Epic multi-part compositions, long crescendos, drones and field recordings, gloomy moods giving way to cathartic orchestral climaxes—yes, it’s another Godspeed You! Black Emperor album. There are now more post-reunion albums than pre-hiatus ones, and the recent output has taken on greater weight in the overall oeuvre. It may feel rote to those who are notContinue reading “Godspeed You! Black Emperor. G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END!”
Genre Archives
Future Perfect. Drone On.
Montreal-based interdisciplinary artists Julia Dyck and Amanda Harvey join forces as Future Perfect on Drone On, a live recording that functions as a sonic treatise on ecoacoustics and the phenomenology of sound. The piece, originally performed by the duo in 2019 as part of a month-long residency at the Mitchell Art Gallery in Edmonton, hasContinue reading “Future Perfect. Drone On.”
Aidan Baker’s Ambient Autonomy
Over the past twenty years, Berlin-based Canadian guitarist and composer Aidan Baker has developed a creative rhythm, using his guitar as a gateway to seemingly disparate sounds and marrying noise, krautrock, metal, drone, and free jazz in thrilling and unexpected ways. Through his workmanlike approach, he has amassed a sprawling discography—the selected discography on hisContinue reading “Aidan Baker’s Ambient Autonomy”
Pauline Oliveros and Connie Crothers. Live At the Stone.
The first, last, and only musical meeting between jazz improviser Connie Crothers (1941–2016) and electronic-music icon Pauline Oliveros (1932–2016) took place in August 2014. It is preserved in its entirety on this disc. Oliveros and Crothers were probably surprised by how many musical ideas they shared. Both had an unerring sense of rhythm coupled withContinue reading “Pauline Oliveros and Connie Crothers. Live At the Stone.”
Sarah Davachi flies into psychoacoustic space
One could say that Sarah Davachi’s drone-based music is all about meditative states, or texture, or duration. But more than anything else, it’s about balance—between the theoretical and the practical, the material and the cerebral, the antique and the avant-garde, the electronic and the purely acoustic. Barons Court (Students of Decay), Davachi’s first vinyl release,Continue reading “Sarah Davachi flies into psychoacoustic space”
Dasha Rush: Dark Hearts of Space
The prospects are grim for a person who has fallen into a black hole. The gravitational forces exerted by these mysterious regions of space are so strong that nothing—not even light—can escape, once it passes a certain proximity threshold. From a safe distance, the unlucky soul would appear to stretch and smear as it approachedContinue reading “Dasha Rush: Dark Hearts of Space”
Burden Unpacks the Piano’s Inner Life
At the 2016 Winnipeg New Music Festival, the members of Burden and their synecdochical piano are set up in the midst of a noisy, beer-swilling crowd at Union Sound Hall. Without so much as a word of introduction to attract attention, they assume positions on three sides of the piano and begin. The only noiseContinue reading “Burden Unpacks the Piano’s Inner Life”
crys cole amplifies personal space
I first saw crys cole perform in a tiny gallery in Winnipeg’s Chinatown. Seated with a contact mike, a pane of glass, and little else, cole reflected the minimalism of her setup in quiet soundscapes and restrained gestures. Immediately, she had the room under her command. There was a charged tension in the air, asContinue reading “crys cole amplifies personal space”
Joshua Abrams’ Natural Information Society
THERE’S AN ENGAGING CATCH-AS-CATCH-CAN LOOK to Joshua Abrams’ Natural Information Society, something that immediately conveys a certain spontaneity, yet disguises—slightly—the complexity of the music. During the band’s North American tour in May 2015, which included performances at Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville and Toronto’s Array Space, an unusual combination of instruments was putContinue reading “Joshua Abrams’ Natural Information Society”
Healing Power Records Hits Toronto With a Sonic Balm
The last place you’d expect to hear a comprehensive showcase of a modern experimental music community is on a dance mix. But with Heart of Toronto, a 2013 CD and download compilation, the Toronto-based label Healing Power has done just that. A compelling snapshot of North America’s fourth-largest city’s dizzyingly interconnected underground music scenes, HeartContinue reading “Healing Power Records Hits Toronto With a Sonic Balm”