AASRAA by vacuum tree head
This is the "East Coast" version of Vacuum Tree Head, recorded with some amazing New York City musicians. Many of the compositions were developed and refined out of group improvisations. Partially as a reaction to the guitar overload of the previous studio album, THIRTEEN!, there are no guitars - and no bass guitars - on this album. Tuba holds down the bottom end. Features Tim Byrnes and Keith Abrams from Kayo Dot.
"1 part brass band, 2 parts lounge jazz, one part noisy meanderings, this EP is the sister release to Botafogos in Shadow Position. Buzzing, skronky, cloudy, weirdo sounds. You find yourself lost in a Dali-esque circus show, whose entire show is amalgamated up in a mere 15-minute extravaganza! Let the show begin!"
- Mickey Slim, KFJC
"AASRAA is by far the more mysterious of the two recent Vacuum Tree Head EP releases, though I wouldn’t say it’s any better or worse than its partner release Botafogos in Shadow Position, it’s just different. With one less song and seemingly shorter (I think it just seems that way), it may perhaps be more rooted in improvisational origins... This is more of an East Coast version of Vacuum Tree Head (Jason Berry called Brooklyn home for many years, but has now returned to the Bay Area), given that Byrnes and Abrams are members of Kayo Dot, and Scandura is a member of The Molecules, all excellent NY based groups, and the players on the partner EP are mostly from the San Francisco Bay Area (where De La Cuesta has called home all along). Opener “Veil of Tamar” is mostly A. Nonymous doing an avant garde jazzy piece on the piano while others add to the fun with electronics, drums, synths, and chimes. Another piece of note is “Adonai” where the group is improvising over a tango rhythm and knocking it out of the park. Yes, everything here is a mystery, but repeated plays will at least bring forth familiarity!
-Peter Thelen, Expose.org
Tracklist
| 1. | Veil of Tamar | 2:48 |
| 2. | Shibboleth | 1:53 |
| 3. | Moses and Monotheism | 2:25 |
| 4. | Adonai | 4:29 |
| 5. | Pillar Mirage | 3:24 |
Credits
Keith Abrams - drum kit / Jason Berry - various instruments / Ross Bonadonna - bass clarinet, saxophones / Richard E Barber - electric piano / Tim Byrnes - trumpet, synthesizer / Michael de la Cuesta - electronics, vibraphone / Lucy Foley - voice / Brigitte Godot - keyboards / Christopher Meeder - tuba / Andy Nonymous - piano / John Kenneth Press - drum kit, percussion / Thomas Scandura - drum kit
License
All rights reserved.Tags
Vacuum Tree Head was formed by Jason Berry and Michael de la Cuesta in a garage in south San José, California, in 1989. Inspired equally by punk rock, free jazz, electronic music and modern composition, we recorded in whatever style we wanted, on whatever instrument we could get our hands on, in whichever manner we pleased. VTH ceased operations in December of 2019.