#zoh amba

[dustedmagazine]

Myriam Gendron — Mayday (Feeding Tube/Thrill Jockey)

Photo by Justine Latour

Quebecois folk singer Myriam Gendron is far from the first artist to turn in some demos expecting them to serve as a rough draft, only to decide that the results stand on their own. Since that debut collection of Dorothy Parker’s poetry set to music (2014’s Not So Deep as a Well), Gendron’s only put out one further record (2021’s justly attention-getting collection Ma Delire: Songs of Love Lost and Found), but she’s been busy with literally life and death. It was only after having kids and then putting together Ma Delire that Gendron really started touring consistently, and then that was sadly halted because of her mother’s sickness and eventual death. That experience informs Mayday, an album of firsts for Gendron; first more traditionally “studio” recording, first time she’s made her music her day job, and first time she’s written most of the songs herself. Despite all those changes, though, Mayday is just as exceptional, intimate, and timeless feeling as anything Gendron’s done before.

On Ma Delire Gendron brought in Bill Nace and Chris Corsano for a song apiece; here she widens and deepens her net (and Nace is back too). A mutual admiration society between her and justly-lauded performers Marisa Anderson and Jim White resulted in the three working together on three songs here, about a third of the total running time. The results are stunning; Anderson and White have worked together to great effect before and Gendron’s richly crestfallen voice fits in perfectly, whether the duo are calm and reflective on “Long Way Home,” foreboding and restless on “Terres Brûlées” (with Nace), or exploratory and elegiac on “Lully Lullay.” The former two also feature Cedric Dind-Lavoie on double bass, and it’s hard not to wish for more from that particular grouping.

That’s not because the rest of Mayday is lacking, though. Gendron eases the listener in with the Fahey-homaging instrumental “There Is No East or West,” and although the title references a gospel song, here it seems to speak more to the feelings of doubt, uncertainty, and grief that course through Gendron’s songs. Whether adapting Parker again on “Dorothy’s Blues,” turning out gemlike instrumentals like “La Luz,” or leaning into the soaring sadness of “Look Down That Lonesome Road,” Gendron continues to be a singular voice (figuratively and literally).

The title of the closing “Berceuse” translates to “Lullaby,” and gentle tone and lyrics match. Until Zoh Amba’s saxophone squeals surge in, playing the track off as Gendron’s electric guitar slowly gets quieter. It’s a striking moment, and after a few listens on that it’s hard to imagine the song and the album without, as if the messiness of life is bursting in to remind us why we need to sing children to sleep in the first place. As always, the beauty of Gendron’s music feels both hard fought and carefully wrought, something worth sharing and protecting.

Ian Mathers

[burlveneer-music]

Chad Fowler, Ivo Perelman, Zoh Amba, Matthew Shipp, William Parker, Steve Hirsh - Alien Skin - a one-off free-leaning set with THREE HORNS (Mahakala Music)

On the last afternoon of Arts for Arts’ iconic Vision Festival in 2021, I found myself standing next to pianist Matthew Shipp and drummer Andrew Cyrille as William Parker’s closing group took the stage. Matthew and I were casually chatting as the stage filled with what would ultimately be the largest group of the festival that year. The music started and the bandstand spouted fire from beneath as it lifted off toward the stars. Every person in the venue floated in space together through almost an hour of spiritual, emotional, cathartic joy. It was music so raw and frenetic that, had I had a horn with me, It would have been difficult to fight the urge to join them uninvited. Steve and I had already been planning a couple of studio dates later that year in Brooklyn at Jim Clouse’s Park West Studios. After hearing this music, I wanted to recreate the feeling I got from listening to it. The visceral experience. Not the sound. I can’t remember what it sounded like. That wasn’t the point. So as Steve and I started planning for our upcoming session, we set out to put together a group to generate that same kind of energy: The group: ZA (who had played on William’s Vision set), Ivo Perelman (who we asked at the last minute to come by for a day and he ended up on both days of the recording), Matthew Shipp, William, Steve, and me. This was the first and probably last time this group of musicians will have ever come together in this configuration. As is our custom, we didn’t discuss much about what the music would be before Jim Clouse started recording. This record documents our second full day together, presented in order. From soulful balladry to demented rock music to an otherworldly march, the musical tension is palpable throughout. As is, I think, the pure joy of creation that animated our time together. - Chad Fowler Chad Fowler - stritch, saxello ZA - tenor saxophone, flute Ivo Perelman - tenor saxophone Matthew Shipp - piano William Parker - bass Steve Hirsh - drums

[culturedarm]

Following the delicate harmonies and swinging melodies of Mesmerism, the drummer Tyshawn Sorey returns to the repertoire alongside Aaron Diehl, Russell Hall, and Greg Osby on a freewheeling three-and-a-half hour live performance from The Jazz Gallery in New York City. As Touch celebrates forty years of fierce resistance to the status and trappings of 'record label', the multi-instrumentalist Patrick Shiroishi takes a novel approach to field recording, emanating from within the dotted landscape of Evergreen Cemetery in Los Angeles for a stirring treatise on stillness and presence. The sound sculptor Sawako returns with her first solo album since 2014, Yves Tumor sees the spectre of God in life's same old circle, and Gloria de Oliveira embarks on a celestial Brazilian island for the video to 'Eyes Within', as tracks by Klein, Tomu DJ, Rat Heart, Tom Skinner, and Yo La Tengo also feature in the latest roundup of best new music. https://culturedarm.com/tracks-of-the-week-05-11-22/

[donospl]

LIVE: Marek Pospieszalski [Oktet / Oktet ft. Zoh Amba / solo]

Jazz Goes to Town Festival, Hradec Kralove, Czechy, 14.10.2023 / NOSPR, Katowice, 3.11.2023 / Fabryka Sztuki, Łódź, 9.11.2023 Ostatnio [przełom października i listopada 2023] udało mi się trzykrotnie uczestniczyć w koncercie Marka Pospieszalskiego. Każdy z nich prezentował inne oblicze jego muzyki.  Flagowy oktet Marka Pospieszalskiego dorobił się w jazzowym środowisku porównania do ośmiornicy.…

[revilermpls]

Zoh Amba, Chris Corsano and Bill Orcutt Create Beautiful Chaos on Their New LP The Flower School (Plus live video from Amba/Corsano DC show)

When in Washington D.C. for work in late June, I saw a show that had Chris Corsano on the bill. I knew of him from multiple apperances back in the day at the (much missed) Heliotrope Fest in Minneapolis, so knew it would be worth the train ride to Rhizome DC, a non-profit/house venue. Joining Corsano was a tenor sax player I didn’t know named Zoh Amba, and it turned out she was as commanding and…

[bebopbeatniks]

via 21st Century Jazz Composers

Chad Fowler, Ivo Perelman, Zoh Amba, Matthew Shipp, William Parker, Steve Hirsh - Alien Skin - a one-off free-leaning set with THREE HORNS (Mahakala Music)

On the last afternoon of Arts for Arts’ iconic Vision Festival in 2021, I found myself standing next to pianist Matthew Shipp and drummer Andrew Cyrille as William Parker’s closing group took the stage. Matthew and I were casually chatting as the stage filled with what would ultimately be the largest group of the festival that year. The music started and the bandstand spouted fire from beneath as it lifted off toward the stars. Every person in the venue floated in space together through almost an hour of spiritual, emotional, cathartic joy. It was music so raw and frenetic that, had I had a horn with me, It would have been difficult to fight the urge to join them uninvited. Steve and I had already been planning a couple of studio dates later that year in Brooklyn at Jim Clouse’s Park West Studios. After hearing this music, I wanted to recreate the feeling I got from listening to it. The visceral experience. Not the sound. I can’t remember what it sounded like. That wasn’t the point. So as Steve and I started planning for our upcoming session, we set out to put together a group to generate that same kind of energy: The group: ZA (who had played on William’s Vision set), Ivo Perelman (who we asked at the last minute to come by for a day and he ended up on both days of the recording), Matthew Shipp, William, Steve, and me. This was the first and probably last time this group of musicians will have ever come together in this configuration. As is our custom, we didn’t discuss much about what the music would be before Jim Clouse started recording. This record documents our second full day together, presented in order. From soulful balladry to demented rock music to an otherworldly march, the musical tension is palpable throughout. As is, I think, the pure joy of creation that animated our time together. - Chad Fowler Chad Fowler - stritch, saxello ZA - tenor saxophone, flute Ivo Perelman - tenor saxophone Matthew Shipp - piano William Parker - bass Steve Hirsh - drums

[thoregil]

2023-02-02 FRI FORM #81: Zoh Amba trio - Dokkhuset

[iangmaia]

Zoh Amba's Bhakti featuring Farida Amadou & Chris Corsano

Bimhuis, Amsterdam

01.05.2024

[palilalia]

The Consolation of Records: a new series on Palilalia starting with these five LPs. $10 each. Limited vinyl only. Bandcamp exclusive. No digital, no streaming, no repress. PAL-082 Corsano/Orcutt "Live at Big Ears" PAL-083 Zoh Amba "Solo in Italy" PAL-084 Alan Licht & Bill Orcutt "At Land & Sea" PAL-085 Okkyung Lee & Bill Orcutt "Play Paris and Glasgow" PAL-086 Rivero/Heule/Orcutt "Soundtrack for New York Ghetto Fishmarket 1903"

[dustedmagazine]

Listed: Magic Tuber String Band

Photo by Kristin Karch

The core of the Magic Tuber String Band consists of Courtney Werner on fiddle, Evan Morgan on guitar and banjo and both on occasional vocals and other acoustic instruments. Their approach involves combining traditional Appalachian instrumentation with the experimentalism of composers such as Henry Flynt, Harry Parch, and Pauline Oliveros. Field recordings and drones add texture to many of their tracks, and Werner and Morgan as well as their collaborators are formidable players. The arrangements are complex but not cluttered, with tunes often veering in unexpected directions. In his review for Dusted, Jim Marks described the band’s latest, Needlefall, as “the most satisfying in a five-year run of outstanding albums.”

Evan Morgan

Alan Clarke — Penda's Fen

I found out about this film (made for a BBC anthology series) from Rob Young’s book on British folk, Electric Eden. It is one of those immediately captivating films, almost perfectly made (and visually reminiscent of Tarkovsky's Nostalghia at times). The whole film builds towards a view of folk tradition and local history as an antidote to reactionary nationalism, all within the space of a coming-of-age story. We watched this for the first time recently and coincidentally were just asked to play before a screening of the film in Brattleboro this coming August for Epsilon Spires.

Alice Rohrwacher — La chimera

Alice Rohrwacher is really homing in on a kind of filmmaking that is related to the dialects of those films from the past we now think of as great films — but it is also something entirely her own. It's patient but also immediately spellbinding which feels like a rare quality these days. La chimera picks up the theme of a modern relationship to old ways that points towards communal culture as a way out of an increasingly privatized world. But it is also a lot more than that. It's both an obvious folktale and a dense dream. Would make a great double feature with Penda's Fen.

Mario Vargas Llosa — The War of the End of the World

I was completely blown away by this novel. I found it at a used bookstore last summer and waited until December to pick it up because of its intimidating length. It is an onslaught of character portraits, nearly everyone vividly rendered and memorable despite the book’s length and the pace of events, time rolling back, jumping ahead, and standing still. The story of the War of Canudos, one of a heavily armed state attacking the most disenfranchised members of its land in the name of democracy, makes TWOTEOTW a very timely read.

Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band — Dancing on the Edge

Easily my most listened to record of 2023 and still on heavy rotation on into 2024. We got to see Ryan & the Roadhouse Band play this material live in Athens a few weeks ago which was absolutely transcendent.

John Francis Flynn — Look Over the Wall, See the Sky

We have been living in Augusta, GA since December of last year and there’s something about this record that really clicks with the architecture and layout of the city. I go for walks with my dog every day on a trail that runs between the canal and the Savannah river. To the south, the trail leads towards a long-abandoned, late 19th-century textile mill; to the north, past the hidden ruins of an old fish camp squat and the (often) roaring stone headgates. This record builds a sense of place and that place is intended to be Dublin. But its transposable nature hints at a deep connection between certain places that have not entirely lost visible monuments to their past industry and daily life. I especially like the version on here of Ewan MacColl's “Dirty Old Town.”

Courtney Werner

Chaz Knapp and Mariel Roberts — Setting Fire to These Dark Times

Chaz Knapp invited me to improvise with him throughout the Ozarks in 2022 using fiddle, dulcimer, voice, tape loops and natural sounds. I’m inspired by his attention to space and the sound of landscapes. He and cellist Mariel Roberts released this incredible album in 2023.

Tatiana Hargreaves — Soledad

I saw Tatiana perform the Soledad compositions at a residency in Durham, NC in 2018 and it was one of the most influential live music experiences of my life. They blend elements of old-time and contemporary classical styles with extended techniques to create captivating solo fiddle pieces that inspired me to want to compose myself.

Rafael Toral — Spectral Evolution

One of my favorite albums of this year so far.

Zoh Amba — Bhakti

An incredible record full of life and heart.

Evan Parker — Evan Parker with Birds

One of my favorite examples of pushing an instrument to be an animal, and duetting with natural sounds.

[theloniousbach]

A MILDER MICAH THOMAS?

With JOE FARNSWORTH and Sarah Hanahan and Felix Moseholm with Georgia Hughes, SMALL’S JAZZ CLUB, 1 JULY 2024, 9 pm set

With Kanoa Meldenhall and Eric McPherson, MEZZROW’S, 28 JUNE 2024, 10:30 pm set

With OR BAREKET and Joe Dyson, MEZZROW’S 27 JUNE 2024, 10:30 pm set

My first encounters with MICAH THOMAS suggested that he was an adventurous player for those occasions when going out there was what one’s mood required. I saw him with Immanuel Wilkins first and then in a duo with Zoh Amba who makes Wilkins seem tame. But he’s been playing with straightahead but willing to challenge himself JOE FARNSWORTH who is energized by younger players like Thomas and the brash swagger of Sarah Hanahan.

While she is not yet subtle, she can play a few choruses of a ballad before wailing. This time they had a fine young singer, Georgia Hughes to dictate a more focused straightahead set. Thomas can play tunes and is growing in interesting ways from this collaboration with the veteran drummer so that his own trio set and the trio with OR BAREKET were very tune-centric as fine launching pads but also grounding.

FARNSWORTH and Felix Moseholm opened the gig in conversation with the bass suggesting the tune for five minutes before Thomas came into define it. It wasn’t until Hanahan came in wailing that I realized it was Softly, As In a Morning Sunrise. After one of Farnsworth’s Uncle Joe stories (traveling to Indonesia with his parents when he was in 8th grade, returning for a few days in LA to see the Playboy Jazz Festival with Sarah Vaughn, by way of introducing Georgia Hughes. She was a not overly affected singer who aided in constructing a strong set: The Song Is You (Hanahan never worked through the bridge, grumble), April in Paris, and I Cover the Waterfront before the band did a couple of choruses of the Rhythm changes closer, The Theme. Hanahan though did provide some nice comments on Hughes’ lines and they played off one another effectively.

But, again, Thomas can play tunes. On his own gig, they worked on MIles’ Tune Up, two Monks—Work and Reflection—with I Cover the Waterfront between them and a bebop tune (maybe not Parker, but may be). I don’t want to suggest that Thomas is “just” another New York piano player. Simply that the logic of his excursions is more transparent. Kanoa Meldenhall was solid but a bit down in the mix, but Eric McPherson was simply exquisite with deft cymbal work and great subtlety well suited to the trio and the room.

Similarly Joe Dyson was essential and tasteful on OR BAREKET’s set. These three played together at the bassist’s apartment and said let’s play a gig. It had a bit of a rehearsal feel, not in the playing but in the what should be play next. I of course couldn’t name the tunes in the first, slightly more planned, part of the set, but as the conferences got longer I heard them settle on a rollicking A Train (which yes I would have identified) and then Horace Silver’s Quicksilver to close out. But there were a couple of good old standards and at least one other canonical jazz composition.

Three sets of fine tunes, brilliant drummers, and a more accessible and growing MICAH THOMAS.

[culturedarm]

Zoh Amba twists her tenor through windswept songs of devotion alongside Micah Thomas, Tyshawn Sorey, and Matt Hollenberg, the indomitable Oren Ambarchi bands with an all-star cast for the billowing tones and reticulated melodies of Shebang, and Drew Daniel as The Soft Pink Truth practices joy in the face of death, embracing the silvery flush of the disco ball as Jamie Stewart recites the words of Georges Bataille while Ulaş Kurugüllü teases strings to resemble those of The Love Unlimited Orchestra. Slip into the arms of Michael J. Blood and Rat Heart on the cherubic opener to Nite Mode Vol. 1 or brace for the briskest sounds from deepest Durban, as tracks by DJ Scriby, Valentina Magaletti, Cole Pulice, Billy Woods, and Naphta complete the roundup of best new music.

https://culturedarm.com/tracks-of-the-week-01-10-22/

[noloveforned]

tune into wlur from 8pm until midnight tonight for this week's episode of no love for ned with artists new (including another @nerf-cat request!) and old. as always, you can stream last week's show on mixcloud if you'd like to catch up!

no love for ned on wlur – february 2nd, 2024 from 8-10pm

artist // track // album // label jeanines // tilt in your eye // each day 7" // slumberland soup assistants // boys with plants // mummy what are flowers for? cassette // mangel love child // cigarette ash // okay? // homestead essential logic // wake up // john peel session on february 21st, 1979 10" // precious billiam // i got a girl (and she's got a problem with you) // jump to 3d 7" ep // discos de muerte / cow tool the serfs // the dice man will become // half eaten by dogs // trouble in mind exwhite // fomo // this is future // spared flesh cold cream // cactus wife // cold cream ii // (self-released) watery love // face the door // decorative feeding // in the red blues lawyer // our divide // sight gags on the radio 7" ep // dark entries j mascis // can’t believe we're here // what do we do now // sub pop the paranoid style // the ballad of pertinent information (turn it on) // the interrogator // bar/none ramona and the holy smokes // i want you to be my man // i want you to be my man - single // (self-released) matthew "doc" dunn // fantastic light // fantastic light // cosmic range barbara morgenstern // zwischen den stühlen // in anderem licht // staatsakt sigur rós // hoppípolla // takk // geffen ariel kalma, jeremiah chiu and marta sofia honer // ten hour wave // the closest thing to silence // international anthem jessica ackerley, kevin cheli and gahlord dewald // silently // submerging silently cassette // cacophonous revival francisco mela and zoh amba // causa y efecto // causa y efecto, volume two // 577 pan afrikan peoples arkestra // nation rising // sixty years // the village mourning [a] blkstar featuring dragonchild // jack johnson // mourning [a] blkstar in boston live // (self-released) theravada and zoomo // sus tain // waste management // rrc music co. jamila woods featuring peter cottontale // thermostat // water made us // jagjaguwar corinne bailey rae // red horse // black rainbows // thirty tigers surya botofasina, nate mercereau and carlos niño // so much love // subtle movements // leaving shira small // lights gleam lonely // the line of time and the plane of now // numero group jad fair and samuel locke ward // boys don't cry // the same cured hair as you- a tribute to the cure cassette // almost halloween time corvair // tenseless // bound to be // paper walls lavender blush // jealousy // there's nothing inside your heart ep // shelflife silver biplanes // uas 29396 // a moment in the sun // where it's at is where you are cheerbleederz // my condolences // even in jest // alcopop!

[ceevee5]

[staxoftrax]

OCTOBER 11th NEW ARRIVALS!!

Well no highlight pic this week thanks to the Football insanity that has taken over this town so you'll have to read and not view. I'll be putting out two boxes of really great records tomorrow. One box came from a latest batch of mind blowing records that I've acquired this past week. They're in absolutely incredible condition and are from all genres but heavy on hard to find 80's LP's like the B-52's, Blondie, Gang of Four, Eno/David Byrne, David Bowie & more. Also a bunch of Bruce Springsteen bootlegs, some Doc Watson, The Doors and more. I'll being stocking some of the mint LP's every week now until Christmas.

I also want to let you know about a couple of shows next week from our friends at 3 Dots. November 14th will feature El Khat, a band of three friends from Polish, Iraqi and Moroccan backgrounds. Check them out on Youtube. It should be a pretty wild and funky show! And on Saturday the 18th they will feature a Jazz duo Zoh Amba & Chris Corsano. Zoh Amba has been described as a dauntless saxophonist who has rapidly become a focus of the NYC creative music community. This should also be a pretty wild night. Hope to see some of the folks who came out for the Baba Commandant show a couple of weeks ago. For more info check out https://3dotsdowntown.com/venue/3-dots-downtown/

Josh Ferko / Stax of Trax Records