WEIRD LITTLE BOY — Weird Little Boy (1998) APE (image+.cue), lossless

 From the first ten seconds of this album, you know exactly where jazz masochist John Zorn is heading with Weird Little Boy, one of his many noise projects with Mr. Bungle singer Mike Patton. A Phil Spector-style drum intro immediately leads into some hissing noise, with squeaks and pops provided by Zorn's saxophone. From this point on, nothing is sacred sonically. These are not songs so much as pieces of sound, and this is how the artist intended it to be. The music slides from casual guitar jamming (courtesy of Patton's partner in crime Trey Spruance) to ear-splitting noise to the sound of someone choking to cartoon sound effects in a matter of a minute. The album is more of an experience than anything, and this is driven home by the wonderful packaging (which includes a booklet filled with poetry, text, and art). This is not for fans of jazz, or fans of anything really. This is a brutal noise experience for listeners interested in how far sonic technology can really be stretched and twisted. It is also very captivating music, and given time it can really sustain interest. Just make sure to listen to it when you have time to digest the whole package. Bradley Torreano
Tracklist :
[1]    (10:07)
1.1    Two Weeks On A Morphine Drip    
1.2    New Dirt And New Flies    
1.3    Lorne Greenlies    
[2]    (8:05)
2.1    If The Gun Has A Mind    
2.2    Redeye    
2.3    Worms And Shit    
3    Totally Poobied    2:14
4    Weird Little Boy    1:39
5    Lungfull Of Water    7:51
6    Seance    3:04
7    When Blood Fills A Cylinder    2:59
8    Waiting    1:46
9    Blindness    4:04
Credits :
Chris Cochrane - Guitar
Mike Patton - Drums, Vocals
Trey Spruance - Guitars, Keyboards, Drums
William Winant - Percussion
John Zorn - Alto, Samplers, Keyboards
Dennis Cooper - Text

AKI TAKASE | SILKE EBERHARD — Ornette Coleman Anthology (2006) 2CD | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
Credits :
Alto Saxophone, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet – Silke Eberhard
Piano – Aki Takase

RAN BLAKE — Epistrophy (1992) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Ran Blake's re-interpretations of 12 Thelonious Monk songs and four standards that Monk enjoyed playing are quite different than everyone else's. He states the basic melody but, rather than improvising off the chord changes, Blake's flights on these solo piano performances stay close to the mood of the melodies, alternating silence with unexpected emotional flurries. Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1. Epistrophy (Clarke-Monk) - 3:08
2. Thelonious (Monk) - 5:18
3. April in Paris (Duke-Harburg) - 3:07
4. Off Minor (Monk) - 1:39
5. Criss-Cross (Monk) - 2:19
6. Reflections (Monk) - 3:24
7. Epistrophy (Clarke-Monk) - 3:55
8. 'Round Midnight (Monk) - 5:50
9. Hornin' In (Monk) - 0:56
10. Just a Gigolo (Brammer-Casucci) - 3:10
11. Nice Work If You Can Get It (Gershwin-Gershwin) - 3:47
12. Ruby, My Dear (Monk) - 3:00
13. Monk's Mood (Monk) - 5:12
14. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (Harbach-Kern) - 2:48
15. Eronel (Monk) - 2:27
16. Misterioso (Monk) - 3:08
17. Epistrophy (Clarke-Monk) - 1:18
Credits :
Ran Blake - Piano

FRANK WRIGHT QUARTET — Blues for Albert Ayler (1974-2012) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

No, this isn't a long-lost ESP session despite the label. It's a tape from Rashied Ali's club made in 1974 celebrating both a visit by Frank Wright from his base in Paris, and a dedication to the memory of Albert Ayler. Backing Wright was James Blood Ulmer on guitar, Benny Wilson on bass, and Rashied Ali on drums and they were assembled just for the occasion. It's a blowing session for sure, with everyone getting plenty of solo space, but it's not an all-out firestorm. There's a theme that they return to throughout and Wright comes from a jump blues background and even his outside playing is informed by that. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this recording is hearing how advanced Ulmer's harmolodic playing is at this stage, well before he recorded with Ornette Coleman. He even takes a very unorthodox wah-wah solo at one point. It's certainly a long way from his work with Big John Patton for Blue Note just a few years prior. This is a great, historic session captured in surprisingly excellent sound that we're lucky to have. Sean Westergaard

Tracklist :
1. Part 1 (12:50)
2. Part 2 (5:10)
3. Part 3 (14:38)
4. Part 4 (12:13)
5. Part 5 (23:58)
6. Part 6 (5:47)
Credits :
Frank Wright - Tenor Ssaxophone, Flute, Vocals
James Blood Ulmer - Guitar
Benny Wilson - Bass
Rashied Ali - Drums

ALBERT MANGELSDORFF | JOHN SURMAN — ROOM 1220 (1970-1993) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Three stunning tunes featuring some of the best improvisers in the world today, all of them written -- yes, written -- by trombonist Albert Mangelsdorf. Interestingly, with a band this diverse and dimensionally articulate, the composer has come up with a program addressing each of the band's particular strengths. The title track, clocking in at over 21 minutes, is a study in the spatial relationship of tonalities. Even so, with its slow unwinding passages -- and interesting interplay between Surman on baritone and Mangelsdorf -- there are intervals, which allow for the creation of alternate harmonies and timbral interjections in chromatic architecture. Pianist Eddy Louis, along with Pedersen, are largely responsible for keeping the slowly revolving beast moving, but they add true depth in microtones and chord voicings. "Triple Circle" is quintet jazz, pure and simple, with everybody playing the hard bop line. Pedersen's solo is of particular interest here, in that his pizzicato playing moves through all three registers and offers scalar blues attacks in each. Finally, "My Kind of Beauty" caps it all off with a pastoral, late-night into courtesy of the horns and Louis on organ. It's a shimmering ballad until almost five minutes in, when Surman begins playing the baritone in the upper register and makes it cry with loneliness and an outpouring of what can only be called amorous emotion. Just as he finishes his sojourn, Pedersen and Louis begin to pace off a blues and transform the number into a groove tune with room enough for every body in the slowly evolving mix of textures in the intervallic transition. Louis' own solo is light and airy, whispering itself along the changes until it shifts into a noirish piece of film music with Mangelsdorf's solo. It all ends on a groove in the backbeat somewhere, but not without making the listener smile. Room 1220 is a hell of a Mangelsdorf date to be sure, but this is once in a lifetime ensemble, and the recording proves it.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist :
1    Room 1220    22:05
2    Triplet Circle    8:32
3    My Kind Of Beauty    12:51
Credits :
Baritone Saxophone – John Surman
Bass – Nils-Henning Ørsted Pedersen
Drums – Daniel Humair
Piano, Organ [Hammond] – Eddy Louis
Trombone, Composed By – Albert Mangelsdorff