Jazz /
Carte Blanche
It took more than just some time and imagination to believe that 'Carte Blanche' , this piece of astonishing contemporary music by some of the most talented and able musicians of the international avant-circuit, could be realized. Karkhana, a highly explosive mostly Middle Eastern / Mediterranean ensemble - Sam Shalabi Land of Kush, Shalabi Effect, Dwarfs of East Agouza), Sharif Sehnaoui (“A” Trio), Michael Zerang (Peter Brötzmann, Hamid Drake, Jaap Blonk, Vandermark, etc.) Mazen Kerbaj (“A” Tri…
Electric Smog
The newest installment in Unrock’s ongoing Saraswati Series is the most rebellious and wildest to date. Again an intercontinental output. A dangerous, electric brew filled with exotic aroma from Cairo’s sound guerilla, Alan Bishop (Sun City Girls), Maurice Louca (Karkhana) and Sam Shalabi (Land of Kush, Karkhana). The always changing face of Dwarfs of East Agouza, shows them in a feverish mode and adrenalin rush. Massive eruptions fight genuine flow. Sultans of Unrock. Chris Corsano and Bill Or…
Aamm
Back in August of 2015, the legendary London Grand Seigneurs of improve pioneers, AMM (John Tilbury and Eddie Prévost) joined forces with Lebanese electro-acoustic-free-jazz outfit "A" Trio (Mazen Kerbaj, Sharif Sehnaoui & Raed Yassin). Two generations of improvisers with a very differing approach to work, captured dancing slowly along a very thin line of fine tuned, both, clear and crackling improvised sounds. Harsh at times with magic mellow moments of intense, fragile, broken noises. No overd…
Burj Al Imam - Extended Version
**2019 stock** 140-gram LP in gatefold sleeve with a special drawing by Mazen Kerbaj + bonus 7". Mastered for vinyl by Harris Newman. Edition of 500. Entirely recorded at Tunefork Studios on the outskirts of Beirut, Burj al Imam's five tracks include three largely improvised numbers, a loose reworking of Sun City Girls track "The Imam", and a cover of traditional Americana song "Gently Johnny" (a highlight of Alan Bishop's live Alvarius B. shows). True to their habits, the Lebanese trio of trump…
Muusa Ja Ruusa
Svart Records continues the Eero Koivistoinen reissue program with this 1971 super-rarity. With Vesa-Matti Loiri, Seija Simola and Eero Raittinen on vocals. Koivistoinen’s children’s music album Muusa ja Ruusa was based on the poems of Kirsi Kunnas and released by the book publishing company WSOY. Although some of these songs were revisited in the 2000s on the Ville ja Valle album, the original album has never been reissued in any format. The moods on this 1971 range from pastoral calm to the ps…
Holography
**2006 release, long out of print, very few copies available** One of the rarest albums ever from the mighty Masahiko Satoh, a composer and arranger,as well as a key figure in the avantgarde music from Japan. Originally issued on Japan Columbia in 1970, the two sides of very free piano show a sensitivity that's really amazing – still moments of freedom that reflect Satoh's connection to the avant garde of the time, interwoven with his own sense of cosmic creation, in ways that are similar to his…
Cheol-Kkot-Sae (Steel.Flower.Bird)
Cellist Okkyung Lee explores her Korean roots in an amazing long-form composition combining electronics, improvisation, composed melodies and noise with Korean traditional music, performed with the superb ensemble of John Edwards (bass), Ches Smith (drums), John Butcher (sax), Jae Hyo Chang (Korean percussion), Song Hee Kwon (Pansori singing), and Lasse Marhaug (electronics).
The piece unfolds like a ritual, making these disparate and unusual pairings seem totally organic and natural. Performed …
Oryantal
** Edition of 300 copies ** Istanbul based multi-instrumentalist Umut Çağlar founded the Turkish free jazz band Konstrukt at the beginning of 2008. Since then the band went through many line-up changes and collaborated with with the likes of Peter Brötzmann, Joe McPhee, William Parker and Keiji Haino, continuosly evolving its sound. The band is currently formed by Çağlar, Korhan Futacı, Apostolos Sideris, Erdem Göymen and Berkan Tilavel and this EP - recorded at Hayyam Studio in Istanbul in 2017…
Schraubenlieder
Trost present Schraubenlieder, unreleased songs by Sven-Ake Johansson and Alexander von Schlippenbach from 1988, recorded by Radio DRS Bern. Personnel: Sven-Ake Johansson - vocals; Alexander von Schlippenbach - piano.
Untitled
The Département d’Éducation Psychique group - Dynamo Dreesen and SVN : Andreas and Sven = DRESVN & Jean-Marc Foussat - was born in Paris June 25, 2014 in La Java, at a concert organized by Xavier Ehretsmann. The proposal of Xavier and our deep desire at all was to “mix” various networks for the unexpected meeting, improbable, surprising… of artists referenced “techno”, here DRESVN, with others from the “improvised music” in this instance Jean-Marc Foussat. And so as the duo DRESVN the German has…
Sonny's Time Now
LP version. In 1965 - only a few months after recording „Ghosts“ with Albert Ayler - Sonny Murray released his first album as a leader. „Sonny's time now“ is one of the holy grails for collectors and aficionados of free avant garde jazz music from the 1960s and while original vinyl copies fetch prices up to 270,00 US$ and more ,even the first Japanese reissue from 1986 on vinyl and CD is rare as stardust these days and goes up to 100,00 US$ for a mint CD copy. Well, we will take a closer look at…
Mass Hysterism: In Another Situation
Mass Hysterism: In Another Situation, a 1983 record by the late Japanese noise-guitar hellion Masayuki Takayanagi (1932–1991) is one of those albums that always going to be lurking in my attic, so to speak. I can put it away for a while, but it never goes to sleep—it's always calling me. Even if it takes a few years, I'll be back. (As an illustration of this, I obsessed over Takayanagi in a February 2007 post as well.) It's a bashing, clanging exorcism: two electric guitars (the other played by …
Duos With Guitars
Giovanni Di Domenico (piano, Rhodes), With Norberto Lobo (acoustic guitar), Tetuzi Akiyama (acoustic guitar) and Jim O'Rourke (electric guitar). Recorded during the course of 3 years (from 2011 to 2013) in various locations in Brussels and Tokyo, this double LP puts together 3 of the most uncompromising and original guitar players of the globe (there should have been a fourth great guitar player, the late Hans Reichel, but unfortunately he passed away days before asking him to join the project),…
Live at Tarcento Jazz
** Second edition, 200 copies on black vinyl ** Konstrukt is the free jazz revelation of the last ten years.This incredible quartet of saxophonist Korhan Futaci, guitarist Umut Caglar, drummer Korhan Arguden and percussionist Ozun Usta is blowing a real stream of fresh air, like the Art Ensemble of Chicago did in the 70s. This live multi-channel recording by Giulio Moratti captures their whole performance at Tarcento Jazz Festival (July 18th 2014) giving a perfect taste of their Cosmic–Turkish f…
Spontaneous combustion
A 2 CD issue of the 2013 LP with 78 additional minutes, from the two day residency at UK's Cafe Oto of Decoy with special guest Joe McPhee on pocket trumpet and alto sax.
Music(S)
Music(s) is the intimist portrait of Japanese composer Otomo Yoshihide.Music(s) is the intimist portrait of Japanese composer Otomo Yoshihide.In 1990, he founded the mythic group 'Ground Zero' produced by John Zorn, and is one of the major players on the current Japanese scene. An adept of free jazz and noisy music, he travels around the globe with his various jazz ensembles as well as solo on guitar or with his astonishing turntables. This double DVD presents a talented artist through th…
Guitar Solo
The Guitar Solo album was produced by Takeshi Fujii, the producer of the legendary jazz label "Three Blind Myth", in June 1981. Takayanagi responded to the request with "Lonely Woman" recorded in August 1982. As stated in the liner notes of this work, Takayanagi said: "In my two years of fighting against illness, my thoughts have changed, and now I'm thinking rather than making a group album. The form of solo would be appropriate to put it together" and he worked on the guitar solo as the first…
Kravis Rhonn Project
“Very strong, extremely well integrated set, Krebs and Davies meshing perfectly....next to impossible to describe to any degree of satisfaction, but that's usually the case with something as beautifully positioned as this. Mandatory.” Brian Olewnick, Just OutsideAnnette Krebs (guitar, recordings, mixing board) and Rhodri Davies (electric harp & electronics) played together as a duo for the first time for a day at Annette’s flat when Rhodri was visiting Berlin in April 2008. Annette then spent a…
C-Section
First release on Second Layer Records. Real-time improvisations to be played at maximum volume. Recorded at Eastcote Studios, London May 2008. Mastered by Tommi Keranen. Evan Parker : tenor, soprano saxophone. John Wiese : electronics, tape, MSP. First edition of 1000 copies.
1984
New CD issue of this classic album, with bonus track and improved sound (previously issued by Mantra). Upon it's original release, 1984, with it's unusual combination of lengthy abstract sound-journeys and short, weirdly devolved James Brown-inspired pieces, gained much critical acclaim. 1984 was an extremely unusual release for 1973 and an extremely unusual project for CBS Records, who first released it. Like the groundbreaking novel after which it was named, Hopper's record was truly ahead of …