No Boundaries: Intercontinental Indie-Pop Birds of a Feather Co-Create

No Boundaries: Intercontinental Indie-Pop Birds of a Feather Co-Create

Catalytic creative-juice mixology, a collaborative journey into uncharted musical waters. Co-written on the spot by endearingly eccentric indie-pop multi-instrumentalists Greg Bette (Garçon de Plage, Paris) and Chris Peck (Peck the Town Crier; Fairfax, California), this song began the morning of the session a mere wisp of a motif. A few hours of joint open-mindedness, plenty of playful experimentation, and far more yea’s than nay’s later, led at evening’s close to the birth of “Feather”—now taking flight as Owl Mountain Sessions 013.

A sparkling, sunny daydream with warm retro vibes grows viscous and unfurls into a swirling menagerie of melody, shimmering chimes, astral guitars, and exotic textures, all grounded by the earthy contrast of clay drums and rumbling cavernous toms.

Town Quartet Debuts Anton Reicha's Fugal Science No. XI

Town Quartet Debuts Anton Reicha's Fugal Science No. XI

With Session 012, Oakland’s Town Quartet premieres more unpublished work from 19th-century Czech composer Anton Reicha, performing his Quatuor Scientifique No. 11 (Allegro moderato). A pioneering music theorist and academic from Beethoven's time, Reicha explored the application of mathematics and philosophical concepts within his compositions. Much of Reicha’s musical work was considered too unconventional and radical by the standards of his day, which contributed to his being relatively unknown when compared to some of his classical-era contemporaries. The Town Quartet aims to bring some of this more obscure work to the public. Like Q. Scientifique No. 7, the eleventh movement (of twelve) reveals another of Reicha’s fugal experimentations, this one being based upon the theme from the String Quartet Opus 20 No. 5 in F minor by one of Reicha’s mentors during his days in Vienna: Joseph Haydn.

Sci-fi Electro Mirage Blues & ELLIOTT SHARP's Inner Ear

Sci-fi Electro Mirage Blues & ELLIOTT SHARP's Inner Ear

Multi-genre avant-garde pioneer Elliott Sharp’s "Momentum Anomaly” suite seems less a formal composition in the traditional sense than a living, breathing, yet-evolving expression woven from the prolific NYC composer’s ongoing explorations technical and artistic in nature. Despite being a personal favorite of Sharp’s, Momentum Anomaly is a story never twice told the same when played live, its core expanded upon and reborn with each retelling. The performances are informed in part by memory, preserving a general structure with anchoring themes and phrases shared, but each realization emerges unique, reflecting the flexible vocabulary of the master’s intuitive connection to his physical tools as well as internal palette du moment.

Town Quartet Premieres 1806-Vintage Anton Reicha

In Owl Mountain Session 010, we introduced Oakland’s very own eclectic Town Quartet, featured in Matt Montgomery’s arrangement of Physical Suicide Deterrent System Project’s avant-grunge ballad “Geology”. With PSDSP frontman Eli Carlton-Pearson on acoustic guitar, the quartet of Mia Bella D’Augelli and Corey Mike (violins), Jacob Hansen-Joseph (viola), and Lewis Patzner (cello) gave us a rare blend of classical music and grunge rock, unplugged. The result: a beautifully raw sound with soaring intensity.

For Session 011, the Town Quartet switches gears, returning to more “traditional" string quartet literature. In this case, however, they dive into history to bring us new treasure: the world’s premiere performance and recording of “Quatuor Scientifique”, a rare unpublished piece from Czech-born composer Anton Reicha (1770-1836). A contemporary of Beethoven’s, Reicha was an innovative music theorist and composer whose approaches to rhythm and tonality were advanced beyond his time.

Movement 7 of his Quatuor Scientifique is a four-part fugue that explores the famous theme from Mozart’s “Haffner” symphony. Though brief, the piece unfolds into a complete thought full of rich layers that give equal voice to each member of the quartet. It gracefully ebbs and flows through many changes of texture and light, finally building to a bold, assertive organ-like finish. Please enjoy!

Through the Depths of HEAVEN and the heights of HELL

Music Video Release!! Once TOMMY ODETTO's "Wishing Well" takes off, there's no turning back.. With angsty lyrics and driving rhythms, this nonstop grunge-rock rocket will have you falling and flying through fiery twists and turns. So take a deep breath and dive in....

Wild and On Fire: TOMMY ODETTO "In the Know"

Hot summer nights call for some hot all-out rock 'n' roll, and we know just the number to dial.. TOMMY ODETTO opens for guitar legend ACE FREHLEY of KISS infamy at the historic McNear's Mystic Theatre in Petaluma, California. Odetto's dedication and genuine passion for rock shines through 110% in every performance. Watch the rising Bay Area rocker set the house on fire with his guitar-melting talent and undeniably contagious enthusiasm!

"Tommy has the gift of obvious natural ability, combined with thought and tons of soul. He plays for you, not at you." – Michael Landau (James Taylor session guitarist)

For more TOMMY, visit www.tommyodetto.com

TOMMY ODETTO - Guitar, Vocals

MILO HORSTMAN - Guitar

TIM BAKER - Bass

ETHAN TURNER - Drums

JENN CHAN - Videography, Video Production

Joy in June: JESSE COLIN YOUNG, Live in concert with "Ridgetop"

JESSE COLIN YOUNG and band perform "Ridgetop" LIVE at Sweetwater Music Hall, June 2017

JESSE COLIN YOUNG is back, LIVE! Step into the action as Jesse and his sizzling new band perform the favorite original "Ridgetop" at Mill Valley, California's Sweetwater Music Hall. This joyful June evening was full of music, nostalgia, as well as fresh talent and songwriting, but the dominant feeling in the room was that of Love. A sold-out show, Owl Mountain was blessed to be there to capture the night for you. Enjoy!

 

JESSE COLIN YOUNG's "Sunlight" – 50 Years and Fresh!

Owl Mountain Sessions 006 presents one of our most profound influences, Jesse Colin Young. "Sunlight" harkens back to his first record, "Soul of a City Boy”, when Jesse went into the studio in 1964 with Producer/Pianist/Composer Bobby Scott and cut his first full-length record in 4 hours. This is Jesse at his purest, with only his luscious tenor voice and fingerstyle acoustic guitar playing to bring you into a story, a love song, that speaks to the time when he and The Youngbloods first traveled to San Francisco. Ultimately, “Sunlight” would be the first song Jesse wrote after he made the big move from New York City to the small farming town of Point Reyes Station on the Northern California coast. Such a move would be culture shock for most, but for Jesse, the band, and their families, this was a cultural release that to this day has spawned close to five decades more of creativity. Join us for 006 "Sunlight" and let Jesse take you on a beautiful 4-minute journey of love and inspiration.

Please also take the time to go to www.jessecolinyoung.com to view Jesse's tour schedule. We had the opportunity to see him and his new band at The Sweetwater Music Hall this month and were blown away by their performance. Catch a glimpse into that glorious night with "Ridgetop" as filmed by Owl Mountain Productions HERE. He and his talented crew have been selling out venues all over the East and West coasts, so get those tickets quick!

In the meantime, enjoy Session 006, as well as — if you missed them — our previous Sessions. We invite you to LIKE and COMMENT, then SHARE with your loved ones. There's a lot more just around the corner from Owl Mountain Productions — both from Jesse Colin Young and other stellar musical acts — so act now, SUBSCRIBE to our Owl Mountain Productions channel on YouTube!