Glenn Branca
Indeterminate Activity Of Resultant Masses
Atavistic ALP-46
CD
£11.99
Historically charged issue of key early
Branca material that bundles one of his most radical metal/orchestral/No Wave re-wirings, 1981's Indeterminate Activity Of Resultant Masses, with the New York Chamber Sinfonia's 1989 recording of Branca's music for orchestra, "Harmonic Series Chords" and a revelatory - not to say notorious - interview with John Cage in conversation with Wim Mertons in 1982 where he responds to a live performance of Indeterminate Activity by labelling
Branca as essentially fascist while sounding much more totalitarian, manipulative and linguistically devious (not to say more than a little square) than the subject of his attack. It makes for a fascinating listen, tho when he describes Branca's music as "like a reflection of sunshine on the buildings" it feels like he really captures it pretty well. Liners include two letters about the Cage/
Branca controversy, one from
Branca himself. But the real gravy is the title track, a 31 minute ascension that features ten guitarists (including Thurston Moore, Barbara Ess, Lee Ranaldo, Ned Sublette, Mark Bingham and David Rosenbloom), drums and tympani and builds from eerie percussive metal globes through to a locomotive furnace of overtone drone. Highly recommended