Cuneiform Records JANUARY 2026 Newsletter

CUNEIFORM RECORDS JANUARY 2026 NEWSLETTER New Releases & Concerts   read this newsletter online    LAPTOP/ COMPUTER: navigate email via colored links or scroll down  MOBILE:  scroll email or read online if images don't open ~~~~~~   "An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves."  - William E. Vaughan ~~~~~~ COMING OUT ON JANUARY 30, 2026 MIKE JOHNSON – THE GARDENS OF LOSS AVANT PROGRESSIVE / R.I.O. / POST-CLASSICAL / POST-ROCK  Composer, guitarist & lyricist Mike Johnson, co-founder of Thinking Plague, releases an album under his own name featuring classical orchestration – strings, brass, reeds, etc – and rock instrumentation, performed by 19 musicians from around the globe [USA] – Thinking Plague releases on Cuneiform Records ~~~ OUT NOW! RELEASED DECEMBER 20, 2025 CUNEIFORM RECORDS / VARIOUS ARTISTS – CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2025  NEW MUSIC / CLASSICAL MINIMALISM / ROCK / JAZZ / EXPERIMENTAL / BEYOND GENRE Cuneiform Records releases its annual "Name Your Price" sampler featuring tracks from each of the 20 albums the label released in 2025 ~~~ AN OVERVIEW OF CUNEIFORM RECORDS' 2025 RELEASES CUNEIFORM RECORDS 2025 JAZZ RELEASES CUNEIFORM RECORDS 2025 ROCK RELEASES CUNEIFORM RECORDS 2025 NEW MUSIC / CLASSICAL MINIMALIST / BEYOND GENRE RELEASES ~~~   OUT NOW! RELEASED NOVEMBER 25, 2025 HAPPY FAMILY – JUST A STAIR / THE GREAT SWORD OF RESPONSIBILTY  NEW MUSIC / CLASSICAL MINIMALISM The third installment of Happy Family's piano series featuring composer/pianist Kenicho Morimoto. Released in anticipation of the band's Silver Elephant concert in Tokyo. [JAPAN] ~~~   OUT NOW! RELEASED NOVEMBER 21, 2025 GILLES LAVAL –   100 GUITARS SUR UN BATEAU IVRE [100 GUITARS ON A DRUNKEN BOAT] AVANT ROCK / EXPERIMENTAL French guitarist, composer and spectacle organizer Gilles Laval's immersive project, inspired by Arthur Rimbaud's poem and composed for 100 electric guitars [FRANCE] – Gilles Laval on Cuneiform's 2022 release of Balungan's Kudu Bisa Kudu ~~~~ SNEAK PEEKS WITH SOUNDS 5 DIGITAL RELEASES COMING OUT FEBRUARY 20, 2026: B.MEZ – UNDER CIRCUITOUS SKIES ELECTRONIC / IMPROVISATION / AVANT CLASSICAL / AVANT ROCK Boston-based, genre-defying improvising project developed by members of Birdsongs of the Mesozoic: Michael Bierylo, Ken Field, Rick Scott, and for this recording, Roger Miller, the original co-founder of Birdsongs. [USA] FREDERIC L'EPEEE – CONTRE COURANT IMPROVISATION / AVANT CLASSICAL / AMBIENT Composer and guitarist Frédéric L'Epée, founder of French bands Yang, Philharmonie and Shylock, releases a new album of solo electric guitar music that emphasizing the instrument's exquisitely sensitive sonic range. [FRANCE] DENMAN MARONEY – MEAN TIMES AVANT JAZZ Previously unreleased 1995 Knitting Factory concert by "hyperpianist" and composer Denman Maroney with Mark Dresser, Ellery Eskelin, Phil Haynes and Herb Robertson. [USA] NATHAN MOORE / EDDIE PREVOST / RAY RUSSELL – STACKED JAZZ / AVANT ROCK / IMPROVISATION  Two legends from the earliest days of British free music – drummer Eddie Prévost and guitarist Ray Russell –  join up with a guitarist from a younger generation – Nathan Moore – to perform a set in 2025 of exuberant, exploratory music more informed by rock music than one might expect. [UK] NEBELNEST – SAALFELDEN 2007 AVANT PROGRESSIVE / POST-ROCK Live recordings made by this hard-hitting, French instrumental beyond-genre, dark symphonic rock ensemble at Austria's 2007 Jazzfestival Saalfelden.  [FRANCE]  ~~~~~ SNEAK PEEKS  OF WHAT'S COMING OUT IN 2026 & BEYOND: A LIST OF UPCOMING JAZZ , ROCK, & EXPERIMENTAL/ ELECTRONIC RELEASES ~~~~~ CUNEIFORM ARTISTS ON TOUR: LIVE CONCERTS & TOURS   ~~~~~ ENJOY A WORLD OF MUSICAL ADVENTURE with  CUNEIFORM RECORDS ONLINE:   • EXPLORE Cuneiform Records'  SOCIAL MEDIA //  BANDCAMP PAGE // YOUTUBE CHANNEL //  SOUNDCLOUD PAGE ~~~~~ • Purchase music from 100s of labels at WAYSIDE MUSIC, our sister store, estab.1980 ~~~~~ • Missed seeing a CUNEIFORM NEWSLETTER? Access prior issues at cuneiformrecord.blogspot.com/    ~~~~~                                                                                    read this newsletter online ~~~~~~ return to top COMING OUT JANUARY 30, 2026 ON CUNEIFORM RECORDS MIKE JOHNSON THE GARDENS OF LOSS Bio information: MIKE JOHNSON Title:  THE GARDENS OF LOSS (Cuneiform Rune 521) Format: CD / DIGITAL Release date: January 30, 2026 www.cuneiformrecords.com FILE UNDER: AVANT ROCK / AVANT PROGRESSIVE / POST-CLASSICAL    Composer and Guitarist MIKE JOHNSON, co-founder of the legendary, longstanding American experimental / Rock In Opposition band THINKING PLAGUE, unleashes his formidable compositional skills to create his first 'solo' album, THE GARDENS OF LOSS, an unflinchingly original, post-genre, orchestral work  steeped equally in  rock and classical tradition, and performed by a global orchestra Destined to be one of 2026’s most ambitious, adventurous, and relevant releases, The Gardens of Loss features performances by 19 musicians currently based in the USA (Johnson, several Thinking Plague alumni, and others); Canada (Kimara Sajn); Portugal (Nuno Mourão); Spain (Pau Sola Masafrets);  Sweden (Simon Steensland, Morgan Ågren), and  The Netherlands (Oene van Geel, Pablo Rodriguez, César Puente Sandoval, George Dumitriu)   listen to/ share "The Lords of Creation" on Soundcloud, from Mike Johnson's The Garden of Loss "...the aesthetic is generally more orchestral in the 2Oth century sense, while still incorporating some intensely "rock" elements. It's not "classical" orchestration pasted onto rock band tracks, rather, it's integrated to sound like a big electro-acoustic ensemble with many voices....very organic... ....All the tracks deal explicitly or implicitly with some kind of regret, loss or threat of loss..." – Mike Johnson, on The Gardens of Loss In 1982, Mike Johnson cofounded Thinking Plague, a storied band whose forty-five year history has seen it cleave consistently to the extreme limits of what is possible to do within rock music. Much of the music it released has owed more to traditions external to rock, such as folk, chamber music, and particularly, the avant-garde tradition of twentieth-century classical music. Its thread has always been twisted into a thicker yarn, variously labeled with terms such as ‘art rock’, ‘avant-rock’, ‘avant-progressive’ and also ‘Rock in Opposition’(RIO), a term associated with European outfits such as Henry Cow, Univers Zero, Art Zoyd and Present who fused elements and instruments from rock and 20th century classical music with compositional rigour and DIY aesthetics. Thinking Plague have often been cited cited as the leading light of the American arm of the ‘Rock In Opposition’ movement. Genre-defying and, above all, unique, Thinking Plague’s music can be described equally as post-rock and/or post-classical.   Leader and writer Johnson is influenced by harmonically adventurous twentieth-century classical music, as can be heard in the ambiguous tonality of the music, and the rigour of his dense, complex compositions. Johnson, like most rock musicians, is self-taught, but very knowledgeable, and his fusion of rock and classical music is as seamless as it is compelling. His electric guitar, whose hard-edged, mordant timbres cut deeper and more savagely than anything available to the classical arranger, doesn’t dominate the band’s sound, but takes its place as one voice among many. And for the first time ever amongst his 8 albums as leader of Thinking Plague, he has had the opportunity to use orchestral instrumentation as one of the pillars of this work! Perhaps this is the reason why this is a Mike Johnson album and not a Thinking Plague album?   Mike Johnson photo by Sal DeVincenzo Johnson steps in to explain and help guide our journey through The Gardens of Loss: “As some will know, most Thinking Plague music and lyrics over the years were written by me, and the band has essentially been my project since the mid-nineties. But for this album, I was hoping to be free of the some of the expectations and assumptions that come with the name Thinking Plague. I wanted to try some different things, and take full credit or blame for the outcome. One of my main objectives was to make an album incorporating an orchestra, of sorts at least, which required me to employ a lot of new people, such as a string quintet, a new flutist, an oboist, bassoonist, trumpeter, trombonist, etc. And I wanted some different musicians in key roles - like Simon Steensland on bass and Morgan Ågren and Kimara Sajn on drums, and Jeremy Kurn on piano.  In my mind, it wasn't Thinking Plague. I know that some people will say it sounds like Thinking Plague, but what they should realize is that it sounds like me. Not to say that it's literally more of the same. I don't think it is.   There's a lot more, and more varied, orchestral instrumentation - real players; not samples. Sometimes, thanks to the "magic" of overdubbing, it will sound like a large orchestra. Other times you can hear various winds, reeds, brass and/or string ensembles of different sizes. Also, I think the eight song-pieces on the album have more varied styles and character - some quite a bit more accessible than typical THINKING PLAGUE music, and some at least as complex and advanced as THINKING PLAGUE. But the aesthetic is generally more orchestral in the 2Oth century sense, while still incorporating some intensely "rock" elements. It's not "classical" orchestration pasted onto rock band tracks, rather, it's integrated to sound like a big electro-acoustic ensemble with many voices. It's very organic, I think.    Anyone who has followed Thinking Plague will know that my subjects have mostly always been pretty dark. That's because I feel it is my duty, sort of, to call out and respond to the injustices and environmental harms that seem to be so much of humanity's legacy on planet earth. And in the current circumstances I think it's more important than ever, although as a musical artist I don't want to create mere protest songs or ideological "anthems." Rather, I strive to express human emotions in response to what has happened or is happening - where things seem to be going.   For example, the first track "Dies Irae," which is Latin for Day of Wrath, expresses the fear of what might happen if the political situation develops a certain way in America - which it seems to be doing. I think it's pretty obvious what I mean. Another example is the title track "The Gardens of Loss," which deals with the bittersweet experience of nature's beauty and the bereavement and regret one feels when they perceive that it is fading, dying as a result of human stupidity and greed. All the tracks deal explicitly or implicitly with some kind of regret, loss or threat of loss, etc., although the track "Boys with Toys" takes a more facetious approach.    I realize that the obvious question posed by my releasing this as a Mike Johnson album will be about the likelihood of another Thinking Plague record and honestly, I can't say for sure at present. I’m not sure where things are going from here. I intend to keep writing music, but I'm not sure yet for whom or under what circumstances. Although I do still have hankerings to do it.”   – Mike Johnson, December 2025 ~ ~ ~   pre-order / listen to Mike Johnson's The Gardens of Loss on Bandcamp: ~ ~ ~   ALBUM CREDITS: THE GARDENS OF LOSS   Mike Johnson – guitars, lap steels, fiddle, fretless banjo, sampler-synthesizer programming & "pencil guitars" (7) Simon Steensland – bass (except 7) Morgan Ågren – drums and percussion (3–6) Kimara Sajn – drums and percussion (1, 2, 8) Jeremy Kurn – piano Elaine diFalco – vocals Dave Willey – bass, drums (7) Bill Pohl – guitars (8) Elise Roy – flutes Caitlin Hilzer – oboe, English horn Nuno Mourão – bassoons (3) Mark Harris – clarinets, bass clarinet, alto saxophone Shane Endsley – trumpets Jon Stubbs – trombones Oene van Geel – violins, "concertmaster" Pablo Rodriguez – violins George Dumitriu – violas Pau Sola Masafrets – cellos César Puente Sandoval – double basses All music composed and orchestrated by Mike Johnson. Lyrics by Mike Johnson except for “Transience” by Elaine diFalco. Strings and bassoons recorded by Björn Warning at Warning Studios, Amsterdam, Netherlands. warningstudios.nl Woodwinds and reeds recorded by Loren Dorland at Mighty Fine Studios, Denver, Colorado. Vocals, drums, basses, guitars, piano, trumpets, trombones, oboes and English horn recorded “at home.” Mixed and mastered by Colin Bricker and Mike Johnson at Mighty Fine Studios, Denver, Colorado. mfpcolorado.com Produced by Mike Johnson.   return to top MIKE JOHNSON on THINKING PLAGUE  albums released by CUNEIFORM RECORDS [click each album cover or title to listen / buy] Thinking Plague photo by Sal DeVincenzo "Denver's Thinking Plague stand out in bas-relief" stated  Alternative Press,  "Among the vanguard of groups riding the crest of a largely unheralded avant-progressive tsunami... an idiom responsible for some of the 20th century’s most significant musical achievements." – Alternative Press   HOPING AGAINST HOPE DECLINE AND FALL "Thinking Plague lays down some of the most rhythmically complex, texturally inventive, and melodically challenging popular music of the last 30 years, and somehow makes it all sound easy and natural."– All Music Guide "...the manner in which Thinking Plague…have condensed only the most fertile (and often the most pulverizing) aspect of he last 30 years of progressive exploration into an nth-degree endgame is nothing short of awe-inspiring." – Eric Lubleau, Alternative Press A HISTORY OF MADNESS UPON BOTH YOUR HOUSES "...it's hard to pin down Thinking Plague, especially when it comes to what bin the record belongs in. Just as well. Mike Johnson may be deadly serious, but his music has enough layers to bypass classification." – All About Jazz    “If this is prog-rock, it’s progressive music with sharp teeth, making serious demands on most listeners.” – Jason Gross and Steve Smith, “American Contraband: Alternative Rock and American Experimental Music,” New Music Box "… a masterly blending of avant-garde musical resources with rock, and some exceptional playing from everyone involved. “ – John Covach. Progression                              IN EXTREMIS “Rating: Aces/ hands down classic / Head-spinningly complex prog-rock of the highest order. ... On In Extremis… these unsung geniuses have channeled the crushing fury of King Crimson, the existential angst of the Art Bears, the dense contrapuntal irregularity of Henry Cow and the pitch-black angularity of Present into a disquieting concoction whose ceaseless paroxysms of unabated intensity are tempered only by “Les Etudes D’Organism"’s disturbed diversion into perversely cheerful and structurally perverse circus music.… a relentless tide of head-spinning complexity…wildly shifting plates of sound. …the feverish surfeit of spellbind[ing] ideas investigated here are almost without precedent.” – Eric Lumbleau, Alternative Press   “I can safely say that this album wins my #1 slot for best new releases of 1998, and may very well occupy that slot for the entire decade. Yes, it is THAT good. A perfect “10”. Johnson has created an emotionally charged Maelstrom of progressive rock sounds, the statistical density of which is still hard to fathom. ..... no two measures of music on this album are alike, yet the album has a very logical, linear flow and is surprisingly easy to listen to… Johnson’s guitar is the star of the show, incorporating the styles of Fred Frith and Robert Fripp, along with the brief speedy outbursts of Steve Howe circa “Topographic Oceans” and “Relayer”. ...All of the songs are uniformly fantastic, and there is not a single weak moment... Truly a jaw-dropping album, and the best album I have heard in a very long time..” – Steve Robey, Roundtable review, Exposé Thinking Plague photo by Andy Watson, 1980   "Acid Rock and art rock influences abound, as do, avant-jazz and modern classical styles. Their remix of a previous title track, “Moonsongs,” is unearthly…” –Neil Strauss, Ear Magazine EARLY PLAGUE YEARS IN THIS LIFE “Perhaps the finest attempt so far by an American band to add to the pantheon of classic Rock-In-Opposition records… Mike Johnson’s composition are astonishing and – the clincher – beautiful, and Susanne Lewis’ vocals are…eerily enigmatic and…more accessible… Fred Frith guests on one track…” –MM, New Sonic Architecture   “It is a rare pleasure to discover brave, peculiar music which combines intellectual stimulation with sensual reward – music so thoroughly satisfying that it immediately becomes a permanent part of the listener’s context for appreciating all other music. Thinking Plague is…a phenomenon: a genre of music unto itself, eclectically derivative in a bold new way and spectacularly innovative in the old fashion sense of genuine originality.” – Andy Watson, Journal Wired, 1990   Mike Johnson photo by Leslie Jordan       Mike Johnson photo by Andy Watson return to top !! OUT NOW !! RELEASED DECEMBER 20, 2025 ON CUNEIFORM RECORDS CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2025 Bio information: CUNEIFORM RECORDS Title:  CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2025 Format: DIGITAL Release date: DECEMBER 20, 2026 www.cuneiformrecords.com FILE UNDER: AVANT ROCK / JAZZ / POST-CLASSICAL  / EXPERIMENTAL / BEYOND GENRE   Cuneiform Records Releases its Annual "Pay What You Wish" Digital Sampler, Featuring Tracks from Each Album  Released by the Label in 2025   This special, "Name Your Price", year-end album is a summation and compilation of all of the albums that Cuneiform Records released in 2025. This album features creative and fun music throughout the course of 20 tracks, all of which are taken from albums which were released by Cuneiform Records in 2025. We hope you will listen to 'Cuneiform Records: The Albums of 2025' and explore the wide spectrum of music we released over the year. Each track by each artist is unique and we hope you will sample it all. And then, if you've not already done so, we encourage you to listen to the artists who most appeal to you. ...and a funny thing happened on the way to a cover.... Neither Simon nor I are designers. We needed some sort of an illustration for this album and Simon suggested that we use the idea of one of this years' releases and change it in some way, using AI. So, we asked ChatGPT to take the cover artwork for Skullcap's Snakes of Albuquerque cuneiformrecords.bandcamp.com/album/snakes-of-albuquerque-2 and to take the snake amulet off of the string of pears and substitute the Cuneiform logo, adding the words : The Albums of 2025. It kept changing the logo; we'd feed it in and it would render it in various ways, all of them amusing, but inaccurate. This one, believe it or not, was the best (if woefully inaccurate) rendition! Additionally, it did not use the artwork of Skullcap and add the one thing we asked of it; it completely re-drew it. Compare the art of the original album to the art of this album. Whatever! At least it didn't add extra fingers...  ~ ~ ~   Buy [Name Your Price!] / listen to CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2025  on Bandcamp: ~ ~ ~   CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2025 TRACK LIST:   1. Trinary System - Monkeys (on Your Back) 04:44       2. SWRM - The Hunt 05:35       3. The Reference Group - Leatherreport 05:36       4. Balloons For The Dog - Peaches & Dogma 03:44       5. Krakhouse - We Go Blam Blam 02:04       6. Chris Cochrane / Collapsable Shoulder Big Band - Interdependence 04:01       7. Roger Clark Miller - Russian Spy Cannisters 05:20       8. Gilles Laval / 100 Guitars Sur Un Beateau Ivre - Roches 05:55       9. Skullcap - Journey to the Sunset 03:21       10. Curlew - To The Summer In Our Hearts 09:37       11. Luke Stewart / Silt Remembrance Ensemble - Commandments 06:58       12. Heat On - RSJ 05:44       13. Led Bib - Iron Ore 03:52       14. Revolutionary Snake Ensemble - Present 04:41       15. Miriodor - Le Dresseur de Chenilles 05:31       16. Forgas - Cocktail 03:42       17. Tinn Parrow & Co. / Laurence Bond Miller - Next Stop-Babylon 04:35       18. Rosa Ensemble - Nachtmuziek 03:03       19. Happy Family - Pygmalion 05:35       20. John Surman - Once Upon A Time 09:12 If you like a track on the sampler, scroll below to LISTEN TO & LEARN MORE about the ALBUM it's on: return to top CUNEIFORM RECORDS' 2025 RELEASES Click Album Cover to Listen & Buy via Bandcamp JAZZ  (format: CD, Digital, some LP )     HEAT ON – HEAT ON "In personnel and style, it’s an unabashed mash note to Chicago jazz. Tenor saxophonist Edward Wilkerson Jr. and alto saxophonist Fred Jackson Jr. have both been members of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians..and both are strong creative forces... Electric and acoustic bassist Nick Macri,...is a long-time presence on the city’s musical scene across genres... ...Finnegan’s compositions give the players plenty to deal with... If you’re looking for a Chicago sound, you need look no further.... Heat On makes Finnegan as a strong and conscious representative of place Chicago’s jazz scene." – Bill Myers, Dusted   ~ ~ ~ ~   LED BIB – HOTEL PUPIK “Led Bib are back as a lean and mean four-piece... It’s a riotously melodic set, with saxophonists Chris Williams and Pete Grogan going toe-to-toe with maverick drummer/bandleader Mark Holub and wildly creative bassist Liran Donan. While they ‘continue to make the world safe for dangerous music’, the sound of the group has matured and become deeper and more melodic, incorporating influences from other cultures and weaving them into their Motorik, prog and punky DNA.” – JazzWise (UK)   ~ ~ ~ ~      REVOLUTIONARY SNAKE ENSEMBLE – SERPENTINE "Splendid...spontaneous, improvisational, rigged with the band's energy and prosody...a solid blast of brass in a mercury-wild package.  This is music for listening, moving your ass....being alive." - Provincetown Magazine "Such an invigorating blast." - Downbeat "[a] unique and somewhat twisted twist on the New Orleans brass band tradition…hard-partying avant-funk, with boisterous soloing.” - NYC Jazz Record   "What’s refreshing here is the dual nature: yes, you can stomp your feet - because the grooves land hard - but you should think too, because the arrangements and improvisations carry weight. Field’s decision not to include a chordal instrument (no piano, no guitar) gives the horns autonomy; harmony becomes a communal act of negotiation, not a backdrop ... – Chain D.L.K. ~ ~ ~ ~ SKULLCAP – SNAKES OF ALBUQUERQUE JAZZ / ROCK / BEYOND "6 Stars...I honestly believe this is the first time I have ever said "power cello trio". Janel Leppin (cello, Minimoog) and Anthony Pirog (electric guitar)...Mike Kuhl (drums, percussion)....coming together...and recording this album has resulted in something which is special, indescribable and undoubtedly beautiful. ...The music is RIO at times, or avant, or jazz, or something more, but never anything less. ...music which has real worth and value..."  – Progressor "5 Stars.  ...The whole album is comfortable and fluent, taking you through a variety of influences and styles, from rock to folk to jazz, without a jarring moment." – MusiqueMachine ~ ~ ~ ~   LUKE STEWART / SILT REMBRANCE ENSEMBLE – THE ORDER "4.5/5 stars. ...Silt Remembrance Ensemble.. brings together [Luke Stewart's] Silt Trio...and members of his Remembrance Quintet ... The result, The Order, doesn’t sound quite like either group — although it does sound indefatigably like Stewart.  In fact, it might be said to encapsulate everything Stewart does best. The tunes tend toward the kind of infectious, organic grooves that shape the Silt Trio’s two albums... Yet it has the wider textural palette, busier interaction and poetic augmentations of the Remembrance Quintet... Much is happening here, all of it captivating." –Mike West, DownBeat ~ ~ ~ ~   JOHN SURMAN – FLASHPOINTS AND CROSSCURRENTS              "Rating: 5/5 stars.   ....this new 2-CD set, Flashpoints and Undercurrents. Comprising 13 originals it fully justifies the five star rating. In fact, if there is a spare star lying around anywhere you can add that too. This music fully deserves it – British jazz from its famous Golden Period, 1955 to 1975, at its best.      Nothing Surman recorded for Deram – John Surman (1969), How Many Clouds Can You See (1970) or Tales of the Algonquin (1971) – [can]  prepare you for this.      .....Recorded in exceptional fidelity from the original broadcast quality tapes, this is jazz for the ages. At a time when Surman’s albums for Deram are going for three-figure sums in the collectors market, this classic of perhaps greater merit is now available for a two-figure sum." – Stuart Nicholson, Jazzwise   John Surman's Flashpoints & Undercurrents named  #6 in JazzWise Magazine (UK) Top 20 Reissue/Archive Albums of the Year   JAZZ  (format: Digital)   CURLEW – EAST / WEST / ALSO JAZZ / ROCK / BEYOND / POST-GENRE "4/5 STARS. Recorded on the 1990 Knitting Factory tour...from fairly late in the timeline of the [Pippin] Barnett / [Tom] Cora / [George] Cartwright / [Ann] Rupel / [Davey] Williams line-up. ... This RIO/avant-garde/free jazz outfit manage to be completely together, as tight as can be imagined while playing complex music, or free and loose as they improvised over the top, meaning each time they played a song it would be different ... This is music for those who love improvised music yet also need some semblance of structure, as this is dynamic and exciting, thought-provoking and necessary, all at once. The crowd were certainly appreciative of what must have an incredible experience, and it is great that 35 years after these events, Cuneiform have made the tapes available." – Kev Rowland, Progarchives ~ ~ ~ ~   PATRICK FORGAS – COCKTAIL JAZZ / JAZZ ROCK / PROGRESSIVE ROCK "4.5/5 STARS. In the realm of jazz-rock fusions and progressive experiments, Cocktail is an odd, sparkling gem - equal parts charm, youthful audacity, and dream logic. Originally released in 1977, when its creator Patrick Forgas was barely out of his teenage years, this reissue...serves as both time capsule and crystal ball: a snapshot of a young drummer-composer’s ambitions, and a prophecy of the path he would later carve in the European avant-prog underground. ... The original tracks (recorded in 1977) unfold like scenes in a silent film scored by a jazz-fusion troupe...in a crooked mirror maze. ...bonus tracks - drawn from various demo sessions between 1973 and 1979...reveal the slow formation of a musical voice.... ...Cocktail is where it all starts - with reel-to-reel dreams, punkish confidence, and an uncanny sense of melodic storytelling."– Tio Camarretta, Chain D.L.K. ~ ~ ~ ~   CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2024 – CUNEIFORM'S 40TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR JAZZ / ROCK /CLASSICAL MINIMALISM / ELECTRONIC / POST-GENRE feedback from BandCamp customers:  "gracias por este regalo de verdadero arte" – Marek Kulpa: "wow - what a great sampler high quality - mine this carefully kids : )" – jorgegonzalezlarramendi: return to top CUNEIFORM RECORDS' 2025 RELEASES Click Album Cover to Listen & Buy via Bandcamp ROCK (format: CD, Digital, some LP ) HAPPY FAMILY – 4037 AVANT PROGRESSIVE / ZEUHL / ROCK "4/5 STARS: Happy Family’s 4037 feels less like an EP and more like a triumphant phoenix rising... After touring behind Minimal Gods into near burnout, the Tokyo-born, Zeuhl-infused quartet vanished - only to reemerge at the invitation of Cuneiform Records’ 40th anniversary. Fittingly, 4037 marks “40” years of the label and “37” years of the band itself, a playful arithmetic that underpins both the record’s spirit of gratitude and its sly commentary on time’s elastic pull. ...For fans of the adventurous fringe - whether you worship Magma’s ancient lineage or crave the next twist in avant-prog - Happy Family’s 4037 is a miniature epic worth savoring." – Chain D.L.K.  "...4037 is a powerful reminder that Happy Family’s fire hasn’t dimmed with time – it’s only grown weirder, heavier, and more compelling." – Avant Music News "... Instrumental progressive rock just doesn’t get much better than this. ... it’s a welcome return for a great band." – Exposé ~ ~ ~ ~   GILLES LAVAL –   100 GUITARS SUR UN BATEAU IVRE [100 GUITARS ON A DRUNKEN BOAT] ROCK / EXPERIMENTAL « 100 guitares sur un bateau ivre » sails from town to town, inviting local musicians to reinterpret the composition. The number of participants can vary from 30 to 100, depending on the context.  It is a tribute to the oceans and their defenders, to the still little-known blue immensities full of life and secrets, outrageously and dangerously plundered today, in the light of Arthur Rimbaud’s scintillating, lactescent, tempestuous and wild poem. It’s also a tribute to all those who won’t find the shores after departures full of hope or terror. " – Gilles Laval          ~ ~ ~ ~ ROGER CLARK MILLER –  CURIOSITY FOR SOLO ELECTRIC GUITAR ENSEMBLE ROCK / EXPERIMENTAL "4.5/5 STARS. Roger Clark Miller ..returns with...a record that is both an exploration of sound and an excavation of the psyche. ...It’s part science fiction, part lucid dream, and entirely Roger Clark Miller. ...this is a solo album, but don’t let that fool you. Miller is an ensemble unto himself, conjuring layers of sound from a modified Stratocaster, an array of prepared lap steel guitars, and enough looping devices to make time fold in on itself. His compositions emerge like carefully constructed hallucinations - somewhere between 20th-century avant-garde, post-punk experimentalism, and a tape-delay séance with the ghost of Morton Feldman." – Chain D.L.K. "Roger Clark Miller’s latest solo electric guitar ensemble album showcases him at his best, blending avant-garde experimentation with familiar guitar rock textures."– ArtsFuse   ~ ~ ~ ~ SKULLCAP – SNAKES OF ALBUQUERQUE JAZZ / ROCK / BEYOND "6 Stars...this album...is special, indescribable and undoubtedly beautiful. ...The music is RIO at times, or avant, or jazz, or something more, but never anything less. ...music which has real worth and value..."  – Progressor "5 Stars. ... Lightly distorted blues rock fuzz guitar meets a vibrant, expressive folk lead cello, with a drummer who plays with a jazz subtlety. ..In this trio, each player establishes a strong identity without a weak link. The lead playing is poignantly, cuttingly expressive, whether it's Pirog's...or Leppin's...."– MusiqueMachine ~ ~ ~ ~   TRINARY SYSTEM – THE HARD MACHINE "...Trinary System presents their new album...between art rock, experimental pop, and instrumental storytelling, feeling both complex and immediate. The band combines organic timbres with electronic structures, layering with transparency, energy with melancholy. ...Between pulsating grooves, poetic textures, and shimmering guitar lines, musical spaces emerge that range from introspective fragility to eruptive power. The album plays with contrasts – between control and chaos, catchiness and abstraction. ... "The Hard Machine" is a multifaceted statement from a band that defies easy categorization yet remains instantly recognizable. – Broken Silence    "Trinary System continues the elegant, abstract, agitated firestorm tradition of Miller's Burma songs, with an unmistakable swagger…" – Dusted Magazine.   ROCK (format: Digital) BALLOONS FOR THE DOG – WICKED FORMS OF OLD SNOW ROCK / ART ROCK / NEW WAVE "4/5 STARS  ....From 1977 to 1981, they were Washington DC’s untrainable stray, sniffing at the bins of punk, lapping at the puddles of art rock, and then running away to bark at metaphysics under the moon. Wicked Forms of Old Snow finally gathers their only single alongside 18 unreleased tracks... They were too feral for punk’s uniforms, too irreverent for art rock’s temples, and far too funny to be taken seriously - until suddenly they were. ... Forty-plus years later, these tracks sound oddly prescient. Where so many “lost bands” emerge from the vaults sounding dated, Balloons for the Dog feel like they were rehearsing for a future that never arrived - a future where categories were useless, where art was both joke and sacrament, where amps burning down was just part of the gig. In 2025, with post-punk’s ghosts endlessly resurrected, their refusal to choose sides feels less like confusion and more like liberation."– Chain D.L.K.  ~ ~ ~ ~ CHRIS COCHRANE'S COLLAPSIBLE SHOULDER BIG BAND – LIVE 2019: A MAP OF BOOKS ROCK / AVANT ROCK " In 2019, Cochrane introduced...Collapsible Shoulder...a big band—a total of 20 musicians... The songs they played explode off the disc, but what’s most notable is the strength of Cochrane’s writing. He’s long been an intriguing songwriter, but the cuts here—which also includes covers of songs by Fred Frith, Robert Pollard and This Heat—are sensitive, engaging, and, dare I say, refined? ...Cochrane’s writing has never come off so heartfelt." – Kurt Gottschalk, NYC Jazz Record "Cuneiform offers a vital document of guitarist, vocalist, and composer Chris Cochrane with his Collapsible Shoulder Big Band, recorded live at Roulette in 2019 and 2020. Cochrane is one of those archetypal downtown NYC creatives who’s had a hand in pretty much everything: new music, free improv, indie rock, and so on. His band – a multi-generational crew comprising similarly versatile players like Gordon Beeferman, Brian Chase, Kato Hideki, Gelsey Bell, Syd Straw, Jim Pugliese, and longtime No Safety partner Zeena Parkins – is up to every challenge the leader proposes. Listen, learn, savor." – Steve Smith, Night After Night   ~ ~ ~ ~ KRAKHOUSE – BASTARDS OF PROG ROCK / COMEDY / EXPERIMENTAL ...“Bastards of Prog,” Krakhouse’s debut...runs across eighty-four lo-fi/high-IQ experimental-comedy songs. Krakow collaborated with Dot Wiggin-Semprini of The Shaggs, and threw in covers of Captain Beefheart, Sisqo, and Alan Smithee. Krakow says, “...anything can be ‘prog,’ no matter how it sounds, looks like or tastes.” For him, progress is about breaking limits: “the people who do so don’t (just) play ‘prog’, they play music... Whatever it is that they do, they bastardize the medium of their choice.”  – Idioteq   ~ ~ ~ ~ SWRM – LIGHTS OFF DARK SYNTH POP / ART ROCK / PSYCH / MINIMAL WAVE / ELECTRONIC "8 Great Psychedelic Albums from Summer 2025 SWRM – LIGHTS OUT A witches’ brew of psych, prog, space rock, minimal wave and post-punk...created by just two musicians from Providence...: Alec K. Redfearn and Matt McLaren. They both play...wizards of Oz by employing a slew of curious instruments and using them as a curtain behind which they carry out their hypnotic hijinks. Vocalist Redfearn alternates between...four skronky-sounding synths (a Moog Matriarch, the Sequential Trigon 6 Analog Synthesizer, the Korg MS-20 and a Eurorack modular synth). All the while, McLaren keeps busy...over his drum kit and percussion, whilst also dabbling with harmonica and neyanban (a Persian bagpipe...). With a guest spot by Mary Sullivan of Yawni, Lights Out succeeds in that its tempo remains mostly steady through the six songs, which allows listeners to...soak in the range of synths. That strategy worked for Gary Numan, and it works for longtime collaborators Redfearn and McLaren with their shadowy SWRM project."  – Kurt Orzeck, Treble "...the duo released...Lights Out via Cuneiform Records and it’s purely hypnotic. ....It’s a unique and haunting assortment of electronic-based music that’ll excite the senses." – Rob Duguay, Culture Beat ~ ~ ~ ~ MIRIODOR – LIVE '97 ROCK / AVANT-PROGRESSIVE / ROCK IN OPPOSITION "6/6 STARS. This is a version of RIO which can be even more challenging than normal and...very French, taking influences from the likes of Art Zoyd and Univers Zero and then combining it with King Crimson and Van Der Graaf Generator. There are times when the guitar feels almost like a wild animal with plenty of feedback and distortion but then it can suddenly move into...pronk, picked and very effective. We keep getting circus melodies coming to us from the keyboards, but this is not the sort of world where children will be happily laughing... There are passages of sheer beauty which are in total contrast to the chaos, each making the other feel even more so. While this album will not be for everyone, anyone who likes this style of music will find this an incredible piece of work where every musician knew the destination, even if there are times when they are taking quite different paths." – Progressor "There’s also something oddly poignant about hearing Miriodor in 1997 from the vantage point of 2025. The circus they built then was a counter-spectacle, a rebuttal to rock’s solemnity and prog’s tendency to drown in its own gravitas. What they offered instead was artful chaos, wit, and daredevil precision - a reminder that progressive music could be serious without being self-serious, and absurd without being throwaway. ..."Live 97" is not just a long-lost artifact for collectors. It’s a snapshot of risk-taking energy, of a group willing to stumble for the sake of surprise, of a band whose sense of play was as sharp as their musicianship." – Chain D.L.K. ~ ~ ~ ~ THE REFERENCE GROUP – FILE UNDER UNPOPULAR ROCK "6/6 STARS . There is no doubt that Cuneiform are one of the most important labels in the world as they continue to make available music which otherwise would have been lost, and here we have a fine example in The Reference Group who were only around in 2007/08, played just one gig and recorded just eight tracks (all collected here). ...This does not sound like songs...recorded nearly 20 years ago but instead is cutting edge and of today. ...Beefheart...brought...into the modern environment and...definitely uncommercial,... The more this is played the more significant one realises this group were in a musical sense, and they should have been far more highly recognised. Yet again Cuneiform have released an absolute indispensable gem." – Progressor ~ ~ ~ ~ TINN PARROW & COMPANY  – MY GYMNASIUM MUSEUM ROCK / ART ROCK  "...music-hall-pop-psychedelic-jazz by Tinn Parrow & Company / Laurence Bond Miller... Tinn Parrow is Miller's alter-ego for this mad collection, and he plays the majority of the instruments, alongside numerous Metro Detroit jazz and classical musicians, as well as his twin brother, Benjamin... ...there's so much pop on this album—leftfield, off-the-wall, atypical, nonintuitive pop, but undeniably catchy—alongside more Dada-esque excursions. My Gymnasium Museum...fully captures Miller's brilliance with composition and harmony, his surrealist humor, and deeply embedded ability to balance weird hooks and controlled anarchy." – Christopher Porter, A2 Pulp Arts / Ann Arbor District Lbrary ~ ~ ~ ~   CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2024 – CUNEIFORM'S 40TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR JAZZ / ROCK /CLASSICAL MINIMALISM / ELECTRONIC / POST-GENRE     return to top CUNEIFORM RECORDS' 2025 RELEASES NEW MUSIC / CLASSICAL MINIMALISM / POST-GENRE (format: Digital) ROSA ENSEMBLE – ODDMENTS NEW MUSIC / CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL / POST-GENRE "4/5 STARS. On "Oddments", now a quintet featuring musicians with terrifyingly wide résumés - John Dikeman’s free-jazz sax, Koen Kaptijn’s trombone-as-noise-machine, Jeroen Kimman’s anything-goes guitar arsenal, Mei Yi Lee’s restless percussion, and Peter Jessen’s bass grounding it all - the group returns to something deceptively “small”. Instead of grand productions, we get a collection of bite-sized compositions from Floris van Bergeijk, Jeroen Kimman, and Wilbert Bulsink. Each track is a tiny organism...under two minutes. ...It’s a collage aesthetic - part Erik Satie’s sardonic brevity, part Captain Beefheart’s fractured logic, part downtown New York improv scene - but filtered through Dutch wit and precision.  ...playful, unpredictable, and gloriously unclassifiable" – Chain D.L.K.    HAPPY FAMILY  some words from Happy Family: We are excited to share three new piano versions of upcoming Happy Family tracks. These interpretations offer a raw and intimate glimpse into the core of our latest compositions—currently being developed into full-band arrangements through ongoing rehearsals. We're also thrilled to announce an upcoming headline show in Japan. Happy Family will perform a live set on Saturday, December 13, 2025 at Silver Elephant in Tokyo. For more details and updates, please visit our official Facebook page HappyFamily.music.   JUST A STAIR / THE GREAT SWORD OF RESPONSIBILITY       WALKING THROUGH THE MIRE / THE DARK FOREST      FLOWING YET CUNNING / FORT OF RESPONSIBILITY  Airplay on BBC Radio 6, Stuart Maconie's Freak Zone Oct. 19, 2025       CUNEIFORM RECORDS: THE ALBUMS OF 2024 – CUNEIFORM'S 40TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR JAZZ / ROCK /CLASSICAL MINIMALISM / ELECTRONIC / POST-GENRE return to top !!OUT NOW!! RELEASED NOVEMBER 21, 2025 ON CUNEIFORM RECORDS GILLES LAVAL 100 GUITARS SUR UN BATEAU IVRE [100 GUITARS IN A DRUNKEN BOAT] Bio information: GILLES LAVAL Title:  100 GUITARS SUR UN BATEAU IVRE (100 GUITARS IN A DRUNKEN BOAT) (Cuneiform Rune 535) Format: CD / DIGITAL Release date: November 21, 2025 www.cuneiformrecords.com FILE UNDER: AVANT ROCK / EXPERIMENTAL    French composer, guitarist, spectacle organizer and educator, GILLES LAVAL presents large-scale musical works in cities across Europe. Inspired by Earth's oceans and ARTHUR RIMBAUD's poem, he composed 100 GUITARS SUR UN BATEAU IVRE (100 GUITARS IN A DRUNKEN BOAT) for live, immersive performances by 100 electric guitars. Laval's stunning and evocative tribute to the sea is captured on this studio album, 100 GUITARS SUR UN BATEAU IVRE, released on Cuneiform Records   listen to/ share "Roches" on Soundcloud, from Gilles Laval's 100 Guitares sur un Bateau Ivre" « 100 guitares sur un bateau ivre » sails from town to town, inviting local musicians to reinterpret the composition. The number of participants can vary from 30 to 100, depending on the context. Coming soon to your town? Info: gsubi.com  It is a tribute to the oceans and their defenders, to the still little-known blue immensities full of life and secrets, outrageously and dangerously plundered today, in the light of Arthur Rimbaud’s scintillating, lactescent, tempestuous and wild poem. It’s also a tribute to all those who won’t find the shores after departures full of hope or terror. " – Gilles Laval  100 Guitars sur un Bateau Ivre – performance n Avignon, 2019. Photo by L Danière & S Kamel   When Arthur Rimbaud wrote his 1871 poem Le Bateau ivre, it’s likely that he’d never boarded any vessel larger than a ferry across the river Meuse. At 17, his voyages to Java, Yemen, and Ethiopia were still far in the future, but the young writer was no stranger to the tempestuous seas of sex, love, and the subconscious. Plunging through vertiginous waves and “milk-white spume”, his “drunken boat” finds an ecstatic death in fire and breakers. The metaphorical implications are many, and it’s easy to see why guitarist, educator, and composer Gilles Laval took it as inspiration for his return to the Cuneiform Records label, following his 2022 contributions to the brilliant Franco-Javanese band Balungan’s Kudu Bisa Kudu.   “I wanted to find an unconventional form of writing that was accessible to as many people as possible,” Laval explains, noting that he’s an avid snorkeler and scuba diver, with a life-long passion for the sea. “In this poem by Rimbaud, which I read regularly, the sea symbolizes freedom, adventure, escape, and rebellion.   “Le Bateau ivre guided me throughout the composition as a common thread,” he continues, “and the title itself opens up an immediate and limitless imagination.”   Laval’s 100 guitares sur un bateau ivre is much more than a cruise through Rimbaud’s poetic waters, however. In its seven sections, Laval unfurls a narrative that has only a tangential connection to the poet’s imaginary voyage, while incorporating atmospherics drawn from his own aquatic adventures. There is great beauty here, as the music often embraces the otherworldly and immersive aspects of the marine environment, but also quietly subversive commentary. “I wanted to denounce the madness of overfishing, and new forms of fishing such as bottom trawling that massacre the seabed without respecting anything,” Laval says. And if his music embraces darkness as well as adventure, that’s only natural. 100 guitares sur un bateau ivre’s final movement, “Unsaved”, is a wordless eulogy for all of the nameless migrants who’ve died in desperate voyages to find safety and peace.   100 Guitars sur un Bateau Ivre – performance in Berlin What has been a place of wonder and joy for the composer has also been a “horrible cemetery” for others, he notes. Still, the strongest currents here have to do with surprise, transformation, and empowerment. On the surface, Laval has embraced Rimbaud’s aesthetic of “the systematic derangement of the senses”, using the abstract sonic possibilities of the electric guitar to produce a shifting, restless soundscape that asks for the listener’s active engagement.   “Yes, I like this idea of disturbing the senses, shaking up sounds, melodies, harmonies, and ways of doing things,” Laval says, adding that his tools include prepared guitars and multiple eBows, handheld electronic devices that allow guitarists access to violin-like sustain and various timbral effects. “There is no organized narrative to the poem,” he continues. “I drew inspiration from the sensations I experienced each time I read it, with these explosions of colors, scents, sounds, rhythms, images, and a sense of the revolt brewing within.”   For many, the idea of an orchestra made up of 100 electric guitars will be revolutionary enough, but there are precedents for some of Laval’s innovations—and he was in on some of them. For instance, he was the motivating factor behind Fred Frith’s Impur, which called for an ensemble of 100 and emerged from the avant-rock mastermind’s extended residency at the National Music School in Villeurbanne, where Laval teaches. The French musician has also performed with Rhys Chatham, whose early multi-guitar pieces prefigured the work of everyone from American rock band Sonic Youth to Canadian composer and guitarist Tim Brady.  Cuneiform Records has previously released works composed for guitar orchestras, including Raoul Bjorkenheim's Apocalypso (2001) and Adam Rudolf's GO: Organic Guitar Orchestra's Turning Towards the Light (2015), but this is their first release of a work composed for 100 guitars.     100 Guitars sur un Bateau Ivre – performance in Leipzig 21 juin 2023. Photo by Laurence Danière For Laval, working with up to 100 other plectrists is a way of expressing his love of his chosen instrument. “I can't get enough of it!’ he enthuses. “I also feel most at home working with musicians who share my musical worlds or musical practices. I already have other ideas for compositions, perhaps adding other instruments, but almost anything is possible with guitars.” There’s also a democratic impulse at play here: although all too often shunned in symphonic circles, the electric guitar is the instrument of choice in many cultures worldwide and is accessible to all, from amateurs to virtuosi. Built into 100 guitares sur un bateau ivre, Laval explains, are multiple levels of complexity; relative novices can comfortably take part (with some preparation), while experienced professionals will have their skills as well as their preconceptions challenged.  “Bringing together 100 people in a common project is no small feat,” the composer explains. “I’ve chosen to offer a ‘long-term’ approach: one to two months of preparatory work with a core group of 20 guitarists who will then be distributed among four groups of 25. I also need to train four captains or ‘skippers’ who will lead the four groups, with the help of the guitarists in the core group. Mutual support is essential so that everyone can find their way, regardless of their background or guitar level.   “Once the 100 guitarists are assembled,” he continues, “I propose a work period of approximately six months, with six to eight rehearsals during this time. Things take time to settle in, and the process is complicated, but it works!”   100 Guitars sur un Bateau Ivre – rehearsal Part of Laval’s pedagogical intent is that his hundred musicians will learn more than just his score. Along the way, he hopes, they’ll pick up the skills necessary to navigate this world’s increasingly troubled waters, using the solidarity they’ve developed on-stage and in the rehearsal process to combat racism, sexism, disinformation, and the other plagues of our time.   “The future doesn't seem to me to be the brightest one could wish for: wars, famines, the climate, politics, leaders, nationalist and populist movements, et cetera,” Laval allows. “The list is far too long. We currently know less about the ocean floor and its ecosystem than the surface of the moon, and already some new colonizing autocrats want to go to Mars. Yet we must continue to navigate, to rebel, to remain hopeful.   “The battle is tough,” he adds. “But in the end the most important thing is to see the smiles and enthusiasm of the participants, and the pleasure they have in sharing this extraordinary musical moment with the audience.” We’ll have to extrapolate those smiles from this recorded version, but in 100 guitares sur un bateau ivre Laval and his musicians have courage, hope, and adventure to spare—and to share.   100 Guitars sur un Bateau Ivre in Avignon 2019  Photo by O. Dick ~ ~ ~ buy / listen to Gilles Laval's 100 Guitars sur un Bateau Ivre on Bandcamp: ~ ~ ~   ALBUM CREDITS: 100 GUITARS SUR UN BATEAU IVRE  STUDIO GUITARISTS: Stéphane Augagneur, Serge Bégout, Adrien Bovigny, Jacq-Niels Clerc, Rémy Decrouy, Jon Fayard, Guillaume Fenoy, Louisa Fillot, Clémentine Gasnier, Sébastien Gayrard, Guillaume Jacquet, Salah Kamel, Mélodie Kostrzewa, Antoine Lartigue, Jules Laval, Le Bich Nhi, Thiên Kim Pham-Picard, Thomas Picot, Léonie Prost, Paolo Rezze COMPOSITION: Gilles Laval RECORDED AT: Mikrokosm, Villeurbanne, France (Oct 2020) MIXING: Clémentine Gasnier, Gégé Millet, Gilles Laval at Studio 8 PM, Lyon, France  MASTERING: Paul Nameche ARTWORK: Jon Fayard, Gilles Laval PHOTO CREDIT: Paul Caigert (strawberry squid) DIRECTION: Gilles Laval, assisted by Nicolas Sidoroff CO-PRODUCTION: Les ateliers Frappaz centre national des arts de la rue et de l’espace public, Chef Menteur production 100 Guitars sur un Bateau Ivre at Avignon 2019 – rehearsal return to top OTHER RELEASES ON CUNEIFORM RECORDS FEATURING GILLES LAVAL BALUNGAN KUDU BISA KUDU "...French drummer Guigou Chenevier...and five other French musicians ended up in Yogyakarta teaming up with seven Javanese gamelan players to create this thirteen-piece ensemble [Balungan] fusing Indonesian traditional sounds with rock music. This isn’t rock music with gamelan tacked on, nor is it traditional gamelan music played by a rock band; the group was built from the ground up, each member contributing their original material and instrumentation, each contributing lyrics in their own language, and the arrangements done together as a group...in France and Indonesia.. ...the recording at hand, live at La Garance, dates from May 23rd, 2017, a technically flawless recording that stands as one of the best gamelan-rock fusions one is likely to hear anywhere, and these guys do rock — each of the twelve tracks is are overflowing with energy, urgency, and power. ... Kudu Bisa Kudu is like no other, and perhaps my number one contender for album of the year." – Peter Thelen, Exposé, 2022   BALUNGAN credits: Guigou Chenevier – drums Loïc Guénin – keyboards Laurent Frick – vocals Gilles Laval – guitar Laurent Luci – guitar Franck Testut – bass Setyanto Prajoko – gamelan Sudaryanto – gamelan Tri Widiantoro – gamelan Setyaji Dewanto – gamelan Sutikno – gamelan Bagus Ariyanto Seputro Nasution – gamelan Desyana Wulani Putri – gamelan return to top !! OUT NOW !! NOVEMBER 25, 2025 ON CUNEIFORM RECORDS HAPPY FAMILY JUST A STAIR / THE GREAT SWORD OF RESPONSIBILITY Bio information: HAPPY FAMILY Title: JUST A STAIR / THE GREAT SWORD OF RESPONSIBILITY (Cuneiform Rune 4040) Format: DIGITAL Release date: November 25, 2025 www.cuneiformrecords.com FILE UNDER:  NEW MUSIC / CLASSICAL MINIMALISM JAPAN'S HAPPY FAMILY RELEASE THIRD INSTALLMENT OF THEIR PIANO SERIES:  – JUST A STAIR  / THE GREAT SWORD OF RESPONSIBILITY – BY COMPOSER / PIANIST KENICHI MORIMOTO –  The new single released November 25, in celebration of Happy Family's return to live performance with a December 13 2025 concert at Tokyo's Silver Elephant –  the quartet's first live show in a decade! HAPPY FAMILY shares its news: SINGLE RELEASE The third installment of Happy Family’s piano series is here! We are excited to share two new piano versions of upcoming Happy Family tracks. These interpretations offer a raw and intimate glimpse into the core of our latest compositions—currently being developed into full-band arrangements through ongoing rehearsals. CONCERT IN TOKYO: December 13, 2025 The Happy Family quartet will perform a headline show in Tokyo on Saturday, December 13, 2025 at the Silver Elephant. For more details and updates, please visit our official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/HappyFamily.music Tickets for this performance - our first live show in 10 years - will go on sale starting October 13: www.silver-elephant.com/progre ABOUT THE SINGLE JUST A STAIR / THE SWORD OF RESPONSIBILITY Kenichi Morimoto discusses his compositions: "Just a Stair" There is an artistic approach proposed by the avant-garde artist Genpei Akasegawa called Hyperart Thomasson. It refers to architectural fragments that, through layers of renovation and reconstruction, have lost their original purpose yet remain abruptly embedded in the built environment. These vestiges are often left untouched—presumably because removing them would cost more than simply ignoring them. Akasegawa named the appreciation of such abandoned structures “Hyperart Thomasson.” One of its emblematic examples is the “Just a Stair.” It is a staircase attached to the exterior wall of a building; as you climb, you find that it connects to nothing, forcing you to descend the same steps back to the ground. This piece takes that staircase as its theme, incorporating touches of the blues scale. I wonder if the intention came through—the attempt to give meaning to something that is, by nature, utterly meaningless. "The Great Sword of Responsibility" In the Happy Family piano series, I once presented a piece titled "Fort of Responsibility." Yet defense alone cannot shift the situation, so this time I composed from the opposite stance. Because the work was never meant to be performed on a standalone piano, I entered everything directly into my Mac. The entire composition probably took about an hour. Among the pieces in this series, it is the only one that did not employ an acoustic piano in its creation.  BUY / listen on Bandcamp to HAPPY FAMILY'S JUST A STAIR / THE GREAT SWORD OF RESPONSIBILITY   CREDITS Kenichi Morimoto - piano written by Kenichi Morimoto mixed and mastered by Takahiro Izutani   ~~~   "We already have...a full album's worth of brand new material...composed by Kenichi Morimoto...The upcoming album will centre around his piano and focus on expressing the 'beauty' of Happy Family. ....Before, Happy Family had two sides of musical direction: comical, fun melodies, and the dark, heavy side of music. Now, we are thinking about how to make a great, beautiful kind of music. That's a new perspective [facet] of ourselves." – Takahiro Izutani, quoted in Daniel Spicer's article "Happy Family," The Wire  496, June 2025   Happy Family photograph by Ryohei Obama for The Wire Read the full 4-page (pp. 26-29) article on Happy Family by Daniel Spicer in The Wire (#496), June 2025 return to top ! SNEAK PEEKS WITH SOUNDS! 5 RELEASES COMING OUT IN DIGITAL FORMAT FEBRUARY 30, 2026 ON CUNEIFORM RECORDS [scroll down; digital releases are listed here alphabetically by artist name] ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ b.mez UNDER CIRCUITOUS SKIES b.mez is a post-genre improvising project developed by members of the Boston-based group  Birdsongs of the Mesozoic: Michael Bierylo, Ken Field, Rick Scott, and for this recording, Roger Miller, the original co-founder of Birdsongs. [USA] listen to/ share "LEDGE" on Soundcloud, by B. MEZ from UNDER CIRCUITOUS SKIES credits: Michael Bierylo : guitar, modular synthesizer, loops Ken Field : alto & sopranino saxophones, concert & alto flutes, percussion, loops Roger Miller : guitar, Rogue lap-steel guitars,electric piano, piano, prepared piano, loops Rick Scott : synthesizers, loops ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   FREDERIC L'EPEE CONTRE COURANT Composer and guitarist Frédéric L'Epée (leader of French guitar-based groups Yang, Philharmonie, Shylock) explores the exquisite delicacy, natural richness, and wide range of sounds conveyed by guitar in this elegant, mesmerizing album of solo electric guitar music.  [France] listen to/ share "FESTINA LENTE" on Soundcloud, by FREDERIC L'EPEE from CONTRE COURANT credits: Frédéric L'Epée : guitars ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   DENMAN MARONEY MEAN TIMES Previously unreleased 1995 avant jazz concert at the Knitting Factory by composer Denman Maroney on sampled hyperpiano, with Herb Robertson on trumpet, Ellery Eskelin on tenor saxophone, Mark Dresser on bass and  Phil Haynes on drums. [USA] listen to/ share "MEAN TIMES" on Soundcloud, by DENMAN MARONEY from MEAN TIMES CREDITS Herb Robertson – trumpet  Ellery Eskelin – tenor saxophone  Denman Maroney – composition and sampled hyperpiano  Mark Dresser – bass  Phil Haynes – drums   Recorded April 11, 1995 live in concert at the Knitting Factory, New York NY.  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   NATHAN MOORE / EDDIE PREVOST / RAY RUSSELL STACKED Two legends from the earliest beginning of British free music – percussionist Eddie Prevost (founder of AMM) and guitarist Ray Russell – join up with a younger guitarist, Nathan Moore, to perform a set of exuberant, exploratory music more informed by rock music than one might expect. [UK] listen to/ share "RAISE" on Soundcloud, by PREVOST/ RAY RUSSELL from STACKED CREDITS: Nathan Moore : electric guitar (right) Eddie Prévost : drums Ray Russell : electric guitar (left) Recorded at The Crypt Studio, London, April 24, 2025 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   NEBELNEST SAALFELDEN 2007 Live recordings made by this hard-hitting, French instrumental ensemble whose uniquely post-punk take on zeuhl music / dark symphonic rock incorporated found-sound, noise, improvisation and dissonance. Founded in 1997, their 2007 concert at the 2007 Saalfelden Jazzfestival was the band's last show. [FRANCE] listen to/ share "Pillars of Birth" on Soundcloud, by NEBELNEST from SAALFELDEN 2007 CREDITS : Olivier TeJeDOR: Keyboards Michael ANSeLMI : Drums Gregory TeJeDOR : Bass Matthieu SaSSLeR : Guitar Julien WACK : Sax, Flute, Guitar Recorded at Jazzfestival Saalfelden, Austria 2007 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ return to top SNEAK PEEKS OF DISTANT TREASURES   COMING OUT IN 2026 & BEYOND ON CUNEIFORM RECORDS (Listed in alphabetical order. Sound samples to come out in future newsletters) ~~~~~ JAZZ ~~~~~ GHOST RHYTHMS – MISSING TIMES  (New studio album by young French avant progressive ensemble) [FRANCE] ~~~~~~ JANEL LEPPIN  – SLOWLY MELTING (Cellist & composer Janel Leppin's 2nd solo album of genre-defying music) [USA] ~~~~~~ JANEL LEPPIN / ENSEMBLE VOLCANIC ASH – PLUTO IN AQUARIUS (Third studio album by composer / cellist/  bandleader Janel Leppin's Washington DC-based jazz group, Ensemble Volcanic Ash) [USA] ~~~~~~     ROCK ~~~~~~ ACCORDO DEI CONTRARI – TBC (A new studio album by the acclaimed Italian avant -progressive ensemble) [ITALY] ~~~~~~ BOUD DEUN – LIVE ORION APRIL 5, 1997 (Previously unreleased live concert recordings by '90s DMV/suburban Washington DC avant progressive fusion quartet led by Sean Persinger) [USA] ~~~~~~ CHEER-ACCIDENT – TBC (A new studio album and a DVD of live performances by Chicago's fave longstanding alt-rock / post-pop group) [USA] ~~~~~~ FRENCH TV – THE SPANISH CAPER (A double album by French TV: one album of new compositions, and one of covers of '60s and '70s "deep-cuts" that had influenced the band. This double feature will be the band's 16th & 17th album(s)! ) [USA] ~~~~~~ HENRY KAISER / GLENN PHILLIPS  – GUITAR PARTY (Reissue of 1990 studio album featuring Henry Kaiser & Glenn Phillips, two uniquely great, American rock guitarists) [USA] ~~~~~~ JANEL LEPPIN  – SLOWLY MELTING (Cellist & composer Janel Leppin's 2nd solo album of genre-defying music) [USA] ~~~~~~ NEBELNEST – THE LOST ALBUM   (Nebelnest's previously unreleased 4th album - an exciting find!) [FRANCE] ~~~~~~ THE LUCK PUSHERS – TBC (New studio recording by guitarist/ composer Shawn Persinger’s current, Connecticut-based band) [USA] ~~~~~~ YANG – TBC (Fifth studio album by French composer/ guitarist Frederick L'Epee's longstanding progressive ensemble) [FRANCE] ~~~~~~ return to top CUNEIFORM ARTISTS ON TOUR 2026 - 2027 - 2028 CALENDAR IMPORTANT REMINDER: In an evolving (and now endemic) COVID-19 world, and with adverse weather and political "events" happening in increasing frequency, these dates are ALL tentative. Please check with venues, close to the concert date, to confirm. We're ecstatic that live concerts are happening worldwide, but we remain aware that emergent variants - as well as severe weather - can unexpectedly affect schedules. See also the Tours Page at Cuneiform Records. ANTISTATIC Danish experimental trance rock quartet Antistatic (Søren Høi - drums, Laust Moltesen Andreasen - guitar, Mads Ulrich - guitar, Janus Bagh - bass) produces powerful minimalist music.  "... the percussive style that characterizes the four musicians has its roots in the minimalist experience and also in the post-industrial soundscape....Definitely not free jazz or improvised music but creative music nonetheless and absolutely worth listening." – freejazzblog.org February 12 - Christianshavns Beboerhus - Dronningensgade 34 - København, DK February 13 - Norder 147 - Norderstraße 139 - Flensburg 24939, Germany February 15 - Stellwerk - Hannoversche Str. 85 - Hamburg, Germany March 10 - Moods - Schiffbaustrasse 6 - Zürich, Switzerland Listen to & Buy   Relics GILLES LAVAL French guitarist, composer & spectacle organiser Gilles Laval celebrates the Cuneiform Records release of his new album 100 Guitares dans un Bateau Ivre / 100 Guitars on a Drunken Boat  with a record release concert in his hometown of Lyon.   2026 February 5 - Marché Gare - Lyon, France    Listen to & buy:   100 Guitares dans un Bateau Ivre        JANEL & ANTHONY Washington DC's premier music power duo, Janel & Anthony individually are internationally acclaimed master players and composers who lead their own ensembles. In June 2024, they'll release a new, double-disc studio recording on Cuneiform Records, called New Moon In the Evil Age - their second duo release for the label.   "Janel & Anthony - guitars and 'cello respectively - play a haunting and humbly virtuosic form of music wherein the elements of electronics, looping, and lo-fi timbres live both in intimacy and in majesty in the same house as acoustic instruments and folk/blues-inspired melodies. As such, it is both timely and timeless..." – Nels Cline   2026   March 23 - Rhizome DC - 6950 Maple St. NW - Washington, DC March 24 - Palisades Hub - 5200 Cathedral Avenue, NW - Washington, DC [opening for Nik Bärtsch & Ronin] March 26-29 - Big Ears Festival - Knoxville, TN   Listen to & buy:   New Moon In the Evil Age                                Where Is Home    "The result is a marvelous surprise at every turn, as the duo...two absolute virtuosos...create atmospheres that at times evoke the music of Steve Tibbetts, Brian Eno, even soundtrack music" – DownBeat   HENRY KAISER Grammy winner Henry Kaiser is widely recognized as one of the most creative and innovative guitarists, improvisers, and producers in the fields of rock, jazz, world, and contemporary experimental musics. –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– THE HENRY KAISER QUARTERLY SHOW is presented on a regular basis, exclusively on the CUNEIFORM RECORDS YouTube Channel  When Covid pandemic lockdowns began in 2020, Henry Kaiser began curating & presenting a series of pre-recorded music videos exclusively on Cuneiform's YouTube Channel for music lovers isolating at home. These "live" concerts – which initially were released on a WEEKLY basis – were taped beforehand and not streamed; Henry discusses the process in a Guitar Moderne interview, "The New "Live"".  Many videos in the series depicted duets and larger bands, despite the program then being called the "HENRY KAISER WEEKLY SOLO SERIES".  While many depicted new or recent performances, other videos in this series are vintage footage of performances not available elsewhere (The Valentines' 1994 concert in the Fukuoka Dome). Kaiser continued presenting his popular video series on Cuneiform Records' YouTube Channel after the pandemic, but on a new schedule; it is now THE HENRY KAISER QUARTERLY SHOW. In addition to these quarterly releases, he presents additional videos marking special events or tributes.  All 52 videos from the initial Henry Kaiser's Weekly Series, the entire two year Monthly Series and all current quarterly videos are archived & available on Cuneiform's YouTube Channel.  We invite you to visit and follow Cuneiform Record's YouTube Channel to see the videos that Henry regularly presents. A must see: the WINTER 2024 video is HENRY KAISER QUARTERLY #4: BARITONE GUITAR SPECIAL, featuring Henry's awesome guitar work along with Special Guests: Luciana Bass, Jim Clark, Janet Feder, Sandy Ewen, Vanessa Gould, Sandor Nagyszalancy, Anthony Pirog, Gregory Stephen, Sid Stephen, & Carl Weingarten. Just released, the SUMMER 2024 video , HENRY KAISER QUARTERLY SHOW #6 : You Can't Get There From Here, features Morgan Ågren  Jennifer Burnes,  Jaya Drats, Trey Gunn, Killick Hinds, Michael Manring,  Ed Petterson, Damon Smith, Jim Thomas, and Bill Walker. In addition to his video series, Kaiser occasionally presents special videos:  some focusing on current events and guitar legends, and some providing free guitar lessons, focusing on tunes associated with legendary guitarists. For instance, his September 2022 guitar lesson video, focusing on the whole tone scale and Sonny Sharrock, is titled The Whole Tone Scale! Sonny Sharrock’s DICK DOGS lesson with Henry Kaiser.  His video for 2025's 1st quarter, HENRY KAISER QUARTERLY SHOW #8 : The Backwards Guitar Solos Lesson, is both instructional for players and highly entertaining for non-musicians. Besides his work as a musician, Kaiser is also a scientific diver and underwater videographer in the U.S. Antarctic program. Several of his Solo Series videos on the Cuneiform channel feature Henry's stunning underwater videography in addition to his guitar playing, as in this stunning video from May 2020:  HENRY KAISER : Cuneiform Weekly Solo #2 : Under The Ice Again . Because all videos are archived on the Cuneiform Records' YouTube Channel, you can watch anything in the series at any time.   Listen to & buy: Albums by Henry Kaiser & Friends  on Cuneiform A Love Supreme Electric [Vinny Golia / John Hanrahan / Henry Kaiser / Wayne Peet / Mike Watt]: A Love Supreme Electric: A Love Supreme and Meditations  Yo Miles!: Henry Kaiser & Wadada Leo Smith: Sky Garden & Upriver     Five Times Surprise [Henry Kaiser / Anthony Pirog / Tracy Silverman / Jeff Sipe / Andy West]:  Five Times Surprise Henry Kaiser & Ray Russell:  The Celestial Squid Henry Kaiser: Lemon Fish Tweezer; Fred Frith & Henry Kaiser: Friends & Enemies     Healing Force [Vinny Golia • Aurora Josephson • Henry Kaiser • Mike Keneally • Joe Morris • Damon Smith • Weasel Walter]: Healing Force:  The Songs of Albert Ayler                       V.A.: 156 Strings: Nineteen Totally Original Acoustic Guitarists JANEL LEPPIN A composer and cellist who’s honed a singular synthesis of composition, orchestration and improvisation, Janel Leppin is an avant-jazz luminary. Besides performing as half of the experimental duo Janel and Anthony, which she co-leads with her husband guitarist Anthony Pirog, she leads the seven-piece chamber-jazz Ensemble Volcanic Ash, as well as performing and recording with other jazz, rock, and experimental  groups. In early 2026, Cuneiform will release a new solo album by Leppin, as well as the third Ensemble Volcanic Ash album.   "An Absolute Virtuoso - 4 Stars" - Downbeat Magazine, reviewing the first EVA album "Leppin is a rarity..ahhh-vant garde at its finest." - Capital   2026 JANEL LEPPIN'S ENSEMBLE VOLCANIC ASH April 23 - Rhizome DC - 6950 Maple St. NW - Washington, DC [Ensemble Volcanic Ash record release show] April 24 - Belmont Arts Theater - 221 Carlton Road - Charlottesville, VA [Ensemble Volcanic Ash record release show]   JANEL & ANTHONY Janel Leppin with Anthony Pirog March 26-29, 2026 - Big Ears Festival - Knoxville, TN 2027 JANEL LEPPIN RESIDENCY with ENSEMBLE VOLCANIC ASH May 19, 2027 - The Stone - Stone Residency - 55 West 13th St - NYC, NY May 20, 2027 - The Stone - Stone Residency - 55 West 13th St - NYC, NY May 21, 2027 - The Stone - Stone Residency - 55 West 13th St - NYC, NY May 22, 2027 - The Stone - Stone Residency - 55 West 13th St - NYC, NY   Listen to & buy: Janel Leppin Ensemble Volcanic Ash  To March Is To Love                 Ensemble Volcanic Ash Janel & Anthony New Moon In the Evil Age,   Where Is Home       THE ED PALERMO BIG BAND "Twenty-first century big-band music doesn’t get more exciting and impressive than this." – Jazz Times An astounding 18 piece jazz ensemble of five woodwind players, four trumpeters, three trombonists, two keyboardists, guitar, violin, bass and drums, led by arranger, composer & saxophonist Ed Palermo, one of America's most singular arrangers who draws on jazz, pop and rock tunes for his top-notch band. There are a number of ensembles performing the music of Frank Zappa, one of the greatest American composers of the 20th century, but no one does it with the ease, skill and originality that Ed and his band do! –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Don't miss seeing the ED PALERMO BIG BAND live!  THEIR SHOWS SELL OUT, so buy your tickets well in advance. ~~~~ January 25 - The Falcon - 1348 Rte 9W - Marlboro, NY 12542 [Eddy's Chemistry Set : small band] January 26 - Iridium - NYC, NY   February 28 - The Falcon - 1348 Rte 9W - Marlboro, NY 12542 March 23 - Iridium - NYC, NY April 25 - The Falcon - 1348 Rte 9W - Marlboro, NY 12542 June 13 - The Falcon - 1348 Rte 9W - Marlboro, NY 12542 August 29 - The Falcon - 1348 Rte 9W - Marlboro, NY 12542 October 31 - The Falcon - 1348 Rte 9W - Marlboro, NY 12542 [Halloween show!] December 19 - The Falcon - 1348 Rte 9W - Marlboro, NY 12542      Listen to & buy Ed Palermo Big Band albums on Cuneiform: The Adventures of Zoyd Zundgren // The Great Un-American Songbook Vols. 1&2  // One Child Left Behind // Oh No! Not Jazz!!  // Eddy Loves Frank. //  Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance                               ANTHONY PIROG "[Palo Colorado Dream] covers a sprawling musical terrain–avant jazz, atmospheric soundscapes, earthy Americana, math-rock...with an arsenal of effects hardware and studio production techniques..." – JazzTimes "One of jazz’s most reliable conduits to a living, breathing audience is electric-guitar heroism, and Anthony Pirog, from Washington...seems poised to become a hero of the instrument." – The New York Times ________________________________ JANEL & ANTHONY Anthony Pirog with Janel Leppin  March 23 - Rhizome DC - 6950 Maple St. NW - Washington, DC March 24 - Palisades Hub - 5200 Cathedral Avenue, NW - Washington, DC [opening for Nik Bärtsch & Ronin] March 26-29, 2026 - Big Ears Festival - Knoxville, TN   Anthony Pirog with The Dave Chappell Band   January 9 - Creative Cauldron - 410 S Maple Avenue - Falls Church, VA January 14 - Hell's Bottom - VFW Post 350 - 6420 Orchid Avenue - Takoma Park, MD [7:00 pm]   Anthony Pirog with with The Messthetics   January 10 - St Stephen's - 1525 Newton Street, NW, DC [benefit concert] January 22 - JV's - 6666 Arlington Blvd - Falls Church, VA   Anthony Pirog with  The Messthetics featuring James Brandon Lewis   January 28 - Pannonica - Nantes, France April 17 - Star Theater - 13 NW 6th Ave - Portland, OR April 18 - Clock-Out Lounge - 4864 Beacon Ave S - Seattle, WA 98108 April 24 - The Earl - 488 Flat Shoals Ave SE - Atlanta, GA 30316 April 26 - AyurPrana Listening Room - 312 Haywood Rd - Asheville, NC April 28 - Otis A. Singletary Center for the Arts - 405 Rose St - Lexington, KY 40508 April 30 - Constellation - 3111 N Western Ave - Chicago, IL 60618 May 1 - Third Man Records Cass Corridor - 441 W Canfield St - Detroit, MI 48201 May 2 - 918 Bathurst Centre for Culture, Arts, Media and Education - 918 Bathurst St - Toronto, Canada May 3 - Centennial Hall - 145 W 11th St - Erie, PA 16501 May 5 - City Winery Boston - 80 Beverly St - Boston, MA 02114 May 6 - Le Poisson Rouge - 158 Bleecker St - New York, NY 10012 May 7 - Alphabet City - 40 W North Ave - Pittsburgh, PA 15212 May 8 - Solar Myth - 1131 S Broad St - Philadelphia, PA 19147 June 26-28 - Solid Sound Festival - Mass Moca - North Adams, MA   Listen to & buy: Anthony Pirog: Pocket Poem  // Palo Colorado Dream .       Janel & Anthony    New Moon in the Evil Age //     Where Is Home            in other groupings: Location Location Location: Damaged Goods Five Times Surprise: Five Times Surprise The Spellcasters, Music from the Anacostia Delta   Janel Leppin/ Ensemble Volcanic Ash To March Is to Love  //  Ensemble Volcanic Ash            REVOLUTIONARY SNAKE ENSEMBLE Since 1990, Boston's fun & fantastic Revolutionary Snake Ensemble has expanded the parameters of brass band with influences ranging from free jazz to New Orleans second line to contemporary funk to experimental. Having released the new album Serpentine on Cuneiform Records at the end of September 2025, The band is currently celebrating a new studio album. Serpentine, released on Cuneiform Records at the end of September 2025, in a series of exuberant live shows filled with "fun, fire and innovation".    SERPENTINE   February 21 - Scullers [Mardi Gras show] - 400 Soldiers Field Road - Boston, MA 0213   Listen to & buy: Forked Tongue THUMBSCREW All-star jazz supergroup Thumbscrew (Michael Formanek, Tomas Fujiwara, Mary Halvorson) have released 8 internationally acclaimed albums on Cuneiform. "Thumbscrew are one of the essential contemporary jazz groups"– Brian Morton, The Wire “Thumbscrew...are likeminded souls with decades of experience among them. Encapsulating a rare chemistry, their music offers a virtual masterclass of communal interplay.” – Point Of Departure February 3 - Son's D'Hiver Festival - Espace Jean Vilar - 1 rue Paul Signac - 94003 Arcueil, France   Listen to & buy: "Thumbscrew's work is impeccable...and their new Wingbeats continues the trio's run of brilliant releases—they're simply one of the finest trios." – Maurice Hogue, All About Jazz    Wingbeats                  Multicolored                                     Midnight                                                                        Never Is Enough // The Anthony Braxton Project       Theirs              //   Ours         Convallaria   //   Thumbscrew        TRINARY SYSTEM Trinary System is guitarist, composer & singer Roger Clark Miller’s (Mission of Burma) current rock band, a trio with Larry Dersch (Binary System, A.K.A.C.O.D.) and P. Andrew Willis (the Web, Crappy Nightmareville). The band plays live to celebrate The Hard Machine, its first Cuneiform Records release.   listen to & buy Trinary System The Hard Machine   March 19 - Myrtle - Providence, RI March 20 - tbd - MA March 21 - Crystal Ballroom at Somerville Theatre - 55 Davis Square - Somerville, MA 02144   “Trinary System continues the elegant, abstract, agitated firestorm tradition of Miller’s Burma songs, with an unmistakable swagger…" – Dusted Magazine   To set up press and radio interviews with Cuneiform Artists while on tour or at home, please contact: promo@cuneiformrecords.com return to top SPEND 2026 WITH EXPLORE COUNTLESS HOURS OF GREAT MUSIC & VIDEOS BY SOME OF THE BEST MUSICIANS   IN THE INTERNATIONAL AVANT-GARDE     CUNEIFORM RECORDS has a treasure chest of interesting music to serve as soundtrack, inspiration and solace during these evolving and challenging times. Our mammoth catalogue of over 500 releases by artists from around the world includes many of avant music's most esteemed icons as well as young rising stars, and is available for purchase in digital and physical formats at the CUNEIFORM RECORDS BANDCAMP store, and in physical formats at one of our sister companies, WAYSIDE MUSIC as well as in RECORD SHOPS worldwide (see our DISTRIBUTORS).  Your purchases of our CDs, LPs, and digital downloads supports or indie musicians, indie labels, and small businesses.    • VISIT the official CUNEIFORM RECORDS WEBSITE  for extensive information on the artists and recordings on our label,  upcoming concerts & much more.   • WATCH VIDEOS on Cuneiform Records' YOUTUBE CHANNEL Cuneiform Records has an extremely active YouTube Channel which you should bookmark as a favorite:  free music videos, videos of live shows, & samples from 500+ adventurous releases!   And we began expanding our video content during the pandemic, most notably with an ongoing video series curated  and produced by guitarist Henry Kaiser.  • PURCHASE & LISTEN to releases on CUNEIFORM RECORDS BANDCAMP PAGE  Discover new music on our Bandcamp Page, and support artists & our indie label by purchasing music.   • PURCHASE music from100s of LABELS from around the world at  WAYSIDE MUSIC, our sister store.  At our internet store, WaysideMusic.com (established in 1980!), you can purchase hard-to-find CDs and LPs from ALL your favorite labels!  • ENJOY and SHARE SAMPLES of music by releases of countless Cuneiform artists on the Cuneiform Records' SoundCloud Site. • VISIT, LIKE & FOLLOW  Cuneiform Records' Official FACEBOOK PAGE.  • JOIN the Cuneiform Records FACEBOOK GROUP:  FANS Of Cuneiform Records.  • FOLLOW @CuneiformRecord on TWITTER (now X) • LICENSE music from Cuneiform for movies, ads etc via our sister site TheMusicOutpost.com. • SIGN UP for the CUNEIFORM RECORDS NEWSLETTER if you're not already one of our subscribers, and  get BOTH this monthly newsletter in your email box AND receive notices for Cuneiform's weekly "$5 Friday" offers – Cuneiform selects a special album from its archive each weekend,  to be sold in download format via Bandcamp, that weekend only,  for half price. • VISIT our TOURS PAGE for upcoming concerts WORLDWIDE by our artists.   • ACCESS PRIOR ISSUES of the CUNEIFORM RECORDS MONTHLY NEWSLETTER at cuneiformrecord.blogspot.com/     Cuneiform Records' Monthly Newsletter announces and gives in-depth info on ALL of the label's NEW RELEASES - both physical and digital formats - and also provides TOUR / CONCERT info from its artists.   ~ ~ ~ return to top CUNEIFORM RECORDS SOCIAL ONLINE Cuneiform YouTube Cuneiform Website Facebook FanGroup Facebook Page Cuneiform Twitter Cuneiform SoundCloud Cuneiform Bandcamp Instagram Email Cuneiform return to top Cuneiform Records' Monthly Newsletter is compiled by Joyce (Joy) [Nalewajk] Feigenbaum, DIRECTOR OF THE MUSIC OUTPOST – PUBLICITY EMAIL: joyce@themusicoutpost.com FACEBOOK PAGE: MusicOutpostPublicityAndLicensing TWITTER: @TheMusicOutpost     STOP WARS         Photo on left of Ceasefire Now banner unveiled 1/24/2024 by Greenpeace & Unmute Gaza at Madrid's Reina Sofia Museum. Poster image by US visual artist Shepard Fairey "Obey" based on photo by Palestinian photojournalist Belal Khaled. Museo Reina Sofia is the home of Picasso's iconic 1937 Guernica painting, photo above/right.   return to top Copyright © 2026 Cuneiform Records, All rights reserved.   Washington, DC // Silver Spring, MD Our mailing address is: Cuneiform Records P.O. Box 8427 Silver Spring, MD 20907 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. Was this email forwarded to you from a friend? Subscribe to the Cuneiform Records Newsletter. Read this email online   return to top