urfunk etude (1997) is for solo piano with or without electronics. In terms of the sequences of minimalist canonic material and the parallel alignments of pitch, rhythmic structure and register, it is a precursor to my string quartet Madra (1999) and other works. It also builds upon a particular piano technique that worked around my limitations as… Continue reading 1997+25 urfunk etude
Category: Electronic
1989+33 Premonition
“Premonition” (1989) is a dance pop song, incorporating aspects of hip hop and jazz funk. It was recorded late at night in demo fashion, and included on my DIY album Nerve. The lyrics consist mostly of cliched phrases, satirizing the end-times though giving way to an urgent chorus. The instrumental track was created entirely on a… Continue reading 1989+33 Premonition
1989+33 Void
“Void” (1989) is an art pop song from my student days. One of my weirder, nerdier numbers, in it I still sought to be groove-based. It was recorded quickly along with other songs in a late night session, and included on my DIY album Sleepdancing. “Void” posed an existential question that required a complex musical answer.… Continue reading 1989+33 Void
Sequences
Sequences (2000, rev. 2020) is scored for percussion and two marimbas. The title refers to sequences both in the sense of a musical phrase that repeats with a variation in pitch each time (in this case, with a variation in rhythm as well), and in the sense of an arrangement programmed electronically using a sequencer… Continue reading Sequences
95/25: Uhuru
Uhuru is a self-released album which was completed during the winter of 1995 and released in the fall. I had originally hoped to release it on CD but was unable to secure sufficient funds, so it arrived in a run of 100 cassettes. The program was over 70 minutes long, comprising mainly songs and instrumentals… Continue reading 95/25: Uhuru
90/30: Eccentricities
Eccentricities is a six-song, self-released cassette EP which emerged in the fall of 1990. I recall having 100 copies made and being satisfied with that level of dispersion; it was all I could afford in any case. In honour of the 30th anniversary, I present two of the songs here (with a third linked below).… Continue reading 90/30: Eccentricities
Twenty Tens
As a farewell to the decade when music collections and manual selection became niche, here’s an old-fashioned segue mix. Ìfé | Bangah (Pico y Palo) Georgia Anne Muldrow | Overload Ibeyi | River D’Angelo and The Vanguard | Really Love King | Red Eye Thundercat | Them Changes Erykah Badu | Gone Baby, Don’t Be… Continue reading Twenty Tens
Best of 2019
Layale Chaker & Sarafand Inner Rhyme Flying Lotus Flamagra Shafiq Husayn The Loop Kaytranada Bubba Anne-Sophie Mutter / John Williams Across the Stars Anderson .Paak Ventura Caroline Shaw / Attacca Quartet Orange Solange When I Get Home James Tenney Changes: 64 Studies for 6 Harps Dwight Trible Mothership Honourable mention: Marvin Gaye You’re the Man
Best of 2018
Brandon Coleman Resistance Tigran Hamasyan For Gyumri Zaki Ibrahim The Secret Life of Planets The Internet Hive Mind JACK Quartet Everything That Rises (John Luther Adams) Kuniko Drumming (Steve Reich) Kukuruz Quartet Julius Eastman Piano Interpretations Kendrick Lamar/Various Artists Black Panther: The Album Kelly Moran Ultraviolet Georgia Anne Muldrow Overload Steve Reich/International Contemporary Ensemble/Colin Currie Group Pulse/Quartet Esperanza Spalding… Continue reading Best of 2018
Otherwhere
British responses to Black diasporic music, and other sounds from formative walks in SSM and Toronto, via a recollection of refrains, harmonic worlds visited and the journeys between Omar | You’ve Got to Move Working Week | Inner City Blues The Brand New Heavies | Dream On Dreamer Colourbox | Philip Glass Young Disciples |… Continue reading Otherwhere
EL MAHBOOB 