I never quite agreed with Heldon (a.k.a. Richard Pinhas) being labeled as the French Robert Fripp. He’s his own man, and has come up with some rather amazing sounds on his own. Still, it’s quite something to hear Richard perform this paean to Frippertronics.
Rock
[Video] Lead Into Gold – A Giant On Earth
Though Ministry was always seen, rightly or wrongly, as Al Jourgensen’s band, it’s not fair to say that he was the only talent in the group. Bassist Paul Barker used Lead Into Gold as a vehicle for his own creative output. It’s a shame he didn’t do more with it.
[Video] Carlos Santana & Mahavishnu John McLaughlin – A Love Supreme
This is not a cover of the John Coltrane classic in a traditional sense, but Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin of the Mahavishnu Orchestra bring out the heart of the great master’s work here beautifully.
Seek out this album, as it’s a masterpiece.
[Video] Pere Ubu – Visions of the Moon
Perhaps the finest avant-punk band to ever come from Cleveland, Pere Ubu is in fine form with a track from their 2014 release, Carnival of Souls.
[Video] Grateful Dead with Ornette Coleman – The Other One 2-23-93
I’m not a big fan of The Grateful Dead’s studio recordings. However, they were rather sublime live. And when they are paired with one of the giants of free jazz in Ornette Coleman, magic happens.
[Video] Amanaz – Africa (Full Album)
Thanks to Oded Fried-Gaon and Oddrocker Orlando Greenhill, who posted this originally. Amanaz produce amazing psych-fuzz, and hail from Zambia.
[Video] Spooky Tooth with Pierre Henry – Prayer
An updated version of this post, as an error by GoDaddy, who hosts this site, ate it. Hopefully, I have no more missing posts.
[Video/Sample] Árstíðir – Heyr Himna Smiður
The best way to describe Árstíðir, at least in this gorgeous tune, is something like what a Varangian choir might have sounded like in 13th-Century Byzantium, singing in the Hagia Sophia.
As it turns out, the tune is from the 13th Century, written by Kolbeinn Tumason. No, Wuppertal isn’t quite Byzantium, especially inside of the train station, but the lads made a mundane place seem almost holy that day.
For another, perhaps clearer version, check out this performance from Vilnius, Lithuania, in 2012. To hear this as an MP3 or FLAC file, just download the ‘name your price’ album via Bandcamp.
[Video] 잠비나이 (Jambinai) – Connection
Many thanks to dear Maryna Evilly from Ukraine for originally posting this.
The band is a new one to me. It seems that they’re from South Korea, and, at least on this track, they have a sound which reminds me of Tuxedomoon or bands from the legendary Italian record label Materiali Sonori.
Greek singer Demis Roussos dies aged 68
I hate it when my blog becomes a necropsy report. Unfortunately, the world lost former singer of Aphrodite’s Child, and an amazing singer in his own right, Demis Roussos.
The BBC provides an obituary here.
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 