YOUR MOUTH

no clue on who,what or where...

 

AGREN, COLBY & KAISER - TROUBLE WITH TREBLE

• Jimmy Agren, Scott Colby & Henry Kaiser: Trouble With Treble
      (2023, cd-promo, USA, private release)

THIS IS ONE FANTASTIC ALBUM.
Unbelievable that it's only out as a CD-promo.
I do hope that a regular CD or even a Bandcamp release will follow as well.

Just check out this track list and the guest musicians.
I'm quite happy that I got hold of a copy.
This is great music performed by great musicians.

A lot of the tracks can also be found on YouTube.

ONE SHOT - 111

• one shot: 111
      (2023, cd, france, le triton)

Last week, I mentioned One Shot, the band that consists of former Magma band members, and their recent "À James" album.
It turns out that "À James", their tribute to James Mac Gaw, wasn't their latest release.

March 2023, "111" saw the light of day, a 5-track album that will make fans of the jazzy side of Magma and Zeul music in general quite happy.
I sure like it.

JEFF HOLLIE - ARMIN BECK - FRED HÄNDL IN CONCERT

In the Mosae aftermath and in the start of the new year, Hollie, Beck & Händl will be doing a concert in Heerlen, NL, on January 6.
I'm quite convinced that they'll be performing some Zappa tunes.

ICH BIN WALLOU - LA VIE DES BÊTES

• ich bin wallou: la vie des bêtes
      (2021, download / streaming, --, bandcamp)

Despite the global mess that we're in, 2023 did bring us some great music and some beautiful surprises.

One of these surprises was my discovery of Ich Bin Wallou.

French band Ich Bin Wallou got founded in September 1994 !!

In 2020, the band started a kisskissbankbank funding project to support the release of an LP entitled “La Vie Des Bêtes”.
The album got released on vinyl (2 LP in a fold-out cover) in a limited edition of 200 copies.
The initial files included a track taken from a Frank Zappa interview called ‘Zappa Introduit Tinseltown’ (Zappa Introduces Tinseltown) but that didn’t make the vinyl version.
Eventually, 14 tracks made it to the 2 LP set, of which 11 tracks also got released on Bandcamp.

All / most of the tracks had nods to FZ’s music and were composed by Kader Hadi.
One of the tracks, ‘No Wrong Tinseltown’, included several musical references ( & album titles thrown into the lyrics).

This is an amazing album !!
Class musicians that perform fine, complex and humorous compositions (with lots of nods to FZ).
I love it. This is great stuff.

Essential listening for every Zappa freak !!

THE "MUSIC ACROSS" RADIO SHOW WILL KICK OFF THE NEW YEAR WITH A(NOTHER) ZAPPANALE SPECIAL

Monday, 01.01.2024 - 21h00 - 22h00 CET

"Music Across"
Produced by Gernot Friedbacher

This programme features interviews with the musicians of "Banned From Utopia", which "Music Across" conducted backstage at the Zappanale on 16 July 2023, as well as music from the live recording at the Zappanale and from the musicians' own music projects.

Or listen later:
https://cba.media/podcast/music-across

Auf ORANGE 94.0 dem Freien Radio in Wien:

im Radio: Frequenz UKW 94.0 MHz

im gesamten Großraum Wien über Telekabel: Frequenz 92.7 MHz
in Wien über Internet Live Stream: http://o94.at

weltweit Sendungen können nach der Erstausstrahlung auch im Cultural Broadcasting Archive des Verbandes Freier Radios Österreich nachgehört werden unter
https://cba.media/podcast/music-across

THE MILWAUKEE ZAPPAFEST 2023

Zappafest 2023

4 hours of music on YouTube !

with Dr. Chow's Love Medicine, The Mirrormen, and Gozrtenplat.

 

ZAPMOSPHERES II

A couple of weeks ago, LiLo (Lionel Loswarn) and his son performed Zapmospheres II in concert in Massy in France. Just below Paris.
Here's a YouTube impression.

 

A SOFT MACHINE UPDATE FROM MOONJUNE RECORDS

a message from MoonJune

Dear Friends in Music,

Great news for 2024 is that all back catalog of SOFT MACHINE LEGACY will be released also on vinyl and several albums that are out of stock will be repressed on CDD,a nd finally, SOFT WORKS studio album 'Abracadabra' will be re-released as well, on LP and the 2CD set will have additional live recording of the band, as a bonus material.

FES ANNOUNCES A NEW ALBUM

The Flat Earth Society Orchestra has just announced a new album, "The One", to be released in spring 2024.

 

BLAST

Dutch band Blast released "A Sophisticated Face" on the Cuneiform record label in 1999.
It included a piece entitled 'Zoot' to which Blast guitarist Frank Crijns recently added on Facebook that it was dedicated to Frank Zappa.

THE LOW BUDGET ORCHESTRA

Italian ensemble, The Low Budget Orchestra, featured Alessandro Fabbri on drums.

Allesandro, at one time, was a part of If Six Was Nine, a band that had recorded a handful of Frank Zappa pieces for their "Allegro Andante" album. Released in 1998.

A couple of days ago, a recording from a concert by The Low Budget Orchestra appeared on DimeADozen.

"Low Budget Orchestra" - Omaggio a Frank Zappa [RESEED with enhancements]

Prato, Teatro Metastasio
2008-09-25

"Low Budget Orchestra"

• Fabio Bagnoli, oboe
• Luciano Tristaino, Flute
• Giulia Nuti, viola
• Federico Loy, bassoon
• Fabrizio (De) Melis, electric violin
• Massimo Pinca, double bass
• Andrea Rinaldi, piano and trombone
• Alessandro Fabbri, drums

all songs arranged by Alessandro Fabbri and Fabrizio Melis

Blessed Rellief * Waka Jawaka * Duke of Prunes * America Drinks and Goes Home * Idiot Bastard Son * Little Umbrellas * Dog Breath * Blessed Relief (encore)

-- link: Jeroen Janssens

ALIENO DE BOOTES - UNCONVENTIONAL RESIDENTS - ALTERNATES & OUTTAKES

Klanggalerie just announced a third volume of Alieno De Bootes' tribute to The Residents and that's something that I'm really looking forward to.
"Unconventional Residents" offers an adventurous way to rediscover the music of The Residents !

Alessandro Pizzin (a.k.a Alieno deBootes) continues his unconventional reinterpretation of The Residents' music with this third volume of mutated well-known themes of the legendary American art combo.
The usual international guest list featured on this Unconventional Residents III CD is even more interesting this time with the inclusion of Brian Poole/Renaldo M (Renaldo & The Loaf), Amy Denio (Tone Dogs, Pale Nudes, Tiptons) and William D Drake (Cardiacs) featured here together with the usual musical friends like Ken Field (Birdsongs of the Mesozoic/Revolutionary Snake Ensemble), Christophe Godin (Mörglbl), James Larcombe (Stars in Battledress), Luis Gonzalez (Caballero Reynaldo), Masha Galvan & Spike Delgado (The Bootes Trio). On the Italian side of the lineup for the first time featured here are Piergiuseppe Ciranna (lead vocalist from Alieno's band Ruins, active since 1979), Pedro Bortoluzzi (clarinet), Anu (multi-instrumentalist also from the aforementioned Ruins) and the Yahozna Band (with whom Alieno recorded and co-produced an album of unconventional"Frank Zappa music back in 1995).

In the meantime, to ease the wait, Klanggalerie released "Alternates & Outtakes".
Make sure to check out track number 7, 'You YesyesyYes' for the fine reference to Frank Zappa's 'Inca Roads'.
Love it !!

• alien de bootes: unconventional residents - alternates & outtakes
      (2023, streaming / download, --, klanggalerie  / bandcamp)

Since the beginning of the Unconventional Residents project, Alieno deBootes has recorded, arranged, adapted, processed and completed a lot of stuff. Thanks to the collaboration of other great italian and international friends and musicians, he was able to realize a project he had been working on for a long time: publish a non-conventional reinterpretation of the music of one of the most interesting and influential groups in his listening experience. With the involvement of Klanggalerie Records it was therefore possible to publish the first two volumes of these collections, characterized by decidedly unusual interpretative choices, especially considering the uniqueness of the musical material we are talking about. On the eve of the forthcoming publication of the third volume of Unconventional Residents, Alieno deBootes and Klanggalerie have agreed to collect some of the recordings made so far through the choice of alternative versions of the songs that appeared in the two previous volumes, as well as a preview of the contents of the next album (also in this case with "alternate versions") and some curious outtakes that did not find space in the final compilations of the albums produced so far. It is a sort of Christmas present that precedes the official release of the third chapter scheduled for the beginning of winter 2024.

JANUARY 2020

January 9, 10 and 11, 2020, Markus Muffler organized a three-day tribute to  the music of Frank Zappa at the BURGHOF, a cultural center in the city of LORRACH, Germany.

Markus had The Grandsheiks performing at the festival, and he had invited Dweezil Zappa to attend the festival.

The first night had an audio listening session, plus a screening of "Eat That Question", plus a sofa session with Dweezil Zappa.

The second night, The Ensemble Recherche performed classical music that had influenced FZ.

And the third night, The Grandsheiks played a Zappa set. And much to everybody's surprise, Dweezil was featured as special guest during 'I'm The Slime'.

Read more:
https://www.rockatnight.com/2020/01/a-fantastic-zappas-tribute-at-the-burghof-in-lorrach-germany/

See more:

MARCUS REZAK'S ZAPPA EXPERIENCE FEATURING ROBERT MARTIN IN CONCERT TONIGHT

Tonight,
December 29, 2023,
at 5 Points Music Sanctuary
in Roanoke, VA

Marcus Rezak's Zappa Experience featuring Robert Martin.

https://www.5pointsmusic.com/#

PASCAL FILLET, THE SOUND ENGINEER FOR STEVE VAI'S "PASSION AND WARFARE"

The Secret Story of Passion and Warfare - Live conference feat. the sound engineer Pascal Fillet.

Steve Vai & Pascal Fillet

DWEEZIL ZAPPA / ZAPPA PLAYS ZAPPA - HOT RATS LIVE

• • Dweezil Zappa: Hot Rats Live!
      (2023, download, USA, reward music platform)

Dweezil Zappa : HOT RATS LIVE! Is an on-stage presentation of the entire 1969 classic Frank Zappa album 'Hot Rats.' The concert took place in Birmingham England in 2019.

The 2019 Zappa Plays Zappa band
Dweezil Zappa, Adam Minkoff, Scheila Gonzalez, Chris Norton, Kurt Morgan, Ryan Brown, Cian Coey

1. Peaches En Regalia
2. Willie The Pimp
3. Son Of Mr. Green Genes
4. Little Umbrellas
5. The Gumbo Variations
6. It Must Be A Camel

The band reproduced FZ's "Hot Rats" album as close to the original as possible.
Impressive? Sure !
Amazing music? Yes, it still is.
Top band? Hell, yeah.
But as some folks already mentioned on Facebook, it's a very nostalgic approach.
Still, a nice way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of "Hot Rats".

THE MET-X ZAPPA BIGBAND

• various artists: met-x-ology vol.3
      (2013, cd, belgium, met-x)

The "Met-X-Ology, Vol.3" album is a bit of an odd release.
Not that I mind odd releases. Rather the opposite, actually, but this one was a bit disappointing.

Track 4 is entitled "Apaz", written by V. Delmelle, and is performed by a band (or project?) called Zappa, a big band for kids.
I would have expected some sort of reference to the late composer that bears the same name...

Maybe I should have checked it out on YouTube before I bought the CD.

SHM-CD

If I'm not mistaken, the "200 Motels (50th Anniversary)" album from a couple of years ago, was the first one that got released by Universal.
As a result, "200 Motels" and its successors were also issued in Japan. Most of these even on SHM-CD (Super High Material Compact Disk).

I recently treated myself to the Japanese edition of "Funky Nothingness". It includes an additional booklet and an obi but I have to admit that I haven't compared this SHM version with the standard CD edition yet.

 

MARK TURNER - MARK TURNER

• mark turner: s/t
      (1998, cd, usa, warner brothers)

Mark Turner's second album featured:

• Mark Turner - tenor sax
• Edward Simon - piano
• Christopher Thomas - bass
• Brian Blade - drums
  
  and guest
• Joshua Redman - tenor sax

This is top notch, swinging contemporary jazz.
Very enjoyable.

Here's the final track from the album, Coltrane's '26-2':

GONG - UNENDING ASCENDING

• gong: unending ascending
      (2023, cd, --, kscope)

Psychedelic / progressive rock band Gong was formed in 1967 by Daevid Allen and Gilli Smyth.

Daevid Allen passed away in 2015, but he had asked the band to continue performing and had suggested Kavus Torabi to become the new frontman of the band.

"Unending Ascending" is the third or fourth release in the post-Daevid Allen period. The album features Kavus Torabi (guitar, synth, vocals), Ian East (sax, flute), Fabio Golfetti (guitar, synth, vocals), Dave Sturt (bass, vocals) and Cheb Nettles (drums).

The band sounds great, especially in the vocal section.

Gong will be touring the UK together with The Ozric Tentacles next year, for the biggest part of March.

And word has it that the band will be performing at Zappanale in 2024.

Something to look out for.

ONE SHOT - Á JAMES

• one shot: à james
      (2022, cd, france, le triton)

One Shot released their first album in 2001. At the time, the band consisted of Philippe Bussonnet, James Mac Gaw, Emmanuel Borghi and Daniel Jeand'heur.
The first three out of these four members had been part of Magma at a certain point in their career.

Guitarist James Mac Gaw passed away in 2021 after which One Shot reformed with both Emmanuel Borghi and Bruno Ruder on keyboards.

Zeuhl / avant prog / fusion.
Recorded in concert at Le Trition in Paris, France.

Beautiful.

PIERRE VERVLOESEM - SPACEQUAKE

• pierre vervloesem: spacequake
      (2023, streaming / download, --, bandcamp)

Just in time for Christmas, here's Pierre Vervloesem's "Spacequake".

According to Pierre, it's his 80th album.
According to me, this just might be the best Christmas album that I ever encountered.

Lots of polyrhythmic guitar extravaganza, free jazz saxophone solos (Bruno Vansina?), synclavier-like melodies, and twisted Christmas tunes.

THIS IS GREAT !!
Check it out !

 

CAPTAIN BEEFHEART'S "SHINY BEAST / BAT CHAIN PULLER" RECORD STORE DAY RELEASE

To celebrate the 45th anniversary of Captain Beefheart's "Shiny Beast / Bat Chain Puller" album, it has been re-issued as a Deluxe Edition on Record Store Day RSD / Black Friday a couple of weeks ago.

A 2 LP set with a lot of bonus material. But at a deluxe price as well...

DARKO THE SUPER - NOW !

Darko The Super keeps on putting this little (hidden) Zappa references in his music.
I love it.

Check out the final three seconds of the first track !

Yes, indeed.
‘Candy Colored Clown’, the first track on Darko The Super’s “Now!” album, ends with a very short sample of the intro of Frank Zappa’s ‘Zoot Allures’.
“Now!” is available through Bandcamp but also in a limited edition (of 100 copies) on CD.

EIDON - CICADAE

An exciting new piece by Eidon.

 

FRANK ZAPPA'S 'SOFA NO. 2' PERFORMED BY CIARDELLI / DRAGO / STRANO

Valentina Ciardelli: Double bass/ Back Vocals/ Arrangement 

Anais Drago: Violin/ Back Vocals

Riccardo Angelo Strano: Lead Voice

AIM - HINTERLAND

• aim: hinterland
      (2002, cd, UK, grand central records)
      (2002, 2lp, UK, grand central records)

Andy Turner’s Aim project released “Hinterland” in 2002. The album included a piece entitled ‘The Omen’ that sampled Frank Zappa saying, “You Ready?”, taken from the start of ‘The Blimp’ (from “Trout Mask Replica”). 
The album got released on CD and on 2LP.

Earlier this year, a remastered version, with different album artwork, got re-released as a 2LP.
It also included a bonus postcard with the album artwork.

Cover art of this latest version :
    (2023, 2lp, UK, atic records)

Check it out. 20 seconds into the song you hear FZ say 'You Ready?'.

I just love these little nods and references.

L.A. FREAK SCENE IN THE SPOTLIGHT IN THE LATEST ISSUE OF SHINDIG MAGAZINE

Shindig #145 has a 7-page article on the 1960's L.A. freak scene, mentioning a.o. the importance of Vito & Carl Franzoni on the early careers of Zappa's Mothers and The Byrds.

And yes, that's FZ and Don Van Vliet on the cover !

SUN RA AND HIS INTERGALACTIC RESEARCH ARKESTRA - PARADISO 1970

• sun ra and his intergalactic research arkestra: paradiso 1970
      (2023, cd, nl, nederlands jazz archief)

The Dutch Jazz Archive (Nederlands Jazz Archief) released Sun Ra's 1970 concert at the Paradiso in Amsterdam, NL, on CD and on 2 LP.
The 2 LP is already sold out but will be repressed in January.

November 18, 1970. That's over fifty years ago.
It was the first concert of Sun Ra and his Arkestra in The Netherlands.

This release comes with extended liner notes from Rudie Kagie who recalls the concert (18 musicians, 3 dancers, a singer, and a fire-eater) and gives an overview of Sun Ra's remarkable career. Lots of great pictures as well.

And then there's the music. The setlist reads as some sort of best of compilation, and the performance is phenomenal.

Additional info & sound samples:
https://www.jazzarchief.nl/product/sun-ra-and-his-intergalactic-research-arkestra-paradiso-amsterdam-1970/

 

THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR GUITAR RELEASED SOME MORE ZAPPA INSPIRED JAMS

 Out on Bandcamp:

The Six Million Dollar Guitar - Live At Waterfront Station - August 14/22

1. Frank Zappa joins Steely Dan 36:49
2. The torture never stops 01:03:01
3. Didn't get a potato chip blues 28:54
4. On an island 01:42:02
5. Don't thumb around here no more 30:46
6. Reflections 42:36

AKA MOON

An extended version of Aka Moon will be doing a concert at Flagey in Brussels in January: 

Wednesday, January 17, 2024.

https://www.flagey.be/nl/activity/10379-aka-moon-the-orchestral-constellation-quality-of-joy

Aka Moon & The Orchestral Constellation will be performing  music from "Quality of Joy", the album they released earlier in 2023.

• Fabrizio Cassol, saxofoon & comp.
• Michel Hatzigeorgiou, Fender bas
• Stephane Galland, drums

& The Orchestral Constellation

• João Barradas, accordeon
• Adèle Viret, cello
• Pierre-Antoine Savoyat, trompet
• Nathan Surquin, trombone
• Adrien Lambinet, trombone

SEAORM

Seaorm will be releasing a "Nekyia" in January.
Here's a teaser.

Angel Ontalva (guitar) and Victor Rodriguez (keyboard), plus Arkady and Ivan Fedotov.

Ángel Ontalva · Seaorm - The martyrdom of metals

 

MARK TURNER - IN THIS WORLD

• mark turner: in this world
      (1998, cd, USA, warner bros)

Few things can beat starting the day with a fine contemporary jazz album.
Mark Turner's "In This World" presents original tunes next to a classic jazz standards (Days Of Wine And Roses & You Know I Care) and a pop classic (She Said, She Said).

Mark Turner (tenor sax), Brad Mehldau (piano), Larry Grenadier (bass) & Brian Blade (drums),

and featuring guests Kurt Rosenwinkel (guitar) and Jorge Rossy (drums).

 

ZAPPA'S "A TOKEN OF HIS EXTREME" AVAILABLE ON STREAMING SERVICES

The Frank Zappa Newsletter says:

HAPPY ZAPPADAN

On December 21st, we’ll be celebrating what would have been Frank’s 83rd birthday.

To keep the celebration going, A Token of His Extreme will be available for streaming on Apple TV, YouTube and Amazon Prime Video on Friday, December 22nd. Mark your calendars.

Recorded on August 27, 1974 at KCET TV Studios in Hollywood, A Token of His Extreme was a program that Frank Zappa created and originally was intended to be a TV special. It features a legendary extravaganza of live music by him and his five incredibly talented band members: George Duke, Napoleon Murphy Brock, Ruth Underwood, Tom Fowler, and Chester Thompson.

NEW RELEASE FROM J. M. SMIG - - - FEAR BULLSHIT AND TENDERNESS

 

VARIOUS ARTISTS - WERF RECORDS - 2023 WRAPPED

The Belgian W.E.R.F. record label is known for their excellent contemporary jazz releases.
Yesterday, the label released a sampler on Bandcamp.

THE UNIVERSE BY EAR - III

• the universe by ear: III
      (2021, cd, Switzerland, on stage)

The Universe By Ear have a new album out and that one's called "Sail Around The Sun".
More on that later.
For now, I want to talk about "III", the amazing album that the Swiss power trio released two years ago.

"III" isn't actually called "III". Not visibly on the album artwork, at least.
As with their previous albums, it's sort of an eponymous release. But it's number three in the series, so to keep things simple and let's call it "III".

5 tracks.
5 long and nicely spun out prog rock tracks in which the three instruments complement each other perfectly.
Add the multi-voiced vocals and you know that I'm a fan.

• Beni Bürgin: drums, percussion, vocals
• Pascal Grünenfelder: bass, vocals
  
• Stef Strittmatter: guitar, vocals

The Universe By Ear's "III" sounds like a rolling train.

Powerful, energetic and yet, completely under control.
This is how I like my musical journeys.

Check it out !!
Highly recommended.
Also available on CD.

THE BANNED FROM UTOPIA WILL BE PERFORMING AT THE BAKED POTATO IN FEBRUARY

Banned From Utopia, featuring four Zappa alumni, will be doing a three night run at the iconic Baked Potato, the last weekend in February, the 23rd, 24th and 25th.

DARC MIND SAMPLED FRANK ZAPPA

Darc Mind sampled Frank Zappa's 'Little Umbrellas'.
The track got released on the duo's 2005 "Soulfood" EP, a CDR release.

About thirty seconds into the track !!

One year later, the piece would find its way to "Bipolar".
Initially, "Bipolar" got released as a 2 CDR set. In 2007 it would be out on several digital platforms.

WDR SINFONIEORCHESTER PERFORMED FRANK ZAPPA IN CONCERT

December 1, 2023, the WDR Sinfonieorchester, conducted by Titus Engel, plus special guests Jennifer Walshe (vocals) and Alex Paxton (trombone) performed a concert in Cologne.

Broadcast on the radio, a recording of the show found it's way to DimeADozen.

The program

• Alex Paxton (*1990)
  Pullbackhat Biome-Dunk (a Chat-Can Let-Go) (2023)
  for Improvisors and orchestra (world premiere) (7:53)
  
  
• Alex Paxton (*1990)
  Od Ody Pink‘d (2019)
  Concerto for Jazz musicians and orchestra (13:06)
  
  
• Frank Zappa (1940-1993)/orch. Andrew Digby (2016)
  While You Were Art II (1986) (13:10)
  
  
• Frank Zappa (1940-1993)/arr. Ali N. Askin (1999)
  Revised Music for Low Budget Symphony Orchestra (1969) (9:05)
  
  
• Jennifer Walshe (*1974)
  The Site of an Investigation (2018/2023)
  for voice and orchestra (world premiere of the reduced version) (33:26)

GOOD TIMES MAGAZINE

The latest issue of Good Times magazine fell on my doorstep earlier this week.
A nice surprise !

And a very fine issue it is.
In German, but in English the articles could have been called :

• "Frank Zappa through the eyes of his fans" = an interview with Peter Görs
• "Frank Zappa - Trade instead of war" = an interview with FZ from 1988
• "Frank Zappa and his parodies"

8 pages on FZ inside the magazine, and the other articles are quite nice as well.
Plus lots of reviews, news and tourdates...
An impressive magazine, this German "Good Times".

MJXII

Musical weirdness from Tory Slusher and Solo Goodspeed.
Their project was called MJXII, the album "Archipelagopher".

MOON ZAPPA AT LA PODFEST IN 2017

Live The Dork Forest with Laraine Newman, Kelly Carlin and Moon Zappa at LA PODFEST

 

MEN & VOLTS

Men & Volts are going through their archives & have just made "Healing Hands" available.

 

MATTEO MANCUSO - TRIBUTE TO JEFF BECK

Matteo Mancuso - Tribute to Jeff Beck solo

 

BROTHERS OF DIMENSION

To support the project
BROTHERS OF DIMENSION

go to
https://www.helloasso.com/associations/la-sauce-improbable/collectes/spectacle-brothers-of-dimension

The aim is to offer a show in 2024 based on Frank Zappa's compositions, integrating video and stage performance.

MENTAT ROUTAGE invites Médéric COLLIGNON

Mentat Routage, based in Mans since 1998, draws on jazz, improvised music and progressive rock, and has been incorporating performance (video, dance, etc.) into its creations since 2005.

Médéric Collignon is a virtuoso cornetist and vocalist, French composer and arranger who is very active on the jazz scene and has won numerous awards (Victoires du Jazz, Django Reinhardt prize, etc.).

TWAN VAN GERVEN - CATCH A VIBE - DB HOOLIGANS

Dutch guitar player Twan van Gerven has just released "Catch A Vibe - dB Hooligans" through Bandcamp.

 

MIKE KENEALLY MADE HIS "TAR TAPES VOLUME 2" AVAILABLE THROUGH BANDCAMP

Mike Keneally released several cassettes (on his TAR label) in 1988.
Ten years later, he would release most of the material on two CD's: the TAR Tapes.
Volume two has just been added to Mike's Bandcamp page.

NI - FOL NAÎS

 

• ni: fol naïs
      (2023, cd, france, dur & doux)

"Fol Naïs" is the latest album by Ni, a French experimental music ensemble.
Out on Bandcamp, with the actual CD and/or 2LP released earlier this month.

I received my CD a couple of weeks ago, and I just keep going back to it.

Complex and dissonant, with atypical rhythmic structures and surpassing all energy levels.
That's Ni.

One of the top albums of 2023.
Whatever I say, you will never be prepared for this.
Check it out !!

BEAT LOVE ORACLE - DANGEROUS LIQUIDS

• beat love oracle: dangerous liquids
      (2023, cd, spain, amarxe)

"Dangerous Liquids" is the fourth release by Beat Love Oracle.
The Belgian quartet performs pieces by Frank Nuyts (who also plays the marimba), with Frank Debruyne on sax, synth a vocals, Stijn Deldaele on bass & Ronald Dhaene on drums.

Fascinating and undefinable.

Amazing stuff.

Out on CD and on LP.

NARADA MICHAEL WALDEN - IMMORTALITY

• narada michael walden: immortality
      (2020, cd, usa, quarty valley records)

Narada Michael Walden started his career as a drummer for John McLaughlin, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Chick Corea and Weather Report, to name just a few.
In later years, he would work as a more pop and r&b oriented record producer and songwriter.

His 2020 "Immortality" album, however, shows him returning to his fusion roots.

With the focus on the drum set !

EIDON - SHARDS

Eidon’s “Shards” album collected several tracks that he had released separately during the year.
(Some of these mentioned Frank Zappa in the liner notes.)
A nice collection of musical experiments.

 

MATTHEW HALSALL - AN EVER CHANGING VIEW

• matthew halsall: an ever changing view
      (2023, cd, uk, gondwana records)

Matthew Halsall (trumpet player, bandleader and composer) released "An Ever Changing View" earlier this year.
Relaxing & meditative.
Very nice.

Bandcamp added:
During the album's creation, he was staying in both a beautiful architect’s house with breath-taking sea views and a striking modernist house, where he composed what he saw “like a landscape painting”. In these new environments, Halsall wanted to capture “the feeling of openness and escapism” and to approach making music again from scratch. “I hit the reset button and wanted to have complete musical freedom,” he says. “It was a real exploration of sound.”

 

IRON MAIDEN & FRANK ZAPPA

Did I already share this picture?
Taken from the booklet of the 1998 re-issue (enhanced CD) of Iron Maiden's "The Number Of The Beast".

FROM THE RESIDENTS / CHERRY RED NEWSLETTER

Greetings Eyeballers!

And so, with winter closing in, we reach the final New Ralph Too mailout of the year. The Residents have been put back into their boxes and are tucked away in their usual warm corner of their studio for hibernation, leaving those of us who look after them in charge for a few months. Our annual opportunity to enjoy the quiet and get some paperwork done without them asking irritating questions and then not listening to the answers is here.

You may well have heard by now that the group's final act before retiring for the winter was to oversee the release of 'The Residents' Secret Show', a live album and DVD documenting their January 2023 50th Anniversary performance. Crammed full of guest artists and at least a couple of Residents songs never performed live before, it's something of a must-have, and perfect for Grandma's Christmas stocking. It'll be available on 2LP and a CD/DVD set.

... if the track listing alone doesn't cut it for you, perhaps THIS taster clip featuring Les Claypool and The Residents working up 'Hello Skinny' might.

Strange to think that album will be out there in the wild by the time we wake The Residents up for their next obligation - a much anticipated UK tour of their famous 'God In 3 Persons' show! In terms of realising thirty five year old ambitions, this is a big one.

Rumours persist of further dates to be announced, but if I were you I'd start looking into a cheap flight to the UK if you can make it. All the dates and details are at residents.com/tour dates as ever. Enjoy!

To coincide with the tour, the group have also prepared a completely unrelated album for 2024's Record Store Day event, of which they're still great fans. As ever, The Residents are more than happy to sell records on the back of FOMO, peer pressure and cultural conformity, and have offered something called 'Leftovers Again?! AGAIN?!?' this time around. What that is, nobody really knows. But it sounds great doesn't it. Watch the skies!

Meanwhile, as the Eyeballs sleep through the coming months we'll be continuing to prepare pREServed releases for both 'Demons Dance Alone' and 'Animal Lover' according to their precise instructions, and checking in on post-production, mixing and all of the other complicated technical stuff which will go into their proposed new album, which should be with us some time next summer.

Of course, there's more - there's always more, right? Off the top of my head: at least two proposed books (including a collection of screenplays, film and TV treatments etc, many of which never made it), a documentary, some uber niche limited CD releases, something called 'The Randy, Chuck And Bob Studio Sessions', 'G3PRDX' and on and on and on it goes.

We do hope you'll enjoy it all, or at least some of it. I'm contractually obliged to say The Residents *still* appreciate every purchase, every click, every 'like', every needle drop, every ticket and T-shirt bought, every friend turned on to their stuff, every kinda-weird-but-ultimately-complimentary-if-you-choose-to-take-it-that-way comment on social media and all the rest of it. And it really is true.

Peace out, and have a very happy multi-faith end of year celebratory experience, wherever you are.

All at New Ralph Too

DHAFER YOUSSEF - STREET OF MINARETS

• dhafer youssef: street of minarets
      (2023, cd, europe, back beat)

Beautiful contemporary jazz. Mixing modern music with Arabic melody lines and vocals.

Here's 'Ondes Of Chakras' with Marcus Miller on the bass and Vinnie Colaiuta on drums.
I love it !!

UNIVERS ZERO - LUEUR

• univers zero: lueur
      (2023, cd, belgium, sub rosa)

It has been over ten years since Univers Zero released an album.
Instrumental, progressive, contemporary music.

Univers Zero's new album (since 10 years) follows the lineage of 'Phosphorescent Dreams', originally released only on CD in Japan in 2014, and reissued as an LP on the Sub Rosa label in 2019. Lueur is the fruit of two years' work and reflection, the foundations of which were laid by Daniel Denis (keyboards, drums, percussion...), then enriched by the contributions of Nicolas Dechêne (guitars), Kurt Budé (clarinet / bass clarinet) and Nicolas Denis (bass, percussion, vocals), all three present on Phosphorescent Dreams.

With this reduced line-up, Lueur offers a dense journey, rooted in the balance between power and calm, raging and serene sound. A balance, too, between complex arrangements and more contemplative moments. While this album continues the avant-rock tradition of Univers Zero, it also features some very short pieces, more electronic, tribal and haunting sounds, and voice work that is new to the U.Z. universe. Between tradition and subtle evolution, Lueur is a major new contribution to the discography of this band, which will be celebrating its fiftieth anniversary in 2024.

Univers Zero represents one of the longest-living bands in Belgium. It was established in 1974. Drummer Daniel Denis had the brilliant idea to gather together a team of professionals sharing the same taste for music. The band has adopted an instrumental progressive style.
Over the last couple of decades, the band has also implemented a series of influences from chamber music - most commonly, chamber music from the 20th century. Even if the line-up changes a lot over the years, the overall sound of UZ remained fairly consistent.

NEW RESIDENTS ALBUM ANNOUNCED

Scheduled for February 2024.

The Residents: "The Residents' Secret Show (Live In San Francisco) - Faceless Forever"

THE RESIDENTS’ ONE-OFF SECRET 50TH ANNIVERSARY PERFORMANCE! RECORDED LIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO, JANUARY 2023.

released as a 2 LP set, and as a CD/DVD package.

PROPELLER KUH

From 2019 !
Propeller Kuh's "Grumpy La Vie" album.

It kicks off with a Zappa sample in the first piece, but there might be more...

Quite an adventurous album. I enjoyed it a lot.

 

ONE SHOT DEAL

A recent show by One Shot Deal turned up at Dime A Dozen.

One Shot Deal
Alvas Showroom, San Pedro, California
May 12, 2023

Pete Griffin - bass guitar
Matt Rohde - keyboards
Ben Thomas - trombone, trumpet, percussion, guitar, voice
Scheila Gonzalez - keyboards, alto sax, tenor sax, flute, voice
Jamie Kime - guitar
Billy Hulting - vibraphone
Joe Travers - drums

with special guest: Mike Keneally - guitar, keyboards, vocals

Camarillo Brillo > Wind Up Workin' In A Gas Station > Carolina Hard-Core Ecstasy * Peaches En Regalia > I'm the Slime > Cosmik Debris * Village of the Sun > Echidna's Arf (Of You) > Don't You Ever Wash That Thing? * Montana > A Pound For A Brown * Pick Me, I'm Clean > Andy > Inca Roads * Dirty Love > Willie the Pimp

And a snippet (The Black Page ! ) of an even more recent show found its way to YouTube...

RICHARD GROSSER

Richard Grosser’s  2021 “Bang!” album presented 30 songs, including his version of FZ’s ‘Sinister Footwear II’ and ‘Watermelon In Easter Hay’.
The collection got released on iTunes and other digital music providers.

Also in 2021, he released his recording of 'Lumpy Gravy' on Soundcloud.

Richard Grosser · Lumpy Gravy

 

JOE SATRIANI & BRIAN TARQUIN - SPEED OF SOUND

November 2023: On Oct. 22, the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville hosted a revered music award ceremony for the independent music industry, the 9th annual Josie Music Awards (JMAs).

Winner in the category "Music Video of the Year (Male)" :

Speed of Sound featuring Joe Satriani & Brian Tarquin
Director 3Dave

The song is featured on “Brothers In Arms” featuring such iconic musicians as Joe Satriani, Vinnie Moore (UFO), Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal (Guns N’ Roses), Alex De Rosso (Dokken), Travis Stever (Coheed & Cambria), Jeff Duncan (Armored Saint), Johannes Weik (Son of a Bach), Gerald Gradwohl (Tangerine Dream), Chris Haskett (Henry Rollins Band), The Budapest Orchestra.

The Album topped the metal radio charts peaking #7 on the NACC Loud Rock charts and #11 on the Metal Contraband charts. Brian Tarquin, a one-man army, composed, produced and performed all guitar melodies, solos, bass, rhythm guitars and used session drummer Reggie Pryor. The album features exclusive songs inspired by those military soldiers who have fought for their country.

Brian's upcoming album, "Beyond the Warrior's Eyes," a fusion album due January 2024. Special guest players include Jean Luc-Ponty, Steve Morse, Eric Johnson, Robben Ford...

JOHN SCOFIELD - A GO GO

• john scofield: a go go
      (1998, cd, usa, verve records)

"John Scofield A Go Go" featured John Scofield on guitar, Chris Wood on bass, John Medeski on organ, and Billy Martin on drums.
Quite a funky / soulful record.

I was very impressed with a recent solo concert (at jazz club De Singer), and this album (from 1998) only confirms that Mr. Scofield is one of the finest jazz guitar players around !!

SOUND LIBERATION & DI.J. QUARTET

Gene Pritsker's Sound Liberation & DI. J. Quartet has just released an (eponymous) album.
Here's a teaser :

CHANAN HANSPAL TALKS TO MIKE KENEALLY

Mike Keneally talks about his illustrious career working for Frank Zappa, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, XTC's Andy Partridge, as well as his brilliant work as a solo artist.

 

THE OZRIC TENTACLES ARE COMING TO BELGIUM

Wednesday, April 3, 2024, the Ozric Tentacles will perform at De Casino in Sint Niklaas (BE).

https://decasino.be/concert/ozric-tentacles-silas-saski/

• April 4 = 'De Boerderij' in Zoetermeer (NL)
• April 5 = 'De Effenaar' in Eindhoven (NL)
• after which they'll visit Switzerland and Italy.

Tour details:
https://ozrics.com/live-shows/

CABALLERO REYNALDO

Caballero Reynaldo morphed into Reynaldo and is now making pop music.
Together with Irene Villar Tiemersma, the duo operates as Tiemersma & Reynaldo.

They've released two EP's.
On Bandcamp on on CD !
Sounds nice.

-

OSSI DURI - CRUISING WITH ZAPPA & THE JAZZ

• ossi duri: cruising with zappa & the jazz
      (2023, streaming / download, --, itunes)

Recorded in concert at the Casa di Alex in Milano, Italy on December 13, 2014, “Cruising With Zappa & The Jazz” is another excellent tribute to the music of Frank Zappa by Ossi Duri.

Ruben Bellavia on drums, Alessandro Armuschio on keyboards and vocals, Martin Bellavia on guitar and vocals, Andrea ‘Vidjo’ Vigliocco on percussion, and Simone Bellavia on bass and vocals, with special guests Jacopo Albini (sax) and Sandro Lanzafame (electric piano).

1. King Kong
2. Little Umbrellas
3. The Idiot Bastard Son
4. Let’s Move To Cleveland
5. Blessed Relief
6. Chunga’s Revenge
7. Lumpy Gravy
8. Eat That Question
9. Black Napkins
10. Oh No
11. Twenty Small Cigars
12. Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance
13. Dummy Up (band intro) (F.Zappa, J.Simmons, N.M.Brock)
14. Peaches En Regalia

https://music.apple.com/be/album/cruising-with-zappa-and-the-jazz/1715669317

NEW ARISTOCRATS STUDIO ALBUM ANNOUNCED

from The Aristocrats newsletter:

THE ARISTOCRATS reveal album title/concept of first new studio album in five years!

DUCK.

That’s the name of our fifth studio album, coming out on February 16. There’s the big news. And there’s a story to it and everything. Plus some fancy new artwork.

Pre-orders will start in early January. There will be a standard CD, a “DUCK Deluxe”, and DUCK vinyl. We’ll be playing lots of tunes from DUCK on the USA West Coast mini-tour to celebrate the release. It’s all very exciting. :-)

You can read more about it in the press release below.

Thank you again for your support on the DEFROST tour while we worked hard to finish this new music for you!

Cheers to all,
The Aristocrats

Renowned rock-fusion trio The Aristocrats are excited to reveal the album title and concept of their first studio album in five years: DUCK will be available in both standard and deluxe edition formats as well as vinyl on February 16th, 2024. The new concept album will be released via BOING Music, distributed via Hostile City Distro/MVD in North America. The trademark Aristocratic musical mayhem is rowdier than ever, but the band’s fifth studio album is truly like nothing else in their catalogue. DUCK is mixed by Forrester Savell (Twelve Foot Ninja, Dead Letter Circus, The Butterfly Effect) and contains original character artwork by film animator Lance Myers (Space Jam, Anastasia, Quest For Camelot).

Of the inspiration for DUCK, The Aristocrats collectively explained, “It is the story of a web-footed Antarctic Island native fleeing a penguin policeman all the way to New York City… where considerable misadventure and danger await.” Of its genesis, they elaborated, “We’ve always been writing with a storytelling aspect in mind, and our live shows always include our stories behind the songs… But the stories had mainly been about us. Then Marco came into the studio with a song about a duck, and we all looked at each other and said, ‘What if all of stories for the songs on this album… happened to a duck? What’s that story about?’ And suddenly we had a concept album on our hands.”

DUCK will be available in both standard and deluxe editions. The standard edition features the original CD, whilst the deluxe edition contains the original CD along with a USB DUCK drive with behind-the-scenes footage, demos and more, a DUCK pass laminate with QR code for bonus features and a custom Aristocrats-branded lanyard. DUCK will also be available in 180-gram double vinyl.

Coinciding with the release of DUCK, The Aristocrats will headline select dates on the West Coast of the United States.

FEBRUARY

• 16 - Seattle, WA - The Triple Door
• 17 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
• 19 - Redding, CA - The Dip
• 22 - Mill Valley, CA - Sweetwater Music Hall
• 24 - Los Angeles, CA - The Echo

LIVING AROUND - WILLIE THE PIMP

Recorded on August 30, 1986, by Mark Bogaerts (sax), Daniel De Cort (guitar), Guy Segers (bass) and Ron Van Eyck (drums), and released in 2023 by Guy Segers through his Bandcamp page.

 

Daniel De Cort participated in the recording of "The Purple Cucumber". He toured and recorded with Galileo's Left Wing.
Composer and bass player Guy Segers was part of Present and of Univers Zero. He owned the Carbon 7 record label.

VARIOUS ARTISTS - RED HOT RA - NUCLEAR WAR

"Red Hot Ra", a tribute to Sun Ra.
Volume 1

Released as a 2 LP set, and also on Bandcamp.

TREACHEROUS CRETINS CELEBRATES THE MUSIC OF FRANK ZAPPA BY RELEASING ONE OF THEIR SHOWS ON YOUTUBE

UK band Treacherous Cretins will celebrate the music of Frank Zappa by making one of their shows available on YouTube.
Treacherous Cretins ft. Robert 'Bobby' Martin
recorded at the 100 Club in London on February 17, 2023.

Tonight at 22h00 CET time.

HAPPY ZAPPADAN

Today is the first day of Zappadan.
Zappadan runs from December 4th (the date of Frank's death) to December 21st (Frank's birthday).

Recent trips to Vienna, Heerlen and Brussels sure got me in the right mood.

Vienna was the place for the Idiot Twins Festival.
In our case, it meant combining a fine afternoon concert by the Studio Dan Ensemble (2023 11 11) with the evening festival where, a.o., Gabba Zappa Hey performed.
Good times.

Heerlen was the place for the MOSAE ZAPPA Festival.
I lost count. Was this the 6th edition already? Whatever the number, it was another excellent one.
The MSRBL HRNSHNE did their thing on Friday evening (2023 11 24), with Saturday offering gigs of Fred Händl, Remco Serban, Wolfbox, Gary Lucas, The Wrong Object, and Cheap Thrills.
As if that wasn't enough, the series continued on Sunday with Händl / Beck / Hollie, and with Kameel.
An overdose of fine gigs...

Leading up to Brussels ZAPPA.YES.YES.YES. Festival, I was able to catch the Ensemble Styx two times. With special guests Dave Douglas, Bruno Vansina, Samuel Ber, and Pierre Verloesem.

And a the ZAPPA.YES.YES.YES. Festival it was time for the Ryelandt Trio, Ensemble Styx, and Sinister Sister with special guest Robert Martin. (2023 12 03)
At the incredible Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels.

Completely exhausted, but also very satisfied.

As long as we're able to produce and to listen to beautiful music, there is still hope for the world.
Happy Zappadan.

JIMMY AGREN, SCOTT COLBY & HENRY KAISER PROMOTIONAL CD

Jimmy Agren, Scott Colby and Henry Kaiser have been releasing several pieces of music on YouTube for the last year or so.
Some have been selected and are being offered on a promotional CD that one can get with an order over at Wayside Music and at Squidco.

The amazing news is that the track list looks incredible !!
Wait. I'll say that again: INCREDIBLE !!

With Mike Keneally and Morgan Agren as special guests on 'Trouble Every Day'.

1. Plastic Factory (Don Van Vliet)
2. Your Mouth (Frank Zappa)
3. Sun Zoom Spark (Don Van Vliet)
4. Walk It Off (Scott Colby)
5. Funeral Hill (Don Van Vliet)
6. Today Gluggo, Tomorrow The World (Lionel Rubin, Pete York)
7. New Values > When Big Joan Sets Up (Don Van Vliet, Iggy Pop, Scott Thurston)
8. Ride On (Angus Young, Bon Scott, Malcolm Young)
9. It Just Might Be A One-Shot Deal (Frank Zappa)
10. Howlin' For My Darlin' (Chester Burnett)
11. That's The Way The Cookie Crumbles (Scott Colby)
12. On The Road Again (Floyd Jones, Tommy Johnson)
13. Trouble Every Day (Frank Zappa)

Goosebumps !!

SUN RA ART PRINT

The Art Yard record label is making a Sun Ra art print available through Bandcamp.
Illustrations by Peter Dennett and Veronika Pražanová.

https://sunrastrut.bandcamp.com/merch/there-are-other-worlds-sun-ra-limited-edition-fine-art-silk-screen-print?from=fanpub_fb_merch

Illustrations by Peter Dennett and Veronika Pražanová.

EIDON - TIJA-NEE

Eidon keeps on releasing beautiful music.
Here's 'Jija-Nee'.

 

JOHN BLUM, DAVID MURRAY, CHAD TAYLOR - THE RECURSIVE TREE

• john blum, david murray, chad taylor: the recursive tree
      (2023, cd, --, relative pitch)

"The Recursive Tree" presents high energy improvised jazz by John Blum (piano), David Murray (tenor sax) and Chad Taylor (drums).

Not familiar with the term, I did a search for "The Recursive Tree":
https://www.cs.cornell.edu/courses/cs3110/2012sp/lectures/lec20-master/lec20.html.
Something I'll have to re-read a couple of times, I guess.

The music on this album, will also need multiple listening sessions.
And that's something I'm looking forward to.

PIERRJEAN GAUCHER - SATINÉDITS

• Pierrejean Gaucher: Satinédits
      (2023, streaming / download, --, bandcamp)

Pierjean Gaucher:
At the time of the release of the 'Zappe Satie' CD (2021), I still had some previously unreleased musical material recorded in the studio. After 2 years and a number of concerts, I felt the need to come back to it. Also, 2025 will mark the centenary of Erik Satie's death. A great opportunity to breathe new life into this musical project! This EP is fairly short (15'00) and mixes full tracks with 'interludes', as on the previous album. Yet they offer a different and complementary facet of this repertoire.

I, for one, I'm glad that this EP got released. The music is beautiful.
I love the instrumentation and the tone of Pierrjean's guitar.

• Pierrejean Gaucher : guitars, various instruments
• Quentin Ghomari : trumpet
• Thibault Gomez : piano Fender Rhodes
• Alexandre Perrot : acoustic bass
• Ariel Tessier : drums
• Marc-Henri Boisse : voice on 3

Only six pieces, but they're all great.
'Pacific 431' sounds like the start of a voyage, 'Gnossienne no.8' kicks off with a Frank Zappa sample (from the spoken word intro from 'Be-Bop Tango (Of The Old Jazzmen’s Chuch)' from the “Roxy & Elsewhere” album), 'Erik's Speaking' is quite funny and it has Sati's vocals doubled on guitar (remember The Jazz Discharge Party  Hats?),...

Highly recommended !

Check it out.

SUN RA - - - PARADISO 1970 AMSTERDAM

The new Sun Ra And His Intergalactic Research Arkestra "Paradiso 1970 Amsterdam" album, is being made available both on vinyl (2LP) and on CD.

STORIES BEHIND ZAPPA ALBUM COVERS - - - ARTIST CAL SCHENKEL

Bob Dobbs talking with Cal Schenkel.

-

 

AHMET ZAPPA'S HALOS AND ARROWS

Ahmet Zappa's Halos and Arrows company is selling prints linked to the Frank Zappa Archives.

https://halosandarrows.com/shop-prints/frank-zappa-archive/

-- info: Tina Grohowski on Facebook