DAVID GRUBBS (US, Drag City) + RED BRUT + ABLE NOISE
DAVID GRUBBS (US) + RED BRUT + ABLE NOISE
David Grubbs (Brooklyn, New York) has released fourteen solo albums and appeared on more than 200 releases. He was a (founding) member of the groups Gastr del Sol, Bastro, and Squirrel Bait and has performed with Tony Conrad, Pauline Oliveros, Luc Ferrari, Will Oldham, Loren Connors, the Red Krayola, Royal Trux, Codeine and many many others.
Whistle from Above by David Grubbs
WHISTLE FROM ABOVE (DRAG CITY)
“As a whole, Whistle From Above is a meticulously crafted record that emanates a patchwork charm, a truly hypnotic gem that rewards repeated listens.” – THE QUIETUS
Ex-Squirrel Bait, Gastr Del Sol guitarist offers meticulously crafted record with a weirdness lurking underneath
Over the course of his forty-plus years career in music, David Grubbs stands out as sort of an unlikely journeyman. His work spans the sweaty post-hardcore of early band Squirrel Bait, the radical experiments of his highly influential group Gastr Del Sol, and the deconstructed singer-songwriter music of his early solo work. Yet, his forward-thinking approach seems less rooted in ambition or polymathic desire, and is more a condition of a genuine sense of curiosity that often manifests in very subtly oft-kilter music. Grubbs’ most recent release, Whistle From Above, is a testament to this dynamic, a contemplative work that finds abstraction in tranquillity, and vice versa.
Whistle is Grubbs’ first solo album since 2017’s Creep Mission, and over the course of the past eight years much of Grubbs’ work has focused on collaborations with fellow travellers in genre-defying experimentalism such as Taku Unami, Loren Connors and Alan Courtis, as well as writing three books. Last year, after reconnecting with former bandmate Jim O’Rourke, the two released a collection of unheard Gastr Del Sol recordings, We Have Dozens of Titles. This was a pleasant surprise from two musicians who have not made much time for looking back, but the experience seems to have been invigorating for both of them. One can hear that sense of introspection factoring into Whistle From Above, which calls back to Grubbs’ previous work while still standing alone as a work in and of itself.
Red Brut :: Spontaneous sound collage
The artistic alias of Dutch artist Marijn Verbiesen (aka Red Brut), who recently moved to Groningen and has been a vital force in Rotterdam’s art scene. Her work reveals a particular sensitivity to everyday sounds, the soundscapes of cassette music, musique concrète, and spontaneous sound collage, combining these elements into a unique and truly personal avant-garde expression.
Red Brut’s third album, On Bare Ground, is a sonic tapestry woven from the final threads of her Rotterdam existence. Entirely composed of soundscapes captured during her last two years in the city, the album evolves into a poignant farewell as its creation mirrors the passage of time, culminating in a profound departure from her life there.
On Bare Ground is a sculptural work blending its lo-fi with haunting melodies, field recordings, and ethereal soundscapes. Uncompromising in its approach, the album evokes the echoes of experimental music from a spectrum that ranges from dark bedroom pop to rhythmic noise, crafting a cloudy and dreamlike atmosphere. With meticulous attention, it unfolds as a strong hypnotic journey, where intricate sounds emerge from a hidden center, while, in a parallel narrative, they gradually expose On Bare Ground’s underlying deep melancholic core.
“I always considered my personal surroundings instruments or providers in sound.” ~Marijn Verbiesen
ABLE NOISE
Alex Andropoulos and George Knegtel make up The Hague–based experimental warble-core guitar and drum duo Able Noise. Harnessing an organic and spatial approach, their sophomore album High Tide (2024), on label World of Echo – follow-up to their debut Recordings (2020) on label GLARC – is a collage-like selection of hauntological gems that reverberate with sonic remnants. Using voice, cassette tapes, and non-conventional playing methods, the duo whittle strange and vivid songs that are guided by noises, texture, and melody. Clean mid-western guitar tones and a crunchy penchant for grit proliferate in Able Noise’s warm no wave sound. Listening to their emotive creations builds an acute sense of closeness that feels somehow awry – as if eavesdropping on a private discussion or reading a stranger’s diary.
Able Noise