John B

Chaney - Go with these to start: For full length albums I am partial to their early to mid 90's sound and would recommend 1. Mars Audiac Quintet 2. Emperor Tomato Ketchup 3. Transient Random Noise Bursts With Announcements Before those I might recommend grabbing a few discs of their singles collections. Switched On Stereolab, Refried Ectoplasm (Switched on v.2) and Aluminum Tunes (Switched On v.3) all have some fantastic tracks. I have also heard, and enjoyed, Peng!, Cobra and Phases Group, and Sound Dust, but don't feel they are as strong as the other discs I mentioned.

PM sent! I receievd a package from Hiroshi Tanno last night, so my comments on Dave Holland / Barre Phillips - Music From Two Basses and Cecil Taylor's Live in the Black Forest will be forthcoming, as well as more of my Jemeel Moondoc / Eremite comments.

yep. Eremite's normally run $14 per disc, shipping included in the U.S. If you buy 4, that drops to $10.50 per disc, shipping included. I found it to be "an offer I couldn't refuse." edit - This is how I picture Michael Ehlers of Eremite: "Sonny, Vito, tell this nice man that he needs to buy more Jemeel Moondoc cds."

Tony - from Eremite's email: "place your order the usual way at eremite.com, then send the label a message via the website's feedback form indicating your bonus disc selection. as ever, uspo media rate shipping is included for all domestic orders, & overseas shipping rates are quite reasonable." So, it sounds like you order three off of the website and then email them with your fourth free selection. I've just about got my order ready to go.

staying with Eremite: This version of the DLAD quartet features Roy Campbell in place of Kondo. While not up to the level of the best DLAD discs, this is still a very strong outing. The band seems "looser" than on the FMPs, I'm guessing due to Campbell's lack of familiarity with the group. (Brotz mentions that this is the first time he performed with Campbell.) With the "buy 3 get 1 free" sale going on at Eremite these discs will only set you back $10.50 each. At that price it should be a no-brainer for fans of this music.

This prompted me to go back and revisit all of the Moondoc cds I own. Today I am starting with this one: Jemeel Moondoc / Denis Charles - We Don't (Eremite) This duo session was recorded in 1981, but was not released for 22 years. The sound is not pristine, but is extremely listenable. Both Moondoc and Charles are in fine form, Moondoc in particular exhibiting the influence of Ornette Coleman very strongly. The playing is fiery and never fails to be interesting. Highly recommended.

There was a thread about her over at JC last year. I just did a search and she was charging $100 per cd back then.

Interesting....has Wrapped Islands already been repressed or did you do a larger initial run than for Do? I'm also surprised to see The World Turned Upside Down so high on the list. I find it to be a fantastic album, but one that doesn't seem to get as much mention on these boards as several other Ersts. (Hands of Caravaggio, for instance.)

Never heard of him, but the AMG review makes this disc sound interesting. Anyone who played with Moholo and Feza can't be bad. Great avatar, by the way!

I'll join the chorus: see them live if you are able. I came back to the studio recordings with increased appreciation after seeing the band live.

I'd like to recommend "do" to any people who suffer from Tinnitus. d'oh I believe Do is the best selling Erst so far. I have no desire to hear it.

My friends used to have an old dog who created "minimalistic low farting sounds," but we never found it enjoyable to any extent.

As much as I am open to the concept of sine waves as music, I really have trouble listening to Sachiko M or Toshimaru Nakamura. I find the higher pitched sounds they create to be painful and annoying at times. I had enough high pitched whining resonating in my head the last time I had to go under the drill at the dentist.

I agree with Chaney, and want to add that I love the fourth track. Very nice and relaxed groove from Hamid, et al.

per a request from our own Roi Ubu, a few words on an album I was listening to earlier this afternoon: Jérôme Noetinger / ErikM - What a Wonderful World (Erstwhile) Jérôme Noetinger: electroacoustic devices ErikM: 3-K.pad ƒ system, MD, turntables This is, at turns, a very abstract and a fairly accesible (relatively speaking) album. Noetinger and M take recordings of found sounds, layer them in amongst their own recodrings, and subject the whole to an intensive amount of post-production. To quote from the Erst website: "Over the following months, Noetinger and ErikM painstakingly edited and shaped the material into a coherent whole, flavoring their complex, abstract electronics with insistent repetitions and field recordings, creating instant concrète-- each individual idea as carefully constructed as the impeccably chosen first and last sounds." One of my favorite moments on any electroacoustic album occurs towards the end of the album, where Noetinger and M drop in a French pop song, seemingly playing off of an old record, and gradually add layers of electronic fuzz and grinding over the voice of the nameless chanteusse. I find the track to be transcendent and the entire album, while not one of my top five discs in the genre, very satisfying.

I just saw this posted on the Henry Grimes thread in the Artists forum and didn't want my Funny Rat friends to miss it: "Joyful news!! The first label release by the NEW Henry Grimes will be out soon!! It's The Henry Grimes Trio featuring David Murray and Hamid Drake live in Europe, 'O4 on Ayler Records " Supposedly they are aiming for October. Nothing about this that I could find on the Ayler site yet. Great news! I will be ordering this one as soon as possible.

yes, this is fantastic news! still nothing up on the Ayler site about this. This will be a pre-order for me.

I don't know, I've never heard that album. Other than the Nessa disc I've only heard his Unheard Music Series discs and the album he did with the DKV Trio.

Another Fred Anderson recommendation, this time on Nessa: This one was recorded in 1979 and features Fred along with Larry Hayrod on bass, Hamid Drake on drums and Adam Rudolph on percussion. Four long tracks, including a 15 minute cd bonus track composed by Hamid. Highly recommended!

I listened to this one this past weekend: Who needs coffee or espresso when you have the Brotzmann Tentet? Broken English starts off pleasantly enough, with Hamid chanting from the Koran and Brotz entering somewhat ecstatically, but, fairly quickly, the entore band explodes into the song, in what is, to my ears, the closest Brotz has come to revisiting Machine Gun in recent memory. Part of the jolt lies in the dynamics of the cd. There are some very quiet, almost lyrical passages, which are, before too long, ripped to shreds by the fury of the collective. Not for all tastes, and not always what I am in the mood for but this is a very good album.

I just received an email from Eremite, letting me know that they will be having a sale through the end of July. If you buy three discs directly from the label, you will get a fourth disc for free. This only applies to discs on Eremite, not on one of the labels they distribute, and the free selection can not be a double cd. fwiw, I own No Nothing, but not the new solo disc, so am also unable to compare the two.

For one thing, when you do talk about Free-Jazz, or A/G on other threads, you get a bunch of people who always grip about how "That's not jazz, it's just noise!" I, for one, am just damn tired of that act, so I don't even bother to talk about the kind of jazz I mostly listen to on anything but the "Funny Rat" thread. I think it is great that, ever since this discussion started, the Funny Rat thread has been devoted almost exclusively to Coleman Hawkins.

I just received another package from Dennis Gonzalez last night. Right now I am listening to Herido, a disc recorded live in Chicago in 1999. This one prominently features the spoken word of Yusef Komunyakaa, which will probably not be to everyone's tastes, but I am really digging the laid back vibe of thsi recording. One Final Note has a nice review of this one: "Dennis Gonzalez / Yusef Komunyakaa Herido : Live At St. James Cathedral (8th Harmonic Breakdown) by Frank Rubolino January 2002 It takes a special kind of talent to combine successfully the nearly mutually exclusive art forms of jazz and poetry. Dennis Gonzalez and Yusef Komunyakaa have accomplished this difficult amalgamation with a bluesy, down-home presentation that features the ever-enchanting music of Gonzalez melded with the lush, resonant voice of Komunyakaa. Gonzalez wrote just about all the music for this live performance in Chicago, and it has his noted brand emphatically stamped all over it—melodic themes, rhythmic pulsation, intricate improvisations, unique instrumentation—all that we have come to recognize in his music is present here. Gonzalez very effectively adds a few modern twists with his display of sampled material, keyboard variations, and walkie-talkie inserts, which all co-exist naturally with his multiple brass instrumentation. With this motivating undercurrent, Komunyakaa is able to command strict attention as he expresses himself in a most regal way. He has a deep, penetrating voice that reeks with richness. His poetry speaks of life's experiences, some of it ordinary and some of it special but much of it centered in the South and portraying a rustic Southern lifestyle. The stories come alive as he eloquently relates these very personal moments with vivid imagery. Komunyakaa has a way of expressing himself that makes a lasting impression. His verse often has a profound impact, such as when he states the obvious but often forgotten truism 'Elvis stole from R&B' within his storytelling of rural life on "Gristmill". With each succeeding tale, the mental pictures unfold, and one's mind simultaneously absorbs the stimulating music that becomes inseparable from the words. Sugar Blue masterfully creates the Southern scene through his weeping, sadness-laden harmonica. Mark Deutsch adds an element from another culture as he embraces Komunyakaa's words through his soulful sitar. The use of these two diverse instruments works wonders in the mood-establishing department, taking one back in time on a journey down dusty roads at sundown where troubles were meant to be temporarily vanquished through the joy of the music. Gonzalez mixes in his soulful and yearning trumpet pleas, giving Komunyakaa a perfect soundstage from which to emote. Throw in the sensitive and accent-filled percussion work of Susie Ibarra, and you have a musical formula that works to perfection to complement the meaningful words. Several of the selections are all-instrumental ventures, providing a platform for Gonzalez and the band to delve into his stimulating compositions. "Hymn for Tim Green" has an infectious beat that gets into one's blood while allowing the musicians to expound with improvisations to match the rhythmic pulsation. There are many moments when the band stretches out on its own, but when the lustrous voice of Komunyakaa reenters, the picture somehow becomes complete. The storyline of Komunyakaa is telling, and the emotion-drenched music of Gonzalez and its treatment by the band merges naturally with Komunyakaa's deep baritone voice. The ingredients are just right for making their marriage of poetry and jazz a viable union. "

I'll go explore the Hawk thread in a minute. I think BMG has the Hawk / Ellington disc in stock, and I have a few free discs to redeem....hmmmmnnnn.... Hawk / Ellington has now been ordered, along with Sonny Rollins - Newk's Time, both for free.

Is anyone here familiar with this one: I've had my eye on it for a while, but I'm not sure it would be one of the better places to start exploring Hawk.