Goodybe z'ev

Late last night Disaster Amnesiac was awakened by some sort of rumbling. Knowing that sleep would elude me for a while, I logged on to social media and saw the news of the passing of Stefan Weisser, aka z'ev.
Along with being tremendously saddened by this news, and happy to have seen him play live, Disaster Amnesiac has been marveling at the man's influence. z'ev's use of metals as percussive instruments within his performances has been incredibly influential. What had been a method utilized seemingly only by Avant Garde composers made the jump over into popular culture in a huge away, in large part on account of his steadfast use of it. A few years back, I saw an ad for an "Industrial percussion line" of some major drum manufacturer, and all that I could wonder was if z'ev was being cut in on the royalties. Surely, others that were familiar with him felt the same way? Additionally, his work with textual cut ups and permutations, approached through the lens of pure poetics, was wide ranging and incredibly deep. In many ways, he took the mantle from Burroughs and Gysin and pushed their innovations further. There's also the hermetic, alchemical research done by the man. The way that I see it, this area of his life has only just begun. It would seem to me that any of his writings within that area will be courses of study for serious students of Hermetic arts. Additionally, he had style. Disaster Amnesiac has seen more than a few Industrial percussionists that had been pretty clearly aping his looks and threads. The thousands of people that have read and obsessed over his RE/search Industrial Culture interview will know exactly what Disaster Amnesiac means.  Hell,  I still haven't forgiven a reviewer for the mid 2000's zine Swingset who mocked z'ev in what to me was an incredibly petty and disrespectful way.
z'ev performed and thrived at the margins of the greater society, utilizing a lot of its cast off materials to make, in his words, "...schonste muziek...". His sounds and actions will continue to influence and effect those that have been exposed to them.
Goodbye, z'ev. You truly were an Artist and Poet.

Sage Pbbbt-invocations of unknown entities; Tone List Records CD, 2017

Late night insomnia-related web surfing lead Disaster Amnesiac to Sage Pbbbt's invocations of unknown entities. A promo blurb showed up on a page that I follow, and its descriptor of the release's nature, "True Shamanic Black Metal", had me hitting "purchase" within minutes. After a bit of a wait (things take time to ship from Australia to the U.S.!), it's been acquired and listened to repeatedly.
Consisting of three tracks, Charms (1), Charms (2), and Trange, which are spread over two discs' length, invocations gets down to some very out there musical production. As Disaster Amnesiac has listened, I've marveled at their incantatory otherness.
Sage Pbbbt pairs down her musical tools to voice and percussion throughout. The drumming, which sounds as if it's done with a kit of two bass drums and a couple of tom toms, rolls and thunders with a deliciously non-linear tack. It feels as though she allowed herself the freedom to play patterns and rolls until the time was right to take space, to let the drums breathe. Additionally great for this fan of drums is the way that they sound here: loosely tuned, big and booming. Along with the lovely timbres, it's great to hear what sound like a few different striking implements utilized on the drums. Invocations' percussion sounds wonderfully live, vigorous, and untamed. Not always a common occurrence, that's for sure. Credit must be given here to engineer Dan O'Conner. What a great job of capturing what can be a very elusive vibe.
As for the entities, Pbbbt channels them through vocal accompaniment to the drums. Disaster Amnesiac has been able to identify a clutch separate ones. Among the vocal emanations (I deeply hesitate to call them "styles"), there are screeching banshee, Tuvan shaman, total alien voice, operatic tenor,  Medieval farmer, and urban wild person. During today's listen, a new voice seemed to arise from the mix, so, presumably, the list could be close to infinite, depending on how closely one can listen. It feels like an absolutely tough exercise in extended technique, but, then again, invocations of unknown entities is expressly described as being a work that aims beyond that type of qualifier. Still, the sheer physical range is impressive.
As invocations of unknown entities has played around Disaster Amnesiac for the last several days, I've wondered too it many Black Metal fans will find their way around to it. It most definitely has the Outsider feel that makes so much of that approach to self expression so vital and great.  It most definitely has entranced this listener. Lastly, major kudos to Sage Pbbbt for using the phrase "exploratory music" on the liner note, as well. A real perception changer for me!

Lindsay Walker-Demo Tape; no date given, Noiseservice.com

It must have been about three to four years ago when Disaster Amnesiac copped this tape from sound artist Lindsey Walker at a New Year's Eve party in Berkeley. Recent tape organizing/purging lead me back to it. As I've been digging its Minimalist vibes, you can rest assured that my copy wont be ending up at Goodwill.
The A side, Mathematics "UK Lite", features Lindsay in pure vocal mode. What sounds to this listener like a minor scale is sung repeatedly for several minutes. This piece's drama comes from the way in which this scale is processed and cut up. Mathematics "UK Lite" has this great, cavernous delay setting throughout its duration, which gives it a quite unsettling, claustrophobic vibe. Disaster Amnesiac imagines a singer in a room somewhere, perhaps purging, perhaps celebrating. Either way, this imagined presence is most definitely solitary; the intimacy of the piece can really get into your brain. Also of note are cuts that are applied at various spots, which have made my perceptions jump and wiggle. Right as Disaster Amnesiac gets comfortable with the repeated "la la la la la la...." actions, all wrapped up in their echoes, Walker applies a swift, sudden cut that lasts for a few seconds before the singing starts up again. Mathematics "UK Lite" is a great piece of Minimalist vocal artistry.
On the flip side of this demo, we have an extended keyboard meditation, Could've Turned (I.I.#1), which, much like Mathematics, centers around a simple repeated riff.  Walker uses this riff as a vehicle  for movements into to improvised spaces. She coaxes big, billowy tones from her keyboard, sometimes playing simple one note phrases, other times slamming out clusters of notes. It sometimes sounds to Disaster Amnesiac as if she's using her entire forearm to get them, and I love those sounds. Along with these types of tones, Walker gets cool, almost robotic, swirly synth stuff happening, never losing the heavy, billowy timbres while doing so. The cuts in action are similarly utilized, but they feel more organic within the piece, less seemingly a function of taping and more so interior to the composition. Who knows, though? Could've Turned (I.I. #1) has a similar loner Minimal feel throughout its duration as Mathematics, linking them pleasingly as two of a piece.
Disaster Amnesiac has not seen Lindsay Walker since the party at which I got this demo tape from her. It's my hope that she continues to produce such cool, individualistic pieces of music. As mentioned, don't bother looking for my copy in a thrift store, as it'll surely remain here with me. 

Goodbye Malcolm

The first time that Disaster Amnesiac heard AC/DC, I was a ten or eleven year old, rolling around Stockton, California with a cousin and a few of his pals. The music's power had an instant effect upon me, as I imagine that it did for so many other Rock 'n Roll fans. Since that time, they're a group that I'll make time to listen to; as much as I despise Classic Rock radio programming, I'll occasionally surf over to the local representative of that vibe in hopes of hearing some of those great Malcolm Young riffs. As far as I know, and it's recalled that Angus Young has copped to this, it was the former that wrote all of those great tunes, subsequently giving them to the rest of the group, with the latter whooping it up live over them. One would be hard pressed to find a more elegantly simplified aesthetic as that of Malcolm Young's. AC/DC never strayed far from their initial template, and, with one so bare-bones brilliantly simple, what reason would they have to have done so, anyway?
As Disaster Amnesiac has thought about Malcolm since news of his passing hit the media, I've kept coming back to a comparison between him and Johnny Ramone. Both took Rock 'n Roll innovations from their predecessors, paired them down to an even more elementally basic form, and subsequently worked within those parameters to great artistic success. At times in the past, Malcolm has sounded to this listener like some master of Minimalism, as, indeed he was. It's fascinating that he was able to make these artless moves within the always novelty-obsessed world of the Big Corporate Rock. Malcolm Young really did stick to his vision, and while doing so, crafted a lasting, solid, and most of all enjoyable body of work.
Farewell, Malcolm Young, thanks for staying true to your vision. Such fine musical examples you set.

Max Roach and Dizzy Gillespie-Paris 1989; A&M Records, 1990 compact disc

As recalled, this disc's release was treated with huge fanfare in the early 1990's, touted as the answer to many a Jazz lover's prayers. Max Roach and Dizzy Gillespie, together again after four decades apart! Disaster Amnesiac had a copy during that time, but somewhere along the line, it was sold or traded off or given away. Recently, I'd been hankering to hear it again, and a recent stop at the Rasputin's Records in Campbell, CA offered it up to me, shiny and seemingly unused. Money was paid. Listening ensued. Impressions made? You'd better believe it!
Roach starts things off on Paris 1989, rolling across his immaculately tuned drums with the finesse that's so characteristic of his playing. Cymbals are added, and the total effect is that of a drum choir embodied by one man. Max's playing is so tightly eloquent throughout this recording, it's just wonderful to listen to. He goes from straight linear rhythmic beats to free pulsing to wild flailing, and that's pretty much within the first five minutes of disc opener In The Beginning. Anyone interested in Jazz drumming absolutely must listen to Max Roach; in multiple interviews he would state that his style was based upon the earlier masters such as Baby Dodds and Sid Catlet. That said, Roach developed an incredibly unique and somewhat more complex approach than his esteemed predecessors, one that remains highly innovative. It's a high, high standard. Across the 90 or so minutes of duo exchange with Gillespie, Max leads the way, changing up the rhythms when he needs to, taking the lead or being supportive when either of those are needed. His moves from sticks to mallets to brushes offer fascinating tonal variation from his kit as he makes these moves.
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie will obviously be remembered as one of the key 20th Century artists. Much like Roach, he built upon the earlier innovations of Jazz, spearheading his own innovations into the Bop movement, from which he bounced into a lifetime of Jazz touring and ambassadorship. The playing of this then 71 year old man on Paris 1989 sounds fresh, strong, and clear. Disaster Amnesiac hears him quoting from Copeland, hears him get chillingly intimate and boldly brassy, hears complicated multi-note runs and simple Blues phrases. I've marveled at his control of the trumpet: Diz does it all with Mastery. One thing that Disaster Amnesiac has ruminated upon while listening to these two discs is the relatively simple design of the trumpet, and the way in which Gillespie extends and elaborates this simplicity into such sublime sounds. Additionally, when he scat sings on Salt Peanuts and Oo Pa Pa Da, a world of absolute joy opens up.
Taken together, Roach and Gillespie play with such great simpatico on Paris 1989. Reunited after four decades of being apart, the duo share leads and supports. One can tell that a lot of active listening is being done as they trade phrases within the tunes, as comments fly back and forth between drummer and trumpeter. The vibes are heavily weighted with their decades of experience.  It's the sound of Masters conversing upon their craft. Where Max goes, Dizzy follows, and vice versa. Signals are sent and responded to. Lines are traded, mused upon, and then exited, often with Roach opening up new opportunities with great, rolling fills on his tom toms. So much action going on there! Although it sometimes seems as though Gillespie is content to lay out and let his dear friend wail, when he does step up, the sounds are always perfectly placed, always spot on. Although mostly improvised, Paris 1989 has the feel of a fully formed, thought out musical composition.
In the liner note for Paris 1989, Gillespie states something along the lines of "...this recording will go down in the history of recorded Jazz as one of its greatest...". Not many could get away with such a statement, but Disaster Amnesiac, and surely others, would have to agree. It's an essential document from two titans of one of the best developments of the otherwise absolutely violent and often criminal 20th Century. Close to thirty years since its release, and close to 100 years since Roach and Gillespie began their respective epic runs, it holds up quite nicely. Dig in and LEARN.

z'ev/Alexandra von Bolz'n/Fragment King-The Garden; digital release via Bandcamp, 2017

You just have to hand it to to z'ev: fifty plus years into his creative journey, and the man is still working. He seems to come back from any and all adversity. Most recently, Disaster Amnesiac has read that he was injured in some type of literal train wreck, only to rehab and recover, this time duly heading for South America. z'ev is not thin skinned, that's for sure.
Neither is his voluminous documented work, which, with his Bandcamp page, is growing all the time. While not located at that same cyber node, his music with Alexandra von Bolz'n and Fragment King is equally tough, and highly worthy of checking out.
Disaster Amnesiac has been digging The Garden, nineteen minutes of percussive trance bliss from 2011, especially of late. z'ev starts things off with a fine example of his ostinato drumming approach on what sounds like a single bass drum. It stays for the duration of The Garden, conjuring up hallucinatory images of snakes and surreal landscapes for this listener. Disaster Amnesiac is reminded too of a RE/Search interview in which the master percussionist/sound manipulator spoke of dispensing with flashy drum licks in order to get to some kind of deeper essences. This is most definitely the case herein. z'ev doesn't "do" a lot with his lines on The Garden, and in doing so does everything, moving the track to fully trance inducing places.
Atop the magic rhythmic carpet laid down by z'ev, one hears whirling, high pitched electronics from Fragment King that drill down into ears. Not so much melodic as atmospheric, they spin and cloud around the sound spaces, digging down and flying out and around the drumming. Alongside these moves, vocalist Alexandra von Bolz'n intones some kind of bizarre script. Disaster Amnesiac can't really tell what language she's singing in, but her dramatic vocal rises and falls sure sound dramatic and often somewhat disturbed. Perhaps they're some kind of vocalized asemic writing?
The sum total of The Garden strikes Disaster Amnesiac as some kind of sublime Industrial Black Metal, as its darkened vibes sink in to the auditory perception in a way that is heavy, mysterious, and singularly out there. This music is not traditionally pleasant, but it's surely compelling and fascinating to this listener.
It's my hope that z'ev, von Bolz'n and Fragment King have more of these sonic darts to throw at us.

Reptoid-Scum Supreme, Cool Room Records/Barcop Records; 2017

A few months back, Disaster Amnesiac had the pleasure of being surrounded by the fearsome sound and energy of Reptoid at Oakland's Golden Bull. It was fascinating and impressive to watch and listen to this manic one band as he plowed through an energetic 45 minute set; the guy was seriously pushing some air, his sounds attacking the audience with blast upon blast of tight, intricate pieces for electronics and drum set. After the set, his merch table had a sign that advertised an upcoming 7" release. He had me before the last notes of his set rang out, that's for certain.
Due to a busted turntable, now replaced, and general life stuff taking up a ton of time, Disaster Amnesiac had not been able to delve into my copy of Scum Supreme for a bit, but over the past few days I've had time to groove to its sounds, and they're kicking my ears' ass just the same way that Reptoid's live set did.
Over the course of what appear to be four tracks on the vinyl (three tracks listed on the cover), drummer/electronics controller/vocalist Jordan Sobolew thrashes and pounds his kit with over the top strength, rolling over his toms and snare as he shreds the tunes' synth arrangements. The latter are crazed,  glossy, glassy, whirling tones that leap off of the vinyl and surround the listener with their high end, treble attacks. No mere effects, though, these sounds work to make their songs quite melodically effective.
The drumming is a real highlight, at least for this listener. Sobolew is kicking serious butt with his playing, and Disaster Amnesiac, having seen him do his thing live, knows it's the real deal. His gruff vocals, shouted atop the musical melee, convey some serious angst with their Punk Rock demonstrativeness. Reptoid ain't singing about good vibes and mellow flower people, that's for sure.
The sum total of this short ride is a strong, heavy, and wrenching one. Scum Supreme strikes me as a cleansing purge, Reptoid pushing through all of the negativity that he perceives and arriving at a shimmering, metallic, peacefully drained space.
It's worth the slog, that's for goddamn sure.