Tag Archives: free jazz

Tele.S.Therion – Luzifers Abschied

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

Tele.S.Therion is a self-described acousmatic black metal ensemble based in Italy, with members from various European countries. They have been making music since at least 2009, and Luzifers Abschied is their eighth and latest release, from 2017. So… what is acousmatic black metal about, exactly? Simply put, it’s a “veiled” collective improvisation. The band refers to how Pythagorus would give lessons behind a veil, so his students would better concentrate, but I find the analogy here to be questionable, at best. How Tele.S.Therion operates is that each musician will add their improvised performance to a recording … Read more

Erna – Pan

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

Erna is a fantasy. This is the only line we get to describe this Danish percussion duo. In slightly more details, Kristian Paulsen and Anders Bach have just released Pan, an EP made only – or rather, mostly – using various percussions and whatever object you can hit that creates a sound when doing so. Slightly over twenty-five minutes, Pan is relatively short. But it only feels that way since the cacophonic pieces take you and hold you in a trancelike hypnotic state. To be fair, I think that longer improvisations, like the two final … Read more

Eave – Eave

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

Montréal’s Eave is a surprising new minimalistic free jazz quartet. They just delivered their self-titled debut album, and it’s a thing of wonders! Eave is strong by its meekness. It isn’t overtly boastful, and is of the discreet type. However, the reserved are often the most incongruous. As such, Eave paint the most disturbing scenes using very few and pale colours. It is free jazz done differently than what I’m used to. With bands like dMu, Nakata, or Waifu, I’m used to the horrid, the loud, and the terrifying; Eave brings me the calm, the odd, … Read more

Garrett Wingfield’s Octopod – Monoliths and Sepulchres

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Thoughts

For full disclosure, yes, I’ve backed this project on indiegogo. Nonetheless, I think this album is a really awesome one! Monoliths and Sepulchres is the debut full-length from Denton, Texas-based experimental jazz unit The Octopod. The aptly-named Octopod features eight musicians, including three horn-blowers (correction: five). As such, their music is heavily textured and rich. The album moves from free jazz during the prelude, postlude, and interludes to composed scores in the main tracks. Consequently, the result is a highly aberrant album that’s nonetheless a more than recommended listen. Its theme is to grow progressively … Read more

EXCLUSIVE PREMIERE: Patrick Shiroishi – “The Screams of a Father’s Tears”

by Dæv Tremblay

Japanese-American saxophonist Patrick Shiroishi, whom we’ve come to spect and respect for his involvement with some of the best and craziest music acts out there – like Upsilon Acrux, Corima, Sewing Circle, and Nakata, to name a few –, is going to release new music under a his solo moniker with the album Tulean Dispatch. The project deals with the Tule Lake internment camp, where his Japanese grandparents were placed during World War II. The album not only reflects on these past events but draws parallels to what is happening today in the world and the USA. It’s a … Read more