Bagatellen Reviews

June 18, 2009 — Mike

From Bagatellen:

Julien Skrobek – Double-Entendre

Julien Skrobek’s work is not destined to generate chasms in the rock of EAI, yet the French experimenter keeps maintaining a reasonably steady release schedule, alternating records that leave practically no trace in the memory, to comparatively intriguing episodes where a superior degree of commitment and, consequently, deeper layers of implication are noticeable.
Double-Entendre belongs to [...]

Uncle Woody Sullender – Live At Barkenhoff

Brooklyn-based Woody Sullender is a truly unique specimen of improviser, in that he chose a traditional American sonic tool – the banjo – to “play with and against the cultural baggage of the instrument” and, in simpler prose, discover new improvisational approaches. After receiving technical assistance from the renowned STEIM, [...]

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Bill Horist, Jakob Riis, JP Jenkins in Portland

June 18, 2009 — Mike

From Portland Eye and Ear Control:

Portland New Music Society presents:
Sunday, June 21st
8pm
@ Enterbeing (ne 16th and Alberta)
$5 donations

Bill Horist-(Seattle)-unique prepared guitar improvisation
Jakob Riis-(Denmark)-laptop and electronics.
JP Jenkins – (Portland)-guitar & electronics

Bill Horist
(b. 1971, Washington DC, US)
Since arriving in Seattle in the mid- nineties, Bill has established himself as a highly regarded performer, composer and improviser. He has appeared on over 50 releases and has performed hundreds of concert around the world. In addition to his solo endeavors and work with bands Master Musicians of Bukkake, the Paul Rucker Ensemble and Ghidra to name a few, he has collaborated with a wide range of artists including John Zorn, Secret Chiefs 3, Ruins, Bill Frisell, KK Null, Vidushi Sumitra Guha, Kinski and Aiko Shimada among many others.
——————————
Jakob Riis
(b.1964, Vejle, Denmark)
Composer, electronic musician, improviser. Active in the experimental fields of electronic music, soundart, improvisation and contemporary composition. Former trombonist, now focusing on electronic music, laptop pioneer on the danish experimental scene. Today Jakob Riis is primarily making electronic, noise and electroacoustic music, often making solo laptop prefomances, improvising within open structures. As a composer he has composed music for bigband, chamber ensembles as well as electronic and electro acoustic music, for ensembles like Copenhagen Art Ensemble, The Orchestra and The Ghettoblaster Ensemble. As an improviser he is playing with people like Axel Dörner, Jassem Hindi, Philipp Wachsmann, Peter Ole Jørgensen, Mats Gustafsson, Pål Nilssen-Love, Lotte Anker a.o. Studied trombone at the Rhythmic Conservatory (RMC) in Copenhagen, where he graduated in 1990. In 97-99 he studied composition with Bob Brookmeyer at RMC.

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Magnus Broo in Chicago

June 18, 2009 — Mike

From Post No Bills:

Broo is one of Sweden’s most skilled and flexible horn men, a guy rooted in the fundamentals of the American jazz tradition (he studied at the University of Texas during the 80s). His early work reveals a more straight-ahead sensibility, but since cofounding Atomic in 1999 and serving a stint in the Peter Brötzmann Chicago Tentet–filling in for trombonist Bishop during the period he retired from music due to hearing issues–he’s opened up his playing and become much more daring. On Lorena–which features six original pieces, including three by Broo–his bold, blustery playing seethes with a muscular melodocism, ripping through tricky, rhythmically complex themes (which set up provocative platforms for improvisation), then busting out with endless streams of lyrical elaboration.

Broo will be busy over the next four nights. Tomorrow he’ll join excellent Dutch group Trio Braam de Joode Vatcher at Elastic and on Friday and Saturday he and pianist Wiik (who also plays in Atomic) will participate in the Vandermark 5 Special Edition at the Green Mill. Ken Vandermark has created new arrangements of some older V5 material and written some new pieces to accommodate these two excellent guests. The performances will be recorded for later release.

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New CD From Taylor Ho Bynum & SpiderMonkey Strings Coming September 15th

June 18, 2009 — Mike

From Improvised Communications:

On September 15th, Firehouse 12 Records will release Madeleine Dreams (FH12-04-01-011), the second recording from cornetist/composer Taylor Ho Bynum’s improvising chamber ensemble, SpiderMonkey Strings. The seven year-old group features Kyoko Kitamura (voice), Jason Kao Hwang (violin), Jessica Pavone (viola), Tomas Ulrich (cello), Pete Fitzpatrick (guitar), Joseph Daley (tuba) and Luther Gray (drums).

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New on Ayler Records

June 18, 2009 — Mike

Ayler Records has a handful of new releases:

Eyal Maoz & Asaf Sirkis – Elementary Dialogues

Eyal Maoz and Asaf Sirkis share a long history of collaboration. Combining composition and improvisation, their intuitive rapport guides the way through a musical conversation full of unexpected twists and turns and sudden bursts of color and energy, yet with great emotional depth and logical coherence.

Jacob William Quartet – Secondary Deviations

Jacob William is a Boston-based bass player, composer and improviser working to stretch the multicultural paradigm – exploring the innate, ornate and the palpitating roots of diverse musical traditions, here with his “Secondary Deviations” quartet featuring Jim Hobbs (alto sax), Forbes Graham (trumpet) and Croix Galipault (drums).

Rechtern/Zinman/Wang/Cook – Wakte Oglaka

A “Story of War”, told in music, minimal and reduced to the just necessary yet ornamental, by four master improvisers traveling in open spaces, with nothing but some horses, a sword, a jurta and the wind, the wind, the wind, breeding the math layed out throughout that space. Free improvisation at its best.

Jeffrey Hayden Shurdut – Digital Box
2nd installment available now!

Further explorations into the ongoing work of New-York avant-garde multi-instrumentalist Jeffrey Shurdut and friends (including collaborations with Joe McPhee, Blaise Siwula, Brian Osborne, Daniel Carter, Frode Gjerstad, Anders Gahnold, Tom Chess, Marc Edwards, Dave Sewelson, Marcus Cummins, Laura Cromwell, among others).
8 new recordings now available for download along with an updated linerbook. Enjoy the ride!

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