Recording: Mick Barr

Artist: Mick Barr

Pieces: [excerpts from two sections]^*

Recorded at Jam Factory (Intersection – Day 1/The Music Gallery's Departures Series), August 31, 2017.

Mick Barr - [excerpt from first section]

Mick Barr - [excerpt from second section]

In recent years, the Intersection Festival would normally consist of a paid concert, usually the night before the day-long extravaganza in Yonge-Dundas Square. This year, however, under the continued guidance of Burn Down The Capital's Tad Michalak the festival expanded to four events, including a pair of concerts at The Jam Factory. In an echo of last year, this opening night was once more a co-presentation with the Music Gallery's Departures Series, mixing Thin Edge's chamber styles with a visiting composer/musician.

After getting a chance to hear some of his chamber pieces being played by Thin Edge, Mick Barr performed a solo set. With a rep for musical virtuosity and known for his work in a series of extreme-metal projects, there was an interesting arc to this set, leading off with an extended shimmering Reich-like piece, before adding some drum machine to power some machine gun riffs — and then heading off to shredsville, with no pedals or fancy stuff, just "proper" technical playing.

[You can see some footage from this set over at Brandon Caswell Douglas' Intersection playlist.]

^* Does anyone know the titles to these? Please leave a comment!