The Long Run

My obsessive-compulsive tendencies dictate my music consumption.  The necessity to fully immerse myself in the sounds that interest me means that lengthy works occasionally gum up the works.

The discovery of Anthony Braxton’s four-hour Quartet (New Haven) 2014 in December clogged my queue during the holiday season.  The live recordings of saxophonist and composer Braxton, trumpeter Taylor Ho Bynum, guitarist Nels Cline and drummer Greg Saunier rendering a thorny form of free jazz aren’t exactly easy listening.

The new 230-minute version of Handel’s Agrippina that’s currently being staged at the Metropolitan Opera is similarly problematic.  Yet the 122 distinct selections of the digital version allow me to experience each distinct piece as an avant-garde chamber-pop song.

Dipping in and out of Agrippina during the past ten days- not to mention knowing less than 25 words of Italian- stripped all context and continuity from the work.  As is sometimes the case, not knowing what’s going on can be enormously comforting.


---
I reviewed Post Malone’s party-hearty concert at the Sprint Center for The Kansas City Star.

---
I write weekly concert previews for The Kansas City Star.

---
I admire Guitar Elation’s new album Double Live at Green Lady Lounge at Plastic Sax.

---
Justin Gillespie, the Kansas City man who rapped as Info Gates, has died.  I recall witnessing him best a clutch of area rappers at the Riot Room in 2018.  His work with the Beat Academy of Kansas City was also extremely promising.

---
I indulged my obsession with Jerry Hahn at his first Kansas City performance in eight months.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Toni Braxton and Babyface- Love, Marriage & Divorce

I suppose my obsession with adult-themed duet albums began when I first put a ring on someone's finger.  Whether it's Womack & Womack or Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, hearing a man and a woman address difficult themes in song thrills me. 

That's why I had high hopes for Love, Marriage & Divorce, a new collaboration between Toni Braxton and Babyface.  I was initially disappointed that the album sounds exactly like a Toni Braxton and Babyface project. 

Obviously, I shouldn't have been surprised.  Babyface gave a genre a name with the title of his 2004 album Grown & Sexy.  Braxton is the quiet storm version of Céline Dion.  It's tempting to suggest that the soundtrack to Disney's Frozen may be funkier than Love, Marriage & Divorce. 

Mocking the album's smooth aesthetic is easy, but the truth is that I've had the album on repeat all week.  It speaks directly to me.  What tracks like "Hurt You" lack in sonic grit is made up for in the raw emotion conveyed by the blunt lyrics and exceptional vocals.

I intend to remain faithful to Love, Marriage & Divorce for the remainder of my life.


---
Here's the promotional video for the 2014 edition of the Middle of the Map festival.

---
Conflict's cover of Tech N9ne's "It's Alive" is solid.

---
Making Movies covered "Aguanile".

---
My favorite entry in the latest episode of the KC Cypher Series is Info Gates.

---
The 2014 edition of the Gathering of the Juggalos will take place in the Ozarks.

---
I somehow missed the news of the passing of jazz trumpeter Roy Campbell, Jr. until this week.  Here's how I'll remember him.

---
Danilio Pérez has an impressive track record of making entertaining albums.  Panama 500 is no exception.  The related EPK, however, is terrible.  RIYL: Chick Corea, the unexpected, Ruben Bladés.

---
"Move That Dope" is undeniable.  RIYL: Pusha T, crime, Pharrell. 

---
James Brandon Lewis' Divine Travels showcases the saxophonist in a free jazz trio setting.  RIYL: David Ware, conversing with God, Cecil Taylor.

---
I'll probably never listen to it again, but the strong moments outnumber the embarrassing moments on David Crosby's new album Croz.

---
Indian's From All Purity is truly devastating.  It took me three sessions to get all the way through the metal album.  RIYL: pain, suffering, hopelessness. 

---
I'm looking forward to "Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton", a documentary about Stones Throw Records.

---
Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Concert Review: The Pitch Music Showcase

The annual Pitch Music Showcase is one of my favorite events of the summer.  Friday's party was no exception.  Here are the three best things I took in during the three-and-a-half hours I spent in Westport.

1. Gee Watts at the Riot Room patio
I was charmed by the way in which the young rapper adapted his performance to the pitifully meager audience of about a dozen members of his entourage and 20 unrelated onlookers.  He set the tone by referring to the intimate setting as a "poetry reading."  Although he performed a few off-color selections like "Nasty", his low-key delivery on wrenching material like  "Premature Hate" floored me.  Between selections, Watts shared his views on God, capitalism and friendship.  He even broke down one or two of his songs in the style of Rap Genius.

2. La Guerre at the RecordBar
I've seen Katlyn Conroy perform several times as a member of Cowboy Indian Bear.  I've also enjoyed her recordings.  Not until I witnessed her sing for about a dozen people at the RecordBar, however, did I grasp that her voice is a truly magnificent instrument.

3. Info Gates at the Riot Room patio
Info Gates, a hip-hop producer, songwriter and performer, was joined by Ubiquitous, Godemis and Les Izmore.  It looked and sounded a lot like this.


---
I reviewed Saturday's concert by the Killers, Queens of the Stone Age, Gogol Bordello and the Virgins.

---
Strange Music continues to crank out product.  "Why Me", is a track on Krizz Kaliko's new Son of Sam album, his fifth in six years.

---
Mills Record Company provides a nice analysis of the significance of the Get Up Kids' Four Minute Mile.

---
Mary Halvorson's stellar set at last weekend's Newport Jazz Festival is available as a free download.  RIYL: Henry Threadgill, Marc Ribot, Charles Mingus.

---
I'm looking forward to hearing this week's new releases by Gary Burton, the Civil Wars, Chick Corea, Iwrestledabearonce, Christian McBride, Old Crow Medicine Show, the Polyphonic Spree, Elvis at Stax: Deluxe Edition, Revocation, Terje Rypdal, Beating The Petrillo Ban: The Late December 1947 Modern Sessions and Mutazione - Italian Electronic & New Wave Underground 1980 - 1988

---
Kansas City Click: Amon Amarth open for Rob Zombie at Cricket Wireless Amphitheater on Monday.

The Floozies perform Tuesday at Crossroads KC.

T.J. Martley performs with Bill McKemy and Matt Leifer at Unity of Kansas City North on Wednesday.

John Velghe & the Prodigal Sons appear at Knuckleheads on Thursday.

(Original image of Gee Watts by There Stands the Glass.)