The Foetus symphony orchestra : "York"

(Big Cat, 1997)

This recording was conceived by J.G. Thirlwell and Lydia Lunch as a travelogue and exploration of DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass), site of the notorious Farragut Housing Projects. These projects have been called the most dangerous in New York City, and J.G. Thirlwell resides and works next to them to this day.
First Exit To Brooklyn (aka York, a reference to the nearby York Street subway stop, also a thematic link to J.G. Thirlwell's obsession with four letter one syllable LP titles) is a meditation and catalogue of DUMBO's crime, it's denizens, it's violence and oppression, it's industrial and human waste based on ten years of first hand experience.
It was performed from a lateral libretto consisting of emotive cues and descriptions of form, format and tempo along with pre-composed music themes, which were then fleshed out and improvisatorily elaborated on by an amazing and eclectic ensemble of musicians. Composed and conducted by J.G. Thirlwell, the musicians also took cues from 9 synchronized kitchen clocks - one per member - and each other.
The musicians involved encompass a veritable who's who of the New York music scene, including Foetus live band veterans Brian Emrich (Furnace), Vinnie Signorelli (Swans, Unsane), David Ouimet (Motherhead Bug, Cop Shoot Cop, Firewater) and Kurt Wolf (Pussy Galore, Boss Hog, Loudspeaker, Emma Peel). Aided and abetted by the abundant talents of Steven Bernstein (Lounge Lizards, Spanish Fly), Oren Bloedow (Elysian Fields) and Marcus Rojas (Spanish Fly).
All involved were hand-picked for their empathy, musicality and sensitive, sensuous and swinging sensability; despite the fact that virtually none of them had ever met, the chemistry proved to be spot on. The narrative was written and performed by Lydia Lunch, who resided in DUMBO from 1987 until 1990 with partner-in-grime J.G. Thirlwell who composed and sang the lyrics. Both the narrative and lyrics are based on crimes committed on them, crimes observed, crimes against the neighborhood, criminals both reviled and revered and, in one piece, crimes Thirlwell commits upon himself.
York was recorded at the nearby Brooklyn Anchorage, one of the huge stone pillars which supports the venerable structure that is the Brooklyn Bridge. Within the cavernous pillar, which boasts fifty foot ceilings, are numerous vaults and ante chambers. While having previously being used to store discarded tires, it was taken over several years ago by Creative Time, a New York arts foundation, who have each summer been curating it to stage and display numerous amazing interactive installations, art exhibits, performances, concerts and raves.
Turn off the lights and hide the razor blades.

Enjoy!

(liner notes)

HERE

Steven Bernstein + Marcus Rojas + Kresten Osgood : "Tatoos & mushrooms"

(Ilk Music, 2008)

Featuring Steven Bernstein on trumpet & slide trumpets, Marcus Rojas on tuba and Kresten Osgood on drums. Multi-bandleader, arranger and trumpet hero Steve Bernstein never seems to rest. Besides running Sex Mob and the Millennial Territory Orchestra, he has four fabulous discs on Tzadik and has worked with Lounge Lizards, Kamikaze Ground Crew, Max Nagl's Big Four, Satoko Fujii and Mario Pavone. He was also a member of an early downtown trio called Spanish Fly with Dave Tronzo and Marcus Rojas, who still get together on occasion when Tronzo is in town. Since Mr. Tronzo has relocated to the Boston area, Spanish Fly plays gigs with guest members like Ned Rothenberg. Hence this new trio with Marcus Rojas and Danish drum wiz Kresten Osgood, who seems to get around and appears on more discs than I can count. It is Kresten who is the main composer on this disc.
The very first sound you hear on this disc is Marcus playing his tuba like a dijeradoo, making this spooky hum/growl. Besides four originals by Kresten, there are a few select and diverse covers by Charles Brackeen, Thelonius Monk, Charles Mingus and Hank Williams. Charles Brackeen's "Prince of Night" starts things off and is a perfect opening piece. It has a peaceful, spiritual vibe and a delicate, somber melody. Kresten's skeletal yet seductive "Hope for Denmark" shows how to set the scene with a minimum of notes. It reminds me of how the blues works best with a handful of select notes, where each one counts. Marcus Rojas is a master tuba player with his own distinctive sound and approach. He starts Monk's "Thelonius" by rubbing and tapping on his tuba while he hums of just plays a certain eerie notes. When he switches to the bass line, he sounds totally old school and filled with friendly swagger. "Scaramanga" is an eerie, spacy improvised trio that floats freely and thoughtfully. Kresten's drums are recorded with breathtaking care and are at the center of "Abington". His mallet use is sublime and works well with Steve's haunting muted trumpet and Marcus cosmic droning tuba. Initially I thought that there is nothing that connects Mingus' "Eastcoasting" with Hank Williams' "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry". Both were written in the fifties and played next to each other, they both evoke a certain timeless quality, especially the way the trio turn Hank's song inside out and sent it to the outer space. The feeling that I get from this gem is that it is Kresten that called the shots and organized to session. This is indeed a wonderful job from all three members of this phenomenal trio.

Bruce Lee Gallanter (Downtown Music Gallery)

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Roy Nathanson : "Fire at Keaton's bar & grill"

(Six Degrees, 2000)

Roy Nathanson has always been a storyteller. In the late 1980s, his band with Curtis Fowlkes, called the Jazz Passengers, echoed the voices he heard from his New York streets. Deranged and Decomposed and Broken Night/Red Light, both nearly impossible to find recordings, spoke of multi-ethnic ramblings, preachers, and strange drugs. Nathanson also wrote music for performance artist David Cale, accenting his tales. Later work with the Lounge Lizards and the nineties reincarnation of the Jazz Passengers with vocalist Debbie Harry of Blondie fame, further broadened Nathanson's musical palate. He is a showman with an inclination for burlesque, a joke and a good time.
Fire is the full realization of his storytelling. He constructs an imaginary tavern, with an assemblage of patrons and odd characters that include Deborah Harry as Cups, the bartender everyone lusts for, Elvis Costello the narrator, Richard Butler of the Psychedelic Furs as the would be arsonist, and various patrons that include a micro and a macro physicist. Not since The Who's Tommy or, well...The Van Trapp families exploits has musical theatre captured my imagination. Nathanson's theater is all about the bar's characters. Scored with tangos, a saxophone quartet, funk, organ grease, and Jazz Passengers circus music, the musical vignettes shed light on the tragic night of the fire, hint at relationships and turmoil, before disappearing into the smoke.
Nancy King and Kenny Washington sing/scat "Bar Stool Paradise" ala' "Moody's Mood For Love" at true lush life where a few drinks create eternal love, at least for tonight.
Nathanson casts his musical theatre with top musicians and eclectic styles. Where else can a B3, as if in a make believe jazz night, play opposite a cello and Dobro "kid song" next to a love song between two gay particle physicists? Somehow Elvis Costello's voice has become the narration of our times and Harry's graduation from Blondie signals a collective call for all of us to grow up already. Nathanson has given us the postmodern-Cheers, then burned it to the ground. See, jazz can be fun music, it can be theatre, and it can tell stories.

Mark Corroto (All About Jazz)

1- Fire suite 1
2- Fire suite 2
3- Fire suite 3
4- Bar stool paradise
5- Last call
6- Jazz night at Keaton's
7- A bend in the night
8- Carol Ann
9- Toast quartet
10- Loss
11- Cups
12- Fire suite reprise

musicians :

Roy Nathanson : alto, tenor & soprano sax (2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12)
Bill Ware : vibes, piano, hammond B3 (3,8,11,12)
Brad Jones : bass (1,3,5,8,12)
EJ Rodriguez : drums, percussion (1,3,5,11,12)
Marc Ribot : guitar (3,4,11)
Erik Friedlander : cello (1,10)
Jay Rodriguez : tenor sax (2,3,6,9)
Curtis Fowlkes : trombone (5,6,11)
Ben Perowsky : drums (3,6,8)
Anthony Coleman : piano (7)
Sam Furnace : baritone sax (2,3,9)
Ned Rothenberg : alto sax (2,3,9)
Rob Thomas : violin (5,6)
Charles Earland : hammond B3 (4,6)
Marcus Rojas : tuba (11)
Deidre Rodman : piano (5)
Cyrus Chestnut : piano (1)
David Gilmore : guitar (8)
Hector Del Curto : bandonion (5)
Danny Blume & Chris kelly : programming (8)
Mike Marshall : dobro (10)
Rob Johnson : trumpet (6,11)
David Driver & Darius de Haas : vocals (7)
Nancy King : vocal (4)
Kenny Washington : vocal (4)
Juan "Coco" de Jesus : vocal (10)
Corey Harris : vocal (8)
Deborah Harry : vocal (11)
Richard Butler : vocal (5)
Elvis Costello : vocal (1,3, 12)

HERE

Spanish Fly : "Fly by night"

(Accurate, 1996)

HERE

Kamikaze Ground Crew : "Covers"

(Koch Jazz, 1999)

At the rate Kamikaze Ground Crew cranks out albums, we can expect the all-star band's next pit stop around 2006. That's OK, because there's enough musical and emotional content under these Covers to fuel high-altitude listening for years to come. Originally organized to accompany the acrobatic antics of the Flying Karamozov Brothers, KGC recroded its first LP in 1985. Before Covers the rambunctious septet had produces only two other cds, 1990's The Scenic Route and 1993's Madam Marie's Temple of Knowledge. In the meantime, the personnel has shifted about original members Gina Leishman (accordion, saxes, bass clarinet, Hammond organ, vocals) , Doug Wieselman (clarinets, saxes, electric guitar, balalaika, Hammond Organ), and Steven Bernstein (trumpet, slide trumpet). Since the last outing, tenor and soprano saxophonist Peter Apfelbaum has returned (replacing Ralph Carney), and trombonist Art Baron, Tuba player Marcus Rojas, and drummer Kenny Wollesen have come on board.
Whereas previous KGC recordings featured mostly original Leishman and Wieselman compositions, Covers showcases the brilliant way they and Bernstien arrange other people's material. Opening with a dreamy version of a pop tune from Bhutan, Covers turns pieces by Stockhausen, Hendrix ('Electric Ladyland"), Satie, Huey "Piano" Smith ( "Blow Wind Blow" and "Rockin' Pneumonia" ), Eisler and Brecht, and Los Lobos' David Hidalgo into vehicles for extended collective gliding and individual soaring, consistent with the idiosyncratic interpretive styles of other bands that have feartured the players, such as the Lounge Lizards, Spanish Fly, Sex Mob, Heiroglyphics Ensemble and the Carla Bley big band. A hybrid of jazz , modern classical, rock, avant-cabaret, and New Orleans R&B, KGC's music yields pleasure on its own terms, much like that of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, Mothers of Invention, or Willem Breuker Kollektief, its bent but beautiful structures providing cover from the mainstream culture's hail of mediocrity.

Derk Richardson

HERE