Hell's Bellows + James Hoskins

Hell's Bellows accordion quartet is a 21st century ensemble with the radical idea that the accordion is just another instrument. Scott Adams, Amy Denio, Marchette DuBois, and Eli Kaufman have been creating original work for the accordion since 2006, and you will be amazed at the variety of sounds they can get out of the instruments. James Hoskins is a gifted cellist and improviser based in Boulder, CO since 1991. He plays in the Balkan/Middle-Eastern musical groups Sherefe and Barbelfish, the jazz group County Road X, and in a duo with Akemi Iwase that plays Japanese folk-inspired music.

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Fluke

A new project featuring Brian Kinsella (piano), Chris Symer (bass), and Chris Icasiano (drums), Fluke plays primarily the music of Seattle composer Jim Knapp, as well as music from films and original compositions. Fluke utilizes a traditional jazz trio instrumentation - acoustic piano, acoustic bass, drum set - but its music is in the realm of free improvisation, noise, and pop classicism.

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Estuary: a merging of sound & dance

Briana Jones (butoh dance) with music by Sentient Explosive (gongs with analog modular synthesizer); Victoria Jacobs (flamenco/modern/fusion) with music by Sataray with Celadon (dark sirenic vox & harmonium with industrial/ambient sound); Jessica Ludescher & Christian Swenson (dance movement and voice) with music by Ahmad Yousefbeigi & Andrew Sorkin (Iranian percussion w/ beat box).

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Darin Gray + Alchimia

Darin Gray (St. Louis) is best known as Jim O’Rourke’s go-to bassist for nearly 20 years, as half of the duo On Fillmore, and as the bassist for Grand Ulena, Dazzling Killmen, and Brise-Glace. As an improviser he has performed and recorded with Loren Connors, Masami Akita (Merzbow), Josh Abrams, Jason Roebke, Axel Dorner, Kevin Drumm, Alan Licht, Thollem Mcdonas, and Jim O'Rourke. He has toured extensively in the United States, Japan, Brazil, Canada, Russia and Europe. Alchimia (Dawud Mateen: sax, flute, percussion, voice; Brad Smarjesse: violin, keyboard, percussion, voice; Robert Iwanik: bass, voice) is a trio of Seattle improvisors exploring jazz, ambient and avant territories.

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Rob Angus + Stuart Dempster & Susie Kozawa

Rob Angus creates ambient-industrial soundscapes using acoustic instruments to generate sounds that are manipulated, layered, and sent out into a 4-channel surround-sound system. Stuart Dempster and Susie Kozawa explore space with small instruments, sound toys and re-purposed objects.

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Eric Barber's MetriLodic + Bad Luck

Eric Barber's MetriLodic is a freely improvising trio that breaks most of the rules of groove-based ensembles. Featuring Eric Barber on sax and electronics, with longtime collaborators PK on electric bass and Byron Vannoy on drums, this band take rhythm, meter, groove, and melody in a new direction. Bad Luck (drummer Chris Icasiano + saxophonist Neil Welch) use live loops and pedals to create an astounding range of sound, quickly shifting into fierce improvisations, sound art, and carefully constructed harmonic palettes.

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Monktail Composers Series, Vol. 7

Monktail Creative Music Concern presents a performance of their improvising big band Non Grata. This season's performance features conduction, spontaneous composition, and full group improvisations featuring Bill Monto, Darian Asplund, Paul Hoskin, Bill Jones, Stephen Fandrich, Steven Bell, Mark Ostrowski, Bill Horist, Stephen Parris, David Milford, Paul Kemmish, John Seman and more.

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