Cataclysmic Commentary – Audience Participation (Eschatology, 2018) Carlo Costa – Oblio (Neither/Nor, 2018) Jamie Saft Quartet – Blue Dream (Rare Noise, 2018) Various – Sub Rosa: An Anthology of Noise & Electronic Music, vol. 3 (Sub Rosa, 2004) [3 LPs]
On September 5, 2018, violist Joanna Mattrey convened a quintet of superb improvisers that included trombonist Ben Gerstein, trumpeter Joe Moffett, bass clarinetist John McCowen, and vocalist Nina Dante. Their set was an exploration of the possibilities of minimalist improvisations in a collective context. The music began with small sounds, as if emerging from all
Originally from Maine, drummer Devin Gray has been active in New York City for over a dozen years. His two main projects as a leader have been Dirigo Rataplan, a quartet with saxophonist Ellery Eskelin, trumpeter Dave Ballou, and bassist Michael Formanek, and RelativE ResonancE, a quartet with reedist Chris Speed, pianist Kris Davis, and
Colombian electric bassist, Carlos Quebrada, based in Buenos Aires, joined New York drummer Weasel Walter and saxophonist Sam Weinberg for an intense, visceral performance at Wonders of Nature on Wednesday, September 5. This trio presented a set of jagged-edged, high-energy improvised music that really pushed the boundaries. Saxophonic squeaks, rapid, percussive bass lines, and hard,
Fridman Gallery is celebrating its fifth anniversary in the West Village and they are hosting a week of amazing concerts. The bills pay tribute to the wide variety of cutting edge music happening right now in New York and beyond. For a full listing, see the Fridman Gallery website.
Blacks’ Myths, a duo of electric bassist Luke Stewart and drummer Warren G. “Trae” Crudup III played the second set at the Fridman Gallery, Friday, September 7. They released their debut record in July. The band embodies deep rhythms and dark energies. The two riffed and improvised, building off of each other constantly. Stewart often
I was running late on Friday, September 7, but when I approached the block where the Fridman Gallery is in the West Village, I was pleasantly greeted by the flowing sounds of the saxophone of James Brandon Lewis. I recognized it instantly. The music appeared in an interesting context, the closing night of the Strange
Vocalist Charmaine Lee opened a three-set bill at Wonders of Nature on Wednesday, September 5. Using an amplifier and distortion effects, Lee created explosions of ecstatic, attacking sound with vibrations like abrasions, collisions, and disruptions which she occasionally disrupted with vocalized words or phrases. She performed the entire 10-minute set with her back to the
Charles Tyler Ensemble – Voyage from Jericho (Ak-Ba Records, 1975) [vinyl] Andrew Raffo Dewar – Reflejo (pfMentum, 2018) Lucas Brode’s Spying – self-titled (Self-released, 2018) Kuzu – Hiljaisuus (Astral Spirits, 2018) [vinyl] Choi Sun Bae Quartet – Arirang Fantasy (No Business, 2018) Kaoru Abe/Sabu Toyozumi – Mannyoka (No Business, 2018) Carol Liebowitz & Birgitta Flick – Malita-Malika (Leo, 2018) Devin Gray
Electric guitarist Lucas Brode and drummer Kevin Shea met for an ambient duo performance at the Troost on Wednesday, August 22. What I heard defied all expectations that I had about these two musicians and represented a new dimension of their work (for me anyway). Shea opened with light shimmering cymbal work to which Brode
