We Here & Now – Weirdo Shrine

4 August 2023

Review + Q&A: Ivan The Tolerable – Ritual In Transfigured Time (2023, Echodelick Records, Worst Bassist Records, We Here & Now, Ramble Records)

As sure as the sun goes up in the morning and the Dutch weather is unpredictable, Ivan The Tolerable will be releasing record on a regular basis, and they continue to be worth your while. For his new recordings he once more asked his old King Champion Sounds bandmates Elsa van der Linden and Mees Siderius to participate and the result is Ritual In Transfigured Time, an eclectic amalgamation of kraut, post rock, weird folk, and free jazz.

In each track we are presented with a different kind of ritual, be it a quiet little personal rite, or a communal shamanic weather dance. A song like The Spiritualist for instance harks back to the days of Cluster and Harmonia, and feels like an invitation for a meditation. While the next song could be dark electro jazzer Statues-Bodies that will make your earthly vessel move itself around the floor in moody psychedelic shuffles. Across The Room could be a latter day Radiohead track if Thom Yorke fired his entire band and replaced them with glockenspiel players. More atmospheric songs like String To Ball, Another Veil, and album closer Ritual In The Hall even take you to entirely different places, as if we were being lifted from our seat and transported to the setting of the movie The Man Who Would Be King, following Sean Connery and Michael Caine in their weird journey through Asia and encountering many otherworldly customs and rituals.

Every song is a little ritual on its own, and each one will make you do, think, or feel something else. If you, like me, have been following Oli Heffernan and his tolerable alter ego for a while now you might not be as surprised as you could be. Still each new release presents new mental images, new weird twists in the Ivan spectrum, new musical approaches and insights. Each album is a new treasure chest to discover, and I am glad that I am in possession of the pirate map to find them every time.

New single: Into The Ocean

Once again I caught up with Oli Heffernan and talked about this slice of life he is living on at this very moment. This time, as was the last time, and probably the next time is a pleasure. We make it a ritual to keep up with Ivan The Tolerable as Oli continues to explore the time space and sound continuum, as it feels like a good and healthy thing to do. So let’s get cracking, shall we?

Hi Oli! It feels like we just spoke and yet here we are again for a new album. How have you been!

All good thanks pal. Usual drill. Working, making records, sleeping a bit. I’m very much a creature of habit….been playing bass with a band called All Structures Align (ex-Nub members, Wrong Speed Records, 3rd LP out soon!) for a change of scene and that’s been fun! I sometimes get a bit stuck in my own head so its good to just get out of the house and do something else every so often.

What was the best thing that happened to you this year so far?

I’ve done some good gigs, had some nice food and been to some nice places but going to ATA Records Studio in Leeds to record a new album with Neil Innes (Work Money Death) was deffo a highlight! What a place! So much incredible gear that he just let us use, we made a double LP which will be out next year – it sounds amazing. The only time I’ve ever enjoyed being in a proper studio – we did it as a trio all in the same room together – a really great experience! More on that in 2024 though!

What can you tell me about the making of Ritual In Transfigured Time? Was it long distance or were you, Mees and Elsa in the same room?

We made it long distance as is our way. We rarely get to see each other since the band we were in together (King Champion Sounds) wound down but we do as much as we can via email. It would be nice to do one and in the same room again someday but this works just fine! We did it over the Christmas break last year and it came together really quickly. I’d been talking to Jim Putnam (Radar Brothers) who I’d worked with in the past and he told me he’d been studying the trumpet so I got him involved too! Then Ajay mixed it and it was done. Nice and Easy!

What was your aim while making it? Or perhaps you had a certain idea or mood throughout?

I rarely have an aim. I just start recording and see what happens. I don’t spend a great amount of time on anything really, I prefer music to just be more like a photograph – capture a moment and then move on. I get bored if I have to redo things or fine tune stuff. Whatever happens happens. There are no such things as mistakes.

What was the best thing you watched on TV lately?

I watch A LOT of TV! I really enjoyed season one of The Bear – season 2 is due out this week over here in England so that’s on my list! Succession was phenomenal. Probably the best TV show ever. New season of Black Mirror is a return to form, especially the Space episode. That’s the main ones that come to mind. I watch all the bleak Scandinavian police stuff too, they are always solid…

..and the best thing you listened to?

Top 5 records I’ve been enjoying lately are You Loved Me by Patty Waters, Since Time Is Gravity by Natural Information Society, Travel by The Necks, Comradely Objects by Horse Lords and Akhenaten by Nat Birchall – there are a million more! But those are this week’s top 5! Check em out.

What can you tell me about your extra curricular activities? There are several bands next to Ivan The Tolerable that you are involved in, right?

I mainly just do Ivan in its various iterations these days, but I’ve been playing with All Structures Align a lot lately and that’s been fun – there is talk of a new University Challenged album this year but we shall see if schedules line up. I always threaten to make another Detective Instinct album but I dunno . That’s about it really – I have a full time job, plus making 5 Ivan albums a year is another full time job! if only time were infinite!

What can we expect from you for the rest of this year?

All going to plan, there was a 7″ out last week, then after Ritual is out next month, there will be another new LP in November. There are a couple of labels that will be doing proper LP releases of some of my out of print albums, the ones that scalpers sell on discogs for daft money – so I’m putting a stop to that – the first couple of them will be out later this year and continue throughout next year. And then there are NEXT YEAR’S new LPs – 2 are done and with labels ready to go already. I always think 10 steps ahead, it’s the only way I can operate. If I was a rich man I’d GLADLY pay someone to do all my social media stuff for me, I HATE That side of things – its just draining. So if anyone wants to do all that for me for no money, I’ll gladly pay them in records!

What should the Weirdo Shrine reader do after reading this interview?

Go and have a pint in the sun. It’ll soon be winter.

2 August 20232 August 2023

Review + Q&A Chela – Diagonal Drift (2023, Echodelick, Worst Bassist, Ramble Records, We, Here & Now)

Let’s start off by stating that Chela is NOT a secret recording of extra terrestrial activity. We have researched this assumption and found out that in fact two earthlings, one Dutch resident by the name of Ajay Saggar, and one Japanese resident by the name of Kohhei Matsuda are the individuals responsible for it. You’ll have to forgive us the confusion though, as Diagonal Drift by their alias Chela is one of the most otherworldly, or even outer-worldly musical experiences we had this year…

Taking their impressive musical explorers’ career from their steady outlets Bhajan Bhoy and Bo Ningen into account, it is not so strange that this music would lean towards the progressive or avantgarde, but I can assure you there is still little that can prepare you for the utter strangeness of Chela and their Diagonal Drift. At times they sound like they emulate two gigantic space ships in the cosmos, at other times they show a more human side with rambling pianos and searchlight synthesisers. One thing is guaranteed though; it never becomes dull or ordinary for even a millisecond.

It is not quite clear what the purpose of the whole exercise is, other than to absolutely confound us and to show us the sounds the human race can produce when they are able to open their third eye and dive deeply into the cosmos. I bet though, if the people at SETI got a load of this album and would fire it into space they would get finally get an interesting conversation going. Because at the very least, Diagonal Drift is an interesting conversation starter…

Straight out of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, I talked to 50% of the Chela duo, being mr Bhajan Bhoy himself; Ajay Saggar. The other half, Bo Ningen guitarist Kohei Matsuda is represented by him as we talk about the new collab album, and loads of other topics as well.

How are you? What was the last thing you wondered about?

The last thing I wondered about was when would it be possible for independent musicians from Europe to tour in the UK and in the USA again without all the stress and costly bureaucracy.

Can you introduce yourself and your multiple musical projects?

My name is Ajay and I have been making music for most of my life. I started in bands at school and then played in hobby bands whilst at university. After university (in England) I played in a band called Dandelion Adventure (whom John Peel loved…and he gave us a session). Since then I have had groups (in Holland) like Donkey, The Bent Moustache, King Champion Sounds, Deutsche Ashram. Nowadays I am busy with Bhajan Bhoy, Chela, University Challenged, and Volksempfänger.

What can you tell me about your musical background?

I started listening to the John Peel show in 1976 (when my family moved from Kenya to England). I bought my first 7 inch single in 1977 (The Stranglers / “No More Heroes”) my first album in 1978 (The Stranglers / “Black + White”) and attended my first show the same year (The Stranglers). Since then I’ve been a complete music fiend buying tons of records, attending hundreds of shows, and basically having my life dictated by music. My all time favourite group are The Fall. I seriously started to play in band after I left university and was on the dole with the group Dandelion Adventure (I lived in Manchester, and the group was from Preston, Lancashire). Since then I have constantly been playing / making music and releasing a ton of records and playing shows. My tastes in music are incredibly broad….psychedelia, punk rock, dub+reggae, jazz / free jazz / spiritual jazz, electronica, folk, world music, drone, ambient, experimental, etc etc etc. I do a radio show on Radio WORM and also a monthly musical podcast (https://www.mixcloud.com/ajaysaggar/).

What does a regular day in your life look like?

Get up early, go to Paradiso (where I work), come home and cook for the family, then spend the whole evening in my studio working on music. If I dont go into Paradiso, then I will spend the whole day and evening working in my studio.

What is the best thing about the new Chela album?

I love how this Chela album turned out to be so adventurous and unpredictable….and utterly engaging to listen to.

What can you tell me about the collaboration between you and Kohei Matsuda?

Kohhei and I have been friends for many years and we enjoy each others company and also making music together. We have played many duo shows together in the past, and I suggested to him that we should finally commit to making an album together….which he was also very keen to do. We had recorded together previously, but then with a third member…Oli Heffernan….under the name University Challenged. This time we did it with just the two of us. The recording process was organic and inspired. I collected everything we had done, and then set about spending several weeks in my studio editing, mixing and producing the whole thing. Kohhei listened to the stuff I had done and really loved it. We made minor adjustments and then got it mastered.

When the album had been recorded, it was a case of deciding whether we should release it with our names on it or a group name. We chose for the latter. I suggested CHELA….Chela means disciple in Hindi and claw in Japanese……our cultures and ethnic backgrounds crossing nicely.

Where do you live and what is the environment like for musicians like you?

I live in a small town north of Amsterdam called Krommenie. I like it here as I have my home and studio nearby…and so working and focusing on music is easy for me. With regards to playing opportunities, we have a cultural centre called De Groote Weiver, where people are able to organise concerts themselves and perform themselves…..thats pretty unique. Most people however gravitate towards Amsterdam (15kms away) which is understandable.

Which contemporary musicians do you look up to?

Wow….there are soooo many! I wouldn’t be doing justice to the hundreds of musicians I admire who are plying their trade for the sole purpose of making great art. But here are a few….Billy Hart, Bill Orcutt, Annea Lockwood, Steve Gunn, Julia Reidy, Marta Warelis, Chris Corsano, Jeffrey Alexander, Myriam Gendron, Matthew J Rolin, Han Bennink, Ab Baars, Gayle Brogan.

Can you tell me about how you go about composing and recording songs?

Hahaha….the ultimate question. I go to my studio, I make a huge pot of tea, I put on an LP and listen to some music, I fire up all the speakers and amps and microphones and synths and equipment, and then when I’m ready, I will sit down and start playing.

What are your immediate and long term future plans?

In 2023, I will release 5 LPs. 3 LPs from Bhajan Bhoy (2 of which were released in March 2023, and another one will come out in October 2023), 1 LP from Chela (release date is late July / early August) and 1 LP from Volksempfänger (out in November). I have produced 2 albums for Ivan The Tolerable this year, one for Kurios Oranj, and another for Humph. I am busy recording new material for Bhajan Bhoy and also for University Challenged. And I plan to continue playing shows near and far if people invite me (I have no booking agent and so book everything myself).

What should the Weirdo Shrine reader do after reading this interview?

I suggest your readers check out these Bandcamp pages :

https://chela1.bandcamp.com/album/diagonal-drift

https://bhajanbhoy.bandcamp.com

29 July 2023

Review + Q&A: Blue Rumble – Blue Lightning/Abrasas EP (Echodelick Records, Ramble Records, We, Here & Now)

Man, Blue Rumble would have been BIG in the late 60s/early 70s. Their style of improvised acid rock would resonated big time with the flower power crowd, but also with the generation that came after, wanting their rock as lysergic but heavier resulting in Black Sabbath, Leaf Hound, Blue Cheer, and the likes. Blue Rumble wanted to be a part of that scene, they don’t disguise it, even their moniker gives it away. And to be fair, they would have rocked it back then.

But hey; they are rocking it right now, and we all still love to be taken on a trip like this. Wandering guitar solos, John Bonham inspired thundering drums, beautifully rumbling bass lines, and an organ that hits all the right places. It is all there, and Blue Rumble plays it from the heart, lives it, breathes it. Not just emulating things from the past, but creating their own.

The biggest compliment perhaps for an instrumental jam band like Blue Rumble is that you would almost forget that they are. The vocals are hardly missed when the music is constantly taking you to interesting places with so much to see and hear. If you didn’t know of them before, you know now, and this vinyl EP is an excellent way to get acquainted.

I talked to the band and guitarist Andrea Gelardini, and bassist Sebastien Metens responded. This is the introduction to their band, of which no doubt we will hear plenty more in the future. Let’s dive into the world of Blue Rumble!

How are you? How has the pandemic period been for Blue Rumble?

Andrea: We’re doing well, during the pandemic like many people we suddenly had more time than usual on our hands, and that’s when we recorded our debut LP. So, in a sense, we made the best of that free time.

Sebastien: We would have been a remote band regardless of the pandemic–given that all of us live in different countries–so COVID didn’t affect us in the way it would have done for a more conventional band. We didn’t have any gigs planned, so there was no issue on that front.

Can you introduce the band, and how did you meet, etc?

Andrea: I’m Andrea, the guitarist, I’m from Italy. Sebastien plays bass and is from Luxembourg. Ronaldo plays keyboards and is from Brazil. Harry, is our drummer and is American. Living on different continents means we record our music remotely, we haven’t actually met in person but only through video-calls. The idea of starting the band came to Ronaldo and me while discussing our musical influences. We noticed we like the same things in music, and decided to look for like-minded band mates.

Sebastien: Andrea and I have known each other online for quite a few years now–the early 2010s, if I remember correctly. We met through the music platform last[.]fm and started exchanging messages after finding that our tastes coincided. In the intervening years we started a band (again remote) called Occhio e Croce, with Andrea on guitar and me on drums and bass. One of Andrea’s friends also contributed keyboards on some tracks. The songs weren’t terribly good in retrospect, particularly because I would lay down the drums without listening to an accompanying guitar track; this meant that I would speed up or slow down unintentionally, having no reference tempo on which to base my playing. We re-recorded (properly, this time) one of the songs from that period with Blue Rumble; you can find it on our LP as the song “Occhio e Croce”. I met Andrea in Rome in around 2015 and we had a short jam session in a studio. Fast-forwarding to the formation of Blue Rumble and Andrea contacted me when the band were in the middle of recording “Occhio e Croce”, asking me if I’d like to play bass on the track. I did and I stayed on, relieving Ronaldo of having to record both keyboards and bass going forward.

What can you tell me about your musical backgrounds?

Andrea: I come from classic rock, when I was very young I fell in love with the music of Led Zeppelin and the Jimi Hendrix Experience; the intensity, passion and sheer musical genius is what caught my interest in these two bands. From then over the years I’ve been listening to all kinds of music and I’ve been expanding my horizons. Progressive rock, psychedelic rock, folk, blues and jazz are genres I often listen to; with an ear always open for unusual sounds and underground oddities.

Sebastien: Although I listened to classic rock when I was a child–I remember in particular listening to mixtapes of Deep Purple albums on my Walkman cassette player during long car journeys–it wasn’t until I was about 19/20 years old when I really fell in love with music. Seeing footage of Led Zeppelin playing “We’re Gonna Groove” at the Royal Albert Hall in 1970 struck a chord with me–in particular Bonham’s drumming. Listening to Black Sabbath‘s first album all the way through for the first time was another pivotal moment: I had never heard such a heavy sound whilst still exhibiting blues and jazz underpinnings. I got my first (and only) drum kit shortly after that, but I only had the opportunity to practise regularly starting from 2010. I considered the drums my main instrument, playing bass only when Andrea and I needed a bass track for one of our Occhio e Croce songs. It was when I was given the opportunity to join Blue Rumble that I took my bass-playing more seriously. In fact, I don’t currently have the space for my drum kit, so I don’t play drums anymore.

What can you tell me about the current vinyl release on We Here Now/Echodelick/Ramble Records?

Andrea: The vinyl release of our upcoming EP is set for July 28th. We’re stoked to be part of this team of wonderful people who showed interest in getting our music out there. Really looking forward to release day!

Sebastien: The EP on Echodelick consists of four tracks: there are two songs from our digital single release and two taken from our self-titled, privately-pressed LP. The former pair, “Brasas” and “Blue Lightning”, haven’t had a vinyl release until now.

Who are some contemporary musical heroes of yours?

Andrea: Some of my favorite contemporary artists are Kevin Parker, Jack White, and Sven Wunder. In the past few decades there have been bands/artists who influenced me as a guitarist, I’m a big fan of the work of Surprise Chef, Soft Power, The Strokes, Radio Moscow and many more. Although I would say I’m more grounded in the 60s/70s music-wise, I still enjoy plenty of modern artists.

Sebastien: I don’t listen to modern artists very often these days. That said, Paul Marrone (Cosmic Wheels/Radio Moscow/Psciomagia/Birth/Pazzo/etc.) was a big influence on me throughout the years, as was his brother Vincent (when they were in a band together called Cosmic Wheels). Both very talented musicians and songwriters. I like what’s coming out of the San Diego area in terms of progressive rock, and that’s usually where I go looking when I want to find a new (modern) band to listen to.

Can you tell me about how you go about composing and recording songs?

Sebastien: One of us–usually Andrea, Ronaldo, or me lays down an initial, rough track. The other band members then add their tracks on top in succession, generally at home, using their own DAW software. This method of recording involves a lot of sharing of files, as you can imagine. Harry, the drummer, adds extra percussion–in addition to his main drum track–as the very last step for some songs. When we’re satisfied, we send off all the individual tracks to our producer, who works his magic.

What are your immediate and long term future plans?

Sebastien: We have several new songs worked out; it’s just a matter of each of us finding the time to record. Currently, we’re in the middle of working on one of my compositions