I won’t hide the fact that I think John Zorn is one of the most amazing composers out there so for me it was a real treat to be able to not only see him perform but work with him. On Wed the 17th and Thu the 18th the Lower EastSide theather Henry Street Settlement, also known as Abrons Art Center, hosted an incredible two nights of Zorn music performed by 10 different ensembles. The two evenigs were curated by Zorn who chose the music and the musicians. Every night five 20 minute sets entertained the crowds for 2 hours and showcased some of Zorn’s mighty vast and versatile body of work. Although for me as a live sound engineer it is obviously much harder and more work (10 stage changes, 20 if you consider the rehearsals) I still feel enormously priviledged to be a part of this incredible experience. Those who were present know what I am talking about and those who don’t should try to go to Montreal July 1st or Milan on Nov 8th for thr next two Zorn festivals of this kind. It’s truly the best way to experience his versatility and the vast array of differing moods, nuances, genres of his material.

I’ve always loved Japan, but one thing Japan has never been cool for (in fact downright worse than any other country in the world) is the whaling industry, which along for whales kills 23′000 dolphins a year in the small town of Taiji alone!

Why is this so awful? Many reasons, first and foremost the fact that dolphins are probably the smartest animal known to man (think smarter than dog, to the point where some scientists agree they should be granted the same rights humans have). In addition to that dolphin meat (which very few people eat, even in Japan where most people don’t even know that dolphin meat is sold) is one of the most mercury-loaded meats, and mercury is the most toxic non-radioactive substance known. However Japan’s fishing industries are quietly selling dolphin meat in supermarkets marking it as whale meat, which is obviously illegal and dangerous to consumer’s health.

The press release reads: “In The Cove, a team of activists and filmmakers infiltrate a heavily-guarded cove in Taiji, Japan. In this remote village they witness and document activities deliberately being hidden from the public. To really make an impact on this issue, we must get the word out in Japan and urge action from our own leaders. We believe that once the world and the Japanese people know, they will demand change. Help us save Japan’s dolphins.”

You can sign a petition here.
You can read more about the movie here.
You can read about the Ocean Preservation Society who created this movie here.
Or you can text the word “DOLPHIN” to 44144 to get news on how to help.

Anyway, long story short, a very interesting documentary that you should see.
Here’s the trailer:

My friend Bridget O’Neill has always been a comedian but as far as I know this was the first time she took the stage (the Moth at the Bitter End in NYC) for more people to appreciate her hilariousness… This is the PG rated version and it’s funny already, but I hear she’s got a rated R version that she performs privately for friends… I’ll have to ask her next time I see her.

P.S.: She’s funny and nutty alright, but did I mention she is single? I guess if you look like a firefighter and you think like an artsy person you stand a good chance with her ;-)

Here’s a review of the show we just did. I did sound for it and I had a ton of fun! You should check out Cyro as soon as you have a chance

Cyro Baptista, Le Poisson Rouge, NY / Live Reviews / This Is Fake DIY

Don’t know who the others are because of their Halloween masks, but I recognized Robert Musso jamming in the middle of 10th st and 1st av, with a drummer, a bassist and a saxophonist…

Every once in a while someone comes along and does something so extraordinarily out of the order that it blows your mind away and shatters whatever preconceived notions you might have. Kenny Wollesen was that person for me tonight. I knew how talented he is from having seen him play drums and vibes with John Zorn many times and I knew he had manu other side projects as well (some of which I’ve seen and some I have not yet). When he told me about this event, it sounded so interesting that I couldn’t pass it up, so even though I was at a rooftop dinner party, I just left for an hour to go check out Wollesonic Laboratories’ “Touchless Kaleidophonic Sonic Massages”. It was sooooo worth it!
Held at the new Gallery 151 on the Bowery (co-curated by the talented urban/pop singer Miz Metro), the free donation-supported event basically consisted in two opposite rows if yoga mats where you would lay down, close your eyes if you wanted to (if you didn’t there was a psychedelic light show being projected on the ceiling) and absorb all the sounds created by Kenny’s populous crew (dressed in official looking white lab coats with woven names). For about 30-45 minutes I laid there relaxing and breathing in and out silently while the crazy professor and his assistants shuffled from one end of the gallery to the opposite making some kind of sound. Rain carousels, hellophones, sleep grinders, wind wands, rotorifics, magic cat boxes, rubber band contraptions, spinning baloons and other crazy looking things… If you can imagine it in your wildest dreams, Kenny probably built it! The sounds were pretty subtle, but every now and the there would be a subsonic rumble that you could feel in your spine through the wooden floor. I was terribly torn between wanting to keep my eyes closed to focus on the sounds and wanting to take a peak to satisfy my curiosity about what object on earth would produce such cool sounds. For those on the receiving end, if you let yourself be transported by this sonic massage you could pretty much enter an outlandish Tim Burton-esque parallel fantasy world where huge bugs hover over your head, mysterious creatures surround you and other amorphous sounds contribute to the creation of this dreamy sonic realm (which I bet might sound pretty scary if you didn’t have the comfort of knowing that they were created by friendly humans from planet earth). The spatiality and movement of the sounds makes it so much more special… Here’s an example: while you are feeling the air and focusing on the sounds of a giant butterfly flapping its wings above your head, suddenly a cricket-type sound punctures the silence from behind you on the left and when you least expect it dog comes up really close to your right ear and breaths… the Wollesonic touchless crew is pretty tactful and quiet while they run up and down the gallery and if they were even more silent it would be scary!
It was a blast. I highly recommend anyone interested in experimentation with found sounds and new sonic experiences in general not to miss this event if/when it comes around again. I know I won’t.

I ventured through the swamps of the Gowanus channel to make it to this beautiful new (at least to me) place called Littlefield where Suphala tonight just finished playin a show to an intimate crowd of about 50 world music loving concert goers. Suphala is one of the leading tabla players out there and her latest project features an oud player, a cellist and a violinist. I didn’t get the right spelling of their names but they were all exceptional players which brought their musical backgrounds to the table and together offered a mixture of Indian, Arabic and American moods and melodies. Truly beautiful sounds and interesting musical influences to create an inspiring soundtrack to this full moon night.

Grace Potter kicks ass and after a kitesurfing session in Long Island this is a great way to end the day, even if I only caught the last half hour of the show. The band is so tight, it’s as if Black Crowes made the great Chris Robinson into a woman or turned him for an excange with a Janis Joplin or Beth Heart! Music is just fucking awesome and makes life taste so much better!

Miz Metro with revamped and extended Makebelievers line up and a new hair style was looking and sounding good at their first Joe’s Pub appearance. This young group keeps getting better every time I see them play (I recorded their CD which just came out and was mixed by LA producer Ray Chervenka and I saw her at SXSW in 08 and 09) and her facial expressions and vocal versatility definitely captivate the crowd every time.
Originally I came to see Laura but I stayed for Ma’ayan Castel’s set whose music I was new to. Castel has a sexy and mature voice that reminds me a little bit of Amy Winehouse. The supporting is made of pro’s who grooved together like only pros can do and were agumented by pre-recorded loops and some background vocals that thr drummer was clicking along).
Both girls have talent to sell and should be followed.

My friend Robbie Angelucci is in town from LA for a few days so I’m taking him around the city and showing him the cool places. Of course I could not not take him over to Rockwood, one of my favorite music venues in town, and it really paid off. After dinner we headed over there and without knowing any of the bands on the bill we walked in around 11pm at the very beginning of Poundcacke’s set. Poundcake is  bunch of very talented cats: drummer/producer Ethan Eubanks (who plays with Kin, Emerson Hart, The Gray Race etc) on drums, vocals and jokes, Teddy Thompson on vocals and guitar (who enjoys a successful solo career you should check out), the perennially busy Jeff Hill on upright bass and vocals (who you can also see touring with Rufus Wainwright, Brazilian Girls and many others). Given the caliber and experiences of these individual you can imagine that the bar was set very high and the show was a magic collection of great old tunes.

Thinking we got lucky because we came here and it wasn’t just a good band but it was a really great band, I thought that would remain the only musical highlight of the evening but the next band was actually just as good! On the bill it said they were called “Fangbangers” but it turns out it was only a decoy. The female trio actually goes by Puss n Boots and features another amazing set of musically gifted individuals: Sasha Dobson on guitars, vocals and drums (no, not all at the same time, although I am sure she could pull that off if she wanted to), Catherine Popper on bass and vocals (another perennially busy touring bass player like Hill) and Norah Jones (hence the need for a decoy) on vocals and guitars (the only band member on the stage to remain un-introduced to keep the whole thing under the radar). The girls did a great show, filled with beautiful tunes, angelic voices and heartfelt captivating performances which kept everyone’s eyes glued on them.

All in all I’d say it was a great evening. It’s easy to have great evenings at Rockwood but I think this topped many of the one’s I’ve had.