ReR Megacorp and related

The Nudes are something of an avant supergroup, with Chris Cutler, Amy Denio, & Swiss guitarist Wadi Gysi. Energetic & fun punk/folk/jazz/art-rock songs; these will make fans of Chris' & Amy's work very happy.
"Your ticket to pop paradise. Maybe."...

The second and final of the 'second wave' line-up of 5uus (basically Dave Kerman, Bob Drake and Sanjay Kumar + guests). This is considered by many people to be their best period and I would probably agree.

"Second installment from monster band 5UU's, featuring rock complexity, extraordinary production (by bassist and singer Bob Drake) and high energy precision mixed with eccentric song-writing. People that work this hard are becoming an endangered species. Extraordinary."-Chris Cutler

"Magnificent" - Boston Rock

"...will easily contend for the best release of new music this year." - Gibraltar

"...one of the most unique and startling albums in a long time - original, vibrant and cutting edge." - Expose


Drummer/composer Dave Kerman revived the 5uu's in the mid 90's with long time keyboardist Sanjay Kumar and guitarist/bassist/vocalist Bob Drake of Thinking Plague. As the review says below, it strongly hints at a parallel universe combination of Ye

"Based in Miami, this is a very interesting American band, ploughing its own furrow - whose accent is what they call 'prog' over there, but whose language is more complex by far. Pip Pyle adds a seasoned sophistication - in fact I think this is a great...

This is a collection of most of the 1984 album “Glass Tube”, which was After Dinner’s first album + some other stuff, plus 30’ of live material by this Japanese new music rock band, who predated the current huge interest in all things "Japan".
Characterized by leader Haco's vocals, this is subtly detailed, almost pastel, progressive Japanese music; they don’t sound like ANYBODY else!

“Can't say I've heard anything quite like this. Truly awesome in its presentation, it's hard not to want to...

''Imagine a classical composer writing a gothic symphony for a multi-faceted electronic musician, who in concert was aided by Mayan musicians, a haunting, often operatic singer, & a psychic intermittently channeling the spirits of the dead - that pretty much sums up this fascinating album.''- Goldmine.

“Atmospheric, evolving, intricate and layered; a suite of fine compositions and carefully crafted sounds. Consistent creation of another place, another time.”

Cornelius Cardew: Piano, Cello, Transistor Radio
Lou Gare: Tenor Saxophone, Violin
Eddie Prevost: Percussion
Keith Rowe: Electric Guitar, Transistor Radio
Lawrence Sheaff: Cello, Accordion, Clarinet, Transistor Radio

Originally recorded and released in 1966, this has long been considered one of the early high-watermarks of contemporary improvised music/sound.
AMM were one of the first completely non-idiomatic free improvising ensembles, and this was their very first releas

The first release on ReR by this quite amazing guitarist and how most of us first heard of him. Even with all his other releases, this one is still amazing and is recommended!
This is an album of solo guitar music performed on the 'Giant" Sardinian guitar, which is sized somewhere between a conventional guitar and a cello and is tuned lower than a standard guitar. Paolo has taken this folk instrument and has completely rebuilt it. There is a large mechanical claw stuck onto the side of the body which..

"Known best as an experimental guitarist, with his ‘‘Giant’ Sardinian guitar – which has a large mechanical claw stuck to the side of its body (to pluck counter melodies), piano-like hammers operated by pedals (to strike the strings), extra strings crossing the main strings at right angles with yet another set of sitar strings mounted on the body, a rope, a viola bridge - which holds yet more strings - and thirteen pickups and microphones which can separately amplify all the elements, sending them to...

"Paolo’s latest is an extraordinary collection of pieces that explore the full range of his highly modified, extended and prepared Sardinian guitar; and although it’s just him and electricity, it seldom sounds like fewer than 3 people...

"An amazing record. It's beautifully recorded and almost impossible to believe that such a layered and polyphonic music, with chords, percussion, lead lines, bass lines, harmonies, string sections and sometimes voice could all be produced by one person in real time, without overdubs or loops. But it is. The instrument, a specially designed and augmented Sardinian guitar (almost the size of a cello) is equipped with motors, pedals, individual string mic'ing, and extra appendages; and of course there are...

"Another extraordinary release by Sardinian virtuoso Paolo Angeli, this time featuring compositions by Fred Frith and Bjork – all played solo in real time (though when you hear it, it’s hard to believe it) on his highly customised and extended, electrified, giant Sardinian folk guitar. A tour de force of technique and at the same time highly musical; and there is so much going on here at any given time that it is difficult to relate what your ears tell you to just one Frankenstein instrument. Dense...

"Another extraordinary release by Sardinian virtuoso Paolo Angeli, this time featuring compositions by Fred Frith and Bjork – all played solo in real time (though when you hear it, it’s hard to believe it) on his highly customised and extended, electrified, giant Sardinian folk guitar. A tour de force of technique and at the same time highly musical; and there is so much going on here at any given time that it is difficult to relate what your ears tell you to just one Frankenstein instrument. Dense...

"This disc will play in stereo on a CD player and with film and 5.1 surround sound (or stereo) on a DVD player or computer. The music, as always, is prodigious, sounding like a small band, but played by one person in real time (as the film attests). In this format, you can also see the instrument close-to - a highly rebuilt and extended giant Sardinian guitar - with many sympathetic and extra strings, motor driven hurdy gurdy wheels, whirling strings, springs and other appendages, played, like a cello...

"This disc will play in stereo on a CD player and with film and 5.1 surround sound (or stereo) on a DVD player or computer. The music, as always, is prodigious, sounding like a small band, but played by one person in real time (as the film attests)...

Just as fabulous as you would hope!

“A meeting that had to happen: the clash of tradition and experiment has been the distinguishing signature style of both protagonists, and they aren’t holding back on this rather unusual record.
Paulo’s virtuosity - and his customised, cello-sized, extended and prepared Sardinian guitar - designed to do several things at once, some of them hardly believable – engages head-on with Iva’s extended violin and take no-prisoners vocalising. Professional....

Takumi Fukushima – violin, voice
Paolo Angeli – prepared Sardinian guitar, voice
Excellent album of duos; some a bit wild, others, very intimate and - dare I say - beautiful? Remember, Monk wrote a song called "Ugly Beauty"... After the demise of Volapük, I was wondering when I would hear Takumi again and I am happy to hear her here with Paolo who makes an excellent musical partner for her.

"This is Paulo Angeli’s fifth release, this time with ex-After Dinner, ex Volupuk violinist and....

An amazingly good listening experience of music that comes from a non-musical instrument; a box that produces feedback. But not feedback in terms of horrible squeaks and squeals.

"Breaking all the loose rules of experimental electronic music...

Remastered excellently by Bob Drake, this was the 1st album by the successor band to Henry Cow, which was actually recorded AS a Henry Cow album but released as by Art Bears when some members of Cow didn't feel it was a "Cow" release. With Dagmar Krause-vocals, Chris Cutler-drums, electronics & Fred Frith- guitars, keyboards, violin, etc. + all the rest of Henry Cow. Songs with powerful lyrics built upon experimental kernels. "This grouping made one of the most powerful statements yet in the world of...

This the the double CD of remixes, etc that was previously only available in the Art Bears box set, but now can be bought on its own. "A double CD of re-mixes, re-workings and (mostly) new pieces made from the Art Bears multi-track masters by The Resid...

Received direct from label, unsealed and outer box has some shelf wear. It's not bad, but could be better. I guess that's how these come now, so it is what it is. You have been warned. The box and the booklets are really beautifully done. Now here comes the party line:
"The Art Box marks the 25th anniversary of one of the most eclectic, dynamic and productive creative alliances in the history of experimental music. Featuring...

Dagmar Krause-vocals Chris Cutler-drums, electronics Fred Frith-guitars, keyboards, violin, etc.

This was the 3rd and final album by the successor band to Henry Cow. I'm not really sure why (short playing length? the press had gone onto other things to champion? it wasn't released stateside, unlike the first two?) but this one slipped under the radar of a lot of folks, compared to their 1st two.
It's a very bleak, but also a very solid work. And very clever and sly in its own way - who...

Dagmar Krause-vocals
Chris Cutler-drums, electronics
Fred Frith-guitars, keyboards, violin, etc.

This was the 3rd and final album by the successor band to Henry Cow. I'm not really sure why (short playing length? the press had gone onto other things to champion? it wasn't released stateside, unlike the first two?) but this one slipped under the radar of a lot of folks, compared to their 1st two.
It's a very bleak, but also a very solid work. It’s probably my favorite of their albums

Dagmar Krause-vocals
Chris Cutler-drums, electronics
Fred Frith-guitars, keyboards, violin, etc.
This was the 2nd and possibly most successful of the three albums by this immediate offshoot of Henry Cow, as it was recorded AS an Art Bears album (their 1st had been recorded as a Henry Cow album, but half the band objected, so it came out as being by Art Bears).
It’s also their best known album as it was released in the States by The Residents' Ralph label, in the early 80's and at the

What the London orbital is to the English capital, the Berliner ring is to Berlin: a circular highway that surrounds the city. The first contemporary release from Art Yard amalgamates disparate elements: electro mechanical devices, invented...

After many, many years of work, this is apparently the final Biota release and it's also probably their finest as well as their most accessible. The heavily treated sonic material remains, but as in their last few, it's applied to a very 'folky' under-carriage.
Think of the most twisted-yet-musical take possible on Sandy Denny/June Tabor/Judy Collins imaginable and you have a glimmer of what they are doing here. Really nice. REALLY NICE. And a gorgeous art portfolio is included. Highly recommended...

Since the late 1970s Biota has ploughed its own furrow, producing a body of work that resembles nothing anyone else has done or is yet doing. Their compositions evolve in long, constantly shifting timbral blocks filled with fragments and echoes of...

"Six years in the making, this is the sixth CD released by ReR from the visual/sonic art group Biota. Unique in their history and method, Biota painstakingly construct complex, organic structures that mix extensive studio processing and musique concréte techniques, with a highly eclectic orchestra of acoustic and electronic resources - from kit drums, through mediaeval winds, strings and barrel organs, to early experimental electronic instruments. Their works are always performance driven and interleaved...

If fans of Biota were shocked by the pop songs that appeared for the first time on the previous Biota release, Invisible map is going to send them reeling. They are sung by Genevieve Heistek, from the same school of Montreal musicians who spawned Godsp...

Biota is a unique project consisting of both musicians and artists. Their work is complex, subtle, vast, exquisite and powerful. Layers and layers of processed sound, all originating in played, mostly acoustic sources. All CD's come with books of prints by their visual art component.

"Stunning work that breaks new ground; an extraordinary achievement that was 3 years in the making and rewrote lot of rules in passing. With texts and singing by the inimitable Susanne Lewis, the CD also features...

Contents:
Funnel to a Thread
Half a True Day
Invisible Map
Object Holder
Gyromancy
and the box-only bonus Counterbalance.

The music on the bonus disc is all unheard music built from the group archives and is dedicated to Charles O'Meara, who contributed his piano work to the group for several decades.

“Without any obvious keystone event, Biota – who started recording in the late 1970’s as the Mnemonist Orchestra – have quietly become a musical fixture...

'Tumble' is a 74 minute commissioned for CD work, using the maximum available parameters offered by the medium. More recognisable organisation of materials here. Comes with a booklet of colour prints.
Tumble combines two distinct Biota projects recorded between Autumn 1988 & Spring 1989."

I was at this show! It was very, very disorienting, and the visuals gave me severe motion sickness! Not kidding. This was the only live performance they have undertaken since 1981!

"Biota was founded in 1979 in Fort Collins, Colorado, as the Mnemonist Orchestra. Over the years, the Mnemonist Orchestra developed into Biota (the musical contingent) and Mnemonists (the visual contingent). Both Biota and Mnemonists work as one on productions of musical and visual components. Heard on this CD is...

For their fifth album, the long-lived Dutch avant rock band, founded in 1989 change gears a little bit. Their usual dense, intense compositional work is still there and on display, but due to the addition of drummer Fabriz...

"This is the second release (editor's note: no, it isn't, it's their sixth release; it's their second on ReR after three on Cuneiform and a first that was self-released) after a long wait, from this unique ensemble. Equally at home with the discipline of composition and the tightrope of improvisation Blast have evolved a fluid, pointillistic, unfathomable but transparent musical language that seamlessly integrates - over very short durations - highly complex writing and very free ranging improvisation...

"This is the second release (editor's note: no, it isn't, it's their sixth release; it's their second on ReR after three on Cuneiform and a first that was self-released) after a long wait, from this unique ensemble. Equally at home with the discipline of composition and the tightrope of improvisation Blast have evolved a fluid, pointillistic, unfathomable but transparent musical language that seamlessly integrates - over very short durations - highly complex writing and very free ranging improvisation...

"Containing all the Blegvad Trio and Quintet studio releases: Downtime, Just Woke Up, Hangman’s Hill and Go Figure – all re-mastered and repackaged - plus two additional CDs of unreleased studio recordings and live performances, mostly featuring songs not available on the studio CDs - as well, of course, as a fat, definitive, book of photographs, memorabilia, drawings, documents and recollections by the main actors.
ReR released the first Peter Blegvad Trio LP in 1988 and since then there's been a...

Peter Blegvad-guitar, vocals
Chris Cutler-drums, percussion
Bob Drake-guitar, vocals, percussion
John Greaves-bass, piano
Karen Mantler-organ, vocals, glockenspiel, harmonica

Adding the organ of Karen and the 'personalities' of Bob and Karen was an inspired move!

"After 19 years, the return of the Peter Blegvad Trio, in supernal form and now a quintet with Karen Mantler and Bob Drake. Recorded over 10 days at studio Midi-Pyrenees the old way: sitting in a room, working

With John Greaves and Chris Cutler. Follow up to the masterly Just Woke Up, sporting great new songs and guests including B.J.Cole, Geraint Watkins, Adam X, Chris Stamey, Bob Drake, Stoffer Blegvad.

“Described as a "fusion of Lou Reed and Bob Dylan, cross bred with English humorist Jon Hegley", Peter Blegvad has carved out a unique position as performer, songwriter and cartoonist. This is his third solo album on ReR.
The 1996 release "Just Woke Up" was a big critical success; Hangman's...

An early 90's solos, featuring ace contributions from John Greaves, Chris Cutler & Kristoffer Blegvad, Tim Hodgkinson. Always intelligent, funny songs & lyrics.

"Three old hands out of Soft Machine, Gong and Henry Cow stretch already flexible musical material into one shape after another, then tie it in knots and generally have a fun with it. High quality recordings combined with seat-of-the-pants playing..."

The Camberwell Now were led by Charles Hayward, the drumming/vocalist mastermind behind This Heat, and was the band that he formed immediately after This Heat broke up.
They were released an album and 2 EPs in their lifetime, and this includes all of them in complete, chronological form, plus a track from a sampler.
Their sound was very informed by the This Heat esthetic, with more creative usages of drones than before and some incredible basswork.
While they didn't always quite...

“New and old compositions for Luigi Russolo's legendary Intonarumori. After publishing his visionary manifesto, the Art of Noises, in 1913, the futurist painter Luigi Russolo designed and built a revolutionary family of new instruments with which to compose with noise: black, wooden boxes, fitted with huge acoustic horns, crank-handles (to drive them) and levers (to vary the pitch).
They came in different varieties – designed to give composers access to five of what Russolo had identified as ‘the...

A restocking of this title, the fourth and final by Cassiber, Chris Cutler's great post Henry Cow band that he founded with Heiner Goebbels, Afred Harth and Christoph Anders (although Harth was out by this time). "A Face" breaks new ground altogether. ...

Cassiber was the very exciting post-Henry Cow project of Chris Cutler, which also featured Heiner Goebbels and Alfred Harth as well as Christoph Anders. This collects all their albums and much more. Limited edition of 1,000 made!...

A very great collection of unreleased live and studio recordings from the very exciting post-Henry Cow band of Chris Cutler.

"Cassiber (phonetically: 'a message smuggled out of prison') crashed like a locomotive into the 'Deutsche Neue Welle.'
Founded by Heiner Goebbels, Alfred Harth, Christoph Anders, and Chris Cutler (his first major project after News From Babel), Cassiber managed to fuse materials and attitudes drawn from experimental rock, fringe jazz, punk, pop, plunderphonics...

Cassiber were Christoph Anders, Heiner Goebbels & Chris Cutler, & they play reeds, keyboards, drums, guitars, tapes, vocals, & more. They were a band who always played with great fire, recording improvisations that are recorded in real time.This is...

I believe that this was the second Charming Hostess album, which has been waiting for a release for a few years now and it is very great to have it finally available. Familar names here include most of Sleepytime Gorilla Museam: Carla Kihlstedt, Nils Frydahl and Dan Rathburn, plus Jewlia Eisenberg (the band's leader) and Wesley Anderson.

"A few of you will already have heard either the Hostesss first wild American release or founder Jewlia Eisenbergs ear-opening Tzadik CD of last year...

Lol Coxhill-soprano sax
Charles Hayward-drums
Hugh Hopper-bass
Orphy Robinson-vibes, steel drums
with
Robert Wyatt-cornet

The first release (and sadly the only one) by this improvising group of established figures from the creative rock and improvised music scene in Britain. They've been together for a few years now, plays shows when circumstances permit, and it's great that they've finally documented something. This pretty quickly finds its feet, finds a groove and keeps.

This has been out of print for some years and completely unavailable on these shores. Well worth getting if you don't already have it.
A repressing of bassoonist/oboeist/saxist/composer Lindsay's first two solo albums. Lindsay first made her name in Henry Cow and was also greatly featured in News From Babel. Both of these were film scores.

"Consists of the whole of the LP previously issued as Re/arc and most of "The Golddiggers".
Featuring Lindsay Cooper, Sally Potter, Phil Minton...