Colin Stetson
"Stetson demolishes clichés to unleash fresh, unexpected energies. It's like being inside an enormous brass tunnel full of windy byways and slamming valves, at once exhilarating and frightening." - Pitchfork
Colin Stetson was born and raised in Ann Arbor, and spent a decade in San Francisco and Brooklyn honing his formidable talents as a horn player, working extensively live and in studio with a wide range of acts including Tom Waits, TV on the Radio, Arcade Fire, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson. Meanwhile he has developed an utterly unique voice as a soloist, principally on saxophones and clarinets, his intense technical prowess matched by his exhilarating and emotionally gripping skills as a songwriter. He settled in Montreal in 2007.
Colin Stetson was born and raised in Ann Arbor, and spent a decade in San Francisco and Brooklyn honing his formidable talents as a horn player, working extensively live and in studio with a wide range of acts including Tom Waits, TV on the Radio, Arcade Fire, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson. Meanwhile he has developed an utterly unique voice as a soloist, principally on saxophones and clarinets, his intense technical prowess matched by his exhilarating and emotionally gripping skills as a songwriter. He settled in Montreal in 2007.
FULL BIO...
In 2008 Aagoo records released Colin's debut, the first in his New History Warfare album cycle. New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges arrived via Constellation in Spring 2011, kicking off a hectic year of solo engagements and year-round touring as part of the Bon Iver band. The album met with universal acclaim from critics across a spectrum of jazz and indie rock/pop cultural spheres: "pure revelation" according to All About Jazz, the album was shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize, and landed on year-end lists at Pitchfork, Tiny Mix Tapes, SPIN and the Village Voice. His frequent appearances on stages at SXSW, All Tomorrow's Parties, and countless stops on the international jazz festival circuit cemented his reputation as a versatile and virtuosic player while bringing his solo work to a broad international audience.
Colin's astounding physical engagement with his instruments (chiefly bass and alto saxophones) produces emotionally rich and polyphonic compositions that transcend expectations of what solo horn playing can sound like. Stetson is equally at home in the avant jazz tradition of players who have pushed the boundaries of the instrument through circular breathing, embouchure, etc. (i.e. Evan Parker, Mats Gustafsson) and at the nexus of noise/drone/minimalist music that encompasses genres like dark metal, post-rock and contemporary electronics (i.e. Tim Hecker, Ben Frost - both of whom have mixed or remixed Stetson recordings).
April 2013 will see the release of New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light via Constellation, completing the conceptual and narrative arc of the series and constituting a definitive realization of his unparalleled musicianship and stunning skill as a composer.
Okay, so it's May in Montreal! Admittedly the volume's been turned down a bit since last year, but the basics are all there: the water fountains are turning on, the Solidarity Across Borders Status For All march is this weekend and the Anarchist Bookfair the weekend after, you can still get arrested every damn time you leave the damn house, because protest is basically illegal now...
And of course, it also means that SUONI PER IL POPOLO, the best music festival in the world, is right around the corner!
As usual, the festival will bring dozens of truly amazing acts to the city all through June, and as usual a whole bunch of local CST friends and allies will hit the stages at Casa del Popolo and Sala Rossa. See below for a brief roundup, along with audio and video samples. Have a look, and then head over to the Suoni site to check out the full program.
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NICK KUEPFER + LEE RANALDO w/ STEVE SHELLEY
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June 6 • Sala Rossa • $17/20 • Info/tickets
This year Suoni will host two appearances of Nick Kuepfer, Montreal weirdo genius and master sculptor of rickety, immersive soundscapes built up from guitars and tape machines and piles of scavenged ephemera.
On June 6 he'll open for Lee Ranaldo and Steve Shelley. You know those guys, right? They were in some bands? Anyways, this Ranaldo character is going to play some acoustic stuff of his own, accompanied by Mr. Shelley; should be nice.
MP3 - NICK KUEPFER: "Corpse in the Wildflowers" (from Avestruz)
MP3 - NICK KUEPFER: "Winter 2" (Soundcloud)
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OSO BLANCO (COLIN STETSON, NATE WOOLEY, C.S. YEH, & RYAN SAWYER) + HRAÏR HRATCHIAN
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June 9 • Casa del Popolo • $10/12 • Info/Tickets
His stunning New History Warfare trilogy concluded with the April 30 release of To See More Light, mind-bending saxophone juggernaut Colin Stetson will lend his formidable lungs to Oso Blanco, alongside three similarly virtuosic players on trumpet, drums and violin.
Opening will be Hraïr Hratchian - multidisciplinary artist and performer, past Jerusalem In My Heart collaborator - leading a nine-musician ensemble in a performance of "Bardézoum vartér patsvadz" a 100-year old Armenian folk piece by composer Krikor Dalian.
MP3 - COLIN STETSON: "High Above A Grey Green Sea"
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PACHA + NOUVEAU ZODIAQUE + JOSHUA ABRAMS' NATURAL INFORMATION SOCIETY
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June 11 • Sala Rossa • $10/12 • Info/Tickets
Pierre-Guy Blanchard spent years studying various percussion techniques and compositional modes of Turkish, Balkan and Middle Eastern musics. His project, Pacha, is a thrilling fusion of intense propulsive rhythms and gloriously fried synth lines. Affaires Étrangères, Pacha's debut, was released last year as part of Musique Fragile Vol. 3, and its live iteration is an explosive thing: heady and precise, while guaranteed to get sweaty.
Nouveau Zodiaque is a shifting group of musicians rallied by Les Momies de Palerme's Xarah Dion, pulling on various threads of folk and world musics to form a gorgeous, cohesive and strangely danceable synthesis.
Joshua Abrams - Chicago native, prolific musical experimentalist, co-founder of Town & Country and Sticks & Stones (with Matana Roberts) - has of late been leading ensembles on a unique trajectory of trance-like, slightly psychedelic exploration, pulling from North and West African traditions, minimalism and out jazz. Check out last year's totally killer Represencing to get an idea.
MP3 - PACHA: "L'Aeroport de Charlo"
MP3 - LES MOMIES DE PALERME: "Solis"
MP3 - JOSHUA ABRAMS & CO.: Live Dublab session
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SALTLAND + ERIC CHENAUX & RADWAN GHAZI MOUMNEH + WORMHOLES
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June 14 • Sala Rossa • $11/13 • Info/tickets
I Thought It Was Us But It Was All Of Us, the debut album from Rebecca Foon's Saltland project - "captivating", "modern and mesmerizing", "alluring and intoxicating" - was released this week. For this official release show Foon will join her compositions for voice and cello to ornate, buoyant arrangements for electronics, percussion and contrebass courtesy of Jamie Thompson and Aaron Lumley, and it will be breathtaking.
Eminent guitar handler and heart-rending balladeer Eric Chenaux will join forces with sound engineer, boxer, all-around CST go-to guy and Jerusalem In My Heart musical mastermind Radwan Moumneh for a performance certain to be as affecting and beautiful as it is indescribably abstract.
Wormholes is an audio-visual project of Beirut-based improvisational musicians Mazen Kerbaj and Sharif Sehnaoui. Solo guitar manipulations meet light tables projections with live drawing. We're told by those in the know that this rare performance is unmissable.
MP3 - SALTLAND: "Treehouse Schemes"
MP3 - JERUSALEM IN MY HEART: "Yudaghdegh..."
MP3 - ERIC CHENAUX: "Amazing Backgrounds"
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ELFIN SADDLE IN MUSIC TEMPLE + HANGEDUP + NICK KUEPFER
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June 18 • Sala Rossa • $12/14 • Info/tickets
Emi Honda and Jordan McKenzie have for years been crafting small DIY dystopias and rich, sparkling soundworlds with quiet reverence and humble anger. As Elfin Saddle they've produced three albums of urgent, ramshackle folk (the most recent, Devastates, released last year), a stop-motion film staged over several months in their backyard, and most recently "Music Temple": a multimedia installation at Montreal's MAI gallery involving automated musical instruments, film projections and live performance. An abridged version of the "Music Temple" installation will be brought to this one-of-a-kind performance.
The mighty viola and percussion duo of Hangedup is rolling once again. Since ending a long hiatus in 2010, they've played a handfull of shows in Montreal, kicked our asses around Europe as part of our 15th anniversary celebrations, and released Transit of Venus, an epic, towering collaborative LP with minimalist legend Tony Conrad. Gen Heistek and Eric Craven deliver a clattering, cavernous racket with a soft, graceful touch.
Nick Kuepfer, once again, is our hero (see above).
MP3 - HANGEDUP & TONY CONRAD: "Principles"
MP3 - HANGEDUP: "Alarm"
MP3 - ELFIN SADDLE: "The Changing Wind"
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Of course there are a ton of other highlights: our fearless leader Don taking part in a panel discussion called "Beneath the Surfaces (Discussion on audio formats)", shows with Maica Mia, Avec Le Soleil Sortant de sa Bouche + Oneida & Rhys Chatham, Jen Reimer & Max Stein + Gambletron, Grouper, Jefre Cantu-Ledesma + Le Révélateur, Kevin Drumm, Ratchet Orchestra, and on and on... Really, there's just so much good stuff. Liberate your ears.
The full calendar, with links to buy tickets online, is right here; tickets are also available in the usual shops.
photo: Scott Irvine
Next Tuesday Colin Stetson's New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light will be available in stores. To tide us over for the week, NPR will host a stream of the entire album in their First Listen section. Click below to head over there.
STREAM NEW HISTORY WARFARE VOL. 3: TO SEE MORE LIGHT AT NPR
Over the past weeks, we've let out several clips from the album: "High Above A Grey Green Sea", which Ad-Hoc heralds as a display of his "blaringly idiosyncratic approach" to the saxophone; "Among the Sef", premiered by The Quietus last week; and a double video for "And In Truth" and an excerpt from "In Mirrors" - set to gorgeous visuals from Kurtis Hough, Dan Huiting and Tab Firchau - via Pitchfork. Now we're able to present the double LP as a complete work - intense, dynamic, and truly thrilling.
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light is available for pre-order here
This morning Pitchfork premiered a new video for two clips from Colin Stetson's forthcoming New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light. It pulls an excerpt from "In Mirrors" as well as Justin Vernon-assisted album-opener "And In Truth", with stunning visual work from Kurtis Hough, Dan Huiting and Tabb Firchau. Watch it now:
VIDEO: "In Mirrors" + "And In Truth" (via Pitchfork)
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light will be available in stores on April 30, and puts Stetson's startling skills both as player and composer on beautiful display. The Wire applaud the album's "extraordinary aural illusionism" while Textura say, "To call it amazing is no exaggeration." According to Under The Radar, "Stetson has ventured into uncharted territory, and the heretofore-unheard sounds that he's brought back are utterly bewitching."
Get the full run-down on the album here, and click below for an MP3 of album track "High Above a Grey Green Sea."
MP3: "High Above A Grey Green Sea"
COLIN STETSON
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light
CST092 2 x 180gLP/ CD / DL
Out 30 April 2013
AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW.
Today we announce the second of our new releases for Spring 2013 – New History Warfare Volume 3: To See More Light, the much-anticipated third full-length album from saxophone visionary Colin Stetson. It'll hit stores on April 30. See below for info, including an MP3 from the album, or click here for the full run-down.
Colin will be out on the road for much of the Spring, spending the bulk of March in continental Europe and May in the United States and Canada. Check our tours page for the full schedule.
Colin Stetson established himself as an intensely original solo composer and performer in 2011 with the release of the widely acclaimed New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges. Judges ended up on countless year-end lists and emphatically proved that Stetson's approach to solo saxophone transcends niche or genre; a unique and emotionally resonant instrumental music with influences as wide-ranging as jazz, metal, pop, soul, drone, industrial, minimalism, electro-acoustic and modern contemporary.
Remarkably, Stetson channels these manifold musical strains into a singularly identifiable and personal sound as a polyphonic soloist who doesn't rely on looping/layering or multi-track/overdubs technologies. Anyone who has seen Stetson in solo performance can attest to the stunning physicality of his circular-breathing technique and capacity to produce a seemingly impossible palate of multiple voicings simultaneously in real time – making his already beautiful and evocative compositions all the more enrapturing and viscerally human.
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light is the final installment in a trilogy of solo albums and is Stetson’s most ambitious song cycle to date, again recorded live in single takes with a wide array of microphone positions and again mixed by groundbreaking producer Ben Frost. Colin's membership in Bon Iver over the past two years has also led to vocal contributions from Justin Vernon for this record, who appears on four songs, with a diverse approach on each, and whose voice constitutes the only overdubbing on the album.
The record's 15-minute centerpiece, title track "To See More Light", is the longest piece Stetson has yet recorded and possibly the heaviest: a tour de force of swirling arpeggiation, continuous breathing, pumping valves and vocalizations through the reed of the horn that gives way to a tremendous, screaming, sea-sawing dirge through the song's final movement. This latter stretch conjures a sort of saxophonic sludge metal, and the album's heaviosity references other sub-genres of metal as well, most notably in the hardcore blast of "Brute" (abetted by Vernon's cookie monster barking) and the ambient grindcore throb of "Hunted". In other instances, the album is soulful and even hymnal, especially where Vernon's vocals play a lead role: opener "And In Truth" (featuring Vernon's most instantly recognisable contribution, of massed, multi-tracked harmonies), the cover of Washington Phillips' gospel tune "What Are They Doing In Heaven Today", and "Among The Sef" where Vernon (singing a lyric written by Stetson) delivers one of the more tender and honest vocal performances we've heard from him in any context.
New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light is the most cohesive and fully realized of Stetson's solo albums to date. It should reliably stand as the apotheosis of the New History Warfare trilogy, and certainly signals the full flourishing of Stetson's unique talents as both composer and performer, pressing his arsenal of virtuosic techniques into the service of vivid, impassioned and conceptually astute songcraft.
Thanks for listening.
Click here for more info.
Constellation celebrates its 15th Anniversary with a series of five mini-festivals in Europe this November: the locations are Bern, Paris, Munich, Vienna and Leipzig, in partnership with some of our favourite venues and partners that have supported the label and its artists over the years,
Go here for an at-a-glance round-up of the line-ups, locations and ticket links.
Read here for a longer post about the events.
See below for a rendering of the commemorative screenprinted poster that will be available at the events (being printed by the Dis-patch Collective from Belgrade, Serbia – whose Constellation artwork exhibit will also be on display in Bern and Vienna) and a little video clip we produced for the celebrations.
The Paris 15th Anniversary CST shows are now sold out.
Information about all CST 15th events can be found HERE.
Nous invitons nos camarades français à prendre note des autres concerts en France en novembre, ainsi que de nos événements à Berne et à Bruxelles...
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While we realise it's a bit of an extra journey for the good people of France, we remind everyone that about 50 passes still remain for the CST fest in Bern, Switzerland.
CST Heartland Festival passes for Bern are available here.
The Bern event is a Constellation takeover of the Heartland Festival and represents an expanded 4-day affair, with a CST art exhibit curated by Dis-patch Collective (Belgrade) and performances by several artists who cannot make the Paris weekend: Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Colin Stetson, Hrsta, Nick Kuepfer and Khora.
Details for each night of the Bern event (and single night tickets) can be found HERE.
If you are looking for information about Bern accommodations, we encourage you to contact Dachstock@Reitschule HERE.
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We would also like to note the following Constellation-related concert dates happening in France and Belgium as the label celebrates throughout November with many artists on tour:
DO MAKE SAY THINK
16.11.12 Metz FR Musiques Volantes Festival TIX
SANDRO PERRI + ERIC CHENAUX
15.11.12 Nantes FR Stakhanov
16.11.12 Limoges FR Centre Culturel John Lennon
THEE SILVER MT ZION + MATANA ROBERTS
19.11.12 Tourcoing FR Le Grand Mix TIX
20.11.12 Strassbourg FR La Laterie TIX
COLIN STETSON
14.11.12 Brussels BE Ancienne Belgique VZW TIX
20.11.12 Poitiers FR Confort Moderne TIX
21.11.12 Rennes FR UBU1 TIX
22.11.12 Nantes FR Pôle Etudiant
23.11.12 Gent BE Theaterzaal Vooruit TIX
24.11.12 Rouen FR Le 106 TIX
25.11.12 Tourcoing FR L'Hospice d'Havré - Maison Folie de Tourcoing TIX
DO MAKE SAY THINK + SANDRO PERRI + ERIC CHENAUX
CONSTELLATION LABEL NIGHT @ AUTUMN FALLS FESTIVAL
26.11.12 Brussels BE Atelier 210 TIX
Following a series of already-announced dates in eastern Canada and the United States, Colin Stetson has just announced a batch of shows on the West coast in April and May, as part of the "Alone Together" tour with Sarah Neufeld (Arcade Fire/Bell Orchestre) on solo violin and Gregory Rogove (Devendra Banhart/Megapuss/Priestbird) playing solo piano.
See below for dates, or check our tours page. If you haven't already, check out Colin's New History Warfare Vol 2: Judges and Those Who Didn't Run EP.
| DD/MM/YY | PLACE | VENUE |
|---|---|---|
| 23.03.12 | Durham, US | Motorco Music Hall with Tyondai Braxton |
| 30.03.12 | Kingston, CAN | The Grad Club with Sarah Neufeld |
| 31.03.12 | Waterloo, CAN | Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics with Sarah Neufeld |
| 01.04.12 | Buffalo, USA | Big Orbit's Soundlab with Sarah Neufeld |
| 03.04.12 | Brooklyn, USA | Glasslands Gallery with Sarah Neufeld |
| 04.04.12 | Amherst, USA | Hampshire College |
| 05.04.12 | Troy, USA | Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) with Tyshawn Sorey and Sarah Neufeld |
| 28.04.12 | Los Angeles, USA | Dilettante with Sarah Neufeld and Gregory Rogove |
| 01.05.12 | San Francisco, USA | Hotel Utah with Sarah Neufeld and Gregory Rogove |
| 03.05.12 | Portland, USA | Mississippi Studios with Sarah Neufeld and Gregory Rogove |
| 04.05.12 | Seattle, USA | Columbia City Theater with Sarah Neufeld and Gregory Rogove |
| 05.05.12 | Vancouver, CA | Western Front with Sarah Neufeld and Gregory Rogove |
| 06.05.12 | Vancouver, CA | Western Front with Sarah Neufeld and Gregory Rogove |
Between more dates on the road with Bon Iver, Colin Stetson will head out early this March for some solo shows in the northeastern USA and Ontario. See below for dates, and a stream of Those Who Didn't Run EP, Colin's latest (info here).
| DD/MM/YY | PLACE | VENUE |
|---|---|---|
| 23.03.12 | Durham, US | Motorco Music Hall with Tyondai Braxton |
| 30.03.12 | Kingston, CAN | The Grad Club with Sarah Neufeld |
| 31.03.12 | Waterloo, CAN | Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics with Sarah Neufeld |
| 01.04.12 | Buffalo, USA | Big Orbit's Soundlab with Sarah Neufeld |
| 03.04.12 | Brooklyn, USA | Glasslands Gallery with Sarah Neufeld |
| 04.04.12 | Amherst, USA | Hampshire College |
| 05.04.12 | Troy, USA | Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) with Tyshawn Sorey and Sarah Neufeld |
There's really not much we can tell you about Colin Stetson at this point. Between non-stop touring, on his own and as part of Bon Iver's lauded live band, and the release of two absolutely stunning records in February and October - New History Warfare Vol 2: Judges is showing up on year-end lists at Pitchfork, Tiny Mix Tapes, Prefix, Exclaim, and Drowned in Sound - the man owned 2011. He's decided to finish it off with a video for "Those who didn't run," the title track from his newest EP, directed by Isaac Hale. It was premiered this morning by Interview magazine. Check it out below:
WATCH VIDEO HERE.
Get more info on Those Who Didn't Run EP here and New History Warfare, Vol 2 here, if you haven't already.
Following a fantastic year, which included the release of the critically-acclaimed New History Warfare, Vol. 2 and October's vinyl-only EP Those Who Didn't Run, Colin Stetson will head to Europe in November for a handful of shows in Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and France. See below for dates, and streaming audio of the new 10", or check our tours page.
| DD/MM/YY | PLACE | VENUE |
|---|---|---|
| 27.11.11 | Linz, AT | Stop.Spot! Festival |
| 28.11.11 | Brussels, BE | Ancienne Belgique VZW |
| 30.11.11 | Nijmegen, NL | Doornroosje |
| 01.12.11 | Amsterdam, NL | Bimhuis |
| 02.12.11 | Rennes, FR | Les Transmusicales |
CBC Radio program The Signal recorded the final show of Colin Stetson's recent end-of-summer mini-tour at Montreal's Il Motore on September 2nd. It was an awesome performance to a capacity crowd, and while the CBC recording has a somewhat different sonic texture relative to how insanely intense it sounded in the room, this is a really solid document. First part of the concert will be broadcast on The Signal at 10:48PM tonight, Friday September 16th on CBC Radio 2 and the entire performance is already online at CBC's Concerts on Demand here.
With the presentation of the Polaris Prize a week away, our dear Mr. Stetson has been getting a lot of attention lately. If you haven't heard what all the fuss is about, check out these recent live videos that have gone up online in the past week or so - a pair of videos shot in July by Dan Huiting, posted at Pitchfork; and another by Mitch Fillion, shot in Toronto last Month, at Southern Souls.
Colin's New History Warfare, Vol. 2 LP is available here, and his forthcoming Those Who Didn't Run EP is available for pre-order here (release date October 4).
Colin Stetson "The Stars In His Head (Dark Lights Remix)" from Isaac Gale on Vimeo
Pitchfork premiered the new video for Colin Stetson's "The stars in his head (Dark Lights Remix)," from New History Warfare, Vol. 2. It's directed by Isaac Gale and Dan Huiting (Huiting is also co-responsible for the Bon Iver "Calgary" video, whose band Stetson is currently touring in). Their Stetson vid is rather creepy. We love it.
UPDATE: Since Pfork's re-design the link to their video premiere is broke. We're now embedding this directly from Isaac Gale's Vimeo.
Also be sure to check out Colin's forthcoming Those Who Didn't Run EP, due October 4.
We're thrilled to announce our fall release schedule - magnificent new records from Siskiyou, Evangelista, Colin Stetson and Sandro Perri. All are available now for pre-order. See below for release page links and audio samples.
CST082 - EVANGELISTA, In Animal Tongue
180g LP / CD / DL • release date: 20 September 2011
MP3: "Artificial Lamb"
CST083 - SISKIYOU, Keep Away the Dead
180g LP / CD / DL • release date: 4 October 2011
MP3: "Twigs and Stones"
CST084 - COLIN STETSON, Those Who Didn't Run
10" / DL • release date: 4 October 2011
Visit release page for streaming audio sample.
CST085 - SANDRO PERRI, Impossible Spaces
180g LP / CD / DL • release date: 18 October 2011
MP3: "Love and Light"
Colin Stetson has made it onto the 10-album shortlist for the Polaris Music Prize, a Canadian initiative honouring "artistic integrity, without regard to musical genre, professional affiliation, or sales history." Pretty sweet. Check out the rest of the list here.
We've remodeled our website a bit (perhaps you've noticed). Among the changes is a new video interface on our Audio/Video page, onto which we've loaded a few (mostly) new videos of Eric Chenaux, Esmerine, Siskiyou, Khora and Colin Stetson.
We highly recommend you check them all out here, starting with Eric Cazdyn's gorgeous treatment of "Warm Charleston" by Eric Chenaux, also below:
Yes, it's June, and yes, Suoni Per Il Popolo has started again, and we're excited/overwhelmed as usual. Among the long list of truly amazing shows at this year's festival, consider checking out some of the following:
KHÔRA + NICK KUEPFER + SILENT LAND TIME MACHINE
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June 10 • Casa del Popolo • $9 • FACEBOOK
2/3 of the first installment of Musique Fragile kick off a month-long tour with Silent Land Time Machine, from Austin. Download MP3's below and check out video of a Khôra performance in Toronto.
KHÔRA - "Body Aperture"
NICK KUEPFER - "Corpse in the Wildflowers"
Khôra (Live 11/19/10) from The Momo Art Law on Vimeo.
COLIN STETSON + HANGEDUP
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June 17 • Sala Rossa • $12 • FACEBOOK
People keep saying Colin and his saxophone are "a force of nature"; Said the Gramophone said his new LP is "like being struck by a comet." It's all true.
Hangedup returned this past winter from a long hibernation, having lost none of the power that gave us all such beautiful, beautiful headaches in the early 2000's. Drums and viola and all kinds of heavy. MP3's and video below.
COLIN STETSON - "The stars in his head (Dark Lights Remix)"
HANGEDUP - "Klang Klang"
Colin Stetson: The stars in his head (Dark Lights Remix) from Constellation Records on Vimeo.
ERIC CHENAUX + DEAD RAT ORCHESTRA + Ô PAON
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June 20 • Casa del Popolo • $11
Eric Chenaux, our beloved Torontonian guitar sage - whose Warm Weather with Ryan Driver was described as a "quiet victory of subtlety and refined musicianship" by Line of Best Fit - returns to Montreal with a pile of friends and some truly breathtaking tunes. Check out a gorgeous new video for Eric's "Warm Charleston" below.
ERIC CHENAUX - "Warm Charleston"
ERIC CHENAUX - "Old Peculiar"
Warm Charleston - Eric Chenaux from Constellation Records on Vimeo.
The full calendar, with links to buy tickets online, is right here. Tickets can also be purchased in Montreal at L'Oblique, Phonopolis and Cheap Thrills.
La Blogothèque has posted a couple of gorgeous videos of Colin Stetson playing in his Montreal apartment, shot by Derek Belcham.
Colin performs a bunch of stuff from his New History Warfare Vo.l 2: Judges album.
Colin Stetson | Awake on Foreign Shores & Judges | A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.
Colin Stetson | Red Horse (Judge II) & In love and in Justice | A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.
If you have not already been smacked with our splash page on this...
The Colin Stetson album has dropped.
We are officially short-handing it as Judges but let it be known:
New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges is now available.
If you want to see that splash page (or see it again - because it is full of enticing quotes in praise of the record and enticing links for buying it) it is here.
The whole album is streaming for a limited time on Spinner.
There are free MP3s:
"The stars in his head (Dark Lights Remix)" on our site.
(and at Altered Zones who premiered it a while back)
"Fear of the unknown and the blazing sun" over at Pitchfork.
And Stetson has new live dates we'll be announcing real soon – maybe even later today.
A tremendous live performer with a tremendous new album under his belt.
Some great Q&As with Colin Stetson on Alarm Press, Paste, and Pitchfork.
Colin offers truly interesting insight into his technique and trajectory, and the process surrounding the recording of his incredible New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges album, in single takes, with no overdubs or looping technologies. Hearing the record will make clear how crazy and significant and fact this is!
From PITCHFORK RISING:
"On the surface, Colin Stetson's second album, New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges, is a solo saxophone record. But across the LP, he turns the instrument into its own weirdo one-man band, using pad-hitting sounds as percussion and even singing through the horn while he's playing quick-trigger figures. It's disorienting and engrossing, somewhere between Ornette Coleman and Tom Waits (with whom Stetson has collaborated).
But the album seems even more unusual once you learn Stetson performed almost the whole thing by himself without overdubs or loops, with many songs nailed on their first recorded take. It's not just an artistic feat but a physical one as well."
As a testament to Colin Stetson's genre-busting aesthetics and general awesomeness-slash-intensity, there are some emphatic recommendations coming today from erudite masters of the non-commercialised blogosphere Said The Gramophone along with leading purveyors of internet jazz publishing All About Jazz.
Of course Said The Gramophone offers a poetry, sincerity and enthusiasm quotient in a league of their own.
"It is the most exciting and devastating record that I have heard in seasons; it is a roaring, terrible sadness. Judges sounds like nothing else. It is like being struck by a comet." - Said The Gramophone
But also nice to see a review on the overtly jazz side of the fence that appreciates how Stetson is hitting things out of the park.
"First question, how does he do this? Stetson is a one-man band, maybe even a one-man studio...with this second volume he has enlarged and strengthened his palate. Pure revelation." - All About Jazz
Recently published at the very fine Alarm Press...
Great interview with Colin Stetson that offers some real insight into what he does and how he does it.
And a re-print of a Vic Chesnutt feature published in issue 37 last year is now online – interviewed shortly before he died; retrospectively heartbreaking.
It's good to know that after the musical apocalypse someone around here can actually play a real instrument.
We think what they may mean is after the real apocalypse, when there is no power for electrical instruments, apps, etc. But fair enough - Stetson does pretty much transform the definition of the "one-man band" from something circus-like and almost inherently comedic (if not cringeworthy) to a mind-blowingly powerful, truly virtuosic channeling of solitude into ecstatic, physical, musical sound. No bells strapped to these feet.
Altered Zones is featuring a track from Stetson's forthcoming New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges album today, and it is fully downloadable MP3 action.
"The Stars In His Head (Dark Lights Remix)" is not your traditional remix. No computers, samplers or drum machines involved. This is Coliin re-interpreting the Bell Orchestre song "Dark Lights" using just the heart, lungs, vocal chords and a horn.
Get the MP3 here.
Tim Hecker will join Colin Stetson for a stellar double bill in Montreal and Quebec City in early February as both artists celebrate the release of new albums.
Hecker remixed a song from Stetson's previous solo album, which is due out some time this year on 12" courtesy Agoo Records. Hecker has a new full-length of his own hitting the streets in mid-February.
No word on whether Colin and Tim will meld sounds at the shows, but these are sure to be ear-melting evenings either way.
COLIN STETSON + TIM HECKER
05 FEB Quebec City @ Le Cercle
10 FEB Montreal @ Sala Rossa
Online ticket link for Montreal show at our town's finest indie promoters Blue Skies Turn Black.
See the Montreal poster below.
Colin Stetson is one of Time Out New York's five artists to watch in 2011.
"The Laurie Anderson cameos on Colin Stetson’s forthcoming record, New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges, only serve to underscore how little he needs the help. To get a sense of the saxophonist’s self-sufficiency, think of him as a nonsinging singer-songwriter. His command of circular breathing and multiphonics will prick up the ears of any experimental-improv buff, but Stetson’s real coup is the alchemical way he channels these raw materials into fully outfitted tunes—the kind that loop in your head involuntarily. Don’t be surprised if Anderson crashes Stetson’s February 3 gig at the Stone; on the other hand, don’t fret if she can’t make it out." - Time Out New York (Jan 13-19, 2011)
An amazing track from an amazing album - click the tab above and go listen.
Also check out the extremely sweet screenprinted poster that comes with every copy of the deluxe vinyl edition of the new record. Hot off the presses, printed on black Riblaid paper in red and white inks, 11"x23". Picture after the jump...
We are highly pleased to announce the forthcoming album New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges by Colin Stetson, which is scheduled for release on 22 February 2011.
Read all about it here.
And have a listen to "The righteous wrath of an honorable man" below - this cut is from the full-length, and also features on the A-Side of a lovely screenprinted 7" we did with Colin last month which he has been selling in concert and is now available strictly through our webshop for the next couple of weeks.
The righteous wrath of an honorable man by Colin Stetson
Colin Stetson will amaze and astound with his solo horn styles as he gathers steam ahead of the release of his new album on 22 February 2011.
Stetson opens for Godspeed You! Black Emperor during the second half of GY!BE's Europe tour in late January then returns for two very special NYC dates (at The Stone and The New Museum) along with album launch shows in Montreal and Quebec City, all in the first half of February.
More dates to be announced in the new year.
COLIN STETSON LIVE DATES
| DD/MM/YY | PLACE | VENUE | |
| 25.01.2011 | Wien | AT * | Arena |
| 26.01.2011 | Bologna | IT * | Estragon |
| 27.01.2011 | Trezzo sull'Adda (Milano) | IT * | Live Club |
| 28.01.2011 | Marseille | FR * | Espace Julien |
| 29.01.2011 | Barcelona | ES * | Apolo |
| 30.01.2011 | Madrid | ES * | Joy Eslava |
| 01.02.2011 | Toulouse | FR * | Le Bikini |
| 03.02.2011 | NYC | USA | The Stone |
| 05.02.2011 | Quebec City | CAN | Le Cercle |
| 10.02.2011 | Montreal | CAN | La Sala Rossa |
| 17.02.2011 | NYC | USA | The New Museum |
* with Godspeed You! Black Emperor
| DD/MM/YY | PLACE | VENUE |
|---|---|---|
| 02.05.13 | Quebec, QC | Le Cercle w/ Sarah Neufeld |
| 03.05.13 | Montreal, QC | La Sala Rossa w/ Sarah Neufeld |
| 04.05.13 | Montreal, QC | La Sala Rossa w/ Saltland |
| 07.05.13 | Burlington, VT | Burlington City Arts Center w/ Sarah Neufeld |
| 08.05.13 | New York, NY | Le Poisson Rouge w/ Rafiq Bhatia |
| 09.05.13 | Boston, MA | Museum of Fine Arts w/ Sarah Neufeld |
| 10.05.13 | Philadelphia, PA | World Cafe Live w/ Sarah Neufeld |
| 11.05.13 | Pittsburgh, PA | Andy Warhol Museum w/ Sarah Neufeld |
| 14.05.13 | Cincinnati, OH | Contemporary Arts Center w/ Sarah Neufeld |
| 16.05.13 | Chicago, IL | Schubas w/ Justin Walter |
| 17.05.13 | Ann Arbor, MI | The Blind Pig w/ Justin Walter |
| 19.05.13 | Toronto, ON | The Great Hall |
| 19.06.13 | Calgary, AB | Sled Island Festival |
| 20.06.13 | Portland, OR | Mississippi Studios |
| 21.06.13 | Seattle, WA | Barboza |
| 22.06.13 | Vancouver, BC | Ironworks - Vancouver Jazz Fest |
| 23.06.13 | Vancouver, BC | Venue - Vancouver Jazz Festival |
| 26.06.13 | San Francisco, CA | The Chapel |
| 27.06.13 | Los Angeles, CA | Bootleg Theater |
| 29.06.13 | Honolulu, HI | Honolulu Museum of Art |
| 26.07.13 | Guelph, ON | Hillside Festival |
| 02.08.13 | Sackville, NB | SappyFest |
photo by Robert Nethery, 2013
photo by Robert Nethery, 2013
photo by Robert Nethery, 2013
photo by Scott Irvine, 2013
Bass #1 - Keith Klenowski
Seated w/Bass - Scott Irvine
Head Shorn Shot - Scott Irvine
Bass Close-up - Keith Klenowski
Tenor - Keith Klenowski
Clarinet - Keith Klenowski
The Birds & The Beast - Scott Irvine
Seated w/Bass & Table - Scott Irvine
Leaning - Scott Irvine
New History Warfare Vol. 3:
To See More Light
Colin Stetson CD / 2x180gLP / DL
Colin Stetson - In Mirrors + And In Truth
Colin Stetson "The End Of Your Suffering" (Live)
Colin Stetson "The stars in his head (Dark Lights Remix)"
Colin Stetson "The Stars In His Head (Dark Lights Remix)"
Colin Stetson - Part of Me Apart from You
Colin Stetson - Judges
Colin Stetson | Red Horse (Judge II) & In love and in Justice | A Take Away Show
Colin Stetson | Awake on Foreign Shores & Judges | A Take Away Show
ALBUM TRACKS
- High Above A Grey Green Sea
New History Warfare Vol. 3:
To See More Light - The stars in his head (Dark Lights Remix)
New History Warfare Vol.2: Judges
Five Essential Albums feature at ChartAttack
NHW Vol. 3 announcement at Pitchfork
In The Studio interview feature at SPIN
Interview at The Grid TO
Feature in NOW Toronto
Interview feature at The Quietus
New live recordings at Daytrotter
Globe and Mail feature
Montreal Gazette feature
Pitchfork review of New History Warfare, Vol. 2
Interview at Paste
Pitchfork 'Rising' feature
NHW Vol. 3 announcement at Pitchfork
In The Studio interview feature at SPIN
Interview at The Grid TO
Feature in NOW Toronto
Interview feature at The Quietus
New live recordings at Daytrotter
Globe and Mail feature
Montreal Gazette feature
Pitchfork review of New History Warfare, Vol. 2
Interview at Paste
Pitchfork 'Rising' feature
 | New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More LightColin Stetson CD / 2x180gLP / DL |
CST092
 | Those Who Didn't RunColin Stetson 10" / DL |
CST084
 | New History Warfare Vol.2: JudgesColin Stetson CD / 180gLP / DL |
CST075
 | Righteous Wrath 7"Colin Stetson 7" / DL |
CST073
...
