Alan Licht – A New York Minute
November 12th, 2009
Working since the 1980s as an author for such mags as Forced Exposure, Halana, The Wire and many more; and player in outfits like Run On, Love Child, The Pacific Ocean, Text of Light, plus collaborations with dozens of avant musicans; Alan Licht occupies a front and center spot in the realm of left field New York music. A New York Minute is a two-for-the-price-of-one double CD set of experimental minimal works released in 2003. It all kicks off with the John Cage-inspired title track, which consists of a lengthy series of cut-up weather reports that eventually give way to ambient field recordings from a crowded subway station. “Freaky Friday” could easily put the most hyperactive kid into a trance. It’s exactly the kind of 20-minute-long plume full of mellow, repetitive guitar picking that you just don’t want to end. “Muhammed Ali and the Crickets” layers field recordings of said insects with blasts of fast-paced punk rock and African music for strange sonic brew with an exceptionally odd taste. “Another Sky” closes disc one with a delicious seven-layer burrito of shrill, multi-tracked synth drones.
No Comments » | 
Alan Licht | 
Permalink
Posted by Arcane Candy