Jon Hassell -- Classic Or Dud?

jon hassell fucking RULES.

i picked up a nice copy of Power Spot yesterday and it has blown my mind. it's up there with his very best work, if not above it. produced by eno/lanois, recorded in 83 but not really released until 86 (i think)? many of the songs are hypnotic in a way that reminds me of some songs on the francis bebey Psychedelic Sanza 1982-1984 comp.

10 out of 10. five stars. "A Masterpiece", an early Oscar Pick, 6 bags of popcorn, 6 sodas.

I give Jon Has.. Jona Hassle.. Jon Has Well's 'Power Spot' five bags of popcorn and an extra bag of popcorn.

(sorry. great album I did not know yet, but digging it thanks to you)

Power Spot is indeed very mighty — and quite possibly his most representative album. Like, if you just want one slab of vinyl to represent "What is Jon Hassell?", Power Spot is it.

My overall favorite is still his other ECM album from a few years back; Last Night the Moon Came Dropping its Clothes in the Street.

if you just want one slab of vinyl to represent "What is Jon Hassell?", Power Spot is it.


Just by coincidence, yesterday I was daydreaming about this very question, and how I would be unable to answer! I was imagining the goofy feeling of recommending Jon Hassell to someone and then being unable to give them a good starting point. I think I imagined just suggesting they start with Possible Musics so they could go ahead and check out his most well known album and save even better stuff for later. But Power Moves is probably an even better place to start.

Glad you like it LBI! My appreciation for Hassell’s music grows every time I listen

you guys checked this out, it rules: https://soundcloud.com/frasconimusic/sets/jon-hassell-group-1982

I think what marks out Power Spot is that it is a lot tighter and more explicitly rhythmically structured than the albums that precede it (Possible Musics, Dream Theory in Malaya etc.) but still very much exemplifies the ideas he was pursuing on those albums - so if you wanted an album that not only explained Hassell but also his influence on a lot of subsequent music it fulfills that role very handily.

I used to put "Wing Melodies" on a lot of mix-cds alongside stuff like Ricardo Villalobos and O'Rang and Laika and it fit very nicely in that context.

I like Last Night the Moon most too. Probably because it has a strong dub influence.

Of the 3-4 I've heard (including Power Spot, which I like), Listening to Pictures is my favourite. Here's to hoping he'll release another one soon.

Looks like the sequel will be coming out this summer, called Seeing Through Sound.

So thriled about it — Listening to Pictures is one of my favorite records of all time, and a favorite Hassell record.

(He mentions it at the end of this recent Aquarium Drunkard interview: https://aquariumdrunkard.com/2020/03/05/jon-hassell-the-aquarium-drunkard-interview/)

https://www.instagram.com/p/B_knIhkDfW6/?igshid=1qrr5tq9eqyz7

From his website:

Jon Hassell Needs Your Help

Jon Hassell is one of the most influential composers of the last 50 years. His invention of what he called ‘4th World Music’ opened the way for a fresh look at, and deeper respect for, the music of other cultures around the world. His recordings have had a big impact on other musicians, and, through them, have changed musical tastes dramatically. His unique intellectual contribution is also noteworthy: he is a tireless and articulate theorist as well as a great musician.

Jon is going through hard times now. I feel that many of us owe him a debt of gratitude, so perhaps making a contribution to this fund is a way we can thank him.

Brian Eno
London, April 28, 2020


One of the giants of modern music, trumpeter, and composer Jon Hassell has been a true innovator for decades and his influence has been incalculable. Now, at 83, because of long-term health issues, Jon is in a dire position and needs financial assistance to ensure a safe and sustainable living situation going forward. As Jon is in the highest risk group for COVID-19, the urgency of his condition has become even more acute in recent weeks.

To address his pressing needs, we--a group of Jon's family, friends, and collaborators--are reaching out to his audience and fan base around the world to ask for help. If you are a fan of Jon's music, we would greatly appreciate any contribution you can make at this extremely challenging moment. Thank you.

-De Fracia Evans, Uti Cleveland, Taska Cleveland, Rick Cox, Peter Freeman, Dan Schwartz, Robert Walsh, and Luke Schwartz

‘Murica.

New album Seeing Through Sound is out 24th July. Pre-orders are up now, and there's a single (Fearless) out in all the usual places...

That's awesome news, doubly so in light of his recent financial troubles and the fact that he's 83!

https://jonhassell.bandcamp.com/album/seeing-through-sound-pentimento-volume-two

new album is very nice

Compared to vol. 1, this one felt a little rushed to me, its pieces too blocky to allow for immersion. I need to spend more time with it.

it was recorded during the same sessions as vol 1 fwiw!

different but not lesser imo

the "pentimento" in the title that describes scraping paint off to see what an artist originally painted is how he approached this one in the studio apparently, but scraping bits of sound off, which might be what is giving you an impression of rushed?

I assume he used the same technique on vol. 1, where it worked wonders, but vol. 2 strikes me as more amateurish for some reason (wouldn't go so far as to call it Monkey Christ-ish, though!). I'll give it another spin later today.

I would listen to Monkey Christ - the album!

I can't stop listening to the new album, I think it's wonderful. Think I might prefer it to Volume 1. Fearless, Moons of Titan and Delicado are up there with his greatest works IMO. I love the smokey, late-night textures dissolved in layer upon layer of electronic processing.

I have no idea whether it is better or worse than vol 1 yet but it is certainly not a disappointment.

have any of you ever listened to Motohiko Hamase? 80s minimalist/ambient composer, new to me, who was reissued by WRWTFWW earlier this year. very big jon hassell RIYL. i'm still getting a handle on his music, but Anecdote (a live 1987 recording) is one that i can recommend for people on this thread:

https://wrwtfww.com/album/anecdote

(#Notes of Forestry and Technodrome are the other two being reissued - if anyone has thoughts about them, or knows anything about Motohiko Hamase, i'd love to hear it!)

New one is pretty different from Vol.1 at first listen but gorgeous all the same!

finally getting to this. strikes me as a lot different from listening to pictures on first impression. much more doodley and. . . idk, jammy? is that an okay word to apply to this music? in any case, i'll need to sit with it a bit more, but it's new jon hassell music, so i'm happy.

Notes of Forestry is super good as are Reminiscence and Intaglio. These latter two were re-recorded in 2018 and are excellent but I think the original versions eclipse the remade ones. I'm just getting to know Technodrome. It's slightly indebted to house / techno records of that era but actually is perhaps the most Hassell-esque of them all imo.

good lord, i listened to technodrome and notes of forestry back-to-back, and i am ruined. what a night

Listening to this now. FWIW, Andy Beta's (nice) review on Pitchfork says this:

Back in April, Brian Eno started a GoFundMe for Hassell, who as a cancer survivor is at high risk of severe COVID-19 infection. Hassell is now out of intensive care, but he’s still well short of his fundraising goal, and one wonders how much more music lies ahead for the octogenarian artist.

https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/jon-hassell-seeing-through-sound-pentimento-volume-two/

Just to say that I think that the new album Seeing Through Sound - Pentimento Volume Two is absolutely brilliant. To me it sounds as if Brian Eno's organic ambient masterpiece On Land had been crossed with Nils Peter Molvaer's groundbreaking electric jazz album Khmer.

it's the first time a jon hassell album has done anything for me. it has not a lot to do with the first part. in-between a quantum leap has happened. there are these objets trouvès here and there (eg in rejkjavik). those haunting parts like in cool down coda. it's like another green world without the tunes. which obviously is better as it does not use itself up. my album of the year for the time being.

have any of you ever listened to Motohiko Hamase? 80s minimalist/ambient composer, new to me, who was reissued by WRWTFWW earlier this year. very big jon hassell RIYL. i'm still getting a handle on his music, but Anecdote (a live 1987 recording) is one that i can recommend for people on this thread:

https://wrwtfww.com/album/anecdote

― The GOAT Harold Land (Karl Malone), Wednesday, July 29, 2020 11:12 AM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

(#Notes of Forestry and Technodrome are the other two being reissued - if anyone has thoughts about them, or knows anything about Motohiko Hamase, i'd love to hear it!)

― The GOAT Harold Land (Karl Malone), Wednesday, July 29, 2020 11:14 AM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

New one is pretty different from Vol.1 at first listen but gorgeous all the same!

― SQUIRREL MEAT!! (Capitaine Jay Vee), Wednesday, July 29, 2020 12:35 PM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

finally getting to this. strikes me as a lot different from listening to pictures on first impression. much more doodley and. . . idk, jammy? is that an okay word to apply to this music? in any case, i'll need to sit with it a bit more, but it's new jon hassell music, so i'm happy.

― Totally different head. Totally. (Austin), Wednesday, July 29, 2020 3:42 PM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

Notes of Forestry is super good as are Reminiscence and Intaglio. These latter two were re-recorded in 2018 and are excellent but I think the original versions eclipse the remade ones. I'm just getting to know Technodrome. It's slightly indebted to house / techno records of that era but actually is perhaps the most Hassell-esque of them all imo.

― stirmonster, Wednesday, July 29, 2020 6:10 PM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

good lord, i listened to technodrome and notes of forestry back-to-back, and i am ruined. what a night

― The GOAT Harold Land (Karl Malone), Thursday, July 30, 2020 2:51 AM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

I have yet to hear Notes of Forestry or Technodrome but Anecdote is beautiful. Favorite recent discovery.

Trying to support my local so I ordered Seeing Through Sound from them but there's no telling when it will arrive

i didn't get around to listening to Seeing Through Sound until after my Motohiko Hamase binge. and when i finally did, it ruined me as well. these musicians are ruining me in the best way. the last track on Seeing Through Sound, "Timeless", is just incredible.

this new one is superb, it reminds me of VLadislav Delay in places!

*googles furiously*

sorry:
https://jonhassell.bandcamp.com/album/seeing-through-sound-pentimento-volume-two

the delay comparison makes sense to me. they both seem to form some esoteric nocturnal logic of their own, and i enjoy dozing off to them both.

whistleblower is the album i have in mind in particular

some of the tracks on this new one have that bubbling, percolating feel that I associate with classic Vladislav recs

"Timeless" in particular

xposts with sleeve

oh, i meant googling Vladislav! i know nothing about him, but i will definitely be checking them out too (heeding whispering karl's whistleblower recommendation!)

this thread rules imo

WHAT

OK you gotta go listen to Multila ASAP

Just checking Vol. 2 out right now for the first time, and hard agree re: V. Delay, esp on "Timeless"

(Hey Sleeve, I rushed into commenting without seeing you type the same)

Those long-tone strings combined with the stuttered choppy Sasu-y/Delay textures on that track are sounding really sweet to me, and nicely distinct in terms of Hassell himself seemingly laying out/no harmonized trumpet

Agreed on the Delay comparison - this album reminds me in part of ‘Nordub’, his recent collaboration with Nils Petter Molvaer and Sly & Robbie.

His WHAT

oh yeah, Nordub is amazing