This Month's FMA Gold

February 2013

Some of the albums that caught our attention this month at the Free Music Archive

BJ Block & Dawn Pemberton: II [Soul, R&B, Dance]	BJ Block And Dawn Pemberton: The Land of Make Believe [Soul, R&B, Jazz]	Various Artists - BLM50: Raise The Black Lantern [Hip Hop, Jazz, Rap, R&B, Varied]
The Woolen Men: Tour Tape Number 1 [Punk, Rock]	Various Artists (Enough Records): AtlanThis 2 [Electro, Experi]	Carsie Blanton: Buoy [Folk, Pop, Country]
Cloud Becomes Your Hand: S/T [Psychedelic, Experi, Psych Rock]	Cloud Becomes Your Hand: Doggy Paddle Tore Tape 2011 [Psychedelic, Experi, Psych Rock]	Ash On Dust: Vol 1 by Ash On Dust [Rock, Drone, Instr]
Ex-Cult: Live on WFMU's Cherry Blossom Clinic [Punk, Rock]	Burning Bright: Burning Bright EP [Hip Hop, Rap]	Various Artists [NEW/esc.rec.]: NEW 8.0 [Electro]
Dot Wiggin Band: WFMU Hurricane Sandy Benefit [Covers, Garage]	The Custodian of Records: Burton Music [Hip Hop, Rap]	Telegraphy: Kurz-above [Ambient Electro, Experi]
Classwar Karaoke: Classwar Karaoke - 0021 Survey [Varied]	Arín Dodó: ¿Es Vd. Arín Dodó? o "El enigma del infierno convertido en perro" (Parte III)" [Free Jazz, Experi] Jan 31st	Nuclear Spring: Live On WFMU's Distort New Jersey [Political Punk]

Cuban-American Salsa

A great four-song EP of Cubano salsa from Frank Guerrero Y Su Grupo Aché of Columbia:

Francisco Guerrero Torriente (Frank Guerrero), was born to a musical mother in Havana, Cuba. He studied guitar as a teenager and fell in love with Colombia during his travels. Ever since, he has taken much inspiration from the country as well as other Carribean rhythms while still incorporating his native Cuban style.

This work combines the sounds of traditional Cuban septets with with the romantic and fresh style of the composer. Beta 0.1 is an analogy to new technologies and software, which means it is a product in development. (translated from Gerson CD, 2012.)

 

license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (aka Music Sharing)

Art Music from Saxophone Quartet

The West Point Saxophone Quartet, from the United States Military Academy Band at West Point, New York, is comprised of members of the saxophone section of the Military Academy's Concert Band.

Founded in 1965, the West Point Saxophone Quartet consists of soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone saxophones. The ensemble performs across genres -- classical, jazz and popular music, and demonstrates beautifully the technical virtuosity, tonal beauty and versatility of which the saxophone family is capable.

In their album Fault Lines, the Quartet performs modern compositions by Perry Goldsmith, David Kechley, Pierre Lantier, David Froom. This is an album we come back to often and recommend to all lovers of modern composition. It is beautifully done. With the exception of a Radiohead piece, Fault Lines is available for free download from the Academy website where there are complete program notes and credits.

license: uncertain (US Government Public Domain?)

The Beautiful Music Sampler

The Beautiful Music label in Ontario, Canada, purveyors of fine pop,"collectors and distributors of fine music," offers you a taste of their pop goodness with their label sampler 15 Beauty Tips For Modern Music Lovers.

"Anyone who knows us already knows that we love giving things away free and so here we are doing it again. Great music deserves to be heard and we think that we have released some of the greatest music you will ever hear, on our tiny imaginary label. If we had our way we would just give away all our albums for free but that doesn’t help recoup some of the costs for the bands so we only ask that if you enjoy some of these tunes, then please support some of these artists, whether it is attending their shows or purchasing a few more of their songs or just telling all your friends about them or about this free sampler."

This bubblegum may get stuck in your head! Hear for yourself!

license: full copyrights, all rights reserved

Tasmin Little's The Naked Violin CD

Since 2008, classical violinist Tasmin Little has offered her gorgeous The Naked Violin CD featuring works by J.S.Bach, Paul Patterson and Eugène Ysaÿe to listeners for free online. It is a long loved work at Oddio Overplay.

Little's friendly spoken introduction shares technical and musical insights and encourages listeners to think differently about classical music. Tasmin Little's aim is to remove the elitism associated with classical music forms.

"Classical music, for some reason or another, has this reputation that you need a certain kind of education to listen to it, you need to be a certain colour or live in a certain place and I'm a bit fed up with that. I wanted to take away any possible barrier and see if it makes a difference."

Tasmin's Three Step Challenge

1.  Listen to my spoken introduction and download my CD.

2.  Take some time to listen and get to know these pieces. Then write to me and tell me what you like (or don’t like) about each piece.

3.  Go to a concert, buy a CD or write and tell me what barriers still remain to prevent you from wanting to do either!


license: full copyrights; all rights reserved

The Fall Forum Member Bands

Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote of The Fall, "Of all the late-'70s punk and post-punk bands, none were longer lived or more prolific than The Fall. Throughout their career, the band underwent a myriad lineup changes, but at the center of it all was vocalist Mark E. Smith. With his snarling, nearly incomprehensible vocals and consuming bitter cynicism, Smith became a cult legend in indie and alternative rock. Over the course of their career, The Fall went through a number of shifts in musical style, yet the foundation of their sound was a near-cacophonous, a-melodic jagged jumble of guitars, sing-speak vocals, and keyboards."

Considering the stylistic phases of The Fall, it comes to reason that the music made by fans of The Fall would reach across genres. Members of The Fall Online Forum divided their compilation into three CDs: pop, rock, and noise. All three are available to the public as The FOF Compilation.


License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 US

Vox Novus

Vox Novus is a collective of composers, musicians, and music enthusiasts collaborating together to create, produce, promote, and enjoy the new music of today. The mission is to cultivate a music community and make artists' work available to the greater public.

Hundreds of works by contemporary composers are made available to you at no charge on the Vox Novus website.

From the Wikipedia entry for Vox Novus:

Vox Novus is the name of a New York City-based organization consisting of composers, musicians and music enthusiasts who state they want to support and spread new music. Vox Novus was founded by Robert Voisey to promote contemporary composers in 2000.

"This organization was created for the purposes of expanding the presence of contemporary music in the public's vision, empowering composers and contemporary musicians to create, produce, and promote their music. Vox Novus does this by the production of concerts, exposure on the Internet, and facilitating networking between professionals. Vox Novus promotes and produces contemporary music using repeatable methods and models that composers can take and use on their own. This way contemporary music can reach an ever wider audience thereby continuing the advancement of culture and art."

Vox Novus is most noted for its 60x60 project [an artistic project contain 60 one minute art performances by 60 composers], the Composer's Voice Concert Series, Fifteen Minutes of Fame music project, and the American Composer Timeline. Vox Novus has produced and promoted more than 300 concerts in over 20 countries around the world. The organization boasts more than 200 composer members including notable composers: Beth Anderson, Dennis Bathory-Kitsz, Jay Batzner, Noah Creshevsky, Emma Lou Diemer, Dennis Eberhard, David Gunn, Jennifer Higdon, Liana Alexandra, Mary Jane Leach, Mike McFerron, David Morneau, Serban Nichifor, Maggi Payne, Ruth Schonthal, Laurie Spiegel, Allen Strange, and Augusta Read Thomas.

Zeynep Ucbasaran, Concert Pianist

Distinguished pianist Zeynep Üçbaşaran is a recording artist for classical leaders Eroica and Naxos who has performed all over the world.

Here's what the press have to say about her remarkable skill and talent:

"Consummate Mastery - ... an art of crystalline clarity.."  Music & Vision

"As a Mozart player, Ucbasaran touches the sublime.."   All Music Guide

"An agreeable elegance pervades pianist Zeynep Ucbasaran's playing.."  The Gramophone

"Clean articulation girded by a powerful sonority.."   Audiophile Audition

"An excellent recommendation for three of Mozart’s rarer sonatas played with real conviction.."  MusicWeb

"The Turkish pianist gives us objective performances of clarity, sharp detail, rhythmic vitality, and integrity.."  American Record Guide

Ms. Üçbaşaran offers you preview MP3s of her albums on her website. Her albums are available in record stores, through classical distributors, and at Eroica and Naxos.

Solace Concept Album From Tettix

Solace, the latest album by Tettix, is a soundtrack to a game that does not exist.

"I see the composition and concepts of the game with great clarity," said Tettix in a Boing Boing interview, "but you can imagine whatever you like." Tettix offers the album and accompanying game concept artwork as a free download.

In yesterday's post at Boing Boing, Rob Beschizza wrote, "What could easily have been merely a clever idea insinuates itself into one's thoughts; every motif and mood seems perfectly tuned to an echo of gamers' collective memory. Sonorous, sleepy, otherworldly and tentative, it's hard to avoid the curious feeling that I played this years ago—and simply forgot."

See and hear for yourself at the official Tettix website. Donations accepted.

license: full copyrights; all rights reserved

New N.E.W. 8.0

Hot off the presses, the new esc.rec electronic showcase is released today.

With the software that’s available these days you can have a full studio at home. And thanks to social media, your music can be heard all over the world. Ever more often young producers are making a name for themselves internationally before anyone in their own town has ever heard of them. Nieuwe Electronische Waar (N.E.W.) keeps their ears perked to discover and presents a new generation of talented producers from East Netherlands. These names you should definitely remember.

N.E.W. is a platform and network for producers in Gelderland and Overijssel. Every year N.E.W. releases a new album with twelve tracks from producers they will feature prominently for the coming year.

Generation NEW 8.0 consists of Alias Lou, Julien Mier, GameFace, Kalima, Knarsetand, Knotted Sheets, MSNTHRPX, Near Earth Object, Raymon Brugman, Sinewave77, Sam A La Bamalot + Asterisms, and Yoeri. In their music you can hear the influence of everything that is happening in electronic music at the moment. The dominance of the four to the floor time is long past, and influences are drawn from ambient, acid, dubstep, future garage, glitch, juke, and trap.

Both 7.0 and 8.0 are also available for instant download and streaming at the Free Music Archive. Hear all volumes at Nieuwe Electronische Waar (N.E.W.).

license: Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Netherlands

Borromeo String Quartet

"Since their explosive debut in 1989, the critically acclaimed Borromeo String Quartet have become one of the most sought after strings quartets in the world, performing over 100 concerts of classical and contemporary music across three continents every season. Audiences and critics alike champion their ability to bring back the contemporary fire to often heard works from the classic repertoire while making even the most challenging new music approachable. As one of today's most adventurous quartets, they continue to push musical, intellectual, and technical boundaries to a level achieved by only a very few."
-- official website

The Borromeo Quartet have received many prestigious awards throughout their illustrious 22 year career and have been ensemble-in-residence for the New England Conservatory of Music, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the Taos School of Music, and NPR's Performance Today.

Enjoy one of their performances as ensemble-in-residence at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum of Boston, Massachusetts.

 

license: Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States

Utne Monthly Music Sampler

Begun in 1984, Utne Reader magazine collects and reprints articles on politics, culture, and the environment from journals, newsletters, weeklies, zines, and independent media sources. The Utne's writers and editors contribute books, film, and music reviews and original articles which tend to focus on emerging cultural trends, as well.

Every month, Utne Reader presents free, downloadable music gleaned from current and upcoming releases on independent music labels in their Utne Monthly Music Sampler.

Seventies Mutation

None of the original artists playing none of your favorite songs!

Various Artists - Seventies Mutation

A satirical take on pop and rock legends of the much maligned decade

WFMU says: " Well, if you enjoyed that mutant version of "Boys of Summer" that Puff Tube put out years ago, this is for you. French performance freak Costes does Lennon's "I Found Out", and you also get completely messed up versions of "Black Magic Woman" (by Xpr.xr), "Have You Never Been Mellow" (Phigg-Newtons), "She's Always a Woman" (Slippery Fingers), "Le Freak" (His Hemmorhoids Are Gone) and many more gems not only covered but deconstructed into piles of smoldering electronic goo."

Track 11 appeared on  Valentine's Day show (playlist, download, stream, etc.) of Busy Doing Nothing on WFMU's Give The Drummer Radio.

Running Time 72:52

01 - "Black Magic Woman"  [Santana] performed by XPR.XR (2:26)
02 - "Mississippi Queen"  [Mountain] performed by Totimoshi (2:33)
03 - "I Found Out"  [John Lennon] performed by Costes
04 - "Family Affair"  [Sly & the Family Stone] performed by Sasame-Kai (3:51)
05 - "American Pie"  [Don McLean] performed by Hawking
06 - "You're So Vain"  [Carly Simon] performed by Scatter My Atoms (6:15)
07 - "Jungle Boogie"  [Kool and the Gang] performed by Destructo (1:10)
08 - "Freebird"  [Lynyrd Skynyrd] performed by The Spoon and Candle Workshop (6:33)
09 - "Waterloo"  [ABBA] performed by Thetotalwasteband (3:12)
10 - "Wish You Were Here"  [Pink Floyd] performed by The Final Cunt (4:03)
11 - "Have You Never Been Mellow"  [Olivia Newton-John] performed by The Figg-Newtons (3:30)
12 - "Telephone Line"  [Electric Light Orchestra] performed by Pat Robertson's Police State of Love (4:33)
13 - "She's Always a Woman"  [Billy Joel] performed by The Slippery Fingers (3:34)
14 - "Le Freak"  [Chic] performed by His Hemerhoids Are Gone (2:12)
15 - "Closer to the Heart"  [Rush] performed by Rush to Excellence (3:28)
16 - "Hot Child in the City"  [Nick Gilder] performed by Tasha (3:56)
17 - "Beast of Burden"  [The Rolling Stones] performed by The Platitudes (1:59)
18 - "Babe"  [Styx] performed by Bitch Machine (5:03)
19 - "I Need a Lover"  [John Cougar] performed by The Dewey Roses (5:27)

Joshua Worden's Downtempo Soul

Joshua Worden is a downtempo soul singer, musician, and producer whose music flows smoothly across genres like soul, rhythm and blues, singer-songwriter pop, and even jazz. He creates a calm comfort with his music and an immediate friendly intimacy with his words. He is sharing his songs "The Line (featuring blctxt)" and "Salted Graces." Once you fall in love with those tracks, his entire releases A Pause in the Desert and The Withered Tree are available from Amazon, iTunes, and Bandcamp. Joshua performs with Will Montgomery at venues in the Southeast US, so get out there to see the magic. Official Site | Facebook | Support | YouTube "... displaying an electronic edge with R&B/soul flavor. It's as stirring as his past work, and is produced and executed equally as well - Worden doesn't do things halfway - but is far from more of the same. His efforts are worth your attention." --Florida Times Union "... flows remarkably well. It's stylish and mellow, supplementing its otherwise simple melodies with layers of electronic tunes and ambience." --EU Magazine "Joshua Worden delivers an air of road worn smoothness to an otherwise new sound." --Doughnut Magazine

Valentines

Passing out valentines for the whole class!

Oddio Overplay FMA Valentine Mix [Varied]	Wakka Chikka Wakka Chikka, Vol 1 Wakka Chikka Wakka Chikka, Vol 2 [Varied]
Alternate Root 2013 Valentine's Day Sampler [Country]	Sexy Jams on the FMA [Trip Hop, Hip Hop Beats, Electro]

 

Space Rock Classic

Begun as a psychedelic collective in the 1980s, Quarkspace grew up to become one of America's best space rock bands from the 1990s.

Their third studio album, Drop, was released into the public domain as a CD-R in November of 2001, as the group was retiring from stage activities. It is available for minimal cost from Bandcamp and vendors and free with every order from the group's record label, Eternity's Jest. Duplication is authorized and encouraged.

Drop, rated 4.5 stars by the All Music Guide, is available in mp3 format at the official website Quarkspace.com, FLAC at Bandcamp (support), or on CD-R with every order from Eternity's Jest.

François Couture of All Music Guide writes:

Since the lyrics deal with the abuses of a consumerist society, the bandmembers felt uncomfortable with selling the album and thus decided to give it away. And listeners can thank them for that, because Drop stands as their best effort, a fantastic swan song.

The eponymous Quarkspace had good moments but lacked some studio proficiency. The Hidden Moon was impressive but a bit overstretched. Every track on Drop is dense, concise, and delightful. New songs (sung by a Chet Santia, still improving as a vocalist) alternate with fresh instrumental tunes. Guitarist Stan Lyon replaces Darren Gough, and a handful of guest musicians appear here and there, including Architectural Metaphor's Greg Kozlowski and Thom the World Poet reciting on the great 20-minute closer, "Blanket Hill."

As songcrafters, Quarkspace has become very efficient Meddle-era Pink Floyd trippers. As jammers, they rise even higher than before -- and Lyon's guitar work has definitely something to do with it. A group's best album available for free? Why should you pass? Fans and newcomers alike have all the reasons to be very, very happy.

Iyadede

Rwanda (via Belgium) transplant Iyadede will have you dancing with her sincere pop. Her website seems to be down now, but her 2011 demo, a 2012 tune, and a track with Afrik Yambre are available at Bandcamp.

Reworking An Electronic Innovator

Daphne Oram (31 December 1925 – 5 January 2003) was a British composer and electronic musician. She was the creator of the "Oramics" technique for creating electronic sounds. Oram was a true pioneer in electronic music.

Reworking Daphne Oram is an album by People Like Us created with recordings from Oram's archives.

INFORMATION

"In January 2005, Sonic Arts Network, the leading UK body for electronic music and sound art, was asked by Daphne’s descendants to care for her collected papers, recordings and other items. It was with the benefit of experimental electronic music practice in mind that Goldsmiths Electronic Music Studio (EMS) collaborated with the Sonic Arts Network (SAN) to bring this collection into the academic community where it could be properly studied and developed. To this end, a grant was awarded to Goldsmiths, University of London in 2007 by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to catalogue the collection, digitise the audio tapes and initiate related research.

"In June 2008 People Like Us were invited into the archives of electronic music pioneer Daphne Oram, to rework them into new compositions, to be presented as part of a day-long symposium at London's South Bank Centre. Here are the results." -- People Like Us

BIOGRAPHY

Since 1991 British artist Vicki Bennett has been an influential figure in the field of audio visual collage, through her innovative sampling, appropriating and cutting up of found footage and archives. Using collage as her main form of expression, she creates audio recordings, films and radio shows that communicate a humorous, dark and often surreal view on life. These collages mix, manipulate and rework original sources from both the experimental and popular worlds of music, film, television and radio. People Like Us believe in open access to archives for creative use. In 2006 she was the first artist to be given unrestricted access to the entire BBC Archive. People Like Us have previously shown work at Tate Modern, The Barbican, Royal Albert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Pompidou Centre, Maxxi in Rome and Sonar, and performed radio sessions for John Peel and Mixing It. The ongoing sound art radio show 'DO or DIY' on WFMU has had over a million "listen again" downloads. since 2003. The People Like Us back catalogue is available for free download hosted by UbuWeb.

Vicki recently completed the creation of a new live a/v performance called "Consequences (One Thing Leads To Another)", which premiered at transmediale in January 2013. She is now working on a film for live improvisers called "Gesture Piece".

Paper Tape Archives

Vince Long in Montana owns the Paper Tape Archives, a collection of radio program recordings created by a Montana man from the late '40s into the '50s. It was a time when big band performances were broadcast across the country on long waves from swanky hotels, night clubs, dance halls, restaurants, and even skyscraper rooftops. Paper Tape Archives shares those recordings, and Mr. Long writes:

Just as the amateur photographer uses the camera to capture that visual moment in time which holds a special meaning, the home recorder has used various audio devices to grab audible slices of history for repeated listenings. While many home recorders did not look at preservation as their mission, some of their work has outlived them and makes up an interesting tapestry of sounds depicting American life in ways only audio recordings can.

      The recordings featured on this web page originated in Billings, Montana and were made by a gentleman who started his fascination with sound recording using a Webster Chicago Model 80 wire recorder. In 1947-48 he acquired the first commercially available tape recorder, the Brush BK-401, and filled several hundred reels of tape with the sounds of family, friends, and radio broadcasts.

      While the family recordings will remain in private hands, tapes of over-the-air broadcasts and a few non-broadcast recordings from local events are included in this collection. For many of the recordings, the original dates are included, however, many are undated. The bulk of these tapes were made between 1947 and 1953.

Bomb!

Bomb was a psychedelic punk rock band from San Francisco (1986-1993). Bomb's Hits Of Acid is among Nirvana founder Krist Novoselic's favorite albums. Their Happy All the Time and Hate Fed Love were in massive overplay at Oddio NYC headquarters for many years.

Bomb was made up of Michael Dean (vocals, bass), Jay Morgan Crawford and Hilsinger (guitar), and Tony Fag (drums. Dean has been sharing much of Bomb's music on his sites for years (featured at Oddio in 2007), and we are happy to find the albums are still posted at his most recent site.

Here's the Bomb history from his site:

Yop Pop

Yop is a singer/songwriter from Rotterdam. Like some sort of home-made Brian Wilson variety he layers his songs, while at the same time stealing some tricks from the likes of Robert Pollard, Grandaddy, Kristin Hersh, Frank Black and Ray Davies. This free download is an esc.rec. re-release of the 2006 original that was self-released by Yop, but holds a previously unreleased bonus track to top the cake. -- esc.rec press release

The Prostitutes Live

The Prostitutes deliver fun "Garage-Surf-Punk-Rock". Their Live at Porto-Rio album opens with a rocking version of Paul Revere and the Raiders' "Hungry (For The Good Life, Baby)" and continues with a classic garage sound throughout.

The live album is available to you through the remarkable You Are Not Stealing Records Netlabel created by Stealing Orchestra. You can get it from the Internet Archive or directly from the netlabel.

license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs

MrJuan

mrjuan is also known as Juan Naveira, Juan of the Juanitos, and Miss Emma's dad. In these parts he is mostly known as the life of the party! Playing his music is an instant party. The proof is in King Kong Man!

Official Site | SoundCloud | Jamendo 

FMA | Support (Donation Link)

license: Creative CommonsAttribution 3.0 France License

The Power of Meg Myers

Meg Myers is a champ. We get chills when she belts out her songs, her truth, her triumph.

Here's hoping Myers gets all the respect due her for the power she carries. Go, Meg Myers! And she is going places. Her music has appeared in CSI:NY, and she was on the Carson Daly's Last Call.

Check out her debut EP Daughter in The Choir.

I used to live in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee / now I live in Los Angeles
I used to be a Jehovah's Witness / now I celebrate my Birthday
I didn't go to high school / instead I built forts
I sing / I play guitar, piano and bass
I will always make music
xoxoxoxo
meg

Official Website | Facebook | Tumbler | Support | YouTube

license: full copyrights

SubPop Freebies

Infamous independent label Sub Pop shares annual sampler compilations at SoundCloud

For more information on all of these artists please visit: www.subpop.com

• Sub Pop's 2012 Free Downloads
• Sub Pop's 2011 Free Downloads
• Sub Pop's 2010 Free Downloads
• Sub Pop's 2009 Free Downloads
• Sub Pop's 2008 Free Downloads

Wonderfully Weird World of Jason Polland

While revisiting some Jason Polland CDs today, we were struck to find that we had never promoted him on this blog. Jason Polland holds a dear place in the hearts of lovers of oddio! Polland's works call to mind the quirky new wave of Oingo Boingo and Devo. In fact, his voice often reminds one of Danny Elfman.

In most releases, you might hear the arty genius of Logan Whitehurst and The Jr. Science Club (on FMA and Happy Puppy Records) and They Might Be Giants. In other releases, you might hear the cabaret styles of acts like The Dresden Dolls.

You will find your own diverse comparisons, and also find that Polland's work is its own brand of wonderfully weird. You don't have take our word for it, because Jason Pollard offers a large chunk of his catalog of works on the Brave New Weird label (on Internet Archive) for you to enjoy without charge.

Jason Polland's  musical projects:

• Mental Rental (1988 - 1998)
• Archbishop Jason Polland (1991 - 2010)
• Used (1995 - 1996; 1997 reunion show; 1999 reunion album)
• The Nourishment (1998 - 2003; 2006 reunion show; 2007 reunion show)
• New Big Black Mr. Super-Soul Bad Sugar Man (1999 - 2001)
• Plague Party (2008 - 2011)

Try some!