Week of July 25, 2004 -- No Conscience, by Steve Coleman. "No Conscience", 5:31. Steve Coleman From Rhythm People, 1990. noconscience.mp3, 5.06MB.This song is the chosen Song of the Week to provide an example of music from the M-Base way of thinking (Macro - Basic Array of Structured Extemporizations). This concept-based genre originated in the early 1980s among collective musicians based mainly in New York. For me, the highlight of this genre lies in experiencing the nastiest rhythm section feels; this song definitely exhibits that classic M-Base sound: insane polymetrics along the bass, keyboard, and drum parts. Every instrument is playing stark contradictory rhythms, yet the song lines up perfectly. If you're feeling brave, try and figure out the core meter of this tune. At the end of the week, I'll post the time signature, if I can ever figure it out. =)
Week of July 11, 2004 -- Greggery Peccary, by Frank Zappa.This song is the chosen Song of the Week for sake of its sheer "Welcome to my 'Song of the Week' page" diversity. This song alone encompasses many genres of music, including twentieth-century classical, R.I.O., and prog. Frank Zappa puts his core musicians to the test in sightperforming this 20-minute masterpiece of humorous yet complex and original melodies, forms and rhythmic weirdness. Frank Zappa narrates the story/lyrics of Greggery Peccary with his otherworldly storytime craftsmanship. Listening mostly to the background "supporting" music, one has to wonder how this song was conceived: Did he write the lyrics first, or the score? As is typical of a classic Zappa tune, some melodies of his other songs are referenced (e.g. Billy the Mountain), while some melodies of famous, lame tunes get picked on (e.g. Chameleon, Louie Louie). An unforgettable monument to the late Zappa's historic musical legacy.
Week of July 04, 2004 -- Greggery Peccary, by Frank Zappa. "Greggery Peccary", 20:35. Frank Zappa From Studio Tan, 1974. Cut into two parts to correct server complications.
Due to some technical complications (read: this server appears to be limited to 10.5MB), any mp3 I post as song of the week must be smaller than 9.5MB; therefore, any song that is larger must be split into two parts, across two weeks. Contact me for former songs of the week.