Yeah? I've not listened to that in an age but I remember it being way more propulsive / chaotic. maybe I need to listen to this turned up.
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Thursday, 8 October 2015 13:54 (eight years ago) link
My copy of Vertigo finally came, prepared piano and bowed bass and gongs and things like that = awesome. It is a negative/reverse image of Open, which is to say a minor key variation with the same atmospheric rubato approach. Couldn't be more different from Drive-By, ha, no grooves or rhythmic motifs to be found here at all. There's some sections with prestissimo cymbals and hammered piano notes giving a kinda polyrhythmic cushion, though. It levitates!
The second half is appropriately vertiginous with all this reverb and weird distant dragging/slurping percussive sounds and the bowed bass played in the higher registers so it sounds like a bagpipe drone or a sustained trumpet note. And then it gets more and more sinister and murky and the notes get lower and lower until the return of the prepared piano at the very end. Perfect title, concept, execution. Essential The Necks.
― liam fennell, Monday, 2 November 2015 13:45 (eight years ago) link
I'm having a hard time connecting to it, but I guess I miss what you call the "grooves." The Necks are never dull, but this is maybe the first album of theirs that tests my patience a bit. Maybe it'll grow on me.
― Jimmywine Dyspeptic, Monday, 2 November 2015 14:27 (eight years ago) link
Yeah, I can see that, they definitely are getting farther and farther and farther from the niche they carved out for themselves. This newer more experimental phase just happens to coincide exactly with all my own interests, maybe.
― liam fennell, Monday, 2 November 2015 19:49 (eight years ago) link
Listened to it this morning (it's on Spotify) and it's instantly one of my favorites by them.
― phở intellectual (WilliamC), Monday, 2 November 2015 20:08 (eight years ago) link
They can do no wrong for me, they have been consistently great for decades imo
I would recommend Andrew Hill's out there masterpiece Compulsion!!!!!! (not my exclamation marks) to people who dig The Necks, it obviously has had a big influence on them.
― xelab, Monday, 2 November 2015 20:33 (eight years ago) link
anyone at cafe oto last night? hadn't seen them live before and it was incredible. just three wildly brilliant musicians playing off each other.
― doing my Objectives, handling some intense stuff (LocalGarda), Saturday, 14 November 2015 10:50 (eight years ago) link
Bugger me, these guys are actually playing in Southampton next Thursday. Nobody plays in Southampton.
― Poacher (Chinaski), Saturday, 14 November 2015 10:54 (eight years ago) link
It is quite heartening to see on their tour itinerary that they have also played at such other cultural metropolises as Halifax, Exeter, Cork and Gateshead in recent years!
― xelab, Saturday, 14 November 2015 15:17 (eight years ago) link
Feel pretty #blessed that they've made the trip across the ditch to New Zealand a few times; some of my favourite live shows. Slowly digging into the new one, and cheers xelab for the Compulsion!!!!!! tip! Closest thing I've seen to the Necks recently was Nik Bärtsch's Ronin (ECM, etc); attended a jazz festival in Shenzhen and played a side-show opening up a new jazz club beside the Pearl River Brewery's new beer museum on a party pier(?????).
― etc, Saturday, 14 November 2015 15:44 (eight years ago) link
btw i found out this week you can buy all the albums digitally from this norwegian site:
http://www.subradar.no/artist/necks
― doing my Objectives, handling some intense stuff (LocalGarda), Saturday, 14 November 2015 15:53 (eight years ago) link
US TOUR
3/21 – Blue Whale – Los Angeles, CA – Angel City Arts3/22 – Goethe Institute – Boston, MA – Non-Event3/23 – Philadelphia Art Alliance – Philadelphia, PA – Ars Nova Workshop3/24 – The Whitney Museum of Art – New York City, NY3/25 – The Whitney Museum of Art – New York City, NY3/26 – The Stage at KDHX – St. Louis, MO – The New Music Circle3/27 – Constellation – Chicago, IL3/28 – The KMAC Music Series (Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft) – Louisville, KY – The Kentucky Center for Performing Arts - Todd Hall3/29 – The North Door – Austin, TX – Epistrophy Arts3/30 – Match Houston – Houston, TX – Nameless Sound3/31 – Big Ears Festival – Knoxville, TN – Tony Buck with Zeena Parkins*4/01 – Big Ears Festival – Knoxville, TN – Chris Abrahams solo*4/02 – Big Ears Festival – Knoxville, TN – The Necks**set times for Big Ears subject to date change – keep an eye on the schedule! http://www.bigearsfestival.com/
― Brakhage, Tuesday, 26 January 2016 18:33 (eight years ago) link
http://northernspyrecords.com/shows/
― Brakhage, Tuesday, 26 January 2016 18:44 (eight years ago) link
Bummer no SF show.
― One bad call from barely losing to (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 26 January 2016 19:46 (eight years ago) link
Houston!
― ryan, Tuesday, 26 January 2016 20:31 (eight years ago) link
Philadelphia show was REAL good and also sold out. Bass player Lloyd Swanton in particular seemed overjoyed once they started levitating about 10 minutes in! A lot of fun and also curiously exhausting because of the amount of energy flying around the room at the peak, which consisted of a clamorous tornado-crescendo lasting about 20 minutes.
― liam fennell, Thursday, 24 March 2016 12:40 (eight years ago) link
seeing them next week and couldn't be happier about it.
― ryan, Thursday, 24 March 2016 13:12 (eight years ago) link
sunday, sameglad to know the show was energetic!
― La Lechuza (La Lechera), Thursday, 24 March 2016 13:17 (eight years ago) link
this sounds promising: http://40.media.tumblr.com/65184fa41408fc98d83df9beab3c0ac6/tumblr_inline_o2yc3vPxs51ryacpf_500.jpgThe Still are a cast of international musicians who congregate in Berlin and create hypnotic, perfectly-tensioned instrumental music that has earned them a cool cult following on the underground gig scene there. Experimental drummer/percussionist Steve Heather and fellow Australian Chris Abrahams (The Necks) on piano, Canadian Derek Shirley on double bass, the wonderfully-named German guitarist Rico Repotente, and Thomas Meadowcraft on organ/revox are the core members, with an occasional expanded version with horns. The mood is set for minimalist, unhurried grooves and soundscapes.http://seriesaphonos.com/
― tylerw, Thursday, 24 March 2016 14:18 (eight years ago) link
that'll be good shit.
not really Necks related but Nik Bartsch doesn't have a thread and occupies similar territory to them, his latest one Continuum is very good.
― calzino, Thursday, 24 March 2016 14:46 (eight years ago) link
I like just about everything put out on the Tonus Music label, where Nik Bartsch got his start. Check Don Li, Mik Keusen, and Sha's Banru if you're into the Nik Bartsch/Dawn of Midi minimal vibe.
― Unyielding Dispair Architects, LLC (Sanpaku), Thursday, 24 March 2016 18:12 (eight years ago) link
saw them in LA on monday, they were a-m-a-z-i-n-g
― donna rouge, Thursday, 24 March 2016 18:19 (eight years ago) link
This live performance from a year ago is mesmerizing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFpWd1V__SI
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Thursday, 24 March 2016 19:37 (eight years ago) link
Continuing the aside, Nik Bartsch's Mobile Extended has a few US sets coming up. Nowhere near me, alas.
May 01 Portland, OR Albetra AbbeyMay 05 Troy, NY EMPAC- The Curts R.Priem Experimential Media and Performing Arts CenterMay 06 New York, NY The Rubin Museum
― Unyielding Dispair Architects, LLC (Sanpaku), Friday, 25 March 2016 22:17 (eight years ago) link
I honestly can't believe I forgot about the 2 shows in NY this week. Disgusted with myself.
― Oblique Strategies, Sunday, 27 March 2016 22:25 (eight years ago) link
i heard that ppl stood a reasonable chance of getting in via the standby line but i couldn't make it either night
― adam, Sunday, 27 March 2016 23:59 (eight years ago) link
chicago show last night was sublime, warm & bubbly. i was sitting in front of tony buck and it was interesting to see how their sound comes together and where all the noises come from. at one point he moved a brush about an inch in either direction on the snare for 35 min straight. 35 min! he also rolled some bells around with his feet. i also thought it was interesting how gently he used the bass drum. anyway they played 2 longish sets and if they are in your area, you should definitely go.
― La Lechuza (La Lechera), Monday, 28 March 2016 13:35 (eight years ago) link
seeing them Wednesday in Houston. havent been this excited for a show in a long time.
― ryan, Monday, 28 March 2016 13:42 (eight years ago) link
"the curves of the desire imprisoned somewhere, in a space with an implacably rectilinear geometry. But it's also a pink sky pastel, something of our sexual, epileptic and short-lived world." pretentious as fuck, but ace French drummer Sylvain Darrifourcq describing his acoustic chamber jazz trio Axel Erotic - In Love With album. It is only remotely similar to The Necks in the sense that it is improv, albeit with no piano - more like Dawn Of Midi I suppose, but it is still very good.
― calzino, Monday, 25 July 2016 20:35 (seven years ago) link
had incredibly high expectations going to see them last night, hoping for something spare & fragile & precious, and instead got this gorgeous shimmering jumble, ideas gradually refined through repetitions, everything turning into a radiant blur that left me feeling like a well-stroked cat
tony buck was v pleasingly understated and cliche-free, not seen anything like that before
― ogmor, Wednesday, 9 November 2016 14:11 (seven years ago) link
excerpt from new one: https://soundcloud.com/editionsmego/the-necks-timepiece-excerpt-soma025
― tylerw, Friday, 18 November 2016 17:28 (seven years ago) link
Not onboard for this. I think I've mostly been responding to the gestures towards dub in earlier Necks albums, so for me its all about that bass.
― Distribution of all possible outcomes (Sanpaku), Friday, 18 November 2016 20:23 (seven years ago) link
Whoa, awesome, thanks Tylerw!
Well, I love colorful rhythm clatter and chiming sounds, so I couldn't be happier. Good song title, too, for music with stut t e r y staccato bass figures that sound like a pocketwatch winding down!
― liam fennell, Monday, 21 November 2016 19:14 (seven years ago) link
Got home from work to find the Necks boxset had arrived. That's this evening sorted.
― Duke, Wednesday, 23 November 2016 19:59 (seven years ago) link
New record 'Unfold' available now. Sounds ace after a couple of listens; a 'gorgeous shimmering jumble' to borrow ogmor's phrase. 'Blue Mountain' is the standout for me so far.
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Friday, 10 February 2017 16:21 (seven years ago) link
Going to see them again soon, a few weeks. Looking forward to it so much! The show I went to brought out all kinds of people I rarely see at shows and it made me think of their rather broad appeal.
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Friday, 10 February 2017 17:02 (seven years ago) link
ugh, i'd love to see them. new one is great — when I first put it on, I was kinda like "ok this is the necks", but by the middle of it I got the "holy shit how are they even doing this" feeling.
― tylerw, Friday, 10 February 2017 17:05 (seven years ago) link
Gonna get there so early so I can sit right near Tony. They're playing for 2 nights!
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Friday, 10 February 2017 17:09 (seven years ago) link
they've definitely built up a cult audience over the years. it was a very bald crowd when I saw them
― ogmor, Friday, 10 February 2017 23:15 (seven years ago) link
No reason why male pattern baldness should stop anyone enjoying this kind of sublime improv:p I love the new one already and like Tylerw on my first listen I had doubts + I was thinking are they turning into some average ECM plodders, but then realised it is absolutely wonderful.
― calzino, Saturday, 11 February 2017 11:08 (seven years ago) link
Wow, Blue Mountain is glorious. What a band.
― The shard-borne beetle with his drowsy hums (Chinaski), Saturday, 11 February 2017 14:27 (seven years ago) link
I think the first two tracks are amongst the best ever Necks as well, that organ on Overhear gives it a trance/gospel quality. Wonderful stuff.
― calzino, Saturday, 11 February 2017 14:34 (seven years ago) link
Shades of "Vuh" in Overhear. But I think the involving stasis of Timepiece is the most arresting.
― Noel Emits, Saturday, 11 February 2017 17:55 (seven years ago) link
Well quite by happy chance I caught them -- for the first time ever -- last night here in SF. Stellar show.
― Ned Raggett, Monday, 20 February 2017 02:17 (seven years ago) link
so has anyone else seen this band play with a guest musician? at the second night of the chicago shows (the one i went to), joshua abrams (natural information society, among many others) sat in for the second set and it was really interesting to watch another person integrate into the necks sound-world, which seems very tightly sealed from the other sets i've seen them play (2). he played one of these https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sintir
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 21:31 (seven years ago) link
They played with Ned Rothenberg at the first Big Ears, iirc. It was billed under their four names rather than Necks + NR. (I wish the festival still had previous years' schedules archived so I could check that.)
― scattered, smothered, covered, diced and chunked (WilliamC), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 21:44 (seven years ago) link
he's a saxophone player right? how was it? the set with abrams was significantly more heavy on the groove side of things (he's a bass player most of the time iirc) if memory serves there were even some riffy moments. i think i enjoyed the pure Necks set slightly more bc they are like a snowglobe band -- you enter their world and then stay there for a while to daydream.
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 21:52 (seven years ago) link
As I recall the set, it was very much Rothenberg entering Necksian trance-space, long lines and patterns. I don't know enough about him to say if that's his territory to start with.
― scattered, smothered, covered, diced and chunked (WilliamC), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 22:07 (seven years ago) link
not much use to me by the looks of it, but maybe relevant to some of your interests:
Sat 29th: Cheltenham, UK - Cheltenham Jazz Festival Sun 30th: Bray, Ireland - Bray Jazz Festival MAY Mon 1st: Brighton, UK - St Luke's Church Wed 3rd: London, UK - Jazz Cafe Sat 6th: Glasgow, UK - Glasgow Tectonics - The Necks with BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra Sun 7th: Glasgow, UK - Glasgow Tectonics - Eddie Prévost's Spirals with members of The Necks Mon 8th: Rijkesvorsel, Belgium - De Singer Tue 9th: Paris, France - La Dynamo Wed 10th: Prague, Czech Republic - Palac Akropolis Thu 11th: Olomouc, Czech Republic - Jazz Tibet Club Fri 12th: Ustí Nad Labem, Czech Republic - Národní dům
― Django Chutney (Noodle Vague), Saturday, 1 April 2017 16:09 (seven years ago) link
I'm photographing Tectonics again this year and really looking forward to finally seeing The Necks, never managed to catch them before.
― NWOFHM! Overlord (krakow), Monday, 3 April 2017 09:36 (seven years ago) link