It’s happening this Sunday! Just a little reminder about our next ‘LUME Presents…’ gig at the Vortex Jazz Club in Dalston. It’s going to be a great night of improvised music, with a solo set from Corey Mwamba and the return of Dee’s duo with sound artist Merijn Royaards, Deemer. Don’t miss it: tickets are still on sale from the Vortex website.
And a re-cap of the other gigs coming up in this series, with lovely artwork by Peter Beatty:
We’re back! For our first gig at Long White Cloud after the summer break, we have a double bill of acoustic/electronic improvised music from London and Brighton. duck-rabbit brings together some musicians who have appeared at LUME with different projects, while The Static Memories is a duo of two top improvisers and our first band from the Brighton scene.
This new improvising trio explores two contrasting and overlapping personalities; one acoustic, one electronic. Using unique electronic instruments, they interact with their acoustic improvisations to form a rich and varied dialogue. Their interaction creates an absorbing interplay between past and present, a constant re-imagining of ideas within an expanded sonic terrain. Two releases, ‘Path To Field’ and ‘Scattered Voices: Part 1’ came out in early 2014.
Joe Wright – saxophone/electronics
Tom Taylor – piano/electronics
James Opstad – double bass/electronics
The Static Memories
Dan Powell and Gus Garside have been working together on improv project The Static Memories since 2007. Their new album ‘The bloudy vision of John Farley’ came out in June on The Slightly Off-Kilter Label.
Dan Powell (laptop/guitar/sampler/effects) began making sound for installation works in London in the mid 90’s and was involved in live arts group OMSK. Since moving to Brighton in 2000 he has concentrated on experimental and improvised music. He is a member of Brighton based collective The Spirit of Gravity and has performed across the UK. Dan is also a member of free improv duo Nil with Chris Parfitt.
Gus Garside (double bass/electronics) has worked in a variety of musical settings – jazz, contemporary music, pop, cabaret, dance, theatre and, most importantly, improvised music where he has performed with many leading players. Gus formed arc in 1988 and their third album “the pursuit of happiness” was released on Emanem Records in 2009. He formed In Sand in 2004 and their first album “Whatever” came out mid 2008. Gus is part of the Brighton Safehouse collective, and has collaborated with a wide range of improvising and contemporary music players and dancers and frequently works with laptop musicians and also performs solo.
+ Special guest dancer Mirei Yazawa
This will be a fascinating evening of new music – come and join us as we kick off the next season of Long White Cloud gigs. Don’t forget that this is a double LUME week too, as our second ‘LUME Presents…’ gig at the Vortex, with Corey Mwamba and Deemer, is this Sunday!
After a fantastic first night in a packed Vortex, our ‘LUME Presents…’ series continues on Sunday 7th September. This time, rather than filling the stage with as many musicians as possible, we’re inviting experimental electro/acoustic duo Deemer to fill it with their signature array of weird and wonderful equipment and get stuck into some sonic cookery. They will be sharing the bill with the captivating improviser and friend of LUME, vibraphone monster and multi-instrumentalist Corey Mwamba. We hope you can join us for another ‘LUME-inous’ night of new music at the Vortex.
Corey Mwamba
Corey Mwamba creates music using vibraphone, dulcimer, electronics and small instruments. His music contains elements of jazz, folk from different countries, and electronica. Born in Derby and a former chemist and librarian, Corey is virtually self-taught in music, having made the decision to take up vibraphone in his late teens after seeing a picture of Orphy Robinson in a book and taking five lessons with the orchestral percussionist Lewis Dyson. Corey is renowned as a highly creative improviser with a wide stylistic range: he has performed with Orphy Robinson, Pat Thomas, Tony Kofi, the Master Drummers of Africa and Evan Parker among countless others.
Deemer
The brain-child of Merijn Royaards and Dee Byrne, Deemer started life in 2006 as a weekly improvisation/electronics session in a warehouse in Hackney Wick. The project has since evolved into an installation/performance based electro-acoustic ‘two-manned’ orchestra, whose aural narratives are created within fluid frameworks that map a trajectory in time, but leave the sonic textures and compositions entirely free
and undetermined. Deemer employ, among other things, alto saxophone, drums, analogue electronics, tape, transducer microphones/speakers to instantly compose, activate space, and blur the boundaries between free jazz and sound installation.
Merijn Royaards – electronics/percussion
Dee Byrne – alto saxophone/electronics
Doors are at 8pm, with the music starting at 8.30pm. Tickets are £8 in advance from the Vortex website, or £10 on the night. See you there…
Our ‘LUME Presents…’ series at the Vortex kicks off on August 3rd with a double bill of Overground Collective and Madwort’s Menagerie. It’s all very exciting and advance tickets are available now from the Vortex website! Here’s some background on the two bands…
Overground Collective
Paulo Dias Duarte is an award-winning Portuguese composer, based in London since
2003. Paulo’s compositions mix styles and frame musical clichés in very unusual way,
guiding audiences through rarely-visited musical fields. The Overground Collective is
an unorthodox big band composed of some of the wildest improvisers on the London
jazz scene. The combination of Paulo’s music and these improvisers makes each
concert a unique experience….as you can see from this video!
Guitar/composition – Paulo Dias Duarte
Alto saxophone/soprano/flute – Chris Williams
Alto saxophone/flute/piccolo – Julie Kjaer
Tenor saxophone – Rachel Musson
Tenor saxophone – Dan Mays
Bass clarinet – Tom Ward
Baritone saxophone – Joseph Stout
Trumpet – Noel Langley
Trumpet – Yazmeen Ahmed
Trumpet – Andre Canniere
Trumpet – Henry Spencer
Trombone – Paul Taylor
Trombone – Ed Reiband
Trombone – Raph Clarkson
Bass Trombone – Olivir Haylett
Tuba – Ben Kelly
Bass – Ben Bastin
Keyboards – Danny Keane
Drums – Jon Scott
Madwort’s Menagerie
After a momentary glimpse in a misfiring big band rehearsal, Tom Ward has been
bugged by an overheard snippet of a weird quartet comprising bass clarinet, flute,
trumpet and trombone. Transmogrifying some of his compositions for sax quartet,
hybridising this with his free improv duo Ti/om and finally balancing woodwind, brass
and strings with the addition of a cello, Tom is proud to present Madwort’s
Menagerie. Featuring some incredible improvising musicians with a full spectrum of
credits ranging from the London Improvisers Orchestra through Brass Mask, the
Overground Collective, Quadraceratops and The Imaginary Delta to Sinfonia Cymru
and the London Tango Orchestra.
Tom Ward – bass clarinet, flute, composition
Julie Kjaer – flute, alto flute
Alex Bonney – trumpet
Magnus Dearness – trombone
Adam Spiers – cello
Tim Fairhall – double bass
We hope you’ll agree it’s going to be a fantastic night of new music. Join us as we venture into a new chapter of LUME with these amazing musicians!
Artwork by the ever-awesome Peter Beatty…
This will be our last regular gig for a few weeks, as we’re taking a break for August: we’ll be back at Long White Cloud every Thursday starting on September 4th. To tide you over though, we’re launching our new ‘LUME Presents…’ series at the Vortex on August 3rd with Overground Collective (fantastic big band led by Paulo Duarte!) and Madwort’s Menagerie (brand new project from Tom Ward!). Head over to the Vortex website for advance tickets: we’d love to see you there as we kick off this new venture.
Anyway, back to the gig in hand! We’re excited to welcome two top names on the improv circuit this week, for our last gig of the Summer season. Here go the biogs…
Mark Sanders
Mark has played with many renowned musicians from around the world including Evan Parker, Peter Brotzmann, Derek Bailey, Myra Melford, Paul Rogers, Henry Grimes, Roswell Rudd, Okkyung Lee, Barry Guy, Tim Berne, Otomo Yoshihide, Luc Ex, Ken Vandermark, Sidsel Endresen and Jean Francois Pauvrois, in duo and quartets with Wadada Leo Smith and trios with Charles Gayle with Sirone and William Parker.
New collaborative projects include `Riverloam Trio` with Mikolaj Trzaska & Olie Brice, `Asunder` with Hasse Poulsen & Paul Dunmall, duos with John Butcher and DJ Sniff, `Statics` with Georg Graewe & John Butcher and trio with Rachel Musson & Liam Noble
Sarah Gail Brand
Described as “the most exciting trombone player for years” (The Wire), Sarah Gail has recorded and performed on the international jazz and improvising scene since the early 1990s with Mark Sanders, John Edwards, Billy Jenkins, Elton Dean, Evan Parker, Phil Minton, Lol Coxhill, Martin Hathaway, Alexander Hawkins, Maggie Nicols, Wadada Leo Smith, Jason Yarde and countless others. Gail has composed music for short films, including an original score for Charlie Chaplin’s ‘Easy Street’, performed live to film at the Barbican Cinema, London and has music projects in development for theatre. Recent work includes: work with comedian Stewart Lee and appearing in ‘Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle’ (BBC TV): duo with US improvising vocalist Morgan Guberman; long standing duo with drummer Mark Sanders; Gail Brand Sextet performing her pieces with edgy improvisation at the heart of the music. Sarah Gail is an occasional interviewer on BBC Radio 3’s Jazz on 3 programme.
We’re really in for a treat! Doors 8pm, music starts at 8.30pm. £5 entry….
We’re very excited to announce a new venture for late Summer and Autumn 2014: ‘LUME Presents…’ at the Vortex in Dalston! We will be hosting monthly double bills of our favourite musicians every first Sunday of the month starting on August 3rd. Join us for an extra dose of great original and improvised music…and a great excuse for some brand new artwork from the amazing Peter Beatty! Tickets are on sale from the Vortex website.
A year ago this week, we put on the first LUME gig upstairs at Hundred Crows Rising near Angel. Since that first double bill of Redshift and Identity Parade we’ve hosted so many bands that we’ve lost count, and there are plenty more coming up!
We’re celebrating a year of presenting great ensembles playing new music by….presenting a great ensemble playing new music. Come down and join us this Thursday, 3rd July at Long White Cloud as we toast a year of LUME with:
Vicky Tilson Quartet
The VTQ is influenced by a range of musicians but in terms of the compositions, bassist Vicky Tilson has this to say: “My writing is constantly influenced by that of Charles Mingus, particularly his Changes I and II albums, which showcase his more esoteric side. The groove-based, odd meter tunes of Dave Holland and Steve Coleman have also inspired me and HEADLOVIN’ was the first piece I ever wrote in this style. More recently, Phronesis have inspired me to continue the groove-based odd meter side of things, whilst the influence of British pianist/composer Michael Garrick has led me melodically. Some of my harmonic ideas have even been awakened by listening to indie band Blur!”
TIME OUT say: “Bass-led modern jazz from this Guildhall trained bassist/composer, who combines deep Mingus-style grooves and pastoral melodies with gritty textures on top provided by guitarist Stuart Fiddler and alto sax ace Dee Byrne.” – 25th April 2012.
To hear what the band sounds like head over to their Soundcloud page.
Dee Byrne alto sax
Stuart Fiddler guitar
Vicky Tilson bass/compositions
Reinis Axelsson drums
Doors 8pm, music at 8.30pm, £5 entry. See you at Long White Cloud!
An exciting finale for the month of June with the notorious Leeds-based sextet Shatner’s Bassoon, bringing their distinctive brand of ‘controlled pandemonium’ to LUME as part of their UK tour. We’re in for a treat! Here’s the biog….
Shatner’s Bassoon are a group of six Leeds based composers/improvisers. Since forming in 2010 they have embarked on two tours of the UK, completed a PRS funded residency program, had a live show featured on BBC Jazz on 3, released their debut album ‘Aquatic Ape Privilege’ on their own label – ‘Wasp Millionaire’ and have been selected by Jazz North as ‘Jazz Ambassadors of the North’ on their ‘Northern Line’ program.
Influenced by contemporary artists such as Tim Berne, Mr. Bungle, John Zorn, Frank Zappa, Tyshawn Sorey and a range of rock and electronica; and with a combined experience that includes eastern European folk, Hindustani music, Brazilian music, straight ahead and free jazz, reggae, metal, contemporary classical and musique concrete; Shatner’s Bassoon have developed a unique collective sound based on developing complex compositional structures through improvisation – allowing the music to be naturally infused by their experiences. The results can range from dense free noise through intense riffs and ambient textures. They play with musical clichés and conventions to produce music that negotiates a path from the beautiful to the sinister, humorous and surreal.
Michael Bardon – bass/electronics
Ollie Dover – sax/clarinet
Joost Hendrickx – drums/electronics
Andrew Lisle – drums
Johnny Richards – keys/electronics
Craig Scott – guitar/electronics
This will be a packed night with a BIG lineup, so make sure you get to Long White Cloud early to avoid having to climb over the band! Doors 8pm, music starting at 8.30pm, £5 entry…join us!
For this week’s gig we’re looking forward to presenting Stories. Most of the band members have played at LUME before in different projects, so it will be great to hear them in this configuration. The ensemble plays the compositions of drummer Simon Roth, who writes:
Stories is an outlet for new music, uniting five of London’s most exciting improvising musicians. Their combined force creates an emotionally charged music, full of nifty melodies, fruity harmony and propulsive grooves.
Have a listen to a live recording on their Bandcamp page.
“An overflow of creative juices, with each musician allowed the freedom to express their personality through a selection of finely tuned angular grooves and intricate melodic writing” – Jazz UK
Joe Murgatroyd clarinets
Laura Jurd trumpet
Joe Wright tenor sax
James Opstad bass
Simon Roth drums
Doors 8pm, with the music starting at 8.30pm at Long White Cloud. £5 entry as usual. It promises to be a great gig!
The first meeting of a new group, as two of LUME’s favourite musicians join forces with our own Cath Roberts. Corey and Cath have played together before as part of a trio with Martin Pyne at the first Long White Cloud gig in February, while Olie and Corey have also worked together a few times in various ensembles. Who knows what will happen when they combine as a trio?
Corey Mwamba – vibraphone, small instruments
Olie Brice – bass
Cath Roberts – baritone sax
Doors 8pm, music starting at 8.30pm, £5 entry. Come along for an evening of improvised music from a never-heard-before band…