New Soft Machine Legacy live release out tomorrow

On their rousing new live disc for MoonJune (recorded during the European tour in October of 2009), Live Adventures, Soft Machine Legacy covers more vintage Soft Machine repertoire than on previous releases, yet reinvigorates the tunes by means of fresh arrangements and expansive, protean improvisation. Soft Machine partisans will rejoice at the inclusion of such repertory gems as “Gesolreut”, in which the band lays bare the funky heart of its signature elliptical ostinato with steaming soli and propulsive grooves; “As If”, an oblique rereading of the Mike Ratledge piece marked by spectral guitar shadings and Travis’s shakuhachi-like flute etchings; and the stirring, elegiac “Song of Aeolus”. And fittingly, the band pays heartfelt tribute to the dearly departed Hugh Hopper with a rendition of his iconic “Facelift”, artfully investigating the intricate twists and turns of its singular long-form melody. This is no potted history of Soft Machine, but a living, breathing music.

With Live Adventures, Soft Machine Legacy makes a forceful case that the music of Soft Machine is as relevant and ripe with possibility today as it was in the band’s heyday. Longtime fans and new converts alike can take heart in the knowledge that the Soft Machine family tree, with its deep roots in the musical revolution of the ‘60s, continues to sprout new limbs in the new century and shows no signs of slowing. The legacy is in very good hands indeed.

The beauty of Soft Machine’s legacy – and of Soft Machine Legacy the band – is that nearly a half-century after the original group’s inception, that legacy is far from stagnant but continues to evolve to this day. Ever since Soft Machine Legacy was first formed (as Soft Works) in 2002 at the instigation of Leonardo Pavkovic, the group has amply demonstrated that it is no mere exercise in nostalgia, lazily mining the Soft Machine back catalog; instead, SML has admirably carried the parent group’s spirit of inquiry and exceptional standard of musical excellence forward into the present. Just as the original Soft Machine was in a state of continual metamorphosis in terms of both personnel and musical approach – shape-shifting over time from a psychedelic pop band to a proto–prog rock outfit to pioneers of adventurous jazz-rock fusion, and ranging from trio to septet configurations – Soft Machine Legacy has been in constant flux as members have come and gone, each new arrival placing his distinctive stamp on this musical work in progress. It is a tribute to the open-ended nature of Soft Machine’s ingenious compositional frameworks that they can accommodate such a wide range of strong musical personalities.

With the untimely passing in June 2009 of the brilliant and widely mourned bassist/composer Hugh Hopper, Soft Machine Legacy lost its last link to the formative 1960s incarnations of Soft Machine. Happily – and in a fitting case of déjà vu – his place has been taken by the only other bassist capable of filling the role, Roy Babbington, who after having made cameo appearances on Soft Machine’s 4 and 5 went on to replace Hopper as the group’s regular bassist from 1973-76, notably on the unfairly overlooked Seven. A prodigious player and improviser whose impressive curriculum vitae includes stints with such groundbreaking units as Nucleus, the Keith Tippett Group, Ovary Lodge and Delivery, Babbington injects fresh energy and musical intelligence into a lineup that already boasts such formidable instrumentalists as drum statesman John Marshall, guitar sorcerer John Etheridge, and woodwind player extraordinaire Theo Travis, who, while the only Soft Machine Legacy member that is not a Soft Machine alumnus, clearly has fully internalized the SM ethos.

1. Has Riff 8:31
2. Grapehound 8:38
3. Nodder 7:04
4. In The Back Room 9:41
5. Song Of Aeolus 6:58
6. Relegation Of Pluto / Transit 3:02
7. Gesolreut 5:52
8. Facelift 3:28
9. Last Day 5:01

JOHN ETHERIDGE electric guitar
THEO TRAVIS tenor & soprano sax, flute
ROY BABBINGTON bass guitar
JOHN MARSHALL drums.

Recorded at Posthof, Linz, Austria on 22 October 2009 (3, 5, 8, 9) and at The Village, Habach, Germany on 23 October 2009 (1, 2, 4, 6, 7)

Produced by Soft Machine Legacy.
Executive producer Leonardo Pavkovic.

http://www.moonjune.com/MJR036.htm

Gouveia Art Rock 2009 announces Daevid Allen/University of Errors

The Australian Daevid Allen is one of the most important names in international progressive music. In addition to having founded legendary bands like Soft Machine in the UK and Gong in France, Allen has constantly reinvented himself in the course of a solo career spanning more than four decades, eventually making himself into a living legend.

Among Allen's numerous collaborations, one from the late 90s stands out especially and has produced particularly excellent results: University of Errors, founded in the US by the almost "retired" Professor Allen together with three musicians from San Francisco. Since its very beginning, the project has featured a good amount of the experimentalism and recklessness that are so characteristic for Allen, and their music goes far beyond the limits of what a rock quartet with guitars, bass and drums would normally produce.

At their Gouveia show, Sunday May 3rd, the band will not only perform their own material, but also revisit songs from Soft Machine's 'pop' era and Gong's 'allien' phase.

Hugh Hopper news update

Another older article, but again, just found out today.

From his website:

Well, the back pain disappeared, but in June I was diagnosed with leukemia.

I am having ongoing treatment and it's going well. Chemotherapy has advanced a lot recently and it's not the horrible ordeal it used to be. I had no real problems with the chemo. Had some minor infections after the course finished, but that's because the body has no defences for a couple of weeks.

The team at Canterbury Hospital are brilliant - really supportive, and the hospital is part of a national Clinical Trial, so they always have the state of the art medication and no funding problems.

I have to start another course of chemo soon which means I can't travel to do gigs, but I am feeling positive about my life. My dear love Christine has been a miracle worker, making sure I have all the best food and supplements. It's actually harder for the people around than it is for me - I just have to relax in hospital, being cared for.

Fred Baker and Roy Babbington have been doing the Soft Machine Legacy gigs in my place. Roy of course was a guest already on Soft Machine albums and took over from me when I quit the group in 1973. And Fred from Phil Miller's In Cahoots is a wonderful player - much better than me technically!

Onwards and upwards!

Soft Machine 1970 on DVD!

At long last the Soft Machine DVD featuring a live performance captured by French Television in 1970 is now available to purchase. The concert was filmed in March 1970 at the Theatre de la Musique in Paris France and features the line up of

Robert Wyatt - drums, vocals
Hugh Hopper - bass
Mike Ratledge - Lowrey organ & Hohner pianet
Elton Dean - alto sax & saxello
Lyn Dobson - soprano sax, flute, voice & harmonica

The set list is below and is certainly one to get long time admirers of this most unique of British bands who are the acknowledged leaders of the "Canterbury Sound."

More details and a low quality sample can be seen at the website.

This release really is one for the fans of Soft Machine who are universally considered to be the premier group of the Canterbury Scene.

Available for the first time EVER on DVD - never released on before even on VHS the film has many plus points for the long time Soft Machine fan.

* Lovingly restored from the original master
* Sound track re mastered.
* 8 page booklet
* Extensive sleeve notes by Aymeric Leroy
* Approved by the band

http://www.softmachinedvd.com/

Part 1 :
Facelift (18:57)
Eamonn Andrews (7:17)
Backwards / Mousetrap reprise (4:08)

Part 2 :
Out-Bloody-Rageous (15:45)
RW vocal improv (2:53)
Esther's Nosejob (9:53)