Loose Autumn Moans (2003)

“Wellington, NZ composer Dave Edwards with some able assistance from duo or trio the Winter... Guitars, violin, cello, and percussion all stack up… He’s got a persona that’s all his own.”

– George Parsons, Dream Magazine #5

All acoustic, with a string section, recorded and mixed on analogue equipment, and originally released on cassette in 2003 – new 2020 remaster.

Featuring

Sam Prebble (violin)

Mike Kingston (cello)

and Simon Sweetman on percussion.

Bats Theatre, Wellington NZ 2003

Sam Prebble RIP, 2014

Loose Autumn Moans is dedicated to Sam Prebble (aka Bond Street Bridge), who died in 2014.

Further listening

Loose Autumn Moans consists of five acoustic ensemble tracks:

	1.	Summer Skin 06:20
	2.	Mouth of the Caveman 03:26
	3.	Redressing Depression Regression 06:02
	4.	The Hurricane Wrangle (Live at Bats Theatre) 07:22
	5.	The Winter – O Henry Ending (Live at Photospace Gallery) 12:46

The album is structured as a progression from summer (with a NZ pohutukawa tree in flower on the cover) through autumn – a time of harvest, preparation, shortening daylight, and the shedding of old dead layers – and finishes with an extended live version of ‘O Henry Ending’, recorded at the Winter’s first gig.

The original C60 cassette (and later online) release included solo interludes recorded in 2002. The collaboration with these guys followed on from

After the Filmshoot (2002)

By focusing on the 2003 sessions Loose Autumn Moans becomes concise, emphasising the lyrics and the jazzy acoustic instrumental interplay – a mini orchestra to bring colour.

oose Autumn Moans is dedicated to Sam Prebble (aka Bond Street Bridge), who died in 2014.

Further listening

The collaboration with these guys followed on from

The Winter: Parataxes

The Winter live at Photospace Gallery, July 2003 (photo by James Gilberd)

The Winter‘s debut: electric and acoustic trio improvisations for guitars, cello and percussion, by Dave Edwards, Mike Kingston, and Simon Sweetman (2003)

“A strange sonic brew that includes dissonant rock textures, rough outsider folk-blues mysteries, electric and acoustic improvisations and a considerable part of tasty feedback. Imagine equal parts Derek Bailey, New Zealand’s Pumice and classic ’60s blues/folk and you’re in the right ballpark.” – The Broken Face

Continue reading “Loose Autumn Moans (2003)” →

Sonnet on Summer

A duo with my nephew, Hans Landon-Lane, from Poems & Lyrics by John Collie (1856)

Rosemary Bromley, Dave Edwards, Hans Landon-Lane

Clever Hansel – ukulele vocal
Dave Edwards – guitar, harmonica, vocal

This was the last in-person collaboration before the COVID-19 shutdown, recorded in Lower Hutt, New Zealand, March 2020.

THE sweet breath of summer blows fresh o’er each plain,

The woods have resumed their lost grandeur again;

The groves with the notes of the blackbird are ringing,

By fountain and streamlet the wild ﬂowers are springing.

And the breath of the heather bell sweetens the breeze,

And the old stormy ocean lies slumbering in peace;

And the wild bees are humming around the wild ﬂowers,

Afar above earth the lark proudly soars;

The bleat of the lamb on the moss-cover’d hill,

The sound of the shepherd’s pipe jocund and shrill,

All tell in a language most striking and plain,

T hat summer, fair summer, is reigning again,

The old face of nature her smiles has put on,

And the blustery appearance of winter has ﬂown.

16 February @ Fernside Gardens Open Days

I played solo acoustic at the Fernside Gardens Open Day on Sunday 16th February, 11am.

Continue reading “16 February @ Fernside Gardens Open Days” →

The Marion Flow (part 2, Wellington 2001)

: produced by Paul Winstanley, & featuring Chris O’Connor (drums), Chris Palmer (electric guitars), Simon O’Rorke (percussion). Recorded at Thistle Hall, Wellington, 2001, and mixed by Joe Callwood.

For the earlier 1999 New Plymouth sessions see The Marion Flow (part 1, Taranaki);

The Marion Flow was originally a longer album which spanned recordings from New Plymouth in 1999 and Wellington in 2001.

“It’s lo-fi, organic and about as eclectic as one could manage. Kind of reminds me of Nick Cave if he had grown up in Timaru. No pretentious American accents or catch phrase choruses, just a bunch of people making music. A little beauty!” – NZ Musician, August/September 2002

By the time the opportunity arose to finish recording the Marion Flow I’d been thoroughly immersed in the Wellington free jazz and avant-garde music scene, and was very fortunate to have help from some of the top players there. I’d never studied music at school or been in a conventional band, and was out of my depth technically… so working around my limitations became a spark to creativity.

In 1999, aged 20, I’d left New Plymouth, a large rural town, where I grew up, and moved to Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city, where I’d been born and where my early pakeha settler ancestors had lived in the 19th century. The Marion Flow reflects this journey, geographically, sonically and spiritually.

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I’ve now reissued the two halves of the album separately – to emphasise the sense of time and place, and stylistic evolution, and to re-present them more concisely for the short-attention-span 21st century.

“Edwards’ music is often a sculpture rather than a melodic composition. Within this chosen form, amongst all the writings rantings & poetry there’s much difficult pleasure to be had for the musically adventurous.” – Brent Cardy, Real Groove, July 2002

Further listening

Continue reading →

The Marion Flow (part 1, Taranaki 1999)

“It’s lo-fi, organic and about as eclectic as one could manage. Kind of reminds me of Nick Cave if he had grown up in Timaru. No pretentious American accents or catch phrase choruses, just a bunch of people making music. A little beauty!” – NZ Musician, August/September 2002

Produced by Paul Winstanley, & featuring Steve Duffels, the Digitator, the Dadapapa Magickclone Orchestra and more. Recorded at the TFC Lounge, New Plymouth, 1999 – with special thanks to Brian Wafer.

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The Marion Flow is a pre-millennial fusion of warm acoustic pop, spoken word and postpunk discord.. An almost-acknowledged New Zealand classic from Taranaki – of its time (the ’90s!) yet timeless.

In 1999, aged 20, I left New Plymouth, a large rural town, where I grew up, and moved to Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city, where I was born. The Marion Flow reflects this journey, geographically, sonically and spiritually.

The Marion Flow was originally a longer album spanning recordings from New Plymouth in 1999 and Wellington in 2001. I’ve now reissued the two halves separately – to emphasise the sense of time and place, and stylistic evolution, and to re-present each more concisely for the short-attention-span 21st century.

This page is for the 1999 New Plymouth sessions;

for the 2001 Wellington followup recordings see The Marion Flow (part 2);

Further listening

If you enjoy the avant-garde sound of the last track, try the companion album DDPP: Waiting For the Drummer – recorded at the same sessions in New Plymouth in 1999 with the same personnel;
for my raw live solo punk sound at the time try Live 1999

Continue reading “The Marion Flow (part 1, Taranaki 1999)” →

Live 2019

An acoustic solo set, live at Wairarapa TV in Masterton, New Zealand

– which took place live on the internet. This was simulcast on Freeview CH41, ArrowFM 89.7FM and YouTube.

The set was part of the Property Law Service May Music Marathon – 12 straight hours of live Music to Television screens during NZ Music Month on May the 4th 2019.

Living in a small town I don’t get to as many gigs as I used to… so here using 21st century technology to play ‘virtually’ everywhere.

On the other hand musically this was closer to a traditional folk/singer-songwriter set than I’d done for quite a while, eschewing dissonant improv, multitracking, live backing musicians or electronic trickery.

I kept my half hour minimal and acoustic (the discord and electric noise I’m saving for another time soon) and updated my past – with

Continue reading “Live 2019” →

Live 1999

by Dave Edwards – electric and acoustic guitars, harmonica, vocal
Live at Bar Bodega, Wellington, New Zealand, June 1999.

I was the opening act for Chris Knox – so this is (obviously) dedicated to him.

Chris influenced generations of artists in NZ and abroad; (go check him out if you haven’t already). His place in the pantheon is secure.

Chris Knox

I’d recently turned 20 and moved back to Wellington (my birthplace). I had with me a cheap imitation Stratocaster, some notebook scribblings, a harmonica in my pocket, and an album and a half recorded.
I’d never studied music at school or played in a band. I was socially awkward, had only basic conventional musical ability, and had zero interest in playing cover songs; I’d internalised the DIY punk ethos (which Chris Knox had helped pioneer in NZ – number 8 fencing wire applied to rock music). I was amazed at how Chris could do so much with a just a few E-shape barre chords.
Over the next few years, and in large part as a result of living in Wellington where an active free improv & avant-garde music scene was coalescing, I moved further away from pop song structures. But at this point my repertoire consisted of songs from Scratched Surface and The Marion Flow, which I’d written and recorded in New Plymouth.

On the Live 1999 cassette recordings they’re even more lo-fi, a ’90s aesthetic.

Releasing these recordings 20 years later comes as we reach the end of another decade. The zeitgeist is different now – faster paced, more diverse and interconnected, different political context, more urgent ecological crisis. Maybe this music is no longer relevant? Or, youthful and free of 21st century baggage, is it still fresh?
Live 1999 is literally half my lifetime ago at this point… where to from here? I’m 40 years old, never did ‘make it’ in the arts and am further out of touch from the music scene than ever, but have developed in some ways… so far in 2019 I‘ve come back full circle to where I was at the beginning, playing solo:

Chris Knox, meanwhile – impaired by a stroke in 2009 and unable to play guitar or communicate easily any more – is a prolific painter.
Thank you Chris! And to Fraser McInnes, Darrel Hannon, Brian Wafer, Steve Dean, Rob Thorne, Peter Jefferies, Alec Bathgate, and everyone who came along.

Summer Skin

Live 4th May 2019, at Wairarapa TV May Music Marathon, in Masterton NZ.

Solo guitar & harmonica version of track http://www.fiffdimension.bandcamp.com/track/summer-skin

Originally recorded in Wellington NZ, September 2003, for the album ‘Loose Autumn Moans‘, with a mini string section of Mike Kingston on cello and Sam Prebble (RIP) on violin. It also appears on the Gleefully Unknown: 1997-2005 compilation.

Continue reading “Summer Skin” →

The Blast of a Wintry Day (by John Collie, 1856)

A song written by my great-great-grandfather John Collie, in Banffshire, Scotland, in 1856.

It also appeared on

Other Islands: 2012-2018

Where it marked a return to my solo acoustic approach of early years.

lyrics

Continue reading “The Blast of a Wintry Day (by John Collie, 1856)” →

Other Islands: 2012-2018

fiffdimension vol3

brings us into the current decade – with further wide-ranging experimentation and exploration sonically, temporally and geographically, in New Zealand, Western Australia, Indonesia, Okinawa (Japan), and Fiji.

by Dave Black (acoustic & electric guitars, banjo, harmonica, laptop, bass, tenor saxophone, field recordings, piano, ukulele, sanshin, saron, jublag, demung, vocal), with

Mike Kingston (charango, acoustic guitar),

Simon Sweetman (percussion),

Nat da Hatt (electric guitar, keyboards, banjo),

Emit Snake-Beings (banjo, vocal, percussion, flute, electronics),

the Digitator (electric drums, keyboards & loops),

Campbell Kneale (electric guitar, analogue synthesiser),

Cylvi M (vocal, field recordings, percussion, shakuhachi),

Blair Latham (bass clarinet),

Simon O’Rorke (keyboards),

Chris Prosser (violin),

Julie Bevan (acoustic guitar),

plus Indonesian gamelan ensembles led by Sofari Hidayat, Budi Putra, and Gareth Farr,