PARKER, JEFF The Relatives (Thrill Jockey) cd 14.98
This gent might be most familiar to folks as being the guitarist in many of the most prominent bands in the Chicago postrock scene. Yup, he's played in Isotope 217, Chicago Underground Duo (and Trio and Quartet and Orchestra... you get the picture) and of course Tortoise. That said his musical leanings frequently delve into considerably more avant garde and free jazz territory. He has participated in numerous collaborations, but he's also plenty prolific on his own. The Relatives marks his second full length on which he's the captain steering the ship (his first was 2003's Like-Coping on Delmark Records). And well, to put it kindly, this is perhaps his most accessible work to date... verging on easy-listening soft jazz. Dinner jazz even. Very skillfully executed tapioca.
MPEG Stream: "When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You"
MPEG Stream: " Istanbul"

PARKER, WILLIAM Double Sunrise Over Neptune (Aum Fidelity) cd 14.98
These three amazing long compositions taken from live performances at the twelfth annual Vision Festival in New York in 2007 will be difficult to convey in a one minute sound clip. Their sweeping scope performed by a tight 16-piece unit of horns, woodwinds, and strings (including an oud and electric guitar), journey through a broad modal push and pull of ethnic, improvisational and modern compositional forms, veiled by an almost cosmic exotica. That aspect comes courtesy of the East Indian singer Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay, whose sometimes wordless, sometimes poetic vocals interweave throughout the piece's dynamic colorful tones and earthy textures, yet they never overly predominate. This one requires attentive listening to the deep and wide unfolding of these compositions for its full rewards, but it's well worth it!
MPEG Stream: "Morning Mantra"
MPEG Stream: "Neptune's Mirror"

PARKER, WILLIAM Long Hidden: The Olmec Series (Aum Fidelity) cd 14.98
There's something about William Parker that for some reason makes us end up not paying too much attention to what he's up to. Sure a lot of what he does is indeed mindblowing. But a lot isn't. And the problem is there is just so much William Parker, that we'd sort of just given up on caring too much. The pay off for keeping up was just not enough. It seems like maybe a record a week although it must be less than that. But hell if this new record doesn't have us kicking ourselves. We were struck immediately by the instantly recognizable artwork and weird bubbly letters, the work of John Fell Ryan, a member of the mysterious Excepter. Strange match up that's for sure. It had us assuming that this was William Parker WITH Excepter, which would indeed be something else! But the actual reality is even stranger, Parker and a twenty something merengue band, weird but it works. Wonderfully. The first track is a blissful and tranquil meditation for solo bass, so spacy and lovely. Then a brief spin on the 8-string doson ngoni, which produces a lovely buzzing drone, and then Parker is joined by the Olmec Group, bass, sax, timbale, bongos, conga, percussion and accordion, and the sound is festive, joyous, jazzy but funky and mysterious. Horns wheeze and drone over bopping bass and clattery percussion, like some wild avant block party. These tracks are the heart of the record, a wild, breathless fluttering heart. Fiery and fun, lively and so alive. Those tracks are separated by solo Parker joints, one on which he makes the bass squeak and squeal like a feeding back guitar mixed with a glass harp, all shimmering harmonics and squealing string scrapes, another with Parker turning his 8-string doson ngoni into some gorgeously alien Appalachia. The record winds down with another solo doson ngoni exploration, warm and muted and almost folky sounding. The final track, a bonus track which was recorded in 1993 and originally appeared on a super limited cassette is Parker solo on acoustic bass, sawing away, coaxing all kinds of buzzing and droning from his bass, harsh and aggressive but also totally mesmerizing and beautiful.
MPEG Stream: "Codex"
MPEG Stream: "There Is A Balm In Gilead"
MPEG Stream: "El Puenteseco"

PARKER, WILLIAM & HAMID DRAKE Summer Snow Vol. 2 (Aum Fidelity) cd 14.98

PARKER, WILLIAM & HAMID DRAKE Volume 1: Piercing The Veil (AUM Fidelity) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

PARKER, WILLIAM QUARTET O'Neal's Porch (Aum Fidelity) cd 14.98

PARKINS / CLINE / MOORE Live At Easthampton Town Hall (JMZ) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
So how many electric harp / electric guitar / electric guitar trio albums do you own? None? Well you should pick this one up then, 'cause it's good, and also sales of this cd benefit the Flywheel Community Arts Space in Easthampton, Mass., which seems like a cool place. (Normally, releasing a disc of noisy improv music wouldn't be such a brilliant fundraising idea, but the presence of Sonic Youth guitarist Thurston Moore in the line-up probably will help sell a few copies.) Of course, his contribution is only one-third of the whole. Downtown NYC harpist Zeena Parkins and LA-based guitarist Nels Cline (we're always raving about him, y'know) are just as good reasons to check this out. Together, the trio make a rather beautiful, loud racket. It's a fifty minute string-scribble strum-storm that really builds into some frenzied peaks of outward-bound heaviness!

PARKINS, ZEENA Devotion (Table Of The Elements) 12" 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Still another in the Table Of The Elements' series of super limited, silkscreened one sided 12"s. This latest 12" features harpist and NY downtown mainstay Zeena Parkins along with Raz Mesinai and Jim Pugilese. While the instrumentaion is listed as electric harp, wasp (!), percussion, mallet instruments and bells, the sound is a lot less rhythmic and percussive than that list would lead you to believe. Instead, it's a deep, rich, swirling wash of gentle melodies, droning chords, and shimmering tones with subtle low-in-the-mix rhythms that occasionally sound a bit like a more ambient Muslimgauze. The final piece on the record is a beautiful hypnotic melodic drone constructed out of Pugilese's rapid mallet strikes, Steve Reich-like, slowly-shifting rhythm stretched into a sweet undulating melody.
A flowery trellis is silkscreened in white ink on the non-playing side of this record. And in response to the complaints of folks who bought any of the first eight 12"s in this series and experienced the brittle / easy-cracking plastic sleeves, these new 12"s come in an improved sleeve, much softer, and way less fragile.

PARKINS, ZEENA AND IKUE MORI Phantom Orchard (Mego) cd 16.98
Recent Wire cover stars Zeena Parkins and Ikue Mori team up, not for the first time, for this new disc for Austrian experimental electronics label Mego. Both fixtures of the downtown NYC scene, Parkins is the fashionably dressed avant-harpist best known lately for playing with Bjork (alongside Matmos), and Mori is the former drummer for no wave legends DNA who has made a career since then doing really interesting things with drum machines, though now she's using laptop computers. Together, Parkins and Mori create an enjoyable example of electro-acoustic improv, the abstract soundworld of their Phantom Orchard mixing harp, piano, and synth with squiggly electronics and samples, some tracks mesmerizingly mild and pretty, others on the somewhat skronkier side...
MPEG Stream: "Jezebel"
MPEG Stream: "Savage Flower"

PARKS Umber (Infraction) cd 15.98

PARKS, VAN DYKE Song Cycle (Warner Brothers) cd 12.98
Decades before Sufjan Stevens was singing about the landscape of the the states, or Jim O'rourke was deconstructing pop, Van Dyke Parks was giving us all a crash course on orchestral avant-pop. Best known as Brian Wilson's collaborator on Smile, and decades later the producer and arranger of Rufus Wainwright's debut, Parks has made several challenging pop records of his own. Along with Discover America, this is for sure his landmark recording. A warped and thrilling affair exploring the southern California landscape. One moment he takes us to palm desert then laurel canyon blvd. and one moment you feel like you're in a musical on acid and then a psychedelic pop opus and then a folk song spiked with flowery colors and warped sensibilities. When Brian Wilson began hanging out with Van Dyke Parks, it's rumored they spent their nights doing amphetamines and Parks would read Wilson literature that he felt would touch his heart. Of course the more square side of the Beach Boys camp considered Parks an enemy, Mike Love in particular was totally intimidated by the intellectual and avant-minded nature of Parks. And well, any enemy of Mike Love is probably a friend of ours! But back to this record, it's for sure one of the most adventurous, ambitious, deranged, delightful albums of pop created in the last quarter century. And wow, how dapper a young Van Dyke Parks looks on the cover of this record. Eat your heart out Sufjan! Just thought we should get this on our site, at last...
MPEG Stream: "Palm Desert"
MPEG Stream: "All Golden"

PARLANE, ROSY Getxo (Sigma) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
"Getxo" is the second full album from New Zealand transplant Rosy Parlane, who had previously worked in the avant-noise-rock ensemble Thela with Dean Roberts and Dion Workman. Like the solo work of Roberts and Workman, Parlane has been exploring the possibilities of sound construction through digital means. At his best, Parlane establishes melancholic hazes through layers of crunching digitized distortion applied to simple melodic repetitions that sweep like sad waltzes through cybernetic flotsam. Undeniably inspired by the work of Christian Fennesz (who has collaborated with Parlane on occastion), these compositions hover as synthetic abstractions of what were once traditional rock melodies. Sometimes, Parlane gets too distracted by the trickery of digital signal processing and ends up with some clunky chunks of Mills College computer music, which doesn't always complement the oceanic washes of his aforementioned deconstructed melodies.
RealAudio clip: "Versa"
RealAudio clip: "Number 6"

PARLANE, ROSY Iris (Touch) cd 15.98
While perhaps not as prolific as his former partner Dean Roberts (they played together in the Sonic Youth inspired avant-rock trio Thela), Rosy Parlane has quietly constructed a quite impressive career himself. Iris is Parlane's third solo album, after a couple of releases on his own Sigma Editions imprint and a collaboration with Christian Fennesz. In many ways, Iris echoes the recent Fennesz masterpiece Venice, as DSP filters perpetually spiral samples into immersive drone constructions. Parlane's Iris is less focused on the suggestions of melody and more concerned with textural abstractions which softly shower upon the composition's minimal foundation. Spread across three extended pieces, Iris is a bleary low key album, supposedly crafted from organ, piano, and guitar, but you might not necessarily guess so. Parlane's digital treatment of those source materials renders almost all of the references to the original instruments unrecognizable: a series of monochromatic blurs of ambient sound quietly activated by distant mechanical whirrings and icy fragments that are just as fragile as they are cold. Certainly on par with the laptop intellect of Stephan Mathieu and Akira Rabelais.
MPEG Stream: "Iris [part 1]"
MPEG Stream: "Iris [part 3]"

PARLANE, ROSY Jessamine (Touch) cd 15.98
New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark should really have a word with one of her country's citizens about the paucity of material he's been producing over the years. When so many other New Zealand sound artists release dozens of albums every year (you know, Birchville Cat Motel, Peter Wright, Anthony Milton, etc.), how can almost three years go by between albums for Rosy Parlane? Fortunately, Parlane's delinquency in keeping up with his fellow New Zealanders is made up by the quality of Jessamine. While Parlane's work harbors a glassine drone sensibility found in the similarly minded aforementioned NZ artists, his work has a considerable density and an appreciation for digital processing rarely heard in the feral drone underground. Parlane's ephemeral atmospheres strive for an activated minimalism, occasionally harboring similarities to the sparkling electronica of the Kompakt Pop Ambient sensibility; but he often pushes the work into teethgrinding electro-acoustic studies paralleling the Hafler Trio and even Hitoshi Kojo's vastly under appreciated collaboration with Maurizio Bianchi. The closest thing that Parlane gets to the tempestuousness of a Campbell Kneale outing is on Jessamine's finale which culminates in a steadily building track of monochromatic psychedelic distortion.
MPEG Stream: "Part One"
MPEG Stream: "Part Three"

PARLANE, ROSY Peetoom Files (Tonschacht) 7" 6.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This is another in the Tonschacht series of 7"s that has previously featured Gate, Ashtray Navigations, Hrvatski, and Vote Robot. Rosy Parlane is a New Zealand transplant now living in London, having spent a good portion of the last decade in such NZ guitar noise projects as Thela (with Dean Roberts and Dion Workman), Emperical, and Pit Viper. As can be heard on his recent solo disc, Parlane's recent work is much less Sonic Youth and much more Fennesz in taking the powerbook approach to sound manipulation. These two short tracks are warm constructions of digitized surges and morse code bleeps. Nicely done.

PARLENE, ROSY #1 - 4 (Sigma) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Shimmering gossamer drones that are constructed with appears to be looping hypnotic layers of violin. Quite similar to what Robin Storey did for Zoviet France and Rapoon. A very nice debut from this New Zealander.

PARLET Invasion of the Booty Snatchers (Universal) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

PARLIAMENT First Thangs (HDH) cd 14.98
Early Parliament tracks (mostly from their debut "Osmium") circa '70 - '72. Some, like "Red Hot Mama" later were reworked for later Funkadelic output. Essential funk.

PARLIAMENT Mothership Connection (Casablanca) cd 12.98
This is it, the mothership has landed! If you wants to get funked up, start here.

PARLIAMENT Osmium (Sanctuary / Castle) cd 17.98
Got some of these in, thought we ought to get it up on our website. After all, in my (Windy's) opinion the best Parliament album is this, their first, released in 1970. Removing the "s" from their name heralded George Clinton's change from the Parliaments' doo-wop sound to a truly original mix of gospel / country / funk / rock / even classical. That they hooked up with a white woman from England, Ruth Copeland, who wrote several of their most devotional tracks is even more weird, but then you've got hear this album to believe just how weird, yet totally accessible and great, it is. Especially if you're only familiar with Parliament / Funkadelic's more shiny dancefloor-oriented later material, then this will be a full-on revelation to you, so be *sure* to give the soundclips a try. While some folks choose to take sides over liking either Funkadelic *or* Parliament, Clinton's bands existed simultaneously and there is so much crossover in personnel and style that they may as well be considered the same band. So I tend to divide their sounds into early and later, myself much preferring the early work of both Parliament and Funkadelic -- 1971's Maggot Brain is my fave Funkadelic masterpiece. Osmium comes with seven bonus tracks to round out the album's original 10. Essential essential essential!
P.S. This has been reissued several times, including as a Brit import some years back called Rhenium, so note that if you've got that one you already have all the stuff here except the bonus tracks.
MPEG Stream: "I Call My Baby Pussycat"
MPEG Stream: "Oh Lord, Why Lord / Prayer"
MPEG Stream: "Funky Woman"

PARLIAMENT Up For The Down (Casablanca) lp 12.98

PARLIAMENT Up For The Down Stroke (Casablanca) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The 2nd Parliament album, from '74. Old Parliaments soul is updated to mid-'70s psychedelic funk specifications. A classic.

PARLIAMENTS, THE Testifyin' (Goldmine/Soul Supply) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Before Parliament & Funkadelic, George Clinton and co. were known as The Parliaments...presented here are their mid-sixties Detroit sessions, 18 soulful tracks worth--including the 1967 hit "I Wanna Testify" and several others later reworked by P-Funk in the seventies. "Good Ole Music" indeed. And plus it's neat to see the cover pic of a smooth-lookin' Mr. Clinton and the gang from before they adopted their LSD/Sun Ra-inspired dresscode (i.e. sans multicolored hair extensions, outlandish costuming, etc.)...

PARLIAMENTS, THE Testifyin' (Goldmine/Soul Supply) lp 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Before Parliament & Funkadelic, George Clinton and co. were known as The Parliaments...presented here are their mid-sixties Detroit sessions, 18 soulful tracks worth--including the 1967 hit "I Wanna Testify" and several others later reworked by P-Funk in the seventies. "Good Ole Music" indeed. And plus it's neat to see the cover pic of a smooth-lookin' Mr. Clinton and the gang from before they adopted their LSD/Sun Ra-inspired dresscode (i.e. sans multicolored hair extensions, outlandish costuming, etc.)...

PARLOUR Googler (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 13.98
Much like the cloud of plastic googly eyes that festoon the cover of this cd, Parlour's music has the tendency to drift off in all directions. From track to track and moment to moment, they're ever-morphing stylistically and tempo-wise. That's not to say that this album is scattered or haphazard. Not at all, there is a unifying slow, meandering flow to the proceedings, and it's all definitely rooted in the postrock camp. Perhaps the diversity is due to the fact that these tracks were done over a five year period in a number of different locales? Or perhaps it's still the lingering traces of the members past projects (The For Carnation, Aerial M, Crain)? Yes, the latter is particularly apparent. Nevertheless, Googler is an intriguing journey through melodic guitar and bass cycles, driving rhythms, warm drones and prickly textures. At times propulsive and sharp-edged while at others smooth and delicate. Six lengthy songs in all.
RealAudio clip: "Jojolinine"
RealAudio clip: "Regulkfro Reel"

PARLOUR Hives Fives (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd ep 9.98
New 20 minute four song ep from Louisville post rockers Parlour. While there's no escaping their deep connection to Tortoise -- we're talking circa Millions Now Living... -- they also have a broad arsenal of musical weapons at their disposal which make them stand out. Most significantly is the inclusion of both bass clarinet and tenor saxophone as prominant leaders in their sonic pallette, but also richly endowed with the sounds of tasteful analogy synths, jangling guitars and the requisite bass and drums. To be fair to Parlour, and maybe give a little more credit where credit is due, their sound is probably even closer to that of Pell Mell (who were squeezing out their own surfy brand of instrumental post rock long before Tortoise ever played a single note).
MPEG Stream: "Such (A One Year Stem)"
MPEG Stream: "Timorme"

PARLOUR Octopus Off-Broadway ( Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 14.98
Led by Tim Furnish (Crain, Aerial M, For Carnation), this Louisville group is quite beautiful. It's a post rock instrumental record... and yeah, there's a lot of those out right now! However, this is totally at the higher end of the quality spectrum. The lulling Tortoise-like grooves that the band gets into are super warm and organic sounding, as opposed to too much electronics. I like that. Added twists *do* occur on a synth, but ironically enough, these are some of the warmest sounds on the record -- reminding me of flutes, wooden percussive implements, random harmonizing squiggles. It's not the most challenging record in the world, but it don't hafta be. a worthy indierock answer to Boards of Canada or Gas. A very pretty, very nice surprise.
RealAudio clip: "Stipendlax"
RealAudio clip: "Aflipperput"

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD Chants Magnetiques (Fractal) cd 22.00
Had Fractal not dusted off this gem of French electronic composition, there's a good chance this disc might have found its way back into circulation through elusive Icelandic cd-r label Creel Pone. Bernard Parmegiani was one of the many composers who cut their teeth at the highly influential INA-GRM studio / label / laboratory of sound, alongside the likes of Pierre Henry, Luc Ferrari, and Xenakis. Favoring an acousmatic strategy that reveals sound in a manner that sublimates its origins, Parmegiani is best known for his grandiose La Creation Du Monde whereby the composer attempts to address the sound that predates the Big Bang, as well as its polyphonous explosion through a constantly spiralling thrum of electronic vibration. Chants Magnetiques (which translates as Magnetic Fields, and Fractal is quick to point out that this album precedes the Jean Michel Jarre album of the same name by several years) is easily the darkest album in Parmegiani's body of work; and perhaps, the paranoiac qualities of Chants Magnetiques were the reason for its obscure status for so long. The opening round of erratic electric squiggles slides into a languid drone of sustained strings, whilst a robotic hammering strikes against what sounds like springloaded doors. Occasionally chipper but usually damaged electronic percolations and atonal blasts of prog organs intermingle with sheet metal cacophony and convulsive buzzings, only to sulk into subterranean layers of sound haunted by mad scientist chords on the organ and spooky atmospherics that never sound cheesy in spite of the references. The entire composition is executed with an incredible precision and complexity, easily positioning itself as a clear influence upon the later work of Autechre. One not to miss.
MPEG Stream: "Vibrations"
MPEG Stream: "Pulsion"

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD Da Natura Sonorum (INA/GRM) cd 21.00
Listening to "Da Natura Sonorum" it's easy to understand where Autechre borrowed their mutable rhythms from. Often cited as a huge influence upon those figureheads of current abstract electronica, Bernard Parmegiani emphasized the "instantaneousness of the ephemeral and the mobility of the repetitive" within his fusionist compositions between musique concrete and live instrumentation. While Autechre took this agenda (and particularly Parmegiani's ping-pong algorithms of granular synthesis) to a post-electro / fractured breakbeat context, Parmegiani is firmly rooted in the traditions of INA GRM electronic music. Over the two distinct suites of "Da Natura Sonorum," Parmegiani couples electronic and tape constuctions with lengthy sustained chords from live instruments at times attaining a Feldman-esque flutter of multiple French Horns, yet the second passage exhibits more fleeting compositions for the orchestral elements in favor of dense collages of electronics.
RealAudio clip: "Conjugaison du Timbre"
RealAudio clip: "Pleins et Delies"

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD JazzEx (Fractal) cd 21.00
We've been a fan of French musique concrete composer, Bernard Parmegiani for awhile now. His sound engineer's background brings forth a stunningly unique view of music-making through which he combines improvisational intuition with an excellent sense of compositional form. JazzEx is a collection of four of his earliest works: "JazzEx" (1966), a composition for electronic tape and Jazz Quartet from the 1966 Festival de Royan; "Pop Eclectic" (1969), an electro-acoustique divertimento that mixes natural and synthetic sounds and was composed for the Peter Foldes movie; "Du Pop a l'Ane" (1969), a plunderphonics sound collage using pop and symphonic sounds; "Et Apres" (1973), an amazing electronic tango composition featuring Michel Portal on bandoneon. This is an important period of Parmegiani's work, noting his first major steps in this eclectic sound language. Highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Pop Eclectic"
MPEG Stream: "Du Pop a l'Ane"

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD La Creation Du Monde (INA/GRM) cd 21.00
Bernard Parmegiani is a French musique concrete / electronic music composer who has worked extensively with the influential INA GRM recording studio / label. While a number of 20th Century composers avidly footnote their work with dense historical references and conceptual overviews, Parmegiani favors the acousmatic approach (currently espoused by Francisco Lopez) of creating a hallucinatory sound without revealing what caused it. Such a philosophy favoring mystery over intention is perfectly suited to the cosmologically tinged composition "Le Creation Du Monde" (1982-1984). Parmegiani expresses the cosmic beginning through gradual introductions and transformations of dense, yet ephemeral fragments of sound which mutate and coalesce into warm, buzzing timbres and aqueous percolations. While the tonalities to "Le Creation Du Monde" are comparable to Xenakis's "Persepolis" or Stockhausen's "Mikrophonie," Parmegiani's volatile collage aesthetic falls much closer to the non-academic forms of early Nurse With Wound. Good work.
RealAudio clip: "Instant 0"
RealAudio clip: "Jeux De Confrigurations"
RealAudio clip: "Polyphonie"

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD La Memoire Des Sons (INA-GRM) cd 21.00
"Le Memoire Des Sons" collects three pieces from the French musique concrete composer Bernard Parmegiani, including "Capture Ephemere" (1967), "Sons-Jeu" (1987), and "La Memoire des Sons" (2001). As with his previous works including his masterpiece "La Creation Du Monde," Parmegiani follows an acousmatic approach to contextualizing how his heavily processed sounds are to be perceived. Despite the span of 34 years in between all of these recordings, there is a remarkable similarity in how Parmegian fractures the source material into generative particles tumbling, exploding, flanging, dissolving, sparkling, and timestretching into very plastic sound constructions, that clearly follow the strict rules of what musique concrete should be according to the precepts of the French state sponsored institution INA-GRM.
RealAudio clip: "Capture Ephemere"

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD Pop'eclectic (Plate Lunch) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Odd-ball music conrete from this legendary French composer. This disc presents archival material from 1966-1973, thereby predating the pop cut-ups of Christian Marclay by a good bit. The four pieces here feature a patchwork of styles, at times fused with symphonic elements, or having free jazz musicians play over prerecorded tapes of electro-acoustic music. Important, influential, and a fun listen, too!

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD Violostries (INA-GRM) 2cd 30.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

PARMEGIANI, BERNARD / FRANCOIS BAYLE Divine Comedie: Enfer / Purgatoire (MFA) 2cd 29.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

PARMENTIER Luxsound (Sigma) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Parmentier is a collaboration between New Zealand's Rosy Parlene and Dion Workman (ex-Thela) who combine to create scratchy drawn out soundscapes with bleak, claustrophobic drones and rhythms approximating at time the Chain Reaction pulse, by building loops out of skipping records. The end result is similar to Boyd Rice's infamous Black Album, but far more beautiful.

PARRENIN, EMMANUELLE Maison Rose (Lion) cd 14.98
Haunting and lovely avant-folk recording from French multi-instrumentalist Emmanuelle Parrenin. Recorded in 1977, Parrenin's fascination and adeptness with ancient traditional stringed instruments such as the harp, hurdy-gurdy, spinet, and dulcimer, gives a unique spin on her more forward thinking compositions. Often compared to Vashti Bunyan and Linda Perhacs due to her sweet multi-tracked vocals which accompany about half of the songs, we think the later recording date puts her more in line with Kay Hoffman's Floret Silva (another progressive folk masterpiece recorded the same year) or the kosmiche pastoral vibe of Popol Vuh due to the layered Celtic-inflected droning harmonies she evokes from her instruments. Beautiful and so recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Chibault et L'Arbre D'Or"
MPEG Stream: "Apres L'Ondee"

PARRENIN, EMMANUELLE Maison Rose (Lion) lp 30.00
Now, reissued on vinyl too!
Haunting and lovely avant-folk recording from French multi-instrumentalist Emmanuelle Parrenin. Recorded in 1977, Parrenin's fascination and adeptness with ancient traditional stringed instruments such as the harp, hurdy-gurdy, spinet, and dulcimer, gives a unique spin on her more forward thinking compositions. Often compared to Vashti Bunyan and Linda Perhacs due to her sweet multi-tracked vocals which accompany about half of the songs, we think the later recording date puts her more in line with Kay Hoffman's Floret Silva (another progressive folk masterpiece recorded the same year) or the kosmiche pastoral vibe of Popol Vuh due to the layered Celtic-inflected droning harmonies she evokes from her instruments. Beautiful and so recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Chibault et L'Arbre D'Or"
MPEG Stream: "Apres L'Ondee"

PARRY / SOEGAARD Off The Map (Hwyl Nofio) cd 14.98
Back in stock!!
We've long been huge champions of the highly unpronounceable UK outfit Hwyl Nofio, aka Steve Parry. Every record some new world of sound, haunting and mysterious, delicate and lovely, creepy and dreamy. Judging by how quickly we sell through most of the Hwyl records, you all feel very much the same way. 
Off The Map is the long in the works collaboration between Hwyl's Steve Parry, and fellow guitarist Fredrik Soegaard, who had been a contributor on previous Hwyl recordings. Thus it's not really a huge stretch to imagine that some of Off The Map might sound a bit like Hywl Nofio, and it does, while at the same time taking off in its own distinct directions. 
Two guitar players, each with their own approach to the instrument, both seeming to fit together perfectly. Much more active than the often subdued Hwyl records, these two guitars tangle and wrangle and the results are quite lovely, from buzzing metallic drones, and complex webs of melody and overtones, to burbling cauldrons of electronic sputter and squiggle, to gorgeously melodic soundscapes of sparkle and glimmer, to chest rattling steel stringed lowbuzz, to damaged atonal acoustic folk, peppered with squeaky balloon streaks of high end guitar, to blissed out washes of soft shimmer and muted melody, to grinding Wolf Eyesian industrial scrapescapes, complete with haunting pterodactyl skree and throbbing metallic crunch, to dizzying arrays of all-over-the-place screech and splatter and flurries of upper register trills, to soft billowing waves of warm sun drenched sonic buzzstorms...
Every track is dramatically different, but they all seem to fit together, like chapters in a book, each track a tiny piece of the story, every one hinting at what is to come, each retaining ghostly memories of what came before, part of the joy is figuring out the story, following the record from end to end, it's a journey through sound, letting your ears lead the way, but the great thing about Off The Map, and music in general, if you don't care about the 'story' or the 'journey', the sounds offer just as much on their own, sans emotional and intellectual intent, just sweet simple sonics to set your ear drums abuzz. 
MPEG Stream: "Off The Map"
MPEG Stream: "Unstrung 101"
MPEG Stream: "Map"
MPEG Stream: "Abstract 0 9"

PARSON Throw Some Ds (Planet Mu) 12" 7.98

PARSON SOUND s/t (Subliminal Sounds) 2cd 34.00
Before we actually listened to this reissue, we didn't expect too much from these fairly obscure Swedish psychedelic underground rockers, having never heard them before, and knowing only that they were an earlier incarnation of another Swedish hippy rock outfit (Träd, Gräs och Stenar) whose much-hyped live album failed to impress us when it was issued on cd several years ago by this same label. So how was it that this band could deserve a double cd collection? Well, they do. Man, were we wrong! These guys were great! [Something also borne out by the more recent reissues of Harvester, International Harvester, and the actual Träd, Gräs och Stenar studio album, all of which are worth getting too.] This is a completely astounding collection of dark shimmering drones and super heavy tranced out minimal psych-rock recorded in 1967 and '68. At times freaky and chaotic, but most often hypnotically locked into stoned grooves, this is some of the best heavy psych we've ever heard. Their shifting instrumentation (the list includes guitar, bass, drums, organ, double-bass, electric-cello, flute, cowbell, saxophone, hand drums, acoustic guitar, tape recorder, and...seance? huh?) is employed in both intricate and extended studio recordings and totally primal and euphoric live performances over the course of these two discs. Parson Sound crafted music that, while reminiscient of the Taj Mahal Travellers, Terry Riley, Flower Travelling Band and the like, is almost wholly their own. If you were told that this was a new, 2001 recording you'd think that it must be some Japanese Acid Mothers Temple style psych-rock supergroup, or Bardo Pond on some hitherto unknown variety of really really good drugs...wow! Yet again we are amazed at the musical treasures hidden in the not-so-ancient past, and greatful to the fans and labels that dig 'em up for reissues like this one. And Subliminal Sounds does it right, packaging these archival recordings with detailed liner notes, and evocative art and photos -- although the music is all that's needed to make you wish you'd been born old and Swedish enough to have been at one of the free-rock happenings documented here!
RealAudio clip: "Tio Minuter"
RealAudio clip: "From Tunis To India In Fullmoon (On Testosterone)"
RealAudio clip: "India (Slight Return)"
RealAudio clip: "A Glimpse Inside The Glyptotec-66"

PARSONS, DAVID Earthlight (Celestial Harmonies) cd 15.98
David Parsons is not as well known outside of New Age circles as say Deuter or Kitaro, but in the case of this New Zealand artist who's been releasing music since the early eighties, obscurity in that particular genre is an asset rather than a liability. Parsons makes the kind of New Age music we really dig a lot around here, the kind that exceeds the boundaries of the genre into areas of experimental drone, pastoral Kosmiche music and 20th century composition. Like Eberhard Schoener (another krauty 'New Ager' we love), Parsons is known mostly for a cross-cultural fusion of Eastern and Western musical forms that feature lots of ethnic instruments and field recordings, on Earthlight, Parsons only uses synthesizers, where he programmed in his own sounds built completely from scratch. Deep bottom-heavy Ur-drones, and soft phased in high tones converge on fields of repetitive gamelan-ish arppegiations and filtered washes of bell tones. Really Nice!
MPEG Stream: "Earthlight"
MPEG Stream: "Altai Himalaya"
MPEG Stream: "Corona"

PARSONS, DAVID Jyoti (Celestial Harmonies) cd 15.98
As we mentioned in the Pulse Emitter Meditative Music reviews, we do get a lot of folks here looking for cds for meditation, massage and yoga, and while we can get down with the concept of meditative music, we can't always get past the aesthetic cheesiness inherent in most music specifically designed for this purpose. You know what were talking about, right? Those photoshopped jewel tones, that terrible Hindu/Sanskrit-like font, and the gross overuse of words like "dharma", "kundalini", and "chakra".
So thank God, there are musicians like David Parsons who still work within the new age genre but don't completely fall into its trappings, making worthwhile music that both experimental drone heads and meditative music seekers can get behind. Maybe you'll recall his Earthlight disc we liked last year. Now, on Jyoti, Parsons takes us deep into some heavy inner earth drones, low temple bells and cavernous tonal soundscapes. Each track over 9 minutes of slow monumental and drifting resonance with no unnecessary or excessive melodic elements. If you need music to get your chakras aligned, we recommend this!
MPEG Stream: "Incarnation"
MPEG Stream: "They Come"

PARSONS, GRAM Another Side Of This Life (Sundazed) cd 13.98
Normally a discovery like this, lost unreleased recordings of the late great Gram Parsons, would have everyone freaking out. I mean, this is the grievous angel! He was personally responsible for some of the most beautiful country rock ever, AND he was in the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers.
But our initial excitement may have been a bit premature. These are home recorded demos from 1965-1966, a time when GP was immersed in the New York folk scene, so most of the songs have that Greenwich Village/Dylan/folkie vibe, not much of the twang that would become his 'sound'. The sound we've all come to know and love. The covers range from Buffy Saint-Marie to Fred Neil to Lieber and Stoller. And normally, unreleased/unheard tracks would be the treasure here, but in this case it's the songs that would resurface later (albeit in different incarnations) that are the most interesting. Probably his most famous song, 'Brass Buttons', is included here, stripped down and kind of tentative sounding, and it's just really cool to hear a 'classic' in its fetal stages. Too bad there wasn't more of that. The bottom line, is that this one's for the completists and GP obsessives and I imagine there are quite a few of you out there.
RealAudio clip: "Brass Buttons"
RealAudio clip: "Another Side Of This Life (Fred Neil)"

PARSONS, GRAM Another Side Of This Life (Sundazed) lp 15.98
Normally a discovery like this, lost unreleased recordings of the late great Gram Parsons, would have everyone freaking out. I mean, this is the grievous angel! He was personally responsible for some of the most beautiful country rock ever, AND he was in the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers.
But our initial excitement may have been a bit premature. These are home recorded demos from 1965-1966, a time when GP was immersed in the New York folk scene, so most of the songs have that Greenwich Village/Dylan/folkie vibe, not much of the twang that would become his 'sound'. The sound we've all come to know and love. The covers range from Buffy Saint-Marie to Fred Neil to Lieber and Stoller. And normally, unreleased/unheard tracks would be the treasure here, but in this case it's the songs that would resurface later (albeit in different incarnations) that are the most interesting. Probably his most famous song, 'Brass Buttons', is included here, stripped down and kind of tentative sounding, and it's just really cool to hear a 'classic' in its fetal stages. Too bad there wasn't more of that. The bottom line is that this one's for the completists and GP obsessives, and I imagine there are quite a few of you out there.

PARSONS, GRAM Archives Vol. 1 (Amoeba) 2cd 21.00
Wow, here's something we're sure a few folks -- specifically Gram Parsons fans -- wished they'd found under the tree a few days ago!
Ah well, better late than never! Here's just the facts:
Gram Parsons and The Flying Burrito Bros.
Live at the Avalon Ballroom here in SF.
Two evenings back in April 1969.
Awesome.
These two cds feature 25 remastered live recordings
as well as two recently unearthed home recorded demos! they're packaged in a beautiful 5"x5.75" hardcover 20-page book. It sounds great. It looks great. A fantastic document of '60s Americana!

PARSONS, GRAM Fallen Angels - Live 1973 (Rhino) cd 16.98

PARSONS, GRAM GP / Grievous Angel (Reprise) cd 14.98
An absolutely essential album in any self-respecting country rock music fan... seriously. It just doesn't get much better than this. A true classic. 'Nuf said.

PARSONS, GRAM Sacred Hearts and Fallen Angels Anthology (Rhino) 2cd 28.00
Rhino releases a very nice anthology covering the broad swath of Gram Parsons' short (he died in his mid-twenties) but brilliant career, thru almost all the bands he took part in, including the International Submarine Band, the Byrds, and the Flying Burrito Bros. (There's nothing from the early group the Shilohs, but they weren't all that good anyway.) Plus, of course, the two completely seminal solo albums he made with Emmylou Harris in the early 1970s. Yes, the phrase "seminal" is an overused cliche, but if you're already a Parsons fan then you'll know its use is appropriate here. Gram Parsons basically invented the country rock genre that has since found flower in the "no depression" alt.country scene that's alive and well today. He named it Cosmic American Music. He felt equal love for the honkytonk and the outlaws, for the rock and the folkies, and combined them in a way that is completely his own, that is super listenable and sing-along-able and heartbreakingly beautiful. Uncle Tupelo, Wilco, Son Volt, Jayhawks, the Creekdippers, Old 97s, Dieselhed, Beachwood Sparks, Whiskeytown... they are all indebted to Gram Parsons.
If you don't already have his solo records and the single Byrds album he appeared on (Sweetheart of the Rodeo), then why not give this anthology a try. It's got one previously unreleased Int.Sub.Band outtake (that's quite good), copious liner notes, including notes on each song included, plus lots of photos of Parsons in his Nudie suits that I'd never seen before, some words from Emmylou, and it's all packaged in a very nice slipcase. Recommended.
Note: we always carry the two solo albums he made -- GP and Grievous Angel -- which have been released on one disc.
RealAudio clip: BYRDS "You Don't Miss Your Water"
RealAudio clip: GRAM PARSONS "$1000 Wedding"
RealAudio clip: GRAM PARSONS "To Love Somebody"
RealAudio clip: INTERNATIONAL SUBMARINE BAND "Knee Deep in the Blues"

PARSONS, GRAM The Complete Reprise Sessions (Warner / Rhino) 3cd 38.00
The enigma of Gram Parsons remains ever elusive. Considered the Father of Country Rock by pioneering the concept of a rock band playing country music through his contributions with The Incredible Submarine Band, The Flying Burrito Bros, and The Byrds later output, namely Sweetheart of the Rodeo (An interesting side note: the recent reissue of Sweetheart of the Rodeo restores Parsons vocal tracks which originally had to be removed due to contractual obligations with Lee Hazelwood's LHI label who released the sole Incredible Submarine Band album.). But it's Parson's two solo records on Reprise, G.P. from 1972 and Grievous Angel from 1973 that cemented his legend and legacy due to his untimely death from a morphine and tequila overdose near the Joshua Tree National Monument only weeks after the Grievous Angel sessions were completed. He was 27 years old. While there have been numerous 2 disc compilations and anthologies highlighting various periods of Parsons short but incredibly productive and influential career, including his years as a Greenwich village folkie, as well as live sets, there has never been a box set to completely round out his influence. So this new 3 disc box set showcasing his two solo records with a bonus disc of stripped down alternate takes and interviews will only offer minimal new insights. Previously only available as a two-fer, these absolutely essential solo albums have now been given room to breathe and stand up as two completely individual listening experiences, while the alternate takes only emphasize the loss of one of the finest country voices. So utterly heartbreaking. The only happiness that comes from these sessions is the magical presence of EmmyLou Harris who was introduced to the world with these records and was an equal partner in their making, and without her, the legacy of these recordings would not shine as brightly.
MPEG Stream: "A Song For You"
MPEG Stream: "Brass Buttons"
MPEG Stream: "In My Hour of Darkness"