Recording: New Positions

Artist: New Positions

Song: [excerpt, in three parts]

Recorded at Toronto Public Library – Parkdale Branch (SHHHH – Day 2), May 7, 2016.

New Positions - [excerpt, part 1]

New Positions - [excerpt, part 2]

New Positions - [excerpt, part 3]

So many things I like here, wrapped up in one package. Not only was this a celebration of an awesome new initiative from the Toronto Public Library where anyone with a library card can borrow a musical instrument, it was celebrated with a couple shows in the program's home branch. I didn't make it out on the Friday where the event's co-organizer Kyle Knapp played a quieter show with his Deliluh project, alongside solo efforts from Dorothea Paas and Dave from Soupcans (a new solo endeavour called Stucco). But Sunday afternoon (a free!, all ages!, afternoon! show — which for me is like seeing a row of cherries come up on the slot machine) moved things down to the Parkdale library's mysterious basement — home, it turns out, to an auditorium that awesomely looks like it was last redecorated c. 1985. This show got pretty loud, though apparently the bunker-like building is soundproofed enough that that didn't disturb the patrons above. I would love to see more shows like this — the mind reels at the possibilities of the communities that could be brought together in this space.

Other projects have kept this pairing on the down-low for awhile, so I was pleased to hear from Neil Rankin that he and C. Jude were getting back together to reactivate New Positions. From radio static-scapes to industrial beat knife-fights, they've tackled a fair range of sounds (and issued a kick-ass tape a couple years back). Rankin didn't bring his sax or boombox this time out, focusing on staggering bass lurches while Jude similarly added some guitar noise. You can hear some distorted vocals here, and later on the doom-y drum-machine pulses would drive things to a conclusion. Looks like the boys are back in town.

[New Positions will be opening things up at what should be a fantastic/loud Invocation show alongside BIG|BRAVE and Fresh Snow, Saturday, June 4th at Soybomb.]