Sifter (w/ Lisa Mezzacappa):
Flake / Fracture (Queen Bee Records)
A chordless Bay Area quartet with Rob Ewing on trombone, Beth Schenck on alto saxophone, Lisa Mezzacappa on acoustic bass, and Jordan Glenn on drums, performing original compositions from each member in playful, lyrical, and texturally rich improvisations that balance groove, swing, and exploratory ensemble interplay with an eclectic yet cohesive sound. ... Click to View
Caspar Brotzmann Massaker:
It's A Love Song [VINYL + CD] (Corbett vs. Dempsey)
The legendary power trio of Caspar Brötzmann on long-scale electric guitar and voice with Saskia von Klitzing on drums and Eduardo Delgado Lopez on bass in two monumental live renditions of All This Violence, recorded in Vienna and Dresden, unleashing waves of searing guitar tone, crushing rhythm, and visceral intensity that move from furious protest to stark, haunted beauty. ... Click to View
Jean-Marc Foussat :
Abbatage (Fou Records)
Originally released in 1983 as Jean-Marc Foussat's sole solo statement for the next 18 years, Abattage is a frenetic musique concrète collage of Synthi AKS & VCS3 electronics, tapes, voice, guitar, piano and field recordings, reissued in a deluxe remastered edition with 32-page booklet that restores the intensity and inventiveness of his groundbreaking debut. ... Click to View
Thrash the Flash (Dufourd / Foussat):
Viens ! (Fou Records)
A rare meeting across four decades as guitarist Marc Dufourd and synthesist Jean-Marc Foussat revisit their Axolotl roots, juxtaposing the raw collage of their 1982 improvisations — feedback, fractured rhythms, and spectral melodies — with a 2023 counterpart of folk-tinged guitar, toys, and electronics, a reflective dialogue on time, memory, and sound’s restless possibilities. ... Click to View
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante:
The Sound of Raspberry [VINYL] (Wash and Wear Records)
A relentless duo of Japanese drummer, vocalist and electronic artist Tatsuya Yoshida (Ruins, Koenji Hyakkei), with Mexican saxophonist Martín Escalante on alto and voice, captured live in Tokyo in fourteen explosive improvisations of blistering energy, searing noise, and sudden precision shifts, balancing chaotic abandon with uncanny control. ... Click to View
Chester Hawkins :
Apsis (Intangible Arts)
Recorded while on tour in Arizona, Denmark, and Sweden, experimental composer Chester Hawkins transforms keyboards, live loops, field recordings, synths, lapsteel, and music box into immersive and hallucinatory soundscapes, weaving tense, meditative, and otherworldly excursions that trace the shifting orbits of inner and outer space in vivid, exploratory detail. ... Click to View
S*Glass:
Benign Neglect (Public Eyesore)
Founding member of Bren't Lewiis Ensemble and Glands of External Secretion, and longtime driver of Bananafish magazine, Seymour Glass (as S*Glass) presents three 20-minute works of surrealist musique concrète, layering loops, cassettes, objects, organ, voice, and field recordings into unsettling yet strangely meditative sound collages that conjure fever dreams and altered states. ... Click to View
A Magic Whistle:
The Solar Cell [VINYL] (Public Eyesore)
Recorded largely in an off-grid mountain hut, the fifth A Magic Whistle album finds Andy Puls uniting the chamber-folk intimacy and minimalist electronics of his earlier work into a vivid, wilderness-shaped soundscape where homemade sequencers, modular synths, guitars, whistles, and his resonant "Cascadian Sympathetic Steel" flow with field recordings and wordless voice. ... Click to View
Karl Evangelista's Apura + Andrew Cyrille:
Bukas (577 Records)
West Coast Bay Area guitarist Karl Evangelista leads his Apura ensemble — Lisa Mezzacappa (bass), Francis Wong (tenor sax), Rei Scampavia (keys, electronics), and Lewis Jordan (alto sax) — joined by drum legend Andrew Cyrille in a powerful statement of free improvisation, blending expressive intensity and forward-looking vision with deeply rooted passion and creative openness. ... Click to View
Jean-Jacques Avenel / Daunik Lazro:
Duo (Fou Records)
The duo of bassist Jean-Jacques Avenel and alto saxophonist Daunik Lazro are captured live in 1980 at the Massy Library in France in an essential document of French free music, a marvel of liberated improvisation where Lazro's uncompromising voice meets Avenel's inspired and multifaceted playing, captured with clarity by engineer Jean-Marc Foussat in a performance both intense and deeply authentic. ... Click to View
Frode Gjerstad / Alexander von Schlippenbach / Dag Magnus Narvesen:
Seven Tracks (Relative Pitch)
A dynamic trio session from Frode Gjerstad on alto sax & clarinet, Alexander von Schlippenbach on piano, and Dag Magnus Narvesen on drums & percussion, their first collaboration unfolds in seven spontaneous improvisations that balance fierce intensity with lyrical openness, revealing a seasoned interplay that blends deep exploration with collective free jazz sensibility. ... Click to View
Magda Mayas / Jim Denley:
One Another (Relative Pitch)
An immersive meeting of Berlin pianist Magda Mayas and Australian flutist Jim Denley, f
following up on their 2017 Relative Pitch release, Tempe Jetz, as they weave flutes, piano, and percussive objects into a delicately balanced exchange where subtle gestures and resonant detail create a patient yet gripping exploration of texture, breath, and sonic space. ... Click to View
Foster / Crawford / Sullivan:
Against Proper Objects (Relative Pitch)
The debut of saxophonist Michael Foster, guitarist and banjo player Webb Crawford, and drummer Joey Sullivan, a free trio whose quirky yet technically impressive improvisations shift from sax shouts and overblown tones to frenetic banjo and guitar textures, driven by metallic percussion into a dense but dynamic interplay that combines raw energy with finely detailed, unpredictable explorations. ... Click to View
Katie Porter :
Conversation No. 1 / Collecting Rocks from the Places We've Been (Relative Pitch)
A deeply introspective solo endeavor from New York bass clarinetist Katie Porter, blending live playing with layers of previously recorded bass clarinet for a slow-moving, richly textured improvisation; the artist creates an intimate, deep-register conversation that unfolds with emotional subtlety and immersive soundscapes. ... Click to View
Eugene Chadbourne / Jair-Rohm Parker Wells :
Fed Up With Bass [2 CDs] (Public Eyesore)
The monumental 2-CD collaboration between Eugene Chadbourne and Jair-Rôhm Parker Wells submerges the listener in an expansive world of sound where acoustic and electric guitars meet upright and electric basses, modular processing, and sound design, with guest poet John Sinclair, shifting between ferocious intensity and spacious, patient passages in an exploration beyond melody and form. ... Click to View
Euphotic (Leonard / Djill / Day):
Clastic (Confront)
The cross-continental trio of Cheryl E. Leonard, Tom Djll, and Bryan Day create an improvised electro-acoustic environment of equal voices, blending trumpet with attachments and electronics, invented instruments, homemade synths, driftwood, shells, bones, feathers, and field recordings in a dynamic performance recorded in Albany, NY and San Pablo, CA, mastered by Thomas Dimuzio. ... Click to View
Hal McGee:
Columbus Expedition [Cassette w/ Download] (Copy This!)
A celebration of friendship, sound, and daily life, Hal McGee’s cassette + download release assembles dictaphone recordings from his June 2025 trip to Ohio, capturing conversations with Chris Phinney, Jeff Chenault, and Jerry Kranitz, the ambience of cafés, shops, and the Arts Fair, collaborative studio and live performances, and voices from the city, composed into a strangely compelling audio diary. ... Click to View
Racing Pisshorses, The:
It Only Takes One To Stop An Ice Cream Truck [7'' VINYL w/ DOWNLOAD] (self)
An archival punk document from JJ Gregg-better known now for his adventurous sitar work-this 1995 Seattle-area session with drummer Ryan Toliver captures the youthful energy of their Illinois-formed duo The Racing Pisshorses, recorded live to tape in under three hours and released here for the first time on 7" vinyl with download, a raw and spirited reminder of Gregg's formative years in DIY music. ... Click to View
Georg Graewe / Brad Jones / Hamid Drake:
More Than Anything (Random Acoustics)
A long-awaited reunion between pianist Georg Graewe and drummer Hamid Drake, joined for the first time by bassist Brad Jones, captured live at the 2024 Konfrontationen Festival in Austria in three expansive improvisations, the trio's chemistry igniting in deep rhythmic interplay, fluid abstraction, and Graewe's seamless movement between jazz traditions and contemporary sensibilities. ... Click to View
Kaze (Fujii / Tamura / Orins / Pruvost) with/ Koichi Makigami:
Shishiodoshi (Circum-Libra)
A joyful and unpredictable meeting of Japanese quartet Kaze — pianist Satoko Fujii, trumpeters Natsuki Tamura and Christian Pruvost, and drummer Peter Orins — with avant-rock icon Koichi Makigami, recorded live in Lille in a kaleidoscopic blend of free improv, surreal humor, textural exploration, and exuberant interplay that celebrates spontaneity and sonic invention. ... Click to View
Daunik Lazro / Tristan Honsinger / Jean-Jacques Avenel:
True & Whole Tones in Rhythms (Fou Records)
Recorded live in 1982 at Paris' 28 rue Dunois, the trio of Daunik Lazro (alto saxophone), Tristan Honsinger (cello, vocals), and Jean-Jacques Avenel (double bass) create a spirited interplay of strings and reeds, shifting from intricate pizzicato and arco textures to exuberant collective outbursts, in a performance brimming with freedom, wit, and unbridled invention. ... Click to View
Koenjihyakkei:
Live at Club Goodman [2 CDs] (Skin Graft)
Recorded without an audience at Tokyo's Club Goodman in 2020 and later mixed for release, Koenjihyakkei's double live set spans their entire catalog, unleashing over 100 minutes of virtuosic Zeuhl that fuses progressive rock, jazz fusion, symphonic and neoclassical elements with punk energy, metal power, and dazzling ensemble interplay in a career-spanning, high-intensity performance. ... Click to View
Zingaro Carlos / Joao Madeira:
Arcada Pendular (4DaRecord)
An inspired meeting between Portuguese double bassist João Madeira and pioneering violinist Carlos Zingaro, recorded in 2023 in Barreiro, Portugal, their duo exploring a vast sonic terrain of lyrical interplay, textural bow work, and spontaneous counterpoint, moving from delicate introspection to angular abstraction with an intuitive rapport that bridges risk and curiosity. ... Click to View
Flut (Kunz / Rossler / Hall):
Stones That I Have Chiseled [VINYL] (Aut)
Drawing on six decades of saxophone-bass-drums tradition yet rooted in the present, Christopher Kunz (saxophone), Isabel Rössler (contrabass), and Samuel Hall (drums, percussion) craft a vibrant 2023 Berlin session of intuitive, collective improvisation, balancing rhapsodic form, boundless technique, and inviting lyricism in a fresh, unifying statement of creative jazz. ... Click to View
Simon Rose / Nicola Hein :
Moon (Confront)
A 2020 Berlin recording uniting British baritone saxophonist Simon Rose and German guitarist/electronic musician Nicola L. Hein in a richly textural duo of sustained microtonal guitar, gravelly saxophone rumbles, layered drones, and shifting intensities, balancing intense and sometimes corrosive abstraction with earthy, lyrical interplay. ... Click to View
Tony Orzano / Bryan Rohmer / Jeremy Wexler:
Balloons On Grass (577 Records)
Debuting as a trio after meeting on the Long Island scene, Tony Orzano (saxophone, clarinet), Bryan Rohmer (guitar, pedals), and Jeremy Wexler (drums) deliver an unplanned 2025 studio session of raw, high-energy interplay, blending avant-punk edge, noise textures, and free improvisation into an immersive, genre-defying set of inventive and electrifying sonic collisions. ... Click to View
Monica Agosti Nica / ShapeX:
Ornettiana [VINYL] (Aut)
Inspired by Ornette Coleman's harmolodic principles, vocalist Monica Nica Agosti leads Tommaso Iacoviello (trumpet), Tobia Bondesan (alto saxophone), Francesco Sarrini (double bass), and Giuseppe Sardina (drums) in a vibrant 2021 studio session in Arezzo, italy, blending free improvisation and deep ensemble interplay into an expressive and richly textured celebration of creative music. ... Click to View
Sun Ra:
Sleeping Beauty [VINYL] (STRUT)
A soulful and serene 1979 session from Sun Ra and his Arkestra, Sleeping Beauty brings lush grooves, celestial soul, and meditative funk through gently swaying vamps, gospel-tinged chants, and sublime ensemble interplay, featuring June Tyson's luminous vocals and understated performances that reveal a rare, late-night tranquility within Ra's cosmic jazz vision. ... Click to View
Nakatani Gong Orchestra:
NGO, Live in Ojai, California [VINYL GOLD] (Weird Cry Records)
A 17-piece ensemble of bowed and struck gongs directed by percussionist Tatsuya Nakatani, recorded live with local musicians from Ojai, California in 2023, creating massive resonant waves, shimmering overtones, and dynamic swells through real-time conduction, as Nakatani sculpts an immersive, communal sound world of meditative intensity and textural depth. ... Click to View
Joe McPhee & Strings (w/ Maneri / Lonberg-Holm / Bisio):
We Know Why The Caged Bird Sings (RogueArt)
Uniting Joe McPhee on tenor saxophone and spoken word with violist Mat Maneri, cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, and bassist Michael Bisio, this remarkable quartet of long-time collaborators and distinct musical voices forges a deeply cohesive work of lyrical chamber jazz and free improvisation, balancing individual expression with a collective language of striking originality and emotional depth.
... Click to View
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The Squid's Ear is the companion magazine to the online music shop Squidco ! |