a ground-ups x-mas...

Mary Christmas told me to tell you...

Ground-Ups began in like 1999, or something like that. Shane and I were really into Ruins around that time, but definitely not up to that kinda like trap-kit blitz or stamina. To make up for it, we like put that influence together with our own art drives, and decided to like both play the drums.

We like talked the whole thing up to Chris Clavin and soon he found a home in g-ups via one of his lost passions, the trumpet (and/or) cornet.

Shawn and I love the trumpet (and/or) cornet, and welcomed the new movement of the ground-up. I don’t know...I think Chris just really liked playing trumpet (and/or) cornet.

The initial material really related to life, if you were on a boat, or worked in a hotel, like Shane and I did at the time.

We had some other stuff, like a floor tom with some trash in it, and some spray paint, and Chris had a bunch of stuff like a dictionary, and we spray-painted that and the cape. We record our first show on a video camera, and that appears in these recordings. Sounds like bad, but good bad too.

The second round includes Shan Egg and I with Leah Yeppi highlighting the vocals, playing banjo, banging keys and effex, and engineering the shit in a strange way. Shane and I came up with “GT Frame You Fucking Suck” on the way to record, when we saw some guy walking down the street either riding or carrying a GT mountain bike frame. One of said, “GT frame you fucking suck.” He heard us. We made it into a tape called: “OH! It Bites Me!”

Part 3 is some live recording a few years later when it was just Eric Weddle and I for the large part, and Shim on and off. Er’s horn action (trumpet and sax) is blasted well thru a cut down ancient quad fender amp.

E.W. and I moved on to record studio type ground sounds with Nhoj Daswon at White Ark. Things, like purpose, never really materialized, so these recordings have since sat, been fondled, and end up here in whatever form available from thy hard drive. There is also a few live tracks recorded by someone in PG Six. I like the way those sound.

I wanted to put together a disc or something and title it “Knights of the Ground Table”. But didn’t. The actual recordings sound great rad, but I went in over the course of time and mixed them around and screwed up a lot of the goodness. And that’s fine.

Ground-ups TNG featured Justin Clifford Rhody on trumpet and Clare Hubbard on saxophone. These could of been, and possibly were the best of times...I think I was drinking too much though. Here’s a few tunes from that, and I know there is more out there, but...

These appear via friends and relatives records as a cassingle, split with Crotch Council.

Shane was back on these tunes, at least some of them, and sometimes I can’t tell if it’s both or not. Regardless, it’s def jcr and Clare.

We’re still doing it...whoever we are.

hear it....http://www.last.fm/music/Ground-Ups

-jk 

recent arrivals...

Friends are great! Especially whenever they make great things, and send them to you in the mail. Here’s a taser factory word on a few choice items that have recently hit the always crowded studio postal hole.

1. thee open sex- “on every street corner” (cassette - Magnetic South) My dear friend John Dawson holds an existence in the realm of sound, which transcends positives, negatives, and calls for distinctions of earthly makes. open sex is a solo recording effort, and a project, which has seemingly been building an encompassing live presence.

This channels subtle meditative progressions and rhythms that slow the rate of time. One moment you’re on a boat and the next you’re on the floor of your room, but it’s comfortable…file under: Beyond Everything.

2. Apache Dropout- “Do the Splendid Crown“ (7” – Magnetic South)

This record drips mid-western psychedelia in some unforgiving, all analog means. Crashing weirdo garage from Lord Fyre and a couple of Hot Fighters, which somehow carries rock n’ roll through waves of bottoming out and topping out and stuff. Come on! I mean they’re named after an Edgar Broughton Band song! Rippin’ Live…

3. Cloud Becomes Your Hand (cassette – Canada Goose Tapes) A new audio product from Brooklyn based Stephen Cooper. I’ve been pals with Steph for years, and have watched and listened to snips of his eclectic evolution thru various sound projects ranging from strange post-rock to free-improvised jazz, as well as the sculpture band Eagle-ager.

Years ago, I begged him to submitted a track from his video game inflected Portal project for a comp I was helping assemble. CBYH rings back to the Portal persuasion in his sensibility towards overall compositional structures. He builds soundtracks which bounce simple poppy hooks off highly pronounced multi instrumental formations, fleeting experimental placements, and technological utility.

4. Ground-Ups / Crotch Council- “who talks to my necklace?” (cassingle – Friends and Relatives Records) Ground-ups is a free-ish noisy hard jazz group featuring...me, and various others throughout it’s fluttering little course. This tape features what i believe to be a free freak out from the Justin Clifford Rhody, Clare Hubbard, Shane Edge, and me period. Harsh horns / harsh drums!

Russian Tsarlag and Aurora Doreyalice as crotch council brings back some rad memories of shadow lake drownings and the time of my life. I always found Carlos’s voice oddly persuasive. Groan up, and Trash guitar / trash drum! Cover art by…Me!

5. EMERGE series (5 CD Set - THIT Sounds) Mr. Goatmother is one prolific and busy (goat)motherfucker, and the massively involved EMERGE series is ONE of the latest additions to his all media catalog for this year alone!

The Official Text: “The Emerge Series is a series of five album singles exploring "drones" and "emphasis" in the keys of C, D, E, G, and B. The packaging is all handmade. Each album also includes linear notes and a five color poster.”

This is entirely true. And for those with waning ideas surrounding “drone” and “emphasis”, prepare to re-write your mind. This is powerful art, and better-than-engaging.

*There’s more where that came from, but these are so taser, and most recently-est listened to.