Tag Archives: jazz

Live Show Review: Poil Ueda and John Zorn at the FIMAV

by Dæv Tremblay

FIMAV, photo by Martin Morissette

It is well known that I seldom venture out of the comforts of my abode to seek the fellowship of likeminded individuals in a live music ritual. However, upon seeing the delightful programme that the FIMAV (the French acronym for Victoriaville’s International Contemporary Music Festival) had to offer this year, I was tempted—and later fulfilled these temptations—to journey beyond the borders of my realm and into the unknown. You have to hand it to the organizers of this festival for the awe-striking programme: Poil Ueda (opening the festivities), Ikue Mori, Zoh Amba, Fred Frith, Guy… Read more

Brian!, Trevor Dunn, Miriodor, and Oiseaux-Tempête

by Dæv Tremblay

Brian! – Cataclysmic Engine (Nefarious Industries)


What if you replaced the bassist with a bassoonist? Well, Brian! answered this question in 2010 with their debut EP EEE. Twelve years on, the New York power trio has mastered its peculiar sound and grown more confident, more adventurous, and more certain. With the Cataclysmic Engine, you can hear the idiosyncratic sound of the bassoon, somewhere between electric bass and synthesizer during the riffs and a genuine woodwind instrument during solos. I love this instrument, and I’m really grateful that such a band exists! Be sure to check out this new… Read more

God Alone, Insane in the Rain, Wizrd, and Angela Avetisyan

by Dæv Tremblay

God Alone – Etc. (Prosthetic)


Somewhere between blues, noise rock, and post-metal, we find Irish quintet God Alone. Their new album, Etc. was a huge surprise for me, and an absolute banger of an album. Perhaps you can best experience the breadth of the band’s sound by listening to the ten-minute “Kung Fu Treachery”, which goes to hell and back, and shows God Alone’s ease with disparate yet memorable musical composition. One of the great underrated noise rock albums of the year!

Insane in the Rain – Insane in the Rain


Carlos Eiene, also known as Insane in the Rain,… Read more

Drumcorps, Charbon, Ahleuchatistas, and Edith Judith

by Dæv Tremblay

Drumcorps – Creatures


So have you ever tried to blend mathcore and breakcore? I have, but that’s a story for another day, for today I’m talking about Netherlands-based Drumcorps. Their new album, Creature, is indeed a creature of its own. The moment you hit play, you get the dissonant off-putting riffs, you get the glitch effects and synthetic drums, and you get the howling screams. That’s basically all I want from different music genres put into a cereal box. And it’s amazing. Be sure to check it out!

Charbon – Cavalcade


Admit it, you already know what to expect,… Read more

John Zorn, Levi Nice, Atte Aho, and 417.3

by Dæv Tremblay

John Zorn, played by Brian Marsella, Jorge Roeder, and Ches Smith – Suite for Piano (Tzadik)

Suite for Piano
Official Tzadik website
You have to believe me when it comes to Zorn material, as there’s no official preview of most of his music to be found online. However, Suite for Piano, despite its rather boring title and appearance, is one of his best works recently. First off, this release was inspired by Schönberg and Bach’s Goldberg Variations, and is Zorn’s take on various musical forms for piano—the prelude, the allemande, the scherzo, the menuet, and the gigue to name a few—played by … Read more