A Reader staffer shares three musical obsessions, then asks someone (who asks someone else) to take a turn.
Neuköllner Modelle, Sektion 1-2 This multigenerational free-jazz unit takes a familiar approach—an ad hoc sax trio improvises with no preset material. Drummer Sven-Åke Johansson has called its music “constructive free jazz,” a fair way to describe the limber, obliquely melodic, pulse-driven sound he creates with bassist Joel Grip and saxophonist Bertrand Denzler. The group explores within a comforting form, especially Johansson—his drumming clenches and loosens in a contemporary take on the free jazz of the past.
Yellow Magic Orchestra, Technodelic I only recently learned about Yellow Magic Orchestra. I was peripherally familiar with cofounder Ryuichi Sakamoto, but not with this seminal group. They have a huge discography, and this 1981 album is my favorite that I’ve heard by far. It reminds me of a streamlined This Heat, though YMO is usually compared to Kraftwerk. I dig the surprising harmonies and melodies atop the tight electronic rhythms. This album was also one of the very first to use the legendary Roland TR-808 drum machine.
