Exposé Online banner

Gutbucket — Flock
(Cuneiform Rune 321, 2011, CD)

by Jon Davis, 2013-04-01:

Flock Cover art I saw Gutbucket play much of this material live before I heard the CD. The band is pretty impressive live, with all the music's crazy twists and turns executed with seamless skill and great energy. For the studio versions of the tunes, the performances are a bit more precise and varied, but still energetic. Though without the visual element of sax player Ken Thomson bouncing around the stage like a subatomic particle subject to magnetic forces unseen to human eyes. The music fits in that odd spot where it's maybe not jazz, but also not not jazz. Which makes it jazz in my book, since I'm not a purist. Aside from Thomson's acrobatic saxes, it's Ty Citerman's guitar that stands out, and is really the wild card in their deck - he favors dissonance over anything you might find on a chord chart. Gutbucket is not as abrasive to my ears as some of John Zorn's work, but they're definitely in the same ballpark. The sax melodies even have a klezmer-like quality to them at times. One of my favorite moments is when the lunatic stuttering rhythms of "d0g Help Us" give way to the long cathartic tones of "Murakami." That's a sweet bit of programming there, providing some balance between poles that are widely separated. Another big difference this recording has from the live show is the use of expanded instrumentation. Thomson handles nearly every variety of saxophone and clarinet possible, and bassist Eric Rockwin adds touches of cello and keyboards from time to time; drummer Adam Gold also contributes some electric piano. All in all, an outstanding release, though probably not to everyone's taste.

by Henry Schneider, 2013-04-01:

Gutbucket has been around for about 12 years and Flock is their sixth release of indie, math rock, and jazz music. The four members Ty Citerman (electric guitar), Eric Rockwin (electric upright bass), Ken Thomson (saxophone), and Adam D. Gold (drums) play rhythmically complex jazz-rock music with extended dissonant chords. You can easily detect the influence of Robert Fripp in their approach. Most of the 11 tracks are aggressive compositions that will take a dedicated listener to make it through the entire disc. There are so many things going on at different levels, each musician is exploring a different path that is all somehow coordinated. At times you can even detect something that resembles a melody. In addition to the odd time signatures, there are odd ball song titles, for example "d0g Help Us," "Zero Is Short for Idiot," and "Said the Trapeze to Gravity (Why Are You So Old?)." These titles do seem a bit contrived and do not appear to correlate in any obvious way with the music. The coolest thing about this release is the cover art of a sheep sitting on a cloud and knitting a club tie from its own fleece. But I am not sure how that relates to the music either. Probably the best music on the disc is the three-part "Born Again Atheist Suite." This suite, for me, is the most approachable of the set and worth the price of the disc.

Filed under: New releases , Issue 40 , 2011 releases

Related artist(s): Gutbucket

More info

Latest news

2019-12-11
There's No Time Like the Present – The Belgian band Present has been one of the best avant-rock bands in the world since its formation in 1979. Over the years since then, Present has released nine amazing albums, and now they're ready to start work on number ten. They're looking for some financial help from their fans around the world. » Read more

2019-11-07
Glenn Smith RIP – Glenn Smith, founder, mandolinist, and primary composer of the DeLand, Florida based prog / fusion band Magnatar, passed away on October 18th 2019 at the age of 68, after a brief illness.  » Read more

2019-11-04
Dino Brassea RIP – Word reaches us of the passing of Dino Brassea, who sang and played flute in Cast for many years. By our count, Brassea appeared on 11 Cast albums between 1994 and 2002. He also released music as a solo artist. » Read more

2019-10-06
Ginger Baker RIP – Legendary English drummer Ginger Baker has died at the age of 80. After coming to fame with Cream in the 60s alongside Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce, he became one of the most recognized and influential drummers of the rock era. On September 25, his family announced that he was critically ill, and on October 6 his death was confirmed. » Read more

2019-08-20
Alex's Hand Seeks Spa Treatment – American / European band Alex's Hand has a new album in the works called Hungarian Spa, which looks to be their biggest and best yet, featuring a large roster of guest musicians. They're seeking funding to take the project on the road, and are looking for help from the crowd of wisdom. » Read more

More news

Previously in Exposé...

Osanna - Preludio Tema Variazioni Canzona (Milano Calibro 9) – This album represents the intersection of a number of trends going on in Italy at the time it was made. One was for rock bands to adopt Classical forms, sometimes even involving actual orchestras (New...  (2006) » Read more

Bondage Fruit - Bondage Fruit – Bondage Fruit were formed in 1989, and have finally released their first CD. Leader Natsuki Kido is also a member of P.O.N. (and other groups unknown outside Japan). Like other bandleaders he employs...  (1996) » Read more

Tipographica - The Man Who Does Not Nod – After Tipographica's amazing 1994 debut, the big question was: could these guys pull it off live? Well, here's the living proof. Actually, Tipographica has been together since around 1989, gigging...  (1996) » Read more

John Tchicai - Life Overflowing & Love Letters from the Madhouse – Tenor saxophonist John Tchicai is the leader or co-leader on two recent independent jazz releases. Life Overflowing is a quintet project, while the other is spoken word prose backed by reeds. The...  (2000) » Read more

Sadhappy - Good Day Bad Dream – Sadhappy has been one of Seattle’s quietly active units for the last few years. The group has undergone some famous personnel changes (in particular the departure of key saxophonist, Skerik from...  (1999) » Read more

Random review

Listen & discover

Bane for Isildur, boon for the rest of us

More recommendations
The Seventeenth Dream of Dr. Sardonicus Festival 2019

Print issues