Black Music Disaster - "Black Music Disaster" CD

New project Black Music Disaster combines the skills of John Coxon (of UK electronic/free jazz group Spring Heel Jack, Jason Pierce (of psychedelic rockers Spiritualized), American out-jazz icon Matthew Shipp, and drummer Steve Noble. 

This debut self-titled album coalesces these players into a single 38-minute mass of improvised noise and jazz freakouts. Beginning with mysterious farfisa organs, "Black Music Disaster" evolves into a stream-of-consciousness psychedelic jazz beast, with screeching guitar weirdness and plenty of rolling drum madness. Don't expect conventional songs, structures, or melodies here, as Black Music Disaster is for more out-there improv/noise tastes. Kudos to the players for capturing such a feral intensity while obviously riffing off one another. (Thirsty Ear)

Zu - "The Way Of The Animal Powers" LP

After 10 years and a number of releases on genre-bending labels like Atavistic and Ipecac, this Rome-based quartet turn to Public Guilt for the James Plotkin-mastered vinyl version, and it's a wonderful blending of elements and out-there instrumental (and organic) textures. Zu are like the missing link between free jazz, Black Flag, and no-wave, if you can imagine that. Or maybe the mutant offspring of Tortoise and Mr. Bungle. Either way, it's great and imaginative music. The memorably-titled "Tom Araya Is Our Elvis" opens, and this sets the stage with a monolithic SWANS (pre-"Filth") groove that meets Greg Ginn somewhere in a New Orleans bar. Awesome and annihilating. "Things Fall Apart" is a bewildering avante-tribal-jazz-improv that sounds like Crash Worship jamming with Ornette Coleman. Very kuhl. "The Witch Herbalist Of The Remote Town" is an apt title, capturing a feral set of magical tones, scrapings, and rolling percussion. Jungle jazz, indeed! Zu's innovative and out-there music can safely be called experimental, but whereas most sounds classified as such can be overly conceptual and academic, this album is both evocative and engaging, from start to finish. Stupendous work, and something that should be mandatory listening for jazz, metal, or indie rock purists alike. (Public Guilt)

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Red Garland - "The 1956 Trio" CD

Pianist Red Garland was a fixture on the great jazz scene of the 50's-80's, and even non-jazz aficionados may have unknowingly heard his work with Charlie Parker and the Miles Davis Quintet (among others). Here, he leads a trio (with Paul Chambers on bass and Art Taylor on drums) and the resulting sounds are lovely, sweeping, and intimate. "Makin' Whoopee" swings gently and romantically, while "Blue Red" is as it suggests -- a bluesy slow jam by Red and company. "Constellation" is a frenzied bit of out-jazz, stopping on a dime and showing the synergy these guys had. They lived and breathed music, and this intense, yet accessible set is evidence of just that. These recordings were originally released as "A Garland Of Red" in 1956, and this CD reissue adds 5 bonus tracks from the same era, effectively completing Garland's studio work in the trio configuration. Essential studio work from one of the greats. (EJC)

Billie Holiday - "The Life And Artistry Of Lady Day" DVD

The inimitable 'Lady Day', as she was called, was unquestionably the first lady of jazz and blues in her time. Her tremendously troubled (and brief) life was rife with horror and tragedy, but Holiday channeled this into her music, which stands today as an inspiration and influence on even today's singers. This UK-produced documentary does an admirable job summing up her life and art. It's highlighted by several complete performances, including a breathtakingly solemn and intense 'Strange Fruit'. The limited outsider viewpoints, and the reliance on stock footage of Holiday makes for a wonderful primer, and there's a few minor bonuses (discography, some short performances from film, etc.) to beef it all up. A nice deal, and well-suited to Lady Day novices like myself. (Idem Home Video via MVD Visual)

Caress Of My Fist - "Etudes In Violence" CDR

First off, the presentation here is impeccable - the professionally-produced CDR is housed in a stylish origami-style textured red paperboard, with informational insert. That said, the more important component here is the sound within, and it's fortunately as interesting as the packaging.

CoMF is basically a duo consisting of violinist Mike Khoury and sax/flutist Fred Bergman - both veterans of the free music and avante scenes. Here, they collaborate with drummer Curtis Glatter and guitarist Chris Riggs on a series of improvisational vignettes that hint at both out-jazz and noir-ish soundtracks - all based around a fist-fight theme.

Songs like 'Fat Lip' seem to allude to a dramatic sort of beat poetry (but minus the poetry) - evocative and haunting work. 'Knuckle Sandwich' is a brash and disorienting cut, with wild violin swipes and crazy sax bleating - a collision of chaos and invigorating unpredictability. 'Knocked The Wind Out Of Me' picks up the pieces - exactly as the title describes. 'Punched In The Stomach' (staying on topic, of course) feels the brunt of it (I can almost feel my ribs throbbing with pain), whereas tracks like 'Black Eye' seem to question what just happened - a state where the endorphins have kicked in. A superb, clever, and amusing musical approximation of a basic, old-school brawl! Nice work, and definitely a lot of fun to listen to - and certainly much better than the violent confrontation that it depicts. (Cohort Records)

Jasper van't Hof's Pork Pie featuring Charlie Mariano - "Transitory" CD

Another obscure and worthy fusion remastering/reissue from Promising Music (and, as with the Don 'Sugar Cane' Harris recording reviewed earlier, this one has deluxe packaging with extensive liner notes, photos, a gatefold sleeve, etc.), this 1974 incarnation of Pork Pie (led by Dutch keyboardist van't Hof) includes some impressive European jazz-sessioners.

And although the group is van't Hof's in name, the standout player (and most noticeable player in the recording) is American sax/flutist/nadaswarm player Charlie Mariano, who shines with a opulent Indian/Eastern air in 'Transitory (parts 1+2)'. Here, the group's jazz/rock roots give way to a more wide-open, worldly, and even spiritual path - and moving far beyond the expectations of listeners, I'd bet.

The meditational, atmospheric, and ambient sound of 'Transitory' falls away (too soon, to my ears) to reveal 'Angel Wings', which synthesizes the more structured 'band' sound with an exotic vibe, partly attributable to drummer Aldo Romano's Brazilian influences. 'Pudu Kkottai' is another strong track that melds an obviously Eastern spirituality with a more conventional Western fusion framework. 'Bassamba' sounds as it states - a spunky and upbeat number that again showcases both Mariano's freeform transcendent sound (I am reminded of Coltrane, really, though I do not profess to be any sort of jazz expert) and Romano's lively percussion. van't Hof's bouncy keys are also paramount here, rounding out the sound with some funky keyboard action.

Closing down this superior set is the 'March Of The Oil Sheiks', which seems to be a sort of fun and playful ending to the set, and lacks the serious meditational vibes that make this recording so immersive. All-in-all, a really listenable and oftentimes beautiful set of tunes from a(n unjustly) long-forgotten group of artists and visionaries. (Promising Music/SPV Germany)

Free Form Funky Freqs - "Urban Mythology Volume One" CD

Led by the masterful and incendiary guitar voodoo of Vernon Reid, this new trio project with bassist Jamaaladeen Tacuma and drummer G. Calvin Weston mines a muscular jazz/rock stratosphere that goes pretty well crazay, maaan. These dense compositions (like the scalding 'Over And Under') re-imagine Hendrix in a way-out jam session with Miles Davis. Other cuts resemble Bill Laswell's old Massacre project. 'Chump Champ Chunk' is a little more easygoing, though Reid's signature fretboard pyrotechnics are unleashed later in the cut. If the term 'jazz rock' conjures images of pretentious daytime radio office muzak, let Reid (obviously the focal point of the group) and company show you that it can be as heavy and muscular as metal. Killer!
(Thirsty Ear)