John Zorn (born September 2, 1953 in New York City) is an American avant-garde composer, arranger, record producer, saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist. Zorn’s recorded output is prolific with hundreds of album credits as a performer, composer, or producer. His work has touched on a wide range of musical genres, often within a single composition, but he is best-known for his avant-garde, jazz, improvised and contemporary classical music. Zorn has led the punk jazz band Naked City, the klezmer-influenced quartet Masada and composed the associated ‘Masada Songbooks’, written concert music for classical ensembles, and produced music for film and documentary. Zorn has stated that “I’ve got an incredibly short attention span. My music is jam-packed with information that is changing very fast… All the various styles are organically connected to one another. I’m an additive person – the entire storehouse of my knowledge informs everything I do. People are so obsessed with the surface that they can’t see the connections, but they are there.”
 
After releasing albums on several independent US and European labels, Zorn signed with Elektra Nonesuch and attracted wide acclaim in 1985 when he released The Big Gundown with his interpretations of music composed by Ennio Morricone. This was followed by the album Spillane in 1987, and the first album by Naked City in 1989 which all attracted further worldwide attention. Zorn then recorded on the Japanese DIW label and curated the Avant subsidiary label before forming Tzadik in 1995, where he has been prolific, issuing several new recordings each year and releasing works by many other musicians.
 
Zorn established himself within the New York City downtown music movement in the early 1980s but has since composed and performed with a wide range of musicians working in diverse musical areas. By the early 1990s Zorn was working extensively in Japan, attracted by that culture’s openness about borrowing and remixing ingredients from elsewhere, where he performed and recorded under the name Dekoboko Hajime, before returning to New York as a permanent base in the mid 1990’s. Zorn has undertaken many tours of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, often performing at festivals with varying ensembles to display his diverse output.

Thurston Moore Official Website | Thurston Moore on Facebook | Thurston Moore on Twitter | Thurston Moore on Instagram

Thurston Moore moved to NYC at eighteen in 1976 to play punk. He started Sonic Youth in 1980. Since then Thurston Moore has been at the forefront of the alternative rock scene since that particular sobriquet was first used to signify any music that challenged and defied the mainstream standard. With Sonic Youth, Moore turned on an entire generation to the value of experimentation in rock n roll – from its inspiration on a nascent Nirvana, to Sonic Youth’s own Daydream Nation album being chosen by the US Library of Congress for historical preservation in the National Recording Registry in 2006. Thurston records and performs in a cavalcade of disciplines ranging from free improvisation to acoustic composition to black/white metal/noise disruption. He has worked with Yoko Ono, John Zorn, David Toop, Cecil Taylor, Faust, Glenn Branca and many others. His residency at the Louvre in Paris included collaborations with Irmin Schmidt of CAN. Alongside his various activities in the musical world, he is involved with publishing and poetry, and teaches writing at Naropa University, Boulder CO, a school founded by Allen Ginsberg and Anne Waldman in 1974. Thurston also teaches music at The Rhythmic Music Conservatory (Rytmisk Musikkonservatorium) in Copenhagen.

Presently he performs and records solo, with various ensembles and in his own band, The Thurston Moore Group (with mbv’s Deb Googe, Steve Shelley & James Sedwards). In 2014, the band released The Best Day which critics described as “optimistic and sun-drenched in beauty” and “[has] experimental attitude dovetailed with instantly accessible pop melodies.” The Best Day was a record defined by positivity and radical love. In 2017 Thurston Moore Group’s released a full-length album, Rock n Roll Consciousness which was recorded in The Church studios in London with producer Paul Epworth. The songs are expansive, anthemic and exploratory with lyrics that investigate and herald the love between angels, goddess mysticism and a belief in healing through new birth. Ranging from opener “Exalted”, an unfolding and emotional journey in homage to sacred energy and exaltation, to “Cusp” a charging, propulsive piece with a feeling of Sonic Youth mixing in with My Bloody Valentine. “Turn On” is a pop-sonic poem to holy love both intimate and kosmiche to the contemplative mystery of life-defining time travel in “Smoke of Dreams”. The record concludes with “Aphrodite”, a strange and heavy no-wave rocker in salutation to the idol of love, beauty, pleasure, and procreation.

Thurston Moore’s new release entitled SPIRIT COUNSEL is a box set of new material recorded between 2018-19, including the epic tracks such as“Alice Moki Jayne” dedicated to Alice Coltrane, Moki Cherry and Jayne Cortez “8 Spring Street” an homage to his late teenage mentor Glenn Branca and “Galaxies” a symphonic masterpiece constructed of twelve musicians playing 12-string electric guitars. THE SPIRIT COUNSELTOUR will commence on International Peace Day, September 21, 2019 with tour dates to be announced.

Jesse Harris official site | Jesse Harris on Facebook | Jesse Harris on Twitter
Star Rover on Facebook | Star Rover on Bandcamp | Star Rover official site

Originally from New York City, Jesse Harris is a singer, songwriter, guitarist and producer of artists from all over the world.   He has been making records since the mid 90s, when he started in the group Once Blue on EMI Records.  It was his first experience writing for another singer, lead vocalist, Rebecca Martin.  Combining folk, jazz and pop, the group defined a direction for Harris and was also notable for featuring the guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel.

As a solo artist since then Jesse has released 12 albums, including many with his former backing band The Ferdinandos and one all-instrumental recording (Cosmo). His forthcoming album, No Wrong No Right (to be released 2/10/15 on Dangerbird Records) finds him with backing group Star Rover and many special guests, including Julian Lage, CJ Camerieri, Mauro Refosco, Margaret Glaspy, Larry Goldings, and Sofia Rei (See the full press release below).

In 2003 he received the Grammy Award for Song Of The Year for Norah Jones’ breakout hit “Don’t Know Why,” from her debut album, Come Away With Me, which has sold over 20 million copies worldwide.  Four other Harris compositions appear on it, “Shoot The Moon,” “One Flight Down,” “I’ve Got To See You Again,” and “The Long Day Is Over,” and he plays guitar throughout.  Since then, Jones and Harris have collaborated many times.  She duets with him on “What Makes You” from his album The Secret Sun and sings harmonies on several others,Crooked Lines, While The Music Lasts and Watching The Sky.  He appears as guitarist on almost all of her albums, contributing songwriting to The Fall, and produced her version of his song “World Of Trouble” for the Ethan Hawke film The Hottest State.  That soundtrack features not only Harris’ score, but new versions of his songs by Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Cat Power, Feist, The Black Keys, M. Ward, Brad Mehldau, Bright Eyes (on whose album “I’m Wide Awake It’s Morning” Jesse also appears as guitarist), and others.  Recently Harris and Jones appeared together in the Amy Poehler/Paul Rudd comedy They Came Together, performing his song “It Was The Last Thing On Your Mind,” also produced by Harris.

Other artists who have covered his material include Smokey Robinson, Sasha Dobson (whose album Modern Romance he co-produced with Richard Julian), George Benson, Pat Metheny, and Solomon Burke, on whose album Like A Fire Harris also plays guitar and sings backing vocals.  Songwriting collaborations have included Madeleine Peyroux, Lizz Wright, Melody Gardot, Maria Gadu, and Vinicius Cantuaria.

Recently Jesse joined John Zorn’s The Song Project, along with Mike Patton and Sofia Rei, writing lyrics for various Zorn compositions and singing them at festivals worldwide with an all-star band that features Marc Ribot on guitar, John Medeski on keyboards, and Zorn conducting. A limited edition of vinyl 45s has just been released on Tzadik Records (tzadik.com).

Veteran singer, songwriter and musician Jesse Harris has just announced the release of new album No Wrong No Right, out Feb. 10 on Dangerbird Records.

The Grammy-winning Harris had his breakthrough in 2003, having written Norah Jones’ first and biggest hit “Don’t Know Why.” He subsequently has had a vibrant solo career of his own, along the way writing for and collaborating with renowned artists such as Bright Eyes, Cat Power, Feist, M. Ward, Melody Gardot, Mike Patton, John Zorn, Solomon Burke, Willie Nelson and Emmylou Harris.

On No Wrong No Right—Harris’ 13th solo album—he drew inspiration from Neil Young’s approach on After the Goldrush. “Some of that record was done with Crazy Horse, and it’s a rock record,” Harris explains, “but then you also have these hushed acoustic folk songs, and it keeps shifting back and forth between the two distinct moods. I always loved the way that worked, so I started there, but with No Wrong No Right, I also added a third element.”

The three elements Harris speaks of are an inspired set of full-band tunes recorded with guitarist Will Graefe and drummer Jeremy Gustin of experimental duo Star Rover; a more subdued, acoustic-anchored series of duets with guitar virtuoso Julian Lage; and a trio of evocative instrumental tracks.

The album initially grew out of Harris’ discovery of Star Rover and the friendship and musical chemistry that developed between them last winter. “I fell in love with their band,” Harris says. “I was sort of a groupie, checking out their gigs all the time. One day they invited me over to their loft to play, and it felt great from the first song. Which inspired me to write a bunch more songs.

“Will and Jeremy, musically, are adventurous and free, and at the same time completely supportive of the song. They love to work out arrangements, but they play with a lot of looseness and expression. It’s so hard to find that perfect combination—either people don’t want to rehearse, and just play all over the songs, or they’re too rehearsed and there’s no spontaneity. As a singer and songwriter, I feel like they support the music, but at the same time completely challenge it.”

The duos with Lage—“I Probably Won’t See You For A While,” “Don’t Let Me Pass By” and John Zorn co-write “Kafiristan”—are sparse and disarmingly intimate, offering a refreshing contrast to the record’s more fleshed-out tracks. Harris raves about the musical abilities of Lage, who also plays in duos with Wilco’s Nels Cline and Chris Eldridge of The Punch Brothers. “Julian is a remarkable young musician,” Harris says. “He’s a jazz guitarist, but he’s equally interested in songcraft and experimental music. Playing with him is always exciting—he’s extremely sensitive, and has such a beautiful tone. I really wanted to capture our duo on this record.”

The album’s three instrumentals—also backed by Star Rover—continue Harris’ tradition of including a few sans-vocals tracks on every release. The aptly named “Staring Contest” features a loping, repetitive and extremely hummable guitar figure. “Pandora’s Box” is a dreamy meditation on the modern rabbit hole of social media, and “Miyazaki” is a tribute to the legendary Japanese anime director.

No Wrong No Right also features a mysterious and gorgeously wintery rendition of Rodgers & Hart standard “Where or When” bolstered by the organ playing of Larry Goldings (James Taylor, Madeleine Peyroux, Maceo Parker). Other notable guests on the record include CJ Camerieri (Paul Simon, Bon Iver, yMusic) on horns and horn arrangements; Margaret Glaspy on vocals; frequent Harris collaborator Mauro Refosco (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Atoms for Peace) on percussion, marimba and electronics; and Sofia Rei—who also performs with Harris in the John Zorn-led Song Project—on vocals.

***

“Star Rover, the Brooklyn twosome of guitarist Will Graefe and drummer Jeremy Gustin, specializes in an alluring sort of pastoral punk that suggests a collaboration between Deerhoof and John Fahey.“- Time Out New York

Star Rover will be releasing a collaborative album with Grammy Award winning songwriter Jesse Harris on Dangerbird Records on February 10th. Lately, they’ve been busy collaborating with Petra Haden, Sam Amidon, Lars Horntveth (Jaga Jazzist), Larkin Grimm, Sam Owens (Celestial Shore), Lazar Davis (Cuddle Magic). They also recently recorded with Brazilian singer Tiago Iorc, and you can hear one of those songs, “Dia Especial”, right here.

For their debut album as Star Rover, guitarist Will Graefe (Landlady, Jesse Harris, Larkin Grimm) and drummer Jeremy Gustin (Delicate Steve, Marc Ribot, Albert Hammond, Jr.) began with the music of John Fahey and ended up in their own corner of a skewed, over-driven, weird America. Western Winds, Bitter Christians is available now from FYO Records.

Star Rover’s original compositions use John Fahey’s guitar playing as a launching point for interstellar explorations. Those 6 strings, kick, snare, tom, and cymbals separate and recombine, lead and accompany, and alternately push and pull the time with incredible variety. Rhythmic drive comes as often from Will Graefe’s guitar as it does from the drum set; Jeremy Gustin’s languid drumming is full of song-like melodies; and a casually precise blend of kick drum and low guitar strings provides ample bass-register harmonic grounding.

A few years ago two American nomads began exploring a music without rules or regard to borders. The glue was simply their mutual enthusiasm for uncharted sounds, unusual instruments, and the diverse musicians that inspired them. Now, with the release of their third album, New Deli, TriBeCaStan has matured into a large tight-knit ensemble, complete with power horns, rocking bass lines, catchy vocal riffs, and wickedly ingenious solos. With cover art by Zappa’s favorite artist Cal Schenkel, the group—led by co-founders John Kruth and Jeff Greene—has concocted their most dance-friendly record to date, a heady brew of gritty, funky new grooves from the world’s deepest musical roots, thanks to an all-star “FolkLorkeStra” of globally-inspired jazz and rock music veterans.
 
Photo credit: Doran Gild, 2010

A world class guitar hero, a Grammy-nominated songwriter and composer, an international recording artist with over 20 acclaimed solo albums to date, and a soundtrack composer for film and television, GARY LUCAS is on the move in 2012.
 
Photo by Bram Belloni

http://introducingflutterbox.blogspot.com/
 
Photo credit: Scott Friedlander

Red Baraat official site | Red Baraat on Facebook | Red Baraat on Twitter | Red Baraat on Instagram

The ever evolving Red Baraat is a pioneering band from Brooklyn, New York. Led by dhol player Sunny Jain, the group has drawn worldwide praise for its merging of hard driving North Indian Bhangra with elements of funk, go-go, rock, and jazz – fueled by master rhythm makers, the muscle of horns, raucous guitar, and a booming sousaphone. Created with no less a purposeful agenda than manifesting joy and unity in all people, the band’s effortless outlook empowers their audience in a near hedonistic celebration of music and dance. “A knitted blend of poly-rhythmic panache exploring what it means to communicate music between individuals and across cultures,” states SPIN Magazine, and NPR has dubbed them “the best party band in years.”

On the heels of a new album release, Sound The People, Red Baraat are very much taking their sonic signature to a new astral realm, while firmly placing it within the context of a globalized generation. All Songs Considered called their latest release “wildly infectious, soul-grooving music.” and Stereogum premiered the title track featuring Heems (Das Racist / Swet Shop Boys), “Red Baraat delivers an explosion of sound. A frenzy of funk, jazz, hip-hop, and Indian bhangra.”

Red Baraat has released five albums prior, including 2017’s Bhangra Pirates (#4 on World Music Charts Europe), 2012’s Shruggy Ji (debuted at #1 on the Billboard World Music Charts) and their debut release in 2010, Chaal Baby, which was featured in FX TV show, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.  Their infamous live show has criss-crossed the globe including stops at Bonnaroo, Peter Gabriel’s WOMAD Festival (UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Spain), Austin City Limits, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Luxembourg Philharmonic, New York City’s iconic Bowery Ballroom and Vienna Concert House. The band has performed at the request of The White House, TED, and the Olympic Games, and they’ve been curating their multi-city Red Baraat Festival of Colors for the past 7 years, based on the Hindu holiday of Holi.

Photo Credit: Mark Jaworski

David Amram has composed more than 100 orchestral and chamber music works, written many scores for Broadway theater and film, including the classic scores for the films Splendor in The Grass and The Manchurian Candidate; two operas, including the groundbreaking Holocaust opera The Final Ingredient, a comic opera Twelfth Night with a libretto by Joseph Papp; and the score for the landmark 1959 cult
classic Pull My Daisy, narrated by novelist Jack Kerouac. He is also the author of three books, Vibrations, an autobiography, Offbeat: Collaborating With Kerouac, a memoir, and Upbeat: Nine Lives of a Musical Cat, all published by Paradigm Publishers.

Ayelet Rose Gottlieb: Voice
Sofia Rei Koutsovitis: Voice
Basya Schecter: Voice
Malika Zarra: Voice
 
“Mycale utterly dazzled with their precision harmonies and flute-like intonations” said Downbeat Magazine about Mycale’s performance at the Montreal Jazz Festival. Commissioned by composer John Zorn to arrange, perform and record selections from his “Book of Angels: Masada Book II”, vocalists Basya Schechter (Brooklyn), Ayelet Rose Gottlieb (Israel), Sofia Rei (Argentina) and Malika Zarra (Morocco) use words, sounds and vocal beats to bring a unique interpretation to Zorn’s compositions. They sing in Hebrew, Spanish, Yiddish, Arabic, Ladino and French, presenting their diverse cultural backgrounds and passionate vocals.
 
Since the release of their first album, “Mycale: Book of Angels, Vol 13”, Mycale have been touring internationally including performances at Teatro Manzoni (Milano), The Jewish Museum (Berlin), Middleheim Jazz Festival (Antwerp), Ashkenaz Festival (Toronto), Beit Avi-Chai (Jerusalem) and Le Poisson Rouge (New York). Their performances have been hailed by the press as “Transcendent” and “astonishing”. As The Examiner put it after recently hearing them in the John Zorn Masada Marathon at the New York City Opera: “for a moment, people may have been able to imagine the magical lure of the sirens”