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Tony Oxley: A Birthday Tribute--75 Years
by John Eyles
As its title indicates, this album was released to mark the occasion of drummer Tony Oxley's seventy-fifth birthday (which occurred on June 15 2013.) Fittingly, it is released on Incus, the ground-breaking label that Oxley established in 1970 with Derek Bailey and Evan Parker, frequently cited as “the first independent musician-run record label in Britain" (just about true because of the inclusion of “independent"--which rules out The Beatles' Apple label--and of “in Britain," which rules out Debut set up by ...
read moreLol Coxhill / Alex Ward: Old Sights, New Sounds
by John Eyles
Recorded at Incus HQ, London, in October 2010, this duo is a delight that should refresh even the most jaded ears. Lol Coxhill and Alex Ward are both veteran improvisers and regular participants on the London scene, so it was inevitable that they would eventually play together as a duo. As evidenced below by YouTube, that happened in August 2010 at John Russell's annual Fete Qua Qua; the pairing was repeated the following month at Sybil Madrigal's monthly Boat Ting ...
read moreAcoustic Guitar Trio: Acoustic Guitar Trio
by John Eyles
Unpredictable as ever, Incus have released an album rich in melody and harmony, neither typical of the Incus catalogue. If an electric guitar can produce some of the most violent of improvised music, an acoustic guitar is potentially both soothing and melodic. When three of them play together, the soundscape verges on lush.Listened to in mono, these three guitars interact so closely that they frequently become as one. In stereo, the individual contributions are separated and one can ...
read moreBailey/Davies/Fell/Gaines/Wastell: Company in Marseilles
by John Eyles
What is it that makes Company Company?In the early days, some people thought that it was a group. But the personnel changed radically, so it couldn't be a group. Other people thought that any grouping led by Derek Bailey was Company. But Bailey also recorded under his own name, and one year Company Week did not even include him, so that was not the answer. And then Company Week stopped happening and Company went global, appearing in France ...
read moreCompany: Epiphany
by John Eyles
Quite simply, Company produced some of the most stimulating improvised music you will ever hear.These recordings date from the Company Week held in June and July 1982. Having begun in 1976, by 1982 this annual improvisation festival was an established (and eagerly awaited) part of the calendar (even if the venue and time of year were unpredictable). Typically, Derek Bailey was looking beyond the cosy [his word] group of tried-and-trusted improvisers and was inviting musicians to Company Week ...
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