A source for news on music that is challenging, interesting, different, progressive, introspective, or just plain weird
Interviews with artists and other interesting people
Source: Downbeat.
The marathon, lung-bursting howl of Peter Brötzmann’s Machine Gun, which the saxophonist self-released on his BRÖ imprint 50 years ago, captured the anxiety of a generation grappling with the Vietnam War and civil unrest. The emotional and political complexity it was born from still resonates today.
Source: burning ambulance.
Episode 19 of the Burning Ambulance podcast tells the story of host Phil Freeman‘s recent trip to Bergen, Norway to attend the annual Nutshell jazz showcase, and includes interviews with percussionist Erland Dahlen, drummer Gard Nilssen, and saxophonist André Roligheten. The episode also features live recordings of performances by the groups Bounce Alarm, the Dag Arnesen Trio, Erland Dahlen, and the Andre Roligheten Quartet.
Source: 5049 Records.
Patrick Holmes. There are few people in the world of New York music and night life whom I adore as much as Patrick Holmes. Originally from Austin, TX he (like me) started on electric bass as a teenager, switching over to the clarinet at age 24. He’s been in New York for the past twenty years, working diligently to refine a voice and approach to the clarinet that is uniquely his own. He has studied with Connie Crothers and Sabir Mateen and he has performed with Ryan Sawyer, Daniel Carter, Masami Tomihisa, Axel Dörner and many many more. Whether it’s about clarinets, jazz, booze, food, metal or just plain shit, Patrick is one of my favorite people to talk to and I’m really happy that this conversation finally happened for the podcast.
Source: 5049 Records.
For our first foray into the live podcast medium, we are joined by our old friend and collaborator, Toby Driver. He was the very first guest on the podcast back in 2013, and when we pulled the plug back in 2015, he was the last. For this episode, Toby is accompanied by String Noise (Conrad Harris & Pauline Kim Harris) to present some of his recent ballads. Moody, gothic songs, reminiscent of Current 93, Nick Cave and of course, Kayo Dot. Toby!
Source: Point of Departure.
Page One: a column by Bill Shoemaker
Michael Musillami: Celebrating Life: an interview with Troy Collins
Visceral and Cathartic Joy: an appreciation of Cecil Taylor by Taylor Ho Bynum
Ezzthetics: a column by Stuart Broomer
Jumpin’ In: a column by Greg Buium
Moment’s Notice: Reviews of Recent Recordings
Source: burning ambulance.
David Murray arrived in New York in the mid-1970s as a student from Pomona College in California, and quickly started playing gigs in the lofts that were hosting most of the really forward-looking music at that time. He can be heard on the compilation Wildflowers, which documented a run of performances at Sam Rivers’ RivBea studio in 1976, and he made his debut album, Flowers For Albert, around the same time, with Olu Dara on trumpet, Fred Hopkins on bass, and Philip Wilson on drums. And since then, he’s made somewhere in the neighborhood of three hundred records, and probably more. What makes Murray important, though, is not just his productivity, but his unique voice – he combines old and new school styles in a really striking way, attacking with the whole horn, from the bottom to the top of its range and creating a sound that’s part Ben Webster, part Archie Shepp, and part Albert Ayler, but ultimately unlike anyone else out there. And he’s different from a lot of tenor players in that he doesn’t also play soprano. He plays tenor and bass clarinet, and that’s pretty much it.
Source: Jazz Right Now.
KRETZMER: I stayed in Paris for another year and a bit. I loved it there and there’s some really interesting music around. By that time I was starting to grow a bit tired with mainstream jazz and that’s mostly of what you see there on the first level. Once you dig a bit deeper, you hear this great stuff- experimental stuff, interesting stuff. Obviously there’s a strong classical timbre. A lot of the experimental stuff that people do over there.
