Hey!!
It is time for the GMR Back-to-School Sale!
Unfortunately, we have no school supplies to mark down. But we have some pretty nice and new(ish) stuff for ye.
First up, Mark Brunke’s epic and beautiful “The Mürderbirds”. Very new! Performed beautifully solo by Mark in an extended version at August’s GMR showcase (that’s him above), it is now available to all of you who attended or even those who were not available to attend. I am certain you will love it as much as I do.
Mark: “The Mürderbirds” was written during the pandemic, between 2020 and 2023. The guitar part is written out, but performed freely with regard to rhythm and other elements left up to the performer. The working title for this was “Isolation for Solo Guitar”. The guitar part is a repeating and changing pattern played 10 times over an 80 chord sequence, with a conclusion within the 8th sequence. The underlying chords are not played, but alluded to periodically, and instead the performer must integrate with an inconsistent pedal which may or may not work. Following the composed section, the final third is an exploration in sound upon the theme of “The Mürderbirds”, which is the coexistence of disparate elements in a harmony we have found.
Mark Brunke: guitar, effects pedals, drum programming, and keyboards. Written and recorded by Mark Brunke. Mastered by Tom Dyer.
In the continuing Strongbow legacy series, this month we bring you Insect Masque, the 4th Mystery School CD (of 7 or 8 releases, depending how you count). Here Jon and Marty are joined by some old and new friends to make one hour, nineteen minutes and 39 seconds of songs about bugs. All song titles feature some aspect of our six-legged friends.
Here’s an album cover excerpt from Jon: “Author’s Disclaimer: Insect Masque had its inceptions in the early 90’s, but I kept putting it on the back burner because the whole concept was so strange; composing a cycle of instrumental music that was making a dark, cynical & humorous connections between humans and insects! But the idea kept haunting me. I began to see blatant similarities between the two worlds. Here are some of the many ways humans resemble insects: Humans go around devouring everything in sight. Humans deceive and trick each other to get what they want, especially in the realms of food and sex. (I was particularly disturbed by a certain insect that simulates the mating call of another species, only to lure another horny, unsuspecting bug into its all-consuming mandibles!) As humans, we all wear masks, not only to disguise our real motives, and preserve our inner clarity.” (continued on cover).
I’ve been listening to all the quite-long (this one is 79:31!) Mystery School albums as I’ve posted them, usually for the very first time. I really like this one, in fact, it may be my favorite MS album thus far. Super solid grooving and some really great bass playing from Marty! He is tearing it up on “Dirge Of The Drone Workers”!
We also bring you Jon’s beautiful hardbound book Northwest Mystic Collage, with work by 15 PNW collage artists and text by Jon. 8 5/8″w x 11 1/4″h. 262 pages. Color images throughout. Limited Edition of 50 copies. Artists include: James Koehnline, Amy Candiotti, Sean Carlson, Phillip Page, Sarah Lakey, Anne Marie Grgish, Melanie Read, Michael Dowers, Collagemonauts, Marty Gordon, Craig Ven-den-Bosch, Tim Manthey, Deborah Fay Lawrence, Chad Yenney, Jesse Treece, Lisa Sheets, John Hundt, and Francesca Berrini. Strongbow text is loosely interspersed throughout. His brother Marc says Jon carefully supervised the print job to make certain the reproduction met his high standards. Pretty glorious. $70.
Meanwhile, in our ongoing Von Cube Saga, it is time for an album of solo guitar Grady Eddins tunes, titled What Used to Matter Doesn’t Matter Anymore. Got it? 10 songs, all live, no overdubs, all tasty, all Grady. Mr. Les Paul without the double-speed overdubs, or Mary Ford. What else do you need to know? Remarkable!
Oly Jazz #4! We are taking you in the wayback machine to 1981 for Obrador’s debut album, More Odd Jobs. In short – this album is refreshingly excellent – a bunch of young guys deep in their chops who probably don’t yet even know how good they are – the opening volley in a thirty year run for this band. They even feature the immortal saxophonist Bert Wilson on Michael Moore’s “Tierra De Ensueno”. This was pressed up on black vinyl back when and I asked the Obradorians to dig thru their basements – they have come up with 10 sealed copies for you to buy. $15 bucks for your piece of joyful Olympia sonic history and truth. Don’t hesitate.
Have a few things we are working on for next month. We shall see what ripens to fruition.
td
Aug 2023