Robert Wyatt Reflects on the Making of ’68

Robert Wyatt is interviewed by John Ephland for DownBeat Magazine.

Read "Robert Wyatt Reflects on the Making of ’68" here.
Has anyone seen this interview in the paper edition of DownBeat? March or April issue?

Wyatt on Jimi Hendrix:
"In some ways, he was even too modest. For example, he didn’t rate his own wonderful singing … “Somebody’s got to do it” seemed to be his attitude! So shy, behind the pyrotechnics".

As Long As He Lies Perfectly Still

Thanks to Hibou, Anemone & Bear who made me aware of Schnauser´s fine cover version of the Robert Wyatt / Mike Ratledge penned Soft Machine tune "As long as he lies perfectly still".

This one is now out on 7" vinyl on Fruits De Mer Records, backed with a cover of "Astral traveller" by Yes.

Schnauser is:
Alan Strawbridge - Guitars, Vocals
Holly McIntosh - Bass, Vocals
Duncan Gammon - Keyboards, Vocals
John Fowle - Drums

And they describe themselves like this:
"Welcome to the world of Schnauser - a place where Canterbury prog, 60s psych and melodic pop gently collide".

Check out their album "Where business meets fashion" from 2013 too, it´s sounding pretty good!

Evan Parker: Awkward

Evan Parker documentary made by Adam Brichto.

Arve Henriksen, Reykjavik, March 2014

Arve Henriksen from what seems to have been a solo show at Mengi, Reykjavik 27 March 2014.

Personal Best #4

Lasse Marhaug has let loose #4 of his fanzine "Personal Best". This year´s subtitle being "fanzine for noise, music and mic placement"!

Interviews from 2012 and 2013 with Jim O´Rourke, Norway´s Kai Kobi Mikalsen and Årabrot, Ray Ahn (The Hard-Ons), Okkyung Lee by C. Spencer Yeh (on film mostly), Kimihide Kusafuka, Marco Fusinato and Keith Fullerton Whitman (on running a mail order for weird music).

May be ordered from Marhaug Forlag, or bought from selected shops.

Check it out.

And visit Fullerton Whitman´s Mimaroglu Music Sales!

Swedish Azz

Swedish Azz are great! Here they are at NOZART Festival in Cologne on March 6, 2010.

Musicians:
Mats Gustafsson -- saxophones, electronics
Per-Åke Holmlander -- tuba, cimbasso
Kjell Nordeson -- vibraphone
dieb13 -- turntables, electronics
Eric Carlsson -- drums

This summer (14 July) they are playing at Moldejazz in sweet Molde.

Let me also recommend their two 10" albums on Not Two Records: "Erik Carlsson & All Stars. Volym 1 & 2" (2013).

Let´s Fuck It Up!

Writer and illustrator Sian Pattenden has posted a preview of a framed Robert Wyatt watercolour painting on Raw Art.

The motto: "Let´s Fuck It Up".

Now I´m quite sure Robert Wyatt does not want to be God, but the artist claims: "Mr Wyatt is God, as we know, so he looks down, God-like".
A fan talking, I guess.

The Moral of the Elephant

Martin Carthy and Eliza Carthy will release their first ever duo album on Topic Records 2nd June 2014.

For one reason or the other, it´s going to be called "The Moral of the Elephant".

Fine folk guaranteed!

Sounds New

Some videos with Elaine Mitchener today. She is performing "Robert Wyatt’s Cuckooland – remixed live performance" with Matthew Wright, Tony Hymas, Brodsky Quartet at Sounds New Festival, Canterbury, in May.

Videos from the top:
- Christian Marclays Manga Scroll (Bremen 2013)
- The Quiet Club performing as part of FUAIM in the Crawford Sculpture Gallery along with amazing guests Elaine Mitchener and VOXMAREAL (Sarah Hayden and Rachel Warriner) (2014 probably).
- EMJA - Mark Sanders (drums), Alison Blunt (violin), Elaine Mitchener (voice), John Russell (guitar) at Mopomoso free improvisation night. Filmed by Helen Petts at the Vortex Jazz Club London on 17 March 2013.

As if the Brodsky Quartet and Robert Wyatt´s Cuckooland wasn´t enough, this is also happening at the Sounds New Festival:
"Janek Schaefer is one of the UKs most distinctive sound artists. For the informal opening night of the Sounds New Festival, Janek will create a brand new sound work as part of an exhibition based around the ‘Canterbury Sound’, in particular the work of Robert Wyatt, whose ‘Cuckooland’ album has been used as a point of reference."



Janek Schaefer pictured visiting Bergen´s Lydgalleriet (The Sound Gallery) in 2009.

Øivind Hånes: Robert Wyatt (1945-)

Norwegian author Øyvind Hånes reads his poem "Robert Wyatt (1945-)", with Tine Asmundsen playing the bass.

Since you probably won´t understand a word, check out more on the poem in a previous blogpost, and follow some links there.

Wyatt reviews Dylan

The great Une Discopgraphie de Robert Wyatt just posted Robert Wyatt´s review of Bob Dylan´s "World gone wrong", from Mojo December 1993.

Head on over there, and read "Hear this man do it, and take courage".

"Hear this man do it, and take courage. How great it could be if everybody struggling to find their own voice were able to just sort of stop struggling and.. well, use their own voice. We all got one, unique as a fingerprint."

Stephan Meidell: Suspire

Suspire by Stephan Meidell from a tolga b on Vimeo.

I already mentioned Stephan Meidell´s great limited edition solo album "Cascades" on Hubro.

Now here is an animation for one of the tracks, made by Tolga Balci.

Lost & Rare Tracks

The CD "Lost & Rare Tracks", stuck to the March edition of the Rolling Stone (Germany), has the Robert Wyatt track "Rivmic Melodies" (Excerpt)on it!

Taken from the great "68" album from 2013.

Bergen Stencils March 2013

Girl blowing bird-bubbles (Joy)
Happy girl under the bridge (Argus)
Some people giving some guy some serious headache (Like (?))

And as always: Click on pictures for larger versions.

The Beautiful Cosmos of Ivor Cutler

Backstage: The Beautiful Cosmos of Ivor Cutler - in rehearsal from National Theatre of Scotland on Vimeo.

Ivor Cutler is being celebrated in a new touring play, called The Beautiful Cosmos of Ivor Cutler, produced by Vanishing Point Theatre Company in association with the National Theatre of Scotland.

The Guardian has a piece on Cutler and the play 16th March 2014 (Ivor Cutler: 'He didn't live by the same rules as everyone else'), and they also talk to: KT Tunstall, Robert Wyatt, Norman Blake, Kathryn Williams, Jim O´Rourke, Alaisdair Roberts and George Martin on the importance of Mr. Cutler.

Robert Wyatt: "I first knew of Ivor after hearing Gruts For Tea on the radio. After that, [Soft Machine] would invite him to be our "supporting group" at gigs. We did not yet know about his Noise Abatement Society tendencies then or we wouldn't have dared ask. In person, Ivor was friendly, dry and funny. His music spoke to me as being neither quite comedy or tragedy – his work simply took you to another place, more like a sort of east European Samuel Beckett. In fact, he was dead chuffed when a radio producer said his silences were even longer than Samuel Beckett's".

See also "Scotland celebrates glorious eccentric Ivor Cutler", The Scotsman 16th March 2014.


The tour:

Eden Court, Inverness
04/04/2014 - 05/04/2014

Citizens Theatre, Glasgow
09/04/2014 - 19/04/2014

The Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock
23/04/2014 - 23/04/2014

Macrobert, Stirling
25/04/2014 - 25/04/2014

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
29/04/2014 - 03/05/2014

Fred Frith "Gravity", live at Roulette

Fred Frith // "Gravity" // Live at Roulette from Roulette Intermedium on Vimeo.

Recorded September 2013 (Roulette Events). Nice!

Fred Frith, guitar/electric bass
with
Marie Abe, accordion
Myles Boisen, sound
Jordan Glenn, drums
Kaethe Hostetter, violin
Kasey Knudsen, alto sax
Dominique Leone, keyboards
Ava Mendoza, guitar
Lisa Mezzacappa, bass
Aaron Novik, clarinet/bass clarinet
William Winant, percussion
Wobbly, sampling

Ken Vandermark & Paal Nilssen-Love

The great duo of Ken Vandermark & Paal Nilssen-Love playing at De Pletterij, Haarlem (The Netherlands) 10th March I believe (says 8th March on YouTube).

Gramola galáctica

Marcos Ordóñez has a piece on Robert Wyatt, called "Gramola galáctica: Una tarde con Robert Wyatt" in El Pais, 11th March 2014.

If your Spanish is as rusty as mine, Google Translate gives some kind of meaning, as you all know of course.

Borealis 2014

Borealis, Bergen´s festival for contemporary experimental music and sound art, is happening 19 - 23 March, with a warm-up week 11 - 18 March.

Citing info from the Borealis web site: "This year the theme is Alchemy, the mother of modern chemistry and an esoteric philosophy rich in mythology and magic. In its quest to transform base metals into gold, alchemy evolved a wealth of scientific and spiritual theories, beliefs, practices and rituals from which this year’s programme has evolved".

Check out the programme, and see if you want to come.

Rob Young´s talk seems to fit the main theme: "A history of magic and the occult in music".

La Plus Jolie Langue

I´m not 100% sure, but it seems like Steve Nieve´s album "Together" (EARmusic 2014) is out all over the world now?

Guests include Ron Sexsmith, Sting, Elvis Costello, Laurie Anderson, and most important for us Robert Wyatt!
The track "La Plus Jolie Langue" with Robert Wyatt & Muriel Teodori is absolutely beautiful, French language and all!

I have only downloaded the Wyatt track so far (iTunes), but might come back later with more. Any views out there on this album?

Here is the full track list, and you may find a teaser on YouTube:

1. Save the World (feat. Tall Ulyss)
2. Conversation (feat. Vanessa Paradis)
3. You Lie Sweetly (feat. Sting)
4. What a Holiday (Pandemonium) (feat. Harper Simon)
5. Tender Moment (Kairos) (feat. Elvis Costello)
6. Up (feat. Joe Sumner)
7. Vertigo (feat. Laurie Anderson)
8. Life Preserver (feat. Steve Nieve)
9. Halloween (Bonfire Night) (feat. Ron Sexsmith)
10. I Do Not Miss You (Nostalgia #2) (feat. Glenn Tilbrook)
11. La Plus Jolie Langue (feat. Robert Wyatt & Muriel Teodori)
12. La Crise (feat. Cali)
13. Voué à l'oubli (feat. Alain Chamfort)
14. Burn the Past (feat. Joe Sumner)
15. Summer Song (Espionage) (feat. Glenn Tilbrook)

If you want to check, there are also some really fine Robert Wyatt moments on Steve Nieve and Muriel Teodori´s "Welcome to the voice" (Deutsche Grammophon 2007).

Ben Watt and Robert Wyatt

Ben Watt´s 1983 album "North Marine Drive" (Cherry Red) is available again, after a re-press was released a couple of days ago.

"North Marine Drive" is a beautiful album with Ben Watt (g, p, voc) and Peter King (alto saxopohone), and on this CD version you will also find the "Summer Into Winter" 12" (Cherry Red 1982), where Watt was working with Robert Wyatt on two tracks.

"Summer Into Winter" was also released on CD in 1993 (Cherry Red).

Here is what Ben Watt says about the Robert Wyatt tracks on his homepage:

"He played two takes of piano on 'Walter and John' and suggested keeping both, panned left and right. The stuttering interplay of the two parts is really lovely. His voice is so great too. He also played a little solo on 'A Girl in Winter'. If there is a naivety to the lyrics here there is also a great amount of heart".

Paal Nilssen-Love

Interview with Paal Nilssen-Love, for Subradar.no from jonassjovaag on Vimeo.

Norway´s drummer extraordinaire, Paal Nilssen-Love, interviewed for Subradar.

Activity level: 15 - 25 records and almost 200 concerts every year (?!).

OK, so you have to watch it on Vimeo or Subradar then! Embed code my ass!

Krokofant

OK, here is another punk-freejazz-blackjazz-prog-metal band from Norway!

The trio Krokofant is: Tom Hasslan (g), Axel Skalstad (dr) and Jørgen Mathiesen (sax), and their new eponymous album is out on Rune Grammofon right now.

Krokofant sound like Shining´s kind cousin or King Crimsons wild grandchild, but what can you expect from a band named after a mix of a crocodile ("krokodille") and an elephant ("elefant")?

I think you better check out this trio!

Cover: Kim Hiorthøy.

More Bagpipes!

Woha! Check out Mats Gustafsson and Erwan Keravec at the Jazzhouse (Copenhagen) 27th February 2014!

More from the same concert on Jazz Peter´s YouTube channel.

After seeing Gustafsson and Keravec I just had to go back to Sonny Rollins and Rufus Harley, here playing "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" in Copenhagen in 1974.

Brodsky Quartet: Robert Wyatt Project

The Sounds New festival is happening in Canterbury 2nd - 9th May 2014.

On the programme they have Evan Parker´s 70th birthday concert, Icebreaker doing Brian Eno´s "Apollo" and (stay cool now!) Brodsky Quartet doing a Robert Wyatt Project (May 8th)!

Metal Machine Music For Airports

Thanks to Dangerous Minds I became aware of this fantastic mashup of Brian Eno´s "Music for Airports" (1978) and Lou Reed´s "Metal Machine Music" (1975).

That´s ambient noise for you!

We embed track number one, where Robert Wyatt is playing the piano. On Eno´s album that is!

Alpaca Bowie (video trailer)

Alpaca Ensemble present music inspired by David Bowie´s “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars”, arranged and composed by Alwynne Pritchard, Ole Henrik Moe, Jon Øivind Ness, and Maja Solveig Kjelstrup Ratkje.

The music was performed live twice in April 2013 (Trondheim and Inderøy), and a studio recording was done in August, with plans for CD and LP release ultimo 2013.
According to Alpaca´s site "Alpaca Bowie" will be released in 2014, probably after the release of a new album with saxophonist Eirik Hegdal called "Moving Slow" (link to Norwegian language site).

Musicians:
Alexander Robson (viol)
Marianne Baudouin Lie (cello)
Else Bø (piano)
Andreas Elvenes (voc)
Maja Solveig Kjelstrup Ratkje (voc)

Get The Blessing

Check out this great video of Get The Blessing at Visioninmusica, in Terni (Italy) 2014!
Musicians: Clive Deamer (dr), Jim Barr (b), Pete Judge (tp) and Jake McMurchie (sax).

I still haven´t heard their newest album "Lope and Antilope" (2014), but remember - Robert Wyatt is on one track ("Americano Meccano") on their 2012 album "OC DC"!

Robert Wyatt, il comunista

The Italian blog ideeinoltre.blogspot.it has a post on the Robert Wyatt history, focusing on the politics: VALERIO D'ONOFRIO: "Robert Wyatt, il comunista".

Google translate from Italian to English is working quite alright on this piece.

"...Robert Wyatt has never been a politician in the strict sense of the term, has never seen the policy as a job, it was simply an artist who in a restricted phase of his life he perceived with extreme urgency need to engage against racism, Western imperialism , capitalism now prevailing and generally against the huge inequalities and injustices he saw everywhere. For this reason he joined the British Communist Party , not as a leader or as a leading figure , but as a simple militant who loved to talk , exchange ideas , explore topics with other members of the party."

The picture is a detail from Alfreda Benge´s sweet cover to the sampler "1982-1984" (Rough Trade 1984).

Brötzmann

This Sunday has been quiet up til now (not everywhere unfortunately! - Ukraine etc), so I felt the need for some Peter Brötzmann again!

First out is Brötzmann with Jason Adasiewicz (vibes) and Hamid Drake (dr) at 2014 Winter Jazzfest in NYC (January 2014) (more on the WindowsHaveEyes YouTube account), and then Brötzmann with Han Bennink (dr) at the 34th birthday festival of The Ex (Den Haag, February 2014).

Groove On The Wireless #65 Love the Quixotic

"Groove On The Wireless #65 Love the Quixotic!" promotes Robert Wyatt.

On the playlist Wyatt´s Ivor Cutler cover "Grass" (7" Rough Trade 1981, also on "Nothing Can Stop Us" 1982) and Hot Chip feat. Robert Wyatt – "We’re Looking for a Lot of Love" (EP EMI/DFA 2008), but it´s not the EP version with Wyatt that´s being played, is it? More like the Hot Chip album version, from "Made in the dark" (2008).

"Grass" is available both on iTunes and even on vinyl, on the "Nothing Can Stop Us" reissue on Domino, but I´m not really sure if it´s possible to buy the Hot Chip EP any longer? Anyone?
I see a couple of copies are up for sale on eBay right now (cheapest one: USD 20).

Hamasyan, Henriksen, Bang, Aarset

Tigran Hamasyan (keyb), Arve Henriksen (tp, voc), Jan Bang (live sampling) and Eivind Aarset (g) at Bergen Jazzforum 28 February 2014.

According to the Bergen Jazzforum web site, the quartet will record an album for ECM later this year.