Stream the new experimental jazz EP from Mac Gollehon, The End is the Beginning
On Friday, February 4, Mac Gollehon will release his new EP, The End is the Beginning on limited gold cassette via Nefarious Industries. The veteran trumpeter has performed with countless artists, including the likes of David Bowie, Blondie, Billy Ocean, Hall & Oates, Duran Duran, Nile Rodgers, Grace Jones and more, and today, his new EP is available to stream in its entirety ahead of its official release.
The EP was recorded, engineered and mixed by Gridfailure‘s David Brenner, and pairs a chaotic noise element with noir jazz, reminiscent at times of John Zorn’s Naked City project, or Bohren and Der Club of Gore with even more cacophony. Gollehon previously shared “The End Is the Beginning” and “Bronx Motor Inn,” each of which showcases different aspects of the project, drawing on the likes of noise rock and Angelo Badalamenti-style cinematic jazz alike.
Gollehon says in a statement, “I would compare this EP’s creation to reverse-engineering. After a cool photo session with Tyler, I sent the photos to David; he suggested I write some music reflecting the character of the photos. I agreed it was a great idea and composed several sequence motifs; I pulled out the score pad and had it completed by the end of the day like a film score deadline. Using device, process, and tonal subset organization, visual intuition referencing influences from early ‘70s crime films was my start. Don Ellis’ The French Connection, Lalo Schifrin’s Dirty Harry suite, David Shire’s The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, and Ennio Morricone’s works were influential reference points.”
Listen to The End is the Beginning in its entirety below.
Jeff Terich is the founder and editor of Treble. He's been writing about music for 20 years and has been published at American Songwriter, Bandcamp Daily, Reverb, Spin, Stereogum, uDiscoverMusic, VinylMePlease and some others that he's forgetting right now. He's still not tired of it.