21 May 2019 : Gong - Bernhard Wöstheinrich & Evan Foreman

The Universe Also Collapses

Gong offer an intriguing new model for band longevity. Rather than groups facing the prospect of merely becoming a tribute act to themselves, renewal and regeneration is possible if founding elders are willing to pass the baton on to younger players who don’t just knock out the old standbys, but embrace the spirit and philosophy that fuelled the band in the first place. This is exactly what Daevid Allen planned for Gong, and so far, it’s worked out spectacularly.
If 2016’s Rejoice! I’m Dead! was a confident assertion of the post-Allen band’s musical identity, then The Universe Also Collapses pushes even further out while retaining Gong’s sense of wonderment and mischief. Featuring just four songs, it’s an album that aims to “bridge the worlds of lysergic exploration and quantum physics,” with lyrical themes of rebirth and re-death seeking to rise above the petty affairs of Man… It’s also an attempt to make a genuinely psychedelic record for the 21st century, Kavus Torabi expressing disappointment with most music that goes under that banner these days – instead, “I want to hear music that makes me feel like I’m on drugs.”
Opening 20-minute track Forever Reoccurring makes a pretty good case for achieving this objective, establishing its cosmic credentials upfront with a shimmer of glissando guitar and pulsing synth. Torabi’s weaving vocal is like a spell, a stoned invocation of blissed-out clarity, borne aloft on Dave Sturt’s buoyant bass. There’s a big surge of chords and some excellent angular fretwork from Torabi – in tandem with Ian East’s playful but powerful sax, it’s difficult not to draw favourable comparisons with VdGG and King Crimson in their 70s pomp. It’s unhurried, discursive stuff, but you can practically hear the molecules buzzing in the song’s super-structure.
If Never I’m And Ever You is a short, nervy head-rush after a long trip, before My Sawtooth Wake takes us on another extended journey, only this time the terrain is a good deal bumpier. Fabio Golfetti’s glissando still weaves its magic, but the main riff is a tough, almost funky strut from a band getting ready to enter into battle with itself. There’s a weightless pull-back to the vocal, but the bass keeps bursting through, becoming more encrusted with noise each time. The Elemental brings the album to a blackly upbeat conclusion, East’s sax like the mocking tootling of faery folk as Torabi sings, ‘The world is ending just the same as it began.’ It combines the whimsical with the deadly serious in a way that Allen would surely have approved of.
By Joe Banks

1. Forever Reoccuring
2. If Never I'm Ever You
3. My Sawtooth Wake
4. The Elemental

Materiaal Series, Part XVII

Recording of the performance at Edge Media Space at Farmington High School, Farmington, April 16, 2019.

Composed, programmed, and recorded in real-time by a crazy mind and his laptop, accompanied by Evan Foreman on percussions and electronics. No prepared sequences, patterns, or melodies used.

The Edge Media Space is an experimental multi-media facility at Farmington High School, run by Evan Foreman. The main studio is an inspiring space with an eclectic collection of all kinds of audio-, computer-, video- and synth gear.

Video Set 1
youtu.be/qkGzEWASLqc

Video Set 2
youtu.be/DeFh11AedR0

credits

released May 9, 2019

Bernhard Wöstheinrich: Keyboards and virtual synthesizers, Live-Sequencing
Evan Foreman: Percussion and Electronics

Live Recording: Gabe Gantkin
Editing, mixing and mastering: Markus Reuter
Cover drawing: Christine Kriegerowski

Special thanks to George "G$" Bley

Tags ambient ambient electronic big beat big beat electro electronica free download percussion world music Berlin

14 May 2019: IDMf / Gerhard Jason / Bards of Antiquity / Tidsrymd

Tonight's show veers away from the mostly electronica full albums of recent programs in order to feature a number of artists who deserve more airplay and recognition.  FreeForm Radio's mission since its beginnings in 1987 has been to play music not usually heard on public or commercial radio.  With the advent of Internet Radio and Streaming Services, it's difficult to find music that hasn't been played elsewhere, so we do our best to spotlight artists who deserve more airplay and recognition.
So here we go!

From the IDMfNetLabel Bandcamp page:

What do you get when a group of IDMf producers join forces to make sweet sweet music together? You get...Date Nite. Our 56th release features the tracks of 10 IDMf artists who paired up for the first time, bringing these 8 beautiful, musical love-children into being. Some are fast, some are slow, some are chill, and some are in your face, but all of these tracks are aimed to please, and were selected by the IDMf community to bring to you.  Their Facebook page is here.

released May 11, 2019

Cover art by Jayson Abalos
Mastering by James Pingel

Released by the IDMforums Netlabel and the community at idmforums.com
May 11, 2019

ambient chillstep drum & bass drumstep electronic idm electronica United Kingdom

From Gerhard Jason's Bandcamp page:
lo-fi for Headphones is an Experiment album infused with elements of Sound Art, Industrial, Spoken Word Poetry, Anti-Folk, and Noise. As a Sound Collage it is at times beautiful, peaceful; hopeful. At other times, it is angry, disturbing, and frightening. It is a little like life in that way. Sometimes it hurts.

lo-fi for Headphones is not intended to be played in a random order, which is why no song can be purchased individually. One song leads into the next. It is a journey. Plug in your headphones and listen from track one through to thirty. Use the first minute or so of the first track to set a comfortable listening level. Sometimes you will have to listen closely to hear what is going on, and that is okay. At other times, the sounds will get quite loud, and that is also okay. It is never so loud that it could damage your eardrums, but it is loud enough to make you uncomfortable.

lo-fi for Headphones is influenced by bands such as Leather Strip and Skinny Puppy; by the song Revolution #9 by The Beatles, and by certain segments of Brian Wilson’s masterpiece, Smile.

released April 16, 2011

Gerhard Jason resides in Edmonton, Alberta Canada. He has been playing guitar since 1995 and he began experimenting with different sounds and techniques in 2000, after the birth of his first daughter. lo-fi for Headphones was recorded between 2000 and 2005. In 2011 it was released as a sixteen track EP on Amazon titled, The Beautiful Noise. More recently, Gerhard removed the EP from Amazon’s catalogue and re-imagined it as a full album. Gerhard went back to the tracks that he’d originally recorded, which hadn’t been included in the early 2000s, and gave them the place they deserved. Along with these tracks, for the sake of continuity, Gerhard added three songs that were recorded more recently.

Gerhard is currently at work on an acoustic Anti-Folk album titled, Mixed States. A rough demo, in its entirety, can be heard here: soundcloud.com/gerhard-jason-geick/the-rough-mixed-states-demo

anti-folk electronic experimental guitar industrial mandolin noise sound art anti-folk industrial noise sound art Edmonton

From Bards of Antiquity's Bandcamp page:

Self-exiled star traveler escapes the pressures of existence through severe isolation and deep hibernation, only to succumb to the irresistible pull of dark oblivion.

released October 31, 2017
The Bards of Antiquity is a recording project led by John Vincent Carpetta with guest musicians on select tracks. Self-produced, they craft concept albums telling tales of love and death, inspired by the classics.  Their Facebook page here.
alternative experimental progressive rock adult alternative rock alternative rock psychedelic rock rock space Concord

We end tonight's show with the ambient sounds of our final artist, Tidsrymd from Gothenberg, Sweden and the release I juliaskan, released September 23, 2018; All songs composed and produced by Johan Ohlsson; Mastered by Joakim Westlund.  Their Facebook page here.
Johan Ohlsson:
The EP is called "I juliaskan", which translates "In the Ashes of July". The title came about halfway into making the title track, during the autumn of 2018. What I heard reminded me of the forest fires, which plagued a few areas of Sweden during the summer and were very difficult get under control.

That summer had somewhat of a strange feeling to it, because of recurrent thunder with little or no rain, dry grass everywhere, different reports of the fires and farmers having to make emergency slaughters due to drought. I won't go into politics, but I think during that summer the concept of climate change became something close to home for the first time to a lot of people in Sweden.

"Dagvild" is a Swedish expression, which means that you don't know which day of the week it is. To me, at least, it associatively follows the theme of summer.

The track "Sinnesro" seems to be your typical relaxation music, but it has some slightly unnerving detuning and dissonance in there, to create a sort of contrast.

This is the First EP I've made on my own, after playing in bands for a couple of years, and I made most of it quite fast in a sort of rush of inspiration during my free weekends. I hope you'll enjoy it – or that you'll enjoy something else.

 
 

07 May 2019

I will not be hosting FreeForm Radio this week (May 7); I'll be back next Tuesday with some experimental/ambient/progressive music.

30 April 2019: Ian Boddy "Altair" (DiN59)

Ian Boddy  Altair   (DiN59)

Release date 17th May 2019

Limited to 1,000 copies Digipak Double CD

FreeForm Radio thanks Ian Boddy for providing a preview copy of this remarkable release to share with our listeners.  Please visit his Bandcamp page to order this and other DiN releases.

DiN label boss Ian Boddy has been performing his own brand of ambient electronica since 1979. Over those 40 years he has built up a wealth of experience of what works in a live environment as well as being able to tailor his shows to the particular setting he finds himself in. As well as playing all over the UK and in Germany & The Netherlands he has also crossed the Atlantic several times to play shows in Philadelphia. The main reason for the latter destination is the wonderful community of listeners built up by Chuck van Zyl at The Gatherings series of concerts which provides a dedicated fan base for Boddy’s style of electronic music. Chuck is also the host of the excellent Star’s End Radio show on WXPN in Philadelphia and Boddy has often combined these concert trips with live radio shows for both Star’s End as well as Echoes Radio hosted by John Diliberto.
Thus 2018 ushered in a fresh adventure for Boddy with a new invitation to play at The Gatherings. His past performances have found their way on to releases such as Shrouded (his 2000 show) and React (DiN29) with Robert Rich. Several of his Star’s End live sets have also been released on DiNDDL as download only albums. However the trip in 2018 produced what is in Boddy’s opinion, his best pair of performances to date and so he has decided to release a double live album to showcase this trip. The first disc documents his Gatherings show on the evening of 20th October in the beautiful St. Mary’s Church in Philadelphia whereas the second disc is his live radio show on Star’s End performed at 2am on the Sunday morning immediately after his Gatherings show.
The music on The Gatherings disc features some tracks from his previous studio album As Above So Below (DiN51) as well as new material composed specifically for this concert. Boddy performed the show playing analogue keyboards and a modular set up borrowed over in the USA alongside Ableton Live laptop work. Muscular analogue sequenced grooves are overlaid with atmospheric beds of FX as well as grandiose sweeping chords. The music gradually building up to the climax of the track The Thaumaturge from his As Above So Below album for which the audience certainly show their appreciation.
The second disc from the Star’s End show is a more introspective set with atmospheric string interludes over deep ambient soundscapes. The music gradually crystallises into a delicate sequencer on Spire before the full Berlin School sequencer work out of Apostasy. Full of haunting tones the final track Remnants closes the set which works as a perfect companion disc to the earlier Gatherings concert.
Altair thus shows Boddy at the height of his powers playing two very different concerts within a few hours of each other in very different venues. Produced in a beautiful fold out 6 panel digipak this double CD album is a must for both Boddy fans as well as lovers of live electronic music.

The Gatherings
01 Shrine 9:00
02 Stay 10:09
03 Quantum Of Memory 10:30
04 Incognito 8:55
05 Altair 17:07
06 Two Blocks 13:36
07 The Thaumaturge 8:38
Total Time 77:54

Star’s End
01 Sanctum 8:16
02 Unquiet 9:04
03 Spire 14:13
04 Apostasy 19:23
05 Remnants 12:06
Total Time 63:02

Released by:   DiN

Release date:  17 May 2019

℗ Something Else Music Limited

 

You can hear a demo mix of this release at Soundcloud.

#thegatherings     #star's end    #IanBoddy   #DiN     #Altair   #eurorack   #modularsynth 

23 April 2019: Beware the Blue Sky / Peter Gabriel

Beware the blue sky are an Icelandic instrumental post-rock band formed in 2016 in Reykjavík.
The band consists of Hilmar Gylfi Guðjónsson (drums), Hlynur Már Árnason (keyboards, guitar), Pétur Haukur Ásgeirsson (bass guitar) and Viktor Aron Bragason (guitar).
FreeForm Radio is proud to feature their debut EP Above Atlas during the first half of tonight's show. 
A collection of four songs, it is an excellent introduction to their music.  We encourage to check them out on Bandcamp, Facebook, YouTube,  Instagram, and Spotify.

For the remainder of tonight's show, we'll be showcasing Peter Gabriel's soundtrack for the Martin Scorsese movie, The Last Temptation of Christ:  Passion.
Passion (re-released as Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ) is an album released in 1989 by the English singer-songwriter Peter Gabriel. It was the first Peter Gabriel album to be released on Real World Records. It is his second soundtrack and eighth album overall. It was originally composed as the soundtrack album for the film The Last Temptation of Christ, but Gabriel spent several months after the film's release further developing the music, finally releasing it as a full-fledged album instead of a movie soundtrack. It is seen as a landmark in the popularisation of world music, and won a Grammy Award for Best New Age Album in 1990. It was remastered with most of Gabriel's catalogue in 2002. 

As the soundtrack for the film, Gabriel used the resources of the organization he founded, WOMAD, to bring together musicians from the Middle East, Africa, Europe and South Asia. He worked with them to create music meant to enhance the mood of the film, but also added a modern ambient musical touch to the original pieces, producing a musical work that has influenced many musicians in the years since its release. Passion introduced many listeners to such artists as Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Youssou N'Dour, L. Shankar, and Baaba Maal.
Later in the year a companion album was released, Passion – Sources, featuring additional songs on which Gabriel does not perform. Gabriel described this album as "a selection of some of the traditional music, sources of inspiration, and location recordings."
The cover art for the album, Drawing study for Self Image II (1987), is a mixed media composition by the artist Julian Grater.^[10] When re-released, the album was titled Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ due to "legal barriers" according to Gabriel in its liner notes.^[11]

2019 04-18: DiN @ 20

DiN | Ian Boddy Newsletter April 2019

 

DiN @ 20 

It is with great pleasure that I'd like to announce the 20th anniversary of DiN.

If in any way you can help spread this news or feature DiN in your programming or blogs that would be much appreciated.

Yes I can't quite believe it myself. Twenty years of producing & releasing albums on the DiN label. It was in April 1999 that the first 3 albums were released, namely Box Of Secrets (DiN1), Distant Rituals (DiN2) & Strange Geographie (DiN3). Since then there have been 58 physical releases in total on the main DiN label, 22 download only albums on the DiNDDL sub-label & last year the launch of the Tone Science sub-label with the first 2 compilations released on CD featuring various musicians working within the field of new modular.

To help celebrate this momentous occasion an old friend of mine, Sid Smith, who used to frequent Spectro Arts Workshop in my formative years back in 1978 - 1982 has written a nice piece about the history of DiN. Not only is Sid a professional writer (most notably the author of In The Court Of King Crimson) but he also joined myself for several pre-DiN meetings in local pubs whilst I was formulating my ideas for DiN in 1998. It thus seems suitably apt for Sid to give his viewpoint on the DiN label.

http://ianboddy.com/news/

To help with the celebratory spirit there will also be free downloads (you can of course feel free to chip a few pennies into the DiN pot) of the 5 current DiN sampler albums as well as the 2 DiNDDL compilation albums. The CD versions of the 5 DiN iNDEX albums will be @ 50% off their usual price so that's just £2.50 (+ VAT where applicable & postage).

iNDEX01 (DiN10) download (covers DiN1 - 9)
iNDEX02 (DiN20) download & CD (covers DiN11 - 19)
iNDEX03 (DiN30) download & CD (covers DiN21 - 29)
iNDEX04 (DiN40) download & CD (covers DiN31 - 39)
iNDEX05 (DiN50) download & CD (covers DiN41 - 49)
Submission 01 (DiNDDL10) download (covers DiNDDL01 - DiNDDL09)
Submission 02 (DiNDDL20) download (covers DiNDDL11 - DiNDDL19)

This special celebratory offer will run until May 17th - which will be the release date for the next DiN album. This will be Altair (DiN59) a double live album of my performances last Autumn in Philadelphia, USA, at the Gatherings Concert series & on the Star's End Radio show.

More news on this in the next Newsletter but for now here is a demo mix of this special album on Soundcloud.

Altair (DiN59) demo mix

16 April 2019: Faust / Riverside

Faust (English: "fist") are a German krautrock band. Formed in 1971 in Wümme, the group was originally composed of Werner "Zappi" Diermaier, Hans Joachim Irmler, Arnulf Meifert, Jean-Hervé Péron, Rudolf Sosna and Gunther Wüsthoff, working with record producer Uwe Nettelbeck and engineer Kurt Graupner.

1971–75

Faust formed in 1971 in the rural setting of Wümme. They secured a recording contract with Polydor and soon began recording their debut, Faust, which sold poorly but received critical acclaim for its innovative approach and established a devoted fan base. Meifert was sacked shortly afterwards because, as Peron wrote in 2004, "he discussed things, because he had flat buttocks and an absolutely beautiful girlfriend, because he practised every day, because he always kept his room neat and woke up every morning to first wet a cloth he'd put in front of his room to keep the dirt out, because he played such a hard 4/4th that we had to travel into the tongue, ready to drop, ding dong is handsome top."^[2]
In 1972 the band recorded its second, slightly more accessible album So Far. Faust became one of the premier bands in the international appreciation of the genre that would eventually be known as krautrock.^[3]
Faust became one of the first acts to sign to Richard Branson's Virgin Records, who embarked on a marketing campaign somewhat daring for its time, aimed at introducing Faust to British record-buyers. The Faust Tapes was a cut-and-paste album, which spliced together a large number of bits and pieces from their extensive collection of private recordings not originally intended for release. Virgin issued it at the then price of a single, 48 pence. The Faust Tapes reportedly sold over 100,000 copies but its low price tag rendered it ineligible for a chart placing.^[3]
After collaborating with Tony Conrad on the album Outside the Dream Syndicate, Faust recorded Faust IV at Virgin's studios in England. The band broke up in 1975 after Virgin rejected its fifth album (some of the recordings later appeared on the Munich and Elsewhere album), but reissues of their recordings and various additional material through Chris Cutler's Recommended Records maintained a level of interest.

Faust performing in Manchester in 2007.

Faust experimented with the presentation of their early records. Their first album was originally released on clear vinyl, in a clear sleeve with an X-ray of a human fist silkscreened on the outer sleeve. Their second album, So Far, made extensive use of the color black, though inside the sleeve were sheets with a different illustration for each song. The Faust Tapes had a visually unsettling op art cover design by Bridget Riley, while that for Faust IV consisted of a series of blank music stave.

Eye of the Soundscape is an album by Polish progressive rock band Riverside, released on 21 October 2016 through InsideOut Music
The album is a collection of older experimental instrumental pieces in addition to four new tracks: "Where the River Flows", "Shine" (released in Poland as the only single), "Sleepwalkers" and "Eye of the Soundscape".^[2] It is the first, and only, posthumous album to feature guitarist Piotr Grudziński after his death on 21 February 2016.

Track listing

All tracks written by Mariusz Duda, Michał Łapaj and Piotr Grudziński.

Disc 1
No.	Title	Original album	Length
1.	"Where the River Flows"	New song	10:53
2.	"Shine"	New song	4:09
3.	"Rapid Eye Movement" (2016 mix)	"Schizophrenic Prayer" (single)	12:40
4.	"Night Session - Part One"	Shrine of New Generation Slaves (bonus disc)	10:40
5.	"Night Session - Part Two"	Shrine of New Generation Slaves (bonus disc)	11:35
Total length:			49:57

Disc 2
No.	Title	Original album	Length
1.	"Sleepwalkers"	New song	7:19

09 April 2019: Babylon / Kindly Spoken Thieves

Babylon was a progressive rock band from Florida that emerged from the band Helicopter.^[2] Babylon was formed in 1976 by Rick Leonard, Rodney Best, Doroccas, J. David Boyko, and Gary Chambers.^[3]
They have been compared to Marillion, Gentle Giant, Rush, and Nursery Cryme period Genesis. The members state their main influences as Gentle Giant, Van der Graaf Generator, Happy the Man, Genesis, and others.^[4][5]. 
Very Genesis influenced Floridian band who put out a coveted album in the late seventies. This is album is extremely in the Genesis style (like Marillion) yet avoids the commerciality that this band eventually dived headfirst into.) Syn-Phonic also released two bootleg quality live albums from their heyday which show them in a rather muddy light.
Imagine an incredible dynamo of progressive energy in the mold of Nursery Cryme period Genesis, but with some slight punky undertones thrown in as well. Add to this the affected vocals of singer Doroccas, and you have a sound that, while not unlike a high energy version of early Marillion, pre-dated that band by five years. They only released one self-titled studio album around 1978, featuring four long cuts. Hopefully someday that fine album will be reissued on compact disc. A few years ago, two limited issue LPs of their live show were released, (Night Over Never and Better Conditions For The Dead) which included all of the songs from the original album, plus several other tracks not included on the studio LP. While the quality of the recording is no better than an average bootleg, the performance on both of these live albums is incredible.
Babylon, in some ways, is better than Nursery Cryme-era Genesis, although certainly not nearly as innovative, given that their album was recorded in '77. Detectable influences include peak-period Genesis, Gentle Giant, a bit of Zeppelin, even. The vocalist has a very high voice, Plant-like in tone, but phrased more like early Gabriel (if you can imagine that). There's some vague resemblance to Rush, but much more progressive and less metallic. I wish they'd been better recorded; the home-grown qualities of the studio album detract from its appeal, though it's certainly better than the "bootleg quality" ascribed to those live albums. If some really exceptional remastering (or remixing!) is done for the CD reissue, this could be a major winner!
 

Discography

• Babylon (1978, reissued 1995 and 1999)
• Night Over Never: Live at the Empty Keg 1 (1989)
• Better Conditions for the Dead: Live at the Empty Keg 2 (1989/2002)

The electronic and ambient collaboration of Steve Setzepfandt and Josh Wittman out of the Minneapolis, MN area.
Recorded from beginning of 2016 to the end of 2018. It is the first album released by the duo under the moniker, Kindly Spoken Thieves.
 

released March 30, 2019

All tracks recorded, mixed, and performed by Steve Setzepfandt and Josh Wittman

Cover Art By: Artem Gordienko
Titled: "Anthropomorphism"
Instagram: www.instagram.com/gordienko.artem/

ambient downtempo electronic guitars piano synth Minneapolis

1.	Black Lines 04:45
	2.	Copter 05:58
	3.	The Graze 07:48
	4.	Straights of Fear 03:42
	5.	Cable Two 05:58
	6.	In Queens 06:37
	7.	Grey Cradle 04:52
	8.	Vyrmillion 03:12
	9.	Amphibious 05:55
	10.	Moonraker 05:52

 

02 April 2019: In Memory of JB

Tonight's show will be two hours of jazz dedicated to the memory of JB Heineman,

 a talented musician, teacher, surveyor, and host of Sunday Night Jazz who recently passed away.
His influence on the music scene in Kodiak cannot be overestimated.

26 March 2019: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard / Kansas / Asaf Sirkis

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard is an Australian rock band formed in 2010 in Melbourne, Victoria.^[1][2] The band consists of Stu Mackenzie (vocals, guitar, keyboards, flute), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (vocals, harmonica, keyboards), Cook Craig (guitar, vocals), Joey Walker (guitar, vocals), Lucas Harwood (bass), Michael Cavanagh (drums, percussion), and Eric Moore (drums, percussion, management). They are known for their energetic live shows and prolific recording output, having released 13 studio albums since their formation.
King Gizzard'sfull-length album, Sketches of Brunswick East, a collaboration with Alex Brettin's psychedelic jazz project Mild High Club, was released on 18 August 2017.^[47] Taking inspiration from Miles Davis' 1960 album Sketches Of Spain, as well as the band's base recording location of Brunswick East in Melbourne, it is a jazz-improvisational album. Mackenzie described the record as "perhaps representing greater changes that are happening in the wider world, and (this is) our attempt to find beauty within a place that we spend so much time", referring to the constant changes in their neighbourhood.

"Listening to Asaf Sirkis" at work, two things are immediately obvious: passion and commitment. Blessed with technical skills that are disarmingly under-played, his middle-Eastern sensibility balances the potentially volcanic with the meditative and reflective. A master of creative surprise, it’s on the edge of your seat listening when Asaf’s in town." - Dr. Bill Bruford

MoonJune Music Recommends Series:
ASAF SIRKIS " Full Moon"
22 TUNES OF PROGRESSIVE JAZZ & BEYOND
featuring One Of Today's Most Versatile And talented Drummers

Tracks selected by Leonardo Pavkovic.

Featuring Aris Daryono, Ben Waghorn, Bernard Gregor-Smith, Carl Orr, Carles Benavent, Chris Garric, Demi Garcia, Dusan Jevtovic,  Dwiki Dharmawan, Eyal Maoz, Frank Harrison, Fred T. Baker, Gabi Fortuna, Gabi Mayer, Geoff Eales, Gilad Atzmon, Guillermo Rozenthuler, James Pearson, John Turville, Kevin Glasgow, Kobi Arad, Lizzie Ball (6), Mark Wingfield, Markus Reuter, Mike Outram, Nguyên Lê, Pat Bettison, Reem Kelani, Robert Wyatt, Saat Syah, Steve Lodder, Sylwia Bialas, Tassos Spiliotopoulos, Tom Mason, Vasil Hadzimanov, Yaron Stavi. 
Asaf Sirkis by John Kelman

After establishing himself as an in-demand drummer and percussionist in his home country of Israel, Asaf Sirkis' career began an greater upward trajectory upon moving to London, England in 1999. In addition to garnering significant critical praise for his own groups - most notably his Messiaen-informed Inner Noise, with guitarist Mike Outram and organist Steve Lodder, and his Asaf Sirkis Trio, with guitarist Tassos Spiliotopoulos and bassist Yaron Stavi - Sirkis has also made important contributions to the music of other emergent artists based in the UK. Bringing a unique pan-cultural vision to reed and woodwind multi-instrumentalist Tim Garland's Lighthouse Trio, fellow Israeli expat, reed multi-instrumentalist Gilad Atzmon's Orient house Ensemble and Swiss guitarist Nicolas Meier's Group, Sirkis has also recorded with artists including reed multi-instrumentalist Klaus Gesing (Norma Winstone, Anouar Brahem), pianist Glauco Venier (Norma Winstone), guitarists Phil Robson (Partisans), pianist Gwilym Simcock (Tim Garland, The Impossible Gentlemen) and double bassist Yuri Golubev (Gwilym Simcock, Alex Hutton).

More recently, Sirkis has been working in a collaborative quartet with singer Sylvia Bialas, which also features keyboardist Frank Harrison and bassist Patrick Bettison, but perhaps most significant is his recent affiliation with New York's MoonJune Records. Sirkis made his first MoonJune appearance alongside fellow Israeli expat, bassist Yaron Stavi, on guitarist Mark Wingfield's critically acclaimed Proof of Light, but the fall of 2016 will see the percussionist's involvement with the label accelerate significantly.

Sirkis made his second MoonJune showing in September 2016 on Dwiki Dharmawan's Pasar Klewar, an ambitious double-disc set that also includes other names either already familiar or destined to become so to MoonJune fans in the coming year; in addition to Wingfield, guitarist Nicolas Meier, Yaron Stavi, Italian vocalist Boris Savoldelli and Gilad Atzmon all join Sirkis in making the Indonesian pianist/keyboardist's sophomore effort for MoonJune a truly earth-shattering, trans-cultural affair that blends unrepentant jazz improvisation with music indigenous to Dharmawan's home country.

Coming in the early 2017, the result of an intensive six days' recording in Barcelona, Spain this past winter will see no fewer than four MoonJune releases involving Sirkis: first, the percussionist joins Stavi, Wingfield and progressive trio Stick Men's touch guitarist Markus Reuter for The Stone House; following that, a collaborative trio recording with Wingfield, Reuter and Sirkis; a new Wingfield recording with Stavi and Sirkis; and, finally, a new recording from Serbian guitarist Dusan Jevtovic - whose MoonJune debut, 2014's Am I Walking Wrong?, was well-received by critics and fans alike - that will include Sirkis, in addition to fellow Serb, pianist Vasil Hadzimanov.

It's a busy year ahead for the London-based percussionist, and that's only counting recordings that have already been made. With Sirkis' remarkable ability to fit into any musical context and sound like he's been at it for his entire life, things can only look even further up for this tremendously talented, empathically intuitive and, above all, supremely musical percussionist. 


bill bruford ecm jazz jazz fusion moonjune records fusion London
 

19 March 2019: Dick Dale / KLM / Leaving Richmond

We begin tonight's show by honoring Dick Dale who just recently passed away.
From Wikipedia:

1960s

Dale began playing in local country bars where he met Texas Tiny,^[16] who gave him the name "Dick Dale" because he thought it was a good name for a country singer.^[17]
Dale is credited^{[by whom?]} as one of the first electric guitarists to employ non-Western scales in his playing. He regularly used reverb, which became a trademark of surf guitar. Being left-handed, Dale tried to play a right-handed guitar, but then changed to a left handed model.^[9] However, he did so without restringing the guitar, leading him to effectively play the guitar upside-down, often playing by reaching over the fretboard, rather than wrapping his fingers up from underneath. He partnered with Leo Fender to test new equipment, later saying "When it can withstand the barrage of punishment from Dick Dale, then it is fit for the human consumption." His combination of loud amplifiers and heavy gauge strings led him to be called the "Father of Heavy Metal".^[8] After blowing up several Fender amplifiers, Leo Fender and Freddie Tavares saw Dale play at the Rendezvous Ballroom, Balboa, California and identified the problem with creating a sound louder than the audience screaming. The pair visited the James B. Lansing loudspeaker company and ask for a custom 15-inch loudspeaker, which became the JBL D130F model, and was known as the Single Showman Amp. Dale's combination of a Fender Stratocaster and Fender Showman Amp allowed him to attain significantly louder volume levels unobtainable by then-conventional equipment.^[18]
Dale's performances at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa in mid to late 1961 are credited with the creation of the surf music phenomenon. Dale asked for and gained permission to use the 3,000 person capacity ballroom for surfer dances after overcrowding at a local ice cream parlor where he performed made him seek other venues.^[19] The Rendezvous ownership and the city of Newport Beach agreed to Dale's request on the condition that he prohibit alcohol sales and implement a dress code. Dale's events at the ballrooms, called "stomps," quickly became legendary, and the events routinely sold out.^[19]
"Let's Go Trippin'" is one of the first surf rock songs.^[20] This was followed by more locally released songs, including "Jungle Fever" and "Surf Beat" on his own Deltone label. His first full-length album was Surfers' Choice in 1962. The album was picked up by Capitol Records and distributed nationally, and Dale soon began appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show, and in films where he played his signature single "Misirlou". He later stated, "I still remember the first night we played it ("Misirlou"). I changed the tempo, and just started cranking on that mother. And ... it was eerie. The people came rising up off the floor, and they were chanting and stomping. I guess that was the beginning of the surfer's stomp."^[21] His second album was named after his performing nickname, "King of the Surf Guitar".^[22] Dale later said "There was a tremendous amount of power I felt while surfing and that feeling of power was simply transferred into my guitar". His playing style reflected the experience he had when surfing, and projecting the power of the ocean to people.^[23]
Dale and the Del-Tones performed both sides of his Capitol single, "Secret Surfin' Spot" in the 1963 movie, Beach Party, starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello.^[24] The group performed the songs "My First Love," "Runnin' Wild" and "Muscle Beach" in the 1964 film, Muscle Beach Party.

The Bucket List is the collective effort of guitar extraordinaire Phil Keaggy, legendary bassist Tony Levin and rhythm master Jerry Marotta featuring 12 original instrumentals that showcase the strengths of these three musicians.
Having recorded over 60 albums since the late 1960’s, Phil Keaggy is one of the most admired guitarists in the Contemporary Christian music world. Phil’s talents have earned him two Grammy nominations as well as being a seven time recipient of the GMA Dove Award for Instrumental Album of the Year.
How many musicians can claim they recorded/toured with King Crimson, Peter Gabriel, Pink Floyd, Yes, and let’s not forget John Lennon? Bassist and Stick player Tony Levin can and that’s barely scratching the surface of his musical biography. When Tony’s not bouncing between King Crimson and Peter Gabriel, he’s usually found on the road with The Stick Men.
For over a decade, Tony along with drummer Jerry Marotta were the rhythm section for the classic Peter Gabriel years. Jerry’s unique percussion style has graced the music of Paul McCartney, Hall & Oats, Elvis Costello, The Indigo Girls and so many others. These days, Jerry never takes a break working with The Security Project, The Marotta Brothers Band, The Fragile Fate and Flav Martin.
The genesis of this super trio can be traced back over ten years ago when Phil, Tony and Jerry first met in Woodstock for an impromptu jam session that lead to a live show and a whole lot of improvisation left in the can. Over the years the material was revisited and reworked then left to age in the barrel a little longer.
Fast forward to 2018, the recordings are given a fresh breath of air plus added tracks to formulate a collection of actual songs. The end result is executive producer Paul Grimsland finally getting to tick off a box of his Bucket List. Like a fine wine, The Bucket List has been aged to perfection and is ready for consumption from an audience thirsting for this musical delight.
Phil Keaggy – Guitars
Tony Levin – Bass/Stick
Jerry Marotta – Drums/Percussion
Executive Producer: Paul Grimsland
Produced by: KLM
Recorded at: Jersville Studio, Woodstock, NY
Dreamland Recording Studio, Woodstock, NY
Kegworth Studio, Nashville, TN
Engineers: Roman Klun, Pete Caigan, Adam Armstrong, Dylan Shad, Ariel Shafir
Engineer/Editor Extraordinaire: PTK
Mixed by: Michael Cozzi
Mastering: Chris Athens

Art Direction/Cover Design: Christine Baldelli/Lillypod Media
Photography: Edward AJAJ
Strategic Liaison: A.J. Chippero
https://tonylevin.com/road-diaries/klm-2019-shows/klm-winter-tour-2019

Subcircuits is the 6th studio album from the Los Angeles based electronic music project: leaving richmond.

A futuristic vibe while very human at the same time, creating a soundscape for your mind to traverse.

Let us soundtrack your day.

credits

released March 16, 2018

Our thanks to Leaving Richmond for providing a promo copy for tonight's show.
electronic ambient atmospheric chill chillout cinematic downtempo ethereal instrumental techno trance Los Angeles

12 March 2019: d'Voxx (DiN58) / Parallel Worlds - Tonal Paintings

The DiN ambient electronica label run by the well known UK synth artist Ian Boddy has reached the milestone of 20 years of releasing music in this year of 2019. During this time Boddy has curated DiN to bring a series of critically acclaimed albums by both well known and up and coming artists through almost 60 CD releases. It’s always particularly satisfying to give new artists a platform for their music and so it is with “Télégraphe” (DiN58) the debut album by d’Voxx.

This duo of Nino Auricchio and Paul Borg explore the post-digital landscape working within the constraints of analogue systems and the evolving phenomena of New Modular synthesis. The project has developed over the past three years through a series of acclaimed live performances at festivals and expos across Europe, which included the world premiere of a live new modular performance in 3D-Audio at the London College of Music in 2016.

Both Paul and Nino have enviable music careers in the worlds of music production, engineering, remixing and musical education that gives them a wealth of experience that they bring to bear both on stage and in the studio. “Télégraphe” unfolds over 9 tracks to create a sonic travelogue where each track segues into the next via field recordings at various subway stations throughout the world. The music both looks at the past with it’s tightly choreographed, Berlin School inspired sequence lines but wraps this in a gorgeous blanket of modern ambience. Some beautiful vintage Fender Rhodes adds to the textures via glitched up modular effects. What is most impressive though is the sheer musicality of the sequencing which is showcased in the glorious opening track “Opera”.

Even after 20 years the DiN label shows no signs of resting on it’s laurels and in promoting new acts such as d’Voxx is helping to expand the worlds of ambient electronica. 

credits

releases March 15, 2019

Composed and produced by Gaetano Auricchio and Paul Borg.
Station announcements by Jutta Bushell.
Mastered by John Webber at AIR Studios, London.
Special Thanks to Ian Boddy, Robin Rimbaud, Ben Wilson, Phelan Kane, Andreas Schneider, Ross Lamond, Jason Lim (Instruō), Larry Whelan & Luke Oxlade. 

ambient em electronic electronic music electronica chill out downtempo modular synth Sunderland

Parallel Worlds’ music is a combination of dreamy/atmospheric textures with pure analogue electronic rhythms and sequences, combining the feel of 70s electronic music with modern electronica and ambient music.

Delving deep into a ghostly landscape, Parallel Worlds make his personal journey through ambient-soundtracks music created by a selected range of synths. This personal and introspective album is composed by eight tracks which come from far away and unraveling between horror atmospheres, dark desolate landscapes and sci-fi visions. After a series of incredible albums for labels such as Shima Records and DiN, Parallel Worlds lands on Lost In It Records with an intense and visceral work ready to leave its mark in your soul.

Biography:
Parallel Worlds’ music is a combination of dreamy/atmospheric textures with pure analogue electronic rhythms and sequences, combining the feel of 70s electronic music with modern electronica and ambient music. For Parallel Worlds, melody is essential, but most important is emotional context.

Parallel Worlds are the main project of Bakis Sirros with John Sirros (and some occasional collaborators). They were originally born in 1994, but only after 1998 they started to be a part of the active greek electronic music scene.

Parallel Worlds have collaborated, so far, with established Italian ambient composer Alio Die, with the very well-known UK electronic music master Ian Boddy, and with the music professor Dave Bessell (member of the NODE synth supergroup).

Bakis Sirros also participates on some collaboration projects, the project “Interconnected” with the german musician Ingo Zobel (of DRON, Signalform, Self Oscillate, Datasette, etc.), the ambient / experimental project “Memory Geist” with the australian electronica musician Steve Law (of Zen Paradox, Starseed Transmission, Guild Of Fire, etc.).

Bakis Sirros has also teached Synthesizer Programming at an (after-high-school) public learning institution and also instructed a Workshop on Analogue Modular Synthesis in Synch Festival 2008. 

credits

released October 22, 2018

Machines used:
Yamaha CS-01, CS-5, CS-15, Roland SH-101, Novation Bassstation rack, Korg Mono/poly, Roland JX-8P, Akai
AX-80, S-950, Korg Wavestation, 03R/W

All tracks written and produced by Bakis Sirros, in Wavemountain studio, Athens, Greece, between 1995 - 1997

Mastered by Andrea Merlini
Cover Design by LaCosta
Photography by Francesco Stella

2018 - Lost In It Records 

ambient berlin school cosmic downtempo electro electronic experimental synth techno Roma