Created by Bang On A Can, New York City’s Asphalt Orchestra is Bang On A Can’s street band. A 12 piece ensemble of brass and percussion, Asphalt Orchestra brings together “odd meters, virtuosic playing, and general tech-dorkery under the vibrant, visceral auspices of totally fun street performance” re-imagining the marching band, drawing their repertoire from rock, jazz and classical. Their self-titled debut (out this month via Cantaloupe) attempts covers of Frank Zappa, Björk, frenetic Balkan jazzer Goran Bregovic, tech-metal kings Meshuggah, and NYC’s own Tyondai Braxton of Battles.
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Month: August 2010
Best FZ Covers: Orchestra Percussion
A beautiful arrangement by Orchestra Percussion, the actual concert was in Meyzieu, France, november 2009 – I especially love the extreme slow tempo. Like this? You might also want to see RDNZL, Let’s Make The Water Turn Black, We Are Not Alone, or Peaches!
Holiday in Berlin e ancora Zappa
Spotlight, Swedish TV, 1971
While in Stockholm, Sweden on December 4th, 1971 during a short European tour, Frank Zappa and The Mothers appeared on the Swedish TV show entitled “Spotlight“. The 34 minute broadcast had interviews with Zappa mingled with music clips from 200 Motels [“This Won’t Take Long”, “The Final Solution”, “Centerville”] and included performances of “The Air”, “Dog Breath”, “Mother People”, “You Didn’t Try To Call Me”, “King Kong”, and “Who Are The Brain Police?” from Palais Gaumont, Paris, France on December 15th, 1970.
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Zappa & Zin
Next August 24, The Ed Palermo Big Band will be playing at the City Winery, which is cool because they’re one of the superior FZ tributes out there IMHO — but there’s a twist:
As the night progresses we will find opportunities to pair Zappa tunes with a selection of world-class wines that pair with the different period and themes of Frank’s career. The wine focus of this educational and entertaining night will be Zinfandel, a truly original American wine with its roots in the Old World, but a product of the hard work of immigrants, just as Zappa created a truly unique and original sound from his humble beginnings.
Cute, though I’d personally prefer a beer themed venue: a nice Duvel to kick things off with Titties ‘n Beer, a lovely Grimbergen to go with Cruisin’ For Burgers perhaps — oh the possibilities!
Frank Zappa – Sleeping In A Jar (Animated)
This piece of early animation set to “Sleeping In A Jar” excerpted from the Swedish TV program ‘Spotlight: Stockholm, Sweden‘ originally broadcast on December 4, 1971, begins and ends with Frank Zappa’s commentary on the possibility of the merging of music and animation mediums in advertising. Given the date, era and technology, it is truly amazing how much of a witting futurist Zappa was with MTV and music videos another ten years away, and the advent of the Internet and the World Wide Web another ten years after that.
Beefheart Cover from Hamamatsu, Japan
Just when I thought I couldn’t be pleasantly surprised by anything posted on YouTube lately, I came across the following two Japanese Indie Bands, Blood Pees with their cover of Don Van Vliet’s “I’m Glad” and New Roman Chitose‘s “PV Volume One” (performed with pole dancers):
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