'Catherine Market' On Cassette

Jonathan Byerley - Catherine Market

This is our very first cassette release. The process is all analog. Songs tracked to tape, mixed on tape, and released on tape.  Byerley has created a gem, a forgotten key to the long-locked bungalows of Laurel Canyon circa 1969. This is one of our favorite forms of song-craft and word-smithery. It's familiar but fresh, classic yet abstract.   Order it here.

"Up until now both Byerley’s group and solo efforts have been well-kept secrets, but the release of this LP (also available on cassette) might change that. Regardless of the inevitable critical accolades and potentially lucrative sales receipts, Catherine Market builds upon a body of work that is exquisitely crafted and refreshingly original."

-SSG MUSIC

"Catherine Market is a truly rich sounding record.....as heavy, durable and authentic as an old leather wallet.." -BowlegsMusicReview.com

Autumn Favorites - Jonathan Byerley (Plates Of Cake), David Kresge (Goodnight Stars Goodnight Air), Jay Hudak (An Albatross / Mystical Wizard Business)

Delaware Water Gap, PA 2011

As the leaves turn color in Pennsylvania, we've been speaking with our friends and compadres from around the globe. We like to share what keeps them motivated, what makes them tick, what nostalgia is triggered by the changing season.  Music, food, films, yoga positions, home remedies; all of the great condiments of life.  


This is our last installment of 2011 Fall Faves. The trees here are bare, and we're in the final days of autumn. We caught up with three of our favorite artists and asked them to join us in the conversation. Jonathan Byerley of Brooklyn's Plates Of Cake shares with us a superb playlist with a hint of autumn twang. We've also been spinning his excellent solo material around here non stop. Our long-time friend, associate, and musical collaborateur Jay Hudak (of An Albatross) has been kind enough to share his favorite soup recipe with us. It's good, too...you should try it.  David Kresge is Goodnight Stars Goodnight Air, you've heard his atmospheric and ethereal work with Dragon Turtle and Soars. Now you can hear some of his own influences....enjoy.

Jonathan Byerley

Jonathan Byerley / Plates Of Cake:

Mother Hen – Mother Hen (RCA, 1971) 

This is my ultimate fall album, probably because the songs on it hold my hand all through winter. Knowing nothing about this artist, I found this record in a used bin and bought it on account of the session players (Clarence White and Sneeky Pete are all over it). The first time I played it I was floored. Who the hell is this woman? I asked. Brilliant lyrics, funky voice. Songs for being away from home and coming home again. Turns out the woman is Jane Getz, a career jazz pianist who has played with the likes of Charles Mingus. But she made two country records for RCA in the seventies under the name Mother Hen. This is the first. Jane Getz on AllMusic.com

The Impressions – This is my Country (Curtom Records, 1968)

Gone Away

For reasons I can’t explain, there is a direct correlation in my mind between the Zombies’ Odyssey and Oracle and the Impressions’This is my Country. Probably it’s because for years the Zombies were my go-to when the leaves started to change, but eventually they had to make room for Curtis and co. Because despite the soul, funk, and the context of urban and civil blight present on this LP, I hear this strangely pastoral, melancholic, even autumnal vibe to these tunes. (Listen to Love’s Happening and hopefully you’ll see what I mean). I like this album so much that when I got married this fall, I begged my wife to let me play The Impressions during the recessional. She said no. Understandable. Lyrics like “Every brother is a leader/ Every sister is a breeder” just don’t go over as well today.

The Pretty Things – Emotions (Fontana, 1967)

Death Of A Socialite

Apparently, The Pretty Things hated this record. I think it’s brilliant. With orchestral arrangements that don’t spare on strings and horns, it is certainly an anomaly for this band. On the heels of their balls-out, skuzzed-out, two-chord garage rock, but before their psychedelic masterpiece S.F. Sorrow, these guys were definitely the unlikeliest bunch of hoodlums to make a chamber pop record. But here it is.


Marianne Faithfull – Go Away from my World (London, 1965)

Go Away From My World

This is pre-hip, pre-drug, pre-punk Marianne Faithfull, back when she was an aspiring starlet still under Andrew Loog Oldham’s thumb. This album doesn’t get talked about much. I think it’s generally considered unexceptional, standard sixties fare for the dollar bin, from back when every singer would crank out versions of Yesterday and Scarborough Fair. That’s a shame cause this one is a real hidden gem. For every banal cover on it, there are two more superb arrangements of folk classics – Wild Mountain Thyme, Mary Ann, Sally Free and Easy, North Country Maid, and more. Ok, it might be a little sentimental but hell, it is autumn right?

Michael Nesmith and the First National Band – Loose Salute (RCA, 1970) 

Silver Moon

A lot of guys are credited with being one of the “pioneers” of country-rock, and a lot them really were. But for my money I’ll take Gene Clark and Michael Nesmith over just about any other. Loose Salute is the second in a trilogy of killer albums by Nesmith’s first post-Monkees project. The pedal steel of Red Rhodes alone is worth finding these titles at your local record store. This is what I’ve been spinning most this fall.

A Serious Game Of Jenga

Jay Hudak / 

An Albatross, Mystical Wizard Business:

Pink Floyd- Darkside Of The Moon  (Early Alan Parsons mix)The mere mention of Darkside' usually brings immediate reaction to music lovers and Floyd heads around the globe. Of course, the album that you have heard a million times is the number one stereotypical college stoner album that brings together the freaks and the geeks bonding alongside the athletes and science majors. On the other hand, its heralded as one of the greatest albums ever. Upon listening to the mix, (not to be confused with Alan Parson's Quad Mix also included on the 2011 DSOTM Immersion box set), the potentials of a great album become even more apparent. The nuances of a less commercially viable picture comes to the surface in all its stunning glory, tape hiss included. To hear this at its early tackle at mix of a multilayered album with no indication of its eventual legacy, is thrilling. This album allows me to work harder at creating the idea of a timeless album and warms the souls of the contemplative broken hearted on a chilly fall evening. Imagine the tree lined leaf imprinted streets and walking alone hidden under a warm hat and headphones. Us and Them. This whispered in my ear to be included in my top 5.

Comus- First Utterance  1971 Dawn RecordsI was turned on to this British progressive folk group, Comus a few years ago while on tour in England. I was crashing down in a flat after a riotus show in Coventry that ended in a full on street brawl between patrons of the show and skinheads who were ready to kill us. Around 5 am, I found my spot on the floor admist the sun up boozing going on to the tune of this dark chilling album. Immediately I wasn't tired and listened to the masterpiece that is First Utterance from start to finish. This time-warping, pagan acid taking album was given to me as a gift from my mate Rob after I suggested he give me his only scratched cdr copy. A one in a million chance that this long forgotten band would reunite, but after years of internet cult mythology, notable high praise and highly expensive sought after copies of this album, the unthinkable happened. In 2008, after nearly 40 years of inactivity, the group reformed and are currently working on new material. "The Herald" is in my top 5 of favorite songs ever and maybe my perfect fall song. I am doing my best to make sure this band finally comes to the USA, and believe it or not, they sound BETTER than before.  Compare the two clips from '71 and 2008. Amen.

Cream of Grilled Vegetable Soup

Yes, other than my commitment to the music machine, I am a total foodie and I am obsessive with ingredients and the process of congealing for perfection in flavor. Allow me to share a simple hearty heart warming soup recipe for the fall. I am giving you the basics. As with anything, mix and match and go for it until its "yours", then invite me over. I make this annually with the last gasp of fresh produce before the frost comes.

Having Soup

Ingredients:
1 Butternut Squash
1 small Zucchini
1  medium Eggplant
1 or 2 Red Peppers
1 Yellow Pepper
1 Jalapeno-seeded (optional)
1 Onion
3 Garlic cloves
1 Lemon
1 Can of Vegetable stock
Sunflower Oil
1 small carton of heavy cream or half and half

Spices:
Nutritional Yeast(found in health food stores, optional), Coriander, Garam Masala,Sea Salt, Pepper,Smoked Paprika,Cumin, onion powder

You will need a Grill, Food processor and a pot to cook on the stove.

Prep Time: Two hours. First, cut all vegetables with exception of garlic cloves and lemon into rounds.Remove skin of butternut squash, seeds and pulp. Leave all peppers whole and slit holes into them for roasting. Finely cut the garlic cloves with a straight razor or weapon of choice and stuff them in the slits in the peppers then roll in oil and put aside.

Secondly, get a large bowl to combine all vegetables and coat with enough sunflower oil to prepare them for the grill. An oven will be fine if no grill, but grilling will bring out the full charred wonderous flavors of the soup. Next add spices. It really is up to you to determine amounts. I would estimate at least 2 -3 teaspoons of each with the exception of Nutritional Yeast which we will get to later. I always go for more though. For the lemon, cut in half and squeeze the juice into the bowl minus seeds and stir all ingredients together.

Third, Fire up the Grill to 450. Add the coated vegetables to the grill, turning them so they start to break down and turn black with char grilled marks. The butternut squash will take the longest to cook. Its important that the squash gets very soft. Add peppers to the grill and allow them to blister and turn black so the skin can be removed.  Once all vegetables are grilled, remove and set aside. Its optional to put them in the fridge over night to solidify the tastes.  If not, add all ingredients including a small handful of washed fresh cilantro and or/basil, and the skinned roasted peppers to a food processor and blend continually until smooth. When working with the mixture, add water or even a little vegetable stock slowly while processing so it doesn't get too thick.

Finally, add the mixture to a pot with a can of vegetable stock and simmer on the stove until it starts to boil and break down. Consistency is up to you if you would like a thick or thinner soup. Then whisk in carton of heavy cream, a shake of nutritional yeast, and taste. Don't allow the soup to boil after adding cream. Alter to you taste buds.

Immediately serve in bowls with homemade croutons, a hearty beer or serious Kombucha (see below), share with good friends or a lover and enjoy your fall evening.

Melt-Banana Live

I am honored to have had the pleasure to tour the USA with Melt-Banana, one of favorites from Japan. In my eyes, they do no wrong and never get old.Totally animated like living electric cartoons, completely opening the doors of their own perceptions and trailblazing years ahead of mundane hardcore. I shot this video on Halloween in Philadelphia. Highlight of the Fall of 2011 thus far. See it through my eyes. 

Kombucha

It is almost impossible for me to function on dreary and cold days without this magical potion.

The company GT makes the most potent and widely available Kombucha which is a live natural energy drink made from tea and fermented mushroom cultures. Believe it or not if it works but I have no doubts. This is the perfect wake up and alert antidote for long drives, cold days and long recording sessions. After being pulled from the shelves for awhile, it's finally back and still tasty. Brew your own batch to drink after the comedown of autumns' graces of too much hard cider.

David Kresge

 David Kresge / Goodnight Stars Goodnight Air

Total Control - Henge Beat (LP, Iron Lung 2011)
Real urgent young Australian post punk burners that move between various sounds, recalling Warsaw / early Joy Division, Pink Flag era Wire, Ultravox, Swell Maps, MC5, Suicide.  On paper, those disparate vibes may not make too much sense until you hear the way the release is sequenced.  It's hard to not listen to this record, especially in the car.  Be prepared to get lost or get a speeding ticket.  They're on tour now.



400 Blows - Sickness and Health (LP, Org Music 2011)
Former Big Business and a Circle Jerk move away from previous semi-ineffectual late 90's early aughts noise rock to peel off some seriously brutal jams in this latest comeback record.  This is heavy metal in the best possible way, without irony, the way metal used to move me when i was a kid.  No bullshit, snotty and pissed, lots of black humor, memorable song writing, and hits you like a brick.  All without requiring a bass player.  I can't tell you the last time i listened to a record over and over and over again.  Do not miss their live show, the drummer's skills will shame you.

Battles - Gloss Drop (LP, Warp 2011) 

What is there to say?  They are all pretty mind-bogglingly awesome musicians (I was a devoted Don Cab and Helmet fan) but during the recording of this, they lost the hugely influential Ty Braxton.  They could have said fuck it and quit or cobbled together a disjointed pile of thin tracks, but they regrouped and created one of the finest modern day prog rock records I have ever heard.  Hugely expansive in sound and scope, deep and layered, this totally blows away Mirrored.  But more than that, it's fun and engaging and works on a lot of different levels... if you love weed and 70's krautrock, you'll dig it.  If you have a triangle tattoo and only leave your house for sweaty dance parties, you'll dig it.  Totally stupid-good, boundary pushing, and forward thinking.

Kill All Redneck Pricks: A Documentary Film about a Band Called KARP (Bill Badgley, 2011)

Brand new movie that chronicles the joys and tragedies of this cult, but much loved, heavy punk band.  It's a biography of three friends, just trying to escape their mundane lives.  The movie is touring now and if you're in eastern PA, I've booked it at Secret Art Space, Bethlehem for this event (or email me for information).

From The Back Of The Room (Amy Oden, 2011)

Chronicling the history of women in punk and modern DIY movements, this is so much more than just Riot Grrrl.  Totally inspirational and moving, the DC based film maker intersects race, gender, class, and activism in really thoughtful ways and interviews 30+ women ages 17 to 40, from all over the US.  I'm showing this film at Secret Art Space as well, Dec 8th (email me for information). info

Autumn Favorites - Daniel Knox and Arc In Round

As the leaves turn color in Pennsylvania, we've been speaking with our friends and compadres from around the globe. We like to share what keeps them motivated, what makes them tick, what nostalgia is triggered by the changing season.  Music, food, films, yoga positions, home remedies; all of the great condiments of life.  

For our sixth fall '11 installment, we caught up with our very own Daniel Knox, as well as Mikele Edwards & Jeff Zeigler from Philadelphia's finest progressive ensemble, Arc In Round.

Daniel Knox:


Balanesqu Quartet - 
Angels & Insects Waltz
From the score to Angels & Insects. I saw this movie when I was 15. It played at the Fox Theatre which was where Keresotes dumped art films distributors forced them to play. It didnt play long and though I liked the film enough, I basically saw it evry day of it's week run so I could listen to the score, which wasn't available at any of Springfield's poor music store offerings. 

Al Jolson - Blue River
This song is perfect for October but maybe just to me. That banjo line that starts it off is really dark and sets a tone. But what's important to me most about this song is how I sort of perfectly misheard it. I was sort of disappointed when I read the actual lyrics and continue to sing my version whenever I sing along.

Frank Sinatra - September Of My Years
I used to hate Sinatra and I still dislike most of his early and very late material. But this album finds him at his peak singing about loss and old age. I bought it because I'd heard "It Was A Very Good Year" at the end of a Soprano's episode and because I always admired Harold Arlen's "Last Night When We Were Young" but I quickly grew tired of the former and wasn't impressed much with the latter. This opening track made me understand why people revere Sinatra so much. His voice is starting to age and crack a little but that only elevates the material. I drove around listening to it in my employer's truck delivering calendars trying to imitate his phrasing when he gets to that second "a-aaand I find . . ." which is just perfect. It's one of those songs always I wish I could cover but then there's something distasteful about a young person singing world-weary stuff like this.

Falling / Twin Peaks Theme - Angelo Badalamenti
I think I associate this with autumn because that's probably when I became obsessed with the series. And the song version is called "Falling". There's also that sort of orange-brown hue to the opening titles that feels like October/November.


October In The Railroad Earth - Jack Kerouac and Steve Allan
I sort of outgrew Kerouac's writing when I discovered better writers later on. But I still admire his method and his turn of phrase. His line readings are really terrific and almost a kind of singing, if you're able to try and unhear all the dismal slam-poetry style readings that have come after it. I like this one because it paints a really specific picture that tells a story while leaving room for you to find your own place in it, which is what most good songs do.

Mikele Edwards / Arc In Round:


Fall is my favorite season. It's the time of year when I feel the most alive and creative, and also the time when I yearn to be inspired. There aren't too many female musicians that really inspire me and when I do find them, I become somewhat obsessed. Here's a few female-fronted groups that have inspired me over the years and recently.

Stereolab [Fluorescences]
This band is why I got into analog synths. My sister and I bought a Moog and Farfisa in the fall of '95. I woke up early to play the Moog before high school and thought all day about playing it when I got home. I love that I can still listen to their records and hear something I've never heard the previous 100 times listening to a song. My all-time favorite band.

Broadcast [Ominous Cloud]

Even before the untimely passing of Trish Keenan, I was well aware of the importance and rarity of band like Broadcast. I fell in love with them after seeing them live for the first time. Trish's vocals were so powerful over the insanely well-orchestrated band. Broadcast will always remind me to push limits and expectations.

Bachelorette [Blanket]
This band is a newish discovery for me. This songs builds so well over a really simple drum machine beat and I love how Annabel's vocals feel distant yet inviting with gradually more and more layered harmonies. I can listen to this song over and over.

Anika [No One's There]
This is a band all of Arc In Round has become intrigued with recently. Dubbed out no wave with the perfect production by Geoff Barrow (Portishead/Beak>). And they killed it live!

Lush [For Love]
Sometime this past year I rediscovered Lush after not listening to them for like 15 years. I was surprised at how well their albums stood up after all these years. What can I say…classic 'shoegaze' and Miki is a badass.

Jeff Zeigler / Arc In Round:

Camberwell Now - Working Nights

My Favorite of This Heat offshoots, and one of my fave bands probably ever. I happened to find them in the fall, about 6 years ago. It's the aural equivalent of an old, intricate factory rotting in the English countryside or something to me. I'd imagine their rather limited recorded output will be the soundtrack to my falls and winters 4 eva.

Scott Walker - It's Raining Today
Paints a perfect dreary fall picture of love lost and a cold, resigned world. And the ominous string arrangement creates the perfect amount of dread.

Crescent - Sun
First track I ever heard by Crescent, and their most 
abrasive (and probably least representative) but it's the one that hooked me. The guitar solo at 3:31 is a total burner. 

Belle and Sebastian - Fox In The Snow
This band lost me after awhile, but "If You're Feeling Sinister" and "The Boy with the Arab Strap" are pretty perfect raggedy pop to me. I almost don't like to pick one song since the albums work so well as a whole and that's how I've always listened to them, but if I had to pick one song it'd be this one. 

Beige - Folds 
Great new band from NYC. Really smart contrast between the mostly vintage electronics and warm, melodic vocals. Really looking forward to seeing how they develop. 

Autumn Favorites - Lewis & Clarke and The Spinto Band's Nick Krill

Autumn Snow In Delaware Water Gap, Pennsylvania

As the leaves turn color in Pennsylvania, we've been speaking with our friends and compadres from around the globe. We like to share what keeps them motivated, what makes them tick, what nostalgia is triggered by the changing season.  Music, food, films, yoga positions, home remedies; all of the great condiments of life.  

For our fifth fall '11 installment, we caught up with producer-engineer-musician, and sound-collector extraordinaire, Nick Krill of the Spinto Band. He has also recorded and engineered a large part of  the new Lewis & Clarke record, who have contributed their autumnal musings as well. 

Nick Krill  / The Spinto Band:

For me, a lot of autumn is about preparation for winter. The weather starts getting colder…days shorter...trees barer...and all these things get me started preparing for the winter months. I think a lot of these preparations have to do with comfort…it gets cold…people spend more time indoors…people spend time inside coats, and inside sweaters. I guess people go in. For me all that going in is trying to move towards things that are comfortable. It is interesting that people are talking about nostalgia with autumn…it seems like comfort is a key part in all those nostalgic wistful memories. Anyhow, this preparation for winter and making sure I get comfortable seems to be the key to all my favorite things about autumn.

Blankets.
Last week it started getting cold and I pulled all my blankets out of storage. Our house is an old one...and hard to heat. For the most part we just keep the heat to the point where the pipes won’t burst and get by with sweaters and space heaters. But for me…the most important thing is my blankets. I have ten blankets on my bed right now…they stack up about five or six inches total. There are so many that there is a real weight to them…when I am in bed I have this thing pushing down on me…and pushing down around the sides of me...kind of like the weight of the blankets shrink-wrap me in the bed. This to me is the perfect autumn comfort.

Chilly-Bo-Dilly.
This is a word I say when I feel cold. I made it up about a year or two ago…and now I know it is autumn when I start saying “Chilly-Bo-Dilly” more frequently. I love this word, so it is exciting
when autumn rolls around and I have more excuses to say it. You should try saying it…it is fun. I like to put a string of them together sometimes like this, “Chilly-Bo-Dilly-Oh-Chilly-Bo-Dilly-Oh-Chilly-Bo-Dilly-Oh,” or “Chilly-Bo-Dilly-Yo-Chilly-Bo-Dilly-Yo-Chilly-Bo-Dilly-Yo.”


Penguin Café Orchestra.
This is a new addition to my autumn as I was just introduced to them about a month ago. I’m listening to their second album a lot right now. A lot of the songs have a nice repetitive musical line that strings throughout them. The repetition kind of can be hypnotic…and comfortable…. it kind of lulls you into listening…good for autumn if you ask me.


The smell of fireplaces.
This is the time of year when people start putting fires in their fireplaces. The smell of a fire in a fireplace is one of my favorite smells. Case closed.


Soup.
As I said before…we keep our house on the cold side, so any excuse to turn on a source of heat is exciting. I love putting a giant pot on the stove...filling it with whatever I can find in the refrigerator and cooking a soup real slow. I just stand around the stove and listen to the radio. I throw ingredients in one at a time…with long spaces in between…this give me more of an excuse to hover around the stove.

Lou Rogai / Lewis & Clarke:

I appreciate all seasons and the subtle change that occurs as one coalesces into the next. This can be seen and felt in many ways. If you love music, it can be a rich sense-memory and soundtrack for these experiences.

Delaware Water Gap is a beautiful place to be in the fall, the hills are ablaze with color, and the drop in humidity gives the atmosphere a crystal-clear quality.

But enough about the weather, here are some songs that remind me of fall. Of course to be listened to while doing fall-type things and enjoying nature, wherever you may be.

Sandy Bull - Memphis, Tennessee

This is a track from his Inventions album. Reverb mornings of autumn days dripping echoes of reds and oranges. This LP was played in our house on Saturdays when I was a kid. Now I play it on Saturdays, as well as other days in other seasons. 

Unwound - October All Over

I purchased the Leaves Turn Inside You album a decade ago on Sept 14th 2001. I remember that date because it was in Philadelphia three days after 9/11 and the vibe was tense. Mecca Normal opened the show. It was Unwound's last tour and the last album they made together. It was an important and significant album that fall (for obvious reasons) and many others to come, as leaves turn inside all of us.

Van Morrison - It's All Over Now (Baby Blue)

Van does Dylan as Jagger. You can't beat this unique kaleidoscopic arrangement. It's all mood, romance, sun flare, and falling leaves. 

Rachel's - Water From The Same Source

From the Systems / Layers album. It was October and I had this on my headphones on tour in Amsterdam.  We had just heard the sad news of Elliot Smith's passing and the moment burned an impression into my memory. A couple of years later I would have the great pleasure & privilege of collaborating and touring with Eve Miller (cello).  This is my favorite piece of contemporary music, hands-down. Rachel's were pure. 

Hot Tuna - Water Song
The 'Burgers' album is one of Jorma & Jack's finest, in my opinion. In the fall of my senior year of high school, I had an after-school job helping a friend renovate an old farm house in a beautiful area now plagued by natural gas drilling. We'd crank this album (it was one of like 5 cds we had on the job) and burn on into the gorgeous twilight of the highlands. 

Ian O'Hara / Lewis & Clarke:

Phillip Glass' Fifth String Quartet (Performed by the Kronos Quartet)
The opening few measures, though not incredibly harmonically complex, are orchestrated in a way that they sound more intense. The first time I heard it I thought it was the most beautiful string harmonizations I have ever heard. The almost free introduction gives way to the arpeggiated cello figure with some haunting string harmony again on top of it in the violins. It is an exquisite piece of music and one of the most accessible pieces of classical quartet writing I have ever heard.

Brad Mehldau Trio - No Moon At All
One of my favorite jazz pianists and has been since I first heard him in the early 2000's. When I was first listening to this dude play the most striking thing initially was his technical facility. He was playing tons of shit with both hands and incorporating all sorts of styles of music including an almost classical counterpoint type of thing ( see his version of 'Martha My Dear'). However , this is one of my favorite standard tunes that doesn't get played as often as it should. This is a pretty straight version and all the technical bravado is out the door and the song and melody are served throughout with understated rhythmic support. Tasteful stuff by dudes that can shred like your favorite shirtless hair metal guitarist. The overall feeling of the tune, the minor motif etc. is very autumnal, it's catchy as well.


Bach - Partita 3 Loure (For Violin in E major)

I can't really describe why it relates to autumn but it is the most incredibly beautiful piece of music I think I have ever heard that was written for one instrument. Bach seems superhuman to me. The sadness of these piece seems to present a sort of autumnal feeling to me. Not to be all depressing but the fall seems to be the end of a life cycle.

   

The Beatles - Abbey Road

The first time I heard it was in a car in the fall and it is one of my favorite records ever. Almost every time I listen to it I hear something new in the recording, a tiny counter melody I never noticed, a shaker here and there. Each instrument was recorded the way I would want to record it. It's almost a perfect record. Of course the Beatles are the easy choice but they thought of everything. It is an immense work of popular music.

O'Hara Piano

The upright piano in my folks' living room was delivered to our home in Autumn when I was a high school student and my curiosity concerning music was beginning to smolder a bit. It was made by the Merrill Company of Boston,  Massachusetts. The company was eventually bought out by a larger piano manufacturing company in the 1920's and the Merrill name was no longer in existence by the 1930. That dates this particular piano as being manufactured in the 45 or so year span that the Merrill name was in existence(1885-1930 or so?). The ivory on the keys is chipping of here and there and there are some wooden parts that have come loose. It has a wonderful sound that is extremely mellow and almost melancholic.  It is also tuned a semitone low which may contribute to this melancholic quality. The general worn and sort of decaying nature of the sound of such an old instrument brings to mind the hollow sort of feeling that arrives with autumn. However, the piano has outlasted most of the human beings I have ever known so there is also the reminder that the falling leaves don't necessarily signify a death of any kind but a sort of dormant period before rebirth. Maybe that's too heavy,  it's just a piano in my parents living room. It has provided me with a wonderful array of shocking and important musical discoveries that otherwise may have never happened. 

Autumn Faves - WXPN's Fred Knittel & Judson Claiborne

As the leaves turn color in Pennsylvania, we've been speaking with our friends and compadres from around the globe. We like to share what keeps them motivated, what makes them tick, what nostalgia is triggered by the changing season.  Music, food, films, yoga positions, home remedies; all of the great condiments of life.  For our fourth fall '11 installment, we caught up with Fred Knittel & Judson Claiborne's Chris Salveter.



Fred Knittel


As host of WXPN's Folkadelphia show and proprietor of Be Frank Records,  it's an understatement to say Fred is a torch-bearer and enthusiast.  He's shared the following:


For me, autumn is a time for introspection, a time to turn inward, ponder, and slow down. As the leaves turn color and fall off the trees, I find myself revisiting certain films. It's something about their pacing, their themes, their cinematography, and the difficult questions they often raise about life that keep me coming back. Here are a few top movies of my Autumn:




Autumn Sonata (dir: Ingmar Bergman, 1978)
 It's Ingrid Bergman's last feature film and one of the last films directed by Ingmar Bergman. The rich earthy colors, the long shots (care of legendary cinematographer Sven Nykvist), and the musical centerpiece of Chopin's Preludes makes this a go-to Fall film for me.


Three Colors: Red (dir: Krzysztof Kieslowski, 1994)
The final chapter of Kieslowski's Three Colors trilogy (and his last film) features an amazing chemistry between the two leads Irène Jacob and Jean-Louis Trintignant. The mood of the movie just reminds me of Autumn, so I find myself watching it and thinking about it during these months. 


Days of Heaven (dir: Terrence Malick, 1978)
Seriously one of the most beautifully shot movies I've ever seen. As the weather gets colder and the nights come quicker, I imagine the landscapes and scenes that play out in 'Days of Heaven'.


My Night At Maud's (dir: Eric Rohmer, 1969)
Another one with Jean-Louis Trintignant (much younger, of course)! Jean-Louis plays a character who finds his strict moral code compromised by his brief relationship with the bold Maud. In my opinion, a perfect movie to reflect on and talk about during this time of year.


In the Mood for Love (dir: Wong Kar-wai, 2000): Wong Kar-wai is a master of all things visual. You can actually physically feel the longing between the two central characters; you see it in the slowed down scenes, the drifting cigarette smoke, and the significant glances. Without fail, I watch this movie every Fall. 

Relaxing in Delaware Water Gap, PA

Chris Salveter  / Judson Claiborne


When he's not on the road, Mr. Salveter is in Chicago making music and teaching yoga (we've heard demos of the new Judson Claiborne record, and we're excited).  He's taken some time to share with us his top five inspirations of this particular fall season:





The Music of Ted Lucas 
Folk dude from the 60's & 70's...An amazing writer who will remind you of how nice it is to get stoned.

Cambodian Grrl Self Publishing in Phnom Penh
Artist & Writer Anne Elizabeth Moore's brilliant account of her zine-making workshops for teenage girls in Cambodia. 

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Supported Bridge Pose) 
For back pain sufferers, the supported bridge pose offers a set of challenges to the body and mind that together provide an entryway into the benefits of having a yoga practice. Like most yoga poses, the supported bridge pose involves the entire body.

The Legend of Old Gregg
WTF?

Michael Zerang
One of the finest percussionists and improvisers I've ever heard & seen. So fortunate to be in the same town with this guy.