Xela, Perispirit, Brendan Murray & Noell Dorsey at The Piano Factory

Brendan Murray & Noell Dorsey: whales, monkeys, & ghosts singing in an occasionally treacherous river of echoes & footsteps

Brendan Murray: hummingbird heartbeat pulse blast, murky sonar blip feedback, laser tag in space haze

Perispirit: I really don't remember, my mind kinda melted, there were birds & water sounds, CRAZY volume cuts, the end was bordering on black metal, and it seemed to last foooorevverrrrrr

Xela: Jim Siegel (Ning Nong) on drums, synthy sci-fi arpeggio/tremolo tape weirdness, fallen angel choir harmonizes with itself, spontaneously combusts, treads on static circuits & tribal clouds, all the while firmly rooted in euphoria

More photos on Flickr.

Xela

Xela

Perispirit

Perispirit

Brendan Murray

Brendan Murray & Noell Dorsey

MP3: Brendan Murray, Ben Owen, & Mike Shiflet - Live at Supreme Trading 10-15-08

Brendan Murray, Ben Owen, & Mike Shiflet - Live at Supreme Trading 10-15-08


Here's another delicious treat from the increasingly amazing Compost And Height. Brendan Murray, Ben Owen, and Mike Shiflet did a live collaboration in Brooklyn and you probably weren't there. But fear not. A recording of this quality makes it easy enough to imagine that you were.

It's only 15 minutes long but it's totally trance inducing. That is, except for the one time pop of somebody slapping their hand on the floor. That snaps you right back into your living room, until you space out again and start soaring through the deep clear valleys, foggy forests, and silent mountaintops. So so good. Makes me wish these guys would do something like this in Boston.

Show Worthy 9/7 - 9/13

OMG you guys there's like something TOTALLY AMAZING going on every night this week. Too bad I'm working every fucking night this week.



Brendan Murray by R. Yau. via
Monday, September 7
Brendan Murray at Weirdo Records (donate, 7:00, all ages)
You may be thinking to yourself, "Wellll, it's a Monday night, I can see Murray pretty much whenever I want, and it's only him playing..." If that's the case then you need take a step back and fucking realize what this shit is about. Mr. Murray is doing a motherfucking drone installation. I have no idea what that means but it sounds pretty fucking great. It'll run from 7-9 so that means you can space out for 2 hours in a tiny record store and have a highly enjoyable evening in the process.



Raed Yassin Quartet by Intangible Arts via
Tuesday, September 8
Raed Yassin Quartet (Raed Yassin, Audrey Chen, Morton Olsen, Jeff Carey), Skinny Vinny at Outpost 186 ($10, 8:00, all ages)
Fantastic group playing here. Yassin doin his acoustic bass thing, Olsen on percussion, Carey with the electronics, and Chen who does some seriously amazing vocal work while fucking with her cello. Skinny Vinny's weirdo improv noise jazz will kick things off.



Rise Set Twilight by almost foodies via
Tuesday, September 8
Rise Set Twilight at Cafe Fixe (donate, 8:00, all ages)
The next "experimental coffee house" at Cafe Fixe presented by Non-Event has Rise Set Twilight coming to town for the first time in 3 years. Projections, analog shit, and all sorts of noise while drinking some delicious fucking coffee is probably the best way to spend your Tuesday night in Brookline.



Bruno Pronsato by von boot via
Wednesday, September 9
Bruno Pronsato at Phoenix Landing ($5, 10:00, 19+)
Bruno Pronsato (aka Steven Ford) makes killer electronic beats that are perfect for dancing or chilling. If Raster Noton decided to put out some dance records, Bruno Pronsato would be the first release.



Dirty Three by fishplums via
Thursday, September 10
Dirty Three, The Low Lows at ICA Boston ($25, 7:30, all ages)
I was this close to going to this show. I got the day off and everything. But then I was like, "FUCK. Am I really going to spend $25 on Dirty Three?" Maybe if they were playing Ocean Songs like they are at ATP NY. Otherwise, no. Sorry dudes. But if you got some extra cash this week, then this would the place to spend it.



Hrvatski (as Keith Fullerton Whitman) by Seth Tisue via
Friday, September 11
Mavis Concave, Hrvatski, Sharpwaist, Typical White Male, Nathan Trites & Max Lord, Karlheinz, DJ Travis England at Butcher Shoppe/Burger Stoop (donate, 8:00, all ages)
I can't tell you how pumped I am for this show. Do you see that fucking lineup? It's a fucking powerhouse. By the end of the night, the Butcher Shoppe is going to be leveled because it won't be able to contain all of the awesomeness. You got your noise, glitch, drone, power electronics, and everything in between. So so so cool. And yeah, they're attempting to change the name from Butcher Shoppe to Burger Stoop so keep your eyes peeled.



Many Mansions by Asteroid M via
Saturday, September 12
Boston Underground Summit (Round Robin style with Many Mansions, General Interest, World Map, Big Digits, The Needy Visions, Crystal Understanding, Mmoss, Life Partners) at Outside The Lines ($10, 6:00, all ages)
Kinda self explanatory, right? You know about the Round Robin thing done by Dan Deacon multiple times. Except now it's with some of Boston's best experimental bands. There's no way this isn't going to be the coolest thing ever.


Sunday, September 13
Ulysses' Crewmen, Diagram A, Xiphoid Dementia, Zerfallt, Bitchneck at Outpost 186 ($5, 8:00, all ages)
Alright, so this is really confusing for me. I think Ulysses' Crewmen is a play. Something to do with Insurgent Theatre and Existence Establishment. And Diagram A, Xiphoid Dementia, Zerfallt, and Bitchneck are all "involved" and probably performing their regular noise. But I'm not totally sure. Either way, all those dudes are fucking cool as shit and it should be a great time.



Telefon Tel Aviv by florena via
Sunday, September 13
Telefon Tel Aviv, The Race, Coralcola, DJ Pandai'a at Great Scott ($10, 9:00, 18+)
If you're not quite feeling the noise thing Sunday night, you should be at Great Scott. Lots of lush electronic soundscapey tunes. And this is the first tour for Telefon Tel Aviv since Charles Cooper died and Fredo Nogueira has (temporarily?) taken his place helping Josh Eustis on stage. And Coralcola has that new epic song "Egggirl" which I'm sure he'll play. So this show is going to be fucking awesome. Obviously.

Asher & Brendan Murray at Cafe Fixe

Brendan Murray & Asher
Brendan Murray
Asher

Photos by Susanna Bolle (my camera was acting up).
Check out more on Flickr.


Last night was the second "experimental coffee house" put on by Non-Event (who totally rule). The first was Geoff Mullen & Keith Fullerton Whitman (also at Fixe), which I sadly missed out on. But I was determined to check out this seemingly jive coffee shop who hosts cool music and HOLY SHIT YOU NEED TO GO. Let me break it down for you...

It's kinda like the Weirdo shows. It's a small space (though not nearly as small as Weirdo. Fixe has tables & chairs. Though to be fair, they don't have hundreds of records, either). You go early and hang out, instead of buying records you drink coffee, and see a single amazing performance. Cheap, intimate, go home early, what's not to love?

Asher Thal-Nir is a dude I had never heard of before this event but since he was performing with Brendan Murray, I knew the guy was at least awesome by association. Turns out he's pretty cool on his own, too, but whatever. The music is what matters.

It started out pretty simple, just a dried up ocean desert of white noise. Some alternating high & low long form sonar blips, perhaps of the piano origin. Very tranquil. Very desolate. Then someone passes out on their car horn, just laying on that thing, bleeding an electronic organ tone way out in the distance. Suddenly something that sounds like flowing water comes into ear shot, like a geyser is slowly bubbling up, refilling the ocean, although everything remains mostly peaceful for a period of time. But then shit turns dark and scary. Like the water coming back is threatening to summon the deep sea monsters as well. And that sonar returns, too, but this time at a more rapid pace. You realize it's steady, though, so whatever it is is staying put. Eventually, the bubbles fade, and one by one, the dozens of layers you didn't even know where there drop out. Total silence. Show's over. Applause. Curtains. Socializing. Home.

Show Worthy 4/6-4/12

I had an idea to do some sort of regular concert e-mail or post or something like that. Basically, anything to draw attention to shows that are worthy of your eyes and ears in the Boston area in addition to that concert listing column over on the right. So I'm going to attempt to do a weekly Sunday post where I'll highlight some shows coming up within the next week. This is not meant to be inclusive by any means. I'll probably stick to the experimental side of things, but there are always exceptions. Like Mates of State are playing this week. Everyone loves Mates Of State. If you don't, fuck you. You should.

I don't think I'll normally have this many shows listed but this week seems to be chock full of great shows that I can't go to. Especially Friday.



Mates of State at Mercury Lounge, NYC 5-21-08 via Bao Nguyen
Tuesday, April 7
Mates Of State, Black Kids at House Of Blues ($20, 8:00, all ages)
I'm trying not to endorse this show for two reasons. I'm not a fan of Black Kids, nor am I a fan of House Of Blues. But Mates Of State are so cute and awesome. They put on such a great live show that it's probably even worth it to spend $20 and see them in a club as big as HoB. If you haven't seen them yet, you should. Trust me.




Tuesday, April 7
Peace, Loving; Hunted Creatures; Nature; Ophibre at Church (free, 8:30, 21+)
This is gonna be my pick for the week. It's presented by The Whitehaus Family Record and it's frreeeee. You seriously can't pass this up. You know how awesome Ophibre is and he put out that split with Hunted Creatures not too long ago that was fantastic. You pretty much don't have a good reason to miss this show, unless you're going to see Mates Of State.




Wednesday, April 8
Prince Rama Of Ayodhya, Many Mansions, Jealousy, Concord Ballet Orchestra Players at O'Brien's ($7, 9:00, 21+)
Another Whitehaus related show. Both Prince Rama and Many Mansions put on wonderful live shows. I've heard great things about CBOP and have been meaning to see them for a while but just never got around to it. If I were you and free Wednesday night, I'd check this show out.



Parts & Labor at Middle East Upstairs 12-12-08
Friday, April 10
Parts & Labor at Oxfam Cafe (free?, 8:00, all ages?)
I will be at this show. I don't know who else is playing, if anyone. Both the band's and venue's Myspace only list P&L as playing. Even if they are the only band, it still makes it 100% amazing. Aaaaand it's probably free.



Eliza Blaze at Spring Iron Pour 2008 via Eliza Blaze
Friday, April 10
Spring Iron Pour with Justin Crosby, Fractillian, Peace & Quiet, The Silver City at MassArt Courtyard (free?, 7:00, all ages)
Dude. It's a bunch of great bands that play live while iron is being poured. And I'm pretty sure it's free. That's all you need to know.



The Books via interrobang
Friday, April 10
The Books at The Boston ICA ($25, 7:00 & 9:30, all ages)
You know The Books. You love The Books. Electro-acoustic field recording shit for $25 in a nice auditorium.



Brendan Murray at Hell Hoarse Kavekavity Sessions via ex-atari-kid
Sunday, April 12
Brendan Murray, Oneohtrix Point Never, DJ Howard Stelzer at Great Scott ($7, 9:00, 18+)
Intransitive Recordings is putting on another one of their (his) soon to be famous fucking amazing ass shows. Brendan Murray is releasing a new CD and Oneohtrix Point Never is the guy from Astronaut and Infinity Window. Howard Stelzer (the man behind Intransitive) will be DJing. According to some other sites, Red Horse and Eat Cloud are also supposed to be playing and DJ Won't should be spinning as well. If that's true, then this show is going to be fucking epic. But Great Scott's website doesn't mention them so neither will I. Either way, you should go.

Bull Moose Music (Portsmouth, NH)

The other day I went up to Portsmouth, NH with my family for my birthday. We just kinda walked around, enjoyed the place, ate at Friendly Toast, you know the drill. And seeing how it was my birthday, I dragged them into this not so little record store called Bull Moose Music.

Wow. You need to go here.

It's big. Definitely not your average used record shop on the corner. And they sell tons of stuff. Their metal section was pretty admirable (one of the first sections when you walk in) and they actually had an experimental section. Sweet! They do the mixed new/used thing so you don't have to go back and forth to see if they have a specific record you're looking for. I didn't get a good chance to look through, but it seemed like they had a decent vinyl selection, too, with plenty of new stuff and even a special little section for 10"s. Oh, and their price labels come off nice and easy, leaving no residue. That is a fucking plus and a half.

And they actually had a vault. Like, one you keep reeeeeally special stuff in. I bet there's boxes of rare shit I've never heard of like super limited signed copies of some tour only split 7" with Stars Of The Lid and Fennesz. And then they throw wicked secret parties in there where you get to hang out with Zach Hill, Andre Benjamin, and Wayne Coyne. I mean, what else do you do with a vault in a record store?


I was able to pick up a few CDs before my family rushed me out of there. I found used copies of Khanate's Capture & Release and Larval's Predator Or Prey. And I got the motherfuckin deal of the century when I found one of 500 copies of Brendan Murray's Commonwealth with the cardboard sleeve for $3.98. LESS THAN FOUR DOLLARS FOR THAT BITCH. Go to Bull Moose and seek the deals. They shall be had.

Brendan Murray

Local drone guy Brendan Murray was in Boston's The Phoenix this Thursday. A pleasant article about his new album Commonwealth, which I have yet to hear but I'm sure it's just as good as his other stuff. Apparently on Commonwealth, Murray uses more traditional instruments like guitar and organ and not as much electronics as before. Should be interesting. Check out the article here.

Also, was I the only one who didn't know that MC Chris was part of The Warped Tour this year? What the hell is he doing there? I mean, good for him and all, but that just seems a bit strange to me.