A live performance at London's Cafe OTO from composer Thanos Chrysakis, performing compositions focused on the deeper reeds from composers Christian Wolff, Iancu Dumitrescu, Hannes Kerschbaumer, Georges Aperghis, and Chrysakis himself, in configurations from solo to quintet, with Tim Hodgkinson, Jason Alder, Chris Cundy, Heather Roce, Yoni Silver, and Shadanga Duo.

Trombonist Scott Murray (Monicker, AIMToronto) performed this installment of his "Trombone Solos at Odd Hours" series by paying homage after the passing of his friend, painter and drummer John Heward, recording this concert at Heward's studio in his home on Murray Street in Montreal, in a far-ranging and emotional solo performance of fascinating technique and expression.

Stunningly unusual vocal music from composer, music researcher and vocalist based in Montreal, Gabriel Dharmoo, collecting works from 2012 to 2019, performed with small and large ensembles using almost completely wordless voice, utterance, guttural sound, swoops and, melodic flights, augmented with physical percussion like stamping and clamping; brilliant and enthralling.

Recordings from Stavanger, Norway in 1992 by a trio of legends--Derek Bailey on amplified guitar, John Stevens on percussion and mini trumpet, and Frode Gjerstad on alto saxophone--a trio that only performed three gigs on three consecutive days, this album captured on the last of those performances, a testament to their great compatibility and intent.

Paying tribute to his musical inspiration John Coltrane, Finnish/NY electric guitarist Raoul Bjorkenheim leads a quartet with Silvia Bolognesi on contrabass, Tiziano Tononi on drums & percussion, and Emanuele Parrini on violin, as they perform five Coltrane compositions and two Bjorkenheim originals, a superlative homage to technical brilliance and conceptual vision.

Sound and visual artist Gen Ken Montgomery released this album on cassette on the Directions Music label in 1990, here reissued in 2020; the two side-long pieces were performed live and then remixed, creating a fascinating and elaborate tapestry of tapes, concrete and mechanical sounds alongside instrumentation of percussion, violin, voice, &c.

A compilation of works from the late Chicago multi-reedist, experimenter, and AACM founder Muhal Richard Abrams, focused on his widely unknown electronic compositions, in four recording from 1968-1995 with collaborators including Anthony Braxton, Leroy Jenkins, Amina Claudine Myers, Roscoe Mitchell, Maurice McIntyre, Yousef Yancey, Thurman Barker, &c.

The UK Decoy trio of John Edwards (bass), Steve Noble (drums) and Alexander Hawkins (keys) joins forces with pocket trumpet and saxophone player Joe McPhee during McPhee's residency at London's Cafe OTO, recording these two huge sets of brilliant free improv, Hawkins performing on organ adding a unique and soulful tone to a set that balances powerful energy with innate lyricism.

Three female saxophonist from around the world--Rachel Musson (UK), Naoko Saito (Japan) and Audrey Lauro (Belgium)--in a compilation of solo saxophone works, two extended pieces from Musson and Satio, and four shorter works from Laura, with a CD insert with English Braille characters, and a QR code that, when scanned, plays the audio information for the album.

Dedicating his pieces to Charlie Parker, Anthony Braxton, Roscoe Mitchell, Ornette Coleman, Eric Dolphy, and John Zorn, NY alto saxophonist Chris Pitsiokos is heard live at this solo concert in New Haven, CT in 2019, reflecting on the history of jazz through his intense playing style that deploys incredible technique balanced with abstraction and rapid lyricism.

Bringing together two innovative improvising percussionists--Eddie Prevost of AMM fame, and Stale Liavik Solberg (VCDC, John Butcher)--for a studio album of wide-ranging and sometimes hair-raising electroacoustic improvisation, recorded live and unedited with Olie Brice on double bass, Tony Hardie-Bick on piano & tapes, Ed Pettersen on lap steel, and NO Moore on guitar.

Viennese-born, Berlin-based electro-acoustic composer Werner Dafeldecker (Polwechsel, Fennesz, &c) creates an intense and beautiful musique concrete and acousmatic journey in two parts, examining "perspective, extreme subjectivity and the specters that haunt our auditory worlds" through mysterious sound and enveloping sonic construction, a profound and riveting work.

Originally issued in 1972 on the FMP label, drummer Sven-Ake Johansson follows his instincts in polyrhythmic drum improvisation, demonstrating the prowess that makes him such a capable sideman of Peter Brotzmann, Alexander Von Schlippenbach, &c., through three direct and compelling statements of powerful rhythms that layer time signatures and tempos, dynamics and pulse.

Reissuing the first of two albums from the NY collaboration of guitarist Fred Frith and cellist Tom Cora, both providing vocals, percussion, violin, & bass, in a classic example of Downtown NY genre-merging of improvisation and rock with a vicious edge, in smart songs and even smarter instrumental sections, an insanely inventive and intelligent album as vital now as it was then.

Free collective improvisation with an electronic edge from the trio of Nels Cline, double bassist William Parker and pianist Thollem McDonas, following up on their 2012 "Gowanus Session I" recorded in the same studio space, here expanding on the 1st session's shorter works with two large and evolving improvisations that balance reflective moments with intensive playing.

Gamelan Son of Lion partners Philip Corner and Evan Schwartzman perform this Fluxus composition where two pianists play piano notes on the chromatic scale in relationship to numbers counted out loud from 1 to 88, forward and backward, creating an unusual texture and counterpoint that when taken as a whole becomes hypnotic and obsessively absorbing; inexplicably interesting.

A unique sextet of European improvisers active since 2015, comprised of two soprano saxophones, violin, piano, turntables and quarter tone accordion, in their second album of wide-ranging collective improvisation, their orchestration allowing moments of jazz, classical and electroacoustic improvisation to interweave and surprise their listeners; fascinating.

Recalling their brokenresearch LP from 2007, trumpeter Nate Wooley and drummer/percussionist Paul Lytton focus on unusual techniques and approaches to their instruments, using amplifiers and electronics to investigate new frontiers in interactive improvisation, each creating inexplicably interesting, masterfully interwoven sonic material.

A constantly evolving electro-acoustic composition for percussion and microphones from the Swiss-based duo of Vincent Glanzmann and Gerry Hemingway, using cymbals, floor tom & percussion, directed by both graphic and collective compositional approaches while applying carefully controlled amplification to prodigious extended techniques on their instruments.

A brilliant example of free improvisation from the performing trio of Barry Guy on double bass, Agusti Fernandez on piano and Torben Snekkestad on sax & trumpet, recording live at KoncertKirken Ð Blagards Plads in Copenhagen, merging shards of jazz and fully free playing using astonishing technique and creative intention that is as rewarding as it it intrepid.

Astroturf Noise is Sam Day Harmet on mandolin, Sana Nagano on violin, Zach Swanson on bass, Billy Martin on percussion, and Sarah Bernstein on violin, living at the intersection of American folk & roots music and free improvisation, using effects and sonic additions in an unusual mix that the quintet makes completely natural and all their own.

"Whoadie" is New Orleans slang for close friends, and the NY trio of saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter and flute player Daniel Carter, clarinetist Patrick Holmes, and pianist Matthew Putname are three close compatriots, which includes Telepathic Band, and apt description of their chamber-oriented free improv in an album inspired by an out of tune piano.

Two separate live recordings from the UK sax & drum duo of Massimo Magee on tenor, alto and sopranino saxophones, and drummer Tony Irving (Ascension), both captured in 2019 at The Globe in Newcastle Upon Tyne and at Hundred Years Gallery in London, as they burn through three free jazz dialogs of passionate playing informed by personal history and creative drive.

Recorded live in the studio in Sheffield in a single take, this first time meeting of the UK alto saxophone duo of Keith Jafrate and Herve Perez improvise freely, distinguishable by the stereo channel they reside in, as they display great technical skill and a unique sense of humor on tracks titled like "Something Funky in the Sauce" or "And a Hair in the Pudding".

NY/East Coast Jazz vocalist Kosi presents her 5th album, a rewarding album of original songs that depict her experiences touring as an independent singer-songwriter through jazz idioms influenced by blues and rock forms, her strong voice emotional and expressive while supported by a core sextet of New York musicians; lyrical, solid, passionate.

The core trio of the Leap of Faith Orchestra comprising multi-reedist & wind player David Peck, also on percussive devices, with Glynis Lomon on cello, aquasonic and voice, and Yuri Zbitnoff on drums & percussions, with special guests Kat Dobbins on trombone and Bob Moores on trumpet & flugelhorn, in an evolving set of strong harmonic, percussive & lyrical interaction.

Two excursive works from the Boston improvising collective Leap of Faith, with the core trio of PEK on clarinets, saxophones, double reeds & flutes, Glynis Lomon on cello, aquasonic & voice, and Yuri Zbitnov on drums & percussion, plus guests Kat Dobbins on trombone and Bob Moores on trumpets, creating a highly interactive environment performing PEK's framework compositions.

One of the most prolific Evil Clown ensembles, Metal Chaos Ensemble distinguishes itself through the use of Gongs, chimes, glockenspiel, Tibetan Bowls and many other metallic sounds, with horns, compositions and narratives by multi-reedist PEK, in a rhythm-heavy fantastical journey in a septet with Moouse Traore on djembe and Mike Gruen on Azoth and Basilisk.

One of the most prolific Evil Clown ensembles, Metal Chaos Ensemble distinguishes itself through the use of Gongs, chimes, glockenspiel, Tibetan Bowls and many other metallic sounds, with horns, compositions and narratives by multi-reedist PEK, in a rhythm-heavy fantastical journey in a septet with Moouse Traore on djempe and Mike Gruen on Azoth and Basilisk.

Pianist Marco Dalpane and soprano Sabina Meyer create a virtual cabaret of songs using the music of Erik Satie and John Cage, interlacing pieces by each in a delicate set of songs that draw the two composers together through a surprising commonality, the lyrics provided from texts written by J. Peladan, C. Mendes, H. Pacory, J.P. Contamine de Latour, &c.; lovely.

West Coast/San Diego violinist Keir GoGwilt and bassist Kyle Motl are Treesearch, improvising on contrabass and violin with warm strength and expression, using a mix of traditional and creative approaches to their instruments as they bridge jazz and modern compositional approaches to create their own unique approach to free improvisation.

Turbulence Cosmocentric Edition, the extended horn section for the Leap of Faith Orchestra with the core of PEK on winds & percussion, Yuri Zbitnoff on drums & percussion, plus guest Michael Caglianone on saxophones, sheng, game calls and percussion, in an extended piece that holds reflections of Sun Ra's work through powerful rhythms and diverse and unusual instrumental passages.

Turbulence, the wind instrument and sometimes percussion branch of the Leap of Faith Orchestra is represented by leader and composer David Peck (PEK) on winds, reeds and percussion, and Yuri Zbitnoff on drums and percussion, with saxophonist Michael Caglianone joining and also performing on bells, as they perform an extended framework composition from PEK.

Captured live at Chicago's Elastic Arts, the trio of Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello, Ben Bennett on percussion, and Zoots Houston on synthesizer, work on a nearly microscopic level as they use extended techniques and unusual synthetic timbres, transforming from abrasive and gritty to broad tonal environments, from monumental sound to moments of pin drops; fascinating.

Drawing on the work of Steve Lacy's quintet, Montreal saxophonist Jean Derome pays homage to the late saxophonist through a selection of 9 Lacy pieces with lyrics from Brion Gysin, Lao Tseu, Herman Melville, &c, in a quintet with Derome on alto sax, bass flute & voice, Karen Young providing vocals, Alexandre Grogg on piano, Normand Guilbeault on bass, & Pierre Tanguay on drums.

Montreal's true supergroup since 1998 with many of the city's essential Musique Actuelle performers and composers, directed by Danielle Palardy Roger and including Jean Derome, Joane Hetu, Scott Thomson, Lori Freedman, Alexander St. Onge, &c. &c., as they take on a piece by Quebec composer Symon Henry, performed in an exceptional concert in the Chapel in Bon-Pasteur.

Dramatic, darkly thrilling music with moments of sheer beauty from French electric bassist Frederick Galiay and his Camaeleo Vulgaris ensemble, a sextet performing Galiay's compositions in a potent mix of electric guitar, electrified baritone sax, synthesizer, and two drummer/percussionists, recorded after a dozen live concerts honing the material to this riveting studio version.

Merging two Boston-based trios--Cliff of bassist Damon Smith, drummer Eric Rosenthal and pianist Pandelis Karayorgis, and Pools of bassist Nate McBride, drummer Luther Gray, and Karayorgis--performing Karayorgis compositions with collective input from all five, creating profoundly great music in a shared language fueled by long collaborative relationships.

Long-time collaborators the Quatuor Bozzini string quartet of Clemens Merkel, Alissa Cheung, Stephanie Bozzini and Isabelle Bozzini join with Slavic composer living in Montreal Ana Sokolovic, to present a series of 14 short works -- "Ghost 1" & "Ghost 2"; "Commedia dell'arte" in 10 movements; "Blanc dominant"; and "Troisieme page apres le soleil".

Active since the early 90's, the superb Montreal super-group Ratchet Orchestra under the direction of Nicolas Caloia with 19 performers presents 10 works including the title track, with soloists including Jean Rene, Lori Freedman, Jean Derome, Ellwood Epps, Sam Shalabi, Craig Petersen, Yves Charuest, Joshua Zubot, Scott Thomson, Isaiah Ceccarelli, &c.

The Boston-based quintet Cutout of Jorrit Dijkstra on saxophones, Jeb Bishop on trombone, Pandelis Karayorgis on piano, Nate McBride on bass, & Luther Gray on drums, in a set of free jazz pieces and virtual suites from original compositions and "instant-arranging" techniques from all band members, applying fresh ideas to superb playing with great camaraderie.

A concert recording from 1977 in Calgary, CA captured during Eugene Chadbourne's time in Canada prior to his move to NYC, from the guitar trio of Duck Baker, Randy Hutton & Eugene Chadbourne, performing on acoustic guitars, using a variety of approaches to improvising in trio, duo and solo configurations, with original work, an Ornette Coleman mashup, and a piece by Charlie Haden.

NY/East Coast Jazz vocalist Kosi presents her 5th album, a rewarding album of original songs that depict her experiences touring as an independent singer-songwriter through jazz idioms influenced by blues and rock forms, her strong voice emotional and expressive while supported by a core sextet of New York musicians; lyrical, solid, passionate.

Long-time collaborators the Quatuor Bozzini string quartet of Clemens Merkel, Alissa Cheung, Stephanie Bozzini and Isabelle Bozzini join with Slavic composer living in Montreal Ana Sokolovic, to present a series of 14 short works -- "Ghost 1" & "Ghost 2"; "Commedia dell'arte" in 10 movements; "Blanc dominant"; and "Troisieme page apres le soleil".

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