DEEPER IMAGININGS by Paul Adams & Elizabeth Geyer is a follow up to 2015's IMAGININGS
Bringing together some of the worlds most accomplished musicians, DEEPER IMAGININGS by Paul Adams and Elizabeth Geyer is a follow up to 2015's IMAGININGS which debuted #1 on the iTunes new age chart and was the Zone Music Reporter's best Contemporary Instrumental Album of the year. It was a journey of happenstance, whimsy and the joy of sharing music and love between cultures. Elizabeth came all the way from Australia. Pravin Godkhindi played bansuri flute in India. Alp Akmaz who played the balaban (similar to duduk) is from Turkey. Former trumpet soloist and arranger David Hoffman is based in Illinois, and Gary Green of the legendary UK band Gentle Giant added gentle guitar.
Adams, with over 102 million streams on Pandora has shown that walking the road less traveled can work. “We all love to create much like a painter. The choice of color and hue is from the artist's whim and is independent from corporate dictate. I was thrilled to be able to use some of the instruments I built in my earlier years as a luthier. Guitars, dulcimer and electric sitar was blended with the natural genius of Elizabeth Geyer's piano, flugelhorn and voice, used in a textural and ambient way. Her ear is stunning and her musical intuition and training in jazz blended well with my rather improvised gentle folk approach, as well as training in ethnomusicology”
For Adams and Geyer, meeting Pravin Godkhindi on YouTube and Alp Akmaz on Instagram seems appropriate given today’s ease of technology. The fact that the musical co-operation was so natural shows what a tool it is to embrace and grow as the world shrinks around us. Adams comments that “there was an intuitive vibe in connecting with these musicians. A lot of freedom was encouraged. We had faith that each knew the best way to fill their role, and they really did.”
DEEPER IMAGININGS can be found on the web and all digital sites like iTunes, Amazon, Bandcamp, CD Baby, Spotify and Pandora
Italian music artists EMILIANO DEFERRARI & MARCO MACHERA are releasing their debut self-titled album of free-form improvisation on November 15, 2019. Long-time musical friends, Emiliano and Marco had never worked together, but always liked each other's music, and attended each other's performances. Emiliano's band Nanaue used to cover one of Marco's great tunes “The Ugly Song.” Throughout the years, the two musicians discovered very similar taste in music, from no-wave jazz, to art rock and more non-conventional styles. So, when Marco moved to Brussels from Italy, it felt quite natural to do something together. They could have started writing songs, but eventually they preferred to start with “something completely different”.
Emiliano explains, “They call it non-idiomatic free improvisation. We don’t agree 100% with the definition, it’s a philosophical quarrel, but that is what we do. We are both improvisers, inspired by free-form music and wanted to perform together this way. The album is documenting an excerpt from two recording sessions on cold mornings in March and May 2019 in Brussels, at Monty Studio. Two condenser microphones in the room plus a dynamic one pointed on a twin reverb, to capture the sound of us on prepared acoustic and jazz guitars, baglama, violin and objects found in the studio. No overdubs, no post-production, a rough mixing and a transparent pre-mastering. The beauty of the moment without pre-ordered languages to fit into, not against but beyond rules.”
Watch the promotional video:
“We took a walk through Matonge, the Congolese neighbourhood of Brussels, and had fun mixing (us Italians), with those picturesque African vibes on a cold northern European afternoon, last October. That’s the joy of living in an open city like Brussels.”
Marco says, “We have decided to release this material outside of any self-indulgent snobbery, we just decided to give something to the listeners so they could satisfy their possible curiosity. We liked the atmosphere we created, the interplay and the amount of chance which helped the development of those four improvisations. We are eager to perform live and have fun with our audience. You may also consider this album as ‘another side of us’. In fact, for instance, we realize now that we didn't sing during the sessions, even though both of us are frontmen. We were so focused on creating the momentum that we forgot rules, roles and habits.”
From Brussels the duo will start presenting the album and performing live on November 30th at seeU, the ephemeral neighbourhood at the old 'Casernes d'Ixelles'.”
EMILIANO DEFERRARI
Emiliano was born in Genoa, Italy, in 1977. He started playing guitar at 6 and recording his own music at 11. He played and sang jazz, rock and world music with different bands in Italy. In 2005, after settling in Rome, he produced his first solo album “SO_LO” with Rattsburg Records, with good reviews. Since then he started touring Italy with his solo show with guitar, voice and effects. Between 2007/2011, Emiliano toured as The Loop Duo with Adriano Arena, with guitars, voices and live loops, producing an album (THE LOOP DUO/BMA and Rattsburg, 2009). In 2009/2010, he produced a new EP (O.S.T./Rattsburg, 2009) and LP “LIGHT EARS” (Rattsburg 2010). Since 2008 he's been working on the project Nanaue with Matteo Nahum. Between 2011 and 2017 they published 8 singles (Rattsburg Records and Gutenberg Music) and 1 album (Nanaue/Gutenberg Music, 2013) plus 3 recordings for tribute albums of Italian prog label Mellow Records. In 2014 Emiliano moved to Brussels, Belgium where he re-published his seminal album “Small Engines” (2002, Rattsburg) and in 2018 he released “MONTY” (Rattsburg) which received great recognition from the art-rock, prog and jazz reviewers.
PRESS for Emiliano
“Monty is a fascinating journey through the wild mind of a maverick.” - PROG magazine, UK
“Monty, the surprise of the year” - (tr.) Fabio Zuffanti’s TOP 5, PsycandProg, Italy
“Experimental and disturbing, Monty is a bold mix of jazz, world and avant-garde” - (tr.) Corto, Music Waves, France
“Nothing is impossible for one who’s ready to go all the way and make a strange land his own...” - Dmitry M. Epstein, DMME Let it Rock, Canada
“The music rises, it takes us up, and from up there, it shows us how we can be satisfied when listening to – finally – a disruptive album” - (tr.) Enrico Storti, Asterischi di Musiche, Italy
MARCO MACHERA
Marco Machera is an Italian singer-songwriter. He likes to say: “I don't play music – I make it happen.” He released the debut-album “One Time, Somewhere” in 2012: the recording, a unique melting pot of pop and art rock, won early stamps of approval from the likes of Peter Gabriel bassist Tony Levin and ex-Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett, who praised its “interesting atmospheres and contrasting moods.” His second solo effort, “Dime Novels” (2014), is once again a uniquely fresh take on the pop song formula, and features incredible musicians Pat Mastelotto, Tony Levin, Markus Reuter, among others. A third solo record, “Small Music From Broken Windows,” was released in 2017: an intimate and reflective concept album inspired by “The Outsider,” a short story by H.P. Lovecraft. Since 2014, Marco has also been collaborating with American bassist Julie Slick (from the Adrian Belew Power Trio) and drummer Alessandro Inolti on the EchoTest project. In the ever-evolving and experimental worlds of modern progressive rock and avant garde jazz rock, their free-flowing improvisations and strongly melodic songwriting have combined to help them shape an unique identity and garner a growing reputation for their intriguing and surprising albums and their rare and captivating live shows alike.
PRESS for Marco
“Along the way, Dime Novels finds Marco furiously pushing at the walls of musical convention. There are moments when the album sounds like prog, others when it sounds like an ambient fever dream, others still when it sounds like something that couldn’t be farther away from either construct. Dime Novels is as challenging as it is entertaining — and a huge leap forward for Machera.” - Nick DeRiso, Something Else Reviews, US
“[EchoTest] has just released its latest album, 'Daughter of Ocean,' whose nine songs form one vast movement of music that weaves thematic crescendos with ominous and dark undertones. The interplay of Slick and Machera is highly rhythmic throughout, often finding peaks in melodic moments like 'Sleep' and 'Tiger Races.' [...] the album is as enjoyable, wildly impressive, and unconventional as it gets.” - Jon D'Auria, Bass Magazine
To purchase “Emiliano Deferrari, Marco Machera”:
Available for download and streaming on all major digital stores from November 15th https://show.co/5HhTWd9
“The Crimson Guitar” is the eagerly anticipated fifth full-length album by Fernando Perdomo, guitarist and bassist of The Dave Kerzner Band and Jakob Dylan’s Echo In The Canyon Band.
This NEW STUDIO ALBUM is a tribute to KING CRIMSON and has been a labour of love for Perdomo.
Fernando Perdomo said of the release: “'The Crimson Guitar' is my passionate love letter to the amazing King Crimson music that fascinated me when I was first learning classical guitar in my early teens... I created these arrangements with the upmost respect to the music and legacy of the band. My hope is to bring light to the delicate beauty of the songs”
The album has been released by Forward Motion Records, via Cherry Red.
TRACK LISTING
1. PEACE (A THEME)
2. ISLANDS
3. I TALK TO THE WIND
4. FORMENTERA LADY
5. STARLESS
6. PRINCE RUPERT AWAKES
7. ERUDITE EYES
8. MOONCHILD
9. BOOK OF SATURDAY
10. THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING
With the Viscaynes - rare early doo-wop and gospel recordings
Sly Stone's earliest recordings and ultra-rare singles “Sly Before The Family Stone” is now available! Featuring rare early doo-wop and gospel recordings with the Viscaynes. The album is released on CD and Limited Edition of 200 blue vinyl on 180 gram audiophile quality pressing!
Sly and the Family Stone was an American band from San Francisco. Active from 1966 to 1983, it was pivotal in the development of funk, soul, rock, and psychedelic music. It's core line-up was led by singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Sly Stone, and included Stone's brother and singer/guitarist Freddie Stone, sister and singer/keyboardist Rose Stone, trumpeter Cynthia Robinson, drummer Greg Errico, saxophonist Jerry Martini, and bassist Larry Graham. It was the first major American rock group to have a racially integrated, male and female lineup.
Track Listings
1. Honest
2. In the Still of the Night
3. Searchin'
4. Don't Say I Didn't Warn You
5. Ain't That Lovin' You Babe
6. Swim
7. Every Dog Has His Day
8. Suki Suki Part One
9. Suki Suki Part Two
10. Seventh Sun
11. Nerves
12. I Can't Turn You Loose
13. Take My Advice
14. Watermelon Man
15. I Ain't Got Nobody
16. If You Were Blue
17. Rock Dirge
18. Hi Love
19. Life of Fortune and Fame
The Chicago-based prog-rock quintet, District 97, is back with a
new studio release, Screens. Both the band and their sound have
evolved through several incarnations since their inception in 2006. The band
started as an instrumental rock band until changing direction in 2007 when
American Idol finalist, Leslie Hunt, joined as vocalist. A few years later, a
renowned Chicago Symphony Orchestra cellist, Katinka Kleijn joined the band as
well. Ms. Hunt’s vocals capture the angst of society’s marginalized. Her
vocals, combined with the unabashed musicianship, form a curious, yet absorbing
the sonic experience.
Screens pick up where the band’s previous three
studio albums leave off, with a more evolved and accessible sound. Therein lies
one challenge I faced as a listener, blending the stylistic, almost pop vocals
into what feels like an unnatural prog-rock habitat. As a result, I found it
hard to surrender completely. Just as the Zappa-esque prog/jazz/fusion
creativity takes me in one direction, the glossy vocals take over and pull me
in another.
Songs like “Bread & Yarn,” where vocals are more subdued and
democratized, stand out. “ShapeShifter” and “Ghost Girl” come closer to
vocal/musical synergy as Hunt sounds a bit less polished and produced. This
suits the twists and turns of the undercurrent well. Vocals aside, some
masterful performances are starting with Jim Tashjian’s jazz-infused guitar
licks where he takes the listener on short sprees away from the rhythm and
masterfully returns them to the start. Founder Jonathan Schang’s drumming is
clever, accomplished, and brings forth rhythmic illusions in the vein of Gavin
Harrison of King Crimson and Porcupine Tree.
While the blend of pop and heavy prog may not be everyone’s cup
of tea, one can tell by the skill of the players, the shifting tempos, and the
spaces left between the notes that District 97 would be an engaging live band.
The One More Red Night album released in 2014 confirms the
assertion.
Overall, District 97 embodies the Prog rock principals of
pushing the envelope and opening the listener’s mind to new sonic
possibilities. This is a modern progressive sound that melds elements not
typically melded together. While Screens shines in places,
this listener had to work to find them and did not become as absorbed as he had
hoped.
Rate the
Tracks Tracks: 1. Forest Fire 2. Sheep 3. Sea I Provide 4. Bread and Yarn 5. Trigger 6. After Orbit Mission 7. Shapeshifter 8. Blueprint 9. Ghost Girl
It has been over two years since
I have the wondrous and beautiful piano playing of Dulce Joya. My first journey
with this amazing soloist was Reality of Dreams.
Now the curtain opens again for
Dulce on Devotion, a collection of 10 instrumental and epic piano
compositions for those with an ear for a classical, new age, ambient, or just a
good music without words type of listen.
Once again, I find myself
mesmerized by this music. The tracks comprise the entire scale of human emotion
and everything else in between. What Dulce creates is a soundtrack that could
fit into so many lives and film scores for that matter. I heard the excitement,
sadness, the rolling of the ocean's tide as it hits the shore, sunshine, rain, well
let’s just say her range is amazing. And to cover all of this within one
recording to affect one listener in this manner is an implausible achievement.
It takes a lot to get my attention after 21 years of covering music from around
the world. It has to be quite exceptional for me to dive in and be able to flow
with the music and let my words develop and flow as I listen.
Dulce’s passion and technical
expertise with the ivory keys are exceptional and all 10 tracks can offer a
demanding listener enough to hold their attention from start to finish. The
classical influence is strong in her presentation however she does allow the
discipline some breathing room so she goes into different directions and moods
within one song. To articulate it as improvisation is almost a stretch because
it is organized and so perfected. I am not sure how to explain it beyond that.
I think that many listeners would consider it a new age classical as well.
Essentially all you have to do is let it be whatever it is for you the
individual. I think that is the most important factor for anyone’s listening
experience.
I can tell potential listeners
that this is beautiful music to be enjoyed anytime or anywhere. It is more than
background music though, it absorbs you, relaxes you and empty’s your mind to
make room for all the positive things in life. It is not happy time music, it
is more of a time to reflect, focus and just let the sounds, emotions, and
changes of the tempos guide you. It can take you away from the stresses of life
we all experience for a while. For this listener, that is the absolute best
kind of listen to take in.
Dulce is streaming one track from
the album currently title “Yes It Is You,” which I have included here and on my
New Age Music Reviews Spotify Playlist.
When I hear artistry like this on
display, I wish that I could manipulate an instrument and create such beauty.
But for now, my music is my words and I hope it captures your imagination like
this music just did for me.
Review
Provided By New Age Music Reviews Tracks: 01. Passione Nocturnale 02. Yes It Is You 03. The Sound of Your Voice 04. Eternal Love 05. Forgotten Worlds 06. Oceanally Hearts 07. My Untamed Soul in Yours 08. The Endless Feelings of Mine 09. From Ancient Time We Meet Again 10. Mystery Among Candles
