AMM ‎– At The Roundhouse (CD album)

The first release from the ICES concerts from August of 1972 in London. The International Carnival of Experimental Sound, or ICES ’72 for short, was an ambitious festival sprung from the mind of Harvey “Job” Matusow (1926-2002). Jumping off from his associations with Source magazine, Harvey brought together over 300 artists from over 21 countries to perform in London, England over the course of two weeks in August of 1972. Based on the theme of Myth, Magic Madness and Mysticism, he assembled an amazing diversity of performers working in diverse range of audio-visual arts. Encompassing happenings, films, dance, a train ride, and the phantom soft pool table, the focus was on sound – specifically that of artists who were both composers and performers. Most of the concerts were held at The Roundhouse, a cavernous structure that was formerly a railroad engine house, and recorded by John Lifton and his assistants. Now, for the first time in 30 years, these recordings can be heard. AMM was formed in 1965 by Lou Gare, Eddie Prevost, Keith Rowe, and Lawrence Sheaff. The line-up swelled to also include Cornelius Cardew and Christopher Hobbs, and sometimes composer Christian Wolff. From 1971 up until 1976, AMM found itself stripped down to the duo of Prevost and Gare. After that time, Rowe replaced Gare, and Eddie and Keith have continued making AMMusic ever since, mostly with the help of John Tilbury, and occasionally others, and are still a powerful force. The aesthetic of AMM is that of improvised music freed from the constraints of musical style. Their sound is ever evolving and free from the ego of individual players. “Music from half a lifetime ago – that was a very good creative time musically and maybe a new generation will appreciate what we were doing then and still are doing now. Playing with Eddie in that format, just the two of us, was my most rewarding musical experience after the break up of the AMM quartet. When Eddie and Keith tried to get it together again with the four of us I could not go back to that after the freedom of the duo.” – Lou Gare.