Archive for February, 2008

Video: Supporters of Barack Obama — Yes We Can

Tuesday, February 5th, 2008

I know for a fact that Barack Obama has much better taste than the Black Eyed Peas and company (his Facebook profile lists Stevie Wonder and John Coltrane), but I couldn’t pass up this use of painfully politically correct editing to help bolster The Hippodrome’s official candidate today, on Super Tuesday. So although you, impeccable music connoisseur, probably won’t enjoy the aesthetic of this video, pass it along without condescension to your relatives who are a little more “mmhmm” inclined. And don’t forget to vote!

Ivan Naranjo and Ensamble Aspero

Monday, February 4th, 2008

ivan.jpgIvan Naranjo is a sound arranger and composer from Morelia, Mexico. A fan of composers from Kevin Drumm to John Cage, Naranjo creates experimental compositions with a predilection for original sound textures. Especially intriguing is Naranjo’s work on the incredibly beautiful “En Busca del Silencio.” From the Arte Sonoro site:

“[En Busca del Silencio] is an LP recorded by the eclectic Mexican Theater Director Juan José Gurrola in the early Seventies with various friends (Victor Fosado: Percussion, Roberto Bustamante: electric Guitar, Eduardo Guzman: Trumpet). It is an unknown record, only a few copies were made. It is a rare example of Mexican experimental music, free jazz, alternative music, at that time. I consider Gurrola a pioneer of sound art in Mexico, along with Alejandro Jodorowsky [director of the Holy Mountain] who was a good friend of his back in the sixties.

In 2007, the curator Mauricio Marcin did an exhibition of Gurrola’s artistic works and he asked me [Juan Lopez Moctezuma] if we could make a CD of this forgotten LP, but inviting electronic composers to do remixes, sound interventions or works inspired in the different tracks of Gurrola’s LP. I had already suggested this to Gurrola, and so he agreed and I invited 20 Mexican people [one of whom was Naranjo] to participate. It became sort of homage to this great interdisciplinary artist, that sadly died recently, just after the CD was published. “

Naranjo also plays in Ensamble Áspero, a trio whose aesthetic seems an elongation of Morton Feldman’s The King of Denmark. The ensemble recently teamed up with Inca Ore and Lemon Bear to create an album free for download here on internet label Umor Rex. “Miguel” is The Hippodrome’s featured track, and even after all this linking and typing, it still sounds pretty damn rad.

Audio: Miguel

Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned (Exclusive!)

Friday, February 1st, 2008

l_94e6884de2c4ed060abe0662c1ba748d.jpgGoddamn I love exclusives. If the Red Sails shindig wasn’t enough to satiate you, then check out a brand new track from the snarkily named Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned. “Seasons of Joshu” is the latest from the Albany, NY, collective. Alex Muro, Tim Koch and Dan Pardee are credited with the foundations, but just like the infamous folks of Elephant 6, members swap in and out all the time.

Muro tells me that although the band isn’t that into psychedelic drugs, they’ve been cited as producing “philosophically minded songs as conjured up by the Salvation Army band on acid.” You can check out their latest album, The Thing About Time, and even download a few tidbits here.

Audio: Seasons According to Joshu


All writing on The Hippodrome is licensed under a Creative Commons License. You may distribute this material at your discretion, but you must attribute credit to the original author. Graphics are copyright 2007 of Ally Bernstein. Original code provided by the generous aegis of wordpress.org. All rights reserved.