It makes sense that pioneering string quartet Brooklyn Rider would feel close to Debussy, considering their background as classical players who, these days anyway, specialize in world music. The perennially cutting-edge Brooklyn group appear on the latest Silk Road Ensemble album; their first cd included strikingly original arrangements of Armenian folk songs plus a tango by Russian-born violist/composer Ljova. With credits and credentials like that, they hardly need a career boost, but this hypnotically beautiful, stunningly imaginative cross-pollinating work is exactly that. The album’s central theme could be summed up somewhat reductionistically as circularity: this is a collection of new commissioned pieces based on elements that return and echo with a deliberately hypnotic effect, tonally, rhythmically and volume-wise. The concept goes back as far as humanity does, expanding over the centuries and when Debussy discovered Javanese gamelan music, that was the quantum leap, in terms of western classical music at least. The genius of this album is simply picking up where Debussy left off.

Smartly, Brooklyn Rider make Debussy’s lone string quartet the centerpiece here rather than the opening or concluding track, setting it in context with the new works around it. It’s amazing how new and fresh it sounds, delivered with particular percussive verve, nudging the listener to tune in to ideas resonating elsewhere here – unison passages, echoes of Russian and Asian tonalities in the first movement, the swirling repetition of the second and gamelanesque allusions in the last one. There are also motifs that have insinuated themselves into rock music over the years: listen closely and you’ll find them!

Ensemble member and violinist Colin Jacobsen’s Achille’s Heel (Debussy’s birth name was Achille-Claude) displays a strong Kayhan Kalhor influence, and no wonder, considering how closely the group has worked with the Iranian compose (their 2008 collaboration Silent City is a high water mark in East/West mashups). The theme insinuates itself quietly, growing more intense with a Kalhoresque insistence alternated with pizzicato passages leading to an absolutely haunting figure where one of the violins pedals a funereal, bell-like tone before the striking contrast of the most rock-oriented passage on the entire album. Jacobsen’s cantabile astringency in the third movement casually sets the stage for the fiery riffage of the final, counterintuitively ending much as it began.

Shakuhachi player Kojiro Umezaki solos with the group on his composition, (Cycles) What Falls Must Rise, fading up with what sounds like actual studio feedback, the big flute alternating between stillness and rapidfire fifth intervals. A call to alarm sounds distantly over ambient strings and a low, crackling tone that could be a short circuit (amazing how sometimes snafus in the studio translate into the best moments a group could hope for!). It ends with a good ambient jape whose ending deseves not to be spoiled here. The first of the two other tracks here is a tone poem, extended, apprehensive stillness punctuated by ambient effects, by another one of the group’s Silk Road cohorts, Uzbek composer Dmitry Yanov-Yanovsky. The other makes a fullscale rondo out of the John Cage composition In a Landscape, Justin Messina’s artful electronic loops sealing the deal as what’s essentially a blues lick runs over and over again, its permutations finally fading out gracefully. Brooklyn Rider are currently on tour: their cd release show is on March 15 at 7:30 PM at the Angel Oresanz Center. Adventurous listeners would be crazy to miss it – advance tix are available here.

10. Nirvana

Nirvana was a huge deal in the nineties and completely rocked the music scene boat when Nevermind was released. They changed music at the time from pop-craziness and countless one hit wonders and gave the industry back some credibility. They really kicked off the Seattle alternative movement which has had lasting repercussions to this day.

9. Black Sabbath

Heavy Metal began with Sabbath. They changed the face of rock and brought a really dark edge to the music. Paranoid was a game-changer and really kicked off a whole new genre which would grow and develop over the next four decades.

8. Neil Young

The Godfather of grunge. Young may not be as obvious of a choice on this list, but he has had a massive influence upon much of the music that came after him, especially the alternative and indie rock scene. He has inspired countless new bands who, like him, set out to create great, solid songwriting.

7. Johnny Cash

Cash’s musical influence wasn’t just restricted to country. He defied categorization and broke through boundaries. He influenced many people, some who would go on to be musicians themselves, and others simply through the deep themes and messages in his music. He was a troubled soul seeking redemption, and many people were able to relate to his music because of this.

6. Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson changed the face of popular music by making it a spectacle and by really making it global in a way that music wasn’t before. You can almost trace the over-commercialization of music back to Mike, you can claim that he really shaped pop music into what it is today. Despite his bizarre behaviour in the latter couple of decades, its hard to deny the profound impact he has had.

5. Bob Dylan

No one has brought political and social messages through music quite as effectively as Dylan. He also ushered in an era of truly great songwriters, which was refreshing after the “do-wop” cookie cutter groups of the 50s. Dylan’s power comes through his words, hard-hitting poetry combined with musical notes. He is a huge figure in the history of modern music and his legacy will likely last for a long time to come.

4. Chuck Berry

Chuck Berry is one of the great trailblazers of Rock and Roll. He brought rhythm and blues together with pop music and helped to create the defining musical genre of the latter half of the twentieth century. His emphasis on the guitar sprung a tradition which would create a pantheon of legends, such as Hendrix, Clapton, Beck, etc. Chuck Berry is a music legend, plain and simple… even if he did just rip-off Marty McFly.

3. Louis Armstrong

A pioneer of modern music, Armstrong led the way with the call of his trumpet. He brought jazz to the forefront and kicked off the movement of popular music would would be a prominent component of the century. Armstrong is one of the founding fathers of modern music and therefore one of our most important musicians.

2. The Beatles

I’m not sure that I really need to say much here. This one seems pretty obvious. The Beatles revolutionized the pop music scene on a scale that no one has since. Their anthology is vast and the quality of their music is at the highest level. They are probably the most famous musicians in the world and their legacy is likely to last for decades to come.

1. Elvis Presley

Elvis pretty much created rock and roll. He brought high energy music to the forefront and brought music into popular culture so convincingly that it would be a very important part in that culture for sixty years. He is the most important musician of the last century without a doubt.

They did a great job on our “Ape Shit” 7 inch. You can check them out here gottagrooverecords.com

A Dominican friend, Meylinh replied my interview about Dominican Belly Dancing and introduced me Dominican Belly Dancer, Vanessa Angulo. 

Vanessa Angulo is very famous in the Caribbean. She has a school in Santo Domingo and she teaches also older ladies so they will feel sexy and good with their bodies, she does an amazing job. 

Read the rest of this entry »