FAST & BULBOUS

Fast & Bulbous will do a Frank Zappa tribute concert in Chieti, Italy, on the 21st of December !

Formed in 1991, Fast & Bulbous released ‘Memorial Barbecue’, their tribute to the music of Frank Zappa, in 1997.

Between 1997 and 2000, Fast & Bulbous participated in the most important festivals dedicated to FZ's music in Italy and Germany.

In 1999, a track from their album was included in the compilation ‘Frank you, thank! vol. 1’.

In 2003, a second (unreleased) track was included in volume 2 of ‘Frank you, thank!’

Starting from a reinterpretation of Zappa's music, Fast & Bulbous move towards a personal sound, crossing genres and languages in the original spirit of the master, moving far away from the typical imitative intentions of cover/tribute bands.

VARIOUS ARTISTS - W.E.R.F. RECORDS - 2025 WRAPPED

"2025 Wrapped", a fine way to check out the different releases on the Belgian W.E.R.F. Records label.

FIDO PLAYS ZAPPA TOURDATES

THE ZAPPANALE ADVENT CALENDAR

Check out the Zappanale's advent calendar for some concert recordings or previous Zappanale concerts, as broadcast by Rockradio.

https://www.zappanale.de/en/adventskalender-2025

and, in the meantime, take note of the 2026 festival date !

ZAPPAROSSA #2

Dates have been set for the second edition of the Zapparossa festival.

11-13 September 2026
Gelnhausen, Germany

CRANK SOME FRANK

Next Sunday, in The Hague / Den Haag, NL.
at the Musicon:

"Crank Some Frank"
Celebrating the music of Frakn Zappa.

A little festival, featuring Fred Händl and the Absolutely Frank band.

The ArF duo will not be happening, but there will be a replacement.

SPINIFEX UPDATE

Avant-garde jazz sextet Spinifex celebrates their 20th anniversary in 2025/2026, marking the milestone with a special project and album called Maxximus, featuring guest musicians for an expanded, acoustic sound, continuing their legacy of boundary-pushing improvisation that started with their 10th anniversary in 2015.

20 years and 10 albums !!

1	Spinifex Orchestra: Triodia     (2008, cd)
2	Spinifex: Hipsters Gone Ballistic     (2013, cd)
3	Spinifex: Veiled     (2015, cd)
4	Spinifex: Maximus     (2015, cd)
5	Spinifex: Amphibian Ardour     (2018, cd)
6	Spinifex: Soufifex     (2019, cd)
7	Spinifex: Spinifex Beats The Plague     (2021, cd)
8	Spinifex: Spinifex Sings     (2022, cd)
9	Spinifex: Undrilling The Hole     (2024, cd The Netherlands, trytone tt559-103)
10	Spinifex: Maxximus     (2025, cd, The Netherlands, trytone tt559-114)

The band recently performed at The Plusetage in Baarle Nassau, NL, which allowed me to complete the discography with the latest two albums: "Undrilling The Hole", and "Maxximus". Notice the double 'X' in the latter to emphasize the 20th anniversary.

Spinifex = Tobias Klein (bass clarinet/alto sax), Bart Maris (trumpet), John Dikeman (tenor sax), Jasper Stadhouders (guitar), Gonçalo Almeida (double bass), Philipp Moser (drums)/
The extended line-up for "Maxximus": Jessica Pavone (viola), Elisabeth Coudoux (cello) , and Evi Filippou ( vibraphone/percussion).

Salome Amend replaced Evi Filippou for the Baarle Nassau concert, doing an excellent job.

It doesn't get much better than this !
Check it out !!

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STÉPHANE GALLAND - KANDA

• Stéphane Galland: Kanda
      (2025, cd, The Netherlands, challenge records)

For his latest project, Stéphane Galland is collaborating with Lúcia Pires (flute, EWI & electronics) and Louise van den Heuvel (bass & chompi).

I picked up the album after the CD release concert at De Singel in Antwerp a couple of days ago.
The concert was excellent, and the CD is even better.

In the liner notes, Stéphane explains Kanda:

It is the foundational pulse from which our music grows, a sacred space where three distinct voices meet in a common exploration.
adding
Our collaboration is a celebration of symbiotic differences: a trio spanning nations, generations, and roles, united by a shared curiosity for rhythm's infinite possibilities. This diversity is our strength. It si why we delve into uneven time signatures, polyrhythms, and morphing grooves, weaving in electronics and textures to mirror the complex, rich tapestry of human connection in sound.

The result can be enjoyed in 7 fascinating pieces.
It's quite a funny contradiction: the music is rhythmically complex, yet it has a calming and relaxing effect. At least, that's how I experience it.

Beautiful !!
Here's a live session from a earlier this year :

"Kanda" is released on the Dutch Challenge Records label.
https://www.challengerecords.com/products/17581870284769/kanda

BERLINDE DEMAN - PLANK 9

• Berlinde Deman: Plank 9
      (2025, download / streaming, --, bandcamp)
      (2025, cd, USA, relative pitch records)

Being a music lover, I consider myself very fortunate to live in Belgium.
We still have a lively music scene, and when bands tour, as Belgium isn't that large, we get several opportunities to see them.

Just to give you an example, we caught the Flat Earth Society Orchestra twice this month. Once celebrating the 20th anniversary of Michel Mast's Ham Sessions festival in Ghent, and a second time in 'De Kern', a fine cultural center in Wilrijk nearby Antwerp.

Flat Earth Society (FES) is led by Peter Vermeersch and includes a colourful assortment of excellent musicians. One of these is Berlinde Deman.
Berlinde plays the bass tuba and is a indispensable factor in the rolling train that is FES.

In October, Berlinde released her first solo album, "Plank 9", on which she features the Serpent, a 16th century musical instrument that produces beautiful deep sounds.
It shows a completely different side of Berlinde.

Using the Serpent, her voice, and some effect pedals, Berlinde succeeds in creating a world in which light and darkness move alongside each other. Cautious, hesitant, slowly moving. Love it.

Recommended listening !

PRINCE - CHAMELEON 1-10

• Prince: Chameleon 1-10
      (2025, 10 cd bootleg box, --, playtime records)

The "Chameleon" series is a set of Prince bootleg albums that exist on vinyl and on CD.
I'm quite happy with this recent re-release that collects all 10 volumes in one box set.

Demos, outtakes, remixes, you name it...
A pretty amazing collection.
If you're into Prince, try to find this set !
Nice artwork as well.

I've only listened to the first disc so far.
Must have listened to it eight times already  :-)

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If you're looking for rare Prince material / downloads, visit the Guitars101 forum.