An amazing album of vocal utterance and layered sound from Dutch improviser and experimenter Jaap Blonk, using spatial placement and movement extended by electronic means to focus on phonetic concepts, particularly the diphtong and approximant.

Dutch vocalist and electronic artist Jaap Blonk takes on insomnia in 13 short works celebrating sleeplessness, including one piece for Dada sound poet Raoul Hausmann, and other "songs" using effective electronics and bizarre vocal utterances to accompany your own sleepless nights.

Eight meditations on just intonations from electroacoustic artist and vocalist Jaap Blonk, here focusing on instrumental aspects while creating beautiful environments of serene and shimmering sound.

Sound poet Jaap Blonk extended the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) into BLIPAX (Blonk's IPA Extended), developing scores as drawing which are converted into electronic sound through audio software and then back to text through OCR to create these unusual spoken audio pieces.

Two live sets of exemplary improvisation: the first revelatory encounter of pianist Sebastian Lexer and drummer/percussionist Steve Noble from 2011, and a more considered and spacious meeting in 2014, both from London's Cafe OTO.

A meeting between two accomplished saxophonists recorded live at Kernel Brewery, in London in 2014, and at The Studio in Derby, with Seymour Wright on alto saxophone and Evan Parker on both alto and soprano, criss-crossing and combining in exuberant and astonishing ways.

Pianist Chris McGregor's 1963 album with a large South African band including saxophonists Dudu Pukwana and Kippie Moeketsi, and Mongezi Feza on trumpet, a precursor to Blue Notes and Brotherhood of Breath, showing the powerful direction McGregor was to take his music in.

Early compositions from John Cage performed on accordion by Edwin Alexander Buchholz and violin by Joanna Becker, presenting "Dream" (1948); "In a Landscape" (1948); "Six Melodies" (1950); and "Souvenir" (1983).

Pisaro's Harmony Series revolve around the process of translating poetic works into text scores, which are then analyzed to find change in the implicit sound of the text, and developed into graphic scores for the performers; here presenting 9 of 34 pieces from the series.

A dynamic set of wind and object improvisations from multi-reedist Hans Koch, using extended techniques to elicit a diverse and astounding range of sounds from his instruments, and Thomas Peter creating indescribable sound on amplified objects and live electronics.

Recorded at Herbal International headquarters, Finders Art Space in Kuala Lumpur, Tim Bleichman and label founder Goh Lee Kwang reunite for this album of no-input mixer and laptop, an extended work of powerful sound, glitch, and indescribeable sonic environments.

The title of this work for a cross-wired analog DJ mixer from Goh Lee Kwang translates to "Internal Pleasures", as he finds unexpected sounds from the noise floor of his equipment, which he develops into 7 untitled sound works of hiss, hum, controlled feedback, and rich sound.

Three soundtracks to movies from sound artist Eric La Casa, developed for directors Luke Fowler, Christian Jaccard and Marie-Christine Navarro, organizing sounds from field recordings, with Navarro's soundtrack complemented by organ recordings from Jean-Luc Guionnet.

Sound artist Martin Kay focuses on the intimate and visceral symphony of domestic activity reverberating throughout a variety of shared courtyard spaces in Paris, using field recordings from various locations to examine their distinct acoustic characteristics.

Four innovative and creative pianists performing solo at the Western Front between 1985 and 2015--Anthony Davis, Paul Plimley, Al Neil, John Kameel Farah--compiled on this extraordinary LP, the 2nd essential archive from one of Canada's most important performance spaces.

Portugese violist Joao Camoes, living in Paris, in a duo with Jean-Marc Foussat on electronics and voice, which he approaches like those of the acoustic improvised music and free jazz; the two present two long works where Foussat processes and extends Camoes' sound.

Andre Gonvalves, known for the ADDAC System brand of modular synthesizers and several devices for electronic music, in a solo album combining analog and digital sounds and tools, processing of field recordings and ready-made materials, a rich and beautiful work.

Established players on the London and European Free Jazz scene from two generations, saxophonist Evan Parker and pianist Alexander Hawkins come together for a duo of remarkable insight, technical skill, and inventive dialog from two masterful players.

Alto saxophonist Julie Kjaer, a Denmark native living in the UK and active on the London Improv scene, in a trio with two of the most active London players - Steve Noble on drums and John Edwards on bass - for a live album at Vortex Jazz Club in 2015.

Jazz Passengers leader and saxophonist Roy Nathanson in an album of duos recorded live during a series of concerts at The Stone in NY, with collaborators including Marc Ribot, Curtis Fowlkes, Anthony Coleman, Arturo O'Farrill, Myra Melford, and Lucy Hollier.

New York bassist Eric Revis' Trio with Kris Davis on piano and Gerald Cleaver taking over the drum position in an album that crosses the traditional piano trio concept with modern free parlance, for both lyrical and unconventionally creative moments.

Scandinavian and American musicians join together to form this quartet, with Kristoffer Berre Alberts on saxes, Jamie Saft on organ and keys, Ingebrigt Haker-Flaten on electric bass, and Gard Nilssen on drums & electronics, for an album of spacey and groove oriented jazz.

Portuguese trumpeter Luis Vicente in a quartet with Amsterdam-based improvisers John Dikeman (sax), Wilbert De Joode (bass) and Onno Govaert (drums), captured during an energetic live performance at zaal 100 in Amsterdam in 2015 for superb free jazz.

A New York quartet blending generations and styles in passionate, rich, and deeply layered improvisation from pianist Jamie Saft, trombonist Roswell Rudd, drummer Balazs Pandi, and drummer Trevor Dunn, free jazz drawing on diverse form and intense conversational skills.

A New York quartet blending generations and styles in passionate, rich, and deeply layered improvisation from pianist Jamie Saft, trombonist Roswell Rudd, drummer Balazs Pandi, and drummer Trevor Dunn, free jazz drawing on diverse form and intense conversational skills.

The follow-up to drummer/composer Dan Weiss's release "Fourteen" presents a larger ensemble taking on jazz, world music, prog rock, contemporary classical music and more in compositions named for drummers, with a diverse orchestration of acoustic and unconventional instruments.

The 27th volume in John Zorn's Book of Angels series, presenting his Masada compositions interpreted by superlative groups, here in a piano trio of lyrical and technical power: Craig Taborn (piano), Christian McBride (bass), and Tyshawn Sorey (drums).

Jurg Frey on clarinet and Irene Kurka on soprano vocals perform Wandelweiser composer Antoine Beuger's extended composition "Two"; then the duo of Rhodri Davies on harp and Ko Ishikawa on sho are layered on the first recording, creating a refreshingly new take on the piece.

Antoine Beuger introduces this album with a short poem by Amy Lowell in reference to the larkspur, in two discs with 17 tracks on each of Beuger whistling, quietly and with a silence and patience of intense concentration emerging from near silence.

Long time collaborators, Italian saxophonist Daniele Cavallanti and drummer Tiziano Tononi, travelled to NYC to record with friends new and old, the results of which are this dynamic free jazz album recorded with Steve Swell (trombone), Herb Robertson (cornet) and Joe Fonda (bass).

John Cage's "Empty Words" (1974) is drawn from the Journals of Henry David Thoreau, written in four parts: Part I omits sentences, Part II omits phrases, and Part III omits words. Part IV, which omits syllables, leaves us nothing but a virtual lullaby of letters and sounds.

Italian soprano saxophonist Gianni Mimmo meets Boston guitarist Garrison Fewell for 10 freely improvised duets of strong dialog balancing technical and lyrical skills with an ebullient intensity and warm spirit, engaging the listener in their joyful dialog.

The duo Contour of Stephen Altoff (trumpet) & Lee Forrest Ferguson (percussion) perform Antoine Beuger's "dedekind duos" dedicated to mathematician Julius Wilhelm Richard Dedekind; and Jurg Frey's "22 Sachelchen" or "small things", 22 focused miniature compositions.

John McAlpine performs composer Tom Johnson's beautiful piano cycle "Counting Keys", using mathematical progressions to create the structure of its 5 movements; plus 8 parts from his "Organ and Silence for Piano"; and two other compositions using mathematical processes.

Violinist Emanuele Parrini leads his quartet with Dimitiri Grechi Espinoz on alto sax, Giovanni Maier on double bass, and Andrea Melani on drums, performing Parrini's 3 part "The Blessed Prince", and original compositions from bassist Maier; lyrical and innovative modern jazz.

Since 2012 the free improvising duo of vocalist Geraldine Eguiluz and double bassist Stephane Diamantakiou have worked together, taking themes from the jazz songbook as a starting point for free form improvisations of a fragile and unpredictable nature.

Two works from composer Frey performed by Montreal's string ensemble Quatuor Bozzini: "String Quartet No. 3", a minimal work of colors, sensations, shadows, durations; and "Unhorbare Zeit" exploring durations without sound, or empty volumes, to achieve lucidity and transparency.

Pianist Samuel Vriezen performs Tom Johnson's work presenting what Johnson describes as a natural phenomenon within a musical scale: progressions in 1 to 5 voices of all possible combinations of notes with each voice being limited to 3 steps, a perfect 4th or a perfect 5th.

Christian Wolff initiated his "Microexercises" series when the Miniaturist Ensemble asked for a piece with no more than 100 notes in it; he went on to create 21 more pieces, 13 of which are performed here by the South African duo of Beat Keller & Reza Khota on electric guitar.

Three extended compositions using field recordings and electronic processing from Vanessa Rossetto and Matthew Revert, using obscure references in song titles to mask subtle dovetailing and transitioning of concrete sound and mysterious tones.

A fascinating collaboration from two minimalist/Wandelweiser figures: Christian Wolff on prepared piano, whistles, and stones, and Michael Pisaro on guitar, harmonica and stones, recording together in Caimbridge, MA for two extended works, "Looking East" and "Looking West".

Using guidelines related to form, time, sound source and density, the trio of Tim Olive on magnetic pickups, Takahiro Kawaguchi and Makoto Oshiro on self-made instruments, recorded these compositions live, named for the atmosphere of the recording environment.

Percussionist Paul Lovens joins the Lok 03 trio of Alexander von Schlippenbach (piano), Aki Takase (piano), and DJ Illvibe (turntables) for the follow-up to their 2005 debut, here in an extended album of playfully unexpected improv from four masterful players.

Recording in Brooklyn in 2014, this collaboration between Olive and Ben Owen presents four tracks of electronic improvisation using shortwave radio, oscillators, paper, contact microphones and magnetic pickups, creating a mysterious and well-paced album of sound experimentation.

Emphasizing the lyrical aspects of free jazz, the superb trio of Peter Brotzmann on alto & tenor sax and taragato, Fred Hopkins on bass, and Rashied Ali on drums, recorded this album in 1991, now remastered to bring this exceptional music back to the foreground.

Guitarist Stephen O'Malley meets UK free improvising drummer Steve Noble in Philadelphia PA to record this mammoth duo of sound and drone guitar with active, deep drumming, for a mesmerizing album of intense sound and rhythm.

Based in New York but recording this album live at the Velvet Lounge in Chicago in 1991, the quartet of Tom Bruno on drums, Matthew Hyner on bass, and both Daniel Carter and Sabir Mateen on sax & winds, present three extended improvisations of insanely great collective jazz.

Third collaboration between Keiji Haino, one of the most prolific artists of the Japanese experimental / noise scene, and the critically acclaimed ensemble Zeitkratzer, who enthuse with these stunning interpretations of Stockhausen compositions.

Thick, grungy, ecstatic free improvisation crossing into rock territory from the trio of Mats Gustafsson (The Thing) on sax, Brian Chippendale (Lightening Bolt) on drums, and Massimo Pupillo (Zu) on electric bass, a temporary project that evolved into a touring band.

The magnetic heads on Takuji Naka's cassette decks and Tim Olive's magnetic pickups explain The New "Attractive" aspect of the title, as this duo use pliable metals, analog electronics and a battered spring reverb unit to create a unique journey in sound.

A masterful fountain of melodic ideas, intriguing rhythms, and exceptional technical skill from the duo of Hamid Drake on drums and frame drum, and Sylvain Kassap on clarinets and chalumeau, recording live at the France Musique at Studio Theatre dÕAlfortville and in the studio.

A live performance at Judson Church in Manhattan as part of the 20th Vision Festival from the NY/France free improvising trio of Joelle Leandre on double bass, Mat Maneri on viola, and Gerald Cleaver on drums and percussion, two tracks of steadily building, incredibly compatible dialog.

The Swedish duo of percussionist Andreas Pollak and prepared pianist Johan Graden (Adam & Alma) in an album of references and innuendo, clandestine and furtive sounds that evoke great mystery and drama in beautifully shaped sound; evocative music that deceives to emerge from the electronic realm while in actuality coming from all acoustic sources.

The second volume of the project heard in the previous Creative Sources album, "Suspensao", here in a 9-piece electroacoust ensemble with viola, cello, doublebass, alto sax, trombone, piano, electric guitar, computer and percussion, suspenseful lowercase music that unfolds in mysterious, beautiful and rewarding ways.

Live recordings at LOFT in Cologne, Germany from the trio of George Wissel on prepared saxophone, Achim Tang on doublebass, and Simon Camatta on drums & percussion, performing seven "Movements" that use prodigious technique with reserve and direction, revealing the structure of their work as the pieces build and recede in fascinating ways.

Having previously worked together with Joe McPhee and Kent Kessler, this album distills the Portuguese saxophonist Rodrigo Amado and NY drummer/percussionist Chris Corsano to a concentrated sax and drum duo of earnest and edgy playing, bending jazz, free and blues idioms to their will with magnificent technique and power, both clearly elated in their meeting.

Recorded live at Silence Sounds in Guelph Canada, the duo of Xavier Charles on clarinet and Eric Normand on electric bass & objects eschew idiom in favor of their unique natural language on their instruments, applying patient development of truly idiosyncratic and fascinating command through a single extended work punctuated in seven diverse passages.

From 2008-16 until drummer Frank Rosaly moved to Amsterdam, alto saxophonist Nick Mazzarella's Trio was an active part of Chicago's creative jazz scene; in early 2018 Rosaly returned for a visit and Mazzarella composed a suite of 6 new pieces to commemorate the trio's tenth anniversary, the exuberant result this excellent concert recorded at Co-Prosperity Sphere!

A beautiful solo set of 12 improvisations, Michael Attias performing on alto sax with his left hand and piano with his right, captured in the natural reverberation of La Maison en Bois in Abeville-La-Riviere, France; surprisingly his 1st solo album, developed over 12 years yet played in under an hour with no retakes, a wonderful nuanced reflection in tone, melody & color.