We saw The Bays for the first time a few years ago in Norwich, intrigued by the idea of a band that doesn't have a recording contract, doesn't release product and doesn't rehearse.
They've taken their improvisation to another level in a collaboration with the Heritage Orchestra, and will shortly start a tour of the UK. The film below will explain the idea far better than I can.
This is the first in a no doubt irregular series of posts about albums that seem to get more plays than others on my iPod.
"Every Man and Woman is a Star" was Ultramarine's second album, released in 1991. Simon Reynolds describes the album perfectly in his 'Energy Flash' book:
"Perhaps the first and best stab at that seeming contradiction-in-terms, pastoral techno... all sun-ripened, meandering lassitude and undulant dub-sway tempos... like acid-house suffused with the folky-jazzy ambience of the Canterbury scene."
The duo (Paul Hammond and Ian Cooper) were inspired by early UK House and long standing crushes on A Certain Ratio, 23 Skidoo and Cabaret Voltaire and collaborated with various musicians including Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers and David McAlmont.
Very much recommended and enjoyed by St. Jude's, "Every Man..." is still available from the gem that is LTM. Paul Hammond now records as Further Details and runs Real Soon.
Perhaps one of the greatest pieces of music ever written, Miles Davis' 'So What' - the opening track on the 1959 album 'Kind of Blue' - featured as part of BBC Radio 4's excellent 'Soul Music' series.
For the next few days you'll be able to listen to the documentary in full via the BBC's iPlayer feature.
In the meantime, enjoy...
A recent link from Underworld's website served as reminder about Chris Watson's work.
Having been a founding member of Sheffield's Cabaret Voltaire (when I first came across his work), Chris began his sound recording career in 1981 working for Tyne Tees Television.
His recordings regularly crop up on radio and TV nature programmes, and the Guardian rated his 2003 'Weather Report' album as one of the '1000 Albums to Hear Before You Die'...
"Watson is one of the world's leading recorders of wildlife and natural phenomena, and here he edits his field recordings into a filmic narrative. The unearthly groaning of ice in an Icelandic glacier is a classic example of, in Watson's words, putting a microphone where you can't put your ears."
Back from a couple of days in London. Had a particularly good night on Wednesday in the company of Mr. Spicer. Managed to do several things that I don't normally get to do here in rural Norfolk - sat on the edge of a pavement drinking in the West End on a warm summer evening, ate a decent pizza and then got to see/hear some particularly good jazz in a decent venue.
The clip below is of the Neil Cowley Trio's performance on Later With Jools Holland which I don't think I've pasted here before. There are still plenty of opportunities to see the band play live this year - next stop for Angie and I will be Edinburgh (earlier that week we'll be seeing the rather fine Count Arthur Strong at the Assembly Rooms). For live dates and CD purchases, visit www.neilcowleytrio.com
It was a strange experience hearing the sad news of Swedish jazz pianist Esbjörn Svensson's death last night in similar circumstances to those in which I came across his music in the first place. I was in Scotland at the time and had more or less drifted off to sleep listening to Stephen Duffy's excellent 'Jazz House' show on BBC Radio Scotland - he played the Esbjörn Svensson Trio (E.S.T.) track 'Seven Days of Falling' and within seconds I was wide awake. I'd never heard the Trio before and had to scrabble around trying to find a pen and paper.
In this Guardian obituary, John Fordham describes Svensson as a rare phenomenon in the jazz world: "A hero to the hardline critics, and a bankable international star.". You'll also find an extensive obituary at The Independent's website.
Find out more about the Trio's output at their website. And here's a live version of 'Seven Days of Falling' via YouTube...
I came across this quirky site via the Guardian Blog Roll where it was featured last week.
The concept of the Black Cab Sessions is simple, 'One song. One take. One Cab'. The producers of this unique and intimate gig, Hidden Fruit, select talented musicians to play a song in a taxi while the cabby weaves through the streets trying to concentrate on the road and not the live show on the seats behind.
So far there have been forty-five performances of which I have viewed a handful. I am a fan of Seasick Steve, predictably he is my current favourite. See what you think.
As usual, I was laying in bed this morning, slowly coming round to the day listening to Radio 4's 'Today' programme.
What a pleasant surprise to hear the voice of an old friend and fellow ex-band member, Nick Ryan, being interviewed.
Along with Jane Carter and John Mathias, Nick is part of The Fragmented Orchestra, a music project that has just been named as the winner of the New Music Award.
The Fragmented Orchestra's idea uses recording units set up at 24 sites across the UK to capture their sounds - these sounds will then be transmitted back to the Foundation for Art & Creative Technology (FACT) in Liverpool for visitors to hear.
The New Music Award judging panel said: "This extraordinary work mirrors the fundamental human activity of the brain."
It must be about a year since we first saw the Neil Cowley Trio in Norwich. I'd only just bought their first album, 'Displaced', and didn't quite know what to expect. But what a great night. I even ended up sort of inadvertently/accidentally 'stalking' Neil by e-mail in the days following the gig. A long story.
Their latest album - 'Loud Louder Stop' is available now on CD/iTunes and the trio are on tour across the UK. We're off to see them in Norwich next week. Here's a taster...
I've just discovered a relatively new music site, Idiomag.
It’s easy and quick to join and by just adding artists you like,
Idiomag will introduce you to other bands it thinks you will also enjoy
listening to. You need to vote for the music you like and don’t like so it helps feed you with sounds and information that you want to hear and read.
Your daily personalised digital magazine can be sent via RSS, email or Facebook and will provide you with music videos, artist interviews, photo galleries as well as the option for purchasing downloads.
And just like with Facebook, Idio is all about sharing - social networking is unavoidable.
