★Tzadik
The Temperature in Hell is Over Three Thousand Degrees
Composer Virgil Moorefield was born in Chapel Hill, North Carolina in 1956 and grew up primarily in Europe. Living in NY since 1975, Moorefield recorded and toured as a drummer with numerous rock bands and avant garde ensembles, including the Swans, Glenn Branca, Bill Laswell, Elliott Sharp and Damage. The music on this disc is a reflection of his recent interest in microtonality and in creating a music which is looser in structure than his previous works. Alternating between strict notation and…
Musical Aluminum
An absolutely raging new instrumental trio from the Kansai area of Japan, home to the Boredoms, Omoide Hatoba, Haco and more. Combining hardcore punk, improvisation, metal, funk and fusion in a seamless and dynamic new music, Motor Humming is at the forefront of instrumental experimental rock and one of the most original bands in Japan. Musical Aluminum (a light metal) is their first CD, and it features an incredible range of pieces in a program you will find exciting, challenging and fun. Along…
Zohar
From the inventive minds of John Zorn and Yamantaka Eye comes an intimate and highly original duo project inspired by historical recordings of ancient Judaica. The Mystic Fugu Orchestra masquerades as "newly discovered" recordings from the Mystical tradition of Kabbalah - paralleling 14th century author Moses de Leon's original presentation of of his Kabbalistic classic "The Zohar" or "book of Splendors" as having been discovered by him and actually written by Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai centuries be…
Pranzo Oltranzista
Following the remarkable success of his solo debut, Adult Themes (Tzadik 7015), Mike Patton, best known as the vocalist of Faith No More and Mr. Bungle, steps out as a composer. Patton's extended composition, Pranzo Oltranzista: Musica da Ravola per Cinque (Banquet Piece for Five Players) is inspired by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti's Futurist Cookbook (1932). Performed by an all-star ensemble, Pranzo Oltranzista magically transports the listener to a surreal ambient world of the unexpected. In addi…
Camp Songs
A regular drummer with John Scofield, Dave Douglas, Steven Bernstein and many others, Ben Perowsky is a familiar name to jazz fans the world over. Joined here by keyboard sensation Uri Caine, one of the most acclaimed young pianists on the scene, Ben’s first recording under his own name on Tzadik is an eclectic take on the songs he used to sing during his formative years at Jewish summer camp. Exotic percussion, twisted arrangements and several brilliant original compositions make Camp Songs a s…
Gongs and Bamboo
*2022 stock.* The first release outside Japan of music by one of the the most original and underappreciated composers in contemporary music. Born 1900 in the Phillipines, Maceda has been creating remarkable compositions, often for large ensembles of the same instrument for fifty years. This CD brings together three very different pieces from his enormous catalog. The hypnotic Suling-Suling is scored for an ensemble of forty bamboo flutes, Colors Without Rhythm is one of his most dynamic orchestr…
Rashanim
Jon Madof, Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz, Mathias Kunzli. This dynamic NY guitar trio covers a range from Jim Hall ballads to Blood Ulmer funk harmolodics. Complex compositional originals alternate with gorgeous renditions of classic Jewish melodies making this an extraordinary program from start to finish. Beautifully recorded, with mix translations by Bill Laswell.
Masada First Live 1993
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* As a unit, Masada was well-documented in live settings. Despite the ten studio recordings, there have been numerous double live concert outings from the quartet -- John Zorn, Dave Douglas, Greg Cohen, Joey Baron -- from all over the world, but until now, there has been scant opportunity to hear how Masada's sound (which came across as completely mature on their first studio date) was born and developed. This set, the band's first ever live meeting at the old…
Dion McGregor Dreams Again
Dion McGregor dreams out loud, and his dreams are not very pretty. Tzadik invites you to eavesdrop on the horror in Dion McGregor's mind. In 1964 ten of Dion's tape-recorded dreams were released on album and quickly dropped out of print. This CD is it's sequel, drawn from the same source material -- the spoke-aloud dreams of Dion McGregor as taped by his room mate Michael Barr between 1961 and 1967. Documented with extensive photos and a long essay by Dion scholar Phil Milstein, this is the ulti…
Cellule 75
Back in stock: Irreverent, psychosexual and always fascinating, Ferrari's work manifests itself in texts, instrumental textures, electroacoustic compositions, reportings, films, theatre, etc. It is an honor for Tzadik to release two of his most important works from the 1970s, recorded under the supervision of the composer himself. 'Place des Abbesses,' the first electro acoustic portrait work realized at his home studio in Paris, 1977, is an evocative portrait of a small square between The Sacre…
Solo For Wounded
A founding member of the Fluxus Movement with Takehisa Kosugi, Yoko Ono and George Maciunas, Yasunao Tone has been doing experimental sound pieces since the early 1960s. For the past ten years much of his work has centered on extending the possibilities of CDs as a performance medium. With this new CD, Tone has created a new noise music for the 21st century: a symphony of digital errors that reaches a new extreme in intensity and musical energy
Lost Marbles
A pioneer of live electronic music and one of America's most adventurous composers, Alvin Curran has been walking his own eclectic path since the late 1960s. The range and scope of his work is enormous, and unprecedented. Few composers have as many interests, or as much wit. This special compilation takes us on a whirlwind tour of fifteen of his most productive years (1987- 2002), capturing both live and studio performances from around the world. Featuring a seductive work for chorus and ensembl…