Spin-17 Reviews
Motoko Shimizu -
Attack of the 5-Foot WomanWow. This is really hilarious. LOL. I don't really know what the purpose of this release is all about. This is experimental music so go figure. The vocals do sound like Yoko Ono at times. Other than that this is just sounds, and mostly percussion sounds. The artist has quite an impressive resume and achievements. Do your own research about it. This is not some kid wanking around with sounds. This is actually an artist. This disc offers 1 track that is close to 30 minutes. Not a bad experimental release, it's just very new to my ears.
Review by: Adhab Al-Farhan
Chain DLK
http://www.chaindlk.com/reviews/index.php?search=motoko+shimizu&type=music
Finally!
Total Unity (Luther Thomas, Jeff Shurdut, Ed Chang, Motoko Shimizu)
On his website, rebel alto player Luther Thomas says "Musicians want to play all the time, we can live all over the world. The battlefront is everywhere, and we are on the frontline. We are like NATO, but it's not a weapon it's an instrument, it's all about love. We're ready to go, have a ticket, have a gig, have horn, will travel." With his weapon firmly in hand, he unleashes a record that outlines his firm belief that improvisational unity can be possible. With a line up that features Jeffrey Hayden Shurdut on guitars, amplifier and drums, Ed Chang on computer, home made reeds and tenor, along with Motoko Shimizu on toys, recorder and voice, we are officially ready for an inter-galactic blast off. Even though each member of the quartet gets shared writing credits, this is as improvised as it comes. While Thomas attacks full-front center with tsunami waves of alto, Shimizu plays around with various toys and gadgets and Shurdut shines with crazy percussive work [he's especially heavy on the cymbals, which gives the music a shimmering layer]. Some feedback is evident in sections as Shurdut puts his guitar through some hoops. The electronic faction of the record is quite heavy, which allows for an interesting mix of the human and non-human instrumentation. Chang's mastery on his laptop twists the pictures into skewed images of themselves. Finally, we get an exhaustingly wild and abandoned ride. Superb!
- Gaz-Eta magazine, review by Tom Sekowski
http://www.gaz-eta.vivo.pl/gaz-eta/recenzje/gazeta.php?nr=50&id=s_24
Finally! Total Unity
(Luther Thomas, Jeff Shurdut, Ed Chang, Motoko Shimizu)
...Though these four albums add something substantial to the leaders’ respective discographies, it is Luther Thomas’ Finally! Total Unity in 3 Phases that is the potential major statement of the lot. For anyone who only associates the alto saxophonist through discs like Funky Donkey and groups like Human Arts Ensemble, the music of this unusually configured quartet will be nothing less than startling. In quieter moments, the industrial surrealism hark back to Thomas’ BAG colleague Julius Hemphill’s Roi Boye and the Gotham Minstrels, but when they ramp up the intensity, resulting music is withering. At every turn, Jeffrey Hayden Shurdut (guitar, drums), Motoko Shimiizu (toys, recorder and voice) and Ed Chang (computer, reeds) simply set Thomas off. He plays almost continuously from beginning to end, bobbing and weaving through ever-shifting textures, yet always maintaining an exultant sound steeped in the African-American continuum. Finally! is an object lesson in genre-bending improvisation.
Bill Shoemaker, Point of Departure Jan 2007
http://www.pointofdeparture.org/PoD9/PoD9MoreMoments2.html
Finally! Total Unity
(Luther Thomas, Jeff Shurdut, Ed Chang, Motoko Shimizu)
Over the years I have read reviews of
dozens of JEFF SHURDUT’s recordings but have never before heard any of
them. Here’s a batch that helps me make up for lost time. On FINALLY!
TOTAL UNITY (No Labels 6068), Shurdut leads his troupe (Shurdut, g,
amp, d; LUTHER THOMAS, as; ED CHANG, computer, as, black tube; MOTOKO
SHIMIZU, turntable, vcl, perc, toys, rec) on a freewheeling journey
(Finally! Total Unity, 1-3. 66:04. Summer 2006, NYC, NY and
Christiania, Denmark) that looks back to an earlier era of improv.
Thomas’ rootsy alto gives this disc a somewhat different flavor, with
the clattering percussive backdrop often conveying the feel of an early
AACM jam. Shurdut and Shimizu work together quite well, stirring the
pot with restraint to create ominous shimmering textures. The second
track gets a bit nasty, with metal sheets and chirping electronics
spurring on Thomas. What’s interesting about this recording is the
coexistence of two different approaches to improvising—one more clearly
rooted in Jazz, the other in noise—and this is also what is least
successful. There are moments when the contrast works
invigoratingly (as in the shriek-fest at the end of the second track)
and others where it falls flat. Still probably the best disc of
this batch.
Ed Chang, Jeff Shurdut, Brian Osbourne,
Jay Dunbar
IMAGINARY CONTROL SYSTEMS PT. 2 (No
Labels 5863) is a low-key quartet session (Imaginary Control Systems
pt. 2. 44:13. June 3, 2006, Brooklyn, NY) featuring an unpredictable
group (SHURDUT, g, amp; BRIAN OSBORNE, perc, homemade instr,
transistor, mouth tube; JAY DUNBAR, b, vcl; ED CHANG, as, homemade
inst, aluminum can) on two long, untitled tracks where ethereal
groaning and barely recognizable homemade instruments blend with a
punky DIY improv sensibility. Chang’s alto sax sounds like an
industrial instrument and he stokes the fires somewhat mightily on the
first track, with its continual whirr and clang. It’s a bit thudding
and directionless in places, but it has moments. The quieter moments—
with low rubbed noises and so forth—are usually the more appealing. But
it’s hard to knock the high point of the second tune, where Dunbar
whips up a nearswing, with mangled voices and electronic howling
seeming to haunt any hint of clear reference. Ending with some garage
thrash, this is pretty fun stuff.
Cadence 12/2006 (Jason Blvins)
Marshall Allen/Jeffrey Hayden Shurdut/Ed
Chang/Motoko Shimizu/Danny Ray Thompson : Live at the University of
Pennsylvania
Many of the musicians in this small niche of the contemporary NYC improv scene seem to have one foot in the noise scene represented by the No Fun crowd and one in the post-free jazz ethos. The performance captured here, from earlier this year, is one of the more successful such combinatory ventures I’ve encountered. It’s interesting that right from the start, Allen (82 years young) is able to evoke the atmosphere of Sun Ra; makes one wonder if I’d been underestimating how hugely vital he had been to that band’s sound. His alto, especially in this fairly noisy context, quickly calls to mind classics like “Black Myth” (originally the BASF LP “It’s After the End of the World”), with Shurdut’s guitar and Chang’s noise machine chipping in to help summon forth images of Ra’s eruptive keyboards. .this concert ebbs and flows naturally over its 48 minutes, subsiding into considered areas of calm amidst the raucous free-for-alls... It’s a good disc, one that provides a vibrant picture of this particular musical nexus.
Brian Olewnick - Bagatellen
Marshall Allen/Jeffrey Hayden Shurdut/Ed Chang/Motoko Shimizu/Danny Ray Thompson : Live at the University of Pennsylvania
The best of the lot: LIVE! AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA (No Labels
5368). The group consists of Shurdut (g), MARSHALL ALLEN (as, EVI,
flt), MOTOKO SHIMIZU (vcl, toys, record player, small instruments), ED
CHANG (live computer, electronics, as) and DANNY RAY THOMPSON (flt).
Recorded on 1/26/06, this is an intense electronic exploration with
Marshall
Allen’s squealing alto taking front stage center at moments. The
electronic end paints a broad swath of sound that live must have been a
wonderful and harrowing experience. From Shurdut’s end, he proudly
proclaims that his guitar has no pedals and effect, yet it’s clear that
not all of the electronic sounds are coming from Chang. Shurdut’s
guitar drones and feeds back to a wonderful effect. Chang adds to the
otherworldly ambience with his computer-generated clicks, pops and
whirrs. Allen and Thompson must have felt at home because the music, at
times, reminds of Sun Ra at his most intensely electronic. It’s one
long performance and of this
batch, it’s the one most worth hearing. It’s truly alien-sounding music
and all the stronger for it. (total time: 48:26.) But beware, the sound
can be a bit harsh and in-your-face at times.
Cadence Magazine
DOWNTRODDEN MASS (NoLabels 4064)
finds JEFFREY HAYDEN SHURDUT again with saxophonist/trumpeter Daniel
Carter, flutist Nick Gianni, and saxophonist Enrico Oliva. They are
joined by Motoko Shimizu
(voice, toy recorder and tiny drums) and Jerome James (percussion,
voice and chanting). The
music has solemn qualities builtinto its freewheeling exterior (two
untitled tracks. 56:27,
12/18/04. New York, NY). James and Shimizu mete out a compelling beat
while the horn players design an
unstructured hymn of quiet beauty. James’ subdued chanting and
Shimizu’s spiritual vocal cries are buried
in the core of these extended live selections. Consistent with his
previous efforts, Shurdut remains
an underlying force with his ambient guitar and amplifier textures. The
reverent quality of the music is
infectious; on the second selection, Carter, Oliva, and Gianni pour
mournful messages through their horns
while James emits husky throat grunts offset by Shimizu’s high-pitched
psalms and Shurdut’s
subtle whistling. An Indigenous American rhythm surfaces amidst the
collective praying.
Carter’s flute musings add further to the mystique of this impressive
example of freedom typically cloaked
in sereneness but ending
with a flourish.
Cadence March 2006
Michael Rosenstein
Spin-17 with Jeffrey Shurdut & Ravi
Padmanabha - 21st Century Folk Music Vol. 3 - CD
Dall’interazione tra
gli Spin-17 (formati da Ed Chang e
Motoko Shimizu), Jeffrey Shurdut e Ravi Padmanabha
nasce questa raccolta di tracce votate all’improvvisazione e
alle sonorità sperimentali.
Percussioni, chitarra elettrica, giocattoli, ‘onde corte’,
sassofono e giradischi si scontrano e azzardano traiettorie
impreviste, creando suoni molesti e stridenti, dissonanze e
caotiche deformità che proiettano verso territori accidentati
ed impervi prossimi al free-jazz.
La partenza è atmosferica e misteriosa (le composizioni non
hanno i titoli); poi si avvertono sibili, frequenze disturbate e
il cinguettio di uccelli (direi provocato ‘artificialmente’
attraverso gli strumenti).
La sei corde, a seconda dei momenti, dispiega flussi di
feedback sullo sfondo o viene martoriata, mentre (a fasi
alterne) il sax di Chang impazza singhiozzando e
‘starnazzando’.
Qualche breve parentesi in balia di deliri cacofonici e
si arriva alla parte conclusiva del disco, contrassegnata
da una calma illusoria (vedi l’improvvisa ‘eruzione’ nel
settimo pezzo), reiterazioni sonore e svolazzi vocali.
(5/5)
(Miuzik Web Site)
- 2-4-2007
http://www.miuzik.it/cgi-bin/it/news/viewnews.pl?newsid1175464800,79714,
SPIN-17
I’m
late
reviewing this duo of Ed Chang and Motoku Shimizu because I’ve been
enjoying it
too much. Fun this is: gizmos, turntables, tape, guitars, clarinet and
samples.
Most folks don’t use this stuff for fun; they are too serious and dress
themselves and their discs in black. These guys (well, guy and gal)
take you to
a sonic amusement park which is no joke, but the risk-taking is more
than worth
the trip. As the liners say, “Unauthorized duplication is a violence of
apples
and loons.” True, but you also would miss the nifty flying saucers,
toys and
drawings on the cover. I love this record.
Steve
Koenig
http://www.jazzweekly.com/reviews/spin17.htm
Spin 17 Ed Chang and Motoko Shimizu create a simmering stew of electronic whispers and whistles that sounds like a chorus of sirens in the distance. Ghostly howls play off gurgling analog synths. It's a spine-tingling funhouse. Neil Gladstone, Philadelphia CityPaper
http://citypaper.net/articles/090398/fringe.music.shtml
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Spin-17
This
fifty-one minute CD presents fifteen wacky songs that feature mostly
children's
toys. The effect is funny but with a Something Wicked this Way Comes
subtext.
The two musicians are very creative in the studio as this CD is
compelling and
that's not easy when your instruments are children's toys. Of course,
there is
some clarinet and turntable work in here and other, more expensive,
electronics. They pile on a lush, yet musical, mixture that transcends
mere gimmickry
into sounds from the apocalypse. The cover art is whimsical too. -
Glenn
Engstrand
http://www.the-improvisor.com/i00220.html
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Spin-17
50:56
minutes of pure fun and mayhem. A free wheeling skip through rock,
jazz, free
improv, music concrete, dj turntable frenzy, skronk opera, studio
manipulation,
toy instruments and anything/everything else...twisted electronics,
20th
century clarinet, heavy guitar, tapes, tape manipulation and turntable
acrobatics by Ed Chang vs. vocal extremities, turntable gymnastics,
toys,
gizmos and more heavy guitar by Motoko Shimizu. Includes a nod to John
Cage
with a performance of Aria. Not for the weak of heart - nothing stays
the same
for more than a few seconds - take a step beyond and fall off the edge.
Recommended.
http://www.virtulink.com/immp/jux/visit011.htm
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'Round
Here
Friday
Spin
17
BY
MIKE
BREEN
For
a
unique live-music experience (and one which challenges the limits of
what music
is) you can't get much more out-there than Spin 17. The duo features Ed
Chang
and Motoko Shimizu, who take the concept of free, experimental music to
new
heights on their self-titled CD (Quodlibet Recordings). Chang is an
avant-garde
composer in the vein of a modern-day John Cage (whose "Aria" is
deconstructed on the new release). The improv storm of sound is created
with
various lo-fi electronics, most notably children's toys, and the
manipulation
of sound combines blips, "tape stretching" and DJ scratches to create
a sometimes maniacal, sometimes silly, sonic collage. It's a mish-mash
of
sounds that might not be a record you put on to soothe your soul, but
in a live
setting Spin 17 promises to be, at the very least, curiously
captivating.
CityBeat, Vol. 4, Issue
48; October
22-28, 1998
http://citybeat.com/archives/1998/issue448/musicarticle5.html
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…The
experimental jazz duo Spin 17 (Ed Chang and Motoko Shimizu) used wind
instrumentation, electronic sound effects and vocals to create a
sometimes
jarring yet intriguing sound. Spin 17's stress was very much on the
experimental, and worth the effort of the concentration required.
(Pete Dolack)
http://www.nycbigcitylit.com/aug2001/contents/SeriesReviews.html
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Spin-17
Under
the
name Spin-17, Ed Chang (electronics, clarinet, guitar, tapes,
turntable) and
Motoko Shimizu (voice, turntable, toys, gizmos, guitar) make some of
the most
inventive, and some of the funnest and funniest sounds you will have
heard in
quite some time. Lots of emphasis on
innate sound quality, less emphasis on harmony, melody or countable
rhythm; but
with its playfulness and humor, the music does not have the abstract
feeling
often associated with pure sound exploration.
Experimental Musical
Instruments
magazine (Mar 1999)
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…Believe me, these guys are more than you’ve come to expect out of two hyper-Asians banging on vintage electronic toys.Shows of
Note, Quentin
Haskins
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Spin-17
is
a NYC duo, Ed Chang (electronics, clarinet, guitar, tapes, turntable)
and
Motoko Shimizu (voice, turntable, toys, gizmos, guitar).
This album reminds me of Puzzle Punks, other
times it’s like Hong Kong weirdo Xper, or the late great Superball. Scratching, noise, drum and bass,
plunderphonics, free jazz, videogame/cartoon sounds, electronica, scum
– it’s
all there. A fine debut.
Exile Osaka #5, Matt K.
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If
you’re
one of those people that doesn’t just throw around the word pastiche,
then
Spin-17 may be for you. Imagine if Alice
in Wonderland had a scene where Alice came upon a pile of old discarded
records, toys which make noise, tape loop machinery, and various
instruments
like the guitar and clarinet with a note attached that read “Play Me”. Better yet, save your energy and simply
listen to Spin-17’s eponymous debut on NYC’s Quodlibet Recordings. You’ll need that energy too, as this
recording can resemble a science experiment as much as an album of
music. Co-conspirators
Ed
Chang
and Motoko Shimizu play and sing over an abundance of acquired sounds,
as
voices on recordings long forgotten speak again amidst spinning
turntables,
whirring and beeping gizmos, and live musicians. As
much a statement about technology in music
as a creative type of recycling, this attention-grabbing project shows
music is
the product of musicians, not instruments.
Are they truly “making adult music on children’s toys” as
suggested in
their promotional material? I’ll tell
you when I get back from my parents’ basement.
Signal to Noise Jan/Feb
1999, Scott
Menhinick