Cordis Releases 'Seams', U.S. Tour To Kick off 10/1

By: Richard Best Sep. 13, 2016

Think Igor Stravinsky meets Sigur Ros - if these two musical forces could start a band together, the sound would bear a striking, sonic resemblance to the work of chamber music mavericks, cordis. In addition, the band's new album, Seams, is now available beginning today, Tuesday, September 13, 2016 on Amazon, iTunes, CD Baby and cordismusic.com, or streamed via Spotify and Pandora. Their sound borders on a gritty rock/punk aesthetic, but because the members were classically trained and steeped in chamber music, the resulting sound is not postured on loud and fast, but rather more developed and cerebral.

In addition to its signature timbre of the electric cimbalom, cordis further crafts its sound by weaving one-of-a-kind creations, such as electric mbiras, modified typewriters, pitched wind tubes, 19th-century talking machines and the world's longest-playing, cylinder-driven music box into performances. The four-man band features electric cimbalomist (and founder/principal composer) Richard Grimes, multi-percussionist Andrew Beall, electro-acoustic cellist Jeremy Harman and pianist/keyboardist Dan Padgett. Together, they are considered to be innovators in this post-rock rendering of chamber music and the unique sound framed around founding member Richard Grimes' self-created, electric cimbalom.

"Jaco Pastorius blurring stylistic boundaries; Miles Davis vision to infuse electricity into his music; John Cage's consideration of all things sound - visionaries like these all had a profound impact on our approach to music in the sense that each of them had the relentless courage and spirit to evolve. Born out of that brand of maverick blood, cordis continues this unbridled exploration into tone and timbre," says founder/composer/electric cimbalomist Richard Grimes. "The creative approach we chose when making Seams took its initial inspiration from a stream of luminaries who really shaped our generation's sonic palette through their unbridled, textural experimentation and melding of styles."

"Look, we all come from an indie and punk background, but the fact is music as we know it has been shifting and evolving since the advent of the tempered scale," says multi-percussionist Andrew Beall. "What cordis represents is a step in that ongoing process. To that end, Seams offers further crystallizing of our vision of what this new stream of chamber music can be."

The band's forthcoming album, Seams, was produced by Sam Kassirer and cordis at Great North Sound Society. Kassirer and cordis have a long history of collaboration, originating with his tenure as the original keyboard player with the group, (and a founding/current member of Josh Ritter and the Royal City Band). Richard Grimes, the group's primary composer, describes the writing on the new album as a "dual compositional exercise in patience versus efficiency," with pieces ranging from under 0:30 seconds to more than 10 minutes.

"We didn't embark on the new album with the intent to develop or evolve anything. We are simply a group of like-minded artists with a shared vision, and what you hear on Seams is the product of that chemistry ... whether in the studio or on the stage, we take no prisoners," Beall explains. "We realize that level of intensity is not for everybody, but it is what is right for us on a collaborative level."

"Seams captures cordis at a point where we are able to really develop and expand the electronic and technical possibilities on our instruments in ways that no other chamber ensemble is doing to my knowledge," Grimes added. "Too often, experimentation in music ends up in the trappings of gimmickry, so we proceed very thoughtfully with our ideas. I can honestly say everything we've done - and will do - will always be at the sincere insistence of the music itself."

Comments

To post a comment, you must register and login.

Videos


News on your favorite shows, specials & more!