15 for 2015

15 for 2015

1)  Coin Coin Chapter Three: River Run Thee – Matana Roberts

2)  For Ed Blackwell – Hamid Drake/Michael Zerang

3)  Site Specific – Ken Vandermark

4)  This Is Not Art – Double Basse (The Craftsman Part 1)

5)  Divers – Joanna Newsom

6)  You Can Be Mine- Fred Lonberg-Holm & Paal Nilssen-Love (The Pleasure Principle)

7)  A Magnetic Center – Jon Mueller

8)  Experiments With A Leaf – John Butcher & Andy Moor (Joy Is the Headlight)

9)  Warsaw Improvisers Orchestra (Split Cassette) – WIO (This…That…And The Other)

10) Alone Together – Joe McPhee

11)  Double Arc – The Resonance Ensemble (Arc Two, Section A/Arc Two Section D)

12)  Full Bleed – Thurston Moore / John Moloney Caught On Tape

13)  The Bridge – Hervé Perez & André Darius (Couleurs Primaires)

14)  Pool Blunt – Marriage (Church Of The Horny Goat)

15)  Show Us The Fire – Zelienople (Uptown/Blue Sands)

Off the top of my head a few other things that while not released in 2015 helped make my year and made me smile:  DKV’s blistering Milwaukee 2013 set on the Motion In Sound box set (2014), the positively gorgeous Ville Vesten from Moskus (2006), Neil Hagerty’s syrupy pop classic Out Of Reach (2003), The Swell Maps’ deliciously hectic Big Maz In The Desert, and last but not least John Carter & Booby Bradford…and Fred Anderson.

moonra’s recommendation for June: Lean Left: Live at Cafe Oto

These two releases are the essence of excitement in the improvised world of music.  They involve two days of live recordings with musicians Terrie Ex: Guitar, Andy Moor: Guitar, Ken Vandermark: Reeds @ Paal Nilssen-Love: Drums with special guests
Ab Baars: Reeds (day 1) and Steve Noble: Percussion (day 2).  It basically adds up to a improvised collaboration between The Ex guitarists and Vandermark / Nilssen-Love.  What does it amount to?   Pure improvised bliss like I never heard before.  I’ll be seeing Ken, Terrie and Paal perform in two weeks, can’t wait!