Ahleuchatistas
Encyclopedia
Ahleuchatistas are an American
instrumental
math rock
duo that mix influences of jazz
, progressive rock
, avant-garde
, and experimental
to create a unique sound. The band was formed in Asheville, North Carolina
in November 2002.
Ahleuchatistas' sound is rooted in a wide variety of sonic influences and musical traditions. In addition to being an instrumental rock band, there are elements of noise
, African music, ambient
/drone
, psychedelia, Chinese traditional music, garage rock
, minimalism
, classical music
, and electronica
. They employ block-form, thru-composition, and improvisational musical strategies. Sudden tempo changes, amelodic tones, and technically complex motifs are prominent characteristics of much of the band's recorded output. The original members of the band were Shane Perlowin on guitar
, Derek Poteat on bass
, and Sean Dail on drums
. Sean Dail left the band in May 2008 and was replaced by Ryan Oslance, a drummer from Carbondale, Illinois
. Ryan was found by a reply to a MySpace
bulletin outlining the band's request for a new drummer. He then drove to Asheville, auditioned, and the band immediately rehearsed for 25+ hours over a four day period. This was followed by a 3 week US tour. Ahleuchatistas have released six albums on different record labels, including Cuneiform Records
, Angura Sound, Tzadik Records
, and guitarist Shane Perlowin's independent label Open Letter Records. Their album The Same and the Other was reissued in 2008 on Tzadik Records
after the influential avant-garde composer/musician John Zorn
took a liking to them.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
math rock
Math rock
Math rock is a rhythmically complex guitar-based style of experimental rock that emerged in the 1980s and that was very influenced by progressive rock like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Henry Cow - and 20th century composers such as Steve Reich and John Cage...
duo that mix influences of jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
, avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
, and experimental
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
to create a unique sound. The band was formed in Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active...
in November 2002.
Ahleuchatistas' sound is rooted in a wide variety of sonic influences and musical traditions. In addition to being an instrumental rock band, there are elements of noise
Noise
In common use, the word noise means any unwanted sound. In both analog and digital electronics, noise is random unwanted perturbation to a wanted signal; it is called noise as a generalisation of the acoustic noise heard when listening to a weak radio transmission with significant electrical noise...
, African music, ambient
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
/drone
Drone
-Nature:The male sex of social Hymenopterans, such as a* Drone * male wasp* male ant-Chemicals:An abbreviation referring to one of two psychoactive drugs:* Mephedrone* 4-Methoxymethcathinone, commonly known as methedrone-Vehicles:...
, psychedelia, Chinese traditional music, garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
, minimalism
Minimalism
Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
, classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
, and electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
. They employ block-form, thru-composition, and improvisational musical strategies. Sudden tempo changes, amelodic tones, and technically complex motifs are prominent characteristics of much of the band's recorded output. The original members of the band were Shane Perlowin on guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, Derek Poteat on bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, and Sean Dail on drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
. Sean Dail left the band in May 2008 and was replaced by Ryan Oslance, a drummer from Carbondale, Illinois
Carbondale, Illinois
Carbondale is a city in Jackson County, in the state of Illinois, within the Southern Illinois region. It is located at the junction of Illinois Route 13 and U.S. Route 51, southeast of St. Louis, Missouri, on the northern edge of the Shawnee National Forest...
. Ryan was found by a reply to a MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
bulletin outlining the band's request for a new drummer. He then drove to Asheville, auditioned, and the band immediately rehearsed for 25+ hours over a four day period. This was followed by a 3 week US tour. Ahleuchatistas have released six albums on different record labels, including Cuneiform Records
Cuneiform Records
Cuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, Angura Sound, Tzadik Records
Tzadik Records
Tzadik Records is a record label based in New York City specialising in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by the eclectic composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995; Zorn is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases...
, and guitarist Shane Perlowin's independent label Open Letter Records. Their album The Same and the Other was reissued in 2008 on Tzadik Records
Tzadik Records
Tzadik Records is a record label based in New York City specialising in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by the eclectic composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995; Zorn is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases...
after the influential avant-garde composer/musician John Zorn
John Zorn
John Zorn is an American avant-garde composer, arranger, record producer, saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist. Zorn is a prolific artist: he has hundreds of album credits as performer, composer, or producer...
took a liking to them.
Discography
- On the Culture Industry (Angura Sound, 2003)
- The Same and the Other (2004) (Reissued in 2008 on Tzadik Records)
- Ahleuchatistas/Friendly Bear SPLIT 7" (Angura Sound, 2005)
- What You Will (Cuneiform, 2005)
- Even In the Midst (Cuneiform, 2007)
- Of the Body Prone (Tzadik, 2009)
- Ahleuchatistas/FAT32 SPLIT 10" (Gaffer, 2010)
- Location Location (Open Letter, 2011)