The NOWnow label releases music by musicians active in Australia's new improvised music scene, and is closely related to the NOWnow festival which rocks Sydney every January.
http://www.thenownow.net

Clare Cooper - gut

CD from the NOW now (CD003)

"Amazing, subtly brain-dazzling set of improvisation across the harp and guzheng from this Australian lightbulb that references a bunch of previously articulated improvisatory tangents without nailing its colours to any particular tree. Moves from weird revenant ghost shapes through to huge fields of subtly-discharged vibration. Not often you hear a voice as startlingly new as this""her first solo disc - Gut - maybe it hit at the right personally, but damn if it isn't fantastic; a killer surprise. Right there, while drinking morning coffee and throwing a jam on from "the pile," I decided on the spot that this album was a platform on top of which I could spin around my vague issues about "improvisation" at the time in Autumn '05. The first time through, what had truly struck me wasn't the music itself (don't get me wrong — the sounds were what sat me down on the couch initially, instead of cleaning the kitchen) but its basic formal qualities — a frackin' "solo improv CD" clocking in at around LP length — forty minutes or so, with an attention to sequencing that seems more akin to the usual "narrative" song-based concerns than whatever the "usual" approach towards a solo improv CD is. Which isn't to say that the content itself is fancily typical harping gestures with some sharp angles; as the liners note "explorations in grit, texture and time" — maybe Joanna Newsom meets Organum (except without Joanna Newsom). Maybe Organum meets Clare Cooper (except without Organum). C. Spencer Yeh of Burning Star Core's VT column Jazzweekly.com review

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Artery: Jon Rose / Chris Abrahams / Clayton Thomas - Artery

CD from the NOW now (NNCD002)

"Violin, double bass, forte piano and harpsichord shouldn't sound quite so evil. An hour of powerful string action from 3 of Australia's most intense acoustic musicians - exploring the harmonic world that existed before equal temperament - Artery is a deep textural barrage of detail and quick fire communication. "Jazzword Review here

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the splinter orchestra / Martin Ng / Anthony Pateras / Oren Ambarchi / Jon Rose / Jim Denley / Peter Blamey / Clayton Thomas / Clare Cooper / Scott Horscroft / Phil Slater / Ortez Funeral Directors (NZ) / Cor Fuhler / Mike Cooper / lots more - the NOW now 2003 excerpts & the Splinter Orchestra 2CD

CD from the NOW now (NNCD001)

NNCD001 VARIOUS The NOW now, excerpts & orchestra 2CD A snapshot of the 2nd annual NOW now festival in Sydney, 2003 - excerpts comprises 13 pieces featuring Australia's most committed improvisers and electronic musicians. Music by local uber stars, Martin Ng, Anthony Pateras, Oren Ambarchi, Jon Rose, Jim Denley, Peter Blamey, Scott Horscroft, Phil Slater and international travellers - the Ortez Funeral Directors (NZ), Cor Fuhler and Mike Cooper included. Disk two features the Splinter Orchestra - over 30 musicians - comprising nearly every performer in the festival, playing an intensely subtle 30 minute composition by Adam Sussmann at the old Space3 Gallery warehouse, Sydney.

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