Where do I start with Nought? I doubt many people reading this blog will have ever heard of them. The band formed in Oxford, UK in 1996. They were loved by John Peel and apparently they toured for a while in Russia. They've never become very widely known, which is a shame because they are an extremely talented bunch of individuals.
I'm not even sure quite how to describe their music. The sound is experimental, noisy, has elements of prog-rock, math-rock, post-rock, jazz, industrial, modern classical, and is very avant-garde. They have been compared to likes of Miles Davis, Steve Reich, Sonic Youth, Philip Glass, Stravinsky, Glenn Branca, Nation of Ulysses, John Coltrane & The Fall. I don't think this does them justice though, they are highly original and almost virtuosos. They improvise heavily while performing although if you have ever seen this band play then you have probably lost a little bit of your hearing.
I first started watching Nought in tiny little venues and was completely mesmerized by the two Fender Jaguars laying horizontally on stands, with a drill sitting on top of one of them, the insane time signatures, the discordance, and the almost inhuman drumming and bass playing. They were certainly something to behold at that time.
They have gone through a few line up changes since then, which is a shame because I don't think they've ever been quite as good as they were with the original members. I didn't understand the music at the time and I probably don't understand it now. The main member of band is not far from a genius, he composes everything and directs the band. I can only imagine what goes on in his mind.
It was a while before they released an album although they did release a couple of singles on Shifty Disco which were excellent and really did a good job to represent how the band sounded on stage.
The album itself is, in some ways slightly tamer but more crafted and mature. It contains quite a few of the old songs that they always played, including the one with the drill and a telephone ringing, but it is well produced and has more sophisticated air about it.
You can buy the album at their website here - NoughtMusic
or at the Shifty Disco website here - Shifty Disco
or at the Shifty Disco website here - Shifty Disco
It is only £5 at the Shifty Disco site although you can download a couple of tracks from their website.
This is a download from their site: Ignatius
I can't find a video with music from this album but there are a couple floating around of their live performances, pretty noisy! Please just download the song because this video is really not a good representation of the band's talent.
1 comments:
it's between Pink Floyd and King Crimson, sounds really nice and interesting
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