Funny Rat

[king ubu]

I guess you all have this one, but as I recently got it and love it very much, I thought I'd nevertheless mention it here:

A great GREAT record!

ubu

[Guest Chaney]

What about Georg Gräwe's own label: RANDOM ACOUSTICS. Looks good. I don't own anything from its catalog.

Interesting, that Gräwe himself now prefers to record for other lables (Nuscope, for example). Anybody heard his new release yet, by the way?

Not familar with either of those labels and I don't own any Gräwe. Nice catalogs! I have the feeling that I'll be offering these folks my financial support some time soon.

The Music Resource lists nine Nuscope titles at $11.75 each. NICE PRICE... if they can deliver.

[John B]

The Music Resource lists nine Nuscope titles at $11.75 each. NICE PRICE... if they can deliver.

The Music Resource, based on my previous experience, is very slow, but delivers.

[Д.Д.]

The Music Resource lists nine Nuscope titles at $11.75 each. NICE PRICE... if they can deliver.

The Music Resource, based on my previous experience, is very slow, but delivers.

...and you can view your order status. I normally expect to get about 85% of my TMR order - and I order some quite obscure stuff. The sad thing is tat TMR seems to have completley cut on avant-/free- stuff - I don't see them offering any of the 2002/03 releases. Still their back catalog is large enough (check out all these Music & Art releases for $7).

[Д.Д.]

I guess you all have this one, but as I recently got it and love it very much, I thought I'd nevertheless mention it here:

A great GREAT record!

ubu

...and a good cover!! I actually don't have it - I will, of course get it sooner or later. The next Brötzmann I plan to buy is THIS ONE. It's on excellent Italian Splasc(H) lable.

[John B]

I guess you all have this one, but as I recently got it and love it very much, I thought I'd nevertheless mention it here:

A great GREAT record!

ubu

...and a good cover!! I actually don't have it - I will, of course get it sooner or later. The next Brötzmann I plan to buy is THIS ONE. It's on excellent Italian Splasc(H) lable.

I really dig Ultima and Remember to Forget, the two discs he recorded with William Parker and Hamid Drake.

[king ubu]

ever heard of this label?

http://www.avantart.com/longarms/longarms.htm

or:

http://www.avantart.com/music/solyd/solyd1.htm

and:

http://www.ccnc.de/

I guess in looking for rare ones these fit the category, no?

ubu

Edited December 2, 2003 by king ubu

[Д.Д.]

king ubu, I know both of these Russian labels: Solyd and Long Arms. They both were started in the late-80s and are pretty dead by now. I heard very few of their releases, but I saw many of these artists live in Russia. It is pretty uneven stuff. In general Russian improvisational music scene is not particularly rich (although there are some excellent musicians - I'll expand some time later). If you are interested in anything from their catalog, I can contact the owners of the labels directly when I am in RUssia next time (Spring, I guess) to see if anything is still avilable. It looks like this AVANTART website is dysfanctional as well, so I doubt you can order anything from it.

Meanwhile, new November Leo Records releases are listed on Leo website: http://www.leorecords.com/?m=catalogue&release=2003/11

This Chadbourne thing looks scary...

[Д.Д.]

How about a bit of Swiss uglyness: For4Ears

I know nearly nobody from the catalog, except for Butch Morris, Urs Leimgrüber and Freddy Studer, but the samples are GOOD. A lot of this stuff seems to be available at FORCED EXPOSURE for $14.

Edited December 2, 2003 by Д.Д.

[John B]

How about a bit of Swiss uglyness: For4Ears

I know nearly nobody from the catalog, except for Butch Morris, Urs Leimgrüber and Freddy Studer, but the samples are GOOD. A lot of this stuff seems to be available at FORCED EXPOSURE for $14.

That is Gunter Muller's label. I really want to hear his solo disc and the solo Le Quanh Ninh discs. You can get there really inexpensively through Erstwhile records. click on "Other Cds" and they all seem to be $11 plus shipping.

[Д.Д.]

Thanks John.

I am actually eyeing Erstwhile for quite some time now. I have only a couple of Erstwhile releases: "Tom and Gerry" and "Paricles and Smears" and they are both outstanding. Hey, I have "Weather Sky" as well, but I don't remember it. Anyway, I will make a big Erstwhile order soon.

As for Müller, I will try to buy the CDs from him directly.

Edited December 2, 2003 by Д.Д.

[Guest Chaney]

With John B's recommendation and blessing, I ordered Duos for Doris (Erstwhile 030-2) along with a few Hat titles from SQUIDCO.

Have a listen to the sound samples on the Erstwhile site and be drawn in... DANGER: YOU WILL BE DRAWN IN!

Nice Squidco price too: $16.95 for the 2-CD set -- postage included!

[Д.Д.]

Doris goes into the shopping cart.

[John B]

Thanks John.

I am actually eyeing Erstwhile for quite some time now. I have only a couple of Erstwhile releases: "Tom and Gerry" and "Paricles and Smears" and they are both outstanding. Hey, I have "Weather Sky" as well, but I don't remember it. Anyway, I will make a big Erstwhile order soon.

As for Müller, I will try to buy the CDs from him directly.

I've been really getting more and more interested in Erstwhile this year. I've picked up quite a few of their releases and have enjoyed all of the, to varying degrees. I have not, however, heard any of the three you mentioned. I'll pick up Particles and Smears when it is reprinted next year.

Which For4Ears discs are you thinking about picking up?

[king ubu]

Д.Д., thanks for the info on that russian stuff - I would have to take a deeper look to see in what I might really be interested.

About For4Ears I don't know much. I listened to some stuff in stores here, but nothing that did grab me instantly.

And holy shit, erstwhile really seems to draw one in once you came too close... I better not start right now - wait till my finances get a little bit healthier!

ubu

[king ubu]

I found two very interesting solo piano discs yesterday:

Georg Gräwe, Six Studies for Piano Solo (West Wind)

Ulrich Gumpert, The Secret Concert (ITM)

both of them were recorded in Berlin in the year o 1987. About Gräwe I know nothing, except having seen him mentioned in this thread and someplace else on this forum, the only thing I have from Gumpert so far is his apperance on that very good Lacy duo disc, Five Facings (FMP).

ubu

[king ubu]

king ubu, I know both of these Russian labels: Solyd and Long Arms. They both were started in the late-80s and are pretty dead by now. I heard very few of their releases, but I saw many of these artists live in Russia. It is pretty uneven stuff. In general Russian improvisational music scene is not particularly rich (although there are some excellent musicians - I'll expand some time later). If you are interested in anything from their catalog, I can contact the owners of the labels directly when I am in RUssia next time (Spring, I guess) to see if anything is still avilable. It looks like this AVANTART website is dysfanctional as well, so I doubt you can order anything from it.

Д.Д., it would be great if you could look for some Ganelin trio stuff! I never heard them, but read some rave reviews!

But maybe there are records available by them you rate higher than the russian ones, so you rather tell me what to get first, and forget about the russian stuff.

thanks,

ubu

[.:.impossible]

Steamboat Switzerland sounds promising! I followed the link and came up with a few mp3s. I am listening to a very minimalist piece right now. Sort of a Sigur Ros, or maybe a modern classical sound. My wife just called it "halloween music again."

Back on task:

Does anyone know the source of the name Die Like a Dog? There seems to be a recurring theme with dogs and rats. Any ideas?

[John B]

Steamboat Switzerland sounds promising! I followed the link and came up with a few mp3s. I am listening to a very minimalist piece right now. Sort of a Sigur Ros, or maybe a modern classical sound. My wife just called it "halloween music again."

Back on task:

Does anyone know the source of the name Die Like a Dog? There seems to be a recurring theme with dogs and rats. Any ideas?

Die Like a Dog refers to the manner in which Albert Ayler died.

From an interview w/ Brotzmann that I found online:

"Just to start off easy, what was the origin of the Die Like a Dog quartet name?

I was writing a little article about Albert Ayler for a Swiss newspaper, and that was the same time I was hanging around Toshinori Kondo and we were thinking and talking about Ayler. You know, I know Kondo for 20 years at least, and at that point we wanted to set up a new group, another group, cause at that time I was working on one side with William Parker, for long years, and the other one was Hamid Drake, with whom I was playing a lot of duo concerts. So, we just decided to make a new band, and this article ended with the sentence, "He died like a dog." It was in my first opinion it was not meant as a title for the band, it was just because I was using the article for the booklet of the first CD of that quartet. But we realized that people liked the name, so we stayed with it. That was all. "

It's funny, my wife calls this sort of music "ghost music." Sounds like she has very similar tastes with you wife!

Edited December 5, 2003 by John B

[.:.impossible]

Thanks John. I guess we're the real Goth crowd, eh?

[John B]

I'll have to check out Steamboat Switzerland. It sounds like they might be right up my alley.

King Ubu -

let us know how those solo piano discs are once you get a chance to listen to them

[Д.Д.]

OK, I have only two Gräwe CDs

Concert San Francisco 1995 (Music & Arts). Solo. Quite unique - the guy is playing basically a European impressionism-type of stuff (thing Ravel and Debussy) with some very clever rythmical structures and unpredictable improvisations. Some times Cecil-ish, but in a more gentle way. A lot of ideas. I like it.

Light's VIew (Nuscope, 1999). This is a duo with John Butcher. Haven't listened to it yet - will do over the weekend.

king ubu, I will make a bit of an overview of "good" Russian stuff later. Good thing is that discs by RUssain artists can be bought in RUssia for $5-6, so I can bring you (and anybody who is interested) some from my next Russian trip.

Ganelin Trio albums are easily available from LEO RECORDS - 10+ discs, so you don't need any secret Russian sources. I have a few Genelins and somehow cannot warm up to them. I don't know what's there (or what is not there) that prevents me from enjoying their music - this is really original explorative stuff played with amazing skill. My perception of their music might change though.

One of the Russian (well, Ukranian actually) musicians I find very interesting is Yuri Yaremchuk - he plays reeds. You can check some samples here (this is with the Second Approach band): http://zvuki.ru/M/P/23002

[Д.Д.]

Thanks John.

I am actually eyeing Erstwhile for quite some time now. I have only a couple of Erstwhile releases: "Tom and Gerry" and "Paricles and Smears" and they are both outstanding. Hey, I have "Weather Sky" as well, but I don't remember it. Anyway, I will make a big Erstwhile order soon.

As for Müller, I will try to buy the CDs from him directly.

I've been really getting more and more interested in Erstwhile this year. I've picked up quite a few of their releases and have enjoyed all of the, to varying degrees. I have not, however, heard any of the three you mentioned. I'll pick up Particles and Smears when it is reprinted next year.

Which For4Ears discs are you thinking about picking up?

John, I would recommend getting Tom and Gerry. Particles and Smears is good.. very good, but if you want to hear a groundbreaking record, a real masterpiece (and something more in a "jazz" side), go for "Tom and Gerry".

[king ubu]

John, I had a casual listen to the Gumpert yesterday, and it is a beautiful disc. Free improvised pieces, only one is a composition of his.

The concert, according to his liner notes, was actually not scheduled (however, this does not sound like a live recording at all, the place given is the FMP studio in West Berlin). I don't have the disc at hand so I have to go from memory: In 1987, 40 years of the german nations was being celebrated. The east Germans (as Gumpert says) were not willing to do something together with the west Germans. So it was fobidden to eastern German artists to do any performance in West Berlin/Germany. Gumpert writes he got a passport in order to attend a concert in West Berlin (some piano session kind of thing), when, only a couple of hours before his concert another piano player (west German, I think, Gumpert gives his initials, but I could not figure out who it could be, would have to look them up) who should have done a solo piano concert, had to call his concert off, Gumpert jumped in and did his "secret" concert (thus the title of the disc).

The music is beautiful often in a quite traditional sense/way. Quite accessible, for me, but not mainstream in any way, either.

To give some more elaborate comments, I would have to find the time to give it a thorough listen.

ubu

[king ubu]

On Steamboat: what I have of them are two broadcasts, the trio doing Sam Hayden's composition "dB", and the Steamboat extended ensemble doing another composition, David Dramm's "Orange Slice" - I just listened to this one while coming home tonight. It's a great piece! 55 minutes of uninterrupted playing, constantly building, somewhere between composition and improvisation, but totally coherent. The extended ensemble is Blum (hammond, analog synth, piano), Pliakas (el b ), Niggli (d), with Gerard Bouwhuis (sampling key, piano), Pete Wilson (el b ), Remo Signer (d/perc), Marco Blaauw, Reijer Dorresteijn & Bob Koertshuis (trumpets).

Quite a massive sound wall they're building up! The trumpets enter only after about half an hour, and in the beginning it's only keyboards. The two drummers (both swiss) are very good, grooving together, pushing the others. The concert also includes parts where both keyboard players play acoustic piano, and things are quite varied, actually.

I do not know (neither did I care until now to find out) if these two concerts are on CD, but I guess they are (on Grob, maybe? Will have to check), and I guess they might be the same concerts that were broadcasted by swiss radio.

ubu

edited to change B) to b ) B)

Edited December 6, 2003 by king ubu