the big nOte files - 2002/05/20

• nasal retentive orchestra: have a bun  (2)
      (2002, cd, fr, pickaboo nro 002) - incl.various frank zappa compositions
  • as they say in french "le nouveau nro est arrivé" !!
    i think i already told you last time that i consider "fric out" as one of the best things to come out of 2001.  no need to say that i was quite curious to hear the new one.  and yes, "have a bun" is another superb album.  the nasal retentive orchestra knows how to play and it sounds like they're having a lot of fun doing it.  the album kicks off with lennon & mccartney's 'drive my car' (beep beep - beep beep - burp) and carries on with a couple of zappa compositions, including freaky solos & backing vocals: 'regyptian strut', 'call any vegetable', 'igor's boogie' and 'status back baby/oh no' all get the nasal retentive treatment.
    'circles', a delbrouck/metzger compositions starts out as a minimal, repetative line, only to turn into a backing (vamp) for an exellent sax solo.  and 'igor's variations' is motheresque band improvisation.
    the disc continues with zappa's 'the idiot bastard son' and 'willie the pimp', separated by 'mandraque' (delbrouck, metzger, bruneau) and ending with 'the surgenerator's monopoly' (metzger, marschalle).
    "have a bun" is must-have for every mothers fan.  limited to 500 copies (as is "fric out"), you shouldn't wait too long.  contact: christophe.delbrouck@wanadoo.fr / www.nro.fr.st
    
• various artists: faust - freispiel
      (2002, cd, ger, klangbad frr 1992) - incl. the residents: 't-électronique'
  • celebrating the 30th anniversary of electronic music band faust, record label klangbad put out an album on which various artists remix compositions from the faust "ravvivando" album.
    as mentioned above, the disc also includes a reworked 't-électronique' by our masked resifriends.  the complete title of the residents remix is 't-électronique (the death of komarov)'; vladimir komarov not only being the name of the russian composer of electronic music, but also of a ussr cosmonaut who died in a crash.
    
• the residents: petting zoo
      (2002, cd, usa, ralphamerica)
  • yet another 30th anniversary celebration: the residents have compiled 20 of their most ear-friendly compositions on one disc.  it's a sampler, it's cheap and it has been issued in the us of a (jewel case), in yurrip (digipack) and in japan (paper sleeve edition), so don't tell me you can't find it.  an easy and good-looking introduction to the residents.

news:
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2002/07/24 - 26    concert 'suntory hall', tokyo, japan
steve vai will perform ichiro nodaira's "fire strings", a concerto for guitar and 100-piece orchestra (the tokyo metropolitan symphony orchestra, conducted by yutaka sado).  the concert program also includes bernstein's "candide overture" and stravinsky's "le sacre du printemps.
* * * *
vai's newest release "the elusive light and sound, vol.1" was previously released in the limited "secret jewel box".  it's a collection of film contributions.  as you might expect, from a commercial point of view, the album has a different cover than the one that came in the box.
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2002/06/29    film: frank scheffer: frank zappa: phase II - the big note
frank scheffer made another documentary on frank zappa.  it will premiere on a big screen as part of the docuzone film festival in amsterdam on 2002/06/29 - 16.00 h, and will be followed by a discussion with producer frank scheffer.
subjects include: 200 motels, zappa's friendship with captain beefheart and (!!) unique footage about the grand wazoo tour, thanx to malcolm mcnabb's private archives.
* * * *
someone asked if lowell george contributed to robert palmer's 1974 "sneakin' sally through the alley"; that the album listed no line-up.  the question was forwarded to me, so i don't know who wants to know, but in danny mathys's database, the line-up for this album looks like this:

• robert palmer: vocals
  guests :

• cornell dupree: guitar

• lowell george: guitar

• leo nocentelli: guitar

• richard tee: keyboards

• art neville: keyboards

• gordon edwards: bass

• george porter: bass

• bernard purdie: drums

• joseph modeleste: drums

so i guess the answer is positive.

www-additions:

* * * a nice article on peter wolf from "studio sound" (info from bill)
* * * a new documentary on frank zappa by frank scheffer: docuzone info
* * * mats öberg - random notes
* * * and a bunch of frank zappa fanzines