8pm: Analog synthesist Rroland
9pm: Ava Mendoza/Kurt Kottheimer/Josh Smith trio
Mendoza/Kottheimer/Smith trio
Originally formed by Josh and Kurt in 2003 and joined by Ava in 2005, this group consists of three improvising instrumentalists turned electronic musicians. Drawing from their acoustic backgrounds, the trio takes a distinctive, highly expressive and organic approach to electronic improvisation. Creating entirely abstract music that defies boundaries of collage,lowercase sound, noise, soundscape, and general good taste, the group's vocabulary enters widely varying realms of texture and volume, turning on a dime from chunks of abrasive noise to blocks of silence and barely audible hisses and crackles. The trio's battery of mainly analog sounds is produced using cassette tapes, mixing board, feedback, and a few effects pedals.
Ava Mendoza - electronics, guitar
Joshua Smith - saxophones, electronics
Kurt Kotheimer - electronics, bass
From Splendide zine:
"On the basis of his press release, Rroland appears to be a mythological musical figure on a par with The Frosted Ambassador or the long-lost fifth Beatle. Throughout the album, Rroland (whoever he is) makes great use of his rudimentary composition skills, gingerly guiding the listener through a Technicolored world of hesitant, slightly off-kilter electronic pop.
The gleefully bouncy "Frozen Fugue" brings to mind the twisted creations of Wendy/Walter Carlos, while the delightful "Shining Chariot" sounds like someone attempting to play the Pac-Man theme song while doing a handstand and eating a Creamsicle. I guess I'll have to wait for the video to see if that's actually the case. I'm still not entirely sure who this Rroland guy
is, but his Candyland-on-crack soundscapes are welcome in my home any time."
Statement:
Analog synthesist Rroland is a local San Francisco composer. Rroland has made installations for ATA (Artists Television Access), toured the west coast with Momus, who runs the label American Patchwork which relased Rroland's CD 'Reflections on a Past Life', and is a member of the art collective 'Concept Bureau'. He composes and records in his home studio (apartment) and is a producer and member of Lord Nasty and the Seekers of
Perversion.
Cost: $6-10