Tuxedo Moon Play Prague Febuary 1st

wednesday 1. 2. 19,30
Palác Akropolis

The cult heroes of West Coast rock started recording for the same label as the Californian anti-stars Residents, and share the electronic wizardry of German innovators Can and Brian Eno's ambient projects. Despite their temporary breakup in 1989 the band activity culminates again with sold out performances at Barcelona's Sonar Festival and Centre Pompidou in Paris.
Their comeback album Cabin in the Sky was enthusiastically received by the young generation, comparing Tuxedomoon to Radiohead and Michael Nyman. "Transfer 'Cabin' onto a canvas and you have Pollock, Bacon, Miro and Dali all rolled into one, with themes of surrealism, whimsy, magic, and earthy ferocity." Tuxedomoon's soundscapes are decorated with impressionist strings, their music performances are in fact multimedial events. The DVD version of their CD was described as "quasi cinematographic masterpiece".

Tuxedomoon were born in the electronic music lab of San Francisco City College, and debuted along with The Residents, Snakefinger, Chrome and MX 80 Sound on the Ralph Records label. Their brand of post-punk experimentalism was close to the European tradition and covered wide spectrum - classical, jazz, funk, tango all heartily combined into a cerebral mix. They appeared in Andy Warhol 's "Interview" magazine, between the early '80s and mid '90s the band lived in Europe, absorbing more influences and sounds from their privileged position in Brussels, then an underground hotbed of theatre, music and art. It was during these years that Tuxedomoon increasingly used multimedia elements such as lighting, film and video to embellish their live shows. Today the core members are as disparate geographically as they are sonically (Mexico, New York, Greece, Belgium). This very global, very post-modern situation perhaps goes some way to explaining the worldliness of "Cabin In The Sky". Impressionistic strings, wistful flourishes of brass and accordion, languorous electronic scribbles and lyrics sung in English, Italian and French provide unashamedly romantic textures. Still, this record is the most consistently spacious, unhurried, gravity-defying album the band have made; certainly the closest they've ever come to the sentimentalist soundscapes of contemporary electronic bands like Air or the quiet ambient vignettes of Eno or Fripp.

Sensing their evergreen appeal, the ever perspicacious German nightclub veteran DJ Hell put out a record of re-mixes before inviting the band for a tour of Germany. Hell also plays on their last album, along other prominent guests as Juryman (Ian Simmonds), Tortoise's John McEntire, Parisian wizard Marc Collin, Aksak Maboul (aka Crammed originators Hollander & Kenis) and German hipsters Tarwater.

Selective discography:
Half Mute (Ralph) 1980
Desire (Ralph) 1981
Holy Wars (Restless) 1985
Pinheads on the Move (CramBoy) 1987
You (CramBoy) 1987
Live In St. Petersburg (Acoustic) 2002
Cabin in the Sky (Crammed Disc) 2004

Personnel:
Steven Brown: vocals, keyboard, sax, clarinet
Blaine L. Reininger: vocals, violin, viola-guitar, keyboard
Peter Principle: bass
Luc Van Lieshout: trumpet, fluegelhorn, accordion
George Kakanakis: live video, real-time object and image manipulation

Tickets:
Palác Akropolis
Ticketstream
Ticketpro

More info you can find at:
www.crammed.be