LP
since March 2001
outsider music for the hip
Omicron/Omega 10LP box
QBICO 104
Dj Qbico- plays mento, blue beat and calypso (QBICO 104) LP ltd/numbered 1/70, with hand-made cover, black vinyl, printed labels
QBICO 103
Dj Qbico- plays latino 45 (QBICO 103) LP ltd/numbered 1/70, with hand-made cover, black vinyl, printed labels
QBICO 102
Dj Qbico- plays unreleased funk, soul, jazz & rare groove soundtracks (QBICO 102) LP ltd/numbered 1/99 only with hand-made cover on luminous crystal quartz paper, printed labels/black inner sleeves
QBICO 101
HARTMUT GEERKEN/MICHAEL RANTA- The Heliopolar egg, 1976 (QBICO 101) 5 + one-sided LP box (b&w) with 3 inserts (photos, rec. details, instruments played), black vinyls
Hartmut Geerken
piano, prepared piano, piano strings, tibetan tingshak, water tingshak, waldteufel, mokkatam pot rattles, bells, water bells, sleigh bells, gongs, water gongs, tibetan boo-chals, water boo-chals,
musical clock, tibetan horn, singing tube, maracas, wood block, temple blocks, peking opera gongs, castagnets, lead camel bell, short-wave receiver, swarmandal, whistles,
argool, monkey drum, toy xylophone, lion bell, gopichand, egyptian cymbals & sagat, waterphone, voice, toy glockenspiele, thumb piano
Michael Ranta
mallet instruments (xylophone, marimba, metallophone, vibraphone), tabla, flexatone, castagnets, japanese oboe, argool, gongs, tamtams,
short-wave receiver, chinese violin (er-hu, jung-hu), wood block, echo machine, cup bells, indian israj, vco, vcf, vocals
LP 1 (one-sided) rec. November 25; Baghe Ferdows-Zafaranieh
in co-op with NIRT, Teheran, Iran
LP 2 rec. December 3/4; Max Mueller Bhavan, Calcutta, India
LP 3 rec. December 8; German Cultural Institute
in co-op with the Academy of the Arts, Dacca, Bangladesh
LP 4 rec. December 13; Abelardo Inner Green (open air)
in co-op with U.P. College of Music, Manila, Philippines
special guest: Josè "Pepito" Bosch- congas
LP 5 rec. December 15; Korea Drama Center, Seoul, Korea
LP 6 rec. December 18; Goethe-Institute, Osaka, Japan
a1 excerpt from Toshi Ichiyanagi "arrangements"
a2 Shoko Shida "lonely mountain"
b1 "same trains"
b2 "coda" special guest: Toshi Ichiyanagi- synthesizer
REMINISCENSES:
"another major release and massive box ! Hartmut sent me some rec. all sounded incredible and well preserved ! particulary happy with the quailty paper i found for this box and the fonts used... for the ltd ed Hartmut send me some of his original photos, while Micheal was kind enough in cutting one of his original painting in 26 bits ?! met Hartmut last time in Cope at the last unite, where he united with us along with his old friend Don Moye: ibi ibizzibazzi baaa !" qbico
ltd ed
THE HELIOPOLAR BOX
26 copies, numbered from A to Z
front:
one piece of Wayne Jacob (Michael Ranta's alter ego) original painting, which he cuts in 26 pieces
back:
Hartmut Geerken original Lomographies; hand-colored, stamped and signed
outside:
brown box
inside:
6LP + some original flyers/booklets
LP 1 (full LP, NOT one-sided as regular ed) side b rec. December 1; Max Mueller Bhavan, Delhi, India
QBICO 100
THE ORKUSTRA/ARTHUR DOYLE TRIO (QBICO 100) 200gr. split picture disk, exclusive artworks by Bobby BeauSoleil (three versions: gold, grey and green border)
Arthur Doyle Trio- Nature boy
Arthur Doyle- tenor sax, bass clarinet, flute
Charles Stephens- trombone
Rashied Sinan- drums
rec. live @ Studio RivBea, NYC, August 26, 1972
The Orkustra
Bobby BeauSoleil- electric guitar
David LaFlamme- electrified violin
Jaime Leopold- electrified bass
Henry Rasof- electrified oboe
Terry Wilson- drums, percussion
rec. October 27, 1966, San Francisco
WORDS:
"Bobby sent me 10 Orkustra CDs to choose the right music for the qbico #100 and i finally choose a single track, the most heart breaking for me... Arthur's totally poignant version of Nature Boy cover a period which had not been documented before, where he was at the apex of his wildness... exclusive artworks by Bobby BeauSoleil... the top of the pyramid is reached... following is a description of the word DIAMOND (by Bourgault):
the most precious stone, of cubic geometric form, the most perfect of all the stones and one that has reached the summit of its evolution. it symbolises the Unique One... it's the hardest of all the stones (Mother Earth's bones), it's cubic construction displays a very balanced physical organisation... it's a very powerful amplifier and in a clear diamond we can see all the colours of the rainbow...
YEAH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" qbico
QBICO 99
QBICO U-NITE VI & VII, Detroit & Buffalo, USA (QBICO 99) 3LP, black vinyls, insert, artworks by Muruga, mastering Maurizio Abate
u-nite VI
Bohemian National Ballroom, Detroit
Nov. 16, 2006
side A
Faruq Z. Bey w/Northwoods Improvisers
Faruq Z. Bey- tenor, alto sax
Mike Carey- bass clarinet, tenor sax
Skeeter C.R. Shelton- soprano, alto, tenor sax, flute
Mike Gilmore- vibes
Mike Johnston- bass
Nick Ashton- drums, percussion
Emerging field
Half life w/special guest Perry Robinson- clarinet
side B
Muruga and the Global Village Ceremonial Band
Drums & Percussion: Muruga Booker
Vocals: Belita Woods, Treylewd, Louie "Babblin" Kabbabie
Percussion: Aaron Vittala Bookvich
Shakers: Richie "Shakin" Nagan
Clarinet: Perry Robinson
Saxophone: Mark Hershberger
Saxophone & Percussion: Ralph Koziarski
Zen Drum & Keyboards: Ken Kozora
Bass: Richard Smith
Guitar: George Kerby
Self A Dilic Funk
side C
Odu Afrobeat Orchestra:
Adeboye Adegbenro- vocals, tenor and alto saxophones
Chris Facini- guitar
Chad Gilchrist- guitar
Joel Peterson- bass
Kevin Callaway- drums
Akunda Brian Hollis- conga
Faruq Z. Bey- alto sax
Michael Carey- tenor saxophone
Marko Novachcoff- baritone sax
William Townley- trombone
Machine Gun
Kakati Yaga
u-nite VII
Soundlab, Buffalo (presented by Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center)
Nov. 18, 2006
side D
Steve Baczkowski/Ravi Padmanabha
Steve Baczkowski- baritone sax, tenor sax, pungi
Ravi Padmanabha- drums, percussion, pungi
malleus
incus
stapes
side E
Andrew Barker/Daniel Carter
Andrew Barker- drums, percussion
Daniel Carter- flute, clarinet, alto sax
improvisation
side F
Arthur Doyle Electro-Acoustic Ensemble
Arthur Doyle- voice, alto sax
Nuuj- electronics
Dave Cross- turntables
Tim Poland- clavinova
Vin Paternostro- Korg EA-1
Ed Wilcox- percussion, drums
cave dross
crass dove
WORDS:
"memorable and unrepeatable two qbico u-nites rec. in Detroit & Buffalo in 2006. worths mentioning: Perry Robinson jamming with Faruq Z. Bey and Northwoods Improvisors, Muruga Free Funk Band in full glory with the lovely Belita Woods and members of P-Funk, like Louie "Babblin" Kabbabie from Lebanon or Treylewd, Perry too (audience got carried away and i saw people dancing on top of other people shoulders ?!) ! Odu Afrobeat Orchestra led by Fela's alumni Adeboye Adegbenro (sax/vocals/real deal) in which also Faruq played that night, Steve Baczkowski/Ravi Padmanabha with an hypnotic pungi duo, a long and fascinating improvisation by Andrew Barker/Daniel Carter (qbico 02) and finally what'd be one of the very last rec. of the Arthur Doyle Electro-Acoustic Ensemble with nearly all his original members. from afro-jazz, funk and afro-beat to free jazz/free music and outer space... more then two hours of great lake music !" qbico
QBICO NU
DIRECT CURRENT featuring ATIBA N. KWABENA and DAVE NUSS (QBICO NU) black vinyl, cover Aki Goto/Sound @ One; 99 copies ONLY (+26 with hand-made covers)
Atiba
flutes, percussion, voice, effects
Dave Nuss
percussion
rec. live @ the Qbico U-nite XIII, realized @ RAW Studios, August 2009; NYC
side A
from one dream to....
rainforest rag (for Scott Joplin)
if i smile
side B
Olatunji's Kirk works
the word
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"it's a kind of psychedelic african record filled with beautiful layers of traditional rhythms and has a sort of hypno trance vibe, with Atiba's odd loop pedals and voice/flute jazziness/poetry. atiba is really the MASTER of the african percussion and i learned so much working with him in the studio. i think it's a one-of-a-kind record for sure !" dave nuss
"the original music was rec. @ the qbico u-nite XIII which took place @ Issue Project Room in NYC back in Feb. 2009. for sure the opening set by Atiba & Dave Nuss was one of the most original live set i had the pleasure to... see i remember talking with Dave, trying to set up this gig... he came out with this duo, saying that Atiba is the best well kept secret in the NYC... he spotted him playing in Harlem Clubs... nobody knows him, Andrew Barker or Steve... nobody ?! time to hear his message, jah hh music music steps music steps right on in right ooon ! afrodelic voodoo hip jazz for the next generationS..." qbico
ltd ed
THE MIRROR BOX
26 copies, numbered from A to Z
three versions:
silver, sunburned, bronze age
inside:
hand-made postcard by Bobby BeauSoleil (qbico 100)
hand-made FOLDER covers by Muruga (qbico 99)
hand-made covers by Dave Nuss (qbico nu)
plus
hand-made covers by John Olson
(which'll be the last single hand-made cover on qbico)
textile, hand/spray painted and sewed, so that you can't insert any record !
QBICO XI
JAMES GURLEY/MURUGA- It's big huge (QBICO XI) paste-on covers, black vinyl; 99 copies ONLY (+26 with hand-made covers)
rec. Nov. 2009
side A
Big Bang super string blues
Cosmic triune
side B
Esonic rapture
Takeing the time to tell you
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"One night i got a very excited mail from Muruga, saying his old pal James Gurley (Janis Joplin, Big Brother & The Holding Co) was visiting... he asked me if i'd have been interested in doing an album + hand-paint some cover right on the spot... without hesitation i/we followed the flow, so i said YES ! Muruga told me that it'd have been a RARE chance to catch James in the NOW (most of the tracks on the qbico xi were rec. on Nov. 25, 2009) ! few days, after i received the audio master and the hand-made covers (some of the most colorful and psychedelic i ever got !), Muruga brought me the sad news that James passed away after an heart attack ?! sad and unexpected news... SO glad that he's part of the qbico family ! rest in p big bro, it's huge !" qbico
"James Gurley was the Yuri Gagarin of rock & roll -- the first man... in space ! There was only handful of us that created our mini-genre of psychedelic guitar, and James was the avatar who blazed the path for the rest of us." Barry Melton, Country Joe and the Fish
ltd ed
26 copies only, numbered from A to Z
with hand-made covers by Muruga and James (half & half)
QBICO 98
NEOKARMA JOOKLO TRIO- Memories from the age of the Dragon (QBICO 98) red vinyl, troglosound art, 3 different inner sleeves (gold/red/green), heavy textured cover
david vanzan
percussion, voice, bow harp, bass, anologue electronics
virginia genta
soprano sax, ocarina, flutes, marimba box, bells
maurizio abate
kalimba, zither, hurdy gurdy, tape delay
rec. during the age of the dragon
a1 journey towards the creation
b1 evocation of the winds
b2 the ancient mystery
QBICO 97
NEOKARMA JOOKLO EXPERIENCE- Peaceful messages (QBICO 97) folder cover, black vinyl/black inner sleeve, troglosound art
david vanzan
virginia genta
maurzio abate
luca massolin
paolo pascolo
ali de zan
rec. June 6th, 2009
a1 cosmic balance
a2 turkish train
b holy freedom
QBICO MU
JOOKLO DUO- Roots (QBICO MU) one-sided LP, black vinyl, silk-screened cover & stamp on label by Troglosound, 99 copies ONLY (+26 for the ltd ed)
david vanzan- drums
virginia genta- tenor, soprano sax
rec. October 2009
QBICO KAPPA
JOOKLO DUO- Live in Itri (QBICO KAPPA) 10" brown vinyl with yellow/white effects and silk-screened clear inserts by Troglosound,, 99 copies ONLY (+26 for the ltd ed)
david vanzan- drums
virginia genta- tenor, baritone sax
rec. live @ Una sporca Estate Festival, August 27th, 2006
a tenor song
b baritone song
ltd ed
the Shaman's drum
by Nuxakaan
26 round bronze boxes, numbered from A to Z
outside:
- eagle feathers, hawaiian pearls (red/green), rafia, spray paint (2)
- hand sculpted iron crosses from Chiapas, Mexico
- fox tails, yuta, spray paint (3)
- alligator foot (freeze dried and coated in polyurethane), leather, spray paint
- alligator back scute, leather, spray paint
- antique hook, rafia
- badger and porcupine claws, rafia, spray paint (2)
- pearlized nautilus shell (center cut), hawaiian pearls (pink), rafia
- mother of pearl sea shell, hawaiian pearls (pink), rafia (2)
- red ear slider turtle shell, leather (2)
- natural rawhide deer drum head, wood pearls, rafia (9 )
- deer tail, rafia
all the above material is REAL, NATURAL and HARD TO FIND
special thanks to Aaron in helping me to obtain this material and to Ali for her precious suggestions
inside (all vinyls with new clear plastic sleeves):
- Peaceful messages (QBICO 97) LP
- Memories from the age of the Dragon (QBICO 98) LP with different vinyls color from regular ed: blood
- Live in Itri (QBICO KAPPA) 10" with different vinyls color from regular ed: brown vinyl with yellow/pink effects
- Rising above (QBICO MU) one-sided LP with silk-screened back vinyl & hand-made labels by Troglosound (all different)
- hand-made insert by Troglosound (all different, glued on the back inside of the box)
QBICO 96
MAKOTO KAWABATA- Under your moonshine (QBICO 96) black vinyl, artwork by Troglosound
Makoto Kawabata- electric guitar (with no overdubbing)
rec. around 2003/4
WORDS:
"the last Makoto Kawabata release for qbico ! and strange enough Makoto told me that this was his last solo guitar rec. with no overdubs. he gave to me this special solo a while ago, maybe 2003/4... i waited for the right moment to release it, just before the closure of qbico, it all started with him..." qbico
QBICO 95
SABU TOYOZUMI/MOTOTERU TAKAGI- If Ocean is broken (QBICO 95) 2LP, black vinyls, cover by qbico
Sabu Toyozumi- drums, percussion
Mototeru Takagi- soprano, tenor sax, bass clarinet
rec. live April 1971 @ Yasuda Seimei Hall, Tokyo
side A
Song for Yoo-Ki Lee
side B
If Ocean is broken
side C
The Alilan pass
side D
Nostalgia for Che-ju Island
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"unreleased free jazz from Japan in it's prime, rec. live in Tokyo in 1971. Mototeru Takagi already released two beautiful duo LP back then with master Japanese drummers like Masahiko Togashi (Isolation) and Toshi Tsuchitori (Origination), so this last DLP complete in a sense the set of duo rec. with the best, 1st generation, free music drummers from Japan. On the other side it complete also the duo rec. by Sabu with the greatest reeds player from Japan (still of the 1st generation); being, his various duos with legendary Kaoru Abe, already documented on qbico (Senzei) and elsewhere. About the music: raw and passionate = primitive beauty; both musicians are in top form and surely in their most creative period. Mr. Takagi plays tenor, soprano sax and bass clarinet, while Sabu is on drums and percussion. original rec. were very well preserved (fortunatly) and the pressing came out wonderful ! cover by qbico which Sabu san really dig saying (at the unite in Japan) that En no Gyoja is deeply respected by him, he opened the way... AND that was his master's guru (strange coincidences ?! i found or better HE found me one night while surfing the Net in search for the right image to use for the cover). Sabu did the ltd ed covers (hand-painted !), rare event, 1st time from a Japanese musician." qbico
QBICO LAMDBA
MATS GUSTAFSSON- Mats G plays Albert A (QBICO LAMDBA) 125 copies ONLY, one-sided LP black vinyl, with insert
26 copies, paste-on white covers, with stamped and signed photo by Mats, numbered from A to Z
99 copies, paste-on white covers
Mats Gustafsson- baritone sax, music box
rec, mixed and mastered June 16, 2009 by Ola Glans, Svinaberga, Sweden
side A
Our prayer
Angels/Spirits
WORDS:
"these two albums on yr label are two of the ones I m most pleased with ever ever ever.... fuck yeah!!!!" Mats
ltd ed:
JAPAN
26 hand-made Totoushi boxes with folder panel and typical Japanese paper/writings/color
numbered from A to Z
inside:
qbico 95 2LP with hand-made cover by Sabu Toyozumi (paint with calligraphy brushes) & Yoshi Takahashi (precious wa-shi paper from Kyoto)
qbico 96 LP with hand-made cover by Yoshi Takahashi (precious wa-shi paper from Kyoto)
3 original flyers: u-nite + DJ sets
QBICO 94
KLUSTER AND FRIENDS- 1969-1972 (QBICO 94) 6LP (black vinyls/black labels/black inner sleeves) box, spray painted (stencils by
Troglosound) in gold or silver and with clear plastic insert (rare photos)
Conrad Schnitzler, Klaus Freudigmann, Wolfgang Seidel and friends
rec. in Berlin, 1969/1972
REMINISCENCES:
"most legendary qbico release ever ?! maybe... for sure i can't express in words my mood when Con said to me that he'd have sent me some unreleased Kluster music to choose from and to close qbico with the BOMB !!? only rules to follow were: all black and few info ! so long Con ! ah yes, this ltd ed was the most difficult one to make... finally, an happy note: NO music mag worldwide has ever written a review of such an historic/key document = this give you easily an idea of which kind of music magazines are around today ??!" qbico
ltd ed
26 hand-made boxes by qbico, numbered from A to Z with:
6 LP plus 1 one-sided LP
"kluster & qbico"words in relief (like the originals early Kluster LP), made using a polyurethane foam
clear plastic insert with photos
available in the following colors:
-sea blue (3)
-sky azul (3)
-sky azul + coral pink (6)
-forest green (7)
-blue jeans (1)
-coral pink and sea blue (1)
-sea blue + sky azul (1)
-coral pink (4)
QBICO 93
ASTRAL SOCIAL CLUB- Psychic smog 1-7 (QBICO 93) red & pink vinyl
Neil Campbell, Mel Delaney
rec. West Yorkshire, Winter 2008/09
side A
Psychic smog 1-6
side B
Psychich smog 7
WORDS:
"More experimental treats on Qbico this week and amongst the latest batch of vinyl is Astral Social Club's 'Psychic Smog 1-7'. Recorded in winter 08/09 the tracks here are oven fresh. For this record the club are duo Campbell and Delaney. They sound like their pushing the gear to it's absolute limits here with some seriously strange cosmic sounds blasting from the speakers. This is some far out space ritual gear that's pretty darn mind blowing. Third track in and some pummeling rhythms blast out with all manner of magical synths going off all over the place. The tracks flow freely almost as if the sounds have a mind of their own and you get the sense that the artists aren't in full control at times. The machines are taking over man! Either that or the extra terrestrial squad have some mind control techniques. What I love about this stuff is that it takes elements from lots of different styles that I adore: old synth/ early electronic music/ noise/ techno/ improv and just melts them together wonderfully to create a sound that is truly unique. Proper head gear that'll take you places. Nice coloured vinyl to boot." Norman
QBICO 92
CHURINGA CANARIES (QBICO 92) black vinyl
Phil Legard, Alexander Neilson, Tirath Singh Nirmala, Phil Todd
rec. in Leeds, December 2005
originally released as a CD-R, 100 copies only
side A
Under heavy rent
side B
A sovtek swirl
WORDS:
"Collaborations can be a hell of a gamble. Fortunately, it seems that in the world of the underground music lover, collaborative ventures always seem to turn out to be synergetic exercises that yield amazing results. Churinga Canaries is such an endeavour: a one-off group effort improvised by four of the brightest lights in the UK underground music dog-and-pony show. A rundown of the participants should be more than enough to cause many of you to drool with excitement. Phil Legard (Xenis Emputae Travelling Band), Alex Neilson (Scatter, Richard Youngs collaborator, etc.), Tirath Singh Nirmala (formerly John Clyde-Evans of Hood) and Phil Todd (Ashtray Navigations) assembled in Leeds in chilly December 2005 to bang out some noise and melt the ice right out from under themselves with a warm bowl of sonic porridge. The results are two stunning long-form tracks of joyful jazz-inflected psych-noise in the vein of some of the wilder Ash Nav moments. Neilson's propulsive yet amazingly free drumming serves as the perfect background for the virtual maelstrom conjured up by the other three improvisers. About five minutes into the leading track, Under Heavy Rent, the sound is so dense and chaotic that it's almost dizzying. The foursome manage to keep themselves and their sound from breaking apart into a million tiny pieces, but just barely. A Sovtek Swirl starts off subdued, with a recurring thematic element gluing the shards of our dumbstruck minds back together again. By the time the disc is finished however, you'll be left panting in a useless heap on the floor. This is powerful stuff, not to be taken lightly. Don't say I didn't warn you!!" review of the CD-R by Byron Hayes from July 2006 (Foxy Digitalis)
QBICO 91
MIKE COOPER- Live at the Hint House (QBICO 91) black vinyl, cover design/collage by Mike Cooper
rec. in NYC, 2000
REMINISCENCES:
"Live at the Hint House might be considered a field rec. in as much as it is a recording of an ambience or soundscape. Made on my first ever trip to mainland America to play music this is the 2nd set of that evening, the 1st set had been an acoustic one of songs and slide guitar. At the start of the 2nd set i quickly realised that my guitar was not working and rather than stop and attempt to find out what was wrong i decided to just continue and improvise with what was at hand on the table in front of me. A Casio SK1 sampler keyboard, a Yamhaha SU10 sampling unit with some pre-recorded samples loaded, a mini disc with some tropical ambience rec. from Malaysia and a pitch shifter delay pedal. I was not very happy with what happened that night and when Matt Zwed gave me two CD-Rs the next day i don't remember giving much attention to the 2nd set. Five years on, coincidently to the day as i write this, i realized he had captured more than me trying to get through the piece. It was me, the people in the room, the dog that ran around barking, the traffic sounds coming through the door that was open right behind me and a whole host of magically transported tropical birds and insects that suddenly found themselves reciting whatever it was in the loft space on the edge of Harlem, competing or colluding with all of the above to produce a piece of urban exotica." Mike Cooper
QBICO 90
ASHTRAY NAVIGATIONS- Running on autokinetic (QBICO 90) green vinyl
rec. in Leeds, June 2007
originally released as a CD-R, 100 copies only
side A
St.Rooster's lament
Feedback is
side B
Hiss lizard revisited
Fucking the hole in the money
WORDS:
"So the Ashtray Navigations LP I'm not reviewing (Monocycle American) is one of those fancy yet expensive hyperlimited ones that Qbico like to do and the other is Running on Autokinetic which has got a burger thing on the cover that's making me hungry. This isn't a band I've ever investigated in too much depth but I've always had the impression the fella did noiser stuff than the lengthy first tune on here, its blissed-out beauty totally reminded me of Vision Creation Newsun by Boredoms but with the intensity toned down until all that remains is a lazily relaxing groove with soundy light flying everywhere like someone's shoved a disco ball inside a prism. A couple of far harsher tracks which back up my preconceptions follow before we all get our snakes charmed by the Middle Eastern tooting of the final effort which happily marries his noise and psychedelic sides, settling them down in a little cottage next to the Nile so we can all watch as they raise a little family of pyramid-building alienfolk. Well good." Norman
QBICO IOTA
ASHTRAY NAVIGATIONS- Monocycle American (QBICO IOTA) one-sided, red vinyl with white shizo effects, paste on cover, 99 copies ONLY
(+26 for the ltd ed)
originally released as a CD-R, 50 copies only
ltd ed:
LIQUID BOX
26 copies only (numbered from A to Z)
especially designed DELUXE plexi box with on front a liquid panel with the
following colors combination:
pink/blue (5)
yellow/green (6)
green/orange (6)
orange/red (6)
orange/blue (1)
blue/green (1)
light blue/pink/red (1)
inside:
qbico 93 with hand-made covers by Neil Campbell
qbico 92 with hand-made covers by Phil Todd/Mel Delaney
qbico 91 with paste-on covers, photo by Mike Cooper, signed (and insert)
qbico 90 with hand-made covers by Phil Todd/Mel Delaney
qbico iota with hand-made covers by Phil Todd/Mel Delaney
QBICO 89
CONRAD SCHNITZLER- Silver (QBICO 89) 180gr. crystal or blue vinyl, cover by qbico
rec. 1974/75
WORDS:
"This time Conrad Schnitzler's release here has been issued before in his "colors" series of albums. This set is from 1974-75, and it's was a very much "ahead of it's time" recording to my ears. Synth Bass tones move slow and creepy while twisted high tones chitter and snake about on track one, it has a late-night sound that is futuristic and gothic at the same time. It has a feeling sort of like walking the streets of some dark city in the future while robots seem to be observing you just a bit too closely. Track number two on side A is drone dominated, but those rising squggle-tones still are haunting you , when suddenly a metallic throb starts to develop. This all begins to do some sort of skeletal dance, that somehow has a beat but is still foreboding. Side B of Silver starts with a brittle sounding machine dance, like a ritual of digital machine sounds (and this dating pre-digital too)."Cold hard electronics", indeed ! This has a sound sort of like an abatoir dance.... maybe happy machines doing their cutting. Track two, side B is more clock-work in speed... slow clockwork. Very much a soundtrack of suspense. It would be great in a movie. The last piece on side B is air-y. Whisps of sound dance about while high-freq tones hold the tune. Again there is a suspense here, a dark sort of unease. Not to say that this is bad to listen to....it's just a very uneasy listen. I very much like it, but if you buy this for some easlily digestable 1970's synth music you will not find that sound here. Here CON does a great job of making those "cold hard electronics" sounds he has always set out for. A sound that in the mid 1970's was not too common.....the sound of foreboding. Maybe the sound of this future we are living." psychatrone
QBICO 88
PETER KOWALD- Bass solo (QBICO 88) black vinyl, photo by Don Barber, cover by qbico
rec. live @ Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant; May 17, 2000
rec. by Mike Johnston
REMINISCENCES:
"maybe few of you already know that the qbico #02'd have been a solo by Peter Kowald over animal sounds... he had already prepared a tape to which improvise over, i had already booked a studio, but unfortunatly Peter started to feel sick... Kiki Smith agreed also on using one of her artwork for the cover... anyway, this is the right recording that i had been waiting for so long and it planes to me thanks to my dear friend Mike Johnston of the Northwoods Improvisers, who rec. this incredible solo by Peter back in 2000. simply the best bass solo i ever heard ! a definitve statement from one of the greatest musicians and free spirit that i had the honour to met.
that happened back in 1996... i invited him to play solo many times (once also duo with Baby Sommer) and also at my flat one night as a private party... many fond memories of him...when i heard the sad news of his passing, i remember jumping on the car and driving around with no destination in mind, just driving and let the sadness grow on me with blues playing in the background... the 1st musician that i felt really close to me, that was a sad day.
pressing plant kind of mistaken/switched the front cover (fortunatly it happened only this time) but nobody is perfect. i was able to tract down and talk with one of his daughter and get the license to do this solo... ah yes Mike, very kindly took care of the ltd ed."qbico
QBICO 87
HARTMUT GEERKEN/JOHN TCHICAI- The Kabul and Teheran tapes (QBICO 87) 2LP, black vinyls, cover by qbico
Hartmut Geerken-
piano, piano strings, prepared piano, percussion, sun harp (bandura), tibetan tchinkas, short wave receiver, thumb piano, peking opera gongs
John Tchicai-
soprano and alto sax, flute, darabukka, voice, bells, egyptian bendire
Ustad Mohammed Aref
tabla (on A and C2)
rec. May 5, 1977 in Teheran, Iran*
rec. May 22, 1977 in Kabul, Afghanistan**
side A
Wazir akbar khan mena**
side B
Gaziantep**
side C
Yazilikaia*
Afghanistan perdu**
side D
Perdidoboogie**
Blues for underdogs*
master by Maurizio Abate
REMINISCENCES:
"more about Hartmut, one of qbico's most precious treasures. Mike Johnston, from Northwoods Improvisers, once said to me: you'd get in touch with Hartmut... can't have given me a more wise suggestions ! i was already familiar with his name, thanks to the few albums he made on Praxis and to the legendary Cairo Free Jazz Ensemble LP. also i remember Roberto getting RARE Saturns from him in the late 90's (including two copies of Song of the Stargazers which i had never seen anywhere else afterwords ?!)... know also his wonderful book about Sun Ra... anyway, 1st time we met is when i invited him to play at the Secrets of the Sun event (along with Neokarma), that was a magical night and we stayed at Troglosound early place in the Veneto country side (they even rec. as a 4et with Maurizio; and also Hartumt jammed with Neokarma at the concert). then an year later (2008 ?!) we (still me & Neokarma) also drove (after being stopped by the police asa we entered Bavaria) and played his town (it was fun ! he lives in a beautiful place in front of a lake... we tasted his fab mushrooms, saw his collection of Sun Ra records and African masks, ect... treated as us great !)... that's one of the many anedoctes he told me that particulary impressed me: he lived in Turkey back in early 60's i think with his wife... they did some teaching, also supported by the Goethe Institut... well he teached many people German and those were the 1st immigrants that then went to live in Germany.. the major of this little town one day said to Hartmut to follow him, as he'd like to make a present to him for all the help he gave to his people... once arrived in a deserted country side he gave Hartmut four stones, saying to throw them to the 4 directions... well, where they'll follow, this'll be the limit/surrounding of yr new home/SPACE ! an amazing life for a wonderful xhol.
kind of happy with the cover artwork, which looks like an invitation to enter the place where they played (doors are open)... while Hartmut took care of the ltd ed covers with spores ! that'd have been a mythical journey to the East. two side-long spontaneous compositions on side A/B, some far out and alien sounds on side C, two perdidoboogie for the underdogs on side D." qbico
QBICO 86
THOMAS BORGMANN/WILBER MORRIS/REGGIE NICHOLSON- Live at Tunnel (QBICO 86) black vinyl, cover by Joseph Beuys
Thomas Borgmann- tenor and soprano sax, ocarina
Wilber Morris- bass
Reggie Nicholson- dr
rec. on March 22, 2000 @ the Fringes Festival
side A
Same time, different place
side B
Wilber's mood
We went that away
REMINISCENCES:
"only available rec. of a kind of historic Festival that EP and La Moja organized in Milan in 2000. other sets were Sunny Murray/Arthur Doyle, Mego night with Rehberg & Bauer, Peter Kowald/Daunik Lazro, Frank Perry solo, the music of Conrad Schnitzler, Han Bennink solo, John Butcher/Phil Durrant. It's a live set full of passion and warm, in total contrast with the cold cover (Roberto style/idea, he likes grey color; kind the opposite of me :-). This trio evolve from the original one of Borgmann/Morris/Dennis Charles (which i had the pleasure to see and invite in 1998)... Reggie Nicholson took Jazz's chair after his premature passing. Dedicated to you, Wilber." qbico
QBICO 86/87/88/89
ltd ed, 26 copies only, numbered from A to Z
the German bag
hand-made and silk-screened bag by Danish artists Mads Westrup & Zven Balslev
qbico 86 front cover artwork by Joseph Beuys (different from regular ed.) + two inserts + original flyer of the Fringes Festival
qbico 87 signed envelope by both artists, containing, as invitation, the original flyer (on parchment paper) of the Kabul concert (in arabic letters too)
qbico 88 hand-made covers by Mike Johnston + insert the original flyer of the live gig
qbico 89 hand-made cover by qbico with aluminium foil
QBICO THETA
MAURIZIO ABATE- Armonicum (QBICO theta) black vinyl, black inner sleeve, cover by Troglosound
99 copies only
+ 26 copies with hand-made covers by Maurizio (eclipses made with: spray paint, salt, sand, stones and film), numbered from A to Z
rec. 2008; solo, instruments played: guitar, steel guitar, tanpura, harmonica, kalimba
side A
Ego Trip
Gutt feelings
side B
The carpet
WORDS:
"This man,I have to admit, was totally unknown to me before QBICO's owner recommended this LP to me. I searched out his name on the internet and found some very wild YouTube video of live performances....one man and his stringed instruments and harmonica. Yes, harmonica ! It sounded like Mr. Abate used treatments to make Eastern influenced drones using harmonica. I DID have to hear this one. Side A here has two cuts, Ego Trip is the first and is a beautiful Eastern tinged guitar performance, acoustic guitar with slide ! It's an incredible upbeat performance with sudden slide guitar tones mixed in with his strumming sounds. Jimmy Page watch-out ! Track two has what sounds like sitar backing to his guitar picking,which builds up adding ,again, slide sounds and layers of drone and strumming guitars. This is all solo recording work here. Very tasty stuff. For some reason it reminds me of David Gilmore in his The Narrow Way era. Side B is called The Carpet. This starts out like a western movie soundtrack... albeit one from some 1960's trippy, freaky movie! A suspended drone lays back behind a harmonica solo while kalimba starts to dance in your ears. This all soon develops an easy groove unlike anything I could have imagined. Maybe a lost CAN EFS (Ethnic Forgery Series) track ? In any description of this I'd have to add that it's a dreamy sound, in that this is music like you could only possibly hear in a dream ! I'd guess that CAN is a good comparison, because as the track progresses it flows from one soundscape to another in the same way Bel Air from that group's Future Days album moves. Yes, I will invoke such a masterpiece in this description ! Sitting here and marvelling at this cut I have to say that this beautiful music was "short pressed". I mean it's an absolute shame that more than 100 copies of this insanely incredible trip will not be out there for you to hear. But that's been the way of QBICO's limited series. I've not yet heard one of these that didn't just blow the mind.
So, there you go. One "foreboding" album of classic stature....and one beautiful trip of a future "lost classic" album by one amazing instrumentalist ! I'd say beg ,borrow ,or steal to get Maurizio Abate's album. This is what I always look for in this sort of music,and it's out for just one moment. A dream pressed onto vinyl." psychatrone
QBICO 85
ACID BIRDS (QBICO 85) 180gr. yellow vinyl with black, cover by qbico
rec. by Jeremy Wilms and Torbitt Schwartz at I.T.S. studio, Brooklyn; November 14, 2007
Andrew Barker- drums, percussion, jaw-harp
Jaime Fennelly- electronics, harmonium
Charles Waters- alto sax, clarinet, bass clarinet
side A
Acid Birds
side B
Larvae
If I die, my cat will eat my face
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"The Acid Birds recording is one of the best free forms jazz recordings I have ever heard! I saw Andrew and Charlie play with Golden Jooklo at Union Pool in New York this last May which was stunning but this recording takes me to a new dimension. Beyond the passion is remarkable complexity when each performer, a master in their own right, combines to express feelings that are not of this earth. Nothing short of fantastic." Chris Allick, Mill Valley
"Firstly, the vinyl disc is really pretty. It kind of looks like a sun spot to me, or at least what I imagine a sun spot to look like. The music, though, is even better. The composition "Acid Birds" was my favorite after listening to the whole record once. But the others were great too - "Larvae" felt like a dream, especially because the notes of the harmonium are constantly oscillating. And it's cool that Charles plays three different instruments during that track. And the percussion is very interesting, too - sometimes there's a classical-like precision to what you play (triangle, bass drum (?) hits) but then there's something that sounded like a chain attacking a cymbal that was chaotic but beautiful. The last track is certainly very aggressive, but I like that. Nice contrast from what came before it. I especially liked the vocal sounds, it reminds us that there are humans responsible for these sounds. And I say that because I've never heard anything like this, and I think the electronics have a lot to do with it. Are your drums treated in any way? The three of you compliment each other so well, you're never stepping on each other. And it's fun to think about the three separate parts. It's usually not obvious that there are three people playing, because the electronics I think tend to get categorized in the "ambient" section of our ears. I wish I could be more specific, but after one listen, I think that's all I can say. But I will be listening a lot in the near future. I don't mean to categorize this music (which shouldn't be anyway), but this is the best "free jazz" album I've ever heard. I'm a bass player myself, but I don't miss the bass here at all. The electronics provide the 21st century update - but it's just killer music." Pat Kelly (Stumparumper Records)
"Barker (drums, jaw harp) and Waters (sax) made the countdown last year as part of a trio with Sabir Mateen. This year I put them up here again, but in a much different context. Now, they are joined by Jaime Fennelly on electronics. This trio broods and rages over three pieces. The vinyl is colored beyond comprehension, and is the only evidence that you will ever have to present to someone that vinyl records are the supreme musical document of human existence." Alex Shaw
"one of the most difficult qbico to spread around by a group in which i strongly belive in (they're probably too far ahead for their time) ! i dig them without having heard a single note, just for the name and instrumentation, really ! how can a bird on acid sing badly !? impossible... i invited them to the u-nite at Issue and their set was astonishing ! Jamie is a really sweet guy and Andrew put contact mic on a huge pic nic table which was played with chains !? i saw Andrew's one-of-a-kind score for the music on this album... that LP also marked my fascination with feathers, which i used for the ltd ed. finally, since i do not like easy things, i'll continue following these Acid Birds flying NOW into the future... so get ready for vol. II" qbico
QBICO 84
ARTHUR DOYLE/WILBER MORRIS/RASHID BAKR- Live at the Alterknit (QBICO 84) one-sided LP, white vinyl, two cut corners
rec. August 9, 1997 in NYC
Arthur Doyle- tenor sax, recorder
Wilber Morris- bass
Rashied Bakr- drums
WORDS:
"Fuck! This is a wild live recording from NYC in August 1997 with Arthur on tenor sax, vocals and recorder, Wilber Morris on bass and Rashid Bakr on drums. There are two tracks, one long, inspired reading of an early Doyle song Ancestor and a shorter version of Brother John . The first track ranks as one of Doyle s all-time greatest performances. It s the most perfect reconciliation of his wild, outside song/vocal/sax style circa Plays More Alabama Feeling and his more group-focussed free jazz blow-outs. The groove that Morris and Bakr get into is absolutely irresistible, a classic Sun Ra-styled dirge, with Doyle moving from sax to hypnotic, endlessly repeating vocals that Morris bolsters with wailing vocal tones and inspired extrapolations. This is one of the best groups that Doyle has ever worked with and their degree of empathy and the seriousness with which they take Doyle s visions is totally persuasive. The second track is even more blasted, tearing apart nursery rhyme rhythms (complete with uncomprehending sniggers from a buncha confused squares in the audience) with vocals, recorder and some inspired improvising. The fidelity is totally there too, a beautiful crude sound that matches classics like Babi for instant-impact guerilla-style sonics. A perfect recording in every respect and a major free jazz release." David Keenan
"Whoa, momma! Doyle busts back on the scene with a white vinyl. I like this trio record for several reasons:
1) Doyle sings his ass off on both tracks.
2) The group plays well together, rather than just letting Doyle steal the show.
3) The album sounds like it was recorded in an enormous bathroom." Alex Shaw
QBICO 83
MURUGA/PERRY ROBINSON dyad- Bubble waves (QBICO 83) aquamarine vinyl, artworks by Muruga
rec. in 2007 at Sage CT. Studio, Michigan
Muruga- drums, bells, shaker, Nada drum, conga, jimbay, synth
Perry Robinson- clarinet, wood whistles
side A
Bubble wave
side B
Bubble beat
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"I got 3 of the newest QBICO LP's ...... the first I've had a chance to actually pop onto my turntable's spindle is BUBBLE WAVES by the Muruga/Perry Robinson Dyad, and it's just what the doctor ordered if you are feeling like you need some very flowing free-form music. I'll review this here now.... later for the other two as I get a change to absorb their vibes.... This LP was written up as by a magical duo, and ....the preacher met the magician.... Maybe that's too obscuro of a description coming with no references for your mind to grasp......so let me tell you what I hear on this disc. I'll start by telling you that Muruga is the drummer here but plays synth also, while Perry Robinson let's fly on clarinet and wood whistles. Then for all of you who may be of the mind that all "free-form" music is a bunch of screeching and agressive sounds, I will inform you that this is some of the most soothing of free-form I've had the pleasure of hearing in a while. I'm not saying that this doesn't have any percussive drive... it's just that any drumming here is not rasping or grating,it flows like a stream tumbling over rocks in the sunlight ! Take for example the A side here Bubble Wave... it's flow is mesmerizing and yet mentally stimulating enough to make all sorts of "water" mind-visions appear in your cranium. The droning synth floats and, yes.... bubbles quietly behind a nice stream of consiousness jam between the drums and woodwinds. This is a modern, time-suspending ,brightly colored set that keeps you going through a very visual set of sounds bringing to mind floating on some peaceful bay while hearing all sorts of bird calls and shore life activities all while in a near dream-state ! The nice thing is I think it's got enough "traditional" sound to it to appeal to say, Alice Coltrane fans as well as psychedelic heads too. On to side B... Here things start off a bit more rhythmic right from the start, but in a deep African jungle soundform, but this is called Bubble Beat so there's your clue ! Shakers and bells with woodflute give way to talking drum swells with clarinet of an Eric Dolphy-esque vibe ,and soon conga takes the whole jam into a 1950's "beat" era sound. The players are so sensitive to eachother's sounds this piece has a lot of air to breath around the jams making it all very tasteful and incredible. Not to be missed, really ! If you enjoy any of the musical references above, then I'm sure you won't regret taking the time to search-out this fabulous record. As always the coolest colored vinyl and cover art round out a completely satisfying package." pyschatrone
"this is the only result of a collaboration who goes along at least 30 years... cover artwork taken from one of Muruga's ultra hip hand-made ones. a musician friend of mine said to me that Muruga is a genius and of course i agree BUT unfortunatly an unsung one..." qbico
QBICO 82
FARUQ Z. BEY & DENNIS GONZALEZ w/NORTHWOODS IMPROVISERS- Hymn for Tomasz Stanko (QBICO 82) 180gr. orange vinyl with gold, cover by Mike Rudolph
rec. 11/04/04 and 3/13/05 by Mike Johnston & Dennis Gonzales
Dennis Gonzalez- trumpet, percussion
Faruq Z. Bey- tenor, alto sax, gong
Mike Carey- tenor sax, bass clarinet
Skeeter C.R. Shelton- tenor, soprano sax
Mike Gilmore- vibes, marimba, saz, tamboura
Mike Johnston- bass, percussion
Nick Ashton- drums, percussion
side A
Hymn for Tomasz Stanko
Hu-Hu
side B
Kuntu
Ilam
WORDS:
"Dennis González nor Faruq Z Bey may be the most memorable instrumentalists on either trumpet or sax, but what a musical feeling both musicians have! They are both eclecticists with a broad range of musical styles in their baggage, yet they manage, at least on this album, to create a very focused, very soulful and emotional warm sound. The album is created in tribute to one of my own favorite trumpeters, the Polish magician of melancholy, Tomasz Stanko. Stanko is one of the best trumpeters and musicians of the past decades, someone who has been able to create his own signature sound, which delves into the deepest levels of sadness and melancholy. His great achievement is to do that without resorting to cheap sentimentalism. His music is absolutely creative and fascinating. Now González and Bey move into the same kind of territory without trying to copy Stanko either. Most of the music is slow to mid-tempo, with great themes, creative ideas and excellent improvisations, but the main achievement lies in the solidity of the band's common construction of the pieces. The band further consists of Mike Carrey on tenor and bass clarinet, Skeeter Shelton on tenor and soprano, Mike Gilmore on vibes, marimba, saz and tamboura, Mike Johnston on bass and percussion, and Nick Ashton on drums and percussion. What makes this album great, is that the musicians manage to capture Tomasz Stanko's melodic sadness, while incorporating it into their own music. The four horns create a warm blanket of sound in perfect symmetry with the sustained polyrhythmics of the rhythm section, leading to a music which moves forward in great waves of sound, flowing like the sea, unstoppable and hypnotic. Hymn For Tomasz Stanko starts with the title track, with bass, drums and sparse vibes, followed by a grand sweeping theme, dark and ominous, leading the way to a sequence of solos and repetition of the theme, with especially Gilmore's sparse vibes giving a wonderful atmospheric touch to the overall sound. The second track Hu-Nu has a wonderful counterpoint build-up, laid over a halting rhythm, quite inventive and very effectful, and is followed by a less orchestrated, free-er, more open composition, on which none of the instruments ever play together, but rather weave several phrases together, as suggested by its title, Calligraphy. Kuntu is pure sustained African rhythm, with a steady bass vamp, a great theme and excellent soloing by González, Gilmore and especially Bey at the end of the track. Namesake is a piece which first appeared on the Silkheart record with the same name in 1987, which now starts with a slow unison theme before the bass vamp kicks in at a slightly higher tempo, supported again by great drumming. Again, this is a hypnotic piece with a great sequence of solos. The last track, Ilam, moves us from Africa to more Middle-Eastern music, with a saz intro by Mike Gilmore, followed by his playing the tamboura throughout the piece. The theme that follows is slow, sad and deeply moving, again with nice soloing and aptly ending with one by González, on a tune that could have come from Stanko. In short, a great album, in my opinion of the same expansive and broad-sweeping level as his Nile River Suite or Dance Of The Soothsayer's Tongue. The overall sound is very coherent, all tracks are of the same high quality, melodic, lyrical and creative. I love it!" Stef blog
QBICO ETA
NORTHWOODS IMPROVISERS- Constellations (QBICO ETA) one-sided LP, ltd ed 125 copies only
26 hand-made covers for the velvet box
99 covers with two stickers (front & back) + sticker on label (design by Mike Johnston) + insert on parchment paper
rec. live to tape by Mike Johnston in 2007/08
Mike Gilmore- guitar, saz, kalimba, shakers
Mike Johnston- bass, inanga, bone guitar
Kirk Lucas- guitar, tamboura, tambourine
Mike Last- tabla, kosika
Mike Khoury- violin
Don Barber- bells, frame drum
side A
Malik
Indian folk song
Tenere'
African Bells
Trampled rose
REMINISCENCES:
"finally, even if a one-sided, the only vinyl release by this outstanding improvisers ! their compositions are simply brilliant... music that you'd hear again and again... top hand-made covers as usual from Mike, who became one of the pier of the qbico family, helped a lot and bringed great music !" qbico
QBICO 82/83/84/85 & eta
ltd ed, 26 copies only, numbered from A to Z
velvet box
especially designed velvet box in red and blue
inside panels hand-made by qbico: 13 stars freemasonry's original flag/dollar bill detail the all seeing eye
qbico eta hand-made covers (front & back; unique pieces) + hand-made label by Mike Johnston + black inner sleeve + insert on parchment paper
qbico 82 silk-screened covers by Mark Rudolph (front & back, top class !) + two postcards and large insert on parchment paper
orange vinyl with red & yellow + black hand-made labels by Mike Johnston + black inner sleeve (17 copies)
orange vinyl and gold + bronze hand-made labels by Mike Johnston + white inner sleeve (9 copies)
qbico 83 hand-made covers (front & back; unique pieces) + bubble insert: Bubbles by the bubble king Muruga
qbico 84 with different vinyl color from regular ed: azul vinyl
qbico 85 yellow & green cover + acid bird + real Amazon or Macaw parrrot feathers (wonderful !), hand-made by qbico & ali (front & back; unique pieces) + different vinyl color from regular ed: yellow with black, gold and white or yellow with gold or yellow with red and black
QBICO 81
LOOSERS- Natives are restless (QBICO 81) 2LP, black vinyls, photos by Tiago, cover by qbico
side A
Glyph
side B
The Orthodox tongue
Hipsters
side C
At prison gates only the keys sing
side D
An appointment with jackals and vultures
rec. 2005/06 in Portugal and Europe
REMINISCENCES:
"their 2nd and final LP on qbico (last Loosers vinyl ?!). Tiago took this amazing front cover photo in Mauritania if i remember well (as well as labels ones), i put the cave on the back... (you dig ?! like enter into their music and exit as a caveman :-) he sent me some music to choose from... one of the thing i always admired about Loosers is that they have their own sound/style, easy to recognize." qbico
QBICO 80
TROPA MACACA- Fiteiras suadas (QBICO 80) 180gr. clear azul vinyl, artwork by Joana Da Conceicao
REMINISCENCES:
"sweet couple from Porto with their own style. rare photo on the cover of a Porto with snow... their ltd ed silk-screened/hand-made covers are quite cool..." qbico
QBICO ZETA
GOLDEN JOOKLO AGE- Tropical trip (QBICO ZETA) 180gr. green or blue vinyl with pink & yellow skizo effects, silk-screened cover by Troglosound (black or light brown covers), 125 copies ONLY (of which 26 for the ltd ed)
Virginia Genta- tenor sax, flute, voice, zorna
David Vanzan- drums
Luca Massolin- mandolin, keyboard
Tiago Miranda- congas, synth, perc
Rui Damaso- bass
Rui Damaso (Frango)- voice, fx
rec. by Pedro Alsada @ ZDB, Lisboa, Feb. 17, 2008
WORDS:
"What is/was the GOLDEN JOOKLO AGE ?!
What I can tell you is that QBICO ZETA is what I'm talking about. What the "Golden" Jooklo Age was or is ...well, that I'm not too sure of. But anything with "JOOKLO" attached to it's title on QBICO record, I can let you know, IS the finest in freaky free-form entertainment ! The whole title on this great item is GOLDEN JOOKLO AGE "Tropical Trip"...and it's insanely limited. The cover is a paste-on of some kind of Cyclopean eagle God...each colored by hand, while the vinyl is a spectacular spin-art type of design in blues, with flaming shards of spikey color (yellow ,orange, and pink-ish) shooting out to it's outer edge....All that aside....the music is three pieces of long jamming psych/free-form that is really trance-inducing. Side A is one long track that starts right out in space with metallic drones and gongs being abused (although quietly !), then a snake-y bass-line with a driving hand-drum beat comes in with some wordless female chanting and ululating that keeps a forward motion going like the best of Can's music...along the travels in this mode a wild sax sound comes into your soundfield. The sax is very tastefully mixed into this trance. So, even though it's a wild and heavy free sax solo, it never breaks your trance fixation on that snake-bass and beat. The next addition is conga and metal percussion that sets the stage for some "motorik" propulsion of the finest vintage ! So after soaking in this sound for a little over 23 minutes you really feel like you've been on a nice trip. Excellent ! Side two starts with a piece that has a dark tone... like a ride on a giant owl through some mythological forest, swooping down on and circling a late-night ritual dance ! The rhythm is all sultry and juju-like with subtle "space whisper" vocals....again conga, shaker and some kind of strange bells are the drive here. The bass is the main instrument besides that echo/whisper vocal.....that is untill some cymbal swells and an echoed zorna join the late night dance ! Such sweet sounds. After about 16 minutes this all breaks down to a tiny ending of swirling echos of flute and distant sax. Side two track number two starts a bit more agressively with a loping beat that slowly gets more funky and freaky with a wailing sax solo, once more very tastefully mixed into the sounds. This is the most propulsive of all the cuts here...and features some generated electronic sounds flying around with the sax solo ! Its a strangely dance-able cut that breaks down to a churning mix of electronics and sax at about the five minute mark and flows strangely to it's end in a swirl of sounds. Again, if you like Can , Amon Duul , or music that you could use at a ritual dance around a bon-fire....well, this is highly recommended !! Another gem in the crown of both Jooklo and QBICO !" pyschatrone
"Italy's free-jazz psych warriors in the Golden Jooklo Age have got the chroma-soaked, sauteed hallucinations of peyote overindulgence etched firmly into our brain tissue with their masterpiece Tropical Trip, as the opiated aftereffects of hypnotic afro-beat comedown slam into a smoldering desert palace of psychedelic rubble with the intensity of a flaming ball. Putting this baby to rest after many months of repeated listens has proven to be quite a task, but any chance for us to unlock the floodgate of droning, trance ragas contained within the GJA dynasty, or any Jooklo-related material for that matter (i.e. Jooklo Duo, Neokarma Jooklo Experience, et al), has made every step of the way seem like a forty-eight hour binge on liquid acid. Recorded at Lisbon's Zé des Bois gallery during their first tour of Portugal in 2008, the three-piece is joined on their drug quests by Tiago Miranda and Rui Damaso of the group Loosers and Rui Dâmaso (not the same) of Frango. Psych walls of sun-gauzed effects, wailing sax, flute, and splashy percussion unroll like a magic carpet into a panoramic desert isolation, closed off from the rest of society and haunted by festering drug-addled delusions. Screaming vox mantras rise from the dead like graying spiritual smoke, infiltrating a sonic landscape of tribal dirge rituals with the slow-burning stench of sage. Rhythmic astral jazz grooves flow like cosmic ashes, descending from outer space like the phantom of Sun Ra to make a pact with Satan, only to remerge as the melted psyche of the GJA. Pressed with sheer perfection on limited multi-colored vinyl with handcrafted sleeving by powerhouse imprint Qbico. " brontosonix blog
"An interesting start to the week with Golden Jooklo Age and their Tropical Trip LP, the presentation on this one is some of the best I've seen for ages with a mental totemic cyclops owl that's probably just beamed down from the heavens to take over our world via the power of the pentagram emblazoned on it's stomach. Then the vinyl is a complete splatterjob, looking like some hippy's eaten their tye-dyed T-shirt their dirty, water birthed child shat on at Glastonbury, vomited it back up and turned it into a record. Apparently they're all unique and I think I can say without seeing the entire run that they're all FAR FUCKING OUT. The music follows suit, being lengthy instrumental jams pushed along by throbbing, slightly dubby basslines and incredibly cymbal-heavy percussion, later morphing into Eastern rhythms that are making Ant talk about Apocalypse Now.. In fact that's a really good comparison, this is totally dark and otherly business that'd be a perfect fit on there. Not sure where the occasional skronky saxophone would fit in in 'Nam but it does the business here perfectly. Imagine Sylvester Anfang mixed up with one of The Stooges' Fun House jams and a touch of the Far East.. It's totally brilliant actually, I'm not doing it any justice because I'm crap at doing reviews at this unholy time in the morning (it's 11am for Christ's sake) but I'm sorely tempted to get one myself despite the hefty price. Apparently it's because there's only 100-odd, Qbico do that sort of funny stuff and they have to make their money back somehow I guess.. Highly recommended for the more adventurous improvisation lovers among you!" Brett Wayne blog
QBICO ZETA/80/81 ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z
Portugal
specially designed box in red & green (Portugal's flag colors; lined also on the inside)
qbico zeta with silk-screened covers by Troglosound
qbico 80 with silk-screened and hand-made covers by Tropa Macaca (all different)
qbico 81 with hand-made covers by Tiago (all different)
QBICO 79
ODD CLOUDS (QBICO 79) pic disk, artworks by Chris Pottinger & Jamie Easter
rec. betw 2004-2007 in Detroit, Ferndale and Hamtramck; Michigan
performers:
Chris Pottinger
Jamie Easter
Heath Moerland
Glen Morren
Chris Sprague
Matt Smith
Noah Eikhoff
Free Wade
WORDS:
Surrounded by Odd Clouds.
"Well, if this band were here I WOULD be surrounded, since there are 8 members ! ODD CLOUDS is a project lead by Chris Pottinger and Jamie Easter and their album is a new QBICO release. This is some really way out and propulsive free-form music, all presented on a wild picture disc of "bad trip" art by Chris and Jamie. The art has scary intestine creatures looming on Side A, and a poor fella that seems to have sprouted tubes from many of his appendages, along with having a few eyes shooting out of his left eye socket on it's "B" side. I hate when I feel like that ! It's quite unsettling, but well designed and probably clues you in to how mad these sounds are on the vinyl. The music is a bit like Smegma but without the use of any cut-ups or much electronics. Here they use, among other things, guitar, sax (and/or some kind of horn), and voice. This is an organic miasma of throbs and groans...none of which overstays it's welcome. Here, what sounds like the rites of Cthulu at the Mountains Of Madness, is the order of the day. I mean this stuff sounds like someone just about to lose their mind...but it's so damned good in that sense ! Ahhh , that "thin piping sound" Mr. Lovecraft so often wrote of. Is it the call of the "old ones" or is that just your mind going off ? But it's not a bad thing,...don't get me wrong here. Relax your mind and float downstream.....is it not dying ? (Yes, I did mis-quote that ON PURPOSE!) This is music for those of us that like the darker side of psychedelic free form sounds....like Brast Burn,Taj Mahal Travellers or good ol' Smegma. This has it's own angle on that bunch...but if you dig any of the before mentioned bands, you should love this. Another fine and wild release by QBICO. yum !"psychatrone myspace
QBICO 78
COTTON MUSEUM- No face in the bog (QBICO 78) cow's milk vinyl, artworks and music by Chris Pottinger, with insert
side A originally released as a ltd ed CD-R art set in 100 copies on Tasty Soil, Creature
B1 track is unreleased, rec. in 2007
B2 originally released in 2006 on Fag Tapes as a side of a tour cassette with Sick Llama
B3 was played as a loop for 8 months straight on a pirate radio station that broacasted out of the Cloud House on 107.9 fm
REMINISCENCES:
"i bought Odd Clouds 1st LP and it was among my fav release for 2006, great cover/great music ! so i wrote Chris... that was the 2nd time i did a focus on a single artist (1st being with Troglosound)... glad i was able to present Pottinger's music and art all together in a ltd ed box set, especially designed and silk-screened by Chris. they come to say hello at the u-nite i did in the big D, he and Jamie.. and they also, very kindly, brought gifts... nice charachters." qbico
QBICO 77
SLITHER- Invertebrate (QBICO 77) one-sided black vinyl
Heath Moerland & Chris Pottinger: horns & electronics
side A
Venom injection
Invertebrate
WORDS:
"Another one-sided LP from this vinyl only label. Where would the Top 10 of the Year (2008) be without these guys? Nowhere, that’s where. From what I have heard from this duo, they stick to a fairly predictable, but singular, formula: ping-pongy low-end electronics, molasses-slow tempos, and interweaving layers of horns. Clarinets, Mizmars, both? Slither is the musical equivalent to that Nick Cave book And the Ass Saw the Angel." Alex Shaw
QBICO 77/78/79 ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z
the creatures box
qbico 77/78/79 records
one unique and original creature artwork by Chris Pottinger (all different)
silk-screened box with creature by Chris Pottinger
creature badge
QBICO EPSILON
MATS GUSTAFSSON- Mats G plays Duke E (QBICO EPSILON) 125 copies ONLY, one-sided LP black vinyl
26 copies with paste-on grey covers with stamped and signed photo by Mats, numbered from A to Z
99 copies with paste-on white covers
Mats Gustafsson- tenor sax and live electronics
rec. April 8, 2008 by Olof Madsen at Blue Tower Studios
side A
In a sentimental mood
I never felt this way before
Come Sunday
Blue goose
Sophisticated Lady
REMINISCENCES:
"1st in the hommage series Mats G plays, his idea... we both agreed on a raw/punk style paste-on cover. to be continued..." qbico
QBICO 76
ERUPTION- Live action 1972, Wuppertal (QBICO 76) 2LP (music on three sides) with folder cover in heavy outer plastic sleeve, black vinyl & orange vinyl (180gr), cover by qbico
music by:
Conrad Schnitzler
Klaus Freudigmann
Wolfgang Seidel
and friends
3 side long tracks, the complete concert
WORDS:
"qbico erupts !!!
YESSSS!
Another set of QBICO records’ greatness is now at hand ! Although this time ’round I have only ,so far, scored a copy of QBICO 76....Conrad Schnitzler’s ERUPTION Live Action, 1972...Wuppertal a double album with 3 sides of early historical German sounds. Yes, 3 sides live,...but nothing like that Genesis album of the same title! Ha! No ,this is a full live concert from Conrad Schnitzler and his collegues while he’d just left Tangerine Dream and Kluster because he wanted to make more cold hard electronics sounds even at this early stage in the KrautRock game. Here are pieces of music that somehow go from brooding soundtrack-like segments all the way to the deepest space travels even during one track. Another cool thing is the use of acoustic instruments in this mix, like flute and violin (cello). Yes there is more of what I call I.P.R. (that’s Imagination Per Minute) on this album than than most classic albums of the era, and even modern albums of this ilk too! What makes this a delight is the sheer forward momentum of ideas and textures ...from one minute to the next these pieces grow and mutate into areas you never expect. To me side A and side B seem like one piece cut in two by the time limit of album sides, but this may have been one continuous show start to finish. Funnily the vinyl color and label designs seem to reflect the music’s growth in intensity too. The first album is of black vinyl , but the label for side A has the least lava flowing on it...by side B the music and the lava on the label are getting pretty powerful... then by side C the album is bright orange vinyl and the label too is angrily glowing with the stuff of the very Earth’s birth AND (by God) the music by this point will have you glowing too! A while back QBICO released an early ERUPTION album that I was incredibly excited over....and that one’s gone for a while now. But now you have another chance to hear a little bit of (almost) lost KrautRock history and this time you should try and catch a listen. Conrad Schnitzler , Klaus Freudigmann and Wolfgang Seidel have been a sort of mystery influence on early electronic and free music.....NOW is the time to experience what has been hidden for what seems like ages. Some of you might want a bit of a comparison in terms of sound...well, I said to QBICO records that this sounded a bit like a guitarless Electronic Meditation or sort of like Alpha Centauri era Tangerine Dream, to which QBICO replied: NO,....it’s better than that. (or something similar) After a few more listens I’d still stick by that as just purely a musical reference point ....expressly because I’d have to agree that this album might even be what those other albums aimed to achieve and fell short of! Yeah, it’s THAT good! These are sounds from a totally alternate universe." pyschatrone myspace
QBICO 75
HARTMUT GEERKEN- Amanita (QBICO 75) 2LP with folder cover in heavy outer plastic sleeve, black vinyl & gold vinyl (180gr), cover by qbico
rec. May 11, 1995
instruments played:
Sun Ra's Sun harp
Swarmandal
voice
side A
amanita spissa
side B
amanita ovoidea
side C
amanita strobiliformis
amanita vaginata
amanita phalloides
amanita rubescens
side D
amanita mappa
amanita pantherina
amanita vema
WORDS:
"Pratically impossible to make it brief here, HGeerken: author, composer, musician, film-maker, performer, actor, mycologist, archivist, stager of exhibitions, publisher of numerous authors from the circle of literary expressionism and dada, lumberjack, bumble-bee-keeper. during his six-year stay in Egypt in the 60's he is co-founder (together with Salah Ragab and Edu Vizvari) of the Cairo Jazz Band as well as founder and head of the Cairo Free Jazz Ensemble. played in various music groups: Embryo, trio with John Tchicai and Don Moye (extensive tour of Africa) and also with the Art Ensemble of Chicago. he worked with Sunny Murray, Don Cherry, Okay Termiz, Peter Kowald, Takehisa Kosugi, Toshi Ichiyanagi, Michael Ranta, ect... today Geerken possesses one of the most comprehensive Sun Ra archives (waitawhile sun ra archives). his book omniverse sun ra (1994) ,which contains a first all-embracing discography of the musician, has meanwhile grown to be a priceless cult book. together with James Wolf from the library of congress in Washington DC , he's editor of the recently published collected poems and philosophical works of Sun Ra (the immeasurable equation 2005). better to read his bio to know more.
This is Geerken 1st ever solo release (a major event indeed !) and it was recorded under the influence of magic mushrooms (dried amanita muscaria). one of the instruments played here is Sun Ra's Sun harp (a Bulgarian bandura), which Sun Ra gave him in 1971 in Egypt, were Hartmut invited the Arkestra to play... they got no money to fly back to the States, so Hartmut kindly borrow them some bread for the trip back... in exchange Sun Ra gave him his Sun harp (which you'd hear on several Saturn LP and which was one of the few instruments that Sun Ra played besides keyboards) saying i'll buy it back from you one day... which evidently never happened. the other string instrument played here is a Swarmandal, which was given to him in 1976 in New Delhi by the renowed Dhrupad singers: the Dagar brothers. probably the wildest qbico ever, alien sounds !" qbico
QBICO 74
DATASHOCK (QBICO 74) 180gr. clear olive vinyl, photo by Marion Meilgen
rec. August 2007, mastered by Pete Swanson, two side long tracks
Ruth-Maria Adam
Pascal Hector
Ronnie Oliveras
Martina Ripplinger
Ulf Schutte
Marcel Turkowsky
Jan Werner
REMINISCENCES:
"i wrote Pascal, after hearing their fine 1st album Datashock and Shivers which came out few months before the qbico release. they send me an high quality pic for the cover, so i did my best to make the vinyl colors fit with it... their hand-made covers are simply BEAUTIFUL (and varied, being done by various members of the group)!" qbico
QBICO 74/75/76 ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z
Germany
qbico 74 hand-made covers by various members of Datashock
qbico 75 Atlas of musimycology, spor print by HG on original jazz cards by Eberhard Gommlich, signed & stamped by the paramycologist (insert+photos)
qbico 76 hand-made covers by Troglosound, signed
box wrapped in gauze, painted and spray stencil writings by qbico (stencil by Troglosound on back)
3 versions: rich gold (8), micaceus black (10) and vermilion (8)
QBICO 73
GRAVEYARDS (QBICO 73) black vinyl, cover by John Olson
rec. 2007, two side long tracks
bunny- cello
mike khoury- violin
zach wallace- bass
nate wooley- trumpet
hell- percussion, tapes
coccyx- saxophone, electronics
johnny coorz- flute, electronics
REMINISCENCES:
" probably only Graveyards big band release. John Olson hand-made covers are unbeliveable and for sure some of the coolest ever received, love his art/style ! American Tapes is the only label, in recent times, which i used to collect." qbico
QBICO 72
BOBBY BEAUSOLEIL- Mantra (QBICO 72) pic disk, artworks by Bobby Beausoleil
rec. in Oregon State Penitentiary at the end of the 80's
side A
Mantra part I
side B
Mantra part II
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"A prison is a noisy place. The clanging of bells announcing the prison routine, the whir and ratcheting, banging and slamming of electric gates and mechanical metal doors, the ebb and flow of human vocalizations as hundreds of people caged against their will respond to their conditions in myriad ways - to express their loneliness, or discontent, or rage, or insanity, or merely to cheer or boo a play in a football game on television - punctuated by the shouts of guards who must enforce their authority to maintain what passes for order in such places . . . all of this and more is amplified within the confines of reverberant concrete walls, conspiring to make it difficult to find, much less preserve, one's peace of mind.
I composed Mantra: soundscapes for meditation in response to several requests from some of my fellow prisoners. I was asked to create some gentle music that they could listen to on their personal cassette players as an aid in practicing meditation and relaxation techniques widely accepted as valuable tools in the process of healing mind, body and spirit. The challenge was to produce a musical composition that would help to mask the noise of the environment without being intrusive or demanding too much of the listeners attention, while incorporating combinations of tones and textures that may aid an individual in achieving a relaxed, meditative state of consciousness. By all reports, including my own experience, Mantra succeeds in its intended mission. As environmental music, it also seems to work well as a focusing agent when doing some types of creative work, or when reading, and to enhance the restfulness of sleep when set to play continuously through the night at low volume. You may find other uses for it as well. For all I know, it may help plants to grow more healthy, or soothe a teething baby. We are all doing time in one way or another, and the stresses of day to day life make it imperative that we find ways to generate harmony within ourselves from time to time. I hope that Mantra will serve you in this regard as well as it has served some of my friends in prison. Peace." Bobby BeauSoleil
"ok, more on Bobby: a friend of mine back then pointed me on a web site of an art gallery where they had a kind of an exibition of Bobby artworks... i gave it a try and i kindly asked them if they'd put me in touch with him... so i wrote him and after a little misunderstanding we hit the right track... whenever i have some problems or something that disturb me in a way, i try to get in touch with him on an higher plane, seeking his help... and i can tell you, he's POWERFUL ! and very easy going too... he also seek my advice once when they wanted to limit/boycott his art... i used to sent him few books as gifts, including Osho- The book of secrets which he found deep (he asked me to send one also to his lady, so that they'd read it together...) he also send me as a gift one of his artwork from the Lucifer Rising Anthology box (saying that he gave those to his best friends). i think he paid his dues and it's time for freedom... i might even go to salute him if he'll ever be released one day... as i feel very close to him. obviously one of the strongest qbico's voices." qbico
QBICO 71
RAHDUNES (QBICO 71) pic disk, cover by qbico
rec. 2007, two tracks on side A and one on side B
REMINISCENCES:
"that's my friend Aaron duo, which i also gladly met once he came here to play/DJ/party... wanna it looks kind of mysterius (i used images from a book who talked about experiments with sounds), so to goes along with the menacing and psychedelic vibes of the music... he sent me some very elaborated hand-made covers..." qbico
QBICO 70
PSYCHATRONE RHONEDAKK- Early free-form waveforms (QBICO 70) deep blue sea 180gr. vinyl, cover by qbico
side A
Harmonic resurgence
Spacemen 2 or 3
Psychatrone- synth
Brian Turner- guitar
rec. June 28, 1995
side B
Underwater sea chantys
Psychatrone- synth
rec. 1996 live to tape
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
""We never get promos from Qbico anymore (Hint Hint) but we did manage to lay hands on a great new LP they released called Early Freeform Waveforms by Psychatrone Rhonedakk. We're not exactly sure what the hell this is, but it appears to be an old electronic project that involved Brian Turner, the current program director of WFMU, which is probably the best radio station we've ever known. Brian plays very Chrome-ian guitar on one side, the flip is a pure Zolar gloop of electro-whizz. It's a formidable space jam, champ." Byron Coley, ARTHUR (#29 May 2008)
"the Psychatrone is a long time qbico friend and it was a great surprise to hear those unreleased stuff he kindly sent me ! it looks like that vinyl and cover perfectly match... i remember the design came out to me easily at the 1st try (kind of qbical) and the Rhonedakk was delighted too." qbico
QBICO DELTA
THE RODNEY FOREST (QBICO DELTA) 125 copies ONLY, black vinyl with black labels and black inner sleeve
26 hand-made covers by Ju Suk & Tom Recchion (for the ltd ed)
+ 99 sprayed covers by qbico with stencils artworks by Troglosound (front & back)
six versions:
orange covers with gold or silver or black letters
silver covers with gold or silver or fuchsia letters
rec. 2007, two tracks each side
Ju Suk Reet Meate, Oblivia and Tom Recchion
REMINISCENCES:
"what a rare trio ! far out music and hand-made covers... 1st use of the stencil technique." qbico
QBICO delta/70/71/72/73 ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z
interstellar hand-made bags by Troglosound (on precious changing satin)
psychatrone rhonedakk qbico 70 LP with paste-on covers, signed
rahdunes qbico 71 pic disk in hand-made covers (collage cover, taped and sued)
bobby beausoleil- mantra qbico 72 pic disk
graveyards qbico 73 LP in hand-made pic disk covers by John Olson (Wolf Eyes/American Tapes label)
the rodney forest qbico delta LP with hand-made covers by Ju Suk Reet Meate, Oblivia (Smegma) and Tom Recchion (LAFMS)
Bobby Beausoleil artwork The Green Man
silk-screened insert by Troglosound
QBICO 69
BORIS MORGANA- Liquid child (QBICO 69) maroon with green vinyl, cover by Juho Hotanen
rec. early 2006 in Pakkala, Finland
Robin Ellis, Juho Hotanen, Juuso Paaso, Taneli Tuominen, Jukka Vallisto and Hermanni Yli-Tepsa
side A
Thirst of Organus
Sex games of the forbidden forest
Souls take pleasure in becoming moist
side B
Infinite Winter games
REMINISCENCES:
"i remember well this one: i was at Tero place on a small island just outside Turku and one night we played that music which had been given to me by Taneli at the u-nite V. my thought were: that's a wild ride, i'd do it ! one of the less understood Finnish rocket, along with Cluster. Taneli, that nice guy, showed up at some qbico related Finnish events... psychedelic cover."
QBICO 68
BLACK MOTOR (QBICO 68) black vinyl, cover by Tiitus Petajaniemi & Simo Laihonen
rec. April 2006 in Tampere, Finland
Sami Sippola- alto and tenor sax
Ville Rauhala- bass
Simo Laihonen- drums
side A
Love life
Postmodern affair
side B
Mr. Cherry
Muurame
Dancin' on your grave
WORDS/REMINISCENCES::
"Just a muddy and rainy day here in Psychatrone's sad Pennsylvania..... EXCEPT for when I turn on my new LPs from QBICO records !!
I pick up the two black and white covered albums, still looking out the window at the rain...
BLACK MOTOR (QBICO68) is the first I pull from the sleeve (featuring a picture of someone standing near what looks sort of like the Liberty Bell)....the LP makes me think of the good old days of discovering nice sounds in vinyl racks of discs that seemed endless....ahh those days are gone, right ? I drop the needle onto the spiral scratch...and soon all the grey day vaporises! I am transported back to the days when Don Cherry made albums that tread the waters of Free Form, New Thing jazz, and yet were just oh so close to being trad.... playing some almost Hard Bop "heads" that soon flow into the hottest of solos ! This just takes you there... a "new classic" I think to myself. You could be fooled into thinking it's an "old classic", I mean,...but this IS a NEW THING ! Great !
NEOKARMA JOOKLO TRIO is next with SOLAR VISION (QBICOgamma, an edition of 125 copies...so buy it where you find it ...SOON). This one's cover is black and white in design too...but it's "mat" white background and use of artful tactics in design makes the front jiggle your eyes in a ticklish way......BUT the back cover is a victory in psychedelic art ! This side of the sleeve makes you feel like you are looking through some sort of portal of black into space while our own "spiral galaxy" floats just above the surface of the sleeve.... NO KIDDING here either ! THEE most psych black & white art I have ever beheld with my eyes. THAT'S just the cover ....kiddies ! Now inside this eye feast in simple colors is a slab of sunny vinyl in yellow/red/orange color....and the sounds it produces are not far from what the title would lead you to imagine... All sorts of hand percussion and gongs propel the sounds of sax and wood flute...along with harmonica and guitar too. A sunny mix of middle eastern sounds of the freakiest qualities flow out of your speakers making holographic images of Sun Ra and Bastet float around the inside of your skull. If that doesn't transport you...well, you need to find a sarcophagus to lie in ! Mr. Qbico is always touting the NEOKARMA's.......and so far he's right on. All of their LPs so far are representing some of the best free-form music I've heard in a while.....this one's just an Arabian sun-kissed mind set for you all here ! YES, this IS a SOLAR VISION and I think anyone who missed this one is sadly missing one wild trip. All around this one is a total winner from cover to sonic eminations.
The mud is outside but the sun is in my mind...thanks to Mr. Qbico and his magic albums!" Pyschatrone blog
"that's the beginning of a long friendship with Simo, The Reverend. can't rememeber exactly how we get in touch, probably he sent me something (i have also a Black Motor shirt, yes ! i like that band name)... their 1st vinyl release, a jazz unit with class: they play & practise a lot together, and you'd hear that affinity... live they're impressive ! Simo also helped in setting up the unite X at legendary Telakka in Tampere (free sauna for the musicians in one of Finland oldest place). not sure 100% but that man on the cover'd be Ville's relatives, a Church man who ring the bell..." qbico
QBICO 67
QBICO U-NITE- V, Turku, Finland (QBICO 67) 200gr. clear blue vinyl (few clear aqua vinyl for the ltd ed), cover by qbico
rec. live @ Dynamo Klubi on March 11, 2006 by Mikko Lagernohm
side A
Rakhim with Hans-Joachim Irmler
side B
Lauhkeat Lampaat with Lau Nau & Kuupuu- Joka nurkka haisse
REMINISCENCES:
"that was another beautiful u-nite which my brother Tero helped in setting it up. 1st time in Finland... Dynamo is super kool klubi ! was nice to met Irmler... but unfortunatly we didn't worked together anymore ?! Rakhim set was wonderful: remember Jussi with lots of bells in his hands, a set with a unique mood... while it was my idea to unite brothers Tolvi with Lau Nau (Antti's wife) and Kuupuu, two male with two female = a very joyful set ! so in some ways you got two sides with opposite moods. Jaakko and Kuupuu even started hanging out together for a while after that concert... Reindeer on the cover, as was tradition with the u-nites covers to use only animals." qbico
QBICO gamma
NEOKARMA JOOKLO TRIO- Solar vision (QBICO gamma) 200gr. clear orange vinyl, ltd. 125 copies only (of which 26 for the ltd ed ice q-be), with color insert
rec. by Maurizio Abate
Virginia Genta- tenor sax, bombarda, wood flute, voice, little percussions
Maurizio Abate- tanpura, harmonica, acoustic guitar, kalimba
David Vanzan- percussions, gongs, africanisms
side A
Arabian Sun
The 3rd eye blues
Vision of light
side B
Solar Exodus part I
Solar Exodus part II
for words, see qbico 68
QBICO 69/68/67/gamma ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z
the ice q-be
(plexiglass, each one is different !)
inside:
qbico 67 LP
qbico 68 LP
qbico 69 LP
qbico gamma LP with hand-made labels and yellow inside cover
QBICO 66
NEOKARMA JOOKLO OCTET feauturing MAKOTO KAWABATA- Infinity (QBICO 66) 2LP, 180gr. clear vinyl with white & light blue atmosphere, artwork by Troglosound
rec. Feb. 12, 2007 by Maurizio Abate
Virginia Genta- baritone sax & voice
Paolo Pascolo- flute
Andrea Gulli- tape & laptop
Giorgio Pacorig- fender rhodes
Makoto Kawabata- electric guitar
Christian Zandonella- electric guitar
Maurizio Abate- tanpura & steel guitar
David Vanzan- percussions
4 tracks with no titles
QBICO 65
JOOKLO DUO- Free serpents (QBICO 65) 180gr. clear vinyl with black effects, artwork by Troglosound, with color insert
rec. Dec. 2, 2006 by Maurizio Abate
Virginia Genta- tenor and baritone sax
David Vanzan- drums
10 tracks with no titles
QBICO BETA
NEOKARMA JOOKLO TRIO- Meditative (QBICO beta) 180gr. clear vinyl with pink and red clouds (+26 with clear vinyl, 2nd issue), one-sided, ltd. 125 copies only (of which 26 for the ltd ed Troglo box), artwork by Troglosound
rec. Nov. 30, 2006 by Maurizio Abate
Virginia Genta- tenor sax
Maurizio Abate- tanpura & harmonica
David Vanzan- percussions
QBICO 66/65/beta ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z (+ one for the artists, copy "666")
the Troglo box
outside:
painted box with hand-made metal plates transformed into pure energy (alchemy)
(each one is a unique piece)
inside:
QBICO 66 double LP
QBICO 65 LP
QBICO beta one-sided LP
precious & smooth silk bag, silk-screened
signed by Troglosound
QBICO 63/64
QBICO U-NITE- IV, Aarhus, Denmark (QBICO 63/64) 2LP, black vinyl, cover by qbico
rec. Feb. 1 (at Jon/Marc's flat) and 2 (live at Musikcafeen, Aarhus, Denmark), 2006 by Marc Gade
side A
Global Experience Orchestra- Flow with time
Daniel Carter- tp, as, cl
Vin Paternostro- ss
Marc Gade- tuba
Pernaus Salon- recorder, ss, clay flute
Qbico- balalaika, vc, perc, vl
Ed Wilcox- dr, harmonica
side B
Family Underground- 2/2/06
side C
Daniel Carter/Vin Paternostro/Ed Wilcox- Light in extension
side D
Daniel Carter/Vin Paternostro/Ed Wilcox- Walking flame
Daniel Carter- tp, as, fl ,cl
Vin Paternostro- ss
Ed Wilcox- dr
REMINISCENCES:
"LOTS of fine memories from this u-nite ! Arthur was supposed to come BUT we knew so Daniel was ready... it seems that his passport had been confiscated, but he told nobody ?! anyway, the night before the u-nite we had this private jam which was fun ! Musikcafeen was/is (?!) a very nice club with good food too... and it was pretty crowed. ah, Marc rec. it on tapes ! only qbico originally recorded analogically." qbico
QBICO 62
TRULOFA (QBICO 62) black vinyl, cover by Jon, with insert
side A
Adamant
Marc Gade- electronics
Samsera (live in Poland)
Kristoffer- cembalo
Jon- fiddle, perc, recorder
Nikolai- recorder
Ditte- vc
side B
The traveller
Marc Gade- 12 string gt
Slam- Spanish gt, balalaika, melodica
Jorgen Larsen- Western gt
Elektro
Jon- fiddle
Marc Gade- vc, radio, tin foil
Slam- drones, synthesis
REMINISCENCES:
"Jon was so skilled in finding euro 5.000 to set up the u-nite in Aarhus AND probably at the time of the u-nite he was 20 or 21 max !? such a wonderful young man, i really like him AND his hand-made covers are for sure among the best ever on qbico ! same for regular ed. artworks... this is one of the least understood qbico album, kind of a little gem in my opinion: eclectic, varied and exciting music rec. by Jon and his young buddies from Denmark. if i remember well Trulofa means True Love in an old Danish slang." qbico
QBICO 62 & 63/64 LP ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z
the Danish bag
outside:
especially designed and sewed cloth bag (interior is on bright red satin lining, see Danish flag) by Ditte (Jon's wife) and hand-made "stamps" by Jon
inside:
fantastic Trulofa hand-made covers by Jon, with folder cover on high quality papers
every one is different, various materials & techniques used...
(nearly all have front and back hand-made, most also the inside folder panels, with tracks titles, loose inserts, ect...)
postcard with all album notes
the U-nite double LP is housed in a faked (so nice material, it seems real !) foxy fur (glued on front cover), made by qbico
six photos of the Aarhus trip as inserts
original poster of the U-nite
small postcard of the regular ed cover with all album notes
QBICO 61
MICHAEL FLOWER- Returning to knowing nothing (QBICO 61) black wax, artwork by Robert Thomas
rec. from 2003 to 2005
side A
Octave #1
The window is a river
If your light goes out....
side B
FFR #1 (for BS)
Antlers and whiskers
3pm 28_08_05
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
" Fucking wow. This latest batch of Qbico rocket ships is easily amongst their best batch of releases since the labels inception. And that's saying something. These fit firmly in along catalog gems by Matt Valentine, Double Leopards, Sunburned Hand, Conrad Schnitzler, Makoto Kawabata, Arthur Doyle and others….Fuck the Rough Guide, this is the Qbico Handbook for the psych-maddened, beauty of the UK now-sound scene. But no road-maps, list of hot spots or mini history lessons here. This is all modern day dream music. And while these certainly aren’t the only four worthwhile bands operating in the UK, they are as good as they come. Astral Social Club contributes two magical sides of shimmering droney-love. After a steady flow of cd-r's its nice to have some of this gorgeous music on a slab of vinyl. Pink vinyl too! A beauty stream of guitar and casio and drum machine and computer FX work together to create this dreamy tapestry of sounds. It builds to shimmering, blissful heights and really takes you, as the listener, out of body and into the cosmos. I shit you not. The sound of cartoon factories imploding. In slow motion. The Michael Flower LP is my fave here. After spinning my beat up cd-r originals for the last couple of years, it’s so nice have a bunch of it here in LP format. Compiled from tracks previously released on tour cd-rs between 2003 and 2005, this music is a revelation. He starts right in with a whirlybird Henry Flynt hoe down and doesn’t stop. Flynt, Tony Conrad, and Jajouka collide with ambient synthesizers and abstract free un-rock to make music that is almost frustratingly gorgeous. An album of the year for sure. Vibracathedral are cranking out some of their best stuff right now…..and that’s saying something. Here we have two side-long excursions on green vinyl and it really gets the neurons firing. Manic, static, patient buzz. The guitars and toy instruments pile up on one another and create a dense foam, a musky lather. Demented church organ sounds drive headfirst and there’s even some percussion thrown in for a bit. Although, they don’t need percussion to drive a piece of music. The Vibracathedral band pulses, fucking undulates and rides, on a wave of sweet electric drone. Ashtray Navigations give a real far-out trip with Throw Up in the Sky/ With Fine Clinking Magnets. It takes it’s time and slowly builds, the whir of a computerized space mixes with distorted tunes and tones floating about, electronic fluttering… but what does build works itself into a digital meltdown frenzy…and that’s just side one. The flip side grabs you by the oblongata and takes you on a drunken stumble down the back stairs. While most (if not all) of these are gone at the label you should be able to track them down through the various distros and mail orders. And I would very highly recommend doing such. 10/10" Adam Richards (3 July, 2007), Foxy Digitalis
"KILLER cover artwork by one of Sunburned's originals... really like this one, how it came out... my pleasure to work with Michael (who came to the unite in Bruxelles with Vibra), also here he sent me a wonderful silk-screen cover for the ltd ed." qbico
QBICO 60
VIBRACATHEDRAL ORCHESTRA- The sun balance/The open knot (QBICO 60) kiwi vinyl, artwork by Adam Davenport/Mick Flower
rec. 2006
side A
The sun balance
side B
The open knot
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
for words, see the collective review on qbico 61
"full proper only release on qbico, after the u-nite sides. Michael sent me beautiful silk-screened covers ! that was one of my favourite bands, seeing them live was SOMETHING !" qbico
QBICO 59
ASTRAL SOCIAL CLUB- Star guzzlers (QBICO 59) shrimp vinyl, artwork by Neil Campbell
rec. January 2007
side A
Star guzzlers, part I
side B
Star guzzlers, part II
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"ok, the last qbico upload of the day belongs to none other than Neil Campbell and his Astral Social Club. for those who don't know nothing, ASC is Campbell's post-Vibracathedral project, usually finding him solo or with one or two friends helping. of course it's a drone based affair, with shimmering guitars and highly processed glitchy drum machines usually with the bpm being cranked all the way. it's like the drone music ravers would listen to. this is a great record to come down off drugs to. opening very peacefully, Campbell lulls you in with shiny guitars and synth effects that are repeating and swelling until about minute 14 when the volume is so huge that your brain is only filled with it. if i close my eyes and listen to this i think of being in a blue room with little dots of bright light going ever faster until they explode everywhere and you just want to smile and embrace them. fantastic. side b opens with a glitchy delay pattern that shifts and repeats over and over with sprawling guitars behind all the sounds, a wonderful and faded melody that sits in the back of your head while you focus on the clicks and tinkles of the processed electronics. then, almost out of nowhere the track changes completely, with the guitars coming forward and getting the processed treatment, sounding like lasers firing and a dj spinning acid house records at 16rpm. the two ideas come together and it is just fantastic, making you want more and more and you are only about halfway through the track. then, the drums fall out and you are left with a processed click and just the laser-like guitars humming and shimmering softly, rising and becoming louder and louder until it is just a beam of processed feedback and beautiful distortion, ending with more processed sounds and a strange ufo-like spinning sound that gives the whole thing an otherworldly feel. this is an incredible record. Astral Social Club has been one of my favorite projects of any musician for a while now, any genre. it's just so pretty and sparkly and makes me wish everything was in a blacklit room. drone music for the out there folks, or those wishing they could be even further out than they already are. lovely." Kill's blog
see also the collective review on qbico 61
"my friend Neil new project at the time, i think this was his 2nd vinyl release... met him in London years ago, at a Festival with Vibra & Sunburned... i think he's one of the key figure of the UK underground music scene (along with Richard Youngs), starting with the A Band back in the early 90's." qbico
QBICO 58
ASHTRAY NAVIGATIONS- Throw up in the sky/With fine clinking magnets (QBICO 58) sky vinyl (few on white), artwork by Phil Todd
rec. 2006
side A
Throw up in the sky
side B
With fine clinking magnets
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"You probably remember where you were when you heard the names of the four latest Qbico records hit the streets. It was heavy times. Ashtray Navigations, Astral Social Club, Vibracathedral Orchestra and Michael Flower. Are you kidding? Four U.K.-spawned demolishers. If you're anything like me, you promptly started to fret about which/how many to buy because Qbico records don't really come dirt cheap. I was actually gonna skip em all but I knew I'd regret it later, so I bit the bullet and scored the Ashtray Navigations LP because I know Phil Todd's brew and I know it always hits the spot - not to say the others don't, mind. And heck, they're only about $22 per, which isn't so bad if you think about it. Who needs to eat when you've got records to play, man? Besides, you can feast on the eye candy this album will provide - great, mind-blasting artwork via Phil Todd himself and white/sky blue splatter wax, certainly apropos when taking the title and the music into consideration. I'm not even sure if anybody else is playing on this record or if it's Todd multitracking, but it's got his acid-stained visions all over the place regardless. Both sidelongs work with an idée fixe - building off of and decorating glorious foundations of sound. "Throw Up in the Sky" is the more "traditional" AxNx piece, if you want to put it that way (it reminds me a lot of what was heard on his fantastic 2006 outing "Four More Raga Moods"). It's a beauty of a slow-moving sheen that starts out with quiet roaring electronics and tinny snare hits that eventually congeal into a heavenly, soupy gloss. Amidst said cascading backdrop is a whole pollution of syrupy synth calls lifted from the same whooshing vein that Acid Mothers Temple are usually so keen to hit on. The loping percussion ushers along Todd's swirling guitar rag, but the track is never in any hurry to get anywhere - all the sounds wind up splayed out in the sun and are allowed to melt freely into one another until either they evaporate or day creeps into night. Todd's mastery of everything even remotely in tune with psychedelia is here in its spangled, sprawlin' glory though he never shoots even so much as a backwards glance - Ashtray Navigations are pushing on into the 41st century and bucking "revivalism" so hard I got saddle sores. It may well be down to an exact science at this point in the game (15 years on!) and I'll still be first in line to guzzle whatever swill's in the beakers. "With Fine Clinking Magnets" hoists itself up on a grainy, space-vaccuum type drone, with Todd's guitar adding assorted some gasps, some yawns, and plenty of strung-out liquid tonality echoing and reverberating until the next strings are plucked and coerced. The mechanical underbelly lends a disorienting urban feel to an otherwise heavily stoned session of front-porch guitar ramble...even more so when Todd's guitar adopts a sound somewhere close to a banjo stuck with a wah pedal to lay out a supreme bluegrass/psych shred. Or maybe it's Robert Fripp with a Mellotron letting loose on a concrète backing track sniff. All'n'all it's denser and not as gorgeous as the other side (with an ending that's much more "noise" than anything I've heard from the band in recent daze) but it still manages to be a sweet ride and as worthy of your precious time as anything else on the planet. I may never know if I made the Right Choice when it came down to selecting a fruit from the Qbico branch, but I tell you, those other records have got the bar set sky-high if they're gonna try and top Phil Todd's contribution. I know this one (and probably the three others) are sold out at Qbico by now but there's a few other stores in town that boast copies, so maybe you should try the usual hangouts before you get too discouraged, huh? If you've heard the others (or all of em), lemme know yer thoughts in the comments section a jump or two down below." outer space gamelan
"one of the very 1st CD i bought was a split by Ashtray Navigations & Universal Indians (American Tapes), so i was kind of familiar with Phil's amazing efforts since a while... and since i'd have liked to do a focus on the UK scene, i thought it was the right time to ask... the hand-made covers he sent me were far out ! another easy going fella." qbico
QBICO 58/59/60/61 LP ltd ed
26 copies only numbered from A to Z
Leeds bondage box
hand-made bondage box by qbico with:
two hand-made covers by Phil & Neil (58 & 59)
two silk-screened fold out covers on a precious paper by Adam and Mick (60 & 61)
QBICO 57
SMEGMA with PERRY ROBINSON- Live @ No Fun Fest (QBICO 57) red vinyl, artwork by Ju Suk Reet Meate; with postcard as insert, photos by Michael Muniak
Smegma:
Dr. Id, Ju Suk Reet Meate, Oblivia, Conroy, Burned Mind, Perry Robinson
rec. March 17, 2006 live @ No Fun Fest
side A
After midnight
Electric toy flute
side B
Dunes
Hot rod dreaming
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"Live recording of the Smegma line-up of Dr Id, Burned Mind, Ju Suk Reet Meate, Oblivia and Conroy joined by legendary free jazz clarinettist Perry Robinson as well as Mark Samason, Mike Mehaffey and Todd Dickerson at the 2006 No Fun fest with extra tracks drawn from sessions in 2001 and 2003: "Smegma began 2006 with a triumphant performance at New York's No Fun Fest, where they rubbed shoulders with a virtual who's who of the contemporary noise underground at one of the signal gatherings of the new music. But always keen to join the dots between current practice and historical antecedents, they asked jazz clarinettist Perry Robinson, who has worked as a sideman with Archie Shepp, Charlie Haden and Bill Dixon, to sit in with them, an attempt to locate the source of their approach outside of simple noise-qua-noise. "To my mind, to have a guy with that kind of pedigree sitting in with us in New York - I don't know how many people in the audience were aware of it, but to me it was completely mindblowing, a validation of what we do and a real connection to old school avant garde," Meate insists." A great document of a historic meeting that served to tie up a whole bunch of 20th century freak/free music/guerrilla art strands." David Keenan
"Smegma with Perry, wow what a unique meeting (another No Fun rec.) ! Perry is really eclectic and up front (with a foot and both ears into new music/currents), while Smegma enjoy a cult like fame, having released so many fab vinyls slab back then... It was easy to deal with Oblivia and Ju Suk and they were quite happy with the final result; they sent me some splendid hand-made covers and i used one to print the regular ed." qbico
QBICO 56
ALAN SONDHEIM- 56 (QBICO 56) red vinyl with white, photos by Alan Sondheim, cover by qbico
rec. 2005/06 in NY and LA
side A
Chitara3
Dervishi
Longninetheta
Vlfy
Plantplant
Birdcalls
Pieds8
side B
Fieldphone
F
Ion2
Dervish3
Deathl
Chitara6
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"Poet, metalinguist, cultural theorist and musician Alan Sondheim is best-loved by consumers of sub-underground fare for the stellar sides he recorded for ESP-Disk in the late-60s. But prior to that he was already active as an improviser in Rhode Island working with Ritual All 770, a multi-disciplinary group that combined brass, vocals, tranced hand percussion, bass and drums with a great up-ending attitude to avant garde sources that was reminiscent of the way that the Los Angeles Free Music Society would later use a goofy strategy of provocative art prank as a cover to allow non-initiates to work on serious formal breakthroughs. The Songs - an early collaboration between the two - was originally issued on Riverboat Records in 1967 and has remained fairly unknown outside of All 770's appearance on the legendary Nurse With Wound list that appeared in copies of that group's first album, Chance Meeting On A Dissecting Table Of A Sewing Machine And An Umbrella. 56 represents his first new LP in 35 years. Here Sondheim is solo, using guitar, alpine zither, electronics and field recordings. The guitar material orbits a bunch of singular hemispheres that would seem to locate the arc of his melodic thought somewhere between the odd, baroque constructions of Sandy Bull and the knotty dissonance of John Fahey - or even at points Derek Bailey - while the electronics and field recordings are full of subtle concentric rings of melodic suggestion and feel almost like close-ups on organic events, full of refracted slow-motion pulses and coronas of phantom tone. The whole set is perfectly assembled, with tracks short enough not to be too gruelling and long enough to reveal their full transportational properties. Indeed, I'd go so far as to say it was Sondheim's most accomplished work to date. A classic of avant extension and highly recommended. " David Keenan
"A connoisseur of free jazz and well versed in its history, EP seemingly lost no time in getting in touch with Sondheim when he was back on the scene. On this platter, we hear a continuation of Ski/nn, possibly even material from the same sessions as this was recorded in 2005 and 2006. However, in additional to the lovely strumming of guitar and zither, there are pieces of pure electronic sound and field recordings. Sondheim stated in the Muckraker interview that he dislikes drones, so it not fair to call those pieces that. In common with the instrumental pieces, they set out a playing field and work within that area. None of the works here deal in radical dynamics of soft and quiet, but deal in the momentary details - the notes or the timbral qualities. This album is more of a return to a work like T'other little tune in that is a collection of heterogeneous pieces that come together as an album. Fieldphone even reminds one a little of voice pieces on that album, though the processing now is digital compression algorithms rather than analog circuits. However, rather than looking back, it is better to consider this in the context of it being a contemporary production. Alan, like us, lives in the present day and has found as much, if not more, fascination with the internet and the possibilities of making music and art with the computer. The guitar is as much a part of the prsent as people continue to play it, and it only makes sense that Sondheim fuses this long time interest with that of exploring what is new, much the way he explored the Moog synthesizer in 1968. Here we hear the two worlds come together on Ion2, as well as separate into different pieces. Listened start to finish, the newer fascinations are sorrounded by the acoustic instruments whose tracks begin and close the LP. Perhaps there is a metaphor in this, i leave that for you to ponder." Eric Lanzillotta from Bixobal zine n° 1, Oct. 2007 (article and interview with Alan Sondheim)
"it was a unique experience to do this album, Alan is really one of a kind... after touching base, he gave me free choice in selecting his music for the vinyl: it was all there, free to download in his far out web site, so it was fun and easy to check all his music and select/compile. an album that came out really natural and easy to do; Alan never said no. this marked his comeback on the scene, after three legendary album issued back in the 60's (two on ESP). ah yes, MV pointed me out to Alan (and maybe he even gave me his contact), when he told me that he have played the same gig @ Tonic... also for the ltd ed i have free choice to select eclectic Alan's photos. i asked if the album got a title and Alan said, which catalog n° is mine LP ?!..." qbico
.....
QBICO 55
PENGO- Toads tools amongst the tombstones (QBICO 55) green vinyl with red, cover by Pengo
pengo is:
John Schoen, Jason Finkbeiner, R. Nuuja
rec. in 2003
side A
After the impossible happened
Doboce (albino possum)
Voices inside the circle
side B
The day it came crawling
One eye looks north
Let's levitate the outhouse
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"Pengo really do make my favourite kind of music, playful psychedelic music that pushes the boundaries of the genre with a sense of fun and an atmosphere of mystery. For the completely uninitiated ‘Toadstools Amongst the Tombstones’ could serve as a primer on modern psych modes. Opening with some mbira led minimal rumblings the album moves through absurdist sound poetry, organic drone and ramshackle fingerpicking. It is a mixture of radio and live recordings. Pengo’s organic approach to music gives the whole record a ritualised feel. Pressed onto brown vinyl and adorned with pictures of toads and toadstools, it is easy to imagine weird creatures and magic spores swarming about the surface of the vinyl as it spins. ‘The Day It Came Crawling’ may be the albums heaviest moment, a squeaking sound of indeterminate source permeates the entire rtrack as metallic guitars congeal from spindly nothingness into a swirling shitstorm. Then it all drops out, people start screaming, faint applause is heard somewhere. It is easy to imagine that by this point in the evening audience/performer barrier is completely shattered. This is the best thing I’ve heard from Pengo. Essential listening for anyone into the genuine weird shit. 9/10" Cola Nitida, Foxy Digitalis
"Nuuja played with the Doyle EAE and i enjoyed Pengo 1st album, so... i got in touch with Jason. it seems all in tune here: vinyl color, label, cover. some very nice hand-made covers here too by the musicians." qbico
QBICO 54
THE SB- Who will feed them. (QBICO 54) black vinyl, with insert; cover artwork by Adam & The SB
performed by:
Mark Bajuk, Adam Burr, Tony Fasce, Silvia Feriozzi, Eric Mauer, Brent Peich, Russ Waterhouse
rec. by Eric on June 10th, 2006 in Yonkers, NY
side A
sb.433.a
side B
sb.433.b
REMINISCENCES:
"Andrea from Elica spoke good to me about this little known unit, after hearing their 1st vinyl release. i was able to track down that wax and i agreed with my friend suggestion: so i got in touch with Russ... really dig this music, very subtle... they sent me also some wonderful hand-made covers." qbico
QBICO 54/55/56/57
ltd ed, 26 copies only, numbered from A to Z
Experiment US cardboard box with inside:
-three hand-made covers by Ju Suk Reet Meate (3 versions), John Schoen (2 versions) and The SB (5 versions)
-one cover with Alan Sondheim's unique photos, signed by Alan
-twine, old postal stamp (from young ep's collection) and ep stamp
QBICO 53
FARUQ Z. BEY with NORTHWOODS IMPROVISERS- Infa'a (QBICO 53) yellow vinyl w/violet, cover by Mark Rudolph
Faruq Z. Bey- tenor & alto sax
Mike Carey- tenor, alto sax, flute, kalimba
Skeeter Shelton- tenor, soprano sax
Mike Gilmore- vibes
Mike Johnston- bass
Nick Ashton- drums
live studio rec. from August 2006
side A
Oncala
Ethiopia
side B
After death
Ode to E. R.
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
"Qbico, brings us the latest installment from dependable Detroit veteran, Faruq Z. Bey, and his group, Northwoods Improvisers. Four pleasant jammers in a late 60’s, celestial Afro-Jazz inspired mode, featuring Bey and others on a variety of horns and, Mike Gilmore, on vibes. Cool."
selected by Sonictroubadour among his favourite LP for 2006
"voted #1 on WNUR Radio Jazz Show chart"
"The music exists in a space cleared long ago by Coltrane's tireless modal
searching and Sun Ra's insinuating pulse, yet it still appears fresh and
purposeful - a music pleasingly at ease with it's own history".
Julian Cowley; The Wire Feb. 2007
"Qbico often has cool color-swirled vinyl, but this time it seems like it’s mood-vinyl, a soothing and fervent green spins around the turntable almost as an entrancing as this release itself. There are minor flashes of red and blue and white…but the green is elemental and rich. This supports the garden of sound cultivated here, Bey’s sax takes deep roots, often shadowed and wrapped with brotherly vines from fellow saxmen Mike Carey and Skeeter Shelton. Nick Ashton’s drums drop dewdrops on all the players, moist with cymbals plenty. Mike Gilmore’s vibes are what make this so green…so alive…hell they even make a track called “Ethiopia” sound lush. That has a nice mystic run to it, and in the latter half bassist Mike Johnston and Ashton get one of those infinite grooves ala Parker and Drake going, magic carpet rise! Again Gilmore is the sonic photosynthesis here..listen to him wrap up that “Ethiopia” number. On the flipside we explore life on “After Death” with Mike Carey communicating via kalimba and Bey slowly stirring the song along. Again an almost Egyptian flare rises from the ashes, if anyone stumbles on this review by way or searching jazz and Gilmore, as Sun Ra built an Arkestra that took to the skies, in Detroit Faruq
Z. Bey and his Northwoods are in full bloom. Pristine earth soul jazz." Thurston Hunger KFJC FM on-line review
"forgot exactly what happened but i made two version of that one: 1st i think was with green wax and i didn't liked much as it didn't fit well with cover's colors (the label was colored too). so i went for another pressing, with the right color combinations... as usual, with every Faruq releases, excellent artwork by Mark Rudolph" qbico
QBICO 52
SABIR MATEEN/DANIEL CARTER/ANDREW BARKER- Not on Earth.... in your soul ! (QBICO 52) "smoke" vinyl (clear w/black), photo by Thomas Tulis
Sabir Mateen- clarinets, sax, voice
Daniel Carter- flute, trumpet, sax, voice
Andrew Barker- drums, jawharp
rec. May 3, 2002 live @ EyeDrum , Atlanta, GA
side A
Not on Earth...
side B
in your soul !
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
from Foxy Digitalis on-line mag:
"When discussing any record put out on the Qbico label, one must first address the visual aspects, as they play such an important role in how the record is initially received. At Qbico the ideal is to create records that are in and of themselves significant objects beyond the fact that they transmit some wonderful sounds. Where the tendency of previous Qbico releases has been to rely heavily on an array of psychedelic colors, this release by Daniel Carter, Andrew Barker and Sabir Mateen functions on a level of visual subtlety. The cover is an elegant black and white photo of the three players; Carter up front, Barker in the mid-ground and Sabir Mateen bathed in a wonderful light in the background. The light featured in this photograph, alludes to the transcendental nature of the album’s title; “Not on Earth… In Your Soul.” The record itself is a beautiful translucent, smoky grey color that further enhances the overall feel. What has been created here is a perfect merging of image, text and sound as the physical object begins to reveal what is awaiting the listener between the sleeve tucked deep away inside those tiny grooves. The sound itself is an attempt to describe the transcendental experience of the text; slowly taking you up and out to some real deep moments of pure ecstatic freedom. The first side begins slow and mellow with some flute and clarinet but as soon as the drums kick in the experience soon evolves into some heavier moments that still latch onto the airiness of the beginning. The face ends with some moving vocal improvisations that almost sound like directions on how to get to the space that the music is about to head when the record is flipped. The second side begins right where the first left off launching into some very groove oriented drumming with chanted vocals and some back and forth action between the two horn players. This is the point where these gentlemen really hit their peak; taking the listener out.. way out, or better yet in and then.. gone..only to be brought back to earth by the enthusiastic sounds of the crowd as the musicians take their bow" Cory Card
from Motel de Moka:
"The Qbico label is always full of surprises and rarely fails to impress. With this LP we are treated with one of the most inspiring and energetic free-jazz performances of the year. The amazing drumming by Andrew Barker, the back and forth action between the two horn players and the chanted vocals make for an exhilarating and ecstatic experience. Also great about the label is their use of artwork. This one in particular is breathtaking. The musicians are captured in a moment which perfectly reflects their joyful and energetic playing" Bubbachups’ Top 10 albums 2006
"these were Andrew's words: got a strong medicine for you... so i was pretty excited to receive the audio master, Andrew always sent me no bullshit... a release that smoked, as the vinyl'd confirm..." qbico
QBICO 51
STEVE BACZKOWSKI/RAVI PADMANABHA- Aqua machine (QBICO 51) clear brown vinyl w/black & violet, photo by Padmanabha
SB- baritone & tenor sax, slide bass clarinet, bells, conch shell, voicemaster, noseflute, home-made 8 hole clarinet
RP- drums, percussions, gopichand, tabla
live improvisations rec. in Buffalo, Rochester & Syracuse on April 8/9/10, 2005
side A
A1
A2
side B
B1
B2
B3
WORDS/REMINISCENCES:
from Foxy Digitalis on-line mag:
"Baczkowski and Padmanabha have been tearing up the improv music scene for a few years now, both together and apart. Baczkowski made a notable appearance on The Dim Bulb with Paul Flaherty and Chris Corsano. As a trio they played so heavy they shook the steel girders. But he is no slouch away from that occasional line-up. Laying down the real slop in groups such as the Buffalo Suicide Prevention Unit, Hyoloza, along with gigs supporting William Parker and Eddie Gale amongst others, Baczkowski is a force, pure and simple. Padmanabha has been seen and heard in various line-ups with Baczkowski over the years, and in different groupings around NYC, but it is this duo where these two start to boil water. Here we have improvisation, seething with purity. Their date issued by Utech earlier this year starts to show the power of this “sax and drums” duo. But here, on Aqua Machine, they swing the wrecking ball. Right now they are hot off a giant appearance at Instal 06 and an equally drool-inducing set at Qbico Unite VII, but this slab of dark pink vinyl (like a hookers cheap lipstick !) takes us back a year and change. The sounds on these two sides were recorded over three days of trekking from Western to Central NY, hitting Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse. Baczkowski broadens his palette here, on record at least. Primarily known for his mean baritone playing, that horn is only featured on one of the five cuts here. Two cuts get the tenor treatment while the remaining are fleshed out by tubes like the slide bass clarinet, noseflute and homemade 8-hole clarinet. Yargh ! The record opens and closes with a sax-drum duo of the most volatile variety. In between, the drumming becomes percussion and then transcends both drumming and percussion. We hear all matter of bells, skins and some dreamy tabla. Each time I see or hear these two play together it manages to top the previous time. They truly have an extra-terrestrial level of communication, one that only seems to grow stronger. Padmanabha doesn’t just hold a beat he plays in and around Baczkowski…or Baczkowski plays in and around what Padmanabha is conjuring…Track B1 is a trip, at times sounding like much more than two people playing their insides out…often veering towards maelstrom, only to jump back and prance dreamlike through a fucking meadow…their chemistry is more like magick here. And it roars. Aqua Machine is surely worth the cost and/or the search to obtain it. And the duo of Baczkowski and Padmanabha are greatly worth your attention. They burn bright and show no signs of fading. 9/10" Adam Richards
"probably Steve sent me something, as nothing was out about this amazing duo (apart from CD/CD-R)... this is their only vinyl release, hope to do more by them... very talented and natural players. Steve helped A LOT in setting up the u-nite in Buffalo, treated us WELL ! an hip cat (who knows horny ladies too...)." qbico
QBICO 50
ARTHUR DOYLE ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC ENSEMBLE- Patriotic act (QBICO 50) one-sided "brick red" vinyl, three cut corners, artwork by Keith Haring
Arthur Doyle-kinetic sax, village voice
Vinnie Paternostro- roland 505
Dave Cross- turntables
Nuuj- electronics
Leslie Q- guitar
Ed Wilcox- drums
rec. March 19, 2004 live @ the No Fun Fest, NY
side A
Homo
When the shit goes down
Milk brain
Butt call
REMINISCENCES:
"that was rec. at the 1st No Fun Festival, i was there, been done just few days after the 1st unite @ Tonic. it was pretty crowded and Arthur was in a good mood... Dave came up with the titles (on the his-story page there is a pic of him from that night); artwork is from Roberto private collection." qbico
QBICO 50/51/52/53 & ALPHA
ltd ed, 26 copies only, numbered from A to Z
Free US polystyrene box
(bronze top borders), with:
-Qbico 50/51/52/53 LP
-Qbico alpha one-sided LP (black vinyl): "Gogisgi" (unreleased) & a completly different take of "Himalayan foothpath" (both from "Rwanda" session)
-Qbico 52 & alpha got "Egyptian" hand-made covers and hand-made labels by Mike Johnston + various inserts (some on parchment paper)
- 3 rubber bands + 4 marble balls + stamped letters
QBICO 49/01