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The PiNG presents cheryl o and friends



THE AMBiENT PiNG   http://www.theambientping.com
Wednesdays @ THE TEQUILA LOUNGE
http://www.tequilalounge.ca - 794 Bathurst Street at Bloor
(directly across from the Bathurst subway station) - Toronto
Doors open at 9pm - 1st set at 9:30 - PayWhatYouCan
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This Wednesday February 9th - cheryl o and friends

Ambient, experimental, looping cellist cheryl o returns
for a night of improvisations with some cool musical friends,
including the innovative Rob Piilonen with his extended flute
techniques and treatments, the very funky Jen Gillmor on
kamel n'goni and bass guitar, and the versatile and zany
Michael Keith on guitar and sundry sonic doodads.
This is a recipe for some very potent musical jambalaya!

cheryl o - http://www.cellojuice.com
Jen Gillmor - http://www.svdesign.ca/Sound-Intro.html
Michael Keith - http://www.michaelkeith.com

Between Sets CD - "Truth & Beauty: The Lost Pieces 2"
Each week in February we'll be featuring a CD in Steve Roach's
"The Lost Pieces" series, leading to his newest release "TLP4".
"Truth & Beauty: TLP2" offers a wide variety of Roach's
haunting soundworks created between 1992 and 1996.
http://www.steveroach.com
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Coming February 16th - Hypnotech 3 and Tobas Mong
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/hypnotech3.htm
http://www.synthetictechnologies.com with Bleep Visuals.
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||:IN THE LOOP:|| "Out of the Shadows: Kathode and Odradek"

THE AMBiENT PiNG celebrated Wiararton Willie's prediction
of an early spring with an evening of experimental music
performances at the T.Lounge on Wednesday, February 2, 2005.

Readers might remember SPROG's Ambient-TV concert from
last week. This time around, PiNG-goers experienced another
kind of TV show: Kathode (Tomasz Krakowiak) started the
evening off with the sounds of a "pure cathode ray tube run
through a bowl of cables". Using a closed cycle of audio-
frequencies-generating-TV-frequencies-generating-audio-
frequencies..., Kathode landed onstage with the sound of
beating helicopter blades from a black & white television set.
The sense of anticipation kindled by this dramatic opening
was rewarded later in the show as Kathode incorporated
some remote control antics into the mix by continuing
his set from the bar. A little while later, Kathode wrapped
things up with another signal change and a final flick
of the TV's remote control.

Odradek (James Bailey, Michelangelo Iaffaldano and Andy Yue)
picked up on the playful tone of Kathode's performance with
an improvised series of free form pieces. Intrigued by the trio's
name, I discovered its origin: a story fragment by Franz Kafka.
Like Kafka's titular subject, Odradek's music was, at times,
cartoon-like in its playfulness, while undercurrents of longing 
created steadily building streams of tension. Even as 
shimmering waves of high pitched bleeps melted into
quiet murmurs, this set's sonic turmoil lingered.

Luna Tek  -  luna@theambientping.com
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rik maclean's *ping things* CD Reviews

The debut release by quasiMODAL is a prime example of both
the talent and the collaborative nature of the music scene that's
developed around Toronto's AMBiENT PiNG. Featuring cheryl o
on cello, treatments & loops, Steven Sauve (of karmafarm and
of Sylken) on synth, piano & loops, Michael Keith (half of MCF)
on guitar, banjo, vocal stylings & more, and Matthew Poulakakis
(aka Automatic Fats) on piano, bass, guitar etc., it's a veritable
who's who of local ambient/improvisational artists! Showcasing
a collection of pieces recorded at a variety of sessions,
including a performance last year at THE AMBiENT PiNG,
this disc captures the sound of four brilliant talents perfectly
aligned with each other in the spirit of creation.

"Mr K Dreams the Truth" opens the disc with a duel of cello
and guitar, spurred on by piano and bass. An improvisational
tour de force highlighting the various talents assembled.

Track two "Left of Spring" features a similar frenetic energy,
albeit more focussed, more directed towards the idea of spinning
a tale, weaving a yarn. Building to an inspired ending reflecting
intensity and madness, "Left of Spring" is a fantastic piece
of aural story telling.

"Luminal" plays along a more delicate path, a beautiful piece
bringing to mind the calm untroubled flight of a butterfly, wind
both aiding and hindering it's journey through the sky. Some
very nice bass work in this one, very sublime playing.

The amusingly titled "New Adventures With Buzz & Klik" is a
brilliant example of processed loops, feedback & remodelled
sounds all brought together in a seemingly random pattern
that slowly builds into a form of reason and purpose. A
beautiful piano melody dances along the edges of the track
while drones rise and fall, buzzes whirr and click, and a
thousand (or maybe only just one) other tones compete for
your attention. What an incredible track!

Now. Let us turn our attention to "In the Guinea Pig Cage".
It opens with Michael's vocals backed by a slow build of piano,
cello and more all rising towards a frenetic and fantastic swell
that ebbs and flows for a spell before gradually calming and
breaking into segments showcasing each member of the
ensemble. I think this piece might well be the quintESENTIAL
(quintiMODAL?) track, truly highlighting the ability of these
artists to work together as a group and as individuals within
that group. Truly a testimony to the skill and musicality of
its collected members.

Without doubt, quasiMODAL is something special, something
worth discovering for yourself. If you've been lucky enough
to see one of their performances then surely you already
know what I'm talking about. If you haven't, then this disc
is a great introduction to their work, sure to make you a fan.

rik maclean - rik@pingthings.com

http://www.pingthings.com = ambient + electronic + chill things

Send an e-mail to pingthings-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
for updates on *all* the latest releases on sale at ping things
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THE AMBiENT PiNG is a social sound/art event presenting
live performances by Toronto's finest ambient, chillout, improv
and experimental music artists plus performers from across
the continent, Wednesday evenings at The Tequila Lounge -
794 Bathurst Street at Bloor. http://www.theambientping.com
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Please forward this e-mail to any friends who may be interested
in live ambient, chillout and experimental music performances