Morning Music

admin — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 23:05:00 +0000

I'm one of those music nerds who, because of my incredibly broad tastes, finds herself taunted by other more self-conscious music nerds. I will give anything a chance. Anything. For example, I have no shame in admitting that I like those slightly contentious sub-genres known as free and avant-garde jazz. I especially love the music of Alice Coltrane, the late composer/multi-instrumentalist/wife of John Coltrane. Heavily reliant on harp and piano, and influenced by Indian mysticism, Coltrane's music is just as likely to be reviled as it is to be emulated. In the years following her death in 2007, a variety of artists have paid musical tribute to this underrated innovator, including English rocker Paul Weller (The Jam, Style Council) and American drone-metal duo Sunn O))). Although never mentioned directly, it is clear to me that Alice Coltrane's body of work also had an influence on Mia Doi Todd's latest album, the all-instrumental Morning Music.

Since 1997, Todd has released eight studio albums, a remix collection and an EP, three of which were Todd put out on her own label, City Zen Records; Morning Music is her latest self-released title. From the warm worn early-1970s look of the front cover to the inside close-up picture of Todd's fingers caressing a keyboard against a psychedelic backdrop, and right on to the beatific back cover image of she and album collaborator, percussionist Andres Renteria, the album seemed a dead giveaway to what lay in store upon listening. I was neither incorrect nor disappointed. This is not just “morning music” however.

This is Sun Salute yoga music. This is hot tea music. This is languorous stretching like a cat music. This is caftan and sandals music. This is soaking in the tub for an hour until you melt music.

The brief presence of background bird tweets and motorcycle engines toward the end of the fourth track, “Electrafficbirds One,” not only jostles awake those listeners previously enmeshed in a soothing drone of sound, but also serves as foreshadowing of the (ever-so-slightly) more lively music to come. It never gets raucous, but things at least pick up a little.

The innocent melody of “Emotion” conjures fond memories in me of a favorite song from my childhood, the Joe Raposo-penned “Sesame Street” classic “Sing.” The tunes have nothing in common, and yet to my ear certain notes in the latter recall the former. Perhaps it's how the piano, acoustic guitar and tin whistle all lope gently around each other.

Written by: M. Brianna Stallings, August 1st 2009

Gea

admin — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 13:11:00 +0000

By Mia Doi Todd

City Zen Records

When Mia Doi Todd’s _The Golden State _was released in 2002, I thought her work was oddly impressive. Her strange voice as captivating; if not always soothing or particularly enjoyable, it impressed me and kept me tuned in. Her first (and only) major-label album, it compiled tracks from her previous independent records, and it looked like Todd might Sony/Columbia Records’ new “it” girl.

Time passed. Her contract wasn’t renewed. She contributed to other, better known musicians’ projects while two more solo albums came out to much less critical acclaim. Gea, her latest effort, arrived at my doorstep weeks ago, and sadly, I can barely manage to listen to the entire record despite its short length of ten tracks.

Todd is a unique hybrid of American East Coast woodsy and East Asian influence. Practically unclassifiable, her insanely minimalist music doesn’t make sense to a lot of people. Often only a piano or guitar accompany her haunting voice, and she is also known to remix much of her own work and create new albums from it (which is an odd choice considering much of it isn’t particularly well received these days anyway). I’ve never known anyone who was a rabid Mia Doi Todd follower, and recently, when I played a Gea track for a friend with no information or introduction, he asked if Todd wasn’t a slower, less Celtic Loreena McKennitt. Ouch.

I can’t give Gea my love because it’s boring and painfully repetitive. It also bears too close a resemblance to every other Mia Doi Todd track I’ve heard, and this sadly doesn’t impress me. I wanted to stand confidently behind her latest effort, but Todd’s voice and songwriting skills are much better suited for collaborations than her own solo career. I hope she’ll consider doing more partnered work in the future.

Written by: Brittany Shoot, January 22nd 2008