The Albany Sonic Arts Collective presents their first concert of 2011 with performances by some of the Capital Region’s most exciting experimental musicians including Century Plants with Matt Weston, Holland Hopson, SoundBarn and Insect Posse.

DEEP FREEZE: Experimental Music for Snowy Times
Saturday, February 19
8:00 pm
Upstate Artists Guild
247 Lark St.
Albany NY
$5 suggested donation

This will be my first Albany show of 2011 and my last performance before heading to the Atlantic Center for the Arts for a residency with David Behrman (more on that later…). I’ll be performing a set of music for soprano sax and computer. My current plan includes a piece using a DIY plate reverb as the primary electronic sound source.

More about the artists after the jump…

About Century Plants:
ASAC members Eric Hardiman and Ray Hare have been collaborating for years as Century Plants, utilizing voice, guitar, and complex electronics setups to create haunting, evocative works.  For this performance, they will be joined by Matt Weston on percussion and electronics, sure to add a new layer of intrigue.
For more information http://www.myspace.com/centuryplants and
http://www.mattweston.com/

About Holland Hopson:
Named by Metroland as the area’s “Best Retro-Futurist,” composer Holland Hopson will present a set of his typically challenging work in a rare solo appearance on soprano saxophone and electronics. Holland is preparing for an upcoming three week residency with composer and live electronics pioneer David Behrman at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna, Florida.
For more information http://hollandhopson.com

About SoundBarn:
soundBarn (Thomas Lail and Patrick Weklar) use heavily processed and prepared guitar to construct ad-hoc compositions that span the space from spare, minimal soundscapes to full-on noise with ever-shifting rhythms, pace and moods.

soundBarn has recently collaborated with Albany Sonic Arts Collective on full-length performances of Rhys Chatham’s famed “Guitar Trio” as well as performances at The soundBarn—a project of artist/musician Lail and artist/gallerist Tara Fracalossi located on what was once Heald Orchards in Valatie, New York.

Lail formerly performed with the experimental trio Lukomski/Majer/Lail  whose improvised sound Metroland weekly recommended ”for those who are turned way on by the gloriously weird guitarscapes of Sonic Youth’s late ’90s SYR recordings, or the dreamy, sometimes atonal soundwaves of Hovercraft…”  Both Lail and Weklar were founding members of the long-ago Albany post-punk band The Fauves.
For more information http://www.soundbarn.blogspot.com

About Insect Posse:
Insect Posse are the prolific and inscrutable Mark Lunt and Chris Bassett, purveyors of noisy yet hypnotic hymns to other worlds of nothingness. This will be their first official ASAC appearance.
For more information http://www.myspace.com/insectposse

About the Albany Sonic Arts Collective:
The Albany Sonic Arts Collective (ASAC) is a grassroots organization dedicated to building a thriving community of listeners and performers of music that exists outside of traditional boundaries. The Collective supports a wide variety of music and sonic art forms, with an emphasis on those that stress freedom and exploration of new ideas. Styles include free improvisation, drone, noise, electroacoustic improvisation, electronic music, avant jazz, and many others. ASAC have been presenting regularly since November 2007. In 2008 the Albany Times Union called ASAC a “sonic bright spot” of the Capital District arts scene.

Photo: MisterV

I’m looking forward to floating in the River of Drone II: Seven Hours of Sound.

Sunday May 16th
12 noon to 7pm
at the SoundBarn in Valatie, NY.

The Albany Times Union wrote a preview here. Find more information on the Albany Sonic Arts Collective site or below.

Albany Sonic Arts Collective (ASAC) and The soundBarn are proud to present River of Drone II: Seven Hours of Sound. A very special, long-form event, River of Drone II is a free, seven-hour, improvised sound performance from 12 noon – 7 pm on Sunday May 16 at The soundBarn, Valatie, NY.

River of Drone II: Seven Hours of Sound is a collective sonic improvisation that will unfold and develop unlike any ordinary concert. From quiet, peaceful soundscapes to full-on noise, the ever-shifting rhythm, pace and mood will evolve as the ebb and flow of performers, energy and instrumentation progresses through the seven hour performance.

Set in a former orchard cooler with views of the Catskill Mountains, The soundBarn is a uniquely suited location for visitors to lounge, listen and linger for an hour, a few minutes or the entire performance. The audience is encouraged to make themselves comfortable and to bring pillows, chairs, food and drink. Unlike a traditional concert setting, performers will be located throughout the venue and listeners are encouraged to move around, watch the accompanying video projections, wander in and out and discover new relationships to sound through immersion, reflection, deep listening, meditation, and concentration.

We hope you will join us to listen, meditate, self-hypnotize, bliss out– or to simply enjoy a swim in the RIVER OF DRONE!

River of Drone II is a collaborative presentation of Albany Sonic Arts Collective and The soundBarn and will be presented at The soundBarn.

Featured musicians include: Jason Cosco, Matt Ernst, Tara Fracalossi, Eric Hardiman (Rambutan, Century Plants, Burnt Hills,) Ray Hare (Century Plants, Fossils From the Sun, Burnt Hills,) Holland Hopson, Thomas Lail (soundBarn,) Patrick Weklar (soundBarn) Matt Weston (Barn Owls), Mike Bullock, Linda Aubry Bullock, Mark Lunt, Chris Bassett, Jeremy Kelly, and many more special guests.
Videos by: Tara Fracalossi, Kyra Garrigue and more.

The soundBarn is a project of artist/musician Thomas Lail and artist Tara Fracalossi and is located on what was once Heald Orchards in Valatie, New York. The soundBarn is sited in a modern addition to the orchard’s 100 year old Dutch style barn. The cavernous, heavily insulated space served as the orchard’s cooler where apples and pears were over-wintered and chilled by the massive, still visible refrigeration system.

Remember the first River of Drone? Listen to some of the first River of Drone.