611 Florida update for anyone that cares:
Saturday, May 22, 9pm
611 Florida Ave NW, Washington DC
$5 suggested donation
call 202-360-9739 for more info
Clavius Productions Simon Wickham-Smith (from the UK, VHF REcords, Majora)
From Quagmire (from DC, VHF Records)
Sharron Kraus (Camera Obscura Records)
This Saturday is shaping up to be one of the most diverse events at 611 Florida yet, spanning traditional musical styles from centuries ago to contemporary modern technology. Since 1990, Simon Wickham-Smith has been recording both acoustic and digital compositions, ranging from loose, abstract improvisations to rigidly academic constructions. On this rare tour of the United States, he'll be performing improvisations on laptop. Be sure to ask him about transgendered astrology, the Sixth Dalai Lama, and font design. From Quagmire features Dorothy Geller and James Wolf (ex-Laconic Chamber) and Vincent Van Go-Gogh (ex-Rake), who build delicate songs around Geller's haunting, whispery vocals and Wolf's keening violin, complemented by Go-Gogh's unpredictable array of sawed cymbals, bizarre percussion, and electronic warblings. As a whole, and like the covers of both their albums (The Tropic of Barren and Caught in Unknowing), their aura is enshrouded in mystery and impressionism. Currently residing in Philadelphia after years of studying at Oxford, Sharron Kraus may be this generation's answer to those highly revered interpreters of traditional British folksong, Sandy Denny and Shirley Collins. Like Gillian Welch, Kraus writes her own ballads, though hers are steeped more in the Child and Sharp ballads of England instead of the Appalachia of Welch (which of course derive from the same sources). Kraus has recorded two phenomenal albums for Camera Obscura and plays solo, accompanied only by guitar, banjo, or whistle.
All three acts are also performing at the Warehouse Next Door at 1pm earlier that day. As always, bring your own intoxicants. Some press:
From Quagmire is Dorothy Geller (Laconic Chamber, Elegy) on finger-picked nylon string guitar and hushed vocals, James Wolf (also Laconic Chamber) on violin, and Vinnie Van Go-Gogh (Rake) on guitar, percussion, and situationism.
Their second CD ??Caught in Unknowing?? strongly follows on from their 2001 debut ??Tropic of Barren?? further evolving the Virginian trio??s exquisite and unique chamber music. Here the spaces between notes seem even more like chasms, the sounds of instruments laid bare by the extraordinary fidelity of their recording. In fact, the compositions on ??Caught in Unknowing?? seem like X-rays of songs, their skeleton defined and everything else a ghostly imprint. The pieces on ??Caught in Unknowing?? typically center around some kind of basic internalized folk-song core provided by Dorothy??s guitar patterns and whispered lyrics, around which the other members weave sonic exclamations wild violin excursions from James, and the sound of complaining hinges and a spectra of clatter from VVGG.
Many sounds are of indeterminate origin, and for some reason that makes for compelling listening of the ??how did they do that?? variety. The lengthy central track (possibly called ??Stale Mate?? though it is a little hard to tell with a track listing that appropriately is a circular thing with no obvious beginning or end??) wraps up all of these elements into a transfixing whole, and asks the listener to try and think of something else that sounds like this. And that??s a question that doesn??t get asked very often any more, and even less often results in a stumped listener. From Quagmire has now relocated to Oxford UK, with Simon Wickham-Smith??s laptop replacing VVGG??s guitar and percussion. I for one can??t wait to hear the results of that union. (from Ptolemaic Terrascope)
"There are a few who fight a lonely battle against world music's commercialized and warped definition of folk. People like Timothy Renner, the Iditarod and Gillian Welch who dig their hands deep into the soil of an unnerving past. And let us now also count Sharron Kraus among them. She's been playing music for a decade, but it's not until now she makes her debut on record - many thanks and congratulations to Camera Obscura for that. And what a debut it is! Kraus's songs are rooted as much in Appalachian styles as in the gloomier side of British folk song with a touch of Lal Waterson. And like Waterson, Kraus has a voice of a woman, not a girl. The instrumentation is sparse, often only an earthy banjo and a gritty fiddle. The songs are like omens of a world going decidedly wrong but with alluring melodies to trick you into the trap. When the song deals with family traditions it is ridden with guilt and accusations. When she sings of love, it is of physical affection between twins or if Kraus cares to pour light into the grim story at all it is still marred with rue and regret. The world as seen through the songs of Sharron Kraus is a relentless place of faded sepia. The only way to endure it is to turn ugliness into beauty. It doesn't really matter what is wrong, because there is no right left. Morals change and distort and you won't notice. Beautiful Twisted is the perfect title. Many singers have explored the shady side of the world and the minds of those who inhabit it, but few have done it as convincingly as Sharron Kraus. It's too early to name Beautiful Twisted a classic, but I doubt you'll find a better example of a true future folk classic this early in the new millenium." -Peter Sjoblom (The Broken Face)
Upcoming: July 10: Incite/Gradient Communication/Axiomatic Integration/others TBA (German minimalist drone, in the vein of Oval, Pole, Pansonic, etc)
