The Necks
Encyclopedia
The Necks are an experimental
jazz
trio from Sydney
, Australia
, comprising Chris Abrahams
on piano
and Hammond organ
, Tony Buck
on drums
, percussion
and electric guitar
and Lloyd Swanton
on bass guitar
and double bass
. The band plays improvisation
al pieces of up to an hour in length that explore the development and demise of repeating musical figures.
Typically a live performance will begin very quietly with one of the musicians playing something very simple. One by one, the other two will join with their own contributions, all three independent yet intertwined. As the 'piece' builds through subtle micro-changes, the interaction of their instruments creates layers of harmonics and prismatic washes of sound that lead some to appellation 'trance
jazz'. Instant by instant, their music seems driven not so much by the convention of cause and effect, but by the 'insistent demand of the moment'. Consequently their live performances can be challenging for those expecting a conventional musical experience, as the Necks' music may remain in a seemingly interminable 'holding pattern' until, paradoxically, sufficient momentum has built up for a break-out into the next phase of development.
The Necks are also well known in Europe
. Their soundtrack for The Boys was nominated for ARIA
Best Soundtrack Album, AFI
Best Musical Score and Australian Guild of Screen Composers Award. They have also recorded soundtracks for What's The Deal? (1997) and In the Mind of the Architect (three one-hour ABC-TV
documentaries, 2000).
Venues played in Sydney include The Basement, the Harbourside Brasserie, and the Vanguard in Newtown
. A performance at the Sydney Opera House
in 2003 was interrupted by the venue management due to a minor technical problem, to the obvious dissatisfaction of band and audience. In Melbourne
, they have played numerous times at The Corner Hotel in Richmond
. In 2006 the Necks played at the Melbourne Town Hall with Abrahams playing the pipe organ instead of piano. Unfortunately a hard drive failure meant the recording of that performance was also interrupted, much to the dismay of the band. They have also played as a supporting band for the experimental rock
band Swans
, for the Australian part of their 2010/2011 tour.
are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association
(APRA).
|-
| 2005
|| "Drive By
" (Lloyd Swanton
, Christopher Abrahams
, Anthony Buck
) || Most Performed Jazz Work ||
|-
| 2006
|| Mosquito
(Swanton, Abrahams, Buck) || Most Performed Jazz Work ||
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...
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...
trio from Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, comprising Chris Abrahams
Chris Abrahams
Chris Abrahams is a Sydney-based pianist, best known for his jazz work.Abrahams has been a member of the Benders, the Laughing Clowns, The Sparklers and The Necks. He has recorded several solo albums, as well as collaborations with Melanie Oxley from the Sparklers...
on piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
and Hammond organ
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
, Tony Buck
Tony Buck
Tony Buck is a drummer and percussionist. He graduated from the New South Wales Conservatorium of Music , becoming involved in the Australian jazz scene....
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 ....
, percussion
Percussion instrument
A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
and electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
and Lloyd Swanton
Lloyd Swanton
Lloyd Stuart Swanton is an Australian jazz double bassist/bass guitarist and composer, based in Sydney. Swanton was a member of Dynamic Hepnotics in 1986 and co-founded, jazz trio The Necks in 1987 with Chris Abrahams and Tony Buck....
on bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
and double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
. The band plays improvisation
Improvisation
Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new practices, new structures or symbols, and/or...
al pieces of up to an hour in length that explore the development and demise of repeating musical figures.
Typically a live performance will begin very quietly with one of the musicians playing something very simple. One by one, the other two will join with their own contributions, all three independent yet intertwined. As the 'piece' builds through subtle micro-changes, the interaction of their instruments creates layers of harmonics and prismatic washes of sound that lead some to appellation 'trance
Trance music
Trance is a genre of electronic dance music that developed in the 1990s.:251 It is generally characterized by a tempo of between 125 and 150 bpm,:252 repeating melodic synthesizer phrases, and a musical form that builds up and breaks down throughout a track...
jazz'. Instant by instant, their music seems driven not so much by the convention of cause and effect, but by the 'insistent demand of the moment'. Consequently their live performances can be challenging for those expecting a conventional musical experience, as the Necks' music may remain in a seemingly interminable 'holding pattern' until, paradoxically, sufficient momentum has built up for a break-out into the next phase of development.
The Necks are also well known in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Their soundtrack for The Boys was nominated for ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
Best Soundtrack Album, AFI
Australian Film Institute
The Australian Film Institute was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Australian film industry...
Best Musical Score and Australian Guild of Screen Composers Award. They have also recorded soundtracks for What's The Deal? (1997) and In the Mind of the Architect (three one-hour ABC-TV
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
documentaries, 2000).
Venues played in Sydney include The Basement, the Harbourside Brasserie, and the Vanguard in Newtown
Newtown
-Australia:*Newtown, New South Wales*Newtown, Queensland *Newtown, Queensland *Newtown, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong*Newtown, Victoria , a locality near Ballarat-Ireland:* Newtown, County Cork* Newtown, County Laois...
. A performance at the Sydney Opera House
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
in 2003 was interrupted by the venue management due to a minor technical problem, to the obvious dissatisfaction of band and audience. In Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, they have played numerous times at The Corner Hotel in Richmond
Richmond, Victoria
Richmond is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Yarra...
. In 2006 the Necks played at the Melbourne Town Hall with Abrahams playing the pipe organ instead of piano. Unfortunately a hard drive failure meant the recording of that performance was also interrupted, much to the dismay of the band. They have also played as a supporting band for the experimental rock
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
band Swans
Swans (band)
Swans are an influential American post-punk band initially active from 1982 to 1997, led by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Michael Gira. The band was one of the few groups to emerge from the early 1980s New York No Wave scene and stay intact into the next decade. Formed by Gira in...
, for the Australian part of their 2010/2011 tour.
Discography
- Sex (Spiral Scratch, 1989 - reissued on Fish of Milk) - a single hour-long track of a two-bar motif with variations. This album was notable for the instrumentation of piano, bass and drums being overdubbed in a dual take, unlike later works
- NextNext (The Necks album)Next is the second album by Australian improvised music trio, The Necks, originally released on the Spral Scratch label in 1990 and later rereleased on Fish of Milk. The album differs from most of The Necks releases in that it features six tracks rather than the usual single improvised track. The...
(Spiral Scratch, 1990 - reissued on Fish of Milk) - six tracks: "Garl's", "Nice Policeman Nasty Policeman", "Pele", "Next", "Jazz Cancer" and "World At War" - Beyond El Rocco (Vox, 1993) - Soundtrack to Kevin Lucas' documentary on Australian Jazz features one track by The Necks - "Royal Family"
- AquaticAquatic (album)Aquatic is the third album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks released on the Fish of Milk label in 1994 and the Carpet Bomb label in the US in 1999. The album features two tracks, both titled "Aquatic", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck with the addition of Steve...
(Fish Of Milk/Shock, 1994) - two tracks, both titled "Aquatic". Additional musician Steve Wishart on hurdy gurdyHurdy gurdyThe hurdy gurdy or hurdy-gurdy is a stringed musical instrument that produces sound by a crank-turned rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar to a violin... - Silent NightSilent Night (album)Silent Night is the fourth album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks released on the Fish of Milk label in 1996 as a double CD. The album features a two tracks, titled "Black" and "White", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck. The Australian Rolling Stone review of the...
(Fish Of Milk/Shock, 1996) - a double CD featuring two disc-length tracks, "Black" and "White" - Piano Bass DrumsPiano Bass DrumsPiano Bass Drums is the fifth album and first live album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks released on the Fish of Milk label in 1998. The album features a single track titled "Unheard", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck recorded in concert at The Basement in...
(Fish Of Milk/Shock, 1998) - a single fifty-three minute track, "Unheard", recorded live at the Basement, SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, with instrumentation restricted to piano, bass and drums. Nominated Jazz Recording of the Year, ABC Classic FMABC Classic FMABC Classic FM is a classical music radio station available in Australia, and internationally online. It is operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation . It was established in 1976 as "ABC-FM", and later for a short time was known as "ABC Fine Music" , before adopting its current name...
Awards - The BoysThe Boys (soundtrack album)The Boys is the sixth album and first soundtrack album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks originally released on the Wild Sound/MDS label in 1998 and later rereleased on Fish of Milk. The album features music recorded for the Australian motion picture The Boys...
(original soundtrack) (Wild Sound/MDS, 1998 reissued on Fish of Milk) - Hanging Gardens (Fish Of Milk/Shock, 1999) - a single disc-length track of the same name
- AetherAether (album)Aether is the eighth album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released on the Fish of Milk label in 2001 and later on the ReR label internationally. The album features a single hour-long track, titled "Aether", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck. Allmusic...
(Fish Of Milk/Shock, 2001) - a single disc-length track of the same name. Notably more ambient than their other works - Athenaeum, Homebush, Quay & RaabAthenaeum, Homebush, Quay & RaabAthenaeum, Homebush, Quay & Raab is the ninth album and second live album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released on the Fish of Milk label in 2002 as a 4 CD set. The album features 4 live performances by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck recorded in Melbourne, Sydney...
(Fish Of Milk/Shock, 2002) - four-CD box of four live performances, three in Australia and one in AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
(Athenaeum was recorded on 20 January 2001 at the Athenaeum Theatre, Melbourne; Homebush was recorded on 26 January 2001 at the Southee Complex, Sydney; Quay was recorded on 31 January 1999 at the Basement, Sydney; and Raab was recorded on 30 March 2001 at Musikschule Raab, Austria) - PhotosyntheticPhotosynthetic (album)Photosynthetic is the tenth album and third live album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks released on the Russian Long Arms label in 2003...
(Long Arms, 2003) - live in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, 2002 - Drive ByDrive By (album)Drive By is the eleventh album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released on the Fish of Milk label in 2003 and later on the ReR label internationally. The album features a single hour-long track, titled "Drive By", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck...
(Fish Of Milk/Shock, 2003) - a single disc-length track. Winner of the Best Jazz Album award in the ARIA Music Awards of 2004ARIA Music Awards of 2004The 18th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards were held on 17 October 2004 at the Sydney Superdome within the Sydney Olympic Complex... - Mosquito/See ThroughMosquito/See ThroughMosquito/See Through is the twelfth album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released as a 2 CD set on the Fish of Milk label in 2004 and later on the ReR label internationally. The album features two hour-long tracks, titled "Mosqito" and "See Through", performed by Chris...
(Fish of Milk, 2004) - double album with two tracks - ChemistChemist (album)Chemist is the thirteenth album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released on the Fish of Milk label in 2005 and later on the ReR label internationally. The album features three tracks, titled "Fatal", "Buoyant" and "Abillera", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony...
(Fish Of Milk/Shock, 2006) - three tracks: "Fatal", "Buoyant" and "Abillera". Winner of the Best Jazz Album award in the ARIA Music Awards of 2006ARIA Music Awards of 2006The 20th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards were held on 29 October 2006 at the Acer Arena at the Sydney Olympic Park complex... - TownsvilleTownsville (album)Townsville is the fourteenth album and fourth live album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released on the Fish of Milk label in 2007 and on the ReR label internationally. The album a single track, titled "Townsville", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck...
(Fish Of Milk/2007) live album, recorded on 15 February 2007 live in concert at the Riverway Arts Centre in Thuringowa City, Northern Queensland. - SilverwaterSilverwater (album)Silverwater is the fifteenth album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released on the Fish of Milk label in 2009 in Australia and on the ReR label internationally...
(Fish of Milk/2009) - a single disc-length track of the same name - Stade Trasparenti (Staubgold/2011) - Soundtrack featuring one track by The Necks, "Transparent Roads"
- Mindset (Fish of Milk/2011) - two tracks: "Rum Jungle" and "Daylights". Their first album to be released on vinyl.
APRA Awards
The APRA AwardsAPRA Awards
The APRA Music Awards are several award ceremonies run in Australia and New Zealand by Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually....
are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association
Australasian Performing Right Association
The Australasian Performing Right Association is a copyright collective representing New Zealand and Australian composers, lyricists and music publishers. The association's head offices located in Sydney Australia, and it has branch offices in Auckland, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth...
(APRA).
|-
| 2005
APRA Awards of 2005
The Australasian Performing Right Association Awards of 2005 are a series of awards which include the APRA Music Awards, Classical Music Awards, and Screen Music Awards. The APRA Music Awards ceremony occurred on 30 May at the Sydney Four Seasons Hotel, they were presented by APRA and the...
|| "Drive By
Drive By (album)
Drive By is the eleventh album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released on the Fish of Milk label in 2003 and later on the ReR label internationally. The album features a single hour-long track, titled "Drive By", performed by Chris Abrahams, Lloyd Swanton and Tony Buck...
" (Lloyd Swanton
Lloyd Swanton
Lloyd Stuart Swanton is an Australian jazz double bassist/bass guitarist and composer, based in Sydney. Swanton was a member of Dynamic Hepnotics in 1986 and co-founded, jazz trio The Necks in 1987 with Chris Abrahams and Tony Buck....
, Christopher Abrahams
Chris Abrahams
Chris Abrahams is a Sydney-based pianist, best known for his jazz work.Abrahams has been a member of the Benders, the Laughing Clowns, The Sparklers and The Necks. He has recorded several solo albums, as well as collaborations with Melanie Oxley from the Sparklers...
, Anthony Buck
Tony Buck
Tony Buck is a drummer and percussionist. He graduated from the New South Wales Conservatorium of Music , becoming involved in the Australian jazz scene....
) || Most Performed Jazz Work ||
|-
| 2006
APRA Awards of 2006
The Australasian Performing Right Association Awards of 2006 are a series of awards which include the APRA Music Awards, Classical Music Awards, and Screen Music Awards. The APRA Music Awards ceremony occurred on 5 June at the Sydney Four Seasons Hotel, they were presented by APRA and the...
|| Mosquito
Mosquito/See Through
Mosquito/See Through is the twelfth album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks first released as a 2 CD set on the Fish of Milk label in 2004 and later on the ReR label internationally. The album features two hour-long tracks, titled "Mosqito" and "See Through", performed by Chris...
(Swanton, Abrahams, Buck) || Most Performed Jazz Work ||
External links
- The Necks home page
- The Necks on Set - 25 minute performance for ABCAustralian Broadcasting CorporationThe Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
television in 2006. Includes MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
and streamsStreaming mediaStreaming media is multimedia that is constantly received by and presented to an end-user while being delivered by a streaming provider.The term "presented" is used in this article in a general sense that includes audio or video playback. The name refers to the delivery method of the medium rather...
. - The Necks performing at The Factory, Sydney in March 2008