tron
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Vialka are a guitar and drum duo based in deepest France, pretty sure to be unlike anything you've seen before. They tour constantly, having played hundreds of dates in most of the countries in the world, frequently touring by public transport (see http://http://vialka.com/concert-archive for a dizzying tour history). They are most at home in the underground DIY networks they have become familiar with over their long career, forming alliances and collaborations with many innovators on the fringes of improvised music, punk, folk, noise or whatever - the most well known being Damo Suzuki and Jacopo Adreini.
Their music is a bizarre mix, starting from a kind of frantic post-punk noise, over the years they have explored several musical styles that feature the high octane complex interplay between instruments that is their hallmark. Recent recordings are occasionally kind of reminiscent of a Frank Zappa/Terry Bozzio world music two-piece. They have long incorporated Balkan and gypsy influences, later African melodies, and have been strongly influenced by Chinese underground music - somewhere they have toured many times and have formed strong ties. Their 2009 release features versions of (or snippets of) Chinese folk tunes, Shona mbira songs (Zimbabwe), middle eastern melodies, Russian folk songs and on and on - all stripped down and reassembled. (see http://www.dualplover.com/vialka.php for a collection of occasionally bemused reviews)
Their live show is something special - they perform in costume, sometimes dance and sing a capella, tell stories or otherwise put on a show. In a way they seem to try to distract from the fact that they are highly accomplished musicians who clearly have worked for years to hone their performances to microsecond precision. Various performances can be see on youtube or at http://vialka.com/video
See http://vialka.com/discography to sample their sound.
Their music is a bizarre mix, starting from a kind of frantic post-punk noise, over the years they have explored several musical styles that feature the high octane complex interplay between instruments that is their hallmark. Recent recordings are occasionally kind of reminiscent of a Frank Zappa/Terry Bozzio world music two-piece. They have long incorporated Balkan and gypsy influences, later African melodies, and have been strongly influenced by Chinese underground music - somewhere they have toured many times and have formed strong ties. Their 2009 release features versions of (or snippets of) Chinese folk tunes, Shona mbira songs (Zimbabwe), middle eastern melodies, Russian folk songs and on and on - all stripped down and reassembled. (see http://www.dualplover.com/vialka.php for a collection of occasionally bemused reviews)
Their live show is something special - they perform in costume, sometimes dance and sing a capella, tell stories or otherwise put on a show. In a way they seem to try to distract from the fact that they are highly accomplished musicians who clearly have worked for years to hone their performances to microsecond precision. Various performances can be see on youtube or at http://vialka.com/video
See http://vialka.com/discography to sample their sound.
