A series of solos and duets between Kalimba player Rainer Wiens and an impressive set of improvisers including Jean Derome, Malcolm Goldstein, Frank Lozano, &c.

The acclaimed daxophonist Hans Reichel meets shruti stick and metallophone inventor Ganesh Anandan for these expressive and unconventional dialogs.

Montreal/Actuelle turntablist Martin Tetreault and Berlin turntablist Ignaz Shcick in two sets of recordings from two encounters in Belgium and Switzerland, 2006.

Saxophonist Pierre's Labbe's 1st release in 6 years, performing original compositions in a quartet with guitarist Bernard Falaise, drummer Isaiah Ceccarelli & bassist Clinton Ryder.

Tim Brady with Bradyworks and Quatuor Molinari in a CD/DVD release of four synchronized musical, video & theater works, ambitious and fascinating compositional pieces.

"Surreal slabs of processed sound float by each other in brilliant high fidelity, from the man behind much of the documentation of Bug Incision's live activites..."

Jay Crockers follows the allure of salvage from six years of recordings, taking sketches and mini-improvs and organizing them into a large and unusual sonic journey.

Another slab of basement strangeness from this Hamilton, Ontario-based trio/duo that pivots around sound artist David Payne; a baffling work of sound and noise.

Birder started as a piece for solo tenor banjo to study of the music of Charlie Parker (Bird), an exhaustive work with Christine Duncan's trombone and theremin at the end.

Guitarist and composer Myk Freedman's little big band, a salon orchestra that's both entertaining and remarkably sophisticated, a playground of styles and ideas.

Vancouver's The Trio - drummer Jean Martin, guitarist Justin Haynes, trumpeter Kevin Turcotte - plays the music of...Dr. Seuss (The 5000 Fingers of Dr. T) and Rogers (Oklahoma).

This incredible trio, recorded at the 25th Victo Actuelle Festival, play complex music using shared ideas about articulation, timbre, and methods of interaction.

This amazing trio performed at the 25th Victoriaville Festival of Musique Actuelle in 2008 with 2 guitars, 3 turntables, one spy-microphone, and 201 spectators.

Chris Riggs (Traum/Trauma, Holy Cheever Church, &c.) featuring assemblages of highly abstracted guitar improvisations and silence.

The Bent Spoon Trio + 3 (Thom Golub, Jay Crocker, Danny Meichel) from their monthly series at Theatre Junction in Calgary.

John Boyle & Aya Onishi of Nihilist Spasm Band with Arnaud Riviere of Textile Orchestra from their first set of unrelenting primal improv at Sonic Protest 2007 in France.

"Quell" is an aural sound journey, using music and field recordings to investigate and present a deeply emotional exploration of Sinha's second home: India.

Toronto percussionist Debashis Sinha's first release as the Ima Ensemble features the vocals of Toronto world music singers Jayne Brown and Sophia Grigoriadis.

Subtle exploration of the jazz trio from this Montreal based group whose music is driven by Middle Eastern influences melodies and the exotic percussive work of Ziya Tabassian.

The Normand Guilbeault Ensemble with Jean Derome, Matthieu Belanger, &c. continue to create incredible interpretations of the music of Charles Mingus.

Surreal sound experiments using poetry, noise and ambient music and an eclectic set of instruments to make bewildering and enjoyable compositions, recommended!

"Ugly Beauties" explores the alien terrains between jazz, compositional and improvised music, with pianist Marilyn Lerner, cellist Matt Brubeck and drummer Nick Fraser.

Michel Gonneville's dreamlike, shamanistic journey, "Hozhro", in a brilliantly executed reading by Montreal's Quatuori Bozzini with vocalist Marianne Lamber & saxophonist Mathieu Gualin.

An aural map of extended pianist Charity Chan's techniques, in unusual non-invasive, object interactive and excursive approaches to the acoustic piano.

Put this one in your Wishlist for the next holiday season: 5th in a series drawing on Vancouver's best; unusual approaches to the classics in a oddly skewed yet sentimental ways.

After touring Canada extensively for 3 years the trio of Jean Martin, Justin Haynes and Kevin Turcotte released this CD of wide-ranging and excellent recordings.

An eclectic assortment of old-fashioned entertainment, pre-harmonic bop, and Canada's new wave of avant garde mariachi from Jean Martin, Nick Fraser, Justin Haynes, &c..

Jean Derome's extended Dangereux Zhomes opened the 25th Victo Festival in 2008, adding Joane Hetu, Lori Freedman, Bernard Falaise, &c. for an incredible and expressive orchestra.

Drummer and loopster Jean Martin with multi-instrumentalist Colin Fisher in a veritable orchestra of sound resources, inspired and imaginative studio work.

Much more than a simple duo, with overdubbed saxophone Martin & Shaw make large and complex environments & orchestral sections over which they nimbly improvise.

Lyrical and sophisticated improvisations performed on just a ukulele and a suitcase from these Toronto musicians playing the compositions of lap steel player Myk Freedman

A beautifully building release of guitar and percussion, one long track that adds intensity from lovely minimalism to Fripp-ian chords and driving drum work.

Francisco Lopez initiated this project in 2006 with the Pogus CD "Montreal Sound Matter", now expanded into an acousmatic group of linked tracks from a group of impressive sound artists.

Toronto's amazing husband & wife team drummer Jean Martin and unusual vocalist Christine Duncan with guest guitarist Justin Haynes and Bernard Falaise, recommended!

Detroit based Traum is a guitar/percussion duo that often becomes a trio with the addition of cello, playing free improv somewhat like a sped-up AMM.

The debut studio recordings from Calgary, Canada's Mark Fleischhaker and Scott Munro, electronically manipulated vocals with a loose sense of the word.

Eugene Chadbourne and Kevin Blechdom (aka Kristin Erickson) performing songs from their 2007 Victo performance, warped banjo rock instrumentals and songs.

The sixth QB Collection, "Arbor Vitae", pays homage to the Canadian-American composer James Tenney with performances of the complete quartets and quintets.

An engaging encounter between bassist Leandre and pianist Sirjacq, delicate yet intense interaction from two sophisticated & listening players from different generations.

An audio and acousmatic documentary of the sounds along the St. Lawrence River, above and below water, and the voices of the people living around the shore.

A supergroup of the AM collective with Derome, Hetu, Labrosse, Roger, Tanguay and Tetrault, in adventurous and far-reaching improvisation that have to be heard to be believed!

Four improvisers from Quebec and Norway playing prepared reeds, strings, and a broken turntable, an ea-improv release evoking the sonic and industrial world of sound.

A plethora of objects being struck and stroked from the meeting of drummers Cote (Bruire, Klaxon Gueule) and Ceccarelli, complex interactions of percussion, feedback and electronics.

New Yorkers Snow, Licht and Onda in their 2007 Victoriaville performance, an improvised set using sound from sparse to dense with mutated field recordings, synth, radio, &c.

Guitarist and string player Jim McAuley's "The Ultimate Frog" is a double album made up of duets with artists Leroy Jenkins, Nels Cline, Ken Filiano, and Alex Cline.

The 4th release by The Peggy Lee Band and the 1st with the band expanded from a sextet to an octet, with 3 horns and 2 guitars blending beautifully for a warm, full sound.

Guitarist Falaise (Klaxon Gueule, Les Projectionnistes) in pieces that reference Aksak Maboul, Braxton, Beefheart, Donatoni, Les Granules, Nancarrow, Stravinsky, & Wyatt.

For a decade, Brigitte Poulin has been commissioning and premiering works by composers who, she thought, could help better define our own piano culture.

A recording of wide-ranging, freely improvised solos and duets by Montreal clarinetist and bass clarinetist Lori Freedman & Toronto trombonist Scott Thomson.

Using double bass player John Geggie's compositions as a point of departure, this creative trio covers much terrain with its lyrical and sonic landscapes.