Recording: Shelly/Jurgensen/Vetro

Artist: David Shelly/Arnd Jurgensen/Harrison Vetro

Song: [excerpt, in two parts]

Recorded at Array Space (Audiopollination #48.2), November 12, 2016.

Shelly/Jurgensen/Vetro - [excerpt, part 1]

Shelly/Jurgensen/Vetro - [excerpt, part 2]

Audiopollination's fourth anniversary was celebrated in typical fashion — that's to say with an eclectic mix of musicians playing together in ad hoc small combos. The highlight of the night, and one of the best improvised sets I've seen this year, this was a too-rare opportunity to see David Shelly in action inside. Often found busking throughout the city (under the project name Treeotica), Shelly plays a custom-designed amplified tree branch. The wide range of sounds here come from bowing, scratching and tapping the branch, and running the resulting sounds from a contact mic into some pedals. Later on, you can hear the chiming sounds of a music box being held against the branch. Meanwhile, Arnd Jurgensen (on guitar) and Harrison Vetro (on percussion) provide admirable musical support here, holding back and not overwhelming Shelly's beautifully-delicate sounds.

[There are two Audiopollination events left before the end of the year: a special event on Sunday (December 18th) featuring electro-acousticians Sound of the Mountain, and an improv session with cellist Rémy Bélanger de Beauport on December 22nd.]

Recording: Treeotica

Artist: Treeotica

Song: [excerpt]

Recorded at Geary Lane ("Summer Sesh @ Geary Lane"), July 26, 2014.

Treeotica - [excerpt]

Who says we can't have nice things? Local promotion duo Man Finds Fire launched their new venue with an afternoon party, showing off a beautiful space nestled in a warehouse-like building in the industrial strip by Dufferin and Dupont. The main floor features a large (but not imposingly cavernous) open area, with a bar and couches and tall white walls that give the whole thing the feel of a modern art gallery. There's even a comfy upstairs patio with a nice view of the railway tracks and the city beyond. Recently used for film work, the room also sounds more like an intimate hall than a reverberating cave. It's a bit off the beaten track, but well-worth heading out for. Promising to specialize in more experimental sounds (their next couple shows are already announced), let's wish MFF great success and a long tenure at Geary Lane.

I've encountered David Shelly before as a busker, and remember wishing I had more time to linger and listen to the strange electroacoustic sounds he wrung from a tree branch rigged with a cello string and run through a distortion pedal. Shelly brought some of that outside feeling to this set, deploying both glowing toy birds and recorded birdsong as background to humming twangs that built up into some sort of avant diddley bow percussion. Intriguing stuff, and I hope to hear him again, both on stage and on street corners.