Random Mini Review #01

(I thought it might be fun to open my media player, set it to random play, and write a short review of whatever song comes on, no matter what it is. Maybe I'll do this once a week or so. Might be an interesting experiment.)

Song: "Aum/Venus/Capricorn Rising"
Artist: Pharoah Sanders
Album: Tauhid

Drums then sax rising like a rocketship, fighting the jealous grip of gravity, and breaking free with ear-bleeding passion. The aural trip races through pulsars and asteroids with increasing tension and terror until ... everything relaxes, falls into a gentle orbit around a soothing bassline; the coolest of horn and piano (from when cool meant cool, before the West Coast, easy-listening "jazz" players got ahold of it) leads us to the softest of landings, and the song ends.

Interviewed on "Destination Out"

Mike Johnston, host of the great experimental jazz program "Destination Out" on WCMU Public Radio and bassist for Faruq Z. Bey & The Northwoods Improvisers, called me the other day for an interview and to have me read some poetry for his show.

The interview will air as part of his next broadcast, Sunday, November 16; 11:00 pm (Eastern Time).

If you are in mid- or northern Michigan or the Algoma District of Ontario, you can tune in on one of these stations:

89.5 Mt. Pleasant
90.1 Bay City
91.7 Alpena
95.7 Oscoda
96.9 Standish
98.3 Sault Ste. Marie
103.9 Harbor Springs

Otherwise, you can listen to it online here: http://wcmu.org/radio/listenlivepage.html

We discuss the link between jazz and poetry, current politics, and I read several pieces from both The Moon Cracks Open: A Field Guide to the Birds and Jihad bil Qalam: To Strive by Means of the Pen.