A beautiful gong begins the proceedings of Possible Universes creating the right mood for the improvisations. A solo violinist is playing away like mad, while rumbles from small percussion instruments: bells, wood blocks, and more, pepper the floor, making it difficult to get through this impassable field. This recording uses the full Leap of Faith
When I toured with Cellular Chaos, I met a number of musicians, artists, along with other interesting individuals during those road trips. One such young man is, Brian David Downs. He came to our show when the band played at the Hexagon Bar, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was one of our most enthusiastic fans. During
Musicianer’s Slowlearner features Josh Sinton on baritone saxophone and compositions, Jason Ajemian on contrabass, and Chad Taylor on drums. Slowlearner sounds like an agitated mind, racing and breaking irregularly. Despite this erratic pace, the saxophone, consistently deep and powerful, is drawn out over long breaths. This develops, at times, into an explosion, as we hear
“Badlands is the second full length album by composer Jeremiah Cymerman’s apocalyptic chamber ensemble, Pale Horse. Recorded in February 2015, Badlands, picks up where their self-titled 2014 debut left off, with emphasis on dark ambient soundscapes built by the acoustic trio of clarinet, cello, and drums. Over the course of two long form compositions, the
I had an acute thought a number of times today: “I am busy writing about women in improvised music, I don’t need to give white nationalists air time in my mind.” In light … or in darkness of everything that is going on with the white nationalist marches, I really felt how important my work
Celebrated poet, organizer, activist and actress Amina Baraka is a central figure in the living history of the Black Arts Movement, along with her late husband Amiri. On her latest project, Baraka digs deep into that poetic and political history, unearthing a bittersweet, timeless Blues for the working class. Backed by a tight, intuitive ensemble
Two years before her death in an interview published by Motion Magazine, Science Fiction author Octavia Butler set out to explain how the political climate of the late Cold War period inspired the hellish post-apocalyptic landscapes she wrote about in her storied Xenogenesis series. Interestingly, Butler pointed to the human tendency to organize social life
David Peck is one of the more prolific musicians in free jazz today. His Leap of Faith Orchestra (LOFO) is his primary vehicle for generating his brand of musical notes and tones. The first track, “Luminous,” is taken from a live performance done late last year at the Somerville Amory in Somerville, MA. The ensemble’s
The new album by the Chris Welcome Quartet, Challenger (May 2017) is effortless and commands our attention all at once. I find myself drawn to jazz because of its distinct contrast; soft and forceful, silent and chaotic, empty and overflowing … it can be, and often is, a series of opposing ideas. This is apparent
The self-titled album by the Chicago-based band, Hearts and Minds, was released in October of 2016. Hearts and Minds is a synthesis of electronic noise and improvisational jazz, absorbing the listener into an atmosphere of synthesized fuzz and distortion. This is combined with a bass clarinet that produces both a more “classical” sound (notable in
