Category Archives: Improvisation / new music

Spring Forward

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A quick note on a pair of shows coming up in the next week:

Dels in a boxThe Delusionaires make a (seemingly) triumphant return to one of our favorite stomps from the good ol’ days, The Emerald Bar in St. Petersburg. It’s been many a year since we’ve walked through that beer-stained doorway and can’t wait to swill our fill alongside St. Pete’s finest. Don’t know if anyone we knew then still works there, but I’m sure whoever is serving will do The Emerald proud. We’ll be there Saturday, March 8 along with The Intoxicators and Crippled Masters. It’ll be epic, if not downright terrifying.

Milton_bradley_portraitThe next afternoon, Sunday, March 9 at 2pm, has me still in St. Pete, this time at the main library for New Music on a Sunday Afternoon, presented by The New Music Conflagration, Inc. This will be the final performance of Milton Bradley, a game piece I created for the 2012 CageFest in Jacksonville. Although this is the fifth or sixth performance of the piece, it is the first time I will present it on Florida’s west coast. Joining me in the quartet will be Kris Gruda on guitar, electronics and voice, A.J. Herring on trombone, guitar and alto saxophone, and Elizabeth A. Baker on piano, theremin, and an as yet unnamed third instrument. You can read more about the game piece here.

Hope to see all of you on the dreamy shores (or side streets) of St. Pete.

2014 Off and Running

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A slew of upcoming shows to begin the year:

January 10 and 11: Midnight Exterminations: A tribute to William S. Burroughs. Here’s the full event disclosure:

1461572_10202380018879145_740552842_nA tribute reading of William S. Burroughs accompanied by segments of avante garde musical arrangements. This productions orations will be performed by: Megan Faubel, Patrick Greene and Christian Kelty. All musical composition is written by Dana Fasano , Jim Ivy, Kris Gruda and Todd Elliott. Please come and enjoy this event with us and celebrate what would have been Mr.Burroughs 100th birthday upcoming on Feburary 5. 2014…. 12a.m. Janurary 10th and 11th… $ 5 cover @ The Venue.

January 31: The Delusionaires with D.J. Dots at Nobby’s St. Augustine. Our favorite vinyl spinner joins us for an over-the-top party.

Fun_house_reissueAn as of yet unannounced special performance of the entire Funhouse recording by The Stooges in February. More details to come.

And more shows in March including the final performance of the game piece, Milton Bradley and another surprise appearance by The Delusionaires.

Also slated is a Gatto Pazzo release and my TrIP Project contribution, Discarded Angel, full release. More detail to come.

One More Thing…

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artworks-000051930147-h1tiuo-originalOne final show before the end of the year: T/SMS (Tom Smith of To Live and Shave In LA fame) will be performing at Uncle Lou’s on Saturday, December 21, along with The Rot Guts, Jamison Williams and Hell Garbage.

85756141_295In an opening slot I will be joined by Dr. Moonstien for Duo CHANG, accompanying a short film collage of mine. I’ll also be performing Act One of The Fortune as part of our duo. Gonna be a very awesome show to end the year.

Where is that bottle…?

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hqdefaultAs another year comes to a close, I want to thank everyone for their support in my humble endeavors. Health has been a deterrent to the number of shows I’ve performed this year. Lung issues will definitely curtail a wind instrument player. That’s not to say I don’t want to play your show, so please ask. It’s been a little bit of a tough year, but it’s closing on a very busy November. So, let’s run it down.

I’ll be performing my first solo piece in a very long time on Saturday, November 9th, part of Hal McGee’s Apartment Music series, this one numbered 21. Great performers at this show and I can’t wait to watch them.

DelsOnce again, the word has been out for a while now, The Delusionaires crawl out of the woodwork for a series of shows: Friday, November 15th at Will’s Pub in Orlando, FL (with Shannon and The Clams!!), November 16th at a private wedding in Saint Augustine, and Saturday November 23rd at 529 in Atlanta, GA (with The Stents!!!!).

Gatto Pazzo is finalizing the mixes for their upcoming release, The Buffalo, out just after the beginning of the year.

thefortuneFor those of you who enjoyed my CD with writer John Ajac called The Fortune, on Ilse Records, we are working on a new composition/story. Stay tuned. It’s always interesting when we get together.

Hope to see you before the end of the year. As always, my CDs and music downloads are available from Bipediment Recordings here. Gatto Pazzo CDs and downloads are available here. Or grab one from me when you see me.

A Party In Saint Petersburg

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venture compoundSo it is now set: Black Beast of CHANG will have it’s CD release show at The Venture Compound in St. Petersburg, Florida on October 12. Also on the bill will be Oblongata, Leveret, Lovebrrd, Rest in Satin Silence. Show starts at 9pm, $5 cover.

kronos-cover-smallThe CD, titled Kronos, is loosely based upon the ancient Greek myth of the Titan King and his downfall. In actuality, the recording is a live in studio improvisation and contains no overdubs or edits. The four “acts” were created as they are heard and in that order. I split the pieces into smaller “bite-sized” bits for digestion. It just happened to fit the story incredibly well. Besides, who could resist basing a work upon a story that contains castration, war, humiliation, and the eating of one’s children.

DelsIn other news, The Delusionaires once again kick off the dust of neglect and set sail on another round of boozy shows, this time in Orlando, at Will’s Pub on Friday, November 15 with Shannon and the Clams, and in Atlanta on Saturday, November 23 with The Stents! I believe there be a wedding sometime in between somewhere…

Gatto Pazzo has awoken from their hibernation and has recorded another hours worth of gold. I love that band!

And finally: NEW BAND ALERT: A new line up has emerged with a new sound that’s developing quite well. No details to you yet, but I’ll keep you informed. Let’s just say the rehearsals are banging!

Happy Birthday Mr. Cage

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john_cage-photo_steven_speliotisSeptember 5, 2013 marks what would have been the 101st birthday of John Cage. Happy birthday! To celebrate, The Gallery at Avalon Island and Accidental Music Festival have put together quite an afternoon/evening. The event is called Silence 101 and it features Voci Dance, the UCF Collide Ensemble, Rick Jones performing Cage’s “Lecture on Nothing”, and my chance operation game piece “Milton Bradley”. Start time is precisely at 4:33pm, September 5th. You can find out more about the event here.

Black Beast of ARRRGHHH meets CHANG… again

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Two years after our only live duo performance and numerous conversations about the possibilities, Bipediment Recordings is proud to present (finally) a CD collaboration between Black Beat of ARRRGHHH (Zachory Short Jr) and CHANG (Jim Ivy), collectively known as Black Beast of CHANG.

kronos-cover-smallTitled KRONOS, the CD is loosely based upon the ancient Greek myth of the Titan King and his downfall. In actuality, the recording is a live in studio improvisation and contains no overdubs or edits. The four “acts” were created as they are heard and in that order. I split the pieces into smaller “bite-sized” bits for digestion. It just happened to fit the story incredibly well. Besides, who could resist basing a work upon a story that contains castration, war, humiliation, and the eating of one’s children.

You can download the CD here, but I suggest purchasing the CD as the artwork in the packaging is well worth the cash, not to mention it’s a very limited edition and will not be around long.

We hope to schedule a series of shows soon. Stay tuned.

And for old time sake, you can listen to the first live collaboration/improvisation as Black Beast of CHANG from November of 2010 here. Not for the faint of heart.

Music Is The Healing Force Of The Universe

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the-book-of-knotsMay means many things but for me, May means great music. May marks the greening of the grounds, but first and foremost, May marks the time for the wonderful FIMAV festival in Victoriaville!

zorn1This year’s line-up is, once again, outstanding: Iva Bittova/Gyan Riley/Evan Ziporyn, Michel Doneda/Tatsuya Nakatani, Haunted House, Oxbow, ZGA, Anna Homler, The Book of Knots (!), The Thing and Thurston Moore, Hikashu, and many more. And to close out the festival this year, a full day of John Zorn projects to mark his 60th birthday, including Moonchild, The Dreamers, Electric Masada, chamber ensembles, a “song project”, and solo church organ! Hooray for May! More details here.

wilmer14_7950To top off the month of May, there will be a tribute to Albert Ayler at Jacksonville’s Burro Bar on May 26th. This show was set up and organized by Jamison Williams, who asked me to participate. I have arranged The Spiritual Unity Suite, a suite based upon the Spiritual Unity album, with a bit of other Ayler thrown in. Other musicians participating in the evening include Jamison Williams, Kris Gruda, Steve Bristol, A.J. Herring, Bill Henderson, Jack Allen, Jeff Abbott, Kathy Burkett, Jason Dean Arnold, Dan Kozak, Tim Albro, Micheal Lanier, and Lucy Bonk. It will be a monumental tribute to a monumental artist. Be there if you can.

Of Gongs and Kings…

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Mark your calendars:

nakataniTatsuya Nakatani solo and Gong Orchestra will be performing at the Church of Holy Colors in Gainesville, Florida on February 27th. Gatto Pazzo will open the show. Gatto Evan will also be participating in the Gong Orchestra. If you’ve never witnessed Tatsuya Nakatani, then what are you waiting for?

Nakatani’s approach to music is visceral, non-linear and intuitively primitive, expressing an unusually strong spirit while avoiding any categorization. He creates sound via both traditional and extended percussion techniques, utilizing drums, bowed gongs, cymbals, singing bowls, metal objects and bells, as well as various sticks, kitchen tools and homemade bows, all of which manifest in an intense and organic music that represents a very personal sonic world. His approach is steeped in the sensibilities of free improvisation, experimental music, jazz, rock, and noise, and yet retains the sense of space and quiet beauty found in traditional Japanese folk music. His percussion instruments can imitate the sounds of a trumpet, a stringed instrument or an electronic device to the extent that it becomes difficult to recognize the source of the sound. He has devoted himself to a musical aesthetic where rhythm gives way to pulse, often in a way that is not always audible or visible, in currents that incorporate silence and texture.

KingKhanBBQThe Delusionaires will be opening two shows for King Khan and BBQ Show (!!!!), April 22nd at The Basement in Atlanta, and 23rd at Siberia in New Orleans. If we all survive this extravaganza, there will be many sordid stories to tell. THESE ARE THE ONLY TWO SOUTHERN U.S. SHOWS OF THIS TOUR! DON’T MISS IT!

AuschAlso of note: the new limited edition CD from Gatto Pazzo, Ausch Dönitz, will be available at the Tatsuya Nakatani show, all in an artfully crafted, hand made slim case. Buy it while it lasts. Thank you for your patronage.

Auld Lang Syne 2012

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As 2012 gives way to 2013, there are a few notes worth mentioning.

folderAlthough the Mayan prophecy proved uneventful and we are all still here, The Delusionaires plan to at least kill a good amount of your brain cells. Friday, January 18th marks to release of their long anticipated (?) long-playing vinyl record Flooze Party. To celebrate the event, there will be a much more anticipated hoedown at Will’s Pub that night. Also on the bill will be Gravitron and Golden Pelicans. There will be much rejoicing, as well as a lot of falling down.

Danny Feedback’s Crack Rock Opera has been selected to participate in the 2013 International Fringe Festival in May. That’ll be seven shows in ten days! More detail forthcoming.

Sanjiro-smallAnd, finally, the Son of CHANG release, Sanjiro, will be available the first day of 2013. There are some audio excerpts on the Audio page. Son of CHANG is a project using sets of musical quotes and themes that are arranged live by holding up cue cards. An all-star cast of Danny Feedback, Evan Shafran, and Todd Elliott join me on this roller coaster of a ride.

I hope your 2012 was joyous and successful and your 2013 will be the best year yet.