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KnCurrent (Brennan / Cooper-Moore / Davis / Hwang):
KnCurrent (Deep Dish)

An electrifying and richly textured electroacoustic quartet of NY improvisers—Patrick Brennan on alto saxophone, Cooper-Moore on diddley-bo, On Ka'a Davis on electric guitar, and Jason Kao Hwang on electric violin — weaving active improvisations where timbre, pitch, and rhythm share equal weight, as KnCurrent channels dynamic musical interaction into a polyglot, collective voice. ... Click to View


Elliott Sharp / Scott Fields :
Reimsi Geara (Relative Pitch)

A vital and inventive meeting between NY guitarist Elliott Sharp and Chicago guitarist Scott Fields, two visionary electric guitarists whose longstanding collaboration finds them weaving complex textures, sharp counterpoint, and dynamic interplay into a seamless blend of free improvisation, experimental composition, and nuanced sonic dialogue. ... Click to View


Dietrichs:
No Bahdu (Relative Pitch)

An uncompromising and electrifying studio set from father-daughter duo Don and Camille Dietrich, whose ferocious blend of distorted tenor saxophone and overdriven cello pushes sonic boundaries through four intense improvisations, merging free jazz, noise, and amplified effects into a blistering, high-voltage assault of raw energy and experimental fire. ... Click to View


Biota:
Measured Not Found (Recommended Records)

A deeply immersive and meticulously crafted work from the reclusive Biota collective, blending microtonal instruments, electroacoustic techniques, and a wide array of ancient and modern timbres into a richly layered and human sound-world of instrumental and delicate song forms, unfolding across shifting textures and suspended time-the result of more than seven years of collaborative studio experimentation. ... Click to View


Charlemagne Palestine / Seppe Gebruers:
Beyondddddd The Notessssss [VINYL] (Konnekt)

A mystical microtonal encounter between Charlemagne Palestine and Seppe Gebruers on four grand pianos — two tuned to 428Hz and two to 440Hz — recorded live in Geneva's Fonderie Kugler, where the duo's passion for unusual tunings and multi-piano performance unfolds in deeply resonant, transcendent layers of sound and silence. ... Click to View


Charlemagne Palestine / Seppe Gebruers:
Beyondddddd The Notessssss [NEON GREEN VINYL] (Konnekt)

A mystical microtonal encounter between Charlemagne Palestine and Seppe Gebruers on four grand pianos — two tuned to 428Hz and two to 440Hz — recorded live in Geneva's Fonderie Kugler, where the duo's passion for unusual tunings and multi-piano performance unfolds in deeply resonant, transcendent layers of sound and silence. ... Click to View


Deli Kuvveti :
Kuslar Soyledi [CASSETTE w/ DOWNLOAD] (Tsss Tapes)

A limited-edition cassette release from Turkish-born, Seattle-based artist Deli Kuvveti, Kuşlar Söyledi presents four studio compositions blending creaking doors, bird and liquid sounds, and minimal drones into a meditative exploration of microsound and sound collage. ... Click to View


Viddekazz2:
Sounds Of Silence (Public Eyesore)

An assertive Japanese punk-noise duo from Tokyo, VIDDEKAZZ2 delivers a volatile fusion of syncopated drumming, abrasive guitar textures, and unexpectedly serene vocals, channeling the disjointed energy of early noise rock with subtle pop inflections and a raw, Load Records-era aesthetic. ... Click to View


Leap Of Faith:
Spectral Radii (Evil Clown)

A compact yet sonically expansive set from the Boston-based Evil Clown collective, featuring PEK, Glynis Lomon, John Fugarino, and Michael Knoblach in a highly textural electroacoustic improvisation, blending a massive arsenal of traditional, extended, and invented instruments into a dense, spontaneous tapestry that embodies the group's signature broad-palette aesthetic. ... Click to View


Steve Lehman Trio + Mark Turner:
The Music of Anthony Braxton (Pi Recordings)

Alto saxophonist Steve Lehman leads his trio with bassist Matt Brewer and drummer Damion Reid, joined by tenor saxophonist Mark Turner, in a vibrant live homage to Anthony Braxton's small ensemble works, blending intricate modern jazz interplay with searing emotional expression in a bold, high-energy celebration of Braxton's enduring influence. ... Click to View


Steve Lehman Trio + Mark Turner:
The Music of Anthony Braxton [VINYL] (Pi Recordings)

Alto saxophonist Steve Lehman leads his trio with bassist Matt Brewer and drummer Damion Reid, joined by tenor saxophonist Mark Turner, in a vibrant live homage to Anthony Braxton's small ensemble works, blending intricate modern jazz interplay with searing emotional expression in a bold, high-energy celebration of Braxton's enduring influence. ... Click to View


Ellery Eskelin Trio New York:
(ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)

Reuniting for two powerful studio sessions recorded in 2011 and 2013, tenor saxophonist Ellery Eskelin, organist Gary Versace, and drummer Gerald Cleaver form Trio New York, navigating an intuitive path between free improvisation and jazz standards with soulful depth, rich allusions, and a shared language that reimagines the classic organ trio. ... Click to View


Russ Johnson / Christian Weber / Dieter Ulrich:
To Walk On Eggshells (ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)

In a spontaneously assembled 2009 session at Zürich's DRS studio, trumpeter Russ Johnson, bassist Christian Weber, and drummer Dieter Ulrich sculpt a dynamic and intuitive trio performance, threading balladic lyricism with abstract tension in a deft interplay of trust, fragility, and risk that transforms improvisation into captivating and timeless art. ... Click to View


Jean-Jacques Birge :
Perspectives Du Xxiie Siecle (Musee d'ethnographie de Geneve)

Commissioned by Geneva's Museum of Ethnography, Jean-Jacques Birgé crafts a richly imaginative sonic fiction using field recordings, archival folk material, and electroacoustic composition, with a remarkable ensemble including Nicolas Chedmail, Antonin-Tri Hoang, Jean-François Vrod, Sylvain Lemêtre, and Else Birgé, evoking a post-human journey through reinvention and memory. ... Click to View


Un Drame Musical Instantane:
Tchak (Klanggalerie)

The final recordings of Un Drame Musical Instantané with co-founder Bernard Vitet, compiling sessions from 1998 to 2000 with the Machiavel Quartet and guests including Baco Mourchid and Nem, blending free jazz, electroacoustic experimentation, and multimedia spontaneity into cinematic improvisations that showcase the ensemble's enduring commitment to collective creation and sonic innovation. ... Click to View


Paul Flaherty:
A Willing Passenger (Relative Pitch)

A solo saxophone album from legendary free improviser Paul Flaherty, recorded at Pete's Basement Studio in Massachusetts in 2021, presenting a deeply personal and expressive journey through alto and tenor saxophone explorations that juxtapose raw turbulence and lyrical beauty, continuing Flaherty's legacy of shaping sound into emotionally resonant sonic narratives ... Click to View


Tommaso Rolando / Andy Moor :
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Recorded live in Genoa in 2022, the energetic and exploratory, rock-oriented duo of bassist Tommaso Rolando (Torto Editions) and guitarist Andy Moor (The Ex) captures an improvisational dialog shaped by alternate tunings, intent listening, and kinetic spontaneity, as the two seasoned performers bridge punk-rooted experimentation with richly resonant acoustic interplay. ... Click to View


Tetsuya Nakayama :
Edo Wan [CASSETTE w/ DOWNLOAD] (Tsss Tapes)

Composing with assembled field recordings and environmental textures, Chiba, Japan-based composer Tetsuya Nakayama transforms mundane sounds into poetic events, as water, metal, and incidental noise intertwine in a quiet yet immersive narrative that re-enchants everyday spaces, revealing a new mode of listening shaped by nuance and fleeting detail. ... Click to View


Turbulence Orchestra and Sub-Units:
Tempestuous Hubbub (2 CDs) (Evil Clown)

A massive 22-member improvising ensemble, the Turbulence Orchestra and Sub-Units are heard live in Vermont, with five dynamic sub-unit performances and a full-orchestra hour-long guided improvisation, blending structured conduction, graphic notation techniques, and a chaotic palette of woodwinds, brass, strings, percussion and even rubber chickens in an intense and unpredictable sonic experience. ... Click to View


+Felladog+:
+Felladog+ (Love Earth Music)

A high-decibel collaboration between harsh noise veteran Steve Davis (+DOG+) and Cleveland sound artist Jim Fellahean Szudy (Fellahean), recorded in Massachusetts and Ohio, blending subterranean industrial textures with metal scraping, low drones, and brutal sonic ruptures across 14 dynamic tracks, delivering an hour of immersive and confrontational electro-industrial experimentation. ... Click to View


Masayo Koketsu / Nava Dunkelman / Tim Berne:
Poiesis (Relative Pitch)

A first-time meeting in the studio for alto saxophonists Tim Berne and Masayo Koketsu with percussionist Nava Dunkelman, captured in a dynamic session of collective free improvisation where contrasting approaches — Berne's grounded tone, Koketsu's extended techniques, and Dunkelman's textural percussion — intertwine with clarity and spontaneous expression. ... Click to View


Laura Cocks:
FATHM (Relative Pitch)

An intimate and exploratory solo recording from NY flutist Laura Cocks, known for their work with TAK Ensemble, presenting a poetic and deeply focused album where breath, silence, and sound merge into fragile, resonant gestures — Cocks bends time and expectation with extended technique and stillness, inviting the listener into a space of presence and emotional depth. ... Click to View


Julia Uehla and Dalava:
Understories (Pi Recordings)

Drawing from Moravian folk songs transcribed by her great-grandfather, vocalist Julia Úlehla leads the Vancouver ensemble Dálava in a haunting and emotionally charged set blending Czech and English vocals with experimental improvisation, as Aram Bajakian, Peggy Lee, and Joshua Zubot weave a deeply layered, otherworldly sonic journey that bridges ancestry and avant sound. ... Click to View


John Zorn (Ikue Mori):
The Bagatelles Vol. 4 Ikue Mori (Tzadik)

Downtown NY improviser, sound artist and drummer Ikue Mori reimagines John Zorn's compositions from his Bagatelles book through her distinctive electronic lens, crafting a solo album where composed structures meet spontaneous digital improvisation, revealing new dimensions and highlighting her innovative approach to sound and form. ... Click to View


Poudingue:
La Preuve (GRRR)

A song-oriented, genre-blurring album from the French quartet Poudingue (Pudding), drawing from the spirit of Rock in Opposition with richly layered arrangements, experimental textures, and playful lyricism, as multi-instrumentalist Nicolas Chedmail, guitarist Frédéric Mainçon, synthesist Jean-Jacques Birgé, and drummer Benjamin Sanz fuse improvisation and composition into an irreverent and inventive set. ... Click to View


Denis Lavant / Jean-Jacques Birge / Lionel Martin:
Les Dements (2 CDS) (GRRR / Ouch!)

Following their 2022 album Fictions, French saxophonist Lionel Martin and multi-instrumentalist Jean-Jacques Birgé reunite with actor Denis Lavant for a second collaboration, captured in a spontaneous two-disc session of spoken word and electroacoustic improvisation, as Lavant delivers chosen texts with surreal intensity amid vividly shifting soundscapes. ... Click to View


Jean-Michel Van Schouwburg / Nuno Torres / Ernesto Rodrigues / Joao Madeira / Carlos Santos :
La Rambarde Des Songes, Les Congruences Des Soupirs (Creative Sources)

A hushed and enigmatic quintet improvisation featuring Jean-Michel Van Schouwburg's extended vocal techniques alongside Nuno Torres (alto saxophone), Ernesto Rodrigues (viola, crackle box), João Madeira (double bass), and Carlos Santos (modular synthesizer), unfolding in reductionist, pointillistic interplay that explores subtle texture, utterance, and resonance. ... Click to View


Erik Klinga:
Elusive Shimmer (thanatosis produktion)

Swedish composer Erik Klinga crafts radiant electroacoustic works from Buchla synth, pipe organ, drum machine, and field recordings, weaving melodic ambient vignettes that shimmer with warmth and light, moving through celestial textures, gliding rhythms, and bird-like flourishes in a richly detailed debut recorded at Stockholm’s Royal College of Music, the first of a planned trilogy on Thanatosis. ... Click to View


Metal Chaos Ensemble:
Room 2017 (Evil Clown)

A transitional yet quintessential Metal Chaos Ensemble set, this septet blends horns, Chapman Stick, electronics, guitar, drums, and an arsenal of metallic percussion with spoken word, creating dense free improvisation that balances spacey electronics, chaotic interplay, and shifting sonic textures within the group's evolving aesthetic. ... Click to View


Unsub:
Suffer Apathy (Love Earth Music)

A collaborative ambient work from sound artists, LA-based guitarist Fetusk and Massachusetts-based synthesizer Steven Davis, blending subtly layered guitars, drones, and synth textures in a spacious, contemplative environment that unfolds slowly and delicately, drawing the listener into a refined and immersive electroacoustic soundscape. ... Click to View



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  Koby Israelite 
  Dance of the Idiots  
  (Tzadik) 

   review by Elliott Simon
  2003-06-10
Koby Israelite: Dance of the Idiots (Tzadik)

It appears that this side of the Atlantic is not the only place where Jewish music is influencing young experimental artists. Myriad musical maestro Koby Israelite has released Dance of the Idiots, a whiplash inducing CD that can catch the listener unaware as it quickly changes gears and genres. In addition to programming, Israelite plays at least four instruments on most tracks including drums, electric guitar, pocket clarinet, flute, piano, accordion, keyboard, melodica and percussion. While clearly displaying cantorial, Chasidic, and klezmer foundations, Idiots is foremost a stylized self-portrait that draws on metal, rock, psychedalia and synth pop, resulting in an unmistakably kosher ragout.

Israeli born, Koby Israelite has resided in England for over a decade and performed with many distinguished jazz musicians, several of whom he has wisely recruited for this session. Most notable is reedman and fellow Israeli ex-pat Gilad Atzmon, whose band The Orient House Ensemble and their cd Exile (Enja Justin Time, JENJ 3305) have both been nominated for 2003 BBC best band and best album Jazz Awards. Also here from the Exile session are the deliciously talented violinist Marcel Mamaliga and bassist Yaron Stavi. A first rate brass section in the persons of cross-genre session trumpeter Sid Gauld (Burt Bachrach, Blur, James Galway, The Stranglers, Ray Charles and dozens of others) and trombonist Reut Regev (seen in NYC with Assif Tsahar and Ras Moshe, among others) helps produce some of the cd's stronger cuts. With decidedly funky bassist Stefan Redtenbacher, Ofir Gal's rock guitar, virtuoso Romanian born jazz/classical accordionist, Marin Nasturcia and Howard Davies' didgeridoo occasionally added to this heady mix, Israelite has conjured up a suitable quorum to present his sweeping musical concept

Although Dance of the Idiots can veer dangerously close to cheesy Chasidic Casio Karaoke ("Saints and Dates") or resonate an inbred gondola music groove (parts of "I Used to be Cool"), these moments are saved by expert musicianship and the best cuts are close to flawless. "Battersea Blues" evinces a sensibility that flies in the face of commercialization in its simplistic but beautiful melody and raw but not happenstance folk instrumentation. "I Used to be Cool" and "Wanna Dance" take the listener on breakneck genre tours that can begin with a Gregorian chant, grind to a surprising non-cadencial ending or have a laughing klezmer clarinet eructate into a final belch. "In the Meantime" enables Sid Gauld to stand out on trumpet and is a Balkan funky concoction, as is "Truah," where brass again shines against a funky rhythm with Regev's trombone leading the way through some MidEastern synth noodling. The title piece explodes into an animated ska beat that boasts everything from crisp accordion runs to the theme from the Simpsons. "Toledo Five Four" features Israelite on 5 instruments that with Savi's bass set up a rhythm upon which Atzmon, Mamaliga and Regev provide hot solos. "Diego (Hora Miresei)" is an all-too-short traditional Romanian wedding tune that Nasturcia plays in classic fashion while Israelite free-form drums an accompaniment.

Israelite shows himself to be a seamless mixologist as "HappyLouge" and "2nd of Tamuz" are delightful melanges of various genres interspersed amongst each other until heavy metal and Chasidic nign eventually align as kindred spirits. While the individual musicians on Dance of the Idiots are standouts, the album ultimately glows as a panoramic statement of Israelite's vision.





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