A completely excellent afternoon with the Dennis Brennan Quartet on my lawn last Saturday. Was phenomenal to play live with humans again, especially these guys. Check out video from the show HERE.
Hello friends,
Today marks the release of our record, Ugly Beauty. The record is available for digital download via Bandcamp HERE. Feel free to listen; better yet, purchase the 14 track record and help support the music. We put a lotta love into this thing…
Releasing a record is supposed to be a time to celebrate the completion of a creative product, a time to share. We looked forward to playing this music live in front of people. Who knew when we recorded this last November, that so much in America and the world would unravel in the meantime. Now, by simply arriving at this time, this record takes on different and additional meaning.
This record is comprised entirely of the music of our hero, Thelonious Monk. An African American pianist and composer, he is considered by many to be one of the most important and prolific contributors in jazz. His unique gift of non-traditional and sometimes “off-kilter” pianistic and composition styles was truly singular and set jazz in a startling direction, making different musical trajectories possible. There would be no jazz without the African American experience, and Monk blasted it into his own idiosyncratic atmosphere.
This record represents our take on Monk’s music. By design, is not “straight-ahead”; most of what is here is no longer “jazz”. We’ve put his music through our own filters, just as he took traditional styles and crafted them into his own music. We have punk, disco, noise, rock, ambient and yes, ok, maybe a little jazz. So goes the tradition of absorbing the past and pressing it forward, sometimes changed into completely different and unrecognizable forms.
Black lives matter. They are integral to the American experience, from which we all draw. Without them, none of this would be even imaginable. In the end, this album rests on Monk’s shoulders. Without him, we wouldn’t be here.
Thank you– we appreciate your support!
~ Andrew, Jef & Jared
We’ve talked about it for years and it comes next week– the UGLY BEAUTY record! 14 tracks of Thelonious Monk’s music completely reimagined for guitar/bass/drums. Punk Monk, slide Monk… disco Monk! NEXT FRIDAY!!
I figure with everything going remote these days, now is the time to get my home studio going. I am thrilled with the results and am having a blast doing studio work from home– hit me up if you need guitar tracks! I’m also steadily chipping away at my second solo guitar record… stay tuned….
NEW BAND ALERT: Half Holy Hearts will debut on Thursday January 16th at Once Lounge with FauxMenco and Famous Grouse. The idea for this group– reimagined country noir deep cuts plus original instrumentals– was born years ago by Gavin McCarthy, Brian Carpenter and me after a Beat Circus rehearsal. 2020 will finally bring it to fruition with Scot Fitzsimmons on bass and Rafi Sofer on guitars. Can’t wait ~
Man oh man! Our Monk trio, UGLY BEAUTY (Jef Charland/bass; Jared Seabrook, drums) finally made it to the studio. This is gonna be a doozy of a record. Extreme liberties were taken with these tunes– wow. Huge thanks to Dan Cardinal at Dimension Sound Studio for kicking serious butt. Stay tuned as this develops….
Was a delightful night at the MAGNET-O! record release show on 10/16.
Photo by Rafi Sofer
Wow– just back from the western plains playing guitar alongside Mark Erelli. Mark’s songs are powerful and from the heart. What a treat it was to play duo, adding textures to his stories. Can’t wait to do it again…
PLEASE check him out: www.markerelli.com
