Five fascinating works composed from old cassette tapes accelerated or slowed down, layered and transformed with analog devices, with the addition of sources from movies soundtracks and classical or liturgical music extracts.
A beautifully balanced Downtown NY album mixing rock forms with improvisation from some of NY's finest improvisers: the trio of Mary Halvorson (guitar, voice, compositions), Kyle Forester (bass), and Kevin Shea (drums) with guests Peter Evans, Sam Kulik, and Dan Peck.
Electric Bird Noise artist Brian Lea McKenzie extends his concepts in a new duo with vocalist Claudia Gregory (Exhaust the Fox, Claudia Versus the Queen of Hearts), with a new band name and a compelling set of epic electro-rock songs.
Electric Bird Noise (Brian Lea McKenzie) goes back to his guitar roots for a challenging record built from dissonant chords, which McKenzie refers to as "elevator music for art galleries"; hypnotically jarring music creating a unique sonic tapestry.
Wandelweiser artist Manfred Werder and Japanese field recording artist Toshiya Tsunoda in a large, layered work that merges and contrasts natural and urban sounds into a detailed work of subtle ambiance and intriguing sound.
A collaboration between two Seoul, South Korean sound artists--Hong Chulki and Ryu Hankil--both performing on no-input mixer & objects for an album of electronic, glitch and sputtering sound with an extreme dynamic range and twisted purpose.
The duo of pianist Tonino Miano and trumpeter Brian Groder, both NY based, in a sophisticated jazz duo that borrows from melodic, avant and compositional jazz forms in a strong and compelling dialog.
Pianist Shipp's long-standing trio with bassist Michael Bisio and drummer Whit Dickey, complex and inspired compositions that makes modern creative approaches to jazz beautifully accessible and essential.
The second take of Boston area drummer Luther Grays' project Lawnmower with Jim Hobbs on sax, Kaethe Hostetter on violin and Winston Braman on electric bass, excellent jazz with unique instrumentation and a diversity of approaches.
Saxophonist Rodrigo Amado in a quartet with 2/3's of Red Trio - bassist Hernani Faustino and drummer Gabriel Ferrandini - and guitarist Manuel Mota adding unusual angles to their exemplary blues-based free improvisation.
The duo of French saxophonist Matthieu Donarier and Dutch pianist/prepared pianist Albert van Veenendaal (I Compani), beautifully paced and inventive dialog between two melodic players who embrace both improvisational and compositional styles.
Three groupings and three large works from Portugese trumpeter Sei Miguel, in bands including Rafael Toral, Erenesto Rodrigues, Nuno Tores, &c., performances of scores that he's written over the past 30 years that have never or have rarely been heard previously.
A superb modern jazz release from NY bassist Eric Revis with Chad Taylor (drums), Bill McHenry (sax) and Darius Jones (sax), plus special guest Branford Marsalis on two tracks.
The trio of Thanos Chrysakis on synth, radio, gongs & laptop; Wade Matthews on synth & field recordings; and Javier Pedreira on guitar, in studio recordings of edgy electroacoustic improvisation using a wide sound palette of indescribable sources.
Norway's younger generation of improvising musicians, acoustic and electronic, perform in percussionist Paal Nilssen-Love's Large Unit from their first EP, a live recording from Molde Jazzfestival 2013.
Using an alto saxophone where the original mechanisms have been replaced with water, gas & compressed air taps, saxophonist Sergio Merce can microtonally move the tuning of any note and create multiphonics, allowing him to play several sonic layers while using circular breathing.
Percussionist Scott Davidson, whose music is informed by jazz, classical Indian and Middle Eastern music, teamed up with pianist Matthew Shipp, bassist Michael Bisio, drummer Whit Dickey and reedist Lloyd Shorter for this album of world encompassing and rhythmic jazz.
Drummer Gerry Hemingway in a CD & DVD release, 15 audio tracks and accompanying video and interview, dividing the program into "mist, dust, light, and sex", highlighting aspects of this prominent percussionist that expand our understanding of his prodigious abilities.
After recording Stroomtoon in December 2011, electronic sound artist Rutger Zuydervelt wanted to capture more of the roughness and spontaneity of his live performances, so he recorded more material for this second installation.
Two different renderings of the same composition by Nathaniel Bartlett featuring an acoustic and electronic manipulation of the marimba and a mallet-tracking computer interface designed by Bartlett.
Sound artist Nathaniel Bartlett electronically processes the marimba and a variety of metal objects in an extended composition commissioned by sculptor Andree Valley for an exhibition featuring metallic sculptures.
Electronic artist Nathaniel Bartlett (marimba, computer) is joined by Geoffrey Brady (percussion) and Nils Bultmann (viola) for a physical and temporal sound experience.
Two pieces by sound artist Nathaniel Bartlett, one written for percussionist Justin Alexander and the second studying an enormous variety of sounds from metal objects.
The saxophone trio of Jonas Kullhammar, bassist Torbjorn Zetterberg and drummer Espen Aalberg, the 2nd release in their Basement Sessions merging bop and free European forms in masterful ways.
West Coast trombonist and electronic artist Michael Dessen's electroacoustic trio with bassist Christopher Tordini and drummer Dan Weiss, balancing detailed compositions and radically open improvisation that equally embraces groove-based improv and soundscape.
Bassist John Hebert continues to explore his Louisana/Cajun roots with his trio of Benoit Delbecq on piano (plus synth & electronics) and drummer Gerald Cleaver, challenging and enigmatic improvisation with a solid rhythmic center.
Known for his more abstract Memorize the Sky project, tenor saxophonist and clarinetist Matt Bauder's band Day in Pictures adheres to jazz traditions with the superb quintet of Nate Wooley (trumpet), Kris Davis (piano), Jason Ajemian (bass) and Tomas Fujiwara (drums).
Rich electronic space explorations in the tradition of Ash Ra Tempel, Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream, &c.
Max Nagl (composer, saxophones), Otto Lechner (accordion, piano, voice) and Bradley Jones (double bass) play ten pieces inspired by Charles Mingus but with a unique signature that is Nagl's own.
Six musicians play along with Wolfgang Mitterer's one hour and fifty-four minute computer track which leaves ample room for free improvisation, mixing contemporary composition with electronic and jazz music.
Composer and pianist Russ Lossing explores the eloquence of silence as his music grows out of silence and the space between thought and gesture in this trio with Ed Schuller (bass) and Paul Motian (drums).
Two slow-motion radio pieces by Swiss audio artist Herbert Distel that blur the threshold between the "real" sound world and the sonic realms of illusion and imagination.
Musician and composer Max Nagl in his first release that breaks away from his standard miniaturist compositions and is played with a broad-band ensemble.
An hour of improvised duo music by Per Henrik Wallin (piano) and Sven-Ake Johansson (drums) on one CD, and another hour of exceptional playing by the trio of Wallin, Peter Janson (double bass) and Leif Wennerstrom (drums) on the second CD.
Pianist Richard Grossman in a trio with double bassist Ken Filiano and percussionist Alex Cline, playing freely improvised jazz in a live setting.
Composer and saxophonist Jon Lloyd comes together for the first time as a quartet with Stan Adler (cello), Marcio Mattos (bass), and Paul Clarvis (percussion) in a series of loosely composed works with a lot of room for improvisation.
Indian-born, currently Amsterdam-based American Rajesh Mehta expands the timbral and textural palette of the trumpet in twelve pieces with accompaniment by Paul Lovens on drums and cymbals.
German composer Bernd Konrad masterfully balances composed and improvised parts in these pieces of construction and decay that constantly change texture.
An ambient electronic adventure driven by experimental touches of noise and glitch in a journey through moods of mystery, melancholy, eminent peril, and even elation inspired by the magickal strength of Aleister Crowley.
Theo Ceccarelli expands his string trio from their Ayler debut album, "Carrousel", adding bassist and free vocalist Joelle Leandre to the group, yielding a new dimension to their rapidly expanding repertoire of rich, interactive improvisation.
The beautiful and introspective duo of guitarist Scott Fields and Jeffrey Lependorf, a certified master of the shakuhachi, performing new works for guitar and shakuhachi that combine written and improvised material, lovely and intelligent music.
The inquisitive nature of saxophonist Perelman searches for denser forms of expression with pianist Matthew Shipp and two drummers - Whit Dickey and Gerald Cleaver - allowing intense rhythmic playing over which Perelman's expressive voice slurs and shines.
Double bassist and balafonist Enrico Fazio leads this 9-piece band, here in their 3rd Leo release, demonstrating his unique approach to harmony and melody through sometimes dense but always accessible and compelling compositions.
Germany's Grid Mesh (Frank Paul Schubert-saxophones; Andreas Willers-guitar; Willi Kellers-drums; Johannes Bauer-trombone) performs suspenseful, multi-dimensional improv with a fascinating blend of acoustic & electric sounds, here captured live in Madrid, 2011.
Russian new music from reed and wind player Alexey Kruglov, in a quartet with Alexey Lapin on piano, Oleg Yudanov on drums, and Estonian guitarist Jaak Sooaar, energetic and unusual improvisation recorded live at Jazz Centre in Yaroslavl, Russia.
Acclaimed free improvising saxophonist Jack Wright is joined by his son Ben on double bass for these exceptional duos that balance space and color through extended techniques and an impecable sense of timing.
After many years collaborating together, New York saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and drummer Tom Rainey present their debut as a duo in a series of improvisations, from subtle interaction to rousing interplay.
Two amazing wind players - saxophonist, clarinetist and flautist Vinny Golia and saxophonist Urs Leimgruber - in a series of free improvising duos pushing their instruments into unusual and captivating territories.
A set of playful, upbeat duos from West Coast-born bassist Greg Cohen and NY guitarist Bill Frisell, celebrating Cohen's home state of California in 6 originals and 3 California covers.
Site specific recordings made for two live performances in Le Havre and Liege (2010) by sound artists Eric La Casa and Cedric Peyronnet, one disc each of sound sculpted from the same field recordings, but with vastly different results.
