The Troubled Times: […]

The sophomore EP by The Troubled Times duo of Antony Milton and Dave Edwards.

Raw loud Improvised pluck and drone. Recorded on a windy rainy Sunday in Antony’s garage in Masterton, in 2021, between Covid lockdowns.

credits

Guitar/Bass –Dave Edwards
Guitar/Keyboard/Vocs –Antony Milton.

released June 26, 2022

Masterton, New Zealand

Tracklist

1.	Move Along 03:54
2.	Genes 02:17
3.	Super Lucid 13:46
4.	Woodness 04:01

Further listening: The Troubled Times

The first full length release from this duo, which pre-dates the name ‘The Troubled Times’, was Return of the Sun (2021)

In 2022, the duo became a trio, joined by David Heath on drums, givng us a full ‘band’ sound.

The Winter: Shortest Days 2003-2015

A compilation by Wellington NZ free improv trio The Winter

Simon Sweetman – drums, percussion

Mike Kingston – guitars, cello (2-5), clarinet (7,11,14), charango (7,10)

Dave Edwards – guitars, vocal (3), harmonica (4,7,9), banjo (7), ukulele (7,9,11), saxophone (10,14), piano (10), bass (12,13), electronics (6,8,13)

Wellington, New Zealand,
free improv music trio, formed on winter solstice day June 2003.

An archive compilation,

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w/ James Robinson – Negentropic Diatribes (2022)

Multimedia spoken word and music collaboration between two unique NZ artists:

Listen

About

James Robinson is a mid career contemporary New Zealand mixed media artist, exhibiting widely since 1989 – www.jamesrobinson.nz

fiffdimension is music and multimedia by Dave Edwards (aka Dave Black) and collaborators, since 1998 – www.fiffdimension.com

We met in the early 2000s, and finally collaborated 20 years on. Negentropic Diatribes was recorded in Otago in 2022, as James used spoken word recordings to discuss his creative process and innermost thoughts.

The musical settings were created by Dave in Featherston – plus contributions from other collaborators.

credits

James Robinson – words, voice, paintings & drawings, bell drum
Dave Edwards – electric guitar, bass, loops (2,6,9), midi (9,13), ukulele (11), harmonica (14)

with

Antony Milton – electric guitar (4)
David Heath – drums (4)
Dr Emit Snake-Beings – percussion (5), keyboard (11)
Jody Lloyd – beats and mixing (12)
Nathan Palmer – electric guitar, thumb piano, jaw harp, banjo, and synth (14)
‐‐——-

Tracklist

1.	Telescopic Misanthropy (take 1) 02:10
2.	Tendrils of Glowing Memory Filaments 04:31
3.	Nothing Can be Threatened by Nothing 04:19
4.	James Robinson + The Troubled Times – The Edge 03:25
5.	James Robinson + snakebeings + fiffdimension – Dialogue with the Divine 05:30
6.	Well Done Son! 00:54
7.	Old Brain (metadada of Oceania remembering) 06:19
8.	James Robinson – Is Not Art 03:29
9.	Existential Threat 01:02
10.	Got Razed 07:34
11.	James Robinson + snakebeings + fiffdimension – That which is itself nature 05:00
12.	James Robinson + Trillion – Bath poem 10:31
13.	Psychocultural Glossalalia 01:39
14.	James Robinson + Nat da Hatt + fiffdimension – Ake Ake Amene 18:20

James Robinson

James won 2007 paramount prize in the wallace award for
” Taniwaha dragon mother ( spirit bones)”

‘… a great big flatulent belch of fresh air amongst all the tight-sphinctered, deodorised boys and girls of the accepted national art world….. off-kilter and threatening but always sumptuously, gloriously beautiful.’
– Chris Knox.

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Spastic Rhythms ’22 (2022)

Featherston, NZ – early 2022 – spontaneous compositions, two wet weekends in a row.

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A sequel to Spastic Rhythms vol 1 (2021)

second in a series of ‘quickfire’ DIY solo albums, created in a couple of days each.
This one features interspecies guest collaboration with Oscar the huntaway.

credits

Dave Black – guitars, bass, banjo (2), clarinet (6), sanshin (10), loop pedal, e-drum

Oscar – vocal (3,9)

released February 13, 2022

Featherston, New Zealand

Tracklist

1.	Drums on Waitangi Day 00:54
2.	Estado Novo 01:20
3.	Oscar – Oscar’s Blues 01:28
4.	fiffdimension / snakebeings – Arising (into Fragments) 03:51
5.	Black Mountain (Црна Гора) 00:59
6.	Shuffling the Tarot 03:39
7.	Classical rain bucket 01:41
8.	Rebooting 02:52
9.	Oscar – At home pants ft. cannon bone 02:12
10.	Removing a bandaid 00:51
11.	Shuri Jo (琉球諸島) 01:03
12.	Waiting for Dovi 05:24

Further listening

águas brilhantes: 2018-2022

A compilation of tracks from the Wairarapa in these years.

“It is unusual to find someone playing so confidently in such diverse areas, and anyone into independent music will certainly find something on here to enjoy – Kev Rowland, muzic.nz

w/ Antony Milton: Return of the Sun

Antony Milton is a sound artist based in Masterton, New Zealand.

He has been active in the underground and experimental music scenes since the early 1990s.

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The 2021 debut album by The Troubled Times!

This was our first recording session, as an electric guitar improv duo – in collaboration with antonymilton.bandcamp.com

Recorded in Masterton, New Zealand, 26 September 2021 – on the first day of daylight savings, in the southern hemisphere Spring,

Antony Milton is a sound artist based in Masterton, New Zealand.

He has been active in the underground and experimental music scenes since the early 1990s.

Continue reading →

Escape Velocity: the Electricka Zoo live

New live album!

With New Zealand in lockdown this might be the next best thing to an actual gig..

Track 1 recorded live at the Fringe Bar, Wellington NZ, 27-02-18

Tracks 2-7 recorded live at Escape Velocity, Featherston NZ, 10-03-18

As part of the New Zealand Fringe Festival

credits

The Digitator – midi, laptop, vocal
Dave Black – bass, electric guitar

www.fiffdimension.com/the-electricka-zoo

Outono 21

A new multilayered Dave Black electric improv / xenochronous composition.

The track continues the evolution of my Wairarapa one man band 2020s ‘late style’, which began with Glimpses of Utopia (2020) and Spastic Rhythms (2021)

It was originally created for the Psi-solation+1 – 2021 compilation album curated by fellow Featherston resident Campbell Kneale. He’s known for his noise music, paintings of cats, and as proprietor of the Miracle Room.

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PSI-SOLATION + 1 (one year on)

PSI-SOLATION | a global compilation of music made in lockdown | CELEBRATE PSI PHENOMENON (bandcamp.com)

2021 compilation album curated by Campbell Kneale. He’s known for his noise music, paintings of cats, and as proprietor of the Miracle Room gallery in Featherston.

A sequel to his acclaimed 119-track Psi-solation compilation of music made in lockdown 2020.

Both albums are pay what you want via Campbell’s label, Celebrate Psi Phenomenon .

I contributed a new Dave Black piece, Outono 21.

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Spastic Rhythms vol1 (2021)

A quickfire Dave Black solo EP, recorded one summer morning, 24 January 2021

Listen

[send us your review]

It includes ilhas Atlânticas, a tribute to my Portuguese ancestor Manuel Bernard.

Tracklist

1.	banjo trio 24/1/21 03:01
2.	drums 1 24/1/21 00:49
3.	guitar trio (ringtone) 24/1/21 02:07
4.	gritches blerk 24/1/21 01:12
5.	spastic drum solo 24/1/21 04:38
6.	ilhas Atlânticas 03:12
7.	Outono 21 08:49

Further Listening

The album adds banjo and electric drums to the 2020s Wairarapa DIY solo electric improv style begun in

Glimpses of Utopia (2020)

The first of the ‘late period’ solo instrumental albums.

águas brilhantes: 2018-2022

A compilation of tracks from the Wairarapa in these years.

“It is unusual to find someone playing so confidently in such diverse areas, and anyone into independent music will certainly find something on here to enjoy – Kev Rowland, muzic.nz

Glimpses of Utopia (2020)

Palette-cleansing electric solo improvisations.

Listen

About

Recorded solo in Featherston, New Zealand, 2019-20.

Not specifically a ‘lockdown album’, but nonetheless recorded solo at home during the pandemic.

It marked the emergence of a new ‘late period‘ solo style.

I’m not a trained jazz musician, but nor do I fit neatly into the ‘NZ noise‘ genre.

Tracklist

1.	Abbadebdab 03:00
2.	October ring 03:37
3.	11 through the viewer 7 (acoustic) 01:24
4.	Torrential logistics 04:05
5.	Usquebaugh 03:53
6.	Walking through an aye (in Paparoa national park) 03:53
7.	Solstice Shards 19 05:07
8.	Teenager 01:39