Two reasons why you shouldn??t ignore this event:
1) You will not see a superior line-up of acoustic guitar mastery in your lifetime.
2) It??s my birthday show.
Saturday, March 26
611 Florida Ave NW
http://www.claviusproductions.org 8pm, $5 suggested donation
(202) 360-9739
BYOB!
Jack Rose (of Pelt, from Philly, VHF/Eclipse Records)
P.G. Six (of Tower Recordings, from NYC)
Harris Newman (from Montreal, Strange Attractors Records)
Glenn Jones (of Cul De Sac, from Boston, Strange Attractors)
The Mikel Dimmick Joy Band (featuring Mike Gangloff of Pelt, from SW Virginia)
Jack Rose Jack Rose is -- without exaggeration -- one of the premier fingerpickers on this revolving chunk of dirt called Earth. From delta blues and bluegrass to Hindustani raga drone and avant-garde composition, Jack's songs touch upon numerous cultures, eras, and moods, culminating in an overarching statement of personal expression. His ability and melodic sensibilities completely belie his thirty-something years.
??Drink a couple shots of neat Kentucky whiskey and see if you don??t slur raag and rock into the same guttural syllable. While I can??t comment knowledgably upon Jack Rose??s substance intake during the sessions that comprise
Raag Manifestos, his third LP of acoustic steel-stringed guitar music, he certainly managed to mash those sounds together so solidly that they bond into an entity heavy enough to exert its own gravitational pull. That he does this with neither an amplified instrument, nor any formal training in Indian classical music, only heightens his accomplishment.
With each successive record, Rose has stepped further from the Mount Rushmore-sized shadows cast by John Fahey, Robbie Basho, and Sandy Bull. Sure, you can hear their influence in his choices of instrument and material; and like them, he plays steel-stringed acoustic guitar, and blends American blues and folk styles with Eastern and Western elements.
But Rose, unlike the rest, came to fingerpicking fairly late in his personal musical evolution. He grew up listening to classic rock and graduated to punk without ever cutting ties with his old school. Pelt, the band in which he came of age as a player, used punk??s anything-goes ethic as permission to use Indian instruments, as well as minimalist forms, without going through any lengthy dues-paying process.
There??s no denying Rose??s command of the guitar. On ??Tower Of Babel,? for example, his nuanced articulation and resonant tone combine to stir the emotions. But he hasn??t lost that punk attitude. Not only does Rose make good on the record??s name, staking his claim farther into the hinterland of the Indo-blues territory any of his Takoma forebears did, he does it with unsurpassed aggression. His slashing attack on ??Black Pearls From the River? and brutal chording on ??Hart Crane??s Old Boyfriends? is pure rock and roll, and it??s the weight in his playing that makes this album stand out in a year packed with solo acoustic guitar records.? (Bill Meyer, Dusted)
P.G. Six Along with his identity as P.G. Six, Pat Gubler is also a founding member of Tower Recordings. Tower Recordings took its name from a loft space in Port Chester, New York called "Tower Gallery" where Helen Rush and Matt Valentine were living in the early nineties. Pat soon was living there too and it was in this loft space that the core of the Tower Recordings collective began putting songs and improvisational sessions to tape. The group put out the
Rehearsals for Roseland LP (in a limited edition of 500 copies) on Superlux (Lux 003) packaged in hand-painted covers in 1995. Stylistically the record takes cues from contemporary bands like Sebadoh, GBV, Palace, Silver Jews, and The Fall. Following this record came
The Fraternity of Moonwalkers on Audible Hiss (AH 16) which sounds more reminiscent of sixties folk and psych, as well as bands like the Godz and Amon Duul. This record was followed by the amazingly beautiful Planet T.R. release
Let the Cosmos Ring on Spirit of Orr (SO
where, along with a few "group" songs, each Tower member is showcased on their own tracks. P.G. Six??s "The Seventh Member" reveals a beautiful droning folk sound, reminiscent of a loosely improvisational traditional folk tune. This was followed by the full length
Furniture Music for Evening Shuttles on Siltbreeze (SB 54). Most recently, a one-sided 12? entitled
Folk Scene (Shrat Field Recordings) documents the expanding Tower line-up, which now includes Tim Barnes, Samara Lubelski, and Dean Roberts, to name a few.
Prior to his involvement in Tower, in the early nineties, Pat Gubler studied music at SUNY Purchase. While at Purchase, he met Matt Valentine and Marc Wolf, who formed the Captain Beefheart and Pussy Galore-inspired Memphis Luxure. Memphis Luxure did some live shows around the Northeast with like-minded noise outfits like Danbury, CT??s Bunnybrains and released two seven-inches on Superlux (Lux 001 and 002), a label started and run by Matt Valentine, Helen Rush, and Pat. In 1995, Pat also released "Book of Rayguns" (Lux 005) on Superlux, which is P.G. Six??s formal debut. This 7" is a Branca-esque piece of concert music for the electric guitar performed with Tom Keller and P.G. Six. At one point in its development, Pat had twelve guitarists rehearsing in the basement of SUNY Purchase Music Division. The Superlux 7" features an edited version of this larger concept and composition.
Parlor Tricks and Porch Favorites is a continuation of P.G. Six??s development.
Pat has also played with one of his musical heroes, Robin Williamson of the Incredible String Band. The influence of Williamson is clear throughout
Parlor Tricks and Porch Favorites, especially on the Pentangle-inspired "When I Was a Young Man," with its echoes of Irish and Scottish folk music. P.G. Six covers Anne Briggs' "Go Your Way," as well. P.G. Six also shares a strong connection to folk instrumental virtuosos like Sandy Bull and John Fahey, especially on "The Divine Invasion" and "Unteleported Man." The bluesy sound of the American Christian backwoods is evident on the "The Shepherd." Like most American art forms, the record has experimental flourishes and, in this case, Pat references minimalist theory, on the drone epigraph/epilogue "Letter to Lilli St. Cyr" and free improvisational playing on "Quiet Fan for SK." "The Fallen Leaves That Jewel the Ground" is clear P.G. Six, melding the harpsichord-like sounds of a wire-strung harp and electronic drone.
Harris Newman ??Way back in the early/mid-??90s, tired of all the lo-fi and indie rock that had been just about everything I had listened to in recent years, I wanted to get out of all that and my way out was through the genius of John Fahey. Admittedly, it took some time before I really saw the mastermind of Fahey but hearing some of his music truly opened doors that I didn??t even know existed. Canadian Harris Newman has a similar approach to music in the sense that he goes out of his way to merge different musical styles and cultures. Unlike the deeply spiritual (and highly recommended) predecessor, Newman??s brand new album
Accidents With Nature and Each Other goes far beyond being another Fahey-esque guitar album. We still get plenty of fingerpicking along the Takoma axis but the package is way more grand and complex this time out. The languid guitar structures are flavored with a fair bit of tasty experimentalism and acoustic drones. The way the sounds move back and forth from the abstract and droning to the compositional and folky makes me feel like I'm in some weird state of awareness where it??s hard to make out of if I am dreaming or if the vision for my eyes is the actual reality. The ghostly droning steel string landscapes of ??It??s a Trap (Part 1)? provides just that sort of dreamlike hypnosis, but before you know it we??re all back in the midst of Newman??s quietly intense, subtly dynamic and desolate acoustic guitar sound. The result of all this is a rather diverse trek through the outer possibilites of the acoustic guitar and if you ask me it just doesn??t get much better. Definitely an early contender for upcoming top 2005 lists.? (Mats Gustafsson, Broken Face)
??The critical consensus on Montreal-based steel string guitarist Harris Newman's debut CD, 2003's
Non-Sequiturs, was that it showcased a nascent stylist with little of the idiosyncratic bent and voracious ability of heavy-hitting post-Fahey players like Jack Rose, Glenn Jones, and Matthew Valentine. However, its follow-up,
Accidents With Nature and Each Other, is a different bag entirely. Here Newman unravels the rudimentary basics of his technique into some beautifully hypnotic spools, combining tough solo conceptions in the mode of John Fahey with some group-thing and a few deeply psychedelic tone poems. Newman's core approach is based around working repeating single note patterns into accumulatively potent forms, anchoring each composition with an implied undercurrent of drone. At points here, his writing is as evocative as great Fahey compositions like "Joe Kirby Blues" -- second track "Cloud City" has the same complex aura of attempted emotional neutrality almost overwhelmed by poignant remembrance -- while at others he steps outside of the canon altogether. "It's A Trap (Part 1)" works long singing tones into a phased devotional mass that sounds like something from Popul Vuh's
Hosianna Mantra, while the closing "Driving All Night With Only My Mind" adds some subtle swing thanks to Godspeed You! Black Emperor member Bruce Cawdron's brush glockenspiel work. Indeed, the addition of Cawdron provides a clutch of the record's highlights, especially on "Lords & Ladies," where his drumming helps meld motorik German rock and American primitive guitar in a way that's as evocative as Cul De Sac's pioneering work. Newman really plays the hell out of his guitar here and his approach has taken such a massive leap, both technically and conceptually, that it's enough to blow any latent accusations of piggybacking or opportunism out of the water for good. This is the real deal.? (David Keenan, The Wire)
Glenn Jones ??I'm sure you know who Glenn Jones is, but just in case: Glenn's full-time band, Cul de Sac have amassed a huge following and have been releasing records since well into the Grunge Administration. Despite their long running career, they have only just recently hit their peak with the stunning
Death of the Sun (also released by Strange Attractors). And, while this is Glenn's first solo release, he has been playing solo shows for some time around the Northeast, perhaps most notably at the notorious (was it?) Brattleboro Free Folk Festival a couple years back. He also recently lent his guitar prowess to Jack Rose for a track on his second LP,
Opium Musick.
This collaboration is very fitting for Glenn, as his solo music is very much in line with Jack Rose's. Jones has an incredibly adept control of the guitar. Over the course of this album's 43 minutes, his guitar soars, stomps, and burrows its way through your speakers with many faces. It opens with the blues-tinged title track, which mournfully moans its way into the deeply moody "Sphinx Unto Curious Men" which was originally released, in greatly truncated form on Cul de Sac's most recent effort,
The Strangler's Wife. "Linden Avenue Stomp" has a ragtime feel and may sound familiar: it is the only song on this album with a guest appearance (Jack Rose), and it is the song that Glenn co-wrote for Jack Rose's album (though it is a different take than the song on
Opium Musick). "The Doll Hospital" shows Glenn's obvious love for Fahey's music, and "One Jack Rose (That I Mean)" is a richly melodic take on Americana.
Glenn's technical abilities are above any kind of criticism. The first time I saw him play, I was literally watching in disbelief, as the movement of his fingers didn't seem to be matching up with the music coming from his guitar. And I've played guitar for 10 years. I'm generally able to pick apart basically everything I see performed live. But I wasn't prepared for that first time seeing Glenn. But, beyond that, he has the musical wherewithal to release an album like this, packed full of hints, influences, and references to a myriad of world and especially traditional American musics, but make it all so hard to pin down to a single thing.? (Sean Hammond, Fake Jazz)
Upcoming 611 Florida Ave events 4/17: Mike Bullock-David Gross-Tucker Dulin (sax/bass free jazz trio from Boston)/Greg Davis (Kranky)/Keith Fullerton Whitman (Kranky)/Bird Show (Ben Vida from Town & Country)
5/8: Sir Richard Bishop (of Sun City Girls, solo acoustic fingerpicking)/Mouthus (insane guitar/drums duo from NYC on Ecstatic Peace)/Double Leopards (tentative)
Upcoming Warehouse Next Door events 4/1: USAISAMONSTER (Load Records)
4/4: Red Eyed Legends (featuring Chris Thompson of Circus Lupus/Monorchid/Skull Kontrol)/The Eternals
4/11: Call Me Lightning/Chariots/Mommy & Daddy/Ten-Ton
4/12: Mono/Eluvium
4/16: The Hidden Hand/Weedeater/Rwake
4/20: Franklin Delano (File 13 Rec., from Italy)/Jodi Jean Marston & Ponieheart (on tour with Bonnie Prince Billy)/Madagascar
4/22: Hand Fed Babies/Gang Wizard (Ecstatic Peace)/r_garcia
4/23: Distant Sun: A Tribute to Captain Beyond/Wretched/Black Manta/The Expotentials
5/4: Psychic Paramount (ex-Laddio Bolocko/Panicsville)/Trephine
5/10: Michael Columbia (ex-Bablicon/Olivia Tremor Control/Need New Body)/Ovo (experimental noise from Italy)/Mr. Natural
