Three tracks and 56 minutes deep, Steve Lantner’s latest, Paradise Road is a workout – for listener and artist alike. Moods range from caffeinated and frenetic to thoughtful and subdued, with each member holding the spotlight for a moment and none outshining the other.
Lantner’s compositions bring together the best of the American and European avant-garde. A comparison to Matthew Shipp would be justified, as the two seem to associate with the same circle of friends (Mat and Joe Maneri, Joe Morris) though Lantner also finds congress with the Chicago scene of Ken Vandermark, Nate McBride and co.
Paradise Road is culled from a December 2005 live performance at the Skycap Arts Festival and presented here unedited. Lantner’s regularly trio, consisting of Joe Morris on bass and Luther Gray on drums, is augmented by the addition of saxophonist Alan Chase. Morris, whose guitar playing is in the same vein as Eugene Chadbourne or Derek Bailey, sounds outstanding here on bass – just check out his solo in the closing moments of “Shaking Hand.”
To give his free improvisations more structure Lantner experiments with pitch-class sets, with each tune revolving around a specific three note pitch-class (on this particular recording, the sets are 013, 025 and 024, respectively). This idea is intriguing and certainly gives his tunes a dynamic structure, but you don’t need to know music theory to appreciate what’s going on. Simply put, Paradise Road is loosely structured free improvisation at its finest.
The Steve Lantner Trio +1 hits to road running with the opening cut, “Shaking Hand.” All four members are engaged in choppy, static exposition. Lantner drops blocky chords akin to Cecil Taylor, while Chase’s alto darts in and out of the melody and Morris and Gray get lost doing their own thing. You could separate what’s going on here into two distinct conversations: the rhythm section is deeply involved in its own thing, while Chase and Lantner engage in theirs. Chase drops out for a section and we hear the core trio of Morris, Gray and Lantner playing with unmatched energy. One bass solo and drum solo later and the full quartet is back at it again.
Chase’s baritone on “Barrelhouse” is smooth and rich. Shoot – you could dub a swinging hard bop band over the Lantner trio and not notice a difference in Chase’s playing. Gray attempts to swing appropriately, but Lantner does his best to keep things disjointed.
“Two Step” opens with a solo by Lantner. The pianist’s playing here and throughout is lyrical and punchy. Like a fast talker eager to make his points felt just as much as heard, Lantner weaves his topics of conversation in, out and around the loose rhythms of Gray and Morris. As “Two Step” progresses, the tune evolves into a soft and subtle conversation between Chase and Lantner, with the two playing at their absolute best (note to Lanter: next project – a duets album. Do it!)
Paradise Road is an outstanding showcase of new and unheard talent – not just Lantner, but Morris, Chase and Gray as well. All four participants shine.
10.11.2006
10.04.2006
DJ Shadow LIVE review
Turntablist, scratchologist, crate-digger, mix master and cut chemist DJ Shadow graced the stage at legendary Stubb’s BBQ in Austin this past Sunday. Like so many others in attendance on this muggy September night, I had been a fan of Shadow’s experimental instrumental sounds since first hearing the classic Entroducing, in 1999 (three years after it’s initial release but oh well). Nearly ten years later, I still hadn’t had the opportunity to see Shadow perform live – tonight would be a special night.
Arriving late, minutes before Shadow would take the stage and well after supporting act and Shadow’s Quannum labelmate Lateef the Truth Speaker had completed his set, we worked our way through the crowd to get in prime position to watch Shadow’s hands work their magic. Upon taking the stage to uproarious applause, Shadow welcomed his audience and briefly acknowledged a rather unwelcoming visit to Waterloo Records for a scheduled-but-forgotten-about in-store earlier in the day. Shadow also made mention of his “special” relationship with Austin TX (no doubt a reference to the illegally bootlegged Shadow performance dubbed Live in Austin that hit the market in the downtime between Entroducing and it’s follow-up Private Press.)
Shadow’s set began with a quick review of classic material from both Endtroducing and Private Press, sometimes combining tracks from both, creating his own personal mash-ups of sorts, with beats from one track making love to melodies off another. “Six Days” had the crowd singing in unison while bangers like “Giving Up The Ghost,” a sped-up “Fixed Income” and the breakthrough cut “What Does Your Soul Look Like” brought the crowd to a fever pitch.
After thirty minutes of recap and review, the DJ unveiled one of his newest tracks. “Seein Things” featured hardcore Southern rapper David Banner waxing about Katrina and the failure of government while images of New Orleans touched the screen behind Shadow. The just-as-banging “3 Freaks,” featuring Bay Area up-and-comers Turf Talk, followed. As far as crowd-moving goes, this was the height of the evening’s performance, for as impressive as Shadow’s instrumentals are, something about an emcee can make a crowd go crazy.
With our ears still ringing from the trunk-rattling bass of Banner’s track, Shadow paused to chat with his audience. Addressing the criticism Outsider has received on the Internet and in print (for being too diverse, a schizophrenic escapade or just plain escapist) Shadow explained how he understood his audience, how he knew his fans were smarter than the critics and we could get down with a folk song followed by a hardcore rap song, even if the industry “didn’t get it.” This was the motive behind Outsider and clearly this struggle to communicate a deep appreciation of sound and rhythm of every variety to music fans everywhere is what keeps Shadow on the road, bringing his art to the masses.
So with that acknowledgement of mutual understanding, Shadow announced the presence of a very special guest. British vocalist Chris James then came out from behind the stage to perform his Shadow-produced contributions to The Outsider. On “You Made It,” James’ voice oozed over electropop beats coupled with shoegazer melodies a la Album Leaf, Blockhead and others. “Erase You” found James doing his best Bono impersonation, his falsetto moan reaching orgasmic climax and even ripping the line “under a blood red sky.” It was unclear how much of the audience was interested in this excursion and while Shadow’s appreciation of Brit-pop is surely applaudable, a DJ’s primary role is to rock a party and in this moment, the vibe suffered.
No worry, as Shadow soon brought out another guest, his traveling hypeman and longtime collaborator, Lateef the Truth Speaker. Showing up late my guests and I had missed Lateef’s warm-up act so catching this amazing emcee with Shadow was a bonus for sure. Lateer is a crowd pleaser of the finest caliber and the audience was clearly stoked to hear some of his and Shadow’s classic collabos, including the Latyrx gem “Lady Don’t Tek No.” Getting the crowd thoroughly involved with “repeat after me” and “let me hear some noise” demands is the primary (and original) roll of the emcee, to get the crowd appreciating the DJ and what he is doing, and in this, Lateef excelled.
Following a brief intermission, Shadow returned to the stage and the crowd exploded in excitement as the DJ began the unforgettable melody of the Endtroducing standout “Organ Donor.” Sticking with the save your best for last mantra, Shadow next went into a much harder beated remix of his Thom Yorke collaboration “Rabbit in Your Headlights” from the UNKLE record Psyence Fiction.
Arriving late, minutes before Shadow would take the stage and well after supporting act and Shadow’s Quannum labelmate Lateef the Truth Speaker had completed his set, we worked our way through the crowd to get in prime position to watch Shadow’s hands work their magic. Upon taking the stage to uproarious applause, Shadow welcomed his audience and briefly acknowledged a rather unwelcoming visit to Waterloo Records for a scheduled-but-forgotten-about in-store earlier in the day. Shadow also made mention of his “special” relationship with Austin TX (no doubt a reference to the illegally bootlegged Shadow performance dubbed Live in Austin that hit the market in the downtime between Entroducing and it’s follow-up Private Press.)
Shadow’s set began with a quick review of classic material from both Endtroducing and Private Press, sometimes combining tracks from both, creating his own personal mash-ups of sorts, with beats from one track making love to melodies off another. “Six Days” had the crowd singing in unison while bangers like “Giving Up The Ghost,” a sped-up “Fixed Income” and the breakthrough cut “What Does Your Soul Look Like” brought the crowd to a fever pitch.
After thirty minutes of recap and review, the DJ unveiled one of his newest tracks. “Seein Things” featured hardcore Southern rapper David Banner waxing about Katrina and the failure of government while images of New Orleans touched the screen behind Shadow. The just-as-banging “3 Freaks,” featuring Bay Area up-and-comers Turf Talk, followed. As far as crowd-moving goes, this was the height of the evening’s performance, for as impressive as Shadow’s instrumentals are, something about an emcee can make a crowd go crazy.
With our ears still ringing from the trunk-rattling bass of Banner’s track, Shadow paused to chat with his audience. Addressing the criticism Outsider has received on the Internet and in print (for being too diverse, a schizophrenic escapade or just plain escapist) Shadow explained how he understood his audience, how he knew his fans were smarter than the critics and we could get down with a folk song followed by a hardcore rap song, even if the industry “didn’t get it.” This was the motive behind Outsider and clearly this struggle to communicate a deep appreciation of sound and rhythm of every variety to music fans everywhere is what keeps Shadow on the road, bringing his art to the masses.
So with that acknowledgement of mutual understanding, Shadow announced the presence of a very special guest. British vocalist Chris James then came out from behind the stage to perform his Shadow-produced contributions to The Outsider. On “You Made It,” James’ voice oozed over electropop beats coupled with shoegazer melodies a la Album Leaf, Blockhead and others. “Erase You” found James doing his best Bono impersonation, his falsetto moan reaching orgasmic climax and even ripping the line “under a blood red sky.” It was unclear how much of the audience was interested in this excursion and while Shadow’s appreciation of Brit-pop is surely applaudable, a DJ’s primary role is to rock a party and in this moment, the vibe suffered.
No worry, as Shadow soon brought out another guest, his traveling hypeman and longtime collaborator, Lateef the Truth Speaker. Showing up late my guests and I had missed Lateef’s warm-up act so catching this amazing emcee with Shadow was a bonus for sure. Lateer is a crowd pleaser of the finest caliber and the audience was clearly stoked to hear some of his and Shadow’s classic collabos, including the Latyrx gem “Lady Don’t Tek No.” Getting the crowd thoroughly involved with “repeat after me” and “let me hear some noise” demands is the primary (and original) roll of the emcee, to get the crowd appreciating the DJ and what he is doing, and in this, Lateef excelled.
Following a brief intermission, Shadow returned to the stage and the crowd exploded in excitement as the DJ began the unforgettable melody of the Endtroducing standout “Organ Donor.” Sticking with the save your best for last mantra, Shadow next went into a much harder beated remix of his Thom Yorke collaboration “Rabbit in Your Headlights” from the UNKLE record Psyence Fiction.
DJ Spooky in Austin for AT&T Fuzion Series
Several hours prior to heading down to see That Subliminal Kid DJ Spooky at Waterloo Park in downtown Austin, I spoke with a friend from college now struggling to survive in New York City.
“What are you up to tonight buddy,” he asks.
“DJ Spooky is playing Waterloo Park tonight for free.”
“Sick. I saw Spooky perform here last week on Broadway. Dude – he had Matthew Ship, Rob Swift, Vijay Ayer and Guillermo Brown come out and perform – two hours in this seated theater – wow. Two months ago, I saw Spooky at Central Park with Guru [of Gangstar-fame].”
This is how my night started, expecting an amazing live performance from the much heralded and so-far-ahead-of-his-time-it-hurts, DJ Spooky. The same Spooky whose Dubtometry, Optometry, Celestrial Mechanix, and Riddim Clash I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing for various publications. One of the few DJs embraced by the jazz scene at-large, most notably the Thirsty Ear-affiliated players William Parker, Shipp and Brown, Spooky has taken the turntable to a totally new level of musicianship, rivaled only by fellow New Yorker DJ Logic.
The AT&T Fuzion series is billed as the latest in audio and video technology presented live, for free, in the city widely touted as the “Live Music Capital of the World.” Previous Fuzion performers have been Cut Chemist and RjD2.
The air was cool and the crowd thin but growing as we entered Waterloo Park. Local “DJ’s” – if by “DJ” you mean cats who mix tracks on their MacBook or tap buttons on an MPC processor – Supercontinent were warming up the crowd for headliner Spooky. Club music, white kids with nice computers and an ill-advised beatbox session did little to warm this noticeably chill Austin crowd.
By this time the crowd had grown and Spooky was busily connecting his audio gear and adjusting the dimensions of his laptop-fed video projector. Two two-story inflatable projection screens graced either side of the small stage where Spooky stood. Seated comfortably on the grace, I figured as long as I can see these screens I’ll be all right, and thankfully, you can’t miss these screens.
Grabbing the mic, Spooky explained how tonight’s performance would be a mix of audio and synchronized video, compared the area codes of Austin (512) and Brooklyn (212), and encouraged fellow laptop owners to make their own remixes.
For thirty-minutes, Spooky displayed the latest in video remix technology, mashing the Stones’ “Satisfaction” with Outkast’s “Hey Ya,” or cutting audio and video of Kurt Cobain’s “hey!” of “Smells Like Teen Spirite”-fame in and out of Ludacris’ guest verse on Missy Elliot’s “One Minute Man.” What about Prodigy circa Music For the Jilted Generation mashed with Stereo MC’s “Connected” – incredible.
This sort of performance is one those “you gotta see it to get it” scenarios. You can imagine how DJ’s cut and paste records together; now imagine the same concept but with music videos as the template for manipulation. Get it?
The mash-up has certainly become the technology du jour of disc jockey galore, made easier by the laptop, digital audio tape and internet downloading. The art of digging crates may be a dying art indeed, but Spooky himself, ever the forward thinking artists, encouraged fans to max and mash on their own, acknowledging the user-friendly nature of digital remixology. Yes, kids, you too can be a fantastic DJ, rock a party like a pimp and shake rumps with remix recipes.
In the evening most impressive moment, Spooky chopped up a vid of Jimi Hendrix’s classic Woodstock exposition of “Star Spangled Banner” that Jimi himself would have approved of, no doubt appreciating the philosophical and artistic relevance of a modern mixmaster dissecting Hendrix’s anthem. Slowly and rather gently, Spooky brought in a DMX verse. DMX mashed with Hendrix – and Hendrix at Woodstock no less?! Unreal.
So for thirty-minutes, Spooky was cutting edge. It was better than anything I had heard on any of his records, and while Shipp, Iyer and/or Guru weren’t there, it was impressive nevertheless. But still an hour-plus was left in the scheduled ninety-minute performance.
So for the next hour, That Subliminal Kid mixed pop tracks with drum ‘n bass, trance and all-too typical four-on-the-floor house music. A sped up “Message in a Bottle” followed by “Mirror in the Bathroom” tightly wound with throbbing house rhythms that had the diverse crowd moving in unison – save those of us content to sit on our blankets.
As for the video, by this point Spooky had settled on cueing preproduced videos from his Apple – repetitive flicks featuring the kid himself, bugs crawling on microchips and other images of technology gone haywire. By this point Waterloo Park had become the host of the first rave I’d witnessed since high school and was hardly what I was expecting for this calm cool Friday night in late September. With fifteen-minutes to go in the scheduled set time, my friends and I left to purchase Sparks and Lonestar.
“What are you up to tonight buddy,” he asks.
“DJ Spooky is playing Waterloo Park tonight for free.”
“Sick. I saw Spooky perform here last week on Broadway. Dude – he had Matthew Ship, Rob Swift, Vijay Ayer and Guillermo Brown come out and perform – two hours in this seated theater – wow. Two months ago, I saw Spooky at Central Park with Guru [of Gangstar-fame].”
This is how my night started, expecting an amazing live performance from the much heralded and so-far-ahead-of-his-time-it-hurts, DJ Spooky. The same Spooky whose Dubtometry, Optometry, Celestrial Mechanix, and Riddim Clash I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing for various publications. One of the few DJs embraced by the jazz scene at-large, most notably the Thirsty Ear-affiliated players William Parker, Shipp and Brown, Spooky has taken the turntable to a totally new level of musicianship, rivaled only by fellow New Yorker DJ Logic.
The AT&T Fuzion series is billed as the latest in audio and video technology presented live, for free, in the city widely touted as the “Live Music Capital of the World.” Previous Fuzion performers have been Cut Chemist and RjD2.
The air was cool and the crowd thin but growing as we entered Waterloo Park. Local “DJ’s” – if by “DJ” you mean cats who mix tracks on their MacBook or tap buttons on an MPC processor – Supercontinent were warming up the crowd for headliner Spooky. Club music, white kids with nice computers and an ill-advised beatbox session did little to warm this noticeably chill Austin crowd.
By this time the crowd had grown and Spooky was busily connecting his audio gear and adjusting the dimensions of his laptop-fed video projector. Two two-story inflatable projection screens graced either side of the small stage where Spooky stood. Seated comfortably on the grace, I figured as long as I can see these screens I’ll be all right, and thankfully, you can’t miss these screens.
Grabbing the mic, Spooky explained how tonight’s performance would be a mix of audio and synchronized video, compared the area codes of Austin (512) and Brooklyn (212), and encouraged fellow laptop owners to make their own remixes.
For thirty-minutes, Spooky displayed the latest in video remix technology, mashing the Stones’ “Satisfaction” with Outkast’s “Hey Ya,” or cutting audio and video of Kurt Cobain’s “hey!” of “Smells Like Teen Spirite”-fame in and out of Ludacris’ guest verse on Missy Elliot’s “One Minute Man.” What about Prodigy circa Music For the Jilted Generation mashed with Stereo MC’s “Connected” – incredible.
This sort of performance is one those “you gotta see it to get it” scenarios. You can imagine how DJ’s cut and paste records together; now imagine the same concept but with music videos as the template for manipulation. Get it?
The mash-up has certainly become the technology du jour of disc jockey galore, made easier by the laptop, digital audio tape and internet downloading. The art of digging crates may be a dying art indeed, but Spooky himself, ever the forward thinking artists, encouraged fans to max and mash on their own, acknowledging the user-friendly nature of digital remixology. Yes, kids, you too can be a fantastic DJ, rock a party like a pimp and shake rumps with remix recipes.
In the evening most impressive moment, Spooky chopped up a vid of Jimi Hendrix’s classic Woodstock exposition of “Star Spangled Banner” that Jimi himself would have approved of, no doubt appreciating the philosophical and artistic relevance of a modern mixmaster dissecting Hendrix’s anthem. Slowly and rather gently, Spooky brought in a DMX verse. DMX mashed with Hendrix – and Hendrix at Woodstock no less?! Unreal.
So for thirty-minutes, Spooky was cutting edge. It was better than anything I had heard on any of his records, and while Shipp, Iyer and/or Guru weren’t there, it was impressive nevertheless. But still an hour-plus was left in the scheduled ninety-minute performance.
So for the next hour, That Subliminal Kid mixed pop tracks with drum ‘n bass, trance and all-too typical four-on-the-floor house music. A sped up “Message in a Bottle” followed by “Mirror in the Bathroom” tightly wound with throbbing house rhythms that had the diverse crowd moving in unison – save those of us content to sit on our blankets.
As for the video, by this point Spooky had settled on cueing preproduced videos from his Apple – repetitive flicks featuring the kid himself, bugs crawling on microchips and other images of technology gone haywire. By this point Waterloo Park had become the host of the first rave I’d witnessed since high school and was hardly what I was expecting for this calm cool Friday night in late September. With fifteen-minutes to go in the scheduled set time, my friends and I left to purchase Sparks and Lonestar.
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