Cy Twombly R.I.P.

I first encountered Cy Twombly's work back in the late-'80s when a friend of mine showed me a monograph of his paintings. Now, I considered myself pretty sophisticated when it came to art so when my response was the stereotypical, "a three-year old could do that!", well, I was shocked. I loved the AbEx giants like Jackson Pollock and Willem DeKooning, but this was something else altogether. After chuckling at my reaction, this friend of mine (who was himself a painter) politiely informed me Twombly was one of the finest draughtsmen in modern art and proceeded to point out putative examples in the book. I was flabbergasted. But I respected his opinion enough to take him at his word and I checked a number of books out of the library.

As it turns out, it is extremely difficult to scribble like a child once you are an adult -- especially if you have any sort of "training," which rewards representation (or imitation) over expression very early on. Indeed, Twombly turned down a solo exhibit early in his career and, instead, spent some time drawing in the dark so as to lose the habits of his schooling. From there, he went on to develop his inimitable signature style, marrying a prodigious formal technique to seemingly childlike mark-making.

To make a long story short, I learned to love Cy Twombly; in fact, he is probably my most favorite artist of all time, partly because of the very difficulty I had to overcome in order to appreciate his work. Part of the difficulty is the fact that his paintings and drawings do not reproduce well, deflating their often monumental scale and obscuring subtle details in the process. In person, his works are all-engulfing and powerfully expressive of ineffable truths about freedom, desire, frailty. At least to me. I feel fortunate to have attended the 1994 retrospective at MOMA and visited the Cy Twombly Gallery at the Menil Collection in Houston, Texas.

So, I was sad to learn of his passing yesterday. He was 83 -- the same age as my Mom. He had lost his wife last year and was suffering from cancer, so it was probably a blessing. But it is hard to say goodbye to our heroes (and our family); fortunately for us, their works remain behind. Thank you, Mr. Twombly, for enriching my life. May you rest in peace.

The New York Times obituary is here.

Peter Plagens's comments here.

An extensive online gallery of Twombly's works can be found here.

Happy Independence Day!

Playing with fire and playing with the camera: that's how I like to celebrate Independence Day! Have a happy (and safe) Fourth of July, everybody!

Playlist Week of 7-02-11

* J.S. Bach: Motets (La Chapelle Royale/Collegium Vocale/Herreweghe) (Harmonia Mundi CD)
* Scriabin: Complete Symphonies (Deutsches Symphonie-Orch. Berlin/Jablonksi) (d.3)(Decca 3CD)
* Lachenmann: Kontrakadenz, etc. (SWR Stuttgart/Gielen, et al.) (Kairos CD)
* Django Reinhardt: The Classic Early Recordings in Chronological Order (d.2-3) (JSP 5CD)
* John Coltrane: A Love Supreme (Impulse! SACD)
* Sun Ra: It Is Forbidden: At The Ann Arbor Blues & Jazz Festival In Exile (Alive/Total Energy CD)
* Sun Ra: Jazz Showcase, Chicago, IL 9-08-74 (AUD CDR)
* Sun Ra: Dance Of The Living Image: Lost Reel Collection, Vol.4 (Transparency 2CD)
* Sun Ra: Civic Auditorium, Santa Cruz, CA 12-11-74 (AUD 2CDR)
* Mahavishnu Orchestra: Visions Of The Emerald Beyond (Columbia LP)
* Stanley Clarke: School Days (Epic/Friday Music LP)
* LTJ Bukem: Journey Inwards (Kinetic 2CD) †/‡
* 13th Floor Elevators: The Psychedelic Sounds of… (International Artists/Charly CD)
* 13th Floor Elevators: Easter Everywhere (International Artists/Charly CD)
* 13th Floor Elevators: “Live” (International Artists/Charly CD)
* 13th Floor Elevators: Bull Of The Woods (International Artists/Charly CD)
* Grateful Dead: Fillmore West 1969: The Complete Recordings (d.1-2) (GDP/Rhino 10CD)
* Grateful Dead: Steppin’ Out With the Grateful Dead: England ‘72 (d.1-3) (GDP/Arista 4CD)†/‡
* Grateful Dead: Winterland, June 1977: The Complete Recordings (d.1-3) (GDP/Rhino 9CD)
* Neil Young: Freedom (Reprise LP)
* Grateful Dead: Sam Boyd Silver Bowl, UNLV, Las Vegas, NV 5-21-95 (SBD 3CDR)
* The Band: Rock Of Ages (Capitol/MoFi SACD)
* Big Star: #1 Record (Ardent/Classic LP)
* Big Star: Radio City (Ardent/Classic LP)
* King Crimson: Larks’ Tongues In Aspic (DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: Starless And Bible Black (DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: USA (DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: Discipline (DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: Beat (DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: Three Of A Perfect Pair (DGM CD)†
* Jakszyk, Fripp & Collins: A Scarcity Of Miracles (DVD-A) (Inner Knot CD/DVD-A)
* Japan: Oil On Canvas (Virgin 2LP)
* David Sylvian: Gone To Earth (Virgin 2LP)
* Sonic Youth: Daydream Nation (Deluxe Edition) (Goofin’ 4LP)
* Spacemen 3: Perfect Prescription (Genius CD)
* Lifeguards: Waving At The Astronauts (Serious Business CD)†/‡
* Deerhoof: Friend Opportunity (Kill Rock Stars CD)
* Deerhoof: Offend Maggie (Kill Rock Stars CD)

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

I’m still having too much fun with the new camera to sit still and write anything—and besides, it’s a holiday weekend here in the USA. So y'all just take it easy and enjoy yourselves. There will be more blather from me in due time. . .Until then, “Keep On Rockin’ In The Free World.”

Sun Ra Sunday

Sun Ra & His Arkestra: Jazz Showcase, Chicago, IL 9-08-74 (AUD CDR)

The Arkestra was apparently quite active in the fall of 1974, including a two-week stand at the “new” Five Spot in New York. Four-hour sets were the norm and, according to witnesses, “the band books carried by the musicians were thick as two phone books; except for a few numbers like ‘Watusi,’ many otherwise unknown compositions were played along with some 1950s pieces and few were repeated” (Campbell & Trent p.215). Sadly, there are no known tapes from this legendary engagement. However, we do have this sixty-minute audience recording from Chicago’s Jazz Showcase on September 8, which hints at the Arkestra’s expanding repertoire during this period. The (mono) sound quality is typically awful—but it is by no means the worst sounding tape we’ve had to suffer through during this project. Despite the obvious sonic flaws, it’s a terrific performance well worth hearing.

“Images” dates back to 1958 and Sun Ra’s first Saturn LP, Jazz In Silhouette, and is here given an extended reading, including a dramatic piano intro which moves from ominous rumblings to skittering dissonances before settling into the slightly old-fashioned swing rhythms and chord changes of the piece itself. The Arkestra enters with the subtly off-center big-band arrangement, the saxes and trumpets filled out with flutes and piccolo. Kwame Hadi solos first, but John Gilmore steals the show with a series of increasingly expressionistic choruses, demonstrating his mastery of both pre- and post-bop tenor stylings. Just gorgeous. Then Ra takes a weirdly “inside-out” solo before the band returns with the oblong coda.

“Somewhere Else” is similarly structured, with another lengthy piano introduction before the band comes out and struts its stuff. Besides Akh Tal Ebah and Hadi, a mysterious third trumpet player can be heard. Chicagoan Phil Cohran seems a likely candidate, but Prof. Campbell says it’s not him (Id. p.213). There’s also a bassist present—his big tone and fleet soloing almost brings to mind the inimitable Ronnie Boykins, but it’s obviously someone else, whose identity is unknown (Id.). At almost twenty minutes, just about everyone gets a chance in the spotlight on this medium groover, including all three trumpeters, Marshall Allen and Danny Davis on alto sax, Gilmore on tenor, our unidentified bassist (who earns a nice ovation) and, of course, Ra himself.

“Discipline 27” is given a focused reading – with some jazzy electric guitar audible (possibly Dale Williams). Ebah acquits himself admirably, but again, Gilmore upstages him with another incredibly inventive and precisely articulated tenor outing. Ra moves to organ for “Outer Spaceways Incorporated,” almost drowning out June Tyson and the Space Ethnic Voices with its electronic roar. But he eventually drops back and the sound clears up considerably. Of course, it’s the usual thing, if a little restrained—until Allen (or is it Davis? I have a hard time telling them apart sometimes) steps up with a blistering solo on alto sax before the reprise. Ra’s groaning organ chords also threaten to overwhelm the delicate “Lights on a Satellite,” mostly obscuring the intricate counterpoint of flutes, trumpets and saxophones. Regardless, you can tell the Arkestra is tight and well-rehearsed: it’s a note-perfect performance, short and to the point; beautiful, in spite of the dreadful sound quality.

Sonny introduces “Barbizon” as an original piece he wrote “in France, near Fontainbleau, an artists’ colony” and it’s another brief but elaborately orchestrated, through-composed work, devoid of any opportunity for improvisation. The dirgey, sweet’n’sour harmonies and tense voicings remind me of the early “Discipline” numbers and, like those works, “Barbizon” was only sporadically performed. That seems a shame, as it is another fascinating composition demonstrating Ra’s mastery of unusual forms and creative arrangement. Then again, the audience doesn’t quite know what to make of it. Is this “jazz?” No—it’s something else altogether.

Ra again steps up to the microphone to introduce “The Shadow World,” offering a clue to its meaning:

The next song is entitled, ‘Shadow World.’ To me, the Earth is a place of shadows and dreams and not the reality of the cosmos. This ‘shadow world’ concerns the potential of humanity and not the reality, which I have to reject.

He hammers out the organ ostinato at a fast clip and the horns rip through the complexly hocketed melodies with fearsome intensity. Hadi solos over boiling percussion but quickly drops out. Then Gilmore takes over and—well, yes, it’s another a cappella blowout, but a particularly inspired one. Ra attempts to steer him back to the head, but Gilmore will have nothing of it. He continues to blow his brains out, ranging across the entire register of the horn (and beyond), capping it off with an astonishing display of multiphonic pyrotechnics. Wow! Gilmore is on fire! This elicits several outbursts of whooping and hollering and stunned applause when he finally finishes. Not even five minutes long, this is probably one of the shortest performances of “The Shadow World” ever, but boy is it ever potent! “Space Is The Place” follows, but, unfortunately, the tape cuts off after only a minute and a half. Oh well.

Aside from Gilmore’s outstanding soloing (will he ever get the credit he deserves?), what’s interesting about this set is how tightly controlled it is. Foregoing the usual long, open improvisations, freewheeling medleys and cosmic pageantry, the Arkestra is on a fairly short leash. Sonny's straight-faced spoken intros are also highly unusual. Whether it was the venue’s posh ambience or simply a measure of Sun Ra’s developing professionalism, these discrete performances are taut, lean and immediately appealing. Of course, it’s quite possible the rest of the set was completely off the hook. But it is clear Sun Ra was continuing to refine his vision and, next time, we’ll listen in on a lengthy rehearsal session from later in the year, which provides some insight into his peculiarly effective working methods.

+++

UPDATE: This was written out of order. Two nights before this gig, the Arkestra performed at the Ann Arbor Blues & Jazz Festival in Exile, documented on It Is Forbidden. John Sinclair identifies the bass player as Reginald "Shooby-Doo" Fields and the guitarist is definitely Williams. I apologize for the confusion.

Playlist Week of 6-25-11

* Buxtehude: Seven Sonatas, Op.1 (Holloway/Mortensen/ter Linden) (Naxos CD)
* Purcell: Fantasias For The Viols, 1680 (Hespèrion XX/Savall) (Alia Vox SACD)
* Marais: Suitte d’un Goût Etranger: Pièces de Viole du IV Livre, 1717 (Savall) (Alia Vox 2SACD)
* Marais: Sonnerie de Saint-Geneviève du Mont: Suites pour Violes (Harnoncourt) (Harmonia Mundi CD)
* Bruckner: Symphony No.7 (Orch. des Champs-Élysées/Herreweghe) (Harmonia Mundi SACD)
* Miles Davis: Bitches Brew: Legacy Edition (Columbia/Legacy 2CD+DVD)
* Miles Davis: Bitches Brew Live (Columbia/Legacy CD)
* John Coltrane: Ballads (Impulse! CD)
* Ornette Coleman: Town Hall 1962 (ESP-Disk’ CD)
* Ornette Coleman: Chappaqua Suite (Columbia—France 2CD)
* Sun Ra: Jazz Showcase, Chicago, IL 9-08-74 (AUD CDR)
* Andrew Hill: Judgment! (Blue Note CD)
* Andrew Hill: Point Of Departure (Blue Note CD)
* Andrew Hill: Eternal Spirit (Blue Note CD)
* Andrew Hill: Time Lines (Blue Note CD)
* Anthony Braxton & Derek Bailey: Moment Précieux (Victo LP)
* Evan Parker Electro-Acoustic Ensemble: Toward The Margin (ECM CD)†
* John Abercrombie : Cat And Mouse (ECM CD)†
* MAP (Halvorson/Nakatani/Radding): Fever Dream (Taiga 2LP)
* Guillermo E. Brown: Soul At The Hands Of The Machine (Thirsty Ear CD)†/‡
* Bahia Black: Ritual Beating System (Axiom/Island CD)
* Nicky Skopelitis: Ekstasis (Axiom/Island CD)
* King Crimson: In The Court Of The Crimson King (Island/DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: In The Wake Of Poseidon (Island/DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: Lizard (Island/DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: Islands (Island/DGM CD)†
* King Crimson: ProjeKct Two: Space Groove (d.1) (DGM 2CD)
* Chicago: Chicago Transit Authority (Columbia/Rhino 2LP)
* Chicago: Chicago [II] (Columbia/Rhino 2LP)
* Grateful Dead: Winterland 1973: The Complete Recordings (d.8-9) (GDP/Rhino 9CD)
* Grateful Dead: Delta Center, Salt Lake City, UT 2-21-95 (SBD 2CDR)‡
* David Crosby: If I Could Only Remember My Name… (Atlantic DVD-A)
* Neil Young & Crazy Horse: Weld (Reprise 2CD)
* Sonic Youth: EVOL (SST LP)
* Sonic Youth: Sister (SST LP)
* Aphex Twin: I Care Because You Do (Sire CD)
* Aphex Twin: Richard D. James Album (Sire CD)
* Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell: Psychonavigation (Subharmonic CD)†
* Radiohead: The King Of Limbs (TBD/Ticker Tape CD)
* Robert Pollard: Robert Pollard Is Off To Business (GBV, Inc. CD)†/‡
* Robert Pollard: Lord Of The Birdcage (GBV, Inc. LP)
* Circus Devils: Mother Skinny (Happy Jack Rock Records LP)
* Fleet Foxes: Helplessness Blues (Sub Pop 2LP)


†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

It’s summertime. It’s hot. I don’t feel like writing. Instead, I’m having fun playing with the camera (and listening to music, of course). The playlist speaks for itself this week.

Sun Ra Sunday

THE OTHER SIDE OF MUSIC

Some music is of specialized interpretation.
Some music is of synchronization precision.
Every light is a vibrational sight and sound:
It is rhythm in harmony with beam/rays/intensification
and projection visibility.
Music is light and darkness . . . precedent
of vitality . . . stimulation extraordinary
Equational harmonic differential pause prelude
to the sound that is on its way . . .
EVERY PLACE THERE IS, IS MUSIC, CHAOS
IS MUSIC AND HARMONIOUS PEACE IS MUSIC
What direction does it: decides the way until . . .

Silence is music.
There are different kinds of silences:
each silence is
A world all its own.
In a lesser but not least important sense,
Silence is an integral part of all music:
in a fractional sense,
When judged metrically.

We must not forget transposition.
Transposition always results in a
change of color.
Behold the vastness of music,
It is as vast as the greater allness
and the greater neverness . . .
And too music in its meta-phases
must not be ignored.

Are you thinking of metaphysics
alone? Well, don’t.
In the future (and even as of Now),
you will have to contend with and
recognize METAMENTAL and METASPIRIT:
also you will come face to face with
oblique METATHESIS.

--Sun Ra (1972)

Playlist Week of 6-18-11

* Josquin Desprez (Collegium Vocale Gent/Herreweghe): Église de Minimes, Brussels, 3-17-11 (FM CDR)
* J.S. Bach/Chopin (Hewitt): Wigmore Hall, London 6-06-11 (FM CDR)
* J.S. Bach: Violin Concertos (AAM/Manze/Podger) (Harmonia Mundi SACD)†
* J.S. Bach: 7 Harpsichord Concertos (AAM/Manze/Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi 2CD)†
* Handel: Trio Sonatas, Op.2 & Op.5 (Academy of Ancient Music/Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi 2CD)
* Miles Davis: Kind Of Blue (Columbia SACD)
* Cannonball Adderley: Somethin’ Else (Blue Note CD)
* Bill Evans: Everybody Digs Bills Evans (Riverside/JVC XRCD)
* Sun Ra: Sub-Underground (Saturn LP>CDR)
* Sun Ra: Jazz Showcase, Chicago, IL 9-08-74 (AUD CDR)
* Anthony Braxton: 12+1tet (Victoriaville) 2007 (Victo CD)
* Andrew Raffo Dewar: Six Lines Of Transformation (Porter CD)
* Bob Marley & The Wailers: Babylon By Bus (Island 2LP)
* Jimi Hendrix: West Coast Seattle Boy: The Anthology (Experience Hendrix/Columbia 4CD+DVD)
* Rolling Stones: Singles Collection: The London Years (d.1-2) (London/Abkco 3SACD)
* Rolling Stones: Some Girls (Rolling Stones/Virgin LP)
* Rolling Stones: Some Girls Sessions (fan/boot 2CDR)
* Grateful Dead: Winterland 1973: The Complete Recordings (d.4-5) (GDP/Rhino 9CD)
* King Crimson: Beat (DGM CD)†
* Neil Young & Crazy Horse: Sleeps With Angels (Reprise 2LP)
* Neil Young & Crazy Horse: Broken Arrow (Reprise 2LP)
* Emmylou Harris: Red Dirt Girl (Nonesuch CD)†/‡
* Elvis Costello: My Aim Is True (Columbia/Universal/MoFi LP)
* Elvis Costello: This Year’s Model (Columbia/Universal/MoFi LP)
* Elvis Costello & The Attractions: Armed Forces (Columbia/Universal/MoFi LP)
* Elvis Costello & The Attractions: Get Happy!! (Columbia/Universal/MoFi 2-45RPM LP)
* Los Lobos: Colossal Head (Warner Bros. CD)†/‡
* Los Lobos: This Time (Hollywood/MoFi SACD)
* Thurston Moore: Demolished Thoughts (Matador CD)
* Guided By Voices: Do the Collapse (TVT CD)†
* Tortoise: Standards (Thrill Jockey CD)†/‡
* Tortoise: It’s All Around You (Thrill Jockey CD)†/‡
* Tool: Lateralus (Volcano CD)†
* A Perfect Circle: Mer de Noms (Virgin CD)†/‡
* A Perfect Circle: Thirteenth Step (Virgin CD)†/‡
* A Perfect Circle: eMOTIVe (Virgin CD)†/‡
* Deerhoof: Friend Opportunity (Kill Rock Stars CD)
* Deerhoof: Offend Maggie (Kill Rock Stars CD)
* Deerhoof: Deerhoof vs. Evil (Polyvinyl CD)

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

With his old-fashioned, angular eyeglasses, thrift store chic and a snarling vocal delivery, Elvis Costello (nee Declan MacManus) epitomized the rise of British “punk rock” with the release of his debut album, My Aim Was True, in 1977. And, at the time, the menacing tone and manic tempo of the opening song, “Welcome To The Working Week,” certainly seemed to drive the final nail in the hippie’s coffin and signaled something truly new, grim and exciting in pop music. In retrospect, it’s obvious Costello was always just another singer/songwriter at heart, with deep roots in Tin Pan Alley, music hall and American soul music. This was already apparent on the title track and on his first hit single, “Allison,” both enduring ballads full of tricky chord modulations, elaborate melodies, and jazzy lead guitar—a far cry from the amateurish minimalism of, say, the Sex Pistols. Yet, however good the songs are, My Aim Is True is weighed down by the pedestrian accompaniment of the San Francisco-based Clover, who was hired by producer Nick Lowe to rush record the album in a mere twenty-four hours. This deficit was immediately remedied on the following albums, which featured Costello’s working band, The Attractions, and with their muscular and sophisticated musical support, his songwriting flourished, unleashing a string of near-perfect albums which transcend the now-dated “new wave” label. This Year’s Model (1978), Armed Forces (1979) and Get Happy!! (1980) showed remarkable growth and consistency, establishing Costello as a bona fide rock star—and the preeminent singer/songwriter of the era. These records sound as fresh today as when they were originally released, even if they’re not really “punk rock.”

Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs has recently reissued these first four albums on ultra-high-quality vinyl and they are nothing less than spectacular in every possible way. Admittedly, they are not audiophile recordings to begin with, but MoFi has extracted every bit of detail from the analog master tapes, making them sound better than ever. And, as usual, the packaging is super-deluxe: oversize, heavy-duty gatefolds with old-style, pasted-on artwork—going so far as to recreate the original British covers with their intentional “mistakes” (the deliberately off-center front on This Year’s Model and Get Happy!!’s artificial “ring-wear”) which were “corrected” by Costello’s U.S. label, Columbia, who was afraid customers would return them en masse as “defective.” However, MoFi retains the Columbia track-listings so as to include the familiar singles which were omitted on the British editions—a happy tradeoff for this Yank. Also note that rather than stuffing all twenty-one of Get Happy!!’s songs onto a single LP, MoFi recreates the original promo-only version, stretching them across two forty-five-RPM discs for vastly improved sound quality. Excellent! If you love these records and have access to a turntable, you owe yourself these outstanding reissues. Yeah, they’re a little pricey, but worth every penny, in my opinion—they are just so exquisitely well done. It’s unclear whether MoFi will continue on with this series of definitive vinyl editions. I, for one, would love to see Imperial Bedroom given this kind of treatment, given that it is one of my favorite records of all time. I guess we’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, these will continue to provide lots of listening pleasure. All four are most highly recommended.

Sun Ra Sunday

Sun Ra & His Arkestra: Sub-Underground (Saturn LP>CDR)

The appropriately titled Sub-Underground (also known as Cosmo-Earth Fantasy and Temple U.) is another super-rare artifact, badly in need of upgrade and reissue. Originally released as Saturn 92074 in late 1974, Prof. Campbell posits side one was recorded at Variety Recorders in New York City sometime in September while side two was recorded live at Temple University in Philadelphia, possibly on September 20 (Campbell & Trent p.214-215). Yet, as usual with Sun Ra, there is much confusion and uncertainty regarding the details of this recording and, after careful listening, I’m not sure I agree with our discographer in all respects. Unfortunately, the sound quality is somewhat murky and my less-than-perfect transfer of the original LP does not help to clarify much. Despite (or perhaps because of) its difficulties, Sub-Underground a fascinating record.

Side one is taken up with “Cosmo-Earth Fantasy,” an epic, twenty-two minute improvisation, obviously recorded in the studio. It begins with Arkestra scrubbing, scraping and plucking a variety of zithers, harps, guitars and other “Strange Strings” while Ra strums the interior of a piano. I love it! Enervated bass octaves come and go. Is this electric bass? (Prof. Campbell thinks so.) Or is it Ra on some sort of keyboard? Maybe—it’s hard to tell. Anyway, the spacey exotica goes on for about seven minutes before Ra fingers an ominous chord sequence on Clavinet, signaling Marshall Allen to pick up the oboe and echo Ra’s insistently repeated figures. Sonny continues to hold down a pedal point and outline upper-register harmonies while Allen keenly elaborates on the simple theme. Just lovely. Then the oboe drops out and there’s more “bass,” with what sounds like a melodica wheezing around the corner. At the half-way mark, a high-pitched marimba (Ra?) starts clattering away, Chinese-style, eventually joined by Allen on flute. Then the texture starts to thicken (possibly through the use of overdubbing) as multiple flutes, “bass,” Clavinet and percussion build up a spiky, Messiaenic din. Wild! After some slow, held chords, the piece comes to a definite, satisfying conclusion. Prof. Campbell lists additional instrumentalists, including John Gilmore on tenor sax, Eloe Omoe on bass clarinet and (possibly) Dale Williams on guitar (Id.), but I just don’t hear them on this track. Regardless, “Cosmo-Earth Fantasy” is a classic.

Side two begins with “Love Is For Always,” another impossibly romantic piano ballad featuring Gilmore’s creamy and delicious tenor saxophone—yes, it’s another incredible Gilmore solo! This beautiful Ra composition was, apparently, only performed one time. What a shame! The distant and boomy drums indicate it was indeed recorded live, although, curiously, any applause has been deftly edited from the end of the track. “The Song of The Drums” shares the same reverberant acoustic, and the eponymous drums are almost impossible to hear. Eddie Thomas [Thomas Thaddeus] vocalizes in an absurdly eccentric patois, later joined by another male vocalist (possibly Akh Tal Ebah—but it doesn’t really sound like him) while Ra alternates between bright, major-key comping and ominous Morse code messaging on Rocksichord. It’s sort of interesting, but ends inconclusively. Finally, the album concludes with “The World Of Africa,” which sounds to me like it was recorded in studio (possibly at the same session as “Cosmo-Earth Fantasy”), with its comparatively clear and dry ambience (but who knows?). June Tyson and Cheryl Banks wordlessly intone a repeating melody over a two-chord Clavinet vamp and percussion and while the hypnotic 6/8 groove is suitably enchanting, it fades out after only a few minutes, breaking the spell too soon. Oh well.

Sub-Underground is a weird and wonderful record. Certainly, “Cosmo Earth Fantasy” is one of the great long-form improvs, notable for its unusual instrumentation and “Love Is For Always” is also beautiful and unique. While the other tracks are perhaps less essential, they are interesting vocal experiments well worth hearing. Let’s hope Art Yard or some other intrepid label will rescue Sub-Underground from its willful obscurity.

Playlist Week of 6-11-11

* J.S. Bach: Trio Sonatas (London Baroque/Medlam) (Harmonia Mundi CD)†
* Handel: 12 Solo Sonatas, Op.1 (Academy of Ancient Music/Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi 2CD)
* Handel: Concerti Grossi, Op.3 (Academy of Ancient Music/Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi SACD)
* Handel: Organ Concertos, Op.7 (Academy of Ancient Music/Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi 2SACD)
* Venice Baroque Orchestra (Marcon/Carmignola): Concerto Veneziano (Archiv Produktion CD)†
* John Coltrane: Live In Japan (d.1-2) (Impulse!/GRP 4CD)
* Sun Ra: Sub-Underground (Saturn LP>CDR)
* Anthony Braxton: Septet (Pittsburgh) 2008 (New Braxton House MP3)†
* Henry Threadgill’s Very Very Circus: Too Much Sugar For A Dime (Axiom/Island CD)
* George Benson: Breezin’ (Warner Bros./MoFi LP)
* Stanley Clarke: School Days (Epic/Friday Music LP)
* Chaka Khan: I Feel For You (Warner Bros. LP)
* Bob Marley & The Wailers: Rastaman Vibration (Island LP)
* The Who: Who’s Next (Deluxe Edition) (MCA/Universal 2CD)†/‡
* Grateful Dead: Go To Nassau (GDP/Arista 2CD)†
* Grateful Dead: Truckin’ Up To Buffalo: July 4, 1989 (GDP/Rhino 2CD)†
* Grateful Dead: Crimson, White & Indigo: Philadelphia, July 7, 1989 (GDP/Rhino 3CD+DVD)†
* Grateful Dead: Buckeye Lake Music Center, Hebron, OH 6-11-93 (SBD 3CDR)
* Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles: Live! (Columbia/Sony—Japan CD)
* The Band: Music From Big Pink (Capitol/MoFi SACD)
* Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: Déjà vu (Atlantic/MoFi LP)
* Fleetwood Mac: Rumours (Reprise/Warner Bros. 2-45RPM LP)
* King Crimson: Discipline (DGM CD)
* Sonic Youth: Bad Moon Rising (Homestead LP)
* Thurston Moore: Demolished Thoughts (Matador CD)†
* Thurston Moore & Tom Surgal: “Not Me”/”Lydia’s Moth” (Fourth Dimension CDEP)
* Christian Marclay/Thurston Moore/Lee Ranaldo: Fuck Shit Up: Victoriaville Mai 1999 (Victo CD)
* Yo La Tengo: Summer Sun (Matador CD)
* Yo La Tengo: And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out… (Matador CD)
* Yo la Tengo: Popular Songs (Matador CD)†
* Yo La Tengo: “Today Is The Day” (Matador CDEP)
* Yo La Tengo: “Danelectro” (Matador CDEP)
* Tool: Undertow (Volcano CD)†/‡
* Tool: Ænima (Volcano CD)†/‡
* Radiohead: Kid A (Capitol CD)†
* Radiohead: Amnesiac (Capitol CD)†
* Radiohead: Hail To The Thief (Capitol CD)†
* Robert Pollard: Lord Of The Birdcage (GBV, Inc. LP)
* Mars Classroom: The New Theory Of Everything (Happy Jack Rock Records MP3)†/‡
* Broken Bells: Broken Bells (Columbia CD/LP)
* Broken Bells: Meyrin Fields EP (Columbia EP)
* Fleet Foxes: Sun Giant (Sub Pop CDEP)†
* Fleet Foxes: Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant EP (Sub Pop LP/EP)
* Fleet Foxes: Helplessness Blues (Sub Pop 2LP)

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

I didn’t really get Fleet Foxes when they burst on the scene back in 2008. The hype was inescapable, which sort of put me off from the get go. But I was intrigued by the album’s cover, a detail from Bruegel’s bizarre masterpiece, Netherlandish Proverbs (1559)—a bold move, flirting with pretention and cliché. On a whim, I bought a copy. But the music didn’t really grab me. Sure, the elaborate multi-part harmonies and gently strumming acoustic guitars evoke such folkie icons as Simon & Garfunkel, The Byrds, and Crosby, Stills & Nash and the nouveau-hippie, faux-rural vibe was pleasant enough—but the songs just didn’t stick with me. Restless and diffuse, a song might begin one way only to wander off into baroque instrumental passages and a big, catchy chorus might occasionally erupt, only to disappear, replaced with an incongruous coda. The singing was nice enough, but the whole thing sounded like a folk-rock pastiche, a twenty-something’s dream of the ‘60s, drenched in reverb and patchouli oil. Frankly, I wondered what the big deal was.

But I persevered. I picked up their previous EP, Sun Giant, because, well, again, I liked the cover (yes, I do things like that). And I liked this one a bit better. “Drops in the River” pits a catchy tune against atmospheric sitar and fingerpicked guitars while “English House” yields another one of those surprisingly gorgeous choruses. But “Mykonos” stood out immediately: a relatively straightforward song with strong melodies, propulsive rhythms, and carefully layered instrumental textures. Yet it's a quintessential Fleet Foxes construction, eschewing a regular AABA form and taking a left turn about half-way through—yet, somehow, it works, building up momentum and releasing tension via an oblique shift in meter, dynamics and theme. Nevertheless, despite my fondness for that one song, I didn’t really think much of the Fleet Foxes. Occasionally, I would pull these records out and give them another try but my ambivalence persisted.

So, I had sort of forgotten about them by the time their new album, Helplessness Blues, appeared in the record store a couple of weeks ago. The reviews were, once again, rapturous and since the cover art is, once again, stunningly beautiful, I decided to give them another shot (I am a sucker for snazzy packaging—what can I say?). And at first, it seemed like more of the same but the sprawling double-LP reveals more cohesive, introspective songwriting and increasingly ambitious musical settings. The lush vocal harmonizing and cavernous reverb remain intact, but the songs are less self-consciously derivative, less meanderingly episodic—and the band stretches its wings, orchestrating delicate, ethereal arrangements utilizing a variety of instruments, from fiddles, dulcimer, harp, and pedal steel to woodwinds, harpsichord, and harmonium to analog synthesizers to Tibetan singing bowls. The Foxes’ signature sound—a windswept Americana—is retained and refined but also expanded and developed, culminating in an outrageously skronky bass-clarinet freakout (with swooning violins) on the penultimate epic, “The Shrine/An Argument.” Very impressive. Two years in the making, Fleet Foxes obviously put a lot of effort into crafting Helpless Blues and have managed to fulfill the promise of their previous records. Now I “get” it—and those earlier efforts are starting to make more sense.

It took a while to get over my skepticism about this band. I have become so jaded, I was unable to believe the Fleet Foxes’ earnest demeanor was truly sincere. Where was the winking irony? Where was the post-punk malaise? Where was the rawk? How could music so pretty and precious exist in this day and age—much less be so popular? In the liner notes to the Sun Giant EP, lead Fox, Robin Pecknold (hiding behind a pseudonym), writes:

A very smart and gifted friend of mine told me once that music is a kind of replacement for the natural world. That, before civilization or whatever, the world must have seemed a place of such immense wonder and confusion, so terrifying in a way, unthinkably massive and majestic and that that feeling of mystery and amazement is somehow hardwired into us. Once the world became commonplace, mapped and conquered, that mystery left our common mind and we needed something to replace it with and then along came music. I think she’s right. Music is magic to me, transportative and full of wonder in a way that I have trouble getting from the natural world. All the human things that make the natural world so hard to connect with just aren’t there with music….Music to me is just as awe-bringing as the world maybe once [was]. And I just love it a lot.

I think I have to take him at his word and accept the fact that the Fleet Foxes are not “cool” and they are not “hip.” They are simply musicians trying to bring awe to a commonplace world. Helplessness Blues succeeds—so long as I can abandon my world-weary cynicism. That’s probably a good thing.

Happy Anniversary!

Thank you, lovely Lizzy, for seventeen wonderful years of marriage!

Playlist Week of 6-04-11

* De Filharmonie (Herreweghe/Peckova): Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels 9-16-10 (FM 2CDR)
* Poulenc: Concerto For Organ, etc. (ORTF/Martinon, et al.) (Erato LP)
* Poulenc: Aubade/Piano Concerto (Paris Conservatoire Orch./Prêtre/Tacchino) (Angel LP)
* Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers: Mosaic (Blue Note LP)
* Lee Morgan: The Sidewinder (Blue Note LP)
* Sun Ra: The Antique Blacks (Saturn/Art Yard CD)
* Sun Ra: Sub-Underground (Saturn LP>CDR)
* Andrew Hill Trio: Promenade Hall, Pori, Finland 7-20-02 (FM CDR)
* Archie Shepp: Four For Trane (Impulse! CD)
* Marion Brown: Three For Shepp (Impulse! CD)
* Herbie Hancock: Secrets (Columbia LP)
* Miles Davis: We Want Miles (Columbia 2LP)
* Bill Laswell: Points Of Order (Innerhythmic CD)†/‡
* Emmylou Harris: Hard Bargain (Nonesuch CD)‡
* Rolling Stones: Saitama Super Arena, Saitama, Japan 4-02-06 (CATV>2CDR)
* Paul McCartney & Wings: Wingspan: Hits & History (Capitol 2CD)†/‡
* Grateful Dead: Formerly The Warlocks: Hampton, VA 10-89 (d.5-6) (GDP/Rhino 6CD)
* King Crimson: Heavy ConstruKction (DGM 3CD)†/(‡)
* Yes: Close To The Edge (Atlantic/Rhino CD)
* Yes: Tales From Topographic Oceans (Atlantic/Rhino 2CD)
* Yes: Relayer (Atlantic/Rhino CD)
* Yes: Going For The One (Atlantic/Rhino CD)
* Yes: Tormato (Elektra/Rhino CD)
* Latin Playboys: Latin Playboys (Slash/Warner Bros. CD)
* Latin Playboys: Dose (Atlantic CD)
* Thurston Moore: Demolished Thoughts (Matador CD)†
* Dinosaur (Jr.): Dinosaur (Homestead LP)
* Boredoms: Vision Creation Newsun (Birdman CD)
* Robert Pollard: Lord Of The Birdcage (GBV, Inc. LP/FLAC>CDR)
* Radiohead: In Rainbows (TBD CD)†
* Radiohead: The King Of Limbs (XL/TBD CD)†
* Animal Collective: Strawberry Jam (Domino CD)†
* Panda Bear: Young Prayer (Paw Tracks CD)
* Panda Bear: Live At Governors Island (Paw Tracks bonus MP3) †/‡
* Deerhoof: The Runners Four (Kill Rock Stars CD)
* Deerhoof: Friend Opportunity (Kill Rock Stars CD)
* Broken Bells: Broken Bells (Columbia LP)
* Broken Bells: Meyrin Fields EP (Columbia EP)
* Fleet Foxes: Helplessness Blues (Sub Pop 2LP)

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

As you all know, I like to listen to music—a lot. And while I am allowed to listen to music at work, it must be via headphones—but I am not a big fan of headphones. I don’t like the sensation of music appearing to come from inside my head, rather than as vibrations of air in an acoustic space. Further degrading were the cheapo earbuds I used with my iPod which were extremely uncomfortable and, moreover, sounded like crap. After a few minutes, my ears would start to hurt. Eventually, I pretty much stopped listening to music at work and this made me very sad.

Of course, I have a very nice pair of over-the-ear headphones I use in my home studio, but I’m not going to lug them back and forth and, worse, look like a total geek wearing them at the office. Besides, I have to be at least somewhat aware of my surroundings while at work and the complete isolation they provide would be totally inappropriate. That means earbuds are my only practical choice. Ugh.

So I did a little research. Surely there must be good sounding, comfortable earbuds out there! After reading several enthusiastic reviews, I finally sprung for the Monster Turbine Pro Copper Edition, which boast an all-metal construction for low resonance and high durability, Monster’s usual superlative cabling and, conveniently, a multitude of ear-tips in various sizes to ensure a proper fit. They promised audiophile sound quality and non-fatiguing, long-term wearability. It seemed too good to be true, but according to users, they deliver. I had to give them a try.

They arrived this week and I had an opportunity to check them out yesterday. Wow! What a difference! They deliver deep bass, sparkling highs and have a surprisingly open, uncongested midrange—very much unlike my old earbuds, which always sounded compressed and tinny. I’m still experimenting with various eartips, but with a proper seal, these things sound amazing. In fact, they sound so good, lossy MP3 artifacts are brought to the fore, revealing the sonic compromises of listening to music on an iPod. Sure, it’s great for the car, where road noise masks the flaws inherent to the format, but MP3s simply do not stand up to close listening. I think I have an old Sony Discman somewhere that still works—maybe I’ll bring it to work so I can listen to CDs. Gosh, it almost makes me look forward to Monday. Well, almost…

Expect even longer playlists in the coming weeks!

Sun Ra Sunday

Sun Ra & His Myth Science Solar Arkestra: The Antique Blacks (Saturn/Art Yard CD)

On August 9, 1974, Richard M. Nixon resigned as President of the United States. I imagine this extraordinary event was on Sun Ra’s mind when, a week later, he assembled a small Arkestra for a live radio broadcast at Temple University in Philadelphia on August 17 [FN1]. While not making any direct references to Nixon, Ra took the opportunity to sermonize at length and he felt strongly enough about the performance to edit the recording for an LP entitled, The Antique Blacks, released on his own Saturn label later in the year (Saturn 81774). Ra clearly felt he had to get his message out. In actuality, this record was pressed in vanishingly small editions, sometimes re-titled, Interplanetary Concepts or There Is A Change In The Air and with various covers, including a generic “Acropolis” sleeve (see Campbell & Trent, pp.212-213). Like the mystical texts in his personal library, The Antique Blacks was probably made available to only initiates or persons Ra felt could decode his deeper, spiritual meanings. The ever-resourceful Art Yard label has reissued the album on CD with a bonus track recorded at the same session—but beware: Ra’s philosophizing is as inscrutable as ever, making this a strange and difficult listen for the casual fan. Keep in mind: it was a different era.

The record starts out easy enough with “Song No.1,” a gently rollicking space groove propelled by burbling percussion (including Clifford Jarvis on trap drums and Atakatune on congas) and Sonny’s reedy Rocksichord comping. This is one of my favorite “genres” of Sun Ra’s music (think “Love In Outer Space”) and this is particularly fine example. John Gilmore is up first with a terse but beautifully melodic tenor sax solo: starting with burnished low-register figures and then flying into the highest registers, he gracefully returns to earth with a variation on the theme he’d extemporaneously established. Yes, it’s another brilliant Gilmore solo! Ra is up next and then—what’s this?—who’s playing the screaming electric guitar? That’s a good question. The liner notes to the Art Yard CD say it’s the mysterious “Sly” while Campbell & Trent insist it’s a 15-year-old Dale Williams (p.313). Whoever it is plays with a rocked-out, psychedelicized abandon which works well enough in this setting, despite a severe intonation problem. Then Akh Tal Ebah enters with one of his smeared, expressionistic trumpet solos. Kwame Hadi is absent at this session, giving Ebah a rare opportunity to stretch out. While Ebah doesn’t hit every note with refined precision (like Hadi), his melodic ideas are unique and interesting. Gilmore enters with a tasteful counter-melody and, after some more buzzy comping from Ra, the “Song No.1” comes to an end. Very nice.

Much of the rest of the album appears to be taken from a long, continuous piece, but chopped up and re-arranged for release. Ra outlines a simple ascending bassline in waltz-time then pauses to make his declamations, the Arkestra periodically entering with pulsating space chords, ensemble freakouts or out-jazz solos. Gilmore is joined by Marshall Allen and Davis for a full-blown saxophone battle on “There Is a Change in the Air” and Williams/Sly sounds a little like Sonny Sharrock with his gonzo, metallic attack. On “The Ridiculous ‘I’ and the Cosmos Me,” Gilmore delivers one of his trademarked a cappella blowouts and James Jacson takes a positively ripping solo on the otherwise unwieldy bassoon. For the most part, Ra sticks to Rocksichording incongruous harmonies and skittering runs, except at the end where we get some spaceship synthesizer. But, most of the time, Sonny is preaching it, hot and heavy.

So, what is he on about? “There is a change in the air!” (Nixon has resigned!) “Do you not hear the heavy silence there?” Then he warns: “Some people are on the right road, but they’re going in the wrong direction. They need to turn around. The arrow points to pointlessness.” And it goes on from there with exhortations to “The Antique Blacks” (“they belong to me!”); a disquisition on “so-called equality”; the summoning of “dark spirit” Lucifer; and, of course, an invitation to join him in outer space. It might be interesting to transcribe the declamations and do some sort of exegesis, but I’m afraid I’m not the man for the job. And it is also tempting to dismiss this stuff as the rantings of a crank and accuse him of blatant charlatanism. But that would be unfair—and completely miss the point (whatever it is). Sun Ra is speaking in code and I lack the esoteric knowledge required to decipher his true meaning—or call his bluff. As a white guy in the year 2011, I also suspect I am not the intended audience for his message, who might have taken false hope in Nixon’s ignoble departure in the summer of 1974. Indeed, he makes it clear that while “There is a change in the air,” it is not necessarily for the better.

Thankfully, all this heaviness is leavened by a bit of frivolity: “This Song Is Dedicated To Nature’s God” is joyous and bouncy, a major-key singalong, with everyone chanting the title again and again over burbling percussion and herky-jerky Rocksichord. It’s a fun little number, although the guitar is woefully out of tune and whoever is playing seems to be struggling with the irregularly repeating chord progression. The album concludes with small-group arrangement of “Space Is The Place,” with Jarvis whipping up a swinging groove on his reduced kit and Ebah doing his “soul-man” thing. June Tyson is regrettably absent, but it does sound like a female vocalist is scatting away in the background—who is it? One of the bandmembers singing falsetto? I suppose it’s possible. In any event, the record ends on a high note with band exclaiming, “Sun Ra and his Band from Outer Space have entertained you here!”

Art Yard adds a bonus track, “You Thought You Could Build A World Without Us,” another long declamation with instrumental punctuation, but with Sonny playing synthesizer in “mad scientist” mode. Campbell & Trent list this ten-minute track separately as it was unheard until broadcast on WKCR’s Sun Ra festival in 1987 and they suggest it was material cut from the Space Is The Place movie, which was still unfinished in the summer of ‘74 (see p.209). The Art Yard CD states it was recorded on August 17 and while the sound quality is reduced, it is almost certainly from the same session. The reverb-drenched electric guitar meshes well with squiggly synthesizer and Ra is at his most messianic: “If you refuse to recognize me, I refuse to recognize you!...I am The Magic Lie! Greater than your truth!” Meanwhile, the Arkestra titters in the background and spare horns and ominous percussion ebb and flow while Ra continuously demonstrates his mastery of the MiniMoog, keeping things interesting and intense, even as he’s sermonizing away at the microphone. It’s an interesting track and fits in perfectly with the rest of the album.

Ultimately, The Antique Blacks is a difficult album for me to fully appreciate. I don’t enjoy being preached at, even if it’s Sun Ra up in the pulpit. At the same time, I cannot dismiss this stuff out of hand. Ra’s philosophy (such as it is) may be shrouded in hokum and showbiz and fail to cohere into a plausible cosmology, but it is interesting to note how well it served him. Herman "Sonny" Blount conjured up an elaborate persona, Sun Ra, and lived it—fully and completely—to the end of a long life, surrounded by a core of musicians who were as devoted to him as the followers of any guru. So it obviously worked—for him. The Antique Blacks is prime source material regarding Sun Ra’s psyche but it is musically less than completely satisfying. That said, the eight-minute “Song No.1,” is one of Sun Ra’s most delightful “space grooves” ever and makes this essential for the truly obsessed fan. As usual with Art Yard, the sound quality and packaging is first rate so if you want this, rest assured you get your money’s worth (and some of that money goes to the surviving Arkestra). But I wouldn’t recommend The Antique Blacks to novices.

+++

[FN1]: The location for this recording is highly speculative, based on the teenage recollection of Dale Williams (Id. p.213). It certainly sounds like a studio recording, but it lacks the ambience of Variety Recorders in New York, Sonny's usual choice. Considering the impromptu feel of the proceedings, a college radio station seems a likely venue. But who knows? No tapes of the broadcast have surfaced (if indeed it even occurred). Another discographical mystery.

Playlist Week of 5-28-11

* J.S. Bach: Brandenburg Concertos (AAM/Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi 2SACD)
* J.S. Bach: Trio Sonatas (London Baroque/Medlam) (Harmonia Mundi CD)
* J.S. Bach: Sonatas For Viola Da Gamba (Pandolfo/Alessandrini) (Harmonia Mundi CD)
* Geminiani: Cello Sonatas, Op. 5 (ter Linden/Mortensen) (Brilliant Classics CD)
* Charlie Parker: Charlie Parker Hi-Fi (Verve CD)
* Sun Ra: The Antique Blacks (Saturn/Art Yard CD)
* Sun Ra: Sub-Underground (Saturn LP>CDR)
* Anthony Braxton: Sextet (Boston) 2005 (d.1) (New Braxton House FLAC>2CDR)
* Kip Hanrahan: Vertical’s Currency (American Clave/Pangaea CD)†/‡
* Material: Hallucination Engine (Axiom/Island CD)
* The Disco Box (selections) (Rhino 4CD)
* Emmylou Harris: Wrecking Ball (Elektra CD)†/‡
* Grateful Dead: The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA 8-30-80 (set 2) (SBD CDR)†
* Grateful Dead: Formerly The Warlocks: Hampton, VA 1989 (d.1-4) (GDP/Rhino 6CD)
* U2: The Unforgettable Fire (Deluxe Edition) (Island 2CD)†/‡
* U2: The Joshua Tree (Deluxe Edition) (d.1) (Island 2CD)†/‡
* Sonic Youth: Simon Werner A Disparu (Soundtrack) (SYR-9 LP)
* Thurston Moore: Psychic Hearts (Geffen 2LP)
* Thurston Moore: Trees Outside The Academy (Ecstatic Peace CD)
* Thurston Moore: Demolished Thoughts (Matador 2LP/CD)
* Thurston Moore: 12 String Meditations For Jack Rose (Thin Wrist/Vin Du Select Qualitite LP)
* The Flaming Lips: The Soft Bulletin (Warner Bros. CD)†/‡
* Robert Pollard: Moses On A Snail (GBV, Inc. CD)†/‡
* Circus Devils: Sgt. Disco (Happy Jack Rock Records 2LP)
* Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavilion (Domino CD)†/‡
* Panda Bear: Tomboy (Paw Tracks CD)
* Broken Bells: Broken Bells (Columbia CD)†/‡
* Fleet Foxes: Sun Giant (Sub Pop CDEP)
* Fleet Foxes: Fleet Foxes (Sub Pop CD)
* Fleet Foxes: Helplessness Blues (Sub Pop 2LP)

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore may no longer be so youthful (he turns 53 on July 25) and you might conclude from his latest solo album, Demolished Thoughts, he has mellowed with age. But that’s OK because it’s an unselfconsciously beautiful record—the kind of record a younger Moore could have never dreamed of making. Known for his noisy electric guitar playing, he sticks to acoustic instruments here, including spare accompaniment from Samara Lubelski on violin, Mary Lattimore on harp (!), Bram Inscore on bass and Joey Waronker on percussion. This is similar to the approach taken on 2007’s Trees Outside The Academy, but while that one still retained some punk rock heaviness (thanks, no doubt, to the presence of Sonic Youth’s drummer, Steve Shelley, and Dinosaur Jr.’s, J. Mascis on lead guitar), Demolished Thoughts just floats on air. To that end, Beck Hansen was brought in produce and his sweet string arrangements and deft recording skills give these dreamy, ethereal songs a pure-pop glow reminiscent of his own Sea Change or Nick Drake’s Five Leaves Left (two of the most gorgeous albums ever made). If nothing else, this album is definitely chill.

At first, it seemed a little derivative of what had come before: More Trees Outside The Academy, if you will. But the super-relaxed mood and luscious sound quality made me want to play it over and over and doing so revealed subtleties I had initially overlooked in a rush to judgment. For example, “Orchard Street” sounds alarmingly similar to any number of latter-day Sonic Youth songs, but a simple, tasty riff inserted between the verses and a swelling, swirling coda laden with billowing strings, glistening harp and ghostly howling go a long way to redeem it. Likewise, “Mina Loy” is constructed around an angular chord sequence that sounds vaguely familiar but Beck’s production choices, including Morricone-esque whistling and gauzy violins, give the song a windblown, Spaghetti Western feel that is perfectly charming. But there are also signs of growth: Moore’s acoustic guitar playing has matured, delivering a surprisingly bluesy solo on the opening “Benediction” and executing intricate cross-picking patterns on the penultimate “Space.” Meanwhile, his 6-and-12-string strumming is rich and full-toned throughout—aided, in part, by Beck’s meticulous recording. And while Moore’s lyrics are only obliquely self-referential, his laconic crooning has never sounded more nakedly sincere, revealing an emotional depth previously hidden by a veil of irony. The album sounds like a very personal, perfectly pitched statement, making some of the rehashed musical material more forgivable.

The limited edition LP (mastered by Bob Ludwig) generously spreads the album across two (blue) vinyl discs for exceptional sound quality and the deluxe gatefold packaging houses full-color inner sleeves along with a copy of the CD booklet containing lyrics and additional artwork—well done, Matador! Also included is a download card for a free MP3 copy of the album, a nice bonus if you’re so inclined (personally, I prefer the compact disc for my digital needs). Demolished Thoughts may be an imperfect masterpiece, but it is certainly a richly rewarding listen. Check it out—you can download free MP3s of “Benediction” and “Circulation” here.

Sun Ra Sunday

The Sun Ra literature is depressingly thin. Aside from Szwed’s excellent biography and Prof. Campbell’s exhaustive (but now out of date) discography, there’s not much else out there. Fortunately, a couple books came out recently to help to fill the void.

After a long delay, the third and final volume documenting the spectacular 2006 exhibition, “Pathways To Unknown Worlds” was published last year by Whitewalls. Curated by John Corbett, Anthony Elms and Terri Kapsalis, the first volume in the series, The Wisdom of Sun Ra: Sun Ra’s Polemical Broadsheets And Streetcorner Leaflets collects facsimiles (and transcriptions) of Ra’s earliest writings while the second volume, Pathways To Unknown Worlds: Sun Ra, El Saturn And Chicago’s Afro-Futurist Underground 1954-68 serves as a catalog for the exhibition with high-quality reproductions of album art and other business ephemera along with essays by Corbett, Glenn Ligon, Adam Abraham, and Camille Norment. Finally, Traveling The Spaceways: Sun Ra, The Astro Black and Other Space Myths compiles presentations from a two-day symposium held at the Hyde Park Art Center in Chicago in November 2006. I haven’t read the whole thing yet, but our own Prof. Campbell offers his research on Sonny’s earliest years in Chicago and there are essays by all the curators as well as notable critics, Kevin Whitehead and Graham Lock. Like others in the series, it is a slender but lovingly produced volume and, taken together, they make a wonderful reference source regarding Sun Ra’s Chicago years.

Additionally, good old John Sinclair has put together a book for Headpress simply titled, Sun Ra: Interviews & Essays and it looks pretty interesting. Collecting journalism from various sources, the book makes available writings that would otherwise be impossible to find—like an interview Sinclair conducted with Ra in 1966 for the Detroit Sun or a 1994 interview with trumpter, Michael Ray, published Offbeat. Again, I haven’t had a chance to read much of it yet, but I’m grateful to have it. Saturn Research continues!

+++

I know: I punted again. Tune in next week for more record reviews—I promise!

Playlist Week of 5-21-11

* J.S. Bach: “Tonet, ihr Pauken,” BWV 207, etc. (Coll. Vocale Gent/Herreweghe) (Harmonia Mundi CD)
* J.S. Bach: Cantatas, BWV 12, etc. (Collegium Vocale Gent/Herreweghe): Brussels 11-03-08 (d.1) (FM 2CDR)
* Ben Webster With Strings: Music For Loving (Verve 2CD)
* Grant Green: The Complete Quartets With Sonny Clark (Blue Note 2CD)
* Anthony Braxton: Sextet (Philadelphia) 2005 (New Braxton House FLAC>2CDR)
* Mary Halvorson & Jessica Pavone: Prairies (Lucky Kitchen CD)
* Mary Halvorson & Jessica Pavone: On And Off (Skirl CD)
* Mary Halvorson & Jessica Pavone: Thin Air (Thirsty Ear CD)
* Mary Halvorson: Saturn Sings (Firehouse 12 CD)
* Evan Parker, et al.: Teatro alle Tese, Venice, Italy 9-26-10 (FM CDR)
* David Torn: Prezens (ECM CD)†
* Miles Davis: Dark Magus: Live At Carnegie Hall (Columbia/Legacy 2CD)
* The Crusaders: Free As The Wind (Blue Thumb/ABC LP)
* Stuff: Stuff (Warner Bros. LP)
* Material: One Down (Elektra LP)
* Material: The Third Power (Axiom/Island CD)
* Material: Intonarumori (Axiom/Palm CD)†/‡
* Elvis Presley: That’s The Way It Is (Deluxe Edition) (d.1) (RCA 3CD)†/‡
* Rolling Stones: Tattoo You (Rolling Stones LP)
* The Who: Who Are You (Polydor/Classic LP)
* The Who: Face Dances (Warner Bros./MoFi LP)
* Grateful Dead: Curtis Hixon Convention Hall, Tampa, FL 12-19-73 (selections) (SBD 3CDR)‡
* Grateful Dead: Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA 8-28-81 (selections) (SBD 3CDR)
* Fleetwood Mac: Rumours (Reprise/Warner Bros. LP)
* Stevie Nicks: Bella Donna (Modern LP)
* Stevie Nicks: The Wild Heart (Modern LP)
* The Eagles: Hotel California (Asylum LP)
* Sting: The Dream Of The Blue Turtles (A&M LP)
* Sting: Bring On The Night (A&M—UK 2LP)
* Elvis Costello: My Aim Is True (Columbia/MoFi LP)
* Elvis Costello, et al.: Out Of Our Idiot (Demon—UK LP)
* Echo & The Bunnymen: Ocean Rain (Sire LP)
* Pavement: Wowee Zowee (Sordid Sentinels) (d.1) (Matador 2CD)
* Robert Pollard & Doug Gillard: Speak Kindly Of Your Volunteer Fire Department (Fading Captain LP)
* Lifeguards: Mist King Urth (Fading Captain LP)
* Lifeguards: Waving At The Astronauts (Serious Business LP)
* Boston Spaceships: “Headache Revolution” (Happy Jack Rock Records 7”EP)
* Boston Spaceships: “Camera Found The Ray Gun” (Jackpot 7”EP)
* Boston Spaceships: Our Cubehouse Still Rocks (GBV, Inc. LP)
* Mars Classroom: The New Theory Of Everything (Happy Jack Rock Records LP)
* Radiohead: The King Of Limbs (TBD/Ticker Tape CD) †/‡

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

Speak Kindly Of Your Volunteer Fire Department, the 1999 album by GBV guitarist, Doug Gillard, and Robert Pollard, is truly one of the all-time great records in Pollard’s ginormous discography. A non-stop whirlwind of power-pop gems, many of the songs became staples of GBV’s live sets until the very end, a measure of their superlative quality. Then, in 2003, the duo released Mist King Urth under the fake band name, Lifeguards, but it turned out to be a turgid slab of proggy, tuneless sludge—not a bad thing per se, but it seemed lacking in the playfulness and giddy experimentation of the Circus Devils, Pollard’s other ongoing psych-damage project. Despite another listen this week, which revealed a couple of decent songs buried in the murk, Mist King Urth remains one of my least favorite Pollard records. Hey, no one bats a (bee) thousand.

So, eight years later, when a follow-up album under the Lifeguards moniker was announced, I was nonplussed. It got some good reviews and, as an admitted completest, I knew I had to buy it—but I didn’t expect much. Boy, was I in for a surprise! Waving At The Astronauts is a astoundingly good record, rivaling Speak Kindly’s status as a bona fide classic. Sure, the prog-rock element remains, but the ideas are more fully developed, inspiring some of Pollard’s best singing in years. Right from the start, “Paradise Is Not So Bad” overflows with big, catchy hooks, chunky riffs and soaring melodies, all capped with an anthemic, singalong chorus. Perfect! And the album goes along like that, with Gillard’s virtuoso multi-instrumentalism and slickly layered production perfectly complimenting Pollard’s clever melodic wordplay. The chugging electro-rock of “Product Head” and the demented hillbilly psychedelia of “Trip The Web” are other standouts but there’s really not a dud track on the album—even the dour side-closers, “You’re Gonna Need a Mountain” and “What Am I?,” are redeemed by richly textured instrumental settings and heartfelt vocal performances. It would be easy to overlook Waving At The Astronauts in the relentless outpouring of releases from the absurdly prolific Pollard, but it’s well worth having a listen. The LP comes with a copy of the CD but, if you’re merely curious, you can download a free MP3 of “Paradise Is Not So Bad” over at Serious Business. Check it out!

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Similarly, I didn’t have particularly high hopes for Pollard’s latest music-by-mail project, Mars Classroom, a collaboration with Gary Waleik, formerly of the semi-legendary Boston hopefuls, Big Dipper. Of course, that name brings back fond memories of my younger years in old Beantown, rocking out at The Rat in Kenmore Square or Green Street Station out in J.P., where Big Dipper stood out from the rest of the grungy punkers on the scene with their earnest tunefulness and sophisticated song structures. The band released a bunch of solid records on a local indie label only to sign with Epic in 1990—and that was the beginning of the end. After releasing one mediocre, over-produced album, the label unceremoniously canceled the deal and Big Dipper quickly faded into obscurity. In other words: the same old story. But in 2008, Merge Records released a three-CD box set, Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology, prompting a resurgence of interest in the band—which just goes to show: sometimes there is a second act. As it turns out, Pollard is a big fan and he sought out Waleik to make this record, titled The New Theory Of Everything. It’s another pleasant surprise.

After opening with a one-two pure-pop punch of “New Theory” and “Man. Wine. Power!” the album proceeds to alternate between up-tempo rock songs and super-creamy ballads, the latter yielding some of the most passionate vocals of Pollard’s career. In fact, songs like “There Never Was a Sea Of Love” and “Lumps” are quite unlike anything else in the guy’s ridiculously vast catalog, with their swooning, romantic keyboards and emotionally direct lyrics. Meanwhile, “Wish You Were Young” closes the record with the sort of bittersweet lament for lost youth only Pollard can put across. Throughout, Waleik’s chiming guitars and low-key production fit Pollard’s voice like a glove and the whole thing coheres into a thoroughly satisfying, thirty-nine minute album. Another unexpected charmer. I hope Mars Clasroom is more than just a one-off—I’d love to hear more from these two. The LP (on red vinyl!) comes with a free download card from GBVDigital and is available at your local record emporium or, if you prefer, directly from Rockathon.

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Of course, it just keeps coming and more Pollard product is on the way, with a new solo album, Lord Of The Birdcage, due out next week (a free MP of “In A Circle” is available at Pitchfork). Then, in August, the long-awaited magnum opus from Pollard’s other band, Boston Spaceships, finally hits the streets. A sprawling, twenty-six-song, two-LP set cheekily titled, “Let It Beard,” it will no doubt be worth the wait. After that, who knows? The Circus Devils are overdue for a new album; perhaps we’ll get one in time for Halloween. In any event, I’m sure there are already lots more records in the pipeline. How does he do it? I don’t know—but God bless Bob Pollard!

Sun Ra Sunday

These things only come around a couple times a year, so I got up this morning and headed over to the Holiday Inn by the airport for the Alpha Music Record Collectors’ Convention. I got there just after they opened and the tiny meeting room was already jam packed with fanatical record fiends. Wow! I didn’t find any Sun Ra records (and I didn’t really expect to) but I did find a few treasures (see if you can pick them out of this coming week’s playlist!). Consequently, I spent the rest of the day cleaning records and listening to them; so, no time to write a big review. Honestly, the next Sun Ra album in the queue is one the strangest records in a very strange discography and I’m more than a little intimidated. Check in next week and see if I’ve found the words to describe it. I’m not making any promises!

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By the way, I see the re-constituted Saturn label has reissued The Soul Vibrations of Man (Saturn 771) (1977) on vinyl only. Has anyone out there heard these new Saturn LPs? Any information you could share would be most appreciated! I see them around sometimes and wonder how they sound (as nice as the Evidence CDs are, they went a little overboard with the noise reduction, in my opinion). However, with no CD issue of this one in sight, I might have to pick it up and find out for myself. I’ll keep you posted. Maybe this means its companion, Taking A Chance On Chances (Saturn 772), will also be forthcoming…?

Playlist Week of 5-14-11

* Il Suonar Parlante (Ghielmi): Eglise des Minimes, Brussels 4-22-11 (FM CDR)
* J.S. Bach: Four Cantatas (Collegium Vocale Gent/Herreweghe): Leipzig 6-12-10 (FM 2CDR)
* Mozart: Violinkonzerte (Mozart Ens. Amsterdam/Bruggen/Schröder) (d.1) (Seon/Philips 2LP)
* Mark Volker: Elemental Forces (Centaur CD)
* Duke Ellington: Money Jungle (Blue Note CD)
* Sonny Clark: Cool Struttin’ (Blue Note/Classic LP)
* Sonny Clark: The 45 Sessions (Blue Note—Japan CD)
* Sun Ra: The Antique Blacks (Saturn/Art Yard CD)
* Sun Ra: Sub-Underground (Saturn LP>CDR)
* Henry Threadgill’s Zooid: This Brings Us To, Volume I (Pi CD)
* Henry Threadgill’s Zooid: This Brings Us To, Volume II (Pi CD)
* Tom Rainey Trio: Firehouse 12, New Haven, CT 5-06-11 (AUD 2CDR)
* Herbie Hancock: Headhunters (Columbia/Legacy CD)
* Herbie Hancock: Thrust (Columbia/Legacy CD)
* Herbie Hancock: Man-Child (Columbia/MoFi CD)
* Massacre: Killing Time (Celluloid/OAO LP)
* Massacre: Funny Valentine (Tzadik CD)
* Spring Heel Jack: Million Shades…… (Island CD)
* Tortoise: It’s All Around You (Thrill Jockey LP)
* Grateful Dead: Curtis Hixon Convention Hall, Tampa, FL 12-18-73 (SBD 3CDR)
* Grateful Dead: Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, LI, NY 11-01-79 (selections) (SBD 3CDR)(‡)
* Grateful Dead: West High Auditorium, Anchorage, AK 6-20-80 (SBD 3CDR)‡
* Grateful Dead: West High Auditorium, Anchorage, AK 6-21-80 (SBD 3CDR)‡
* The Soft Machine: The Soft Machine (ABC/Probe/Sundazed LP)
* The Soft Machine: Volume Two (ABC/Probe/Sundazed LP)
* Red Krayola: Amor And Language (Drag City LP)
* Red Krayola: Hazel (Drag City LP)
* Steely Dan: Decade of Steely Dan (MCA CD)†/‡
* Elvis Costello: My Aim Is True (Columbia/MoFi LP)
* Elvis Costello: This Year’s Model (Columbia/MoFi LP)
* Elvis Costello: Armed Forces (Columbia/MoFi LP)
* Pavement: Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain (LA’s Desert Origins) (Matador 2CD)
* Robert Pollard: Space City Kicks (GBV, Inc. LP)
* Lifeguards: Waving At The Astronauts (Serious Business LP)
* Radiohead: In Rainbows (TBD CD)†
* Jim O’Rourke: The Visitor (Drag City LP)
* Broken Bells: Broken Bells (Columbia LP)
* Broken Bells: Meyrin Fields EP (Columbia EP)

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

Tuesday’s Indeterminacies program at Zeitgeist Gallery was another scintillating evening of art, music and discussion. Surrounded by works by local artists, Patrick DeGuira and Brent Stewart, Belmont University, composer Mark Volker presented three remarkably diverse pieces of music while philosopher/aesthetician, Erin Bradfield, led a fascinating colloquy with the audience and musicians about what they heard.

The first piece was written expressly for the Pulse New Music Ensemble, a group of young musicians committed to performing music by living composers (“composers with a pulse”), and it was appropriately titled, “Pulse.” Actually, it was performed twice: once without introduction and again after a discussion about the composer’s inspiration, the audience’s reception and how they intersected. Mr. Volker explained how the dramatic percussion intro was inspired by Japanese Taiko drumming but that he allowed the ensemble sections to express other influences, not just modern “classical music” but also rock and soul and whatever else moved him—including an emphatic “HUH!” interjected during pregnant silences. Indeed, much of it reminded me of the exuberant, irreverent synthesis of Frank Zappa’s “serious” compositions with its complexly grooving rhythms, brightly pantonal, intricately interleaved melodies and prominent mallet percussion. Mr. Volker also spoke of how a C-major chord may sound bland and banal in the usual context, but becomes exotic and strangely beautiful when it arises within a modernist, “atonal” language—and it’s true. The second time through seemed to be invigorated by the exchange with the audience, the hyper-complicated rhythms and melodies executed with a genuinely rock-ish excitement and verve. While the first take may have been more technically precise (and had that unrepeatable sense of surprise), the second was more immediate and compelling—and those “HUHs” and “C-major chords” did indeed feel powerfully expressive and unifying.

The second work shifted gears, with Mr. Volker picking up the nylon-stringed classical guitar to accompany his wife, mezzo soprano Alyssa Sullivan Volker, in a four-part song cycle based on “Non Omnis Moriar” by the Mexican poet, Manuel Gutierrez Najera (1859-1895). Now, I have to admit up front I am shamefully monolingual, baffled by poetry and have an inordinate aversion to “operatic” singing so I am behind the Eightball when commenting on this kind of stuff. But I realize this is my own failing— and I’m working on rectifying it. Even so, the composition won me over with its rich harmonic density and the inventiveness and sensitivity of Mr. Volker’s guitar accompaniment. During the discussion, he pointed out how the restlessly shifting meters of the piece were based upon the rhythm of the words as spoken or recited, which gives the pieces a flowing yet irregular pace. More personally, he revealed that the poem had helped him to overcome a fear of death with its promise of immortality through art. The title is from Horace (Carmina 3.30) and can be translated from the Latin as, “I Shall Not Completely Die” and in the poem, Guiterrez Najera says farewell to a friend but comforts himself by asserting: “Something of my elusive spirit/shall within the line’s diaphanous urn/by Poetry be piously preserved.” Interestingly, some stanzas (sung in Spanish) overlap in the third and fourth songs, set in contrasting moods as if to physically demonstrate the ability of art to make the poet’s words—and the poet himself—eternal.

The evening concluded with “Deep Winter,” a work for flute and computer-generated music which showed yet another facet of Mr. Volker’s wide-ranging creativity. He spoke of the technological challenges inherent with electro-acoustic music and his desire to move beyond the passive “instrument with tape accompaniment” approach and working with software incorporating score following and real-time instrument tracking, enabling the computer to interact with the performer directly and instantaneously. In practice, it made for some startling precise effects which would otherwise be impossible such as dramatic tuttis and interlocking melodic flurries. I was reminded of Mark Snyder’s remarks at last month’s Indeterminacies program about having to remove these interactive elements from his pieces because of their unreliability and the potential for disaster as a solo performer (which is completely understandable). But with Mr. Volker monitoring the laptop’s behavior, the performance of “Deep Winter” on Tuesday was flawless—and a technological marvel. The work is an homage to the interminable seasons of his youth growing up in Buffalo, New York where, as a child, the bitter cold and mountains of snow were both terrifying and magical and it vividly conveys the bleak grandeur of a winter landscape.

Sadly, time ran out before Mr. Volker could play the shiny, red electric guitar perched tantalizingly over in the corner of the room—but that’s OK. It would have been a shame to cut off discussion just to cram in another piece. Fortunately, I was able to pick up Mr. Volker’s CD on Centaur entitled, Elemental Forces, which contains a studio rendition of “Deep Winter” along with two very different compositions for chamber ensemble and a suite for pipe organ (!). It’s an excellent disc and further showcases the remarkable diversity of this talented young composer.

Indeterminacies will continue in the fall with Andrew Raffo Dewar on October 11 and John Latartara on November 8. In the meantime, podcasts of previous events are available at Theatre Intangible, where you can also read an informative interview with the series organizers: architect, Lesley Beeman, and gallery curator, Lain York. The Indeterminacies series are must-see events—and more than just concerts of “new music.” As Mr. Beeman points out:

[t]he difference is that with Indeterminacies the audience is considered integral to the event from its conception. We never think of the presentation and the Q&A as separate events. When you come to Indeterminacies, expect to participate. Come prepared to fully engage with the program and with your fellow attendees…because there will be a quiz.

Well, maybe there won’t exactly be a quiz, but don’t be surprised if you’re called upon to answer a question or offer an observation—or coaxed into a dialogue with your neighbor. It’s what makes these events so stimulating and unpredictable. See you there!

Sun Ra Sunday

PLANES OF NATURE

If they would rise up above their knowledge
They would be able to see with their intuition’s heart
They would be able to see beyond their sight
Their spirit’s eye could pierce the night
Where earth dwells in hooded shame
Yes, earth was once a noble name.
If they would rise up above their yes-bound self
They would know the things to no . . . . . . . . . .
Then they would see nature as it is
And at long last they would feel
The touch of the Cosmo-Real
And they would know that they know they know
That there is no need to know,
If you cannot feel.

--Sun Ra (1980)

Playlist Week of 5-07-11

* J.S. Bach: Suites For Violoncello (ter Linden) (Harmonia Mundi 2CD)†
* J.S. Bach: French Suites (Leonhardt) (ABC/Seon 2LP)
* J.S. Bach: Cantatas, BWV56 & BWV82 (Baroque Ensemble/Brüggen) (Pro-Arte/Seon LP)
* J.S. Bach: Cantatas, BWV106 & BWV182 (Monteverdi Choir/Leonhardt Ens./Jürgens) (Telefunken LP)
* Miles Davis: In Concert: Live At Philharmonic Hall 1972 (Columbia/Legacy 2CD)
* Johnny Griffin: The Congregation (Blue Note LP)
* Grant Green: Idle Moments (Blue Note CD)
* Grant Green: Street Of Dreams (Blue Note CD)
* Milt Jackson/Hubert Laws: Goodbye (CTI LP)
* Sun Ra: Out Beyond The Kingdom Of (Saturn LP>CDR)
* Sun Ra: Hunter College, New York, NY 6-16-74 (AUD 2CDR)
* Sun Ra: The Antique Blacks (Saturn/Art Yard CD)
* Anthony Braxton: Orchestra (Los Angeles) 1992 (FM?>FLAC>CDR)
* Anthony Braxton: Sextet (Boston) 2005 (New Braxton House FLAC>2CDR)
* James Brown: Star Time (d.2) (Polydor 4CD)
* Sly & The Family Stone: Fresh (Epic/Sundazed LP)
* Johnny Cash: American IV: The Man Comes Around (American CD+DVD)
* Emmylou Harris: All I Intended To Be (Nonesuch CD)
* Emmylou Harris: Hard Bargain (Nonesuch CD+DVD)
* Lucinda Williams: Blessed (Deluxe Edition) (d.1) (Lost Highway 2CD)
* Grateful Dead: Road Trips Vol.4, No.3: Denver ’73 (GDP/Rhino 3CD)
* Grateful Dead: 2011 Bonus Disc (Cleveland, OH 12-06-73) (GDP/Rhino CD)
* Grateful Dead: West High Auditorium, Anchorage, AK 6-19-80 (selections) (SBD 2CDR)‡
* Grateful Dead: Deer Creek Music Center, Noblesville, IN 6-22-93 (SBD 3CDR)‡
* Grateful Dead: Deer Creek Music Center, Noblesville, IN 6-23-93 (SBD 3CDR)‡
* Santana: Caravanserai (Columbia/Legacy CD)
* Sir Douglas Quintet: The Mono Singles ’68-‘72 (Smash/Mercury/Sundazed 2LP)
* Tom Waits: Heart Attack And Vine (Asylum LP)
* Los Lobos: Kiko (Slash/Warner Bros. CD)
* The Fall: This Nation’s Saving Grace (Omnibus Edition) (d.1,3)(Beggar’s Banquet 3CD)
* Purple Trap: Decided…Already The Motionless Heart […] (Tzadik 2CD)
* Mars Classroom: The New Theory Of Everything (Happy Jack Rock Records LP)
* Lifeguards: Waving At The Astronauts (Serious Business LP)
* Those Bastard Souls: Debt And Departure (V2 CD)
* Fleet Foxes: Helplessness Blues (Sub Pop CD)
* Broken Bells: Broken Bells (Columbia LP)
* Broken Bells: Meyrin Fields EP (Columbia EP)

†=iPod
‡=car

Commentary:

For many Deadheads, 1973 is their very favorite year—and for good reason: the band was at an undeniable peak of creativity and musicianship. A bunch of excellent new songs debuted during the year resulting in a decent studio album, Wake Of The Flood, released on their own label—a pioneering effort at the time. More subtly, a serious investment was being made behind the scenes developing new instruments and clean, high-power amplification, which would culminate in colossal “The Wall of Sound” in 1974. The Dead were nothing if not ambitious during this period and it resulted in some of the finest music they ever made. They were also about as overtly “jazzy” as they ever got, with outrageously inventive, hour-long jams breaking out just about every night—so, yeah, 1973 was a good year. Accordingly, it’s well represented in “official” releases, including the stupendous Winterland ’73 box set and Dick’s Picks Volumes 1, 14, 19, and 28. Soundboards[FN1] of almost every show circulate regularly (and legally) on the internet, so one might have to ask: is another ’73 release is really necessary? The latest Road Trips answers in the affirmative. Consisting of the complete concert from November 21 at the Denver Coliseum (and a portion of the night before), the sound quality is much improved over the circulating version (which includes a cassette generation) and, if you’ve heard that, you know this a spectacular show, representing everything that makes 1973 so special.

The first set is super-mellow but superbly well-played, highlights being a leisurely, loping “Sugaree” and a slowed-down “Dire Wolf” early on followed by a lacey, filigreed “Here Comes Sunshine” mid-set. Concluding with an expansive “Weather Report Suite,” the band finally stretches its wings and takes flight. The second set features one of those seamless song collages, with “Playing In The Band” cementing it all together, which coheres into a kind of vaguely cosmic meta-narrative. And as if that wasn’t enough, the band then launches into “Truckin’,” which leads to yet another long jam, ending with an extended “Uncle John’s Band” encore. The Dead certainly gave the Denver crowd their money’s worth! Filling out disc three with another version of “Truckin’” from the night before might seem like an oddly repetitious choice, but this one is quite different, demonstrating the open-ended, improvisatory nature of the band during this period. Rather than evolving into the blues explorations of “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” and “Goin’ Down The Road Feeling Bad,” the band segues into the jazz/fusion space-out of “The Other One” followed by a quiet and tender “Stella Blue.” Stunning. Road Trips Vol.4 No.3 is a hugely satisfying release and unreservedly recommended to both casual fans and obsessed Deadheads alike.

Early subscribers also received their annual “Bonus Disc” with this volume and, as usual, it’s a keeper—so good it almost overshadows the regular release. I’ve been critical of the whole limited edition “bonus disc” thing in the past and I’m glad they’ve stopped including them every time out and, instead, have expanded the Road Trips series to a more accommodating three CDs. The yearly subscription is a relative bargain if (like me) you plan to buy them all anyway; so the “bonus disc” actually feels like a genuine bonus rather than just a crass marketing ploy. Even so, it’s a shame punters will once again miss out on another slice of prime Dead, unless they want to pay ridiculous sums on the secondary market (or resort to piracy—and who could blame them?). Recorded at the Cleveland Public Auditorium on December 6, 1973, the forty-five minute “Dark Star” is justifiably legendary and the dreamy “Eyes Of The World” which follows does not suffer from the brutal cut in the middle as does the circulating soundboard—that alone makes it essential! This is another one of those mind-blowing, hour-long jams traversing across vast musical territories while remaining deeply rooted in the rich, earthy soil of American folk—the kind of stuff that makes 1973 a favorite year for hardcore Deadheads and turns the “Bonus Disc” into a real treasure. Thanks, GDP! Now, I wonder what’s planned for the next Road Trips? I can’t wait!

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FN1. Technically, these tapes are not “soundboard” recordings at all, but a separate sub-mix made with a microphone splitter and a Nagra reel-to-reel. The spacious ambience and instrumental clarity made possible with this method is much preferable to the dry and often woefully unbalanced recordings made from the soundboard’s P.A. feed. The sheer quality of the recordings during this period is one of the reasons why the mid-‘Seventies are so revered amongst Deadheads, beyond the merits of the music itself. Sadly, the Nagra bit the dust around 1979 and the effort to make high-fidelity tapes was abandoned. That’s one reason why the 1980s have been largely avoided for “official” releases: actual soundboard tapes (which record an inverse mirror image of what the audience heard) often sound weird and awful, depending on the vagaries of the cavernous venues in which the band performed. Fortunately, there were some amazingly realistic recordings made from the audience during this period, although they are few and far between. It wasn’t until the 1990s that technology caught up with the Dead and soundboard tapes could be made to sound good—but by then, it was, perhaps, too late.

“Indeterminacies” Final Event Next Tuesday, May 10

Lizzy and I have really enjoyed the “Indeterminacies” series of events at Zeitgeist Gallery (I previously wrote about them here and here) and we are looking forward to attending the final concert of the season on May 10. Hosted by esteemed local architect, L. Lesley Beeman, Jr., the “Indeterminacies” series seeks to do something more than just put on concerts of “new music.” The gallery (the back of which is home to Manuel Zeitlin Architects) is an intimate, yet open and airy space, flanked by two enormous picture windows and hosts tastefully curated exhibits of provocative and exquisite contemporary art. On the second Tuesday of each month in the Spring and Fall, Mr. Beeman invites composers to present their work—and also invites a local moderator to initiate a discussion with the artist and the audience. The composer must be brave, willing to come out from behind the score, so to speak, and confront the audience directly. The ensuing dialogue is often quite illuminating and it’s a rare and delightful opportunity for an attendee at a concert of modern music to interact with composers and musicians (and the moderators) in a comfortable yet artistically stimulating environment. Unlike the rarified, distancing formalism of a “classical music” concert, each event is unique—indeterminate—and always thought-provoking.

Tuesday’s program will feature works by composer Mark Volker, Coordinator of Composition and Assistant Professor of Music at Belmont University. Mr. Volker will present several works, including a new piece for two percussionists, flute, violin, and cello; a set of songs for voice and guitar; a piece for flute entitled, “Deep Winter” and a recent work for electric guitar, interactive electronics and dance. For the latter, Mr. Volker intends to play a video of the dance component during the performance. Sounds like a wonderfully varied and interesting set! The moderator will be Erin Bradfield, a Ph.D. candidate in the philosophy department at Vanderbilt University. Her work in aesthetics “focuses on the moment when you are confronted with a wholly unfamiliar, yet profoundly affecting work of art.” I am sure Ms. Bradfield’s scholarly, philosophical background will inspire a thoughtful discussion on music, art and life—and provide the kind of deep insight into the music a mere concert could never provide.

The event begins at 6:00pm and admission is free. Zeitgeist Gallery is located at 1819 21st Avenue South, Nashville, Tennessee 37212. I hope you to see you there!