-recorded with phillip greenlief a coupla months ago.  alternating between single-tracked and overdubbed pieces, they’re all extended technique saxophone tracks inspired by the art of eva hesse and robert rauschenberg.  the album should be out within a month or so on evander music.

-just started working with the fabulous classical indian violin virtuoso kala ramnath and the stupendously amazing mridangam player anantha r. krishnan.

-alee karim just posted his album alee karim & the science fiction for FREE DOWNLOAD on bandcamp.  amazing science fiction chamber pop songs in the vein of berlin-era david bowie, brian eno, talking heads, the microphones, etc.  featuring marielle jakobsons, agnes szelag, shayna dunkelman, and jordan glenn!

-been recording with my band, the atomic bomb audition, for our next album, tentatively titled “roots into the see”.

-my other band cosa brava, just spent two weeks in europe touring and recording.  the next record should be out in 2011 on intakt records.  fred’s new tunes are INCREDIBLE!

-and from the beautiful st. mark’s church in san francisco, the lush orchestral piece “unweathered embers” by my favorite duo of eastern european soundstresses, myrmyr.

-just finished mastering a new album by jon porras (elm) of barn owl.  should be out on root strata sometime in the next few months!

-speaking of barn owl, i recorded their next album “ancestral star” and it’s due to be released on thrill jockey in november!!!

-from the cassette-only UK label the tapeworm, a release by zachary james watkins titled “black spirituals” that i recorded back in sept. of 2009.  doepfer modular synths + gospel field recordings + marshall half stack + the amazing drumming of jordan glenn = holy shit!!!

-and then a special super secret surprise release featuring me, barn owl, theresa wong, and ellen fullman.  it’s gonna be released on important records around november!  two words- mega drone!

-this just in, the recording from ilyas ahmed at the 2009 root strata on land festival will be released this month!  limited edition of 25 10″ vinyl records, all with unique hand-collaged cover artwork by ilyas.

already got a few really choice exit signs from germany:

UPDATE!  Buy the album on iTunes here.

Berthiaume is nearer to Frith than Bailey in his guitar stylings, and on Leaves and Snows he’s occasionally drawn to the tuneful end of the improvisation spectrum. “Freedom Fried” and “Kawaidski” for example, contain elegant, simple melodies and sound thoroughly composed, though they may not be, while “Staring at a Western Time” is suggestive of Hans Reichel mimicking one of Ry Cooder’s ‘lone guitar in the wilderness’ film soundtracks.

But enough of comparisons, they distract attention from a keypoint- the individualism of Berthiaume’s approach, something he has in common with Quentin Sirjacq (piano, sometimes prepared) and especially Norman Teale (electronics). These players already have a distinctive music that, for all its spontaneity, is conceptually rigorous and displays a true group sensibility. They aren’t garrulous or barnstorming players- the music they make is spare and exacting, cool but not chilly, and Teale’s delicate electronic soundscaping and sensitive interactions are remarkable for such a young and relatively inexperienced player.

Each of them brings something worthwhile to the mix, and Teale’s engineering and editing of the session is exemplary- this is one of the best-sounding CDs I’ve heard for quite some time. In her brief sleevenote to Leaves and Snows, Joelle Leandre describes the music as “profound” and “lovely”, which sums it up rather well. Consistently attractive without ever lapsing into prettiness, Leaves and Snows is a great success.