Revolt of the ILX Brigade: New Post-Fahey Folk For PPL that post in the Takoma & Tompkin's Square Threads

Not surprised Global, I think your stuff is good enough to release personally. I have listened to those bandcamp albums quite a few times.

There isn't really a bad place to start with Marisa, everything I have heard is good. It is actually all up on bandcamp, I would just start with the latest, Mercury:

http://marisaanderson.bandcamp.com/album/mercury

@global tetrahedron your stuff is awesome! I think I dug it here or over bandcamp... can't remember!

I also learned today that William Tyler released something even before "the paper hats - the deseret canyon"
http://www.normanrecords.com/records/143638-the-paper-hats-come-and-see-
It came out on a german label btw. :)

i really liked the last marisa anderson, just haven't been feeling the new one yet for no particular reason

Sorry to keep bombing this thread with so much, but here's another relevant link. Really enjoyed that W. Tyler/JJ Toth interview above, and in a similar vein this C. Forsyth interview is definitely interesting. Gives real insight into how the recent records differ from each other and a whole bunch of other stuff:

http://adhoc.fm/post/interview-chris-forsyth/

That Solar Motel artwork is so cool- the photobooth one on the back cover in particular adds to the atmosphere of the music in a way I dig quite a bit...

congrats global that's a nice writeup

really enjoyed that wooden wand/tyler conversation

Hey guys - saw Marisa tonight and she was exceptional. Just really, really great - medleys, Stephen Foster, and a great new thing called "Bluegrass Parking Lot" (may not be the actual title) that really knocked me out. I'm very tired so I apologize for the 'bullet points,' but wanted to note a few things before I forgot:

1. She's traveling with four guitars. When I asked, all know-it-all-y, "Ah, for different tunings?" she said no - they're tuned identically (open D, she said), but she said that they just sound different, and do different things. So she travels with four guitars for their distinctive sonic qualities. I thought that was an interesting detail.

2. She has a new album coming out in a few months - all public domain songs. Some church songs, some state songs and a murder ballad, she says.

3. Though the albums are all improvised (culled and edited down from longer jams), the live set is not! Kinda backward, and kinda awesome: She makes the album, then learns the songs so that she can play them live. I'm sure other guitarists have used this approach, but I can't think of any off the top of my head.

4. Her first name is pronounced "ma-REE-sa."

cool, really sad i missed her when she was through mpls :(

point #3 is really surprising!

Hah wow, very cool Jimmywine. Thanks for that rundown. Really wish I had seen her here.

I of course am not a great imporviser or guitarist, but I do improvise a lot when I play, and almost everything I am working on now that might become a song (if I get a home recording set-up going) started this way, i.e., I heard a recording of it and thought "huh, I might be able to turn that into a song". Very interesting that she is willing to make a whole record out of improvisations though, and then learn/refine them for the live show!

Just saw William Tyler at this little space in Teaneck NJ... basically a tiny community art center for some reason with a Puffin theme. Mostly old people there from the town. Between songs one old lady asked if he could turn down the volume! He had a lot of funny stories and his playing was fantastic of course.

He is playing tomorrow at Union Pool in Brooklyn by the way!

new thing i did overdubbing myself a bunch of times...

https://soundcloud.com/matthew-lee-helgeson/dead-malls

reminds me a bit of krusty by papa m, which is about the highest complement I can bestow

wow thank you. i have not heard any of the papa m stuff but to be compared to pajo in any way is awesome.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fy3fuGV1UAg

it's perfect. always makes me feel happier. there should be more pajo talk, he is much better than almost everyone mentioned in this thread imo.

when i spoke to the great dbh i asked him about his influences because i couldn't hear any takoma in his music, or any particular folk style or w/e, and he mentioned live from a shark cage and a big light went on in my head.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PcoysxOYfA

Vinyl edition of this: track listings make it seem like it might be worth checking out---links to some tracks below (on the same page with tracks from the same-day vinyl of an okay-for-Spotify Shel Silverstein trib; more about that on the National Record Day thread)
https://gallery.mailchimp.com/1dff6e90b856dc06c872242fe/images/johnfahey.jpg
Welk Music Group and Vanguard Records will release the first vinyl edition of I AM THE RESURRECTION: A TRIBUTE TO JOHN FAHEY on November 29, 2013 in celebration of Record Store Day’s Black Friday.

Known as the father of the “American primitive guitar”, John Fahey is one of acoustic music’s most noted innovators. His work has influenced countless musicians from a wide range of musical genres. I Am the Resurrection: A Tribute to John Fahey is a 13 track collection that includes a who’s who of indie rock artists’ paying their respects to the folk legend. Co -produced by M. Ward and Vanguard staffer Stephen Brower the album features cuts from Fruit Bats, Sufjan Stevens, Calexico, Devendra Banhart, and Sonic Youth's Lee Ranaldo, among others.

The albums are issued on 2xLP white vinyl and green marbled vinyl and mastered at 45rpm for maximum fidelity. Click here to listen to some of the tracks with full track listings below.
https://soundcloud.com/vanguard-records/sets/vanguard-and-sugar-hill

Black Friday was created by the organizers of Record Store Day as a way to celebrate and spread the word about the unique culture surrounding nearly 1000 independently owned record stores in the US and thousands of similar stores international. For more information visit http://recordstoreday.com/CustomPage/1210

Tracklisting:

I AM THE RESURRECTION: A TRIUBUTE TO JOHN FAHEY
1. "Death of the Clayton Peacock" - Fruit Bats
2. "Sunflower River Blues" - Pelt
3. "Variation on 'Commemorative Transfiguration and Communion at Magruder Park'" - Sufjan Stevens
4. "Sligo River Blues" - Devendra Banhart
5. "Dance of Death" - Calexico
6. "The Singing Bridge Of Memphis, Tennessee (Brooklyn Bridge Version: The Coelcanth)" - Lee Ranaldo
7. "Bean Vine Blues, No. 2" - M. Ward
8. "The Portland Cement Factory at Monolith, CA" -Cul de Sac
9. "Dance of the Inhabitants of the Palace of King Phillip XIV of Spain" - Jason Q. Lytle
10. "Joe Kirby Blues" - Immerglück, Kaphan, Krummenach & Hanes
11. "Medley: John Hurt Shiva Shankarah" - Currituck Co.
12. "When the Catfish is in Bloom" - Peter Case
13. "My Grandfather's Clock" - Howe Gelb

haven't though about currituck co. for a while

this compilation was probably the first Fahey related thing I've ever heard in early 2000 and the "Medley: John Hurt Shiva Shankarah" - Currituck Co. was and is my favorite track.

<3 currituck co. kevin barker has been busy with his filmmaking!
he and his wife made this awesome movie --
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1745740/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

imdb reviews are mixed but i really liked it. our roomie contributed some of the music.

(it's on netflix btw)

I'm not sure Richard Dawson belongs on here, but he might do and you should listen to Richard Dawson. I like Richard Dawson.

Richard Dawson,

dig the papa m stuff a lot

btw solar motel is on spotify now, great so far

ha i had a papa m cd in my alarm clock as wakeup music for years and to this day my husband can't stand it and refers to it by making this plunnnnnnng plunnnnnnnnnnng noise
i think the track was "arundel"?

I've been messing around with acoustic resonance, feedback, high pitches, low pitches, metal scrapes, and any object that adds a harder curtain to coleuses with straight finger picking.

I bought a cheap rabab here in Cairo, which is a 1 string fiddle, just to use the bow, the fiber is much looser than a well made fiddle bow. Ever since figuring out how to do Jack Rose's "Sun Dogs" technique, I love wasting my time listening to that glorious high pitches, low pitches, and metal screeches.

Wife isn't to found of loud drone exploration on the acoustic but I gotta do what is flouting around in my head. Here is a first take of combining the "Sun Dogs" technique while bowing the guitar, a multitude of pitches

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3wuEETGpQ8

you're good at the sun dogs thing! is there a particular trick to it?

Matt this is rad! thanks for showing!

And some list: http://totalvibration.tumblr.com/post/66103908941/slide-into-sligo-creek-36-american-primitive-records
with the usual suspects and more...

Can we now maybe start a new thread for our own experiments in this style and keep this one for talking about people who are touring, releasing records, etc?

speaking of, i am SUPER EXCITED for this just announced show in Mpls:

http://www.thecedar.org/events/2014/01/22/califone-william-tyler

Jimmywine Dyspeptic: Can we now maybe start a new thread for our own experiments in this style and keep this one for talking about people who are touring, releasing records, etc?

I mean no harm nor to ruffle any feathers here, but I am a guy recording, touring, and releasing/designing records. Even though I am doing those things I still like to share a crude new idea or two via audio or video. That leads me to my idea being that, most (if not all) contemporary 'american primitive' players who are currently touring, recording, collaborating - built themselves from the ground up and I can think of half a dozen fairly easily who did this with determination. Bedroom experiments and crude recordings: it can lead to a record deal fairly fast if you've got something worthwhile to give.

My point is, separating "experiments" or the progression of one's ideas in gitfiddle picking, with "real(?)" musicians who are touring, and releasing records seems kind of counter intuitive. It's not hard to sift through touring dates and someone's personal recordings. In fact, it's really nice to see these two subjects at hand together in one thread. And as I said, there is a very fine line between being a bedroom rat and releasing records: example, Guanaco ±, Bronze Horse, Danial Bachman, Hayden Pedigo, Wes Tirey, etc etc etc.

When you separate that linkage between Fahey's own definition of 'american primtive'... that being "someone who is self taught." It kind of breaks down the point of the whole thing. There aren't many places you can freely post/send your recordings to and actually be easily heard. There's a few, to which I highly recommend anyone to sign up for, like the "Fahey Players Group" over on yahoo. Where people talk daily about the old and new of all this, and by daily I mean by the likes of Glenn Jones, Gene Rosenthal, Peter Lang, and random label Heads. Deep conversations you don't hear anywhere else. Just sign up for yahoo, and forward that inbox to your normal email addy. Group like these highly welcome personal accounts of vintage stories, home recordings, touring dates, and record release press/congrats/and the progression of that entire process.

I've loved ILX since I found it because of how contemporary it is, and not just veterans reminiscing. Everyone here is kind and real encouraging when it comes to one's own progression in this type of unconventional guitar playing. Separating the 'experimenting' from the official record releasing could just lead to further confusion and much less exposure of people who wouldn't ever get it otherwise.

Sorry for the ramble, ramble, ramble... but I am Neal Cassady no doubt.

Good perspective, and I definitely did not mean to be discouraging in any way - I mean, I click on most of (all?) of you links. I was just suggesting that we streamline the thread a little. There's an I Make Music board, for instance, and a Takoma / Fahey / Basho, hell, even Haino / Bailey / Orcutt type thread there would be really cool. My minority opinion is that 'separating a linkage' is often necessary, lest we have Oneohtrix and Ty Segall threads becoming the equivalent of Bandcamp or something. Again, minority opinion; from the looks of it, most of the people in this thread are happy to be sharing ideas about guitar technique. Just remember that for some of us who are merely appreciators--not practitioners--of the idiom, such discussions threaten to make this very long thread a lot less compelling to read.

I guess I'm guilty of posting stuff. I guess I don't have a problem with it. I like hearing stuff ppl are doing.

Also I guess I don't really get it. I think if what Neal posted was someone else, not him, I think ppl would have listened to it and appreciated it.

I don't post every little thing I record into my phone, I try to at least feel that it's worthwhile... this thread has a pretty small group and has been pretty casual & friendly and I don't really think a handful of links you can easily skip is a big deal.

I appreciated Neal's post/video, I just haven't been able to keep up with posting much lately. To be honest I came close to turning it off as it took two minutes to get to the music (no big deal, but maybe put rosin on the bow before hitting record?). I found the music to be compelling/cool though, it is something I would go see live any time. I have liked most of the stuff people have posted, including UMS's stuff (new one is definitely cool, dig the harmonics), but maybe I am biased cause I post a thing now and again as well. Just to add a little bit in re Neal, he is a good player and has stuff available to listen to that is in league with a lot of the stuff getting press via tours and records coming out, so where is the line?

Generally I think this thread has ridden the line pretty well, some digressions into technique/personal territory, but a lot more of it is taken up with current records/shows/tours/musicians that are higher profile (and getting plenty of press outside of this thread, at least currently). I think this thread has been way ahead of the curve on a lot of the stuff, and has perhaps helped some of these musicians get their name out there a little faster (Forsyth definitely started getting some run here before most other places, etc.) Really I hope a lot of people feel engaged here, and am happy with it going in waves between the two poles (folks posting stuff vs. talk of more established musicians and lineages of players etc.), though I can see how tedious it could get if you just want to pop in and see what records/established musicians folks here are getting into. For me at least it is a much more interesting thread because of how involved a lot of the folks are with it. It could easily devolve though, if everyone posted everything they or their friends were working on, so hopefully everyone keeps that in mind, but I am still digging the approach personally.

And let me follow briefly (sheesh I need an editor) that Jimmywine, I like your contributions to the thread and hope that enough of a balance can be achieved so folks like you stick around, I really don't want the pool of posters to shrink, cause the main thing that keeps the thread interesting is folks coming from different angles on this stuff.

i have no angle to come from but i like the peaceful feeling here and have enjoyed both lines of discussion, albeit casually

i'm trying to chill on posting my own stuff anyway....

also basically i agree w/grandavis it's more a matter of everyone using good judgment i think

Has anyone mentioned the 12" 45rpm LP MIA records put out of Steve Gunn, Cian Nugent, and John Truscinski? The group is called Desert Heat and the vinyl is titled “Cat Mask at Huggie Temple".

It's much like the Gunn/Truscinski Duo LPs but I did it so much. It carries the same subtle build that those Three Lobed releases revealed, but adding Cian to the mix is pretty incredible. I defiantly recommend it to any Gunn fans. I don't know how many of those are here, but he's defiantly one of my favorites when he delves into his Sandy Bull/long-form improvisations. Those Gunn/Truscinski Duo records are some of the best ever, always a go-to alteast once a week.

http://mie.limitedrun.com/products/516728-desert-heat-cat-mask-at-huggie-temple
https://soundcloud.com/miemusic/sets/desert-heat-cat-mask-at-huggie
https://soundcloud.com/miemusic/desert-heat-chimay-blues

Hey Neal, some good points, and I think most of us on here agree that sharing is cool and getting at it/making your own records/labels/songs is cool too. There are plenty of smaller profile tapes/streams/players etc shared all over this thread. We post numerous videos/streams of heavy hitters because generally we all dig it. When this thread started, this stuff was not getting nearly as much attention from major sites and media outlets as it is now, and I can honestly say that I have discovered a ton of stuff from this thread to the point that I don't need to read other sites to know what's happening, and appreciate that. Basically that is the exact nature of the thread, sharing shit that people think is good, plain and simple, with a smattering of stuff people are working on personally that is relevant to the thread (and I am sure we all hope is considered "good" as well). So basically carry on, but keep the balance in mind. Hopefully we can then just hang and not worry about what this thread should be too much.

And yeah, that Desert Heat action has been getting some run here (basically all things Gunn/Nugent have been bubbling up for a while). I really like the interplay between Gunn/Nugent, hope there will be more at some point. When you have the time you should dig back through this thread, a lot of that stuff is covered pretty heavily (though it is a really long thread at this point, don't undertake that task unless you are looking for a rabbit hole to fall down). Those Gunn/Truscinski duo records were my first introduction to Gunn, I like them a lot. Gunn's recent record focussing on concision/songs is really good, but I lean towards the long-form stuff for the most part.

here's my review of the new nugent/cosmos record. so good. i don't know, it has pretty much everything i want out of a record these days: http://www.aquariumdrunkard.com/2013/11/08/cian-nugent-the-cosmos-born-with-the-caul/

Just read that man, it's great. I will definitely be buying this record, everything I have heard off of it is great.

listening to this today - http://thekey.xpn.org/2013/11/10/folkadelphia-session-chris-forsyth-mary-lattimore-jeff-zeigler-aka-the-ultimate-session/
pretty nice stuff -- actually makes me think a little bit of the music grandavis has been posting, at least in terms of vibe.

Just listened to it, thanks for posting. Really like the beginning of it/first 20 minutes or so, and it is generally cool. I didn't love Forsyth's straightforward guitar moves as much as I usually do, liked his more abstract parts better in this context (especially in the first half), but the harp and synths were great throughout. I do love hearing people do stuff like this though, but I am decidedly wired for spacious improv.

I can definitely see a similarity in vibe too, thanks for listening to some of those links I posted.

yeah, i like your music a lot!
here's a lengthy investigation into what exactly "american primitive" means in 2013 - http://adhoc.fm/post/american-primitive/

Thanks again man, I appreciate it. Just played a show with the Nathan Bowles & Scott Verrastro duo, who were awesome! Really cool dual percussion action, from gamelan-ish and heavy (and very competently played) banging to lots of bowed and rubbed and pretty quiet parts. Definitely recommend seeing them if you get a chance, but it all got recorded by a buddy of mine, so I can share if anyone is interested.

Have seen that piece tossed around quite a bit today, by a couple of the players mentioned as well. It is definitely interesting to see who bristles at and who embraces the "American Primitive" tag. I haven't listened to No Neck in forever, maybe I need to dip back into those waters a bit.