Het Interstedelijk Harmoniumverbond - s/t (KRAAK)
Het Interstedelijk Harmoniumverbond is the collaborative work of Flanders based musicians Glen Steenkiste, Brecht Ameel, David Edren and Steve Marreyt. The group is indicated to be on a “quest for yet undiscovered dimensions of drone.” They all play harmonium and share a genuine interest for temporality in music. The project had its premiere on Eastern Daze V festival in November 2018. KRAAK’s latest release comprises 2 pieces of this project:
Balg and
Riet suitable for those in need of a stellar listening experience. For the rest: beware.
La Tène & Jacques Puech et Louis Jacques & Jérémie Sauvage et Guilhem Lacroux - Abandonnée/Maléja (Les Disques Bongo Joe, Three:four Records)
The hurdy-gurdy/harmonium/percussions trio La Tène welcomes for their third album two bagpipes (cabrettes and 23” to be exact), and a combo of string instruments (12-string guitar and electric bass). Beyond the instrumentation, this is a group of high esteemed guests: Jacques Puech, Louis Jacques, Guilhem Lacroux and Jérémie Sauvage, whom works are given their due credit (with the La Novià collective and its multiple variations, the France group, Super Parquet, the Standard-In-Fi label, etc.). Even if the album was released last December, it just cannot be missed from our monthly round up.
Lightbath + Emily A. Sprague - full/new (RVNG Intl.)
full/new is an expression of mutual planetary motion. Drawing a school of listeners to the floor of Commend’s relatively small interior on a late July Sunday afternoon in 2018, Emily A. Sprague and Lightbath (aka Bryan Noll) provided an hour of aqueous reflections that whispered with the trees outside on Forsyth street and tempered the activity of the surrounding island.
full/new was originally presented as a limited run of cassettes in hand-numbered cases as part of our Commend Here series, which captures the magical moments of select Commend events. It is now available in digital format for enjoyment in the ether.
Massimo Pupillo / Tony Buck - Time Being (Trost Records)
Massimo Pupillo / Tony Buck - Unseen (Trost Records)
Magnificent duo comprising Tony Buck (drums, percussion, vibraphone) and Massimo Pupillo (bass, electronics) collaborate in a beautifully haunting, absorbing ambient set, taking in electronic abstraction and free improvisation. Pupillo & Buck are well known for their work with their long-running bands, as well as for their collaborations with musicians of the current international avantgarde scene. In Time Being / Unseen the listener experiences floating uncanny percussion sounds underlined with heaving subs, sealed in deep and noisy atmospheres.
Mdou Moctar - Ilana: The Creator (Sahel Sounds)
"I am a very curious person and I want to push Tuareg music far,” Tuareg rising star Mdou Moctar says. A long time coming, “Ilana” is Mdou's first true studio album with a live band. Recorded in Detroit at the tail end of a US tour by engineer Chris Koltay (the two met after bonding over ZZ Top's “Tres Hombres”), the band lived in the studio for a week, playing into the early hours. Mdou was accompanied by an all-star band: Ahmoudou Madassane's (Les Filles de Illighadad) lighting fast rhythm guitar, Aboubacar Mazawadje's machine gun drums, and Michael Coltun's structured low-end bass. The album was driven by lots of spontaneity – Mdou's preferred method of creation – jumping into action whenever inspiration struck. The resulting tracks were brought back to Niger to add final production: additional guitar solos, overdubs of traditional percussion, and a general ambiance of Agadez wedding vibes.