dearest all,

i hope this email finds you well.

as always, here are some things worth listening to (i think).

Khalil Gibran Muhammad speaking at John Jay College in 2015. this man has taught me SO MUCH. he can teach you, too. it stings. but it's important. i always knew i had it easy. and i always knew it wasn't fair. but i never really knew. you know?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STKb-ai6874

Kenny Warren Trio :: In the Heat
did i already write about this? i meant to. the title and the motivation are spot-fucking-on right now. Nathaniel Morgan recorded this group beautifully. and they play their butts off. i'd call this a gateway drug to improvised music and free-jazz if you're one of the folks on my list who isn't fully plugged into that stuff.

bell hooks and Cornel West speaking at New School University on my birthday in 2014. watching these two agree and clash, weave and fray... damn. this is a beautiful talk / dialogue. again. if you didn't know, now you know.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LL0k6_pPKw&t=19s

friends!

i hope you're all doing well. if you're not, that's ok, too. and totally understandable.

for my part i'm doing about as well as could be expected. i'm reading and listening more with the intention of becoming a better ally.

i'm struggling at the moment to square the fact that i'm a white man who has made his life and livelihood from black music. maybe struggle isn't the right word. but it's a challenge to figure out what, if anything, is worth sharing right now. so artistically i'm laying pretty low in hopes that voices that truly need to be heard can rise above the noise.

i have, however, come to at least one conclusion regarding positive action that i can take. after talking with a dear pal here in pittsburgh, i've decided to pledge the following:
i will donate at least 5% of every dollar i make playing music to organizations aimed at social justice, police and policy reform, and black arts initiatives.

this isn't me looking for a pat on the back. i'm sharing this because maybe you're a musician who owes as much to black music and black musicians as i do. and maybe you'll consider doing something similar.

ALL THIS BEING SAID, i've been listening and reading a lot lately. but not necessarily to music. here's some stuff that has felt especially educational:

Throughline Podcast :: American Police episode
Throughline hosts Rund Abdelfatah and Ramtin Arablouei state that their mission is to look at the past to help understand the present. some episodes do a better job than others in my opinion, but this one is especially poignant. their guest Khalil Gibran Muhammed does an incredible job of contextualizing why policing is what it is in the USA today by going waaaaaay back to the beginning.


The Daily Social Distancing Show :: What Does It Mean to Defund or Abolish the Police?
Trevor Noah talks to Patrisse Cullors, Josie Duffy Rice, Sam Sinyangwe, Mychal Denzel Smith and Alex S. Vitale about the phrase "defund the police" and a million other things in this jam packed 20 minute slip. it's incredibly eye-opening and makes defunding the police sound better and better. please watch and listen ESPECIALLY if the phrase "defund the police" makes you cringe or feel afraid. 

George Lewis :: Improvised Music after 1950: Afrological and Eurological Perspectives
this paper by musician / composer / improviser / scholar / educator George Lewis is dense and super worth reading. basically connects a lot of the stuff that Khalil Gibran Muhammed talks about in the Throughline podcast to improvised music. one of the heaviest parts of this paper is that it was published almost 25 years ago, and references stuff going all the way back to the 1950s. 

​dearest all,


i hope you're all doing at least as well as can be expected. for my part. i'm doing fine. i've been writing and playing lots of music by myself. which isn't the only way i like to do it, but it is one way...

anywho, i have a couple things coming up, and i've been listening to some good stuff, too. check it out!


listen to this/these!

Vinnie Sperrazza, Jacob Sacks, Masa Kamaguchi :: Play...

wow! these guys! why didn't i know about these records?? i love vinnie and jacob and i love their playing. masa is new to me and is great. this trio has released a MESS of recordings organized by composer. so far they're done Cy Coleman (!!!!!), Johnny Mandel, Lee Morgan, Benny Golson, Sonny Rollins, Tadd Dameron... i haven't even listened to them all. but i recommend them all. they've selected great tunes. they approach the music with a dead serious irreverence that is very near and dear to my heart. and their group sound is totally ace go listen!


James Shipp :: Everything and also his instagram

composer singer percussionist comedian former roommate james shipp is just such a joy. he's been making short music videos on his instagram. catch up. talk about irreverent. he also makes some of the most unironically beautiful music i've ever heard (see Rose of Trolley also on his insta) and this gorgeous duo record with Nadje Noordhuis. just go to his website. there's SO MUCH great stuff there. www.jamesshipp.com


Becca Stevens :: Wonderbloom

becca and i have been buds for a long long time. and though we don't really keep in touch anymore i think back fondly on a time when we would hop in her subaru together and go on short solo tours, me playing experimental saxophone music while wearing a pair of these (she actually took this photo i think), and she would play a gut twisting set of solo voice with guitar / ukulele. i fell in love with her band when we were all at the new school together. suffice it to say her music sounds a lot different now. but her (literally) unbelievable voice and her twisty and exciting compositional sense are still at the center of all of it. great new record. i'm happy for my old pal.

dearest all,


i haven't sent one of these in quite some time. i haven't felt like there's a lot to share.

i could go on. i'll spare you.

instead let me regale you with tales of sounds that i have recently enjoyed.

mmeadows :: Who Do You Think You Are?
Kristin and Cole are just the greatest. i've loved everything they've done. and they've both done a lot. this husband-wife synth pop duo are making charming, tuneful music that features Kristin's unbelievable (literally i don't believe it sometimes) voice. listen to their new ep! it's so so so good!


Kenny Warren Trio :: in the heat
Kenny is a dear old friend. he's one of my favorite people and one of my favorite musicians. his music is represented perfectly here. he is, in my opinion, the greatest living melodicist on the trumpet. his compositions and his band (Nathan Ellman-Bell on drums and Matthias Pichler on bass) highlight this perfectly. also the recording (by Nathaniel Morgan) sounds pretty friggin perfect. go listen to this, please.


andrew smiley and jason nazary :: a huddled complex
well this is just great. jason and andrew have put together an awesome set of music here. incredible musicians and improvisors both, they've developed a special rapport over the years playing in bands like Little Women and Empyrean Atlas. not sure which parts (if any) of this are composed and which are improvised. because that's how these guys roll. some of this is raucous and noisy. some if it is more tender, but also still kind of noise-y. all of it is great.


Webber/Morris Big Band :: Both Are True
well this is cool. a huge band with tons of my friends in it. Anna Webber and Angela Morris assembled a friggin unbelievable ensemble to play their unique and ambitious music. they've created a really special recording using a (more or less) classic big band instrumentation. grooves, melodies, sludgy space jams, and stellar ensemble writing and playing, and exceptional performances by individual soloists. Anna and Angela clearly worked their asses off. Go listen!!


Pittsburgh Public Theater :: Playtime
the PPT's new artistic director, Marya Sea Kaminski, has been pushing for adventurous programming since her arrival a couple years ago. necessity is the mother of invention, as they say, and recent events have necessitated a new approach to the theater. every thursday and friday at 7pm the PPT presents the first and second half, respectively, of a theater work via Zoom. it's free, but they are accepting donations. performances so far have been great and have featured talent from all over the US. tune in!

howdy there friends!

i hope you're all doing great. 
lots happening. not a ton of time. if you're in Pittsburgh, scope the shows tonight and tomorrow (keep scrollin) with fellow VAXer Liz Kosack in town from Berlin for 2 nights only. 

also, my pops suggested this: Recommended Listening Archive. i dug up as many of my past RL emails as i could find and archived them in a blog. feel free to dig through my past recommendations especially if you're new to the list. 

meanwhile, i've been listening listening listening.

Jaimie Branch :: Fly or Die II: Bird Dogs of Paradise
CLICK. THAT. LINK. i'm a little late to the party on this one. jaimie branch's new record is SMOKIN. it's not dissimilar from the first one, but everything is deeper. deep grooves stacked from bottom up: bass, drums, cello. the group sound and the record sound, the vision and direction are all incredibly clear. joyous and celebratory and also fuckin fed up.

Robert Lundberg :: Water Infrastructures Addendum
i've been a fan of rob's ever since i heard In One Wind back in 2007 or something. rob is a kickass bass player, a really smart and thoughtful person, and a water lawyer. seriously. this new solo bass recording is GREAT. drone-y, repetitive, cyclical. the performances develop slowly. imagine water reshaping a landscape over centuries and millennia. also the physical manifestation of this recording is a beautifully assembled book of photos and history. highly recommended.

Dana Saul :: Ceiling
i met dana at a workshop in Banff in 2012. i'm excited to hear this new recording in which he very much realizes a unique and personal intersection of composition and improvisation. this album features absolute shredder musicians, but doesn't use them as such. the focus is on the slow unfolding of composition and group interplay. it's great. go listen.

Nathan Alexander Pape and Patrick Breiner :: Ground Air
my buddy nate pape and i released a recording in October and i didn't really tell anyone about it. in hindsight that was kinda dumb. here it is! it's twisted and great. quiet, sound-based improvisations with kernels of melody throughout. i'd love for you to have a listen.

​Dearest all,

I hope the sudden change of the clocks and the gradual changing of the seasons are treating everyone with relative kindness. 

Personally, I tend to struggle with the weather and the lack of sunlight. But music helps. A lot. Especially this music. 

Ruth Garbus :: Kleinmeister
www.ruthgarbus.bandcamp.com/album/Kleinmeister

I’m not exaggerating when I say that I’ve been waiting for this album for years. Ruth opened for Battle Trance on a short string of dates in the northeast maybe 2.5 years ago..? Her songs, her voice, her enigmatic approach to harmony, and her granular attention to the timbral subtleties of her voice and her instrument moved me to tears more than once. I’m ecstatic that I can finally hear those songs again. 


Nicole Mitchell :: Maroon Cloud
https://fperecs.bandcamp.com/album/maroon-cloud
Nicole Mitchell is the new head of the jazz program at Pitt. And it seems like none of the musicians in Pittsburgh have checked her out. Fix that. Right now. This album (her newest as far as I can tell) is dark as hell but somehow still glitters. Nicole’s compositional sense is brilliant here. She writes for a small ensemble of virtuosos playing piano, cello, voice, and herself on flutes. The music sounds incredibly specific to me, with lots of worlds in which her band can improvise to great effect. I’m genuinely moved by this very special recording. 

Nick Dunston :: Atlantic Extraction
http://outofyourheadrecords.bandcamp.com/album/atlantic-extraction
Nick wrote and recorded one hell of a record. It happens to be his debut. But it sure doesn’t sound like it. The ensemble of double bass, guitar, flutes, violin/viola, and drums gives Nick a ton to work with. He pulls some really special sounds out of the group and each player individually brings a palpable urgency to the music. Really special music on Adam Hopkins’s new label Out of Your Head Records. 

Caroline Davis and Rob Clearfield’s Persona :: Anthems
http://carolinedavismusic.bandcamp.com/album/anthems
Geez this recording is awesome. Caroline’s sound on the alto is deeply layered. Velvety and plush even when applied with force (a description which, upon reflection, also applies to the compositions on this recording). The band executes a patient vitality that I feel like I can chew. Like in a cheesecake-y way where some of it gets stuck to the roof of your mouth. 

Laila and Smitty :: III
http://kennywarren.bandcamp.com/album/laila-and-smitty-iii
Kenny is one of those dudes whose life and whose trumpet playing seem to be the same. Apparently effortless, light and funny, and deeply thoughtful. He also makes me wonder “how the hell do you sing so nice without opening your mouth all the way?” I love this band’s first two recordings dearly and this newest installment just doubles down. So so so worth many listens. 

friends!

i hope you're all doing well. 

time is short. this feels urgent. there's music. good god there's music. here's some. actually here's a lot.

Lisel :: Angels on the Slope
there's a great series of house concerts called Home Audio that some of my pals started in brooklyn a bunch of years ago. their most recent concert featured Lisel. i wasn't around for the show but I scoped her new recording. this album is really special. crystalline vocals. trippy production and fun grooves. it’s awesome. go get it.

Mmeadows :: I'll Never Let You Go
mmeadows is just the best. husband / wife team cole and kristin produce jams that lay perfectly under literally unbelievable vocals. this i think is a single from an upcoming release. bright and shimmering and sludgy and thumping. this music is gold. GOLD. 

Steve Lehman :: The People I Love
steve lehman's alto saxophone sound is immediately recognizable to me. for better or worse. bright and edgy and direct. i've been listening to his music for a lot of years. and this new release is special in how casually he and his band rip through some incredibly challenging material seemingly without breaking a sweat. i love this record.

Steph Richards :: Take the Neon Lights
this album was released about 6 months ago and i've been SNOOZING. steph is one of my generation's most flexible and brilliant trumpet virtuosos. her melodic sensibilities are NUTS. her command of the instrument in its "true" form AND through a gamut of extended techniques is incredibly exciting and moving. steph's writing on this album is top notch and her band crushes the material. from moody scratch n sniff to driving and sometimes funny bluesy grooves. holy shit buy this and listen to it.

Derider :: You Became the Ground
grungy and gritty and loud and driving but sometimes still pretty. wtf how do they do that? these pittsburgh pals are awesome and so is their music. please listen. it's worth it.

​Friends!

I hope you’re all doing great. 

For my part I’m chilling on the couch with dear old pal Jon Crompton in beautiful (ahem) Brooklyn. I’ll be playing his CD release party tonight at the Owl with the same slaying band that’s on the record. More on that further down. 

I’ve been scoping some music that I’m really into lately. For example. 

Rajna Swaminathan :: Of Agency and Abstraction 
https://rajnaswaminathan.bandcamp.com/album/of-agency-and-abstraction
This recording is just awesome. Rajna plays mrudangam (a two-headed drum played with the hands) and assembled an unbelievable band. They play her music at a measured simmer throughout. It’s beautifully recorded. It’s beautifully conceived. A perfectly fluid confluence of a variety of influences including jazz and Carnatic Indian music. Listen! Buy!

Dave Frishberg
Good buddy Jacob Pleakis hipped me to Dave’s music while we were brainstorming songs to sing together. Dave wrote stuff like “I’m Just a Bill” and other Schoolhouse Rock classics. He also wrote ripyourgutsout devastatingly beautiful songs like “You Are There” and hilariously clever and relatable tunes like “Blizzard of Lies.” I’ve been listening to and enjoying all of it. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for the Breiner/Pleakis collab Sad Bastards. Or maybe Secret Crooners. Or maybe Electric Tornado. So hard to decide....

friends!

i hope you're all doing great. this will be a quick one.

i'm excited to play at Pittsburgh's brand new jazz club Con Alma tonight with a quartet that i love dearly. more later. first: listen to this!!

Bedouine :: Bird Songs of a Killjoy
Azniv Korkejian has been writing and performing songs under the name Bedouine for a couple years now. and they're the best songs. like actually the best songs. i love her brand new album so much. just please go listen to it.

friends!

i hope you're all well. 

time is short. my greetings are suffering. but the suffering ends there for me. at the greetings. all things else are peachy-friggin-keen. 

hey so there's good music out the and i feel pretty excited that i get to listen to it. here are some things.

Merry Peers :: Merry Peers
so brad henkel and yoshi klein are two of my favorite people. and they happen to be two of my favorite musicians. and they happen to be married. and they're brand new (like 2 weeks ago or not even) parents. and they released this recording DAYS before Charlie was born. brad plays trumpet like no one else on planet earth. yoshi often plays recorders but here plays synth. the music on this recording  is 100% unexpected. ambient. melodic. sometimes a little squirrelly. moments of spoken word. just. really good. please listen.

Julia Reidy :: brace, brace
julia is a rad aussie pal who lives in berlin. on the same UK label as Merry Peers, julia reidy recently released this awesome 12 string guitar recording. her playing is subtly virtuosic and her finger-picking gloms several lines together into a singular trippy ambience. this music is really special. please please listen.

Dykes and Young :: on tour
just heard jeff and laura play a beautiful duo set in pittsburgh last night. scope their sounds and GO HEAR THEM LIVE. it's GOOD. beautiful acoustic ambient violin and upright bass imprompositions. that is, improvisations that have morphed into compositions. yeah i made it up. what?
Cleveland, DC, Baltimore, Philly, Brooklyn, Catskill, Boston.