Style: Avant-Garde Jazz, Experimental Big Band
Vibe: Cosmic, Energetic, Passionate, Colorful
Musical Attributes: Complex, Dynamic, Progressive, Suite, Polyrhythmic, Spoken Word
Sonic explorations and research from the outer groove
Style: Avant-Garde Jazz, Experimental Big Band
Vibe: Cosmic, Energetic, Passionate, Colorful
Musical Attributes: Complex, Dynamic, Progressive, Suite, Polyrhythmic, Spoken Word
A brooding, droney cover of Neil Young’s Revolution Blues.
“There is a heightened and sustained sense of intuition running through this recording whose sonic palette is so wide it captures – through soundscaping, invocation, lament, impressionistic vocal weaving – not only the transient and hybridised nature of life in Johannesburg, but also the heaviness of the air at the time of its recording. More ambient, controlled swirl of rhythm and experimental mixing than incessant groove, the album is an outpouring of a range of expressions that exist between the supposed binaries of indigenous forms of music and the electronic experimentation Johannesburg is known globally for.” (from Bandcamp)
Originally released in 1972 on CBS Records 2019 Superior Viaduct Reissue Format: LP Style: Free Improvisation, Ambient Jazz, Drone Vibe: Ritualistic, … More
Religious allegory, profane thoughts, and lustful confessions intertwine on Human Behavior’s third LP; Kedimum is a brooding suite of psychological chamber folk that introspects into a conflicted mind, struggling to reconcile matters of indoctrinated faith, natural human desires, and internalized guilt. Primary songwriter Andres Parada is joined by a sympathetic cast of vocalists to create a vivid sonic drama complete with choral vocals and spoken word passages to complement his haunting narrations. The intricate and shadowy arrangements blend distorted electronic beats with a wide array of acoustic instrumentation, including banjo, clarinet, accordian, acoustic guitar, violin, ehru, and cello.
Style: Free Folk, Chamber Music, Progressive Folk
Vibe: Ritualistic, Hypnotic, Earthy, Tribal, Nature, Meditative, Medieval, Exploratory
Musical Attributes: Acoustic, Improvisation, Instrumental, Minimalistic
Instrumentation: Oboe, Violin, Viola, Recorder, Percussion (Tabla, Drums, Chimes), Cello
Style: Poly-Free Improvisation, Modern Classical, Avant-Garde Big Band
Vibe: Complex, Hypnotic, Intense, Suspenseful, Cerebral
Musical Attributes: Polyrhythmic, Polyphonic, Odd Time Signatures, Acoustic, Poly-Free Improvisation, Repetitive
Instrumentation: Orchestral, Mallet Percussion (Marimba, Vibraphone, etc) Violin, Cello, Piano, Trombone, Drums, Flute, Bass Clarinet
Released in 1983 on Columbia Records Format: LP
Released in 2005 on Drag City Format: LP
Released in 2018 on International Anthem Recording Co. Format: LPx2
Washes of piano, harp, and other ephemeral sonic artifacts float through Ledesma’s peaceful, almost static atmospheres like a night breeze through the quiet woods.
Originally released in 2000 on Epic Records 2010 Repress Format: LPx2
Released in 1979 on Charisma Records Recorded February 1978 Format: LP
Released in 2006 on Sub Pop Records Format: LP
Released in 1974 on Atlantic Records Format: LP
Released in 1973 on Atlantic Records Format: LP
Released in 1971 on Impulse Records Recorded November 25, 1970 and January 12, 1971 Format: LP
Released in 2016 by Thrill Jockey Records Format: LP
The apocalyptic chamber-folk of Bethpage soundtracks multiple chapters of cryptic storytelling, mixing one’s darkest thoughts with religious imagery and allegory through banjo sing-alongs and haunting spoken word passages. The heavy climaxes are whirlwinds of bombastic drums, driving bass, fiddle, clarinet, and banjo that often recall the communal chamber-punk of Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra. While many tracks feel seeped in shadow and darkness, a heavenly light occasionally floods in through some truly serene and beautiful passages.
On his latest, producer/composer/multi-instrumentalist Bibio blends serene folk pop, lush instrumentation, pastoral guitar instrumentals, nature field recordings, Walt Whitman-esque lyrics and beat-oriented grooves into the perfectly crafted springtime album. Ribbons feels like daydreaming in a garden or out in the woods under a tree or by a trickling stream.
On experimental musician/author/professor David Grubb’s first album as singer-songwriter, he synthesizes technical bluegrass banjo and fingerstyle acoustic guitar playing with imaginative arrangements, abrupt stylistic shifts, philosophical questioning lyrics, improvisation, drones, and an eclectic cast of musicians, including drummer John McEntire (Tortoise, The Sea and Cake), bassist Josh Abrams (Natural Information Society), and drone violinist Tony Conrad.
The third album from the Melbourne (Au) violin/guitar/drum trio consists of loose, drifting instrumentals that conjure images of vast, open plains. Though the music here is often melancholic and lethargic, it is occasionally swept up with bursts of passionate energy and possessed by cathartic longing (especially the pleading and utterly beautiful violin solo on “Warren’s Lament”). All three instrumentalists have very individual styles that complement and dialogue with each other in refreshingly unique ways.
“Side A is cut at 45rpm and features “Moya”, a broiling cascade of upward scales that repeatedly explodes beyond its own threshold. “BBF3” on Side B clocks in at 18 minutes, and was the band’s most lyrical, multi-movement music to date — more elaborated melodic figures wind around an angry spoken-word field recording (infamously culminating in the recital of the speaker’s poem — verses lifted straight from Iron Maiden)”
Released in 2018 on Domino Records Format: LPx2 Includes 12″x12″ glossy lyric and photo booklet Track Listing *A1 – Turn … More