30: Unknown

This post’s musical journeys will be just that. All new-ish music that I have purchased from Bandcamp but have not yet heard. I may know the artist, but I’ve not yet listened to the album. It will be fun, and we’ll see what my success rate for positive exploration is! So, join me for a dive into the unknown!

I’m starting with the new album by Canadian guitarist and singer Othman Wahabi - who is of Moroccan Descent. I’ve heard several of his albums before, but never this new release, which is called Bolila, and is credited to Wahabi and Aswad Blues Collective. Behind a funky blues based mélange of African (North and West) rhythms, the lyrics address injustice worldwide - from the trials of being a black man in America today, to the struggles in the Congo and Nigeria (with a lovely ode to the great Fela Kuti), to getting ripped off trying to get scalped tickets to Yankee Stadium for a concert - I think. (It’s not really defined. But I’m generously choosing to believe he actually wasn’t actually intending to go see the Yankees play. Musically and lyrically, he seems like more of a Mets fan to me.) Wahabi is a good guitar player, and his band is crackling. He sings in English and Arabic (and maybe other African languages as well). While there is nothing earthshaking about this record, it is a good one - and lyrically important. The only downside to me was the occasional inclusion of some uninteresting almost Kenny G. like alto sax playing. It’s not enough to downgrade the album, but I could have done without it. I’ll keep this guy on my radar, and would go see him play live if he toured in the area. A really good find, and an excellent first step on this explorative journey.

In medical news, I’ve begun researching some of the services available to Alzheimer’s sufferers outside of the medically stunted USA. I’ve now reached out to two clinics who offer comprehensive stem cell treatments. I’ve spoken with one of them, and sent out some medical records. I’m awaiting a consultation to learn about the treatment itself and what it means for long term prognosis. There is potential curative work going on here. If that’s the case, I’d really consider it - the costs will be astronomical, but for a cure I’d really have to consider it. Without diving into politics, I am really concerned about what will happen to medical care and insurance under this administration, and - as mentioned, am not too happy with my current Neurologist. With all that said, I am looking into this because I’m doing well. I don’t ever want to get worse. Updates as I know them!

In other news, it’s odd, but I’ve noticed that several of the current TV shows Wendy and I are watching (and books that I am reading) are all featuring storylines that include an Alzheimer’s patient, and his/her impact on family or self. I’m not sure if I recall so much of that in the past. Wendy feels like it’s a more recent trope as well. I wonder if it's because there has been such exponential growth in people getting the diagnosis and such slow development of a greater medical understanding of the how and why.

Yesterday we went to an African drumming workshop. It was a lot of fun. It was only an hour long - and we learned five different rhythms. There was a huge turnout. I could really see the benefit of incorporating rhythmic exploration into my routine. Counting is an issue (whether it be musical or just general) for me, so perhaps a deeper dive into rhythm - which is something I’ve always loved - is in order. I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I have a complete lack of understanding of how to count in odd signatures.

Tomorrow I have infusion number 13 - which means I’ve been doing Leqembi for a half a year. That’s a pretty unexciting anniversary. The next day I have an MRI as required by the process. Still hoping for no brain bleeds! (Which, I suppose, is an excellent thing to hope for in general!)

Next up is the latest Zen Funk outing on Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin Rhythm Records by Kali Trio, called The Playful Abstract. In general, I pre order anything that Nik puts his hand on, and I’ve got several other Kali albums - but I haven’t spun this one, which just arrived the other day, yet. So here goes! (Also, I rarely “spin” anything any longer. I click play on the downloaded audio file. It’s not quite as gratifying to say that though!)

Well… I’m sorry to report that the Kali Trio was a uniformly uncompelling listen musically. As an exercise in sensory stimulation, it did its job. Rhythmically complex, percussion driven and nearly perfect for the lights, I still prefer my music to be - at least somewhat - musical. Whereas fellow Zen Funksters like Bärtsch and Stephan Thelen manage to infuse their rhythmic explorations with a wonderful sense of music and tonal exploration, this album doesn’t. It is a well titled record (um… group of files) though. I get the sense of a group of musical savants playing in the studio, and creating an abstract work. There are some interesting moments to be sure - musicians of this caliber have no choice but to settle into something compelling at times - but overall it didn’t do it for me for anything other than serve as an audio driver for the lights - which it did well. I turned it off after my minimum required 30 minutes. Win some / lose some I suppose.

In other news, and speaking of winning and losing, I got my ass absolutely handed to me in Scrabble last night. Almost 100 points behind. So my boasting last week about being cured needs to be addressed with a hefty handful of salt. No grains here. I could whine and say that I generally picked crappy letters - which is true, I rarely had over 7 total points in my hand, and often a string of O’s and E’s with no viable consonant to bind them. The truth though, is that Wendy played brilliantly, and handed me my ego on a platter.

I’m mucking around a bit with the Vibe unit. I can’t say for certain that it’s helping or not. I’m really not sure of what I’m supposed to expect. But I will do it regularly. They ask you to try it for 30 days before making a decision, and will give you your money back after that time if you find it unhelpful. I will honor that and give it my best shot.

Today is President’s day in America - and while I most certainly do not honor the current administration, I do hope for America and for the world. Things are pretty awful out there, many people are losing their jobs, and the only promises being kept are the worst of them. With that said, I need a new oven (ours caught fire the other day) so am hoping to find a good sale. That, unfortunately, is the current limit of my patriotism in this day and age.

Off to the infusion center in a few. Fingers crossed for an easy IV.

This morning, I’m <sigh> clicking play on the recently downloaded audio file for the first track on a new purchase by an old favorite - Luther Dickinson, under the moniker Gravel Springs. I’ve had this one for a while now, but never actually clicked play on it. It's called Crow's Nest Meditations, and promises to be quite different from most of his oeuvre. As we well know, I appreciate when an artist branches out - so let’s see if I like this branching!

While there’s some really interesting playing on this record, ultimately it didn’t do it for me this morning, which is a huge disappointment. I always look forward to new work by Luther. This is an album that is, at its best, noodling. There is no cohesive song structure, and the ambiance - which is what is being striven for here, is non-compelling. I made it two songs in before hitting the stop button.

Fortunately, there is another new release by Luther on the back burner for me to check out. I actually bought the vinyl of this, so I could spin it if I wanted to. But I’m just clicking on the computer for now. This one is called Mississippi Murals, and turns out to be a really interesting and most excellent record. As we well know, I have a hard time with genre classification, and this is a perfect example of why I do. Is it Jazz? Blues? Abstract art? Maybe all of them. It is released by the Walter Anderson Museum of Art and each track is inspired by one of Anderson’s paintings. The end product is - I suppose - best described as avant free jazz blues. Joining forces with Luther on this release is the great John Medeski on piano and organ, along with a bass player and drummer. The loose freedom of the music ends up being quite cohesive, and there are some really great moments of music here. It’s not background music at all - and was perfect under the lights - but if you’ve got time and energy to sit back and explore the reaches that this record strives for, you’ll be gratified. I’ve had it for a while now, so it’s not really a first listen, but it was my first uncompromised attempt to immerse myself, and I am glad I did. While the first track seemed a little too abstract for me, it really ends up gelling, and I quite enjoyed it. There’s some excellent barrelhouse blues playing, and moments that made me think of old Marx Brothers jams. It turned out, after the disappointment of Gravel Springs, to be a great morning’s listen.

I’m really unsure how to manage the IV insertions at my infusions. It took three times and two nurses to get it right again. The second nurse, who is apparently the expert, got it right away. I don’t want to offend people - I have to be there regularly - but I’m not sure my body should serve as an experimental pin cushion. I even told nurse one to read through my chart, which should chronicle all the attempts of prior nurses to get a good insertion. It’s frustrating - and painful. I have my MRI this afternoon, which also requires an IV for contrast. Hopefully those techs get it done better.

I have to change things up here a little bit. This is FAR from the first listen to this seminal record, but Jamie Muir passed on yesterday, and I’m going to listen in his honor. Larks Tongues In Aspic, released in 1973 was a game changer for me, and a game changer for King Crimson. Arguably the very best incarnation of a band that changed members quite regularly, this record was the first for the core lineup of Robert Fripp, Bill Bruford and John Wetton, who, on this album, were augmented by Muir and violin player David Cross. I would not be far off calling Bruford and Wetton the greatest rhythm section of all time (Fripp is no slouch on guitar either). Listen to this live improvised piece here, by the greatest power trio of all time (Cross is in there too, but he’s faded down so that we can focus on what matters). It’s as dynamic as anything ever recorded. But I digress.

Jamie Muir brought something really unique and exciting to King Crimson. His percussive excesses permeate the album, really setting it apart from its follow up (which I actually like better), Starless and Bible Black. While Crimson always had a sense of improv to their music, this incarnation (which sadly only lasted for two years) remains unique in their reliance on, and reworking of, the art of improv. And Muir was a chief architect of that sound. Watch the madman strutting around the stage, banging, blowing, and looking fine in his furs, while the tightest band in the world (at the time) maintains some sort of order amidst the general chaos. Contrast this from only a year later when Bruford more than adequately holds down the percussive chair on his own. (I don’t think, actually, that anyone has ever used the word adequate in the same sentence as Bruford before!) There’s a sense of freedom missing with the loss of Muir that I think best expresses his input. (Just for fun, here’s the same track performed by the ‘80’s incarnation (the first with 2 guitar players - and the last great Crimson lineup) - with only Bruford and Fripp as surviving members.) Another digression. Sorry. I’m getting sucked right down a rabbit hole into my past here! Anyhow, Thank you and RIP to Jamie Muir for your contribution to my musical upbringing. You weren’t on a ton of albums that I love, but you were for sure on one of the ones I’ve loved best! I feel it also important to point out that all those great 1970’s Crimson albums were released by major record labels - showing that at least at one point, it wasn’t only about manufactured pop music. That artistry meant something and that money for nothing was not always the order of the day.

It’s the half year anniversary of my treatments for Alzheimer’s. I’ve done 13 infusions (every two weeks) and just had my follow up MRI. Again they had trouble getting into my vein for the contrast dye, and ended up doing a shot (not an iv) directly into my wrist. I’m starting to look like a junkie with all the missed pops. Also I’ve been using the Vibe PEMF device for nearly a week now. I can tell you for sure that some of the protocols seem to be working. Some of them I’m not sure about yet, but I’ll keep trying. I kicked some serious butt at Scrabble again, so that’s good!

As always,

Thanks for reading!
Dy