Join Sonic Youth guitarist Lee Ranaldo, collaborating live with saxophonist Ulrich Krieger and guitarist Alan Licht, as he goes to the blasphemous extreme with live scores to the films of Stan Brakhage and other mid-century American cinema avant-gardists. According to Licht, Text of Light “does not perform soundtracks to the films of Stan Brakhage. Rather, it uses the films as a further element for improvisation, almost as [another] performer. While Brakhage intended for these films to be screened silently as films…[here] they are juxtaposed with the music, in a kind of real-time performance, mixed-media collage.” But the evening doesn’t stop there! The night also includes a screening of Parallel, an animation tour-de-force by mediamaker Huckleberry Lain, featuring music by Argentinean-born, L.A.-based electronic duo Languis.
Mia Doi Todd (born June 30 1975) is a musician from Los Angeles, California, United States.
Todd moved to New Haven, Connecticut in 1993 to attend Yale University, where she majored in East Asian Studies. Her first album, The Ewe and the Eye, was recorded at the Spaceshed, the recording studio/garage belonging to the LA band Further. It came out on its label, Xmas Records, in the spring of 1997, as she was graduating from college. She moved to New York City and started playing in clubs. That fall, she recorded her second album, Come out of Your Mine, which was released on the Communion Label in 1999.
She lived in Japan for most of 1998, studying Ankoku Butoh first with Kazuo and Yoshito Ohno and at Asubeustosu-kan, and then with Min Tanaka at Body Weather Farm. She speaks rudimentary Japanese. Returning home to Los Angeles, she recorded most of her next album, Zeroone, on a Power Mac G4 and started City Zen Records to release it in 2001.
Her first three albums were solo acoustic recordings. She then started to play with a band, which was called Los Cincos which later renamed itself Syncopation. Todd and the group did not record much together. She signed a contract with Columbia/SME Records and recorded The Golden State, culling songs from her previous albums. Mitchell Froom and Yves Beauvais helped her produce it. She recorded at the Sunset Sound Factory, and the album came out in the fall of 2002. For a year, she toured the US and Europe, on her own and then with Alaska! and Lou Barlow’s Folk Implosion. Columbia chose at this time not to renew her contract.
Her fifth album, Manzanita, which was released in 2005, is also the Spanish name of a round-leaved bush with smooth, red bark and tiny, bell-shaped blossoms that grows throughout California and the Pacific Coast. She recorded in Lake Hollywood with Rob Campanella. Many of the songs were still just voice and guitar or piano. Brent Rademaker played bass as well as some guitar and piano. On drums and percussion were Hunter Crowley, Ric Menck, and Nelson Bragg. Members of Dead Meadow and Beachwood Sparks made cameo appearances, and the entire band—Future Pigeon—backed her on the song “Casa Nova.” Rob engineered the album and played electric guitar, piano, dulcimer, and mandolin.
An album of remixes, La Ninja: Amor and other dreams of Manzanita, appeared in April 2006 and also had three new tracks, including a cover of the Beatles’ song “Norwegian Wood.”
Mia Doi Todd’s seventh album Gea was named as LA Weekly’s Top-10 Recordings of 2008. Carlos Nino produced with Miguel Atwood Ferguson’s orchestrations. Mia toured the US and Canada as guest artist for Jose Gonzalez.
In 2009 she released her first instrumental album, Morning Music, in collaboration with percussionist Andres Renteria.
From youtube member partizandgondry
“Michel Gondry’s newest music video for Mia Doi Todd’s ‘Open Your Heart’. After several years conceptualizing a video involving dozens of dancers wearing bright multi-colored outfits, Michel found a perfect fit with Mia’s tune. The music was produced and arranged by long-time friend and collaborator, Jon Brion and the video features the Riverside Community College Marching Band.”
Random Necessities for Audible Bliss on KSPC 88.7 FM
Fridays from 6-8PM . Live webcast at kspc.org
Playlist for March 5, 2010
silver mt zion . i built myself a metal bird
mono
russian circles . fathom
pelican (by request) . the creeper
caspian . quovis
do make say think . do
grails . acid rain
air . la femme d’ aregent
sonic youth . anagrama
south china . escape
the lickets . the seven pomegranite seeds
crystal castles (by request) . vanished
the faint (by request) . forever growing centipedes
flower pistols . playground love (air)
four tet . she just likes to fight
goddamn electric bill
South China is on tour from Maine & they are stopping by KSPC. Tune in & Space out…
South China was born in 2002 as a marriage, musically and literally, of Jeremy and Jerusha Robinson. Their individual backgrounds in experimental rock and classical music produce a sound that feels sparse and improvised, evoking a slightly dark and dream-like state, like trying to recall something that is just beyond the edges of memory. They draw listeners into their intimate world of Maine winters, bittersweet moments, subtle humor, and the bizarre dream imagery.
While living on Washington Avenue in Portland during 2003-2004, they wrote constantly, and also began collaborations with their friend and former band mate David Lamb, forming the first trio version of Brown Bird. Over the following 6 years South China chipped away at their catalog, writing, re-writing, ditching, digging up, gestating. They moved six times. They landed in Biddeford and rented out a music studio on Washington Street. When coming up with a name for the album which they are finishing up with Ron Harrity at Peapod Recordings, the one that stuck was “Washingtons”.
They have been members of the dark Americana band Brown Bird for the better part of the last 6 years. They are also currently members of Plains and Tiny Fires (both Portland bands) and have been frequently collaborating with White Light, Tin Ceilings, Guy Capecelatro III and Sontiago. – LastFM
Here are some live clips of South China performing at KDVS earlier this year.
There is a dreamlike quality to Magic Neighbor which
cushions Lisas vocals while the instrumentation travels
in different directions and often takes unsespecting turns.
Strings come in and out and wind down piano keys, hiding
to later reappear. Acoustic guitars lend rhythm
to Lisas voice which is hushed and sometimes nearly
whispered. Soft noises and ambience drifting over a calm
before a storm… A gorgeous album. – Kenn
Lisa Germano (born June 27, 1958) is an American singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has released seven albums featuring her often-hushed vocal style, confessional lyrics, and distinctive violin. Her 1994 album Geek the Girl received widespread critical acclaim, including being featured as a top album of the 1990s by the music magazine Spin. She is also known as a guest performer and/or session musician on over sixty records by a variety of artists, including John Mellencamp, Simple Minds, David Bowie, Yann Tiersen, Neil Finn, Sheryl Crow, Iggy Pop, Jewel and Eels. – Wikipedia
From Leipzig, Germany–”In 2003, three people met in a small room in the north-west of leipzig starting to play together. influenced by 80s new wave and postpunk. “erstens” was the name of the first song. countless members passed, mainly on bass. “erstens” was then the title of the first cd-ep released in 2006. Monozid started to play around in squats and other places. in summer 2006 ralf joined the band and now the band is complete as a quartet.”
Swann Danger
www.myspace.com/swanndanger
Swann Danger began as a two piece in Spring 2002 with Andy taking on bass, drum machine + sampler duties and Cynthia on vocals and guitar. Both were members of the band Heart of Snow, which put out an EP on GSL and broke up by early 2002. In 2003 Swann Danger released a self titled EP on their own Custody NIght School label, which was later released on vinyl through Release the Bats records in Sweden. The band toured Europe in the summer of 2005 and played shows up and down the west coast as well as in New York City. Their full length album “Deep North” was recorded down in Los Angeles with Robert “Joey” Perales replacing the drum machine. The album was recorded by Pete Lyman (Infrasonic Sound) and Skot Brown (Kempton House) and released on Custody Night School in the early half of 2007. In April 2007, Jim Andersen (Needles, Year Future) joined the band on drums. The band toured Europe in the summer of 2007 behind the vinyl release of “Deep North” on Cul-de-Sac Komitee (Germany), as well as a west coast tour. In 2008, a second EP was released on CDr and later vinyl and more touring ensued. New songs have been recorded and Swann Danger are looking at releasing another full length record as well as continuing to tour in the US and Europe.
Dalmacio Von Diamond & The Enochian Keys
http://www.myspace.com/enochiankeys
David started a record label and asked Dalmacio to put something out on it. Dalmacio was in a band at the time that was slowly fading. Dalmacio befriended a young spry figure named Moribund who so happened to be fitted with a crude recording apparatus that suited Dalmacio’s idea of what these yet written songs should be captured on. After weeks of recording in Moribund’s bedroom and pleased with the outcome, said crude apparatus died in an instant flash, killing with itself, the entirety of Dalmacio’s album. After a few tears and an expensive bottle of scotch, the two set out to re-record the album. Many months later, after Dalmacio had quit playing in yet another failed band, he decided to gather a small team of trusted allies with similar sound and vision and great style. The first of said gentlemen was Abraham Jay, whom he had previously played with in second failed band. The pair played a host of shows: coffee shops, street corners, living rooms and the radio. Tickled by the response, the two decided to add a few more dashing gentlemen to the fray. This, just about the time that David was pressing the album Dalmacio and Moribund had worked so hard on. A story as old as time, the search for a drummer. Tried many drummers, all sweet gentlemen. But little did Dalmacio know, Moribund, whom helped on a few drum tracks on the album itself held a bitter feeling towards Dalmacio, that he had not asked Moribund himself to take the charge of Drumming. Moribund, a dashing rakish figure and well suited for any job was the last on Dalmacio’s list for he had thought so highly of Moribund, that he thought Moribund would be offended by the offer. But alas, Moribund was gleeful to accept the charge and be deployed side by side with such gentlemen. Upon hearing the news, Abraham Jay was struck with a brilliant idea himself. At this he dashed at the door of Dalmacio, with index towards the gods: I have the perfect man for guitar! Enter Casey Geisen: A lean and wise figure. Reluctant to the task, it took every bit of listening to the album and a few quarts of Jay’s blood, but Casey was resolved in his decision to jump into the fire. After a few rehearsals, we realized we were missing an integral frequency. Upon noticing this David tasked himself to join the fray and picked up a bass guitar and said, nay thee worry fine lads, I will join you arm and arm into the abyss. And so went the first push. The Enochian Keys were born in the bloodlight. But something still was not right. Bogged down by the guitar, Dalmacio sought flight. Ram, master of sound and a keen blackjack player offered his services. Then we knew, we were on our way.
Random Necessities for Audible Bliss on KSPC 88.7 FM
Fridays from 6-8PM . Live webcast at kspc.org
Playlist for February 19, 2010
do make say think . do
live performance from AVANT ABSTRACT
camarillo blues triangle . hemphill
the lickets . endless migration
live performance from AVANT ABSTRACT
phaxanation & the dustkickers . the days when we used to walk
sloan . lucky for me
virginia reed . little did he
unwound . we invent you
grails . reincarnation blues
live performance from AVANT ABSTRACT
russian circles . hexed all
the lights from here . gui la testa
Upcoming live performances…
March 12 – South China (on tour from Maine)
April 2 – Bestial Mouths
April 16 – S. Pineda
April 30 – Phaxanation & The Dustkickers
The Future… Pocket Rockets, The Black Apples, Taller Than Trees, and a guest DJ David of Albino Crow Records.
Downtempo Electonica for the soul.
900X add together many genres all under an
umbrella of electronics. In Music For Lubbock,
We hear elements of Ambience, Rock, IDM, even
a little Creep Hop. Sometmes a little jazzy,
sometimes a little rocking. Perfect soundtrack
for a desert drive into the sunrise. – Kenn
900X is the moniker for James McAlister. James has released the first 900X record, titled “Lubbock, 1980″ as the first in an instrumental Music Library series for the Lander, WY based record label Asthmatic Kitty. “Lubbock, 1980″ is a collection of songs recorded both at home an on the road, in numerous environments and non-environments from 2004-2008. James continues to do remix work and original film music under the 900X umbrella with such artists as My Brightest Diamond, Slavic Soul Party, and Sufjan Stevens. 900X can also be heard on the Asthmatic Kitty-curated Habitat compilation. – Asthmatic Kitty
