John Coltrane - Offering: Live at Temple University,1966 (Resonance, 2014)

Today is my Holy Day, my only holy day. Sept. 23, 1926, my hero, John Coltrane,was born, and there is no better gift to the world than a never before released live concert. This show was unearthed in 2005 and sees its first proper christening today by (Resonance Records).

Recorded just months before his death, This Philly show saw Trane pushing all limits. His health was declining and he knew the end was nigh. Mind you, this is a year or so after McCoy Tyner told someone that Trane was playing so hard that blood was spewing from his mouth. At one point, he removes the sax and begins chanting, and changing vocalization by beating his chest. This was at the point where he felt he had pushed the instrument to its furthest extent, and the only maneuver beyond was to cut out the middle man and push from the depths of his diaphragm.

As far out as he gets here, with Alice Coltrane, Rashied Ali, Pharoah Sanders and a crew of Philly based percussionists, he returns to finish with his rendition of "My Favorite Things", a fan favorite. The drastic departure from the extremes to finish with this was FOR his fans. He never forgot that his spiritual quest could never have launched and finished without those people that loved him.

Trane's body was dying, and the end was soon. He didn't succeed or fail, because,as he would have told you, there is no beginning or end, just the journey.

Recorded November 11, 1966
Mitten Hall, Temple University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Featured Artists: John Coltrane – soprano & tenor saxophones, flute & vocals

Pharoah Sanders – tenor saxophone & piccolo

Alice Coltrane – piano Sonny Johnson – bass

Rashied Ali – drums

Additional musicians include: Steve Knoblauch, Arnold Joyner – alto saxophone Umar Ali, Algie DeWitt, Robert Kenyatta – percussion

Resonance Records, which is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit foundation, will contribute a portion from every sale to the John Coltrane Home (www.thecoltranehome.org), an organization devoted to the preservation of Coltrane’s former home in Dix Hills, New York.

TRACK LIST:

DELUXE 2 CD DIGI-PACK
Disc One
01. Naima (16:28)
02. Crescent (26:11)

Disc Two
03. Leo (21:29)
04. Offering (4:19)
05. My Favorite Things (23:18)

DELUXE 2 LP GATEFOLD
Side A
Naima (16:28)

Side B
Crescent (26:11)

Side C
Leo (21:29)

Side D Offering (4:19) My Favorite Things (23:18)

R.I.P. Kenny Wheeler (1930-2014)

The great Canadian jazz trumpeter has passed away. His work in the 90's moved me heavily, particularly with the album "Angel Song", a masterfully melancholy outing released by ECM. He was joined by Bill Frisell, Lee Konitz and Dave Holland, a lineup that, for my money, couldn't be beat. I cherish this as one of my all time favorites. With the sadness of his passing, no music could be more appropriate.

Survival Unit III: Game Theory (Not Two, 2013)

"Joe McPhee: Not selling out since 1967". This was something I jokingly said to a friend a few years ago. Luckily, it still stands. McPhee is 74 years old and continues to shine. He is one of the oldest American jazz icons. You many know him from his work with a multitude of musicians: Pauline Oliveros' "Deep Listening Band", Peter Brotzmann, William Parker, Ken Vandermark, Evan Parker, Mats Gustafson, Jeb Bishop, The Thing, etc. He is a good example of the effect American jazz has had on Europe. Due to his success there, he's never had to sign to a major American label.

With the latest project, he continues to explore. This time, in a phenomenal trio that includes Michael Zerang on drums, and Fred Lonberg-Holm on electronics. "Game Theory" is four tracks of predominantly reserved and controlled experiments. Though intense and busy, it still comes across as meditative, i.e., minimal on the "Brotzmann Bursts". These three know each other extremely well and they definitely push the limits of control. Forward thinking music doesn't get any better than this.

Demdike Stare - The Weight of Culture (Self-released, 2013) CS

One of the finest architects of modern experimental music, the duo of Miles Whittaker and Sean Canty, offers a sampling of crate digging tastes and its even far better than you'd expect.





http://www.discogs.com/Demdike-Stare-The-Weight-Of-Culture/release/4295738

R.I.P. Charlie Haden

Where do I begin? I don't know. Maybe "The Shape of Jazz to Come"? How do you even talk about such an amazing person? What's there to say about someone who actually "shaped jazz to come"?

As I age, many of my icons are passing away, and even though he was 76, it still hurts. This is a monumental loss. Just take a look at his discography. Read it slowly, take it all in. It will make your head spin.

This is one of the most gigantic figures in the history of music. He will be greatly missed.

Jackie McLean On Mars

             John Coltrane with Jackie Mclean, Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ 1957. By Esmond Edwards


This is a very inspiring documentary on one of my favorite Jazz musicians. Good tunes and really positive dialog from a master of his craft. If you're unfamiliar, check out my review of one of the best records ever made, right HERE.


Jackie McLean on Mars from Ken Levis on Vimeo.

Bohren & Der Club of Gore - Piano Nights (Ipecac, 2014)

One of my favorite bands of all time has returned with their eighth album. Have they changed the formula? Have they reinvented the wheel? Have they altered course for new destinations in uncharted regions? No on all counts. Nothing is different. Their concoction of ambient doom and jazz meets lounge need not change. The adagio / requiem is a perfectly haunting and romantic melancholy to soothe the thinker's soul. With sax, keys, bass and drums so flawlessly executed and painstakingly slow, the patience required to play this music seems an other worldly talent. These German masters win me over yet again. Timeless.

Listen to the full album here or on Spotify below:

Happy David Lynch Day!

This man is a monumental figure in my life. I'm consistently amazed by his artistic output. His films, paintings, animation and even musical compositions have all been enormous influences. Everyone is familiar with his film and television but I'm not sure most are aware the the music in Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks primarily composed by the great Angelo Badalamenti is actually a collaborative effort.

Badalamenti is brilliant but Lynch is quite the musician as well, the mischievous jazz setting for Twin Peaks being his concept. Unbeknownst to the dynamic duo, their tunes would spawn one of my personal favorite subgenres, doom jazz, a form of music that combines the slow tempos, and sense of despair of doom metal with jazz style and sensibility. The music usually conveys an aura of pessimistic introspection, punctuated by dark ambient influences. Championed mostly by Bohren and Der Club of Gore, its also practiced by Mount Fuji Doom Jazz Corporation, Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, Dale Cooper Quartet and the Dictaphones, and many more.

Celebrate the legend's birthday by listening to these great scores below:

Happy Birthday, Don!****Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - The Spotlight Kid (Reprise, 1972)

Its the only album that was credited soley to Don van Vliet. He wanted to make something a little more accessible. A little bit of bread was appealing. The band was barely eating, living off handouts. They hadn't made any money in three years. What did he do that was so radical? What did he do that made the band hate this collection of songs? What kind of extraordinary preposterous great lengths did he go to?

He wrote some slower songs. Yep, Downtempo. That's all. Slowing these songs down made his vocals feel more like a delta blues singer, garnering a bit of a new audience. This period of time was so tumultuous that the whole band almost abandoned him. Granted, there were more details, like Vliet throwing one of the guitarists into a dumpster as a metaphor. I'm sure the communal residence scenario probably began driving hungry unsatisfied musicians into emotional outbursts of all kinds.

Regardless, this is actually my favorite of his records. Go on, disagree. Lester Bangs liked it, so I stand my ground.

Here's one of my favorite live clips from that album era:



And here's the album in its entirety:

Don Drumond - Jazz Ska Attack 1964 (Jet Set, 1999)

Drummond was one of the top soloists and most creative musical minds of Jamaica's ska era. His apex came in 1964 when he and fellow Skatalites, like saxophonists Tommy McCook and Roland Alphonso, organist Jackie Mittoo, Lester Sterling, and trumpeter Johnny "Dizzy" Moore, ruled Kingston's musical scene as the virtual house band for producers Clement Dodd, Duke Reid, George Phang, and many others. Drummond's lopey sounding yet technically superb trombone work stood out on all the Skatalites sessions, whether the band was cutting some of its own records or backing numerous singers like Alton Ellis and Delroy Wilson. This fine Drummond roundup on Jet Set brings together many of the trombonist best Skatalites sides from 1964, including such self-penned classics as "Musical Storeroom," "Eastern Standard Time," and "Don-de-Lion." A great introduction to this most talented of Jamaican jazz masters. -All Music

R.I.P. Amiri Baraka

I couldn't possibly do justice to any kind of obituary for this great man. I found this one. Does the trick.

Amiri Baraka Obituary

And these are three of my favorites:

George Cartwright's Gloryland Ponycat - Black Ants Crawling (Innova, 2003)

Here's a cool Minnesota trio I recently discovered. They play improvisational jazz that doesn't sound contrived or pretentious, offering warm tones with subtle stabs and skronks. Free jazz for the uninitiated? Maybe. If you don't vibe with all the shrill cacophony of typical ESP-Disk routes (like I do) but want to dig on some jazz, give this a go. This is a powerful group with gentle finesse.

Demdike Stare - Post-collapse (DDS, 2013)

Well they've outdone themselves again. Here's a new mixtape you absolutely must have. They are the kings of crate digging. From cosmic jazz to proto-club jams, drum edits to field recordings, you will never have a clue what these tracks are. Cuz they ninja.



Buy this at Boomkat.

Patrick Vian - Bruits et temps Analogues (Egg Records, 1976 / Straubold, 2013)

This year has seen the vinyl re-issue of a phenomenal and little known album. French musician Patrick Vian's "Bruits et temp Analogues" is improvisational jazz meeting synth rock for a journey into the unknown. Think early Tangerine Dream jamming with Soft Machine and Heldon, Conrad Schnitzler's bizarre noise experiments, and a deep prog groove, all held together by masterful percussion (Mino Cinelu of Gong, Miles Davis and Weather Report).

Vian plays Moog c2, ARP 2600, Moog sequencer and piano. Also joining him are Georges Granier on Rhodes and marimba, and Bernard Lavialle on electric guitar. This lineup emits deep droning psychedelic vibes, for an undeniable head trip. And incidentally, I can't stop looking at this album cover.



Here is a track by his other project as well:

Justin Walter - Lullabies and Nightmares (Kranky, 2013)

Justin Walter's debut LP from Kranky is the freshest sound they've released in a while. The choice of instrumentation by this Brooklyn-based composer is quite individualized. With the electronic valve instrument (a breath controlled analog synth) as well as a trumpet, he improvises the bulk of this recording. The only overdubs being drum tracks.

The swirling sounds of loops, serial style repetition, and scattered groovy drum beats call to mind early Boards of Canada with nods to Steve Reich and Vangelis. The evi creates a familiarity that is immensely comfortable, while the nearly clean trumpet parts are reminiscent of particular David Sylvian tracks I've always enjoyed. There is also a very interesting glitchy element that instead of feeling like digital idm, comes across more in an organic jazz vein.

This is very warm and accessible ambient music that though nice as background music is equally thought provoking. These are ambient songs with hooks, songs that I find mesmerizing. Really beautiful material.




Here's a a great video of Walter playing the evi.

LAND - Night Within (Important, 2012)

The band describe this work as, "approaching an apocalyptic noir narrative," and Night Within, despite its slate visual appeal which recalls the grey paintings of Gerhard Richter, thematically points towards a world occupied by the early postmodern detective stories of Paul Auster and the urban neon dislocation of Taxi Driver with its existential protagonist roaming the city alone late at night."

Heavy words for heavy music. The atmosphere of this record makes me think "jazz for a dark alley". There is a definite lurking menace here, a modern take on noir soundtrack. Reminiscent of the doom jazz artists like Bohren and der Club of Gore and Mount Fuji Doom Jazz Orchestra, LAND wisely forego the Angelo Badalamenti elements. They know how to create tension and build to a near crescendo. This is really intense music with a casual delivery, much like the calm and cool demeanor of a film noir character. My first thought was Alain Delon in a 60's Melville film set in a cold Scandinavian climate. 

The two composers are UK musicians Daniel Lea And Matthew Waters. These two assembled quite a cast for this faux soundtrack. Guests include David Sylvian (Japan), Daniel O'Sullivan (Ulver, Guapo, Miasma, Aethenor), Alexander Tucker (everywhere with everyone) and an ensemble of woodwinds, brass, guitar, keys, bass and drums. The album was sculpted in Reykjavik by Ben Frost.

This one will certainly sneak into my End of Year list. 

Read full review of Night Within - LAND on Boomkat.com ©

Ornette Coleman - Chappaqua OST (1965)

How the hell Conrad Rooks (or whoever was in charge of this decision) opted for the Ravi Shankar version of the film score is forever beyond me. I could be in the dark about some particular permutation, but listening to them side by side, I go with this one all day.

Honestly, the churned out dopey cliche vibe of the Shankar score is weak as the companion music to the film, and weak as an offering for the master musician that was Ravi shankar. I'm sorry, but Shankar just rubbed one out.

I saw this film because I randomly picked it up at the neighborhood video rental store when I was nineteen. There was a bargain bin of vhs and I liked the the cover. I had yet to do hard drugs, I was just discovering jazz and  the only education I'd had with experimental film was David Lynch. Watching this film was my first true "countercultural" experience. And eighteen years later, the film still trumps all else.

The premise is that a man is institutionalized due to alcohol addiction. As he goes through DT withdrawls,  the camera portrays what he is hallucinating. There are a multitude of visually striking moments presented, but the one that always pops into my head is a scene in a club where Ornette is skronking away on the sax and standing next to him is the little man from the tv show Fantasy Island. If you're my age or older, you know what I'm talking about, if not, look it up. Either way, its a truly harrowing scene and I can't really explain why. Other notable appearances include William S. Burroughs (this caused me to begin reading his books when I was too young to get it), Allen Ginsberg, and Swami Satchidinanda.

This is an immensely disturbing film in that it is violent, schizophrenic and psychedelic in the true sense of the word. For whatever reason, this film is hard to find. Unfortunately, I've lost my copy, and this really upsets me. Regardless, this is not a film blog. Point being, you need not be a jazz head to appreciate the excruciating hard work that Ornette put into this score that was never used. We're talking about an hour and twenty minutes of textbook Ornette free jazz, just a bit off ballads, and even a venture into his own twisted brand of cool jazz that you won't find outside of this record. And these are the same players as the "Golden Circle" sessions, just to give you heads a backdrop. Such a heavy band...

Whether you like jazz and hard drugs or not, find this film and listen to this (not)soundtrack. And for fuck's sake, somebody leave a comment. Thanks everybody.



Get it HERE

Radian - Tg11 (Rhiz / Editions Mego, 2000)

This is an incredible band that I hadn't thought abut in years. Radian is an Austrian trio of musicians who play acoustic and electronic instruments. The magic about them is that they play their acoustic instruments so precisely, you'd think this were just another electronic act. Lots of low end bass guitar feedback and buzzing is layered with mechanistic drum kit playing and high frequency synth melodies akin to the Raster Noton family of minimalism. Lots of analog glitches, clicks and cuts, and pastiche. And oh so much quiet, so much that it will remind you of Supersilent. Soul for the soulless machine. Lovely stuff for the funk challenged geeks out there.




Read full review of Tg11 - RADIAN on Boomkat.com ©

Charles Gayle Trio - Streets (Northern Spy, 2012)

If you're current with your jazz at all, you know this man is not just another number. In fact, he is possibly the most important sax player and multi-instrumentalist alive. Charles Gayle has spent his life in dedication to the free jazz tradition in the vein of Shepp, Sanders, Ayler and Trane. The "Streets the Clown" personnae is based on his many years as a homeless street musician himself. In fact, he dons this guise and continues to play on the street to this day.

Gayle is a master, and this latest release is surprisingly accessible yet blazing as always. The bassist, Larry Roland and the longtime drummer, Michael TA Thompson hold it down as well as contribute equally to a powerful, blistering, elegant album.  The trio manages to manufacture free jazz that retains a vivid narrative structure. Linear yet non-linear, all the compositions here will resonate with the elitist tastes as well as the casual pallette.



I'm sad to say there is no vinyl for this. pay for download HERE and/ or listen on Spotify.

R.I.P Lol Coxhill (1932-2012)

Where to begin... I can't really say. I do remember the first time I read his name. It was WIRE magazine in 1999. and what I didn't realize then was that I would read his name in almost every issue for the next thirteen years. His name is associated with what a friend and I dubbed "WIRE Babies". Examples would be David S. Ware, Anthony Braxton, Derek Bailey, etc. The beautiful thing about these names is that I actually engaged myself enough as to grasp their importance on an intimate level, recognizing their relevance not because I was supposed to but because they spoke to me, because I felt their souls, and everything they did eventually made sense. The genius I'd read about was no longer esoteric but familiar.

The brilliant Lol Coxhill has passed away. His legacy will be appreciated forever by a small group of people that still hold improvisational music and forward thinking jazz dear to their hearts.


I've always been partial to sax players, particularly those that toyed with soprano. I am familiar with soprano sax due to Coltrane's occasional outing with it. A large chunk of my childhood was based on obsession with anything pertaining to Trane (Stravinsky, Astrology, sweet potato pie. etc.), so when I hear of any musician working in any sort of similar vein, I have to investigate. After reading an article on Coxhill, I gathered as much of his music as I could and plunged in. I discovered that he had played with a vast list of incredible artists which included Derek Bailey, Robert Wyatt, Mike Oldfield and even The Damned. He was a wild experimenter that never ceased to impress all who witnessed any given performance. I only wish I'd had the opportunity.