Nero’s Neptune

Reform Art West

For Sepp (Selections From The Edgar Allan Poe Suite)

Nero’s Neptune

***Over the course of five decades, the legendary Austrian free jazz collective REFORM ART UNIT (and their offshoot groups) have collaborated with countless musicians, including Don Cherry, Carla Bley, Evan Parker, and Jim Pepper. Documented collaborations with free jazz notables include Impressions (Kovarik's Musikothek, 1978) with Anthony Braxton and Clifford Thornton; Subway Performances (Granit, 1994) and Illumination (InRespect, 1995) with Sunny Murray; and With Milo Fine (Granit, 1999). MILO FINE's lengthy resume includes numerous records as leader of his own group (the MILO FINE FREE JAZZ ENSEMBLE) as well as collaborations with Joe McPhee (MFG in Minnesota; Hat Hut, 1978, & Old Eyes; Hat Hut, 1979) and duo encounters with Derek Bailey (Scale Points on the Fever Curve; Emanem, 2003) and Anthony Braxton (Shadow Company; Emanem, 2004). In May of 2015, Fine fulfilled a personal ambition by hosting the first North American appearances of Reform Art Unit founding members FRITZ NOVOTNY and SEPP MITTERBAUER. Three nights of extraordinary and intimate concerts ensued at Minneapolis' Studio Toile d'Angles. This limited edition LP was culled by Nero's Neptune from over three hours of material, and consists of three pieces featuring two sextets and one nonet. Joining the core members of reformARTwest (Novotny: soprano sax/ flutes / percussion, Mitterbauer: trumpet / percussion, Fine: drum set . Bössendorfer Imperial piano / clarinets) are ELAINE EVANS, DANIEL FURUTA, BENJAMIN J MANSAVAGE KLEIN, DAVU SERU, CHARLES GILLETT and PAUL METZGER. For Sepp is dedicated to the living memory of Sepp Mitterbauer, who died on December 9th...

Metzger, Paul

1300

Nero’s Neptune

***PAUL METZGER's choices in instruments involve strings and necks but he is not content to leave them in their original state. On 1300, his ninth solo album and third for Nero’s Neptune, Paul performs on modified guitar and 23-string banjo. The first of the album's two sidelong improvisations, "Meend For Shaista," displays the earliest of Paul's experiments in modification, a revamped Yamaha guitar first displayed on his 2005 debut. The instrument has evolved considerably over the last decade. The neck is now covered in fretless steel, many sympathetic strings have appeared, and a ride cymbal has been attached to the bottom. Metzger applies a percussive string technique and an unorthdox flamenco approach with his right hand, while his gliding left reveals the hidden beauty between the notes. As the piece unfolds, Paul accompanies himself on tabla while simultaneously playing the guitar; it is at times hard to believe the recording is a one-pass live improvisation made by a single player. On the second side, "Death's Other Kingdom," Paul breaks out his 23-string banjo. The banjo has extra strings added (including a zither-like spray of thirteen fanning out over the drum head), with the skin and sides of the banjo utilized for percussive effect. The piece begins with a slow-burning bowed section. Paul’s bowing has evolved from single-note glissandos into a full-neck chordal style, showing impressive strides in development and refinement. Echoes of North Indian classical music, twelve-tone music and Asian musical forms inform his work. Once the bow is set...