Biography
The Muffins –
America's answer to Canterbury? Maybe. Of course, that would
depend on your definition of Canterbury. The band's early works,
such as Chronometers and Manna/Mirage, certainly bear
some stylistic similarities to bands like Hatfield and the North.
But if you include Henry Cow within this subset, you might be
more on the right track.
The original incarnation
of the group was formed in the Washington, DC area in the early
'70s, and included: Dave Newhouse (keyboards), Billy Swann (bass,
guitar, vocals), Tom Scott (woodwinds), Michael Zentner (guitar
and violin) and Stuart Abramowitz (drums). This lineup recorded
the home and studio demos that would appear on the Chronometers
archive CD. After the departure of Zentner and Abramowitz, drummer
Paul Sears joined up with the remaining members, solidifying
the lineup that would create the group's legendary albums. Manna/Mirage
was released in 1978, followed by a limited-edition live LP
released by the band, Air Fiction.
Frequent gigging
would hone the band's improvisational techniques, solidifying
a growing reputation that would eventually lead to collaboration
with Fred Frith on his first solo LP, Gravity. Frith then produced
the band's next album, <185>, in 1980. The band would
play Giorgio Gomelsky's legendary Zu Festival in NYC in October
of that year, playing on a bill that featured Daevid Allen and
NY Gong, Chris Cutler and Yochk'o Seffer's Neffesh Music. But
within six months, the group had disbanded. In the early '90s,
the band performed together again for the first time at a party,
resulting in a reunited collaboration that would play sporadically
together. The fruits of the renewed lineup would appear on the
Cuneiform compilation Unsettled Scores, where the Muffins
covered the Forever Einstein song "She Wears Her Dead Mother's
Hat". Sears' then-project Chainsaw Jazz also saw release
by Cuneiform in 1993, as did the back catalog of Muffins material
in the form of continued reissues. Cuneiform also released Open
City, an archive release of rehearsals, demos and live takes
from the original days of the band.
1998 saw the official
reunion of the Muffins, with the band playing a set at a local
Washington D.C. club. More gigs followed in 1999, as well as
a recording session that would result in parts of 2001's Loveletter
#1. The Knitting Factory in NYC invited the Muffins to play
in 2000, as well as sending them to Rome to play at the Villa
Celimontana Jazz Festival as part of a Knit package. 2001 saw
another Knitting Factory show, as well as an amazing set at
ProgDay. Not content to just re-live their old songs in concert,
the band had been working on new pieces, which would see release
as Bandwidth in May 2002 on Cuneiform. Sporting new material
for a follow-up, the band returned to the ProgDay stage the
next year, even whipping out the epic "Not Alone"
from Open City. The band is as alive as ever, working
on new pieces for their next CD, which, as rumor has it, could
possibly be called RIO Bandwagon. With a sense of humour like
that, maybe the Canterbury comparisons aren't that superficial
after all. - Mike Prete [December 2002]
Manna/Mirage
(1978)
Words
like 'classic' or 'legendary' are so often bandied about to
describe albums by overzealous promotion and rabid fans that
they have practically fallen by the wayside into sheer hyperbole.
But every so often, there is an album that justifies the true
meaning of the words. This is one of them. While taking a cue
from the Canterbury blueprint for melodic, jazz-tinged and jam/improv
inspired rock, the Muffins nonetheless drafted their own design
on Manna/Mirage. Also in the equation is the angular
take on jazz-rock of the sort that Henry Cow explored circa
Legend, with cacophonous outbursts coloring tracks like "Hobart
Got Burned." Although the band were also masters of succinct
melodies and themes, "Hobart…" begins with a discordant
free improv, with all kinds of squealing, squeaking and banging.
However, it soon evolves into a stately piano pattern, and the
concurrent sax, bass and piano/organ riffs that ensue represent
the Muffins' signature sound. No wonder this song is still played
live by the band today.
The complex and
interweaving pieces are deftly handled by all, with constantly
shifting passages sounding like second nature. A veritable small
chamber orchestra, the quartet lineup defines the rich, full
sound of the songs. Multi-instrumentalists all, the band were
able to construct any mood or feeling at will, whether it was
through the dueling saxes of Newhouse and Scott, Swann's commanding
fuzz bass, or Sears' intricate percussives. Lithe chamber sequences
of winds and whistles are countered by full scale invasions
of dynamic and evocative themes. Their refined experimentation
would set them apart from contemporaries such as National Health
or Happy the Man, who, while sharing similarly intricate and
melodic forms, played it safe by sticking to relatively safe
and traditional structures. All in all, Manna/Mirage
is a defining statement of American Progressive music and a
true classic. -
Mike Prete[December 2002]
Click
Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info
<185>
(1981)
<185>
is a schizophrenic release, with the CD reissue containing two
different versions of the album. In late 1980, the Muffins were
approached by Fred Frith with an offer to produce and guest on
an album of material that he had heard the Muffins play when backing
himself, John Greaves and Peter Blegvad in 1978. <185>
was released in 1981, containing ten tracks of both composed and
improvised material, recorded live in the studio with little overdubbing.
The other seven tracks appended to the CD release in 1995 were
the originally composed pieces, remixed to strip down the added
production and give what the band now feels is the best representative
glimpse of what the Muffins sounded like live at the time. Now
that the history lesson has been dispensed with, on to the actual
review.
The songs here
are, for the most part, shorter than on the preceding Manna/Mirage,
yet they are far from short on ideas. Taking a more concise
route, the band explores different textures and landscapes throughout
the album. Frith's sonic affixations certainly push the envelope
to the more avant-garde realms, alongside the band's growing
interest in improv and dissonant structures - yet the underlying
strength of the compositions still bears the defining stamp
of the Muffins. Quirky and catchy, woodwind themes can stick
in your head for hours afterwards. Quivering organ and formal
grand piano lead the songs away from the signature electric
piano of the Canterbury sound, adding contrasting unnerving
and regal timbres. In a metamorphosis towards a decidedly darker
sound, Newhouse and Scott's woodwind interplay is jagged and
spiky, Sears' drumming thunderous and Swann's bass playing a
ferocious, zeuhl-inspired terror.
Despite the stylistic
alterations, this is still the same Muffins many have come to
know and love: dynamic, playful, and tight as hell. As the alternate
versions of the album tracks evince, the true strength of the
band is in their compositions - captivating and alluring in
their basic form - provocative and intriguing in their added
experimentation. -
Mike Prete [December 2002]
Click
Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info
Open
City (1994)
Open
City ties up many of the loose ends from the Muffins short,
yet brilliant career (this album being released before the band's
recent reunion), compiling live outtakes and demos from the
1977-80 period. Recorded live in rehearsal or studio, the tracks
here document the transitional period between the heavily Canterbury
informed Manna/Mirage, and the more dissonant, RIO path
followed with <185>. The first seven songs here comprise
a demo tape recorded in early 1980 at the band's home, with
most of these songs going on to form the core of the <185>
album. While already showing the avant-garde tendencies that
would escalate on the album proper, these tracks still retain
the distinctly jazzy flavoring of the band's earlier material;
"Queenside" especially sounding as if it were an outtake
from the Manna/Mirage sessions. These live, as-is pieces
show the band at the height of their power, simply ripping through
some of their best material.
The next two tracks
are delightfully deceptive, melodic and catchy outtakes from
the recording of Fred Frith's Gravity album, where the
Muffins served as part of his backing ensemble. "Blind
Arch," recorded at one of the Muffin's famed backyard concerts
exemplifies the completely improvisational side of the band's
live shows, while "Expected Freedom" is a true outtake
from the Manna/Mirage sessions. The remainder of the
disc is taken from a March 1977 performance on Georgetown University's
"Take One" radio show. Flanked by a set of improvs,
"Not Alone" sees its first and only release here.
The oldest piece written by the quartet version of the band,
this epic serves as another stunning example of the band's early
sound.
Remastered with
great fidelity, Open City is a must for any self-respecting
Muffins fan. - Mike Prete[December 2002]
Click
Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info
Loveletter
#1 (2001)
More
significant at the time of its release just over a year ago for
being the first recorded output from the Muffins in twenty years,
(including sneak-peeks of material that would end up on Bandwidth)
Loveletter #1 is nonetheless a damn fine album in its own
right. Comprised of various live and in-studio takes, Loveletter's
intent is to serve as a thank you to the band's loyal fan base,
as well as provide a companion to the forthcoming recordings that
would be released in early 2002 as Bandwidth. In all, it
is a special effort that is at once a look backwards at their
revered history, while at the same time representing a bold step
into a prosperous future.
The album showcases
all facets of the Muffins: the stately and refined compositions
of "These Castle Children" and "Under Dali's
Wing" from <185>, the melodically playful baritone
romp of "Walking the Duck," and a brief excerpt of
Matching Mole's "Nan True's Hole." Alongside this
is the on-the-edge improvisation of pieces unique to this album,
like "But Not for Others," an outtake from the Bandwidth
sessions, the live improv "Knitting Factory Blues,"
and most special, an uncharacteristically dark and brooding
minimilastic improv in the form of "QSL." Here, quivering
organ chords set the backdrop for droning saxes, which take
the shape of violin-like timbres, rumbling bass and waves of
cymbals. Occasional flutes flutter by, disrupting the hypnosis
and adding to the uneasiness of the piece.
Of course, a comprehensive
look at the Muffins wouldn't be complete without a representation
of their jazzy, Canterbury side, highlighted here with an excellent,
energized excerpt of "Captain Boomerang" from Manna/Mirage
to close the disc. My one complaint? Thirty-two minutes is not
enough! - Mike Prete [December 2002]
Click
Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info
Bandwidth
(2002)
The
Muffins are back! Bandwidth marks the first all studio
recording of the band in over twenty years, and it is at once
clear that they have not lost a step. Although instantly recognizable
as the Muffins, the recordings show a refined maturity that
has come with the time apart. Shying away from the drop of a
hat time signature changes, and atonal, dissonant improv of
the avant-rock explored on their last studio release <185>,
these new recordings see the band taking a slightly different
approach by way of a more laid back and traditional jazz influenced
stance. Lavish arrangements encompass a greater use of woodwinds
(saxes mainly), and, with a more mid-tempo approach, help illuminate
a subtle beauty that was often overlooked in the recurrently
break-neck speed of earlier arrangements.
The compositions
are just as memorable as before, whether it's the honking antics
of "Walking the Duck", the aching melodies of "East of Diamond"
or the elegant piano motifs of "Sam's Room." Newhouse's "3 Pennies"
is as evocative a song as they have ever done, a preciously
melancholy solo piano piece that wistfully tugs at your emotions.
A fitting ending for what is the Muffins' most emotionally charged
album to date.
Unlike many other
bands from the 70s, who have reunited simply to relive past
glories, the Muffins are back because they have a renewed vision
to share. As they genuinely enjoy making music together again,
I think we will be graced with at least a few more albums from
this timeless group. -
Mike Prete [December 2002]
Click
Here for Tracklist and Lineup Info
