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MALE
Male is Jonathan Krohn and Ben Mjolsness, who have been working in an improvised fashion for over 5 years. Over time they’d developed strong ties with many Chicago musicians and decided to arrange a series of recording sessions to document their take on improvisation. They approached some of their more talented friends from the avant-jazz, improv, experimental, and rock scenes to help them flesh out a greater idea where the tonal met the frenetic; where the ethereal came up against the sounds of beer bottles and pirated AM radio.
The result was All Are Welcome. Each element was recorded in one take. Each musician was assigned a time to show up, had the option of listening to the tracks that Mjolsness and Krohn produced the first day, and recorded. Jeremy Lemos (White/Light) lent his expertise in the recording and mixing process, but, aside from cutting incidentals, the songs remained the same. All Are Welcome is the product of two reference points coalescing at an unknown synthesis. They wanted to create a forum for ideas to meet open interpretation; tones that meet texture, voices that meet structure, knocks and whirls that color a laid-back, anxious roll-call. The act of creating this piece was the purpose; the hope is that the ensuing product may provide others a conduit to some other place or feel.
All Are Welcome:
Jonathan Krohn – key; Benjamin Mjolsness - guitar; Jason Adasiewicz (Exploding Star Orchestra) - vibraphone; Josh Berman (Exploding Star Orchestra) - cornet; Steven Hess (Pan American/Fessenden) – percussion; Todd Mattei (Joan of Arc) - guitar; Mike Reed (Exploding Star Orchestra) - percussion; and Hometapes recording artist Nick Butcher - tape. Recorded by Jeremy Lemos and mastered by Bob Weston. Praise for Male: "If they play their cards right, Male could end up being mentioned alongside Tortoise or Explosions in the Sky before too long." -!Earshot "This one really explodes from the gates and catches your ear right off the bat." -Foxy Digitalis "It can teeter on anxiety for what seems like an eternity, then suddenly the lighting changes and you’re in a whole new world of hope and peace." -PopMatters "Male, a collective as captivating as they are complex." -indierockreviews.com "All Are Welcome ranges from meditative drones to contemplative guitar work to minimalist patterns, it is intended to serve not as a background but as richly detailed aural foreground into which listeners situate themselves." -Disquiet “…its pieces quietly stir and reverberate, moving with a rarefied stateliness that will sway anyone with a keen sensitivity.” –Experimusic
“…a light and pleasing, if not lasting, listen.” –Cokemachineglow
“… it achieves a remarkable sense of poignancy…” –Delusions of Adequacy "The resulting sounds are dense and exhilarating, the music roaring and squirming from the speakers, like being engulfed by a huge wave, until you become lost in the water, unsure of which way up you are." -Terrascope "...fine concept and worked out in a great way." -Vital Weekly "With ambient loops, noise, drones, effected guitar and wandering percussion, Male creates an aural experience in which listeners can be pleasantly lost. " -Centerstage Chicago "It feels like drowsily wandering around the streets on a damp spring morning after coming down from a long night." -Panpot "...it is remarkable that Male’s improvised ensemble of solipsistic soloists manage to sound so united and purposeful..." -Beatbots "It's like Godspeed without the conceit of chord progressions, and just as striking." -EL Magazine (JP) "...a whole lot of improv noise that manages to sound like one seamless piece..." -Music Emissions All Are Welcome was also covered by:
-The Sound Projector (UK)
-Pensatos (Track Review)
-Gimme Tinnitus
-Mapsadaisical (UK) -Le Son du Grisli (FR) -Bad Alchemy (DE) -Time Out Chicago - 30 Music (CA) -Indie for Bunnies (IT)
TOUR DATES
| DATE | VENUE | CITY | STATE | SUPPORT |
| 03.22 | The Whistler | Chicago | IL | Apiary |
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