Kitchen-sink improvisation by Chicago’s acoustic quartet Tiny Music. The tape’s two side-long pieces of downplayed, instrumental maximalism incorporate instruments both musical and nonmusical in origin. The band listed out each instrument/tool/toy/kitchen utensil/office supply/Christmas tree ornament/industrial scrap/six-foot tall sea shell chandelier/etc, shedding a meager amount of light on the ambiguously brooding demeanor of the recording. Stringed-instruments are scraped and bowed beyond noticeable qualities. Hums, crackles and oddly dissonant/complimenting drones bubble up amongst the clatter. At times, the microphone seems capture sound directly next to the source. Other times, the activity is occurring on the other side of the room. This is deeply meditative but equally focused and fluid improvisation. The band reveals their hand from time to time, providing a glimpse behind the curtain that most improv bands often perpetuate. Breaks in the “action” like complete silence or crude tone changes on the tone generator give the scne and up-close-and-personal demeanor. Given the title, Epitaph could mark the end of Tiny Music or an epitaph for something else. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it’s the latter.
Notice Recordings
7/10
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