Secret Society

Now isn't this an excellent adventure - part three (CMJ Day Two)

Wednesday night was Secret Society's actual CMJ showcase night, a co-production between our label, New Amsterdam Records, and Cantaloupe Music, which is of course part of the Bang on a Can empire. The evening began with a lovely piece of solo piano music (Wed) by last year's Pulitzer Prize winner, David Lang, played with heartfelt grace by Ning Yu. Our New Amsterdam compatriots NOW Ensemble followed, with a mix of NOW staples like Judd Greenstein's Sing Along and some new works, including pretty sweet pieces by John Altieri (Not Yet) and Joshua Penman (The Whisper Gallery). The group was coming off a mini-tour, having played shows in DC and Baltimore on previous nights, and sounded very strong -- as tight as I've ever heard heard them, in fact.

The multi-talented Matthew Welch followed with Julia Wolfe's Lad, a piece for nine bagpipes -- or, in this version, eight prerecorded bagpipes and a lone live piper. It's a long slow burn full of densely microtonal glisses, and just at the point where we reach total sonic saturation, a keening folklike melody finally rises through the murk. The piece clearly divided the audience (partly due to sheer volume -- it was loud) but I absolutely loved it. It was kind of a punkrock move, even.

Interspersed between all of these performances were clips from (untitled), Jonathan Parker's new romantic comedy about a beautiful and fashionable Chelsea gallery owner (Marley Shelton) who falls for a nebbishy, self-obsessed new music composer (Adam Goldberg) -- David Lang contributed the music. The film opened in NY this weekend, to mixed reviews. I am torn: on the one hand, I am congenitally allergic to romantic comedies; on the other, David Lang has offered to "personally buy a cup of coffee for anyone who can identify every single real-life musician who appears on screen."

As for our set, it was recorded by WQXR's Q2 and should be streaming there before too long, so if you missed it, you'll be able to judge for yourself (watch this space). Again, a massive shout-out to sound engineers Justin Balch and LPR's own Matthew Duane. Also: these CMJ showcases always involve a frantic dash to get set up and get playing as quickly as possible after the previous group finishes, and the LPR crew did a frankly astonishing job of getting the stage reconfigured for myself and my 18 co-conspirators in what is surely record time.

PREVIOUSLY:

CMJ Day Zero
CMJ Day One

MORE:

CMJ Day Three
CMJ Day Four
CMJ Day Five

Now isn't this an excellent adventure - part one (CMJ Day Zero)

 

(Photo: Lindsay Beyerstein)

My week at this year's CMJ Music Marathon unofficially began a day early, with our bigband three-way Monday night at the Bell House -- this one of my favorite venues in town and a hotbed of CMJ activity later in the week. It's a pretty sweet room, as you can see from the photos, with totally unobstructed sightlines (no columns!) and a beautiful arched wooden ceiling that does wonders for the sound. 

Speaking of which, I've very grateful to the Bell House's Jeff Stultz and Infernal Machines engineer Paul Cox for doing such an amazing job on the live sound -- and of course to the Bjorkestra and the Industrial Jazz Group for making it a memorable night of postmodern bigband music.

In case anyone was wondering... I was utterly unprepared for the ambush Stefan Zeniuk's Baritone Army sprang just seconds after our last tune had finished -- more bari sax players than I could count bum-rushed the stage, honking and wailing as they ran through the crowd. Josh, of course, jumped down to join them, heeding the call of his people. It made for a surreal and inspired epilogue.

Deepest appreciation to Search and Restore for helping us get the word out, and to everyone who came down to hear us play. We love you all.

MORE:

CMJ Day One
CMJ Day Two
CMJ Day Three
CMJ Day Four
CMJ Day Five

GIG POSTMORTEM: 18 Sept 2009 @ The Jazz Gallery

(Photo: Lindsay Beyerstein)

SECRET SOCIETY
THE JAZZ GALLERY

18 SEPTEMBER 2009
(right-click/ctrl-click track name to download)

SET ONE

1) MP3: Obsidian Flow
Obsidian Flow
Solo: Erica vonKleist

2) MP3: Zeno
Zeno
Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

3) MP3: Desolation Sound
Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

4) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Ferromagnetic
Solo: Eli Asher, trumpet

5) MP3: Habeas Corpus (for Maher Arar)
Habeas Corpus (for Maher Arar)
Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

6) MP3: Transit
Transit
Solo: Matt Holman, fluegelhorn

DOWNLOAD SET ONE (.zip)

* * * * *

SET TWO

1) MP3: Jacobin Club
Jacobin Club
Solos: Sam Sadigurksy, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

2) MP3: Flux in a Box
Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax; Gordon Webster, piano

3) MP3: Redeye
Redeye
Solo: Sebastian Noelle, guitar

4) MP3: Phobos
Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Mark Small, tenor sax

5) MP3: The Perils of Empire
The Perils of Empire

DOWNLOAD SET TWO (.zip)

* * * * *

If you enjoy what you hear, kindly consider making a donation -- your support is invaluable and helps finance current and future Secret Society activities:

CO-CONSPIRATORS
WINDS
Erica vonKleist
Rob Wilkerson
Sam Sadigursky
Mark Small
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Jon Owens
Tom Goehring
Matt Holman
John Bailey
Eil Asher

TROMBONES
Ryan Keberle
Mike Fahie
James Hirschfeld
Jen Wharton

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, electric guitar
Gordon Webster, piano & keyboards
Matt Clohesy, contrabass & electric bass
Jon Wikan, drums & percussion

RINGLEADER
Darcy James Argue

GIG POSTMORTEM: 15 July 2009 @ LPR

(Photo: Lindsay Beyerstein)

SECRET SOCIETY

LE POISSON ROUGE

15 JULY 2009

SETLIST

(click to listen; right-click/ctrl-click to download)

1) MP3: Zeno
Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

2) MP3: Flux in a Box
Solos: Ben Kono, alto sax; Mike Holober, piano

3) MP3: Hard Up on the Down Low
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet & electronics

4) MP3: Jacobin Club
Solos: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

5) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Solo: Nadje Noordhuis, trumpet

6) MP3: Obsidian Flow
Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto sax

ENCORE
7) MP3: The Perils of Empire

DOWNLOAD ALL (ZIP ARCHIVE)

Apologies for the delay in getting this one up. This was the show that was broadcast on WFMU at the end of July -- here it is in all its fully and freely downloadable glory. "Hard Up on the Down Low" is a new one for us, and was written to feature Ingrid's sweet rack. Many of you know that "Ferromagnetic" is based on my sincere hope that one day, Blackwater founder Eric Prince will have a Tony Stark-like Road-to-Damascus moment... instead, he seems intent on plumbing the depths of villainy. And it's been a while since we've revived "Perils" but I'm afraid it's still pertinent.

Deepest gratitude to WFMU's Scott McDowell and LPR's Matthew Duane for making this recording possible. As always, if you like what you hear, kindly consider making a donation -- your support is invaluable and helps finance current and future Society activities:

CO-CONSPIRATORS

WINDS

Erica vonKleist

Ben Kono

Sam Sadigursky

Mark Small

Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS

Seneca Black

Tom Goehring

Matt Holman

Nadje Noordhuis

Ingrid Jensen

TROMBONES

Mike Fahie

Ryan Keberle

James Hirschfeld

Jennifer Wharton

RHYTHM

Sebastian Noelle, guitar

Mike Holober, piano & electric piano

Matt Clohesy, contrabass & electric bass

Jon Wikan, drums & percussion

COMPOSER - CONDUCTOR - RINGLEADER

Darcy James Argue

She loves a crowd, that's what I hear

(Photo: Nicken05)

SECRET SOCIETY
MOERS FESTVIAL
31 MAY 2009

SETLIST
(click to listen; right-click/ctrl-click to download)

1) MP3: Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Mark Small, tenor sax

2) MP3: Zeno
Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

3) MP3: Redeye
Solo: Sebastian Noelle, guitar

4) MP3: Obsidian Flow
Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto sax

5) ENCORE - MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

DOWNLOAD ALL (ZIP ARCHIVE)

More photos from Moers...

CO-CONSPIRATORS
WINDS
Erica vonKleist
Rob Wilkerson
Sam Sadigursky
Mark Small
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Seneca Black
Tom Goehring
Matt Holman
Nadje Noordhuis
Ingrid Jensen

TROMBONES
Mike Fahie
Ryan Keberle
James Hirschfeld
Jennifer Wharton

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, piano & electric piano
Matt Clohesy, contrabass & electric bass
Jon Wikan, drums & percussion

COMPOSER - CONDUCTOR - RINGLEADER
Darcy James Argue

Deepest thanks to WDR 3, Bernd Hoffmann (producer), Georg Niehusmann (recording supervisor), Rolf Lingenberg & Ron Ruiten (sound engineers), and everyone at the Moers Festival for making this recording possible.

As always, if you enjoy, please consider making a donation:

-----

Darcy James Argue's Secret Society is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

I'd rather be a tortoise from Galapagos

(Photo: Lindsay Beyerstein)

SECRET SOCIETY
INFERNAL MACHINES RECORD LAUNCH
UNDISCOVERED ISLANDS
GALAPAGOS ARTS SPACE
BROOKLYN NY
08 MAY 2009

SETLIST (click to listen; right-click/ctrl-click to download)
1) MP3: Phobos (partial)
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Mark Small, tenor sax

2) MP3: Zeno
Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

3) MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

4) MP3: Redeye
Solo: Sebastian Noelle, guitar

5) MP3: Jacobin Club
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

6) MP3: Habeas Corpus
Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

7) MP3: Obsidian Flow
Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto sax

DOWNLOAD ALL (ZIP ARCHIVE)

I am truly stunned -- in a warm and fuzzy but nonetheless bug-eyed way -- by all of the attention Infernal Machines has attracted. As regular readers of this blog know, I am a deep believer in striving for art that is intelligent and well-crafted and deeply personal, but also presented in a way that actually resonates with other contemporary humans. I am gratified beyond words that this music has struck a chord with so many of you. I am especially grateful to those who have followed and supported the band since our first raggedy-ass gig at CBGB almost four years ago. (And people say there's no such thing as progress... )

The live audio from our CD launch gig at Galapagos (linked above) actually turned out amazingly well. I don't pretend to understand the voodoo involved in getting these "field recordings" -- made with a digital recorder, a pair of binaural capsule mics, and a prayer -- to sound good, but for whatever reason, I seem to have accidentally hit upon a sweet spot with mic placement and levels, so this live representation is better than most. This is somewhat mystifying since the onstage sound at Galapagos was tough on us -- but from all reports, it sounded good in the room. For this I give mad props to Paul Cox, lead recording co-conspirator on Infernal Machines. He was also aboard assisting with live sound at Galapagos, thank the FSM. I only regret that I forgot to start the recorder until the middle of "Phobos" -- so I am afraid the recording of that tune begins in medias res.

At any rate, if you like your bigband raw instead of cooked -- or if you merely want a different perspective on the music from Infernal Machines -- we offer you the live tracks from this show gratis, as is our custom. Don't get me wrong, donations are always appreciated -- as are CD and T-Shirt sales, naturally -- but these live tracks are yours to share, burn, abuse, etc.

There are two more nights of Undiscovered Islands left at Galapagos and I hope you will come out to support the brilliant young artists involved in this festival -- this Friday, May 22, Signal performs Sarah Kirkland Snider's Penelope, and May 29 marks the premiere of Missy Mazzoli's Songs From The Uproar and a preview of William Brittelle's Television Landscape.

CO-CONSPIRATORS

WINDS
Erica vonKelist
Rob Wilkerson
Sam Sadigursky
Mark Small
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Seneca Black
Tom Goehring
Matt Holman
Nadje Noordhuis
Ingrid Jensen

TROMBONES
Mike Fahie
Ryan Keberle
James Hirschfeld
Jennifer Wharton

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Gordon Webster, piano & electric piano
Ike Sturm, contrabass & electric bass
Jon Wikan, drum set & cajon

Incriminating Evidence 2009.05.08

Erica vonKleist
(Photo: Lindsay Beyerstein)

More photos from our CD launch hit at Galapagos are available here, courtesy of official Society photographer/consort Lindsay Beyerstein.

Deepest thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate the impending release of Infernal Machines. We are, as always, honored and grateful for your support.

Audio update

Thanks to the good folks at the Jazz Gallery, I was able to obtain the audio from last Friday's second set. I've added the links here -- these tracks have some killing solos from Josh, Erica, Rob, Mike, and newly inaugurated co-conspirator Matt Holman, so I am very glad to be able to bring them to you.

And all their eyes look shady

So with all the recording-related program activities, I did not quite get around to posting the audio from our December Jazz Gallery hit before we played there again this weekend as part of the Search And Restore website launch -- check it out, it's alive. 

So, then. I'm-a just dump all this audio on the internets all at once like it's some kind of big truck. (Shut your mouth -- Ted Stevens references are timeless.) Here are the recordings from Dec. 12-13 and Feb. 6. There are a couple of caveats: 

One, the recording of the second set on Feb. 6 did not turn out, and I am beginning to get seriously pissed at my super-flaky digital recorder. Or perhaps my mic is dying. Anyway, hopefully the Jazz Gallery recorded the show -- if so, I'll have that audio for you later.

Two, I am keeping the Jazz Gallery-commissioned tunes ("Obsidian Flow" and "Jacobin Club") under wraps for the moment. If you weren't at the gigs, y'all will have to wait for the record to come out to hear those two cuts. Not being a dick, I just want to save a few surprises for the album itself. 

Also, a huge appreciation for trumpeter Matt Holman, last-minute sub for an ailing Nadje Noordhuis, he did an awesome job of sight-reading the book. I am hoping that recording of the second Feb. 6 set comes through eventually so you can hear his amazing solo on "Induction Effect."

Anyway, here are the tracks:

JAZZ GALLERY

12 DECEMBER 2008

SETLIST - SET 1

(click to listen; right-click/control-click to download)

1) MP3: Transit

Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

2) Jacobin Club

Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

3) MP3: Zeno

Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

4) Obsidian Flow

Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto saxophone

5) MP3: Habeas Corpus

Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

---

SETLIST - SET 2

1) MP3: Flux in a Box

Solo: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax

2) MP3: Redeye

Solo: Sebastian Noelle, guitar

3) Obsidian Flow

Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto saxophone

4) Jacobin Club

Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

5) MP3: Phobos

Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Mark Small, tenor saxophone

* * *

JAZZ GALLERY

13 DECEMBER 2008

SETLIST - SET 1

1) MP3: Flux in a Box

Solo: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax

2) MP3: Redeye

Solo: Sebastian Noelle, guitar

3) Obsidian Flow

Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto saxophone

4) Jacobin Club

Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

5) MP3: Phobos

Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Mark Small, tenor saxophone

---

SETLIST - SET 2

1) MP3: Transit

Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

2) Jacobin Club

Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

3) MP3: Zeno

Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

4) Obsidian Flow

Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto saxophone

5) MP3: Habeas Corpus

Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

* * *

JAZZ GALLERY

06 FEBRUARY 2009

SETLIST - SET 1

1) MP3: Phobos

Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; John Ellis, tenor sax

2) MP3: Zeno

Solo: Alex Heitlinger, trombone

3) MP3: Transit

Solo: Ingrid Jensen, fluegelhorn

4) MP3: Drift

Solo: John Ellis, tenor sax

5) Obsidian Flow

Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto saxophone

---

SETLIST - SET 2

1) MP3: Induction Effect

Solo: Matt Holman, trumpet

2) MP3: Flux in a Box

Solo: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax

3) MP3: Chrysalis

Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto flute & soprano sax

4) Jacobin Club

Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax & Mike Fahie, trombone

5) MP3: Lizard Brain

Solo: Josh Sinton, baritone sax

----

Finally, if you enjoy listening please donate. That way we can keep bringing you more music.

Live down on the Bowery somewhere, yeah

Darcy James Argue, originally uploaded by Lindsay Beyerstein.

Sincerest thanks to all who came out to hear us Sunday night. I'm afraid the recording karma was unkind -- my own digital device failed to cooperate (not for the first time), and we are still waiting to see if the BPC's house recording turned out. But in the meanwhile, please feel free to check out our Live Audio Archive and also these very kind writeups from Karen Hildebrand and the indefatigable Terri. Lindsay and Peter have photos. 

Also, I make a cameo appearance at Hooves on the Turf's "Where were you when Obama won?" roundup.

Ours was not the only bigband at the BPC Sunday night. We were preceded by bassist Marty Isenberg's assemblage. I hadn't heard of his group before and only managed to catch their closing number but they were very hip -- check 'em out on MySpace.

Also, anyone catch the name of the badass neo-soul band that went on after us? They were phenomenal.

All Nite Soul 2008

Master of Ceremonies Rob Crocker of WBGO

The Society had a blast at this year's All Nite Soul Festival at St. Peter's Church on Oct. 12, and we hope you did as well (despite the legendarily behind-schedule start time). It was an unbelievable honor to perform on the same bill as so many jazz legends, as well as a compliment of young upstarts doing great new things. And of course, it was a real kick to inaugurate the great Ted Poor as an official co-conspirator. If this night was your first exposure to Secret Society, we hope to see you again on Nov. 9 at the Bowery Poetry Club and Dec. 12-13 at the Jazz Gallery.

As regular readers know, I usually post audio of our live recordings here. I'm not going to to that in this case because, well... as you might imagine, the church's acoustics are somewhat suboptimal for bigband recording, and I'd really prefer y'all listen to those sweet-sounding, mixed & mastered recordings from our summer hit at Le Poisson Rouge. But in case you are keeping track, we played:

1) Flux in a Box (dedicated to DFW)
Solo: Jeremy Udden, alto sax

2) Ferromagnetic
Solo: Nadje Noordhuis, trumpet

Earlier recordings of both of which can be downloaded from our Live Audio Archive.

This was a great opportunity for me to extract myself from my current routine of devoting every waking hour to frantic preparations for our debut recording and instead sit back and enjoy some great music. Many thanks to Ike Sturm for the invitation, for running a great festival, and for playing bass for the Society's set.

More photos below the fold...

-----

Darcy James Argue's Secret Society is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Photos from (Le) Poisson Rouge

Sebastian Noelle, originally uploaded by Lindsay Beyerstein.

More incriminating evidence here.

Our deepest thanks to those who came out to hear us last night at (Le) Poisson Rouge. LPR has a genuine commitment to doing things right, which I'm sure I don't need to tell you, makes them practically unique amongst NYC venues.

I'm actually going back again tonight for Jenny Lin's CD launch. Lots more cool stuff coming up... A Hawk and a Hacksaw, Metropolis Ensemble, Matmos, Matt Shulman, Kathy Suppové... this is a great space to hear great music. Show them some love, people.

It will take me a little bit of time to post the audio from last night. Thanks to LPR, we were able to make a 48-channel digital recording of the entire hit (check out some of the sweet mics), and early next week we are going into the studio with Paul Cox to do the mixing and mastering. I'll post the results here when we are done -- this will be a big step up from the usual gig audio! This was a great gig for us and I am really looking forward to being able to bring you this music.

We need to make new symbols, make new signs

SECRET SOCIETY
NEW LANGUAGES FESTIVAL
THE LIVING THEATRE
NEW YORK, NY
13 JUNE 2008

SETLIST (click to listen; right-click/ctrl-click to download)

1) MP3: Induction Effect
Solo: Ron Horton, trumpet

2) MP3: Phobos
Solos: John Ellis, tenor sax; Jon Wikan, cajon

3) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Solo: Tim Hagans, trumpet

4) MP3: Zeno
Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

5) MP3: Redeye
Solo: Sebastian Noelle, guitar

6) MP3: Habeas Corpus
Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

7) MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

DOWNLOAD ALL (ZIP ARCHIVE)

Our deepest thanks to the large and enthusiastic late-night crowd who turned out for this hit -- we hope it was worth the wait. It was a complete thrill to have Tim Hagans and Ron Horton play with the NYC band for the first time, and we hope to have them both back soon. (In fact, one of them will be joining us for our next gig, July 9 at Le Poisson Rouge... watch this space for details.)

Our sincerest thanks as well to the organizers of the New Languages Festival: Ty Cumbie, Jackson Moore, and Aaron Ali Shaikh, for keeping the flame alive. Running an upstart, independent festival like New Languages is a thankless job at the best of times, but it is vitally important. These days, it's easy to feel like you are alone in your own isolated musical universe. Being part of New Languages made me feel like a part of a greater community of musicians and listeners -- for a moment at least, it felt like we were a roomful of people with a shared sensibility and shared goals.

CO-CONSPIRATORS

REEDS
Erica vonKleist
Ben Kono
John Ellis
Sam Sadigursky
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Tim Hagans
Ingrid Jensen
Ron Horton
Seneca Black
Tom Goehring

TROMBONES
Ryan Keberle
Mike Fahie
James Hirschfeld
Darrell Hendricks

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, piano
Matt Clohesy, bass
Jon Wikan, drums

He took a face from the ancient gallery

SECRET SOCIETY
THE JAZZ GALLERY
NEW YORK, NY
18-19 APRIL 2008

18 APRIL - SET 1
(click to listen, right-click/control-click to download)

1) MP3: Flux in a Box
Solos: Ben Kono - alto sax; Mike Holober - piano

2) MP3: Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan - cajon; John Ellis - tenor sax

3) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Solo: Jonathan Finlayson - trumpet

4) MP3: Habeas Corpus
Solo: James Hirschfeld - trombone

5) MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen - fluegelhorn

Download 18 April Set 1 (.zip archive)

18 APRIL - SET 2

1) MP3: Desolation Sound
Solo: Mike McGinnis - soprano sax

2) MP3: Zeno
Solo: Alan Ferber - trombone

3) MP3: Redeye
Solo: Sebastian Noelle - guitar

4) MP3: Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton - baritone sax

5) MP3: The Perils of Empire

Download 18 April Set 2 (.zip archive)

19 APRIL - SET 1

1) MP3: Ritual
Solo: Mike Fahie - trombone

2) MP3: Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist - alto flute/soprano sax

3) MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen - fluegelhorn

4) MP3: Drift
Solo: John Ellis - tenor sax

5) MP3: Habeas Corpus
Solo: James Hirschfeld - trombone

Download 19 April Set 1 (.zip archive)

19 APRIL - SET 2

1) MP3: Induction Effect
Solo: Sam Hoyt - fluegelhorn

2) MP3: Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan - cajon; John Ellis - tenor sax

3) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Solo: Jonathan Finlayson - trumpet

4) MP3: Zeno
Solo: Alan Ferber - trombone

5) MP3: Desolation Sound
Solo: Mike McGinnis - soprano sax

6) MP3: The Perils of Empire

Download April 19 Set 2 (.zip archive)

-----

Incriminating Evidence (courtesy of Lindsay Beyerstein)

-----

As always, my most sincere and heartfelt thanks to all who came out to hear us last weekend. We inducted several new co-conspirators into the Society, including Mike McGinnis and John Ellis, whose solo work you can hear above -- Mike plays on "Desolation Sound" and John plays on "Phobos" and "Drift." And don't sleep on Sam Hoyt on "Induction Effect." I also unveiled a sparkly new tune, "Zeno," the premiere performances of which you can now check out at your leisure. Finally, be sure to take in Lindsay's photographs -- she's a busy girl, so it's been a while since she's been available to shoot the band, but you can check out her latest work here.

You can also read a very generous writeup courtesy of poet and blogger Karen Hildebrand.

Unfortunately, my trusty digital recorder seems increasingly untrustworthy -- first, it mangled the recording of the final show of our January tour, at Toronto's Tranzac (I forgot to mention this earlier, but if anyone in the audience at Tranzac recorded the show, please contact me... ) and now, the infernal device has also garbled the final set of our two-night stand at the Gallery. However, the Jazz Gallery itself records all events there, so I'm hoping to obtain a copy of their recording and have it uploaded before long. (UPDATE: April 19 Set 2 has now been uploaded.)

Finally, while I don't anticipate that Secret Society will be declaring Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the immediate future (sweet lord I hope not, at least), we are in fact still attempting to pay off many of the expenses related to our January tour up to Montreal and Toronto. Musically, it was a massive success, with hugely enthusiastic audiences and rave reviews all around. It opened some important doors for us and and I have every reason to hope it will lead to bigger and better things for the band. That said, what with gas prices being what they are (and the US dollar being what it is), it was also an extremely expensive endeavor, and we are still soliciting individual donations to help us pay for trip-related costs. 

Of course, my undying love and gratitude goes out to those who have already made a donation. You are all awesome and I truly cannot thank you enough.

And thanks to you (this will be more "inside baseball" than "rock and roll," for which I apologize in advance) we are very, very close (like, within $120) to meeting our initial fundraising goal for this campaign. If that happens, then we will become eligible to apply for  institutional donations to help us fund our next big project -- the nature of which I am not yet at liberty to reveal but let's just say it rhymes with "sudeo according."

If you can, please help us pass that important milestone. We are in a brave new post-record-company world here, folks, and we are trying our best to make a go of it. But we can't do it without your help.

Once again, all of your donations made via Fractured Atlas are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Alternatively, if you'd like something more tangible than my undying love and gratitude in exchange for your hard-earned cash, our stylish Secret Society t-shirts (silkscreened by Hemlock Ink) can be had for roughly 867% less than a shirt from the new Varvatos boutique.

And, of course, you can always help us by downloading the above live MP3s and sharing them with your friends. Thanks for supporting creative independent 21st century music, and thanks most of all for listening.

-----

MANDATORY DISCLAIMER: Darcy James Argue's Secret Society North's Winter '08 Tour is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society North may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Well, I ain't been home to see my baby in ninety nine and one half days

SECRET SOCIETY NORTH
LA SALA ROSSA
MONTREAL
8 JANUARY 2008

SETLIST (click to listen/right-click or ctrl-click to download)

1) MP3: Flux in a Box
Solos: Erik Hove, alto sax; Gordon Webster, keyboard

2) MP3: Induction Effect
Solo: Lina Allemano, trumpet

3) MP3: Ritual
Solos: Kelsley Grant, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

4) MP3: Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Joel Miller, tenor sax

5) MP3: Drift
Solo: Chet Doxas, tenor sax

6) MP3: Desolation Sound
Solo: Christine Jensen, alto sax

7) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Solo: Kevin Turcotte, trumpet

8) MP3: Habeas Corpus
Solo: Mike Fahie, trombone

9) MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

DOWNLOAD ALL (ZIP ARCHIVE)

This was not just the first-ever gig for the Society's Canadian splinter cell, it was my first gig in Montreal since August 2000. Thanks to all who came out to hear us -- you made this hit feel like a real homecoming. With any luck, it will not take another seven years for us to be back.

And of course, a huge thank-you to all of our supporters -- this tour would not have happened without your individual contributions.

Here are some reviews -- Juan Rodriguez in the Montreal Gazette:

The morning after, I was still stunned at what I'd heard - clearly some of the most ambitious and compelling sounds I've ever encountered in the past 40 years.

Read the whole thing.

---

Adam Kinner at the Gazette's Words and Music blog:

Point is: it’s great to see a jazz composer who is actively manipulating the jazz tradition and the incorporating other music to produce a truly fresh and unique sound. 

Read the whole thing.

---

And David Ryshpan at Settled in Shipping:

[E]ven though I'd been listening to recordings of the New York band, hearing that music live had a different power and immediacy that I wasn't expecting.

Read the whole thing.

---

SECRET SOCIETY NORTH CO-CONSPIRATORS

REEDS

Erik Hove

Christine Jensen

Joel Miller

Chet Doxas

Carl Maraghi

TRUMPETS

Ingrid Jensen

Lina Allemano

Kevin Turcotte

Jimmy Rhodes

Jocelyn Couture

TROMBONES

Mike Fahie

Kelsley Grant

Barb Hamilton

Bob Ellis

RHYTHM

Sebastian Noelle, guitar

Gordon Webster, keyboard

Matt Clohesy, bass

Jon Wikan, drums

COMPOSER, CONDUCTOR & RINGLEADER

Darcy James Argue

-----

Our winter 2008 tour is now complete, but it's not too late to help support this effort by making a tax-deductible donation.

Oh it's midnight on the Bowery and your feet are soakin' wet

SETLIST (click to listen/right-click or ctrl-click to download)

1) MP3: Ritual
Solos: James Hirschfeld, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

2) MP3: Induction Effect
Solo: André Canniere, fluegelhorn

3) MP3: Flux in a Box
Solos: Ben Kono, alto sax; Mike Holober, electric piano

4) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Solo: Nadje Noorhuis, trumpet

5) MP3: Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Jason Rigby, tenor sax

6) MP3: Redeye
Solo: Sebastian Noelle, guitar

7) MP3: Habeas Corpus
Solo: Ryan Keberle, trombone

8) MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, flugelhorn

9) MP3: The Perils of Empire

Download all (ZIP archive)

The Society bids a fond fare-thee-well to trumpeter André Canniere, who in 2008 is relocating to Dear Old Blighty to be with his lovely bride. André has been in the Society since almost the very beginning, and has been featured on most of our various versions of "Induction Effect" -- none more compelling than his solo turn last night. Have a listen. 

Good luck in the UK, André -- we will miss you.

It was a regular blogger powwow last night on the Bowery, with Ethan, Sid, Peter, Elana, Amy, and Kelly all in attendance. Thanks to all who turned out on a cold December night, and thanks most especially to Kelly for her invaluable assistance with the T-shirt sales.

Speaking of which, you have until midnight tomorrow (Tuesday) night to place your Secret Society T-shirt orders. After that, I am headed back home for the holidays, and then in early 2008 we will embark on our first-ever tour. T-shirt orders placed after Dec. 18 won't ship until my return in mid-Jan., so if you want yours before then, you'll need to act swiftly.

My most sincere and heartfelt thanks to those of you who have helped support us as we prepare to take the show on the ice-encrusted roads of Quebec and Ontario in early January (what was I thinking???). If you have not already made a tax-deductible donation (via Fractured Atlas), and/or purchased a handsome Secret Society T-shirt, please consider doing so now. Your contributions and T-shirt purchases help me  ensure that the band gets there and back without any unnecessary  casualties. Remember, we must be mindful of the Australians amongst us -- they are not used to these weather conditions.

Rest assured, the scenes behind the scenes of this winter tour will be fully documented on the blog -- if not as-it-happens, then at least upon my (presumed) safe return to Brooklyn.

Thank you all for reading, thank you for listening, and thank you for supporting creative independent music. On behalf of the Society and all its co-conspirators, all the very best for the holidays and the year to come. Stay tuned, and stay warm.

-----

A gentle reminder that our fall fundraiser is in full swing. You can help make our January tour a success by making a tax-deductible donation.

I blew my gig pokin' 'round the gallery

SETLIST - SET 1 (click to listen/right-click to download)

1) MP3: Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan - cajon; Mark Small - tenor sax

2) MP3: Ferromagnetic
Solo: Kenny Warren - trumpet

3) MP3: Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist - alto flute/soprano sax

4) MP3: Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen - fluegelhorn

5) MP3: Habeas Corpus (for Maher Arar)
Solo: James Hirschfeld - trombone

Download Set 1 (ZIP Archive)

SETLIST - SET 2

1) MP3: Indcution Effect
Solo: André Canniere - fluegelhorn

2) MP3: Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson - alto sax; Jesse Stacken - piano

3) MP3: Desolation Sound (this performance dedicated to the memory of Barry Beyerstein)
Solo: Sam Sadigursky - soprano sax

4) MP3: Redeye
Solo: Sebastian Noelle - guitar

5) MP3: Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton - bari sax

Download Set 2 (ZIP Archive)

Damn, it's good to be back.

We unveiled two new tunes at the Jazz Gallery on Thursday night -- "Ferromagnetic" (which draws [unironic] inspiration from the aforementioned awesome trailer), and "Redeye," a gentle ode to the effects of sleep deprivation. (Hey, write what you know, right?) This tune was rescued from the ashes of a much earlier attempt at developing this material -- one that did not end at all well.

My deepest thanks to all who came out to hear us play -- this was perhaps the most satisfying hit yet, on every level. Naturally, I was delighted to see that there were some fellow bloggers in the house. (PS Thanks for the writeups, Yooni, Chris, and Kelly! )

-----

Thanks to the good people at Fractured Atlas, you may now make a secure, online, and tax-deductible donation to Secret Society:

Here is the official appeal for our current fundraising campaign -- I will have more information for you soon:

Secret Society North is the Canadian cousin to the acclaimed New York big band Secret Society. Vancouver-born, New York-based composer-bandleader Darcy James Argue wanted to give Canadian audiences the opportunity to hear his cutting-edge large ensemble music live. He realized that putting together an edition of Secret Society that augments the core of the NYC band with Canadian musicians would not only allow him to present his music north of the 49th, it would also give him the opportunity to reconnect with musicians he had collaborated with during his years on the Montreal jazz scene in the 1990’s. He calls this band "Secret Society North."

Secret Society North have been invited to perform at the 2008 IAJE (International Association for Jazz Education) conference in Toronto. This is by far the largest jazz event in the world, regularly attracting over 7,000 attendees. It is also a terrific opportunity to perform fresh and forward-looking music for jazz students and educators, who too often let their focus on jazz's past obscure their view of what is happening right now.

We humbly ask for your support to help us defray the travel expenses and other costs associated with bringing our innovative and genre-defying music to audiences in Toronto and Montreal that have never heard anything quite like it before.

MANDATORY DISCLAIMER GOES HERE: Darcy James Argue's Secret Society North Winter '08 Tour is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society North Winter '08 Tour may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

It was on the Bowery when it was time to go

SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Ritual
Solos: Ryan Keberle, trombone; Mike Baggetta, guitar

2) Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Mark Small, tenor sax

3) Induction Effect
Solo: Jonathan Finlayson, trumpet

4) Drift
Solo: Jason Rigby, tenor sax

5) Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, fluegelhorn

6) Habeas Corpus
Solo: Christian Pincock, trombone

Download All (ZIP archive)

-----

What a kick to have the evening open up with a set by Kyle Saulnier's Awakening Orchestra. This band hasn't been around all that long, but they are already impressively tight, executing Kyle's demanding and varied music with sensitivity, grace, and pinpoint precision. Kyle's music is very different than mine -- he is much more likely to reach for the jarring juxtapositions, abrupt transitions, extreme contrasts, but the results are very hip, personable and refreshing. It's nice to have occasional reminders that there are other people out there shooting for the same stars. It makes you feel less delusional... although, like a gathering of self-reinforcing conspiracy nuts, there's no guarantee that we aren't actually all of us barking loons.

That being the case, I don't think I'll let myself be institutionalized quite yet. Especially if there can be more nights like Saturday's big band double-bill. It's always a thrill to see how players I've grown used to hearing in completely different contexts sound when sucked into the Society vortex for the first time. Check Mike Baggetta's slashing sound constructs on "Ritual" (also augmented by some authentic lungcore low end, courtesy of Alex Hamelin on bari), and Jonathan Finlayson's intimate and fragile solo opening on "Induction Effect." Christian Pincock has played with us on a couple of previous occasions, but has never before had the chance to stretch out with a solo turn -- check his plaintive contribution to "Habeas Corpus." Jason Rigby was on our third-ever hit back in November 2005 -- you can, if you are so inclined, compare his solo on "Drift" back then to the one he blew Saturday night. This is not to neglect the reliably great Mark Small, Ingrid Jensen, and Ryan Keberle -- on "Phobos," "Transit," and "Ritual," respectively.

While this blog may be finally back from hiatus, the band is going to take a little break, whilst I try to come up with some new music, and also hopefully devising some new strategems for getting the music out there. (Perhaps the spirit of the late Rev. Falwell will offer up some tips from beyond the grave on developing one's evangelism chops.) At any rate, thanks again to Kyle and his crew for sharing the night with us, and thanks especially to all who came out to hear us. You guys are the best. See you again this fall.

POSTSCRIPT: As mentioned at the gig, this will be Society trumpet player Dave Rezek's last appearance with the group. Dave is one of the finest trumpet players I have ever worked with. He first began playing my music back in Boston, when we were both at NEC, and since we both moved to New York, he has made every single Secret Society hit save one -- and he only subbed out of that one because that was the week his wife was due. But Dave, Lori, and their 18-month old baby Seth will be leaving Gotham this summer for good, to return to their hometown of Des Moines, Iowa. I wish the three of them all the very best.

The minstrel in the gallery

Thursday, 5 April 2007 - The Jazz Gallery

SETLIST - SET 2 (click to listen/download)

1) MP3: Transit (excerpt)
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, fluegelhorn

2) MP3: Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

3) MP3: Induction Effect
Solo: André Canniere, trumpet

4) MP3: Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto flute/soprano sax

5) MP3: Habeas Corpus
Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

6) MP3: The Perils of Empire

Download all (ZIP archive)

Many, many thanks to those who came out for our Jazz Gallery debut. Your support is quite literally what allows us to keep going. My appreciation for your contribution to this nefarious enterprise knows no bounds.

I'm afraid that the first set of the evening is preserved only in the memories of those who heard it, as unbeknownst to me, the freshly-charged batteries on my recorder died almost the instant I turned it on. The good news is that the second set captured almost in its entirety -- the recording begins in medias res on "Transit," but after that everything is represented in full. (For the curious and/or the obsessive completists, the Set 1 setlist is reproduced below the fold.)

Our next gig will be a very exciting big band double-bill at the Bowery Poetry Club on May 19. Kyle Saulnier's Awakening Orchestra will kick things off at 7:00 PM sharp, and the Society will follow at 8:00 PM. It's also my birthday (observed), so please join us as I do my best to age loudly and gracelessly.

Everybody's going Uptown (it's where I wanna be)

Wednesday, 7 March 2007 - Makor

SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, fluegelhorn

2) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigurksy, soprano sax

3) Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto flute/soprano sax

4) Induction Effect
Solo: André Canniere, trumpet

5) Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Dan Willis, tenor sax

6) Flux in a Box
Solos: Ben Kono, alto sax; Mike Holober, piano

7) Habeas Corpus
Solo: Alan Ferber, trombone

Download All (ZIP archive)

-----

Thanks to all who came up to hear us venture outside of our usual haunts. Makor is a very hip venue, an oasis of eclecticism lurking in the monocultural shadow of Lincoln Center. (Though presumably the uneasy fit with Uptown concergoing tastes is a big part of why they're moving to TriBeCa.) But it's a great space, with great sound -- as you can hear on the above MP3s. Mike Holober was happy to play an actual acoustic piano for once -- check his solo on "Flux," as well as Ingrid's return to the fold on "Transit," Alan's take on the somewhat revised "Habeas Corpus," and the blistering playing by special guests Ben Kono (also on "Flux") and Dan Willis ("Phobos").

If you missed us at Makor, we will be at the Jazz Gallery on April 5, and then back at the Bowery Poetry Club on May 19 (in a double bill with Kyle Saulnier's band).

-----

Sorry, no incriminating evidence this time -- the band photographer was busy with other assignments.

And the Bowery is screaming while Delancey rests

Sunday, 14 January 2007 - Bowery Poetry Club

with the Industrial Jazz Group

SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton, baritone sax

2) Induction Effect
Solo: André Canniere, trumpet

3) Drift
Solo: Mark Small, tenor sax

4) Transit
Solo: Shane Endsley, trumpet

5) Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto flute and soprano sax

6) Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajon; Mark Small, tenor sax

7) Habeas Corpus
Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

8) The Perils of Empire

 

Download all (ZIP archive)

-----

Incriminating evidence (by Brazilian music photographer Dani Gurgel).

-----

Goddamn but that was fun. And believe me, I never thought I'd say that about a gig where I found out just a few hours before the hit that one of the players was stuck in Florida airport hell (redundant, I know) and couldn't make it back to New York in time to play. Luckily, last-minute sub Marc Phaneuf -- who had never seen any of the music before -- is evidently some sort of sight-reading mutant, and so all was good.

The Industrial Jazz Group were, as predicted, more fun in a club setting at night than they were in a hotel ballroom during a Very Important Jazz Conference at noon a few days prior. And since they were still pretty goddamn fun at IAJE, that's quite the accomplishment. It no doubt helped that Andrew Durkin & co. were playing the final night of an east coast tour, in front of a hugely supportive crowd. Seriously, I have never seen the BPC that packed. Shameless gig-flogging at IAJE (from all involved) evidently really does work. Who knew?

Anyway, the IJG brought boundless reserves of energy to Andrew's infectious and witty charts, which are full of clever inside jokes but thankfully mostly snark-free -- they kid because they love. Their tunes are all great, but I'm especially partial to "Bongo Non Troppo." If you haven't heard their stuff yet, get thee to MySpace posthaste.

IJG trumpet player and blogger extraordinaire Kris Tiner has the inside scoop:

I'm interested to read what Durkin will blog about the whole thing, but I'll go ahead and venture to say that this was probably the strongest and most fun IJG gig I've ever played on. Playing this music night after night with more or less the same people is really something else. Tonight it just seemed to coalesce and flow together and fly by effortlessly.

It was truly amazing to have such a killing group hit just before we did -- their set was an inspiration for the Society to try to give it up as much as the Industrials did.

I will let you all decide whether or not we succeeded in that regard, but I'm very pleased with how things went. It was great to have Erica, Jon, and Darrell back with us, and the newly inducted co-conspirators -- Shane, Alex, Thomson, and of course Marc -- all played their asses off. Not a bad start to 2007, all things considered.

-----

REEDS
Erica vonKleist
Rob Wilkerson
Marc Phaneuf
Mark Small
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Shane Endsley
André Canniere
James De La Garza
Tom Goehring
Dave Rezek

TROMBONES
Alan Ferber
Alex Heitlinger
James Hirschfeld
Darrell Hendricks

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, keyboards
Thomson Kneeland, bass
Jon Wikan, drums

COMPOSER, CONDUCTOR, RINGLEADER
Darcy James Argue

But in the Bowery hangs the memories of dreams that still come true

Gig Postmortem
Thursday, 30 November 2006 - Bowery Poetry Club

SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Ritual
Solos: Ryan Keberle, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

2) Phobos
Solo: Mark Small, tenor sax

3) Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax; Mike Holober, piano

4) Induction Effect
Solo: André Canniere, fluegelhorn

5) Drift
Solo: Mark Small, tenor sax

6) Transit
Solo: Jacob Wick, trumpet

7) Habeas Corpus
Solo: James Hirschfeld, trombone

8) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

-----

NYT Review (Ben Ratliff)

While I'm extremely flattered by the praise Ratliff has for my writing, I can't agree with his characterization of Rob's solo on "Flux in a Box." But hey, the great thing about the interweb is that you can listen and make up your own mind.

I am, as always, deeply grateful to all of my co-conspirators for their dedication, hard work, and consummate musicianship. But kindly indulge me in a supersized shout-out to Kendrick Scott. This music lives or dies by the drummer. He's the guy you depend on to keep everything from flying off the rails, to unite 18 different time feels, to give shape to the music, to keep it aloft.

This is not the kind of thing you can just read cold. Regular Secret Society drummer, Jon Wikan (who's currently out with Maria Schneider's band) knows by now what the music needs, having anchored most of our gigs so far. As does Richie Barshay, who played with us in August -- Richie got to know my music by playing it every week for a year back when we were both students at NEC. But Kendrick had zero previous exposure to my writing. Nonetheless, over just a couple of rehearsals, he was able to internalize the shape and the spirit of it, figure out where the music crests and where it breaks, all while bringing his own distinctive personality to bear. I knew from that first slam into the beat on "Ritual" that this was going to be a fun gig.

-----

Incriminating Evidence

-----

CO-CONSPIRATORS

REEDS
Aaron Irwin
Rob Wilkerson
Sam Sadigursky
Mark Small
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Jacob Wick
André Canniere
James De La Garza
Tom Goehring
Dave Rezek

TROMBONES
Mark Patterson
Ryan Keberle
James Hirschfeld
Mike Christianson

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, keyboards
Matt Clohesy, bass
Kendrick Scott, drums

COMPOSER, CONDUCTOR, RINGLEADER
Darcy James Argue

Through factory chains and the ghost of the union

Saturday, August 26 - Flux Factory (3 Quarks Daily bash).

SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax; Mike Holober, piano

2) Phobos
Solo: Mark Small, tenor sax

3) Chrysalis
Solo: Aaron Irwin, alto flute/soprano sax

4) Induction Effect
Solo: Matt Shulman, trumpet

5) Ritual
Solos: Mike Fahie, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

6) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

7) Transit
Solo: Jacob Varmus, trumpet

- - - - -

Sunday, August 27 - Union Hall

 SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Transit
Solo: Jacob Varmus, trumpet

2) Phobos
Solo: Mark Small, tenor sax

3) Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton, bari sax

4) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

5) Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax; Mike Holober, piano

6) Chrysalis
Solo: Aaron Irwin, alto flute/soprano sax

7) Induction Effect
Solo: Matt Shulman, trumpet

8) Ritual
Solos: Mike Fahie, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

9) The Perils of Empire

- - - - -

One of the biggest challenges of running a big band is trying to keep a stable group of players together -- especially when so many of those players have busy touring schedules of their own. But on the other hand, one of the biggest rewards of running a big band is the chance to have your music realized by a staggering variety of incredibly talented musicians who each bring their own personality to bear on the music. (Actually, Ike emailed me after the gigs to say: "It's so great to have an excuse for the community to congregate and make music together," which pretty much made my fuckin' year.)

These recordings from last weekend all sound very different from our previous hits -- it's the first time we've played without our regular, stalwart rhythm section of Matt Clohesy and Jon Wikan. And while, as a bandleader, you can't help but miss the security of players that have more or less internalized your charts, it's also thrilling to hear what great musicians like Ike Sturm and Richie Barshay will bring to the music -- especially since Richie and I go way back (he played on some of the earliest performances of "Flux in a Box," "Chrysalis," and "Lizard Brain" back in 2001-2002).  It's also incredibly satisfying to be able to showcase musicians who have toiled away at Secret Society reading sessions and rehearsals but never performed with the band -- check out these amazing solo turns by Matt Shulman on "Induction Effect", Mark Small on "Phobos", Aaron Irwin on "Chrysalis", and Jacob Varmus on "Transit". And while you're at it, listen to the fresh ideas Society veterans bring to familiar material: Josh Sinton on "Lizard Brain", Sam Sadigursky on "Desolation Sound", and Rob Wilkerson and Mike Holober on "Flux in a Box".

On Saturday, at Flux Factory, we were playing mainly for the 3 Quarks community, most of whom had never heard us before and had no idea what to expect, which made the enthusiastic response all the more gratifying. (And I have to admit, I'd been looking forward to playing "Flux in a Box" at the home of FluxBox for a long time... )  On Sunday, at Union Hall, I finally got to bring the band to  Brooklyn (my home for the past three years), and we got to play for friends old and new -- including Jean, Julie, Corey, Seth, Brenda, Sarah, Chris and Molly. And I'm happy to report that Union Hall is the real deal -- an amazing-sounding room with a staff that treats musicians like human beings (instead of the customary noisy chattel).

Heartfelt thanks to all who came out to hear us this weekend. We are, as ever, at your service.

And, as always, there is Incriminating Evidence available for your perusal...

- - - - -

CO-CONSPIRATORS

Reeds
Aaron Irwin
Rob Wilkerson
Sam Sadigurksy
Mark Small
Josh Sinton

Trumpets
Matt Shulman
Jacob Varmus
James de la Garza
Tom Goehring
Dave Rezek

Trombones
Alan Ferber
Mike Fahie
Kajiwara Tokunori
Darrell Hendricks

Rhythm
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, keys
Ike Sturm, bass
Richie Barshay, drums

SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax; Mike Holober, piano

2) Phobos
Solo: Mark Small, tenor sax

3) Chrysalis
Solo: Aaron Irwin, alto flute/soprano sax

4) Induction Effect
Solo: Matt Shulman, trumpet

5) Ritual
Solos: Mike Fahie, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

6) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

7) Transit
Solo: Jacob Varmus, trumpet

- - - - -

Sunday, August 27 - Union Hall

 SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Transit
Solo: Jacob Varmus, trumpet

2) Phobos
Solo: Mark Small, tenor sax

3) Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton, bari sax

4) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

5) Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax; Mike Holober, piano

6) Chrysalis
Solo: Aaron Irwin, alto flute/soprano sax

7) Induction Effect
Solo: Matt Shulman, trumpet

8) Ritual
Solos: Mike Fahie, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

9) The Perils of Empire

- - - - -

One of the biggest challenges of running a big band is trying to keep a stable group of players together -- especially when so many of those players have busy touring schedules of their own. But on the other hand, one of the biggest rewards of running a big band is the chance to have your music realized by a staggering variety of incredibly talented musicians who each bring their own personality to bear on the music. (Actually, Ike emailed me after the gigs to say: "It's so great to have an excuse for the community to congregate and make music together," which pretty much made my fuckin' year.)

These recordings from last weekend all sound very different from our previous hits -- it's the first time we've played without our regular, stalwart rhythm section of Matt Clohesy and Jon Wikan. And while, as a bandleader, you can't help but miss the security of players that have more or less internalized your charts, it's also thrilling to hear what great musicians like Ike Sturm and Richie Barshay will bring to the music -- especially since Richie and I go way back (he played on some of the earliest performances of "Flux in a Box," "Chrysalis," and "Lizard Brain" back in 2001-2002).  It's also incredibly satisfying to be able to showcase musicians who have toiled away at Secret Society reading sessions and rehearsals but never performed with the band -- check out these amazing solo turns by Matt Shulman on "Induction Effect", Mark Small on "Phobos", Aaron Irwin on "Chrysalis", and Jacob Varmus on "Transit". And while you're at it, listen to the fresh ideas Society veterans bring to familiar material: Josh Sinton on "Lizard Brain", Sam Sadigursky on "Desolation Sound", and Rob Wilkerson and Mike Holober on "Flux in a Box".

On Saturday, at Flux Factory, we were playing mainly for the 3 Quarks community, most of whom had never heard us before and had no idea what to expect, which made the enthusiastic response all the more gratifying. (And I have to admit, I'd been looking forward to playing "Flux in a Box" at the home of FluxBox for a long time... )  On Sunday, at Union Hall, I finally got to bring the band to  Brooklyn (my home for the past three years), and we got to play for friends old and new -- including Jean, Julie, Corey, Seth, Brenda, Sarah, Chris and Molly. And I'm happy to report that Union Hall is the real deal -- an amazing-sounding room with a staff that treats musicians like human beings (instead of the customary noisy chattel).

Heartfelt thanks to all who came out to hear us this weekend. We are, as ever, at your service.

And, as always, there is Incriminating Evidence available for your perusal...

- - - - -

CO-CONSPIRATORS

Reeds
Aaron Irwin
Rob Wilkerson
Sam Sadigurksy
Mark Small
Josh Sinton

Trumpets
Matt Shulman
Jacob Varmus
James de la Garza
Tom Goehring
Dave Rezek

Trombones
Alan Ferber
Mike Fahie
Kajiwara Tokunori
Darrell Hendricks

Rhythm
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, keys
Ike Sturm, bass
Richie Barshay, drums

Puppet, pauper, pirate, poet, pawn, king

Gig Postmortem

Friday, 7 July 2006 - Bowery Poetry Club

SETLIST (click to listen/download)
1) Induction Effect
Solo: André Canniere, fluegelhorn

2) Flux in a Box
Solos: Jeremy Udden, alto sax; Kris Davis, piano

3) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, soprano sax

4) Drift
Solo: Dan Willis, tenor sax

5) Ritual
Solos: Alan Ferber, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

6) Chrysalis
Solo: Ben Kono, alto flute/soprano sax

7) Phobos
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax

8) Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

9) The Perils of Empire

Co-Conspirators:

REEDS

Ben Kono

Jeremy Udden

Sam Sadigursky

Dan Willis

Alden Banta

TRUMPETS

Ingrid Jensen

André Canniere

James De La Garza

Tom Goehring

Dave Rezek

TROMBONES

Alan Ferber

James Hirschfield

Mike Fahie

Darrell Hendricks

RHYTHM

Sebastian Noelle, guitar

Kris Davis, keyboards

Matt Clohesy, bass

Jon Wikan, drums

Recorded in 24-bit mode on my Edirol R-1 using Core Sound capsule mics, which you can see clipped to the music stand next to me in the above photo. Ben Kono, Jeremy Udden, Alden Banta, James Hirschfield and Kris Davis were the newly inducted co-conspirators, and they all performed admirably. "Induction Effect" and "Phobos" both saw some revisions since last time, and Jon and I had a long session at his place trying to figure out the best way to handle that material.

Don't forget to examine the Incriminating Evidence, courtesy of Lindsay.

Many, many thanks to all who came out to hear us, and we hope to see you again soon.

There was the Bow'ry, ablaze with lights

Gig Postmortem
Tuesday, 18 April 2006 - Bowery Poetry Club - Stefan Zeniuk's Open Ear series

Co-Conspirators
 
REEDS
Erica vonKleist
Rob Wilkerson
Sam Sadigursky
Donny McCaslin
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Ingrid Jensen
André Canniere
James De La Garza
Tom Goehring
Jason Colby

TROMBONES
Alan Ferber
Mike Fahie
Christian Pincock
Darrell Hendricks

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle
Mike Holober
Matt Clohesy
Jon Wikan

SETLIST (click to listen/download)
1) Phobos
Solos: Jon Wikan, cajón; Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax

2) Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen, trumpet

3) Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton, baritone sax

4) Chrysalis
Solo: Ericka vonKleist, alto flute and soprano sax

5) Ritual
Solos: Alan Ferber, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

6) Induction Effect
Solo: André Canniere, trumpet

7) Flux in a Box
Solos: Rob Wilkerson, alto sax; Mike Holober, Yamaha CP70 electric piano

8) Desolation Sound
Solo: Donny McCaslin, soprano sax

9) The Perils of Empire

Incriminating Evidence

Please see Steve Smith's detailed and insightful review.

I should also mention that the recorded sound is greatly improved this time -- everything except the opener was captured by the BPC's house mic (a stereo pair suspended above the audience) and recorded by Stefan Zeniuk direct-to-HD. Thanks again to all who came out to hear us -- we hope to see you again before long.

Or lecture me with poetry

BPC Postmortem...

Friday, 20 January 2006 - Bowery Poetry Club - Stefan Zeniuk's Open Ear series

Co-Conspirators
 
REEDS
Erica vonKleist
Will Vinson
Sam Sadigursky
Dan Willis
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Dave Smith
André Canniere
James De La Garza
Tom Goehring
Dave Rezek

TROMBONES
Mark Patterson
Christian Pincock
Ben Griffin
Darrell Hendricks

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle
Mike Holober
Matt Clohesy
Jon Wikan

SETLIST (click to listen/download)
1) Flux in a Box
Solos: Will Vinson, alto sax; Mike Holober, keyboards

2) Phobos
Solo: Sam Sadigursky, tenor sax

3) Ritual
Solos: Mark Patterson, trombone; Sebastian Noelle, guitar

4) Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist, alto flute and soprano sax

5) Transit
Solo: Dave Smith, fluegelhorn

6) Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton, bari sax

Incriminating Evidence

I had a blast on Friday. The band was on and the audience was with us. The rhythm section is becoming familiar enough with the music now that they're starting to surprise me (in a good way). I've probably heard "Lizard Brain" more often than any of my other charts — it's the earliest piece of mine in the Secret Society book, and in a way, it's the most tradionally "big band" thing we do (if you just ignore the intense chromaticism, the screech-honk meltdowns, and the  fact that most of it is in 13, it sounds just like Thad Jones, I swear), but tonight is the first night I felt like the piece really came together, thanks to some supple, dynamic, locked-in playing from Jon and Matt, and an out-of-the park solo from Josh Sinton. (For a completely different side of Josh's playing, check out his MySpace page, featuring his group Holus Bolus.)

"Phobos" has undergone some revisions since the first time we played it, back in Novemeber. Sam has more space at the beginning of his solo, and the buildup is more gradual and more satisfying, I think. This was also the official unveiling of Jon Wikan's new secret weapson — the electro-cajon. (So if you were wondering "what the hell is that weird percussion sound?", wonder no more.)

One of the great pleasures of running a big band (which it helps to remind yourself of when you are about to cave under the weight of the sheer aburdity of running a big band) is that you get to hear a lot of amazing players navigate your music and bring out completely different aspects of it. Dave Smith has rehearsed with us before but never played on one of our gigs, and he brings an energy all his own to his solo on "Transit."  And Mark Patterson is our regular lead trombone player, but before Friday night, he hadn't had the chance to blow — he handles the solo on "Ritual" with the requiste hardcore aplomb.

André Canniere, James De La Garza, Christian Pincock, and Ben Griffin also made their Secret Society debuts, and it is, as always, an honor to work with players who are so completely committed to the music.

This is the first time I've recorded a gig with my new Edirol R1, which is a very cool portable digital recorder with one big drawback — the interface for monitoring the recording level is completely obtuse. (Would it have killed them to add a couple of meters to the front?) So I'm afraid I set the level way too low, and consequently there's a bit more hiss than usual. I'll get the hang of it for next time.

Hello from the gutters of New York City

CB's Postmortem

Wednesday, 02 November, 2005 - 10 PM
CBGB Lounge - Freestyle Jazz Series

Co-Conspirators:

REEDS
Dan Willis
Peter Van Huffel
Jason Rigby
Sam Sadigursky
Ed Renz

TRUMPETS
Ingrid Jensen
Brian Pareschi
Tom Goehring
Miki Hirose
Matt Peterson

TROMBONES
Ryan Keberle
Mike Fahie
Paul Olenick

BASS TROMBONE & TUBA
Dale Turk

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, piano
Matt Clohesy, bass
Jon Wikan, drums

SETLIST (click to listen/download)

1) Ritual
Solos: Mike Fahie (trombone), Sebastian Noelle (guitar)

2) Phobos
Solo: Sam Sadigursky (tenor sax)

3) Chrysalis
Solo: Dan Willis (alto flute/soprano sax)

4) Flux in a Box
Solos: Peter Van Huffel (alto sax), Mike Holober (keyboard)

5) Drift
Solo: Jason Rigby (tenor sax)

6) Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen (fluegelhorn)

7) Desolation Sound
Solo: Sam Sadigursky (soprano sax)

8) The Perils of Empire

Recorded straight to Lindsay's laptop. This time, I experimented with a different mic placement, recording further back from the stage in an attempt to get a better balance from the band. The balance is indeed better, but the law of unintended consequences strikes again -- I had forgotten about the loud ventilation system in CB's Lounge, which makes a special guest appearance on all eight tracks.  Oh well.

This is, incidentally, the first performance of a minty-fresh new tune, Phobos, written to feature Sam Sadigursky on tenor. Sam also plays the stratospheric soprano part on this version of Desolation Sound.

Incriminating evidence from the night will be up in the sidebar shortly. Thanks again to everyone who joined us Wednesday night.

Bowery Poetry Club postmortem

Tuesday, 25 October 2005 - 10 PM
Bowery Poetry Club - Open Ear series

Co-Conspirators

REEDS
Erica vonKleist
Will Vinson
Donny McCaslin
Sam Sadigursky
Josh Sinton

TRUMPETS
Ingrid Jensen
Jon Owens
Brian Pareschi
Tom Goehring
Dave Rezek

TROMBONES
Ryan Keberle
Mark Patterson
Mike Fahie

BASS TROMBONE & TUBA
Darrell Hendricks

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, piano
Matt Clohesy, bass
Jon Wikan, drums

Setlist (click to listen/download)
1) Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen (trumpet)

2) Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist (alto flute, soprano sax)

3) Desolation Sound
Solo: Donny McCaslin (soprano sax)

4) Lizard Brain
Solo: Josh Sinton, bari sax

5) Drift
Solo: Donny McCaslin (tenor sax)

6) Ritual
Solos: Ryan Keberle (trombone), Sebastian Noelle (guitar)

7) Flux in a Box
Solos: Will Vinson (alto sax), Mike Holober (electric piano)

8) The Perils of Empire

Photos

Thanks again to all who came out to hear us. I thought the performances of "Chrysalis" and "Lizard Brain" were especially strong, as well as the two tunes featuring Donny -- "Desolation Sound," and an extra-slow version of "Drift" dedicated to Shirley Horn. Also, "The Perils of Empire" -- a piece of faux horror-movie music I wrote in early 2003, during the runup to the invasion of Iraq -- ended up being grimly appropriate, as it was on the morning of Oct 25 that the 2000th U.S. combat death in Iraq was announced.

CBGB Postmortem

Sunday, 29 May 2005 - 9 PM
CBGB Lounge - Freestyle Jazz series

Co-Conspirators:

REEDS
Erica vonKleist
Peter Van Huffel
Joel Frahm
Sam Sadigursky
Ed Renz

TRUMPETS
Ingrid Jensen
Dave Rezek
John Chudoba
Tom Goehring
Miki Hirose

TROMBONES
Marshall Gilkes
Mark Patterson
Mike Fahie
Paul Olenick

RHYTHM
Sebastian Noelle, guitar
Mike Holober, keyboards
Fraser Hollins, bass
Jon Wikan, drums

Setlist:
(click to listen/download)

1) Flux in a Box
Solos: Peter Van Huffel (alto sax), Mike Holober (piano)

2) Drift
Solo: Joel Frahm (tenor sax)

3) Ritual
Solos: Marshall Gilkes (trombone), Sebastian Noelle (guitar)

4) Chrysalis
Solo: Erica vonKleist (alto flute, soprano sax)

5) Desolation Sound
Solo: Joel Frahm (soprano sax)

6) Transit
Solo: Ingrid Jensen (trumpet)

Photos

This was the very first Secret Society performance, and -- much to my relief -- we played for a large and enthusiastic crowd. It was a real thrill to have our inaugural gig at a venue I've wanted to play since I was six years old (even if we were, technically, downstairs from and next door to the main stage). It was also great to be part of Dee Pop's late, lamented Freestyle Jazz series, which had some of the most varied and adventurous programming in NYC.

As you may have heard, CBGB are having a wee bit of trouble with their landlord. While things are currently looking pretty grim, if any venue can claw its way up out of the grave and return to terrorize the villagers once again, it's CB's. And if you missed the chance to check out CB's Freestyle Jazz in its heyday, rumor has it that there will be one last final final blowout concert on Wednesday, October 19th.