Blogcritics Author: Stephen V Funk

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

E.T.: The Mix Tape

Stephen V Funk — Thu, 7 Jun 2007 18:10:02 EDT

A short time ago, in a galaxy not very far away... NASA launched the Voyager Golden Record into outer space.Wikipedia explains, "The Voyager Golden Record is a phonograph record included in the two Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. It contains sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth. It is intended for any intelligent extraterrestrial life form, or far future humans, that may find it."What a great idea -- but unfortunately it doesn't seem to be working. It's now thirty years later, and we still haven't heard from the aliens (at least as far as I know...)Maybe the extraterrestrials just don't care for the music we recorded for them -- there's no accounting for taste, after all -- so I've decided to take another shot at it... and I need your help!First, go to the Golden Record website to find out what was on the original Golden Record (assuming you don't already have it committed to memory...)Then post a comment below with your suggestions for the new version.Anticipating NASA budgetary constraints, this new interplanetary mix will be recorded on a 100 minute cassette encased in a gold-plated ghetto blaster -- therefore we have room for only about twenty selections, each lasting five minutes or less. (Let's not burden the cosmos with the entire Ring Cycle or White Album just yet. Remember we're trying to encourage the aliens to visit, not scare them away...)Check back here on Monday, when I'll be posting the final track listing of our new Golden Record drawn from your suggestions and my own personal picks.Boldly go where no mix tape has gone before...!

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Concert Review: Bjork (Chicago, IL 5/12/07)

Stephen V Funk — Tue, 15 May 2007 08:16:34 EDT

Bjork (with Ghostigital)Saturday, May 12, 2007 8:00pmAuditorium TheaterChicago, IL Ghostigital (opening act): Picture a guy (who apparently used to be in The Sugarcubes) working out some issues by shout-singing a litany of unintelligible pronouncements while another guy at a laptop cranks out blistering electro-thrash. Yikes. I'll be at the bar...Bjork's outfit: Oversized gold lamé potato sack inscribed with a topographic map of Mt. McKinley. Black spandex with day-glo fuzzy caterpillars glued to them. Barefoot. The band: A drummer. Two guys on electronics and/or keyboards. Ten-piece all-female brass section with flags sticking up over their heads wearing flowing pastel robes.The audience: 99.8% Caucasian.The stage: Colorful banners with pictures of fish (I think) on them hung from above. Occasional pyrotechnic flame bursts and green laser beams. Big screen TVs showing the fingers of the electronics guys pressing buttons and lights and stuff.(Is it just me, or does all this vaguely nationalistic imagery and the brass brigade combined with the fist-pumping sell-out crowd's perpetual standing ovation look a lot like those fascist rally-esque concert scenes in Pink Floyd: The Wall...?)Bjork on Volta:"Because I'd done two or three projects in a row that were quite serious, maybe I just needed to get that out of my system or something. So all I wanted to do for this album was just to have fun and do something that was full-bodied and really up. ... Everything that stay[ed] was a little nostalgic, going back to 1992 when you had really simple 808 and 909 really lo-fi drum machines not doing anything fancy but really basic -- almost like rave or trance stuff..."The show: While the new album itself is far from the hook-laden techno-pop confection that Bjork seemed to be hinting at above, this was a concert that aimed to please, interspersing the less familiar new material with plenty of tried-and-true Bjorkian classics.The beats were big, the bass was phat, the amps were set to eleven. That Icelandic brass section provided mostly visual interest, with the electronics, percussion, and Bjork's vocals competing for dominance in the mix.The shuffling martial assault of "Earth Intruders" was the sure-fire opening crowd-pleaser... Then there were the more austere Vespertine-era atmospherics that weren't quite as suited to the mega-concert format.But soon enough Bjork was hitting her stride as the set careened forward... "Army of Me" killed... "Bachelorette" rocked... "Hyperballad" soared.The final song/hyper-individualist manifesto, "Declare Independence," had none of the menacing techno-punk urgency as heard on Volta and was instead a blast of pure joy and head-banging adrenaline.By the end, it was almost like being at the techno-rave party of your wildest dreams. The brass and the flags and the lasers didn't matter... it was all about Bjork and the beats.At last, she actually seemed to be "really up" and having "fun..." And so were we.Raise your own flag... [ cell phone photos from flickr ]

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Concert Review: Keith Jarrett - "An Evening of Solo Piano Improvisations" (2/17/07, Chicago, IL)

Stephen V Funk — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 18:45:43 EST

A capacity crowd in an unusually somber mood converged on Symphony Center on Saturday night to hear what was billed as Keith Jarrett's "first solo piano recital in Chicago since 1985 and his only solo recital in North America in 2007." No pressure, Keith...!A pre-concert announcement informed us that the performance was being recorded and to therefore refrain from extraneous noises and coughing -- so the audience responded in turn with a chorus of coughs followed by tittering, self-satisfied chuckling. Welcome to Chicago in February.Mr. Jarrett was greeted by riotous applause as he appeared on stage wearing dark sunglasses and what appeared to be the same austere outfit worn during two previous appearances here with his trio.Surprisingly, he began by speaking to the audience using a stand-up microphone set up on the side of the stage, grasping at tenuous Chicago connections from his past and even calling out an audience member for illegally recording: "I can see those two little red lights... you should at least change the color or unscrew the bulbs."In general, I was taken aback by Keith's chattiness -- throughout the evening he frequently addressed us from the mic and the piano, name dropping philosophers and classical composers, debating the relative merits of American vs. German pianos, and once even wondering aloud what to play next... "how do I follow myself?" I have to wonder -- Is this a common occurrence at his solo concerts that gets edited out of the recordings, or was he just in a talkative, Midwestern mood?His often playful demeanor even extended to a large white towel he periodically used to wipe the sweat from his brow -- at one point relishing the sound of dropping it onto the Steinway strings repeatedly, and later revealing that "I tell my grandchildren I get paid to fold towels on stage" (Many Jarrett fanatics in attendance would probably pay good money to see that, actually).A few misguided groupies even attempted to talk back to Keith, shouting out things like "you're great," "thanks for all you give", and "easy on the starch!" I'm glad these folks were having a fun time, but it sort of ruined the mood for the rest of us (and probably reduces the likelihood that a CD of this concert will ever be released... at least that guy on the Main Floor was recording it for himself.)One brave soul even dared to cough loudly during the performance, prompting a visibly annoyed Mr. Jarrett to request "one more... one more..." before resuming his playing. Keith is arguably his own worst distraction, however, and his trademark standing, gyrating, stomping, grimacing, singing, and groaning were in full force during the entire concert. While this eccentric behavior is presumably sincere and inadvertent, I admit I was sometimes a little irritated by it and almost embarrassed on his behalf.As for the actual music, anyone familiar with Mr. Jarrett's recent solo piano recordings -- Radiance, Tokyo Solo, and The Carnegie Hall Concert -- probably knew what to expect here in Chicago: a series of relatively short, self-contained improvised movements exploring wildly divergent styles and emotions.Gone are the epic, grandiose solo gestures that were Jarrett's original claim to fame, heard most notably on Bremen/Laussane, La Scala, and the blockbuster Koln Concert, where musical ideas evolved spontaneously and flowed organically over extended time periods.Instead, Jarrett now serves up a buffet-style tasting menu of sorts that surveys the full breadth of his pianistic powers in concise, bite-sized chunks: from polytonal boogie-woogie to 12-bar blues vamps to anthemic balladry to post-Impressionistic tone paintings to atonal chromatic finger-busters to tender melancholic melodies.Although he proudly proclaimed that his concert would be "100% analog" during his opening remarks, Keith's new formula is ideally suited to the random iPod Shuffling of our digital age.Despite this disjointed and sometimes quite jarring approach, Mr. Jarrett's uncanny ability to conjure elegant counterpoint, rich harmonies, varied dynamic shadings, and soaring melodies from his instrument at will was consistently awe-inspiring and often breathtaking.Predictably, he rewarded the boisterous, rock star-worthy applause with five encores: a wistful rendition of Cole Porter's underplayed "Miss Otis Regrets," a rapid-fire, almost barrelhouse romp on "You Took Advantage of Me," something lovely that sounded sort of like "Easy Living" but probably wasn't, another gorgeous ballad that I couldn't identify, and -- last but definitely not least -- one of Jarrett's signature closers, a stunningly beautiful "When I Fall In Love."

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

The 15 Greatest Albums of All Time [1981 Edition]

Stephen V Funk — Fri, 2 Feb 2007 18:26:34 EST

Sure, it's all fine and good to assemble a "Greatest Albums of All Time" list informed by decades of open-eared listening and insightful criticism.It's another thing to wonder what such a list might look like if I made one at the age of, say, ten or eleven... when my primary exposure to music was via Casey Kasem's American Top-40 countdown, the latest PG-rated multiplex blockbuster, and/or whatever LPs (sometimes cassettes!) I could borrow from the Public Library and beg my parents to buy for me.Let's set the Wayback Machine to somewhere deep in the depths of circa 1981, when my "Greatest Albums of All Time" list probably would have looked a little something like this...[15] REO Speedwagon: Hi InfidelityChock full o' power hits! Wonder what my parents thought about that album cover...[14] Meco: Star Wars and Other Galactic FunkThe Greatest Composer of All Time's music is actually improved by laser sounds and disco beats![13] Olivia Newton John/Electric Light Orchestra: "Xanadu" [single]Ohhhh-livia... I have to believe you are magic! Didn't care for that Gene Kelly guy on Side B, though...[12] Bob & Doug MacKenzie: Great White NorthTwo guys pretending to be Canadians drinking beer for an hour or so. What more do you need? Take off, eh! Hosers! Priceless...[11] Grease [soundtrack]Summer Nights? Greased Lighnin'? Born to Hand Jive? Pure gold! (Except the mushy Hopelessly Devoted to You... Ick...)[10] Billy Joel: Glass HousesWorth it for the awesome sound of broken glass at the start of the album. The songs are okay too.[9] Can't Stop The Music [soundtrack]The bizarre appeal of this project is impossible to explain... just turn off your brain and enjoy![8] The Alan Parsons Project: "Games People Play" [single]Side A sure is catchy, but it's the flip side, "Ace of Swords," that I really loved -- the ideal instrumental interlude to an afternoon of Dungeons and Dragons...[7] Blondie: "Rapture" [single]The original -- and still the best -- white rap. Fantastic bass and horns too... and it's over six minutes long! [6] Queen: "Another One Bites The Dust" [single]Hey kids -- two groovy songs about killing: other people on side A, yourself on side B. Cool laser machine gun sound effects seal the deal.[5] Supertramp: Breakfast In AmericaI can't tell you how many times I called the radio station to request "Take The Long Way Home" and/or "The Logical Song" (as if they didn't play them enough already).[4] Styx: Paradise TheaterSorta kinda concept album? Whatever... Styx can do it all -- power rock AND pretty ballads![3] Styx: The Grand IllusionMore Styx! Why? Because they are geniuses! "Come Sail Away" -- need I say more?[2] Hooked on ClassicsClassical music sounds so much better when you cut out the boring parts, string it all together, and put a drum machine beat on top of it. Who needs Music Appreciation class when you can have this instead?[1] Saturday Night Fever [soundtrack]Let me count the ways... "Stayin' Alive," "You Should Be Dancing," "If I Can't Have You," "A Fifth of Beethoven," "Night on Disco Mountain," "Open Sesame," and the massive 10-minute closer, "Disco Inferno"... Clearly, the Greatest Album of All Time.Agreed? Remember, it's 1981...

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Music Review: Rhys Chatham - A Crimson Grail (for 400 Electric Guitars)

Stephen V Funk — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 13:45:17 EST

The first thing to understand is that there are no drums. Well, not exactly -- a lone cymbal pulses throughout the second movement, which culminates in some manic drumming buried in the depths of the sonic stew. But this is not toe-tappin' and/or head-bangin' Rhys Chatham like Guitar Trio, Die Donnergotter, or An Angel Moves Too Fast To See. Instead, think Charlemagne Palestine's marathon drones, Brian Eno's Discreet Music, or maybe Anton Bruckner's adagios... as played by 400 electric guitars.Also consider that the experience and sheer spectacle (bordering on ritual) of 400 electric guitars performing in an enormous basilica at an all-night concert in Paris would be damn near impossible to capture on a recording. So just as the CD of Chatham's 100 guitar opus An Angel Moves Too Fast To See, as great as it is, surely pales in comparison to the actual concert, imagine the engineering difficulties presented by a group four times that size before an audience of 10,000 people.What we end up with is this very raw, very "live," almost bootleg-ish document of the October 2005 performance of A Crimson Grail (Moves Too Fast To See) on the adventurous Table of the Elements label. And we should be thankful.The first movement is surprisingly gorgeous and serene, as the guitarists coax shimmering chords from their instruments that resonate like some kind of massive spectral chorale. It's hard to believe that hundreds of electric guitars could be producing these awesomely beautiful, sometimes eerily choral waves of sound.The next movement is somewhat darker, with that subtle cymbal pulse taking us from adagio to andante and the players repeating bell-like tones, chiming in a sonic haze and churning toward an apocalyptic (or is it triumphant?) conclusion. Chatham pulls out all the stops in the final movement, which slowly builds from a steady drone to an almost impossibly dense mass of rhythmic strumming.The cheering audience is then rewarded with a final coda, as the "guitar army" intones one last gigantic, ecstatic chord -- an electric "Amen"...

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Chicago's Jazz Showcase Shuttered

Stephen V Funk — Thu, 4 Jan 2007 10:14:49 EST

In what is either an amazing coincidence or some kind of vast right- and/or left-wing conspiracy, yet another one of my favorite places to eat, drink, and/or shop in Chicago has closed its doors -- possibly for good... the venerable Jazz Showcase.[For those of you keeping score at home, the other ones are The Berghoff, Trader Vic's, Carson Pirie Scott, Marshall Field's, and Tower Records...]Sure, their cover charges were sky-high, the owner/doorman/master of ceremonies, Joe Segal, was usually more cranky than he was charming, the acts booked there tended toward the overly mainstream/Charlie Parker-obsessed (with a strange aversion to vocalists), and you could only really see the stage from about half of the seats in the place (there was also the time we endured the Maggiano's "Dinner Package" fiasco, but let's not go there right now...).Still, the Jazz Showcase was a true rarity: a smoke-free venue with no minimum drink requirement and the only place in town where you could see some of the really big names -- often the "living legends" of jazz -- appearing in an intimate club setting. Plus, they usually let you stay for both sets without paying another cover charge if you wanted to, and there were even "save the children" matinees on Sunday afternoons.Now, after almost 60 years in Chicago, the Jazz Showcase has lost its lease. They may reopen in a new location sometime in the future, but it seems far from certain at this point.In the meantime, I can at least be thankful for the great shows SSS and I have seen there over the past few years...The smooth and stylin' piano/guitar duo of Benny Green and Russell Malone, despite our getting a little sleepy toward the end (did Benny actually notice...? oops...) The seemingly ageless Marian McPartland and her trio swinging like mad and inviting the crowd to shout out requests (thanks again for playing the tune "I'll Take Romance..."!)A spunky and sassy Ernestine Anderson digging in deep and holding the audience in the palm of her hand...Dee Dee Bridewater and her Fab French Quartet positively rocking the house -- and even busting a few rhymes...!? (Liza Minnelli was also in the crowd that night... too crazy!)And, probably my personal favorite...Pharoah Sanders -- twice! He and his quartet mostly played marathon sets of epic Trane tribute jams, including what must have been a nearly hour-long "My Favorite Things." An enigmatic poet/disciple/hanger-on named "G-Mon" or something was along for the ride the second time around, adding a welcome element of Pharoah-ian mystic strangeness. I even amused and alarmed SSS that night by getting so caught up in the second set that I actually joined in the frenzied chants of "Got To Have Freedom!"Got to have live jazz too, and the Jazz Showcase was -- and hopefully will continue to be -- the place to see all the "heavies." Come back soon, Joe... Chicago needs you, I need you, the ghost of Charlie Parker needs you, and -- whether they realize it or not -- "the children" need you too...!

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Ten Turkeys of 2006

Stephen V Funk — Thu, 21 Dec 2006 13:05:14 EST

Sad but true: along with the favorite CDs of 2006 there were also the disappointing, the uninspired, and the flat out bad ones...[10] AFX: Chosen LordsThe enigmatic electronica/IDM genius Richard D. James is merely spinning his wheels here, churning out nondescript, monotonous "limited edition" singles with little of the manic glee or introspective moodiness heard in Aphex Twin's best work, such as Come To Daddy and drukqs.[9] Diana Krall: From This Moment OnWhat should have been a no-brainer return to form after her tepid foray into singer/songwriter territory on The Girl In The Other Room, Diana Krall's new album of tried-and-true jazz standards backed by a big band never really gets off the ground. While her previous collaboration with the Clayton/Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Christmas Songs, was a charmer, From This Moment On has too much polish and not enough sparkle and swing, and the tunes just kind of sit there. If you try to please everyone...[8] Louis Andriessen: Writing To VermeerI can't imagine why Mr. Andriessen's new opera Writing to Vermeer is garnering so much praise -- maybe "you had to be there." On CD, however, it's a grating, annoying, and self-consciously postmodern trial to endure... in fact, I finally had to just give up about halfway through the second disc. Life is too short, after all.[7] Four Tet: Everything Ecstatic [Films & Part 2]If you start releasing everything you've ever recorded, you'll eventually end up with a few shitty albums. That's what happened to Kieran Hebden with Everything Ecstatic Part 2, a pointless and unnecessary collection of throwaways and outtakes that will be listened to once by die-hard Four Tet fans and then never played again. And as for the mostly amateurish, grotesque, silly, and/or irritating "films" on the DVD, the less said the better...[6] Amorphous Androgynous: Alice In UltralandWhatever they're calling themselves these days, Future Sound of London, a.k.a. Amorphous Androgynous, continue their regrettable and mind-boggling descent into laughable neo-psychedelia. Their previous misadventures into this territory, The Isness and The Otherness (get it?), at least benefited from Max Richter's luxurious production, but Alice In Ultraland expands upon the worst elements of those albums -- jangling guitars, noisy sound effects, awful vocals -- to create a really bad trip. I don't know what FSOL is smoking, but I sure hope they stop soon...[5] Stephin Merritt: ShowtunesStephin Merritt, one of the most talented songwriters alive, tries his hand at musical theater, resulting in a Magnetic Fields meets The Mikado hybrid that unfortunately won't appeal to fans of either. While the songs themselves (none of which are sung by Merritt himself, unfortunately) have plenty of trademark wit, style, and intelligence, the affected theatricality of these performances makes Showtunes almost unbearable to listen to and impossible to enjoy.[4] Philip Glass: The Concerto Project, Vol. 2The outer movements of Glass's "Lewis and Clark" Piano Concerto are merely bland and barely distinguishable from those of his "Tirol" Concerto, but it's the central "Sacagawea" movement that would almost be hilarious if it weren't meant to be taken seriously. R. Carlos Nakai has the unenviable job of noodling around on a Native American flute made to sound like an out-of-tune recorder playing Glass's unidiomatic and inane little ditties in a shameless attempt at P.C. multiculturalism that falls flat on its face. The descent into self-parody is complete with the Harpsichord Concerto, a ridiculous trifle of a piece possibly indicating that Philip Glass will crank out a concerto for anyone willing to pay for one. Coming soon: the Bongo Concerto?And last, and unfortunately least... [drumroll...] the Turkey of the Year Award for 2006 goes to... Brad Mehldau![3] Brad Mehldau / Pat Metheny: Metheny/Mehldau[2] Brad Mehldau Trio: House On Hill[1] Brad Mehldau / Renee Fleming: Love SublimeThe once promising and inventive jazz pianist who amazed us all with his Art of the Trio series, cool versions of Radiohead and Nick Drake tunes, and the stunning solo effort Elegiac Cycle, was responsible for not one... not two... but THREE bland, ponderous, and entirely forgettable albums released on the Nonesuch label in 2006.House On Hill has his stellar original trio coasting along aimlessly through Mehldau originals that all sound the same, Metheny/Mehldau pairs the pianist with the jazz guitar legend for a yawn-fest of uninspired noodling, and the ambitious Love Sublime, a collaboration with opera superstar Renee Fleming, is a dreary, pretentious, and unlistenable mess.Here's to hoping Brad Mehldau gets his mojo back in 2007...

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Fifteeen -- OK, Twenty Favorite CDs of 2006

Stephen V Funk — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 15:13:32 EST

Well, it was only supposed to be the "fifteen favorite CDs of 2006"... but as a tribute to the dearly departed Tower Records, and therefore probably my last year of quality deep-catalog browsing and impulse music buying at an actual record store, the list is hereby expanded to twenty...[1] Frank Sinatra: VegasAt long last... a treasure trove of previously unreleased (legitimately, at least) live Sinatra performances from the vaults, beautifully packaged as a four CD + DVD box set. You get to experience The Man not only in his swinging 1960s prime but also during his under-appreciated post-"retirement" phase, including a remarkable 1978 Caesar's Palace show on the DVD. (Too bad they edited out some of Frank's more outrageous comments from the monologues, though...)[2] Moondog: Rare MaterialA welcome reissue of the out-of-print and fantastic Big Band album in its entirety, along with a second CD of Moondog rarities including some wonderful stuff from the impossible-to-find Bracelli. I only wish there was more truly "rare material" like this included here instead of several readily available tracks from Moondog's Prestige albums. Please keep 'em coming, ROOF Music![3] Rhys Chatham: Die Donnergotter[4] Rhys Chatham: An Angel Moves Too Fast To See Table of the Elements happily reissued the contents of their phenomenal but now out-of-print Rhys Chatham box set on individual CDs this year, so if you missed out on hearing these incredible electric guitar symphonies the first time around, you've got another chance to experience some of the most rockin' avant garde music ever recorded. Forget about Glenn Branca... Rhys Chatham is the real shit. (But buyer beware: Two Gongs is only for die-hard drone-heads...)[5] Bonnie "Prince" Billy: The Letting Go Everything comes together perfectly on The Letting Go, probably Bonnie "Prince" Billy's finest effort to date. The harmony vocals by Dawn McCarthy are Will Oldham's secret weapon here, along with the subtle and seductive acoustic arrangements. Basically, it's an indie-folk-pop dream come true.[6] John Coltrane: Fearless Leader If you don't already have this stuff, now's your big chance... Here are all of Trane's Prestige sessions as a leader newly remastered and repackaged as an attractive and relatively affordable six CD set. His soloing on the uptempo tunes has the impressive and dazzling pyrotechnics, but it's the ballads on these recordings that are truly breathtaking.[7] What It Is! Funky Soul & Rare Grooves (1967-1977) Wow! Behold -- a major label compilation that unearths buried nuggets from its vaults instead of the same old "greatest hits" over and over again. Warner/Rhino may be a little late to the "rare groove" party, but they arrive in high style with this nifty four CD box of mostly obscure vintage funk, R&B, Soul, Disco, and Jazz tracks, many of which have never been previously released on CD. Dig it![8] John Foulds: Dynamic Triptych / Music-Pictures IIIFrom the good folks who brought us the awesome Three Mantras a couple years back, another CD of colorful, striking, ahead-of-its time, and, uh, dynamic music by John Foulds, the nearly forgotten eccentric composer of "British Light Music" and so much more. Let's hope a recording of his epic World Requiem is in the works, too...[9] Richard Thompson: 1,000 Years Of Popular MusicThe cult folk/rock guitar hero romps through a millennium of pop music, from English madrigals to Gilbert & Sullivan to coal miner songs to Britney Spears. What could have been a postmodern farce is instead a sincere tribute to great songwriting through the ages. The two CDs contain all the music, but the DVD is the best way to experience this live performance, including RT's informative and witty between-song banter... it's the next best thing to being there.[10] Dave Douglas: Keystone Initially released in 2005, this CD+DVD on Douglas's new Greenleaf Music label was not widely distributed until this year... and so here it is. And kick ass it does. This is thick, hard, driving electric neo-fusion at its best, featuring stellar take-no-prisoners drumming by Gene Lake and even DJ Olive adding another layer of grunge. Hearing these new "soundtracks" paired with the almost 100 year old Fatty Arbuckle movies on the DVD is especially revelatory, a little eerie... and mostly just plain fun.[11] Ingram Marshall: Savage Altars A striking and, uh, savagely beautiful work for chorus, violin, viola, and electronics, Savage Altars is some kind of postmodern, post-minimal masterpiece. This CD also features interesting instrumental works for classical guitar with Ingram's trademark digital delays, and, thankfully, some good ol' acoustic solo piano. The astonishing Savage Altars, though, is the main reason to get it.[12] Daniel Lenz: On The Leopard Altar Over 20 years later, a minor "new music" classic gets reissued on CD at last. A breath of fresh air, full of bubbling rhythm, infectious hooks, straightforward beauty, and shameless optimism, On The Leopard Altar has a universal appeal that should have put Lenz in the same league as Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and John Adams... I guess it's still not too late, right?[13] Marc Mellits / Real Quiet: Tight Sweater I don't know what the deal is with the, er, interesting album cover photo, but Marc Mellits proves that minimalism isn't quite dead yet with his perky, spiky, and appealingly compact chamber music. It's even kinda groovy...[14] Metropolis Shanghai: Showboat To China Another fine entry in the illustrious Winter & Winter "AudioFilm" series, elegantly employing only music and ambient sounds to transport listeners to "the Paris of the East in the 1930s and 1940s." The perfect antidote to a visually overstimulated world...[15] Kon & Amir / DJ Muro: The Kings Of Diggin' While the Kon & Amir disc is an entirely serviceable collection of ultra-rare "crate diggin'" finds, DJ Muro unleashes a jaw-dropping, ass-shaking, brain-melting mix of obscure breaks on his CD that just... keep... coming... A turntable tour-de-force that might possibly restore your faith in the dubious mix CD format.[16] John Adams: The Dharma At Big Sur / My Father Knew Charles IvesMy Father Knew... is little more than a skillful if somewhat bland symphonic Ives pastiche, but John Adams sort of gets his groove back in The Dharma At Big Sur -- a rhapsodic, rambling, and rather trippy fantasia for electric violin and orchestra. It's not very polished and it's actually a little tacky... and that's exactly what's great about it (Hey, why on Earth did Nonesuch release less than an hour of music as a two CD set? tsk-tsk...).[17] Patricia Barber: MythologiesA jazz song cycle based on Ovid's Metamorphoses? Sounds like a recipe for a pretentious self-indulgent disaster, but somehow Ms. Barber pulls it off in a way that is not only literate but accessible and mostly (gasp) entertaining. She even gets away with an "Endangered Species rap" of sorts, and you gotta give her mad props for that... or something...[18] Johnny Cash: Personal FileIt's been a big year for posthumous Johnny Cash releases, including the warm campfire glow of the (not quite) final Rick Rubin-produced American recordings and the tenth-or-so reissue of the now really complete (honest!) Live at San Quentin. The mother lode, though, is Personal File, a two disc set of previously unissued 1970s solo acoustic private recordings by Cash, complete with spoken introductions. A rare and almost miraculous opportunity to hear a larger-than-life legend at his most intimate, reflective, and, well, personal. There's one CD of secular songs and another of sacred ones, depending upon your mood/religious preferences.[19] Gabriela Montero: Bach & Beyond I'm not sure what she's doing to that sofa, but what Gabriela Montero does to J.S. Bach is an appealing hybrid of conservatory training and improvisatory flights of fancy. This isn't on the level of Uri Caine's Goldberg Variations or even Loussier's Play Bach, but it's something entirely different and rarely heard on record -- a classical soloist humoring her jazz muse.[20] Demenga / Larcher / Anzellotti: Chonguri A tastefully arranged, thoughtfully sequenced, and mildly eclectic recital of chamber music bon-bons by everyone from Bach to Chopin to Faure to Milhaud to Webern. Chonguri is not only merely delightful but also moderately hip thanks to the presence of accordion virtuoso Teodoro Anzellotti.[honorable mentions]Aw Hell, why stop at just twenty? Here's a handful of also-rans too... Philip Glass: The VoyageFinally on CD almost 15 years after its Met Opera premiere, The Voyage contains plenty of overwrought operatic tedium, but also some choral passages of surprising power and beauty. Johnny Cash: American V - A Hundred HighwaysRick Rubin's respectful and loving posthumous completion of The Man In Black's (not quite?) final album. Nobody else could have pulled it off with such understated style, class, and grace. Four Tet: DJ-Kicks Four Tet: RemixesKieran Hebden cranks out a wildly diverse yet coherent and enjoyable installment in the consistently interesting DJ-Kicks mix CD series, and compiles a two disc set of remixes by and of Four Tet that range from barely tolerable to completely stunning.Joey Negro: The Trip Air: LateNightTalesTwo deliberately eclectic and better-than-average CD "mix tapes"... short of making your own, they don't get much better than this.Keith Jarrett: The Carnegie Hall ConcertNot the religious experience it's been hailed as by some, but still an impressive and engaging solo piano workout before a worshipful and almost rowdy New York audience.

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Ten Favorite DVDs of 2006

Stephen V Funk — Sat, 16 Dec 2006 15:08:51 EST

[1] Playboy After DarkTake a ride up the elevator and a trip back in time to party at the Rumpus Room with Hugh, the playmates, and hip guests including Lenny Bruce, Ella Fitzgerald, Linda Ronstadt, Sammy Davis, Jr., Joe Cocker, and LeRoy Neiman. The booze was flowin' and the cigarettes were smokin' during this late-night variety/talk show/dance party that was on the cutting edge at the time, and still seems fresh and a little subversive today. They sure don't make 'em like this anymore, folks... and that's a damn shame. Please keep 'em coming, Hef! (Definitely skip the insufferable interview "bonus feature," though...)[2] Cecil Taylor: All The NotesThe iconoclastic avant-garde pianist really chews up the screen in this meandering yet engrossing documentary film. However you feel about Taylor's galvanizing music, he's a fascinating and defiantly eccentric character to follow around for a while, and the filmmaker clearly knows he's hit paydirt with this guy. Cecil sings, Cecil dances, Cecil drinks, Cecil swears, and Cecil even plays a little piano now and then. "If they say boo, I'll give them something to REALLY boo about!" Nothing to boo about here, though.[3] Star Trek: The Animated SeriesBoldly go where the cast is mostly the same as it was in the Original Series, the sound effects and music sound vaguely familiar (but the opening theme song seems upside-down and backwards), and Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty look like botoxed, barrel-chested two-dimensional versions of themselves. Yes, ST:TAS, the red-headed step-child of the Star Trek franchise, has finally arrived on DVD! It may not be official Trek "canon," and the choppy animation is more Scooby-Doo than Spirited Away -- but it's still way more fun to watch than The Next Generation or any of the other recent spin-offs. Hey, if it looks like Trek and it sounds like Trek...[4] Police Squad!: The Complete Series"Cigarette?" "Yes, I know..." How many times can that be funny? Plenty, apparently. There are just as many rapid-fire sight gags, groaner puns, and deadpan jokes packed into each of the six half-hour Police Squad! episodes as you'd find in any of the (more dated) feature-length Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker movies. Ahead of its time in more ways than one, if this criminally short-lived series were shown on HBO or BBC today it would be hailed as a satirical comic masterpiece.[5] Homicide: Life On The Street [Complete Series Megaset]Sweet baby Jesus! Thirty-five DVDs, 122 episodes, plenty of juicy bonus features... it's all seven seasons of Homicide for less than the price of two, all packaged in a super-cool faux filing cabinet. This is one of the most critically acclaimed TV series of all time, and for plenty of good reasons. Warning: You will never want to watch another episode of CSI again. (You can thank me later.)[6] Dazed and Confused [Criterion Collection]The often underrated and overlooked cult classic coming-of-age flick affectionately directed by Richard Linklater and featuring a stellar cast of no-name actors (including Parker Posey and Matthew McConaughey "before they were stars") gets the deluxe Criterion treatment it richly deserves. Plenty of great extras are included, of course -- especially interesting is the director's commentary detailing the behind-the-scenes budget struggles during the making of this film, his first "major studio" release... which sound rather quaint by today's standards.[7] Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete Fifth SeasonLarry David seems to be running on empty during much of Curb's fifth season, but there's still plenty of histrionic neurotic behavior and cringe-inducing social ineptitude to enjoy here, and the final payoff episode, The End, is an undisputed classic (and apparently this series is not quite at "the end" yet after all).[8] WordplayAn irresistibly breezy documentary surveying the subculture of New York Times crossword puzzle enthusiasts who worship at the temple of Will Shortz. Clinton, Dole, and Jon Stewart are along for the ride as we follow a handful of obsessive puzzle-solvers on their way to the American Crossword Puzzle Championship. Generous special features also, including five actual "unforgettable" dead-tree crosswords and a DVD featurette about each one.[9] Boston Legal: Season TwoThis maddeningly uneven David E. Kelley series really hit its quirky stride during its second year (and then lost it again during the current season). If you can sit through the ponderous political pontificating, revolving-door cast of forgettable minor characters, and pointlessly jittery camerawork, you'll be rewarded with plenty of infectious rapport (or is it courtship?) between Shatner and Spader, bizarre fourth wall violations, curious Star Trek references, memorable balcony scenes, and -- best of all -- the dance.[10] Penn & Teller: Bullshit! The Complete Third SeasonRude, crude, and sometimes lewd... yet consistently hilarious and righteously reasonable. Never before have sacred cows such as gun control, the Endangered Species Act, and, yes, even circumcision been slaughtered so gleefully. Prepare to be offended, provoked, and/or enlightened.

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.

Music Review - Moondog: Rare Material

Stephen V Funk — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 08:33:25 EST

Although he rubbed shoulders with a remarkably varied group of 20th century cultural figures, including Janis Joplin, Mr. Scruff, Charlie Parker, Philip Glass, Igor Stravinsky, Bob Dylan, Artur Rodzinski, Mouse on Mars, William S. Burroughs, Lenny Bruce, Alan Freed, etc., etc.... Louis "Moondog" Hardin -- the composer-busker -percussionist-philosopher himself -- remains a largely misunderstood and sadly under-recorded musical genius.Rare Material is actually the second double CD set of this blind, Viking-garbed, counterpoint-obsessed composer's "rare material" released by the German ROOF Music label, which thankfully seems dedicated to documenting Moondog's musical legacy -- albeit in a rather scatter-shot manner.The German Years (1977-1999) has fancier but flimsy packaging, with one of its discs compiling some extremely hard to find recordings from Moondog's time in Europe along with several selections from the widely available (though apparently now out of print?) Sax Pax for a Sax Atlantic album. The second German Years CD is a revelatory, previously unreleased recording of his final live performance in France (not Germany...) with pianist Dominique Ponty on August 1, 1999.This new Rare Material ROOF collection has less luxurious but sturdier packaging and an almost identical cover image. It mines much of the same territory and unearths even more riches, although the decision to include several long tracks from the far-from-"rare" Prestige albums Moondog and More Moondog is as regrettable as the extensive sampling of Sax Pax for a Sax on the earlier collection.The first CD resurrects the rare and out-of-print 1995 Big Band album in its entirety (one track was also included on The German Years.) Like Sax Pax, Big Band also highlights John Harle's London Saxophonic and even includes some of the same compositions.These performances, however, feature... well, a "bigger band," augmenting the saxophones, clarinets, and occasional vocal choruses with a brass ensemble and more percussion. This results in a fresh, striking sound even on familiar pieces like "Paris" and especially "Shakespeare City," which has an amazing extended second half not performed on the Sax Pax album. Every other tune is a winner too, from the exuberantly jazzy "Blast Off" to the stately processional "Torisa" to the maddening and/or compelling "Invocation" -- a ten minute "16-part canon on one tone." Yep, one tone. Literally.The second disc is a hodgepodge of Moondog recordings spanning about forty years, and other than those previously mentioned Prestige tracks, this additional "rare material" was all new to my ears and completely fascinating.Hardin's early years are represented by Moondog's Symphony (1949!), tracks from Moondog and his Friends and Moondog on the Streets of New York (both from 1953) and most of the remarkable 1955 EP Moondog and his Honking Geese (only "Bumbo," a tune re-recorded on Big Band, is missing.)Jumping forward in time, a pair of rather pedantic pipe organ pieces from an obscure 1978 Musical Heritage Society LP are included, as is a one-off instrumental with the Swiss pop singer Stephan Eicher from 1989.Best of all, appearing on CD for the first time here are four substantial selections from the 1986 album Bracelli. One tantalizing track from this ultra-rare release also appeared on The German Years, and this is unquestionably some of the greatest stuff in the Moondog... uh... canon. Performed by a violin-less string ensemble and percussion, these complex and appealing pieces weave mesmerizing yet often surprising strands of counterpoint and harmony around a percolating foundation of infectious rhythm.My only wish is that the entire Bracelli album was included here instead of the not-very-"rare material" from the Prestige LPs. A few more of the H'Art Songs would have been nice, too. Then there's Kenny Graham's long lost Moondog Suite. And what about that mind-boggling 1957 children's album, Tell It Again -- an unlikely collaboration between Moondog and Julie Andrews (yes, that Julie Andrews!)Let's hope ROOF Music has these Moondog rarities and many more waiting in the wings for future releases. In the meantime, we should be grateful that this remarkable music is at last readily available on CD and at a fairly reasonable "import" price to boot.The merely curious and/or uninitiated might also be tempted by the very fine new single disc Moondog compilation The Viking of Sixth Avenue, but Rare Material -- especially when paired with The German Years -- paints a more vivid (if still incomplete) portrait.Am I dreaming? Two excellent Moondog CD collections appearing within months of each other? Perhaps his time is finally coming...

Stephen V Funk has no iPod, no cell phone, and three blogs.