The Relative Band - 85' (Australia/USA 1985)

Mutant Sounds Album Of The Week.

1. Soft & Fragile (4:39)

2. Billy Jean Stings (0:41)

3. You'll Never Walk Again (5:04)

4. Hand's Up (Psycho Drama Pt. 2) (1:53)

5. Oh-O-Oh (2:52)

6. Gone With The Wind (3:20)

7. Tel Aviv Bats (5:09)

8. Cool School (4:30)

9. Come On Jon (Psycho Drama Pt. 2) (3:32)

10. Is It Catching (4:59)

11. Moore Strings (0:38)

12. Conversations With Jollian McGrose (3:11)

13. Lumps (3:23)

14. No Way The Last Word - Medley (4:28)

More avant-garde weirdness, lots of female screaming, random sounding noises and no melodies or tunes to speak off, just some live recordings of a cacophony of noise, fits in quite well with the early John Zorn stuff I have been exploring. Just not the sort of stuff that I find interesting, especially over a whole album. I can only suffer this stuff in small doses when incorporated into a song or album that has some other actually listenable music. Nuff said, time to move onto something I enjoy. Rating 1/5.

Mt Cheeseman - 28th April 2013

Uncle Roddus Tramping Diary: Tramp No 137

Mt Cheeseman - 28th April 2013

Things hadn't quite all gone to plan in the tramping stakes over the last month, last weekends trip was cancelled due to horrible weather and the weekend before that I got my days mixed up and couldn't go as I was working on Saturday, as I have been all this month. So it was great to finally get out in the mountains again after nearly a month.

The weather again played a part in defining the destination of this day trip. The original plan had been to tackle Castle Hill Peak via Mt Plenty but with North West winds forecast to be 60-70km and possibly 100Km  later in the day, we would have been pretty exposed. Our resourceful leader had an alternative plan already formulated before he left the city. Our destination now being Mt Cheeseman via The Hogs Back, where the mountains would shield us from the brunt of the wind for most of the trip. 12 of us left the cars at 10am with the temperature being mild and the sky slightly overcast as we headed up onto the Hogs back via a well developed mountain bike track. From the back of Hogs Back we left the track and crossed a small stream before heading up a steep ridge south of Tims Stream. At about 1400m things levelled out a bit and to keerp out of the wordt of the wind, we sidled the ridge and headed up onto the tops via the low point between Cheeseman  and point 1950, after which we stayed on the eastern side of the tops until a few brave souls actually ventured up on to Cheeseman peak to experience the wind trying to blow them back off again. The next problem was trying to find somewhere somewhat sheltered to have some lunch.  We finally hunkered down behind a rock out crop just above the tarn above point 1552 for a bite to eat. After that we headed past the tarn and dropped quickly down some reasonable scree into Waterfall Creek which appears to be pretty much free of any waterfalls. After that it was a short walk to find the mountain bike track then back to the cars about 3:30pm. 

THE CLASSIC GUIDE TO STRATEGY, VOLUME TWO: John Zorn (USA 1986)

John Zorn Discography No.9

I won't say too much about this except that  it is pretty much more of the same as volume one, no song structure, no melody, very little of what most of us would define as music. Some times it sounds like Johns Saxophone is played buy the Chipmunks.  More underwater blowing and other weird noises and all seems rather pointless as a listening experience and not something I enjoy at all. I'm so glad that I didn't discover John Zorn through this earlier music because our artist/fan relationship would have been very short lived and i would have missed out on the excellent music he later went on to make. Rating for this set 1/5.

Sun Ra - Sound Sun Pleasure!! (USA Saturn SR 512 (1970))

Sun Ra Album Of The Week.

Side A:

'Round Midnight (Hanighen-Monk-Williams)

You Never Told Me That You Care (Hobart Dotson)

Hour of Parting (Schiffer-Spoliansky)

Side B:

Back In Your Own Backyard (Jolson-Rose-Dreyer)

Enlightenment (taken from Jazz in Silhouette) (Ra)

I Could Have Danced All Night (Lerner-Loewe)

I had the draft for this review sitting round for a while waiting for the actual CD issue to arrive from Amazon. I actually already had it on CD combined with another album on a single disc, but I decided to purchase this stand alone copy due to it having extra tracks taken from the out of print Deep Purple album, which had some very early Ra recordings.

This set originally released in 1970 consists of tracks originally recorded about 1958. The tempo on these recording is much slower and there are more vocals here. So a fairly laid back affair and although I prefer my jazz usually more up-tempo, this is a well played and enjoyable set and will appeal to fans of more conventional jazz. I like it and rate this set 3/5.

Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz and John Zorn - Abraxas: The Book Of Angels Volume 19 (USA 2012)

More John Zorn

I kinda missed this one as I have been working my way back through the John Zorn Catalogue, due to the fact that I already had the CD in my collection, as I have all 19 volumes of the Book Of Angels, and I had been putting off reviewing these releases for some reason I can't quite explain. The whole series of John Zorn's second Masada Songbook has been blowing my mind for several years now and I always look forward to the next volume. Unlike Masada Book One, each volume of Book 2 is preformed by a different band or set of musicians, bringing their own style of music and their own interpretation of the songs. This has made for a wide range of music across the 19 volumes so far with hardly a dud amongst them.

So this volume is a mostly Hi-NRG mix of what might be called Klezmer Rock, it has that Masada feel but is firmly rooted in rock and leaning well towards the progressive end of that spectrum. As usual, the sound quality and the musicianship is outstanding and overall this is yet another most enjoyable addition to this series, but not one of my favourites and as a whole kinda wears thin over the full 44 minutes, there isn't any tracks that kinda stand out from the rest . So not at all bad but not something to rave about.Rating 3.5/5. 

Ralph Lundsten - Paradissymfonin (Sweden 1979)

Mutant Sounds Album Of The Week.

1. Paradisets förgårdar (5:49)

2. Himmelens port (6:21)

3. Ärans och hjältarnas paradis (6:33)

4. Den himmelska fridens ängd (5:10)

5. Illusionernas paradis (5:22)

6. Lustbarhetens himmel (3:40)

7. Den sista porten (2:35)

8. Epilog (1:09)

An instrumental set of late period Prog. A slightly strange mix but interspersed with some catchy and quirky melodies, but fails to keep me interested throughout. Sometimes reminds me of more recent bands like Fridge and Battles. So occasional good bits but not something to get overly excited about. Rating 2.5/5.

Painter - Painter (Canada 1973)

Rare MP3 Album Of The Week.

This is a quality set of early 70s pop/rock with plenty of catchy hooks, some impressive vocal melodies, well crafted songs and echos of Crosby, Stills' and Nash. An enjoyable set but suffering from sound quality issues , so a good quality remaster would be quite appreciated.Rating 3.5/5.

VA - Wavelength Infinity: A Sun Ra Tribute (USA 1995)

New CD Of The Week

I was very surprised to find this compilation still available to purchase. I first came across it in the public library not long after I first discovered Sun Ra and I was suitably impressed with what I heard. Back in those days I didn't have a computer or know about buying CDs online and this wasn't something that was likely to be readily available in our local music emporiums. After coming across it on Amazon recently it quickly found its way into my shopping basket and duly arrived in my mailbox last week. It is as good as I remember with a selection of Ra's compositions from throughout his career, covered by a mostly obscure bunch of artists and reminds me of a similar thing John Zorn did with The "Voices in the Wilderness" CD. Any way there is a great mix of jazz based music here with some fairly straight played renditions to some pretty wild stuff as well. Too many good bits to mention now although the spoken poems don't do much for me but there isn't anything here that I don't like so I'm glad I was able to obtain this and apparently the proceeds of this CD go to what is left of the Arkestra, so that is good. Rating 4/5. Defiantly recommended. 

John Zorn - Templars_ In Sacred Blood (USA 2012)

New John Zorn CD

So continuing on with buying my way backwards through the John Zorn Discography with this arriving in the mail box last week. This is one I had heard and reviewed before and on further listening I will have to again adjust the original rating I gave this release. This is a more rock orientated release with Mike Pattons Satanic sounding vocals giving it a Metal feel but Medeski's fantastic organ work along with Trevor Dunns Bass lines lending the music a more Progressive rock feel. Still on the whole, the whole thing works very well and I am now far more impressed than I was initially. Rating 4/5. 

Sun Ra - Visits Planet Earth (USA Saturn LP 9956-11-A/B (1966)) & Interstellar Low Ways (USA Saturn SR 9956-2-M/N (mid 60s))

Sun Ra Album Of The Week.

Still working my way through the complex and massive Sun Ra discography with this latest CD to arrive from Amazon. Two albums on one CD originally released in the mid sixties with material recorded around 58' on "Visits Planet Earth" and possibly 1960 on "Interstellar Low Ways". I have reviewed this particular release before but wanted to update with the arrival of this CD.  Things get more confusing with the discography as almost all of the tracks on "Visits..." were released on "Sound Of Joy" a couple of years later, which I reviewed recently. So I was already quite familiar with the first half of this CD and all that did was make it even more enjoyable to revisit some of these great tunes that I am coming to know quite well now and they just keep getting better and better each time I hear them. The rest of the CD being the "Interstellar Low Ways" album is just stunning. The contrast between the two sets is interesting but not too pronounced to be off putting to the continuity of the Cd as a whole., but the melodies and playing on the second set have impressed greatly and "Space Aura" is one of the greatest pieces of Jazz I have ever heard. I have to re-evaluate my original rating and now give this 4.5/5.

Gravestone - Back to Attack (Germany 1985)

Rare MP3 Album Of The Week.

Like their later album I reviewed recently, this set of 80s Heavy Metal is a well played and well produced but somewhat formulaic collection. Possibly finding it slightly less enjoyable than the other one and not all that inspired to give it too much attention at present. Some good rockin moments and ok tunes and again was more impressed with it when I first heard it a couple of years back, but it is one of those albums that sounds quite impressive on first listens but soon shows its self not to be something that gets better with familiarity. Rating 2/5.

3rd Avenue Blues Band - Fantastic (USA 1970)

Rare Mp3 Album Of The Week

Rose Garden

It’s Got To Be Love

I Know About Love

Put A Little Love In Your Heart

Hawk’s Blues

Don’t Make Me Laugh

Come And Get It

It’s Your Thing

If You Don’t Want Me

Bad Moon Rising

Mean Greens

This starts off a little slow with some average covers, certainly played well, indicating the quality of this groups playing. The covers are instantly recognisable, "Rose Garden" not one I care for a lot. The next track is much better with a second vocalist who has a familiar sounding voice and the music is firmly in the Blood, Sweat & Tears school of Pop-Rock and also sounds like something The Blues Brothers would do. After another couple of well executed but not outstanding covers things take a decisive turn for the better with a great "Super Session" Blues number in "Hawks' Blues, followed by a classic Blood, Sweat & Tears sounding  funky number in "Don't Make Me Laugh" Things stay brilliantly Blusy, Jazzy and funky on "Come and get it and I'm not sure of any of the last three tracks are originals or covers, but they are impressive to say the least. "It's Your Thing" keeps up the relentless tempo of great music before they slow things down again with what I believe is another cover. "Bad Moon Rising" is the best cover here as the actually do something slightly different from the original and pull it off well. The album finishes on a high with a great jazzy instrumental that is most impressive and the Sax is great. Overall a pretty good listen with the music getting much better on the later part of the album when things get more uptempo and funky. Rating 4/5.

GANRYU ISLAND - Michihiro Sato and John Zorn (USA 1984)

The John Zorn Discography no.8

1/ Ryu Kyu Heishi (Warrior from Ryu Kyu)6:09
2/ Haguregumo (The Wanderer)14:10
3/ Two Ronin 3:49
4/ Kagemusha 10:39
5/ Odori Dayu (Evening Dance of a Courtesan)5:16
6/ Ganryu Island 11:09
7/ Yoshiwara Kaidan (Ghosts of the Geisha District)3:30
8/ Natsu Matsuri
9/ Giri
10/ Yonaka No Hatashiai
11/ Uma No Koku
12/ Tsugaru Bushido

Recorded in New York City on November 23, 1984

Michihiro Sato: shamisen; John Zorn: reeds.

This time we actually have something approximating music on this collaboration with  Michihiro Sato, who plays a Japanese string instrument called a shamisen ,which is a familiar sound as it certainly evokes visions of the orient. But really what we have here is Zorn doing his usual weirdness on his sax similar to the previous "... Staratgy" album with Sato playing along behind him. Again slightly interesting for a few minutes but wears thin quite quickly. Another album I am glad to have been able to hear before I brought a copy. Still Progress is being made towards some great music in the not to distant future. Rating 1.5/5.

THE CLASSIC GUIDE TO STRATEGY, VOLUME ONE - John Zorn (USA 1983)

The John Zorn Discography no.7

1/ Senki (War Spirit)(Zorn)19:40
2/ The Moon In The Cold Stream Like A Mirror (Zorn)19:43

ecorded at the OAO Studio in Brooklyn, New York on February 27, 1983

John Zorn: alto, soprano, clarinets, game calls.

So This time John goes it alone on this first volume of "The Classic Guide to

Strategy" and if we were expecting anything different from what John had already

been releasing music wise then this is most disappointing. John gives his sax a

very hard time coaxing out of it all sorts of weird sounds the the original designers

probably didn't expect it to make, he even plays it under water at points. All

this weirdness sounds quite pointless and apart from the occasional interesting

sound, this all gets pretty tedious pretty quick. As usual for this stage of His

carreer there is no melody or conventional song structure here just random

sounding noises. I guess John had to go through this stage to prepare him for

all the fabulas music he would go on to make later, but I am glad I am able to

find this stuff on the internet to sample first as I would be most disappointed

to actually buy this and than find out what was actually on the recorded later.I

am also disappointed with this particular record as it has been praised in the

past. I wonder what sort of drugs they were on? Rating 1/5.

Derek Bailey, George Lewis and John Zorn - Yankees (USA 1983)

The John Zorn Discography no.6

 1/ City City City   8:22

 2/ The Legend Of Enos Slaughter  9:17

 3/ Who's On First 2:56

 4/ On Golden Pond  18:00

 5/ The Warning Track  5:28

 Recorded at OAO Studio, Brooklyn

Derek Bailey: guitars; George Lewis: trombone; John Zorn: alto, soprano,

clarinets, game calls.

John had no trouble finding like minded people to play the same type of weird music(and I use that term in its  most loosest sense)He seemed to prefer back in his early days. I have chosen to add this into my coverage of John's Discography as He had his name amongst the credits for this release and I was familiar with it from several discographies where it is mentioned, but from what I have read, John was a junior collaborator on this which is more of a vehicle for the more senior Bailey. In saying that though, the music presented here doesn't sound out of place amongst his previous game pieces, so more avant-garde improvised weirdness with very little in the way of melody or song structure and frankly bores the crap out of me. Looking forward to getting into some real music from John in the near future.Rating 1/5.

John Zorn - Archery (USA 1981)

The John Zorn Discography no.4

 1/ no title                                 (Zorn)                  20:48
 2/ no title                                 (Zorn)                  20:21
 3/ no title                                 (Zorn)                  24:00
 4/ no title                                 (Zorn)                  23:42

 Recorded at the OAO Studio in Brooklyn, New York on September 12 and 13,
    1981
 
Robert Dick: flutes, game calls; George Lewis: trombone; John Zorn: alto,
soprano, clarinets, game calls; Anthony G. Coleman: organ, electric piano;
Wayne B. Horvitz: Farfisa organ, harmonica, tape, electronics; Mark Kramer:
cheap organ, tapes, synthesizer; Eugene Chadbourne: guitars; Bill Horvitz:
guitar; Bill Laswell: bass; Polly Bradfield: violin; Tom Cora: cello; David
Moss: drums, voice, percussion; Mark Smith: prompter.

1982 - Parachute Records (USA), P017/18 (2xLP)
1997 - Tzadik (USA), TZ 7316 (7xCD)
2001 - Tzadik (USA), TZ 7316 (3xCD)
2001 - Tzadik (USA), TZ 7316-4 (3xCD)

See THE PARACHUTE YEARS 1977-1980 (1997) or ARCHERY (2001) for unreleased
takes from the Archery session.

Not a lot to say about this lot, more of the same as the previous Game pieces and more of the same unlistenable noise, although there are some interesting sounds being produced, it wears thin very quickly.Rating 1/5.

VA - Ladies Sing The Blues (USA 1920's and 1930's) (UK Release 1996)

Off The Shelf'

I have quite a few of these budget blues compilations although most of them are of the men folk doing the early delta stuff. The Women of the Blues were a different kettle of fish though.  Whereas the men were recorded mostly solo with acoustic guitar and sometimes piano, the Women had a bit more musical backing and for me have more of a Jazz sound. I think that this music was the forerunner of Jazz vocals and the later Jazz pop. Several of the Ladies on this compilation went on to have long and distinguished careers, Like Alberta Hunter, Ethel Waters and of course Billie Holiday. Ma Rainey and  Bessie Smith were two of the earliest and most successful blues singers. Most of this music was recorded in the 1920s and 30s so the recordings are pretty rough in places.  This is an historically interesting set but I prefer the Delta blues of the Men, although there are some good tunes here and some pretty raunchy lyrics. There are some well known songs on this set, like "Trouble In Mind" and "It Ain't Necessarily So" and any Led Zeppelin fan will recognise Memphis Minnie's "When The Levee Breaks". Its quite fascinating listening to these old songs and I am quite enjoying this in small doses.  Rating 3/5. 

Patrick Gibson - We, Him and Just Me (Australia 198?)

Mutant Sounds Album Of The Week.

I will dispense with this one fairly quickly as it isn't worth spending much time with. Some minimal synth and other 80s sounding tracks mixed with some drones and other bits and pieces. A  mostly quite uninspiring  set of unreleased recordings, rating 2/5 for some interesting noises but its time to move onto something better. 

John Zorn - Pool (USA 1980)

The John Zorn Discography no.3

    1/ Pool                                     (Zorn)                  51:12
    
    Recorded at Sorcerer Sound Studio, New York City on March 1, 1980
    
  Polly Bradfield: violin; Mark E. Miller: percussion, contact microphones,
  vibraphone; Charles K. Noyes: percussion, saw, khene; Bob Ostertag: elec-
  tronics (Serge); John Zorn: alto, soprano, Bb clarinets, game calls; Lesli
  Dalaba: prompter.

    2/ Hockey (first version)                   (Zorn)                  11:16
    
    Recorded at Dick Charles Studio (by Les Paul, Jr.) on March 4, 1980

  Eugene Chadbourne: electric guitar, personal effects; Wayne Horvitz: ampli-
  fied piano; Bob Ostertag: electronics (Serge).

    3/ Hockey (second version, take 2)          (Zorn)                   3:42
    4/ Hockey (second version, take 5)          (Zorn)                   2:43
    5/ Hockey (second version, take 8)          (Zorn)                   0:50
    6/ Hockey (second version, take 10)         (Zorn)                   0:59

    Recorded at Sorcerer Sound Studio, New York City on March 1, 1980

  Polly Bradfield: violin; Mark E. Miller: percussion; John Zorn: goose, duck 
  and crow calls, clarinet mouthpiece.

    1980 - Parachute Records (USA), P011/12 (2xLP)
    1997 - Tzadik (USA), TZ 7316 (7xCD)
    2000 - Tzadik (USA), TZ 7316-3 (CD)

  Note: the 1xCD reissue only contains (1).

  See THE PARACHUTE YEARS 1977-1980 (1997) for unreleased takes from the
  Hockey session.

The above information was taken from the John Zorn Discography.

I have tried to give this a serious listen and I don't have a problem with music

 with plenty of weird sounds etc, but this is almost unlistenable. As much as I

 love John Zorn's music, his early game pieces are hardly what I call music. I

 know these are games that the musicians play and I'm sure that they have plenty

 of fun playing them, from what I have seen on videos but I am not sure why he 

 ever actually recorded them. Wether or not I actually understand how this system 

works and the rules doesn't make this any more enjoyable to listen to. There is a 

lot of space in there pieces between short bursts of the musicians making their

 instruments make all sorts of noises. The version I was listening was from the 

Parachute years box set, So I'm not entirely sure how that fits with the particular

 recording above, except there are a lot more takes on the CD set.
The First version of Hockey I could almost get into with its electronic noises and

 it was a more compact piece than the others. But I just can't listen to the rest 

of this stuff. I would like to see "Cobra" played live just to try and see this 

sort of thing in the flesh and that is his most famous Game piece, but if your new 

to Zorn's music, stay well away from this stuff.Rating 1/5.  

VA - Next Stop... Soweto Vol 2. Soultown. R&B, Funk & Psyc Sounds From The Townships 1969-1976 (Strut 2010)

Off The Shelf

Oh Yeah, Strut have done it again, as with the other two volumes in this set, Strut records have managed to piece together another absolutely fantastic set of rare South African gems.
This arrived in my mailbox several months ago and after a few initial listens where I didn't feel as impressed as I did with Volumes 1 and 3, it got shelved in favour of other new CD arriving. So I wasn't overly excited when it presented itself for this weeks CD review, but on that first listen, as I was now slightly more familiar with the music, it had a far greater impact on me this time round and it has been a real grooving soundtrack to my after dinner clean-ups and other inside chores. This lot is a lot closer in spirit to the West African Afro funk I love so much. The album is kinda like the "Nuggets" of South Africa, but with less of the garage and more of the funk/jazz and psychedelic tones that sound so bloody good when mixed with native African music, it somewhat reminds be of the later Acid Jazz music from the early 90s. Chock full of wonderful vocal melodies and some utterly fantastic guitar playing, I have just fallen head over heals for this compilation. Highly recommended. Rating 5+/5.

John Zorn - Locus Solus (USA 1983)

The John Zorn Discography no.5

This looks to be John Zorn's first release that is not one of his Game Pieces although musically it sounds like it fits in well with the style of those earlier pieces. I have had this CD for a considerable time but due to the difficult nature of the music, I haven't given it a lot of attention. This set of 38 short pieces was recorded during 3 different sessions with a different line up on each occasion and you can notice the differences between each session. The first set I don't enjoy as much mainly due to the slightly treated vocals/narrative which sounds a little creepy to me. I find the third set to be more interesting with some impressive sounds seeping out of the musical chaos. Like most of John Zorn's early stuff there isn't much here in the way of conventional tunes or melody. It is very experimental and avant-garde. There are rewards for careful attention to the complex detail but it doesn't sit too well foe casual listening and can be quite a task to sit through the whole lot at one sitting. I do find many of the pieces stand up well isolated on their own when I hear them played on a Zorn Mix playlist and I have always enjoyed this album more than the earlier game pieces.Rating 2.5/5.

Sun Ra and his Myth Science Arkestra - Angels and Demons at Play (USA 1963)

Sun Ra Album Of The Week.

Side A:

"Tiny Pyramids" (Ronnie Boykins) – 3:38

"Between Two Worlds" – 1:56

"Music from the World Tomorrow" – 2:20

"Angels and Demons at Play" (Boykins) – 2:51

Side B:

"Urnack" (Julian Priester) – 3:46

"Medicine for a Nightmare" – 2:16

"A Call for All Demons" – 4:12

"Demon's Lullaby" – 2:35

Things sound pretty loose on some of these tracks as we jump ahead a bit with the recording dates for side one being from 1960 and side two back again to 56'. The album itself was released sometime later in the 60s and my CD copy comes paired up with "The Sound Sun Pleasure" and "We Travel The Space Ways" albums. There is a noticeable difference between the two sides with the 56' set being more swinging, like his other earlier stuff and the band sound much tighter and more conventional, I like it better than the later side which is more Ra sounding but the selection isn't what I'd call the best, sounding much looser and the music more demanding to stay focussed with. With the two recording dates so far apart it makes for an historical comparison but an uneven listen. Rating 2.5/5.

Tako - Tako (Japan 1983)

Mutant Sounds Album Of the Week.

\

Hmm, Not sure about this one, parts of it just don't grab me at all and so those that I had heard during the week inspired me to keep skipping listening to this and going for other albums in this weeks playlist. The set doesn't start off at all well with the opening track sounding like someone being sexually tortured. The album is a real schizophrenic affair and THIS description from Mutant Sounds describes it a lot better than I can.  Still , in amongst the screaming and caterwauling and other weird sounds there are occasional moments of shear brilliance. Actually in places this sounds like a weirder Japanese version of The Mekons early works and other English Post Punk indie bands from around the same period as this was released, thinking Delta 5 or maybe a touch of the Raincoats with more wild avant-garde sax. On closer inspection, there are more interesting moments than I first thought, although this isn't something I would choose to spend a lot of time with. Typically Japanese(If there is such a thing) and gets a rating of 2.5/5.