phog masheeen

Palm Springs Museum, ongoning work...

2012-01-29T07:17:00.000-08:00

Work has begun on the next CD from phog masheeen, titled "The Eternal Battle of Heat and Cold." So far we have had outstanding recording sessions with Bobby Almon from Liver Cancer and Emmy Collins from Brutal Poodle. Both Bobby and Emmy made brilliant contributions and thank you does not express our gratitude for their participation in the project. More work is underway and we are weaving in tracks from all of our different tools. The Pick-0-Phone and The Shambler being represented among them.

Unique to this production is the fact that William Almas is working in parallel with the audio recordings creating video content and his experiments are informing the audio production. There is some back and forth there.

On the performance front, phog masheeen will be performing at the Palm Springs Art Museum on March 11th as part of their free. Second Sunday series. They are running a great show that will still be up when we perform. Titled Backyard Oasis: The Swimming Pool in Southern California Photography, 1945-1982 We will be performing from 1:00 to 2:00 PM in the James and Jackie Lee Houston Atrium on March 11, 2012.

Landfill 5 tonight at Max Steiners, Long Beach, CA

2011-12-26T08:24:00.000-08:00

Tonight the phog masheeen side project the landfill 5 will be presenting Duke Ellington songs and two chord guitar jams at Max Steiners in Long Beach.

Some say that jazz is funner to play than it is to hear. This should be fun on all levels! If you're in Long Beach check it out.

Landfill 5 will play 2 sets starting at 8:45 PM. FREE!

Max's Steiner

2500 East Anaheim Street, Long Beach, CA 90804-3607

(562) 433-5823

Incase these gigs didn't fit your schedule...

2011-12-18T11:33:00.000-08:00

There are some posted recordings of some interesting gigs.
The phog masheeen show at SANF3 is up on Soundcloud here.

And the Drone shift recording is available for download here. Streaming here.

Just a note on the times, Droneshift was a three hour event and the download is over 300 megabytes. So plan accordingly. It is long and elegant. Suitable for watching shadows cross a room.

The SANF3 show was thirty minutes of howling intensity. The feature for the evening was Eric Strauss' instrument "The Shambler." The way it dominated the sonic space is impressive. It could crowd the entire audio spectrum at one time!

Enjoy!

2011-12-15T06:44:00.000-08:00

The Santa Ana Noise Fest looms large this weekend! Saturday 12-17-11. 3PM start time.

It is FREE!

We have the honor of debuting Eric Strauss' newest invention......The Shambler!

Eric will be joining us at the controls of The Shambler, Ryan Hunt will be operating the Pick-0-Phone and Dr. Kaplan will be rolling out the Kitchen Percussion.

We will be performing in the second set of bands around 7:30 PM.

Pick-0-Phone

I (heart) Noise cake for the potluck at SANF3

The Shambler

Santa Barbara, Droneshift and OCCCA

2011-11-29T05:35:00.001-08:00

We are faced with a flurry of activity coming up this December.

We will be performing at Muddy Waters in Santa Barbara on Thursday the 8th.

Then up to San Francisco to participate in Droneshift on Saturday the 10th.

The following Saturday is The Santa Ana Noise Festival at the OCCCA. The line-up for phog masheeen expands for the Santa Ana Noise Fest with Dr. Kaplan, Ryan Hunt and Eric Strauss. All this and FREE admission too! Such a deal.

Max Stieners video.

2011-10-23T07:39:00.000-07:00

Video has been posted of the Max Stieners gig. In this version you get to see Bills video! Ryan Hunt's Pick-0-phone playing is well represented on this as well!

Available here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TALWSeeniIg&feature=colike

This video also features the loudest bar maids in Long Beach!

The beginning of the set.

http://youtu.be/CVoDaHhTr4Y

Not performing at Jawbone Canyon.

2011-10-20T09:05:00.001-07:00

Regrettably phog masheeen will not be performing at Jawbone Canyon.
Sorry for the short notice.
Maybe next year.

2011-10-15T06:33:00.000-07:00

Much to our delight, phog masheeen has a track on the Wire Tapper! The Wire Tapper is a CD that is included with The Wire Magazine!

This is huge for us and we would encourage you to check it out further here: http://www.thewire.co.uk/articles/7776/

Coming up next Friday the 21st of October we will be heading out to Jawbone Canyon in the Mojave desert for the Hop-Frog Collective's festival of experimentation in the dirt! This year titled Dust Streams, Fire Skies and Tarantula Thighs.

Here is the link to the Urch Records Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/URCK-Recordsthe-hop-frog-kollectiv/240815479163

This is the lovely stage setting on Sunday Morning after the festivities last year.

This is the sunrise the same day.

And the flyer!

And the weather!

Max Steiners gig recording up!

2011-10-12T10:37:00.000-07:00

I know, it was a Monday night. You couldn't make it out to Max Steiners to see phog masheeen. But! As an ongoing service to our fans that evening lives again through the ongoing miracle that is the internet! Ryan Hunt joined the proceedings with the newest addition to the Pick-0-Phone set-up the Kick Drum. Covering the low end in a non-pitched sort of way.

Check out this short but epic set!

http://www.archive.org/details/PhogMasheeenMaxSteiners10-10-2011

Here is the embedded stream player:

Soundwalk 2011 recording up for your amusment and perusal

2011-10-05T07:51:00.000-07:00

A distilled one hour and seventeeen minute version of the phog masheeen five hour soundwalk performances is available here http://www.archive.org/details/PhogMasheeenSoundwalk10-1-2011

Here is the hyperbole attached to the file:
A one hour seventeen minute composite of the five hour phog masheeen performance at the Soundwalk in Long Beach, CA 10-1-2011. Performers William Almas, Dr. Kaplan, Ryan Hunt, Eric Strauss and Mark Soden Jr. Highlights include, the debut of the Pick-0-phone. (a musical instruments constructed of railroad picks, bundt pans and a plow disk from a tractor) and the Duodenum (an instrument constructed from a motorcycle exhaust) receiving a dry-ice rub down. The general tone is lovely, abrasive and percussively alluring. A defining moment in West Coast Free Noise and Post-Industrial Exotica!

We here at phog masheeen understand that the likelyhood that people are able to schedule anything these days is slim. So we provide as many ways as we can devise to allow you to timeshift our performances to fit your schedule.

Enjoy,

the management

Here is the streaming option to experience this file.

Soundwalk 2011 Recap!

2011-10-03T10:17:00.000-07:00

Thank you Igor Amokian for filming the phog masheeen snippet for Youtube.It was a perfect evening, warm and dry.Big thanks to Ryan Hunt who joined us as Pick-0-phone operator and Eric Strauss who sat-in with Dr. Kaplan on percussion!

Next we are on to Jawbone Canyon in the Mojave desert on Oct. 21st and 22nd. Phog masheeen will be performing on Friday the 21st.This event is a free and fun campout.

Jawbone Canyon is as "Mixed Use" as it gets. Guns, Dirt Bikes and Noise Concerts, it all happens there. It is a post-apocalyptic weekend with gas enough for everyone. Worth checking out if you can hang with sleeping on the ground.

2011-09-27T06:40:00.000-07:00

Here is your last minute cheerful reminder that Soundwalk 2011 is occurring this coming Saturday Oct. 1st in Long Beach from 5:00 to 10:00 pm.

It is FREE!

phog masheeen is #6 on the map, which you can view here http://maps.google.com/maps/msmsid=214839954856713076552.0004ab483e981afb54931&msa=0

The main Soundwalk 2011 website is here http://soundwalk.org/index.html

phog masheeen will be performing from sunset projecting video on the side of the building in the alley between 1st st. and Broadway.

We will be rolling out new technology with the Pick-0-Phone as well as some of our old favorites Kitchen percussion and the Duodenum.

Please stop by and say hi!

9-17-11 live show recording up now!

2011-09-18T11:42:00.000-07:00

The recording of the 9-17-11 phog masheeen show at the Handbag Factory in LA is up now for your listening pleasure. It is embedded below or click here to go to the page.

It was a great night with a great line up. Thanks again to Steve Davis for promoting the show.

Handbag Factory 9-17, Soundwalk map up!

2011-09-16T13:31:00.000-07:00

The location Map for the Soundwalk 2011 is up here http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=214839954856713076552.0004ab483e981afb54931&msa=0&ll=33.76849,-118.186734&spn=0.001449,0.002207

We will imbed it as well just for fun!

View SoundWalk 2011 in a larger map

This weekends mirth and merriment will be at the Handbag Factory in downest downtown LA.

Saturday 9-17-11, 8:30 PM. Phog masheeen will be appearing with a variety of local luminaries, such as +dog+ and Pretty Agony.

The link to the particulars is here http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=245738285464189

This show has some potentially thrilling features. Including a cover of a Bavab Bavab song!

Certainly worth the drive!

The first one's still free! & New video for your viewing pleasure!

2011-09-05T08:57:00.000-07:00

We got some great comments from Suki O'Kane (Curator of Oakland's spectacular Illuminated Corridor) regarding our submission to her project. Here is what she had to say...

"I've watched Color, Movement and Theatrical Violence now, oh, i dunno, about a million times. The selection of gestures and focal points for this keeps amazing me, surprising the viewer with so much more than kicking and punching. It's David Lean-ish in its intimations of violence: using footage just before and after it, or if a classic battle, layering the psychedelic upon it to mirror our own clouded, subconscious ultraviolence. It compels us to reform our idea of Lee: the martial artist as thinker, critical observer, calm (and calming) warrior sliding elegantly into a ritual jacket in the midst of a relentless chaos."

You can view the video at the Illuminated Corridor channel on Youtube. Or the direct link is http://youtu.be/1QqbghhgIZU?hd=1

Don't forget... The first track is still free at CD Baby! Click Here to go there.

The first one's free!

2011-08-03T16:28:00.000-07:00

Taking a tip from Multi-level marketers, The first tracks free! Check it out! Click through HERE to 23 Duets on CD Baby, The first track Rocktastic Noise is Free and Download Baby, Download!

We will be adding to this post for a while, as the "first one's free promotion is rolling on.

Preparations are well under way for Soundwalk 2011 in Long Beach, CA. We will be rolling out a pumped up Pick-0-Phone. Improved with resonators and improved playability, the Pick-0-Phone is ready for prime time. Here is the pic.

Link to Soundwalk 2011.

Touch the Gear is a go!

2011-07-01T07:18:00.000-07:00

I will be heading to San Francisco on July 17 to participate in the Outsound New Music Summit's "Touch the Gear" event.

The event will be at San Francisco Community Music Center, 544 Capp Street @ 20th, San Francisco, CA
on July 17, 2011. We were involved last year and it was a great event! Lots of cool setups and you can play them. From this event I got some new ideas of how to use my setup.

Is the "art" getting there?

For this event I am taking the Pick-0-phone and the Boise Bundts + 1.

I am flying to San Francisco. The seven pick heads come to around sixty pounds in a bag. I am sorting through whether to package them carefully or just put a bolt through them and put them in a duffle bag.

The TSA commonly searches all my bags. Perhaps I should put a sign in the bag to explain that I am:

1- Taking these picks to the "Antiques Roadshow"

2- Going to a digging tool convention.

3- I am making sure I have the right tool for the job. As long as the Job requires seven picks.

It kind of reminds me of the postal art days of the '80's. A good amount of the "art part" was seeing if the postal service would deliver the item. Here we are struggling to get everything on a plane in our current travel environment.

Here is the setup I am planning to bring.

Stomata Loaf (work in progress)

2011-06-17T15:11:00.000-07:00

I have posted A work in progress track called "Stomata Loaf" (Thank you Kevin C. for the title.)

It features some of the experiments with the Boise Bundts +1 and the Pick-0-phone.

It is a love-thing that settles the score with your home speakers.

Here is the stream:

Download at: http://www.archive.org/details/StigmataLoaf

New Tools, Pick-0-Phone, Boise Bundts +1

2011-06-15T12:15:00.000-07:00

Check this out ladies and gentlemen, new phog masheeen tools to bring the noise.

The Boise Bundts are joined by the recently acquired Yucca Valley Bundt. Colored Orange the Yucca Valley Bundt is a prize indeed bringing an A concert to the Bundt rack.

In the lower front of the photo is the Pick-0-Phone. Utilizing pick heads as an instant idiophone. The Pick-0-Phone brings a skewed version of tonal music to the noise of phog masheeen. I am planning to lay out the electronics and see what this setup has to offer.

Ok here is the setup with the electronics.

Here is the link to how it sounds (Dig if you will the Barking cadenza performed by Red (the dog):

Recap of the OCCCA show....

2011-06-05T07:01:00.000-07:00

What a delicious evening, three long sets and lots of time to stretch and try new things.

Big thanks to Skip, Abbey, Max, David, Vince, Bob, Craig and all the people that came out to check out the Mirth and merriment.

For all you that couldn't make it to Santa Ana, here is a segment of the proceedings. It is available for download at this address:

http://www.archive.org/details/PhogMasheeenOccca6-4-2011

You can stream is here:

Enjoy!

phog

Performing this Saturday at OCCCA in Santa Ana, CA

2011-06-02T17:29:00.000-07:00

The phog masheeen experience is coming back to the OCCCA in Santa Ana this Saturday 6-4-11 for the second opening of the Deep show.

We will be performing from 7:00 to 10:00 PM in three long sets of atmospheric sound. We are hoping for Rapture of the Deep without the nitrogen narcosis.

Click here for Directions.

Did I mention that it is FREE!

The "Boise Bundts" go Drone Crazy!

2011-05-14T07:37:00.000-07:00

I am rolling out the "Boise Bundts" for the Le Placard headphone festival tonight at 10:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time. I will be streaming to Hamburg Germany where it will be 7:00 AM.

The event in Hamburg is titled Blurred Edges. It looks to be a great festival, judging from the program.

If you want to catch the stream. Log onto the Placard Chat and get the url then open it in your media player.

Here is the recording of The Boise Bundts Go Drone Crazy! for your streaming pleasure.

The Wonder Valley Set is up!

2011-05-09T21:14:00.000-07:00

The Wonder Valley Experimental 3 set is now up on the internet archive.

You can find it here.

Or listen to the stream here:

Boise Set, Bundt Pans and event notes...

2011-05-09T08:33:00.000-07:00

Here is the Boise set for your entertainment, the link to the stream is at the bottom of this post.

It appears that people in Boise do not value their Bundt Pans.

I found two fine specimens at the Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store.

One was the extremely unfinished "holy mother of aluminum" version.

Rare indeed. The sonic qualities of cast aluminum Bundt Pans are legendary for their resonance and sustain. The bell like qualities are like a bell from a parallel universe. Route that through a contact mic and you have a gateway to a wonderland of fun.

The city of Boise is clean walkable and safe. Bill and I had a great time checking out the downtown.

The sets at the Boise Creative and Improvised Music festival were varied and intriguing. Lots of surprises, which is the feature of improvised music that keeps me coming back for more.

I was paired with Colter Frasier to start the random match up part of the festival. That provided an opportunity to stretch out on the newly aquired Bundt Pans and Slide Trumpet. I was a fun feature that was unique to this festival.

Here is the stream of the phog masheeen set at B-CIMF 2011. Also Available at http://www.archive.org/details/PhogMasheeenB-cimf5-7-2011

Enjoy,

phog

WVE3 was Amazing, On to Boise!

2011-04-25T14:34:00.001-07:00

Wonder Valley Experimental 3 was a huge success! Many happy/noisy people were present and convivial in the amazing environment that is the Palms in Wonder Valley. Pictured on the right is the skate board/Guitar or Skatar being pressed into service with Punk as a Doornail at WVE3. No frets, played slide style with a liquor bottle.

For the Wonder Valley event Bill projected his video feed onto a tree that was stage left. I liked that alot!

Dr. Kaplan turned in a great set bringing her pots and pans to the phog masheeen experience.

Next we are on to Boise Idaho for the B-CIMF (Boise Creative and Improvised Music Festival).

So if you know people in Boise, Tell them phog masheeen is coming.

Boston Recap, on to Wonder Valley!

2011-04-11T08:22:00.000-07:00

The trip to Boston was stunning in its greatness! We had the honor of performing with brilliant performers. We found dry-ice easily. The talk was spectacular.

Many thanks to Vanessa LeFevre for booking the trip and orchestrating the entire event.

The most humbling experience was meeting Performer, Instrument designer and all around great guy Eric Nugent. He spent a decade creating the NU (pictured here). The short version is that it is a Digeridoo with keys.

Let us ponder that information for a moment.

Ten years in development. Casting the parts. Doing the math to locate and size the holes correctly. Then learning to play it brilliantly! I would be stopped at the ten year development cycle. I might scrawl the idea on a note pad that I would eventually not be able to locate. But the patience and skill to design and fab an instrument is a different level of patience and commitment.

But wait there's more!

Eric also fabricated a double trumpet that was operated by Eric Dahlman, the other half of the Auddity duo configuration. This horn had two bells, two sets of valves, a dog toy squeeker mouthpiece. On of the possible configurations included inflating a balloon that could be made to push air through the squeeker. Amazing! Also they had a pan of water with a mic on it that they would submerge the trumpet bell in the water and create an aquatic almost motorboat like sound with it. For added star power they added ENO to the performance. In the form of the fizzing antacid, not the Music for Airports guy.

Walking on Mass Ave. provided some wonderful urban beauty as evidenced in this brilliant work of editing.

Also, since the 119 Gallery was located in Lowell, MA we visited the grave of Jack Kerouac. The city of Lowell has adopted Jack as a tourist attraction. Such that they named a 5K run in his honor. I imagine him spinning in his grave as healthy people run sweating in the streets of Lowell.

Lovely town Lowell. Home of RRR Records as well.

Moving on to next weekend. The Wonder Valley Experimental 3 rolls into the Palms.

There are some updates on this event.

Desert local, Piano Bob will be providing break music between sets with his legendary prepared piano! Bob is a local legend and some would say a national treasure! We are honored to have Bob as part of our line up.

Bob's history with noise is long and storied. He collected metal from illegal dumping in the desert and sorted it by sonic qualities.

This included larger pieces such as automobile gas tanks.

(Automobile gas tanks have a number of different bends and have a similarity to steel drums in that they offer a wide variety of pitches depending on where they are struck.)

Bob would bring his collection to local coffee houses for monthly "noise nights" where people were invited to jam on his collection of sonified metal.

His public piano project predated the character in New York that is desperately trying to claim it by years. That project included Bob pushing the piano on the side of highway 62 from one site to the next, where it would then be moored for the public to play till he pushed it on to another site.

I am looking forward to Bob's addition to the noise fest!

Preparations for Boston Trip...

2011-03-26T07:32:00.000-07:00

Collecting gear and packing for the trip to Boston.

It is a bit like herding cats and packaging them so the TSA wont kill them in transit.

Bill and I are heading out on a red-eye on Thursday to arrive early Friday.

Buy dry-ice and check the show at 119 Gallery on Friday night then we are on for two shows and a talk Sunday afternoon.

Here are the particulars. If you are in the Boston area and come to the show I would love to meet you, please hit me up for swag or something.

Saturday Show

119 Gallery, 119 Chelmsford St, Lowell MA 01851
978-452-8138 8PM

Phog Masheen + Auddity

WhenSat, April 2, 8pm – 9pm

DescriptionPhog Masheen (from Los Angeles) investigates noise as post-millenial folk music, unusual uses of resonant chambers, and sound as an object that can be stretched, inverted and mutilated. Hear the otherworldly sounds of the Duodenum, an instrument made from the exhaust manifold of a motorcycle and played with dry ice and blowtorch. Auddity (from Massacusetts) combine drones, free improvisation and whirled music grooves creating soundscapes utilizing traditional and invented instruments. Erik Nugent (playing his invention The Nu, a chromatic didgeridoo, as well as slide bagpipes, slide clarinet, overtone singing), Eric Dahlman (trumpets, voice, pasta tin), and Michael Knoblach (percussion, voice) bring humor, amazing technical skills, and fearless experimentation to their improvised performances. Sponsored by Vanessa/Lunar Plexus.

Talk Outpost 186 in Cambridge.

Sunday 3 April @ Outpost, 1-3pm, $5 donation
The Changing Context of Improvisation:
Unplayable Instruments, Disaster Management and the Safe Handling of Dry Ice

A workshop with Mark Soden of Phog Masheen

Phog Masheen (from Los Angeles) investigates noise as post-millenial folk music, unusual uses of resonant chambers, and sound as an object that can be stretched, inverted, and manipulated like sculpture. In this discussion/hands-on workshop, explore topics such as:

· The vuvuzela: was the 2010 World Cup a defining public noise performance or an act of audio terrorism?
· Voted Off the Island: the rise of reality television and its effect on the perception of improvisation.
· Dwellers of the Land that Time Forgot: drum circle, sweat lodge, the trance dehydration vortex.
· The rise of dissonance: cognitive, auditory, economic and political. If noise is the soundtrack of our times, what of the future?
· Loosening the lug nuts on the wheels of orchestration.
· Is the audience part of the performance?
· High Art vs. roadside attraction: some thoughts on community action.

Sunday Show

Phog Masheen Xiphoid Dementia Blac Bloc

Frkse

Trachypithecene Entity

It will be at Starlab, 32 Prospect St, Somerville, MA, Sunday April 3 at 8 PM

Themes for the AHC Monday night 2-28-11

2011-02-27T06:42:00.000-08:00

As we are closing in on the Ad Hoc Committee show at the Puka Bar this Monday 2-28-11.

I thought I would share some of the themes for improvisation that we will be using.

Theme #1:

There is a Macdonald's restaurant at the bottom of the marianas trench. Play the lilting strains of muzak drifting out of the Macdomald's into the ocean 6.76 miles under water.

Theme #2:

Trained locust swarm out of a circus tent and make a break for freedom. Their one trick is to attach themselves to the face of a clown and form a beard. The clown walks back to his trailer after the show. He hears a buzzing sound before his world goes black.

Theme #3:

You Build a vehicle of bones and debris. It gets good milage but it is hard to park. Make the sound of parallel parking.

The ad hoc committee meets Monday night at the Puka Bar 710 W. Willow in Long Beach. Show starts at 8pm.

The participants for this round are Drummer Craig, David Bunion and the members of Brutal Poodle. This should be a festive and noisy evening! And FREE!

George Herms: The Artist's Life @ Redcat

2011-02-04T08:47:00.000-08:00

The image is the "Concerto for Cell Phone and Saw" George Herms at the saw.

Wow, what a show George Herms: The Artist's Life @ Redcat in the Disney Hall.

George loves free jazz. So much he had two free jazz bands on stage. He did his thing; assemblage, live on stage. Making art on paper plates and then flying them into the audience like frisbees. In the picture you can see the spiral staircase. That was played with 2x4s. He also brought out a buoy. Not a little buoy, we are talking eight foot in diameter buoy. It was suspended and then played with 2x4s. It was like an art/noise show. Very Cool!

The one thing I think he will leave as an institution at Redcat was to Start the evening with the After-party. Everyone can feel cool.

It is going tonight and Saturday if you want to see it. Order tickets online or you will be shut out.

2011-02-02T14:05:00.000-08:00

The WVE3 flyer has arrived! Please spread it far and wide.

Mark your calendar! This is prime desert time, so plan to be there.

You can even camp on site! Which can be as informal as falling to the ground and sleeping.

I hope you are as thrilled as I am about this!

phog

"ad hoc committee" forming, Club Bit Map returns!

2011-01-26T06:59:00.000-08:00

It was a great noise night at the Puka bar last Monday!

From that I got an opportunity to book the February and March shows.

Here's what I have planned.

Feb. 28 - "ad hoc committee" a group of 5 noise artists will be grouped in various ways and given tasks drawn from a hat! Tasks such as, "you have never seen the instruments you are playing, you have 3 minutes to learn to use them or your head will explode." or "you learned everything you know about music by watching two YouTube videos. Now play Eruption by Van Halen."

It has the potential for being an interesting evening.

The committee is forming!

Update: The Brutal Poodle, Johnny Left and Anonymous Bosch are on the ad hoc committee! These members of the Brutal Poodle ensemble rocked the stage at the Hi-desert experimental festival. I can't wait to see them in Long Beach!

Club Bit Map returns March 28th at the Puka bar. Bent electronics over dance beats. The recordings of electonic music pioneers repackaged for the dance floor. With a dance lesson on how to dance to move to this ... "stuff." Paul Wilkins from Clowns and Foetuses is one of the guest artists for this. We have one more opening for a circuit bender. I will keep you posted on that.

toodles,

phog

PS An object at rest....

Tales from the front in the epic battle of heat and cold. The BernzOmatic.

New Link to Tracks, 23 Duets CD is up for download.

2011-01-10T08:32:00.000-08:00

Hey there,

The 23 Duets CD is up on CD Baby for download. As it is said "hard copy to follow" the CD object is coming soon. Click on the badge on the right and spice your ipod with these tracks.

The CD description is a work in progress. Here is what I have so far:

23 Duets by phog masheeen is your opportunity to enter a wonderland of pulsing noise. Using dry-ice, shop vacs, trumpets, electronics and a home built aerophone called "the Duodenum" (featured on the cover of 23 Duets) phog masheeen drives deep into the territory that only comes to view when field recordings, groove boxes and trumpets are collaged together in a post-modern mural of sound. Utilizing the esthetic of "distortion is the new reverb." phog masheeen paints with heavy strokes on a sound-field canvas. Swirling shapes, textures and colors are bent into shape by means of the digital audio workstation. Sometimes swirling like a dust devil on a dry lake, the music is on an unpredictable course that delivers the listener to the uncharted Hi-desert of the mind.

If you want one track to get a "Flava" for the 23 Duets experience. Try track 3 "Air Lock," it features some dynamic dry-ice playing and pillowy bending of the "duodenum." The "duodenum" is an instrument synthesized from a re-purposed motorcycle exhaust that is fitted with a trumpet mouthpiece receiver. It has a tone that will starch your socks.

The recording environment for this CD was all over the map. Samples were collected at a palm oasis in the mojave desert, trumpet parts recorded in a quonset hut also in the desert. There the recordings were made during the summer and the hut was just a shade cooler than a ceramics kiln running at full power. You can feel the heat in the sound and performance. Look to track 8 titled "You Can't Stop A Weed Species" for the oasis and the K-hut.

Bullet holes is based on a sample recorded by a cell phone. That recording was from the return trip to a ad hoc gun range in the desert to recover steel objects that were riddled with bullet holes. The sound of the shards of bent metal scraping against each other in the back of a jeep on a bumpy road provided the genesis for "Bullet Holes" Track 9. The track "Bullet Holes is an exploration of the potential of a new genre..... country noise.

Droneshift recap and Slide Trumpet!

2010-12-28T17:07:00.000-08:00

Dronshift was a lovely and illuminating evening. I had just rolled into San Francisco on a late flight and went directly to the Luggage Store Gallery from the airport. I was not the first arrival, but there was still space around the outside of the gallery to set up. The picture to the right is my view from my chair. CJ Borosque it chilling with her trumpet and Rent Romus' table is front and center. The room was full with participants and audience as well. As things got underway, there was a sense of sparseness that required people to step up from time to time to keep the drone going.

I got the hang of timing my contributions with the stopwatch on the Iphone. About two thirds of the way through the event Matt Davignon walked around the room with a bar napkin with "+ 5 minutes to your time." I was delighted to get the high sign. This amounted to a total playing time of 28 minutes in two hours. I liked the game like parameters of setting the amount of playing for each participant. It seems like an interesting way to get groups of players to interact in a uniform but undefined way. Something I would like to try with a quartet setting.

The next night in Oakland was equally amazing at Frank Moore's performance. A dance studio was transformed with lights, murals and warmth, Frank asked only questions of his audience and achieved amazing results. I see Frank on the vanguard of mining the human psyche to find fear and transmute that into action. I was honored to be there.

On the acquisition side of things, I located a slide trumpet on Craig's list. It required some serious repair. I took it to the legendary repair person Bruce Belo and it has been remediated. Bruce also put some true fear into me in terms of the proper maintenance of the instrument. Using phrases like "it is building a coral reef inside the horn." Bruce persuasively sold the idea of ongoing maintenance as a form of brass hygiene. I see a world of microtonal possibilities and slippery intonation with this tool! Stay tuned for further developments!

The new CD 23 Duets is entering the final phases of mastering. Pictures have been taken and the cover is coming together. The hum of excitement is pulsing through the Coastal Lair.

Droneshift tonight at the Luggage Store Gallery, SF

2010-12-16T05:52:00.000-08:00

I am heading up to San Francisco for Droneshift tonight. It is at the Luggage Store Gallery on Market St. at 8PM.

I will be one out of many in this event, with 23 minutes of "play time." I thought this sounded intriguing enough to book a flight to do this. Long tones in the dark of winter. What a theme.

Here are some notes on the event:

Aesthetics:
This event should be a drone concert in that each person's notes begin
and end gradually and are of very long duration. There should not be
any noticeable rhythms or melodies. Please think of your contributions
as elements and aspects of a singular "group sound". If you play a
breath-related instrument, and do not have circular breathing
techniques, you can play in a "gradual ebb and flow" style. There will
be natural changes in dynamics and mood. At some points, non-drone
sounds such as field recordings or singular bell sounds may be
appropriate element to the group sound.

Performance:
As I mentioned earlier, you're each going to need some sort of
stopwatch. Cell phones and ipods often have them, but I realized last
time that my ipod seems to turn itself off after a minute or so. I'm
not worried about the quiet beeping noises of wristwatches. (In fact,
they may be kind of nice.) The rules are:
1) Each musician can play for up to 23 minutes. When you play is up to
you - just make sure your stop watch is running as you play.
2) We will get started at exactly 8pm and finish at exactly 10pm.
3) As a group, however, we need to make sure that the music
continuously happens for the entire 2 hours.

On Friday I will be sitting in with Frank Moore for his performance in Oakland.

Plastic is the future of Brass - The Vuvuzela

2010-11-25T09:43:00.000-08:00

I was pondering if the World Cup was a world class noise event and whether the plastic Vuvuzela is the future of brass performance. The sound of the world cup was either the sound of angry insects or a soothing drone. Depending on your perspective. I was amused by the plastic horn as weapon of mass insurrection. No play by play or color. no announcer re-stating what had happened. Just the harsh fog of angry plastic horns. Cheap, loud and endless. Wow! The convergence of marketing and conceptual art. Since no one has claimed the idea, I suppose it will be noted as a cultural fluke.

I am considering ways to integrate the subtle nuances of the Vuvuzela into the phog masheeen œuvre.

Luggage Store Drone, Boston in April!

2010-11-25T06:48:00.000-08:00

I have some travel in the offing....Luggage Store Gallery, San Francisco on 12-16-10 for Drone night, 12-17-10 in Oakland in the band for Frank Moore. On the topic of Frank Moore, he is a constant inspiration. When you see what he has achieved it permanently changes your perspective on what is possible. A perspective that cuts right through the whiney BS that people produce to excuse their lack of focus or motivation. And he has such a fine time doing it. Amazing!

A little down the road, there is a trip to Boston in the works for early April. That includes a talk with the title of: "The changing context of improvisation: unplayable instruments, disaster management and the safe handling of dry ice." More details as they become available.

Happy Thanksgiving! Don't operate heavy equipment after the L-Tryptophan kicks in.

Video from Jawbone Canyon, Duodenum Featured!

2010-11-10T22:21:00.000-08:00

A nice quiet close to the phog masheeen set at Jawbone canyon.

Jawbone Canyon Set up for your listening pleasure...

2010-11-07T06:50:00.000-08:00

The Jawbone Canyon Set us up Here.

This was a decidedly harsh set. I attribute this to going on after +DOG+.

The theme here seems to be "A fist full of Samples." One at a time is clearly not enough. Some delightful moments with the dry ice and some "lyrical" lines played on the Duodenum.

Gothenburg Sweden show up for your streaming pleasure!

2010-11-06T09:05:00.000-07:00

Another streaming set turned in to Gothenburg Sweden at Galleri 54 Placard.

The set is available at: http://www.archive.org/details/PhogMasheeenLePlacard5-11-2010

enjoy!

phog

Photos from Club Bit Map!

2010-10-27T06:31:00.001-07:00

Everyone loves to see Gear! We will start there. This pic is of Igor Amokian's set up on the two left tables and the third table on the right is Big Epoch's rig. Note that the blue, green and yellow drum pad toy also lit up when played!

Here is the view of Big Epoch's setup on the lower left.

I will note that Big Epoch is the master of the Kaos pad. To watch him run it is an education. Impressive!

Phog gear. Groove box, filter, fuzztone, mixer. Good for parking blunted beats over Philip Glass or Carl Orff. In the course of the evening tracks by Art Ensemble of Chicago, Miles Davis, Steve Reich and more were mixed with beats as break music. It is an homage to the the true pioneers that opened the door to the noisy life we lead. The mixes were done with the upmost respect. Really! This is not an ironic statement!

Dan from Clown's and Fetuses working the dance floor!

Epic!

Club Bit Map Recap, Link to recording.

2010-10-26T09:49:00.000-07:00

Last nights Club Bit Map at the Puka Bar in Long Beach has been recorded and is available for your listen pleasure HERE.

It features great sets by Igor Amokian and Big Epoch as well as a jam with Amokian, Epoch and phog masheeen.

Included is the dance lesson of how to do the new dance "The Buddah got a lap-band" also the costume contest and other mirth and merriment.

Video promo for Club Bit Map!

2010-10-19T15:25:00.000-07:00

Coming this Monday!

Club Bit Map! Circuit bent dance club!

Costume Contest with a Cash Prize! Dance lessons & Big fun!

Monday 10-25-10 8PM

Puka Bar, 710 Willow, Long Beach.

FREE FREE FREE

Next up, Jawbone Canyon...Vids from OCCCA....

2010-10-14T07:56:00.000-07:00

Jawbone Canyon in the beautiful Mojave is coming up on 10-22-10.

For those of you who like some adventure with your noise. This is an opportunity to camp and do all the desert entertainments.

Not for everyone, But it could be fun!

Here is Vid from the OCCCA show.

More OCCCA show....

New track up for your amusement and perusal!

2010-10-06T14:17:00.000-07:00

There is a New track up for your amusement and perusal!

Airlock is culled from the upcoming phog masheeen CD "23 Duets."

It is at the Santa Ana Noise festival page on Sound Cloud.

http://soundcloud.com/occca-noise-festival

Enjoy all the tracks from the performers!

This Saturday! Santa Ana & Bucharest!

2010-10-06T06:43:00.000-07:00

This Saturday is the OCCCA show I am thrilled to be on that bill with the who's who of the local noise scene!

I just got back from Chicago. Interesting town that Chicago. The temperatures were just starting to dip. The locals bleed anti-freeze when they are cut. I however, do not have the midwest attribute of being impervious to low temps. I bought a wool coat at a Goodwill to address the issue. Nice Coat, $12.06. It looks like it might have fed some moths along the way.

Onward....

phog

23 Seconds, OCCCA, Jawbone Canyon

2010-09-22T06:30:00.000-07:00

I got an invitation to participate in the 23 seconds project that is being produced by the Autonomous Individuals Network. I submitted a fresh track called "Vessel Sink" to them. It will be popping up soon on CD and Download.

October 9th is big with performances in Bucharest with Le Placard Headphone festival and at the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art in Santa Ana. The Santa Ana performance is their second annual noise night. The last one was rather memorable. It was orchestral in size and was a test of stamina.

Le Placard is a headphone festival that I like to participate in as often as I can. The process is to stream my performance to servers in Paris and then to Rumania. The feed from that festival is varied and entertaining.

The title of the Jawbone Canyon event is "COLD SNAKES WALK FREE FROM FIRE (JAWBONE IV)," This is a free event at a campground in the Mojave Desert. We are performing on Friday Oct. 22nd. Other performers include, The Deglet Noor Fakirs, Night at Noon, Swamplands, DOG, The Upside Down Face, COTA & Phaul. Another fine opportunity for Adventure and Experimental Music!

Club Bit Map is shaping up with Igor Imokian and guests lined up for your dancing pleasure. The beats and blips will be flowing, dance lessons and costume contest! October 25th at the Puka Bar in Fabulous Long Beach. As an added touch we will be floating the classic works of experimental music over extra custom grooves. So Pierre Henry may be layered with a semi-digested throb. Looking forward to that!

Club Bit Map

2010-09-10T11:37:00.000-07:00

I had a funny thing fall in my lap.

I received the opportunity to book a night at the Puka Bar!

So I decided to combine the drum machine culture and the cult of circuit bending into a dance club. Club Bit Map.

I am now recruiting Dancers to train the dance-phobic to move to noise.

The appeal of Club Bit Map is:

It is Monday night. (no competition)
It is a short 3 hour burst of dancing.
It is free
There will be trained professionals to show you how to dance to noise safely!
It could be fun!
Alcohol is available!

Talent is being contacted and promotion is beginning!

phog ... out

Soundwalk date change, Bucharest instead....

2010-09-09T18:37:00.000-07:00

Much to my chagrin the date was changed for the Soundwalk. They moved it up a week to the 2nd of October.

I will be in Chicago on the second. So no Soundwalk this year. I can devote my full evening to Noisefest 2 at the OCCCA (Orange County Center for Contemporary Art) on October 9th.

Just to fill out the day I booked a headphone fest for the afternoon. I will be playing at 4pm in Costa Mesa at the Coastal Lair Studio and streaming to Bucharest Rumainia where it will be 2AM. I will be done in plenty of time to drive to Santa Ana for the full event of Noisefest!

If you are interested in hearing the set on Le Placard check their site http://www.leplacard.org/2010/Bucarest%20Knotland%20two/

Gotta Run,

phog

Desert Experimental pic, video work and stuff...

2010-08-27T13:21:00.000-07:00

Skating the thin ice of non-diatonic music.

Seeking a moment of perfect clarity by playing three valves with one finger.

All while in the disassembled hangar at the Palms in Wonder Valley.

I have been working on props, scripting a video production and struggling to complete 23 Duets. I am going to seek some inspiration from Coffee.

I also want to put together a totally trimmed down set up for Soundwalk. Ultra portable and battery powered. More on that as it develops.

l8tr,

phog

Desert Experimental 3AM, no show at the Puka Bar...

2010-08-24T17:57:00.000-07:00

Desert Experimental was great in many different ways.

By the time we got on it was 3AM. I was glad it wasn't sunrise. We wouldn't have been able to see Bill's Videos. The set went well and we missed the lone heckler.

The lone heckler was the daytime bar tender at the Palms and voiced her opinions about every performer till about 2 AM when the bar closed and she went home. I missed much of her schtick but I was told she was relentless.

On Monday I went to the Puka Bar for noise night, however it didn't happen and the usual suspects arrived and loitered around and groused for a while then wondered off. As they say.... better luck next month.

We got accepted to the soundwalk for another thrilling year! The performances this year will be nomadic and will be announced on twitter. You can follow this mirth and merriment by following @phogmasheeen on twitter.

gotta run,

phog

Gearing up for Desert Experimental!

2010-08-12T08:12:00.000-07:00

We are gearing up for Desert Experimental out in Wonder Valley @ the Palms.

One good reason to attend this event is the Palms itself.

If we ever colonize another planet.....say Mars. If there is a bar there. And there will be a bar there.... it will look like the Palms.

The Palms is the bar at the end of the universe....a remote location for people who thrive on remote locations. You can camp on the site. An advantage since returning to your tent is nicer than a long drive. Any other location is a long drive.

If you need to leave a city or a suburb, the Palms is the way to do it. When you eventually return to whatever your situation is, things seem less precious and it seems easier to let things that seemed so important before..... go. Sometimes forever.

As the third stop for the "Arthroscopic Tourism" show we are frothing with excitement at another opportunity to trot this out to the Palms.

Dr. Kaplan has a new piece for her arsenal of percussion. A gift from the owner of the Sky Village Swapmeet in Yucca Valley, Bob. It is a mirror from one of the movie projectors. Polished steel to endure the heat from the arc-light in the projector. It is beautiful to see as well as hear. It makes a low gong-like sound that seems to sustain forever. It is an excellent addition to her collection of re-purposed percussion, a good amount of which was found at the Sky Village Swapmeet.

Video of Monday's show...

2010-07-28T07:01:00.000-07:00

A Big Thank You to Ken Huntington for filming Mondays show at the Puka Bar.

Puka Bar Wonderment! Great Sander Wolff article!

2010-07-27T08:40:00.000-07:00

The Puka Bar persists as one of the most enjoyable venues in Southern California. The Decor of the idealized island life and a bar tender that is waiting for her knees to heal to return to roller derby. It is a great combination!

There was a point in the show last night where I was charmed to death by the inland empire noise sensation Ralph Love as he deconstructed industrial rock with a great sound set of industrial samples. I love industrial rock so it was a trip down memory lane for me.

I did an interview with the Legendary Sander Wolff for the Long Beach Post.

The link is the word interview in the previous sentence and the cut and paste is below. The cut and paste is a little jumpy. The interview link is better and has video.

Phog Masheeen: Music Between The Cracks

by Sander Wolff | Culture Agent | 07.26.10 |

The Puka Bar, located at 710 W Willow, is presenting another installment of its First Mondays' Experimental Music Evenings tonight. One of tonight's performances will be by phog masheeen, fresh from a trek to the Bay Area for a series of shows.

Sander: How was San Francisco?

Phog: It was great! The Outsound New Music Summit starts with an event called "Touch the Gear" That happened Sunday the 18th at the Community Music Center on Capp St. in San Francisco. I flew myself and my gear up there to participate.

The Gear thing was amazing! Some really great ideas. The really informative part was watching other people use my gear.

Sander: What did you discover?

Phog: People hit all the buttons at once. and rather than subtle fading, they sweep the pots the full distance to see what it does. Some people play a sampler like a piano. amazing!

Phog: I am back down to collect the rest of the stuff, and Dr. Kaplan, and will head back up to SF to see the Thursday and Friday Shows and to perform on Saturday. Monday we are performing at the Puka Bar in Long Beach. There is some driving involved this week.

Sander: So, you left your gear up there?

Phog: Some. I am bringing up an aerophone that we call "the duodenum" that is more than I think the TSA could deal with. It is constructed from a Motorcycle exhaust pipe with a trumpet mouthpiece receiver in it. I am bringing a propane torch to warm the duodenum before massaging it with dry ice. Flying with that is a non-starter.

Sander: Aside from being cold, what does the dry ice do?

Phog: When the dry ice touches metal it boils. The difference in temperature between the ice and the metal determines how fast it boils. When dry ice boils the escaping gas vibrates the metal and the sound can be picked up with a contact mic. It works with the trumpet too. I don't use the propane on the trumpet, though.

The results are truly out of control. I can select the location of the noise that is produced, but it is very hard to say that I can control what that noise is. The whole process keeps me on my toes.

Also I use welding gloves to handle the dry ice. That adds an interesting spin to things as well.

Sander: And how does the propane come into this equation?

Phog: I use the torch to heat spots on the duodenum to provide nodes of heat on the metal. At that point I can use a strumming motion with the ice. I use the propane only to heat the metal.

Sander: I really do think you should fly with your gear, just to see what happens! (You've seen Midnight Express, right?)

Phog: I already get the little "you have been searched" pamphlets. I would need to be going somewhere really cool to push the envelope with the TSA.

One more thing about the TSA: They disassembled a rack of gear and they couldn't put it back together again. So they put it in grey buckets and sent it to the luggage carousel. Not a pretty sight to see. That was after a red-eye to Philly.

Sander: Let's talk, for a moment, about the 'Noise' genre. Do you feel that what you do is music, or is it a non-musical sonic experience? I ask because I feel that there are certainly components or elements of music in what you do.

Phog: I work in a variety of legit musical settings. I feel the noise/sound design genre offers an opportunity to communicate emotion without diatonic concerns, or beat. I consider it music between the cracks. Can I do it without chords, melody, and beat, and use texture and color to communicate [instead]? Painters can. I think musicians can, too.

Sander: That's why I struggle with 'noise' as a genre. I think it doesn't really do justice to the compositional, tonal, textural, and dynamic planning that goes into most performances.

Phog: I would agree with that with some performers. For some, NOISE is really all they want to do. I am fine with that. I think it is inspiring to see what people can do with simple means or clever manipulation of gear. I am totally unqualified to speak for any genre. However, in my work I appreciate the surprises of working in the moment. I think that the audience is aware of how far out on the plank you are, and that brings some excitement to the performance. In reference to doing justice to the tonal, textural, and dynamic planning: That may or may not apply to all performers.

Sander: There is a sense of play, of being completely in the moment, that seems to intrigue artists who work in experimental performance of one sort or another. Can you talk a bit more about that?

Phog: The play aspect is more evident for me in long form settings. We were at Torrance Art Museum a couple of weeks ago and we had five hours to fill with sound. At that point you are looking at your collaborators' ideas and seeing if there is a way to re-combine, or twist, their idea and take it in a different direction to fill the five hours. That is more playful.

In short form settings, say twenty minutes, I work to maintain focus and continuity. To maintain a story arc from one end of the performance to the other. I generally have some texture ideas at the outset but, if the plan isn't working, the plan goes. None of this "stay the course" crap. If my initial concept doesn't click right away, then I will go with no concept at all and see where that leads.

You can't do experimental music if you don't do experiments. Some of them fail. It is the way they fail that brings people to noise shows. It is like going to NASCAR to see the wrecks.

On to the Puka Bar Tonight!

2010-07-26T15:13:00.000-07:00

Tonight Puka Bar in Fabulous Long Beach! The second stop in the "Arthroscopic Tourism" tour.

We are on at 9:30 and Delighted to be there. It has been an action packed day so far. Getting back up to speed after our SF trip. Then we gear up for .......Desert Experimental in August!

Heading North again tomorrow....

2010-07-21T18:57:00.000-07:00

North, South, North

2010-07-20T20:29:00.000-07:00

The happy gear motivate throng at the Touch the Gear Event!

As we say stuff, stuff, stuff. The touch the gear event at the Outsound New Music Summit was AMAZING!

The reveling in the religions of tinkering, fabrication, signal path and the obscure was in full effect at the Community Music Center on Capp St.

A very convivial group of folks gathered to try out the various rigs that were presented.

I spent most of the evening introducing my signal path and showing people how to run it.

It was a very unique and fun event. I am glad I made it there!

Thanks Ken Rugg, Tam Recap. On To Outsound!

2010-07-14T06:39:00.000-07:00

Things are really rolling here at the Costal Lair.

The Torrance Art Museum show was a great success. Five seamless hours of performance.

I am thankful to be in such auspicious company with Eric Strauss and the Divine Brick Research team. We augmented the phog masheeen core group (William Almas, Dr. Kaplan) with Tim Fritch on Clarenet, shop-vac and bundt pan.

The Arthroscopic tourism Tour kicks off at the Outsound New Music Summit in San Francisco. We are thrilled to be a part of the Summit. I am flying up for the "Touch the Gear" portion of the Summit on Sunday July 18th. Where people can check out the performer's gear and try it out. Very Cool! Then we drive up on Thursday to see shows and to perform on Saturday the 24th.

Ken Rugg's video of Eric Strauss' piece at the Torrance Art Museum.

Torrance Art Museum Tomorrow 7/3/2010

2010-07-02T20:26:00.000-07:00

We were working on the final touches at the Museum today.

That room sounds Great! It is a great space to perform in.

I am humming with anticipation for tomorrow!

Torrancen Art Museum Tomorrow 7/3/2010

2010-07-02T06:29:00.000-07:00

TAM: On Saturday, July 3, 7 sound and media artists from Los Angeles and Orange County will collaborate on a five hour performance that explores the concepts of transition, interaction and improvisation. Incorporating both electronic and conventional instruments, light projections, and movement, the program will feature new works by Jose Juarez (DBRP), phog masheeen, Eric Strauss, and FLOOD.

Compositions will be presented as a continuous stream of interconnected events that will transform the Torrance Art Museum into a cooperative sound/media installation and minimal conceptual circus. This performance exhibition will be curated by the Long Beach group FLOOD who produces and curates SoundWalk, a one-night multi-media event dedicated to sound art.

WHAT: Sound Art Exhibition curated by FLOOD (Kamran Assadi, Frauke von der Horst, Shelley Rugg-Thorp, Shea M Gauer, Marco Schindelmann)

WHO: Jose Juarez (Divine Brick Research Project featuring:Aaron Moreno), phog masheeen, Eric Strauss and FLOOD (refer to artist bios below)

WHERE: Torrance Art Museum (TAM), 3320 Civic Center Drive, Torrance, CA 90503
(310) 618-6340

WHEN: Saturday, July 3^rd (11:00AM-5:00PM)

ADMISSION: Free PARKING: Free

The great work for Torrance Art Museum show continues!

2010-06-08T16:03:00.000-07:00

We are well into the process preparing for the Torrance Art Museum Show (7-3-2010).

I rehearsed with Eric Strauss and William Almas today. Video is being filmed and edited. Audio is being rehearsed. Circuitry is being tested and refined.

The process is being respected.

I am enjoying 9 beet stretch as I type. It is an enduring classic! I strongly recommend it!

NWEAMO App in, Work Continues on TAM show

2010-05-06T07:00:00.000-07:00

Well lets see, today I put in an app for NWEAMO 2010.

Work is continuing on the Torrance Art Museum show. Save the date 7-3-2010. It should be an interesting event!

Upcoming work. Looks like fun!

2010-04-10T19:52:00.000-07:00

I met today with other sound artists at the Torrance Art Museum (TAM) to see the space and consider the possibilities for collaboration. It was an exciting discussion. I am looking forward to seeing what comes of the collaboration. Some great ideas were batted around.

The event is curated by FLOOD who orchestrate the spectacular Soundwalk in Long Beach.

The Date for the event is July 3, 2010. Mark your calendar!

Monday night, in Long Beach!

2010-01-22T15:27:00.000-08:00

The phog masheeen experience is returning to the Puka Bar in Long Beach. This coming Monday Night (1-25-10) 8:00 PM. FREE!!!

We are rolling out mad new audio and visuals for this show!

It is a great line-up with a rare appearance of or-fun-aany!

Fun & FREE!!!

2010 Oh! My!

2010-01-03T06:58:00.000-08:00

Onward ever onward. A new year with a blue moon. I don't know what it signifies.

I was cruising around and found a great page on Sound Is Art referencing a field recording of a slide scanner. It sounds pretty cool. Other cool stuff on that site as well.

I completed my six night gig playing x-mas music. It was an instructive experience. Playing wind instruments in a cold, un-amplified, outdoor setting is a great teachable moment. I have an increased appreciation of the Salvation Army Bands now. The Salvation army can just ring bells between songs, we had to tell family friendly x-mas jokes. The jokes evolved to quiz questions with sugar products for prizes. We damaged alot of teeth this year with all that sugar.

On a different tip, a friend pointed me in the direction of Mnozil Brass they are a gifted lot. I am unsure of their history or whereabouts. But they do have that eastern european look and vibe.

I celebrated the winter holiday by preparing for taxes. With my nose in an excel spreadsheet. No "It's a wonderful life" for me.

But now we are onto 2010! A fresh start with a new decade! Cool!

An entertainment value!

2009-11-20T17:34:00.000-08:00

This is too good to not share.

phog

UEM at Redcat.

2009-11-02T12:20:00.000-08:00

I went to see UEM play the Redcat theater in LA last night.
They scored the gig I had been angling for. It was an interesting evening. This was the "Fall Studio" show. It is the Redcats quarterly outreach to the locals to present what they are working on. There were 6 different performers with a fifteen minute slot. The material presented stretched from far eastern traditional dance styles, to vaudville, to UEM.
For their slot Bill, Andy and Jasmine titled their piece The Typhoon, the rope and the slippers. It dealt with the events and aftermath of a receint typhoon. It was in three parts. Bill played the soprano sax in the third movement. Andy had a proliforation of Gongs in play and Jasmine gave a stirring performance of keeping your head above water and sucking in air. The loops looped. The gongs, gonged. It worked for me. Then I stardted looking at the crowd.
This was a different group than I am used to. With parking at $9.00 and the entrance at $12.00.
This was a different level of arts consumer. A bit more well heeled than I was used to. I am glad I went. I have a better idea of how to pitch this gig.
It was a cool show.
Uem is playing again tonight!

Lets talk about noisefest...

2009-10-20T13:03:00.000-07:00

I love the Norcal Noisefest! What a great set of shows!
Thanks to LOB for creating a way-cool event!
Sure there was the little glitch with the neighbor with the samaurai sword. Clearly he was put up to it by his nagging wife.
But setting that aside it was an outstanding gathering of the noise community.
After the Big City Orchestra performance closing out the event. A tea ritual with whistling teapots. Bobby from Liver Cancer said "After a weekend of anger and agression, it (the Big City Orchestra performance) was like a big warm hug!"

It was a great weekend!

phog

Placard Tonight, Noisefest next weekend!

2009-10-10T08:51:00.000-07:00

For those of you that missed Soundwalk 2009 there is much documentation on youtube.

Today I went on the Placard headphone fest site and found out that there is a headphone fest today!

I signed up to stream in at 10:10 pm from the "Coastal Lair" studio in fabulous Costa Mesa to the Festival in Dijon France.

You can find the address on the placard chat. Check it out if you have time.

Next weekend is the NorCal Noisefest! This is the premier noise event in the great state of California.

Bill and I are heading up to perform on Saturday afternoon (before the dinner break) if you are anywhere around Sacramento check it out!

Disney Hall and all...

2009-10-07T14:23:00.000-07:00

So I managed to perform at Disney Hall in Los Angeles on Sept. 26th. It was with the GYCB Jazz Combo.

A supersized combo to be sure.

I did remain standing for two choruses of "Song For My Father" by Horace Silver.

It was a moment.

phog

Soundwalk this coming Saturday 10-3-09

2009-09-29T10:31:00.000-07:00

Hey Ya'll,
This Saturday 10-3-09 is the annual Soundwalk in Long Beach.
Phog masheeen will be there projecting on a wall by the alley between Broadway and First St. on Linden Ave.
The Soundwalk starts at 5PM and Goes till 10PM. It is FREE!
I strongly recommend this event. More fun than is belivable for the cost of parking.
More info here:http://www.soundwalk.org/

CU There,

phog

2009-09-06T07:16:00.000-07:00

Desert Experimental Rocks the Wasteland!

Once again the Palms in Wonder Valley proves it self to be the most adaptable venue in the known world! Where else can you get the Desert songs of the Sibleys followed by the angry screeching of UEM! Amazing! And Wonderful!

As illustrated to the right, +DOG+ performed with the legendary Bobby!

Bobby also turned in an excellent set with the Duo Liver Cancer!

The weather was mild and the sets started around 4 pm.

A big thank you to Steve Davis for putting Desert experimental together. It was the best use of August in the desert that I know of!

2009-08-19T05:18:00.001-07:00

Desert Experimental, This Saturday 8-22-09, The Palms in Wonder Valley. Bring water, redbull, sunblock, liquor, guns and ammo (hmmm, not so much guns and ammo). Be ready to sleep where you lay down. There will be sun and heat in large quantities. Be Prepared! CU There!

North on Thursday...

2009-08-10T05:25:00.000-07:00

I am playing a festive gig at the Luggage Store Gallery in San Francisco on Thursday night. This promises to be a festive evening of experimental music. Here is the Description:

Thursday, Aug 13 2009 8:00 PM

Guest Curation by CJ Borosque
Intersections and connections:
The 8 ball evening: kicking off the series "BEHIND THE 8"
A show about making connections between artists of radically different musical traditions...
Phogmasheen (trumpet, FX)
Jim Kaiser (bicycle wheel)
CJ Borosque (trumpet, FX)
and Arachnid Arcade (noise FX)

The first set will be a duo between Arachnid Arcade and CJ Borosque. Two noise artists who have never shared the stage.
The music will be spontaneously composed and will be about 25 mins...
The second set will be an orchestra of never-played-together-before musicians.

The set will be 30 to 40 mins
and will be a meditation on a video that will be unveiled the night of the performance.
The musicians will provide an ambient noise score, to go with the film, that will be unrehearsed and unpredicted in outcomes, as radically different players from different tradition create music to accompany visual media they have never seen. Surprise is the name of the game.

If you are in the city, come on down!

1007 Market St.
@ 6th Street
San Francisco California 94103 USA

Thursday 8-13-09 8:00 PM $5.00

phog masheeen placard performance posted!

2009-07-27T09:27:00.000-07:00

The phog masheeen placard performance of 7-27-09 has been posted.

Look for it here:

http://www.archive.org/details/PhogMasheeenLePlacard27-07-2009

6 am in LA, 3 pm in Paris. It is good to get to work early!

Live at eVocal in Costa Mesa!

2009-06-30T05:23:00.000-07:00

Live at eVocal in Costa Mesa, Dr. Kaplan on percussion. Dig the Bundt pan!

Links to phog masheeen & Frank Moore and company Jam!

2009-06-25T07:29:00.000-07:00

I got this note from Linda Mac with links to a Jam I did in Berkeley with Frank, Erika and Jen.

I find that jamming with these folks will really get me to move off my dime and explore some new territory. I love their approach. Check it out if you have time.

phog

http://www.luver.com/podcasts/index.html

Show #94
Phog Masheen Jam

Featuring Phog Masheen, Erika Shaver-Nelson, Jen Wilson & Frank Moore.
Recorded November 16, 2008.

Listen: http://www.luver.net/podcasts/phogmasheeenjam-music.mp3
Photos: http://www.luver.com/underground/shamden_photos/phogmasheenjam111608/index.html

Placard Headphone fest, eVocal.

2009-06-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

I performed for Placard headphone fest in Toulouse, Pyrenees-Atlantiques - Aquitaine, France on Tuesday morning. It got off to a slow start as my brain was asleep. My set started at 6:00 am My time. Three in the afternoon their time. After the theramin break it has some moments. The link to the page is here.

Sunday was off to a ripping start at eVocal in Costa Mesa!

Dr. Kaplan was in the house with her spectacular collection of pots, pans and kitchen gear.

Igor Amokian documented my gear and some of the set.

2009-06-08T05:54:00.000-07:00

With prices like these, how can you not want to spend an evening at the Fabulous PUKA Bar in glittering Long Beach?

With a stunning line-up from all over Southern California (including the Valley), you, the discerning music aficionado of today should beat feet to this show!

Did I mention that it is free?!?

Ladies and Gentlemen....The Rotochime!!!!

2009-05-31T07:43:00.000-07:00

More gigs, all over the map

2009-05-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

I just signed up for another session with Le Placard headphone festival. These are great fun and I recommend them highly.
I am starting to wrap my brain around designing another web site. I may use the phog blog in the interim.
On June 21 I will be at E-vocal in Costa Mesa a for a noise fest put together by the Actuary people. On the 22 of June I will be at the Puka Bar in Long Beach. Then on Tuesday the 23 at 6AM I am doing the headphone festival in Toulouse, Pyrenees-Atlantiques - Aquitaine, France.

It should be an interesting run.

Gotta run,

phog

Public practice on Fools day!

2009-03-31T14:41:00.000-07:00

I will be at the Music Center in LA tomorrow. Practicing trumpet from 1:30 to 2:00 in the afternoon. It is part of Public Practice. It is a program at the music center for the public. Well, that's me! The public, and this is one way to play the music center. I am looking forward to it! I have my music for the OCC wind ensemble to brush up on. It will be fun!

Full Placard set available for your amusement and perusal!

2009-03-22T06:38:00.000-07:00

Greetings all,
I posted the phog masheeen set for placard headphone fest that was recorded yesterday 3-21-09.

Le Placard is a streaming festival where my contribution was streamed to CAHORS France to be enjoyed by the attendees there and people listening on the internet everywhere.

Now YOU can enjoy it too!

Port of Los Angeles

2009-03-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

Life in phog land was fun last night with a trip to the port for some recording.
You can dig the event here!

Breakfast show this Saturday, 7AM PDT

2009-03-18T14:58:00.000-07:00

Greetings all,
I am on for an hour set this coming Saturday at 7AM!
This nice long hour set will focus on the manipulation of toy samples.
Chatty toys.
If you want to check out the stream, log onto the placard chat and get the address.

NEUROTRONIC - PLACARD
March 21st at 7:00 AM PDT.
One hour set. Get the streaming address at Placard chat.

you can join the placard irc chat use any irc client

ex:
windows : mIRC
mac os9 : smircle
mac osx : conversation
linux: xchat, gaim, irssi

irc server : irc.leplacard.org

then just:
/join #placard

Take a picture, it lasts longer!

2009-03-13T12:37:00.000-07:00

In case you weren't chained to your computer and happened to miss the Friday March 13 dinner show. Here it is! In all of its flash video splendor!

Enjoy!

Phog

Streaming live video by Ustream

Streaming Event this Friday the 13th 6-7 PM

2009-03-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

The second installment of the Friday the 13th phog masheeen streaming audio and video occurs this Friday the 13th at 6PM.

the link is here:

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/phog-masheeen-live

Flying to DC tonight!

2008-10-03T08:09:00.000-07:00

I am heading to Washington DC tonight for the Sonic Circuits Festival.

I am thrilled to be heading to this event.

If you happen to be out that way phog masheeen performs around 4:30 at the Velvet Lounge.

Come on down!

phog

New phog masheeen CD, Survey of Brutality out now!

2008-01-11T09:07:00.001-08:00

The phog masheeen CD Survey of Brutality is out NOW!

Available from Itunes and CD Baby!

Molten brass poured over pulsing clipped beats. Social engineering and angry landlords pipe up from time to time and smoggy urban soundscapes round out this sparkling epic.