![]() ![]() The horns enter the fray, setting the musical tone. The intro features talking, abstract vocal snippets, echoes, a laughing woman and a man's laughter that sounds like it was sampled from a Scientist dub album. GLK serves as conductor of the band by utilizing his iPad to manipulate samples and sound effects during the show. This makes sense, given GLK's interest in obscure music (Klaus Weiss, Osanna) and his DJing gigs at Low End Theory and one of Cinespia's after-sunset screenings at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The band alternates between psychedelic hip-hop, West Coast jazz, trippy beats and cinematic moments. ![]() Other band members include: Amir Yaghmai (guitar) Gene Coye and Dexter Story (drums) Allkoi Pete and Andres Renteria (percussion) Jason Taylor (keys) Brian Martinez (bass) Elizabeth Lea (trombone) Tyler Randall (sitar) Tom Lea (viola) Tylana Rena (violin) and Peter Jacobson (cello). Tenor saxophonist Kamasi Washington - who appears on Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly album, recently released his debut album Epic and also worked as a member of Snoop Dogg's touring band - lends jazz credibility to the affair. The group of musicians assembled for The Gaslamp Killer Experience live concert is diverse and rather impressive. His DJ sets at SXSW and at London's Boiler Room are a good introduction to the GLK sound for those unfamiliar with "The Gaslamp Killer Experience." Another great collaboration, with the Amsterdam-based Afrobeat band Jungle by Night called Brass Sabbath (2013), takes inspiration from Black Sabbath, Turkish singer Selda and the Specials. The recent Kid Moxie and GLK collaboration titled “Museum Motel” fits into this soundscape. Original versions of several songs played during the live concert appeared on GLK's Breakthrough album (released by the Flying Lotus-founded Brainfeeder label). The darkness, echoes and reverb found in GLK's reworking of Iron Knowledge's blistering psych-funk anthem “Show Stopper” a few years ago constitute an important part of his aural aesthetic displayed in this concert. Knowing the backstory makes the listening experience even richer. In an interview, he described his hospital stay as nightmarish and absurd. He crashed while riding down a hill in L.A.'s Highland Park one night, and his heavy scooter landed on top of him. Recorded live at the Mayan Theatre in November 2013, the concert also marked a triumphant, resilient moment: the Gaslamp Killer (aka William Bensussen) had survived a near-fatal scooter accident a few months before. With his latest release, The Gaslamp Killer Experience: Live in Los Angeles, this imaginary child of Lucio Fulci and one of the Manson family women (with a bit of Frank Zappa's bluntness) completely flips the script by introducing a live audience to his contemporary big-band concept. His name comes courtesy of his experiences of “killing” dancefloors in San Diego's Gaslamp District, and his DJing work places him on the outskirts of territory occupied by Andy Votel, Cherrystones and Cut Chemist (and occasionally Egon). He's like a Navajo jacket-wearing, present-day Jewish member of the '60s Source Family cult, without the silly choir robes. ![]() Inherent moodiness, randomness and darkness create the zone for a wild mix of Argento-style horror, unforgiving, hermetically sealed Jodorowsky desert surrealism, and midnight California trippiness. The edgy dystopian soundscape of The Gaslamp Killer, the quintessentially West Coast producer and DJ known for dark psychedelic rock and hip-hop beats, seems like the coolest soundtrack possible to an incessant nightmare. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |