Los Angeles’ cutting edge jazz celebration, the Angel City Jazz Festival, now in its fourth year, is pleased to open their 2011 “Global Jam” edition with Australian popular and critical jazz sensation the Necks.
The Angel City Jazz Festival opening night event takes place at Blue Whale, LA’s hottest new jazz club in the heart of Little Tokyo at 123 astronaut E S Onizuka St., Suite 301 Los Angeles, CA 90012. The band will do two sets at 8:30pm and 10:00pm. Tickets are $20 for one set or $30 for both and are available exclusively at http://thenecks.eventbrite.com/.
The Necks
With Chris Abrahams on piano, Tony Buck on drums, and Lloyd Swanton on bass The Necks conjure a chemistry together that defies description in orthodox terms. Their lengthy pieces slowly unravel in a most mesmerizing fashion, while frequently underpinned by an insistent deep groove. The deceptive simplicity of their music throws forth new charms on each hearing. The fifteen albums by The Necks stand up to re-listening time and time again. Not entirely avant-garde, nor minimalist, nor ambient, nor jazz, the music of The Necks is unique in the world today.
Critical acclaim for The Necks has been astounding, including such accolades as:
“One of the greatest bands in the world” – New York Times
“At around the 100-year point in jazz’s evolution, conjuring new spirits out of old spells is a difficult mojo to work. But people are doing it – a case in point is The Necks” – Jazz Times
“…Entirely new and entirely now…They produce a post-jazz, post-rock, post-everything sonic experience that has few parallels or rivals. They may teach us to listen in a new way, but they communicate a fierce energy and warmth at the same time. Their music is a thrilling, emotional journey into the unknown. Like seeing a world in a grain of sand, The Necks permit us to hear a whole new world of music in a sliver of sound” – The Guardian
“(The Necks) draw your attention to the music instead of the means: you never get the idea that they’re playing for an hour to prove that they can do it, or to showcase a glut of ideas, but simply to give you the pleasure of focusing on music in extreme detail” – Pitchfork
“Tonal, accessible, and yet profoundly challenging… The Necks are singular… Yielding things no one else does” – The Wire
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For more information see http://www.angelcityjazz.com/artists/necks. For press information please contact Susan von Seggern on susan@susanvonseggern.com or 213-840-0077.
ABOUT THE ANGEL CITY JAZZ FESTIVAL
Angel City Arts proudly announces the lineup for the 2011 ANGEL CITY JAZZ FESTIVAL September 22 – October 2, 2011. The theme for the fourth annual festival is Global Jam, with artists representing eight countries at seven events in six venues throughout Los Angeles.
The festival venues include LACMA, REDCAT (Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater), The John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, Zipper Hall, The Echoplex, and The Blue Whale. Some of the artists performing at the festival include Armenian pianist and Thelonius Monk competition winner Tigran Hamasyan, Indian saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa, the African ensemble Burkina Electric with percussionist Lukas Ligeti and special guest D.J. Spooky, Colombian harpist Edmar Castaneda, German vocalist Theo Bleckmann, French artists The Kandinsky Effect, the Australian trio The Necks, and a tribute to Art Ensemble of Chicago legend Roscoe Mitchell and a performance by his trio in celebration of his 71st birthday.
For more information, please see http://www.angelcityjazz.com.
ABOUT BLUE WHALE
Blue Whale is a live jazz bar located in the heart of Little Tokyo, Los Angeles. Blue Whale boasts excellent live music, great food, and unprecedented interior in an intimate, yet upscale atmosphere. Join us for live music on Tuesday through Saturday nights and jam session hosted by special guest every Tuesday night from 8pm till 1am. BLUE WHALE is open from 7:30pm Tuesday through Saturday!