★Drag City
Hexadic II
Several years ago, after tiring of the predictable patterns he sensed himself settling into as a guitar player, Ben Chasny of Six Organs of Admittance decided to design a theoretical framework that would force his hands into different positions. Chasny distributed a deck of poker cards in a circular array of sets of six, corresponding to the notes of the guitar. The relative positions of the cards gave Chasny a "tonal field" in which to operate, as well as a set of notes from which to pick, some…
Andy and His Grandmother
Andy Kaufman changed the worlds of comedy and performance in the 1970s, showing fans and friends alike a determination to follow put-ons into territory no one had ever even considered 'comic' before. His fervor was so intense that when he passed away suddenly in 1984, it seemed as if the ultimate disappearing act had been staged; one that some people believe is still ongoing, with the reveal soon to come. This makes him the quintessential entertainer of our generation, a man ahead of his …
Recurring Dreams
Reissue of this 1981 album. Dating back to '81 and the apex of the Brian Eno / Berlin schools' influence over a myriad of American followers, Young created eight EMS/Rhodes pieces solo, subtly weaving in variable speed Revox manipulation of traditional Rock instrumentation with the lightest of touches. "Matthew Young's genre-bending, acclaimed 1986 release Traveler's Advisory reappeared as a reissue on Drag City/Yoga in 2010 and quickly sold out. We now return to Young's first effort, Recurr…
Shade Themes From Kairos
"Shade Themes from Kairos is a new iteration of the dream for all the guitar freaks out there, bringing together a couple of singular players together, just to see what happens. In this case, the players were old friends and collaborators Oren Ambarchi and Stephen O'Malley, playing in a space engineered and co-populated by Randall Dunn. From the top, Shade Themes from Kairos is resonant as a collective inquest in sound, with all the players deeply immersed within the panorama they are creating. …
Savage Sons Of Ya Ho Wa
"Now that the story of The Source Family is out there, as the subject of an acclaimed book and documentary film (as well as an ongoing series of rare, never-before-released recordings), it's time to turn the light back on the records that made this whole thing a story in the first place. In the 1990s, it was a revelation to discover that there was a series of records made by a hippie cult led by a big Santa Claus-looking guy named Father Yod. It was of further interest that these records weren…
Alasdair Roberts
"Alasdair Roberts is the name of the new solo record from the well-known Scottish songwriter, guitarist and singer Alasdair Roberts -- his eighth Drag City Records release under that name... Alasdair Roberts' ten songs are sparse, intimate and concise. The focus throughout is on Alasdair's deft acoustic fingerstyle guitar and his voice. The songs are variously elliptical and gnomic, direct and personal, romantic and tender. There are occasional guest appearances from fellow Glasgow-dwellers Alex…
Tangier Sessions
"The tone of the guitar and Sir Richard's gentle, loving touch with it hold forth from the first moment of Tangier Sessions, sitting clear and true in the home-recorded night air above the city. The album sequence is the precise order of the songs as they were conceived and recorded. Rick's all over the neck in the early going while sorting through the dynamics of the instrument -- in fact, guitarophiles, the first couple of songs feature Sir Richard Bishop playing without a plectrum for the fir…
Hexadic
" The only constant in Ben Chasny's longstanding Six Organs of Admittance project is change. Since 1998 he has engaged in composing, playing, improvising, and recording based on whatever aesthetic or philosophic principles appeal to him regardless of genre. More often than not, his records have existed between rather than within them, though there has always been a thread that marked a unique, if mercurial, signifier woven throughout to connect them. Hexadic is a different animal. Chasny spent s…
Simple Songs
"Yes, Simple Songs is an album of songs sung by Jim O'Rourke all the way through! It has been ten years since Jim's voice rang out from a new album. Ah, when James Michael was just a wee lad, he sang all the time, with a lovely little lilt to his voice, like all the children do. But the songs he sang gave his parents no end of consternation: 'Great Decei-verrr! Cigarettes, ice cream, figurines... of the Vir-gin Mar-eeee!' Aye, if only we'd-a been there -- little Jimmy's career would have started…
Black Snakes
‘Black Snakes’ was issued in 1983 as a co-release by Switzerland’s Rec Rec and Germany’s Pure Freunde label. With a quartet featuring synthist Allen Ravenstine doubling on soprano sax, this was a smaller group than had appeared on either of the Crayola’s two previous releases, ‘Soldier-Talk’ and ‘Kangaroo?’. Mayo Thompson’s guitar in particular shines in the space allowed by this configuration.
Amor and Language
Amor and Language was one of three Red Krayola releases on Drag City in 1995 (two were from the vault: Coconut Hotel and Kangaroo?). After returning to America in 1994 and producing the first Red Krayola record since Malefactor (it was appropriately self-titled), Thompson was producing new Red Krayola material at a prolific rate -- Hazel was released the following year. When Amor and Language was in production, the pressing plant claimed to hear imperfections in the CD master.
Malefactor, Ade
In 1989, ‘Malefactor, Ade’ was issued on the UK’s Glass Records, which had arranged several years earlier for the first actual release of Mayo Thompson’s 1970 solo LP, ‘Corky’s Debt To His Father’. This was the first Red Crayola record release in five years. The fearlessness with which genres are converted can be disarming, but stick to it - you’ll find listening an utter triumph. ‘Malefactor, Ade’ was reissued on CD by Drag City in the year 2000. Now it's on lovely vinyl.
The Hexadic System
Introducing a new approach to playing and composing music - The Hexadic System doesn’t require the use of a computer or an internet hookup. All that the interested player will need is a copy of ‘The Hexadic System’ book and a regular deck of playing cards. The struggle of habit is a problem in all walks of life, particularly creative work. We don’t always have an instinct to question the systems we are taught but consider the old adage about history being written by the winners. What does that i…
Voices in a rented room
The voices are two, spinning harmonies both heavenly and salt-pickled. Picking their direction and floating along on a pair of acoustics, New Bums are the sound of old drunk America, dancing out of the shadows, coming forth again to stand in the light, in the hopes of repopulating those sad old single-occupancy hotels before they're all torn down. New Bums is the grudging match-up of Donovan Quinn (Skygreen Leopards) and Ben Chasny (Six Organs of Admittance, Comets on Fire, 200 Years, Rangda and…
Don't tell the driver
Finally, after 15 years, Big Mick Turner has turned in the big rock record we always knew he had in him. Yeah, Don't Tell the Driver is a different kind of record from all the Mick Turner records -- not just his own, but the ones he's done with Dirty Three, Bonny Billy, Cat Power, Fungus Brains, and Venom P. Stinger put together. So, what's so different about Don't Tell the Driver anyway? Well, Mick grew a mustache for this one. That must mean it's his Sgt. Pepper; a consolidation and developmen…
Imitation of Life
Drag City presents the first domestic release of any kind from the Japanese singer-songwriter Eiko Ishibashi -- and the first vinyl release of any kind on this already accomplished performer. And what a release! Imitation of Life isn't just another pop record from another part of the world -- it's got a sci-fi theme and is produced by none other than Drag City's old friend, Jim O'Rourke. With an understanding of band dynamics developed through her many live shows and recordings, Eiko's delicate,…
Surrender to the Fantasy
Stop right there, hands in the air! If you want to know what Magik Markers think is good for you, you'll Surrender to the Fantasy. For this long-desired alpus, they've been working in threes and stuff. Triangles. The hermetic trifecta of knowledge, Christ and the two thieves, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and the original tagline of the Markers' symbol: '3 down, no to go.' Meaning, these three get it and literally no one else needs to, 'cept the record-buying public, tra la la, ha ha ha ha. STTF (nev…
The Collected Fanzines
Reproduces all the original pages, mostly hand-written or featuring primitive xerox art, that were published in small editions, 1992 thru 1999. You're excused if you've never seen or heard of these "fanzines". Influential line: "Janet Jackson thinks Christ is a Hoax." There are many other pages with similar sentiment, but dude, the vibe is a little scurrilous... "Going back through the years...it's so hard to remember, I was always tripping and falling over myself. These 'zines were written over…
An emotional memoir of Martha Quinn
A thoughtful and entertaining look at how music and culture infect ('cross-pollinate?') each other, Alan Licht's An emotional memoir of Martha Quinn succeeds by being real. Paper, ink, binding -- it's all there -- but Licht, a long-time musician -- and writer of music-inspired commentary -- has brought the lessons learned, the high and low-lights of the last few decades in the realms of popular music, back home again. In his own words, Licht's book 'is a highly subjective survey of the last two …
Veterans of disorder
Back in play just to celebrate 14 years, 2 months and 12 days since its original release is Royal Trux's penultimate album, Veterans of Disorder. Coming off the fan-favorite Accelerator LP, it was clearly time to build on expectations, right? Uh... listen, maybe this isn't the band for you. Neil and Jennifer were fans of rock n roll to the finish, sure -- but in that, Royal Trux was a dyed-in-the-wool contrarian enterprise, rebels to the core, and everything they endeavored to was viewed from th…