine job of capturing his unique vision, with lengthy articles about his views & explorations, interviews with Eno himself (in both English & Italian), a concise cronology of Eno's professional career and a list of numerous websites to gather more info/opinions from. The cd compiles mostly ambient works both in & out of print from the likes of Eno's 'Music for Films III' and Derek Jarman's 'Glitterbug' soundtrack. This entire project was done with much care obviously, and word is that even Eno is happy with the outcome. Both the long articles in the booklet and the cd leaves us with much to ponder about this ever fascinating individual. One interesting point that Eno makes early on was his attempt to remove his own personality from his projects, so that the landscape or soundscape would become a place for people to be inside rather than us staring at the vocalist in the center of the mix. From the same company that brought us that great book/cd on John Zorn, an Italian import for a measly $15. 24.ODEON POPE TRIO-Ebioto (KFW 245) w/ Odeon on tenor sax, Tyrone Brown on upright bass & Craig McIver. Odeon Pope is a great sax player who played for many years with seminal Max Roach Quartet and has led his own Saxophone Choir for a long time as well. All but one of these tunes were composed by Odeon, with only "Tribute to Duke and Mingus" written by their bassist. The sax trio is always a challenge for each member, without another instrument in the frontline and no piano or guitar to accompany. This is a strong & solid trio, well balanced and exciting, each member an important part of the whole. This music is not that out, it is much more focused and swings in its own way, there is no angry screaming sax to be found - Odeon's tone has a more melodic edge, this is much more of a group effort. There is one piece with a rather hypnotic repeating bass part that I dig, but since both the back of the cd and the booklet both give different order to the pieces, I am unsure which title is right. The Knit folks should really know better by now. The title piece "Ebioto" sounds sort of African, but actually stands for "everybody is on their own." Very good but not great. $13. Bruce Lee Gallanter . 25. Loren MazzaCane Connors & Darin Gray- The Lost Mariner.(Family Vinyard02) Loren's saddest, saddest tones accompany his narratives -a storytellers path which directs most of his albums, on this new CD, the chosen mariner theme is particularly suitable for his slow motion turbulence when paired with the pianistic tones of Darin Grays bass. The haunting stillness verifies the most striking factor of Lorens music: that these tales inhabit the music in away that gives voice to a sublime nostalgia, inwardly coaxing emotional fragments, images, airs, eluding to the past - some bygone event -his chords and phrasings , suspended notes are imbued with a patina of fractured memory - like de ja vu , the warmth of this music is as though it has previously been through ones head, or accompanied some devastating event. This music has a skeletal frame of reference , to the blues, to folk and especially early classical /Baroque in its arrangement of suites - here, 7 tracks meld into one lulling and patient event. The Lost Mariner, is a bleak romantic narrative, the folklore tale of the seafarer's love affair with the elemental turbulence of the sea - Invoking the washed out gray silver colors of the sea and sky, the stinging salt, the squalls of biting wind, and the tranquility of calm, Mazzacane Conners can, through sound, court and create and animate characters, light, air and liquid, then weave them into choreographic perfection. Gray and Loren compliment each other's styles beautifully, by melding the most faded glow of electric tone into one, like distant lighthouse bells. 26. Richard Maxfield/Harold Budd - The Oak of the Golden Dream. (New World 80555-2) The Liner notes of this re-issue (by Kyle Gann) open the first page of the booklet with bold text stating "The 1960's Not as they were remembered- but as they were" make things pretty clear that this CD documents a lost treasure of the ark that is the American avant garde, and that this is yet another chapter in the re-write of history that the 90's has become. Ina terse but very justified statement, Gann credits this Maxfield recording as a signposts to the avant garde composition tantamount to what Ornette Coleman's "Free Jazz" represented to that movement of the time. While with this 1960's work, Maxfield leaned towards the Cage side of things theoretically, but curiously the 4 works here are stylistically more Europeanist - inclined toward the Stockhausen /Usachevsky aesthetic, and especially the Italian avant garde composers. These recordings are performed by David Tudor (Piano), Terry Jennings (Saxophone) Nick Roussakis (Under -water Clarinet (!!??), Robert Block (Prepared Violin) Edward Fields (Narration) and Farad Machkat (Violin). A collection of Maxfields pieces that is certain to up-end historical perception as aggressively as the re-evaluation of the early works of Feldman and Xenakis has in recent years. Brace yourselves! Harold Budd is someone often associated with the Californian end of Minimalism - where the tonal drift jet streamed out of the art-theoretical rigor and into the ambient environment. His spectral wallpaper music has appeared in some of Eno's interior designs, and as a back drop to the guitar oceans of the Cocteau Twins. Though his work at CalArts in the early 70s was developmental to the to the great drone that hangs over western music for the remainder of the century. Here, Budd is working with the Bucla synthesizer, and like the Maxfield work is informed by the totality of Free-Jazz in its inspiration to accommodate the sheets-of sound approach used by Coltrane - and the 1969 piece ' Coeur D'Orr' for Charles Orena's soprano approaches Evan Parker-esque heavy tone clusters. $14 27.Derek Bailey & Vertrek Ensemble -Departures (Volatile) VDCD002) A wonderful supercharged session between the ubiquitous Mr. Bailey and the young Canadian Duo of Ron De Jong (Drums /Percussion) and Vadim Budman (gtr/Reeds), recorded beautifully in the studio in London last year. In the studio setting Bailey's Guitar can be observed in full detail, while the groups interplay is complex and lively -they are able to play with the finer points of the sound minutiae. A s a big fan of bailey in Blowout mode _re, with the Ruins or Tony Oxley - it is nice to hear a more tentative side to his guitar playing. The Vertrek ensemble have great humor, and an inclination towards fast sputtering movements - sounding at times like an askew gamelan, and at others sounding as splattered and un-hinged as 2 drunken infants doing the washing up. After a while, Bailey, like the assertive Dad - says "okey dokey chaps, stop larking about' in his own way and at that point the 3 get their heads down and get the job done. By midway through the CD, a serious trio work out takes shape in which the elder statesman's guitar is shedding sparks which start a small fire in the pile of woodchips that have formed in front of the heavily attacked marimba, a reed cornet alerts us of the blaze - and the trio let it burn to the brink of danger before trampling it out in a rhythmic flurry. And then, Pop lulls us to sleep with flamenco music right out of a Calvino novel - never here nor there, but loving the space in between. $14 28. Electro Putas- (S/t Electro Putas CD) Debut CD from this truly frenetic NYC group who proudly flying the agit-punk /no-wave/ art rock flag and raising the spirit of early Sonic Youth, DNA/Mars , Crass ,EX, etc .Funky Slits-esque grooves nailing down a sonic briccollage of fractured guitar /synth /tapes /misc. splutter. Revisionist in the best intent, this brings to mind some of the great aspects of early 80's post-punk/ dub funk such as the Pop Group and the all-out excess of the Swell Maps. The EPs should be caught live too. 6 long tracks on this CD, the first 2 are instrumentals and the 3rd introduces a de-ranged mantra of a vocal that would appear chilling to even the most manic Damo Suzuki. A truly righteous affair - the agitated grooves laid down by drums and bass accumulate out of crazed improvisational lulls into machine like cyclical wind-ups that manifest in the kind of majestic paranoid boogie that has us all screaming "fuck art-lets rock!!!!" This is my pick for best NY album of the month. inspired. $12 29. Alvin Lucier-Silver streetcar for the orchestra(ALGEN 120 3"CD) So Bruce and I are calling for feedback on this one, we are offering an undisclosed prize to any of you who can come forward and name another recording in existence which is composed "for solo triangle" ?. Lucier, a composer known for working with complex electronic interfaces to Zen-like studies in physics and sound phenomenology - he approaches this minute instrument with the kind of removed austerity that makes his works such as 'I am sitting in a room'- like all good minimalist art - examples of getting the most from the smallest of means. This 3" CD documents a wonderful study of the orchestras most neglected instrument, and when glory comes to the Triangle players of the world, which it will, well then this CD won't be the lone release in it's own genre. A great collectors item. $9 30. Tony Buck/Rick Rue-Come let us build ourselves a city. (ALGEN -3" CD) Another in the ALGEN series of this wonderful context for short sharp shocks. The 20 minutes of music on these cute baby CDs is a great way to hear this Australian duos blast of improvisational noise attack. Rick Rue on tape machines, MD recorders etc. pushing things over the edge, which one wouldn't expect less. Rich is an artist who seems to have done just about everything, well, about 10 years before everyone else in the field of tape and noise manipulation, record/CD mutilations etc, etc. and Tony Buck is a free- percussionist who not afraid of drum machines, together they create a warped and surrealist mixture of mayhem and control. $9 Dean M Roberts. 31. The Canals of the Atlantean Plain- Shri Swifty & the Mandali of Mantra (Cherry Splash) Progressive microtonal minimalism meets Atlantis. Exotic instruments used include just intonation violin, a retuned Baldwin electric church organ, the Lambdoma Frequency keyboard (???), F Hammerstrings (the harp from a piano? a big hammered dulcimer?), ebow fretless guitar, theremin (wee ahh ooo!) and tibetan bells. Harry Partchshould sit up in his grave and check this out. A richly textured constantly mutating throbbing soundscape with Southeast Just Intonation Society director Pat Pagano sliding around the mix on his violin. $14 David Beardsley
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