Experimental / Free Improvisation

"In the beginning, was the voice, before there were instruments even the oldest ones - percussion! The voice has always been there, and when voices resound in a musical space, in a pure improvised creative act then extraordinary things happen! Such was the case when four outstanding vocalists Anna Gadt, Natalia Kordiak, Marta Grzywacz and Gosia Zagajewska met in the Warsaw space “Prześwit” to improvise a new unique sound world. Did they succeed? We think it succeeded more than great!!!!!!!!" - F…

As this four-disc retrospective shows, Australian violinist Jon Rose has done more than any musician to revolutionise the approach to his instrument, with technical developments and radical performance strategies. Jon Rose is one of the most productive, original and focused people I know; he's also an extraordinary musician and an inspired composer. To mark his 60th anniversary we are releasing this three CD box of previously unreleased works ranging from radio documentary and radio fiction to v…

*In process of stocking* ‘A grain of Earth’ is the first solo venture and expression of several years of working with instant compositions and the timbral possibilities of an acoustic piano. This has been wrapped in an idea of realities beyond our perception, and a thought that we are a part of a big organism where everything goes endlessly bigger and smaller in scale of size, time and speed. Everything moves in constantly interfering waves of energy; echoing and reflecting, in ceaseless dance o…

Tip! *2024 stock. 300 copies limited edition. 180g black vinyl. 390g paper folder. with obi. 4 page booklet in chinese and english. The cover Art is an oil painting by the famous Chinese contemporary artist Wang Guangle*  Two Other Comrades + Yan Jun "Nanjing Live" Produced by Godstalker Music: Two Other Comrades + Yan JunHuan Qing: Kalimba (Thumb Piano), Mouth ChordsGuitar Effects, Field Recording, MixerChen Zhipeng: TambourineYan Jun: samples, electronics, field recordings Recorded by Huan Qin…

The duo of Yan Jun and Eric Wong focus on the temporal and spatial interplay of organic and digital sound. Using human voice, sine waves, and white noise as their instruments, the musicians modulate the sound sources to bring out resonance as well as to create sonic movements that blurs the borders among the sonic events. Eric says “When I perform with Yan Jun, I swing my arm holding a Bluetooth speaker as he filters his voice by moving his head and body. I remember I did it for the first time w…

This recording documents the first ever meeting between Susan Alcorn and Catherine Sikora. When musicians improvise with each other, a space is created that is unique and specific to the musicians who are playing. With Susan and Catherine, the space that presented itself was enormous, with great freedom and tonal flexibility, opening up endless possibilities for expression.

Monophonic is the name of the new album by Maria Bertel. As the title hints the album is a study of music played with 'one voice'. The amplification of the trombone mimics the effect of a magnifying glass, that let otherwise inaudible sounds be heard and brought forward. The compositions are long swathes of sound slowly developing, heavily inspired by drone and noise.

"Tenor saxophonist Ada Rave, born and raised in Argentina, decided to move to Amsterdam, the Netherlands in 2013. She had heard ‘the call’, followed her musical intuition and became part of the colorful community of Dutch creative improvised music. Educated in the jazz tradition she started to look for a more personal language. A deep search. Not an easy path to go. The destination is always changing. Each step made will call for a next step. A slow process of collecting material, sounds, techni…

Conic Tube comes from the idea that the saxophone is nothing but a metal conical tube that amplifies, modifies and pushes the air through the room, if the instrument is just an object and sound is just air and air is inside-out of us, pushing this air becomes the tool to structure our space and surroundings making possible changes on our environment and energies. With this in mind and spirit this record was produced with the intent to fulfill and open new possibilities for the minds and spirits …

The first solo release of baritone saxophonist Sofia Salvo, “Rotarota” consists of a series of improvised pieces. They evoke emotional memories aspiring to set them free and mutate them into blaring music.

The newest release from 29 Speedway, UltraBody, is a compilation record featuring the music of Jake Muir, Pent & Dylan Kerr, Nexcyia & Mu Tate, James K, Flora Yin-Wong, Ex Wiish & Dorothy Carlos, Kamran Sadeghi, Tati au Miel, James Hoff, Eric Frye, Muein and Maxwell Sterling. The record is emblematic of the artists who have performed at 29 Speedway shows in New York and Europe during the past two years, and is the third in a series released by the label. The record was born out of a desire to in…

Tip! **Edition of 230** This is alga marghen’s third installment of Smegma’s original “Suburban Primitive Avant-folk music” Period (1973-1975) based in Pasadena, featuring three previously unreleased tracks from the deep vault of their home recordings. In the beginning, the Band Smegma had only one rule. No Musicians. Starting from scratch, they took the Road much less traveled. They were inspired by outsider musical artists of the time such as John Cage, Sun Ra, Captain Beefheart, Wild Man Fish…

Recorded live -no overdubs- in Koto Tama Records Studio (Aug. - Oct. 2007). Packaged in a 'matchbook' style cover.

Recorded 20th - 24th of May 2008 at Q02, Brussels. Research center for the definition of happiness (Istanbul branch). Edition of 500 copies. Packaged in a round six-panel textured card cover.

Tip! In "Handle, Nail and Rubber Dinosaur", Jun-Y Ciao plays soprano saxophone and Zhu Wenbo plays clarinet. Before recording there was very little pre-planning, the only decision was that they each play a few short passages. They recorded a single take, during which there were some naturally occurring pauses and breaks – these make up the first 13 tracks of the album. After that they decided to make another recording with a more defined limitation: they maintain fixed fingerings, limiting the s…

From September 1 to September 9, 2023, Li Song, Zhao Cong and Zhu Wenbo went on a South China tour together. They performed 8 shows in four cities, and almost every show was different. In two of these venues, they gave very unique trio performances. This album features these live recordings. At E^dge 一脊 in Wuhan (September 6th) they used the "3 lines" feedback system developed by Zhu Wenbo using transducers, elastic ropes and other objects (foil, paper...). They performed in a small alley in fro…

MTDM (acronym from the Chinese name mei tui de ma, “horse without legs”) is the duet of Jun-Y Ciao and Tao Yi, both born in 1978, Year of the Horse. Tao Yi plays drums and trumpet, and Jun-Y Ciao, woodwinds, including different sizes of saxophone and clarinet. Around 2008, MTDM returned to Shanghai from Europe, and straight away got involved in the local experimental music scene, giving entirely improvised performances using only acoustic instruments. From their overall musical style, to their a…

Tip! *2024 stock* I first met Takashi in a duo performance by Seijiro Murayama & Tetuzi Akiyama at Permian. I recall that the small underground venue was packed and that the interplay between these two great musicians was vivid, tense and loud. After the performance we scheduled to meet and play at a later date. There’s always some aura (in my mind) when two improvising musicians meet for the first time, as if there is still a chance for an infinite amount of possibilities. It felt natural for m…

There is not a lot to say when a young talented percussionist meet one of the master of improvised music, also percussionist ; we can just sit and listen what happens. this is what exactly did the guys at cosabeat studio during "mirrors" recording session. the result is incredible. you can really feel the musicians concentration and then understand the importance of every sound they created. this is a focused, brilliant, top class "sound dialogue" between two of the most dedicated artist i …

*2024 stock* Jaap Blonk - voice, electronics Damon Smith - double bass Ra Kalam Bob Moses drums, percussion Recorded by Ryan Wasoba at Birdcloud Studios, Collinsvile, Il November 1st. 2022 Mixed & Mastered by Weasel Walter Design by Alan Anzalone Cover art by Damon Smith Untitled micro-collages 2003-2004 Oil, graphite, bass rosin, collage & objects on graph paper 3" x 3.5" Concrete Poem / liner notes Ra Kalam Bob Moses / Jaap Blonk All Titles from text messages from Ra Kalam

Piotr Dabrowski: Primitive lyre, Voice. Giacomo Salis: Objects, Caxixì, Radio, Frequency sound generator. Paolo Sanna: African bells (Apitua set.) Tubophone set, Cicada, African seed rattles.

Relatum features two compositions revolving around the relationship and interplay between the human and the algorithmic, bringing together musicians and artificial performers.

Improv/metal. If you like your improvised music on the noisy side of the spectrum, we're here for you. Purchase includes pdf of artwork, photos, text etc

*2024 stock* "I have always been fascinated by the improvising combos that give prominence to the classical guitar, but it is usually easier to find such productions on the contemporary side. So having caught this little gem with strong freeform accents, where it makes its worthy appearance was a sign of amazement. We specify that the Graculus do not give exclusive space to the six strings but that in reality they are a duo formed by the English Phil Hargeraves (flute, soprano sax) and Richard H…

*2024  stock* "Before I received this CD, I was told "this might not be up my street" which is always a funny assumption I feel, as I am rarely shocked thanks to my obsession with Romanian experimental music during my early 20's. Though this new album by bloodcog really gave a good stab at it. Experimental music is often stuck in a difficult situation, how far can it go? Is it music? Is it not music? I often feel it is limiting in the way peope discuss and think about it. Bloodcog, like most exp…

*2021 stock* Phil Hargreaves is a Liverpool saxophonist and bold improviser whose music evokes the voices and echoes of his home city. In his new album, Fall Through the Infinite, he duets with the drummer of Spaceheads, Richard Harrison, and they create an urban soundscape, sometimes forlorn, sometimes bursting with hope, which is constantly inventive and multifaceted in its sonic patterns. Hargreaves’s tenor horn rampages through Reach for the Tar in ardent conversation with Harrison’s scuttli…

"A splendid collaboration between experimental vocalist Maggie Nicols and multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Phil Hargreaves. Human is a work in eight movements through which runs Hargreaves’ title poem. A long and delicate collage of vocal interventions, acoustic improvisations, field recordings, and electronic textures. Sophisticated, captivating, poignant at times [“Fugue (We Are Not Certain)”] and – the greatest feat here – imbued with honesty and immediacy, rare qualities in this kind of collab…

Fran Bass - electric bassRichard Harding - chapman stickPhil Hargreaves - saxes/fluteRichard Harrison - drums/percussionPete Smyth - electronics

Four fifths of Bloodcog, this is more of a playing session than Bloodcog's power electronics.

Matteo Uggeri is an Italian visual designer and composer from Milan. He invests himself in sound poetry of everyday life, organized around a vast array of personal field recordings, plunderphonia and melodic compositions meticulously arranged in a story-telling way. He’s part of the duo Starlight Assembly along with Dominic Appleton and he plays in Sparkle in Grey, Open to the Sea and The Last Five Minutes. Recently, he has released an album in collaboration with Nigel Ayers, from Solstice to Eq…

Tip! Inspired by Georg Trakl's "Nocturnal Song" and recorded in separate locations during lockdown 2021. The Japanese free music players Harutaka Mochizuki and Makoto Kawashima excite with their haunting play in the spirit of Kaoru Abe – beautiful and sad and violent at the same time. The French lapsteel guitarist Michel Henritzi mixes the pieces together, they float naturally into a melancholic but vibrant soundpoem, envocating their ghosts, their desires and feeling the mood of Trakls poem, th…

Recorded at Dreamland, a historic church converted into a studio just a few miles from Woodstock, NY, August Light captures the organic and spiritual essence of its unique setting. Owned by acclaimed drummer Jerry Marrota, Dreamland’s sensational acoustics and vibrant wood surfaces provided the perfect backdrop for Richard Carr’s collaborative explorations. Joining him on this musical outing are cellist Clarice Jensen and violist Caleb Burhans, both shining lights of the new music scene. Togethe…

In 2022 Lori Goldston went on a small 4 date tour of Ireland playing in Cork, Limerick, Leitirm and Drogheda. Willie Stewart of Nyahh Records drove her on the tour and recorded each performance. With Lori’s permission, Willie edited and mixed each performance and put them together to make this album. The end result is a collection of improvisations and spontaneous moments. Every performance is drastically different to one another in mood, energy and technique. In these recordings you can hear ho…

Dating back to the 13th century in Wales, the Telyn Rawn is a nearly forgotten horsehair harp; UK improvising harpist Rhodri Davies researched the instrument and its unique sound, commissioning the construction of a harp on which he performs 18 improvisations of impressive technique and sonority, launching his new Amgen Records label with this album named for the instrument. "A Telyn Rawn is a harp strung with horse hair and predates the appearance of the triple, lever and pedal harps. The earli…

An epic second installment from the trio of Mats Gustafsson, David Grubbs, Rob Mazurek, nearly 90 minutes of intense live performances from January 2020. They converge here on a wide swath of sounds: expansive free improvs, full-tilt electronics, alt-universe chamber music and spontaneous arrangements of three previously released Grubbs’ songs.

Modern Obscure Music presents "Sakuraza," a live album featuring Eiko Ishibashi (flute and electronics), Jim O'Rourke (electronics), Kei Matsumaru (alto saxophone), Tatsuhisa Yamamoto (drums), and Giovanni Di Domenico (piano). Recorded at the Sakuraza jazz club in Kofu, Japan, this dynamic and sophisticated performance blends jazz, electronic music, and pop elements.Giovanni Di Domenico, a frequent visitor to Japan, organized this June 2023 concert with long-time collaborators Ishibashi, O'Rourk…

NoBusiness presents Live at Willisau 1993, a new set of recordings by  Juozas Milašius / Tomas Kutavičius / Dalius Naujokaitis and Lithuanian Young Composers Orchestra recorded live 26th August, 1993 at Willisau Festival, Switzerland. Mastered by Arūnas Zujus at MAMAstudios. Design by Oskaras Anosovas. Juozas Milašius - guitarTomas Kutavičius - pianoDalius Naujokaitis - drums Lithuanian Young Composers Orchestra:Vytas Labutis - saxophones, cymbal, clapping, tramplingVilija Naujokaitienė - vocal,…

Limited edition of 100 copies Som Desorganizado is an anual meeting on sound that takes place at Sonoscopia, in Porto, Portugal. In each edition there are several talks, concerts, sound installations and an artist doing real time illustrations of of conceptual contents of this event. Each edition is also celebrated with a special physical release, that tries to resume many of the issues debated in the meetings. For 2021, 100 classical records were silk printed in order to create loops, rhythms a…

2024 stock, rare private press LP. Plaintive and imbued with the  Mediterranean-inspired air, wide-ranging, and undeniably erratic. Ramuntcho Matta could employ African tribal rhythms, discordant progressive jazz, pretty folky melodies, throat-stretching vocals, spoken poetry, channeling the sounds of improv jazz and numerous traditions across the globe, its experimental approaches stitch an emotive world that brims with tension and life

Wasteland Jazz Unit is Jon Lorenz and John Rich on saxophone and clarinet. The first full length of this apocalyptic Cincinnati duo is simply akin to the sonic equivalent of pouring molten silver (at 700°C) inside an ear. Space Denial is a powerful destruction trip pushing all the limits of reed electronic manipulations to areas and heights only explored by the mighty Borbetomagus.