OUT OF TIME

Rip It Up, Issue 199, 1 March 1994, Page 24

OUT OF TIME

As promised last time, Sun Ra with Concert For the Comet Kahoutek, a NY gig from 73. I've come late to this dementoid and don't pretend to know much about his self or his chosen art form. I do know that there's a shitload of his stuff out there and it's all to some degree unhinged. I spose it's biggish band jazz but only in the way that latter Miles Davis could be similarly labelled for, like Miles, this is purely one creature’s music that exists outside any mainstream classification. Sun seemed to sincerely believe that he was from another planet and, judging by the performances herein, he probably was. Some of it choogles along like some weird but accessible soundtrack gunk and then ZWEED PUZZ TZINK FBFBFBFBLLLLLLLZZT PTEEWZH and you're off to the stars. Amiable insanity of the creamiest order. This one's on the exasperating ESP label (try 4104 PB, Kingston NY 12401 or Industiegebiet, Benzstrasse, 35797 Merenberg, Germany, good luck!) and don't forget to ask them for a catalogue .... Arvo Part isa "classical" composerfrom Estonia. He's my pick for the best living exponent of that largely moribund genre. "Collage" has the normally rather reticent Neeme Jarvi conducting seven pieces spanning Part's career from 64 to 91. Included is his "greatest hit", 'Fratres', in a revised version which doesn't have quite the impact of the classic ECM version from 84 but the rest of the disc is a deep delight. Three pieces use Bach as a starting point and do his genius proud with rabid mixtures of respect, derision and fellowship. The earlier stuff is wildly experimental, the later mostly sonorous and plunged in glowing darkness. He may be godfearing but I love him nonetheless. This generally extraordinary feast of non-embarassing orchestral adventure is on Chandos (Chan 9134) and should be available locally. Henryk Gorecki comes from a similar era and spirit. He's more famous than Part, thanks to his as-seen-on-TV Third Symphony (my pick for largely unjustified hype of 93) and also was wildly experimental in his youth but just doesn't seem to have the younger man's authority and feeling. Despite this The Essential Gorecki (Olympia OCD 385, you can get it locally) is a pretty good showcase of his early iconoclastic styles and the late 60s Polish recordings are gutsy, heartfelt performances without the filmy distance of so many DDD releases. If you like Symph No. 3 you'll probably hate this.

This column's educational fun. For me, anyway. Now it's thrown up German noiserockers Faust from the dark ages of the early 70s. Always used to see their LPs in secondhand bins two decades ago, was told they were crap, now I find that they're really quite exceptional. Which doesn't mean consistently great, just. . . .well; I've only heard the tip of their iceberg, being Faust IV (Caroline, 114 W. 26th St, NY, NY 10001) apparently their least'avantgarde', which opens with a stunning 11 minute velvetsuicide noisemare called (fetchingly) 'Krautrock', unlike anything else I've heard from 72. There's 'songs' too (each with its own jarringly inappropriate sonic intrusions) but the longer voiceless bits are the real meat.

Same year. Tony Conrad (member of the Dream Syndicate, early drone investigators who also included LaMonte Young and John Cale, and preVelvets conspirator with Reed and Cale) ends up committing his hitherto unrecorded vision of the drone to tape. In Germany, with (yup!) Faust and their fearless producer Uwe Nettelbeck. Another thriftshop stalwart of the 70s, Beyond the Dream Syndicate is 73:08 of ascetic violin based throb. Three pieces each with its own relentless beat and drone which will either entrance or irritate. Very subdued, no pyrotechnics, an acquired taste. Probably "really important" and I really like parts II and 111. (Table of the Elements, Box 423838, SF, CA 94142 but there should be some imports floating around). Back to Japan for U(nlimited) F(reak) O(ut) or Die whose Cassettetape Superstar (I think that's what it's called) is available from Public Bath, Box 2134, Madison, Wisconsin 53701, a great source of Japnoise. UFO or Die are Eye & Yshimi Boredom with a bass player and if you've learnt to love the BOpeople you will find this equally delicious. If you still haven't investigated this area .. .well, I know it's tough out there ....

. As it must have been at Tokyo's Gallery Komai in 84 when 'Deus Irae’ by ■ Merzbow & Null was / recorded. If you feel that E. Neubaten wimped out after their first coupla records this is the bunch for you. Three-quarters of an hour of crashing, crushing, . icepick-through-the-back-of-the-head-and-warm-jellimeat-in-your-face type fun and it's all one track so you can't find out what happens at the end until you've listened to the whole thing (well, not on my cheapshit CD player anyway). These people are some of the revered old-timers of Nipponese and I » shall endeavour to uncover some later material. ‘ Meantime, hustle up Camel House, Box 170277, SF, CA, 94117-0277 and ask for NuxD4. I'm sure they'd be impressed. This IS the music of the future, be first on your block etc etc. ’ Just a quick mention that Ode Records (Box 37331 Auckland) are distributing Hat Records who have quite a quantity of that annoying Cage charac- ' ter's wonderments on disc. More on this next time. Keep yer ears open, don't support beautifully re-

corded bubbleheads and floss regularly.

CHRIS KNOX