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Sunday, February 9, 2025

FIRE! Work Song For a Scattered Past

Sunday, February 09, 2025    1 comment

Appearing on Friday this past week, a video by Samot Nosslin/Underhypnos was released for the song "Work Song For a Scattered Past" by FIRE! Watch as the trio of Mats Gustafsson (sax), Johan Berthling (bass) and Andreas Werlin (drums) apply their lugubrious magic to devastating effect.

FIRE! and it's bigger sibling FIRE! Orchestra and their influences have graced the pages of the Free Jazz Blog quite a few times over the years:

- Paul Acquaro

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Sunday, December 1, 2024

Christian Lillinger - Sunday Interview

Sunday, December 01, 2024    No comments

Photo by Erich Werkmann FFM

  1. What is your greatest joy in improvised music?

    For me, improvisation is a wonderful way of dealing constructively with freedom and the indeterminate. It allows me to realize anything I can imagine. Of course, it requires work on the imagination, through intensive engagement with the processes and passion for the music, otherwise it wouldn't be possible.To quote a phrase from Adorno: The question was no longer ‘how can musical meaning be organized, but how can organization be meaningful.'

  2. What quality do you most admire in the musicians you perform with?

    That they are able to create meaning and are open to all experiments. That they are open to every new question to which there is not yet a direct answer. So that they are truly free to create free music that enables connections to the future.

  3. Which historical musician/composer do you admire the most?

    I cannot limit myself here, there are countless names from all areas of history and cultures.To name a few: Xenakis, Ellington, Coltrane, Monk, Stockhausen, Webern, Berg, Shorter, Parker, Wyschnegradsky, Feldman, Taylor, MF Doom, Grisey, Berio u.v.a……….

  4. If you could resurrect a musician to perform with, who would it be?

    I can't really answer that either, because the outward impression is less and less sufficient for me to be able to imagine something that might fit. I would have loved to work with: Charlie Parker, Cecil Taylor, Mamady KaÏta, Iannis Xenakis, John Coltrane, Duke Ellington and Max Roach. From the 50s and 60s I would have liked to exchange ideas and learn from Karlheinz Stockhausen, Pierre Boulez, Iannis Xenakis, Luigi Nono.

  5. What would you still like to achieve musically in your life?

    More music and music processes from different continents and countries such as Africa, India, Japan, and South America.

  6. Are you interested in popular music and - if yes - what music/artist do you particularly like?

    Sure! There are always very refreshing productions from, for example: Tyler The Creator, Beyonce, Rihanna, Busta Rhymes, Justin Timberlake, Michael Jackson, Aphex Twin, Little Simz, MF Doom, Earl Sweatshirt u.v.a. It comes and goes to me.

  7. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

    I would have started with music and philosophy much earlier.

  8. Which of your albums are you most proud of?

    That is difficult! The greatest pride doesn't exist for me, as it has its own time. I will only name a few here:

    • DLW Grammar II (plaist)
    • Open Form for Society (plaist)
    • Open Form for Society LIVE (plaist)
    • Konus (plaist)
    • Antumbra, Penumbra (plaist)
    • Supermodern Vol.II
    • Beats I & II by DLW (plaist)
    • Second Reason of my ensemble Grund (clean feed)
    • The first Grünen album (clean feed)
    • Amok Amor (boomslang)
    • Umbra II (intakt)

  9. Once an album of yours is released, do you still listen to it? And how often?

    Very irregularly! Very often during the production process, of course, and every now and then afterwards.

  10. Which album (from any musician) have you listened to the most in your life?

    That is also very difficult! But of course there are also classics like

    • A Love Supreme, John Coltrane
    • Boulez Structures I & II (Kontarsky/Kontarsky),
    • Piano Sonata 2, Morton Feldman for Bunita Marcus,
    • The Viola in My Life I-IV (ECM), Morton Feldman
    • Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star
    •  [Live At The] Plugged Nickel and Kind of Blue,Miles Davis
    • Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), Wu-Tang Clan

  11. What are you listening to at the moment?

    Can't remember right now:)!

  12. What artist outside music inspires you?

    Also the one I just thought of, here. Let's also add writers:
    Thomas Bernhard, Sigmund Freud, Joseph Beuys, Theodor w. Adorno, Bruce Lee, Jean Tinguely, and of course many more I can't think of right now. 

Christian Lillinger on the Free Jazz Blog:

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Sunday, November 3, 2024

Peter Evans - Sunday Interview XL

Sunday, November 03, 2024    2 comments

Photo by Cristina Marx/Photomusix
  1. What is your greatest joy in improvised music?

    I get a very basic and fundamental joy from the activity itself. This is not necessarily enough to generate good or interesting music however!

  2. So, how do you turn the joy of making music into interesting music?

    I don’t know if its a matter of “turning it into interesting music”, more framing or delivering the activity or process of improvisation into something that is not only somewhat intelligible for the listener but perhaps more importantly constantly engaging for the performers. I believe there needs to be almost a feedback loop or regenerative process of using the group dynamics to produce things that are maybe on the border of “not working” to keep things fresh and engaging. If the players are alert and engaged, the music stands more of a chance of being interesting both to the players and the listeners. Take all of this with a grain of salt, nothing said about the activity of improvised music has ever really captured the vibe or been 100 percent true.
     
  3. What quality do you most admire in the musicians you perform with?

    Personality, craft, the development and mastery of their own language... I guess I appreciate a personal voice the most. I admire the dedication it takes to cultivate and develop that voice.

  4. You have so many projects going and clearly often asked by other musicians to join their bands: how do you prioritize what you do?

    I’m not asked a ton but when I am and its by someone I really admire I will make space for it. I love being a sideman with an inspiring bandleader. Aaron Burnett, Dan Weiss and Mazz Swift are three artists I’ve gotten to perform with in their groups just this year alone. They are all so different and each exhibit total mastery over their materials, have interesting aesthetics, so its a pleasure for me to help realize their vision. Its fun as well, and I always learn something.

    With my own bands I really have one main thing now and that’s Being & Becoming. Other groups that I gave documented recently such as Symphony or Forever 21 are more in a holding pattern until I can focus on them more, although in NYC I’m always trying stuff out. I recently set up a couple of gigs with the tenor player Mark Shim for instance, which was an incredible experience.

    I don’t know if its like this for everyone but I’ve found that in this business it pays to be proactive. I am working hard now to get B&B out there in front of listeners and to develop the band sound.
     
  5. Which historical musician/composer do you admire the most?

    Can't pick just one, I'm sorry!
     
  6. If we extend it to say 5?

    Bach and Coltrane. I know that’s boring in a way but its true.
     
  7. If you could resurrect a musician to perform with, who would it be?

    I've known and worked with too many musicians who have died prematurely to really appreciate this idea. It's a bit morbid. If I HAD to resurrect someone would they be in? I'm a big fan of the movie Reanimator. Things can go haywire.
     
  8. What would you still like to achieve musically in your life?

    Many things, more than I will be able to achieve. All sides of my work I think have so much room to explore. I feel that I am reaching towards something; a vision or a concept of how I would like my music to feel and sound, and while I go forward. the thing itself keeps morphing. I think this is a common feeling for artists.
     
  9. Your solo performance are considered by many (including us here at the Free Jazz Blog) to be the highest level of achievement. Do you however see areas of improvement or development?

    Thanks for that. But to answer the question - of course! The only limits are that of the imagination and how much time one is willing to put in to realize an idea.
     
  10. Is there a musical setting that you would still like to perform in or create?

    Too many to name, but in reality most „new“ settings happen naturally. I would like to explore the Early Music side of things at some point.
     
  11. We often ask about ideal band members, but what is the audience that you prefer?

    Just that people are there, relaxed and involving themselves with the music. I don’t mind when people make noise and interact with the music, it can be really nice.
     
  12. Are you interested in popular music and - if yes - what music/artist do you particularly like?

    Sure! These days I enjoy the act of listening to music more than even getting into whether I "like" the specific music or not. So I listen to lots of stuff without a lot of judgement on the front end. It's nice. My wife and I were recently going through classic Pharrell stuff, some of the big hits he produced, Twista's "Overnight Celebrity" for instance. That stuff is kind of old now! Recently listening to some Dua Lipa as well. If I'm in another country I will always listen to the local pop radio. Recently in Sardinia they were playing some really nice new pop stuff. American-influenced for sure, but still cool and it had a vibe. Angelina Mango was one, she had a definite Rosalia influence (who I also really like, especially Motomami).
     
  13. So, if you were to choose between performing with Miley Cyrus or Taylor Swift, who would it be?

    Miley seems cool. I’d be happy to work for her.
     
  14. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

    I don't know how to answer this! I don't want to bullshit you but a real answer will take some more consideration. There are things that are actually changeable so those things I attempt to work on. I guess the real question would be - what is something you'd like to change that is impossible to change? Need to think on that.
     
  15. Which of your albums are you most proud of?

    Specific recordings:

    • "Embraceable You" from the album Standards
    • “From Beyond” - the Midi piano piece from the album Murmurs
    • Destination Void
     
  16. Once an album of yours is released, do you still listen to it? And how often?

    I will only listen to it maybe years later out of curiosity. After a recent album comes I'm usually sick of hearing it for awhile.

     
  17. Which album (from any musician) have you listened to the most in your life?

    That's tough. Not sure. Maybe some Coltrane…
     
  18. What are you listening to at the moment?

    Digging around some older minimal techno recommendations from Nick Jozwiak, Richie Hawtin for example. I listened to some of the Shostakovich Preludes and Fugues last night. I love Steve Grossman's stuff from the 70s and have had "Shapes to Come" on repeat for the last year or two. I listen to a lot of "early music", stuff like Ockeghem, Phillipe de Vitry, and stuff from the Ars Subtilior movement in the 1400's. Recorder music from that era too. I have Tomito Satori on right now while writing this - some more techno stuff. An album called Blood Rising.
     
  19. What artist outside music inspires you?

    Comedian Tim Dillon brings me a lot of joy these days. I have a book of interviews with Andrey Tarkovsky on the nightstand now. I am really inspired by these "larger-than-life" characters, so for instance when I read Mike Tyson's auto-biography "Undisputed Truth", I thought there was a lot to chew on. Great book.
     
  20. The element of fun is often present in your compositions and improvisations, either in the speed of the execution (pyrotechnics), the pulse and drive of the music. How important is this to you as compared to your work with eg Jeremiah Cymerman or Cory Smythe or Barry Guy? How do you place these differences in your performances?

    I think its more important just to be prepared and act/react naturally in every situation.
     
  21. Any ideas on how to get mainstream attraction for avant-garde music? Why is non-figurative painting more acceptable than non-figurative music?

    The age-old question. I don’t know what constitutes mainstream anymore but I think for instance with Being & Becoming we could vary the repertoire enough that we could play for pretty much anyone. I’m not necessarily presenting it as "avant garde" music. That goes for other projects I play in as well.

    A lot has to do with how the music is presented, who it is advertised to, which venues it is happening in. I wish promoters would understand better how much of a difference they can make in the reception and the development of audience by addressing some of these parameters more imaginatively and directly. I feel that at times (not always) the lack of acceptance of more „difficult“ music is a self-fulfilled prophecy, and it doesn’t need to be. A lot of responsibility to create a better situation rests on the artists and the presenters, in my opinion.

    Non-figurative painting is fine as a thing in general of course but let’s be honest: that world is now part of an international system of money laundering, and has been for a long time. We all know this. On the other side there is Francis Bacon's criticism of non-figurative art, in which case its resigned to becoming background ambiance, indistinguishable from interior design, like buying a Mondrian-style decorative plate at Walmart. So it’s acceptability is kind of strange and much different than music. I’m not sure what non-figurative music is - I think I know what you mean but the definitions here are to slippery to be of much use.

Peter Evans on the Free Jazz Blog:

 


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Sunday, July 14, 2024

Ken Vandermark - Sunday Interview

Sunday, July 14, 2024    3 comments

Photo by Peter Gannushkin
  1. What is your greatest joy in improvised music?

    Creating new music in real time.

  2. What quality do you most admire in the musicians you perform with?

    Risk

  3. Which historical musician/composer do you admire the most?

    Duke Ellington

  4. If you could resurrect a musician to perform with, who would it be?

    Derek Bailey

  5. What would you still like to achieve musically in your life?

    To create something as good as Billie Holiday’s work with Lester Young.

  6. Are you interested in popular music and - if yes - what music/artist do you particularly like?

    Sly Stone and the Family Stone

  7. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

    To be multilingual.

  8. Which of your albums are you most proud of?

    Haven’t made it yet.

  9. Once an album of yours is released, do you still listen to it? And how often?

    No and never.

  10. Which album (from any musician) have you listened to the most in your life?

    Anthony Braxton’s, Dortmund (Quartet) 1976 [hat ART]

  11. What are you listening to at the moment?

    Erik Satie

  12. What artist outside music inspires you?

    Chantal Akerman

Ken Vandermark on the Free Jazz Blog*:
*In the compilation process of this list, it was amazing how often Ken Vandermark was mentioned as a touchstone of some sort. From style of music, to have recorded with, to craft, the list was double what is presented here. Of course, there are likely many that have slipped through the filter still, thus some of the articles listed here may reference Ken Vandermark and not be a recording he was involved with making.

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Sunday, July 7, 2024

Dave Rempis - Sunday Interview

Sunday, July 07, 2024    No comments

Photo by Cristina Marx/Photomusix

  1. What is your greatest joy in improvised music?

    To me it’s the combination of physicality in the playing and finding ways to truly be in the moment in the deepest sense. But that also combines with intelligence, wit, and strategic thinking. The best improvisers to are ones who don’t just “play what they feel” at a given point in time, but can actually recall the motifs, forms, and structures that have developed over the course of a piece, whether it’s 5 minutes or 90 minutes. They then make decisions based on that knowledge, which is a whole lot to balance at once – playing an instrument, dealing with the immediate input from other musicians, and navigating and contributing to the longer-term compositional elements of a piece. Seeing a band who can do all of those things at the same time is truly exhilarating. 

  2. What quality do you most admire in the musicians you perform with?

    A commitment to the music, no matter what the context. Whether you’re playing on a big festival stage, or a quiet Monday night at a bookstore in your hometown. I admire the folks who take every situation with the same level of seriousness and find ways to make a contribution to the music every time.

  3. Which historical musician/composer do you admire the most?

    There are so many, I don’t know where to begin. I hate top 10 lists, and desert island choices. I am who I am as a musician because of so many different people I’ve had the fortune to hear over the years, both live and on recordings. They’re all important to me and it’s the combination of all of those ideas, practices, and approaches that help make me who I am as a musician. 

  4.  If you could resurrect a musician to perform with, who would it be?

    It’s an interesting concept, but I wouldn’t be so presumptuous. That person may be quite happy where they are, or where they “aren’t” depending on your perspective. I’d hate to take the gamble that they wouldn’t be real happy to get dragged out of there and have to play with my dumb ass. We can always meet up later if the situation allows.

  5. What would you still like to achieve musically in your life?

    I’d still really like to be able to put together a large ensemble to record and tour at least once. But financial realities of this music make that pretty challenging unless you’re one of the anointed few who have grant or other money showering down on you from above. It’s challenging enough to make a trio tour work out ok financially for everyone nowadays.

  6. Are you interested in popular music and - if yes - what music/artist do you particularly like?

    Yeah, I like tons of different music. There’s no one right now in pop music who I’d say I’m loving, but there are plenty of folks across the years. I used to bartend at a couple of large Chicago rock venues when I was younger and got to see everyone from Prince to Bob Dylan to Slayer to Tori Amos. There’s great work in all different genres, it just depends on who it is.

  7. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

    Always a work in progress…plenty of things to work on.

  8. Which of your albums are you most proud of?

    As an improviser, I’m not sure that records are really the final outcome of something to be celebrated and analyzed and adulated. To me they’re very much more of a snapshot of a particular moment in time. The real work to me is the ongoing learning process of live performance across many years. With that in mind hopefully the most recent ones are the “best.”

  9. Once an album of yours is released, do you still listen to it? And how often?

    Since I run my own record label, and produce 90% of the recordings I’m on, by the time a record comes out I’ve heard it so much through the process of choosing material, mixing, mastering, double checking masters before manufacturing, etc etc that I generally don’t want to hear it ever again. That said, I listen once when it comes back from the manufacturer (or to several copies if it’s an LP) to make sure there aren’t any manufacturing errors. And then I usually go back about 6 months later once I have some distance from it to see if I still think it’s any good or not.

  10. Which album (from any musician) have you listened to the most in your life?

    Tough one. When I was younger it would probably have been a Coltrane or Ornette record, but at this point I’d guess it’s a Yusef Lateef record – probably Live at Pep’s. 

  11. What are you listening to at the moment?

    Silence. I just came back from tour and am enjoying a little space before I go out again in 10 days or so. I read a lot when I’m home, and I find it tough to both read and listen to music at the same time. It overwhelms my brain! I can’t wait to get in the van for this upcoming US tour with a new quartet called Archer with Terrie Ex, Jon Rune Strøm, and Tollef Østvang though. I love driving on the road, and those are the times when I can really listen with some focus, since I’m not answering emails or doing other admin work when I’m driving. There’s a ton of stuff on my list including a couple of new releases from my friend Mars Williams who passed away last fall, both of which just came out on Corbett vs. Dempsey.

  12. What artist outside music inspires you?

    My partner turned me on a lot to Piet Oudolf over the last few years. He’s a Dutch gardener/landscape architect who’s done a ton of major projects including the Lurie Garden in Millennium Park in downtown Chicago, and the Highline in New York. He has some remarkable concepts about gardening, particularly regarding the dynamic nature of his work, which seem very relevant to the music.

Dave Rempis on the Free Jazz Blog:

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