Test Tonehttp://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/Copyright Test TonesNews Sound Experiments Test Tone 80: Permutations of Fine Order April 10th, 2012 (Tuesday) 20:00 to 23:00 at Super Deluxe, Nishi Azabu, Tokyo. The Lacy Foundation (Plays the music of Steve Lacy: 1934-2004) The Lacy Foundation is a growing collective of international musicians celebrating the legacy of the late Steve Lacy, a legendary saxophonist and composer who left behind a wealth of poetic, colourful and quietly passionate work, much of which is just starting to be discovered. A perfect blend of the emotional and the intellectual, Lacy's work captures a beautiful simplicity that can be interpreted many ways, and this is where The Lacy Foundation excels. Mixing prepared compositions with unprepared performance, the group remains fresh and exciting, and features an ever-changing lineup of performers revolving around clarinetist, saxophonist and composer Huw Lloyd, both a student of Lacy's and a consummate musician and educator in his own right. On this special evening, the group will be rounded out by Chris Koh on violin and Kei Tainaka on guitar. The Lacy Foundation on YouTube Julie Rousse (from France) + Yukitomo Hamasaki (mAtter) The arresting work of Julie Rousse strikes a skillful balance between the organic and the abstract. Her compositions are at once dense and starkly conceived, yet still evoke a dreamy boundlessness. As a performer, Julie uses an improvisational approach, manipulating field recordings in real time to capture spontaneity of form, while retaining the color and sound of her collected source material. She has been performed worldwide in a range of solo and collaborative settings, and her work has seen a number of releases. Most recently, she was featured on a compilation released from Sub Rosa in 2010. On this evening, she will be joining forces with Yukitomo Hamasaki, a multimedia artist of the highest order who has also been making waves internationally—not only with his own work, but also thanks to the splendorific activity of his Tokyo-based label 'mAtter'. Great minds may just think alike. Julie Rousse Yukitomo Hamasaki (mAtter) STAND ALONE-404 (Mitsuo Sakaguchi: synth/keys, 448: bass, Daigo Wakasugi: drums) Anyone who has borne witness to the piano pyrotechnics of Mitsuo Sakaguchi will agree that the man can play some terribly mean keyboard. Often lending his talents to a range of projects (teneleven, Polylis, Alan Smithee's MAD Universe, etc.), he has now taken the lead with his own group, called STAND ALONE-404. Running the musical gamut from electronic noise and ambient soundscapes to ecstatic jazz freakouts, this keyboard trio reaches some sizzling heights due in part to the equally stellar musicianship of 448 on wood bass and Daigo Wakasugi on drums. This is music for dancing in free and downright undomesticated ways. STAND ALONE-404 onnacodomo (visuals) Taking their inspiration from moments and objects from everyday life, visual unit onnacodomo make the ordinary decidedly extraordinary. Eschewing computer-generated graphics or recorded material, the three members (DJ Codomo, Yasuko Seki and Ruka Noguchi) perform in real time using a video camera to capture their spontaneous creations. Shimmering projections are created using water, mirrors and an array of lights, while a world of fantastic images is constructed with found photos, kitchen utensils, toys, stationary and improvised artwork. Kaleidoscopic, absurd and unreal, onnacodomo takes you into a slightly-unhinged world that is absolutely original in its conception. Evil Penguin Master of disguises, Mexican top-hats, ambient rockabilly to minimal Hawaiian Kumulipo chants, the Evil Penguin poses the primordial question of evanescence against a backdrop of New Wave folk. Celebratory, subliminal, moment-to-moment. A Tasmanian treasure with a penchant for open spaces. Tue, 03 Apr 2012 04:40:30 +0000http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/home/test-tone-vol-80/http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/home/test-tone-vol-80/ Sound Experiments Test Tone 79: Disturbances March 13th, 2012 (Tuesday) 20:00 to 23:00 at Super Deluxe, Nishi Azabu, Tokyo. Government Alpha Government Alpha is Yasutoshi Yoshida's experimental noise project, running strong since 1994. He first started turning heads in 1995 with a track on the Extreme Music from Japan compilation CD from UK label Susan Lawly. Since then, there has been a steady stream of Government Alpha output on compilation and collaboration CDs, as well as his own releases. In addition to sitting at the helm of long-running noise label Xerxes, Yoshida is a singular visual artist, contributing his collage work to albums, books and a range of other releases. Government Alpha Zbigniew Karkowski Zbigniew Karkowski studied composition at the State College of Music in Gothenburg, Sweden, aesthetics of modern music at the University of Gothenburg's Department of Musicology, and computer music at the Chalmers University of Technology. He works actively as a composer of both acoustic and electroacoustic music. He has written pieces for large orchestra (commissioned and performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra), an opera and several chamber music pieces that have been performed by ensembles in Sweden, Poland, and Germany. He was also a founding member of the electroacoustic music performance trio Sensorband, a unit notable for its network concerts played via ISDN and Internet. Karkowski has collaborated with many experimental groups and artists, including The Hafler Trio, Blixa Bargeld, Merzbow, Stelarc, John Duncan, Aube, Tetsuo Furudate, Kelly Churko and more. Zbigniew Karkowski on Wikipedia Manuel Knapp (Vienna) + Tatsuhisa Yamamoto Viennese artist Manuel Knapp began his studies in the visual arts, but has followed a interdisciplinary trajectory involving both experimental film and sound, his works being shown and numerous film festivals and multimedia events worldwide. He currently back in Japan for some concerts with a number of fine local artists, including his unit with legendary Hiroshi Hasegawa (aka ASTRO), called Cosmic Coincidence. On this night, Manuel will be joined by bombastic drummer Tatsuhisa Yamamoto, who despite 20+ gigs a month and sold-out shows with indie supergroup Natsumen, still finds the time to take part of these evenings with his signature 'drums and metal'. From psych jazz and progressive rock to scumcore and noise, Yamamoto has developed a reputation for holding his own in a number of unorthodox musical settings, while still keeping his unique voice as a drummer. Manuel Knapp Tatsuhisa Yamamoto Masako Tanaka (Video works w/ Markus Popp: Sound) Tokyo-born visual artist Masako Tanaka has long been making waves abroad with her resplendent video compositions, and her most recent work, Halveplane v.4 and Flam v.4.1, premiered at last year's CTM Festival (formerly club transmediale) in Berlin. By using the ten-channel video format in the CTM CineChamber in pioneering ways, CTM visitors were treated to the full measure and marvel of her spatial organisms. This 10-channel experience will be modified to fill the three main walls at SuperDeluxe in this rare showing of her work in Japan. Tanaka also worked as the main video production head for the "Multiple Otomo" Project on the Asphodel label where she was the primary editor, assembler and visual composition coordinator/adjuster. A computer musician since the early 90s performing under the name Oval, Markus Popp was influential in so-called glitch with releases on Thrill Jockey and Mille Plateaux. Originally a three-piece, Oval disdained conventional electronic instruments – their early albums were composed through the creative abuse of compact disc players. Markus Popp returned with a new Oval album, O, in 2010. Evil Penguin Master of disguises, Mexican top-hats, ambient rockabilly to minimal Hawaiian Kumulipo chants, the Evil Penguin poses the primordial question of evanescence against a backdrop of New Wave folk. Celebratory, subliminal, moment-to-moment. A Tasmanian treasure with a penchant for open spaces. Tue, 06 Mar 2012 04:57:09 +0000http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-79/http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-79/ Sound Experiments Test Tone 78: Dyadic Reconfigurations February 14th, 2012 (Tuesday) 20:00 to 23:00 at Super Deluxe, Nishi Azabu, Tokyo. Che Chen (from New York) + Tetuzi Akiyama Following a whirlwind tour of Western Japan with improvising pioneer Mukai Chie, New York sound artist Che Chen will be landing in Tokyo just in time to join forces with ramblin' guitar-man Tetuzi Akiyama on this special evening. Using stringed, wind, reed and percussion instruments, reel to reel tape machines, oscillators and other musical and "non-musical" objects, Che's work explores his interest in a range of perceptual phenomena and global folk music traditions. Aside from his solo work and collaborations, Che also plays in a duo with multi-instrumentalist Robbie Lee, in Jozef Van Wissem's Heresy of the Free Spirit, and in True Primes, his duo with singer/percussionist Rolyn Hu. Part-iconoclast, part-bluesman, and one of the leading players in modern Japanese improvisation, Tetuzi Akiyama has taken his guitar far and wide, gaining a large international following while influencing countless younger musicians in the process. With a certain stark minimalism, Akiyama forged a name for himself in the onkyo scene in the late 1990s with the likes of Otomo Yoshihide and Toshimaru Nakamura. These days, he explores the full resonance of his instrument from a myriad of musical gateways, from primitavist leanings to drone and even some hypnotic guitar boogie. Che Chen Tetuzi Akiyama Mukai Chie + Nobunaga Ken For the past 25 years, Chie Mukai has been an active force in the free improvisation scene both in Japan and around the world. Since taking up the kokyu (a traditional Japanese stringed instrument) in the mid-70s, Mukai has earned a reputation as a powerful and original voice on her instrument, from her captivating solo performances to her improvised and song-based work with a number of legendary groups (East Bionic Symphonia, Ché-SHIZU, Enkidu, dadunr). Over the past decade, she has been examining collective improvisation in a large-scale format as curator of the Perspective Emotion international multimedia art festival and workshop. In the collaborative spirit of her work, Mukai will be making an appearance at Test Tone accompanied by percussionist and multi-instrumentalist Nobunaga Ken. Aside from his wide range of music-based work with a number of bands (Tetragrammaton, 00, hisspiss, etc.), Nobunaga also collaborates with dancers in the contemporary and butoh styles, visual artists, 'ikebana' flower arrangers and filmmakers. His musical activity has taken him worldwide, previously touring in Spain, Germany, Korea, Hong Kong and China. Mukai Chie Nobunaga Ken on Myspace Hattori Masatsugu + Ikezawa Ryusaku With a firm grasp of jazz tradition, drummer and vibraphonist Masatsugu Hattori took his percussion work straight into the new millennium with a range of projects, such as electroacoustic unit Ryusenkei Body, jazz-electronica unit Zycos, and conceptual electronica with Aktion Directe. These days he has taken a minimal musical approach while focusing on solo and collaborative work. As such, he'll match his modus operandi to the mercurial drumming of Ryusaku Ikezawa (aka Giev Rutang), another multi-faceted musician who keeps his playing schedule jam-packed with a number of other improvising projects, such as Oncenth Trio, Denki Slime and Real Blue. Head-to-head, this twosome might just take their kits some otherwise inaccessible places. Hattori Masatsugu Ikezawa Ryusaku Evil Penguin Master of disguises, Mexican top-hats, ambient rockabilly to minimal Hawaiian Kumulipo chants, the Evil Penguin poses the primordial question of evanescence against a backdrop of New Wave folk. Celebratory, subliminal, moment-to-moment. A Tasmanian treasure with a penchant for open spaces. Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:18:00 +0000http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-78/http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-78/ Sound Experiments Test Tone 76: Unknown Concordance December 13th, 2011 (Tuesday) 20:00 to 23:00 at Super Deluxe, Nishi Azabu, Tokyo. Brendan Landis (aka Hey Exit from Brookyn) + Fujiwara Daisuke Currently touring Japan with performaces on both koto and guitar, Brooklyn-based Brendan Landis is a multifaceted musician who covers a lot of ground in his work. Performing under the name Hey Exit, his improvised guitar work moves from passages of grinding guitar repair one moment to stumbling loops of drone the next, all carefully placed amongst grand chunks of silence. As a koto player, he works in both traditional settings and as an acoustic improvisor. On this evening, he will be joined by local tenor sax whiz Fujiwara Daisuke, who has been expanding into new and wonderful realms of expression as of late. A perfect collision of sounds from which to start the holiday season. Hey Exit Fujiwara Daisuke Tin Can Trio (Scott Jordan: metal instruments, Take: metal instruments, Lead Sister II: handmade instruments) This all-metal instrument trio is the brainchild of koto player Scott Jordan, who will put down the koto strings to coax some wonderful sounds out of scrap metal. He'll be joined by multi-instrumentalist Take, and the mad musical inventions of Lead Sister II, which qualify as metal–due to the nails needed to fix them–after their repeated end-of-show destruction. Scott Jordan on Myspace Take on Myspace Lead Sister II on Myspace Baby Copperhead aka Benjamin B. Lee (from Brooklyn) + AEN aka Yasufumi Suzuki (soundroom) We are very happy to announce the addition of Brooklyn-based Baby Copperhead to the line-up of Test Tone 76. Visiting Japan for a very short holiday, he has agreed to bring his stellar banjo chops and homemade electronics for what promises to be an otherworldly yet intimate affair. For this special occasion, we have corralled SOUNDROOM's very own Yasufumi Suzuki (aka AEN) to face off with Baby Copperhead for the final Test Tone of 2011. This will be a fun one. Baby Copperhead Yasufumi Suzuki (Commune Disc) Evil Penguin Master of disguises, Mexican top-hats, ambient rockabilly to minimal Hawaiian Kumulipo chants, the Evil Penguin poses the primordial question of evanescence against a backdrop of New Wave folk. Celebratory, subliminal, moment-to-moment. A Tasmanian treasure with a penchant for open spaces. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 06:55:39 +0000http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-76/http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-76/ Sound Experiments Test Tone 75: Perspective Collisions November 8th, 2011 (Tuesday) 20:00 to 23:00 at Super Deluxe, Nishi Azabu, Tokyo. Ballrogg + Ivar Grydeland (from Norway) Very much in demand as two of Norway's newest jazz innovators, Klaus Ellerhusen Holm (sax and clarinet) and Roger Arntzen (double bass) formed the duo Ballrogg to explore the acoustic extremities of their instruments. Involved in a range of diverse projects outside the duo, they bring a virtuosic range to Ballrogg's singular sound, creating soundscapes that are deeply disturbing and, at times, stunningly beautiful. After recently joining forces with the great Norwegian guitar and pedal steel guitar player Ivar Grydeland (Huntsville, Dans Les Arbres, Hanne Hukkelberg), this group is expanding their cinematic sound universe into grand territories, offering a musical lookout to some truly monumental moments. Ballrogg Ivar Grydeland Bertrand Gauguet (from France) + Toshimaru Nakamura + Tetuzi Akiyama French saxophonist Bertrand Gauguet has created a unique and expressive vocabulary in his improvised work, ranging from billowing overtones to percussive clicks and taps, all delivered with a sweeping mastery of his instrument. In a range of settings, he has also performed with some of Europe's finest players, such as John Butcher, Rhodri Davies, Michel Doneda and Franz Hautzinger (among many others). His musical explorations now take him to Japan, where he will perform with two of the most important artists to come out of the textural improvisation movement that emerged in the late 90s. After over a decade of playing, recording, and touring around the globe, Toshimaru Nakamura and Tetuzi Akiyama continue to collaborate together in situations like this; challenging, dynamic and unpredictable in a extremely good way. Bertrand Gauguet Toshimaru Nakamura Tetuzi Akiyama Bing a.k.a. Toshio Kajiwara + Cal Lyall + Yoko Higashino (Baby Q) In the early 1990s, guided by an obsession with obscure recordings, sound performance artist Bing (a.k.a. Toshio Kajiwara) began performing with turntables and tape players at some of New York City's experimental music venues. This eventually took him to collaborations with the likes of Christian Marclay, Tim Barnes, and Okkyung Lee, while still finding time to curate the PhOnOmena improvisation series at (New York venue) Tonic with DJ Olive. Now back in Tokyo, he's involved with a number of projects led by choreographer and dancer Yoko Higashino (Baby Q), who will bring her intriguing presence and intense range of movement to this performance. This will no doubt be amplified by the visual prism and light of YAMAT, the installation work of 20TN! (a.k.a. Daisuke Fujita), and the tabletop guitar wrangling of Test Tone curator Cal Lyall. Bing a.k.a. Toshio Kajiwara Cal Lyall on Myspace Yoko Higashino (Baby Q) Evil Penguin Master of disguises, Mexican top-hats, ambient rockabilly to minimal Hawaiian Kumulipo chants, the Evil Penguin poses the primordial question of evanescence against a backdrop of New Wave folk. Celebratory, subliminal, moment-to-moment. A Tasmanian treasure with a penchant for open spaces. Fri, 21 Oct 2011 04:25:47 +0000http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-75/http://www.soundispatch.com/ttsnews/previous-events/test-tone-vol-75/