For more than 15 years multi-reedist, wind and trumpet player Daniel Carter and drummer Federico Ughi have collaborated in live performance and on record, here showing the results of their work in this duo album, the vinyl edition of their exceptional 2013 CD release that shows their melodic and technical sides, their jazz roots, and their warm camaraderie.

Of interest to lowercase/Wandelweiser fans, the quartet of Billy Gomberg, Anne Guthrie, Richard Kamerman and Takahiro Kawaguchi use synthesizer, french horn, found objects, & field recordings, frequency generators, to create evolving sound environments of unique sound and timbre.

The fourth dance piece by Dutch/Spanish choreographer Ivan Perez to feature an original soundtrack by Rutger Zuydervelt (Machinefabriek), performed live on stage in Korzo in The Hague, and at Vondelpark in Amsterdam, the composer and coreographer developing a movement and sound 'vocabulary' to create a performance that mixes structured and improvised music.

Saxophonist Sabir Mateen's NY based Shapes, Textures, and Sound Ensemble with Steve Swell on trombone, Matt Lavelle on trumpet, Matthew Heyner on bass and Michael T.A. Thompson on drums, run though a gamut of post-bop and collective, creative jazz forms with energy, incredible dexterity, and tremendous group interplay, a great example of the modern spirit of jazz.

A six track album from drummer Donald Sturge Anthony McKenzie II written about the abuse of force from those charged to protect us, in a series of duos with amazing performances from guitarist Nels Cline, saxophonist Arnold Lee, bassist Melvin Gibbs, bassist Dave Hofstra, guitarist Vernon Reid, and drummer/keyboardist CX KIDTRONIX; disturbing and important work.

A duo between two Italian born improvisers--New York based drummer and 577 Label leader Federico Ughi, and pianist Gabriele Meirano, active in the London jazz club scene for more than a decade--for an album of insightful free jazz in a dialog that shows both thoughtful and challenging moments in an open-minded, ultimately lyrical conversation between two like-minded players.

Polyorchard founder and double bassist David Menestres leads the quartet of Jeb Bishop on trombone, Shawn Galvin on percussion, and Laurent Estoppey on saxophone, using skills drawn from both improvisation and compositional music to present six free dialogs showing intent listening amongst the four as they create complex, interweaving, sophisticated statements; impressive!

New York drummer Federico Ughi in a band with long time collaborator David Schnug on sax, Mike Irwin on trumpet, and Jeff Snyder on electronics, more of a creative jazz album than electric, with Leila Adu on vocals and Zach Swanson on bass on 2 tracks each; informed, intelligent and lyrical free improvisation from a tight-knit group of superb players.

TLASILA was an experimental music collective founded in 1990 by composer Tom Smith; this 3 CD + download releases finds a massive cast of artists restructuring the improvisations from the "Noon and Eternity" album into a massive 240 minute work.

The Brooklyn duo of saxophonist Sam Weinberg (Captain Phillips) and synth player Chris Welcome (Chris Pitsiokos, Mike Pride) in an album of abrasive, rhythmically abraded and contorted electro-acoustic improvisation, each player embedding themselves into each other's sound, at time making their instruments indistinguishable from one another.

Pairing electronics with cornet, the duo of French cornetist Louis Laurain and US/Berlin electronicist Pierce Warnecke create an absolutely impressive and frequently frightening confluence of brass and sound, from slow interference tones to fully amplified microscopic elaboration, building environments that shift to surprise, alarm, and entrance their listeners.

Finding free improvising trumpeter Jacob Wick, a master of lowercase approaches using unorthodox techniques, in a more active setting with Chicago drummer Phil Sudderberg (Marker with Vanderkmark, Dave Rempis); together they challenge each other in a give and take of skill and solid discussion, leaving room for unusual and sometimes aberrant technique; joyful!

The rock legacy that is Japan's Acid Mothers Temple led by guitarist Makoto Kawabata reissues their 1st album from 1997, an ensemble of 14 musicians including guitar, synth, sax, bass, drums, didgeridoo, magic cane, and penguin; a heady brew of hypnotic flowing psychedelic, prog-quoting kosmiche, starting their legacy with a prayer and ending with AMT for All!

NY drummer Harris Eisenstadt composes for his quartet with Jeb Bishop on trombone, Tony Malaby on tenor & soprano saxophones, and Jason Roebke on bass, recording live at a Jazzshares concert in The Parlor Room, Northampton, Massachusetts, in their second tour performing Eisenstadt's inventive compositions leading to strong, lyrical soloing with unexpected twists and turns.

Performing in concert at Iklectik in London in 2017, the UK and Norwegian free improvising trio of Pat Thomas on Moog Theremini & IPad based electronics, John Butcher on saxophones, and Stale Liavik Solberg on drums & percussion impress through a mix of masterful free playing and eclectic electroacoustic conversations, an adventurous and wonderfully unpredictable set.

An uncommon solo guitar album from Andrew Smiley, a member of Little Women and the Chris Pitsiokos Quartet, creating textures on the guitar by applying unconventional techniques with his pick and fingers instead of using effects or guitar preparations, and accompanying himself on voice in Haino-esque ways, creating an album of sharp contrast and color.

The debut recording of New York double bassist Sean Ali's improvising string trio with violist Joanna Mattrey and cellist Leila Bordreuil, having worked together since 2015, each brings impressive technique and a somewhat twisted approach to their strings in a diverse set of extended improvisation from pensive and spacious to formidable density.

Two basses and a lower-end saxophone from the trio of Damon Smith on double bass, Andrew Durham on electric bass, and Danny Kamins on baritone sax, Durham also adding effects and "Radio Manipulation" to their deep sound, Durham & Kamins the core of CARL with Damon Smith adding extra underpinnings to their slowly developing, sometimes pensive, sometimes cantankerous, profound improvisation.

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.

Recorded on the last night of 577's Forward Festival 2017 in Brooklyn, the quintet of Daniel Carter (reeds & trumpet), Patrick Holmes (clarinet), Matthew Putman (piano), Hilliard Greene (bass) and Federico Ughi (drums) take their audience on three remarkable journeys of almost chamber-oriented collective free jazz, adventurous and not-to-be-missed examples of modern jazz.

The NY based, long-running trio The Gate led by Dan Peck on tuba and effects, with double bassist Tom Blancarte and drummer Brian Osborne, in a cassette culled from live concerts in Hannover and Brussels while on a European tour in November of 2015, "a brutally unfiltered representation of The Gate's special brand of spontaneous composition."

New York trumpeter Joe Moffett (Earth Tongues) in a solo album of absolutely impressive technique and intensely personal playing, at times using amplifiers and computer applications to generate unique sonic environments for the horn or playing beautifully lyrical tone, timbres, grunts and spits; an album of profound, introspective inner dialog.

Toronto-area saxophonist Colin Fisher, best known for his group I Have Eaten The City, with his collective quartet of NY players Daniel Carter on tenor, alto & soprano saxophones + clarinet & flute, Brandon Lopez on upright bass, and Marc Edwards on drums & percussion, for three extended and exploratory improvisations of exemplary creative insight.

Quietly lurking as it prepares to attack, this Kobra is the free improvising quaret of Aurora Nealand on accordion, alto saxophone, voice & objects, Steve Marquette on acoustic & electric guitars, Anton Hatwich on bass, and Paul Thibodeaux on drums, captured live at Chicago's Hungry Brain during the Instigation Festival for a mysterious 2-part "New Omens" and some "Telly Attire".

The Field/Vidic duo of Slovenian saxophonist based in Switzerland Gregor Vidic and London born drummer Niclas Field is expanded with Japanese free improvising guitarist Tetuzi Akiyama, recording at Gok Sound in Tokyo in 2017 for three exceptional and suspenseful and electroacoustic improvisations, merging melodic and abstract approaches in uniquely detailed ways.

Already planning a duo concert at Chicago's Hungry Brain between saxophonist Dave Rempis and drummer Paal Nilssen-Love as part of their Transmission Series, the duo expanded to a trio with the inclusion of visiting cellist Tomeka Reid, and then to a quintet by adding New York legend Joe McPhee on trumpet & sax, and NY bassist Brandon Lopez, recording this masterful, limited album.

Captured live at Chicago's Elastic Arts, the trio of Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello, Ben Bennett on percussion, and Zoots Houston on synthesizer, work on a nearly microscopic level as they use extended techniques and unusual synthetic timbres, transforming from abrasive and gritty to broad tonal environments, from monumental sound to moments of pin drops; fascinating.

Layered lowercase electroacoustic improv from the US / Mexico City / German trio of Chris Cogburn on percussion & electronics, Juan Garcia on double bass, and Ignaz Schick on turntables & electronics, eclectically informed by concrete sources and abstract electronics over Garcia's bass work and Cogburn's threshold-crossing acoustics & electronic percussion.

Primarily voice improvisations from the duo of Muyassar Kurdi and Ka Baird, also performing on piano, bells, gong, flute and spike fiddle, recorded at Pineapple Reality and Pioneer Works in Brooklyn, NY between 2017 & 2018, their work focused on typically delicate interweaving of their voices and instruments, with a sense of suspense, humor and joyful mystery.

Essentially a string trio, guitarist Brandon Seabrook's Trio with upright bassist Henry Fraser and cellist Daniel Levin is anything but typical string fair, blending improvisation with complex composition and rock sensibilities as one of New York's most unique downtown players takes listeners on a diverse and sometimes demented journey through genre and style.

A split 7" release between Cremaster (Alfredo Costa Monteiro (electronics) and Ferran Fages (feedback mixing board and electroacoustic devices); and the Komora A trio of Karol Koszniec (electronics), Dominik Kowalczyk (laptop) and Jakub Mikolajczyk (modular synth).

A momentous 2020 concert at London's Cafe OTO, presented in two discs, the 1st with label leader Jean-Marc Foussat in a solo improvisation on synth and voice, the 2nd in a trio with Daunik Lazro on tenor & baritone sax, and Evan Parker on soprano sax, the 2 saxophones weaving and responding to Foussat's remarkable alien soundscapes and vocalization in an immersive extended improvisation.

German saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and Vancouver pianist Kris Davis, both living and working in NY, and having worked together in a variety of groups including Laubrock's Anti-House, a trio with drummer Tyshawn Sorey, Tom Rainey's Obligatto, &c. &c., concentrate their sophisticated playing with this duo album of 7 original compositions and 2 free improvisations.

Exploring the lineage of the Dukes of Bedford, the Russell lineage in Bedford, England, in groupings of acoustic & electric guitarists John Russell, Ray Russell, and Henry Kaiser along with double bassist Ollie Brice, from duos to quartets, eight Duke "Russells" from 1680 to 2003 are explored through intricate and joyfully creative and technically amazing string improvisations.

Taking his title from a poem by Octavio Paz with titles from translations by Lysander Kemp of other Octavio Paz poems, this solo album from double bassist Damon Smith is his definitive statement on the instrument: 23 tracks from 46 seconds to 5 minutes 50, developed over 15 years and displaying Smith's incredible technique and creative intent; incomparable.

The title aptly describes the intense excitement and exhilaration of NY guitarist Brandon Seabrook's second trio album on Astral Spirits, performed with rhythm giants Cooper-Moore on Diddley Bow (a single-string bass) and free jazz drum legend Gerald Cleaver, the two creating a percolating interactive foundation for Seabrooks powerfully expressive and investigative playing.

Originally planned for release in conjunction with their appearance at the 2020 Pitchfork Festival, saxophonist Dustin Laurenzi's Snaketime Octet celebrates the theoretical 104th birthday of eccentric NY composer Moondog with 4 tracks intended for his 2019 Snaketime album, performed with Jason Stein, Nick Mazzarella, Chad McCullough, two drummers and bass.

The long collaboration between saxophonist Mike Pride and drummer/percussionist Jonathan Moritz is concentrated in these superb studio recording, bring great clarity to the far-ranging and detailed interactions both bring to their improvisations through unusual technique, an expansive arsenal of percussive devices, and wonderfully inventive attitudes.

A soulful and lyrically passionate album of modern jazz from Chicago drummer Charles Rumback in a trio with pianist Jim Baker and bassist John Tate, their third album together, with all three bringing compositions to the session, yielding a sensitive, understated yet impeccable balance of melodic music that reveals great strength at its center.

Pieces written for the Ever Present Orchestra, a 13-piece ensemble formed in 2016 exclusively to perform composer Alvin Lucier's works, with a core of 4 guitarists, 3 saxophones, 4 violins and piano, here presenting Lucier's continuing exploration of the behaviour of sound in physical space, blending electronic and acoustic sources with subtle tension and mystery.

Working extensively together in recording and touring, Japanese experimental sound artist Takuji Naka and Canadian ex-pat Tim Olive living in Kobe, Japan, recorded thise seven improvisations in the studio in Kyoto, 2019, using lo-fi electronics, distressed cassette tape and self-made instruments to create a unique sound in unusual dialogs of mysterious sonic motion.

A live recording from zentri-fuge in Berlin, led by trombonist Jeb Bishop, with Milan bassist Antonio Borghini (Mike Patton's Mondo Cane) and German drummer Michael Griener (Carl-Ludwig Hübsch' Primordial Soup), in a collective set of free and energetic improvisations, five pieces that "Jounce", "Jitter", "Plumb" and "Dither" through an exciting and expressive concert.

The second release for the Chicago trio of Keefe Jackson on tenor & sopranino saxophones, Jim Baker on piano & synthesizer, and Julian Kirshner on drums, following their 2016 album The Noisy Miner, are heard in two performances a year apart at the Hungry Brain, each an extended exploration of remarkably compatible, creative and uniquely lyrical collective collaboration.av

Jessica Pavones String Ensemble with Pavone and Abby Swidler on violas, and Erica Dicker and Angela Morris on violins, are recorded live at Firehouse 12 in a set of Pavone compositions combining traditional notation and improvisation, with a focus on sustained collaborative playing and the application of ideas exploring the healing potential of sonic vibrations.

A series of ominous duos on the dark side from NY improviser Jeremiah Cymerman on clarinets & pedals, and Charlie Looker (Extra Life, Psalm Zero) on guitars & piano, each of the five pieces exploring murky caverns of warmly bleak environments rendered through Looker's deep piano & guitar work, perforated by cracks of light through Cymerman's riffs & exclamations.

Vocalist Amirtha Kidambi (Elder Ones, Mary Halvorson's Code Girl) and guitarist/composer Matteo Liberatore create sonic environments and aural landscapes without using effects, slowly evolving their work so as to allow each utterance and sustaining note to be fully absorbed, their meditative and introspective works rewarding to the attentive listener.

A "document of sonic purging" from New York sound artists Merche Blasco and Gryphon Rue, a combination of compositions and electroacoustic improvisation using an unusual collection of instruments--EMS Synthi AKS, modular synth chain, harmonium, voice, percussion and musical saw--applied through diverse approaches to create inspired landscapes and curious constructions.

Using unusual techniques and a collection of instruments that include the standard Western instruments of cello and flute, along with guembri, sulittu, dilli kaval, bass xun, launeddas (mancosedda, tumbu), plus the application of objects against strings, the Italian duo of Antonio Bertoni & Stefano Leonardi engage in seven remarkable and assertive improvised duos.

During the lockdown of 2020 clarinetist and composer Aaron Novik recorded the sounds of clarinet, bass clarinet and contrabass clarinet, using those samples to create this 10-part composition, a work of active counterpoint and minimalist structures with a playful sense of humor, the character of the samples bringing forth both acoustic and electronic evocations.

"Regering" signifies "Government", the title and track names derived from the works of B. Traven, in the first meeting between sound artist and composer Matrijn Comes and guitarist Lukas Simonis (AA Kismet, Coolhaven), in a dark album of subtle innuendo and detail, running the spectrum from nightmarish environments to hopeful glimmers; an impressive collaboration.

Frond, aka Richard Bultitude, is a UK sound artist who creates rich soundscapes of guitar, synthetics, field recordings and other ethereal elements, the mix of live instrumentation over drone and ambient environments adding warmth and personality to beautifully crafted works, each exuding a sense of inner calm through innately melodic music replete with detail.

Six variations in Lithuanian sound artist and composer Gintas K's work composed during an art residency in MoKS (moks.ee), Estonia, each variation between 8 to 12 minutes long evolving interactions between granulated and continuously shifting computer generated sounds, thick electronics that leaves space amidst the synthetics to create digestible and intriguingly compelling works.

With the haunting impression of spiritual peacefulness and inner contemplation, Netherlands sound & experimental musician Matthijs Kouw blurs synthetic sound, field recordings and acousmatic sources into a reflection of his interest in Daoism and his visit to China's Wudang mountains, where he studied Chinese meditation and martial arts.

Prolific sound artist Francisco López, with more than 378 diverse works composed over 40 years, from nearly silent to overwhelming swells of sonic force, here in a set of eight pieces composed from different source materials, pieces and origins, using field recordings, synthetics and sources of mysterious origin, paced and placed in profound and breathtaking ways.

Rutger Zuydervelt (aka Machinefabriek) invited 41 drummer/percussionists including Tony Buck, Vasco Trilla, Tim Barnes, Greg Stuart, Cyril Bondi, &c. to take part in a project by recording a few short fills or phrases, which Zuydervelt used as "Lego Bricks" to build a series of short rhythmical collages, the results being 24 diverse and fascinating compositions.

The electroacoustic duo of singer Andrea Silvia Giordano and drummer Nicholas Remondino, working with Pierre Bastien, E-cor Ensemble, Gianluca Verlingieri, Maria Dybbroe and Torstein Lavik Larsen, create uniquely motioned works of decay, deconstruction and destruction, percussion and voice weaving amid unusual sonic sources both abstract and rhythmic.

The fifth album from Amsterdam avant rock band Plan Kruutntoone led by Hans Visser on guitar, banjo & voice, and drummer/percussionist Chris MŸller, is a diverse set of recording that bring a sense of isolation and introspection, including spoken word pieces with Samuel Beckett text fragments, and a string quartet composed by Hans Visser; unique and singular.

Inspired by Jeroen Diepenmaat's Xerox collage art book, "co//age co//py", sound artist Jos Smolders developed these tracks as a response through 9 brief works and one larger construction, intersecting voice, synth, sax, piano and field recordings in a mix of oddly and abruptly sliced sound offset with periods of beauty; a compellingly curious album.

The first part of guitarist, sound artist and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Junnic's Fabula trilogy evokes dynamic and mercurial environments through intuitive approaches, altering and transforming components and source material in acousmatic ways over which acoustic instruments sometimes intone, the results warm and intriguing, implying melody and engaging the listener.

Chicago tenor saxophonist Gerrit Hatcher, known for his duos with Anton Hatwich and with Julian Kirshner, the improvising trio Devouring the Guilt with Eli Namay & Bill Harris and a trio with Mars Williams & Lia Kohl, is heard here in three extended solo improvisations, with strong tone riffing on grooves, exuding warm melodies, and running demanding technical passages on his horn.

Featuring electronically-augmented vocal interpretations of lieder songs by such composers as Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann, New York vocalist Judith Berkson also presents purely electronic pieces engaging noise and feedback-oriented vignettes, the evolution of her project started in 2016 as she re-contextualizes classical music in powerfully expressive ways.

An improvisational investigation into two bass drums over two extended recordings from West Coast experimental improvisers Kevin Corcoran and Jacob Felix Heule, as they apply an arsenal of unusual techniques and engage every inch of the drums with a diverse set of objects, evoking strange sounds, pattering rhythmic echoes, metallic cries and deep rumbling effects.

Recorded primarily at Issue Project Room in Brooklyn and leveraging the natural resonance of that performance space, the New York trio of innovative improvisers Henry Frase on double bass, John McCowen on Bb and contrabass clarinets and Sam Weinberg on tenor & soprano saxophones explore the peripheries of their instruments in intense and reflective interplay.

GRM alumnus and collaborator with Pierre Schaeffer & Francois Bayle, French electroacoustic, acousmatic and musique concrete composer Beatriz Ferreyra is heard in five works from 40 years of compositions, astonishing pieces of embraceable, radical, strange and inspired sound, including the amazing "Mad Man's Song" and works dedicated to Bayle & Bernard Bashet.

Initiating like a jet shaking the sky, the trio of Kevin Corcoran on percussion & objects, Giacomo Salis on percussion, objects & field recordings and Paolo Sanna on percussion & objects create otherworldly sonic environments that project collapsing and ringing events above often turbulent foundations, creating side-long journeys that engage through mysterious and surmisable sound.

Recorded at Elektronmusikonstudion EMS, Stockholm and Studio W, Brussels between 2017 & 2019, Giovanni Di Domenico presents two extended compositions for solo piano and electronics, melodically evolving piano figures taking the foreground over unusual rhythmic and percussive interactions, building in complexity and releasing in exquisite ways.

A series of unusual improvisations between London free improvising trombonist Edward Lucas (Hyperion Ensemble, London Experimental Ensemble) and experimental sound artist, turntablist & percussionist Graham Dunning, merging acoustic sources with controlled feedback, objects and field recordings, pressed to dubplate to create these engagingly strange and concise dialogs.

Using small objects and contact microphones to create peacefully clacking, mewling and idiosyncratic utterances, sound artists Takamitsu Ohta and Anne-Francoise Jacques developed this installation shown in 2019 at the Bonjour! Gendaibunmei gallery in Kyoto, recorded by Jacques as a tour of the various sonic manifestations that a visitor to the gallery might experience.

The fourth release from the long-standing sonic research duo of Montreal sound artist Anne-F Jacques, who uses "rotating devices" based around small amplified motors, and Montreal ex-patriot living in Kobe, Japan Tim Olive (845 Audio), using magnetic pickups on objects and self-built instruments, here in six richly detailed and sometimes curiously menacing recordings.

Applying techniques similar to those of the prepared piano, Japanese experimental artist Kayu Nakada uses circuit bending--circuit boards from electronic instruments short circuited for new effects--joining forces with Japan-based Canadian electronic instrument maker Tim Olive (845 Audio) for four works of intriguingly interactive glitch, hum, static and sonic inexplicables.

Using handmade devices and contraptions including small motors and found objects, Montreal sound experimenter Anne-Francoise Jacquese amplifies her miniature devices to create unexpectedly large textures and rhythms, which she manipulates with great instinct to create fascinating sonic environments, heard here in four pieces recorded in Montreal and Sackville from 2018-19.

The core of Chicago's Mako Sica--Brent Fuscaldo (electric bass, voice, harmonica & percussion) and Przemyslaw Krys Drazek (electric trumpet, electric guitar & mandolin)--join forces with Hamid Drake on drums & percussion, Tatsu Aoki on upright bass & shamisen and Cheer-Accident's Thymme Jones on keyboards, trumpet, balloon & voice for a warmly spiritual album.

An excellent blend of electronics and acoustics as saxophonist, flutist and trumpeter Daniel Carter meets sound artist Tobias Wilner from world-renowned electronic pop band Blue Foundation, with Wu-Tang Clan bass player Djibril Toure and drum wiz Federico Ughi rounding out this forward-thinking album of hazy and rhythmic electroacoustic environments.

Thirteen succinct improvisations pitting Gordon Grdina's swinging middle-eastern flavors on the oud offset by gritty, experimental guitar work against drummer Jim Black's well-chosen and rock-solid grooves, an engaging album that shifts and explores a tremendous range of ideas and adventurous attitudes that span jazz, rock and experimental genres with ease.

With virtually the same lineup as their Feeding Tube album Ourania, the Chicago-based duo of Mako Sica--Brent Fuscaldo (electric bass, voice, harmonica & percussion) and Przemyslaw Krys Drazek (electric trumpet, electric guitar & mandolin)--again join with Tatsu Aoki on bass & shamisen and Thymme Jones on keyboards, trumpet, balloon & voice, subbing drummer Jacob Fawcett.