Food, Music, and Ramblings South of the Hill
Joachim Nordwall: New Music For Inner Peace & Outer Disturbance
I didn’t find this one particularly compelling. Repetitive and not particularly interesting voice loops playing over repetitive and not particularly interesting music loops.
For being recorded in 2020, it sounds like something from the 1980s.
“Recorded at Brännö Sound Experiment, July 2020.
1 & 3 contains voice samples from Carl Abrahamsson’s ‘Radio Mega Golem, Episode 1’.”
#SuperPang #SP12 #JoachimNordwall
2021 Moon Bear Yunnan raw puerh, “white” varietal, from White2Tea.
Moon Bear is a bit of an oddity. To go back a bit, Puerh tea is traditionally made from a tea (Camellia sinensis) varietal called ‘assamica’. There are also specific processing steps which are traditionally used to make Puerh tea.
Moon Bear is not made from the ‘assamica’ tea varietal, it is made from another varietal which the “locals” and farmers call ‘white’ (not to be confused with “white tea”, which refers primarily to a processing style). Beyond the growers calling it ‘white’, the seller of the tea is not sure exactly what the varietal of Moon Bear is, (though I suspect it is something close to Camellia sinensis var taliensis).
On the other hand, Moon Bear IS processed with the same steps used to make Puerh tea. I.e. Brief rest, kill green, roll, dry.
And, for the record, Moon Bear IS made from a pretty bud heavy, (1 bud, 1 leaf,) early spring pick, while puerh is typically a bit later spring and 1 bud, 2 leaf.
The flavor is much closer to Raw Puerh tea than tea processed as White Tea, but a bit on the light side, however with a fair kick of bitterness in the aftertaste.
The feel/energy is strong and definitely closer to the head/body punch of puerh than white tea.
The producer describes Moon Bear as, “another of those teas that doesn’t fit very neatly in any of the big boxes,” which seems about right.
#ShengPuerh #RawPuerh #Puerh #Tea #Cha
2021 Premium Yancha Tasting Flight
This tasting flight includes:
1. Gao Cong ShuiXian (高枞水仙)
2. Tiger Whistling Rock Rou Gui(虎啸岩肉桂)
3. Peach Fragrance Da Hong Pao(桃香大红袍)
4. Huang Jin Gui(黄金桂)
5. Golden Water Turtle (Shui Jin Gui)/水金龟
6. Iron Arhat (Tie Luo Han)/铁罗汉
7. Huang Guan Yin/黄观音
8. Heaven’s Waist (Ban Tian Yao)/半天腰
9. Yue Ming Xiang (悦茗香)
10. Shui Lian Dong Qi Lan (水帘洞奇兰)
11. Yellow rose (Huang Mei Gui)/黄玫瑰
12. Bai Rui Xiang /百瑞香
I’m not going to do detailed writeups of each tea this year, but will say that it appears 2021 was a very good year for rock oolong from Tong Xin She Teahouse, especially the traditional varietals in the selection. Here’s hoping that 2022 is just as spectacular!
According to google translate, “Musique Grossière,” translates to, “Coarse Music”.
I wouldn’t disagree with that, but more than “coarse” this is a disorienting recording.
Seemingly unconnected electronic sounds, noises, and manipulated recordings roll back and forth across the audio stage. Sequential noises seldom settle into any groove or steady tempo.
If there is an organizing principle, it is along the lines of sound and reaction, as in speech, than some more “musical” principle, like theme and variation or harmony. The track “PhysMod Silverware” almost settles into a groove over the course of its brief 3:32 run time.
I guess I would describe it primarily as a percussion recording, albeit percussive sounds made with an extremely diverse sample palette.
The song titles are pretty amusing and, if disorienting, the recording is certainly not boring.
“Recorded by Parsa in Tehran, July 2020”
#SuperPang #SP10 #Parsa
Every year we buy Persimmons from the Nuns at the Mission San Jose in Fremont, and every year I make this persimmon pudding from them. I love persimmons, and this is one of my absolute favorite desserts. It used to be up on the Robert Mondavi website, but now appears to have disappeared due to reorganization, so I will put it up here for posterity.
Steamed Persimmon Pudding
Ingredients:
3 very ripe, soft Hachiya Persimmons (about 1 pound) stemmed
1/2 cup (4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
6 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup sifted unbleached all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions:
In blender or food processor, puree persimmons (with skins); set aside. (Hint: Before putting persimmons in blender, slice roughly and check for seeds.) In large mixer bowl, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Mix in egg to blend thoroughly. Into another bowl, sift the dry ingredients and mix into butter mixture alternately with milk in three additions. Mix in persimmon puree and vanilla to blend thoroughly. Generously butter a 1-quart mold. Pour batter into mold and cover tightly with a buttered lid or aluminum foil. Place a rack in a pot taller than the mold. Place the mold on rack and add enough boiling water to come halfway up side of mold. Cover the pot with a lid or aluminum foil.
Steam pudding over medium heat on the top of the stove or in a preheated 325-degree oven 1 1/2 hours, checking frequently and adding boiling water to maintain correct level. Remove mold from pot to cooling rack. Remove lid; set aside mold until lukewarm. Unmold onto plate and serve warm or at room temperature.
In general, I listen to SuperPang albums on the way home from band practice. But, I’ve been stuck on The Untitled for about a month now. The first time I listened, I got so absorbed, I took a wrong turn and almost ended up in Berkeley.
It’s an unusual record, Vida calls it “Musique concrète”, but it sounds like there are some instruments and computers involved. I would call it spooky, haunting, atmospheric, and far more compelling than it’s relative brevity would lead you to believe possible.
“Musique concrète recorded in Shady, New York, Summer 2020.
Computer, Hardware, Mixing Console.”
#SuperPang #SP09 #BenVida
giovanni di domenico: Gelotophilia / Katagelasticism
Gelotophilia is joy in being laughed at. Katagelasticism is joy at laughing at others, often at their own expense. (I had to look them up.)
Gelotophilia is piano with electronics, with the piano dominating and the electronics fading in and out in the background. Katagelasticism is electronics with piano, with the electronics more to the fore.
The piano playing is vaguely “classical” in style, rolling sheets of consonant chords. The electronics are more drone-ey. I can’t tell from listening if the electronics in either piece are processing the piano or independent, though the two seem to share some tonal centers. Overall an entirely pleasant recording to listen to, engaging yet not demanding.
“Recorded in Elektronmusikstudion EMS, Stockholm and Studio W, Brussels, 2015/2020”
#SuperPang #SP08 #TodaysCommuteSoundtrack
Allegedly algorithmic music, but really pretty cool and organic feeling. I would describe it as “nonchalantly menacing”. Reminded me a bit of some Cluster related music. Maybe my fave Superpang release so far.
“All tracks are performed, mixed, and mastered by William Fields using Bohlen–Pierce tuning.”
#SuperPang #SP07 #WilliamFields
Pretty much a harsh noise album. The passages of sound where the instruments in the credits are identifiable as themselves are few and far between. Mostly wet sound coming off of whatever live electronic processing is going on. There are some nice bits about 15 mins into the first track. I also liked the framing device for the second track, sound of piezo mic’d cardio and/or respiration.
“Compositions by Mats Gustafsson (STIM/NcB). Baritone and bass saxophones, organ, live electronics, bass drum.”
#SuperPang #SP06 #MatsGustafsson
“These works form a study of an experimental implementation of a waveguide synthesis algorithm.”
Metallic KO. Almost all the sounds on this recording sound like they were generated from some sort of metal striking another (even though they were probably entirely digitally generated.) Well, one thing I like about recordings on Superpang is they usually use very original sample sets and sound sources.
“Composed/performed by Akira Sileas”
#SuperPang #SP05 #TodaysCommuteSoundtrack #AkiraSileas