CHIRP: The Chicago Independent Radio Project

Michael Ardaiolo writes

Michael Ardaiolo's Favorites of 2008

Our next best of 2008 list spans from tunes recorded at the beginning of the 20th century to a band that may just be 2009’s next big thing.

Check out Michael Ardaiolo’s list below

Favorite Releases of 2008 in no particular order:

Disappears – 7”s + Live Over the Rainbo / Self

Unquestionably the best debut of the year came from Chicago’s own Disappears. As well as scoring nearly every coveted opening slot in the city (from the of-the-moment act Deerhunter to the living legends Wire), the four-piece released two kick-ass 7”s and a CD-R of their fiery live show. Featuring members of 90 Day Men and The Ponys, Disappears might just be the most talked about band in 2009.

Various Artists – 1970s Algerian Proto-Rai Underground / Sublime Frequencies

Though Sublime Frequencies is rarely off their game, their trend towards vinyl-only releases (that typically appear on CD about a year later) has been much appreciated. This year’s collection of unearthed Algerian tunes may be my favorite yet. Somewhere between North African grooves and mariachi charisma, cats like Boutaiba Sghir concocted a brand of infectious music I had no idea existed and now am completely infatuated with finding more.

Toumani Diabaté – Mandé Variations / World Circuit

Mali’s Diabaté has been a long favorite of mine, but this year’s set of solo kora pieces is moving and gorgeous. Diabaté handles the bass, rhythm, melody and improvisation all at once, deftly pronouncing his mastery of the kora as he continues his development by intertwining Indian, Egyptian, Senegalese and flamenco themes within traditional Malian music. A must hear.

Roots Manuva – Slime & Reason / Big Dada

Rodney “Roots Manuva” Smith has never got the stateside respect I think he deserves. And now, despite his fourth solid release with little attention from American audiences, it sadly doesn’t appear like it will ever happen. His style is too eclectic for our rap mainstream, too urban-synth (without the irony) for the indie elite, too ragga-influenced for the back-packers, and too hip-hop for the dancehall. Which of course makes the rapper/producer an individual and oddball in the current clone-heavy state of the music industry. Hardly a complaint.

Flying Lotus – Los Angeles / WARP

My word has Steven Ellison’s stock raised in 2008. (In fact, it may be the only stock in the entire American market to do so.) In a years time, Ellison has gone from being an Adult Swim segue way music producer and little known Plug Research artist to being a WARP wunderkind and getting write-ups in publications that range from XLR8R to the New Yorker. Thanks to the deeply saturated production, just minutes into Los Angeles you are already lost among the ebb and flow of the mercurial synths and adroit beats. A headphone listen that is like sticking your head in a fish tank of blunted haze and aural psychedelics. The music is ethereal, atmospheric and hypnotic––impressive for what is essentially an instrumental hip-hop record.

Bob Dylan – The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8: Tell Tale Signs – Rare and Unreleased 1989-2006 / Columbia

No joke, I caught Dylan performing live at a zoo in Southern Indiana this summer. A zoo! I guess the ridiculous setting was appropriate for the equally ridiculous – but honestly, still impressively captivating – performance from the aged Dylan. His steel wool of a voice live may be a deal-breaker for some, but this collection is proof that he still has his studio wits about him. This is an excellent collection of latter-day Dylan, steeped in gospel, nostalgia and infectious sentimentality. I get hopelessly lost in my thoughts every time I listen.

Debashish Bhattacharya – Calcutta Chronicles: Indian Slide Guitar Odissey / Riverboat/World Music

Now at 45, Bhattacharya is formally known as Pandit Debashish Bhattacharya, meaning he is now a certified master musician of his instrument of choice: the slide-guitar. Molding a completely idiosyncratic three-fingered style, Bhattacharya combines the techniques used on Indian sitar, Western guitar and Hawaiian lap steel with traditional Indian ragas and classical Hindustani music. Calcutta Chronicles is spirited and intricate, undeniably lyrical without a single syllable being muttered, and performed with elegance, skill and energy. Bhattacharya’s guitars sound limitless thanks to the microtonal detail of performing with a slide, and he has the manual dexterity to criss-cross scales, rhythms and modes without any abruptness. It creates a mercurial sound with curved, sensuous edges, like a rotating prism of light translated across a melodic tonal scale. Gorgeous.

Valerio Cosi – Collected Works / Porter

Odean Pope – What Went Before, Volume 1 / Porter

I was hipped to Porter Records mid-2007, and I was immediately captivated by their initial releases. 2008 though was certainly the Florida imprint’s breakout year. Thanks to some 20+ releases over the year – spanning experimental, rap, afro jazz-fusion, free jazz, electronic, international and soul jazz – label-head Luke Mosling has built quite an intriguing collection of music. My favorite releases come from opposite sides of the stylistic spectrum despite both coming from saxophonists. Collected Works collects (duh) ultra-limited CD-R and cassette releases from the incredibly talented 23-year-old Italian saxophonist Valerio Cosi. A spiritual descendent of Pharaoh Sanders, Cosi blends his free jazz freak-outs within psychedelic drones and bedroom-produced experiments. One of the most promising cats I’ve ever stumbled across. What Went Before, Volume 1 is a nice collection of late-90s performances from Max Roach-sideman Odean Pope. Still making music today, Pope is one of the most sorely overlooked jazz saxophonists in the last few decades. These make for two excellent introductions if these names are previously unfamiliar to you.

Chris Connelly – Forgiveness & Exile / Durtro Jnana

Two years in a row now, Scotland-bred Chicagoan Chris Connelly has released a fantastic album. Notably more menacing than 2007’s The Episodes, Connelly taps into his industrial roots for inspiration with hints of Scott Walker, Van Morrison, Bill Laswell and maybe even PiL. With a great cast of local musicians backing him – Ben and Adam Vida, Josh Abrams, Tim and Nate Kinsella and Jason Adasiewicz – the album floats in and out of melodic crooning, wandering free jazz, industrial rhythms and spoken word among many other stylistic shifts. Murky, elegant and visceral, Forgiveness & Exile is a fantastically interesting listen. Not to mention 100% of the profits made on the album benefits Chicago’s Marjorie Kovler Center, an agency that provides treatment and aid to survivors of torture who have migrated to the United States.

Various Artists – Give Me Love: Songs of the Brokenhearted – Baghdad, 1925-1929 / Honest Jon’s

Various Artists – Sprigs of Time: 78s from the EMI Archives / Honest Jon’s

Honest Jon’s presented two killer compilations this year, both specializing in pre-popular music recordings. Give Me Love is an unprecedented look at turn-of-the-century Iraq and the underground music being captured by early audiophiles. The music is endlessly intriguing, and the translated lyrics included in the excellent packaging are absolutely heart-breaking. Maybe a bit ethnic for some listeners, but if you can open your boundaries a bit, it is a truly moving compilation. Along similar lines, Sprigs of Time paints a wonderfully colorful portrait of a burgeoning record label with a world’s worth of music at its disposal. The collection of 78s ranges from 1903 to 1957 and span the globe from Tokyo to Constantinople, Baghdad to Bali, New York to Uganda. It gives us a glimpse into the curious beginnings of Electric & Musical Industries, the Berliner Gramophone Company, and in turn, the popular music trade that seems to enrapture us all. Not only does it make for an enjoyable and interesting listen, but it also feels slightly important in the further understanding of what makes this runaway train chug on so incessantly.

Sir Victor Uwaifo – Guitar-Boy Superstar 1970-76 / Soundway

Brighton, England’s Soundway Records had a very strong year thanks to their Nigeria Special releases (Nigeria Special Volumes 1 & 2, Nigeria Disco Funk Special and Nigeria Rock Special) alone, but my personal favorite was their retrospective on Nigerian guitarist Sir Victor Uwaifo. You get 19 cuts of West African folk, highlife, afrobeat, psych, and electric rock that really have little stylistic parallels. While there is not really a lull in the compilation, I found myself mostly obsessed with absolutely killer “Dododo (Ekassa Number 1)” in particular. Essential for all fans of African popular music from the 70s.

Scott Tuma – Not for Nobody / Digitalis

Not for Nobody is the third solo album from Chicagoan Scott Tuma (Souled American, Boxhead Ensemble). The mood it conjures is somber and placid, the atmosphere thick, the music fragile, and the overall vibe rather confusing and more often than not, downtrodden. You are forced to ponder, reminisce and daydream within the cascading timbres of guitar, banjo, harmonium and hand percussion. An exacting portrait of thought may never fully form as the album swells and ebbs, but the hazy memories and emotions Tuma evokes with his voiceless melodic glimmers are plenty enough to force you to sit down and recollect yourself before leaving the room. An under-appreciated release from a longtime musician with still plenty left to create.

Matana Roberts Quartet – The Chicago Project / Central Control

The Chicago native and now NYC-based reedist Matana Roberts is one of the youngest current members of the AACM. For her latest venture as a bandleader, Roberts has formed a quartet with three of her fellow hometown luminaries, all interestingly enough of about the same age. With guitarist Jeff Parker, bassist Josh Abrams and drummer Frank Rosaly, The Chicago Project is a prime example of Chicago’s contemporary AACM sound. Behind Roberts exhaustively emotional alto saxophone, the band lulls and shrills, pleads and exclaims, croons and wails, all the while blurring the lines between easily-defined stylistic tags and singular expressions.

Best Shows

Stars of the Lid – Lakeshore Auditorium

Toumani Diabate – Logan Square Auditorium

The Ex & Getatchew Mekuria – Pritzger

Amir ElSaffar – Pritzger

Ornette Coleman – Grant Park

Matana Roberts – Heaven Gallery