CTIndie Summer Mix MMXIV

It's finally here! This years CTIndie.com Summer Mix has been assembled by our volunteers and is ready for the world!

Buck McGrane - Grazie Mille

"Buck McGrane plays sad songs that make you feel good." - Dan from Pools are Nice. That's all it says on the bio part of Buck McGrane's Bandcamp. I don't know if I agree that the songs are sad but they CERTAINLY make you feel good.

Alexander Turnquist w/ Eric Carbonara at NeverEnding Books on 2/17

Never Ending Books in New Haven has a cool show coming up, with  Alexander Turnquist and Eric Carbonara!

Keith Fullerton Whitman at Firehouse 12

There is no quick way to sum up Keith Fullerton Whitman. He is a ridiculously prolific artist, with recordings, performances, collaborations, as well as an intensely motivated music-geekdom that has taken him around the world. Chances are even if you're half-interested in experimental electronic music, laptop improv, noise, drill n bass, or you have come across Mimaroglu Music Sales, you've heard something by Keith Fullerton Whitman. His performance at Firehouse 12 will be introduce by a talk (free ticket required). A big thanks to all that helped make this come together.

Diogenes in Hell - Venus Dominating the World

Diogenes, greek philosopher, creator of the Cynic school of philosophy, I believe... Anyway one could probably write an entire article on the band name alone. So, rather than bore you with all that, lets talk about the music. Diogenes in Hell, from what I gather, consists of one fellow: Ariel is his name... I think... The sound of this mysterious project is minimalistic and utilizes sub-bass quite heavily. The soundscapes resemble something Robert Fripp might do if he was influenced by Apple Seed Cast. I can't help but think of Bedhead too when I listen to "Venus Dominating the World."

Diogenes in hell - we Are free by mexicanrobots

Old Man Lady Luck, Shrinnirs, Thank You Mr. Keating

Friday, September 2nd, 2011, Indie Night @ the Oak brings:

Location:
Charter Oak Cultural Center
21 Charter Oak Ave
Hartford, CT

All Ages - 8 PM - $6 or only $5 w/ a canned good donation for Hartford Food Not Bombs


Co-headlined by Shrinnirs (aka Bimbo Shrineheads/Shrin/The Shrinnirs), this Dog-Faced Hermans-like duo starts off the night, going on at 8:00, so do not be late. Dawn Cook (vocals) and Joe Malinowski (drums) are a non-genre. Not to be missed.




Old Man Lady Luck, will be finishing the night off. Dark instrumentals, like The Notekillers slowed to a vicious crawl, setting the mood for a David Cronenberg autopsy scene. With drumming as good as Todd Trainer from Shellac, and an early Jesus Lizard feel, do yourself a favor and stay late for Old Man Lady Luck.





Thank You Mr. Keating will be playing second, bringing an acoustic version of The Baxter Special to life!

Paul Flaherty & Bill Nace, The Mountain Movers, Oxbow Lake

Friday, July 15, 2011, Indie Night @ the Oak presented by CT Indie

Location:
Charter Oak Cultural Center
21 Charter Oak Ave
Hartford, CT

All Ages - 8 PM - $6 or only $5 w/ a canned good donation for Hartford Food Not Bombs

FB Event page

A night that will melt your mind.

Free-reed wise man Paul Flaherty has been in the improv trenches for some four decades now. Equally powerful solo as he is in collaboration with likeminded free-scene jazz/noise instrumentalists, here he joins Bill Nace, extreme-guitar wizard. The duo was most recently documented by Jim Matus at Paranoise Studios in Hadley Mass. The LP, No, the sun is out on Open Mouth in a limited edition of 250. The duo also released the LP An Airless Field last year on Ecstatic Peace!. Both Flaherty and Nace have collaborated with legendary drummer Chris Corsano, with Flaherty in The Hated Music and Nace in Vampire Belt. Thurston Moore and Bill Nace, who play together in The Northampton Wools, joined Flaherty for an untitled CD in 2008, another Paranoise Studio recording, which has been called "Ferocious, killer, and loud as fuck."



Begun by Dan Greene (Butterflies of Love) and Rick Omonte (Crooked Hook/Shaki Presents), the psych-pop-jam-noise-folk of The Mountain Movers most recently grew into a three sided double-LP called Apple Mountain, their fourth full length, and second (first two LPs were on Safety Meeting Records) on their very own Car Crash Avoiders label. John Miller helped in the creation of Apple Mountain, but The Movers are now backed by Kryssi Battalene on lead, Ross Menze on drums. Kryssi fondly calls this current rhythm section the Rick Ross. The cassette EPs Get Out and Come In came out a few months ago, collections of lo-fi freak outs and "drinking songs" put together on the 8 track in Dan's garage.



Oxbow Lake, an avant-garde trio consisting of Stephen Haynes (horns), Charlie Dye (drums), and Matt Sargent (guitars). Haynes is an improv composer, a product of the Black Music Division at Bennington College. He has worked with Rhys Chatham, Cecil Taylor and the Dells to name only a few. Charlie Dye plays drums in several projects, including Sunspots, Mary of Egypt (Indie Rock/Avant-Garde), Andy Akiho (Contemporary Classical meets Soca with Steel Pan, Harp and Strings), Trio Schema (Free Improvisation) and Basecadet (Southern Metal Ska Rock). Matt Sargent is a musician from Hartford, CT, by way of Chesapeake Bay. Since 2007, he has directed the Hartford Sound Alliance, a CT-based performer/composer ensemble. Matt currently holds a Presidential Fellowship at SUNY Buffalo, where he will begin a PhD in Music Composition in Fall 2011.

Oxbow Lake at La Paloma (4.29.11) by mattsargent

Rhode Island Rocks: The Body bring their crushing sound to Connecticut

Photo by Richard Rankin

There is a loud and destructive force that has called Providence, Rhode Island home for the past 11 years. It includes the crushing weight of downtuned guitars and the pounding of drums. For the most part, the locals are quite proud with this force, and it seems like a lot of metal and loud rock fans are picking up on the Body’s destructive frequencies. So now, it’s time for Connecticut to submit to their will.

The Body, which is comprised of Chip King on guitars and vocals and Lee Buford, on drums, has been blowing eardrums and minds and ears. Their sound is one of the world coming down, the apocalypse brought to life, and it all started humbly enough for these two Arkansas transplants.

“Chip moved to Philly and I moved to Boston to go to school for a year. I ended up not liking Boston so I moved down to Providence where I seemed to like more of what was going on there way more than Boston. Eventually, Chip moved out of Philly and ended up in Providence, too,” said Buford.

You would think trading in those two major cities thriving loud rock scenes for Providence would hamper the duo’s creative opportunities, but, in fact, the Rhode Island capital has a thriving underground rock scene that seems to turn out edgy and wonderful loud rock bands at an alarming frequency. (Anyone remember the now unfortunately defunct Daughters and the current prog-sludge upcomers Howl, to just name two) So, it was a perfect fit for these two dudes.

“I think it’s a pretty small scene so there’s no division in terms of musical genres. We have a lot friend that play really great music that isn’t easy to classify and I think people kind of feed off of each other, too,” said Buford.

And the band’s ethos gels perfectly with the scene’s ethos.

“I think we fit in pretty well, we have a ton of Providence musicians on the record and we’re lucky to have really great friends here that are doing like minded things, maybe not musically, but thematically,” said Buford.

The record that Buford mentions in the above quote is called “All The Waters Of The Earth Turn To Blood”, and is the band’s latest and greatest. Released on the At A Loss label last year, it has garnered the band raves from such non-metal publications as Pitchfork, NPR and the New York Times. But there is truth in the title as the music contained on this disc is dark, heavy and scary, brimming with hymns for the end times.

It also features a bunch of Providence musicians and various other instruments, but the biggest contribution comes from the Assembly Of Light Choir, which is a full-fledged female choir whose voices are used to great effect on the record.

“Chrissy Wolpert, who started the choir up, is a great friend of ours and has been on other records of ours in the past. She was getting the choir going around the same time we started recording, so we both evolved in unison. I love the way the choir pieces worked out. We just went on a tour with them and seeing them every night was unreal,” said Buford.

In fact, the first seven minutes of the CD are taken up by the Choir’s angelic voices, before Chip and Lee weigh with their drums and guitars on the song “A Body”. But that isn’t the total highlight of disc. On the last track, “Lathspell I Name You”, Chip and Lee lay down a bludgeoning sound right before the choir kicks in at the half way point of this 14 minute song and totally takes it an epic sounding direction. It’s quite a way to end an already excellent CD.

It’s also interesting to note that the band’s live show differs from their recorded output. Live, it is all about the volume, while the studio is more a place to experiment for the duo. Buford affirms this thought.

“We can’t achieve the feeling of a live show as far as volume, so we have to come up with other ways to come up with the same feeling without relying on our equipment,” he said.

Right now, the band has a few other projects they will be working on, including a collaborative record with Braveyoung, that will see light in the fall, as well record another record with a friend named Steve, who plays with them sometimes on tour and Neill from Krieg for a record that will be released on their own Aum War label. So look out for those. It doesn’t look these two will be slowing down any time soon.

“We’re best friends so it’s pretty easy to keep going. I don’t know what we’d do, if we didn’t do this,” said Buford.

So get down to Daniel Street early, not only to catch great local opener Ferocious Fucking Teeth, but also to catch this crazy duo when they take the stage before headliners Harvey Milk. You will be glad you did.

Manic Productions Presents:

Harvey Milk
The Body
Ferocious Fucking Teeth

Tuesday, July 12
Daniel Street
21 Daniel Street, Milford, CT
8:00 pm – 21+ - $12 ($10 advance)

Earth, Ô Paon at the Wadsworth Atheneum

Tuesday, June 14, 2011, Manic Productions presents

Photo: Sarah Barrick

Location:
Wadsworth Atheneum (Aetna Theater)
600 Main Street
Hartford, CT

7:00pm - All Ages - $15 Buy tix now!

Earth: Here is a review of Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light, Vol. 1 from allmusic.com, which explains Earth in its current form:

When Dylan Carlson resurrected Earth after a five-year break, he also reinvented their sound. Gone were the crushing, devastatingly slow, blown-out guitar and bass drones that essentially created the entire post-rock genre. The new Earth create a more atmospheric music with more arid soundscapes; they explore skeletal yet pronounced layered melodies inside their trademark drones, creating the aural equivalent of vast, utterly empty desert landscapes. It began on 2005's Hex: Or Printing in the Infernal Method, and attained maturity on 2008's Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull. With Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light, Vol. 1 -- the first of two thematic albums proposed for 2011 -- that's still the case, but Carlson and longtime drummer Adrienne Davies have succeeded in opening up Earth's soundscape texturally and pushing beyond what was achieved on Bees. The contributions of new members cellist Lori Goldston and bassist Karl Blau make this possible. "Old Black" opens the set with Davies playing a kick drum, snare, and cymbal, with trancelike precision. Carlson pursues a series of chord changes one note at a time; Goldston creates a counter-melody just outside his frame. Blau pushes harder and slower, creating tension and a slightly shifting dynamic as the music intensifies but intentionally never breaks loose; it reveals its considerable power with restraint. "Father Midnight" commences with a two-chord vamp, played by all three string players. Carlson finds just enough extra notes to create a melody. Blau and Goldston assert themselves against this ever-so-slowly evolving lyric statement and one another; harmony and dissonance coexist without antagonism, creating a heaviness and tension that are aesthetically beautiful and emotionally resonant. The title track, a 20-plus-minute mindwrecker that closes the set, allows that dissonance in from the jump as Goldston and Blau explore the lower registers of their instruments in a counterpoint that is bridged by Carlson's low-end guitar only minutely at first. The trio gains traction in minute increases that up the dynamic tension. This creates a sinister brooding resonance that is underscored when Davies enters five minutes later. What takes place for the remainder is an exploration of intonation, space, and melody based on a minor-key blues that transcends the form. Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light, Vol. 1 represents a further shift in Earth's evolution. It is darker -- even sinister -- and undoubtedly heavier than Bees, but it is more seductive with its mantra-like droning repetition and more elegantly detailed in its textural dimension.



Ô Paon: Geneviève Castrée was born in Québec in 1981, she says:

"I started Ô Paon at home in 2007. I felt the need to start something new, to work harder. The songs of Ô Paon are often born out of frustration, events happen in front of me and I make my comments. I make stuff up, I create scenes. I fuck around a little bit because it's important to forget to take yourself seriously sometimes. Ô Paon has sung a little bit everywhere: in Canada, in the United States, in Europe, in Japan, in Australia and in New Zealand. It was great. There will be more occasions for me to show myself in the near future.

I choose to write and sing my songs in French, my mother tongue. People often tell me I have a weird accent. I don't know what to say about that. I sing the way it comes out. I am a well-traveled French-speaker.

I like recording by myself in my house. Clumsiness can become magic. For Courses, my first full length, I surrounded myself with people who really know music and how to play it. I went into a real studio. It was worth it."



Earth tour:
Midwest/East Coast American Tour:
6/08/2011 Mayne Stage - Chicago, IL w/ Ô Paon
6/09/2011 Mad Planet - Milwaukee, WI w/ Ô Paon
6/10/2011 Magic Stick - Detroit, MI w/ Ô Paon
6/11/2011 The Strut - Kalamazoo, MI w/ Ô Paon
6/12/2011 Grog Shop – Cleveland, OH w/ Ô Paon
6/13/2011 Johnny Brendas - Philadelphia, PA w/ Ô Paon
6/14/2011 Wadsworth Atheneum - Hartford, CT w/ Ô Paon
6/15/2011 Middle East Downstairs - Boston, MA w/ Ô Paon
6/16/2011 Le Poisson Rouge - New York City, NY w/ Ô Paon
6/17/2011 Ottobar - Baltimore, MD w/ Ô Paon
6/18/2011 Braddock Carnegie Library– Braddock, PA w/ Ô Paon
6/19/2011 Southgate House - Newport, KY w/ Ô Paon

West Coast American Tour:
7/13/2011 Doug Fir Lounge - Portland, OR w/Angelo Spencer and Wyrd Visions
7/14/2011 The Northern - Olympia, WA - w/Angelo Spencer, Broken Water and Wyrd Visions
7/16/2011 What the Heck fest? - Anacortes,WA
7/21/2011 Catalyst Atrium - Santa Cruz, CA w/Angelo Spencer
7/22/2011 Slim's - San Francisco, CA w/Angelo Spencer and Whirr
7/23/2011 Echo Plex - Los Angeles, CA w/Angelo Spencer
7/24/2011 The Casbah - San Diego, CA w/Angelo Spencer
8/02/2011 Tractor Tavern - Seattle, WA w/Tiny Vipers and Angelo Spencer
8/05/2011 Shakedown - Bellingham, WA w/Cold Lake and the Narrows

More date here

My Brightest Diamond, Emily Wells, Jonny Rodgers

Friday, January 28, 2011 Manic Productions presents

Location:
Daniel Street
21 Daniel Street
Milford, CT

8:00pm - 21+ - $14 ($12 advance)

Buy tickets now or pick them up at Redscroll Records

bios from Manic's page

My Brightest Diamond is spearheaded by Shara Worden, granddaughter of an Epiphone-playing traveling evangelist, fathered by a National Accordion Champion, and mothered by a classical organist. Having a family of musical wanderers who migrated across the US every few years, the landscape and the musical influences were constantly changing. Spanish tangos, Sunday morning gospel, classical and jazz were the accompaniment to her home life. Her first song was recorded at age three and by age eight she was studying piano with her uncle, Donald Ryan, and performing in community musical productions.

The year 2009 has labeled itself in the Diamond calendar as the Year of Collaboration. My Brightest Diamond released three digital EPs of remixes of A Thousand Shark's Teeth by Alfred Brown, Son Lux and Roberto Carlos Lange (the fourth installment by DM Stith will be released in 2010 digitally, in conjunction with the release of 1,500 limited edition, signed cds). Other upcoming Diamond projects include a 7 inch with Dayna Kurtz, and an album of poetry, song and photographs with artists Clare and The Reasons, Rob Moose and Murat Eyuboglu.

Continuing with 2009's collaboration theme, as a solo artist, Shara found herself in the role of The Queen with The Decemberists for their album The Hazards of Love, performing with Bryce and Aaron Dessner in The Long Count, singing with St. Vincent on David Letterman, recording a duet with David Byrne for Here Lies Love and singing the songs of new music composer Sarah Kirkland-Snider in a collection called Penelope. Asthmatic Kitty Records



Emily Wells creates music by blending her many influences. She is a classically trained violinist with a penchant for hip hop production. Live, Wells creates a lush layer of 'symphonies' by looping and live sampling everything from her violin and voice, to her many toys and electronics.



Jonny Rodgers plays beautiful, quirky songs using guitars, tuned wine glasses, loops, electronics and a unique chamber orchestra. His eerily pure voice has often been compared to the straight, beautiful tones of singers in the choral tradition; this is coupled with intricate guitar playing and unusual melodies and harmonies. Whether solo or with his full chamber orchestra, Rodgers' shows are nothing less than transporting.

Apse, Matt Wilga (of Stoned Ambassadors), Roman Wolfe @ Popeye's Garage, Oct. 2nd

This Saturday, October 2nd Popeye's Garage will be hosting Northampton's Apse as well as openers Matt Wilga (of Brooklyn's Stoned Ambassadors) and Roman Wolfe (New Haven) for the first of its final three shows.

Formed in Newtown, Connecticut over a decade ago, Apse has significantly expanded its reach, both sonically and musically since its early days on the local scene. At varying points referencing elements of post-punk, post-rock, krautrock, shoegaze, ambient, industrial, goth and metal, Apse's unique creative vision (led by the band's only constant member Rob Toher) can be technically hard to define. Percussion heavy rhythms, Toher's trademark vocal delivery, and liberal doses of reverb and delay are familiar elements; however, songs push and pull, morph into each other and generally don't stick to one thing for too long. The band's songs seem to be more about an exploration of ideas than two and a half minute pop perfection, though the hooks are there, scattered throughout. Despite limited stateside appeal, Apse has enjoyed significant success abroad, especially in Europe where the band has repeatedly toured to great response. They are also currently signed to ATP Recordings and have made repeat appearances at their label's namesake festival. The current incarnation of the band has been pared down to a relatively meager four-piece (including bassist John Mordecai who also performs in locals Shark and the Tyler Trudeau Attempt) although they surely can still carry a wallop live. This particular performance marks Apse's first Connecticut show in over a year and, based on our calculations, its first show in New Haven proper ever. Openers Matt Wilga (of Brooklyn's the Stoned Ambassadors) and Roman Wolfe (New Haven) bring a complementary mix of pop sensiblity (Wilga) and synth exploration (Roman Wolfe) that should go well with Apse's subtley melodic sonic stew while still retaining their own musical identity.



Shows like this don't come along very often folks (and pretty soon Popeye's Garage won't be either) so get yourselves downtown this Saturday!

APSE
MATT WILGA (of The Stoned Ambassadors)
ROMAN WOLFE

@ Popeye's Garage
50 Goffe Street / New Haven
All Ages / $5 / 6pm

Uz Jsme Doma, Kimono Draggin', Shawn Persinger is Prester John @ Daniel Street, Sept. 23rd

On Thursday, September 23rd Milford's Daniel Street will play host to a trio of highly creative bands: Uz Jsme Doma, Kimono Draggin' and Shawn Persinger is Prester John.

Formed in 1985 in what is now the Czech Republic, Uz Jsme Doma is named after a Czech expression that loosely translates into "now we're at home" (meaning "now I get it"). Stamped "antisocial" by the Communist government of the time, the group spent its first years playing illegal concerts, going through numerous changes in their lineup, and writing an impressive repertoire of avant-punk songs influenced by Pere Ubu, the Residents, the Sex Pistols, and the Rock-in-Opposition movement. After the Velvet Revolution of 1989, Uz Jsme Doma was one of the first groups to establish an alternative rock sound for the new republic. Along with Plastic People of the Universe, Uz Jsme Doma frequently toured the U.S., establishing a dedicated cult following along the way. Uz Jsme Doma are punk in spirit, activists at heart, and strongly avant-garde in their dissonances, complex songs, and humor.



Opening for Uz Jsme Doma are locals Kimono Draggin' and Shawn Persinger is Prester John, two bands who share the headliner's notoriety for complex arrangements and punk-inspired energy. Kimono Draggin' in particular aligns itself well with Uz Jsme Doma both for the seemingly endless twist and turns of their arrangements and for their tenacious live energy. Shawn Persinger is Prester John also shares a kindred musical spirit to the headliner although usually on a more stripped down level instrumentation wise. Overall this billing brings together three different artists whose musical creativity and pure love of form is evident in their music through and through.

For anyone interested in great guitar work, interesting arrangements and near punk energy, do not miss this show!




If When You Go:

Manic Productions presents

Uz Jsme Doma
Kimono Draggin'
Shawn Persinger is Prester John

@ Daniel Street
21 Daniel Street
Milford, CT. 06460

8pm / 21+ / $8 adv./$10 door
--> Buy Tickers Here <-- or pick them up at Redscroll Records or DETRITUS

Hartford Sound Alliance and El MuCo

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Loccation:
Artspace Hartford
555 Ayslum Ave
Hartford, CT

7:30pm - 10:00pm FREE

Facebook Event Page: Click

Come check out a show of electronic improv music with new music groups Hartford Sound Alliance and New Haven-based El MuCo. This free event will present musicians at the forefront of improvisation, electronics, circuit bending, composition and performance in the Artspace Hartford gallery in downtown Hartford.

Hartford Sound Alliance: Steven Haynes, trumpet; Todd Merrell, keyboards/electronics; Matt Sargent, laptop/guitar; Bill Solomon, percussion

El MuCo: Juraj Kojs, instruments/laptop; Scott Peterson, laptop; Carl Testa, electronics/string bass; Brian Kane; Anne La Berge, flute; Anne Rhodes, soprano; Christopher Cerrone and Adrian Knight, bowed objects/laptop

Full Force Dance Theatre: Body Electric

A unique collaboration between Full Force Dance Theatre, SEMI (Studio of Electronic Music, Inc.) and five Connecticut area composers will take place at the Charter Oak Cultural Center. Each composer will write an electronic, or electro-acoustic, work for the evening. FFDT Artistic Director Katie Stevinson-Nollet will choreograph original dance works in collaboration with each composer. The five composers are Leif Ellis, Alphonse Izzo, Matt Sargent, Kathryn Swanson and Karl Warner.


Two performances:
April 16, 7:30 pm
April 17, 7:30 pm

Tickets: $20 general admission, $10 seniors
Charter Oak and Let*s Go Arts! Members, $5 students

Click here for more information.