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"It all began with a little red tongue sticking out of an unseen mouth and licking its way in the dark. Hesitating at first, then sparkling and crackling and all of a sudden bursting out in total, u-n-c-o-n-t-r-o-l-l-a-b-l-e freedom."
[from The Flame Within...] .................................................. 6 tracks, 39'. Available on a limited edition of 300 12" LPs +/or Digital Album in 24-bit resolution (FLAC strongly recommended) from Thirsty Leaves Music. released on March 3, 2017. .................................................. George Avramidis - trumpet moody alien - (processed) glockenspiels, vibraphone, marimbas, tubular bells; windchimes & keys; effects & treatments; mixing featuring: Vasilis Bacharidis - drums on "The Numbers..." & "The Sky...", tombek on "The Sky..." / Sotiris Patsalias - double bass on "The Sky..." / Nektarios Manaras - electric guitar on "The Sky..." / Phut - electric guitar samples for "The Numbers..." ....................................................................................................................... Recorded at Royal Alzheimer Hall, Arkadikon, a couple of home studios, the State Conservatory of Thessaloniki & the Bey Hamam. Mastering for the digital album by moody alien, pre-master for the vinyl LP by Totsouko. Artwork design by Andreas Neophytou. ....................................................................................................................... Special thanks to Vasilis Bacharidis, Maria Kagiadaki, Anastasis Voukyklarakis & Totsouko. ....................................................................................................................... ℗ & © Thirsty Leaves Music / To Pikap Store ....................................................................................................................... |
REVIEWS.
"A new project featuring trumpeter George Avramidis and Moody Alien, MAGAM shows us how easy it is to just let go of everything around you. Side One is what I’d call the day side whilst Side Two is a purely nocturnal affair; both feature great examples of two styles coming together to create a strange new whole… maybe that was world, I get a lot of visuals playing this one none of which are relaxing. Despite repeated listens I keep coming away from ‘One’ with the same conclusion that the true scope of this collaboration is vast.
The reason for this probably is that ‘One’ is the first of a two-part undertaking by MAGAM; there’s no time frame for that other album by the way so I suggest those who acquire this be content with trying to understand what cannot be understood. No digital trickery or production sleight of hand was used on any of these seven pieces, Moody Alien carefully arranged and then orchestrated the majority of this music. If you enjoyed his ‘Down to the Junkyard’ record you’re going to love what he’s composed here because like that album the usage of tape loops and custom made sound sources carry the day.
Add to this that several recording spaces were also used and you have the makings of a unique artistic expression. This becomes apparent when Avramidis’ trumpet comes into play.
We’re given distant reverb on some of his contributions before having those notes get right up next to our ears at other points. He puts a lot of effort into revealing this dexterity by virtue of how he plays; I myself was in a couple of brass bands while at school and it’s a definite treat to get someone on wax who knows their way around not only those three valves but also their mouthpiece. You can do a lot of damage with it literally and figuratively, going from tart staccatos to languorously drawn out sensuality. The trumpet, when in the hands of one who has this kind of skill, speaks a language all its own.
As for the choice in formats, I’d suggest the vinyl due to how cleanly and thickly it’s pressed. I’ve encountered absolutely no static or skips, to date there hasn’t even been a crackle or pop to report. Aesthetically it very much coincides with the mood this pair are out to conjure up: late night soirées on balconies high above the city and when the crowd dies out it’s down to walk along the beach as the light begins to appear behind opaque banks of towering clouds.
Maybe you’ve got someone with you while you do this, perhaps you prefer to keep your own council. In this realm, the air cuts crisp and close; an endless array of seashells litter the sands, going on and on far out into the waves…"
Peter Marks for Santa Sangre
-------------------------------------------------
"[...] the first vinyl release for the Thirsty Leaves label [...] features the duo of Moody Alien on processed stuff & treatments and George Avramidis on trumpets plus four other musicians on guitars, bass and drums. Aside from Moody Alien, I am not familiar with any of the musicians here. One side is called ‘Bey Side’ and the other ‘No Bey Side’. NBS opens with hypnotic muted trumpet sailing over spacey electronics or echoes and a ghost-like rhythm team. The eerie, solemn sound reminds me of “He Loved Him Madly” by Miles Davis from the ‘Get Up With It’ album. Spooky, ultra-somber and especially haunting with mysterious sounds floating by like distant clouds. On ‘Bey Side’, the lone muted trumpet is still at the center as the rhythm team reaches up in waves surrounding it with several layers of swirling sounds carefully flowing in the currents. The trumpet itself also provides another layer of distant echoes which adds to the hypnotic, dream-like atmosphere. This music has a dark undercurrent like swimming in the depths of a vast ocean as it swallows us up and then spits us out further and further away from the safe shoreline. Calm at the center yet somehow most unsettling."
Bruce Lee Gallanter for Downtown Music Gallery
-------------------------------------------------
"[...] The album opens with "Leading the Way" with an old carillon, then a dirty vibraphone tone is penetrated by a dirty trumpet, sometimes even doubled. In "The Numbers Being Outnumbered" there is a Lynch guitar (guest Phut), a nervous rhythm (with the contribution of drummer Vasilis Bacharidis) and a trumpet in two counterpoint-led voices. The actors work excellently with dynamics as well as with electronic thickening. The following "Eat Not, Drink Not" uses the sound of tubular bells, a blurred trumpet sinks into the meditative ambient. Gradually, however, the music becomes disturbing. The "Goner" is appropriately nervous and inwardly submerged, surrendered; just like a done person. In "The Sky Was Like Sky", guests are more likely to speak: drummer Vasilis Bacharidis (also with a tombak drum), double bassist Sotiris Patsalias and guitarist Nektarios Manaras. In this way, as a quintet, they weave a minimalist thread, which gradually acquires a nujazz thrust, and mix in delicious freejazz poisons. The final song (and also the longest - 15:12) "Sparkling and Crackling" really sparkles and bursts with mysterious, lonely electronic sounds, which gradually thicken. Add a dejected trumpet, a minimalist jingle, thickening until the ears rest; the music gains in urgency. In the middle there is an immersion, ambient surfaces with long tones, which in the end turn brown under the onslaught of electronics."
Jan Hocek for JazzPort.cz
-------------------------------------------------
"[...] A second difference between the two LPs (i.e. One & Another), which is directly related to the two different line-ups, is that on the first album, "One", there are more jazz timbres, a fact partly due to the widespread use of the trumpet, which in this case can only be combined with the electric, electronic and percussive sounds.
Listening to "One" is in any case an evocative experience as not only the trumpet and the percussion with the relevant manipulation have a decisive effect on it, but also the guests' sounds (Vassilis Bacharidis drums, percussion, Sotiris Patsalias double bass, Nektarios Manaras and Phut electric guitars), which provide, on occasion, very interesting extensions, building quirky and adventurous jazz, avant, electronic, improv and fusion environments.
A very good case of a Greek "advanced" group and LP - and not too late to discover it (if you haven't already)."
Phontas Troussas for Diskoryxeion/Vinylmine
-------------------------------------------------
"A new project featuring trumpeter George Avramidis and Moody Alien, MAGAM shows us how easy it is to just let go of everything around you. Side One is what I’d call the day side whilst Side Two is a purely nocturnal affair; both feature great examples of two styles coming together to create a strange new whole… maybe that was world, I get a lot of visuals playing this one none of which are relaxing. Despite repeated listens I keep coming away from ‘One’ with the same conclusion that the true scope of this collaboration is vast.
The reason for this probably is that ‘One’ is the first of a two-part undertaking by MAGAM; there’s no time frame for that other album by the way so I suggest those who acquire this be content with trying to understand what cannot be understood. No digital trickery or production sleight of hand was used on any of these seven pieces, Moody Alien carefully arranged and then orchestrated the majority of this music. If you enjoyed his ‘Down to the Junkyard’ record you’re going to love what he’s composed here because like that album the usage of tape loops and custom made sound sources carry the day.
Add to this that several recording spaces were also used and you have the makings of a unique artistic expression. This becomes apparent when Avramidis’ trumpet comes into play.
We’re given distant reverb on some of his contributions before having those notes get right up next to our ears at other points. He puts a lot of effort into revealing this dexterity by virtue of how he plays; I myself was in a couple of brass bands while at school and it’s a definite treat to get someone on wax who knows their way around not only those three valves but also their mouthpiece. You can do a lot of damage with it literally and figuratively, going from tart staccatos to languorously drawn out sensuality. The trumpet, when in the hands of one who has this kind of skill, speaks a language all its own.
As for the choice in formats, I’d suggest the vinyl due to how cleanly and thickly it’s pressed. I’ve encountered absolutely no static or skips, to date there hasn’t even been a crackle or pop to report. Aesthetically it very much coincides with the mood this pair are out to conjure up: late night soirées on balconies high above the city and when the crowd dies out it’s down to walk along the beach as the light begins to appear behind opaque banks of towering clouds.
Maybe you’ve got someone with you while you do this, perhaps you prefer to keep your own council. In this realm, the air cuts crisp and close; an endless array of seashells litter the sands, going on and on far out into the waves…"
Peter Marks for Santa Sangre
-------------------------------------------------
"[...] the first vinyl release for the Thirsty Leaves label [...] features the duo of Moody Alien on processed stuff & treatments and George Avramidis on trumpets plus four other musicians on guitars, bass and drums. Aside from Moody Alien, I am not familiar with any of the musicians here. One side is called ‘Bey Side’ and the other ‘No Bey Side’. NBS opens with hypnotic muted trumpet sailing over spacey electronics or echoes and a ghost-like rhythm team. The eerie, solemn sound reminds me of “He Loved Him Madly” by Miles Davis from the ‘Get Up With It’ album. Spooky, ultra-somber and especially haunting with mysterious sounds floating by like distant clouds. On ‘Bey Side’, the lone muted trumpet is still at the center as the rhythm team reaches up in waves surrounding it with several layers of swirling sounds carefully flowing in the currents. The trumpet itself also provides another layer of distant echoes which adds to the hypnotic, dream-like atmosphere. This music has a dark undercurrent like swimming in the depths of a vast ocean as it swallows us up and then spits us out further and further away from the safe shoreline. Calm at the center yet somehow most unsettling."
Bruce Lee Gallanter for Downtown Music Gallery
-------------------------------------------------
"[...] The album opens with "Leading the Way" with an old carillon, then a dirty vibraphone tone is penetrated by a dirty trumpet, sometimes even doubled. In "The Numbers Being Outnumbered" there is a Lynch guitar (guest Phut), a nervous rhythm (with the contribution of drummer Vasilis Bacharidis) and a trumpet in two counterpoint-led voices. The actors work excellently with dynamics as well as with electronic thickening. The following "Eat Not, Drink Not" uses the sound of tubular bells, a blurred trumpet sinks into the meditative ambient. Gradually, however, the music becomes disturbing. The "Goner" is appropriately nervous and inwardly submerged, surrendered; just like a done person. In "The Sky Was Like Sky", guests are more likely to speak: drummer Vasilis Bacharidis (also with a tombak drum), double bassist Sotiris Patsalias and guitarist Nektarios Manaras. In this way, as a quintet, they weave a minimalist thread, which gradually acquires a nujazz thrust, and mix in delicious freejazz poisons. The final song (and also the longest - 15:12) "Sparkling and Crackling" really sparkles and bursts with mysterious, lonely electronic sounds, which gradually thicken. Add a dejected trumpet, a minimalist jingle, thickening until the ears rest; the music gains in urgency. In the middle there is an immersion, ambient surfaces with long tones, which in the end turn brown under the onslaught of electronics."
Jan Hocek for JazzPort.cz
-------------------------------------------------
"[...] A second difference between the two LPs (i.e. One & Another), which is directly related to the two different line-ups, is that on the first album, "One", there are more jazz timbres, a fact partly due to the widespread use of the trumpet, which in this case can only be combined with the electric, electronic and percussive sounds.
Listening to "One" is in any case an evocative experience as not only the trumpet and the percussion with the relevant manipulation have a decisive effect on it, but also the guests' sounds (Vassilis Bacharidis drums, percussion, Sotiris Patsalias double bass, Nektarios Manaras and Phut electric guitars), which provide, on occasion, very interesting extensions, building quirky and adventurous jazz, avant, electronic, improv and fusion environments.
A very good case of a Greek "advanced" group and LP - and not too late to discover it (if you haven't already)."
Phontas Troussas for Diskoryxeion/Vinylmine
-------------------------------------------------
