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Greetings to you, my much beleaguered friends/colleagues/community, This a bit of self-promotion, but also (I think) a project of interest. I have an album releasing on the stellar Astral Spirits label next Friday, May 22. This record, entitled Apura! (Tagalog for "very urgent"), is a collection of improvised trios and quartets featuring the company of the O board's own Alexander Hawkins, South African legend Louis Moholo-Moholo, and UK great Trevor Watts. This project is the fulfillment of a longtime dream to convene an international, intergenerational quartet of creative voices for the goal of making music that is at once spontaneous, contemporary, and suffused with the energies of the incendiary past. To put it in so many words, this felt and feels like crisis music for today in much the same way that the music of the Blue Notes, Amalgam, etc. was crisis music for its era. You can pre-order and preview some tracks here: https://apura.bandcamp.com/ As some of you may know, it was my goal to bring a version of this project out to the US for a run of May concerts. Clearly this didn't/won't happen, though we're going to try for a series of December dates featuring myself, Alex, Asian American jazz innovator Francis Wong, and the great Andrew Cyrille. Will keep you posted, but in the meantime, I've scheduled a livestream "Album Release Concert" (accompanied by prerecorded elements from the Moholo/Tippett album No Gossip). In summary: it's going to be strange, but it's going to be cool. May 22, 7pm PT: https://youtu.be/daAtrW-nAF8

Hello, all- I've been posting here with (admitted) scarcity as of late, but I thought that, considering the pedigree, this project might be of interest to some of the folks on here. The project in question is Apura, a brand new program meant to explore the intersection between legacies in free improvised music and social transformation in an era of worldwide political upheaval. For this project, I'm doubly excited to be working with Francis Wong (co-founder of Asian Improv aRts and associate of the late Glenn Horiuchi, Jon Jang, Fred Anderson, etc.), the O board's own (brilliant) Alexander Hawkins, and the legendary Louis Moholo-Moholo. The project is slated for two dates in the SF Bay Area in May of 2020--May 21 at the San Francisco International Arts Festival, May 22 at the California Jazz Conservatory in Berkeley. It's our intention to document the proceedings for our out-of-town listeners. Considering the sheer complexity of this project, we're actively seeking donors to help offset some of the considerable costs. It's a tough time of the year, but absolutely anything, big or small, helps. More info/donation page is here: https://chuffed.org/project/apura-improvised-music-bay-area Perks include a download of Grex's full discography (HERE) + a copy of a forthcoming record that, I by the way, also need to introduce: a double album featuring the UK version of this project (w/Messrs. Hawkins + Moholo-Moholo + the great Trevor Watts) is slated for release in April of next year. Wherever/however you may be, happy holidays to all and hope to trade some overlong screeds with you soon, Karl Evangelista/ep1str0phy

Hey folks- I'm emerging from a period of relative inactivity out here to share some wild news: my art rock project Grex is touring the American West Coast for the entirety of June. I've (happily) met and encountered some of you at Grex jaunts in the past. This one is a little different--for the first time in something like five years, we're touring with the duo iteration of the band. We've expanded our arsenal from keys and guitar to a pretty strange multi-percussion setup--it's a "two man band" in the vein of Skeleton Crew, and we're excited to be tapping into that tradition of hybridized songs, psychedelic filigree, noise, and free jazz. More information here: http://www.grexsounds.com The dates: June 4, Joshua Tree, CA, 7pm at Beatnik Lounge (w/Ahead Change & Hive Minds) June 5, Long Beach, CA, 9pm at Que Sera (w/Celik Brothers & DJ Dank Steak) June 6, Los Angeles, CA, 8pm at The Mint (w/featuring Joe Berardi, w/Beyond Rare & The HiGrounds) June 8, Los Angeles, CA, 10pm at Hyperion Tavern June 9, San Diego, CA, 9pm at The Merrow (w/Nexus 4000 & Whelmer) June 10, Pasadena, CA, 8pm at Battery Books (featuring Dan Clucas) June 11, Long Beach, CA, 8pm at Rebel Bite (w/Nathanael and Frankie) June 14, Eugene, OR, 9pm at Old Nicks (w/Mood Area 52) June 16, Portland, OR, 9:30pm at Kenton Club (w/Alto!, Noah Bernstein) June 17, Seattle, WA, 7:30pm at Good Shepherd Center (Wayward Music Series w/Citizens Band) June 18, Portland, OR, 8:30pm at Turn Turn Turn (w/Toyboat Toyboat Toyboat, Bubble Cats) June 20, Seattle, WA, 7:30pm at The Royal Room (part of Father Daughter) June 23, Quincy, CA, at Main Street Sports Bar June 24, Sacramento, CA, at Gold Lion Arts (part of Gold Lion Festival) June 25, Berkeley, CA, 9pm, at The Starry Plough (w/3 Leafs, Dire Wolves) I'm especially excited to be playing with a couple of remarkable guests: ace journeyman Joe Berardi on percussion (6/6) and the remarkable LA trumpeter Dan Clucas (6/10). Also of possible (particular) interest to Organissimo people: we're sharing the bill with some of Seattle's best young improvisers at the longstanding Wayward Music Series (6/17), and with a murderers' row of creative musicians in Sacramento (6/24--featuring the great Stuart Liebig, bassist on Julius Hemphill's Georgia Blue). Lastly, a couple of samples: the first (Stump F***ers) is from the band's first run as a duo, the second (Mango Mango) from our current book. We can't wait to share this bizarre new version of the band with everyone.

Hello, all- I'm breathlessly excited to be announcing that Grex--my Oakland-based trio--will be hitting the East Coast for a special run of dates (split between NY, DC, Virginia, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts.) We've entitled the tour Electric Ghost Parade. The music we're taking on tour with us--none of which has been played on the East Cost before--is different from the stuff we've done in the past. A lot of the process of creating this music has centered on confronting our "creative apparitions"--the "big" stuff that a lot of outre jazz, rock, and electronic music is beholden to. When at first we thought we'd be consumed by the catastrophic burden of "creating something new," we've come to rejoice in the process. (Hence the "parade.") So we're proud to be bringing this fresh slew of music--which jousts and/or battles, in phases, with everything from Enemy-era Sonny Sharrock, Are You Experienced Hendrix, Surfer Rosa Pixies, the Spontaneous Music Ensemble, J Dilla's Donuts, and Deerhoof--out East. For fans of interesting "local music" of all stripes: we have some pretty killer bills in order, featuring some genuine underground powerhouses. So it's "art rock" or "post jazz" or whatever, but more than anything else, I'm proud of it and it's fun. If I catch any Organissimo folk when I'm out on tour, beverages are in order. Details: TOUR DATES Sept. 24, Philadelphia, PA, 8pm at AUX Space (Fire Museum Presents, w/Superlith, George Korein & the Spleen) Sept. 25, Washington, DC, 9pm at Velvet Lounge (with Chester Hawkins, Plums) Sept. 27, Arlington, VA, 9pm at Galaxy Hut (with Lost Civilizations) Sept. 29, Montclair, NJ, 9pm at Meatlocker (with PA Angelo, Ghypsee and the Wichts, et al.) Sept. 30, Cambridge, MA, 7pm at Lilypad (with Kenne Highland of the Gizmos, Fable Grazer) Oct. 1, Brooklyn, NY, 9pm at Muchmore’s (with Weasel Walter/Chris Pitsiokos Duo, Andrew Barker Trio, Max Jaffe/Brandon Seabrook/Tim Dahl) Oct. 2, Brooklyn, NY, 9:30pm at Pine Box Rock Shop (with Young Nudist, Aaron Novik's Abebbe (w/Ava Mendoza, etc.), Marc Edwards & Slipstream Time Travel) Oct. 3, Brooklyn, NY, 8pm at Panoply (Brooklyn Experimental Song Carnival, with Naked Roots, et al.) Listen to Grex: http://grex.bandcamp.com More Info: http://www.grexsounds.com

Epistrophy Arts is proud to present the last event of our 2013 season. Please join us for a special concert with the electro-acoustic free improvisation trio Konk Pack at the Museum of Human Achievement. KONK PACK Tim Hodgkinson (lap steel guitar, electronics, clarinets) Thomas Lehn (analogue synthesizer) Roger Turner (drumsets and percussion) Wednesday October 16 doors 8PM, music 8:30PM Museum of Human Achievement (map) advance tickets $13, $15 @ door tickets available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/485761 “Konk Pack are utterly awesome. Featuring Thomas Lehn on the craziest old EMS synthi A, Tim Hodgkinson on flat guitar and Roger Turner on percussion, the show is awkwardly brilliant and defiant. With startling combinations of punkish nuisance, ingenious change-ups, and rolling, stumbling, tripping and flipping sound inventions, Konk Pack are one of the most exciting Improv groups in the world.” The Wire http://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/dec/19/konk-pack-review KONK PACK brings together three major figures in contemporary music. For over 10 years the group has amazed audiences at festivals and concerts all over the world with the sheer energy of its rapid-fire interplay, earning numerous critical accolades. Since 1997, Konk Pack have toured regularly throughout Europe, completed three major tours of the US, and have been described by The Wire magazine's Lee Henderson as "one of the most exciting improv groups in the world." The group has released four compact discs on the German label GROB, and performed at major music festivals from Vancouver to Belgrade. TIM HODGKINSON is well-known among North American and European avant-garde audiences as a founding member of the legendary and radical art rock band Henry Cow, with whom he played for a decade. Tim Hodgkinson's musical output is marked by versatility, creativity, and an intense work ethic. His 30 year career has encompassed avant-prog, electro-acoustic improvisation, contemporary classical composition, and even abrasive post-punk. THOMAS LEHN Schooled both as a concert pianist playing contemporary repertoire and as a recording technician, Thomas Lehn deploys a huge musicality through his unique chosen outlet the analogue synthesizer. This instrument allows him extremely close and immediate contact with all aspects of sound modification - a vast gamut of living electronic sound produced with unmatched speed and fluency. Thomas Lehn simply represents a coming-of-age of electronic sound production in the domain of concert performance that sets a standard for the entire medium. He is therefore unsurprisingly an essential member of many of the most active and significant projects in this highly international and dynamic scene. ROGER TURNER Over decades Roger Turner has brought the renowned volcanic power and finely honed precision of his drum work to ensembles that have often forged real connections with musicians both sides of the Atlantic. In addition he has worked extensively in the microscopic laboratory of the acoustic duo situation where he acquired a highly developed sense of detail and of dynamic control. One of that select group of world-class players who have collectively redefined the language of contemporary percussion. In Turner's hands minute inflections of tension can shape the group's musical direction and galvanize a new level of audience experience. about Epistrophy Arts: Epistrophy Arts is a grass-roots cultural organization dedicated to presenting the finest in adventurous and improvised music in Austin Texas. Since January of 1998 we have presented over 70 concerts with living legends, unsung heroes and rising talents in the field of adventurous music. This project is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Economic Growth & Redevelopment Services Office/Cultural Arts Division believing an investment in the Arts is an investment in Austin’s future. Visit Austin at NowPlayingAustin.com.