The Squid's Ear Magazine
  Recently Restocked

Albums which we have recently restocked, listed in most recently restocked order. Some quantities will be limited, particularly for older albums. This page is updated after every catalog refresh, typically Tuesdays & Thursdays.



Orlov-Davydovsky, Georgy: Borderline Psychosonic Environments (Love Earth Music)

Working alone with electronics, radios, field recordings, homemade instruments, and voice, Georgy Orlov-Davydovsky constructs immersive electro-acoustic pieces shaped by specific physical environments, layering noise, drone, and fragile gestures into meditative sound narratives that explore borderline psychosonic listening states through dense textures and unstable sonic detail.



T. Mikawa x Victoria Shen: Personality Chrysler (Love Earth Music)

A duo recorded in Tokyo in 2019 as a live performance, and through remote collaboration on the internet, between NY sound artist Victoria Shen, who focuses her work on extreme textures and gestural tones, using "chaotic sound" to oppose signal and information to elude traditionally embedded meaning, and Japanese noisician Toshiji Mikawa of Hijokaidan & Incapacitants fame.



[ahmed] (Thomas / Grip / Gerbal / Wright): Sama'a (Audition) [VINYL 2 LPs] (Otoroku)

Reimagining and transforming Ahmed Abdul-Malik's Jazz Sahara in their first studio session, the [Ahmed] quartet of Pat Thomas, Joel Grip, Antonin Gerbal, and Seymour Wright ignite four compact, single-take explorations that fuse percussive intensity, kaleidoscopic group interplay, and a fearless reshaping of tradition into dizzying, future-leaning improvisation.



Pierre Favre Trio (Favre / Schweizer / Mraz): Bird Food (Songs)

Captured in 1968 in Zurich and long shelved before its recent discovery, this early trio session brings Pierre Favre, Irene Schweizer, and George Mraz together in a concise, fiery set of attentive free jazz, balancing Ornette Coleman's title piece with Schweizer's compositions, where dynamic interplay and acute listening reveal a nascent yet fully engaged collective voice.



Peter Brotzmann / Steve Noble / John Edwards: The Worse The Better (Otoroku)

CD edition of the first set performed by the trio of Peter Brotzmann, Steve Noble and John Edwards at Cafe OTO in January 2010 during Brotzmann's first residency at the venue, and the first time this trio had played together.



Otomo Yoshihide / Sachiko M / Evan Parker / John Edwards / Tony Marsh / John Butcher: Quintet/Sextet/Duos (Otoroku)

The final night of Otomo and Sachiko's first residency at London's Cafe OTO in 2009 saw the pair joined by the long-running trio of Evan Parker, John Edwards and Tony Marsh and special guest John Butcher, for an exceptional set of creative improvisation.



lll人 (Daichi Yoshikawa / Paul Abbott / Seymour Wright): Gjerhan (Otoroku)

The trio of Daichi Yoshikawa (feedback), Paul Abbott (drums) and Seymour Wright (sax) in two 20 minute excerpts from two separate performances at Cafe OTO in 2013, bare exuberant and exhilarating free improvisation on the cutting edge.



Roger Turner / Yukihiro Isso: Takanehishigu [VINYL] (Otoroku)

UK drummer/percussionist Roger Turner in his first meeting with Japanese Noh flutist Yukihiro Isso, an accomplished improviser who has performed with Cecil Taylor, Peter Brotzmann, John Zorn, &c., for a unique and fascinating conversation bridging two traditions.



Kan Mikami / John Edwards / Alex Nielson: Live at Cafe Oto [VINYL] (Otoroku)

More typically a solo performer, Japanese bluesman Kan Mikami has created a distinctive path for his voice, guitar and poetic lyrics; here he is propelled in an improvisational setting with two powerful UK players--John Edwards on bass and Alex Neilson on drums--captured live at London's Cafe Oto for a growling concert of finesse and brusque attitude.



Evan Parker / Paul Lytton: Collective Calls (Urban) (Two Microphones) [VINYL] (Otoroku)

A much-needed reissue of saxophonist Evan Parker and drummer/percussionist Paul Lytton's first duo album, recorded in London at the loft of The Standard Essenco in 1972 and originally released on the Incus label, the duo approaching their instruments in fantastic and unusual ways in a dialog far ahead of its time, augmented with recordings and eccentric assemblages.



Evan Parker / George Lewis: From Saxophone & Trombone [VINYL] (Otoroku)

The first vinyl re-issue of the 1980 duo between UK saxophonist Evan Parker and US trombonist George Lewis, captured live at the Art Workers Guild in London, using the natural resonance of the space and phenomenal technique in an intense set of dialogs showing the mastery of each player and the forceful voice each of them brings to free improvisation.



Sophie: Agnel Learning [VINYL] (Otoroku)

Recorded in two powerful live sets at Café OTO, Sophie Agnel's first solo LP channels her post-recovery reinvention into a fiercely physical language for prepared piano, unleashing dense sound masses, interior textures, and sudden moments of clarity as she reshapes the instrument into a raw, personal terrain of gesture, resonance, and fearless exploration.



Ivo Perelman / Matthew Shipp / William Parker / Bobby Kapp: Heptagon (Leo Records)

Releasing albums at a furious pace, Brazilian/NY saxophonist Ivo Perelman continues his collaborations with some of New York's finest players, here in a quartet with Matthew Shipp on piano, William Parker on bass and Bobby Kapp on drums, in the appropriately titled 7-part "Heptagon" of lyrical free improvisation of great intensity and dialog.



Marc Sabat : Harmony (Another Timbre)

The fifth CD in the Canadian Composers Series is also the debut appearance on Another Timbre by the Jack Quartet, performing works by composer Marc Sabat--two string quartets and a violin/cello duo--all combining an exploration of the soundworld of Just Intonation with a strong underlying lyricism.



Adrian: Democ Neha (Another Timbre)

Neha, the Slovakian word for tenderness, is expressed by composer Adrián Demoč in this lovely and gentle work performed by the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra; and "Popínavá hudba", written for the international symphony orchestra for new music, Ostrava New Orchestra, referencing the growth of climbing plants through an alluring melodic line that shifts and spreads in direction.



Magnus: Granberg Evening Star, Vesper Bell (Another Timbre)

Written for and performed by the UK ensemble Apartment House, composer & performer Magnus Granberg's latest work reduces his working size from the larger Skogen ensemble to this sextet, opening new possibilities for composed structures that incorporate improvisation, in a work structured around components from Schubert's Abendbilder and So in Love by Cole Porter.



Linda Smith Catlin: Flowers of Emptiness (Another Timbre)

The 6th album on Another Timbre from Canadian composer Linda Catlin Smith, a leading voice in contemporary chamber music, presents eight exquisite works performed by Apartment House, including the 1st recordings of three string quartets, alongside a violin duo, a clarinet quartet, an early string trio, a cello and piano duo, and a bass clarinet solo; evocative and deeply expressive artistry.



Catherine: Lamb Curva Triangulus (Another Timbre)

Inspired by the geometric and illusory work of artist Bridget Riley, Catherine Lamb's "Curva Triangulus" borrows from Renaissance music that she "warps" by interjecting geometric musical figures, performed by the Proton Ensemble of Bern using traditional, new and historic instruments, all underpinned by the 16th century microtonal Vicentino arciorgano organ.



Jakob: Ullmann Solo I / Solo IV (Another Timbre)

Jakob Ullmann's Solo I and Solo IV are realised together as two ultra-quiet, long-form works in which graphic notation, fixed pitch sequences, and subtle performance choices guide quarter-tone flute and double bass through slowly shifting regions of colour and resonance, blending live sound with tailored playback to create a fragile, immersive acoustic environment.



Morton Feldman / Apartment House: Piano and String Quartet (Another Timbre)

Inspired by the broadcast performance by The Apartment House ensemble of three works by Morton Feldman, Another Timbre requested that they record the exceptional late work of the minimalist composer, Piano and String Quartet, captured at Henry Wood Hall two months later in a stunning interpretation of this enigmatic work of sensually dissipating motion.



Morton Feldman / Apartment House: Violin and String Quartet [2 CDs] (Another Timbre)

One of New York School minimalist composer Morton Feldman's later works, this extended composition spread across two CDs invokes waves of beautifully suspended, weaving strings from four violinists and cello, performed by the UK Apartment House ensemble violinists Mira Benjamin, Chihiro Ono, Amalia Young & Bridget Carey and cellist Anton Lukoszevieze.



Morton Feldman : Intermission 6 (Another Timbre)

Finnish composer Antti Tolvi's 72-minute realization of Morton Feldman's Intermission 6 transforms the brief 1953 piano score into an extended meditation on sound and silence, his patient, quietly unpredictable interpretation revealing the work's subtle randomness and serene depth, evoking Feldman's later explorations of duration and near-stillness.



Marc: Sabat Bach Tunings (Another Timbre)

Reimagining Bach's Three Sonatas for Solo Violin through the lens of Just Intonation, composer Marc Sabat adds a second violin to create intricate harmonic dialogues performed with Sara Cubarsi and Xenia Gogu, where precise microtonal tuning and subtle psychoacoustic resonance reveal new shades of Bach's counterpoint, bridging baroque invention with contemporary exploration.



Julia: Eckhardt Blanca (Another Timbre)

Developed during a residency in the Spanish town of Blanca, violist Julia Eckhardt's eight compositions trace daily walks through the arid hills as sound, image, and memory, each piece born from field recordings, photographs, and improvisations that echo the wind-swept landscape, transforming the act of walking and listening into meditative musical reflection.



John: Cage Chamber Works 1943-1951 (Another Timbre)

A superb interpretation of John Cage's early chamber works, performed by members of Apartment House and pianist Kerry Yong, recorded at The Old School, in Starston, UK, highlighting Cage's intricate balance of rhythm and resonance through prepared piano, strings, and percussion, captured in detailed and intimate recordings by Simon Reynell at The Old School in Starston, UK.



Terry Riley played by John Tilbury: Keyboard Studies (Another Timbre)

There is uncertainty of when pianist John Tilbury recorded these three solo keyboard works by his associate and friend, legendary minimalist composer Terry Riley, performing "Keyboard Study #1" and #2, along with "Dorian Reeds" using piano, electric organ, harpsichord & celesta, captured with excellent quality in superb performances from Tilbury at the height of his powers.



Linda Smith Catlin : Dirt Road (Another Timbre)

Canadian composer Linda Catlin Smith's extended composition for violin and percussion in 15 parts, performed by percussionist Simon Limbrick and violinist Mira Benjamin, a unique orchestration that reveals a journey of steady pace, tension and beauty.



Pauline Oliveros / Apartment House: Sound Pieces (Another Timbre)

Six sound-oriented compositions for acoustic ensemble performed by the UK ensemble Apartment House, beautifully reflective and rich works, the first six pieces being text scores for open instrumentation, along with Peace/Tree, a seven movement work for violin, cello and piano that specifies pitches while leaving room for interpretation and improvisation.



Morton Feldman (Philip Thomas): Piano [5 CD BOX SET] (Another Timbre)

Containing the majority of minimalist composer Morton Feldman's compositions for solo piano, 3 CDs of short works and 2 for the magnificent "For Bunita Marcus" and "Triadic Memories", performed by one of the foremost interpreters of Feldman's work, Philip Thomas, and presented in a sturdy 5-CD box set with a 52 page booklet of notes from the performer and artwork.



John Cage / Apartment House: Number Pieces [4-CD BOX SET] (Another Timbre)

A 4-disc box-set with a 44-page booklet of extensive notes, presenting John Cage's Number Pieces which he wrote in the last five years of his life, adapted for mid-size ensembles and performed by the London-based ensemble Apartment House, compositions 'Five' to 'Fourteen' along with alternative versions of three of the pieces; significant and essential.



Morton Feldman / GBSR Duo w/ Taylor MacLennan: Trios [6 CD BOX SET] (Another Timbre)

Spanning Morton Feldman's three expansive trios for flute, piano, and percussion, these performances by the GBSR Duo with Taylor MacLennan immerse the listener in an extended temporal field where quiet intensity, precise timbral balance, and fragile rhythmic relationships unfold with hypnotic patience, transforming duration itself into an expressive element of listening, presence, and sustained attention.



Peter Brotzmann / Majid Bekkas / Hamid Drake: Catching Ghosts (ACT Music + Vision)

A powerful, spiritual and warmly dynamic album of international and cross-cultural free improvisation meticulously recorded live at Jazzfest Berlin in 2022 from the trio of German reedist Peter Brötzmann on tenor saxophone and clarinet, Chicago drummer/percussionist Hamid Drake, and Moroccan guembri player and vocalist Majid Bekkas.



Roscoe Mitchell / Michele Rabbia: In 2 (RogueArt)

The duo of Roscoe Mitchell on bass and sopranino saxophones with percussion, and Michele Rabbia on percussion and electronics, engage in a meticulous and expressive dialogue where the smallest breath or strike is amplified into vivid detail, redefining improvisation as an inclusive and responsive art of conversation that balances order, disorder, and creative transformation.



Carla: Bley Joyful Noise (Live In Hamburg 1984) [2 CDs] (Made in Germany Music)

A 1984 live recording from Carla Bley captures her ten-piece ensemble in a vibrant NDR Jazzworkshop performance, blending sly humor, unconventional harmonies, and inventive orchestration, as a stellar lineup channels tightly focused interplay and exuberant energy into a richly expressive, witty, and dynamically charged large ensemble set.



Tomas: Fujiwara Dream Up (Out Of Your Head Records)

Recorded at Roulette Intermedium in Brooklyn, drummer and composer Tomas Fujiwara introduces his Percussion Quartet with Patricia Brennan on vibraphone, Tim Keiper on African strings and percussion, and Kaoru Watanabe on Japanese drums and flute, blending global traditions into vivid, imaginative works that traverse groove, texture, and color with striking originality and depth.



Christopher: Hoffman REX [VINYL] (Out Of Your Head Records)

Recorded in the former home of self-taught painter Rex Brasher, Christopher Hoffman performs a deeply introspective solo work for acoustic and electric cello, channeling solitude and creative intensity into resonant textures and evolving melodic forms that echo both the environment and Brasher's singular artistic vision, creating a powerful meditation on place, perception, and personal expression.



Tomeka Reid Quartet (w/ Roebke / Halvorson / Fujiwara): Dance! Skip! Hop! (Out Of Your Head Records)

Led by cellist Tomeka Reid, this longstanding quartet with Mary Halvorson on guitar, Jason Roebke on bass, and Tomas Fujiwara on drums delivers a rhythmically propulsive and structurally nimble set that balances grounded low-end drive with agile drumming, incisive guitar textures, and Reid's expressive counterpoint, channeling echoes of 1960s jazz while asserting an exuberant, and yes — danceable — release!



Tomeka Reid Quartet (w/ Roebke / Halvorson / Fujiwara): Dance! Skip! Hop! [VINYL] (Out Of Your Head Records)

Led by cellist Tomeka Reid, this longstanding quartet with Mary Halvorson on guitar, Jason Roebke on bass, and Tomas Fujiwara on drums delivers a rhythmically propulsive and structurally nimble set that balances grounded low-end drive with agile drumming, incisive guitar textures, and Reid's expressive counterpoint, channeling echoes of 1960s jazz while asserting an exuberant, and yes — danceable — release!



Marta Sanchez : For The Space You Left (Out Of Your Head Records)

Drawing from periods of isolation spanning a 2017 residency and the early pandemic, pianist Marta Sanchez presents a solo prepared piano work that transforms the instrument into a layered, multi-voiced sound world, where interlocking rhythms, fragile textures, and introspective passages of free improv reflect contrasting emotional states shaped by solitude, vulnerability, and a deeply internal creative process.



Hemphill Stringtet, The : Plays the Music of Julius Hemphill (Out Of Your Head Records)

Celebrating the profound compositional legacy of Julius Hemphill through inventive string adaptations of his saxophone quartet and sextet works, violinists Curtis Stewart and Sam Bardfeld, violist Stephanie Griffin, and cellist Tomeka Reid channel Abdul Wadud's expressive spirit, transforming Hemphill's blues-inflected jazz into vividly textured chamber improvisations with lyrical intensity.



Webber/Morris Big Band: Unseparate (Out Of Your Head Records)

Five years after their debut, co-leaders Anna Webber and Angela Morris return with a 19-piece large ensemble recording that showcases their next-level compositional voices, unfolding through the "Just Intonation Etudes for Big Band" suite and a series of richly orchestrated works that balance drones, contrapuntal density, rhythmic blasts, and lyrical themes in an adventurous exploration of sound and structure.



Bruno Duplant / Rutger Zuydervelt: Edge Of Oblivion (Machinefabriek)

The third collaboration between sound and electronic artists Bruno Duplant and Rutger Zuydervelt (Machinefabriek) is a darkly heavy and dramatic work of subtle motion that slowly unfolds and shifts through vast sonic environments, fueled by acousmatic sources that take the listener to the edge of darkness and then pulls them back in warm waves or rich ambiance.



Ava Mendoza / Gabby Fluke-Mogul / Carolina Perez : Mama Killa (Burning Ambulance Music)

The debut of guitarist Ava Mendoza, violinist Gabby Fluke-Mogul, and drummer Carolina Perez as a power trio, invoking the Inca moon goddess Mama Killa through eight electrifying tracks that fuse free improvisation with the raw energy of doom, death, and black metal, channeling country, blues, and psychedelia into a ferocious and feedback-laden sonic onslaught.



Ken Vandermark and Mats Gustafsson: Verses (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

Surprisingly after long partnerships with Peter Brotzmann's Tentet and the saxophone trio Sonore, this is the first time that Ken Vandermark & Mats Gustafsson have recorded as a duo, here in 6 incredible improvisations balancing technique, power, and beauty.



Peter Kowald / Kent Kessler / Fred Lonberg-Holm: Flats Fixed (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

Three bassists converged on WNUR Studios, in Evanston, Illinois in 1998 to record these tracks, finally released after 16 years: 5 freely improvised trio sessions, 6 miniatures suggested by Kowald and performed by the trio, and 6 duos between Kowald and Lonberg-Holm.



Peter Kowald Quintet: Peter Kowald Quintet (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

First ever CD reissue of the only band under bassist Peter Kowald's own name, remastered; originally released by FMP in 1972, this is exemplary European Free Jazz from one of the orignal innovators in a quartet with Peter Kowald on tuba, bass, & alphorn, Gunter Christmann and Paul Rutherford on trombones, Peter van der Locht on alto saxophone, and Paul Lovens on drums.



Alexander Schlippenbach von : Globe Unity [VINYL] (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

Wild, nearly unprecedented and an exhilarating direction in European Free Improvisation heard in the 1st recordings from 1966 of pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach's Globe Unity band, a 14-piece ensemble that included young saxophonists Peter Brötzmann, Gerd Dudek & Kris Wanders, bassist Peter Kowald, bass clarinetist Willem Breuker, trumpeter Manfred Schoof, &c.



Ken Vandermark / Hamid Drake: Eternal River [VINYL] (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

Focused on the music of Don Cherry and recorded at Corbett vs. Dempsey's gallery space on the closing day of an exhibit of art by Cherry's partner Moki Cherry (whose tapestry "Spirit" is the LP's cover) this concert finds drummer Hamid Drake, who lived with the Cherry family in Sweden, and Ken Vandermark on tenor sax, reworking medleys of Cherry's tunes from across his discography.



Jason: Adasiewicz Roy's World [VINYL] (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

Titled for the film by Rob Christopher — Roy's World: Barry Gifford's Chicago, — whose soundtrack includes segments of this album, vibraphonist and composer Jason Adasiewicz's lyrically upbeat album is performed in a quintet with Chicago mainstays, Jonathan Doyle on saxophones, Josh Berman on cornet, Joshua Abrams on bass and Hamid Drake on drums.



Various Artists: Music is a Message From Space [VINYL] (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

A cosmic tribute to Sun Ra's legacy, this limited-edition LP opens with a rare 1950s home recording of Ra performing a cappella, followed by archival and new works from Joe McPhee, Raymond Boni, Jason Adasiewicz, Wolfgang Voigt, and Spaceways Inc. (Ken Vandermark/Nate McBride/Hamid Drake) with Zu, reimagining Ra's soundworld through homage, remix, and exploratory improvisation.



Milford: Graves Babi [2 CDs] (Corbett vs. Dempsey)

Recorded in 1976 at WBAI-FM/Free Music Store in New York, drummer percussionist Milford Graves goes head to head with two reedists, Arthur Doyle and Hugh Glover, an absolute stunner of percussive momentum and force, drawing the reeds into a frenzy of unbridled free playing; issued with a 2nd CD of a private recording of Graves plus unpublished photos.



Fish-Scale Sunrise (Ab Baars / Kaja Draksler / Joe Williamson: No Queen Rises (Relative Pitch)

Their name taken from a poem by Wallace Stevens, the Netherlands-based trio of Ab Baars on sax and clarinet, Kaja Draksler on piano, and Joe Williamson on bass represent the spirit of the poem in seven compositions from Ab Baars plus two collective improvs, a great mix of serious and playful performance that diverts from detailed interaction to spacious reflectiveness.



Susan Alcorn Quintet: Pedernal (Relative Pitch)

An innovator in integrating pedal steel guitar into modern improvised music, Cleveland-born, Baltimore-based pedal steel guitar player Susan Alcorn's quintet enlists a superb set of New York players--Mark Feldman on violin, Michael Formanek on double bass, Mary Halvorson on guitar, and Ryan Sawyer on drums--taking on a diverse set of Alcorn compositions.



Dietrichs (Camille Dietrich / Don Dietrich): Catch the Leaves (Relative Pitch)

Definitely of the Borbetomagus mold, the duo of tenor saxophonist Don Dietrich and cellist Camille Dietrich, his daughter who grew up under the influence of that band's relentlessly aggressive free jazz, here in a live performance at Tubby's in Kingston, New York for four burning improvisations that take apart a tree, leaving the audience to catch the fragments; terrifyingly intense!



Camila Nebbia (feat/ Marilyn Crispell / Lesley Mok): A Reflection Distorts Over Water [CD + DOWNLOAD] (Relative Pitch)

Recorded at Nevessa Studio in New York, Camila Nebbia joins Marilyn Crispell and Lesley Mok in a fiercely intuitive trio session blending open scores and full improvisation, where elastic group interplay, textural sensitivity, and eruptive momentum allow the music to breathe as a single organism while leaving space for sharply defined individual voices to emerge.



John Butcher / John Edwards / Mark Sanders: Last Dream Of The Morning (Relative Pitch)

A studio album between three UK master improvisers -- John Butcher on sax, John Edwards on double bass, and Mark Sanders on drums -- the trio pushing the envelope in technique and dialog in nearly telepathic playing that transports the listener into their environment, as the music builds and releases in effortless ways that are stunning and exulant; highly recommended.



Peter Brotzmann / Lonberg-Holm, Fred: Memories Of A Tunicate (Relative Pitch)

While both improvisers were in New York City for the 2019 Vision Festival, multi-reedist and European Free Improv legend Peter Brötzmann met Chicago cellist and electronics artist Fred Lonberg-Holm to record their 3rd album together, their 1st album in the studio a diverse set of incredible concentration, with Brötzmann performing on tenor saxophone, woodwind, and clarinet.



Dietrichs: No Bahdu (Relative Pitch)

An uncompromising and electrifying studio set from father-daughter duo Don and Camille Dietrich, whose ferocious blend of distorted tenor saxophone and overdriven cello pushes sonic boundaries through four intense improvisations, merging free jazz, noise, and amplified effects into a blistering, high-voltage assault of raw energy and experimental fire.



Camila Nebbia / Kit Downes / Andrew Lisle: Exhaust [CD + DOWNLOAD] (Relative Pitch)

Recorded live in Berlin, the debut from Camila Nebbia's working trio with Kit Downes and Andrew Lisle captures six dynamic, unrestrained pieces that navigate shifting textures and rhythms, fractured lyricism, and tightly woven interplay, avoiding individual soloing as the group explores contrast and transformation through raw energy, deep listening, and collective momentum.



Lao: Dan To Hit a Pressure Point (Relative Pitch)

Recorded solo in Hangzhou, China, saxophonist and suona player Lao Dan merges Chinese folk motifs with the raw energy of punk, the spontaneity of free jazz, and the abrasiveness of noise and rock forms, creating a fiercely expressive and unpredictable improvisational landscape driven by aesthetic tension and fearless experimentation.



Lori: Goldston Open Space (Relative Pitch)

A meditative and immersive solo cello work from Lori Goldston, performed in one continuous take with amplifier and distortion pedal, unfolding in ten resonant segments that evoke the gradual transformation of light and landscape, offering listeners an expansive and contemplative space for breath, reflection, and quiet communion with the natural world.



Trevor Watts / Barry Guy / Ramon Lopez: The First Touch (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Reconnecting generations of European free improv, legendary saxophonist Trevor Watts joins longtime collaborator Barry Guy and percussionist Ramon Lopez for a fiercely interactive trio session balancing ecstatic energy, disciplined abstraction, and deeply responsive interplay, as decades of shared musical history erupt into vivid collective expression, explosive rhythmic momentum, and emotionally charged spontaneity.



Christine Wodrascka / Bernard Santacruz: Oblic (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

The duo of pianist Christine Wodrascka and bassist Bernard Santacruz create an intricate and mercurial dialog of free improv, balancing lyrical abstraction, percussive tension, and elastic interplay as the two musicians continuously reshape parallel narratives through intimate exchanges, textural contrasts, and restless sonic transformations that drift between delirious energy, shadowy atmospheres, and moments of fragile silence.



Udo Schindler / Sergio Armaroli: Transalpine Sound Bridges (Munich-Milano) [2 CDs] (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Through exchanged realtime recordings rather than direct performance, multi-instrumentalist Udo Schindler and vibraphonist/percussionist Sergio Armaroli create an intimate two-CD session of exploratory free improv, with Schindler responding on soprano saxophone, clarinets, flutes, and cornet to Armaroli's vibraphone pieces in a fluid virtual dialog inspired by the alpine passage between Munich and Milan.



Simon: Nabatov Getting Personal [2 CDs] (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Pianist and composer Simon Nabatov leads two extraordinary ensembles featuring Frank Gratkowski, Angelika Niescier, Ina Stock, and Lucia Mense through deeply personal compositions balancing chamber-jazz lyricism, contemporary classical textures, and adventurous free improv, transforming introspective and emotionally charged themes into richly layered collective expression.



Pascal Niggenkemper / Ensemble Tuvalu: D'Une Rive A L'Autre [CD+DVD] (Subran Music)

Bassist Pascal Niggenkemper leads Ensemble Tuvalu in an immersive CD+DVD work inspired by the climate-threatened Pacific island nation, uniting brass, reeds, accordions, strings, voices, and resonant sound installations in a genre-crossing meditation on ecology, displacement, and community, with the audience surrounded by the ensemble in performance and the DVD capturing a live concert realization.



Ewen / Smith / Walter: Untitled (2) (Balance Point Acoustics)

Reuniting more than a decade after their explosive 2011 debut, guitarist Sandy Ewen, bassist Damon Smith, and percussionist Weasel Walter deliver a fiercely focused free improv session recorded with vivid clarity, balancing dense collective eruptions, microscopic textural detail, and deeply evolved ensemble interplay shaped in part through years performing together in Roscoe Mitchell's quartet.



Gregorio / Smith / Bryerton: The Cold Arrow (Balance Point Acoustics)

The second trio release from clarinetist Guillermo Gregorio, double bassist Damon Smith and Jerome Bryerton on gongs, selected metal & cymbals (but no drums), in a sophisticated album of eight collective improvisations numbered as "The Planar Effect" and two Gregorio compositions, an absolutely impressive set that obscures the line between "spontaneous" and "composition".



James McKain / Damon Smith / Weasel Walter: ... Seeing the Way The Mole Tunnels... (Balance Point Acoustics / International School of Evidence)

Energetic trio interplay from saxophonist James McKain with Damon Smith and Weasel Walter, recorded in Collinsville, Illinois, where taut lines, volatile textures, and razor-cut dynamics sketch "free jazz by way of the European tradition," six concise pieces whose titles nod to Thomas Bernhard and whose restless momentum — anchored by springy bass and splintered drums — turns spontaneity into vividly shaped form.



Turbulence Orchestra: Molecular Diffusion (Evil Clown)

Gathering seven horn players, bass, percussion, electronics, with real-time signal processing, David Peck's Turbulence Orchestra delivers a large-ensemble free improv performance balancing dense brass and reed eruptions with richly varied percussion, electronics, and found-sound textures, evolving through steadily transforming sonorities and broad-spectrum collective interplay.



Directives: Glimmer (Aubjects)

A series of instrumental compositions from D. Petri (Dog Hallucination), structured as songs of a rhythmic nature using synths, samples, field recordings and effects, eight embraceable and upbeat work with layers of detail, influenced by Petri's love of explorative electronic music including YMO or Tom Ellard, or labels like Mille Plateau and Raster.



Directives : Protenomaly [CASSETTE w/ DOWNLOAD] (Aubjects)

Aubjects label leader D. Petri (Amalgamated, Dog Hallucination) continues his work in unusual and sometimes aggressive exploration of the guitar as a sound source, looking for "novel anomalies" in amorphous compositions, seeking an extreme mixture of audio fidelities, peculiar equipment configurations, personally significant field recordings & various multi-level manipulations, in parts joined by Hillary Ulman on percussion.



Amalgamated: Amalgamated (Aubjects)

An album of hallucinogenic and melodic rhythhm and sound from the Amalgamated collective, who take their influence from 80's industrial / cassette culture, as heard in these 8 tracks, balancing modern electronics with lo-fi/home taper instruments and sensibilities.



Directives: Reconsolid [CASSETTE] (Aubjects)

A solo work from D. Petri assembling three cassette-based recordings from 2016-2017, blending abstract guitar voicings with prepared tapes across partially and fully improvised performances, where lo-fi textures and fragmented structures reflect memory reconsolidation, reshaping emotional resonance through layered, obscured, and reassembled sonic material.



Homogenized Terrestrials : Shadows Think Twice (Aubjects)

An electronic project from Phillip Klampe following his album The Contaminist, this 16-track release assembles cerebral atmospheres and surreal soundscapes from layered textures and abstract tonal fragments, where familiar and obscure elements blur into shifting, otherworldly environments that invite immersive listening and subtle psychological dislocation.



Homogenized Terrestrials: The Contaminist (IntangibleCat)

Phil Klampe , aka Homogenized Terrestrials, uses acoustic instruments, sparse, often ethnic percussion, human voice and analog synth sounds to create a tapestry of emotional electronic work, eerie and dreamlike music with a warm accessibility.



Daggerboard The Skipper & Mike Clark: Dagger Board The Skipper and Mike Clark (Wide Hive)

Led by Headhunters drummer Mike Clark and bassist Henry Franklin, this richly orchestrated large-ensemble session blends jazz, funk, fusion, Afro-Latin rhythm, and chamber textures through ten original compositions featuring vibrant arrangements, fluid improvisation, and an expansive Bay Area ensemble including violin, cello, trombone, saxophone, guitar, piano, percussion, and French horn.



Amy: Denio Tutto Bene Vol. II (Klanggalerie)

A wide-ranging solo and collaborative release from Amy Denio, this eclectic set blends voice, accordion, clarinet, guitars, bass, percussion, electronics, and field recordings across composed, improvised, and live performances, weaving jazz, avant-garde, and global influences into a playful, genre-blurring sonic journey rich in texture, storytelling, and inventive ensemble interplay.



Cassiber: The Cassiber Box redux [6 CDs, 1 DVD and Book] (Recommended Records)

Reissuing the 2013 box set of the 1980s UK/Euro improvising rock band Cassiber, including their 4 remastered studio albums + 2 additional CDs, a 2 hour DVD, and a 32-page color book, revealing an amazing band merging experimental rock, fringe jazz, punk, pop, plunderphonics, improvisation, & musique concrete with an energetic and complex form of studio composition - superb!



Melaine Dalibert / David Sylvian: Vermilion Hours (Ici d Ailleurs)

A refined collaboration between pianist Melaine Dalibert and David Sylvian, transforming Dalibert's algorithmic piano works through subtle, impressionistic electronic treatments that deepen their harmonic resonance, creating a luminous and contemplative soundworld shaped by spectral motion and quiet atmospheric detail.



Henry Cow: Leg End (Original Mix) (Recommended Records)



Kenny Wheeler Sextet: What Was (False Walls)

Produced by Evan Parker and drawn from a shelved 1995 studio date, this first full release of the Kenny Wheeler Sextet captures the flugelhorn master at 65 balancing post-bop sophistication with open-ended improvisation alongside Ray Warleigh, Stan Sulzmann, John Parricelli, Chris Laurence and Tony Levin, in harmonically rich compositions that favor nuance, collective trust, and deeply lyricism.



Matthew Wright (Jerberg / Ensemble Klang / Spheric Totemic): Cracked Glaze (False Walls)

Commissioned for Ensemble Klang's Musical Utopias festival, Matthew Wright leads a twelve-piece ensemble with Sofia Jernberg and Spheric Totemic in a large-scale work structured around a slowly descending tonal "spine," where notated layers and timed frameworks intersect with free improv, while live sampling and post-production deepen the shifting interplay between form, texture, and sonic perspective.



Matthew Langford / Andrew Weathers: Stipple (Editions Glomar)

A site-responsive duo recording from trumpeter Matthew Langford and saxophonist Andrew Weathers, using an emptied pool's reflective acoustics to shape a restrained and textural free improv of breath, resonance, and ambient detail, where sustained tones and environmental sound merge into a focused exploration of space, duration, and the physical limits of performance.



Eva-Maria Houben (Nate Wooley): Chanting Ballads (Edition Wandelweiser Records)

Commissioned for the for/with series, Eva-Maria Houben presents a long-form work for Nate Wooley's trumpet, voice, and whistling, where sparse, precisely placed tones unfold in a meditative arc, expanding from an early performance into a deeply considered exploration of pure timbre, attentive listening, and the subtle interplay between composition and free improv.



Ivo Perelman / Nate Wooley / Mat Moran / Matt Maneri / Fred Lonberg-Holm / Joe Morris: Seven Skies Orchestra [2 CDs] (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

A rare setting for tenor saxophonist Ivo Perelman in a larger ensemble: an exemplary sextet with trumpeter Nate Wooley and vibraphonist Matt Moran over a string section of Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello, Joe Morris on bass and Mat Maneri on viola, recording a ten-part work sans drums or piano, allowing fascinating new orchestral possibilities performed with utmost creative mastery.



Savina Yannatou / Julius Gabriel / Agusti Fernandez / Barry Guy / Ramon Lopez: In the Light Of The Current Myth (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

During double bassist Barry Guy's time in Porto Portugal with the Blue Shroud Band, he also took time to join in the studio with a quintet of like-minded improvisors — Savina Yannatou on vocals, Julius Gabriel on tenor & baritone saxophones, Agusti Fernandez on piano, and Ramon Lopez on drums — to record this exceptional collective improv session.



Charles Gayle / Szilard Mezei Quartet Bass: Oils (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

A 2009 live performance at the 15th Magyarkanizsa Jazz Festival in Serbia between Hungarian violist and composer Szilárd Mezei and US saxophonist Charles Gayle, an evocative meeting of transcendent free jazz and compositional precision, weaving Mezei's intricate scores with Gayle's profound, soul-searching improvisations; a dynamic and fiery celebration of freedom and expression.



Zlatko Kaucic (Kaucic / Amado / Dorner / Grom / Guy / Fernandez / Snekkestad): INKLINGS [4 CD BOX SET] (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Marking drummer/percussionist Zlatko Kaučič's 70th birthday, this 4-CD set presents his collaborations with luminaries including Torben Snekkestad, Axel Dörner, Rodrigo Amado, Barry Guy, and Agustí Fernández, blending intimate and transformative improvisations recorded across Slovenian festivals, showcasing Kaučič's mastery and the profound synergy of these exceptional ensembles.



Jerome Deupree / Sylvie Courvoisier / Lester St. Louis / Joe Morris: Canyon [2 CDs] (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Recorded at Firehouse 12 Studios, Canyon brings together four exceptional improvisers — drummer Jerome Deupree, pianist Sylvie Courvoisier, bassist Joe Morris, and cellist Lester St. Louis — for a double album of fluid, high-stakes interaction, balancing volatility and restraint as they carve out richly detailed sonic terrain with spontaneous precision.



Cecil: Taylor Respiration (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

An incredible solo concert from legendary New York pianist Cecil Taylor in October, 1968 at the Sala Kongresowa (Congress Hall, Palace of Culture and Science) in Warsaw during the Jazz Jamboree, recorded by Polski Radio and remastered in 2021, an excellent example of the nimble mind and quick technical skills of Taylor's personal take on improvisation; stunning!



Cecil Taylor : Music From Two Continents feat Stanko, Rava, Frank Wright, Lyons, Borca, Barker, Hampel (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

A truly wild concert of free jazz from Cecil Taylor's transatlantic orchestra, captured live at the 1984 Jazz Jamboree in Warsaw, Poland, bringing together impressive improvisers from the US--William Parker, John Tchicai, Jimmy Lyons, Karen Borca, Frank Wright, & Henry Martinez--with European Free Jazz leaders Tomasz Stank, Enrico Rava, Conrd Bauer & Günter Hampel.



Last Dream of the Morning (John Butcher / John Edwards / Marc Sanders): Sharp Illusion (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

The third release from the trio of John Butcher, John Edwards and Mark Sanders captures a live performance in Lublin that unfolds across four extended improvisations, balancing explosive collective energy and deep listening restraint as saxophones, bass and percussion interweave in a fluid, highly responsive dialogue shaped by decades of shared experience within the UK and European free improv community.



Cimota (Lonning / Reinertsen / Wiik / Haker Flaten / Hulbaekmo): [Cimota] [VINYL] (Sonic Transmissions Records)

A Norwegian quintet led by Håvard Wiik, bringing together Eivind Lønning, Espen Reinertsen, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, and Hans Hulbækmo in a dynamic set that balances composed structures with free improv, blending post-bop lyricism, intricate ensemble interplay, and spacious, timbre-focused passages into a fluid and contemporary jazz expression.



Bruce Coates / Paul Dunmall / John Edwards / Trevor Lines / Mark Sanders: Five On A Die (FMR)

Uniting saxophonists Bruce Coates and Paul Dunmall with bassist John Edwards, bassist Trevor Lines, and drummer Mark Sanders, this quintet session delivers an intense exploration of collective free improv, with intertwining reed lines rising over the dense resonance of dual basses and Sanders� fluid percussion, the ensemble shaping energetic and richly textured spontaneous interactions.



Peter Brotzmann / Steve Hubback : Treforest 82 (FMR)

A previously unreleased duo encounter pairing Peter Brötzmann's ferocious saxophone with Welsh percussionist Steve Hubback's compact and inventive drum setup, captured at the 1982 Treforest festival in the UK in a brief but explosive burst of free improv where probing textures erupt into cathartic climaxes through raw, intensely focused interplay.



Evan Parker / John Edwards / Tony Marsh: Medway Blues (FMR)

A superb 2009 concert at Command House, in Chatham, UK from the trio of saxophonist Evan Parker, double bassist John Edwards, and late drummer/percussionist Tony Marsh, a single 36 minute improvisation of cohesive and energetic free jazz where all three pull together as a nearly telepathic unit, plus two extended duo sections between Edwards and Marsh and a Marsh solo.



Dunmall / Bianco / Kane: Ritual Beyond (FMR)

Live recordings from 2009 at Delbury Hall with the mighty Paul Dunmall on tenor and clarinet; blistering music from an incredible trio playing seriously smoking free jazz.



Deep Joy Trio: Live in Austria (FMR)

Long time associates since their Mujician days, saxophonist Paul Dunmall, bassist Paul Rogers and drummer Tony Levin are recorded live in Austria for two extended and deeply joyful improvisations.



Tony Bianco / Paul Rogers / Paul Dunmall: Dig Deep Trio (FMR)

The British improvising trio of tenor saxophonist Paul Dunmall, 7-string bassist Paul Rogers and drummer Tony Bianco performing two long and serpentine improvisations at Delbury Hall, Shropshire in 2010.



Mary Halvorson Amaryllis : About Ghosts [VINYL] (Nonesuch)

Expanding her Amaryllis ensemble with the addition of saxophonists Immanuel Wilkins and Brian Settles, guitarist and composer Mary Halvorson presents eight new works, balancing spectral beauty and sly unease as vibraphone, layered brass, flexible grooves, and her singular harmonic distortions cohere into a richly orchestrated and restlessly inventive large-ensemble statement.



Dominic Lash / Mark Wastell: Polyvalent Creativity (Confront)

Bringing together two prolific figures in the UK's improvised music community, guitarist Dominic Lash and drummer/percussionist Mark Wastell explore a stripped yet expansive duo format that nods toward free jazz, where a seemingly conventional setup gives way to a language rooted in texture, gesture, and sonic detail rather than pulse or harmonic progression.



Ensemble Var (Gustafsson / Lindal / Lindstrom / Nordwall): VAR (Confront)

A fully free improvisation of subtly disruptive, extended electroacoustic mastery, recorded during the Svensk Musikvår Festival at Aliasteatern, Stockholm in 2021, in a piece conceived by Mats Gustafsson who performs on saxophone & flute, with Anna Lindal on violin, Mats Lindstrom on electronics, effects & sampler and Joachim Nordwall on analog synths, effects & tapes.



Chris Abrahams / Mark Wastell: Two Thousand Sacred Steps (Confront)

Expanding their earlier duo work into a live setting, pianist Chris Abrahams and percussionist Mark Wastell engage in a patient, textural session of free improv, where rippling piano figures and resonant cymbal washes unfold in a deeply attentive dialog, shaping a meditative, slowly evolving sound world defined by subtle interplay, spatial awareness, and restrained, ritual-like intensity.



Adam O'Farrill (O'Farrill / Rogers / Stinson / Holzman): Elephant [VINYL] (Out Of Your Head Records)

Leading his new quartet Elephant, trumpeter Adam O'Farrill presents a forward-looking jazz session of original compositions that shift fluidly between rhythmic drive and abstraction, where contrasting textures, layered structures, and expressive interplay animate a dynamic ensemble sound shaped by subtle electronic elements and a contemporary, cross-genre sensibility.



Marta Sanchez : For The Space You Left [VINYL] (Out Of Your Head Records)

Drawing from periods of isolation spanning a 2017 residency and the early pandemic, pianist Marta Sanchez presents a solo prepared piano work that transforms the instrument into a layered, multi-voiced sound world, where interlocking rhythms, fragile textures, and introspective passages of free improv reflect contrasting emotional states shaped by solitude, vulnerability, and a deeply internal creative process.



Joe: Morris Perpetual Frontier The Properties of Free Music [BOOK] (Riti Publishing)

Joe Morris wrote this book to discuss aspects of free music, including responses to his questionnaire written by Joe McPhee, William Parker, Jamie Saft, Ken Vandermark, Marilyn Crispell, Nate Wooley, Jack Wright, Matthew Shipp, &c.



Joe Fonda Quartet (w/ Wadada Leo Smith / Satoko Fujii / Tizano Tononi): Eyes On The Horizon (Long Song Records)

NY Bassist-composer Joe Fonda leads an exceptional quartet featuring trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith, pianist Satoko Fujii, and drummer Tiziano Tononi in a profound tribute to his mentor Smith, skillfully blending compositional clarity with collective improvisation in a deeply resonant and lyrically intricate musical conversation that reflects inspiration, respect, and artistic integrity.



Alan Silva / Burton Greene: Parallel Worlds (Long Song Records)

Free jazz pioneers and electronic improvisers Alan Silva and Burton Greene together playing vintage synthesizers and keyboards, exploring new sounds and pushing boundaries.



Satoko Fujii / Joe Fonda: Duet (Long Song Records)

First meeting of Japanese pianist Satoko Fujii and New York bassist Joe Fonda, initiated at the suggestion of Fonda, recording in Portland, Maine at the Dimensions in Jazz Series, a beautifully recorded and intimate duo of superb dialog between two seasoned improvisers.





The Squid's Ear Magazine

The Squid's Ear Magazine

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