This month’s podcast takes a look back at some of the past year’s live performances. I played with some great musicians in a variety of settings in 2017, and could probably fill several podcasts with those recordings. But here are four that represent the range of sonic experiences I had this year.
It starts with a solo performance at Beste Studios in October (thanks to Samantha Beste for the drawing at the top of this post!)
At around 11:17 there’s a duo performance with Dean Sharp on guitar, beats and loops, recorded at Newburgh Open Movement in August.
Then at 26:06 it’s a quartet performance with Al Margolis playing wind instruments, including alto clarinet, recorder and trumpet, Andy Rinehart on accordion, and Steve Roe on the Straddlevarious! This was recorded at a contact improvisation workshop in November.
This month’s podcast features experimental musician Al Margolis (if, bwana). Al attempts to use instruments as sound making devices, stripped as far as possible from their traditional sounds and modes of playing. The results are texturally rich, and sonically surprising.
Al manipulating his compromised impositions.
I first met Al performing at My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, where he was assaulting a violin in a most appealing (appalling?) manner. He brought his violin, an alto clarinet and his laptop to our session. We did some improvising with both of us playing instruments, some improvisations with me playing guitar, and Al on laptop manipulating his “compromised impositions”, and also improvisations with Al playing his instruments as I processed them live through my effects. Needless to say this podcast is pretty different, but if you’re interested in exploring sound I think you’re gonna like it.
This month’s podcast features the modular synths of Okkoto. I met Okkoto at a synth meet put on by the Hudson Valley Machine Appreciation Society, where he performed a beautifully minimal set. I was very pleased that he was interested in recording a podcast, and our collaboration produced some deep, textured electronic soundscapes.
Okkoto in the studio. What’s in that box?Many, many things in the box!
Here it is, the thirtieth Errant Space Podcast, The big Three-Oh! This one is a collaboration with Sonic Hudson, playing his suitcase of electronics and lap steel. Its nice and weird, sometimes leaning a bit more into the realm of noise than usual, and traversing some adventurous sonic terrain.
Sonic Hudson, with electric suitcase and lap steel.
This month’s podcast features composer/keyboardist Art Labriola, who eschews his keyboards and performs on his modular synths. The resulting soundscapes are a sonic journey to some strange and fantastic places. Prepare your ears for adventure!
Here it is, the 24th Errant Space podcast! That’s two years of spacing out. Let’s celebrate with a double bill!
The first part of #24 features Abelard who plays guitars while I explore my “Errant Bass” alter ego. Just to mix things up, I decided to spend much of the last month getting back to my roots and playing bass guitar. I found the instrument lent itself quite well to the more soundscapey end of the ambient spectrum and this collaboration with Abelard is a good representation of some spacy goodness. It gets a little weird…
The second part of this month’s podcast goes in a completely different direction with me back on the guitar and featuring saxophonist Brad Hubbard playing electronic wind instrument (EWI) and baritone sax. Our collaboration resulted in some lovely mellow ambient tone poems. The first has Brad playing the EWI, creating nice electronic textures. And we wrap it up with Brad playing some beautiful baritone sax.
Errant Space podcast #15 has something new: beats! courtesy of DJ/producer/electronic musician Reiche.
We met, and exchanged info, back in February 2016 at the Adventures in Electronic Music looping workshop I participated in at Space Create in Newburgh, NY (see ES Podcast #12). A few months later Reiche contacted me about getting together for a collaboration. Following my “the answer is always yes” policy I agreed, even though i had never seen him play ( I did see some videos).
So I didn’t really know what to expect when Reiche showed up at Rude Anagrams Studios with his Roland AIRA gear and Abelton Live set up, but I’m very pleased with the results of our first collaboration! Open up your ears and give it a listen.
Here it is, the tenth Errant Space podcast! Number ten is something different, as its the first to feature an acoustic instrument; the accordion of Mr. Andy Rinehart. That’s right, accordion, with all its wheezy mechanical goodness!! I think it adds some really interesting textures, and Andy brings some nice rhythmic elements to this space out. His approach to the accordion is wonderfully abstract, and it was a real treat to play with him.
This month’s podcast was recorded at the Cocoon Theatre in Poughkeepsie, NY during their Beckett Festival.
Photo courtesy of Cocoon Theatre
I played in the lobby before and after a performance of Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days. The first third of the podcast was recorded pre-show, the last part was after the show. I think its interesting to hear how the play’s performance effected my performance – that Beckett sure does take one to a weird place!
He brought a few effects and used a couple of mono-synths and a few more effects from the Rude Anagrams collection and we created what, to me, sounds like an imaginary soundtrack to a sci-fi film noir.
Here it is, the 24th Errant Space podcast! That’s two years of spacing out. Let’s celebrate with a double bill!
