Terry Riley-A Rainbow in Curved Air

I thin pretty much everything this man does is brilliant, but I guess just about everyone else does as well. I'm no scholar on contemporary classical music, but I'd think that this guy has got to be one of the most influential figures. If I were to list the amount of new bands that take from this guy, your unborn child will have gone through puberty by the time I am finished. Anyone remotely interested in electronic music will certainly have this already. Shit, anyone remotely interested in music should have this already.

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Once Dreamt-Drifting

I can't say that i was all that enthralled by the whole Michigan space rock scene of the early/mid 90s. At the time it just seemed pretty dull and boring. In retrospect, however, I now think it was pretty great and foreshadowed many contemporary sounds. This band, as far as I know, was a early precursor to some of the leading names of that scene--namely Windy & Carl and Fuxa. I've never been too into Fuxa, and Windy & Carl have some great, yet inconsistent, moments, so this is the one I pull out when I want some droney bliss from the Wolverine state. Now you may do the same.

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Meredith Monk-Book of Days

This will probably be the only time I get a chance to post an album by someone who won a MacArthur genius grant. And really, she is a pretty talented lady. She describes herself as "a composer, singer, director/choreographer and creator of new opera, music theater works, films and installations." That's a lot of hats to wear. I can barely keep up with teaching, writing, and tying my shoes. So I'm impressed. As you'd probably guess from someone who's so prolific Monk's work is pretty difficult to describe. So let's see. It's pretty droney and there's some weirdo vocals and, yeah...Just download it.

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