Featured this time are: Peter Breslin, J. By David Grundy. Headphonica: Label Overview 16 A look at some of the myriad releases on net-label Headphonica, from off-kilter pop songs to spacious free improvisation, electronic experimentation and exploratory ambient textures.
An interview with John Russell 26 One of the leading lights on the contemporary British free improvisation scene, guitarist John Russell to make fascinating music and is also an important organizer: his Mopomoso evenings, currently held at the Vortex in London, provide vital opportunities for old combinations to pick up the conversation where they left off, and for new groupings to generate new creative sparks.
This interview covers his many projects over the years, including collaborations with Japanese free jazz musicians such as Toshinori Kondo, and the creative processes behind his playing. Interview by David Grundy. By David Grundy and Ian Thumwood. I guess the interview I conducted with him for Issue 2 may have been the last he gave, so maybe that will serve for tribute.
Other news, other thoughts: the re-appearance of the Freedom of the City festival this year, at a new venue after the stalwart back-room of the Red Rose pub decided to close the improv side of affairs, is surely cause for celebration, and the combination of veteran British improvisers such as Steve Beresford and Evan Parker with younger guests from abroad such as cellist Okkyung Lee makes it just as great a space for experimentation as ever.
Interviewee for this issue, John Russell, continues to make his Mopomoso nights a fine space for numerous combinations β a place to hear both established artists β Russell, Evan Parker, John Butcher, Phil Minton β and exciting new players such as multi-reedist Shabaka Hutchings. The object here is not produce gleaming jewels, bona-fide great works of art, but to showcase process, work and dedication, to enable viewers to truly participate in the process of making a music that engages with faculties both emotional and mental, on so many levels.
