CUT OF THE MONTH features Firebrat again. Why a FIREBRAT encore? Because
this band is soooo good! I've made this comparison before - if Freddy
Mercury fronted The Attractions but Costello still wrote the songs,
FIREBRAT is what you'd get. Check them out on this months file, "Odus",
and let me know what you think.

BLACK CAT ORCHESTRA was in to track both the soundtrack for Fritz Lang's
"Spies" and a few more songs for an upcoming album. Never heared Black Cat
before? They have an audio cut on the Website, as well - go listen. Their
blend of eastern european sounds played with prime musicianship makes them
a favorite among all who feel the waves.

Speaking of Black Cat...LORI GOLDSTON, KYLE HANSEN and I got together on
election day to belt out some strange, weird sounds from our analog synths
and processed cello (and it turns out ours wasn't the only strange
weirdness going on that day). We lovingly refer to this project as
"Tarpit", and the recording is being submitted to Sonarchy for broadcast
(Saturday nights at 11pm on KCMU in Seattle and over the web).

Speaking of Sonarchy... I also completed another Sonarchy show from
recordings made earlier this summer by Ellen Fullman on her Long String
Instrument and accompanied by other artists. These recordings - called
"Sunday Sessions" - are presently being mixed by Ellen, who is in Berlin
being all fabulous. I also created a separate mix and edit of one
particular night's recording for a Sonarchy broadcast.

Still speaking of SONARCHY... the recording I made of MATT SPERRY, JON
BUTCHER and GINO ROBAIR will be broadcast on January 20th (you'll get a
special announcement prior to this broadcast). Since it will be available
over the web, anyone can listen in, even you!

SUN CITY GIRLS were in mid-month to complete their new record - Volume 6 of
the Carnival Folklore Series, called Sumatran Electric Chair - which will
be available in early January. It was great to work with The Girls in a
studio environment again... it's been a looong time. As usual, many
inventive mic techniques were utilized to give each piece a unique sonic
character, but we wouldn't expect anything less from The Girls, would we?

YOUNG COMPOSERS COLLECTIVE DEGENERATE ART ENSEMBLE were in to record their
"Rinko" soundtrack, which they have been performing live to the delight of
many audiences. We also mixed "Razor Stitch", a portion of which will be
featured as the January 2001 Cut of the Month.

Finally, not one to be pidgeon-holed I began work on the recording of 10
Vivaldi Sonatas played on bass with piano accompaniment. BARRY LEIBERMAN
is the master bass player for this project, and will apparently be the
first to perform this collection on bass. We recorded in Brechmin Hall at
UW and, believe it or not, some veeery unconventional mic techniques were
employed to give this recording an entirely different sound than we would
have achieved utilizing traditional (*yawn* boring!) techniques. Of
special interest is that Barry's bass is 400 years old, and was actually
played by the grand maestro Antonio Vivaldi, himself. Spooky, but special!

See you next year. Have an inventive holiday!

Sc