vhf

2012-04-19: Black Twig Pickers, Brighton, UK, The Prince Albert
2012-04-20: Black Twig Pickers, Antwerp, Belgium, Scheld’apen
2012-04-21: Black Twig Pickers, Brussels, Belgium, Le Viaduc
2012-04-22: Black Twig Pickers, London, UK, The Slaughtered Lamb
2012-04-23: Black Twig Pickers, Edinburgh, Scotland (w/SIR RICHARD BISHOP), The Banshee Labyringth
2012-04-24: Black Twig Pickers, Newcastle, UK, Morden Tower
2012-04-25: Black Twig Pickers, SECRET, SECRET
2012-04-26: Black Twig Pickers, Bristol, UK, Cafe Kino
2012-04-28: Black Twig Pickers, Blacksburg, Va., Cellar
2012-05-02: Black Twig Pickers, Blacksburg, Va., private bbq
2012-05-12: Black Twig Pickers, Birmingham, Ala., Secret Stages festival
2012-05-19: Black Twig Pickers, Mount Airy, NC, WPAQ 740 AM Merry-go-round (11am-noon)
2012-05-25: Black Twig Pickers, Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance
2012-05-26: Black Twig Pickers, Blacksburg, Va., Cellar
2012-06-10: Black Twig Pickers, Blacksburg, Va., Beliveau Estate (2pm-6pm)
2012-06-14: Black Twig Pickers, Blacksburg, Va., Gillies
2012-06-15: Black Twig Pickers, Williamsburg, W.Va., Badlands Bluegrass Festival
2012-06-16: Black Twig Pickers, Newport, Va., Newport Jamboree
2012-07-26: Black Twig Pickers, Blacksburg, Va., Gillies
2012-07-27: Black Twig Pickers, Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance
2012-08-09: Black Twig Pickers, St. Cloud, Minn., Minnesota Bluegrass & Old-Time Festival
2012-08-10: Black Twig Pickers, St. Cloud, Minn., Minnesota Bluegrass & Old-Time Festival
2012-08-18: Black Twig Pickers, Bruceton Mills, WV, Chestnut Ridge Park
2012-09-01: Black Twig Pickers, Catawba, Va., Catawba Farm Fest
2012-09-07: Black Twig Pickers, Monkton, Md., private wedding
2012-09-28: Black Twig Pickers, Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance
2012-09-29: Black Twig Pickers, Blacksburg, Va., Blacksburg Farmers Market apple tasting
2012-11-16: Black Twig Pickers, Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance

Finally available, this deluxe triple pack brings two of the band’s classic jams back into print and adds on a 50 minute bonus disc with the 4 contemporaneous singles. Full details after the jump. 3xCD $18, Buy It!!!

“Doubles” is the first widely-available release by Irish guitarist Cian Nugent, a showcase of major talent in an audacious setting of two side-long epics. Clearly inspired by the Takoma-classics and the recent generation of greats (Rose, Jones, etc), Cian delivers two perfectly formed takes on the classic steel-string sound, one (mostly) unaccompanied, the other an expertly arranged full-band throwdown. “Peaks & Troughs” is a slow-building solo piece in the style of Fahey’s “Fare Forward Voyagers,” with each part perfectly connected to the previous. Cian has ample technique, but the virtuosity here is all in service of the mood and the build up. His guitar has a darker, intimate sound than many current players, without the brittle ring common to fingerstyle. The emergence of a deep drone after 15 minutes shakes up the track, like a swarm of bees spilling out of the speakers. In contrast, “Sixes & Sevens” is a percolating jam in the style of Jim O’Rourke’s classic LP “Bad Timing,” with Cian’s steel string riding an inventive wave of drums, organ, viola, woodwinds, and brass in an ambitious, filmic masterpiece. The main tune of the song is instantly memorable, building momentum before a subdued interlude that resets things for an elegant, orchestrated finish. CD is in beautiful folio printed on heavy art paper by Stumptown Printers. Audiophile LP is in equally fine gatefold and includes download coupon. Both formats are among the finest looking and sounding productions we’ve ever had the good fortune to be involved with! CD $10, LP (w/download coupon) $14 Buy now!!!

This massive double from 2001 is one of their all time joints and has been out of print for several years. Electric and acoustic (like the Dead ca. 1970). Can’t go wrong. Get it

Sixty Strings is an album of two epic duets by Eric Carbonara (22-string upright Chaturangui guitar) and Jesse Sparhawk (38 string lever harp). While Eric has studied Chaturangui extensively with Pandit Debashish Bhattacharya in Kolkata, and Jesse was classically trained by major figures of the harp world in his formative years, the music here is their own – not a mashup of quasi-orientalism and conservatory bloodlessness. Both side-long tracks lay out a spacious framework, with the two players working to support simple but elegant melodies that recall “Brüder des Schattens”-era Popol Vuh and various modal/devotional styles. While the sound of the Chaturangui’s sympathetic strings provides a constant electric blanket of comfort, Eric’s playing is concise and restrained, forgoing the kind of melismatic ornamentation that is a stylistic tic of much Indian-inspired music. Jesse, whose expert playing adds so much to Fern Knight’s complex orchestrations, steps out and extends his instrument using various techniques – fingerpicking guitar-like patterns that interlock with Eric, and using sharply-struck attacks at the upper register for a piano-like effect. On “The Entwined Twin,” the dry crack of a snare drum (played by Julius Masri) enters after a few minutes, ratcheting up the urgency and adding an unexpected texture to the proceedings. The excellent recording captures both instruments in detail, with a strong aura of closeup, intimate feel. Digipak CD or Audiophile LP (w/download coupon) CD $10, LP (w/download coupon) $13 Buy now!!!

Third VHF album from this young New York-based guitarist/composer who continues to forge his own radical style to create a very resonant and enveloping acoustic sound, full of beautiful harmonic overtone interplay, all instruments sustained. Alex’s guitar approach revolves around a prodigious right-hand technique and a minimalist slant on composition that separates him from the retro-styling endemic to most current acoustic guitar music. Hallway of Mirrors uses much of the tonal palate from his previous record (As the Twilight Crane Dreams in Color, vhf#118) – dense 12-string finger-picking with vibraphone and piano carrying much of the melody. On Hallway, the pieces are more concise with the added sweep of Christopher Tignor’s elegant violin punctuating Alex’s harmonics-laden forward motion and Matthew O’Koren’s immaculate vibraphone (played with both mallets and bow). The additional instrumentation, inspired in part by Steve Reich’s “Music for 18 Musicians,” provides an added focus in the music, signifying each change in tone and timbre. Recorded on analog tape using traditional automatic double tracking stereo mix techniques by engineers Henry Hirsch and Bram Tobey, the sound has an elegant soft focus that highlights Alex’s strong and sharp performance. The centerpiece of the album, the 16 minute “Waiting at the Departure Gate,” makes a sly nod in tribute to fellow VHF artist Jack Rose, who all too briefly explored similar techniques on his classic “Black Pearls.” A truly uplifting and emotional listening experience. CD $10, LP (w/download coupon) $13 Buy now!!!

Monday, May 16
IOTA Club and Cafe
2832 Wilson Blvd
Arlington, VA 22201

Garland of Hours
Fern Knight
Arborea

8 pm
$12

Supporting the new jam “Hallway of Mirrors”

May 6 Historical Laboratory Hudson New York
May 13 Hudson Opera House Hudson New York
May 14 Random Tea Room Philadelphia, PA
May 15 Garfield Art Works Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
May 17 Cameo Gallery Brooklyn New York
May 18 Trash Bar Brooklyn New York

June 2 2011
Bush Hall, London, UK

June 3 2011
The Kazimier, Liverpool, UK

June 4 2011
Islington Mill, Manchester, UK

June 5 2011
Classic Grand, Glasgow, UK’

June 6 2011
The Fleece, Bristol, UK

The boys on tour ahead of the release of their vhf jam “Sixty Strings” (vhf#129) in April.

Wednesday, March 16, Bera, Spain @ Casa de Cultura
Thursday, March 17, Bayonne, France @ Maison a Boucau
Sunday, March 20, Castellon de la Plana, Spain @ SONS
Tuesday, March 22, Zamora, Spain @ Sala Berlin
Friday, March 25, Bueu, Spain @ Bar Labranza
Sunday, March 27th, Porto, Portugal @ Cafe au Lait
Wednesday, March 30, Marseille, France @ Festival Interface @ DATA
Friday, April 1, Paris, France @ Les Voutes w/ Steve Gunn, William Tyler, Michael Chapman
Sunday, April 3 Liege, Belgium @ L’an Vert
Thursday, April 7th, Amsterdam, Netherlands@ VPRO (recorded session) (EC only)
Friday, April 8th, Venlo, Netherlands @ De Splinter (EC only)

Massive and already widely acclaimed new jam in stores, online, etc everywhere. You can probably download it from some blog, but you’ll miss out on saying “huh” when you see that the insides of the jackets are printed solid blue. Elegant card-folio CD and deluxe white vinyl dbl LP. Buy it!

“Crystalline and intoxicating: an album to return to repeatedly for inspiration” – Bruce Russell, Tha’ Wire

Martin Bisi
Fern Knight
The Plums

Saturday Feb 5 2011
Comet Ping Pong
5037 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20008
10 pm

more info:

http://www.cometpingpong.com/

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=80012655858 Live Music Page

http://www.facebook.com/people/Comet-PingPong/1169469211

Steve Noble, Daniel O’Sullivan, Stephen O’Malley

ÆTHENOR Italia tour December 2010
7 Chateau Rouge / Prague / CZ
8 Arena / Vienna / AU
9 Unwound / Padova / IT
10 Teatro Rasi / Ravenna / IT
11 Sala Teatro Espace / Torino / IT
12 La Casa / Milano / IT
13 Mono Spazio Bar / Pescara / IT
14 Galleria Toledo / Naples / IT
15 Init Club / Roma / IT

New CD/2xLP En Form for Blå available on vhf Jan 2011!

Third vhf release of lovely psych/folk by this East coast quartet, written, arranged, and performed with the now expected quality and verve. Somewhat less fastidious than 2008′s exquisitely arranged Fern Knight cd (vhf110), Castings has a warm, analog feel, with looser and louder performances from the quartet. Led as always by Margaret Ayre’s voice, guitar, and cello, the group stretches out on rockier fare like “The Poisoner,” growling with fuzz, while leaving plenty of room for softer moments of beautiful clarity. There’s “jammy” moments here, but everything is expertly sized and placed, with not a moment wasted on doodles. The centerpiece of the album is the band’s treatment of the King Crimson epic “doom” classic “Epitaph.” Trading their own cello and violin for the original’s signature mellotron, the group channels the vibe of the original while making it their own. Margaret’s cool and understated vocal plays it straight in a situation that less assured players and performers would make a bombastic mess of. As on the self-titled CD, Jesse Sparhawk’s harp and James Wolf’s violin provide the heart of the sound in many spots, a unique strategy that lets the band update the classic genre forms and styles while making them their own. CD is in digipak and has one additional track (“Cave of Swords”). LP was cut by Golden, audiophile press from RTI. Housed in super-heavy Stoughton “tip-on” gatefold. Buy now!!!

Lola fest London Ontario sept 18
We are magnets festival Hudson NY October 8
O Positive Festival Kingston NY October 9

2010-08-27: Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance
2010-09-04: Newport, Va., Newport Fest
2010-09-12: Newcastle, England, Cluny2 (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-13: England, Nation of Shopkeepers (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-14: Manchester, England, Band on the Wall (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-15: Glasgow, Scotland, CCA (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-16: Aviemore, Scotland, The Old Bridge Inn (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-17: Skye, Scotland, Sabhal Mor Ostaig (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-18: Loch Lomond, Scotland, Memorial Hall Milton Of Buchanan by Drymen (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-19: Edinburgh, Scotland, Roxy Art House (w/Charlie Parr)
2010-09-20: Leeds, England, Victoria Hotel
2010-09-22: Hebden Bridge, England, Trades Club
2010-09-23: London, England, Windmill Brixton
2010-09-24: Coventry, England, The Tin Angel
2010-09-25: Penryn, Cornwall, Miss Peapod’s
2010-09-27: London, England, Vortex Jazz
2010-10-02: Blacksburg, Va., Gillie’s (w/Ember Schrag)
2010-10-23: Blacksburg, Va., Blacksburg Farmers Market Squash Bash
2010-10-29: Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance
2010-11-06: Mount Airy, NC, WPAQ Merry-go-round (we’re on noon-1:30 pm: 740 AM and wpaq740.com and live in downtown theater; Slate Mountain Ramblers have the 11 am slot!)
2010-11-19: Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance
2010-11-20: Blacksburg, Va., Cellar
2010-12-17: Floyd, Va., Floyd Country Store dance
2010-12-18: Blacksburg, Va., Cellar

A small eternity in the making, the Richard and Simon “20 Years” set is now available. I have NO IDEA what the level of interest in this set is going to be, but be aware that due the rather high cost (by our standards) of putting it together, it’s a rather limited edition. “20 Years” is not a retrospective – it’s all unreleased material, some new, some old. For me, “Songphase” and “SMIRR” (both included here), unreleased when finished in the 90′s, are instantly two of the essential items in their discography. “20 Years” and “LIVE!!!” are maybe more for aficionados, but if you know their work, you’ll find plenty to like there, too. The essays from David Keenan, Marc Masters, Neil Campbell, and Jon Dale are all spot-on, smart writing from people who get and celebrate what Richard and Simon are all about and fun to read, rather than dry sub-doctoral theory. The extensive interview with R!!! and S!!! included in a separate booklet is both illuminating and maddening. We’ve done our best to make this an elegant package, appropriate for the guys and music.

Bonus item! here’s a snap of Richard and Simon performing “LAKE” in 1990:

These two classix are available again on CD – small, modern, convenient!
FSA
Jack “Kensington”

Æthenor @ Synch Festival/Technopolis
Athens, Attica, GREECE
Friday, Jun 4 2010, 9:30 PM

Æthenor @ Point FMR
Paris, Ille-de-Fr, FRANCE
Saturday, Sep 11 2010, 10:00 PM

Available again after several years of out-of-printness. This is exactly the same as the previous pressing, cept’ for a fix to the original CD label art, which was lost – it was sorta messed up anyway. This was greeted with complete mystification when released, being decidedly non-riffy. 14 years on from release, it seems a logical step in the flow of UK underground output that spawned Sunroof!, Vibracathedral, Jazzfinger, et al. It’s a good deal less intense than recent Hototogisu and SF output that’s had all dials set to “annihilate.” Get it