Arboreal Quartet

Interstices

2011-10-25T12:56:00.000-07:00

Hi, John here.

I've been away from blog and web updates for a few months for a very good reason.

Starting on July 15th, I embarked on a project to write new music for the Arboreal Quartet. The different phases of this project involve further research into North Indian classical music, compositions, and rehearsals with my group.

First off I must say that it is very rewarding to be working with such talented musicians as Tom Eliosoff (guitar), Sage Reynolds (upright bass) and Eric Thibodeau (drums). One of my goals has been to push myself forward musically and to write material tailored to the strengths of the musicians, and this has been very rewarding.

At present we are having bi-weekly rehearsals, and I'm excited to be unveiling a few of the new pieces in two weeks over at les Pas Sages here in Montréal.

I have a lot to say about the project but I'll be brief here (for the moment!) Essentially what I'm doing is looking at the Hindustani tradition of classifying different ragas according to the time of day when they are normally played. A book I bought in India in 1998 (Nad - Understanding Raga Music by Bagchee) contains a chart dividing the day and night into two sets of 4 cycles, or 3-hour periods. Each period contains many possible ragas.

Through this book and several other sources I began creating a map of these ragas. My plan is to choose a raga from each period, study it, listen to as many recordings of it as I can find, and come up with a musical idea based upon it. The completed piece will pass through all of the sections of the day and night. My goal is not to write North Indian classical music, but rather to be inspired by it, in the context of the sonic possibilities of the ensemble I've put together.

The working title of my project -- Interstices -- refers to a particular interest of mine: how can I express, musically, the transition periods between these sections of the day and night? What are some ways I can lead the listener from one period to the next, in such a way that the unique qualities of each section are highlighted?

I've had a number of ideas on how to accomplish this, and have been working away on exploring them. Along the way I've been keeping a detailed project journal, and it occurs to me that I could add sections of the journal to this blog as I proceed. The subject is vast and rewarding, and I still feel that I am barely scratching the surface here.

So, there, I've broken the radio silence! More to come soon.

November 8 - show at les Pas Sages, 951 Rachel Est, Montréal

2011-10-25T12:50:00.000-07:00

MOG

2011-06-14T12:04:00.000-07:00

For those using MOG, Arboreal Quartet is there. I'd actually inquired with them about how to get my music involved, and I found out that it already was!

CKCU last Monday

2011-06-14T11:59:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Dean Verger over at CKCU 93.1FM (Ottawa, ON) for the spin on Monday June 6th -- he played "Mountain" alongside Delhi 2 Dublin and fellow Montréaler Li'l Andy.

The Signal - CBC Radio 2 - May 19, 2011

2011-06-03T11:00:00.000-07:00

I was pleased to find out that The Signal on CBC Radio 2 played our track "Dee" on their program of May 19th, in a typically (and wonderfully) eclectic mix. Thanks to everyone at the Signal for including us once again in their eye-opening programming.

SoundCloud update

2011-06-03T10:20:00.000-07:00

Since moving to SoundCloud for our album streams, we've recently hit the landmark of over 1,000 plays directly from arborealquartet.com (1,020 plays as of today).

Via SoundCloud's stats, I'd like to say hello to new listeners from Tel Aviv, Mexico City, Pelotas (Brazil), Barcelona, Madrid, Prague, and Budapest.

Thanks for dropping by, and please share!

New pic (thanks Carl!)

2011-06-03T10:16:00.000-07:00

Here's a promo photograph that Carl Ruttan took of me recently, which I used in an application to l'Off festival de Jazz de Montréal. You can see more of Carl's work at his site, Studio Taro.

CKCU 93.1 FM spins

2011-06-03T10:03:00.001-07:00

Continued thanks to Susan Johnston at CKCU 93.1 FM (Ottawa, Ontario) for the spins -- I noticed two recent plays, April 11th ("Lucky") and April 15th ("Theme").

UnderCurrents April 4

2011-04-07T10:45:00.001-07:00

Gregg McVicar over at UnderCurrents gave us a spin on Monday April 4th. It seems he's enjoying "Dee" as a show closer. Very cool as his program is broadcast on over 80 stations across the U.S. Thanks, Gregg!

Radio catch-up: Crooked Highway, brilliantCORNERS

2011-03-24T13:45:00.000-07:00

I found out about a couple of interesting radio plays lately:

Damon Dowbak, who has played us before on his eclectic world/jazz show brilliantCORNERS on LU Radio 102.7 in Thunder Bay, put us in an interesting set on March 15th alongside Rahsaan Roland Kirk, the Creaking Tree String Quartet (which contains ex-Montréaler John Showman) and Geoff Berner. This was on March 15th.

And back on January 2, on a show called Crooked Highway -- "A bucket of folky bluesy mostly acoustic indie roots music broadcasting on KVMR FM in Nevada City" -- host Gary Wells fit us in amongst Calexico, the Marc Atkinson Trio, Vic Chesnutt, M. Ward, and Townes Van Zandt. Thanks, Gary!

Both plays were of our track "Shift."

Video from last week at Casa -- solo sarod

2011-02-11T13:23:00.000-08:00

A few days ago, Eric sent me this video of the opening piece from our set at Casa Del Popolo on Wednesday February 2. I played a solo introduction on the sarod. That's quite the 8mm home movie filter!

The piece is called 'Tanpura' and I actually wrote it on guitar years ago, before putting the Quartet project together.

It resurfaced as I was practicing sarod one afternoon a few months ago. A brilliant burst of sun emerged on an otherwise cloudy day, and I noticed an interesting effect of the light reflecting my fingers on the metallic surface of the sarod's neck, so I took a few photos. Here's one:

CKCU 93.1 Friday Special Blend Feb 11

2011-02-11T13:08:00.000-08:00

Thanks to host Susan Johnston for the plays this morning on "Friday Special Blend" over at CKCU in Ottawa.

CISM 89.3 Montreal

2011-02-10T14:51:00.000-08:00

Thanks to host Maxime Bouchard for the play this week on CISM 89.3 Montreal!

February 8, 2011

22h30	Theme de Yoyo	Zu & Spaceways Inc.	Radiale	Atavistic (2004)
22h31	Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody	Louis Prima	The Wildest!	Capitol Jazz (1962)
22h36	Frisco Club	Gerry Mulligan	The Jazz Soundtracks	Gambit (2006, enr. 1958)
22h42	Lac aux Castors	Quintet Marie-Claire Durand	Mai	Indépendant (2011)
22h47	October 25th	Avishai Cohen	Introducing Triveni	Anzic Records (2010)
23h00	Snap	The Arboreal Quartet	The Arboreal Quartet	Indépendant (2010)
23h07	Luz da lua	Thomas Carbou	Hekátê	TCMusique (2011)
23h13	Melismatic	Tim Brady	24 Frames - Trance	Ambiances Magnétiques (2010)
23h15	Slinger	Muskox	5 Pieces	Standard Form (2009)
23h25	When Cassavetes Hit Reagan	Surreal Estate (Bruce Friedman, Jonathon Grasse, Ken Luey, David Martinelli, Jeff Schwartz, Charles Sharp)	Lacunae	Acoustic Levitation (2010)
23h35	One For the Rev.-Rev. Frank Wright	Sabir Mateen	Urdla XXX	Rogue Art (2010)
23h45	Out to Lunch	Otomo Yoshihide's New Jazz Orchestra	Out to Lunch	Doubt Music (2006)

Grand merci -- big thanks

2011-02-03T10:20:00.000-08:00

Eric sent me this pic from the opening part of last night's set at Casa del Popolo -- I played a solo piece on the sarod.

Thanks to everyone who braved the crazy storm to warm up the room!

The Hit List - Hour weekly & hour.ca

2011-02-02T09:42:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Robyn Fadden for including us in this week's Hit List in the Hour weekly here in Montreal, and at hour.ca!

Wednesday 2
The seemingly simple diptychs in painter Mark Igloliorte's Two Ways of Seeing present subtle shifts in perception of the same subject, at Galerie Donald Browne (#528, 372 Ste-Catherine W.), to March 5. In On the Surface, Lucie Chan presents two installations made with drawings, paper and animation that articulate themes of intimacy, social voyeurism, diaspora and personal stories, at MAI (3680 Jeanne-Mance), to March 12. Montreal's Arboreal Quartet strums up world-music-infused acoustic jazz at Casa del Popolo, 8:30 p.m. And Czech-born, Toronto-based singer-songwriter Lenka Lichtenberg builds cultural bridges in World Beat, at La Sala Rossa, 7:30 p.m.

brilliantCORNERS - January 25, 2011

2011-02-02T09:38:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Damon Dowbak for the play last week on brilliantCORNERS -- LU Radio 102.7 (Thunder Bay) !

Tonight's the night - despite the snow! Feb 2, Casa del Popolo

2011-02-02T09:33:00.001-08:00

I woke up today to find this view out of my window. Ah, February in Montreal. Don't let that deter you from heading down to Casa del Popolo tonight, though. It'll be warm!

Along with Tom Eliosoff (guitar) and myself (sarod), we'll be welcoming these fine musicians:

Sage Reynolds - Upright Bass
Eric Thibodeau - Drums

WSCA-LP Portsmouth 106.1 FM (WSCA)

2011-01-27T10:32:00.000-08:00

I noticed a couple of Arboreal Quartet plays this past Tuesday the 25th over at WSCA in Portsmouth, NH. Thanks to host Tim Stone for the spins!

Sweet Spot Audio Forum (Sweden)

2011-01-17T09:55:00.000-08:00

I noticed an entry about our album music on the Swedish music forum Sweet Spot Audio. It's an eclectic music recommendation thread. Thanks to kme for the addition!

CKCU 93.1 (Ottawa) - Friday Special Blend Jan. 14

2011-01-17T09:49:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Susan Johnston over at CKCU Ottawa for spinning us on last Friday's "Special Blend" !

In the yearly top 20 jazz chart for 2010 - !earshot

2011-01-13T11:33:00.001-08:00

Cool news -- we're in !earshot-online's top 20 for the year!

Show at Casa del Popolo February 2nd, 2011

2011-01-12T11:00:00.000-08:00

Lucky

2010-12-17T11:30:00.000-08:00

According to someone commenting on our track "Lucky" on YouTube,

Sentir y cerrar los ojos.
Porque cada vez que se escucha esta canción, cuenta una historia diferente.

International comments..

2010-12-10T12:22:00.000-08:00

This week I found two nice mini-reviews / comments about the Arboreal Quartet album -- the first from a Brazilian music blog, who recommends it as a gift for people with discerning musical tastes. As a wise man once told me, "They make great gifts!" [Thanks, Mark]

Here's the mini-review, in Portuguese I believe:

The Arboreal Quartet - "The Arboreal Quartet"

Este quarteto canadense, de Montreal, lançou este disco que é um dos destaques do jazz neste ano; pitadas de folk e música celta, e muitas influências de música indiana que incluem o uso de instrumentos como o "sarode", formam um caldeirão jazzístico da melhor qualidade. Espetacular e surpreendente!

And the second comes from the Turkish music blog, Dunya Ezgirel i, that continues to generate a lot of web traffic. I hadn't noticed the short description of the album in a comment. It reads:

Kesinlikle dinlenmesi gereken bir albüm. Caz yapısı içerisine hint müziği rifleri özenli ve dengeli bir biçimde yerleştirilmiş. Özetle: Dinleyiniz.

Rough online translations show that these comments are very positive. Thanks!

WCSB - Cleveland, Ohio

2010-11-17T09:30:00.000-08:00

I noticed this morning that we were played on WSCB in Cleveleand Ohio this past Monday. Here's the playlist:

The Brewing Luminous 15 November 2010
[*] Sun Ra, "Sun Ra and His Band from Outer Space" from College Tour Vol. 1: The Complete Nothing Is... (ESP 2010)
[*] Andrew Lamb Trio, "Song of the Miracle Lives" from New Orleans Suite (Engine 2010)
[*] William Hooker Trio, "Century's Soles" (from Yearn For Certainty, Engine 2010)
[*] Stephen Hayes (w/ Joe Morris and Warren Smith), "Unfolding" from Parrhesia (Engine 2010)
[*] Joe Morris, "Transparent" from Colorfield (ESP 2009)
[*] Polar Bear, "The Love Didn't Go Anywhere" (from Peepers, Leaf 2010)
[*] Tony Malaby, "Alechinsky" (from Paloma Recio (New World 2010)
[*] Scanner with The Post Modern Jazz Quartet, "C Jam Blues" from Blink of an Eye (Thirsty Ear 2010)
[*] The Arboreal Quartet, "Lucky" from self-titled debut CD on their own label
[*] Weasel Walter Septet, "Cleistogamy" from Invasion (ugEXPLODE 2010)
[*] Paul Dunmall and Chris Corsano, "Identical Sunsets" from Identical Sunsets (ESP 2010)
[*] Sonny Simmons, "A Distant Voice" from Staying on the Watch (ESP 1966 reissued 2010)
[*] Marion Brown Quartet, "La Sorrella" from Why Not? (ESP 1968 reissued 2010)

Thanks!

The Signal with Laurie Brown - tune in tomorrow! (CBC Radio 2)

2010-11-10T12:27:00.001-08:00

I'm told that one of our tracks will be played tomorrow night (Thursday November 11th) on 'The Signal with Laurie Brown' on CBC Radio 2, near the beginning of the program. The program airs at 10pm EST.

We'll also appear on the Signal's podcast #20, which is going live tomorrow, on November 11th. Thanks to everyone at the Signal for the support!

[EDIT] Looks like the podcast is live now.

Chart catch-up - CHRW (London, ON), November 2

2010-11-10T12:22:00.001-08:00

Catching up here, I see that we were on the jazz chart over at CHRW (London, ON) for the week of November 2, 2010, at #6. Thanks again!

Review on The Big Takeover (Brooklyn, NY)

2010-10-20T11:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we received an album review on The Big Takeover, the Brooklyn, New York-based music magazine. Many thanks to Matt Lee for the review! Here's the text:

The Arboreal Quartet - The Arboreal Quartet (Independent)

by Matt Lee
There have been few times in my life when music has caused me to shed tears. Interestingly, all of these heart swelling tear inducers have been instrumental. John Coltrane ’s “Spiritual”, Albert Ayler ’s “Ghosts: First Variations” and Ravel ’s “Pavane Pour Un Enfant Defunte” (the solo piano version). To that list I can now add the opening track, “Theme”, from The Arboreal Quartet ’s debut.

Based in Montreal, The Arboreal Quartet may seem at first glance to be of the “global jazz” ilk, following a path trod prior by Ry Cooder and V.M. Bhatt ’s A Meeting By The River in it’s fusing of guitar and sarode music. In this writer’s opinion that watermark is here surpassed, not necessarily in it’s musicianship (which is masterful), but in it’s successful crafting of it’s own language. The cast of the music draws from jazz and traditional Indian music, naturally, but the scaffold of the songs are less a platform for endless virtuosic soloing than a series of linked vignettes.. poignant without feeling maudlin, engaging without overreaching or overstaying the ear’s welcome. Songs like “Mountain” for example, build on deceptively simple motifs set forth by the sarode and guitar, are garnished by mellifluous sprinklings of solo work and held firmly in place by the tasteful upright bass and brushed drums. Without a scrap of lyric, the songs manage to be incredibly lyrical, singing images pleasantly into the mind’s ear. The attentive listener is transported into splendid harbors of bright and comforting light and shade, to the point where the texture of the music is almost palpable to the touch.

Spearheaded by Montreal musician John Wrinch Williams (sarode), The Arboreal Quartet also includes Tom Eliosoff (guitar), Fernando Gelso (drums) and J.F. Martins on bass. On this, their self-titled debut as an ensemble, all are playing with the virtuosity and restraint evident in players at the top of their abilities. One listen is enough to leave an indelible impression on your soul. Isn’t that why we play, listen to and seek out music in the first place? A beautiful, deep and triumphant album.

CHRW plays (London, Ontario)

2010-10-06T16:22:00.000-07:00

I just noticed that over at CHRW 94.9 MHz - London, we're at #2 on their weekly jazz chart for the week ending October 5, 2010. Thanks, CHRW!

AQ1 streaming on SoundCloud

2010-09-17T12:50:00.001-07:00

On our website I decided to take a step back and make it easy to listen to the album. I took inspiration from the website for Mos Dub (produced by Max Tannone - A remix album featuring Mos Def and dub reggae music).

I like the simple "here's the artwork, here's a giant play button, here's how you get it" approach, so I did a quick redesign of our homepage with this in mind.

Again, as we move towards the next recording I need to make room for it on the site :) Here's the SoundCloud stream that can also be found on our homepage. I wonder if I could add it as a sidebar to this blog.

AQ1 by user907003

AQ1 now on CDBaby

2010-09-17T12:20:00.000-07:00

We're pleased to now be available at CDBaby, the largest online distributor of independent music. As we move towards recording our next release, I wanted to make sure that our first album (which we released only 6 months ago!) has a good home.

It became more and more obvious that CDBaby was the choice, as it's internationally known, reliable, and easy to use.

Check out our release page on CDBaby!

Back in !earshot-online's monthly jazz chart (August 2010)

2010-09-06T11:18:00.000-07:00

Our CD has re-appeared on the !earshot monthly jazz chart for August 2010, at #11.

WCUW 91.3FM & WEFT 90.1FM plays

2010-08-26T14:06:00.000-07:00

Catching up on some airplay here:

Last night our track 'Lucky' was played on WCUW 91.3 (Central Massachusetts) on 'Face the Music.'

Over at WEFT 90.1FM (East Central Illinois), 'Cycle' was played on August 5th on 'North, South, East, WEFT' with host John Wason.

WEFT also played 'Dang' on August 12 -- thanks to Shelley, host of the program 'Sounds Like Home.'

UnderCurrents radio play

2010-08-25T11:35:00.000-07:00

I just found out that we were played on the radio program UnderCurrents with host Gregg McVicar. Our track "Shift" was played on August 18, 2010. Here's the playlist. This program has a quite an extensive reach:

[Edit:

Through some other playlist sources, I noticed today that we have been played at least two other times on Undercurrents:

June 2, 2010 - "Lucky"
June 20, 2010 - "Dee"

Thanks, Undercurrents! ]

New CD Review on 'Minor 7th'

2010-08-24T10:16:00.000-07:00

The just-released September/October issue of the 'Minor 7th' webzine features a review of our CD. Minor 7th is a music review site focusing on new acoustic releases.

"The music is in no hurry, but ebbs and flows, carrying the listener to that rare place of quiet listening, uncovering graceful melodies along the way."
- Kirk Albrecht, Minor7th.com

Read the full review here. Thanks, Kirk!

WCUW 91.3FM (Worcester, Massachusetts)

2010-08-19T08:43:00.000-07:00

We had a spin on WCUW 91.3FM in Worcester, Massachusetts on a program called "Face the Music" last night. They played our tune 'Snap.' Thanks, Mary!

Thanks to everyone who came out to Casa on Tuesday!

2010-08-19T08:32:00.000-07:00

Thanks, folks -- we had a great time on Tuesday night.. it was a perfect opportunity to try out a bunch of our new material, to move the new music closer to the recording phase. Thanks to everyone at Casa del Popolo and to Steve for the excellent sound. We look forward to coming back!

Hour Magazine blurb

2010-08-17T09:19:00.001-07:00

This week's Hour magazine (Montreal) and the hour.ca HitList has a short blurb about our show tonight:

TUESDAY 17
Akira Kurosawa: A Centennial Celebration continues tonight with The Hidden Fortress, Kurosawa's 1958 film about two bickering farmers on the run from clan wars who end up fighting to save a princess and her family fortune - swashbuckling! And beautifully executed filmmaking, at Cinéma du Parc (3575 Parc), 9 p.m., cinemaduparc.com. Toronto hardcore punk Cancer Bats lead the loud army of Crimson Red, Kid Icarus, A Wasted Sacrifice and Stray From The Path, at Le National, 7 p.m. Jeff Martin, formerly of The Tea Party, toasts Petit Campus. And Montreal's fascinating Arboreal Quartet mixes folk/roots, jazz and North Indian classical at Casa del Popolo,

Thanks, Robyn!

Back in !earshot-online's weekly jazz top 10

2010-08-10T17:13:00.001-07:00

Thanks to the two #1s mentioned earlier today, we're back in !earshot's cross-Canada jazz top 10 list this week, at #7.

Chart update -- two #1 spots this week!

2010-08-10T11:09:00.000-07:00

This week, over at CHRW 94.9 in London ON, we're again at #1 on the jazz chart.

Debuting at #10 on the same chart is The Franco Proietti Morph-tet's latest album, "Live! A Weekend at Centre St.Ambroise." Hello, Morph-tet! [Fernando and JF are in both the Arboreal Quartet and the Morph-tet].

At CHUO 89.1 in Ottawa, ON, we've been re-added to the jazz chart, also at #1. Thanks, CHRW and CHUO!

Thanks also to Magnus at !earshot for fixing the spelling of our artist name and for adding our website link.

CD review on SoundRoots World Music & Global Culture

2010-08-03T17:09:00.000-07:00

I just had an email from Scott Stevens at SoundRoots.org from Olympia WA, saying that he'd had a chance to check out our CD during a road trip this past weekend, and that he'd put up a review on their site. Thanks, Scott! Here's the text:

CD REVIEW
Arboreal Quartet: The Arboreal Quartet (self-released)

Warning: innocent world music fans may find the Arboreal Quartet to be a gateway to the insidious world of jazz. And for that matter, jazz purists listening to this album may just find themselves entertaining a hitherto unexpressed curiosity about ethnic instruments. Thus is the curious impact of this Montreal-based quartet, which makes beautiful instrumental music that peeks over the fence between jazz and global sounds. Three-quarters of the group is standard jazz stuff: Tom Eliosoff on guitar, Fernando Gelso on drums, and J.F. Martins on bass. The unexpected twist comes though the sarode of John Wrinch Williams.

A cousin to the sitar, this Hindustani instrument takes on a variety of tones under Williams' capable fingertips. Sometimes it finds an interplay with the guitar with similar tones; sometimes it becomes twangy like a banjo. And sometimes its bent notes evoke slide guitar (or, yes, sitar).

Williams is also the group's composer and arranger, though that doesn't mean his sarode is always front and center. Gelso's crisp drumming and Martins' smooth upright bass (often sounding more like a bass guitar) provide the songs' heartbeat and identity sometimes more than the other players' melodic lines. The album includes no song notes to explain the story of the songs, all titled with a single word ("Lucky," "Upswing," "Dang," "Shift"). My favorite so far is the upbeat swing-reggae-jazz number "Snap." Don't think too much about the song names; find your meaning in the music, an unusual, rich, and surprising blend of crisp world-jazz instrumentals.

While the group clearly would like you to buy their CD, it appears you can also download it from their website (link below) and make a donation. Play nice.

By the way, there's no indication in their literature that the band lives up to their name by playing their concerts while perched in trees. Though I haven't seen them live, so I can't yet be certain....

Tuesday August 17th @ Casa del Popolo, Montreal

2010-08-03T15:02:00.000-07:00

We're excited about the upcoming show at Casa del Popolo.. Doors are at 8:30pm and it's $8 at the door. I'm hoping to include some special guests..

#1 - CHRW 94.9 (London, ON) Jazz Chart - August 3, 2010

2010-08-03T12:10:00.000-07:00

We were re-added to the jazz chart over at CHRW 94.9 in London, Ontario this week -- at #1. Thanks, CHRW!

WEFT 90.1FM (Illinois)

2010-07-19T11:12:00.000-07:00

WEFT 90.1FM in Illinois played our track "Mountain" this morning on their Jazz, Folk, World music morning mix, "Early Dementia." Thanks!

Montreal Jazz Festival notes (Part II)

2010-07-14T04:09:00.000-07:00

Andreya Triana, Bonobo and Mr. Scruff - July 3 @ Metropolis
Andreya Triana's opening set was tastefully arranged, and led up to an effortless drum & bass conclusion that reminded us who invented the genre. Bonobo's "Black Sands" was my album of the spring and the band delivered a great rendition. Nice also to hear older tracks in this new orchestration. Mr. Scruff is at the top of his game.

Marc Atkinson Trio - July 4 @ Scene du Festival
Some laid-back but kick-ass playing in this acoustic trio.

The Lost Fingers - July 4 @ Scene TD
Quite engaging and clearly a crowd-pleaser. I particularly enjoyed their AC-DC medley.

Gypsophilia - July 5 @ Scene du Festival
Great players, great compositions, and a very diverse variety of moods, often in the same piece.

Nomo - July 5 @ Scene Bell
They get props for using two instruments I haven't seen before. Some kind of breath-controlled synth? An electric kalimba? I liked how their sound varied from entirely organic (full-on Afrobeat) to synth-led electronic atmospheres.

This rounded out the festival this year for me. Good stuff!

WSCA 106.1 - Portsmouth, New Hampshire

2010-07-13T12:51:00.000-07:00

We were played on WSCA 106.1's morning world music program, "Mundo Mondays" yesterday morning alongside Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and the Upper Egypt Ensemble.

Montreal Jazz Festival notes (Part I)

2010-07-04T11:32:00.000-07:00

Like many music freaks in Montreal, I've been attending the Montreal Jazz Festival pretty much every night. I missed two nights so far, so I don't get my official badge this year, but they were for good reason.

In one case my ears just needed a break, and in another we were rehearsing. New Arboreal Quartet material on its way!

So far I've enjoyed:

Shad - June 25 @ Scene Bell
Wow, what a creative guy, with smart, self-reflexive lyrics, engaging stage presence. I had the real sense that he's moving the art of hip-hop forward in a meaningful way. His success is well-deserved.

Nils Petter Molvaer - June 26 @ Gesù
I've been enjoying his album "Khmer" for many years, but haven't been staying up to date with his evolution. I knew things were moving in an experimental direction and this show was definitely on that tip. The combination of musical and visual exploration really made for a sense of journey.

Omar Souleyman - June 28 @ Scène Bell
Very infectious beats from Syria. Love the sound production. The weather was particularly dramatic during this set.

Slavic Soul Party - June 30 @ Scène TD
[note: site auto-plays music]
I have a new bass hero. Years ago at the Festival I was blown away by the bass stylings of beatboxers Bauchklang and haven't been bassed out as much until now. With a mohawk, kilt, and giant bass amplifier driven by a tuba, this guy is serious business. Very engaging rhythms and top-notch playing all around.

Darren Sigesmund - June 30 @ Scène CBC/Radio-Canada
A 6-piece group led by trombone, with sax, guitar, bass drums and (mostly non-verbal) vocals. For their second set of the evening, the sound balance had been smoothed out and I really got into their compositions. I'm definitely going to look into this group further. Tasty stuff.

Exclaim! magazine - up to #3 on Jazz chart, July 2010 issue

2010-07-04T11:04:00.000-07:00

The July 2010 issue of Exclaim! magazine became available in Montreal yesterday, and we've moved up to #3 in their top 5 Jazz chart.

This represents campus/community airplay for the month of June, meaning we also appear at #3 on !earshot's monthly jazz top 20.

WJFF - Radio Catskill, Jeffersonville, NY

2010-06-22T13:05:00.001-07:00

I had an email yesterday from the assistant station manager at WJFF out of Jeffersonville, NY:

hydropowered community radio serving the Catskills, Northeast Pennsylvania and the Upper Delaware River Valley

They were letting me know that they have been playing our CD on one of their bluegrass/stringed instrument shows, and that they were enjoying it. The show is called Jambalaya, and it airs Saturdays 1-2. Their archives are here.

As I was checking out the show, one tune caught my ear, as it featured a drone introduction with acoustic guitar playing a kind of 'alap' into a twisty melody with a punchy rhythmic arrangement. This sound seems very complementary to our approach.

It turned out to be "Scott Nygaard with Crow Molly." Here's their CD at CDBaby. From their short bio:

Original contemporary string band music by Grammy-nominated guitarist Scott Nygaard and young string virtuosos Joe Walsh (mandolin) and Lauren Rioux (violin) that combines jazz, Celtic, folk, and bluegrass influences.

I'll definitely be checking this out some more. Thanks, WJFF!

Jazz Euphorium play this week - CKUT Montreal

2010-06-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

Jazz Euphorium on CKUT here in Montreal played our track 'Mountain' this past Wednesday June 16. Thanks!

Playlist:
------------------------
oliver jones - one more time - body and soul
jacky terrasson - push - beat it/body and soul
christian scott - yesterday you said tomorrow - kkpd
parc x trio - s/t - witch hunt
vijay iyer trio - historicity - somewhere
dave douglas - mountain passages - summit music
arboreal quartet - s/t - mountain
robert glasper - double booked - festival
the nels cline singers - initiate - floored
evan parker - whitstable solo - solo #2
benoit delbecq unit - phonetics - the elbow room, vancouver
the vandermark 5 - the color of memory - suitcase
dave holland octet - pathways - blue jean
michael musillami trio - old tea - old tea
cecil taylor - jazz advance - you'd be so nice to come home to
thelonious monk - brilliant corners - i surrender dear
------------------------

#2 - ChartAttack Jazz/Blues chart - June 12

2010-06-16T12:06:00.000-07:00

ChartAttack's latest Jazz/Blues chart just appeared last night, and we're up to #2 this week.

Upcoming Montreal shows - July 11, August 17

2010-06-16T12:01:00.000-07:00

We're playing at Divan Orange on Sunday July 11th, which is the weekend after Jazz fest, so if you're like me you'll be looking for more live music after two weeks of fun. I see they've put a splash page up on their calendar. Thanks!

Also we'll be at Casa del Popolo on Tuesday August 17th. It'll be my first time playing there, and the new room is a great addition. Looking forward to it!

Played on 'Makin' Whoopee' - CJSR Edmonton

2010-06-16T11:55:00.000-07:00

Catching up on some radio plays.. over at CJSR in Edmonton, we were played on a program called Makin' Whoopee on May 25. They played the opening track, "Theme."

Thanks, guys!

CJAM - #15 on overall Top 30

2010-06-16T11:51:00.000-07:00

I noticed that a couple of weeks ago (May 25) we'd entered the Top 30 on CJAM in Windsor at #26, and we moved up to #15 last week (June 8). Our other chart placements have been on Jazz or Jazz/Folk specialty charts, so this is interesting.

Added to KOOP music library - 91.7 in Austin, Texas

2010-06-16T11:49:00.001-07:00

Most of my CD mail-outs went to radio stations in the US and I have been waiting for a reaction. This is the first I've heard -- we've been added to the music library at KOOP, in Austin, Texas. KOOP is home to an online program called "Whirled Beet" which seemed like a good match for the our CD.. it is

a multi-genre international world music program, explores an eclectic mix of vintage gems, new releases, and hand-picked rarities. Hosted by a collective of creative and diverse KOOP music programmers, Whirledbeet showcases a wide breadth of musical stylings from around the globe and our own backyard.

Hopefully it'll make it on to the show and others at the station!

#1 - !earshot Jazz chart - June 8, 2010

2010-06-09T10:24:00.000-07:00

Over at !earshot, last week (June 1) we'd slipped off the weekly Jazz top 10 list though appearing at:

#4 - CILU Thunder Bay
#5 - CJSW Calgary

This week, we're at #1 on !earshot's Jazz top 10 for the first time, thanks to these appearances:

#3 - CFRU Guelph
#4 - CHUO Ottawa
#4 - CILU Thunder Bay
#1 - CJAM Windsor

Indian Rasa (Blog)

2010-06-09T10:02:00.000-07:00

I'd been exploring a blog called Indian Raga - "Classical Music for the Uninitiated" for week or so, thinking about dropping its curator a line to say hello. Just as I was considering this, they launched a companion blog, Indian Rasa - "Contemporary Music of the Subcontinent." This was the perfect opportunity to make contact, so I did, and this past Monday a nice post about our album appeared on the site. Many thanks!

Exclaim! magazine - #4 on Jazz chart, June 2010 issue

2010-06-06T15:55:00.000-07:00

We've made into the print edition of Exclaim! magazine's jazz chart in the June 2010 issue (it's on the inside back page). This represents airplay throughout May 2010, and it's a top 5 list in the print issue. In the online version of the May 2010 chart, which is a top 20, it's worth noting that we are the only independent artist on the chart.

ChartAttack Jazz/Blues Chart -- #4 [May 16 - May 22] + #5 [May 23 - May 29]

2010-06-02T10:43:00.000-07:00

This week (May 23 - May 29) we're at #5 on ChartAttack's Jazz/Blues chart and are listed at #4 for the previous week (May 16 - May 22).

Branching into Folk and World blogs

2010-06-02T10:26:00.000-07:00

I noticed a bunch of web hits and downloads of the album from Turkey this morning. Looks like a Turkish world music blog called Dünya Ezgileri ("World Tunes") posted about us today. This blog is linked to by a number of other world music blogs, such as Azeri Muzik.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed that a blog from the US called Call it Folk had posted about us also. Thanks to Tunesmith, aka John O'Hara for his kind words! His mandate is to provide exposure for acoustic and folk artists.

A third blog that gave us some exposure in mid-May is Folk Yourself. I contacted them directly, and the post appeared soon after. Much appreciated!

Chart update

2010-06-02T10:24:00.000-07:00

Some jazz chart updates for the week ending June 1, 2010:

#5 on CJSW Calgary
#4 on CILU Thunder Bay

The Topic is Jazz (CJAM Windsor/Detroit)

2010-06-02T10:22:00.000-07:00

Over at CJAM in Windsor/Detroit, we were played this past Saturday May 29th on The Topic is Jazz.

playlist:
Count Basie - Splanky
Josh Rzepka - Call Me Back
Hugh O'Connor - Triste
Mah/Goodman Quartet - Faust Arp
Marc Wagnon - Light at the End
Carol Morgan Trio - Like Someone in Love
Yuko Ito - Flor de Lis
Arturo Sandoval - Every Time We Say Goodbye
Woody Herman - Tiny's Blues
The Arboreal Quartet - Snap
Jake Hertzog - Not Blues
Grafitti = Leeway
Scott Kemp - Traits
Scott Kemp - Thanks Forgiven

Chart update - #2 on !earshot's jazz chart (second week)

2010-05-26T19:57:00.000-07:00

For the week ending May 25th, 2010, we're at #2 on !earshot's jazz chart, with a new entry at #7 on CHRW 94.9 MHz - London, as well as:

#7 on CHUO 89.1 MHz - Ottawa
#4 on CILU 102.7 FM - Thunder Bay
#1 on CJAM 91.5 MHz - Windsor

The Get Up (CJSW Calgary)

2010-05-24T13:03:00.000-07:00

Two of our tracks were played on CJSW's morning program "The Get Up" last week, on May 17th:

Alice Coltrane // Journey into Satchidananda
Arboreal Quartet // Theme; Lucky
Max Roach // Garvey's Ghost
Roy Haynes // Quiet Fire
Bud Shank & Clare Fisher // Misty
Polar Bear // Peepers
Radio Dept. // The Video Dept.
Tortoise // TNT Takemura Remix
Kate Nash // Do-Wah-Doo
Sally Saltmann // Book Song
Emma McKenna // Happiness**
Alberta Cross // Theif & the Heartbreaker**
Le Husky // Le Monde Est Rouge
T-Love // On My Mind
heRajiKa tracks // I Believe
Final Fantasy // This Lamb Sells Condos**
Olive Oil // Pianity
Marvin Gaye // Ain't That Peculiar
Let Me Play Guitar // Beauty
Youthless // Golden Age
Youth Pictures of Florence Henderson // To Sit Down or to Follow, So I Follow
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros // 40 Day Dream
Digable Planets // Dog It
Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings // I Learned the Hard Way
Flying Lotus // And the World Laughs With You
Most Serene Republic // Vessels of a Donor Look
Bonnie Prince Billy & the Cairo Gang // The Sounds are Always Begging

The Signal Podcast (May 20, 2010) - CBC Radio 2

2010-05-20T14:59:00.000-07:00

The Signal with Laurie Brown from CBC Radio 2 has launched a new weekly podcast, updated on Thursdays. Our track "Snap" is featured at around the 30 minute mark in their second podcast. Very interesting show -- check it out!

The Signal Podcast #2, May 20, 2010.

DJ set on CHOQ.FM last week (May 18)

2010-05-19T19:08:00.001-07:00

Paul invited me on his program Mutations in CHOQ.FM last Tuesday, and we took turns on the decks . Pretty upbeat stuff.. one might say summery.

Here's what I played:

Fantastique Bresil - Batterie de l'Ecole de Samba "Portella"
Skalpel - 1958 (Skalpel remix)
Scuba - You Got Me

Hu Vibrational - Locomotion
Fahmoud Fadl - United Nubians - Saidi Style
Deben Battacharya - Musique Folklorique du Monde (Iran) - Segah

Grab the podcast here.

Played on The Signal with Laurie Brown (May 13th) - CBC Radio 2

2010-05-19T11:55:00.000-07:00

I just found out that The Signal played our track "Snap" on the evening of May 13th:

Up to #2 on !earshot's jazz chart

2010-05-19T11:52:00.001-07:00

For the week ending May 18th, 2010, we're at #2:

New chart listing -- CHUO 89.1 (Ottawa)

2010-05-18T12:51:00.000-07:00

We appear at #5 on CHUO's jazz chart for the week ending May 18th, 2010:

In other news, we're up to #4 on CILU (Thunder Bay) and at #3 on CJSW (Calgary).

ChartAttack May 15, 2010: #7 on Jazz/Blues chart

2010-05-18T10:48:00.000-07:00

ChartAttack's jazz/blues chart just came out today, and we're at #7:

Debuting at #4 on !earshot's Jazz chart for the week ending May 11, 2010

2010-05-12T13:40:00.000-07:00

I noticed this last night.. !earshot's compiled chart of Canadian campus and community radio Jazz charts lists us at #4 for the past week:

CFRU 93.3 (Guelph)

2010-05-11T16:53:00.000-07:00

More good news today.. CFRU in Guelph has been checking out our CD this past week.

Jazz
11-May-2010
RANK ARTIST TITLE (LABEL)
1 ANDREW DOWNING* Silents (Black Hen)
2 BRAD MEHLDAU Highway Rider (Nonesuch)
3 DRUMHELLER* Glint (Rat-Drifting)
4 BEN GROSSMAN* Macrophone (Self-Released)
5 ELODIE LAUTEN Piano Works Revisited (Unseen Worlds)
6 ARBOREAL QUARTET The Arboreal Quartet (Self-Released)
7 ILHAN ERSAHIN Istanbul Sessions with Erik Truffaz (Nublu)
8 POLAR BEAR Peepers (Leaf)
9 LITTLE WOMEN Throat (AUM Fidelity)
10 MULATU ASTATKE Mulatu Steps Ahead (Strut)

New chart listing.. 101.8 CFUV (Victoria)

2010-05-11T14:12:00.000-07:00

CFUV 101.8 in Victoria has us at #9 in their jazz chart for the week ending May 11th, 2010.

And on the other jazz charts available so far this week, we're at:

#5 on CILU Thunder Bay
#5 on CJAM Windsor, and
#3 on CJSW Calgary

Chart update - CJAM and CJSW

2010-05-08T11:13:00.000-07:00

!earshot online, the national campus and community radio report, is a great resource! On CJAM in Windsor we've moved to #8 and on CJSW in Calgary, we're now at #3 on the Jazz chart.

Movement Museum on CKUT 90.3 (Montreal)

2010-05-06T15:32:00.000-07:00

Movement Museum, the dance program on CKUT here in Montreal, played our CD today during an interview with choreographer and dancer Margie Gillis, who is presenting a show at l'Agora de la Danse through this Saturday May 8th. She's an enthusiastic speaker and has a lot of interesting things to say about the creative process and the life of a Canadian artist.

CILU 102.7 (Thunder Bay)

2010-05-05T11:03:00.000-07:00

CILU in Thunder Bay has been playing the CD..

LU Radio Charts for the Week Ending May 4th, 2010
Jazz
04-May-2010
RANK ARTIST TITLE (LABEL)
1 JEFF HEALEY* Last Call (Stony Plain)
2 CHRISTINE JENSEN JAZZ ORCHESTRA* Treelines (Justin Time)
3 PAT METHENY Orchestrion (Nonesuch)
4 QUEEN ESTHER What Is Love? (EL)
5 KRISTIN PORTER By The Light Of The Moon (Self-Released)
6 MARC POMPE Lost in the Stars (Self-Released)
7 ALLYSSA JONES 35 (Self-Released)
8 ELIZABETH SHEPHERD* Heavy Falls The Night (Do Right! Music)
9 ARBOREAL QUARTET The Arboreal Quartet (Self-Released)
10 SYLVIA BENNETT Smile (Self-Released)

89.5 CIUT (Toronto)

2010-05-04T11:16:00.000-07:00

Looks like our CD has been added to the jazz library at CIUT, in Toronto. Sweet!

CHLY 101.7 (Nanaimo, BC)

2010-05-02T17:20:00.000-07:00

Dave O Rama included our track "Snap" on his show The Lovecast on CHLY this past Saturday, April 24, 2010. Check out the program here.

He also interviews Adam Shaikh, whose music I've enjoyed for years, later in the program.

CJAM 99.1 FM (Windsor)

2010-05-02T16:59:00.000-07:00

CJAM 99.1 FM, broadcasting in Windsor and Detroit, has us in their jazz chart this past week, in the #4 slot.

Indie Morning Wake-up Call Top 5 - CHSR 97.9 (Fredericton)

2010-05-01T12:10:00.000-07:00

I noticed today that we are being played on CHSR 97.9 FM:

The Top Canadian Albums on the Indie Morning Wake-up Call for the week ending April 30 2010
--
1) Little Miss Higgins - "Across the Plains"
2) The Blue Violets - "The Blue Violets"
3) Sam Tutanuak - "Utiqpungaa"
4) The Arboreal Quartet - "The Arboreal Quartet"
5) Delhi to Dublin - "Planet Electric"
--

I've seen Delhi to Dublin live -- they did a show at Bobards here in Montreal last summer. I got the impression that they were definitely used to playing large outdoor festivals -- to some degree they were playing past the audience at this venue. With those large windows behind him, the dhol player definitely didn't need amplification!

Good stuff, and the setting reminded me of seeing Martyn Bennett at a club in Guelph, Ontario, probably the Albion. So much gear and energy for that small room!

Radio update #2

2010-04-29T15:40:00.001-07:00

After about a month of research, I today made it through to the end of the U.S. section in the Indie Bible's list of campus/community radio stations -- still checking the schedule grid and playlists on the websites of each station -- and have sent out just over 100 CDs at this point. There is a lot more still to do but this is a good milestone.

Along the way I've been collecting radio show names from stations across the U.S. that cracked me up. Here is a selected list:

Vinyl Fantasy
Super Happy Fun Time!
Super Happy Doom Time
Sound and Safe
Those Who Live in Philip Glass' House Shouldn't Roll Stones
Furious George
Mahnamanology
Moar Caübél
Metadeth
Too Evil to Have a Human Name
The Floating Head of Zsa Zsa

Breaking the Tethers - CJSW 90.9 (Calgary)

2010-04-26T18:57:00.000-07:00

Andrew Waller played our track "Dang" this morning on his show "Breaking the Tethers" on CJSW -- Calgary's independent radio. I can't find an archived podcast at the moment, will keep looking. Here's the playlist:

"Opening line" - Carol Morgan Trio (Opening)
"The search" - Quiet Nights Orchestra (Chapter one)
"Between B & C" - Keiran Hebden and Steve Reid (NYC)
"Don't look back" - Steve Reid Ensemble (Daxaar)
"If not now, when?"- Organissimo (Alive & kickin')
"Lundu" - Egberto Gismonti (Saudacoes)
"My mind" - Chubby Checker (Chubby Checker)
"Red sails" - Danny Michel (Loving the alien)
"Dang" - The Arboreal Quartet (The Arboreal Quartet)
"Oxygene part IV" - Christian Prommer (Drumlesson zwei)
"Monk's blues' - Dave Glasser (Evolution)
"So soon' - Little Ax & The Golden Echoes (Fire in my bones: raw rare + otherwise unworldly african-american gospel (1944-2007))
"Red pepper blues" - Art Pepper (Art Pepper meets the rhythm section)
"What to say' - Hutchinson Andrew Trio (Rocky mountain jazz)
"John boy" - Brad Mehldau (Highway rider)
"Monocrat" - Ismism (Ismism)
"Peepers" - Polar Bear (Peepers)
"Goodbye" - Chet Doxas (Big sky)
"Berimbau" - Yuko Ito (Mania de voce)
"An happy organ" - Gov't Majik (Party favors)
"Our man Barack" - Pharez Whitted (Transient journey)
"Nautilus rising" - Weasel Walter Septet (Invasion)

Jazz Euphorium - CKUT 90.3 (Montreal)

2010-04-19T10:23:00.000-07:00

We were played on CKUT's Jazz Euphorium this past Wednesday. The show was hosted by Matt Testa. Lots of great music to be found in their archives!

Here's the playlist from April 14th:

ornette coleman - the shape of jazz to come - lonely woman

brad mehldau - highway rider - john boy

chet doxas - big sky - for jim

keith price - breakfast of champions - warmth

thomson kneeland - mazurka for a modern man - crus bifurcatus

matthew shipp - 4d - what is this thing called love

keith jarrett trio - tokyo '96 - billie's bounce

charles mingus - mingus ah um - goodbye pork pie hat

normand guilbeault ensemble - mingus erectus - mdmd

ratchet orchestra - live at the sala rosa, november 28, 2007 - september

jacky terrasson - smile - smile

robert glasper - double booked - downtime

brad mehldau - highway rider - into the city

the arboreal quartet - s/t - lucky & shift

malcolm sailor quartet - s/t - looking for something to say, anything to say

danilo perez - central avenue - lush life

mose allison - the way of the world - crush

medeski martin & wood - last chance to dance trance (perhaps) - bemsha swing / lively up yourself

Link: Jazz Euphorium April 14, 2010

DJ set on CHOQ.FM

2010-04-16T09:58:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday I sat in on the decks at Mutations, the weekly eclectic mix hosted by Paul Charpentier on CHOQ.FM. He surprised me with what I think is a no-input synth sound generated from the mixing board itself. I'd brought a few drone records, so I rolled with it and we ended up with some interstitial (possibly interspacial) synth/scratch duets between tracks.

Playlist:
Vladimir Cosma - Lame de Fond
Arboreal Quartet - Lucky
Paul Horn - Mumtaz Mahal
Shakti with John McLaughlin - Mind Ecology
Bauchklang - Chingari feat. Shilpa Rao
David Hykes - Hearing Solar Winds
jww - Don't Stop 'Til you get a Sixth Sense
David Hykes - Hearing Solar Winds (con't)
Arboreal Quartet - Snap

link: Mutations April 13, 2010

Review on MontrealMusicScene.com

2010-04-16T09:01:00.000-07:00

MontrealMusicScene.com ran a short review with some photos of our show on March 5th. Thanks, Shannon!

Radio update

2010-04-14T12:19:00.001-07:00

So I finished off sending CDs to all of the stations across Canada that seemed compatible with our album, and have now started in on the United States. If a station plays folk/roots, world and jazz -- all three of these -- then I'll send them a CD.

Still using the Indie Bible for radio station lists, and following up on other avenues as they appear. One such avenue:

Tracking information provided by music promotion services like Crossover Media

I came across this while searching for stations featuring world music, which led to Crossover's project page about The Melody of Rhythm, a collaboration among Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer and Zakir Hussain. To know which stations are enjoying this album this week is great.

Along the way I've been compiling a bunch of particular radio shows and stations that I'm going to listen to more frequently, and I'll post them here once I have a few more.

Embarking on radio campaign..

2010-04-08T12:09:00.000-07:00

Over the past month I've been mailing CDs to radio stations, starting by sending to stations and DJs recommended to me by friends who have been listening to our album.

So far I've hit up KEXP in Seattle, CBC Radio 3 (for consideration on their Sirius channel 86), The Signal with Laurie Brown on CBC Radio 2, CFRU in Guelph and CHOQ.FM and CISM here in Montreal.

The Signal became a fan on our Radio 3 profile and included us in their Radio 3 playlist on March 31. Thanks!

The other day I ran into Rick from Lake of Stew at the post office, and on his advice I picked up the Indie Bible, which is a pretty huge resource (1000 pages).

Following through on this, I today mailed out to campus/community stations in Alberta (one province at a time!): CJSR at University of Alberta, CKXU at University of Lethbridge, CKUA, and soon CJSW at University of Calgary.

I also sent one in to the Canadian publication Penguin Eggs for possible review, thinking that we probably fit within their guidelines of "recordings that fall under the folk, roots and world music banner ... anything from American zydeco to Zimbabwean a cappella." It's an interesting process trying to define our genre.. I think it's accurate to say that we blend at least a few. I've checked out the magazine often over the years -- it's great stuff.

One recurring theme in all of the radio submission guides I've been reading and in the Indie Bible is that most Music Directors like the following:

- A standard CD case (with a spine)
- Unless otherwise specified, nothing more than a one-sheet with pertinent info about the CD, a short bio, and contact information

Also (common sense) you should get familiar the program schedules of each station you're sending to, listen to programs, look at playlists, and make sure that your music fits (ie. not a mass mail-out).

On the subject of Canadian radio in general, I just came across what looks like a great resource: Earshot Online, the national campus and community radio report.

WahGujarat Video Portal

2010-03-31T18:12:00.000-07:00

I love the banner and background pattern of the WahGujarat Video Portal, which has picked up our track "Dang" on their video redistribution service:

Happy Birthday, Articule!

2010-03-21T10:31:00.000-07:00

That was a lot of fun, and we were glad to be a part of it. To whoever took home piece #37: that would have been my pick! Find out more about the gallery -- history and future -- at articule.org.

ความประหลาดใจ

2010-03-19T13:43:00.000-07:00

This appears to be a Thai video site. I've never really had a good look at Thai text before. What a สวย ลายมือ !

Mirror article about the Articule event

2010-03-19T13:32:00.000-07:00

The Montreal Mirror ran an article yesterday about the Articule fundraiser that we're playing at tomorrow night. Here's the link to the web version, and here's the print version:

Optical illusion

2010-03-16T13:41:00.000-07:00

In one of the photos that Carl took for us for promo material, through some trick of perspective it appears that J.F., our illustrious bass player, is very small -- shoulder height to me. I'm not that tall to begin with. He's been miniaturized.
For comparison, here's one where he's back to normal size, though I seem to be suspended at an unnatural angle. Strange things can happen on that mountain.

(I quickly adjusted the contrast on these myself -- this is not indicative of Carl's vision for the photos!)

CBC Radio 3 site info

2010-03-16T13:13:00.000-07:00

I noticed today that over at CBC Radio 3, we are listed as the #2 most-played jazz song of this week. Also, on March 3, we were at the #1 most-played jazz song of the day, both times for our song "Snap." Our profile is here.

There is a wealth of cool stuff to be found on the CBC Radio 3 music site. Do check it out if you're not familiar with it yet!

Another one..

2010-03-13T13:54:00.000-08:00

I didn't know there was a Napster.jp. But here we are:

Web Ephemera

2010-03-12T10:59:00.000-08:00

One unexpected result of putting out the Arboreal Quartet CD has been the way it's propagating into the world at large. Here are a few examples:

I noticed last week that our album was for sale on a Finnish website -- C M-store.fi. Using an online translator, I figured out that the distributor was a certain 'IODA,' legit, via Indiepool. If you want to use Euros to get the album, this is one option.

Also, you could hit up musakauppa.go.fi and behold their rather alarming banner ad:

If you prefer your YouTube videos on a Japanese site, look no further than Woopie.jp. For some reason they've picked up only one of the 14 videos I posted on YouTube: Upswing.

We're also now listed on a German site called Songtexte. I'm not really sure what this site is all about -- music indexing with video content, sort of a Last.fm?

Pick a Piper

2010-03-12T10:46:00.000-08:00

I went and saw Pick a Piper last night. A few years back, when Caribou was Manitoba, they delivered one of the top shows I've seen in Montreal, identities hidden behind Rupert the bear masks until the end of the set. My brain was full enough that I didn't stay for much of the headliner -- Prefuse 73. Also on that bill was a new-to-me Fourtet. What a night.

I'd heard that Pick a Piper had some Caribou/Manitoba connections in personnel, more than enough reason to check them out. Energetic stuff, and they manage the difficult task of using a computer track as a component of their music, but still sounding organic and un-rigid. Well done, sirs!

the Jefferson Tugboat

2010-03-11T10:18:00.000-08:00

Big thanks to everyone who came out to the launch last Friday. It was a big step for us and everything went off even better than expected.

I'll go into more detail in coming posts, but what better way to launch this blog than with coverage of the opening act?

Julia Narveson and Brad Levia (aka 'the Jefferson Tugboat') did a really fun set of retro (a la 1800s) music. Comments I heard were unanimously positive -- eg. "Their original song sounds as old as their covers!"

They tore it up with beautiful harmonies, acoustic guitar, washtub bass, banjo, and the infamous stealth kazoo (looks like a trombone, complete with moving but decorative slide).

Thanks to Carl for taking some video that night (as well as the photo above), including a short clip of 'the Jefferson Tugboat' -- check it out!