KILIMANJARO DARKJAZZ ENSEMBLE s/t (Planet Mu) cd 14.98
The minute we threw this on, we were totally captivated. The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble are a gloriously creepy crawly mutant jazz combo, equal parts DJ Shadow's Endtroducing, seventies horror movie soundtracks, late night jazz and super sluggish blown out trip hop. The KDJE originally formed to create live soundtracks for films by FM Murnau, Fritz Lang and the like, taking their inspiration from such unlikely sources as animators the Quay Brothers and artists Bosch, Picasso and Goya and boy does it show. A full on group, not one dude and his laptop, the KDJE unfurl haunting imaginary soundtracks, dark and dense, smoky and noir, everything in rich lustrous shades of black and grey, shuffling jazzy skitter underpins melancholy moaning horns bathed in reverb, pizzicato strings and minor key guitars hover and dart furtively, a drizzly rainy day jazz dirge, so creepy and mysterious and lovely, and that's just the first song. The rest of the record wanders similarly rainslicked streets, hat pulled down low, collar pulled way up, face obscured by shadows, the wet streets reflecting the orange grey glow of the streetlights, the buildings like totem poles of shadowy ghosts, the sky a blackish grey, turning the vibrant city into a lonely monochrome. This record is just so ominous and foreboding, so emotionally charged, so haunting and murky, imagine DJ Shadow collaborating with Tricky, mix in plenty of Raymond Chandler some dingy bars, some laid back jazz, some doomy dark ambience, some muted Boards Of Canada shuffle and thump, the whole thing drenched in late night ambience and warm warped M83 style whir and you'll have a rough idea. The ultimate soundtrack for late night lonely walks through the city.
MPEG Stream: "The Nothing Changes"
MPEG Stream: "Pearls For Swine"
RealAudio clip: "Adaptation Of The Koto Song"

KIPPLE Flashes Of Irrational Happiness (Evander Music) cd 14.98
Along with the "irrational happiness" in this album's title there are also flashes of madness and brilliance throughout the proceedings. Bringing together free roaming avant jazz with elements of tiki exotica, psychedelia, post rock and so much more, the new Bay Area combo known as Kipple craft a loose, open musical weave that's often quite reminiscent of awesome fellow SF artists such as pop collagists Milk Cult and the uncategorizable keyboardist Graham Connah. It's no wonder about the latter 'cause he just happens to make many a wonderful contribution throughout the album. Also featured prominently are Moe! Staiano (formerly of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum and Idiot Flesh) and Ches Smith (Secret Chiefs 3, Marc Ribot, Xiu Xiu, Carla Bozulich or Trevor Dunn's Trio-Convulsant). Keeps you on your toes, and keeps those toes a-tapping thanks to a creative and tight rhythm section. Moodily captivating. Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Crafty Apples"
MPEG Stream: "Infinity Plus One"

KIRCHIN, BASIL Abstractions of the Industrial North (Trunk) cd 17.98
Another weird and wonderful installment in the fascinating and varied history of this lost musical visionary. Many of you avant garde types will no doubt recognize Kirchin's name from the infamous Nurse With Wound list of favorite and influential experimental recordings. But over the last few years, UK label Trunk has been releasing more and more lost bits of Kirchin's wild musical past and so far it's all been totally fascinating and compelling listening. Abstractions opens with eleven tracks, the Abstractions of the Industrial North recording proper. Dreamy and pastoral, cinematic and light and airy. Quite lovely and not even remotely avant garde or freaked out. Things get weirder with the nine bonus tracks, all cues from rare musical library ten inch records. Freaked out, acid tinged prog, mixed with groovy Euro soundtrack music, horns and organs, chimes and vibes, bombastic percussion and psych rock guitars all woven into what could be the clost soundtrack to the coolest spy thriller you've never seen. Smooth and groovy, with just enough weird stuff going on to keep it interesting. Pay close attention to track 18, "Pageing Sullivan", a burbling, psychedelic soundtrack jaunt through India via Paris, or something, but on the guitar you'll find a pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page! And as always, super informative and interesting liner notes!
MPEG Stream: "Prelude And Dawn"
MPEG Stream: "Heart Of The North"
MPEG Stream: "The Observer"

KIRCHIN, BASIL Charcoal Sketches / States Of Mind (Trunk) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
If this keeps up Basil Kirchin could become the underground avant garde Tupac. The only problem is that Kirchin is still alive. After years of complete silence and a series of recording either impossible to find and hear or unreleased, seems that the floodgates have opened and reissue after reissue come tuumbling forth. We're not complaining though, as everything we've heard so far has been pretty amazing. For those of you new to Kirchin, this composer / arranger / musician, is probably best known in underground circles for being namechecked on that legendary Nurse With Wound list that came with their first record. This here cd is not a reissue, rather the first time these two mini albums have ever been released. The first three tracks, or 'Sketches' consist of rough ideas and works in progress that Kirchin composed and recorded before his legendary Quantum record (reviewed on the AQ list last year). These sketches are jazzy and dreamy, meldoic and almost traditional sounding, EXCEPT for the fact that the tinkling pianos and muted trumpets are competeting with a wild panoply of exotic bird calls, chirping and cheeping and occasionally shrieking. The second half of this disc, States Of Mind, is an unreleased soundtrack to a documentary about mental illness and features Evan Parker making one of his first appearances with his new 'free' style. Which is perfectly suited to the music. Dark and creepy, atonal and confusional, haunting and cinematic, swirling backdrops of manic piano, rumbling bass, and swirling horns with Parker's sax skronking atop it all. Really curious liner notes too, describing song by song, the different mental ailments related by the music. Weird.
MPEG Stream: "Sketch 1"
MPEG Stream: "Plaques And Tangles"

KIRCHIN, BASIL Charcoal Sketches / States Of Mind (Trunk) lp 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
If this keeps up Basil Kirchin could become the underground avant garde Tupac. The only problem is that Kirchin is still alive. After years of complete silence and a series of recording either impossible to find and hear or unreleased, seems that the floodgates have opened and reissue after reissue come tuumbling forth. We're not complaining though, as everything we've heard so far has been pretty amazing. For those of you new to Kirchin, this composer / arranger / musician, is probably best known in underground circles for being namechecked on that legendary Nurse With Wound list that came with their first record. This here cd is not a reissue, rather the first time these two mini albums have ever been released. The first three tracks, or 'Sketches' consist of rough ideas and works in progress that Kirchin composed and recorded before his legendary Quantum record (reviewed on the AQ list last year). These sketches are jazzy and dreamy, meldoic and almost traditional sounding, EXCEPT for the fact that the tinkling pianos and muted trumpets are competeting with a wild panoply of exotic bird calls, chirping and cheeping and occasionally shrieking. The second half of this disc, States Of Mind, is an unreleased soundtrack to a documentary about mental illness and features Evan Parker making one of his first appearances with his new 'free' style. Which is perfectly suited to the music. Dark and creepy, atonal and confusional, haunting and cinematic, swirling backdrops of manic piano, rumbling bass, and swirling horns with Parker's sax skronking atop it all. Really curious liner notes too, describing song by song, the different mental ailments related by the music. Weird.
MPEG Stream: "Sketch 1"
MPEG Stream: "Plaques And Tangles"

KIRCHIN, BASIL Particles (Trunk) cd 16.98
The late great Basil Kirchin's final work, that was years in the making, is not always an easy listen. Finally realized after years of working with what he called "particles" of music (some recorded as early as the sixties) while his body was riddled with cancer, it's difficult to separate what is happening in the music from what was happening with the man. Book-ended by spirited pastoral compositions of the British jazz variety that we are accustomed to, most of the body of Particles falls into the realm of the atonally challenging. He even calls the main suite, "The Atonals". Even so, it would be unfair to casually dismiss this. One needs to understand Kirchin's process, a laborious attention to recording, editing and filtering that works through primarily conceptual guidelines rather than compositional ones. For instance, "The Atonals", subtitled, "The Secret Conversations Between Instruments", began as recordings of between-session banter with the musicians without their knowledge they were being recorded. Then these hours of tapes were edited into snippets of conversation until each had a clear line of its own, orchestrated together with other lines, then run through a series of processes that remove the words and the voice sounds and are replaced with sounds of instruments that fit closest to the original "voice". It may take a few listens to Particles to unleash its power, but it's a fitting and uncompromised finale of one of the most innovative experimental composers of our time.
MPEG Stream: "Tzuris Oy Vey"
MPEG Stream: "The Die Is Cast"
MPEG Stream: "E+Me"

KIRCHIN, BASIL Particles (Trunk) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The late great Basil Kirchin's final work, that was years in the making, is not always an easy listen. Finally realized after years of working with what he called "particles" of music (some recorded as early as the sixties) while his body was riddled with cancer, it's difficult to separate what is happening in the music from what was happening with the man. Book-ended by spirited pastoral compositions of the British jazz variety that we are accustomed to, most of the body of Particles falls into the realm of the atonally challenging. He even calls the main suite, "The Atonals". Even so, it would be unfair to casually dismiss this. One needs to understand Kirchin's process, a laborious attention to recording, editing and filtering that works through primarily conceptual guidelines rather than compositional ones. For instance, "The Atonals", subtitled, "The Secret Conversations Between Instruments", began as recordings of between-session banter with the musicians without their knowledge they were being recorded. Then these hours of tapes were edited into snippets of conversation until each had a clear line of its own, orchestrated together with other lines, then run through a series of processes that remove the words and the voice sounds and are replaced with sounds of instruments that fit closest to the original "voice". It may take a few listens to Particles to unleash its power, but it's a fitting and uncompromised finale of one of the most innovative experimental composers of our time.
MPEG Stream: "Tzuris Oy Vey"
MPEG Stream: "The Die Is Cast"
MPEG Stream: "E+Me"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Blacknuss (Collectables) cd 13.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, I'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orater, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So kudos to Collectables for reissuing 7 essential and timeless Kirk masterpieces. Some terrible design ideas though: the cheesy Collectables logo, HUGE ADS taking up whole pages in the cd booklets, and the 'Collectables Jazz Classics' tag line pasted everywhere over the original art, making them look like those bargain collections you find at truckstops or drugstores. But it's all about the music right....
This legendary record originally released in 1972 features one of Kirk's most moving tunes ever, his sorrowful take on Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine", complete with soaring minor key strings and Kirk growling the lyrics through his flute! Mostly covers, this finds Kirk straddling the line between overt sentimentality, and more of that party/boppy/get-up-and-dance-dammit vibe. While some of the tunes here are tepid and sort of straight ahead, there are moments where Kirk slays, the aforementioned "Ain't No Sunshine", the testifying gospel tinged "Blacknuss", and an unlikely cover of Bread's "Make It With You"??
RealAudio clip: "Ain't No Sunshine"
RealAudio clip: "Make It With You"
RealAudio clip: "Blacknuss"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Blacknuss (Atlantic) lp 12.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, We'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orator, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird maybe? But we know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the discerning AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So big ups to whoever is responsible for this Kirk vinyl reissue campaign, the latest entry being his legendary Blacknuss record, originally released in 1972, which just so happens to include one of Kirk's most moving tunes ever, his sorrowful take on Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine", complete with soaring minor key strings and Kirk growling the lyrics through his flute! Mostly covers, this finds Kirk straddling the line between overt sentimentality, and more of that party/boppy/get-up-and-dance-dammit vibe. While some of the tunes here are bit straight ahead, there are moments where Kirk slays, the aforementioned "Ain't No Sunshine", the testifying gospel tinged "Blacknuss", and an unlikely cover of Bread's "Make It With You"?? Awesome.

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Brotherman In The Fatherland - Recorded "Live" In Germany, 1972 (Hyena) cd 15.98
As we may have mentioned in a review or two or five, RAHSAAN ROLAND KIRK IS GOD!! We love us our Coltrane's and Ayler's and Sun Ra's sure, but Kirk holds a very special place in our heart. He's the ultimate outsider jazzbo, like the Moondog of jazz, blind since birth, later paralyzed from a stroke, could play sax, flute, you name it, eventually he even had to begin inventing his own instruments, often played three horns at once, an actual one man band, dressed in rags and carried around a huge wheeled staff with various musical instruments duct taped to it, was shunned for being a novelty act, live would spend half the set telling stories, interacting with the audience, playing back stuff he had recorded on his portable tape player, whooping, shouting, singing -- this man was possessed by jazz and exuded utter and absolute joy when he was playing. And the music reflected that, a dizzying mix of traditional and free, a complete disregard for genre, embracing bop, soul, gospel, whatever.
We can never get enough, and we're always excited when a new live record sees the light of day, because live, in front of an audience is where Kirk reigned supreme. This live set was recorded in Germany in 1972 and is a seriously aggressive, fiery and free set. Really intense and super kick ass. Kirk does his usual, depending on the track wielding the sax, the flute, the nose flute, the manzello, the stritch or the clarinet, sometimes more than one at a time. Not a whole lot of between song banter, but the songs speak volumes. A killer mix of Kirk classics, standards and some unlikely covers including a killer version of Bread's "Make It With You".
Really funny and bitter liner notes from long time Kirk confidante Joel Dorn, relaying a conversation between Dorn and his partner, talking shit about Dorn's always amusing liner notes, and how after years of ranting about Kirk's brilliance, he decided to just fuck the serious liner notes, since it isn't liner notes that would convince someone to dig Kirk, it's the music. And the music on Brotherman In The Fatherland should be enough to convince anyone.
MPEG Stream: "Intro / Like Sonny"
MPEG Stream: "Make It With You"
MPEG Stream: "Rahsaan's Spirit"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Left And Right (Collectables) cd 13.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, I'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orater, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So kudos to Collectables for reissuing 7 essential and timeless Kirk masterpieces. Some terrible design ideas though: the cheesy Collectables logo, HUGE ADS taking up whole pages in the cd booklets, and the 'Collectables Jazz Classics' tag line pasted everywhere over the original art, making them look like those bargain collections you find at truckstops or drugstores. But it's all about the music right....
Left And Right (from 1969) starts off with a bizarre intro for bouncy cinematic string section and a ranting Roland Kirk as well as sound effects (breaking glass etc...).The record stays pretty far out with Expansions, the 20 minute, 9 part epic, sounding equal parts swinging sixties soundtrack, Morricone score, jazzy funereal dirge, and shrieking grandiose epic! The strings play a huge part on the rest of the record, fleshing out and gussying up some smooth dreamy, late night jazz workouts into gorgeous cinematic melancholia.
RealAudio clip: "Black Mystery Has Been Revealed"
RealAudio clip: "Expansions"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Left And Right (Atlantic) lp 14.98
One of our favorite records, from one of our favorite jazz LEGENDS, gets the deluxe 180 gram vinyl reissue treatment, and like always when it comes to Roland Kirk, before we can even talk about the record, we need to talk about THE MAN:
Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orator, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber)!!! So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment...
Left And Right (from 1969) starts off with a bizarre intro for bouncy cinematic string section and a ranting Roland Kirk as well as sound effects (breaking glass etc...). The record stays pretty far out with "Expansions", the 20 minute, 9 part epic, sounding equal parts swinging sixties soundtrack, Morricone score, jazzy funereal dirge, and shrieking grandiose epic! The strings play a huge part on the rest of the record, fleshing out and gussying up some smooth dreamy, late night jazz workouts into gorgeous cinematic melancholia.
MPEG Stream: "Black Mystery Has Been Revealed"
MPEG Stream: "Expansions"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Other Folks' Music (Collectables) cd 13.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, I'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orater, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So kudos to Collectables for reissuing 7 essential and timeless Kirk masterpieces. Some terrible design ideas though: the cheesy Collectables logo, HUGE ADS taking up whole pages in the cd booklets, and the 'Collectables Jazz Classics' tag line pasted everywhere over the original art, making them look like those bargain collections you find at truckstops or drugstores. But it's all about the music right....
Other Folks' Music (from 1976) starts out years ahead of its time, with a fuzzy distorted tape recording (think Godspeed) that slowly turns into a creepy crawly harmonica flecked scene setter worthy of any Morricone/Leone western. Worth it for that track alone. The rest of the record ranges from dreamy late night cocktail jazz, to really hard bop, to almost loungy exotica to timeless/classic Kirk nu-bop.
RealAudio clip: "Water For Robeson And Williams"
RealAudio clip: "Donna Lee"
RealAudio clip: "Samba"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Prepare Thyself To Deal With A Miracle (Collectables) cd 13.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, I'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orater, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So kudos to Collectables for reissuing 7 essential and timeless Kirk masterpieces. Some terrible design ideas though: the cheesy Collectables logo, HUGE ADS taking up whole pages in the cd booklets, and the 'Collectables Jazz Classics' tag line pasted everywhere over the original art, making them look like those bargain collections you find at truckstops or drugstores. But it's all about the music right....
1973's Prepare Thyself... album found Kirk mixing bop with cinematic soundscapes, bizarre vocalisations, bells and chimes and tribal percussion. The opening track is another barnstormer, totaly menacing and haunting, percussive and hypnotic. Why he was never hit up to score movies I'll never understand. The 10 minute Seasons was my introduction to Roland Kirk, although the version I first heard was recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival documented on the live release Eye Aye I. A tripped out tribal intro gives way to summery fluttery flute improvisations. But the real attraction here is an epic 21 minute free jazz workout called "Saxophone Concerto", complete with ranting female testifying, Kirk and band swinging from bop to swing and bopping from swing to bop, often in the same passage. But the focal point is Kirk's endless, breathless, tenor sax, wailing and squealing and screeching for 20 minutes, until any normal man would have passed out. Or dropped dead.
MPEG Stream: "Salvation And Reminiscing"
MPEG Stream: "Seasons"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Prepare Thyself To Deal With A Miracle (Atlantic) lp 12.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, we'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans have never seemed able to get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orator, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But we know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber)!!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. And so it is again with the amazing, nay miraculous, Prepare Thyself... album from 1973, which found Kirk mixing bop with cinematic soundscapes, bizarre vocalisations, bells and chimes and tribal percussion. The opening track is a total barnstormer, totally menacing and haunting, percussive and hypnotic. Why he was never hit up to score movies we'll never understand. The 10 minute "Seasons" was our introduction to Roland Kirk, although the version we first heard was recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival documented on the live release Eye Aye I. A tripped out tribal intro gives way to summery fluttery flute improvisations. But the real attraction here is an epic 21 minute free jazz workout called "Saxophone Concerto", complete with ranting female testifying, Kirk and band swinging from bop to swing and bopping from swing to bop, often in the same passage. But the focal point is Kirk's endless, breathless, tenor sax, wailing and squealing and screeching for 20 minutes, until any normal man would have passed out. Or dropped dead.
MPEG Stream: "Salvation And Reminiscing"
MPEG Stream: "Seasons"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Simmer, Reduce, Garnish, & Serve (Warner Archives) cd 12.98
A wonderful reissue.

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND The Case Of The 3 Sided Dream In Audio Color (Collectables) cd 13.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, I'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orater, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So kudos to Collectables for reissuing 7 essential and timeless Kirk masterpieces. Some terrible design ideas though: the cheesy Collectables logo, HUGE ADS taking up whole pages in the cd booklets, and the 'Collectables Jazz Classics' tag line pasted everywhere over the original art, making them look like those bargain collections you find at truckstops or drugstores. But it's all about the music right....
The main attraction here is the bizarre interludes between almost all of the songs. Whether it's a voice from beyond commanding Kirk to sleep, and Kirk explaining why he can no longer dream, to thundering horse hooves, ping pong, sampled TV music, strange ambient interludes, that same voice from beyond commanding Kirk to wake up and Kirk ranting right back, and then a 13 minute 'Side Four' featuring 10 minutes of silence, then all sorts of conversation, tape recorded howls, etc.... The actual music here (recorded in 1975) is classic Kirk, but with the unlikely inclusion of some surprisingly hard funk!!
RealAudio clip: "Conversation"
RealAudio clip: "Echoes Of Primitive Ohio & Chili Dogs"
RealAudio clip: "Freaks For The Festival"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND The Inflated Tear / Natural Black Inventions: Root Strata (Collectables) cd 14.98

MPEG Stream: "The Inflated Tear"
MPEG Stream: "The Black And Crazy Blues"
MPEG Stream: "A Laugh For Rory"
MPEG Stream: "Many Blessings"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND The Man Who Cried Fire (Hyena) cd 12.98
Yet another in the long overdue series of reissues from the legendary and under appreciated Rahsaan Roland Kirk. Not only an amazing player, but also as bit a character and as completely nuts as Mingus, Sun Ra or any other jazz greats you can think of. Best Kirk anecdote ever:
"In the late 60s we were in the studio getting ready to mix one of his albums, He wouldn't let me start working with the tapes until I could 'do it like me'. I didn't know what he meant. He told me to sit down and close my eyes. He got behind the chair and started to wrap my head, mummy style, with masking tape, from the neck up. Enough room was left for me to breathe. When Rahsaan was convinced that I couldn't see, he held a gun to my head and said 'I just want you to know how I feel all the time'."
The liner notes have more amazing stories from Joel Dorn long time producer / pal to Kirk as well as tons of cool Kirk quotes. Not sure if this was ever an actual release, seems more like a collection of random tidbits, but it has everything: Kirk on clarinet (rarely recorded), saxophone, manzello, stritch, Kirk talking/joking with the audience (even does a dead on Miles Davis impersonation), slow smoldering blues, wild live shows with Kirk on clarinet and tenor (also a rarity), playing two and three horns at once...it's all great. Really fun to hear how wild and excited the crowd gets, whooping and hollering. Like being at a revival meeting! If you're new to Kirk, this is as good a place as any to start. And most of it's unreleased so even if you got it all, you need this. RRK is GOD!
RealAudio clip: "Bye Bye Blackbird"
RealAudio clip: "Multi-horn Variation"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Volunteered Slavery (Collectables) cd 13.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, I'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orater, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So kudos to Collectables for reissuing 7 essential and timeless Kirk masterpieces. Some terrible design ideas though: the cheesy Collectables logo, HUGE ADS taking up whole pages in the cd booklets, and the 'Collectables Jazz Classics' tag line pasted everywhere over the original art, making them look like those bargain collections you find at truckstops or drugstores. But it's all about the music right....
Originally released in 1969, this finds Kirk in a very soulful mood. The jazz here is only an afterthought, with these funk/soul/gospel numbers heavy on the horns, the testifying and the party/dance vibe!! Covers of '"I Say a Little Prayer" (a Kirk staple) and an awesome version of Stevie Wonder's "My Cherie Amour" complete with Kirk's over the top Biz Markie style vocals!! The second half was recorded live at the Newport Jazz Festival and features some smoking versions of "One Ton", "Three For The Festival", and a Coltrane melody, all interspersed with Kirk's insanely inspired introductions and some of the wildest, most intense flute playing EVER!
RealAudio clip: "Intro/A Tribute To John Coltrane"
RealAudio clip: "My Cherie Amour"
RealAudio clip: "Volunteered Slavery"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND Volunteered Slavery (Atlantic) lp 14.98
One of our favorite records, from one of our favorite jazz LEGENDS, gets the deluxe 180 gram vinyl reissue treatment, and like always when it comes to Roland Kirk, before we can even talk about the record, we need to talk about THE MAN:
Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orator, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber)!!! So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment...
Originally released in 1969, Volunteered Slavery finds Kirk in a very soulful mood. The jazz here is only an afterthought, with these funk/soul/gospel numbers heavy on the horns, the testifying and the party/dance vibe!! Covers of '"I Say a Little Prayer" (a Kirk staple) and an awesome version of Stevie Wonder's "My Cherie Amour" complete with Kirk's over the top Biz Markie style vocals!! The second half was recorded live at the Newport Jazz Festival and features some smoking versions of "One Ton", "Three For The Festival", and a Coltrane melody, all interspersed with Kirk's insanely inspired introductions and some of the wildest, most intense flute playing EVER!
MPEG Stream: "Volunteered Slavery"
MPEG Stream: "Spirits Up Above"
MPEG Stream: "My Cherie Amour"

KIRK, RAHSAAN ROLAND AND THE VIBRATION SOCIETY Rahsaan Rahsaan (Collectables) cd 13.98
It seems like time for a rant again. Don't worry, I'll make it short. Roland Kirk is God! Or at least as much a god as Mingus, Sun Ra, Davis or Coltrane. So here's your chance to see what you've been missing. And what the majority of jazz fans can't get their narrow heads around: soulful, jazzy, funky, groovy, funny, soul shaking, gut busting, tear jerking brilliance from this musical genius. Master of every instrument he picked up (as well as a handful he invented!), able to play three horns at once (not as a gimmick, as a way to play three melodies), blind since birth and later suffering paralysis from a stroke, wandering around NYC with a huge wheeled staff with various horns duct-taped to it as well as a portable tape recorder that he used to record the sounds of the world and would sometime incorporate into live performances, a brilliant and funny orater, telling jokes and stories, ranting and testifying, preaching and proclaiming, and once even handing out cocaine to folks in the crowd. This man was remarkable. Musically, socially, personally. Unclear why he tends to get overlooked, and underappreciated by the majority of jazz fans. Too weird I guess. But I know that won't bother you (speaking here to YOU, the erudite AQ list subscriber) !!!
So it's always a happy day, when some new Kirk gem is unearthed, or some classic Kirk record gets the re-release/remaster treatment. So kudos to Collectables for reissuing 7 essential and timeless Kirk masterpieces. Some terrible design ideas though: the cheesy Collectables logo, HUGE ADS taking up whole pages in the cd booklets, and the 'Collectables Jazz Classics' tag line pasted everywhere over the original art, making them look like those bargain collections you find at truckstops or drugstores. But it's all about the music right....
Again, Kirk opens proceedings on 1970's Rahsaan Rahsaan with a rant to end all rants, delivered in quite a state, and backed up by clattery percussion and gloomy droning chords. A few minutes into it though, the band kicks in and we're back on more familiar bop territory, although as with a lot of Kirk's work, it's dark and dangerous and tinged with an ominous vibe, mysterious and unsettling. Kirk takes great pains in a two minute introduction to explain his two horn technique and how he gets his mind to think two different things. He then proceeds to play "Sentimental Journey" on one horn and Dvorak's "Going Home" on the other. AT THE SAME TIME. 4 minutes of impossible brainsplitting, ultra complex, totally impossible horn playing. Mindblowing. The record finishes off with more classic Kirk bop and another really funny introduction that as always, keeps the audience in stitches.
RealAudio clip: "Intro/Medley (2 melodies at once!)"
RealAudio clip: "The Seeker"

KIRK, ROLAND Domino (Verve) cd 16.98
Another unbelievable document of Kirk's total mastery of his instruments, his impeccable songwriting, and another bit of evidence for my case against all the fucking jazz heads who haven't given Kirk his due. I mean I love Mingus and everything, but how many more movies and books do we need about him, or Sun Ra for that matter, before someone takes on one of the greatest, and most unique horn players in jazz, as well as one of Jazz's craziest characters. Yet another beautiful Verve reissue, nicely packaged, great sounding, and heavy on the flute!!

KIRK, ROLAND Early Roots (Avenue jazz) cd 12.98
Everyone here knows what a big Roland Kirk freak I (Andee) am so every reissue or previously unreleased track makes me way too excited. So you can imagine how I feel about this one. A reissue (originally released on an lp in 1956 that went practically unnoticed) of the very first Kirk recordings from when he was only 20 years old. Although these recordings are considerably less far-out than some of his later stuff, he already proves himself to be a dangerously proficient musician. Split almost evenly between standards and originals, 'Early Roots' is way more traditional, sort of big band going on bop, if that makes any sense. Needless to say, if you are a fan, you probably have to own this.
RealAudio clip: "Rolands Theme"
RealAudio clip: "Slow Groove"

KIRK, ROLAND Here Comes The Whistleman (Water) cd 15.98

KIRK, ROLAND I Talk with the Spirits (Verve) cd 15.98
Remastered, from 1964.

KIRK, ROLAND The Inflated Tear (Atlantic / Rhino) lp 13.98
Finally reissued on vinyl, one of our favorite records, by quite possibly our favorite jazzman ever, Roland Kirk. The Inflated Tear was Kirk's first studio record for Atlantic (before he became Rahsaan), and it's a gorgeous classic jazz record. We've raved endlessly about Kirk elsewhere on his site, known by many primarily for his wild antics and far out behavior, playing multiple horns at once, playing the nose flute, wheeling around a huge wheeled wooden cane, pulling out a tape recorder and playing random recordings into the mic during concerts, passing out cocaine to the crowd, we could go on and on, and we won't lie, his character, and his larger than life persona definitely has a lot to do with why we fell in love with him, but the downside is that folks often forget he's an incredible player, and fantastic composer, all of which is evident here. Totally classic classic jazz, with Kirk handling saxophone and flute, the flute tracks in particular are incredible, fluid and fluttery, the rest of the tracks slipping from slow and brooding and moody and contemplative, to wild and frenzied an almost free, but it's the title track that makes this so essential. Supposedly written when he was on acid, it's the perfect mix of classic jazz, and his more avant side, beginning with a soft cacophony of noisemakers, chimes and rattles, and bells, and then the main horn refrain, is so haunting, a strange otherworldly harmony, you sort of have to hear it (sample below), totally moving and unlike any jazz we've heard, still gives us goosebumps, and then after this strange moaning minor key call, the band slip into straight up, soft cocktail jazz, only to return to that refrain, this time underscored by some seriously ominous piano rumbles, slightly altered, the horns slipping into something more rhythmic, until finally, the band break out into a dark, freak out, all low piano pound, and Kirk howling and ranting, only to finish how it started with bells and chimes. So amazing. The whole record. One of THEE most essential jazz albums for sure. On vinyl. Again.
MPEG Stream: "The Inflated Tear"
MPEG Stream: "The Black And Crazy Blues"
MPEG Stream: "A Laugh For Rory"
MPEG Stream: "Many Blessings"

KIRKLAND, MIKE JAMES Doin' It Right (Luv N' Haight) cd 14.98
Rare groove classic which on vinyl fetches upwards of $500, lovingly reissued on disc and LP by the fine folks at Ubiquity Records. Sweet soul music. Recommended.

KIRKLAND, MIKE JAMES Doin' It Right (Luv N' Haight) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Rare groove classic which on vinyl fetches upwards of $500, lovingly reissued on disc and LP by the fine folks at Ubiquity Records. Sweet soul music. Recommended.

KLANGMUTATIONEN Schwarshagel (Utech) cd 14.98
"Organic free metal from Malaysia" is what we had heard about Klangmutationen. Wow, really? Utech doesn't provide much information at all about this band, other than to describe them as a "mystery" (how helpful), and compare their music to the work of outside '70s free improv artists from Europe (the FMP label) and Japan (Masayuki Takayangi, Kaoru Abe). We're also told that this mysterious group hails from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Do we believe it? Maybe. We'd like to.
Certainly their music has a dark, strange vibe - literally, vibrations - cycles of low-end droning, sounding like giant metal springs being vibrated... or more likely, electric guitars, detuned. Strings/springs flapping loosely, arcing with electricity. Weird and atmospheric. Like Harry Bertoia meets Caspar Brotzmann!?
That's the first track (2:19) and part of the second into which it flows (25:05). But before long, the lengthy track two develops a serious case of screaming, saxophone/flute/clarinet skree, definitely giving some skronked-out substance to those free jazz comparisons. It's pretty intense and extreme, right on for those into Rudolph Grey's Blue Humans, John Zorn's Painkiller, Peter Brotzmann, Charles Gayle, Arthur Doyle, Albert Ayler, cats like that... yet it's definitely not, y'know, jazz. More like "jazz" for fans of SUNNO))) and Aufgehoben... or drone music for fans of Borbetomagus. Dense and distorted, this is the sound of plunging into the abyss, with a witches' chorus of reed-squealing cacophony as company.
The third track, clocking in at 19:42, is almost as much of a juggernaut. More whale-call feedback guitar grind, murk and moodiness. And then this disc comes to a close with the brief (1:58), relatively quiet caresses of fourth, final track. An eerie, wispy coda that could be the soundtrack music heard as a landing party from TV's Star Trek beams down to some strange, oddly lit world... and they should be glad they don't have to face whatever alien threats the album's earlier tracks would provide cues for!
Curious stuff, this Klangmutationen. Heavy too. We're enjoying repeat spins of this disc, and also should mention we have another release of theirs, yet to be reviewed - an LP on the Holy Mountain label (which affiliation in itself is a recommendation).
MPEG Stream: "track 1"
MPEG Stream: "track 2"

KONDO, HIDEAKI Structures (PSF) cd 17.98
Fans of the late great Japanese free improv guitar master Masayuki Takayanagi take note of this release. Guitarist Kondo and his group pay tribute with a version of Takayangi's gorgeous, gradually projected "Herdsman's Pipe Of Spain". And the rest of this is quite in keeping with the spirit of Takayangi's pioneering New Directions Unit. And while therefore pretty "out" sounding, it's also quite a bit different from some of the more extreme offerings we've heard from Kondo's other band, the electronics n' computers plus free jazz noisemaking ensemble Exias-J, known for their droning and distorted Borbetomagus-like jams. Here things are often calmer and more, dare we say, melodic. Though this is still pretty darn avant-garde. It opens with a solo guitar piece, finding Kondo playing a "ten-string gut guitar", which is an impressively large, plank-like instrument. Later on, he's accompanied by a group featuring flute, percussion and contrabass.
And this is called Structures for a reason. Even though there's a large improvisational element to Kondo's music (with certain tracks designated as such) he's really into experimenting with improvisations within particularly strict and unusual theoretical structures. Or at least that's the idea we get from what we've read about it, and certainly the very meticulous music here, full of moody pink-plonk, rumble-fumble, and scritch-scrape, seems like it could creatively stem from such complex, intellectualized musical methodologies...
MPEG Stream: "Herdsman's Pipe Of Spain"
MPEG Stream: "The Secondary Object Of Mode One, Crossing Lines"

KOURGANE Ivan Rebrof, Lonley Hearts Club Band (Sonore) cd 14.98
Eccentric quirky jazz from France. Trumpet, saxaphone and modulationg vocalizing augment the traditional trio head for Uz Jsme Doma territory. Label mates include Hoppy Kamiyama, Ruins and Alboth!

KROKO Furia (Verdura) cd 14.98
Circle's Jussi Lehtisalo recommended this to us: another Finnish band that operates in the in-between realm of rock, improv, jazz, and prog. Kroko are an all-instrumental basso/perkussio/kitara trio featuring the guitarist from Bad Vugum recording artists Deep Turtle (Finland's answer to Mr. Bungle, y'know). The band's music possesses a variety of moods and textures, ranging from dense free-improv jazziness (not unlike AQ-faves the Nels Cline Trio) to more aggressive, heavier fare on a few tracks, with riffing a la the Melvins (or, more accurately, the Ruins, what with the complex twists these songs sometimes take). At one point things get so heavy and distorted it approaches Merzbow-style noise. But that's balanced by the many quieter, more delicate, atmospheric tracks. And then there's the others that sound like Gregg Ginn's Gone, gone Mahavishnu... Recorded live to digital, with some overdubs and edits. There's 18 tracks, and while a few come off merely as skronky, sometimes humorous live jams, most go far beyond that.
RealAudio clip: "Sol Ist"
RealAudio clip: "Agent Weird"
RealAudio clip: "Polanski After Ski"
RealAudio clip: "Liero"
RealAudio clip: "Setzur Au Naturelle"

KYOAKU NO INTENTION Astral Projection (PSF) cd 22.00
Second album of extreme electric guitar and drums improv action from the duo of Munehiro Narita and Shoji Hano, this time under the name Kyoaku No Intention (Worst Intention) which was the title of their previous PSF release (as well as the name of an early '80s project led by Narita prior to his formation of the Tokyo psych rock legends High Rise). The original Kyoaku No Intention left behind no available recorded traces, so we can't say how closely it forshadowed the sounds heard on Astral Projection. But with Narita's distorted, screaming guitar and Hano's tumbling drums, this disc can't be any less "out" than what Narita got up to 20 years ago. Shoji Hano is primarily a free-jazz drummer, though he's experienced in various psychedelic rock combos (Mainliner for one). Meanwhile, Munehiro Narita is of course the sort of underground Japanese guitar god that Hano is used to playing with (previous sparring partners include Keiji Haino and Kawabata Makoto). So you can expect serious speedfreak Hendrix psych-spurts alongside more moody, almost jazzy clatter over the three long, live tracks that writhe and burn on this disc. Lovers of way out, free-to-be-skree electric guitar mangling and drum wrangling will want to stick this in their ears right quick!
MPEG Stream: "track 2"

L. STINKBUG The Allure Of Roadside Curios (Starlight Furniture Co.) cd 13.98
Nels Cline is the man. He's not only a super-nice guy, but of course also a brilliant avant-garde guitarist, equally at home with ECM jazz as Sonic Youth noiserock. L. Stinkbug is the (odd) name of his band with fellow LA guitar maestro G.E. Stinson, bassist Stuart Liebig, and drummer Scott Amendola. Improv, improv, improv is what they've been doing together since 1997. Loud and noisy, with rock grooves (thanks to Amendola), thence to quiet jazz moments. This disc features four long tracks, flexing and stretching and splattering all over the place. There's ambient sections of noir-ish mystery, plenty of tinkering sounds of things in their strings, and outright intense noise-scorch when they build up to it. These guys are really into preparing their guitars and basses and drums with a variety of unusual objects (Cline, Stinson, Liebig and Amendola are credited, respectively, with the use of implements, applied tools, stuff, and hair. Hair?). Tools, implements, and stuff like chopsticks, springs, Nels' famous egg whisk, an electric drink stirrer, custom-made doodads, etc. And then there's all the effects they run their guitars through on top of that. L. Stinkbug: for all your avantguitarimprov "extended techniques" playin' needs!
Recorded live at Bruno's, just around the corner from us here at Aquarius. Can't imagine the usual yuppie Bruno's crowd would have liked this one bit!
RealAudio clip: "Chopped Up And Laid End To End"
RealAudio clip: "Beacon"

L.A.F.M.S. Unboxed (Cortical Foundation) cd 15.98
Excellent sampler of the limited and prohibitively priced Los Angeles Free Music Society box set. From noise to spoken word rants to sappy jazz to avant garde audio fuckery.

LACY, STEVE The Forest And The Zoo (ESP) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Recorded live in Buenos Aires in 1966, 'The Forest And The Zoo' is one of the first records Steve Lacy made after permanently relocating to Italy. Lacy who was considered the first 'modern' musician to specialise in the soprano sax, played with Cecil Taylor, Gil Evans, Thelonious Monk and others before he moved to Europe and formed a semi-permanent group. The quartet on this record is Lacy, Enrico Rava on trumpet, Johnny Dyanni on bass and Louis T. Moholo on drums. Two sidelong tracks of gorgeous, squealing melodies and skittering percussion. Essential.
RealAudio clip: "Forest"

LACY, STEVE The Forest And The Zoo (ESP) cd 13.98

LACY, STEVE The Forest And The Zoo (ESP / Get Back) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Recorded live in Buenos Aires in 1966, 'The Forest And The Zoo' is one of the first records Steve Lacy made after permanantly relocating to Italy. Lacy who was considered the first 'modern' musician to specialise in the soprano sax, played with Cecil Taylor, Gil Evans Thelonious Monk and others before he moved to Europe and formed a semi-permanant group. The quartet on this record is Lacy, Enrico Rava on trumpet, Johnny Dyanni on bass and Louis T. Moholo on drums. Two sidelong tracks of gorgeous, quealing melodies and skittering percussion. Essential.

LACY, STEVE The Gap (America) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
WOW. And do we mean WOW!! Fifteen classic free jazz records from the late sixties / early seventies, long out of print, finally getting the ULTRA deluxe reissue treatment. Incredibly limited, these will probably be out of print before you know it.
Comes in a gorgeous diecut fullcover three panel sleeve, with new artwork, as well as a huge booklet with the original album sleeve notes, new liner notes in french and english as well as a bunch of cool photos. So nice!

LACY, STEVE QUINTET Esteem (Live in Paris 1975) (Atavistic) cd 15.98

MPEG Stream: "The Crust"
MPEG Stream: "The Uh Uh Uh"

LANCASTER, BYARD It's Not Up To Us (Water) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Another excellent reissue from local label Water. This time from Byard Lancaster, who somehow I had never heard of, even though HE PLAYS THE FLUTE, and he would go on to play with Roland Kirk (my favorite!), as well as Sun Ra, McCoy Tyner, Sunny Murray and loads more. Originally released in 1968, and produced by long time Roland Kirk sidekick/confidante/producer Joel Dorn, It's Not Up To Us finds Lancaster hooking up with legendary guitarist Sonny Sharrock and original Weather Report drummer Eric Gravatt. And while this IS jazz, it's pretty wild and all over the place, mixing in psychedelic rock, dirge-y rhythmic drones, abstract free skronk and rollicking fuzzy funk. The sound is surprisingly contemporary though. In fact everytime we play this in the store people come up to ask what it is, and are surprised to find out it's over 30 years old. And of course, there's wailing flute ALL OVER! This may just be a contender to enter the pantheon of my all time favorite flute records, of which there are an elite few!! So check it out.
MPEG Stream: "It's Not Up To Us"
MPEG Stream: "Last Summer"

LANCASTER, BYARD Live At Macalester College (Porter) cd 14.98
A while back, someone made us a really excellent mix tape of jazz. And there were a couple songs by a cat called Byard Lancaster that just knocked us for a loop! He was playing flute and just destroying. A total wildman, singing and shouting, and humming, almost scatting through the flute, spitting out multiple melody lines, sputtering maniacally, but somehow making it sound as natural as whipping out a staid version of Coltrane's "My Favorite Things". So we were a bit obsessed, and it proved pretty dang difficult to track down any proper releases from Lancaster, outside of crazy pricey imports.
Then word came down from Porter Records, a new label started by aQ pal Luke Mosling, who in the first few months of existence, have released more records than most labels put out in a year, about a deal brewing between Porter and Mr. Byard Lancaster that since has been solidified. Which means that over the next little while, Porter will start re-releasing essential Lancaster discs, as well as digging up rarities and lost sets and making them available for the first time.
Such is the case with this here gem, a set recorded at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1971 (a magical year for music, as we've noted in about a million other reviews!). Those three tracks clock in at nearly 21 minutes, at start out all dreamy and moody, piano and flute, ominous and haunting, but that soon gives way to an amazing drum solo, nearly two minutes, skittery and in its own way weirdly catchy, until the band joins in and they're off, that track is super abstract and skronky, very free, but with a definite dark melody running through it, while the 10+ minute track that makes up the bulk of the Macalester set is bouncy and energetic, wild and while less free, still free enough. Each player shines, some serious bop that gives way to some more dark moodiness. Gorgeous gorgeous stuff.
And if that weren't enough there are three loooong bonus tracks. The opener "1324", is 16 minutes of gorgeous free jazz bliss, Lancaster wailing away, the bass and drums slippery and serpentine, Lancaster's horn slipping from classic jazz to Eastern melodies and back again, and fear not, there's a drum solo here too!
The two bonus tracks tacked on the end were recorded in 1973 by the J.R. Mitchel Experimental Unit featuring Lancaster on sax, and features some seriously psychedelic jazz, skronky and free, but with lots of drones and exotic percussion, some tripped out effects and some seriously dense compositions. Awesome and expansive far out freedom for sure! Can't wait for the rest of those lost and impossible to find Lancaster discs to materialize, but this one will hold us over just fine.
Like the rest of the Porter releases so far, nicely packaged with a huge booklet, extensive liner notes, extra notes from Lancaster himself, band and musician histories and a bunch of cool photos.
MPEG Stream: "1324"
MPEG Stream: "Live At Macalester"

LANCASTER, BYARD Personal Testimony (Porter) cd 14.98
Byard Lancaster was a revelation. An aQ customer turned us on to him, as a flute player, it might have even been Porter Records head honcho Luke Mosling, which would make perfect sense, regardless, the music of Byard Lancaster blew our minds. We're (not so) mildly obsessed with flute music, especially jazz, so hearing Lancaster completely own the flute, pulling off Roland Kirk style sing/shouting through the instrument and then smoothly slipping into so soft fluttering groove, we were immediately obsessed. And even more blown away to discover it wasn't just the flute Lancaster had mastered. Piccolo, clarinet, sax, piano. We knew we had to hear more. The bad news being that most of Lancaster's recording were impossible to find. Which is why we were so excited when Mosling started up Porter, specifically with an eye to re-release all the lost Lancaster titles. So here's the first one, Personal Testimony, a collection of solo recordings originally released in 1979, and so amazing. From the soulful piano groove of the opener, with softly crooned vocals and dark swirling melodies, to the ethereal drifting fluttering flute of "In Lovingkindness", the melodies moody and mystic, multiple fluted interwoven and gloriously and complexly entangled, to the wild funky soulful flute jam that is "Dogtown", you can almost imagine the bad kicking in behind him, as he whips up impossible clusters and flurries of notes, occasionally offering up James Brown style grunts between breaths, to the deeeeeep droney low end moan of the big horns in "Brotherman", the tones reverberating and rumbling gloriously. There are a handful of sax tracks too, some skronky and FREE, others smooth and jazzy, some all tangled up with other overdubbed horns, all of them amazing. Some of the most intense and beautiful solo recordings we've heard for sure.
This reissue has six new tracks tacked on as bonus material, recorded last year, a sort of 'now' to the first half's 'then'. Not so into the a capella opener, maybe a little too soulful scat, but soon we're back into some serious flute territory, laced with hand drums and shakers, various vocalizations, and some wild playing. Three tracks worth of kick ass, wild and free, fluttery and free flute action, that sounds almost as good as the first half. The second to last track is solo piano, dark and moody, some gorgeous flurries of notes, dense clouds of thick chords, wild free explosions of sound, eventually building to a super chaotic wild piano freak out, pounding, with all the pedals down, before drifting back into more tranquil territory. The final track is hymn like, soft fluttery flute, delicate piano, and crooned vocals, lilting and melancholy, and quite lovely.
An awesome and essential reissue, well worth it for just the '79 release alone, but the bonus tracks make it just that much sweeter. Lots of liner notes, past and present, as well as a bad ass photo of Lancaster shirtless, in tight white pants, wailing on the sax!
MPEG Stream: "In Lovingkindness"
MPEG Stream: "Dogtown"

LAST ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC SPACE JAZZ & PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE, THE (MADLIB) Miles Away (Stones Throw) cd 17.98
Madlib is one prolific producer, one of our favorites actually, but there is something refreshing to hear his fine production techniques with a live jazz ensemble. Miles Away plays special tribute to all the cosmic jazz and groove we love from artists in the sixties and seventies, from John Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders, The Tribe's Phil Ranelin, Fred Walker, Roy Ayers, Larry Young, Woody Shaw, and Harry Whitaker amongst others. Basically, all of the cats who have inspired hip-hop over the last few decades. Lots of tribal percussion, piano, vibes and flutes in airy compositions that are as contemplative as they are grooving. Beautiful! Nicely packaged in a miniature lp style sleeve, too.
MPEG Stream: "One for The Monica Lingas Band"
MPEG Stream: "Tones For Larry Young"
MPEG Stream: "Mystic Voyage (For Roy Ayers)"

LAST EXIT Koln (Atavistic) cd 14.98
Brotzmann, Sharrock, Jackson and Laswell kick out the jams in Koln!

LAST POETS, THE The Last Poets/This Is Madness (Light In The Attic) 2cd 19.98
A double-cd release of The Last Poets' first two albums! Their 1970 self-titled debut broke out and made its own scene, forging a way for hip hop with politically charged, African-American enlightenments in syncopated rhythm. Fans of Sun Ra will notice similarities in vocal stylings, emotion and lyrical content, though in The Last Poets this treatment is much more fierce and raw than mystical and cool. 1971's This Is Madness got them a spot on President Nixon's Counter-Intelligence Programming lists. These street poets' use of graphic language (including the 'N' word used, oh, about five million times) pounds out their frustrations in the racial and social state of the country and at the time helped to extend their messages to a broader audience by way of its pure and utter rawness. Nicely packaged in the albums' original artwork, these albums are fierce documents of the group's seminal contribution to that time and still stir up some of the same emotions today.
MPEG Stream: "Wake Up, Niggers"
MPEG Stream: "New York, New York"

LASWELL, BILL / MILES DAVIS Panthalassa: The Music of Miles Davis 1969-1974 (Columbia) cd 16.98
A "reconstruction and mix translation" by Laswell, long awaited and hotly debated...and rumoured to be quickly pulled, due to some disputes over rights...

LEANDRE, JOELLE Concerto Grosso - Live At Gasthof Heidelberg Loppem (Kunsthalle Lophem) 2cd 35.00

MPEG Stream: "Dans Le Sol"
MPEG Stream: "Chant Du Camembert... Fourre!"

LEE, DAVID JR. Evolution (Universal Sound) cd 19.98
From the mysterious black cover and gothic font, we initially thought that this was some new vinyl release by Amort or Striborg or any number of black metal hordes we see day in and day out. But no, this is in fact quite an awesome surprise, a beautiful early-seventies drum-centric spiritual jazz record by the unknown to us, David Lee Jr., and it's really quite killer! Right up there with the likes of Steve Reid, Rashied Ali, Roland P. Young or Khan Jamal!
Hailing from New Orleans and moving to New York where Lee played in Roy Ayer's Ubiquity for a few years, Evolution was recorded in 1974 and is Lee's only solo record originally released on his own Supernal records imprint (not to be confused with the black metal Supernal!). Centered around martial rhythms and syncopation with a left-field avant jazz sensibility and even some blazing psych rock and soul flourishes, the disc is 14 short tracks with the title track centerpiece being a 7 minute extended drum solo. There are even a couple of short vocal tracks, one of which should just be skipped over at the very end called "I Want Our Love To Always Last" (even the Soul Jazz site won't let you sample it). But other than that one misstep, this is a highly recommended album for fans of vintage beat-heavy seventies jazz from the likes of P. E. Hewitt, Lee Miller, or any of the cool cats we mentioned above!
MPEG Stream: "Revelation"
MPEG Stream: "Love Parable"
MPEG Stream: "Cosmopolitan"
MPEG Stream: "Second Line March"