HAZEL-RAH - The Africantape Ep

Hazel-Rah began as Tim Byrnes' inspiration to rise up to a personal challenge to compose a set of music that would compliment Toby Driver's Tartar Lamb on a mid-winter tour of the United States that straddled 2006 and 2007. That famous tour ended tragicomically with the van breaking down on the way home in Tomah, Wisconsin. This initial Hazel-Rah line-up featured Byrnes on vocals and synth, Driver on guitar, and Friendly Bears' Andrew Greenwald on drums. They played a set of three songs. As a band, Hazel-Rah laid low for the next five years, as Tim was caught up into other musical responsibilities, including Anthony Braxton's trumpet ensemble, Ron Anderson's PAK, and Toby Driver's Kayo Dot among other things. There were, however, some highlights from that time, including a southern U.S. tour with Forbes Graham (on drum machine) in summer '07, a really short tour of New England and Philly with Forbes and Stern in summer '08, opening slots on the PAK/Stig Noise Sound System tour of France in fall '08, a house show in Seattle during the Kayo Dot Coyote sessions in summer 9, and a big show at John Zorn's music space The Stone in February '10, which featured an excellent lineup of David Andrew Moore on drums, Adam Minkoff on guitar, and Extra Life's Charlie Looker on baritone guitar (with Driver making a special guest appearance mid-set). Hazel-Rah's first five-year season culminated with a recording session at Colin Martson's Menegroth the Thousand Caves, which yielded "Behold, A Firewall" and "Stars". These would constitute Hazel-Rah's first official release, The Africantape 10' on Africantape Records (February 6 2012). Prior to these songs, the recorded output had been sparse but pointed, consisting of lo-fi recordings that included several art-songs, a remix/reinvention of Candiria's "Pull", and a French horn/baritone guitar duet played by Byrnes and Looker called "Glacier". The Africantape EP "Behold, A Firewall" and "Stars" are indeed the preeminent full-ensemble compositions from Hazel-Rah's first 5 years, captured skillfully onto tape by Colin Marston (Dysrhythmia, Krallice) and masterfully executed in performance by Tim Byrnes, Adam Minkoff, David Andrew Moore, and Charlie Looker (Extra Life). These songs epitomize Hazel-Rah's sound, juxtaposing crushing dissonance with epic cadences, and advanced rhythmic structures with trance-like passages Record Label: Africantape Style: Garage Rock