Showing 1 - 25 of 52
Artist: Circular
Formed in the wake of the ambient house/techno explosion of the early '90s, Circular was inspired particularly by the more experimental end of the ambient spectrum, creating distinctively dark and often beatless soundscapes that betrayed a debt to fellow Norwegians Biosphere, among other modern ambient touchstones. Partners and longtime friends... [+] Read More
Artist: Circular Ruins
Artist: Circular Sunburst
Artist: Circular Firing Squad
Artist: The Beatles
So much has been said and written about the Beatles -- and their story is so mythic in its sweep -- that it's difficult to summarize their career without restating clichés that have already been digested by tens of millions of rock fans. To start with the obvious, they were the greatest and most influential act of the rock era, and introduced... [+] Read More
Artist: Mark VI
An ambient, textural and circular experiment of the acoustics of an electric Fender jazz bass in a feedback loop. [+] Read More
Artist: Antiverse
Bored with the writing style of modern 'nu-metal' the members of Antiverse set out to create something new and unique. Inspired by progressive bands such as Dream Theater, Tool, and Pantera, Antiverse adopted a style that is clearly their own. With a linear song structure, rather than the usual circular structure, the listener is left with an... [+] Read More
Artist: The Wyrd Sisters
Named in homage to the ancient Triple Goddess representing the circular nature of life and the moon's phases, the Canadian folk trio the Wyrd Sisters comprised singers Nancy Reinhold, Kim Baryluk and Lianne Fournier. Formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1991, the group issued their debut EP Leave a Little Light two years later; 1995's Inside the... [+] Read More
Artist: Oumou Sangare
In 1990, Wassoulou singer Sangare became a superstar in West Africa with Moussolou, which sold an astonishing 250,000 copies (many more were likely pirated). She received much of her attention for writing and singing lyrics that specifically addressed concerns of women in modern West African society, such as the conflict between marriage and... [+] Read More
Artist: Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan's influence on popular music is incalculable. As a songwriter, he pioneered several different schools of pop songwriting, from confessional singer/songwriter to winding, hallucinatory, stream-of-conscious narratives. As a vocalist, he broke down the notions that in order to perform, a singer had to have a conventionally good voice,... [+] Read More
Artist: Luis Galvão
Having been born in Juazeiro (Bahia), Luis Galvão moved to Salvador (Bahia), where he met Moraes Moreira and Paulinho Boca de Cantor, forming with them the group Os Novos Baianos in 1968. Principal lyricist of the group, highly influenced by tropicalia, he wrote most of the group's songs (with Moreira), and participated in the next year in the... [+] Read More
Artist: Outback
Outback's ebullient, accessible, yet highly irregular style could be described as "tribal new-acoustic." The group is anchored by two multi-instrumentalists, Graham Wiggins and Martin Craddick, who in 1988 met by chance in Oxford and began playing as a duo all over England. A former jazz pianist, Wiggins taught himself to play the didgeridoo... [+] Read More
Artist: Don Menza
Don Menza is a powerful tenor saxophonist who, although able to effectively imitate most of the top stylists (from Coleman Hawkins to John Coltrane), has a distinctive sound of his own. Menza started playing tenor when he was 13. After getting out of the Army, he was with Maynard Ferguson's Orchestra (1960-1962) as both a soloist and an... [+] Read More
Artist: Baby Do Brasil
Former member of the Os Novos Baianos, Baby do Brasil has an active career in pop and choro music, being one of the rare singers to devote to the virtuosic sung choro in the tradition held by Ademilde Fonseca. Some of her hits in her solo career are the choro "Brasileirinho" (Waldir Azevedo), "Menino do Rio" (Caetano Veloso), and "Todo Dia Era... [+] Read More
Artist: Akikazu Nakamura
Akikazu Nakamura studied composition and jazz at the Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory, as well as being a graduate student from the NHK school of traditional music in Japan. As a composer, he wrote many commissioned works, including works for the Jean Sibelius Quartet, Munch Trio, and many others. He also developed the... [+] Read More
Artist: Extras
In 1980, singer and keyboardist Denis Keldie joined forces with singer Leon Stevenson and drummer and percussionist Paul Armstrong. Together they became known as the Extras. Other members stepped in later, including bassist Paul Daiter and guitarist Pat Rush. The Canadian group completed a few singles, an EP, and three albums before fading away... [+] Read More
Artist: First Nation
Intuitively blending folk, noise, and snippets of pop into an organic, experimental whole, First Nation features singer/guitarists Nina Mehta and Kate Rosko and percussionist Melissa Livaudais. The New York City-based trio got its start when Mehta and Rosko, who had been playing together for a while, began jamming with mutual friend Livaudais... [+] Read More
Artist: Lorus
What would happen if Tool, Melvins and Mogwai all had a gangbang in the back of a tour bus? Their bastard offspring would be called Lorus. Raised by King Crimson with a little strict discipline from Mr. Bungle, Lorus is an avant metal band formed by guitarist Dylan Burr and keyboardist Alan Lawrence. Lorus' music blends divergent genres and... [+] Read More
Artist: Harry Carney
Although he was not the first jazz baritone saxophonist, Harry Carney achieved his goal of making the instrument "necessary" in a big band. His tone was huge and definitive, and his style mixed together Coleman Hawkins and Adrian Rollini; he was also one of the first jazz musicians to master circular breathing (which he generally used to hold an... [+] Read More
Artist: The Squires
From Bristol, Connecticut, the Squires enjoy a higher profile than most of the thousands of similar teenage bands that cut a single or two in the mid-'60s. That's because both sides of their second and last 45, "Going All the Way"/"Go Ahead" (1966), were anthologized on the earliest Pebbles volumes. This was indeed one of the strongest garage... [+] Read More
Artist: Jim Knodle
Trumpeter Jim Knodle has been playing with jazz outfits since the early '80s (initially on the west cast, before relocating to Ballard, Washington, where he now resides). Past groups have included Circular Cowboys, Inside Out, and This Room (with singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Sue Ann Harkey), before launching his own solo career in... [+] Read More
Artist: Kelley Stoltz
Circular Sounds is the fourth LP from San FranciscoÂ’s home recording auteur Kelley Stoltz. Its 14 songs are a stereophonic advance on the lo-fidelity psych-fuzz of Antique Glow (Beautiful Happiness, 2004) and the mid-fi piano-rock of Below the Branches (Sub Pop, 2006): two modest masterpieces which, by a curious coincidence, both made #24 in... [+] Read More
Artist: Eden's Bridge
The spirituality of gospel music is adapted to the musical traditions of the Celtic isles by Eden's Bridge. According to lead vocalist Sarah Lacy, the group's goal is to "compose honest lyrics that communicate with our holy God and give Him praise."
The early albums by Eden's Bridge -- Celtic Psalms and Celtic Worship -- were the first Celtic... [+] Read More
Artist: Paulinho Boca de Cantor
Paulinho Boca de Cantor, founder and member of the seminal electric choro/samba band Os Novos Baianos, also has had ups in his solo career, which began in 1979. His first professional assignment was with Cartilho e sua Orquestra (1962). With Perinho Albuquerque, Tuzé de Abreu, Perna Fróes, Tutty Moreno, Moacyr Albuquerque, and Bira Silva he... [+] Read More
Artist: Gutbucket
Thanks to the engaging harmolodics of Ornette Coleman and the intense rhythms of Afro-Cuban music, Ken Thomson discovered new exciting ways to express jazz improvisation in his group Gutbucket. Gutbucket, which consisted of Thomson (sax), Ty Citerman (guitar), Eric Rockwin (bass), and Paul Chuffo (drums), celebrated the release of its debut CD,... [+] Read More
