Taking guitar and flute into very strange territory informed by vast experience and technical skill, NY flutist Robert Dick and electric guitarist Nicola L. Hein create truly unique and dramatic sound worlds, sometimes tense, sometimes beautiful, but always fascinating in momentum and expression; unique musical structures that refuse to be easily categorized: extraordinary!

The first of a five-volume compilation series curated by Nick Vander, a testament to the incredible musical range of the guitar and the imaginative possibility of guitarists around the world, with tracks from L. Hein, Davaajargal Tsaschikher, Alan Courtis, Marco Cappelli, Elliott Sharp, Hery Ujjaya, Killick Hinds, Gilbert Isbin, and Nick Vander.

Using an electric guitar, preparations, and objects as a tool of reflection, Nicola L. Hein presents an album of philosophical bent, about the question of skepticism in music, or a skeptical form of improvisation, through tumultuous playing of impressive technique caught live at Spectrum in NYC, as each track title presents observations or questions that Hein seeks to resolve.

A "shug monkey" is a cryptid, a creature that may or may not exist, supposed to have features of a dog and a monkey, an odd but apt reference for the unusual improvisations by Berlin-based saxophonist Simon Rose and guitarist Nicola L. Hein, one of 8 tracks named for unusual creatures and mythological beings, each described in sound through extended techniques and powerful playing.

Mixing free jazz and and open-minded collective improv using unusual techniques from Argentinian-born, Amsterdam-based saxophonist Ada Rave and her trio with German prepared guitarist Nicola L. Hein and Netherland bassist Wilbert De Joode, blending lyrical formats as she seeks new paths in the combination of written composition and spontaneous improvisation.

Mexican composer and vibraphonist based in Berlin since 2012, Emilio Gordoa in a duo with guitarist Nicola L. Hein, using preparations to their vibraphones, percussion, and guitar, in an 8 part composition of diverse approaches to improvisation, from exuberant interaction to Reich-like minimalism to cantankerous experimentation, a well-rounded and interesting album.