• Muslimgauze - Free From a Veil
• Plug - Me & Mr Jones (Boymerang remix)
• Dan Gulberry - Casual Man
• Mung - P300 EEG
• Bedouin Ascent - Waveboy
• Koru - Worriers
• Doppler 20:20 - One Small Step
• Fructose - Bleached Bone
• Force of Angels - Stasis
• Milkyboy - yerallmouf

Reading:

Listening:

Fuck me dead. Matthew Herbert – he’s the brilliant producer who squanders his talent on 4/4 house shit, isn’t he?. The musician whose politics I love – shame about the music. The guy I’d love to like who just makes crap. The one who records in “Swingtime”, but whose sense of rhythm (all of his fans to contrary) is as stilted as all get-up. Right? (*)

Well that was all pretty much correct, until I picked up this little beauty the other day. Herbert says Goodbye Swingtime by making a hybrid swing band-meets-glitch pop record. The Big Band is perfect (if a little more Broadway Frank Sinatra rather than my preferred early Duke Ellington, say) and the clicky, ultra-edited production that underlies it is pretty as (especially on “Misprints”, which will be on repeat indefinitely here at Frogworthville Central). Herbert has a little description of how it came about here. Some of the conceptualisation behind the work is a little silly:

specific political texts have been used to generate additional percussion noises. I have also used clippings sent to us from around the world about a possible imminent invasion of Iraq, and people dropping their local phone book from various heights.

I really don’t see how the sound of a political work being manipulated can have any impact on a piece of music. I’m sure Herbert doesn’t think it really means anything either, but then why? Just like his Mechanics of Destruction project was a fascinating concept (the ultimate anti-corporate album, never sold, only given away; created entirely from samples of various corporate symbols (Big Mac meal etc) being manipulated or destroyed), but the music was just so much crappy glitchy house. *sigh*

The music on this CD, however, is fantastic. I find Jamie Lidell’s voice a little annoying (as I do on super_collider – I’m just not into the whole soul/funk axis particularly, despite the incredible wealth of samples those genres have provided for jungle & hip-hop), but the instantly recognizable Arto Lindsay is superb on another highlight, “Fiction”, as are the various female vocalists.
Take a moment to stop by the website and have a read of the lyrics too. That’s where the politics really lies, not in the silly post-modernism of obscure homemade samples.
The Big Band music is very lyrical, beautifully arranged and played, with close-knit harmonies, while underneath it the electronica often burbles. To me, there’s nothing untoward about a brass solo climaxing into a subdued clicking soundscape, or a classic-sounding female vocal harmony being sung over jump-cut-edited brass samples. It’s just what the doctor (Rockit?) ordered.

*NB: With some guilt, I must comment that I paint my HerbertHatred above with somewhat stronger hues than necessary. Herbert’s remix of Björk’s “Pagan Poetry” is a beautiful pulsating creation, and his Matmos remix is tops too; and I have a Dr Rockit track on the Ninebar Records Rumpus Rooms comp which is actually drum’n'bass! I just find that the rapture with which some people take him is unwarranted in the main; I’ve listened to the Mechanics of Destruction CD in its entirety, as well as the Secondhand Sounds double CD of his remixes, and the indubitably excellent production is swamped by relentlessly, overwhelmingly boring 4/4 house beats. There’s no swing or funk in sight, to these particular ears.
But anyone who knows me knows my aversion to house music in general. Like Akufen – awesome production; “Deck The House” never fails to astound with its mind-bending pop-radio-sampling, but two tracks later the kick drum’s still thumping and I’ve pressed stop. So be it.

The extent to which I am behind in my music reviewing is insane. There is no way I can catch up. There has been a huge amount of wonderful music coming my way in the last few months, but I either haven’t been up to reviewing or have been busy doing other things. Sorry. Here’s one to start me back into it, and a humdinger it is too!

John Zorn is the infamous bad boy of the Jewish music scene, founder of cut-up punk jazz group Naked City, producer of the legendary first Mr Bungle album, composer of bizarre string quartets for Kronos, and so on. For the last 10-15 years (at least?), he’s been at the hub of the downtown New York free jazz/experimental/punk/whatever scene, and with his extraordinary and expansive label Tzadik has popularised what he likes to refer to as “Radical Jewish Culture”. Just about epitomising that Radical Jewish music is his Masada project. Initially Masada was (and is) a jazz quartet modelled after Ornette Coleman’s quartet – Zorn on sax, Dave Douglas on trumpet, Joey Baron on drums and the omnipresent and brilliant Greg Cohen on double bass (see myriad releases by Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, etc etc). Masada perform original tunes from Zorn’s Masada songbook, an ongoing creation which has enriched the world of Jewish music incalculably (not that there wasn’t a huge amount of wonderful stuff around already!)
Then in 1996 Tzadik released the 2CD set Bar Kokhba (go and google Masada & Bar Kokhba and brush up on your Jewish history if you’re interested), which featured “chamber” versions of Masada tunes and swiftly became Tzadik’s best-seller – and justifiably. It was the first Tzadik CD I got and I never looked back. Among the musicians featured are the three other Masada members, David Krakauer (awesome clarinettist, ex-Klezmatics, check out his solo albums, esp Klezmer NY), guitarist Marc Ribot, John Medeski of Medeski, Martin & Wood on organ, and various others in various combinations. One of the most glorious combinations from that CD was what became the Masada String Trio: Marc Feldman on violin (you may know him from his playing on They Might Be Giants‘ version of Istanbul Not Constantinople among other places), Erik Friedlander on cello and Greg Cohen on bass. The follow-up, The Circle Maker, devoted one whole CD just to that combination, and they’ve appeared on Zorn-penned soundtracks as well.

Which brings us to this project. There’s a Masada Guitars CD I’ve not yet heard, but on this double CD various heroes of the Tzadik world and beyond interpret songs from the Masada catalogue. A lot of the tunes here are familiar to those of us who are fans, and the artists involved either stay beautifully true to the sound or put their own spin on the pieces. The highlights far outweigh the few missable numbers here; the double CD is entirely justified.
Pharoah’s Daughter start off the first CD with a combination of vocals, strings, oud, melodica and guitar/bass/percussion that puts Masada right into the Middle East; lovely. Uri Caine (whose downtown klezmer/improv versions of Mahler on Urlicht/Primal Light (Winter & Winter) are extraordinary and essential) contributes lovely understated piano to drummer Ben Perowsky’s track. The Cracow Klezmer Band’s track is great but doesn’t live up to their extraordinary second album for Tzadik, The Warriors (strongly recommended). Naftule’s Dream (the more experimental incarnation of Boston’s Shirim Klezmer Orchestra) simultaneously bring out the klezmer and the free jazz, while Kramer is as bizarre as ever…
The most wonderful discovery on the CD is Jewlia Eisenberg, whose multitracked vocals and percussion recall the extraordinary Tzadik CD by Tin Hat Trio’s Carla Kihlstedt (review forthcoming – remind me!) No surprise then that Carla & Jewlia play/sing together in the band Charming Hostess. I must check them out, as well as Jewlia’s Tzadik CD. Also notable is a dreamy number from Pachora, who feature downtown regulars Chris Speed, Brad Shepik and Jim Black…

Kicking off CD2 are the aforementioned Medeski, Martin & Wood, extremely groovey as ever. Davka are a beautiful combination of passionate violin, cello (playing the bass role like I do so often in FourPlay *grin*), bassoon (yep!) and percussion. It’s a strange combination of classical or even pre-baroque feel with improvisation.
Following Davka are the always-unbeatable Tin Hat Trio, with a beautiful version of a beautiful song. Check out Carla doing the pulling-a-bow-hair-tied-to-a-string thing a la Taraf de Haidouks!
Mike Patton (of Mr Bungle and Faith No More, kids!) does a very cool track on which he plays/sings everything except for percussion (supplied by William Winant). Meanwhile Anthony Coleman (familiar from various Tzadik releases and contributor of some wonderful piano playing on Bar Kohba) brings out the groove with his trio the Professionales.
Penultimately, violinist Jenny Scheinman is another discovery, combining her violin with guitar/bass/drums for some beautiful improvisatory explorations of the Jewish mode used. A websearch reveals that she too used to be in Charming Hostess, and has an album on Tzadik as well as a Django-inspired album, and appears on Norah Jones’ Come Away With Me. Someone else to check out soon.
Jamie Saft finishes of the comp with a slow digidubby track featuring his wife Vanessa on vocals. Saft has brought the sound of dub (and to a lesser extent drum’n'bass) to Tzadik recently with his solo albums and his remixes of David Gould. Even though I find there’s some kind of veridicality missing from his electronica, these ventures into that sound are a welcome addition for Tzadik, and I hope they continue to explore this area of music.

In summary, I can’t recommend this album enough. Whether you already know the Masada material backwards or are a newcomer, this will delight and enthrall.

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