Archive
* Favorite Instrumental Albums of 2011 *
As I start this post, I will say that this is all very subjective and really put together for my own purposes. I’ll also state that, yes, some of the music below does have some vocals (i.e.- the Goddamn Electric Bill & Mike Patton CDs). For the most part, it’s sequestered to a track or two on a long CD of mostly instrumental goodness. My list, my rules, and/or my breaking of the rules. With that being said, all of the artists below tend to be in the jazz and instrumental frame of reference anyway.
As said before… I’ve been buying less music… or, at least a lot less mainstream (major label) music. This is also my fourth year now that I bought more instrumental CDs than vocal CDs. I think as I get older, I am drawn more towards jazz and other instrumental forms of expression. Hopefully my spilling out of music that I like finds interest with someone else. But if not, thanks for stopping by… check out the artists’ webpages, Facebox pages, yadda yadda yadda. Some of these also made it on to my 2011 Mix CD (free streaming/download).
OK, now on to the best of what’s hit my ears this year…
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 Cyro Baptista’s Banquet of Spirits plays John Zorn’s Masada Book Two: Book of Angels, Vol. 17 (Caym) :: The Masada Book two series is some of my favorite music coming out of Tzadik. Banquet of the Spirits is the touring band of Latin percussionist Cyro Baptista, a long time Zorn collaborator. Each track touches upon a different world tradition, steeped in Zorn’s klez-jazz score. Lyrical and moving and fun!
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 Artichaut Orkestra – T For Teresa :: Featuring four young musicians from Toulouse, Artichaut Orkestra mix jazz, klezmer and classical music, blending rock energy with improv. This is their debut record, and I’m definitely looking forward to more coming from them in the near future.   |
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 Curtis Macdonald – Community Immunity :: To be honest, this was an impulse purchase. One of my favorite record labels is Greenleaf Music – founded by my favorite living trumpet-player Dave Douglas. I was picking up some new music from DD and figured, “eh, what the hell!” I was impressed with Curtis’ melodic compositions and emotive alto sax playing. |
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 Mogwai – Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will :: Stunning double-disc set from post-rock’s Scottish kings. I’ll still probably forgo seeing them live again (too loud, beyond their needs), but they put out some amazingly beautiful music. |
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 John Zorn – Nova Express / At the Gates of Paradise / A Dreamer Christmas :: Three discs made the cut of the six Zorn releases in 2011. Nova Express combines quirky atonal classical lyricism with a touch of the cut up techniques of Naked City and virtuosity of the Masada songbook. Zorn scored this for Joey Baron (drums), Trevor Dunn (bass), John Medeski (piano), and Kenny Wollesen (vibes).  Paradise features the same band as Nova Express, brings some Medeski organ into the mix and adds more of Zorn’s “mystical” ambiance. The Dreamer Christmas album was an oddity for me. Why would a Jewish jazz musician put out a Christmas album? Because he can! The Dreamers is one of my favorite Zorn-assembled ensembles: Joey Baron (drums), Cyro Baptista (percussion), Trevor Dunn (bass), Marc Ribot (guitars), Jamie Saft (keys), and Kenny Wollesen (vibes). Very accessible, but not smooth jazz! Adventurous! Mike Patton joins them on the final track for a croon-y “chestnut roasting.” The holiday album was also put out as a 12″ vinyl and a 7″ single – both with gorgeous artwork and design by Chippy. |
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 yMusic – Beautiful Mechanical :: The yMusic Ensemble had a kickstarter earlier this year for their debut album – with songs composed by Son Lux, Annie Clark, Shara Worden (aka My Brightest Diamond), Saraha Kirkland snider (who penned a favorite album Penelope last year), and Gabriel Kahane. Their string-heavy, indie chamber rock approach excites me. Being the musical backdrop for My Brightest Diamond’s All Things Will Unwind album (my #2 vocal album in 2011) doesn’t hurt. |
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 Peter Mulvey & David Goodrich – Nine Days Wonder :: Peter Mulvey has toured all over the US and the world for about 2 decades. Some of the first times I saw him in concert, he had “Goody” with him on backing guitar. They don’t get a chance to tour together much lately, but they did find some time to hole-up inside a studio to write and record some instrumental guitar duets. While I love Peter’s vocal storytelling, it’s nice to hear his and Goody’s instrumental interplay tell a different story.  |
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 Goddamn Electric Bill – Jazz :: GdEB is the one-man brainchild of Jason Torbert. He hits the spot for organic electronic meets post-rock for me. Ambient at times, melodic other times. His latest work has featured some vocals, but he’s primarily a groove-induced soundscape kind of guy. Chirps and glitches, too. Excellent stuff! |
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 The Dead Kenny G’s – Operation Long Leash :: The Dead Kenny Gs is a duo started by saxophonist Skerik and drummer/vibes Mike Dillon in 2004. shortly thereafter, they started adding Brian Haas, keyboard genius, when he is able, as well as Brad Houser, bassist from another Skerik band – Critters Buggin. They push through the jazz/rock minefield to fight “injustice, cheese, and dishonesty in music, and society.” |
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 Talkdemonic – Ruins :: Portland-based chamber-indie-post-rock… goodness. So much sound from two people. If you’re in Portland, they’re playing a big NYE show tonight… if in Eugene, they’ll be through our way (at Sam Bond’s) on Feb 24th. Not to be missed! |
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 Mike Patton – The Solitude of Prime Numbers :: I had to put this album as #13. This chiefly instrumental album is a tribute to the book (by Paolo Giordano) and film of the same name. The score is 16 tunes spread out over a 53 tracks, with the only tracks with content being 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, and 53. *slow clap* Clever, Mr. Patton! For people who bought the CD, you can thank me for entering in the info to CDDB (t’was a pain). The score/album fits more with his prior score for A Perfect Place – more accessible when compared to Patton’s usual schizophrenic output. The packaging design is also brilliant – a gorgeous die-cut leaf that fold outwards. I’d always recommend getting physical releases from Ipecac versus the digital download version.
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 Garage A Trois – Always Be Happy, But Stay Evil :: Skerik, Stanton Moore, Marco Benevento (who replaced Charlie Hunter) and Mike Dillon make their way through Oregon quite a bit. They are a sight to see – you don’t know exactly what kind of show you’ll get, but it’s definitely a fun time. Fun, groove-oriented “new jazz.” |
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 Explosions in the Sky – Take Care, Take Care, Take Care :: If not jazz, this list is also overtaken by post-rock. it’s a love of mine, and Explosions in the Sky are one of the best in that game. Epic, sweeping guitars crashing over a hearty drum & bass end. This is another album where I’d recommend the physical edition – the case can be unfolded to form a model of a house, where if viewed from the inside, the view from the door of the house is overlooking a tornado across a plain.
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 Erik Friedlander – Bonebridge :: I started 2011 seeing Erik perform his John Zorn-penned Volac album in its entirety… brilliant and moving. Later in the year, he came out with Bonebridge – a new band/concept that takes his Broken Arm Trio (with Trevor Dunn & Mike Sarin) and adds slide guitar player Doug Wamble to the mix. What you get is a perfect chamber-Americana-jazz album. I hope there are more where this came from… |
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 Kevin Moore – Shine (Küçük Kıyamet Soundtrack) :: Kevin Moore’s main projects are the trippy/sample-heavy Chroma Key & heavier prog collaboration band O.S.I. (with Jim Matheos). Shine is the soundtrack to the 2006 Turkish film Küçük Kiyamet (“Little Apocalypse“). It came out in early 2011 after a successful Kickstarter in 2010. The next album from O.S.I. comes out in February 2012 on Metal Blade. I can almost guarantee it will be my Top album of 2012, and I haven’t heard a shred of it yet. |
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 Reptet – At the Cabin :: This Seattle-based jazz sextet is fuuuuuuuuuun – both on record and in the live setting. I wish the distance on I-5 between me and them wasn’t 5-6 hours, as I’d see them far more often if I could.
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 Matt Chamberlain, Viktor Krauss, Dan Phelps – Modular: Sonic Explorations :: Gorgeous soundscapes from Matt Chamberlain, Viktor Krauss, and Dan Phelps. The Modular Project is the collaboration of the aforementioned musicians working together to “discover what the spontaneous and organic manipulation of sound can yield. Inspired by the world around them, they set out to discover what it might sound like when continents shift, clouds form, and roots push through soil.” The track, “Everest,” features one of my favorite cellists – Eyvind Kang (who has worked with Secret Chiefs 3, John Zorn, Bill Frisell, Mike Patton). It’s a great mix of cello, vibes and soaring atmosphere. The album is only available digitally or on vinyl (it’s a luscious triple-gatefold!)… |
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 Dave Douglas – Three Views: GPS Series – Rare Metals, Orange Afternoons & Bad Mango :: Originally released as the “Greenleaf Portable Series” (download only), these three different releases in 2011 finally got a proper physical (boxset) release. Dave’s prolific writing comes out with different bands on each record: Rare Metals features Dave’s most recent band Brass Ecstasy; Orange Afternoons features a specially put together quintet with Ravi Coltrane, Vijay Iyer, Linda Oh, and Marcus Gilmore; and Bad Mango paired Dave’s trumpet with So Percussion’s marimba, drumset, glockenspiel, musical saw, toy bells, shruti box, crotales, and more. Three very different records tied together with Dave’s fantastic playing.
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 Tides From Nebula – Earthshine :: This Polish post-rock group won my heart in 2009 with their debut, Aura (in 2009). They continue to tease me with emails or news that says “tour” until I open and can’t pronounce the names of the cities that they’re hitting. Drat! At least their music will keep me company! Earthshine is perfect for those fans of Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, and the like… and seeing as it beat out both those groups on my 2011 list, well, that should tell you something as well.
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 Michael Kelsey – Submerged :: Michael Kelsey is a HUGE amount of what I miss from the Midwest music scene. He’s a musical genius – rarely paralleled on the frets. Seeing him live (which I did any chance I could) was a site to behold. His records do their best to capture his virtuosity, but they usually fail to capture his energy, too. Catching fire in a bottle is tough. Regardless, this one is a gem and also marks his first all instrumental affair. Check him out, and if you live within a state or two from central Indiana, I count you a lucky one. Go see him if he stops by your town.
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 Earth – Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light 1 :: More riff-oriented and melodic compared to the prior drone doom albums, Earth bring a cello into the mix for the first time and create an ominous soundscape that is both elegant and dreadful. The follow-up, Angels & Demons 2, comes out in Feb 2012… and you can almost guarantee it’ll rise to the top of my list next year as well.
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Note: Ric Hordinski’s Arthur’s Garden (which made it on my 2011 Mix) is technically a 2012 release, hence its absence above.
Where do I get most of these jazz and other instrumental releases? My #1 favorite source for jazz is Downtown Music Gallery in New York. Manny and Bruce and their great staff are superb… and being the official distributor for John Zorn’s Tzadik doesn’t hurt my affection for them. I usually do a monthly Tzadik order (if the releases strike my fancy), and they have a ton of other non-Tzadik jazz and avant-garde releases as well.
And, no, I’m not affiliated, I don’t get a commission, and beyond my initial “big tax refund / gotta get caught up on Zorn order of 2005,” I haven’t gotten a discount with DMG. I just love and support what they do.
Enjoy the New Years’ weekend!! Be safe! See you in 2012.
My Other Favorites of 2011 Recaps:
- Fave Concerts & Photos of ‘11 are recapped *HERE*
- Fave EPs/Vinyl/Live/DVDs/more of ‘11 are *HERE*
- Fave Vocal Albums ‘11 are *HERE*
- Old Years:
- 2010: Instrumental, Vocal, EPs/etc, Concerts,
- Best of the 2000s Decade (1-10, 11-20, 21-25)
- 2009: Instrumental, Vocal, EPs/etc, Concerts
- 2008: Instrumental, Vocal, EPS/etc, Concerts
- 2007: Vocal, Instrumental, Concerts
- 2006 & 2005
~Dan – np: Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross – The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
REVIEW: Reptet @ Luckey’s (Eugene, OR – 1/14/11)
FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM
A rare nice, non-rainy evening in Eugene on Friday… how do you start a show? You get your gear and head outside! Reptet did just that… wearing drums and horns, they hit the street right outside Luckey’s to get the crowd pumped as well as bring in some surprised passersby. After their Reptet-ization of a Chamillionaire song, they shuffled and bounced back inside, bringing more people in after them than were originally were in the bar. First song, first stroke of genius.
This was the first show of their West Coast CD Release tour (see dates below). Their 4th studio album AT THE CABIN just came out, and after a couple spins… I’m totally digging it. Great fun-romp of a jazz sextet. A little bit of goofing around, a little bit of standard following mixed with standard setting, and a little bit of punk & experimental sensibilities with a solid rhythm section. To me, this is what a jazz combo from (my) young generation should be like. Plus I’m a sucker for brass & reed-based jazz…
Reptet is made up of Samantha Boshnack (trumpet & vox), Chris Credit (sax/clarinet/flute), Izaak Mills (sax/clarinet/flute & vox/fake phone calls), Nelson Bell (trombone/sousaphone), Tim Carey (acoustic & electric bass), and John Ewing (drums & vox). They played about 70 minutes, and hit a few unidentified songs, but here are the ones I know they played…
Setlist:
- Chamillionaire on the street
- Zeppo
- Snow Leopard x 3
- unknown
- Skcorcissalc
- Something Like What.
- brains
- Fish Market
They ended about 15 minutes ’til midnight, and while I wanted to stick around for Eugene-based jazz combo Eleven Eyes, I had to call it a night. Thanks for making Eugene a part of your CD release tour, Reptet! See you again soon!
more photos below
The Appropriate Linkage:
- Reptet’s Site
- Reptet’s Social Media Links (see below)
- My Other Related Reviews~
- Cozmic Pizza (Eugene – Dec 2007)
- Luckey’s Site / MySpace / Twitter
Check out more tour dates below.
~Dan – np: Reptet – At the Cabin
REPTET PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2011 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution
(click for larger)
Tour Dates
- Friday January 14th at Lucky’s Club in Eugene OR – 10 pm, $5
- Sunday January 16th at Jub Jub’s Thirsty Parlor in Reno, NV -10 pm, free
- Monday January 17th at The Press Club in Sacramento, CA – 9 pm, $5 (w/ Harley White Jr. Orchestra and The Flower Vato
- Wednesday January 19th at TAIX 321 Lounge in Echo Park (LA), CA – 10 pm, free
- Thursday January 20th at ResBox – The Steve Allen Theater at The Center For Inquiry in Los Angeles, CA – 8 pm $10 general, $5 CFI Members
- Friday, January 21st at Live Culture in Santa Barbara, CA – 9 pm, free
- Saturday January 22nd at Cafe Van Kleef in Oakland, CA – 9 pm, $5
- Sunday January 23rd at Applegate River Lodge in Jacksonville, OR – $10
Reptet review coming soon…
Über-busy past week and weekend ahead of me, but I made time to check out the f’in awesome Reptet show last night at Luckey’s in Eugene.
Photos and thoughts by Monday at the latest. Check them out on their West Coast CD Release tour (FB event link) for their 4th CD – At the Cabin.
~Dan
2011 anticipated albums
So, the year end recaps are in process (instrumental list maybe later today or Friday) … I needed something to fill the gap… here are some artists who are expecting to release new material in 2011 (some are carryovers from 2010’s anticipation), all of which I’m looking forward to…
Kevin Moore‘s Shine (digital out now, CDs en route), dredg has one due at the end of March, Over the Rhine‘s The Long Surrender, Earth‘s Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light 1 (in February), Iron & Wine‘s Kiss Each Other Clean, Mogwai‘s Hardcore Will Never Die But You Will, Reptet‘s At the Cabin, My Brightest Diamond‘s as of yet untitled (she’s in the studio), a bunch of new stuff from John Zorn, Derek Webb‘s Democracy Vol 2 (10 cover songs for 2011), maybe the Secret Chiefs 3 will finally release Book of Souls (it’s their “Chinese Democracy”), Eisley‘s The Valley, Jelly Jam with Ty Tabor of King’s X/John Myung of Dream Theater/Rod Morgenstein of Dixie Dregs, Goddamn Electric Bill‘s Jazz, A.N.M. featuring Doug Pinnick of King’s X and Jimi Hazel of 24-7 Spyz, Ken Andrew and Co’s Digital Noise Academy (maybe), Silverchair are working on one (didn’t hit in 2010), Radiohead have put in studio time in 2010 (maybe something out by year’s end), Glen Phillips likely has a few in the hopper (RemoteTreeChildren #2? new Toad? new WPA? new solo?), Opeth is in the studio, Steven Wilson with Mike Portnoy & Mikael Akerfeldt (of Opeth) too, Sufjan Stevens tribute album (due out in March), more chapters from Celldweller‘s Wish Upon a Blackstar, new tracks from Billy & Maynard’s A Perfect Circle, Mike Patton‘s electronic Fantômas or Peeping Tom #2, and… Ani DiFranco – I mean, it’s inevitable… right? Well, not always, she totally missed 2010 (as of now, no studio albums out in 821 days / 257 since a live EP on Record Store Day 2010).
Plus many more great albums due out in 2011, I’m sure.
~Dan – np: Kevin Smith – Red State of the Union (podcast)
REPTET ::West Coast CD Release Tour 2011::
Seattle jazz sextet REPTET is at it again, following up their 7″ vinyl single Agendacide from late 2009 with a new full-length album – entitled At the Cabin. It’s set for release on the Artists Recording Collective on January 11, 2011.
They’re hitting the road in support of the new CD, and Eugene is the first stop! Yippie! http://reptet.com/
Friday, January 14 10:00 pm
Luckey’s Club
Eugene, OR, United States
Monday, January 17
The Press Club
Sacramento, CA, United States
Tuesday, January 18 6:00 pm
Live Culture
Santa Barabara, CA, United States
Wednesday, January 19 10:00 pm
Taix 321 Lounge
Los Angeles, CA, United States
http://www.taixfrench.com/321lounge.html
Thursday, January 20 8:00 pm
ResBox – The Steve Allen Theater at The Center For Inquiry
Los Angeles, CA, United States
http://steveallentheater.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=318543
Friday, January 21 8:00 pm
CODA
San Francisco, CA, United States
http://www.codalive.com/
Saturday, January 22 9:00 pm
Cafe Van Kleef
Oakland, CA, United States
http://www.cafevankleef.com
For more info, check out http://reptet.com/
~Dan – np: John Zorn – Interzone
Reptet Coast to Coast Tour
I wasn’t able to hit their most recent local gig (in Cottage Grove, OR), but good news for non-West Coasters, Seattle-based jazz sextet REPTET is making a jaunt through the north, midwest and east coast…
2010 Coast-to-Coast Agendacide Tour
- Apr 27 Seattle, WA – Sunset Tavern
- May 6 Wilmington, DE – Mojo 13
- May 7 Philadelphia, PA – Chris’s Jazz Cafe
- May 8 Tivoli, NY – The Black Swan
- May 9 New York, NY – The Local 269
- May 10 Brooklyn, NY – Rose Live Music
- May 12 Cleveland, OH – Nighttown
- May 13 Grand Rapids, MI – Founders
- May 14 Three Oaks, MI – The Acorn Theatre
- May 15 Chicago, IL – The Viaduct Theatre
- May 16 Madison, WI The Frequency
- May 17 Minneapolis, MN Acadia Cafe
- May 18 Fargo, ND – The Red Raven
- May 20 Missoula, MT – Top Hat Lounge
- May 21 Sandpoint, ID – Eichardt’s
Their latest release is the 7″ vinyl Agendacide. Find out more about Agendacide and the tour at: http://www.reptet.com/
~Dan – np: Clogs – The Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton
Reptet 7″ / Glen mashup video
Seattle jazz band Reptet has a new 7″ vinyl out called Agendacide. It’s available in vinyl/mp3 and mp3-only versions via the Reptet website, CDBaby, or (I expect eventually) the Monktail Creative Music Concern’s webpage. They’re headed out on a West Coast tour (that I won’t be able to catch this time, unfortunately):
- October 29, 2009 Cottage Grove, OR The Axe & Fiddle
- October 30 Chico, CA The Coda Cafe
- October 31 South Lake Tahoe, CA The Divided Sky
- November 1 Placerville, CA The Cozmic Cafe
- November 2 San Francisco, CA The Make-Out Room
- November 3 Sacramento. CA The Shady Lady
- November 4 Davis. CA The Delta of Venus
- November 5 Oakland, CA Café Van Kleef
- November 6 Reno, NV The Zephyr Lounge
- November 7 Los Angeles, CA Molly Mallone’s
- November 8 Santa Barbara. CA Live Culture
- November 9 Glendale CA JAX
- November 13 Olympia, WA The Eastside Club
They’ve got a new blog going on, too: http://reptet.wordpress.com/
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SInger-songwriter Glen Phillips tweeted last week about a mashup video of his “Spirit of Shackleton” and OneRepublic & Timbaland‘s “Apologize,” and the 1961 film The Phantom Planet. Behold “Spirit of an Apology“:
~Dan – np: Flight of the Conchords – Flight of the Conchords
Seinfeld + Curb / Reptet Tour / OTC Tour / Jurassic 5 spin-off
Entertainment Weekly reported recently that Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards will have appearances in multiple episodes of (co-Seinfeld creator) Larry David‘s Curb Your Enthusiasm this season. Yay!
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One of my favorite jazz bands from Seattle, Reptet (part of the Monktail Creative Music Concern) is hitting the road again this spring.
March 12th – Mississippi Pizza – Portland, OR
March 13th – The Stage Door – Mt. Shasta, CA
March 14th – Divided Sky – S. Lake Tahoe, CA
March 15th – The Zephyr Lounge – Reno, NV
March 16th – Don Quixote’s – Santa Cruz, CA
March 17th – Delta of Venus – Davis, CA
March 18th -Amnesia Bar – San Francisco, CA
March 19th – Cozmic Pizza, Eugene, OR
March 20th – Triple Door (Musiquarium) – Seattle, WA
I’m bummed, as when they’ll be here in Eugene, I’ll be up in their neck of the woods in Seattle. And when they’re back in Seattle the next day, I already got Spinal Tap tickets at the Paramount in Seattle. “Boo” for too many things on the same day. Anyway, they put on a great show. Check ’em out… it’s fun, frolicky, goof-off jazz wonderment.
http://www.reptet.com/
http://www.monktail.com/
http://www.myspace.com/reptet
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Jason Schimmel’s Orange Tulip Conspiracy put out one of my favorite CDs of 2008 and played one of my favorite concerts of 2008 is also hitting the road again.
May 1- The Comet Tavern Seattle,WA
May 2- The Tonic Lounge Portland, OR
May 3- The Urban Lounge Salt Lake City, UT
May 4- Hi Dive Denver, CO
May 5- Knickerbockers Lincoln, NE
May 6- TBA Chicago, IL
May 7- TBA Buffalo, MA
May 8- TBA Boston, MA
May 9- The Studio at Webster Hall New York City, NY
May 10- TBA Philadelphia, PA
May 11- TBA Washington, DC
May 12- The Village Tavern Mount Pleasant, SC
May 13- Backstage Lounge Gainesville, FL
May 14- The Earl Atlanta,GA
May 15- Bo Bo Gallery Asheville, NC
May 16- Dragon’s Den New Orleans, LA
May 17- Rubber Gloves Denton, TX
May 18- Emo’s Austin, TX
May 19- Zeppelins Underground El Paso, TX
May 20- The Hut Tucson, AZ
May 21- Brick by Brick San Diego, CA
May 22- Knitting Factory Los Angeles, CA
May 23- Hotel Utah San Francisco, CA
I hope to hit the Portland show…
http://www.myspace.com/orangetulipconspiracy
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One of my favorite, now-defunct rap groups Jurassic 5 has a new spin-off. Solo albums first by Cut Chemist, Chali 2Na, and DJ Nu-Mark… Akil the MC has one in the works, too… Now Marc7 and Zakir (aka Soup) have formed a new group called Portable Payback. Sounds pretty smooth – which fits in with 7even & Soup’s style in J5.
Check them out on the MySpaces: http://www.myspace.com/portablepayback
~Dan – np: Ben Folds Five – Ben Folds Five
meaty Reptet, naked Raquy, and Gratuitous French Fries
REPTET. Great jazz band that lives about 4.5 hours too far away from me. Alas, they’ve been down this way (Eugene) from their way (Seattle) once lately (see review here). Great improvisors, great songwriters, great musicians. They’ve got a new album out. It’s great. It’s called Chicken or Beef?. My ears aren’t vegetarians. It’s quite delicious.
email “reptet @ hotmail (.) com” to see how to get ahold of a copy of Chicken or Beef?
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RAQUY and the Cavemen… tonight at Cozmic Pizza… look for a review tomorrow. Seen her and her band of misfits a few times in Cincinnati. They’re always a treat, plus they’ve put out 2 CDs since we last saw ’em… gather together in a cave and groove with a pict…
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Free French Fries are the opener for Peter Mulvey who is the opener for Patty Larkin… Thursday at WOW Hall. Peter Mulvey is one of my favorite singer-songwriters… ever. Great vocals, great guitarist (and his backing guitarist Goody is also wicked good, but not with him on this tour). Oh, and all you coupon haters can hate my cajun french fry fingers… foo! So, yeah, it’s all about literally free french fries via coupon (from The Vintage, who makes great cajun french fries & food and has great local beer on tap), not a band named Free French Fries. Though that would be cool in its own right… anyway, look for a review on Friday…
~Dan – np: Reptet – Chicken or Beef?
email “reptet @ hotmail (.) com” to see how to get ahold of a copy of Chicken or Beef?
REVIEW: Reptet @ Cozmic Pizza (Eugene, OR – – 12/9/07)
Well, the first thing I want to say is “shame on you, Eugene.” Just because school is out, that’s no reason to not hang about town to hear some wonderful music!! The crowd at Cozmic Pizza was very small on this particular Sunday evening… which I blame on school letting out only 2 days prior, this being primarily a college town, and Sunday night at 9pm not being conducive to concert-going anyhow. Cozmic is usually hoppin’ (and a great place to get a local Oatmeal Stout and a great slice of pizza). Cozmic also having nutritional yeast available on their condiment rack is niiiice. Regardless of the lackluster crowd size, the band played on and seemed to be having a wonderful time trying out some new tunes for us.
The band was/is a sextet from Seattle comprised of Izaak Mills on reeds (sax & clarinet) & flute, Samantha Boshnack on various horns (primarily trumpet), Christopher Credit on reeds (sax & clarinet) and a (mini) trombone, Nelson Bell on trombone & tuba, Tim Carey on bass (upright & electric), and John Ewing on drums. All members tended to throw their hat into the percussion ring throughout the night. They played for just over an hour solid.
The tunes I jotted down that they played: “Eve of Threve”, “Chicken or Beef”, and “Fish Market.” They also played a latin-sounding number, a rabbit/carrot number and few other tunes mixed in. They were fun on stage, cheering and ranting and even walking around the room on the last number. Solid musicianship, great songs, fun stage presence, and adventurous without “gettin’ all Zorn” on us (not that I’d mind that, though). :) Reptet is not smooth jazz*, but rather an adventurous sextet with great sense of melody and playfulness.
*-Thankfully.
After talking to the band after the show, apparently the whole set was new tracks for the upcoming 3rd album. I recognized some of the names of the songs due to downloading them from the Monktail website (here).
Anyway, I fully recommend both of Reptet’s releases thus far… Reptet (2003) and Do This! (2006). Both are available online for a great package price… ie- “a steal.” I also recommend seeing them live when they come around your neck of the woods… they’re playing down the West Coast as I type this.
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Check ’em out online… Reptet & MCMC…
http://www.reptet.com/
http://myspace.com/reptet (free samples)
http://www.monktail.com/ (their collaborative group/record label… tons of free tunes)
http://myspace.com/monktail (more free samples)
I’m definitely looking forward to Reptet album 3… and more Oregon visits from them. I just hope we [Oregon] show up next time.
Concerts coming up tomorrow… a free jazz show (by the Shedd Jazz Ensemble) at the 5th Street Public Market in downtown Eugene… and then David Bazan (the Pedro the Lion guy) at the Indigo District for $8. Not a bad deal, in either case. Look for a Pedro review later this week…
~Dan – np: Ken Andrews – Secrets of the Lost Satellite Tour
-Eyvind Kang
-Frank Zappa
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Creative Commons
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