Back in jazz

After a year of inactivity here, I found my way back, following some digital bread crumbs. Lately been listening to almost nothing but jazz, the more "traditional" stuff I guess: Coltrane,Monk, Ornette. Especially liking the guitar duets between Kenny Burrell and Coltrane, Burrell and Hawkins, etc. That Jim Hall/Bill Evans record is wonderful.

avant garde

Wifey B happened into the cave while I was listening to the HIO set from last Sunday night at the Cellar. She actually expressed that she liked it and that it sounded "avant garde", a discussion of the term ensued. She informed me the term "avant garde" refers to the head flank, the first troops to go into battle, ahead of everyone else (she's half-French). I did not know that. Nonetheless, here's the set. My little Fender 10 watt amp is distressingly high in the mix, first running the cbg through it, then the iPod touch with the Moog Filtatron app. Thanks to Terry and the gang for having me.

Improvised Silence - Live at the Cellar, 24 February 2013 released 26 February 2013
Kavin Allenson - cigar box guitar, effects Matt Hickey - gopichand Terry Horn - cigar box bass, effects, percussion, samples, small instruments Mark Kitchens - cigar box guitar, effects, percussion, spring

RPM Challenged

For those who DON'T know, the RPM Challenge is an internet thingie which challenges musicians to record and produce an album in the month of February. Record Production Month. Get it? I did, and this is my sixth year to participate. Some years I've done multiple albums, either under my RPM alias Kavin.s Acoustic Church, or as Breaking Light, or with friends in the Love Light Shine project one year, and so on. This year I had planned to do a BL album only and sit out KAC, but stuff happens, and it's never according to plan, as you know.

So here it is the tale end of February and I'm all done but the packaging and sending off, which I always seem to put off until the 28th (or 27th, if it's a leap year) anyway.

As far as the Breaking Light album, I had intended to take an ambient/dub tack, much inspired by Bill Laswell, and local defunct dubsters Sub Oslo (whose perf at the Electric Eyeball Experience at the Ridglea Theater several years ago threw my head for a loop, I tell ya), but that concept didn't retain it's steam it seems. Sure there are a coupla dub flavored tunes, but live loops, stacked looping and a lot of bass guitar lines permeate the album. So it's definitely a departure for the Light in that respect.

Breaking Light "Sculduddery"

As I mentioned previously, I had decided to give the Acoustic Church a break, after five years in the Challenge. But the last week in January, instrument-maker, artist/musician Terry Horn bestowed upon me a handmade cigar box guitar. Incidentally,Terry heads up the Hentai Improvising Orchestra and produces his solo music as The Owl and the Octopus.

On a whim, I sat down with it on the afternoon of February 10 and let the R10 handheld recorder roll (but I wasn't holding it, I was playing the cbg, of course). A twenty minute improv session later, I had some pretty raw, but pretty cool stuff, to my ears. Another session a few days later yielded a few more pieces.



In recent years, the Challenge hasn't been so much to see if I can produce an album in a month, because I know I can. The Challenge is really to produce something different, and at least interesting to my ears each year.

If your so inclined, and love music (I know you do!) go to the RPM site, play the stuff in the player. Go to the jukebox and hit some random albums. There's some really amazing stuff there. Really. And tell them I sent ya.

Buon Giorno 12/7/12

Been a long time...

I've had a week to sit back and process the BG gig with Kristina Morland, and it all seems like a cool little dream. Kristina did great, in spite of some jitters, naturally, since she hasn't performed in public for what seems like ages. Her new songs were great and hopefully I added some atmosphere in my accompaniment on a few of them. A good turnout too, it was great to see so many of her friends and fans come out to support her.

She opened with six songs, a few from her first album Pidgin Music, and a few new ones. Nice fingerpicked guitar work, that fragile childlike vocal and abstract but accessible lyricism. She let me take over after that and I did my thing for about half an hour, and she came back and we did a few more songs together, which was the highlight, for me. We blended rather nicely I thought, in spite of having virtually no rehearsal beforehand. I closed out with a BL set with Ross Reitzammer joining me on flute, which is always a pleasure. That segment can be heard in the player below.

I certainly hope this was the first of many more shows for Kristina!