Shades of Eternal Night

JIM O’ROURKE- MUNIMUNI / MICHEL PICCOLI (TABLE OF THE ELEMENTS,...

Sat, 01 Jun 2013 11:02:28 -0400

JIM O’ROURKE- MUNI
MUNI / MICHEL PICCOLI (TABLE OF THE ELEMENTS, 1993)

I recently acquired a USB turntable and am in the process of digitizing some of my vinyl. Besides allowing me to listen to a number of new LPs that I had purchased, it’s given me an excuse to revisit some music that I haven’t played in possibly a decade. Here’s a 7” that I couldn’t really parse when I first picked it up; at the time, I’m pretty sure I wanted something from O’Rourke more in line with what I had heard on Bad Timing or Eureka— nevermind that years separated those projects and that dozens of O’Rourke’s projects found release in the interim.

Listening to it now is a more immediately engaging experience—I know a little more context for this style of playing (some Fahey, some Bailey) and I appreciate how melody and resolution emerge, however obliquely. Especially since the 7” format is pretty rare for O’Rourke (the one on Touch from a few years back is the only other example I know of), it’s a worthwhile listen.

experimedia: STREAM+REVIEW// MARY LATTIMORE - The Withdrawing...

Sun, 19 May 2013 13:49:42 -0400

experimedia:

STREAM+REVIEW// MARY LATTIMORE - The Withdrawing Room on Desire Path | Order now at Experimedia.net. Limited to 300 copies on black vinyl. Includes immediate download.

Chances are you’ve heard Mary Lattimore play without even realizing it as her harp has graced records by Thurston Moore, Kurt Vile, and Meg Baird among many others. But you haven’t heard Lattimore utilize her instrument quite like this since “The Withdrawing Room” sees her equally dependent on the rich acoustic harp sounds and the long decays provided by a Line 6 loop pedal. It’s a curious mix of sound and anyone who has twisted the knobs of a delay pedal will be familiar with the erratic, warbled contortions heard on “Pluto the Planet” and “Poor Daniel.” It meshes with her clean, cascading plucks in a variety of ways – at times overwhelming them, other times subtly augmenting them. However, her harp gets downright shredded on the 25 minute opener “You’ll Be Fiinne” by ringing feedback and throbbing low end that is as exciting as it is alarming. – Ryan Potts, Experimedia

This is a fantastic album—just listened to it again but purchased it awhile ago. I first heard Lattimore’s playing earlier this year when she took part in Nick Cave’s Heard NY installation in Grand Central Station. The Withdrawing Room is just the right mixture of the gentility and whimsy one might associate with the harp and the deconstruction of those same qualities. Each of the three tracks here introduces fragile figures that are ultimately processed through a loop pedal, becoming wobbly, churning versions of themselves. As an album, it’s cohesive and a total pleasure to listen to while remaining challenging music.

TAKEHISA KOSUGI & YAMATSUKA EYE IN CONVERSATIONMUSIC #1...

Thu, 16 May 2013 12:28:00 -0400

TAKEHISA KOSUGI & YAMATSUKA EYE IN CONVERSATION
MUSIC #1 (1997)

Existing for just three issues in the late ’90s, Music was a joint venture between editors Yuzo Sakuramoto and Gary McCraw. Oversized, heavy on large graphics while also eager to use negative space, it had the feel of highly specialized, more personal Raygun. With a name that is at once accurate and perversely simple, Music focused on experimental music and film of then and (once-) now, sound art, and free jazz. Its inaugural issue featured a tribute to David Tudor by Nam June Paik, a piece on Microstoria by future Yeti founder Mike McGonigal, and this dialogue between Kosugi and Eye.

The conversation gets philosophical pretty quickly, and it’s clear that there is mutual respect and awareness of each person’s art and approach to sound. Highlights include discussion of Indian music, improvisation and its influence on composition, and Eye’s fascination with pure electronic sounds, like testing signals—“the ultimate psychedelic.”

Sakuramoto went on to found the Five Myles gallery in Brooklyn and translate the extensive liner notes found in the Super Fuji Discs releases of Taj Mahal Travellers and Kosugi albums. McCraw is now the studio manager for Jeff Koons. Here they are in 2011:

N.B.: I only scanned the cover and article in question—if you’re interested in other parts of the magazine, be in touch. All three issues can also currently be purchased as a set from Fusetron.

issueprojectroom: Just announced! PAN_ACT hits NY in June: 16...

Wed, 15 May 2013 21:25:51 -0400

issueprojectroom:

Just announced! PAN_ACT hits NY in June: 16 shows exploring the intersections of conceptual art in underground dance and experimental music. Tickets on sale Wednesday, full schedule here: http://issueprojectroom.org/program/pan-act

What an unbelievable set of shows. I feel very lucky to be in New York and wrapping up the school year just when this program begins.

CHARLEMAGNE PALESTINE- PIANO PIECE FOR...

Wed, 15 May 2013 10:29:00 -0400

CHARLEMAGNE PALESTINE- PIANO PIECE FOR SIMONE
ILLUMINATIONS (2010, ALGA MARGHEN)

The Simone referred to in the title here is Simone Forti, choreographer and occasional collaborator of Palestine’s. Illuminations is credited to them both and primarily consists of two recordings of the duo, but this piece is Palestine alone at the piano. Recorded in 1971 but unreleased for nearly 40 years prior to its appearance in 2010, these are fascinating sessions. The title track and “Wed Oct 13th 1971” feature the pair conjuring sound from bells, glasses, and a molimo—“a corrugated tube meant for connecting the gas stove,” state the liner notes—amongst the assorted yelps and yawns of their own voices. It’s pretty out-there and challenging to listen to, but grounded in what seems like a sincere mix of exploration and humor.

Appearing after the manic din of what came before, “Piano Piece for Simone” is a sort of palette cleanser. If you’ve heard his “Beauty Chord + Voice” (from the Voice Studies LP), this is in the same vein—almost heartbreakingly fragile, it is grounded in Palestine’s patient, gentle piano work and then elevated by his ghostly falsetto. Unlike “Beauty Chord + Voice,” “Piano Piece for Simone” has a genuine climax to it, as those early arpeggios turn into a wash of glissandos and his wordless incantations find themselves edging closer to the ecstatic. This recording is a great reminder that Palestine has never warmed to the use of the term “minimalism” when discussing his music—he’s much more comfortable with “trance,” regardless of whatever connotations it might already have.

I’ve made this out-of-print LP available here. Apologies for the crackly transfer—it’s actually from a brand new copy. (Though I’m grateful for Alga Marghen’s archival work, google “alga marghen” and “pressing” and you’ll discover that many of their LPs suffer from surface noise, which is a shame, especially when it comes to music like Palestine’s or Eliane Radigue’s.)

LA MONTE YOUNG & MARIAN ZAZEELA- OCEANSLA MONTE YOUNG /...

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 10:00:46 -0400

LA MONTE YOUNG & MARIAN ZAZEELA- OCEANS
LA MONTE YOUNG / MARIAN ZAZEELA (1969/2012)

Two La Monte Young bootlegs surfaced at the end of last year—one was an LP featuring two excerpts of a Raag Bhairava purportedly from the Theatre of Eternal Music era, accompanied by no artwork and only the barest information. It’s very good, but the other that (suspiciously?) appeared around the same time holds far more fascination for me. The A-side is part of what has been labeled Day of the Holy Mountain—specifically, part 2a of this set, which I just reblogged from Doom and Gloom from the Tomb. Especially when excerpted here as a 20-minute side (as opposed to when absorbed as part of an 80-minute session), its impact is immediate and remarkable. I’m sometimes a little skeptical of David Keenan’s messianic proclamations, but his observation that this music is “joining the dots between early free jazz reveries, dervish music and the sound of ‘holy minimalism’” feels accurate and well-articulated.

The B-side though, which is given the title “Oceans (aborted session for a 1969 CBS LP),” is the real discovery. To my knowledge, this has not appeared on previous releases of Young’s, official or otherwise. It’s extremely, almost elementally basic—a recording (done by David Tudor) of Young and his collaborator/partner Marian Zazeela overlapping their voices in a series of reedy, mesmerizing drones as they sit on the edge of an ocean. In between extended passages of vocalizing, there are disarmingly mundane asides muttered by Young to Tudor about the minutiae of microphones.

Though this is pure speculation, the idea of Young and Zazeela cutting a record for CBS in 1969 makes sense, especially coming off the success of Terry Riley’s success for them with In C just a year earlier. “Oceans,” as presented here, was never meant to stand on its own, but when experienced as such, it becomes the most profound eavesdropping you’ll ever do.

doomandgloomfromthetomb: The Theatre Of Eternal Music/Dream...

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 22:49:12 -0400

doomandgloomfromthetomb:

The Theatre Of Eternal Music/Dream Syndicate - Day Of The Holy Mountain

And since we’re on the subject of obscure, extracurricular Velvet Underground activity, here are these recordings of La Monte Young, Marian Zazeela, Tony Conrad, John Cale, Angus MacLise and Terry Jennings droning the days away in 1964. There is no beginning, there is no end. Cale and Conrad have long talked up this stuff, but say that Young won’t release any of it officially unless the other members publicly state that he composed everything. Or something like that! Anyway, if you dig the drone, you’re going to dig this.

By all means grab this. Whoever originally uploaded it was kind enough to present what originally appeared on two discs as one (essentially) continuous mp3, which emphasizes the no beginning / no end quality of the session(s?). I’ll be following this up with my own post related to Young’s recordings soon.

CHRISTOPHER WILLITS- FILTERED LIGHT,FOLDING, AND THE TEA (12K,...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 22:04:40 -0400

CHRISTOPHER WILLITS- FILTERED LIGHT,
FOLDING, AND THE TEA (12K, 2002)

I’m not sure if it’s too early for a glitch revival, but I’d imagine/hope that if one does arise down the line, Folding, and the Tea would stand as a benchmark. Warm and melodic compared to some of the more minimal, clicks-&-cuts material coming out of Europe at the same time, Willits “folding” guitar technique and MSP processing is still a cousin to the work of Oval and Pan Sonic. (There’s a shared interest in Deleuze, at least.)

Arguably the centerpiece of the album, “Filtered Light,” allows for extended immersion in the gently hiccuping rhythms and “folded” phrasing of the guitar work—which, it should be noted, is essentially unrecognizable as such. The leaps and reversals from note to note that result from Willits’ process allows the listener to fill in the gaps as the scattershot clipping provides a percussive push forward.

LUTHER VANDROSS- A HOUSE IS NOT A HOMELIVE ON THE NAACP IMAGE...

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 16:46:49 -0400

LUTHER VANDROSS- A HOUSE IS NOT A HOME
LIVE ON THE NAACP IMAGE AWARDS, 1988

Had Luther Vandross on my mind because yesterday was his birthday. This is one of the few clips from YouTube that I’ve bothered to transfer to a hard copy because I worry that someday, some company with the legal authority to do so will take down this video and that it will become lost in the ether.

I think this is probably the single greatest vocal performance I’ve ever seen. It always gives me chills and usually elicits some tears, much like it did for Dionne Warwick. Vandross had recorded “A House is Not a Home” for his debut album, Never Too Much back in 1981—the context of his 1988 performance here is a tribute to Warwick, who first popularized this and many other Bacharach/David songs. His version is more than twice as long as hers, and like many Bacharach/David songs, there are some very unusual tempo and key changes present in this song. The longer duration highlights those qualities while also allowing them to unfold more naturally.

I’m sure that part of what makes this such an emotional viewing experience is that you are not only watching Vandross sing, but others react, especially Warwick, whose admiration for (and awe of) his performance is laid plain at the end. There is also a melancholy tinge to seeing this pleading, vulnerable song of devotion and love sung by someone who, by many accounts, was not able to be so honest about himself to his public and his industry.

Regardless, what seems so palpable here is Vandross’s total command of both the song and the audience. He’s a master of the delicate but dramatic leaps across octaves as well as the impassioned adlibs (the “Good morning, good evening…” bit at 1:20) that add a little attitude and surprise to an exquisitely crafted piece of music. From multiple angles, there is brilliance on display in this performance.

TERRY RILEY & DON CHERRY- DESCENDING MOONSHINE DERVISHESLIVE...

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 21:36:01 -0400

TERRY RILEY & DON CHERRY- DESCENDING MOONSHINE DERVISHES
LIVE KÖLN 1975 (bootleg, 1975)

The recent appearance of this set as a bootleg LP has brought another round of (always-deserved) attention on it. The interplay is truly affecting and remarkable, hitting In a Silent Way-style peaks for me. (Riley’s interpolation of “Shortnin’ Bread” on the final improvisation is a nice touch!) This music is very much worth your time; that said, don’t go crazy spending $30 to $70 on the vinyl when the mp3s (which probably were the source for the LP anyway) are still very much available.

This day in history: today is the tenth anniversary of this...

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 13:14:55 -0400

This day in history: today is the tenth anniversary of this bewildering Garfield.

BLACK JOKER- UNTITLED (2)WATCH OUT! (PACIFIC CITY/OLDE ENGLISH...

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 10:00:00 -0400

BLACK JOKER- UNTITLED (2)
WATCH OUT! (PACIFIC CITY/OLDE ENGLISH SPELLING BEE, 2008)

Last year, in reference to the Inner Tube album that Mark McGuire and Spencer Clark collaborated on, I wrote, “One day, I’m sure I will really enjoy a record involving either of the ex-Skaters; I have not yet experienced it, though.” That moment has come, as I’ve been impressed with this one from 2008, attributed to Clark’s Black Joker alias. Some other people must have thought it was especially good too, as it is the only one of Clark’s numerous tape/CD-R from the era that received reissue on vinyl, courtesy of Olde English Spelling Bee.

The label’s press release for Watch Out! cites Angus MacLise as a reference point, which is certainly evident. The modal keyboard improvisations and the quick tape splices also evoke Terry Riley, or at least the experience of hearing a Terry Riley record being played in the next room over, given the determinedly low fidelity on display here. There’s a sense of an evolving journey on these two sides, though there’s no particularly clear endpoint.

MICK TURNER- MOTH, PART 3MOTH (DRAG CITY, 2002) It’s grey...

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 17:22:59 -0400

MICK TURNER- MOTH, PART 3
MOTH (DRAG CITY, 2002)

It’s grey and rainy here, so instinctively I returned to this album. I’m always partial to “sketches” albums, where each individual piece feels fragmented but somehow they all collectively achieve a certain cohesion and scope. I feel like Loren Mazzacane Connors’ Airs or (more recently) Sean McCann’s Mammoth Mountain are in this tradition—Moth is gloriously so.

Years ago, while helping to organize the year-end concert at my college radio station, I looked into how much it might cost to fly Mick Turner to New York (from New Zealand) purely because I had a vision of him performing outdoors at dusk. That entirely impractical dream never came to fruition, and it poured on the day of the show anyway, but I think the integrity of my idea remains. Turner has such a unique tone and his guitar work always seems crepuscular and intimate.

HANS-JOACHIM ROEDELIUS- GERADEWOHLSELBSTPORTRAIT VOL. III- REISE...

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 16:05:52 -0400

HANS-JOACHIM ROEDELIUS- GERADEWOHL
SELBSTPORTRAIT VOL. III- REISE DURCH ARCADIEN (SKY RECORDS / BUREAU B, 1980/2013)

I’ve been listening to this track a lot this past week—Selbstportrait Vol. III was just reissued by Bureau B. It’s astonishing how comfortable this sounds next to different strains of electronic music that came after it, whether it’s ambient-leaning IDM like Boards of Canada or analog revival work by Oneohtrix Point Never. A perfect balance of melody and melancholy.

DENNIS JOHNSON- NOVEMBER (as performed by R. Andrew Lee)NOVEMBER...

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 15:44:50 -0400

DENNIS JOHNSON- NOVEMBER (as performed by R. Andrew Lee)
NOVEMBER (IRRITABLE HEDGEHOG, 2013)

Pictured above is the score (as transcribed by Kyle Gann) for the first four minutes of Dennis Johnson’s November, which received its New York premiere last weekend at Issue Project Room courtesy of pianist R. Andrew Lee—only 54 years after its composition. From what I understand, those first four minutes were the starting point for a performance that ultimately lasted roughly five hours; its inaugural recording (also done by Lee and just released on the Irritable Hedgehog label) clocks in just shy of that length.

As someone who is just starting to explore the origins of minimalism, I find the existence of this piece to be really fascinating in how it helps (re)construct the history of this strain of music. The line that has been trotted out about November is that it inspired La Monte Young to compose The Well-Tuned Piano, his own lengthy solo piano piece that originated in 1964 and has gone through various iterations (and tunings) since then. The impact of Young’s piece was tremendous, and it’s tempting to view November mostly as a precursor or influence as opposed to experiencing it on its own terms. Listening to Lee perform November now, with its accumulation of motifs, chords, and colors, the music is divorced from time and context. Melancholy but resilient, this is music to inhabit (or invite to inhabit you). Perhaps a little more austere than the Michael Nyman piece I posted last week but occupying a similar space…

SEAN MCCANN- REMAINPRELUSION (RECITAL, 2011) The Root...

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 12:47:02 -0400

SEAN MCCANN- REMAIN
PRELUSION (RECITAL, 2011)

The Root Blog posted a nice little Q&A with Sean McCann this week in anticipation of the reissue of Prelusion on vinyl. (My favorite exchange: “Who do you love?” “Most everyone a little, a few people quite a lot.”) Root Strata is heralding this release as the “definitive” version of the album, which seems to mean chopping off a minute of “Divine Portal,” renaming it, and excising “Remain” entirely. I don’t know if it was simple practicalities (the original’s running time was too long for one LP but not really long enough for two) or that McCann is no longer fond of the piece, but I always thought that “Remain” was a fitting capstone to all that came before it.

McCann is a gifted multi-instrumentalist, but I’m especially excited whenever his violin appears in the mix and, if memory serves me well, it’s entirely absent on the trio of pieces that now constitute the Root Strata release. On “Remain,” sustained, arcing lines are woven in and out of meter and melody in a way that recalls Eno’s deconstruction of Pachelbel’s Canon on the B-side of Discreet Music. There’s a worn tension to the music that is simultaneously sad and graceful.

The original version of Prelusion (and dozens of other releases) are available to stream and purchase on McCann’s Bandcamp page.

"I like to believe that all uses of a technology alter and define that technology. Any tool is..."

Sun, 17 Mar 2013 13:11:00 -0400

“I like to believe that all uses of a technology alter and define that technology. Any tool is subject to redefinition through its uses, and dependent on its placement within wider social and cultural contexts; for example, my Dad’s use of a screwdriver to open a tin of paint, or a friend’s use of a shoelace to commit suicide.”

- Mark Fell, in last month’s “Collateral Damage” column in The Wire. The last part in particular is one of the more startling turns of phrase I’ve come across and has stayed with me since I first encountered it.

KEVIN DRUMM- JUST LAY DOWN AND FORGET ITIMPERIAL HORIZON...

Sun, 17 Mar 2013 08:57:16 -0400

KEVIN DRUMM- JUST LAY DOWN AND FORGET IT
IMPERIAL HORIZON (HOSPITAL PRODUCTIONS, 2009)

An emotional, anxiety-producing day last week led me to revisit this hour-long piece. I have never really investigated the influential harsh electronics work that burnished Drumm’s reputation, and my impression is that Imperial Horizon is something of an outlier in his body of work. Regardless, I continue to be struck by how empathetic this music is, if one can categorize a non-living thing as such.

Perhaps a better way to think of it is as something akin to a rorschach. There is enough space in this slowly evolving music to accept whatever you want to project onto it or demand of it. Even the piece’s title—“Just Lay Down and Forget It”—offers multiple interpretations. Until recently, I had always thought of it as dismissive or defeatist, but now I see that it can be read as calming, assuring the listener of the opportunity to move on.

For me, this is a cherished listening experience. If others have recommendations about where to proceed next in Drumm’s considerable discography, I welcome suggestions.

MICHAEL NYMAN- 1-100DECAY MUSIC (OBSCURE, 1976) I acknowledge...

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 22:54:04 -0400

MICHAEL NYMAN- 1-100
DECAY MUSIC (OBSCURE, 1976)

I acknowledge that many people still bristle at buying music digitally, but it’s something I’ve done increasingly over the years—mostly with singles, but occasionally when an album is available for a steal. For whatever reason, Michael Nyman’s Decay Music is available for a rather reasonable $2.49 on iTunes. (Admittedly, you can also stream it on UbuWeb for free, but it’s ripped from a crackly vinyl copy.) On repeated listens, Decay Music hasn’t proven to be a life-changer, but as a piece of history, it’s valuable.

Nyman is someone whose name was mostly familiar to me as a film composer—my perception is that he is respected but not enthusiastically championed. He was influential as a critic, though—the first use of “minimalism” in reference to music is, for better or worse, generally attributed to him. Decay Music also holds the distinction of being one of only ten records that Eno released on his own Obscure label.

Nyman’s LP is comprised of two pieces. The second, “Bell Set No. 1,” does little for me—Nyman is approaching it with an interest in attack and decay but its persistent clanging is a bit of an endurance test. “1-100,” however, is a keeper. Its stark simplicity is apparent from its opening moments, and the piece maintains a gentle but complex color throughout. I’m weak on knowledge of traditional classical music, so my closest reference point is maybe Satie, though the piece’s origin story in the liner notes suggests a deconstruction of Strauss’s The Blue Danube. There’s a remarkable sense of space here, as most of the chords are allowed to linger long after being struck—it’s almost instantly affecting and extremely sessionable.

thehebrides: Waulking song 1982 video from the School of...

Sun, 03 Mar 2013 15:59:00 -0500

thehebrides:

Waulking song

1982 video from the School of Scottish Studies at the University of Edinburgh. The footage here includes an octet of women singing while they waulk (essentially, cleaning and thickening) fresh tweed.