Amon Tobin: ISAM

This is fantastic.

He’s so freaking brilliant.

Or just check Amon Tobin’s website, which has to be the best site on the web right now.

Upcoming Releases: Plans & Ideas

EP with Doug Stailey
Collection of improvised songs with collaborators
Collection of improvised songs with first time collaborators
EP with Noel Mueller
Zombie Christ: Back from the Dead EP

Introductions & Improv Sessions

Over the past few months, I’ve had some introductory jams with some folks, notably cellist Doug Stailey and guitarist (and luthier) David Cinnamon.  I’ve recorded these sessions.  If I can find enough folks to have introductory jams with, I’ll try to put together a collection of tracks for release.

Sometimes, I’ll hit it off well enough musically with someone that we’ll plan to get together another time for more improvised music.  Maybe I’ll finagle enough of those, too, for another release.

Artscape 2011

I haven’t received official “official” notice yet, but rumor has it I’ll have an installation piece at Artscape this year.  Last year, I was part of the “Concatenation (disambiguation)” exhibit across from the Charles Theater.  I presented a number of surround sound compositions for it.  Given that the exhibit was in a garage, I decided to have my pieces played through two cars parked rear bumper to rear bumper with the doors open and the music blaring.  It worked splendidly and the natural reverb and delay created by the structure itself made everything sound wonderful.

This year, I’ve upped my game a bit and am in the midst of two related, but different installation pieces.  Once I receive official word, I’ll spill the beans on the contents of both projects.

Update: I just received an email saying a contract is in the mail!

A Friend’s Blog

My friend Jen has a blog.  It’s fun and funny and witty and all that good stuff.  If I get around to it, I’ll contribute some ridiculously overwrought whiskey reviews because I happen to like whiskey.

Here’s her blog: http://www.biancasandbourbon.wordpress.com/

And here’s a video of me and Jen hanging out one time.

Geoff Wilt has an EP coming out soon

A friend of mine and musical polymath, Geoff Wilt, has an EP coming out soon via Fuzzy Panda’s Temporary Release Program.  Geoff is a College Park, MD multi-instrumentalist who has been in such disparate sounding bands as the free jazz noise band They Can Never Take Our Crow and the Baltimore garage punk band Soft Cement.  He drummed for both.

His upcoming EP is mostly acoustic guitar and voice.  From what I’ve heard so far, it’s fantastic.

I’ve been lucky enough to jam with him a number of times.  He’s a great songwriter, fantastic guitarist, huge Bob Dylan fan, and an all-around good guy.

C’mon now

Rechercher: The Narrows

In 2001 or so, I received a CD in the mail.  At the time, I was running a collectivist record label with some folks in the DC music scene.  The senders of this disc wanted show help.  Unfortunately, we were all rather unversed in the nonsensical methods of show booking.  To us, shows were these random gifts from heaven that seemed to be the result of fate, talent, and friendship.  We didn’t know that shows stem from money or networking.  Naive? Yes.  Passionate? Yes. Prematurely jaded? Most certainly.

The CD I received (indeed, my roommate CJ was also a recipient) was from a band based in Bellingham, Washington.  I had never heard of Bellingham and could barely register thoughts of a place so far away that wasn’t L.A. or Seattle.  This demo came from The Narrows.  Four songs.  Guitar, bass, drums, occasional vocals.  It sounded like it was recorded by a band member or perhaps a friend.  But it rocked.  The Narrows’s demo sounded like an angst ridden Dead Meadow.  The vocals howled and the guitar mourned.  One song, in particular, caught my attention: The B.S.A.  I may be wrong on the title, but it was so heavy and sparse that I was hooked instantly.

Fast forward to today.  Yes, this very day.  I got the urge to listen to The Narrows.  I put on their demo.  It still rocks.  I zipped it and sent it to some friends, thinking that this band had vanished in the unfound annals of the pre-Google era.  Nevertheless, I searched.  Here is the order of searches I performed, based on memories half-forgotten or made up from nearly a decade ago:
The Narrows band
the narrows “the bsa”
“the narrows” “the bsa” music
“the narrows” “down in the darkness” “no need for progress”
“the narrows ” “b.s.a.” portland
“the narrows” “b.s.a.” guitar brother bass (thinking that maybe two of the band members are brothers)
“the narrows” guitar bass band
Finally, a hit.  A Bellingham, WA band called Lands Farther East played their final show with The Narrows in Bellingham, WA. 
“skrocki records”
“david glen kyle” (I emailed this guy and some other folks)
“the narrows” bellingham
Found them!

It took awhile, but I found The Narrows.  Check them out.  They still rock, and they’ve clearly grown as songwriters.  Maybe I can convince them to do a temporary release through Fuzzy Panda and/or get them a show in DC or even link up with them when I’m on tour this summer.

Retrouver or sankofa

There may be some fuzz emanating from my apartment this evening.

Pleasant Surprises

This morning, I found this blog sharing my last EP, Peculiar Ghost.  I think that’s wonderful.  I don’t know the purveyor of the blog, but I’m glad I happened upon it – there’s a lot of great ambient stuff there.

And now I’m going to check this out: Syuzhet.  Syuzhet means subject or theme, according to Ivan.