Anthony Joseph

Music

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Anthony Joseph & the Spasm Band - Dead Flowers by Raul Ramone on Mixcloud

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Interview, presenting the new album!

90bpm : Album "Rubber Orchestras" review - september 2011 by Whatthefunkparis on Mixcloud

She is the sea...from the album Rubber Orchestras

General Info

Genre: A'cappella / Funk / Tropical
Location Trinidad, United Kingdom, France, Un
Profile Views: 293748
Last Login: 7/9/2012
Member Since 5/12/2006
Website www.anthonyjoseph.co.uk
Record Label Heavenly Sweetness | Naive
Type of Label Indie
Bio
ANTHONY JOSEPH.. is one of the leading writers of his generation. A poet, novelist, academic and musician, he was born in Trinidad, moving to the UK in 1989. His publications include Desafinado (1994), Teragaton (1997) and The African Origins of UFOs (Salt, 2006). In 2004 he was chosen by the Arts Council as one of 50 black and Asian writers who have made major contributions to contemporary British literature, appearing in the historic 'Great Day' photograph. In 2005 Joseph served as the British Council's first Poet in Residence at California State University, Los Angeles. He has performed internationally and also tours with his band The Spasm Band with which he has released three albums. Joseph lectures in creative writing at Birkbeck College. He lives in London. .... ..BIBLIOGRAPHY...... .... ..Bird Head Son, Jan 2009 (Salt Publishing)..PURCHASE.. .. .. .. ....The African Origins of UFOs (Salt Publishing 2006) ..PURCHASE........Selected Works.., forthcoming summer 2009 (Salt Publishing).. ..Desafinado..(London, poisonenginepress 1994).. ..Teragaton..(London, poisonenginepress 1997).. ..Liquid Textology..(CD, London, poisonenginepress, 2005).. .. See ..www.anthonyjoseph.co.uk/textology.. for more info and excerpts from these books..... ..REVIEWS : ...... "afro-blue to astro-black and what glimmers in between" -.. ..The Times........ "Joseph employs a syncretic, diasporic and highly innovative blend of genres and styles, providing an example of how diaspora becomes subject, inspiration and rationale for the innovative use of form, while experimental traditions enable him to show the diaspora in a fresh light.".. ..Dr. Lauri Ramey, California State University, Los Angeles......... The African Origins of UFOs tracks the pull of place and the pull away from place, Afro-blue to astro-black and what glimmers in between. "Genetic contraband" and "bootleg melanin" afford a measure of the job it takes on. Possessing or possessed by requisite bearings, language and lore, Anthony Joseph is fully and beautifully up to the task. ....Nathaniel Mackey...... "The leader of the Black avant-garde".. ..Ilkley Literature Festival.... This is great new 'second generation' Caribbean stuff – movin away from the script & the scruff – or ratha – betta! – writin upon it – over and under it – a palimpsest to rahtid! – pouring out images like Eno's – or UFOs!!!.. ..Kamau Brathwaite.... Anthony Joseph is a talented writer with a powerful imagination. ..Linton Kwesi Johnson...... ..ANTHOLOGISED IN.... - Identity Parade(Bloodaxe, 2010).. - Caribbean Erotic (Peepal Tree, 2010).. - Red(Peepal Tree, 2010).. - Black Brown and Beige : Surrealist Writings from Africa and the Diaspora, Edited by Franklin Rosemont and Robin D.G. Kelley, 2009.. - Caribbean Review of Books, Summer 2008.. - Chimurenga, South Africa 2007.. - Harlem Studio Museum magazine, 2006.. - Hambone Vol. 18 - Ed. Nathaniel Mackey - 2006.. - Poetry International Web(Poetry Society)- Oct 2006 - http://uk.poetryinternationalweb.org.. - New Writing 15, British Council 2007.. - Black British Aesthetics Today (Cambridge Scholars Press 2007)..- Dark Matter - A century of speculative fiction from the African Diaspora - ed Sheree Thomas(New York, Warner Books 2000).. - Modern Love - London, Renaissance One, 2001.. .. Online Resources: AJ on ..Wikipedia.... See Anthony's page on ..Salt Publishing.. for more info on The African Origins Of UFOs... ...... ..BLOGS.... See Anthony's literary blog at ....http://birdheadson.blogspot.... for work in progress, essays and random instances from the Diasporic Avant garde..... Also see the Spasm Band blog ....http://spasmband.blogspot.com.... for exclusive tracks, photos, videos etc from the Spasm Band....... ..VIDEOS.... .. .. .. .. .. .. .... EPK - Live in Nice in April 2010 (c)jazzwebline.com .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .... Anthony Joseph performs Ghost Planet with Jerry Dammers Spatial AKA on Later with Jools Holland, BBC2, April 2010.... This is a feature length film featuring international concert performances and backstage footage from the first 4 years of Anthony Joseph & the Spasm Band... .. .. .. .. .. ......There is no time : Anthony Joseph & The Spasm Band.. from ..anthony joseph.. on ..Vimeo....."VERO" live at L'Olympic, NANTES.. .. .. .. .. .. .. ........For the full concert go to http://www.grandcrew.com/videos/110....
Members
Anthony Joseph - Vocals Andrew John - Bass Colin Webster - Sax/flute Christian Arcucci - Guitar Marijus Alexsa - Drums Will Fry - Percussion ..FOR ALL BOOKINGS AND INFO : ..Antoine Rajon at antoinerajon@mc.com.. .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .......................... ..............Create your own visitor map!....
Influences
Kamau Brathwaite, Derek Walcott, Bob Kaufman, Mighty Sparrow, Lord Kitchener, Trini people tongue, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, Henry Dumas, Sun Ra, Elizabeth Smart (by grand central station...), Roland Barthes, Andre Breton, Funkadelic, Ted Joans, Jean Toomer, Nate Mackey, paul Keens Douglas, Will Alexander, William Carlos Williams, Claude McKay, Gil Scott Heron, Charles Bukowski, Dorothea Brande, Aime Cesaire, Wilson Harris, mother and grandmother who swim in heaven, vines and gulleys of backyard bush, aranguez savannah in old mt lambert trinidad, the batchacks and beetles I burned in matchbox discoteques, John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, Basquait, Thelonious Monk, Brother Resistance, Amiri Baraka, LKJ, Fanon, James Oscar jr, my father who wore 12 eye high desert boots in 1970s Trinidad, Charles Mingus, Frank Wright, Rashaan Roland Kirk, David Rudder, Nathaniel Mackey, Foucault, James Brown, jourvert morning mud mas and all fish eyed badjohns roaming port of spain on jourvert morning with white handle razor, deep spiritual baptist rhythm and trance/spirit talk...
Sounds Like
.......DISCOGRAPHY...... RUBBER ORCHESTRAS - ALBUM RELEASED SEPTEMBER 10 2011 BIRD HEAD SON.... Released January 20 2009! (Feb 7 in the UK) Heavenly Sweetness / Naïve(CD, double vinyl).. ........ Tracklisting :.. 01. Vero 6:14.. 02. Blues For cousin Alvin 4:55.. 03. The Bamboo Saxophone 3:29.. 04. Jungle 12:04.. 05. Bird Head Son 8:40.. 06. Cutlass 6:21.. 07. His Hands 5:19.. 08. Two Inch Limbo 6:21.. 09. Conductors of His Mystery 7:31.. 10. River of Masks 4:51.. 11. Robberman 3:28.. 12. Dream on Corbeau Mountain 3:46.... ..PURCHASE ..or download from itunes ........ or purchase it from Heavenly Sweetness Ebay Store : http://stores.ebay.fr/heavenlysweetness00....The album is released alongside a new collection of poetry also entitled .. Bird Head Son.. .... REVIEWS.... Some seriously raw funk. Joseph intones funny, funky Gil Scott Heron-ish rhymes as his Spasm band - featuring tenor sax, wah wah guitar, bass and bongos produces a remarkable racket, flirting with Ethiopian Jazz, Nigerian afrobeat and James Brown's garage funk...- ..Uncut Magazine...... An intensely challenging, yet gloriously rewarding volume of spiritual tales. A place where the parables, pitfalls, redemption and affirmation of life are rapped-chanted-sung-slam-stitched together with Voodoo funk, Rastafarian revelation, bayou blues, calypso rhythms and unbridled free jazz movement ....- Shook Magazine....Read the rest of this review at ..www.shook.fm......Warm, elegant and accomplished, this new offering reunites the manifold musical identities of the African diaspora over twelve tracks. Here, spoken word lyrics, inspired horns and layered grooves conjure up some sacred syncretic dreams, evoking fabled free spirits like Gil Scott-Heron or The Last Poets. Sincerity shines through, and this sharp wordsmith and his impeccable Spasm Band touch the motherlode on this trip to the heart of Great Black Music.....- Mondomix....Full review at ..www.mondomix.com.... ........LA DIABLESSE 12" EP....Heavenly Sweetness (France), Aug 2008. .. ft Keziah Jones & Joseph Bowie .. ........Tracklist : Side 1 - Vero.. Side 2 - 1. Robberman 2. Poverty is Hell.... ..PURCHASE.. or download from itunes.... REVIEW : Fiercely funky work from Anthony Joseph and his Spasm Band -- their greatest single to date, and a really righteous batch of grooves! The set leads off with the long "Vero" -- a cut with funky guitar, pounding percussion, and a vibe that's somewhere between spiritual soul jazz and tighter funk -- almost in the mode of some of Archie Shepp's recordings of this nature from the early 70s, but harder overall. "Poverty Is Hell" is equally funky, if not more so -- with some wah-wah guitar in the mix, and nicely accented vocals from Joseph that are a bit of a change. "Robberman" continues the vibe, again with lots of guitar and percussion -- and on the cut, Joseph's vocals are perhaps the most free-flowing of all!....Dusty Groove...... ..LEGGO DE LION.. - Kindred Spirits - 2007............Leggo the Lion is the debut album by Anthony Joseph and The Spasm Band... ..Tracklist.... 01 . Buddha.. 02 . Black Dada .. 03 . Extending Out To Brightness.. 04 . Wallerfield .. 05 . Kneedeepinditchdiggerniggersweat .. 06 . On Kunu Land: Alfred Mac.. 07 . Killer Joe.. 08 . Hummingbird......PURCHASE.. or download from itunes ..........To hear samples of all tracks and for more info see : .. ..www.kindredpirits.nl/anthony...... ..REVIEWS.... .. The spoken word revelation of the year. Spiritual and surreal. .. - Vibrations Magazine, France....Funky grooves and righteous poetry -- a contemporary album, but one that takes us back to the hip 70s work of artists like Gil Scott-Heron or Wanda Robinson! Words are by Anthony Joseph, who's got a spoken, slightly-sung style that's really compelling -- backed with rhythms that are more in a jazz funk mode overall -- played by the Spasm Band on flute, tenor, guitar, bass, and lots of rootsy percussion -- the last of which serves to give the tracks an earthy, organic quality that surprisingly timeless, given the recent date of the set!..- Dusty Groove.... Joseph is a fiery and capable performer and commands the unconditional attention of the listener like his influences Gil Scott Heron and Fela Kuti. This is an imaginative trip into the mind of a mystic...- Scott C. -www.montrealmirror.com.... .... ..SPIRIT LASH - Heavenly Sweetness, 2006.. ...... ..The first Spasm Band 12" single, still available but hard to find.......Tracklist.... a. Buddha 6.54.. b. Bo Nuggy 10.06...... PURCHASE.. or download from itunes......REVIEWS.... .. By now, you should know that any track called 'Buddha' gets us excited. But it still has to answer a higher calling. Thankfully, it does as it finds the band somewhere between James Blood Ulmer and James Chance on an Afro trip with Mark Murphy. Really, it's that good! This is going to be in my box until it is as big a hit as 'The Creator Has A Master Plan'... It's that time of year where we start think about awards and the like and Heavenly Sweetness and 'Spirit Lash' is bombing into the top ten, Be warned, there is nothing spasmodic about this band's pure African spiritual jazz brilliance. ..Gerry Hectic, Fly.co.uk.... see ..www.flyglobalmusic.com.. for the full review....... Very hip work from jazz poet Anthony Joseph -- 2 tracks that are issued here on 12" single, but which sound like righteous jazz numbers from many years past! Both numbers feature Joseph's words mixed with hip instrumental backings from a combo that includes tenor, flute, guitar, and lots of percussion -- often used in rootsy ways that give the tracks a very organic, almost improvised feel -- like lost gems from the New York loft jazz years, or some of the later generations of the downtown scene! ....Dusty Groove, Chicago...... Listen to these samples - ....Buddha......Bo Nuggy...... ....