vocal, instrumental, or mechanical sounds that reflect the general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era
Artist Profile: Joseph A. Peragine
Music Zeitgeist recently discovered the music of Ohio artist Joseph A. Peragine. The self-produced multi-instrumentalist creates gorgeous and urgent evolving songs that summon up the best that the first wave of early 90’s independent alternative music had to offer. This is not a slight - it was a golden age for musical experimentation and the music landscape would do well to remember the undercurrents that have slowly become annexed by the bands that claimed the game prize.
His angelic and beautifully rendered vocals aside, Peragine evokes everything from Jesus Lizard, His Name Is Alive and King Crimson to Smashing Pumpkins and Fred Frith. But it isn’t limited to post-prog innovators; his track “Perspectives of Then and Now Saved… Metamorphosis Engraved/Rewind” from his album The Acoustic Diaries is a holographic dream of amazing sampling, tape-playback, acoustic/vocal singing and songwriting that instantly bypasses all your defense mechanisms and leaves you staring a thousand yards beyond the twilight out the grimy window of whatever little box you live in and contemplating those seemingly significant moments of your life that you can still manage to surrender from fading memory.
Music Zeitgeist had an opportunity to ask the artist some personal questions:
Music Zeitgeist: Who?
My name Is Joseph A. Peragine
What?
I am an Indie/Experimental Solo artist who writes my music about my personal struggles with paranoid Schizophrenia.
Why?
I want to eliminate all of the negative stigmas associated with my illness and show the world that there is recovery.
Until when?
As long as I am mentally and physically able to create music and spread my positive message I will do so.
And then?
Hopefully I can leave some type of positive impact in the world of music and mental health.
Instrumentation
Joseph A. Peragine: Guitar, Bass, Vocals, Drums, Percussion, Sampling
Discography
“The Acoustic Diaries” (Oct. 2004)
“Self Medication…Poems of Alienation” (Nov. 2006)
http://www.josephaperagine.com
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Kevin Shields, quoted in the January 2007 edition of NME stated: “I do feel that I will make another great record. We are 100 per cent going to make another My Bloody Valentine record unless we die or something.” Well don’t all artist hope and believe that, but how many do? To put this in context, MBV’s last record “Loveless” was released in 1991. The album took over two years to complete, and cost well over $100,000.00, bankrupting the band’s label. The next we heard from them was Kevin Shield’s original contributions to Sofia Coppolla’s “Lost In Translation” soundtrack.
For those of us who were permanently transformed/ruined by our first listen to Loveless, fifteen years is a long time to hold your breath. I have found the strangest things to tide me over in the meantime: live MBV concerts in PAL format that I bought on the streets of Chile. I staked out an indie concert in LA a few years ago listing Kevin Shields as the headliner only to discover that it was the name of a band that made noise-core in tribute to their heroes. I repeatedly cite them in interviews as a fundamental influence in all of my musical output, not so much in an auditory sense as in one that is philosophic. The other day, when LA’s Indie 103.1 radio played “Only Shallow” I nearly crashed my car. Despite the fact that people invoke the holy name of MBV as an influence the way film students cite Tarkovsky, catching direct glimpses of the band in the popular market is not unlike spotting Bigfoot in Yellowstone.
But now that is changing. My Bloody Valentine is set to headline the All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival in upstate New York the week of September 20th. The event will be “curated” by Kevin Shields himself, which means the lineup will astound and amaze and likely irrevocably transform a small legion of young listeners and aspiring indie music mavericks spawning a new generation of John Cage-minded experiments. According to The Daily Swarm the band’s long-time booking agent Frank Riley has confirmed that after a brief European tour, the reformed group will launch a U.S. tour, stopping at 6-8 cities.
In NME Shields went on to say “I’d feel really bad if I didn’t make another record. Like, ‘Shit, people only got the first two chapters, but the last bit is the best bit’.” Lord knows the indie world, the music world, needs an injection - despite the massive upsurge of indie output and its availability, the music is reflecting back on itself in a weird self-parodizing manner that threatens to gentrify the very definition of creative freedom into a certified and predictable genre in the manner that befell the term “Alternative.”
So, welcome back Kevin shields, and My Bloody Valentine, I hope you fuck shit up and good.
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fizzarum - “exivyd” - Album: monochrome plural
Why: obviously made by a brain jettisoned into space after the biomech upgrades went wrong. But in a really zen way. In other words - just the real deal.
Jack Wall, Sam Hulick, Richard Jacques, David Kates - Album: Mass Effect Original Game Soundtrack
Why: Because it often leans towards Richard James Selected Ambient Works 2, and it does it right. Made finishing this massive RPG a lot more satisfying. More of this in games please.
Santana - “Mantra’ - Album: Lotus (disc 2)
Why: This rare import of Santana live in Japan back in the mid 70’s is just the lick. Insane percussion, stream of consciousness, fat analog synths and psychotropics. At about 180bpms. Amazing.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
* Why it’s Noteworthy: Christ almighty, this guy just puts out one goodie after another. One of his finest yet.
The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
* Why it’s Noteworthy: Because their last record was a beat poet tour-de-force set to music that would make GVSB blush.
Santogold - Santogold
* Why it’s Noteworthy: This record is the business. Gonna blow up something large. Thank you, Santogold, for the injection.
Billy Bragg - Mr. Love & Justice
* Why it’s Noteworthy: Billy’s not only a great songwriter, but his onstage banter reminds us he’s been out there pumping his fist long before Che Guevarra just a toy you got in a Happy Meal.
Cyndi Lauper - Bring Ya To The Brink
* Why it’s Noteworthy: This was the first stadium concert this author ever attended. She may have lost the pop-queen war to Madonna back in 1984, but Lauper was and is still the better singer/artist.
Willie Nelson - One Hell of a Ride
* Why it’s Noteworthy: Still love him for stepping way out to make Teatro with Dan Lanois a few years back.
Scarlett Johansson - Anywhere I Lay My Head
* Why it’s Noteworthy: She is attempting an album of Tom Waits covers and she has that raspy voice. Could be brill could be offensive. Worth finding out. See also: Keram covers Blue Valentines on his 2008 release “Box.”
Teyana Taylor - From a Planet Called Harlem
* Why it’s Noteworthy: Her lead-off track is titled “Google Me”
Phantom Planet - Raise the Dead
* Why it’s Noteworthy: This band just keeps getting better. When their last album hit it was harder to discern whether they were just hopping on the Strokes bandwagon, or riding the celeb slant, but it was neither. This one delivers and it cites Charles Manson and David Koresh music as an influence. Not that that is a plus, but at least its a novel source. Also - not produced by fucking Timbaland or Neptunes.
N.E.R.D. - Seeing Sounds
* Why it’s Noteworthy: They already produce any club-worthy hit on the planet, so if you’re gonna - might as well go right to the source.
Alanis Morissette - Flavors of Entanglement
* Why it’s Noteworthy: she is wonderfully raw in her sentiments, rarely repeats herself, is a culture-jammer, collaborated on this one with half of team Frou Frou.
Martha Wainwright - I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings, Too
* Why it’s Noteworthy: The seemingly demure songstress and elder sister of Rufus is more fiery than one might at first suspect. Check out her disc at CDBaby: Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole
Portishead - Third
* Why it’s Noteworthy: You know all those “trip-hop” sample collections you love leeching off piratebay? If you have to ask…
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