Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/28/07 - 5/31/07

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ROBEDOOR/YELLOW SWANS: “Tremor Deliverance”/Untitled Split 7” Single (Arbor) - L. A.’s Robedoor and Portland’s Yellow Swans each contribute a track to this split 7” single on the up and coming and inspirational (as it is owned and operated by 17 year-old Chicagoland resident, Mike Pollard!) Arbor label. Robedoor's “Tremor Deliverance” combines droning keyboards, cello, guitar, and reverbed and delayed vocal wails (ala Raccoo-oo-oon) to create a gorgeous, but somewhat dark, dronescape. The Yellow Swans’ untitled track provides a brief and accurate sonic snapshot of their sound - a dark, powerful, slowly evolving mass of droning psychedelic noise.


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In Other News...

I've been remiss in noting that reviews by the Sonictroubadour of new releases are now also appearing on the fantastic Foxy Digitalis website (http://www.digitalisindustries.com/foxyd/index.php). For reasons too numerous and tedious to detail here, some future reviews will be exclusive to Foxy Digitalis, some will remain exclusive to the Sonictroubadour blog you're currently reading, and others will be published in both. So, readers may wish to check out both sites, if they're interested in keeping up on all the latest musical ramblings of the Sonictroubadour.

Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/27/07

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NORTH SEA: Exquisite Idols CD (Type) - After many limited edition CDRs and compilation appearances comes “Exquisite Idols”, the debut full-length release from the North Sea, the solo project of Digitalis Industries mogul Brad Rose. Over the course of this album’s 8 tracks, Rose executes all the required moves to earn his “acid folk” merit badge. So, you’ve got a couple of takes on contemporary acid folk sounds such as “Guiwenneth Of The Green Grass” (which combines field recordings, hand percussion, and beautiful acoustic guitar work), the country-tinged “Children Of The Ashes”, an acid folk raga featuring sitar “And Then The Solstice Disappeared”, and the jubliant stomp of the disc’s closing track “Feather-Cloaked Silver Priestess”. There’s also a couple of more experimental pieces, the opening dronescape “Eternal Birds” and the orgy of echoplexed percussion and electronics “Cover Me With Knives”. Like the majority of the many releases currently flooding the scene under the general rubric of “acid folk”, there’s nothing particularly ground breaking on this disc, but with “Exquisite Idols”, Rose has delivered a well-crafted, nicely varied, and engaging set of contemporary acid folk that deserves repeated play.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/15/07 - 5/26/07

Been a long time...

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POEM ROCKET: Invasion! DCD (Atavistic) - Poem Rocket is a long-running NYC-based project led by the duo of Michael Peters and Sandra Gardner. “Invasion!” is their first release since 2000 and contains two discs, each of which focuses on a particular aspect of the group’s sound.

Disc 1, which is subtitled “A Parade Of Vigilance”, features 10 tracks of gorgeously recorded, acoustic guitar-based pop, often augmented with little lysergic touches such as droning synths, miscellaneous percussion, and various loops and samples. Personal favorites included “Underwater”, “The Keeper”, and the disc’s one sonic outlier, the densely layered dronescape ”The Ocean As Itself (Reprise)”. Disc 2, which is subtitled “The Abdomen Of Memory”, contains 9 tracks of pop-rock that I found to be very reminiscent of the kind of material that was quite popular within certain softer circles of the international underground in the early 1990’s as represented by such diverse labels as Creation, Sub Pop, Too Pure, and so on - a pleasant blend of simple drums patterns, rumbling bass lines, distorted guitar chords and jagged, multi-effected electric leads, and tasteful keyboard treatments. Highlights from the second disc included “Sound Byte Hit” and “Pulse (I Hope You Dream Something)”.

When listening straight through, I found that both discs tend to be a bit sonically monolithic. Perhaps, some editing (like taking the strongest tracks from each disc and combining them into a single disc) would have yielded a more dynamic and higher quality final product. Still, there's enough solid material on these two discs to merit adding this enjoyable, but far from innovative, album to my ever expanding music library.


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Good Riddance To Jerry Falwell!!!!!

It's a great day. One of the darkest forces for regressive thought and social action, Jerry Falwell, has become worm food. On days like this my only regret is that there really isn't a god, a heaven, and a hell, because if there was, a regressive scumbag like Falwell would surely (and deservedly!) be quite surprised to find himself roasting in hell right now!!!!!

Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/13/07 - 5/14/07

HOWARD, NOAH: The Black Ark CD (Bo’Weavil) - It’s no secret to regular readers of this blog that I’m a big fan of the almost criminally under recorded and under appreciated alto saxophonist, Noah Howard. Ever since first hearing the Eremite reissue of “Patterns/Message to South Africa”, I’ve scoured the ‘net and the racks to purchase any of Howard’s all too few titles I could find (even scoring rare original vinyl issues of some releases such as “Space Dimension”!), but “The Black Ark” remained elusive. And it was one of his most intriguing titles, too, with that colorful psychedelic cover and an excellent cast of supporting musicians that included Sirone (who was then still going under the name Norris Jones and is excellent throughout this disc) and (in his recording debut) Arthur Doyle. Recorded in 1969 in NYC and later released on the UK’s Freedom label, this was also one of Howard’s earlier releases as a leader. Now, the fine folks at Bo’Weavil have ended my quest with this welcome reissue of “The Black Ark”.

This album features four solid compositions by Howard, who is also excellent on alto throughout, whether crafting soulful themes or pursuing more aggressive solos. While it has its moments, most notably the solos by Howard and pianist Leslie Waldron (Howard often leaves a lot of space for/relies on the contributions of the excellent pianists who have graced his recordings), the opening track “Domiabra” is, overall, a somewhat rough and less than fully satisfying initial shakedown for the group. The disc’s best track “Ole Negro” is next. It features the expanded rhythm section (Rashid’s brother, Muhammad Ali, on drums and Juma on conga, along with the piano and bass) laying down an incredible, almost hallucination producing foundation for the soloists. The other real winner on this CD is the longest piece “Mount Fuji”, which contains trumpeter Earl Cross and Doyle’s most significant contributions and some fine free ensemble playing (vaguely reminiscent of Coltrane’s “Ascension”) in the segments which connect the solos. The album’s closing track, the pleasant, but all too brief “Queen Anne”, is highlighted by the solos of Waldron and Howard.

Like many similar releases from the period on labels such as ESP, BYG/Actuel, and so on, both the performances and the recording quality on this disc are, at times, somewhat uneven. Nevertheless, the music contained on this CD represents another interesting and appreciated document from a seminal era in the development of free jazz that richly deserves further exposure to a wider audience.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/12/07

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V/A: Bougouni Yaalali CD (Yaala Yaala) - Yaala Yaala is a new imprint from Drag City that focuses on world music. They recently launched the label with a trio of releases of music from West Africa, from which I selected the one which appeared to be most interesting, “Bougouni Yaalali”.

All that is revealed by the minimal liner notes is that the material on this CD was recorded at various social events in the rural town of Bougouni, Mali (hence the disc’s title, which apparently translates to “wandering around Bougouni”), obviously on some form of hand-held device. After that, you’re left to rely on your senses to derive any additional information regarding these recordings, as there are no artists, instruments, nor track titles listed! These unknown musicians use percussion (created on all manner of instruments such as djembe, nkerinye, home made metal shakers, and so on), hypnotic figures plucked on, I suspect, the ngoni (usually, again, a home made multi-stringed spike lute made out of wood or gourds), and vocals (sometimes in a more Arab-influenced style, other times displaying attributes associated with traditional West African vocal styles) to create these excellent authentic African folk grooves! Even with a lifetime of exposure to “lo-fi” recordings (having seen it develop into an aesthetic, instead of merely being a pleasing sonic byproduct of financially challenged musicians!), I can’t deny that the music on this release would benefit from a variety of improvements in the documentation process. Nevertheless, the music contained on this CD provides another intriguing and unique (and very much appreciated!) sonic snapshot of a remote and relatively unknown region’s musical culture for the continuing enlightenment of audio-ethnographers (like me!) everywhere.

With “Bougouni Yaalali”, Yaala Yaala is off to an excellent start and I’m going to check out additional titles from the label’s catalog soon.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/9/07 - 5/11/07

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OLAUSSON, JAKOB: Moonlight Farm LP (Destijl) - “Moonlight Farm” is the debut (and almost entirely solo) release from Sweden’s Jakob Olausson. Using an assortment of instruments such as banjo, bells, flute, violin, and, of course acoustic and electric guitars, Olausson created these 10 little gems of lo-fi acid folk and basement psych. Personal favorites included two tracks which feature dark, but beautiful and well-developed melodies “What Will Tomorrow Bring” and “Silhouette V”, “Welcome Traveler” an acid folk track featuring flute, and “Live To Tell” which is highlighted by soaring, reverb-drenched electric guitar and vocals. While there’ll certainly be no big surprises for aficionados of similar late night fare contained inside these grooves, Olausson’s “Moonlight Farm” is, nevertheless, another solid entry into the canon of contemporary loner/outsider recordings.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/5/07 - 5/8/07

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ZALATNAY, SAROLTA: S/T CD (B-Music) - The record stack rummagers at Finders Keepers return with this compilation of recordings from Hungarian multimedia celebrity, Sarolta Zalatnay. Although the vast majority of the work in her lengthy and varied (music, films, etc.) career in the entertainment industry was aimed at popular mass consumption, she did produce (with the backing of some of Hungary’s best known musical groups of the era such as Locomotiv GT and Skorpio) some fairly unique sounding and high quality, if still mainstream leaning, recordings during the earlier years (the 1970’s) of her career.

This release contains 19 tracks which range from pop to heavy, exploito-psych sounds and funky, hard rock. Throughout this CD, Zalatnay demonstrates that she, unlike so many “celebrity” pop vocalists, is actually a very accomplished singer, delivering full-throated rock wailing; smooth, sultry vocals; and almost childlike pop chanteuse stylings with equal skill. Highlights include the lysergic-tinged folkish pop of “Munanyag Almok” and “Adj Egy Percet”, the hard rockin’ "Itt A Nyar" and “Fekete Arnyek”, the rockin’ funk of “Hadd Mondjam El” and "Egyser", and a couple of jazz informed tracks “Egy Szot Se Szolj” and "Zold Borostyan". As was the case with the Phil Trainer reissue I recently reviewed, some of the material on this CD is just too mainstream pandering to be of merit, but the tasty fuzz wah and heavy percussion, present throughout the majority of this release, combined with the use of Eastern European phrasing and the exotic sound of Zalatnay’s Hungarian vocals and make this compilation yet another “guilty pleasure” with too many charms to be denied.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 5/1/07 - 5/4/07

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ANDERSON, FRED, AND HAMID DRAKE: From The River To The Ocean CD (Thrill Jockey) - “From The River To The Ocean” marks the latest reunion of Fred Anderson and Hamid Drake, one of the Jazz world’s longest-running and most productive partnerships. On this disc they are joined by Jeff Parker (guitar), Harrison Bankhead (bass/cello/piano) and Josh Abrams (bass/guimbri), who provide excellent support throughout. In fact, referring to Abrams, Bankhead, and Parker as mere “support” is probably both unfair and inaccurate, as the performances on this CD have a cohesion that sounds as if it could only have resulted from the collaborative efforts of an engaged and fully functioning group and each member (except for Parker) contributes to the composing duties.

“Planet E” is a suitably swinging opening shakedown for the ensemble that features Anderson and Parker. The lengthy and, perhaps definitive, version of Anderson’s venerable Blues “Strut Time” is highlighted by Parker, both comping tastefully in support and delivering excellent pointillistic solos, and Bankhead, who is masterful on cello. “For Brother Thompson” is a slow burning and spiritual piece that features Anderson’s soulful tenor wailing, Bankhead on piano, and Drake’s chanting and celestial percussion textures. The title track is also the album’s centerpiece, with Drake and Abrams providing a foundation of incredible tribal rhythms for the solos, of which Bankhead’s masterful eastern-influenced bow work on bass (or perhaps, though uncredited, it’s an arco bass?!?) was the most transcendent. The closing track “Sakti/Shiva”, is another soulful showcase for Anderson, accompanied only by Abrams on guimbri. While Anderson, Drake and company certainly aren’t blazing any new trails to the frontiers of Jazz on this date, “From The River To The Ocean” is, nevertheless, a very engaging collection of skillfully crafted contemporary Jazz as informed by pan-global ethnic musical traditions.


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Regarding The Ridiculous Proposal To Boycott Gas Stations On 5/15/07

I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve issued a few posts that discussed fuel prices, how they’re manipulated by “Big Oil”, and, most importantly, that decried the ongoing negative environmental and geopolitical effects on all the peoples of our world which result from our inability to kick our collective addiction to oil. I, furthermore, can sympathize with the frustrations of those who wish to do something about these matters and can admire, at least to some small extent, emotionally, if not intellectually, the spirit behind those who wish to promote this “Gas Out” on May 15th. That all being stated, however, I have to state plainly that such an action is based on false urban myths and equally faulty logic and, as a result, will have no effect whatsoever on gas prices nor oil company profits.

Here are some of the obvious fallacies with the proposed "Gas Out” on May 15th effort:

The myth that this will lower gas prices - Unless the boycotters do not drive their cars on May 15th, their overall gas consumption will remain exactly the same. Boycotters will simply pump more gas either immediately before or after May 15th. and the companies will, ultimately, sell the exact same amount of gas that they would have, with or without this boycott. Furthermore...

No "Gas Out" occurred in April 1997 - Even after an exhausting search of the internet, I could find no record of any "Gas Out" having ever occurred in April 1997. Even if one did occur, it, as I similarly project above, obviously did no good, as the claims that this non-event caused gas prices to drop,” 30 cents a gallon overnight” are not borne out by the statistics provided by the US DOE at:

http://www.energy.ca.gov/gasoline/retail_gasoline_prices.html#1997

1997 - Unleaded Gasoline Statewide Averages:
The weekly California statewide average prices are compiled by the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA) from a telephone survey that includes a sample of 38 California gasoline stations. These stations were sampled with a likelihood equal to the company's proportional size to the total annual volume of gasoline, by grade, sold in California.

Price Per Gallon Of Regular Unleaded By Date:

4/28/97 - $1.374
4/21/97 - $1.381
4/14/97 - $1.384
4/7/97 - $1.372


As you can see, during the course of the month of April ‘97, there was actually a slight increase in fuel prices, not a 30 cent decrease, as claimed in this ridiculous email that’s circulating.

So, hey, be frustrated about skyrocketing gas prices, if you want. I don’t blame you.

And don’t buy gas on 5/15, too, if it will make you feel better psychologically. More power to you.

Just don’t delude yourself into thinking that your actions will really have any effect, because they won’t. Fuel prices will continue to spiral upward without end, until we find a replacement for oil - period.

Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/30/06

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EFTERKLANG: Under Giant Trees CD (Leaf) - The marriage of electronics with real orchestral instrumentation (strings, brass, and so on) applied by Efterklang to create these pieces of precise, minimal, almost cinematic sounding electronica was conceptually solid, but a somewhat less than scintillating listening experience. Better luck next time.

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Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/28/06 - 4/29/06

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PLANTS: Photosynthesis CD (Strange Attractors Audio House) - Plants are a new and appropriately named project from Portland Oregon. Centered around the husband-wife team of Joshua and Molly Blanchard and supported by a variety of guest musicians, Plants use a wide array of instruments (cello, saw, banjo, organ, bells, recordings of “found sounds” and, of course, both acoustic and electric guitars) to create these eight tracks of rich drones and fragile acid folk. Although there’s certainly nothing groundbreaking about material on “Photosynthesis”, there’s no denying its charms as a soundtrack for mindlessly gazing at the smoke as it floats away through the filtered light of the trees on a breezy, but hot, summer day.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/26/06 - 4/27/06 ...and a brief book recommendation, too!

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TRAINER, PHIL: S/T CD (Underground Masters) - This CD reissues the debut album by singer-songwriter, Phil Trainer. Although this was recorded and released in the UK in 1972, Trainer was an American and the material on this release certainly reflects the well-produced, mainstream leaning pop emanating from the studios of SoCal during that era. In a fashion somewhat similar to that of the Travel Agency (whose 1969 LP on Viva I recently reviewed), the 10 tracks on this CD almost constitute a sampler of the various styles of contemporary pop and rock from the period. So, among the disc’s highlights you have “No No No “ a pop rocker with tasty fuzz-wah leads, the easy West Coast pop psych of “She’s Gone West”, the more uptempo, yet primarily acoustic-based “In The City” (which sounded reminiscent of Stephen Stills’ early solo work), the folkish showcase for dulcimer “Leave Me Alone”, and the rocking braggadocio of “Stud”. Honestly, several of the tracks on this album pander disgustingly to the goal of mainstream pop success, but the remaining tracks, which, admittedly, still rate as “guilty pleasures”, are pleasurable, nonetheless, and, in no small part, that is due to the stellar instrumental support Trainer receives from members of the legendary UK underground group, Trees. All that being stated, this was still barely a “keeper” for me and probably not worth the fare for anyone who is not a pretty dedicated student of obscure 60’s sounds.


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Might I also take a moment to make a positive recommendation for the new book by Christopher Hitchens, “God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything". Although Hitchens’ verbose and academic writing style prevents this from being an “easy read”, it is, nevertheless, an excellent book. The arguments it contains provide unbelievers with more ammunition regarding the nonexistence of god with which to confront believers. More importantly, it details well the dangers and damages which result from allowing the organized bodies (i.e., the many churches of the various religions, especially those dangerous, control freak “fundamentalists” of all stripes, not just Muslim!) of these disparate believers in what are, at best, “fairy tales” and, at worst, outright lies purposefully created in order to control and subjugate the masses, to completely dominate all aspects of our personal lives and collective culture(s).

It is this issue, not its major subsidiary industry of distraction and coercion, the “Global War On Terror” (as the organized religions of the warring world, by and large, have historically supported, even if indirectly at times, many similar actions on all sides!), that is really the great issue that needs to be confronted, the battle that needs to be won in our time!

In The Clubs!

Last night I had the honor to witness one of the all-time geniuses of the guitar, Nels Cline, in action at Yoshi’s in Oakland, CA. Performing in a trio setting with Devin Hoff (whose interplay on bass with Cline on several pieces was nothing short of amazing!) and Scott Amendola (percussion and some very tasteful electronic treatments) as the “Nels Cline Singers” (of course, there were no vocals), Cline was masterful throughout two mind-blowing sets. A wide range of material was covered: straightforward, yet modern, Jazz guitar interpretations of compositions by the late, great Andrew Hill; somewhat minimal, yet spacious, free jazz experimentations; precise and beautiful post-rock stylings; and incendiary outre rock extravaganzas, often punctuated by blasts of extreme experimental electronics. In summary - two great sets which displayed three amazing improvisors using all of their collective powers to create an assortment of challenging and genre-blurring sounds. A sonic Tour de Force!

Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/25/07

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ALEX DELIVERY: Star Destroyer LP (Jagjaguwar) - All the advance hype, which made references to Krautrock icons such as Can and Faust, caused me to check out this debut LP from Alex Delivery. Unfortunately, this heavily electronics-based set of tunes bore, in my humble opinion, little resemblance to the seminal sounds produced by those legends. Rather, the majority of the material on this release just sounded like sub-par electronica, lacking both the flow and charm which characterizes the best pop-oriented electronica and certainly not pushing any boundaries of hard core electronic experimentation, either. Ultimately, this didn't even interest me enough to "burn and return", it's just getting returned. Can?!? Don't believe the hype!


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/23/07 - 4/24/07

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SILVESTER ANFANG: Echte Vlaamse Geiten LP (Eclipse) - After many limited releases on CDR and cassette, this is the second proper full-length release from the prolific Belgian free psych collective Silvester Anfang. Armed with an arsenal of acoustic and electric instruments, the group (who describe their music as “funeral folk”) create a dark, druggy mess of improvised pieces, ranging from the lumbering, lo-fi, heavy psych of “Satanische Slang Vernietig De Aarde” to the excellent droning basement psych raga “Mag Ik Eens Met Uw Viool Spelen”. As is often the case with recordings made by such collectives, there are certainly some segments where things break down and the result is less than captivating. Overall, however, this is a relatively interesting and worthy addition to the collective body of work produced by the burgeoning international scene of free psych jam bands.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/21/07 - 4/22/07

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WILLIAM PARKER AND HAMID DRAKE: Volume 2: Summer Snow CD (Aum Fidelity) - I was very impressed with Parker and Drake’s first duo release, 2001’s “Piercing The Veil”, so it was with much anticipation that I greeted their long awaited second volume of studio recordings “Summer Snow”. Once again, Parker and Drake use an interesting assortment of instruments (doson'ngoni, shakuhachi, dumbek, water bowl, talking drum, frame drum, gongs, and tablas, in addition to their normal tools in the Jazz trade, the bass and drum kit) to create these intriguing, hypnotic, and beautiful tracks which incorporate Jazz improvisation with pan-global ethnic musical traditions. Although they apply a similar basic approach and instrumentation, this material on this set is decidely more focused on quieter, more meditative pieces and, as a result, I found this to be, overall, somewhat less impressive than “Piercing The Veil”. Still, with excellent ethno-groovers like “Sky”, “Pahos”, and “Faces”, there’s plenty of material to satisfy those who crave unique, genre-blurring sounds.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/18/07 - 4/20/07

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VIBRACATHEDRAL ORCHESTRA: Wisdom Thunderbolt CD (VHF) - The prolific Vibracathedral Orchestra returns with another pleasing blast of their patented take on "Free Music", highlighted by stoney drones, bleating synths, noisy guitars, skronking horns, and improvised percussion racket. In fact, this release may be one of their more "accessible" titles (if such a term can properly be applied to any Vibracathedral Orchestra recordings!), with "A Natural Fact" and "Order Of The Broad Eraser" displaying moves that could be described as being vaguely "rock" in nature.


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VALET: Blood Is Clean CD (Kranky) - Murky, minimal drones and experimental tones provide the back drop for the hazy vocal meditations of underground veteran (JOMF, etc.) Honey Owens. While I’ll readily admit that the best tracks (the title track, which is highlighted by some excellent distorto guitar and “My Volcano’) are pretty intriguing, this release simply does not contain enough memorable moments to save it from a fate of “burn and return”!


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/17/07

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HUSH ARBORS: Since We Have Fallen LP (Harvest Recordings) - Hush Arbors is the mostly solo project of Keith Wood, who has performed with many groups, most notably Sunburned Hand Of The Man, Six Organs Of Admittance, and Wooden Wand And The Vanishing Voice. This deluxe LP package reissues early Hush Arbors material that was originally released as a limited edition CDR on Foxglove. The A-Side contains four tracks, ranging from the sublime blend of lush drones and experimental tones of the opening track "As The Spring Breaks", to the title tracks’s wasted acid folk, and the atmospheric acoustic guitar mantra “Blanca Peak”. A side long piece "Spell Against Demons" closes out the album. It begins with another tasty segment of improvised acid folk which continues to build until the percussion kicks in to propel layers of alien synth sounds. With “Since We Have Fallen” Wood has created a work which truly equals the best output of his many well known peers.


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Music I Liked And Didn't - 4/16/07

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APOTHECARY HYMNS: Trowel And Era LP (Locust) - I'm just now catching up on this 2005 debut full length from former Court & Spark member Alex Stimmel's solo project, Apothecary Hymns. On this release Stimmel takes elements of indie rock, "American primitive", 60's British psych and folk, and 70's major label rock (which, I know, sounds potentially bad, but is incorporated tastefully by Stimmel) to create a diverse range of excellent pop and rock tracks. Over the course of the album's 9 tracks there are solid takes on contemporary indie rock ("Abandoned Factories"), acid folk ("The Father"), retro-sounding popsike ("Watching The Bay"), late 60's/early 70's English "group folk" ("The Marigold" and "A Sailor Song"), and, even, some over the top fuzz boogie ("All True Love Is Happiness"). In summary, "Trowel And Era" is a well-crafted and stylistically diverse set that's not to be overlooked and I look forward with great anticipation to future releases from Stimmel's Apothecary Hymns.


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