Escapade (band)
Encyclopedia
Escapade is a NYC Space-rock/Post-Rock
band formed in 1996 by ex-Drunken Boat drummer Hadley Kahn. Their music is similar in spirit to Krautrock, while variously taking in influences of psychedelia, avant garde, minimalism, ambient and even jazz.
They're frequently noted for their strong improvisational abilities. Even the last minute substitution at a live show of a bassist who'd never before played with Escapade is said not to have affected the band's performance.
Early albums have more of a jam based character than later works. But instead of the jam band
staple of individual members soloing over musical riffs, Escapade's approach is more akin to the King Crimson
or Can
style of improvising collectively from the ground up. 1998’s Citrus Cloud Cover was the last album to strictly employ this method.
Following this album, the prominence of synths and electronics slowly gave way to a more guitar-oriented sound. Subtle editing and overdubbing also began to be used, though the music was still fundamentally improvised.
In 2003, a CD was released which was split between them and Japanese psych collective Acid Mothers Temple
, entitled A Thousand Shades of Grey. Their contribution to the split CD and its 2006 follow-up But Distractions Abound both find Escapade increasingly focusing on hypnotic repetition ala Neu!
or Finland's Circle
.
The band is seemingly disbanded or on hiatus.
Post-rock
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock...
band formed in 1996 by ex-Drunken Boat drummer Hadley Kahn. Their music is similar in spirit to Krautrock, while variously taking in influences of psychedelia, avant garde, minimalism, ambient and even jazz.
They're frequently noted for their strong improvisational abilities. Even the last minute substitution at a live show of a bassist who'd never before played with Escapade is said not to have affected the band's performance.
Early albums have more of a jam based character than later works. But instead of the jam band
Jam band
-Ambiguity:By the late 1990s use of the term jam band also became ambiguous. An editorial at jamband.com suggested that any band of which a primary band such as Phish has done a cover of be included as jam band. The example was including New York post-punk band Talking Heads after Phish performed...
staple of individual members soloing over musical riffs, Escapade's approach is more akin to the King Crimson
King Crimson
King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...
or Can
Can (band)
Can was an experimental rock band formed in Cologne, West Germany in 1968. Later labeled as one of the first "krautrock" groups, they transcended mainstream influences and incorporated strong minimalist and world music elements into their often psychedelic music.Can constructed their music largely...
style of improvising collectively from the ground up. 1998’s Citrus Cloud Cover was the last album to strictly employ this method.
Following this album, the prominence of synths and electronics slowly gave way to a more guitar-oriented sound. Subtle editing and overdubbing also began to be used, though the music was still fundamentally improvised.
In 2003, a CD was released which was split between them and Japanese psych collective Acid Mothers Temple
Acid Mothers Temple
Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. is a Japanese psychedelic band, the core of which formed in 1995. The band is led by guitarist Kawabata Makoto and early in their career featured many musicians, but by 2004 the line-up had coalesced with only a few core members and frequent guest...
, entitled A Thousand Shades of Grey. Their contribution to the split CD and its 2006 follow-up But Distractions Abound both find Escapade increasingly focusing on hypnotic repetition ala Neu!
Neu!
Neu! was a German band formed by Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother after their split from Kraftwerk in the early 1970s...
or Finland's Circle
Circle (band)
Circle is an experimental rock band, founded in Pori, Finland in 1991. Their eclectic style is "ever changing, ever Circular", classified into genres such as progressive, Krautrock, ambient, heavy metal, speed-kraut, and avant-rock, among others...
.
The band is seemingly disbanded or on hiatus.
Band members
- Paul Casanova - Guitars, Electronics
- John Ortega - Processed Bass, Synths
- Rob Giffen - Guitars, Effects
- Hadley Kahn - Drums
- Russell Giffen - Bass
- Paul Hilzinger - Synths, Sampler, Processing
- Joey Murphy - Bass, Guitar
Discography
- 1996 - Searching For The Elusive Rainbow (CD)
- 1997 - Inner Translucence (CD)
- 1997 - Obscured Dialogues (CDR)
- 1998 - Citrus Cloud Cover (2CD)
- 1999 - Due to a Faulty Premonition (CD)
- 2000 - Remembrance of Things Unknown (CD)
- 2002 - Rule #3 (CD)
- 2003 - A Thousand Shades of Grey split w/ ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE (CD)
- 2004 - If/Or (live, recorded 1996) (CDR)
- 2006 - Just When, Just How (CDR)
- 2006 - But Distractions Abound (CD)
External links
- Band Website
- Escapade entry at Piero Scaruffi's History of Rock Music
- [ Escapade entry at Allmusic]
- Acid Mothers Temple/Escapade page at Funfundvierzig