Jeff Chan - Winds Shifting (March 2021)

Due to the tragic events in Atlanta, I have made downloads on my Bandcamp page free and urge you to make a donation to Asian Americans Advancing Justice/Atlanta. They have set up a fund to support those impacted by the violence of March 16.

https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/support-georgias-asian-american-community/

My first album! Recorded in 1997 for Asian Improv records, with the stellar bassist/drummer combo of Trevor Dunn and Eliot Humberto Kavee. Special guests Francis Wong on tenor saxophone and Neil Straghalis round out this debut session of original compositions.

1. Snap, Crackle, Pop 06:14

2. Infringement 07:41

3. Dreams/Silver Skies 07:51

4. Spiritual 06:31

5. Winds Shifting Coming and Going 13:43

6. Cactus Patch 08:37

Jeff Chan - tenor saxophone

Trevor Dunn - bass

Elliot Humberto Cave - drums

Francis Wong - tenor saxophone

Neil Straghalis - piano

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Endangered Blood - Don't Freak Out (SKIRL RECORDS 2018)

1. Passion Fruit Birthday Cake 03:41

2. Koreana 04:12

3. Easy Blues 04:53

4. Varmints 07:59

5. Waiting For Marni 05:12

6. Complimenti 05:29

7. Diego Partido 05:53

8. Bella V 04:33

Dan Weiss - Starebaby (PI RECORDINGS 2018)

Starebaby is the upshot of drummer/composer Dan Weiss’s long-running dream to bring together some of the most accomplished players on the jazz scene to play music that combines the improvisation nature of that music with the power of heavy metal and electronic new music. One of the most in-demand drummers in jazz, Weiss performs with such disparate artists as Rudresh Mahanthappa, Chris Potter, John Zorn and Jen Shyu, evidence of the breadth of his artistry. As with his two critically-acclaimed previous releases — Fourteen, which was named one of the best releases of 2014 by The New York Times, and Sixteen: Drummers Suite, — Starebaby is a decidedly original work that is largely without precedence, reflecting the power of conviction coming from a single, brimming wellspring.

Weiss has wanted to put this particular project together for over a decade. As with his prior output, it reflects his catholic taste in music, where jazz improvisation, doom metal, electro-acoustic music, Indian beat cycles, and innumerable other influences are all compounded into an outpouring of personal expression completely beyond musical boundaries. Starebaby, though, definitely tilts towards the heavy, and Weiss, in particular, cites as influences metal bands such as Meshuggah, Burning Witch, High on Fire, Gorguts, early Metallica, Wormed, and Confessor; electronic and electro acoustic composers such as Karlheinz Stockhausen, Bernard Parmegiani, and Luc Ferrari; and every type of jazz ranging from Sidney Bechet to Threadgill. It is also inspired by Season 3 of the television show Twin Peaks, whose surreal, ominous emotional landscape helped shape the overall feel of this music. The music ebbs and flows, surging to thundering swells of foreboding doom before tempering to quiet reflection, finding a deep space where brutal aggression meets ghostly vulnerability. The expansive soundscape ranges from fortissimo to pianissimo, grave to presto, and dense, roiling dissonance to exquisite, pellucid melodies.

All of the musicians: Craig Taborn and Matt Mitchell on keyboards, piano, and electronics, Ben Monder on guitar, and Trevor Dunn on bass, along with Weiss – some of the heaviest hitters in the jazz/improvised music scene – share a love for heavy metal. It’s an astonishment to hear them play in this distinctly different setting, but perhaps the absolute authority they display should not be a complete surprise. Weiss played with the doom metal band Bloody Panda a dozen years ago and Dunn was a member of the experimental rock bands Mr. Bungle (with Faith No More singer Mike Patton) Fantômas (also with Patton), and Secret Chiefs 3. Weiss’s thundering gestures and Dunn’s shuddering, sludgy bass serve as the backbone of this music. Mitchell and Taborn are well known for their adroit experimentation on electronics, and they deliver to the music a huge variety of swirling textures and color. Monder’s own music usually tilts toward the spacious, so it’s somewhat of a surprise to hear him outright shredding with overdriven distortion. Together, they perform this music with complete conviction, melding meticulous precision, prodigious power, and masterful improvisation.

According to Matt Mitchell: “One thing I admire about Dan’s composing it’s how he manages to transcend stylistic issues. Although heavy music is undoubtedly the primary inspiration for this batch of material, I notice here many updated examples of forms that I associate with Dan’s composing: strong, direct melodies; long cycles allowing for building towards ecstatic climaxes; multiple instruments asymmetrically orbiting each other. Unique to this project is the combination of a very strong and distinctive compositional voice and extensive contribution from each of the musicians. Although this is Dan’s music through-and-through in a very specific way, he asked for a lot of input, especially regarding timbre, and he provided many novel spaces in which to improvise or act as a sonic free agent. All these qualities taken together result in an extremely powerful and multifarious musical message, one in which it is a privilege to take part.”

1. A Puncher's Chance 03:10

2. Depredation 05:32

3. Annica 09:04

4. Badalamenti 06:53

5. Cry Box 06:20

6. The Memory of My Memory 10:18

7. Veiled 04:23

8. Episode 8 14:28

Dan Weiss (drums, compositions)

Ben Monder (guitars)

Trevor Dunn (electric bass)

Craig Taborn (keyboards, piano)

Matt Mitchell (keyboards, piano)

John Zorn - Insurrection (TZADIK April 20, 2018)

Insurrection is an intense new instrumental project featuring guitar wizards Julian Lage and Matt Hollenberg with the incredible rhythm section of Trevor Dunn and Kenny Grohowski. Inspired by some of the greatest experimental novels of the 20th century the music is incredibly varied, combining rock, funk, blues, jazz, classical and more-often in the same song! Gnarly atonal melodies, bizarre harmonies, astonishing guitar fireworks and telepathic group interaction make this one of Zorn's most scintillating and adventurous new projects.

Everyone is playing at their best here, and you have never heard such sounds! As always Zorn pulls the very best out of the musicians and they play some of the most outrageous solos you have ever heard. Essential! Julian Lage, Matt Hollenberg, Trevor Dunn, Kenny Grohowski.

1 The Recognitions  03:39

2 Pulsations  08:24

3 A Void  04:47

4 Mason and Dixon  05:03

5 Progeny  02:50

6 The Journal of Albion Moonlight  06:54

7 The Atrocity Exhibition  04:43

8 The Unnameable  03:09

9 Cat’s Cradle  03:09

10 Nostromo  03:45

John Zorn - The Garden of Earthly Delights (TZADIK 2017)

The sixth CD by Zorn’s heaviest 21st century ensemble Simulacrum celebrates the 500th anniversary of the passing of one of the greatest painters the world has ever known—Hieronymus Bosch. A visionary of unparalleled power whose imagination and fantastical creations re- main uniquely his own, Bosch is one of the most enigmatic figures in world art. Inspired by his surreal visions of Heaven and Hell, “The Garden of Earthly Delights” blends heavy metal, blues, funk, jazz and modern classical music together into one of the strangest amalgams you’ve ever heard. Tighter than ever and joined by bassist Trevor Dunn, Medeski, Hollenberg and Grohowski are at their manic best in this jaw-dropping visit to a wild musical world where absolutely anything is possible!

1. Angels and Devils

2. The Infernal Machine

3. The Dragon Tree

4. Paean to the Prince of Hell

5. Music of the Flesh

6. Eve and Adam

7. Mirror Image

8. The Garden of Earthly Delights

9. The Circuit

10.Out of the Eternal Sphere

Trevor Dunn: Bass

John Medeski: Keyboards 

Kenny Grohowski: Drums

Matt Hollenberg: Guitar

Sara Serpa: Voice