Band: Knead
Album: 1st
Label: PSF 128
Musicians: Keiji Haino (g,vo), Tatsuya Yoshida (dr,vo), Hisashi Sasaki (b)
Release Date: May 25, 2002
Haino has released recordings of him playing in a lot of varied
guitar-bass-drums trios: Fushitsusha (the rocking trio), Aihiyo (the cover
band trio), w/ Barre Philips and Sabu Toyozumi (the European Free Improv
trio), w/ Greg Cohen & Joey Baron (the downtown NYC improv trio), w/ Bill
Laswell & Rashid Ali (the tepidly received Tzadik supergroup trio). This
latest trio, Knead, has been billed as Haino + RUINS and that description
is relatively accurate. The sound is a blend of Fushitusha and RUINS. The
cd is 75 + minutes long and is a recording of a live show from December 8,
2001. It contains several 13-17 minute tracks. On some of the tracks,
particularly the opening track, the dense ferocity of Fushitsusha is
clearly evident, hearkening back to earlier Fushitsusha albums such as
Pathetique. On other tracks the arrhythmic rhythm section of RUINS is the
prevalent sound, accompanied by Haino on guitar and voice. Altogether, the
album is a rock album. This is in contrast to Haino's last release, "Until
Water Grasps Flame", which was a duo with Tatsuya Yoshida and was more in a
non-rock improvisational vein than this current release. This album will
certainly please Haino's Fushitsusha fans.
David K.
p.s. Other related Haino news: (i) Solo percussion video on PSF released,
(ii) new Vajra album next month, (iii) long interview in the upcoming issue
of The Wire.
